Oral health-related quality of life before hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

OBJECTIVES: This study was planned to evaluate the impact of oral health on the quality of life (QoL) of patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). MATERIAL AND METHODS: We assessed 200 patients divided into two paired groups: 100 patients prior to HSCT (SG) and 100 healthy volunteers (CG). We applied the Oral Health Impact Profile instrument, which is based on the biopsychosocial problem gradation of World Health Organization (WHO) and relates oral health problems with QoL according to seven dimensions. RESULTS: Fourteen patients in SG were referred for extraction of one to eight teeth, mostly due to deep caries with risk of pulpal infection and possible spread of infection via blood (r = 0.59, p = 0.000). The presence of severely compromised teeth by extensive decay correlated with Oral Health Impact Profile (OHIP-14). The Mann-Whitney test showed a significant difference between SG and CG in the following dimensions: functional limitation (p < 0.001), physical pain (p = 0.025), physical disability (p = 0.016), and social disability (p = 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: The impact of oral health on QoL of onco-hematologic patients is weak but is greater as compared to healthy ones. Nevertheless, a significant impact is seen in patients with severely compromised teeth. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The negligence of oral care, proper hygiene, and the search for dental care may increase the risk for local and systemic infections.

Six cases of leprosy associated with allogeneic hematopoietic SCT.

We report here the first six cases of leprosy associated with HLA-identical allogeneic SCT in different phases and with different findings and outcomes. Skin and peripheral nerves may be sites of leprosy associated with SCT, stressing the importance of differential diagnosis between leprosy and GVHD or drug reactions. Clinical manifestations of leprosy before or after transplantation did not influence the outcome of SCT in our cases.

The influence of parental age on the risk of Wilms tumour

The Brazilian Wilms' Tumour Study Group carried out a hospital-based multicentre case-control study of potential risk factors for the disease between April 1987 and January 1989. The parents of 109 cases of Wilms' tumour (WT) were interviewed when they were admitted to hospital for diagnosis and treatment. Also interviewed were the parents of two controls per case, matched for age, sex and interviewer, who were admitted to the same or nearby hospitals for treatment of non-neoplastic conditions. Odds ratios adjusted for family income and parental education were calculated by conditional logistic regression. Among cases diagnosed before 25 months of age there was a marked gradient of increasing risk of WT with increasing maternal age at the time of the child's birth. There was no increased risk for cases diagnosed after 25 months of age. The effects of paternal age were less marked. Possible explanations for these results are discussed.

Parental exposures to pesticides and risk of Wilms' tumor in Brazil.

Wilms' tumor is one of the most common abdominal childhood malignancies. Wilms' tumor rates in Brazil are among the highest in the world. This prompted the Brazilian Wilms' Tumor Study Group to conduct a hospital-based, multicenter, case-control investigation of environmental risk factors for the disease. Between April 1987 and January 1989, the authors collected information on relevant occupational exposures by interviewing the parents of 109 Wilms' tumor cases admitted to hospitals in Sao Paulo, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, and Jau. Also interviewed were the parents of 218 age- and sex-matched control children who had been admitted for treatment of nonneoplastic diseases to the same or nearby hospitals. Odds ratios (ORs) adjusted for income and education were calculated by conditional logistic regression. Consistently elevated risks were seen for farm work involving frequent use of pesticides by both the father (OR = 3.24, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2-9.0) and the mother (OR = 128.6, 95% CI 6.4-2,569). These risk elevations were restricted to cases diagnosed after 2 years of age (ORs > 4), for paternal exposure, and after 4 years of age (OR = 14.8, 95% CI 2.2-98.8), for maternal exposure. Risk elevations were also more pronounced among boys (paternal exposure OR = 8.56, 95% CI 2.1-35.1; maternal exposure OR = 4.60, 95% CI 0.8-26.4) than among girls (paternal exposure OR = 1.31, 95% CI 0.4-4.1; maternal exposure OR = 2.03, 95% CI 0.5-8.9).

Parental exposures to pesticides and risk of Wilms tumor in Brazil

Wilms' tumor is one of the most common abdominal childhood malignancies. Wilms' tumor rates in Brazil are among the highest in the world. This prompted the Brazilian Wilms' Tumor Study Group to conduct a hospital-based, multicenter, case-control investigation of environmental risk factors for the disease. Between April 1987 and January 1989, the authors collected information on relevant occupational exposures by interviewing the parents of 109 Wilms' tumor cases admitted to hospitals in Sao Paulo, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, and Jau. Also interviewed were the parents of 218 age- and sex-matched control children who had been admitted for treatment of nonneoplastic diseases to the same or nearby hospitals. Odds ratios (ORs) adjusted for income and education were calculated by conditional logistic regression. Consistently elevated risks were seen for farm work involving frequent use of pesticides by both the father (OR = 3.24, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.2-9.0) and the mother (OR = 128.6, 95% CI 6.4-2,569). These risk elevations were restricted to cases diagnosed after 2 years of age (ORs > 4), for paternal exposure, and after 4 years of age (OR = 14.8, 95% CI 2.2-98.8), for maternal exposure. Risk elevations were also more pronounced among boys (paternal exposure OR = 8.56, 95% CI 2.1-35.1; maternal exposure OR = 4.60, 95% CI 0.8-26.4) than among girls (paternal exposure OR = 1.31, 95% CI 0.4-4.1; maternal exposure OR = 2.03, 95% CI 0.5-8.9).

Medicina caseira em sete localidades da regiäo de Bauru, SP / Domestic medicine in 7 localities of the Bauru región, SP

Este trabalho foi realizado nas localidades de Duartina, Piratininga, Presidente Alves, Bocaina, Boracéia, Dois Córregos e Potunduva (Regiäo de Bauru), em 1981. O objetivo foi avaliar o conhecimento e o uso de plantas medicinais, pela populaçäo. Foram entrevistadas 372 pessoas, das quais, a maioria pertencia ao estrato social baixo. Mais de 95% das pessoas conheciam plantas medicinais, com grande utilizaçäo de duas a quatro variedades. O näo-uso representou, no total, apenas 10,8%. O local de obtençäo mais freqüente foi quintal, seguindo-se a farmácia. Citaram-se 118 plantas diferentes para uso medicinal. Destas, em apenas 9,3% näo se encontrou, na literatura, o nome científicos correspondente e, em 17,0%, a indicaçäo do valor medicinal. O uso mencionado pelos entrevistados foi coincidente com os da literatura em quase 70% das vezes, em pelo menos um sintoma ou doença. Discutiram-se as razöes do recente incremento da medicina caseira; alguns aspectos referentes à industrializaçäo e comercializaçäo de plantas medicinais e sublinhou-se a necessidade de promoçäo de pesquisas farmacológicas para o melhor conhecimento do valor terapêutico de flora medicinal brasileira