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- von Mutius, E, et al.
(författare)
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International patterns of tuberculosis and the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema
- 2000
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 55:6, s. 449-453
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background - An ecological analysis was conducted of the relationship between tuberculosis notification rates and the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis, and atopic eczema in 85 centres from 23 countries in which standardised data are available. These essentially comprised countries in Europe as well as the USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. Methods - Tuberculosis notification rates were obtained from the World Health Organization. Data on the prevalence of symptoms of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in 235,477 children aged 13-14 years were based on the responses to the written and video questionnaires from the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). The analysis was adjusted for gross national product (GNP) as an estimate of the level of affluence. Results - Tuberculosis notification rates were significantly inversely associated with the lifetime prevalence of wheeze and asthma and the 12 month period prevalence of wheeze at rest as assessed by the video questionnaire. An increase in the tuberculosis notification rates of 25 per 100,000 was associated with an absolute decrease in the prevalence of wheeze ever of 4.7%. Symptoms of allergic rhinoconjunctivitis in the past 12 months were inversely associated with tuberculosis notification rates, but there were no other significant associations with other ISAAC questions on allergic rhinoconjunctivitis or atopic eczema. Conclusions - These findings are consistent with recent experimental evidence which suggests that exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis may reduce the risk of developing asthma.
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| 2. |
- Mazumder, D. N. G., et al.
(författare)
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Bronchiectasis in persons with skin lesions resulting from arsenic in drinking water
- 2005
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Ingår i: Epidemiology. - : Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health). - 1044-3983 .- 1531-5487. ; 16:6, s. 760-765
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Arsenic is a unique human carcinogen in that it causes lung cancer by exposure through ingestion (in drinking water) as well as through inhalation. Less is known about nonmalignant pulmonary disease after exposure to arsenic in drinking water. Methods: We recruited 108 subjects with arsenic-caused skin lesions and 150 subjects without lesions from a population survey of over 7000 people in an arsenic-exposed region in West Bengal, India. Thirty-eight study participants who reported at least 2 years of chronic cough underwent high-resolution computed tomography (CT); these scans were read by investigators in India and the United States without knowledge of the presence or absence of skin lesions. Results: The mean ( +/- standard deviation) bronchiectasis severity score was 3.4 ( +/- 3.6) in the 27 participants with skin lesions and 0.9 ( +/- 1.6) in the 11 participants without these lesions. In subjects who reported chronic cough, CT evidence of bronchiectasis was found in 18 (67%) participants with skin lesions and 3 (27%) subjects without skin lesions. Overall, subjects with arsenic-caused skin lesions had a 10-fold increased prevalence of bronchiectasis compared with subjects who did not have skin lesions (adjusted odds ratio = 10; 95% confidence interval = 2.7-37). Conclusions: These results suggest that, in addition to being a cause of lung cancer, ingestion of high concentrations of arsenic in drinking water may be a cause of bronchiectasis.
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