Ultraviolet and volatility loss of herbicides

Herbicide 2,4-D formulated as a urea-type polymer was readily destroyed by long-wave uv (356-nm) irradiation, whereas conventional 2,4-D was more resistant. The opposite relationship was noted for polymeric and conventional formulations of dicamba. Polymerized 2,4-D was more resistant to thermal degradation (60°C) than non-polymerized formulations. Ultraviolet degradation of polymerized 2,4-D was eliminated by the incorporation of RYLEX-H and UVINUL D-50, industrial uv absorbers. Exposure of polymeric dicamba to 60°C heat, followed by trapping of the volatile component, indicated that 21 percent was lost by thermal degradation and 46.6 percent by volatilization. Comparable values for non-polymerized dicamba were 37.9 and 60.1 percent.     

Assertive/leveling communication and empathy in adolescent drug abuse prevention

This paper presents the feelings reported by 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th graders when role playing situations in which they wanted to say no to alcohol/drugs or to talk to a friend who was using. These role plays were part of SAY IT STRAIGHT (SIS) training, which was described in the preceding paper. Youngsters described themselves as feeling good and having high self-respect/esteem only when they said no in an assertive/leveling way. Only youngsters toward whom an assertive/leveling no was addressed described themselves as surprised/shocked and respectful of the person who was saying no. Finally, youngsters reported that the most effective way to convince a friend to quit using and/or get help was to express caring and friendship, and to touch the friend rather than being aggressive/blaming, irrelevant or super-reasonable. This feedback from youngsters opens conceptual issues relevant to some assertiveness training and drug abuse prevention programs.The authors thank Kevin Miller and Antoinette Bradley for their help on the project.This research was supported in part by the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health, Contract # N200073.     

The debate on primary prevention: Toward a synthesis

Conclusion The primary prevention model presented above provides a larger theoretical structure capable of including both sides of the debate. It encourages primary prevention efforts yet builds in the careful assessment, planning, research, and evaluation needed to prevent excesses.Primary prevention is an experiment. It is thezeitgeist in mental health, and it will have its day. It is a powerful metaphor spurred by the dream of eradicating mental illness from society. Primary prevention may prove to be an important turning point in the history of mental health. Or it may end up on the junk heap of progressive ideas which were either unsound or unworkable. Either way, primary prevention is an idea whose time has finally come.     

Toxicity of mercury,copper, nickel,lead, and cobalt to embryos and larvae of zebrafish,Brachydanio rerio

The toxicity of mercury (HgCl₂), copper (CuCl₂: 5 H₂O), nickel (NiSO₄: 6 H₂O), lead (Pb(CH₃COO)₂: 3 H₂O) and cobalt (CoCl₂: 6 H₂O) was studied under standardized conditions in embryos and larvae of the zebrafish,Brachydanio rerio. Exposures were started at the blastula stage (2–4 h after spawning) and the effects on hatching and survival were monitored daily for 16 days. Copper and nickel were more specific inhibitors of hatching than cobalt, lead, and mercury. Nominal no effect concentrations determined from the dose-response relationships (ZEPs, Zero Equivalent Points) for effect on hatching time were 0.05 g Cu/L, 10 g Hg/L, 20 g Pb/L, 40 g Ni/L and 3,840 g Co/L, and those for effect on survival time were 0.25 g Cu/L, 1.2 g Hg/L, 30 g Pb/L, 80 g Ni/L, and 60 g Co/L. The no effect concentrations for Ni, Hg and Pb are consistent with previously reported MATC values for sensitive species of fish. The no effect concentrations for copper are 1–2 orders of magnitude lower than previously reported values. The major reason for the latter discrepancy was considered to be the absence of organics that can complex copper ions in the reconstituted water that we used, which had a hardness of 100 mg/L (as CaCO₃) and a pH of 7.5–7.7. Unexposed controls were started with embryos from different parental zebrafishes and the parental-caused variability in early embryo mortality, median hatching time and median survival time were estimated.     

Cross-sectional epidemiological study on neurotoxicity of solvents in paints and lacquers

Summary In a multi-disciplinary retrospective study we examined 105 house painters employed for at least ten years (median 27 years, range 10–36 years). Fifty-three workers from various professions (non-painters), who were matched with regard to age, occupational training and socio-economic status served as the control group. In both groups no cases of a clinically manifest polyneuropathy or encephalopathy were found. The neurophysiological examinations (EEG and NCV-measurement) showed no differences in painters and controls that would indicate adverse effects of organic solvents. There were no cases with neuroradiological findings of a diffuse cerebral atrophy. Furthermore the evaluation of certain brain structures (ventricular diameter, cella media index) of the CAT films did not reveal any significant differences. In the neurobehavioral tests significant differences in the results were only found in the subtests change of personality and short term memory capacity in a subgroup of painters with repeated prenarcotic symptoms at the workplace. Ambient air monitoring measurements at 30 representative work-places showed that the concentrations of the main components of the solvent-mixtures were well below the MAK-values. The results of the Erlangen Painter Study does not confirm former epidemiologic findings from other countries, mainly Denmark. However, there are some aspects, such as minor solvent exposure in German house painters, insufficient diagnostic and etiological procedures as well as mis-classifications which may explain the different experiences.     

Hard hats vs. soft hearts: The conflict between principles and reality in child and adolescent care and treatment programs

Much of child care in volves quick reactions based on one's automatic pilot derived from how we were parented. This paper is about two seemingly universal automatic pilot systems—the hard hats and the soft hearts. Hard hats are behavior management and modification oriented, while soft hearts are psychodynamically and counselling oriented. Typically, the hard hats tend to have the upper hand due to the nature of our culture, and they therefore have the effect of preventing the contributions of the soft hearts from being realized. That all too frequently sets up a dominant culture and a resentful minority situation. To correct this imbalance, a value orientation from the top which emphasizes mutual respect and utilization is suggested.Grateful acknowledgement is made to Ray Peterson for his helpful suggestions in the preparation of this paper.     

Mesure de l'exposition au plomb dans un collectif de jeunes filles

Résumé En janvier-février 1976, 2 collectifs (ville et campagne) de jeunes fille (âge: 11–16 ans) ont été examinés par la mesure des paramètres suivants: PbB, ALAD, EEP, hémoglobine, hématocrite. Les résultats indiquent une exposition au plomb faible (PbB20g/100 ml; ALAD (méthode européenne) 33 U/l) et une différence villecampagne minime, statistiquement confirmée uniquement sur la base des mesures d'ALAD.

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Lead exposures in a group of young girls

Summary In January–February 1976 blood analyses were performed for two groups (rural and urban) of young girls aged 11–16 years. The following parameters were measured: PbB, ALAD, FEP, haemoglobin and hematocrit. Results indicate only low blood lead levels (PbB20g/100 ml: ALAD by European method 33 U/l). A small but statistically significant difference was observed in case of rural/urban ALAD values.

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Messung der Bleiexposition bei einem Kollektiv junger Mädchen

Zusammenfassung Bei zwei Gruppen junger Mädchen (Stadt und Land) im Alter von 11–16 Jahren wurden im Januar und Februar 1976 Blutuntersuchungen durchgeführt. Dabei wurden folgende Werte bestimmt: PbB, ALAD, FEP, Haemoglobin und Haematokrit. Die Ergebnisse zeigten eine nur geringe Blei-Belastung (PbB20g/100 ml; ALAD (europäische Methode) 33 U/l; eine geringe, statistisch jedoch gesicherte Differenz zwischen der Stadt- und Land-Gruppe ergab sich lediglich bei den ALAD-Werten.

     

Biological and environmental monitoring of occupational exposure of pharmaceutical plant workers to methotrexate

Summary The exposure of 11 pharmaceutical plant workers to methotrexate (MTX) was studied. Personal air samples were taken during the different manufacturing processes: drug compounding, vial filling, and tablet preparation. The uptake of MTX was established by the determination of MTX in urine. MTX was analyzed using the fluorescence polarization immunoassay (FPIA), a method that is frequently used for monitoring serum levels in patients treated with MTX. The FPIA method was modified in such a way that MTX could be measured quickly and efficiently in air and urine samples. MTX was detected in air samples of all workers except for those involved in the vial filling process (range: 0.8–182 g/m³; median: 10 g/m³). The highest concentrations were observed for workers weighing MTX (118 and 182 g/m³). MTX was detected in urine samples of all workers. The mean cumulative MTX excretion over 72–96 h was 13.4 g MTX-equivalents (range: 6.1–24 g MTX-equiva g MTX-equivalents (range: 6.1–24 g MTX-equivalents). lents). A significantly lower background level of 10.2 g A significantly lower background level of 10.2 g MTX-equivalents was measured in urine of 30 control persons (range: 4.9–21 g MTX-equivalents).     

Improving on‐time performance in health care organizations: a case study

In this paper, we propose a strategy to build a measurement system that helps improve ontime performance in health care organizations. We analyze the measurement system for monitoring the performance of daily start times of first surgeries in a U.S. hospital. Although surgeons appear to be the main cause of delay, efforts to improve their ontime performance alone are not sufficient to improve ontime performance for first surgeries. Therefore, working on the main source of delay to improve performance, as the Pareto principle suggests, does not always work in the health care context. Rather, we found that ameliorating the hospital's overall ontime performance achieves the desired result of improving surgeons' performance through a snowball effect (a selfreinforcing effect) and, consequently, the ontime performance for first surgeries also improves.     

Inter and intea-observer variation in ultrasonographic detection of gallstones: The Multicenter Italian Study on Epidemiology of Cholelithiasis (M.I.COL.)

Inter and intea-observer agreement in classifying the presence of gallstones by ultrasonographic images according to established criteria was studied. A film recording of 50 routine ultrasonographic examinations of the gallbladder was read by each of the 46 observers who participated in the Multicenter Italian Study on Epidemiology of Cholelithiasis (M.I.COL.). The overall Kappa score for inter-observer agreement was 0.649, while intea-observer agreement was good or excellent (Kappa scores >0.60) in 75% of the observers. No statistical difference for inter-observer agreement between novices and expert echographers was found in the overall Kappa statistic or in category-specific Kappa scores (gallstone, no gallstone, doubtful and inconclusive examinations) The present study suggests that the development of explicit criteria by a group of trained echographers does not eliminate inter-and intea-observer disagreement in categorizing subjects for gallbladder stones. M.I.COL. (Multicentrica Italiana Colelitiasi).Corresponding author.See appendix.     

Comparison of pesticide and particulate recoveries with the vacuum and dislodgeable surface pesticide residue techniques

The dislodgeable and vacuum surface residue techniques were compared for the quantity of pesticide residue and quantity and quality of particulate matter removed from Valencia orange leaves. Data trends for dislodgeable and vacuum parathion and paraoxon residues were correlated at r0.95 for both emulsifiable concentrate and wettable powder formulations.The amount of pesticide residue and particulate matter obtained was dislodgeable > glass fiber filter > 5.0 filter > 0.8 filter. The flow rate of the filter was correlated with the amount of residue removed.The quality of particulate matter as judged by size analyses was equal The dislodgeable technique removed about five times more particulate material and about eleven times more pesticide residue compared to the vacuum technique.Florida Agricultural Experiment Stations Journal Series No. 745.     

Katecholaminausscheidung im Urin bei emotional und mental belastenden TÄtigkeiten im Flugverkehrskontrolldienst

Zusammenfassung Im Rahmen einer Feldstudie wurde die Katecholaminausscheidung bei 69 Fluglotsen unter Arbeits- und unter Ruhebedingungen bestimmt, wobei 258 Arbeits- und 405 Ruhewerte den Ergebnissen zugrunde liegen. Entsprechend den Bedingungen einer Feldstudie war das Ausgangsmaterial wesentlich grö\er und umfa\te 1296 Katecholaminbestimmungen. Das übrige Material konnte in dieser Studie nicht direkt verwertet werden, da die Arbeitswerte auf Grund früherer Erfahrungen auf mehrere Ruhewerte bezogen werden müssen, was eine Mitarbeit erfordert, zu der nicht alle der zunÄchst 122 Probanden umfassenden Stichprobe bereit waren. Verwertet wurden dann nur solche Arbeitswerte, zu denen wenigstens 3 Ruhewerte vorlagen. Diese Ruhewerte wurden zeitlich parallel zur Arbeitszeit und bei gleicher Kaffeeaufnahme wie an den Arbeitstagen gewonnen, da eine AbhÄngigkeit der Katecholaminausscheidung von der Kaffeeaufnahme besteht, die auch durch unsere Untersuchung bestÄtigt wird. Unter diesen methodischen Voraussetzungen konnten wir zeigen, da\ die Katecholaminausscheidung in den Positionen Radar Control und Radar Hand-Off Control signifikant gegenüber den Ruhewerten erhöht war und da\ auch die Differenz zwischen diesen beiden Positionen wahrscheinlich signifikant (p< 5%) unterschiedlich war. Differenzen durch unterschiedliche emotionale Belastung bei verschiedenen TÄtigkeiten lie\en sich durch tageszeitliche und sequentielle Analyse verhindern. Die Höhe der Katecholaminausscheidung bei den Radarlotsen wird mit der Ausscheidung bei anderen TÄtigkeiten und Belastungssituationen verglichen.

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Catecholamine excretion in urine during mental work load in the air traffic control service

Summary In a field study, we examined the excretion of catecholamines in the urine of 69 air traffic controllers. We collected 258 urine samples under working conditions and 405 urine samples under resting conditions.For each sample under working conditions we needed at least 3 samples under resting conditions, which were taken at the same time of day and under the same conditions (e.g. breakfast at same time) as on work days.We were able to show that mean values for catecholamine excretion in the positions radar control and radar hand-off control were significantly higher than the values at rest. We also found that the difference between these two positions was probably significant (p < 5%).Differences in catecholamine excretion caused by a different emotional stress in different occupations could be eliminated by means of an analysis which took into account the time of day and the sequence of different working situations.The level of the catecholamine excretion of the air traffic controllers at work was compared with the catecholamine levels of other working and stress situations in earlier investigations.

     

Short-term exposure of zooplankton to the synthetic pyrethroid,fenvalerate, and its effects on rates of filtration and assimilation of the alga,Chlamydomonas reinhardii

In acute tests of toxicity, two cladocerans,Daphnia galeata mendotae andCeriodaphnia lacustris, and the calanoid,Diaptomus oregonensis, were more sensitive to fenvalerate thanDaphnia magna, the organism used in standard laboratory bioassays. The 48-hr EC₅₀s for each species/stage in order of increasing sensitivity were adultD. magna — 2.52 g/L;D. magna (48-hr old) — 0.83 g/L; adultD. galeata mendotae — 0.29 g/L; adultC. lacustris — 0.21 g/L;D. galeata mendotae (48-hr old) — 0.16 g/L; adultDiaptomus oregonensis — –0.12 g/L. No toxicity was observed when these organisms were exposed to a range of concentrations of the emulsifiable concentrate without fenvalerate (the EC blank).Rates of filtration of the¹⁴C-labelled alga,Chlamydomonas reinhardii byD. galeata mendotae, C. lacustris andD. oregonensis were decreased significantly at sublethal concentrations of fenvalerate after only 24-hr exposure.Ceriodaphnia lacustris showed the greatest sensitivity with rates of filtration significantly decreased at 0.01 g fenvalerate/ L. Concentrations of fenvalerate 0.05 g/L resulted in decreased rates of filtration byD. galeata mendotae. A concentration of 0.10 g fenvalerate/ L caused rates of filtration to increase inD. oregonensis. whereas 0.05 and 0.5 g/L resulted in a decrease in these rates.Rates of assimilation of algae byD. galeata mendotae, C. lacustris andD. oregonensis exposed to similar concentrations of fenvalerate were decreased at concentrations 0.05 g fenvalerate/L. Changes in rates of assimilation were not as sensitive a parameter of toxicity as changes in rates of filtration. The EC blank had no significant effects on rates of filtration or assimilation for all three species.     

The Cultural Dimension in Childhood

This article emphasizes the fact that culture surrounds and influences the young people in child and youth care programs all the time, and that child and youth care workers must become cultural mediators for the culturally undernourished when assisting youth in care. This work must add to psychological pedagogics and social pedagogics a third new dimension, cultural pedagogics. Through raising and answering a series of six questions concerning culture, the author hopes to stimulate better practice and educational training in the cultural preparation of young people receiving child care services.     

Graphitstaublunge und Silikose

Zusammenfassung Es wird über einen weiteren Sektionsfall von sog. Graphitpneumokoniose ausführlich berichtet. Die Frage nach graphitspezifischen Lungenveränderungen ist nach Vergleich mit den histologischen Bildern früherer Sektionsfälle und des eigenen dahingehend zu beantworten, daß reine Graphitpneumokoniosen nicht vorkommen. Erhärtend werden die neuen experimentellen Ergebnisse Rüttners und Baumanns herangezogen, wonach reiner Graphitstaub keine fibroplastischen Gewebsreaktionen auslöst.Es wird daher vorgeschlagen, den Ausdruck Graphitpneumokoniose fallen zu lassen und die diesbezüglichen Lungengewebsveränderungen als Graphitsilikose zu bezeichnen.Mit 6 Textabbildungen     

Biological aspects and self-evaluation of shiftwork adaptation

Summary Two male truck drivers working in a Brazilian cellulose plant and classifying themselves as well- and ill-adapted to a shiftwork schedule of 4 days-on and 1 day-off, participated in an autorhythmometric study. Psychophysiological self-ratings (calmness, stress and alertness), oral temperature measurements and urine collections (detection of K⁺,Na⁺ and 17-OH concentrations) were performed regularly during the waking period for 15 consecutive days during the shift schedule — the midday shift (11:00 to 19:00h), early-morning shift (03:00 to 11:00 h) and evening shift (18:00 to 02:00 h), including days-off. Cosine fitting of the data to a successive running one-day window revealed different individual temporal patterns, with the well-adapted subject showing a relatively stable phase relationship of the variables under study and the ill-adapted subject showing a less stable relationship. The different patterns could explain, at least partially, the fact that one subject feels adapted to shiftwork and the other not.Dedicated to the memory of Prof. Dr. Dr. Joseph Rutenfranz, former Director of the Institut für Arbeitsphysiologie, Dortmund, FRG, who contributed so much to the development of studies on occupational and environmental health     

Chronic toxicity and bioaccumulation of 2,5,2′,5′- and 3,4,3′,4′-tetrachlorobiphenyl and Aroclor® 1242 in the amphipodHyalella azteca

The addition of 100 (g/L of Aroclor^® 1242 (A1242) or 2,5,2,5-tetrachlorobiphenyl (TeCB) during 10 week chronic toxicity tests withHyalella azteca resulted in complete mortality. There were no effects on survival, growth, or reproduction after addition of 30 g/L. Toxic effects were observed at tissue levels of between 30 and 180 g/g on a wet weight basis, and tissue levels appear to be a better indicator of toxicity than levels in water. No toxic effects were observed after additions of up to 2,700 g/L of the coplanar congener 3,4,3,4-TeCB.H. azteca has the ability to avoid accumulating in excess of 140 g/g 3,4,3,4-TeCB. The amount taken up was proportional to the amount added in water up to 100 g/L, but was constant at higher additions, possibly accounting for its relatively low toxicity. The low toxicity of the coplanar congener, as compared to the non-coplanar 2,5,2,5-TeCB, is in direct contrast to the high toxicity of coplanar PCB congeners to mammals and may be associated with slower rates of aromatic hydrocarbon metabolism in amphipods. Polychlorinated biphenyl levels measured in amphipods from Lake Ontario are approximately 100-fold below levels associated with toxicity inH. azteca, but are above levels which, through biomagnification up the food chain, lead to salmonid residues in excess of 2 g/g, a tolerance limit for human consumption.     

Bioaccumulation and toxicity of selenium in Chironomus decorus larvae fed a diet of seleniferous Selenastrum capricornutum

The bioaccumulation and toxicity of selenium in a simple aquatic food chain was investigated by feeding a diet of seleniferous algae (Selenastrum capricornutum) to fourth instar midge (Chironomus decorus) larvae. Treatment diets consisted of S. capricornutum cultured in three concentrations of selenite (0, 10, and 40 g Se/L) and four concentrations of selenate (0, 4, 10, and 40 g Se/L). The seleniferous algae was freeze-dried and utilized as a diet for the midge larvae. The data show that, under laboratory conditions, a 96 h dietary exposure of 2.11 g Se/g dry weight significantly reduced larval growth at tissue concentrations 2.55 g Se/g dry weight. The results demonstrate that some invertebrates are very sensitive to dietary selenium exposure. When compared to similar studies with Daphnia magna, the data suggest that invertebrate primary consumers differ in the metabolism of dietary selenium.     

Neurocognitive and Physiological Prerequisites for Prevention of Adolescent Drug Abuse

A number of programs for adolescent substance abuse are reportedly effective for a significant number of subjects; however, there is invariably a substantial subgroup that does not respond favorably. It is critical that underlying mechanisms for these differential effects are identified in order to improve prevention efficacy. Integrity of executive cognitive function (ECF) and its modulation of emotional arousal levels may represent key dimensions of regulatory processes related to risk for substance abuse, and may play a principal role in differential responses to prevention programming. Deficits in ECF and skin conductance responses (SCRs) have been associated with several behavioral disorders, most notably substance abuse, aggression, psychopathy, conduct disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Differences in these neurocognitive-emotive processes may also contribute to differential responses to preventive interventions. ECF and physiological responses to cognitive processing (SCRs) implicated in substance abuse were measured in a small pilot study reported herein. Responses of extreme groups of high risk youth who responded favorably and unfavorably to an effective prevention program differed in cognitive and emotional measures, suggesting that they may play a role in variation in intervention outcomes. Further investigation will provide valuable insights for developing preventive interventions.     

Levels of β-HCH,HCB, p,p′-DDE,p,p′-DDT and PCBs in human milk from a continental town in Croatia,Yugoslavia

Summary Concentrations of -HCH, HCB, p,p-DDE, p,p-DDT and PCBs were determined by gas chromatography in 50 human milk samples collected from the general population during 1981/1982 in a continental town in Croatia (Yugoslavia). The samples were collected between one and 22 weeks after delivery from mothers breast-feeding one child only. The mothers' age was 18 to 31 years, and they were nursing their first or second child. All 50 samples contained -HCH, HCB, p,p-DDE and PCBs, whereas p,p-DDT was present in 37 samples. The concentrations of -HCH, HCB, p,p-DDE, p,p-DDT and PCBs expressed on a whole milk basis were (median in g/kg): 11, 7.1, 67, 7.3 and 22 respectively, and expressed on a fat basis (median in mg/kg): 0.28, 0.21, 1.9, 0.18 and 0.62 respectively. The fat content was 3.7% (median). PCBs were present in a mixture containing penta-, hexa- and heptachlorobiphenyls.