FS02.6Patch test reactivity to nickel sulphate and fragrance mix in unselected children

Aim:  To investigate the occurrence of hand eczema after 20 years in schoolgirls previously patch‐tested to nickel.
Methods:  In 1982–83, 960 schoolgirls, aged 8, 11 and 15 years, were investigated for the occurrence of nickel allergy (Larson‐Stymne B and Widström L, Contact Dermatitis 1985:13:289–293). The girls were patch‐tested and the prevalence of nickel allergy was 9%. Twenty years later, the same individuals have received a questionnaire regarding hand eczema and factors of importance for the development of hand eczema. After two reminders, the response rate was 81%.
Results:  In total 17.5% of the girls reported hand eczema after the age of 15. The 1‐year prevalence of hand eczema was 12.6%. Of the previously patch‐tested schoolgirls who answered the questionnaire, 63 were sensitive to nickel. In this study, the prevalence of hand eczema among those 63 was 16%, compared to 17% in the non‐sensitive group (NS). Excluding persons with atopic dermatitis, the prevalence of hand eczema was 12.5% in the nickel‐sensitive group, and 10% among the others (NS). 32% of the persons who had had atopic dermatitis reported hand eczema after 15 years of age, compared to 10% of those with no history of atopic dermatitis (p < 0.001).
Conclusion:  Contact allergy to nickel in early childhood (8–15 years) did not seem to increase the prevalence of hand eczema later in life. The prevalence of hand eczema was increased by a factor of three among those with a history of atopic dermatitis, which is in accordance with earlier reports.     

实践表现的自我评估:美国内科委员会实践改善教育活动

为了评估美国内科委员会(American Board of Internal Medicine,ABIM)开展的实践改善单元(Practice Improvement Module,PIM)教育活动的效果,以及参与心脏疾病预防PIM教育活动的专科医师临床实践改善的表现,美国内科委员会进行了一项以自我指导为基础的观察研究.     

头痛宁治疗偏头痛效果及安全性的Meta分析

目的 评价头痛宁胶囊治疗偏头痛的临床效果.方法 计算机检索维普、中国生物医学文献数据库、中国知网、万方数据库进行资料收集,筛选2001年1月1日～2014年6月1日间所有使用头痛宁与西药治疗偏头痛的随机对照试验(RCT),同时手动检测其参考文献.采用Jadad7分评分法评价纳入文献质量,由2名评价者独立进行文献质量评价和资料提取后,采用RevMan 5.0软件进行Meta分析.结果 检出符合标准RCT文献共144篇,筛选出10项研究(中药组602例,西药组566例)进行Meta分析.头痛宁治疗偏头痛效果与西药比较,其总OR=1.19,95％CI为(1.12,1.27);在治愈率方面,OR=1.61,其95％CI为(1.24,2.09);在安全性方面,其不良反应出现OR=1.64,95％CI为(0.29,0.90).结论 头痛宁治疗偏头痛效果确切,比西药单纯治疗效果好,两者合用可能取得更好的效果,但尚需更多高质量的研究以增加证据的强度.     

Cadmium in Jamaican Bush Teas

Samples of Jamaican plants used as bush teas were collected from households in high soil-cadmium (Cd) areas of central Jamaica and analysed by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometry for total cadmium and for cadmium extractable with a hot water brew as prepared for human consumption to determine their contribution to dietary cadmium exposure. The concentrations ranged from < 0.03 to 6.85 μg/g for total Cd, between 1 and 15% of which was extracted with a hot water brew. One cup (200 ml) of the teas examined was found to contain < 0.04–1.18 μg of Cd and would contribute 0.1 – 0.3 μg of Cd to a person''s dietary intake. This is significantly below the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of 7 μg Cd/kg body weight established by the World Health Organization (WHO). While this suggests that bush tea consumption does not contribute significantly to the PTWI, some of the teas examined exceed the WHO recommendation of less than 0.3 mg/kg Cd for medicinal plants.     

Cell elastimetry in the detection of antineutrophil antibodies

Cell elastimetry has been applied to the measurement of antineutrophil antibodies. This technique measures, under direct visualization, the negative pressure required of aspirate PMNs into small-pored pipettes. Two groups of studies were carried out: (A) In the first group of studies, normal PMNs were incubated with 1 of 8 known antineutrophil serums. Each serum significantly decreased membrane deformability-- i.e., cells became more rigid. The study was conducted in an entirely blind fashion. Randomly coded serums from patients and controls were studied for deformability by observers unaware of the code. (B) In the second group of studies, sera containing immune complexes were incubated with normal PMNs. No significant effects were noted upon deformability. As a single cell assay that partially reflects membrane rigidity, elastimetry may, therefore, have potential in the further characterization of mechanisms by which such antineutrophil antibodies compromise neutrophil functions.