Preventing accidental injury to young children in the home using volunteers

Accidental injury in the home is a major cause of death andill-health among young children. Reducing home safety hazardsby the use of safety devices such as stair barriers and safetytaps has the potential to prevent home injuries. Little is knownabout levels of home safety hazards or how to encourage parentsto reduce hazards. The Safe Place Project examined parents'knowledge of home safety and the prevalence of safety hazardsin homes where there were young children. The study also evaluatedthe effectiveness of a low-cost strategy aimed at reducing homesafety hazards. The strategy used trained volunteers to providehome safety checks and tailored safety education in conjunctionwith increasing the availability of home safety devices. Onehundred and six families with young children participated inthe project. Some homes contained many hazards, with 43% ofthe sample having more than 10 home safety hazards. At follow-up,the intervention group showed a significant reduction in homehazards and a trend towards an increase in knowledge of homesafety.     

The relationship between blood pressure and left ventricular mass in essential hypertension is observed only in the presence of the angiotensin-converting enzyme gene deletion allele

An insertion/deletion polymorphism in the angiotensin-convertingenzyme (ACE) gene accounts for approximately 50% of the variancein plasma ACE concentration: deletion homozygotes (DD) havethe highest, and insertion homozygotes (II) the lowest ACE concentrations.ACE is responsible for the generation of angiotensin II, whichis implicated in the development of left ventricular hypertrophy,an independent risk factor for morbidity and mortality in hypertension.The aim of this study was to investigate the contribution ofACE genotype to the development of left ventricular hypertrophyin patients with essential hypertension. Eighty-five patientswith essential hypertension underwent echocardiographic assessmentof left ventricular mass index (LVMI) and determination of ACEgenotype from leukocyte DNA by polymerase chain reaction. Therewas no significant difference in LVMI among the genotypes (II,ID, DD). Analysis of covariance modelled for LVMI showed a significantinteraction with systolic blood pressure (p = 0.036). but notdiastolic blood pressure (p = 0.453). The relationship betweenLVMI and systolic blood pressure was strongest in the deletionhomozygotes (p = 0.002, R² = 0.47), and also present in theheterozygotes (p = 0.013, R² = 0.40). No relationship was seenin the insertion homozygotes (p = 0.914, R² = 0.23) These findingssuggest that the effect of blood pressure on LVMI in essentialhypertension is expressed only in the presence of the ACE genedeletion allele.     

Importance of Dietary Fiber in Childhood

Dietary fiber has important health benefits in childhood, especially in promoting normal laxation. Currently, children consume amounts of dietary fiber that appear to be inadequate for optimal health promotion and disease prevention. It is prudent to recommend that children older than 2 years of age increase dietary fiber intake to an amount equal to or greater than their age + 5 g/day. According to the “age + 5” rule dietary fiber intake would increase from 8 g/day at age 3 years to 25 g/day by age 20 years. After age 20, dietary fiber levels of 25 to 35 g/day are recommended. Dietary fiber intake should be increased gradually in childhood by increasing consumption of a variety of fruits, vegetables, legumes, cereals, and other whole-grain products. Although very high fiber intake in childhood could have adverse effects, the potential health benefits of a moderate increase in dietary fiber substantially outweigh the possible risks, especially in highly industrialized countries such as the United States. A safe range of dietary fiber intake for children may be between age + 5 and age + 10 g/day. This range is considered safe even for children and adolescents with marginal intakes of some vitamins and minerals; should provide enough dietary fiber for normal laxation; and may provide enough added dietary fiber to help prevent chronic diseases.J Am Diet Assoc. 1995; 1140-1146, 1149.     

A COMPARISON OF GLUTATHIONE REDUCTASE AND GLUTATHIONE PEROXIDASE ACTIVITES IN PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS AND HEALTHY ADULTS

A 30% increase in erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase (GP) activitywas found in patients with rheumatoid arthritis when comparedwith healthy controls (p = 0.001) whereas the increase in glutathionereductase (GR) was statistically insignificant. No correlationwas found between the activities of the enzymes and the erythrocytesedimentation rate (ESR). The enzyme activities were independentof age, sex, or type of drug treatment of the patients. A possibleinterpretation of the results is presented. KEY WORDS: Glutathione peroxidase, Glutathione reductase, Rheumatoid arthritis, Disease activity, Thiol, Peroxides     

T cell clones from a Sjögren's syndrome salivary gland biopsy produce high levels of IL-10

Sjögren''s syndrome (SS) is characterized by a focal periductal salivary gland infiltrate consisting mainly of T and B lymphocytes. Most of the T cells bear the memory of CD4⁺ Th-1-like phenotype and express high levels of class II, though CD8⁺ cells are also present. We have studied 17 labial salivary gland and 15 peripheral blood T cell clones from a patient with primary SS. The tissue clones were 71% CD8⁺ and 29% CD4⁺, and the peripheral blood-derived clones were 60% CD8⁺ and 40% CD4⁺. The CD4⁺ T cell clones from both the salivary gland and autologous peripheral blood were of the Th1 phenotype, in that they produced interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and IL-2 but very little IL-4 after 24 h stimulation with phorbol myristate acetate and anti-CD3 antibody. The salivary gland-derived CD4⁺ clones produced 15 times more IL-10 (7·92 ng/ml) than peripheral blood-derived CD4⁺ clones (0·52 ng/ml, P≤0·02). The tissue CD8⁺ clones produced 1·2 times (P<0·04) more IFN-γ and CD4⁺ clones produced 3·5 times less IL-2 (P<0·02) than the respective PBM-derived clones. The accumulation of Th1-type cells producing high levels of IL-10 in the salivary gland suggests a specific immunoregulatory function at the site of inflammation in SS.