The IOMC organisations: a source of chemical safety information.

The Inter-Organisation Programme for the Sound Management of Chemicals (IOMC) was established in 1995 as a mechanism to co-ordinate the efforts of Inter-governmental Organisations in promoting the sound management of chemicals. The seven participating organisations are the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the World Health Organisation (WHO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), and the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Members consult on the planning, programming, implementation and monitoring of activities undertaken jointly or individually, and help ensure that programmes are mutually supportive, complementary and avoid duplication of efforts, thus meeting the overall needs of the users more efficiently and effectively. To deal with technical work, the IOMC established smaller thematic groups in the main programme areas of Agenda 21's Chapter 19. One such group promotes information exchange work. Within this IOMC framework, the seven organisations have developed approaches and products to help customers find chemical safety information, as well as improving modalities of access to these data. These mechanisms come in addition to and complement the extensive information products and databases developed and provided by the individual organisations. This article presents an overview of the role of each organisation, an introduction to its electronic information products and tools, and a discussion of the products of this joint effort.

Stability of BCG vaccine (intravesical) Theracys/BCG therapeutic ImmuCyst and its importance in clinical efficacy.

The manufacture of Therapeutic BCG can and should be a controlled process, to ensure adequate treatment doses are received by CIS patients. Standardization of production methods and CFU potency testing methods are essential to ensure continued successful treatment of CIS. Stability data can be used to validate assumptions about Therapeutic BCG potency used in clinical trials. Accelerated heat degradation studies of Therapeutic BCG should not be used for predictions of shelf life, but can be used for comparative purposes.

Evaluation of clinical data in bladder cancer immunotherapy with Connaught BCG (ImmuCyst).

Treatment of superficial bladder carcinoma in situ with Connaught BCG (ImmuCyst) significantly increased complete response rate and extended the disease-free interval when compared with Doxorubicin (DOX) chemotherapy. In 54 patients treated with ImmuCyst, 74% showed complete response compared with 42% of 60 patients treated with DOX. The median disease-free time was 48.2 months for BCG and 5.9 months for DOX treatment. Types and severity of adverse reactions were similar for both treatments and within tolerable ranges.

Changes in the tendency of lymphocytes to undergo blastic transformation in the postoperative period, in immune-stimulated and untreated colonic tumour patients.

A study was made of the blastic transformation of lymphocytes in the postoperative period in colonic tumour patients: 23 who had been immune-stimulated by vaccination, and 28 who had not been vaccinated. The immune reactivity decreased significantly in the majority of the cases; however, the deterioration of the immune status affected 68% of the nonvaccinated group, but only 48% of the vaccinated group. The data indicate that the vaccination primarily averted the deterioration of the defence ability in the early postoperative period in patients with a normal preoperative immune activity. An evaluable change in the immune reactivity did not occur in the 6-10 preoperative days following vaccination. Three months postoperatively, the number of patients giving a normal immune reaction was three-fold in the vaccinated than in the non-vaccinated group.

[Pancreatic pseudocysts and fistulas]. / False chisturi si fistule pancreatice.

The authors present false pancreatic cysts and fistulae that have been encountered inthe practice of the I-st Clinic of Surgery from Tg-Mures over a period of 10 years (between 1964 ans 1979). The author's personal cases are presented and the rarity of this type of disturbances is stressed. A total of 14 cases are described, of which 8 were false pancreatic cysts and 6 were false pancreatic fistulae. The major complications that occurred in the cases with false pancreatic cysts the most severe was the intra-cyst haemorrhage, that was encountered in 2 patients (of which one developed severe shock), and peritonitis, following rupture of the cyst in the peritoneal cavity. The 6 pancreatic fistulae have developed following surgery (3 cases), trauma (one case), and acute pancreatitis (2 cases). The treatment of the false cysts consisted in the external drainage (two emergencies), and cyst-gastrectomy. Pancreatic fistulae have benefited from fistulo-gastrostomy (two cases), while the remaining 4 patients were treated conservatively. Only one death was recorded in this group of patients.

[Investigation of house-dust allergy in children (author's transl)]. / Beitrag zur Hausstaub-Allergie bei Kindern.

Authors were studying the relationship between the history data, the diagnostic difficulties, the skin tests and ventilatory functions after provocative inhalation and specific IgE positivity in connection with 40 cases of bronchial asthma. The most important feature of the treatment is the specific hyposensibilisation, which was performed by a depot house-dust preparation, manufactured by the Vaccine Producing Institute "Human", Budapest. Full success was given in 61,1% of the treated asthmatics.

Potency of PPD preparations derived from M. tuberculosis and M. bovis.

No significant difference was found between the biological activity of PPD-preparations derived from M. tuberculosis and M. bovis, although the latter was more potent. In potency tests performed in guinea-pigs, the use of difference mycobacteria as sensitizing agents had no influence on the result of the assay. We could not demonstrate a significantly greater potency of homologous versus heterologous PPD. Evaluation of the 95 p.c. fiducial limits established in the course of variance analysis suggested a greater reliability of reading at 48 than at 24 hrs after allergen application. It also seems possible that the results of the potency assays of PPDs derived from different mycobacterium strains are greatly influenced by the level of the working dilutions employed.

Biological standardization of potency testing of diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccines.

Active protection tests were introduced for the potency testing of the toxoid components of the DTP vaccine. The standardization of these tests is described, with special attention on WHO requirements. A freeze-dried, adsorbed DTP vaccine was prepared for use under tropical or subtropical conditions. The potency testing of the components of this vaccine is presented in this paper.

Demonstration of non-capsulated Haemophilus influenzae in the tissues of the respiratory tract in atopic and non-atopic subjects by means of an immunofluroescence technique.

The use of an immunofluorescence method for demonstration of non-capsulated H. influenzae colonization and penetration in the tissues of the respiratory tract seems to be a useful and convenient laboratory method. However, in in the tissues of the lower respiratory tract H. influenzae in our materials could not be demonstrated.

Preparation and laboratory testing of plain and aluminum hydroxide-adsorbed cholera vaccines used in a field trial in Indonesia.

TWO TYPES OF CHOLERA VACCINE WERE PREPARED: a plain vaccine and an aluminium hydroxide-adsorbed vaccine, by using the Inaba NIH 35A3 and Ogawa NIH 41 serotypes of Vibrio cholerae. For cultivation, a solid medium was used and the cultures were inactivated with 0.02% thiomersal and by heating for 1 hour at 56 degrees C. The final vibrio concentration of the vaccines was adjusted to 16 x 10(9) vibrios/ml (equal proportions of the two serotypes). The antigenicity of the vaccines was assessed by the active mouse protection test and by the antibody production test, i.e. by determinating the vibriocidal antibodies in the sera of immunized mice. The results of the active mouse protection test showed that the antigenicity of the Inaba and Ogawa components of both vaccines met the WHO Requirements. The antigenicity of the Inaba component of both vaccines was about the same. The antigenicity of the Ogawa component of the plain vaccine appeared to be somewhat higher than that of the adsorbed vaccine. In the antibody production test, the adsorbed vaccine elicited a higher and longer-lasting immune response than the plain vaccine.

Stability of mammalian tuberculin PPD.

Six lots of PPD prepared in 1937 met the requirements when tested in guinea pig potency assay in 1974. Reading of the skin reactions at 48 hr gave more consistent results than the 24 hr reading. Data were evaluated by analysis of variance and by a quick method developed for the estimation of identity of the standard and the test preparation. Although less sensitive than the analysis of variance, the quick method has been found suitable for estimation of the potency of tuberculin preparations.

[Hepatic suppurations requiring segmented or atypical hepatectomies]. / Supuratii hepatice care au necesitat hepatectomii reglate sau atipice

Following studies of cases with hepatic suppurations the authors indicate the necessity for regular or atypic hepatectomies. The extension of the suppurative process in the liver made necessary the ligature of the great sagital vein and the authors show, on the basis of anatomic and topographical data (hepatic segmentation), that it is necessary to extend the hepatectomy to the IV-th para-median segment. The authors also present the indications for bi-segmental right hepatectomy in segments VII-VI as well as of the total left regulated hepatectomy.