Imaging of underground cavities with cosmic-ray muons from observations at Mt. Echia (Naples).

Muography is an imaging technique based on the measurement of absorption profiles for muons as they pass through rocks and earth. Muons are produced in the interactions of high-energy cosmic rays in the Earth's atmosphere. The technique is conceptually similar to usual X-ray radiography, but with extended capabilities of investigating over much larger thicknesses of matter thanks to the penetrating power of high-energy muons. Over the centuries a complex system of cavities has been excavated in the yellow tuff of Mt. Echia, the site of the earliest settlement of the city of Naples in the 8th century BC. A new generation muon detector designed by us, was installed under a total rock overburden of about 40 metres. A 26 days pilot run provided about 14 millions of muon events. A comparison of the measured and expected muon fluxes improved the knowledge of the average rock density. The observation of known cavities proved the validity of the muographic technique. Hints on the existence of a so far unknown cavity was obtained. The success of the investigation reported here demonstrates the substantial progress of muography in underground imaging and is likely to open new avenues for its widespread utilisation.

[Occupational morbidity among health service professionals in Bashkortostan Republic].

The authors analysed changes in occupational morbidity among health service professionals in Bashkortostan Republic over 1960-2003 period. Prophylactic trends are defined.

[Morbidity and prophylaxis of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in the Republic of Bashkortostan]. / O zabolevaemosti i profilaktike gemorragicheskoi likhoradki s pochechnym sindromom v Respublike Bashkortostan.

The brief retrospective analysis of morbidity, epizootological data and preventive measures with respect to haemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) during the whole period of its registration on the territory of the Republic of Bashkortostan along with the structure of HFRS morbidity during epidemic seasons of 1998 and 1999 is presented. The main causes of decreased HFRS morbidity in 1998, its rise in 1999 as well as prognosis for the year 2000 were detected. The level of HFRS morbidity among the population was found to be directly related to the number of rodents and their infection rate. The basic strategy of epidemic control interventions has been proposed.

[An epidemiological analysis of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome morbidity in the Republic of Bashkortostan in 1997]. / Epidemiologicheskii analiz zabolevaemosti gemorragicheskoi likhoradkoi s pochechnym sindromom v Respublike Bashkortostan v 1997 g.

The outbreak of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in the Republic of Bashkortostan, resulting in 10,057 registered cases of the disease (287 cases per 100,000 of the population), was analyzed. HFRS cases among the population were registered in 52 out of 54 regions of Bashkortostan. 31% of the total number of patients were the inhabitants of rural regions (170 cases per 100,000) and 69% were urban dwellers (295 cases per 100,000), mainly in Ufa (512 cases per 100,000). HFRS morbidity among males was fourfold higher than among females. In 70% of cases persons aged 20-49 years were affected. 5% of the total number of patients were children aged up to 14 years. In 34 cases (0.4%) the severe clinical course of the disease had a fatal outcome. Cases of HFRS were registered from April 1997 till March 1998 with the highest morbidity rate observed during the period of August-December. In most cases (46.8%) both urban and rural dwellers contacted infection during a short-term stay in the forest. As the result of the serological examination of the patients, all HFRS cases were etiologically attributed to hantavirus, serotype Puumala. The main natural reservoir of this virus and the source of human infection in Bashkortostan were bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus), the domination species among small mammals in this region.

[Leukemia, lymphogranulomatosis and histiocytosis of Langerhans in children with a history of enlarged thymus gland]. / Leikozy, limfogranulematoz i gistiotsitoz Langergansa u detei s uvelichennoi v anamneze vilochkovoi zhelezoi.

The group consisted of 1056 children with enlarged thymus and a monitored catamnesis in 317 of 0.5-23 years. In 5 examinations in different periods after the diagnosis of enlarged thymus, haematological malignancies were diagnosed: acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (2 children), lymphogranulomatosis (1 child), chronic myeloid leukaemia (monocytic variant) and histiocytosis of Langerhans (1 child). The comparison of these data with other publications on the prevalence of these diseases in the population and the rate of mortality in Moscow place the children with enlarged thymus to high-risk group for haematological malignancies.