A case-control study of parental occupation, leukemia, and brain tumors in an industrial city in Taiwan.

We conducted a case-control study in an industrial city in Taiwan to determine whether parents of newly diagnosed patients who were younger than 30 years old with leukemia or brain tumors or the patients themselves were more likely to have been employed in certain occupations or industries. Job histories were collected for parents (and for subjects if they worked) on 103 newly diagnosed cases of leukemia, 74 newly diagnosed cases of brain tumors, and 417 controls matched for age and sex. All jobs since the age of 16 that the subjects held for more than 6 months, a total of approximately 4,000 jobs, were coded for occupation and industry according the standard four-digit system used in Taiwan. Matched-pair analyses were performed comparing cases and controls among all jobs held by subjects and both parents using four-digit occupation and industry codes. Separate analyses also were performed for parental jobs held during the preconception, perinatal, and postnatal periods. Odds ratios (ORs) were adjusted for subject smoking, parental smoking, and exposure to medical radiation. Certain industry and occupation four-digit codes were significantly associated with increased odds ratios of childhood tumors. Including work during any or all periods, leukemias were more common in children of fathers who had worked (1) as wood treaters (adjusted OR 16.03, 95% confidence interval CI = 1.77-145.5), and (2) as building finishers and related trades workers (adjusted OR 4.08, 95% CI = 1.12-14.8), whereas brain tumors were more common in children of mothers who had worked (1) in electronic parts and components manufacturing (adjusted OR 13.78, 95% CI = 1.47-129.0) and 2) as textile and garment workers (adjusted OR 7.25, 95% CI = 1.42-37.0), as well as in subjects who had worked with certain electronic parts and components (adjusted OR 28.67, 95% CI = 2.88-285.6). Leukemias were more common in children of fathers who had worked in the preconception period (1) as wood treaters (adjusted OR 12.17, 95% CI = 1.36-109.2), (2) as building finishers and related trades workers (adjusted OR 4.08, 95% CI = 1.12-14.8), (3) as electronic equipment assemblers (adjusted OR 4.56, 95% CI = I 1.05-19.9), and (4) as certain other assemblers (adjusted OR 10.24, 95% CI = 1.02-102.6). In addition, leukemias were more common in children of fathers who had worked in the perinatal period (1) as wood treaters (adjusted OR 13.08, 95% CI = 1.36-125.5) and (2) as building finishers and related trades workers (adjusted OR 4.51, 95% CI = 1.04-19.6). Brain tumors were more common in children of mothers who had worked in the preconception period (1) in electronic parts and components manufacturing (adjusted OR 11.81, 95% CI = 1.20-116.3), and (2) as textile and garment workers (adjusted OR 7.25, 95% CI = 1.18-31.0).

Improving Gram-stained reproducible result by further adding clue cells in diagnosing bacterial vaginosis.

The reproducibility of interpretation in diagnosing bacterial vaginosis may be enhanced by adding pus cells and clue cells into two different criteria, developed by Spiegel et al. and Nugent et al. The purpose of study was designed to find out which parameter was more reproducible. 100 patients were collected with the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis as an experimental group, while the other 100 patients who were with routine Papanicolaou smears in gynecologic clinic the collected as a control group. Two slides, including the original and reproducible ones, were obtained from vaginal smears for each patient. Three technicians read the slides randomly by using two different criteria, plus pus cells and clue cells. This showed the agreement for clue cells is the best method regardless of experimental group or control group (Kappa values between 0.708 and 1.000). The intra-observer agreement for the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis by the method of Nugent et al. is superior to the method of Spiegel et al. Our data show the comparison of Amsel criteria versus Nugent criteria for the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis with sensitivity of 88.9%, specificity of 55.4%, negative positive value of 62.1%, and positive predictive value of 85.8%. Moreover, our data also demonstrate the comparison of Amsel criteria versus the diagnosis either based on Nugent criteria or the presence of clue cells with sensitivity of 95.7%, specificity of 56.7%, negative positive value of 81.2%, and positive predictive value of 87.1%. The results demonstrate further adding score of the clue cells can enhance the reproducible diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis, which is superior to the methods of Nugent et al. and Spiegel et al.