Fibrous polymer nanomaterials for biomedical applications and their transport by fluids: an overview.

Over the past few decades, there has been strong interest in the development of new micro- and nanomaterials for biomedical applications. Their use in the form of capsules, particles or filaments suspended in body fluids is associated with conformational changes and hydrodynamic interactions responsible for their transport. The dynamics of fibres or other long objects in Poiseuille flow is one of the fundamental problems in a variety of biomedical contexts, such as mobility of proteins, dynamics of DNA or other biological polymers, cell movement, tissue engineering, and drug delivery. In this review, we discuss several important applications of micro and nanoobjects in this field and try to understand the problems of their transport in flow resulting from material-environment interactions in typical, crowded, and complex biological fluids. Our aim is to elucidate the relationship between the nano- and microscopic structures of elongated polymer particles and their flow properties, thus opening the possibility to design nanoobjects that can be efficiently transported by body fluids for targeted drug release or local tissue regeneration.

[Dermatitis and VDU work]. / Dermatiti e lavoro con VDT/PC.

Skin disorders like rosacea, seborrhoeic dermatitis, non-specific erythema and acne can be VDU work linked. At present, many environmental and individual causes are involved in the development of these disorders, but the former appear to be the issue to investigate more in depth.

Posterior vitreous detachment and work efficiency: a case study.

The paper analyses a case report of a female worker whose job required prolonged near visual effort and who suffered from multiple ophthalmological disorders. The specific case of interaction between the visual apparatus of the operator and the tasks performed is discussed, with particular reference to the unstable compensation that different pathological disorders, when summed together, can produce, thus allowing to subjects to lead a normal working and social life for long periods of time without any limitations and without any significant asthenopic symptoms. Because this compensation is unstable, it can unexpectedly be impaired due to the onset of diseases not involving the visual apparatus. The scientific literature was analysed in order to assess, at least approximately, the prevalence of clinical/functional situations identical or similar to the case described.

[Mean-term variations of visual function of video display terminal operators: observations on 70 cases]. / Variazioni a medio termine della funzionalità visiva in operatori VDT: osservazioni di 70 casi.

The aim of the study was to evaluate medium-term variations of visual functions in VDT operators and their possible relationship to VDT exposure. The clinical records of 70 VDT operators attending our outpatient service for periodical ergophthalmological evaluation were reviewed in order to evaluate the variation of some visual parameters after a two-years follow-up. These included refraction, phorias, fusional convergence and divergence, stereopsis. The group did not include subjects affected by hyperopia, large ametropias, or binocular vision disturbances and was divided into two subgroups: low exposure group (n = 20; < 4 hours/day) and high exposure group (n = 50; exposure > 4 hours/day). Asthenopia was frequent in both groups. Variation of refraction and binocular vision parameters were absent or rather limited in both exposure groups. This seems to indicate that in subjects without significant ophthalmological problems the risk of permanent functional damage is very low at medium-term.

[Dermatitis in VDT operators: a review of the literature]. / Dermatiti in operatori a VDT: rassegna della letteratura.

The paper reports studies on the relationship between work with VDT's and dermatitis in the operators. From the first observation in 1979, numerous studies have been carried out to try and explain the reason why some forms of dermatitis like rosacea, eczema seborrhoeic and erythematitis appeared more frequently in VDT operators compared to the general population. The various authors at present consider low indoor air humidity associated with a strong electrostatic field to be essential factors in the occurrence of dermatitis. Laboratory experiments have shown that the presence of a strong electrostatic field does not seem to be important in itself. Similarly, it is agreed that X, UV-A or UV-B radiations do not play any causative role in dermatitis. Further investigations are required to assess the influence of indoor climatic factors and the presence of irritant substances in the air of the working environment.

[Asthenopia and objective ophthalmological findings in a population of 2058 VDT operators in Lombardy]. / Astenopia ed obiettività oftalmologiche in una popolazione di 2058 operatori VDT in Lombardia.

A large population of 2058 VDT operators from all compartments in Lombardia of a large national company was studied. An "ergophthalmological" questionnaire was administered to all subjects, followed by an ophthalmological-orthoptic examination. Ametropias showed a prevalence of 51.9%; the most common refractive defect was myopia followed by astigmatism and hyperopia. Heterophorias with bad or mediocre compensation had a prevalence of 4.1 and 11% respectively. The study of symptoms showed a frequency of 23.5% of intense asthenopic complaints and 21.1% of less severe and less frequent symptomatology. Asthenopia was significantly correlated (chi square) with sex, VDT exposure, refraction, presbyopia, and decompensated heterophorias.

[Contact dermatitis of the hands in housewives: preliminary data of a multicenter study]. / Indagine sulla dermatite da contatto delle mani delle casalinghe: dati preliminari di uno studio multicentrico.

The preliminary results of a survey carried out by the Institutes of Dermatology of Bari and Florence Universities and by the Clinica del Lavoro of Milan University are analyzed. The survey, whose aim is to identify the causes of contact dermatitis on housewives' hands and whose conclusions are forecasted for June 1990, will examine 1,650 female people, 1,050 of which are ill and 600 are case-controls. The results of the first 617 cases (514 ill and 103 case-controls) are reported. The anamnesis has shown that the hands (in 488 cases) are the most affected part of the body, that the most frequent symptoms are itch and burning sensation (in 410 cases), and that cosmetics, followed by detergents and softeners, are considered by the patients among the products more responsible for these symptoms. The allergic tests, even if with a different percentage of incidence, have shown metals (above all nickel), rubber additives and resins as the main aptens. Another survey, also in progress, concerning the search of metals in detergents and in washing waters for pollution caused by abrasives, pots, Inox sinks, pipes and tabs of the water system, is reported.

Occupational contact psoriasis.

Occupational psoriasis accounts for about 1.2% of all cutaneous pathologic conditions due to work. It is especially important for subjects with slight signs of psoriasis, since patients already suffering from clear illness spontaneously avoid traumatic activities. Our interest was directed to cutaneous symptoms, signs for identifying subjects predisposed to traumatic dermatitis, also useful in vocational guidance. The necessity of official acknowledgement of such work-related dermatological pathologies is suggested.

Skin pathology in industrial workers exposed to synthetic corticosteroids.

Systemic and cutaneous side effects observed in some workers of a company producing synthetic corticosteroids are described. The production process and the results of clinical and laboratory investigations are shown. A high incidence of skin and internal disorders (erythema, telangiectasia, acne, purpuric lesions and inhibition of the pituitary-adrenal axis) were found.