ABSTRACT
We assessed the long-term immunity to hepatitis B among 242 Egyptian children aged 6-12 years who had received a full vaccination course in infancy, and investigated the factors associated with immunity. Only 39.4% of the children had protective (> or = 10 lU/L) hepatitis B surface antibody levels (HBsAb). This proportion decreased with age but the decrease was not statistically significant. The mean level of HBsAb decreased significantly with increasing age (P = 0.026). A significant negative correlation was found between current age and HBsAb levels (r = -0.31, P = 0.041). Age and weight-for-age were found to be significant predictors of non-protective HBsAb levels.
Subject(s)
Hepatitis B Antibodies/blood , Hepatitis B Vaccines/immunology , Vaccination , Age Factors , Body Weight , Child , Cross-Sectional Studies , Egypt , Female , Health Services Needs and Demand , Hepatitis B Surface Antigens/immunology , Humans , Immunity, Active , Immunization Schedule , Immunization, Secondary , Logistic Models , Male , Multivariate Analysis , National Health Programs , Risk Factors , Seroepidemiologic Studies , Socioeconomic Factors , Surveys and Questionnaires , Urban Health/statistics & numerical data , Vaccination/methodsABSTRACT
We assessed the long-term immunity to hepatitis B among 242 Egyptian children aged 6-12 years who had received a full vaccination course in infancy, and investigated the factors associated with immunity. Only 39.4% of the children had protective [>/= 10 IU/L] hepatitis B surface antibody levels [HBsAb]. This proportion decreased with age but the decrease was not statistically significant. The mean level of HBsAb decreased significantly with increasing age [P = 0.026]. A significant negative correlation was found between current age and HBsAb levels [r = -0.31, P = 0.041]. Age and weight-for-age were found to be significant predictors of non-protective HBsAb levels
Subject(s)
Hepatitis B , Hepatitis B Vaccines , Hepatitis B Antibodies , Age Factors , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
In this study, we evaluated the effect of low level occupational exposure of nurses in a medical oncology unit in Cairo, Egypt, to anticancer drugs. Twenty nurses who constantly handled these drugs and 20 controls, matched according to age and sex, were examined. Metaphase chromosomes were studied. Percentages of metaphases with chromosomal aberrations were significantly higher (P < 0.001) in the exposed group (6.1 +/- 2.7) versus the controls (2.6 +/- 1.6). The detected chromosomal aberrations were in the form of chromatid gaps, chromatid breaks and acentric fragments. Micronucleated peripheral blood lymphocytes were also analyzed in cytochalasin B treated binucleated lymphocytes. There was significant increase in cells with micronuclei (P < 0.001) in nurses (10.05 +/- 4.71) in comparison to the matched control (5.42 +/- 2.22) (P < 0.001). Nurses exposed to the cytotoxic drugs for > or = 48 months showed a slightly higher frequency of cells with chromosomal aberrations as well as micronucleated cells than those exposed for < 48 months, but these differences were not statistically significant (P > 0.05).
Subject(s)
Antineoplastic Agents/adverse effects , Chromosome Aberrations , Micronucleus Tests , Mutagens/adverse effects , Nurses , Occupational Exposure , Adult , Chromatids/drug effects , DNA Damage , Female , HumansABSTRACT
Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) patients are predisposed not only to skin cancers but also to tumors on the tip of the tongue. Although this enhanced risk has been attributed to a defect in the repair of DNA damage induced by ultraviolet rays from sunlight there is a lack of data showing that DNA damage is occurring in vivo at these sites. In order to determine whether a relationship exists between exposure to ultraviolet light and the level of chromosomal breakage occurring in epithelial tissue in XP patients, the exfoliated cell micronucleus test was applied to different sites in the oral cavities of four XP patients: the right and left buccal mucosa, the dorsal tip of the tongue and the palate. Six Egyptian controls were sampled concurrently. Micronucleus (MN) frequencies were higher in XP patients than in controls for all sites except the palate, where technical difficulties were encountered. In addition, an unequal distribution of the frequency of micronucleated cells was found in the different sample sites of the oral cavity in the XP patients, with the greatest elevation in frequencies among cells collected from the dorsal tip of the tongue. In contrast, the frequency of micronucleated cells did not vary significantly in samples from different sites obtained from the controls. These data suggest that the complex interplay of host and environmental factors can affect MN frequencies when this endpoint is used to quantify in vivo genotoxic damage in a tissue.
