Risk of hypertension from exposure to road traffic noise in a population-based sample.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the association between hypertension and traffic noise. METHODS: The prevalence and incidence of hypertension were examined in a Swedish municipality partly affected by noise from a highway (20,000 vehicles/24 h) and a railway (200 trains/24 h). A-weighed 24 h average sound levels (L(Aeq,24h)) from road and railway traffic were calculated at each residential building using a geographical information system and a validated model. Physician-diagnosed hypertension, antihypertensive medication and background factors were evaluated in 1953 individuals using postal questionnaires (71% response rate). Prevalence ratios and odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for different noise categories. Based on year of moving into the residence and year of diagnosis, person-years and incidence rates of hypertension were estimated, as well as relative risks including covariates, using Poisson and Cox regression. RESULTS: When road traffic noise, age, sex, heredity and body mass index were included in logistic regression models, and allowing for >10 years of latency, the OR for hypertension was 1.9 (95% CI 1.1 to 3.5) in the highest noise category (56-70 dBA) and 3.8 (95% CI 1.6 to 9.0) in men. The incidence rate ratio was increased in this group of men, and the relative risk of hypertension in a Poisson regression model was 2.9 (95% CI 1.4 to 6.2). There were no clear associations in women or for railway noise. CONCLUSIONS: The study shows a positive association between residential road traffic noise and hypertension among men, and an exposure-response relationship. While prevalence ratios were increased, findings were more pronounced when incidence was assessed.

The microenvironment of vulvar skin in women with symptomatic and asymptomatic herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) infection.

BACKGROUND: It is not known why some individuals infected with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), experience frequent recurrences, while most of those infected have a completely silent infection. OBJECTIVE: We wanted to study if local factors in the skin could explain this difference. DESIGn 21 HSV-2 seropositive patients, 10 with history of >8 clinical recurrences a year (symptomatics) and 11 without symptoms of genital herpes (asymptomatics) were included. All had to answer a questionnaire. With standardised methods, the skin temperature, pH, and the skin barrier function, expressed as transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and skin capacitance, were measured on labium majus and perineum. Culture for bacteria was performed from the same regions. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: No significant differences in terms of pH and skin barrier function were registered between symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. Asymptomatic patients had a tendency (0.06) to a higher colonisation with lactobacilli on labium majus than symptomatic patients.

Comorbidity and subgroups in childhood autism.

The objective of this study was to identify clinical subgroups in children with childhood autism and to examine comorbidity in each subgroup. The study was based on medical records of 30 inpatients referred to a specialist ward for children with pervasive developmental disorders. Eighteen consecutive patients with an IQ above 50 and fulfilling research criteria for childhood autism were grouped in accordance with the Wing's social subgroups of autism (aloof, passive, and active but odd). Comorbidity, in terms of deficits in attention, motor control, visuo-motor and visuo-spatial function, as well as epilepsy, was described in each of the three groups. The aloof and passive groups produced a pure autistic triad of deficits, while the active but odd group was characterized by strong comorbidity.