Excess lung cancer occurrence in poultry plants. Occupational risk factors: Findings for oncogenic viruses exposure and other occupational exposures.

Certain viruses naturally infect and cause cancer in chickens and turkeys. Humans are widely exposed. The viruses cause cancer in primates, and transform human cells in vitro, but it is not known if they cause cancer in humans, mainly because of the lack of epidemiologic evidence. We conducted cohort mortality studies of workers in poultry slaughtering/processing plants across the United States, because they have the highest human exposures. An excess of lung cancer and other deaths was recorded in the poultry workers. Here, we report on a case-cohort study of the lung cancer deaths nested within these cohorts, that was conducted to provide epidemiologic evidence linking these viruses with human cancer occurrence, while adjusting for possible confounders, including workplace chemical carcinogens. We obtained interviews for 339 lung cancer deaths and 457 controls, selected from our combined cohorts of 30,411 poultry plant workers and 16,405 non-poultry workers, belonging to United Food & Commercial Workers unions. Data was analyzed by both logistic regression and Cox regression, adjusting for smoking and other confounders. Lung cancer risk was independently associated with tasks or work areas indicative of exposure to both poultry oncogenic viruses and to workplace chemical carcinogens. The study provides an incremental piece of evidence (epidemiologic), indirectly linking the oncogenic viruses of poultry with the occurrence of cancer in humans, and thus may have public health implications, but the limitations highlighted must be considered. Confirmatory studies, particularly molecular studies providing definitive proof of poultry oncogenic retrovirus integration in human DNA are needed, before the findings observed in this study can be put into proper perspective.

Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems and Smoking Cessation in Arkansas, 2014.

OBJECTIVES: As of October 2015, evidence needed to make a recommendation about the use of electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) for smoking cessation was limited. We used the 2014 Arkansas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System with additional state-specific questions to determine the prevalence of ENDS use, the impact of ENDS use on smoking cessation, and beliefs about ENDS use in Arkansas. Our objectives were to determine if (1) ENDS use was associated with lower odds of quitting smoking, (2) ENDS users believed that ENDS use was not harmful to their health, and (3) ENDS users believed that switching to ENDS reduced their tobacco-related health risks. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 4465 respondents to the Arkansas Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and used weighted analyses to account for the complex survey design. We used a subset of records formed by (1) formers smokers who quitted smoking in the last 5 years and (2) current smokers to assess the odds of quitting. RESULTS: In 2014, 6.1% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.0%-7.4%) of Arkansas adults were currently using ENDS. Of the 1083 participants who were current smokers or had quit smoking within the past 5 years, 515 (54.1%) had used ENDS. Of the 515 ENDS users, 404 (80.3%) had continued smoking. ENDS use was significantly associated with reduced odds of quitting smoking (weighted odds ratio = 0.53; 95% CI, 0.34-0.83). Although 2437 of 3808 participants (62.5%) believed that it was harmful for nonsmokers to start using ENDS and 1793 of 3658 participants (47.0%) believed that switching to ENDS did not reduce tobacco-related health risks, only 80 of 165 (41.3%) and 50 of 168 (33.9%) ENDS users shared these same respective beliefs. CONCLUSIONS: Most smokers who indicated smoking in the past 5 years and who tried ENDS did not stop smoking. ENDS use was inversely associated with smoking cessation. Tobacco cessation programs should tell cigarette smokers that ENDS use may not help them quit smoking.

Long-Term Nonmalignant Disease Mortality in Subjects Exposed to Transmissible Agents Present in Animals Used for Food.

OBJECTIVE: To study mortality from nonmalignant diseases in subjects with high exposure to transmissible agents present in animals used for food, and in their raw or inadequately cooked products. METHODS: Mortality was compared in a cohort of meat handlers in slaughtering and processing plants with that of the U.S. general population. RESULTS: Excess mortality was observed for conditions known to be associated with infections-these include, septicemia, chronic nephritis, diseases of the kidney and ureter, diseases of the pancreas, cirrhosis of the liver, acute and subacute endocarditis, acute rheumatic fever, functional diseases of the heart, aortic aneurysm, intracranial and intraspinous abscess, and meningitis. Excess mortality was also observed for ischemic heart disease and diabetes, conditions without an established infectious etiology, but which have been linked with infections. CONCLUSIONS: If transmissible agents present in food animals and their raw products cause long-term diseases and mortality in humans, this study importantly points to the likely diseases, many of which are already known to be associated with infections. The excess mortality observed for ischemic heart disease and diabetes is consistent with existing evidence linking these conditions with infections, and gives rise to the novel hypothesis that microbial agents present in food animals and their products may be candidates for an infective role in the occurrence of these conditions, and therefore needs further investigation.

Obesity is associated with visit-to-visit systolic blood pressure variability in the US adults.

BACKGROUND: Evidence has accumulated showing that blood pressure variability is associated with cardiovascular disease. A substantial increase in the prevalence of obesity has been documented globally. Our objective was to examine the relation of total and central obesity on visit-to-visit blood pressure variability. METHODS: We used data collected from the cross-sectional Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, to examine the association of visit-to-visit blood pressure variability with body mass index and waist circumference. RESULTS: The analysis included 14,988 participants. The participants' mean age was 43.45 years. Visit-to-visit systolic blood pressure variability was associated with a body mass index ≥30 and a large waist circumference (beta coefficients were 0.25 and 0.31, respectively, P-values < 0.01). Neither the bivariate nor the multivariable analyses showed significant relationships between the obesity indicators and diastolic blood pressure variability. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity is associated with visit-to-visit systolic blood pressure variability. Additional research is required to replicate the reported results in prospective studies and evaluate approaches to reduce blood pressure variability observed in clinical settings among obese persons to reduce its subsequent complications.

In situ remineralisation of eroded enamel lesions by NaF rinses.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the remineralisation of eroded enamel by NaF rinses in an intra-oral model. METHODS: Serving as their own control, subjects (N=80) participated in a randomised, four-leg (20 subjects/leg), 28-day, parallel design study. In each leg, each participant wore a customised orthodontic bracket attached to a mandibular molar that contained one tooth block having an initial erosive lesion (0.3% citric acid, pH 3.75, 2 h). Within the 28-day period, participants engaged in twice-daily brushing for 1 min with a fluoride-free dentifrice followed by 1-min rinsing with one of the following aqueous rinses: fluoride-free (0 ppm F), 225 ppm F, 225 ppm F plus functionalised ß-tricalcium phosphate (fTCP), and 450 ppm F. Following intra-oral exposure, appliances were removed and specimens were analysed using surface microhardness (SMH) and transverse microradiography (TMR). RESULTS: Statistically significant (p<0.05) remineralisation, as determined by SMH and TMR, of the eroded enamel relative to baseline occurred for each fluoride system. No significant differences in SMH were observed amongst the fluoride groups (p>0.05), however, 225 ppm plus fTCP produced 27% and 7% SMH indent length reduction relative to 225 ppm F and 450 ppm F, respectively. No significant differences in TMR were observed amongst the fluoride groups (p>0.05), however, 225 ppm F plus fTCP and 450 ppm F produced significant (p<0.05) mineral gains relative to the fluoride-free control, whilst 225 ppm F did not (p>0.05). Relative to the 225 ppm F group, the 450 ppm F and 225 ppm F plus fTCP groups produced 65% and 61% greater mineral change, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These pilot results demonstrate this model is sensitive to fluoride and that addition of fTCP to an aqueous rinse containing 225 ppm F may provide significant remineralisation benefits. Therefore, the combination of relatively low levels of fluoride and fTCP might be an effective alternative to a high fluoride treatment for anti-erosion benefits.