Co-exposure to parabens and triclosan and associations with cognitive impairment in an elderly population from Shenzhen, China.

Parabens and triclosan (TCS) have been extensively applied in personal care products (PCPs) as preservatives and antibacterial agents. However, their potentiality to disrupt the neurological system has induced increasing concern. The elderly population is at a higher risk of neurodegenerative disorder, although research on its association with PCP exposure remains scarce. Here, we measured the urinary levels of four parabens, TCS, and an oxidative stress marker among 540 participants from the Shenzhen aging-related disorder cohort during 2017-2018. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) was used to assess the cognitive status of participants. Their demographic, dietary, and behavioral factors were collected via questionnaire survey. Among the four paraben analogs, the median concentration of methyl parabens (MeP) was the highest (Low-risk group: 1.21 ng/mL, High-risk group: 1.64 ng/mL). TCS and 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) were detected in more than 90% of the samples. Weighted quantile sum regression and quantile-based g-computation showed that the combined effect of all analytes was positively associated with the level of 8-OHdG. BtP, EtP and MeP were identified as the major contributors to the joint effect. After stratification by gender, females exhibited more pronounced changes in urinary 8-OHdG level than males. However, the positive correlation between co-exposure to parabens and TCS and cognitive impairment was not significant (p > 0.05) in both models, which warrants investigation with the larger sample size.

Advantages of Sedation With Remimazolam Compared to Midazolam for the Removal of Impacted Tooth in Patients With Dental Anxiety.

PURPOSE: Although midazolam is commonly used to sedate patients with dental anxiety, it has shortcomings that reduce the satisfaction of patients and doctors. The aim of this study was therefore to explore the advantages of remimazolam as a sedative. METHODS: The study design was a prospective randomized controlled trial. Patients with dental anxiety and who were to undergo impacted tooth removal were randomized into remimazolam and midazolam groups. They were sedated with remimazolam or midazolam prior to receiving nerve blocker. The predictor variable was the type of sedative, while the primary outcome variables were the onset time, awakening time, recovery time, and postoperative side effects. Secondary outcome variables were the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale score before and after surgery, patient satisfaction and comfort levels scores, and doctor satisfaction level scores. Other variables included the patient demographics and the operation time. Data were analyzed using the Student's t-test, Mann-Whitney test, χ2 test, and two-way repeated measurement ANOVA test (SPSS Version 25.0). RESULTS: A total of 83 patients were included in this study, with 42 randomized to the remimazolam group and 41 to the midazolam group. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of demographic features and operation time. Patients in the remimazolam group had significantly shorter onset time, awakening time, and recovery time compared to those in the midazolam group (each P < .001). Postoperative side effects were more frequent in the midazolam group (P < .001). Following surgery, the Modified Dental Anxiety Scale scores in both groups were significantly lower than prior to surgery (P < .001). Satisfaction levels scores for the patients and doctor were higher in the remimazolam group than in the midazolam group (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The use of remimazolam results in faster onset, more rapid recovery, and lower incidence of postoperative side effects compared to midazolam, leading to improved satisfaction for patients and doctors. Remimazolam therefore appears to have several advantages over midazolam for the sedation of patients with dental anxiety associated with the removal of impacted teeth.

Perchlorate in shellfish from South China Sea and implications for human exposure.

Shellfish can absorb and accumulate contaminants. The consumption of shellfish could expose humans to pollutants and increase related health risk. Perchlorate (ClO4-) is a ubiquitous pollutant and could affect thyroid functions, especially for children and pregnant women. However, knowledge on the contamination of perchlorate in aquatic food such as shellfish remains limited. This study aimed to investigate the abundances of perchlorate in shellfish from South China Sea and to assess human exposure risks. A total of 178 shellfish samples from eight species were collected from offshore aquaculture waters in South China Sea. Perchlorate was detected in 99.4% of them, suggesting widespread pollution in coastal waters. Concentrations of perchlorate ranged from not detected (N.D.) to 71.5 µg kg-1, with a median value of 4.33 µg kg-1. Estimated daily intake (EDI) and hazard quotient (HQ) were used to assess human exposure dose and health risks, respectively. The HQ values were determined to be less than 1, indicating no significant health risks to local residents via shellfish consumption. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate perchlorate contamination in South China shellfish and assess potential human risks.

The internal exposure of bisphenol analogues in South China adults and the associated health risks.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is widely applied in industrial products and household products, leading to ubiquitous occurrences in environmental and biological samples. However, knowledge on human internal exposure to bisphenol analogues remains limited. Our study determined nine bisphenol analogues in urine samples collected from 1168 South China adults. BPA and bisphenol F (BPF) exhibited the highest detection frequencies in urine, i.e., 99.4% and 74.6%, respectively. BPA dominated over other analogues, with a median concentration of 1.74 µg/L, while BPF had a median concentration of 0.08 µg/L. Significant positive correlation was observed between urinary BPA and BPF (r = 0.201, p < 0.01), indicating similar exposure sources or pathways of these two chemicals. Urinary BPA concentrations were significantly correlated with age, marital status, drinking status and history of hyperlipidemia (p < 0.05). The median estimated daily intake (EDI) of Σ3BPs (the sum concentrations of BPA, BPF and BPAF) was determined to be 53.6 ng/kg-bw/day for adults. The EDIs were much lower than the temporary tolerable reference dose of BPA recommended by the European Food Safety Authority, indicating the bisphenol analogues presented no obvious health risks to South China adults.

Physical activity and risk of prostate and bladder cancer in China: The South and East China case-control study on prostate and bladder cancer.

BACKGROUND: Recent meta-analyses have suggested a modest protective effect of high levels of physical activity on developing both prostate and bladder cancer, but significant heterogeneity between studies included in these meta-analyses existed. To our knowledge, few Chinese studies investigated the association between physical activity and prostate cancer and none between physical activity and bladder cancer. Given the inconsistencies between previous studies and because studies on the relation between physical activity and prostate and bladder cancer in China are scarce, it remains elusive whether there is a relationship between physical activity and prostate and bladder cancer within the Chinese population. METHODS: We investigated the association between physical activity and risk of developing prostate and bladder cancer within a hospital-based case-control study in the East and South of China among 260 and 438 incident prostate and bladder cancer cases, respectively, and 427 controls. A questionnaire was administered to measure physical activity as metabolic equivalents (METs). Random effects logistic regression was used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) of prostate and bladder cancer for different levels of physical activity and for the specific activities of walking and cycling. RESULTS: Increasing overall physical activity was associated with a significant reduction in prostate cancer risk (Ptrend = 0.04) with the highest activity tertile level showing a nearly 50% reduction in prostate cancer risk (OR = 0.53, 95%CI: 0.28-0.98). Overall physical activity was not significantly associated with risk of bladder cancer (Ptrend = 0.61), neither were vigorous (Ptrend = 0.60) or moderate levels of physical activity (Ptrend = 0.21). Walking and cycling were not significantly associated with either prostate (Ptrend> = 0.62) or bladder cancer risk (Ptrend> = 0.25). CONCLUSIONS: The findings of this largest ever case-control study in China investigating the relationship between physical activity and prostate and bladder cancer suggest that overall physical activity is associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer, but not with bladder cancer.

Dietary consumption and diet diversity and risk of developing bladder cancer: results from the South and East China case-control study.

BACKGROUND: The epidemiologic evidence on the role of dietary consumption on the risk of bladder cancer in the Chinese population is limited. We investigated the role of dietary consumption and diet diversity on the risk of developing bladder cancer within a Chinese population. METHODS: A case-control study of 487 cases and 469 controls was conducted in four hospitals in China. A food frequency questionnaire was used to gather information on the consumption of 35 food items. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to derive odds ratios (ORs) and corresponding 95 % confidence intervals (95 % CI) for the relationship between dietary factors, dietary diversity scores, and bladder cancer. RESULTS: The ORs of bladder cancer for red meat (OR = 1.8, 95 % CI:1.1-3.0;p(trend) = 0.01), organ meat (OR = 1.6, 95 % CI:0.9-2.9;p(trend) = 0.04), leafy vegetables (OR = 2.9, 95 % CI:1.6-5.4;p trend = 0.003), bulb vegetables (OR = 2.3, 95 % CI:1.3-4.0;p(trend) = 0.003), and preserved vegetables (OR = 2.3, 95 % CI:1.2-4.2;p(trend) = 0.02) were significantly increased when comparing the highest to lowest level of consumption. The ORs for white fresh fish (OR = 0.5, 95 % CI:0.3-0.9;p(trend) = 0.004), citrus fruits (OR = 0.4, 95 % CI:0.3-0.8;p(trend) = 0.007), stone fruits (OR = 0.4, 95 % CI:0.2-0.6;p(trend) < 0.001), vine fruits (OR = 0.5, 95 % CI:0.2-1.0;p(trend) = 0.02), flower vegetables (OR = 0.3, 95 % CI:0.2-0.6;p(trend) < 0.001), potatoes (OR = 0.4, 95 % CI:0.2-0.9;p(trend) = 0.005), or dairy products (OR = 0.4, 95 % CI:0.3-0.7;p(trend) < 0.001) were significantly decreased when comparing the highest to lowest level of consumption. Subjects with the highest total diet diversity (OR = 0.4, 95 % CI:0.2-1.1;p(trend) = 0.02) and fruit diversity (OR = 0.1, 95 % CI:0.0-0.3;p(trend) < 0.001) had reduced ORs of and compared to subjects with the lowest diversity. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that a diet with higher total diet diversity and in particular fruit diversity may reduce the risk of bladder cancer.