Evaluation of prenatal diagnosis of associated congenital heart diseases by fetal ultrasonographic examination in Europe

Ultrasound scans in the mid trimester of pregnancy are now a routine part of antenatal care in most European countries. With the assistance of Registries of Congenital Anomalies a study was undertaken in Europe. The objective of the study was to evaluate prenatal detection of congenital heart defects (CHD) by routine ultrasonographic examination of the fetus. All congenital malformations suspected prenatally and all congenital malformations, including chromosome anomalies, confirmed at birth were identified from the Congenital Malformation Registers, including 20 registers from the following European countries: Austria, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuania, Spain, Switzerland, The Netherlands, UK and Ukrainia. These registries follow the same methodology. The study period was 1996–1998, 709 030 births were covered, and 8126 cases with congenital malformations were registered. If more than one cardiac malformation was present the case was coded as complex cardiac malformation. CHD were subdivided into ‘isolated’ when only a cardiac malformation was present and ‘associated’ when at least one other major extra cardiac malformation was present. The associated CHD were subdivided into chromosomal, syndromic non-chromosomal and multiple. The study comprised 761 associated CHD including 282 cases with multiple malformations, 375 cases with chromosomal anomalies and 104 cases with non-chromosomal syndromes. The proportion of prenatal diagnosis of associated CHD varied in relation to the ultrasound screening policies from 17.9% in countries without routine screening (The Netherlands and Denmark) to 46.0% in countries with only one routine fetal scan and 55.6% in countries with two or three routine fetal scans. The prenatal detection rate of chromosomal anomalies was 40.3% (151/375 cases). This rate for recognized syndromes and multiply malformed with CHD was 51.9% (54/104 cases) and 48.6% (137/282 cases), respectively; 150/229 Down syndrome (65.8%) were livebirths. Concerning the syndromic cases, the detection rate of deletion 22q11, situs anomalies and VATER association was 44.4%, 64.7% and 46.6%, respectively. In conclusion, the present study shows large regional variations in the prenatal detection rate of CHD with the highest rates in European regions with three screening scans. Prenatal diagnosis of CHD is significantly higher if associated malformations are present. Cardiac defects affecting the size of the ventricles have the highest detection rate. Mean gestational age at discovery was 20–24 weeks for the majority of associated cardiac defects. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ambient Ultraviolet B Radiation and Prevalence of Infection by Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis in Two Amphibian Species

Abstract: Chytridiomycosis, the emerging disease caused by the chytrid fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd) is responsible for declines and extirpations of amphibian populations worldwide. Environmental covariates modify the host‐Bd interaction and thus affect the ongoing spread of the pathogen. One such covariate may be the intensity of ultraviolet B (UV‐B) radiation. In a field experiment conducted in Laguna Grande de Peñalara (central Spain), a mountainous region where the presence of Bd has been documented since 1997, we analyzed the potential effect of environmental UV‐B (daily maximum 2.5–3.9 W/m²) on the susceptibility of larvae of the common toad (Bufo bufo) to Bd. The proportion of infected individuals increased as tadpoles developed. The prevalence of Bd was significantly lower in tadpoles exposed to environmental UV‐B intensities (2.94%) than in tadpoles not exposed to the radiation (9.72%). This finding mirrors that seen for a second amphibian species, the European midwife toad (Alytes obstetricans), for which conditional prevalence (i.e., prevalence of infection conditioned on the probability of a site being infected) across the Iberian Peninsula was inversely correlated with the intensity of UV‐B.     

石油物探行业员工心脑血管疾病预防初探

以某物探公司为例,分析阐述了物探行业心脑血管疾病高发的主要原因,从完善体检筛查、合理安排工作、改善工作条件、应急能力建设、宣传健康知识等方面,探讨了预防石油物探企业员工心脑血管疾病的措施。     

A mixture of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), dibenzofurans (PCDFs), and non-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) changed the lipid content of pregnant Long Evans rats

Pregnant Long Evans rats received 1.0 μg/kg of dioxin toxic equivalents (TEQ) by oral gavage on the 15th gestational day (GD 15), using a dosing mixture that contained two polychlorinated dioxins, four polychlorinated furans and three non-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Rats were sacrificed on GD 16, GD 21 and postnatal day 4 (PND 4). The lipid content of fetus, pup, placenta and maternal liver, serum and adipose tissue were determined. Treated GD 16 and GD 21 fetuses had identical lipid content to the control group, yet the lipid content of treated pups on PND 4 was 32% higher than that of the control group. On the other hand, the lipid content of placenta, liver, and serum from the treated dams was 44–50%, 24%, and 38% lower than that of the control group, respectively. Thus, a low-dose mixture of dioxin-like compounds can cause changes in lipid content. The lipid content of offspring was not affected until they were exposed via lactation.     

Measuring Positive,Negative, and Null Impacts of Forest Disturbances: A Case Study Using Dwarf Mistletoe on Douglas Fir

Not all disease activity causes an impact. Not all impacts are negative. The aim of this study was to examine a method that could conceptually specify when impacts occur and that could quantify both negative and positive disease impacts. For this study, dwarf mistletoe (Arceuthobium douglasi) of Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) in southwestern Oregon was used as a case study. The method uses six variables for forest growth, mortality, and stand structure, and six categorical disease severity scores. The impact model displays stands as points in multidimensional scaling space, where relative position is determined by values of the six stand variables. Positions in this two-dimensional space change when stand characteristics change. Differences associated with disease severity could be traced as trajectories, and impact was quantified using the length and direction of these trajectories. This multivariate impact assessment method was contrasted to impact assessments based on single variables. Methods based on multiple variables offer a useful way of characterizing impact on multiple objectives. The model indicates that dwarf mistletoe has positive, negative, and neutral impacts and that these could be illustrated and quantified using this method.     

Post-disaster behavior of some communicable diseases

The surveillance of communicable diseases after a natural disaster reflects the permanent state of effectiveness of the health services and the adverse factors of the natural, physical and family environments. Diarrhoeal diseases may be the best indicator of a community's period of recovery. The return of these diseases to endemic levels means that the pre-disaster situation has been reestablished.     

2001年农作物病虫害发生流行的气候影响评价

综合分析了 2001年气候条件对全国农作物病虫害发生流行的影响.春夏季全国大范围的持续严重高温干旱,造成全国农作物病虫害偏重发生,其特点是虫害重于病害,全国大部分地区以虫害为主,病害较轻.春夏季的高温干旱引发蝗虫全国大发生,但制约了小麦病虫害的严重发生,为中等发生年.全国主要稻区病虫害发生期间干旱、少雨、大雨频次低,限制了水稻病虫害的严重发生,为中等发生年.水稻稻飞虱中等偏轻发生,但造成长江流域水稻螟虫的中等偏重发生.东北、华北地区中后期温度降水配合相对适宜,造成玉米螟中等偏重发生.     

西藏公路建设中的地质病害防治与生态保护

文中通过分析地质病害对生态环境的影响，提出了对西藏公路建设过程中可能诱发的地质病害的防治措施，并对常见地质病害的防治措施提出了切实可行的建议。     

上海市郊大棚蔬菜的农药使用调查

通过对上海市郊大棚生产中农药使用情况的调查，揭示了上海市郊大棚蔬菜生产中存在的主要农药污染问题，主要表现在：所使用农药的结构不够合理，一些危险级农药仍在使用，而高效杀菌剂和除草剂的品种很少；大棚蔬菜的农药残留量较高，超标率可达１０％；食用受农药污染蔬菜的急性中毒事件时有发生，主要为绿叶蔬菜，农药主要是甲胺膦。     

Assessing health consequences in an environmental impact assessment: The case of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

In this article a comprehensive approach for the evaluation of possible health effects in an environmental impact assessment (EIA) is described, illustrated with the example of Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. Unlike many EIAs, we estimated quantitatively the impact of aircraft-related pollution in terms of the number of affected people for aircraft noise annoyance, odour annoyance and hypertension. In addition, an analysis of health registry data on cardiovascular and respiratory diseases and a short survey on annoyance and risk perception were carried out. The scope of a health impact assessment depends on the situation, available knowledge and data, concern in the population about the impact and the number of people concerned. It is important to pay attention to the perception of risks and concerns from all parties involved. Moreover, the results demonstrate that far more people outside the area for which standards apply were affected than inside.