Linked Life Data

9601201

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/9601201

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
3
pubmed:dateCreated
1998-7-7
pubmed:abstractText
In the fall of 1996, fish kills in Maryland rivers were attributed to the dinoflagellate, Pfiesteria piscicida. After a group of researchers established a potential link between exposure to Pfiesteria and an illness causing memory problems, state health authorities closed a portion of the Pocomoke River. To determine the extent of illness, the range of symptoms, potential risk factors for disease, and to provide information to concerned citizens, a toll-free hotline was created. All symptomatic persons who called the toll-free number were administered a standardized questionnaire. Persons who had been exposed to Pfiesteria or Pfiesteria-laden waters were more likely to have respiratory, neurologic, dermatologic, and gastrointestinal problems than those persons without exposure. Among the persons calling the hotline, many had extensive neuropsychologic testing. Of the neuropsychologic test battery, low scores on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), a standardized measure of learning and memory, best characterized illness related to Pfiesteria exposure. Patients with low RAVLT scores were more likely to have neurologic symptoms and skin lesions than control subjects. Low RAVLT scores were associated with fishing (OR, 9.00, 95% CI, 106, 409.87), catching fish with lesions (OR, 6.17, 95% CI 1.27, 32.10), and handling fish with lesions (OR, 5.34, 95% CI, 1.05, 29.92), but not with consumption of seafood. While preliminary, these results do suggest that some risk factors for Pfiesteria-related illness may be easy to modify and used to prevent unnecessary human exposure.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
May
pubmed:issn
0886-0572
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
47
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
137-43
pubmed:dateRevised
2004-11-17
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1998
pubmed:articleTitle
Pfiesteria in Maryland: preliminary epidemiologic findings.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health, Baltimore, USA.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article