Annals of clinical research
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To discover the prevalence of chronic respiratory disease and its association with various factors, 1217 women (84% of the defined population) aged 25 to 69 years were surveyed using a questionnaire, chest radiograph and spirometry. 71 women with pulmonary tuberculosis or "other respiratory disease" were excluded from the analysis. At all ages the smokers were thinner than the non-smokers. The percentages of overweight women among the non-smokers, ex-smokers and smokers were 50%, 42% and 19%, respectively (P less than 0.001). ⋯ Breathlessness, wheezing and the effect of weather were significantly more common at older ages. Socioeconomic status did not seem to influence the occurrence of chronic respiratory disease. No significant effect of smoking on FEV1, FVC or FEV1 % was found.
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The effects of smoking and occupational conditions on COHb saturation were studied among employees on traffic duty, in restaurants, in iron foundries, and in an office. The subjects were 139 smokers and 152 nonsmokers working in the same environments. Changes in COHb saturation were observed in samples of blood obtained before and after the working period. ⋯ On traffic duty and in iron foundries the increase was significant, but the values after work were less than half the permitted occupational threshold limit value (TLV) level of 6 per cent units. In the smoking group the mean values of COHb saturation before work were about twice the mean COHb saturation in the nonsmokers after work. In office work and in foundries the mean COHb saturations after the work exceeded the permitted TLV.
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The association of meterological factors with acute myocardial infarction was studied within a one-year period in Helsinki. Seasonal variation was found with the lowest incidence in summer and the highest in late autumn. Environmental temperature was not significantly correlated with the incidence of myocardial infarction but the case fatality rate was higher on coldest days. ⋯ The incidence of infarction did not increase on typical cold and dry winter days. The most favourable weather was warm, dry and stable summer weather. The difference in incidences between most and least favourable weather types was three-fold.