Modern drugs are invented according to medical needs, making use of the latest innovations in technology. They are sophisticated, efficacious, and costly, but are they effective? Are they superior to existing - and cheaper - alternatives, and is this superiority reflected in increased cost-effectiveness? Are they socially more beneficial? These questions, and those related to the intriguing search for better quality of life, are addressed in this book by experts from the fields of medicine, epidemiology, economics, sociology and the pharmaceutical industry. The book describes the environmental situation in the United States and Europe in which pharmaceutical development takes place; it also explores the grounds for agreement as well as disagreement between the social and the economic evaluations of progress. It tackles the problem of outcome measurements, patients' behavior, quality of life, and individual value judgments and describes methodological boundaries in the socioeconomic evaluation of drugs.

Presented here is an account of industrial and general air pollution problems in view of air quality management, community and industrial health aspects, emission inventorying, emission and air quality measurement techniques, dispersion phenomena and control technologies. Moreover, several case studies from automotive and manufacturing processes as well as some country reports are presented. Finally, the global warming problem (greenhouse effect), atmospheric carbon dioxide build-up and radiation hazards involved in the atmosphere are discussed.

An important purpose of The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry is to aid the understanding of distribution and chemical reaction processes which occur in the environment. It is designed to serve as an important source for environmental scientists and decision-makers in industry, governmental and regulatory bodies. "Volume 3, Part E" of this series is dedicated to organometallic compounds, aluminium and to chemicals used in the rubber industry.

Over the last few decades, there have been dramatic improvements in the understanding and research of environmental design. Numerous methods have been developed to enhance architectural design in order for it to be more energy efficient, sustainable and health enhancing.

This book presents several theories and techniques that can be used to improve how buildings are engineered and designed in order to utilize more sustainable construction methods while promoting the health of the building's occupants.

Contributions to the study of environmental design have come from a diversity of fields including applied mathematics, optimization, computer science, medical research, psychology, management science, architecture, and engineering. The techniques developed in these areas of research can be used to increase building performance, occupant satisfaction, productivity, and well being, and reducing the incidence of health conditions and chronic diseases related to the use of a designed space.

This book provides architectural practitioners, civil engineers as well as other interdisciplinary researchers with the techniques needed to design, implement, and test for sustainability and health promotion in new or existing structures.

This volume written by 25 experts from industry and research provides a thorough overview of commerically important and environmentally mobile organosilicon materials. It outlines the structure, properties and applications of the four most significant material classes, and summarizes their environmental entry, transport, fate and impact. Detection and analytical methods are discussed both in the context of environmental assay and ecotoxicity testing along with some of the challenges. Measurement/estimation techniques and data available for several eco-pertinent properties of selected organosilicon compounds are summarized and limitations of the estimation and expertimental methods discussed. The environmental laws/regulations/trends in the U.S., Europe and Japan are discussed, along with their relevance to organosilicon materials. The book concludes with a broad overview of the major markets and global silicone producers, reviewing the industry's stewardship initiatives, relevant HES (health, environmental and safety) organizations and global cooperation.

Like the first edition, the second edition of the Encyclopedia of Stress covers nearly every conceivable aspect and ramification of stress including a wide range of related topics such as neuroimmune interactions, cytokines, enzymatic disorders, effects on the cardiovascular system, immunity and inflammation, and physical illnesses. Over the last decade, scientists have presented convincing research showing that psychological stress increases vulnerability to disease. They now understand more clearly that stress may be the thread tying together illnesses that were previously believed to be unrelated. Bone loss, increased abdominal fat, and damaged memory cells in the hippocampus have been linked to elevated cortisol levels.
Building on the success of the first edition, this completely revised work surveys the vast amount of research generated in the past five years, resulting in a substantial revision with over 30% new material and over 100 new entries. Expanded sections include Animal Studies, Anxiety and Depression, Drugs, Depression, Disasters, and Psychological and Other Therapies.
Also available online via ScienceDirect (2007) - featuring extensive browsing, searching, and internal cross-referencing between articles in the work, plus dynamic linking to journal articles and abstract databases, making navigation flexible and easy. For more information, pricing options and availability visit www.info.sciencedirect.com.
* Timely update on the topic of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder taking into account events such as terrorism and middle east wars
* Includes expanded coverage on anxiety and depression
* Incorporates entries on the advances in our knowledge ofimmunology, cytokines and cell mediated immunity involved in stress responses and autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Type I diabetes

Skin diseases caused by aquatic organisms are continually on the increase owing to the great number of people who now converge on the hydrosphere for holidays, sports and professional activities. Aquatic skin diseases are no longer only a seasonal affliction but can be observed at any period, thanks to the tourist boom promoting aquatic holidaymaking throughout the year. This book aims to contribute to the knowledge of some aquatic animals that have only developed a poisonous apparatus to protect themselves and adapt to their environment, as well as of the various clinical pictures induced by different pathogenic mechanisms. Besides the afflictions caused by biotoxins, skin reactions to microscopic organisms present in seawater, freshwater, swimming pools and aquariums are described, together with some non-biotic forms induced by direct contact with salt and freshwater. A better knowledge of the aquatic environment may help people to enjoy this enthralling habitat at lesser risk.

This volume focuses on the human exposures and medical effects studies in the SemipaiatinskJ Altai region of Siberia that were a consequence of the radioactive fallout from nuclear test explosions that took place at the Semipalatinsk Test Site of the former Soviet Union. It contains a detailed account of a NATO Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) devoted to the subject, and a selection of the papers presented. The title of the ARW was "Long-term Consequences of Nuclear Tests for the Environment and Population Health (SemipaiatinskJAltai Case Studies)." The estimated exposures to large numbers of people in the Altai lie in an important dose rate and dose domain. Hence the research reported herein provides new and unique information on the effects of radiation on humans. Also emphasized at the ARW were studies involving fallout from the Pacific Island tests of the U. S. A . . There have been over 2300 nuclear weapon test explosions to date. More than 500 took place in the atmosphere and outer space; the remainder were underground. The atmospheric tests comprise the largest source of anthropogenic radioactivity released into the earth's atmosphere to date. The vast majority, in number and yield, were carried out by the former Soviet Union (FSU) and the United States. Each superpower maintained two primary test sites, one continental primarily for small yield tests, and the other more remote for larger yield tests. For the U. S. A.

A good number of misconceptions are currently circulating on the effects of non-ionizing radiations on our health, which can lead to an oversimplification of the issue, to potentially dangerous assumptions or to misleading data analysis. Health effects may be exaggerated, or on the contrary underplayed. The authors of this work (doctors, engineers and researchers) have endeavored to supply validated and easily understandable scientific information on the electromagnetic fields and their biological and health effects. After a general review of the physics of the waves and a presentation of non-ionizing radiations, the authors review the main emission sources encountered in our daily environment. They summarize simply but as accurately as possible the current knowledge on their biological effects.
The safety limits recommended by international organizations are presented for the different frequency ranges. This book is intended for doctors, teachers, scientists, students, policy makers and anyone else interested in a deeper understanding of the health effects of electromagnetic fields. Intended to serve a broad readership, everyone will approach it according to their respective level of curiosity and knowledge. It is neither an exhaustive inventory of all the studies made to date, nor a survey text focusing only on some chosen studies. Nor is the objective to present all the sources of non-ionizing radiations. Interested readers will be given the opportunity to broaden their knowledge, also by consulting the selected bibliography presented by the authors at the end of each chapter.

The probability for exposure to damaging radiation, toxic chemicals in the environment and adverse biological agents has increased exponentially today. The more frequent and faster travel that we experience today also escalates the risk of contraction and transmission of potentially deadly infections. This has created a very real and escalating risk for injuries and deaths. This is accentuated in the military and medical staff that is more frequently exposed to radiological, chemical, and biological agents in their normal working environment. Understanding the mechanisms whereby these toxic agents inflict damage to our bodies is essential to prepare us for these challenges. Much of the damage is inflicted through the generation of free radicals and non-radical oxidants which then act through oxidative mechanisms to injury the body. This volume will discuss the damage caused by these radiological, chemical, and biological environmental stressors, the mechanisms through which the damage can occur and the novel strategies that can be used to reduce the injury inflicted by these toxic compounds. Using basic and clinical research approaches, the contents of this book discuss new ideas for the development of bioactive products and environmental approaches to lessen or negate the biological damage inflicted by these noxious compounds.

Seasonal patterns have been found in a remarkable range of health conditions, including birth defects, respiratory infections and cardiovascular disease. Accurately estimating the size and timing of seasonal peaks in disease incidence is an aid to understanding the causes and possibly to developing interventions. With global warming increasing the intensity of seasonal weather patterns around the world, a review of the methods for estimating seasonal effects on health is timely.

This is the first book on statistical methods for seasonal data written for a health audience. It describes methods for a range of outcomes (including continuous, count and binomial data) and demonstrates appropriate techniques for summarising and modelling these data. It has a practical focus and uses interesting examples to motivate and illustrate the methods. The statistical procedures and example data sets are available in an R package called season ."

This highly topical book provides an in-depth account of the South Asian experience with the deadly disease that has held this region hostage for millennia. The book touches specifically on the resurgence of malaria experienced in the second half of the twentieth century, which occurred just a few years after malaria was thought to have been virtually eradicated from the region. The progress of this reappearance across space and time, as well as its causes and consequences, are discussed. The book also covers past, present and future ways to curb, control and ultimately, conquer malaria. As malaria continues to ravage the developing world, even in today s age of science, this is a particularly relevant book, especially as most studies analyze the problem in Africa, the continent that bears the brunt of this disease. Here, the authors call attention to challenges in South Asia, home to an immense at-risk population. The chapters in this book use a range of conceptual frameworks, quantitative analyses and descriptive aapproaches, finding that malaria is not just a complex disease driven by highly adaptive agents and vectors thriving in particular ecologies, but also a social concern deeply related to the region s cultural traditions, financial and developmental shortfalls, and inexorably related to political will.

The book comprehensively deals with all aspects of the malaria situation in South Asia, and is invaluable to upper level students as well as emerging and established scholars in the fields of medical geography and epidemiology, Asian studies and development studies."

In a new era of global health diplomacy, the most important tool for decision-making is negotiation. Globalization is binding countries, issues and people together as never before. In the domain of public health, traditional international concerns like the spread of infectious diseases have been joined by new concerns and challenges in managing the health impacts of trade and intellectual property rights, and by new opportunities to create effective global public health agreements and programs. To address the major health crises of today and to prevent or mitigate them in the future, countries must seek collective agreement and action within and across their borders. However, the world of international negotiation is not the world in which health decision-makers reside or are most comfortable. The goal of this guide is to provide health policy-makers with practical information and negotiation tools, to help them create better international health agreements and programs. "This is the best book I know to help health professionals develop the negotiation skills necessary to meet the challenges of global health diplomacy. It is filled with wise advice and invaluable tools for success." Professor Jeswald W. Salacuse, The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University

This series is dedicated to serving the growing community of scholars and practitioners concerned with the principles and applications of environmental management. Each volume is a thorough treatment of a specific topic of importance for proper management practices. A fundamental objective of these books is to help the reader discern and implement man's stewardship of our environment and the world's renewable resources. For we must strive to understand the relation ship between man and nature, act to bring harmony to it, and nurture an environment that is both stable and productive. These objectives have often eluded us because the pursuit of other individual and societal goals has diverted us from a course of living in balance with the environment. At times, therefore, the environmental manager may have to exert restrictive control, which is usually best applied to man, not nature. Attempts to alter or harness nature have often failed or backfired, as exemplified by the results of imprudent use of herbicides, fertilizers, water, and other agents. Each book in this series will shed light on the fundamental and applied aspects of environmental management. It is hoped that each will help solve a practical and serious environmental problem."

ENVIRONMENTAL HYGIENE III deals with the detection and evaluation of environmental pollutants as well as with their relevance to human health. Environmental components are important determinants of the health status of groups at risk and of the general population. The main objective is the early detection and identification of hazardous substances by physical, chemical and biological methods, risk assessment andprotection of human health. Faced with these problems the volume gives an overview on the mulifaceted aspects of environmental hygiene and medicine. Contributions include basic and innovative approaches in the fields of - Experimental cell biology - Cytotoxicity testing - Mutagenicity and carcinogenicity studies - Inhalation toxicity - Human exposure monitoring - Epidemiology - Important harzardous agents - Environmental control, prevention and legislation.

The protection of human health and food and fiber resources against the ravages of pests of many sorts is a continuous struggle by all people in the world. The use of chemical pesticides as an aid in this struggle is now also global. These chemicals are deliberately added to the environment for the purpose of killing or injuring some form of life. Because pesticides are generally less selectively toxic than would be desired, non-target species, including humans, must be protected from injury by these chemicals. This can only be achieved by thorough understanding of the comparative toxicology of these compounds, and by minimizing human (and other desirable species) exposure. The latter can only be achieved by sound regulatory policies that utilize scientific principles and data, properly tempered by both gaps in that data and sociologic and economic considerations. This book contains the proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on "Toxicology of Pesticides: Experimental, Clinical and Regulatory Perspectives" held in Riva del Garda on October 6-15, 1986. This NATO-ASI has been promoted by the School of Public Health and Community Medicine, University of Washington at Seattle, by the Institute of Pharmacological Sciences, University of Milano and by the Giovanni Lorenzini Foundation, and has been sponsored by both the Society of Toxicology (USA) and the Italian Society of Toxicology.

A. AULICIEMS Living organisms respond to atmospheric variability and variation, and over time morphological and process differentiations occur both within individuals and the species, as well as in the environment itself. In systems language, the concern is with the atmospheric process-response system of energy and matter flows within the biosphere. The study of such interactions between living organ isms and the atmospheric environment falls within the field of bioclimatology, alternatively referred to as biometeorology. Amongst the more readily recognizable study areas under the bioclimatolog that investigate the effects of atmospheric variation and ical umbrella are those variability upon 1. Terrestrial and aquatic ecology (zoological, botanical and ethological), natural resource production and management (including silviculture, agri culture, horticulture, and grassland, wetland, and marine systems). 2. Stress, morbidity and mortality in animals and humans (including physiolog ical and psychological adaptations). 3. The built environment (all aspects of planning, urban design, and architec ture). 4. Economic systems and social activities (including organizational, individual, and group behavior and management). In addition, bioclimatology is very much concerned with the feedback loop, that is both 5. The inadvertent modification of the atmosphere by living systems, especially human, i.e., studies of pollution, changes to atmospheric amenity, and the processes of deterioration of landscape (deforestation and desertification), and 6. The advertent modifications of natural energy and matter flows within urban areas and indoor climate constructions."

The purpose of this book is to investigate the suitability and applicability of available methods for analyzing the human and ecological risks involved in the release of genetically-modified microorganisms. Main topics include: - risk analysis and assessment; approach to safety assurance; - inventory of available scientific risk assessment methods for biotechnology; - identification of methodology gaps and research needs in biology, ecology or other disciplines; - development of a general framework to guide future biotechnology risk assessment efforts; - international regulatory activities.

Environmental Chemistry is a relatively young science. Interest in this subject, however, is growing very rapidly and, although no agreement has been reached as yet about the exact content and limits of this interdisciplinary discipline, there appears to be increasing interest in seeing environmental topics which are based on chemistry embodied in this subject. One of the first objectives of Environ mental Chemistry must be the study of the environment and of natural chemical processes which occur in the environment. A major purpose of this series on Environmental Chemistry, therefore, is to present a reasonably uniform view of various aspects of the chemistry of the environment and chemical reactions occurring in the environment. The industrial activities of man have given a new dimension to Environ mental Chemistry. We have now synthesized and described over five million chemical compounds and chemical industry produces about hundred and fifty million tons of synthetic chemicals annually. We ship billions of tons of oil per year and through mining operations and other geophysical modifications, large quantities of inorganic and organic materials are released from their natural deposits. Cities and metropolitan areas of up to 15 million inhabitants produce large quantities of waste in relatively small and confined areas. Much of the chemical products and waste products of modern society are released into the environment either during production, storage, transport, use or ultimate disposal. These released materials participate in natural cycles and reactions and frequently lead to interference and disturbance of natural systems.

M. B. KASTAN Cancer is a disease resulting from alterations of cellular genes which cause phe notypic changes in somatic cells. Usually, when we think about genetic diseases, we think about inheriting one or two abnormal genes from our parents and these gene abnormalities confer the disease phenotype. In contrast, in the majority of cancers, no such inherited gene abnormalities can be identified (which does not mean that they do not exist) and there is no obvious family history suggesting an inherited disease. The vast majority of genes which are altered in the cancer cells are not transmitted through the germ line, but rather become abnormal in somatic cells sometime during the lifetime of the individual. Thus, the critical question which arises is "how do these genetic changes occur in somatic cells?." Epidemiologic data suggest that exposure to environmental carcinogens con tributes to the genesis of at least 80% of all human cancers (DOLL and PETO 1981). Thus, it is natural to suspect that the genetic changes in somatic cells which con tribute to the transformed phenotype arise from DNA damage caused by such exposures. Therefore, understanding how cells respond to DNA-damaging agents is likely to be an important component of our understanding of the genesis of human tumors."

From 11 to 15 July 1977 about 60 physiologists, endo crinologists, ecologists and other biologists from 14 countries convened at the University Montpellier for a symposium on Environmental Endocrinology. This meet ing was organized as a Satellite Symposium of the 27th International Congress of Physiological Sciences, Paris, 18-23 July 1977. This volume is a record of the com munications presented at the symposium. The objectives of the program were to examine the role of the endocrine system in a wide spectrum of adjustments and adaptations to changes in environmental conditions by various spe cies of animals, including man, and to promote an ex change of ideas among investigators who have approached these functions from diverse aspects. The diversity of the information and ideas communicated is great. Of necessity, they represent only an extremely modest se lection of the many facets of endocrine function in the interaction of animals with their environments. Be yond the usefulness of the communications individually, we hope that they collectively demonstrate the substan tial heuristic value of the concept of environmental endocrinology as it was perceived by the participants. We acknowledge gratefully the kindness and sympathy of Professor Jaques ROUZAUD, President of the University of Montpellier II, for his generous extension of the hospitality of the University to the Symposium. We are most grateful to Mrs. Monique VIEU who effected so well the secretarial organization of the Sympos."

Since the implementation of catalysts containing platinum-group-elements (PGE) for the control of vehicle emissions in 1975, a controversial discussion has begun on PGE emissions and eventual consequences for the environment. However, a comprehensive overview of the various works and results in different scientific areas is still lacking. This book covers all aspects of anthropogenic PGE emissions and their consequences for man and environment. The interdisciplinary approach is substantiated by contributions from the fields of environmental geosciences, analytical chemistry, biology and occupational medicine. The articles mirror the actual status of scientific work and discuss environmentally related topics. Modern analytical methods for various environmental matrices as well as models of the current and future geochemical behaviour of PGE in the environment are presented. Bioavailability and toxicological and allergic potentials are discussed.

Chemical pesticides continue as a point of major controversy in our society. Increasingly stringent regulatory actions on the part of state and federal agencies, exemplified by the RPAR (Rebuttable Presump tion Against Registration) program of the Environmental Protection Agency, are supported by environmental groups and are generally op posed or viewed with skepticism by agriculturalists. The energy crisis invokes other questions on benefits of pesticides versus nonchemical controls and effects on labor utilization. As DDT and other persistent pesticides have been phased out, the more labile, short-lived chemicals have filled the voids in pest management systems; and effects on nontarget species appear to have declined in recent years as the shift occurred. However, nagging ques tions of the hazard to man and other nontarget species from long-term, low-level exposure to pesticides are frequently raised; and recent suggestions that certain well-known and long-used chemicals cause cancer, increase sterility, and initiate or augment other deleterious effects in test animals have instilled a sense of caution and raised con cern about the continued availability of some pesticides previously considered safe. So the facade of concern and confusion continues. This book is an outgrowth of a symposium at the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in February, 1978. An introduction has been added, and some of the papers have been modified since presentation."

Estimates of the air pollution health impact play a crucial role in environmental protection. These estimates require accurate data on the pollutant exposure and dose to the population as well as the dose-response relationships to calculate the health impact. From an air quality manager's perspective there is concern about the validity and accuracy of these calculations. There is a need for information and possible ways to adjust the assessment. One important topic for air quality managers is to understand the relative cont- bution of sources to the total exposure. These sources may be coming from both different outdoor sources from sectors such as transport, industry and energy ind- tries, and from a number of indoor sources, such as heating, ventilation and indoor activities as well as out-gassing from building material and furniture. Indoor air quality is now drawing the attention of policy makers. The basic right to, and importance of, healthy indoor air was emphasized by the World Health Organization as early as 2000 and several countries have described target conc- trations for various pollutants. The WHO Air Quality Guidelines 2005 rec- mended the development of specific guidelines for indoor air quality and these are expected to be published soon. Indoor air pollutants have not been as extensively monitored as outdoor air pollutants and the evidence base for contributions to health effects needs to be strengthened.

Diverse driving forces, processes and actors are responsible for different trends in the development of megacities and large urban areas. Under the dynamics of global change, megacities are themselves changing: On the one hand they are prone to increasing socio-economic vulnerability due to pronounced poverty, socio-spatial and political fragmentation, sometimes with extreme forms of segregation, disparities and conflicts. On the other hand megacities offer positive potential for global transformation, e.g. minimisation of space consumption, highly effective use of resources, efficient disaster prevention and health care options -- if good strategies were developed. At present in many megacities and urban areas of the developing world and the emerging economies the quality of life is eroding. Most of the megacities have grown to unprecedented size, and the pace of urbanisation has far exceeded the growth of the necessary infrastructure and services. As a result, an increasing number of urban dwellers are left without access to basic amenities like clean drinking water, fresh air and safe food. Additionally, social inequalities lead to subsequent and significant intra-urban health inequalities and unbalanced disease burdens that can trigger conflict and violence between subpopulations. The guiding idea of our book lies in a multi- and interdisciplinary approach to the complex topic of megacities and urban health that can only be adequately understood when different disciplines share their knowledge and methodological tools to work together. We hope that the book will allow readers to deepen their understanding of the complex dynamics of urban and megacity populations through the lens of public health, geographical and other research perspectives.