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In case of a mass casualty radiation event, there is a need to distinguish total-body irradiation (TBI) and partial-body irradiation (PBI) to concentrate overwhelmed medical resources to the individuals that would develop an acute radiation syndrome (ARS) and need hematologic support (i.e., mostly TBI victims). To improve the identification and medical care of TBI versus PBI individuals, reliable biomarkers of exposure could be very useful. To investigate this issue, pairs of baboons (n = 18) were exposed to different situations of TBI and PBI corresponding to an equivalent of either 5 Gy 60Co gamma irradiation (5 Gy TBI; 7.5 Gy left hemibody/2.5 right hemibody TBI; 5.55 Gy 90% PBI; 6.25 Gy 80% PBI; 10 Gy 50% PBI, 15 Gy 30% PBI) or 2.5 Gy (2.5 Gy TBI; 5 Gy 50% PBI). More than fifty parameters were evaluated before and after irradiation at several time points up to 200 days. A partial least square discriminant analysis showed a good distinction of TBI from PBI situations that were equivalent to 5 Gy. Furthermore, all the animals were pooled in two groups, TBI (n = 6) and PBI (n = 12), for comparison using a logistic regression and a non parametric statistical test. Nine plasmatic biochemical markers and most of hematological parameters turned out to discriminate between TBI and PBI animals during the prodromal phase and the manifest illness phase. The most significant biomarkers were aspartate aminotransferase, creatine kinase, lactico dehydrogenase, urea, Flt3-ligand, iron, C-reactive protein, absolute neutrophil count and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for the early period, and Flt3-ligand, iron, platelet count, hemoglobin, monocyte count, absolute neutrophil count and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for the ARS phase. These results suggest that heterogeneity could be distinguished within a range of 2.5 to 5 Gy TBI.

Prospective longitudinal studies mainly conclude on a causal role of e-cigarettes in the initiation of cigarettes in flagrant contradiction with conclusions drawn from epidemiology and other studies showing a sharp decline in cigarette use in parallel with the spread of e-cigarette use. This systematic review explores the reasons for this discrepancy., Methods: Among 84 publications on e-cigarette/cigarette association in adolescents identified in the Medline database from 2011 to 2022, 23 concern 22 never-smoker longitudinal sub-cohorts., Results: A link between e-cigarette experimentation at T1 and cigarette initiation at T2 is reported in sub-cohort analyses of never-smokers (AOR: 1.41 to 8.30). However, studies exclude 64.3% of T1 e-cigarette experimenters (because of dual-use) and 74.1% of T2 cigarette experimenters. With this study design, e-cigarettes contribute only to 5.3% of T2 cigarette experimentation, casting major doubt on the external validity of results and authors' conclusions that e-cigarettes have a significant effect on the initiation of cigarettes ( Gateway effect ) at the population level. This sub-cohort design prohibits highlighting any Diversion effect , which is the most likely mechanism accounting for the competition between these two products., Conclusions: While nicotine abstinence remains the best medical option, over-regulation of e-cigarettes because of misinterpretation of longitudinal study results may be detrimental to public health and tobacco control.

Pulmonary Langerhans cell histiocytosis (PLCH) belongs to the spectrum of diffuse interstitial cystic pneumonias; it affects young people of both sexes and occurs almost exclusively in tobacco smokers or co-users of tobacco and cannabis. The management of this severe chronic disease is undertaken in specialized centers. A better understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms of the disease has opened up prospects for targeted therapies. However, supporting the abstinence from inhaling noxious materials which determine its prognosis remains the cornerstone of treatment. Patients with PLCH who persist in smoking despite the diagnosis may be very dependent on tobacco, experience significant difficulties in stopping smoking, and must have access to specialist smoking cessation clinics., (Copyright © 2021 SPLF. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Binge drinking and continued alcohol use in large amounts are associated with many health problems but there are very few studies on the effects of alcohol intake on the function of lung, the effects of ethanol on lung diseases, and links between alcohol consumption and lung cancer. Therefore, our knowledge of these interactions from pathophysiological, clinical and epidemiological aspects is poor., Background: Acute alcohol exposure stimulates the beating of the cilia of mucociliary epithelium cells but the effects of chronic ethanol over-exposure are different, with a progressive desensitization of ciliary response: ethanol exposure reduces airway mucociliary clearance. As a result this important innate primary defense mechanism, which protects the lungs from the deleterious effects of different pollutants, allergens and pathogens, is weakened. Chronic alcohol exposure alters the adaptative immune response to pathogens (decreasing the phagocytic function of macrophages) and leads to an inflammatory response (pro-inflammatory cytokines). Respiratory function is impaired by alcohol misuse: asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung infections, and the acute respiratory distress syndrome are more frequent and severe. It is difficult to establish a causal link between alcohol and lung cancer as the lung cancer risk is likely confounded by the effect of smoking. Very few studies among never smokers have been conducted until now and the results are not consistent: they are therefore necessary to confirm or refute whether lung cancer is attributable to alcohol misuse., Conclusion: The pulmonary effects of alcohol misuse are many but further investigations into the mechanism by which alcohol might predispose to lung cancer are necessary., (Copyright © 2018 SPLF. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Tobacco use is not just about manufactured cigarettes. Rolling tobacco, highly prized in the wake of price increases, is estimated to carry more toxic agents than its counterpart. This study shows that the use of cigar, pipe, cigarillos and narghile also leads to a cohort of pathologies similar to or more than what is known for smoking single cigarettes. Exotic, liquid or heated forms do just as much. The non-smoked tobacco, often fallen into disuse in France is very used in the United States and especially in Scandinavia. Denuded of inhaled products, it is often pointed as a form of reduction of smoking risks. Its use by athletes in all countries as a doping attitude, especially in ski disciplines, required a campaign of prevention within the federations concerned., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

There is emerging evidence that Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) supplements can decrease aggression. However, experimental studies with adults from non-specific populations are scarce. We hypothesized that Omega-3 supplements would decrease self-reported aggression among non-clinical participants. In a double-blind randomized trial, two groups of participants (N = 194) aged 18-45 from the general population followed a 6-weeks treatment with 638mg docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and 772mg eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) per day or the equivalent quantity of copra oil (placebo). Self-reported aggressiveness was measured at baseline and after the 6-week treatment period. Findings showed that Omega-3 supplements significantly decreased self-reported aggressiveness at the end of the 6-week period (d = 0.31). In conclusion, this experiment indicates that Omega-3 administration has beneficial effects in reducing aggression among the general population., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

This retrospective cohort study deals with the causes of death among 57,000 military personnel who served in the French Navy surface vessels and were observed over the period 1975-2000. We successively compared the mortality rate and the specific causes of death between two groups differing in their potential exposure levels to radar. Occupational exposure was defined according to the on-board workplace (radar and control groups). The age-adjusted death ratios of the navy personnel were compared. For all causes of death, the results showed that 885 deaths in the radar group and 299 in the control group occurred (RR = 1.00 (95% CI: 0.88-1.14)). RRs were 0.92 (95% CI: 0.69-1.24) for neoplasms. For the duration of follow-up, the results did not show an increased health risk for military personnel exposed to higher levels of radio frequencies in the radar group, but the number of deaths was very small for some cancer sites.

In case of a mass casualty radiation event, there is a need to distinguish total-body irradiation (TBI) and partial-body irradiation (PBI) to concentrate overwhelmed medical resources to the individuals that would develop an acute radiation syndrome (ARS) and need hematologic support (i.e., mostly TBI victims). To improve the identification and medical care of TBI versus PBI individuals, reliable biomarkers of exposure could be very useful. To investigate this issue, pairs of baboons (n = 18) were exposed to different situations of TBI and PBI corresponding to an equivalent of either 5 Gy 60Co gamma irradiation (5 Gy TBI; 7.5 Gy left hemibody/2.5 right hemibody TBI; 5.55 Gy 90% PBI; 6.25 Gy 80% PBI; 10 Gy 50% PBI, 15 Gy 30% PBI) or 2.5 Gy (2.5 Gy TBI; 5 Gy 50% PBI). More than fifty parameters were evaluated before and after irradiation at several time points up to 200 days. A partial least square discriminant analysis showed a good distinction of TBI from PBI situations that were equivalent to 5 Gy. Furthermore, all the animals were pooled in two groups, TBI (n = 6) and PBI (n = 12), for comparison using a logistic regression and a non parametric statistical test. Nine plasmatic biochemical markers and most of hematological parameters turned out to discriminate between TBI and PBI animals during the prodromal phase and the manifest illness phase. The most significant biomarkers were aspartate aminotransferase, creatine kinase, lactico dehydrogenase, urea, Flt3-ligand, iron, C-reactive protein, absolute neutrophil count and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for the early period, and Flt3-ligand, iron, platelet count, hemoglobin, monocyte count, absolute neutrophil count and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio for the ARS phase. These results suggest that heterogeneity could be distinguished within a range of 2.5 to 5 Gy TBI.

Background: Liver fibrosis, now assessed by liver biopsy or using non-invasive methods, might be different in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) and chronic hepatitis C (CHC)., Aim: To compare histological amount and pattern of fibrosis in CHB and CHC., Methods: Sixty CHB and sixty CHC biopsies from naïve patients, standardized for the spectrum of Metavir fibrosis stages, were analysed for (1) semi-quantitative Metavir activity, steatosis, perisinusoidal fibrosis, alpha-smooth muscle actin immunoreactivity, (2) quantitative morphometry of total and perisinusoidal fibrosis ratio (FR and PFR)., Results: Biopsy quality, activity, steatosis, Fibrotest(®) values were not different between the two groups. Correlation between FR and fibrosis stage was stronger in CHB (r = 0.90) than CHC (r = 0.81). Mean FR was 1.5-fold higher in CHC than CHB for early fibrosis stages (F ≤ 2, P = 0.001), with higher PFR in CHC for F0 (P = 0.001), F1 (P = 0.08) and F2 (P = 0.004). Hepatic stellate cell activation index was also higher in CHC than in CHB (P = 0.007). Diagnosis performance of FR for significant fibrosis was not statistically different in CHB than CHC (AUROC 0.92 and 0.87 respectively), but cut-offs optimizing sensitivity and specificity were higher in CHC and their extrapolation to CHB led to 10% decrease in sensitivity. In F ≤ 2 patients, correlation between FR and Fibrotest(®) was only significant in CHC., Conclusions: As compared to CHB, amount of fibrosis is greater in CHC for F ≤ 2 patients, mainly because of higher perisinusoidal fibrosis. These data illustrate difficulty to assess early fibrosis stages by non-invasive methods, and support the need for specific cut-offs in CHB., (© 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.)

Smoking represents a major public health problem because of its high morbidity and mortality rates. Nearly half of the deaths in the lower class are caused by smoking. The socially deprived are physically and psychologically vulnerable. The instability of their situation increases the difficulty to invest in smoking cessation and certain time orientations linked to this social deprivation represent negative factors in the prognosis. Socially deprived populations do not understand the consequences of smoking unless they are in denial of the risks. The motivation to stop is essentially financial. The perception of smoking cessation is taken as a deprivation of pleasure. Independently of the social deprivation factors, taking into account the time perspective conveys necessary information of appropriate care.

This biodosimetry study used irradiated baboons to investigate the efficacy of a kinetic multiparameter (clinical, physical, and biological) approach for discriminating partial-body irradiation (PBI) and total-body irradiation (TBI). Animals were unilaterally (front) exposed to 60Co gamma rays (8 to 32 cGy min) using either TBI or vertical left hemi-body irradiation (HBI), as follows: 2.5 Gy TBI (n = 2), 5 Gy TBI (n = 2), 5 Gy HBI (n = 2), and 10 Gy HBI (n = 2). Midline tissue doses were measured at the anterior iliac crest level with an ionization chamber, and body dosimetry was performed using thermoluminescent dosimeters. Blood samples were collected before exposure and from 1 h until 200 d after irradiation. Clinical status, complete blood cell count, biochemical parameters, and cytogenetic analysis were evaluated. The partial least square discriminant analysis chosen for statistical analysis showed that the four groups of irradiated baboons were clearly separated. However, the dicentric chromosome assay may not distinguish HBI from TBI in confounding situations where equivalent whole-body doses are similar and the time of exposure is sufficient for peripheral blood lymphocyte homogenization. Interestingly, as bone marrow shielding in HBI animals prevented aplasia from happening, hematologic parameters such as the platelet count and Flt-3 ligand level helped to distinguish HBI and TBI. Moreover, the ratio of neutrophil to lymphocyte counts, creatine kinase, and citrulline levels may be discriminating biomarkers of dose or injury. Both early and delayed clinical signs and bioindicators appear to be useful for assessment of heterogeneous irradiation.

Alcohol is frequently related to interpersonal aggression, but information regarding the role of alcohol consumption by victims of severe aggression is however lacking. In order to better understand the dynamic of victimization, we investigated contextual, facilitator, and psychological impact variables related to victimization in a French sample composed of 1,033 females aged 18-74 years. The participants were recruited using quota sampling methodology, and responses were measured using Computer-Assisted Self-Interviewer. A logistic regression was conducted using a backward elimination procedure to identify the significant predictors of blows and wounds suffered in the past 24 months. The results indicated that victims, relative to nonvictims, did binge drink significantly more often, had a higher aggression trait, and had experienced more social hardships in the past. The study's limitations are noted.

Background & Aims: In chronic hepatitis C (CHC), HCV-specific T-cell responses are often dysfunctionnal. In vitro data point out that regulatory T cells (Treg) are able to suppress HCV-specific lymphocyte proliferation and cytokine secretion but their implication in this pathology is still debated., Methods: Three complementary approaches were performed to investigate phenotype, frequency or localization of intra-hepatic Treg in treatment naïve CHC patients. Double immunohistochemical analysis was performed in 20 formalin-fixed biopsies with CD8/FoxP3 and CD4/FoxP3 antibodies. Cellular markers and cytokines were investigated by quantitative RT-PCR in 27 additional frozen biopsies. Eight other fresh liver biopsies were selected for complementary analysis of immunophenotyping and frequency of intra-hepatic Treg., Results: Immunohistochemical analyses showed the presence of intra-hepatic CD4(+)FoxP3(+)T cells while CD8(+)FoxP3(+)T cells were very scarce. CD4(+)FoxP3(+)T cells were located in necro-inflammatory areas in contact with CD8(+)T cells, suggesting that Treg-mediated inhibition of CD8(+)T cell proliferation may occur by cell-cell contact. RT-PCR analyses showed strong correlations between CD8, FoxP3, and IL-10 with emergence of four distinct gene clusters, CD8-FoxP3, CD8-IL-10, TGF-beta-IL-10, and TNF-alpha-TGF-beta. No correlation was found between serum viral load and any immune markers. Interestingly, the FoxP3(+)/CD8(+) cells ratio significantly decreased in severe fibrosis (F>3) due to the dramatic decline of FoxP3 cells., Conclusions: This study provides new insights into the histological localization of Treg within HCV-infected liver, with a special accumulation of CD4(+)FoxP3(+)Treg cells in necro-inflammatory areas, in contact with CD8(+)T cells. Our results suggest a link between Treg, CD8, and IL-10 which altogether could balance immune responses against the virus to avoid immunopathogenesis., (Copyright 2010 European Association for the Study of the Liver. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Soman, an irreversible organophosphorus cholinesterase inhibitor, induces status epilepticus and, in sensitive brain areas, seizure-related brain damage (e.g. brain edema and neuronal loss). The brain metabolic disturbances associated with these events are ill known. In the present study, we thus evaluated these changes in a murine model of soman-induced status epilepticus up to 7 days after intoxication. Mice, protected by HI-6 and atropine methyl nitrate, were poisoned with soman (172 microg/kg) and then sacrificed at set time points, from 1 h to 7 days. Brain biopsies from the piriform cortex (Pir) and cerebellum (Cer) were analyzed by 1H HRMAS NMR spectroscopy. Spectra were then analyzed using both a supervised multivariate analysis and the QUEST procedure of jMRUI for the quantification of 17 metabolites. The multivariate analysis clearly showed the metabolic differences between a damaged structure (Pir) and a structure with less prominent changes (cerebellum) and helped to globally assess the time course of metabolic changes. Analysis of the individual metabolites showed that the major changes took place in the piriform cortex but that cerebellum was not change-free. The most prominent changes in the former were an early (1-4 h) increase in alanine and acetate, a delayed increase in lactate, glycerophosphocholine and glutamine as well as a delayed decrease in myo-inositol and N-acetylaspartate. A week after poisoning, some metabolic disturbances were still present. Further research will be necessary to clarify what could be the involvement of these metabolites in physiological processes and how they might become useful surrogate markers of brain damage and repair., (2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: In a department of hepatology and gastroenterology, a significant number of patients are hospitalized for alcohol withdrawal. The aim of this retrospective study was to identify factors predictive of severe or complicated alcohol withdrawal in order to improve patient management., Methods: Between June 2002 and June 2005, 182 patients admitted for alcohol dependence according to the DSM-IV classification were enrolled in this study. A unique management protocol for alcohol withdrawal was applied for all patients. The Cushman score was recorded on day 1, 2 and 3 to assess the severity of alcohol withdrawal. We searched for correlations between epidemiological, clinical and biological data and the Cushman score., Result: The study population included 136 (74.7%) men and 46 (25.3%) women, mean age 47.6+/-10.1 years. One hundred and eighteen patients (64.8%) were referred from a specialized outpatient clinic and 64 (35.2%) patients were referred from the emergency unit. The mean and median Cushman scores on day 1, 2 and 3 were: 5.1 and 5; 3.9 and 4; 2.3 and 2, respectively. Twenty patients (11.0%) and five patients (2.7%) had scores greater than or equal to 8 and greater than 12, respectively. The proportion of patients with Cushman score greater than or equal to 8 on day 1 was significantly greater in patients referred from the emergency unit than in those referred from a specialized outpatient clinic (p=0.002). Mean alanine aminotransferase level on day 1 was significantly higher in patients with a score greater than or equal to 8 than in those who had a score less than 8 (112.1+/-44.4 UI/L versus 78.4+/-11.8 UI/L; p=0.046). Referral via an emergency unit as well as an alanine aminotransferase level greater than 1.5fold the upper limit of the normal range were independent predictive factors for a Cushman score greater than or equal to 8. In conclusion, severe alcohol withdrawal (Cushman score>or=8) is significantly associated with initial management in an emergency unit and serum alanine aminotransferase level greater than 1.5 fold the upper limit of the normal range. These predictors should be monitored in order to appropriately adapt the therapeutic schedule.

Aims: Etiological investigations proposed for patients with acute pancreatitis have been evolving considerably these past few years, significantly limiting the number of cases labeled idiopathic. The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of non alcoholic non biliary pancreatitis and identify causes, comparing severity by etiology., Patient and Methods: This retrospective analysis included 108 patients managed from October 1996 to April 2005. Standar-dized extensive etiological investigations were performed. The following criteria of severity were recorded: peak CRP value, Ranson score, Balthazar score, duration of hospital stay and pseudocyst occurrence., Results: The cause of acute pancreatitis was alcohol (N=45), gallstones (N=50), obstruction (N=10), unknown (N=10), drugs (N=9), auto-immunity (N=4), infections (N=3), post-operative (N=2), post-ERCP (N=2), trauma (N=1), hypertriglyceridemia (N=1), genetic (N=1). The main criteria of severity were significantly different between non alcoholic non biliary pancreatitis and the other causes (CRP>120 mg/L, Ranson score>3 and Balthazar score > or =D) while other criteria (pseudocyst occurrence and duration of hospitalisation) were similar. Mean peak CRP was 79.5 mg/L for the overall population and varied significantly by etiology: peak CRP for drug-induced acute pancreatitis (4.6 mg/L) was significantly lower than for the other causes (P<10(-6))., Conclusion: This study shows that non alcoholic non biliary causes account for one third of the cases of acute pancreatitis, usually with a mild to moderate presentation. As the mean peak CRP value is significantly lower in drug-induced acute pancreatitis, careful search for an adverse drug reaction is appropriate in patients with acute pancreatitis of unknown cause and a low peak CRP level.

To date, there has been little research into the relationship between violent behavior and the practice of sport in young adolescents (both girls and boys) in the general population. Indeed, sport is often recommended as a means of prevention and an alternative to violence in adolescence. For this reason, we studied this issue in a representative sample of 14-16 year-olds (ESPAD 99). Among this sample, boys practised some form of extra-curricular sport more than girls (75% vs. 57%), this practice being more intensive (13% boys vs. 4% girls practising sport more than 8 hours per week outside of school) and more "competitive" (14% vs. 4% taking part in national and/or international events). Boys also exhibited more violent behavior than girls, including stealing (mean 0.91 for boys vs. 0.49 in girls), fighting (mean 1.71 in boys vs. 0.49 in girls) or serious offences (mean 0.66 in boys vs. 0.34 in girls). Taking part in competitions was found to be highly associated with violent behavior. In particular, competition at a national or international level was associated (in decreasing order of significance) with fighting (OR=2.35), serious offences (OR=1.78) and stealing (OR=1.58), after adjustment for age, gender, father's educational level and type of school attended. The practical implications of this study are that it is important to moderate one's judgment about the positive effects of sport in reducing youth violence, to be attentive to violent acts perpetrated in stadiums and to better analyze the eventual beneficial effects of sports clubs.

Few studies have analyzed in the general population psychoactive substance use among athletes, especially among females. In fact, sporting activity is often promoted in prevention actions, as an alternative to addiction or alcohol, tobacco or other substance misuse. So, we propose an analysis of the ESPAD 1999 sample among students (16-18 years old), focused on the relationship between sporting activities and substance use. Boys play sport more frequently than girls (71.5% versus 49.5%) and report 8 hours and more a week 4 more times than girls (14% versus 3.5%). Sixty-eight percent of boys and 36% of girls have already participated in sport competitions, more often at a local, departmental or regional level; a minority of them (26% of boys and 20% of girls) have already participated in sport competitions at a national or international level. Sporting activity is decreasing with age among girls, students from general lycée play sport more frequently than others do (vocational lycée); the higher the father's education level, the more frequently the students play sport. Moderate sporting activity (1-8 hours a week) is a protective factor against regular smoking (OR=0.54 in boys and OR=0.60 in girls) and against regular cannabis use among boys (OR=0.64). Intensive sporting activity (>8 hours a week) is a risk factor for illicit drugs (except cannabis) use (OR=2.74) and sleeping drugs/tranquillizers (OR=1.82) only among girls. Competition level is the most important risk factor for substance misuse as well in boys (except sleeping drugs/tranquillizers) as in girls. Practical implications are: adjusting health policy concerning the beneficial effects of sporting activity, raising sports associations abilities and avoiding doping and addiction in high-level sporting activities.

Early February 1999, the French Ministère de la Jeunesse et des Sports (Youth and Sports Ministry) sponsored three different studies, aiming to prevent harmful behavior in the area of sport practices among youth. Two years earlier, our health care team working with drug users published reports on the meaningfulness of intensive sports activities in the history of our patients. The present work was performed to highlight the midterm results of one of these studies, to better understand and quantify the importance of physical training in the history of a group of outpatients seen for addictive disorders and comorbid pathologies. For 20 consecutive weeks, 3,040 self-administered questionnaires were available for persons consulting 20 health centers, 2 self-help groups and a general practitioner network working in the field of alcohol or heroine abuse. One thousand one hundred and eleven questionnaires were filled out (36.1%) and returned by mail for complete analysis: 86% of the answering persons had practiced at least one sports activity or participated in physical training, 10.5% had participated in a national or international level competition, and 10.6% reported stress fractures. In the intensive sports group, 36% had used illicit drugs intravenously and 16.4% said they had already used doping substances. Only 28.4% said they experienced dependence during their period of intensive sports activities compared with 15.2% before this time, and a majority (56.4%) thereafter. Intensive sports or physical training should not be seen as a protective factor nor as a way of improving addictive behaviors. More studies are needed to evaluate individual vulnerability factors and specific harm of overtraining and to determine the exact periods when men and women participating in sports activities are likely to abuse drugs, especially at the end of their career.

Using only ingested alcohol quantity, where individual erroneous values are counted and weigh a lot, alcohol consumption evaluation is biased. An original alcohol consumption evaluation is explained: ordinal factor analysis, and evaluation scales are described. This study shows several people groups, whose sensitivity about alcohol consumption safety varies greatly: from people whose alcohol consumption is low and have a bad picture of alcohol, to people whose consumption is high, have a good picture of alcohol, or think that their consumption is low or normal. In fact, for the last ones, alcohol consumption safety will never be effective.

We have developed a method for the assessment of auditive loss using a sample of 1794 Bekesy audiograms recorded in young military students. A rectangular digital filter was used to smooth rough audiogram signals so as to detect pathological patterns such as scotoms and recruitments. Three factors were extracted from principal component analysis. They were correlated with the usual auditory indices and explained 70% of the total observed variance. The first factor is a general indicator of deafness, while the second and third describe the shapes of the hearing threshold level (asymmetry and convexity). This method can be used for rapid identification of suspect audiograms and is thus of value for epidemiological surveillance of populations exposed to impulsive noise.