Documents Murphy, Michael 2 results

"This paper examines the influence of socio-economic risk factors over the life course on the self-rated health of older Russian men and women.
A random sample (response rate 61%) of the general population of the Russian Federation in 2002 included 1004 men and 1930 women aged 50 years and over in a cross-sectional study.
They provided information concerning their childhood circumstances, including going to bed hungry ; education ; current social conditions, including per capita household income ; health behaviours and self-rated health.
There was considerable tracking of adverse social conditions across the life course with men and women who reported hunger in childhood having lower educational achievements, and current household income was strongly influenced by educational attainment.
The effect of these socio-economic risk factors on health accumulated with an odds ratio of poor health of 1.87 [1.07-3.28] for men with one risk factor, 3.64 [2.13-6.22] for two risk factors and 4.51 [2.57-7.91] for all three compared to men with no risk factors.
For women, the odds ratios were 1.44 [1.05-2.01], 2.88 [2.10-3.93] and 4.27 [3.03-6.00] for one, two and three risk factors, respectively.
Current income was the strongest individual predictor for men, and education for women.
Adjustment for health behaviours reduced the odds ratios only marginally.
The results suggest that self-rated health in older Russians reflects social exposures accumulated over the life course, with the differentials observed only partially explained by current social conditions.
Health behaviours were not involved in mediating social differences in self-rated health.
Our results indicate that a life course approach may contribute to the understanding of health in Russia."

"Certain paternal occupations and related exposures have been suggested as possible risk factors for neural tube defects (NTD). We analysed data collected as part of a case-control study to investigate the relationship between paternal occupational exposures and NTD. Cases were 694 NTD-affected pregnancies diagnosed between 1970 and 1987 in Oxfordshire or West Berkshire, England. Controls were randomly selected from a computerised maternity database individually matched to cases on maternal year of birth and year of index pregnancy. Data on paternal occupation were abstracted from hospital antenatal records. Associations between paternal occupational exposures and NTD were assessed using odds ratios adjusted for maternal year of birth, year of index pregnancy, gender of baby, multiplicity of birth and number of previous obstetric events. Statistically significant positive associations were observed for paternal occupational exposure to agrochemicals and animals. Analysis by occupational title revealed that more case than control fathers were farmers, gardeners and butchers. Statistically significant negative associations were seen for paternal occupational exposure to inhaled hydrocarbons and metal-working oil mists. The findings from this population-based study for paternal agricultural and animal-related occupations overlap and have been previously observed. The apparent protective effects of fathers working with inhaled hydrocarbons and metal-working oil mists have not been previously described. No underlying biological mechanisms have been identified, therefore other explanations cannot be excluded."