MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 2015 HEALTH & SCIENCE Correct glove use may save hairdressers’ skin NEY YORK: Hairdressers who reuse gloves while being exposed to these chemicals, the study team dressers followed the study team’s glove recommen- glove use affected symptoms of hand eczema. dyeing hair risk exposure to chemicals that cause says. Aerts and lead author Tom Geens, both of dations, using gloves during the entire dyeing But, the researchers conclude, the results show irritation and allergic reactions, according to a study Provikmo Occupational Health Services in Bruges, process and only using disposable gloves once. The that correct glove use does reduce exposure to a from Belgium. Occupational eczema, a severe itchy told Reuters Health in a joint comment that this is hairdressers also used gloves with a longer cuff that very common cause of eczema among hair- skin rash, is often caused by such chemical expo- likely to be because hairdressers commonly misuse were made of nitrile, which tends to be more chemi- dressers. sures and frequently drives hairdressers and trainees gloves, with some industry guidelines even instruct- cal-resistant than traditional latex. The researchers Dr Pil Kyun Jung of the Department of out of the profession, researchers report in the jour- ing hairdressers to turn gloves inside out and reuse monitored subjects’ exposure to the dyeing agents Occupational and Environmental Medicine in Korea nal Occupational and Environmental Medicine. them. Hand eczema “is a major problem in the sec- by collecting urine samples before and after their notes that glove size is also important to consider. In a small study, hairdressers who used longer, tor, and it has been shown previously to be an shifts on three consecutive work days. They collect- “Especially in the case of using loose gloves, con- more protective disposable gloves - and used them important reason to leave the profession, or even ed another sample after at least two days without centrations and absorption of such substances can only once - had much lower exposure to a common earlier, the training,” the authors said by email. exposure to see if the substances built up in the hair- be amplified,” Jung said in an email. skin-irritating chemical in hair dye, compared to dressers’ bodies. The results showed that the hair- Geens and Aerts strongly advised against when they reused gloves. Evelyne Aerts, an author of Traditional latex dressers’ overall exposure to PTD was much lower in reusing disposable gloves and recommended the study, told Reuters Health she decided to investi- The researchers recruited 11 hairdressers from the second week, while only using gloves once. using them throughout the entire dyeing process. gate the subject after a pregnant hairdresser asked two hair salons in Belgium and observed them over Urine concentrations of the chemical were about “Protective gloves should be worn while mixing her whether it was safe to continue working with a two-week period. During the first week, the hair- one sixth of what they were during the week when color, application of color and during rinsing and chemicals. Of particular interest were PPD and PTD dressers followed their normal glove use routine, gloves were reused. The researchers did not find a washing after dyeing,” they said. Beyond changing (paraphenylenediamine and paratoluenediamine), which involved washing disposable gloves, then difference in the hairdressers’ exposure to PPD and gloves as often as possible and washing hands if chemicals frequently found in permanent hair dye turning them inside out and reusing them. The par- the chemical did not appear to build up in the body. there is an unexpected exposure to hair dye, “After and known to cause allergic skin reactions. Past ticipants also tended to be less careful with glove washing hands, proper moisturizing using hand research has shown that under real work conditions, use while using lighter colored hair dye. Proper moisturizing lotions or creams” will help prevent irritation, Jung using gloves has not protected hairdressers from During the second week of the study, the hair- The study did not directly examine how proper advised. — Reuters It’s panda-monium! National Zoo says Mei Xiang has twins

WASHINGTON: It’s double trouble for the hadn’t fully developed. Still, Neiffer, the National Zoo after its adult female panda zoo’s chief veterinarian, said the first cub gave birth to twins. The cubs arrived about had shown “all signs of being healthy and five hours apart Saturday. Panda mom Mei happy.” Keepers have heard it squeal and Xiang (may-SHONG) gave birth to the first grunt. The zoo said on Twitter that the sec- cub at 5:35 pm and a second at 10:07 pm, ond cub also appeared healthy. Even if the the zoo said. If the cubs survive, they would new cubs are physically fit, panda fans be the 17-year-old panda’s third and fourth shouldn’t expect to see them in person for surviving offspring. Mei Xiang’s first cub, Tai a while. After Bao Bao was born in 2013, it Shan, was born in 2005 and returned to was about 5 months before she made her China in 2010. Her second cub, Bao Bao, public debut. Fans who want to see the turns 2-years-old Sunday and still lives at newest pandas will have to try to catch a the zoo. glimpse of them on the zoo’s online panda The new additions mean that for the cameras. first time the zoo has five pandas in resi- dence. In addition to Bao Bao, Mei Xiang Genetic matches and the new cubs, the zoo is also home to Though the zoo’s camera-viewing site an adult male panda named Tian Tian. In can host about 850 viewers at a time, the past, the zoo has never had more than spokeswoman Pamela Baker-Masson says three pandas at one time. Zoo director the site has been overloaded with people Dennis Kelly said at an evening news con- trying to watch. Fans can also download a ference following the first cub’s birth that zoo app to view the cameras. The public he was “so happy, so pleased, so excited.” also won’t learn immediately whether the

LIBERIA: In this Tuesday, Sept 30, 2014 file photo, a medical worker sprays disinfectant around people being discharged from the Island Clinic Ebola treatment center in Monrovia. With many Ebola survivors ailing, doctors evaluate situation

‘It’s too early to know what the direct effect or link is to Ebola, if at all’

DAKAR: Lingering health problems afflicting many of the roughly 13,000 Ebola survivors have galvanized global and local health officials to find out how wide- spread the ailments are, and how to remedy them. The World Health Organization calls it an emergency within an emergency. Many of the survivors have vision and hearing issues. Some others experience physical and emotional pains, fatigue and other prob- lems. The medical community is negotiating unchart- WASHINGTON: This image released August 22, 2015 courtesy of the Smithsonian’s ed waters as it tries to measure the scale of this prob- National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute shows giant panda Mei Xiang in lem that comes on the tail end of the biggest Ebola labor. — AP photos outbreak in history. “If we can find out this kind of information, hope- The zoo’s chief veterinarian Don Neiffer was cubs are male or female or whether the fully we can help other Ebola survivors in the future,” also asked about the possibility of a second zoo’s male panda, Tian Tian, is the cub’s Dr Zan Yeong, an eye specialist involved in a study of cub. In 2013, when Mei Xiang gave birth to father. Mei Xiang was artificially inseminat- health problems in survivors in Liberia, told The Bao Bao, she also gave birth to a stillborn ed with sperm from Tian Tian and a panda Associated Press. About 7,500 people will enroll - cub. Asked about the possibility of a sec- named Hui Hui from Wolong, China, who 1,500 Ebola survivors and 6,000 of their close contacts ond cub this time around, Neiffer said that was determined to be one of the best - and will be monitored over a five-year period in the LIBERIA: Dr Zan Yeong, left, an eye specialist for a joint Liberian-American Ebola initiative during an ultrasound earlier this week he genetic matches. The zoo will use saliva study launched by Partnership for Research on Ebola known as the Partnership for Research on Ebola Vaccine in Liberia (PREVAIL), examines the did see “two areas that made me excited.” from the cubs’ mouths to determine gen- Vaccines in Liberia, or PREVAIL. eyes of Ebola survivor Abraham Moses. der and paternity, said Laurie Thompson, a Only about 40 percent of those infected have sur- 2007. But with such small numbers, past outbreaks who became infected while working in Sierra Leone Physically fit giant panda biologist at the zoo. vived Ebola, according to WHO estimates. But while haven’t provided sufficient opportunities for extensive for WHO, developed an inflammation and very high The zoo says after the second cub was The National Zoo is one of only four the survivors beat the odds, preliminary research study, Bausch said. Now, with thousands of survivors, blood pressure in one eye months after being born, keepers removed one of the cubs and zoos in the US to have pandas, which are shows that many are still suffering. Around half those doctors want to learn why people are experiencing released from treatment. His iris temporarily changed moved it to an incubator. The zoo says it on loan from China, and its cubs are the who received post-recovery check-ups have joint pain, these ailments, how they affect the body, what per- color from blue to green; doctors found his eye con- will alternately swap the cubs, allowing one only ones born in the United States this said Dr Daniel Bausch, an Ebola expert and consultant centage of survivors has issues and how to treat them. tained the Ebola virus. He is still recovering, but his time to nurse and spend time with Mei year. Pandas also have a history at the for WHO. “We don’t have the capacity yet - we wish we Experts also want to learn whether the physical vision has improved, according to Emory University Xiang while the other is bottle fed. The zoo Washington zoo that makes them closely did - to follow every survivor,” he said. Consequently, problems are directly caused by the virus, whether Hospital which has been treating him. the percentage of survivors who have complications said it could not confirm whether the cub watched. The zoo’s first pair of pandas, they existed before, are side-effects or perhaps Nancy Writebol, who last year became the second isn’t known, he said. He described the joint pain as autoimmune reactions, Bausch said. “It’s too early ... to American infected with Ebola, said she suffers joint that was removed was the first or second Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, were a gift from “very debilitating and a very serious problem that can born. It says pandas give birth to twins China following President Richard Nixon’s know what the direct effect or link is to Ebola, if at all,” pain, mostly in her knees. She said she had problems prevent people from going back to work and provid- Bausch said. In early August, WHO gathered experts in with her vision, but they seem to have gone away. She about 50 percent of the time, but this is historic 1972 visit to the country. The pair ing for their family.” only the third time a giant panda living in had five cubs while living at the zoo but Sierra Leone who concluded that more needs to be assists a weekly survivor clinic in Liberia at ELWA hos- Some degree of changes in vision has been report- done to provide better care plans for survivors, and pital run by Serving In Mission, a North Carolina-based the United States has given birth to twins. none survived. The zoo’s current pandas, ed by roughly 25 percent of the survivors who have Keepers will be watching the newest cubs Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, the parents of more research and specialist help is needed. Christian organization. been seen by medics, he said, including severe inflam- She noted that Liberia’s health-care system is bro- closely. Pink, hairless and blind, newborn both Bao Bao and Tai Shan, arrived in 2000. mation of the eye that if untreated can result in blind- Still recovering ken and many survivors lack running water and elec- cubs weigh three to five ounces (85 to 142 The pandas belong to China as do any cubs ness, he said. The Ebola virus has been found, in at Post-recovery problems haven’t been confined to tricity in their homes, making their recovery more grams) and are about the size of a stick of they have. The cubs’ birth isn’t the only least a few cases, to linger in the eyes, though experts West African survivors, whose health might not have arduous than that of survivors in the West. “There are a butter. Kelly, the zoo director, called it a event being celebrated at the zoo this say it is not transmitted through tears. Morris Kallon, been strong to begin with considering the poor state lot that are having troubles with vision,” she said. “One “very fragile time.” weekend. For Bao Bao’s second birthday 34, a health worker who survived Ebola in a village in of health care in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea - the of the greatest complaints that we see is joint pain. “We’re very excited, but we’re very cau- Sunday she will get a cake made out of ice Liberia’s Grand Cape Mount County, said he had three impoverished countries most affected by Ebola - And you can tell just by the way people are moving tious,” he said before the second cub’s birth, with the number “2” on top. She will stay at fevers, headaches, lower abdominal pain and red eyes even before the epidemic. Dr Ian Crozier, an American that they are suffering.” —AP noting that in 2012, Mei Xiang gave birth to the zoo until she is four years old when she after he returned home. a cub that died after just six days. Its lungs will return to China. —AP Testing blood samples “I have been experiencing whole lot of problems within my body system,” he said. “I still feel pains in my back. It is very difficult for me to swing my arms. ... My vision is always blurred, like dew on my face.” Lab technician Mohamed SK Sesay was working at a hos- pital in Kenema, a town in eastern Sierra Leone, test- ing blood samples for Ebola when he fell sick with the virus. About eight members of his team got infected and he was among the few survivors, WHO said. After he recovered, he was discharged from an Ebola treat- ment unit in September. He was still weak, and says he was shunned by his community. Then his health deteriorated. “Sleepless nights. Joint pain. Muscle pain,” he said. “I started experienc- ing loss of weight. ... Loss of sight was the worst one that set me off. I used to cry. I couldn’t see my comput- er.” He was attended to by one of Sierra Leone’s few eye doctors and his health improved overall, but he still has bad days. “My biggest challenge is now my health,” he said. He loses vision from time to time. Sometimes if people call out to him on the street he can’t hear them. Eye problems were noted in some survivors of WASHINGTON: In this photo one of the giant panda cubs is examined by veterinari- Ebola outbreaks in Congo in 1995, in Uganda’s Gulu LIBERIA: Patients being discharged from the Island Clinic Ebola treatment center in Monrovia, ans after being born at Smithsonian’s National Zoo. district in 2000 and in Uganda’s Bundibugyo district in wait to be sprayed with disinfectant.