[1] Mature fault zones appear to be weaker than predicted by both theory and experiment. One explanation involves the presence of weak minerals, such as talc. However, talc is only a minor constituent of most fault zones and thus the question arises: what proportion of a weak mineral is needed to satisfy weak fault models? Existing studies of fault gouges indicate that >30% of the weak phase is...

slurry or thoracoscopic talc poudrage pleurodesis. Furthermore, it remains unclear whether spontaneous pleurodesis with TPC prolongs life. In survivors to 14 weeks, the mean time to pleurodesis was 54 days. One coauthor’s earlier study revealed that those with TPC who had spontaneous pleurodesis lived over 3 times as long as those who did not have pleurodesis [2] . If pleurodesis by itself prol...

OBJECTIVES To study whether the mortality from non-malignant and malignant respiratory diseases of workers employed in French and Austrian talc mines and mills is related to their long term occupational exposure. METHODS Two historical cohorts were set up comprising all male subjects who had been working continuously for at least 1 year in a series of talc producing companies in France and Au...

Talc formation via silica-metasomatism of ultramafic rocks is believed to play key roles in subduction zone processes. Yet, the conditions talc remain poorly constrained. We used thermodynamic reaction-path models assess at slab-mantle interface and show that it restricted a limited set pressure–temperature conditions, protolith, fluid compositions. In contrast, our predict chlorite ubiquitous ...

ation of the fluid and adhesiolysis during thoracoscopy, showed excellent immediate (>90%) and 1-year (85%) results [6] , with few side effects, producing better quality and quantity of pleural symphysis compared to talc slurry [7] . Talc seems to have another interesting local antitumor effect, the induction of apoptosis of cancer cells [4, 8] . Iodopovidone is an interesting alternative to ta...

Postoperative chylothorax remains an uncommon but potentially life-threatening complication of various intrathoracic procedures, and the ideal management of this condition is still controversial. We report the treatment of four patients with chylothorax after thoracic surgical procedures during the year of 2010 and 2011. Instead of surgical intervention, their management had succeeded in bedsid...

Pulmonary talcosis is a rare but debilitating variant of pneumoconiosis often presenting with isolated non-specific symptoms of progressive exertional dyspnoea or cough. Occupational exposure to talc dust and intravenous drug abuse are well-recognised aetiological factors with only a few cases related to cosmetic talc exposure being reported to date. The authors report a case of a young woman i...

TALC IS DIRT Any pulmonologist who has ever visited a pleural disease or pneumothorax session at a major international conference or symposium, has heard the famous exclamation of my good friend Prof. Richard Light, one of the ‘‘popes’’ of pleural disease. Prof. Light is an exponent of the (mainly North American) school of pulmonologists who do not like talc as a pleurodesis agent. These pulmon...

Recent studies demonstrated potential effects of stem cells on cardiac function in heart failure. However, influences of the technique of application remained undetermined. In the present study, the pericardial sac was used as depot for fluorescent-labeled mesenchymal stem cells in rats. To evaluate influences of inflammation on cell homing, a sterile pericarditis was induced by talc. It is sho...