1,720,956 research outputs found
Wastewater workers and hepatitis A virus infection.
Full text linkThe main occupational hazard of wastewater workers (WWs) is the direct exposure to the variety of
infectious agents present in sewage material, with hepatitis A virus (HAV) being the most frequent
one. Most epidemiological studies have shown a higher risk of hepatitis A among WWs, although some
studies have produced conflicting evidence.
To evaluate the hypothesis of increased risk of HAV infection in WWs.
The prevalence of antibodies toHAV in 869WWswas compared to 311 other subjects and analysed to
detect the main potentially confounding variables.
Univariate analysis demonstrated that occupational exposure to sewage was not significantly associated
with the prevalence of anti-HAV(1). The anti-HAV(1) prevalence was strongly associated with
age and shellfish consumption (P,0.05) when the subcategories of workers were examined separately
(WWs and control group) and jointly. In the logistic regression model, a significant association
between anti-HAV(1) prevalence and duration of employment (P,0.05) was found. The interaction
term(age3duration of employment) was significant (P,0.001) when included in the logistic model.
This study shows that working in a wastewater treatment plant does not seem to be related to a greater
prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis A. Moreover, the relative risk of HAV infection among WWs
seems to be correlated with low anti-HAV(1) prevalence in the general population
Integrated Approach for the Assessment of Real Risk of Population Exposure in Industrial Areas
Full text linkResearch goal is to identify an integrated approach for assessing real risk exposure of population located in areas of extractive industries. We focused on environmental data evaluation (diffusion model), figures and contextual analysis of active health surveillance data of the population (questionnaire, chemistry panel, spirometry and activation of a biobank). Environmental exposure data crossed with the calculation of the AQI (Air Quality Index) did not highlight any critical issues. A cohort of 600 locals subjected to health surveillance was analysed by calculating risk perception; a questionnaire aimed at assessing risk perception was administered to the population sample.All data (environmental and clinical) were georeferenced and analysed using GIS (Geographic Information System) software; study of contaminant distribution was carried out using a Q-GIS software shows average exposure conditions well below regulatory limits, with minor exceptions relative to concentrations of finer particulate matter (PM 2.5) and with reference only to the major urban centers; analysis of risk perception evince “incorrect” perception, with little confidence in relation to the environmental monitoring of the Regional Agencies
Microbiological evaluation of the efficacy of two new biodetergents on multidrug-resistant nosocomial pathogens
No full textAbstract Background In the last few years, several outbreaks of nosocomial infections caused by multidrug-resistant pathogenic agents have been observed, and various biocides products were developed in order to control this phenomenon. We investigated the efficacy of two natural biodetergents composed of plants and kelps extracts, BATT1 and BATT2, against multidrug-resistant strains. Methods In-vitro antibacterial efficacy of BATT1 and BATT2 against nosocomial multidrug-resistant isolates was assessed using a suspension-inhibition test, with and without bovine serum albumin (BSA). The test was also carried out on glass surfaces with and without BSA. Results In vitro tests with both biocidal disinfectants at 25% concentration demonstrated an overall drop in bacterial, mould and yeast counts after 10 min of contact with or without organic substances. For Pseudomonas aeruginosa, it was necessary to use undiluted disinfectants with and without an organic substance. The same results were obtained in tests carried out on glass surfaces for all strains. Conclusions The natural products BATT1 and BATT2 behave like good biocides even in presence of organic substances. The use of both disinfectants may be beneficial for reducing hospital-acquired pathogens that are not susceptible to disinfectants. However, it has to be stressed that all these experiments were carried out in vitro and they still require validation from use in clinical practice.</p
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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