Identifying critical periods of susceptibility for maternal exposure to biothermal stress and the risks of stillbirth and spontaneous preterm birth in Western Australia.

A few studies investigated critical periods of temperature and the risks of stillbirth and preterm birth. This study aimed to identify critical periods of composite biothermal stress (Universal Thermal Climate Index, UTCI) for stillbirth and spontaneous preterm birth (sPTB). From the Midwives Notification System, 415,271 singleton births between 1st January 2000 and 31st December 2015 were linked to spatiotemporal UTCI in Western Australia.

The respiratory health effects of acute in vivo diesel and biodiesel exhaust in a mouse model.

Background: Biodiesel, a renewable diesel fuel that can be created from almost any natural fat or oil, is promoted as a greener and healthier alternative to commercial mineral diesel without the supporting experimental data to back these claims. The aim of this research was to assess the health effects of acute exposure to two types of biodiesel exhaust, or mineral diesel exhaust or air as a control in mice. Male BALB/c mice were exposed for 2-hrs to diluted exhaust obtained from a diesel engine running on mineral diesel, Tallow biodiesel or Canola biodiesel.

Primary closure of fasciotomies has a reduced complication rate following compartment syndrome in the paediatric population.

Purpose: Currently no guidance exists within the literature regarding diagnostic criteria or the long-term outcomes for paediatric patients with acute compartment syndrome (ACS). We conducted a retrospective cohort study reviewing all cases of paediatric ACS managed at a single tertiary referral centre with the aim of characterising the factors responsible for the eventual outcomes.

Methods: The patient cohort was identified retrospectively by interrogating the hospital coding system for all paediatric patients between January 2014 and November 2022.

Flow-S: A Field-Deployable Device with Minimal Hands-On Effort to Concentrate and Quantify Circulating Anodic Antigen (CAA) from Large Urine Volumes.

A laboratory-based lateral flow (LF) test that utilizes up-converting reporter particles (UCP) for ultrasensitive quantification of circulating anodic antigen (CAA) in urine is a well-accepted test to identify active infection. However, this UCP-LF CAA test requires sample pre-treatment steps not compatible with field applications. Flow, a new low-cost disposable, allows integration of large-volume pre-concentration of urine analytes and LF detection into a single field-deployable device.

Field Testing of Gamma-Spectroscopy Method for Soil Water Content Estimation in an Agricultural Field.

Gamma-ray spectroscopy (GRS) enables continuous estimation of soil water content (SWC) at the subfield scale with a noninvasive sensor. Hydrological applications, including hyper-resolution land surface models and precision agricultural decision making, could benefit greatly from such SWC information, but a gap exists between established theory and accurate estimation of SWC from GRS in the field. In response, we conducted a robust three-year field validation study at a well-instrumented agricultural site in Nebraska, United States.