Laboratory Test to Evaluate the Resistance of Cementitious Materials to Biodeterioration in Sewer Network Conditions.

The biodeterioration of cementitious materials in sewer networks has become a major economic, ecological, and public health issue. Establishing a suitable standardized test is essential if sustainable construction materials are to be developed and qualified for sewerage environments. Since purely chemical tests are proven to not be representative of the actual deterioration phenomena in real sewer conditions, a biological test-named the Biogenic Acid Concrete (BAC) test-was developed at the University of Toulouse to reproduce the biological reactions involved in the process of concrete biodeterioration in sewers.

Unrecognized misplacement of endotracheal tubes in a mixed urban to rural emergency medical services setting.

Objective: To determine the rate of unrecognized endotracheal tube misplacement when performed by emergency medical services (EMS) personnel in a mixed urban and rural setting.

Methods: The authors conducted a prospective, observational analysis of out-of-hospital endotracheal intubations (EIs) performed by EMS personnel serving a mixed urban, suburban, and rural population. From July 1, 1998, to August 30, 1999, emergency physicians assessed and recorded the position of out-of-hospital EIs using auscultation, direct laryngoscopy, infrared CO(2) detectors, esophageal detector devices, and chest x-ray.

The performance of procedures on the recently deceased.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of performing procedures on the recently deceased for training purposes in emergency departments (EDs) with emergency medicine (EM) training programs.

Methods: Surveys were mailed to program directors of Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-approved residency programs in EM. A check-off system was used to identify which procedures were performed and who performed the procedure.

Expediting the early hospital care of the adult patient with nontraumatic chest pain: impact of a modified ED triage protocol.

A prospective study that compared a traditional emergency department (ED) triage protocol with an expedited protocol was conducted to determine if minimizing the subjectivity of nursing triage would result in more efficient management of adult patients presenting with nontraumatic chest pain. The traditional protocol triaged 382 patients into 1 of 5 categories of acuity. The expedited study group (418 patients) were triaged as usual but subsequently were treated as if they were triage category 1 or 2 (medical evaluation within 15 minutes of arrival).

Effect of povidone-iodine and saline soaking on bacterial counts in acute, traumatic, contaminated wounds.

It is common practice to soak acute traumatic wounds in dilute povidone-iodine solution before definitive wound cleaning and debridement. The effectiveness of soaking wounds is unknown. Using quantitative wound bacterial counts as a measure of efficacy, we compared wounds soaked in 1% povidone-iodine solution or in normal saline with wounds receiving no treatment.