A comparison of the effect of weather and climate on emergency department visitation in Roanoke and Charlottesville, Virginia.

Compared with mortality, the impact of weather and climate on human morbidity is less well understood, especially in the cold season. We examined the relationships between weather and emergency department (ED) visitation at hospitals in Roanoke and Charlottesville, Virginia, two locations with similar climates and population demographic profiles. Using patient-level data obtained from electronic medical records, each patient who visited the ED was linked to that day's weather from one of 8 weather stations in the region based on each patient's ZIP code of residence.

Development and evaluation of an inhalable bioaerosol manifold sampler.

This paper describes the development and evaluation of an inhalable bioaerosol manifold sampler for the collection of replicate samples over sequential sampling periods. Wind tunnel experiments at wind velocities < or = 0.6 m/sec (< or = approximately 120 ft/min) and at a sampling velocity of 0.

Coronary artery intimal hyperplasia, occlusive platelet thrombus, and fatal myocardial infarction in an intravenous cocaine user.

A 38-year-old man died of an acute inferoposterior myocardial infarction, shortly after intravenous injection of cocaine. At necropsy, diffuse intimal hyperplasia and an occlusive platelet thrombus involved the left main, left anterior descending, and the left circumflex coronary arteries. The possible relation of these morphologic findings to the effects of cocaine on platelet and coronary vascular function are discussed and the relevant literature is reviewed.