BACKGROUND Internal grade inflation is a documented practice in secondary schools (mostly in private schools) that jeopardises fairness with regard to access to medical school. However, it is frequently assumed that the higher internal grades are in fact justifiable, as they correspond to better preparation of students in private schools in areas that national exams do not cover but nevertheles...

The aim of this study was to model the growth, in a model system, of toxigenic strains of Bacillus cereus as a function of temperature, pH and water activity. Optical density (OD) values were transformed into numbers of colony-forming units (CFU) by the use of a 'calibrating' relation. The growth curves were then fitted to the Gompertz function which allowed the estimation of the lag-time (lamb...

The effects of mononuclear cells from nontransfused and transfused dogs on the growth of erythroid colonies (EC) from DLA-identical littermates were studied. To this purpose, marrow samples were cultured both before and after one to three transfusions from the DLA-identical littermate. Mononuclear cells obtained before transfusions and cocultured with autologous marrow or marrow from DLAidentic...

OBJECTIVE To compare the number of bacterial counts in tap water at first burst and running tap water. MATERIAL AND METHOD The present study was performed in thirty-two first burst water samples and twenty-nine running tap water samples after two minutes, collected from an operation room at one standard hospital and analyzed for the mean, median, and 95% achieved confidence interval of CFU/ml...

In this study, the culturability of indoor and outdoor airborne fungi was determined through long-term sampling (24-h) using a Button Personal Inhalable Aerosol Sampler. The air samples were collected during three seasons in six Cincinnati area homes that were free from moisture damage or visible mold. Cultivation and total microscopic enumeration methods were employed for the sample analysis. ...

BACKGROUND The Dijon University Hospital in Dijon, France is involved in a large construction program with heavy truck traffic and a very dusty environment. This study aimed to assess the impact of outdoor hospital construction work on Aspergillus air contamination in the immediate environment of patients at high risk for aspergillosis in the presence of protective measures. METHODS Prospecti...

We investigated Staphylococcus aureus contamination of the hand rims and handles of wheelchairs for common use on hospital wards by wiping with gauze. Examination of the hand rims of a total of 20 wheelchairs revealed methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA) and/or methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) on 17 wheelchairs (85.0%), and MRSA on 11 (55.0%). The mean ± SD (range) density of MRSA conta...

Bacteria of the genus Lysobacter are considered to be facultative predators that use a feeding strategy similar to that of myxobacteria. Experimental data supporting this assumption, however, are scarce. Therefore, the predatory activities of three Lysobacter species were tested in the prey spot plate assay and in the lawn predation assay, which are commonly used to analyze myxobacterial predat...

The best practice for cleansing urinary drainage bags (leg and bed) in a hospital setting can be translated for use by clients for self-care within the home setting. Common household bleach containing 5.25% sodium hypochlorite, diluted in a 1:10 ratio with tap water, is a safe and effective method to reduce colony-forming units per milliliter (CFU/ml) to a study-defined acceptable range of 100 ...