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High grazing pressure can lead to soil erosion in pastures, causing increased sediment delivery to waterways. The objectives of this research were to evaluate the impact of grazing management and buffer strips on soil erosion by assessing soil physical properties, hydrology, and sediment loads from pastures fertilized with broiler litter. Field studies were conducted for 12 yr on 15 small watersheds. Five management strategies were evaluated: hayed (H), continuously grazed (CG), rotationally grazed (R), rotationally grazed with a buffer strip (RB), and rotationally grazed with a fenced riparian buffer (RBR). Broiler litter was applied every year at a rate of 5.6 Mg ha. Bulk density and penetration resistance were highest for CG watersheds. Runoff volumes, sediment concentrations, and loads were lowest for the H and RBR treatments and highest for CG. Average runoff amounts were 48, 84, 77, 60, and 81 mm yr for the H, R, RB, RBR, and CG treatments, respectively. Annual average sediment loads were 25, 30, 58, 71, and 110 kg ha for H, RBR, R, RB, and CG, respectively. The Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation, Version 2 was reasonably effective at predicting soil loss for the R, RB, and RBR treatments, but it greatly overpredicted soil loss from the CG and H treatments. Converting a pasture to a hay field or using rotational grazing in conjunction with a fenced riparian buffer appear to be effective options for reducing soil erosion and runoff to waterways from pasture soils., (Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.)

Routine surveillance of syphilis of public health importance (infectious, congenital, and neurosyphilis) began in England and Wales in 1994, using reports from six PHLS laboratories that undertook serological and other reference work. One hundred and thirty-one cases were reported in the first two years, including 100 cases of infectious syphilis, with all regions reporting some infectious syphilis. Reports from PHLS laboratories represented one sixth of the number of cases seen in genitourinary clinics (KC60 data), but both systems produced comparable results. Laboratory reports provided more data on risk factors, which were not available elsewhere. This study documents the risk in England and Wales from infections originating in eastern Europe, where sexually transmitted infections including syphilis have reached epidemic proportions. Forty-five per cent of cases of infectious syphilis were reported to have been acquired in the United Kingdom (UK) and 59% of people with infectious syphilis were reported to have been born in the UK. Twenty per cent of the infectious cases were associated directly or indirectly with transmission in Russia or elsewhere in eastern Europe. The majority of infectious cases were from the white ethnic group. Eighty-five per cent of cases of infectious syphilis were reported to have been acquired heterosexually; 26% of male cases were reported to have been acquired homosexually. The PHLS laboratory reporting system is now well established, and could usefully be expanded to include other, non PHLS, laboratories that undertake reference work. It has the capacity to detect changes in the national epidemiology of syphilis, including imported infections.

Latex, hydrophilic polymer-coated latex and PVC balloon indwelling urethral catheters were compared in respect of the urinary tract infections arising in association with their use in male patients. The polymer (Hydron) coating conferred no benefit over uncoated latex which in turn was indistinguishable from PVC. No significant differences in the spectra of infecting organismns were observed between the 3 catheter types.

In tracing the source of an outbreak of food-poisoning with Salmonella virchow a chicken-packing station and associated rearing farms were investigated. The serotype was found in chickens in 9 of the 14 rearing farms investigated and in the hatchery, but not in the breeding flocks supplying the hatchery. Several personnel on the farms were affected. The infection was most likely to have been introduced by contaminated feeding-stuffs.