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Abstract: After a single patient was transferred to Leipzig University Hospital from a hospital in Rhodes, Greece, the hospital experienced the largest outbreak due to a KPC-2-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae (KPC-2-KP) strain thus far observed in Germany. Ninety patients hospitalised between July 2010 and October 2012 were affected. In an attempt to eliminate KPC-2-KP from their digestive tracts, 14 consecutive patients (16%) were treated with a short course (7 days) of selective digestive decontamination (SDD), employing colistin (1 million units q.i.d.) and gentamicin (80mg q.i.d.) as oral solutions, and applying colistin/gentamicin gel (0.5g) to the oral cavity. In a retrospective analysis, these 14 SDD patients were compared with the remaining 76 patients harbouring KPC-2-KP. KPC-2-KP carrier status was followed in all 14 SDD patients by submitting stool samples to KPC-specific PCR. The mean follow-up period was 48 days (range 12–103 days). Successful elimination of KPC-2-KP was defined as a minimum of three consecutive negative PCR test results separated by ≥48h each. Decolonisation of KPC-2-KP was achieved in 6/14 patients (43%) after a mean of 21 days (range 12–40 days), but was also observed in 23/76 (30%) of the non-SDD controls (P =0.102). SDD treatment resulted in the development of secondary resistance to colistin (19% increase in resistance rate) and gentamicin (45% increase) in post-treatment isolates. In the control group, no secondary resistance occurred. We conclude that the SDD protocol applied in this study was not sufficiently effective for decolonisation and was associated with resistance development. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses the legal framework for soil conservation in Germany. The author provides details concerning the Bundesbodenschutzgesetz (Federal Soil Conservation Law, BBodSchG), including its broader aims, its areas of applicability, and its relationship to other environmental protection laws such as the Bundes-Immissionsschutzgesetz (Federal Emissions Law). She also outlines environmental compliance enforcement mechanisms established by the law such as environmental impact assessments, provisions concerning decontamination, and liability for environmental degradation.

Aim: In 2010, the ASP GLOSAIRTM 400 was introduced in Germany for nebulizing hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Since there were no results of practical experience, the new method was to be checked under practical conditions for its effectiveness in decontaminating air in rooms, infested with mold after water damage and, at the same time, under experimentally controlled conditions, test surfaces, contaminated with Aspergillus brasiliensis. Method: After the nebulizer was used in two rooms with a massive mold infestation, the air colony count was determined (MAS-100® Zinsser Analytik) and, at the same time, the mold infestation in samples of wall plaster. Results: In a massive mold infestation resulting from water damage (worst case), an approximately 9-fold decrease in the mold content and an approximately 13-fold decrease in the number of colony-forming units (sum of the bacteria + fungi) could be detected in the room air immediately after the nebulizing was finished. Even in samples of wall and joint plaster, the molds were reduced, although to a distinctly lesser extent. By indoor nebulization of 5-6% H2O2, A. brasiliensis was reduced >4 log on vertical and horizontal surfaces. Discussion: In rooms with a massive mold infestation, the ASP GLOSAIRTM 400 system is suitable for attaining a clear reduction in the fungal and bacterial room air load, lasting for a week. On vertical and horizontal surfaces, contaminated experimentally with A. brasiliensis, a reduction of >4 lg is achieved. As a load of 104 to 105 fungal spores is unlikely to occur on pre-cleaned surfaces, the GLOSAIRTM 400 can be considered a suitable complementary process for the substantial reduction of fungal contamination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Obrigheim nuclear power plant was built by Siemens in 1968 as a two-loop PWR (pressurised water reactor) plant. It has a rated capacity of 356 MW. From the outset, considerable effort was made to keep the radiation exposure of personnel to a minimum. This paper explains how dose rates were significantly reduced by implementing hydrogen- and lithium-based primary water chemistry regimes, by installing fine-mesh mechanical filters in the coolant purification system, by replacing the steam generators and decontaminating a number of other primary system components, as well as by administrative measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the accidental ingestion of thyroxine (T[sub 4]) and triiodothyronine (T[sub 3]) in young children. Concentrations of T[sub 3] and T[sub 4] in serum; Diagnosis; Treatment.