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Catheter type, access technique, and the catheter position should be selected considering to the anticipated duration of PN aiming at the lowest complication risks (infectious and non-infectious). Long-term (>7–10 days) parenteral nutrition (PN) requires central venous access whereas for PN 3 weeks subcutaneous tunnelled catheters or port systems are appropriate. CVC (central venous catheter) should be flushed with isotonic NaCl solution before and after PN application and during CVC occlusions. Strict indications are required for central venous access placement and the catheter should be removed as soon as possible if not required any more. Blood samples should not to be taken from the CVC. If catheter infection is suspected, peripheral blood-culture samples and culture samples from each catheter lumen should be taken simultaneously. Removal of the CVC should be carried out immediately if there are pronounced signs of local infection at the insertion site and/or clinical suspicion of catheter-induced sepsis. In case PN is indicated for a short period (max. 7–10 days), a peripheral venous access can be used if no hyperosmolar solutions (>800 mosm/L) or solutions with a high titration acidity or alkalinity are used. A peripheral venous catheter (PVC) can remain in situ for as long as it is clinically required unless there are signs of inflammation at the insertion site.

Compared to enteral or hypocaloric oral nutrition, the use of PN (parenteral nutrition) is not associated with increased mortality, overall frequency of complications, or longer length of hospital stay (LOS). The risk of PN complications (e.g. refeeding-syndrome, hyperglycaemia, bone demineralisation, catheter infections) can be minimised by carefully monitoring patients and the use of nutrition support teams particularly during long-term PN. Occuring complications are e.g. the refeeding-syndrome in patients suffering from severe malnutrition with the initiation of refeeding or metabolic, hypertriglyceridemia, hyperglycaemia, osteomalacia and osteoporosis, and hepatic complications including fatty liver, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cholestasis, cholecystitis, and cholelithiasis. Efficient monitoring in all types of PN can result in reduced PN-associated complications and reduced costs. Water and electrolyte balance, blood sugar, and cardiovascular function should regularly be monitored during PN. Regular checks of serum electrolytes and triglycerides as well as additional monitoring measures are necessary in patients with altered renal function, electrolyte-free substrate intake, lipid infusions, and in intensive care patients. The metabolic monitoring of patients under long-term PN should be carried out according to standardised procedures. Monitoring metabolic determinants of bone metabolism is particularly important in patients receiving long-term PN. Markers of intermediary, electrolyte and trace element metabolism require regular checks.

ISO/CD 18857-2 (International Organization for Standardization, Geneva) describes a now international standard method for the determination of octylpbenol, nonylphenol, their mono- and diethyoxylates, and bisphenol A in nonfiltered samples of drinking ground, surface, and wastewater. The method is based on the extraction of the analytes from an acidified water sample by solid phase extraction, solvent elution, derivatizafion, and determination by gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection. For validation of this method, 14 laboratories from 4 different countries in Europe and Canada participated in an interlaboratory trial to determine the performance characteristics of the method, which are intended for publication in the corresponding standard. The interlaboratory trial was evaluated according to ISO 5725-2 and included two duplicate nonfiltered water samples: surface water containing the target compounds in an analyte concentration range from 0.05 to 0.4 [micro]g/L and wastewater containing the target compounds in a concentration ranged from 0.1 to 5 [micro]g/L. The repeatability variation coefficients (within-laboratory precision) varied for all samples and compounds between 1.9 and 7.8%, showing a sufficiently high repeatability of the method. The reproducibility variation coefficients (between-laboratory precision) were found to vary within a satisfactory range of 10.0-29.5% for surface water and 10.8-22.5% for wastewater. The recoveries as a measure of accuracy varied from 98.0 to 144.1% for surface water and from 95.4 to 108.6% for wastewater. The determined concentrations of the samples compared well to the 'true' values, thus showing very satisfactory accuracy of the method. In the chromatogram of the surface water sample, a high unresolved background made up of coextractable matrix compounds was apparent. It is conceivable that compounds from tiffs background may be responsible for enhanced recoveries of 144.1% for 4-nonyiphenol (mixture of isomers) and of 123.4% for 4-nonyiphenol monoethoxylate (mixture of isomers) in the surface water samples. The isotope-marked standard compounds developed in this context proved to be reliable internal standards that allow a precise and accurate quanfitation of all compounds specified in ISO/CD 18857-2. The results of the interlaboratory trial cenfumed that the analytical method is robust and reliable and can be used as a standard method to analyze the target compounds in water samples.

Findings from composting studies conducted at Austria's Biological Agriculture Institute are presented. These include nitrogen dynamics and water economy in soil, the impact of biowaste on heavy metal and micronutrient levels in crops, types of compost for weed suppression, and the effect of compost on fruit quality and crop yields.