Source identification and global implications of black carbon

Black carbon (BC) is one of the short-lived air pollutants that contributes significantly to aerosol radiative forcing and global climate change. It is emitted by the incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuels, and biomass. Urban environments are quite complex and thus, the use of mobile jointly with fixed monitoring provides a better understanding of the dynamics of BC distribution in such areas. The present study addresses the measurement of BC concentration using real-time mobile and ambient monitoring in Barranquilla, an industrialized urban area of the Colombian Caribbean. A microaethalometer (MA200) and an aethalometer (AE33) were used for measuring the BC concentration. The absorption Ångström exponent (AAE) values were determined for the study area, for identifying the BC emission sources. The results of the ambient sampling show that vehicle traffic emissions prevail; however, the influence of biomass burning was also observed. The mean ambient BC concentration was found to be 1.04 ± 1.03 μg/m3 and varied between 0.5 and 4.0 μg/m3. From the mobile measurements obtained in real traffic conditions on the road, a much higher average value of 16.1 ± 16.5 μg/m3 was measured. Many parts of the city showed BC concentrations higher than 20 μg/m3. The spatial distribution of BC concentration shows that vehicle emissions and traffic jams, a consequence of road and transport infrastructure, are the factors that most affect the BC concentration. A comparison of results obtained from two aethalometers indicates that the concentrations measured by MA200 are 9% lower than those measured by AE33. The AAE obtained was found to vary between 1.1 and 1.6, indicating vehicular emissions as the most crucial source. In addition, it was observed that the BC concentration on working days was 2.5 times higher than on the weekends in the case of mobile monitoring and 1.5 times higher in the case of ambient monitoring

Cronología de una pandemia: la nueva influenza a h1n1 en bogotá, 2009-2010

Objetivo Describir el comportamiento del virus de Influenza A H1N1/09 según variables de tiempo, edad y sexo, en pacientes con sospecha de infección, atención médica  y diagnóstico por laboratorio.                                   Método Estudio descriptivo retrospectivo de pacientes diagnosticados con Influenza A H1N1/09 entre abril 2009 y julio de 2010 en el Laboratorio de salud Pública de Bogotá D.C. Resultados Se confirmaron los primeros casos de Influenza A H1N1/09 desde la semana 17 de 2009; a continuación la positividad creció gradualmente, hasta manifestar su máxima expresión entre las semanas 31 a 36 de 2009 (43 % a 53 %), descendiendo a  partir de la semana 37.  Los grupos de edad más afectados fueron los de 6 a 15 años (35,4 %) y de 16 a 25 años (28 %) (p=0.0044); las proporciones más bajas se hallaron en menores de 1 año (8,7 %) y mayores de 65 años (7,2 %) (Chi 1,98, p=0.119). La proporción por  sexo fue similar: femenino (18,6 %) y masculino (17,6 %) (Chi 1,82, p=0.1768). Conclusiones Durante el año 2009, el virus Influenza A presentó un aumento significativo de casos; sin embargo, no modificó el comportamiento endémico del virus Sincitial Respiratorio. Por otra parte, el subtipo H1N1/09 reemplazó casi en su totalidad al virus estacional que tradicionalmente circulaba entre la población Bogotana y afectó en forma similar a  hombres y mujeres, principalmente adultos jóvenes. El mayor predominio de casos se presentó entre los meses de agosto y septiembre de 2009

International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium report, data summary of 50 countries for 2010-2015: Device-associated module

•We report INICC device-associated module data of 50 countries from 2010-2015.•We collected prospective data from 861,284 patients in 703 ICUs for 3,506,562 days.•DA-HAI rates and bacterial resistance were higher in the INICC ICUs than in CDC-NHSN's.•Device utilization ratio in the INICC ICUs was similar to CDC-NHSN's. Background: We report the results of International Nosocomial Infection Control Consortium (INICC) surveillance study from January 2010-December 2015 in 703 intensive care units (ICUs) in Latin America, Europe, Eastern Mediterranean, Southeast Asia, and Western Pacific. Methods: During the 6-year study period, using Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Healthcare Safety Network (CDC-NHSN) definitions for device-associated health care-associated infection (DA-HAI), we collected prospective data from 861,284 patients hospitalized in INICC hospital ICUs for an aggregate of 3,506,562 days. Results: Although device use in INICC ICUs was similar to that reported from CDC-NHSN ICUs, DA-HAI rates were higher in the INICC ICUs: in the INICC medical-surgical ICUs, the pooled rate of central line-associated bloodstream infection, 4.1 per 1,000 central line-days, was nearly 5-fold higher than the 0.8 per 1,000 central line-days reported from comparable US ICUs, the overall rate of ventilator-associated pneumonia was also higher, 13.1 versus 0.9 per 1,000 ventilator-days, as was the rate of catheter-associated urinary tract infection, 5.07 versus 1.7 per 1,000 catheter-days. From blood cultures samples, frequencies of resistance of Pseudomonas isolates to amikacin (29.87% vs 10%) and to imipenem (44.3% vs 26.1%), and of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates to ceftazidime (73.2% vs 28.8%) and to imipenem (43.27% vs 12.8%) were also higher in the INICC ICUs compared with CDC-NHSN ICUs. Conclusions: Although DA-HAIs in INICC ICU patients continue to be higher than the rates reported in CDC-NSHN ICUs representing the developed world, we have observed a significant trend toward the reduction of DA-HAI rates in INICC ICUs as shown in each international report. It is INICC's main goal to continue facilitating education, training, and basic and cost-effective tools and resources, such as standardized forms and an online platform, to tackle this problem effectively and systematically