Radon Investigation in 650 Energy Efficient Dwellings in Western Switzerland: Impact of Energy Renovation and Building Characteristics

As part of more stringent energy targets in Switzerland, we witness the appearance of new green-certified dwellings while many existing dwellings have undergone energy efficiency measures. These measures have led to reduced energy consumption, but rarely consider their impact on indoor air quality. Consequently, such energy renovation actions can lead to an accumulation of radon in dwellings located in radon-prone areas at doses that can affect human health. This study compared the radon levels over 650 energy-efficient dwellings in western Switzerland between green-certified (Minergie) and energy-renovated dwellings, and analyzed the building characteristics responsible of this accumulation. We found that the newly green-certified dwellings had significantly lower radon level than energy-renovated, which were green- and nongreen-certified houses (geometric mean 52, 87, and 105 Bq/m3, respectively). The new dwellings with integrated mechanical ventilation exhibited lower radon concentrations. Thermal retrofitting of windows, roofs, exterior walls, and floors were associated with a higher radon level. Compared to radon measurements prior to energy renovation, we found a 20% increase in radon levels. The results highlight the need to consider indoor air quality when addressing energy savings to avoid compromising occupants’ health, and are useful for enhancing the ventilation design and energy renovation procedures in dwellings

Fungal Contaminants in Energy Efficient Dwellings: Impact of Ventilation Type and Level of Urbanization

: The presence of growing fungi in the indoor environment has been associated with the development of respiratory problems such as asthma or allergic rhinitis, as well as the worsening of respiratory pathologies. Their proliferation indoors could be a result of water leakage or inadequate ventilation. Although the factors promoting mould growth have been widely investigated in traditional dwellings, little work has been done in energy efficient dwellings. Here, the effectiveness of ventilation type, i.e., natural or mechanical, in influencing mould development was estimated in 44 recent and 105 retrofitted energy efficient dwellings. Fungi growing on surfaces were investigated in the dwellings situated in rural, peri-urban, and urban regions of Switzerland. The presence of these fungi was also investigated in bedroom settled dust. Information on building characteristics and owners’ lifestyle were collected. Significant associations were found with the level of urbanisation, the location of mouldy area in dwellings, and the diversity of fungal taxa. Dwellings in peri-urban zones showed the most frequent fungal contamination in the owners’ bedroom and the highest diversity of fungal genera among dwellings. While the urbanisation level or the ventilation type favoured no specific genus, we found marked disparities in the diversity of fungi growing on surfaces in naturally ventilated versus mechanically ventilated dwellings. Aspergillus, in particular, was a frequent surface contaminant in bedrooms with natural ventilation, but not in those mechanically ventilated. We observed a strong association between fungal growth on surfaces and the number of fungal particles counted in the settled dust of owners’ bedrooms. These results demonstrate the importance of ventilation systems in energy efficient dwellings in controlling fungal proliferation in living areas

Precious metal carborane polymer nanoparticles: characterisation of micellar formulations and anticancer activity

YesWe report the encapsulation of highly hydrophobic 16-electron organometallic ruthenium and osmium carborane complexes [Ru/Os(p-cymene)(1,2-dicarba-closo-dodecarborane-1,2-dithiolate)] (1 and 2) in Pluronic® triblock copolymer P123 core–shell micelles. The spherical nanoparticles RuMs and OsMs, dispersed in water, were characterized by dynamic light scattering (DLS), cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM), and synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS; diameter ca. 15 and 19 nm, respectively). Complexes 1 and 2 were highly active towards A2780 human ovarian cancer cells (IC50 0.17 and 2.50 μM, respectively) and the encapsulated complexes, as RuMs and OsMs nanoparticles, were less potent (IC50 6.69 μM and 117.5 μM, respectively), but more selective towards cancer cells compared to normal cells.We thank the Leverhulme Trust (Early Career Fellowship no. ECF-2013-414 to NPEB), the University of Warwick (Grant no. RDF 2013-14 to NPEB), the Swiss National Science Foundation (Grant no. PA00P2_145308 to NPEB and PBNEP2_142949 to APB), the ERC (Grant no. 247450 to PJS), EPSRC (EP/G004897/ 1 to APB, and EP/F034210/1 to PJS), Institute of Advanced Study (IAS) – University of Warwick (Fellowship to JJSB), and Science City (AWM/ERDF) for support. We thank the Wellcome Trust (055663/Z/98/Z) for funding to the Electron Microscopy Facility, School of Life Sciences, University of Warwick

EuReCa ONE—27 Nations, ONE Europe, ONE Registry A prospective one month analysis of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest outcomes in 27 countries in Europe

AbstractIntroductionThe aim of the EuReCa ONE study was to determine the incidence, process, and outcome for out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) throughout Europe.MethodsThis was an international, prospective, multi-centre one-month study. Patients who suffered an OHCA during October 2014 who were attended and/or treated by an Emergency Medical Service (EMS) were eligible for inclusion in the study. Data were extracted from national, regional or local registries.ResultsData on 10,682 confirmed OHCAs from 248 regions in 27 countries, covering an estimated population of 174 million. In 7146 (66%) cases, CPR was started by a bystander or by the EMS. The incidence of CPR attempts ranged from 19.0 to 104.0 per 100,000 population per year. 1735 had ROSC on arrival at hospital (25.2%), Overall, 662/6414 (10.3%) in all cases with CPR attempted survived for at least 30 days or to hospital discharge.ConclusionThe results of EuReCa ONE highlight that OHCA is still a major public health problem accounting for a substantial number of deaths in Europe.EuReCa ONE very clearly demonstrates marked differences in the processes for data collection and reported outcomes following OHCA all over Europe. Using these data and analyses, different countries, regions, systems, and concepts can benchmark themselves and may learn from each other to further improve survival following one of our major health care events

Détermination d'un indicateur d'activité pertinent pour les préparations en pharmacie hospitalière (application à deux établissements de santé)

DIJON-BU Médecine Pharmacie (212312103) / SudocSudocFranceF

ESSAI DE MISE EN PLACE D'UNE GRILLE D'EVALUATION DE LA DOULEUR POUR PERSONNES POLYHANDICAPEES DANS UN INSTITUT MEDICO-EDUCATIF

BESANCON-BU Médecine pharmacie (250562102) / SudocPARIS-BIUM (751062103) / SudocSudocFranceF

Le syndicalisme européen: ce grand inconnu

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Application de la dose définie journalière à la consommation de trois antifongiques (corrélation à l'épidémiologie des candidoses et à la résistance au fluconazole (DES de sciences pharmaceutiques))

DIJON-BU Médecine Pharmacie (212312103) / SudocSudocFranceF

L’état de l’euro-syndicalisme aux Rendez-vous de l’Histoire

info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublishe

Indoor radon and air quality investigations in new or renovated energy-efficient swiss single-family dwellings

The perspectives of a new energy crisis subsequent to the depletion of natural resources along with the increase of energy costs make, more than forty years after the first oil crisis, energy savings a priority. This lead to rethink building practices so as to make it more sustainable and economical in terms of energy consumption by ensuring the air tightness and a good thermal insulation. Indeed, the less we ventilate such sealed houses, the more moisture, number and level of pollutants increase in the indoor environment. The deterioration of the indoor air quality and the appearance of occupants non-specific health disorders are the consequences. Preliminary results indicate the attention to pay to energy-efficient buildings. On the one hand, the concentration of indoor radon has a clear tendency to increase after an energy saving action. On the other hand, it appears that even though the new Swiss energy efficient houses seem less affected by this problem than the traditional renovated houses, or even transformed according to these label requirements, unexpected situations may still arise. People living in energy saving buildings need to be well informed about the risks and about “what-to-do and not-to-do” living in such “high tech” houses. Maintenance of technical installation can also be troublesome