The term 'ultrapure water' is a common way to define water used for on-line treatments: it refers to the absence of chemical, organic and microbiological contamination. To be more accurate in definition, every known and potential contaminant has to be fixed at its limit value. AAMI recommendations and various Pharmacopoeias have set limits for dialysate based on traditional dialysis treatments,...

Opinions differ on the value of microbiological testing of endoscopes, which varies according to the technique used. We compared the efficacy on bacterial biofilms of sampling solutions used for the surveillance of the contamination of endoscope channels. To compare efficacy, we used an experimental model of a 48-h Pseudomonas biofilm grown on endoscope internal tubing. Sampling of this experim...

A microbiological study of saffron spice was undertaken in the context of a European research project (Methodologies for Implementing International Standards for Saffron Purity and Quality, the acronym for which is SAFFIC), analyzing 79 samples obtained from the main producer countries, namely Greece, Iran, Italy, Morocco, and Spain. Current microbiological quality criteria are the same as for ...

Water is life and its preservation is not only a moral obligation but also a legal requirement. By 2030, global demands will exceed more than 40 % the existing resources and more than a third of the world's population will have to deal with water shortages (European Environmental Agency [EEA], 2010). Climate change effects on water resources will not help. Efforts are being made throughout Euro...

Microbial testing performed in support of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical production falls into three main categories: detection (qualitative), enumeration (quantitative), and characterization/identification. Traditional microbiological methods listed in the compendia and discussed by using the conventional growth-based techniques, which are labor intensive and time consuming. In general, ...

Background: In accordance with the German Infection Protection Act, the treatment and handling of laundry was checked by the Public Health Department in 2016 in all Frankfurt nursing homes with special focus on the staff's clothing. Methods: On-site visits and surveys were conducted in all 44 nursing homes in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, and random microbiological examinations of 58 reprocessed and...

In December 2012, an outbreak of acute gastrointestinal illness occurred in a geographical distinct area in Denmark covering 368 households. A combined microbiological, epidemiological and environmental investigation was initiated to understand the outbreak magnitude, pathogen(s) and vehicle in order to control the outbreak. Norovirus GII.4 New Orleans 2009 variant was detected in 15 of 17 indi...

A prolonged outbreak of Salmonella enterica serotype Enteritidis occurred in northern France between December 2014 and April 2015. Epidemiological investigations following the initial notification on 30 December 2014 of five cases of salmonellosis (two confirmed S. Enteritidis) in young children residing in the Somme department revealed that all cases frequented the same food bank A. Further ep...

The results of a study on the microbiological stability of canned tuna produced by Italian companies and similar canned products manufactured in countries outside Europe are reported herein. The study involved 38 samples of canned tuna of various brands, of which 14 were produced by companies outside Europe and 24 by Italian companies. Qualitative and quantitative microbiological tests were con...

Diarrheal diseases are a leading cause of under-five mortality and morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa. Quantitative exposure modeling provides opportunities to investigate the relative importance of fecal-oral transmission routes (e.g. hands, water, food) responsible for diarrheal disease. Modeling, however, requires accurate descriptions of individuals' interactions with the environment (i.e., ac...