A chromatographic immunoassay cholera antigen detection kit, the Cholera Spot test, was evaluated. The test was found to be specific with a sensitivity of 10(6) cfu/ml for the direct detection of V. cholerae in simulated stool specimens and 10 cfu/ml in simulated cotton-tipped swab specimens after overnight incubation in alkaline peptone water. This enables early recognition of cholera cases an...

Background and Objective: Cervical cancer involves many women annually and Pop smear test has played a significant role in reducing its mortality and for this reason, its improvement is very essential. In this respect, cervex brush is a new tool that has been introduced in many countries. Therefore, this...

AIMS   To test the efficacy of four wipe cloth types (cotton bar towel, nonwoven, microfibre and blended cellulose/cotton) with either quaternary ammonia cleaning solution or silver dihydrogen citrate (SDC) in cleaning food contact surfaces. METHODS   Swab samples collected from untreated, cloth-treated and cloth disinfectant-treated surfaces were subjected to hygiene monitoring using adenosi...

Methamphetamine (meth) from meth syntheses or habitual meth smoking deposited on household surfaces poses human health hazards. The U.S. State Departments of Health require decontamination of sites where meth was synthesized (meth labs) before they are sold. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) methods for meth analysis require wipe sampling, extraction, clean-up, solve...

Plain, buffered cotton-wool swabs and albumen-coated cotton-wool swabs were prepared with known numbers of the following: Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, corynebacteria and Escherichia coli. Swabs were plated immediately (0 hours) after loading with a 0.1 ml standardised inoculum; each swab was plated out four times by streaking on both halves of two pla...

Surgeons are continuing to strive toward achieving higher quality minimally invasive surgery. With the growth of modern technology, intelligent medical devices are being used to improve the safety of surgery. Milling beyond the bone tissue wall is a common abnormal milling state in ear surgery, as well as entanglement of the drill bit with the cotton swab, which will do harm to the patient's en...

Objective The aim of this study was to assess whether aural stimulation with ointment containing capsaicin improves swallowing function in elderly patients with dysphagia. Study design A randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, comparative study. Settings Secondary hospital. Patients and methods Twenty elderly dysphagic patients with a history of cerebrovascular disorder or Parkinson...

BACKGROUND Cervical Papanicolaou (Pap) smear screening is an effective method of detecting cytological changes in the cervix before they lead to cervical cancer. However, the quality of a Pap smear can be compromised by inflammatory exudate, inadequate cellularity or failure to sample the transformation zone. We evaluated the effect of routine cervical cleaning on Pap smear quality. METHODS I...

BACKGROUND In general practice, infectious conjunctivitis is a common and mostly (64%) self-limiting disorder. In case of an aberrant course or severe symptoms, a general practitioner may take a culture. Direct inoculation is considered the reference standard, but usually a swab is sent to a laboratory. OBJECTIVES To compare the diagnostic performance of the swab, transported by surface mail ...