The activities of 10 formulations as mycobactericidal agents in Mycobacterium tuberculosis-contaminated suspensions (suspension test) and stainless steel surfaces (carrier test) were investigated with sputum as the organic load. The quaternary ammonium compound, chlorhexidine gluconate, and an iodophor were ineffective in all tests. Ethanol (70%) was effective against M. tuberculosis only in su...

292 www.thelancet.com Vol 382 July 27, 2013 Iodine, a crucial micronutrient, is essential for thyroid hormone production and for normal in-utero neurodevelopment. During pregnancy, iodine intake must be increased by 50% because of physiological increases in maternal thyroid hormone production, an increase in maternal renal iodine losses, and fetal iodine needs for thyroid hormone production. Io...

The efficacy of 14 disinfectants against Listeria innocua and two strains of Listeria monocytogenes in the presence of organic matter was studied. Quantitative efficacy tests were used. Many of the disinfectants tested were not as effective on Listeria spp. when the test organisms were dried onto the surface of steel disks (carrier tests) as they were when the organisms were placed in suspensio...

BACKGROUND The risk of maternal mortality and morbidity (particularly postoperative infection) is higher for caesarean section than for vaginal birth. With the increase in caesarean section, it is important that the risks to the mother are minimised as far as possible. This review focuses on different forms and methods for preoperative skin preparation to prevent infection. OBJECTIVES To comp...

In recent years and decades increasingly more emphasis has been placed on alcohol-based solutions for hygienic and surgical hand disinfection. Traditional handwashing with soap and water has been largely replaced in the everyday clinical setting, as has the use of disinfectant soap-based solutions for surgical hand disinfection. It has been possible in recent years to reduce the exposure time f...

The study by Condo et al. in this issue of the British Journal of Nutrition assessed the utility of a forty-four-item FFQ for use in determining the iodine intake of pregnant Australian women. This is the first such study designed specifically for pregnancy. A strength of the study was the administration of the FFQ at two different time points in gestation, which allowed for assessment of the r...

We evaluated the eficacy of povidone-iodine treatments in preventing vertical transmission of Flavobacterium psychrophilum in the eggs of masu salmon Oncorhynchus masou, Japanese char Salvelinus pluvius, coho salmon O. kisutch and rainbow trout O. mykiss. When newly spawned eggs were immersion-chalenged with F. psychrophilum (> 10 CFU/mL) and subsequently disinfected with povidone-iodine (50 pp...

A study was made of the chemical disinfection of oral thermometers used by patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis. Only 10% of these thermometers were found to be contaminated with acid-fast bacilli. Because of this small number, the use of a phenol coefficient type test with Mycobacterium tuberculosis was suggested as an alternative method for evaluating tuberculocidal activity. These dat...

Clinical and pathological investigations were conducted on outbreaks of infectious bursal disease (IBD) in pullets under brooding using the battery cage system in a commercial poultry farm in Kaduna, Nigeria. Two consecutive outbreaks of IBD on the same farm were studied. The onset of the disease and morbidity and mortality rates were recorded. Postmortem examinations were conducted and gross l...

BACKGROUND: Gauze dressing continues to be the most commonly used wound dressing. However, because of its porous structure it is not a barrier to bacterial penetration. Binding an antimicrobial agent to the gauze fibers may prevent bacterial migration through the gauze and thus allow gauze to become a bacterial barrier. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of gauze treate...