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The study aimed to analyze the use of complementary and integrative health practices (CIHPs) during labor and birth in a freestanding birth center. A total of 28 different CIHPs were applied with or used by laboring women. The most adopted CIHPs were mind-body practices (99.9%) and natural products (35.5%), mostly used by primiparous women ( P <.05). Adopting CIHPs can increase care quality, increase positive experiences during childbirth, and promote evidence-based choices., (Copyright © 2024 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

The development of methods for determining volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in public spaces has become necessary to identify potential health and environmental risks. This study presents a practical methodology for sampling, extracting, detecting, and identifying these compounds in a vehicular traffic region in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The methodology uses direct-immersion solid phase microextraction (DI-SPME) and static headspace (SHS) to extract SVOCs/VOCs. Comprehensive time-of-flight gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC×GC/Q-TOFMS) and gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC/MS) were used to detect and identify compounds. The analysed samples, collected with a high-volume sampler (Hi-Vol) with quartz filters and in which particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) was retained, showed the presence of more than 200 compounds, both biogenic (natural origin) and anthropogenic (human origin). Regarding the distribution of chemical classes, aromatic compounds were predominantly found at 29.2%, followed by esters at 20.8%, non-aromatic hydrocarbons at 5.6%, and carboxylic acids at 9.4%. Static headspace gas chromatography (HS-GC) enabled the identification and quantification of 21 volatile compounds, including BETX, dichloromethane, chloroform, and naphthalene, which are currently regulated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)., Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethical approval: Not applicable. Consent to participate: All authors consented to participate in the draughting of this research article. Consent for publication: All authors consented to publish this research article. Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)