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This paper presents a risk assessment of exposure to metal residues in laundered shop towels by workers. The concentrations of 27 metals measured in a synthetic sweat leachate were used to estimate the releasable quantity of metals which could be transferred to workers' skin. Worker exposure was evaluated quantitatively with an exposure model that focused on towel-to-hand transfer and subsequent hand-to-food or -mouth transfers. The exposure model was based on conservative, but reasonable assumptions regarding towel use and default exposure factor values from the published literature or regulatory guidance. Transfer coefficients were derived from studies representative of the exposures to towel users. Contact frequencies were based on assumed high-end use of shop towels, but constrained by a theoretical maximum dermal loading. The risk estimates for workers developed for all metals were below applicable regulatory risk benchmarks. The risk assessment for lead utilized the Adult Lead Model and concluded that predicted lead intakes do not constitute a significant health hazard based on potential worker exposures. Uncertainties are discussed in relation to the overall confidence in the exposure estimates developed for each exposure pathway and the likelihood that the exposure model is under- or overestimating worker exposures and risk., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To determine the prevalence of histological chorioamnionitis associated with preterm prelabour rupture of membranes (PPROM) in women following spontaneous onset of labour, urgent delivery or planned delivery after 34 weeks' gestation., Methods: Charts of all women admitted to Kingston General Hospital with PPROM prior to 34 weeks' gestation over five years were collected. Obstetrical outcomes and histopathology reports were reviewed., Results: Two hundred forty-four women with PPROM were identified and reviewed. The majority of women (169; 69%) went into spontaneous labour and, of those, 24 (14%) had clinical chorioamnionitis and 79 (47%) had histological chorioamnionitis. Of the 45 women (18%) who required urgent delivery, 27 (60%) had clinical chorioamnionitis and 31 (69%) had histological chorioamnionitis. Only 26 of the original 244 women with PPROM (11%) were managed expectantly until 34 weeks' gestation and then had a planned delivery. The prevalence of histological chorioamnionitis in this group whose placentas were sent for histopathologic review was 24%. Overall, the clinical suspicion of chorioamnionitis was found to be specific (91%) but not sensitive (37%) for identifying chorioamnionitis on the basis of histopathology., Conclusion: Histological chorioamnionitis complicates almost one half of all cases of PPROM that occur prior to 34 weeks' gestation. Most women will progress to spontaneous labour or require urgent delivery for clinical chorioamnionitis or other complications related to ruptured membranes before reaching 34 weeks' gestation. Only a subset of women remain pregnant long enough to have labour induced, but among those the prevalence of histological chorioamnionitis is lower (24%).

Objective: To determine whether a novel web-based learning module could adequately prepare first-year undergraduate medical students to skilfully perform their first female pelvic examination., Methods: First-year Queen's University medical students without prior training or experience in female pelvic examination were recruited for this study. After viewing key segments of the learning module, students were evaluated while performing a pelvic examination on a female volunteer using a standardized assessment checklist (total score = 30 points). Descriptive and comparative statistics were generated., Results: Forty-five students participated with a mean age of 24 years (range 20 to 40). The mean score (±SD) on the assessment checklist was 23.9 ± 3.6 points, (range 17 to 30). All study participants received a passing grade of ≥ 50% (15/30 points), and 53.3% (24/45) received an honours grade of ≥ 80% (24/30 points). Of the participants, 88.9% (40/45) agreed that they were well prepared for their first female pelvic examination after viewing the training video. Mean scores were similar for male students (23.9, n = 22) and female students (23.8, n = 23) (P = 0.90, t test). Mean scores were not higher in those who watched key segments of the learning module more than once., Conclusion: This learning module viewed immediately prior to a simulated clinic session afforded first-year medical students the necessary knowledge and skills to perform a first female pelvic examination. This was accomplished with as little as one viewing, and could lead to savings in organizational costs and instruction time for medical school curricula.

Several naphthalene Unit Risk Factors (URFs) were proposed by the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2004 using data on the development of olfactory epithelial neuroblastomas and nasal respiratory epithelial adenomas in rats, but these URFs may be inappropriate and unnecessarily conservative for estimating human cancer risks. The purpose of the present exercise was to perform a screening-level population risk assessment of the US population to compare the observed number of naphthalene-induced nasal tumors in the US to the number that would be predicted if the URFs for naphthalene were as proposed. Nine scenarios were evaluated to represent the range of exposures individuals have typically experienced. Results indicate that the total predicted burden of naphthalene-induced nasal tumors per year in the US (65,905 rare nasal tumors, of which 29,121 are olfactory epithelial neuroblastomas) is much greater than the number of these tumors actually observed per year (910 total nasal tumors, of which 66 are olfactory neuroblastomas) over the period 1973-2006. This suggests that using rat nasal tumor data to derive a naphthalene URF for humans should be re-evaluated., (Copyright 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)