Efficacy of Nootka Oil as a Biopesticide for Management of Imported Fire Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Recent concerns regarding the impact of traditional synthetic pesticides on nontarget organisms have generated demand for alternative products with lower environmental impact. This demand has led to increasing focus on plant essential oils as sources of new biopesticides. In this study, we demonstrate that the essential oil of the Alaskan yellow cedar, Cupressus nootkatensis (D. Don) Spach, has activity against hybrid imported fire ant workers, Solenopsis invicta Buren × Solenopsis richteri Forel. In digging assays, ants were repelled by nootka oil and digging continued to be suppressed by nearly 50% in nootka oil-treated sand aged 6 mo in the laboratory. Higher worker mortality was also observed in contact and fumigation assays compared to control checks. In a field drench test, mortality of mounds treated with nootka oil lagged behind mounds treated with bifenthrin treatment for 7 wk, but both nootka oil and bifenthrin had higher mortality than the untreated check at the end of the 12-wk evaluation period. In a band application evaluation, nootka oil plots maintained a 90-95% reduction in fire ant mounds from the 2nd to 17th wk, when new mounds began to intrude on the field plots. The quarantine-approved bifenthrin band treatment maintained 100% control from the 2nd to 24th wk. Although the formulation tested here did not perform to Federal Imported Fire Ant Quarantine standards, other formulations may enable this product to reach 100% control. In addition, nootka oil could be beneficial in situations where ant suppression rather than complete quarantine elimination is the management goal.

Paraphimosis in seven debilitated horses.

This paper reports seven cases of penile paraphimosis which occurred in both entire and castrated horses in association with general debility. Two cases were discharged after treatment while still suffering from partial paralysis; one was discharged at the owner's request with complete paralysis; three were destroyed and one died during treatment. Identified causes of debility were malnutrition, severe parasitism, glucose malabsorption and salmonellosis.

Management information systems in the HMO environment.

Realization of the unique potential of a health maintenance organization is dependent on the availability of adequate, accurate, and timely information. The particular data needed are determined by the structure of the organization; the physician compensation plans; requirements for state, federal, or other reporting; and many other factors. The author introduces the concept and objectives of the HMO, and presents the management information systems necessary for planning and monitoring HMO performance: patient information, utilization information, and management information for the staff and nonstaff HMO.

An analysis of 500 cases of equine cryptorchidism.

The authors analyse data collected over 23 years from 500 cryptorchid horses. They show that left- and right-sided abdominal cases occur with approximately equal frequency in ponies. Approximately half the right-sided unilateral abdominal cases have the epididymal tail descended while only 20 per cent of the left-sided cases do. These findings are briefly discussed. From their analysis of inguinal cryptorchidism the authors conclude that it is a relatively more complex phenomenon with incidence changing with age as well as breed. Right-sided retention predominates in young ponies, probably being an extreme expression of testicular hypoplasia, but in older ponies and in other types of horse, retention occurs equally on the left and right.

Suprapubic paramedian laparotomy for equine abdominal cryptorchidism.

The history of techniques for abdominal equine cryptorchidectomy is briefly reviewed. The technique of suprapubic paramedian laparotomy as used since 1955 at the University of Liverpool veterinary field station is described in detail and an account given of the authors' experience with the technique in nearly 200 cases. It is concluded that the approach to the abdominal cavity is easy, that the testis itself is generally readily located and removed and that controlled repair of the incision is possible. Serious post-operative complications are rare and the danger of post-operative prolapse of bowel eliminated.