COVID-19 outbreak and healthcare worker behavioural change toward hand hygiene practices.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has affected healthcare workers (HCWs) in their clinical practice. HCWs were challenged with new guidelines and practices to protect themselves from occupational risks. AIM: To determine whether hand hygiene behaviour by real-time measurement was related to the dynamic of the epidemic, and the type of patient being cared for in France. METHODS: This study used an automated hand hygiene recording system to measure HCW hand hygiene on entry to and exit from patient rooms throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The correlation between hand hygiene compliance and COVID-19 epidemiological data was analysed. Analysis of variance was performed to compare compliance rate during the different periods of the epidemic. FINDINGS: HCW hand hygiene rate on room entry decreased over time; on room exit, it increased by 13.73% during the first wave of COVID-19, decreased by 9.87% during the post-lockdown period, then rebounded by 2.82% during the second wave of the epidemic. Hand hygiene during patient care and hand hygiene on room exit had a positive relationship with the local COVID-19 epidemic; conversely, hand hygiene on room entry did not depend on the trend of the epidemic, nor on nursing of COVID-19 patients, and it decreased over time. CONCLUSION: HCWs modified their behaviours to face the risk propensity of the pandemic. However, to improve the poor compliance at room entry, reducing confusion between the hand hygiene recommendation and glove recommendation may be necessary; disinfection of gloving hands might solve this issue.

Fluctuations and All-In-All-Out Ordering in Dipole-Octupole Nd(2)Zr(2)O(7).

By means of neutron scattering and magnetization measurements down to 90 mK, we determine the magnetic ground state of the spin-ice candidate Nd(2)Zr(2)O(7). We show that, despite ferromagnetic interactions, Nd(2)Zr(2)O(7) undergoes a transition around 285 mK towards an all-in-all-out antiferromagnetic state, with a strongly reduced ordered magnetic moment. We establish the (H,T) phase diagram in the three directions of the applied field and reveal a metamagnetic transition around 0.1 T, associated with an unexpected shape of the magnetization curves. We propose that this behavior results from the peculiar nature of the Nd^{3+} doublet, a dipolar-octupolar doublet, different from the standard Kramers doublet studied to date, thus revealing the importance of multipolar correlations in the properties of pyrochlore oxides.

[Hereditary multiple exostosis complicated by spontaneous haemothorax]. / Hémothorax spontané compliquant une maladie des exostoses multiples.

Spontaneous haemothorax is a rare event in the general population. However some diseases, including hereditary multiple exostosis, have an increased incidence of this complication. We report the case of a 22 year old patient with hereditary multiple exostosis who presented with a right sided haemothorax due to an exostosis of the seventh rib. The pathophysiology of spontaneous haemothorax in the setting of hereditary multiple exostosis is discussed together with surgical treatment and long term follow up.

[Clinical and biological surveillance after the cessation of Hymenoptera venom desensitization]. / Surveillance clinique et biologique après arrêt de la désensibilisation aux venins d'hyménoptères.

107 patients have discontinued Hymenoptera venom immunotherapy between 1988 and 2000. 31 have been seen again with intradermal tests with IgEs, and 81 responded to a questionnaire. Intradermal reactions and IgEs decrease together significantly during immunotherapy and then persist at low level during three years. Beyond, the number of patients is insufficient. 32 patients were stung by the same Hymenoptera and not had any systemic reaction. However, five have beta blockers, three have IEC and half of the patients don't take precautions to avoid Hymenoptera.

[Respiratory allergy and domestic animals]. / Allergie respiratoire et animaux domestiques.

Pets must be considered allergy factors. They are not advised for atopic families. However some recent publications suggest a protective effect of cat and dog exposure in the first year of life. The origin of this protective effect is not known.

Gynandroblastoma of the ovary.

A left ovarian gynandroblastoma in a 24-year-old woman was clinically manifest by prolonged (7 years) amenorrheas interrupted by metrorrhagies, with moderate hypertrichosis is presented. An important urinary elimination of estrogens (1.500 gamma/24 h) and of 17-ketosteroids (25 gamma/24 h) with normal 17-OH and gonadotrophins were evidenced. The microscopic examination of the operated tumor showed structures of a granulous tumor intermingled with arrhenoblastomatous structures. Restoration of the patient's sexual biological conditions.