Country-specific correlations across Europe between modelled atmospheric cadmium and lead deposition and concentrations in mosses.

Previous analyses at the European scale have shown that cadmium and lead concentrations in mosses are primarily determined by the total deposition of these metals. Further analyses in the current study show that Spearman rank correlations between the concentration in mosses and the deposition modelled by the European Monitoring and Evaluation Programme (EMEP) are country and metal-specific. Significant positive correlations were found for about two thirds or more of the participating countries in 1990, 1995, 2000 and 2005 (except for Cd in 1990). Correlations were often not significant and sometimes negative in countries where mosses were only sampled in a relatively small number of EMEP grids. Correlations frequently improved when only data for EMEP grids with at least three moss sampling sites per grid were included. It was concluded that spatial patterns and temporal trends agree reasonably well between lead and cadmium concentrations in mosses and modelled atmospheric deposition.

Lignicolous macrofungi of the Kékes North forest reserve in the Mátra Mountains, Hungary.

A three-year mycological investigation of the Kékes North forest reserve in the Mátra mountains. Hungary proved the richness of the area in lignicolous macrofungi. Diversity of macrofungi was in close correlation with the developmental phases of the forest as well as with the amount of dead wood of different quality (diameter, stage of decomposition, etc.).

Prevention of postoperative thromboembolisms in general surgery by the combination of heparin and dihydroergotamine.

The effect and the degree of safety of administering a fixed combination of 5000 IU of heparin + 0.5 mg dihydroergotamine (HDHE s.c. per every 12 hours) as opposed to 5000 IU of heparin (LDH s.c. every 8 hours) was assessed in a prospective randomized study on 86 patients having undergone major abdominal operation. Postoperatively a deep vein thrombosis was detected by the radiofibrinogen test in 10% of the 40 patients of the HDHE group and in 13% of 46 of the LDH group. Four patients died. At autopsy neither fatal nor a contributing pulmonary embolism was found. 'Non-lethal' pulmonary embolism diagnosed by lung perfusion scintigraphy and by chest X-rays, developed in 2 patients treated with LDH and in one treated with HDHE. Two-thirds of the dose of heparin were identically effective in prevention of venous thromboembolisms than the whole dose if heparin was combined with DHE. The decrease of the heparin dose significantly reduced the number of wound haematomas and of suffusion due to injection.