ABSTRACT
Two versions of an electrically powered device (Rotorinser) to sample carcasses or other surfaces in situ for microbiological analysis and several different sampling protocols were evaluated against excision plus stomaching for ability to remove bacteria from pig skin and beef carcass tissue. Both devices sampled circular areas of approximately 14 cm2. Ten tissue samples were used for each set of conditions. Rotorinser bacterial removal efficiency was calculated as R/(R + S), where R is the Rotorinser count (CFU cm-2) and S is the count on stomached excised tissue after rotorinsing. Stomacher efficiencies were calculated as S1/(S1 + S2), where S1 is the first stomacher count of excised tissue and S2 is the count from a second stomaching. Both Rotorinsers were much better than traditional swabs. Rotorinser 1 gave removal efficiencies of 0.79 to 0.88 for beef, and 0.79 to 0.95 for pork. Prewetting surfaces for 5 min improved removal, but mixtures of enzymes did not. Rotorinser 2 applied with NaCl or NaCl-Tween 80 diluent for either 30 or 60 s was significantly better (0.93 and 0.98) than the stomacher (0.86) at removing aerobic mesophilic bacteria from pork skin. The Rotorinser causes negligible tissue damage and can be used on surfaces at any angle.
Subject(s)
Food, Fortified , Pregnancy/physiology , Asia/ethnology , Birth Weight , Female , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Nutritional StatusSubject(s)
Calcium/metabolism , Infant, Newborn , Pregnancy , Alkaline Phosphatase/metabolism , Animals , Asian People , Black People , Blood Chemical Analysis , Diet , Female , Humans , Hypocalcemia/epidemiology , Infant Nutritional Physiological Phenomena , Inositol/analysis , Milk , Parathyroid Hormone/blood , Phosphorus/analysis , Umbilical Cord , Vitamin D/analysis , White PeopleABSTRACT
To assess the significance of various maternal and neonatal factors in the aetiology of neonatal tetany we have investigated the serum calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and heat-labile alkaline phosphatase of 250 mothers from three ethnic groups at several stages of pregnancy and the serum calcium, phosphorus, and magnesium of many of their infants. Subclinical hypocalcaemia was found to be much commoner in full-term infants on the sixth day of life than is generally appreciated, especially during the winter months and in babies of Asian parents. It is considered that this is a result of high phosphorus loads in artificial milks and is also influenced by maternal vitamin D and possibly calcium intake during pregnancy. The importance of ensuring that Asian women take adequate vitamin D supplements during pregnancy is stressed.
