Impact of weather on the risk of surgical site infections in a tropical area.

We studied the impact of average daily temperature and relative humidity on the risk of surgical site infections in 36,429 surgeries performed in a hospital in inner Brazil. Adjusted Poisson regression models found an association between surgical site infections and temperature (rate ratio [RR], 1.013; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.001-1.025). The effect was concentrated on clean wound procedures and was greater over the 75th (RR, 1.109; 95% CI, 1.015-1.212) and 90th (RR, 1.196; 95% CI, 1.055-1.355) percentiles of daily temperature.

Evaluation of measurement errors of temperature and relative humidity from HOBO data logger under different conditions of exposure to solar radiation.

This study aimed to assess measurements of temperature and relative humidity obtained with HOBO a data logger, under various conditions of exposure to solar radiation, comparing them with those obtained through the use of a temperature/relative humidity probe and a copper-constantan thermocouple psychrometer, which are considered the standards for obtaining such measurements. Data were collected over a 6-day period (from 25 March to 1 April, 2010), during which the equipment was monitored continuously and simultaneously. We employed the following combinations of equipment and conditions: a HOBO data logger in full sunlight; a HOBO data logger shielded within a white plastic cup with windows for air circulation; a HOBO data logger shielded within a gill-type shelter (multi-plate prototype plastic); a copper-constantan thermocouple psychrometer exposed to natural ventilation and protected from sunlight; and a temperature/relative humidity probe under a commercial, multi-plate radiation shield. Comparisons between the measurements obtained with the various devices were made on the basis of statistical indicators: linear regression, with coefficient of determination; index of agreement; maximum absolute error; and mean absolute error. The prototype multi-plate shelter (gill-type) used in order to protect the HOBO data logger was found to provide the best protection against the effects of solar radiation on measurements of temperature and relative humidity. The precision and accuracy of a device that measures temperature and relative humidity depend on an efficient shelter that minimizes the interference caused by solar radiation, thereby avoiding erroneous analysis of the data obtained.

Tropical healthcare epidemiology: weather determinants of the etiology of bloodstream infections in a Brazilian hospital.

We studied the influence of weather on the etiology of healthcare-associated bloodstream infections in a hospital in Brazil during the years 2005-2010. Monthly average temperatures were positively associated with higher incidence of gram-negative bacilli as a whole, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Enterobacter species. The same groups presented seasonal behavior in stochastic models.