Drone and Other Hobbyist Aircraft Injuries Seen in U.S. Emergency Departments, 2010-2017.

INTRODUCTION: Recreational radio-controlled hobbyist aircraft-particularly "drones"-have become increasingly popular in the last decade. The purpose of this study is to describe injuries associated with hobbyist drones and compare them with injuries associated with other hobbyist aircraft. METHODS: In this 2018 cross-sectional analysis of National Electronic Injury Surveillance System data for 2010-2017, case narrative fields were searched to identify emergency department visits related to hobbyist aircraft injuries. The incidence of hobbyist aircraft injuries was estimated, and summary statistics, chi-square tests, and t-tests were used to describe and compare the demographic and clinical characteristics of drone and other hobbyist aircraft-related cases. RESULTS: An estimated 12,842 hobbyist aircraft injuries presented to U.S. emergency departments during 2010-2017. An increased incidence attributable to drone-related injuries emerged in 2015. Overall, most injuries involved male patients aged 50 years on average. Propeller injuries were the leading mechanism. An estimated 270 patients required hospital admission. Patients injured by drones were younger (mean, 34 years vs 58 years; p<0.001) and more likely to be female than patients injured by hobbyist planes. Drone-related injuries were more likely than plane-related injuries to result from blunt trauma (e.g., being struck or falling during aircraft retrieval; 40.5% vs 7.9%, p<0.001). Helicopter-related injuries more closely resembled drone-related injuries than plane-related injuries. CONCLUSIONS: Hobbyist aircraft-related injuries are increasing, particularly drone-related injuries. Tailored injury prevention measures and product safety materials are needed to address all hobbyist aircraft-related injuries, with a particular focus on drone-related injury prevention measures.

Changes in immunomodulatory properties of Echinacea spp. root infusions and tinctures stored at 4 degrees C for four days.

BACKGROUND: Phytomedicinal preparations from members of the genus Echinacea are popular worldwide and frequently used to treat upper respiratory infections. With the increasing popularity of herbal medicines, many people are making their own Echinacea extracts at home and storing them at refrigerator (4 degrees C) temperatures. We tested the hypothesis that Echinacea extracts made using homemade methods change in immunomodulatory efficacy with storage at 4 degrees C over a 4-day period. METHODS: Three extract types (50% ethanol tincture, cold water infusion, hot water infusion) from 5 different species (Echinacea angustifolia, E. pallida, E. purpurea, E. sanguinea, E. tennesseensis) were prepared. Four in vitro immune assays (monocyte secretion of TNF-alpha, IL-10, and IL-12; and peripheral blood mononuclear cell proliferation) using human blood were used to test extract efficacy at Days 1 and 4 post-extraction. Two statistical analyses, traditional ANOVA and several statistical models that account for endotoxin effects, were used. RESULTS: Endotoxin was found to significantly impact immune outcomes only in 4-day old cold water infusions and not in all assays. Extracts showed the greatest stimulation in TNF-alpha assays. By extract type, 50% ethanol tinctures produced the most immune stimulation. By species, extracts from E. angustifolia extracts were the most efficacious in our assays; extracts from E. sanguinea showed the least activity overall. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, these results suggest that: (1) homemade Echinacea extracts are efficacious in modulating immune cell activity in vitro but that their properties change with time during storage at 4 degrees C; and (2) endotoxin effects from extracts may be important considerations in the analysis of immunobiological data.