Analysis of Consumer Exposure Cases for Alcohol-Based Disinfectant and Hand Sanitizer Use against Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)

The development and distribution of vaccines and treatments as well as the use of disinfectants and hand sanitizers to cope with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection has increased rapidly. As the use of disinfectants and hand sanitizers increased, the number of unintended exposures to these substances also increased. A total of 8016 cases of toxic exposure to disinfectants and hand sanitizers were reported to the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) from 1 January 2017 to 30 May 2021. The cases have been characterized by substance, sex, patient age, exposure reason and site, treatments received, and outcomes. The number of exposures correlates closely to the rise of COVID-19 cases, rising significantly in March 2020. About half of the total cases involved children less than 10 years old and 97% of those exposures per year were unintentional. In addition, the most common exposure site was the patient’s own residence. Over-exposure to disinfectants and hand sanitizers can cause symptoms such as burning and irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat, coughing, chest tightness, headache, choking, and, in severe cases, death.

Best Practices and Lessons Learned in Deploying and Setting Dissolvable Frac Plugs in Middle East at HPHT Conditions

The multistage hydraulic fracturing technique is considered to be one of the most effective stimulation techniques used for exploiting unconventional plays. The use of dissolvable frac plugs in multistage hydraulic fracturing has the potential to reduce well intervention requirements. Applicability of dissolvable frac plugs, as an integral part of plug and perf operations, in Middle East unconventional plays presents a myriad of technical challenges associated with high-pressure and high-temperature (HPHT) well conditions. Two counteracting drivers coexist in dissolvable frac plug design: 1) The need for the frac plug to withstand well conditions during the entire frac stage operational cycle and 2) the requirement for the frac plug to dissolve as quickly as possible after the stimulation treatment has been placed. The HPHT conditions of the wells utilizing dissolvable frac plugs adds to the complexity of not only the plug design, but also its associated deployment operational procedures. The main premise of the functional methodology of dissolvable frac plugs involves a chain reaction being triggered in the presence of specific fluids under specific temperature conditions. After the commencement of the degradation/dissolution chain reaction process, the useful lifetime of the frac plug begins to deplete, where the degradation chain reaction accelerates with increasing temperature exposure. Site operations will then conform to expedited practices to minimize undesired exposure time. This would minimize the risks of degradation/dissolution before plug setting, plug test, and actual stimulation treatment placement. Based on the HPHT well conditions of Middle Eastern unconventional plays, a structured process was put in place to satisfy the define, assess, select, and execute phases of the initiative The inevitable occurrences of unforeseen complications during operational deployments served to accelerate the learning curve for the continued utilization of dissolvable frac plugs. Operational issues ranging from electric line unit complications to frac pump downtime during the initial frac plug deployments compromised the structural integrity and functionality of the dissolvable frac plugs. Recognizing that exposure time was critical to maintaining the structural integrity of the plug, best practices were derived and enforced to minimize said exposure time. In addition, slight design modifications were made to specific components of the plug to increase its robustness while not compromising the desired degradation rates. The adoption of these mitigating measures has resulted in the acceptance of the dissolvable frac plug as the standard plug option for all plug and perf operations. The vast experience gained during the deployment of more than 1,000 dissolvable frac plugs for hydraulic fracturing stages in a Middle Eastern country has served as a basis to conceive a list of best practices to address mitigating unforeseen complications. These best practices are enforced to minimize plug exposure time, which in turn maximizes the probability of plug utilization success.

Novel Bioactive Adhesive Monomer CMET Promotes Odontogenic Differentiation and Dentin Regeneration

This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro effect of the novel bioactive adhesive monomer CMET, a calcium salt of 4-methacryloxyethyl trimellitate acid (4-MET), on human dental pulp stem cells (hDPSCs) and its capacity to induce tertiary dentin formation in a rat pulp injury model. Aqueous solutions of four tested materials [4-MET, CMET, Ca(OH)2, and mineral trioxide aggregate (MTA)] were added to the culture medium upon confluence, and solvent (dH2O) was used as a control. Cell proliferation was assessed using the Cell Counting Kit-8 assay, and cell differentiation was evaluated by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. The mineralization-inducing capacity was evaluated using alizarin red S staining and an alkaline phosphatase activity assay. For an in vivo experiment, a mechanical pulp exposure model was prepared on Wistar rats; damaged pulp was capped with Ca(OH)2 or CMET. Cavities were sealed with composite resin, and specimens were assessed after 14 and 28 days. The in vitro results showed that CMET exhibited the lowest cytotoxicity and highest odontogenic differentiation capacity among all tested materials. The favorable outcome on cell mineralization after treatment with CMET involved p38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinases signaling. The nuclear factor kappa B pathway was involved in the CMET-induced mRNA expression of odontogenic markers. Similar to Ca(OH)2, CMET produced a continuous hard tissue bridge at the pulp exposure site, but treatment with only CMET produced a regular dentinal tubule pattern. The findings suggest that (1) the evaluated novel bioactive adhesive monomer provides favorable biocompatibility and odontogenic induction capacity and that (2) CMET might be a very promising adjunctive for pulp-capping materials.

1350. Characterization of the Type of Specimen Used for Testing of Sexually Transmitted Infections in Outpatient Clinics

Background Screening and diagnosis of Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) requires use of nucleic acid amplifications tests (NAATs) on optimal anatomical specimens. Vaginal or cervical swabs are preferred in women and first-catch urine in men. Furthermore, extra-genital testing is recommended for men who have sex with men (MSM) and for men who have sex with women (MSW) based on exposure history. Increasingly, STI care is being provided in non-STI specialized settings such as Urgent Care (UC) and Primary Care clinics (PC). Therefore, we aimed to characterize the types of anatomical specimens being utilized for the diagnosis of STIs in non-STI specialized clinics. Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of all Neisseria gonorrhea (GC) and Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) tests obtained at 46 adult outpatient clinics (PC, UC and Obstetrics & Gynecology [OB/Gyn]) part of an integrated health system in Des Moines, Iowa, between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019. In this database, no information was available regarding patient history of sexual exposure site(s). Descriptive statistics, including counts, percentages, and differences in proportions were estimated and stratified by outpatient clinic type. Results We identified a total of 18,503 encounters involving 2,802 men and 15,701 women. Rates of extragenital testing were overall low, but higher in male patients (14.6%) than in female patients (0.20%). Among male patients, extra-genital testing was obtained in 21.1% of patients seen in PCs compared to 5.2% in UCs (p< 0.0001) (Table 1). Notably, 177 (50.9%) of the extra-genital samples collected at PCs were obtained at a clinic specializing in the care of MSM. Among female patients, the proportion of urine-based tests was highest in PC (32%), while non-urine genitourinary samples were more frequently obtained at Ob-Gyn clinics (92.7%) (p< 0.0001) (Table 2). Conclusion Extragenital site testing for GC and CT remains an uncommon practice across all clinic setting types, and high proportions of female patients evaluated at PC and UC clinics were tested using urine specimens. Our results indicate a need for effective education and implementation processes for optimal testing modalities in primary care clinics. Disclosures All Authors: No reported disclosures

Potential Impact of UWWT Effluent Discharges on Ruditapes decussatus: An Approach Using Biomarkers

The use of biomarkers in bivalves has gained significance as a reliable method for the assessment of the presence and effect of contaminants in aquatic ecosystems. However, it is important to note that the biomarkers respond not only to contaminant loadings and bioavailability but also to environmental stress. Therefore, the association between biomarkers and contamination/pollution should be conducted cautiously as the environmental factors also affect their response. These factors should be integrated into the assessment of the response of the biomarkers. The potential impact of effluents from an urban wastewater treatment plant (UWWTP) on the Ruditapes decussatus clam specimens located 1.5 Km away in a surrounding area was evaluated. After one month of exposure, three biomarkers were analyzed, namely lipid peroxidation (LPO), acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and electron transport system (ETS). These parameters were also determined for a control group purchased from a local nursery, which had no influence from UWWTP, in order to compare the results obtained from both groups. The in situ physicochemical characterization of the exposure site (temperature, salinity, pH and dissolved oxygen) was evaluated together with nutritional parameters, morphometric measurements and condition index. The biochemical analysis showed that the activity levels of AChE fluctuated from 4.0 to 4.6 nmol/min g protein and that of LPO from 101.5 to 248.9 nmol MDA/g protein. Also, the ETS activity levels were in the range of 27.2 to 30.2 nmol O2/min g protein. The lipid peroxidation was found to be the most responsive biomarker toward the damage caused by environmental conditions on the clams.

Novel application of mosses transplanted in bags as biointerceptors of airborne radioactive dusts after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Station accident

<p>Nine years after the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, in line with the strong efforts to devise ever more effective methods to monitor airborne radioactive dusts, in the present study we proposed for the first time the use of mosses transplanted in bags as biointerceptors of <sup>134</sup>Cs and <sup>137</sup>Cs in the evacuated zone of the Fukushima territory and according to a standardised protocol. The work aimed to investigate the ability of the moss transplants to accumulate radiocaesium and therefore to act as radiocaesium biointerceptors. To this purpose, the activity concentrations of radiocaesium were measured in moss bags filled with 3 widely studied moss species (<em>Sphagnum palustre, Hypnum cupressiforme, Hypnum plumaeforme</em>) and exposed for 3, 6 and 9 weeks at 5 residential sites within Fukushima area. The levels of radiocaesium found in moss bags were evaluated as function of different parameters (e.g. exposure time, site conditions, moss species). The moss bags were able to accumulate <sup>137</sup>Cs in all exposure sites and periods, with <em>Sphagnum palustre</em> acting as the most performant moss species. The <sup>137</sup>Cs activity concentrations (from 28 to 4700 Bq kg<sup>-1</sup>), could be explained by the Cs deposition levels and decontamination status of each exposure site, highlighting the sensitivity of the moss bags to discriminate among exposure sites according to their contamination level. Autoradiography and electron microscopy analysis of the distribution and the chemical composition of the particles entrapped by moss surfaces revealed a prevalence soil-derived radiocaesium. The linear dependency of Cs accumulation with the exposure time allowed a radiocaesium quantitative assessment by using location-specific (LF) and species-specific (SF) factors, with the latter susceptible to an “universal” applicability in future biomonitoring studies with the same experimental design.</p>

Correlation of a Temperate UV-Weathering Cycle to Outdoor Exposure for the Determination of the Environmental Instability of Polyethylene Films Using HT-GPC Analysis

Accelerated UV-weathering cycles are predominately used for evaluating the durability of plastic materials, particularly polyethylene (PE) films. The point of failure for this testing is usually the loss of a physical property, such as the loss of tensile strength over time. For plastics designed to be instable under environmental conditions, the accelerated weathering cycles are yet to be defined and their correlation to outdoor exposure has yet to be made. This study demonstrates the utility of a newly defined temperate accelerated UV-weathering cycle, recently codified in the British Standard PAS 9017:2020. In addition, the effectiveness of the laboratory weathering cycle has been correlated to real-world outdoor exposure through simultaneous testing of the same samples at a specialist outdoor exposure site in Florida. The utility of the testing methodology and the performance of the polyethylene samples was demonstrated through the use of High Temperature Gel Permeation Chromatography (HT-GPC) analysis. The data led to a detailed insight into the physico-chemical changes occurring in the PE films upon exposure to environmental stimuli. By comparison, and surprisingly, the techniques employed appear to provide an insight into the processes in which secondary micro-particles of PE are formed from macro-polyethylene samples. The temperate accelerated UV-weathering cycle over 14 days demonstrated an approximate correlation to 90 days of outdoor exposure in Florida for the PE film studied.

Keeping the workforce healthy and safe during COVID-19 at Woodside

Keeping the workforce healthy and safe during COVID-19 required extraordinary responses from Australian extractive industries. Woodside maintained safe and reliable operations using a collaborative and principle driven approach to health and safety leadership to protect its workforce. Woodside demonstrated an ability to respond rapidly and decisively to the COVID-19 pandemic. Health principles were quickly developed, guiding staff on the importance of hygiene, maintaining health at work and quickly reporting any flu-like illness symptoms. Technology was used to analyse travel history, health status and potential exposure. Site-specific controls to limit access and prevent potential spread of infections were implemented. Procedures to manage potential cases were developed and operating models were modified to ensure business continuity for safety critical roles. As rosters were modified and people worked from home, a wellbeing framework guided the implementation of preventative and mitigative controls for mental health. Leaders encouraged the small working groups to back their judgement as the situation rapidly evolved, providing time and space for the teams to develop and implement effective health management plans. Woodside worked collaboratively with industry partners, contractors and communities, recognising the importance of collaboration to align responses and remove barriers to deliver effective controls. Support and enablement of leaders was a key focus area. Significant emphasis was placed on enabling optimal human performance by focusing on emerging risks, for example how leaders can optimise human performance in the key areas of mental wellbeing, fatigue management and remote leadership when restrictions limited traditional face-to-face support on operational sites.

Service Life Modeling of Concrete with SCMs Using Effective Diffusion Coefficient and a New Binding Model

This paper presents a new algorithm that predicts the service life of concrete contains supplementary cementitious materials, SCMs, and determines time of corrosion initiation. The algorithm drives effective diffusivity from an apparent diffusion model, using experimental binding data performed in the lab, temperature, free ion concentration, and carbonation, and generates free chloride profiles for concrete with and without SCMs by using Fick’s law in a finite element model. Adjusting diffusion coefficient at each step of the solution, by addressing the impact of different parameters, simplifies the algorithm and reduces calculation time without jeopardizing the results’ quality. Results generated by the model compare well to the performance of concrete blocks constructed in an exposure site on the east coast of Saudi Arabia. The exposure site hosted five different mixes of Portland cement and SCMs, and the concrete blocks were exposed to harsh weather over the period of two years. Linear polarization and chloride profiling assessed the performance of the mixes against corrosion activities. Lab work identified the performance of the mixes through binding capacity and chloride profiling. Statistical analysis evidenced the accuracy of the model through correlation and regression analysis. Furthermore, a new proposed binding model, produced from binding data in different studies, alters the experimental binding data in the algorithm to decouple the solution from experimental values. The algorithm proves its accuracy when compared to the experimental free chloride profile. The proposed transport model proves that using effective diffusion and binding capacity are enough to generate reliable results, and the effective diffusion can be calibrated with environmental conditions such as temperature, age, and carbonation. Finally, the algorithm presents its features in an object-oriented programming using C# and user friendly web interface.