Potential effects of the reuse of building material on soil quality In a circular economy, building materials have a longer life cycle and are reused in innovative ways. Reusing building materials is sustainable, but can also be risky as building materials may contain contaminants such as heavy metals.
Vaccine manufacturer employee contracts poliovirus An employee of vaccine manufacturer Bilthoven Biologicals (BBio) has been infected with a poliovirus. The virus was found in a stool sample provided by the employee. The employee concerned is now in isolation.
Limited impact of incorrect data used for list of top 100 ammonia emitters On 1 November 2022, RIVM announced that its list of top-100 ammonia emitters was compiled using incorrect emission factors for some types of livestock housing. RIVM has investigated whether the erroneous data had also been used in other RIVM products.
Annual report ‘Tuberculosis in the Netherlands’ for 2021: slight increase in number of TB patients In 2021, the number of tuberculosis (TB) patients in the Netherlands rose slightly compared to the preceding year: up to 680 TB patients from 622 in 2020. However, the 2021 number was lower than the number for 2019 (754 patients).
Screening for chronic Q-fever is only cost-effective for specific groups RIVM has investigated for which groups screening for chronic Q-fever might be cost-effective.
Pneumococcal disease in the elderly The Health Council of the Netherlands is preparing an advice on pneumococcal vaccination for the elderly on request of the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport.
Statement on health care spending Down syndrome Recently a tweet containing a video from a Dutch tv-show about Down syndrome caused a lot of turmoil on Twitter.
Temporary dermal fillers prove harmless RIVM has conducted a market surveillance study of 26 so-called non-permanent fillers. All 26 products proved to be harmless.
Slight increase of the number of tuberculosis patients in 2016 For the second consecutive year, the number of tuberculosis (TB) patients in the Netherlands increased.
Promising biobased alternatives to controversial polar aprotic solvents There are a number of promising biobased alternatives to controversial polar aprotic solvents, as revealed in a report from Wageningen Food & Biobased Research commissioned by RIVM .