Blood spot test extended as of 1 January 2017 to include two more disorders As of 1 January 2017, the disorders alpha and beta thalassaemia will be added to the neonatal blood spot (‘heel prick’) screening programme.
First patient infected by tick-borne encephalitis virus For the first time, a person in the Netherlands has fallen ill after a bite from a tick carrying the tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBE virus).
Less air pollution from traffic and industry but increased contribution from agriculture International air policy has shown good results in Europe: in the past 35 years the air has become cleaner. Nevertheless air pollution is still an important cause of premature death.
Nanotechnology increasingly used in medical devices The application of nanotechnology to design and produce medical devices is increasing. RIVM provides an overview of nanotechnology enabled medical devices.
Newborn heel prick screening starts on St Eustatius and Saba On 26 October 2015, heel prick screening started for all newborns on St Eustatius and Saba.
Icy air measurements Bernice Notenboom’s Arctic March expedition team has reached the summit of Greenland. She has conquered the 3500-metre high summit on Greenland with functioning air measuring equipment.
Climate reporter Bernice Notenboom arrives in Greenland for continuation of climate expedition Climate reporter and expedition leader Bernice Notenboom and her team left for Greenland on 4 May 2015 for the second part of the Arctic March.
New insights on ammonia emissions Calculated ammonia emissions in the Netherlands are still declining. However, emissions overall are greater than previously assumed.
Big Data gives more insight into the health impacts of air pollution Long-term exposure to particulate air pollution and nitrogen dioxide has been found to be associated with total mortality and mortality from respiratory diseases and lung cancer in the Netherlands.
Risk of degradation of European ecosystems by air pollution is decreasing The number of natural areas in Europe that are threatened by air pollution will decrease between 2005 and 2020.