ventilator
早産により生まれた子供を治療する医療機器（透明のプラスチックで覆われたベットのようなもの）の成分に，赤ちゃんにとって有害な物質が含まれていることが示唆されました。
記事の中で気になった単語は"ventilator"です。『Wisdom英和辞典第三版』（三省堂）によると「換気装置，換気扇，換気窓，人工呼吸器」などという意味がありました。「通気孔」などの意味をもつ"vent"から派生した単語であると思います。（Ume）
Warning over plastics used in treating premature babies
Previous research that attempted to calculate exposure to DEHP in babies in hospital had measured how much was passed out in the urine, but this was difficult to do accurately, the researchers said.
Instead the team, from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, calculated potential exposure based on studies that had shown how much DEHP could leak out of certain medical devices.
Reporting in the Journal of Perinatology, they estimated that premature babies who were on a ventilator could be exposed to about 16mg/kg per day, which is 4,000 to 160,000 times higher than those believed to be safe.
Analysis of the possible health impacts, other than the most commonly reported effects on reproduction showed, at least in animals, phthalates could also cause problems with the development of the lungs, gut, brain and eyes development.
Study leader Dr Eric Mallow said critically ill premature babies were cared for in an environment almost completely made of plastic.
"The role of these synthetic materials in the clinical course of our patients remains almost completely unexplored.
"PVC is the predominant flexible plastic in most NICUs [neonatal intensive care units], and this can result in considerable DEHP exposures during intensive care," he said.
