RIVM Publications Repository
Each year the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) produces numerous reports and publications on all aspects of public health, nutrition and food, health care, disaster management, nature and the environment.
In addition, RIVM employees publish scientific articles in national and international journals.
Elk jaar brengt het Rijksinstituut voor Volksgezondheid en Milieu (RIVM) talloze rapporten en adviezen uit over volksgezondheid en gezondheidszorg, voeding, natuur en milieu en rampenbestrijding.
Daarnaast publiceren RIVM-medewerkers wetenschappelijke artikelen in (inter-)nationale tijdschriften.
We are constantly working to improve the Repository. Please contact our administrator if you have any further questions or remarks.
Recent Submissions
Publication Midichloria mitochondrii stimulates the sylvatic cycle of (sensu lato)) in and contributes to Lyme disease risk.(2025-07-03)Sex and symbionts of arthropod vectors are potential modulators of infection with vector-borne pathogens. Here, we investigated the involvement of sex and presence of the bacterial symbiont in immature stages of ticks on the acquisition and abundance of the tick-borne spirochete (). There was no difference in the infection rate of between male and female larvae. The infection with but not tick sex increased the acquisition of () by larvae feeding on naturally infected birds. The infection with () in questing nymphs was positively associated with , but not with their sex. The infection rates of in field-collected ticks showed substantial spatial variation. In our field study, we observed that locations exhibiting higher prevalence in nymphs also have significantly higher infection rates with (). Thus, the symbiont appears to enhance the ability of immature ticks to acquire and/or maintain () in nature and is therefore an additional factor that contributes to the spatial variation in Lyme disease risk.Publication Unlocking liver physiology: comprehensive pathway maps for mechanistic understanding.(2025-07-07)methods provide a resourceful toolbox for new approach methodologies (NAMs). They can revolutionize chemical safety assessment by offering more efficient and human-relevant alternatives to traditional animal testing. In this study, we introduce two Liver Physiological Maps (PMs); comprehensive and machine-readable graphical representations of the intricate mechanisms governing two major liver functions.Publication Bridging behavioral theory and household energy decisions: enhancing agent-based models with behavioral analysis.(2025-07-09)Households are crucial in the energy transition, accounting for over 25% of the European Union's energy consumption. To design effective policy measures that motivate households to change their behavior in favor of the energy transition, agent-based models (ABMs) are vital. For ABMs to reach their full potential in policy design, they must appropriately represent behavioral dynamics. One way to accomplish this is by strengthening the fit in ABMs between behavioral determinants (e.g., trust in energy companies) and the behavior of interest (e.g., adopting tariff structures). This study investigates whether a structured behavioral analysis improves this "determinants-behavior-fit." A systematic review of 71 ABMs addressing household energy decisions reveals that models incorporating a behavioral analysis formalize nearly twice as many behavioral determinants, indicating a more systematic uptake. Subsequently, we find a difference between models focusing on investment-related behaviors (e.g., households buying solar panels) and those examining daily energy practices (e.g., households adjusting charging habits). Models in the first category integrate more social factors when incorporating behavioral analyses, corresponding with the influence of networks and peer effects on investment behaviors. Models in the second category emphasize individual and external factors in response to behavioral analyses, corresponding with the energy practices' habitual and contextual nature. Despite the benefits of a behavioral analysis for improving the determinants-behavior fit in ABMs, only one-third of the studies apply it partially. On top of that, almost half of the studies do not report a rationale for their choice of behavioral determinants. This suggests that many models may not fully capture the behavioral mechanisms underlying household energy decisions, limiting ABMs' potential to inform policymakers. Our findings highlight the need for systematic behavioral assessments in model development. We conclude that collaboration between behavioral scientists and modelers is crucial to accomplish such integration, and we emphasize the importance of allowing sufficient time and resources for meaningful exchange. Future research could further investigate empirical validation of behavioral insights in ABMs and explore how ABM results improve with a better determinants-behavior fit. By bridging behavioral science with computational modeling, ABMs' decision-support power to policymakers can be improved, ultimately accelerating the energy transition.Publication Wastewater surveillance studies on pathogens and their use in public health decision-making: a scoping review.(2025-06-30)This study provides a comprehensive overview of wastewater surveillance studies on pathogens, identifies key characteristics of studies that are associated with public health actions, and highlights the actions resulting from these studies. Many studies refer to the value of wastewater surveillance in public health decision-making, but it remains unclear how many studies support public health action and whether this is incorporated into study designs. Therefore, we conducted a scoping review following PRISMA guidelines and used the machine learning tool ASReview to identify wastewater surveillance studies monitoring pathogen circulation in human populations, followed by correlational analyses. A total of 974 studies were included, of which only 84 described public health action. Merely 28 of these incorporated strategies to facilitate action within their study designs. Studies leading to public health action primarily monitored viruses, e.g., SARS-CoV-2 and poliovirus, and since 2024 also influenza A and B virus, respiratory syncytial virus, hepatitis A virus and mpox virus. Furthermore, studies conducted by public health institutes or targeting non-standard locations are more likely to result in action, whereas those with larger population sizes or focusing on residential areas are less likely to result in action. The most common public health actions included informing health authorities and identifying cases. Our findings highlight the value of learning from existing use cases. While wastewater surveillance can support public health actions, evidence of its use is limited. Future studies should improve study designs by, e.g., incorporating strategies for public health actions to maximize their effectiveness and impact on decision-making.Publication Under-reporting of Validation Efforts for Health Economic Models Persists Despite the Availability of Validation Tools: A Systematic Review.(2025-04-28)In this study we aimed to identify possible changes over time in validation efforts and the way in which they are reported for model-based health economic (HE) evaluations, given the introduction of several new validation tools and methods in the past decade.
Communities in RIVM Publications Repository
Select a community to browse its collections.