PLoS medicine
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Comparative Study
Comparative analysis of alcohol control policies in 30 countries.
Alcohol consumption causes an estimated 4% of the global disease burden, prompting governments to impose regulations to mitigate the adverse effects of alcohol. To assist public health leaders and policymakers, the authors developed a composite indicator-the Alcohol Policy Index-to gauge the strength of a country's alcohol control policies. ⋯ The strength of alcohol control policies, as estimated by the Alcohol Policy Index, varied widely among 30 countries located in Europe, Asia, North America, and Australia. The study revealed a clear inverse relationship between policy strength and alcohol consumption. The Index provides a straightforward tool for facilitating international comparisons. In addition, it can help policymakers review and strengthen existing regulations aimed at minimizing alcohol-related harm and estimate the likely impact of policy changes.
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The number of children worldwide with hearing impairment is increasing, and these children face a number of social and educational obstacles.
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Building on existing knowledge from social science work on malaria, the authors propose two models for studying social science aspects of malaria in pregnancy.
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Malaysia's stable health care system is facing challenges with increasing medicine costs. To investigate these issues a survey was carried out to evaluate medicine prices, availability, affordability, and the structure of price components. ⋯ The free market by definition does not control medicine prices, necessitating price monitoring and control mechanisms. Markups for generic products are greater than for IBs. Reducing the base price without controlling markups may increase profits for retailers and dispensing doctors without reducing the price paid by end users. To increase access and affordability, promotion of generic medicines and improved availability of medicines in the public sector are required.