Postgraduate medical journal
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Effective screening questionnaires are essential for early detection of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The STOP-Bang questionnaire has high sensitivity but low specificity. Dry mouth is a typical clinical sign of OSA. We hypothesised that adding dry mouth in the STOP-Bang questionnaire would improve its specificity. ⋯ The dry mouth symptom correlated with snoring and sleep apnea. The specificity of the STOP-Bang questionnaire can be improved by integrating dry mouth. The diagnostic accuracy of the STOP-Bang-dry mouth questionnaire is yet to be further verified in prospective studies.
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Out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) in the young population have only been examined in a limited number of regional studies. Hence, we sought to describe OHCA characteristics and predictors of survival to hospital discharge for the young Irish population. ⋯ The high prevalence of non-medical OHCAs and the OHCA location need to be considered when developing OHCA care pathways and preventative strategies to reduce the burden of OHCAs in the young population.
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Facilitating radiological imaging for patients is an essential task for foundation year (FY) doctors. Achieving competence in this task can significantly enhance patient management. We evaluated the confidence and skills of FY doctors in facilitating radiological imaging before and after introduction of formal training. ⋯ There was a demonstrable benefit with focused training in improving these skills. This could potentially provide significant benefits in patient care and management. Interspecialty communication should be introduced into undergraduate and postgraduate educational curriculum.
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Editorial Comparative Study Historical Article
COVID-19: a comparison to the 1918 influenza and how we can defeat it.