Bmc Fam Pract
-
To establish the clinical relevance of S-carboxymethylcysteine in the treatment of glue ear in children using measures approximating those saving a child from operation for grommet insertion. ⋯ S-carboxymethylcysteine is effective in the treatment of children with glue ear. For every five or six children treated with S-carboxymethylcysteine over one to three months, one will not undergo surgery for grommet insertion who would have done had they been given placebo. The confidence in this conclusion is limited because studies included relatively few children.
-
Nicotine replacement therapies (NRT) and a new drug, bupropion, are licensed in several countries as aids to smoking cessation. General practitioners (GPs) play a crucial role in recommending or prescribing these medications. In the UK there has been discussion about whether the medications should be reimbursable by the National Health Service (NHS). This study assessed English GPs' attitudes towards reimbursement of NRT and bupropion. ⋯ GPs in England appear to be divided in their attitudes to medications to aid smoking cessation and appear not to discriminate in their views between different types of medication or different aspects of their use. This suggests that their attitudes are generated by quite fundamental values. Addressing these values may be important in encouraging GPs to adhere more closely to national and international guidelines.
-
Dissatisfaction with uniprofessional education structures as a means of improving the quality of healthcare has led to proposals to develop ways of integrating professional learning and organisational development. ⋯ This work supports the view that organisational development has considerable potential for bringing about effective change, and individual contributions could form a valuable component of personal portfolios. We believe that the existing structures in education and management in the health service are not yet able to support these processes. Evidence from the fields of risk management and quality improvement all point to the need to develop effective organisational systems and the results of this feasibility study indicate that alternative models of sustaining organisational development need careful evaluation.
-
A project aimed at studying the frequency of dementia and depression in the catchment area of the Health Centre of Chrissoupolis (HCCh), Northern Greece, was carried out. This paper reports the association between AD and anemia among the elderly participants in this Greek study. ⋯ Anemia is a frequent finding in elderly and it may be a risk factor for dementia, but the extent of the associated deterioration of cognitive impairment or the relation with AD is not known. GPs should be aware of this coexistence and recommend for screening, assaying and treating elderly people.