Nederlands tijdschrift voor geneeskunde
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Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd · Feb 2006
Case Reports[Recurrent abdominal pain caused by left mesocolic hernia].
A 37-year-old man presented with symptoms of intestinal obstruction. Laparotomy revealed a congenital left mesocolic hernia. ⋯ Congenital mesocolic hernias are an infrequent cause of intestinal obstruction. In order to conduct the operation properly, surgeons must have a good understanding of the origin of the hernia and its anatomic relationships.
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Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd · Feb 2006
[Medical end-of-life decisions in neonates and infants in Flanders, Belgium; 1999/2000].
To determine the number of medical end-of-life decisions in critically ill neonates and infants in Flanders, Belgium. ⋯ The death of neonates and infants was commonly preceded by an end-of-life decision in Flanders. The type of decision varied substantially according to the age of the child. The majority of physicians involved, favoured legalization of the use of lethal drugs in some well-defined cases.
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Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd · Feb 2006
Comment[Insight into end-of-life decisions in newborns in Flanders, Belgium].
In the Netherlands, as in many other European countries, the majority of deaths in newborns are preceded by end-of-life decisions. In most cases, these decisions concern the withholding or withdrawing of treatment. Drugs with a potential life-shortening effect are often prescribed in the terminal phase of treatment of newborns to alleviate their suffering. ⋯ The Dutch government has recently announced the instalment of a multidisciplinary committee of experts to whom all cases must be reported. The advice of the committee to the prosecuting authorities will be crucial. It is expected that this change will increase the willingness to report cases.
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Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd · Feb 2006
[The practice guideline 'Headache' from the Dutch College of General Practitioners; a response from the perspective of neurology].
In comparison with the previous version, the Dutch College of General Practitioners' practice guideline 'Headache' has been improved in several respects. The addition of information on cluster headache, tension headache and substance-induced headache may benefit the daily practice of the general practitioner. ⋯ There is a need for studies into the non-medicinal treatment of tension headache. In these practice guidelines, the medicinal treatment of migraine is largely consistent with the guidelines of The Netherlands Society of Neurology.
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Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd · Feb 2006
[Granted, undecided, withdrawn and refused requests for euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide in the Netherlands; 2000-2002].
To determine the characteristics of patients who request euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide and whether these characteristics differ among those whose request is granted, those who die before the procedure, those who die before completion of the approval process, those who withdraw their request, and lastly, those whose request is refused by the physician. ⋯ The complexity of euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide decision-making is reflected in the fact that, besides granting and refusing a request, 3 other situations could be distinguished. The decisions physicians made, the reasons for their decisions and the way they arrived at their decisions appeared to be based on patient evaluations and on the official requirements for accepted practice.