MRSA: Political point-scoring over hospital cleanliness ignores the real issue
Political point-scoring over policies to control MRSA (meticillin-resistant Staphlococcus aureus) confuses cleanliness with the real failure in UK hospitals poor hand hygiene and inadequate use of gloves, states an editorial in this week's issue of THE LANCET. ......With a general election looming, all major political parties in the UK have seized on public fears about the health implications of...Study of energy and health in Africa focuses spotlight on charcoal and forest management
Study of energy and health in Africa focuses spotlight on charcoal and forest management 2Study of energy and health in Africa focuses spotlight on charcoal and forest management 3Berkeley and Boston -- A new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Harvard School of Public Health finds that promoting cleaner, more efficient technologies for producing charcoal in Africa can save millions of lives and have significant climate change and development benefits. ......The African continent, as well as many developing nations in Asia and Latin Ameri...Charcoal and forest management could reduce greenhouse gas levels & save lives in Africa
Charcoal and forest management could reduce greenhouse gas levels & save lives in Africa 2Charcoal and forest management could reduce greenhouse gas levels & save lives in Africa 3Berkeley, CA & Boston, MA A study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Harvard School of Public Health, finds that promoting cleaner, more efficient technologies for producing charcoal in Africa can save millions of lives and have significant climate change and development benefits. The findings appear in the April 1, 2005 issue of the journal Science. ......The Afric...More evidence of cannabis-induced psychosis
More evidence of cannabis-induced psychosis 2Volunteers taking cannabis-based therapeutic drugs as part of a controlled trial, which had been approved by an ethics board as safe for the subjects, experienced psychotic effects just as strong as if they had smoked cannabis. These findings, highly unexpected in such a controlled environment, are published today in the peer-reviewed, Open Access journal BMC Psychiatry. ......Dr Bernard Favrat an...British hospitals need clinical ethicists
"We need to introduce clinical ethicists in hospitals in the United Kingdom," says a researcher in medical ethics in this week's BMJ.......A sound knowledge of medical ethics is essential to the good practice of medicine, yet conclusive evidence exists that doctors need help with ethical problems, writes Daniel Sokol of Imperial College London.......About a fifth of NHS acute trusts currently have...Not enough evidence that multivitamins prevent infections in the elderly
There is currently not enough evidence to suggest that multivitamin and mineral supplements prevent infections in elderly people, finds a study published online by the BMJ today.......Ageing is associated with an increased risk of infection. So, as the number of elderly people in developed nations continues to rise, there has been great interest in the use of supplements to help prevent infections...Wolfowitz is the wrong choice for the World Bank
The nomination of Paul Wolfowitz to head the World Bank is the wrong choice and should be rejected, says an editorial in this week's BMJ.......Wolfowitz's reputation as the chief mover for the war on Iraq a development disaster sits uncomfortably with a job whose main role is multilateral international development, writes Kamran Abbasi, BMJ Deputy Editor. Many countries that Wolfowitz will be re...Study shows promise in identifying kidney failure
Study shows promise in identifying kidney failure 2Study shows promise in identifying kidney failure 3CINCINNATI A researcher at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center has identified a protein that allows for earlier and quicker diagnosis of kidney failure - a diagnosis that now often occurs too late to treat kidney failure effectively.......The research, which is published in the current issue of The Lancet, sites evidence in favor of using the protein neutrophil gelatinase-associated lip...Strategy effective against drug resistant tuberculosis
Strategy effective against drug resistant tuberculosis 2Directly observed therapy (DOTS) - the main strategy for tuberculosis control- can rapidly reduce the transmission and incidence of the drug resistant form of the disease, concludes a study published in this week's issue of THE LANCET.......The DOTS strategy for tuberculosis includes a short-course chemotherapy with combinations of first-line drugs. There is growing concern about current and futur...Sexual lifestyles vary among ethnic groups in Britain
Sexual lifestyles vary among ethnic groups in Britain 2Patterns of sexual lifestyles and sexually transmitted infections (STI) vary among ethnic groups in Great Britain, concludes a study in this week's issue of THE LANCET.......Kevin Fenton (University College London, UK) and colleagues used data from the second British National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles, involving 12,110 men and women aged 16-44 years resident in Great Britain, to in...