Coping with a lot of stress in middle age may boost the risk of developing dementia in late life – at least among women – suggests research published in BMJ Open. The response to common life events may trigger long lasting physiological changes in the brain, say the authors. They base their findings on 800 […]
International “war” on illegal drugs is failing to curb supply
The international war on illegal drugs is failing to curb supply, despite the increasing amounts of resource being ploughed into law enforcement activities, finds research published in BMJ Open. Since 1990, the street price of illegal drugs has fallen in real terms while the purity/potency of what’s on offer has generally increased, both of which […]
Hospital admissions, podcasts and rural vaccinations: Most read articles in August
The most-read article in August was Hornshøj et al‘s article on vaccination coverage in rural Guinea-Bissau. Carter et al‘s interview study of workplace bullying in the NHS stayed in the top ten for another month. Another title was the subject of the first BMJ Open podcast: Griffiths et al on how active our children are. Other newly-published papers in the […]
Half of all UK 7 year olds sedentary for 6 to 7 hours every day and not exercising for recommended minimum
Half of all UK seven year olds are sedentary for six to seven hours every day, and only half clock up the recommended daily minimum of moderate to vigorous physical activity, indicates research published in BMJ Open. Click here to listen to the podcast Girls, children of Indian ethnic origin, and those living in Northern Ireland […]
Cigarette packaging, twitter and workplace bullying: Most read articles in July
The most-read article in July was Wakefield et al‘s article on effects of the Australian plain cigarette packaging policy on adult smokers, which received widespread press coverage. Another popular title was Brynolf et al‘s paper on physician’s use of Twitter. Other newly-published papers in the top ten include Wallace et al‘s systematic review on the epidemiology of malpractice claims in […]
Certain blood pressure drugs slow dementia deterioration
A class of drug, called ACE inhibitors, which are used to lower blood pressure, slow the rate of cognitive decline typical of dementia, suggests research published in BMJ Open. Furthermore, these drugs may even boost brain power, the research indicates. The researchers compared the rates of cognitive decline in 361 patients who had either been diagnosed […]
Plain packaging seems to make cigarettes less appealing and increase urgency to quit smoking
Early findings from Australia indicate that policy has an impact—at least in the short term. Plain packaging for cigarettes seems to make tobacco less appealing and increase the urgency to quit smoking, suggest early findings from Australia, published in BMJ Open. Australia formally introduced plain brown packaging, accompanied by graphic health warnings taking up three quarters […]
Missed diagnoses and drug errors make up bulk of primary care malpractice claims
Missed diagnoses―particularly of cancer, heart attack, and meningitis―and drug errors make up the bulk of malpractice claims brought against doctors in primary care, finds an analysis of published data in BMJ Open. The risk of litigation has not been given a great deal of attention in primary care, say the authors. But with most healthcare […]
More bed sharing, baldness and vitamin C: Most read articles in June
The most-read article in June was once again Carpenter et al‘s article on bed sharing with non-smoking parents and the risks of SIDS, which received widespread press coverage. Another popular title was Yamada et al‘s paper on the associations between male pattern baldness and coronary heart disease. Other newly-published papers in the top ten include Hemilä et al‘s […]
New generation electronic games boosts kids’ physical activity at home
Giving kids new generation “active” electronic games boosts their physical activity at home and has the same effect as stopping them from using the older versions altogether, indicates a small study published in BMJ Open. Most electronic games are no better than watching TV in terms of the body movement and energy expenditure involved, say […]