Death rates 20 per cent lower in hospitals with 6 or fewer patients per registered nurse A higher nurse to patient ratio is linked to a reduced risk of inpatient death, finds a study of staffing levels in NHS hospitals, published in the online journal BMJ Open. In trusts where registered (professionally trained) nurses had […]
The NHS Health Check in England, bereavement by suicide, and public involvement in medical research: Most read articles in January
NHS Health Checks, the risks of bereavement by suicide, and public involvement in medical research The Top 10 Most Read list for January is almost completely comprised of new entries, with the exception of the ever popular review by Kristensen et al on the effects of statins. In the top spot this month is an evaluation […]
Requesting clinical trial protocols
We have recently made some changes to our submission system. If we receive a clinical trial, we will now ask that authors include the original trial protocol. Editor-in-chief, Dr Trish Groves, explains why: Transparent reporting of research has always been at the heart of BMJ Open. From the very start the journal has published all […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Seven
Polypharmacy and potentially inappropriate prescription of medicines This week we have been looking at some of our staff editors’ favourite articles from 2015. These papers have covered a variety of important issues in medical research, from the transparency of clinical trials to the publication of negative findings. Our final editors’ pick takes us to Ireland, […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Six
The 2D:4D digit ratio and autism risk: is there an association? In December we surveyed our staff editors to tell us about their favourite articles from 2015. Our penultimate editors’ pick investigates the relationship between autism risk and a putative marker of testosterone exposure: the 2D: 4D digit ratio. In spite of large investments in […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Five
How well reported are interventions in systematic reviews? In December we surveyed our staff editors to tell us about their favourite articles from 2015. Part 5 focuses on another important editorial issue: the quality of reporting in systematic reviews. Clinicians and healthcare professionals often rely on systematic reviews and meta-analyses for information on how effective interventions […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Four
Long-term health effects of exercise for the elderly: study protocol Each day this week we’ve been looking at a published paper from 2015 that sparked the interest of one of our staff editors. Our fourth pick is a study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of exercise training in an elderly population. BMJ Open supports […]
Antidepressants and risk of mania, medically unexplained symptoms and the association between alcohol and mortality in Alzheimer’s: Most read articles in December
Antidepressants, medically unexplained symptoms, and alcohol consumption in Alzheimer’s patients December saw a lot of new papers entering the Top 10 Most Read, with half of them being from the current issue. Patel et al‘s research paper, complete with video abstract and press release, questions whether antidepressants increase the risk of mania and bipolar disorder […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Three
Combating Dissemination Bias in Clinical Research: Recommendations Tip of the iceberg: Dissemination bias includes publication bias, where published papers that are exposed to readers are biased in favour of particular characteristics (e.g. positive findings). Papers with other characteristics (e.g. negative findings) are not published and, as a result, remain out of view from readers. […]
Editors’ Picks 2015: Part Two
Clinical Trial Transparency: disclosures for new drugs below ethical and legal standards In December we surveyed our staff editors, who oversee and manage the peer review process, to tell us about their favourite articles from 2015. Part 2 looks at clinical trial transparency for new drugs. The ability of medical and healthcare professionals to select […]