Every week or two we detect an irregular pulse and send the patient off for an ECG, but we’ve never audited how many with ?AF written on the form actually […]
Richard Lehman’s weekly review of medical journals
Lancet 25 Aug 2007 Vol 370
Here is a painstaking meta-analysis of trials involving 64,000 people randomised to take calcium, vitamin D (in various doses) or placebo for the prevention of fractures and bone loss in […]
Ann Intern Med 21 Aug 2007 Vol 147
How grateful we should be for those who delve in the dark places of the earth, bringing up ores and jewels for our use and pleasure. Systematic reviewers share the […]
Plant of the Week: Viburnum cylindricum
This big handsome shrub is about to display its flat cymes of dull white flowers, exuding a faint sweetish smell. Clearly it is not for these that we in limy […]
JAMA 15 Aug 2007 Vol 298
There aren’t many vaccines which work after the infection has been acquired, […]
NEJM 16 Aug 2007 Vol 357
The initials RLS are forever associated with the great Scottish teller of tales who died on Samoa at the age of 44. He certainly had restless legs, and rarely remained […]
BMJ 18 Aug 2007 Vol 335
“Good germs” to help acute diarrhoea in children have become very popular, and with some reason. For a decade or more, I used to advise parents to give their kids […]
Lancet 18 Aug 2007 Vol 370
This week’s Clinical Update is titled “codeine maintenance in opioid dependence”, but it’s actually a useful summary of all varieties of opioid maintenance, […]
Arch Intern Med 13/27 Aug 2007 Vol 167
Here is a systematic review of RCTs aimed at the prevention of sports injuries. Successful interventions include the use of insoles, external joint supports and multi-interventional training programmes. […]
Plant of the Week: Rosa “Aimée Vibert”
There are plenty of good roses which repeat flower through the summer, but this one is unusual in that it only gets going in August and produces big bunches of […]