Comprehensive case finding, repeat testing, and apps for contact tracing and self-isolation also key Border controls, restricted entry, and quarantine for inbound travellers are essential for stopping not just COVID-19, but any future pandemic, in its tracks, finds a review of the available published evidence on early infection control in the online journal BMJ Open. Comprehensive […]
Category: In the news
Number and relative age of siblings is linked to risk of cardiovascular events
First-born children have a lower risk of cardiovascular events, but having lots of siblings is associated with an increased risk First-born children have a lower risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and strokes than brothers and sisters born later, but people who are part of a large family with many siblings have an […]
Autistic people across Europe have struggled to access COVID-19 services during pandemic
Likely result: rises in associated deaths, ill health, and poor quality of life, warn authors Autistic people across Europe have not only struggled to access standard health and care services during the pandemic, but, crucially, also those for COVID-19, finds research published in the online journal BMJ Open. The likely consequences of this widening of existing […]
Long term use of prescription meds for insomnia not linked to better quality sleep
No difference between those who did and didn’t take these drugs for 1–2 years Long term use of prescription meds for insomnia doesn’t seem to improve disturbed sleep in middle-aged women, suggests research published in the online journal BMJ Open. There was no difference in sleep quality or duration between those who did and didn’t take […]
Preschoolers’ extensive electronic media use linked to emotional/behavioural issues
Associated with hyperactivity, short attention span, poor concentration and friendship issues Preschoolers’ extensive use of electronic media, including game consoles, mobile phones, and tablets, is linked to a heightened risk of emotional and behavioural problems by the age of 5, finds research published in the online journal BMJ Open. This behaviour is associated with hyperactivity, short […]
From locked-in syndrome to rock and roll, and everything in between
BMJ Open marks a decade of influential open access research From a Belgian survey, showing that many patients with locked-in syndrome aren’t necessarily unhappy, to a study showing that solo performers living the rock n roll lifestyle are twice as likely to die young as their band members, and everything in between, BMJ Open is marking a decade of influential […]
Higher coffee intake may be linked to lower prostate cancer risk
Each additional daily cup associated with reduction in risk of nearly 1% Drinking several cups of coffee every day may be linked to a lower risk of developing prostate cancer, suggests a pooled data analysis of the available evidence, published in the online journal BMJ Open. Each additional daily cup of the brew was associated with […]
350,000+ women likely missing out on key postnatal check-ups in the UK every year
Teen mums and those from most deprived areas least likely to get them Every year more than 350,000 women in the UK may be missing out on key formal health and wellbeing check-ups following the birth of a child, reveals the largest study of its kind, published in the online journal BMJ Open. Teen mums and […]
‘Diseases of despair’ have soared over past decade in US
Suicidal thoughts/behaviours among under 18s up by 287%, and by 210% among 18-34 year olds ‘Diseases of despair’, such as substance abuse, alcohol dependency, and suicidal thoughts and behaviours, have soared in the US over the past decade, reveals an analysis of health insurance claims data published in the online journal BMJ Open. And they now […]
Health benefits of multivitamins/mineral supplements may be all in the minds of users
No measurable clinical improvements between them and non-users, research suggests The health benefits of multivitamin/mineral supplements may be all in the minds of those who take them, prompted by positive expectations of effectiveness rather than hard evidence of that, suggests research published in the online journal BMJ Open. Multivitamin/mineral supplements are widely used, with some estimates […]