Medicine and Science from The BMJ

Preventing overdiagnosis - the problems with screening

17 Sep 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Screening tests were central to many of the discussions taking place at the Preventing Overdiagnosis conference (preventingoverdiagnosis.net) To su...

Trans-sphenoidal surgery, a patient’s experience

12 Sep 2014

Contributed by Lukas

A recent clinical review in The BMJ discusses diagnosis and management of prolactinomas and non-functioning pituitary adenomas. One management option...

Overtreating mild hypertension, are we doing more harm than good?

12 Sep 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Stephen Martin, an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, thinks we're overtreating otherwise healthy patients who hav...

Should patients be able to email their doctor?

04 Sep 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Demand for better access to primary care is ever rising, but is email the answer? In this podcast, Elinor Gunning, a clinical teaching fellow in Londo...

Ebola virus disease, a long terms perspective

20 Aug 2014

Contributed by Lukas

David Heymann, professor of infectious disease epidemiology, and head and senior fellow, at the Chatham House Centre on Global Health Security was sen...

How to test for an immediate food allergy

08 Aug 2014

Contributed by Lukas

A new rational testing article, published on thebmj.com, looks at how to diagnose an immediate food allergy. Mabel Chew, The BMJ's practice editor, is...

Diagnosing and managing spasticity in adults

05 Aug 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Management of spasticity requires a balanced approach, weighing the benefits of treatment against the usefulness of the spasticity. Current interventi...

Are essential medicines essential?

01 Aug 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Global endorsement as a WHO essential medicine is big step. But Corrado Barbui, from the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at the Uni...

Pre-diabetes - epidemic or emperor’s new clothes?

17 Jul 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Pre-diabetes is an umbrella term and the most widely used phrase to describe a blood concentration of glucose or glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) that lie...

Should research fraud be a criminal offence?

15 Jul 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Research fraud, the deliberate falsification of research data, undermines science and can lead to horrible outcomes, as exemplified by Andrew Wakefiel...

Newly diagnosed HIV

11 Jul 2014

Contributed by Lukas

HIV testing is now being routinely offered in increasingly diverse health settings, including primary care. In this podcast we talk to HIV consultant ...

Why we need an independent WHO

20 Jun 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Devi Sridhar, population health researcher and lecturer, joins us to discuss why an independent organisation to co-ordinate international health conce...

FiFA, the World Cup, and the disappearing alcohol ban

13 Jun 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Whichever country hoists aloft the World Cup trophy on 13 July, the real winner will be the alcohol industry. In this podcast Jonathan Gornall explai...

Drugs for weight loss

06 Jun 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Drugs to encourage weight loss have a chequered past, with many of them having been withdrawn from the market due to increased morbidity and mortality...

Helicobacter pylori - new evidence, and when to test and treat

27 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Two articles on bmj.com look at helicobacter pylori; a systematic review and meta-analysis examines if eradication treatment reduces rates of gastric ...

Is advice to cut down smoking wrong?

23 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

New NICE guidance says that smokers should be encouraged to cut down on the number of cigarettes they smoke, as well as trying to quit. In a head to h...

Investigating UTIs in older adults

22 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

UTIs are often diagnosed in secondary care, but often that diagnosis isn't accurate. In this podcast Gavin Barlow from the Department of infection and...

Alcohol - The UK’s billion unit pledge is worthless

21 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

The BMJ has been investigating the “cosy relationship” between the alcohol industry and the British government. In a series of articles Under the...

Operating to remove recurrent colorectal cancer: have we got it right?

15 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

A new analysis article on bmj.com discusses the story of a surgical colon cancer trial, that was started 30 years ago and then abandoned, and the data...

Patient confidentiality in the digital age

09 May 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Digital technology introduces new concerns for confidentiality and information security. In this podcast Bradley Crotty and Arash Mostaghimi, both fro...

The problems with testosterone testing in female athletes

30 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and other international sports federations have recently introduced policies which require a medical investi...

Should doctors be prescribing cannabinoids?

25 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Farrell, professor and director of the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, talks to Mabe...

Using HbA1c to diagnose type 2 diabetes

24 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Glycated Haemoglobin (HbA1c) is used to measure glucose control in patients with diabetes, but can now be used as an alternative test to glucose conce...

How to manage the first seizure in an adult

14 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

First seizure covers a wide range of manifestations, but picking up the minor events can prevent a patient from experiencing a major event, so early d...

Tamiflu US Press Conference

09 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Tamiflu (oseltamivir) is a neuraminidase inhibitor, developed by Roche, for the treatment of seasonal and pandemic influenza. Yet for the first time a...

Triptans for the acute treatment of migraine

07 Apr 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Mabel Chew talks to Tamara Pringsheim, from the University of Calgary, about the use of triptans for acute treatment of migraine. When, how, and what ...

Friends and family test: Don’t just collect data, use it

27 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

The NHS has been collecting data on patients’ experience of care for over 10 years but few providers are systematically using the information to imp...

Who, when and how: Screening for MRSA

21 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) remains one of the foremost hospital acquired pathogens. Patients colonised or infected with MRSA p...

ParkinsonNet: a new approach to management of chronic disease

20 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the full analysis of ParkinsonNet: http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g1838 Patients with Parkinson’s disease need long term support to manage...

Recognising a subdural haematoma in the elderly

11 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Subdural haematoma is more common in elderly patients, yet the condition is easy to miss in this group. John Young, a consultant geriatrician at Bradf...

The Health and Social Care bill: An end of year report

07 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Each year at the Nuffield Trust Health Policy Summit, The BMJ hosts a breakfast roundtable. It has been one year since the Health and Social Care Bill...

HPV vaccination and cervical cancer screening in Australia

06 Mar 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the open access research: http://www.bmj.com/cgi/doi/10.1136/bmj.g1458 Australia was one of the first countries to introduce HPV vaccination, an...

Recognising and treating fibromyalgia

24 Feb 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Most doctors are familiar with patients who describe chronic pain all over the body, which is associated with a range of other symptoms including poor...

Steps to limit smoking in China could save 13,000,000 lives in 35 years

17 Feb 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Complete implementation of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) recommends policies in China that would p...

Twenty-five Year Follow-up of the Canadian National Breast Screening Study

07 Feb 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Controversy rages over the relative benefits or harms of screening for breast cancer, with evidence suggesting that in younger women at least it does ...

Veggie drugs

05 Feb 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the full article online: http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g401 When you prescribe a drug, do you ever stop to wonder if it's suitable for vege...

BMJ podcast: Treating erectile dysfunction

27 Jan 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the full article: http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g129 Erectile dysfunction is a common problem, and novel treatments mean that patient’s op...

BMJ podcast - high risk devices for rare conditions

24 Jan 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Two articles on bmj.com look at high risk devices for rare conditions, and how the US Food and Drug Administration regulates them. Joining us to disc...

Why don’t WHO guidelines on fluid resuscitation in children include the FEAST trial results?

17 Jan 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the article: http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.f7003 The 2013 World Health Organization guidelines continue to recommend rapid fluid resuscitati...

Should journals stop publishing research funded by the drug industry?

15 Jan 2014

Contributed by Lukas

Read the head to head: http://www.bmj.com/content/348/bmj.g171 The BMJ no longer publishes research funded by tobacco companies. Richard Smith says th...

Solving the case, making the diagnosis: Neurology and detective writing

03 Jan 2014

Contributed by Lukas

When searching for clues to reach a diagnosis, neurologists often empathise with the detective who is trying to solve a case, write Peter Kempster and...

Virgin births, poor house hospital and right or happy

20 Dec 2013

Contributed by Lukas

It is generally agreed that sex is useful when getting pregnant, but is it necessary? Professors Amy Herring, and Carolyn Halpern from the University ...

James Bond’s drinking and caring for undocumented migrants

13 Dec 2013

Contributed by Lukas

James Bond, legendary secret agent, marksman, womaniser, smoker, but perhaps most famously, drinker. Neil Guha and Patrick Davies from Nottingham Univ...

Christmas charity appeal and treating polymyalgia rheumatica

06 Dec 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This year The BMJ has chosen Doctors of the World as it's Christmas appeal. This week we hear about the charity's international work. Deputy magazine...

Patient centred research and doctors burnout

29 Nov 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Sir John Oldham, from the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London, talks about reforming reform, and why he worries...

Aneurysmal subarachnoid haermorrhage

22 Nov 2013

Contributed by Lukas

The latest NCEPOD (National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death) report examines the management of aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage...

Population ageing, the timebomb that isn’t

15 Nov 2013

Contributed by Lukas

The population timebomb: The idea that an ageing population is making it harder and harder to fund pensions, social care, and healthcare, as the numbe...

A sugary drinks tax, liver tests in pregnancy

08 Nov 2013

Contributed by Lukas

A modelling study on bmj.com suggests that a 20% tax on sugar sweetened drinks would reduce the number of obese adults in the UK by 1.3%, and by 0.9 f...

Heath in Europe, When to order ANA tests

01 Nov 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Michael Marmot has spearheaded WHO Europe’s Health 2020 report, which looks at the disparity in the social determinants of health across t...

Statins: benefits and harms for low risk patients

25 Oct 2013

Contributed by Lukas

NB: In our interview about statins, Abramson quotes the figure of an 18% relative increase in risk of adverse effects of statins. This figure should b...

Tobacco industry vs science, vCJD in the UK

18 Oct 2013

Contributed by Lukas

The BMJ, BMJ Open, Heart, Thorax, and Tobacco control – all journals in BMJ’s stable, have announced they will no longer carry research funded in ...

Brain tumours in children, and why all polyps are not equal

15 Oct 2013

Contributed by Lukas

There are many overlapping classifications for bowel polyps. Geir Hoff, professor of gastroenterology at the University of Oslo, explains why he fears...

Leaving the RCGP

04 Oct 2013

Contributed by Lukas

As Clare Gerada's stint as RCGP chair comes to a close, she gives BMJ news reporter Gareth Iacobucci a typically honest exit interview. And David Lox...

Possible racial bias in the RCGP exam

30 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

A study on bmj.com raises raises concerns over possible “subjective bias owing to racial discrimination” in the MRCGP - the Royal College of Gener...

A new chief inspector of hospitals

30 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Sir Mike Richards, previously National Cancer Director at the Department of Health, and former head of the Academic Division of Oncology at ...

Safety from Syria

30 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

UN Refugee Agency High Commissioner António Guterres described the Syrian crisis this week as the great tragedy of the century, a "disgraceful humani...

Treating childhood autism, and cardiac imaging for stable chest pain

30 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

NICE has published now guidelines on the treatment of children with autism. Mabel Chew BMJ practice editor talks to Tim Kendall, director of the Natio...

HPV testing in preventing cervical cancer

30 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

What do clinicians need to know about the developing role of HPV in cervical cancer prevention? BMJ clinical reviews editor Sophie Cook speaks to Henr...

Diagnosing dementia, treating personality disorder

16 Sep 2013

Contributed by Lukas

inda Gask, professor of primary care psychiatry at the University of Manchester, explains why a personality disorder diagnosis is not as hopeless as m...

Looking forward

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

For our first podcast of 2010, we’ll be asking various medical professionals what they’d like to see happen to healthcare in the next decade. Also...

Retrained to eat

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week, research published on bmj.com shows that overweight and obese teenagers can be taught to eat more sensibly by using a device called a mando...

Disaster and dementia

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Haiti this week suffered its worst earthquake in 200 years. Marc Dubois, general director of aid charity MSF UK, talks about how his organisation is r...

12 steps to public health

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week the Faculty of Public Health has released its manifesto tor a healthier Britain. Duncan Jarvies speaks to the faculty’s president, Profess...

Clubfoot

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Several articles on bmj.com deal with clubfoot disorder. Kirsten Patrick gives us a quick history of the condition, and talks to Andrew Hogg - a GP tr...

Urinary tract infections

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Urinary tract infections are commonly seen in primary care, particularly in women, yet there are gaps in the evidence about their treatment. Trish Gro...

Transmuting tamoxifen

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week new research was published on the use of the SSRI (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitor) antidepressants, in combination with the drug ta...

Personal care

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast Sam Lister, health editor of the Times, explains the political fight that’s emerging around provision of free home health c...

Disinvestment

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Estimates of HIV are just that, estimates – but in order to research the progression of the virus, and the effectiveness of intervention strategies,...

Chronic fatigue syndrome

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week’s hot topic is chronic fatigue syndrome. The journal Science published a paper in October 2009, which suggested a possible link between a ...

Sex life - from soup to nuts

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Duncan Jarvies talks to Stacy Lindau and Natalia Garilova about their new sex life expectancy measure, and what it could mean for patients ...

Variolae Vaccina

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

If you visited Trafalgar Square in central London today you’d see Admiral Nelson gazing down from his column. What you won’t see is a statue to ce...

Sunbeds and spotlights

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week the BMJ published research into the use of sunbeds. Cancer Research UK surveyed teenagers across the country to find out how often they top ...

Cannabis conversations

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week Duncan Jarvies discusses with London GP Chris Ford how to talk to patients about their cannabis use. Rebecca Coombes talks to Jim Swire, a r...

Regulating herbal medicines

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week Ike Iheanacho investigates the role of herbal remedies in modern medicine. He speaks to Dr Linda Anderson, Principal Pharmaceutical Assessor...

Sudden death

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week’s podcast is based on the BMJ series Competent Novice.Junior doctors play an important part in verifying sudden deaths in hospital and com...

Seeing the body

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

A traumatic death can be very difficult for friends and family to deal with. A clinician’s instinct may be to protect them from seeing the extent of...

Cambodia

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week David Payne talks to Emily Friedman, a health policy and ethics analyst, about Cambodia – a country with a difficult past that is now rebu...

Screening and serodiscordance

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast Duncan Jarvies talks to Theresa Marteau about screening for diabetes; can patients be given too much information? Also Anne B...

Legacy of the games

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week we’ re looking at the legacy of large sports events - with the 2012 Olympic games costing £9bn, and that cost being justified by saying h...

Healthy heart, happy smile

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast we examine the link between toothbrushing and cardiovascular disease – Richard Watts talks about his research in Scotland. ...

Suicide, sport, and CME

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

What is the association between IQ and attempted suicide? David Batty talks to us about his research in Sweden. Also this week, Steven Kawczak, associ...

I ♥ the smoking ban

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week research published on bmj.com looks at the association between the smoking ban and a drop in acute myocardial infarctions. Anna Gilmore, dir...

Radios and retinas

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Since mobile phones have been around there has been public concern about their safety - fears over radiation exposure causing cancer have been particu...

BMA-on-Sea

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week saw the British Medial Association’s Annual Representatives Meeting. Deborah Cohen and Helen Morant tell us what was going on in Brighton....

Methado, methadon’t, methadone

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Later this month sees the 17th International AIDS Conference in Vienna. One of the topics that will be discussed there is harm reduction, and the poli...

The white paper

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

The new coalition government’s white paper on health – encompassing the future of the NHS - was published this week. Chris Ham, chief executive of...

The bridge

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week the print BMJ has a cluster of articles on suicide – one of which talks about the efficacy of physical barriers to prevent suicide from br...

The NHS market place

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

The new coalition government’s plans for the NHS in England put GPs firmly in the driving seat - how do their secondary care colleagues feel about t...

Musical lithotomy

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In June 2010 the drug company Novo Nordisk announced that its only conventional human biphasic insulin, human Mixtard 30, would no longer be available...

Heavy weather

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast we discover the link between the weather and the risk of heart attacks - Krishnan Bhaskaran tells us about his research. Also...

The hidden eunuch

29 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Jill Morrison talks about how people on long term incapacity benefit because of mental health problems could be identified by their GPs three years be...

Shit happens

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week, to steal a line from the latest BMJ editor’s choice, we’ll be talking shit. The millennium development goal on sanitation is way off tr...

NICE in America

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast we find out from Sean Tunis about the future of comparative effectiveness research in the USA, and how the new institute crea...

Rational suicide

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

A person’s right to refuse treatment is based on their capacity to make a rational decision – but what is the situation when someone is admitted a...

Spotlight on palliative care beyond cancer

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In a series of articles, this spotlight focuses on recognising and managing the end of life, having the difficult conversations with patients about th...

Radical reforms

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week we’re joined by Martin McKee, professor of European public health at the Loncon School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He’s also resea...

Safety comes second

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Last week saw Safety 2010, the international conference on preventable accidents. We hear from some of the speakers there why safety comes second when...

The new lost tribe

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

Last week BMJ Careers published “The new lost tribe,” describing the cohort of surgical trainees moving from ST2 to ST3. In this podcast Edward Da...

Reboxetine and the missing data

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

This week Beate Wieseler from IQWiG (Institut für Qualität und Wirtschaftlichkeit im Gesundheitswesen) tells us how they uncovered data on the antid...

Hyper hypo

28 Aug 2013

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s podcast Jayati Das-Munshi, from the Institute of Psychiatry, London, talks about her study into the mental health effects of ethnic d...