Montelukast: UK regulator says asthma drug needs clearer warnings of side effects
The asthma drug montelukast (Singulair) will carry more prominent warnings in the UK to alert…
Author: British Medical Journal
Doctors in training should be at the top of the workforce priority list
The working conditions of doctors in training have had a brief moment in the spotlight…
Record breaking floods hit Brazil
bmj;385/may08_1/q1038/FAF1faCarlos Fabal/AFP/GettyPictured are the flooded streets of the Sarandi neighbourhood of Porto Alegre, a city…
Continuity of care belongs in secondary care as well as in primary care
Prioritisation of continuity of care in primary care in the UK is long overdue.1 Continuity…
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Duty of candour: BMJ investigation reveals patchy enforcement by regulatory agencies
Professional medical regulators lack the mechanisms for knowing how well they are enforcing or investigating…
No men’s health strategy on horizon as government focuses on promoting health checks
The UK government is trying to highlight the importance of health checks for men and…
Comparative effectiveness of second line oral antidiabetic treatments among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus: emulation of a target trial using routinely collected health data
AbstractObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness of three commonly prescribed oral antidiabetic drugs added to metformin for…
Staff shortages are key contributor to baby deaths, investigation finds
Staffing shortages play a key role in unsafe maternity care, an analysis of 92 cases…
Workforce and winter under Labour: Wes Streeting on his plan for the NHS and ending the strikes
With a general election looming, Wes Streeting could find himself health secretary by next January….
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David Oliver: How well is the duty of candour enforced in the NHS?
Readers of The BMJ who are registered clinicians working in the UK will be well…
April top picks: Hope springs eternal
One of my favourite poemsis “Hope” is the Thing with Feathers, by Emily Dickinson. I…
Why I . . . go mountaineering
“It feels infinite,” Adam Booth says of the view when standing at the summit of…
EXPRESSION OF CONCERN: Efficacy of psilocybin for treating symptoms of depression: systematic review and meta-analysis
This notice alerts readers to an error with this paper by Athina-Marina Metaxa and Mike…
Judge warns over “dangerously high” hormone dose prescribed to teenager by online gender clinic
The judge who heads the High Court’s family division has warned of the risks of…
Saying hello to patients: there is no “one size fits all” approach
Launer makes a good point about the benefit of acknowledging patients with a simple “hello.”1There…
US expert panel says breast cancer screening should begin at 40
Women in the US should begin breast cancer screening with mammography at age 40 and…
Growth in UK children living in households with food insecurity
In March 2024, the UK’s Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) reported new data on…
Toxic household exposures in children
What you need to knowPoisoning is the third most common cause of injury related hospital…
Leading clinical academic warns of crisis in UK research
Medical academia is experiencing a “deepening crisis” that calls for immediate action, the outgoing acting…
Ask the consultant: old age psychiatry
What you need to knowFirst line antidepressant treatment in older people should be dictated by…
Sickle cell: NICE approves voxelotor after initially rejecting it over uncertain evidence
Up to 4000 patients could be offered voxelotor (Oxbryta), a treatment for sickle cell disease…
The risk of falls in older people prescribed antihypertensives … and other research
Antihypertensives and risk of falls in older peopleFalls are common and dangerous for older and…
Democratic Republic of the Congo: a strengthened response to mpox could help revitalise the country’s healthcare system
Since 1 January 2023, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has reported over 13…
A man with palpitations
A man in his 80s presented to the emergency department with recurrent episodes of chest…
Taking action against industry influence
The continuing medical education (CME) provider Medscape has withdrawn a set of courses on smoking…
Sarah Benn verdict: an unwelcome deterrent for doctors attending climate protests
Doctors campaigning to protect patients and the public against the health dangers of the climate…
Florida bans abortions after six weeks, leaving millions of women in southeastern US without care
The state of Florida, the third most populous state in the US, banned abortions after…
GP who used his surgery for sex sessions with three women is struck off
A GP who described himself as a sex addict and used his surgery for sex…
Unusual bruising of the fingers
A woman in her late 30s presented with a three day history of bruising on…
Houston transplant programme halted amid allegations that surgeon in charge secretly made patients ineligible
The kidney and liver transplantation programmes of a major hospital in Houston, Texas, have been…
Chest pain with diffuse ST segment elevation
A man in his 80s presented with persistent chest pain two weeks after receiving radiotherapy…
Octreotide for small bowel bleeds . . . and other stories
Gastrointestinal angiodysplasiaAngiodysplasias are sometimes a cause of intractable small bowel bleeding, particularly among older people….
Whistleblowers face systemic poor behaviour from employers, warns union
Whistleblowers in the NHS are targeted by a systemic employer “playbook” designed to silence or…
Women live longer than men but have more illness throughout life, global study finds
A global review of three decades of health data has revealed huge health differences in…
Efficacy of psilocybin for treating symptoms of depression: systematic review and meta-analysis
AbstractObjectiveTo determine the efficacy of psilocybin as an antidepressant compared with placebo or non-psychoactive drugs.DesignSystematic…
Consultants in Northern Ireland to be balloted on strike action from next week
The BMA will ballot consultants in Northern Ireland on industrial action from next week, doctors’…
Seven days in medicine: 24-30 April 2024
NHS pensionsBMA dismay over judicial review dismissalThe BMA has expressed disappointment at the Court of…
UK research sector launches voluntary environmental sustainability agreement
The UK research and innovation (R&I) sector has developed a voluntary sustainability agreement, with the…
Reduce waste in the NHS to deliver population health
A cash injection of £32bn to the NHS might be what The BMJ wants,1 but…
Clinical effectiveness of an online supervised group physical and mental health rehabilitation programme for adults with post-covid-19 condition (REGAIN study): multicentre randomised controlled trial
Several sections of this paper by McGregor and colleagues (BMJ 2024;385:e076506, doi:10.1136/bmj.e076506, published 7 February…
Early diagnosis is not always an unmitigated good, we need to make it useful for patients and clinicians
The importance of early diagnosis, particularly in cancer, has been covered widely in the media….
Irritable bowel syndrome: low dose antidepressant improves symptoms
The studyFord AC, Wright-Hughes A, Alderson SL, et al. Amitriptyline at low-dose and titrated for…
What do we know about covid-19’s effects on the gut?
What gastrointestinal symptoms can covid-19 cause?Lack of appetite, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and abdominal pain. These…
Fluoroquinolones: clearer evidence and guidance on safety are needed
Doctors learn early in their careers about the central importance of communication in medicine. Discussion…
Gaza: Paediatricians call on UK government to stop selling arms to Israel
Paediatricians and child health professionals are urging the UK government to stop selling arms to…
Scottish parliament did not lack courage in voting against assisted suicide bill in 2015
Warlow, a trustee of the pro-assisted dying campaign group Friends at the End, welcomes the…
MPs debate assisted dying amid protests by both sides
bmj;385/apr30_17/q982/FAF1faTim KavanaghThe UK government has ruled out introducing legislation to allow assisted dying in England…
US coal fired power stations must clean up or close down, says environment agency
Coal fired power plants in the US will have to clean up or close down…
Sixty seconds on . . . anti-ageing products
Do they work?It’s a valid question, but their efficacy isn’t the focus here. A major…
Doctors will shape Labour’s 10 year plan to fix NHS crisis, says shadow health secretary
The shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, has told the Royal College of Physicians’ annual conference…