Convalescent plasma for covid-19
Plasma from people recovering from infection, particularly after severe illness, may contain high levels of…
Category: BMJ
Long covid: doctors call for research and surveillance to capture disease
A group of doctors who have been affected by persistent symptoms of covid-19 have written…
From doctors as patients: a manifesto for tackling persisting symptoms of covid-19
We write as a group of doctors affected by persisting symptoms of suspected or confirmed…
Covid-19: RECOVERY trial will evaluate “antiviral antibody cocktail”
The RECOVERY trial, which discovered that dexamethasone shows benefit in patients seriously ill with covid-19,…
When to replicate systematic reviews of interventions: consensus checklist
The inability to replicate research findings in various scientific disciplines has been a concern.12 Systematic…
Painful perianal ulcers with nicorandil
What you need to knowNicorandil, a second line treatment for angina, may cause severe, painful…
Helen Salisbury: The hollowing-out of services
Like many GPs, I’ve spent too long recently discussing the deeply unglamorous topic of earwax—specifically,…
Details matter: predicting when nudging clinicians will succeed or fail
Interest in promoting better medical decisions by applying insights from behavioural science research has surged.1…
Covid-19: How does Belarus have one of the lowest death rates in Europe?
Belarus’s beleaguered government remains unfazed by covid-19. President Aleksander Lukashenko, who has been in power…
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Canadian court says wife cannot block husband’s medically assisted death
A Nova Scotia man is free to seek a medically assisted death in the next…
Covid-19: Implication GPs haven’t seen patients in person is an insult, says RCGP
The Royal College of GPs has said that a letter from NHS England calling on…
Why we . . . deskercise
“Our Shetland health improvement officer Joanna Inkster told us about ‘deskercise’—exercises we could do at…
Understanding the US failure on coronavirus—an essay by Drew Altman
On 9 August, the US passed the five million mark in cases of covid-19, representing…
Hepatorenal syndrome: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management
ABSTRACTHepatorenal syndrome (HRS), the extreme manifestation of renal impairment in patients with cirrhosis, is characterized…
Covid-19: An efficient and effective test trace regime is not a numbers game
The government’s “moonshot” plan to test millions of people daily for covid-19 risks repeating the…
Covid-19: Doctors working outside their expertise are unlikely to face GMC charges
Doctors working outside their usual area of practice with limited or no support or guidance…
60 seconds on . . . jargon
It’s everywhereYou’re telling me. Terms that used to be the preserve of scientists are suddenly…
Covid-19: Scotland launches contact tracing app with England and Wales to follow
Scotland has launched its own contact tracing app for covid-19 based on the same Apple…
Covid-19: Waiting times in England reach record highs
More than 83 000 patients in England waited more than a year for NHS treatment…
Operation Moonshot: What do the leaked documents say?
Operation Moonshot is the name of the UK government’s newly proposed covid-19 mass testing scheme….
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Update to living systematic review on drug treatments for covid-19
This living systematic review by Siemieniuk and colleagues (BMJ 2020;370:m2980) has been updated. For the…
Covid-19: “protecting the NHS” encourages people with symptoms to stay at home
There are many reasons for England having the highest excess mortality for covid-19.1234 As the…
Covid-19: Is the UK carrying out more tests than anywhere else in Europe?
Last week at Prime Minister’s Questions Boris Johnson claimed that the UK was now carrying…
Covid-19: broadening research expertise to understand workplace transmission
Michie and West make a well judged argument for the development of behavioural, environmental, social,…
Helen Salisbury: Stewardship of resources
All doctors will remember being quizzed about a proposed list of investigations, being fixed by…
How The BMJ’s racism special inspired a Leeds GP to set up an ethnic minority staff network
Leeds GP Mo Sattar was already involved in discussions about ethnic minority issues through the…
Testing for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies
What you need to knowPositive antibodies show evidence of previous exposure to SARS-CoV-2 virusAntibody testing…
The US politicisation of the pandemic: Raul Grijalva on masks, BAME, and covid-19
It was an incident that seemed to epitomise the state of affairs in the US….
Do PROMS improve outcomes in patients with depression in primary care?
What you need to knowPatient reported outcome measures (PROMS) are questionnaires used in the initial…
Long covid: How to define it and how to manage it
DefinitionPanel member Nisreen Alwan (box 1) began the discussion by defining long covid as “not…
US Congress investigates effects of $80bn private equity industry on government healthcare programme
A US government committee is to examine the role of private equity firms in Medicare,…
Covid-19: UK studies find gastrointestinal symptoms are common in children
Gastrointestinal symptoms are common in children infected with SARS-CoV-2 and should trigger tests for the…
The NHS people plan
NHS England and NHS Improvement published the long overdue people plan for 2020-21 on 30…
Tracy Earley is a consultant nurse in nutrition
What is a nurse consultant, anyway?Nurse consultants are highly trained senior nurses, who specialise in…
Covid-19: Government faces criticism over {pound}500m plan to pilot mass testing
Experts have questioned the UK government’s decision to expand its testing programme for covid-19 to…
Hannah Grace is an art therapist
Art therapy—is that like taking a painting class?Not exactly. Grace says, “Art therapy is a…
How can I build a portfolio career?
“Think about what you enjoy”Sarah Goulding, career coach and mentor for doctors and NHS GP,…
We need better evidence on non-drug interventions for covid-19
Almost 1300 controlled trials have been registered for drug interventions for covid-19.1 Among them have…
George Beech Bowater
bmj;370/sep04_10/m3421/FAF1faGeorge Beech Bowater was a keen atomic physicist, who decided to turn his skills to…
Martin Hughes
Martin Hughes was a life fellow in medicine at Magdalene College, Cambridge. Not only was…
Dermot Patrick Byrnes
bmj;370/sep04_8/m3420/FAF1faDermot Patrick Byrnes was born in Dublin in 1939 into a well known medical family….
Clive Malcolm Tonks
bmj;370/sep04_7/m3429/FAF1faClive Malcolm Tonks was born in Castleford into a Yorkshire coalmining family. After grammar school,…
Covid-19: Hong Kong scientists report first confirmed case of reinfection
A 33 year old man from Hong Kong is reported to have the first confirmed…
Adapting to the unexpected
When I sat down to consider the topic for this issue, it was January 2020…
Making ordinary decisions in extraordinary times
The pandemic arrivesThe covid-19 pandemic has led to unprecedented uncertainty for governments and healthcare bodies…
Covid-19: face masks can be devastating for people with hearing loss but alternatives are available
Chodosh and colleagues1 and Grote and Izagaren2 highlight an important matter but overlook the use…
Potential impact of missing outcome data on treatment effects in systematic reviews: imputation study
AbstractObjectiveTo assess the risk of bias associated with missing outcome data in systematic reviews.DesignImputation study.SettingSystematic…
How can I get involved in research as a medical student?
At medical school you will find plenty of opportunities to get involved with research, and…
Covid-19 risk assessment: a futile metaphorical strip search
The NHS has embarked on a nationwide covid-19 risk assessment programme with good intentions.12The whole…
Outbreak: stay calm but take prompt and decisive action
We read with interest Rimmer’s reflection on the concept of outbreak.1Firstly, an outbreak, in whatever…