British Medical Journal - 07/19/03
Volume 327, Number 7407
Mental health of refugee children: comparative study Mina Fazel and Alan Stein
Section : Papers
Areas of interest : Pediatrics. Psychiatry.
The study analyzes the rate of psychological distress in a sample of children living in the United Kingdom who were in a refugee camp and compares it with that of a group of children from an ethnic minority but who had not been in a refugee camp. and with that of the natives. Each group was made up of 61 boys and 40 girls. Psychological distress was measured through a questionnaire, where a higher score means that there is more psychological distress. The refugee children obtained a significantly higher score than the ethnic minority children in the overall questionnaire and in the domain related to emotional role; The refugee children had significantly higher scores than the native children in the overall questionnaire, in the emotional role and in the domain related to hyperactivity.
Longevity and carrying the C282Y mutation for haemochromatosis on the HFE gene: case control study of 492 French centenarians Hélène Coppin, M Bensaid, S Fruchon, N Borot, H Blanché, and MP Roth
Section : Papers
Areas of interest : Genetics. Geriatrics and Gerontology.
The main conclusion of this study is that longevity is not compromised in either heterozygous or homozygous carriers of the C282Y mutation, which invalidates the possible recommendation to screen the population for this mutation. The authors studied 80 men and 412 women over 99 years of age and the same number of controls of the same sex and geographical origin. Among the long-lived population, 44 heterozygotes of the mutation were found, while in the controls the number was 42, a difference that is not statistically significant. The number of homozygotes was two and one, respectively.
Prevalence of five common clinical abnormalities in very elderly people: population based cross sectional study AJM de Craen, J Gussekloo, YKO Teng, PW Macfarlane, and RGJ Westendorp
Section : Papers
Areas of interest : Endocrinology and Nutrition. Geriatrics and Gerontology. Hematology and Hemotherapy. Family medicine. Internal Medicine. Diabetes. Arterial hypertension.
The study estimates the prevalence of anemia, diabetes mellitus, thyroid dysfunction, atrial fibrillation, and hypertension in a sample of the population 85 years of age or older. Among the 528 participants, 38 had a diagnosis of anemia, 77 had diabetes mellitus, 32 had thyroid dysfunction, 32 had atrial fibrillation, and 304 had hypertension.
Effect of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs on risk of Alzheimers disease: systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies Mahyar Etminan, Sudeep Gill, and Ali Samii
Section : Papers
Areas of interest : Neurology. Clinical pharmacology. Neurology.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can prevent Alzheimer’s disease, although aspirin has only a modest effect, according to the results of this systematic review of nine observational studies, including a total of 15,000 patients. The risk of developing the disease was reduced by 30%. The benefit of aspirin was 13%. In addition, long-term users of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs obtained greater benefits than those patients who only took them for a short time. The appropriate dose and duration of treatment are not clearly determined, the authors state.
Community based retrospective study of sex in infant mortality in India R Khanna, A Kumar, JF Vaghela, V Sreenivas, and JM Puliyel
Section : Papers
Areas of interest : Health policy.
In India, more girls than boys die from diseases that are easily treatable, such as diarrhea. No differences were observed in more serious diseases such as neonatal asphyxia. In India, where there are more men than women, sex discrimination is a major concern and both antenatal sex determination and voluntary abortion when the fetus is a girl are persecuted.
Efficacy of knee tape in the management of osteoarthritis of the knee: blinded randomized controlled trial Rana S Hinman, Kay M Crossley, Jenny McConnell, and Kim L Bennell
Section : Primary Care
Areas of interest : Osteoarticular pathology. Rheumatology. Family medicine. Internal Medicine. Rehabilitation. Rheumatology.
This clinical trial evaluates the effectiveness of a therapeutic plaster to reduce pain in patients with knee osteoarthritis. The comparison groups consisted of patients to whom a tape with no therapeutic effect was applied and a third group to which no tape was applied. 87 patients aged 50 or older were included. The results were measured using a pain scale and the SF-36 questionnaire. A favorable outcome for the intervention was observed at three weeks (P=0.001), with 73% (21/29) of patients in the intervention group improving, while in the other groups the percentage was 49% (14 /29) and 10% (3/29), respectively
A levels and intelligence as predictors of medical careers in UK doctors: 20 year prospective study IC McManus, Eleni Smithers, Philippa Partridge, A Keeling, and Peter R Fleming
Section : Learning in practice
Areas of interest : Medical education. Medical training.
Medical students who obtain brilliant grades in college also have good grades in postgraduate studies. However, IQ is not a good predictor of good results during graduate studies and during your professional career. The authors comment that more studies are necessary to clarify whether the predictive value of college grades is the result of evaluating knowledge, motivation, study habits, or other factors linked to personality.
