The extent and nature of the use of medicinal drugs by drivers who had undergone a blood test on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol was ascertained by analysing some 40,000 case records in which the suspect had been questioned about the use of drugs. No chemical analyses were performed. 9.7% of the road users indicated that they used drugs in combination with alcohol, and more ...

Following the well-publicized problems with paediatric cardiac surgery at the Bristol Royal Infirmary, there is wide public interest in measures of hospital performance. The Kennedy report on the BRI events suggested that such measures should be meaningful to the public, case-mix-adjusted, and based on data collected as part of routine clinical care. We have found that it is possible to predict...

A lack of communication between junior doctors and phlebotomists means untaken blood tests are often not recognised until late in a junior doctor's day, resulting in additional hours worked, delays in patient management, and potentially avoidable handover of additional work to on-call doctors. We set out to improve communication, with an aim that ward doctors should be made aware of patients wh...

BACKGROUND This study was conducted to ascertain the feasibility of using rapid oral fluid testing as an alternative HIV testing method in China. METHOD This is a mixed-method study among men who have sex with men (MSM), female sex workers (FSW) and VCT clients, conducted in 4 cities in Shandong Province. A pre-tested questionnaire was administered to 1137 participants through face-to-face in...

Photoplethysmography is one of the optical techniques has been developed for experimental use in vascular disease. It has several advantages over other traditional experimental approaches. Because of its non-invasive, safe, costeffective and easy-to-use properties, it is considered as a useful diagnostic tool. The further developments in the Photoplethysmograph may replace it among other tools ...

AIM To investigate whether routine annual assessment blood tests in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients under 5 years influence management. METHODS Retrospective review of the results of the first annual assessment blood tests of patients with CF less than 5 years of age during a four year period (1995-99). Management changes were identified from a follow up letter to the general practitioner or lo...

Purpose There are great needs for innovative pharmacotherapies in combination with clinical tests to identify asymptomatic children at risk of developing scoliosis and symptomatic ones to predict who may be at risk of scoliotic curve progression. Early detection of scoliosis is critical to broaden the range of treatment options and increases effectiveness. Currently, there are no FDA cleared “p...

BACKGROUND Given the low prevalence of and racial/ethnic disparities in colorectal cancer screening, it is important to monitor whether prevalence and disparities are increasing or decreasing over time. METHODS We estimated the prevalence of colorectal cancer screening by year (2001, 2003, and 2005), modality (endoscopy, fecal occult blood test, either), and recency (ever had, up-to-date) for...

Figure 1 Scheme showing aims and linkages of the HUPO Plasma Proteome Project. The Human Proteome Organization (HUPO) was founded in 2001 to accelerate the development of the field of proteomics and to stimulate and organize international collaborations in research and education (1). HUPO has launched several major initiatives, of which the Plasma Proteome Project (PPP) is the most salient for ...