OBJECTIVE To examine the prevalence and patterns of high risk prescribing, defined as potentially inappropriate prescribing of drugs to primary care patients particularly vulnerable to adverse drug events. DESIGN Cross sectional population database analysis. SETTING General practices in Scotland. PARTICIPANTS 315 Scottish general practices with 1.76 million registered patients, 139 404 (7...

Background: The enormous numbers of people involved in artisanal gold mining (AGM) together with primitive methods being used in processing gold have resulted in health and environmental challenges. Based on this, both the local and international stakeholders in mining and health sectors engaged in therapeutic practice to mitigate the challenges. Methods: Physical observation and soil samples ...

BACKGROUND Atrial fibrillation (AF) has been recognised as an important independent risk factor for thromboembolic disease, particularly stroke for which it provides a five-fold increase in risk. This study aimed to determine the baseline prevalence and the incidence of AF based on a variety of screening strategies and in doing so to evaluate the incremental cost-effectiveness of different scre...

BACKGROUND Assessing the current practices and learning and resource needs of primary health care professionals in regards to their alcohol risk assessment practices is an important step in providing optimal training and educational methods. Needs and current practices in alcohol risk assessment of pregnant women and women of child bearing years may vary according to practitioner demographics. ...

BACKGROUND Although efficacy is unknown, many men who have sex with men (MSM) attempt to reduce HIV risk by adapting condom use, partner selection, or sexual position to the partner's HIV serostatus. We assessed the association of seroadaptive practices with HIV acquisition. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS We pooled data on North American MSM from four longitudinal HIV-prevention studies. Sexu...

BACKGROUND A pilot cardiovascular disease prevention project was implemented in the inner-city West Midlands. It was evaluated by comparing its effectiveness to a control group where full implementation was delayed by a year. METHODS Cardiovascular risk factor data were extracted on all untreated patients 35 to 74 years old from electronic medical databases in six general practices. A best es...