Why Britons should be grateful for the NHS
	Jane Smith
	BMJ  2004;329, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.0-g [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

This week in the BMJ

This week in the BMJ [Full text] [PDF]

	Isolation may reduce spread of MRSA [Full text]

	Medicine in the south Caucasus is changing [Full text]

	Drinking no alcohol, or too much, increases the risk of cognitive impairment [Full text]

	Mistrust blocks prevention of vertical HIV transmission [Full text]

	Taking lactobacillus does not prevent vulvovaginitis [Full text]

	Bell's palsy responds best to immediate treatment [Full text]

Editorials

	Preventing the spread of MRSA
	Andreas Voss
	BMJ  2004;329:521, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.521 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Health care in Armenia
	Samvel G Hovhannisyan
	BMJ  2004;329:522-523, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.522 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Treating hypertension with guidelines in general practice
	Neil C Campbell, Peter Murchie
	BMJ  2004;329:523-524, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.523 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] [extra: Figure]

	Bioterrorism and compulsory vaccination
	Tom Jefferson
	BMJ  2004;329:524-525, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.524 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Stopping clinical trials early
	Adrian Grant
	BMJ  2004;329:525-526, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.525 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

Letters

This week's letters [PDF]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: Cholesterol values seem to diverge
	Gerry E Burns
	BMJ  2004;329:569, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.569 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: Life in the real world may not allow recommendations to be implemented
	Paul N Green
	BMJ  2004;329:569, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.569-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: BHS is set to bankrupt NHS
	Martin G Duerden
	BMJ  2004;329:569-570, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.569-b [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: Is hypertension really a disease?
	Paul A Sackin
	BMJ  2004;329:570, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.570 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: Numbers are missing
	Peter Davies
	BMJ  2004;329:570, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.570-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Guidelines from the British Hypertension Society: Authors' reply
	Bryan Williams
	BMJ  2004;329:570-571, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.570-b [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] [extra: Longer version]

	NICE clinical guidelines: Maybe health economists should participate in guideline development
	Peter Littlejohns, Gillian Leng, Tony Culyer, Mike Drummond
	BMJ  2004;329:571, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.571 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	NICE clinical guidelines: Account of guideline development was inadequate
	Stephen Pilling
	BMJ  2004;329:571-572, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.571-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	NICE clinical guidelines: Health economics must engage with complexity of issues
	Martin Eccles
	BMJ  2004;329:572, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.572 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	NICE clinical guidelines: Authors' reply
	Allan Wailoo, Jennifer Roberts, John Brazier, Chris McCabe
	BMJ  2004;329:572, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.572-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Eradication of MRSA by "ring fencing" orthopaedic beds: Stand alone orthopaedic units may be way forward in reducing MRSA
	Graham C Cheung, Ashutosh Acharya
	BMJ  2004;329:572, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.572-b [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Eradication of MRSA by "ring fencing" orthopaedic beds: Author's reply
	Leela C Biant
	BMJ  2004;329:572, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.572-c [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	"Serious" and "severe" adverse drug reactions need defining
	Christian Frankenfeld
	BMJ  2004;329:573, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.573 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Stigma of AIDS needs to be overcome
	Ediriweera B R Desapriya
	BMJ  2004;329:573, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.573-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Shouldn't patients decide who should access their records?
	Joan Higgins
	BMJ  2004;329:573, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.573-b [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Burns rehabilitation is more than skin deep
	Monique Berger, Stephen Wilson
	BMJ  2004;329:573-574, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.573-c [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	How protective is the working time directive?: Two doctors mull over personal horror stories
	Farheena N Mecci, Akheel A Syed
	BMJ  2004;329:574, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.574 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	How protective is the working time directive?: New Zealand is still dealing with the issues 20 years on...
	Frank A Frizelle, Angus Watson
	BMJ  2004;329:574, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.574-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	How protective is the working time directive?: ... but Australia may have a way forward
	Cameron Burrows
	BMJ  2004;329:574, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.574-b [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

News

	Study indicates nine risk factors explain most heart attacks
	Caroline White
	BMJ  2004;329:527, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.527 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	UK audit will review pathologists' reports on adult autopsies
	Susan Mayor
	BMJ  2004;329:527, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.527-a [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	In brief
	BMJ  2004;329:528, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.528 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	Slow progress on sanitation puts 2.6 billion people at risk
	Ganapati Mudur
	BMJ  2004;329:528, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.528-a [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	Support services help maintain independence
	Rebecca Coombes
	BMJ  2004;329:528, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.528-b [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	Specialists challenge claim that fluoxetine plus talk therapy works best for depressed adolescents
	Jeanne Lenzer
	BMJ  2004;329:529, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.529 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	Air conditioned buildings increase risk of sickness
	Roger Dobson
	BMJ  2004;329:529, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.529-a [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	Iraqi doctors are being targeted by kidnappers
	Fred Charatan
	BMJ  2004;329:531, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.531-b [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	A sight for sore eyes
	Bryan Christie
	BMJ  2004;329:531, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.531-c [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	South Africa and Britain reach agreement to curb poaching of healthcare staff
	Pat Sidley
	BMJ  2004;329:532, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.532 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

	UN warns that aid for Sudan is "grossly underfunded"
	Peter Moszynski
	BMJ  2004;329:532, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.532-a [Extract] [Full text] [PDF]

News roundup [abridged versions appear in the paper journal]

	French surgeons call off strike action
	Brad Spurgeon
	BMJ  2004;329:530, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.530 [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	Figures show more Americans do not have insurance
	Janice Hopkins Tanne
	BMJ  2004;329:530, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.530-a [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	Sweetened drinks increase women's chances of having diabetes
	David Spurgeon
	BMJ  2004;329:530, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.530-b [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	Pakistan medical association warns of potential rise in hepatitis
	Ashfaq Yusufzai
	BMJ  2004;329:530, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.530-c [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	German police call off murder investigation
	Annette Tuffs
	BMJ  2004;329:530, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.530-d [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	Japan's doctors say low fees are driving many to ruin
	Jane Burgermeister
	BMJ  2004;329:531, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.531 [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

	Nearly a third of US adults have high blood pressure
	Scott Gottlieb
	BMJ  2004;329:531, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.531-a [Extract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text]

News extra [these stories appear only on the web]

	United States prepares for another flu pandemic
	Fred Charatan
	BMJ  2004;329:532, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.532-b [Extract] [Full text]

	Counterfeits of impotence drug appear in the United Kingdom
	Liza Gibson
	BMJ  2004;329:532, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.532-c [Extract] [Full text]

	New study warns of potential epidemics in UK
	Barbara Kermode-Scott
	BMJ  2004;329:532, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.532-d [Extract] [Full text]

Primary care

	Effect of lactobacillus in preventing post-antibiotic vulvovaginal candidiasis: a randomised controlled trial
	Marie Pirotta, Jane Gunn, Patty Chondros, Sonia Grover, Paula O'Malley, Susan Hurley, Suzanne Garland
	BMJ  2004;329:548, doi: 10.1136/bmj.38210.494977.DE, (Published 27 August 2004) [Abstract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Identification of potential candidates for varicella vaccination by history: questionnaire and seroprevalence study
	Eithne MacMahon, Lisa J Brown, Sarah Bexley, David C Snashall, Dipti Patel
	BMJ  2004;329:551-552, doi: 10.1136/bmj.38170.691956.AE, (Published 23 July 2004) [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

Clinical review

	Recent developments in Bell's palsy
	N Julian Holland, Graeme M Weiner
	BMJ  2004;329:553-557, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.553 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] [extra: Further information][extra: Figures]

	Lesson of the week: Rare causes of haemoptysis in suspected pulmonary embolism
	M S Warburton, M A Jackson, R Norton, M Bhabra
	BMJ  2004;329:557-558, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.557 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	ABC of sexual health: Sexual problems associated with infertility, pregnancy, and ageing
	Jane Read
	BMJ  2004;329:559-561, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.559 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

Education and debate

	Understanding health care in the south Caucasus: examples from Armenia
	Tido von Schoen-Angerer
	BMJ  2004;329:562-565, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.562 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Consent to the publication of patient information
	Peter A Singer
	BMJ  2004;329:566-568, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.566 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

Reviews

	Book: The $800 Million Pill: The Truth Behind the Cost of New Drugs
	Jeff Aronson
	BMJ  2004;329:577, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.577 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Book: Spores, Plagues and History: The Story of Anthrax
	Itzhak Brook
	BMJ  2004;329:577, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.577-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	Press: The tabloid fixation on superbugs
	Peter Wilson
	BMJ  2004;329:578, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.578 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	PERSONAL VIEW: The three paradoxes of private medicine
	Marcus J Longley
	BMJ  2004;329:579, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.579 [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

	SOUNDINGS: Under the Tuscan sun
	Kevin Barraclough
	BMJ  2004;329:579, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.579-a [Extract] [Full text] [Request Permissions]

Minerva

	Minerva
	BMJ  2004;329:580, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.580 [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

Fillers

	POEM*: Postmenopausal oestrogen does not improve cognitive function
	BMJ  2004;329, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.0-f [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Medscape conference coverage: American Thoracic Society 100th International Conference, Orlando, Florida
	BMJ  2004;329:526, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.526 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	A memorable teacher: What am I doing here?
	David Crosby, John Henry Jones
	BMJ  2004;329:552, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.552 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	bmjlearning.com: Occupational asthma
	Kieran Walsh
	BMJ  2004;329:558, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.558 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	One hundred years ago: Quackery and baldness
	BMJ  2004;329:565, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.565 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

	Barbara's bowel
	Brian Witcombe
	BMJ  2004;329:568, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.568 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions]

Corrections

	Dr Foster's case notes: How often are adverse events reported in English hospital statistics?
	BMJ  2004;329:547, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.547 [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Operative vaginal delivery and neonatal and infant adverse outcomes: population based retrospective analysis
	BMJ  2004;329:547, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.547-a [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Neurocardiogenic syncope
	BMJ  2004;329:547, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.547-b [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

Career focus

	I am interested in training in reconstructive surgery. How can I find specialist consultants or reconstructive units in the UK, Ireland, or Australasia?
	Jain Abhilash
	BMJ  2004;329:s92, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s92, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	If I leave a medical rotation after a month in order to take up a post in accident and emergency in January 2005, will it jeopardise my chances in that same region?
	Stephen Hearns
	BMJ  2004;329:s92, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s92-a, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	What level of income can I expect if a UK practice says it is "well above average" or "very profitable"?
	Steve McCabe
	BMJ  2004;329:s92, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s92-b, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	How do you become a GP who also works part time in A&E as a middle grade? Do you have to do the new A&E exams?
	Andy Lockey
	BMJ  2004;329:s92, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s92-c, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	I have just started a three year rotation and my first job is banded 2A. Is this pay protected for the rest of the contract?
	Simon Eccles
	BMJ  2004;329:s92, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s92-d, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	THIS WEEK
	Rhona MacDonald
	BMJ  2004;329:s93, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s93, (Published 4 September 2004) [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	A career in neurology
	Trevor Pickersgill
	BMJ  2004;329:s93-s94, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s93-a, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Looking after your pennies
	Christopher Kuit
	BMJ  2004;329:s95, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s95, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	How to be a healthy doctor—without trying too hard
	Karen Hebert
	BMJ  2004;329:s96-s97, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s96, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Experience of a single "epileptic" fit
	David Parkins
	BMJ  2004;329:s98, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s98, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Breaking down professional barriers
	Bruno Rushforth
	BMJ  2004;329:s99, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s99, (Published 4 September 2004) [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Outpatient clinic sessions
	Faiyaz Mohammed
	BMJ  2004;329:s99, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s99-a, (Published 4 September 2004) [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Roger Bannister: running the extra mile
	Peter Cross
	BMJ  2004;329:s100, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s100, (Published 4 September 2004) [Abstract] [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Keeping patient appointments to seven minutes
	Una Coales
	BMJ  2004;329:s100, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.s100-a, (Published 4 September 2004) [Full text] [Request Permissions] FREE

Obituaries

This week's obituaries [PDF]

	Alexander Grando
	Boleslav Lichterman
	BMJ  2004;329:575, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.575 [Extract] [Full text]

	Raymond George Birch
	Timothy P Finnegan
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576 [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

	Cornelius Jeremiah Griffin
	Mary Heaney
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-a [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version][extra: Longer version]

	Michael McGovern
	Roger Boyle
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-b [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

	Kenneth Arthur Rowley
	P R Duncan
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-c [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

	William David Smith
	John Anderton, John Ridyard, Roger Fletcher
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-d [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

	Alexandra Tobert (née Noskwith)
	Jonathan Tobert, Patricia Vicary
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-e [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

	Victor Gordon Walker
	Belinda Bateman
	BMJ  2004;329:576, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.576-f [Extract] [Full text] [extra: Longer version]

Papers

	Isolation measures in the hospital management of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA): systematic review of the literature
	B S Cooper, S P Stone, C C Kibbler, B D Cookson, J A Roberts, G F Medley, G Duckworth, R Lai, S Ebrahim
	BMJ  2004;329:533, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.533 [Abstract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Commentary: Golden rules
	Geoff Watts
	BMJ  2004;329:538-539, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.538 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Alcohol drinking in middle age and subsequent risk of mild cognitive impairment and dementia in old age: a prospective population based study
	Tiia Anttila, Eeva-Liisa Helkala, Matti Viitanen, Ingemar Kåreholt, Laura Fratiglioni, Bengt Winblad, Hilkka Soininen, Jaakko Tuomilehto, Aulikki Nissinen, Miia Kivipelto
	BMJ  2004;329:539, doi: 10.1136/bmj.38181.418958.BE, (Published 10 August 2004) [Abstract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Women's reasons for not participating in follow up visits before starting short course antiretroviral prophylaxis for prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV: qualitative interview study
	Thomas M Painter, Kassamba L Diaby, Danielle M Matia, Lillian S Lin, Toussaint S Sibailly, Moïse K Kouassi, Ehounou R Ekpini, Thierry H Roels, Stefan Z Wiktor
	BMJ  2004;329:543, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.543 [Abstract] [Abridged text] [Abridged PDF] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

	Relation between online "hit counts" and subsequent citations: prospective study of research papers in the BMJ
	Thomas V Perneger
	BMJ  2004;329:546-547, doi: 10.1136/bmj.329.7465.546 [Extract] [Full text] [PDF] [Request Permissions] FREE

Career focus

Read this week's articles on http://careers.bmj.com/careers/

To see an article, click its [Full Text] link. To review many abstracts, check the boxes to the left of the titles you want, and click the 'Get All Checked Abstract(s)' button. To see one abstract at a time, click its [Abstract] link.