What is Perthes’ disease? Perthes’ Disease is a rare condition that affects the developing femoral head (the “ball” of the “ball and socket” hip joint) of a child due to poor blood supply. In this condition, the blood supply to the femoral head is disrupted and this leads to joint deformity. The destruction typically causes the femoral head to flatten and not fit well in the acetabulum (the “socket” of the hip joint). This in turn can cause significant pain for children with Perthes’ disease and limit their activity levels significantly. ©Syda Productions / stock.adobe.com Doctor examining a ..read more

Discrimination based on one’s group membership can be a significant source of stress. When it occurs frequently, it can have a long-term impact on both physical and mental health, as per the Minority Stress Model. Unfortunately, a recent poll reveals that 45% of Romanian LGBT+ respondents have experienced discrimination in at least one aspect of life within the past year. This makes Romania one of the EU nations with the lowest rates of LGBT+ inclusion. Although all LGBT+ individuals may experience minority stress, younger sexual minorities appear to be at greater risk of suffering negative ..read more

Nursing assessments Nursing assessments are the basis for making diagnoses and interventions that meet the needs of the patient. Therefore, any error, lack of information or use of inadequate instruments can affect the next steps in the nursing care process, affecting the quality of care, safety and patient satisfaction. Despite their relevance, nurses perceive nursing assessments as an administrative burden due to the increase in duplicated items. Different studies have shown that the registry of nursing assessments does not meet adequate standards of quantity and quality of information. So ..read more

A social-media-based health education plus exercise programme (SHEEP) Despite the comparatively high prevalence of possible sarcopenia among adults who are in the young-older age category (aged 60-69 years) in the community, there is currently no available and effective social media-based intervention to increase the awareness and behaviour of the target population to prevent sarcopenia. Using the co-design methodology, we developed a multicomponent intervention strategy of health education and exercise for sarcopenia prevention using the TikTok platform. The primary purpose of this study is ..read more

What is oral mucositis? Oral mucositis means that the inside of your mouth is red, swollen, and has sores or wounds. It is one of the most debilitating and bothersome side effects observed in cancer patients treated with chemotherapy. The incidence and severity of oral mucositis depend primarily on the chemotherapy regimen and doses used. Antimetabolites, platinum derivatives, taxanes, anthracyclines, irinotecans, and alkylating agents can all promote oral mucositis to varying degrees. The progression and severity of mucositis also depend on the patient’s characteristics. Some of the known r ..read more

Why is this research necessary? The Russian invasion of Ukraine started in February 2022 and is the largest European ground offensive since World War II. Countless civilians have been killed, and millions of children, women, and elderly people have fled the country. One study found that adolescents living in war-torn regions of Ukraine were at increased risk of experiencing depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress symptoms than those in the peaceful areas. These children are also likely to experience comorbidities; for example, those experiencing post-traumatic symptoms are at greater ..read more

Background 5583 suicides were recorded in 2021 and about 1 in 5 people experience suicidal ideation (suicidal thoughts and plans) in their lifetimes. People who are suicidal find it hard to seek help. They may not know where to go or may doubt that anyone would understand. Stigma, feeling like a burden and, for men, pressure to conform to societal norms concerning masculinity, are also barriers. Early intervention and capitalizing on windows of opportunity are vital. The Lifeguard Pharmacy study tests whether a community pharmacy response service would offer a discreet and accessible help-se ..read more

As adolescents, we have the challenge of navigating our complex social relationships alongside experiencing stronger emotions and feelings. Sometimes, our emotions and relationships can negatively impact on one another. For example, we might remember a time when we had a disagreement with a friend, how this made us feel upset, and how this affected our conversation with another person, such as a parent. We know that social relationships and emotion-processing abilities are closely related to mental health outcomes during adolescence. In recent years, emotion processing and social relationshi ..read more

When health research is published, we tend to focus our minds on the findings and consider the implications for future treatments. Yet, what about those who took part in the trial? Too often they are forgotten and ignored. In recent years there has been an increasing call to let trial participants know the results of trials in which they have taken part. The call has also been for this to be in a plain language summary. As a strong advocate for more active patient and public involvement (PPI) in all aspects of health and care research following my own treatment for throat cancer, I welcome t ..read more

There are a few (but growing) centers that will proactively see patients with diabetes in high-risk areas when admitted to the hospital, however, by far the most common practice is for patients to only be seen by a specialist team, including for diabetes, on receipt of a referral. In diabetes, referrals are often triggered by glycemic-related events, such as hypo/hyperglycemia and ketosis or for patient education. We know that patients with diabetes stay in the hospital on average 1-3 days longer than their peers without diabetes who are admitted for the same reason. We also know that glyce ..read more