The anti-inflammatory drug hydroxychloroquine does not significantly reduce admission to intensive care or death in patients hospitalised with pneumonia due to covid-19, finds a study from France published by The BMJ today.A randomised clinical trial from China also published today shows that hospitalised patients with mild to moderate persistent covid-19 who received hydroxychloroquine did not clear the virus more quickly than those receiving standard care. Adverse events were higher in those who received hydroxychloroquine.Taken together, the results do not support routine use of...…The anti-inflammatory drug hydroxychloroquine does not significantly reduce admission to intensive care or death in patients hospitalised with pneumonia due to covid-19, finds a study from France published by The BMJ today.A randomised clinical trial from China also published today shows that hospitalised patients with mild to moderate persistent covid-19 who received hydroxychloroquine did not clear the virus more quickly than those receiving standard care. Adverse events were higher in those who received hydroxychloroquine.Taken together, the results do not support routine use of...WW…

Around 100,000 convicted felons across the US still likely own a gun, despite being banned from doing so, concludes the first study of its kind, published online in Injury Prevention.There's no nationwide programme to recover these weapons, with California the only state to do so. But such an initiative might go some way to curbing firearm violence in the US, suggest the researchers.Relatively little attention has been paid to people who legally purchase guns but who are subsequently banned from firearm ownership because of a conviction for violent crime; or an admission to hospital for a...…Around 100,000 convicted felons across the US still likely own a gun, despite being banned from doing so, concludes the first study of its kind, published online in Injury Prevention.There's no nationwide programme to recover these weapons, with California the only state to do so. But such an initiative might go some way to curbing firearm violence in the US, suggest the researchers.Relatively little attention has been paid to people who legally purchase guns but who are subsequently banned from firearm ownership because of a conviction for violent crime; or an admission to hospital for a...WW…

Restricting salt intake is considered a key component of heart failure treatment, but restricting it too much may actually worsen the outcomes for people with a common form of the condition, suggests research published online in the journal Heart.Younger people and those of black and other ethnicities seem to be most at risk, the findings indicate.Salt restriction is frequently recommended in heart failure guidelines, but the optimal restriction range (from less than 1.5 g to less than 3 g daily) and its effect on patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction isn’t clear as...…Restricting salt intake is considered a key component of heart failure treatment, but restricting it too much may actually worsen the outcomes for people with a common form of the condition, suggests research published online in the journal Heart.Younger people and those of black and other ethnicities seem to be most at risk, the findings indicate.Salt restriction is frequently recommended in heart failure guidelines, but the optimal restriction range (from less than 1.5 g to less than 3 g daily) and its effect on patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction isn’t clear as...WW…

We should err on the side of caution and stop the global roll out of 5G (fifth generation) telecoms networks until we are certain this technology is completely safe, urges an expert in an opinion piece published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.There are no health concerns about 5G and COVID-19, despite what conspiracy theorists have suggested.But the transmitter density required for 5G means that more people will be exposed to radio frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs), and at levels that emerging evidence suggests, are potentially harmful to health,...…We should err on the side of caution and stop the global roll out of 5G (fifth generation) telecoms networks until we are certain this technology is completely safe, urges an expert in an opinion piece published online in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.There are no health concerns about 5G and COVID-19, despite what conspiracy theorists have suggested.But the transmitter density required for 5G means that more people will be exposed to radio frequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMFs), and at levels that emerging evidence suggests, are potentially harmful to health,...WW…

Access to legal cannabis stores is associated with a reduction in opioid related deaths in the United States, particularly those linked to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, finds a study published by The BMJ today.Opioids are 'morphine-type' drugs that relieve short-term (acute) pain and pain at the end of life. There is little evidence that they are helpful for long-term (chronic) pain, but they are often prescribed for this reason.This has led to widespread misuse and a sharp rise in overdose deaths, particularly in the United States. In 2018, there were more than 46,000 fentanyl...…Access to legal cannabis stores is associated with a reduction in opioid related deaths in the United States, particularly those linked to synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, finds a study published by The BMJ today.Opioids are 'morphine-type' drugs that relieve short-term (acute) pain and pain at the end of life. There is little evidence that they are helpful for long-term (chronic) pain, but they are often prescribed for this reason.This has led to widespread misuse and a sharp rise in overdose deaths, particularly in the United States. In 2018, there were more than 46,000 fentanyl...WW…

There's a 7-fold unexplained variation in rates of euthanasia across The Netherlands, reveals an analysis of health insurance claims data, published online in the journal BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care.It's not clear if these differences relate to underuse, overuse, or even misuse, say the researchers.The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalise euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, introducing preliminary legislation in 1994, followed by a fully fledged law in 2002. The practice has been tolerated, however, since 1985.Official data show that the number of...…There's a 7-fold unexplained variation in rates of euthanasia across The Netherlands, reveals an analysis of health insurance claims data, published online in the journal BMJ Supportive & Palliative Care.It's not clear if these differences relate to underuse, overuse, or even misuse, say the researchers.The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalise euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, introducing preliminary legislation in 1994, followed by a fully fledged law in 2002. The practice has been tolerated, however, since 1985.Official data show that the number of...WW…

People with 'silent' COVID-19 infection have as much coronavirus in their noses and throats as those with symptoms, reveals research published online in the journal Thorax.Given how many of these people there are---a fifth of those infected, the study findings show--they may have a key role in driving the spread of COVID-19, warn the researchers, who go on to suggest that this warrants extending testing provision.People infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, but who don't have symptoms, still carry potentially transmissible virus, known as the viral load.But just how...…People with 'silent' COVID-19 infection have as much coronavirus in their noses and throats as those with symptoms, reveals research published online in the journal Thorax.Given how many of these people there are---a fifth of those infected, the study findings show--they may have a key role in driving the spread of COVID-19, warn the researchers, who go on to suggest that this warrants extending testing provision.People infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, but who don't have symptoms, still carry potentially transmissible virus, known as the viral load.But just how...WW…