RECENT NEWS

The latest point-of-care ultrasound technology from SonoSite has been chosen by consultant orthopaedic surgeon Harry Brownlow, at the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading, to help in the diagnosis and treatment of a whole range of shoulder and elbow injuries.

A team of researchers have demonstrated a direct link between a particular genetic variant and vitamin D which can determine an individual's risk of developing MS. The new evidence emerged from a study published in the journal PLoS Genetics which found that the most important gene implicated in susceptibility to MS, the variant gene DRB1 can be switched on by vitamin D in laboratory experiments.

Royal Philips Electronics and Immunetrics have entered into a joint development agreement to explore future-generation approaches to the problem of infectious disease in critical care. This announcement was made at the annual Congress of the Society of Critical Care Medicine, in Nashville, Tennessee.

Medical guidelines on the diagnosis and management of ME and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) are being challenged through a judicial review. The case against the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is generating considerable interest among the 250,000 people in the UK who have ME, as some patients hope the legal proceedings will lead to the withdrawal of the guideline. However, the charity “Action for ME” said that it supports the NICE guidance.

The Healthcare Commission has announced that Newham University NHS Trust has made substantial improvements to its maternity services, with more beds, more staff and better management of risk. The Commission published a report detailing progress at the Trust since it conducted a formal review of the services in 2007. The review was conducted at the request of the Trust, after almost 800 women were not booked for antenatal care appointments in late 2006 and early 2007, despite being referred for this service.

A Swiss cancer clinic is among the first in the world to use a new, faster radiotherapy technology from Varian Medical Systems to treat a child patient. A 12-year-old girl with Hodgkin's lymphoma was treated using Varian's RapidArc technique at the Oncology Institute of Southern Switzerland (IOSI) in Bellinzona.

New guidance from NICE recommends the use of two systems to maintain the condition of kidneys from deceased donors before they are used for transplants in the NHS. Before a transplant can take place, time is needed to match the kidney to the recipient, to transport and prepare the recipient and the kidney and finally to implant the kidney.

A new study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, reveals that an obese woman in her first pregnancy has a particularly high risk of delivery of a low birthweight baby, of pre-eclampsia and of premature birth.

An increase in meningococcal group B infections (MenB) was recorded by the Health Protection Agency between late December 2008 and early January of this year for England, although the annual number of cases for 2008 remains similar to previous years.

As the birth-rate in the UK continues to rise, new recruitment data reveals demand for midwives has increased by almost 20% over the last year. This comes at a time when midwifery is no longer among the professions included on the Government’s recently published list of jobs open to immigrants from outside the European Union.

The consulting firm BearingPoint has published research suggesting that without urgent action the Government’s 18-week referral to treatment target could prove unsustainable.

A new technique developed by Glasgow doctors could save the NHS millions of pounds and could help reduce needless hospital admissions all over the world. The new Glasgow Blatchford Scale (GBS) is a clinical scoring system to determine the severity of internal bleeding. In the UK, more than 51,000 people attend hospital with symptoms of internal bleeding each year and are usually admitted before doctors can determine the severity of their condition and treat them.

Reporting on the state of healthcare in England and Wales, the Healthcare Commission has applauded improvements in the NHS and said that access to services have been improved by driving down waiting times.

The Healthcare Commission has announced substantial improvements in infection control at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust since its investigation in 2007, which identified serious failings.

A survey of senior orthopaedic surgeons undertaken by the British Orthopaedic Association has stated that elderly patients face early death and permanent disability because of delays in treating emergency hip fractures, and has identified NHS elective targets as one of the main reasons.

MedMat, which provides clinicians with a sterile area for procedures such as wound changing, has been named a winner in the NHS Smart Solutions programme aimed at identifying innovative technologies with the potential to fight healthcare-associated infections (HAIs.)

Full Support Healthcare has been awarded the Business of the Year Award 2008, in recognition of its financial performance, employment generation and contribution to the community.

Patients at the Bristol Eye Hospital, run by the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, are the first in the West Country to benefit from a new sutureless eye surgery technique.

The third annual health check of the NHS by the Healthcare Commission has shown a dramatic fall in the percentage of organisations who meet core standards on decontamination of reusable medical devices. Last year 84.8% of organisations reached satisfactory standards of instrument decontamination - this year saw a 7% drop to only 77.3%.

Medica, a teleradiology company, has signed up seven more NHS acute Trusts as healthcare organisations seek to improve their services in the face of continuing high demand for speedy diagnostics. CEO Simon Rasalingham said that demand for high quality and cost-effective outsourced services continues to be very high as Trusts prepare to meet the Government’s diagnosis-to-treatment targets.