A recent case has suggested that there may be a role for N-acetylcysteine in treating H1N1 pneumonia in clinical practice. In the case, a 48-year-old woman with H1N1 pneumonia was admitted to the intensive care unit where she was treated with oral oseltamivir and intravenous antibiotics. The next day, her oseltamivir dose was doubled and [...]

Irish and international perspectives in the treatment of immune thrombocytopenic purpura were recently discussed at a Dublin meeting Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), an autoimmune disease, is characterised by a decreased number of circulating platelets. First noted in the 17th century, ITP was not properly defined until 1951, having received many misnomers along the way, including [...]

Bathing trauma patients daily using cloths containing the antiseptic chlorhexidine may be associated with a decreased rate of colonisation and infection by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). In a study, doctors followed 253 patients admitted to a trauma centre who were bathed at least once daily using a single-use cloth bath product not known to have [...]

Dr Brian O’Doherty looks at the treatment of bacterial infections in the primary care setting It is currently an opportune time to talk about the use of antibiotics, what with the increased instance of respiratory tract infections. Good clinical practice and other pressures, such as financial constraints, force us to consider our role in prescribing [...]

Pregnant women in Australia and New Zealand who had swine flu were 13 times more likely to be admitted to hospital with a critical illness, according to new research. The authors concluded that 11 per cent of mothers and 12 per cent of babies died as a result of being admitted to intensive care with [...]

Contamination of heroin with anthrax spores in Scotland has led to an outbreak of anthrax infection in heroin users and has resulted in several deaths, senior doctors there have warned. The doctors described the case of a drug user who presented to the emergency department at Crosshouse Hospital in Kilmarnock eight hours after he administered [...]

An air of defeatism exists within the medical profession about chronic fatigue syndrome that is undermining evidence that it can be treated, according to leading doctors in the field. The recent acquittal in Britain of Kay Gilderdale, who had been charged with the attempted murder of her 31-year-old daughter Lynn, has led to blanket press [...]

Doses of antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents should take into account the patient’s bodyweight, to maximise their potential effectiveness, according to leading Greek researchers. “For most widely used antimicrobial agents, dosing recommendations in adults do not take into account adjustment to body-size measures,” said the researchers. “Even when such recommendations are made for an agent, [...]