BMJ Best Practice Podcast

Pre eclampsia

Pre eclampsiaPre-eclampsia is common. It has been reported to affect between 2% and 8% of all pregnancies worldwide.  And complications are common as well - from eclampsia to fetal growth restriction to pulmonary oedema. So it is important that we get the diagnosis and management of this condition right. To find out more about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to his podcast interview with Emeritus Professor James Walker of the University of Leeds. Please note: Remember to do a FBC, U&E, and LFTs in affected patients. Competing interests: JJW is Honorary President of the Baby Lifeline Training Company and Honorary Medical Director of Action on Pre-eclampsia. He lectures and teaches on pre-eclampsia and maternal safety both nationally and internationally, and is the author of national and local reports into safety investigations for the Healthcare Services Investigation Branch and national and local bodies as Clinical Director.

BMJ Best Practice: Improving Primary Care

BMJ Best Practice is freely available in England, Scotland and Wales. And in many other institutions around the world. We want to ensure that it is used. But we want more than just clicks. We want people to use it to improve individual patient care, to improve care processes and quality and safety, to improve education at all levels. So how should we do this? Please do listen to his podcast interview with Dr Dan Bunstone, GP Principal and Clinical Director of Warrington Innovation Network. Competing interests: none

Acute otitis media

Acute otitis media is common. More than 80% of children experience at least one episode of acute otitis media before the age of 2 years. And complications are common also - from perforated tympanic membrane to otitis media with effusion. So it is important that we get the diagnosis and management of this condition right. To find out more about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to his podcast interview with Dr. Carlos Armengol of the Pediatric Associates of Charlottesville in the US. Competing interests: none

Animal bites

Animal bites
Each year in the UK, approximately 250,000 people attend emergency departments for the treatment of dog bites. And about 10% of patients will develop an infection. And that is just dogs. Animal bites are a common and serious problem - it is important that we get the assessment and management of this condition right. To find out more details about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to his podcast interview with Dr Oliver Spencer, Consultant in Emergency Medicine at Croydon University Hospital NHS Trust.
Competing interests: none

Burns

Burns are a common injury. The exact prevalence is difficult to know, as many people will not seek medical advice. But we do know that around 13,000 people in the UK require hospital attention from specialist burns services. And burns can cause a range of complications from scarring to sepsis to psychological trauma. So it is important that we get the management of burns right. To find out more details about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to his podcast interview with Professor Rob Sheridan, Associate Professor of Surgery, Harvard Medical School. Competing interests: none

COPD: an update on diagnosis and management

COPD is common. It is the third leading cause of death worldwide, causing 3.23 million deaths in 2019. And anyone who has worked in a hospital will know that exacerbations are common also. So it is important that we get the diagnosis and management of this condition right. To find out more details about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to his podcast interview with Neil Greening, Associate Professor and Honorary Consultant Physician at the Institute for Lung Health, Leicester. Competing interests: Dr Greening has received honoraria, lecture fees, travel for conferences and consultancy fees from AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Chiesi, Sanofi and Pulmonx. His Institution has received grant funding and consultancy fees from GSK, and Roche.

Syncope

Syncope is common. It accounts for approximately 1% of all emergency department visits and 2% of all hospital admissions from the emergency department. Causes include dysrhythmias, pulmonary embolism, subarachnoid haemorrhage, and acute coronary syndrome - to name but a few. So what if anything can we do to ensure that it is diagnosed and managed correctly? To answer this and other important questions, please do have a listen to this podcast interview with Professor Shamai Grossman, Associate Professor of Medicine and Emergency Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Competing interests: none

Sepsis in adults

Sepsis is common. In 2018, more than one million US Medicare patients were admitted to hospital with sepsis.
And complications are serious - from renal failure to ARDS to DIC.
So what if anything can we do to ensure that it is diagnosed and managed correctly?
To answer this and other important questions, have a listen to this podcast with Professor Andre Kalil, from the Department of Internal Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
For more on sepsis, visit BMJ Best Practice.
Competing interests: none

Acne vulgaris

Acne is a common condition. The Global Burden of Disease estimates the prevalence of acne to be 8%, ranking it the eighth most prevalent disease worldwide.
And acne can cause complications - from scarring to dyspigmentation to mental health problems.
So what if anything can we do to ensure that it is diagnosed and managed correctly?
To answer this and other important questions, please have a listen to this podcast interview with Professor John Barbieri, Assistant Professor of Dermatology at Harvard. 
For more on acne, visit BMJ Best Practice.
Competing interests: JB has received consulting fees from Dexcel Pharma.

Cervical spine injury

Cervical spine injuries result primarily from motor vehicle accidents, sports activities, and diving into shallow water. These mainly happen with young people. In older people, falls are a common cause. And such injuries can cause a range of complications from pain to radiculopathy to other neurological disability.
So what if anything can we do to ensure that cervical spine trauma is diagnosed and managed correctly?
To answer this and other important questions, listen to this interview with Michael Fehlings, Professor of Neurosurgery at the University of Toronto, and author of our BMJ Best Practice topic on this condition.
Competing interests: MGF served as a consultant for Zimmer, In Vivo Therapeutics, and Pfizer. He receives institutional fellowship grant support from AOSpine, Medtronic, and Depuy-Synthes.