BMJ Best Practice Podcast

The BMJ Best Practice podcast publishes interviews with clinical experts, aimed at healthcare professionals and students with an interest in keeping up to date with the latest scientific developments, evidence-based medicine and guidelines. BMJ Best Practice is ranked one of the best clinical decision support tools for health professionals worldwide.* Structured around the clinical workflow and updated daily, BMJ Best Practice uses the latest evidence-based research, guidelines and expert opinion to offer step-by-step guidance on diagnosis, prognosis, treatment and prevention. bestpractice.bmj.com *Kwag KH, González-Lorenzo M, Banzi R, Bonovas S, Moja L. Providing Doctors With High-Quality Information: An Updated Evaluation of Web-Based Point-of-Care Information Summaries The purpose of this podcast is to educate and to inform. The content of this podcast does not constitute medical advice and it is not intended to function as a substitute for a healthcare practitioner’s judgement...

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Episodes

Hyperkalemia

Mar 13, 2025

Mar 13, 2025

22 min

Hyperkalemia is common and can be serious. It can result in life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias. So it is important that we assess this problem properly, find an underlying diagnosis if there is one, and manage appropriately.
To find out more about this problem and what we can do about it, please do listen to this BMJ Best Practice podcast interview with Sri Yarlagadda, Associate Professor at The University of Kansas Medical Center.
Competing interests: None declared
For more on hyperkalemia, visit BMJ Best Practice.

Hypothyroidism

Feb 24, 2025

Feb 24, 2025

23 min

Hypothyroidism is common. The prevalence of overt hypothyroidism in the general population ranges between 0.2 and 5%. And it can cause a range of complications - from heart to brain problems to problems during pregnancy. 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, listen to this interview with Dr Wail Malaty who works as a physician in Houston, Texas. Wail is our BMJ Best Practice author on hypothyroidism. Competing interests: None
For more on hypothyroidism, visit BMJ Best Practice.

Wrist fracture

Feb 10, 2025

Feb 10, 2025

20 min

Wrist fractures are common. They can occur in older women with osteoporosis and low-impact injury. Or young men with high-impact injuries.
 
And they can cause complications from malunion to joint stiffness to complex regional pain syndrome.
 
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, listen to this podcast with Michael Barrett, Consultant Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgeon at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and BMJ Best Practice author on wrist fracture.
 
For more on wrist fractures, visit the BMJ Best Practice topic.
 
Competing interests: MB is a director of Orthohub.xyz, an online education platform for orthopaedic surgeons. Orthohub.xyz receives sponsorship from the healthcare industry.
 

Tourette syndrome

Jan 27, 2025

Jan 27, 2025

21 min

Tourette syndrome has a prevalence of 0.6% in children and adolescents ages 6 to 17 years, with about half of patients undiagnosed. And Tourette syndrome is associated with distress, substance abuse, and treatment-related side effects. 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 Marco Grados, Clinical Director and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Division for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Johns Hopkins.
 
Marco is the author of our topic on Tourette syndrome on BMJ Best Practice. Competing interests: None

Jan 14, 2025

27 min

Cervical spine injuries result primarily from car accidents, falls, and sports activities (such as rugby or diving into shallow water).
They can occur in young and old, and can cause considerable complications - from chronic pain to medication dependence.
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 interview with Muhammad Dherijha, Consultant in Complex Spinal Surgery at the Northern Care Alliance in Manchester.
For more on cervical spine injuries, visit BMJ Best Practice.
Competing interests: none

Jan 2, 2025

21 min

Comorbidities are common and important in all countries around the world. They have a significant impact on patients and healthcare providers. The BMJ Best Practice Comorbidities Manager has been designed to help healthcare professionals better manage patients with common combinations of comorbidities. This BMJ Best Practice podcast is an interview with Professor Neera Ahuja, Professor of Medicine, Associate Chief Medical Officer and Senior Vice President at Stanford Healthcare. Competing interests: NA has received honoraria for editorial work on BMJ Best Practice

Asthma

Dec 17, 2024

Dec 17, 2024

26 min

Acute severe asthma is common. The global prevalence, morbidity and mortality, and economic burden caused by asthma have progressively increased over the last few decades. About 300 million people worldwide currently have asthma. About 180,000 deaths annually are caused by asthma. And most asthma deaths are preventable. 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 Richard Russell, Specialty Registrar in Respiratory Medicine, Glenfield Hospital, Leicester, UK. Richard is one of the authors of our topic on acute asthma on BMJ Best Practice. Competing interests: RR has received support from Chiesi. 

Dec 3, 2024

22 min

ST-elevation myocardial infarction is a common and important condition. Myocardial infarction is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality so it is vital 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 Mahi Ashwath, Professor of Medicine and Radiology and Inaugural Reuben Jacobs Chair in Internal Medicine at the UHS/UT Heart and Vascular Institute, San Antonio, Texas. Mahi is author of this topic on BMJ Best Practice. Competing interests: MA is a consultant for Tersera.

Panic disorder

Nov 20, 2024

Nov 20, 2024

27 min

Panic disorder is common. The prevalence of panic disorder is 2% to 3% in adults and adolescents. And panic disorder can cause distress, substance abuse, and treatment related side effects. 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 Professor Craig Sawchuk of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester. Craig is the author of our topic on panic disorder on BMJ Best Practice. Competing interests: None
 

Uterine fibroids

Nov 4, 2024

Nov 4, 2024

23 min

Uterine fibroids are common. They represent the most common solid tumours of the female pelvis and are a leading indication for hysterectomy. And complications are frequent also - from bleeding to obstetric complications. So what can we do to ensure that we get the diagnosis and management of this condition right? To answer this and other important questions, please do have a listen to this podcast interview with Professor Ayman Al-Hendy, Tenured Professor at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Chicago. Competing interests: AAH has served on the external advisory boards of Bayer, AbbVie, Myovant, Pfizer, ObsEva and Allergan, and has received research funding from the National Institutes of Health.

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