April 2017 Volume 110 Number 4

IMJ Commentary

Towards A High Integrity Health System

J FA Murphy – Editor  (P541)

____________________________________________________________________________

Original Papers

Incidence of hospital acquired thrombosis (HAT) in a tertiary care hospital

 Khan et al in their study found that acute venous thrombosis (VTE) was diagnosed in 100 patients and hospital acquired thrombosis (HAT) in 48 patients.  The authors stress the importance of a hospital thromboprophylaxis policy. (P542)

Caring for obese children- a change in paradigm

Doyle et al report on the role of a hospital programme for overweight children.  The study included 111 children.  A high incidence of emotional difficulties was encountered among the children.  Learning difficulties was another feature. (P543)

Ireland’s recent contribution to the radiological literature: a bibliometric analysis  

Redmond et al report on the published papers produced by Irish radiology departments since 2000.  There were 781 papers.  Only 9.6% of papers were a collaborative effort with more than one hospital department (P544)

An audit of empiric antibiotic choice in the inpatient management of community-acquired pneumonia

Delaney and Jackson studied 60 patients with community acquired pneumonia.  They were assessed using the CURB score.  At least one third of patients had a CURB score 0-1 which suggests that they could have been managed as an outpatient. (P545)

Rotavirus Gastroenteritis is Associated with Increased Morbidity and Mortality in Children with Inherited Metabolic Disorders

A Smith, M Mannion, P O’Reilly, E Crushell, J Hughes, I Knerr, P Gavin, A Monavari (P546)

Hospital acquired thrombosis (HAT) prevention in an acute hospital: a single centre cross-sectional study  

Khan et al audited the proportion of patients with a VTE risk who received thromboprophylaxis (TP).  TP was prescribed to 43% of these patients.  Following the introduction of an assessment tool the TP prescription was 46.3%. (P547)

Barriers to dental attendance in older patients

 Shanahan and O’Neill assessed the standard of dental care in older patients with a mean age of 79.6 years.  Over 50% of the patients had not attended a dentist in the preceeding 36 months.  The authors point that regular dental checks are important for the detection of oral pathology as well as dental care. (P548)

____________________________________________________________________________

Case Reports

A role for susceptibility weighted imaging in progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy

Yap et al report on the MRI findings in 2 cases of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy.  The specific finding was the hypodense signal of subcortical u-fibres on susceptibility weighted sequence. (P549)

Post traumatic tension pneumocephalus: the Mount Fuji sign

Ryan et al describe a case of complex facial bone fractures and a pneumocephalus following an assault.  The pneumocephalus, which is illustrated on the skull x-ray, is called the Mount Fuji sign. (P550)

The Bingo card sign as an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease

Hawco and Weaver that the loss of the capacity to play bingo may be an early marker for the onset of Alzheimer’s disease.  The game requires number recognition, letter recognition, short-term memory, and concentration (P551)

____________________________________________________________________________

Short Report

Potential impact of cycle of care on Diabetes services in secondary care

Finnegan et al describe the programme ‘Diabetes cycle of care’ through which 25% of Diabetic patients attending OPD could be managed in primary care.  The plan is bi-annual structured Diabetes review through primary care services for type 2 Diabetes patients with stable glycaemic control. (P552)

____________________________________________________________________________

 Occasional Piece

Establishing a mentoring system for anaesthetic trainees.

A Quinn, D Moore. (P553)

____________________________________________________________________________

Letters to the Editor

Books to Blogs – The Top Layer Of FOAM

A M Imtiaz, J Ryan (P554)

A breathtakingly rare presentation of pyloric stenosis

S A Hurley, F McCartan, N McGrath, A Mortell, MJ O’Grady (P555)

A Turn for the Worse

J Hayden , M Crealey B O’ Connor, A Mortell, E Ryan (P556)

Cancer Care Costs and Clinical Trials

D Kelly, C Brady,J Sui, E, Cronin, D O’Hare, J Waldron,D O Mahony , D Power, RM Bambury, S O’Reilly