This Canadian review set out to update guidelines related to primary care of people with learning disabilities. The terms developmental disabilities is used in Canada but is equivalent to the use of the term learning disabilities in the UK. Estimates of the prevalence of learning disabilities in Canada vary from 1% to 3% of Canadians. [read the full story…]
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) have commissioned the National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health to produce a new guideline on the recognition, referral and diagnosis of children and young people on the autism spectrum. The guideline is aimed at GPs, paediatricians, psychiatrists, psychologists, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists [read the full story…]
NICE Guideline 64 does not recommend the routine use of antibiotic prophylaxis in invasive dental procedures to prevent infective carditis. Their guideline states that patients should only be offered it if the procedure is at a site where there is already a suspected infection. This guidance caused some difficulties for dentists, as reported in the [read the full story…]
Substance use during pregnancy is common. In national prevalence surveys, 14% of Canadian women reported using alcohol during their last pregnancy, and 17% reported smoking during pregnancy. The prevalence of illicit drug use among Canadian women of childbearing age is less but not insignificant. In United States population surveys, around 5% of pregnant women reported [read the full story…]
The British Association for Psychopharmacology regularly publish consensus guidelines on the pharmacological treatment of mental health conditions. In the last two years these publications have included guidance on insomnia (PDF), dementia (PDF) and bipolar disorder (PDF). The latest guideline from the BAP is on the pharmacological treatment of schizophrenia and as usual it’s available in full-text [read the full story…]
The press release from NICE says that: Quality standards are a set of specific, concise statements and associated measures [that] set out aspirational, but achievable, markers of high-quality, cost-effective patient care, covering the treatment and prevention of different diseases and conditions. NICE have already published quality standards on dementia and depression in adults and they have [read the full story…]
Improving Health and Lives (IHaL) is the Learning Disabilities Public Health Observatory: a three year project funded by the Department of Health in response to Sir Jonathan Michael’s 2008 inquiry into access to healthcare for people with learning disabilities. The national observatory aims to provide better, easier to understand information on the health and wellbeing [read the full story…]
The British Medical Association have published a toolkit for GPs, which provides practical advice to doctors on promoting and protecting the wellbeing of vulnerable adults. Although principally aimed at GPs, any professional working in health care settings with vulnerable adults will find it useful. The term “vulnerable adults” covers an extremely wide range of individuals, [read the full story…]
Internationally the rates of edentulousness are estimated to be between 7% and 69%. In 2009 the American College of Prosthodontists (ACP) formed a task force to establish evidence-based guidelines for the care and maintenance of complete dentures. This comprised members of the ACP, the Academy of General Dentistry, American Dental Association (ADA) Council on Scientific [read the full story…]
Physical activity has an important role to play in promoting mental health and well-being by preventing mental health problems and improving the quality of life of those experiencing mental health problems and illnesses. For example, evidence shows that physical activity can reduce the risk of depression, dementia and Alzheimer’s. It also shows that physical activity [read the full story…]
