scholarly journals Trends in dermoscopy use in the UK: results from surveys in 2003 and 2012

2015 ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
Thomas D. Butler ◽  
Rubeta N. Matin ◽  
Andrew G. Affleck ◽  
Colin J. Fleming ◽  
Jonathan C. Bowling

Background: Dermoscopy is a useful tool to aid diagnosis of pigmented and non-pigmented skin lesions, as well as many other dermatological conditions. Use of dermoscopy is increasing worldwide, but to date, there are no reported data on attitudes of dermatologists in the United Kingdom (UK) towards dermoscopy. Objective: To determine current attitudes of UK dermatologists towards dermoscopy and assess how these attitudes have changed over the last decade. Methods: In October 2012, an online survey was sent to members of British Association of Dermatologists over a 12-week period. Data were subsequently compared with data from a similar UK nationwide paper questionnaire distributed to members in 2003. Results: The 2003 survey collected 292 responses (uptake 42%), and in 2012 there were 209 responses (22%), predominantly from consultants and registrars. In 2012, 86% respondents reported increased use of dermoscopy over the previous decade with 98.5% of respondents reporting regular clinical use of dermoscopy, compared with 54% in 2003. Overall, 81% respondents in 2012 had received dermoscopy training, mainly from UK-based courses (62% of respondents) but increasingly via Internet-based resources (30% vs. 7% in 2003). However, 39% respondents lacked confidence when making a diagnosis based on their interpretation of dermoscopy findings.  Conclusions: Over the last decade, use of dermoscopy has increased amongst UK dermatologists and the majority of respondents now employ dermoscopy in daily clinical practice. However, the use of dermoscopy in the dermatology community overall is not known and for those individuals there is a continued need for education.


Author(s):  
Wei Yue ◽  
Marc Cowling

It is well documented that the self-employed experience higher levels of happiness than waged employees even when their incomes are lower. Given the UK government’s asymmetric treatment of waged workers and the self-employed, we use a unique Covid-19 period data set which covers the months leading up to the March lockdown and the months just after to assess three aspects of the Covid-19 crisis on the self-employed: hours of work reductions, the associated income reductions and the effects of both on subjective well-being. Our findings show the large and disproportionate reductions in hours and income for the self-employed directly contributed to a deterioration in their levels of subjective well-being compared to waged workers. It appears that their resilience was broken when faced with the reality of dealing with rare events, particularly when the UK welfare support response was asymmetric and favouring waged employees.



2017 ◽  
Vol 102 (9) ◽  
pp. 1244-1247 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl Mercieca ◽  
Brett Drury ◽  
Archana Bhargava ◽  
Cecilia Fenerty

AimsTo evaluate, describe and quantify the diversity in postoperative antimetabolite administration and bleb needling practices among glaucoma specialists performing trabeculectomy surgery within the UK and Ireland.MethodsA cross-sectional online survey was distributed to all consultant glaucoma specialists who are on the United Kingdom and Eire Glaucoma Society (UKEGS) contact list. Participants were asked specific questions about their current practices for post-trabeculectomy antimetabolite administration followed by questions directly related to bleb needling procedures.Results60 (83%) of UKEGS glaucoma subspecialty consultants completed the survey. 70% of respondents administered 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) in their clinic room while 30% used a separate treatment room. Doses of 5-FU varied considerably but 70% used 5 mg as standard. Techniques used to reduce corneal toxicity included precipitation with amethocaine (44%) or benoxinate (14%), saline wash (14%) and modified injection technique (8%). Topical antibiotics and/or betadine were used to prevent infection following 5-FU injection in just over 50%. Bleb needling was exclusively performed in operating theatre by 56% of respondents and solely at the slit lamp in the clinic room by 12%. A further 30% used a combination of both theatre and outpatient clinic rooms. Anti-metabolites used were 5-FU (72%) and mitomycin C (22%) with 12% using either of the two substances.ConclusionsThere is a significantly wide variety of current practices for antimetabolite administration and bleb needling within the UK and Ireland. This may be influenced by a glaucoma surgeon’s specific experience and audit results as well as particular clinical set-up, availability of antimetabolite and clinic room space.



F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 229
Author(s):  
Nick Riddiford

Background: Recent articles have presented a bleak view of career prospects in biomedical research in the US. Too many PhDs and postdocs are trained for too few research positions, creating a “holding-tank” of experienced senior postdocs who are unable to get a permanent position. Coupled with relatively low salaries and high levels of pressure to publish in top-tier academic journals, this has created a toxic environment that is perhaps responsible for a recently observed decline in biomedical postdocs in the US, the so-called “postdocalypse”. Methods: To address the gulf of information relating to working habits and attitudes of UK-based academic biomedical researchers, a link to an online survey was included in an article published in the Guardian newspaper. Survey data were collected between 21st March 2016 and 6th November 2016 and analysed to examine discrete profiles for three major career stages: PhD, postdoc and principal investigator. Results: Overall, the data presented here echo trends observed in the US: The 520 UK-based biomedical researchers responding to the survey reported feeling disillusioned with academic research, due to the low chance of getting a permanent position and the long hours required at the bench. Also like the US, large numbers of researchers at each distinct career stage are considering leaving biomedical research altogether. Conclusions: There are several systemic flaws in the academic scientific research machine – for example the continual overproduction of PhDs and the lack of stability in the early-mid stages of a research career - that are slowly being addressed in countries such as the US and Germany. These data suggest that similar flaws also exist in the UK, with a large proportion of respondents concerned about their future in research. To avoid lasting damage to the biomedical research agenda in the UK, addressing such concerns should be a major priority.



Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 288 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Hall ◽  
Rachel Kay ◽  
Jim Green

The number of equines injured as a result of incidents during road transport is currently unknown in the United Kingdom. Although previous research has identified factors that affect an equine’s behavioural and physiological responses to transportation, their contribution to incident occurrence and injury risk is unclear. The aim of this study was to identify factors associated with incident occurrence and equine injury during transportation by road. An online survey was administered between 12 May 2017 and 21 July 2017 in the UK. The survey was open to those transporting equines non-commercially and comprised two sections. Questions relating to general transport behaviour were completed by all participants. Participants who had experienced an incident then provided details of these, including outcomes. Incidents were reported by 16.2% (342/2116) of participants, with details included for 399 incidents. Those participants who had a professional/competitive involvement with equines reported more incidents than those with a predominantly leisure involvement (p < 0.01). Equine behaviour was the attributed cause of 56% of incidents reported and most incidents occurred during the first hour of travel (65%). In over 50% of the incidents reported, the equine was injured, with those incidents attributed to transport vehicle malfunction being associated with the highest percentage of injury (68%). This study highlights the need for better preparation of the equine for transportation and to identify risk factors associated with transport vehicle type, design and operation.



2018 ◽  
Vol 128 (1) ◽  
pp. 144-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aimee Lawson ◽  
Andy Molyneux ◽  
Robin Sellar ◽  
Saleh Lamin ◽  
Allan Thomas ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVEThe Woven Endobridge (WEB) device has been in clinical use for the treatment of brain aneurysms for the past 4 years. Observational studies to assess clinical outcome and related complications have been published. Clear evidence is required to better understand the safety profile of the WEB device. The authors here present a multicenter series that provides a detailed safety analysis focused on patient selection, procedural events, and technical issues of treated patients throughout the United Kingdom (UK).METHODSA nationwide password-protected database was set up to collect anonymous information across the UK (14 centers). Complications and clinical outcome were analyzed for the initial 109 patients (112 procedures). An independent root cause analysis classified the complications into groups (procedural, disease, device, ancillary device, and other). The modified Rankin Scale (mRS) was used as a marker of clinical outcome.RESULTSEach of the 109 patients had 1 aneurysm suitable for WEB treatment (109 aneurysms). Three patients had 2 procedures, making a total of 112 procedures performed. Eight procedures were abandoned because of access issues; 2 patients went on to have a successful procedure. All 109 patients had a preprocedure and discharge mRS scores recorded. One hundred patients had a recorded mRS score from a > 3-month follow-up.Deployment of the WEB device was successful in 103 (94.5%) of 109 patients and 104 (92.9%) of 112 procedures. One patient had 2 successful WEB procedures on separate occasions. Patients without a successfully implanted WEB device were included in the analysis. Selection analysis showed that the average patient age was 56.5 years among 34 men and 75 women. The percentage of incidental aneurysms was 58.7%, acute 16.5%, symptomatic 18.3%, and recurrent 6.4%. Further results analysis showed that 40 (36.7%) of 109 patients had recorded adverse events, including those unrelated to the WEB device. Events that could be related to the WEB device numbered 17 (15.6%) among the 109 patients. Two patients with device-related complications were symptomatic. Overall, 11 patients (10.1%) had persistent clinical sequelae. Thromboembolism was the most prevalent event, affecting 15.6% of the patients (17 of 109), and 6.4% of the patients (7 of 109) with a thromboembolism were symptomatic.Overall mortality before discharge was 0% and at the > 3-month follow-up was 5% (5 of 100 patients). Morbidity was defined as an mRS score increase to > 2. Overall morbidity at discharge was 1.8% (2 of 109) and at the > 3-month follow-up was 6% (6 of 100). No device-related morbidity or mortality was associated with this group.CONCLUSIONSThe UK data show that the WEB device is safe for clinical use. Thromboembolic complication adds a risk that should be minimized with appropriate anticoagulation and correct sizing of the device. There is scope for further evaluation and standardization of an anticoagulation regimen for the WEB device.



Author(s):  
Crawford Moodie ◽  
Catherine Best ◽  
Nathan Critchlow ◽  
Martine Stead ◽  
Ann McNeill ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Since May 2017, all cigarettes and roll-your-own (RYO) tobacco in the UK must be sold in standardised packs with pictorial warnings displaying, for the first time, a stop-smoking website. Methods Data comes from three waves of a longitudinal online survey with smokers and ex-smokers conducted pre- and post-standardised packaging, with Wave 1 (W1) in April-May 2016, Wave 2 (W2) in October-November 2017, and Wave 3 (W3) in May-June 2019. Only smokers are included in the analysis: W1 (N=6233), W2 (N=3629) and W3 (N=2412). We explored any change in citing warnings on packs as a source of information about a stop-smoking website, and whether citing warnings as a source was associated with use of a stop-smoking website. As the warnings, and therefore the stop-smoking website, are larger on RYO packs than on cigarette packs due to the larger pack size, we explored differences in awareness of a stop-smoking website among exclusive cigarette smokers (W1=3142, W2=1884, W3=1247) and exclusive RYO smokers (W1=2046, W2=1119, W3=814). Results Among smokers recalling seeing information about a stop-smoking website, citing warnings as a source increased between waves (W1=14.0%, W2=24.2%, W3=25.1%) and was associated with having visited a stop-smoking website (OR=11.81, 95% CI 8.47-16.46). Citing warnings as a source of a stop-smoking website increased among exclusive RYO smokers at each wave (W1=15.5%, W2=26.3%, W3=32.1%), while for exclusive cigarette smokers it only increased at W2 (W1=10.5%, W2=22.4%, W3=19.9%). Conclusions Warnings are an important source of cessation resource information. Making this information more prominent may help sustain awareness. Implications The findings support the inclusion of a stop-smoking website on warnings as awareness among smokers increased and citing warnings as a source of information about a stop-smoking website was associated with having visited a stop-smoking website. We also explored whether the stop-smoking website on warnings on RYO packs, which is larger than on cigarette packs as a function of the larger size of RYO packs, would have any impact on awareness of this information. That exclusive RYO smokers were more likely than exclusive cigarette smokers to notice a stop-smoking website on warnings suggests that this information should be more prominent.



2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (S 01) ◽  
pp. S44-S49
Author(s):  
Misha Patel ◽  
Payvand Menhadji ◽  
Serena Mayor

Abstract Objective The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has affected professionals in all fields; none more so than medical and dental professionals. As dental core trainees (DCT) working in hospitals, we have been at the forefront of the crisis and one of the first in line for redeployment. Therefore, we decided to investigate the impact of COVID-19 on the redeployment of DCTs across the UK. Materials and Methods  Data for this study was collected and shared between three project researchers. All researchers were undergoing dental core training in Oral Surgery and Restorative dentistry at Guy’s Hospital, London. An online survey was sent out via email and online social media platforms to reach as many DCTs as possible in the United Kingdom. Implied consent was obtained by respondents on submission of the survey.The survey consisted of five sections and was branched, with respondents answering different sections depending on their redeployment status. No qualitative data was collected, as all questions included in the survey were dichotomous or multiple-choice questions. The last two questions were in the form of a 5-point Likert scale, inviting respondents to rate five statements from strongly agree to strongly disagree. Results A total of 150 participants responded, of which 34% had been redeployed due to the pandemic. The majority of DCTs were redeployed to an intensive care unit or similar setting, and over 75% of those redeployed were working with either COVID-19 positive/suspect patients. Additionally, 23.8% of respondents had stopped patient contact due to their medical status. Conclusion Many DCTs have been deployed to departments outside of their specialty and expressed some anxiety as a result. Inevitably, this has resulted in disruption to their training program and education over the last few months. The response across the United Kingdom has been understandably variable due to the differing demands of the hospital trusts within which the DCTs work.



2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Blackie ◽  
Jade Colgan ◽  
Stephanie McDonald ◽  
Kate C. McLean

Research in the field of narrative psychology has found that redemption – a narrative sequence in which people recount emotionally negative experiences as having positive endings – is a useful mechanism for coping with adversity. Redemption has been viewed as a cultural master narrative in North America, providing individuals with a socially valued script for narrating challenging life experiences. Presently little research has examined the presence and function of the redemption narrative outside of North American contexts. The aim of this qualitative study, therefore, was to identify themes in UK individuals’ narratives of trauma and adversity to gain insight into the content of the master narrative for meaning-making in the UK. Sixty-Five participants (57 females, Mage = 21.97, SD = 7.24) with little to no experience of lifetime adversity were recruited into an online survey. Participants answered open-ended questions adopting the perspective of a survivor from a selected UK national tragedy, focusing on how they felt survivors could recover from trauma. We identified two themes in our thematic analysis that were relevant to recovery: recuperation and redemption. Recuperation was most commonly reported, it was described as a gradual lessening of symptoms over time and the ability to cope with the lasting emotional and physical scars. Our findings suggest that redemption is not necessarily the dominant cultural script in the UK for guiding recovery in the aftermath of trauma.



F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 229
Author(s):  
Nick Riddiford

Background: Many recent articles have presented a bleak view of career prospects in biomedical research in the US. Too many PhDs and postdocs are trained for too few research positions, creating a “holding-tank” of experienced senior postdocs who are unable to get a permanent position. Coupled with relatively low salaries and high levels of pressure to publish in top-tier academic journals, this has created a toxic environment that is perhaps responsible for a recently observed decline in biomedical postdocs in the US, the so-called “postdocalypse”. Methods: In order to address the gulf of information relating to working habits and attitudes of UK-based biomedical researchers, a link to an online survey was included in an article published in the Guardian newspaper. Survey data were collected between 21 st March 2016 and 6 th November 2016 and analysed to examine discrete profiles for three major career stages: the PhD, the postdoc and the principal investigator. Results: Overall, the data presented here echo trends observed in the US: The 520 UK-based biomedical researchers responding to the survey reported feeling disillusioned with academic research, due to the low chance of getting a permanent position and the long hours required at the bench. Also like the US, large numbers of researchers at each distinct career stage are considering leaving biomedical research altogether. Conclusions: There are several systemic flaws in the academic scientific research machine – for example the continual overproduction of PhDs and the lack of stability in the early-mid stages of a research career - that are slowly being addressed in countries such as the US and Germany. These data suggest that similar flaws also exist in the UK, with a large proportion of respondents concerned about their future in research. To avoid lasting damage to the biomedical research agenda in the UK, addressing such concerns should be a major priority.



2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samantha Lane ◽  
Saad Shakir

Background: A signal of myocarditis and pericarditis following mRNA COVID-19 vaccines first emerged in Israel in May 2021. Further cases have since been reported in multiple countries. The reporting rates of these events indicate that they are very rare given the high numbers of vaccinated persons. Males and younger vaccinees appear more frequently affected, more often following the second vaccine dose. As vaccine programmes progress with the focus shifting to younger people, it is possible that more cases of myocarditis and pericarditis will be reported. Objectives: To bring together spontaneously reported data from around the world to estimate the reporting rate in different countries and better understand the risk factors for myocarditis and pericarditis following exposure to COVID-19 mRNA vaccines. Methods: Spontaneous reports from the United Kingdom, United States, and European Economic Area were used to estimate the frequency of myocarditis and pericarditis reported following COVID-19 Vaccine Pfizer/BioNTech and COVID-19 Vaccine Moderna. Cases were stratified by age, sex, and vaccine dose where data were available. Reporting rates amongst vaccinees receiving mRNA vaccines in each region were estimated. Results: A small number of reports of myocarditis and pericarditis had been submitted to each database examined. These events are very rare according to reporting rates of spontaneous adverse reactions. The events were more frequently reported amongst males, and most reports came from vaccinees aged under 30 years. The typical clinical course of these events is mild, with full recovery in most cases. Conclusions: This study provides evidence that younger vaccinees more frequently report myocarditis and pericarditis following mRNA COVID-19 vaccines compared with older vaccinees. These very rare events with mild clinical course followed by full recovery in most cases were more frequent following the second dose. Reporting rates of myocarditis and pericarditis were consistent between the data sources.



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