Ethical issues in ageing.

Population ageing, in both the developed and developing world, has put increasing demands on health resources; this has brought to the fore various ethical issues related to ageing. This paper examines moral issues that confront people as they grow old as well as those who are involved with them. The concepts of autonomy, dignity, justice and intergenerational solidarity are explored.

Leishmaniasis in Malta and the Mediterranean basin.

Leishmaniasis is a public-health problem in most countries bordering the Mediterranean littoral. In Malta, where the disease has been recognized for many years, Phlebotomus perniciosus is the established vector and dogs act as reservoir hosts. Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) was the only form of the disease recorded in Malta until the early 1980s, when cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) was recognized.

The prognostic value of blood glucose in diabetic patients with acute myocardial infarction.

The aim of the study was to investigate prospectively the prognostic value of blood glucose on admission in diabetic and non-diabetic patients with an acute myocardial infarction. Three hundred and thirty-three diabetic and 565 non-diabetic patients were admitted with acute myocardial infarction during the study period of 3.5 years.

Absence of circadian variation in the onset of acute myocardial infarction in diabetic subjects.

Objectives: To investigate the circadian pattern of acute myocardial infarction in non-insulin-dependent diabetic patients and to compare it with that of controls.

Background: Previous studies have shown that there is a circadian variation in the incidence of acute myocardial infarction, but there are few data on diabetic subjects.

Methods: A hospital based prospective case-control study.