The comparison of the 1972 Hodkinson's Abbreviated Mental Test Score (AMTS) and its variants in screening for cognitive impairment.

Background: Since its introduction by Hodkinson in 1972, Abbreviated Mental Test Score (AMTS) and its English and other language versions have been widely used in research and clinical practice alike. However, whether the various versions of AMTS yield equivalent information has never been tested.

Methods: We performed cross-sectional assessment of inpatients aged 65+ years with seven AMTS versions and the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) after correction for age and education (MMSEc).

[Preoperative anxiety assessed by questionnaires and patient declarations].

Background: The perioperative period can be anxiety-provoking for any patient scheduled for surgery. The anxiety can be divided into three categories: physiological, psychological and behavioural. For objective assessment, special questionnaires have been used, yet since they are too complicated for everyday use, simpler methods have been proposed.

[Cardiac arrest in chronic metabolic alkalosis due to sodium bicarbonate abuse].

Background: Moderate metabolic alkalosis has not been considered as a life-threatening situation by many authors, but when it persists and pH increases above 7.65, the situation may become critical.

Case Report: We present a case of a 61-yr-old alcoholic male patient, who had been consuming approximately 200 g of sodium bicarbonate daily for twenty years, due to persisitent heartburn and abdominal pains.