Can open cholecystectomy be taught by cadaveric simulation?

Background: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is the current standard of treatment for surgical gallbladder removal as it has an overall improved post-operative recovery compared to Open Cholecystectomy (OC). This has resulted in the loss of exposure to surgical trainees and the associated technical skills and decision-making required to convert to OC. The aim of this study is to provide construct validity to the proposition that cadaveric simulation can be used successfully to teach and learn open cholecystectomy.

The new Diploma of Rural Generalist Anaesthesia: Supporting Australian rural and remote communities.

In 2023, a Diploma of Rural Generalist Anaesthesia (DipRGA) was implemented across Australia. Developed collaboratively by the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists (ANZCA), the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the 12-month qualification is completed during or following ACRRM or RACGP Rural Generalist Fellowship training. Focused on the needs of rural and remote communities for elective and emergency surgery, maternity care, resuscitative care for medical illness or injury, and stabilisation for retrieval, the DipRGA supports rural generalist anaesthetists working within collaborative teams in geographically isolated settings.

Predictors of unfavourable treatment outcome in patients diagnosed with drug-resistant tuberculosis in the Torres Strait / Papua New Guinea border region.

Drug-resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) is an ongoing challenge in the Torres Strait Islands (TSI) / Papua New Guinea (PNG) border region. Treatment success rates have historically been poor for patients diagnosed with DR-TB, leading to increased transmission. This study aimed to identify variables associated with unfavourable outcome in patients diagnosed with DR-TB to inform programmatic improvements.

Understanding the ongoing learning needs of Australian metropolitan, rural and remote paediatricians: Evaluation of a neurology outreach programme.

Aim: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a neurology outreach teaching programme delivered via video-teleconferencing (6 × 60 min live sessions every 6-8 weeks) is acceptable, contributes to understanding and meets the neurology learning needs of Australian paediatricians from metropolitan, rural and remote areas.

Methods: A sample of six NSW sites that joined the neurology outreach programme between 2017 and 2019 (Arm 1) and six interstate sites from QLD, WA and TAS who commenced the programme in 2020 (Arm 2) participated. A mixed-methods survey explored participants' learning needs and value of the programme.

Participant experiences of intervention to detect and manage familial hypercholesterolaemia in Australian general practice: A qualitative descriptive study.

Background And Objectives: General practitioners (GPs) are ideally placed to have a much larger role in detection and management of familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) among their patients. The aim of this study was to seek the reflections of practice staff and newly diagnosed patients with FH on the implementation of an FH model of care in the general practice setting.

Method: Qualitative descriptive methodology was used.

Efficacy of Prednisolone for Bell Palsy in Children: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Multicenter Trial.

Background And Objectives: Corticosteroids are used to treat the early stages of idiopathic facial paralysis (Bell palsy) in children, but their effectiveness is uncertain. We set out to determine whether prednisolone improves the proportion of children with Bell palsy with complete recovery at 1 month.

Methods: We conducted a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial of prednisolone in children presenting to emergency departments with Bell palsy.

A study protocol for a randomised controlled trial of ice to reduce the pain of immunisation: The ICE trial.

Background And Objectives: Vaccine injections commonly cause iatrogenic pain. Ice may reduce pain. This is a study protocol for a prospective randomised controlled trial aiming to investigate the efficacy of ice packs to decrease vaccine-related pain in adults.

Preserving antibiotics for the future: Where Australian general practice sits on the global spectrum.

Background: Antibiotics have revolutionised modern medicine; however, since their discovery a century ago, their effectiveness against common infections is waning. Antimicrobial resistance is one of the most important challenges of our time. Reversing the trend of increasing resistance is vital to ensure procedures such as surgery, neonatal care and organ transplants remain safe.

Achieving High Breast Cancer Survival for Women in Rural and Remote Areas.

Background: Significant improvements in breast cancer survival have been made in the past few decades in many developed countries including Australia with a five-year relative survival of 90%. The aim of the present study is to obtain a brief estimate of the relative importance of demographic factors such as rurality, socio-economic standard and ethnicity versus traditional risk factors for women diagnosed with breast cancer in Far North Queensland, Australia.

Methods: This was a retrospective longitudinal study of all women diagnosed with their first episode of breast cancer in 1999-2013 in Far North Queensland, Australia.

Co-creating scholarship through collaborative writing in health professions education: AMEE Guide No. 143.

This AMEE guide provides a robust framework and practical strategies for health professions educators to enhance their writing skills and engage in successful scholarship within a collaborative writing team. Whether scholarly output involves peer-reviewed articles, book chapters, blogs and online posts, online educational resources, collaborative writing requires more than the usual core writing skills, it requires teamwork, leadership and followership, negotiation, and conflict resolution, mentoring and more. Whilst educators can attend workshops or courses to enhance their writing skills, there may be fewer opportunities to join a community of scholars and engage in successful collaborative writing.

Awareness of familial hypercholesterolaemia in Australian primary care: A qualitative descriptive study.

Background And Objectives: A lack of public and health professional awareness about familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) leads to an estimated 90,000 Australians remaining undiagnosed. The aim of this study was to establish the level of knowledge and awareness of FH in Australian general practices.

Method: A qualitative descriptive methodology was used to explore baseline knowledge and perceptions of practice staff about diagnosing and managing FH.

Implications of new clinical practice guidance on familial hypercholesterolaemia for Australian general practitioners.

Background: Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is a monogenic lipid disorder that may be overlooked in the diagnostic process.

Objective: The aim of this article is to review the key areas for identification and management of FH that affect Australian general practitioners (GPs).

Discussion: Recent consensus advice on the care of patients with FH in Australia provides an opportunity for GPs to increase their awareness and skills in diagnosing and managing FH.

The Hydrus Microstent in Pseudophakic Patients With Medically Refractory Open-angle Glaucoma.

Purpose: Minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) is an emerging therapy for glaucoma. The Hydrus Microstent is a MIGS device that stents Schlemm's canal, thereby increasing aqueous drainage and lowering intraocular pressure (IOP). This article describes the use of the microstent in pseudophakic patients with medically refractory glaucoma, a patient population undocumented in the current literature.

Multiaxial classification in child and adolescent mental health - a reaffirmation of benefit and practical applications.

Objective: Classification systems and their practical implications have become increasingly important in child and adolescent psychiatry. This paper presents the evolution and practical applications of a multiaxial classification system for children and adolescents presenting to mental health services. Included are some worked examples demonstrating both the complexity of many presentations and how broadening the use of the multiaxial system can help in identifying appropriate interventions.

Quality criteria for randomized controlled studies: obstetrical journal guidelines.

Background: Most retractions of obstetrics and gynecology manuscripts are because of scientific misconduct. It would be preferable to prevent randomized controlled trials with scientific misconduct from ever appearing in the peer-reviewed scientific literature, rather than to have to retract them later.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the policies of obstetrics and gynecology and top medical journals in their author guidelines and electronic submission systems regarding prospective randomized controlled trial registration, ethics committee approval, research protocols, Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trial guidelines, and data sharing and to detect the most common quality criteria requested for randomized controlled trials in these journals.

Association between guidelines and medical practitioners' perception of best management for patients attending with an apparently uncomplicated acute sore throat: a cross-sectional survey in five countries.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between guidelines and the medical practitioners' perception of optimal care for patients attending with an apparently uncomplicated acute sore throat in five countries (Australia, Germany, Sweden, UK and USA).

Design: International cross-sectional survey.

Setting: Primary healthcare (PHC).

Opinions of vascular surgeons and podiatrists in Australia and New Zealand on the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for lower limb ulcers.

Introduction: Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) has been suggested to improve healing of lower limb ulcers, though the quality of available evidence is weak to moderate. This study assessed the opinions and use of HBOT by specialists treating lower limb ulcers.

Research Design And Methods: Accredited vascular surgeons and podiatrists in Australia and New Zealand were sent an online survey via their professional organizations.

Efficiency and Accuracy of Three-Dimensional Models Versus Dental Casts: A Clinical Study.

Objective: The aim of this study was to compare the accuracy of digital and plaster model methods and the time required for analysis.

Methods: A total of 30 subjects (20 females, 10 males; mean age, 14.36±6.

Atypical Tibial Fracture in a 63-Year-Old Woman With Intermittent Use of Bisphosphonate Unmasking Hypophosphatasia.

We report an unusual case of atypical proximal tibial stress fracture (APTF) associated with intermittent use of bisphosphonates (BPs) and persistently low serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels. We describe the case of a 63-year-old white woman who had experienced an APTF after 4 years of intermittent exposure to alendronate given for recurrent metatarsal stress fractures. BP administration was stopped after the diagnosis of the APTF.

Haemorrhage control in the prehospital setting: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: Prehospital haemorrhage control has saved thousands of lives in the military over the last decade. While uncontrolled haemorrhage is a leading cause of preventable injury death in the USA for individuals under 45, military prehospital haemorrhage control techniques have not fully translated to the civilian sector in the USA. The effective implementation of haemorrhage control for civilian prehospital trauma is dependent on a more complex array of system and personnel-level factors than the military.