- All acute hospital patients in Glasgow are to be tested for alcohol abuse under a plan by the National Health Service in Scotland to identify and treat drink-related illnesses earlier. All hospital admissions in the area will be asked to fill in a questionnaire to assess if their normal pattern of drinking is a danger to their health.Those judged to be drinking too much will be offered treatment and counselling. The programme is being introduced after a study at the Victoria Infirmary in Glasgow found that one in five acute admissions abused alcohol: 24.5% of men and 12.2% of women. Phil Hanlon, professor of public health at the University of Glasgow, urged other health boards in Scotland to follow Glasgow’s example. TimesOnline
- Banning trouble-makers from pubs can have a greater effect on some people than sending them to prison, West Cumbria Pubwatch co-ordinator Inspector Joe Murray told Home Secretary John Reid. Insp Murray met Mr Reid and cabinet minister Hazel Blears at the House of Commons to give them a presentation on the successful scheme. Pubwatch, which bans violent or anti-social drunks from licensed premises, has been running since 2002. It has gone from strength to strength in that time and has even been rolled out to protect staff at the West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven from drunken yobs. Insp Murray said: “I found the Home Secretary to be very forthright about the benefits of Pubwatch and very positive about what we are doing. “He was keen to ensure that other people benefit from it and Hazel Blears is going to use it as an example of best practice in other parts of the country. “I highlighted the fact that one aspect of Pubwatch is that banning people from going out to pubs and socialising with their friends actually appears to have a greater effect than a prison sentence on some people.” Times and Star
- Why is alcohol consumption a risk factor for cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus? Scientists long have suspected that the culprit is acetaldehyde, a compound produced as the body breaks down the alcohol in beer, wine and hard liquor. Now researchers in Japan have discovered direct molecular evidence supporting that link between acetaldehyde and alcohol-related cancers. Medical News Today
- Senior Saab executives and Swedish car-fleet and taxi operators are to participate in user trials for the Saab AlcoKey, an alcohol breath test unit which prevents people from driving over the limit. The six-month user trial will involve about 100 cars. It is the final step in a two-year development program that has focused on miniaturising the unit to its current small size and maximising battery longevity. Announcing the user trial program, in which he will take part as well, Saab Automobile Managing Director Jan-Åke Jonsson said: 'Car crashes and personal injuries due to drunk driving remain a great concern and Saab wants to do what it can to help prevent this.' 'We have listened to car-fleet operators in Sweden, particularly those running public or taxi services,' Jonsson said. 'They want to demonstrate their social responsibility and provide some public reassurance by giving drivers access to a device such as Saab's AlcoKey.' The Engineer Online
- With help from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) will continue to unravel the mystery of how alcohol use and abuse alters the effects of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication. MPH, a psychostimulant, is the most widely prescribed drug for ADHD treatment. However, MPH also is widely abused due to its ability to produce effects similar to those of cocaine if not used in the prescribed manner. Concern over this behaviour has led MUSC researchers to find that alcohol causes MPH blood concentrations to rise and brain effects to change. Only recently has awareness grown that ADHD frequently persists into adulthood, setting the stage for the use and abuse of MPH with alcohol. Alcohol abuse is more common among ADHD patients than in the general population, especially in women. Accordingly, the combined effects of a MPH - alcohol mixture on both the mind and the body are of special interest to NIH and MUSC. Medical News Today
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