ACT
Lamotrigine: when and where does it act in affective disorders? A systematic review
Recent published data and treatment guidelines have created uncertainty about the use of lamotrigine in affective disorders, especially in acute bipolar depression. Furthermore, unpublished data on lamotrigine in mania, mixed episodes, unipolar depression and rapid cycling are still waiting to be integrated into the literature. Therefore, we critically reviewed the position of lamotrigine in the acute and long-term treatment of affective disorders.
[Correspondence] Royal Colleges must act over Health and Social Care Bill
Despite intense lobbying during its passage through the UK's House of Commons, the Health and Social Care Bill now passes to the House of Lords and will enter into the Committee Stage on Oct 11. We are extremely concerned that, should this legislation be passed, we will be taking yet another step down the road towards a fully private insurance system. The National Health Service (NHS) will be fragmented and its assets will be stripped by private providers looking to run services with profits at the heart of business, not patients.
[Comment] Treatment intensity at end of life—time to act on the evidence
Current health-care spending in the USA is unsustainable. Advances in expensive medical technologies and ageing of the population have resulted in soaring health-care costs. Medicare expenses in the last year of life are on average five times greater than non-terminal years, and vary substantially across geographical regions. Despite high costs, the quality of care at the end of life is often poor: many patients suffer with pain and other symptoms, and some receive treatments inconsistent with their preferences and goals.
A sunshine act for Europe
As the days grow shorter in this northern outpost of Europe, we can dream about sunshine, real and metaphorical.
The National Health Service Act 1946
Some good things come in small packages: and this compact document changed the world.
[Editorial] US National Cancer Act: 40 years on
In 1971, US President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act into law and so launched his war on cancer. It was shortly after the first man walked on the moon and Americans' faith in technology led to the feeling that anything, even an end to cancer, was possible.