PhysioUpdate 4th May 2021

The rising number of preterm babies – a category referring to those born before the 37th week of pregnancy – is having a growing impact on the workloads of physiotherapists and others in healthcare and education systems around the world.

That is the conclusion of a team of researchers led by Véronique Pierrat, from Tenon Hospital in Paris, whose observational study appears in the latest edition of The BMJ.

Healthcare professionals in the chronic pain field often fail to explore self-management options with patients early enough in their treatment programmes, according to a guideline published today (7 April) by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice).

The claim appears in a section in the 36-page guideline – titled Chronic pain (primary and secondary) in over 16s: assessment of all chronic pain and management of chronic primary pain – that explores the ‘rationale and impact’ behind the recommendations.

Delayed antibiotic prescribing is a safe and effective way to tackle respiratory tract infections, according to an article based on an analysis of patient data in the latest edition of The BMJ.

Written by an international team led by Beth Stuart, from the Academic Unit of Primary Care, Population Sciences and Medical Education at the University of Southampton’s faculty of medicine, the article tackles the thorny issue of delayed prescribing – also known as ‘just in case prescribing’.