Should primary aldosteronism be diagnosed among normotensive subjects during general health check-up and/or at general outpatient clinics?

Comparison of primary care experiences among adults in general outpatient clinics and private general practice clinics in Hong Kong

BACKGROUND The main goal of Hong Kong's publicly-funded general outpatient clinics (GOPCs) is to provide primary medical services for the financially vulnerable. The objective of the current study was to compare the primary care experiences of GOPC users and the users of care provided by private general practitioners (GPs) in Hong Kong via a territory-wide telephone survey. METHODS One thousa...

Author's response to reviews Title: Comparison of primary care experiences among adults in community health clinics (general outpatient clinics) and private general practice clinics in Hong Kong Authors:

Patient characteristics affecting attendance at general outpatient clinics.

A study was carried out to identify the characteristics of children who do not attend appointments at general outpatient clinics. Over six months, 359 children who had an appointment at a general clinic were studied using a questionnaire given to parents (74% response rate) and by inspection of case notes. Based on their first appointment in the study period, children were divided into 'attende...

Asymptomatic Normotensive Primary Aldosteronism

We report a case of primary aldosteronism in a 30-year-old woman without hypertension or any other characteristic symptoms. The condition was first suspected by hypokalemia (2.6 mEq/liter), which was incidentally found by routine checkup. There was evidence of suppressed plasma renin activity (PRA) and elevated plasma aldosterone levels. However, the blood pressure never reached a hypertensive ...

General practitioners ' referrals to specialist outpatient clinics

There has been much concern about the wide variations in general practitioners' referral rates and the consequent implications for cost and quality of care. This has led to a call to evaluate the appropriateness and effectiveness of referrals. A collaborative audit of referrals to outpatient clinics was conducted by 127 general practitioners in 33 practices in the Oxford region. Records were ke...