TRIAL DESIGN Cluster randomised controlled trial. OBJECTIVE To compare current practice for encouraging homeless people to be screened for tuberculosis on a mobile digital X-ray unit in London, UK, with the additional use of volunteer peer educators who have direct experience of tuberculosis, homelessness or both. PARTICIPANTS 46 hostels took part in the study, with a total of 2342 resident...

AIMS We aimed to study the diagnostic influence of adding a routine cardiovascular ultrasound screening of the cardiac anatomy and function, the pericardium, the pleura and the abdominal great vessels by the new pocket-size ultrasound device (pUS) with grey scale and colour Doppler imaging. METHODS AND RESULTS In 119 randomly selected patients admitted to a cardiac unit at a non-university ho...

Background. The admission screening of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) by rapid molecular assay is considered to be an effective method in reducing the transmission of MRSA in intensive care unit (ICU). Method. The admission screening on patients from ICU once on their admissions by BD GeneOhm MRSA assay has been introduced to Prince of Wales Hospital, Hong Kong, since 2008. ...

OBJECTIVE We evaluated the causes of hearing loss found after failed universal newborn hearing screening and compared the results with the previously used behavioral observation test (Ewing/CAPAS). STUDY DESIGN Hearing loss in neonates, born between September 1999 and October 2007 and referred to our center after failed screening, was determined by audiologic testing and physical examination....

BACKGROUND The emergence of validated means to determine which individuals will develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following a traumatic event has raised the possibility of designing and implementing effective screening programmes following traumatic events. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to study the usefulness and implementation of a PTSD screening programme for victims of violent cr...

The feasibility of universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) using automated auditory brainstem response (AABR) devices in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) is already well demonstrated. The aim of this study was to find out whether the postconceptional age (PCA) of the babies at the time of the AABR measurement has an influence on the measuring results and to determine the earliest time...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The Hong Kong government is planning to introduce an electronic smart identity card for all seven million citizens in 2003. If the smart card contains the full red cell phenotype/genotype of the individual, it may be possible to transfuse phenotype-matched blood units without pre-transfusion antibody screening. We conducted a feasibility study. DESIGN AND METHODS Red...

OBJECTIVE To determine, by phenotypic and genotypic methods, oxacillin susceptibility in Staphylococcus aureus strains isolated from pediatric and neonatal intensive care unit patients seen at the University Hospital of the Botucatu School of Medicine. METHODS A total of 100 S. aureus strains isolated from the following materials were studied: 25 blood cultures, 21 secretions, 12 catheters, 3...

OBJECTIVE Strategies are available to reduce maternal-fetal transmission of HIV and depend on adequate prenatal screening. At present, a significant proportion of Canadian pregnant women remain unscreened. We reviewed our screening practices before and after the implementation of a departmental policy on universal counselling for HIV screening and the distribution of a patient educational broch...