AIMS To investigate drug-related deaths among newly released prisoners in England and Wales. DESIGN Database linkage study. PARTICIPANTS National sample of 48,771 male and female sentenced prisoners released during 1998-2000 with all recorded deaths included to November 2003. FINDINGS There were 442 recorded deaths, of which 261 (59%) were drug-related. In the year following index release...

UNLABELLED There have been concerns that individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) are over-represented but not recognised in prison populations. A screening tool for ASDs in prisons has therefore been developed. AIMS We aimed to evaluate this tool in Scottish prisoners by comparing scores with standard measures of autistic traits (Autism Quotient (AQ)), neurodevelopmental history (As...

PURPOSE Epilepsy is an extremely widespread and serious neurological disease. Although comorbidities of psychiatric disorders are prevalent in epilepsy patients, quite often this coexistence could be overlooked. Studies in this area demonstrated that depression, anxiety disorders and schizophrenia are the most common psychiatric disorders accompanying epilepsy. Mental health problems are known ...

One hundred ninety-nine male prisoners without prior felony convictions were evaluated through a structured personal interview administered within 24 hours of this arrest. While 46 per cent met psychiatric diagnostic criteria, only 5 per cent demonstrated a need for acute treatment for their affective disorder or organic brain syndrome. It is felt that the alcoholics (15 per cent) and drug-abus...

BACKGROUND Assessment of the health of men aged 60 and over in English and Welsh prisons. METHODS 203 men were interviewed from 15 prisons, comprising one-fifth of all sentenced men in this age group in England and Wales. Assessment included semi-structured interviews covering chronic and acute health problems, and recording of major illnesses from the medical notes and prison reception healt...