- © 2007 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors
UK gamblers need treatment: The British Medical Association wants gambling to be recognized as an addiction that requires treatment under the National Health Service. In its Jan. 15 report, Gambling addition and its treatment within the NHS, the BMA recommends that gambling operators and service providers pay at least £10 million per annum to fund research, prevention and intervention programs through the Responsibility in Gambling Trust. There are now insufficient treatment facilities available. Psychological problems can include anxiety, depression, guilt and suicidal thoughts. — Margot Andresen, Ottawa
Psoriasis solution: Relief may be in sight for psoriasis patients (N Engl J Med 2007:356). Researchers led by Dr. Gerald Krueger at the University of Utah and Dr. Richard Langley at Dalhousie University explored the use of a human interleukin-12/23 monoclonal antibody to treat the disease and found that there was at least a 75% improvement in the psoriasis area and severity at 12 weeks. The new therapy “will likely change the way we manage the disease in the future,” Langley says. — Donalee Moulton, Halifax
Statins for all at-risk Scottish men: Almost 50% of Scottish men aged 40 and over may soon be prescribed statins under radical new plans to overhaul the country's National Health Service coronary heart disease services. In a move thought to be a world first, regular risk assessments for everyone over 40 will include information on family history and social status. All those calculated to have more than a 20% risk of coronary heart disease or stroke over 10 years will be recommended statins. The strategy was announced Feb. 6 by the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, which makes clinical recommendations to Scotland's NHS. In 2005, the UK became the first country in the world to allow statins to be sold over-the-counter. — Colin Meek, Wester Ross, Scotland