BMJ  2006;332 (7 January), doi:10.1136/bmj.332.7532.0-f

Editor's choice

Doing things differently

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The beginning of a new year is a time to think about doing things differently. The first BMJ of the new year has several suggestions.

If fear of precipitating acute glaucoma has prevented you from dilating a patient's pupils before checking for diabetic retinopathy, stop worrying and get out the mydriatic eye drops. Gerald Liew and colleagues (p 3) tell us that you are twice as likely to spot retinopathy through a dilated pupil and there is very little chance of precipitating acute angle closure glaucoma, though they do say you should warn the patient to seek medical attention if symptoms develop.

If you have been following guidelines on treating chronic cough with empirical treatments for gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, stop—A B Chang and colleagues' systematic review suggests you should first check that the patient has GORD (p 11). If you have ever thought of giving clarithromycin . . . [Full text of this article]

Fiona Godlee, editor

(fgodlee@bmj.com)


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