What Doctors Don't Tell YouOne of the things conventional medicine prides itself on is its diagnoses. But much of the credit goes not to doctors, but to the technologists who have created increasingly sophisticated ways of peering into the human body.
Yet another study confirms that routine ultrasound examination of normal women is of no benefit and the technique should be restricted to high-risk pregnancies.
Screening individuals aged 40-49 years for colorectal cancer is unlikely to yield much useful information, according to a new report.
* Choose ‘fine-needle aspiration’ performed under ultrasound; it is thought to carry the least risks (Acta Cytol, 1995; 39: 449-52)
Endoscopy, the diagnostic test, is killing one in 2,000 patients. This alarming situation has come to light only because a special audit has been carried out to look into the longer-term effects o ...
Doctors can easily detect Helicobacter pylori, the bug responsible for most ulcers, with a simple breath test without resorting to endoscopy which, for many patients, is a distressing experience.
* Lung: PET scans are just as accurate as biopsies, with no significant health risks (Appl Radiol, 2003; 32: 9-17).
* Breast: MRI has variable accuracy (60-100 per cent)
A new type of X-ray scan already being widely used to test for osteoporosis is proving to be very unreliable, doctors in London and Cambridge have discovered. ...
Another flaw in the triple test for pregnant women seems to have been uncovered - it doesn't work too well on Asian women. The test is designed to detect Down's syndrome in the unborn fetus, and comprises ultrasound, serum screening and...
What’s it for?
The human brain and spinal cord are surrounded by a watery fluid called cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). It protects the brain and spine by acting as a shock absorber,
