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Recent work on homicide and the media has focused on the United States. This study considers the British context and examines the coverage of homicide by a leading British newspaper (The Times) over a period of 23 years (1977 to 1999 inclusive). The focus is on the newspaper coverage of the top cases each year and over the whole period. This approach allows for an exploration of the hierarchy within ‘media–homicides’ that are distinguished in terms of ‘mega–cases’, ‘mezzo–cases’ and ‘routine cases’. Hence, this issue is shown to be a more complex social and cultural phenomenon than is usually understood through the traditional binary ‘reported–non reported’ approach. The importance of unusualness and cultural context is emphasised in fully understanding how homicides become, particularly, mega–cases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the 'trientalis europaea l.' a herb from the primulaceae family in Great Britain. Description of the growing environment; Area of growth; Observation of trientalis growth in pine forest and clear field.

Mosses have been used as biomonitors of atmospheric pollution for some years, but few studies have been carried out on the effect of NOx emissions from traffic on moss tissue N. Eight species of moss (102 samples) growing on walls or roofs next to roads exposed to different traffic densities were collected from urban and rural sites in the UK. The shoots were sampled for total N, their stable isotope 15N/14N content (δ15N) and heavy metal content (Pb, Zn). There was a lack of correlation between tissue total N and traffic exposure, but a very good correlation between traffic exposure and tissue δ15N. Plants collected near motorways or busy urban roads had δ15N values ranging between +6 and −1‰, while in rural areas with hardly any traffic these ranged from −2 to −12‰. In a separate survey of mosses, the average δ15N of shoots from busy roadsides in London was +3.66‰, whereas from samples collected from farm buildings near poultry or cattle pens it was −7.8‰. This indicates that the two main atmospheric N sources, NOx and NHx, have different δ15N signatures, the former tending to be positive and the latter negative. Tissue concentrations of both Pb and Zn show a strong positive correlation with traffic exposure, with Zn in particular being greater than Pb. The results are discussed with regard to the use of moss tissue Zn as a means for monitoring or mapping pollution from vehicles, and of δ15N as an aid to distinguish between urban (NOx) and rural (NHx) forms of N pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The use of National Health Service (NHS) hospitals to treat private patients is debatable on the grounds of equity of access. Hospital episodes Statistics (HES) annual reports are the only routine source of information on the scale of this activity. The accuracy of the information is doubted. This enquiry tested the completeness of HES data against information obtained directly from private patient unit managers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The purpose of this paper is to re-examine the Hines' model of trade union pressure as an independent force in the determination of the rate of change of wages. Hines' hypothesis has already been re-examined on several occasions (Purdy and Zis, 1974, 1976; Dogas and Hines, 1975; Henry et al., 1976; Fautz, 1980) but it is felt that further examination is justified both because the role of trade unions is again in the forefront of discussions on the explanations for the decline in the competitiveness of the UK economy, and because variations of Hines' model, in particular the use of the rate of change of trade union membership to represent trade union pushfulness are still used (for example, Arestis and Hadjimatheou, 1982; Briguglio, 1984). Additionally, the retesting and re-estimating of models and theories is in itself a valid part of economic research (Mayer, 1980). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ground level ozone is formed by the atmospheric chemical reactions of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides in the presence of sunlight and water vapor during summertime on the European scale. Ozone is one of the most important secondary air pollutants which crosses internationalboundaries and its concentrations may be predicted with air quality models, which describe the chemistry occurring in air parcels moving with the windfield. The strength of the UK Photochemical Trajectory Model lies in its detailed chemistry, which we have applied to demonstrate how ozone levels have improved in the United Kingdom from 1980 to the present day, and quantified the contribution that the solvents business sector has made to this improvement. Our study also shows that future reductions of 30% from solvents will lead to substantial improvements in peak concentrations of ozone in VOC-limited regions of the United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The British Heart Foundation's (BHF) annual statistical compendium is a comprehensive source of accessible epidemiological data in relation to cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the UK. Using datasets with multiple years of data from the compendium we have analysed trends in mortality, morbidity, and treatment for CVD within the UK. CVD mortality in the UK has consistently declined over recent decades, from 1045 deaths per 100 000 in 1969, shortly after the BHF was founded, to 255 per 100 000 in 2019. Despite this remarkable improvement, inequalities in CVD mortality persist in the UK nations, for example in 2019 the death rate in Scotland was 326 deaths per 100 000 compared with 246 per 100 000 in England. Improvements in CVD mortality have been paralleled by increased use of primary prevention medications (anti-hypertensives and statins) and interventional procedures. In recent years, progress in mortality outcomes has stalled, probably due to a combination of factors including a rise in risk factors such as obesity and diabetes. In terms of morbidity, CVD remains a significant burden in the UK, accounting for at least 1.18 million hospital admissions and reflects the enormous economic burden of CVD, estimated at £19bn in the UK. Our results highlight the importance of accessible and comprehensive statistics in relation to the burden of CVD and the value of the BHF's annual compendium in drawing out conclusions and opportunities for future research. One key area is to improve the data on which estimation of prevalence is based. There is also a need for ongoing work to better understand the root causes of disparity between socio-economic groups in relation to CVD. One important way to address this will be to improve the consistency of reporting of CVD health data across all nations of the UK. Understanding the causes will inform UK healthcare planning in addition to providing analytical insights that will be applicable in other countries., (Published on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. © The Author(s) 2022. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Oro-mucosal midazolam maleate (OMM) with suitable training to family and carers is being increasingly recognized as the treatment of choice to mitigate the development of status epilepticus in non-hospital community settings. There are no studies to describe the use, effectiveness, and suitable dosing of OMM in adults with epilepsy in community settings., Purpose: To describe the use, effectiveness, and dosing of OMM in the emergency treatment of epileptic seizures in community settings., Methods: A retrospective observational study (2016-17) design was used with participant recruitment from four UK NHS secondary care outpatient clinics providing epilepsy management. Study sample was of adult people with epilepsy (PWE) having had a recent seizure requiring OMM. Data on patient demographics, patient care plans, details of a recent seizure requiring emergency medication, and dose of OMM were collected from medical records., Results: Study data from 146 PWE were included. The mean age of PWE was 41.0 years (SD 15.2) and mean weight was 64.8Kg (SD 18.2). Fifty-three percent of PWE were recorded as having intellectual disability. The most frequently used concomitant medications were lamotrigine (43%). The majority of seizures occurred at people's homes (n = 92, 63%). OMM was most often administered by family/professional care-givers (n = 75, 48.4%). Generalized (tonic/clonic) seizures were recorded in most people (n = 106, 72.6%). The most common initial dose of OMM was 10 mg (n = 124, 84.9%). The mean time to seizure cessation after administration of this initial dose was 5.5 minutes (SD = 4.5, Median 5.0, IQR 2.1-5.0). Only a minority of seizures led to ambulance callouts (n = 18, 12.3%) or hospital admissions (n = 13, 9%)., Conclusion: This is the first observational study describing the use and effectiveness of OMM in adults in community settings. Minimal hospital admissions were reported in this cohort and the treatment was effective in ending seizures in adults in community settings., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic condition that affects over 8.75 million people in the UK. Approximately 43% of people in the UK search for health and medical information online. However, health information on the internet is of variable quality. Research into the quality of online OA information is dated and there is a need to evaluate the existing information., Objectives: To assess the quality of websites which provide educational information for patients with OA., Design: Electronic cross-sectional survey., Methods: The search term 'osteoarthritis' was entered into the five popular UK-based search engines in order to identify 50 unique websites. These websites were appraised by two assessors using criteria developed from the available literature and recent guidelines of the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence. The appraisal considered the general quality of the website and OA-specific content., Results: Most of the websites evaluated (34/50, 68%) scored more than half of the maximum available quality score (max score 59). The median total score was 41. For general quality of the website, the median score was nine (range three to 16, out of 16), and for OA-specific content, the median score was 31 (range two to 43, out of 43). Websites of higher quality were created more recently, disclosed sources of information, had external seals of approval and directed the reader on to other relevant websites., Conclusions: The internet is a potentially useful tool for educating and empowering healthcare consumers. The websites evaluated were generally of a 'high' standard; however, there was wide variation in the quality of information., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)