Medico-legal issues of body packing: what do clinicians need to know?

The study by Heymann-Maier et al.recently published in Swiss Medical Weekly emphasises that clinicians need to become more familiar with the medico-legal issues of body packing, especially in consideration of the great impact that their actions or non-actions may have on the drug smuggling, directly or indirectly.

Models to predict readmission rates – trying to sand the wings of the boomerang

The models still deliver a blurred picture of the clinical reality.

Basic concepts of heart-lung interactions during mechanical ventilation

An understanding of heart-lung interactions is crucial in the care of ventilated patients, as mechanical ventilation can compromise cardiac function and haemodynamic stability.

New treatment for non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphomas with a special focus on the impact of junctional adhesion molecules

B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas are are among the six most common cancer types in Switzerland. Five-year survival is approximately 55–75%.

Smoking cessation in workplace settings: quit rates and determinants in a group behaviour therapy programme

A smoking cessation programme in a workplace setting has been developed and implemented in companies across the language and cultural regions of Switzerland.

Individual development and potential determinants of excess weight in children and adolescents: a longitudinal study

Excess body weight is a major public health concern already at a young age. Overweight children are much more likely to become overweight adults, and the early school years might be a critical time for the excess BMI gains.

Emergency department management of body packers and body stuffers

Authorities regularly ask medical or medico-legal professionals in areas near borders to assist with identifying potential body packers or body stuffers, and to monitor them and/or treat in the case of acute intoxication.

Supplementum 225: Annual Meeting Swiss Society of Gastroenterology, Swiss Society of Visceral Surgery, Swiss Association for the Study of the Liver and Swiss Society of Endoscopy Nurses and Associates