Babies are often separated from their mothers at birth. In standard hospital care, newborn infants can be held wrapped or dressed in their mother’s arms, placed in open cribs or under warmers. In skin-to-skin contact (SSC), the newborn infant is placed naked on the mother's bare chest at birth or soon afterwards. Immediate SSC means within 10 minutes of birth while early SSC means between 10 minutes and 24 hours after birth.

Do school-based interventions prevent HIV, sexually transmitted diseases, and pregnancy? This is the question asked by researchers from the University of York, South African Medical Research Council, and Stellenbosch University in a Cochrane review published this week.

immy Volmink recognized for his contributions to evidence-based health careThe South African Medical Research Council (MRC) has called Professor Jimmy Volmink, Director of Cochrane South Africa, the African region's ‘father of evidence-based health care'. Professor Volmink, also the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences at Stellenbosch University, was presented with the MRC Recognition Award for “Outstanding Achievements in Contributions to Evidence-based Health care in Africa.”

Have you ever tried to explain how a Cochrane Review gets produced? Wondered how all the people, processes, and technologies work together to make the whole thing happen? Then look no further than our infographic illustrating the Cochrane Review Ecosystem from developing the question to final publication, with all the tools and teams that contribute along the way.

Do nasal decongestants used alone relieve cold symptoms?Colds, although not serious, are common illnesses responsible for many visits to family doctors and days lost from work and school. Cold symptoms may last up to two week and include runny nose, sore throat, and sneezing. There is no cure for colds; treatments only ease the symptoms. Many people use over-the-counter medicines such as nasal decongestants to treat cold symptoms.

Успешный двухдневный семинар повышает осведомленность о доказательной медицине и КокрейнВ Казанском федеральном университете, доме Кокрейн – Россия, состоялся двухдневный семинар по первым шагам в разработке систематического обзора: от регистрации названия – до составления протокола.

 

Scarce evidence, but pointers to promising strategies to fight corruption in  health care

A recent article in the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin on the BMJ states that other than folic acid and vitamin D, there is limited evidence of the benefits of the often expensive prenatal multivitamins.