A qualitative study has found that many sick doctors complain of uncaring, unsupportive and judgemental colleagues. A supportive partnership, in which doctors feel valued by their colleagues and in which personal vulnerabilities are acknowledged and mitigated, will both protect us from developing health problems and facilitate a return to health and work should they occur.

A temporary programme to vaccinate pregnant women against pertussis has been developed following an increase in cases in young infants in England and Wales.

'A treatment-risk paradox where patients become less likely to receive appropriate treatment with advancing age has been observed in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). This is particularly apparent for cholesterol-lowering treatment with one study showing the likelihood of statin treatment was 6% lower with each year increase in age. However, it is not clear if such a paradox exists in primary prevention and a recent UK study published in the BMJ addresses this issue...'

Treating asymptomatic older men with 5-alpha reductase inhibitors may reduce their risk of developing benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). However, the case for prophylactic use of these drugs is still unproven. Dr Jonathan Rees, GPwSI Urology, Bristol, considers the implications of new data from the long-running Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial.

The aims of palliative care are to provide the best quality of life for patients and their families, and to facilitate a good death. The NICE quality standard on end of life care, published in November 2011, consists of 16 quality statements which inform patients of the standard of care which they should expect and define aspirational standards for clinical governance. If patients are to die well, they need to be prepared for death, to achieve a sense of control, to be free of pain, to be respected as an individual, and to spend meaningful time with close family and friends in familiar surroundings.

The textbook presentation of myocardial infarction (MI) is not difficult to recognize but in the undifferentiated world of primary care presentations it can be far from clear. This difficulty is compounded by the sex and ethnicity of the patient and the presence of comorbidities such as diabetes. Women are often older than men at hospitalisation for MI and present less frequently with chest pain. It is generally accepted that patients without chest pain tend to present later and are treated less aggressively than those presenting with more typical symptoms. Furthermore, those presenting without pain have almost twice the short-term mortality rate.

Around 1,200 people die from asthma every year in the UK. A National Review of Asthma Deaths, led by the Royal College of Physicians, in collaboration with a consortium of professional bodies and patient organisations, will consider all asthma deaths in the UK during the 12 months from 1 February 2012.  This editorial includes a link for UK clinicians who want to participate.

Life expectancy, at age 20, for patients treated for HIV increased by more than 15 years from 1996 to 2008, a large cohort study from the UK has shown. Mortality rates from HIV have decreased dramatically over the past few decades through the use of antiretroviral therapy (ART). The risk of death in patients treated successfully with ART is now similar to that of people with unhealthy lifestyles such as heavy smokers or drinkers, those who are obese or have chronic conditions such as diabetes. HIV infection has itself become a chronic disease with a good prognosis, provided treatment is commenced early and the patient maintains adherence to therapy. [With external links to current evidence]

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects 1% of the population.  Genetic and environmental factors have long been known to contribute to the development of RA. Exposure to cigarette smoke was first linked with RA more than twenty years ago. Smoking is now recognised as the most established environmental risk factor for the development of RA.