Undergoing major organ transplantation is a daunting prospect for anyone. But one year after lung transplantation, a study in Chest (2005;127: 166-70) of 125 patients reports that the overall degree of anxiety and depression within the recipients was comparable to that in the general population. One interesting difference is that the men were significantly more depressed than the women. Previous lung problems had long lasting effects on the level of anxiety, whereas other health problems did not.

Taking just one hour to offer one-to-one educational sessions with patients with chronic heart failure before they're discharged home from hospital can pay dividends. In a randomised controlled trial comparing a nurse educator session with the standard discharge procedure, the intervention resulted in significantly improved clinical outcomes (fewer days back in hospital, and fewer deaths) and lower overall costs of care. The intervention also increased patients' adherence to self care (Circulation 2005;111: 179-85).

In an effort to make academic papers more accessible to readers, and to take up less space in the journal, the BMJ experimented with producing three different shortened formats of papers: a conventional abridged version, a journalistic …