Skiers who have had their anterior cruciate ligament reconstructed may be wise to wear a knee brace next time they are on the slopes. A prospective cohort study of people with reconstructed ligaments working in the skiing industry compared 257 who wore braces with 563 who did not. Braced skiers had significantly lower rates of subsequent knee injuries than their non-braced counterparts. Mathematical modelling identified non-bracing as an independent risk factor for subsequent knee injury in skiers with reconstructed ligaments (American Journal of Sports Medicine 2006;34: 1581-5).

The low cholesterol concentrations required to protect patients at high risk of coronary heart disease will not be attained with statins bought over the counter, say two Australian doctors. In addition, they argue that for low risk patients, serious adverse events may exceed the benefits and that over the counter statins will reduce the likelihood of identifying people at high risk because they have a low concentration of high density lipoprotein, the protective cholesterol. Logically, they say, statins should be prescription only (Circulation 2006;114: 1310-4).

Biodegradable polymer nanoparticles offer a novel method for delivering combined drug and genetic therapies directly to cancers. The polymer of hydrophilic and lipophilic molecules spontaneously forms nanoparticles when placed …