November

The BCMJ publishes 10 issues per year and three or four of those are so-called theme issues. We know from readership surveys that a substantial majority of readers appreciate them. We have always tried to maintain a healthy balance between regular issues and theme issues as an integral component of our commitment to CME. Although theme issues take a lot of extra work to get them to the print-on-paper stage, we actually like doing them.

Our ability to cure bacterial disease with antibiotics is central not only to the resolution of individual infections but also to the outcome of most surgery and cancer treatment. For over two decades, antibiotic-resistant organisms have grown in prevalence in hospitals, increasing the complexity and costs of hospital-acquired infection. More recently, resistance has also emerged among community-acquired bacteria. Antimicrobial resistance has contributed to a fatal case of community acquired pneumonia in BC (personal communication, Patrick Doyle, MD).

References

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) in children and adolescents is a growing public health concern and reflects the increasing rates of obesity in our society. Reports from various centres in the United States suggest a tenfold to thirtyfold increase in the number of children with T2D over the past 15 years.[1] These studies focused primarily on children from ethnic groups at high risk for T2D, including children of African, Asian, Hispanic, Pacific Island, and American Indian heritage.

The success of pancreatic islet transplantation using the Edmonton protocol is a significant landmark in patient care and research in the search for a cure for type 1 diabetes (T1D).[1] It is estimated that there are approximately 20 to 26 new cases of T1D per 100 000 children aged 0 to 14 years in Canada each year.[2]

Advances in the treatment of type 1 diabetes (T1D) in the past decade have occurred in the areas of treatments and treatment philosophy. The push for new insulin analogs such as glargine, aspart, and lispro came in part from the results of the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), which highlighted the importance of more physiological insulin profiles.

Prevention of complications in type 1 diabetes