The New England journal of medicine
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In 1994 the Dutch Supreme Court ruled that in exceptional instances, physician-assisted suicide might be justifiable for patients with unbearable mental suffering but no physical illness. We studied physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia in psychiatric practice in the Netherlands. ⋯ Explicit requests for physician-assisted suicide are not uncommon in psychiatric practice in the Netherlands, but these requests are rarely granted. Psychiatric consultation for medical patients who request physician-assisted death is relatively rare.
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Comparative Study
Rapid measurement of urinary trypsinogen-2 as a screening test for acute pancreatitis.
Acute pancreatitis can be difficult to diagnose. We developed a rapid dipstick screening test for pancreatitis, based on the immunochromatographic measurement of urinary trypsinogen-2. ⋯ In patients with acute abdominal pain seen in the emergency department, a negative dipstick test for urinary trypsinogen-2 rules out acute pancreatitis with a high degree of probability. A positive test usually identifies patients in need of further evaluation.