https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143614 Mon, 29 Jun 2026 02:33:33 GMT 2026-06-29T02:33:33Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143752 Title: The Synapse : the Medical Professionals' Network : volume 23 : issue 1 Authors: Friggieri, Jesmond; Ellul, Ian C. Abstract: Table of contents:; 1/ ELLUL, I. C. - Mr Jo-Etienne Abela’s wheel of fortune; 2/ FENECH MAGRIN, A. M. - An overview of superficial and medium-depth chemical peels : part 1; 3/ GALEA, G. - Lung cancer screening : an overview; 4/ ZERAFA SIMLER, M. A., & MICALLEF STAFRACE, K. - Osgood-Schlatter disease in adulthood : a case report; 5/ AGIUS, M., & ALEKSIC, T. - Empowering communication : the crucial role of speech and language therapists in augmentative and alternative communication practices Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143752 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143707 Title: Mr Jo-Etienne Abela’s wheel of fortune Abstract: Let us face it. In the past few weeks, the new Minister for Health has inherited a cornucopia of challenges. Challenges which many of us know and some of us know even better. But let me go one step back and analyse the decision to appoint Dr Jo-Etienne Abela to the post of Minister for Health. You may loathe politics and strongly dissent from the current political administration, but I believe that the majority of people hailing from both sides of the political spectrum will agree that the decision by the Prime Minister to appoint Dr Abela as Minister for Health was a chess master’s move. Let me explain better. Everyone in the field knows that Dr Abela is an excellent surgeon with a distinguished career trajectory. Tick. However, in politics that does not suffice. You also need a likeable, well-meaning, and charismatic leader. Tick. Someone who can build bridges and not burn them. Tick. A person who calls a spade a spade and then, takes the bull by the horns to address any shortcomings. Tick. A visionary. Tick. Add to that the fact that he is Gozitan, and you have the ideal person. Historically, Dr Abela is the first Gozitan to occupy the post of Minister for Health (as well as Active Ageing). [excerpt] Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143707 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143700 Title: Lung cancer screening : an overview Authors: Galea, Gabriel Abstract: Lung cancer is a heterogeneous and often aggressive disease. Despite advances in lung cancer treatment and an overall reduction in the rate of heavy smoking over the last half century, lung cancer remains the most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer death worldwide and in Malta. The theoretical benefits of lung cancer screening are clear; it is a common disease with a significant prognostic benefit when detected early. A cheap, noninvasive and widely available screening tool was the major obstacle to large-scale, successful lung cancer screening. Historical attempts at lung cancer screening using chest radiographs with or without cytological analysis of sputum specimens were largely unsuccessful, mainly due to the limitations of chest radiographs in the detection of early-stage lung cancer. The advent of lowdose chest CT (LDCT) around the turn of the millennium led to the establishment of several large-scale trials determining whether screening with LDCT would reduce mortality from lung cancer among high-risk persons. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143700 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143688 Title: An overview of superficial and medium-depth chemical peels : part 1 Authors: Fenech Magrin, Anna Maria Abstract: A chemical peel is the application of a chemical agent to the skin, which causes controlled and predictable destruction of a part or entire epidermis, with or without the dermis. This ultimately results in an improved appearance of the skin, removal of superficial lesions and regeneration of new epidermal and dermal tissue. Mon, 01 Jan 2024 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/143688 2024-01-01T00:00:00Z