https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/39109 Tue, 07 Apr 2026 05:35:22 GMT 2026-04-07T05:35:22Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13810 Title: Health perceptions and adherence to diet Authors: Scerri, Josianne; Ferguson, Eamonn; Scerri, Christian A. Abstract: Advances in the medical and technological field have greatly extended the life-expectancy of individuals with chronic conditions. However, such individuals may still experience difficulties in various domains such as in adjusting to their condition and in adhering to a recommended treatment regimen. Hence, one potential role of research on health perspectives is to provide information on factors which contribute to the favorable management of a chronic condition. This paper will utilize Leventhal’s self-regulation model1 in order to explain plausible cognitive factors that may have an influence on adherence to a diet regimen. Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13810 2007-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13809 Title: Personal experiences of health and illness on the web : a resource for patients, carers and health professionals Authors: Ryan, Kath; Herxheimer, Andrew Abstract: People are becoming savvier as health consumers when faced with the need to make decisions. They are turning to the internet for both factual and experiential information. DIPEx, an awardwinning, electronic, multi-media resource of personal experiences of health, illness and related issues on the web, addresses this need with evidence-based information alongside video, audio and written interview clips that identify issues that matter to people. The website is freely available 24 hours a day providing support for patients and their families, friends, carers and health professionals from the personal perspective. Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13809 2007-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13808 Title: Pharmacogenetics : the path to personalized prescribing Authors: Fenech, Anthony G. Abstract: The fact that different patients may show dissimilar responses to the same drug, has been recognised for several years, and many variables, such as age, gender and body weight have been identified to contribute to this observation. The last half century has seen a rise in research concerning a new variable – genetic variation – which has been recognised to offer a major contribution to this phenomenon. Pharmacogenetics research has today established itself as an important arm of pharmacology, and has key applications in drug development and clinical therapeutics. The advent of high throughput methodologies coupled with new data derived from the human genome sequencing project, has helped to powerfully mobilise the developmental pace of this research work, and to introduce the concept of genome-wide pharmacogenetic studies, or pharmacogenomics. The eventual development of pharmacogenetic tests, able to identify patients who are most likely to adequately respond to specific therapies from those who are not, will be a landmark in the history of therapeutics, and coupled to the development of new drugs for specific pharmacogenetically-stratified patient populations, will provide a markedly enhanced toolkit for the optimization of the benefit-risk ratio in prescribing. Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13808 2007-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13807 Title: A focus on the newer antibiotics targeting Gram-positive bacteria Authors: Tonna, Antonella; Tonna, Ivan; Cuschieri, Paul Abstract: The incidence of antimicrobial resistance has continued to rise with a threat to return to the “pre-antibiotic” era. This has included a sharp increase in multi-drug resistant organisms, which may cause life-threatening infections. Efforts have been made to develop new antibiotics with novel modes of action, aimed at acting against these multi-drug resistant strains. This review aims to focus on newly available and investigational antibiotics targeting Grampositive organisms. It is likely that these antibiotics will be used mainly in a secondary care setting; however primary care health care professionals also need to have an understanding of these antibiotics, since patients may be discharged home on them. Mon, 01 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/13807 2007-01-01T00:00:00Z