Pearls

In this week’s Pearl, we share our newly-updated article on contraception and weight, which includes this MHRA guidance. Read more to learn more about considerations we need to make in supporting people living with overweight and obesity.

Let’s face it – these are often left to the last minute. But thinking about them clearly in advance, and defining what you want to achieve going forward, can be more rewarding, both educationally and personally!

Long summer days and more outdoor sports activities lead to more MSK presentations on the triage list. Many of us have joints we feel ‘less confident’ about, and the heel and ankle is definitely a common area people ask questions about on our MSK courses!

A ban on the sale of single-use, disposable vapes came into force on Sunday 8 June 2025. The story is nuanced, and we unpack it all in our recently-updated article.

June is Pride Month, and we are sharing an article that focuses on some specific considerations for supporting LGBTQ+ people with cancer screening, diagnosis and support when living with and beyond cancer.  

In this week’s Pearl, we share a GEMS (Guidelines and Evidence Made Simple) on assessing and managing hyperkalaemia in primary care

The UK Medical Eligibility Criteria (UKMEC) are guidelines which assist clinicians in prescribing safe and suitable contraceptive options. The recommendations are made by expert working groups based on appraisal of evidence and consensus opinion.

Everything you need to know about combined hormonal contraception... guidelines and evidence made simple!

Multiple sclerosis often presents in early adulthood, and a diagnosis is life-changing. The challenges in general practice are:  suspecting it and referring appropriately, and supporting with symptom management.  We cover all this and more in this week’s Pearl – click here to read more: 

The ‘gut health revolution’ is apparently here – everyone and anyone is talking about it! Sharing what is known and what just isn’t known is an important part of shared decision-making with patients.  

People living with severe mental illness (SMI) face one of the greatest health equality gaps in the UK. Click here to read more and consider – what one small thing could you change in your practice?

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women of reproductive age. Many women will continue to be sexually active during and beyond treatment, and will usually need to avoid pregnancy during treatment and for at least 2 years after.

With such a large topic, it’s challenging to know what bits to focus on so we thought we would share our handy GEMS (Guidelines and Evidence Made Simple).

Glue ear (otitis media with effusion) is a common cause of hearing difficulty, particularly in children. NICE guidance in 2023 recommended that if we suspect the condition in primary care, we should refer immediately for audiology assessment.

This week’s Pearl considers how we can approach making a diagnosis of pelvic inflammatory disease in general practice. This is important because it has significant sequelae, including subfertility and chronic pelvic pain. Please see https://www.redwhale.co.uk/bytes for the video byte

In this week’s Pearl, we share our article on Lynch syndrome, the role of primary care, how people can access testing, and what support and surveillance can be offered.  

Tomorrow is world Parkinson’s day. Parkinson’s disease is increasing in prevalence as our population ages. Our role in primary care is to spot it early and refer and then, alongside our secondary care colleagues, to support people living with the condition with potentially complex symptoms and drug regimens.