Following introduction of Sunday alcohol sale sessions in Brisbane, there were significant increases in the number of Sunday casualty and reported property damage accidents. The increases still applied during a second 3-year after period. By contrast, none of the various control comparisons gave significant results in the same direction. It was concluded that the study had documented the ongoing adverse effect on traffic accidents of introducing Sunday sessions in Brisbane.

A comparison was made of 72 men who were patrons in hotels with 6 A.M. or 7 A.M. opening, with a control group of 87 men interviewed in nearby hotels with 10 A.M. opening. The two groups were very similar on biographical characteristics, yet the men in the early-opening group consumed significantly more alcohol, had more drinking sessions, spent longer in drinking, and had significantly higher SMAST scores. The early opening was apparently facilitating problem drinking.

Stellate ganglion blockade for cardiac dysrhythmia is a well-described technique but infrequently used to manage ventricular tachycardia (VT). In patients with left ventricular assist devices (LVADs), these dysrhythmias cause increased morbidity because of right ventricular dysfunction, and often severe discomfort. Continuous stellate ganglion blockade may yield valuable information on a diagnostic and therapeutic basis in preparation for definitive, permanent interventions. We describe the successful management of intractable VT with continuous left stellate ganglion blockade, followed by surgical gangliolysis in a patient with an LVAD.

Summary Lowering of the legal minimum drinking age to 18 years in two Australian States significantly increased male juvenile crime by 20–25%. In the case of a third State the limited data available yielded similar results. Particularly as the above increases were over and above those for between‐State control groups of the same age, and older control groups within the same State, the findings appeared to be valid. For the females the results varied from State to State. From the view point of preventing alcohol‐related juvenile crime, a 20 or 21 year legal minimum drinking age is preferable to an 18‐year‐old limit.

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the Serenity Lodge alcohol rehabilitation program by comparing a group of 137 men who entered the program with the same number of similar men who did not enter the program after an admission to a detoxification hospital. The residential program, for which people must pay board, is based on the AA philosophy and reality therapy. Follow-up interviews were conducted with three-quarters of the men in each group. Even after allowing for spontaneous remission as measured by the improvement in the control group, it was apparent that for a wide range of outcome criteria, and not just the obtaining of abstinence, the program was having a beneficial effect for the men who stayed at Serenity Lodge.