This year, 2016, marks the sixtieth anniversary of the discovery of “Minamata Disease,” so-named for the town ravaged by the effects of methylmercury poisoning, and the namesake of the Minamata Convention on Mercury. As of April 22, 2016—Earth Day—128 nations have signed and 25 have ratified the international treaty designed to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic releases and emission of mercury and mercury compounds.

Menorrhagia can be treated by drug therapy or surgery. General practitioners (GPs) can prescribe drugs to reduce menstrual blood loss as first-line treatment, referring patients for surgical treatment if drug therapy fails. This study examined the efficacy of drugs used to treat menorrhagia and surveyed British GPs to discover the extent to which they prescribed the most effective drugs for this condition. The results suggest that treatment of this condition in primary care falls short of desirable standards. A meta-analysis of randomized trials of drug therapy revealed wide differences in efficacy and side effects. The most effective drug (tranexamic acid) is little used by British GPs, whereas the least effective drug (norethisterone) is the most frequently prescribed.