FOCUS: THIS WEEK'S TOP STORIES
Vitamin D protects against severe asthma attacks
October 18th, 2017 Taking oral vitamin D supplements in addition to standard asthma medication could halve the risk of asthma attacks requiring hospital attendance, according to research led by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). Asthma affects more than 300m...
Most new cancer drugs don't work — 5-year European study
October 18th, 2017 More than half (57%) of cancer drugs authorised by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) between 2009 and 2013 came onto the market without any clear evidence they improved the quality or quantity of patients’ lives, according to research from...
Gauteng Health's top brass pushed implementation of 'irrational' plan
October 18th, 2017 While NGOs leaders will have to explain at the Life EsidImeni arbitration why more than 140 patients died under their watch, the former Gauteng Health leaders must be held accountable for a project described by one of its executives, Levy...Weekly Roundup
SA cities rated on their healthy living profiles
Discovery Health Medical Aid’s wellness programme has released the results of their ObeCity Index... October 18th, 2017Fake doctor arrested in Nelspruit
A fake doctor has been nabbed by the Hawks just as he was allegedly about to perform an illegal... October 18th, 2017Discovery continues to dominate medical insurance — CMS report
Discovery Health Medical Scheme continued to dominate South Africa’s medical insurance industry... October 18th, 2017Scottish GPs will no longer attend to routine matters
Patients in Scotland will no longer see their family doctor for routine matters under a shake-up of... October 18th, 2017NHS staff must quiz all patients on sexual orientation
Gay rights campaigners have backed an UK National Health Serivce (NHS) policy demanding that... October 18th, 2017Med students trained to run practices as businesses
MediSwitch, a unit of JSE-listed Altron, is helping medical students by training them and advising... October 18th, 2017GP accused of patient rape remanded in custody
A Limpopo general practitioner accused of raping a 17-year-old patient during a medical... October 18th, 2017SA basketball player successfully treated for the plague
The South African basketball player who had contracted plague in Madagascar has been successfully... October 18th, 2017CARDIOLOGY
Modifiable risk factors cause direct changes to structure of the heart
Being overweight or obese creates directly damaging changes to the structure of the heart, according to research led by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL). The new research uses UK Biobank data to reveal – for the first time – the direct... October 18th, 2017EPIDEMIOLOGY
Discharge delays may be cause of sharp rise in deaths in the UK
The increased prevalence delays in discharge from hospital was associated with the sharp rise in mortality in England in 2015, accounting for up to a fifth of mortality increases. UK researchers believe they have found evidence that poorer... October 18th, 2017HIV/AIDS
HIV: The benefits of INH prophylaxis for TB are confirmed
Long-term follow-up in the ANRS TEMPRANO trial confirms that tuberculosis chemoprophylaxis in HIV-infected people is more than ever relevant in resource-limited countries. This prophylactic use of drugs reduces mortality, even among people taking...
October 18th, 2017
Protease inhibitor regimen maintains viral suppression for a year
People who switched from a multi-pill antiretroviral regimen to the first one-pill, once-daily regimen that includes a protease inhibitor maintained undetectable viral load for a year, according to a report at the recent IDWeek 2017 conference in... October 18th, 2017ART in Africa bridges health gap between those with, without HIV
The expansion of ART for HIV infection has helped reduce disparities in health-related quality of life between HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals in Zambia and South Africa, Healio reports according to study findings. “Little evidence... October 18th, 2017INFECTIOUS DISEASES
Ebola vaccine tested on adults and children in Africa
Data confirms the acceptable safety and immunogenicity profile of the rVSV-ΔGP-ZEBOV Eboal virus in adults and support consideration of lower doses for paediatric populations, a University of London found. The worst Ebola virus disease outbreak... October 18th, 2017Clofazimine protects against TB in brain and central nervous system
A recently published paper has highlighted the potential of clofazimine to protect the brain and central nervous system against extra-pulmonary TB, according to one of the researchers, Dr Sooraj Baijnath, senior lecturer in pharmaceutical sciences... October 18th, 2017INFECTIOUS DISEASES
Simple oral swab test could revolutionise TB detection in children
At the 48th Union World Conference on Lung Health, a diagnostic test for tuberculosis (TB) has been presented that is simple, potentially ground-breaking, yet very low-tech.
Oral swab analysis (OSA) is a novel alternative to sputum analysis for...
October 18th, 2017
TB CONFERENCE
Ingestible sensor to transform TB treatment adherence methods
A new, “digitised medicine” could revolutionise the way patients are treated for tuberculosis (TB), according to the results of a study announced at the 48th Union World Conference on Lung Health. Data released show Wireless Observed Therapy... October 18th, 2017STREAM results provide insight into 9-month treatment regimen for MDR-TB
Preliminary results – released at the 48th Union Conference on Lung Health – from Stage 1 of the STREAM randomised clinical trial show that the nine-month treatment regimen being tested achieved favourable outcomes in almost 80% of those... October 18th, 2017New drugs to treat MDR-TB not available to all
Sinethemba Kuse, 18, invited her friends and family to a celebratory party on 22 September. But, says a Daily Maverick report, it wasn’t a birthday or graduation: the Khayelitsha teenager had taken the last of her TB medication. Kuse was... October 18th, 2017Case for more effective, less toxic and shorter MDR-TB treatments
Recently released research bolsters the case for more effective, less toxic and shorter treatment regimens for drug-resistant tuberculosis, offering hope for patients suffering from a disease that is notoriously difficult to treat. The Wall Street... October 18th, 2017PSYCHOLOGY
Men finding 'bromances' more emotionally satisfying than romances
Young men's 'bromances,' close friendships with other men, are more emotionally satisfying than their romantic relationships with women, finds a small University of Winchester study.
Study authors led by Stefan Robinson at the department of sport...
October 18th, 2017
Gossip is essential for interpersonal relationships
Intrasexual competition positively predicted gossip frequency with women reporting a greater tendency to gossip in comparison to men, particularly about physical appearance and social information, whereas men reported gossiping more about... October 18th, 2017PUBLIC HEALTH
Poison shrub warning after Limpopo kids are hospitalised
Scientists have issued a warning about a shrub common in at least three of South Africa’s provinces after four children were poisoned by its seeds, reports The Times. The children‚ aged between two and six‚ were playing in Limpopo when... October 18th, 2017PSYCHIATRY
'Magic mushroom' compound reduces depression symptoms
Patients taking psilocybin to treat depression show reduced symptoms for up to five weeks after treatment following a 'reset' of their brain activity. The findings come from a study in which researchers from Imperial College London used... October 18th, 2017RHEUMATOLOGY
New drug reduces gout flares
Researchers report that the drug febuxostat reduced gout flares in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 314 adults with early gout. Febuxostat treatment also reduced synovitis – or inflammation of the joint lining detected by MRI scanning... October 18th, 2017SPORT & EXERCISE MEDICINE
HiRIT safe for post-menopausal women with low bone mass
Contrary to current opinion, High-intensity resistance and impact training (HiRIT) was efficacious and induced no adverse events for otherwise healthy post-menopausal women with low to very low bone mass. Exercise is known to be beneficial to... October 18th, 2017