FOCUS: THIS WEEK'S TOP STORIES
Med scheme support sought for distressed private practitioners
July 1st, 2020 COVID-19 has slashed patient numbers, leaving many private doctors in financial distress and worsening patient health outcomes, writes MedicalBrief. While private health offers to help the state have “elicited little traction” a novel plan for...
Coronavirus vaccine likely in 12 months — ARV drug co-inventor Larry Corey
July 1st, 2020 Unlike HIV, the coronavirus is more open to the development of a vaccine and one should be within the grasp of modern science by June next year, writes Chris Bateman for MedicalBrief. That’s the optimistic view of one of the world’s most highly...CORONAVIRUS RESEARCH
Infectious Diseases Society of America updates COVID-19 management guidelines
The Infectious Diseases Society of America updated the treatment portion of its COVID-19 management... July 1st, 2020UK's NICE review not recommending vitamin D to reduce risk of COVID-19
A UK National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) rapid evidence review has failed to... July 1st, 2020HIV drug combo shows no benefit in treating COVID-19 patients — Oxford trial
A combination of antiretroviral drugs used to treat HIV had no beneficial effect in patients... July 1st, 2020Survivors need PTSD screening — COVID Trauma Response Working Group guidelines
Patients affected by COVID-19 need to be urgently screened for post-traumatic stress disorder... July 1st, 2020Brain complications in patients with COVID-19 — First UK nationwide surveillance study
Researchers at the University of Liverpool have led the first nationwide surveillance study of the... July 1st, 2020UK's new rules: No communal dancing nor screaming on rollercoasters
No "communal dancing", singing or laughing. No screaming on rollercoasters or making a cuppa for...
July 1st, 2020
Clear signs of brain injury with severe COVID-19 — Small Swedish study
Certain patients who receive hospital care for coronavirus infection (COVID-19) exhibit clinical... July 1st, 2020Critically ill COVID-19 patients 10x more likely to develop cardiac arrhythmias
Patients with COVID-19 who were admitted to an intensive care unit were 10 times more likely than... July 1st, 2020Higher rates of severe COVID-19 in BAME populations remain unexplained
Higher rates of severe COVID-19 infections in Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) populations... July 1st, 2020Two US research reports on multi-system inflammation syndrome in children
Two US research groups have reported finding nearly 300 cases of an alarming apparent side effect... July 1st, 2020Children with multi-system inflammatory syndrome post-COVID-19 — Small UK study
In recent weeks, a multi-system hyper-inflammatory condition has emerged in children in association... July 1st, 2020COVID-19 generally a mild disease in children — Analysis of 582 European patients
Children with COVID-19 generally experience a mild disease and fatalities are very rare, according... July 1st, 2020Far-UVC light safely kills airborne coronaviruses — Columbia University
More than 99.9% of seasonal coronaviruses present in airborne droplets were killed when exposed to... July 1st, 2020Leeds research review confirms WHO's 'classic' symptoms of COVID-19
Persistent cough and fever have been confirmed as the most prevalent symptoms associated with... July 1st, 2020WEEKLY ROUNDUP
SA's healthcare workers want a 6-month exemption from taxation
As South Africa’s COVID-19 coronavirus numbers continue to rise, City Press reports that... July 1st, 2020Limpopo accuses 'certain doctors' of fake certificates for teachers
Limpopo's Provincial Coronavirus Command Council (PCCC) has accused some teachers of submitting... July 1st, 2020Slow-payer Gauteng Health owes R1.2bn to over 800 companies
The Gauteng Health Department owes R1.209bn to 823 companies for more than 90 days even though they... July 1st, 2020More violent incidents reported at Soweto mental health hospital
Bheki Mlangeni District Hospital in Soweto has recorded four more violent incidents by mental... July 1st, 2020KZN hospital workers strike over COVID-19 fears
Health workers have halted operations at Rietvlei Hospital, in Umzimkhulu, in southern... July 1st, 2020Nurses at Netcare hospital in Johannesburg test COVID-19 positive
Several nurses at Linksfield Netcare Hospital in Orange Grove, Johannesburg, have reportedly... July 1st, 2020COVID-19 test samples found dumped in the Eastern Cape
Hundreds of COVID-19 test samples have been found dumped next to the N2 highway near Mdantsane in... July 1st, 2020Pricing of Gilead's remdesivir is 'fairly restrained'
Medicine may be a science but drug pricing is definitely an art. Reuters Health reports that... July 1st, 2020Mkhize: Invasive ventilation of COVID-19 patients should be avoided if possible
Ventilating COVID-19 patients is not always in their best interest. The Times reports that this is... July 1st, 2020WHO and key partners unveil plan to buy 2bn doses of COVID-19 vaccine
The World Health Organisation and key partners have unveiled a plan to purchase 2bn doses of... July 1st, 2020China tests its candidate COVID-19 vaccine on troops
Chinese troops will be among the first to get jabs of one of China’s leading COVID-19 vaccine... July 1st, 2020Gauteng legislature approves hospital tariff hike
The Gauteng provincial legislature's committee on scrutiny of subordinate legislation has approved... July 1st, 2020SA must change social behaviour to beat COVID-19 — Mkhize
Speaking at the launch of a field hospital in Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape, South Africa’s... June 24th, 2020NEWS RELEASE
Repurposing of testing facilities vital in the response to COVID 19 outbreak
The improvement in the provision of health services has changed over the years, from the... July 1st, 2020SPONSORED EDITORIAL
EZMed and Medici - The integrated practice management and telehealth solution that will take you practice to the next level
Telehealth isn’t a trend, it is a necessary, everyday intervention and is...
July 1st, 2020
GERONTOLOGY
Two studies examine lifestyle factors in becoming a centenarian
Not smoking and remaining socially engaged are significant markers of living past 100, according to a New Zealand analysis of 292 centenarians, while a Washington State University study suggested living in highly walkable, mixed-age communities was... July 1st, 2020INFECTIOUS DISEASES
Tuberculosis cases and deaths predicted to spike due to COVID-19
The global COVID-19 pandemic could significantly increase the global burden of tuberculosis (TB) due to disruptions to health services, and delays to diagnosis and treatment, according to new estimates. Before COVID-19, over 4,000 people were dying... July 1st, 2020MEDICAL PRACTICE
Declines in US patient visits during pandemic will cost GPs $65,000 each
US primary care practices are projected to lose more than $65,000 in revenue per full-time physician in 2020, following drastic declines in office visits and fees for services from March to May during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study led... July 1st, 2020NEUROLOGY
Disrupted circadian rhythm associated with later Parkinson's
Older men who have a weak or irregular circadian rhythm guiding their daily cycles of rest and activity are more likely to later develop Parkinson's disease, according to a study by scientists at the University of California – San Francisco Weill...
July 1st, 2020
PSYCHOLOGY
Study finds evidence that loneliness makes it harder to quit smoking
In a study published in the journal Addiction, researchers at the University of Bristol have found evidence for a causal link between prolonged experience of loneliness and smoking. Although numerous studies have shown an association, it has been... July 1st, 2020PUBLIC HEALTH
Could the debate over SA’s alcohol sales ban have a subtext you’re missing?
No, South Africa’s alcohol ban wasn’t the only thing that helped lower hospital trauma admissions recently, but it did play a substantial role, write professors Richard Matzopoulos and Charles Parry of the South African Medical Research Council... July 1st, 2020TRANSPLANT MEDICINE
Liver perfusion could save 7 in 10 rejected donor livers
A major study investigating the effectiveness of liver perfusion as a technique to improve the function of donor livers that would have otherwise been rejected, has shown that up to 7 in every 10 could be used after just 4-6 hours of the assessment....
July 1st, 2020