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A Focus
When common sense and sound judgment go up in smoke
Government’s proposed anti-tobacco bill lacks any scientific assessment as an underlying principle of legislation, argues Tim Cohen, senior editor of Business Day. In a...
Med scheme actions trigger practitioner calls to 'rein in' and 'rise up'
The SA Private Practitioners Forum has lodged a complaint with the Council for Medical Schemes that the two largest medical schemes — Discovery and...
Implant investigation shows costs of poor regulation and testing
The Prolift vaginal mesh implant was launched despite the company being warned it could shrink and harden inside the body, according to an international...
55% of former ICU patients report symptoms of psychological disorders
Patients who have survived critical illnesses requiring care in an intensive care unit (ICU) frequently report symptoms of anxiety, PTSD and/or depression, found a...
Motsoaledi lashed for saying illegals are burdening health system
Amnesty International and the Public Protector’s Office have lashed Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi over his statement that illegal and undocumented immigrants are putting an...
Mixed results from trials on cardiovascular benefits of fish oil
VITAL and REDUCE-IT – both highly anticipated trials revolving around the cardiovascular benefits of fish oil products – delivered mixed results at this year’s...
UCT in infectious diseases treatment breakthrough
University of Cape Town (UCT) scientists have offered the first hope of addressing the risk of tuberculosis-associated immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (TB-IRIS), which is...
GPs overwhelmingly incorrect in deciding on tonsillectomies
An analysis of over 1.6m children from more than 700 UK general practices over 12 years found that only 13% of children suitable for...
Scan may predict dementia risk a decade before symptoms emerge
A five-minute ulstrasoound scan of blood vessels in the neck could predict a person's risk of developing dementia a full decade before symptoms emerge,...
Link between appendix removal and development of Parkinson's
Removing the appendix early in life reduces the risk of developing Parkinson's disease by 19% to 25%, according to the largest and most comprehensive...
BMI strongly associated with all-cause mortality
Body Mass Index (BMI), a measure of body fat, is linked to risk of death from every major cause except transport accidents, according to...
Not to be sniffed at: Dogs diagnose malaria to better-than WHO standards
In recent tests trained sniffer dogs successfully diagnosed malaria infections simply by sniffing samples from socks worn briefly by children from a malaria endemic...
NICD rebuts research claiming an outbreak of MDR-TB in SA
The SA National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) says it “does not support” the findings of a research study reporting an outbreak of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB),...
Instead of gaining an edge, many competitors lose the plot
Hoping to gain a competitive edge has made weekend warriors and elite athletes, both, vulnerable to pseudoscience and dodgy marketing, writes Digital Clubbing Power...
Nursing failures fuel claims against private hospitals — Stellenbosch study
The failure of nurses at private hospitals to follow guidelines, as well as poor monitoring of patients, lies behind rocketing liability claims, according to...
Summit: A fixit plan by December and a pledge on private healthcare
President Cyril Ramaphosa that there would be a plan by December to tackle SA's public health crisis, speaking at a two-day health summit to...
Surge in the number of C-sections around the world
Globally, the number of babies born through caesarean section (C-section) almost doubled between 2000 and 2015 – from 12% to 21% of all births...
3D mammograms detect more invasive breast cancers
After screening 15,000 women over a period of five years, a major clinical study in Sweden has shown that 3D mammography, or breast tomosynthesis,...
'Discrimination' appeal puts CMS spotlight on obesity surcharge
A Council for Medical Schemes appeal accusing Spectramed of discrimination has spotlighted the 50% surcharge that that surgeons and anaesthetists can levy when operating...
Supreme Court judgment important for covering doctors
The ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal ordering a Durban gynaecologist Dr and Life Healthcare Group to pay R20m for medical negligence, contains...
It’s now your right to smoke marijuana — but don’t bluff yourself that it cures anything
It's not for the state to decide what individuals put into their bodies in their own homes, writes Digital Clubbing columnist Alastair McAlpine. But...
World-first SA liver transplant results support a review of ethics policies
The successful, world-first liver transplant between an HIV-positive woman and her HIV-negative infant, undertaken in South Africa has delivered results, reported in the academic journal...
The domino effect: Are you part of the resistance?
“Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is not just a health issue, it’s a societal issue – it involves all of us,” said Ian Wakefield, BD Africa...
The high lifetime risk of neurological disease
One in two women and one in three men will develop dementia, or Parkinson's disease, or have a stroke in their lifetime. according to...
Religious upbringing link to better health and well-being in adulthood
Participating in spiritual practices during childhood and adolescence may be a protective factor for a range of health and well-being outcomes in early adulthood,...
Hospital 'detention' for unpaid medical bills a growing issue
Refusing to discharge from hospital patients who have failed to pay their medical bills is increasingly resorted to in many countries. The Kenyan High...
IRR report: Deficiencies in state health sector doom NHI to failure
An Institute of Race Relations report says that the proposed National Health Insurance is a 'noble goal' but will destroy private healthcare and medical...
Right-to-die doctor could face multiple murder charges
The arrest for murder of Professor Sean Davison, a medical doctor and founder of Dignity SA, five years after the assisted death of quadriplegic, Dr Anrich Burger,...
Electrical stimulation of spinal cord gets 2 paralysed people walking
Two patients in an experimental US rehabilitation programme for paralysed people have been able to walk again thanks to electrical stimulation of their spinal...
Daily aspirin has 'no effect' on healthy life span in older people
Daily low-dose aspirin in healthy older adults without previous cardiovascular events did not prolong healthy, independent living (life free of dementia or persistent physical...
Dairy consumption linked to lower rates of CVD and mortality
Dairy consumption of around three servings per day is associated with lower rates of cardiovascular disease (CVD) and mortality, compared to lower levels of...
IARC report shows rising global toll of cancer
One in five men and one in six women around the world develop cancer during their lifetime. The Guardian reports that this is according...
Review of SA's 15 years of compulsory community service for doctors
The SA experience of compulsory Community Service (CS) over the first 15 years has been 'overwhelmingly positive', largely meeting objectives of redistribution of health...
Whole grains substantially reduce type 2 diabetes risk 15-year study
A large Swedish study over 15 years found that eating any type of whole grain reduces the risk of type-2 diabetes. Among those who...
Medical cannabis provides symptom relief for a myriad of complaints
Medical cannabis can provide statistically and clinically significant relief from symptoms from dozens of health conditions with relatively minimal negative side effects, according to...
BHF calls on govt to regulate where private sector doctors work
The Board of Healthcare Funders (BHF) has called on the government to consider regulating where private sector doctors and specialists work, in order to distribute...
Studies look at the benefits of aspirin for patients with CVD
A meta-analysis from 11 trials found that aspirin reduced the risk of non-fatal myocardial infarction by 22% and death by 6%, at the cost...
Mass hysteria blew simple complaint into a national issue – Health Ombud
Findings by Health Ombudsman Professor Malegapuru Makgoba that whistleblower claims of unacceptable practices at the Tower Psychiatric Hospital in the Eastern Cape were unfounded...
More accurate method of estimating body fat developed
Cedars-Sinai investigators have developed a simpler and more accurate method of estimating body fat than the widely used body mass index, or BMI. Called the...
No safe level of alcohol consumption — 195-nation study
Giving up drinking completely is the only way to avoid the health risks associated with alcohol, according to a major study covering 195 countries over...