Headlines
MedicalCommon spinal problem eased with surgeryResearchers in the United States have found that people who underwent surgery for spinal stenosis had less pain two years later than those who decided not to undergo surgery. Africa needs access to affordable medicine[Bathandwa Mbola] South African Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang has called on the continent's health industry to improve access to affordable medicine. Advertisement:
Chronic diseasesChronic disease as great a threat as terroristsAccording to international experts the global threat from chronic disease is as great as the threat of terrorism and too little is being done to fight it. Moderate aerobic fitness can lower the risk of strokeA moderate level of aerobic fitness can significantly reduce stroke risk for men and women, according to a large, long-running study presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2008. Obesity linked to stroke increase among middle-aged womenMiddle-aged women's waists are not the only thing that increased in the last decade. So did their chance of stroke. Minocycline antibiotic may prevent JETwo researchers from National Brain Research Center (NBRC) suggest that a common antibiotic called minocycline may prevent children from death due to Japanese encephalitis (JE), or commonly known as brain fever. Type 2 diabetes driving epidemicType 2 diabetes poses one of the greatest public health threats of the 21st century. The majority of the western world is in the grips of a diabetes epidemic – driven by type 2 diabetes – that goes hand in hand with the escalating incidence of obesity. New computerised image analysis will aid diagnosis and treatment of cancer With the aid of computerised image analysis, it may be possible in the future for radiologists to feel images with the help of a three-dimensional mouse. Transplanted cells can cure haemophiliaScientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have shown for the first time that transplanted cells can cure haemophilia A (the most common form of the disease) in an animal model.
Corporate Social ResponsibilityCompany news: BESTmed announces 2008 Olympic sponsorship - Junxion CommunicationsBESTMed, one of the largest healthcare providers in South Africa, has announced its sponsorships for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Company news: MSD (Pty) Ltd supports nurse vaccine education in rural communities - MSD (Pty) LtdMSD has a long history of support for nurse education.
HIV/AIDSSafari operators alleviating AIDS crisis Small charter planes fly tourists from all over the world to safari camps in Botswana's Okavango Delta, where they view wildlife by day and pay up to US$1,000 a night to stay in luxury lodges or rough it in five-star tents. BOTSWANA: People living with HIV turn to homeopathyHomeopathy is being used as an adjunct to antiretrovirals in Botswana. EGYPT: Taking aim at ignorance about HIV/AIDS Two men in Egypt have been tortured after being found HIV positive in a forced test. Charges against Dr Colin Pfaff droppedThe charges against Dr Colin Pfaff have been completely withdrawn Kenyan blood donors encouraged to learn HIV statusBlood donation drives held in Kenya in recent weeks to meet the need created by post-election violence have highlighted the shortage of regular blood donors and the problem this creates in public healthcare, say officials from the national blood transfusion service. HIV/AIDS Clinicians Society supports Dr Colin PfaffFrom across South Africa many doctors who are members of the Society have expressed outrage at reports of disciplinary action being taken against one of our colleagues, Dr Pfaff, by the Department of Health, for providing dual therapy for the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT).
Infectious diseasesCote d'Ivoire: Unprepared to respond fully to meningitis threatSome 172 cases of meningitis have been reported in Cote d'Ivoire and 44 deaths since the beginning of January, but with only 400,000 vaccines available for the one million people at risk and health staff poorly prepared to deal with a meningitis epidemic, a wider crisis is feared. Liberia: Lassa fever prevention failing Medical officials in a rural hospital say efforts to prevent outbreaks of Lassa fever, a hard-to treat-disease transmitted by rats, are failing because of a lack of investment in health services and public information. KENYA: Cholera outbreak in ManderaAn outbreak of cholera in a remote area of Kenya has claimed at least six lives Conference: Final call for abstracts for South African TB Conference - Magda NaudeClosing date 14 March - submit at www.tbconference.co.za
Medical AidCompany news: Medscheme and doctors reach breakthrough agreement - Magna CartaMedscheme and the leaders of major Independent Practitioner Associations (IPAs) have jointly announced a breakthrough agreement aimed at significantly improving the quality and cost effectiveness of healthcare delivery in South Africa.
Medical ResearchComputers beat the experts when it comes to dementiaComputers can diagnose Alzheimer's disease faster and more accurately than experts, according to research published in the journal Brain. The findings may help ensure that patients are diagnosed earlier, increasing treatment options. Soothing music speeds recoveryListening to music in the early stages after a stroke can improve patients' recovery, according to new research published online in the medical journal Brain. Depression: symptoms may improve, but...A study has shown that as depression symptoms improve with antidepressants, a sense of hopelessness can linger.
Medical TechnologyNew laser for wrinkle removal, acne scarring and tattoo removalUT Southwestern Medical Centre plastic surgeons are among a handful in the nation deploying a new type of laser that goes deeper into the skin to help reduce wrinkles, tighten surface structures and treat pigmentation differences.
Mental healthExercise prescribed for depressionMore GPs in Britain are prescribing exercise as part of the treatment of depression.
NutritionExpert says obesity is as big a threat to the planet as climate changeAs the latest statistics estimate that worldwide one billion adults are overweight, and a third of those are obese, an expert has stated that the issue must be regarded with the same urgency as climate change.
Obstetrics and GynaecologyMost maternal deaths in Africa preventableA study published in PLoS Medicine this week suggests that of women who die during pregnancy and childbirth in sub-Saharan Africa, more may die from treatable infectious diseases than from conditions directly linked to pregnancy. Pre-eclampsia linked to herpes virusAustralian researchers have discovered a viral link which they believe may help explain high blood pressure during pregnancy (pre-eclampsia) and pre-term birth.
OncologyNew test for early ovarian cancer 99% accurateResearchers at Yale have developed a test for a clinical marker for early ovarian cancer that promises to be 99% accurate
Public healthGLOBAL: LifeStraw water purifier grows into family sizeA portable water purifier may help to solve some of the problems of clean water supply in the developing world. Minister leads Healthy Lifestyle campaign[Gabi Khumalo] Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang kicks off the 2008 Healthy Lifestyle Campaign, focusing on addressing the prevalence of Non-Communicable Diseases, today, 22 February. Health spending to grow by 10%[Gabi Khumalo] Government's spending on health services is projected to increase by 10% a year over the next three years. Pedal power promises pure magic! Almost 20 percent of the world does not have access to safe drinking water, which, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), means 1.6 million people die every year of waterborne diseases. A team in California has a potential solution: a tricycle that filters water as one pedals. Australian drinking guidelines "unrealistic"The recently released Australian draft guidelines on alcohol which set a two-drinks-a-day limit on adults while warning pregnant women and young people not to drink at all, have been come in for some harsh criticism. NIGERIA: Making villages hygienic, one by oneChildren in villages in Nigeria are learning the importance of hand washing | 
Women should not die in childbirth in the 21st century - that is unequivocal. But an alarming number still do - most in the developing world - and, it seems, in sub-Saharan Africa, most are still dying of preventable diseases and not the complications of childbirth itself. Every year, half a million women die during childbirth, during pregnancy or within a few weeks of delivery. Half of all these maternal deaths occur in sub-Saharan Africa. The number of maternal deaths per 100 000 live births in this region is nearly 1 000. In industrialised countries this figure is one in 8 000 - a stark and tragic contrast.
