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CancerAid
Dr Linda Calabresi
  • Clinical Articles

CancerAid

CancerAid is a free app designed by two Australian oncologists for people affected by cancer and their carers. The motivation behind this app’s development was to improve cancer care outcomes by engaging patients in their own care. Patients using the app can monitor treatments, find resources, manage side-effects and read others’ experiences, thereby developing an effective support network. The technology also allows patients to share information (if they want to) with family and friends as well as relevant health professionals The information on the CancerAid app is both evidence-based and constantly updated, so doctors can be very comfortable recommending it to their patients.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Value of pre-implantation genetic testing questioned
Dr Karin Hammarberg
  • Clinical Articles

Value of pre-implantation genetic testing questioned

If you’re going through IVF, you may be offered a test to look at your embryos’ chromosomes. Pre-implantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (chromosome abnormalities), known as PGT-A, is an “add on” used to help choose embryos with the right number of chromosomes. It’s promoted by IVF clinics as a way to increase the chance of success, especially for women over 35. But the evidence shows that in most cases, PGT-A doesn’t improve the chance of a baby. What is aneuploidy? Human cells usually contain 46 chromosomes. Aneuploidy is a term that describes a chromosome number that is different from 46 – either too many or too few chromosomes. In human embryos, most aneuploidies are lethal, resulting in miscarriage, or do not result in pregnancy at all. The chance of aneuploidy increases with the age of the woman; by the time a woman reaches age 40, approximately 80% of her embryos are aneuploid.

By Dr Karin Hammarberg, David Amor
Understanding urticaria and angioedema
Dr Karl Baumgart
  • Clinical Articles

Understanding urticaria and angioedema

Urticarial lesions are usually intensely pruritic welts that can be generalised or localised. They normally last less than 24 hours in the one place, being migratory, and leave no residual marks on the skin. Angioedema lesions may be uncomfortable or sometimes painful and occur in the deeper dermis or mucosa and may take 72 hours to resolve. Acute urticaria may be allergic, mediated by inappropriate IgE responses to food allergens. It usually occurs rapidly after exposure to the causative allergen: within 30-60 minutes, up to six hours and rarely eight hours. The most common allergens are either ingested (food or oral drugs) or parenteral (bee or wasp stings or drugs, for example, penicillin). Aeroallergens are not usually the cause of allergic urticaria except when due to grains (in bakers) and latex. However, people who are allergic to grass pollen may develop localised urticaria on contact, for example, when sitting on the grass.

By Dr Karl Baumgart
The secret powers of soup
Dr Linda Calabresi
  • Clinical Articles

The secret powers of soup

In one of the more unusual studies seen in the medical journals of late, UK researchers have determined that some home cooked, family recipe broths actually have antimalarial properties. The study, published in the Archives of Diseases of Childhood, involved the testing of 56 samples of broths which had been made from recipes passed down as a tradition in families of diverse ethnic origin. These broths were believed to confer health benefits in times of illness, commonly helping to reduce fever. And before you start getting the mental image of these scientists deciphering these recipes and cooking up a storm, in fact these researchers asked school children at an ethnically-diverse UK primary school to simply bring in a sample of their family anti-fever soup. Of the 56 soup samples, five were found to significantly inhibit the growth of the asexual blood stage of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro. In fact, the inhibition seen with two of the broths was comparable to that seen with one of the leading antimalarial agents, dihydroartemisinin

By Dr Linda Calabresi
shutterstock_1184014789
Ohio University
  • Clinical Articles

‘Bad cholesterol’ is only as unhealthy as its composition

Low-density lipoproteins (LDL), the kind of cholesterol found in fast food, processed meats and desserts, has come to be known as 'bad' cholesterol due to it's association with heart attacks and coronary disease. Despite this, 75% of heart attacks occur in patients whose cholesterol levels don't indicate they're at high risk, leading many to suspect the link isn't as simple as initially thought. Researchers at Ohio University may have just figured out why.

By Ohio University
Hear this Healthful diet tied to lower risk of hearing loss
Brigham and Women's Hospital
  • Clinical Articles

Hear this: Healthful diet tied to lower risk of hearing loss

It’s just natural that as people age, their hearing gets worse, right? Not according to researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, who have recently published their prospective study of eating habits and hearing threshold decline in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Gathering data on on pure-tone hearing thresholds from participants across 19 sites in the US over the course of three years, the researchers then compared these results with longitudinal data on participants’ dietary intake. Participants whose diets most closely resembled recommended healthy diets, such as the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, the Alternate Mediterranean (AMED) diet, and the Alternate Healthy Index-2010 (AHEI-2010), were found to have substantially lower odds of decline in hearing sensitivity, at both mid- and high frequencies.

By Brigham and Women's Hospital
New research on countering superbugs
Ms Maria Cohut
  • Clinical Articles

New research on countering superbugs

Antibiotic resistance is by no means a new problem, but the latest CDC report into the phenomenon does outline some novel approaches to treating bacterial infection. The advice for slowing infections generally and resistance in particular will be familiar: vaccination, strict hygiene for medical facilities and personnel, and using antibiotics only when needed and for the shortest duration possible. The authors admit that these are only temporary measures however, especially given that some bacteria are now becoming resistant to disinfectants as well. Researchers are also working to develop new types of antibiotics to combat drug resistant bacteria, although most of these efforts are in the early stages. In the shorter term, research has indicated that using specific combinations of existing antibiotics can be effective where current therapies fail.

By Ms Maria Cohut
Preventing allergy
Dr Linda Calabresi
  • Clinical Articles

Preventing allergy

We all know that the previous avoidance strategy to prevent young children developing food allergies has been turned on its head. But out there in the real world, many new parents remain very nervous about feeding their six-month-old cooked egg or letting them taste peanut butter. As much as we would like to think a word of reassurance from their trusted GP is all that is needed, such reassurance is likely to carry much more weight if it is accompanied by a written resource from a reputable source. Enter the Prevent Allergies website. Among many other resources available on the site, there is a very succinct, definitive, printable brochure - entitled ‘Nip Allergies in the Bub’ - that clearly outlines the latest evidence-based information about what parents should be feeding their child and when with regard to lowering their risk of food allergies.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
shutterstock_276705851
Ms Alexandra Hansen
  • Clinical Articles

Is social media damaging to children and teens? We asked five experts

If you have kids, chances are you’ve worried about their presence on social media. Who are they talking to? What are they posting? Are they being bullied? Do they spend too much time on it? Do they realise their friends’ lives aren’t as good as they look on Instagram? We asked five experts if social media is damaging to children and teens.If you have kids, chances are you’ve worried about their presence on social media. Who are they talking to? What are they posting? Are they being bullied? Do they spend too much time on it? Do they realise their friends’ lives aren’t as good as they look on Instagram? We asked five experts if social media is damaging to children and teens.

By Ms Alexandra Hansen
Just Checking people with an intellectual disability
Dr Linda Calabresi
  • Clinical Articles

Just Checking people with an intellectual disability

It is well-documented that people with an intellectual disability are less likely than the general population to participate in the currently available cancer screening programs. This of course means they are needlessly at increased risk of dying from cervical, bowel or breast cancer. To address this disparity, Family Planning NSW has developed a new website called Just Checking, which aims to provide people with an intellectual disability the right support and information to help them engage with these screening programs.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Vaping-related lung disease what you need to know
A/Prof Coral Gartner
  • Clinical Articles

Vaping-related lung disease: what you need to know

More than 2,000 people in the United States have developed serious lung damage in a poisoning outbreak associated with the use of vaping devices this year. At least 39 people have died from the condition. Most of those affected are young men. Their symptoms, which developed over a few days to several weeks, included cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, fever, chills, and weight loss. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recently named this combination of symptoms – “e-cigarette or vaping product use associated lung injury”, or EVALI. Importantly, it has now implicated vitamin E acetate, an ingredient added to illicit cannabis vaping liquids, as the most likely cause of EVALI.

By A/Prof Coral Gartner, Prof Wayne Hall
Eating stodge makes you sluggish
Dr Linda Calabresi
  • Clinical Articles

Eating stodge makes you sluggish

Complaints of excessive daytime sleepiness would have most doctors reaching for their referral pad to send the patient to the nearest sleep lab. However Australian research suggests another, more readily modifiable lifestyle factor might be to blame. According to a large-scale epidemiological study, researchers from Flinders University determined a high intake of saturated fats and carbohydrates increases the risk of excessive daytime sleepiness. And it’s not simply because a diet of hot chips and thickshakes will cause weight gain, and obesity is a well-known risk factor for sleepiness. In this study, they compared fats, carbohydrates and protein calorie for calorie – so it wasn’t how much you ate, or how energy-dense your food was – it was, in fact, the type of food you ate.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
CancerAid

CancerAid

CancerAid is a free app designed by two Australian oncologists for people affected by cancer and their carers. The motivation behind this app’s development was to improve cancer care outcomes by engaging patients in their own care. Patients using the app can monitor treatments, find resources, manage side-effects and read others’ experiences, thereby developing an effective support network. The technology also allows patients to share information (if they want to) with family and friends as well as relevant health professionals The information on the CancerAid app is both evidence-based and constantly updated, so doctors can be very comfortable recommending it to their patients.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Value of pre-implantation genetic testing questioned

Value of pre-implantation genetic testing questioned

If you’re going through IVF, you may be offered a test to look at your embryos’ chromosomes. Pre-implantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (chromosome abnormalities), known as PGT-A, is an “add on” used to help choose embryos with the right number of chromosomes. It’s promoted by IVF clinics as a way to increase the chance of success, especially for women over 35. But the evidence shows that in most cases, PGT-A doesn’t improve the chance of a baby. What is aneuploidy? Human cells usually contain 46 chromosomes. Aneuploidy is a term that describes a chromosome number that is different from 46 – either too many or too few chromosomes. In human embryos, most aneuploidies are lethal, resulting in miscarriage, or do not result in pregnancy at all. The chance of aneuploidy increases with the age of the woman; by the time a woman reaches age 40, approximately 80% of her embryos are aneuploid.

By Dr Karin Hammarberg, David Amor
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Understanding urticaria and angioedema

Understanding urticaria and angioedema

Urticarial lesions are usually intensely pruritic welts that can be generalised or localised. They normally last less than 24 hours in the one place, being migratory, and leave no residual marks on the skin. Angioedema lesions may be uncomfortable or sometimes painful and occur in the deeper dermis or mucosa and may take 72 hours to resolve. Acute urticaria may be allergic, mediated by inappropriate IgE responses to food allergens. It usually occurs rapidly after exposure to the causative allergen: within 30-60 minutes, up to six hours and rarely eight hours. The most common allergens are either ingested (food or oral drugs) or parenteral (bee or wasp stings or drugs, for example, penicillin). Aeroallergens are not usually the cause of allergic urticaria except when due to grains (in bakers) and latex. However, people who are allergic to grass pollen may develop localised urticaria on contact, for example, when sitting on the grass.

By Dr Karl Baumgart
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
The secret powers of soup

The secret powers of soup

In one of the more unusual studies seen in the medical journals of late, UK researchers have determined that some home cooked, family recipe broths actually have antimalarial properties. The study, published in the Archives of Diseases of Childhood, involved the testing of 56 samples of broths which had been made from recipes passed down as a tradition in families of diverse ethnic origin. These broths were believed to confer health benefits in times of illness, commonly helping to reduce fever. And before you start getting the mental image of these scientists deciphering these recipes and cooking up a storm, in fact these researchers asked school children at an ethnically-diverse UK primary school to simply bring in a sample of their family anti-fever soup. Of the 56 soup samples, five were found to significantly inhibit the growth of the asexual blood stage of Plasmodium falciparum in vitro. In fact, the inhibition seen with two of the broths was comparable to that seen with one of the leading antimalarial agents, dihydroartemisinin

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
shutterstock_1184014789

‘Bad cholesterol’ is only as unhealthy as its composition

Low-density lipoproteins (LDL), the kind of cholesterol found in fast food, processed meats and desserts, has come to be known as 'bad' cholesterol due to it's association with heart attacks and coronary disease. Despite this, 75% of heart attacks occur in patients whose cholesterol levels don't indicate they're at high risk, leading many to suspect the link isn't as simple as initially thought. Researchers at Ohio University may have just figured out why.

By Ohio University
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Hear this Healthful diet tied to lower risk of hearing loss

Hear this: Healthful diet tied to lower risk of hearing loss

It’s just natural that as people age, their hearing gets worse, right? Not according to researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, who have recently published their prospective study of eating habits and hearing threshold decline in the American Journal of Epidemiology. Gathering data on on pure-tone hearing thresholds from participants across 19 sites in the US over the course of three years, the researchers then compared these results with longitudinal data on participants’ dietary intake. Participants whose diets most closely resembled recommended healthy diets, such as the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet, the Alternate Mediterranean (AMED) diet, and the Alternate Healthy Index-2010 (AHEI-2010), were found to have substantially lower odds of decline in hearing sensitivity, at both mid- and high frequencies.

By Brigham and Women's Hospital
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
New research on countering superbugs

New research on countering superbugs

Antibiotic resistance is by no means a new problem, but the latest CDC report into the phenomenon does outline some novel approaches to treating bacterial infection. The advice for slowing infections generally and resistance in particular will be familiar: vaccination, strict hygiene for medical facilities and personnel, and using antibiotics only when needed and for the shortest duration possible. The authors admit that these are only temporary measures however, especially given that some bacteria are now becoming resistant to disinfectants as well. Researchers are also working to develop new types of antibiotics to combat drug resistant bacteria, although most of these efforts are in the early stages. In the shorter term, research has indicated that using specific combinations of existing antibiotics can be effective where current therapies fail.

By Ms Maria Cohut
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Preventing allergy

Preventing allergy

We all know that the previous avoidance strategy to prevent young children developing food allergies has been turned on its head. But out there in the real world, many new parents remain very nervous about feeding their six-month-old cooked egg or letting them taste peanut butter. As much as we would like to think a word of reassurance from their trusted GP is all that is needed, such reassurance is likely to carry much more weight if it is accompanied by a written resource from a reputable source. Enter the Prevent Allergies website. Among many other resources available on the site, there is a very succinct, definitive, printable brochure - entitled ‘Nip Allergies in the Bub’ - that clearly outlines the latest evidence-based information about what parents should be feeding their child and when with regard to lowering their risk of food allergies.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
shutterstock_276705851

Is social media damaging to children and teens? We asked five experts

If you have kids, chances are you’ve worried about their presence on social media. Who are they talking to? What are they posting? Are they being bullied? Do they spend too much time on it? Do they realise their friends’ lives aren’t as good as they look on Instagram? We asked five experts if social media is damaging to children and teens.If you have kids, chances are you’ve worried about their presence on social media. Who are they talking to? What are they posting? Are they being bullied? Do they spend too much time on it? Do they realise their friends’ lives aren’t as good as they look on Instagram? We asked five experts if social media is damaging to children and teens.

By Ms Alexandra Hansen
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Just Checking people with an intellectual disability

Just Checking people with an intellectual disability

It is well-documented that people with an intellectual disability are less likely than the general population to participate in the currently available cancer screening programs. This of course means they are needlessly at increased risk of dying from cervical, bowel or breast cancer. To address this disparity, Family Planning NSW has developed a new website called Just Checking, which aims to provide people with an intellectual disability the right support and information to help them engage with these screening programs.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Vaping-related lung disease what you need to know

Vaping-related lung disease: what you need to know

More than 2,000 people in the United States have developed serious lung damage in a poisoning outbreak associated with the use of vaping devices this year. At least 39 people have died from the condition. Most of those affected are young men. Their symptoms, which developed over a few days to several weeks, included cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhoea, fever, chills, and weight loss. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recently named this combination of symptoms – “e-cigarette or vaping product use associated lung injury”, or EVALI. Importantly, it has now implicated vitamin E acetate, an ingredient added to illicit cannabis vaping liquids, as the most likely cause of EVALI.

By A/Prof Coral Gartner, Prof Wayne Hall
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles
Eating stodge makes you sluggish

Eating stodge makes you sluggish

Complaints of excessive daytime sleepiness would have most doctors reaching for their referral pad to send the patient to the nearest sleep lab. However Australian research suggests another, more readily modifiable lifestyle factor might be to blame. According to a large-scale epidemiological study, researchers from Flinders University determined a high intake of saturated fats and carbohydrates increases the risk of excessive daytime sleepiness. And it’s not simply because a diet of hot chips and thickshakes will cause weight gain, and obesity is a well-known risk factor for sleepiness. In this study, they compared fats, carbohydrates and protein calorie for calorie – so it wasn’t how much you ate, or how energy-dense your food was – it was, in fact, the type of food you ate.

By Dr Linda Calabresi
Clinical Articles iconClinical Articles

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