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Specialist and mainstream audiences alike rely on the Health Report to bring clarity to health and medical issues from social, scientific and political points of view.

ABC Radio National


    • Jul 11, 2022 LATEST EPISODE
    • weekly NEW EPISODES
    • 31m AVG DURATION
    • 322 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from Health Report - ABC RN

    11 July: Tackling obesity | Standards on how to handle sepsis | The right amount of Vitamin D

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 11, 2022 28:35


    In 2009 Australia launched a National Preventive Health Strategy with the aim of being the healthiest country in the world by 2020—where we're at with it now. The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Healthcare has created a national clinical care standard for diagnosis and treatment. Many people are told to take a vitamin D supplement, especially in winter when there's less sunshine, but you can have too much of it.

    4 July: Coming to terms with long COVID; Vaxes for variants; An artificial pancreas; Protecting pandemic teens

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 4, 2022 28:35


    Australia has many stories from people who say they have long COVID but who are unable to access help | Updated versions of coronavirus vaccines targeting the Omicron variant have been announced, yet the virus still mutates | People with Type 1 diabetes need to monitor their blood glucose but automatic systems are being trialled to assist them | A study on the behaviour of teens undertaken during the pandemic identified some of the particular health risks for this group.

    Speculating on an Australian Centre of Disease Control and Prevention; How Indigenous culture can protect the heart; Associations between mental health and mortality

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 27, 2022 28:35


    What an Australian Centre for Disease Control might aim to be; An Indigenous perspective and research to engage culture for protection against cardiovascular disease and stroke; Research on links between mental health and mortality concludes that both mental and physical health can be adversely impacted.

    Breast density and MRIs, diet and mental health, genomics and osteoarthritis

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 20, 2022 28:35


    There may be a link between what you eat and your mental health—also, avoiding overtreatment for breast cancer; predicting your risk of osteoarthritis; and whether mammogram results should inform women about breast density.

    The cancer risks that run through generations

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2022 28:36


    The cancer risks that run through generations of families—and the growing frontier in medicine trying to change that.

    Cancer treatment and 'time toxicity'; youth mental health and smoking; a paradox for cholesterol level

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 6, 2022 28:34


    The term 'time toxicity' expresses the idea that if treatment to extend a patient's life means lengthy periods in medical facilities, it may be time wasted; In Australia smoking has decreased generally, but tobacco use is higher than average in young people with mental health issues; The bad form of cholesterol is LDL — low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein is the good form. An new study suggests there's a limit on how high HDL should be.

    Abortion access, lipid profiling; quality of life and cancer drugs; exercise and kids' heart surgery

    Play Episode Listen Later May 30, 2022 28:35


    Those at greatest risk from unplanned pregnancy are often least able to access it; Study on 800 different lipids to check your metabolic risk and health profile; It's important to ask if someone's life will be improved by taking cancer drugs; Heart defects in kids may need surgery but new research considers exercise as a key to improving their life expectancy.

    What is monkeypox and where is it coming from? treating the rise in melanoma cases; better stroke management; comparing data on mental health conditions against immune-related diseases

    Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2022 28:33


    Combating monkeypox with increased vaccination—and monitoring polio cases in Ukraine; Treating the increasing number of melanoma cases; A faster and more mobile way to diagnose stroke; Comparing data on some mental health conditions against immune disorders.

    Considering health issues ahead of an election

    Play Episode Listen Later May 16, 2022 28:35


    Ahead of the election, The Health Report hosts a discussion between experts about the pressing health issues. What are the most pronounced problems, and what health questions have not been raised at all?

    Mortality mapped to electorates, prostate surgery and relationships, how doctors can better treat Indigenous patients

    Play Episode Listen Later May 9, 2022 28:34


    The risk of premature mortality has been mapped on to federal electorates and Australia's lack of response to the disparity contrasts with that of the UK. The effects of prostate surgery affect the man and his partner—and sometimes it means a change to sexual function. Doctors can struggle to communicate with Aboriginal patients—a podcast featuring Aboriginal elders offers advice on delivering culturally safe healthcare.

    Climate and new virus vectors; advice on prescribing opioids for pain; triggers for an oesophagal problem; cost of macular disease medication

    Play Episode Listen Later May 2, 2022 28:37


    Global warming will probably mean that wildlife travels more and mixes with other species—and an effect will be to spread unfamiliar viruses; There is new guidance to help hospital doctors and clinicians prescribing opioids for pain; A disorder of the oesophagus creates symptoms similar to reflux or allergies, but the cause of the disorder is not known; The non-availability of a treatment for age-related macular degeneration has eye surgeons arguing for change.

    The lowdown on longevity

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 25, 2022 28:36


    It's expected now that we will generally live longer, but what really interests people is how to spend their longer life in good health—what to do now in order to set a good foundation.

    Chimeras in medicine, Pt2—avatars; What's to be done about tinnitus

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 18, 2022 28:35


    Oncologists don't always know which chemotherapy drug will work best, and even then, one treatment won't suit everyone. So there's growing research on potential therapies using animal 'avatars'. And later ... an estimated one in six Australians lives with tinnitus but told nothing can be done to help it.

    Chimeras in medicine: xenotransplantation

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 11, 2022 28:37


    Many people are waiting for an organ donation and some of them may die before a suitable organ is found. Some researchers think that in the near future we will be able to grow organs in animals to be safely transplanted into humans. The first of two features about medicine's use of animals for organ and tissue transplantation. This program was originally broadcast in October 2021.

    Effect of pain medication on immunity; impact of the Budget on GPs and healthcare; importance of planning global vaccination

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 28:57


    A review of multiple studies on common painkillers found that they have a marked effect on our resistance to infection—which is sometimes bad and sometimes good. Some of these medications could also reduce our response to a vaccination—especially if taken straight before one. Doctors, nurses and other health professionals keep you healthy. But despite Australia's relative good health it has major problems with general practice. By international standards we are probably overproducing medical graduates, but not enough go into general practice. New variants of the COVID-19 virus continue to appear, especially as there are low income countries with low levels of immunisation. The 2022-23 Australian Budget allocated A$85 million to COVAX, the international program for delivering COVID-19 vaccines particularly to low income countries. Is it enough?

    Research on passive antibodies to combat Omicron | Is Transient Ischaemic Attack an obsolete term? | Treating blood pressure may affect blood flow to the brain? | How hormones and hypertension are related

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 28, 2022 28:37


    Assessing the continuing ability to treat COVID-19 with antibody infusions. | A 'temporary stroke' means people get the signs of a stroke but the symptoms go away it's a called a Transient Ischaemic Attack - but that could be a misnomer. | If you have high blood pressure and lifestyle controls are not helping - by how much should pressure be reduced? | Primary aldosteronism (PA) is a hormonal cause of high blood pressure; it's treatable and there's a simple test.

    The changing demographic of blood groups; diet to ease MS; relationship of mental health and dementia

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 21, 2022 28:36


    What we know about the diversity of blood group types in Australia has just been updated—it reflects patterns in immigration. And we discuss the potential benefits of modifying diet to treat multiple sclerosis. And whether mental health issues may raise the risk of cognitive decline.

    Japanese Encephalitis vectors; climate change and effect on health; archival heart transplant; and data behind decreased heart attacks

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 14, 2022 28:35


    Japanese Encephalitis (JEV) is common in Asia but now causing concern in Australia. The rise of JEV in Australia happened when the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (the IPCC) were reporting on climate change—a key aspect of which was the effect of climate on health. There's unique archival audio from the 1980s of the surgeon who performed a heart transplant operation on Baby Fae - using a baboon heart. And the records of 80 million people have been assessed to see why there are now less deaths from heart attack.

    Out of pocket health costs; faecal microbiome transplants; stomas

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 7, 2022 28:36


    Australia is lucky to have free healthcare services—but there can be big gaps in who receives it; reports on two people with bipolar disorder finding benefit from a faecal microbiota transplant; and how stomas help the intestine heal.

    COVID didn't come from a lab; can you trust blood pressure monitors; your preference for more—or perhaps less—health care; studying concussion and head knocks

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 28, 2022 28:35


    Two recent scientific publications show that the pandemic originated in the Huanan Wholesale Seafood Market, in Wuhan, China. The publications are not yet peer reviewed but seem to put paid to the theory that the virus escaped from a Wuhan virology lab.

    Developments in heart transplants; Achilles tendon rupture intel; and cardiomyopathy in meth users

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 21, 2022 28:53


    An Achilles tendon rupture is sometimes heard as a loud 'snap'—so then what? And how the cardiologists are developing new devices for heart transplants; And the complexity of treating cardiomyopathy in methamphetamine users.

    Living younger for longer; tinglesas intervention for anxiety; finding pancreatic cancer early

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 14, 2022 29:12


    Tech and physical activity; Insomnia and depression; Retinal age; and early intervention as treatment for BPD

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2022 37:59


    What happens after omicron; action on blood pressure; coronary artery disease; BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 31, 2022 39:24


    What COVID-normal might mean; hearing loss and screening kids; depression and inflammation; genes and the heart

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2022 28:36


    Brendan Crabb on how we best understand and get to a COVID-normal life. Also, there's reason to consider screening kids at primary school age for hearing loss problems. Inflammation and how it may affect your risk of depression; And, congenital heart disease and genes not necessarily specific to the heart.

    Navigating the pandemic: Dr Anthony Fauci

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 17, 2022 28:45


    From the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, one expert came to the fore as a trusted voice, not just in his home country of the United States, but around the globe: Dr Anthony S Fauci, the director of the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

    Substance use omnibus: Protecting kids from drug and alcohol misuse; the relationship of alcohol in pregnancy and kids later use; drinking culture and avoiding the pressure to drink;

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2022 28:38


    An omnibus episode about protecting kids from drug and alcohol misuse.

    Rising ICE use in Australia; and an account of the difficulty in quitting

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 28:38


    What you need to know about ICE-crystal meth, and a first-hand account of how difficult it is to quit an ICE addiction. Both items in this programs were originally broadcast in June 2021.

    The enduring stigma surrounding Borderline Personality Disorder

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 27, 2021 28:38


    Borderline Personality Disorder is one of the most stigmatised and misunderstood mental health conditions. It affects a significant number of people in the community, a large proportion of them having suffered trauma early in life. The emotional instability, fear of abandonment and patterns of self-harm can alter someone's life and that of their loved ones in profound ways. But the enduring stigma around BPD means it often goes unrecognised or not properly treated and many fall through the cracks. This program was originally broadcast in September 2021

    The day I lost my mind

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 20, 2021 28:39


    If you mention Transient Global Amnesia – TGA – the chances are that nobody has heard of it. When Dasha Ross lost her memory for a day she was diagnosed as having experienced this mysterious ‘neurological enigma'. This enigma affects over a thousand Australians a year, and Dasha was determined to find out why, and what causes it. This program was originally broadcast in April 2021

    Psychedelic drugs and psychotherapy; evaluating a cancer therapy; mental health and your heart; exercise and your brain

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 13, 2021 38:07


    Report on Omicron reinfection rates; screen use after concussion; exercise after concussion; infant formula and cognitive development

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 6, 2021 42:35


    Mon 29 Nov: the new variant Omicron; platelet-rich plasma in knees and ankles; and Parkinson's possible connection to influenza

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 29, 2021 28:35


    Stillbirth in lockdown, health risks for adolescents, sleep disorder with fly-in fly-out rosters, senescent cancer cells

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 22, 2021 29:15


    Youth mental health care; COVID vaccines of the future; balancing cancer treatment and vaccination

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 15, 2021 36:34


    Women's health: menopause and cardiovascular risk; efficacy of vaginal laser use; remedies for incontinence; tools to improve breast cancer screening

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 8, 2021 38:20


    What to know about buying and using rapid antigen tests | chimeras in medicine part 2 | more snakebite information

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 1, 2021 35:59


    Rapid antigen tests can now be purchased by the general public, and what you need to know. There's Part 2 of our Chimeras in medicine—the use of animal avatars. And further responses to questions about snakebite treatment from the expert toxinologist.

    Chimeras in medicine: xenotransplantation

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 25, 2021 29:58


    Many people are currently waiting for an organ donation, and some of those waiting may die before a suitable organ is found. However some researchers think that we will be able to grow organs in animals to be then safely transplanted into humans. This is the first of two features about medicine's use of animals for human tissue and organ transplantation.

    COVID-19 boosters; the big uptake for digital health; cholesterol in different age groups; amputation decision aid

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 18, 2021 37:11


    As the world opens up after COVID-19, what should we know about further vaccination; cholesterol studies in different age groups; digital health and how it helps health care.

    Malaria and vector-borne diseases, the Hippocratic Oath, the best way to treat snake bite

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 11, 2021 38:45


    Malaria and the implications of a vaccine for it; a new book about what happens to the Hippocratic Oath when it's in the real world; and, if you are bitten by a snake - what next?

    The widespread gender bias in healthcare

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 4, 2021 28:36


    The gender bias in healthcare is pervasive and causes harm when women receive worse treatment during a heart attack, are denied proper pain relief when in pain or when less likely to receive timely access to critical health interventions.

    Who gets care if hospitals become overwhelmed?; colorectal cancer risks; and the myth of placebos

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 27, 2021 40:01


    What may happen if the hospital systems in NSW and Victoria are overwhelmed when we open up at 70 and 80% and the expected surge in cases occurs? New research sheds light on colorectal cancer risks. And are the potential benefits of placebos overblown?

    The enduring stigma surrounding Borderline Personality Disorder

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 20, 2021 28:27


    Borderline Personality Disorder is one of the most stigmatised and misunderstood mental health conditions. It affects a significant number of people in the community, a large proportion of them having suffered trauma early in life. The emotional instability, fear of abandonment and patterns of self-harm can alter someone's life and that of their loved ones in profound ways. But the enduring stigma around BPD means it often goes unrecognised or not properly treated and many fall through the cracks.

    The first year of COVID; the 'molecular messages' sent during exercise; is orthopaedic surgery over prescribed?; and can a combination pill transform how blood pressure is treated?

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 13, 2021 36:59


    How did Australia fare in the first year of the pandemic? What are the 'molecular messages' our body sends during exercise and how can they be used to help treat disease? Are the most common elective orthopaedic surgeries prescribed always the most effective option? And can a pill that combines four low-dose medications transform how high blood pressure is treated?

    Vaccine rates in Indigenous communities; the origins of The Black Death; understanding illness caused by ticks; and the trial of Theranos founder begins

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 6, 2021 38:15


    The COVID outbreak in regional New South Wales is highlighting the comparatively low vaccination rates in Indigenous communities. New research uncovers more on the origins of The Black Death. Researchers try to understand more about the experience of chronic illness after tick bites. And in the US, the trial of the founder of biotech company Theranos begins.

    Can substituting salt save lives?; the science of the COVID modelling; and Toxoplasma Gondii and cognitive decline

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 30, 2021 36:17


    What new research shows about the effect of substituting salt and health - can it save lives?

    Have we misunderstood the Doherty modelling?; High viral loads in vaccinated people; COVID risks to children; and substance use and the developing teenage brain

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 23, 2021 40:17


    Australia is pinning its hopes on modelling that says restrictions can start to ease once we hit vaccination targets, but will the high case numbers in NSW disrupt that plan? New research finds that people who are fully vaccinated but contract COVID can still carry high viral loads. Why are some countries seeing high numbers of children in ICUs, while others are not? And why are some teenagers more at risk of regular substance use? The answer - partly at least - may lie within the brain.

    How can ventilation be improved to protect against COVID; post-op lung complications in patients who isolated before surgery; what's it like living with tinnitus?; and calls to do more to prevent chronic disease

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 16, 2021 38:25


    How can ventilation be improved to help reduce the spread of COVID? The surprising discovery that patients who isolate prior to surgery are more likely to develop post-operative lung complications. What's it like living with tinnitus and can anything be done about it? And calls to do more to prevent chronic disease.

    The modelling on the pathway out of the pandemic; why critical care for women having heart attacks is being delayed; and alcohol use and anxiety

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 9, 2021 37:43


    We now have modelling to guide our way out of the pandemic, but some researchers say we will need to vaccinate even younger age groups to reach sufficient immunity. Why are so many women having critical medical care delayed when experiencing a heart attack? And research shows people living with anxiety are more likely to use alcohol. But what happens when drinking becomes a problem and where can you get help?

    The frontline of the NSW COVID outbreak; the race to find more effective COVID treatments; and COVID risk for people living with mood disorders

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 2, 2021 37:51


    What are people experiencing in intensive care as a result of the delta COVID outbreak and how are hospitals coping?

    COVID vaccine trials for young children; COVID's mental health toll on Indigenous communities; should bilateral cataract surgery be done on the same day?; and the link between bone loss and cognitive decline

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 26, 2021 38:06


    Right now overseas, several covid vaccines are being trialled in children as young as babies 6 months of age. So how long will it be until younger kids can get vaccinated? How pandemic prevention measures have been particularly tough on the mental health of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Cataract surgery can and is sometimes done in both eyes on the same day. But what does a review of the data tell us about whether this is best? And a puzzling link between two things that can cause disability as we age: cognitive decline, and fractures.

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