Diana's Health Matters

22 March to 27 March 2011

Interesting study

Back in 1960, a study by Barritt and Jordan, "Anticoagulant drugs in the treatment of pulmonary embolism" looked at people presenting with pulmonary embolisms. Seventy-five percent of the patients were treated with anticoagulant therapy and every one of them survived. The news was not so good for the remaining 25 percent of patients who received placebos. Not one of them lived, however as a result of this study anticoagulant therapy is now the first line of treatment for such patients presenting at hospitals today.

Hearty report

It appears that dying young is an excellent way to avoid cardiovascular disease (CVD). A recent report shows the main risk factor for this disease is age. Many of the other risk factors are also impossible to change as they include sex (although it is not clear if having it or not having it is the point), ethnicity, and a family history of the disease. CVD not only costs more lives than other diseases, it also has the greatest level of health expenditure. It imposes a burden of disease, measured in terms of disability and premature death, second only to cancer.

The National Centre for Monitoring Cardiovascular Disease has just released its fourth national report (based on the year 2007-2008) which showed 3.5 million Australians had a long-term cardiovascular disease. It was responsible for more deaths than any other disease group, 34 percent of the total.

The good news is that the overall death rate for CVD has fallen by about 80 percent since the 1960s and continues to fall and that death rates for the major types of CVD, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure, rheumatic heart disease and peripheral vascular disease, have all fallen markedly in the past 20 years.

So take heart.

2 March to 6 March 2011

A 2008 study, just released by beyondblue, showed more than one-third of the 180,000 aged care residents living in Australia are estimated to be living with depression. This rate of 34.7 percent is far higher than the 10 to 15 percent incidence rate found in the general older population.

Unfortunately many cases of depression go undetected as the signs are either put as part of the ageing process or are included in with dementia.

The general manager of Navitas Health Skills Australia, Chris White, said depression was not a usual part of general ageing. He said it was widely accepted in medical, health and allied health fields that there was chronic under treatment of depression in all populations however older people were the most vulnerable.

Mr White said improved training for aged care workers was critical and would help improve detection rates, ensuring that more aged care residents' needs were properly understood and managed.

Health Burden

Anxiety and depression make up 14.3 percent of the total disability burden in Queensland according to the third report from the Queensland chief health officer. And during 2009 12 percent of adult Queenslanders scored high levels of psychological distress.

Since that time there have been floods and cyclones all over the state and it would be expected the numbers who are psychologically distressed would have increased dramatically. Suicides in 2007-2008 were almost ten per week.

13 February to 20 February 2011

Seniors benefit from computer use

Research has shown that using that internet has numerous benefits for seniors including less depression, less loneliness, and it even provides a boost to memory. Another benefit is more independence where products can bought online and delivered to the door.

National Seniors Australia chief executive Michael O'Neill has urged seniors to become computer literate as it has been shown computer use can decrease depression by 20%.

International studies research shows computer use increases brain activity in the areas of the brain that control language, memory, and visual ability.

"This helps seniors stay mentally fit because it enhances neural stimulation leading to better reasoning and decision making according to the research," Mr O'Neill said.

Current health trends have highlighted that seniors tended to be relatively more passive in relation to their healthcare and were uninformed about their illness, medicines and treatments however those who used the internet could learn about their illness, were more likely to ask questions, and to be more active in their treatment which resulted in a healthier life. Mr O'Neill said it was ironic that the information was mainly available on the internet and was not reaching the people who were most in need of convincing.

25 December to 27 December 2010

Music hath charms to soothe the savage breast,
To soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak.

....said William Congreve in The Mourning Bride, but unfortunately if the breast belongs to a patient with Alzheimers, and if the music is baroque, then the couplet does not work.

The idea that demented patients can be calmed through the playing of baroque music has been stomped upon by Professor Kichu Nair and colleagues at the Hunter New England Health Service who discovered the music of Vivaldi and Handel caused an immediate increase in behavioural disturbances amongst residents of an aged care home.

The music was specifically chosen because it has a rhythm of 40 to 68 beats per minute which was thought to be soothing as it was similar to the beating of the heart.

Professor Nair considers the music may have caused agitation as it had to be played loudly to enable residents with hearing problems to hear it. He now suggests music is similar to medication, that it needs to be targeted to individuals.

Right on brother! If I am ever in a nursing home and anyone plays jazz loudly the carers will see an immediate increase in behavioural disturbances. Or even if it is played softly.

2 December 2010 to 8 December 2010

Sailors and soldiers have a lot to answer for, particularly where the various names for syphilis are concerned. Because it was believed to be spread by visiting males through their contacts with prostitutes,every country called the disease by a different name, passing the buck, not to mention the disease, very effectively.

• The Russians called it the Polish disease
• The Polish called it the French disease
• The Japanese called it the Chinese disease
• The Italians called it the French disease
• The French called it the Italian disease
• The Dutch called it the Spanish disease
• The Turks called it the Christian disease
• The Tahitians called it the British disease

And the man who started it all off, back in 1530, was Girolamo Fracastoro, a doctor, who wrote a poem called "Syphilis or the French Disease".

To take your mind off syphilis...

A heliconia grown by Michael and Suzanne

Heliconia's are more than just a beautiful flower, they also provide food for hummingbirds while the leaves are made into tents by the Honduran White Bat. They are also called lobster claws and the false-bird-of-paradise, as opposed to the Strelitzia, the ruly-truly bird-of-paradise flower.

Roz' Cactus

People of yesteryear were cactus if they caught syphilis.

24 to 28 August 2010 - Accutane a danger to pregnant women

American statistics show approximately one in every 33 babies is born with a birth defect and a large number of these are caused by the use of dangerous medications during pregnancy. The US based website, DrugWatch says it is very important for pregnant women to understand which medications should not be taken during pregnancy in order to avoid harm to themselves or the baby.

Accutane is a medication that was commonly prescribed to treat severe acne, typically when other treatments proved ineffective. The medication is linked to the onset of severe adverse reactions, including ulcerative colitis and inflammatory bowel disease, prompting many patients to file Accutane lawsuits against the manufacturer of the medication.

Throughout a period of more than 25 years, Accutane was prescribed to approximately 16 million patients in the United States. During this time, Accutane was associated with serious side effects in pregnant women, such as the development of severe birth defects and miscarriage.

DrugWatch strongly suggests pregnant women should never take Accutane, as the medication may cause life-threatening birth defects that may affect a developing baby's brain, heart, ears, face, eyes, skull or head. These serious defects may develop following just one dose of Accutane. Documented birth defects following Accutane use include cleft palate, cardiovascular abnormalities and the abnormal formation of certain regions of the brain, among others.

Causes of Birth Defects

• Defective Genes
• Abnormalities in the structure of Chromosomes
• Abnormalities in the number of chromosomes
• Exposure to Teratogens eg drugs and chemical exposure
• Dietary Deficiencies

Information, on the causes of birth defects, is from ez fertility.

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2 August 2010 - Galvus for Type 2 Diabetes

I enjoy putting photographs and diagrams of body organs on my site and today I have an excuse to put the pancreas on view to illustrate the story about a new drug, Galvus, which will help those who have type 2 diabetes.

The drug, which is about to be added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, can help with large reductions in blood sugar levels. At present, only a third of all the type 2 diabetes patients are able to reach their blood sugar level targets.

Dr Neale Cohen, of the Baker Institute in Melbourne said that if a patient's glucose level was high then the drug had a very strong action and if the glucose level was low the action of the drug was very small which Dr Cohen described as 'quite an advantage'.

Galvus may make a difference to a great many people as 1.5 million Australians have type 2 diabetes.

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25 April 2010 - Brain Training

During the past few years special brain-training software has been a hit with people of all ages however a recent study by the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit in Cambridge, UK, showed people who spent the same amount of time to surf the web made the same "modest cognitive gains".

A total of 11,000 volunteers underwent tests to gauge their reasoning ability and verbal and spatial memory and then spent six weeks either working with the brain-training programs or alternatively, they surfed the web.

A second round of cognitive tests six weeks later showed similar results for both groups. One conclusion was that the special software only made people better at those specific tasks on which they had been working.

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14 to 18 May 2010 - Gouda and Immune Systems

As we grow older it appears we can help to both preserve and enhance our immune systems by eating probiotic cheese, such as gouda, every day. Dr Fandi Ibrahim from the University of Turku in Finland said it was important to look for new ways in which to thwart the immune system and as probiotic bacteria were known to enhance the immune system it had now been shown probiotic cheese had the same effect.

Old age brings about immunosenescene which is when the immune system begins to deteriorate thus enabling tumour cells to proliferate. The discovery about the value of probiotic cheese followed a trial where aged care residents ate either a placebo or probiotic Gouda cheese each morning for four weeks. The results revealed that the residents who ate the probiotic cheese had dramatically increased the number of white blood cells which fight infection.

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19 to 26 May 2010 - Brain

I was very happy today to learn about a new study, being run by the University of Adelaide, into whether having a mind that works quickly can benefit the quality of people's life as they age. The happiness came about because I had a wonderful image, of a brain, and with this story I can finally use it.

Researchers are looking for 200 women who are aged 60 and over for the new study. Professor Ted Nettelbeck is concerned that people who are slow thinkers may be at risk of problems with everyday functioning, as well as have memory issues, as they age. Women who apply to take part will undertake a cognitive task and will be asked to fill out a questionnaire.

Much of Professor Nettelbeck's research has involved the development and application of measures of timed performance, like inspection time and reaction time, to the study of individual differences in information processing. He is interested in determining whether the ability to think quickly has the potential as a biomarker for functional ageing.

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13 to 18 June 2010 - Chocolate

Some interesting Dutch research, which revolved around 470 healthy elderly men, showed that the one third of people in the trial who consumed the largest amounts of cocoa, (an average of 4.2 grams per day), had a 45% to 50% lower death rate than the one-third of men who did not consume any cocoa. Much of the cocoa was consumed as chocolate bars and boxed chocolate. Only 4 % was consumed as cocoa drinks. The four grams of cocoa equals two to three squares of chocolate.

The Heart Foundation, which encourages people to eat fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds, as well as warm black or green tea, also suggests high polyphenol cocoa and chocolate may not only increase endothelial function (which is good) they will also reduce both systolic blood pressure and platelet reactivity.

For a healthy heart people should not drink more than five cups of coffee a day, and the drink should not be boiled, nor be prepared in a plunger. The maximum for alcohol is no more than two standard alcoholic drinks per day.

The Heart Foundation does not consider supplements of vitamin E, or combinations of antioxidant supplements, will prevent cardiovascular disease. So just eat chocolate.

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1 to 5 June 2010 - Antibacterial Agents

Fixating too much on keeping families healthy may not be a good thing. A decade ago there were a dozen or so household products which contained antibacterial agents however today there are more than 700! While such products have a valuable use, particularly in hospitals, they are now being added to ordinary products although no added health benefit has ever been shown by their use.

It is suspected that the relatively recent increase of surface antibacterial agents into homes may contribute to the present global health issue where, due to misuse of antibiotics, bacteria have developed a strong resistance.

People buy these antibacterial products because they think they help to protect the health of their families. The range of products now includes such items as antibacterial chopsticks and window cleaners.

Good old E.coli, discovered in 1885 by German bacteriologist Theodor Escherich, which is used widely in laboratories throughout the world.

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24 to 26 March 2010 - Cataract Surgery

During this period I had cataract surgery on both eyes and wrote the following - I had thought of cataract surgery as being something very new, and of course the methods and technology are up-to-the-minute, however a form of cataract surgery was first undertaken in the sixth century BC in India where a needle was used to push the lens of the eye out of the central field of vision and then warm butter was lathered onto the eyeball. I'm very pleased I wasn't around then. In 29 AD Aulus Cornelius Celsus described the early operation in De Medicinae.

Last century intraocular lens were introduced which were implanted in the eye and fifty years ago a new technique, where ultrasonic waves were used to emulsify the cataract, became widespread which enabled the operation to be undertaken through a small incision.

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17 March 2010 - Soft Drinks and Diabetes

The Singapore Chinese Health Study, which was based on 60,000 people, suggests that more than two soft drinks a week will send up the risk of pancreatic cancer by 87 percent! The University of Minnesota, which collaborated in the study, suggested the high sugar content was to blame as neither diet soft drinks, nor fruit juices carried the same risk.

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14 and 15 March 2010 - The Pill

It appears that those of us who took the contraceptive pill in the 60's may not only have been avoiding pregnancy but also reducing our risk of dying from bowel cancer by 38 percent, and from dying from any other disease by 12 percent.

The University of Aberdeen undertook a study of 46,000 women for forty years from 1968. It appears that women who took the contraceptive pill from the late 1960's are living longer than those who never took the pill.

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13 March 2010 - Soft Drink

A study which followed 60,000 women and men over a fourteen year period, showed that drinking two or more soft drinks a week doubles the risk of developing pancreatic cancer.

A combination of scientists from the National University of Singapore and the University of Minnesota undertook the study. By the end 140 people involved had died of pancreatic cancer.

Dr Mark Pereira, from the University of Minnesota, said his research took into account other factors such as smoking, age, weight and intake of red meat.

"Lots of insulin is secreted when you consume these beverages in high volumes and insulin has been shown to promote the growth of cancer cells," he said.

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29 January to 2 February 2010 - Human Bequest

Human Beqest Card

I was quite excited when I opened my mail recently to find it contained a special card. I have had my name down as an organ donor for many years but increasingly during the past nine months or so I have considered donating my body to be used by student doctors during their training.

As I get older I realise my organs may not be in the best condition and, rather than have my body go to waste, making it a bequest seemed the way to go. James Cook University has a program and although one's body is not necessarily accepted, and in fact cannot be accepted if it has been the subject of a coronial inquest or a post mortem, there is still a good chance it can be put to good use. Above is the card I received in the mail and which I now carry in my purse.

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11 October 2009 - Changing Brain

I have had a delightful couple of days reading a book by Norman Doidge called The Brain That Changes Itself. The book includes numerous case studies which show people, who were in a compromised mental state, improved radically following a variety of exercises both mental and physical. The book also discusses the importance of continuing to learn and enjoy new skills as one grows older. I loved a quote, attributed to Pablo Casals, who, when asked at the age of 91 why he continued to practice, replied, "Because I am making progress".

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4 to 7 October 2009 - Neuroplasticity

Following a conversation with my friend, Anne, who lives in Townsville, I have become very interested in neuroplasticity. After four and a half years of researching a variety of themes for my university studies, my brain just doesn't want to have a rest yet and I am fascinated in the concept that it is possible for the brain to change its structure and functions, even as we grow older. An odd bestseller, The Brain that Changes Itself, is written by a psychiatrist, Norman Doidge and includes numerous case studies.

One of the first scientists to bring neuroplasticity to the gaze of the public, Mark Rosenzweig, found that the brains of rats who were stimulated were heavier, had a better blood supply, and had more neurotransmitters than the brains of rats whose environment lacked stimulation. Neuroplasticity describes nerve cell activity which can produce changes in the brain. And how do we change our own brains? I'll tell you when I finish reading the book.

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17 to 25 August 2009 - Dementia and Sleep

New research, from the University Hospital of Madrid, shows people who have eight or more hours sleep every night are twice as likely to get Alzheimer's. Great sigh of relief from me as my sleep is woeful. The danger appears to escalate for those people who have afternoon naps and who sleep in in the mornings.

Other research at both Monash Immunology and Stem Cell Laboratories, and at the University of California, is focusing on stem cells and work with harvesting cells from healthy mice and putting them in mice with Alzheimer's. I wish I hadn't found that piece of information, it is preying on my mind.

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9 to July 10, 2009 - Merck Manual

For years my Merck's Manual has been one of my favourite non-fiction books, now I have discovered there is a Merck Manual of Geriatrics and Chapter 40 is all about dementia.

Alzheimer's Disease affects 24 million people around the world and this figure represents seventy percent of people who have dementia.

There are two types of Alzheimer's, one is familial (with which I am overly familiar with) and sporadic. A world-wide figure suggests a new case of Alzheimer's is diagnosed every seven seconds, a total of 4.6 million new cases every year.

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6 and 7 June 2009 - Alzheimers

I have been fascinated by alzheimers for many years as my mother, her two sisters, and their mother were all afflicted with it. Males in the family don't appear to suffer any problems so that leaves myself, and my cousin, Judy, as next in line. I try to use my brain in as many ways as possible and constantly set myself challenges. My university studies have certainly sent my thinking in many new directions. I also exercise by dancing and walking my dog, and by parking my car far away from where I am going. Living in a highset house means I constantly do stair exercises.

Today's Sunday Courier Mail ran a story about footwear being developed which has a built in GPS device which enables 'wanderers' to be tracked. Apparently up to 60 percent of those who have Alzheimer's disease will have a 'critical wandering incident'. I must tell my children to put in an order.

I love mushrooms and eat them often, both raw and in soup, and apparently I am on the right track here as the niacin in mushrooms is believed to have a beneficial effect, providing a certain amount of protection against Alzheimer's disease The World's Healthiest Foods has very interesting information about mushrooms if you would like to read more.

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6 May 2008 - An Evening of Pain

Jonathan and I recently organised an education session for Mackay Division of General Practice on titration and pain relief which was attended by a large gathering of pharmacists, doctors, community nurses and staff from Mackay and district residential aged care facilities.

Our four guest speakers included pharmacist Greg Kyle who spoke on opioids and HMR; Dr Sharon Roche who explained pain management in herpes zoster; Dr Tony Jenkins, whose subject was NSAIDS, pain management in the elderly, and Dr Nicolae Cruceru who discussed pain physiology.

We were fortunate to have Dr Kathryn Jacoby as our GP facilitator and Jonathan and I were ably assisted by Angela.

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6 March 2008 - Palliative Care Workshop

I had an interesting time last night at a workshop presented by Dr Robert Penhall at the Grand Mercure Suites. Dr Penhall, who spoke on various aspects of palliative care to an audience of doctors and nurses, was introduced by the chairperson of the Mackay Division of General Practice, Dr Lynne Mullholland.

Mackay Division of General Practice provides many educational events each year for doctors, residential aged care facility staff, practice managers and nurses, community nurses and pharmacists.