Latest health news

Patients in and out of hospital

Readmission rates at hospitals are higher than previously believed.

Harriet Alexander 7:06 PM   Up to 40 per cent more people are limping back into acute care after hospitalisation than previously believed.

Skinny jeans hospitalise squatter

Stylish: But are people wearing skinny jeans walking a dangerous line?

James Bullen   Hipsters beware - skinny jeans might be bad for your health.

How Australia could save $320m a year on prescription drugs

The report finds that patients are often unaware of whether their drug attracts a premium.

Dan Harrison   Taxpayers could save $320 million a year by only paying for the best-value drug when cheaper drugs work just as well as more costly ones, according to a report by a former federal health department head.

Alcohol-related injuries in young women skyrocket, study finds

The number of young women with alcohol-related injuries is on the rise.

Nicky Phillips   The number of women presenting at emergency departments with alcohol-related injuries is increasing at an alarming rate, a new national study has found.

Pot and the politics of pain

Greens leader Richard Di Natale.

Scott Hannaford   Surveys show nearly three quarters of the population wants the nation's drug laws to change, and politicians across the political spectrum from the Prime Minister down are lining up to agree with them. So what's stopping thousands of sick and dying Australians from getting legal access to cannabis medication? Scott Hannaford meets those pushing hard for change.

Transparent fish give hope for motor neuron disease

Nick Cole with transgenic fish, which are being used to study Motor Neurone disease at Macquarie University Hospital.

Rick Feneley   Dr Nicholas Cole is the keeper of thousands of transparent fish that glow with pretty blobs of fluorescent green, evidence they carry a human gene that causes "a true bastard of a disease".

Is the multi-million dollar campaign for a female viagra just pink wash?

In August the FDA will make their decision on flibanserin, a pill which purports to boost women's sex drive.

Nicky Phillips   It's taken drug companies more than a decade to come up with a female version of the "little blue pill", but by August women who've lost interest in sex may have access to their own version of viagra.

Poor hit hardest by federal health cuts

Senior public servants anticipate that elective surgery lists will blow out as the NSW government attemtps to do more with less and those who cannot afford private health cover will bear the brunt.

Harriet Alexander   Senior public servants anticipate that the federal government's cuts to public hospital will hit the poor the hardest, resulting in longer waiting lists and cuts to services in rural areas, internal documents reveal.

Health Dept overhaul will tackle bullying but won't cut jobs

Secretary of the Health Department Martin Bowles.

Markus Mannheim   Restructure to help unclog "bureaucratic" practices and reduce overwork and 'inappropriate behaviour'.

Picking up underwear: it's a pain in the back

The triggers for lower back pain range from lifting heavy loads to replacing toilet rolls.

Harriet Alexander   The triggers for lower back pain range from lifting heavy loads to replacing toilet rolls.

Why Australia shouldn't ban trans fats

(FILES) In this June 28, 2007 file photo, french fried potatoes cooked in trans fat-free soybean oil are ready to serve at Katz's Delicatessen on the Lower East Side of New York. Partially hydrogenated oils, known as artificial trans fats, are not safe to eat and must be removed from the food supply in the next three years, US regulators said June 16, 2015. Often found in margarine, frosting, cookies, crackers and frozen pizzas, partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) are not "generally recognized as safe" for use in human food, said the US Food and Drug Administration, finalizing the agency's proposed ban on artificial trans fats in 2013. AFP PHOTO/Stan HONDA

Kate Aubusson   The US is playing catch up to Australia when it comes to regulating trans fatty acid, but that doesn't mean our food is trans-fat free.

Scientists unlock genetic secrets of muscular dystrophy

Marnie Blewitt, genetic research scientist with the Walter and Eliza Institute.

Bridie Smith   Scientists have for the first time worked out how a gene linked to one of the most common forms of muscular dystrophy works.

How to choose a GP

Corporate health work can keep blood pressure in check.

Julia Medew, Health Editor   Here is what you should consider when you're shopping around for a medical keeper.

Stroke can age the brain eight years

Portrait of stroke victim Tony Finneran at his home in Padstow. 12th June 2015 Photo: Wolter Peeters The Sydney Morning Herald

Andrew Brown   Tony Finneran considers himself pretty lucky despite having a stroke in 2013. But new research from the US shows that his brain could've aged by eight years as a result.

Pharmacists urged to dump dubious products before doing doctors' work

A leading GP says homeopathic treatments should not sit alongside conventional medical treatments in retail pharmacies.

Julia Medew, Health Editor   Pharmacists should stop selling dubious products including homeopathy if they want to perform work currently done by doctors under a federal government trial, a leading GP says.

E-cigarettes may increase nicotine dependence and attractiveness of smoking: study

Call for regulation: Study finds pyrazine additives may reinforce the addictive qualities of nicotine.

Henry Belot   A new study has found a chemical additive commonly found in e-cigarettes could play a role in tobacco dependence and increase the attractiveness of smoking among youth.

Thousands quit statins after TV report

cholesterol

Harriet Alexander   Medical safety experts are fuming at an ABC science show which claimed that cholesterol medication was "toxic", resulting in 60,000 people cutting down or abandoning their medication.

Surgeon accused of bullying leaves Monash Health

Helen Maroulis.

Julia Medew Health Editor   A senior neurosurgeon accused of intimidating junior staff and throwing surgical instruments while working at Melbourne's largest public hospital network has cut ties with her employer.

Remarkable recovery in mesothelioma patient raises hope

Asbestos warning signs were nonexistent when Bradley Selmon was working as an apprentice plumber. .

Harriet Alexander and Nicky Phillips   Bradley Selmon had his proposal all planned out. While he and his partner Karen were holidaying in Europe in the spring of 2013 he'd pop the question.

Whooping cough to reach highest levels in three years

Francesca Wallace   Three times as many people were infected with whooping cough in 2015 than in 2014, according to NSW Health data. 

Thousands waiting too long for care in Victorian hospitals

Merylee Punchard can finally move on with her life after waiting two and a half years for breast re-construction surgery. She had to have a double mastectomy after two breast cancers and felt unable to face new employers prior to having the surgery.

Julia Medew, Craig Butt and Siobhan Calafiore   More than 90,000 patients waited longer than clinically recommended times for emergency care and elective surgery in Victorian hospitals during the first three months of this year.

How to beat insomnia

Everyone has war stories about being unable to sleep.

Nicky Phillips   One of the most effective treatments for insomnia can be found inside your own head – but it's unlikely to be recommended by your doctor.

Dogs on a plane a tough call for airlines

Monique Juniper, a diabetic, with Luigi and nicola

Marc Moncrief   It's no exaggeration to say that, without her dogs, Monique Juniper could die.

Use of medical marijuana for childhood epilepsy splits health community

Calls for the use of medical marijuana in Australia are growing. Pictured: A facility in Canada.

Andrew Masterson   The medical community is split over the burden of proof that should be demanded before cannabis-derived pharmaceuticals are considered effective and safe to treat conditions such as childhood epilepsy.

Australians show poor taste on vegetable consumption

Nationally, just 6 per cent of survey participants met the recommended daily intake of vegetables.

Dan Harrison   New ABS figures shed light on the nation's eating habits, and it's not a pretty picture.

Still Rob: life with early onset dementia

Rob Trinca, pictured with wife Jane Sandow, was diagnosed with dementia in his early 50s.

Craig Butt, Health Reporter   Architect Rob Trinca was only 49 when he noticed he was having trouble drawing. His doctor thought he was depressed.

The diet to stick to when you're pregnant

You, and your baby, are what you eat.

Harriet Alexander   Even before they contemplate children, the type of food that women eat can determine their health during pregnancy.

Dr Philip Nitschke comes to rescue on Qantas flight

Qantas crew approached Dr Philip Nitschke about two hours out of Sydney when a cancer-stricken passenger became ill.

Michael Koziol   Euthanasia campaigner and suspended doctor Philip Nitschke provided medical assistance to a critically ill man on a trans-Pacific flight to Sydney on Tuesday morning.

World's first 'feeling' leg prosthesis unveiled

Wolfgang Rangger presents his sentient artificial leg.

Nina Lamparski   The world's first artificial leg capable of simulating the feelings of a real limb and fighting phantom pain has been unveiled by researchers in Vienna.

Daniher leads 'Big Freeze at the G' before Queen's Birthday clash

Fans gather at Federation Square for Neale Daniher's walk to the MCG.

Konrad Marshall   Two people in Australia die every day of Motor Neurone Disease, and two more are diagnosed.