Why patients might ask about beetroot juice as a treatment for heart failure. Beetroot is a staple in pretty much every true Aussie hamburger. However, apart from being deliciously tasty, there is another reason why it might soon become more...

Hypercholesterolaemia not only has a damaging impact on health, but on the economy too. According to a new report from the Heart Foundation, an estimated seven million Australians are living with high cholesterol, which placed a strain on the Australian...

Adults on the autism spectrum are often prescribed psychotropic medication to manage behaviour, despite limited evidence to support this practice, a new report has found. The longitudinal study, which draws on data from The Cooperative Research Centre for Living...

Neuropathic pain is defined as ‘pain caused by a lesion or disease of the somatosensory nervous system’.1 It is associated with impaired quality of life. Around 7–8% of adults have chronic pain with neuropathic characteristics. A quarter of people...

Nanoparticles contained in sunscreen do not penetrate the skin or cause cellular toxicity, a new Australian study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology has shown. The research, led by the University of Queensland (UQ) and University of South Australia...

Pregabalin-related ambulance attendances have increased 10-fold since 2012, a Victorian study has shown. Published in the Medical Journal of Australia, the retrospective study on the ambulance attendance in Victoria between 2012–17 found that the increase in acute harm associated with...

As the fatal consequences of prescription overdoses have climbed in Australia, a recently published  study from Monash University identified key factors that could indicate a predisposition to persistent opioid use in patients without cancer.   The population-based study examined a...

The New England Journal of Medicine has released two studies about the impact of omega-3 supplements on major cardiac events and cancer. While one study found that omega-3 supplements have minimal, if any, impact on the prevention of major...

It is estimated that falls in hospitals are significantly higher than in the community setting. This summary presents the best available evidence regarding the effectiveness of interventions to reduce falls in the elderly in nursing homes and hospitals. For the full...

Almost one-quarter of prescriptions in hospitals have been assessed as inappropriate, and one-third were non-compliant with guidelines, according to new data from the Hospital National Antimicrobial Prescribing Survey (NAPS) 2017. 1 The report, which is conducted annually by the Australian...