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...

Almost three-quarters of Australians are aware of the term ‘antibiotic resistance' and one quarter believe that it is affecting us, an NPS MedicineWise survey has found. But NPS MedicineWise CEO Steve Morris says many Australians still lack awareness of the...

Experts are urging allergic rhinitis (hay fever) sufferers to seek the help of pharmacists, following a recent poll showing hay fever to be the most common allergic disorder in Australia; causing more than a simple case of the sniffles,...

Research from the University of New South Wales National Drug & Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) has shown a decline in illicit low-dose codeine use since the February rescheduling. The report shows 14% of the 910 metropolitan-based participants in the national...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterised by joint inflammation. The immune system attacks the tissue lining the joints (synovial membrane), causing joint pain, swelling and stiffness. It usually occurs in joints on both sides of the...

Recent research has shed light on a potential new avenue to reduce insulin requirements for people with type 1 diabetes. An estimated 1.2 million Australians (6%) live with diabetes, not including gestational diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is one of the...