AUSTRALIA IN THE ASIAN CENTURY – A series examining Australia’s role in the rapidly transforming Asian region. Delivered in partnership with the Australian government.
Here, Professor Martyn Jeggo looks…
Jude Law as Alan Krumwiede in the thriller "Contagion".
Claudette Barius
One touch and you’re infected. By the next day your muscles ache, you have a fever and the beginnings of a headache.
You don’t know it yet, but you only have a one in three chance of survival and you…
It's time the ACT government trialed a needle and syringe exchange program.
Dave Blume
It’s no secret that prisoners inject drugs. And because they don’t have access to sterile needles, inmates not only share needles – they share infectious diseases as well.
The ACT government is currently…
Encephalitis lethargica seemed to take over its victims' mind with neurologic and psychiatric changes.
Finizio
Encephalitis lethargica, an infectious disorder that only once appeared in epidemic form (1916-1926), is largely forgotten now. But this curious illness provided significant insights into brain function…
Only 2% of Australia's TB is drug-resistant but this is much more common in PNG.
Flickr/PACOM
Papua New Guinea (PNG) is currently in a battle with potentially preventable and treatable tuberculosis, as reported in today’s Age and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers. The disease has increased in the…
Children too young for the vaccine or those who haven't been vaccinated are most at risk from whooping cough.
anjanettew/Flickr
Even though we’ve had a whooping cough (pertussis) vaccine since the 1950s, the disease is proving difficult to control and beat. Dealing with its resurgence requires clear communication about the importance…
Bird flu transmission to humans is rare and hasn't occurred with this new strain.
AAP
The circulation of a new strain of the H5N1 avian flu virus from China and Vietnam has prompted calls from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN for health authorities to be ready for a possible…
Legionella's is rare but can have devastating effects on those with compromised immune systems.
Flickr/Alex R
Every few weeks or months we see another outbreak of the potentially deadly legionella bacteria. Today, it’s a regional South Australian hospital, where 36 aged residents have been exposed to a contaminated…
When you’re sick with a cold, you’re likely to be told to rest and drink plenty of fluids – water, juice, tea and the old favourite, chicken soup.
This has been the prevailing advice for generations and…
It's wise to rug up outdoors but it won't stop you getting a cold.
Flickr/foshydog
By Merlin Thomas, Baker IDI Heart & Diabetes Institute
Colds are more common in the cold winter months. But does the weather have anything to do with why we get sick?
These days, we use other terms such as “virus” or “the flu” to describe our sniffles because…
People with chronic medical conditions and others in high-risk groups should get a flu shot.
mcfarlandmo/Wikimedia Commons
The number of people suffering from influenza in Australia this year has soared compared to recorded numbers from previous years, with nearly 8,000 cases so far compared to about 2,000 last year.
We don…
Preventing infection with the Hendra virus remains the most effective measure against the virus.
AAP
Queensland authorities came under attack yesterday for being unprepared for a Hendra virus outbreak after it was found that they’d only stocked 15 doses of virus antibodies.
But the case for stocking…
Vaccines are history's best public health tools but developing countries give low priority to health in their budgets.
AAP
The Lancet, one of most prestigious medical journals in the world recently published a series of five papers on “the new decade of vaccines”.
These were followed by a sixth paper – A call to action for…
The vaccine – which will be given to horses – is currently 18 months away.
AAP
As Queensland authorities confirm the third outbreak of Hendra virus within a week, researchers are moving to fast track a horse vaccination for the deadly virus, which can spread from horses to humans…
Animals aren't to blame – the bacteria came from humans.
The genomes of the recent German E. coli outbreak have revealed crucial insights into the origins of this deadly strain. The bacteria was found in German bean sprouts but it didn’t originate from the gut…
If most people in a community are vaccinated, others are also protected.
Sanofil Pasteur
Let’s be clear: immunisations matter. They matter a lot.
We all have a complex and ever-changing ecology of microorganisms and parasites inside our bodies and in our community.
A recent fatal case of…
Measles is one of the few infectious diseases for which elimination is possible.
USACE Europe District/flickr
Despite high vaccination rates, Australia and other developed countries periodically have small outbreaks of measles, as seen in the recent scares in Victoria and New South Wales.
Until about 40 years…
Radical approaches to drug discovery are required to combat superbugs.
Holmesgal/flickr
The rapid emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria, or “superbugs” is a critical global health issue. Paradoxically, while there is a compelling need for new antibiotics, their development has slowed…
Active surveillance would provide reassurance about the safety of the flu vaccine.
AAP
Today the Gillard Government released an independent assessment of Australia’s management of vaccine adverse events.
Commissioned by the Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Catherine King…
