Shingles is a nasty recurrence of the chickenpox virus resulting in extreme pains on one side of the body, followed by a stripe of bubbly rash. Sometimes the pains never go away, and other complications can follow. It is also contagious for chickenpox – if you have...
Sometimes contact with fairly mundane household items can have devastating consequences for kids. Years ago when I was working on my own in an isolated emergency department I pulled a thin plastic bottle cap out of a blue infant’s throat. It must have happened in...
Prior to jetting off on holidays it is a good idea to check in with your GP to ensure your travel is not marred by avoidable illness. Conditions such as malaria and typhoid are typical diseases that can be encountered overseas and are preventable with a little forward...
The two most common types of meningococcal disease, B and C, can be prevented by vaccination. When I was a medical student it was a sad reality in paeds wards to see the aftermath of meningitis – young kids missing limbs, vision, hearing, or learning to eat and talk...
Australian families rejoice – we have the lowest death rate from cervical cancer of anywhere in the world. This results from frequent pap tests (which detect changes that precede cancer by up to 10 years) and a great public health system that provides treatment for...
Head injuries are a very common ‘urgent fit-in’ at our practice. They run the gamut from minor scratches and bumps to injuries causing permanent brain injury. In children even minor head injuries can have quite significant consequences, and so all head injuries are...
