freelance science journalist and author
Medical reporting
From ABC Health and Wellbeing, 17 January 2014: In the 15th century, an unknown Dominican friar penned Ars Moriendi, or The Art of Dying. At the time, it offered an immensely popular guide on the attainment of a ‘good death’ and spawned a rash of translations and copycats across Europe. One wonders what its author … Continue reading Is there a right way to approach death?
From ABC News in Science, 16 January 2014: Biodegradable microparticles could dramatically reduce the inflammatory damage that occurs during a heart attack, potentially making the difference between life and death. The study, conducted on mice, found that the microparticles significantly reduced the amount of scarring in the heart tissue and promoted repair. The serendipitous discovery … Continue reading Microparticles could reduce heart attack damage
From ABC Science, 2 December 2013: Faecal microbiota transplantation – also known as ‘faecal transplants’ – restores bacterial diversity and quickly relieves the symptoms of antibiotic-associated diarrhoea, according to a new study. Researchers compared the gut bacteria of 14 individuals who had Clostriduium difficile infection as a consequence of antibiotic treatment, before and after faecal … Continue reading Poop transplants boost gut defences
From Clinical Endocrinology News, 16 December 2013: MELBOURNE – Approximately half of adults who meet the eligibility for glucose testing according to four different guidelines are not being tested for type 2 diabetes, according to data from a large survey of U.S. adults. Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed data from … Continue reading Only half of at-risk adults being screened for diabetes
From Clinical Endocrinology News, 17 December 2013: MELBOURNE – Secure messaging can achieve similar outcomes in terms of behavioral goal achievement, self-reported health maintenance exam completion, and hemoglobin A1c level testing, compared with telephone and in-person support, new data suggest. A study of different methods of diabetes self-management support found no significant differences in outcomes … Continue reading Secure messaging viable for diabetes support
From Clinical Endocrinology News, 23 December 2013: MELBOURNE – Corneal nerve fiber length, measured using corneal confocal microscopy, is significantly reduced in individuals with type 1 diabetes who go on to develop diabetic neuropathy at 3 years, according to data from the longitudinal LANDMark study. Researchers found that corneal nerve fibre length was significantly lower … Continue reading Corneal nerve fiber loss may predict diabetic neuropathy
From Clinical Endocrinology News, 2 January 2014: MELBOURNE – Diabetic ketoacidosis was associated with swelling of white brain matter and shrinkage of gray matter, and the degree of change was associated with neurocognitive outcomes up to 6 months after the event, based on a study of children who were newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes … Continue reading Diabetic ketoacidosis without cerebral edema linked to neurocognitive changes
From Clinical Endocrinology News, 3 January 2014: MELBOURNE – A diagnosis of type 2 diabetes before age 50 was associated with an increased risk of microvascular complications, based on a secondary analysis of data from the international ADVANCE trial. In ADVANCE, the risk of microvascular complications, such as eye and kidney disease, increased with disease … Continue reading Microvascular complications increase with diabetes duration but not age
From ABC Health and Wellbeing, 5 December 2013: Like most first-time mothers, Sheridan had certain expectations of how the birth of her first child might go. Those expectations did not include giving birth to her baby nearly six weeks before her due date. Nor did they include a panicked ambulance trip to the nearest major … Continue reading Premature birth: why do some babies come early?
From ABC Health and Wellbeing, 10 November 2013: Over the years, the placebo has earned an unfair reputation as an instrument of medical fakery; a white lie to convince unsuspecting patients they are being treated when in fact their treatment is nothing more than a sugar pill or surgical sleight of hand. However growing evidence … Continue reading Placebos more effective than mere sugar pills
Bianca Nogrady 