Many people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease are diagnosed at a late stage of the condition where it has already caused significant damage to the lungs. COPD is an umbrella term which includes chronic bronchitis and emphysema and the single largest cause is smoking. There are many reasons why diagnosis is late, including the fact […]
In the 21st century, tobacco consumption will kill a billion people if not tackled seriously. Due to the global population rise and a shift of main tobacco consumers from the Global North to the Global South, the figures of affected people are rising too – unfortunately this is impacting the socially and economically less adaptable. […]
As a mum of three, I know just how dirty a family car can get. My children are grown up now but I remember long car journeys from where we lived in St Albans all the way to Cornwall on holiday. It was the usual happy chaos, with the kids fighting for legroom, the dog […]
In some quarters, fertility continues to be seen as a contentious medical issue, which in turn leads some patients to approach treatment with trepidation. Whilst it remains true that fertility treatment can be a complex process, as a scientist in the field, I feel that as a medical speciality huge strides have been made in […]
As-salamu alaykum! (“May peace be upon you” in Arabic). This is the common greeting heard here in Bokoro, a town about 300 km east of N’Djamena, the capital of Chad. Bokoro is in central Chad, in the southernmost part of the Sahal belt of Africa, so it is an extremely hot, dry, desert climate with […]
Around 100,000 people in the UK have facial palsy which can be caused by traumatic injury, damage after an operation, or simply because of a virus. Bell’s palsy, which can affect anyone at any time of life, is due to a virus which paralyses the muscle. Up to 28,400 people are diagnosed with this each […]
Women who give birth to a healthy baby in the UK are routinely offered a routine six-week follow-up appointment. This allows medics to screen for post-natal depression, which can then be treated. It’s a sad fact but your mental health only seems to matter if you have a successful pregnancy. For women who suffer a […]
Bonfire night celebrations are great fun for adults and kids alike. Unfortunately, darkness, fireworks, trailing fancy dress costumes and undercooked bangers can be a hazardous combination. According to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, around 1000 people end up in hospital every year due to injuries caused by fireworks in the four week […]
‘Many of my patients are experienced frequent fliers who develop a phobia of flying after spending decades hopping on and off shuttles, and who have previously found air travel no different to any other travel mode like a bus, train or boat. They tend to cite something I call ‘the cat with nine lives’ syndrome. […]
We all need to sleep, and lack of sleep is linked to depression, behavioural disorders and some of our leading preventable diseases including obesity, heart disease and diabetes. According to a recent poll of 2000 adults by the Royal Society for Public Health, we only get an average of 6.8 hours a night, far less […]