Let the risk factors take flightMEDICAL MATTERS: About five years ago, there was a degree of media excitement concerning a possible link between air travel …Tue Apr 11 2006 - 01:00
Clinical trial split into four categoriesThe adverse reactions experienced by six healthy volunteers during a new drug trial at the clinical pharmacology research unit…Tue Apr 04 2006 - 01:00
Toxic side effects of drugsMedical Matters: "Man has an inborn craving for medicine..Tue Mar 21 2006 - 00:00
Surgical answer to obesityMEDICAL MATTERS: Anne Diamond, the TV presenter who has publicly battled a weight problem, was recently criticised after she…Tue Feb 21 2006 - 00:00
How best to get patients to take pillsMEDICAL MATTERS: I first became aware that patients did not always take their medication when, as an intern, I was presented…Tue Feb 14 2006 - 00:00
Stroke care must improveMedical Matters: The serious and life-threatening stroke suffered by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon earlier this month…Tue Jan 31 2006 - 00:00
Survey reveals mixed lifestyle habitsThe College Lifestyle and Attitudinal National (CLAN) Survey of more than 3,200 undergraduate students in full-time third-level…Tue Jan 17 2006 - 00:00
Too many rules could stifle a doctor's wisdomMEDICAL MATTERS: As the Department of Health and the Health Service Executive (HSE) begin to negotiate new contracts for both…Tue Jan 10 2006 - 00:00
Not for the fat, 40 and fertileMEDICAL MATTERS: In response to a request from a reader, this week's column will look at gallstones and the related condition…Tue Dec 13 2005 - 00:00
Forecasting a better health serviceMedical Matters : 'Whoever wishes to investigate medicine properly, should proceed thus: in the first place consider the season…Tue Dec 06 2005 - 00:00
Pros and cons of screeningMedical Matters: The news that the forthcoming national cancer strategy will recommend the extension of breast cancer screening…Tue Nov 22 2005 - 00:00
Caring for the survivorsMEDICAL MATTERS: One of the best medical "good news" stories of the past couple of decades is the steady increase in the number…Tue Nov 08 2005 - 00:00
Gout no longer strikes only wealthyMedical Matters: What do Michelangelo, Alexander the Great, Kubla Khan and Henry VIII have in common? They all suffered from…Tue Nov 01 2005 - 00:00
Never say never in medicineMEDICAL MATTERS: The award of the 2005 Nobel Prize for Medicine to two Australian doctors for their discovery of a bacterium…Tue Oct 25 2005 - 01:00
Explaining without scaringMedical Matters: Explaining risks to patients has become a central part of medical practiceTue Sept 13 2005 - 01:00
Listening to patients' narrativesMedical Matters : Somewhere amid the politics of healthcare and the ongoing debate about improving our health system are patients…Tue Sept 06 2005 - 01:00
Living with the effects of a strokeMEDICAL MATTERS: Of the many unpleasant aspects of having a stroke, the impairment or loss of speech must be one of the most…Tue Jul 26 2005 - 01:00
Asthma is not for laughsMedical Matters: For those of us who do not suffer from asthma, there is understandably a perception that winter is the worst…Tue Jul 19 2005 - 01:00
Attend to in-flight healthMEDICAL MATTERS: The recent successful re-enactment of the first transatlantic flight achieved by Alcock and Brown in 1919 was…Tue Jul 12 2005 - 01:00
Abandoned for blowing the whistleMEDICAL MATTERS: Who would be a whistleblower? In one US study, 100 per cent of whistleblowers lost their jobsTue Jul 05 2005 - 01:00
What does the future hold for Elan's troubled drug?Now that the dust has settled on the sudden withdrawal by Elan of its new Multiple Sclerosis (MS) treatment, Tysabri, the question…Fri Mar 04 2005 - 00:00
Doctors critical of plan to move mental hospitalThe Irish College of Psychiatrists (ICP), along with patient representatives, have strongly criticised Government plans to transfer…Tue Feb 01 2005 - 00:00
Harney set to drive reformsThe Tánaiste, Ms Harney, has said her main focus during her term as Minister for Health is to sort out accident and emergency…Tue Jan 04 2005 - 00:00
Coming home to the bluesMedical Matters: No one has ever arrived into my consulting room and announced, "I'm suffering from the post-holiday blues."Tue Aug 24 2004 - 01:00
Quantum leap for treatmentMEDICAL MATTERS: It is not often that a major breakthrough in the treatment of a particular disease is madeTue Aug 10 2004 - 01:00
Doctors' new work times come into effect tomorrowThe EU Working Time Directive which limits the working hours of junior doctors comes into effect in the State tomorrow.Sat Jul 31 2004 - 01:00
In-flight medical dramasMedical Matters: Flying off in the coming weeks for your annual get-away-from-it-all break? As a mode of transport, flying is…Tue Jun 15 2004 - 01:00
Pharmacists promote 'cholesterol' drugsPharmacists have called on the Government to allow the supply of cholesterol-lowering drugs to patients without prescription.Thu May 13 2004 - 01:00
Doctors and sexMedical Matters: I have been reminded recently by a number of readers of topics that they would like to see covered in this …Tue May 04 2004 - 01:00
New IMO head warns of threat to patient careThe incoming president of the Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) has warned that a general practice manpower crisis is threatening…Tue Apr 13 2004 - 01:00
A gentle approachMedical Matters: Now that the smoking ban has finally been implemented, it looks as if our rapidly rising levels of obesity …Tue Mar 30 2004 - 01:00
No plan for EU-wide smoke ban lawEU: The EU Commissioner for Health and Consumer Protection, Mr David Byrne, will not introduce community-wide legislation on…Thu Feb 26 2004 - 00:00
20% of blood given cannot be usedMore than one in five blood donations offered during 2003 were rejected due to disease-related restrictions, according to the…Mon Jan 19 2004 - 00:00
First aid training urged for school PE teachersNo PE teacher with up-to-date first aid training is available in one-third of schools in Northern Ireland and the Republic, a…Fri Sept 12 2003 - 01:00
Rate of hysterectomies well above norm, report foundThe statistical evidence put before the Fitness to Practise Committee (FTPC) of the Medical Council as part of its investigation…Thu Sept 04 2003 - 01:00
'Undue haste' to remove womb of woman (20)Case Study: Patient G was a 20-year-old woman in her first pregnancyThu Sept 04 2003 - 01:00
Install tachometers to curb ministerial speeding, say doctorsIMO conference: Doctors at the annual meeting of the Irish Medical Organisation have called for the installation of tachometers…Fri Apr 25 2003 - 01:00
Centre follows EU guidelines on SARSAmid concerns that airline passengers have contracted Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) during a flight from Hong Kong…Thu Mar 27 2003 - 00:00
Physiotherapists criticise slow pace of planThe Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists (ISCP) has expressed concern over the slow pace of implementation of the Government…Mon Dec 30 2002 - 00:00
Minister approves plan for 10 primary care teamsIn the first tangible development since the announcement of the primary care health strategy last November, the Minister for …Wed Oct 09 2002 - 01:00
Drinking just the one to your healthRecent studies show that one in four of us are drinking alcohol at a level likely to damage our healthMon Sept 23 2002 - 01:00
How letters can spell a better level of treatmentMEDICAL MATTERS: Have you ever wondered what a doctor writes about you, the patient? Look at any chart or electronic record …Mon Jun 24 2002 - 01:00
Getting down to the boneBone fracture patients with the debilitating and potentially fatal condition of osteoporosis are slipping through the health …Mon Mar 25 2002 - 00:00
Body of evidenceHave you considered donating your remains to medical science? There is a constant demand for bodies, and you'd be repaying a …Mon Feb 18 2002 - 00:00
10% are affected by clinical depressionClinical depression affects 10 per cent of the populationFri Feb 01 2002 - 00:00
A condition that's hard to spot, easy to treatThe thyroid gland was once described as the conductor of the body's orchestraMon Jan 28 2002 - 00:00
How doctors consider depression treatmentWhat an interesting reaction to my column on depression, of December 17thMon Jan 21 2002 - 00:00
Why prayers and mantras can help you feel betterWe probably pray most fervently when we feel threatened by catastrophe or illnessMon Jan 07 2002 - 00:00
Drug trial gives hope for breast cancerIn the largest breast cancer trial undertaken, researchers have found a more effective treatment for early stage breast cancer…Tue Dec 11 2001 - 00:00
Anxious, depressed, ignorant and unhealthyAre men the new women? This was the question posed by a journalist writing in Canada's leading newspaper, the Globe And Mail, …Mon Dec 03 2001 - 00:00
