Australian Doctor

1 day ago | ausdoc.com.au | Mohana Basu

More than 30 pain medicine societies are calling on The BMJ to retract a clinical practice guideline that advises against interventional procedures for chronic spine pain. The guideline, part of the BMJ Rapid Recommendations series, recommends that procedures such as epidural injections of anaesthetic or steroids should not be offered to adults with chronic axial or radicular spine pain that is not associated with cancer or inflammatory arthropathy, outside of clinical trials.

3 days ago | ausdoc.com.au | Mohana Basu

Most patients with carotid stenosis of 50% or more at low to medium risk of further stroke could be spared from revascularisation, a groundbreaking study has found. The randomised trial across 30 stroke centres in Canada and Europe found no evidence that adding carotid endarterectomy or stenting to optimised medical therapy improved outcomes in the two years following a stroke.

6 days ago | ausdoc.com.au | Heather Saxena

Change is difficult to accept at both ends of life.   I once witnessed (via video chat) my grandson, then aged two-and-a-half, arrive home from childcare saying he was sad.   × If this is your first visit to the new AusDoc website, reset your password here. Remember MeForgot Password?

1 week ago | ausdoc.com.au | Rachel Carter

The high-profile Canberra practice placed in voluntary administration two weeks ago will reopen, at least in the short term, under a deal with an unnamed private operator. But the practice, which universally bulk-billed its 4900 patients and offers drug and alcohol services as well as gender-affirming care, has also secured a pledge of a further $3.8 million from the Federal Government to keep it afloat long-term.

1 week ago | ausdoc.com.au | Mohana Basu

Draft prostate cancer screening guidelines aim to shift away from discretionary testing by individual doctors and towards a more organised approach, with earlier testing using less invasive methods. The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia proposals include key changes relating to earlier testing, the inclusion of additional risk factors, absolute PSA thresholds and use of MRI before biopsy in those with elevated PSA levels (see summary at the end).