Explore the Pomegranate Health Podcast library
Browse all episodes below, starting with the most recent releases.
Latest episodes
Ep138: Amyloid busters- the benefit and the burden
Australia has approved a two amyloid-targeting therapies for incipient Alzheimer’s dementia but both remain unfunded. We put the research outcomes into context and discuss the implications of the burdensome treatment regimen for the health system.
[Case Report] 52yo with hand clumsiness after Chiari operation
52-year-old female presenting with clumsiness and paresthesia of the right hand had three weeks prior undergone a suboccipital craniotomy for a Chiari malformation. She had accompanying headaches, but there was a past medical history of migraines and a family history of a Factor V Leiden mutation.
[Journal Club] Thrombolysis up to 24hr after ischaemic stroke
Thrombolysis can buy valuable time for patients who experience acute ischaemic stroke but two thirds of them present outside the recommended window. A recently published study shows that tenecteplase improves outcomes in selected patients even if administered up to 24 hours from onset of a large vessel occlusion.
Ep61: Delirium Part 2- Prevention and Management
Delirium can be precipirated by a host of environmental triggers that are highly modifiable. Anything that contributes to a person’s disorientation and discomfort can increase the likelihood of a delirium episode. While a lot of these factors are compounded in elderly and frail patients, delirium can be reversed in a majority of patients by non-pharmacological means.
Ep60: Delirium Part 1- Detection and Causes
Delirium is an acute disturbance of consciousness, attention, cognition or perception. It’s associated with an increased risk of falls, dementia and high dependency care, and all of this adds up to higher mortality. About a third of patients admitted to ICU or approaching the end of life, experience delirium. But it’s notoriously underdiagnosed, so in this episode we talk about the presentations and detection of delirium. We also go through some of the medical and iatrogenic risk factors.
Ep45: Medical Fitness to Drive
Clinicians are drawn into the question of driving fitness in two main ways. The more clearcut is when a patient presents with a medical assessment form. The other is when they detect a new or worsening condition in a patient who is already licenced. Clinicians are expected to warn their patients off driving, and to potentially report them to the DLA if this advice isn’t being heeded. In this podcast we hear about some of the diagnoses that should raise red flags, and how to discuss cessation from driving with patients.
Ep33: Early Days for Cannabis Therapy
Cannabis is a plant rich with potential therapeutic compounds and centuries of cultural resonance. However, only a few of the claimed medical effects of the plant have been proven by rigorous clinical trials in people. These include spasticity and pain in multiple sclerosis, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting and some cases of epilepsy. But for many other conditions, systematic reviews have concluded that meaningful clinical recommendations cannot be made. In this episode, we explain how important it is to separate the effect of various cannabinoids in a systematic way, and why well-regulated research and prescribing will be safer for patients.
Ep4: Stem Cell Therapies Today
This month we’re presenting an overview of stem cell research—looking at ongoing clinical trials for stem cell therapy around the world, and the current treatments available in Australia and New Zealand.