The Medical journal of Australia
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To assess glycaemic control, anthropometry and insulin regimens in a national sample of Australian children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes. ⋯ Most Australian children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes are not meeting the recognised HbA1c target. The prevalence of overweight and obesity is high. There is an urgent need to identify barriers to achieving optimal glycaemic control in this population.
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There is an ongoing investigation into infections with non-tuberculous mycobacteria associated with contaminated heater-cooler units used in cardiac surgery. The overall risk is low, but surgical site and disseminated infections have been reported, including one possible case in Australia, mainly with surgery involving implantation of prosthetic material. ⋯ If cases are confirmed or heater-cooler devices are found to be contaminated, details should be reported to the hospital infection control team, the jurisdictional health department, the Therapeutic Goods Administration and the Australian distributor of the affected heater-cooler unit(s). Measures to manage risk should include communicating with relevant hospital departments, ensuring that the manufacturer's updated instructions for use are followed, regular testing of machines, and reviewing the location of machines when in use.
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To determine the extent to which physical activity reduces the number of hospital bed-days for Australians over 55, using an objective measure of activity. ⋯ More active people require less hospital care, and an achievable extra 4300 steps per day would result in an average of one less day in hospital for each 3 years of life.