Vol 136 No 1572: 24 March 2023

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Issue Summary

Article

SUMMARY

Treatment outcomes of adult acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in Auckland, New Zealand

Stephen Hong Chun Wong, Maryanne Offner, Rong Hu, Claire Hemmaway

This paper looks at the treatment outcomes of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in Auckland City Hospital, which treats patients from most of the North Island. The survival outcomes of young adults are comparable to international standards (more than 80% of those treated will survive up to 3 years). However, adults and Māori and Pacific Islanders may have poorer survival compared to other countries. Increasing availability of newer drugs will improve outcomes.

Article

SUMMARY

Colonic Investigation following acute diverticulitis in Northland, New Zealand

Josh Tiro, Olivia Lengyel, Matthew James McGuinness, Christopher Harmston

Previous studies have suggested that up to 10% of patients with acute diverticulitis may have an underlying bowel cancer. Our study shows that patients who were admitted with acute diverticulitis in Northland had a low rate of bowel cancer found on investigation in the 2 years following their admission. However, we found a low rate of investigations of patients in Northland compared to previous studies. Larger studies may be needed to help guide how we investigate this group of patients in the future.

Article

SUMMARY

Alcohol-related presentations to emergency departments on Crate Day in Waikato, New Zealand

Ishani B Soysa, Alexander C Brebner, Dyfed Thomas, Elizabeth Becker

Crate Day is of public health concern because of the potential alcohol-related harm due to an increase in alcohol consumption in a high-risk way and which is likely to be distributed unevenly across society. It also could cause indirect harm through consumption of scarce healthcare resource and the associated cost of delaying other patients’ care. This study aims to describe the pattern of emergency department (ED) alcohol-related presentations (ARPs) on Crate Day in the Waikato and the findings suggest such relationship between Crate Day and ARPs, which varies between different population groups.

Article

SUMMARY

Is success written in the stars? The effect of zodiac sign on the outcome of total knee arthroplasty

Christian JH Peacock, Irrum Afzal, Vipin Asopa, Nick D Clement, David H Sochart

There are 12 signs of the zodiac, each attributed with its own specific personality traits, desires and attitudes. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of zodiac sign on patient-reported outcome measures following total knee replacement. We identified 509 patients undergoing total knee replacement during a 2-year period, and collected data including patient demographics, patient-reported outcome measures and patient satisfaction scores. Each patient’s zodiac sign was assigned from their date of birth. Our study found that zodiac sign was associated with outcome following TKA and shows that an individual’s zodiac sign may serve as a useful predictive factor for functional outcomes and satisfaction following knee replacement.

Article

SUMMARY

Impacts of the COVID-19 lockdown on self-reported mood and self-rated health of community-dwelling adults with chronic illness | OPEN ACCESS

Gary Cheung, Claudia Rivera-Rodriguez, Brigid Ryan, Adrian Martinez Ruiz, Etuini Ma’u, Ange Bissielo, Brigette Meehan, Vanessa Burholt

The aim of this work was to determine whether the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown affected the self-reported mood or self-rated health of people with chronic illness in Aotearoa. We analysed data that is routinely collected from all New Zealanders who live at home and have medical and support needs. Unexpectedly, we found that in some demographic groups, self-reported mood and self-rated health increased following the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown.

Viewpoint

SUMMARY

Empagliflozin and dulaglutide: community awareness project promotes improved access to newly funded medications for Pacific patients with type 2 diabetes

Gerhard Sundborn, Fale Lesa, Graham King, Kate Vennell, Henry Kozak, Karen Pickering, John Baker

In 2021, Pharmac funded two new drugs for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (Jardiance & Trulicity) that offer significant advantages over current medications. The Diabetes Foundation Aotearoa conducted a “grass roots” community awareness campaign tailored primarily to the Pasifika community. This direct-to-consumer marketing approach was effective in increasing community health awareness and uptake of the new medicines.

Research Letter

SUMMARY

Prevalence of anaemia in acutely unwell infants

Ji Young Park, Cameron C Grant

Anaemia is a common health problem in young children, being present in about 40% of preschool aged children globally. Previous studies have shown that anaemia is common in young children in New Zealand. A group of children at higher risk of anaemia are infants hospitalised with an acute infection. In this study of children admitted with an acute illness to the general paediatric service at Starship Children’s Hospital in 2019, anaemia was present in 71/235 (31%) children. For only a small proportion of the children with anaemia (5/71, 7%) was anaemia identified as a problem in the hospital discharge summary. Better surveillance for anaemia among young children hospitalised with acute illnesses is required.

Editorial