Dr Feelgood Saturday 15th March 2003

DISEASE OF THE WEEK 

ENDOMETRIOSIS

Endometriosis is a debilitating gynaecological condition that often goes undiagnosed. Too many women accept painful periods as "their lot". While endometriosis is not always the cause it is a diagnosis that warrants consideration, as treatment is available. I have written a detailed article on the topic which you can read by clicking HERE

Dr Jim Tsaltas is a gynaecologist who's special interest if endoscopic ( keyhole) surgery and in particular management of endometriosis. He will be joining me today to take your calls on this confusing topic

http://www.endometriosisassn.org/ The American Endometriosis support group has excellent information

http://www.ivf.com/endohtml.html This is another American Health information site with very upto date and comprehensive info – a bit more scientific.

http://www.ecca.com.au/ A new Australian Endometriosis group headed by Professor Carl Wood one of the pioneers of IVF in Australia. Click on their "information button" for good info and pics of Endo

http://www.endometriosis.org.au/ Endometriosis association of Australia . This group has been working hard for years to raise awareness of the condition and give support to sufferers.

HEALTHY WORK PLACES 

THE IMPORTANCE OF CHOOSING THE RIGHT CHAIR

These days more and more of our time at work is spent sitting at a desk using a computer and if you take a look around at the way people sit at their desks it is no wonder that so many people complain about back and neck pain. When people think of the Workcover organization they often think of injuries. But this organization is very proactive in prevention of work place injuries and has all sorts of programs to reduce injury in the work environment. One such important area is seating ergonomics. Elizabeth Pratt is a Work Safe Inspector and Ergonomist . She provides expert advice to workplace interventions under WorkSafe's Strategy 2000. As part of her role, Elizabeth provides advice on a variety of health and safety issues - manual handling, compliance with OHS legislation and the practical application of ergonomics to reduce the risk of injury in industry. Liz will join me to discuss how you can improve your health by choosing the right chair !

Please visit the Victorian WorkCover Authority's information area with some ideas about seating at work. www.workcover.vic.gov.au/vwa/alerts.nsf/pages/Use+of+the+fitness+ball+as+a+chair

HEALTHY PARKS HEALTHY PEOPLE 

As Victorians we own 6 million hectares of magnificent parkland. It our heritage and we should get into it ! I have been working with Parks Victoria for a few years now on their wonderful project Healthy Parks Healthy People. We encourage people to view parks as a great place to improve their health - mind body and spirit. There are many parks hidden in suburban areas allowing us all green escape, as well as huge expanses of untouched wilderness protected and cared for by legislation that will preserve it for generations to come. 

Last October we launched our World's Greatest Pram Stroll event at Albert Park lake where over 700 mums and babies ,dads and grandparents turned up to walk around the lake to raise awareness of the problems some new mothers face with social isolation after child birth. Champion swimmer and then, new mum, Linsday Frame lead the stroll ! The aim of the project was to encourage mums (and dads) to form walking groups in local parks and take a stroll with their baby amongst the soothing noises of nature. We pointed out that even if the baby was crying that's a nature nose too !

Lee Naylor, champion athlete and mum is a supporter of Healthy Parks Healthy People. Indeed she was involved in the initial launch of the project two years sgo in her capacity as ambassador for Asthma Awareness.

For information about Healthy Parks Healthy People please go to http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/1hphp.cfm

 for information on the World's Greatest Pram Stroll please go to http://www.parkweb.vic.gov.au/hphp_story0.cfm

HORMONES AND MENTAL HEALTH

 Professor Jayashri Kulkarni is director of Psychiatry Research at the Alfred hospital. Much of her research looks at the relationship between hormones and mental illness. She is finding that manipulation of hormone levels in particular oestrogen may influence symptoms of such conditions as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. She joins me to discuss this fascinating area.

Read an article in the Herald Sun on Prof Kulkarni's research http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,6035436%255E24331,00.html 

visit the Monash University Faculty of Medicine Nursing and Health Sciences Department of Psychological Medicine http://www.med.monash.edu.au/psychmed/ 

(note this site lists Prof Kulkarni as working at Dandenong Hospital - she is now at The Alfred http://www.alfred.org.au/index.html  but their site is not, at this time, updated to include this info )

SCIENCE CELEBRITIES 

AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR 

Professor Fiona Stanley

We spoke with Professor Stanley on Australia Day when she was announced as Australian of the Year. She is the founding Director of the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research that was established in Perth in 1990. The Institute is multi-disciplinary and researches prevention of major childhood illnesses. It currently has more than 300 employees. Professor Stanley is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth, a national organisation that was formally constituted in June 2002 with an agenda to improve the health and well-being of young Australians. Professor Stanley's career has focussed on the importance of using population data and research to provide significant health, social and economic benefits to the community. Her research work involves conducting and supervising studies in maternal and child health. Main areas include § strategies to enhance health and well-being in populations § the causes and prevention of birth defects and major neurological disorders particularly the cerebral palsies § the causes and lifelong consequences of low birth weight and other pre- and postnatal problems § patterns of maternal and child health in Aboriginal and Caucasian populations. In 1977 her group of researchers established the WA Maternal and Child Health Research Data Base. It is a unique collection of data on births from the entire state so that the research has a whole of population (and hence an unbiased) approach. It is an effective resource for describing trends in maternal and child health and the effect of preventive programs.

Please visit Prof Stanley's website at the Telethon Institute of Child Health Research at University of Western Australia http://www.ichr.uwa.edu.au/about/intro.html

PROCEDURE OF THE WEEK

TREATMENT FOR SEVERE FACIAL BLUSHING AND SWEATING

In medicine we are never satisfied to call things by simple names so Idiopathic Craniofacial Erythema is a complicated name for abnormal facial blushing. Facial blushing is mediated by a special part of the nervous system which is involved with temperature regulation as well as "fight fright" responses - The Autonomic Nervous system, and in particular the "sympathetic nervous system" - and there is nothing sympathetic about this system when it causes you to blush or sweat excessively. For some people these problems can cause social issues that impede their lives. Dr Chris Hensman is a surgeon who has a special interest in the management of sympathetic nervous system dysfunction and he has good news for people with the problem of uncontrollable, severe Facial Blushing. He says it can now be radically treated. The simple procedure, called ETS (Endoscopic Transthoracic Sympathicotomy), is performed under general anaesthesia. The procedure simply involves inserting a small endoscope as well as an electro-cautery device into the thoracic cavity and interrupting the nervous supply to the small blood vessels of the face. Dr Hensman joins me to day along with a patient who has had the treatment to discuss it and take your calls.

The following site has excellent information about excessive facial blushing and sweating http://www.hyperhidrosis.com/

HEALTHY EATING

TEAGE EZARD

To find out that Teage Ezard's cooking career began with an apprentice ship under Hermann Schneider at Two Faces would immediately make any Australian who loves food realise that this man would be destined for great things. And great things are exactly what Teage has gone on to do. He was head Chef at Guernica restaurant for 5 years where he won many awards . His own restaurant Ezard at Adelphi in Melbourne's CBD won best new restaurant in 2001 and has gone on to achieve 3 chefs hats each year since from the Age Good Food Guide. It's fabulous to have home grown Teage defining his food as "Australian free style", taking the best of our multicultural Melbourne and creating colourful culinary delights. We know that Melbourne is the food capital of the world but stamping food as Australian and proud of it means we have come of age !

Teage has just released his first fabulous Cook Book entitled EZARD

Please visit Teage's website http://www.ezard.com.au/

 see what Mietta's restaurant guide has to say about Ezard at Adelphi http://www.miettas.com/restaurants/guide2002/vic/melbourne_cbd/ezard_at_adelphi487302.html

LOVE YOUR WORK

 HIDDEN TREASURE IN THE HILLS - PUFFING BILLY

There wouldn't be many Melbournians who haven't experienced a ride on Puffing Billy when they were a Kid - I recall as a child we packed up the car and travelled for what seemed ages every May School Holidays to my grandfathers country property at Emerald - It seems strange that Emerald is now an outer suburb and only a short drive of 40 Km along the freeway. I must have done the ride from Belgrave to Emerald hundreds of times as a kid. The Puffing Billy line is a wonderful treasure we have here in Melbourne. It certainly worth revisiting. For a small group of people Puffing Billy preservation is a passion. The historic steam trains that take you back in time are no plastic tourist them park . These trains were work horses in their day, but now under the loving care of the Puffing Billy Preservation society the engines are polished and the passengers are enjoying fine dining or celebrating a wedding or just enjoying a leisurely trip through rainforest on route to a picnic at Emerald lake.

Please visit the Puffing Billy site and relive your childhood - or make someone else's childhood a little better by introducing them to something tangible from our past. Alan Gardner is a Puffing Billy driver and he'll be telling us about his work For general enquiries about Puffing Billy phone - 03 9754 6800 Please visit the Puffing Billy website : www.puffingbilly.com.au