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Alarm over Ross River virus

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A crisis meeting will be held next week to tackle growing concerns about Ross River virus in WA, as the number of cases of the mosquito-borne virus heads towards record levels.

In the past 12 months the Health Department has been notified of 1535 Ross River virus cases, up from 1137 the previous year.

This year 1173 cases have been recorded, just 201 short of the 1374 recorded in 2012, one of the worst years for the virus in WA.

Ahead of summer, historically the worst time for the virus, 130 of the State’s experts in mosquito-borne viruses and controlling the insects will meet in Mandurah on Monday to try to find ways to lower the levels of mosquitoes.

The three-day meeting comes after a consistent increase in cases of Ross River virus during the past two years.

Environmental health hazards managing scientist Michael Lindsay said researchers were monitoring trapped mosquitoes from Rockingham to Dunsborough and the department would alert the public once the first cases of the virus were traced, expected in the coming weeks.

“As we move into the warmer months we know historically that the risk of Ross River virus increases,” he said. “We certainly wouldn’t be able to tell people in the South West that there’s no need to worry, there’s no risk.

“We would be encouraging people to take precautions to avoid mosquito bites from now on. We can only set up so many traps and it may be out there already in low levels.”

Dr Lindsay said many of the reported cases were in Perth and a high proportion were in the South West, where most cases of the virus were usually recorded.

Former Australian Medical Association WA president Richard Choong, a general practitioner in Port Kennedy, where there were many cases of Ross River virus, said it was not always taken seriously because it was not life-threatening and often went unreported because sufferers mistook the symptoms for a cold.

Dr Lindsay said the department was also investigating whether an unseasonal surge in cases in the winter months – almost double last year’s cases – was caused by a warmer- than-average winter or a change in testing methods skewing results.

Dr Lindsay said long-range weather forecasts tipped lower than average rainfall for summer and lower sea levels, which it was hoped would reduce the saltmarsh mosquito breeding.

The most common symptoms or the virus include joint pain, fever and fatigue which typically last for up to six months, but can last for more than a year.

The department advises emptying water containers in outdoor seating areas and draining roof gutters to prevent mosquito breeding.

Using repellent and covering up to prevent bites is encouraged.

Natalie Brown The West Australian September 6, 2014

New priority for arthritis

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After nearly 40 years of campaigning by Shenton Park group Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA, a professorship dedicated to arthritis has been established at the University of WA.

Arthritic, systemic autoimmune and other bone and joint conditions cost Australia an estimated $24billion a year in medical care and lost productivity. Yet despite affecting an estimated one in 10 Australians, these conditions are still regarded as the poor relations of chronic disease.

It’s a situation Dutch rheumatology expert Johannes “Hans” Nossent hopes to turn around after being appointed inaugural chair of rheumatology and musculoskeletal medicine at UWA. Professor Nossent will train medical students, undertake clinical sessions at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital (SCGH) and spearhead research into rheumatic and musculoskeletal conditions in a five year $2.7million collaboration between UWA, SCGH and Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA.

Winthrop Professor Nossent said there was a remarkable and regret-table lack of services for patients with rheumatic conditions. He agreed the diseases were often misunderstood, with people in both the medical profession and the community dismissing them as the aches and pains of old age and something people simply had to put up with.

“Many do not appreciate that these are often very severe diseases that affect a wide range of people, including children and people in their 20s, 30s, 40s,” Professor Nossent said. “These are chronic conditions they will have to deal with for the rest of their lives, because we have no cure yet.”

Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA will contribute $962,269 to the five-year partnership, with SCGH contributing $996,100, and $747,889 from UWA.

Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA executive director Ric Forlano said the professorship would shine a much-needed spotlight on a suite of conditions which had been overlooked for too long.

New Vice Patron appointed

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Former Defence and Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen Smith will become Vice Patron of Arthritis and Osteoporosis WA.

Mr Smith will announce the role at a University Club of WA breakfast today.

Since retiring last year from a 20-year career in Federal politics, Mr Smith has been appointed Winthrop Professor of International Law at the University of WA, a board member of Perth USAsia Centre and a member of Lavan Legal’s advisory board.

Mr Smith said his latest appointment was the first that he did not have a background in. It is estimated 6.2 million Australians over age 50 will have osteoporosis by 2022, costing the economy $33.6 billion over the next decade.

Paracetamol warning – Arthritis Australia’s response

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Paracetamol, the most Common Household Medicine is Poisoning 150 Australians per Week

It’s the most common painkiller in every medicine cupboard but paracetamol is poisoning 8,000 Aussies a year.

More than 150 patients a week are hospitalised as a result of paracetamol poisoning and experts say the problem is on the rise.

A new study has found paracetamol is now responsible for one in five deliberate poisoning cases that present to hospital emergency departments around Australia. read more

Arthritis Australia’s Response to Media Coverage about Paracetamol

Paracetamol is the most frequently used analgesic for the relief of pain in people with arthritis. Taken in advised doses paracetamol is relatively safe medication.

However, recent studies highlight that – despite common perceptions, paracetamol has little or no side effects – taken in excess, there is real concern for toxicity, especially affecting the liver. These concerns echo similar concerns raised by the main regulatory body in the US, the Food and Drug Authority (FDA), who have recommended a maximal daily dose of 3.2gm as opposed to the 4gm commonly recommended.

Part of the challenge is that paracetamol is frequently in cold and flu remedies that people may take in addition to their regular analgesia, and therefore, accidental over-dosage is not unusual. These concerns over toxicity have been compounded by studies of paracetamol that suggest modest efficacy in the relief of pain and to the extent that it is no longer recommended as first-line medication management for the relief of osteoarthritis pain (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24462672

There are many other options for the management of osteoarthritis pain; call The Arthritis Helpline on 1800 011 041.

New immune cell ‘could help to combat autoimmune disease’

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US scientists have identified a new means of manipulating the immune system in a way that could be used to combat various autoimmune conditions. According to the University of California – San Francisco (UCSF) research, a new and distinctive type of immune cell called eTACs could be the key to preventing the body from attacking its own cells and causing the symptoms of diseases such as type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis.

Since eTACs have a natural dampening effect on immune responses, the team was able to modify them to prevent the destruction of the pancreas in a test mouse affected by diabetes, with results from the study published in the medical journal Immunity.The team is now hoping to develop new ways of exploiting eTACs therapeutically by finding out how to grow them in large quantities outside the body.

Immunologist Dr Mark Anderson, a professor with the UCSF Diabetes Center and the lead researcher on this study, said: “We need to figure out how to grow a lot of these cells, to load them up with whatever molecule it is that we want to induce tolerance to, and then to load them back into a patient.”This could allow doctors to use these therapies in future to shut down any unwanted immune responses within the body.It would prove an ideal solution for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, a disease characterised by immune cells attacking the tissue lining the joints, resulting in swelling, stiffness and pain, and eventual damage to the cartilage and joint itself, in addition to nearby bone. –

See more at: http://www.arthritisresearchuk.org/news/general-news/2013/september/new-immune-cell-could-help-to-combat-autoimmune-disease.aspx#sthash.1Be4i7mx.dpuf

Address specialist shortages to avoid disability associated with rheumatoid arthritis

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Posted on: 29/05/2013

Specialist shortages are creating unacceptable delays in initiating the early treatment for people with rheumatoid arthritis that is critical to avoid permanent joint deformity and disability, according to Arthritis Australia.

“We can’t reverse the joint damage caused by rheumatoid arthritis, but with the treatments we have now, we have a good chance of preventing it if we start treatment within 3-6 months of symptom onset,” said Professor Patrick McNeil, President of Arthritis Australia, responding to a report on the condition released by the AIHW today.

“Despite this, we know that people are waiting up to two years to start treatment in some parts of Australia, especially in rural Queensland, because they can’t get in to see a rheumatologist,” he said.

“Consequently they are facing permanent disability that could have been avoided,” Professor McNeil said. “This is just inexcusable.”

“There is also a huge cost to society because rheumatoid arthritis is most commonly diagnosed in people in their 40’s and 50’s, the prime of their working lives, but without effective early treatment, many have to withdraw from the workforce due to the pain and disability caused by the condition.

“We need immediate government action to address critical specialist shortages in Queensland and in rural areas and we also need to up-skill GPs so that they recognise the early symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and understand how critical it is to get an early referral for specialist treatment,” Professor McNeil said.

“People who are experiencing painful, swollen and tender joints should also ensure that they consult a health professional as soon as possible.”

Rheumatoid arthritis is a severe autoimmune form of arthritis that causes very painful swelling and stiffness of the joints and affects 428,000 Australians. The disease can vary significantly in presentation and course, making diagnosis and treatment a complex and dynamic process requiring specialist care.