Health & Living

Only a month into 2016 and we have seen more than 10,000 dengue cases that resulted in at least 23 deaths. Is there a new dengue strain? Will the El Nino make the outbreak worse? What about the dengue vaccine? These questions and more were explored during this panel discussion with Prof Emeritus Dr Lam Sai Kit, Asia Pacific Steering Committee for Dengue Vaccine to Vaccination Programme; Dr Milton...

Dr George Lee returns to discuss the latest medical news. Focusing on Aedes mosquito-borne diseases, he is joined by the Head of Vector-Borne Disease Sector from the Health Ministry, Dr Rose Nani Mudin to learn more about the Zika virus that is spreading fast across South America. They will also touch on two other diseases spread by the Aedes mosquito – chikungunya and dengue – which a...

“Who am I?” “Where do I belong?” These are a couple of questions children may ask as they begin to have a sense of personal identity. Identity formation is a process that begins from young. While it is a complex subject, the social environment plays a huge role in influencing the identity development in children. To help us understand it better is Consultant Developmental P...

Elite senior marathoners may be giving their younger counterparts a run for their money. A new study published in American Journal of Physiology examines if their impressive fitness has anything to do with their muscles not ageing. Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon, Dr Harjeet Singh, shares how older persons can continue to remain active without injuries. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy infor...

Last year, a British Paralympian hopeful who had been in a wheelchair for four years was told that she could no longer compete because her disability is psychological rather than physical. She is suffering from a condition called conversion disorder. This rare disorder causes people to suffer from neurological symptoms such as paralysis without an identifiable physical cause. Consultant Neuropsych...

A controversial negotiation has come this far. Since we last checked in with Policy Manager at the Malaysian AIDS Council, Fifa Rahman, on the TPP, a lot has taken place: TPP documents were released to the public, the Dewan Rakyat sitting to discuss the TPP is scheduled for January 26 and 27, and the Ministry of International Trade and Industry launched a booklet to explain TPP in simple terms. Bu...

Healthcare is one of the most basic services that must be afforded to everyone. In fact, the right to health is specified as one our basic human rights in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Yet, despite the good intentions of healthcare service providers, the system is designed poorly, according to one physician. What does he mean by that? Meet the doctor who is trying to put the humanity...

On January 8th, the police force launched the Trim N Fit programme for cops with a BMI above 25. Bukit Aman's Director of Management (Communications), Datuk Zulkifli Abdullah said that at least 10% of the police force are obese. Essentially, they are more likely to die from health problems than in the line of duty. Jouyin Teoh, an Occupational Therapist with a focus on Obesity Management and Corpo...

Precision medicine is touted to be the future of healthcare, including in cancer treatments. Producing a personalised treatment for every cancer patient may sound impractical, not to mention wildly expensive; but this approach is expected to boost success rate precisely for every single patient. The question is, how do we know all the right targets to produce all the right drugs for every patient?...

Is snoring a sign of a good night's sleep or is there something more to it? Consultant ENT Specialist, Dr Lim Wye Keat shares his views. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

By the time we leave school, up to 90% of Asians need to wear glasses. But are contact lens and spectacles a constant hassle to you? For years, corrective laser eye surgery was the only method of permanent vision correction, but not anymore. Consultant Ophthalmologist, Dr Khaw Hoon Hoon, gives us a glimpse into the future of vision correction technology.  See omnystudio.com/listener for priva...

Have you ever forced a smile or outwardly agreed with a point while inwardly disagreeing? If yes, then you’ve had to engage in inauthentic behaviour which may have benefited your interpersonal relationships, but at a moral cost. Psychologists have found that acting in an inauthentic way makes people feel impure or immoral, thus leading them to compensate through cleansing activities like was...

As part of our Psychiatry Series, we will be discussing the very serious mental illness that is Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD). People suffering with this disorder behave impulsively, feel isolated, and usually have unstable relationships. Their overwhelming emotions can lead to self-harm and even suicide. Dr Philip George and Dr Stephen Jambunathan, Consultant Psychiatrists tell us more ab...

A girl who chronically skipped school and a man who rejected travel or heavy work. Both complained of unbearable pain. Pain that nobody could see and only those who suffer can understand. Pain that almost robbed the girl and man of their education, career and life. Dependent and dejected, they fell into depression. Then they learned to accept the pain, and rose as champions to face the world. We f...

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, and we start off this year’s Doctor in the House series with discussion on this devastating disease. Learn more about HPV and its link to Cervical Cancer, and why these diseases deserve more public attention to prevent its spreading. Our guests today are Prof. Dr. Jamiyah Binti Hassan, Professor of Obstetric and Gynaecology, University of Malaya an...

At the forefront of a promising first in malaria vaccine research is Malaysian-born and US-based Dr Betty Sim Kim Lee. We talk to her today about the difficulties of manufacturing an effective malaria vaccine, and how her work with the PfSPZ vaccine could mean the end of this disease in malaria endemic countries. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In July, we discussed news of a modified virus with the potential for curing cancer, and the mechanics of using virus vectors in this sort of treatment. Now for the first time, the oncolytic virus, T-VEC, has been approved by the USFDA (US Food and Drug Administration), and made available to patients for the treatment of skin cancer. Today on Health & Living, we will discuss the social and hea...

Traumatic injuries can happen at any time, and in some instances body parts need to be reconstructed with tissue from other sources. Spare-part surgery is a procedure that “scavenges” useable tissue from damaged body parts that would otherwise be discarded. Here to tell us more about how this procedure can restore function and appearance to mutilated limbs is Dr Rajesh Singh, Consultan...

Simply put, rheumatoid arthritis is a lifelong autoimmune disease that causes joint inflammation, but the reality is much more complicated than that. Between 0.5 and 1 per cent of the adult population is affected by this debilitating disease. We speak to Dr Amir Zain, Consultant Rheumatologist all about the onset and treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. This show is brought to you in collaboration w...

On the last part of our year-end round-up series, we feature all stories about the rising cost of healthcare, GST and TPPA amid the economic turmoil this year. With Dr George Lee (Consultant Urologist), Dr Krishna Kumar (Past-President of Malaysian Medical Association), Prof Richard Gold (McGill University), Sharon Palani (Medico Legal Practitioner), Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Dr Haji Mohd Ismail Me...

It may not be too excessive to say that 2015 is the year of vaping. With so many questions clouding the hottest issue in the country this year, we spoke to cardiologists, policy makers, sociologists and activists who all feel strongly about it on both sides of the debate. With views from Prof Dr Gerry Stimson (Public Health Sociologist), John Boley (Director of Factasia.org), Dr Konstantinos Farsa...

In Part 2 of our year-end round-up, we learned that multi-drug resistant periodically populated the news. This episode we uncover your only shot at surviving some of such deadly infections - vaccines. Discover the rise of the anti-vaccination movement and vaccine-preventable diseases, and the push for childhood vaccination from Prof Dr Woo Yin Ling, (Obstetrician and Gynaecologist), Dr Peter Parad...

With input from Dr Sasheela Ponnampalavanar (Associate Professor of Medicine), Dr Latiffah Hassan (Associate Professor of Veterinary Public Health), Dr Ashok Philip (President of the Malaysian Medical Association) and Dr Kartini Abdul Jabar (Microbiologist), we summarise all stories in 2015 about antibiotics resistance, superbugs and prescription policies for our year-end round-up. See omnystudio....

We are looking back to 2015 to follow up on health news that made the headlines. We kick off the line-up with the major outbreaks that plagued our nation: dengue, rabies and typhoid. Featuring the voices of Dr Izwan Effendy Zainudin, Dr Rose Nani Mudin, Dr Vickneshwaran Muthu and Dr Chong Chee Keong of the Ministry of Health. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We take a look at some of the most interesting stories that Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon Dr Harjeet Singh shared with us this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.