Microbe Mail

Professor Francois Venter is back in Part 3 of our HIV series in which he continues to address South Africa's battles against HIV. Here he discusses his experience on how and when to initiate antiretroviral therapy, prophylaxis against opportunistic infection, routine monitoring and what the future of HIV management looks like in South Africa. About our Guest: Professor WD Francois Venter, MD, FCP...

Part 2 of our HIV series addresses South Africa's battles against HIV as we get an account of the complexities of diagnosis, prophylaxis, and managing opportunistic infections from a celebrated HIV clinician, Professor Francois Venter. About our Guest: Professor WD Francois Venter , MD, FCP, PhD is Executive Director of Wits Ezintsha at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, where he r...

Here we discuss how HIV is diagnosed and managed in the USA. About our Guest: Dr Ankita Kadakia, M.D. serves as the Deputy Public Health Officer for the County of San Diego.  Prior to her current role she served as the Chief and Medical Director for the County’s Tuberculosis Control and Refugee Health Branch and is the President of the California Tuberculosis Controller’s Association. Dr...

The spleen is a poorly understood organ that when functioning well, operates efficiently in the background, but what can happen when medical conditions or trauma result in an impairment in that function? In today's episode Vin talks to Professor Veronica Ueckermann about the spleen. They discuss its various functions including mopping up old or damaged red blood cells and its pivotal role in the i...

Injection drug use is becoming increasingly common in Sub-Saharan Africa...and with it, the myriad of infectious complications. On this episode, Vin chats to Dr Evan Shoul about infections and some important considerations for managing patients who inject drugs. About our Guest: Dr Evan Shoul specialised as a consultant physician in Johannesburg and then completed his infectious diseases fellowshi...

Invasive candidiasis (IC)...or evasive candidiasis? This famous fungus somehow managed to cause a great deal of anxiety, especially when it comes to confirming the diagnosis. In this episode, we talk about risk factors for disease, diagnosis and treatment of IC. About our Guest: Dr Tari Papavarnavas completed his medical degree at University of Pretoria and trained in General Internal Medicine and...

For World Antibiotic Awareness Week 2023, we are focusing on setting up antimicrobial stewardship in low and middle income settings with limited resources and a high burden of antimicrobial resistance. About our Guest: Prenika Jaglal is a Clinical Microbiologist having obtained an FC Path(Micro) and a Master’s degree at UKZN. She is currently based at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Depa...

The Pathology Research and Development Congress (PathRed) is hosted by the National Health Laboratory Service every 2nd year. With a focus on Pathology disciplines, it is a fantastic meeting to learn about diagnostic advancements in Africa. Ruan and I attended the meeting and were able to snatch a few interviews with speakers and delegates. To learn more about PathRed, visit the congress website a...

The Pathology Research and Development Congress (PathRed) is hosted by the National Health Laboratory Service every 2nd year. With a focus on Pathology disciplines, it is a fantastic meeting to learn about diagnostic advancements in Africa. Ruan and I attended the meeting and were able to snatch a few interviews with speakers and delegates. To learn more about PathRed, visit the congress website a...

In this episode we have a discussion with ChatGPT focused on the communication of antimicrobial therapy to patients and unpack some of the potential pitfalls of large language model use in medicine. Our Guest: (Bio generated by ChatGPT) Our guest is ChatGPT, a machine learning model developed by OpenAI. As an AI, ChatGPT doesn't possess personal experiences or emotions but is designed to process a...

About our Guest: Sipho Dlamini completed his medical degree, Internal Medicine training and specialist Infectious Disease training at the University of Cape Town and Colleges of Medicine South Africa. His research interests are in HIV and Tuberculosis, the use of vaccines in persons living with HIV infection and on immune-mediated drug hypersensitivity reactions in persons living with HIV. Sipho’s...

Time to "idiot proof" the myth of bactericidal being better than bacteriostatic agents on this collaborative episode with the ID_IOTS podcast. About our Guest: Jame and Callum are the hosts of the ID_IOTS podcast, an Infectious Disease podcast. You can find them through https://idiotspodcasting.buzzsprout.com/share wherever you get your podcasts and also on Twitter as @IDiots_pod References from t...

Upper respiratory tract infections constitute one of the most common acute illnesses evaluated, particularly in the peadiatric outpatient setting. On this episode of Microbe Mial, VIn chats to Dr Nosisa Sipambo about all things upper respiratory - and when antibiotics are indicated...and more importanely, when they are not! About our Guest: Dr Nosisa Sipambo is a paediatric infectious diseases spe...

Yeasts are commonly isolated in clinical specimens, but they are significant in some specimens and not significant in others. There are also a variety of identification methods which can be used in the laboratory. On this episode, Vin chats to a fellow Microbiology podcaster - Luis Plaza of "Let's Talk Micro" about yeasts in clinical cultures. About our Guest: Luis Plaza Hospital Corpsman in the U...

Another fun game of "Would you Rather" but this time, we talk about some fantastic fungal options. Which would you rather choose...? About our Guest: Dr Lyle Murray is a Lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand and a Consultant in Infectious Diseases at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic in Johannesburg, South Africa. He is a clinician scientist with a particular interest in the immunol...

A multi- country outbreak of cholera was reported by the WHO in May 2023. Since the beginning of 2023, a total of 24 countries have reported cases. South Africa is among the countries affected by the outbreak. To aid HCWs in identifying, diagnosing and treating cholera, Microbe Mail has put together this bonus episode on th rapid review of cholera. About our Guest: Dr Amanda Khumalo is a clinical...

In this episode we discuss Dr Tom Boyles's new book: How to request a test: A clinician's guide to the interpretation and evaluation of medical tests ( https://global.oup.com/academic/product/how-to-request-a-test-a-clinicians-guide-to-the-interpretation-and-evaluation-of-medical-tests-9780192866615?cc=us&lang=en& ) Dr Tom Boyles – Short biography. Dr Boyles qualified in medicine Oxford Un...

Best care bundles are a set of practices tied together which are proven to prevent heathcare associated infections. Listen Vin has a chat with Lesley Devenish, a seasoned IPC nurse practitioner and teacher about these bundles. About our Guest: My basic nursing training was completed through the Rand Afrikaans University (now U.J.) and post-grad courses through the University of South Africa. I sta...

Have you ever played the game "Would you rather?" - listen to this episode to hear a virological take on this fun game. And more importantly - is there even a correct answer at all? About our Guests: Marvin Hsiao: is an associate professor and consultant virologist at University of Cape Town and Groote Schuur Complex of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS). In addition to his virolog...

One Health is a concept which described the health not only of humans, but also of the envionment and animals. Our Guest, Dr Yogandree Ramsamy tells us about its origins, who governs the principles and how it can be applied to antimicrobial resistance and everyday clinical practice. About our Guest: Dr Yogandree Ramsamy, a medical doctor with a specialization in medical microbiology (MBChB, MMedPa...

Have you ever played the game "Would you Rather?" - listen to this episode to hear a microbial take on this fun game. And more importantly - is there even a correct answer at all? About our Guests : Dr Lauren Richards : I am a specialist physician with a sub-specialty in infectious diseases. I currently work at Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg in the internal medicine and infectious diseases...

Microbe Mail recorded a collaborative episode with the ID:IOTS podcast. Jame, Callum and I talk about the challenge of multidrug resistant Gram negative bacterial infections, particularly from the perspective of a low- middle income setting, with poor access to the newer antimicrobial agents. Callum is a medical microbiology and infectious diseases registrar working in Edinburgh, Scotland who has...

What is HIV post exposure prophylaxis , who should get it and how should it be given. Vin and Ruan discuss these and other relevant issues related to this topic. About our Guest: Dr Avania Bangalee qualified as a pathologist in virology in 2018 with distinction and was awarded the Coulter Medal for Pathology in the CMSA examination.  She has experience working for large multinational and inte...

Using aminoglycosides to treat infections often causes major distress amongst clinicians. Here we talk about how they should be used appropriately, in the hopes that we may calm some of this anxiety. About our Guest: Dr Veshni Pillay-Fuentes Lorente obtained an MBChB degree at Walter Sisulu University in 2010. Thereafter, completed a 2-year internship at King Edward VIII Hospital, Durban. Worked a...

Wondering what the microbial "match- made- in- heaven" is? This is the perfect drug - bug...or which antibiotic is best for which specific microbe. Listen to this episode to find out more. About our Guest: Michel completed his Undergraduate degree at UCT, and his FC Path(micro) in Dec 2021.  He completed his MMed(micro) in July 2022.  He is currently working as a consultant pathologist m...