A simple procedure, taking six minutes on average, and performed at the same time as other heart surgery, reduces the risk of stroke by about one third in high-risk patients with atrial fibrillation, according to results of the recently published ‘Left Atrial Appendage Occlusion Study III’ (LAAOS III)
A Waitematā DHB doctor's letter to the government has warned medical staff are stretched and struggling to cope, while figures show hundreds of millions of dollars to spent on tackling the problem.
Photo: 123RF
Dr Adrian Kerner s letter to Justice Minister Kris Faafoi, obtained by
Checkpoint, says Auckland s emergency rooms are overwhelmed by patients showing up with alcohol and drug problems.
It also warns of people in their 20s and 30s who are alcohol dependent and showing signs of organ damage.
Meanwhile, data provided under the Official Information Act shows the problem is costing the taxpayer hundreds of millions of dollars.
Dr Kerner, a senior doctor and emergency medicine consultant, was unavailable for this story, but excerpts of his letter to Faafoi bore out just how much of a strain alcohol and drug misuse was having on the health system.
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