NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL最新文献

{"title":"Metastatic neuroendocrine carcinoma mimicking a breast abscess: a case report.","authors":"Ally Yu, Yijiao Wang, Eva S Juhasz","doi":"10.26635/6965.7520","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7520","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1641","pages":"117-119"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148841863","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Public support for government-led skin cancer prevention in Aotearoa New Zealand: findings from a national survey.","authors":"Bronwen M McNoe, Andrew R Gray, Ryan Gage, Ella Iosua, Rana L Peniamina, Louise Signal","doi":"10.26635/6965.7530","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7530","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Aim: </strong>We aimed to assess public support for skin cancer prevention policies and examine how responsibility for prevention is perceived across key societal actors.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A nationally representative survey of adults in Aotearoa New Zealand assessed support for society wide regulatory measures, school based interventions and increased public investment in skin cancer prevention, as well as perceived responsibility across government, institutional and community actors.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We received 1,635 responses, including 385 participants identifying as Māori (23.5%, unweighted) and 368 participants identifying as Pacific peoples (22.5%, unweighted). Support for skin cancer prevention policies was high across all domains. Overall support was 90.1% for government funding of a national SunSmart programme, 91.5% for funding a SunSmart school programme, 90.4% for compulsory school sun-protection policies and 87.3% for Education Review Office (ERO) checks of school sun-protection practices. Support was also high for improving sunscreen affordability (89.1%), regulating sunscreen as a therapeutic product (80.7%) and banning commercial sunbed services (72.5%). Majority support was observed across voting intention. Between 91.4% and 96.3% of respondents assigned at least some responsibility for skin cancer prevention to each actor examined, with schools and government most frequently identified as having a high level of responsibility.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>There is strong public support for government led, structural approaches to skin cancer prevention across demographic and political groups of particular interest, indicating high public acceptability and scope to advance effective and equitable prevention policy.</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1641","pages":"49-59"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148841861","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Public support for policies to create a healthier food environment in Aotearoa New Zealand: findings from a national survey.","authors":"Rana L Peniamina, Andrew R Gray, Louise Signal, Ella Iosua, Cristina Cleghorn, Andrea Teng, Christina McKerchar, Bronwen M McNoe","doi":"10.26635/6965.7536","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7536","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Aim: </strong>The food and beverages we consume affect our risk for developing many types of cancer and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Healthy food environments support population-level healthy dietary habits and address diet-related health inequities. This study investigated public support for key evidence-based policies to create a healthy food environment, with a focus on understanding support by voting intention in the context of an election year.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Adults, recruited from an online panel via quota sampling, completed a cross-sectional online survey that examined support for evidence-based policies to create a healthy food environment in Aotearoa New Zealand. The range of policies targeted areas such as regulating unhealthy food marketing and sponsorship, food product reformulation and a sugary drinks tax. Data analysis examined support by age group, gender, prioritised ethnicity and voting intention.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We received 1,635 responses after oversampling Māori (n=385, 23.5%, unweighted) and Pacific people (n=368, 22.5%, unweighted). People in Aotearoa New Zealand want politicians to do more to create a healthy food environment. There was substantial support (62.2-88.6%) for the range of policies included in the survey, with majority support across voting intentions for current parliamentary parties (50.2-94.9%).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Aotearoa New Zealanders want more action from politicians to create a healthy food environment through evidence-based policies that address factors such as cost, marketing and reformulation, and with no interference from industry. These positive actions would go a long way to addressing the increasing and inequitable health burden of cancer and other NCDs.</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1641","pages":"26-36"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148841821","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Overwhelming and cross-party public support for robust tobacco control measures to achieve a Smokefree Aotearoa New Zealand: findings from a national survey.","authors":"Richard Edwards, Ella Iosua, Amanda Dodd, Andrew R Gray, Rana L Peniamina, Louise Signal, Bronwen M McNoe","doi":"10.26635/6965.7535","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7535","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Aim: </strong>Tobacco is a leading cause of preventable disease, mortality and health inequity in Aotearoa New Zealand where smoking prevalence decline has stalled. Further reductions will likely require tobacco control measures beyond business-as-usual approaches. We report survey support for tobacco control and vaping regulation policies.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We recruited adults from an online panel using quota sampling. We assessed support using a structured questionnaire for: reducing nicotine content in smoked tobacco products; restricting retail availability of tobacco/vaping products; a tobacco-free generation policy; raising the minimum legal age of sale for tobacco and vaping to 21 years; introducing tobacco industry levies; and ending legal sales of smoked tobacco products.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>After oversampling, we received 1,635 participant responses, including n=385 from Māori (23.5%, unweighted) and n=368 from Pacific people (22.5%, unweighted). We found strong majority (70-85%) support for all nine tobacco control/vaping regulation policies. Support was mostly similar by age group, gender, prioritised ethnicity and voting intention, including strong support for all policies among supporters of parties making up the current Coalition Government, and among 18-20-year-olds for the tobacco-free generation and raising the legal age of sale to 21 years policies.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The findings demonstrate overwhelming public support for more robust tobacco control interventions. Politicians of all political parties should prioritise and be held accountable for introducing strong, effective tobacco control measures in order to achieve the Smokefree Aotearoa goal for all peoples. This will greatly improve population health and reduce health inequities, prevent the social, environmental and economic costs of tobacco smoking, honour Te Tiriti o Waitangi and protect future generations from the scourge of tobacco.</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1641","pages":"13-25"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148841867","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Pott's puffy tumour and the impact of medical misinformation in a New Zealand context.","authors":"Morgan Arnold, Mark Elder","doi":"10.26635/6965.7398","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7398","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"107-109"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148766467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Drilling a hole to shorten the gap: an Aotearoa New Zealand therapeutic algorithm for status epilepticus in NEUROPA (Madrid, Spain).","authors":"Ivan Iniesta, Almond Leung, Marta Rodriguez Peña-Marin, Rafael Caballero Cubedo, Chissolle Rodriguez","doi":"10.26635/6965.7280","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7280","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Status epilepticus (SE) is a life-threatening neurological emergency defined by continuous seizure activity longer than 5 minutes or by clustered seizures without recovery of consciousness. When SE persists for over 30 minutes it is associated with irreversible brain damage. Conversely, most seizures are self-limited and do not require pharmacological treatment, while some seizures may not be epileptic. The risk of overtreating such cases must, therefore, be carefully balanced against the risk of under-recognising and undertreating SE. An acquired severe brain injury (e.g., traumatic or stroke) significantly increases the risk of developing seizures, SE and epilepsy. Poor prognostic signs include major brain injury, longer duration of seizures and treatment resistance. There is a gap between clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) for the management of SE and actual clinical practice. Delayed and timid (under-dose) treatments contribute to the perpetuation of SE. A multidisciplinary approach, including early treatment with adequate doses of benzodiazepines (e.g., midazolam) with second-line treatment (e.g., levetiracetam) are key in improving clinical outcomes. Located in the exact antipode of the Manawatū Gorge, Hospital Universitario Los Madroños is a medium-size centre known for its neurorehabilitation unit where we have adopted SE CPGs from Palmerston North Hospital and adapted them to local needs and resources, promoting early intervention and staff familiarity. A pragmatic, consensus-based, site-specific algorithm helps reduce treatment delays and improves clinical outcomes, providing a viable solution to bridge care gaps.</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"87-95"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148761169","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Prescribing and monitoring of riluzole in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a retrospective cohort study from Health New Zealand - Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury.","authors":"Niamh Berry-Kilgour, Rachel Wiseman, Kate Grundy","doi":"10.26635/6965.7367","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7367","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Aim: </strong>This retrospective cohort study assessed adherence to the Motor Neurone Disease New Zealand best practice guidelines and Pharmac Special Authority criteria for riluzole in a Canterbury-based amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cohort. Secondary objectives included reasons for not prescribing, side effects and treatment initiation relative to diagnosis.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the Christchurch Hospital respiratory department's ALS database. Patients diagnosed between January 2020 and November 2024 were included. Electronic health records and Special Authority records were reviewed. Patients with incomplete data or non-motor neurone disease (MND) diagnoses were excluded.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 115 patients, 69 (60%) were prescribed riluzole. Less than 45% of patients had baseline blood tests, and pre-treatment spirometry was completed in 70% of patients. Delays in prescribing improved rates of baseline spirometry, but not blood test completion. Ongoing monitoring was poor, with less than 60% of patients completing recommended tests across all time points. Eight patients (11.6%) reported side effects, and three discontinued treatment following alanine aminotransferase derangement.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Adherence to recommended monitoring and Special Authority criteria for riluzole was inconsistent in this cohort. In the context of emerging evidence supporting broader survival benefit and reduced drug cost, further evaluation of current Special Authority prescribing criteria may be warranted.</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"23-30"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148763310","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Publicly funded healthcare, social insurance and justice in Aotearoa New Zealand.","authors":"Elizabeth Fenton, Robin Gauld","doi":"10.26635/6965.7448","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7448","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In common with most high-income countries, the publicly funded healthcare system in Aotearoa New Zealand is struggling. The pressures of rising costs, an unstable workforce and changing population demographics appear intractable despite numerous system tweaks and reforms. This viewpoint article focusses on how resource constraints in New Zealand's public healthcare system have allowed the private health sector to grow and become the default provider of many non-urgent services and often also urgent or time-critical care, a process of \"creeping privatisation\". Increasingly, patients without the means to access care privately are significantly disadvantaged. Some ethicists have defended dual or \"two-tier\" health systems as permissible and preferable from the point of view of justice. We challenge this view, arguing that the New Zealand case shows how the private sector undermines and erodes the public sector, creating significant concerns for health equity, social solidarity and long-term sustainability. We examine a social insurance funding model for healthcare as a plausible alternative to the current tax-funded model used in New Zealand, with potential advantages in addressing the ethical challenges of a growing gap between the public and private \"tiers\".</p>","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"96-103"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148763863","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Decreasing the life expectancy gap between Māori and Europeans in Aotearoa New Zealand.","authors":"Harvey D White","doi":"10.26635/6965.7620","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.7620","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"114-116"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148762596","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Move on to where: homelessness is a health issue.","authors":"Jacqui Frizelle, Frank Frizelle","doi":"10.26635/6965.e1640","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.26635/6965.e1640","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":48086,"journal":{"name":"NEW ZEALAND MEDICAL JOURNAL","volume":"139 1640","pages":"9-11"},"PeriodicalIF":1.2,"publicationDate":"2026-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148763872","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}