Health Check

Disgraced former transplant surgeon Paolo Macchiarini appeals against a prison sentence for gross assault. Health Check also discusses the impact of eating speed on health and the first functional kidney transplant from a pig into a human.

Contaminated cough syrup found in Iraq; Impact of anti-LGBTQ legislation on HIV healthcare in Uganda; Brain signal decoding technology; Insecticide-treated bed nets for malaria prevention; Nose picking and COVID-19 correlation

In the week that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that leprosy could now be endemic in the South-eastern United States, Claudia Hammond looks at global action on leprosy with science journalist Kamala Thiagarajan. There is an international effort to learn more about weaning seriously ill people off ventilator support in hospitals. We hear about the Weansafe study from Ireland.Professor of integrated community child health at University College London, Monica Lakhanpaul joins Claudia in the studio to discuss why the roll out of a new vaccine for RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) in the US could be a gamechanger. And why on your next trip to a hospital, you could see groups of elderly in-patients going on walks. Could it help prevent the effects of bedrest?Image: Leprosy, nerve biopsy, nerve fibres surrounded by histiocytesPresenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare Salisbury

Henrietta Lacks was only 31 years old when she died from cervical cancer in 1951. While she was in hospital in the USA, her cells were harvested without her knowledge which, since being replicated infinitely, have gone on to enable research into cancer, dementia and Parkinson’s. As well as contributing to the development of vaccines for polio and COVID-19. Her family have fought for decades to get justice for the “stolen” cells, and this week reached a settlement with Massachusetts-based Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. The United Nations says we now live in the era of "global boiling". As temperatures continue to soar across the southern USA, the BBC’s Health and Science Correspondent James Gallagher heads to a high-tech heated chamber in the UK, on a mission to find out how hot is too hot for our bodies to cope with.In Sweden, dentist Dr Nivetha Natarajan Gavriilidou tells Claudia Hammond about her work using the bone structure of the jaw to predict how we might get shorter as we age. Could it lead to dentists working closer with GPs? It’s a question we also put to our studio guest family doctor Ann Robinson. Who brings us new research from the USA that could lead to better treatment for children’s runny noses. And potentially some good news if you’re struggling to shave seconds off your 5KM PB. Could beating your time be down to your genes? Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare Salisbury

The World Health Organisation and UNICEF say global immunisation services reached 4 million more children in 2022 compared to the previous year, after a huge backslide during the Covid 19 pandemic. But the progress in countries like India and Indonesia masks continued decline in many lower income countries. Global health expert Tabitha Mwangi and Claudia Hammond discuss how immunisation numbers can bounce back.They also look at new research from Sub-Saharan Africa that suggests as many as one in 10 teenagers might have high blood pressure, and what might be the most effective way of lowering it?While you may be gripped by the action from the Women’s football World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, Dr Kerry Peek is keeping a careful eye on the games for health reasons. She’s one of a team of ‘concussion spotters’ deployed this year for the first time at the tournament. Claudia asks her why professional sports women are more at risk from head injuries than men.And are you a perfectionist? Psychologist Dr Thom Curran says striving to be perfect could put our mental health at risk.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producers: Clare Salisbury and Dan Welsh(Photo: A child gets administered the polio vaccine from a health worker in Kabul, Afghanistan, 15 May 2023. Credit: SAMIULLAH POPAL Samiullah Popal/EPA)

Just months after the ‘momentous’ announcement of the first drug shown to slow the effects of Alzheimer’s disease, the results of a global trial into another have been published. The antibody medicine donanemab helped people in the early stages of Alzheimer’s by slowing the pace of the brain’s decline by about a third. Dr Graham Easton joins Claudia Hammond to look at what another ‘breakthrough’ means in practice.They also look at new evidence from the USA that giving hearing aids to older people at risk from dementia could be another way to slow cognitive decline in some people. While caring for women in childbirth, midwives are expected to be compassionate. Claudia hears from Dr Halima Musa Abdul, Senior Lecturer in Nursing Science at Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria, and to Dr Kaveri Mayra, who trained in India and is now a researcher at the University of British Columbia. They say that particularly in lower and middle income countries, midwives aren’t being shown enough compassion at work themselves. And we hear from Germany where a portable brain scanner could provide a solution for people in hard-to-reach health clinics. Image Credit: Andrew BrookesPresenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare Salisbury & Dan Welsh

“Sickle cell is not all that we are – Sickle Cell is solvable.” Lea Kilenga Bey from Kenya founded the non-profit Africa Sickle Cell Organisation to campaign on behalf of people like her who live with an inherited blood condition known as sickle cell disease. Now a group of experts from around the world are calling on Governments to provide better care for people with conditions like Lea’s. It comes just weeks after a study published in academic journal The Lancet Haematology showed that the number of people around the world who die with sickle cell disease could be as much as 11 times higher than previously estimated. Claudia Hammond speaks to Lea and hears from Professor Jennifer Knight-Madden in Jamaica where pioneering research has led to a newborn screening programme that helps to diagnose and treat Sickle Cell Disease in babies.Side by Side is a pilot initiative led by the Alzheimer’s Society in the UK, pairing up volunteers with people living with dementia based on their common interests. It’s how David met Simon, who learnt he had Alzheimer’s disease during the Covid 19 lockdown. We hear from David, Simon, and Simon’s wife Ruth about the pair’s weekly walks and how they have helped Simon come to terms with his diagnosis.And Claudia is joined by Consultant in public health Dr Ike Anya. They discuss new research on living with dementia including a study that suggests resistance training might delay the onset of symptoms in people with Alzheimer’s. There’s an early breakthrough in finding a treatment for parasitic born African Trypanosomiasis or Sleeping Sickness. And the researchers combining health education with street theatre in Malawi. How an interactive performance involving “infectious” beach balls transmitted by a giant Tsetse fly is teaching people about catching Sleeping Sickness.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare SalisburyImage credit: Kateryna Kon/Science Photo Library

Since early times, the drum has been part of human society. But have you ever considered how drumming might actually improve our physical and mental health? Researchers from the University of Essex are at this year’s annual Royal Society’s Summer Exhibition in London to talk to the public about their work which shows drumming during a rock concert might give you a similar workout as playing football. Along with the BBC’s health and science correspondent, James Gallagher, Claudia Hammond gets a drumming lesson. They also hear how specially designed audio is being used in virtual reality gaming to train the brains of people with hearing impairments. How micro-robots may provide the future of intricate eye surgery. And how laser technology currently being deployed by the Mars Rover could revolutionise the way we screen our bodies for diseases.Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Erika Wright(Photo: Drumming workshop plus drumming teacher Richard Davis)

African HIV research now makes up almost a third of total research being conducted into the virus. A new study highlights how it has increased from just 5 per cent in 1986. But there’s still a way to go until the quantity of research reflects the burden of HIV infections on the African continent. Claudia Hammond speaks to Professor Thumbi Ndung’u and Dr Omolara Baiyegunhi from the Africa Health Research Institute in South Africa about the future of research being conducted in Africa by Africans and why it matters. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is now the fastest growing liver disease in Europe. It already affects 38 per cent of people around the world. We hear from Vienna in Austria where a mobile clinic is offering people liver scans, and specialists have been teaching school children about liver health. Dr Ann Robinson joins Claudia in the studio to discuss the latest health research including a US study with good news for people diagnosed early with a skin cancer known as melanoma. And a simple reason why staying up late might mean you won’t live as long as someone who enjoys an early start to the day. And who better to crunch the data on siestas than the President of the Spanish Federation of Sleep Medicine Societies. Dr Carlos Egea explains how the modern siesta is more about taking a short time to relax, rather than a long afternoon sleep. Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare Salisbury Assistant Producer: Jonathan Blackwell Production Coordinator: Jonathan HarrisImage credit: Credit:Portra Creative #:675577867

When the Myanmar military staged a coup d’état in February 2021, many healthcare workers became the first government employees to react, announcing a boycott of state-run hospitals. Today, there are doctors, nurses and other health workers providing services across the country, outside of state hospitals and often in secret. Claudia Hammond hears how they are struggling to provide clinics with dwindling resources and equipment and about the impact it’s having on people’s health. We hear from Salvador in Brazil where a joint effort between local people, the Federal University of Bahia and the University of Liverpool is aiming to track rats to try to control the spread of the bacterial disease Leptospirosis. And Professor of Integrated Community Child Health at University College London, Monica Lakhanpaul brings us new research to discuss on the effects of polluted water on babies, why taking a short nap might be good for brain health. And an early study that suggests the painful condition Endometriosis, where tissue from the lining of the uterus moves to other organs in the body, might be caused by bacteria. If the link exists, could it provide hope for new treatments?Presenter: Claudia Hammond Producer: Clare Salisbury Assistant Producer: Jonathan Blackwell Production Coordinator: Jonathan HarrisImage Credit: Visoot Uthairam | GETTY IMAGES | Creative #:862142692