Unless the South African government tightens its laws that govern stem cell treatments, unproven stem cell therapy will continue to surge.
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Many countries are introducing legislation and allowing practitioners to use medication still undergoing trials but that show preliminary signs of being safe, including some stem cell treatments.
South Africa may have legislation broadly guiding stem cell research and treatment, but these laws must be updated and clarified for it to be effective.
Stem cell research and therapy have become buzzwords across the globe. Although some of the treatments are controversial and unsafe, there is also a great deal of excitement and promise.
Stem cell research and therapy has taken the world by storm. Here’s what you need to know about it.
To address corruption in the South African health sector, a combination of political will with an effective government, citizen involvement and advocacy is needed.
Community health workers are finally being formally integrated into the health system – but they need support to make an impact.
With South Africa’s consumption levels higher than the worldwide average, interventions to change the country’s drinking habits are critical.
Eradicating the last 1% of polio cases in the world requires an endgame plan centred on immunisation and surveillance.
The positive impact of the polio eradication initiatives on the continent can be felt across the health sector in other health programmes.
Nigeria’s strategy to eliminate polio was so effective that it was duplicated to deal with ebola. So why did the country take so long to get off the list of polio-endemic countries?
The generic drug industry has become essential to developing countries that need access to cheaper drugs to treat their heavy burdens of communicable diseases.
It’s been one year since the last polio case was reported in Africa. If the continent keeps this up, it could be declared polio free by 2018.
In 12 years Kenya has managed to dramatically improve its exclusive breastfeeding rates from 13% to 61%. The success has not come without challenges, and some persist.
There are two extremes of malnutrition at play among South Africa’s youth - both under nutrition and over nutrition.
Hepatitis B vaccines have been available for over 20 years but the virus is still endemic in Africa, with the continent carrying over one third of the globe’s case load.
Rebranded and scented condoms are part of the South African Department of Health’s plan to make condoms more attractive as a contraceptive for young people.
A re-analysis of research into deworming interventions at Kenyan schools has confirmed some findings and disputed others. However, it does not take away from the programme’s effectiveness.
The re-analysis of data can provide valuable new findings and it can improve transparency, accountability, and strengthen the literature that policymakers base their decisions on.
For South Africa to reduce its stillbirth rate in line with its international pledges, it will have to scale up its several of its maternal health programmes.
How someone suffering from schizophrenia responds to treatment and manages their disorder is dependent on errors in their genes, according to new research.
Material deprivation and young people desiring the latest fashion trends are motivating the transactional sex relationships in Malawi’s urban slums.
Medicine shortages in southern Africa, particularly of anti-retrovirals for HIV patients, require urgent attention. A regional approach to distribution has been tried in South America and could work for the region.
There are many lessons Southern Africa can learn from Cuba, which became the first country in the world to eradicate mother to child transmissions of HIV and syphilis.
Fathers have an important role to play beyond financial support. Research shows they play an invaluable role in maternal, infant and child health.