Pānui pāpāho
Why New Zealand needs to continue decisive action to contain coronavirus
Friday, 20 March 2020 11:39am
With some of the toughest border restrictions and a newly-announced NZ$500 million boost to health services, New Zealand is among a small number of countries with a strategy to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.
Evidence clearly favours taxing sugary drinks – new study
Friday, 13 March 2020 3:42pm
New Zealand should follow the UK and more than 30 other countries in introducing a tax on sugary drinks to tackle obesity and reduce deaths from chronic diseases, leading researchers say.
New Zealand must learn lessons from China’s success in managing Covid-19
Monday, 9 March 2020 10:42am
While the world has been focused on Covid-19’s spread to new countries many might not have noticed that the outbreak in China is slowly being brought under control.
COVID-19 has now reached New Zealand. How prepared is it to deal with a pandemic?
Wednesday, 4 March 2020 12:29pm
New Zealand joined 48 other countries affected by the novel coronavirus last week when health authorities confirmed the first COVID-19 case.
Damp and mouldy housing new measure in latest deprivation index
Thursday, 30 January 2020 2:11pm
Damp and mouldy housing has been included as an indicator of socioeconomic deprivation in New Zealand by University of Otago researchers developing the latest version of the New Zealand Index of Socioeconomic Deprivation (NZDep2018).
What does the coronavirus epidemic mean for New Zealand?
Wednesday, 29 January 2020 2:26pm
Unlike armed conflict, here we are fighting an external threat to global health where collaboration and sharing of information benefits all nations.
Cycling to work? You may live longer
Wednesday, 29 January 2020 11:52am
People who cycle to work have a lower risk of dying, a New Zealand study has found.
Untimely access to diagnosis not main reason why Māori are dying of cancer: Otago research
Monday, 20 January 2020 11:50am
Māori have poorer access to early diagnosis for some key cancers including breast and colorectal cancers though, this is not the case for all cancers and is not necessarily why more Māori are dying of cancer, new University of Otago research shows.
Sharp drop in birth rate as a result of miscarriages in 1918 flu pandemic, study finds
Monday, 16 December 2019 11:05am
The 1918 influenza pandemic in New Zealand resulted in thousands of fewer births, particularly in the 1919 year, largely because of miscarriages from influenza infection during pregnancy, researchers have found.
Uncontrolled online marketing of e-cigarettes putting youth at risk, study finds
Friday, 29 November 2019 11:06am
Only 10 per cent of New Zealand websites selling vaping products require proof of age before purchase, researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington, have found.
Dairy owners’ lack of knowledge about e-cigarettes may undermine smoking cessation
Thursday, 7 November 2019 9:14am
Convenience store owners who lack knowledge of the e-cigarettes they sell may undermine, rather than support, smoking cessation.
Otago researchers recipients of inaugural $3m Marsden Fund Award
Tuesday, 5 November 2019 9:42am
University of Otago researchers are the recipients of an inaugural Marsden Fund Council Award worth $3 million to investigate genetic predisposition to metabolic diseases like diabetes and gout among Pacific people.
Significant association between use of long-acting contraceptives and unprecedented decline in abortion rate, study finds
Tuesday, 29 October 2019 12:24pm
A shift towards the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives, particularly by young women, is associated with declining abortion rates in New Zealand, new research has found.
New Zealand could be lifeboat to save humanity from extinction in a catastrophic pandemic, researchers say
Tuesday, 1 October 2019 10:32am
New Zealand, Australia and Iceland could act as island refuges to save humanity from extinction in the event of a catastrophic global pandemic, researchers have found.
Seven inaugural Sesquicentennial Distinguished Chair appointments to mark 150th
Monday, 30 September 2019 3:22pm
In a new initiative, the University is celebrating its internationally acclaimed scholars by creating a prestigious new role - the Sesquicentennial Distinguished Chair (Poutoko Taiea).
Through the haze: smoke-free laws failing to protect bar staff, patrons
Monday, 23 September 2019 3:10pm
Patrons and workers continue to be exposed to hazardous tobacco smoke in bars, restaurants and cafés, despite legislation designed to protect them, researchers have found.
Remove nicotine from cigarettes, smokers say
Monday, 16 September 2019 10:35am
New Zealand smokers overwhelmingly support removing the nicotine from cigarettes to make them less addictive, a national survey has found.
Smokers concealing cigarette packs’ graphic warnings, study finds
Tuesday, 10 September 2019 10:48am
Smokers are less likely to display packs of cigarettes and tobacco on tables at cafés and bars now that standardised packs with larger graphic health warnings have been introduced, according to a new study.
Otago academic to head new national cancer strategy
Monday, 2 September 2019 12:33pm
The new interim National Director of Cancer Control, University of Otago academic Professor Diana Sarfati, believes lives will be saved as a result of the new National Cancer Action Plan.
New research collaboration to fight cancer in New Zealand
Tuesday, 20 August 2019 8:57am
University of Otago cancer researchers are coming together in a new collaboration awarded a $2 million grant by the Cancer Society in a bid to better tackle a leading cause of death in New Zealand.
Teenagers say ‘nope’ to dope
Friday, 16 August 2019 11:18am
New research from the University of Otago, Wellington, has shed light on the declining use of cannabis use by teens.
Moving house related to behavioural difficulties in four-year-olds, study finds
Tuesday, 13 August 2019 12:02pm
Moving house is linked with increases in emotional and behavioural difficulties in four-year-olds, with the problems compounding each time a family moves, researchers have found.
Massive potential health gains in switching to active transport – Otago study
Thursday, 18 July 2019 12:24pm
Swapping short car trips for walking or biking could achieve as much health gain as ongoing tobacco tax increases, according to a study from the University of Otago, Wellington.
New data on e-cigarette use among New Zealand adults
Monday, 15 July 2019 12:59pm
Around one in six New Zealand adults have tried e-cigarettes but only 2 per cent are using them currently, a national survey has found.
Eliminating waiting lists for cataract surgery prevents falls and is cost effective
Thursday, 4 July 2019 11:21am
Eliminating waiting times for cataract surgery would be a cost-effective health system intervention, largely driven by the falls prevention benefits related to improved vision, a just-published New Zealand study has found.
Sugary drink taxes reduce consumption, major review shows
Tuesday, 25 June 2019 2:32pm
A 10 per cent tax on sugary drinks has cut the purchase and consumption of sugary drinks by an average of 10 per cent in places it has been introduced, a just published major review shows.
Butting Out: Researchers gauge public opinion on tobacco product waste
Friday, 14 June 2019 11:25am
Requiring cigarettes to contain biodegradable filters, fining smokers who litter cigarette butts and expanding smoke free outdoor areas are measures the public considers are most likely to reduce tobacco product waste, new University of Otago research reveals.
More awareness needed about lead exposure from firearms, researchers say
Tuesday, 11 June 2019 3:10pm
Researchers are warning that lead-based ammunition is posing a risk to firearms’ users and their families, with a culture of denial about the issue among the firearms community.
Otago’s emerging researchers secure more than $1.7 million in HRC funding
Thursday, 16 May 2019 12:56pm
An occupational therapist who aims to improve the quality of life for children with disabilities is one of several University of Otago early-stage researchers who have together been awarded more than $1.7 million in Health Research Council funding.
Otago alumna behind UK Government’s move to help cerebral palsy children walk
Wednesday, 1 May 2019 8:32am
An Otago alumna has led a study into spinal surgery for children with cerebral palsy in the UK, which has proven it helps them walk and reduces pain, triggering the UK Government to fund the procedure.
Wood is good, research on 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake shows
Tuesday, 16 April 2019 9:52am
New research has found that only three per cent of deaths in the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake occurred in people’s homes, almost all of which were at that time constructed from wood.
Public health experts call for use of “tie-down” practice to be abolished in NZ prisons
Friday, 12 April 2019 11:31am
A University of Otago public health physician and researcher and her Australian colleague welcome news that the use of “tie-down” practice will be abolished in New Zealand prisons.
Housing WOFs need to be combined with education, study shows
Tuesday, 9 April 2019 11:01am
Alongside funding and regulatory support, understanding how housing affects health and safety can spur owners to make improvements to their properties, researchers from the University of Otago, Wellington and WISE Better Homes have found.
Otago researchers encourage New Zealanders to support Arms Amendment Bill
Wednesday, 3 April 2019 4:28pm
University of Otago firearms researchers are encouraging New Zealanders who are not gun owners to support MPs and political parties with the Arms Amendment Bill.
