"We need our own food, to grow our own veggies…" Remote Aboriginal food gardens in the Top End of Australia's Northern Territory.

Objective: Remote Aboriginal community gardens (gardens) frequently operate below their full potential. A set of gardening sustainability principles may improve their planning, operation and long-term sustainability. This paper aims to document the principles of sustainability of non-profit remote Aboriginal community gardens in the Top End of the Northern Territory.

Renal transplantation in indigenous Australians of the Northern Territory: closing the gap.

Chronic kidney disease causes high morbidity and mortality among Indigenous Australians of the Northern Territory (NT). Studies have shown chronic kidney disease rates of 4-10 times higher in indigenous than non-indigenous Australians and prevalent dialysis rates of 700-1200 per million population. For most patients with end-stage renal failure, renal transplantation provides the optimal treatment for people with end-stage renal disease.

Stores Healthy Options Project in Remote Indigenous Communities (SHOP@RIC): a protocol of a randomised trial promoting healthy food and beverage purchases through price discounts and in-store nutrition education.

Background: Indigenous Australians suffer a disproportionate burden of preventable chronic disease compared to their non-Indigenous counterparts--much of it diet-related. Increasing fruit and vegetable intakes and reducing sugar-sweetened soft-drink consumption can reduce the risk of preventable chronic disease. There is evidence from some general population studies that subsidising healthier foods can modify dietary behaviour.

Identifying national health research priorities in Timor-Leste through a scoping review of existing health data.

Health research is crucial to understand a country's needs and to improve health outcomes. We conducted a scoping review and analysis of existing health data in Timor-Leste to identify the health research priorities of the country. Published and unpublished health research in Timor-Leste from 2001 to 2011 that reported objectives, methods and results were identified.

Screening for rheumatic heart disease: current approaches and controversies.

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is a leading cause of cardiac disease among children in developing nations, and in indigenous populations of some industrialized countries. In endemic areas, RHD has long been a target of screening programmes that, historically, have relied on cardiac auscultation. The evolution of portable echocardiographic equipment has changed the face of screening for RHD over the past 5 years, with greatly improved sensitivity.

Inhaled non-steroid anti-inflammatories for children and adults with bronchiectasis.

Background: Chronic neutrophilic inflammation, both in the presence and absence of infection, is a feature of bronchiectasis in adults and children. The anti-inflammatory properties of non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) may be beneficial in reducing airway inflammation and thus potentially improve lung function and quality of life in patients with bronchiectasis.

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy of inhaled NSAIDs in the management of non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis in children and adults.

The role of energy cost in food choices for an Aboriginal population in northern Australia.

Objective: To explore the relationship between dietary quality and energy density of foods (MJ/kg) and energy cost ($/MJ) for an Aboriginal population living in a remote region of northern Australia.

Design: For a 3-month period in 2005, we collected food and non-alcoholic beverage supply data from food outlets available to the study population. From these data, we compared the energy density of foods with their energy cost.

L-arginine and vitamin D: novel adjunctive immunotherapies in tuberculosis.

Worsening drug resistance and the need for prolonged treatment in tuberculosis (TB) require innovative solutions including investigation of inexpensive, safe adjunctive immunotherapies. L-arginine, the precursor of nitric oxide, and vitamin D recently have elucidated mycobactericidal and immunomodulatory actions against TB and are deficient in people with TB. We review the potential of these agents as adjunctive TB immunotherapies and explore how comparative clinical trials might help clarify their relative importance in the human TB immune response.

Rotavirus outbreak in a remote Aboriginal community: the burden of disease.

Aim: To document the burden of disease caused by an outbreak of rotavirus (RV) gastroenteritis in a remote Aboriginal community.

Methods: During an outbreak of RV gastroenteritis, data were collected from patients notes, hospital and laboratory data. Age, date of presentation, severity of illness, number of total presentations, presentations per patient, total clinic hours per presentation, stool analysis, treatment and outcomes were measured.