Inside Health Folgen

The story of one child's recovery from PIMS-TS, the rare new condition that caught doctors by surprise in April. James Gallagher visits specialists at the Evelina London Children's Hospital to hear how they coped with identifying and treating a condition they'd never seen before. Dr Jenni Handforth and Dr Sara Hanna explain how 'they had to reinvent and tweak the rule book' to manage PIMS-TS, where 'the immune system has gone a bit crazy' and treatments worked 'like a fire blanket to dampen down the immune system'. And scientists at the Francis Crick Institute have discovered that children can have Coronavirus-fighting antibodies from before the pandemic started. Dr George Kassiotis explains how kids could have them and what this might mean. And Dr Margaret McCartney unpicks the tricky issue of spotting Covid and cold symptoms in children.

Thromboses - blood clots that form in the circulation - are easily the biggest single killer of British men and women. They affects people of all ages, races and ethnicities. Most strokes and heart attacks are caused by thromboses forming in the arteries supplying the heart or brain. But clots in the veins can be just as lethal, particularly when part of the clot breaks off and travels around the circulation and lodges in the lungs. Recently, the appearance of abnormal micro-clots in the lungs of severely affected Covid patients has highlighted the huge impact even tiny clots can have on our long term health and mortality. What more should be done to protect people from this misunderstood condition?James Gallagher unravels the risks and causes for blood clots, from deep vein thrombosis to clots in the lungs. As he hears from patients, the surprise of a DVT diagnosis and debilitation can be profound. Treating clots is a delicate process with a need to get the balance right between thinning the blood but preventing bleeding. James examines the effectiveness of the latest range of anticoagulants that have a more predictable blood thinning effect, without the need for regular checks to make sure the blood’s not too thick or too thin.The psychological effects of being diagnosed with thrombosis are often under reported. but in up to half the cases severe anxiety, depression and PTSD can arise. We hear of a major new study following the experiences of patients from their diagnosis to follow ups after treatment that explores how effectively they overcame the impact on their mental health of knowing they carried a blood clot.And James Gallagher reports on the newly emerging relationship between Covid and clotting. It was back in April when the alarm was first sounded about abnormal blood clots in severe Covid cases. Research is shedding new light on the causes of the problem - sticky blood. In turn, this knowledge is offering up new ways to treat some of the major complications thrown up by the virus. Presenter: James Gallagher Producer Adrian Washbourne

How will this year's expanded flu vaccine programme be delivered? In addition to usual groups the flu vaccine will be offered to all eleven year olds, any household contacts of vulnerable people told to shield, more health and social care workers and - the biggest change - everyone over 50! Dr Margaret McCartney discusses the difficult logistics for GP practices and pharmacies trying to work out how to immunise around half the population, whilst managing PPE, social distancing and infection control. Dentistry and Covid - Eddie Crouch, Vice Chair of the British Dental Association discusses how practices open since lockdown are coping. And a good news story of how the pandemic has instigated change in the diagnosis of coeliac disease. Dr Hugo Penny, one of the authors of new interim guidance, explains while Radhika tells of her personal experience of coeliac disease. Plus NHS preparations for winter. Trevor Smith, Divisional Director of Medicine at Southampton General Hospital, and Professor Neil Mortensen, President of the Royal College of Surgeons in England, both share their forecasts..