Pandemic News and Research

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A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. During a pandemic, transmission can be anticipated in the workplace, not only from patient to workers in health care settings, but also among co-workers in general work settings. A pandemic would cause high levels of illness, death, social disruption, and economic loss. Everyday life would be disrupted because so many people in so many places become seriously ill at the same time. Impacts could range from school and business closings to the interruption of basic services such as public transportation and food delivery.

Health perceptions and stigma keep kids from eating school meals

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the federal government enabled schools to provide all children, regardless of need, with free meals to address nutrition and food insecurity.

18 Jul 2025

COVID-19 boosters reduce hospitalization risk for cancer patients

Vaccine boosters help keep cancer patients from being hospitalized or admitted to intensive care units due to COVID-19, according to a new study led by Cedars-Sinai investigators.

17 Jul 2025

Study: Nearly half of hospital toilet users skip handwashing

Almost one in two people using a hospital toilet did not wash their hands afterwards, according to new research from the University of Surrey - raising serious concerns about hygiene compliance in high-risk environments.

17 Jul 2025

Measles outbreaks surge worldwide, driven by declining immunization coverage

The Global Virus Network (GVN), a coalition of leading human and animal virologists from 80+ Centers of Excellence and Affiliates in more than 40 countries, is sounding the alarm over a sharp resurgence of measles cases in the United States and globally.

17 Jul 2025

Virtual eye clinics in shopping centers cut waiting times for routine appointments

Innovative virtual eye clinics in shopping centres could significantly reduce waiting times for routine eye appointments, UCL-led research suggests in a first-of-its-kind study.

15 Jul 2025

Infectious disease outbreaks erode trust in political institutions

The COVID-19 pandemic has drawn the attention to the far-reaching social implications of emerging infectious diseases, bringing to mind similarly impactful events like the Black Plague in early modern Europe or the Spanish Flu after World War I.

15 Jul 2025

Study: Millions worldwide still lack access to essential surgical care

Progress towards universal access to safe, affordable surgical care is dangerously off track as at least 160 million patients each year are unable to receive surgery - with Low- and Middle-income Countries (LMICs) bearing the brunt of the crisis, a new study reveals.

15 Jul 2025

Light-activated drug discovery identifies broad-spectrum antivirals

UC Santa Barbara researchers and collaborators from campus biotech spinoff Integrated Biosciences, as well as Harvard, MIT and genomics company Illumina Ventures are using optogenetics - the use of light to probe the functions of living tissue - to find compounds to help our bodies more effectively help themselves in times of physiological stress.

15 Jul 2025

New AI tool can help doctors read chest X‑rays better and improve health care outcomes

Can artificial intelligence, or AI, potentially transform health care for the better? Now, rising to the challenge, an Arizona State University team of researchers has built a powerful new AI tool, called Ark+, to help doctors read chest X‑rays better and improve health care outcomes.

15 Jul 2025

Genetic secrets of Spanish flu revealed through century-old sample

Researchers from the universities of Basel and Zurich have used a historical specimen from UZH's Medical Collection to decode the genome of the virus responsible for the 1918-1920 influenza pandemic in Switzerland.

14 Jul 2025

Many Americans turn to AI for health answers despite accuracy warnings

Traditionally, individuals asked health questions of their primary health care provider. Confidence in that provider as a source of trustworthy health information has been consistently high in recent years and was at 90% in April, according to survey data from the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania.

14 Jul 2025

Canadian obesity trends accelerated after the start of COVID-19 pandemic

Did the COVID-19 pandemic affect obesity rates in Canada? A new study in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) https://www.cmaj.ca/lookup/doi/10.1503/cmaj.241421 found obesity rates based on body mass index (BMI) increased faster in the 4 years after the start of the pandemic than in the previous 11 years, especially in younger adults.

14 Jul 2025

Vested interests. Influence muscle. At RFK Jr.’s HHS, It’s not pharma. It’s wellness.

On his way to an Ultimate Fighting Championship event, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stopped by the home of podcaster Gary Brecka.

14 Jul 2025

In rush to satisfy Trump, GOP delivers blow to health industry

Doctors, hospitals, and health insurers for weeks issued dire warnings to Republican lawmakers that millions of people would lose health coverage and hospitals would close if they cut Medicaid funding to help pay for President Donald Trump's big tax and spending bill.

14 Jul 2025

Social isolation in older adults linked to higher diabetes risk

Socially isolated older adults are at increased risk of developing diabetes and high blood sugar, according to a study being presented Sunday at ENDO 2025, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in San Francisco, Calif.

13 Jul 2025

Social media analysis reveals emotional burden of children with multiple health conditions

Children with multiple long-term health issues undergo severe emotional stress at the same time as they are trying to cope with the physical challenges of their condition, a study has found.

12 Jul 2025

WHO honors global leaders for driving Pandemic Agreement adoption

The World Health Organization has formally recognized the pivotal role of a number of heads of state and government in securing the adoption of the WHO Pandemic Agreement by the Seventy-eighth World Health Assembly in May 2025.

12 Jul 2025

New microchip tracks antibody-virus interactions from a single drop of blood

A new microchip invented by Scripps Research scientists can reveal how a person's antibodies interact with viruses-using just a drop of blood.

12 Jul 2025

Nearly one-third of UK maternal deaths tied to involvement of children's social care services

The involvement of children's social care services was a common factor in nearly a third of UK maternal deaths occurring during, or within a year of, pregnancy between 2014 and 2022, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Medicine.

12 Jul 2025

WHO maintains global emergency status for mpox following June 2025 IHR Emergency Committee meeting

The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) is hereby transmitting the report of the fourth meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) Emergency Committee (Committee) regarding the upsurge of mpox 2024, held on Thursday, 5 June 2025, from 12:00 to 17:00 CEST.

12 Jul 2025