Measles News and Research

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Measles is a highly contagious, serious disease caused by a virus. It remains a leading cause of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. An estimated 197 000 people died from measles in 2007, mostly children under the age of five.

Measles is caused by a virus in the paramyxovirus family. The measles virus normally grows in the cells that line the back of the throat and the lungs. It is a human disease not known to occur in animals.

Unmanned drones could be economical to deliver vaccines quickly in developing countries

Using unmanned drones to deliver vaccines in low- and middle-income countries may save money and improve vaccination rates, new research led by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center suggests.

21 Jun 2016

ECDC warns risk of gastrointestinal illness and vector-borne infections at Rio de Janeiro Olympics

Visitors to the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will be most at risk of gastrointestinal illness and vector-borne infections concludes ECDC's updated rapid risk assessment on the Games.

15 Jun 2016

Clinical trial to test safety, efficacy of Roswell Park-developed SurVaxM in multiple myeloma patients

An immune-based therapy developed at Roswell Park Cancer Institute is moving forward with its third clinical trial. The early-stage clinical trial will assess whether SurVaxM — a cancer vaccine developed at Roswell Park — is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with multiple myeloma, a rare type of blood cancer.

1 Jun 2016

Doctor’s access to vaccination data can improve pediatric immunization coverage

Exchange of immunization data between a centralized city immunization registry and provider electronic health records led to significant improvements in pediatric immunization coverage, a reduction in over-immunization for adolescents, and increased completeness of immunization records, according to a study conducted at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian, and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene's Citywide Immunization Registry.

6 May 2016

First-ever vaccine to combat Leishmaniasis under development

As scientists scramble to get a Zika virus vaccine into human trials by the end of the summer, a team of researchers is working on the first-ever vaccine to prevent another insect-borne disease - Leishmaniasis - from gaining a similar foothold in the Americas.

27 Apr 2016

High-throughput RNA interference screen identifies potential drug target against henipaviruses

The closely related Hendra and Nipah viruses (referred to jointly as henipaviruses) are deadly cousins of the more common mumps, measles, and respiratory syncytial viruses, all members of the paramyxovirus family. Henipavirus outbreaks are on the rise, but little is known about them, partly because research has to be conducted under extreme level containment conditions.

28 Mar 2016

Promoting breastfeeding as 'natural' way could result in harmful decision-making, experts warn

Breastfeeding campaigns that extol breastfeeding as the "natural" way to feed infants could result in harmful decision-making by some parents on other important health matters, according to experts from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

14 Mar 2016

Blueberry Therapeutics set to create safe, effective nanomedicines to tackle unmet healthcare needs

Blueberry Therapeutics Ltd, a leading pharmaceutical company focused on the major medical problems of inflammation and infection, are exploring the anti-microbial agenda through the development of new anti-fungal drugs and treatments to tackle this important unmet healthcare need.

2 Mar 2016

New WHO report highlights ways to prevent, mitigate hearing loss in children

Nearly 32 million children across the world live with disabling hearing loss. A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, Childhood hearing loss: act now, here’s how, suggests that 60% of this can be prevented.

2 Mar 2016

Cryo-electron microscopy helps analyze infection mechanisms of coronaviruses in detail

High-resolution cryo-electron microscopy and supercomputing have now made it possible to analyze in detail the infection mechanisms of coronaviruses. These viruses are notorious for attacking the respiratory tract of humans and animals.

27 Feb 2016

Poll: 59% of parents rate flu vaccine less favorably than other childhood vaccines

Parents who do not get their children flu shots rate the flu vaccine less favorably than other childhood vaccines, a national poll finds.

23 Feb 2016

Electronic health records could help identify people who have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes

In 2012, a group of UCLA researchers set out to mine thousands of electronic health records for a more accurate and less expensive way to identify people who have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes. The researchers got much more than they bargained for.

16 Feb 2016

UW-Madison research team starts work on Zika virus infection

In October, when David O'Connor last visited Brazil as part of a decade-long research program studying drug-resistant strains of HIV, one of his Brazilian collaborators had a request.

11 Feb 2016

Alternatives exist to eliminate nonmedical exemptions for childhood vaccination

For more than 30 years, Mississippi and West Virginia were the only states in the country that disallowed nonmedical exemptions to mandatory school vaccination laws for religious or philosophical reasons, until they were joined by California last year. These exemption laws have provoked debate over the rights of parents versus the responsibility of government to protect public health.

9 Feb 2016

Vaccinations could have significant economic value

Vaccinations, long recognized as an excellent investment that saves lives and prevents illness, could have significant economic value that far exceeds their original cost, a new study from researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has found.

9 Feb 2016

Recommendations for caring for Syrian refugees' health care needs

What unique health needs will Syrian refugees face, and how can Canadian physicians best provide health care to them and their families? A practice article posted online today in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) provides recommendations on screening and advice for primary care physicians to deal with this specific population's health care needs.

9 Dec 2015

RTFCCR grant supports ASCOLT study that evaluates effectiveness of Aspirin in colorectal cancer patients

Rising Tide Foundation for Clinical Cancer Research, an international private foundation based in Switzerland, has awarded a US $800,000 grant to be released over two years for the ASCOLT study conducted by Dr John Chia, Senior Consultant Medical Oncologist at the Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre Singapore.

9 Dec 2015

Measles vaccination plays key role in reducing child mortality

The number of measles-related deaths has decreased 79% from 546 800 at the beginning of the century to 114 900 in 2014. New data released by WHO for the Measles & Rubella Initiative, estimates that 17.1 million lives have been saved since 2000, largely due to increased vaccination coverage against this highly contagious viral disease.

13 Nov 2015

New vaccine candidate shows great promise at fighting respiratory syncytial virus

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health researchers say a new candidate vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) made with a weakened version of the virus shows great promise at fighting the disease, the leading cause of hospitalization for children under the age of one in the U.S.

5 Nov 2015

Deaths from avoidable risk factors: an interview with Dr Ali Mokdad, IHME

The study showed that about thirty percent to maybe half of the leading causes of death in the world are preventable. These are risk factors that you could manage and thus you could prevent a lot of premature deaths.

3 Nov 2015