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.

Genetic diversity of malaria parasite challenges one size fits all strategies

Despite decades of efforts focused on mosquito eradication, drug therapies, and vaccines, malaria remains hard to beat, especially in Africa.

11 Apr 2025

IL-6 emerges as early sepsis indicator in high risk groups

A pioneering study presented today at ESCMID Global 2025 has uncovered the potential of interleukin-6 (IL-6) as a powerful diagnostic biomarker for the early detection of sepsis in high-risk patient groups, including neonates, children and pregnant women.

11 Apr 2025

Abortion rates remain stable in Ontario despite global spike

A new study finds that, unlike countries across the UK and Europe, abortion rates did not spike in Ontario, Canada from 2020-2022.

11 Apr 2025

COVID-19 treatments show minimal serious side effects

Numerous treatment options for COVID-19 have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over the last four years, including antiviral drugs and monoclonal antibodies that suppress an excessive immune response.

11 Apr 2025

HPV vaccine uptake rises with help from AI chatbot

The first trial of an AI (Artificial Intelligence)-powered chatbot designed to inform parents about the HPV vaccine has shown that it increases vaccine uptake and engagement with health professionals.

11 Apr 2025

WHO warns of health service disruptions due to ODA cuts

The World Health Organization (WHO) issues warning on health service disruptions reported in 70% of its surveyed country offices as a result of sudden suspensions and reductions in official development assistance (ODA) for health.

11 Apr 2025

More psych hospital beds are needed for kids, but neighbors say not here

In January, a teenager in suburban St. Louis informed his high school counselor that a classmate said he planned to kill himself later that day.

11 Apr 2025

ChatGPT improves exercise for neurodivergent kids

A University of Michigan research team has used AI to help deliver exercise "snacks" to kids with autism.

11 Apr 2025

England faces persistent rise in alcohol deaths

The persistent higher rate of alcohol deaths in England since the pandemic in 2020 is an "acute crisis" requiring urgent action from government, according to a new study led by researchers at UCL and the University of Sheffield.

10 Apr 2025

RFK Jr.’s purge of FOIA staff at FDA Spares people working on covid vaccine lawsuits

Mass firings at the FDA have decimated divisions tasked with releasing public records generated by the agency's regulatory activities in sectors including tobacco, food, medical devices, and veterinary medicine.

10 Apr 2025

Trump’s immigration tactics obstruct efforts to avert bird flu pandemic, researchers say

Aggressive deportation tactics have terrorized farmworkers at the center of the nation's bird flu strategy, public health workers say.

10 Apr 2025

Tax time triggers fraud alarms for some Obamacare enrollees

Because of past fraud by rogue brokers, some Affordable Care Act policyholders may get an unexpected tax bill this season.

10 Apr 2025

New quinoline-based antiviral shows strong promise against SARS-CoV-2

Researchers develop quinoline-based drug with inhibitory activity against the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro).

10 Apr 2025

Study shows wisdom of early US investment in COVID-19 vaccines

Five years ago, volunteers rolled up their sleeves in the first clinical trial of a vaccine against COVID-19, as the new pandemic surged around them. By a year later, 66 million American adults had gotten at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, at no cost to them. Now, a new study shows how wise that national investment in testing, buying and delivering the first vaccines was.

10 Apr 2025

U.S. physician burnout rates decline but remain higher than other workers

First, some good news: In late 2023 and early 2024, significantly fewer U.S. physicians reported symptoms of job burnout than they did a few years earlier.

9 Apr 2025

Slashed federal funding cancels vaccine clinics amid measles surge

More than a dozen vaccination clinics were canceled in Pima County, Arizona.

9 Apr 2025

Rural hospitals and patients are disconnected from modern care

Leroy Walker arrived at the county hospital short of breath. Walker, 65 and with chronic high blood pressure, was brought in by one of rural Greene County’s two working ambulances.

9 Apr 2025

Call for urgent support as US funding cuts threaten HIV/AIDS programs

In the face of ongoing funding disruptions to US foreign assistance programmes, a group of international experts calls for urgent action to ensure the continuation of life-saving interventions and support for children and families affected by HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.

9 Apr 2025

New drug compound prevents long COVID symptoms in mice

Researchers have shown a new drug compound can prevent long COVID symptoms in mice – a landmark finding that could lead to a future treatment for the debilitating condition.

8 Apr 2025

GP38 identified as key viral toxin and vaccine target in Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus research

A recent study published in Science Translational Medicine involving scientists from the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in collaboration with scientists from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the University of California-Berkeley have advanced discoveries surrounding the viral glycoprotein GP38 expressed by the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV).

8 Apr 2025