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Antimicrobial copper surfaces reduce hospital acquired infections in ICU rooms

Results from a comprehensive multi-site clinical trial demonstrated that the use of antimicrobial copper surfaces in intensive care unit rooms reduced the amount of bacteria in the rooms by 97 percent and resulted in a 41 percent reduction in the hospital acquired infection rate.

21 Oct 2011

Nasal irrigation safe and effective for people with chronic sinus

Before reaching for an over-the-counter medication to relieve cold and allergy symptoms, try a simple source of relief that's been around for centuries.

21 Oct 2011

India must stay the course in efforts to eradicate polio

"Clearly, there is no room for complacency" in India's efforts to eradicate polio, defined by the WHO as no recorded case of the disease for three years, because "the goal of complete eradication is within reach," Deepak Gupta, a senior U.N. professional in Strategic Health/Development Communication, writes in an Asia Sentinel opinion piece.

21 Oct 2011

The Guardian interviews GlaxoSmithKline lead researcher about new malaria vaccine

The Guardian features an interview with Moncef Slaoui, now chair of research and development at GlaxoSmithKline, who discusses his 23-year involvement in the research leading to the RTS,S malaria vaccine that has shown to halve the risk of malaria among African children.

21 Oct 2011

Aid groups, health ministry plan to administer oral cholera vaccine to 100,000 Haitians

Working in conjunction with the Haitian Ministry of Health and the Haitian aid group GHESKIO, Boston-based Partners In Health (PIH) will begin an immunization campaign in January aimed at providing two doses of the oral cholera vaccine Shanchol "to 100,000 Haitians living in two vulnerable communities: a neighborhood in Port-au-Prince, where potable water and latrines are luxuries, and to an isolated rural village in the lower Artibonite Valley region," the Miami Herald reports.

21 Oct 2011

Bringing NTDs to the forefront of the global health agenda

In this "End the Neglect" blog post, Neeraj Mistry, managing director of the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases, reports on the global burden of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) in anticipation of the World Health Summit set to take place from October 23 to 26 in Berlin, Germany.

21 Oct 2011

Treating TB, HIV co-infections early, aggressively can save lives, multiple studies show

"Treating tuberculosis (TB) and HIV infections at the same time can be a challenge for patients and their doctors, but attacking both diseases early and aggressively isn't harmful and could save the lives of those who are sickest," according to a global study led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

21 Oct 2011

Global Fund to transfer management of HIV/AIDS grant in Mali after investigation finds misuse of funds

"The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria will transfer management of a $28.77 million HIV/AIDS grant from Mali's national AIDS council, the Haut Conseil de Lutte contre le Sida (the High Council for the Fight Against AIDS, or HCLNS), to a new principal recipient at the end of the year" after mismanagement of funds was discovered in the country, a Global Fund press release reports.

21 Oct 2011

Young docs not so keen on immunizations: Survey

A cross-sectional survey of 551 healthcare providers and noted that more recent graduates were less likely to think that vaccines were efficacious said Saad Omer, assistant professor of Emory University in Atlanta. They were also more likely to have doubts about the safety of some vaccines, Omer told reporters at the 49th annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA).

20 Oct 2011

Starting HIV therapy within two weeks of TB treatment increases survival by 33%

Timing is everything when treating patients with both HIV and tuberculosis. Starting HIV therapy in such patients within two weeks of TB treatment, rather than two months as is the current practice, increases survival by 33 percent, according to a large-scale clinical trial in Cambodia led by researchers at Children's Hospital Boston and the Immune Disease Institute.

20 Oct 2011

Study examines potential benefits of discordant couple HIV therapy

A new study published online in the journal AIDS uses mathematical models to predict the potential impact of treating discordant couples with antiretroviral therapy, according to a Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health press release.

20 Oct 2011

Intestinal ecosystem more dynamic than previously thought

The intestinal ecosystem is even more dynamic than previously thought, according to two studies by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers published in the latest issue of Science.

20 Oct 2011

Tenofovir gel shows promise against HSV infection

HIV infection is commonly associated with other sexual infections, such as herpes simplex virus (HSV). Infection with HSV facilitates the risk of HIV infection and negatively impacts the clinical course of HIV disease. Therefore, it would be highly beneficial to identify multi-faceted microbicide compounds that are efficient against HIV-1 and other sexually transmitted infections.

20 Oct 2011

Bill, Melinda Gates speak at Malaria Forum, laud progress in fight against disease

"Eradicating malaria is not a vague, unrealistic aspiration but a tough, ambitious goal that can be reached within the next few decades," Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said on Tuesday at the international Malaria Forum in Seattle, Reuters reports.

20 Oct 2011

Haiti has highest rate of cholera worldwide one year after disease outbreak began

Paul Farmer, a founder of Partners in Health (PIH) and U.N. deputy special envoy to Haiti, in an interview with the Associated Press/Washington Post "said cholera has sickened more than 450,000 people in a nation of 10 million, or nearly five percent of the population, and killed more than 6,000," giving the Caribbean nation "the highest rate of cholera in the world a mere year after the disease first arrived."

20 Oct 2011

Breakthrough in development of effective therapy against Hendra virus

A team of Federal and university scientists reports a breakthrough in the development of an effective therapy against a deadly virus, Hendra virus. The results of their study, "A Neutralizing Human Monoclonal Antibody Protects African Green Monkeys from Hendra Virus Challenge," will appear in Science Translational Medicine online.

20 Oct 2011

Winter health and safety tips

Winter is a special time for celebration. It should also be a time for added caution if you or someone in your family is an older adult. It is the season for falls, slips on icy streets, and other dangers that can be especially harmful for older adults. "Something as simple as a fall can be devastating for older men and women," says Dr. Evelyn Granieri, director of the Division of Geriatrics at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/The Allen Hospital. "Before the cold weather arrives, it is important to prepare."

20 Oct 2011

Despite progress in malaria vaccine development, funding remains potential stumbling block

In this Guardian opinion piece, the newspaper's health editor, Sarah Boseley, responds to the positive results of a large-scale clinical trial of an experimental malaria vaccine reported on Tuesday and recaps other strides made against the disease in recent years, writing that "there is a way to go yet, with more results from the trial to come, and many uncertainties, including how much this vaccine will cost and who will be persuaded to pay."

20 Oct 2011

Experimental vaccine halves risk of malaria in African children, results of large clinical trial suggest

"An experimental vaccine from GlaxoSmithKline halved the risk of African children getting malaria in a major clinical trial, making it likely to become the world's first shot against the deadly disease," according to a study "presented at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's Malaria Forum conference in Seattle and published simultaneously in the New England Journal of Medicine" on Tuesday, Reuters reports.

20 Oct 2011

HIV advocates in Uganda 'losing faith' as country works to prevent, treat new infections, PlusNews reports

PlusNews examines how "corruption scandals, frequent treatment shortages and accusations of a misguided prevention program" have undermined progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Uganda, a country that had "won plaudits in the early days of the epidemic for the aggressive stance taken by President Yoweri Museveni." Uganda "lowered its HIV prevalence from 18 percent in the early 1990s to about six percent in 2000," the news service notes.

20 Oct 2011

Disease/Infection News

Antimicrobial copper surfaces reduce hospital acquired infections in ICU rooms

Nasal irrigation safe and effective for people with chronic sinus

India must stay the course in efforts to eradicate polio

The Guardian interviews GlaxoSmithKline lead researcher about new malaria vaccine

Aid groups, health ministry plan to administer oral cholera vaccine to 100,000 Haitians

Bringing NTDs to the forefront of the global health agenda

Treating TB, HIV co-infections early, aggressively can save lives, multiple studies show

Global Fund to transfer management of HIV/AIDS grant in Mali after investigation finds misuse of funds

Young docs not so keen on immunizations: Survey

Starting HIV therapy within two weeks of TB treatment increases survival by 33%

Study examines potential benefits of discordant couple HIV therapy

Intestinal ecosystem more dynamic than previously thought

Tenofovir gel shows promise against HSV infection

Bill, Melinda Gates speak at Malaria Forum, laud progress in fight against disease

Haiti has highest rate of cholera worldwide one year after disease outbreak began

Breakthrough in development of effective therapy against Hendra virus

Winter health and safety tips

Despite progress in malaria vaccine development, funding remains potential stumbling block

Experimental vaccine halves risk of malaria in African children, results of large clinical trial suggest

HIV advocates in Uganda 'losing faith' as country works to prevent, treat new infections, PlusNews reports

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