Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

First human trials start in Canada for muscle-derived stem cells as a treatment for urinary incontinence

Human muscle-derived cells, pluripotent stem cells found in muscle, have been used to cure stress urinary incontinence in animal models, a finding which signals that these cells are prime candidates to treat the condition in adults.

31 Aug 2005

New vaccine approved for U.S. just in time for flu season

A new flu vaccine has been approved by U.S. health officials in an attempt to bolster up supplies after last season's shortage.

31 Aug 2005

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy for treatment-resistant depression proves effective for some patients

Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) therapy, a treatment recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment-resistant depression, produced a positive response in more than 25 percent of patients in a national, yearlong study led by UT Southwestern Medical Center psychiatrists

31 Aug 2005

Early life exposure to second-hand smoke can produce life-long respiratory problems

A new study finds early life exposure to second-hand smoke can produce life-long respiratory problems. The study of 35,000 adult non-smokers in Singapore found that those who lived with a smoker during childhood had more respiratory problems, including chronic cough.

30 Aug 2005

A far wider range of wildlife species could be at risk from bird flu

Dr Diana Bell, of UEA's School of Biological Sciences, says the discovery that avian flu was responsible for the death of three rare civet cats in Cuc Phuong National Park in Vietnam, raises important questions about the range of wildlife species which could now be at risk from this virus.

30 Aug 2005

Asian bird flu expert joins Murdoch University

Murdoch University's School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences have appointed Dr Trevor Ellis, an expert in Asian Bird flu, SARS and Foot and Mouth Disease.

30 Aug 2005

Indonesia to immunize 24 million children

To combat Indonesia's largest recorded polio epidemic, which now threatens a broad swath of countries across Asia, on 30 August, 24 million children will be immunized during the country's largest-ever mass immunization campaign.

29 Aug 2005

Tuberculosis emergency in Africa

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), African health ministers have declared a tuberculosis emergency to order to rally greater political commitment in the fight against one of the continent's top killers.

29 Aug 2005

Immunity - another important function of the mitochondria

Researchers have discovered a surprise lurking inside mitochondria, the power plants that are present in every cell. It turns out that these powerhouses also contain a protein that triggers the immune system to attack viral invaders.

28 Aug 2005

Better late than never - Hong Kong and China improve communications on disease issues

A run of food scares in Hong Kong in recent weeks has seen the population frightened to eat pork because of swine flu and eels, and now fish, because of a carcinogenic chemical, plus the ever present worry of bird flu, all of which have emanated from China.

24 Aug 2005

Drug company donates bird flu vaccine to World Health Organization

A donation by Swiss drug maker Roche, of enough of its Tamiflu antiviral drug to treat 3 million people against birdflu, could slow the spread of the outbreak among humans, especially in countries too poor to afford their own stockpile.

24 Aug 2005

Quitting heroin under anesthesia is dangerous and ineffective

According to a new study, having a general anesthesia is not an effective way for heroin users to avoid the painful, drawn-out process of breaking their habit and can be dangerous.

24 Aug 2005

Genomics reveals mechanisms that engineer remarkable heat resistance in bacteria

Warm-blooded creatures maintain a relatively stable body temperature that cannot tolerate the stress of intense heat (or cold). When it's too hot proteins destabilize and degrade--in some cases, with fatal results.

24 Aug 2005

No intervention is necessary for most children with fluid in their ears

A Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh study finds that prompt insertion of tympanostomy tubes (small ear tubes) does not improve developmental outcomes of children at 6 years of age as once thought.

24 Aug 2005

China on high alert - new case of pig disease in Hong Kong

After the central government said this week that it had the pig disease under control in Sichuan province, the epicentre of the outbreak, China's far south is now on high alert after one person was killed and three were infected by the disease that has killed nearly 40 in the southwest.

24 Aug 2005

Use of general anesthesia for heroin detoxification offers no benefit when compared to two other methods

The use of general anesthesia for heroin detoxification offers no benefit when compared to two other methods, and is associated with several potentially life-threatening adverse events, according to an article in the August 24/31 issue of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

23 Aug 2005

Wild ducks may be key to development of flu vaccine

According to Dutch and Swedish researchers wild ducks carry more than a half-dozen different types of avian flu virus.

23 Aug 2005

Newly discovered virus linked to childhood respiratory infections

A team of Swedish researchers say they have identified a previously unknown virus that may cause many cases of serious respiratory infections in children.

23 Aug 2005

Elderly woman latest victim of swine flu in Hong Kong

The Hong Kong government has reported that an elderly woman has contracted the pig-borne bacterial disease that has killed nearly 40 people in mainland China.

22 Aug 2005

$Propofol is a safe and effective drug to treat children with refractory status epilepticus$

Propofol is a safe and effective drug to treat children with refractory status epilepticus

...and it is recommended before thiopental, according to a study in the August 23, 2005 issue of Neurology, the scientific journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Propofol and thiopental are widely used intravenous anesthetics which are also known to help control seizures.

22 Aug 2005