Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Parents need better education to reduce drug overdoses in feverish children

More than 50 per cent of feverish children are given incorrect doses of medicine by parents and overdoses have almost trebled in the last two decades, according to a research review in the latest issue of the British-based Journal of Advanced Nursing.

6 Apr 2006

Brits find first case of bird flu in a dead swan

Government officials in Britain say a dead swan found in Cellardyke, Scotland, has a strain of the H5 bird flu virus.

5 Apr 2006

Expert says cats may spread bird flu to humans

The rapid spread of H5N1 bird flu across Europe and the Middle East in the last month and the re-emergence of the virus in Asia, has further ignited fears that the deadly virus will mutate and cause the pandemic everyone fears.

5 Apr 2006

China asked to spread the word about bird flu

David Nabarro the United Nation's top official on bird flu has urged China to share its experience with other countries on how to tackle the disease threatening to become a pandemic.

5 Apr 2006

Bird flu pandemic supercomputer simulation model

Using supercomputers to respond to a potential national health emergency, scientists have developed a simulation model that makes stark predictions about the possible future course of an avian influenza pandemic, given today's environment of worldwide connectivity.

4 Apr 2006

Combination of salmeterol and fluticasone propionate cuts inflammatory cells in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

The combination of two existing clinical treatments, salmeterol and fluticasone propionate, can significantly reduce inflammatory cells in the airways of current and former smokers being treated for moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

4 Apr 2006

Multi-site vaccinations could protect against all four dengue viruses

An innovative new study explains, for the first time, the failure of previous attempts to vaccinate against the four known Dengue viruses, and it suggests a very simple solution - injecting the four vaccines simultaneously at different locations on the body.

4 Apr 2006

Responding to AIDS, TB, Malaria and emerging infectious diseases in Burma

Government policies in Burma that restrict public health and humanitarian aid have created an environment where AIDS, drug-resistant tuberculosis, malaria and bird flu (H5N1) are spreading unchecked, according to a report by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

4 Apr 2006

New clinical trial to test different strengths of a vaccine designed to fight avian influenza

The Duke study is part of a multicenter trial that will test a modified form of an investigational bird flu vaccine to determine whether the vaccine still triggers a strong immune response at lower doses.

4 Apr 2006

British boy dies from measles

The death of a 13 year old boy in Britain from measles is the first fatality from the infection in 14 years and has ignited concern that the once common killer is back.

3 Apr 2006

Bird flu continues to sweep across the globe

An Egyptian health ministry official says the World Health Organization (WHO) has confirmed that four Egyptians have caught bird flu, including two who died from the virus.

3 Apr 2006

Jordan's first case of bird flu, courtesy of Egypt

The Egyptian Government says a failure to comply with instructions is the probable cause of the recurrence of avian influenza among humans there.

3 Apr 2006

High prevalence of mumps in Iowa

The Department of Public Health in Iowa says 245 confirmed, probable or suspected cases of mumps have been reported there since mid-January.

3 Apr 2006

Sweetgum tree may help fight bird flu

The sweetgum tree grows widely throughout the country and is known for its mace-like green fruit, which are sometimes called "gumballs." Now, this spiny fruit may become an important source of a chemical needed to make a lifesaving drug against bird flu - a drug that is currently in short supply worldwide, researchers say.

3 Apr 2006

Gene key to infection-fighting immune cells identified

Every time the human body encounters a virus, bacteria or other infectious agent, immune cells called B-lymphocytes multiply in lymph nodes and then swing into action to fight off the intruders.

3 Apr 2006

Nigeria approves misoprostol for use in hospitals and clinics

An old drug will gain a new use in Nigeria when misoprostol will be distributed for prevention and control of post-partum hemorrhage, the life-threatening bleeding after childbirth that commonly occurs in developing countries.

3 Apr 2006

Expecting enough bird flu vaccine for everyone is a big ask

According to researchers an experimental vaccine produced to offer protection against the H5N1 strain of bird flu presently causing havoc across the world, only appears to work at the very highest doses.

31 Mar 2006

Health experts meet in Asia to discuss preventing deadly childhood diseases

The deadly diseases pneumonia and meningitis kill an estimated 1.8 million children under the age of 5 years across the globe every year. Of these, more than 700,000 occur in the countries in the South-East Asia and Western Pacific regions of the World Health Organization (WHO).

30 Mar 2006

GlaxoSmithKline announces start of clinical trials to test two pandemic vaccines against the H5N1

GlaxoSmithKline has announced the start of an international clinical trial program to test two pandemic vaccines against the H5N1 strain of the avian influenza virus in humans. This dual approach reflects the company's commitment to provide health authorities with concrete options to face the threat of a pandemic.

30 Mar 2006

Bird flu hits India again

Officials in India say seven new cases of bird flu have been reported in the western state of Maharashtra, the site of two earlier outbreaks this year and one in neighbouring Madhya Pradesh state.

29 Mar 2006