Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Branding treatment in India should be banned

A letter in this weeks BMJ reports on how researchers are urging rural clinics in India to stop the superstitious practice known as 'branding treatment'.

27 Feb 2005

Proof that vaccinating children against influenza in the hope of reducing disease spread is inconclusive

Proof that vaccinating children aged 6 to 24 months against influenza in the hope of reducing disease spread is inconclusive. These conclusions are based on a small number of studies based on a large dataset of reasonable quality.

27 Feb 2005

Control and containment key to combating avian influenza

Containing the bird flu virus to the greatest extent possible and reducing the risk of infection in poultry and farmed free-range ducks will help to prevent a global human influenza pandemic, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has announced.

24 Feb 2005

State-of-the-art computer technology to tackle deadly diseases such as influenza

Researchers at the University of Bath have won a £261,000 grant to use the latest software to produce a blueprint of a designer drug that could stop influenza and some other diseases from replicating in humans.

22 Feb 2005

Study reveals need for change in surgical procedures

IPRO has announced progress in surgical infection prevention after the Archives of Surgery published a study highlighting the need for better, more consistent practices to address infection risk factors.

22 Feb 2005

Increased risk of urinary incontinence with hormone therapy

Menopausal hormone therapy (MHT), consisting of oral estrogen plus progestin or estrogen alone, considered in the past as treatment for urinary incontinenc, was until recently, credited with many benefits well beyond the indications for symptomatic relief of hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness. One of the benefits of MHT was to improve the symptoms of urinary incontinence (UI), and it has often been prescribed to treat UI.

21 Feb 2005

Crystallized molecular machine reveals possible new paths for treating diseases

The crystallized form of a molecular machine that can cut and paste genetic material is revealing possible new paths for treating diseases such as some forms of cancer and opportunistic infections that plague HIV patients.

21 Feb 2005

Studies reveal methods viruses use to sidestep immune system

A series of studies by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center sheds light on the mechanisms used by viruses to thwart a host's immune defenses and may aid in the development of more effective drugs to fight hepatitis C and West Nile viruses, as well as the flu and the common cold.

17 Feb 2005

FDA approves medical laser for use in liposuction cosmetic surgery

Erchonia Medical has announced that their model Erchonia Neira 4L low-level laser is the first device of its kind to receive approval for use during liposuction by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

14 Feb 2005

Teaching ethical decision-making in medicine

When medical students at the University of Iowa Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine learn about ethical decision-making in patient care, one of the things they paradoxically learn is that an "ethical" problem often isn't one.

11 Feb 2005

Merck may have known the overuse of mercury in their vaccines posed a dangerous health threat to children

A Los Angeles Times article today reports that Merck, a leading manufacturer of prescription drugs, knew the overuse of mercury in their vaccines posed a dangerous health threat to children.

8 Feb 2005

Health risks increase in Guyana with leptospirosis

Leptospirosis has become a health concern in Guyana, as the number of cases continues to rise and 43 people were being treated for suspected cases of the bacterial disease, which is usually caused by exposure to water contaminated with the urine of infected animals.

8 Feb 2005

Research confirms how early-life events shape later physiology

Underscoring the value of good prenatal care, new research suggests that early infection may create a cognitive vulnerability that appears later during stress on the immune system.

8 Feb 2005

Study compares at home weight-loss and exercise programs to center work out regimes for women

Joy Ungerer has improved her health and lost excess weight by walking on a treadmill at an exercise center. Janet Brewer walks, too - either at a mall or in her neighborhood - and has watched the readings on her bathroom scale drop as well.

7 Feb 2005

Increase in norovirus incidents on board cruise ships

There is an increase in norovirus incidents across the country in hospitals, day care centers, nursing homes and schools, according to Dave Forney, chief of the Vessel Sanitation Program of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

26 Jan 2005

School influenza vaccinations best strategy for slowing flu transmission

The best strategy for minimizing future influenza morbidity and mortality would be to concentrate vaccinations in school children and high-risk groups, according to a new research commentary by scientists at Emory University.

25 Jan 2005

Nasogastric tube after abdominal surgery slows recovery

Routine use of a nasogastric tube after abdominal surgery, once thought to speed the return of normal intestinal functions, actually slows recovery, according to a new review of research.

24 Jan 2005

Chinese medicines may be helpful in treating side effects of chemotherapy and symptoms of flu

New research reviews hint that traditional Chinese medicines may be helpful in treating side effects of chemotherapy and symptoms of flu. For now, however, the findings remain more tantalizing than conclusive.

24 Jan 2005

ID Biomedical begins development of pandemic influenza vaccine

ID Biomedical announced today that it has begun development of an experimental ("mock") vaccine against a strain of the influenza virus, H5N1, that experts believe could cause a deadly worldwide epidemic (pandemic) of influenza.

19 Jan 2005

Newly discovered virus, New Haven coronavirus

A newly discovered virus may be responsible for many respiratory tract illnesses in infants and children, and may be associated with an important multi-organ disease whose cause has remained a mystery for decades, according to articles in the Feb. 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online.

19 Jan 2005