Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Study finds no evidence of intrauterine vertical transmission of COVID-19 infection

There is currently no evidence that the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) causes severe adverse outcomes in neonates or that it can pass to the child while in the womb, according to a small observational study of women from Wuhan, China, who were in the third trimester of pregnancy and had pneumonia caused by COVID-19.

12 Feb 2020

Increased hand hygiene at airports can mitigate spread of coronavirus by 37%

As coronavirus spreads across the globe via infected air travelers, authorities are attempting to contain the outbreak and avoid a pandemic.

12 Feb 2020

MGH researchers uncover potential antiviral drug target for treating infectious diseases

As the coronavirus outbreak shows, viruses are a constant threat to humanity. Vaccines are regularly developed and deployed against specific viruses, but that process takes a lot of time, doesn't help everyone who needs protection, and still leaves people exposed to new outbreaks and new viruses.

11 Feb 2020

Coronavirus app detects if you’ve been exposed

The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) can spread rapidly, with at least a thousand new infections and a hundred of deaths each day. The epicenter of the outbreak, Wuhan in China, has been locked down since the peak of the outbreak. Now, Chinese officials say they’ve developed a new coronavirus app that tracks people and alerts them if they have been in close contact with the deadly virus.

11 Feb 2020

PolyU develops fully automated, rapid diagnostic platform for detecting respiratory infectious diseases

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University today announced the development of the world's most comprehensive automated multiplex diagnostic system (the System) which includes a fully automated machine and a multiplex full-screening panel for the point-of-care genetic testing of respiratory infectious disease including the 2019-nCoV.

11 Feb 2020

Blue Water Vaccines enters into agreement to develop Streptococcus pneumoniae vaccine with St. Jude

Blue Water Vaccines Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on creating transformative vaccines solving global health challenges, has entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement for the development of a Streptococcus Pneumoniae vaccine with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, the nation's leading hospital dedicated to understanding, treating and curing childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases.

11 Feb 2020

Australian scientists grow live coronavirus virus

The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is rapidly spreading across the globe, with the highest magnitude taking a toll on mainland China. Scientists are racing to find a vaccine or a treatment to help contain the virus spread. Now, a team of scientists and health experts in Australia may have found a breakthrough to fight the deadly virus.

11 Feb 2020

Coronavirus spread via aerosol raises concern as death toll rises

The Wuhan coronavirus or novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) has started to spread in a seafood market in Wuhan China before New Year of 2019 and has since spread to 25 countries and has infected more than 40,000 people. The death toll has surpassed that of the SARS outbreak in 2002-2003, and new developments in the virus’s mode of transmission raise alarm worldwide.

10 Feb 2020

When it comes to the new coronavirus, just who is a ‘close contact’?

Even as U.S. authorities have taken the drastic steps of quarantining residents returning from China, and temporarily banning foreign visitors who recently traveled to affected Chinese regions, they have urged the vast majority of U.S. residents to go about their regular activities.

10 Feb 2020

Improving handwashing at airports could reduce the spread of infectious diseases

A new study estimates that improving the rates of handwashing by travelers passing through just 10 of the world's leading airports could significantly reduce the spread of many infectious diseases.

10 Feb 2020

Five-year $3.7 million dollar grant supports research on evolution of viruses

The evolution of viruses will be the focus of a five-year $3.7 million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation's new program on convergence research, to an interdisciplinary team led by Penn State.

10 Feb 2020

How lifesaving organs for transplant go missing in transit

When a human heart was left behind by mistake on a Southwest Airlines plane in 2018, transplant officials downplayed the incident. They emphasized that the organ was used for valves and tissues, not to save the life of a waiting patient, so the delay was inconsequential.

10 Feb 2020

OU researchers awarded NASA grant to better understand emerging infectious disease threats

An interdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Oklahoma has been awarded a $730,000 grant from NASA to better understand emerging infectious disease threats in the region of Central Asia, including the 2019 novel coronavirus that is spreading from China.

9 Feb 2020

New strategies needed to reduce pneumococcal meningitis rates

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine have been highly effective in reducing pneumonia and other invasive infections caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria.

9 Feb 2020

GlobalData: Deploying robots in coronavirus fight may not be necessary

The medical technology industry is stepping up to help fight the spread of coronavirus in some cases deploying robot technology.

6 Feb 2020

Panicky responses to coronavirus may create many more problems

The new coronavirus is still spreading rapidly, in and out of China. By January 31, barely a month after the new pathogen's appearance on the world stage, already 62 countries had imposed restrictions on the entry of Chinese citizens.

6 Feb 2020

Coronavirus - pandemic or not?

The coronavirus strain called 2019-nCoV has been causing widespread illness in China, with 28,276 affected by the virus and over 565 deaths worldwide, mostly in China. As of now, it is already more deadly than the SARS epidemic that raged between 2002 and 2004.

6 Feb 2020

CDC diagnostic coronavirus test gets FDA emergency approval

In the light of the ongoing novel coronavirus epidemic in China, the US Food and Drug Administration has granted approval of a diagnostic test for use in emergency situations (emergency use authorization or EUA). The viral infection has spread to many different and distant parts of the world, involving over 25,000 people and causing nearly 600 deaths since it started in December 2019.

6 Feb 2020

WHO requests $675 million for coronavirus battle

The Wuhan coronavirus is vastly spreading in China and other countries across the globe. Since it was declared to be a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO), many countries have imposed travel bans and on the ground response to contain the virus and prevent further spread.

6 Feb 2020

Coronavirus update: Crucial information about transmission, diagnosis, treatment

The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) that has spread from China to more than 25 countries, is more difficult to contain than previously thought. The death toll from the infection soars past 565, with more than 28,256 confirmed cases. Scientists from around the globe are racing to determine the mode of transmission and how the virus spreads at such a rapid pace.

6 Feb 2020