Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Annual COVID-19 vaccine proves to be a wise investment for personal health and pocketbook

Study finds that receiving an annual COVID-19 vaccine is clinically and economically beneficial for individuals, regardless of insurance status, offering savings by reducing the likelihood of infection and its associated costs.

11 Apr 2024

Gut bacteria play a pivotal role in obesity's impact on body fat metabolism

Review explores the complex interplay between gut microbiota dysregulation in obesity and its impacts on white and brown adipose tissue metabolism, focusing on direct and indirect effects on mitochondria, highlighting potential avenues for obesity treatment through microbiota-focused strategies.

11 Apr 2024

ChatGPT could be an effective tool to help reduce vaccine hesitancy

New research being presented at this year's ESCMID Global Congress (formerly ECCMID) in Barcelona, Spain (27-30 April) suggests that the free-to-use, widely accessible ChatGPT could be an effective tool to help reduce vaccine hesitancy among the general public, as well as providing helpful advice on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in conjunction with sexual health clinics, by improving knowledge and access to care.

10 Apr 2024

Researchers create novel drug that can prevent flu-induced lung injury

Infection with the influenza virus leads to lung injury through inflammation over-activation that causes collateral damage to cells required for breathing.

10 Apr 2024

Human-wildlife interface: Starling movements linked to E. coli carriage

Research unveils how spotless starlings' movements, monitored via GPS, relate to the carriage and potential spread of Escherichia coli (E. coli), emphasizing the significant role of bird movement patterns in transmitting pathogens across different environments.

10 Apr 2024

Study reveals unexpected vulnerability of lung immune cells to SARS-CoV-2

The lung-cell type that's most susceptible to infection by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is not the one previously assumed to be most vulnerable.

10 Apr 2024

An Arm and a Leg: Attack of the Medicare machines

Covering the American health care system means we tell some scary stories. This episode of "An Arm and a Leg" sounds like a real horror movie.

10 Apr 2024

Avian flu's leap to humans: Understanding risks and prevention strategies

Comprehensive report by the EFSA and ECDC delves into the factors that could prompt an avian influenza virus to evolve and potentially spark a pandemic, emphasizing the One Health approach for effective prevention and risk mitigation strategies.

10 Apr 2024

Blood protein could be a potential biomarker for delayed concussion recovery in children

Researchers have discovered a blood protein that could help detect which children will experience ongoing concussion symptoms more than two weeks after an injury.

9 Apr 2024

Denmark's pertussis epidemic reveals the power of maternal vaccination

A study published in Eurosurveillance details the 2023 pertussis epidemic in Denmark, emphasizing the age-specific incidence, the role of maternal vaccination in reducing infant hospitalizations, and the impact of vaccination strategies on managing the outbreak.

8 Apr 2024

Gold nanoparticle adorned polymers boost infectious disease testing

By harnessing the power of composite polymer particles adorned with gold nanoparticles, a group of researchers have delivered a more accurate means of testing for infectious diseases.

5 Apr 2024

Study reveals the impact of prompt design on ChatGPT's health advice accuracy

Study by CSIRO and The University of Queensland highlights how the phrasing of prompts influences the accuracy of health information provided by ChatGPT, showing a significant variance in effectiveness based on prompt design.

4 Apr 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Florida limits abortion — for now

Florida this week became a major focus for advocates on both main sides of the abortion debate.

4 Apr 2024

Newly discovered cause for asthma sparks hope for treatment

Scientists at King's College London have discovered a new cause for asthma that sparks hope for treatment that could prevent the life-threatening disease.

4 Apr 2024

Study evaluates the feasibility of discontinuing CLL specialist care

A study published today in Blood Advances showed that among patients in Denmark who had slow-growing chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) with no symptoms and a low risk for ever needing treatment, those who stopped seeing their doctors for specialized follow-up had fewer hospital visits, fewer infections, and similar survival after three years compared to those who continued to undergo specialized follow-up.

4 Apr 2024

Similar inflammatory profiles discovered in childhood respiratory illnesses

Researchers have made a breakthrough into how two chronic respiratory diseases in childhood affect the immune system, paving the way for better treatments.

4 Apr 2024

Study links pneumonia transmission in seniors to contact with young children

New research being presented at this year's European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2024) in Barcelona, Spain (27-30 April) finds that pneumonia-causing bacteria are common in the over 60s and that contact with pre-school and young school-aged children appears to be the most important factor in the onward transmission of Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus) to the over 60s.

3 Apr 2024

Mental illness does not diminish COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness

A large multi-state electronic health record-based study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC's) VISION Network has found that COVID-19 vaccines are as effective for adults with anxiety or depression or mood disorders as for individuals without these common diagnoses.

3 Apr 2024