Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

People with PTSD 1.8 times as likely to have other infections, study finds

First-of-its-kind study finds people with PTSD were 1.8 times as likely to have any infection as those without PTSD, ranging from being 1.3 times as likely to have meningitis, to 1.7 times as likely to have influenza, to 2.7 times as likely to have viral hepatitis.

15 Oct 2019

Study suggesting that CRISPR babies are likely to die early has been retracted

A research paper that sparked concerns about the lifespan of China's first gene-edited babies has been retracted due to technical errors.

15 Oct 2019

New system can help the immune system spot and eliminate tumors

Cancer cells are masters at avoiding detection, but a new system developed by Yale scientists can make them stand out from the crowd and help the immune system spot and eliminate tumors that other forms of immunotherapies might miss, the researchers report Oct. 14 in the journal Nature Immunology.

14 Oct 2019

Blood vessel damage is more widespread than expected in patients with TBI

The effects of a traumatic brain injury are pretty clear – problems with memory, headaches, and emotions – but what's unclear is the underlying pathological causes for those symptoms.

14 Oct 2019

Get vaccinated to protect yourself from flu, say Johns Hopkins experts

Cases of the flu are already on the rise around the nation as flu season begins. Johns Hopkins Medicine experts say now is the time to fight against the flu as the number of people getting sick from the potentially life-threatening virus will increase in the coming months.

14 Oct 2019

Patients eligible for charity care instead get big bills

When Ashley Pintos went to the emergency room of St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, Wash., in 2016, with a sharp pain in her abdomen and no insurance, a representative demanded a $500 deposit before treating her.

14 Oct 2019

New study could change the way traumatic brain injuries are treated

Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions, can be caused by anything from sports injuries to battlefield trauma.

14 Oct 2019

Brain protein plays a prominent role in the maintenance of chronic pain

A protein called RGS4 (Regulator of G protein signaling 4) plays a prominent role in the maintenance of long-term pain states and may serve as a promising new target for the treatment of chronic pain conditions, according to research conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published in print October 16, in The Journal of Neuroscience.

11 Oct 2019

€7.6 million ERC Synergy grant to support research on molecular mechanisms of viral infection

The interdisciplinary team wants to investigate the molecular mechanisms of viral infection, which will contribute to fundamental knowledge about cellular regulation and new concepts for broad-spectrum anti-viral therapy. The funding amounts to 7.6 million euros.

11 Oct 2019

Genetic mechanisms could serve as a road map for screening new drugs to prolong healthy lifespan

The discovery in the 1990s that a mutation in a single gene of an experimental worm could double its lifespan set off a stampede of research on the molecular biology of aging and triggered hopes that drug therapies or other interventions could be developed to extend healthy human lifespan. But as is often the case in science, the genetic regulation of aging is more complicated than it first appeared.

10 Oct 2019

CRISPR RNA-cutting enzyme programmed to destroy viruses in human cells

Many of the world's most common or deadly human pathogens are RNA-based viruses -- Ebola, Zika and flu, for example -- and most have no FDA-approved treatments.

10 Oct 2019

Researchers identify genetic mutation that causes idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Researchers in Japan have identified a genetic mutation that causes a severe lung disease called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis by killing the cells lining the lung's airways.

10 Oct 2019

Osteoarthritis has no cure, but symptoms can be managed

Osteoarthritis can't be ignored. On a grand scale, it is the most common form of arthritis (which actually isn't a specific disease but rather a general term for inflammation in a joint), accounting for more cases than all the other forms combined. It affects an estimated 31 million Americans and is a leading cause of disability among adults.

10 Oct 2019

Hand sanitizers are effective, but nothing can beat traditional handwashing

Whether they dangle from keychains, spritz from pens or froth and pump out of clinic and classroom dispensers, hand sanitizers are convenient alternatives to handwashing, and they do work.

9 Oct 2019

New game theory approach helps identify bacterial antibiotic resistance

Washington State University researchers have developed a novel way to identify previously unrecognized antibiotic-resistance genes in bacteria.

9 Oct 2019

New discovery brings scientists closer to developing an RSV vaccine

Scientists have made an important discovery that could lead to a vaccine that will protect against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

9 Oct 2019

Vaccine for deadly RSV could be on the way, scientists say

A vaccine for the common and sometimes deadly RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) has been elusive, but scientists say a new discovery puts them much closer to success.

9 Oct 2019

Statin use associated with increased risk of diabetes, skin infections

Statins have been reported to be beneficial for infections such as pneumonia and Staphylococcus aureus bacteremia.

9 Oct 2019

CDC advises vaccination for pregnant women against flu and whooping cough

The Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) has recommended that all pregnant women should be vaccinated against influenza and whooping cough to provide protection to the baby against these deadly infections during the first few months of their lives. The CDC recommendation released this week Tuesday (8th of October 2019), is that these vaccines against flu and whooping cough are safe for pregnant women and do not affect their unborn babies adversely.

9 Oct 2019

Scientists discover new patterns in the evolution of the influenza virus

Researchers from Skoltech have found that the devious influenza virus is capable of new patterns of evolution and mutation in order to escape treatment with the currently available drugs and prevention with the currently available vaccines. This discovery however could help researchers predict the potential mutations in the genome of the virus and ultimately help them develop and design more effective vaccines against influenza.

9 Oct 2019