Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Marathon running linked to increased risk of pulmonary oedema

A new study has found evidence that marathon running could trigger pulmonary oedema, where fluid builds up in the lungs.

3 Sep 2012

Positive results from Elevation Pharmaceuticals’ EP-101 Phase 2b study on COPD

Elevation Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today presented positive efficacy and safety results from the GOLDEN-1 study – a Phase 2b study evaluating EP-101 in patients with moderate-to-severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) – at the annual meeting of the European Respiratory Society in Vienna, Austria.

3 Sep 2012

Scientists restore sense of smell in mice through gene therapy

Scientists have restored the sense of smell in mice through gene therapy for the first time -- a hopeful sign for people who can't smell anything from birth or lose it due to disease.

3 Sep 2012

Complacency and apathy may have played a role in recent spike of West Nile cases

With almost 1,600 cases of West Nile Virus and 66 mortalities reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) nationwide, officials are calling the recent West Nile virus outbreak the largest ever seen in the United States.

1 Sep 2012

Romney barely mentions health care in acceptance speech

The Republican presidential nominee doesn't offer details on his plans for Medicare or the health care law. Nonetheless, several outlets look at what's ahead on that topic from the GOP ticket.

1 Sep 2012

Targeted intervention improves safety of MRI scans for children with sickle cell disease

Jude Children's Research Hospital reports success using a targeted educational approach to teach young patients to remain motionless during MRI scans, making the process safer.

1 Sep 2012

Some smaller clots may not require potentially risky treatment

Men and women who undergo joint replacement procedures, as well as those who have significant fractures, tend to be at an increased risk of developing pulmonary emboli (PE), blood clots that travel to the lungs where they may cause serious complications and even death.

1 Sep 2012

Boosting immune system can help reduce asthma attacks due to viral infections

Details of a treatment that could help asthmatics fight infections that trigger 80% of asthma attacks, developed by University of Southampton spin-out company Synairgen, will be presented to European respiratory experts on Sunday 2 September.

1 Sep 2012

Health Net helps to increase awareness about importance of whooping cough vaccination

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the number of whooping cough cases in the United States could reach a 50-year high in 2012. The CDC's forecast is based on the fact that, as of July 2012, twice as many cases of whooping cough - or pertussis as it's referred to clinically - had been reported to the CDC thus far this year as compared to the same point in 2011.

1 Sep 2012

Water pipe smoking affects lung function and respiratory symptoms as cigarette smoking

A new study published in the journal Respirology reveals that water pipe smoking, such as hookah or bong smoking, affects lung function and respiratory symptoms as much as cigarette smoking.

1 Sep 2012

First Edition: August 31, 2012

Today's early morning highlights from the major news organizations examine Mitt Romney's speech last night and the messages on health care at the Republican convention.

31 Aug 2012

Viewpoints: Romney, Ryan rely on 'the magic asterisk'; Frightening voters over Medicare cuts

The press has focused a lot on the similarities between Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan. They are both technocratic, they espouse tax cuts, and they believe in a balanced budget. But there is a deeper similarity as well: they both believe deeply in the "magic asterisk." The magic asterisk was the invention of David Stockman, budget director to Ronald Reagan. Stockman, who needed to show a more favorable budget than the Reagan tax cuts would justify, put in an asterisk and noted "future savings to be identified."

31 Aug 2012

Less than half of U.S. schools address pandemic preparedness in their school plan

Less than half of U.S. schools address pandemic preparedness in their school plan, and only 40 percent have updated their school plan since the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, according to a study published in the September issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

31 Aug 2012

Tips for parents to recognize signs of childhood obstructive sleep apnea

With school days upon us, a good night's sleep should be on the top of each child's list of supplies. But for some children, getting the rest they need means more than an early bedtime. At Clarity Allergy Center in Chicago, allergy, asthma, and immunology expert, Dr. Brian Rotskoff, is helping parents recognize the signs of childhood obstructive sleep apnea by carefully monitoring childhood snoring and childhood nasal allergies.

31 Aug 2012

Janssen receives FDA Priority Review for ZYTIGA sNDA to treat mCRPC

Janssen Research & Development, LLC, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Priority Review to the supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for ZYTIGA (abiraterone acetate) administered in combination with prednisone for the treatment of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) who are asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic after failure of androgen deprivation therapy.

30 Aug 2012

Climate change associated with increased risk of avian flu transmission in wild birds

Rising sea levels, melting glaciers, more intense rainstorms and more frequent heat waves are among the planetary woes that may come to mind when climate change is mentioned. Now, two University of Michigan researchers say an increased risk of avian influenza transmission in wild birds can be added to the list.

30 Aug 2012

Flu virus can be passed on before appearance of symptoms

Research at Imperial College London examining influenza transmission in ferrets suggests that the virus can be passed on before the appearance of symptoms. If the finding applies to humans, it means that people pass on flu to others before they know they're infected, making it very difficult to contain epidemics.

30 Aug 2012

Long-term cardiac impact of Japan quake revealed

The earthquake and tsunami that devastated parts of eastern Japan in 2011 led to a significantly increased weekly occurrence of cardiovascular disease in the months after the event, study findings show.

29 Aug 2012

Johns Hopkins' Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality receives Moore Foundation grant

Johns Hopkins' Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality has received an $8.9 million grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the first award given as part of an ambitious new $500 million, 10-year program designed to eliminate all preventable harms that patients experience in the hospital.

29 Aug 2012

Top 10 reasons to avoid flu shots this year

It's the gift that keeps on giving, from early fall, through the holiday season and into late spring. It's seasonal flu, caused by a virus that can fly through the air, hitch a ride on a handshake, hug or kiss, and is extremely good at infecting people and making them sick.

29 Aug 2012