Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Lund University researcher discovers new sepsis biomarker in blood

Sepsis is the name of an infection that causes a series of reactions in the body, which in the worst case can prove fatal. The problem for both patients and doctors is that the early symptoms are difficult to distinguish from less dangerous infections such as a severe flu or winter vomiting disease.

23 May 2011

Lab21 acquires molecular diagnostics company Myconostica Ltd

Lab21 Limited, the global specialist in personalised medicine and clinical diagnostics has today announced that it has acquired Myconostica Ltd, a molecular diagnostic company focussing on the diagnosis of fungal infections of clinical importance.

23 May 2011

WHO member states adopt resolutions on financing, reform and flu pandemic at World Health Assembly

A committee of WHO member governments this week at the World Health Assembly in Geneva "adopted a resolution on the future financing of the organisation and a broad set of reforms, as well as a resolution on the WHO's management of [the H1N1] influenza pandemic showing no evidence of wrongdoing," Intellectual Property Watch reports.

21 May 2011

African Americans with SLE have higher antibody response to influenza vaccination: Study

New research shows that African Americans with systemic lupus erythematosus had a higher antibody response to influenza vaccination than European American patients.

21 May 2011

Medivir reports positive results from ASPIRE TMC435 phase 2b study for genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C

Medivir AB, the emerging research-based specialty pharmaceutical company focused on infectious diseases, today announced results from the ASPIRE phase 2b study that evaluates the addition of once daily TMC435 to pegylated interferon and ribavirin in patients with genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C whose prior treatment with pegylated-interferon (PegIFN) and ribavirin (RBV) was unsuccessful either because they relapsed, had a partial response or had a null response.

20 May 2011

Free, online tool to track exercise-induced asthma

Running into breathing problems when you exercise? You may have exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB), commonly referred to as exercise-induced asthma. The American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) has developed a free, easy-to-use online tool to track your symptoms: MyEIBJournal.org.

20 May 2011

VIDAS TOXO IgG Avidity assay to test for recent Toxoplasma gondii infection receives FDA clearance

On May 18, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared the first test to help determine whether a pregnant woman or a person with swollen lymph nodes testing positive for toxoplasmosis, sometimes known as cat scratch disease, developed the infection within the past four months.

20 May 2011

CSL welcomes historic pandemic agreement

CSL Biotherapies welcomed news overnight of a decision by the World Health Assembly to adopt the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework for the Sharing of Influenza Viruses and Access to Vaccines and Other Benefits. The Framework is the culmination of several years work by a dedicated working group of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and paves the way for greater global collaboration between public and private stakeholders in preparing the world for possible future influenza pandemics.

19 May 2011

Afghan Acting Health Minister says country wants to boost immunization access

Reuters featured an interview with Afghanistan's Acting Health Minister Suraya Dalil on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva. "Afghanistan, whose government is fighting a worsening insurgency that has dragged on for nearly a decade since the U.S.-backed overthrow of the Taliban, is also plagued by poverty, malnutrition and corruption," Reuters writes, adding that the government and donors together spend "barely" $10 per person on health annually.

19 May 2011

On Op-Ed pages, controversies abound: Romney, Gingrich, abortion, telemedicine, cancer funding cuts

Gingrich was taking basically the same position on Medicare he took 16 years ago, when, as speaker of the House, he was the commanding general of the Republican Revolution. ... Compared to today's Republican agenda, the Revolution of '94 now appears to be a halcyon period of moderation and good sense. Then, there was a hope that government-run Medicare would "wither on the vine" when recipients were offered alternatives.

19 May 2011

Early childhood food allergies increase risk of severe allergy-related conditions and asthma later in life

Early results from the largest cross-sectional national allergy study ever conducted, to be released later this month, demonstrate that food allergies commonly occur in infants and toddlers, while environmental allergies, such as to dust, ragweed and mold, are more common in older children and adults.

From Quest Diagnostics 18 May 2011

Face masks worn by TB patients could cut transmission rates to non-infected patients

Face masks worn by patients infected with tuberculosis (TB) may be able to significantly cut transmission rates to non-infected patients, according to a new study by researchers from the U.S. and South Africa. The study was conducted in a specialized airborne infections research facility in South Africa, which was designed to allow study of methods to control the spread of TB.

18 May 2011

New data on personalized approaches for skin, ovarian and lung cancer to be presented at ASCO meeting

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that data showing new personalized approaches for people with skin and lung cancer, plus new data with Avastin in ovarian cancer, will be presented at the 47th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

18 May 2011

Workplace smoking ban improves respiratory health and reduces emergency admissions

Workplace smoking bans are gaining ground globally, and one study has shown that they may have significant health effects. The study, conducted by researchers in Dublin, found that emergency room admissions due to respiratory illness dropped significantly in Ireland after the implementation of a workplace smoking ban, compared to admissions that took place before the ban went into effect.

18 May 2011

Bill Gates calls for greater immunization efforts in World Health Assembly address

Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, on Tuesday called for a "Decade of Vaccines" in a keynote address at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, saying strengthening immunization programs against infectious diseases worldwide could save 10 million lives by 2020, Reuters reports.

18 May 2011

WHO Director-General outlines vision for reform in World Health Assembly opening address

WHO Director-General Margaret Chan on Monday laid out her vision for reforming the international health agency in the opening address of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, saying she sees "a WHO that gives a bigger voice to the many partners working on health, but encourages them to speak with a coherent voice that responds, first and foremost, to the needs and priorities as defined by recipient countries," Intellectual Property Watch reports.

18 May 2011

Pernix first quarter net revenues increase 14% to $10.1 million

Pernix Therapeutics Holdings, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical company primarily focused on the pediatric market, today announced financial results for the first quarter of 2011.

17 May 2011

Accelr8 presents initial ICU pilot study results at ATS International Conference

Accelr8 Technology Corporation announced that clinical investigators led by Ivor S. Douglas, MD/FRCP (UK) from Denver Health presented initial ICU pilot study results at the 2011 ATS International Conference.

17 May 2011

Gastroenterologists have limited knowledge of appropriate immunizations for IBD patients, study finds

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine, along with clinicians from Boston Medical Center, have found gastroenterologist knowledge of the appropriate immunizations to recommend to the inflammatory bowel disease patient is limited.

17 May 2011

Concern over vaccine safety prevents parents from vaccinating asthmatic children

Concern over vaccine safety is one of the primary factors preventing parents from having their asthmatic children vaccinated for influenza, or flu, according to Michigan researchers. Parents who do not vaccinate their children are also less likely to view flu as a"trigger" for their child's asthma, the researchers noted.

17 May 2011

Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Lund University researcher discovers new sepsis biomarker in blood

Lab21 acquires molecular diagnostics company Myconostica Ltd

WHO member states adopt resolutions on financing, reform and flu pandemic at World Health Assembly

African Americans with SLE have higher antibody response to influenza vaccination: Study

Medivir reports positive results from ASPIRE TMC435 phase 2b study for genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C

Free, online tool to track exercise-induced asthma

VIDAS TOXO IgG Avidity assay to test for recent Toxoplasma gondii infection receives FDA clearance

CSL welcomes historic pandemic agreement

Afghan Acting Health Minister says country wants to boost immunization access

On Op-Ed pages, controversies abound: Romney, Gingrich, abortion, telemedicine, cancer funding cuts

Early childhood food allergies increase risk of severe allergy-related conditions and asthma later in life

Face masks worn by TB patients could cut transmission rates to non-infected patients

New data on personalized approaches for skin, ovarian and lung cancer to be presented at ASCO meeting

Workplace smoking ban improves respiratory health and reduces emergency admissions

Bill Gates calls for greater immunization efforts in World Health Assembly address

WHO Director-General outlines vision for reform in World Health Assembly opening address

Pernix first quarter net revenues increase 14% to $10.1 million

Accelr8 presents initial ICU pilot study results at ATS International Conference

Gastroenterologists have limited knowledge of appropriate immunizations for IBD patients, study finds

Concern over vaccine safety prevents parents from vaccinating asthmatic children

The Proteoform Puzzle: Unlocking the Next Frontier

Synthetic Biology and the Pursuit of Living Diagnostics

Modular, Scalable, Intelligent: How n6 Is Rethinking NGS Library Prep

Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

The Proteoform Puzzle: Unlocking the Next Frontier

Synthetic Biology and the Pursuit of Living Diagnostics

Modular, Scalable, Intelligent: How n6 Is Rethinking NGS Library Prep

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