Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

CVS/pharmacy to provide H1N1 flu vaccinations at select store locations in Rhode Island

CVS/pharmacy announced today that it will provide H1N1 flu vaccinations at select store locations in Rhode Island by the end of this week. The vaccine will be available to all Rhode Islanders who wish to be vaccinated while supplies last.

23 Dec 2009

Brazilian researchers perform autopsy study to examine the causes H1N1 death

Brazilian researchers have performed the first-ever autopsy study to examine the precise causes of death in victims of the H1N1 swine flu.

23 Dec 2009

Hand sanitizers become popular promotional products

The Advertising Specialty Institute® announced that hand sanitizers now rival pens as the most popular logoed items that companies are giving away to clients and employees.

23 Dec 2009

Prolonged exposure to higher levels of pollutants can lead to hospitalization for pneumonia

A McMaster University researcher has found the first evidence that prolonged exposure to higher levels of the pollutants found in car exhaust fumes and industrial air pollution can lead to hospitalization for pneumonia in adults aged 65 and older.

23 Dec 2009

New community-associated strain of MRSA more apt to cause serious problems

The often feared and sometimes deadly infections caused by MRSA - methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - are now moving out of hospitals and emerging as an even more virulent strain in community settings and on athletic teams, and raising new concerns about antibiotic resistance.

23 Dec 2009

Macomb County Health Department announces 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccination program

The last large H1N1 influenza vaccination clinic for the 2009 flu season has been scheduled by the Macomb County Health Department. It is free of charge and will take place next Monday, Dec. 28, at Bethesda Christian Church in Sterling Heights from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Everyone over 6 months of age can receive the vaccine at this clinic.

23 Dec 2009

H1N1 flu vaccination clinics to be offered at 33 locations across Pennsylvania

The Department of Health will offer H1N1 flu vaccination clinics at 33 locations across Pennsylvania on Jan. 8 and 9, and anyone wishing to receive the vaccine is urged to make an appointment to attend.

22 Dec 2009

Use of digital checklist for patients during pandemic reduces fatigue factor, shows report

The use of a digital checklist for patients being administered emergency drugs during a pandemic or following a biological terrorist attack reduces the fatigue factor, according to a report in the International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management, and could save lives.

22 Dec 2009

Former CDC head to lead Merck's vaccine division

The pharmaceutical company Merck on Monday named former CDC head Julie Gerberding as president of the company's vaccine division, Reuters reports. "Gerberding, who led the CDC from 2002 to 2009 and stepped down when President Barack Obama took office, will head up the company's $5 billion global vaccine business that includes shots to prevent chickenpox, cervical cancer and pneumonia," the news service reports.

22 Dec 2009

Health Canada approves Prevnar 13 vaccine for invasive pneumococcal disease

Following a Priority Review, Health Canada has approved Prevnar 13 (Pneumococcal 13-valent Conjugate Vaccine (Diphtheria CRM197 Protein)) for children aged six weeks through five years for active immunization against invasive pneumococcal disease, a bacterial infection that can include meningitis (inflammation of the coverings of the brain and spinal cord), sepsis (bloodstream infection), bacteremic pneumonia, pleural empyema (accumulation of pus in the cavity surrounding the lungs) and bacteremia (bacteria in the blood).

22 Dec 2009

Sinovac Biotech selected as Top 10 most competitive companies for 2009

Sinovac Biotech Ltd. (SVA), a leading provider of biopharmaceutical products in China, announced today that Sinovac was selected by China Business Media as one of China's Top 10 most competitive companies listed overseas for 2009.

22 Dec 2009

UV Flu Technologies introduces the UV 400 VIRAGUARD air purification product

UV Flu Technologies, Inc. wishes to advise it has recently acquired the assets of AmAirpure, Inc. in order to implement management's plans to move forward as an innovative developer, manufacturer and distributor of bio technology products initially targeting the rapidly growing Indoor Air Quality("IAQ") industry sector.

22 Dec 2009

New quantities of H1N1 vaccine available for walk-in patients; no appointments necessary

U.S. HealthWorks Medical Group, a leading operator of occupational health and urgent care centers in the nation, today announced that most of its 128 medical centers have new quantities of H1N1 vaccine available for walk-in patients – no appointments necessary.

22 Dec 2009

Study results of CSL’s pandemic H1N1 2009 vaccine published in JAMA

CSL Limited, Australia’s leading biopharmaceutical company, announced the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) has published data from a clinical trial conducted in Australia to study CSL’s pandemic H1N1 2009 ‘swine’ flu vaccine.

22 Dec 2009

Duane Reade offers H1N1 vaccines for New York residents

Duane Reade, the largest drug store chain in New York City, today announced that H1N1 vaccines are now available. As previously announced, Duane Reade pharmacies are providing New Yorkers with the H1N1 vaccine as part of the Company's commitment to servicing the health and wellness needs of the City's residents.

22 Dec 2009

Scientists identify role of epigenetic changes in SLE

Identical twins look the same and are nearly genetically identical, but environmental factors and the resulting cellular changes could cause disease in one sibling and not the other.

22 Dec 2009

NMA urges parents to protect their children from meningococcal disease

This winter, while many parents are focused on influenza prevention, the National Meningitis Association (NMA) is urging parents to also protect their families from meningococcal disease, a deadly but potentially vaccine preventable bacterial infection.

22 Dec 2009

Select CVS/pharmacy locations and all MinuteClinic medical clinics offer H1N1 vaccinations

Select CVS/pharmacy locations and all MinuteClinic medical clinics throughout Arizona are now offering H1N1 vaccinations. H1N1 vaccine is now also available at select MinuteClinic locations in Illinois in the Chicago area and in Nevada in the Las Vegas area on demand seven days a week with no appointment necessary.

22 Dec 2009

New findings reveal POPG lipid can prevent RSV infection in lungs

Researchers at National Jewish Health have discovered that a naturally occurring lipid in the lung can prevent RSV infection and inhibit spread of the virus after an infection is established. RSV is the major cause of hospitalization for children in the first two years of life, and is increasingly recognized as a dangerous pathogen in adults with chronic lung diseases, the elderly, and immunocompromised individuals. Currently, there is no effective vaccine for the virus.

22 Dec 2009

Findings may help develop new antiviral drugs for influenza

Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham), Mount Sinai School of Medicine (Mount Sinai), the Salk Institute for Biological Studies (Salk) and the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation (GNF) have identified 295 human cell factors that influenza A strains must harness to infect a cell, including the currently circulating swine-origin H1N1.

22 Dec 2009