Global anti-smoking pact takes effect on Sunday
• Tobacco & Marijuana • Feb 25 05
A global treaty aimed at dissuading children from smoking and helping adults kick the habit comes into force on Sunday despite what health officials…
Dirty water, poor sanitation kill thousands daily
• Public Health • Feb 25 05
Unsafe drinking water and poor sanitation kill 4,000 children every day, global health experts said on Friday.
They described the deaths as a “silent…
Ethiopia records polio case as virus spreads
• Infections • Feb 25 05
A two-year-old girl has contracted polio in Ethiopia in another sign that the epidemic is spreading across Africa, the World Health Organization (WHO) said…
Asian countries appeal for bird flu help
• Flu • Feb 25 05
Asian countries battling a bird flu virus that threatens to create a human pandemic that could kill millions need urgent help from the wealthy…
Platelet transfusions carry risk of infection
• Infections • Feb 25 05
Despite the fact that a blood infection called bacterial sepsis is one of the most frequent causes of death in people who have received…
More drugs better for protecting baby from HIV
• AIDS/HIV • Feb 25 05
Scientists defended the practice of giving a single dose of the drug nevirapine to protect newborns from their mothers’ AIDS infections, saying on Thursday…
Anti-smoking message saves heart patients’ lives
• Tobacco & Marijuana • Feb 25 05
Counseling people who have survived a heart attack about quitting smoking before they have even checked out of the hospital appears to reduce their…
Wives of smokers run risk of stroke
• Tobacco & Marijuana • Feb 24 05
Smoking by husbands is associated with an increased occurrence of stroke among their non-smoking wives, according to a new study.
“Growing evidence suggests that…
Malaria preventive linked to ‘psychiatric events’
• Drug Abuse • Feb 24 05
People traveling in tropical areas who take the anti-malaria drug mefloquine appear to be prone to psychiatric events such as anxiety or psychosis, new…
UN predicts 9.1 billion people on earth by 2050
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
The human race is expected to swell from the current 6.5 billion to 9.1 billion people by 2050, with populations exploding in hungry developing…
US poll backs bigger gov’t role on drug prices
• Drug News • Feb 24 05
Nearly two-thirds of people want the U.S. government more involved in limiting the price of prescription drugs, according to a survey released on…
Hospitals aim to split device savings with doctors
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
Hospitals desperate to save money are trying to get doctors to find methods of cutting supply costs and offering to share savings with doctors.
…
Heart attack risk with HIV drugs a concern
• Heart • Feb 24 05
The risk of having a heart attack for HIV-positive people increases the longer they’re on anti-HIV drug therapy, according to the latest results of…
Nerve factor infusion improves Parkinson’s disease
• Neurology • Feb 24 05
Continuous infusion of substance derived from specialized brain cells improves symptoms and quality of life for patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD), according…
Meditation technique helps lower blood pressure
• Alternative Medicine • Feb 24 05
Transcendental meditation is an effective alternative to blood pressure-lowering medication, according to the results of a study involving African Americans.
People may choose to…
Deaths from UK hospital superbug rising - report
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
Deaths involving the hospital “superbug” MRSA in England and Wales have risen in recent years, according to a report on Thursday.
Mentions of…
Nigeria to expand therapy to 100,000 AIDS patients
• AIDS/HIV • Feb 24 05
Nigeria will dramatically increase the number of AIDS sufferers receiving life-saving drugs this year after its cash-strapped AIDS programme received a financial boost, the…
Studies expose bacterial secret for infecting body
• Infections • Feb 24 05
Bacteria that cause a range of diseases from dysentery to plague use a needle-like “sword” to attack cells, and some have evolved a shield…
Pregnant women risk murder in U.S., report finds
• Pregnancy • Feb 24 05
Murder is a surprisingly common cause of death among pregnant women in the United States, U.S. government researchers reported on Wednesday.
Black women are…
Madagascar needs newer anti-malaria drugs - WHO
• Infections • Feb 24 05
Madagascar urgently needs new anti-malarial drugs, as the prevalent strain of the disease there is fast growing resistant to the most affordable medication, the…
Afghanistan cold said to claim 150 children
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
An international aid group said on Thursday it had reports that up to 150 children had died of cold-related illnesses in one part of…
Hong Kong air quality benchmarks too lax - group
• Respiratory Problems • Feb 24 05
The officially acceptable level of air quality in polluted Hong Kong is far too low, environmentalists warned on Thursday, urging the government to…
Salt should be regulated food additive, group says
• Fat, Dietary • Feb 24 05
A consumer group sued the federal government Thursday, saying that salt is killing tens of thousands of Americans and that regulators have done…
Senator resisting cut in asbestos claims fund
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Arlen Specter indicated on Thursday he is resisting Republican attempts to reduce the size of a proposed $140 billion…
Vietnam appeals for help in bird flu fight
• Public Health • Feb 24 05
Vietnam, the country hit worst by bird flu, has appealed for technical and financial help to fight the virus now endemic in the region,…