People who take oral zinc may experience shorter common cold symptoms than those who do not, researchers from The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, and McMaster University reported in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).The author…
According to a study in the April 25 issue of JAMA, the coverage for children to get vaccinated against influenza increased amongst low-income, hard-to-reach, minority children and adolescents if their patients received education-related text message r…
An intranasal vaccine that includes four weakened strains of influenza could do a better job in protecting children from the flu than current vaccines, Saint Louis University research shows. Before each influenza season, scientists predict which strain…
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have identified a number of tiny but powerful “genetic regulators” that are hijacked by avian and swine flu viruses during human infection. The discovery, published in the Journal of Virology, could rev…
Few people know about the participation of Brazil in Word War I. Although Brazil remained neutral during most of the conflict, it eventually sent a fleet to support the war effort against the central powers. It was the only Latin-American country to do…
A study published in Occupational and Environmental Medicine, reveals that believing in the actual effectiveness of the seasonal flu jab is by far more effective in persuading healthcare professional to get vaccinated, as compared with potentially prot…
Canadian researchers have examined the accuracy of rapid influenza diagnostic tests (RIDTs) in a meta-analysis of 159 studies. The results, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, revealed that although RIDTs can confirm the flu, they do not rule…
On Wednesday, the US Food and Drug Administration announced it had approved FluMist Quadrivalent, a vaccine to prevent seasonal influenza in people aged 2 to 49 years. This is the first quadrivalent flu vaccine, that is one that contains four strains …
Experts say that the 2012 flu season is just starting, and although it is later than usual, they expect that about 5 million people will contract a severe form of flu that will claim 500,000 lives. Those most vulnerable are young children and older adu…
Scientists from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have discovered evidence of a new influenza type A virus in Guatemalan fruit bats. While they don’t believe the virus poses a threat to humans in its current form, they say more …
