I helped advise the US government on the next likely pandemic. What I learned is alarming | Devi Sridhar
The 100-day challenge, to be able to contain a virus while a vaccine is approved, manufactured and delivered, looks ever more remoteFour years on from the first Covid lockdown, life feels to be largely back to normal, although legacies of the pandemic remain. Collective amnesia seems to have set in. Politicians seem eager to move forward and not relive the decisions, delays and deaths that characterised public policy and press briefings. Yet we can ’t forget such a brutal event, when Covid is estimated to have killednearly 16 million people worldwide in 2020 and 2021, and caused life expectancy to decline in 84% of count...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - March 25, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Devi Sridhar Tags: Vaccines and immunisation Coronavirus Science World news Infectious diseases Health UK news US news Source Type: news

Long Covid may be nothing unique in the future – but its effects today are still very real | Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz
While the long-term risk from a current infection is 10 times less than it was in 2020-21, a lot of people are still suffering after getting Covid early in the pandemicGet ourmorning and afternoon news emails,free app ordaily news podcastLong Covid is one of the most controversial topics remaining about the pandemic. Depending on who you ask, it is either a real and current threat to the health of the globe, or a relatively minor issue that we should pay little attention to in the future. It is hard to weigh in on the topic without passionate advocates taking issue with the things that you say, which is true of quite a lot...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - March 22, 2024 Category: Science Authors: Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz Tags: Long Covid Coronavirus Infectious diseases Health Medical research Source Type: news

Goat in Minnesota tests positive for H5N1 bird flu strain that's on the WHO's pandemic watchlist in first ever US case - as experts call it a 'worrisome development'
The baby goat, who tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza strain H5N1, the strain of bird flu that has been spreading since 2022, was from a farm in Stevens County. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - March 21, 2024 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Social distancing is back (but not how you might think!): Health bosses urge Brits to stay 2m away from ALL wild birds, including pigeons and seagulls, amid avian flu pandemic fears
In its first ever public guidance to help Brits 'stay safe', UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) officials claimed avian influenza poses a 'risk to human health'. (Source: the Mail online | Health)
Source: the Mail online | Health - March 19, 2024 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

Here Are the Viruses to Worry About Right Now
As winter ends, several viruses are still continuing to rise across the U.S., according to data from WastewaterSCAN, a network of wastewater surveillance sites. Norovirus, one type of influenza, and another respiratory virus are all increasing or have recently peaked in samples from the network’s 190 wastewater treatment facilities, which are located in 41 states. “What we’re seeing right now for the major viruses we are monitoring is that there are similar patterns across the country,” says Marlene Wolfe, assistant professor of environmental health at Emory University and one of WastewaterSCAN&...
Source: TIME: Health - March 19, 2024 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Alice Park Tags: Uncategorized healthscienceclimate Source Type: news

Is COVID-19 a Seasonal Virus Yet?
The most common respiratory viruses that cause flu, colds, and RSV tend to cluster in the fall and winter months. Though that means months of elevated risk for sickness, “cold and flu season” is a convenient time for public-health officials to remind people to get vaccinated and wash their hands more frequently. Experts had hoped that COVID-19 would follow that same pattern, but so far, that’s not the case. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] COVID-19 occurs in every season Both flu and RSV tend to plummet to near negligible levels in spring and summer before surging again in the fall ...
Source: TIME: Health - March 6, 2024 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Alice Park Tags: Uncategorized COVID-19 healthscienceclimate Source Type: news

A deadly viral illness is exploding in West Africa. Researchers are scrambling to figure out why
Reporting for this story was supported by the Pulitzer Center. Irrua, Nigeria, and Kenema, Sierra Leone— Sitting on a bench outside the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) in Edo state in southwestern Nigeria in September 2023, Muhammed Luqman Dagana recounted his ordeal earlier in the year with Lassa fever, a deadly hemorrhagic disease of West Africa. At first the 33-year-old wasn’t alarmed—his fever, headache, body aches, and cough were innocuous enough. A doctor at his local clinic gave him antibiotics for typhoid fever and antimalarial drugs. But his symptoms persisted, so he tried anoth...
Source: ScienceNOW - February 22, 2024 Category: Science Source Type: news

Lawmaker raises new flap over U.S.-funded virology research that critics call risky
A U.S. senator has thrown a political spotlight on yet another U.S.-Chinese research collaboration that critics suggest includes dangerous experiments that could create “superviruses” capable of sparking a pandemic. But contrary to assertions raised by Senator Joni Ernst (R–IA), none of the U.S. funding for the project goes to foreign researchers, and scientists who are part of the collaboration challenge other concerns she raised. And the U.S. funding agency she questioned this week issued a blistering response. Prompted by information given to her by a group that opposes animal research, the White Coat Waste ...
Source: ScienceNOW - February 17, 2024 Category: Science Source Type: news

There ’s ‘long flu,’ too: Influenza can lead to long-lasting symptoms, study finds
Evidence continues to mount that Covid isn’t the only viral illness that can lead to persistent and sometimes debilitating symptoms. Research published Thursday in The Lancet Infectious Diseases finds that the flu virus may also have long-lasting effects on health. With the arrival of the pandemic…#ziyadalaly #washingtonuniversity #stlouis #alaly #toddrice #anitagupta (Source: Reuters: Health)
Source: Reuters: Health - December 15, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news

You ’ ve Heard of Long COVID. Long Flu Is a Health Risk, Too
Statistically, there’s a good chance you know somebody who has experienced Long COVID, the name for chronic symptoms including fatigue, brain fog, and pain following a case of COVID-19. About 14% of U.S. adults report having had Long COVID at some point, according to federal data. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] But many people don’t realize that other viruses, even very common ones, can trigger similarly long-lasting and debilitating symptoms. A study published Dec. 14 in The Lancet Infectious Diseases focuses on the risk of developing “Long flu” after a severe case of influenza. ...
Source: TIME: Health - December 14, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Jamie Ducharme Tags: Uncategorized COVID-19 healthscienceclimate Source Type: news

Getting Sick All the Time? Don ’ t (Necessarily) Blame COVID-19
Respiratory disease season is in full swing, with influenza, RSV, and COVID-19 case counts rising in various parts of the U.S. Hospitals in some states are also reporting upticks in pediatric pneumonia diagnoses, which experts say seems to be unrelated to the recent spike of pneumonias reported in China. On the heels of last year’s severe flu and RSV reason, all this contagion has some people wondering if SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, may be to blame. Some studies suggest the virus leaves its mark on the immune system even after an acute illness passes, raising an important question: does having COVI...
Source: TIME: Health - December 7, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Jamie Ducharme Tags: Uncategorized COVID-19 healthscienceclimate Source Type: news

China Faces a Surge in Children Suffering Respiratory Illnesses
The World Health Organization asked China for detailed information about a surge in respiratory illnesses in children, including pneumonia, as top pediatric medical centers across the country are overwhelmed with patients. The WHO cited reports including one this week from ProMED, which tracks outbreaks of infectious diseases around the world, warning of an “undiagnosed pneumonia in children in northern China.” The international health body has requested additional epidemiological and clinical information and test results from Chinese officials, it said in a statement Wednesday. [time-brightc...
Source: TIME: Health - November 23, 2023 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Bloomberg News Tags: Uncategorized News Desk wire Source Type: news

In Early Weeks of Flu Season, COVID-19 Patients Show Milder Symptoms as SARS-CoV-2 Continues to Evolve
Doctors report difficulty differentiating COVID-19 from other viral infections, impacting clinical laboratory test orders Because the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus is in the same family of viruses that cause the common cold and influenza, virologists expected this virus—which caused the global COVID-19 pandemic—would evolve and mutate into a milder form of infection. Early evidence from this influenza […] The post In Early Weeks of Flu Season, COVID-19 Patients Show Milder Symptoms as SARS-CoV-2 Continues to Evolve appeared first on Dark Daily. (Source: Dark Daily)
Source: Dark Daily - November 17, 2023 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Jillia Schlingman Tags: Laboratory Management and Operations Laboratory News Laboratory Pathology Laboratory Resources Laboratory Testing Precision Medicine anatomic pathology Andrew Read PhD Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center CDC centers for disease contro Source Type: news

Scaling up infection prevention and control capacities in fragile, conflict-affected and ...
25 Oct 2023, Field visit to the very well-equipped central sterile services department (CSSD) at Zarqa Hospital, Jordan. The WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region is at a critical juncture to capitalize on the momentum from the COVID-19 response. Turning temporarily scaled-up capacity in countries and territories into permanent capacities, agendas and networks will strengthen health security and systems for the future. Infection prevention and control (IPC) is an area in which the Region made substantial gains during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Region has also historically been vulnerable to the emergence and rapid transmissio...
Source: WHO EMRO News - November 13, 2023 Category: Middle East Health Source Type: news