Health
There were around 11 million more cases of malaria in 2023 than in 2022, up to an estimated 263 million, according to a new World Health Organization report, marking another year of negligible progress against the age-old killer. There were 597,000 deaths, a similar total to 2022, the vast
Health
At least 73 people have died of mysterious causes in the Sudanese town of al-Hilaliya, besieged by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, the Sudanese Doctors Union said late on Wednesday. It is one of dozens of villages that have come under attack in eastern El Jezira state since the defection
Health
The UK government warned bird keepers to remain vigilant after bird flu was detected at a commercial poultry farm in northern England, the second outbreak this year and first of the season. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) confirmed on Tuesday the presence of the H5N5 strain
Health
More than 8 million people were diagnosed with tuberculosis last year, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, the highest number recorded since the UN health agency began keeping track. About 1.25 million people died of TB last year, the new report said, adding that TB likely returned to being
Health
Six children who died in a South African township earlier this month had ingested a chemical compound used in pesticides, the country’s health minister said on Monday, in a case that has prompted calls for tighter food safety controls. Local media have reported that the children died after eating
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Polio cases are rising ahead of a new vaccination campaign in Pakistan, where violence targeting health workers and the police protecting them has hampered years of efforts toward making the country polio-free. Since January, health officials have confirmed 39 new polio cases in Pakistan, compared to only six last year,
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The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) needs more funds and has pushed back by three years its target to officially wipe out all forms of the disease, officials said on Thursday. The coalition now hopes to declare an end to both the wild virus and the vaccine-derived variant by 2027
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Johnson & Johnson is discontinuing its phase 2 field study on the efficacy of a candidate drug for dengue, according to a company press release. The study was designed to evaluate the efficacy of an investigational drug known as mosnodenvir for the prevention of dengue virus in adults aged 18-65
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The UN health agency said on Friday that it had approved the use of the first diagnostic test for mpox, a key tool in countries battling outbreaks. More than 800 people have died across Africa from mpox, where the disease has been officially detected in 16 countries, according to the
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Cholera is spreading in war-torn Sudan, killing at least 388 people and sickening about 13,000 others over the past two months, health authorities said, as more than 17 months of fighting between the military and a notorious paramilitary group shows no sign of abating. The disease is spreading in
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Youngsters have been especially impacted by mpox outbreaks raging in Africa, with children under five accounting for nearly a third of the cases in Burundi, the UN children’s agency said Friday. Burundi is the second hardest-hit country on the continent after the Democratic Republic of Congo. “Children in Burundi
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Slumped on the ground over a mound of dirt, Divine Wisoba pulled weeds from her daughter’s grave. The 1-month-old died from mpox in eastern Congo in August, but Wisoba, 21, was too traumatized to attend the funeral. In her first visit to the cemetery, she wept into her shirt
Health
The global vaccine group Gavi will buy 500,000 doses of Bavarian Nordic’s mpox vaccine, its first purchase of the shot to help battle an outbreak in parts of Africa, the group said on Wednesday. In 2024, there have been more than 25,000 suspected mpox cases and 723
Health
The World Health Organization said Friday it has granted its first authorization for use of a vaccine against mpox in adults, calling it an important step toward fighting the disease in Africa and beyond. The pre-qualification of the vaccine by Bavarian Nordic A/S means that donors like GAVI the
Health
Prime Minister Keir Starmer will warn Thursday that Britain’s state-run National Health Service must “reform or die” after an independent report said the venerated institution was in a “critical condition.” Starmer, whose Labour party was elected by a landslide in July, will promise “the biggest reimagining” of the NHS
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A person in the state of Missouri has become the first in the United States to test positive for bird flu without a known exposure to infected animals, authorities said on Friday. The adult patient, who has underlying conditions, was admitted to hospital on August 22, received antiviral medications against