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Epidemiology
UFS team probes deadly fungi that kill millions of people
South African researchers are working to combat diseases caused by fungal infections, which affect more than 3m people a year in this country, and...
Vegetarians have higher risk of bone fracture – UK study
While not eating meat is a popular dietary choice and may offer several health benefits, researchers are still seeking to understand the potential risks...
For full exercise benefits, middle-aged people need good sleep – London study
Middle-aged people not getting enough sleep have less chance of seeing see the benefits of exercise when it comes to protection against a decline...
Daily 11-minute walk reduces early death risk – UK meta-analysis
One in 10 early deaths could be prevented if everyone managed at least half the recommended level of daily physical activity, with just 11...
Those who move gradually from adult normal to overweight live longest
People who start adulthood with a body mass index (BMI) in the normal range and move later in life to being overweight – but...
An new malaria vector in urban African populations
A species of mosquito originally from Asia threatens to put tens of millions of city-dwellers in Africa at higher risk of catching malaria as...
Childhood adversity increases risk of early death more than 4x
A population-based cohort study of 1m Danish children shows that adversity in childhood increases the risk of premature death in early adulthood (16-36 years...
Century-old lessons from the Spanish flu
Dr Stefan E Pambuccian, a Loyola Medicine cytologist, surgical pathologist and professor and vice chair of the department of pathology and laboratory medicine at...
Novel coronavirus imaging features overlap with SARS and MERS
Although the imaging features of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are variable and nonspecific, the findings reported thus far do show "significant overlap" with...
Drug meant for Ebola may also work against coronaviruses
A group of University of Alberta researchers who have discovered why the drug remdesivir is effective in treating the coronaviruses that cause Middle East...
Improved handwashing at airports could slow spread of viral diseases by 70%
Improving the rate of handwashing at just 10 major airports could significantly slow the spread of a viral disease, researchers estimate, The findings, which...
SA's listeriosis outbreak fuelled by HIV and lack of awareness
The listeriosis outbreak that killed more than 200 people in South Africa between 2017 and 2018 was fuelled by HIV and a lack of...
Quantifying the intensity of the coronavirus outbreak and its pandemic potential
A number of groups have estimated R0 for the new coronavirus, meaning that it will die out. But scientists from the Chinese Academy of...
Chinese research that coronavirus passed from pangolins questioned
Independent scientists have questioned research that suggested that the outbreak of coronavirus disease spreading from China might have passed from bats to humans through...
Virus hunters of Sierra Leone pursue the next deadly coronavirus
A team of medical scientists in Sierra Leon, part of the Predict international network, is in search of a holy grail to virus hunters:...
Three-pronged approach could eliminate cervical cancer within 100 years
More than 74m cervical cancer cases and 62m deaths could be averted in the next 100 years if 78 of the world’s poorest countries...
Sepsis associated with 1 in 5 deaths globally, double previous estimate
Twice as many people as previously believed are dying of sepsis worldwide, according to an analysis, published in The Lancet.
Among them are a...
5 healthy habits at middle age may mean up to 9 extra years free of chronic disease
Maintaining five healthy habits – eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, keeping a healthy body weight, not drinking too much alcohol, and not smoking...
Wealth adds 8-9 healthy years to life expectancy
The wealthiest men and women can expect to live an additional eight to nine years free from disability compared to people in the poorest...
Curb chronic inflammation to reduce risk of chronic disease mortality
The group of international experts, which also includes scientists from the National Institutes of Health, Stanford University, Harvard Medical School, Columbia University Medical Centre...
US expands HPV vaccine recommendations
In new human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine developments, a US federal advisory group has expanded recommendations to include men through age 26 and some older...
Appendix removal associated with development of Parkinson’s disease
Patients who had their appendix removed were more likely to develop Parkinson's disease than those whose appendix remained in place, according to the largest...
Africans living longer but spend those extra years in poor health
People are now living longer in sub-Saharan Africa than they did two decades ago, writes Charles Shey Wiysonge, director, Cochrane South Africa, in The Conversation. However,...
Social isolation linked to higher risk of death from all causes
A large American Cancer Society study links social isolation with a higher risk of death from all causes combined and heart disease for all...
High BP and smoking have more heart attack risk for women
High blood pressure, smoking and diabetes increase the risk of heart attack in both sexes but they have more impact in women than they...
BMI strongly associated with all-cause mortality
Body Mass Index (BMI), a measure of body fat, is linked to risk of death from every major cause except transport accidents, according to...
Half of US teens still not fully vaccinated against HPV
Although a vaccine for the cancer-causing human papillomavirus (HPV) has led to a dramatic decrease in infections, Reuters Health reports a new study suggests...
Developing nations have higher mortality risk from NCDs
An analysis from researchers at Imperial College London shows that diseases such as cancer, heart disease and stroke are deadlier in the developing world...
Threat of resistance to anti-fungal drugs under-recognised
An international team, led by researchers from Imperial College London and the University of Exeter, warns that improvements are needed in how existing drugs...
Blood type link to severity of E. coli infections
A study shows that a kind of E. coli most associated with "traveller’s diarrhoea" and children in underdeveloped areas of the world causes more...
Measles vaccine improves child survival beyond protecting against measles
In the largest study to date on children in a low/middle income country, researchers from the Navrongo Health Research Centre, Ghana, OPEN, Institute of...
Improving flu forecasting with 'smart thermometer' data
A new approach tested by researchers at the University of Iowa shows that de-identified data from a "smart thermometer" connected to a mobile phone...
Regular surfers more likely to carry antibiotic resistant E. coli
Regular surfers and bodyboarders are three times more likely to have antibiotic resistant E. coli in their guts than non-surfers. Conducted by the University...
Discharge delays may be cause of sharp rise in deaths in the UK
The increased prevalence delays in discharge from hospital was associated with the sharp rise in mortality in England in 2015, accounting for up to...
Early and middle adulthood weight gain increases chronic disease risk
Weight gain from early adulthood (age 18 or 21 years) to age 55 was associated with an increased risk of major chronic diseases, such...
Removal of Tamiflu from WHO Essential Medicines list comes 'far too late'
Mark Ebell, professor of epidemiology at the University of Georgia, outlines in an editorial, important lessons from the Tamiflu story.
Tamiflu (oseltamivir) was approved by...
Brainy teens less likely to smoke, more likely to drink and use cannabis
In a sample of over 6,000 young people in England, high childhood academic at age 11 is associated with a reduced risk of cigarette...
Children of advantaged older women have better cognitive ability
In contrast to 40 years ago, children born to older mothers today are more likely to perform better in cognitive ability tests than those...
Bacterial growth stimulated by antibiotics
University of Exeter researchers exposed E.coli bacteria to eight rounds of antibiotic treatment over four days and found that they hads peedier and increased antibiotic...
Is altitude linked to metabolic syndrome risk?
People living between 457-2,297m, had a lower risk of developing metabolic syndrome than those living at sea level (0-121m, found a Spanish prospective cohort...