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Quick diagnoses
MERS in the air
Genetic fragments of the deadly MERS virus were detected in the air of a barn where an infected camel was kept. Health24 reports t
hat...
Light affects cancer drugs
Even low levels of light in bedrooms may stop breast cancer drugs from working, US researchers have warned. Animal tests showed light, equivalent to...
Testing for thyroid cancer
The routine use of a molecular testing panel developed at University of Pittsburgh Medical Centre (UPMC) greatly increases the likelihood of performing the correct...
‘No benefit’ from injection
A daily injection to the belly commonly prescribed for pregnant women at risk of developing blood clots has been found to be ineffective. As...
Laureate has a cancer beef
The Nobel Laureate who proved that human papilloma virus causes cervical cancer has a new theory – that eating beef can cause colon cancer....
New IVF procedure
Doctors in London have reported the first pregnancy in Europe from a new IVF procedure that checks embryos for genetic disorders before they are...
Antibiotics as placebo
Family doctors are needlessly doling out antibiotics to ‘placate’ patients, according to a report by the UK’s Commons Science and Technology Committee. The committee...
Ventilation strategies for abdominal surgery
A multi-centre study at 30 centres across Europe, North and South America has investigated various ventilation strategies currently used during anaesthesia given for surgical...
Menopause diagnosis kit
A free and simple toolkit for GPs could revolutionise menopause diagnosis and treatment. Created at Monash University, the world’s first toolkit is designed for...
Pelvic risk for female triathletes
Female triathletes are at risk for pelvic floor disorders, decreased energy, menstrual irregularities and abnormal bone density, according to searchers at Loyola University Health...
Jhb ‘answer’ on migraines
A Johannesburg doctor believes he may have found the answer to the most extreme cases of migraine. Though ‘hesitant’ to claim it is a...
Radiation therapy finding
A new study by radiation oncologists at the Mayo Clinic comparing the world’s literature on outcomes of proton beam therapy in the treatment of...
New imaging technique
University of Buffalo researchers are developing a new imaging technique involving nanoparticles suspended in liquid to form ‘nanojuice’ that patients would drink. Upon reaching...
Walking and Parkinson’s
Regular, moderate exercise, such as walking briskly, can help to improve the symptoms of Parkinson's disease, the chronic motor system disorder. Currently, there is...
Ebola spread warning
West African nations neighbouring those hit by the Ebola epidemic – Mali, Cote D’Ivoire, Senegal and Guinea Bissau – should prepare for the possible...
Anti-tobacco graphics
Indonesia has become the newest country to mandate graphic photo warnings on cigarette packs, joining more than 40 other nations or territories that have...
Lidocaine for teething
The US Food and Drug Administration has warned against using a lidocaine solution as a pain reliever on teething babies’ gums, saying it can...
BAHA hearing implant
A revolutionary magnetic implant has restored the hearing of a young actor who went deaf in one ear at the age of 17. The...
Robotic braces
US health regulators have approved a first-of-a-kind set of robotic leg braces that can help some disabled people walk again. The ReWalk system functions...
Organ preservation
A new technique can preserve organs for days before transplanting them, US researchers claim. Tests on animals showed supercooled livers remained viable for three...
Older donors
Women should not worry about using sperm from older donors as the success rate is the same as using a younger man’s sperm, says...
X-ray crystallography
An international team of experts from Bilbao, California and Liverpool has unravelled the mechanism by which two proteins, namely MAT alpha 2 and MAT...
JSE to investigate Aspen
The JSE will investigate Aspen Pharmacare Holdings after shares in the continent’s largest generic drugmaker fell the most in five years after a conference...
More Mers-coronavirus deaths
More than 100 more cases and 34 deaths from the new respiratory disease Mers-coronavirus have been reported by officials in Saudi Arabia. The cases...
Wits admission changes
Wits University has revised its admissions policy for all Health Sciences programmes. For the medical degree 40% of the places will be offered to...
Pharma partnerships
Drugmakers are linking with eight UK universities in a £16m public-private partnership to speed up research into dementia by studying data from 2m people...
FGM half-life is 60 years
Female g enital mutilation (FGM) is a means for men to maintain control of women and must be eradicated. UN human rights chief and...
Mental health concerns
A group of leading mental health experts in the UK has called for researchers to abandon a £1m project that would involve administering a...
Uruguay legalises cannabis
Uruguay, which recently passed a law making it the first country to legalise the production and sale of cannabis, will also allow doctors to...
Medical Pot Bill
The state of New York has agreed to legalise certain forms of marijuana for patients with a limited range of diseases, capping two decades...
Bird flu ‘danger zones’
The ‘danger zones’ in Asia, which are vulnerable to a deadly bird flu, have been mapped by scientists. The study showed parts of Bangladesh,...
UK death stats moribund
Official statistics on deaths in England and Wales are as much as two and half years out of date, a coalition of doctors, scientists...
US system ‘underperforms’
According to a new performance analysis conducted by the Commonwealth Fund, the US health care system consistently underperforms, despite being the most expensive in...
Testosterone supplements
The growing unease around the safety of testosterone supplements has been highlighted by a US Food and Drug Administration announcement that the products must...
Fasciitis after dentistry
An 18-year-old student was killed by a flesh-eating bacterium contracted following a routine dental procedure, a medical examiner in the US has ruled. Benjamin...
Schistosomiasis evidence
The discovery of a schistosomiasis parasite egg in a 6,200-year-old grave in Syria may be the earliest evidence that agricultural irrigation systems in the...
Cystic fibrosis hopes
A ‘breakthrough’ medication derived from Norwegian seaweed may be an effective treatment for killer genetic disease cystic fibrosis, adding to an armoury of drugs...
MERS reaches Bangladesh
Bangladesh has reported its first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus infection in a man returning from the US through Abu Dhabi....
Raw chicken warning
Consumers are being warned to stop washing raw chicken as doing so increases the risk of food poisoning. Campylobacter, the most common form of...
Acid reflux in SA
There's an increase in the number of South Africans complaining of heartburn and acid reflux over the last decade, according to a survey by...