Health

Suspected cholera cases have jumped in northeast Nigeria where Boko Haram violence has forced tens of thousands of people to seek refuge in crowded camps, the Norwegian Refugee Council said Monday.   The humanitarian group said 10,000 people have been affected by the fast-spreading cholera outbreak and 175 people have died in the northeast states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe ...

New Delhi, Nov 11 : As many as 31 persons have reportedly been infected with Zika virus in India’s central state of Madhya Pradesh, local media reported Sunday.  Although some media reported that two persons died due to Zika virus, state health department officials stated that the cause of these deaths has yet to be confirmed. State’s leading newspaper “The ...

Analysts for a recent study, designed a pioneering technique to spot differences between immune cells in tumours that could speed the development of cancer treatments.   Researchers at the University of Edinburgh analysed genes from anonymised medical databases of thousands of tumours to identify genes associated with immune cells. The findings of the study are published in the Journal of ...

There has been a remarkable global decline in the number of children women are having, say researchers. Their report found fertility rate falls meant nearly half of countries were now facing a “baby bust” – meaning there are insufficient children to maintain their population size.   The researchers said the findings were a “huge surprise”.   And there would be ...

Regular use of aspirin — defined as taking two or more standard-dose tablets a week for over five years — may reduce the risk of developing primary liver cancer, scientists claim.   The study led by Harvard Medical School researchers based at Massachusetts General Hospital in the US support evidence from previous studies aspirin could help reduce the risk of ...

Skin cancer deaths among men have soared in wealthy nations since 1985, with mortality rates among women rising more slowly or even declining, researchers told a medical conference in Glasgow Sunday.   Reasons for the discrepancy between sexes are unclear but evidence suggests men are “less likely to protect themselves from the sun” or heed public health warnings, lead researcher ...

We have all been there – taking leftover antibiotics to save a second trip to the doctor.   However, a recent study has found that giving saved antibiotics to others – within and outside the family – fuels rising rates of antibiotic-resistant infections.  The findings will be presented at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference & Exhibition.   ...

The World Health Organization (WHO) has recently declared that Brunei is free of rubella disease as a public health problem.   The rubella virus is highly contagious, but its spread is preventable with safe and cost-effective vaccines. Initial symptoms among children include fever and rash.  Also known as German measles, rubella is particularly serious for pregnant women, as infection can ...

Britain’s High Streets are getting unhealthier, according to a report analysing 70 major UK towns and cities. The Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) ranked High Streets with more payday lenders, bookmakers, tanning salons and fast food outlets the worst.   Grimsby led the unhealthy High Street list ahead of Walsall and Blackpool, while Edinburgh, Canterbury and Taunton had the ...

Women who want to bear children in their 30s and 40s often face a dilemma regarding how much time to wait between pregnancies. Doctors often advise they wait 18 to 24 months. But pregnancy risks mount with age.   A study Monday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), based on 150,000 pregnancies in Canada from 2004 to ...