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NEWS ABOUT: epidemic

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Contagion: It's Not Just Fiction

Premise 'will almost certainly occur,' writes Dr. Larry Madoff

(Newser) - Bad news for those of you, who after seeing Contagion , reminded yourself comfortingly, “It was only a movie:" According to one epidemiologist, the frightening premise put forth in the film “will almost certainly occur.” The plot deals with a virus breaking out of its niche and... More »

Expert: UN Brought Cholera to Haiti

Nepalese base blamed for epidemic

(Newser) - A French researcher has reached the same conclusion about the Haitian cholera outbreak as rioters did: United Nations peacekeepers are the likely source. The expert—sent by the French government to help Haiti investigate the epidemic that has killed more than 2,000 people—believes the disease probably spread from... More »

Little Kids Still Need 2 Swine Flu Shots

Older kids, like adults, get effective H1N1 inoculation from just 1 dose

(Newser) - Kids over age 9 can safely join adults in receiving just one shot of swine flu vaccine, the Washington Post reports. A test of 650 subjects showed 76% of children between 10 and 17 had a response to a vaccine produced by Sanofi Pasteur, and it was strong enough that... More »

Pregnant Women Win Priority for Swine Flu Vaccine

(Newser) - Pregnant women and people who care for infants will be first in line for the swine flu vaccine this fall, the Washington Post reports. Infants, children and young adults under 24, chronically ill adults aged 25 to 64, and health care workers are the other top priority groups under guidelines... More »

WHO Declares Swine Flu Pandemic

H1N1 has spread to 74 countries, but may be milder than first thought

(Newser) - The World Health Organization has declared the first influenza pandemic since 1968, Reuters reports. Although the current outbreak has caused mostly mild cases of the illness, today's official declaration that the outbreak has hit phase 6, the highest level, means heightened prevention measures in 193 countries. The designation refers to... More »

China Springs Nagin After Swine Flu Scare

Quarantine lifted, New Orleans mayor, wife leave Shanghai

(Newser) - Ray Nagin prepared to leave Shanghai today after four days in quarantine imposed after possible exposure to the swine flu virus. The New Orleans mayor, his wife, and a member of their security detail had been in a hotel-turned-clinic since learning that a fellow passenger on their flight from Newark... More »

Binge Drinking Could Fuel Dementia 'Epidemic'

Up to a quarter of UK dementia cases may be booze-linked

(Newser) - It’s no secret that drinking kills brain cells—but doctors in Britain now fear an “epidemic” of brain damage from binge drinking, the Guardian reports. Up to a quarter of dementia cases in the UK may be brought on by heavy drinking, they say, noting that some people... More »

US May Offer 3 Flu Shots in Fall

(Newser) - Americans may be getting not one but three flu shots this fall, the Washington Post reports. One would be for the seasonal flu and the other two would be for swine flu. The plan is unprecedented—health officials have never asked people to get more than one flu vaccine in... More »

US Sees 2nd Flu Death; CDC Eases Up on Schools

(Newser) - Texas health officials said today that a US woman who lived near the Mexico border has died from swine flu—the second death in the nation and first of a US resident, USA Today reports. The news, however, comes amid continued confidence that the H1N1 virus remains relatively mild here,... More »

Mexico Protests Chinese Quarantine of 70 Travelers

Quarantines in China of Mexicans prompt speech by Calderon

(Newser) - Mexico is sending a charter plane to China today to rescue more than 70 Mexican travelers who have been quarantined by the Chinese government regardless of whether they had symptoms of the swine flu. President Felipe Calderon protested what he called "repressive and discriminatory measures," AP reports. Other... More »

Flu Carries Lessons for Bioterror Fight

(Newser) - The H1N1 flu outbreak spotlights a public-health infrastructure ill suited to respond to a pandemic or its close cousin, a bioterror attack, D.A. Henderson writes for Newsweek. We must “sharpen our health-care response. Rapid diagnosis and response are critical,” he writes. The “interconnected world we live... More »

Obama Lacks Health Team as Swine Flu Spreads

Terrorism pros handle health crisis

(Newser) - With key health posts in the Obama administration still vacant, the swine flu outbreak is being handled by a counter-terrorism specialist and a former governor, Politico reports. The administration still lacks a surgeon general and chiefs for the Food and Drug Administraion and Centers for Disease Control, and needs to... More »

Swine Flu Fears Prompt Quarantine Plans, Pork Bans

(AP) - Canada became the third country to confirm human cases of swine flu today as global health officials considered whether to raise the global pandemic alert level. Nations from New Zealand to Spain also reported suspected cases and some warned citizens against travel to North America while others planned quarantines, tightened... More »

Mexico Grapples With Flu as Pandemic Fears Fly

(Newser) - Schools and museums are closed, sold-out soccer games are being played in empty stadiums, and health workers are ordering sickly passengers off subways and buses. At nightclubs, teenagers are dancing with surgical masks on. Mexico City is grappling with what authorities fear is ground zero for a global epidemic of... More »

Long Dormant, Scarlet Fever Returns to UK

Brits had 3K cases last year; disease seems more virulent

(Newser) - Scarlet fever may seem like a disease of bygone times—it's what took Beth away from the Little Women and sealed the fate of the Velveteen Rabbit—but for many Britons it has become all too current. England and Wales have seen a spike in cases, with 3,000 last... More »

Black Death Wipes Out al-Qaeda Camp in Algeria

Bubonic plague wiped out 40 recruits at Algerian base

(Newser) - Bubonic plague is believed to have wiped out dozens of al-Qaeda recruits at a terror training camp in Algeria, the Daily Mail reports. The epidemic came to light when security forces found a militant's diseased body dumped on a roadside. Security sources say the plague forced the group to turn... More »

Mugabe Acknowledges Cholera Epidemic

(Newser) - Robert Mugabe has backtracked on his denial of the Zimbabwean cholera crisis, AFP reports. “He is acknowledging there is a problem,” said a UNICEF official who met with him today. “He recognizes there is a problem with the water and the sewer systems.” The admission comes... More »

Diabetes in US Nearly Doubles in 10 Years

South is hardest hit, as obesity and lack of exercise fuel surge

(Newser) - The nation's diabetes epidemic shows no signs of slowing, Reuters reports. Almost twice as many people were diagnosed with the disease between 2005 and 2007 as between 1995 and 1997. Nearly all of the new cases are Type 2, which is linked to obesity and lack of exercise. Nine of... More »

Brits Warn of Devastating Pandemic

World ill-prepared for massive outbreak

(Newser) - The world is in danger of losing up to 50 million people to an "inevitable" flu pandemic, and global response agencies aren't ready for such a test, the British government warns. A report rates early-warning systems as "poorly coordinated" and calls for an overhaul of the World Health... More »

24M Americans Diabetic: CDC

Big increase of disease linked to obesity has 8% of US suffering, feds report

(Newser) - Almost 8% of the US population has diabetes, the government reported today. About 24 million Americans suffer from type-1 or -2 diabetes, an increase of 3 million since 2005, Reuters notes. Another 57 million Americans are pre-diabetic, a condition of insulin insensitivity that predisposes them to type-2 diabetes, the Centers... More »

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