Most conspiracy theories are harmless, but rumors that GM mosquitoes may inadvertently have caused Brazil’s epidemic could potentially cost lives. Conspiracy theories are not unlike viruses. Mostly they circulate harmlessly on the fringes of society, but every now and then…
The UN body, criticized for being slow to act, is urged by the scientist who co-discovered Ebola to declare a global emergency. An emergency World Health Organization committee is meeting on Monday to advise on the response to the Zika…
Médicins Sans Frontières has stressed the critical importance of adequate investment into the prevention of diseases such as ebola and cholera. The international aid organization, Médicins Sans Frontières (MSF), has warned that without proper investment, epidemics of cholera, malaria, measles and…
Health experts are unsure why the virus is spreading so rapidly in Brazil and neighboring countries. Image – Aedes aegypti mosquitos are seen in containers at a lab of the Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the Sao Paulo University, on…
Guinea was declared free of Ebola on Tuesday after more than 2 500 people died from the virus in the West African nation, leaving Liberia as the only country still awaiting a countdown for the end of the epidemic. People in…
The global TB rate has been falling by 1.5% per year – far slower than the 10% yearly declines needed to end TB within twenty years. Just last month, the World Health Organization (WHO) released new data showing that, despite…
But ridding the planet of curable and preventable tuberculosis will tax the world’s existing resources. Unless there is a complete overhaul of how tuberculosis (TB) is tackled, the world’s biggest infectious killer will claim lives for centuries – despite being…
A World Health Organization survey has revealed that antibiotic resistance has become a global crisis. Almost two-thirds (64%) of some 10 000 people who participated in a World Health Organization (WHO) survey believe antibiotics can be used to treat colds and flu,…
A report notes that TB rates sky-rocketed in the 1990s fueled by the HIV epidemic, and warns of a similar situation with diabetes-related TB. Research shows that people with diabetes are up to three times more likely to develop tuberculosis…
The latest health barometer suggests mother-to-child transmissions and maternal mortality are decreasing among other significant improvements made. South Africa has made significant strides in HIV prevention and treatment in the past decade. Mother-to-child transmission of HIV being has dropped to…