Two Perelman School of Medicine microbiologists may have found a way to use statins, the well-known blockbuster cholesterol-lowering drugs, to fight the hantavirus, a mysterious and lethal microorganism that appeared suddenly in the US southwest over 20 years ago. That first outbreak led to the deaths of more than a dozen people, most of them in their prime. The last reported outbreak happened in Yellowstone Park in 2012. Eurekalert!
USPSTF Issues Draft Recommendations on Hepatitis B Screening
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends screening for hepatitis B virus in people at high risk.In draft recommendations, the USPSTF says four groups should be screened:
- People born in regions with a high prevalence of HBV infection (Africa, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and the eastern and northern countries in South America)
- U.S.-born children of parents born in the above regions
- HIV-positive people, users of injection drugs, and men who have sex with men
- Patients with a weakened immune system or undergoing hemodialysis Journal Watch
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital scientists have identified a signature immune response that might help doctors identify which newly diagnosed influenza patients are most likely to develop severe symptoms and suffer poor outcomes. The findings also help explain why infants and toddlers are at elevated risk for flu complications. The research appears in the upcoming issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
CDC research finds West Nile virus hospitalizations cost nearly $800 million in US since 1999
In a study of the economic impact of West Nile virus (WNV) in the United States, a research team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that in the 14 years since the virus was first detected in New York, hospitalized cases of WNV disease have cost a cumulative $778 million in health care expenditures and lost productivity. The findings are the result of an analysis published online today in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (AJTMH). MedicalXpress
No comments:
Post a Comment