Emerging Diseases, Plagues, Prions & Virology

Sections

Disease in General
Disease in General News
Virology
WNV: West Nile Virus [Basics]
West Nile Virus News
SARS: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome [Basics]
SARS News
BSE/CJD [Basics]
BSE/CJD News
SuperBugs, MRSA, VRE
Haemorrhagic Fevers
Avian Flu [Basics]
Avian Flu News
Mexican H1N1 Swine Flu
Vitamin D
--
HIV/AIDS in Zimbabwe/Africa
Molecular Biology, Genetics
Back to Index

Disease in General

Disease in General News

2010/02/11: TStar: Credible solution on isotopes greeted with silence in Ottawa
Expert panel's report cuts through the fog and makes a strong case for a new research reactor
2010/02/10: NatureN: Genetic basis for stuttering identified -- Mutations found in genes responsible for directing enzymes to their cellular destination
2010/02/10: BBC: Brain blood vessels clue to MS
More than 55% of multiple sclerosis patients have been found to have constricted blood vessels in their brains, a US study says. The preliminary results are from the first 500 patients enrolled in a trial at the University of Buffalo. The abnormality was found in 56.4% of MS patients and also in 22.4% of healthy controls. The MS Society said it was intriguing but not proof that this caused MS - as one leading expert claims. The New York researchers were testing a theory from Italian researcher, Dr Paolo Zamboni who claims that 90% of MS is caused by narrowed veins.
2010/02/09: CBC: Ottawa to appeal injection site ruling
The federal government is asking the Supreme Court of Canada for leave to appeal a lower court ruling that sanctioned Vancouver's supervised drug injection site. The case has raised important questions about the division of powers among federal and provincial governments that need answers, said Justice Minister Rob Nicholson on Parliament Hill Tuesday.
2010/02/09: NatureTGB: Autism risk higher for older mothers
2010/02/09: CBC: Isotope shortage set to worsen
2010/02/02: HPlusMag: Re-Engineering the Human Immune System
2010/02/08: SciDaily: Industrial Cleaner Linked to Increased Risk of Parkinson's Disease
Workers exposed to tricholorethylene (TCE), a chemical once widely used to clean metal such as auto parts, may be at a significantly higher risk of developing Parkinson's disease, according to a study released today...
2010/02/08: Eureka: A potent suppressor of endometrial cancer is revealed -- Researchers define genetic changes that cause widespread malignant growth of cells lining the uterus
2010/02/08: Impolitical: Upcoming isotope shortage in the spotlight
2010/02/05: PhysOrg: Link between birth defect gastroschisis and the agricultural chemical atrazine found
2010/02/04: PhysOrg: 3 years out, safety checklist continues to keep hospital infections in check
The state of Michigan, which used a five-step checklist developed at Johns Hopkins to virtually eliminate bloodstream infections in its hospitals' intensive care units , has been able to keep the number of these common, costly and potentially lethal infections near zero — even three years after first adopting the standardized procedures. A report on the work is being published in the February 20 issue of BMJ (British Medical Journal).
2010/02/02: BBC: Lancet accepts MMR study 'false'
The medical journal which originally published the discredited research linking autism and MMR has now issued a full retraction of the paper. The Lancet said it now accepted claims made by the researchers were "false". It comes after Dr Andrew Wakefield, the lead researcher in the 1998 paper, was ruled last week to have broken research rules by the General Medical Council.
2010/02/02: CBC: Autism-vaccine study retracted [by Lancet]
A medical journal in Britain has retracted a controversial study it published in 1998 that linked the use of a vaccine in children to autism. The study retracted Tuesday looked at 12 children suffering from colitis, a gastrointestinal disease. British surgeon and medical researcher Andrew Wakefield concluded a component of the measles, mumps and rubella or MMR vaccine caused the colitis, which in term led to development problems that are part of autism spectrum disorder. "It has become clear that several elements of the 1998 paper by Wakefield ... are incorrect," The Lancet said in a statement.
2010/02/01: UManchester: Scientists discover enzyme that 'cleans' cancer cells
Scientists have discovered that an enzyme can rid cells of a gene believed to be responsible for a wide range of cancers. Dr Jorg Hartkamp and Dr Stefan Roberts have found that the protease HtrA2 can "clean" cells of the oncogene WT1, which is found at high levels in many leukaemias and solid cancers such as breast and lung cancer.
2010/02/01: CBC: Enzyme structure cracks HIV puzzle
AIDS researchers have solved a 20-year-old puzzle regarding a key component of HIV, a discovery that could lead to better treatments. Scientists at Imperial College London and Harvard University revealed the structure of an enzyme called integrase, which HIV uses to copy its genetic information into a person's DNA. "Despite initially painstakingly slow progress and very many failed attempts, we did not give up and our effort was finally rewarded," said Peter Cherepanov of Imperial College London, the study's lead author, in a statement. HIV infects a person by copying its DNA into the host DNA, hijacking the cell's mechanisms to make more viruses. Integrase is a protein catalyst, or enzyme, to allow this copying to take place. Some AIDS drugs work by inhibiting integrase, but without a three-dimensional structure of the enzyme, scientists weren't sure how those drugs actually worked.
2010/01/30: ProMedMail: Undiagnosed illness, fatal, adults - India: (AS) RFI
2010/01/29: CBC: Vaccine stops TB in African HIV trial
2010/01/28: PhysOrg: Potential new target for drugs to treat iron deficiency and overload discovered
The discovery of a major player in the body's regulation of iron levels should provide a new target for drugs that prevent common iron deficiency as well as rare, potentially deadly iron overload, researchers said.
2010/01/28: Impolitical: Chalk River opening pushed back a critical month
2010/01/28: BBC: MMR doctor 'broke research rules'
The doctor who first suggested a link between MMR vaccinations and autism acted unethically, the official medical regulator has found. Dr Andrew Wakefield's 1998 Lancet study caused vaccination rates to plummet, resulting in a rise in measles - but the findings were later discredited.
2010/01/27: CBC: Government hasn't acted on listeriosis: groups
Six months after an investigation into the tragic listeriosis outbreak recommended a wholesale evaluation of the food-safety system, the government has yet to act, food inspectors and a consumers group said Wednesday. Option Consommateurs, the country's largest consumer organization, and the union representing the inspectors said the government still has to determine how many people it needs to ensure safe food and to figure out if a new inspection system actually works. They said the government has yet to act on the key recommendations produced by a special investigation into the tainted-meat crisis. The 2008 outbreak, traced to contaminated cold cuts from a Maple Leaf Foods plant, killed 22 people and sickened many more.
2010/01/28: CanWest: Meat inspectors give food agency a failing grade -- In wake of listeria outbreak, key changes yet to be implemented
2010/01/20: NEJM: A Placebo-Controlled Trial of Oral Cladribine for Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis by Gavin Giovannoni et al.
2010/01/26: SciDaily: Little Pill Means Big News in the Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis
A new drug for multiple sclerosis promises to change the lives of the 100,000 people in the UK who have the condition, say researchers at Queen Mary, University of London. A major trial of the oral drug Cladribine -- results of which are published in the New England Journal of Medicine on 20 January 2010 -- has shown that it significantly reduces relapse and deterioration of the disease, and goes a long way to eliminating the unpleasant side effects associated with existing therapies.
2010/01/26: Eureka: A gimmick-free weight-loss pill in the works -- Universite de Montreal research team developing leptin-based pill to control hunger
2010/01/11: AlterNet: Is the Environment to Blame for the Rise in Autism Cases?
2010/01/20: PhysOrg: First evidence that blueberry juice improves memory in older adults
2010/01/19: NewScientist: Nuclear safety: When positive is negative
2009/12/21: SciAm: How to Cure 1 Billion People?--Defeat Neglected Tropical Diseases
2010/01/12: Impolitical: Another coming isotope shortage
2010/01/11: CBC: Isotope delay would be 'extremely serious:' MDs
2010/01/11: OSun: Further delays at Chalk River 'extremely serious'
Canadian doctors are concerned any further delay in getting the Chalk River reactor up and running will have serious consequences for the country's hospitals. The nuclear reactor was scheduled to reopen in spring after 10 months off-line due to a radioactive water leak. But so far, only 24% of the work has been completed.
2010/01/01: PhysOrg: Neglected tropical diseases -- momentum must be continued
This week's edition of The Lancet sees the first in a four-part Series on Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) -- conditions which almost exclusively affect the world's poorest people, namely those 2.7 billion people living on less than $US 2 per day.
2009/12/30: BostonGlobe: Solution to killer superbug found in Norway
[...] There is no sign of a dangerous and contagious staph infection that killed tens of thousands of patients in the most sophisticated hospitals of Europe, North America and Asia this year, soaring virtually unchecked. The reason: Norwegians stopped taking so many drugs. Twenty-five years ago, Norwegians were also losing their lives to this bacteria. But Norway's public health system fought back with an aggressive program that made it the most infection-free country in the world. A key part of that program was cutting back severely on the use of antibiotics.
2009/12/29: PhysOrg: Pressure rises to stop antibiotics in agriculture
2009/12/25: BBC: 'Switch' could block Huntington's
A "molecular switch" that can prevent Huntington's disease from developing has been found in mice. A US study concluded the mutated huntingtin protein, which causes the disease, could be stopped in its tracks by a subtle chemical modification. It is hoped the work could lead to much-needed treatments for the inherited disorder.
2009/12/22: PhysOrg: Mystery solved: Scientists now know how smallpox kills
A team of researchers working in a high containment laboratory at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, GA, have solved a fundamental mystery about smallpox that has puzzled scientists long after the natural disease was eradicated by vaccination: they know how it kills us. In a new research report appearing online in The FASEB Journal, researchers describe how the virus cripples immune systems by attacking molecules made by our bodies to block viral replication. This discovery fills a major gap in the scientific understanding of pox diseases and lays the foundation for the development of antiviral treatments, should smallpox or related viruses re-emerge through accident, viral evolution, or terrorist action.
2009/12/19: TS:QuarkSoup: Autism Rates Are Soaring -- Yesterday the CDC released a report on autism, saying that 1 in 110 American children now suffer from it
2009/12/17: CBC: [7] Leprosy-linked genes identified
Seven genes increase the susceptibility to leprosy, researchers have found. Leprosy is a progressive disease that left untreated can damage the skin, eyes and nerves. It is characterized by lesions on the skin, which for centuries made lepers the object of revulsion. Scientists have long thought that leprosy was only an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium leprae, and that genetics did not make a difference in the disease. The mutation findings, published in Wednesday's online issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, run counter to that thinking.
2009/12/16: UAdelaide: Research breakthrough on body's immune system
2009/12/17: CBC: Scientists crack cancer codes
Scientists are hailing the unlocking of the complete genetic code of two of the most common cancers as "a fundamental moment in cancer research." The mapping of the DNA of skin and lung cancers was reported Thursday in two papers in the journal Nature. The scientists have discovered 30,000-odd errors in the DNA code of melanoma and about 23,000 errors in the DNA of lung cancer. The "map" of the two cancers could lead to new tests for cancer and new and better drugs that target mutated genes.
2009/12/11: SlashDot: Method To Repair Damaged Adult Nerves Discovered
2009/12/10: G&M: Scientist discovers new way to repair damaged nerves
2009/12/10: Neuron: (ab$) SOCS3 Deletion Promotes Optic Nerve Regeneration In Vivo by Patrice D. Smith et al.
2009/12/10: NatureTGB: A possible cure for sickle cell in adults
2009/12/10: SciDaily: People Affected by Autism Believe Increase Is 'Real,' Not Diagnostic
There has been a major increase in the number of children diagnosed with autistic spectrum disorders over the last two decades -- the question is why? Researchers have found a sharp difference between the beliefs of ordinary people and medical experts about the reasons for the increased incidence of autism. Expert consensus is that the rapid increase is a result of changes in diagnostic practice, but many lay people directly or indirectly affected by the disorder believe that the number of cases have increased in absolute terms. Many also believe that increasing incidence is the result of exposure to new environmental hazards and other effects of modern lifestyles.
2009/12/06: TStar: Canada's isotope fiasco
How long must Canadians wait for Prime Minister Stephen Harper's government to settle on a remedy for the shortage of medical isotopes? The issue has been on Harper's desk ever since Linda Keen, who then headed the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, first raised "serious concerns" in 2007 about the Chalk River research reactor and tried to shut it down. She was overruled, but the reactor was finally shut down last spring anyway. That put the world's major producer of isotopes for diagnosing cancer, cardiac and other diseases out of service. Harper, who was quick to fire Keen for what he saw as a lack of judgment, has been slower to solve the isotope problem. The shortage has damaged Canada's reputation as a supplier and caused the Americans and others to think about alternative sources. It has also left physicians relying on erratic supplies, and it has worried patients. Beyond that, Harper has put a question mark over the very future of Canada's medical isotope production by musing about getting out of the business and buying what we need from foreign suppliers.
2009/12/04: BBC: Mobiles 'not causing brain risk'
There has been no substantial change in the number of adult brain tumours since mobile phone usage sharply increased in the mid-1990s, Danish scientists say. The Danish Cancer Society looked at the rates of brain tumours among 20 to 79 year olds from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. They found that trends in cancer rates had not altered from the period before mobiles were introduced. But they say longer follow-up studies are needed.
2009/12/03: CBC: Expert panel recommends new isotope reactor
2009/12/04: CanWest: All eyes on Chalk River reactor fixes -- Isotope production hangs on success of test welds
2009/12/04: G&M: New $1.2-billion reactor needed for isotopes, Ottawa told -- Report follows global isotope shortage after shutdown of Chalk River, Ont. reactor
2009/12/03: Impolitical: Isotope expert panel weighs in with a challenge for the Harper government
2009/12/02: PhysOrg: Study finds that infections are common in ICUs worldwide
An international study that examined the extent of infections in nearly 1,300 intensive care units (ICUs) in 75 countries found that about 50 percent of the patients were considered infected, with infection associated with an increased risk of death in the hospital, according to a study in the December 2 issue of JAMA.
2009/11/27: BBC: MS 'blood blockage theory' tested
US scientists are testing a radical new theory that multiple sclerosis (MS) is caused by blockages in the veins that drain the brain. The University of Buffalo team were intrigued by the work of Italian researcher Dr Paolo Zamboni who claims 90% of MS is caused by narrowed veins. He says the restricted drainage, visible on scans, injures the brain leading to MS. He has already widened the blockages in a handful of patients. The US team want to replicate his earlier work before treating patients.
2009/11/26: BBC: Device spells doom for superbugs
Researchers have demonstrated a prototype device that can rid hands, feet, or even underarms of bacteria, including the hospital superbug MRSA. The device works by creating something called a plasma, which produces a cocktail of chemicals in air that kill bacteria but are harmless to skin. A related approach could see the use of plasmas to speed the healing of wounds.
2009/11/17: TerraDaily: Yellow fever drive targets 12 million West Africans: WHO
2009/11/18: BBC: Tiny chip could diagnose disease
Researchers have demonstrated a tiny chip based on silicon that could be used to diagnose dozens of diseases. A tiny drop of blood is drawn through the chip, where disease markers are caught and show up under light.
2009/11/16: NatureTGB: Cholesterol drugs' effectiveness called into question
2009/11/16: PhysOrg: Major schizophrenia study finds striking similarities across 37 countries in 6 regions
2009/11/16: CBC: Cancer rates linked to industrial activity -- N.B. report urges further study
2009/11/09: Impolitical: U.S. acts, Canada waits on isotope file
2009/11/09: CBC: Maple Leaf plant's problems persisted after listeria find
2009/11/09: CBC: Gene behind vaccine 'memory' revealed
Scientists have pinpointed the gene responsible for how the body responds to vaccines, a discovery that could lead to better vaccinations. The research, published in Monday's edition of Nature Immunology, shows that when this gene is mutated the body "forgets" it's ever been vaccinated. Clinical immunologist Dr. Katrina Randall of the Canberra Hospital said the findings could improve treatment of transplant rejection, autoimmunity and allergy.
2009/11/09: TStar: U.S. isotope industry will be Canada's loss -- Congress approves $163M subsidy to build new reactor, begin domestic production
2009/11/06: BBC: Experts map the body's bacteria
Scientists have developed an atlas of the bacteria that live in different regions of the human body. Some of the microbes help keep us healthy by playing a key role in physiological functions.
2009/11/05: CBC: Canada ranked 25th in world infant mortality
2009/11/: CDC: [link to 979k pdf] Behind International Rankings of Infant Mortality: How the United States Compares with Europe
2009/11/04: TerraDaily: World's Largest Malaria Vaccine Trial Now Underway
2009/11/04: CBC: Federal eHealth project has holes: auditor general
2009/11/04: CBC: Disasters may catch Canada unprepared: AG report
2009/11/04: HealthZone: Pandemic: There's no plan
2009/11/03: NatureN: Initiative targets malaria eradication -- Focus shifts to blocking parasite transmission
2009/11/02: Impolitical: Conservative public health choices coming home to roost
2009/11/02: CBC: $39B needed to cut child pneumonia deaths: UN
2009/10/: APS: The Medical Isotope Shortage
2009/10/26: SciDaily: Latest Diabetes Figures Paint Grim Global Picture
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) has released new data showing that a staggering 285 million people worldwide have diabetes. The latest figures from the IDF Diabetes Atlas indicate that people in low and middle-income countries (LMCs) are bearing the brunt of the epidemic, and that the disease is affecting far more people of working age than previously believed. In 1985, the best data available suggested that 30 million people had diabetes worldwide. Fast-forward 15 years and the numbers were revised to just over 150 million. Today, less than 10 years on, the new figures -- launched at the 20th World Diabetes Congress in Montreal, Canada -- put the number closer to 300 million, with more than half aged between 20 and 60.
2009/10/26: URochester: Scientists Discover Gene that 'Cancer-Proofs' Rodent's Cells
2009/10/21: TerraDaily: General Electric unveils pocket-sized ultrasound tool
General Electric (GE) on Tuesday unveiled an ultrasound device about the size of an iPhone, saying the gadget could become "the stethoscope of the 21st century."
2009/10/21: Impolitical: Taking their eye off the ball
2009/10/17: SciDaily: Link Between Genetic Defect And Brain Changes In Schizophrenia Demonstrated
For decades, scientists have thought the faulty neural wiring that predisposes individuals to behavioral disorders like autism and psychiatric diseases like schizophrenia must occur during development. Even so, no one has ever shown that a risk gene for the disease actually disrupts brain development. Now, researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have found that the 22q11 gene deletion -- a mutation that confers the highest known genetic risk for schizophrenia – is associated with changes in the development of the brain that ultimately affect how its circuit elements are assembled.
2009/10/15: SciDaily: Popular Antidepressant [Nortriptyline] Associated With A Dramatic Increase In Suicidal Thoughts Amongst Men, Study Finds
2009/10/09: BBC: US scientists say they have made a potential breakthrough in understanding what causes the condition known as chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) or ME [ME/CFS/PVFS (Myalgic Encephalopathy/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Post Viral Fatigue Syndrome)]
2009/10/09: CBC: Virus suspected in chronic fatigue
A virus recently linked to prostate cancer is a new suspect in chronic fatigue syndrome. U.S.scientists tested blood from 101 patients and found two-thirds carried the virus. That does not mean the virus causes chronic fatigue, stressed the researchers in Thursday's online issue of the journal Science. The team of scientists from the National Cancer Institute and Nevada's Whittemore Peterson Institute said it was possible the virus, named XMRV, was just "a passenger virus" that catches a ride in patients whose immune systems are weakened by chronic fatigue. Moreover, the researchers found nearly four per cent of healthy people carried the virus, too. That raises bigger questions about just what role this recently discovered virus -- a relative of viruses that cause cancer in mice -- may be playing in overall health.
2009/10/07: SciDaily: Major Discovery Opens Door To Leishmania Treatment
Leishmania is a deadly parasitic disease that affects over 12 million people worldwide, with more than 2 million new cases reported every year. Until recently, scientists were unsure exactly how the parasite survives inside human cells. That mystery has now been solved, according to a new study published in Science Signaling by a team led by Dr. Martin Olivier -- a scientist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) and McGill University. It is hoped the new study will lead to the development of the first prophylactic treatment for leishmania.
2009/09/30: CBC: Airline routes predict spread of disease
2009/09/26: SciDaily: Enzyme Is Key To Clogged Arteries, Scientists Find
Scientists at Queen Mary, University of London have made an important discovery in understanding what causes arteries to clog up. They have discovered that an enzyme called matrix metalloproteinase-8 plays a crucial role in raising blood pressure and causing abnormal build-up of cells in the arteries -- both of which increase the risk of heart disease.
2009/09/24: CBC: Vaccine helps prevent HIV infection: study
Wiki: Chikungunya
2009/09/18: PhysOrg: Prostate cancer may be caused by virus, study indicates
Mounting evidence indicates that prostate cancer is an infectious disease caused by a recently identified virus. [...] The suspect is xenotropic murine leukemia-related virus, similar to viruses known to cause cancer in animals. Researchers at Columbia University and the University of Utah found the virus in more than a quarter of some 300 prostate cancer tissue samples, especially in malignant cells. Let me stress, it is not yet proven that prostate cancer is a viral disease.
2009/09/14: BostonGlobe: Did a lake trigger a deadly disease?
Researchers hope to explain why Lou Gehrig’s disease seems to occur more often in people who live near lakes and ponds where cyanobacteria bloom
2009/09/17: KSJT: Boston Globe: Did a lake trigger a deadly disease?
2009/09/13: NewScientist: Master gene creates armies of natural-born killers
2009/09/14: BBC: Key gene 'controls disease fight'
A master gene that helps mobilise the immune system to fight disease has been discovered by UK scientists.
2009/09/14: BBC: US scientists have uncovered a defence mechanism in bacteria that allows them to fend off the threat of antibiotics
2009/09/10: Eureka: New WHO data underscores global threat of the world's leading child killer [pneumonia]
2009/09/10: G&M: U.S. moves to end dependency on foreign isotopes
Move comes as Canadian doctors accuse a federal government experts' panel on isotopes of wasting time by focusing on hypothetical alternatives to the scarce radioactive material
2009/09/09: Eureka: New research confirms potential deadly nature of emerging new monkey malaria species in humans
2009/09/08: Eureka: Worldwide isotope shortage continues to pose significant challenges -- SNM [Society of Nuclear Medicine] survey of nuclear pharmacies finds patient rescheduling, delayed tests
2009/09/09: BBC: New malaria 'poses human threat' -- An emerging new form of malaria poses a deadly threat to humans, research has shown
2009/09/08: BBC: Virus linked to prostate tumours
Scientists have produced compelling evidence that a virus known to cause cancer in animals is linked to prostate cancer in humans.
2009/09/03: CNN: Teen who cries blood gets help from experts
Tennessee teen started crying blood tears in May - He suffers from a rare condition known as haemolacria, which means "bloody tears" - In four other cases, bleeding stopped spontaneously with no cause found
2009/09/03: NatureN: India says no to HIV drug patents -- Patent office rejects applications from two US drug companies.
2009/09/03: PhysOrg: Scientists begin to untangle root cause of Alzheimer's disease
2009/08/26: PhysOrg: Washing away painful wounds
2009/08/25: PhysOrg: New analysis details devastating toll of neglected tropical diseases in sub-Saharan Africa
An analysis published August 25 in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases sheds new light on the toll that neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) take on sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), with an estimated 500 million people suffering from these debilitating and sometimes deadly diseases. Helminth infections account for approximately 85% of the NTD burden. Overall, the NTD burden may be equivalent to more than double that caused by tuberculosis and up to one-half of SSA's malaria disease burden.
2009/08/25: PLoSNTDs: Neglected Tropical Diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa: Review of Their Prevalence, Distribution, and Disease Burden by Peter J. Hotez & Aruna Kamath
2009/08/25: CBC: Federal program aims to get mentally ill off streets
Hundreds of homeless people with mental illness in five cities across Canada will take part in an ambitious federal housing experiment this fall that researchers say could become a new model for helping the down and out. The experiment -- created by the Canadian Commission on Mental Health -- will provide subsidized apartments and intensive psychological and social support to more than 1,000 homeless people in Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Moncton. The $150-million program will track participants' progress for four years and compare it to people who remain on the streets.
2009/08/21: PhysOrg: New discovery points the way towards malaria 'vaccine'
2009/08/21: PLoS:SoM: Ghostwriting documents now fully available on PLoS Medicine website
2009/08/21: PLoS:Medicine: Wyeth Ghostwriting Archive
In July 2009, a US federal court decision resulted in the release of approximately 1500 documents detailing how articles highlighting specific marketing messages written by unattributed writers, but "authored" by academics, are strategically placed in the medical literature - a practice known as ghostwriting. To release these documents, PLoS Medicine, represented by the public interest law firm Public Justice, and the New York Times, acted as "intervenors" in litigation against menopausal hormone manufacturers by women who developed breast cancer while taking hormones. PLoS Medicine argued that sealed documents identified during the discovery process for the court case, demonstrating the practice of ghostwriting, should be made available to the public. As PLoS Medicine Chief Editor Ginny Barbour stated in the motion to intervene, ghostwriting "gives corporate research a veneer of independence and credibility" and may "substantially distort the scientific record"; "threaten[ing] the validity and credibility of medical knowledge." On July 24, 2009, U.S. District Judge William Wilson, Jr., in Little Rock, Arkansas, granted the motion to make discovery materials public as of July 31, 2009.
PLoS has created this web page to make the released documents publicly available without delay. The documents are organized as they were received following the court's decision. PLoS is working with the Drug Industry Documents Archive at the University of California, San Francisco, to develop an indexed archive of the documents.
2009/08/21: SciDaily: Genetically Engineered Bacteria Are Sweet Success Against Inflammatory Bowel Disease
2009/08/15: SlashDot: Gene Therapy Causes Blind Woman To Grow New Fovea
2009/08/14: DerSpiegel: Fighting Fallout -- Drug Promises Fix for Radiation Poisoning
Dirty bombs are one of the biggest threats to the world's urban populations. Now an American molecular biologist has developed a drug that may protect against the effects of radioactivity. Military officials are thrilled, and the discoverers could make billions.
2009/08/14: G&M: How Canada let the world down
AECL says isotope-producing reactor will be out of service until spring; medical officials call delay ‘a disaster,' fear even longer wait Canada, relied upon as a leader in isotope production, is seen as having reneged on its responsibility to the medical world. The isotope-producing NRU reactor at Chalk River, Ont. will stay shut down until the spring of 2010, at least -- marking the third time Crown corporation Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. has pushed back its estimated restart date since the aging reactor was taken offline in late May when a heavy water leak was discovered. The news was met with frustration yesterday, and a growing sense among the international medical community that Canada has bungled its nuclear file.
2009/08/14: NatureTGB: 'How Canada let the world down'
2009/08/14: BBC: Drug 'attacks cancer stem cells'
A compound that appears to target the master cells which help breast cancers grow and spread has been discovered by US scientists. In tests in mice, salinomycin killed breast cancer stem cells far more effectively than some existing drugs, and slowed tumour growth. The drug, a farm antibiotic, has yet to be tested in humans, the journal Cell reports. But UK experts warned a human version could be some years away.
2009/08/14: CBC: Polio surges in Nigeria after vaccine virus mutates
2009/08/12: CBC: Big isotope bills pile up for hospitals
2009/08/11: ProMedMail: Plague, pneumonic - China (06): (QH), WHO
2009/08/11: Eureka: McGill/JGH researchers successfully reverse multiple sclerosis in animals
New immune-suppressing treatment forces the disease into remission in mice A new experimental treatment for multiple sclerosis (MS) completely reverses the devastating autoimmune disorder in mice, and might work exactly the same way in humans, say researchers at the Jewish General Hospital Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research and McGill University in Montreal. MS is an autoimmune disease in which the body's own immune response attacks the central nervous system, almost as if the body had become allergic to itself, leading to progressive physical and cognitive disability.
2009/08/06: ProMedMail: Plague, pneumonic - China (04): (QH)
2009/08/04: PNAS: The fatal fungal outbreak on Vancouver Island is characterized by enhanced intracellular parasitism driven by mitochondrial regulation by Hansong Ma et al.
2009/08/03: ProMedMail: HIV, human, gorilla - Cameroon: new lineage
2009/08/03: ProMedMail: Plague, pneumonic - China (02): (QH)
2009/08/03: BBC: Scientists find new strain of HIV
2009/08/03: CBC: New HIV strain discovered
A new strain of the virus that causes AIDS has been discovered in a woman from the African country of Cameroon. It differs from the three known strains of human immunodeficiency virus and appears to be closely related to a form of simian virus recently discovered in wild gorillas, researchers report in Monday's edition of the journal Nature Medicine. The finding "highlights the continuing need to watch closely for the emergence for new HIV variants, particularly in western central Africa," said the researchers, led by Jean-Christophe Plantier of the University of Rouen, France. The three previously known HIV strains are related to the simian virus that occurs in chimpanzees.
2009/08/03: BBC: A second man has died of pneumonic plague in [Ziketan, near Xinghai in Qinghai Province] a remote part of north-western China where thousands of people have been quarantined
2009/08/02: PhysOrg: Man dies from plague in China, 11 others infected
Thousands of people have been placed under quarantine in a town in northwest China after a man died of pneumonic plague and 11 others were confirmed infected with the deadly lung infection, health authorities said. The 32-year-old herdsman died in Ziketan in Qinghai province, the provincial health bureau said in a statement posted on its Web site Saturday. It did not say when he died. Most of the others infected are relatives of the deceased and are in stable condition in a hospital, the bureau said. The town of 10,000 people has been placed under quarantine and a team of experts has been sent to the area, it said. Pneumonic plague is spread through the air and can be passed from person to person through coughing, according to the World Health Organization. It is caused by the same bacteria that occurs in bubonic plague - the Black Death that killed an estimated 25 million people in Europe during the Middle Ages.
2009/08/02: BBerg: Prolonged Aid to Unemployed Is Running Out
2009/07/28: CBC: Tanning beds cause cancer: WHO
2009/07/27: TechRev: A Vaccine for Colon Cancer
A new approach to preventing cancer teaches the immune system to seek and destroy emerging tumors.
2009/07/24: CanWest: Listeriosis report doesn't go far enough
2009/07/21: Impolitical: Listeriosis report recommendations reveal mistakes made by Harper government
2009/07/21: AlterNet: What Really Causes Autism? Thousands of Parents Blame Vaccines, and Are Taking on the Medical Establishment
GC: Listeriosis Investigative Review
2009/07/21: CBC: Listeriosis probe calls for better equipment, more inspections
2009/07/20: CBC: Listeriosis report submitted
A long-awaited report into Canada's deadly listeriosis outbreak was submitted to the federal agriculture minister on Monday. Investigator Sheila Weatherill's report assessed how the federal government responded to the crisis last year that saw 22 people die and hundreds more fall ill after eating deli meats contaminated with the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes. The bacteria were traced to a Maple Leaf Foods plant in Toronto. Weatherill wasn't expected to publicly release her findings when she handed the report Monday to Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, who oversees the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. The Agriculture Department is expected to make an announcement Monday afternoon about the report, but neither a department spokesman nor the minister's office would say if the report will be made public as promised.
2009/07/16: CBC: From here to there: The evolution of healthcare
2009/07/17: PhysOrg: How to ... avoid kidney stones
2009/07/07: SciDaily: Muscle Damage May Be Present In Some Patients Taking Statins
2009/07/06: CBC: Increased Alzheimer's, Parkinson's deaths linked to nitrates
2009/07/06: NatureN: A knockout vaccine for rabies? Single injection cures infected mice -- and it can protect those who haven't yet caught the disease
2009/07/06: ScienceInsider: Institutions, Company Spar Over Rights to RNAi
A fight has broken out over who owns important pieces of RNA interference (RNAi) technology, a strategy to silence genes that could prove extremely lucrative as companies figure out how to apply it to human disease.
2009/07/02: CBC: Antipsychotic drug use spiralling in kids, research says
2009/07/01: CBC: Canadian HIV vaccine ready for human tests
2009/06/30: PhysOrg: Scientists discover new information on spreading of cancer [from lungs]
2009/06/30: PhysOrg: Study provides greater understanding of lyme disease-causing bacteria
2009/06/26: CBC: 1 in 25 deaths worldwide linked to alcohol consumption: study
2009/06/23: NewResilient: Two reports, one committee: a public inquiry into listeriosis and the CFIA
2009/06/22: NewScientist: AIDS denial: A lethal delusion
2009/06/22: Eureka: Alterations in brain's white matter key to schizophrenia, UCLA study shows -- White matter 'integrity' may be predictive of functional outcome
2009/06/19: CBC: Minister proposes ban on chemicals used in kids' plastic products
2009/06/19: AlterNet: Are Pesticides Causing Parkinson's Disease?
2009/06/19: TStar: [Parliamentary Food Safety Subcommittee] Report calls for listeria inquiry
Panel blames 'turf wars' for time lost in warning public about meat crisis Canadians need a full public inquiry into the death of 22 Canadians from last summer's listeria outbreak and increased inspection oversight in meat plants, a parliamentary investigation has concluded. After two months of hearings, the parliamentary food safety report also found health authorities lost precious time warning the public because they were immersed in confusion and "turf wars." Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz, who quickly dismissed calls for a public inquiry yesterday, did not respond to an interview request. Critics agreed with the Parliamentary Food Safety Subcommittee that a public inquiry is needed.
2009/06/17: PhysOrg: Libya records 13 cases of bubonic plague
Thirteen cases of bubonic plague have been recorded in eastern Libya, near the border with Egypt, Health Minister Mohamad Hijazi told AFP on Wednesday, stressing the situation was under control.
2009/06/15: Eureka: Huntington's disease deciphered
Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine have discovered how the mutated huntingtin gene acts on the nervous system to create the devastation of Huntington's disease. The report of their findings is available in Nature Neuroscience online. The researchers were able to show that the mutated huntingtin gene activates a particular enzyme, called JNK3, which is expressed only in neurons and, further, to show what effect activation of that enzyme has on neuron function.
2009/06/15: CBC: British men 40% more likely to die from cancer than women
2009/06/11: CBC: Unclear when Chalk River will produce isotopes again: officials
2009/06/12: G&M: MDs, industry want to revisit mothballed Maple reactors
Ottawa urged not to abandon medical isotope business it pioneered a half-century ago
2009/06/08: Independent(UK): Revealed: how Alzheimer's infects the brain -- Breakthrough may lead to new treatments for senile dementia
2009/06/04: PhysOrg: Mystery solved: Tiny protein-activator responsible for brain cell damage in Huntington disease
Johns Hopkins brain scientists have figured out why a faulty protein accumulates in cells everywhere in the bodies of people with Huntington's disease (HD), but only kills cells in the part of the brain that controls movement, causing negligible damage to tissues elsewhere. The answer, reported this week in Science, lies in one tiny protein called "Rhes" that's found only in the part of the brain that controls movement. The findings, according to the Hopkins scientists, explain the unique pattern of brain damage in HD and its symptoms, as well as offer a strategy for new therapy.
2009/05/28: Guardian(UK): Toxic link: the WHO and the IAEA
A 50-year-old agreement with the IAEA has effectively gagged the WHO from telling the truth about the health risks of radiation
2009/05/26: BBC: The number of cholera cases in Zimbabwe is expected to reach 100,000 this week, according to the Red Cross
2009/05/24: BBC: Eczema's link to asthma uncovered
Scientists believe they have found what triggers many children with eczema to go on to develop asthma. The Public Library of Science Biology study points to a way to stop what is known as the "atopic march". The US team at the Washington University School of Medicine showed that a substance made by the damaged skin triggered asthma symptoms in mice. The same substance, thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), is also produced in the lungs of asthma patients.
2009/05/15: PhysOrg: Common virus [CMV: cytomegalovirus] could cause high blood pressure
CDC: Group A Streptococcal (GAS) Disease (strep throat, necrotizing fasciitis, impetigo)
2009/05/11: CBC: Strep infections that could threaten your life
2008/10/09: CBC: New strep strain moving east across Canada
2009/05/08: DiscoverMag: Why Does the Vaccine/Autism Controversy Live On?
Research has soundly disproved the alleged connection, yet fears about vaccines continue to be a major risk to public health.
2009/05/07: PhysOrg: Autism in California increases twelve-fold
California saw a 12-fold increase during the past two decades in the number of autistic people who are receiving services through regional centers, a new state study reveals. The dramatic rise in autism has broad implications for California families, taxpayers and social service agencies. [...] From 1987 to 2007, the number of children and adults with autism served by regional centers rose from 2,701 to 34,656, notes a study released this week by the state Department of Developmental Services. That is a 1,148 percent increase. By contrast, the state's general population grew by 27 percent during that timeframe.
2009/05/05: PNAS: Averting epidemics of extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis by Sanjay Basu et al.
2009/05/01: Denialism: The Dr. Will Sue You Now - A stolen chapter from Ben Goldacre's book Bad Science
Wiki: Human papillomavirus
2009/04/21: SciDaily: First Broad-spectrum Anti-microbial Paint To Kill 'Superbugs'
2009/04/19: SciDaily: Lack Of Key Molecule Leads To Deafness
2009/04/14: PhysOrg: Working to eradicate dengue fever
2009/04/02: NYT:WB: Believing in Treatments That Don’t Work
2009/03/31: CBC: New TB strains 'a time bomb,' WHO chief warns
2009/03/31: SciAm: Scientists Find 'Baffling' Link between Autism and Vinyl Flooring
Swedish children who live in homes with vinyl floors are more likely to have autism, according to a new study, but what's behind the link is unclear Children who live in homes with vinyl floors, which can emit chemicals called phthalates, are more likely to have autism, according to research by Swedish and U.S. scientists published Monday. The study of Swedish children is among the first to find an apparent connection between an environmental chemical and autism.
2009/03/31: BBC: Q&A: The Polypill -- Experts are hailing a pill that combines five drugs into one tablet as the magic bullet to heart-related problems
2009/03/29: ProMedMail: Undiagnosed disease & deaths, bovine - Germany (03): ongoing
2009/03/30: CBC: No one wants Quebec's limited private health insurance -- Province OK'd private insurance to speed up knee, hip and cataract surgery
More than two years after Quebec legalized private medical coverage for select surgeries, the insurance industry says it has not sold a single policy. Bill 33 was supposed to allow Quebecers to seek private insurance for faster knee and hip replacements, and cataract surgery. Yves Millette, senior vice-president of the Canadian Life and Health Insurers' Association, said no one is buying the policies because they are too expensive.
2009/03/27: DerSpiegel: Germany's mystery cow disease -- 'Holy Mary, Help Us in Our Hour of Need!'
A mysterious illness is causing calves to bleed to death on German farms. Veterinarians are stumped over what is causing the deaths: vaccines, genetically modified feed or perhaps even the first mother's milk?
2009/03/27: PhysOrg: Pope 'publicly distorted' science in condom row: Lancet
One of the world's top medical journals accused Pope Benedict XVI on Friday of having distorted scientific evidence in his remarks on condom use and demanded he make a retraction. "By saying that condoms exacerbate the problem of HIV/AIDS, the Pope has publicly distorted scientific evidence to promote Catholic doctrine on this issue," The Lancet said in an editorial. "Whether the Pope's error was due to ignorance or a deliberate attempt to manipulate science to support Catholic ideology is unclear. "But the comment still stands, and the Vatican's attempts to tweak the Pope's words, further tampering with the truth, is not the way forward." The London-based journal added: "When any influential person, be it a religious or political figure, makes a false scientific statement that could be devastating to the health of millions of people, they should retract or correct the public record. "Anything less from Pope Benedict would be an immense disservice to the public and health advocates, including many thousands of Catholics, who work tirelessly to try and prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS worldwide." The pope made the controversial remarks last week when he travelled to Africa, the worst-hit continent for AIDS.
2009/03/26: CanWest: CFIA can't track meat-inspector numbers -- Food-safety committee dismayed that staffing levels, duties aren't known
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency cannot be sure how many meat inspectors are stationed at plants across the country, according to an agency briefing note released to parliamentarians as they begin their investigation into the state of food safety. The document didn't sit well with members of the special parliamentary committee, who held their inaugural meeting on Wednesday probing last year's deadly listeriosis outbreak traced back to a meat-processing plant in Toronto operated by Maple Leaf Foods. Malcolm Allen, an NDP MP, called the admission astounding.
2009/03/25: Eureka: Fructose metabolism by the brain increases food intake and obesity
2009/03/25: CBC: CFIA delays implementation of key food-testing requirement
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has delayed an important element of its new listeria-testing policy in meat processing plants. In February, the CFIA announced a new policy requiring companies to report the results of internal tests directly to the agency inspectors before CFIA meat inspectors conduct their own tests for Listeria monocytogenes, the deadly strain of bacteria linked to the deaths of 21 people. But according to an internal memo obtained by the CBC and Toronto Star, the agency has suspended its own tests until April 1. [...] A second internal memo obtained by the CBC and Toronto Star acknowledges that inspectors haven't been doing any of their own tests for three years, which could explain the delay while training is conducted. In a move toward deregulation of the industry in 2005, the CFIA handed companies the responsibility for testing their own products.
2009/03/24: NewScientist: Disease maps can turn a crisis around
2009/03/20: CBC: U.S. salmonella outbreak points to weakness in self-regulation: lawmakers
The mortgage meltdown exposed the weakness of self-regulation in financial markets, but now the U.S. salmonella outbreak is doing the same for the food industry. A government subcommittee Thursday released new documents that showed how private inspectors contracted by Peanut Corp. of America failed to find long-standing sanitary problems at company facilities. Peanut Corp. is at the centre of a U.S. outbreak that has sickened nearly 700 people and is blamed for at least nine deaths. Lawmakers said the food industry's private inspection system failed to catch filthy conditions because the company itself hired the inspectors. "There is an obvious and inherent conflict of interest when an auditor works for the same supplier it is evaluating," said Rep. Bart Stupak, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce investigations subcommittee. He termed it a "cozy relationship."
2009/03/16: JHSPH: Flies May Spread Drug-Resistant Bacteria from Poultry Operations
2009/03/13: NTI: Scientists make breakthrough in developing AIDS vaccine
SSRI Stories -- Antidepressant Nightmares
2009/03/09: AllAfrica: IRIN: Zimbabwe: On the Cholera Frontline
[...] The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on 9 March that 4,011 people had succumbed to the waterborne disease since the outbreak began in August 2008, and the total number of cases recorded had reached 89,018.
2009/03/06: NatureTGB: The diabetes virus?
2009/03/06: GristMill: Food unsafety -- Who put the food companies in charge of food safety? We did.
2009/03/06: CanWest: Health Canada wants access requests vetted by minister -- Researchers vexed; Critics decry politicization of information
Health Canada is telling contractors who handle the release of departmental documents that they must consult with Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq's office to ensure that "sensitive records are treated appropriately." For those who use the Access to Information Act, the requirement, buried in a contract notice, comes as a further sign of the politicization of the open-records law, which was intended to give Canadians easy access to government documents.
2009/03/05: CBC: Tainted-meat disaster claims 21st victim -- Quebec man listed as victim of bacteria in Maple Leaf products
2009/03/01: NewsWeek: Why Doctors Hate Science -- Scaremongers warn that 'effectiveness research' threatens the lives of Americans.
2009/02/26: Intersection:SRK: Science Reveals How To Lose Weight And Keep It Off
2009/02/24: Eureka: Stunning finding: Compounds protect against cerebral palsy
2009/02/24: PhysOrg: Researchers uncover 'obesity gene' involved in weight gain response to high-fat diet
2009/02/22: G&M: Harper government withholds listeriosis notes
The Harper government has delayed for months the release of notes on conference calls held at the height of last summer's deadly listeriosis outbreak -- a lag some experts say breaks Ottawa's own information laws. At issue is an Access to Information request by The Canadian Press to the Privy Council Office for "all transcripts and minutes" of the crucial exchanges last August and September. Officials were grappling at the time with a health crisis that sparked intense scrutiny of the national food safety system.
2009/02/20: UN: Zimbabwe’s cholera crisis worsens as number of dead, infected climbs - UN
The mounting death toll from Zimbabwe’s devastating cholera epidemic has reached almost 3,800, with more than 80,000 people infected, the United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) reported today. Some 3,759 people have now died from cholera since the outbreak first hit the besieged southern African country in August last year, with all 10 of Zimbabwe’s provinces having been affected by the water-borne disease, which has spilled over to neighbouring countries.
2009/02/18: PhysOrg: AIDS becomes China's deadliest infectious disease
AIDS was the top killer among infectious diseases in China for the first time last year, with 6,897 people dying in the nine months through September, a state news agency said.
2009/02/15: G&M: Airport screening unlikely to stop disease, study says
2009/02/16: CanWest: Federal government is sweeping food safety under the rug
A new outbreak of food-borne illness -- from salmonella-contaminated peanuts produced in the U.S. -- is killing Americans and may be making Canadians sick. The American producer of the poison peanuts has something in common with the Canadian company whose con-taminated cold cuts killed 20 people this summer. Neither was required to report to food safety inspectors when a test showed contamination in their plants and product. This may come as a surprise to many Canadians who remain mostly in the dark about the Maple Leaf listeriosis outbreak. And it seems the prime minister would like to keep it that way. Stephen Harper has gagged the person he just appointed to investigate last summer's killer listeriosis outbreak, forbidding her to speak to the media or the public, while denying her important tools she needs to get to the bottom of the problem. This is entirely consistent with Ottawa's decision to kill reports the government once published that made detailed information about safety and sanitation practices at Canadian meat plants available to Canadian consumers. Meat industry lobbyists will be happy with this approach, but it denies Canadians the information they want and need.
2009/02/12: BBC: W Africa starts anti-polio drive
Twenty million children in West Africa are expected to be vaccinated during the next three days in a major effort to eradicate polio.
2009/02/12: Guardian(UK): Peanut company president refuses to answer questions from Congress [pleads the 5th]
2009/02/11: AllAfrica: [Zimbabwe] Cholera Cases Rise Above 70,000
2009/02/10: NYT:PK: Ignorance is bliss -- That is, your ignorance is the drug makers’ (and the medical equipment makers’) bliss.
2009/02/09: NatureTGB: MMR-autism link doctor stands accused
2009/02/09: KSJT: Times (UK): Brit doctors who asserted a vaccine-autism linked faked the data in Lancet
2009/02/08: Times(UK): MMR doctor Andrew Wakefield fixed data on autism
The doctor who sparked the scare over the safety of the MMR vaccine for children changed and misreported results in his research, creating the appearance of a possible link with autism, a Sunday Times investigation has found. Confidential medical documents and interviews with witnesses have established that Andrew Wakefield manipulated patients’ data, which triggered fears that the MMR triple vaccine to protect against measles, mumps and rubella was linked to the condition.
2009/02/06: PLoSG: Expression of the Multiple Sclerosis-Associated MHC Class II Allele HLA-DRB1*1501 Is Regulated by Vitamin D by Sreeram V. Ramagopalan et al.
2009/02/05: BBC: Vitamin D helps control MS gene
The first evidence of how vitamin D deficiency and genetics interact to increase the risk of multiple sclerosis has been reported by researchers. A UK and Canadian team found that vitamin D helps to control a gene known to increase MS risk, the PLoS Genetics journal reports.
2009/02/05: CBC: Vitamin D interacts with gene in MS: study
Vitamin D seems to help control a gene known to increase the risk of multiple sclerosis - a finding that suggests taking vitamin D supplements during pregnancy and early in life may help prevent the disease.
2009/02/02: SciDaily: Link Found Between Parkinson's Disease Genes And Manganese Poisoning
A connection between genetic and environmental causes of Parkinson's disease has been discovered by a research team led by Aaron D. Gitler, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Gitler and colleagues found a genetic interaction between two Parkinson's disease genes (alpha-synuclein and PARK9) and determined that the PARK9 protein can protect cells from manganese poisoning, which is an environmental risk factor for a Parkinson's disease-like syndrome.
2009/02/01: BBC: Cancer protection secret revealed
Scientists say they have discovered a missing link in the way cells protect themselves against cancer. They have uncovered how cells switch a gene called p53, which can block the development of tumours, on and off. The researchers say the finding has important implications for cancer treatment and diagnosis.
2009/01/30: PhysOrg: UN: Cholera cases in Zimbabwe top 60,000
2009/01/28: UN: Over 3,000 dead as cholera crisis in Zimbabwe worsens, says UN health agency
2009/01/28: BBC: The death toll from the cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe has now passed the 3,000 mark, the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) has said
2009/01/26: AllAfrica: IRIN: Zimbabwe's Worst-Case Cholera Scenario Getting Worse
Zimbabwe's worst-case cholera scenario, as predicted by the World Health Organisation, is likely to be surpassed within a few weeks and there are still about two months of the rainy season left. In December 2008 the WHO said cholera cases could balloon to 60,000 before the rainy season ended in March 2009, but Gregory HÃƒÂ¤rtl, spokesman for the organisation's Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response office in Geneva, told IRIN that as of 25 January, 53,306 cholera cases and 2,872 deaths had been recorded since the outbreak began in August 2008.
2009/01/22: CBC: $630 million US for new push to eradicate polio
Bill Gates and other donors are giving more than $630 million US to the international effort to eradicate polio, after the disease spiked and spread to seven countries that were previously polio-free. Gates announced Wednesday that his foundation, along with the charity group Rotary International and the British and German governments, would donate the money in the next few years. Despite the new injection of funds, the campaign still needs $340 million US to get through 2010. The World Health Organization estimates about another $2 billion US would be needed until 2013, when it hopes that polio will have been wiped out.
2009/01/09: SciAm: New Study: Autism Linked to Environment
Research links soaring incidence of the mysterious neurological disorder to fetal and infant exposure to pesticides, viruses, household chemicals
2009/01/20: AllAfrica: SW Radio: Cholera Deaths Soar in SA And Zambia As Crisis Deepens in Zimbabwe
2009/01/16: CBC: Common blood pressure drugs should not be combined, doctors urge
2009/01/13: UN: Over 2,000 lives now lost to Zimbabwe’s worst ever cholera outbreak -- UN
2009/01/13: PhysOrg: Zimbabwe cholera deaths soar past 2,000: WHO
2009/01/12: CBC: Flu shot mismatched on B virus, early data suggests
2009/01/08: PhysOrg: Study shows California's autism increase not due to better counting, diagnosis
2009/01/06: TerraDaily: Death toll in Zimbabwe cholera epidemic at 1,732: WHO
2009/01/05: AllAfrica: SW Radio: Cholera Death Toll Continues to Rise -- WHO last week reported that the official death count was more than 1600, with over 30,000 reported cases
2009/01/05: CBC: Promised listeriosis probe still lacks investigator
The Harper government has not yet named the leader of a promised probe into the listeriosis outbreak that killed 20 people -- a lag critics say discredits an already suspect process. Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the "arm's-length" investigation last September, four days before forcing an early federal election. But he stopped short of calling a full judicial inquiry as the tainted cold-cuts death toll climbed. The outbreak came as the government was preparing to hand the industry more responsibility for meat inspection.

Virology

WNV: West Nile Virus

West Nile Virus News

2008/10/30: CBC: Canada barely bitten by West Nile in 2008

2008/05/19: PhysOrg: Researchers make West Nile vaccine breakthrough

2007/09/26: CBC: 10,000 Manitobans likely infected with West Nile: health officials

2007/09/14: CBC: Canada records worst year for West Nile
So far this summer, 1,790 people are known to have become infected with West Nile, compared with the previous record of 1,481 cases in 2003.

2007/09/14: CBC: Sask. West Nile infections top 1,000

2007/09/15: CTV: Canada has worst year ever for West Nile virus

2007/09/07: CBC: More than 800 West Nile infections in Saskatchewan, officials say

2007/08/23: CBC: West Nile cases double in Manitoba - Number of diagnoses also up in Alberta, Saskatchewan

2007/08/22: NewScientist: Deadliness of West Nile virus explained
A single genetic mutation might explain why West Nile virus has, within a decade, switched from causing relatively mild infections in humans to outbreaks of deadly encephalitis

2007/08/16: CanWest: West Nile infections on pace to set a record [in Canada]

2007/08/05: CBC: Manitoba orders spraying following West Nile death

2007/07/26: CBC: Manitoba's West Nile count jumps to 25

2007/06/08: CBC: West Nile cases rose in U.S. last year, agency reports
West Nile virus sickened nearly 1,500 people in the U.S. last year, the highest number of cases reported since 2003, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2006, 1,491 cases of serious brain or nervous system problems among West Nile patients were reported, and at least 177 people died, the agency said Friday in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. During 2006, the virus expanded mainly in the northwestern region of the U.S., where some counties saw their first cases, the report said.

2007/05/16: NewScientist: [West Nile] Virus disaster for US birds

2006/10/06: CBC: Threat of West Nile virus unpredictable

2006/05/04: Eureka: New strategy developed to combat West Nile Virus

---

[Previous archived.]

SARS: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome

SARS News

BSE/CJD [Basics]

CDC: Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers
CDC: Marburg Hemorrhagic Fever
CDC: Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever
WHO: Marburg haemorrhagic fever
WHO: Dengue/dengue haemorrhagic fever
WHO: Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF)
WHO: Ebola haemorrhagic fever
2005/10/25: PLoS Biology: Charting the Path of the Deadly Ebola Virus in Central Africa by Peter D. Walsh, Roman Biek, Leslie A. Real
2007/08/22: PLoS One: Marburg Virus Infection Detected in a Common African Bat by Jonathan S. Towner et al.
2008/11/21: PLoSPathogens: Newly Discovered Ebola Virus Associated with Hemorrhagic Fever Outbreak in Uganda by Jonathan S. Towner et al.
--News--
2010/01/19: PhysOrg: Researchers discover Ebola's deadly secret
Research at Iowa State University has led scientists to uncover how the deadly Zaire Ebola virus decoys cells and eventually kills them. A research team led by Gaya Amarasinghe, an assistant professor of biochemistry, biophysics and molecular biology, had previously solved the structure of a critical part of an Ebola protein known as VP35, which is involved in host immune suppression. Amarasinghe and his research team now know how VP35 is able to do it. When most viruses invade a cell, they start to make RNA in order to replicate. When the healthy host cell senses the replicating RNA, the host cell starts to activate anti-viral defenses that halt replication and eventually help clear the viral infections. What Amarasinghe and his group have discovered is that Ebola virus encoded VP35 protein actually masks the replicating viral ribonucleic acid (RNA), so the cell doesn't recognize that there is an invading virus.
2009/08/02: SciDaily: 'Ebola Cousin' Marburg Virus Isolated From African Fruit Bats
A team of scientists have reported the successful isolation of genetically diverse Marburg viruses from a common species of African fruit bat (Egyptian fruit bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus). A paper published in the open-access science journal PLoS Pathogens provides new insight into the identity of the natural host of this deadly disease.
2009/07/10: BBC: Concern over Ebola virus in pigs
A form of Ebola virus has been detected in pigs for the first time, raising concerns it could mutate and pose a new risk to humans. Ebola-Reston virus (REBOV) has only previously been seen in monkeys and humans - and has not caused illness. But researchers are concerned that pigs might provide a melting pot where the virus could mutate into something more menacing for humans. The new discovery - in the Philippines - is featured in the journal Science. However, the researchers, from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, stress that the virus at present appears to pose no risk to humans.
2009/06/29: ProMedMail: Hemorrhagic fever - Congo DR: (Equateur), RFI
2009/06/23: PhysOrg: Scientists block Ebola infection in cell-culture experiments
2009/06/01: ProMedMail: Lujo virus, a novel arenavirus - South Africa ex Zambia
2009/06/02: Eureka: New arenavirus discovered as cause of hemorrhagic fever outbreak [Lujo] in South Africa and Zambia
First Old World arenavirus associated with hemorrhagic fever identified in nearly four decades
2009/05/30: ProMedMail: Ebola hemorrhagic fever, fruit bat - Congo DR, 2007
2009/05/29: CBC: Researchers identify new deadly virus in Africa
2009/05/29: PhysOrg: Scientists identify new lethal arenavirus in Africa [Lujo]
2009/04/23: SciDaily: New Ebolavirus Vaccine Protects Against Lethal Infection in Animal Models
2009/04/02: CBC: Scientist treated with Canadian [ebola] vaccine healthy 21 days after accident
2009/03/20: CBC: Canadian-made Ebola vaccine used after German lab accident
An experimental vaccine against the deadly Ebola virus made by researchers at Canada's national laboratory in Winnipeg was given to a German scientist who may have been infected during a lab accident last week.
2009/03/05: SciDaily: Experimental Vaccine Protects Animals From Deadly Ebola Virus; May Prove Effective In Developing The First Human Vaccine
2009/02/08: PhysOrg: 1st US case of Marburg fever confirmed in Colorado
The first U.S. case of Marburg hemorrhagic fever has been confirmed in Colorado, and authorities say the patient - who contracted the rare illness while traveling in Uganda - has since recovered.
2009/01/30: SciDaily: How Ebola Virus Avoids The Immune System
2009/01/27: UPHS: Penn Study Identifies How Ebola Virus Avoids the Immune System
2009/01/13: SciDaily: Structure Of Key Ebola Protein Discovered
2009/01/03: ProMedMail: Ebola kills two Zim soldiers in Congo DR
2009/01/02: ProMedMail: Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever - Democratic Republic of the Congo: (Kasai Occidental), WHO
2008/12/30: CBC: Ebola outbreak kills 11 in Congo
2008/12/25: PhysOrg: Ebola epidemic kills nine in central DR Congo: report
2008/12/11: FTimes: Manila reports Ebola virus in pigs
2008/11/21: NewScientist: New species of Ebola found in Uganda
2008/11/21: PhysOrg: Scientists discover new species of Ebola virus
Scientists report the discovery of a new species of Ebola virus, provisionally named Bundibugyo ebolavirus, November 21 in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens. The virus, which was responsible for a hemorrhagic fever outbreak in western Uganda in 2007, has been characterized by a team of researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Georgia the Uganda Virus Research Institute; the Uganda Ministry of Health; and Columbia University.
2008/10/30: PhysOrg: New killer virus identified in South Africa
A viral haemorrhagic fever that killed four people in Johannesburg has been identified as a new strain of the deadly arenavirus, health officials said Thursday. Tests performed at the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention identified the new strain that has yet to be named, said Barry Schoub, executive director of the National Insititute of Communicable Diseases (NICD). "The virus is new in terms of its genetic make up and there is currently no vaccine against it," Schoub told reporters, adding that it had "high lethal potential for humans."
2008/10/13: NewScientist: Haemorrhagic virus carried by common African mouse
2008/07/18: ProMedMail: 61 cases of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) in Stavropol Krai
2008/07/12: BBC: Cave warning on Uganda bat virus [Marburg]
The World Health Organization has warned people not to go into Ugandan caves with bats, after a Dutch tourist contracted the deadly Marburg virus. The woman, aged 40, died after being taken to hospital following her return to the Netherlands, health authorities there said. They said she probably contracted the disease while visiting a Ugandan cave inhabited by fruit bats.
2008/07/11: ProMedMail: Dutch tourist infected with Marburg virus
2008/07/09: Eureka: Scripps research scientists reveal key structure from ebola virus - Breakthrough findings point to targets for drugs and vaccines
2008/05/21: AFP: Lab breakthrough seen in lethal dengue fever
2008/04/18: ProMedMail: Arenavirus hemorrhagic fever - Bolivia: (Chapare), new arenavirus
2008/04/18: PhysOrg: Scientists discover new arenavirus associated with hemorrhagic fever
A team of Bolivian health authorities, U.S. Navy health experts based in Lima, Peru, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has characterized "Chapare arenavirus," a previously unrecognized arenavirus, discovered in serum samples from a patient in rural Bolivia who eventually died of the infection. A full report of the study is published April 18th in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens. Named after the Chapare River in the eastern foothills of the Andes, the new Chapare arenavirus produces clinical hemorrhagic symptoms similar to those associated with other New World arenaviruses, such as the Junin, Machupo, Guanarito, and Sabia viruses. Genetically, however, Chapare is different from each. Junin, Machupo and Guanarito viruses have been associated with large outbreaks of hemorrhagic fever. Initial symptoms often include fever, malaise, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, and anorexia, followed later by hemorrhagic symptoms. Untreated, more severe neurologic and/or hemorrhagic symptoms may develop, and death occurs in up to 30%
2008/03/31: TerraDaily: Vaccine For Ebola Virus
2008/01/18: PhysOrg: Can hantavirus infection spread among humans?
2007/12/15: ProMedMail: Ebola hemorrhagic fever - Uganda (11): (Bundibugyo)
2007/12/16: Guardian(UK): Inside Ebola's zone of death
Uganda is gripped by fear of an epidemic 'explosion' as the killer virus develops a slower and potentially more lethal version
2007/12/08: PhysOrg: New Ebola fatalities push Uganda toll to 25: official
2007/11/30: PhysOrg: New Subtype of Ebola Suspected in Uganda
2007/11/30: BBC: Uganda confirms 16 Ebola deaths
A haemorrhagic fever that has killed 16 people and infected more than 50 others in Uganda has been confirmed as the deadly Ebola virus. The casualties are all in the region of Bundibugyo, on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. DR Congo has been battling for five months to contain an Ebola outbreak close to its border with Angola
2007/10/03: PhysOrg: Doctors Hope to Contain Ebola Outbreak [Congo]
2007/09/22: BBC: New Ebola cases seen in DR Congo
The World Health Organisation says nine further cases of the deadly Ebola virus have been confirmed in the Democratic Republic of Congo. At least 174 people in the country's West Kasai region have died so far in the current outbreak
2007/09/17: CBC: Winnipeg scientists called on to assist with Congo's Ebola outbreak
2007/09/12: BBC: Major Ebola outbreak in DR Congo
An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been confirmed by the World Health Organization in Kasai province. At least 166 people have died and WHO says it is aware of 372 other cases. Specialist laboratories in Gabon and Atlanta in the US confirmed Ebola from blood samples, saying they also showed the presence of Shigella dysentery
2007/09/12: AFP: Major Ebola outbreak in DRCongo confirmed, up to 166 deaths could be linked
2007/09/11: UN: Ebola virus outbreak in central DR Congo claims 160 lives - UN health agency
2007/09/11: SciDaily: Marburg Virus Identified In A Species Of Fruit Bat
2007/09/11: BBC: An outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo has killed at least five people says the World Health Organisation
2007/08/22: PhysOrg: Scientists detect presence of marburg virus in african fruit bats
2007/08/22: BBC: Deadly virus linked to fruit bat
US and Gabonese scientists say a common type of fruit bat could be the source of an outbreak of the deadly Marburg disease in Africa. The scientists tested more than 1,000 bats caught in caves in Gabon and DR Congo, and found some members of one species were infected with the virus.
2006/11/14: PhysOrg: Pattern of Human Ebola Outbreaks Linked to Wildlife and Climate
2006/11/12: NewScientist: Ebola heads for last great apes
2006/10/16: Eureka: Researchers discover key mechanism by which lethal viruses Ebola and Marburg cause disease [an amino acid sequence in Filoviruses that results in the rapid depression of immunological response]
2006/04/28: BBC: Vaccine hope for deadly disease - Scientists are hopeful a vaccine against the deadly tropical disease Marburg virus could be developed.
2006/04/27: SciDaily: Experimental Vaccine Protects Nonhuman Primates When Given After Exposure To Marburg Virus
2006/02/21: Eureka: Ebola DNA vaccine produces immune responses in all fully vaccinated volunteers in Phase 1 trial
2006/02/17: WashPost: NIH-Created Ebola Vaccine Passes 1st Test
2005/12/01: PlanetArk: Bats May be Carriers of Ebola Virus - Scientists
2005/12/01: BBC: Fruit bats may carry Ebola virus
Fruit bats may be acting as reservoirs of the killer Ebola virus, responsible for several deadly outbreaks in central Africa, research suggests.
2005/10/27: SciDaily: Charting The Path Of The Deadly Ebola Virus In Central Africa
2005/10/24: Eureka: Charting the path of the deadly Ebola virus in central Africa
2005/06/05: Eureka: Researchers report breakthrough against world's deadliest viruses - New Ebola, Marburg Vaccines effective in animal models
2005/06/06: BBC: Ebola, Marburg vaccine 'success'
2005/06/05: CBC: Vaccines protect monkeys from Ebola, Marburg: study
2005/05/20: BBC: Congo's Ebola town [Etoumbi] is sealed off
The town at the centre of an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in Congo has been sealed off to stop the disease spreading, health officials say.
2005/05/19: ABC(Au): Ebola outbreak spreads to Congo
2005/05/18: BBC: Tests have confirmed an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in Congo [Cuvette West province], the World Health Organization (WHO) says.
2005/05/17: BBC: The world's worst outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus is not over and is spreading to new parts of Angola, the World Health Organization says.
2005/05/14: NYT: New Outbreak of Deadly Ebola Virus Is Feared in Congo Republic
2005/05/10: New Scientist: Marburg outbreak now devastating all age groups
2005/04/27: WashTimes: Ebola suspected in Equatorial Guinea
2005/04/24: UN: Marburg virus has killed 244 but fatalities are decreasing, UN health agency reports
2005/04/23: BBC: Angola is at a critical stage in its fight against an outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus, the World Health Organization says.
2005/04/23: CBC: Angola at critical stage in Marburg battle: WHO
2005/04/23: ABC(Au): Angola at critical stage in Marburg battle: WHO
2005/04/21: CBC: Canada adds help to contain Marburg virus outbreak
2005/04/19: SciDaily: Scientists Discover How Ebola Virus Infects Cells
2005/04/15: UN: UN health agency confronts Angolan families’ refusal to isolate Marburg patients
2005/04/14: Eureka: Scientists discover how Ebola virus infects cells - Finding could lead to treatments for viral hemorrhagic fevers
2005/04/14: BBC: Killer virus hits Angolan rituals
Angolans are being urged to change their traditional rituals for burying loved ones in a bid by health workers to stamp out the deadly Marburg virus.
2005/04/12: BBC: Fear of hospital hits virus fight
Health workers fighting to contain an outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus in Angola say families are refusing to send infected relatives to hospital.
2005/04/11: UN: UN concerned Marburg outbreak in Angola could spread through home care
2005/04/12: ABC(Au): Marburg death toll over 200 in Angola
2005/04/11: BBC: South Africa has stepped up precautions to prevent the spread of the Marburg virus into the country from Angola.
2005/04/10: CBC: WHO resumes count of Marburg deaths
2005/04/07: NSU: Marburg's behaviour bewilders scientists - Rising death toll flags unexplained character of killer virus.
2005/04/08: New Scientist: Angola's neighbours put on Marburg alert
2005/04/09: BBC: Attacks halt virus work in Angola
2005/04/09: CBC: WHO suspends count of Marburg deaths
2005/04/09: NYT: Fear and Violence Accompany a Deadly Virus Across Angola
2005/04/09: Yahoo: UN says Marburg outbreak in Angola worse than Ebola, launches aid appeal
2005/04/06: BBC: Angola virus workers 'need masks' [155 dead, 175 stricken]
Health workers in the Angolan capital, Luanda, are complaining of not having enough protective clothing to combat the deadly Marburg virus.
2005/04/05: Eureka: Ebola virus: from wildlife to dogs
2005/04/05: Guardian(UK): Africa strives to contain Ebola-like virus after 150 die in Angola
2005/04/04: New Scientist: Deadly fever claims yet more lives in Angola
2005/04/03: BBC: Angola Marburg death toll climbs [to 146]
2005/04/01: CBC: Record number of deaths in Angola's Marburg outbreak, WHO says
2005/04/01: ABC(Au): Suspected Marburg cases hospitalised in Italy, DR Congo
2005/03/31: BBC: The Marburg virus, the Ebola-like bug, has claimed nine more victims in Angola this week making it now the worst ever recorded, health officials say.[126 dead]
2005/03/27: BBC: Ebola-like virus death toll rises
2005/03/27: CBC: Canadians help fight Marburg in Angola
2005/03/26: CNA: Toll in Ebola-like virus in Angola rises to 115, spreads to capital
2005/03/25: BBC: Ebola-like virus reaches Luanda
The Marburg virus, an Ebola-like bug that has killed 112 people in Angola's northern province of Uige, has reached the capital, Luanda, officials say.
2005/03/22: BBC: More than 90 people have died in the past five months in Angola after an outbreak of a haemorrhagic fever in the north, caused by the Marburg [ebola] virus.
2005/03/18: Yahoo: Mysterious haemorrhagic fever kills 87 in Angola [over the last 4 months]
2005/02/14: Eureka: Study links Ebola outbreaks to animal carcasses
2004/08/07: BBC: Ebola outbreak is halted in Sudan
2004/05/24: BBC: New Ebola strain found in Sudan
2004/05/22: CBC: Sudan may have new form of Ebola virus
2004/05/21: AllAfrica: IRIN: Sudan: Ebola-Like Virus Confirmed in Western Equatoria
2003/12/09: Eureka: Ebola virus-like particles prevent lethal Ebola virus infection
2003/11/26: BBC: New Ebola deaths in north Congo
2003/11/16: BBC: Congo Ebola outbreak claims lives
2003/11/14: Newsday: Officials Confirm Ebola Outbreak in Congo
2003/08/06: BBC: Breakthrough on Ebola vaccine
2003/03/14: NewScientist: Search for source of Ebola begins

Avian Flu

--Basics--

2004/01/30: CDC: Avian Influenza A(H5N1) Outbreak
2004/01/15: WHO: Avian influenza - fact sheet
WHO: Avian influenza
CBC: Avian Flu
Guardian(UK): Bird flu
WHO: (pdf 117K) Influenza A (H5N1): WHO Interim Infection Control Guidelines for Health Care Facilities
--News Sources--
Effect Measure: a forum for progressive public health discussion and argument as well as a source of public health information
Bird Flu Breaking News
Avian Flu Diary
H5N1 (blog)
Flu Wiki

Avian Flu News

2009/02/04: CBC: Bird flu virus still major concern: WHO
2009/01/26: CBC: Cull of 60,000 turkeys at B.C. farm may begin Monday
2009/01/24: CBC: Avian flu detected in southern B.C.: CFIA
2009/01/20: BBC: Fresh warning on China bird flu
A Chinese health expert has said that the country is likely to experience an upsurge in the number of human bird flu cases in the next month or two. Shu Yuelong, from the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said China needed to work harder at preventing bird flu outbreaks. The warning came after the health ministry said a 16-year-old boy had died in central Hunan province. The human form of bird flu has now claimed three lives this year.
2009/01/20: CBC: 16-year-old Chinese boy dies of bird flu
2009/01/07: Eureka: Avian flu becoming more resistant to antiviral drugs, says University of Colorado study
2009/01/06: CBC: Chinese woman dies from bird flu
2009/01/02: CBC: Whatever happened to avian flu?
2008/12/25: PhysOrg: Bangladesh slaughters 10,000 birds over avian flu
2008/12/20: NewScientist: Struggle over bird flu samples drags on
2008/12/10: NatureTGB: Bird flu round up
2008/12/09: CBC: Hong Kong reports bird flu outbreak
2008/08/13: PhysOrg: The pandemic potential of H9N2 avian influenza viruses
2008/07/29: PhysOrg: SKorea cat had bird flu: officials
A cat found dead in a South Korean city was infected with a virulent strain of bird flu, the first mammal in the country known to have had the H5N1 virus, health officials said on Tuesday. They said it was the first report of a cat having had the virus since a case in Thailand in 1996, but that there was little risk to humans as there has never been a known transmission of the virus from a cat to other mammals.
2008/07/17: CBC: Indonesia's bird flu death toll rises to 111
2008/07/09: NatureN: Whatever happened to bird flu? The media frenzy over bird flu has receded, but the threat of a global epidemic still looms large
2008/06/07: PhysOrg: Bird flu detected in Hong Kong market
2008/06/06: CBC: WHO upset over Indonesia's shift in avian flu reporting
Indonesia's health minister announced Thursday that her country will no longer report H5N1 avian flu deaths as they occur -- a policy shift experts said would put the country in violation of the International Health Regulations, a key global health treaty. And an international law expert said Indonesia, which has refused for more than a year to share sample H5N1 viruses with the global scientific community, is playing a risky game if it intends to make good on the threat to only report H5N1 deaths at six-month intervals.
2008/06/04: PhysOrg: British [H7] bird flu outbreak 'highly pathogenic': officials
2008/05/27: CBC: Avian flu viruses mutating, making humans more vulnerable: study - Experts caution that pandemic not imminent
2008/05/12: CBC: 15,000 birds killed in Seoul over avian flu fears
2008/04/16: CBC: Indonesia endangering world by not sharing bird flu samples, U.S. expert says
2008/04/08: BBC: Father 'caught bird flu from son'
Tests on a father diagnosed with bird flu in China show he probably caught the disease from his dying son. Scientists are concerned that if the virus evolves to pass easily from human to human millions could be at risk
2008/03/19: PhysOrg: UN: Indonesia Failing in Bird Flu Fight
2008/02/20: McClatchyDC: Bird flu remains dangerous as it continues to mutate
2008/02/16: PhysOrg: Indonesia reports 104th bird flu death
2008/02/01: PhysOrg: Bird Flu Continues March 4 Years Later
2008/01/28: BBC: Indonesia bird flu deaths hit 100
2008/01/24: Reuters: Authorities worry bird flu will hit major India city
Authorities patrolled poultry markets in Kolkata to try to stop bird flu spreading to one of India's largest cities as fears grew the outbreak of the disease in eastern India was out of control. Bird flu has spread to nine of West Bengal's 19 districts and there were reports of more bird deaths in another five districts in the state of 80 million people. "The virus is most likely to spread to other areas within the infected zones and nearby districts, but we are now trying to stop it from hitting Kolkata," said Surjya Kanta Mishra, the state's health minister. The H5N1 bird flu virus has been confirmed in two districts so far. Authorities have not confirmed H5N1 in other districts but say it is likely to be the same strain.
2008/01/23: DotEarth: Bird Flu -- Still a Simmering Biological Bomb
2008/01/23: BBC: W Bengal bird flu 'is spreading'
Officials in the Indian state of West Bengal say that the bird flu epidemic has spread to two more of the state's 19 districts, taking the total to nine. They say that the spread of the H5N1 virus means that even more chicken and duck will have to be killed than was originally estimated. On Monday officials said that around 2m birds would need to be culled - a figure that will now rise. Health experts have warned that the outbreak could get out of control.
2008/01/18: PhysOrg: Indonesia reports 97th [H5N1] bird flu death
2008/01/17: PhysOrg: Bird flu spread through India
---
[Previous archived.]

Mexican H1N1 Swine Flu

---Basic Sites---

WHO: Swine influenza A (H1N1)
WHO: Situation updates - Influenza A(H1N1)
WHO: Influenza A(H1N1): frequently asked questions
CDC: Swine Flu aka H1N1
CDC: CDC H1N1 Flu Update: U.S. Human Cases of H1N1 Flu Infection
PHAC: Human Swine Influenza
PHAC: H1N1 Flu Virus (Human Swine Flu) -- Frequently Asked Questions
ECDC: European Centre for Disease prevention and Control
Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases [ProMedMail]
Nature: Swine Flu Special
Wiki: 2009 swine flu outbreak
Australia: H1N1 -- 2009 Outbreak
ScienceInsider: Swine Flu Outbreak, Day by Day
H1N1 Swine Flu Wiki
EBSCO: Influenza (Flu) - Evidence-based Medical Information
Guardian(UK): Full list of swine flu cases, country by country
CBC: Swine Flu: Ready or Not
---Papers---
2009/06/18: NEJM: The Signature Features of Influenza Pandemics -- Implications for Policy by Mark A. Miller, M.D., Cecile Viboud, Ph.D., Marta Balinska, Ph.D., and Lone Simonsen, Ph.D.
2009/10/12: JAMA: Critically Ill Patients With 2009 Influenza A(H1N1) Infection in Canada
2009/12/01: PNAS: Pre-existing immunity against swine-origin H1N1 influenza viruses in the general human population by Jason A. Greenbaum et al.
---News---
2010/02/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (13): vaccine recall
2010/02/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (12): vaccine distribution, WHO update
2010/01/31: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1), animal (04): global, update
2010/01/28: BizInsider: Ukrainian Black Lung Death Toll Over 1000, Over A Quarter-Million Hospitalized
2010/01/: BIN: Ukraine Dead Top 1000 - Donetsk Fatalities Grow
2010/01/28: CBC: Canada sends 5 million doses of H1N1 vaccine to WHO
2010/01/29: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (11): WHO statement to CE, corr.
2010/01/26: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (11): WHO statement to CE [Council of Europe]
2010/01/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (10): PAHO update
2010/01/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (09): WHO update
2010/01/19: NewScientist: Analysis: Swine flu is not just a hoax by big pharma
2010/01/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (08): USA (vaccine safety), Mongolia
2010/01/15: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (07): China, travel alert
2010/01/15: CBC: H1N1 not a 'fake' pandemic: WHO flu chief -- Health authorities cannot 'sit back,' Fukuda says
2010/01/14: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (06): USA (SD) Native Americans
2010/01/12: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1), animal (03): Denmark, porcine
2010/01/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (04): Australia (WA), i/v zanamivir
2010/01/09: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (03): USA (WI) minorities
2010/01/08: CBC: H1N1 death toll hits 12,799: WHO
2010/01/08: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1), animal (02): USA, turkey
2010/01/08: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (02): PAHO update
2010/01/06: CBC: Canada to lend Mexico H1N1 vaccine
2010/01/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (01): China, 2009
2010/01/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (01): China, swine, canine
2009/12/30: WHO: Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - update 81
2009/12/31: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (138): WHO update
2009/12/31: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) (137): Canada, North Korea
2009/12/30: CBC: Kids not 'super-spreaders' of H1N1: study
2009/12/28: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (42): USA (NC) swine
2009/12/29: CBC: Swine flu pandemic threat remains: WHO
2009/12/27: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (136): Argentina, pediatric mortality
2009/12/26: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (41): Russia (CV) swine, OIE
2009/12/23: ProMedMail: Pandemic influenza (H1N1) 2009 (135): Brazil, autopsies
2009/12/23: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (134): comments
2009/12/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (133): WHO
2009/12/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (40): USA (NY) canine
2009/12/16: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (132): Tamiflu efficacy
2009/12/15: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (131): Middle East
2009/12/14: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (130): indigenous peoples
2009/12/13: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (129): indigenous peoples
2009/12/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (128): case estimates
2009/12/10: CBC: H1N1 less lethal than feared: U.K. study
2009/12/09: ProMedMail: Influenza, pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (125): the mild pandemic
2009/12/09: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (36): USA (CO)
2009/12/08: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (124): autopsy findings
2009/12/09: CBC: Big drop-off in swine flu deaths in Canada
There were far fewer swine flu deaths across the country in the Public Health Agency of Canada's most recent reporting period, which ended Tuesday. For the five days ending Tuesday, six H1N1 deaths were reported in British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, and Newfoundland and Labrador, the agency's latest figures show. In comparison, there were 28 such deaths between Nov. 26 and last Thursday. The total number of deaths due to H1N1 in Canada since the influenza pandemic emerged in the spring is 363, the health agency said.
2009/12/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (123): vaccine safety
2009/12/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (35): Italy, swine, OIE
2009/12/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (34): UK (England)
2009/12/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (33): USA (VA, CA)
2009/12/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (122): Canada, China, France, WHO
2009/12/03: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (120): Canada, Haiti, Italy, USA
2009/12/03: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (121): CDC Alert
2009/12/03: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (119): China, Japan, USA (NM)
2009/12/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (32): USA (VA, CA)
2009/12/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (31): Finland, swine, OIE
2009/12/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (118): USA (AK) ethnicity
2009/11/29: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (117): Japan, encephalopathy
2009/11/28: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (30): China, canine
2009/11/27: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (09): Indonesia, swine
2009/11/27: NatureTGB: Swine flu vaccine round up
2009/11/26: TerraDaily: French swine flu 'accelerating', 22 dead in a week
2009/11/27: BBC: Jump in global swine flu deaths
The global number of swine flu deaths has jumped by more than 1,000 in a week, latest figures from the World Health Organization (WHO) show. At least 7,826 people are now known to have died following infection with the H1N1 virus since it first emerged in Mexico in April. Europe saw an 85% increase in the week, with the total number of deaths rising from at least 350 to at least 650. However, in most cases the virus continues to produce mild symptoms. The overwhelming majority of patients usually recover, even without medical treatment, within a week.
2009/11/26: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (116): origin
2009/11/25: TerraDaily: Japan to send experts to Canada over flu vaccine reactions
Japan plans to soon send a team of health experts to Canada to investigate allergic reactions to swine flu vaccinations from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), a government official said Wednesday. Japan has ordered doses of GSK-made vaccinations for 37 million people, a shipment due for delivery in the country in December, as Japan has a limited supply of its domestically-made vaccine.
2009/11/25: DerSpiegel: The Vaccine Renaissance -- How Big Pharma Profits from Swine Flu
2009/11/24: CBC: WHO gathers data on H1N1 mutations
2009/11/25: CBC: Swine flu 'levelling off' in Canada
2009/11/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (115): USA (WV) repeat infection
2009/11/24: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (114): USA (WV), repeat infection
2009/11/24: BBC: Flu vaccine put on hold in Canada
GlaxoSmithKline has advised doctors in Canada to stop using a batch of its swine flu vaccine, amid reports of severe side-effects in some patients. The batch of some 170,000 doses was put on hold because of the reported higher than usual number of patients having anaphylactic reactions. This may include breathing problems, raised heart rate and skin rashes.
2009/11/22: Guardian(UK): Panic over hundreds of flu deaths exploited by Ukraine's politicians
A flu pandemic in Ukraine that has triggered a nationwide panic is worsening this weekend with up to 400 deaths already reported. The arrival of the virus, suspected by the World Health Organisation to be swine flu but possibly a combination of the H1N1 strain and a respiratory illness, has paralysed the country's fragile health system and could even lead to the postponement of the general election which is scheduled for 17 January. Seven people died and 35,000 new cases were reported on Friday, said the health minister, bringing the total number of people infected to 1.6 million out of a population of 46 million.
2009/11/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (112): Canada (MB), vaccine reaction
2009/11/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (28): USA (UT, OR) feline
2009/11/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (111): Norway, mutants
2009/11/20: CBC: H1N1 intensifying in Canada but subsiding elsewhere: WHO
2009/11/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (110): UK (Wales), Tamiflu resistance
2009/11/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (109): Saudi Arabia, Hajj pilgrims
2009/11/20: PhysOrg: Mutation found in swine flu virus: WHO
The World Health Organisation said Friday that a mutation had been found in samples of the swine flu virus taken following the first two deaths from the pandemic in Norway. However, it stressed that the mutation did not appear to cause a more contagious or more dangerous form of A(H1N1) influenza and that some similar cases observed elsewhere had been mild.
2009/11/20: WaPo: Norwegian scientists raise concerns about mutated form of swine flu
Scientists in Norway have identified a mutated form of the swine flu virus that is raising concern because it was found in two patients who died of the flu and a third who was severely ill with the disease, officials announced Friday. In a statement, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health said the mutation "could possibly make the virus more prone to infect deeper in the airways and thus cause more severe disease," such as pneumonia. Scientists have analyzed about 70 viruses from confirmed Norwegian swine flu cases and found the mutation in only those three patients, Geir Stene-Larsen, the institute's director general, said in the statement.
2009/11/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (108): PAHO update
2009/11/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (107): epitope analysis
2009/11/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (106): Ukraine, WHO
2009/11/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (105): rhinovirus interference
2009/11/16: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (104): pandemic activity
2009/11/16: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (103): Ukraine
2009/11/14: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (99): Russia
2009/11/14: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (26): USA (OR), ferret
2009/11/13: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (98): Madagascar
2009/11/13: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (97): Ukraine (LV)
2009/11/12: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (96): Viet Nam, dengue co-infection
2009/11/12: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (95): Africa
2009/11/13: PhysOrg: Role of Statins in Reducing H1N1 Mortality Rates Studied
2009/11/13: CBC: Canadian H1N1 vaccine without adjuvant approved
2009/11/12: CBC: H1N1 a 'dud' pandemic, Ont. health official says
2009/11/12: PhysOrg: CDC: Swine flu has sickened 22 million in 6 months
Government health officials say swine flu has sickened about 22 million Americans since April. They say about 4,000 have died, including 540 children.
2009/11/12: CBC: Canadians think H1N1 risks exaggerated: poll
2009/11/12: CBC: Rapid antiviral therapy helps fight H1N1: WHO
2009/11/11: CBC: Quebec case of Tamiflu-resistant H1N1 worrying: expert -- Warns doctors to limit use of antiviral drug
2009/11/10: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (94): E.Europe, Russia
2009/11/10: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (25): domestic, Hajj
2009/11/09: PlanetArk: WHO Says Pandemic Flu On Rise In China, Japan
2009/11/09: CBC: H1N1 not yet at peak: scientist
2009/11/07: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (93): USA (AK) susp
2009/11/07: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (92): Europe
2009/11/07: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (24): USA, OIE
2009/11/06: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (23): Taiwan, OIE
2009/11/06: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (22): USA, swine
2009/11/05: CBC: ICU admissions up for flu-related illness
Flu activity is three times higher this week than last week, Canada's chief public health officer said Thursday. The higher activity is based on admissions to hospitals and intensive care units, as well as the number of regions reporting widespread flu, Dr. David Butler-Jones told a news conference in Ottawa.
2009/11/05: CWorld: CDC adopts new, near real-time flu tracking system
GE Healthcare-hosted system gives the CDC access to medical data from 14 million patients
2009/11/06: SlashDot: CDC Adopts Near Real-Time Flu Tracking System
2009/11/05: CBC: ICU admissions up for flu-related illness
2009/11/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (90): Venezuela, Yanomami
2009/11/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (21): USA (IA) feline
2009/11/05: CBC: H1N1 infects pet cat, ferrets
2009/11/05: CBC: H1N1 vaccine safe after millions of doses: WHO
2009/11/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (89): USA (CA)
2009/11/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (88): PAHO update
2009/11/04: PhysOrg: Officials: Swine flu confirmed in Iowa cat
2009/11/04: CBC: B.C., Newfoundland report H1N1 deaths
2009/11/04: CBC: Federal eHealth project has holes: auditor general
2009/11/04: AlterNet: Barbara Ehrenreich: Why Your Children May Not Get a Swine Flu Shot Before They Need It
2009/11/04: HealthZone: Pandemic: There's no plan
2009/11/04: TSun: Fraser exposes Tories -- Auditor general's report calls Conservatives' competence into question
2009/11/03: ProMedMail: Avian influenza, human (115): H9, China (HK ex GD)
2009/11/03: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (87): Ukraine, WHO
2009/11/03: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (86): India (MH)
2009/11/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (84): Ukraine, WHO
2009/11/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (83): Iraq, schools
2009/11/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (16): USA (NE) ferret
2009/11/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (82): Egypt, quarantine alert
2009/10/31: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (80): Ukraine susp. RFI
2009/10/31: CBC: Flu clinics close early as crowds swell
2009/10/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (79): responses in children
2009/10/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (78): USA oseltamivir resist
2009/10/29: FuturePundit: Statin Drugs Cut H1N1 Deaths
2009/10/30: BBC: Global jump in swine flu deaths
The number of swine flu deaths reported worldwide has jumped by more than 700 in a week, latest World Health Organization figures reveal. More than 5,700 swine flu deaths were reported by 25 October, compared to nearly 5,000 the week before.
2009/10/30: NatureTGB: The statins-for-flu study that the press missed
2009/10/30: ScienceInsider: Swine Flu Spread Continues to Outpace Efforts to Treat and Prevent Disease [in Northern Hemisphere]
2009/10/29: NewScientist: US swine flu vaccine too late to beat autumn wave
2009/10/29: NewScientist: Timeline: The secret history of swine flu
2009/10/28: Impolitical: The laughing frat pack
2009/10/28: CBC: H1N1 outbreak hits Toronto hospital -- Public told to wait until priority groups vaccinated
Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital has been hit with an outbreak of the H1N1 flu. Dr. Barbara Yaffe, the city's associate medical health officer, confirmed the outbreak at a news conference Wednesday afternoon. In an interview with CBC News, Allison McGeer, director of infection control at the hospital, said the outbreak was possibly linked to the adult intensive care unit and affected both staff and patients. Three people have contracted the flu, she said, without specifying further due confidentiality rules.
2009/10/27: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (18): Canada (ON) avian, OIE
2009/10/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (76); El Salvador, dengue co-infection
2009/10/26: CBC: Swine flu immunization underway
The H1N1 influenza vaccine is now available across most of Canada to health-care workers and people considered at a higher risk for complications from the respiratory illness. Eligible groups include individuals under the age of 65 who have chronic medical conditions, as well as pregnant women, children under the age of five and people living in First Nations or remote and isolated communities.
2009/10/23: ScienceInsider: Pandemic Vaccine "Will Arrive Too Late for Many," CDC Concedes
2009/10/23: PhysOrg: WHO: nearly 5,000 swine flu deaths worldwide
2009/10/23: PhysOrg: US swine flu deaths surpass 1,000
2009/10/24: BBC: US President Barack Obama has declared swine flu a national emergency
2009/10/24: CBC: Obama declares swine flu a national emergency
2009/10/23: CBC: Canada enters 2nd wave of H1N1
2009/10/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (17): Japan (OS) swine, OIE
2009/10/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (74): Canada (ON) oseltamivir resist
2009/10/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (16): Canada (ON) avian
2009/10/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (73): Taiwan oseltamivir resist
2009/10/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (15): USA (OR) ferret
2009/10/21: NatureTGB: Swine flu: vaccinations are go in Europe
2009/10/21: CBC: Swine-flu vaccine approved in Canada
2009/10/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (13): USA swine, conf.
2009/10/20: CBC: 2nd H1N1 wave seen in Manitoba
2009/10/19: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (12): USA swine, susp
2009/10/19: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (11): Norway
2009/10/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (72): pneumonia
2009/10/17: CBS: H1N1 Kills 11 Kids in a Week
Hitting Youngsters Particularly Hard; Vaccine Supply Levels, Distribution Facing Early Bumps in Road
2009/10/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (71): case counts
2009/10/16: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (70): Nepal
2009/10/14: Eureka: Earlier flu viruses provided some immunity to current H1N1 influenza, study shows
2009/10/14: CBC: H1N1 wave hits N.W.T.
2009/10/13: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (69): case management
2009/10/13: CBC: Heart, lung machines last resort in H1N1 cases
2009/10/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (68): Viet Nam, virus clearance
2009/10/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (67): vaccine delivery
2009/10/12: SciNews: Getting to the core of H1N1 flu deaths
Fatalities show lungs are overwhelmed; ventilation to replace lost oxygen and antiviral drugs can rescue patients
2009/10/12: PhysOrg: Sickest swine flu cases in Canada, Mexico detailed
2009/10/12: Eureka: Most H1N1 patients with respiratory failure treated with oxygenating system survive illness
2009/10/12: Eureka: Critical illness from 2009 H1N1 in Mexico associated with high fatality rate
2009/10/12: Eureka: H1N1 critical illness can occur rapidly; predominantly affects young patients
2009/10/12: NBF: Journal of the American Medical Association Studies of H1N1 (swine) flu deaths in Canada and Mexico
2009/10/12: BBC: Poorer nations get swine flu jabs
About 100 developing nations will begin receiving donations of the vaccine against swine flu as early as November, the World Health Organization says. Millions of doses of the vaccine against H1N1 are being donated by pharmaceutical companies. A group of rich nations have also pledged to donate 10% of their vaccine purchases to poorer countries.
2009/10/12: CBC: Severe H1N1 infection in females 'striking': study
2009/10/09: SciNews: H1N1 flu is back and found in 37 states, CDC reports
2009/10/10: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (66): case counts
2009/10/09: CBC: 7% of U.S. H1N1 patients died: study
2009/10/09: CBC: 2 flu shots at same time OK in U.S.
2009/10/09: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (65): update
2009/10/05: TerraDaily: World swine flu cases surge, deaths also up: report
2009/10/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (64): Canada, vaccination update
2009/10/05: CBC: Canadian flu shot study unlikely to change policy: WHO
International influenza vaccine experts are apparently not convinced that Canadian researchers have found a true link between getting a seasonal flu shot and catching swine flu. The consensus that emerged from a World Health Organization teleconference Friday on the controversial data seemed to be that the Canadian findings are likely due to some confounding factor or factors in the data themselves and may not reflect a real increased risk, according to a WHO official who helped pull together the meeting.
2009/10/03: QuarkSoup: H1N1 in the US
2009/10/03: TStar: Swine flu's second wave seems to have arrived -- H1N1 is dominant strain and 'schools are where it all happens,' doctor says
2009/10/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (63): USA military vaccine
2009/10/02: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (10): Ireland
2009/10/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (62): Taiwan hosp cases
2009/10/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (61): FLAARDS
2009/09/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (60): bacterial coinfection
2009/09/30: CBC: Canadians on hook for any H1N1 vaccine damages
If there are lawsuits over the H1N1 vaccine, it will be the federal government, not the vaccine maker, that picks up the tab for any damages awarded by courts. Contracts between governments and vaccine manufacturers usually include an indemnity clause that exempts companies if there are problems with a vaccine, Canada's chief public health officer, Dr. David Butler-Jones, told reporters Wednesday. The provision does not apply, however, in the case of malpractice...
2009/09/30: CBC: Australia starts giving H1N1 shots
2009/09/29: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (59): Canada, vaccination
2009/09/28: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (58): Netherlands, PB2 mutation
2009/09/28: CBC: Flu vaccine side-effect tracking boosted in U.S.
The U.S. government is starting an unprecedented system to track possible side-effects as mass swine flu vaccinations begin next month. The idea is to detect any rare but real problems quickly, and explain the inevitable coincidences that are sure to cause some false alarms.
2009/09/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (57): case counts
2009/09/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (56): antiviral resistance risk
2009/09/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (55): vaccine formulation
2009/09/25: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/09/25: BBC: UK swine flu vaccine 'approved'
The European drugs regulator has given the go-ahead for one of the UK's swine flu vaccines. An expert committee agreed that Pandemrix, made by GlaxoSmithKline, can be used in adults and children over six months old and pregnant women. The decision removes one of the last obstacles to getting the immunisation programme under way although licensing still needs to be formalised. The UK has bought 60 million doses of the vaccine.
2009/09/25: AlterNet: H1N1 Just Isn't That Scary: Why There's No Reason to Go Overboard with Swine Flu Hysteria
2009/09/24: CBC: 3 billion H1N1 doses can be made yearly: WHO
Pharmaceutical companies will be able to produce about three billion doses of swine flu vaccine a year, much less than previously expected, the World Health Organization said Thursday. The United Nations agency had predicted that companies would be able to make five billion doses each year.
2009/09/23: CBC: Seasonal flu shots 'on hold' for now: officials
In the face of concerns that swine flu may mount a fall surge, public health officials in Canada are rethinking pandemic and seasonal flu vaccination plans, with issues of timing and vaccine formulation back on the table, a variety of on- and off-the-record sources say. The pros and cons of a number of scenarios are being hashed out, including delaying, cutting back or cancelling the seasonal flu shot effort and maybe even rethinking the decision to use an adjuvant in the formulation of the pandemic vaccine. The hope is to get a consensus, so that provinces and territories use the same strategy, officials in Quebec and Ontario have said.
2009/09/22: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (54): vaccine availability
2009/09/21: TerraDaily: Swine flu has not mutated into more serious disease: WHO
2009/09/19: CanWest: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (53): vaccine donation
2009/09/20: Guardian(UK): Swine flu 'could kill millions unless rich nations give £900m'
UN report says pandemic may result in anarchy unless western world pays for antiviral drugs and vaccines
2009/09/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal (09): UK (NI) swine, OIE
2009/09/19: HealthZone: Canada absent from list of vaccine donors
2009/09/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (52): WHO update 66
2009/09/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (51): antibody deficiency
2009/09/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (50): oseltamivir resistance
2009/09/18: ScienceInsider: New Date for First U.S. Swine Flu Vaccine Arrival
2009/09/18: CBC: Swine flu vaccines to fall short: WHO
Global production of vaccines to protect against swine flu will be "substantially less" than the previous maximum forecast of 94 million doses a week, the World Health Organization said Friday in Geneva. That means the number of doses produced on an annual basis will fall short of the 4.9 billion doses the WHO previously hoped could be available, said spokesman Gregory Hartl. Lower production levels stem from production problems, as well as the fact that some manufacturers are still turning out vaccines for seasonal flu, he said.
2009/09/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (49): FDA vaccine update
2009/09/17: NatureTGB: Rich countries to share flu jabs
2009/09/16: CBC: H1N1 vaccine priority groups released
2009/09/17: CBC: Critics demand body bag apology
2009/09/17: CBC: Body bag shipments unfortunate, Butler-Jones says
Canada's chief public health officer said it is unfortunate that body bags were sent to some Manitoba First Nations communities along with other supplies to prepare for a possible swine flu outbreak. But Dr. David Butler-Jones also said Thursday morning the bags are likely part of routine materials normally sent to those communities by Health Canada. It's just regrettable they showed up with the flu kits, he said.
2009/09/16: CBC: Ottawa sends body bags to Manitoba reserves
Aboriginal leaders in Manitoba are horrified that some of the reserves hardest hit by swine flu in the spring have received dozens of body bags from Health Canada. The body bags -- which were sent to the remote northern reserves of Wasagamack and God's River First Nation -- came in a shipment of hand sanitizers and face masks. Grand Chief David Harper, who represents northern First Nations, says body bags send the wrong message and no one can understand why Ottawa would do such a thing.
2009/09/16: NatureTGB: Europe's pandemic flu response: who's in the driving seat?
2009/09/15: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (48): contagious period
2009/09/14: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (47): Spain, ICU patients
2009/09/15: CBC: Alberta finds 1st case of drug-resistant swine flu
2009/09/14: NatureTGB: Flu database row escalates
In the latest salvo in a legal row between the Global Initiative on Sharing Avian Influenza Data (GISAID) -- an international group created by leading flu researchers in August 2006 to promote data sharing -- and the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics (SIB) in Geneva, GISAID today launched its own version of the Epiflu database.
2009/09/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (46): WHO update 65
2009/09/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (45): antiviral resistance
2009/09/11: ScienceInsider: U.S. Swine Flu Vaccine: Good News, Bad News
2009/09/10: ERabett: H1N1
2009/09/11: CBC: H1N1 school closures need to be swift: WHO
It's only worth closing schools to slow the spread of the H1N1 pandemic virus during the earliest stages of an outbreak, the World Health Organization said Friday. "[S]chool closure has its greatest benefits when schools are closed very early in an outbreak, ideally before one per cent of the population falls ill," the UN health agency said in a statement advising its 193 member states.
2009/09/10: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (44): receptor binding
2009/09/09: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (43): pediatric questions
2009/09/10: NatureTGB: [European] Commission ditches plan to buy swine flu vaccine
2009/09/09: PhysOrg: Are We in for a Repeat of the Killer Flu Pandemic of 1918?
2009/09/08: CBC: Manitoba launches $47M swine flu plan
2009/09/07: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (42): China, pork consumption
2009/09/06: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (40): global update
2009/09/06: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (41): Iran
2009/09/05: CBC: Swine flu deaths at 2,837 worldwide
2009/09/04: UN: Nearly 2,840 deaths attributed to H1N1 virus, reports UN health agency
2009/09/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (39): pediatric deaths
2009/09/04: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (08): Singapore, swine
2009/09/04: NatureTGB: Pandemic flu - latest update
2009/09/04: G&M: Swine flu shown to be deadliest among children
The H1N1 pandemic virus is deadliest among school-age children, a departure from the seasonal flu, which is more often fatal to babies and toddlers, early indicators from U.S. health authorities show. The findings Thursday from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention come as health authorities brace for the start of the school year, fearing that classrooms will serve as incubators for the swine flu virus to spread rapidly.
2009/09/03: BBC: China approves swine flu vaccine
Chinese health authorities have approved a vaccine that they say prevents swine flu with a single dose. Chinese vaccine maker Sinovac has been given the green light to mass produce the vaccine for the H1N1 flu strain.
2009/09/03: CanWest: H1N1 conference hears stark pandemic warning -- Winnipeg doctor anticipates 'massive onslaught of incredibly sick young people'
An intensive-care doctor speaking Wednesday at a conference on the H1N1 pandemic said the virus is the "most frightening" thing he has seen in his career -- and other experts here warned hospitals are not ready for a surge of severely sick patients. In an interview before his address, Dr. Anand Kumar said he wanted to give the audience "the flavour" of what hospitals can expect from the second wave of the pandemic, expected this fall and winter. "I think it's an absolutely massive onslaught of incredibly sick young people that I had never imagined I would see in my life," Kumar said of his experience treating patients in Winnipeg's intensive-care units. "It's startling, and more than a little frightening, especially when you don't know what the ceiling of this is going to be." The two-day conference, which has drawn together about 150 health-care professionals and experts from across the country and around the world, is focused on how to manage severe cases of the swine flu and prevent them from deteriorating. The sessions are closed to media.
2009/09/02: ScienceInsider: Specious Report of Bird and Swine Flu Co-infection
An Egyptian news story that is starting to receive worldwide attention about a nightmare swine flu/bird flu co-infection is inaccurate, according to officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
2009/09/01: CBC: First Nations priority for swine-flu vaccine: Aglukkaq
2009/08/31: CBC: Flu vaccine plan will be too slow: CMAJ
2009/09/01: G&M: Canada's flu strategy flawed: CMAJ -- Leading medical journal argues plan to vaccinate population will move too slowly
2009/08/31: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (38): 10 S.Amer. presidents exposed
2009/08/31: TerraDaily: Swine flu spreading at 'unbelievable' rate: WHO chief
2009/08/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (37): 2nd wave plan, WHO
2009/08/29: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (05): Chile, avian
2009/08/28: CBC: Feds, First Nations leaders at odds on swine flu preparations
2009/08/28: PrMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (36): USA (IL), NZ
2009/08/28: PrMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (06): Canada, swine
2009/08/27: BBC: UN warns over swine flu in birds
The discovery of swine flu in birds in Chile raises concerns about the spread of the virus, the UN warns. Last week the H1N1 virus was found in turkeys on farms in Chile. The UN now says poultry farms elsewhere in the world could also become infected. Scientists are worried that the virus could theoretically mix with more dangerous strains. It has previously spread from humans to pigs.
2009/08/26: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (34): Tamiflu shelf-life
2009/08/26: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (05): Austr., swine
2009/08/24: TerraDaily: Swine flu could cause as many as 90,000 US deaths: WHouse
2009/08/21: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (03): Chile, avian, RFI
2009/08/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (33): cases, fatalities
2009/08/21: NatureTGB: US kiddie flu shot trials underway
2009/08/21: CBC: Swine flu 'explosion' coming: WHO
2009/08/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health (02): Austr., swine
2009/08/20: NatureTGB: Swine Flu update
2009/08/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (32): Tamiflu use policy
2009/08/15: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (31): drug resistance
2009/08/14: CBC: Swine-flu vaccine now being tested on humans
The manufacturer of Canada's swine flu vaccine has started human testing, the company announced Friday. GlaxoSmithKline PLC said it plans to test its vaccine in more than 9,000 people in Canada, the United States and Europe as part of 16 clinical trials. The first results are expected early next month from tests in Germany on 128 people aged 16 to 60, spokeswoman Alexandra Harrison said.
2009/08/13: G&M: Health minister's hasty departure
It is not too much to ask that Leona Aglukkaq provide explanations and respond to pertinent questions about a potentially life-and-death issue in a public forum When it comes to providing thoughtful examination of serious policy issues, the recent track record of parliamentary committees is mixed at best. Still, the government's dismissive attitude toward opposition MPs' attempts to ask questions about the steps being taken to protect Canadians from the H1N1 virus is surprising. It may be true, as Leona Aglukkaq, the federal Minister of Health, said at a press conference this week, that she has given the opposition ample information about the government's handling of the virus through private briefings, and that its critics are welcome to contact her with their questions. But it is not too much to ask that she provide explanations and respond to pertinent questions about a potentially life-and-death issue in a public forum. If the government is as confident in its H1N1 response as it has claimed, and eager to set to rest Canadians' concerns, it should have welcomed the opportunity.
2009/08/14: Impolitical: Editorial rebukes Health Minister Aglukkaq
2009/08/13: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (30): assumptions
2009/08/12: NatureN: Flu database rocked by legal row -- Dispute over ownership raises concerns among flu scientists -- A question mark is hanging over the future of EpiFlu...
2009/08/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (29): child treatment
2009/08/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (28): child treatment
2009/08/11: CBC: Swine flu spreads in Asia
Swine flu infections are increasing in India, Thailand and Vietnam, and appear to have peaked in the Southern Hemisphere, the World Health Organization said Tuesday. As of Aug. 6, 177,457 confirmed cases of H1N1 have been reported to the UN health agency worldwide, including 1,462 deaths. The full number of total cases is higher, since countries are now only reporting their first confirmed cases. Individual cases no longer have to be tested or reported.
2009/08/09: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (27): Viet Nam, patient data update
2009/08/06: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (25): Australia, UK, updates
2009/08/05: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (24): global update
2009/08/06: BBC: The first swine flu vaccines are likely to be licensed for use in the general population in September, the World Health Organization has announced
2009/08/04: CBC: The number of deaths to date from swine flu is at least 1, 154, the World Health Organization reported Tuesday
2009/08/05: CBC: Human tests of swine flu vaccine start
2009/08/01: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (22): Australia (NSW), swine
2009/07/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (21): vaccine prioriities
2009/07/27: WHO: Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 - update 59
2009/07/30: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (20): Peru, 33 percent asymptomatic
2009/07/29: ScienceInsider: More Canadian Pigs Catch New Flu Virus
2009/07/30: PhysOrg: Researchers study virulence of pandemic H1N1 virus
2009/07/29: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009, animal health: Canada (QC)
2009/07/29: NatureTGB: Pregnant women hit hard by swine flu
2009/07/29: BBC: Pregnant women are four times more likely than the general population to be hospitalised by HIN1 swine flu, US research shows
2009/07/29: CBC: Swine flu complications hit pregnant women
2009/07/28: NatureN: US puts flu vaccines on trial -- NIAID director Anthony Fauci explains testing strategy
2009/07/27: NatureTGB: "Contractual and legal issues" affecting leading pandemic flu sequence database on GISAID
2009/07/25: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (18): 1st case?
2009/07/23: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (17): neurologic complications
2009/07/24: BBC: Swine flu 'reaches 160 countries'
The swine flu virus has reached 160 countries and could infect two billion people within the next two years, the World Health Organization has said. A senior WHO official, Keiji Fukuda, said the virus was still in its early stages and would continue to spread for some time.
2009/07/24: CBC: Swine flu pandemic in early days: WHO
2009/07/23: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (16): Argentina, sequencing
2009/07/23: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (15): Canada (AB) swine workers
2009/07/22: ScienceInsider: Swine Flu Vaccine Tests Move Forward
2009/07/22: NatureTGB: Human tests of H1N1 vaccine begin
2009/07/21: BBC: Global swine flu deaths top 700
H1N1 swine flu has killed more than 700 people around the world since the outbreak began four months ago, says the World Health Organization (WHO). This represents a jump of at least two-thirds from the last official death toll figure of 429, published by the WHO on July 6.
2009/07/20: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (10): vaccine
2009/07/20: NatureTGB: Swine flu update UK
2009/07/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (09): UK, pig stockman
2009/07/18: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (07): Argentina, swine, alert
2009/07/17: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (06): case reporting
Countries should change the way they track the spread of swine flu, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday [16 Jul 2009], noting that it no longer serves any useful purpose to count individual confirmed cases.
2009/07/17: CBC: Canada, WHO stop counting swine flu cases
There are so many new swine flu cases that the World Health Organization this week said governments should stop tallying the number of H1N1 patients nationally. The United Nations health agency said maintaining an accurate count of the number of H1N1 cases has become impossible because of the speed at which the virus is spreading. So the WHO is now asking countries not to send the agency counts of disease cases, and it will stop publishing national swine flu tables. Canada is following the advice. The Public Health Agency of Canada will focus on monitoring severe illnesses and measuring the community spread of H1N1, rather than individual cases.
2009/07/14: SciDaily: Swine Flu: H1N1 Virus More Dangerous Than Suspected, Except To Survivors Of The 1918 Pandemic Flu Virus
2009/07/13: NatureTGB: Pandemic flu vaccine yields worse than expected
2009/07/13: NatureTGB: Swine flu may resemble 1918 pandemic virus
2009/07/11: ProMedMail: Influenza pandemic (H1N1) 2009 (02): obesity risk factor
2009/07/09: NewScientist: Swine flu sweeps the southern hemisphere
2009/07/06: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (84): Tamiflu resistance, China (HK)
2009/07/05: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (83): antiviral resistance
2009/07/04: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (82): transmission
2009/07/03: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1): animal health (17), Argentina, OIE
2009/07/03: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (81): epidemic analysis
2009/07/03: ScienceInsider: Hong Kong Case Suggests Resistant Swine Flu May Be Spreading
2009/07/03: NewScientist: Revealed: How pandemic swine flu kills
2009/07/03: CBC: Tamiflu-resistant strain of swine flu found in Hong Kong
2009/07/01: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (80): Argentina, human to pig
2009/07/01: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (79): case count
2009/07/01: PhysOrg: Swine flu cases reach over 77,000 worldwide: WHO -- with 332 deaths
2009/07/01: SciDaily: Scientific System Accurately Predicts Spread Of H1N1
A new scientific system developed by a St. Michael's Hospital physician, designed to rapidly evaluate the world's air traffic patterns, accurately predicted how the H1N1 virus would spread around the world, according to research recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
2009/06/30: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (78): Tamiflu resistance, DK
2009/06/29: CBC: Deadly pneumonia in swine-flu outbreak hit young hard
2009/06/29: BBC: Experts have reported the first case of swine flu that is resistant to tamiflu - the main drug being used to fight the pandemic
2009/06/27: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (77): case count
2009/06/27: CBC: US health officials estimate that at least one million Americans have been infected with swine flu since the H1N1 virus emerged nearly three months ago
2009/06/26: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1): animal health (16), Argentina, swine, OIE
2009/06/26: ScienceInsider: Swine Flu Strikes Hog Farm in Argentina
2009/06/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (76): comments on 1918 virus (03)
2009/06/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (75): case count
2009/06/24: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (74): susp. origin
2009/06/24: TerraDaily: Swine flu tolls nears 56,000, 238 dead: WHO
2009/06/25: SciDaily: Could Older Population Have Enough Exposure To Past H1N1 Flu Strains To Avoid Infection?
2009/06/22: PhysOrg: Swine flu tolls leaps past 52,000, 231 dead: WHO
2009/06/19: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (70): risk factors
2009/06/19: NatureTGB: Swine flu roundup
2009/06/19: NatureN: The virus spy -- Yan Li talks about spotting the novel swine flu virus at Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory
2009/06/18: TerraDaily: New Cases Push UN swine flu tally towards 40,000
2009/06/18: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (67): comments on 1918 virus
2009/06/17: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (66): new strain, sequence analysis
2009/06/17: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/06/16: PAHO: Influenza A(H1N1) frequently asked questions
2009/06/15: PAHO: Update. Influenza A (H1N1) Regional Report
2009/06/16: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (64): case count, pandemic
2009/06/15: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1): animal health (13) swine, Canada, origin, RFI
2009/06/15: PlanetArk: New Flu Has Been Around For Years In Pigs: Study
The new H1N1 virus, which has caused the first pandemic of the 21st century, appears to have been circulating undetected among pigs for years, researchers reported on Thursday. Although health officials have been watching for new influenza viruses in humans, animal health regulators have missed the opportunity to check swine, the researchers reported. Britons Andrew Rambaut of the University of Edinburgh and Oliver Pybus of Oxford University, and Yi Guan of the University of Hong Kong examined the genetic sequence of the new H1N1 swine flu virus. Like others who have done the same, they show it is a mixture of other viruses that had been circulating in pigs, one of which was itself a mixture including swine, human and avian-like genetic sequences. "We show that it was derived from several viruses circulating in swine, and that the initial transmission to humans occurred several months before recognition of the outbreak," they wrote.
2009/06/15: CBC: Blood tests rule out prime suspect in pig farm swine flu case
2009/06/11: SciNews: Origins of the swine flu virus -- Researchers use evolutionary history to trace the early days of the pandemic
2009/06/13: CBC: Swine flu cases in Manitoba spike to 119 with 42 reported Friday
2009/06/11: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (63): case count, pandemic
2009/06/12: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/06/12: H1N1Wiki: Origins and evolutionary genomics of the 2009 swine-origin H1N1 influenza A epidemic
2009/06/11: TerraDaily: WHO Declares Flu Pandemic: Could Last Two Years
2009/06/11: WHO: Statement to the press by WHO Director-General Dr Margaret Chan -- World now at the start of 2009 influenza pandemic
2009/06/11: UN: World facing global A(H1N1) flu pandemic, announces UN health agency
2009/06/11: UN: Ban stresses preparedness as UN declares global flu pandemic
2009/06/11: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (62): Egypt, Lebanon
2009/06/11: NatureN: Flu pandemic underway -- Countries prepare for the long haul in combating novel H1N1 strain
2009/06/11: ScienceInsider: WHO Finally Raises Swine Flu Alert to Phase 6
2009/06/11: ScienceInsider: The Continuing Mystery of How Canadian Pigs Caught the Novel Flu Virus
2009/06/11: DotEarth: Flu Finding Supports ‘One World, One Health’ View of People and Animals
2009/06/11: CBC: WHO declares swine flu pandemic
2009/06/11: Reuters: WHO declares first 21st century flu pandemic
2009/06/10: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 46
2009/06/10: CBC: Manitoba First Nations, health system straining under flu outbreak
[...] Currently, there are 26 people -- 23 adults and three children -- in intensive care units of Manitoba hospitals, using ventilators to aid their strained breathing from flu-related reasons. It is expected many of them will be confirmed as cases of swine flu, or the H1N1 influenza A virus, Manitoba's chief medical officer of health, Dr. Joel Kettner, said at a press conference Monday afternoon.
2009/06/10: CBC: WHO head asks governments about swine flu spike
2009/06/10: BBC: Australia flu could tip pandemic
The World Health Organization has said that a sharp increase in swine flu cases in Australia may push it to finally announce a flu pandemic. It would be the first such pandemic announced in four decades. More than 1,200 people have contracted the virus in Australia, a four-fold increase in a week.
2009/06/09: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (60): Egypt (Cairo)
2009/06/09: NatureTGB: Inuit hit harder by swine flu?
2009/06/08: CBC: Severe flu cases surge in Manitoba aboriginal community
2009/06/09: CBC: Nunavut's swine flu count jumps to 53
2009/06/09: CBC: 'Very close to knowing' if swine flu at pandemic level: WHO -- Situation in Canada's aboriginal communities of 'great concern,' WHO warns
2009/06/08: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (59)
2009/06/08: PhysOrg: Swine flu spreads to 73 countries with over 25,000 infected
2009/06/05: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (56): case counts
2009/06/03: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 43
2009/06/03: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (55)
2009/06/04: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/06/03: TerraDaily: Swine flu cases infect 19,273 across world: WHO
2009/06/02: ScienceInsider: Swine Flu Hits Australia Hard
2009/06/03: Grist: Europeans demand investigation of the CAFO/swine flu link
2009/06/03: CBC: WHO says swine flu cases approaching 20,000
2009/06/02: CBC: Swine flu 'getting closer' to pandemic level, WHO official says
2009/06/02: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (54): dynamics
2009/06/02: NatureTGB: Phase 6 swine flu pandemic 'getting closer', says WHO
2009/06/01: TerraDaily: Swine Flu In All 50 US States As Cases Top 10,000
2009/05/30: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (52): seasonal vaccine
2009/05/29: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (51): dynamics
2009/05/29: NewScientist: New swine flu cases point to invisible pandemic
2009/05/27: CBC: Canada's swine flu cases exceed 1,000
2009/05/28: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (50): swine immunity
2009/05/28: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (49): case counts
2009/05/28: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/27: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (48): case counts
2009/05/26: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (47): China, epidemiology
2009/05/26: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (46): case counts
2009/05/26: PhysOrg: Mexico, US, Canada announce swine flu deaths
2009/05/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (44): case counts
2009/05/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (45)
2009/05/25: PhysOrg: Chicago reports nation's 12th [confirmed] death from swine flu
2009/05/25: BBerg: Swine Flu Is Spreading Wider Than Official Data Show
2009/05/22: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (41): case counts
2009/05/21: CBC: Swine flu immunity higher in older adults: CDC
2009/05/22: CBC: WHO to consider severity of flu before declaring pandemic
2009/05/23: Reuters: WHO chief warns H1N1 swine flu likely to worsen
2009/05/22: UN: UN health agency chief puts Southern Hemisphere on alert for A(H1N1) virus
2009/05/22: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/22: NewScientist:SSS: When is a flu pandemic not a flu pandemic?
2009/05/21: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (39)
2009/05/21: NatureN: Old seasonal flu antibodies target swine flu virus -- Lab results could explain why young patients are hardest hit by current H1N1 strain
2009/05/19: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (36): case counts, amended
2009/05/20: Reuters: H1N1 flu deaths and cases edge higher - WHO
The number of confirmed cases of the new Influenza A (H1N1) flu has risen to 10,243 and the death toll has edged up to 80, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Wednesday.
2009/05/19: BBC: Cases of swine flu near 10,000
Nearly 10,000 cases of swine flu have been confirmed in 40 countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) says. The WHO said 79 people are known to have died from the new virus.
2009/05/18: UN: Reliable information on new flu critical - WHO chief [Dr. Margaret Chan]
[...] As of today, 40 countries have officially reported 8,829 cases of the new flu strain, including 74 deaths. WHO’s pandemic alert level remains at Phase 5...
2009/05/18: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (34)
2009/05/18: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/18: CBC: WHO chief holds swine flu pandemic alert level steady
2009/05/18: Reuters: New flu virtually everywhere in U.S. now, CDC says
2009/05/16: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (30): case counts
2009/05/16: PhysOrg: WHO says confirmed swine flu cases top 8,400
The number of confirmed swine flu cases has reached 8,451, a rise of nearly 1,000 in 24 hours, the World Health Organisation said on Saturday. The number of people killed by the influenza A(H1N1) virus also rose to 72, compared with 65 on Friday, the WHO said. Over the past week the number of people infected by the virus has risen sharply, going up by around 1,000 a day since Monday.
2009/05/15: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 29 [7520 cases in 34 countries]
2009/05/15: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (28): case counts
2009/05/14: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1): animal health (10) swine, Canada, cull
2009/05/14: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (27): case counts
2009/05/14: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (26)
2009/05/13: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 27
2009/05/13: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (25): case counts
2009/05/13: UN: Influenza A(H1N1) cases now reported in 33 countries, says UN health agency
2009/05/13: PhysOrg: Swine flu fears evident as world's cases top 6,000
2009/05/13: CBC: WHO, flu experts looking into claim swine flu evolved in lab
2009/05/12: Guardian(UK): Swine flu could affect third of world's population, says study -- Researchers say swine flu will spread around world within nine months, as UK confirms three more cases
2009/05/12: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (24): case counts
2009/05/12: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/12: BBC: Swine flu could hit one in three
A third of the world's population could be infected with swine flu, expert projections suggest. Researchers say swine flu has "full pandemic potential", spreading readily between people and is likely to go global in the next six to nine months.
2009/05/11: BBC: US sees confirmed flu cases rise
The US now has 2,532 confirmed cases of swine flu, after a jump in figures in recent days, officials say. The cases - up around 600 since Friday - mean the US has now surpassed Mexico as the most affected nation. But the total of three confirmed deaths is far lower than in Mexico where 48 people are known to have died.
2009/05/11: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (23)
2009/05/11: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (22): case counts
2009/05/11: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/10: Guardian(UK): US has more swine flu cases than any other country, WHO says
2009/05/10: BBC: The US has reported its third death from swine flu, as Costa Rica confirmed a fatality and three more countries found cases of the virus
2009/05/09: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 23
2009/05/09: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (19)
2009/05/09: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (18): case counts
2009/05/09: PhysOrg: First swine flu death in Canada, as US cases double [1,639 cases in 43 states]
2009/05/08: UN: Influenza A(H1N1) infections climb to 2,500, UN agency reports
2009/05/08: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (17)
2009/05/08: NatureTGB: Swine flu round up
2009/05/08: NewScientist: Warm weather may not halt swine flu
2009/05/08: CBC: Alberta woman who died had swine flu, health officials confirm
2009/05/08: Reuters: United States has 1,639 cases of new flu, CDC says
2009/05/07: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 20
2009/05/07: UN: Influenza A(H1N1) infections top 2,000 with 44 deaths, reports UN agency
2009/05/07: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (14): case counts
2009/05/07: CBC: More than 2,000 cases of swine flu worldwide, 44 deaths: WHO -- 'Eating pork is not a danger,' UN health agency says
2009/05/06: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (13)
2009/05/06: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1): animal health (07), swine, Canada, OIE
2009/05/05: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (12): case counts
2009/05/06: NatureTGB: Swine flu update
2009/05/05: CBC: Texas confirms first swine flu death of U.S. resident -- Total number of Canadian cases rises to 165
2009/05/06: CBC: Mexico's shutdown ends as swine-flu death toll rises to 42
2009/05/06: CBC: Swine flu is same strain in Canada and Mexico
Canadian scientists who sequenced Canadian and Mexican samples of the swine flu virus say it is the same strain, even though the virus seems to cause more severe symptoms in Mexico. Scientists at Health Canada's National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg genetically sequenced and compared samples of the H1N1 flu virus from Nova Scotia, Ontario and Mexico. It's the first time the sequence has been completed on samples from Mexico and Canada, said officials during a news conference in Ottawa Wednesday. The results have ruled out a mutation to explain why the Mexican cases have been much more severe than elsewhere, said Dr. Frank Plummer, the chief science adviser of the national lab.
2009/05/05: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (11): coincident H3N2 variation
2009/05/04: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (10): case counts
2009/05/04: G&M: Alberta girl hospitalized with 'severe' swine flu
2009/05/04: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 14
2009/05/04: CBC: Alberta girl sick with Canada's 1st severe case of swine flu -- Alberta announces 6 new cases, bringing provincial total to 24
2009/05/04: UN: Vigilance crucial as influenza A(H1N1) virus continues to evolve - Ban
2009/05/03: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (08): case counts
2009/05/04: CBC: More than 1,000 swine flu cases worldwide: WHO -- 'Level 6 does not mean, in any way, that we are facing the end of the world:' WHO chief Margaret Chan
2009/05/03: CNN: Confirmed cases of H1N1 virus now at 787, WHO says
WHO reports 787 confirmed cases of H1N1 virus in 17 countries - Canadian officials claim pigs at farm have been affected by virus - Mexico has largest number of confirmed cases, followed by U.S., WHO says - Twenty people have died from virus
2009/05/02: CBC: No sustained spread of swine flu virus outside North America: WHO -- Canadian cases up, all considered mild
2009/05/02: CBC: Potential pandemic or garden-variety flu? No agreement among experts
2009/05/02: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 10
2009/05/02: WHO: Influenza A(H1N1) - update 9
2009/05/02: CNN: Emergency rooms hit with flu 'hysteria' -- 'Walking well' flood hospitals with -- or without -- flu symptoms
2009/05/02: CNN: WHO confirming backlog of suspected H1N1 cases
Third of 161 sick Americans visited Mexico, or had contact with visitor - "I would still propose that a pandemic is imminent," WHO official says - WHO reports 658 confirmed cases of H1N1 virus in 16 countries - Hong Kong hotel guest tests positive; 300 quarantined
2009/05/02: UN: Preparedness vital as confirmed cases of influenza A(H1N1) increase -- UN
2009/05/02: BBC: Mexico has revised down the suspected death toll from swine flu from 176 to 101, indicating that the outbreak may not be as bad as was initially feared
2009/05/01: BBC: What scientists know about swine flu
2009/05/02: CBC: More cases of swine flu confirmed across Canada -- The national total of confirmed cases, so far, stands at 55.
2009/05/01: CNN: Confirmed number of global swine flu cases: 363 and counting
Vaccine could be made "in a relatively short period of time," official says - United States' confirmed cases jump to 141, CDC says - WHO: Largest outbreak of the virus is in Mexico, with 156 confirmed cases - Virus has spread to 11 countries, with hardest-hit areas in Western hemisphere
2009/05/01: UN: UN confirms rising number of influenza A(H1N1) infections in more countries
2009/05/01: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (03)
2009/04/30: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) - worldwide (02): case counts
2009/05/01: NatureTGB: Swine flu update
2009/05/01: DerSpiegel: Germany Confirms First Human-to-Human Infection
2009/05/01: CBC: WHO prepares for production of new swine flu vaccine -- WHO confirms 331 human cases of virus, at least 10 deaths
2009/04/30: Guardian(UK): Global swine flu cases top 250
2009/04/30: CNN: Confirmed swine flu cases leap
CDC chief: People with flu-like symptoms should not get on airplanes - Pandemic threat level should stay at 5, World Health Organization official says - WHO reports 236 lab-confirmed cases, up from 148 - 109 cases reported in 11 U.S. states, CDC reports
2009/04/30: UN: UN pandemic alert still at Phase 5, as influenza A (H1N1) continues to spread
2009/04/29: NatureN: Timeline: Swine flu -- An up-to-the-minute chronology of the H1N1 outbreak
2009/04/29: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) "swine flu": worldwide (07), update, pandemic 5
2009/04/29: WHO: Swine influenza - update 5
2009/04/28: WHO: Swine influenza - update 4
2009/04/30: BBC: WHO raises pandemic alert level
The UN's World Health Organization has raised the alert over swine flu to level five - one short of a full-blown global epidemic, or pandemic. A phase five alert means human-to-human transmission in at least two countries.
2009/04/29: Guardian(UK): Swine flu pandemic alert raised to level five
2009/04/29: CNN: WHO raises pandemic alert to [5] second-highest level
Researchers conducting complete genetic sequencing of the H1N1 virus - WHO raises influenza epidemic level from 4 to 5 - "Actions now should be taken with increased urgency," director-general says - World Health Organizations reports 148 cases in 11 countries
2009/04/29: UN: UN notches up swine flu pandemic alert to level 5
2009/04/29: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) "swine flu": worldwide (06)
2009/04/29: NatureTGB: Swine flu round-up
2009/04/29: NatureN: Swine flu goes global -- New influenza virus tests pandemic emergency preparedness.
2009/04/29: NewScientist: Expert analysis: Mexican swine flu -- the story so far
2009/04/29: DemNow: The "NAFTA Flu": Critics Say Swine Flu Has Roots in Forcing Poor Countries to Accept Western Agribusiness
2009/04/29: BBC: US reports first swine flu death -- A 23-month-old Mexican child has died of swine flu in Texas - the first death from the virus outside Mexico...
2009/04/29: BBC: Three new swine flu cases in UK
2009/04/28: BBC: Swine flu: How serious a threat?
2009/04/29: CBC: Swine flu edges closer to pandemic: WHO -- European cases increasing, 13 confirmed in Canada
2009/04/28: CBC: 13 swine flu cases confirmed in Canada, all mild
2009/04/29: CBC: Mid-hockey game BlackBerry check leads to swine virus discovery
2009/04/29: CBC: Faster swine flu tests in the works
Biosurveillance (blog)
2009/04/24: Biosurveillance: Swine Flu in Mexico- Timeline of Events
2009/04/29: BBC: New US health secretary [Kathleen Sebelius] sworn in
President Barack Obama has sworn in the new health secretary, the former Kansas governor, Kathleen Sebelius, after her appointment was backed by the Senate. Senators approved her appointment by 65 votes to 31. Republicans had delayed the confirmation over Kathleen Sebelius' support for abortion. But Democrats said the post needed to be filled quickly as the government reacts to an outbreak of swine flu that has infected 64 people in the US
2009/04/28: Guardian(UK): Swine flu pandemic plans stepped up as US investigates deaths
2009/04/29: Guardian(UK): Swine flu: Crisis, but not yet calamity
2009/04/28: CNN: World battles swine flu as death toll rises
Governments continue to battle swine flu outbreak that's killed scores in Mexico - WHO ups alert level meaning swine flu capable of human-to-human transmission - More than 150 deaths in Mexico are thought to have been caused by swine flu - So far, at least 113 cases have been confirmed in other countries
2009/04/28: UNDispatch: Swine Flu: A Test of the WHO’s New Emergency Response Mechanism
2009/04/28: UN: UN swine flu pandemic alert remains at phase 4 amid rising infections
2009/04/28: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) "swine flu": worldwide (04)
2009/04/28: uComics: (cartoon - Auth) What Next?
2009/04/28: NatureTGB: Swine flu goes global
2009/04/28: PhysOrg: CDC, states: US swine flu cases jump to 68
2009/04/28: PlanetArk: World Animal Health Body Says Swine Flu Wrong Name
2009/04/28: NYT: 7 Countries Have Confirmed Cases of Swine Flu
2009/04/28: BBC: More countries confirm swine flu
2009/04/28: BBC: More cases of swine flu in humans are likely to emerge across Europe in the coming days, EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou has warned
2009/04/28: BBC: Israel has confirmed its second case of swine flu, in a 47-year-old man who recently returned from Mexico
2009/04/28: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) "swine flu": worldwide (03)
2009/04/28: CBC: 79 swine flu cases confirmed around world: WHO
2009/04/27: CBC: Swine flu likely to worsen in Canada, says top health official
2009/04/28: CBC: Alberta confirms 2 cases of swine flu
2009/04/28: CBC: 'Inappropriate' to use antivirals now, public health chief says
2009/04/28: CTV: Swine flu spreads to Middle East, Asia-Pacific
2009/04/28: BBC: The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised its alert level over swine flu from three to four - two steps short of declaring a full pandemic
2009/04/28: BBC: South Korean officials have found a suspected case of swine flu in a woman who recently returned from Mexico
2009/04/28: BBC: The UK Foreign Office is advising against all but essential travel to Mexico, where swine flu is believed to have claimed almost 150 lives
2009/04/28: Guardian(UK): Swine flu - global threat raised from 3 to 4
2009/04/27: EUO: EU health ministers scramble as swine flu hits Europe
2009/04/27: UN: UN cranks up global pandemic alert level to phase 4 due to swine flu spread
2009/04/27: NatureN: Swine flu jumps continents -- Influenza virus spreads around the world
2009/04/27: NatureN: Swine flu outbreak sweeps the globe -- Genetic code of new influenza strain could contribute to its rapid spread
2009/04/27: KSJT: Immense media attention to A,H1N1 swine flu. The news is big, the science story yet untold
2009/04/27: NewScientist: Swine flu: What you need to know
2009/04/27: NewScientist: US 'taking action' to minimise swine flu impact
2009/04/27: PhysOrg: WHO ups pandemic alert [to 4] as Mexico flu deaths climb
2009/04/27: SciDaily: Swine Flu: Public Health Emergency Declared, Investigation Continues
2009/04/27: SwissInfo: Swine flu spreads, five Swiss checked
2009/04/27: NYT: Avoid Mexico, Travelers Are Told, as Flu Toll Mounts
2009/04/27: AmericaBlog: Karl Rove, conservative Republicans, and Susan Collins opposed money spent on pandemic preparedness
2009/04/27: BBC: Mexico suspected flu toll soars -- As many as 149 people in Mexico are believed to have been killed by swine flu as cases of the virulent disease continue to rise around the world
2009/04/27: BBC: Asia on high alert for flu virus
China has banned imports of pork products from Mexico and several US states as part of attempts to prevent a deadly flu virus entering the country
2009/04/27: BBC: Swine flu case confirmed in Spain -- The first case of swine flu has been confirmed in Europe
2009/04/27: BBC: Swine flu cases confirmed in UK
Two people admitted to a Scottish hospital after returning from a holiday in Mexico have been confirmed as the UK's first swine flu cases
2009/04/27: BBC: The United States and the European Union have urged travellers to Mexico to exercise caution, amid concerns over the spread of the swine flu virus
2009/04/27: CBC: Health officials confirm 6 cases of swine flu in Canada -- Global vigilance grows amid Mexico's outbreak
2009/04/27: CBC: Swine flu symptoms spreading beyond Windsor, N.S., campus
2009/04/27: CBC: More swine flu cases expected in B.C.: health authorities -- Concerns raised about Mexican farm workers
2009/04/27: CBC: 3 of 4 N.S. students with swine flu recovered: headmaster
2009/04/27: CBC: Canada will monitor, not bar Mexican farm workers -- Doctors to help border authorities process migrant workers during flu outbreak
2009/04/27: CBC: India, Malaysia issue travel warnings to Canada over swine flu
2009/04/27: CBC: Suspected swine flu death toll in Mexico raised to 149 -- Ontario probing 10-12 potential cases; P.E.I. investigating 8
2009/04/26: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) virus, human: worldwide
2009/04/27: BBC: UK told to expect swine flu cases
2009/04/27: BBC: The international community is better prepared than ever to deal with the threatened spread of a new swine flu virus, a top UN health chief has said
2009/04/27: NYT: U.S. Declares Public Health Emergency Over Swine Flu
2009/04/27: Guardian(UK): Swine flu spreads: suspected cases and precautionary measures
2009/04/27: Guardian(UK): No confirmed cases of swine flu [in UK,] but hospitals on alert
2009/04/27: Guardian(UK): Concern grows in US over spread of swine flu with key officials still not in place
2009/04/26: CNN: 81 dead in Mexico as flu emergency goes global
81 deaths in Mexico "likely linked" to swine flu; ministry given emergency powers - New Zealand quarantines 22 students, 3 teachers with swine flu symptoms - Officials urge Mexicans to avoid large crowds, kissing in greeting - WHO says swine flu virus is "public health emergency of international concern"
2009/04/25: UN: Swine flu outbreak has pandemic potential, warns UN health agency
2009/04/26: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) virus, swine, human - N America (03)
2009/04/26: DotEarth: Contagion on a Small Planet
2009/04/26: PhysOrg: Asia on alert after flu threat spreads
Asian health officials went on alert Sunday as a flu strain that has killed dozens of people in Mexico appeared to have spread to New Zealand, underscoring warnings of a potential pandemic
2009/04/26: PhysOrg: Mexico on edge as reports of swine flu cases climb
2009/04/26: PhysOrg: Swine flu worse in Mexico than US, but why?
2009/04/24: TerraDaily: Mexico shuts schools over deadly influenza epidemic
2009/04/26: BBC: Mexico flu sparks worldwide fear
Mexican authorities have taken drastic measures to contain a new strain of the swine flu virus that has killed 81 and prompted fears of a global pandemic
2009/04/26: BBC: Suspected Mexico flu toll hits 81
2009/04/25: CBC: Swine flu outbreak international 'public health emergency': WHO -- Nova Scotia students among first suspected Canadian cases
2009/04/26: CanWest: New swine flu impossible to contain, experts say
A new and unusual strain of swine flu is likely widespread and impossible to contain at this point, experts agree. The H1N1 strain has killed as many as 81 people in Mexico and has been confirmed in at least 11 people in the U.S., all of whom had mild illness.
2009/04/25: BBC: Mexico flu: Your experiences
Readers in Mexico have been emailing the BBC describing the sense of fear gripping the country as a result of a flu virus outbreak, which has so far claimed up to 60 lives
2009/04/25: PKedrosky: Mexico City Doctor: Outbreak "Far From 'Under Control'"
2009/04/25: WHO: WHO statement on swine influenza, Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General
2009/04/26: Guardian(UK): Global flu fears as 68 die and virus spreads
2009/04/25: ABC(US): Swine Flu Cases in Kansas, Possibly NYC -- Measures Implemented to Control Outbreaks; Many Questions Remain
2009/04/25: CNN: More cases of swine flu reported; WHO warns of 'health emergency'
Two cases confirmed in Kansas; more suspected in New York - Mutated form concerns World Health Organization - Swine flu could develop into a pandemic, WHO top official says - 68 die from swine flu in Mexico; all schools closed in Mexico City
2009/04/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) virus, swine, human - N America (02)
2009/04/25: ProMedMail: Influenza A (H1N1) virus, swine, human - N America
2009/04/25: NewScientist: Deadly new flu virus in US and Mexico may go pandemic
2009/04/25: PhysOrg: Mexico may isolate flu patients, inspect homes
2009/04/25: PhysOrg: Questions and answers about swine flu
2009/04/25: PhysOrg: Fear, anger and fatalism over swine flu in Mexico
2009/04/24: FuturePundit: Swine Flu Pandemic Breaking Out?
2009/04/25: BBC: Mexico flu 'a potential pandemic' -- A new flu virus suspected of killing up to 60 people in Mexico has the potential to become a pandemic, the World Health Organization's chief says
2009/04/25: CBC: Mexico swine flu has 'pandemic potential' -- WHO holds emergency meeting
2009/04/25: G&M: WHO convenes emergency panel
2009/04/25: Reuters: Fatal new flu strain threatens Mexico, U.S.
2009/04/25: BBC: Mexico bid to contain deadly flu
Mexican authorities have closed schools and public buildings in the capital in a bid to contain a new flu virus suspected of killing up to 60 people. Public events were suspended and residents donned face masks as concern grew over the outbreak
2009/04/24: Reuters: Deadly new flu strain erupts in Mexico, U.S
2009/04/24: Reuters: CDC says too late to contain U.S. flu outbreak
2009/04/25: Guardian(UK): Swine flu closes schools in Mexico City
2009/04/24: WHO: Influenza-Like Illness in the United States and Mexico
2009/04/24: CBC: Winnipeg [L4] lab playing key role in swine flu investigation
2009/04/24: ProMedMail: Acute respiratory disease - Mexico, swine virus suspected
2009/04/24: PhysOrg: WHO worries Mexico flu deaths could mark pandemic
2009/04/24: BBC: Dozens of people have died and hundreds of others have been infected in a viral outbreak in Mexico suspected to have been caused by a strain of swine flu
2009/04/24: TSun: Mexican flu raises spectre of SARS
2009/04/24: G&M: Back from Mexico? Watch for flu-like illness -- Travellers urged to be aware as mysterious respiratory infections cause Mexican authorities to ask Canada for investigative help
2009/04/24: G&M: WHO considers raising global pandemic alert level
2009/04/24: CBC: New swine flu strain caused 800 Mexican cases, health minister says -- World health agency schedules emergency meeting
An outbreak of more than 800 "influenza-like" cases in Mexico was caused by a deadly new strain of swine flu "that can attack anyone," Mexican Health Minister Angel Cordova said Friday, amid fears the infectious disease may have spread to the United States. "It is a virus that mutated from pigs and then at some point was transmitted to humans," Cordova told the Televisa network, according to Reuters, in describing the mystery illness that has led to at least 20 deaths in the country. Mexican authorities confirmed that samples tested both at the National Microbiology Laboratory in Winnipeg and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control tested positive for swine flu viruses.
2009/04/23: CBC: Travel advisory warns of severe respiratory illness in Mexico -- 20 die from severe respiratory illness in Mexico

Vitamin D

2010/01/27: Eureka: Vitamin D supplements could fight Crohn's disease
2010/01/22: SciDaily: High Vitamin D Levels Linked to Lower Risk of Colon Cancer
2010/01/20: UCSF: Low Vitamin D levels are associated with greater risk of relapse in childhood-onset Multiple Sclerosis
2010/01/20: PhysOrg: Vitamin D supplementation can reduce falls in nursing care facilities
2010/01/14: PhysOrg: New research confirms benefits of calcium and vitamin D in preventing fractures
2010/01/05: URMC: URMC Study Links Vitamin D, Race, and Cardiac Deaths
2010/01/05: CBC: Demand soars for vitamin D
Some consumers and doctors are becoming convinced vitamin D can help reduce the risk of a long list of diseases, despite a lack of gold-standard research proving it. A growing body of research suggests that supplements of the so-called sunshine vitamin may reduce the risk of multiple sclerosis, diabetes and breast and prostate cancers. But much of the research comes from observational studies rather than placebo-controlled trials -- the highest standard in health research. Such rigorous trials to prove vitamin D's preventive benefits are expensive, and since vitamins can't be patented, pharmaceutical companies have no financial incentive to do the research. But there is a lot of circumstantial evidence. Many of the diseases on the list are more common farther north, so vitamin D seems the most logical explanation, said Reinhold Vieth, a nutritional science professor at the University of Toronto and an international authority on the vitamin.
2009/12/05: Eureka: Mayo Clinic and collaborators find vitamin D levels associated with survival in lymphoma patients
2009/11/25: PhysOrg: Physicians Explore Link Between Vitamin D Deficiency and Hypertension
2009/11/23: PhysOrg: Multiple health concerns surface as winter, vitamin D deficiences arrive
A string of recent discoveries about the multiple health benefits of vitamin D has renewed interest in this multi-purpose nutrient, increased awareness of the huge numbers of people who are deficient in it, spurred research and even led to an appreciation of it as "nature's antibiotic."
2009/11/16: FuturePundit: Low Vitamin D Boosts Heart Death Risks?
2009/11/16: Eureka: New study links vitamin D deficiency to cardiovascular disease and death -- Study finds inadequate levels of Vitamin D may significantly increase risk of stroke, heart disease and death
2009/11/14: NBF: Vitamin D and calcium supplementation reduces cancer risk
2009/11/09: SciDaily: Low Vitamin D Levels Explains Most End-stage Renal Disease Risk In African-Americans
2009/10/26: CBC: 20% of U.S. kids lack vitamin D
2009/10/09: PhysOrg: Women with breast cancer have low vitamin D levels
2009/10/03: SciDaily: Over 65s Should Take High Dose Vitamin D To Prevent Falls, Say Researchers
2009/09/24: CBC: Low vitamin D linked to high blood pressure
2009/09/24: PhysOrg: Vitamin D deficiency in younger women increases risk of high blood pressure
2009/09/21: Eureka: Insufficient levels of vitamin D puts elderly at increased risk of dying from heart disease
2009/08/26: SciNews: Vitamin D may be heart protective -- A deficiency of the sunshine vitamin may worsen plaque accumulation in vessels of diabetes patients
2009/08/21: WUSTL: Research shows why low vitamin D raises heart disease risks in diabetics
2009/08/03: Eureka: Millions of US children low in vitamin D -- Study shows increased risk of bone and heart disease
2009/07/15: Eureka: Vitamin D, curcumin may help clear amyloid plaques found in Alzheimer's disease
2009/07/07: SciDaily: Understanding The Anticancer Effects Of Vitamin D3
2009/06/30: IOF: Vitamin D deficiency is widespread and on the increase
2009/05/29: FuturePundit: Evidence For Vitamin D As Alzheimer's Risk Reducer
2009/05/26: SciDaily: New Model Of Cancer Development: Low Vitamin D Levels May Have Role
2009/05/26: Eureka: Is vitamin D deficiency linked to Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia?
2009/05/20: FuturePundit: Vitamin D Improves Brain Function In Old Folks?
2009/05/22: SciDaily: Fish Really Is 'Brain Food': Vitamin D May Lessen Age-related Cognitive Decline
2009/05/22: Eureka: Low levels of vitamin D linked to common vaginal infection in pregnant women
2009/05/22: Eureka: New model suggests role of low vitamin D in cancer development
2009/05/20: Eureka: Vitamin D may halt lung function decline in asthma and COPD
2009/05/14: Eureka: Vitamin D insufficiency linked to bacterial vaginosis in pregnant women
2009/04/27: BBC: Vitamin D is an effective treatment for prostate cancer in some patients, a UK study suggests.
2009/04/16: SciDaily: Low Levels Of Vitamin D In Patients With Autoimmune Disease May Be Result, Not Cause, Of The Disease
2009/04/14: SciDaily: Vitamin D Deficiency Related To Increased Inflammation In Healthy Women
2009/04/06: PhysOrg: Vitamin D Deficiency Related to Increased Inflammation in Healthy Women
2009/03/23: PhysOrg: Vitamin D supplements associated with reduced fracture risk in older adults
2009/03/17: Warwick: Vitamin D may not be the answer to feeling SAD
A lack of Vitamin D, due to reduced sunlight, has been linked to depression and the symptoms of Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), but research by the University of Warwick shows there is no clear link between the levels of vitamin D in the blood and depression.
2009/03/11: Cornell: 1 in 7 U.S. Teens Is Vitamin D Deficient
2009/02/23: Eureka: Vitamin D deficiency may increase risk of colds, flu - Large-scale study supports potential role in boosting immune system, more research needed
2009/02/10: FuturePundit: Vitamin D For Babies Boosts Growth, Cuts MS
2009/02/10: SciDaily: Vitamin D Tied To Muscle Power In Adolescent Girls
2009/02/06: PLoSG: Expression of the Multiple Sclerosis-Associated MHC Class II Allele HLA-DRB1*1501 Is Regulated by Vitamin D by Sreeram V. Ramagopalan et al.
2009/02/05: SciDaily: Vitamin D Found To Stimulate A Protein That Inhibits The Growth Of Breast Cancer Cells
2009/02/05: BBC: Vitamin D helps control MS gene
The first evidence of how vitamin D deficiency and genetics interact to increase the risk of multiple sclerosis has been reported by researchers. A UK and Canadian team found that vitamin D helps to control a gene known to increase MS risk, the PLoS Genetics journal reports.
2009/02/05: CBC: Vitamin D interacts with gene in MS: study
Vitamin D seems to help control a gene known to increase the risk of multiple sclerosis - a finding that suggests taking vitamin D supplements during pregnancy and early in life may help prevent the disease.
2009/02/04: Eureka: Vitamin D, a key milk nutrient, linked to better muscle power - New study reveals teen girls with higher vitamin D levels may have improved muscle performance
2009/02/03: Eureka: Vitamin D tied to muscle power in adolescent girls
2009/01/24: SciDaily: Low Levels Of Vitamin D Link To Cognitive Problems In Older People
2009/01/23: BBC: Vitamin D 'is mental health aid'
Vitamin D, found in fish and produced by sun exposure, can help stave off the mental decline that can affect people in old age, a study has suggested. UK and US researchers looked at 2,000 people aged 65 and over. They found that compared to those with the highest vitamin D levels, those with the lowest were more than twice as likely to have impaired understanding.
2009/01/22: Eureka: 'Sunshine vitamin' link to cognitive problems in older people - Vitamin D linked to cognitive impairment
2009/01/12: Eureka: Vitamin D is the 'it' nutrient of the moment - Loyola researchers report on benefit of vitamin D in diabetes and other chronic diseases
2008/12/16: Eureka: Vitamin D deficiency in infants and nursing mothers carries long-term disease risks
2008/12/15: PhysOrg: Nearly three-quarters of youths with [Type-1] diabetes insufficient in vitamin D
2008/12/10: SciDaily: Vitamin D Found To Fight Placental Infection
2008/12/10: Eureka: Lack of vitamin D causes weight gain and stunts growth in girls
2008/12/01: PhysOrg: Lack of vitamin D could spell heart trouble
2008/11/17: Eureka: Study helps clarify role of vitamin D in cancer therapy
2008/10/13: KSJT: Much ink: Pediatricians recommend doubling the dose of D
2008/10/13: SciDaily: Vitamin D A Key Player In Overall Health Of Several Body Organs, Says Biochemist
2008/10/13: SciDaily: Vitamin D Deficiency Common In Patients With IBD, Chronic Liver Disease
2008/10/13: Eureka: Vitamin D deficiency may be more common in Parkinson's disease patients
2008/10/13: CBC: Double kids' vitamin D intake, pediatricians recommend
CBC: Vitamin D - Ways to get your dose in winter
2008/10/09: Eureka: Vitamin D a key player in overall health of several body organs, says UC Riverside biochemist

Last modified February 11, 2010