Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Young adults hit hardest by heat in Mexico, new study shows

Many recent studies assume that elderly people are at particular risk of dying from extreme heat as the planet warms.

6 Dec 2024

Stubble burning in Punjab linked to health problems and high household costs

Punjab is the epicenter of stubble burning in India. Although the majority of residents are aware of the harmful effects of burning crop waste, it is still a widespread practice, with serious consequences for health, household expenditures and the environment.

6 Dec 2024

Rethinking public health measures based on game theory

With flu season upon us and coronavirus a persistent threat, Dartmouth researchers propose a new way of thinking about masking and social distancing rules that is more responsive to what people feel is necessary at a given time - and may help increase cooperation.

6 Dec 2024

How measles, whooping cough, and worse could roar back on RFK Jr.’s watch

The availability of safe, effective covid vaccines less than a year into the pandemic marked a high point in the 300-year history of vaccination, seemingly heralding an age of protection against infectious diseases.

6 Dec 2024

Phase one trial explores novel immunotherapy for breast cancer

A groundbreaking phase one clinical trial exploring a novel cell-based immunotherapy for breast cancer has been accepted for publication in JAMA Oncology.

5 Dec 2024

L-arginine shows potential in treating spinocerebellar ataxia type 6

A team led by Specially Appointed Associate Professor Tomohiko Ishihara and Professor Osamu Onodera at Niigata University, along with Professor Yoshitaka Nagai at Kindai University, conducted a randomized, double-blind trial on the efficacy and safety of L-arginine in treating Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6).

3 Dec 2024

Type 2 diabetes doubles infection-related mortality and exposes gaps in health reporting

People with type 2 diabetes face a significantly higher risk of infection-related deaths, particularly in younger age groups, with infections accounting for 13% of deaths compared to 1.2% in conventional records.

3 Dec 2024

Upcoding practices by hospitals lead to billions in extra payments

In five states over nearly a decade, hospitals have increased how frequently they document patients as needing the highest intensity care, which has led to hospitals receiving billions in extra payments from health plans and government programs, according to a new RAND study.

3 Dec 2024

Study cracks the cold case of immunotherapy resistance

A study from the University of Michigan Health Rogel Cancer Center may have, at last, cracked the cold case of immunotherapy resistance.

3 Dec 2024

Nanozyme breakthrough offers new hope for viral pneumonia treatment

A recent study in Nature Materials introduces an inhalable nanozyme treatment for viral pneumonia, showing promising results in reducing inflammation and viral load in various mouse models. The nanozyme, CeTA-K1tkP, demonstrates broad-spectrum effects and biocompatibility, offering a potential new approach to treating pneumonia and other inflammatory conditions.

3 Dec 2024

Polypurine hairpins found to effectively halt SARS-CoV-2 replication

A study led by the University of Barcelona and the Spanish National Research Council's Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC - CSIC) presents a new therapeutic tool capable of inhibiting the proliferation of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

3 Dec 2024

Pregnancy strengthens immune defense against flu, study finds

McGill University scientists have discovered that pregnancy may trigger a natural immunity to boost protection against severe flu infection.

2 Dec 2024

Researchers discover new cause of cytokine storm in COVID-19

As part of the COVID-19 International Research Team, researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, the University of Pittsburgh and Weill Cornell Medicine discovered a novel cause of cytokine storm - the extreme inflammatory response associated with increased risk of death in COVID-19 infection.

2 Dec 2024

New insights into how cells generate microRNAs

It's a big year for microRNAs. The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine went to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun, who discovered the first microRNA in 1993.

2 Dec 2024

Engineered stone countertop workers at risk for silicosis

Durable and attractive, engineered stone countertops are a popular feature in modern American kitchens, but the workers who build them are risking their health.

2 Dec 2024

Reinstating masking curbs hospital viral outbreaks, study confirms

Researchers investigate how changes in hospital policies for SARS-CoV-2 testing and masking have influenced hospital-acquired respiratory viral infections.

1 Dec 2024

New injection treatment could be a game-changer for people with asthma and COPD

An injection given during some asthma and COPD attacks is more effective than the current treatment of steroid tablets, reducing the need for further treatment by 30%.

27 Nov 2024

DNA-based nanorobotic hand could block viruses and enable rapid diagnostics

A tiny, four-fingered "hand" folded from a single piece of DNA can pick up the virus that causes COVID-19 for highly sensitive rapid detection and can even block viral particles from entering cells to infect them, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers report.

27 Nov 2024

A toddler got a nasal swab test but left before seeing a doctor. The bill was $445.

Ryan Wettstein Nauman was inconsolable one evening last December. After being put down for bed, the 3-year-old from Peoria, Illinois, just kept crying and crying and crying, and nothing would calm her down.

27 Nov 2024

Cryoablation for PFO closure in AF patients undergoing PVI

New research shows that cryoablation is a safe and effective approach to close congenital patent foramen ovale (PFO, a small hole in the heart) in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in a single procedure.

27 Nov 2024