Pneumonia News and Research

Latest Pneumonia News and Research

New Zealand Ministry of Health warns Influenza B can be serious health risk to children and young people

A currently-circulating strain of influenza has not been common in New Zealand since 1987 and means children and young people can be at particular risk of serious illness, the Ministry of Health says.

21 Jun 2005

SARS vaccine produced from plants

According to new research, a vaccine has been produced in genetically engineered tomato and tobacco plants, which triggers anti-SARS antibodies in mice.

15 Jun 2005

Medicare's investment in quality improvement may not be paying off

Medicare's quality improvement organizations are charged with improving the medical care of Medicare beneficiaries.

14 Jun 2005

'Hazardous' drinking and drug use are much less severe but much more common than dependence

Research has found that individuals with alcohol and drug dependencies have a greater occurrence of injuries, hypertension, HIV, hepatitis, acid-related peptic disorders, liver cirrhosis, depression, anxiety disorders, and major psychoses.

14 Jun 2005

Information to guide child health policy is lacking in the poorest countries with the highest rates of childhood mortality

Around 10.8 million children die worldwide each year. Credible global and national estimates of the burden of disease in childhood are essential for the development of appropriate health policy and implementation of health interventions to prevent these deaths.

9 Jun 2005

MRSA study demonstrates need for frequent hand washing and environmental disinfection in health care settings

A major cause of hospital-acquired infections can persist for days and even weeks on environmental surfaces found in healthcare settings, including bed linens, computer keyboard covers and acrylic fingernails

6 Jun 2005

New vaccine against whooping cough is effective in teens and adults

The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) has announced that a study to be published in the June 22/29 issue found that a new vaccine against whooping cough is effective in teens and adults, carriers of the contagious respiratory disease so dangerous to infants.

3 Jun 2005

New shingles vaccine

Doctors say they have come up with a vaccine that can reduce both the incidence and the severity of shingles by more than half.

2 Jun 2005

Disturbingly high rate of home care patients are being admitted to hospital suffering from pneumonia

A two-year study showed home-care patients suffering from Community-Acquired Pneumonia (CAP is acquired outside of hospitals) account for 25 of every 1,000 people who visited emergency rooms suffering pneumonia.

26 May 2005

Measuring hormone procalcitonin cuts antibiotic use in half in pneumonia patients

Measuring a hormone in the blood can help doctors greatly reduce the number of days pneumonia patients have to take antibiotics to cure their infection, according to a study to be presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference.

25 May 2005

Cyclophosphamide may be a possible therapy for scleroderma

A drug that suppresses the immune system and reduces inflammation has been shown to be effective in treating lung disease associated with the devastating connective tissue disease scleroderma, according to results presented at the American Thoracic Society International Conference on May 23.

24 May 2005

China vaccinates 3 million farmyard birds in avian flu fear

In what may appear to many to be a somewhat delayed overreaction to an outbreak of bird flu in migrating geese, the Chinese government have sent some three million doses of vaccine to the vast north-west region.

24 May 2005

Rifaximin is effective in preventing attacks of diarrhea

An antibiotic can be safely used to prevent attacks of diarrhea that plague millions of globe-trotting vacationers and business travelers, a Houston research team reports this week in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

17 May 2005

Alcohol consumption increases movement of S. pneumoniae toward the lungs

Streptococcus pneumoniae is a bacterium that can infect the upper respiratory tract and cause pneumonia, as well as infections in other parts of the body such as the bloodstream (bacteremia), lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), bones (osteomyelitis), joints (arthritis), ears (otitis media) and sinuses (sinusitis).

15 May 2005

Mystery respiratory disease sweeping through greyhound population

Dozens of dogs in the U.S. are dying from a mysterious respiratory disease which is sweeping greyhound tracks across the country, and race track owners are being forced to halt racing as researchers hunt for a vaccine to control the outbreak.

12 May 2005

Earlier treatment of perinatal HIV associated with decreased HIV progression

In a study in the May 11 JAMA, earlier treatment of children with HIV infection with ART is associated with less HIV progression and improved survival rates.

10 May 2005

Americans willing to pay more for greater vaccine coverage

How much is it worth to you and your family to have a health insurance plan that covers the latest innovations in adult and childhood vaccines for certain types of cancer or even influenza and pneumonia?

10 May 2005

Neutrophils dictate whether our immune system will permit or prevent bacterial infections

New research on a bacterium that can survive encounters with specific immune system cells has strengthened scientists' belief that these plentiful white blood cells, known as neutrophils, dictate whether our immune system will permit or prevent bacterial infections.

5 May 2005

3 questions identify children at risk of passive smoking

Pediatricians can reliably identify children at risk for environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure (secondhand smoke) by asking parents just three questions, according to an article in the May issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

2 May 2005

Respiratory syncytial virus affects the elderly and high-risk adults as much as influenza

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), primarily seen as a cause of illness in infants and children, often affects the elderly and high-risk adults as much as influenza, a study by University of Rochester Medical Center researchers demonstrates.

27 Apr 2005