A new initiative to introduce COVID-19 oral antivirals and national test-and-treat programmes in 10 countries in Africa and Southeast Asia was launched on Wednesday by the COVID Treatment Quick Start Consortium. The consortium will support governments to introduce and scale up access to antivirals, starting with Pfizer’s Paxlovid, in high-risk populations in Ghana, Kenya, Laos, […] Continue reading ->
Two-fifths of people with tuberculosis are unaware that they are infected because their diagnosis relies on outdated tests – something Unitaid and partners aim to change with a $30 million investment in new diagnostic technologies to enable same-day results. Announcing the investment on Tuesday, the global health agency explained that the current diagnosis in low and […] Continue reading ->
The United Nations General Assembly voted to hold a summit of heads of state and other world leaders next year to find fair, long-lasting solutions for the global inequities and inadequate responses that the COVID-19 pandemic has all too painfully highlighted. Delegates to the 193-nation assembly overwhelmingly approved the resolution in a consensus vote on […] Continue reading ->
Researchers have significantly strengthened the safety profile of a watershed treatment course for highly drug-resistant strains of tuberculosis — a heartening breakthrough set to change the lives of millions of MDR-TB patients around the world. The results of a randomized-controlled trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine today showed the new oral TB […] Continue reading ->
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted emergency use authorization (EUA) to two Omicron-targeting booster vaccines on Wednesday as it anticipates the potential rise of COVID-19 cases in its fall and spring. The boosters, one by Moderna and the other by Pfizer-BioNTech, are bivalent vaccines, or “updated boosters”, that are designed to protect against […] Continue reading ->
MAHANDRI, Pakistan – The village of Mahandri was once a scenic stopover for tourists visiting the valley of Kaghan in Pakistan’s northernmost province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but recent flash floods have destroyed most of its infrastructure. The monsoon floods have killed about 14 people, washed away five restaurants, all 30 shops in the local market […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization’s top official in Europe says the monkeypox outbreak appears to be slowing in the region, and could be eliminated through universal effort. “There are encouraging early signs, as evidenced in France, Germany, Portugal, Spain, the U.K., and other countries, that the outbreak may be slowing,” WHO’s Regional Director for Europe Dr […] Continue reading ->
Swiss drugs regulator Swissmedic announced it has temporarily authorized the first bivalent Covid-19 booster vaccine in the country. That clears the way for an eagerly anticipated second round of booster vaccinations that should better target Omicron sub-variants. Moderna’s COVID-19 mRNA-1273.214 vaccine, Spikevax, is the first COVID-19 vaccine that contains messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) against two […] Continue reading ->