While the Omicron COVID-19 variant appears to be diminishing, it is possible that there could be a resurgence of the Delta variant in the coming months in some countries, according to a team of researchers from Ben-Gurion University (BGU) of the Negev studying the prevalence of SARS-CoV2 virus variants in sewage. The warning comes following […] Continue reading ->
Moderna has filed a brief in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware seeking the dismissal of a patent infringement lawsuit that pertains to the production and sale of its COVID-19 mRNA vaccine Spikevax. The lawsuit against the U.S-based pharmaceutical giant was filed by Arbutus Biopharma Corporation and Genevant Sciences, which had […] Continue reading ->
China’s zero-COVID approach was no longer sustainable in the face of the more infectious but less lethal Omicron, WHO Secretary-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a media briefing on Tuesday. This follows the six-week lockdown of 25 million residents of the Chinese city of Shanghai and restrictions on the movement of people in Beijing, with […] Continue reading ->
Policies initiated to control the COVID-19 pandemic increased the difficulties for people who use drugs when seeking health treatment, leading drug experts to conclude that treatment programmes need to be integrated into community care. Ruth Dreifuss, former President of Switzerland and founding member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, noted that people who use […] Continue reading ->
A third shot of the Pfizer mRNA COVID-19 vaccine boosted vaccine effectiveness against infection, which had been diminished five to six months after the second vaccine dose, according to a study of over 12,000 healthcare workers released this week by Nature. The study was conducted in Israel by Sheba Medical Center and involved 12,413 health workers […] Continue reading ->
Russia’s war on Ukraine and its impact on healthcare in the region is the focus of a special session of the World Health Organization (WHO) Europe on Tuesday, as the latest figures show over 200 verified attacks on health facilities. Ukraine, backed by 38 other member countries including Germany and the UK, requested the session […] Continue reading ->
Preparing for future pandemics requires us to reuse and share data quickly in order to repurpose that information for improved diagnostics and treatments, proposed data experts and scientists at a high-level discussion at the Geneva Health Forum Wednesday afternoon. “It’s the value of what’s in data that can be reused, repurposed, to create new knowledge […] Continue reading ->
Excess deaths during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic are almost triple officially-reported deaths – around 14.9 million deaths rather than the 5.4 million currently reported, according to new figures released by the World Health Organization (WHO). These much-delayed excess death statistics were finally released on Thursday after being contested by India, […] Continue reading ->
The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the level of worldwide investment in respiratory care and now that cases are on the decline, countries need to develop long-term strategies to use oxygen, according to health experts. “Severe pneumonia, sepsis, trauma complications – there are many patients that would benefit from oxygen,” explained Janet Diaz, a team lead […] Continue reading ->
The European Region and COVID-19 are in a “kind of ceasefire,” according to World Health Organization’s (WHO) Regional Director for Europe, Dr Hans Kluge. It is now up to the region’s 53 member states to take advantage of this window to prepare for the next fight, he said. “It is quiet and we have to […] Continue reading ->