In the wake of widespread demonstrations in the United States against police brutality, catalyzed by the death of George Floyd while being pinned under an officer’s knee, the World Health Organization has urged protestors to protect themselves against COVID-19. “We have certainly seen a lot of passion this week, we’ve seen people who’ve felt the […] Continue reading ->
In a series of flip-flops on Friday, the United Kingdom suspended the enrollment of new patients into the hydroxychloroquine arm of its massive RECOVERY trial, one of the largest randomised COVID-19 clinical trials in the world, after preliminary data showed “no benefit” for COVID-19 patients receiving the drug. The suspension of the trial came just […] Continue reading ->
A day ahead of a major pledging event, Gavi-the Vaccine Alliance has received some US $70 million in pledges from a broad range of corporations, foundations, initiatives and individual philanthropists to modernise, streamline and strengthen its delivery of vaccines to children in the world’s poorest countries over the next 15 years. Meanwhile, Médecins sans Frontières […] Continue reading ->
The World Health Organization finally appears poised to recommend wider public use of masks as an additional measure to prevent transmission of COVID-19 – after months of hesitation while countries took unilateral action mandating face coverings, particularly for busy shops, transport systems and public settings. The WHO move, announced at a Wednesday press briefing, follows […] Continue reading ->
Dogs could be trained to discern COVID-19 in humans, reported researchers from The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), Medical Detection Dogs and Durham University in a podcast last Wednesday. The study has received £500,000 from the UK government and hopes to be able to train dogs for rapid virus detection in airports […] Continue reading ->
As the COVID-19 pandemic spawns increased antibiotic use all over the world, more drug-resistant microbes are bound to bite us back , said Dr. Tedros at a WHO press conference on Monday. The repercussions on disease treatment and deaths will be severe, given that the world is running out of effective ways to treat antimicrobial […] Continue reading ->
China stalled for ‘at least’ two weeks in providing the World Health Organization with detailed data on COVID-19 cases, frustrating WHO’s top echelons – even as they tried to put on a positive public face, according to an investigative report by the Associated Press of exchanges that occured in January. China also withheld the genome […] Continue reading ->
“I can’t breathe” could have been a slogan for those suffering the worst effects of COVID-19. But now it has become the battle cry of Americans angered over the police killing by strangulation of a Minneapolis man, George Floyd, last week. While this is the latest in a years-long series of violent events involving African […] Continue reading ->
A new survey by WHO has found that the COVID-19 pandemic has ‘severely’ disrupted the delivery of services to prevent and treat non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in almost 80% of countries surveyed – or 122 out of 150 countries. This is of “significant concern” WHO said on Monday in a statement, because people with NCDs also […] Continue reading ->
Aerosol transmission of COVID-19 is looking to be more significant, and it is ‘essential’ to introduce widespread mask use to reduce COVID-19 transmission by that route – aerosol chemists and infectious disease researchers wrote in a commentary published in Science. The authors refer to a growing body of evidence on aerosols and masks that runs […] Continue reading ->