Infectious Disease News
  • Fifth Coronavirus Death Reported

    Added On : 2nd December 2012

    coronavirus2A fifth person has died from a new respiratory illness similar to the Sars virus, according to the World Health Organization.

    The WHO said the two latest deaths were in Jordan. The disease had previously been detected only in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, although one patient was transferred to the UK for treatment.

    It brings the total number of cases of the infection to nine.

    There may also be evidence of human to human spread of the virus.

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  • 70 HIV Cases Discovered in Kingdom Annually

    Added On : 10th December 2012

    JAZAN — Around 70 HIV cases are discovered in Saudi Arabia every year during pre-marital medical checkups but the Kingdom remains among the Arab countries least affected by the virus, according to an AIDS consultant at Jazan's King Fahd Hospital.

    Dr. Mohammed Bin Mohammed Al-Hazmi told local Arabic daily Al-Madinah that about 97 percent of female AIDS patients in the Kingdom contracted the disease during their married lives.

    He said: "These patients contracted the infection during their conjugal lives, not outside of them as was commonly believed."

    He said Jeddah tops all the Kingdom's towns and cities in terms of the number of AIDS patients.

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  • FDA Warns of Fatal Rash From Hep C Drug Incivek

    Added On : 21st December 2012

    incivekThe FDA warned people taking the hepatitis C drug Incivek (telaprevir) that it has received reports of a serious skin rash from the medication, which has led to several deaths.

    The deaths occurred in people taking Incivek combination treatment. This antiviral treatment includes the drug Incivek in combination with the drugs peginterferon alfa and ribavirin.

    This combination treatment is most commonly used for genotype 1 chronic hepatitis C in adults with compensated liver disease (meaning the liver has some damage but still works), including those who have cirrhosis (scarring of the liver) or those who have previously received interferon-based treatment.

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  • When and How to Reveal You Have an STD

    Added On : 28th December 2012

    Telling a new partner you have an STD can be intimidating, but there are steps you can take to make it easier.

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  • Lung Infection Identified using 'Breath-print'

    Added On : 13th January 2013

    breath test infxnIdentifying the "smell" of different types of lung bacteria could lead to a simple breath test to diagnose infections, a study on mice, in the Journal of Breath Research, suggests.

    Breath analysis could reduce lung infection diagnosis times from weeks to minutes, the Vermont researchers said.

    Scientists have already researched breath tests to diagnose asthma and cancer.

    An expert said breath analysis was "an important and emerging field".

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