Yahoo! Canada News: Health

WHO guarantees antivirals for American countries

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 22:05:00 GMT

AFP - CANCUN, Mexico (AFP) - The World Health Organization on Thursday vowed poor countries in the Americas would receive enough antivirals to combat the swine flu outbreak, amid fresh concern over the epidemic's spread.

President's Choice meat recall and E. coli cases in London, Ont., not connected

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:45:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - LONDON, Ont. - Three cases of children with E. coli reported in the London, Ont., area last week aren't related to this week's voluntary recall of President's Choice fresh beef products at grocery stores across Atlantic Canada, Ontario and Quebec.

Britain facing swine flu upsurge; Argentine govt under fire

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:43:00 GMT

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - Britain's health secretary warned Thursday the country could soon face more than 100,000 daily cases of swine flu, while fears linked to the virus soared in Argentina after the death toll nearly doubled.

Melanoma on the rise in young as number of dermatologists shrinks

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:39:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - VANCOUVER, B.C. - Canada's dermatologists say skin cancer rates, including deadly melanoma, are on the rise among young people just as the number of skin specialists is set to decline.

Canada's in the spotlight as debate on health care reform rages in the U.S.

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:31:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - WASHINGTON - It's rare that anything to do with Canada is front and centre in the minds of Americans, but the Canadian health-care system has been a hot topic of discussion over the past few weeks as Capitol Hill legislators work on a massive health-care overhaul.

Tamiflu-resistant swine flu patient found in Japan: govt

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 21:20:00 GMT

AFP - TOKYO (AFP) - A genetic mutation of swine flu that is resistant to the anti-viral Tamiflu has been discovered in Japan, the first such case in the country, the health ministry said.

Doctors nix idea of 'flu parties' to get immunity in case virus becomes deadlier

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:32:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - As a reason for a party, this one is getting a big thumbs down from public health officials.

Johnson & Johnson takes 1 bln dlr stake in Elan

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 20:20:00 GMT

AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - US health care giant Johnson & Johnson is to take up an 18.4 percent stake in Irish drugmaker Elan and acquire rights to Elan's Alzheimer's disease trial drugs, the companies said Thursday.

Swine flu transmission studies suggest new virus is here to stay:experts

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:30:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - Swine flu viruses are missing at least two key features seen in all flu viruses present and past that transmit well among people and yet the viruses are spreading quite efficiently, two new studies suggest.

Britain faces 100,000 swine flu cases a day: minister

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:59:00 GMT

AFP - LONDON (AFP) - Britain could have more than 100,000 cases of swine flu a day by the end of August, the government said Thursday, while stressing there was no need for alarm.

Bangladeshi man arrested for beating tiger to death

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:30:00 GMT

AFP - DHAKA (AFP) - Police in southeastern Bangladesh arrested a man Thursday for beating an endangered Bengal tiger to death after it strayed into a village, a forest official said.

Economic crisis a 'major threat' to AIDS fight in Africa: UN

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:30:00 GMT

AFP - SIRTE, Libya (AFP) - The global economic crisis poses a "major threat" to the fight against AIDS in Africa as funding for treatment programmes dries up, a top UN official said Thursday.

Heart patients in big alternative medicine study were not fully told of risks, probe finds

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:26:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - A federal investigation has found problems with a controversial study of an alternative medicine treatment for heart attack survivors.

Napoleon died of kidney failure: Danish doctor

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:47:00 GMT

AFP - AALBORG, Denmark (AFP) - Arne Soerensen, a retired Danish doctor, flips through thousands of pages of notes scribbled over 50 years of research and issues his diagnosis: Napoleon died of a kidney disease.

Fawcett's death from rare disease may remove stigma from a taboo topic: experts

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:03:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - ATLANTA - In a perverse twist of medical fate, Farrah Fawcett has become the poster girl for anal cancer, a rare disease often linked to a sexually transmitted virus.

Vegetarian diet 'weakens bones'

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 10:33:00 GMT

AFP - SYDNEY (AFP) - People who live on vegetarian diets have slightly weaker bones than their meat-eating counterparts, Australian researchers said Thursday.

Swine flu cases rise to 40 in Turkey: ministry

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 09:49:00 GMT

AFP - ANKARA (AFP) - The number of swine flu cases in Turkey has reached 40 after another three people were diagnosed with the desease, the health ministry said Thursday.

Australia urges calm after child flu death

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:52:00 GMT

AFP - MELBOURNE (AFP) - Australian authorities told parents not to panic Thursday after the country announced its first child death linked to swine flu.

President's Choice steaks, other meats, recalled due to possible E. coli

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 03:56:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - Canada's food inspection agency has issued a warning not to eat a wide selection of President's Choice fresh beef products because they might contain E. coli.

Few survive cardiac arrest even with hospital CPR; study finds little improvement over time

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 00:49:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - You don't have to be Michael Jackson to have this problem: The odds of surviving cardiac arrest after getting CPR in a hospital are slim and have not improved in more than a decade, a big Medicare study concludes.

12 hospitalized in U.S. in connection with possible E. coli outbreak in beef linked to Colo. company

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 23:58:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - WASHINGTON - Federal health officials say at least 12 people have been hospitalized in connection with a possible E.coli outbreak in beef and two of them suffered kidney failure.

WHO stands by existing anti-virals against swine flu

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:28:00 GMT

AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - Existing anti-viral treatments are effective against swine flu, the World Health Organisation insisted Wednesday, describing a reported case of resistance to Tamiflu as an isolated case.

Policy makers head to Mexico for swine flu meet

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:28:00 GMT

AFP - MEXICO CITY (AFP) - Policy makers from 50 countries are to gather in Mexico on Thursday to discuss their response to this year's swine flu outbreak, as South America continues to be hit by new cases.

US requires suicide warnings for anti-smoking drugs

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 20:47:00 GMT

AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - US federal drug regulators on Wednesday required manufacturers to warn against the mental health dangers, including suicidal thoughts, of two popular anti-smoking drugs.

Rwandan bill would lead to forced sterilization: rights group

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:46:00 GMT

AFP - NAIROBI (AFP) - A US-based rights group on Wednesday urged Rwanda to revise a draft law which it said would introduce compulsory HIV testing and require all people with mental disabilities to be sterilized.

U.S. obesity rates still rising in 23 states, Medicare to brace for influx of fat boomers

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:51:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - WASHINGTON - Mississippi's still king of cellulite, but an ominous tide is rolling toward the Medicare doctors in neighbouring Alabama: obese baby boomers.

Mass of gene clues point to inherited risk for schizophrenia

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:19:00 GMT

AFP - PARIS (AFP) - Three teams of scientists said on Wednesday they had identified hundreds of tiny genetic variants that together account for more than a third of the inherited risk for schizophrenia.

IVF success rates surging in Europe

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 16:18:00 GMT

AFP - PARIS (AFP) - Test-tube fertilisation in Europe has scaled a record high for success while also reducing the risk of multiple births, fertility experts reported on Wednesday.

WHO to start clinical trial on river blindness drug

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:39:00 GMT

AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - The World Health Organisation said Wednesday it was launching a clinical trial for a drug that could halve the treatment period for river blindness, a disease that threatens 100 million people mostly in Africa.

US losing the battle of the bulge: report

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:06:00 GMT

AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States is losing its battle against bulging waistlines, with two-thirds of Americans now overweight or obese, according to an annual report released Wednesday.

Greece fires up anti-smoking ban amid confusion

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:11:00 GMT

AFP - ATHENS (AFP) - Wielding high fines, Greece's health ministry on Wednesday launched a nationwide smoking ban -- the third this decade -- in a bid to eliminate the habit in Europe's most nicotine-addicted nation.

Australia probes death of 3-year-old with swine flu

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 09:13:00 GMT

AFP - MELBOURNE (AFP) - Australian police and medical authorities are investigating the death of a three-year-old boy who tested positive for swine flu, officials said Wednesday.

Roche offers Tamiflu to developing nations

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 07:49:00 GMT

AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche has announced it is launching a programme to produce and store anti-flu drug Tamiflu pandemic stockpiles for developing countries at a sharply discounted price.

Backlog of autistic kids waiting for treatment growing too quickly: NDP

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:41:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - The backlog of autistic children waiting for crucial therapy in Ontario is growing and in some cases leaving parents to pick up the tab for costly treatment, critics said Tuesday.

Bone agent linked to problems in neck surgeries, higher costs in spinal fusions

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:14:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - CHICAGO - A bone growth agent used in thousands of spinal fusion surgeries for neck pain has been linked to complications and higher cost, according to the first nationwide study of the product.

More women aged 50 to 69 having mammograms, Statistics Canada finds

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 03:13:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - OTTAWA - The proportion of Canadian women aged 50 to 69 having mammograms has almost doubled in the last two decades, says a new report by Statistics Canada.

Court orders B.C. tribunal to reconsider prostate exam discrimination case

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 01:07:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - VANCOUVER, B.C. - The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal has been ordered to reconsider whether it's discriminatory to make men pay for prostate cancer screening tests while providing free pap exams and mammograms to women.

Alberta Health Services Board faces $1.1-billion shortfall

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 00:12:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - CALGARY - Alberta's health-care board continues to bleed red ink and faces a $1.1-billion budget shortfall this fiscal year.

Key protein marker is not cause of heart disease: study

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:45:00 GMT

AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - A protein known as a key indicator of inflammation in the body and thought to cause heart disease is not linked to development of the fatal ailment, according to a British study published Tuesday.

Acetaminophen may seem benign, but taking too much can harm liver

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:42:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - For most people, acetaminophen is likely considered one of the more benign drugs in their medicine cabinets. But take too much and this seemingly innocuous painkiller can cause potentially fatal liver failure.

30 Canadian deaths associated with swine flu as Ontario up to 11

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 22:23:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - Ontario is now reporting 11 deaths associated with the swine flu for a national total of 30.

FDA expert panel recommends eliminating Vicodin, similar drugs

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 21:01:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - ADELPHI, Md. - Government experts in the United States say prescription drugs like Vicodin and Percocet that combine a popular painkiller with stronger narcotics should be eliminated because of their role in deadly overdoses.

Russians' alocholism worse than decade ago: Medvedev

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:55:00 GMT

AFP - MOSCOW (AFP) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev Tuesday called for a tougher fight against alcoholism in Russia, voicing concern that Russian drinking was worse than in the bleak 1990s after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Canada-U.S. may go different routes on pandemic vaccine production

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:47:00 GMT

The Canadian Press - TORONTO - Canada and the United States may go separate ways when deciding whether powerful boosting compounds called adjuvants should be added to swine flu vaccines, experts suggest.

S.African health minister revises wage offer for striking doctors

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:03:00 GMT

AFP - CAPE TOWN (AFP) - South Africa's health minister on Tuesday admitted serious challenges in public health, as the government came up with a revised wage offer to stop an illegal doctors strikes.