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University of Nebraska Medical Center

Author: Claudinne Miller

How nations are preparing for a possible H5N1 bird flu pandemic

Nature Bird flu could become a human pandemic. How are countries preparing? As cases of avian influenza continue to rise in cattle in the United States, countries are preparing for the possibility that the virus could start spreading in people. Many nations are ramping up surveillance, as well as purchasing vaccines or developing new ones. […]

Jul 16, 2024

Study reveals how an anesthesia drug induces unconsciousness

MIT Propofol, a drug commonly used for general anesthesia, derails the brain’s normal balance between stability and excitability. There are many drugs that anesthesiologists can use to induce unconsciousness in patients. Exactly how these drugs cause the brain to lose consciousness has been a longstanding question, but MIT neuroscientists have now answered that question for […]

Jul 16, 2024

Measles breaks out at massive NYC migrant shelter

Fox At least two people staying at a sprawling migrant shelter in New York City have contracted measles and health officials in the Big Apple are working to stop the spread of the disease, according to reports.  The outbreak took place at a migrant shelter on Hall Street in Clinton Hill, a huge taxpayer-run facility which opened […]

Jul 16, 2024

COVID Rates Are Rising Again. Why Does It Spread So Well in the Summer?

Scientific American A combination of human behavior and immunity, the environment, and SARS-CoV-2 itself explains why the virus surges during both hotter and colder months. It’s that time of year: a thick, oppressive heat blankets everything, people huddle inside air-conditioned homes, offices, shops and cafes for respite—and COVID is surging again. Levels of SARS-CoV-2, the […]

Jul 16, 2024

Bird flu has been invading the brains of mammals. Here’s why

Science News In spring 2022, a handful of red foxes in Wisconsin were behaving oddly. Veterinary pathologist Betsy Elsmo learned that a local wildlife rehabilitation center was caring for foxes with neurological symptoms like seizures, tremors, uncoordinated movements and lethargy. But tests for common pathogens like canine distemper virus and rabies that typically cause the […]

Jul 16, 2024

U.S. bird flu response builds on lessons learned from COVID

Harvard School of Public Health CDC Director Mandy Cohen explains how country is tackling the H5N1 outbreak July 16, 2024—Avian influenza, or bird flu, has been in the headlines for months now, percolating at a low level but sparking concerns about the risk of broader contagion. In the U.S., bird flu has infected dairy cows in […]

Jul 16, 2024

COVID May Affect Type 1 Diabetes in Kids, and Not in a Good Way

MedPageToday COVID-19 may accelerate progression of presymptomatic type 1 diabetes in youth, a German study suggested. Incidence of clinical type 1 diabetes nearly doubled after the pandemic started among 591 youth ages 1 to 16 known to have presymptomatic type 1 diabetes, Anette-Gabriele Ziegler, MD, of the Institute of Diabetes Research at Helmholtz Munich in […]

Jul 16, 2024

Here’s Why COVID Measures Like Masking And New Ones Like Safety Goggles Could Return If A Bird Flu Pandemic Is Declared

Forbes Here’s the latest news about a global outbreak of H5N1 bird flu that started in 2020, and recently spread among cattle in U.S. states and marine mammals across the world, which has health officials closely monitoring it and experts concerned the virus could mutate and eventually spread to humans, where it has proven rare […]

Jul 16, 2024

5 Cases of Bird Flu Reported in Colorado Poultry Workers, Doubling This Year’s US Tally

KHN Five people who work at a poultry farm in northeastern Colorado have tested positive for the bird flu, the Colorado public health department reported July 14. This brings the known number of U.S. cases to nine. The five people were likely infected by chickens, which they had been tasked with killing in response to a bird […]

Jul 16, 2024

COVID-19 leads to long-term changes in the immune system, study shows

MSN In a study recently published in the renowned journal “Allergy”, a MedUni Vienna research team shows that COVID-19 leads to considerable long-term changes in the immune system, even in mild cases. The findings could help to better understand the long-term consequences of an infection with SARS-CoV-2. As part of the study, the team led […]

Jul 16, 2024