Sudden fever, a severe cough and acute respiratory distress are the familiar onset symptoms of seasonal flu, which has affected WHO’s European Region with unusual intensity and speed this year. As the Northern Hemisphere enters winter, health systems are struggling to manage an epidemic driven by an aggressive, genetically mutated influenza strain A(H3N2) subclade K. […] Continue reading ->
  MUMBAI, India – Cervical cancer kills more than 75,000 women in India each year, according to figures recently disclosed in Parliament – yet it is one of the most preventable cancers. In India, low human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination coverage, limited access to routine screening and deep-rooted social behaviours – such as early marriage and […] Continue reading ->
The United Nations (UN) General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favour of a political declaration to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and promote mental health on Monday, with 175 member states voting in favour, only the United States and Argentina voting against, and Paraguay as the only abstention. The declaration was due to have been adopted by […] Continue reading ->
A new treatment has been approved for gonorrhoea, a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that is increasingly developing resistance to all current antibiotics.  The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the use of zoliflodacin to treat uncomplicated gonorrhoea on Friday, following the publication in The Lancet of the results of a phase 3 trial of […] Continue reading ->
The Indian government claims that farm fires in Punjab, which contribute significantly to air pollution, were reduced by 90% during the autumn season of harvest and crop-waste disposal – historically a factor in sending heavy clouds of air pollution drifting around northern India in late October and November. But in this Earth Chakra podcast, Health […] Continue reading ->
Following eleven hours of intense negotiations overnight, the European Union (EU) clinched a landmark agreement on the most significant pharma reform of its medicines market in over 20 years on Thursday.  Reached in the final moments of the Danish EU Presidency’s mandate, the deal aims to strike a critical balance stimulating pharma innovation, particularly for […] Continue reading ->
Kenya’s High Court suspended the implementation of the country’s Memorandum of Understanding with the United States on Thursday after two separate court challenges by the Consumer Federation of Kenya (COFEK) and local Senator Okiya Omtatah. COFEK argues that the agreement contravenes Kenya’s Data Protection Act, Digital Health Act, Health Act, and new data regulations that […] Continue reading ->