Anyone hoping to stay ahead of the next viral outbreak might want to avoid TikTok, new research suggests. The study, published Tuesday in BMJ Global Health, found that TikTok videos discussing the viral disease monkeypox, which spread widely around the world and infected tens of thousands of Americans last year, often…
There’s no shortage of nasty germs in the world that can make us sick. The most common ones tend to be those passed on from person to person through methods such as respiratory droplets and aerosols, fecal-oral contamination (touching traces of poo from someone’s unwashed hands), or even sex. But there are other…
A team of experts believe they’re confirmed the first U.S. case of tickborne illness caused by a particular bacteria. The case involved a 75-year-old Alabama man who likely caught the germ from a lone star tick. Thankfully, the man was successfully treated with antibiotics.
A Washington woman with tuberculosis who has refused treatment for over a year is set to be arrested as a result. According to the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, the woman had repeatedly disobeyed court orders to stay isolated until she completed treatment. A local judge has now issued a warrant for her…
Officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are sounding the alarm over a diarrhea-causing superbug. The CDC’s data shows a noticeable rise in extensively drug-resistant strains of Shigella bacteria over the past half-decade. Though these infections are typically not severe, antibiotics are needed to…
A rare but sometimes fatal tickborne infection may be expanding its range in the U.S., local and federal health officials warn in a report this week. They say that a case of Heartland virus led to a man’s death in 2021. The infection is thought to have been caught in either Virginia or Maryland—a region of the…
A trip to the scenic island country of Cape Verde off the coast of Africa has turned into a queasy nightmare for hundreds of tourists returning home. A multi-country outbreak of Shigella bacteria, a common but sometimes serious stomach bug, has been traced back to travel from the island since last fall. Over 200 cases…
A new outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus has infected a suspected 25 people and potentially killed nine in the Central African country of Equatorial Guinea, the World Health Organization announced this week.
An old drug used to treat urinary tract infections may have a new trick up its sleeve. In a recent case report, doctors in California say they used it to stop a brain-eating infection caused by an amoeba. Though the infection is very rare, it’s almost always fatal.
Would you be willing to potentially endure a week’s worth of diarrhea for some cold hard cash? If you said yes, then you’re in luck. Researchers at Emory University are now recruiting healthy volunteers to take part in a trial that will test an experimental oral vaccine against Shigella bacteria, which cause a common…
