Latest news with #CenterforDiseaseControl
RTHK
3 days ago
- Business
- RTHK
Trump layoffs appeal falls on deaf ears
Trump layoffs appeal falls on deaf ears Protesters show what's at stake in April outside the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta as mass layoffs of 10,000 staff at health agencies begin. File photo: Reuters A US appeals court has refused to pause a judge's ruling blocking President Donald Trump's administration from carrying out mass layoffs of federal workers and a restructuring of government agencies as part of a sweeping government overhaul. The decision on Friday by the San Francisco-based Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals means that, for now, the Trump administration cannot proceed with plans to shed tens of thousands of federal jobs and shutter many government offices and programs. US district judge Susan Illston in San Francisco on May 22 blocked large-scale layoffs at about 20 federal agencies, agreeing with a group of unions, nonprofits and municipalities that the president may only restructure agencies when authorized by Congress. A three-judge Ninth Circuit panel denied the Trump administration's bid to stay Illston's decision pending an appeal, which could take months to resolve. The administration will likely now ask the Supreme Court to pause the ruling. (Reuters)
Time of India
6 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
Coronavirus Symptoms: Covid sees high number of cases in India: Signs and symptoms of long COVID in children
One of the biggest repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic is long COVID, a condition where symptoms persist long after the initial infection has passed. What made long COVID especially tough for those who have it is that many of the health concerns weren't taken seriously. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Researchers have been studying long COVID ever since, and have now listed down the key symptoms, especially in young children. Long COVID can affect people of every age, including children. However, the lasting symptoms differ based on their age: an infant, toddler, or pre-school-aged child, or older children. Researchers at Mass General Brigham have identified the key symptoms of long COVID in young children. The research is published in . What is long COVID As per the Center for Disease Control (CDC), long COVID is a chronic condition that occurs after SARS-CoV-2 infection and is present for at least 3 months. Those with long COVID exhibit a wide range of symptoms or conditions that may improve, worsen, or be ongoing. Individuals who have had severe COVID-19 have a higher chance of having long COVID. Symptoms in infants and toddlers In children younger than 2 years old, symptoms of long COVID can be difficult to detect, especially as they are unable to talk discomfort. According to the study, caregivers reported the following common symptoms: Trouble sleeping Fussiness Poor appetite Stuffy nose Cough Symptoms in pre-school-aged children The researchers observed that, for children aged 3 to 5, the symptoms were somewhat different. The common symptoms were: Dry cough Daytime tiredness or low energy What do the experts think 'This study is important because it shows that long COVID symptoms in young children are different from those in older children and adults,' co-first author Tanayott (Tony) Thaweethai, PhD, associate director of Biostatistics Research and Engagement at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School said in a release. 'Children with these symptoms often had worse overall health, lower quality of life, and delays in development.' In the new study, the researchers focused on the long symptoms in infants, toddlers, and preschool-age children. They evaluated 472 infants/toddlers and 539 preschool-aged children. Participants were enrolled between March 2022 and July 2024 from more than 30 health care and community settings across the US. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The group included children who had tested positive for COVID-19 and those who had never been infected. The scientists then observed the symptoms lasting at least 90 days after COVID infection as reported by the caregivers. They also compared children who had not been previously infected to those with a history of COVID to see which symptoms persisted. In the children who had been previously infected, 40 of 278 infants/toddlers (14%) and 61 of 399 preschool-aged children (15%) were classified as likely having long COVID. 'Died Within 8 Hrs Of Taking Pfizer Vaccine': Chilling Covid Testimony By Dr McCullough 'We found a distinguishable pattern for both age groups of young children, including symptoms that are different than what we see in older children and adults. The tools from this study can be used in future studies to better understand long COVID in young children and develop ways to care for them,' co-senior author Andrea Foulkes, ScD, director of Biostatistics at MGH, professor in the Department of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and professor in the Department of Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health said.
News18
14-05-2025
- Health
- News18
What Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome In India, What's The Approach For Effective Treatment? Explained
Last Updated: Characterised by extreme fatigue that could last for six months, women are more likely than men to get diagnosed with CFS. Symptoms include brain fog, headaches, sore throat Feeling overtired and extreme lack of energy for weeks? You could be suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), also known as, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (ME). Characterised by extreme fatigue that could last for six months, CFS remains poorly understood in Indian context, where research and awareness are limited. While anyone can be affected by the syndrome, but women are more frequently diagnosed with it. What Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome? The CFS can be complicated, with extreme fatigue in a person that lasts for at least six months and cannot be fully explained by any underlying medical condition. According to doctors, fatigue worsens with physical or mental activity in people who suffer from this condition, but it doesn't improve with rest. Most recently, the condition is termed systemic exertional intolerance disease (SEID). 'We don't see it daily. In the case of chronic fatigue syndrome, it is like a diagnosis of exclusion. We exclude all other diseases and then, at last, when we don't know where to place the patient, that is when we call it chronic fatigue syndrome," she explains. According to doctors, most forms of fatigue encountered have identifiable causes such as diabetes, cardiac conditions, cancer, to even side-effects of medications such as antibiotics. Bu there is no single test to diagnose CFS. There is a need to conduct a variety of medical tests to rule out other health problems that have similar symptoms. Additionally, the treatment focuses on improving symptoms. Due to this lack of tests, doctors often have a hard time describing this disease. This extreme exhaustion affects women twice to four times as often as men, according to several studies. It affects individuals who show no signs of thyroid dysfunction, cardiac conditions, or diabetes. Some experts have also found viral infections to be the known triggers. Viruses such as the Epstein-Barr virus, cytomegalovirus, other herpes group infections and long Covid have been known to act as triggers, as per a Hindu report. However, what causes this unknown condition that typically affects women between the ages of 25 to 45 years is still not known. Health experts maintain that it can affect adolescents and children as well. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that 836,000 to 2.5 million Americans suffer from CFS. However, the majority of them are undiagnosed. Reportedly, the United States loses between US$9 to 25 billion each year in reduced productivity and medical expenses due to CFS. However, statistics on this condition in India are limited. What Does The WHO Say? According to the World Health Organization (WHO), CFS is primarily considered a neurological disorder, as it involves abnormalities in brain function and the nervous system, particularly in the regulation of neurochemicals that influence energy, pain tolerance, and mood. In India, the condition often goes underdiagnosed or misattributed to lifestyle factors, nutritional deficiencies like vitamin B12 or iron, or even psychiatric issues due to a lack of widespread awareness and limited dedicated programmes or policies. Despite being a significant problem, CFS is not yet a public health priority in India, though awareness has started rising after the Covid-19, especially in urban areas. What Are The Symptoms? People suffering from this condition can have a hard time doing very basic physical acts. According to doctors, chronic fatigue syndrome usually has the most common symptom of fatigue, especially after physical or mental exercise. When a person suffers from CFS, they feel very tired and exhausted symptoms persist for more than six months. There are also symptoms like memory issues and brain fog, headaches, sore throat, enlarged lymph nodes in the neck and armpits, and muscle and joint pains. There are difficulties in focus and also dizziness while getting up from lying down or sitting. Moreover, the diseases which cause similar symptoms like anaemia, diabetes, and thyroid diseases are ruled out by the doctor before labeling a person as CFS. Some diseases like fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, depression, and sleep disorders may coexist with CFS. CFS can lead to sleep disorders where a person feels sleep all the time but is unable to sleep and does not feel fresh after a sleep. He could experience intense and vivid dreaming, restlessness, night-time muscle spasm and sleep apnea. They can also experience gastrointestinal problems, nightsweats, muscle weakness, shortness of breath, anxiety or panic attacks and low-grade fever. Diagnosis And Treatment There is a lack of specific tests for diagnosing CFS, which has forced patients to remain untreated and live with pain for years. There are instances in which a doctor has witnessed only 4-5 cases of CFS in a decade in India. According to doctors and health experts, there is no specific cure or treatment for CFS. However, symptoms that are most problematic are addressed first. A report by The Financial Express said in order to diagnose CFS symptoms of chronic fatigue are important. And that sleep does not relieve the symptom of fatigue; different body aches and pain are there that are not explained by any other health condition. Thus, treatment such as psychological counselling, adequate health supplements such as vitamin E, and vitamin D sometimes help to overcome the weakness and improve overall well-being. A good, healthy diet and regular physical exercise, yoga, and meditation can also help the patient to come out of the chronic fatigue syndrome. Since the causes of CFS are still unknown, it is difficult to prevent. tags : fatigue mental health News18 Explains Location : New Delhi, India, India First Published: May 14, 2025, 16:25 IST News explainers What Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome In India, What's The Approach For Effective Treatment? Explained
New York Post
09-05-2025
- Health
- New York Post
Don't splash out for this coveted cruise ship extra — it's a breeding ground for disease, experts warn
Cruising toward disaster? Cruise ship passengers splash out big bucks for private hot tubs in their own staterooms all the time — but the Center for Disease Control is warning against the exclusive amenity, calling them a bubbling breeding ground for Legionnaires' disease. In a damning statement reported on by Travel + Leisure, the CDC linked 12 cases of the severe pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria to private hot tubs on two cruise ships between November 2022 and June 2024. 3 In a scathing October 2024 report, the CDC connected 12 cases of Legionnaires' disease to private hot tubs on two cruise ships from November 2022 to June 2024. Photographer: Losevsky Pavel Ten passengers were hospitalized in those incidents. 'Epidemiologic, environmental, and laboratory evidence suggests that private balcony hot tubs were the likely source of exposure in two outbreaks of Legionnaires disease among cruise ship passengers,' the shocking report notes. 'These devices are subject to less stringent operating requirements than are public hot tubs, and operating protocols were insufficient to prevent Legionella growth.' Unlike public hot tubs, private hot tubs weren't required to meet certain rigorous cleaning standards, according to insiders. Hot tubs can be a source of Legionella growth and transmission when they are inadequately maintained and operated, a CDC spokesperson told T+L. 3 Private hot tubs weren't held to the same strict cleaning rules as public ones — until now. Hot tubs can be a source of Legionella when inadequately maintained, a CDC spokesperson told Travel + Leisure. serg3d 'It is important for cruise ship operators to inventory hot tub–style devices across their fleets, evaluate the design features that increase the risk for Legionella growth and transmission, and test for Legionella,' they told the outlet. For cruise-goers, the CDC advises testing the cleanliness of the hot tub before use. 'Travelers can use test strips to test hot tub water to find out if the hot tub is being properly operated,' the CDC spokesperson added. 3 Norovirus — the cruise ship scourge — is also back with a vengeance. The new GII.17 strain has driven nearly 80% of 2,400 U.S. cases since last summer, per the CDC. u4219699853 Meanwhile, Legionnaires isn't the only unwelcome guest on deck. Norovirus — a notorious cruise ship nemesis — is also making waves. This year, a new strain called GII.17 has fueled a surge in outbreaks, accounting for nearly 80% of the 2,400 reported norovirus cases in the U.S. since last summer, according to the CDC. 'It's new to the population,' Lee-Ann Jaykus, a food microbiologist and virologist at North Carolina State University, recently told the Associated Press. Most people don't have immunity to the germ, so it can spread more widely, she explained. And it spreads fast. People infected with norovirus typically shed 'literally billions of viral particles,' Donald Schaffner, a food safety expert at Rutgers University, said, per the AP. 'And it only takes a few viral particles to make someone sick,' he informed the news agency company. If you see someone vomiting, Schaffner suggests, 'immediately walk away from them, ideally into the wind.' Adding insult to injury, the CDC's Vessel Sanitation Program — the watchdog that inspects cruise ships and investigates outbreaks — recently lost key staffers due to federal budget cuts. 'If you want to have no disease outbreaks, all you have to do is fire all the epidemiologists,' Schaffner quipped. 'And there'll be no one there to investigate.' So, next time you book a cruise, consider skipping the hot tub — or at least bring your own test strips and plenty of soap.
Japan Times
05-04-2025
- Health
- Japan Times
As U.S. ditches diversity in clinical trials, all eyes on Europe
The United States once led the world in running clinical trials that aimed to look like the nation at large. Now it is dumping equality goals and slashing health research, so experts are looking to Europe and Britain to plug the diversity gap. Racial health inequality manifests in many ways — be it discriminatory treatment or higher death rates — but one glaring disparity kicks in at the get-go with the testing of all drugs, medical devices and treatments pre-launch. Studies show that ethnic minorities are far less likely to volunteer for such trials, a fact that health experts put down to mistrust of the health system, fear and misinformation. So when the pandemic showed that Black, Asian, Hispanic and other minority communities were worse hit by COVID-19 than white populations, governments, researchers and pharmaceutical firms all committed to greater diversity in future clinical trials. Recruiting more volunteers from different genders, sex, ages and ethnic groups is key to treating diseases more effectively and addressing disparities, health experts say. The United States was the first country to require companies to test medicines and devices in diverse populations when it brought in draft guidance in 2022, due to be finalized this year. "Diversity in clinical trials is not about an ideological position. It's about scientific accuracy and medical progress," said Joshua Sharfstein, a former top official at the U.S. regulatory body the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But that progress now hangs in limbo as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration guts staff and funding from health departments, and scrubs diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies from federal agencies. Demonstrators hold up signs while protesting outside the Center for Disease Control, in Atlanta, after the Trump administration began mass layoffs this month. | reuters The FDA's Diversity Action Plan draft guidance was among several U.S. government webpages removed in January due to "gender ideology" before a court order reinstated it. Researchers and health campaigners say it is unclear whether the United States will now implement the diversity guidance, as mandated by the 2022 Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act. The FDA and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the agency, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The government on Tuesday began cutting 10,000 jobs at public health agency the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the FDA, and the National Institutes of Health, the leading funder of global medical research. "It's a very chaotic situation and one hopes for the best and one fears for the worst," said physician Robert Steinbrook, director of health research at U.S. advocacy group Public Citizen. "If the FDA were to abandon the scientific progress that has been made because of 'gender ideology' or other concepts which are quite ambiguous... it would be a big step backwards," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. Samantha Artiga, director of racial equity at U.S. health policy group KFF, said positive post-COVID initiatives could lose momentum under Trump. "We're likely to continue to see under-representation of groups in trials, particularly people of colour and women and other historically under-served groups," she said. A 2022 Lancet paper analyzing 20 years of studies showed that less than half of all U.S.-based trials included race and ethnicity data. Despite Black patients representing 21% of COVID-19 deaths, they made up only 3% of U.S. vaccine trials, the study reported. Mayur Murali, a researcher at Imperial College London, found similar trends in a 2023 paper studying British vaccine take-up. Asian volunteers made up 5.8% of all the COVID-19 vaccine trials analyzed and 1% of Black people were included despite these populations having higher mortality rates than white people, according to official data. Fear and mistrust of the health system contributed to their exclusion from the trials, said Murali. "With COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy for example, there was a lot of mistrust amongst ethnic minority communities and a lot of it was to do with misinformation and feeling locked out." According to a 2024 survey of over 8,000 people by research group Ipsos, 41% of ethnic minorities were willing to volunteer in a trial compared to 61% of white respondents, citing fear of side effects and mistrust of pharmaceutical companies. "If you can make that process transparent. ... I think people would be very happy to be involved," Murali said. With the United States turning its back on diversity initiatives, researchers hope Britain and Europe will step up. "I'm worried that the U.S. is not talking about equity, diversity and inclusion anymore," said Sonia Anand, a professor of medicine and epidemiology at McMaster University in Canada. "I really hope that these other governments will continue along the path to promoting the importance of equitable inclusion into clinical trials." There are promising signs. The World Health Organization last year released global guidance to improve diversity in trials. In Europe, a consortium of 73 private and public organizations launched Research in Europe and Diversity Inclusion (READI) in January to tackle the under-representation. British drugmaker GSK, which is part of READI, said the demand to conduct trials that are representative of the different populations and countries they work in remained high. Pfizer and Moderna, makers of COVID-19 vaccines, said they were committed to boosting diversity in clinical trials. In January, Britain began consulting on how best to reflect diverse ethnicity, age, sex and gender in clinical research. Naho Yamazaki, who is spearheading the draft guidance at Britain's Health Research Authority, said it was crucial the guidance truly removes barriers and was not just a "tick box" exercise. "Reducing health disparity requires far more than just equitable representation in clinical research. It's got to be a global effort ultimately. It's not a quick thing, but the momentum is here," Yamazaki said.
