Infectious Disease

Take A Deep Breath: That Clarinet Could Be A Germ Factory

March 31, 2011 • Researchers found bacteria, mold and fungus in tests of more than a dozen children's band instruments. The parts musicians put in their mouths were the most contaminated.

Nine Dead In Alabama After IV Treatment

March 30, 2011 • A pharmacy that produces intravenous solutions is the potential common source for an outbreak of blood infections that has sickened 19 people at six hospitals. The products have been recalled.

Tuberculosis Declines In The U.S., Affecting Mostly Those Born Overseas

Two students receive a tuberculin test in New York City, 1962. Library of Congress hide caption

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Library of Congress

Tuberculosis Declines In The U.S., Affecting Mostly Those Born Overseas

March 25, 2011 • Tuberculosis rates in 2010 were the lowest they've been since 1953 – when it first began tracking them. The disease now mainly affects people living in the U.S. who were born somewhere else.

FDA Gives OK To Broader Use Of Shingles Vaccine

March 25, 2011 • Zostavax, a vaccine against shingles, is now approved for people 50 to 59 years old. The vaccine, given in a single shot, was previously for use in people 60 years and older.

Risky Raccoon Roundworms Found In Pet Kinkajous

There's a risk of infection with roundworms from kinkajou poo. Joel Sartore/Getty Images hide caption

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Joel Sartore/Getty Images

Risky Raccoon Roundworms Found In Pet Kinkajous

March 17, 2011 • An intestinal worm that is common in raccoons has now been found in pet kinkajous. The worm eggs can be passed from animals to humans and cause serious infections, especially in children.

FDA Dispels Concerns About Heart Attacks And HIV Drug

March 2, 2011 • The agency crunched data from 26 randomized controlled trials, the gold standard in clinical tests, and decided they do not show an increased risk of heart attacks.

Hospitals Cut Deadly Bloodstream Infections, But Challenges Remain

A safety push had led to a decline in infections from central lines in ICUs. iStockphoto.com hide caption

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iStockphoto.com

Hospitals Cut Deadly Bloodstream Infections, But Challenges Remain

March 1, 2011 • Dangerous bloodstream infections in hospital intensive care units have fallen, thanks to a major safety push. But the infections, linked to catheters, are still a big problem elsewhere in hospitals and at kidney dialysis centers.

Effectiveness Isn't Enough To Get Truvada Prescribed For Prevention

Sales of Gilead's Truvada pill against HIV aren't getting a boost from data that show it can prevent infection. Paul Sakuma/AP hide caption

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Paul Sakuma/AP

Effectiveness Isn't Enough To Get Truvada Prescribed For Prevention

February 28, 2011 • Sales of a drug to treat HIV haven't showed a big increase since a study showed it could also prevent infection. An annual cost around $13,000 could be one reason.

Maryland Tries Carrot And Stick To Fight Hospital Infections

Maryland hospitals are promoting hand washing among other measures to prevent patient infections. Leah-Anne Thompson/iStockphoto.com hide caption

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Leah-Anne Thompson/iStockphoto.com

Maryland Tries Carrot And Stick To Fight Hospital Infections

Kaiser Health News

February 25, 2011 • A Maryland program to prevent hospital complications goes further than most, including those already under way in Medicare and new ones slated to begin next year under the health care overhaul law.

Questions Hang Over Safety Of Nation's Food Supply

Eggs were at the center of a big salmonella outbreak in 2010 that brought more attention to food safety. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Questions Hang Over Safety Of Nation's Food Supply

February 24, 2011 • New powers for the Food and Drug Administration and tamer estimates of foodborne illnesses in this country are not reasons to let our guard down on food safety.

Zinc May Help Fight Cold Symptoms After All

Evidence is piling up in support of zinc's ability to ease cold symptoms. iStockphoto.com hide caption

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iStockphoto.com

Zinc May Help Fight Cold Symptoms After All

February 16, 2011 • The latest review of the medical evidence about zinc finds that it can reduce the length of a cold by about a day, and helps reduce the severity of symptoms, too.

Why Keeping Girls Squeaky Clean Could Make Them Sick

Not all young girls avoid dirt. Hannah Rose Akerley, 7, plays in a gigantic lake of mud at the annual Mud Day event in Westland, Mich., last July. Bill Pugliano/Getty Images hide caption

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Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

Why Keeping Girls Squeaky Clean Could Make Them Sick

February 3, 2011 • How girls are socialized may account for some disparities in the illnesses that affect them compared with boys. Young boys are more likely to be allowed to get dirty, which may expose them to more germs that help temper their immune systems.

Gates Calls For More Money To Stamp Out Polio

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, his wife Melinda French Gates and British Prime Minister David Cameron at the World Economic Forum on January 28, 2011, in Davos, Switzerland. Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Johannes Eisele/AFP/Getty Images