Madely Health Headlines Commentary for August 30, 2011

New drug in early trials can kill most types of viral infections Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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New drug could cure nearly any viral infection

Reference:

Broad-Spectrum Antiviral Therapeutics

Madely Health Headlines Commentary for November 11, 2010

Polio outbreak in the Congo illustrates danger of complacency Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Congo Republic Declares a Polio Emergency

This is an illustration of what is presumed to be a safe region after universal polio vaccination yet when the vaccination rate drops off or an enclave of people decides not to vaccinate or who have not been vaccinated, the disease makes a comeback.

There remain parents who continue to reject vaccination for their children and despite their representing a minority, it does not take much to reduce the herd immunity level below the 90-95% level required to protect those who have not been vaccinated.

We need to acknowledge the lessons learned from more unfortunate regions of the world.

Madely Health Headlines for June 25, 2010

CMAJ issues warning over polio outbreak Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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CMAJ cautions against complacency over polio

Reference:

CMAJ editorial

How many people remember seeing a child with polio? The success of vaccination programs has created a situation that elegantly illustrates how we think about risk and danger. Because most people have no experience with the disease, many do not perceive it to be a danger anymore. However other areas of the world unfortunately do [...]

Global Polio Eradication Program Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Originally published in The Ottawa Citizen July 4, 2001 We know all too well the pain and suffering the victim, their families and friends endure from the scourge of AIDs. Imagine it’s the year 2051 and there is a vaccine for AIDs. AIDs has been virtually eliminated. Small outbreaks continue to occur but for the [...]