According to the weekly bulletin of the Sentinelles network, the incidence of influenza crossed the epidemic threshold last week, with 231 cases detected in general practice per 100,000 inhabitants. A figure that exceeds the epidemic threshold (179 cases per 100,000 inhabitants). At regional level, the highest rates of incidence were found in: Limousin, Auvergne and […]
A study conducted by Inserm’s Centre for Epidemiology on Medical Causes of Death (CépiDc) and the Paris public hospital system (AP-HP) highlights an association between suicide rate and unemployment in metropolitan France between 2000 and 2010. The statistical model actually reveals a mean 1.5% increase in suicide rate, both sexes combined, for a 10% increase […]
In metropolitan France last week, the incidence rate for cases of acute diarrhoea seen in general practice was estimated at 253 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, i.e. 160,000 new cases, higher than the previous week, and just below the epidemic threshold (269 cases per 100,000 inhabitants). At regional level, the highest rates of incidence were found […]
In Guinea, the epidemic caused by Ebola infection is still in the active phase nearly one year after it began. It is essential that measures for surveillance, control and management be accompanied by study of innovative therapies in order to reduce mortality. Potentially useful drugs include favipiravir (T-705), an antiviral drug already tested against influenza […]
The human immunodeficiency virus, named HIV, is a sexually transmitted disease that targets the immune system and weakens body’s systems that detect and defend against infection and certain types of cancer (source: World Health Organisation). AIDS is the abbreviated term for acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and is the most advanced stage of HIV infection. With more […]
In the absence of specific treatments for Ebola, international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) announced today that it will host clinical trials in three Ebola treatment centres in West Africa. The separate trials, which are aimed at quickly finding an effective therapy that can be used against the disease which has […]
Diabetes type 1 or type 2 is a chronic disease caused by an insufficient mass of pancreatic beta cells, which produce insulin, or by poor use of this hormone by the body. This results in an elevated level of glucose in the bloodstream (hyperglycaemia), and may lead to serious complications (infarct, impaired vision, blindness, stroke, […]
Commonly referred to as a “stroke”, a Cerebrovascular Accident results from the interruption of blood flow to the brain. The deprivation of oxygen and essential nutrients causes brain cells to die, leading to permanent damage (speech or writing difficulty, memory problems, bodily paralysis to a greater or lesser extent), or even sudden death. World Cerebrovascular […]
A paralysed man has been able to walk again after being treated by Polish surgeons at Wroclaw in south-west Poland. According to AFP, two years ago Darek Fidyka underwent two operations in Poland, performed by a team of doctors led by Dr Pawel Tabakow from Wrocław Medical University. This operation was the result of the […]
World Arthritis Day, which is held on 12 October every year, is aimed at raising awareness among the general public, health professions and public authorities, about the size of the burden generated by this disease. A leading cause of disability in the over 40s, rheumatic diseases are, for the most part, chronic inflammatory disorders. Collectively […]