World Health
Monkey Experiments Boost Hope For Human AIDS Vaccine
()The vaccine protected 80 percent of monkeys from infection with SIV, the simian version of HIV. By comparison, an experimental HIV vaccine was 31 percent effective in protecting people against infection in a large-scale study unveiled in 2009.
Shots - Health Blog
Snakebite Threat Gets Short Shrift()
December 6, 2011 Even at the low end of estimates, deaths from snakebites would exceed those from some better-known scourges, such as cholera, dengue fever and Chagas disease.
Shots - Health Blog
US AIDS Chief Says Tipping Point Is In Sight()
December 2, 2011 The cost to treat HIV-positive people in the developing world has dropped dramatically. And a key U.S. official says that the lower costs make it possible to treat many more people without increasing spending.
Social Entrepreneurs: Taking On World Problems
India Eye Care Center Finds Middle Way To Capitalism()
November 29, 2011 Founded in the 1970s in India to eliminate needless blindness, Aravind Eye Care has grown to 4,000 beds in seven hospitals — and its surgeons are among the most efficient in the world. The hospital system conducts 300,000 surgeries a year, and about half are free.
Social Entrepreneurs: Taking On World Problems
Selling Health Care In The Developing World()
November 22, 2011 Healthpoint Services says it has a business model that will not only help the world's low-income populations — but also make a profit. Based in India, the company offers patients videoconferences with doctors, cheap diagnostic tests and clean water. And it hopes to spawn imitators as it proves it can be profitable.
Shots - Health Blog
GAVI To Make HPV Vaccine Available In Developing Countries()
November 17, 2011 About 88 percent of cervical cancer deaths occur in developing countries. The deaths can be prevented by an HPV vaccine, which will be available to some women for the first time in 2012.
The Salt
When Forgettable Salads Cause A Deadly Outbreak()
October 28, 2011 The E. coli outbreak that sickened more than 4,300 people in May and June had epidemiologists scrambling to find the contaminated vegetables that caused it. What made it difficult, they say in a new paper, is that people had trouble remembering what exactly was in the salads they ate. In this case, the culprit turned out to be fenugreek seeds, but it was a long road to get there.