June 15, 2012
A roundup of news on drug resistance and other topics in global health.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first vaccine that protects infants against both meningococcal disease and haemophilus influenza. [Yahoo]
NPR continues their coverage of antibiotic usage in animals in this in-depth interview on Fresh Air. [NPR]
A new study in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology reports that the number of patients admitted to New York City hospitals with cases of community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) more than tripled between the years 1997-2006. [ScienceDaily]
Colistin, a 50-year-old antibiotic previously rejected by doctors due to its tendency to cause kidney damage, is now being reintroduced to fight new drug-resistant infections. [Bloomberg]
An international team of researchers are developing new, less toxic aminoglycoside antibiotics that could be used to treat resistant forms of tuberculosis, according to a study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. [MedCompare]
A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine shows that scientists have successfully used genome sequencing technology to control a simulated MRSA outbreak. [HuffPo]
New research published in Health Affairs finds that Hospital at Home, a new health care model in which patients receive treatments at home, has lower costs and length of stay for patients, as well as higher quality of care and patient satisfaction. [Forbes]
The National Institute of Health s Fogarty International Center writes about the wide-reaching benefits of global health research to the US economy. [FIC]
A study published in the journal Pediatrics found that delivering regular hand-washing instructions to children in kindergarten and grade school significantly reduced both illness and absenteeism. [The Atlantic]
The FDA has expanded its online food safety tracking system, the Reportable Foods Registry, to include more data fields related to contamination agents. [Food Safety News]
Scientists at the University of California, Irvine have genetically engineered a mosquito that blocks the creation and transmission of the infectious malaria parasite. [ScienceDaily]
Researchers from Ethiopia and Norway have developed a mathematical model to forecast malaria outbreaks up to two months in advance. [ScienceNordic]
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Image: mitikusa/Flickr
