The mosquito-born Zika virus may be responsible for an increase in birth defects in U.S. states and territories even in women who had no lab evidence of Zika exposure during pregnancy, U.S. health officials said on Thursday. Areas in which …
Two of the largest mass vaccination campaigns against yellow fever ever seen in the world have begun in Nigeria and Brazil. Both campaigns, which are supported by the World Health Organization, aim to prevent the spread of the disease. Nigeria …
Since late last year, Ugandan medical facilities have been grappling with a severe blood shortage. The crisis underscores a longer term struggle to get Ugandans to give blood. Halima Athumani reports for VOA from Kampala. …
The United States Food and Drug Administration will be talking about alternatives to cigarette smoking as it deliberates whether to approve a new product offered by tobacco companies that delivers nicotine to the user without burning tobacco. The American Lung …
The American Lung Association says fewer Americans smoke cigarettes now than before tobacco control policies were put in place. In its annual report, the ALA says smoking rates among adults and teens are at historic lows. On average, just over …
Sao Paulo closed its zoo and botanical gardens Tuesday as a yellow fever outbreak that has led to 70 deaths is picking up steam. The big Inhotim art park, which attracts visitors from all over the world, also announced …
U.S. mayors increasingly view climate change as a pressing urban issue, so much so that many advocate policies that could inconvenience residents or even hurt their cities financially. The annual survey of big-city executives, released Tuesday by the Boston University …
Drugmakers’ response to the threat posed by “superbugs” remains patchy even after years of warnings, according to the first analysis of individual companies’ efforts to tackle the antibiotic resistance crisis. The rise of drug-resistant bacteria is a growing threat to …
Of the 30 U.S. children who have died from the flu this season, some 85 percent likely will not have been vaccinated, said Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Dr. Brenda Fitzgerald, who urged Americans to get flu shots …
Spacewalking astronauts gave a hand to the International Space Station’s big robot arm Tuesday. As the federal government geared back up 250 miles below, NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Scott Tingle successfully installed the new mechanical gripper. Because of …
Uganda’s cancer patients can finally breathe a sigh of relief after the country got a new cobalt-60 radiation treatment machine. But, health officials say this may not be enough because of an ever increasing number of cancer cases in the …
The number of confirmed cases of yellow fever outbreak in Brazil has tripled in recent weeks, with 20 deaths since July, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Monday. Of 35 confirmed cases, 20 were in Sao Paulo state, which …
A device that heats tobacco without burning it reduces some of the harmful chemicals in traditional cigarettes, but government scientists say it’s unclear if that translates into lower rates of disease for smokers who switch. U.S. regulators published a mixed …
Scientists are reporting progress on a blood test to detect many types of cancer at an early stage, including some of the most deadly ones that lack screening tools now. Many groups are working on liquid biopsy tests, which look …
The World Health Organization’s director general is calling on the agency’s 192 member states to adopt universal health care as the best way of guaranteeing health for all. This is the first time Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has addressed the 34-member …
Some New Caledonian crows craft hooked tools out of branched twigs, and Scottish biologists have discovered why – the birds can extract food from cracks and crevises several times faster than by using straight twigs. “It is a painstaking sequence …
Malawi is once again grappling with an invasion of fall armyworms, which ravaged crops across parts of Africa in 2016 and 2017 and aggravated food insecurity. Amid a shortage of pesticides in Malawi, some farmers are turning to homemade concoctions. …
Once a hugely productive gold mine in the western state of South Dakota, it is now being used as an underground research lab where scientists are trying to learn more about the universe. VOA’s Lesya Bakalets and Serge Sokolov went …
Rough estimates say about 2 of every 100 people around the world have or need replacement joints. Now, some Polish doctors are using stem cell technology to rebuild worn out cartilage, instead of replacing it with metal. VOA’s Kevin Enochs …
A U.S.-based center says in a new report the eradication of the painful Guinea worm disease could be in sight. The Carter Center, leader of the campaign to eliminate the disease, says there were only 30 identified cases of Guinea …
Heart disease kills more than 17 million people around the world every year. It’s the world’s leading cause of death. Scientists are now using artificial intelligence to help them diagnose this deadly disease. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …
The flu season in the U.S. is getting worse. Health officials last week said flu was blanketing the country, but they thought there was a good chance the season was peaking. But the newest numbers out Friday show it grew …
Christa McAuliffe’s lost lessons are finally getting taught in space. Thirty-two years after the Challenger disaster, a pair of teachers-turned-astronauts will pay tribute to McAuliffe by carrying out her science classes on the International Space Station. As NASA’s first designated …
Fighting the flu usually consists of using predictive research to create a vaccine that fights the strains of the disease most likely to show up. But scientists around the world are closing in on a universal vaccine that takes the …