Viruses, Infections & Disease, features and articles | Educational Science

Feb 4, 2016

Super Bowl Teams' Cities See Spike in Flu Deaths

Football fans in Denver and Charlotte might want to be extra vigilant about hand washing during the Big Game this Sunday — a new study finds that cities whose teams play in the Super Bowl have an increase in deaths due to flu that year. The study analyzed information on...

Apr 21, 2016

Did Prince Die from the Flu? How the Virus Kills

Exactly what caused the death of singer-songwriter Prince today (April 21) at age 57 is still unknown; however, some reports suggest that he may have died of the flu, which he was hospitalized for several days ago, his publicist told news sources. People often underestimate how deadly the flu is,...

Jun 23, 2016

No Flu Nasal Spray Next Season: Why Is This Vaccine Not Working?

People who prefer to get the nasal spray version of the flu vaccine, as opposed to the flu shot, will be out of luck next season: Health officials say the nasal spray should not be used this coming fall and winter. The decision was based on new data showing that...

Sep 1, 2016

Triathlete Deaths Possibly Linked to Fluid in the Lungs

The popularity of triathlons — races in which competitors run, bike and swim — has exploded over the past 15 years. According to USA Triathlon, the leading group that organizes races, the number of people with one-day memberships (indicating race participation) stood at more than 447,000 in 2014, compared with...

Sep 6, 2016

Pediatricians Issue New Flu Shot Recommendations for Kids

Children ages 6 months and older should receive the flu vaccine by an injection this flu season, and should not get the nasal flu spray because it doesn't provide enough protection against the virus, according to new recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Research conducted by the Centers for...

Sep 29, 2016

Flu Vaccination Rates Decline Among Older Adults

If just 5 percent more people in the U.S. got the flu shot, 800,000 illnesses and 10,000 hospitalizations could be prevented, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Around 46 percent of Americans above 6 months of age got a flu vaccination last year, Dr. Tom Frieden,...

Oct 2, 2016

Alternative Treatments Linked to Skipping Flu Shots

Children who have been treated with certain forms of complementary or alternative medicine may be less likely to get the flu vaccine, according to a new study. The exact reason behind this link is not clear. However, it may be because the health care providers involved in complementary and alternative...

Nov 11, 2016

Flu Risk May Depend on Birth Year

The year in which you were born may predict your risk of getting some types of the flu, a new study of people in Asia and the Middle East suggests. Researchers found that the people in this study who were born before 1968 were less susceptible to a certain strain...

Nov 21, 2016

Are Colds and Flu Worse in Women Than in Men?

Colds and the flu may take a bigger toll on women than men, according to a new study based on people's reports of their own symptoms. The women in the study were more likely than the men in the study to report severe fatigue and muscle aches when they had...

Jan 12, 2017

No More Flu Shot? Search Begins for Universal Influenza Vaccine

No one wants to catch the flu, and the best line of defense is the seasonal influenza vaccine. But producing an effective annual flu shot relies on accurately predicting which flu strains are most likely to infect the population in any given season. It requires the coordination of multiple health...

Jan 20, 2017

Rare Bird Flu Strikes Cats: What You Need to Know

A rare strain of bird flu recently surfaced in sick cats in New York. Tests have confirmed that 386 cats housed in New York City's Animal Care Centers (ACC) were infected with the H7N2 strain of the influenza virus, The New York Times reported. One veterinarian who had prolonged exposure...

Feb 9, 2017

Winter Sickness: How to Tell If It's a Cold or the Flu

It's wintertime, which means plenty of people are coughing, sneezing and blowing their noses. But if you or a loved one start to show these symptoms, how do you know if it's the flu, or just a really bad cold? It's not easy to tell the difference between a cold...

Feb 16, 2017

Warning on Flu: It's Not Going Away Just Yet, CDC Says

Flu season may have started several months ago, but it isn't going away just yet — U.S. health officials expect flu activity to remain high for at least a few more weeks, according to a new report. The report, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said that flu...

Mar 3, 2017

Deadly 'H7N9' Avian Flu Spreads in China

A particularly deadly strain of avian flu, currently found in China, has infected more people there this flu season than it has in any season since the virus was identified, a new report finds. From October 2016 to February 2017, 460 people were reported infected with the H7N9 virus, according...

Apr 3, 2017

Kids' Risk of Dying from Flu Lower When Vaccinated

Kids who are vaccinated against the flu can still get sick from the virus; vaccination does not provide perfect protection. However, vaccinated kids are still much less likely to die from the flu than children who are not vaccinated against the illness, according to a new study. In the study,...