By Alan Mozes
HealthDay Reporter
TUESDAY, May 15 (HealthDay News) — Corticosteroid nasal sprays apparently are not a silver bullet when it comes to symptom relief for acute sinusitis patients, a new review suggests.
The British analysis of six prior studies found that the sprays confer only a small degree of benefit, and only after being taken for three weeks at relatively high doses.
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) — Those suffering from the common cold will try almost anything to relieve their symptoms, but a cure has yet to be found.
A new Canadian analysis has revealed that zinc tablets may help patients suffer a little less, but side effects are common.
By Denise Mann
HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, May 2 (HealthDay News) — Data in a formerly banned study detailing how the H5N1 avian (bird) flu virus can morph — with the possibility that it could spread from person to person and cause a global pandemic — may help nations prepare for the impending threat.
That’s some of the motivation for lifting the ban and publishing the study in the May 2 online issue of Nature, experts say.
TUESDAY, March 27 (HealthDay News) — The common cold appears to increase the number of “cough receptors” in the airways and makes them more sensitive, which triggers coughing, wheezing and breathlessness, a new study reports.
People with asthma are especially vulnerable to this virus-induced coughing, said the researchers from Queen’s University Belfast. The cough receptors also are known as transient receptor potential (TRP) receptors.
WEDNESDAY, March 21 (HealthDay News) — Most sinus infections are caused by viruses and should not be treated with antibiotics, which target bacteria and are useless against viruses, new expert guidelines state.
About 14 percent (one in seven) of people are diagnosed with a sinus infection each year, and sinus infections remain the fifth leading reason for an antibiotic prescriptions. However, between 90 percent and 98 percent of the infections are caused by viruses, which are not affected by antibiotics, according to the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), which released the new advisory on Wednesday.
By Alan Mozes
HealthDay Reporter
Wednesday, March 21 (HealthDay News) — When used in tandem with standard Western treatments, alternative therapies such as acupuncture, acupressure and dietary changes may spell significant relief for patients battling chronic sinusitis, a new pilot study suggests.
The authors say that their study is the first to explore the potential of combining Western medicine with Eastern therapies among these patients, who experience swollen and inflamed sinuses, facial pain, headaches and impaired breathing.
THURSDAY, March 8 (HealthDay News) — The belief that a seasonal flu shot is effective is far more likely to convince health care workers to get vaccinated than reminding them it will help safeguard patients, a new study suggests.
In many developed countries, it’s difficult to persuade frontline health care workers to get seasonal flu vaccinations in order to protect patients from the flu, the researchers noted.
TUESDAY, Feb. 28 (HealthDay News) — A new influenza A virus has been discovered in Guatemalan fruit bats, according to scientists at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Although the bat flu does not currently pose a threat to humans, the CDC team cautioned that more research is needed to determine if the virus could be a possible source of human flu.
MONDAY, Feb. 27 (HealthDay News) — Rapid diagnostic influenza tests provide an accurate diagnosis, and their use during flu season could lead to earlier treatment for patients and help prevent the spread of the illness, two new studies suggest.
The 2012 flu season is just beginning and, despite the late start, is expected to sicken up to 5 million people worldwide, experts say. Most patients will recover, but up to 500,000 will die, with the youngest and oldest patients most vulnerable.
By Randy Dotinga
HealthDay Reporter
THURSDAY, Feb. 23 (HealthDay News) — The avian flu, which killed almost 60 percent of those known to be infected, actually struck many more people worldwide but didn’t make them very sick, a new analysis finds.
The actual fatality rate of the H5N1 flu strain, therefore, is probably less than 60 percent considering that millions of people may have been infected over the past eight years, the researchers report.
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