Health

MADRID: Spanish virologists have found traces of the novel coronavirus in a sample of Barcelona wastewater collected in March 2019, nine months before the COVID-19 disease was identified in China, the University of Barcelona said on Friday. The discovery of virus genome presence so early in Spain, if confirmed, would imply the disease may have appeared much earlier than the …

GENEVA: The World Health Organisation said on Friday that a global initiative to speed up the development and production of Covid-19 tests, vaccines and treatments will require more than $30 billion over the next year. Providing details of the so-called ACT accelerator, launched in April and aimed at pooling international resources to combat the pandemic, WHO said “the costed plans …

QUETTA: One more polio case was reported from Balochistan on Thursday, taking the countrywide figure for this year to 54.  According to health officials, the latest victim of the virus is a nine-month-old infant hailing from district Dalbandin in Chagai area of Balochistan. This is the fourteenth polio virus case that has reared its head in the province during the …

bact LONDON: A preliminary study of patients hospitalised with COVID-19 has found the disease can damage the brain, causing complications such as stroke, inflammation, psychosis and dementia-like symptoms in some severe cases. The findings are the first detailed look at a range of neurological complications of COVID-19, the researchers said, and underline a need for larger studies to find the …

LONDON: A preliminary study of patients hospitalised with COVID-19 has found the disease can damage the brain, causing complications such as stroke, inflammation, psychosis and dementia-like symptoms in some severe cases. The findings are the first detailed look at a range of neurological complications of COVID-19, the researchers said, and underline a need for larger studies to find the mechanisms …

ZURICH: Many studies assessing the accuracy of Covid-19 antibody tests had major shortcomings, a review released on Thursday concluded, offering further evidence the blood tests are of little use for people seeking to know with certainty if they have been infected. Cochrane, a British-based journal that reviews research evidence to help decision makers adopt better health policies, looked at 54 …

PESHAWAR: Dr Palitha Mahipala, the World Health Organisation representative in Pakistan, has donated two latest PCR machines to the health department as part of strategy to improve testing capacity for Covid-19 of the government and deal with the pandemic effectively. He met with Health Minister Taimur Saleem Khan Jhagra and discussed with him matter regarding the province’s response to the …

Ceiling fixtures emitting a safe form of ultraviolet light called far-UVC would be very efficient at killing airborne coronaviruses, according to a study by researchers at Columbia University. “A very low exposure to far-UVC light killed well over 99.9% of the exposed virus,” lead researcher Dr. David Brenner told Reuters. The researchers put coronavirus particles into little droplets and floated …

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Industries and Production Hammad Azhar on Thursday said that the Ministry of Industries has held a meeting with major oxygen producers to ensure the supply of oxygen to hospitals on a priority basis. In a Tweet, the minister said that it has been decided in the meeting to ensure the supply/redirect of oxygen to Healthcare on …

CHICAGO: An influential foundation, CEPI, focused on preparation and response to epidemics that is backing nine potential coronavirus vaccines has identified manufacturers with capacity to produce four billion doses a year, the group’s top manufacturing expert told Reuters. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovation (CEPI)plans to have two or three manufacturing plants for each vaccine, James Robinson, a longtime biopharma …