Washington, United States | AFP | A cheap, portable device can warn of a person’s vulnerability to infectious diseases like measles, which kills tens of thousands of people each year, mainly in developing countries, researchers said Wednesday. The test, called the Measles-Rubella Box (MR Box), uses a finger-prick volume of …
Read More »Minister Aceng tasks Lango districts to ban Sachet Waragi
Lira, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Health Minister, Dr. Jane Aceng has directed the eight districts in Lango region to immediately pass laws banning the sale of sachet waragi. The district are Dokolo, Oyam, Apac, Lira, Kole, Alebtong, Amolatar and Otuke. In September 2-17, government banned the sale of sachet …
Read More »COMMENT: Teaching drugs new tricks
`Systematic drug repositioningâ seeks to make drugs developed for one illness capable of treating another COMMENT | ARIS PERSIDISÂ & ANDREAS PERSIDIS |Â Producing effective medicines requires huge investments of time and money. The average drug on the market today spent a decade in the lab and in clinical trials, and cost …
Read More »World’s first penis, scrotum transplant done in US
Washington, United States | AFP | Doctors at Johns Hopkins University said Monday they have performed the world’s first total penis and scrotum transplant on a US military serviceman who was wounded in Afghanistan. The 14-hour operation took place on March 26, and was performed by a team of nine …
Read More »Sitting harms brain health
And it doesnât matter how much exercise you put in Kampala, Uganda |Â CATHERINE PADDOCK | Too much sitting may not be good for the brain, according to a preliminary study of adults who have reached middle age and beyond. Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) discovered that …
Read More »THIS WEEK: 11 patients with abnormal heartbeat treated at Mulago
THIS WEEK: 11 patients with abnormal heartbeat treated at Mulago Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT |Â Doctors at the Uganda Heart Institute corrected heartbeat anomalies in 11 patients in a medical procedure known as Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA). RFA is a medical procedure where part of the electrical conduction system of the …
Read More »Saudi women’s fitness centre shut over ‘indecent’ video
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | AFP | Saudi sports authorities shut down a female fitness centre in Riyadh Friday over a contentious promotional video that appeared to show a woman in figure-hugging workout attire. “We are not going to tolerate this,” Saudi sports authority chief Turki al-Sheikh tweeted as he ordered …
Read More »Zimbabwe nurses stage public protest after being sacked
Harare, Zimbabwe | AFP | Scores of Zimbabwe nurses on Friday protested in Harare’s central city park after the government dismissed them for striking over low salaries and poor working conditions. The nurses, who wore their white uniforms, demanded the government reverse its decision to fire the majority of the …
Read More »MOTORING: AMG to ditch V12 engines
Kampala, Uganda | MOTORING GURU |Â Say it isn’t so! Mercedes-AMG expected to adopt hybrid turbo V8 as its flagship engine As the march of technology continues and emissions regulations begin to bite, automotive juggernauts will fall by the wayside. Case in point, the Mercedes-AMG M279 engine, known outside Benz nerd …
Read More »COMMENT: How corruption impedes healthcare
Today, some 800 million people spend at least 10% of their household budgets on health payments COMMENT | SANIA NISHTAR |Â Half of the planet cannot access essential health services. For many people, paying to see a doctor, obtaining medications, seeking family-planning advice, or even getting immunised against common illnesses is …
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