The latest in Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

AP Enterprise: NASA, cruise line got flu shots

2010-03-18T12:45:43Z

<div id="subtitle">AP Enterprise: Cruise line, NASA got swine flu shots early on; CDC says system worked well</div><div><p>Last fall, as swine flu cases mounted and parents desperately sought to protect their kids, the hard-to-get vaccine was handed out in some surprising places: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention successfully used a new tool for the first time — the shopper cards that millions of Americans swipe every time they buy groceries.</p><p>With permission from the pati...

CORRECTED: U.S. herpes rates remain high: CDC

2010-03-10T14:16:29Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - About 16 percent of Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 are infected with genital herpes, making it one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases, U.S. health officials said on Tuesday.</p><p>Black women had the highest rate of infection at 48 percent and women were nearly twice likely as men to be infected, according to an analysis by the Reuters) - About 16 percent of Americans between the ages of 14 and 49 are infected with genital herpes, making it one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases, U.S. health officials said on Tuesday.</p><p>Black women had the highest rate of infection at 48 percent and women were nearly twice likely as men to be infected, according to an analysis by the CHICAGO (Reuters) - Inoculating children against flu protects more people of all ages in the larger community, probably because young people tend to spread viruses through physical play, Canadian researchers said on Tuesday.</p><p>Researchers at McMaster University in Reuters Health) - Although studies in Africa have shown that circumcision can lower the spread of HIV among heterosexuals, it may not do much to prevent infections among gay and bisexual men in Western countries, a new study suggests.</p><p>A number of studies in African nations have found that circumcised heterosexual men were up to 60 percent l...

Clinton, beverage group: School efforts working

2010-03-08T14:30:27Z

<div id="subtitle">Ex-President Clinton, health and industry experts to detail school beverage efforts</div><div><p>The U.S. beverage industry has largely stopped delivering sugary drinks to schools and has replaced them with lower-calorie options, the head of the industry's trade association said Monday.</p><p>"It's a brand new day in America's sc...

Biggest swine flu regret for U.S.: vaccine chaos

2010-03-05T14:18:19Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - First, people were clamoring for H1N1 vaccines, but there were not enough to go around. By the time vaccines were available in any quantity, most of the public had lost interest.</p><p>And no one knew just how unpredictable the production of vaccines would turn out to be, top U.S. public health leaders agreed on Friday.</p><p>Getting the U.S. public to roll up thei...

More people sick on SC cruise ship that had virus

2010-03-05T11:30:28Z

<div><p>Passengers have again fallen ill with a stomach bug aboard a cruise ship hit by a virus last month on its previous trip from South Carolina.</p><p>Celebrity Cruise spokeswoman Cynthia Martinez said Friday that 55 of the nearly 1,900 passengers on board the Celebrity Mercury were sick.</p><p>More than 400 passengers and crew fell ill during a cruise that ended in

Safeway recalls potato salad over salmonella

2010-03-04T12:45:46Z

<div><p>Safeway Inc. said Thursday it is voluntarily recalling potato salad products over concerns about possible salmonella contamination.</p><p>Safeway said the two red potato salad with dill products were sold in its deli department at Safeway, Vons, Pavilions and Carrs stores in 10 states in the West.</p><p>Customers who purchased the products are asked to discard them or return them for a refund.<...

Travelers from Haiti bringing malaria to U.S.

2010-03-04T12:45:24Z

<div><p>CHICAGO (Reuters) - Health experts watching for signs of a malaria outbreak have noticed several cases of the mosquito-borne disease among people traveling back from Haiti, where an earthquake in January killed as many as 300,000 people.</p><p>So far, 11 laboratory-confirmed cases of malaria have been reported am...

Haiti refugees, aid workers risk malaria: US study

2010-03-04T11:19:19Z

<div><p>Hundreds of thousands of Haitians living in makeshift shelters and thousands of aid workers providing relief since a powerful quake rocked the country in January are now threatened by malaria, a US report said Thursday.</p><p>"Displaced persons living outdoors or in temporary shelters and thousands of emergency responders in Haiti are at substantial risk for malaria," the Michelle Obama visited Jackson on Wednesday and watched children play on swings and a jungle gym at a school whose programs have been lauded for fighting obesity by keeping kids active.</p><p>It was the first of her two stops in Reuters) - Everyone in the United States over the age of six months should get seasonal influenza vaccines every year, federal vaccine advisers said on Wednesday.</p><p>The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice...

Panel recommends annual flu vaccinations for all

2010-02-25T05:00:40Z

<div id="subtitle">Influential federal panel recommends annual flu shots for virtually all Americans</div><div><p>A government panel is now recommending that virtually all Americans get a flu shot each year, starting this fall.</p><p>The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices had gradually been expanding its recommendation for flu shots...

Young kids should get new Prevnar, U.S. experts say

2010-02-24T09:17:43Z

<div><p>WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Children under the age of 5 who already got four doses of Pfizer Inc's Prevnar vaccine should get a fifth booster dose of the new version that covers more strains of pneumonia-causing bacteria, the

2010-02-23T00:30:21Z

<div><p>CHICAGO (Reuters) - High blood pressure is a "neglected disease" and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention must do more to fight it by helping Americans eat better and encouraging doctors to treat it more aggressively, an expert panel sai...

Report: US fails to fight high blood pressure

2010-02-22T09:45:09Z

<div id="subtitle">Report finds high blood pressure epidemic neglected, urges doctors, feds to be more aggressive</div><div><p>A critical new report declares high blood pressure in the U.S. to be a neglected disease — a term that usually describes mysterious tropical illnesses, not a well-known plague of rich countries.</p><p>The prestigious Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. That's four ti...

CDC: Swine flu made 57 million Americans ill

2010-02-22T09:04:26Z

<div id="subtitle">CDC: Swine flu has made more than 57 million Americans ill, but cases remain down lately</div><div><p>Swine flu cases are down, but health officials say the disease's cumulative impact has grown to 57 million U.S. illnesses, 257,000 hospitalizations and 11,690 deaths.</p><p>The