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Only private jabs are available to most, but annual shots could reduce healthcare costs and prevent deathsCheaper private Covid jabs may end up as costly as pricier ones, say expertsPrivate Covid boosters are available for people who do not qualify to receive these vaccines on the NHS. But is it worth paying for a shot?With most people now having been exposed to Sars-CoV-2 through...

Health officials racing to identify cause of rise in streptococcal toxic shock syndrome, which has a 30% fatality rateExperts warn that a rare but dangerous bacterial infection is spreading at a record rate in Japan, with officials struggling to identify the cause.The number of cases in 2024 is expected to exceed last year’s record numbers, while concern is growing that the harshest and potentially...

Tens of thousands of dengue cases recorded this year as high temperatures and rainy weather create ‘perfect formula’ for bugsIn his 20 years cleaning the Buenos Aires subway, Mauricio Ríos, 52, had never seen anything like it: a vast and noisy swarm of mosquitoes churning in dark clouds the length of the platform at Piedras station.Ríos pulled out his phone and filmed the growing...

The Tijuana River flows through Mexico and empties off California, carrying pathogens and chemicals and threatening public healthRaw sewage and runoff in the Tijuana River is exposing communities at the US-Mexico border to an unusual and noxious brew of pathogens and toxic chemicals, according to a report released this week.Billions of gallons of sewage flow through the river, which winds north from Mexico through...

The virus recently discovered in Alaska is transmitted from small mammals and symptoms normally include a rash and muscle painAn elderly man has died from Alaskapox, the first known fatality from the recently discovered virus, Alaskan state health officials have said.The man, who lived in the remote Kenai Peninsula, was hospitalised in November last year and died in late January, according to a bulletin...

Emergency measures taken as 364,855 cases of mosquito-borne infection reported this year, a fourfold increase on year beforeDengue fever has surged in Brazil’s hot rainy season, forcing health authorities to take emergency measures and start mass vaccination against the mosquito-borne illness.In the first five weeks of this year, 364,855 cases of infection have been reported, the health ministry said, four times more than dengue...

UN agency calls for ‘urgent vaccination efforts’ in region to prevent further spread of diseaseThe World Health Organization has issued an urgent warning over measles after an “alarming” 30-fold rise in cases across Europe.The UN agency reported an enormous increase in numbers affected by the disease, which it said had accelerated in recent months. More than 30,000 cases were reported between January and October...

Rules reintroduced as ‘commonsense measure’ despite opposition from some regional administrationsFace masks will be mandatory in hospitals and health centres in Spain from Wednesday as the country experiences a surge in cases of flu, Covid and other respiratory illnesses.The government decision, which was made six months after the use of masks ceased to be obligatory in health facilities and pharmacies, has been met with...