News published online Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) includes statistics for this year’s influenza season. It was the worst of the last three seasons.

A recent study conducted at Penn State sheds some much-needed light on the origins of the flu virus that kills 36,000 Americans each year. The study concluded that the virus comes from a “viral reservoir” somewhere in the tropics.

“We now…

The announcement of a breakthrough diagnostic tool was presented simultaneously today in Geneva and Singapore. The device, VereFlu, is a miniature diagnostic laboratory on a computer chip that can detect several strains of influenza in as little as two hours.…

Schools in Hong Kong will be closed until March 28 in order to avert the further spread of influenza that has claimed the lives of four children thus far. The closings affect all nurseries, kindergartens, and primary schools.

The federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recently voted to extend its recommendations for annual flu shots for children. Current recommendations cover children aged 6 months to 5 years but the new recommendations urge vaccinations for all children between the…

To keep up with the latest influenza outbreaks caused by strains that are not included in the current vaccine, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee recommended that producers use three new flu strains in next season’s vaccine,…

Getting a flu shot may not provide as much protection as you think this season. The Centers for Disease Control has reported a rise in resistance to oseltamivir (Tamiflu).

Med Headlines - Remember how your mother was always telling you to wash your hands so you wouldn’t spread germs? She was right, according to a report issued today in BMJ Online. The best weapons against a pandemic avian flu,…