Winter 2024 – 2025 produced a surprising split-screen in U.S. respiratory surveillance. COVID-19 indicators stayed lower than many people expected for a winter stretch. Meanwhile, the flu season surged across clinics and hospitals nationwide. CDC classified the 2024–25 influenza season as high severity across age groups. CDC’s surveillance also recorded a record-high pediatric death total...

Global healthcare and medicine have seen tremendous growth since the industrial age. With this, life expectancy has risen, and people live even longer than they did 5 decades ago. However, as our global population ages, so does the number of dementia cases. While healthcare has seen strides in treatment for many diseases, there is a...

Over 60,000 African penguins have starved to death over the course of eight years. A new study documented the penguin colonies off the coast of South Africa, on Dassen Island and Robben Island. The researchers noticed a pattern: breeding penguins starving to death during the molting season. They attributed these losses to the climate crisis...

A federal judge has sentenced the former Harvard Medical School morgue manager to 8 years in prison for stealing and selling body parts. The judge delivered the convicted, Cedric Lodge, the final verdict on Tuesday. The sentencing concludes a gruesome case and two-and-a-half year scandal involving America’s most prestigious medical universities that exposed a nationwide...

Covid vaccine programs saved many lives, yet questions over their safety still deserve direct answers. One rare concern is myocarditis, which is inflammation in the heart muscle. Surveillance systems detected an increased risk after mRNA Covid vaccine doses in some groups. Most cases occur in adolescent and young adult males, often soon after dose 2....

Sickle cell anemia can turn an ordinary day into an emergency. A blood vessel blocks, pain spikes fast, and plans vanish. Many people live with that uncertainty for years, yet they still work, study, raise families, and push through. Doctors have long wanted a cure that does not depend on a rare-matched donor. Now, gene...

Long COVID can linger long after the acute infection ends. People report fatigue, brain fog, dizziness, and poor sleep. Many struggle to work or manage basic chores. Some crash after small efforts, then lose days to recovery. Routine blood tests can look normal and misleading. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states,...

For most people, dialysis is something they barely think about. For millions of patients around the world, it controls almost every part of daily life. That reality is what makes the idea of a portable dialysis machine so powerful in the first place. When a Canadian teenager suggested a version that could be built for...

Shingles is a reactivation of the varicella zoster virus, the same virus behind chickenpox. The WHO notes the rash usually appears on one side, often as a single stripe of blisters. Pain often appears before the actual rash. So, what is the connection between the COVID booster and shingles? Well, a large Dutch study recently...

The debate around COVID vaccination did not end when clinics closed, and mandates faded. It shifted. Early questions focused on short-term reactions, but later concerns turned toward the future. People wanted to know what vaccination meant years down the line. Online discussions grew louder, yet they often relied on fragments, personal stories, and selective screenshots....

Most heart attacks start with an issue that initially hides in plain sight. Plaque can sit inside an artery for years, then suddenly crack and trigger a clot. Doctors can lower LDL and control blood pressure, yet they still struggle to spot which plaques will eventually become dangerous. Many scans can reveal how narrow an...

Seasonal influenza has shifted early this year, and public health agencies are now tracking a rapidly growing H3N2 lineage called the K-variant flu. The scientific label is influenza A(H3N2) subclade K, but the CDC also uses the genetic name J.2.4.1 for this branch. According to the WHO, they have observed a “recent and rapid rise”...