Disease and Illnesses

A registered nurse measures out a monkeypox vaccine in Miami, Florida.

Six Big Questions About the Monkeypox Virus, Answered

The United States recently declared the monkeypox outbreak a public health emergency. Here’s what you need to know about the disease

Archaeologists excavate the remains of friars buried at the former Augustinian friary in central Cambridge.

Why Were Medieval Monks So Susceptible to Intestinal Worms?

Friars in Cambridge, England, suffered from these parasites at nearly double the rate found among average unwashed citizens

Long Covid is a morass to figure out, but the answers are important for the multitudes still suffering from an infection that happened to them months or even years ago.

How Long Will It Take to Understand Long Covid?

Covid long-haulers experience a litany of symptoms, and researchers have proposed a variety of theories to explain them

A tick runs over a human hand.

Large Lyme Disease Vaccine Clinical Trial Begins in U.S. and Europe

If approved, it would be the first new shot to combat the misunderstood disease in the U.S. in 20 years

Jynneos monkeypox vaccine

U.S. Declares Monkeypox a Public Health Emergency

The announcement comes as nationwide case counts reach 7,000

Monkeypox blood samples

WHO Declares Monkeypox a Global Health Emergency

Five deaths have been attributed to the disease in the Central African Republic and Nigeria in 2022

Poliovirus particles, computer illustration.

First Polio Case in U.S. Since 2013 Detected in New York State

Experts warn that the virus poses a health risk to unvaccinated communities

Seals in Bar Harbor, Maine

Seal Strandings in Maine Linked to Bird Flu

Four stranded pinnipeds tested positive for the avian influenza H5N1

Patients who are struggling with everything from ADHD to eating disorders have turned to art therapy for help.

How Making Art Helps Improve Mental Health

With depression and anxiety on the rise during the pandemic, more professionals may adopt art therapy as a treatment

The yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, spreads dengue fever, Zika, chikungunya and other viruses that infect humans.

Dengue Fever and Zika Virus Make Humans More Attractive to Mosquitoes

Scientists conducted human and mouse studies to find the skin bacteria responsible for the draw

More than 10,000 mental health apps are available, according to one estimate. In order to pick the most reliable ones, researchers say you should consider their privacy policies, effectiveness, and costs.

Can a Mental Health App Help You Deal With Anxiety?

Experts say the aids can be a first step to meaningful treatment if you choose an app based on three criteria

As of June 15, the World Health Organization had recorded a total of 2,103 confirmed monkeypox cases in 42 countries. Pictured: a colorized transmission electron micrograph of monkeypox virus particles (green) cultivated and purified from cell culture

What You Need to Know About the History of Monkeypox

Mired in misconception, the poxvirus is endemic in certain African countries but was rarely reported in Europe and the U.S. until recently

While many strains of E. coli are harmless, some can cause illness.

Ancient Strain of E. Coli Found in 16th-Century Mummy

Researchers identified the bacterium in fragments from a gallstone

Vaccinations could begin as soon as next week if the FDA authorizes either the Pfizer or Moderna shots for kids under 5. 

FDA Says Both Moderna and Pfizer Covid-19 Vaccines Are Effective for the Youngest Children

A panel of experts is set to vote Wednesday on whether the agency should authorize the use of the vaccines for little kids

Later this summer, people will be able to call, text or online chat the number 988 to connect with mental health counselors.

Beginning in Mid-July, Dial 988 for the Mental Health Hotline

The three-digit code will be like 911, but for mental health emergencies only

On average, Osborne experienced 20 to 40 involuntary diaphragm spasms per minute. In total, he hiccupped an estimated 430 million times before his death in May 1991 at age 97.

The Curious Case of Charles Osborne, Who Hiccupped for 68 Years Straight

A 1922 accident sparked the Iowa man’s intractable hiccups, which suddenly subsided in 1990

A baby receives a mallaria vaccine from a nurse at the maternity ward of the Ewin Polyclinic in Ghana in 2019.

Why Did It Take 35 Years to Get a Malaria Vaccine?

The parasite’s complex biology played a role in the delay, but experts say there was also a lack of urgency and funding

A new study shows that children who play individual sports, like tennis, may have more mental health issues than those that play team sports or don’t participate in sports at all.

Should Parents Worry About New Research Linking Kids’ Mental Health and Individual Sports?

According to the study, children who played team sports had fewer mental health difficulties than those who didn’t play sports

At a time of widespread public health crises and evolving ideas about how illnesses spread, kissing was an easily avoidable vector of disease. Unfortunately for Imogene Rechtin, most people proved unwilling to give it up.

The Woman Who Fought to End the 'Pernicious' Scourge of Kissing

New understandings of how disease spread informed Imogene Rechtin's ill-fated 1910 campaign to ban a universal human practice

Visitors looking at sculpture by Skellon Studio in “Cancer Revolution” at the Science Museum.

Exhibition Explores the Art and Science of Cancer—and the Hope of a Future Without It

The Science Museum in London explores the past and future of the disease, and the resilience of its survivors

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