AFP - LONDON (AFP) - British and Italian doctors have carried out groundbreaking surgery to rebuild the windpipe of a 10-year-old boy using stem cells developed within his own body, they said.
The Canadian Press - ATLANTA - An unexpected big drop in new U.S. tuberculosis cases is probably because of stepped up screening and treatment of immigrants before they leave their native countries, health officials say.
The Canadian Press - NEW YORK - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday the highest available dose of Zocor, a component in cholesterol drugs, can cause muscle damage as well as severe and potentially lethal kidney damage.
The Canadian Press - TORONTO - A mysterious illness that has killed upwards of 500,000 bats in the northeastern United States has now been detected in the animals in Ontario.
The Canadian Press - ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - Doctors in Newfoundland and Labrador asked the province Friday for binding arbitration to settle a contract dispute as relations grow increasingly toxic between the government and medical staff.
The Canadian Press - FAIRFAX, Va. - President Barack Obama delivered a closing argument for the goal to which he has devoted much of his presidency, urging lawmakers on Friday to pass a sweeping overhaul of the U.S. health care system in a long-awaited vote this weekend.
AFP - SAO PAULO (AFP) - Brazilian surgeons used a multi-armed robot to repair a hole in a woman's heart in the first operation of its kind in Latin America, they told AFP Friday.
The Canadian Press - LONDON - The World Health Organization says it doesn't have enough information to know if it is winning the fight against drug-resistant tuberculosis.
AFP - BEIJING (AFP) - China's food safety watchdog has ordered inspections of cooking oil nationwide as reports Friday said up to one-tenth of Chinese supplies were illegally made and contained cancer-causing agents.
AFP - SYDNEY (AFP) - Alcohol abuse is a bigger problem for Pacific communities than drugs, according to an Australian report, which links drinking to domestic violence and wide-ranging health problems.
The Canadian Press - TORONTO - Medical authors with ties to diabetes drug makers were more likely to publish favourable articles on a controversial diabetes medication than authors who had no such ties, a new study reveals.
AFP - PARIS (AFP) - Pregnant women may be far more at risk from swine flu than thought, according to a survey published on Friday that was carried out in Australia and New Zealand.
The Canadian Press - TORONTO - The health of thousands of Canadian and U.S. patients could be put in jeopardy by a critical shortage of radioactive isotopes over the next few weeks, nuclear medicine experts say.
The Canadian Press - COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Federal health advisers said Thursday an electronic heart implant should be approved for a large group of U.S. heart-disease patients who currently aren't eligible for the device.
AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - More US children are becoming extremely obese at a younger age, putting them at risk of dying decades younger than normal-weight children and of suffering old-age illnesses in their 20s, a study warned Thursday.
The Canadian Press - TORONTO - The majority of Canadian seniors are taking multiple types of drugs and in some cases the intake is fairly substantial, a new report suggests.
AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - The World Health Organisation warned Thursday that lethal multidrug resistant tuberculosis is becoming a serious threat to global health with just a small proportion of cases diagnosed.
The Canadian Press - ATLANTA - 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 Royal Caribbean cruise line, the headquarters of drug giant Merck, the Johnson Space Center and a Department of Energy office in Idaho.
The Canadian Press - OTTAWA - The maker of OneTouch SureStep test strips has issued a voluntary recall of some lots of the product used by diabetics to measure blood-glucose levels.
AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - The GAVI vaccine alliance, which is backed by software billionaire Bill Gates, said Thursday that it needed an extra 4.3 billion dollars to save millions of lives in poor countries over the next five years.
AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US House of Representatives will vote Sunday on President Barack Obama's historic health overhaul and he is expected to be in Washington despite plans to leave for Asia, a top ally said Thursday.
AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama's historic health overhaul legislation would cut 130 billion dollars from the budget deficit through 2019, according to figures provided by Democratic lawmakers.
The Canadian Press - GENEVA - A global vaccine initiative launched with the help of Bill Gates is seeking $4.3 billion in new funding to ramp up child immunization campaigns against deadly diseases such as hepatitis B, diarrhea and pneumonia in the developing world.
The Canadian Press - BEIJING - China's Health Ministry is investigating the safety of inoculations in a northern province after a report that defective vaccines possibly killed four children and seriously sickened dozens.
The Canadian Press - LOS ANGELES - Condoms might be the only thing porn actors are required to wear if the state's workplace safety board approves a petition mandating their use.
AFP - GENEVA (AFP) - The World Health Organisation said Thursday it was suspending the use of the Indian-developed Shan5 combination vaccine, which is used against infections such as diphtheria, tetanus and hepatitis B.
AFP - KHEWRA, Pakistan (AFP) - A centuries-old salt mine in Pakistan is offering experimental asthma therapy, attracting patients from all over the world.
AFP - BEIJING (AFP) - China has ordered an investigation after a report that unsafe vaccines led to the deaths of four children and sickened 74 others in the country's latest product-quality scare.
The Canadian Press - REGINA - Saskatchewan's privacy commissioner says the provincial Health Ministry charged excessive fees for a request for access to information.
The Canadian Press - PORTLAND, Ore. - Kraft Foods Inc. said Wednesday that it will cut the salt in its products that are sold in North America by an average of 10 per cent over the next two years to appeal to health-conscious consumers.
AFP - NEW DELHI (AFP) - While having a scan, a pregnant woman in India is not allowed to learn the gender of her unborn child. But her bill might be presented in a file coloured blue or pink -- and the meaning is clear.
The Canadian Press - PEACE RIVER, Alta. - The operator of an air ambulance service based in northwestern Alberta has served lockout notice to its employees.
The Canadian Press - EDMONTON - Complaints against Alberta doctors increased by more than one-third last year and questions are being raised about why.
AFP - PARIS (AFP) - A purified form of omega 3, the so-called "good fat" found naturally in certain fish and nut oils, reduced dangerous polyps among people prone to bowel cancer, a study published on Thursday says.
The Canadian Press - WINDSOR, Ont. - Health officials say a fatal case of flesh-eating disease in Windsor, Ont., poses no risk to people the man worked with.
The Canadian Press - LONDON - An American infertility clinic seeking business in Britain prompted fierce criticism by offering free eggs from a U.S. woman to one participant in a promotional seminar in London on Wednesday.
The Canadian Press - OTTAWA - Prime Minister Stephen Harper's decision to champion maternal and child health on the international stage has turned into a political fracas at home over the right of the world's poorest women to use contraceptives and have safe abortions.
The Canadian Press - BOISE, Idaho - Idaho's governor on Wednesday became the first state chief executive to sign a measure requiring his attorney general to sue the federal government if the U.S. Congress passes health care reform that forces Americans to buy insurance.
The Canadian Press - MILWAUKEE - A small but significant portion of medical studies exclude gays from participating, sometimes without an apparent scientific reason, several cancer researchers say.
The Canadian Press - CALGARY - The University of Calgary says the health information of 5,000 patients at one of its clinics may have been compromised by computer viruses.
The Canadian Press - ST. JOHN'S, N.L. - Fresh from his own health crisis, Premier Danny Williams has waded into a dispute between pathologists and the Newfoundland and Labrador government.
AFP - WASHINGTON (AFP) - Researchers launched a clinical study Wednesday to test new treatments for aggressive breast cancer in a rare alliance between the US government and five major drug companies.
The Canadian Press - BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Union's food safety agency says most chicken sold in Europe is infected with bacteria that can cause food poisoning if the meat is not cooked thoroughly.
The Canadian Press - BEIJING - Chinese officials said Wednesday they are investigating heightened lead levels among hundreds of children in Hunan province thought to be linked to local smelters - one of many cases underscoring the toll pollution is taking on the health of rural Chinese.
AFP - PARIS (AFP) - Scientists report that women living in countries with worse rates of disease and ill health are far likelier to plump for "masculine"-looking men than "feminine"-looking rivals.