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Vital Signs Aug (HCV) Press Statement_EMBARGOED_ (1).pdfWEDNESDAY, Aug. 10, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Less than one-third of people with hepatitis C get treatment for this potentially deadly, but curable, infection within a year of their diagnosis, a new government report warns.Spread by contact with blood from an infected person, hepatitis C is a viral disease that inflames the liver and has no symptoms at first. Left untreated, it can cause liver disease, liver cancer and death. There is no vaccine to prevent hepatitis C infection, but there are antiviral drugs that can cure hepatitis C in 8 to 12 weeks.“[Occurring] nearly a decade after a highly effective cure was approved, these gaps are significant and concerning,” said study co-author Dr. Carolyn Wester, director of the U.S....

TUESDAY, Aug. 9, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- People appear less likely to turn to dangerous synthetic pot products in U.S. states where marijuana has been legalized, a new Washington State University study finds.Researchers discovered a 37% drop in poisoning reports for illicit synthetic cannabinoids in states that have approved recreational use of marijuana, compared to states where pot is still restricted.These synthetic products -- known by such street names as K2, Spice or AK-47 -- aren't actually cannabis. Instead, these designer drugs are crafted to work on the same receptors in the brain that respond to THC, the chemical in pot that causes intoxication.The problem is that these synthetics bind to those receptors up to 100 times more strongly, researchers said, making them highly...

THURSDAY, Aug. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Researchers are reporting early but encouraging findings on a potential new way to prevent malaria — an old foe that still ranks as a major killer worldwide.In a small trial of healthy volunteers, U.S. government researchers found that a lab-engineered antibody protected most participants from infection with the malaria parasite — including all of those who received a higher dose of the antibody.The investigators also showed it was possible to give the antibody with a standard injection, rather than the IV infusions typically used to deliver monoclonal antibodies. That will be critical, the researchers said, for use in the "real world."Experts cautioned that much work remains. But they also described the findings as an "exciting"...

THURSDAY, Aug. 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) – Americans could see an easing of COVID-19 social distancing recommendations as soon as this week. Updated guidance expected from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would change current recommendations for schools and some other community settings, sources familiar with the plans told CNN."The CDC is always evaluating our guidance as science changes and will update the public as it occurs,” the agency told CNN. Changes would include de-emphasizing the 6 feet of social distancing that the CDC has advised since early in the pandemic, both for schools and in the community. Instead, it would work to educate people on what settings are riskier based on crowds, poor ventilation and personal risks such as health issues and age, CNN...