News & Perspective

(CIDRAP News) – A package of studies and commentary published this week by the Journal of Infectious Diseases points up the ability of influenza viruses to become drug-resistant and continue to spread, highlighting the need for new antivirals.

(CIDRAP News) – Health officials in Hong Kong today raised its flu pandemic alert level to "serious" after an H5N1 avian influenza infection was confirmed in a 59-year-old woman who had recently traveled to mainland China.

(CIDRAP News) – A large prospective study from Hong Kong raises the possibility that elderly people with chronic illnesses can significantly reduce their risk of stroke and heart attack by getting vaccinated against influenza and pneumococcal disease at the same time, but other researchers are greeting the findings with a mix of caution and skepticism.

(CIDRAP News) – More signals suggest the Southern Hemisphere's flu season is winding down, while activity is low at the start of the Northern Hemisphere's flu season, except in China, which is seeing moderate H3N2 circulation.