HEALTH

Current quick tests for flu miss many cases of the new pandemic H1N1 strain, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Thursday.

Older Americans who have low strength and poor physical function are at increased risk of being hospitalized, researchers report.

Closing schools, stopping large gatherings and other such measures are unlikely to do much to prevent the spread of the H1N1 swine flu pandemic, a team of experts predicted on Wednesday.

Iran has banned Iranians from performing the umra pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia during the holy month of Ramadan to slow spread of swine flu in the country, a health ministry official said Thursday.

A new technique has given researchers a

Healthier sperm may mean longer life, according to a study that followed more than 40,000 Danish men for up to 40 years.

The first vaccines to combat H1N1 swine flu should be approved and ready for use in some countries from September, the World Health Organization said on Thursday.

Despite polls showing growing public doubts about his healthcare overhaul, U.S. President Barack Obama vowed on Wednesday to get a reform bill through Congress this year even without Republicans on board.

A blood test that detects nine compounds in blood may offer a safe way to diagnose early cases of lung cancer, Celera Corporation reported on Tuesday.

Most US kids aren't getting enough vitamin D, a report in Pediatrics shows, raising their risk of weak bones and, possibly, heart disease.

Blockbuster prescription drugs used to treat rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions can increase the risk of potentially deadly cancer in children and teenagers, U.S. health regulators said on Tuesday in ordering stronger warnings on such medications.

High cholesterol levels in midlife -- even cholesterol levels considered only borderline elevated -- significantly increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease 30 years later, results of a large study indicate.

Women who quickly put on pounds after starting birth-control injections seem to be at risk of significant long-term weight gain, a new study suggests.

Veterans who come home from Iraq and Afghanistan with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health diagnoses are hit with a double whammy:

Women with mild or severe high blood pressure during pregnancy - a condition known as pre-eclampsia - should have labor induced after 37 weeks' gestation, according to a new study.

You knew too much TV could be bad for kids in general. Now, hints a study released Monday, too much time in front of the tube,

Use of antidepressant drugs in the United States doubled between 1996 and 2005, probably because of a mix of factors, researchers reported on Monday.

Kids these days may be more likely to get hurt in gym class than they were a decade ago, a new study out in Pediatrics shows.

Malaria may have jumped to humans from chimpanzees much as AIDS did, U.S. researchers reported on Monday in a study they hope could help in developing a vaccine against the infection.

Frequent handwashing and the wearing of face masks at home can help reduce the transmission of influenza viruses within the household if the measures are implemented in good time, a study in Hong Kong has found.

Diabetics who took the drug metformin, which makes the body process insulin better, had a 62 percent lower risk of pancreatic cancer compared to those who had never received it, U.S. researchers said on Saturday.

The U.S. Agriculture Department said on Friday it will increase testing parts of steaks and other meat cuts used to make ground beef as the government steps up efforts to reduce the spread of E. coli bacteria in food.

A woman from Cameroon has been found to be infected with an AIDS-like virus that came from gorillas, French researchers reported Sunday.

China has sealed off a remote far-western town of 10,000 people after two people died of pneumonic plague, state media said Monday, but the World Health Organization said such outbreaks were nothing new.

Scientists have identified a class of immune cells that floods the brain soon after a stroke, causing inflammation and more neurological damage.

One of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer may originate in the cells lining the mammary ducts, which can be targeted in the fight against the disease, experts in Australia say.

Eating omega-3-rich seafood may be a mood-lifter for women who are feeling depressed during pregnancy, suggests a study of British women.

Teaching new mothers how to breastfeed could save 1.3 million children's lives every year, but many women get no help and give up trying, the World Health Organization said on Friday.

President Barack Obama's drive for U.S. healthcare reform suffered another setback on Thursday when Senate Finance Committee leaders said the panel would not vote on a compromise plan before senators leave for a month-long August recess next week.