http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. (HealthDay)—Three people who received transplant organs in 2012 from the same 24-year-old donor got more than they bargained for: Each developed a severe roundworm infection, U.S. health officials reported Thursday. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-04-roundworm-infections-threaten-recipients.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 11 Apr 2013 18:30:01 EST news284919031 (HealthDay)—A Vietnamese immigrant in California died of a massive infection with parasitic worms that spread throughout his body, including his lungs. They had remained dormant until his immune system was suppressed by steroid drugs used to treat an inflammatory disorder, according to the report. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-dies-parasitic-worms-invade-lungs.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 20 Mar 2013 17:50:01 EST news283019956 Scientists are a step closer to developing vaccines for a range of diseases that affect 200 million people, mainly in tropical south-east Asia, Africa and Central America. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-03-immune-aids-quest-vaccines-tropical.html Immunology Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:00:01 EST news282498431 Although they have an important impact on children's health and education, school-based deworming programmes have a limited impact on the level of infection in the wider community, according to a mathematical modeling study conducted by researchers at Imperial College London. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-02-deworming-important-children-health-limited.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:00:02 EST news281289713 (Medical Xpress)—On the list of undesirable medical conditions, a parasitic worm infection surely ranks fairly high. Although modern pharmaceuticals have made them less of a threat in some areas, these organisms are still a major cause of disease and disability throughout much of the developing world. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2013-01-parasitic-worms-diseases-obesity.html Medical research Tue, 08 Jan 2013 10:25:10 EST news276863099 (Medical Xpress)—A well-established family of drugs used to treat parasitic diseases is showing surprising potential as a therapy for tuberculosis (TB), according to new research from University of British Columbia microbiologists. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-repurposed-anti-parasite-drug-tb-treatment.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Fri, 23 Nov 2012 07:58:29 EST news272879872 Watch where you jump in for a swim or where your bath water comes from, especially if you live in Africa, Asia or South America. Snails that live in tropical freshwater in these locations are intermediaries between disease-causing parasitic worms and humans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-treatment-snail-borne-schistosomiasis-haul.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 20 Nov 2012 07:59:04 EST news272620734 (Medical Xpress)—Doctor Joel Weinstock, a parasitologist at Tufts Medical Center in a commentary piece published in the journal Nature, describes work that he and colleagues have been involved in that focuses on studying the possibility of introducing parasitic worms into the guts of patients suffering from autoimmune diseases such as Crohn's disease. The thinking he says, is that modern hygienic lifestyles may be contributing to such diseases and that reintroducing parasitic worms and perhaps certain bacteria into the gut may restore a natural balance in the gut and relieve patients of such symptoms as chronic diarrhea, bleeding and infections. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-parasitologist-espouses-parasitic-worms-treatment.html Immunology Thu, 08 Nov 2012 06:00:01 EST news271574652 Cases of one of the world's deadliest diseases—tuberculosis—are rising at an alarming rate, despite widespread vaccination. Reasons for the ineffectiveness of the vaccine, especially in regions where this infectious disease is endemic, as well as arguments for replacing the existing vaccine with novel synthetic vaccines, are presented in a review published online August 28th in Trends in Molecular Medicine. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-vaccines-tuberculosis-millions.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 28 Aug 2012 12:00:03 EST news265365562 HIV care centers are an important and highly accessed point of care for HIV-infected children and their families in sub-Saharan Africa, but opportunities to address other health issues are being missed. Proven interventions, including routine deworming among young children, could be effectively integrated into HIV care according to a newly published article in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases by University of Washington researchers. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-global-health-urge-de-worming-hiv.html HIV & AIDS Thu, 02 Aug 2012 09:36:30 EST news263118983 (Medical Xpress) -- Scientists have solved an 80-year old mystery linked to an ancient but neglected tropical disease that affects more than 100 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-student-snail-fever-mystery.html Medical research Wed, 01 Aug 2012 08:13:18 EST news263027566 Brazilian researchers say they have successfully tested a vaccine against schistosomiasis, a disease caused by parasitic worms that afflicts more than 200 million people worldwide. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-06-brazil-successful-parasite-vaccine.html Medications Wed, 13 Jun 2012 04:30:05 EST news258780590 Access to sanitation facilities, such as latrines, reduces by half the risk of becoming infected by parasitic worms that are transmitted via soil (soil-transmitted helminths) according to a study published in this week's PLoS Medicine. These findings are important as infection with parasitic worms can cause diarrhea, weakness, and malnutrition, which in turn can impair physical and mental development in children; they reinforce the importance of increased access to sanitation (a Millennium Development Goal target) to improve health outcomes. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-01-availability-sanitation-likelihood-parasitic-worm.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:00:01 EST news246643829 Scientists have identified the genetic blueprint of the giant intestinal roundworm, Ascaris suum, revealing potential targets to control the devastating parasitic disease, ascariasis which affects more than one billion people in China, South East Asia, South America and parts of Africa, killing thousands of people annually and causing chronic effects in young children. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-10-drug-revealed-giant-parasitic-worm.html Genetics Wed, 26 Oct 2011 13:00:05 EST news238852083 With close to one third of the world's population infected with parasitic worms, MUHC researcher Dr. Theresa Gyorkos is thinking big when it comes to finding a solution to this global public health challenge. As part of an international research and policy team, she is contributing to the soon-to-be-released WHO Strategic Plan to control intestinal worm infections in more than 100 countries. Dr. Gyorkos received the Canadian Public Health Association's (CPHA) 2011 International Award for her contributions to global public health at the CPHA annual conference this week in Montreal. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-06-parasitic-worms-hidden-global-health.html Health Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:35:58 EST news227979342 Mummies from along the Nile are revealing how age-old irrigation techniques may have boosted the plague of schistosomiasis, a water-borne parasitic disease that infects an estimated 200 million people today. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-mummies-history-modern-plague.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Mon, 23 May 2011 10:18:04 EST news225364662 Scientists have discovered why some people may be protected from harmful parasitic worms naturally while others cannot in what could lead to new therapies for up to one billion people worldwide. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-worm-discovery-billion-people-worldwide.html Medical research Thu, 05 May 2011 10:08:57 EST news223808899