Reuters - Health Report

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Wednesday, May 24, 2017

Chocolate tied to decreased risk of irregular heart rhythm

Eating a small amount of chocolate every week or so may decrease the risk of a common and serious type of irregular heart rhythm, according to a new study of people in Denmark.

Ethiopia's Tedros wins WHO race, first African to get top job

GENEVA (Reuters) - Ethiopia's Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus won the race to be the next head of the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday, becoming the first African to lead the United Nations agency.

Yemen cholera caseload leaps, death toll rises: WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) - The number of cholera cases in Yemen has leapt, a World Health Organization document showed on Tuesday, with 35,217 suspected cases since April 27, when the outbreak began to spread rapidly.

Abused infants may slip through the cracks in hospital systems

Infants who are victims of physical abuse take longer to get to a hospital and are less likely to receive emergency trauma care compared to children who sustain an accidental injury, researchers in the UK say.

UK biotech boasts Europe's best pipeline as Brexit threat looms

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's biotech sector boasts the strongest new drug pipeline in Europe but industry leaders say it needs continued access to global talent, funding and regulatory clarity to thrive in the future - all of which could be jeopardized by Brexit.

FDA clears Merck's Keytruda based on cancer genetics, not location

(Reuters) - Merck & Co's immunotherapy Keytruda on Tuesday became the first cancer drug ever approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration based on a patients' specific genetic traits, regardless of where in the body the disease originated.

Republicans push back against Trump plan to cut foreign aid

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's fellow Republicans in Congress on Tuesday assailed his proposed cuts in the diplomatic and foreign aid budget, making it unlikely the cutbacks in global health, peacekeeping and other programs will take effect.

'War on sugar' takes toll; Asia, Brazil struggle to make up shortfall

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - The "war on sugar" being waged by governments and consumers to combat public health emergencies like diabetes is slowing growth in global demand, which along with other factors could signal a fundamental shift in consumption ahead.

Kenyan medics say U.S. health aid cuts will mean more abortions

KISUMU, Kenya (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's dramatic expansion of a policy blocking U.S. aid to organizations offering abortion services will have one sure result, say medical workers in this city: more abortions.

Teaching hospitals in U.S. are expensive, but have lower death rates

Academic medical centers, increasingly spurned by insurers for being more expensive than community hospitals, appear to have lower death rates for older adults than other facilities, a U.S. study suggests.