Health

US drives surge of COVID cases in the Americas, PAHO says

COVID-19 cases in the Americas surged 27.2 percent last week from the prior one, driven primarily by a spike in infections in the United States, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said on Wednesday.

More than half of a total 918,000 infections came from North America as US cases jumped by 33 percent to 605,000 in the last week, PAHO said.

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Infections in North America have now been climbing for the past seven weeks, it said.

PAHO Director Dr. Carissa Etienne noted that many countries and local governments are abandoning masking and social distancing requirements and have reopened borders after a period of lower transmission.

However, too many people remain at risk as only 14 of the 51 countries and territories in the Americas have reached the World Health Organization's goal of vaccinating 70 percent of their population, she added during a news conference.

Health

‘Just in case’ use of antibiotics was rife during COVID-19, says UN health agency

Antibiotics saw “extensive overuse” globally among hospitalized COVID-19 patients during the pandemic without improving clinical outcomes, while also potentially exacerbating the already serious and growing threat of antimicrobial resistance, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Friday.

Health

Teen alcohol and nicotine use in Europe is up, WHO urges preventive measures

Substance use is on the rise among teenagers in Europe, Central Asia and Canada and girls now match or even exceed boys when it comes to smoking and drinking, the World Health Organization (WHO) said in a new report on Thursday.

Health

Gender therapy review reveals devastating impacts on teens

A top Human Rights Council-appointed expert has welcomed the decision by all health authorities in the United Kingdom to halt the routine use of puberty-blockers offered to children as part of gender transition services, amid a sharp increase more widely in the number of teenage girls seeking such treatment and concerns that it might disrupt brain development.