Reuters Health News Summary

09/06/2016 8:59

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Classroom standing desks may help kids slim down

Standing desks in classrooms could help children maintain a healthy body weight, a new study suggests. These desks are set at a height that allows students to alternate between sitting on a stool or standing while working.

Singapore says will no longer isolate Zika patients

Singapore will no longer isolate people who test positive for Zika or are suspected of carrying it as the number of cases of the mosquito-borne virus increases across the city-state, the health ministry said on Monday. Tropical Singapore, a global financial and transit hub, has reported just over 240 Zika cases since the first locally infected case was detected on Aug. 27, and media has quoted the deputy health minister as saying the virus was "here to stay."

Vitamin D tablets may help reduce asthma attacks, review finds

The world's 300 million asthma sufferers could help reduce their risk of severe asthma attacks by taking vitamin D supplements as well as their standard asthma medicines, according to the findings of a review of international trial evidence. The analysis - which covered trials in the United States, Canada, India, Japan, Poland and Britain - found that taking vitamin D tablets cut the risk of severe asthma attacks needing hospital treatment to around 3 percent from 6 percent.

Danaher to buy Cepheid in $4 billion deal to expand in diagnostics

Danaher Corp said on Tuesday it would buy molecular diagnostics company Cepheid in a deal valued at $4 billion, including debt, to strengthen its diagnostics business. Danaher will pay $53 per share in cash, a premium of 54 percent to Cepheid's close of $34.42 on Friday.

Philippines confirms first case of Zika virus this year: ministry

The Philippines confirmed on Monday its first case of the Zika virus this year and said it was "highly likely" it had been locally transmitted, and it expected more cases after stepping up surveillance. A 45-year old woman who lives in Iloilo city in the central Philippines has the virus, Dr Eric Tayag, spokesman at the health ministry, told a media briefing.

Research links eczema and hay fever to early antibiotic use

Babies given antibiotics in the first two years of life are more likely to develop allergies as adults, according to an extensive analysis of past clinical studies involving nearly 400,000 people. The findings, to be presented on Tuesday at the European Respiratory Society annual meeting in London, point to a clear association with the risk of eczema or hay fever later in life.

Too costly for Indonesia to thoroughly test for Zika: health official

Indonesia can not afford to thoroughly check for a possible Zika outbreak, a health ministry official said, as Southeast Asia's most populous country must focus on fighting dengue, a potentially fatal virus also carried by mosquitoes. The World Health Organisation (WHO) lists Indonesia among Asian countries with possible endemic transmission of, or evidence of, local Zika infections, but authorities in the sprawling nation of 250 million people have yet to report any recent infections.

Perceptions of pregnancy during medical training are changing

Trainee doctors are finding a more supportive attitude from superiors and colleagues toward their pregnancies, a small study suggests. In the U.S., women entering medicine face many barriers to childbearing, including a persistent negative stigma surrounding pregnancy during years-long training programs, said senior author Dr. Marissa Tenenbaum of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri.

Zika could impact slowing economy, Singapore bank chief says

A Zika outbreak in Singapore could have a small impact on the almost $300 billion economy, the central bank chief said on Tuesday, as the mosquito-borne virus spreads across the global financial and transit hub. Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, did not give further details, but the outbreak coincides with a dip in overall exports and growth in the trade-dependent economy. Growth is also slowing in China, Singapore's main overseas market.

Tonix to stop testing drug for fibromyalgia, shares plunge

Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp said it would stop developing its drug for fibromyalgia and focus on a late-stage trial testing the treatment in patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Tonix shares plunged nearly 50 percent to $1.10 in premarket trading on Tuesday.

09/06/2016 8:59