Japan might approve anti-flu drug Avigan to treat coronavirus patients
Japan is considering using Avigan, an influenza medication developed by a unit of Fujifilm Holdings Corp., to treat patients of the novel coronavirus, health minister Katsunobu Kato says.
COVID-19 outbreak seen bringing quick end to flu season in Japan
The flu season appears to be waning significantly faster than last year thanks to public fear of the deadly new coronavirus, government data shows. In the week ended Feb. 9, reported influenza cases plunged by over 60 percent to 44,737, compared with 129,989 the same ...
Thailand sees apparent success treating virus with drug cocktail
A Chinese woman infected with the new coronavirus showed a dramatic improvement after she was treated with a cocktail of anti-virals used to treat flu and HIV, Thailand's health ministry said Sunday. The 71-year-old patient tested negative for the virus 48 hours after Thai doctors ...
Coronavirus garners headlines, but there's another virus stalking America
A second wave of seasonal influenza is taking hold in the U.S. and elsewhere, just as health officials are on high alert for new cases of the novel coronavirus. Many of the symptoms are the same, but when it comes to immediate risk, people ...
Japan plans wider pig culls if African swine fever discovered
In the event a pig with African swine fever (ASF) is found at a farm, all pigs at farms within up to 3 kilometers of the affected facility could be culled in order to prevent the highly pathogenic disease from spreading, agriculture ministry sources ...
Wearing two hats, Tokyo 'entre-doctor' pins hopes on AI to enhance medical care
By day, he is the chief executive officer of a Tokyo startup. At night and on weekends, he works shifts as a doctor. He wants to keep it that way because he needs both to stay in balance. Sho Okiyama is one of the growing ...
The agriculture ministry will seek to allow pig culls as a preventive measure against African swine fever, something not currently permitted by the law, if the disease is detected in Japan. The ministry will submit a bill to the Diet next year to revise the ...
When is it OK for health officials to panic?
The world faces a mounting threat of pandemics that could kill millions and wreak economic havoc, a international expert panel warns, saying governments should work to mitigate that risk. The Global Preparedness Monitoring Board, convened by the World Bank and the World Health Organization, said ...
On Oct. 26, 1918, just over two weeks before the end of World War I, readers of The Japan Times & Mail, the predecessor of The Japan Times, woke up to the headline "Thousands Dying From Influenza Throughout the World," and an accompanying article ...
Around 2.23 million people are estimated to have been diagnosed with influenza during the reporting period, up about 100,000 from the previous week.
Flu hits 300 staffers and inmates at Nagoya Prison, sparking lockdown and state of emergency
The last time more than a hundred people at the prison caught the flu was in 2015 when 109 got sick.
