Are Pa. residents at risk of a measles outbreak? Here’s what the experts say
Measles, a highly contagious disease that was at one point believed to be largely eradicated in the United States, has seen an increase in cases over the past year. Among the most recently diagnosed cases of measles are several instances in New Jersey in mid-February and a confirmed case in...
Texas measles outbreak fueled by distrust in public health and personal choice
SEMINOLE, Texas — Measles had struck this West Texas town, sickening dozens of children, but at the Community Church of Seminole, more than 350 worshippers gathered for a Sunday service. Sitting elbow-to-elbow, they filled the pews, siblings in matching button-down shirts and dresses, little girls’ hair tied neatly into pink...
Penn State reports chicken pox outbreak at State College
Penn State University has confirmed three cases of chicken pox on its main campus in State College. Students and staff who were in Mifflin Hall between Feb. 17 and 24 or in the Thomas Building on Feb. 20 between 1 and 3 p.m. may have been exposed, the university said...
Vaccine critic RFK Jr. backs measles shot amid deadly Texas outbreak
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. publicly backed the measles vaccine amid an outbreak of the disease in Texas that has already killed one child. The 71-year-old vaccine skeptic had previously criticized the immunization and called the outbreak “not unusual” last week, even though the child was the first person...
In wake of York shooting, security experts see no perfect cure for hospital violence
When Andy Armenta learned of the hostage situation unfolding at UPMC Memorial hospital in York County, he immediately thought of his brush with hospital violence 25 years ago in California. Armenta, a biomedical engineer, was on the first floor of West Anaheim Medical Center the morning of Sept. 15, 1999,...
CDC estimates flu vaccine effectiveness as cases slam the region
This year’s flu vaccine has been effective overall against the current strains of the virus, despite cases and hospitalizations surging in the region, according to the latest federal data. About 54.9% of the influenza A H3N2 strains — which is causing about half of all cases this season — is...
Breakthrough treatments offer some sickle cell sufferers a cure, barriers remain
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Breakthrough treatments offer some sickle cell sufferers a cure, but barriers remainVideo
Esther Nkemakolam runs her fingers through kinetic sand and sings a “Moana” song as UPMC Children’s Hospital nurse Taylor Brennan gets to work drawing blood. Esther is back for her monthly blood transfusion. It’s a frigid February morning, but the routine is familiar for Esther, a bubbly 7-year-old first grader...
Measles risk is real for those unvaccinated, experts say
A child’s death from a measles outbreak in West Texas has raised concerns about vaccination rates and the resurgence of preventable diseases. But about one in 1,000 cases of measles can be deadly or cause lasting harm, said Dr. Paul Offit, the Maurice R. Hilleman Chair of Vaccinology at the...
‘It’s life and death’: Advocates fear dangers of any Medicaid cuts
Erin Gabriel for the last 15 years has relied on Medicaid to cover the costs of doctor’s appointments, medications, physical therapists and tests to help her daughter Abby navigate life with disabilities. Abby is autistic and non-speaking and uses a wheelchair. Doctors are still learning more about a rare, progressive...
Harsh flu season has health officials worried about brain complications in children
WASHINGTON — This year’s harsh flu season — the most intense in 15 years — has federal health officials trying to understand if it sparked an increase in a rare but life-threatening brain complication in children. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 19,000 people have died from the...
Living with periodic paralysis: Ryan Csupak’s fight for awareness on Rare Disease Day
In the past 15 years, Ryan Csupak has been in an emergency room 30 to 40 times, unable to move his legs and arms. He’s experienced shortness of breath, extreme fatigue and weakness. This is the reality of having hyperkalemic periodic paralysis, a rare muscle disorder characterized by episodic attacks...
FDA cancels key meeting to discuss flu vaccine, leaving some experts baffled
The flu vaccine’s future is murky after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration abruptly canceled its committee meeting to recommend the makeup of seasonal flu shots for the 2025-26 influenza season. Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease physician and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security,...
CDC report adds to evidence that HPV vaccine is preventing cervical cancer in U.S. women
A new government report adds to evidence that the HPV vaccine, once called dangerous by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is preventing cervical cancer in young women. The report comes after Kennedy pledged to give a family member any fees he might earn from HPV vaccine...
Measles is one of the world’s most contagious viruses. Here’s what to know and how to avoid it
Measles is rarely seen in the United States, but Americans are growing more concerned about the preventable virus as cases continue to rise in rural West Texas. This week, an unvaccinated child died in the West Texas outbreak, which involves more than 120 cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control...
FDA flu shot meeting is abruptly canceled
A planned meeting of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration committee to recommend the makeup of seasonal flu shots for the 2025-26 influenza season was abruptly canceled Wednesday. That’s according to Dr. Paul Offit, a vaccine expert at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a member of the Vaccines and...
Texas says this doctor illegally treated trans youth. He says he followed the law
EL PASO, Texas — On the Texas border, Dr. Hector Granados treats children with diabetes at his El Paso clinics and makes hospital rounds under the shadow of accusations that have thrown his career into jeopardy: providing care to transgender youth. In what’s believed to be a U.S. first, Texas...
What you need to know about possible cuts to Medicaid
Nearly a quarter of Pennsylvanians are on Medicaid, the joint federal-state program that covers medical costs for poor people along with nursing home and personal care home expenses. If Republicans on Capitol Hill target Medicaid as they seek to slash federal spending by $2 trillion and enact $4.5 trillion in...
Pa. Republican says he’ll protect Medicaid’s ‘core mission’ while looking for budget savings
Democratic members of Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation railed against the budget blueprint that passed the House on Tuesday night, warning it could result in steep cuts to Medicaid. But an Altoona Republican who serves on a committee tasked with coming up with $880 billion in savings over 10 years says he...
A Texas child who was not vaccinated has died of measles, a first for the U.S. in a decade
LUBBOCK, Texas — A child who wasn’t vaccinated died in a measles outbreak in rural West Texas, state officials said Wednesday, the first U.S. death from the highly contagious — but preventable — respiratory disease since 2015. The school-aged child had been hospitalized and died Tuesday night amid the widespread...
Mystery illness in Congo has killed more than 50 people hours after they felt sick
KINSHASA, Congo — An unknown illness first discovered in three children who ate a bat has rapidly killed more than 50 people in northwestern Congo over the past five weeks, health experts say. The interval between the onset of symptoms — which include fever, vomiting and internal bleeding — and...
Does lip balm help chapped lips? Here’s what to know
NEW YORK — A tube of lip balm may seem like the perfect antidote to dry, cracked lips. But do these over-the-counter products soothe flaking or can they make it worse? Though dry lips can happen year-round, they’re most common during the winter. The cold outdoors paired with the low-humidity...
Pennsylvania hostage-taking and shootout highlight rising violence against U.S. hospital workers
A man who took hostages in a York County hospital during a shooting that killed a police officer and wounded five other people highlights the rising violence against U.S. healthcare workers and the challenge of protecting them. Diogenes Archangel-Ortiz, 49, carried a pistol and zip ties into the intensive care...
Cranberry mother and daughter reunite with surgeon who saved them both more than 18 years ago
When Dani Jo McLane noticed some blood in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy with her second child, she went to her doctor multiple times. Tests were done, then a biopsy was taken. Hearing the diagnosis of cervical cancer caused concern — but not for her own health. The...
Life coach Sunny Mann uses mindfulness, resilence and compassion to reach goals
Mental health challenges affect millions of Americans each year. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, as of 2021 around 22.8% of adults — or 57.8 million people — in the United States faced a mental health challenge. In a recent study done by the Department of Psychiatry and...
