Three people died recently in the United States recently from rabies linked to bats, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday. They bring the total number of U.S. rabies cases in 2021 to five. That’s a sharp rise over prior years — no reported rabies cases in people were reported in the…  read on >  read on >

A medication that acts on certain brain receptors can temporarily ease visual-processing problems in some adults with autism, a small study has found. Researchers said it’s far too early to know whether the drug, arbaclofen, could prove useful in managing those visual issues. But the findings do give insight into the brain differences that underpin…  read on >  read on >

A simple blood test may help spot pregnant women who are at risk for developing preeclampsia — dangerously high blood pressure during pregnancy — before it becomes a threat to both mother and child. Marked by a sudden spike in blood pressure, protein in urine or other problems during pregnancy, preeclampsia occurs in about 1…  read on >  read on >

Far fewer kids might develop asthma if there were less traffic pollution, suggests a new study that researched the issue worldwide. “Our study found that nitrogen dioxide puts children at risk of developing asthma and the problem is especially acute in urban areas,” said study author Susan Anenberg, a professor of environmental and occupational health…  read on >  read on >

COVID-19 infection isn’t a game, and you shouldn’t try to get it on purpose — not even the supposedly “mild” Omicron variant of the virus. It’s a high-risk strategy for yourself, for public health and the economy, medical experts agreed. “You’d be crazy to try to get infected with this,” said Dr. Robert Murphy, executive…  read on >  read on >