Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:
Salmonella Outbreak Traced to Dairy Bull Calves: CDC
An outbreak of multidrug-resistant salmonella that sickened 21 people in 8 states has been linked to dairy bull calves, federal and state officials say.
The patients became sick between Jan. 11, 2016 and Oct. 24, 2016. Eight patients were hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.
Investigators concluded the outbreak was caused by contact with dairy bull calves bought at livestock markets in Wisconsin, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The investigation is continuing. To prevent illness when working with livestock, always wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water right after touching livestock, equipment for animals, or anything in the area where animals live and roam, the CDC said.
Use specific clothes, shoes, and gloves when working with livestock, and keep and store these items outside of your home. Work with your veterinarian to keep livestock healthy and prevent diseases.
-----
Bill Seeks to Speed Approval of New Drugs, Therapies
A bill meant to speed approval of new drugs and medical devices in the United States is scheduled for a vote in the House of Representatives this week.
The $6.3 billion bill, which also aims to increase biomedical research, would streamline how federal regulators assess the safety of new therapies in order to make them available to patients sooner, the Associated Press reported.
The bill would provide new money for the National Institutes of Health ($4.8 billion) and the Food and Drug Administration ($500 million), as well as $1 billion in grants to states to fight opioid abuse.
Republicans said the measure was final, but aides to Democrats said discussions were still ongoing, the AP reported.
-----
HIV Vaccine Clinical Trial Begins in South Africa
An experimental HIV vaccine being tested in a clinical trial in South Africa could be the "final nail in the coffin" for the AIDS-causing virus, according to a U.S. government official.
The trial begins Wednesday and seeks to enroll 5,400 sexually active men and women, ages 18-35, at 15 sites across South Africa, the Associated Press reported.
The vaccine in the new trial is based on one used in a 2009 trial in Thailand that was found to be 31.2 percent effective at preventing HIV infection for 3.5 years after vaccination.
The new vaccine was created to provide stronger and longer protection, and was adapted to the HIV subtype that predominates in southern Africa. Each day in South Africa, more than 1,000 people are infected with HIV, the AP reported.
"If deployed alongside our current armory of proven HIV prevention tools, a safe and effective vaccine could be the final nail in the coffin for HIV," Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a statement.
"Even a moderately effective vaccine would significantly decrease the burden of HIV disease over time in countries and populations with high rates of HIV infection, such as South Africa," he said, the AP reported.
