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MercoPress, en Español

Montevideo, October 19th 2025 - 08:28 UTC

Health & Science

  • Saturday, May 24th 2014 - 09:41 UTC

    OIE world assembly begins on Sunday with representatives from 178 members

    The World Assembly of OIE Delegates establishes the policies of the Paris based OIE and supervises their implementation

    The 82nd General Session of the World Assembly of OIE (Animal Health Organization) Delegates will be held from 25 to 30 May 2014, bringing together representatives of 178 OIE Members and observers from international organizations that have signed an official agreement with the OIE, as well as other international and regional organizations and invited guests.

  • Wednesday, May 21st 2014 - 07:10 UTC

    Mosquito-borne Chikunguna cases reported in Miami

    Chikungunya symptoms begin three to seven days after being bitten by an infected mosquito

    The viral mosquito-borne disease, Chikunguna, has been confirmed in three counties of the state of Florida. According to the Florida Department of Health, the women who recently travelled to the Caribbean include a 29-year-old from Broward County.

  • Tuesday, May 20th 2014 - 08:48 UTC

    Brazil World Cup host cities with an early warning system for dengue

    The warning system specifically predicts the risk of dengue infections in 553 micro-regions of Brazil

    A heightened risk of an outbreak of dengue fever during the upcoming soccer World Cup in Brazil has prompted a high alert in three out of 12 host cities. For the first time, scientists have developed an early warning system that predicts the risk of dengue fever infections throughout parts of Brazil.

  • Monday, May 19th 2014 - 21:00 UTC

    WHO's Dr. Chan targets childhood obesity: “our children are getting fatter”

    Dr.Chan announced a high-level Commission will produce a consensus report specifying approaches

    World Health Organization Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan voiced deep concern about the increase worldwide of childhood obesity, with numbers climbing fastest in developing countries. “As the 2014 World Health Statistics report bluntly states, ‘Our children are getting fatter,’” she said during her opening speech to the Health Assembly on Monday in Geneva.

  • Monday, May 19th 2014 - 13:54 UTC

    People living longer, both in rich and poor countries, says latest WHO report

    “Global life expectancy has improved because fewer children are dying before their fifth birthday” said Dr Margaret Chan

    People everywhere are living longer, according to the World Health Statistics 2014 published this week by the World Health Organization (WHO). Based on global averages, a girl who was born in 2012 can expect to live to around 73 years, and a boy to the age of 68. This is six years longer than the average global life expectancy for a child born in 1990.

  • Saturday, May 17th 2014 - 06:16 UTC

    Worldwide 3.3 million deaths in 2012 were caused by harmful use of alcohol

    On average every person in the world aged 15 years or older drinks 6.2 liters of pure alcohol per year

    Worldwide, 3.3 million deaths in 2012 were due to harmful use of alcohol, says a new report launched by the World Health Organization (WHO). Alcohol consumption can not only lead to dependence but also increases people’s risk of developing more than 200 diseases including liver cirrhosis and some cancers. In addition, harmful drinking can lead to violence and injuries.

  • Friday, May 16th 2014 - 10:47 UTC

    Morales reveal that with Argentine help Bolivia is developing nuclear energy

    “We are working on nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, for medical purposes”, said the Bolivian president

    Bolivian President Evo Morales revealed on Thursday that, with Argentina's help, his country was working to develop nuclear power. Morales had previously indicated that his country had plans to go nuclear with help from both Buenos Aires and France, but this is the first time that the news was confirmed.

  • Monday, May 12th 2014 - 23:56 UTC

    Mujica asks Obama support for scientific knowledge and to combat smoking

    He called to fight 'for life' by finishing with the smoking habit that kills eight million people annually

    In an enjoyable press conference at the White House Uruguay's President Jose Mujica spoke about the increasing importance for people in the US to be bilingual, the dangers of smoking and his interest in having access to U.S. knowledge and professors. President Barrack Obama praised the Uruguayan leader's 'extraordinary' credibility and leadership in democracy and human rights issues.

  • Monday, May 12th 2014 - 06:48 UTC

    Brazil downplays, mathematically, the threat of dengue for Cup tourists

    According to the calculi at the most 33 out of 600.000 visitors could catch dengue

    A study by Brazilian experts calculates that, in the worst case scenario, just 100 of the 600,000 foreign tourists who will visit Brazil during the World Cup soccer tourney scheduled to begin in June, or less than 0.02% of the total visitors, will contract dengue during their stay in the country.

  • Wednesday, May 7th 2014 - 06:21 UTC

    Live avian influenza virus discovered in Antarctica Adélie penguins

    “We found that this virus was unlike anything else detected in the world,” said Hurt ( Pic Aeron Hurt, WHO)

    Researchers have found a new type of avian influenza virus in a group of Adélie penguins (pygoscelies adeliae) from Antarctica. Aeron Hurt, PhD, a senior research scientist at the WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza in Melbourne, Australia, said that this is the first time that a distinct, live flu virus has been found in these birds.