A total of 21 cases of XBB.1.5 COVID subvariant have been detected in Canada as of Wednesday, the country’s public health agency has confirmed. XBB.1.5 is a sub-lineage of the Omicron subvariant XBB and has been deemed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as the “most transmissible” COVID strain so far.The new subvariant has been
XBB.1.5, a new COVID-19 strain that has been spreading rapidly in the United States is now the “most transmissible subvariant that has been detected yet,” the World Health Organization says. The subvariant of Omicron has been detected in 29 countries to date, the WHO said during a briefing Wednesday.It is now responsible for approximately 70
Pharmacies across Toronto and beyond are experiencing shortages of adult cold and flu medication, with many pharmacy shelves having little to no inventory. Semah Salib, a pharmacist at Woodgreen Discount Pharmacy said it’s an unprecedented shortage and something he hasn’t seen happen in before.“Nothing is available,” he said. “It’s never happened before. Over the last 20
In a year when pharmacists have stickhandled children’s drug shortages and an extra-busy flu shot season, you’d think they might balk at the news in Ontario and B.C. that their prescriptive powers are being expanded. Yet those in the field say the added responsibilities may make their jobs more fulfilling – so long as the
As Canadians close the door to 2022 and look ahead to the new year, many may be hopeful they can also look forward to good news when it comes to COVID-19. But will 2023 be the year the emergency phase of the pandemic is declared over and that Canada recognizes the virus as endemic?It turns out
There are still “huge weaknesses” in the world’s health-care system that could be exposed if a new COVID variant takes dominance, a WHO official said Wednesday. Dr. Mike Ryan, executive director of the WHO Health Emergencies Programme, told reporters during a news conference in Geneva, Switzerland, that he doesn’t think the world is ready to
A BC doctor is calling for more to be done to protect children from influenza-related illness, which experts say has claimed more lives in recent weeks than typical respiratory virus seasons. Dr. Sanjiv Gandhi, a clinical professor of surgery at UBC, says in the early stages of the pandemic, the elderly were the most vulnerable
Legendary Canadian singer Céline Dion was recently diagnosed with a rare neurological disorder called stiff-person syndrome (SPS) that led her to reschedule several European tour dates. In two videos posted on social media on Thursday, Dion expressed that the condition is not allowing her “to sing the way I’m used to.” Read more: Céline Dion reveals
Paige Lloyd doesn’t normally get the influenza vaccine, but after spending two weeks in the Alberta Children’s Hospital with her four-year-old daughter, she has a new perspective. Andy started feeling sick at the beginning of November. She seemed to recover, but caught something else and was extremely tired for a week. Then, on Nov. 19
Don’t like the weather? Wait five minutes. It’s a common enough phrase during Alberta’s summer storm season, but this winter people across the province are also living through near-daily temperature swings ranging from bitterly cold to balmy and mild.An extreme cold warning was issued by Environment Canada for Monday and Tuesday, but it will be