Plague Case Confirmed Near Lake Tahoe After Likely Flea Bite
A California resident has tested positive for the plague after camping near Lake Tahoe, local health officials confirmed. It’s the latest in a string of positive cases in the western…
The Terror of Toxic Shock Once Ruled Headlines—So Why Did It Fizzle Out?
During the early 1980s, the word tampon became briefly synonymous with terror. Doctors began to document cases of a then little-known condition linked to the feminine care product, called toxic…
Girl Catches Rare Bone Infection From Kitten
A teen girl’s kitten turned out to cause much more trouble than usual. In a new case report this month, doctors in Portugal describe how the cat likely transmitted an…
The Scariest Germs You Can Catch at the Beach
The mostly empty Newport Beach in California.Image: Marcio Jose Sanchez (AP) Earlier this month, South Carolina resident Brent Norman had an especially unlucky time at the beach. Advertisement As reported…
Leprosy in Medieval England Probably Came From Red Squirrels
Medieval residents of Winchester, England, probably got their leprosy from red squirrels in the area, according to a team of archaeologists and geneticists that studied remains from two archaeological sites…
Dozens Sickened, Five Killed by Meningococcal Disease Outbreak in Virginia
An outbreak of meningococcal disease in Virginia has sickened dozens of people and killed at least five, local health officials reported this week. Though severe cases are typically rare, the…