Health News Roundup: WHO to use 'mpox' for monkeypox to tackle stigma; China tightens security after rare protests against COVID curbs and more

Protesters have taken to the streets of Shanghai, Beijing and other cities in recent days to demonstrate against COVID-19 measures and restrictions on freedom, a show of civil disobedience that is unprecedented since leader Xi assumed power. Uganda's president extends Ebola epicentre's quarantine for 21 days Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has extended a quarantine placed on two districts that are the epicentre of the country's Ebola outbreak by 21 days, adding that his government's response to the disease was succeeding.


Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 29-11-2022 02:35 IST | Created: 29-11-2022 02:31 IST
Health News Roundup: WHO to use 'mpox' for monkeypox to tackle stigma; China tightens security after rare protests against COVID curbs and more
Representative Image Image Credit: ANI

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

WHO to use 'mpox' for monkeypox to tackle stigma

The World Health Organization said on Monday it would start using a new preferred term, "mpox", as a synonym for monkeypox and urged others to follow suit after receiving complaints that the current name for the disease was racist and stigmatising. "Both names will be used simultaneously for one year while 'monkeypox' is phased out," the WHO said in a statement.

China tightens security after rare protests against COVID curbs

Police on Monday stopped and searched people at the sites of weekend protests in Shanghai and Beijing, after crowds there and in other Chinese cities demonstrated against stringent COVID-19 measures disrupting lives three years into the pandemic. From the streets of several Chinese cities to dozens of university campuses, protesters made a show of civil disobedience unprecedented since leader Xi Jinping assumed power a decade ago. During his tenure, Xi has overseen the quashing of dissent and expansion of a high-tech social surveillance system that has made protest more difficult, and riskier.

Diphtheria infections rise in Britain, says UK health agency, citing migrant cases

The number of diphtheria cases in England has risen this year, health officials said on Monday, citing dozens of cases found among asylum seekers arriving into the country, but adding that the risk of infection to the wider public remained very low. Data released by the Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said there were around 50 cases among asylum seekers who arrived in England between Jan. 1 and Nov. 25, compared with an average of 2 to 11 cases in the country per year over the last decade.

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei says COVID protests will not shake government

From his Portuguese home, Ai Weiwei, the high-profile Chinese dissident whose art has often criticized Beijing's policies, said the recent wave of protests would not shake Xi Jinping's government because the police would simply crush them into silence. Protesters have taken to the streets of Shanghai, Beijing and other cities in recent days to demonstrate against COVID-19 measures and restrictions on freedom, a show of civil disobedience that is unprecedented since leader Xi assumed power.

Uganda's president extends Ebola epicentre's quarantine for 21 days

Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni has extended a quarantine placed on two districts that are the epicentre of the country's Ebola outbreak by 21 days, adding that his government's response to the disease was succeeding. Movement into and out of Mubende and Kassanda districts in central Uganda will be restricted up to Dec. 17, the presidency said late on Saturday. It was originally imposed for 21 days on Oct. 15, then extended for the same period on Nov. 5.

UK's C4X Discovery signs $400 million licensing deal with AstraZeneca

British drug discovery company C4X Discovery said AstraZeneca had signed a licence worth up $402 million to develop an oral therapy for the treatment of inflammatory and respiratory diseases using its NRF2 Activator programme. C4XD said on Monday it would receive pre-clinical milestone payments worth up to $16 million ahead of the first clinical trial, including $2 million upfront.

Analysis-China protests highlight Xi's COVID policy dilemma - to walk it back or not

The rare street protests that erupted in cities across China over the weekend were a referendum against President Xi Jinping's zero-COVID policy and the strongest public defiance during his political career, China analysts said. Not since the protests of Tiananmen Square in 1989 have so many Chinese risked arrest and other repercussions to take to the streets over a single issue.

Beijing reports 2,086 new local COVID cases during 15 hours to 3 p.m. on Monday- official

China's capital city Beijing reported 2,086 new local COVID cases for the 15 hours to 3 p.m. (0700 GMT) on Monday, Liu Xiaofeng, the deputy director of the city's municipal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a briefing.

(With inputs from agencies.)

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