Health News Roundup: Cocktail of flu, HIV drugs appears to help fight coronavirus

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Brazil to declare emergency, quarantine people returning from coronavirus-hit Wuhan

Alarmed by the growing risks of a new coronavirus, Brazil has decided to repatriate Brazilians from Wuhan, China, and will declare a national health emergency, Health Minister Luiz Henrique Mandetta said on Monday. A chartered plane would be sent to pick up 40 of the 55 Brazilians in Wuhan who have asked to be evacuated from the city at the center of a coronavirus outbreak, Mandetta said. They would be quarantined for 18 days at a military base, he said.

Cocktail of flu, HIV drugs appears to help fight coronavirus: Thai doctors

Thai doctors have seen success in treating severe cases of the new coronavirus with a combination of medications for flu and HIV, with initial results showing vast improvement 48 hours after applying the treatment, they said on Sunday. The doctors from Rajavithi Hospital in Bangkok said a new approach in coronavirus treatment had improved the condition of several patients under their care, including one 70-year-old Chinese woman from Wuhan who tested positive for the coronavirus for 10 days.

Trial of promising HIV vaccine halted after failing to show benefit

A clinical trial testing a promising HIV vaccine in more than 5,000 people in South Africa has been halted because it failed to show a benefit, U.S. health officials said on Monday. The study, known as HVTN 702, built on results from the 2009 RV144 vaccine trial in Thailand, which was the first to show it was possible to prevent HIV infection in humans. In that study, the vaccine cut the rate of HIV infections by 30% compared with people who got a placebo.

Hong Kong records first death from new coronavirus; overall toll over 420

Hong Kong reported its first death from the newly identified coronavirus on Tuesday, the second fatality outside mainland China from an outbreak that has killed over 420 people, spread around the world and raised fears for global economic growth. China's currency and stock markets steadied in choppy trade after anxiety over the spreading coronavirus on Monday hit the yuan and erased some $400 billion in market value from Shanghai's benchmark index.

G7 health ministers agree on a coordinated approach to coronavirus: Germany

Health ministers from the Group of Seven leading industrial nations agreed to coordinate their response to dealing with the coronavirus in a conference call on Monday, the German Health Ministry said. The ministers agreed to coordinate - as far as possible - their approach on travel regulations and precautions, research into the new virus and cooperation with the World Health Organization, the European Union and with China.

Even with insurance, fewer Americans seeing primary care providers

Almost half of U.S. adults with private health insurance are not visiting primary care providers for routine care or sick visits, a new study suggests. Between 2008 and 2016, the number of annual primary care visits for every 100 people with private health insurance declined by 22%, from 169.5 to 134.3, the study found. Over that same period, the proportion of adults who didn't see primary care providers at all rose from 38% to 46%.

U.S. announces more coronavirus cases, details quarantine plans for returning travelers

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Monday announced a second case of transmission of the new coronavirus within the United States and provided more detailed plans on how it will handle travelers returning from China as the country works to limit the outbreak. "We expect to see more cases of person-to-person spread," Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, said during a conference call that included confirmation of a handful of new cases, bringing the U.S. total to 11.

Hong Kong reports first coronavirus death as hospital workers escalate strike

Hong Kong reported its first coronavirus death on Tuesday, a 39-year-old male who had been suffering from an underlying illness and had visited China's Wuhan city in January, hospital staff said, marking the second death outside mainland China. The first death outside of China was reported on Sunday - a 44-year-old Chinese man who died in the Philippines after traveling there from Wuhan, the epicenter of the virus.

Hong Kong suspends four more border crossings to curb spread of virus

Hong Kong's leader announced the closure of four more border crossings with mainland China on Monday, leaving just three checkpoints open, but stopped short of demands for the entire border to be closed to curb the spread of the new coronavirus. Hong Kong has 15 confirmed cases of the coronavirus, which emerged in central China in December and has killed more than 360 people there and sent jitters through global markets.

Conflicting studies point to meat moderation as healthy diet

A new study on meat consumption has found that people who eat red and processed meat have higher risks of heart disease and early death - contradicting recent research that suggested cutting out meat has few health benefits. The multiple findings can make it "difficult for people to make sense of what can seem to be conflicting messages on food", said Duane Mellor, a dietician at Britain's Aston University who was not directly involved with either study.

(With inputs from agencies.)