The World Health Organization is calling for urgent action to end bad health care practices responsible for killing millions of patients around the world every year.  WHO issued a report in advance of the first World Patient Safety Day on September 17.People who fall ill go to their doctor or …

Congo’s National Ebola Response Committee says confirmed Ebola deaths in the east of the sprawling African nation are nearing 2,000 and confirmed cases of the virus have exceeded 3,000.The committee released the latest numbers Friday after a discussion in Goma by the Catholic Church and the Anglican Church about efforts …

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now reports 380 confirmed and probable cases of lung disease associated with e-cigarette use, or vaping. The agency Friday also confirmed six deaths because of e-cigarettes.Until recently, most teens weren’t concerned about vaping. In fact, one brand of e-cigarettes, Juul, advertised that …

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now reports 380 confirmed and probable cases of lung disease associated with e-cigarette use, or vaping. The agency has also confirmed six deaths because of e-cigarettes. These latest figures were released Friday. Although vaping was once advertised as a better alternative to …

Government experts Friday backed an experimental treatment for children with peanut allergies that could become the first federally approved option for preventing life-threatening reactions.The treatment is daily capsules of peanut powder that gradually help children build up a tolerance.The outside panel of advisers to the Food and Drug Administration voted …

Kenya has become the third African country to roll out the world’s first malaria vaccine. Young children in eight western Kenyan counties will receive the RTS, S malaria vaccine, developed by British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline.Africa continues to bear the greatest brunt of malaria globally and the introduction of the vaccine …

Each year, tens of thousands of people across Africa die or get sick from ingesting counterfeit drugs. But Franck Verzefé, a Cameroonian pharmacist, has developed a device that uses artificial intelligence to determine if a medicine is fake or the real thing.  Moki Edwin Kindzeka narrates this report by Anne …

U.S. marine mammal biologists have declared an “unusual mortality event” in the deaths of nearly 300 ice seals off Alaska’s northwest coast.The cause of the deaths is not known.The fisheries arm of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the declaration covers ringed, bearded and spotted seals. All three types …

The Trump administration has thrown out Obama-era rules that expended federal protection of waterways from pollution, a move environmentalists say they will challenge in court.Getting rid of the 2015 Waters of the United States Act “puts an end to an egregious power grab, eliminates an ongoing patchwork of clean water …

Researchers report two newly discovered species of electric eels in South America, one of which can deliver a bigger jolt than any other known animal.The researchers collected 107 eels in four countries and found differences in their DNA, along with minor physical variations.One species had the ability to generate 860 …

The tentative settlement involving the opioid crisis and the maker of OxyContin could mean that thousands of local governments will one day be paid back for some of the costs of responding to the epidemic.But for public officials in Akron, no amount of money will restore the families and institutions …

U.S. President Donald Trump Wednesday announced action against flavored electronic cigarettes, which have been linked to breathing problems, lung damage and death. Vaping has become popular, as many considered it healthier than smoking. Flavors such as mint, bubble gum or ice cream attracted young people. But a spike in serious …

Scientists have created two embryos of the nearly extinct northern white rhino, part of an effort to pull the species back from the brink.    “Today we achieved an important milestone on a rocky road which allows us to plan the future steps in the rescue program of the northern white rhino,” said Thomas …

Growing inequality and climate change will not only derail progress toward global sustainability goals but also will threaten human existence, leading scientists said Wednesday at the United Nations. The world is falling off track on ambitious global development goals adopted by U.N. members, a panel of scientists said in an independent assessment report released at U.N. headquarters. Member nations unanimously adopted 17 …

Malaria could be wiped out in a generation, if $2 billion more every year would be invested in tackling the disease, according to a major new report launched Wednesday. However, there is a debate over whether the global community should make eradication its primary goal — or if this is …

A family of animal lovers is looking after 12 abandoned raccoons in a rural area of the Rostov region in southern Russia. These wild animals lost their hunting and survival skills when they were raised as pets by owners who could no longer keep them. VOA’s Jim Randle narrates our …

Eighteen years ago, more than TV viewers said the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attack was the all-time most memorable moment shared by television viewers during the past 50 years, according to a 2012 study.Cohen Silver, who studies the impact of collective trauma, says some individuals with no direct connection to …

As climate change brings more frequent and extreme heat waves around the world, demand for air conditioners is soaring, with 10 new units sold every second on average, but the poor may be left to swelter, said a University of Oxford researcher.By 2050, energy use for cooling is projected to …

U.S. health officials are investigating what might be causing hundreds of serious breathing illnesses in people who use e-cigarettes and other vaping devices. They have identified about 450 possible cases in 33 states, including six deaths.A look at what we know so far about the outbreak as the investigation continues:What …

Tens of thousands of tons of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant might have to be released into the Pacific Ocean, Japan’s environment minister said Tuesday.The water, used to cool damaged fuel cores after the plant was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011, is being stored in …

When researchers at the University of Kentucky compare brains donated from people who died with dementia, very rarely do they find one that bears only Alzheimer’s trademark plaques and tangles — no other damage. If they do, “we call it a unicorn,” said Donna Wilcock, an Alzheimer’s specialist at the university’s …

India’s space agency says it has located the lunar probe that was feared lost as it was making its final approach towards the surface last weekend.The Vikram lander was just two kilometers above the moon’s South Pole Saturday when ground controllers lost contact with the spacecraft. The Indian Space Research …

Barcelona could cut deaths from air pollution and improve quality of life by implementing in full a plan to calm traffic and free up space for residents, researchers said Monday.The compact Spanish city is home to more than 1.6 million people and is plagued by contaminants and noise largely due …

The American Medical Association on Monday urged Americans to stop using electronic cigarettes of any sort until scientists have a better handle on the cause of 450 lung illnesses and at least five deaths related to the use of the products.The AMA, one of the nation’s most influential physician groups, …

The south peak of Kebnekaise, Sweden’s highest peak for well over a century, has been demoted to second place after decades of rising temperatures melted more than a third of the mountain’s glacier.Since 1880, when measurements started, Swedish children have been taught that the southern peak is the highest peak …