Nicola Low

Not just measles: Another outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease is happening | CNN The FDA approved a vaccine for mumps nearly 60 years ago, so why are some areas of the United States experiencing outbreaks now, and who should be concerned?

Measles isn't the only preventable infection on the rise. Now mumps is apparently making a comeback. Maryland health officials have confirmed an uptick in mumps cases—26 so far this year. With cases of whooping cough also continuing to rise, it's clear RFKjr's anti-vax agenda is having an impact👇

A medical journal says the case reports it has published for 25 years are, in fact, fiction A Canadian journal has issued corrections on 138 case reports it published over the last 25 years to add a disclaimer: The cases described are fictional. Paediatrics & Child Health, the journal…

Outrageous: A medical journal just issued corrections for 138 case reports published over 25 years.
The cases? Completely fictional. One described a rare pediatric condition, used as a teaching tool for decades, but the patient never existed.
retractionwatch.com/2026/03/03/c...

🧪 #medsky #ciencia

Sánchez’s principled stand against Trump matters. So does Merz’s silence Spain’s leader has taken a strong position in refusing the US demand to use Spanish bases to strike Iran. Europe should show solidarity in the face of Trump’s threats.

Pedro Sánchez has taken a strong position in refusing the US demand to use Spanish bases to strike Iran. Europe should show solidarity with Spain in the face of Donald Trump’s threats. https://bit.ly/4l7IYhs

Poster in green red and blue of a female face and flowing text

Bonnie MacLean, US artist known for her 1960s and 70s classic posters using an iconic psychedelic art style to promote the concerts of rock bands and other well known performers #womensart

I officially have a name for what I do….Tsundoku and Librocubicularist #workingonmypile #booksky #readinsky

War (What Is It Good For)

PEPFAR, the program to stop hundreds of thousands of children and adults from dying of HIV/AIDS, was $6.5 billion a year.

Happy Holi!

In a world that often feels heavy, this festival of colors reminds us of the power of hope, joy, and our shared humanity. May the spirit of #Holi bring light, renewal, and brighter days

Switzerland will vote in June on a far-right proposal to cap the population at 10 mio. If the limit is reached, the govt would be required to withdraw from the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons with the EU.

The broader trend:
An increasing number of 🇨🇭ballots openly challenges intl treaties

Oh, truly sad news.

Sad to hear about the death of Robin Weiss. I was the last PhD candidate he examined at UCL as an internal examiner. As stressful as a viva can be, he put me right at ease and though his questions were probing he was kind and thoughtful. The three hours were a breeze.

Challenges Issued to Anti-Vaccinationists An unvaccinated activist accepted a challenge to be exposed to smallpox and he nearly died!

In 1901, an anti-vaccine activist accepted a challenge to enter a smallpox hospital unvaccinated. He nearly died. History has lessons for today's vaccine debates.
stopantivaxpropaganda.substack.com/p/challenges...

Monochrome photograph featuring a white woman on a scooter in a street facing left dressed in a long black dress and hat

In 1916, Florence Norman, a suffragette in London, used a motorised scooter known as a Autoped #WomensArt
Every month on Womensart is #WomensHistoryMonth 💙

Spain confirms person with variant swine flu in Catalonia

The patient remains asymptomatic, and all close contacts have tested negative for the virus.

www.cidrap.umn.edu/s...

Photo: James Hill/Flickr cc

Ivermectin is making a post-pandemic comeback, among cancer patients The anti-parasitic drug became a household name during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it is now being embraced as an alternative treatment for cancer. It is as politically polarizing as ever.

There is no credible evidence that ivermectin has any impact as a cancer treatment.

If you choose to take it instead of undergoing standard treatment, you will die from your cancer.

There haven't been new reports of #H5N1 infected dairy herds in the US for several months, but I keep an eye on the #USDA page where they're posted. Sometime in the past few weeks 4 more herds were added to Idaho's total. Infections were last April-May. publicdashboards.dl.usda.gov/t/MRP_PUB/vi...

Screenshot from https://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/lunar/2026-march-3 saying that the total lunar eclipse will not be visible from Switzerland

Lovely silvery full moon tonight in #Bern 🇨🇭, but no eclipse visible 😢

Photo of a doorway created with twigs in a lush green forest

“Passage”, 2007 by German installation artist Cornelia Konrads #womensart #Spring

That’s the way it is

Painted portrait of a sitting white woman in 17th century dress while in a darkened room

Elisabetta Sirani (1638-1665), an Italian Baroque painter who was one of the first female artists to specialize in history painting. She opened an academy for women artists before her mysterious early death #womensart #WomensHistoryMonth

This article is freely available - click in the link - @plosmedicine.org is an #OpenAccess not for profit publisher

#WomensHistoryMonth 📌

48 years ago today
"Because the Night,” a song from Patti Smith's album Easter, was released.

Written by Bruce Springsteen and Patti Smith, the single was actually supposed to appear on one of the Boss's albums, but he decided not to do it in favor of Patti.

#pattismith #punkrockhistory

🧪 #TB #IDsky 💉

Latest research: Estimating the population impact of new tuberculosis vaccines depending on efficacy against infectious asymptomatic tuberculosis: A modelling study appearing in the @plosmedicine.org journal. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41678562/

Switzerland is also one of the most politically exclusive democracies.

New official data show that only ≈60% of all residents have political rights.

And given Switzerland’s low voter turnout, a small minority (roughly a quarter of all residents who vote regularly) ends up deciding for the majority

fuck

How are asymptomatic COVID-19 cases tracking? In the first year of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, data were assembled that defined how the virus spread among us, who, at the time, had never been infected. But the world's population is very different now - billions of infections, many waves triggered by evolved variants, vaccination, and that has impacted incubation periods, serial interval, generation times, and, according to this modelling, increased the proportion of cases (=infections) that are asymptomatic. A study published last year applied a modelling system. It started by acknowledging that these estimates are challenged by many variables.

As a fully immunised (=successfully vaccinated and boosted) individual, this study is good news. If you get infected, you're a bit more likely to come away with an unnoticed infection.

Poster with text in black and white

One of the iconic posters of the Guerrilla Girls, US artists devoted to fighting sexism in the art world since 1985 #Womensart #WomensHistoryMonth

JID: Multiple Measles Transmission Events Associated with a Single Traveler Arriving in the United States, May 2025

15 secondary cases

Jennifer J Fowler et al

Director Jay Bhattacharya: make this CDC paper open access, please

bit.ly/4b3BPub