By IANS,

New Delhi : After the havoc wreaked by Cyclone Nargis, Myanmar is likely to face a vector-borne disease outbreak due to the flooding, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned.

Forty percent of the children are malnourished in Myanmar, where the official death toll from the cyclone is 35,000 besides tens of thousands affected.

“Major health problems in Myanmar which are most likely to be exacerbated by this crisis relate predominantly to communicable diseases (malaria, dengue, measles) and malnutrition, especially in children,” the WHO said.

By IANS,

London : It's not exactly a response to US President Bush's comments on the global food price hike, but a respected medical journal has said if the obese in the West took to walking or cycling, it would dramatically reduce global oil and food demand.

A study appearing in the Lancet has pointed out that “motorised transport is more than 95 percent oil dependent and accounts for almost half of world oil use. Since oil is a key agricultural input, demand for transportation fuel affects food prices”.

By IANS,

Washington : Infants who experience temporary separation from one or both parents during divorce, illness or violence are likely to face difficulties in learning at school.

Previous research on such separation has concentrated on children in foster or kinship care, who are known to often experience considerable emotional, behavioural and developmental problems.

Yet little is known about the impact of separation more generally, especially in less formalised situations in which one or more parents leave temporarily.

By IANS,

Washington : Latest research indicates that global warming could have another unwanted spin-off - it may spur the formation of kidney stones.

Dehydration, particularly in warmer climes and higher temperatures, will only exacerbate this effect. Consequently, the prevalence of stone disease may increase, along with the costs of treatment.

Using published data bearing on temperature-dependence of stone disease, researchers applied predictions of temperature increase to determine the impact of global warming on the incidence and cost of kidney stone disease.

By IANS,

Toronto : Canada has joined India, Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands in making the morning-after pill freely available over the counter.

Till now, the pill, also known as Plan B or Levonorgestrel, had been a prescription-only drug here, making it mandatory for a woman to have medical consultation before being allowed to buy it.

Pharmacists cited a lack of knowledge among users for its prescription-only sale.

However, the pill has been partially available over the counter in cases where a woman consults a pharmacist.

By IANS,

Washington : A promising new gene therapy is likely to raise the hopes and more of those suffering erectile dysfunction (ED).

Called the Maxi-K therapy, this locally administered gene-transfer technology has been validated by data from participants suffering from ED that failed to respond to any known therapy or treatment.

Researchers observed dramatic changes after Maxi-K therapy, including increases in the number of partial and full erections and a two-fold increase in erection duration.

By IANS,

Washington : A gastric bypass surgery not only helps morbidly obese shed unwanted kilos, but also enables them regain sexual functioning.

This procedure reduces calorie intake by reducing the size of the stomach and bypassing small intestines. The patient feels full faster and learns to reduce the amount of food that he eats.

By IANS,

Sydney : Australian researchers have developed what is being touted as the first “animal- and human-friendly” technique of masturbating an ostrich.

The new technique being used by researchers tasked with collecting semen and artificially inseminating the large and rather fearsome birds - as well as their cousins, the emus - relies on the use of a dummy female.

By IANS,

Washington : It's now official: ejaculation that occurs in less than “about one minute” of penetration has been designated as “premature”.

Experts have drafted the medical definition of “premature ejaculation”, or PE - the bane of millions of men worldwide - and it will be formally unveiled May 19 at the 103rd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA) in Florida.

By DPA,

Vienna : Three out of four children aged between 10 and 13 are unable to distinguish between basic flavours sweet, sour, bitter and salty, a study by an Austrian university found recently.

Only 27.3 percent of children recognised all flavours while 23.6 percent recognised only one, researchers from Vienna's University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences said.

In addition, 8.1 percent of the children did not recognise any flavour.

The results were significantly lower than those achieved by adults or university students in similar surveys.