The antiparasitic drug ivermectin doesn't prevent severe disease from COVID-19 any more effectively than symptom management and close observation by medical professionals, according to a study published Friday in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.The study enrolled nearly 500 people 50 and older who were at risk of severe COVID-19 because of their age and underlying health.

Hong Kong is in the throes of its worst-ever coronavirus outbreak, as residents are suddenly confronted with a severely overstretched healthcare system and a tightening of restrictions even as much of the world opens up.The city's strict but successful "zero-COVID" policy had largely kept the virus out for months.But when the highly transmissible Omicron variant broke through Hong Kong's defences, authorities were caught flat-footed with a dangerously under-vaccinated popu

Police in riot gear cleared the main protest hub in downtown Ottawa Saturday, using batons and pepper spray, smashing truck windows and arresting dozens of die-hard protesters as they moved to finally end a weeks-long siege of the Canadian capital.After a night marked by clashes, protesters – some in body armour – held firm, linking arms and hurling gas canisters and smoke grenades at advancing police, while chanting "freedom."But by midday police, backed by tactical vehicles and ov

Having COVID-19 puts people at a significantly increased chance of developing new mental health conditions, potentially adding to existing crises of suicide and overdoses, according to new research looking at millions of health records in the United States (US) over the course of a year.The long-term effects of having COVID are still being discovered, and among them is an increased chance of being diagnosed with mental health disorders.

The world's biggest economies are committed to taking a careful approach to unwinding support introduced during the coronavirus pandemic, Indonesia said Friday at a meeting of G20 finance chiefs.Some central banks, including in the United States (US), are moving towards hiking rates and withdrawing stimulus as economies rebound strongly from COVID-induced downturns and inflation surges.But there are concerns that aggressive policy tightening could knock a fragile recovery off course, and

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:Canada Arrests Trucker Leaders Canadian police begin arresting leaders of the trucker-led protest that has choked the capital's streets for three weeks.

Outbreaks of Avian influenza (AI), commonly known as bird flu, have been reported to the World Organization for Animal Health across Europe and Asia, causing concern among experts. Whenever avian influenza viruses are circulating in poultry, there is a risk of sporadic infection and small clusters of human cases due to people’s exposure to infected poultry or contaminated environments.

The crisis in Ukraine is a serious threat to the global economy's post-pandemic recovery, Indonesia's leader on Thursday warned a meeting of finance chiefs from the G20 nations.The Group of 20 – which brings together the world's top economies including the United States (US), China and some European nations – is holding talks in hybrid format in the Indonesian capital Jakarta.Opening the two-day meeting, Indonesian President Joko Widodo warned of the risks to the fragile recove

Here are the latest developments in the coronavirus crisis:Hong Kong's Health System Buckles Hong Kong's hospitals buckle under an Omicron-fuelled wave with patients shivering on gurneys outside overflowing wards.No Olympic Infections Beijing Olympics organisers say there were no new COVID cases in the Games' "closed-loop" bubble for the first time, hailing the success of China's strict approach.'World Better Prepared' The wor

Huddled under blankets and thermal shields, dozens of elderly patients shivered on gurneys outside a hospital serving one of Hong Kong's poorest communities – a grim tableau for the city as its health system buckles under an Omicron-fuelled coronavirus wave.We call this the fever zone," a nurse in full-body protective gear told AFP, declining to be named.