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The horrid norovirus is making its annual rounds and we’re praying we don’t catch it this winter. The common stomach bug is highly contagious and causes vomiting and diarrhoea. 

There is no specific cure, so it has to be left to run its course though it shouldn’t last more than a couple of days.

Between 10,000 and 20,000 people per week can catch norovirus in a peak period. 

Symptoms:

The first sign of norovirus is usually an abrupt feeling of nausea followed by sick feeling followed by forceful vomiting and watery diarrhoea.

Some people may also have: A raised temperature (over 38C/100.4F), headaches, stomach cramps and aching limbs.

Symptoms usually appear one to two days after you have become infected but they can start sooner. Most people recover fully within a couple of days.

Aside from the risk of becoming dehydrated, the illness is not usually dangerous and there are usually no long-lasting effects from having norovirus. However, it can be a pretty unpleasant experience while you have it.

What is the treatment for Norovirus (Winter-vomiting bug)?

The winter vomiting bug is a virus so there is no cure, it is therefore best to let the illness run its course and you will fight off the infection within a few days. 

It’s important that you drink plenty of fluids and take paracetamol for any fever, aches of pains. 

To reduce the risk of passing the virus onto others, ensure that your hands are washed regularly and that you stay at home until they are clear of symptoms for 48 hours. Avoid visiting elderly people, ill family/friends and pregnant women until the symptoms have been gone for two full days.

Doctors say:

Doctors have urged people with the virus to stay away from GP surgeries and hospitals, unless absolutely necessary.  

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In an incredible breakthrough for cancer research, a female scientist from the National Polytechnic Institute (IPN) has reportedly found a complete cure for human papillomavirus (HPV).

The apparent cure would help to prevent the spread of cervical cancer among women. Dr Eva Ramon Gallegos, a Mexican scientist, claims to have eliminated the virus in 29 patients infected with HPV.

The report states that a team of researchers, led by Dr. Gallegos, treated the 29 women with non-invasive photodynamic therapy (PDT), which involves using a drug called a photosensitizer and a particular type of light to treat different areas of the body.

Dr. Gallegos had been studying the effects of photodynamic therapy for an amazing 20 YEARS to help tackle tumours such as breast and melanoma cancer, and specialised in the study of photodynamic therapy.

She treated 420 patients in Oaxaca and Veracruz, as well as 29 women in Mexico, with the technique. The repercussions from the treatment were promising; photodynamic therapy was able to eradicate the virus in all patients.

The virus was eradicated in 100 percent of those tested who carried HPV without premalignant lesions of cervical cancer using photodynamic therapy. The treatment was 64.3 percent successful in women with both HPV and lesions.

The therapy has no side effects, which is amazing as it doesn't do any damage at all to the body to have the treatment.

Dr. Gallegos said; “Unlike other treatments, it only eliminates damaged cells and does not affect healthy structures. Therefore, it has great potential to decrease the death rate from cervical cancer,” Radio Guama report.

HPV is a widespread virus from all over the world, with more than 100 variants. 14 of these variants can cause cervical cancer, a disease which is fast becoming a leading cause for death among female cancer patients.

Cervical cancer is the fourth most common cancer in women, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Feature image: National Polytechnic Institute

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A warning has been issued to millions of PC users after hackers managed to slip well-hidden malware into two versions of a popular system clean up tool.

CCleaner works by clearing out junk programs and advertising cookies to in order to speed up devices, and is reportedly downloaded up to five million times a week.

However, a version downloaded by two million people in August of this year included a malicious malware which collected system information including PC names and information from the Windows registry key.

It's thought the virus tried to connect to a number of unregistered web pages in an effort to download additional unauthorised programs.

The threat has since been removed, though it went undetected for a number of weeks. 

Paul Yung of Piriform said in a statement: “We would like to apologise for a security incident that we have recently found in CCleaner version 5.33.6162 and CCleaner Cloud version 1.07.3191.”

“We also immediately contacted law enforcement units and worked with them on resolving the issue.”

While the threat was detected in the early stages and information collected it not believed to be sensitive, users are still being urged to o uninstall and reinstall the software as soon as possible.

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We know the Ebola virus isn’t in Ireland, but there have been over 1000 confirmed cases, with almost 700 deaths, so it's not a bad idea to be informed – especially if you’re going abroad this summer. Here is the lowdown on the signs and symptoms of the virus:

Signs:

  • Fever
  • Headaches
  • Joint and muscle pain
  • Lack of appetite

Symptoms:

  • Vomiting
  • Diarrhoea
  • Stomach pain
  • A rash alongside internal and external bleeding – often from the eyes, nose or mouth.
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