A graduate school of public health will open in September at the University of Toronto, which will deal with epidemic diseases. Leading epidemiologist Jack Mandel will the director of the Dalla Lana School of Public Health.

The school is named after Paul Dalla Lana, chairman and founder of the NorthWest Healthcare Properties, which provided the $20 million grant to fund the school

Gene sequencing on flu viruses from two children who died amid a recent outbreak has revealed that no new flu strain has emerged, Hong Kong health authorities have revealed.

The Center for Health Protection of the Department of Health of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government said in a statement that the flu viruses from the two victims match the genetic makeup of viruses that are already circulating

Experts raised the warning flag on the public health concerns, saying that the attention being given to terrorist threats must also be given to obesity and other "lifestyle diseases" that are killing millions of people.

Speaking at the Oxford Health Alliance Summit held Monday in Sydney, experts said that while international terrorism is indeed a threat, it is less dangerous compared to the results and the risks posed by such conditions as diabetes, obesity, heart complications, and smoking-related illnesses

For the first time ever, scientists have released a detailed map highlighting the world's hotspots for emerging infectious diseases (EIDs). Using data from past 65 years, the map pinpoints the locations where majority of these new diseases come from wildlife.

EID's such as HIV, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), West Nile virus and Ebola are indeed on the rise. The study has determined that zoonoses, diseases that originate in animals, are the current and most important threat in causing new diseases to emerge. The study analysed 335 incidents of previous disease emergence beginning in 1940 and concluded that most of these EID's originated in wildlife

Hong Kong's Consumer Council wants tighter government regulation on non-surgical cosmetic procedures such as whitening drips, placenta extracts, carbon dioxide injections and gold thread facelifts. The council is raising the alarm after several incidents of botched cosmetic surgeries recently led to deaths.

The procedures are not under the supervision of the SAR's Pharmacy and Poisons and Medical Registration Ordinance. Hong Kong laws state that substances used for cosmetic injections are not deemed pharmaceutical products, thus there are no legal requirements over its use. The council also pointed out collagens are not considered medical devices in Hong Kong, so its makers may submit to administrative control on a voluntary basis only