WHO
- Thailand News
WHO praises Thai cuisine for trans-fat removal
The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently hailed Thailand‘s efforts in eliminating trans fat in its cuisine, placing the country alongside Denmark, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia, and Poland. Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) luminary, Dr Narong Aphikulwanit, stated that the FDA’s commitment to vanquish trans fats has earned the country a top-tier accolade, which is a testament to their unwavering dedication…
- Thailand News
WHO selects Thai-discovered flu strain for 2024 Southern Hemisphere vaccine
The World Health Organization (WHO) advisory groups have selected a flu virus lineage discovered and sequenced in Thailand as one of the three strains for the manufacturing of a novel influenza vaccine. The vaccine, set to be used in the Southern Hemisphere in 2024, was chosen by vaccine regulatory agencies, influenza vaccine producers, and the WHO Global Influenza Surveillance and…
- Thailand News
Thailand’s pollution control department to lower safe PM2.5 levels following WHO guidelines
The Pollution Control Department (PCD) yesterday announced plans to align with the World Health Organisation guidelines and reclassify the safe level for ultra-fine particulate matter (PM2.5) from 50 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/m3) to 37.5 µg/m3 in an effort to address dust pollution concerns. Jatuporn Burutphat, the permanent secretary for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, expressed the ministry’s…
- Covid-19 News
WHO makes Covid-19 pandemic plea
The World Health Organisation (WHO) made a plea to those who know about the origins of the pandemic to come clean so they can conclude their report after the debate turned into a geopolitical football that continues to be kicked around. The WHO made the plea on the back of new accusations by FBI Director Christopher Wray who stated that…
- China News
China defends its Covid death reporting rates while allegedly banning photos, videos of Tibetan cemeteries
China is defending itself against World Health Organisation (WHO) claims that its reported Covid-19 death rates are inaccurate. Chinese health officials say that it is ‘not necessary’ to dwell on the exact number of Covid-related deaths in the country. But, a news report by Radio Free Asia says that the government is allegedly banning photos and videos of cemeteries in Tibet.…
- Covid-19 News
WHO to decide if Covid pandemic remains a global emergency on January 27
The World Health Organisation (WHO) is set to decide whether the Covid pandemic is still classified as a global emergency. The organisation is holding a meeting on Friday, January 27 to consider changing its classification. The move comes three years after a global emergency was declared. According to Reuters, WHO spokesperson Carla Drysdale confirmed the scheduled meeting at a Geneva…
- Health
Thailand ramps up airport checks for Ebola
The Thai government reported it has put its airports on red alert after a recent outbreak of the Ebola virus in Africa. Deputy government spokesperson Traisuree Taisaranakul acknowledged Thailand is aware of the Sudan strain of the Ebola virus discovered in Uganda last month and made known steps are being taken to monitor passengers passing through customs from Africa to…
- Hot News
WHO boss in Syria under investigation for fraud, corruption, abuse
The World Health Organisation Syrian branch representative has been accused of fraud, corruption, and abuse by coworkers. Akjemal Magtymova is now under what seems to be one of the most extensive investigations by the organisation as at least a dozen personnel have accused her of mismanaging millions of dollars, giving gifts to government officials and acting frivolously when the Covid…
- World News
Monkeypox declared a Global Health Emergency by WHO
Monkeypox has been found in 74 countries around the world, including Thailand and now Cambodia, and the World Health Organisation (WHO)has now officially declared it a Global Health Emergency. The warning is the highest rating the WHO can assign, after nearly 17,000 people worldwide have been afflicted with the disease. The chief of the WHO held a press conference where…
- Covid-19 News
Covid-19 is far from over cautions the WHO
Despite the world seemingly getting back to normal, the World Health Organisation (WHO) is warning that the Covid-19 pandemic is far from finished. New surges in coronavirus infections in Thailand and around the world are beginning to strain medical facilities and workers, but people are tired of safety measures and growing impatient, frustrating the head of the WHO. “The virus…
- World News
BA.2.75 Omicron sub-variant causing “concern” for authorities in SE Asia
The UN and the World Health Organisation is actively following a new sub-lineage designated BA.2.75, another variant of the Omicron derivative of Covid-19 (SARS-CoV-2 ). It was first detected in India and has since been found in 10 other countries. The Director-General of the World Health Organisation, Tedros Ghebreyesus, noted that new Covid-19 infections, globally, have increased nearly 30% over…
- Covid-19 News
Monkeypox is not a shingles mingle or side effect of Covid-19 vax
The current monkeypox outbreak has not yet caused mass hysteria throughout the globe but there is enough false information doing the rounds on social media to cause concern. The latest stories circulating on social media suggest the outbreak of monkeypox is in fact shingles, while some others believe the flare-up is due to an adverse effect of Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccination,…
- Health
The WHO insist monkeypox is not “a gay disease’
World Health Organisation officials Monday revealed the outbreak of the monkeypox virus in Europe and the US “is primarily spreading through sex among men with around 200 confirmed and suspected cases across a dozen countries.” But today the WHO insist that the disease isn’t just isolated to one community. Andy Seale, from the WHO’s Department of Global HIV, Hepatitis and…
- Covid-19 News
FDA approves protein-based Covovax vaccine for emergency use in Thailand
Need a Covid jab? If you’re in Thailand, you’ll have a new option. The Food and Drug Administration has approved the protein-based Covovax vaccine manufactured by Novavax for active immunisation against Covid-19. The FDA granted the vaccine emergency-use authorisation for individuals 18 years of age and older last Friday, according to a press release from Novavax. The vaccine — known…
- Covid-19 News
First case of new Omicron variant ‘XE’ detected in Thailand
Thailand now has its first case of a new variant of a new Covid-19 Omicron variant. Yesterday, the Centre for Medical Genomics Ramathibodi Hospital confirmed tests of Thailand’s first case of the new recombinant variant, a hybrid of the BA.1 and BA.2 variants. The World Health Organisation flagged concerns about the new variant last Tuesday, warning that XE could be the…
- Covid-19 News
‘Deltacron’ in Thailand? Pft! We got this – Public Health Minister
Don’t fear new virus variants — we can handle it. That’s the main message from Thailand’s public health ministry, which says the country is well equipped to handle any new Covid-19 strains, including the so-called “Deltacron” variant, a possible combination of Delta and Omicron. Speaking at the Thailand International Health EXPO 2022 on Thursday, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said…
- Thailand video news
Thailand News Today | 9 cases of Omicron BA.2 subvariant found in Thailand
Thailand has detected nine cases of the new Omicron subvariant BA-two. The subvariant is spreading across the globe with at least 40 countries reporting the mutated strain, while infections in Thailand involve both Thais and travelers from overseas. When it comes to the severity of symptoms and transmissibility, ศุภกิจ ศิริลักษณ์ from Thailand’s Department of Medical Sciences says researchers have not…
- Phuket News
Change of mood over Covid restrictions as demands rise to reboot Test & Go
There’s a change of mood in some government circles as plans are afoot to ease some current restrictions imposed since the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid-19. The CCSA will meet again next Friday to consider the current restrictions and curbs to control the spread of Covid-19. Now, the Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is publicly noting the low…
- World News
France detects new Covid variant “IHU,” believed to be highly transmissible
While the world is grappling with new spikes in Covid-19 cases due to the Omicron variant, scientists in France have discovered another variant. The newly-discovered variant, called B.1.640.2, was found in 12 patients near Marseille and features 46 mutations, making it vaccine-resistant and contagious. Also known as “IHU,” the strain was detected by scholars at the IHU Mediterranee Infection on…
- Covid-19 News
WHO warns of surge in hospitalisations, particularly among the unvaccinated
The World Health Organisation has warned that even if the Omicron Covid-19 variant proves to be milder, its rapid spread will still mean a surge in hospitalisations. Europe Covid Incident Manager Catherine Smallwood says this will be particularly evident among the unvaccinated. “A rapid growth of Omicron, even if combined with a slightly milder disease, will still result in large…
- Covid-19 News
UPDATE: What we know about “Omicron,” new travel restrictions to Thailand
An increasing number of countries are taking precautionary steps to halt international flights. There are already many travel bans from several southern African nations following the discovery of a newly identified Covid-19 variant called “Omicron”. Is Omicron in Thailand? The Omicron Covid-19 variant has not been detected in Thailand, according to the director-general of the Department of Disease Control, assuring…
- Covid-19 News
Omicron causing concern, Thai authorities ban travellers from 8 countries
Countries around the world are pushing back against the latest strain of Covid-19, now officially called by its Greek alphabet name ‘Omicron’, or B.1.1.529 if you want to be scientific. Potentially, the new variant is more a transmissible coronavirus and was first recognised by South African health authorities. Now, a number of countries are already banning travellers from several southern…
- World News
“Omicron” – a new Covid variant triggers travel alarms as flights disrupted
A reminder today that there is still more steam left in the Covid-19 coronavirus. Just as the world started to peek from behind the curtain of uncertainty, another Covid “variant of concern”, named Omicron, has been discovered. The World Health Organisation says Omicron has a large number of mutations, and early evidence suggests an “increased reinfection risk”. Officially, it is…
- Covid-19 News
Why wasn’t the Thai deputy PM allowed into Switzerland?
Sorry, must be another misunderstanding. Poor Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul. The mercurial Thai deputy PM and leader of the Bhumjaithai political party, continues to be barred from entering Switzerland until he receives another booster Covid vaccine. But confusion surrounds his misgivings last week. He was heading to a World Health Organisation meeting at the end of November but was…
- Covid-19 News
WHO approves Siam Bioscience’s AstraZeneca for emergency use
Today brought good news for Thai vaccines as the World Health Organisation approved the Siam Bioscience-licensed AstraZeneca vaccine for emergency use. Siam Bioscience, a company wholly owned by a subsidiary of the Crown Property Bureau, was licensed last November to produce the AstraZeneca vaccine for domestic use in Thailand and for sale and distribution around Southeast Asia. The director of…
- Thailand News
Japan plans to donate 1.3 million AstraZeneca doses to several Asian countries, 300,000 heading to Thailand
Japan is planning to donate 1.3 million AstraZeneca vaccines to several Asian countries, including 300,000 doses to Thailand. The newest donation from Japan should go out as soon as possible and includes 400,000 doses for Vietnam, 300,000 for Thailand, and 100,00 doses for Brunei. With 500,000 doses heading to Taiwan, Japan’s total donation to the island will be just shy…
- Covid-19 News
Rural Doctor Society praises antigen test kits, says they must be accurate
The frequently vocal Rural Doctor Society has raised a new concern. The society’s chairperson, Dr Supat Hasuwankit, wrote an open letter to PM Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday to remind the PM that the 8.5 million rapid antigen tests kits that are being obtained by the National Health Security Office by way of the Government Pharmaceutical Organization, needs to meet standards that…
- World News
Philippines finds its first Lambda infection
Thailand’s southeast Asia neighbour the Philippines has announced today that it has found its first case of the Lambda variant of Covid, says the Philippines’s health ministry. WHO has designated the Lambda variant as a “variant of interest”. The VOI was first found in Peru last December. Laboratory studies have shown the Lambda variant has mutations that resist vaccine-induced antibodies.…
- Thailand News
Sinovac/AstraZeneca highly effective, according to Thai research
Today, Thailand’s Centre of Excellence in Clinical Virology from the Faculty of Medicine of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, says a vaccine cocktail of Sinovac/AstraZeneca is “highly effective”. Controversial doctor Yong Poovorawan says 2 doses of the inactivated virus vaccine can help “immunity rise to an average level of 100 units”. Further, if 2 doses of the vector vaccine are administered…
- Thailand News
Confusion and cancelled appointments over new vaccine mix-and-match policy
With contradicting statements over the mixing of Covid-19 vaccine brands, many in Thailand’s medical field have been confused, and some even cancelled appointments today. This week, the AstraZeneca vaccine was approved to be used as a third “booster” shot and as a second dose for those who received a Sinovac shot. But just as Thailand announced the approval, a chief…
