Health

For many scientists worldwide, the year 2020 was a race to develop a vaccine for the coronavirus. Designing and testing a vaccine is a slow process — but once a vaccine is available, it can slow the spread of infection and disease.

The World Health Organization's top emergency expert said on Friday it would be "highly speculative" for the WHO to say the coronavirus did not emerge in China, where it was first identified in a food market in December last year.

Gitanjali Marcelline writes on the dimensions of the global problem with particular reference to Sri Lanka

Even if countries see a fall in coronavirus cases, they need to stay vigilant, Maria Van Kerkhove, the World Health Organization's technical lead for COVID-19, said on Friday.

Ten COVID-19 vaccines could be available by the middle of next year if they win regulatory approval, but their inventors need patent protection, the head of the global pharmaceutical industry group said on Friday.

A large study adds to evidence that people with type O or Rh−negative blood may be at slightly lower risk from the new coronavirus. Among 225,556 Canadians who were tested for the virus, the risk for a COVID-19 diagnosis was 12% lower and the risk for severe COVID-19 or death was 13% lower in people with blood group O versus...

Coronavirus is continuing its spread across the world with more than 60 million confirmed cases in 190 countries and more than 1.4 million deaths. Here’s what you need to know about the coronavirus right now:

Indian pharmaceutical company Hetero will manufacture over 100 million doses of the Russian Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine per year under the terms of a deal unveiled on Friday between it and Russia’s RDIF sovereign wealth fund.

The Government will facilitate the first round of COVID-19 Vaccines, once released to the market, to be received by 4.2 million Sri Lankans, Health Minister Pavithra Waniarachchi informed Parliament yesterday.

Days after grabbing headlines with its COVID-19 “vaccine for the world”, AstraZeneca is facing tricky questions about its success rate that some experts say could hinder its chances of getting speedy U.S. and EU regulatory approval.