More than 500 000 people had been tested for HIV in Gauteng in the past five months, the province's Premier Nomvula Mokonyane said on Tuesday.

More than 90 percent of babies born to HIV positive mothers in Gauteng public health facilities between April and June 2010 were saved from the virus, says the provincial Health and Social Development Department.

This is an improvement from an average of 70 percent in previous months. The department said that 91 percent of babies whose mothers were on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) were tested six weeks after birth and tested HIV negative. With the new ARV guidelines that were implemented in all public health facilities in Gauteng offering anti natal care services since April this year, the province hopes to further reduce the mother to child transmission rate, said department in a statement.

The Department of Health is set to partner with Business Unity South Africa (Busa) to help strengthen government's HIV Counselling and Testing (HCT) campaign, said Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.

The City of Cape Town has launched a campaign to encourage people to eat less meat – at least once a week – for the sake of the environment and the welfare of humans and farm animals.

Former US President Bill Clinton has praised President Jacob Zuma during a speech at the 18th World Aids Conference  in Vienna, Austria, saying that South Africa is no longer a "pariah in the fight against AIDS".

A protective gel made using Gilead Sciences Inc's HIV drug tenofovir reduced HIV infections in women by 39 percent over two and a half years - the first time such an approach has protected against the AIDS virus, South African researchers reported.

HIV/Aids organisations in Africa are hopeful that the latest discovery of a protein that can protect against certain HIV strains will lead to a vaccine against the epidemic plaguing the continent.

In an effort to retain skills within the health system, the Gauteng Health Department has launched the retired nurses forum, which will be responsible for guiding and mentoring young nurses.

Grandmothers from all over Africa have joined hands with grandmothers in Canada to call for greater support and recognition of their role in caring for grandchildren orphaned by AIDS.

A team of South Africans cancer survivors arrived back in South Africa this week after climbing to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania to raise awareness for cancer of the lymphatic system.

South Africa will use a new "patent pool" to work on new drugs for tuberculosis and malaria, making it the first government to take advantage of the industry-led idea.

Gauteng's chilly weather did not deter hundreds of South Africans from taking part in the country's HIV, Counselling and Testing (HCT) campaign launch that took place at Natalspruit Hospital in Ekurhuleni on Sunday.

Government will prepare a new tender specification that opens the way for the purchase of cheaper anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs.

The Department of Health launched a national mass measles and polio immunisation campaign this week to take place in April and May.

The private healthcare sector has pledged millions of rands to government's HIV Counselling and Testing (HTC) campaign. Their support will be through funding and free services during the campaign that will be launched on 15 April.

A total of 59 newly-recruited doctors were officially welcomed into the Eastern Cape health department on Thursday.

The Human Science Research Council (HSRC) has opened a nutrition centre to study the underlying causes of chronic lifestyle diseases, such as obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.

The Charlotte Maxeke hospital in Johannesburg today became the first in South Africa to have its own school playground. Funded by Medscheme, it is hoped that the playground will bring some normality to the lives of chronically and terminally ill children.

The playground was specially planned and built to avoid sharp surfaces, metal corners or pipes to take into account the physical frailties of children susceptible to cuts, bruises or more severe injuries.

“A panel of medical staff and specialists in designing play areas contributed ideas and the result has been what is probably South Africa’s most expensive – but safest play area,” said Andre Meyer, CEO of Medscheme.

Health officials are considering a new strategy that they say could effectively kill off HIV/AIDS within 40 years.

CSIR researchers are a step closer to providing TB sufferers with a once-a-week medicinal regime rather than their current daily doses.

The health department will start a national swine flu immunisation campaign on March 15, ahead of the Soccer World Cup in June, the health ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

Cardinal Wilfrid Napier, the Archbishop of Durban, this morning sent out a strong message to all South African leaders, asking them, “Is your sexual morality making you a worthy role model for the youth?”

The Health Portfolio Committee was delighted to receive feedback that the City of Cape Town, in partnership with the Provincial Department of Health and TB/HIV Care Association has received a UN award for its fight against Tuberculosis (TB).

Scientists have finally discovered the structure of a key enzyme found in HIV and similar viruses, a breakthrough that has crucial implications for future HIV treatments.

Investigators from Dartmouth Medical School (DMS) have reported results of a clinical trial showing that a new vaccine against tuberculosis, Mycobacterium vaccae (MV), is effective in preventing tuberculosis in people with HIV infection.