Health Highlights: Jan. 20, 2009

Jan. 21 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

Kennedy Collapses at Obama Inaugural Lunch

Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), who was diagnosed with a cancerous brain tumor last spring, collapsed at President Barack Obama's inaugural luncheon in the Capitol on Tuesday and was taken to a Washington, D.C., hospital by ambulance.

Kennedy was awake and talking at Washington Hospital Center, the Associated Press reported. With him were his wife, Victoria, and his son, Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.). He will be held for observation and will undergo testing, a hospital official said.

Sen. Christopher J. Dodd, (D-Conn.), told reporters that Kennedy appeared to have a seizure but seemed fine as he was put into the ambulance at around 3 p.m. ET, The New York Times reported.

"The good news is, he's going to be fine," Dodd said, according to the Times.

Kennedy, who will be 77 next month, had been seated at the same table with another of the Senate's elder statesmen, Robert Byrd (D-W.Va.), 91. There were conflicting reports about Byrd, who also left the luncheon early after witnesses said he appeared ill. But his office later said his health was not the reason for the early departure, the AP reported.

Sen. Jay Rockefeller, (D-W. Va.), told reporters that Obama noticed when Kennedy became ill, and rushed over to his table, the AP reported.

"There was a call for silence throughout the room," Rockefeller said. "The president went over immediately. The lights went down, just to reduce the heat, I think."

Obama then spoke briefly of Kennedy's latest health problem in his remarks to the luncheon guests, the Times reported. "Right now, part of me is with him," Obama said. "This is a joyous time, but also a sobering time. Our prayers are with him and his wife, Vicki."

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China Reports Third Bird Flu Death This Year

A 16-year-old male student in central China's Hunan province died of bird flu Tuesday, the third bird flu death in the country this year.