Health Insurance
Keri Smith, Ph.D., an assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, has received a Career Development Award from the National Hemophilia Foundation.
More than 40 scientists, bioethicists, lawyers and science journal editors are calling on their colleagues, policy makers and the public to begin developing guidelines for the research and reproductive use of stem cell-derived eggs and sperm, even though such use may be a decade or more away.
A team from MIT and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found a genetic explanation for why the new H1N1 "swine flu" virus has spread from person to person less effectively than other flu viruses.
Even when she"s well, little Cammy Barber doesn"t like getting her ears
The owners of a Brechin rendering plant have been convicted of failing to ensure proper health and safety standards were in place, after two workers were overcome by fumes produced by rotting animal waste.
Imagine donating a sample of your DNA to help researchers study the genetics of diabetes. The disease is common among your friends and family, and you"re proud of your role in finding out why. Now, imagine that some time later, you learn that your DNA has been used for other studies on topics you never expected - schizophrenia, human migration, inbreeding. Although your name isn"t attached to the sample anymore, scientists are using your DNA to draw conclusions about your community and your ancestors. Some of these studies violate your cultural beliefs.
- A $10 million project funded by the European Community to improve Iraq"s water and sanitation services is underway. Implemented by UNICEF in collaboration with the Ministry of Municipalities and Public Works and the Ministry of Municipalities in Kurdistan, the project will increase the government"s provision of services as well as strengthen their capacity to manage and develop Iraq"s water and sanitation sector.
Government"s announcement that the UK is moving to a new phase in the response to the current pandemic flu virus means there will be a change to the surveillance information that the Health Protection Agency will be able to provide to the media in future.
Catalysts assist in chemical reactions without undergoing any alteration of their own. In the cells of living organisms, proteins perform this important function. They carry out the metabolism fundamental to all living processes. Proteins are instrumental in cellular respiration, they for instance reduce oxygen to water and oxidize food into carbon dioxide. This releases the energy that makes life possible at all.
Lars Jansen"s work on the formation of the centromere, a key cellular structure in powering and controlling chromosome segregation and accurate cell division, has just earned him a paper in Nature Cell Biology and a prestigious EMBO installation grant, of 50,000 euro per year, for a maximum of five years.
Mayo Clinic researchers and colleagues at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have found a connection between DNA alterations on human chromosome 9 and aggressive brain cancer known as glioblastoma. The findings are reported in the current online issue of Nature Genetics.
The British Dental Association (BDA) has responded to the publication of outline plans for the reform of NHS dentistry in England by the Conservative Party which have been released today. The plans, which are outlined in a document titled Transforming NHS dentistry, include commitments to improve access to dental care, scrap the unit of dental activity, reintroduce formal patient registration and reward preventive care given by dentists. The document also sees the Conservatives pledge to properly pilot any reforms.
A survey of UK adults found that nearly two thirds are risking their health by not doing enough exercise and putting themselves at greater risk of
Patients who suffer from transient ischaemic attack (so-called "mini-strokes") are more likely to receive rapid assessment and care if they attend a hospital which has organised stroke care services, according to the results of a survey published in the Medical Journal of Australia.
Inovio Biomedical Corporation (NYSE Amex:INO), a leader in DNA vaccine design, development and delivery, announced today that it will make multiple presentations at the Annual Conference of DNA Vaccines in Asia 2009 being hosted by the International Society of DNA Vaccines July 9 - 10 at the Beijing International Convention Center. The conference, with the theme, "Advancing DNA Vaccine Technology," is co-chaired by David B. Weiner, Ph.D., professor of pathology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and chairman of Inovio"s scientific advisory board.
Children with sickle cell disease tend to have interrupted sleep many times during the night leaving them tired and irritable during the day.
Diabetes UK is concerned that more than half a million people with diabetes in England are still not been screened for retinopathy.
"In the past few months, we"ve experienced near hysteria over swine flu and almost constant media attention to scares about tainted food," syndicated columnist Marie Cocco writes in the Oregonian, adding, "These are genuine health hazards - but they aren"t necessarily deadly, nor do they affect nearly as many people in the United States and around the world as does AIDS." Cocco discusses a recent finding by researchers from Columbia University and the Alan Guttmacher Institute that links a drop in condom use among teenagers "in part to waning public concern about transmission of HIV." She writes, "The clear increase in the proportion of teenagers using condoms came during years when public health and media messages about the dangers of HIV were at a height." Cocco continues, "You can argue, based on hard data, that when it comes to teenagers and sex, good policy and genuine leadership get better results than moralizing or ignoring signals that an upsurge in HIV infections may emerge" (Cocco, 7/2).
Unisense FertiliTech A/S announces that the EmbryoScope(TM) Embryo Monitoring System and EmbryoSlide(TM) tray have received CE approval as class IIa medical devices for use in IVF. Unisense Fertilitech A/S also received the DS/EN ISO13485:2003 and AC:2007 quality system certificate for production, installation and servicing of IVF incubators and related accessories.
Sanofi-aventis (EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY) announced that the results of the long-term, 5-year study of Lantus(R) (insulin glargine [rDNA] injection) versus NPH insulin on progression of retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes, published on-line in Diabetologia (DOI 10.1007/s00125-009-1415-7) showed similar effects on retinopathy and overall safety in the two treatment groups. This is the longest controlled study ever reported using insulin glargine.
Surgical removal of a tissue sample is now the standard for diagnosing cancer. Such procedures, known as biopsies, are accurate but only offer a snapshot of the tumor at a single moment in time.
AAMC (Association of American Medical Colleges) President and CEO Darrell G. Kirch, M.D., issued the following statement on the final National Institutes of Health"s (NIH) Guidelines on Human Stem Research, published today:
For the first time, families of murder victims have joined with families of persons with mental illness who have been executed to speak out against the death penalty.
Health professionals are required to provide help for victims of intimate partner violence (IPV), yet many do not even discuss the issue with their patients, according to a University of Pittsburgh study in the current issue of Violence and Victims.
"The nation"s largest insurers, hospitals and medical groups have hired more than 350 former government staff members and retired members of Congress in hopes of influencing their old bosses and colleagues, according to an analysis of lobbying disclosures and other records," the Washington Post reports. The Post"s analysis of lobbying disclosure records shows that three-quarters of major health firms have hired an insider to lobby on their behalf; half of those insiders once worked for the key senators and congressional committees that are now shaping the reform proposals.
When doctors decide whether or not to go ahead with an expensive surgery, "age is no longer the deciding factor, even for invasive treatment such as open-heart surgery," The Philadelphia Inquirer reports. One question is "whether this never-too-old approach is an example of U.S. medical progress, or an example of why Medicare -- federal health insurance for people over 64 -- is headed for insolvency. The answer, experts say, is both. Which is why the current debate over expanding federal coverage to all uninsured Americans is an ethical and economic minefield. "Forty years ago, it was taken for granted that the elderly were not good candidates for organ transplantation, dialysis, or advanced surgical procedures. That has changed," Daniel Callahan, cofounder of the Hastings Center, a bioethics research institute in Garrison, N.Y., wrote recently. "Under the best of circumstances, age should be irrelevant in the Medicare program. But so far, the cost of care has not been considered, and it can hardly remain irrelevant in a program strapped for money.""
As Minnesota braces for some cuts to public health programs, the state"s network of community health centers is being buoyed by money from the federal stimulus that will expand coverage to the un- and underinsured in that state, The Minnesota Post reports.
From his jail cell, Scott Roeder, the man charged in the murder of abortion provider George Tiller, has been sending inflammatory pamphlets calling such killings justifiable and corresponding with radical antiabortion-rights groups, the AP/Boston Globe reports. The pamphlets call Paul Hill, who was convicted of murdering abortion provider John Bayard Britton and his bodyguard in 1994, an "American hero" and quotes some of Hill"s writing about how murdering abortion providers is acceptable. Roeder obtained the pamphlets from the antiabortion-rights group Army of God. Roeder also has been corresponding with the Rev. Donald Spitz, founder of Army of God, and antiabortion-rights advocate Linda Wolfe, who has been jailed about 50 times for antiabortion activities and is a close friend of the woman convicted of shooting Tiller in the arms in 1993. The AP/Globe reports that the FBI and Department of Justice declined to comment on whether they are concerned about Roeder"s mailings. Last month, Roeder in an interview said that there are "many other similar events planned around the country as long as abortion remains legal." Roeder has not been accused of breaking any laws because of the correspondence (AP/Boston Globe, 7/4).
As lawmakers work to pass health reform legislation, "few are talking about" the "essential question" of whether "health reform will force taxpayers to pay for abortions for the first time in 30 years," Family Research Council President Tony Perkins writes in a Washington Times opinion piece. According to Perkins, "the short answer is yes" because there is no "explicit provision" in any Democratic health plan that would "[p]revent taxpayer funding of abortions as part of the health care benefit Congress is considering"; avert "delays in health care services that result in the death of the patient waiting for care"; or allow health care providers "to refuse to participate in health care-related action that violates their conscience." Perkins continues that the House"s reform proposal would provide federal coverage for ""family planning," the well-worn buzz word that includes abortion unless specified to the contrary." He adds that "it would be naive to assume, unless there is an explicit prohibition in the bill, that [HHS] Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will not use her discretion to fund abortions with taxpayers" money." Perkins also writes that the Democratic reform plans, "in short, ... attempt to be silent on the key question of whether or not to allow the U.S. government to fund abortions with taxpayers" money," and also give the HHS secretary "the power to allow taxpayer-funded abortions."He writes, "The Family Research Council"s answer is clear: There must be a permanent prohibition on taxpayer-funded abortions," as well as "provision to allow a right of conscience for doctors and nurses and other health care providers" to refuse to participate in treatments they oppose. He adds that "there can be no system of denial or delay or rationing of care." Perkins concludes, "Euthanasia by any other name is a poison pill in the health reform debate" (Perkins, Washington Times, 7/5)
The 57-year-old lawyer in New York had handily completed the New York Times" Saturday crossword puzzle - the hardest of the week - for years. But one Saturday morning, suddenly he couldn"t retrieve the words to fill in the squares.
Employers are being warned by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to ensure they assess the risks of falling from height in the workplace and provide safe systems of work.
St Helier Hospital, part of Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust, has recently celebrated the installation of a Symbia® T6 TruePoint SPECTò˘CT from Siemens Healthcare. The unit combines a 6-slice CT with variable angle dual detector SPECT for rapid, accurate attenuation correction and precise localisation.
The instruction manual for maintaining an efficient brain may soon include a section on synaptotagmin-IV (Syt-IV), a protein known to influence learning and memory, thanks to a study by University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers.
Children who play an online game promoting healthy foods and beverages appear more likely to choose nutritious snacks than those who play a game promoting unhealthy products, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
A new prostate cancer "homing device" could improve detection and allow for the first targeted treatment of the disease.
Participating in team sports is associated with a reduced likelihood of youths becoming established smokers, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. However, exposure to movie smoking appears to be associated with an increased risk of established smoking in both team sport participants and nonparticipants.
TAU research finds cell phone towers can help predict the next big flood
The amino acid N-acetylcysteine appears to reduce symptoms of compulsive hair-pulling in patients with a condition known as trichotillomania, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have collaborated to uncover important new insights into the neurological basis of autism. Their new study, published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, examined patterns of movement as children with autism and typically developing children learned to control a novel tool. The findings suggest that children with autism appear to learn new actions differently than do typically developing children. As compared to their typically developing peers, children with autism relied much more on their own internal sense of body position (proprioception), rather than visual information coming from the external world to learn new patterns of movement. Furthermore, researchers found that the greater the reliance on proprioception, the greater the child"s impairment in social skills, motor skills and imitation.
An assistive technology that enables individuals to maneuver a powered wheelchair or control a mouse cursor using simple tongue movements can be operated by individuals with high-level spinal cord injuries, according to the results of a recently completed clinical trial.
A test that measures oxygen levels in newborns can detect "critical" congenital heart disease, but there are variables involved with the test that require more study before it is adopted for universal newborn screening, according to a new joint statement from the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
CanBas Co., Ltd. (Numazu, Shizuoka, "CanBas") and Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Osaka, "Takeda") together with Takeda"s wholly-owned subsidiary Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company (Cambridge, MA, "Millennium") announced the advancement of CBP501 into Phase II clinical trials for the treatment of patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Current pre-clinical data suggest that CBP501 has the potential to induce cancer cell death through a mechanism of action that blocks the ability of cancer cells to transition through the cell cycle. Data from a previous Phase I study indicate that CBP501 may enhance anti-cancer cytotoxic activity when combined with selected chemotherapeutic drugs.
Today the National Institutes of Health released their final guidelines detailing what types of human embryonic stem cell research will qualify for federal funding. Although the rules permit federal funding of research on embryonic stem cell lines produced from excess early embryos from in vitro fertilization clinics, they disallow federal support of two key techniques used to derive embryonic stem cells in animals: that of transferring the genetic material from one cell into an egg without a nucleus, and that of stimulating an unfertilized egg to divide.
African-American women who were younger at menarche, or the onset of their menstrual periods, were more likely to report a history of childhood sexual abuse, according to a new study led by a researcher at Boston University"s Slone Epidemiology Center. The results suggest that a history of sexual abuse may increase the risk of early menarche (i.e., onset of menstrual periods before age 12 years).
The New York Stem Cell Foundation (NYSCF) praised the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Final Guidelines for Human Stem Cell Research that were issued today. Susan L. Solomon, NYSCF CEO, applauded the NIH for listening carefully to the public response to its earlier draft guidelines and its willingness to make modifications in furtherance of stem cell science. "We are pleased that the NIH guidelines issued today provide a way in which funding may be considered for existing stem cell lines, on which current research is being done. President Barack Obama"s leadership on this issue, which will impact generations to come, is to be applauded."
Medical Industry E-Mail News Service™ -- July 07 2009 -- The US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) has announced that its Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee will meet on July 15 2009, in Gaithersburg MD, to discuss (1) new drug application (NDA) 022-447, proposed trade name Yondelis (trabectedin) powder, for concentrate for solution for intravenous infusion, Centocor Ortho Biotech Products, L.P., proposed indication in combination with Doxcil (doxorubicin HCl liposome injection), for treating patients with relapsed ovarian cancer; and (2) supplemental new drug application (sNDA) 050-718/S-039, Doxil (doxorubicin HCl liposome injection), for intravenous infusion, Centocor Ortho Biotech Products, L.P., proposed indication in combination with docetaxel for treating patients with locally advanced or metasatic breast cancer who have received prior anthracycline treatment. There is no charge to attend.
In addition to greatly improving overall health and longevity, losing weight is an effective fall prevention strategy for persons with obesity, according to a new study from the American College of Sports Medicine.
State and local health departments get mixed marks for efforts to convey information about the H1N1 virus to the public using their Web sites immediately after U.S. officials declared a public health emergency in April, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
Family Drug Support"s Stepping Stones to Success program has won the 2009 National Drug and Alcohol Award for Excellence in Prevention and Community Education.
Responding to the annual report from the Council for Healthcare Regulatory Excellence (CHRE), Dr. Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:
The resumption of fighting in Mogadishu, Somalia"s capital, has forced the majority of people living in the Yaqshid, Karan, and Abdul Azziz districts in the north of the city to flee, according to the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Mçİdecins Sans Frontiç¨res (MSF). Continuous shelling, explosions, and open combat among various armed groups have claimed the lives of dozens of civilians and plunged the city into chaos. As a consequence, MSF has been forced to close its medical centers in the area.
Major hospital groups reached an agreement Monday with the White House and Senate Democrats to accept $155 billion in payment cuts over ten years, a concession that would help pay for proposed health care reforms, the Washington Post reports. Government savings would come mainly from lower Medicare and Medicaid payments to the hospitals, and smaller subsidies for providing care to the uninsured. Hospitals expect to make up some of the losses by increasing their volume as anticipated reforms bring health insurance to many of the 47 million Americans who don"t have coverage.
"While Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) is expected to be on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee only for a short time, he should have a major effect on health reform," Roll Call reports. "Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) chose Whitehouse to temporarily take the place of former Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), now secretary of State, on HELP because of his experience with health care policy at the state level." But when Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., takes over "the long-vacant Minnesota seat, Whitehouse"s time on the committee will soon be coming to an end -- but not before the health debate is finished."
The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation announced today that all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, have passed legislation requiring that all newborns be screened for cystic fibrosis (CF) by the year 2010.
UK scientists have announced this week that they have found a way to make human sperm from embryonic stem cells in a laboratory, a
-- 58 laboratory confirmed cases in Wales, with eight new cases:
Many of the diseases that we develop as adults likely began in our mothers" wombs. This provocative idea and others-including the causes of infertility, the impact of the environment on maternal and fetal health, and new approaches to unraveling the molecular pathways that guide reproduction-will be among the topics discussed at the 42nd annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Reproduction (SSR), which runs from July 18 to 22 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, downtown Pittsburgh.
Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., (Nasdaq: AMLN), Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) and Alkermes, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALKS) announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for exenatide once weekly has been accepted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Agennix announced that talactoferrin alfa (talactoferrin) has been granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the first-line treatment of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in combination with sunitinib (Sutent(R) - Pfizer).
Diabetica Research Solutions, Inc. (DRSI) http://www.drsirestoreenergy.com: Diabetes is a disease of energy currently affecting 24 million people who have been diagnosed and approximately 55 million who are in a pre-diabetic condition. For so many of these people with diabetes, particularly those with type 2 diabetes, persistent fatigue is a constant complaint. According to a 2007 survey of 8,000 people with diabetes, approximately 85% of respondents reported that fatigue was their number one complaint. When asked how they dealt with their fatigue, 17% of respondents said they do nothing, 31% drink water, 23% drink coffee, 6% drink energy drinks and 23% drink sodas and diet sodas. Now, with the introduction of drsi™ Restore! Energy, there"s a quick and effective way for diabetics and pre-diabetics to experience balanced, long lasting energy and stamina to help them through their daily routines.
SMOKING CESSATION MAY PROVIDE IMMEDIATE BENEFIT TO HEART
Infants and young children treated with heart drugs get the wrong dose or end up on the wrong end of medication errors more often than older children, according to research led by the Johns Hopkins Children"s Center published July 6 in Pediatrics.
AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond released
Even though it may sound like it, heart failure does not necessarily mean that the heart has failed. Heart failure is a serious condition in which the heart is not pumping blood around the body efficiently. The patient"s left side, right side, or even both sides of the body can be affected. Symptoms will depend on which side is affected and how severe the heart failure is - symptoms can be severe.
According to a new Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs report, parents should be skeptical if their doctors offer them free prescription drug samples, especially for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Free samples can hook consumers on high-priced brand name drugs that are not any better or safer than less expensive generic medicines. In addition, when doctors give out free samples, they often fail to give patients information inserts that highlight important safety and side effect information.
Dr. David Steenblock of Mission Viejo, California, a pioneer in clinical applications of stem cells, is pleased to report the results of a 16 year old girl who suffered from cerebral palsy. The patient had right side paralysis and spasticity since birth. The procedure consisted of removing 300 milliliters of bone marrow from her hip and giving it back to her intravenously. Five hours after the raw bone marrow infusion, E.H. was able to move her right toe for the first time in her life. That evening, she was able to walk, stepping heel to toe on her right foot. By the next day, she was able to straighten out and use her right arm and wrist for the first time. Within three weeks, she was also able to move her fingers on her right hand and hold a cup for the first time.
New research reveals around 22 million people suffered back pain in the last year - just under half of all UK adults (45 percent)[1]. More than one in four UK adults - nearly 13 million people - suffered from knee pain in the last year. Over 80 percent of the people with back or knee pain still suffer some pain after undergoing treatment recommended by a healthcare professional. Bupa is making APOS Treatment for knee and lower back pain available in the UK for the first time. The breakthrough treatment can eliminate the need for prescription pain relief for seven out of 10 people[2].
The IFPMA was invited to attend a special session of the United Nations (UN) in Geneva on health in Africa and other least developed countries, organized by the UN Economic and Social Commission (ECOSOC). Michael D. Boyd, Acting Director General of the IFPMA, gave a briefing on the research-based pharmaceutical industry"s contribution to improving health in the developing world, speaking to an audience which included foreign ministers of UN Member States and senior UN officials.
HIV and sexual health charity, Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) has just been approved to offer a new City & Guilds course in understanding HIV and AIDS. The course was developed as a partnership between THT and City & Guilds and it is the first of its kind. Courses will be run at locations across the UK.
In a bid to reduce levels of undiagnosed HIV in Brighton & Hove, HIV and sexual health charity Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is encouraging gay and bisexual men who may have been at risk to attend a local service offering one-hour HIV testing. One in four people who have HIV in the UK are undiagnosed, and there are now more people living with the condition than ever before.
Terrence Higgins Trust (THT) is launching a new campaign to reduce levels of undiagnosed HIV by encouraging gay men, and particularly younger gay men, to start regularly attending sexual health clinics. The campaign will use a stand-alone website (http://www.betterclinics.co.uk), media adverts, posters, condom packs and pin badges to dispel some of the myths about clinics and what the testing process involves.
"White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel reassured House Democrats on Tuesday night that President Barack Obama strongly backs a government-run health insurance plan, seeking to quell a firestorm among liberals upset at Emanuel"s comments in the Wall Street Journal that suggested such a plan could be delayed," Roll Call reports. "Progressive Caucus Co-Chairwoman Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.) warned Emanuel that he would lose the caucus" votes if the White House compromised on the issue and included a "trigger" that could delay a public insurance plan indefinitely" (Dennis, 7/7).
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service"s (HHS) Indian Health Service (IHS) announced $90 million in funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for improved access to vital drinking water and wastewater services in the American Indian and Alaska Native communities. The funds will be invested in "shovel ready" infrastructure projects designed to better protect human and environmental health in Indian Country and to create jobs.
Black women who are diagnosed with breast cancer have a higher probability of dying from the disease than white women, regardless of their estrogen receptor status, according to research from the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health. Differences in breast cancer mortality may reflect racial differences in access and response to innovative breast cancer treatments, as well as other biological and non-biological factors, according to the report. In addition, the researchers found that differences in outcomes in the first few years post-diagnosis make up nearly all of the disparity. These results were published online July 7, 2009 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) President and CEO Jim Greenwood issued the following statement today praising President Barack Obama"s nomination of Francis S. Collins as Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
An independent external validation of QRISK® (http://www.qrisk.org) - a new score for predicting a person"s risk of heart disease - has shown that it performs better than the existing test and should be recommended for use in the United Kingdom by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).
Treatment with the angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab improved hearing and alleviated other symptoms in patients with neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2). In a paper to appear in the July 23 New England Journal of Medicine, which is receiving early online release, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) report that bevacizumab treatment successfully shrank characteristic tumors in a small group of NF2 patients, the first reported successful NF2 treatment not involving surgery or radiation.
A ÷£5million package of measures is being rolled out to help improve services for children and young people with communication problems. A new Communication Champion is also being recruited to raise the profile of these issues, Children"s Secretary, Ed Balls and Care Services Minister Phil Hope announced today.
Inpatients at Southampton"s teaching hospitals are to be offered advice on lifestyle and weight management as part of a radical new project. Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust"s pharmacy team has invented an innovative plan to tackle obesity during routine risk assessments for venous thromboembolism (VTE), better known as blood clots.
People with dementia and their families will get more support throughout the course of the illness as the first dementia advisors started work on Wednesday.
ZyGEM Corp. Ltd., a provider of innovative enzyme-based products for DNA extraction and other life sciences applications, today announced the availability of a new application note documenting that its prepGEM(R) Bacteria DNA extraction kit is capable of producing high quality, ready-to-analyze DNA from a broad range of bacterial species, including mixed or unknown sample types. This addresses an important unmet need --current DNA extraction methods typically require the use of different enzymes for each type of bacteria tested. The prepGEM(R) Bacteria kit also uses a single closed-tube system that reduces extraction time and cost while protecting the sample from contamination and making the kit easily adaptable for automation.
The American Pharmacists Association (APhA), the national professional society of pharmacists, announces that nominations are now being accepted for the APhA scientific awards and honors that will be presented at the APhA Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, DC, March 12-15, 2010. Nominations must be received at APhA headquarters by September 15, 2009.
Researchers working in Cambridge and San Francisco have discovered clues about how stem cells promote myelin repair.
Senators working feverishly to pass health reform ahead of Congress" August recess raised doubts Wednesday on whether they will be able to pass reform on schedule, The Boston Globe reports.
As more specific legislative language emerges on health care, "small business organizations are encouraging members to make their views known through e-mails, letters, phone calls and personal visits" to members of Congress, but "the message is a decidedly mixed one," Kaiser Health News reports. "Small business, a powerful constituency in every congressional district, no longer speaks with one voice on health care. Many of the bigger and more powerful groups that represent small businesses, including the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, have long been allied with Republicans and are lobbying hard against the public option and the employer mandate." But newer, less conservative groups, including the Main Street Alliance, are advocating for those same hot button issues.
"As Congress wrangles with overhauling the health care system, there is one population not being discussed. No proposal for a national health plan would cover the nation"s estimated 11 million illegal immigrants," NPR reports. But "analysts say the notion that illegal immigrants drain the health system is overblown. Simply figuring out how many undocumented immigrants lack insurance is not easy," although the Lewin Group has estimated that the number is about 6.1 million, which is "only about half the total population of undocumented immigrants." John Sheils of the Lewin Group "says many illegal immigrants use false documents to work on the books, with regular tax deductions and benefits."
White House staff and administration officials are trying to maintain their visibility on health care reform this week with public events and meetings as President Obama travels, Roll Call reports.
Francesca Dominici, PhD, a biostatistican whose work has affected air pollution regulation, has joined the faculty of the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) as professor of biostatistics.
G8 Addresses Developing Nation Economic Assistance, Reforming African Aid, Establishing Farming Investment, Food Security, Climate Change
The World Food Programme (WFP) issued an urgent appeal on Tuesday for $23 million in "financial support from international donors for food aid to Yemen specifically targeted at women and children," AFP/Google.com reports. The agency said that the "figure represents 42 percent of the 55 million dollars that it needs for the current year to improve the nutrition of more than 1.6 million vulnerable people in Yemen," the news service writes.
UT Southwestern Medical Center and UT Arlington have reached an agreement with Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. to develop a groundbreaking toolbox of magnetically controlled surgical instruments for minimally invasive surgery.
Athletic injuries can derail any player"s ability to compete, but for a baseball pitcher his shoulder strength and control is critical. A new study to be presented at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine"s (AOSSM) Annual Meeting in Keystone, Colorado, suggests that testing a pitcher"s shoulder strength through a series of exercises during the preseason may help create a focused strength training program to prevent serious injury during the season.
A group of chemicals found in many fruits and vegetables, as well as tea, cocoa and red wine, could protect the brain from Alzheimer"s disease, a dementia expert will tell scientists at a conference today (Friday).
A clinical report from Dresden supports the impression that "Spice Gold" is strongly addictive. In the current edition of Deutsches Arzteblatt International (Dtsch Arzteblatt Int 2009: 106[27]: 464-7), Ulrich S. Zimmermann, from Dresden Technical University, and his colleagues describe a young man who developed physical withdrawal symptoms after regular consumption of this designer drug, accompanied by a dependence syndrome.
BioAlliance Pharma SA (Paris:BIO), the specialty pharmaceutical company focused on therapy and supportive care in cancer and AIDS, announced Europe-wide approval for embossing its Loramyc® mucoadhesive buccal tablet, developed for the treatment of oropharyngeal candidiasis.
Sciele Pharma, Inc., a Shionogi Company, announced the availability of Ulesfia (Benzyl Alcohol Lotion 5%), the first and only prescription medication that kills head lice by asphyxiation without potential neurotoxic side effects. Approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA), Ulesfia is indicated for the topical treatment of head lice infestation in patients 6 months of age and older. Ulesfia is available now by prescription nationwide in time for peak head lice season.
US researchers have developed a new tool that assesses 15 risk factors for dementia that can predict whether people aged 65 and over have a high
Surgeons from Hospital for Special Surgery in New York have identified a drilling technique that improves the outcome of surgery to reconstruct the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). The news is being presented during the annual meeting of the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine, June 9 -12, in Keystone. Colo.
Foresight Biotherapeutics, Inc. announced data from a pre-clinical study designed to assess the safety and efficacy of the topical administration of FST-100 in a highly regarded Ad5 NZW rabbit model of adenoviral conjunctivitis. FST-100 demonstrated a clinically and statistically significant reduction in signs of adenoviral conjunctivitis versus all other groups including the current experimental "gold standard", topical cidofovir. The study was conducted at the Louisiana State University (LSU) Health Science Center, LSU Eye Center in New Orleans, Louisiana by Professor James M. Hill and colleagues, in the Departments of Pharmacology, Microbiology, Ophthalmology and Neuroscience.
In a new study that could transform embryonic stem cell (ES cell) research, scientists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered why mouse ES cells can be easily grown in a laboratory while other mammalian ES cells are difficult, if not impossible, to maintain.
The NHS wants your views on an online personal health information service called HealthSpace.
In a May 15 letter to Sens. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and Dick Lugar (R-Ind.), 31 Republican Indiana state senators asked the lawmakers to oppose the confirmation of Indiana University law professor Dawn Johnsen, President Obama"s nominee to head the Office of Legal Counsel in the Justice Department, due to her support for abortion rights, the AP/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. The state senators wrote that Johnsen"s support for abortion rights "is more than simply pro-choice" and that "she is pro-choice in an extremely radical way," citing Johnsen"s statements and writings. The letter, which was signed by all but two of the state"s Republican senators, asked Bayh and Lugar to consider what Johnsen"s nomination "could mean for the future of the country." Indiana Senate President Pro Tem David Long (R) said, "It"s a statement from a very strong pro-life caucus," adding, "It is not based on the fact she is pro-choice, it is based on the fact that she is radically so." According to Long, the letter originated with a request from Indiana Right to Life to urge Bayh and Lugar to oppose Johnsen"s confirmation.Johnsen in an e-mail said that as a nominee she would not make public comments to the media. White House spokesperson Amy Brundage said that Johnsen "will bring unquestioned integrity and a commitment to non-partisan interpretation of the law to the Office of Legal Counsel, and we"re pleased that both of Indiana"s senators have expressed support for her nomination." Lugar spokesperson Andy Fisher on Monday in an e-mail said that although the senator has said he would not oppose Johnsen"s confirmation, Senate Democrats currently do not have enough support to move forward with the confirmation process. Bayh supports Johnsen"s confirmation, according to Bayh spokesperson Eric Kleiman (Smith, AP/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 5/18).Senate Confirms Hamburg as FDA CommissionerThe Senate on Monday by voice vote confirmed the nomination of Margaret Hamburg to be FDA commissioner, CQ HealthBeat reports (CQ HealthBeat, 5/18). According to the AP/Washington Post, Hamburg"s priorities include leading the development of a swine flu vaccine and overhauling the U.S. food safety system. During her confirmation hearing, Hamburg, a bioterrorism expert, said that she wants to increase consumer confidence in the agency by increasing transparency and accountability. Previously, Hamburg served as an assistant health secretary under President Clinton (AP/Washington Post, 5/19).
The seventh and final member of a multi-million pound international counterfeit gang was sentenced at Kingston Crown Court earlier this week, 6 July 2009.
CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSE Amex: CVM), a late stage cancer immunotherapy company, announced that Dr. Eyal Talor, CEL-SCI"s Senior Vice President of Research and Manufacturing, has been invited to present to the NIH, NCI"s Clinical Center and the Center for Human Immunology, NERD (New Research and Development) Seminar Series, which will take place on Friday July 10, 2009 at the NIH"s Clinical Center located at the main NIH campus, on 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD. The title of Dr. Talor"s presentation is: "Multikine: Cancer Immunotherapy; how to make immunotherapy for cancer work".
Uganda was the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to register a drop in adult national prevalence in HIV. The epidemic, however, remains serious as approximately one million Ugandans are HIV positive. Experts in the field have begun promoting a low cost and powerful weapon against new HIV infections: voluntary medical male circumcision.
22nd Congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP), 12 - 16 September 2009, Istanbul, Turkey
UroToday.com - Increasingly surgical education is being focused on specific procedural training techniques. These researchers at the University of Minnesota have shown the importance of breaking the procedure down into its specific steps and deconstructing the various tasks applied to each step of the procedure.
New data regarding hospital readmission rates have emerged "amid a national debate over how to reduce" these numbers, "which cost the federal government billions of dollars a year in Medicare reimbursements," the New York Times reports. The data, posted on Medicare"s Hospital Compare Web site, examines the number of patients "readmitted to hospitals within a month of being discharged after treatment for heart attack, heart failure or pneumonia between July 2005 and June 2008."
The Health Care Follies CBS News /The New Republic
The Los Angeles Times and the New York Times recently published opinion pieces examining issues related to international women"s health. Summaries appear below.~ Michelle Goldberg, Los Angeles Times: The solution to addressing issues of over-population and under-population in various parts of the world is "giving women more control over their fertility and their lives," Goldberg, author of "The Means of Reproduction: Sex, Power and the Future of the World," writes in a Times opinion piece. Goldberg says that both problems are "symptoms of countries" failures to meet women"s needs." Citing United Nations data, Goldberg writes that the world"s population is growing at an "unsustainable" rate of 78 million people annually, and it will probably continue to increase by 70 million or 75 million annually through 2020. Almost all of that growth will occur in developing countries, she says. "The ethical and effective way to counter rapid population growth is to bolster women"s rights and improve their access to family planning," as well as access to education, Goldberg writes, adding that "study after study has found that girls who go to school marry later and have fewer, healthier children." Meanwhile, some developed countries -- including Japan, Russia, Italy and Spain -- are seeing a decline in birth rates, a fact that some social conservatives are using "to argue for restrictions on women"s rights." According to Goldberg, "Fertility is reaching dangerously low levels in countries where social attitudes and institutions haven"t caught up with women"s desire to combine work and family. When faced with men who are unwilling to share domestic burdens, inflexible workplaces and day-care shortages, many women respond by having fewer children." However, "when societies make it possible for women to combine having children with pursuing their other ambitions, fertility rates are fine," Goldberg says. She adds, "Give women freedom and support, and they will find reproductive equilibrium, so that when societies do shrink or grow, they do so in a manageable way" (Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 5/17).~ Nicholas Kristof, New York Times: About 500,000 women "die annually from complications related to pregnancy or childbirth without attracting much interest because the victims are typically among the most voiceless people in the world: impoverished, rural, uneducated and female," Kristof writes in a Times opinion piece. He adds, "It"s no mystery how to save the lives of pregnant women; what"s lacking is the will and res." Kristof writes that Sierra Leone, which has the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, "is now making progress with the help of the United Nations Population Fund." Former President George W. Bush cut off U.S. funding for UNFPA, but President Obama has restored the funding. Kristof adds that a bill (H.R. 1410) that would "establish American leadership in this area ... has attracted pathetically little attention." He continues that if the lives of women in West Africa "were a priority, there would be many simple ways to keep them alive," such as providing them with bed nets to help protect against malaria or iron tablets to fight anemia at a cost of "just a few dollars" (Kristof, New York Times, 5/17).
The American Heart Association has pledged $50,000 to fund the work of University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) biomedical engineering undergraduate students who are working to develop a computer program that teaches CPR using hand-held remote controls from the Nintendo® Wii video game console.
Marking a unique milestone in prostate cancer surgery, the director of urologic oncology at The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) has completed his 500th robotic prostatectomy at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH), the Flagship Hospital of CINJ, which is a Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
In 2008, the U.S. Department of Agriculture spent $31 million to depopulate herds of cattle affected by bovine tuberculosis (TB), even though the risk of the disease has been significantly reduced in the U.S. over the past several decades. Worldwide, especially in developing countries, the disease persists, which could threaten the U.S. cattle industry in terms of international trade.