Medical Devices
Some patient advocates are lobbying to legalize "compassionate use" of experimental drugs for people with terminal illnesses who have exhausted other treatments, prompting a debate about how and when to provide such patients with treatments that could prolong their lives, the New York Times reports. Most insurers do not cover unproven treatments, and physicians have concerns that using experimental treatment could give patients false hope and cause unnecessary pain. Drugmakers are concerned that if there are unfavorable outcomes from providing patients with an unproven treatment, it could hurt the drug"s chances of receiving FDA approval. At the same time, FDA does not want to grant drugs and their makers the opportunity to skip clinical trials. Currently, patients must individually apply to receive treatments through compassionate use (Harmon, New York Times, 5/17).
The overwhelming majority of all junior doctor rotas will be compliant with the requirements of the European Working Time Directive (EWTD) by 1st August 2009, Health Secretary Andy Burnham announced today.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health yesterday issued a directive recommending that health care providers include written consent for HIV testing in the general permission forms given to patients receiving medical care, the Boston Globe reports. State health care providers typically give patients separate consent forms for HIV testing, a practice health officials say poses as a barrier to HIV testing for patients and their providers. The new Massachusetts recommendation states that HIV testing should be explicitly mentioned on standard general consent forms. Reinforcing a provision in the CDC"s 2006 HIV testing guidelines, the directive also recommends routine HIV testing for all residents age 13 to 64 in health care settings. Patients in Massachusetts must still opt in to HIV testing, whereas the CDC recommends that HIV testing be performed unless a patient opts out, according to the Globe (Cooney, Boston Globe, 6/25).
Several Democratic female senators on Wednesday took to the floor in a series of speeches praising Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor and highlighting her judicial qualifications, the Boston Globe"s "Political Intelligence" reports. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) -- a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee -- was joined by Sens. Mary Landrieu (La.), Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.).In her address, Klobuchar said that Sotomayor"s experience "particularly resonated with me," adding that Sotomayor "understands the law is not just some dusty book in your basement" and that its interpretation has consequences. McCaskill said that Sotomayor is a nominee with "integrity, grit, intellect and the ability to pass judgment in the most difficult intellectual challenges that face a Supreme Court justice."According to "Political Intelligence," the floor speeches came after Klobuchar and others praised Sotomayor"s nomination at Monday"s annual convention of the left-leaning legal organization the American Constitution Society. In her speech, Klobuchar defended Sotomayor against conservative critics who have questioned the nominee"s temperament, citing complaints that Sotomayor was impatient with unprepared lawyers. Klobuchar said that she is "hoping that we would get to a point in this country where we could be appointing and confirming as many as rough and to-the-point female judges as we have appointed male judges" ("Political Intelligence," Boston Globe, 6/24).
The European Medicines Agency has recommended the first marketing
An enzyme that naturally occurs in the brain helps destroy the mutated protein that is the most common cause of inherited Parkinson"s disease, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.
Research published recently in Science Express from the journal Science demonstrates the first definitive link between mutations in the gene DICER1 and cancer. By studying the patterns of DNA from 11 families with an unusual predisposition to the rare childhood lung cancer pleuropulmonary blastoma (PPB) investigators found that children with the cancer carried a mutation in one of their two DICER1 gene copies.
As a woman gets older, physical problems are less likely to influence whether she is sexually active than her partner"s health or interest in sex, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and Kaiser Permanente.
Researchers have discovered a key to the function of a specific protein that helps control the levels of other critical proteins within cells, including a protein that suppresses the spread of cancer. The new information about the mechanism of action of the protein, called gp78, may enable researchers to explore new types of therapies to prevent the spread of cancer. The study, by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, was published in the June 26, 2009, issue of Molecular Cell.
In a landmark technical achievement, investigators in the Vanderbilt Center for Structural Biology have used nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) methods to determine the structure of the largest membrane-spanning protein to date.
Providing reliable evidence of viruses in human blood presently requires time- and labor-intensive molecular-biological procedures. Established methods are particularly hard pushed to produce evidence when the viral burden is very low, for example during a phase of therapy. This could soon change. While developing new types of micro-pumps without movable parts, scientists from the Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering IBMT came across an unexpected phenomenon: stable turbulence structures formed in the microscale pump channels. The nano- and microparticles actually intended to verify the pump effect accumulated in large quantities in the channels. The vortex patterns completely filled the whole microchannel, creating a virtually 100% trap for the particles that followed the generated flow profile, although there is a very large cross-section to flow through. "The development of flow vortices is nothing unusual on the macroscopic scale. However, in microchannels the flow lines almost run in parallel," explains Richard Stein from the IBMT. "The question, therefore, was, how is it possible for vortices to be formed from this which were sufficiently stable and effective for the concentration of nanoparticles?"
Veritide Ltd., a developer of innovative biological identification and detection solutions, today reported that new independent data to be presented at the Biodetection Technologies 2009 conference confirm the exceptional accuracy of its Ceeker™ (pronounced "seeker") portable bacterial detection device in discriminating between anthrax spores and similar-looking hoax substances. The data show that in over two weeks of testing at the Midwest Research Institute in Florida, the company"s Ceeker scanner accurately identified 100% of the anthrax samples used and was correct in 95% of tests involving hoax substances. These test results are consistent with similar results produced last year by a New Zealand forensic testing agency, Environmental Science and Research (ESR).
Using a "neurologger" specially designed to record the brain activity of pigeons in flight, researchers reporting online on June 25th in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, have gained new insight into what goes through the birds" minds as they fly over familiar terrain. The study is the first to simultaneously record electrical brain activity integrated with large-scale navigational movements of free-flying birds, according to the researchers.
The National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) has teamed with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to launch a far-reaching program to help Latin American and Caribbean nations prepare for the impacts of global warming.
The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) is extremely concerned about the length of time that it is taking to resolve the issues for the families of former patients at Gosport War Memorial Hospital.
Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a highly contagious viral infection that can lead to paralysis, breathing problems, or even death. The term poliomyelitis is from the Greek poliÃös meaning "grey", myelÃös referencing the spinal cord, and -itis meaning inflammation.
The National Autism Association (NAA) along with 12 other organizations launched a campaign this week to spur letter writing and raise awareness about dangerous restraint and seclusion practices in schools. The initiative comes on the heels of the May 19th GAO Report that revealed no federal laws regulating restraint and seclusion in schools, no laws in 19 states, and "widely divergent" laws in remaining states.
Laboratoires Pierre Fabre announce that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP), the scientific advisory committee of the European Medicines Agency (EMEA), has issued a positive opinion supporting approval and is recommending to grant marketing authorisation for JAVLOR(R) as monotherapy in metastatic treatment of bladder cancer (advanced or metastatic transitional cell carcinoma of the urothelial tract after failure of a prior platinum-containing regimen).
Researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, came a step closer to understanding how cells close gaps not only during embryonic development but also duringwound healing. Their study, published this week in the journal Cell, uncovers a fundamental misconception in the previous explanation for a developmental process called dorsal closure.
Pope Benedict XVI has agreed to meet with President Obama at the Vatican on July 10, according to White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs, the AP/Boston Globe reports. The Rev. Federico Lombardi, a Vatican spokesperson, on Wednesday said that the pope will hold an afternoon meeting with the president and first lady Michelle Obama after the conclusion of the Group of Eight industrialized nations summit meeting, a break with a Vatican tradition of holding midday meetings. The AP/Globe reports that the Vatican "clearly sought to accommodate" the president"s schedule, an indication that Benedict is interested in meeting with Obama despite his support for abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research.Some U.S. bishops have publicly attacked Obama"s support of abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research, which has fueled anticipation of a meeting between the president and the pope. Most recently, dozens of bishops denounced the University of Notre Dame"s decision to invite Obama to deliver its commencement address and receive an honorary degree. However, L"Osservatore Romano, the Vatican"s daily newspaper, said that Obama"s speech showed that he is looking for common ground on issues related to abortion. Obama also received a positive review from the newspaper after his first 100 days in office. An editorial in the paper said that Obama had not confirmed the "radical" direction on ethical questions he had discussed as a candidate (Simpson, AP/Boston Globe, 6/24).
In Ohio, a nursing home coalition warns of "life-threatening health risks" if Medicaid reimbursements are cut under Gov. Ted Strickland"s proposed budget plan while diabetes patients in the state are threatened by a lack of coverage.
Health Community Should Welcome Human Rights Community"s Help With Reducing Maternal Deaths
No time to keep abreast of the most important osteoporosis-related research? Progress in Osteoporosis, the free online journal published by the International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF) on http://www.iofbonehealth.org/pio provides concise summaries of new research published in the preceding three to four months. The journal is edited by leading osteoporosis researcher and author, Professor Ego Seeman of the University of Melbourne, Australia.
The risk of cancer possibly increases if patients with diabetes use the long-acting insulin analogue glargine instead of human insulin. The Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG), in collaboration with the "Wissenschaftliches Institut der AOK" (WIdO), the research institute of the German Local Health Care Fund, analysed the data of almost 130,000 patients with diabetes in Germany who had been treated with either human insulin or the insulin analogues lispro (trade name: Humalog), aspart (Novorapid) or glargine (Lantus) between January 2001 and June 2005.
Because tobacco use impairs military readiness, harms the health of soldiers and veterans, and imposes a substantial financial burden on the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, these agencies should implement a comprehensive strategy to achieve the Defense Department"s stated goal of a tobacco-free military, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. DOD should gradually phase in a ban on tobacco use in the military, starting at military academies and officer training programs and among new recruits, the report says. DOD should also stop selling tobacco products in Army and Air Force commissaries -- Navy and Marine Corps commissaries already do not sell them -- and should stop selling them at a discount in military exchanges and other stores. In addition, Congress should allow VA to establish tobacco-free medical centers.
Researchers from the University of Valladolid have constructed a demographic and economic simulation model called "CarriÃön", which projects the costs of pensions, Social Security contributions and GDP up until 2060. The model also includes detailed scenarios about the behaviour of people migrating to Spain currently and in the future, in relation to the length of time they stay, their fertility, salaries and employment rate.
Doctors may get a new arsenal for meningitis treatment and the war on drug-resistant bacteria and fungal infections with novel peptide nanoparticles developed by scientists at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) of Singapore and reported in Nature Nanotechnology.
There is widespread confusion among women and doctors about the signs of ovarian cancer, said a UK charity behind a study being published
A UK wide public opinion poll conducted by Hamilton Lock for the British Medical Association released yesterday has revealed how worried the public is about the future funding of the health service in light of the recession. The poll was published to launch the Annual Conference of the BMA in Liverpool this week (29 June to 2 July 2009).
A series of articles in the July/August 2009 issue of The Journal of Midwifery & Women"s Health (JMWH) focuses on midwives" participation in the education of medical students and residents. This issue includes the results of a new national survey by Edie McConaughey, CNM, MS and Elisabeth Howard, CNM, PhD, which found that the number of midwives involved in medical education in the United States has tripled in the past 10 years. More recently, the growth of this model has accelerated secondary to the mandated decrease in resident work hours.
The Government of Canada is moving forward with proposed regulations to prohibit the advertisement, sale and importation of polycarbonate plastic baby bottles that contain bisphenol A, otherwise known as BPA, to reduce newborn and infant exposure to this substance, announced the Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of Health.
Experimental devices that read brain signals have helped paralyzed people use computers and may let amputees control bionic limbs. But existing devices use tiny electrodes that poke into the brain. Now, a University of Utah study shows that brain signals controlling arm movements can be detected accurately using new microelectrodes that sit on the brain but don"t penetrate it.
The expression and activity of Cystathionase is reduced in rodent models of liver injury, leading to hyper-homocysteinemia and impaired generation of hydrogen sulphide, two factors that contribute to endothelial dysfunction and increased intrahepatic resistance.
A groundbreaking non-invasive breast cancer treatment will be unveiled at this year"s Royal Society Summer Science Exhibition . Scientists led by world-renowned breast cancer expert, Mr Mo Keshtgar, are the first to use photodynamic therapy (PDT) to treat what is now the most common cancer in the UK.*
Plainview Milk Products Cooperative, Plainview, Minn., is voluntarily recalling instant nonfat dried milk, whey protein, fruit stabilizers, and gums (thickening agents) that it has manufactured over the past two years, because they might be contaminated with Salmonella. The company sells these products to other industry customers, including distributors and manufacturers, who may have incorporated them into their own products. None of Plainview"s products were sold directly to the public.
Lorus Therapeutics Inc. (TSX:LOR)("Lorus"), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the research and development of pharmaceutical products and technologies for the management of cancer, today announced a publication from investigators at the Ohio State University (OSU). The article entitled "A LC-MS/MS Method for the Analysis of Intracellular Nucleoside Triphosphate Levels" was published in the peer-reviewed journal, Pharmaceutical Research in the June issue (Vol. 26(6):1504-15).
A research article published in the World Journal of Gastroenterology addresses this question. This is believed to be the first study to investigate the effect of PBD in ampullary cancer. A team of gastroenterologists led by Dr Steven Joseph Mesenas and hepatobiliary surgeons at Singapore General Hospital divided 82 patients with ampullary cancer planned for surgical resection into those with PBD (n = 35) and those without (n = 47). The authors looked into various outcomes after surgery, such as pancreatic leakage, wound infection, bile leakage, infectious morbidity, intra-abdominal or gastrointestinal bleeding, intra-abdominal abscess, delayed gastric emptying and mortality. They found that the PBD group had a significantly reduced wound infection rate compared to the non-PBD group. More studies should be conducted to assess this benefit, especially in ampullary cancer patients.
On June 26, 2009 several articles published online in Diabetologia by the European Association for the Study of Diabetes investigated the possible relationship between use of insulin glargine (Lantus, sanofi-aventis) and the development of certain malignancies. The authors themselves, and the accompanying editorial, cautioned against over-interpretation of their limited data and analyses, which precluded them from drawing any firm conclusions. For example, there were contradictory findings among the studies, patient populations were not always comparable, and the duration of observation was short. Nonetheless, since the relationship of type 2 diabetes to cancer is of critical importance, further study is warranted.
-- 17 confirmed cases in Wales, with 0 new cases.
Federally mandated health insurance coverage of in vitro fertilization for women of childbearing age "could lower the extraordinary health care costs associated with the birth of triplets or more" and "even the reproductive odds, giving the middle-class and lower-income Americans access to treatment that is currently reserved for the well-off or the unusually well insured," according to a Washington Post opinion piece by Liza Mundy, a writer for the Post magazine and author of "Everything Conceivable: How Assisted Reproduction Is Changing Men, Women and the World." About one in eight U.S. couples experience infertility, defined as the inability to conceive within one year or to bring a pregnancy to term, Mundy writes. Infertility is about equally common among both sexes, though it is "possibly more common among the poor than among the rich, for the simple reason that the less money you have, the less likely you are to have had access to health care that could prevent serious consequences from relatively minor infections," according to Mundy. She adds that a low income does not prevent people from seeking infertility treatments -- "it just means that the treatment you get is more likely to saddle you with high-order multiples, whose care you are least likely to be able to afford."Mundy cites Jon and Kate Gosselin, the couple from TLC"s reality television show "Jon and Kate Plus 8," as an example of such a "scenario." According to Mundy, the Gosselins "were hardly affluent" and lived in Pennsylvania, "which like most states does not require insurers to cover IVF," when they sought infertility treatments. The Gosselins conceived a set of twins and, later, a set of sextuplets through intrauterine insemination, though the couple has said they had sought to have a singleton with the second pregnancy. The "good thing" about IUI is that it is "relatively cheap, a couple thousand dollars compared to the more than $10,000 average cost for a single round of IVF," Mundy writes. However, the "bad thing is that it"s notoriously hard to control how many eggs will be fertilized" compared with IVF, she continues. IUI carries a higher risk for ""unpreventable high-order multiple births,"" Mundy writes, citing a recent study on the procedure. In addition, infants "born as multiples are far more likely to be premature, the health risks to infants and mother are much greater, and the toll on parents for triplets or more -- "severe physical and psychological exhaustion" as one study put it -- is immense," Mundy states. Mundy writes that a recent study in the journal Fertility and Sterility found that it "often makes sense to bypass IUI/injections and go straight to IVF." The study found that couples who were "fast tracked" to IVF "got pregnant more quickly, and the overall price tag for both treatment and delivery was thousands of dollars lower in the IVF-only group," according to Mundy. The study also noted that IVF success rates have significantly improved over the past two decades, meaning that the procedure has become more effective than IUI. Mundy acknowledges that the "price tag for health care reform is already higher than anybody expected, so it"s probably unreasonable to think that it could include better insurance coverage for the millions of Americans who suffer from infertility." However, health insurance coverage for IVF "is hardly the big-ticket item you might think," she continues. A 2002 study on Massachusetts" mandated coverage found that "the rise in the annual premiums is really a matter of just a few dollars," Mundy writes. "Yet replicating Massachusetts around the country is a tall order because of the persistent public view that infertility is somehow not a legitimate disease, or that infertility patients are to blame for their plight," she says. Advocates for mandated IVF coverage "should work to make the long-term benefits clear: fewer high-order multiples, healthier children, less exhausted parents," according to Mundy. She concludes, "If sweeping health care refor
Researchers at St George"s, University of London have been awarded ÷£4.3 million by the Wellcome Trust for the development of a unique new class of drugs to target the root cause of asthma and allergies. The new Allergen Delivery Inhibitors may be superior to existing medicines, which mainly relieve symptoms.
Today, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) announced their support for H.R. 3108, the Medication Therapy Management Benefits Act of 2009, sponsored by Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR). The bill was introduced on Friday June 26, 2009, and was immediately referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce and Committee on Ways and Means, two House committees with jurisdiction over comprehensive healthcare reform legislation.
The Retail Advisory Board (RAB) of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) met yesterday during the 2009 NACDS Marketplace Conference to discuss social networking opportunities within their businesses.
It could mean the end of animal testing and eventually even clinical patient drug trials. The Virtual Physiological Human is a 21st century pan-European project that"s gaining momentum and takes a major step forward this week at The University of Nottingham. http://www.vph-noe.eu/
As Vietnam"s industrial capabilities have developed rapidly in recent decades, government officials have recognized the importance of helping to secure the nation"s supply of medicines. In an important milestone addressing this need, the Vietnamese Pharmacopoeia Commission (VPC) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Pharmacopeial (USP) Convention. USP is a scientific nonprofit organization that sets standards for the identity and quality of prescription and over-the-counter drugs that are enforced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the United States. USP also sets standards for the identity and quality of food ingredients and dietary supplements; these and USP"s drug standards are used in more than 130 countries.
The RCN has responded to the recent (29 June) publication of Building Britain"s Future with Director of RCN England, Tom Sandford, saying of the two week target to see a cancer specialist:
Aside from the obvious and immediate health problems that patients undergoing mechanical ventilation face, those who recover often do so with profound loss of strength and mobility that can impair their daily functioning and even lead to increased risk of morbidity and mortality down the line. Now research shows that functional status may be restored earlier to ICU patients by performing daily interruptions in sedation paired with mobilization and exercise, as led by physical and occupational therapists.
Dutch researchers have found the first evidence that a process of inactivating the X chromosome during embryo development and implantation, which was known to occur in mice but unknown in humans, does, in fact, take place in human female embryos prior to implantation in the womb.
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., (NYSE: VAR) announced it has acquired the assets of Houston-based IKOEmed and IKOEtech, privately-owned suppliers of software used in the planning of radiotherapy and radiosurgery treatments. The acquisition enables Varian to offer hospitals and clinics an additional software tool to automate and accelerate the most time-consuming portion of the treatment planning process. Varian is paying approximately $2.2 million plus an additional amount based on achievement of specified milestones to acquire the IKOE assets.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced that the administration will rescind all or part of three Medicaid regulations that were previously issued and delay the enforcement of a fourth regulation. Each of these rules, in whole or in part, had been subject to Congressional moratoria set to expire on July 1, 2009.
In a study published online by the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, UC Davis researchers report that it takes at least a year for former methamphetamine users to regain impulse control. The results tell recovering substance abusers, their families and drug-treatment specialists that it can take an extended period of time for the brain functions critical to recovery to improve.
In an effort to increase understanding of the medical device development process and help companies execute the bench-to-bedside process of product development more effectively, researchers at Stanford University have published the first comprehensive model representing the medical device development process.
The July issue of European Urology, the official journal of the European Association of Urology, features an editorial by Lars Holmberg comparing the results from the European Randomised Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer (ERSPC) with the results from the Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian Cancer Screening Trial (PLCO) In the editorial, Professor Holmberg writes that "The studies illustrate that the price to pay for 20% reduction in prostate cancer deaths is high; overdiagnosis and overtreatment are great problems. The answers lie in improving the PSA test or finding biomarkers that effectively separate aggressive cancers from slow-growing ones. We identify some priorities in the discussion about PSA testing."
The Office of Tobacco Control (OTC) today (July 1, 2009) welcomed the commencement by the Department of Health and Children of further provisions of the Public Health (Tobacco) Acts, 2002 and 2004. The key provisions now commenced are:
Helicobacter pylori survives in the body by manipulating important immune system cells. This is shown in a thesis from the Sahlgrenska Academy. The discovery may lead to new treatments against the common peptic ulcer bacterium.
New data from an economic analysis presented today at this year"s European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) congress showed that, within the parameters of the simulation model used, the in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatment MENOPUR (highly-purified human menopausal gonatropin or HP-hMG) offered considerable cost-savings over recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH).1 The cost-effectiveness of HP-hMG compared with rFSH suggested by this data could make it a more attractive choice for use in infertility treatment within a fixed healthcare budget.
Enigma Diagnostics Limited, the decentralised and point-of-care molecular diagnostics company, announced successful independent testing for bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency to evaluate the performance of the Enigma FL (Field Laboratory).
PROLOR Biotech, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: PBTH), formerly Modigene Inc., announced that the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has issued two new patents for the company"s long-acting CTP-enhanced human growth hormone (hGH-CTP) and human erythropoietin (EPO-CTP). The patents cover the composition of PROLOR"s proprietary pharmaceutical compounds as well as certain associated methods. PROLOR"s CTP technology is based on a short amino acid sequence, the Carboxyl Terminal Peptide that occurs naturally in humans. When attached to a therapeutic protein, CTP extends the time that the protein is active in the body.
Cephalon, Inc. (Nasdaq: CEPH) announced that it has submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requesting approval of NUVIGIL(R) (armodafinil) Tablets [C-IV] for the indication of improved wakefulness in patients with excessive sleepiness associated with jet lag disorder resulting from eastbound travel. Jet lag disorder is an acute condition that occurs when a person"s internal body clock becomes disrupted as a result of rapid travel across several time zones. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics findings, an estimated 70 million American travelers experience jet lag annually. Currently, there are no FDA-approved medications to improve wakefulness in travelers who experience the excessive sleepiness commonly associated with long flights.
Calixa Therapeutics Inc. today announced the initiation of a Phase 2 clinical trial of CXA-101 in patients with complicated urinary tract infections. CXA-101 is a new broad-spectrum, parenteral cephalosporin antibiotic with excellent in vitro and in vivo activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, including drug resistant isolates. Calixa is investigating CXA-101 as a potential treatment for serious bacterial infections in hospitalized patients.
Immunology pioneer Professor Chris Goodnow from The Australian National University has been elected as a Fellow of the prestigious UK and Commonwealth academy of science, The Royal Society.
While screening for possible pulmonary emboli using pulmonary CT angiography, a new study shows that radiologists can effectively lower the patient radiation dose by approximately 44% and improve vascular enhancement without deterioration of image quality, according to a study performed at Brigham and Women"s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Tuberculosis (TB) experts at Johns Hopkins have evidence from a four-year series of experiments in mice that anti-inflammatory drugs could eventually prove effective in treating the highly contagious lung disease, adding to current antibiotic therapies.
Today Ipsos-MORI have published the results of the 2008-09 GP Patient Survey which they carried out on behalf of the Department of Health.
The Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing at The University of Western Ontario has announced a $2 million research chair to address issues surrounding the chronic shortage of registered nurses in Canada and the United States. Dr. Heather Laschinger, Ph.D., was named the first Arthur Labatt Family Nursing Research Chair in Human Re Optimization.
The provision of medical care and the evacuation of the trapped and
Whether a monkey is looking to the left or merely watching another monkey looking that way, the same neurons in his brain are firing, according to researchers at the Duke University Medical Center.
First Lady Michelle Obama visited a Washington, D.C. community health center Monday afternoon to announce the release of $851 million for the expansion and rehabilitation of clinics around the country, The New York Times reports.
GPs and practice managers still face familiar barriers when it comes to making one of the government"s flagship health policies a success, yet many remain optimistic that practice-based commissioning (PBC) can make a difference to patient care.
Oxfam Calls On G8 Leaders To Increase Agriculture Investment In Developing Countries
Researchers at North Carolina State University and the Georgia Institute of Technology have received a $1.2 million grant from the National Science Foundation to study whether and how video games can boost memory and thinking skills in the elderly - and then to use their findings to develop a prototype video game to do just that.
Responding to the publication of Lord Darzi"s report, High Quality Care for All: Our Journey So Far, Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:
Internationally acclaimed Michelin-starred chef Marco Pierre White is supporting a global campaign launched today by the World Hypertension League to encourage more people to adopt a healthy, low salt diet to tackle the problem of high blood pressure. High blood pressure affects over 1.5 billion people around the world1. Excess salt raises blood pressure2, which is the number one risk factor for cardiovascular disease, the number one cause of death worldwide3.
The British Veterinary Association (BVA) has called on Defra to abandon its plans for a new animal health body that will give responsibility for animal health to an independent board and leave responsibility for animal welfare with ministers.
Transferring just one embryo at a time to a woman"s womb after embryos have undergone preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) and freezing at the blastocyst stage has become a real option after researchers achieved pregnancy rates that were as good as those for blastocysts that had not had a cell removed for PGD before freezing. Their results mean that it will be possible to reduce the number of multiple pregnancies after PGD and the consequent complications associated with these pregnancies.
Whether on the trail, at the gym, or even on the front-porch steps, what happens inside your ankle in the milliseconds following a single misstep could sentence you to a lifetime of ankle trouble.
While major advances have been made in the understanding of posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) anatomy and reconstruction, a literature review published in the July 2009 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (JAAOS) finds that there must be continued advances in basic science research in order to determine the best course of treatment for those with PCL injuries.
MUSCLE BIOLOGY: Not strong enough: the protein OPN promotes muscle degeneration
It is well documented that police officers have a higher risk of developing heart disease: The question is why.
A just published Review in the publication "Expert Opinion on Investigational Drugs", Volume 18, Issue 7 2009, confirms the previous published information on PROSTVAC(TM). This is the most comprehensive and updated Review on PROSTVAC(TM) so far.
In response to a report by the Public Health Commission which says health messages need greater clarity and consistency to help people make the right choices, Chris Sorek, Chief Executive of Drinkaware, says:
Shire plc (LSE: SHP, NASDAQ: SHPGY), the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, announced results from a Phase 3b study that found VYVANSE® (lisdexamfetamine dimesylate) CII demonstrated significant efficacy at 14 hours after administration during a simulated workplace environment study in adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). VYVANSE is the first approved stimulant for adults with ADHD to be evaluated in this setting, and these data were presented today at the 49th annual New Clinical Drug Evaluation Unit meeting in Hollywood, FL. VYVANSE is currently approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of ADHD in children age 6 to 12 years and in adults with ADHD.
Schering-Plough Corp., (NYSE: SGP) announced results from the Phase III ENGAGE clinical trial demonstrating that a single injection of corifollitropin alfa, first in the class of sustained follicle stimulants, achieved similar efficacy to recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH) given once daily for seven days. The ENGAGE data was presented along with data from the Phase III ENSURE trial and the Phase II REALIZE trial at the 25th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPHM) today announced that it has been awarded a European patent for a novel device and methods for linking biological agents to labels for diagnostic and therapeutic applications. The technology, which is known as In-Line labeling, was developed for the production of radiolabeled anti-cancer antibodies, but is applicable to other agents as well. A study published today in the July 2009 issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine confirms that In-Line labeling can dramatically reduce the complexity and cost of producing radiolabeled cancer drugs(1). In-Line labeling is already being used for the production of Peregrine"s radiolabeled antibody Cotara(R), currently in Phase II trials for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme, a deadly form of brain cancer.
The rate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in U.S. neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) has more than tripled in recent years, reports a study in the July issue of The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals, and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, pharmacy and the pharmaceutical industry.
Because females carry two copies of the X chromosome to males" one X and one Y, they harbor a potentially toxic double dose of the over 1000 genes that reside on the X chromosome.
British scientists have found a significant link between later retirement age and later onset of dementia in men.
So-called "empty nest syndrome" does not affect parents living in rural areas as much as previously thought, according to a new study carried out in Thailand.
POZEN Inc. (NASDAQ:POZN), announced the submission of a New Drug Application (NDA) to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the marketing approval of VIMOVO™ (PN 400), the combination of enteric coated (EC) naproxen and immediate release esomeprazole. POZEN and AstraZeneca entered into a global co-development agreement for VIMOVO in August 2006. Pending regulatory approval, the proposed trade name is VIMOVO and the proposed indications are for the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis in patients who are at risk for developing NSAID-associated ulcers.
XenoPort, Inc. (Nasdaq:XNPT) announced positive preliminary results from a Phase 2 clinical trial of arbaclofen placarbil (AP), also known as XP19986, for the treatment of patients with spasticity due to spinal cord injury (SCI). Doses of 20 and 30 mg of AP, given twice daily (BID), demonstrated statistically significant improvements compared to placebo for the primary endpoint of the study. AP was well tolerated during the trial.
Colorado Right to Life and Personhood USA are proposing a 2010 state ballot initiative with a different version of 2008"s defeated "personhood" amendment to the state constitution, the Colorado Springs Gazette reports. The groups intend to submit their proposal to the Colorado Legislative Council this week. In the November 2008 election, 73% of state voters opposed the previous version, known as Amendment 48, which was sponsored by Colorado for Equal Rights.The new version includes modified language that its supporters say will clarify its intent. Rather than defining a person as "any human being from the moment of fertilization," the new version would establish personhood as "every human being from the beginning of the biological development of that human being." The initiative"s sponsors also said that they will be better funded and articulate a clearer message than in 2008, when a college student launched the campaign.According to the Gazette, abortion-rights supporters "weren"t overly concerned" about the new initiative. Jacy Montoya, head of the Colorado Organization for Latina Opportunity and Reproductive Rights, said that the 2008 vote demonstrated that Colorado residents are "uncomfortable with the government and strangers making personal decision for families." Lynn Paltrow, executive director of National Advocates for Pregnant Women, said that the new attempt "gives us another opportunity to explain how personhood amendments threaten all pregnant women, including those going to term" (Barna,Colorado Springs Gazette, 6/29).
"Labor unions are showing their increasing displeasure over [health reform] financing proposals that target their healthcare benefits by launching attack ads against key lawmakers, causing the Senate"s leading advocate of taxing such benefits to seek an end to one especially aggressive campaign," Congress Daily reports. The Laborers" International Union of North America pulled an ad in Montana attacking Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus at the senator"s request, and after he asked to meet with the union"s president to discuss proposals (Dann, 6/30).
The drug industry began ramping up its lobbying efforts in 2003, when Medicare Part D began, and now is targeting Democrats.
The Medical Protection Society (MPS), the world"s largest indemnifier of healthcare professionals, has announced the key figures who will head up the new Edinburgh office when it opens in June 2009.
Commenting on the new research on Alzheimer"s by the the Institute of Psychiatry at King"s College London, Michelle Mitchell, Charity Director for Age Concern and Help the Aged said:
Researchers at the Moores UCSD Cancer Center are injecting a modified herpes virus into melanoma tumors, hoping to kill the cancer cells while also bolstering the body"s immune defenses against the disease.
An additional 30 million bed nets, the development of life-saving new treatments and new funding to increase access to anti-malarial drugs are announced today in a package of measures by International Development Secretary, Douglas Alexander, as the UK continues its fight to rid the world of malaria.
Diets high in protein and cholesterol are associated with a higher risk of hospitalization or death due to cirrhosis or liver cancer, while diets high in carbohydrates are associated with a lower risk. These findings are in the July issue of Hepatology, a journal published by John Wiley & Sons on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). The article is also available online at Wiley Interscience.
The frontiers of cell transplantation for cardiac repair are discussed in the current issue of Cell Transplantation (Vol. 18 No.3), now available on-line without charge at http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/cog/ct.
Doctors yesterday reaffirmed their support for a minimum pricing strategy for a unit of alcohol. Speaking today at the BMA"s annual conference in Liverpool, Newry consultant and BMA Board of Science member Dr Peter Maguire said,
Scientists at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency"s (CFIA) National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease (NCFAD) have mapped the full genetic sequence of the virus found in swine from Alberta-a development that will help scientists around the world better understand the virus and its affects on animals.
A study published in the July 2009 issue of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology revealed that internet-based lung cancer information was of a higher quality in the United States (US) than in Japan. Dr. Yasushi Goto of the National Cancer Center Hospital in Tokyo and his team of researchers from both the US and Japan evaluated 150 Web sites and determined noticeable differences in the quality and type of information on lung cancer available over the internet in the two countries.
The salamander is a superhero of regeneration, able to replace lost limbs, damaged lungs, sliced spinal cord -- even bits of lopped-off brain.
After enrolling in Medicare Part D, seniors who previously had limited or no drug coverage spent more on prescriptions and less on other medical care services such as hospitalizations and visits to the doctor"s office, according to a University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health study. Published in the July 2 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, the study also found that seniors who had relatively good drug benefits prior to enrolling in Medicare Part D spent somewhat more on prescriptions and, at the same time, increased their spending on other medical care services.
Eisai Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Tokyo, President & CEO: Haruo Naito, "Eisai") and Eisai Corporation of North America (Headquarters: Woodcliff Lake, NJ, Chairman and CEO Hajime Shimizu) are currently focusing on three clinical development programs for the company"s major product Aricept(R) (donepezil hydrochloride tablets) to further contribute to patients with Alzheimer"s disease. As progress in those programs has been made, Eisai announces the status as follows:
The persistent cool and damp weather in the Northeast this spring put many outdoor activities on hold. With the weather finally improving, many people will head outdoors, and when they do, they are likely to find a perennial pest has been lurking, ready to latch onto the next warm-blooded body that comes by. "And that could spell serious health trouble," warns Dr. Chad Richmond, a family physician at the UDMNJ-School of Osteopathic Medicine.
Sports-related injuries such as bruises, scrapes and broken bones accounted for 22 percent of hospital emergency department visits for children ages 5 to 17 in 2006, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
This statement updates Members on the Influenza A (H1N1) swine flu outbreak and the latest developments in Wales, across the UK and internationally.
Help for families with sick and disabled children in Wales is now available at the click of a mouse, Deputy Minister for Social Services Gwenda Thomas will announce.
An OECD report has confirmed that GP-led primary care is a cost effective way to promote good health while sending a warning about the need to better promote general practice as a career. The OECD Health Data 2009 report says despite the growing need for GPs worldwide there is an increasing trend towards specialisation. The number of specialists rose by 60% between 1990 and 2007, compared with only a 23% increase in GPs.
The WHO on Wednesday announced plans for a clinical trial to test a new drug that "could halve the treatment period for river blindness [or onchocerciasis], a disease that threatens 100 million people mostly in Africa," AFP/Dow Jones Newswires/CNN Money reports (7/1). "This is a devastating illness that has plagued 30 African countries for centuries, in particular the populations in the most remote areas "beyond the end of the road,"" Uche Amazigo, director of the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC), said (ANI/Thaindian.com, 7/1).
This week Nursing Standard published some misleading and speculative information regarding the NMC"s registration fee. The story, titled "Registration fees could increase as regulator goes into black", also included factually inaccurate information about the NMC"s diversity data collection exercise which will soon be launched.
In an effort to encourage medical professionals to provide services to low-income rural populations in India, Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad announced an initiative that will significantly raise the salary of "doctors, specialists and para-medical staff" who elect to work in "rural, particularly far-flung and inaccessible areas," the Hindu reports.
Before taking her job as the White House health reform director, Nancy-Ann DeParle earned more than $6 million serving on the boards of major health care corporations, some of which were accused of fraud, mismanagement and regulatory violations during her tenure, the Investigative Reporting Workshop at American University reports on MSNBC.com. Some critics say the corporate relationships could be a conflict of interest for DeParle. Also, while there"s no evidence DeParle was involved in or aware of allegedly fraudulent activities, in three cases, she served on board committees overseeing the companies" legal and regulatory compliance.
Two studies that may influence clinical treatment of serious eye conditions are reported in the July issue of Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology. One correlates the incidence of silent cerebral infarcts (SCI) and visual field loss in patients with normal-tension glaucoma ; the other investigates inflammation biomarkers in relation to corneal transplant rejection in herpes simplex patients.
"A year into a new effort to expand health coverage, recession-weary Marylanders are flocking to the state"s Medicaid program in numbers far greater than expected, costing the state $50 million more in the process," The Baltimore Sun reports. "As of this week, 44,255 additional state residents had enrolled in Maryland"s Medicaid system after income limits were significantly relaxed, outpacing projections that enrollment would increase by 26,605." Health advocates say "the state is doing the right thing by expanding publicly funded health care to adults who have children," but "increased enrollment has also enlarged the price tag." And "while the federal government picks up half the cost, the higher expenses come as Maryland is battling severe budget shortfalls. State health spending has been propped up this year by a major influx of stimulus dollars. Proponents had hoped to extend the public plan to adults without children this year, but the initiative was a victim of state budget constraints" (Fisher, 7/2).
Government Accountability Office Prescription Drugs: Overview of Approaches to Control Prescription Drug Spending in Federal Programs -- "The increasing cost of prescription drugs has put pressure to control drug spending on federal programs such as the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), Medicare Part D, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the Department of Defense (DOD), and Medicaid," according to a summary of a recent GAO report, where the office explores approaches used by the FEHBP and other federal programs to control prescription drug spending (6/24).
The following summarizes news coverage of state abortion statistics in Minnesota and Wisconsin.~ Minnesota: The number of abortions performed in Minnesota decreased for the second consecutive year in 2008, according to an annual report from the state Department of Health, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. Except for a one-time increase in 2006, the number of abortions in Minnesota has trended downward since a peak in 1980, when 19,028 procedures were performed. The new report found that 12,948 abortions were performed in the state in 2008, a decrease of 895 from 2007. Women ages 20 to 24 accounted for about one-third of the procedures, the most among any age group. The number of procedures among teenagers continued a decline that began in the 1990s but had leveled off slightly earlier this decade, the report found. The report also found that less than one-third of women reported using contraception and about one in seven was married at the time of conception (Von Sternberg, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 7/1).~ Wisconsin: Wisconsin abortion providers performed 8,229 procedures in 2008, the lowest number since the state began collecting statistics in 1974, according to an annual report by the state Department of Health Services, the AP/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports. The number of abortions has declined annually since 2003, when 10,557 procedures were performed. State law requires abortion providers to provide DHS with the data. According to the report, slightly more than half of abortions took place in the first eight weeks of pregnancy. Women who had never been married accounted for about three-fourths of all procedures. The report found that 12% of abortions occurred among women ages 35 and older; 34% were among women ages 20 to 24; 11% were among women ages 18 and 19; and 6% were among girls ages 15 to 17. The number of abortions among minors decreased from 551 in 2007 to 500 in 2008, with parents providing consent in 452 of those cases (Richmond, AP/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, 6/30).
Psychologists representing the American Psychological Association joined other invited health care practitioners, leaders and aides to President Obama today for the latest White House Stakeholder Discussion Group, emphasizing that health reform must include psychological services as part of primary care.
We swim in a sea of information, but filter out most of what we see or hear. New analysis of data from dozens of studies sheds new light on how we choose what we do and do not hear. The study found that while people tend to avoid information that contradicts what they already think or believe, certain factors can cause them to seek out, or at least consider, other points of view.