Diagnostics
Building on its widely distributed multiplex PCR technology platform, Seegene is now providing healthcare systems worldwide with a powerful diagnostic test for effective identification of the new influenza A virus (swine H1N1).
Stem Cell Therapeutics Corp. (TSX VENTURE:SSS)("SCT" or "the Company") has received a No Objection Letter ("NOL") from Health Canada for the modified REGENESIS protocol using NTx®-265 for a Phase IIb clinical trial treating acute ischemic stroke.
NPR reports that California"s $26.3 billion budget deficit is marginalizing seniors who rely on California state-provided health care and service to help them manage their lives.
The U.S. will work to address the health challenges facing India among other countries and will aim to improve maternal and child health care services through comprehensive dialogue, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday after visiting a Self Employed Women"s Association (SEWA) trade outlet in Mumbai, India, PTI/Yahoo! News reports. Clinton said, "Our government is already spending a lot of money on HIV/AIDS but we wanted to add maternal and child health to that commitment as it is important for India." She added that the funding will be used to combat tuberculosis and polio, "which are also problems in India" (7/18).
As the UK enters a summer of discontent, one company has a vision to make the outlook decidedly brighter - by looking at life through blue-tinted spectacles.
Cardiovascular disease is increasing in adults under 50 and those of lower socioeconomic status, despite recent trends which show that cardiovascular disease is declining in Canada overall, say researchers at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre. Untreated cardiovascular disease can lead to heart failure, coronary artery disease and death, and is the most common cause of hospitalization in North America.
Most women surgeons would choose their career again, although many would favor more options for part-time or other alternative work schedules, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Every time a neuron sends a signal - to move a muscle or form a memory, for example - tiny membrane-bound compartments, called vesicles, dump neurotransmitters into the synapse between the cells. Researchers report that this process, which is fundamental to the workings of the nervous system, relies on a simple mechanical reality: Tension in the axon of the presynaptic neuron is required.
A new subsidy designed to increase access to life-saving antiretrovirals
Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: AUXL), a specialty biopharmaceutical company, announced that new data from the two-part HYHYHI Study (Hypogonadal Hypotestosteronism in HIV-Seropositive Men) were presented as a poster today at the 5th International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference in Cape Town, South Africa. This retrospective chart review, supported by the Company, evaluated the challenges associated with diagnosing low testosterone in men with HIV/AIDS. The study also compared the difference in testosterone levels achieved after 12 months of treatment with either Testim® 1% (testosterone gel) or AndroGel®, two commonly used FDA-approved testosterone replacement products.
Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), which results in low birth weight and long-term deleterious health effects in cloned swine, is linked to a type of gene - known as an imprinted gene - found only in placental mammals. Imprinted genes play an important role in the normal fetal development of all mammals, and this study could have future implications for the study of IUGR in humans.
A UCLA study has identified a way to turn off a key signaling pathway involved in physiological processes that can also stimulate the development of cancer and other diseases. The findings may lead to new treatments and targeted drugs using this approach.
Bacterial diseases are usually detected by first enriching samples, then separating, identifying, and counting the bacteria. This type of procedure usually takes at least two days after arrival of the sample in the laboratory. Tests that work faster, in the field, and without complex sample preparation, whilst being precise and error-free, are thus high on the wish list. A Spanish research team headed by Jordi Riu and F. Xavier Rius at the University Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona has now developed a new technique to make this wish come true. With a novel biosensor, they have been able to detect extremely low concentrations of the typhus-inducing Salmonella typhi. As reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie, their new method is based on electrochemical measurements by means of carbon nanotubes equipped with aptamers as bacteria-specific binding sites. If bacteria bind to the aptamers, the researchers detect a change in electrical voltage.
The results of a new study of the pen and paper workarounds employed by healthcare providers who use an electronic medical record system may help make electronic medical records even more useful to health-care providers and the patients they serve.
Researchers at Brown University and the University of Arizona have determined that variations of three different genes in the brain (called single-nucleotide polymorphisms) may help predict a person"s tendency to make certain choices.
MYCAMINE (micafungin), the newest echinocandin, is now available in thirteen European markets: UK, Greece, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Nordic region*, Spain, Germany, Ireland and France following its EU approval in April 2008.
A joint Department of Health and Home Office review group has published its findings on a review into access to the NHS by foreign nationals, Health Minister Ann Keen announced today.
Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NasdaqGM: SPPI), a commercial stage biotechnology company with a focus on oncology, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for filing and review the resubmission to the Company"s supplement to the biologics license application for ZEVALIN (ibritumomab tiuxetan) in the first line consolidation setting on July 8, 2009. The FDA considers the review as a Class 1 submission to their complete response letter of July 2, 2009. Therefore, the user fee goal date is September 7, 2009.
An article published in the August edition of The Lancet Infectious Diseases reports that additional research is required on the vulnerability to the new H1N1 flu strain of different immunosuppressed populations. The possible effectiveness and side-effects of future vaccines also need to be evaluated. The review is the work of Dr Ken M Kunisaki, Minneapolis VA Medical Center, USA, and University of Minnesota, USA, and Dr Edward N Janoff, Univeristy of Colorado Denver School of Medicine and Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center, USA.
Across the state of Maryland, there are now doctors and nurses, freshly trained in pediatric dental health care, who can help stem an alarming number of 3-year-old children who arrive for their first dentist visit with teeth "just melting away."
The American Dental Hygienists" Association (ADHA) recently awarded Minnesota State Senator Ann Lynch with a presidential citation to recognize her extraordinary efforts in passing legislation which will establish new oral health providers in Minnesota.
Revised guidelines on when and how to induce labor in pregnant women were issued by The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). The guidelines provide physicians with guidance regarding which induction methods may be most appropriate under particular circumstances, as well as the safety requirements, and risks and benefits of the different methods. ACOG"s Practice Bulletin "Induction of Labor" is published in the August 2009 issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
The National Pharmacy Association and Allergy UK provided free allergy screening to the public at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show from 7-12 July. Over 7,000 members of the public picked up information on community pharmacy allergy screening or asked for advice and 75 allergy screenings were carried out.
"Digital medical records could cut down on office visits," and maybe even health care costs, Marketplace reports. "But for doctors, going electronic could be complicated and expensive. And nothing at all like what they learned in medical school." Relatively few doctors have made the switch so far, though new government incentives, funded by the stimulus bill, could shift the industry into gear. The doctors who have pioneered e-health have confronted a newish industry with few standards. One recalled that his early adoption of the records in 2003 was "a disaster," though he is now touted as an example for other practices (Carroll, 7/20).
Executive vice president is pharmaceutical industry veteran Arthur Simon, Ph.D.
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) commented on a new report by the Care Quality Commission into the West London Mental Health NHS Trust. The report found significant problems at a number of sites including a lack of beds, low staffing levels and serious threats to patient safety.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain pledged to continue to build a
The hospitalization rate of patients admitted for treatment of hip, pelvis and other fractures associated with osteoporosis increased by 55 percent between 1995 and 2006, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
Researchers at Rice University and their international colleagues have for the first time described the atomic structure of the protein shell that carries the genetic code of hepatitis E (HEV). Their findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, could mean that new ways to stop the virus may come in the not-too-distant future.
Purdue University researchers have created magnetically responsive gold nanostars that may offer a new approach to biomedical imaging.
In the new issue of the Developmental Cell journal, a team of scientists at Singapore"s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) and the University of North Carolina School of Medicine at Chapel Hill, report research findings about the molecular mechanisms behind the aging process, which has up till now been poorly understood, that offer the possibility that a novel, pharmacological approach could be developed to combat age-related disorders.
Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) has helped many couples conceive healthy children and is generally considered a safe practice. However, a new long-term analysis of PGD in mice suggests that this procedure may increase risks of weight gain and memory decline in adulthood.
A pioneering University of Wolverhampton lecturer has won a ÷£25,000 grant to research the healing effect of sugar on cuts and wounds.
SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development organization, has announced that SRI"s Center for Cancer Research was selected by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for a leading role in the newly-formed "Chemical Biology Consortium" (CBC), a collaborative drug discovery partnership focused on advancing new cancer therapeutics active against novel molecular and genetic cancer targets. Based on its track record of cancer drug discovery and development, SRI was chosen to lead three of the CBC"s research and development centers: Comprehensive Chemical Biology Screening, Chemical Diversity, and Specialized Applications.
A portable "lab on a chip" that can identify target molecules in blood samples has been created by European researchers. It is being used to measure fertility hormones and detect the genes associated with certain types of cancer.
EHE International recently announced the findings of a study indicating that elevated PSA levels, often associated with prostate cancer, are potentially harder to detect in men who are obese or experiencing weight gain. Prostate specific antigens (PSAs) are proteins produced by the cells of the prostate gland and because elevated levels may be indicative of prostate cancer, PSAs are regularly measured in annual physicals. PSA velocity is a measure of how fast PSA levels are changing in a man through time, and a high PSA velocity is an important indicator of prostate cancer risk. The study describes how obesity and increases in Body Mass Index (BMI) make PSA velocity scores appear lower than they really are, thereby potentially obscuring clinically relevant changes in circulating PSA.
New research from The Children"s Hospital of Philadelphia sheds light on the role of cell receptors in acting as gatekeepers for infectious viruses. By using mice genetically engineered to lack a particular receptor in heart and pancreas cells, the study team prevented infection by a common virus that causes potentially serious diseases in humans.
Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX) announced final selection of a Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) vaccine candidate that will be advanced into additional preclinical studies to support an Investigational New Drug (IND) application. As previously announced, Novavax has been evaluating a number of RSV vaccine candidates, all of which have successfully induced antibody responses in mice. Novavax scientists have now engineered a new vaccine candidate which has been shown to protect mice against RSV disease and can be produced at sufficient yields to allow commercial manufacture. This new candidate is directed against a protein on the surface of the virus, the "F" or "fusion" protein, which is the protein that the virus uses to infect and fuse with cells in the respiratory tract and cause disease.
Today the National Business Coalition on Health (NBCH) released a national report on efforts of health plan programs to improve cardiovascular disease (CVD) care and prevention. NBCH used data from eValue8(TM), the nation"s leading standardized Request for Information (RFI), a tool utilized by employers and coalitions to measure and compare health plan performance.
Results of a long-awaited study of 3,070 American adults at Johns Hopkins and 118 other U.S. medical centers show that treatment with either of the two standard antiviral drug therapies is safe and offers the best way for people infected with hepatitis C to prevent liver scarring, organ failure and death.
Your favourite painting could reveal a lot about your personality, this is a conclusion of a study published today, 23rd July 2009 in the British Journal of Psychology, which found that people"s preferences for painting genres is linked to key personality traits.
Asthma UK"s team of clinical experts is offering important advice on how people with asthma can help protect themselves against swine flu now and into the autumn.
The F-22 Model For Medicare The Washington Post
Fecal incontinence (FI) is a normal part of aging, or the perception that no treatment is available. Doctors may fail to comprehend patient hints about diarrhea and FI or may be reluctant to ask about fecal leakage, perhaps because of their own embarrassment or the perception that FI is a trivial concern.
Stokes caused by non-traumatic intracerebral haemorrhage (IH) are caused by a rupture of blood vessels in the brain. This is a major public health problem which accounts for 2 million (10-15%) of a total of 15 million strokes worldwide each year. The causes and the future treatment of this condition are discussed in a Seminar in this week"s edition of The Lancet, written by Dr Adnan I. Qureshi, (Zeenat Qureshi Stroke Research Center, University of Minnesota, USA); Dr A David Mendelow (University of Newcastle, UK); and Dr Daniel F Hanley (Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Baltimore, USA).
Bracing for an outbreak of 2009 H1N1 (swine-origin) flu that a Saint Louis University infectious diseases expert estimates could sicken one in five people this fall, scientists at eight Vaccine and Treatment Evaluation Units funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) are launching a series of clinical trials this summer to test vaccines to protect against the illness.
Chicago high school students interested in science and health care will get a chance to learn about diagnostic tests and the laboratory professionals who perform them during the American Association for Clinical Chemistry"s 2009 Clinical Lab Expo on July 21 and 22.
Funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will allow the National Institutes of Health to create jobs for early career scientists and increase the ranks of researchers and clinicians working in the global health field. With $3 million in funding over the next 18 months, the NIH"s Fogarty International Center will be able to support 23 additional participants in its Clinical Research Training Scholars and Fellows Program.
The American College for Advancement in Medicine (ACAM) has released its position regarding HB 3200, the health care reform bill proposed by the Obama administration. While ACAM believes healthcare reform is vital and necessary for America, it is our position that integrative medicine principles be included to yield the desired result of creating a more efficient, wellness-centered approach to healthcare.
Over the last four years, heart specialists at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center have implanted an innovative aortic heart valve replacement using a catheter-based approach that does not require open-heart surgery in a total of 100 patients -- the most of any U.S. medical center to date.
By miniaturizing a device that monitors the delivery of healthy cells, researchers at Department of Energy"s Oak Ridge National Laboratory are developing a powerful instrument for physicians to use in treating patients with Parkinson"s syndrome, brain tumors and other diseases.
Illumina (NASDAQ:ILMN) announced that the Genomic Medicine Institute (GMI) at Seoul National University College of Medicine in Korea, purchased seven additional Illumina Genome AnalyzerIIx sequencing systems, expanding the capacity of their recently established Asian Genome Center to 10 Illumina sequencing systems.
Americans living with undiagnosed diabetes incur an estimated $18 billion in healthcare expenditures each year, or $2,864 per person in medical services and lost productivity from diabetes-related complications, according to a new study initiated by the National Changing Diabetes(R) Program and published in the journal, Population Health Management.
Music, rather than electromechanical valves, can drive experimental samples through a lab-on-a-chip in a new system developed at the University of Michigan. This development could significantly simplify the process of conducting experiments in microfluidic devices.
Scientists have launched a project to make hair dye out of seaweed from around the Shetland Islands.
Topical Treatment Improves Wound Healing
New research from the US suggests that having stressed parents may make it more likely that children will develop asthma that is triggered by air
Synchronicity in nature is seen in beating hearts, the flashing of fireflies" lights, the ebb and flow of infectious disease-and the simultaneous rise and fall of populations across vast reaches of space. While scientists have identified some factors that account for this melodic phenomenon, they have yet to sort out the relative contribution each plays in this finely tuned orchestra.
A high intake of linoleic acid, a common dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid (N-6 PUFA), might be implicated in a third of ulcerative colitis cases, suggests research published ahead of print in Gut.
The androgen receptor a protein ignition switch for prostate cancer cell growth and division is a master of adaptability. When drug therapy deprives the receptor of androgen hormones, thereby halting cell proliferation, the receptor manages to find an alternate growth route. A new study by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Ohio State University scientists demonstrates how.
Expression of a single gene programs an immune system helper T cell that fuels rapid growth and diversification of antibodies in a cellular structure implicated in autoimmune diseases and development of B cell lymphoma, scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center reported today in Science Express, the advance online publication of the journal Science.
Human cells are able to secrete a cancer-killing protein, scientists at the University of Kentucky"s Markey Cancer Center have found.
AlphaRx, Inc. (OTCBB: ALRX) announced positive preclinical results which demonstrated that an inhaled tobramycin nanoparticle (Zysolin(TM)) formulation was a more effective treatment in animal models of acute Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia when compared to inhaled and injected conventional tobramycin solutions. The data was presented recently in an oral podium session at the 36th Annual Meeting and Exposition of the Controlled Release Society in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Coal dust exposure is directly linked to severity of emphysema in smokers and nonsmokers alike, according to new research from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
A new study by scientists at the University of Iowa shows why muscle membranes don"t rupture when healthy people exercise.
Commenting on the launch of the Government consultation on mental health and wellbeing, New Horizons, Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said:
A first-of-its-kind RAND Corporation study has linked the rapid growth in health care costs in the United States with job losses and lower output among industries that commonly provide workers with health insurance.
Reps. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) and Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) on Thursday will be joined by leaders of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and NARAL Pro-Choice America in announcing the latest version of a bill that aims to reduce the need for abortion by preventing unintended pregnancies, among other measures, Time reports (Sullivan, Time, 7/23). Ryan and DeLauro first introduced a version of the bill in 2006 (Crary, AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 7/22). However, this version "represents a dramatic break from nearly four decades" of political debate since Roe v. Wade, as both conservative antiabortion-rights groups and abortion-rights advocates have expressed support, according to Time (Time, 7/23).The bill would increase support for comprehensive sex education programs, improve access to contraception, expand Medicaid family planning coverage, increase programs for pregnant or parenting college students, and expand adoption assistance. The Congressional Budget Office has not yet conducted a cost-analysis of the bill, the AP/San Francisco Chronicle reports (AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 7/22). In developing the bill, Ryan sought the help of Rachel Laser, director of culture programs at the policy and strategy think-tank Third Way. According to Time, Laser worked with advocates on both sides and modified the bill to help gather their support, while preventing the measure from becoming "uselessly watered down or split into two."DeLauro noted, "We had to reach a level of trust" with people on both sides and allow them time to become more receptive to the bill"s goals, adding, "Because so often this issue has been one about which there was nothing other than trying to score political points." DeLauro said she hopes the Obama administration will look to the bill for guidance as it crafts its strategy for reducing the need for abortion and preventing unintended pregnancies. President Obama is expected to make an announcement about the plan next month, according to Time (Time, 7/23).DeLauro and Ryan also noted that Rahm Emanuel, Obama"s chief of staff, endorsed an earlier version of the bill when he served in the House, which they hope could mean that Obama would support their measure. DeLauro said, "This is a bill that seems to mesh with the president"s interests," adding, "I see no reason why the White House could not endorse it."Joshua DuBois, director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, said the administration is still reviewing the information it has gathered in recent meetings with representatives on both sides of the abortion debate.Laurie Rubiner, director of Planned Parenthood"s Washington, D.C., office, said "This isn"t a radical bill," adding, "It only seems radical because it"s been so long that we could have a constructive conversation ... with both pro-choice and anti-choice groups around the table."The Rev. Joel Hunter -- an antiabortion-rights evangelical pastor in Orlando, Fla., who serves on the White House Faith-Based Advisory Council -- called the bill "a landmark bill for the culture wars -- a prototype for how we can approach things in the future." He said the bill"s strengths were in its appeals to both liberal and conservative beliefs, adding, "When you realize you need someone who"s been an adversary to help you advance your own projects, that"s a big deal" (AP/San Francisco Chronicle, 7/22).
The routine call and review of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) records will begin
A shortage of doctors and nurses could damage health care reform. Analysis finds that more incentives are needed for primary care doctors and that most medical graduates choose better paid specialties. Meanwhile, a nurse temp agency forms in Texas to address the shortages there.
Patients who added Merck"s HIV drug Isentress to their regular daily HIV drug regimen "fared no better than those who added a placebo to the mix," as the drug failed to "reduce low-level reservoirs of HIV," in the body, according to findings presented at the International AIDS Society conference in Cape Town, South Africa, Bloomberg reports. As part of the 53-participant study led by Harvard University, researchers looked at patients whose viral loads were at undetectable levels and "were given either Isentress or a placebo for 12 weeks, then switched to the alternate agent for an additional 12 weeks. The study found no difference in low levels of the virus between the two groups, using a highly sensitive test," the article states. "The results are a setback for doctors looking for ways to seek and destroy the last vestiges of HIV, which aren"t reached by currently available drugs. Eliminating these so-called viral reservoirs may potentially cure patients, allowing them to stop taking daily medicines," according to Bloomberg (Pettypiece, 7/22).
The Natural Products Association (NPA) announced that Daniel Fabricant, Ph.D., has been appointed interim executive director and CEO of the organization effective August 3. Fabricant has served as vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs with NPA since December of 2004. As was previously announced, David Seckman, who has headed the association for more than nine years, will be leaving at the end of the month to lead the Food Processing Suppliers Association.
Two papers published on bmj.com today raise serious concerns over the methods used to put a value on the benefits of different treatments in order to set healthcare priorities.
Repeated encouragement and verbal instruction do not motivate stroke survivors to be physically active, and other more intensive strategies need to be found, concludes a study published on bmj.com.
A new study of women"s contraceptive use around the world finds that sexually active 15-19-year-olds are more likely than their 20-49-year-old counterparts to use contraceptives inconsistently and, on average, experience a 25% higher rate of contraceptive failure.
Two University of Queensland researchers will drive the translation of stem cell biology into economic benefit through their leadership of new research programs, announced by the Australian Stem Cell Centre.
The Health Protection Agency has reported an 11% decrease in the total number of new gonorrhoea infections diagnosed in the UK last year from 18,649 infections in 2007 to 16,629 in 2008 - the lowest number of new infections recorded since 1999.
Orexo"s (STO:ORX) partner in Japan, Kyowa Hakko Kirin, has obtained positive phase III results in Japan for KW-2246, which is approved for the treatment of breakthrough pain in cancer patients and marketed under the brand AbstralTM in Europe. Kyowa Hakko Kirin will now proceed with preparations for a new-drug application for KW-2246 in Japan for use in continuous pain management of acute cancer pain (breakthrough pain).
Applied NeuroSolutions, Inc. (OTC BB:APSN), a biotechnology company focused on the development of products for the early diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer"s disease ("AD"), announced it has achieved promising results in its development of a blood-based test related to the diagnosis of patients with Alzheimer"s disease (AD). The results of two studies, which provided data from blinded serum samples, showed the ability of this tau-based test to differentiate between patients with AD and normal controls with a sensitivity greater than 80% and a specificity greater than 70%.
Use of the medication tamsulosin to treat male urination difficulties within two weeks of cataract surgery is associated with an increased risk of serious postoperative ophthalmic adverse events such as retinal detachment or lost lens, according to a study in the May 20 issue of JAMA.
More than half of clinic patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) report they also drink heavily. While highly active antiretroviral therapy has helped to reduce HIV-related cognitive and motor deficits, neuropsychological deficits may continue and even be exacerbated by alcohol. A study of memory deficits has found that HIV infection and chronic alcoholism have synergistic, damaging effects on brain function.
In a commentary published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, doctors discuss the types of information pregnant women would welcome and why the advice provided to women by doctors is considered trustworthy.
The injection of bone marrow cells into the heart of patients with chronic myocardial ischemia (reduced blood flow to some areas of the heart) was associated with modest improvements in blood flow and function of the left ventricle, according to a study in the May 20 issue of JAMA.
The increased risk of persons with schizophrenia committing violent crime may be largely mediated by co-existing substance abuse problems, according to a study in the May 20 issue of JAMA.
During a roundtable discussion on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle and Blue Dog Democrat Rep. Jason Altmire (D-Pa.) stressed the cost-effective role that homecare can play in the reform of the U.S. healthcare system. The roundtable also addressed the controversial competitive bidding program for home medical equipment and services. The American Association for Homecare hosted the event, which was attended by congressional staff and media.
For patients with persistent insomnia, a combination of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) and the medication zolpidem for 6 weeks was associated with improvement in sleep, although for a longer treatment period CBT alone was more beneficial, according to a study in the May 20 issue of JAMA.
VistA Imaging, the medical and health care imaging system used in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers, attained over one billion stored images in January this year, according to the department.
Bayer HealthCare AG and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced that their first cooperative group-sponsored randomized Phase II trial in advanced metastatic breast cancer met its primary endpoint of progression-free survival. The study evaluated Nexavar® (sorafenib) tablets in combination with the oral chemotherapeutic, capecitabine, in patients with locally advanced or metastatic HER-2 negative breast cancer. Study findings demonstrated that the median progression-free survival was extended in patients treated with Nexavar and capecitabine compared to patients receiving capecitabine and placebo. These results were statistically significant (p-value = 0.0006). In this trial, the safety and tolerability of the combination was as expected and did not show any new or unexpected toxicities. A complete data analysis from this study is expected to be presented at an upcoming scientific meeting.
Type 1 diabetes is the most common chronic childhood disease. The management of this serious medical condition includes regular fingerstick glucose measurements, multiple daily injections of insulin, and frequent insulin dose adjustments. Because children spend a great deal of their time in school, school nurses often supervise medical decisions and diabetes care. Some researchers believe that the use of telecommunication technology may make diabetes care easier for some children. A new study soon to be published in the Journal of Pediatrics explores the effectiveness of telemedicine in helping school nurses and children manage diabetes care.
Two leaflets from Britain"s National Health Service have provoked controversy over government messages on sexuality among teenagers and the elderly, the Washington Post reports. According to the Post, the leaflet for teens, titled "Pleasure," says that daily sex "keeps the doctor away." It also states, "Health promotion experts advocate five portions of fruit and [vegetables] a day and 30 minutes physical activity three times a week." It suggests that some form of sexual activity "twice a week" could have health benefits as well. The leaflet was issued by NHS in Sheffield, England, and is available to parents, youth workers and teachers nationwide. The leaflet for the elderly says that it is "never too late to experiment" sexually and offers information on dating services and contraception. The leaflet is available online, and 2,000 copies have been distributed to doctors" offices, health centers and libraries.Britain has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Western Europe, and the government has prioritized prevention-related policy measures by spending millions of dollars on awareness and contraception campaigns, the Post reports. The country also plans to make sex education mandatory in all public schools starting in 2010.After the teen leaflet appeared, "dismayed parents lit up message boards," and some educators argued that it "encouraged promiscuity," the Post reports. However, others said the leaflets are a welcome departure from traditional forms of sex education that focus on biology and disease prevention, rather than personal relationships. Hilary Pannack, CEO of the teen pregnancy not-for-profit Straight Talking, said that talking with teens about sexual pleasure "should be done with extreme caution" but that, in general, the leaflet is a "big turnaround for Britain." She added, "British people are very, very embarrassed talking to kids about sex."Steve Slack, the director of NHS" Center for HIV and Sexual Health in Sheffield and a co-author of the leaflet, said one of the objectives was to encourage teens to delay intercourse until they are ready and feel that they will enjoy it. He added that some of the leaflet"s ideas were inspired by the Netherlands, a country that is frequently referenced in British sex education debates because of its liberal attitudes toward discussing sex and its low teen pregnancy rates (Adam, Washington Post, 7/23).
Asian Americans who have adopted more aspects of Western culture may be more likely to engage in behaviors that increase sun exposure, thereby endangering their skin health, according to a report in the May issue of Archives of Dermatology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
CNN reports that African Americans and whites are treated differently by doctors. "While it"s extremely difficult to tell in any given situation how much race -- consciously or unconsciously -- plays a role in a doctor"s decision making, multiple studies over several decades have found doctors make different decisions for black patients and white patients even when they have the same medical problems and the same insurance."
Delay Vacation, Not Health-Care Reform The Des Moines Register
China"s $124 billion three-year "overhaul of its healthcare system needs to address the prescription of unnecessary drugs and treatments - a widespread practice relied upon to finance the medical sector, the World Bank said Thursday," China Daily/People"s Daily Online reports. The country"s "ambitious" reform efforts aim to "provide basic medical coverage and insurance to the country"s 1.3 billion people," according to the publication (7/24).
Lancet Commends U.K. All-Parliamentary Group on AIDS Call For HIV Drug Patent Pool
An amendment to the fiscal year 2010 appropriations bill for health, labor and education programs that opposes the lifting of the ban on federal funding for needle exchange programs will come to the House floor for debate today along with four others, CQ Today reports. Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) "will offer an amendment to strip language that would lift the ban on federal funding for needle exchange programs," CQ writes. According to CQ Today, "Conservatives are concerned that eliminating the ban on federal funds for such programs, which are designed to reduce the transmission of HIV and other diseases, would be tantamount to helping fund addicts" drug habits. Democrats say science has shown that such programs, when coupled with comprehensive prevention strategies, can reduce the rate of [HIV] infections and do not promote drug use." House Appropriations Committee Chair David Obey (D-Wis.) "added compromise language in the committee this week that would prohibit funds from going to needle exchange programs within 1,000 feet of facilities that serve children, such as schools and parks," the article states. The House is expected to vote on the amendment and the appropriations bill today (Wolfe, 7/23).
A new drug that targets a master disease-causing gene can dramatically reduce heart muscle damage after a heart attack and may lead to significantly improved patient outcomes, UNSW researchers have shown.
New research shows that training your brain may be just as effective as training your muscles in preventing ACL knee injuries, and suggests a shift from performance-based to prevention-based athletic training programs.
Overall prognosis for gallbladder cancer appears to be improving, although many patients still have incurable disease and poor survival rates, according to a report in the May issue ofArchives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Kristen Parker, a former Rose Medical Center surgery "scrub" technician, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver, announced David Gaouette, Acting U.S. Attorney, Stephen Holt, Special Agent in Charge of the FDA Office of Criminal Investigations, Kansas City Field Office, and Jeffrey Sweetin, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration Denver Division. Parker, age 26, of Elizabeth, Colorado, was named in a 42 count indictment charging product tampering and obtaining controlled substances by deceit. She remains in federal custody, being held without bond pending a resolution of her case.
A new report from the Institute of Medicine finds suggestive but limited evidence that exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during the Vietnam War is associated with an increased chance of developing ischemic heart disease and Parkinson"s disease for Vietnam veterans. The report is the latest in a congressionally mandated series by the IOM that every two years reviews the evidence about the health effects of these herbicides and a type of dioxin -- TCDD -- that contaminated some of the defoliants.
The poorest people in the UK are 2.5 times more likely to have diabetes at any age than the average person, a new Diabetes UK report reveals today. And once they have the condition, those in the most deprived homes are twice as likely to develop complications of diabetes as those in the least deprived.
African-American adolescents have some of the highest rates of HIV infection in the United States, and efforts to educate them about preventing the disease must include the help of their adolescent peers, new research suggests.
Oral evidence to the Scottish Parliament"s Health and Sport Committee on the Tobacco and Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Bill has now begun. This Bill proposes to ban the use of tobacco vending machines and to ban the display of tobacco products.
On Monday, the Health Ministries of Israel and Saudi Arabia reported their countries" first deaths from H1N1 swine influenza.
What if the quality of cancer care could be assessed and improved in "real clinical time" instead of waiting the typical two years it takes for clinical data to be analyzed and changes implemented? That is an opportunity The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) Network of hospitals is exploring this summer, as it takes the lead in a national initiative to improve data collection on cancer treatment and create a new quality assessment system that can be utilized by health providers across the country. The CINJ Network of hospitals represents nearly a quarter of the 60 beta test sites from across the country that have been invited to help steer the effort. CINJ is a Center of Excellence of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.
The Financial Secretary to Her Majesty"s Government, Rt. Hon. Stephen Timms MP has written to Ivan Corea of the UK Autism Foundation, pledging support for families with autism.
In an article published in the June issue of The Physician and Sportsmedicine entitled "Consensus Statement on Concussion in Sport - The Third International Conference on Concussion in Sport Held in Zurich, November 2008," new information and guidelines on the definition and treatment of concussions in athletes are presented. This is a revised and updated statement of the recommendations developed following the 1st (Vienna) and 2nd (Prague) International Symposia on Concussion in Sport. By developing core questions on how to treat concussions and best "return-to-play" recommendations, the conference members worked to improve the current recommendations as well as aiming to make this information readily available to health care professionals.
A recent independent study has confirmed Fortoss Vital(R), developed by the Pioneering Orthobiologics Company, Biocomposites, as an effective bone replacement material demonstrating superior bone regenerative properties due to its unique negative zeta potential control (ZPC(TM)).
Eli Lilly and Company continues to lead the way in advancing lung cancer treatment. On the heels of new FDA and European Commission approvals for ALIMTA((R)) (pemetrexed for injection) as a treatment for nonsquamous non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) in the maintenance setting, the company will release findings from more than 30 lung cancer studies at the 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in San Francisco, Calif., from July 31 to Aug. 4, 2009. WCLC is sponsored by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. Data will feature Lilly"s ALIMTA and GEMZAR((R)) (gemcitabine HCl for injection).
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley"s Office has reached an agreement with pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly & Co. ("Lilly"), resolving allegations that the company engaged in the improper marketing of its atypical antipsychotic drug, Zyprexa. Under the terms of the settlement, Lilly has paid $22,499,433.04 to the Massachusetts Medicaid Program, which provides funds for health care products and services to eligible low-income individuals, including people with disabilities, children and elder citizens.
The Minnesota Department of Health recently designated Children"s Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota"s two hospital locations as Level III Trauma Hospitals. Children"s of Minnesota has the sixth busiest pediatric emergency department in the nation with over 84,000 visits per year, and already treats around 450 trauma cases each year. Children"s voluntarily participated in the intense designation process, which included an external review of the hospitals" res and capabilities to care for young trauma patients. Children"s met the required standards of commitment, clinical and equipment res, and staff training.
Smoking has once again been implicated in the development of advanced cancer. Exposure to nicotine by way of cigarette smoking may increase the likelihood that pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma will become metastatic, according to researchers from the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson. Their study was published in the August edition of the journal Surgery.
The annual healthcare cost of obesity in the US has doubled in less than a decade and may be as high as 147 billion dollars a year says new
Scientists are closer to understanding how to grow replacement bones with stem cell technology, thanks to research published in the journal Nature Materials.
A preliminary hearing for Scott Roeder, the man charged with the May 31 murder of Kansas abortion provider George Tiller, is set for Tuesday, the AP/Houston Chronicle reports. During the hearing, prosecutors will attempt to convince a judge they have enough evidence for a trial, according to the AP/Chronicle.Roeder is charged with one count of first-degree murder in Tiller"s death, as well as two counts of aggravated assault for allegedly threatening two ushers who tried to stop him from shooting Tiller in the foyer of his Wichita church. According to the AP/Chronicle, Roeder will enter a plea if the judge determines that the case can go to trial. He has not indicated what plea he intends to enter should that occur (Hegeman, AP/Houston Chronicle, 7/26).In related news, the New York Times on Sunday examined the life and career of Tiller, who was one of the few abortion providers who performed the procedure later in pregnancy. Throughout Tiller"s career -- which began in the 1970s -- he "made himself the nation"s pre-eminent abortion practitioner," according to the Times. In addition, antiabortion-rights advocates made his clinic the "most visible abortion battleground" in the U.S., as well as "a magnet for activists from all corners of the country," the Times reports. However, Tiller "would not budge" and "[wore] their contempt as a badge of honor." According to the Times, employees at the clinic said Tiller believed his work saved women"s lives and ensured their right to an abortion. "We have made higher education possible," Tiller said in a speech, adding, "We have helped correct some of the results of rape and incest. We have helped battered women escape to a safer life. We have made recovery from chemical dependency possible. We have helped women and families struggle to save their unwell, unborn child after a lifetime of pain."According to the Times, advocates on both sides of the abortion-rights debate "have been measuring the larger ramifications" of Tiller"s murder. Abortion-rights opponents are "bracing for a drop in support, especially from those in the murky middle ground of the debate." Abortion-rights supporters, on the other hand, are "reeling from the loss of one of their most experienced and savviest leaders," the Times reports. The article also examined Tiller"s career choice, tactics employed by abortion-rights opponents and some of the legal challenges Tiller faced (Barstow, New York Times, 7/26). In addition, the Times on Sunday included an online discussion and slide show involving a man and woman with differing views on abortion rights (New York Times, 7/26).Meanwhile, the Kansas City Star on Sunday included an interview with Roeder, during which he said he was "elated" that Tiller was dead and that he considers killing abortion providers to be justifiable homicide. In the interview, Roeder said that "[n]obody was willing to do anything" about the abortions performed at Tiller"s clinic, adding that it is wrong "for society to allow such an egregious sin to go on." Roeder also discussed his actions on the day of the murder, his past dealings with the antiabortion-rights movement and his possible trial strategy (Thomas, Kansas City Star, 7/26).
Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) -- along with committee members John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) -- recently said that they will oppose Sonia Sotomayor"s confirmation to the Supreme Court, USA Today reports. The Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on Sotomayor"s nomination on Tuesday.In an opinion piece published Monday in USA Today, Sessions wrote that he questions Sotomayor"s "fidelity to the law," adding, "I don"t believe that Judge Sotomayor has the deep-rooted convictions necessary to resist the siren call of judicial activism. She has evoked its mantra too often." In reference to what Sessions said were discrepancies between her statements before the panel and her judicial record, he wrote, "Which Sotomayor will we get?" (Page, USA Today, 7/27).On Friday in floor remarks, Cornyn said, "While her record was generally in the mainstream, several of her decisions demonstrated the kind of liberal judicial activism that has steered the court in the wrong direction over the last few years." He added that "many of her public statements reflected a surprisingly radical view of the law." Cornyn also said that "those speeches contain very radical ideas on what the role of a judge is," noting that Sotomayor expressed a belief that there "is no objectivity in law; courts should change the law to make new policy; and ethnicity and gender can and even should impact a judge"s decision-making" (Bolton, The Hill, 7/24).Hatch, in a statement released Friday, said, "I reluctantly, and with a heavy heart, have found that I cannot support her nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court," adding, "Although Judge Sotomayor has a compelling life story and dedication to public service, her statements and record were too much at odds with the principles about the judiciary in which I deeply believe" (Stanton, Roll Call, 7/24).
A leading Democratic senator, Kent Conrad, D-N.D., said Sunday Democrats would need Republican support to make ambitious proposals to overhaul the health system a reality, the Associated Press reports. "Look, there are not the votes for Democrats to do this just on our side of the aisle," said Conrad, who chairs the Budget Committee. Democrats remain divided over the plans, prompting the Republican leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., to say, "The only thing bipartisan about the measure so far is the opposition to it" (7/26).
"Fifteen months before the midterm congressional election, health care is appearing in candidate stump speeches and interviews - particularly by Republican challengerṣ€¦ running in districts recently claimed by Democrats," USA Today reports. "That dynamic helps explain why a $1 trillion-plus health care bill stalled last week in Congress. ̣€¦ Obama has said he wants lawmakers to finish health care by the end of the year, in part because it could become mired in election-year politics. All 435 members of the House and 36 members of the Senate are up for election in 2010."
UNICEF Using SMS Text Messages To Fight Polio In Zambia
The AMA has congratulated the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission on its final report launched in Canberra by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
AVI BioPharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: AVII), a developer of RNA-based drugs, and Action Duchenne, a leading UK charity dedicated to increasing awareness, engendering action and raising funds to find a cure for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), today announced a collaboration to support the acceleration of research and development for AVI"s exon skipping candidate drugs for the treatment of DMD.
Older patients with diabetes who take antipsychotic medications appear to have an increased risk of hospitalization for hyperglycemia (elevated blood glucose level), especially soon after beginning treatment, according to a report in the July 27 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
People who are rewarded for making correct decisions learn quickly. While
In the race for faster, cheaper ways to read human genomes, Pacific Biosciences is hoping to set a new benchmark with technology that watches DNA being copied in real time. The device is being developed to sequence DNA at speeds 20,000 times faster than second-generation sequencers currently on the market and will ultimately have a price tag of $100 per genome.
Committees in the New Jersey Senate and Assembly on Monday unanimously approved a bill that would provide insurance benefits of up to $36,000 annually for autism treatments, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The funding, provided to developmentally disabled individuals younger than age 21, would go toward diagnostic services and early behavioral intervention, as well as occupational, physical and speech therapies. The Assembly could vote on the bill as early as Thursday, while the Senate bill is being considered by the state Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.Sen. Loretta Weinberg (D), who sponsored the Senate bill, said, "I don"t know of any parent who wouldn"t do everything in their power to give their autistic or developmentally disabled child every chance to excel. However, the enormous cost of behavior intervention ... makes it out of the realm of possibility for many families." Assembly Speaker Joseph Roberts (D), who sponsored the Assembly bill, said, "In this economy, every New Jersey resident is struggling, but families with kids with special needs are struggling even more," adding, "They"re maxing out their credit cards and taking out second mortgages" to cover gaps in health insurance benefits.Citing cost issues, the New Jersey Business and Industry Association and the New Jersey Association of Health Plans were among those opposed to the bill. Christine Stearns, NJBIA vice president for health and legal affairs, said that the bill would make employer-sponsored insurance more costly and cause firms to drop such coverage, adding, "How, who and what is part of a basic health plan is all part of that." Stearns added that the bill is preferable to previous versions because it mandates that covered services be medically necessary and prescribed, places a reasonable cap on prices and ensures that the cost of educational services provided by schools is not shifted to insurers. Roberts said the bill would save money by delivering earlier treatment that could prevent more costly problems in the future (Henry, Philadelphia Inquirer, 5/19).
A person"s absolute risk of fracture over the next 5 or 10 years can be predicted with reasonable accuracy according to their age, sex, bone density and history of fractures and falls.
The International Swine Flu Conference will occur in Washington, DC on August 19-20 to be followed by all day hands-on workshops. New Fields officials announced today. The event will be held at the Hyatt Regency Washington DC on Capitol Hill, August 19-20 and the workshop on the 21st.
A new report, released by the Manhattan Institute"s Center for Medical Progress and authored Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the former Director of the Congressional Budget Office, makes the fiscal and political case for bipartisan healthcare reform. Holtz-Eakin addresses dysfunctions in the existing healthcare delivery system; provides solutions to expanding access to affordable private health insurance in an incremental and fiscally responsible manner; and shows how improving market-based options will lead to better consumer access to information on healthcare quality. He argues that the only way to fix our broken healthcare system is through reforms that incentivize competition and pay for quality care.
Cardium Therapeutics (NYSE Amex: CXM) and its subsidiary Tissue Repair Company (TRC) provided an update on the completion of their MATRIX Phase 2b clinical study and announced plans to provide detailed safety and efficacy data for their Excellarate(TM) product candidate around the end of September. The MATRIX trial, a prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study, has enrolled 124 diabetic patients with non-healing, lower extremity neuropathic ulcers.
Sunshine Heart (ASX: SHC), a global medical device company focused on innovative heart assist technologies, announced that the first two patients implanted with the C-Pulse device in April 2009 at The Ohio State University Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio have successfully completed their 3 month follow-up evaluation.