Diagnostics
Statement of Charles D. Connor, American Lung Association President and CEO:
Eurand N.V. (NASDAQ: EURX), a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops enhanced pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products based on its proprietary pharmaceutical technologies, announced that the Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board (MEB) informed the Company that the Decentralized Procedure (DCP) for registration of Paracetamol 250 and 500 mg Orodispersible Tablets (ODT) in several EU countries has been successfully completed.
What"s Up, Docs? The Wall Street Journal
"The first clinical trial of an HIV/AIDS vaccine designed and developed in South Africa was launched in Cape Town" Monday, the SAPA/The Times reports. The trial will seek to determine the immune response of HIV-negative people to two experimental vaccines -- SAAVI DNA-C2 and SAAVI MVA-C (7/20).
On the occasion of World Hepatitis Day and on the eve of the European Parliament elections, healthcare professionals and patients call on EU decision-makers to make the next 5 years about protecting the liver!
The peptide alpha-MSH works in a region of the brain known as the hypothalamus to suppress appetite. A team of researchers, at Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, and the University of California Davis, has provided new insight into the way in which levels of the active form of alpha-MSH are regulated in mice. Specifically, genetic and biochemical analysis performed by the team, led by Sabrina Diano and Craig Warden, indicated that the protein PRCP is expressed in the hypothalamus and breaks down the active form of alpha-MSH, generating a slightly smaller peptide that does not suppress food intake. Importantly, administration of PRCP inhibitors to both normal and obese mice reduced their food intake. Further, mice lacking PRCP had increased levels of the active form of alpha-MSH in the hypothalamus and were leaner and shorter than normal mice; they also did not get obese when fed a high-fat diet. The authors suggest that these data are the first step in identifying PRCP as a candidate drug target for the treatment of obesity and obesity-related disorders. Although Richard Palmiter, at the University of Washington, Seattle, also raises this intriguing possibility, he cautions that any drug would need to penetrate the brain.
Aggressive forms of cancer are often driven by the abnormal over-expression of cancer-promoting genes, also known as oncogenes.
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.
Scientists at the University of Leicester are investigating how the stuff of stink bombs and flatulence could play a critical role in the human reproductive system.
For decades, scientists assumed that the ovary alone produced steroid hormones during pregnancy. In a new study in mice, however, researchers demonstrate that once an embryo attaches to the uterine wall, the uterus itself actually synthesizes the estrogen needed to sustain the pregnancy.
A UK-wide government review has concluded that some asylum seekers whose claims have been refused but who cannot return home should not be denied free NHS treatment. Commenting on the announcement, Dr Vivienne Nathanson, Head of Science and Ethics at the BMA, said:
University of Queensland researchers will use a $2.5 million grant to help people who have suffered an acquired brain injury communicate with the world.
ImClone Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY), and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved revisions to the U.S. prescribing information for ERBITUX® (cetuximab) concerning the treatment of patients with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-expressing metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC). The labeling revisions include a modification to the indication, which now includes a statement that retrospective subset analyses of metastatic or advanced colorectal cancer trials have not shown a treatment benefit for ERBITUX in patients whose tumors had K-ras mutations in codon 12 or 13 and that the use of ERBITUX is not recommended for the treatment of colorectal cancer with these mutations. Revisions concerning the use of ERBITUX in colorectal cancer tumors with K-ras mutations were also made to the clinical studies and clinical pharmacology sections of the product"s prescribing information.
Saliva sample testing is fast becoming the diagnostic data collector of choice in a variety of medical testing. Over the past two years, American scientists are turning more to the accuracy of results in saliva sample tests, more than traditional blood and urine tests. Ovu-Trac® is at the leading edge of this scientific knowledge with its ovulation test and predictor kit. These fertility test kits can help women who are trying to conceive a child determine when they are ovulating.
Children on the high-fat ketogenic diet to control epileptic seizures can prevent the excruciatingly painful kidney stones that the diet can sometimes cause if they take a daily supplement of potassium citrate the day they start the diet, according to research from Johns Hopkins Children"s Center.
New imaging technology provides insight into abnormalities in the brain circuitry of patients with anorexia nervosa (commonly known as anorexia) that may contribute to the puzzling symptoms found in people with the eating disorder. In a review paper published on line in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, Walter Kaye, MD, professor of psychiatry and director of the Eating Disorders Program at the University of California, San Diego, and colleagues describe dysfunction in certain neural circuits of the brain which may help explain why people develop anorexia in the first place, and behaviors such as the relentless pursuit of dieting and weight loss.
Dental and tissue engineering researchers at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine and the Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences at Tufts have harnessed the pluripotency of human embryonic stem cells (hESC) to generate complex, multilayer tissues that mimic human skin and the oral mucosa (the moist tissue that lines the inside of the mouth). The proof-of-concept study is published online in advance of print in Tissue Engineering Part A.
The UK needs a national plan for dementia research or the country will pay the price, the UK"s top scientists are warning today.
Two large US studies published in a leading journal this month support the already substantial body of evidence that shows choosing to follow a
A new paper to be published in The Obstetrician & Gynaecologist (TOG) examines the relationship between abortion and domestic violence. The authors call for greater awareness about domestic violence, and underline the need to support women seeking to terminate unwanted pregnancies associated with intimate partner violence.
A damning report from the Care Quality Commission has found multiple failings in inpatient care for patients at West London Mental Health Trust, ranging from sub-standard buildings, overcrowding, lack of staff and insufficient staff training, to failure to implement changes that could help prevent suicides on wards. In some areas, there were long delays in considering changes to help reduce suicide risk, and on one inpatient unit, bed occupancy was regularly running at over 110 per cent, resulting in patients sleeping on sofas due to lack of beds.
"The ad wars over the health care campaign are heating up once [again] this week," The New York Times reports. At a speech on Monday, Michael Steele, chairman of the Republican National Committee, released a party television ad "which its spokeswoman says will first be broadcast in Arkansas, North Dakota and Nevada." The ad "opens with a tiny infant, and spools out with a narrator"s voice saying: "They"ve loaned Barack Obama their future, without even knowing it. Trillions for rushed government bailouts and takeovers, banks, the auto industry." And then it continues, as children appear on the screen: "The biggest spending spree in our nation"s in history. And they"ll have to pay. The next big ticket item? A risky experiment with our health care. Barack Obama"s massive spending experiment hasn"t healed our economy. His new experiment risks their future and our health.""
Patients would spend less time waiting for medical testing and treatment if the Government introduced Medicare rebates for GP-referred MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) and diagnostic testing in GP surgeries, the AMA said today.
Genetic testing services have recently begun to be advertised directly to the patient, and the results of the consumers" response can affect public health, as well as the future adoption of pharmacogenetic/genomic testing, according to a position paper from the American College of Clinical Pharmacology (ACCP) to be published in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology. The journal is published on behalf of the ACCP by SAGE.
A team of researchers from the Yale University (United States) and a Spanish company have developed a system to detect the vapours emitted by human skin in real time. The scientists think that these substances, essentially made up of fatty acids, are what attract mosquitoes and enable dogs to identify their owners.
Increasing numbers of children around the world are suffering from respiratory problems - coughing, wheezing and asthma attacks. Although the key external causes of these diseases were identified a long time ago (traffic and industrial air pollution), it had not previously been possible to distinguish clearly between these two factors so as to have a targeted impact on them. Researchers at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) and the University of Leipzig carried out research in this area together with colleagues from the University of La Plata and can now confirm that air pollution caused by industry has even more grave effects than vehicle exhaust fumes.
In the July issue of Biomaterials, published by Elsevier, researchers from the University of Central Florida (UCF) report on the first lab-grown motor nerves that are insulated and organized just like they are in the human body. The model system will drastically improve understanding of the causes of myelin-related conditions, such as diabetic neuropathy and later, possibly multiple sclerosis (MS). In addition, the model system will enable the discovery and testing of new drug therapies for these conditions.
Purdue University researchers have created magnetically responsive gold nanostars that may offer a new approach to biomedical imaging.
The nation"s major safety net health plans today announced their endorsement of the health care reform legislation now moving through the U.S. House of Representatives. In a letter to congressional leaders, the Association for Community Affiliated Plans (ACAP) said the bill "will expand coverage to more Americans, protect the interests of low-income and medically needy people, and preserve vital safety net programs."
FoldRx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (FoldRx) announced positive results from its pivotal Phase II/III clinical study of the company"s lead compound, tafamidis (Fx-1006A), in patients suffering from TTR amyloid polyneuropathy (ATTR-PN), a fatal orphan disease also known as Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy (FAP). Liver transplantation is the only currently available treatment option for this progressive neurodegenerative disease. Preliminary results from the first randomized controlled trial ever completed in this disease demonstrate that tafamidis treatment significantly halts disease progression in ATTR-PN, reduces the burden of disease after 18 months compared to placebo, and appears to be safe and well-tolerated.
A research published ahead of print in Gut (International Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology) reports that high intakes of linoleic acid might be associated to a third of ulcerative colitis cases. Linoleic acid is a common dietary polyunsaturated fatty acid (N-6 PUFA).
A research published ahead of print in the Archives of Disease in Childhood reports that every hour of the day children are inactive adds three minutes to the time it takes them to fall asleep.
Two of the most recognized names in diabetes management - Medtronic, Inc. (NYSE: MDT) and Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) - announced a strategic marketing collaboration to bolster each company"s commitment to help people with diabetes manage teir blood sugar using insulin therapy.
A US non-profit organization filed a lawsuit on Wednesday asking a New Jersey county court to force food companies to put labels warning of
"Many small businesses are worried that rising health insurance costs are choking their growth and hindering the creation of new companies, and they fear health care reform plans being debated in Congress and by the Obama administration could end up costing them even more in taxes, according to business advocates," the Baltimore Sun reports. Some of those views were collected in a survey released Tuesday by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. According to the survey 29 percent of [309] businesses were unable to offer insurance to their employees, and many said their health care costs had risen this year. "Rising health care costs are choking American small businesses just when we need them the most," said Nicholas Green, an organizer for the research group"s Maryland contingent (Sentementes, 7/22).
"Nationally, about a quarter of all residency graduates began their medical training abroad. And in primary care - where there is a national shortage of physicians - more than half of all graduates are immigrants," The Concord Monitor reports. "New Hampshire"s primary care doctors are aging, and as they retire, recruiters said they will increasingly be replaced by physicians who began their training outside the country."
The worldwide death toll from the H1N1 (swine flu) virus has doubled in the past month, reaching over 700, the WHO announced Tuesday, the AP/Google.com reports. "WHO did not give a breakdown of the deaths Tuesday. But as of last week, the U.S. reported 263 deaths, Canada reported 45 deaths and Britain had 29. According to WHO"s last update on July 6, there were 119 deaths in Mexico," the news service writes. "Yet even Tuesday"s figure of 700 deaths may seriously underestimate the true toll, experts say, because not all swine flu cases are being picked up due to testing limitations" (Jordans, 7/21).
Despite increasing danger posed by "al Qaeda-linked militants," U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes said Tuesday U.N. aid workers "were not backing away" from the country, Reuters reports. "Intense fighting is making it increasingly difficult to deliver aid in the Horn of Africa country, where U.N. agencies are trying to combat cholera outbreaks and maintain food supplies to 3.5 million hungry people," the news service writes (Nebehay, 7/21).
OCHA Report Warns Of Possible, New Cholera Outbreak In Zimbabwe
The New York Daily News profiled Paul Klotman, chair of the Samuel F. Bronfman Department of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who is "one of the world"s leading experts on the kidney diseases associated with HIV." In the article, Klotman discussed the clinical details of HIV-associated nephropathy (HIVAN), including treatment, causes and symptoms. According to the Daily News, doctors estimate that two million to four million people of African heritage have HIVAN, including between 4 percent and 12 percent of blacks with HIV in the U.S. The article continues, "In recent years, doctors have made tremendous advances in their understanding of both HIV and its associated kidney disease." Klotman said, "In thinking about a cure, we know now that we have to clean out the brain and the kidney. Those are things we have to know if we can ever achieve a cure for AIDS" (Charles, 7/22).
When teens surf the Internet, are they exposed to tobacco content or imagery? The study, "Exposure to Tobacco on the Internet: Content Analysis of Adolescents" Internet Use," tracked the Web pages viewed by 346 teens between the ages of 14 and 17 years. During a one-month period of data collection, these adolescents viewed 1.2 million Web pages. Of those pages, 0.72 percent contained tobacco or smoking content. Pro-tobacco content was found on 1,916 pages, anti-tobacco content on 1,572 pages, and complex and/or unclear content on 5,055 pages. Most of the tobacco-related content seen by teens was found on social networking sites. MySpace in particular represented 53 percent of the pages on which tobacco content was found. Previous studies have found a link between exposure to tobacco content in traditional media and adolescent smoking. The authors caution that as more communication occurs online in social networking sites, this may also impact adolescent smoking.
The August issue of the journal Anesthesiology, contains a study on potential long-term adverse effects resulting from blood transfusion and reveals that moderate amounts of transfused blood in patients in patients undergoing cardiac surgery did not lead to long-term health problems or increased death rates for the majority of recipients.
Medicaid health plans are producing cost savings for states, increasing access to services for individuals covered by Medicaid, improving quality of care, and earning high satisfaction ratings from enrollees, according to a Lewin Group report released today by America"s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). Twenty-four existing studies were analyzed by the Lewin Group to determine the savings achieved when states have implemented private Medicaid health plans.
The role of a protein called XIAP in the regulation of cell death has been identified by Walter and Eliza Hall Institute researchers and has led them to recommend caution when drugs called IAP inhibitors are used to treat cancer patients with underlying liver conditions.
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.
Scientists in a network of medical research institutions across the United States are set to begin a series of clinical trials to gather critical data about influenza vaccines, including two candidate H1N1 flu vaccines. The research will be under the direction of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.
The recent H1N1 flu outbreak served as a genuine test of our national public health system"s ability to respond to an emerging public health threat and experts are cautioning that a more severe outbreak could occur in the fall of 2009. Leaders from some of the nation"s foremost public health and medical associations will conduct a briefing for staff members from House and Senate offices on Thursday, May 21, 2009. Speakers will focus on the status of the current public health workforce and efforts needed to sustain workforce capacity to respond to emerging infectious diseases.
The NPHS influenza surveillance scheme, which records reports of diagnoses of flufrom more than 300 GP practices across Wales, shows low but increasing levels of influenza activity across Wales. Further detail can be found on the NPHS website: http://www.wales.nhs.uk/sites3/page.cfm?orgid=457&pid=38241
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
Dr Sam Cartwright-Hatton from the University of Manchester has won this year"s May Davidson Award. The award is made each year by the British Psychological Society"s Division of Clinical Psychology to someone who has made an outstanding contribution to the development of clinical psychology within the first 10 years of their career.
Human cells are able to secrete a cancer-killing protein, scientists at the University of Kentucky"s Markey Cancer Center have found.
Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new use for its osteoporosis drug FORTEO((R)) [teriparatide (rDNA origin) injection] to treat osteoporosis associated with sustained, systemic glucocorticoid therapy in men and women at high risk of fracture. Glucocorticoid therapy is the most common cause of secondary osteoporosis, leading to bone loss and an increased risk for fracture.(1)
Pregnant women who quit smoking during the first trimester and women who never smoked during pregnancy have a similar risk of delivering preterm or very small infants, according to a study published in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology, Reuters reports. Premature delivery and stunted infant growth are the most well-documented side effects of smoking during pregnancy, and the risks increase for older women, according to study author Laura Polakowski of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and colleagues. For the study, the researchers analyzed 915,441 birth certificates for infants born in 2005 in 11 states that include information on whether the woman smoked during pregnancy.The study found that 10% of women who smoked for the entire pregnancy gave birth to "preterm but not too small for gestational age" infants, compared with 8% of women who quit during the first trimester. Fifteen percent of women who smoked the entire pregnancy gave birth to full-term infants who were small for their gestational age, while 2% gave birth to premature infants who were small for gestational age. Among women who quit smoking during the first trimester, these outcomes occurred 9% and 1% of the time, respectively.After adjusting for the women"s age, previous preterm births and other factors, the researchers found that women who quit smoking in the first trimester reduced their risk of giving birth to a preterm, normal-size infant by 31%. The risk of delivering a full-term, unusually small infant was cut by 55% and the risk for delivering a preterm, unusually small infant was reduced by 53%. The risks were also reduced for women who quit smoking during their second trimester, although less significantly. The researchers found that the risk reduction was particularly high for older women -- especially those older than age 40 -- who quit smoking during the first trimester. According to the study, the results indicate that the risk of delivering a preterm or small-for-gestational-age infant for pregnant women who quit smoking during the first trimester is "comparable to those who never smoke during pregnancy" (Reuters, 7/21).
A new study finds more seniors are covered by a Medicare drug plan and report greater savings, but gaps in coverage and other problems still persist.
Ovulation is one part of the female menstrual cycle whereby a mature ovarian follicle (part of the ovary) discharges an egg (also known as an ovum, oocyte, or female gamete). It is during this process that the egg travels down the fallopian tube where it may be met by a sperm and become fertilized.
The Alabama Department of Corrections has expanded to all inmates a re-entry program that provides newly released inmates with HIV/AIDS "with information on obtaining licenses [and] other documents and preparing for returning to life outside prison," the AP/USA Today/Montgomery Advertiser reports (Hunter, 7/22). "In the past, prisoners at the end of their sentences were sent back into the free world with minimal assistance, not the in-depth services the inmates with HIV and AIDS had received," according to AP/WZTV.com. The expanded Alabama Prison Initiative will allow all inmates to enroll in classes that provide them with "practical tips" and guidance "that will hopefully help keep them from returning," the AP/WZTV.com reports (7/22). AIDS Alabama CEO Kathie Hiers said, "We"ve seen it help so much in the HIV community. They"re smart to take a good program and expand it" (Hunter, 7/22).
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) has incorporated the American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR), a nonprofit organization dedicated to collecting and reporting on hip and knee joint replacement procedures. AAOS believes this proposed option is a patient safety best practice.
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.
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a frequent complication in patients in intensive care. A new laboratory test called urine neutrophil gelatinase associated lipocalin (NGAL) helps predict if patients will develop acute kidney injury, reports an upcoming study in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN). "As a stand-alone marker, urine NGAL performed moderately well in predicting ongoing and subsequent AKI," comments T. Alp Ikizler, MD (Vanderbilt University).
Join America"s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) September 13 - 17, 2009, along with senior health insurance plan executives, policymakers, and federal and state representatives for updates, analyses, and discussion on the leading issues for health insurance plans participating in Medicare and Medicaid. Whatever is of special interest to you, AHIP"s Medicare & Medicaid Conferences offer sound public policy analyses and access to best practices and insights to help you strengthen your work serving Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries.
Student places at the new UQ Ipswich medical school are expected to be in demand due to the boutique nature of the educational experience, Dean of Medicine, Professor David Wilkinson said.
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.
Merck KGaA announced the submission of a marketing authorization application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) for Cladribine Tablets, Merck"s proprietary investigational oral formulation of cladribine, as a therapy for patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS). Cladribine Tablets could become the first orally administered disease-modifying therapy available for patients with MS, as all disease-modifying therapies currently approved for the treatment of MS are injectable.
Roche announced that the European Union"s Committee on Human Medicinal Products (CHMP) has issued a positive recommendation for the use of MabThera (rituximab) in patients with relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL). Physicians will soon be able to prescribe MabThera, the first monoclonal antibody therapy approved for previously untreated CLL, in combination with chemotherapy to patients who have been treated for the disease but whose cancer has returned or have not appropriately responded to therapy.
At 96-week follow up, data from the MERIT ES analysis show that treatment-naç¯ve HIV patients taking Celsentri/Selzentry (maraviroc), in combination with Combivir® (zidovudine/lamivudine) experienced comparable virologic suppression to undetectable levels and significantly greater increases in CD4 T-cell count through 96-weeks, compared to patients taking efavirenz in combination with zidovudine/ lamivudine. The data also show the favorable tolerability of Celsentri/Selzentry, which was associated with fewer discontinuations due to adverse events.1
Sleep apnea has long been known to be associated with obesity. But a new study published in the June issue of Diabetes Care finds that the disorder is widely undiagnosed among obese individuals with type 2 diabetes - nearly 87 percent of participants reported symptoms, but were never diagnosed.
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.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid Thursday said the Senate will be unable to pass health care reform before it leaves for its August recess, which will likely result in changes to the shape of the final bill, The Washington Post reports.
New England Journal of Medicine: Medicare Part D Update - Lessons Learned And Unfinished Business - "Since 2006, more than 40 million elderly and disabled people have had the opportunity to enroll in a Medicare Part D prescription-drug plan, as established under the Medicare Modernization Act (MMA) of 2003." At that time, lawmakers focused on several features of the proposed legislation. "Issues that received particular scrutiny were the unprecedented way that the benefit would be delivered (exclusively through private plans) and its design, featuring an unusual gap in coverage (sometimes called the "doughnut hole")." Four years into the program, "the Obama administration and the Democratically controlled Congress have an opportunity to review the program and identify areas for improvement." This study, The Medicare Policy Project of the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, returns to some of the key questions raised during the congressional debate and in the years that led up to the program"s start (Neuman and Cubanski, July 23). (Note: KHN is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation.)
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.
A gift from California-based Ozen Engineering Inc. to Clemson University is enabling researchers to create detailed computer models of the human body, which can be used to explore a variety of issues, from improving hip replacements to making more comfortable car seating.
Prostate cancer is a disease which only affects men. Cancer begins to grow in the prostate - a gland in the male reproductive system. The word "prostate" comes from Medieval Latin prostate and Medieval French prostate. The ancient Greek word prostates means "one standing in front", from proistanai meaning "set before". The prostate is so called because of its position - it is at the base of the bladder.
Treatment with surgery or an oral appliance that adjusts the jaw is associated with improvements in obstructive sleep apnea, a condition caused by blocked upper airways in which patients periodically stop breathing during sleep, according to two reports in the May issue of Archives of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
The European Medicines Agency"s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) has concluded that there is no cause for concern of the risk of cancer for people with diabetes on insulin glargine (Lantus).
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.
A group of UQ speech pathology students recently ran an intensive treatment program for people who stutter.
The Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) has responded to the decision by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) to move to a neutral position on assisted suicide.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain has published its fourth Pharmacy
Lutonix, Inc., a privately held medical device start-up, announced that patient enrollment is underway for its three simultaneous first-in-human clinical trials. The three studies are designed to test whether the proprietary Lutonix Drug Coated Balloon (DCB) Catheter is safe and effective in the treatment of vascular narrowing.
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.
Mayo Clinic researchers have found that children exposed to anesthesia during Cesarean section are not at any higher risk for learning disabilities later in life than children not delivered by C-section. These findings are reported in the current issue of the journal Anesthesiology.
Sanofi Pasteur, the vaccines division of sanofi-aventis Group (EURONEXT: SAN and NYSE: SNY), announced that it has shipped the first doses of the 2009-2010 formulation of Fluzone((R)), Influenza Virus Vaccine. Fluzone vaccine is indicated for active immunization in people 6 months of age and older against influenza disease caused by influenza virus subtypes A and type B contained in the seasonal influenza vaccine. Fluzone vaccine is the only vaccine licensed in the United States for children as young as 6 months of age through adults.
The health cost of obesity in the United States is as high as $147 billion annually, based on a new study from Research Triangle Institute and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study, which appears online today in the journal Health Affairs, was released at CDC"s Weight of the Nation conference in Washington, D.C.
"Silent" strokes, which are strokes that don"t result in any noticeable symptoms but cause brain damage, are common in people over 60, and especially in those with high blood pressure, according to a study published in the July 28, 2009, print issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
High-throughput sequencing has turned biologists into voracious genome readers, enabling them to scan millions of DNA letters, or bases, per hour. When revising a genome, however, they struggle, suffering from serious writer"s block, exacerbated by outdated cell programming technology. Labs get bogged down with particular DNA sentences, tinkering at times with subsections of a single gene ad nauseam before moving along to the next one.
On 28th July Eric Page will take his place on Trafalgar Square"s Fourth Plinth for an hour from 10-11am as part of Antony Gormley"s One & Other exhibition Eric will spend part of his hour on the Plinth wearing a "THIVK you"re still negative?" t-shirt to raise awareness of the work of Terrence Higgins Trust. THIVK is a year long campaign developed by the CHAPS partnership and launched by THT to get men to consider if they have HIV without realising. The Health Protection Agency estimates up to 10,000 gay men in Britain have HIV without knowing.
Striking differences in the risk factors for developing heart failure (HF) and patient prognosis exist between men and women. Men and women may also respond differently to treatment, raising concerns about whether current practices provide the best care and reinforcing the urgency for sex-specific clinical trials for HF, according to a review article published in the August 4, 2009, issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
The House on Friday voted 264-153 to approve its fiscal year 2010 Labor-HHS-Education spending bill (HB 3293) after voting on five amendments addressing price and policy issues, CQ Today reports. The bill would appropriate $730.5 billion. The Senate Appropriations Committee is scheduled to begin markup of its version of the bill on July 28.The House voted 183-247 to reject an amendment offered by Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) that would have prohibited family planning funding through the Title X program to Planned Parenthood clinics. The House also voted 211-218 to reject an amendment by Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) that would have stripped language to lift the ban on federal funding for needle-exchange programs. Lawmakers did approve an amendment offered by Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) to strip $5 million in funding for three NIH grants to study the HIV/AIDS risks associated with alcohol and substance use among sex workers in Asia and alcoholics in Russia (Wolfe, CQ Today, 7/24).
The Red River Women"s Clinic in Fargo, N.D., went to court on Thursday to block a state law from going into effect that would require the clinic to give women the option to view ultrasound images and hear a fetal heartbeat 24 hours before receiving abortion services, the AP/Bismarck Tribune reports. The suit was filed in East Central District Court by the Center for Reproductive Rights on behalf of the clinic, which is the only abortion clinic in North Dakota. In the lawsuit, the clinic asked the court to issue a temporary injunction to prevent the law from taking effect on Aug. 1. A hearing has been scheduled for July 30.Suzanne Stolz, an attorney for CRR, said the law is "unconstitutional"” because it "creates an undue burden on a woman"s right to have an abortion." In a statement, CRR said that the law requires an audible fetal heartbeat consistent with "standard medical practice in the community." However, the Center said no such standard exists. In addition, Stolz said that the North Dakota law is less clear than laws in other states with ultrasound mandates that include a fetal heartbeat provision, including Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. Furthermore, CRR said that the equipment needed to provide the audible heartbeat would be expensive for the clinic, although it did not say what the cost would be.Tammi Kromenaker, director of the clinic, said it has offered women the option of viewing an ultrasound image since 2008. She said that the issue with the law is that it is not clear about whether a woman who chooses to view the image must also listen to the fetal heartbeat -- which sometimes cannot be heard in the early stages of pregnancy -- and about the level of technology the clinic must provide.Mary Spaulding Balch, a spokesperson for the National Right to Life Committee, said that the law is not burdensome to women seeking abortions and that it would only require the clinic to use "a simple device used by obstetrician[s] that amplifies" a fetal heartbeat. State Rep. Bette Grande (R), a sponsor of the law, said that the law does not require the Red River clinic to perform the ultrasound. She added that a woman seeking an abortion could receive the image and audio from another clinic prior to the procedure. Grande also noted that the law does not require women to view the ultrasound image and hear the fetal heartbeat -- it "just says they will have this opportunity" (MacPherson, AP/Bismarck Tribune, 7/24).
A recent audit by the U.S. Agency for International Development"s inspector general has "raised questions about several USAID expenditures" on a number of "faith-based" projects initiated during former President George W. Bush"s administration, a Los Angeles Times editorial says. Among other issues, the report highlighted "the use of instructional materials, including biblical references," in an HIV/AIDS prevention program that promoted sexual abstinence in Africa, the editorial continues. It adds that USAID said that it "stopped allowing "religiously infused" curricula after the Justice Department expressed legal qualms."According to the Times, the issue raises several questions, including whether the U.S. Constitution is "violated when U.S. officials abroad ... endorse religious activities in the furtherance of this nation"s foreign policy." It states, "Our answer is no, but policymakers still need to be cautious about mixing religion and diplomacy" (Los Angeles Times, 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).
In New Hampshire, Foster"s Daily Democrat reports: "As unemployment statistics increase and the economic climate deteriorates, a large group of people who would otherwise likely not need mental health services are finding themselves at an increased risk for depression, anxiety, compulsive behaviors and substance abuse, according (to) the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services."
UNICEF Using SMS Text Messages To Fight Polio In Zambia
In Chicago, 17.4 percent of gay men are estimated to be HIV-positive, compared with 1.2 percent of the general male population, according to a new report by the Chicago Public Health Department, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. The report is based on data collected from 570 Chicago men through the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance system, and found that half of the men with HIV were unaware they were infected (Thomas, 7/25). "Health officials said Friday, information in the report on HIV infection mark the first time Chicago health officials have used blood-testing to determine infection rates among men," the AP/Chicago Tribune reports. In the past, estimates have relied on interviews with gay and bisexual men, according to Christopher Brown, the Public Health Department assistant commissioner. The report also found that "black men who have sex with other men have double the HIV infection rates of white and Hispanic men," the AP/Tribune reports (7/24).
The AMA has congratulated the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission on its final report launched in Canberra by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
A comprehensive analysis of nearly 1,600 tumor samples has found that CT-X genes are expressed in nearly half the breast cancers that lack the estrogen receptor (ER). CT-X gene products are the targets of therapeutic cancer vaccines already in phase III clinical trials for lung cancer and melanoma. The study - to be published in the Early Edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this week - was led by the international Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (LICR).
Overconsumption of fatty, sugary foods leads to changes in brain receptors, according to new animal research at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. The new research results are being presented at the 2009 annual meeting of the Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior (SSIB), July 28 - August 1, 2009, the foremost society for research into all aspects of eating and drinking behavior. The results have implications for understanding bulimia and other binge eating disorders.
An innovative nutritional supplement company, who are highly respected around the world for their ground-breaking and pioneering manufacturing technologies, will be showcasing their unique range of products at Hospitalar 2009; the largest healthcare technologies fair in Latin America.
Following the announcement that Diabetes UK and NHS Diabetes have joined forces to deliver an innovative project that will support three PCTs in England to develop effective user involvement approaches in diabetes care, the charity has received an excellent response from PCTs wanting to get involved.
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.
Nanoparticles are being developed to perform a wide range of medical uses -- imaging tumors, carrying drugs, delivering pulses of heat. Rather than settling for just one of these, researchers at the University of Washington have combined two nanoparticles in one tiny package.
Bacterial infection is a major health threat to patients with severe burns and other kinds of serious wounds such as traumatic bone fractures. Recent studies have identified an important new weapon for fighting infection and healing wounds: insulin.
Engineers at the University of Leeds (UK) are developing a way to capture the kinetic energy produced when soldiers march and use it to power their equipment.
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 team of scientists at Queen"s University has been chosen to lead a top research and training programme to prevent groundwater poisoning in India.
A team of astronomers has discovered a group of rare galaxies called the "Green Peas" with the help of citizen scientists working through an online project called Galaxy Zoo. The finding could lend unique insights into how galaxies form stars in the early universe.
Decision Res, one of the world"s leading research and advisory firms for pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that, if Dendreon"s Provenge receives regulatory approval, surveyed oncologists expect to prescribe Provenge to 54 percent of patients with asymptomatic hormone refractory metastatic prostate cancer. Due to the side effects associated with currently available chemotherapy, most oncologists recommend that men who have stopped responding to hormone therapy wait for the development of symptoms before starting chemotherapy.