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Drug safety warnings by FDA do not always lead to targeted changes

Drug safety warnings issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) don't always lead to targeted changes in the way medications are prescribed and used, reports a study in the June issue of Medical Care.

15 Jun 2012

Homeless people with CKD experience higher rates of premature death and kidney failure

Among patients with moderate to advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), homeless people experience higher rates of premature death and kidney failure, and they use emergency services much more often than impoverished peers with stable housing, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

15 Jun 2012

FDA clears KCI’s V.A.C.Therapy System

Kinetic Concepts, Inc. announced today that it has received 510(k) clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to market its proprietary Vacuum Assisted Closure, or V.A.C. Therapy System, for the management of closed surgical incisions.

15 Jun 2012

TGen, Scottsdale Healthcare open INNO-206 Phase 2 trial for pancreatic cancer

An investigational drug that acts like a Trojan Horse to deliver cancer killing agents for pancreatic cancer is being studied at the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center Clinical Trials, a partnership between Scottsdale Healthcare and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) that treats cancer patients with promising new drugs.

15 Jun 2012

Study reveals molecular link between aging and cancer

It has long been known that cancer is a disease of aging, but a molecular link between the two has remained elusive.

15 Jun 2012

Folic acid taken during first month of pregnancy reduces risk of autism in children

A new study by researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute suggests that women who consume the recommended daily dosage of folic acid, the synthetic form of folate or vitamin B-9, during the first month of pregnancy may have a reduced risk of having a child with autism.

15 Jun 2012

High doses of tiny milk vitamin produces numerous health benefits in mice

A novel form of vitamin B3 found in milk in small quantities produces remarkable health benefits in mice when high doses are administered, according to a new study conducted by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College and the Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland.

15 Jun 2012

Roundup: Calpers rate hike approved; Painkiller databases slow abuse in Mass., Minn.; Health workers authorize strike in Philly

The California Public Employees' Retirement System, the third-largest purchaser of health benefits in the country, approved a 9.6 percent increase in health premiums next year for its nearly 1.3 million members.

15 Jun 2012

Exposure to BPA during gestation has long-lasting, trans-generational effects

Exposure to low doses of Bisphenol A (BPA) during gestation had immediate and long-lasting, trans-generational effects on the brain and social behaviors in mice, according to a recent study accepted for publication in the journal Endocrinology, a publication of The Endocrine Society.

15 Jun 2012

Study examines link between soft drink intake and risk of obesity in Canadian children

Most children and youth who consume soft drinks and other sweetened beverages, such as fruit punch and lemonade, are not at any higher risk for obesity than their peers who drink healthy beverages, says a new study published in the October issue of Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism.

15 Jun 2012

FDA approves GSK’s MenHibrix to treat meningococcal and Hib diseases

GlaxoSmithKline plc announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the vaccine MenHibrix [Meningococcal Groups C and Y and Haemophilus b Tetanus Toxoid Conjugate Vaccine].

15 Jun 2012

FDA clears KFx Medical’s new tissue fixation anchor

KFx Medical Corporation announced it has received 510K clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its 5mm AppianFx Tissue Fixation Anchor.

15 Jun 2012

FDA approves Menhibrix for vaccination against meningococcal and Hib diseases

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Menhibrix, a combination vaccine for infants and children ages 6 weeks through 18 months, for prevention of invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups C and Yand Haemophilus influenzae type b.

15 Jun 2012

Quest receives FDA clearance to initiate oregovomab Phase II trial in ovarian cancer

Quest PharmaTech Inc., a pharmaceutical company developing and commercializing products for the treatment of cancer, announces that it has received clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration to initiate U.S. sites for an ongoing international Phase II clinical trial for oregovomab in advanced ovarian cancer patients.

15 Jun 2012

African Sahel faces food insecurity despite record increase in cereal production; New partnership to address food supply in Middle East, North Africa

"According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) quarterly forecast of agricultural production and food," the world is expected to see a record increase in cereal production in 2012, "[b]ut despite the positive global trends, countries in Africa's Sahel region continue to face serious challenges to food security due to locally high food prices and civil strife, FAO said in a news release," the U.N. News Centre reports.

15 Jun 2012

First inventory of microbial diversity in the world's oceans

The landmark publication this week of a "map" of the bacterial make-up of healthy humans has deep roots in an unexpected place: the ocean.

14 Jun 2012

African-American women with low SES more likely to develop obesity

Socioeconomic status across one's lifetime is related to weight gain and risk of obesity in African American women, according to a new study led by researchers from the Slone Epidemiology Center at Boston University. These findings currently appear online in the journal Ethnicity & Disease.

14 Jun 2012

OAS members must assist U.S. efforts to ensure food security in Americas

"Together with international partners, the United States has launched an unprecedented effort over the past three years to reverse a decades-long decline in agricultural investments," with a goal of "alleviating the chronic hunger that afflicts nearly one billion people around the world, including an estimated 53 million in Latin America and the Caribbean," a VOA editorial states.

14 Jun 2012

Senate panel includes funding for implementing health law in spending bill

A Senate Appropriations panel on Tuesday approved a fiscal 2013 spending bill for labor, health and education programs that includes funding to implement provisions of the 2010 health care overhaul, despite Republican objections. The Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee approved the draft measure along party lines, 10-7.

14 Jun 2012

State roundup: Mass. bill seeking Alzheimer's care standards moves forward

A proposal to create minimum standards for Alzheimer's and dementia care in Massachusetts nursing homes is one step closer to becoming law. The state Senate Tuesday unanimously passed legislation that would require the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, which regulates nursing homes, to establish minimum standards for facilities with dementia care units. The House approved the proposal last month.

14 Jun 2012