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FDA clears BG Medicine's Galectin-3 test to identify high risk patients with cardiovascular disease

BG Medicine, Inc., a U.S.-based life sciences company, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared the company's Galectin-3 test for use in conjunction with clinical evaluation as an aid to assess the prognosis of patients diagnosed with chronic heart failure. This marks the first time the FDA has cleared a test to measure galectin-3 blood levels, and is the first novel cardiac test cleared by the FDA in five years.

23 Nov 2010

DaVita announces emergency preparedness information for dialysis patients during winter season

DaVita Inc., a leading provider of kidney care services for those diagnosed with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end stage renal disease (ESRD), announced today important emergency preparedness information for dialysis patients during the upcoming winter season.

23 Nov 2010

African American cigarette smokers at higher risk of rheumatoid arthritis

A new study determined that African Americans who smoke cigarettes have a higher risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA risk is more pronounced among individuals positive for the HLA-DRB1 shared epitope, a genetic risk factor for RA. Findings from this study—the largest to date examining the impact of smoking on RA risk in an African American population—are available in the December issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR).

23 Nov 2010

Early diagnosis and treatment result in positive outcomes for RA patients

Positive outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are closely linked to early diagnosis and treatment with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). A study by researchers in the Netherlands found that patients who are assessed by rheumatologists soon after RA symptoms appear are more likely to experience less joint destruction and improved chances of DMARD-free disease remission.

23 Nov 2010

Innovative new roles and occupations in health sector of the future

Innovative new roles and occupations that could possibly emerge in the health sector of the future are explored in a new working paper published today by Skills for Health.

23 Nov 2010

Ergothioneine international congress 2011 to be held at UCLA

OXIS International, Inc., today announced that the "First International Congress on Ergothioneine, Anti-Oxidants, and Age Management Medicine" will be held Friday to Sunday, July 15-17, 2011, in the DeNeve Auditorium at the University of California, Los Angeles.

23 Nov 2010

Scientists establish new biological links between early puberty and obesity

An international group of scientists, including researchers at the Medical Research Council (MRC), has discovered 30 genes that control the age at which girls reach sexual maturity. They found that many of the genes responsible for puberty also play a strong role in how the body metabolises fat, establishing new biological links between going through puberty at a young age and being at increased risk of obesity.

23 Nov 2010

Landmark comparative study supports more frequent hemodialysis

NxStage® Medical, Inc., a leading manufacturer of innovative dialysis products, today commented on the just- released findings of the Frequent Hemodialysis Network (FHN) Daily Trial that compared in-center hemodialysis administered under a three times per week schedule ("conventional dialysis") versus six shorter sessions per week ("short daily dialysis").

23 Nov 2010

U.S mortality rate from congenital heart defects drops 24%: Report

The U.S. death rate from congenital heart defects dropped 24 percent from 1999 to 2006 among children and adults, according to research reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

23 Nov 2010

Most patients taking anti-depressants give up treatment: Study

Most patients who take anti-depressants give up their treatment in less than six months, the minimum period recommended for treating severe depression and other derived pathologies. This is the conclusion of a new study carried out by Catalan researchers, which reveals that only 25% continue their treatment for more than 11 months.

23 Nov 2010

Rates of hospital emergency department use greater among women and low-income, older and rural Americans

Americans age 18 and older made over 98 million trips to hospital emergency departments in 2008 for problems ranging from broken bones to heart attacks, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. This represents 78 percent of the overall nearly 125 million visits that year.

23 Nov 2010

New computer method measures mechanical stress in fat cells

From fad diets to exercise programs, Americans continue to fight the battle of the bulge. Now they'll have help from recent Tel Aviv University research that has developed a new method to look at how fat cells which produce the fat in our bodies respond to mechanical loads.

23 Nov 2010

Hemispherx announces publication of Ampligen Phase III data in Journal of Applied Research

Hemispherx Biopharma, Inc., announced the publication of a peer-reviewed article providing new data on Ampligen [rintatolimod; poly(I)·poly(C12,U)], an experimental therapeutic in Phase III clinical testing, in the current issue of The Journal of Applied Research.

23 Nov 2010

Arthritis Foundation, Covidien join forces to help Americans suffering from osteoarthritis

The Arthritis Foundation and Covidien have joined forces to help advance awareness and support for millions of people suffering from osteoarthritis in the United States.

23 Nov 2010

Dangers of excess fructose

More and more people have become aware of the dangers of excessive fructose in diet. A new review on fructose in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN) indicates just how dangerous this simple sugar may be.

23 Nov 2010

Winston announces Phase II study results of Dolorac for chronic migraine at Lazard Conference

Winston Pharmaceuticals, Inc. a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing novel pain management therapies, announced the results of its Phase II study on its patented Dolorac Nasal Solution (doxepin 0.4%) for prophylaxis of chronic migraine at the Lazard Capital Markets 7th Annual Healthcare Conference in New York.

22 Nov 2010

$7.5 million Queensland diabetes action plan to roll

According to the latest $7.5 million diabetes action plan, nearly 8,000 people across the Ipswich region who are living with the disease and have not been diagnosed will be helped. Diabetes is growing at a shocking rate with more than 50 Queenslanders diagnosed with the condition every day. Diabetes Australia Queensland says more than 8,000 people in the Ipswich and West Moreton region have been diagnosed with diabetes. Another 8,000 people have the condition but remain undiagnosed.

22 Nov 2010

The conservative way forward on health care

The landslide Republican victory, in taking the House and electing some strong conservatives to the Senate, can be interpreted as a mandate to rein in government spending, and specifically to repeal ObamaCare, as these issues were clearly behind the large turnout. There is still a very real possibility the Supreme Court will find the “individual mandate” to buy private insurance unconstitutional. If this provision is thrown out, it’s hard to see how the law survives, since the mandate is needed to finance it.

22 Nov 2010

North Sunflower Medical Center to deploy McKesson health IT solutions

As part of its mission to become the first critical access hospital in Mississippi to demonstrate meaningful use of electronic health record EHR) technology, North Sunflower Medical Center plans to deploy a suite of McKesson information technology solutions. The new systems will replace paper-based records and disparate technologies and address duplicate data entry challenges with communications capabilities designed to automate outdated manual processes and better coordinate care.

22 Nov 2010

Employers scrutinize dependents for health coverage

The Wall Street Journal: "More employers are scrutinizing employees' health-insurance dependents in order to weed out ineligible beneficiaries" in an effort to cut costs. "Benefits-consulting companies say interest in dependent audits has been growing for the past few years, but has ticked up more recently. … These companies aim to verify the relationships of dependents such as spouses and children, soliciting documents including marriage and birth certificates. In many cases, employers haven't previously asked employees to verify dependents' eligibility" (Mattioli, 11/22).

22 Nov 2010