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Pfizer receives positive opinion from EMA CHMP for crizotinib to treat ALK-positive NSCLC

Pfizer announced today that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has adopted a positive opinion recommending that crizotinib be granted conditional marketing authorization in the European Union (EU), for the treatment of adults with previously treated anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

21 Jul 2012

New WHO guidance recommends use of ARVs for HIV prevention

WHO has issued its first guidance to countries that are considering offering HIV medications, known as antiretrovirals (ARVs), to protect people who do not have the virus but who are at high risk of HIV infection.

21 Jul 2012

Viewpoints: Creating an HIV-free generation; Postal Service's struggle over retiree health benefits

HIV forces us to deal with so much: sex, drugs, poverty, racism, homelessness, homophobia, sexism, illness and death. While our nation's response has been imperfect, we have gotten a lot right. And we are now at a pivotal moment where science has led us to imagine the possibility of an HIV-free generation.

21 Jul 2012

Vitamin D might modify damaging effects of smoking on lung function

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with worse lung function and more rapid decline in lung function over time in smokers, suggesting that vitamin D may have a protective effect against the effects of smoking on lung function, according to a new study from researchers in Boston.

21 Jul 2012

Study opens way for new approaches to slow development of AIDS in HIV-1-infected patients

A new study from Lund University in Sweden has opened the way for new approaches to slowing the development of AIDS in HIV-1-infected patients. It is hoped that this could lead to better treatment methods and preventive measures to combat HIV and AIDS.

20 Jul 2012

Study describes 2010 whooping cough epidemic and details strategies to reduce infection incidence

Because whooping cough (pertussis) is almost as contagious as measles (affecting ~12-17 individuals with each case), clinicians are required to report cases of this bacterial respiratory tract infection to the state's department of public health. In 2010, California had the highest number of cases of whooping cough in 60 years. A new study scheduled for publication in The Journal of Pediatrics describes the 2010 whooping cough epidemic and details strategies to decrease the incidence of this infection.

20 Jul 2012

'Saving Lives at Birth' finalists convene at DevelopmentXChange

In a post on the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's "Impatient Optimists" blog, the foundation's Gary Darmstadt, Wendy Prosser, and Andrew Serazin discuss the finalists of the Saving Lives at Birth initiative, who came together at last week's DevelopmentXChange in Seattle.

20 Jul 2012

HIV in MSM increasing in countries of all incomes

A new Lancet Series published to coincide with the AIDS2012 meeting highlights a population where the HIV epidemic is growing in countries of all incomes: men who have sex with men (MSM). The first paper in the Series charts the epidemiology of HIV among MSM, and is by Professor Chris Beyrer, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA, and colleagues.

20 Jul 2012

New blood sugar monitor: An interview with Sherita Hill Golden

Type 1 diabetes is a disorder in which the body makes proteins (antibodies) against the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, destroying those cells. As a result, individuals are unable to secrete insulin to normalize blood sugar and hyperglycemia results.

20 Jul 2012

Community-based resources in rural Uganda can successfully provide HIV treatments

New research from the University of Alberta's School of Public Health has demonstrated that community-based resources in rural Uganda can successfully provide HIV treatments to patients, where economic and geographical barriers would typically prevent access to care.

20 Jul 2012

Link between objectively measured sleep and subsequent institutionalization among older women

Tired? Scientists have discovered another possible benefit of a night of restful and uninterrupted sleep. According to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health fragmented or interrupted sleep could predict future placement in a nursing home or assisted living facility.

20 Jul 2012

New insight into use and awareness of electronic cigarettes

Survey findings released today show new insight into the use and awareness of electronic cigarettes, devices that allow smokers to inhale vaporized nicotine in a cigarette-like fashion.

20 Jul 2012

Vitamin D may modify damaging effects of smoking on lung function

20 Jul 2012

Covidien receives Brazilian approval for Solitaire FR Revascularization Device

Covidien, a leading global provider of healthcare products, today announced that the Solitaire FR Revascularization Device has been approved by Brazil's National Health Surveillance Agency. The Solitaire FR device is used to restore blood flow to the brain in patients suffering acute ischemic stroke.

20 Jul 2012

Roundup: Minn. health care spending slows; Fla. counties may reconsider Medicaid lawsuit against state; Accessing dental care in Georgia

The state Health Department reports the rate of health care spending in Minnesota has slowed to its lowest point since 1997. Health care costs are still rising, but at a much slower pace -- 2.2 percent between 2009 and 2010. State Health Economist Stefan Gildemeister said the recession was a major factor in why Minnesotans spent less on health care. He said many lost their insurance when they lost their jobs and others who kept their jobs were more cautious.

20 Jul 2012

AOA honors Medical College of Georgia student with Kuckein Fellowship

A student at the Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Health Sciences University is among 47 recipients of the 2012 Carolyn L. Kuckein Student Research Fellowship from the national medical honor society Alpha Omega Alpha.

19 Jul 2012

NPR reports on Brazilian clinical trial of Truvada as prevention strategy

NPR's "Shots" blog reports on one of the drug trials considered by the FDA in its approval of the antiretroviral drug Truvada for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV among people at risk of contracting the virus, which "was done at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation Research Institute, also known as Fiocruz, in Rio de Janeiro."

19 Jul 2012

Alcohol and marijuana use predict hookah initiation, frequency

Nearly a quarter of college women try smoking tobacco with a hookah, or water pipe, for the first time during their freshman year, according to new research from The Miriam Hospital's Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine.

19 Jul 2012

Metabolic syndrome may reduce cerebral blood flow

Metabolic syndrome, a term used to describe a combination of risk factors that often lead to heart disease and type 2 diabetes, seems to be linked to lower blood flow to the brain, according to research by the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

19 Jul 2012

New UC M program to test comprehensive care physician model

Patients who are frequently hospitalized account for a disproportionate amount of health care spending in the United States. Working with a $6.1 million grant, a new University of Chicago Medicine program will test whether an updated version of the traditional general practitioner can reduce spending while also improving care for these patients.

19 Jul 2012

Public Health News and Research

Pfizer receives positive opinion from EMA CHMP for crizotinib to treat ALK-positive NSCLC

New WHO guidance recommends use of ARVs for HIV prevention

Viewpoints: Creating an HIV-free generation; Postal Service's struggle over retiree health benefits

Vitamin D might modify damaging effects of smoking on lung function

Study opens way for new approaches to slow development of AIDS in HIV-1-infected patients

Study describes 2010 whooping cough epidemic and details strategies to reduce infection incidence

'Saving Lives at Birth' finalists convene at DevelopmentXChange

HIV in MSM increasing in countries of all incomes

New blood sugar monitor: An interview with Sherita Hill Golden

Community-based resources in rural Uganda can successfully provide HIV treatments

Link between objectively measured sleep and subsequent institutionalization among older women

New insight into use and awareness of electronic cigarettes

Vitamin D may modify damaging effects of smoking on lung function

Covidien receives Brazilian approval for Solitaire FR Revascularization Device

Roundup: Minn. health care spending slows; Fla. counties may reconsider Medicaid lawsuit against state; Accessing dental care in Georgia

AOA honors Medical College of Georgia student with Kuckein Fellowship

NPR reports on Brazilian clinical trial of Truvada as prevention strategy

Alcohol and marijuana use predict hookah initiation, frequency

Metabolic syndrome may reduce cerebral blood flow

New UC M program to test comprehensive care physician model

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