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MIR names Aetna as Health Insurer of the Year

Aetna a leading global diversified health care benefits company, has been named "Health Insurer of the Year" for 2013 by MENA Insurance Review (MIR), a leading magazine covering the insurance sector in the Middle East and North Africa.

18 Feb 2013

New research focuses on rapid identification of disease outbreaks

EcoHealth Alliance, the nonprofit organization that focuses on local conservation and global health issues, announced new research focused on the rapid identification of disease outbreaks in the peer reviewed publication, Journal of the Royal Society Interface.

15 Feb 2013

SANA releases new video on Benefits of Soyfoods for Active Adults

The Soyfoods Association of North America today announced that it has released a video on the Benefits of Soyfoods for Active Adults demonstrating how soyfoods can help you stay fit and healthy. Americans who are trying to lead healthier lives will find that soyfoods boost their energy, improve heart health, and provide antioxidants.

15 Feb 2013

Cambodia, China report cases of avian influenza H5N1

"Cambodia reported on Wednesday that another four-year-old girl has contracted avian influenza H5N1, becoming the seventh person who infected the virus in 2013," Xinhua reports.

14 Feb 2013

State roundup: Ore. considers rural doc loan repayment

Oregon would restore $4 million in the next biennium to fund a loan repayment program that assists primary health care providers willing to work in rural areas, under a bill being pushed by Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hayward, D-Beaverton. The program ran for nearly two decades before it was cut in 2009 in the depths of the recession.

14 Feb 2013

SGWHC launches first digital resource dedicated solely to sex and gender evidence based care

The Food and Drug Administration recently announced a change to current dosages for sleeping medications in women to half the current prescribed level, and research suggests that flu dosages for women be reconsidered as well. Consideration of how women respond to medicine should be common practice, but we aren't there yet.

13 Feb 2013

Tips for safe displays of affection during Valentine's Day

Say "I love you" with flowers, chocolates or a greeting card, but be careful when you kiss this Valentine's Day.

13 Feb 2013

Individualized flu immune responses revealed by high-throughput sequencing

Researchers have shown that it is possible to create personalized, individual-specific measurements of the antibody repertoire in response to influenza vaccination using high-throughput DNA sequencing technology.

11 Feb 2013

Wichita State associate professor writes two books about flu

The flu: It's a popular topic of conversation lately, as most people probably know someone who has gotten sick this winter. But for Wichita State associate professor George Dehner, the flu is a year-round focus. Dehner, who teaches world and environmental history, recently wrote two books about the flu.

11 Feb 2013

Global response to possible H5N1 flu outbreak could affect epidemic's course

"It's been a rough flu season this winter in the United States and Europe, but it could be worse. A lot worse," science writer Carl Zimmer states in National Geographic's "Phenomena: The Loom" blog.

10 Feb 2013

Northwestern Medicine to open new Outpatient Center in Glenview, Illinois

Northwestern Medicine today announced that on March 1 it will open a new Outpatient Center at 2701 Patriot Boulevard in Glenview, Illinois. At this new center, 20-30 physicians will offer patients a wide range of primary care and specialty clinical services.

10 Feb 2013

FluGen's REDEE FLU vaccine protects against both H5N1 and H3N2 strains

Deadly flu viruses, including the H5N1 bird flu and H3N2 swine flu, may have met their match in FluGen's universal vaccine, REDEE FLU.

6 Feb 2013

AmeriCares rushes to deliver 8,000 more doses of influenza vaccine to free clinics

AmeriCares is rushing to deliver 8,000 more doses of influenza vaccine to free clinics and community health programs to stem the continuing flu epidemic. Widespread flu activity was reported last week in 42 states with seniors at the greatest risk, according to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While the number of flu cases is starting to decline along the East Coast, cases continue to increase in the West.

6 Feb 2013

Three NIH-sponsored influenza trials begin to enroll volunteers

Three clinical trials that seek to find more effective treatments for influenza are enrolling volunteers with influenza at the National Institutes of Health's Clinical Center in Bethesda, Md., and at several dozen other domestic and international sites.

6 Feb 2013

BD first quarter revenues increase 3.7% to $1.90 billion

BD, a leading global medical technology company, today reported quarterly revenues of $1.90 billion for the first fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2012, representing an increase of 3.7 percent from the prior-year period, or 5.2 percent on a foreign currency-neutral basis.

From BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) 5 Feb 2013

Loyola Flu Central now available on LUHS web site

Loyola Flu Central, a weekly snapshot of flu activity locally, regionally and nationally is now available on the Loyola University Health System web site, through Twitter and on Facebook.

5 Feb 2013

Viewpoints: Obama's 'olive branch' on birth control coverage; Sen. Kirk recounts his stroke therapy; Nurses oppose mandatory flu shots

The Obama administration released the final details Friday of the exemption it will provide religious-affiliated employers from the requirement to include free birth control in employees' insurance policies. Not surprisingly, the announcement didn't seem to mollify any of the critics who'd been arguing that the exemption was inadequate.

4 Feb 2013

Interferon retreatment warning in HCV

Hepatitis C virus patients who do not respond to interferon should not receive further treatment with the drug, say the authors of a new Cochrane review.

4 Feb 2013

Facing a 'transition year,' Aetna's fourth-quarter profits are halved

The insurer's net income dropped 49 percent as higher medical costs squeezed the profit margin for the insurer.

3 Feb 2013

Study offers new evidence of natural emission of influenza

A new study suggests that patients with influenza can emit small virus-containing particles into the surrounding air during routine patient care, potentially exposing health care providers to influenza. Published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, the findings raise the possibility that current influenza infection control recommendations may not always be adequate to protect providers from influenza during routine patient care in hospitals.

2 Feb 2013