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Also in global health news: Nuclear accidents; measles outbreak in Europe; funding shortfall in Zimbabwe; drinking water in Pakistan; agricultural development in S. Asia

The world must prepare for more major nuclear accidents, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on Wednesday at a Kiev conference marking the explosion of a reactor at Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear reactor 25 years ago, the Associated Press reports.

22 Apr 2011

Cervical cancer vaccine target falls short: Report

Data from the Australian federal government shows that the target to immunize 80 per cent of 12-year-old girls against cervical cancer is not being met because many of them are failing to have all three doses of the vaccine. This potentially undermines the effectiveness of the $436 million program started in 2007.

19 Apr 2011

International experts meet to focus on impact of vaccines on global health at a time of public scepticism and complacency

International experts gather in Prague today for a three day meeting focused on the impact of vaccines on public health, at a time of increasing concern that public scepticism and complacency could undermine the positive impact of current and future vaccine campaigns.

31 Mar 2011

U-M professors recommend certain steps to reach research equipoise

In 1998, a study linking the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine to autism in children appeared in a respected medical journal. For a decade, the study grabbed headlines worldwide.

23 Mar 2011

Vical announces issuance of U.S. Patent for cytomegalovirus vaccines

Vical Incorporated announced today the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 7,888,112 covering DNA vaccines for cytomegalovirus containing specific gene sequences and formulated with Vical's Vaxfectin adjuvant.

16 Feb 2011

Merck reports GAAP net income of $861 million for 2010

Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2010. The company reported non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings per share (EPS) for the fourth quarter of $0.88, which excludes purchase accounting adjustments, restructuring costs and merger-related expenses.

4 Feb 2011

Measles warnings for Australia and New Zealand

In a flight from Brisbane that arrived in Auckland two weeks ago, a child was confirmed to have measles and has been taken to hospital. Five other cases of the virus have been confirmed. At present a further 100 cases are being investigated by the Auckland Regional Public Health Service.

26 Jan 2011

Viewpoints: Health law repeal; Individual mandate; Essential benefits package; Arizona transplant program

If the government fails, then costs will rise inexorably. Nothing in the law guarantees success: The law embodies almost every idea anyone has offered and hopes a couple of them will work.

14 Jan 2011

Herpes zoster vaccine reduces risk of developing shingles by 55%

Receiving the herpes zoster vaccine was associated with a 55 percent reduced risk of developing shingles, according to a Kaiser Permanente study of 300,000 people that appears in the current issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

12 Jan 2011

Autism-vaccine link study – Complete fraud

There has been a controversy regarding the causative link of vaccines with autism. A report appeared in the British Medical Journal this Wednesday that stated that Dr. Andrew Wakefield, the lead author of a major study to imply such a link had falsified the medical histories of all 12 patients in his study and that he was “hoping to sue vaccine manufacturers and to create a vaccine scare.”

9 Jan 2011

Merck reports $342 million net income for 2010 third quarter

Merck & Co., Inc. today announced financial results for the third quarter of 2010. The company reported non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings per share (EPS) for the third quarter of $0.85, which excludes purchase accounting adjustments, restructuring costs, merger-related expenses and a $950 million legal reserve.

29 Oct 2010

Human haptoglobin gene mutation increases risk of diabetic complications

Type 1 diabetes (T1D), formerly known as juvenile diabetes, is a multifactorial disease of complex etiology characterized by the autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta cells. In addition to genetic susceptibility, it is generally accepted that environmental factors play important roles in triggering disease, with virus infection having perhaps the strongest association.

27 Oct 2010

Study finds vaccination rates in decline for children covered by private health plans

A new report shows that vaccination rates among two-year-olds covered by private insurance plans dipped by almost four percentage points last year." At the same time, vaccination rates for children covered by Medicaid were edging up by less than 1%.

15 Oct 2010

Justices wrestle with issue of protecting vaccine makers

The Supreme Court is grappling with the question of how much protection the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act was meant to provide vaccine manufacturers against lawsuits. The case involves Hannah Bruesewitz, whose parents claim that a Wyeth-manufactured D.T.P. vaccine she received as an infant in 1992 led to developmental problems.

14 Oct 2010

Vaccine lawsuits – Justices divided

The US Supreme Court is seemingly divided over the lawsuits on childhood vaccines. The Justices acquiesced that the Congress has done its bit to shield vaccine-makers from suits by the few who have had an adverse reaction to a vaccine approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Now the matter revolves around whether those hurt by vaccines have the right to sue manufacturers if they can prove that a safer version was available.

12 Oct 2010

Spanish mothers more concerned about the safety of childhood vaccines

Researchers from the University of Alicante (UA) taking part in the European VACSATC project have studied mothers' and fathers' opinions on vaccinating their children in five countries. The results of the survey show that Spanish mothers are more resistant than those in other countries to the idea of paying for vaccines, while 20.9% expressed some concern about the safety of vaccines.

8 Oct 2010

Doctors demonstrate the true impact of vaccination

With Children Back in School, Doctors Clear up Confusion and Demonstrate the True Impact of Vaccination

16 Sep 2010

Inovio Pharmaceuticals achieves promising results in VGX-3100 Phase I study

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leader in the development of therapeutic and preventive vaccines against cancers and infectious diseases, announced today that it has achieved best-in-class immune responses in its Phase I dose escalation study of VGX-3100, its DNA vaccine to treat pre-cancerous cervical dysplasias and cervical cancers caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18.

13 Sep 2010

Children, teens need good health before the start of new school year, says medical director

With the back to school shopping season in full swing, it is also important to arm area children and teens with other tools they need to have a good school year- like medical exams. These are critical to good health and should take place before or shortly after the start of the new school year, and include a routine doctor's exam to confirm that all immunizations are up-to-date, a dental check-up, and a vision exam.

30 Aug 2010

Cedillo vs. Health and Human Services case highlights failure of Vaccine Injury Compensation Program

The Elizabeth Birt Center for Autism Law and Advocacy is deeply disappointed in the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit's decision to affirm Cedillo v. Secretary of Health and Human Services. EBCALA submitted a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of 23 civil society organizations in January 2010 urging the Court of Appeals to reverse. In affirming the decision, the Court of Appeals failed to do justice by Michelle Cedillo and thousands of other petitioners in the Omnibus Autism Proceeding (OAP).

30 Aug 2010