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UCLB, Kurma Biofund form partnership

UCLB is delighted to announce a partnership with Kurma Biofund, a recently formed venture capital fund based in Paris and dedicated to innovations in life sciences and healthcare. Kurma recently announced the closing of a first round of financing totalling -50 million.

21 Jan 2010

Reducing dietary salt can offer significant health benefits

Reducing salt in the American diet by as little as one-half teaspoon (or three grams) per day could prevent nearly 100,000 heart attacks and 92,000 deaths each year, according to a new study. Such benefits are on par with the benefits from reductions in smoking and could save the United States about $24 billion in healthcare costs, the researchers add.

21 Jan 2010

Cancer Research UK offers translation service for people affected by cancer

Thanks to a partnership with Language Line - who interpret telephone conversations in over 170 languages - people affected by cancer who need an interpreter can now have their questions answered.

21 Jan 2010

FDA approves continuous-flow heart-assist device pioneered at Texas Heart Institute at SLEH

The federal Food and Drug Administration today approved a continuous-flow heart-assist device pioneered at the Texas Heart Institute (THI) at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital (SLEH) for use as a permanent treatment for advanced heart failure.

21 Jan 2010

States struggle with budget cuts, increased Medicaid pressure

News outlets look at developments in Medicaid issues. The Associated Press/ABC News reports on Louisiana: "Sen. Mary Landrieu defended the Senate's version of health care overhaul legislation — and language in it that provides up to $365 million in Medicaid money for Louisiana — as she discussed what her fellow Democrats should do after losing a crucial Senate seat to a Massachusetts Republican."

21 Jan 2010

U.S. Navy hospital ship reaches Haiti

Even before the U.S. Navy's hospital ship, Comfort, anchored off the coast of Haiti on Wednesday, patients who were injured in last week's earthquake were airlifted onto the ship to receive care, the Miami Herald reports (Clark, 1/21). According to the Baltimore Sun, "patients were flown in by the Navy, Coast Guard or Air Force in one of the 30 helicopters available within the ship's range. Plans for a boat-based shuttle were foiled by an earthquake aftershock that flattened the pier the Comfort had expected to use and that jolted the ship as if it had hit ground. Ship officials identified an alternate boat-landing site by midafternoon" (Little, 1/21).

21 Jan 2010

Fourth-quarter and fiscal year 2009 results announced by Somanetics

Somanetics Corporation today reported financial results for the fourth fiscal quarter and year ended November 30, 2009.

21 Jan 2010

Meridian Bioscience announces record first-quarter net sales of $42.5M

Net sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2010 were $42,457,000 as compared to $34,293,000 for the same period of the prior fiscal year, an increase of 24%. Net earnings for the first quarter of fiscal 2010 were $8,921,000 or $0.22 per diluted share, both increases of 10% over the first quarter of fiscal 2009. Diluted common shares outstanding for fiscal 2010 and 2009 were 41,185,000 and 41,125,000, respectively.

21 Jan 2010

Results of two pivotal Phase III clinical trials with oral FTY720 published

Results of the TRANSFORMS and FREEDOMS studies, the two pivotal Phase III clinical trials with oral FTY720 (fingolimod), have been published in The New England Journal of Medicine, providing comprehensive evidence to support the efficacy and safety profile of this first-in-class therapy for multiple sclerosis (MS).

21 Jan 2010

Natural grass/cleat combination lowers strain and less likely to cause ACL injury

Athletes put less strain on their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) while making a cut on a natural grass surface while wearing a cleat.

21 Jan 2010

First DataBank signs licensing agreement with SIS

First DataBank, a leading provider of drug databases that help drive patient safety, and Surgical Information Systems (SIS), a provider of feature-rich perioperative software solutions, announced today they have signed an agreement whereby First DataBank will license its suite of comprehensive drug information and associated developer software to Surgical Information Systems to enable the integration of new functionality for drug screening, dosing and documentation within the SIS suite of interoperable surgery solutions.

21 Jan 2010

UnitedHealth Group announces its revenues and net earnings in 2009

UnitedHealth Group today reported growth in revenues and net earnings per share in 2009. The Company earned $0.81 per share in the fourth quarter, bringing full year 2009 net earnings to $3.24 per share.

21 Jan 2010

International Medical Corps sets up mobile medical unit at epicenter of Haiti earthquake

A 6.1-magnitude aftershock hit Haiti at 6:03 am Eastern Time. All International Medical Corps staff and medical teams are unharmed and are now working to assess the damage left by the strongest aftershock since the 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti eight days ago.

21 Jan 2010

One-third of parents give primary schools an ‘A’; less than one-fourth give secondary schools an ‘A’

School psychologists, counselors and social workers are often the first line of support for children with behavioral, emotional or family problems. Problems can range from attention deficit disorder and homelessness to depression and bullying all of which can make academic success a challenge.

21 Jan 2010

ETMC Athens effectively handles record number of H1N1 cases

Throughout the month of September, East Texas Medical Center Athens (ETMC Athens) has seen a 42% average increase in number of patients per day and is taking it in stride. Improved efficiencies in the Emergency Department facilitated by a process improvement firm, Compirion Healthcare, have allowed the hospital to absorb the volume and see an improvement in quality.

21 Jan 2010

Canadian Red Cross ships tents to Haiti

As large-scale Red Cross relief efforts in Haiti continue, a shipment of Canadian Red Cross tents arrived in Haiti. These tents are part of a series of expected Canadian Red Cross shipments from around the world and will temporarily shelter 1,500 people.

21 Jan 2010

Study lays groundwork to develop new treatments for cardiovascular disease and other conditions

In a significant step toward restoring healthy blood circulation to treat a variety of diseases, a team of scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College has developed a new technique and described a novel mechanism for turning human embryonic and pluripotent stem cells into plentiful, functional endothelial cells, which are critical to the formation of blood vessels.

21 Jan 2010

Phoenix Controls announces the introduction of APM2

Phoenix Controls, a Honeywell International business, today announced the introduction of the Advanced Pressure Monitor II (APM2), a device that monitors very low differential pressure between rooms.

21 Jan 2010

Engaging in incentive-based wellness program is associated with lower healthcare costs

According to a study published in the January/February issue of the American Journal of Health Promotion, a peer-reviewed journal devoted to health promotion, health plan members who participated in fitness-related activities within an incentive-based health insurance wellness program had significantly lower healthcare costs.

21 Jan 2010

Researchers explain how HSV dismantles host's defense systems

A viral infection is like an uninvited, tenacious houseguest in the cell, using a range of tricks to prevent its eviction. Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have identified one of the key proteins allowing herpes simplex virus (HSV) DNA to fly under the radar of their hosts' involuntary hospitality.

21 Jan 2010