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MDA awards $14.1 million in new grants to advance treatments and cures for muscle diseases

The Muscular Dystrophy Association, which has invested almost $39 million in 2010 in worldwide research seeking treatments and cures for muscle diseases, today announced that it has awarded $14.1 million in new grants.

18 Aug 2010

RhinoChill Intra-Nasal Cooling System improves survival when initiated soon after cardiac arrest

A new portable system which cools the brain via the nasal cavity may improve survival following cardiac arrest compared with standard care procedures, particularly when CPR and cooling are initiated early. Results from a recent study showed that the RhinoChill(TM) Intra-Nasal Cooling System enabled brain temperature to reach target several hours earlier than patients cooled in the emergency room. It is widely recognized that the sooner brain temperature can be reduced, the better the chances of minimizing long-term damage.

16 Aug 2010

Education and screening of pregnant women recommended for prevention of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

Featured in the August edition of the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Canada is a new consensus clinical practice guideline which recommends that screening for alcohol consumption be done periodically for all pregnant women and women of child-bearing age.

13 Aug 2010

Columbus hospital receives PPMD grant to conduct clinical testing for Duchenne

Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy, the largest non-profit organization in the United States focused on finding a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (Duchenne), will award a $600,000 grant to Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, Ohio to conduct clinical testing of a promising gene therapy technique for muscle disease.

10 Aug 2010

Mass. towns find savings in municipal-based health insurance plans; Conn. hospitals' earnings improve; Free dental clinic in Virginia

"Fourteen cities and towns that have moved their employees, retirees, and elected officials from their own municipal-based health care insurance plans into the state's much larger, more flexible system collectively saved more than $30 million their first year in the program, according to a new report. … The study relies on self-reported fiscal data on the communities' first year in the Group Insurance Commission, the state health care program, which covers some 300,000 state employees, retirees, and elected officials" (Murphy, 8/3).

4 Aug 2010

Republicans plan to block health law by withholding implementation funds

Republicans may not have the numbers to repeal the health overhaul, even after the election, but they are increasingly likely to try to "deny the Obama administration the money it needs to implement the law," Politico reports.

3 Aug 2010

Healthcare Labor Update 2010: A year of critical opportunity for employers

When labor unions, particularly the Service Employee International Union (SEIU), spent hundreds of millions during the last presidential election cycle - resulting in a labor-friendly Democratic Administration and Congressional majority for the first time in a decade - it appeared the labor movement was poised to make a swift resurgence.

26 Jul 2010

Cognis exclusively licensed two new active ingredients from IMD

Specialty chemicals supplier Cognis and InterMed Discovery, a world class natural product lead-discovery company, are continuing their strategic cooperation: Cognis has now exclusively licensed two new active ingredients for weight management and cognitive performance from IMD, further expanding the company's innovation pipeline.

13 Jul 2010

Medicare agency releases data on hospital performance

MedPage Today: "The public can now review data on the quality of outpatient care provided by individual hospitals at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Hospital Compare website. The site previously contained only data on inpatient care quality. All the data are derived from records of Medicare patients treated at more than 3,600 hospitals nationwide."

9 Jul 2010

Conn. AG launches probe of CVS prescription plan termination threat

Richard Blumenthal, the Connecticut attorney general and a candidate for the U.S. Senate, announced an investigation of CVS Caremark after the corporation threatened to terminate a discount prescription drug program, Dow Jones Newswires/The Wall Street Journal reports.

25 Jun 2010

Scientists discover septet of overactive genes that control bodily function

In what is believed to be the largest review of the human genetic code to determine why some people's blood platelets are more likely to clump faster than others, scientists at Johns Hopkins and in Boston have found a septet of overactive genes, which they say likely control that bodily function.

23 Jun 2010

Cardio-perfusion circuit patent portfolio offered for sale

ICAP Ocean Tomo, the intellectual property brokerage division of ICAP plc (IAP.L), is offering for sale a portfolio of three US issued patents relating to a condensed perfusion circuit for cardiac bypass. The technology of the portfolio should be of interest to any medical device company currently working in the cardiac surgery sector, or looking to establish a leading position in this growing field. This portfolio is a strong addition to ICAP Ocean Tomo's growing Bio/Life Sciences practice.

15 Jun 2010

DSM announces agreements with Biomedical Structures, Cortland and Secant Medical

DSM, which created and manufactures Dyneema Purity, the world's strongest Medical grade fiber, today announced agreements with Biomedical Structures, Cortland Company and Secant Medical. These companies' experience in processing Dyneema Purity fiber in biomedical textile structures offers medical device companies the ability to use various constructions of Dyneema Purity, including the recently launched Dyneema Purity BLUE, in commercial medical devices.

9 Jun 2010

Space Shuttle Atlantis returns from International Space Station with tenth scientific payload for Astrogenetix

Space Shuttle Atlantis returned from the International Space Station (ISS) landing at the Kennedy Space Center this morning with the tenth scientific payload for Astrogenetix, a commercial biotech company based out of Austin, Texas. Astrogenetix is conducting research on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as part of the ISS National Laboratory Pathfinder Vaccine (NLP-V) missions.

27 May 2010

6-month results of NovoStent's SAMBA trial for atherosclerotic disease in SFA and popliteal arteries

NovoStent Corporation, a privately held medical device company, today announced the 6-month follow-up results of the company's European clinical trial evaluating the use of its SAMBA Stent and Delivery System in the treatment of superficial femoral and popliteal artery disease. The SAMBA Stent was designed to treat the highly varied presentation of atherosclerotic disease in the superficial femoral (SFA) and popliteal arteries by providing a unique combination of increased vessel coverage, strength and flexibility.

26 May 2010

Pluristem to highlight potential of PLX-PAD cell therapy for critical limb ischemia at 16th ISCT

Pluristem Therapeutics Inc. today announced that its off-the-shelf placenta-derived cell therapies will be the focus of presentations at upcoming investor and medical conferences.

21 May 2010

Hospital deals in New York, Michigan, Tennessee and Georgia

Lenox Hill, a "boutique hospital of choice for the rich" announced Wednesday "that after 153 years as a standalone hospital on the Upper East Side, it was entering a partnership with North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, a powerhouse of 15 hospitals and other health care centers in more humble parts of Long Island, Queens and Staten Island."

20 May 2010

Victory Pharma, Middlebrook Pharmaceuticals sign asset purchase agreement

MiddleBrook Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has entered into an asset purchase agreement with Victory Pharma, Inc. for the sale of substantially all of its assets, and assumption of trade sales and certain other liabilities, of the Company for approximately $17.1 million (the "Acquisition").

15 May 2010

GOP launches new challenge to health law with coordinated messaging

Republicans are starting a new bid to undermine Democratic attempts at touting a new health law. The GOP effort includes attacks on both President Barack Obama's pick to run Medicare and on claims that implementation is going smoothly.