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Also in Global Health news: HIV prevention in China; Global Fund in Philippines; drug-resistant TB; U.S. stance on anti-gay legislation

"A gay bar partially funded by the government of a Chinese city heavily affected by AIDS has finally opened after a delay caused by intense media interest which the owners felt may scared off potential patrons," Reuters Life! reports. The bar in the southwestern city of Dali is a collaborative effort by the city's health department and two NGOs, according to the news service (12/21). "The venue aims to provide a place where homosexuals can meet in a relaxed atmosphere and get information about HIV/AIDS prevention," Agence France-Presse reports (12/20).

22 Dec 2009

MSF report names malnutrition, inadequate funds for HIV/AIDS, neglected diseases among top humanitarian crises of 2009

Inadequate international funding for HIV/AIDS and neglected diseases as well as global malnutrition were among the top 10 humanitarian crises outlined in an annual report issued Monday by Medecins Sans Frontieres, the Associated Press reports (Astor, 12/21).

22 Dec 2009

Matrix Laboratories receives FDA tentative approval for Efavirenz NDA under PEPFAR

Mylan Inc. today announced that its subsidiary Matrix Laboratories Limited has received tentative approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) for its New Drug Application (NDA) for Efavirenz Tablets, 50 mg, 100 mg and 200 mg. These innovative pediatric dosages in tablet form were developed by Matrix for use in treating pediatric HIV/AIDS.

22 Dec 2009

TB bacterium does not contain genes needed for spore formation

But a new study by researchers at Loyola University Health System and other centers casts doubt on the TB spore theory. Researchers were unable to detect spores in TB cultures and demonstrated that the TB bacterium doesn't even contain genes related to those needed to produce spores. Researchers also failed to find any spores in frogs infected with TB bacteria, which would have been expected if TB bacteria produced spores in the course of infection.

22 Dec 2009

Advisory Panel of independent ENT experts recommends FDA to approve Envoy Medical's Esteem

Envoy Medical, a Minnesota corporation, has developed the first Fully Implantable Hearing Restoration System known as the Esteem®. On December 18th, an Advisory Panel of independent ENT experts unanimously recommended that the FDA approve the Esteem®.

22 Dec 2009

NSHAP study sheds new light on health and intimate relationships of older people

Researchers and the general public have a new resource for information on the health and intimate relationships of older people, thanks to a newsupplemental issue of The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological and Social Sciences (Volume 64B, Supplement 1).

19 Dec 2009

Annual diabetes Consumer Guide to be published in the January 2010 issue by Diabetes Forecast

When shopping for a new cell phone or even a car, there are dozens of features to explore and choices to make. The same is true of shopping for medical products that will help manage a chronic disease.

19 Dec 2009

Orphanage care in developing countries is a 'viable option,' study finds

A study, published on Thursday in PLoS One, finds that the "care at orphanages [in developing countries] is often at least as good as that given by families who take in orphaned or abandoned children," challenging "the widespread belief that orphans in poor countries fare best in family-style homes in the community and should be put into orphanages only as a last resort," the New York Times reports (Grady, 12/17).

18 Dec 2009

Recent releases in Global Health

A Scientific American article examines recent efforts to tackle neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). The author writes "NTDs have plagued humankind for thousands of years. … What is new, however, is that donors, drugmakers, health ministries in low- and middle-income countries, the World Health Organization (WHO), and public-private partnerships are linking their efforts to combat the NTDs in a more coordinated and systematic way."

18 Dec 2009

Opinion: Uganda anti-gay bill; Shah confirmation

Columnist Michael Gerson in a Washington Post opinion piece writes of Uganda's Anti-Homosexuality Bill of 2009 being considered by the country's parliament "that would impose new and harsher penalties on homosexuality, including life imprisonment and capital punishment. It also would force pastors and others to report homosexuals to the authorities.

18 Dec 2009

National Journal examines USAID administrator nominee's experience, prospects at the Agency

The National Journal looks at the professional background of Rajiv Shah, President Barack Obama's nominee to be the USAID administrator. "As Rajiv Shah prepares to lead the U.S. Agency for International Development, former colleagues, lobbyists and current and past administration officials paint a picture of a man with dizzying brainpower and social intelligence who has won over skeptics time and again.

18 Dec 2009

U.S. health officials announce shift in focus of prep trial in Botswana

U.S. health officials on Thursday announced they will shift the focus of a clinical trial in Botswana aimed at testing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) - the strategy that "a daily low dose of the drugs, which interfere with the ability of the virus to replicate, could also lower the risk of infection" - after researchers discovered they would be unable to determine the efficacy of Truvada, the medicine used in the trial, Reuters reports.

18 Dec 2009

A selection of today's opinions and editorials

No one has guaranteed ways to slow the growth of health-care spending and ... the pending bills include most of the ways experts believe are likely to succeed (Henry J. Aaron, 12/18).

18 Dec 2009

Congress lifts federal ban on needle exchange programs

The Minnesota Independent: "An appropriations bill passed by Congress last weekend is being hailed by public health advocates for ending funding for abstinence-until-marriage sex education and eliminating the ban on federal funding for needle exchange programs" (Birkey, 12/17).

18 Dec 2009

First Edition: December 18, 2009

The highlights from today's headlines focus on continuing movement in the Senate toward a pre-Christmas health overhaul vote -- but many questions about its cost, and how many votes it can attract, persist.

18 Dec 2009

UAB professors honored for scientific contributions and outstanding mentorship

Three University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) professors have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

18 Dec 2009

SAIC receives multiple-award contract to support BUMED throughout the U.S.

Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) today announced it has been awarded a prime contract by the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command Acquisition Center - Natick Contracting Division to support the U.S. Navy's Chief Bureau of Medicine and Surgery (BUMED) for Medical Research and Development, and their subordinate research and development commands.

18 Dec 2009

Fine print of Senate health reform bill would lead to pre-emption of state patient protection laws

Key members of the U.S. House of Representatives have sent a warning to Senate and House leaders that the fine print of the Senate health reform bill would strip many states, including California and Maine, of hard-won patient rights and benefit requirements, reported Consumer Watchdog.

18 Dec 2009

AHF praises California Assembly members' initiative to protect state’s AIDS drug program funding

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today praised the action taken by thirty-eight members of the California Assembly who, in a signed letter, urged Governor Schwarzenegger to protect funding for California’s AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP). The Governor, who is currently completing his 2010-11 budget, could propose up to $70 million in cuts to ADAP in his upcoming budget, a move which, if enacted, will gut the state’s lifesaving AIDS drug program currently serving more than 35,000 low-income Californians living with HIV/AIDS.

18 Dec 2009

New WHO report shows considerable progress in malaria

According to the World Health organization’s World Malaria Report 2009 released earlier this week, more than one third of affected countries included in the study have witnessed reduction in malaria cases by more than 50 percent between 2000 and 2008.

18 Dec 2009

AIDS News and Research

Also in Global Health news: HIV prevention in China; Global Fund in Philippines; drug-resistant TB; U.S. stance on anti-gay legislation

MSF report names malnutrition, inadequate funds for HIV/AIDS, neglected diseases among top humanitarian crises of 2009

Matrix Laboratories receives FDA tentative approval for Efavirenz NDA under PEPFAR

TB bacterium does not contain genes needed for spore formation

Advisory Panel of independent ENT experts recommends FDA to approve Envoy Medical's Esteem

NSHAP study sheds new light on health and intimate relationships of older people

Annual diabetes Consumer Guide to be published in the January 2010 issue by Diabetes Forecast

Orphanage care in developing countries is a 'viable option,' study finds

Recent releases in Global Health

Opinion: Uganda anti-gay bill; Shah confirmation

National Journal examines USAID administrator nominee's experience, prospects at the Agency

U.S. health officials announce shift in focus of prep trial in Botswana

A selection of today's opinions and editorials

Congress lifts federal ban on needle exchange programs

First Edition: December 18, 2009

UAB professors honored for scientific contributions and outstanding mentorship

SAIC receives multiple-award contract to support BUMED throughout the U.S.

Fine print of Senate health reform bill would lead to pre-emption of state patient protection laws

AHF praises California Assembly members' initiative to protect state’s AIDS drug program funding

New WHO report shows considerable progress in malaria

Industry Focus eBook - Forensics & toxicology (2nd edition) eBook

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

A New Approach to Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

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