Cholesterol News and Research

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Cholesterol is a waxy, fat-like substance made in the liver, and found in the blood and in all cells of the body. Cholesterol is important for good health and is needed for making cell walls, tissues, hormones, vitamin D, and bile acid.

FDA approves Daiichi Sankyo's sNDA for Welchol

Daiichi Sankyo, Inc. (DSI) announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for Welchol® (colesevelam HCl) to be used as an adjunct to diet and exercise for the reduction of elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in boys and postmenarchal girls, 10 to 17 years of age, with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (heFH) alone or in combination with a statin after failing an adequate trial of diet therapy.

7 Oct 2009

The latest medication to treat schizophrenia "ABILIFY" launched in Canada

A new treatment option for Canadians with schizophrenia, ABILIFY(TM) (aripiprazole), is now available in Canada. For those living with this lifelong disease who may be struggling with a treatment that doesn't work for them or with side effects that are difficult to tolerate, ABILIFY offers efficacy and good safety and tolerability with limited impact on weight, blood sugar and lipids - significant clinical benefits that may help patients stay on treatment longer.

6 Oct 2009

Pepsico's initiative to reduce obesity, joins HWCF

PepsiCo, Inc., one of the world's largest food and beverage companies, today announced that it will expand its existing efforts to help reduce obesity in the United States by joining the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF).

6 Oct 2009

Framingham Heart Study receives $1M grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Boston University School of Medicine's (BUSM) Framingham Heart Study (FHS) has received a two-year $1M challenge grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

6 Oct 2009

Depression leads to elevated inflammatory proteins in the human body: Study

To help solve this long standing chicken and egg conundrum, researchers led by Jesse Stewart, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis asked two critical questions. Does depression lead to elevated inflammatory proteins in the human body? Or does an increase in these proteins lead to depression? They found that the answer to the first question appears to be "yes," and the answer to the second question may be "no" among healthy adults.

6 Oct 2009

Eat strawberries to improve cholesterol levels

According to a new study published in the October 2009 issue of Nutrition Journal, women with metabolic syndrome had reduced total cholesterol levels - including LDL - after a brief period of daily consumption of a strawberry-based beverage.

6 Oct 2009

Pomegranate juice beneficial for patients with elevated cardiovascular disease risk factors: Study

According to a clinical study released in The American Journal of Cardiology, a daily serving of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice may decrease the progression of arterial plaque in patients with elevated cardiovascular disease risk factors. The study was intended to see if POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice may slow the progression of intima-media thickness of the carotid artery (CIMT) in patients with moderate coronary heart disease risk.

6 Oct 2009

Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca receive marketing authorisation for ONGLYZA in Europe

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and AstraZeneca announced today that the European Commission has granted marketing authorisation for ONGLYZATM in the 27 countries of the European Union.

5 Oct 2009

Survey finds majority of Americans are at risk of heart disease due to their lifestyle factor

To help draw attention to National Child Health Day (today), the Preventive Cardiovascular Nurses Association (PCNA) has released findings from a new national consumer survey and launched a campaign to educate families about heart disease, the leading cause of death in the U.S.

5 Oct 2009

CSPI sues Bayer for false claims on Men's One A Day multivitamins

The Center for Science in the Public Interest has sued the German drug company Bayer for falsely claiming that the selenium in Men's One A Day multivitamins might reduce the risk of prostate cancer. The lawsuit is filed in the Superior Court of California in San Francisco.

3 Oct 2009

Rewarding healthy behavior with incentives helps lower healthcare costs

On September 30, the U.S. Senate voted to adopt a measure aimed at rewarding healthy behavior as part of the Obama Administration's overall healthcare reform legislation. The Senate Finance Committee voted for a bi-partisan amendment that would allow health plans to provide financial incentives for people to quit smoking, exercise more and engage in other healthy activities.

3 Oct 2009

70% of Americans underestimate the seriousness of SCA

More than 250,000 deaths occur each year as a result of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). In fact, SCA claims one life every two minutes, taking more lives each year than breast cancer, lung cancer or AIDS. Yet, according to a recent survey issued by the Heart Rhythm Society, more than 70 percent of Americans not only underestimate the seriousness of SCA, but also believe SCA is a type of heart attack.

3 Oct 2009

New (and old) ideas for health care show possibility of savings, improvements

The search for reform models continues, with news reports exploring the Veterans Administration's "government-run health care," Washington State's "reputation for lower-cost, higher-quality health care," and Kaiser Permanente's new money-saving approach to heart attack treatment.

3 Oct 2009

ALL initiative three-year clinical observational study results published

A program that bundled two generic, low-cost drugs - a cholesterol-lowering statin and a blood pressure-lowering drug - and gave daily doses to 68,560 people with diabetes or heart disease for two years is estimated to have prevented 1,271 heart attacks and strokes in the first year following the study period, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online in the American Journal of Managed Care.

3 Oct 2009

Study reveals the importance of cholestrol derivative in brain cell formation

A derivative of cholesterol is necessary for the formation of brain cells, according to a study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet. The results, which are published in the journal Cell Stem Cell, can help scientists to cultivate dopamine-producing cells outside the body.

2 Oct 2009

Array BioPharma to present poster on ARRY-403 glucokinase activator

Array BioPharma Inc. today announced that a poster on ARRY-403, a novel, oral, glucokinase activator (GKA), will be presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes annual meeting, on October 2, 2009, in Vienna, Austria.

2 Oct 2009

sNDA for Clonicel submitted to the FDA

Addrenex Pharmaceuticals and Sciele Pharma, Inc., a Shionogi company today announced that Addrenex has submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Clonicel (modified-release clonidine) to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

2 Oct 2009

Actavis' clients launch generic Atorvastatin in Spain

Actavis Group, the international generic pharmaceuticals company, today announced that its third-party sales division, Medis, has delivered 30 million tablets of Atorvastatin to its clients in Spain. This is the first generic version of the blockbuster molecule to reach the Spanish market.

1 Oct 2009

Addrenex submits a sNDA to the FDA for Clonicel

Sciele Pharma, Inc., a Shionogi company, and Addrenex Pharmaceuticals today announced that Addrenex has submitted a supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Clonicel (modified-release clonidine) to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

1 Oct 2009

Patients with serious mental illness need to be treated for physical and mental health

New research backs up the demand to integrate psychiatric care with primary care services for people with serious mental disorders in Ontario, according to a study published today. "Patients need their care providers to close that gap," says lead author Dr. Russell Callaghan of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) in Toronto.

1 Oct 2009