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U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear appeals in civil racketeering lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers

The U.S. Supreme Court today declined to hear appeals in the federal government's civil racketeering lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers. Today's decision upholds the trial court's historic verdict that the cigarette manufacturers are racketeers and have engaged in a decades-long conspiracy to deceive the American public and target children with their deadly and addictive products. That verdict is now final and undeniable: The cigarette manufacturers have been found guilty of engaging in a deadly fraud that is unprecedented in our nation's history.

29 Jun 2010

Study: Statins can reduce risk of prostate cancer recurrence after surgery

Men who use statins to lower their cholesterol are 30 percent less likely to see their prostate cancer come back after surgery compared to men who do not use the drugs, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center. Researchers also found that higher doses of the drugs were associated with lower risk of recurrence.

29 Jun 2010

Maternal alcohol consumption impacts semen concentration in male offspring

Mothers who drink alcohol while they are pregnant may be damaging the fertility of their future sons, according to new research to be presented at the 26th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology in Rome today (Tuesday 29 June).

29 Jun 2010

Today's OpEds: A new breed of medical education, more on the Medicare 'doc fix,' efforts to cut health care waste

Medical schools in particular may transform the way healthcare is practiced and viewed by the general community and its leaders. The medical school with this focus will not only pursue traditional missions like research and teaching students diagnostic skills but also emphasize community involvement, local medicine, social consciousness and local cultural issues (Dr. John Rock, 6/28).

28 Jun 2010

Overweight women undertaking ART at increased risk of miscarriage

Being overweight leads to a greater risk of miscarriage for patients undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART), the 26th annual conference of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology heard today (Monday). Dr. Vivian Rittenberg, a Clinical Fellow in the Assisted Conception Unit, Guy's and St. Thomas' Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK, said that her research provided additional evidence to show that increased body mass index (BMI) was independently associated with a higher miscarriage rate after IVF or ICSI treatment.

28 Jun 2010

Merck challenges New York jury decision in federal FOSAMAX retrial

Merck & Co., Inc. today said it is challenging the decision returned by a New York jury in the retrial of a federal FOSAMAX case, Boles v. Merck. This case was the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee's top choice to take to trial and involved a Florida woman who blamed her dental and jaw problems on FOSAMAX. The first case to reach a verdict, Maley v. Merck, resulted in a defense verdict for Merck on May 5, 2010.

28 Jun 2010

Psychotropic medications associated with adverse drug reactions in Danish children: Researchers

Between 1998 and 2007, psychotropic medications were associated with 429 adverse drug reactions in Danish children under the age of 17. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen's Faculty of Pharmaceutical Studies have published an article in the open access journal BMC Research Notes concluding that more than half of the 429 cases were serious and several involved birth defects, such as birth deformities and severe withdrawal syndromes.

25 Jun 2010

CHMP adopts positive opinion on pending MAA for SYCREST sublingual tablets

Merck announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use adopted a positive opinion on the pending Marketing Authorization Application for SYCREST (asenapine) sublingual tablets. The CHMP has recommended that the European Commission grant a marketing authorization for SYCREST for the treatment of moderate to severe manic episodes associated with bipolar I disorder in adults. The CHMP did not support an indication for the treatment of schizophrenia.

25 Jun 2010

Latino population less likely to receive basic preventive tests, says study

"Prevention" is the new buzzword for health professionals and the new emphasis for containing future health care costs. Yet Latinos, who currently represent about 15 percent of the U.S. population, have the lowest level of preventive care of all racial and ethnic groups in the nation.

25 Jun 2010

Study recommends women to avoid drug abuse during prenatal and breastfeeding periods

Give up smoking, do not drink more than three cups of coffee per day, do not take any kind of drug, or if you do, take it as long as possible before feeding your baby. These are some of the recommendations contained in a study produced by Spanish researchers on methods for detecting medicines and drugs in breast milk. The study shows that the risk from substances such as alcohol is still not well understood.

24 Jun 2010

Majority of North Carolinians support increasing sales tax on cigarettes

Raising taxes typically is not a popular idea, but the option of increasing cigarette sales tax has been gaining momentum in North Carolina for the past several years. Statewide polls since 2004 have shown a majority of North Carolinians support increasing the sales tax on cigarettes as a means of generating state revenue, especially when the funds are used to support public health programs and to decrease teen smoking rates.

24 Jun 2010

Increased mortality rates in Bangladesh is associated with arsenic exposure, study finds

Between 33 and 77 million people in Bangladesh have been exposed to arsenic in the drinking water-a catastrophe that the World Health Organization has called "the largest mass poisoning in history." A new study published in the current issue of the medical journal The Lancet provides the most complete and detailed picture to date of the high mortality rates associated with this exposure, which began with the widespread installation of tube wells throughout the country 30 years ago-a measure intended to control water-bourne diseases.

24 Jun 2010

New Cancer Research UK figures: Deaths from stomach cancer drop

Deaths from stomach cancer are the lowest since UK records began nearly 40 years ago, according to new Cancer Research UK figures released today (Thursday).

24 Jun 2010

Americans spend more on health and get poorer care: Report

According to a Commonwealth Fund report released this Wednesday, Americans spend nearly twice as much as people from other developed countries on healthcare but get lower quality of care, less efficiency and have the least equitable health care system. The comparison was drawn with six other countries, Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, and the United States ranked last. The report collected data from nationally representative patient and physician surveys in these seven countries in 2007, 2008, and 2009.

23 Jun 2010

Early adverse experiences influence migraine sufferers' cardiovascular health in adulthood

Migraine sufferers who experienced abuse and neglect as children have a greater risk of cardiovascular (CV) disease including stroke and myocardial infarction (MI) among others, say scientists presenting data at the American Headache Society's 52nd Annual Scientific Meeting in Los Angeles this week.

23 Jun 2010

Folic acid and vitamin B12 lower homocysteine levels in patients who experience heart attack: JAMA

Patients who had experienced a heart attack and lowered their blood homocysteine levels with folic acid and vitamin B12 supplementation did not have an associated lower risk of heart attack, coronary death or stroke, according to a study in the June 23/30 issue of JAMA. However, the researchers did find that folic acid supplementation did not increase the risk of cancer, which has been speculated.

23 Jun 2010

Misperceptions about 'light,' 'low,' 'mild' cigarettes

Today, new legislation will go into effect surrounding the ban of word descriptors such as "light," "low," and "mild" on all packaging and advertising of existing cigarettes and smokeless products. However, a new survey, sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Consumer Healthcare, shows that many smokers will choose the cigarettes in lighter-colored packaging because they incorrectly believe these cigarettes would be less harmful to their health or make it easier to quit smoking.

23 Jun 2010

New Jersey's failure to fund tobacco control programs is disappointing, says former health commissioner

New Jersey's failure to fund tobacco control programs is disappointing and will have long-term effects on the state's health and economy, said a former New Jersey health commissioner today.

23 Jun 2010

First anniversary of Tobacco Control Act: AACR calls for more research to combat tobacco epidemic

The American Association for Cancer Research recognizes the first anniversary of the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which was signed into law by President Obama on June 22, 2009.

23 Jun 2010

First anniversary of Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act

One year ago, President Obama signed the historic Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act (Tobacco Control Act). Under the Tobacco Control Act, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration obtained authority to regulate tobacco products, with a special emphasis on preventing their use by children and youth and reducing the impact of tobacco on public health.

22 Jun 2010

Smoking News and Research

U.S. Supreme Court declines to hear appeals in civil racketeering lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers

Study: Statins can reduce risk of prostate cancer recurrence after surgery

Maternal alcohol consumption impacts semen concentration in male offspring

Today's OpEds: A new breed of medical education, more on the Medicare 'doc fix,' efforts to cut health care waste

Overweight women undertaking ART at increased risk of miscarriage

Merck challenges New York jury decision in federal FOSAMAX retrial

Psychotropic medications associated with adverse drug reactions in Danish children: Researchers

CHMP adopts positive opinion on pending MAA for SYCREST sublingual tablets

Latino population less likely to receive basic preventive tests, says study

Study recommends women to avoid drug abuse during prenatal and breastfeeding periods

Majority of North Carolinians support increasing sales tax on cigarettes

Increased mortality rates in Bangladesh is associated with arsenic exposure, study finds

New Cancer Research UK figures: Deaths from stomach cancer drop

Americans spend more on health and get poorer care: Report

Early adverse experiences influence migraine sufferers' cardiovascular health in adulthood

Folic acid and vitamin B12 lower homocysteine levels in patients who experience heart attack: JAMA

Misperceptions about 'light,' 'low,' 'mild' cigarettes

New Jersey's failure to fund tobacco control programs is disappointing, says former health commissioner

First anniversary of Tobacco Control Act: AACR calls for more research to combat tobacco epidemic

First anniversary of Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act

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