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Top selling diabetes drug to carry back box warning

The government watchdog body in the U.S., The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), has placed a "black box" warning on the popular drug Avandia.

15 Nov 2007

GlaxoSmithKline implements changes to the US product label for Avandia

GlaxoSmithKline announced today that it is implementing changes to the US product label for Avandia(R) (rosiglitazone maleate), based on an extensive and thorough review by the FDA of myocardial ischemia data on Avandia, the most widely studied oral anti-diabetic medicine available.

15 Nov 2007

Captopril may limit radiation kidney damage in bone marrow transplant patients

Researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee have found that the risk of radiation injury in normal tissue after exposure may be reduced by a drug in common use. Their study in press appears in the on line issue of the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology and Physics.

15 Nov 2007

FDA adds warning for heart attacks to type 2 diabetes drug Avandia

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that the manufacturer of Avandia (rosiglitazone), a drug used to treat type 2 diabetes, has agreed to add new information to the existing boxed warning in the drug's labeling about potential increased risk for heart attacks.

14 Nov 2007

Bolivian Amazon study finds using insect repellent between dusk and bedtime makes insecticide-treated bednets more effective

Using insect repellent in addition to insecticide treated bednets (ITNs) has been shown to provide greater protection against malaria in areas where mosquitoes feed in the early evening.

14 Nov 2007

Avicena receives U.S. patent for compounds to treat Lou Gehrig's disease

Avicena Group, Inc. has announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted the Company U.S. Patent #7,285,573 for the use of the Company's proprietary drug candidates for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis ("ALS" or "Lou Gehrig's Disease").

14 Nov 2007

STEP study of Merck's HIV vaccine to be unblinded

Merck & Co., Inc. and the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) today announced that study volunteers in the STEP study of Merck's HIV vaccine (V520) will be told whether they received vaccine or placebo, and all study volunteers will be encouraged to continue to return to their study sites on a regular basis for ongoing risk reduction counseling and study-related tests.

14 Nov 2007

Volunteers in AIDS vaccine trial may be at greater risk of infection

Following the aborting of two international trials of an experimental AIDS vaccine, thousands of volunteers have been told the vaccine may have actually raised their risk of infection.

14 Nov 2007

Men who take beta carotene supplements for 15 years or longer may have less cognitive decline

Men who take beta carotene supplements for 15 years or longer may have less cognitive decline, according to a report in the November 12 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

13 Nov 2007

Lexicon files investigational NDA for LX2931 in rheumatoid arthritis

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has announced that it has submitted an investigational new drug (IND) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for LX2931, an oral drug candidate for rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune conditions.

13 Nov 2007

Human Genome Sciences announces positive phase 2 LymphoStat-B results

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. has announced the presentation of Phase 2 clinical results demonstrating that LymphoStat-B (belimumab) achieved a sustained improvement in disease activity across multiple clinical measures, decreased the frequency of disease flares over time, and was well tolerated through 2.5 years on treatment in combination with standard of care in patients with active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

13 Nov 2007

Seattle Post-Intelligencer examines reactions of people who participated in Merck's canceled HIV vaccine

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer on Friday examined the reaction of volunteers in the Seattle arm of Merck's recently halted HIV vaccine trial. According to the Post-Intelligencer, participants who were interviewed on the condition of anonymity have voiced "decidedly mixed feelings" about participating in the trial because of safety concerns (Paulson, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 11/9).

12 Nov 2007

Potential block buster on the horizon - new vaccine to control high blood pressure

A vaccine that would help people control their blood pressure is showing promise in early trials.

7 Nov 2007

Tezosentan does not appear to improve symptoms for patients with acute heart failure

The medication tezosentan, which was thought could be beneficial for the treatment of acute heart failure, did not improve breathlessness or reduce the risk of fatal or nonfatal cardiovascular events, according to a study in the November 7 issue of JAMA.

6 Nov 2007

Fenofibrate intervention and event lowering in diabetes

Fenofibrate is the first and only widely available lipid modifying agent to demonstrate significant protection to the eye of patients with type 2 diabetes, reducing the need for laser therapy in a wide spectrum of patients which should decrease the risk of progressive loss of vision.

6 Nov 2007

Novel approaches to hypertension control

A hypertension vaccine could be an important alternative to conventional drug therapy because of patients' inconsistent drug intake - if further research supports results from a small study testing the safety and tolerability of a vaccine.

6 Nov 2007

D-cycloserine could help treat drug addiction

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory provide further evidence that a drug known as D-cycloserine could play a role in helping to extinguish the craving behaviors associated with drug addiction.

6 Nov 2007

Antibiotic that appears to control phobias may also be useful in treating addiction

6 Nov 2007

Bupropion plus counseling appears to help adolescents quit cigarette smoking in the short term

Almost one-fourth of U.S. high school students currently smoke cigarettes, according to background information in the article. Many teen smokers want to quit, but studies estimate that only about 4 percent of those who try are successful each year.

6 Nov 2007

Trial of the antidepressant fluoxetine for teens with depression and substance use disorders

The antidepressant fluoxetine combined with cognitive behavioral therapy appears as effective for treating depression among teens who also have substance use disorders as among those without substance abuse problems, according to a report in the November issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

6 Nov 2007

Placebo News and Research

Top selling diabetes drug to carry back box warning

GlaxoSmithKline implements changes to the US product label for Avandia

Captopril may limit radiation kidney damage in bone marrow transplant patients

FDA adds warning for heart attacks to type 2 diabetes drug Avandia

Bolivian Amazon study finds using insect repellent between dusk and bedtime makes insecticide-treated bednets more effective

Avicena receives U.S. patent for compounds to treat Lou Gehrig's disease

STEP study of Merck's HIV vaccine to be unblinded

Volunteers in AIDS vaccine trial may be at greater risk of infection

Men who take beta carotene supplements for 15 years or longer may have less cognitive decline

Lexicon files investigational NDA for LX2931 in rheumatoid arthritis

Human Genome Sciences announces positive phase 2 LymphoStat-B results

Seattle Post-Intelligencer examines reactions of people who participated in Merck's canceled HIV vaccine

Potential block buster on the horizon - new vaccine to control high blood pressure

Tezosentan does not appear to improve symptoms for patients with acute heart failure

Fenofibrate intervention and event lowering in diabetes

Novel approaches to hypertension control

D-cycloserine could help treat drug addiction

Antibiotic that appears to control phobias may also be useful in treating addiction

Bupropion plus counseling appears to help adolescents quit cigarette smoking in the short term

Trial of the antidepressant fluoxetine for teens with depression and substance use disorders

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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