Endocrinology News and Research

Latest Endocrinology News and Research

Refuse to file letter on NDA for Cladribine Tablets issued to EMD Serono

EMD Serono, an affiliate of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced today that it received a refuse to file letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the New Drug Application (NDA) for Cladribine Tablets, EMD Serono's proprietary investigational oral formulation of cladribine, as a therapy for relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS).

1 Dec 2009

Members of priority groups to receive H1N1 vaccines from Department of Health

The Department of Health reminded Pennsylvanians they can begin making appointments today to be vaccinated against the H1N1 flu virus.

1 Dec 2009

Drinking sugar-sweetened cola a week prior to pregnancy elevates diabetes during pregnancy

Researchers from LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans School of Public Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), Harvard School of Public Health, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, have found for the first time that drinking more than 5 servings of sugar- sweetened cola a week prior to pregnancy appears to significantly elevate the risk of developing diabetes during pregnancy.

1 Dec 2009

Low-income women experience significantly greater gaps in access to health care

Low-income women are four times more likely than higher-income women to report fair or poor health and nearly twice as likely to report a health condition that limits their basic physical activities, according to a new policy brief from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

1 Dec 2009

Pharmacists could play important role in reform

Pharmacists may play an important role in the health care system by filling in health care gaps and advising patients, according to a series of articles in The Los Angeles Times, which reports on one clinical pharmacist Steven Chen and the "Patient Safety and Clinical Pharmacy Services Collaborative, a national project under the Health Resources and Services Administration that is working to integrate clinical pharmacy services into the care of patients with chronic diseases.

30 Nov 2009

Mannequins help doctors-in-training improve their skills

Using mannequins to teach doctors-in-training how to do ultrasound-guided procedures is an effective way to improve their skills without compromising patient care and safety, according to a new study from Henry Ford Hospital.

30 Nov 2009

GE Healthcare concentrates on healthymagination to help patients live longer and healthier

Miniaturized ultrasound. Navigation during interventional procedures. Innovations in sound wave imaging. At RSNA 2009, GE Healthcare is finding better ways to see more. And using that information to do more.

30 Nov 2009

European Commission approves MICARDIS medication for CV protection

MICARDIS® is the first treatment in its class to be approved for this indication. The EMEA approval is the second major milestone for MICARDIS® in cardiovascular protection. It follows the approval by the US FDA for the reduction of the risk of myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke, or death from cardiovascular (CV) causes in patients 55 years of age or older at high risk of developing major CV events who are unable to take ACE inhibitors.

27 Nov 2009

Researchers predict diabetes cases to double and cost to triple in the next 25 years

The diabetes population in the United States will almost double over the next 25 years and annual medical spending on the disease is projected to hit $336 billion, up from $113 billion today, according to a study published in the December issue of Diabetes Care. The National Changing Diabetes® Program (NCDP), a program of Novo Nordisk, commissioned the analysis by a team from the University of Chicago.

27 Nov 2009

Copper sequestering drug tetrathiomolybdate shown to be effective in treating Wilson disease

The copper sequestering drug tetrathiomolybdate (TM) has been shown in studies to be effective in the treatment of Wilson disease, a disease caused by an overload of copper, and certain metastatic cancers.

27 Nov 2009

Experts say vitamin D assists body's immune system to fight against H1N1

The world's leading vitamin D experts say that raising your levels of "the sunshine vitamin" this winter might be the best way to help your body naturally raise its resistance to all forms of the flu virus - including the H1N1 swine flu virus.

26 Nov 2009

MICARDIS receives Health Canada approval to reduce the risk of non-fatal stroke

MICARDIS(R) (telmisartan) has received Health Canada approval to reduce the risk of non-fatal stroke or non-fatal myocardial infarction in patients 55 years or older at high risk of developing major cardiovascular events who cannot tolerate an angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor.

26 Nov 2009

Wnt signaling pathway plays a role in diabetic retinopathy

A group led by Dr. Jian-xing Ma at The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK has demonstrated that the Wnt signaling pathway plays a role in diabetic retinopathy.

26 Nov 2009

Merck to commence MK-6913 phase IIa efficacy trial for treatment of hot flashes/hot flushes

The Swedish biotech company Karo Bio today announced that Merck & Co., Inc., through an affiliate, plans to enter a clinical phase IIa trial with the collaboration's lead investigational drug candidate, MK-6913, identified as part of their joint research collaboration. No milestone payment to Karo Bio is associated with the initiation of phase II clinical development.

26 Nov 2009

GIS scientists publish the first genetic historical map of Han Chinese

The first genetic historical map of the Han Chinese, the largest ethnic population in the world, as they migrated from south to north over evolutionary time was published online today by the American Journal of Human Genetics by scientists at the Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS).

26 Nov 2009

Aetna Better Health teams up with Hartford student to highlight the importance of diabetes and health literacy

For the second time this year, Aetna Better Health in Connecticut is teaming up with a local student to help complete a senior year “Social Justice Project,” while at the same time informing local residents on the important issues of diabetes and health literacy.

26 Nov 2009

Preventative care program to educate and seek affordable health care for people with bipolar disorder

Once again, the National Bipolar Foundation and the MedicAlert Foundation receive a proclamation endorsing their "Safe 'til Stable" program, which is now being widely accepted as a preventive health care measure for bipolar disorder.

26 Nov 2009

Study reveals that ghrelin can increase resistance to Parkinson's disease

Ghrelin, a hormone produced in the stomach, may be used to boost resistance to, or slow, the development of Parkinson's disease, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in a study published in a recent issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

25 Nov 2009

Foot ulcers: One of the many challenges of diabetics

Diabetics face many health challenges, and among them is the risk of developing foot ulcers.

25 Nov 2009

Health reform financing ideas watered down, questions remain on premiums, taxes

The New York Times reports that while the Senate health bill "includes nearly every big idea that health economists and medical researchers have for slowing cost growth — as well as for improving the patchwork quality of American health care, ... many of the ideas, like the rule on Medicare reimbursement, have been at least partly neutered. A provision to punish hospitals for infecting their patients, for example, would cut payments for the related treatments by a mere 1 percent.

25 Nov 2009