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Florida stands out among states with refusal to accept federal health law funding

The New York Times reports on strict stand by Florida governor to avoid HHS money. Meanwhile, other news outlets look at funding for insurance co-ops, efforts to set up health exchanges, and reviews of insurance premium increases.

2 Aug 2011

Lack of TLR1 surface expression linked with increased susceptibility to tuberculosis

Are you genetically predisposed to tuberculosis? Scientists may now be able to answer this question and doctors may be able to adjust their therapeutic approach based on what they learn. That's because new research presented in the Journal of Leukocyte Biology suggests that two frequent mutations in an immune system gene called TLR1 are responsible for cellular changes that ultimately make us less likely to resist the disease.

2 Aug 2011

Illinois EPA declares August 1 as air pollution action day for Chicago

In addition to the "Monday back-to-work blues" trouble breathing, fatigue, headaches and congestion may be what many Chicagoans experience today due to toxic air quality. The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has declared an air pollution action day for today, August 1, for the greater Chicago metropolitan area.

2 Aug 2011

Key Mass. hospital-doctor group still looking to fulfill pledge on reducing insurance premiums

Partners HealthCare System vowed to pay $40 million to help reduce insurance costs for small businesses, the Boston Globe reports. Also, California group announces plans for an ACO and Minnesota Public Radio examines how cost cutting efforts will affect health care.

2 Aug 2011

New liquid material shows promise for people with facial deformities

Biomedical engineers at Johns Hopkins have developed a new liquid material that in early experiments in rats and humans shows promise in restoring damaged soft tissue relatively safely and durably.

2 Aug 2011

PEPFAR will continue to lead HIV/AIDS fight

With recent scientific advancements in HIV prevention "transforming the way we think about AIDS," PEPFAR's "task is to translate new science into policy to inform programs," Ambassador Eric Goosby, the U.S. global aids coordinator, writes in a post on the State Department's "DipNote" blog.

2 Aug 2011

UNOS policy change reduces disparities in kidney transplants for African-Americans

A national transplant policy change designed to give African-American patients greater access to donor kidneys has sliced in half the racial disparities that have long characterized the allocation of lifesaving organs, new Johns Hopkins research suggests.

2 Aug 2011

Methamphetamine use can fuel HIV infection risk among young MSM

A study by researchers at Johns Hopkins Children's Center and elsewhere shows that methamphetamine use can fuel HIV infection risk among teenage boys and young men who have sex with men (MSM), a group that includes openly gay and bisexual men, as well as those who have sex with men but do not identify themselves as gay or bisexual.

2 Aug 2011

Positive results from Jennerex JX-594 proof-of-concept trial on metastatic melanoma

Jennerex, Inc., a private clinical-stage biotherapeutics company focused on the development and commercialization of first-in-class targeted oncolytic products for cancer, today announced that positive results from a proof-of-concept clinical trial using JX-594 to treat patients with metastatic melanoma were published in the peer-reviewed journal Molecular Therapy.

2 Aug 2011

Officials in Nigerian state say parents who refuse polio vaccination for children could be prosecuted

"Officials in Nigeria's northern Kano state say parents who refuse to have their children vaccinated against polio may be prosecuted," VOA News reports.

2 Aug 2011

Early life exposure to mold may increase risk of asthma in infants

Infants who live in "moldy" homes are three times more likely to develop asthma by age 7—an age that children can be accurately diagnosed with the condition.

2 Aug 2011

ADA releases new position paper, 'Nutrition Intervention in the Treatment of Eating Disorders'

As one of the most complicated sets of illnesses to treat, eating disorders have mental health, as well as medical and nutritional, aspects. While treatment by a multidisciplinary health-care team is considered the best practice, there is considerable debate over how to most effectively treat eating disorders and who should be on a treatment team.

2 Aug 2011

To eliminate germs in contact lens, 'rub and rinse' works best

For cleaning soft contact lenses with multipurpose disinfection solutions, the "rub and rinse" technique is most effective for eliminating micro-organisms—even when using "no-rub" disinfection solutions, according to a report in the August issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry.

2 Aug 2011

Insmed receives FDA clinical hold order for ARIKACE phase 3 trials in CF and NTM

Insmed Incorporated, a biopharmaceutical company, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has notified the Company that the agency has placed a clinical hold on Insmed's phase 3 clinical trials for ARIKACE in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients with Pseudomonas lung infections and patients with non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease.

2 Aug 2011

Development Assistance Committee review suggests more coordination in U.S. foreign aid program

"The U.S. should improve coordination among its more than two dozen government departments to promote coherence in its multibillion-dollar foreign aid program and avoid duplication," according to a peer review from the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Guardian reports.

2 Aug 2011

New insight into causes of pronoun confusion in autism

Autism is a mysterious developmental disease because it often leaves complex abilities intact while impairing seemingly elementary ones. For example, it is well documented that autistic children often have difficulty correctly using pronouns, sometimes referring to themselves as "you" instead of "I."

2 Aug 2011

FDA warns U.S. consumers not to use Evital emergency birth control medicine

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning U.S. consumers not to use the emergency birth control medicine labeled as Evital.

2 Aug 2011

Nicotine protects against Parkinson's disease

If you've ever wondered if smoking offered society any benefit, a new research report published in The FASEB Journal offers a surprising answer. Nicotine protects us from Parkinson's disease, and the discovery of how nicotine does this may lead to entirely new types of treatments for the disease.

2 Aug 2011

PCMA President releases statement on new GAO report

Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) President and CEO Mark Merritt released the following statement today on a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, "Medicare Part D Formularies: CMS Conducts Oversight of Mid-Year Changes; Most Mid-Year Changes Were Enhancements":

2 Aug 2011

Obesity more prevalent among Maryland and Virginia residents

Experts at My Weight Doctor, one of the Washington area's most prestigious weight loss clinics, expressed alarm over reports that obesity rates had surged in Maryland and Virginia residents.

2 Aug 2011

Medical News

Florida stands out among states with refusal to accept federal health law funding

Lack of TLR1 surface expression linked with increased susceptibility to tuberculosis

Illinois EPA declares August 1 as air pollution action day for Chicago

Key Mass. hospital-doctor group still looking to fulfill pledge on reducing insurance premiums

New liquid material shows promise for people with facial deformities

PEPFAR will continue to lead HIV/AIDS fight

UNOS policy change reduces disparities in kidney transplants for African-Americans

Methamphetamine use can fuel HIV infection risk among young MSM

Positive results from Jennerex JX-594 proof-of-concept trial on metastatic melanoma

Officials in Nigerian state say parents who refuse polio vaccination for children could be prosecuted

Early life exposure to mold may increase risk of asthma in infants

ADA releases new position paper, 'Nutrition Intervention in the Treatment of Eating Disorders'

To eliminate germs in contact lens, 'rub and rinse' works best

Insmed receives FDA clinical hold order for ARIKACE phase 3 trials in CF and NTM

Development Assistance Committee review suggests more coordination in U.S. foreign aid program

New insight into causes of pronoun confusion in autism

FDA warns U.S. consumers not to use Evital emergency birth control medicine

Nicotine protects against Parkinson's disease

PCMA President releases statement on new GAO report

Obesity more prevalent among Maryland and Virginia residents

Building quality into drug development for safer, faster medicines

How Pulp Fixin Is Turning Paper into High-Performance Sustainable Labware

A new method to measure intracellular water in biological systems

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