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GSK, ChemoCentryx initiate '786 Phase III clinical trial for Crohn's disease

GlaxoSmithKline and ChemoCentryx, announced today that the first patient with Crohn's disease has initiated treatment in the initial pivotal induction study comparing Traficet-EN, now designated GSK1605786 ('786), to placebo.

12 Jan 2011

Study indicates disease's underlying causes in mice, finds compounds that normalize Alzheimer's brain

A Blanchette Rockefeller Neurosciences Institute study published today in the Journal of Neuroscience reveals underlying causes for the degeneration of synapses in Alzheimer's Disease and identifies promising pharmaceutical solutions for the devastating condition that affects more than 5 million people in the United States.

12 Jan 2011

Drug resistant malaria on the prowl

Experts have warned that drug-resistant malaria could spread from Southeast Asia to Africa within months, putting millions of children’s lives at risk. Nicholas White, professor of tropical medicine at Mahidol University in Bangkok warned that a malaria strain resistant to the drug artemisinin that first emerged along the Thai-Cambodian border in 2007.

12 Jan 2011

FDA panel rejects new pancreatic enzyme replacement drug

Eli Lilly & Co did not win the support of the U.S. advisory panel on Wednesday for its one-of-its kind drug not made from pig enzymes to help certain pancreatic patients digest food. A Food and Drug Administration panel of outside experts in a 7-4 vote said they were not convinced the experimental medicine, known chemically as liprotamase, worked well enough for patients to absorb enough needed nutrients. One member of the panel abstained.

12 Jan 2011

Antibiotics for ear infection in kids better than watchful waiting: Study

Findings from two latest clinical trials reveal that a young child with ear infections recovers faster and more completely if doctors give antibiotics right away rather than waiting to see if the kid get better on his/her own. One of the studies was in the U.S. and one in Finland. Earlier it has been debated that for young children with middle ear infections or otitis media whether immediate antibiotic treatment was better than watchful waiting. Current treatment recommendations in the U.S., Canada, and Europe allow for a watch-and-wait approach to suspected middle ear infections in young children. Change is coming, predicts study leader Alejandro Hoberman, MD, of Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

12 Jan 2011

NSAIDs raise risk of heart disease: Study

A new study published online in the British Medical Journal explores the relative safety of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs), commonly used to treat joint and muscle aches and pain and concludes that NSAIDs significantly increase the risk of cardiovascular events in patients who take them regularly.

12 Jan 2011

New Down syndrome non-invasive test for ‘mums-to-be’ on the horizon

According to experts a simple DNA test for Down syndrome could save nearly all pregnant women from invasive tests like amniocentesis. Usually 3% to 5% of pregnant women in the UK or some 30,000 women have to undergo invasive tests like amniocentesis that increases the risk of miscarriage to 1%. The new DNA blood test could bring this down to 0.1%, according to a study in the British Medical Journal.

12 Jan 2011

Rochester Medical enters agreement with Fornix to acquire Laprolan

Rochester Medical Corporation today announced it had reached an agreement with Fornix N.V. to purchase from Fornix its wholly owned subsidiary Laprolan B.V., a medical supplies distribution company located in Beuningen, The Netherlands.

12 Jan 2011

Educational psychologist calls for national review of medicating children to treat behavioural issues

According to the NHS Business Service Authority, some prescriptions of amphetamines for children have increased nearly 120 fold between 1994 and 2009. This is causing ongoing concern amongst some educational and child psychologists.

12 Jan 2011

US most susceptible to brand erosion post patent expiry

On average, small molecule brands in the US experienced the greatest degree of brand erosion following patent expiry and exposure to direct generic competition, according to a new report from independent market analyst, Datamonitor.

12 Jan 2011

Wright launches DARCO Foot & Ankle Plating System in Japan

Wright Medical Group, Inc., a global orthopaedic medical device company, today announced the launch of the DARCO® Foot & Ankle Plating System in Japan. The DARCO® Plating System consists of over 40 different locked plates specifically designed to meet the needs of foot and ankle surgeons. Wright has been selling the DARCO® Plating System in the United States and other key global markets since 2007.

12 Jan 2011

RAS includes Merge iConnect solution

Merge Healthcare, a leading health IT solutions provider, today announced that Radiology Associates of Sacramento (RAS), the largest private radiology practice in Northern California, has expanded their Merge solution suite to include Merge iConnect.

12 Jan 2011

Fruit and vegetables gives more healthy golden glow than the sun

New research suggests eating vegetables gives you a healthy tan. The study, led by Dr Ian Stephen at The University of Nottingham, showed that eating a healthy diet rich in fruit and vegetables gives you a more healthy golden glow than the sun.

12 Jan 2011

Sharp refines IT service management strategy to include BMC solutions

Sharp HealthCare is known for leveraging IT to support its culture of quality service, innovation and excellence. But as the industry faces new reforms affecting patient care and management of patient data, Sharp is relying on BMC Software for an integrated approach to maintain its reputation of IT innovation.

12 Jan 2011

ZOLL announces successful conclusion of Circulation Improving Resuscitation Care trial

ZOLL Medical Corporation, a manufacturer of medical devices and related software solutions, announced today the successful conclusion of the ZOLL-sponsored CIRC trial. The trial's Data Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) closed enrollment when an analysis of the data showed the load-distributing band (AutoPulse® Non-invasive Cardiac Support Pump) to be equivalent to manual chest compressions.

12 Jan 2011

University of Minnesota places order for Bruker's ultra-high field NMR spectrometers

Bruker announces an order valued at over $7.5 million from the University of Minnesota for its new Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) laboratory, including ultra-high field Avance™ III 900 and Avance™ III 850 NMR spectrometers. The systems will be installed in the newly constructed and greatly expanded NMR Facility at the University of Minnesota.

12 Jan 2011

Exiqon launches 2nd generation of miRCURY LNA microRNA Inhibitor libraries for genome-wide screening

Exiqon A/S, a leading supplier of high-value gene expression analysis products, today announced the launch of the 2nd generation of miRCURY LNA microRNA Inhibitor libraries for genome-wide screening of microRNA function in human and mouse. Several libraries have already been shipped to the first customers.

12 Jan 2011

Endosense initiates enrollment in TactiCath Contact Force Ablation Catheter Study for Atrial Fibrillation

Endosense, a medical technology company focused on improving the efficacy, safety and accessibility of catheter ablation for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, has announced first patient enrollment in the TOCCASTAR (TactiCath Contact Force Ablation Catheter Study for Atrial Fibrillation) clinical study at Na Homolce Hospital, Prague, Czech Republic, by study investigator Petr Neuzil, M.D.

12 Jan 2011

Discovery Labs regains compliance with Nasdaq Minimum Bid Price Rule

Discovery Laboratories, Inc. announced today that, on January 11, 2011, a NASDAQ Listing Qualifications Panel determined that Discovery Labs has regained compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2) ("Minimum Bid Price Rule") because its common stock has maintained a minimum closing bid price of $1.00 per share over a period of 10 consecutive business days ending on January 10, 2011.

12 Jan 2011

Daiichi Sankyo and ArQule initiate enrollment in ARQ 197 Phase 3 trial in NSCLC

Daiichi Sankyo Company, Limited and ArQule, Inc. today announced that the first patient has been enrolled in the Phase 3 trial of ARQ 197, an investigational selective inhibitor of the c-Met receptor tyrosine kinase, in combination with erlotinib, for patients diagnosed with non-squamous, non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who have received one or two prior systemic anti-cancer therapies.

12 Jan 2011