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Swissmedic authorizes Phase I/II clinical trial of human neural stem cells for chronic spinal cord injury

A therapy developed by Aileen Anderson and Brian Cummings of UC Irvine's Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center in collaboration with researchers at StemCells Inc. will be the basis of the world's first clinical trial using human neural stem cells to treat spinal cord injury.

8 Dec 2010

FDA grants QLT's QLT091001 orphan drug designation for treatment of Retinitis Pigmentosa

QLT Inc. today announced that QLT091001, the Company's oral synthetic retinoid, has been granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP) from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This follows the FDA grant of orphan drug designation for QLT091001 for the treatment of Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA) also on December 7, 2010.

8 Dec 2010

Some in health industry raising concerns about Accountable Care Organizations

CQ HealthBeat: "The medical device industry told the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that it's concerned about whether accountable care organizations could give providers financial incentives to hold back on needed patient care, particularly on technology. Meanwhile, insurance plan executives warned CMS officials that the ACOs could give hospitals and doctors new bargaining leverage in negotiations with insurers.

8 Dec 2010

NIH awards Scripps Research $2.35M to study new treatment for obesity

The Scripps Research Institute has been awarded a $2.35 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study a new way of treating obesity as part of a national consortium with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

8 Dec 2010

Concentrated nicotine in E-cigarattes poses unknown risks to consumers

What do some pesticides and "electronic cigarettes" have in common? According to a new report published in the American Journal of Public Health, the answer is unregulated concentrations of nicotine that may pose unknown risks to consumers who are exposed to them.

8 Dec 2010

Military health costs skyrocket

CNNMoney: "The cost of health care is blowing the top off the Pentagon's budget. Mirroring the private sector trend, expenses have skyrocketed within the military's health system. The military spent $19 billion on health care in 2001 — and $49 billion in 2010. The Department of Defense forecasts a continued rise of 5% to 7% a year.

8 Dec 2010

One Lambda, Luminex renew 10-year human leukocyte antigen technology development partnership

One Lambda Inc., a leading manufacturer and supplier of quality products and technology for the HLA transplant community, and Luminex Corporation have agreed to a long-term renewal of their 10-year strategic partnership aimed at developing platforms and technologies for human leukocyte antigen (HLA).

From Luminex 8 Dec 2010

Company reaches $28 million settlement for Medicare program

The Tennesseean: "Healthways Inc. will return $28 million to Medicare's overseer under a settlement related to the company's participation in a pilot program to determine the effectiveness of its nurse-based health coaching for chronically ill seniors." The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services had paid the company $72 million for the pilot program, which ended two years ago, under the condition that it meet "specific targets for cost savings, health outcomes and patient satisfaction."

7 Dec 2010

New sensitive blood test could determine unrecognized heart disease

A more sensitive version of a blood test typically used to confirm that someone is having a heart attack could indicate whether a seemingly healthy, middle-aged person has unrecognized heart disease and an increased risk of dying, UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers have found.

7 Dec 2010

Deal for year-long doc fix in the works

Politico: Senators reached a tentative deal Monday that would tap health law funds to avert a scheduled pay cut for physicians. The deal would take back about $19.2 billion in health law subsidies to help people buy health insurance beginning in 2014. It "would change how much money consumers would have to repay if their income status changes mid-year, pushing them out of the eligibility bracket.

7 Dec 2010

eLINCx to implement GE's eHealth Information Exchange across Wooster, Dunlap Community Hospitals

eLINCx, founded earlier this year to provide quality healthcare services to central Ohio communities, and GE Healthcare announced today that eLINCx will implement GE Healthcare's eHealth Information Exchange across Wooster Community Hospital, Dunlap Community Hospital and more than a dozen physician practices.

7 Dec 2010

Early group daycare exposure protects kids from infections later: Study

A new study reassures parents that although young kids might get sick more often when they first start group childcare, these same kids get fewer infections later in their childhood. About one in three U.S. kids receives organized childcare before reaching kindergarten age, whether at a daycare center or a school.

7 Dec 2010

Psychotic depression: the reason for treatment failure with antidepressants

A new study shows that patients with depression who also have psychotic-like symptoms, feelings of being persecuted, or believing others are plotting against them or hearing voices are less likely to respond to antidepressants. The study also showed that bipolar disorder does not appear to be associated with treatment resistance in patients with depression as believed earlier.

7 Dec 2010

Contrave, new weight loss pill gets FDA panel nod

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel yesterday recommended the approval of Orexigen Therapeutics’ weight loss drug Contrave. This is the first time a weight loss drug has received the nod. The vote went 13 to 7 for Contrave’s approval and 11 to 8, with an abstention that additional studies be conducted on heart risks. Although experts agree to risks they believe the benefits outweigh the risks. Although the FDA is not compelled to go with the panel’s recommendation, it more often than not does. The FDA will deliver its verdict by Jan. 31 2011.

7 Dec 2010

Humble aspirin reduces cancer death rates

A new study has shown aspirin cuts down the death rates from a range of cancers. The study reviewed data from eight previous trials involving more than 25,000 patients found that those who took just 75mg of aspirin a day (one-eighth of a normal dose) could reduce their death rates from cancer by 21% with benefits continuing long after patients stopped taking the pill.

7 Dec 2010

Mobile phones use during pregnancy linked to behavioural problems in kids: Study

A new study finds that pregnant mums who regularly use mobile phones may be more likely to have children with behavioral problems, especially if these kids themselves start using mobile phones in their first seven years.

7 Dec 2010

Cognitively-impaired human research subjects need better protection

Practices for protecting human research subjects with Alzheimer’s disease and other conditions that make them incapable of giving informed consent are widely variable and in need of more concrete ethical and legal guidance, according to a study in IRB: Ethics & Human Research.

7 Dec 2010

Size exclusion chromatography illuminates protein crystallization

Understanding membrane protein crystallization is one of the main goals of molecular biology studies aimed at the structural characterization of proteins.

From Malvern Panalytical 7 Dec 2010

Injury prevention for young volleyball athletes

When volleyball was invented 115 years ago in Holyoke, Mass., it was meant to be less rough than basketball, another emerging indoor sport that started four years earlier at a nearby YMCA.

7 Dec 2010

Sheathless transradial intervention highly successful in treating complex lesions

Cardiologists from the Mayo Clinic performed sheathless transradial percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to remedy complex lesions, achieving a 90% success rate with no radial complications. Standard guiding catheters were used during the procedure. Details of this novel approach—overcoming the last hurdle to greater adoption of transradial PCI in the U.S.—are published in the December issue of Catheterization and Cardiovascular Intervention, the official journal of The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions.

7 Dec 2010