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FDA approves Alexion's Rhode Island manufacturing facility as commercial supply source for Soliris

Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Alexion's Rhode Island manufacturing facility (ARIMF) in Smithfield, Rhode Island as a second source of commercial supply for Soliris® (eculizumab).

23 Aug 2010

AHRA announces third Patients First grant program to provide health care facilities

Healthcare facilities across the country are committed to providing the highest levels of patient care and safety for their communities. To help facilities build new or expand existing education and patient care initiatives, AHRA: The Association for Medical Imaging Management announces the third year of its successful Putting Patients First grant program.

23 Aug 2010

Aetna offers Employee Assistance Program resources for flood-impacted members

Aetna is making it easier for members impacted by the flooding in Tennessee to refill prescriptions and access employee assistance and behavioral health programs.The company is monitoring the situation carefully, and will re-evaluate its medical and dental policies for members as necessary to help them access care in the flood-impacted areas in Middle Tennessee, where many people face evacuations from their homes.

23 Aug 2010

Artimplant implements new organization for staff cutbacks

Artimplant is following through on its strategy of focusing the company on the market even further and has now concluded negotiations under the Swedish Co-Determination Act, resulting in staff cutbacks within functions not related directly to sales. Once the periods of notice have been completed the annual saving at Artimplant AB will be approximately SEK 5 million.

23 Aug 2010

Brain can act as a hiding place for HIV virus: Study

Studies of the spinal fluid of patients given anti-HIV drugs have resulted in new findings suggesting that the brain can act as a hiding place for the HIV virus. Around 10% of patients showed traces of the virus in their spinal fluid but not in their blood.

23 Aug 2010

Study finds occurrence of low BMD in inflammatory bowel disease patients

A thesis from the University of Gothenburg (Sweden) is the first in Scandinavia to study the occurrence of low bone mineral density in children and teenagers with inflammatory bowel disease. Half of the patients in the study showed signs of low bone mineral density.

23 Aug 2010

Getinge's vascular graft production unit receives warning letter from FDA

Getinge's production unit in Wayne, New Jersey, US, has received a warning letter from the US FDA (Food and Drug Administration). The warning letter originates from an inspection performed by the authority on the Wayne plant during the spring of 2010. The FDA's observations and remarks relate to the manufacture of vascular grafts

23 Aug 2010

Study finds post Katrina period increases mental health issues among children

Key findings documented in American Medical Association's Journal of Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness 60% of children - as many as 20,000 - displaced by Katrina either have serious emotional disorders, behavioral issues and/or are experiencing significant housing instability.One-third of children are reported to have been diagnosed with at least one mental health problem, but fewer than 50% of parents were able to access needed professional services.Children post-Katrina are 4.5 times more likely to have serious emotional disturbance than children not affected by the disaster

23 Aug 2010

Children's Wish Foundation to grant new wishes for children diagnosed with life-threatening illness

The first word Timur ever uttered was "cat". For all of his 8 years, Timur has been fascinated by animals and dinosaurs; he loves to watch Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel. So when he was told he could have his most heartfelt wish thanks to The Children's Wish Foundation of Canada, animals were certain to be an important part of it.

23 Aug 2010

Samplify receives second series of patent for medical imaging applications

Samplify Systems, Inc., a leading provider of signal-compression technology, semiconductors, and solutions, today announced that the Chinese Government has granted the company its second series of technology patents for medical imaging applications. These new patents come on the heels of the first series of patents that were granted earlier this month for wireless base station compression.

23 Aug 2010

Scientists report global shortage of radioactive isotopes for medical scans

Twenty million medical scans and treatments are done each year that require radioactive isotopes and scientists today described a global shortage of these life-saving materials that could jeopardize patient care and drive-up health care costs.

23 Aug 2010

Researchers discover unusual property of meiosis may lead to Down syndrome

In a study of egg cells using time-lapse microscopy, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have discovered an unusual property of meiosis - cell division that produces reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms.

23 Aug 2010

Researchers find medication for diabetes, smoking cessation

The script for two research teams inducted today into the American Chemical Society (ACS) scientific "hall of fame" the ACS Heroes of Chemistry is a tale of two pills. One team invented a medication that helps people with diabetes control their blood sugar levels. The second team invented a medicine that helps people stop smoking, an addiction that experts regard as today's single greatest preventable cause of death worldwide.

23 Aug 2010

Sledding-related injuries may result in traumatic brain injury: Study

A new study conducted by the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital found that from 1997-2007, an estimated 229,023 children and adolescents younger than 19 years were treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments for sledding-related injuries, an average of more than 20,000 cases each year.

23 Aug 2010

Golden Meditech medical device business raises USD 40 million

Golden Meditech Holdings Limited, China's leading integrated healthcare enterprise, is pleased to announce that its medical devices business has successfully raised USD 40 million from a number of renowned private equity investors where the proceeds will fund the construction of new production lines for both medical devices and medical accessories to fund the formation of joint-venture with Fenwal Inc.

23 Aug 2010

Intelerad to feature hospital solutions at AHRA annual meeting

Intelerad Medical Systems will be featuring its hospital solutions at the AHRA 2010 Annual Meeting and Exposition on August 22 to 26, 2010 in Washington, DC.

23 Aug 2010

Health insurance for college students generating coverage, controversy

A national anti-abortion group is asking Gov. Bev Perdue to look into the details of a new [University of North Carolina] system requirement that all students have health insurance. Students for Life of America has asked Perdue to investigate a number of issues surrounding the UNC system's new health insurance program for students.

23 Aug 2010

Illinois launches health insurance program, California to follow suit

As the new health reform law requires, states are continuing to establish health insurance pools for "high-risk" patients. The Associated Press/Chicago Sun-Times "Hundreds of Illinois residents have submitted applications for a new federally funded health insurance program for people with medical problems.

23 Aug 2010

Epicept receives refusal to file letter on new drug application

EpiCept Corporation today announced that it received a refusal to file letter from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the New Drug Application (NDA) for Ceplene(histamine dihydrochloride).

23 Aug 2010

Scientists develop new synthetic material to grow stem cells

Human pluripotent stem cells, which can become any other kind of body cell, hold great potential to treat a wide range of ailments, including Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injuries. However, scientists who work with such cells have had trouble growing large enough quantities to perform experiments - in particular, to be used in human studies. Furthermore, most materials now used to grow human stem cells include cells or proteins that come from mice embryos, which help stimulate stem-cell growth but would likely cause an immune reaction if injected into a human patient.

23 Aug 2010