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Actient Pharmaceuticals completes transaction to license; acquire six pharmaceutical products from UCB

Actient Pharmaceuticals, LLC ,a portfolio company of GTCR, announced today the company successfully completed a transaction to license and acquire six pharmaceutical products from UCB, Inc., a subsidiary of UCB SA, an international biopharmaceutical company based in Brussels, Belgium.

30 Jul 2010

ACADIA initiates new pimavanserin Phase III trial for Parkinson's disease psychosis

ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company utilizing innovative technology to fuel drug discovery and clinical development of novel treatments for central nervous system disorders, today announced that it has initiated a new Phase III trial designed to evaluate the efficacy, tolerability and safety of pimavanserin as a treatment for patients with Parkinson's disease psychosis (PDP).

30 Jul 2010

Geron second-quarter net loss decreases to $17.0 million

Geron Corporation today reported financial results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2010.

30 Jul 2010

Transforaminal injection of steroids is a viable alternative for lumbar radicular pain surgery

A recent study from Australian researchers determined that transforaminal injection of steroids was a viable alternative to surgery for lumbar radicular pain due to disc herniation. Full details of the study appear in the August issue of Pain Medicine, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Academy of Pain Medicine, the Faculty of Pain Medicine of the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists, and the International Spine Intervention Society.

30 Jul 2010

CVS-Aetna deal boosts the drug store chain

Forbes: CVS Caremark, the drug retailer and pharmacy benefit management firm, announced a new agreement with Aetna to help constrain drug costs. "The deal encompasses approximately $9.5 billion in annual drug spending relating to approximately 9.7 million lives. CVS expects significant long-term financial benefits from this strategic relationship" (7/28).

30 Jul 2010

ASR, School Health sign exclusive distribution agreement for VeraTemp+ non contact thermometer

American Scientific Resources, Inc. announces today that the Company has executed an exclusive distribution agreement with the nation's leading school heath supplies and equipment distributor, School Health Corporation. School Health will be the exclusive distributor of ASR's VeraTemp+ non contact thermometer in the school healthcare market in the US.

30 Jul 2010

Supplementation of vitamin D protects vascular systems: Study

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with arterial stiffness, a risk factor for heart disease and stroke, in black teens according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). Black teens taking vitamin D supplementation of 2,000 international units (IU) per day had a decrease in central arterial stiffness.

30 Jul 2010

BioCurex’s RECAF blood test potential to monitor cancer recurrence, treatment

BioCurex Inc. today announced that the International Society of Oncology and Biomarkers Congress Scientific Committee has accepted BioCurex's presentation on the RECAF blood test potential to monitor cancer recurrence and treatment. The meeting will be held Sept. 3-8, 2010 in Munich, Germany and is broadly attended by scientists, physicians and biotechnology companies involved in cancer diagnostics.

30 Jul 2010

Prostate basal cell can spawn tumors in prostate gland: Research

A type of prostate cell that has been largely ignored by cancer researchers can, in fact, trigger malignant prostate cancer, according to new studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists and their colleagues.

30 Jul 2010

Cardiac Science reports revenues of $36.1 million for second-quarter 2010

Cardiac Science Corporation, a global leader in automated external defibrillator (AED) and diagnostic cardiac monitoring devices, today announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2010.

30 Jul 2010

New paradigm in TB research may lead to improved vaccination, treatment

Often causing no symptoms in carriers of the disease, worldwide tuberculosis (TB) infects eight to ten million people every year, kills two million, and it is highly contagious as it is spread through coughing and sneezing. "It's a global health disaster waiting to happen, even here in Canada, but this new paradigm in TB research may offer an immediate opportunity to improve vaccination and treatment initiatives," explains Dr. Maziar Divangahi of McGill University and of the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre.

30 Jul 2010

Health insurance scams on rise after health reform

U.S. News & World Report: Regulators are accusing the Tennessee-based American Trade Association of bilking consumers out of $14 million by selling fake health insurance to 26,000 households in all 50 states. The scams happened "over a span of 16 months, according to court documents. More than a few of those dollars appear to have been spent on personal items such as cars, real estate, and loan payments, says Leslie Newman, Tennessee's insurance commissioner.

30 Jul 2010

Abaxis first-quarter revenues increase 18% to $35.0 million

ABAXIS, Inc., a medical products company manufacturing point-of-care blood analysis systems, today reported financial results for the first fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2010.

30 Jul 2010

Today's Opinions: Haiti's lesson for the U.S.; Ending 'Pay for delay;' Getting the CLASS Act off the ground

In February, a month after Haiti's earthquake, I went down to Port-au-Prince as part of a team that was helping to reactivate cardiac care in the city's public hospital. For several months since, I have observed how the earthquake and its aftermath profoundly changed Haiti's health care system. Over that time, I have come to the unorthodox conclusion that Haiti's tragic experience may show us a way to improve health care in the United States (James Wilentz, 7/28).

30 Jul 2010

Quidel second-quarter total revenues increase 1.6% to $25.0 million

Quidel Corporation, a leading provider of rapid diagnostic testing solutions, announced today financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2010.

30 Jul 2010

KHN column: Gazing into CBO's budget and health care crystal ball

In his latest Kaiser Health News column, James C. Capretta writes: "Last week, Peter Orszag, the president's outgoing Director of the Office of Management and Budget, released updated budget projections on behalf of the Obama administration.

30 Jul 2010

Poll: Opposition to health reform declines; Seniors view new law more negatively than adults overall

The Washington Post: "Opposition to the landmark health care overhaul declined over the past month, to 35 percent from 41 percent, according to the latest results of a tracking poll, reported Thursday. Fifty percent of the public held a favorable view of the law, up slightly from 48 percent a month ago, while 14 percent expressed no opinion about the measure, according to the poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

30 Jul 2010

iPads for 500 doctors and nurses in Victoria

Doctors and nurses in Victoria will be given Apple iPads as part of a trial to improve internet access in Victorian hospitals. According to Health Minister Daniel Andrews’ announcement yesterday, 500 iPads would be sent to graduate doctors and nurses in January and if the $500,000 pilot program goes well, the devices could be used more widely.

29 Jul 2010

Aged care in crisis: Warns opposition

According to opposition Leader Tony Abbott, the coalition's aged care policy will be suffering a cash crunch. The aged-care sector is critically underfunded and needs more than $50 billion to deal with the increased demand from an ageing population say the Aged Care Association. Mr. Abbott said, “I want to caution people against expecting enormous dollars.” Although he said some very important sectors in the aging population would be addressed but, “It would be a lot easier to help in so many areas if we hadn't been on such a poorly targeted spending spree from this government.”

29 Jul 2010

ADHD linked to poorer eating habits: Study

A new study by researchers in Perth has linked attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder with “western-style” diets in teenage sufferers. For the study the Telethon Institute for Child Health and Research examined the diets of 1,800 adolescents, categorizing them as either eating a healthy mix of fruit, vegetables, whole grains and fish or the “western-style” highly-processed, fried and take-away foods. The latter contained more food additives, flavors or colors, which could lead to hyperactivity or changes to chemicals that control parts of the brain dealing with attention and concentration say researchers.

29 Jul 2010