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Major tech firms join ranks of health IT squad

"The race to streamline online access to medical records turned into a stampede this week as leading high-tech vendors trumpeted new initiatives at the Health Information and Management Systems Society" (HIMSS) trade show in Atlanta," InternetNews.com/Datamation reports, adding that Dell, Google, IBM, Microsoft and others are touting "new and pending deals designed to help consumers, doctors and hospital move to more easily accessible, but also secure, medical histories and information online" (Needle, 3/1).

3 Mar 2010

Phase III study results of Merck's allergy immunotherapy tablet

In new data from a Phase III study in 345 children and adolescents (ages 5-17 years), patients with grass pollen allergic rhinoconjunctivitis treated with Merck's investigational sublingual grass (Phleum Pratense) allergy immunotherapy tablet (AIT) showed a 26 percent greater improvement in the total combined score (daily symptom score and daily medication score), compared to patients receiving placebo

3 Mar 2010

Impax Laboratories' generic FLOMAX ANDA: FDA grants final approval

Impax Laboratories, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted final approval of the Company’s Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for the generic version of FLOMAX® (tamsulosin hydrochloride) 0.4mg capsules. The Company also announced that it is commencing shipment through Global Pharmaceuticals, Impax’s generic division.

3 Mar 2010

EMA accepts the filing of Lux Biosciences' MAA for Luveniq

Lux Biosciences, Inc. today announced that the European Medicines Agency has accepted the filing of the company’s Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) for the company’s lead product, Luveniq™ (LX211; oral voclosporin) for the treatment of noninfectious uveitis involving the intermediate or posterior segments of the eye.

3 Mar 2010

Increasing health costs hurt coverage of medical workers, too

Even members of the health industry are feeling the pain of increasing health costs as they insure their employees, according to the Detroit News. "To combat rising costs, major health organizations are trimming medical benefits, tacking on surcharges for smoking and passing more out-of-pocket costs onto workers. Nurses, technicians and hospital workers are paying higher copayments and deductibles. … For many health providers, these cost-containing moves come out of necessity. They, too, have seen business taper off as a result of the recession, with many of their own patients losing coverage because of job losses."

3 Mar 2010

OrthoDynamix' ArthroSteer 3.5mm Ablator for general surgical use receives FDA clearance

OrthoDynamix announced today that it has received FDA clearance for its new device, ArthroSteer 3.5mm Ablator, a mono polar electrosurgical device, for general surgical use, including the orthopedic and arthroscopic applications for resection, ablation, excision of soft tissue, hemostasis of blood vessels, and coagulating soft tissue in, but not limited to the knee, shoulder, and primarily the hip.

3 Mar 2010

Advanced Cell Technology’s MA09-hRPE cells for treatment of SMD: FDA grants orphan drug designation

Advanced Cell Technology, Inc., a biotechnology company applying cellular technology in the field of regenerative medicine, announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug designation for the company’s MA09-hRPE cells for use in the treatment of Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy (SMD). As a result, the company is eligible to receive a number of benefits, including tax credits, access to grant funding for clinical trials, accelerated FDA approval and allowance for marketing exclusivity after drug approval for a period of as long as seven years.

3 Mar 2010

Concentra expands customer base and reach with the acquisition of Health Now

Effective March 1, Concentra, a national provider of urgent care services, has expanded its customer base and reach with the acquisition of the assets of Cherry Hill Health Care Associates, P.A. in Pennsauken, N.J.

3 Mar 2010

Study shows cryoablation technique offers a potential treatment for breast cancer

Freezing a cancer kills it in its place, and also appears to generate an immune response that helps stop the cancer's spread, leading to improved survival rates over surgery, according to a new study in mice from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

3 Mar 2010

GOP Senators worry about backlash from COBRA extension filibuster

Los Angeles Times' D.C. Now: "Sen. Jim Bunning, the Republican from Kentucky whom Democrats love to blame for preventing passage of an extension of unemployment benefits, again blocked the Senate from taking up the measure on Tuesday." He says he supports the legislation's goals but will oppose it "until it is fully funded without increasing the federal deficit. In a one-person filibuster [that started last Thursday], Bunning has blocked the bill that, in addition to extending benefits, would also ... prevent a big cut in Medicare payments to doctors" (Muskal, 3/2).

3 Mar 2010

Study: Patients with community-acquired pneumonia who develop AKI more likely to die after discharge

Patients hospitalized with even mild to moderate community-acquired pneumonia who develop acute kidney injury (AKI) are more likely to die after discharge than pneumonia patients whose kidneys remain healthy, according to a University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine study in the February issue of Kidney International.

3 Mar 2010

Drinking coffee may lower risk of hospitalization for heart rhythm disturbances

Coffee drinkers may be less likely to be hospitalized for heart rhythm disturbances, according to a new study by the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, Calif. The researchers, who note the findings may be surprising because patients frequently report palpitations after drinking coffee, are presenting the study at the American Heart Association's 50th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention in San Francisco on March 5, 2010.

3 Mar 2010

Dead Sea resorts introduce world-renowned treatment for people with dermatological diseases

The Dead Sea is the only place in the world that combines year-round hot weather, an oxygen-enriched atmosphere, therapeutic UVB solar radiation, a mineral-rich salt sea, world famous mineral-rich mud, thermo-mineral hot springs and luxurious spas.

3 Mar 2010

Study suggests mental activity could stave off age-related cognitive and memory decline

UC Irvine neurobiologists are providing the first visual evidence that learning promotes brain health - and, therefore, that mental stimulation could limit the debilitating effects of aging on memory and the mind.

3 Mar 2010

Combination of two targeted therapies effective against subset of gastric cancers: Study

A combination of two targeted therapies already shown to be effective in breast cancer packs an effective one-two punch against a subset of gastric cancers that have a specific genetic mutation, a study at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found.

3 Mar 2010

Bunning continues block of COBRA subsidy extension, Medicare 'doc fix'

Sen. Jim Bunning, R-Ky., is blocking a bill that would temporarily extend unemployment benefits and federal subsidies for some health insurance benefits.

2 Mar 2010

Doctors issue warnings about reduced access as Congressional inaction cuts Medicare pay

A political deadlock in the Senate has triggered a 21 percent Medicare pay reduction to doctors who say they may have to limit care for older Americans unless the reduction is reversed.

2 Mar 2010

Aesyntix Health offers web-based reimbursement solution for dermatology industry

Aesyntix Health, Inc., a leading provider of solutions for dermatologists, today announced it will be offering the first-ever payer benchmarking for the Dermatology industry.

2 Mar 2010

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics receives Notice of Allowance on ICT-69 monoclonal antibody

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, Ltd., a biotechnology company that is developing immune based therapies for the treatment of various forms of cancer, announced today it received a Notice of Allowance on monoclonal antibody ICT-69 which targets multiple myeloma and ovarian cancers. The antibody has demonstrated high specificity to these cancers by targeting a novel cell surface antigen.

2 Mar 2010

GOP, Dems continue battle over using 'reconciliation' to move health reform forward

Democrats are defending the use of the budget reconciliation in a health care overhaul as "nothing extraordinary" while Republicans are accusing them of "trying to ram through legislation using a parliamentary trick that Republicans say was never designed for such a big bill," The Wall Street Journal reports.

2 Mar 2010

Medical News

Major tech firms join ranks of health IT squad

Phase III study results of Merck's allergy immunotherapy tablet

Impax Laboratories' generic FLOMAX ANDA: FDA grants final approval

EMA accepts the filing of Lux Biosciences' MAA for Luveniq

Increasing health costs hurt coverage of medical workers, too

OrthoDynamix' ArthroSteer 3.5mm Ablator for general surgical use receives FDA clearance

Advanced Cell Technology’s MA09-hRPE cells for treatment of SMD: FDA grants orphan drug designation

Concentra expands customer base and reach with the acquisition of Health Now

Study shows cryoablation technique offers a potential treatment for breast cancer

GOP Senators worry about backlash from COBRA extension filibuster

Study: Patients with community-acquired pneumonia who develop AKI more likely to die after discharge

Drinking coffee may lower risk of hospitalization for heart rhythm disturbances

Dead Sea resorts introduce world-renowned treatment for people with dermatological diseases

Study suggests mental activity could stave off age-related cognitive and memory decline

Combination of two targeted therapies effective against subset of gastric cancers: Study

Bunning continues block of COBRA subsidy extension, Medicare 'doc fix'

Doctors issue warnings about reduced access as Congressional inaction cuts Medicare pay

Aesyntix Health offers web-based reimbursement solution for dermatology industry

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics receives Notice of Allowance on ICT-69 monoclonal antibody

GOP, Dems continue battle over using 'reconciliation' to move health reform forward

Exploring the nanoscale: How AFM is transforming cosmetic science

Innovating Texture and Culture in Plant-Based Foods

Advancing brain microphysiological systems (bMPS)

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