Health Headlines - April 30

Chinese Herbal Compound May Treat Kidney Cysts

A compound derived from a traditional Chinese medicine may reduce the incidence of kidney-destroying cysts in people prone to the illness, researchers report.

A Yale University team led by Dr. Craig Crews tested the compound, called triptolide, in mice bred to have a disease similar to human polycystic kidney disease. Triptolide is found naturally in Lei Gong Teng, a medicinal herb used for centuries in China to fight cancer, inflammation and auto-immune disorders.

In polycystic kidney disease, genetic signals that normally inhibit cell growth are turned off, leading to the proliferation of organ-destroying cysts. Patients often lose one or both kidneys and are forced to wait for transplant or go on dialysis.

In the study, Crews' team found that triptolide prevented cyst formation in mice. "If we were able to slow the rate of cyst formation by even 10 percent a year, compounded annually, patients would not die from this disease," he said in a statement. "A relatively small effect would have an enormous clinical benefit."

The findings were scheduled to be presented Sunday at the Experimental Biology 2007 meeting in Washington, D.C.

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Transplanted Marrow Stem Cells Give Local Stem Cells a Boost

Two new studies suggest that transplanted adult bone marrow stem cells do more than just proliferate on their own. They also enhance the proliferative powers of stem cells naturally residing at the transplant site, researchers say.

The finding, from Dr. Darwin Prockop, director of the Center for Gene Therapy at Tulane University, New Orleans, sheds new light on marrow stem cells, which can be taken from a patient's own bone to repair damaged tissues. Prockop was to present the findings Sunday at the Experimental Biology 2007 meeting in Washington, D.C.

In one study, Pockop's team injected human stem/progenitor cells into the hippocampal region of the brains of immunodeficient mice. And in a second experiment, they infused the stem cells into mice with an illness similar to diabetes. Those cells migrated to the pancreas, which produces insulin.

In both cases, the transplanted marrow stem cells began to proliferate as expected, and they also prompted local stem cells to multiply and differentiate. For example, in the diabetes experiment, the transplanted stem cells boosted the number of insulin-producing cells in the pancreas while repairing microscopic damage to the kidneys.

In a statement, Prockop said the results suggest that autologous (from the patient) marrow stem cell transplant could become a safe, effective treatment for diabetics and for people threatened by kidney failure.

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Mouse Study May Explain Why Alcohol Increases Breast Cancer Risk

U.S. researchers say studies with mice may help to explain the link between alcohol consumption and breast cancer risk.

For the first time, researchers at the University of Mississippi Medical Center used a laboratory mouse model to mimic the development of human alcohol-induced breast cancer.

Drinking even moderate amounts of alcohol is an established risk factor for breast cancer in women. A recent study showed that 60 percent of breast cancers worldwide were attributable to alcohol consumption. But, the biology behind alcohol-induced breast cancer was poorly understood, the study authors said.

Possible causes have included alcohol's impact on estrogen metabolism and response, cell mutation and oxidative damage.

Until the new study, there hadn't been an animal model that faithfully mimicked the characteristics of alcohol-induced breast cancer. So the study authors bioengineered female mice that, at six weeks of age, were fed the equivalent of two drinks per day in humans. Control mice received regular drinking water only.

The researchers found that:

• moderate alcohol consumption significantly increased the tumor size of breast cancer in mice -- a 1.96-fold increase in tumor weight compared to the control mice;
• alcohol intake caused a 1.28-fold increase in tumor microvessel density compared to the control group;
• alcohol intake did not cause significant changes in the body weight of the mice.

The researchers are to present their findings at the American Physiological Society annual meeting, which is being held as part of the Experimental Biology (EB 07) meeting. April 28 through May 2, in Washington, D.C.

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FDA Approves New Treatment for Bleeding Disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved on Friday a new therapy to prevent excessive bleeding during and after surgery in certain patients with von Willebrand disease (vWD). The disease is the most common inherited bleeding disorder, affecting about 1 percent of the U.S. population.

Humate-P is the second biological product to be approved for surgery and invasive procedures in patients with vWD who don't respond to the medication desmopressin. The first biological product, Aphanate, was approved by the FDA earlier this year. But, Humate-P is the first product specifically for patients with severe vWD who are undergoing major surgery, the agency said.

"This is an important advance for patients with vWD, including those who are severely affected by the disorder," said Dr. Jesse Goodman, director of FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. "Humate-P provides a preventive therapy that can make needed surgery not only possible, but also safer."

Men and women are equally affected by vWD, which is caused by a deficiency or defect in certain plasma proteins critical to blood clotting.

Humate-P is manufactured by CSL Behring GmbH, in Marburg, Germany.

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AMA: Tobacco Makers Spend Too Much on Advertising

Despite a two-year decline in the amount of money tobacco makers spend on marketing and advertising, the American Medical Association says too much is still spent on promoting cigarettes and other forms of smoking.

Spending on marketing and advertising among the five largest U.S. tobacco firms fell to $13.1 billion in 2005 from $14.15 billion in 2004 and $15.15 billion in 2003, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in a report issued Thursday.

But anti-smoking advocates said promotional spending was still double the amount spent in 1998, the year the tobacco firms entered into a landmark multi-state settlement, the Associated Press reported.

The AMA added its voice to those who called the amount spent by cigarette makers to promote smoking excessive.

"In 2004 and 2005 alone, the tobacco industry spent an exorbitant $27.7 billion to market their deadly products to the American people," the association said in a statement. "That same money could pay for virtually every smoker in America to receive a full course of nicotine treatment to help them quit."

Noting that the effects of smoking kill some 1,200 Americans daily, the group called for giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to "regulate the manufacture, sale, distribution, and marketing of tobacco products."

The U.S. Congress is considering legislation giving the FDA such authority, the AP reported. The bill may have a better chance of passing than similar legislation proposed in 2004, the wire service said, since Democrats now control both chambers of Congress.

Health Headlines - April 29

Mouse Study May Explain Why Alcohol Increases Breast Cancer Risk

U.S. researchers say studies with mice may help to explain the link between alcohol consumption and breast cancer risk.

For the first time, researchers at the University of Mississippi Medical Center used a laboratory mouse model to mimic the development of human alcohol-induced breast cancer.

Drinking even moderate amounts of alcohol is an established risk factor for breast cancer in women. A recent study showed that 60 percent of breast cancers worldwide were attributable to alcohol consumption. But, the biology behind alcohol-induced breast cancer was poorly understood, the study authors said.

Possible causes have included alcohol's impact on estrogen metabolism and response, cell mutation and oxidative damage.

Until the new study, there hadn't been an animal model that faithfully mimicked the characteristics of alcohol-induced breast cancer. So the study authors bioengineered female mice that, at six weeks of age, were fed the equivalent of two drinks per day in humans. Control mice received regular drinking water only.

The researchers found that:

• moderate alcohol consumption significantly increased the tumor size of breast cancer in mice -- a 1.96-fold increase in tumor weight compared to the control mice;
• alcohol intake caused a 1.28-fold increase in tumor microvessel density compared to the control group;
• alcohol intake did not cause significant changes in the body weight of the mice.

The researchers are to present their findings at the American Physiological Society annual meeting, which is being held as part of the Experimental Biology (EB 07) meeting. April 28 through May 2, in Washington, D.C.

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FDA Approves New Treatment for Bleeding Disorder

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved on Friday a new therapy to prevent excessive bleeding during and after surgery in certain patients with von Willebrand disease (vWD). The disease is the most common inherited bleeding disorder, affecting about 1 percent of the U.S. population.

Humate-P is the second biological product to be approved for surgery and invasive procedures in patients with vWD who don't respond to the medication desmopressin. The first biological product, Aphanate, was approved by the FDA earlier this year. But, Humate-P is the first product specifically for patients with severe vWD who are undergoing major surgery, the agency said.

"This is an important advance for patients with vWD, including those who are severely affected by the disorder," said Dr. Jesse Goodman, director of FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. "Humate-P provides a preventive therapy that can make needed surgery not only possible, but also safer."

Men and women are equally affected by vWD, which is caused by a deficiency or defect in certain plasma proteins critical to blood clotting.

Humate-P is manufactured by CSL Behring GmbH, in Marburg, Germany.

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AMA: Tobacco Makers Spend Too Much on Advertising

Despite a two-year decline in the amount of money tobacco makers spend on marketing and advertising, the American Medical Association says too much is still spent on promoting cigarettes and other forms of smoking.

Spending on marketing and advertising among the five largest U.S. tobacco firms fell to $13.1 billion in 2005 from $14.15 billion in 2004 and $15.15 billion in 2003, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in a report issued Thursday.

But anti-smoking advocates said promotional spending was still double the amount spent in 1998, the year the tobacco firms entered into a landmark multi-state settlement, the Associated Press reported.

The AMA added its voice to those who called the amount spent by cigarette makers to promote smoking excessive.

"In 2004 and 2005 alone, the tobacco industry spent an exorbitant $27.7 billion to market their deadly products to the American people," the association said in a statement. "That same money could pay for virtually every smoker in America to receive a full course of nicotine treatment to help them quit."

Noting that the effects of smoking kill some 1,200 Americans daily, the group called for giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to "regulate the manufacture, sale, distribution, and marketing of tobacco products."

The U.S. Congress is considering legislation giving the FDA such authority, the AP reported. The bill may have a better chance of passing than similar legislation proposed in 2004, the wire service said, since Democrats now control both chambers of Congress.

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Blood Pressure-Lowering Drug Shows Benefits in Trials: Maker

The Novartis blood pressure-lowering drug Diovan (valsartan) showed a 39 percent decreased risk of cardiovascular events and a 40 percent drop in stroke during a 3,000-person Japanese trial, its manufacturer says.

Diovan is among a class of drugs called angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB). In the Jikei Heart Study, scientists compared Diovan combined with conventional non-ARB therapies with use of the non-ARB therapies alone.

In a statement, Novartis said the study was "terminated earlier than anticipated ... due to superior outcomes for the valsartan group over the control group."

Those outcomes also included a 65 percent drop in the incidence of angina pectoris, a 46 percent drop in heart failure, and a drop of 81 percent in aortic dissection -- a tear in the body's largest artery.

Results of the study were published in the April 28 issue of The Lancet.

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Scientists Identify Immune System Factor

American and British scientists working independently have identified a genetic element that appears key to regulating the human immune system, The New York Times reports.

The element is a chemical cousin of DNA referred to as a micro-RNA. Dubbed miR-155, it's among 500 such micro-snippets of genetic material that are found to be especially abundant in the body's antibody-making immune cells, the newspaper said.

When the genetic component was removed from mice, the genetically engineered rodents no longer responded well to vaccination and failed to develop immunity, the Times reported.

"The work on miR-155 opened a window into the understanding of the immune system, but it is too early for immunologists to figure out any practical consequences," the newspaper account said.

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New Test IDs Hepatitis C Patients at Risk of Cirrhosis

A new genetic test can help identify people diagnosed with hepatitis C who are at risk of developing cirrhosis, Stanford University researchers say.

The test evaluates the genetic makeup of each patient to determine who is most likely to contract cirrhosis, a liver disease characterized by severe scarring.

The test analyzes variations on seven genes to comprise a "signature" of certain people who are likely to develop cirrhosis, the researchers said in a statement announcing successful results of their evaluation of the new test. The diagnostic -- which costs about $500 -- was developed Celera, a company based in Rockville, Md.

People with hepatitis C found to be at high risk of cirrhosis could be prescribed a course of "expensive, debilitating drug therapy, while low-risk patients might be better off delaying treatment," the researchers said.

Nearly 4 million Americans are infected with the hepatitis C virus, of which nearly 80 percent have a chronic infection that could progress to cirrhosis, the researchers said. Cirrhosis, in turn, can progress to liver failure or liver cancer, they added.

Health Headlines - April 28

AMA: Tobacco Makers Spend Too Much on Advertising

Despite a two-year decline in the amount of money tobacco makers spend on marketing and advertising, the American Medical Association says too much is still spent on promoting cigarettes and other forms of smoking.

Spending on marketing and advertising among the five largest U.S. tobacco firms fell to $13.1 billion in 2005 from $14.15 billion in 2004 and $15.15 billion in 2003, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in a report issued Thursday.

But anti-smoking advocates said promotional spending was still double the amount spent in 1998, the year the tobacco firms entered into a landmark multi-state settlement, the Associated Press reported.

The AMA added its voice to those who called the amount spent by cigarette makers to promote smoking excessive.

"In 2004 and 2005 alone, the tobacco industry spent an exorbitant $27.7 billion to market their deadly products to the American people," the association said in a statement. "That same money could pay for virtually every smoker in America to receive a full course of nicotine treatment to help them quit."

Noting that the effects of smoking kill some 1,200 Americans daily, the group called for giving the U.S. Food and Drug Administration the authority to "regulate the manufacture, sale, distribution, and marketing of tobacco products."

The U.S. Congress is considering legislation giving the FDA such authority, the AP reported. The bill may have a better chance of passing than similar legislation proposed in 2004, the wire service said, since Democrats now control both chambers of Congress.

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Blood Pressure-Lowering Drug Shows Benefits in Trials: Maker

The Novartis blood pressure-lowering drug Diovan (valsartan) showed a 39 percent decreased risk of cardiovascular events and a 40 percent drop in stroke during a 3,000-person Japanese trial, its manufacturer says.

Diovan is among a class of drugs called angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB). In the Jikei Heart Study, scientists compared Diovan combined with conventional non-ARB therapies with use of the non-ARB therapies alone.

In a statement, Novartis said the study was "terminated earlier than anticipated ... due to superior outcomes for the valsartan group over the control group."

Those outcomes also included a 65 percent drop in the incidence of angina pectoris, a 46 percent drop in heart failure, and a drop of 81 percent in aortic dissection -- a tear in the body's largest artery.

Results of the study were published in the April 28 issue of The Lancet.

-----

Scientists Identify Immune System Factor

American and British scientists working independently have identified a genetic element that appears key to regulating the human immune system, The New York Times reports.

The element is a chemical cousin of DNA referred to as a micro-RNA. Dubbed miR-155, it's among 500 such micro-snippets of genetic material that are found to be especially abundant in the body's antibody-making immune cells, the newspaper said.

When the genetic component was removed from mice, the genetically engineered rodents no longer responded well to vaccination and failed to develop immunity, the Times reported.

"The work on miR-155 opened a window into the understanding of the immune system, but it is too early for immunologists to figure out any practical consequences," the newspaper account said.

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New Test IDs Hepatitis C Patients at Risk of Cirrhosis

A new genetic test can help identify people diagnosed with hepatitis C who are at risk of developing cirrhosis, Stanford University researchers say.

The test evaluates the genetic makeup of each patient to determine who is most likely to contract cirrhosis, a liver disease characterized by severe scarring.

The test analyzes variations on seven genes to comprise a "signature" of certain people who are likely to develop cirrhosis, the researchers said in a statement announcing successful results of their evaluation of the new test. The diagnostic -- which costs about $500 -- was developed Celera, a company based in Rockville, Md.

People with hepatitis C found to be at high risk of cirrhosis could be prescribed a course of "expensive, debilitating drug therapy, while low-risk patients might be better off delaying treatment," the researchers said.

Nearly 4 million Americans are infected with the hepatitis C virus, of which nearly 80 percent have a chronic infection that could progress to cirrhosis, the researchers said. Cirrhosis, in turn, can progress to liver failure or liver cancer, they added.

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Congress Should Limit TV Violence: FCC

The U.S. Congress should legislate limits on TV violence in order to better protect children since voluntary parental controls aren't working, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said in a report released Wednesday.

The FCC said this kind of regulation is needed because research shows that extended exposure to TV violence can lead to more aggressive behavior in kids, The Washington Post reported.

V-chip blocking technology is only partially effective in screening violent content, said the FCC, which produced the report at the request of 39 lawmakers. The report will be used as a basis to draft legislation, said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.).

"Clearly, steps should be taken to protect children from excessively violent programming. Some might say such action is long overdue," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said in a prepared statement.

Giving the government the power to determine what's acceptable for TV concerns some groups, however.

"The job of policing TV for children is one for parents, not the government," Caroline Fredrickson, director of the American Civil Liberty Union's legislative office in Washington, D.C., told the Post. "The government isn't capable of making distinctions about what's violent or gratuitous."

Health Headlines - April 27

Congress Should Limit TV Violence: FCC

The U.S. Congress should legislate limits on TV violence in order to better protect children since voluntary parental controls aren't working, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said in a report released Wednesday.

The FCC said this kind of regulation is needed because research shows that extended exposure to TV violence can lead to more aggressive behavior in kids, The Washington Post reported.

V-chip blocking technology is only partially effective in screening violent content, said the FCC, which produced the report at the request of 39 lawmakers. The report will be used as a basis to draft legislation, said Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.).

"Clearly, steps should be taken to protect children from excessively violent programming. Some might say such action is long overdue," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said in a prepared statement.

Giving the government the power to determine what's acceptable for TV concerns some groups, however.

"The job of policing TV for children is one for parents, not the government," Caroline Fredrickson, director of the American Civil Liberty Union's legislative office in Washington, D.C., told the Post. "The government isn't capable of making distinctions about what's violent or gratuitous."

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Roche Slows Tamiflu Output

Swiss drug maker Roche Holding AG is slowing production of Tamiflu because its ability to make the flu drug is outpacing demand, the Associated Press reported.

The World Health Organization recommends Tamifu as a first-line treatment for people infected with bird flu. It's also used to treat seasonal flu.

In its announcement Thursday, Roche said it could increase Tamiflu production at any time to deal with an increased threat of a flu pandemic, the AP reported.

Governments worldwide have been stockpiling the drug in order to be prepared in case the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus mutates into a strain that's easily transmitted between humans and sparks a pandemic.

Orders from governments amount to about 215 million courses of Tamiflu, but Roche and its partners can now produce more than 400 million courses of the drug a year, the AP reported.

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Many Spanish Couples Donate Surplus Embryos for Stem Cell Reseach

Many Spanish couples who undergo in vitro fertilization (IVF) donate surplus embryos for stem cell research, according to research published online Thursday in the journal Cell Stem Cell.

The study by the Spanish Stem Cell Bank found that nearly 50 percent of couples who were interviewed at least three years after undergoing IVF decided to donate their surplus, stored embryos for research.

The reason for this high donation rate is a result of clear information given to couples by a legal advisor and embryologist during an interview process, the study authors said.

While Spain's stem cell research environment is fairly open and Spaniards have traditionally been supportive of organ and tissue donation, the authors said they believe the results of the stem cell study can be generalized to other countries.

"We are convinced that if this type of personal interview and survey were carried out in the U.S.A., at least 50 percent of the couples would be willing to donate their spare embryos for stem cell research," Pablo Menendez, director of the Spanish Stem Cell Bank, said in a prepared statement.

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System Assesses Death Risk for Bariatric Surgery Patients

A simple five-factor scoring system can help doctors predict the risk of dying among patients being considered for gastric bypass surgery.

The system takes into account a patient's weight, age, gender, blood pressure, and the risk of developing a blood clot in the lungs, and then ranks patients as having a low, medium or high risk of dying from the weight-loss surgery.

The scoring system, first proposed last year by Duke University Medical Center surgeons, was tested in study of more than 4,400 patients. It found that patients in the high-risk group were six times more likely to die than those in the low-risk group, while medium-risk patients were three times more likely to die than low-risk patients.

The study was to be presented Thursday at the annual meeting of the American Surgical Association.

"This represents the first validated scoring system for assessing risk for patients considering bariatric surgery," Duke surgeon Eric DeMaria, who developed the system, said in a prepared statement.

About 170,000 Americans had gastric bypass surgery in 2005, according to the American Society for Bariatric Surgery.

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Imported Eye Products Contain Lead, NYC Warns

The New York City Health Department warned Thursday that certain imported cosmetic eye products contain dangerously high levels of lead that can damage the brain and nervous system.

The products -- called kohl, kajal, and surma -- are imported from Asia, Africa and the Mideast and have been sold at neighborhood stores throughout the city. In recent months, the health department has investigated five lead poisoning cases among children and pregnant women who used the products.

Health department officials have ordered stores to remove the products, which are banned by the Food and Drug Administration and have been imported illegally.

Consumers who have bought and used these products are advised to: immediately stop using the products; keep the products away from children; call a doctor to request a blood-lead test.

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Texas Governor's HPV Vaccine Order Rejected

Texas Governor Rick Perry's order requiring sixth-grade girls to get the human papillomavirus virus (HPV) vaccine was rejected Wednesday by Texas lawmakers, who sent the governor a bill that would block, for at least four years, officials from requiring girls to get the vaccine.

HPV is a sexually transmitted disease that causes cervical cancer.

After Perry issued his executive order in February, prominent legislators vowed to overturn the order because they said the vaccine was too new to force on Texas families, the Associated Press reported. The order was to have taken effect in September 2008.

Perry has 10 days to sign or veto the bill passed by the legislature. Even if he does veto it, lawmakers have the two-thirds majority vote in both chambers needed to override the veto.

The vaccine, which protects against four HPV strains, was recently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in girls and women ages 9 to 26.

To date, about 20 states have introduced bills to require girls to get the vaccine, the AP reported. Critics charge that making the vaccine mandatory promotes promiscuity and infringes on parents' rights.

Health Headlines - April 26

U.S. Army Testing Equipment to Check Soldiers for Brain Injuries

In an effort to better identify hard-to-diagnose brain injuries in soldiers, the U.S. Army says it will soon begin testing new neuroimaging equipment, the Associated Press reported.

A new scanning camera that uses gamma rays and radioisotopes is expected to arrive within two weeks, said Col. John Cho, commander of the Evans Army Community Hospital at Fort Carson, Colo.

Soldiers who've already been diagnosed with traumatic brain injury will be used to test the equipment and its effectiveness. The findings will be given to an Army review board, the AP reported.

Thousands of U.S. soldiers have suffered brain injuries in the Iraq War. A recent study at Fort Carson found that 2,932 (18 percent) of 13,400 troops who'd been to Iraq had suffered at least some degree of brain damage after being hit by blasts caused by improvised explosive devices.

Some critics have accused the Army of not doing enough to diagnose soldiers with brain damage.

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Texas Company Stops Illegal Production and Sale of Drugs

A Texas-based company has agreed to stop the illegal manufacture and distribution of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday.

The agreement applies to PharmaFab Inc., its subsidiary PFab LP, and two company officials -- Mark Tengler, PharmaFab's president, and Russ McMahen, PFab's vice president of scientific affairs.

The products made by the company are illegal because they aren't made according to the required current good manufacturing practice and they may lack FDA approval.

PharmaFab made and distributed more than 100 different prescription and over-the-counter drug products, including ulcer treatments, cough and cold products, and postpartum hemorrhage products, the FDA said.

The unapproved drugs made by the company included: De-Congestine Sustained Release Capsules; GFN 1200/DM 60/PSE 60 Extended-Release Tablets; Rhinacon A Tablets; Sudal 12 Chewable Tablets; Histex PD 12 Suspension; Atuss HX CIII; Ergotrate Tablets; and Hyoscyamine Sulfate Time-Release Capsules.

Consumers who have used any PharmaFab products should talk with their doctor, the FDA said.

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Primary-Care Doctor Visits Less Costly

In 2004, primary-care doctors (general practice, family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatricians) accounted for nearly half of all 967.3 million doctor visits in the United States, but totaled only 30 percent of the $152 billion spent on office-based doctor care.

The remaining 70 percent of the $152 billion was spent on specialty care, says the latest News and Numbers from the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

The agency also found that the average cost of a visit to the doctor's office was $155, but there were wide variations depending on the type of doctor. The average cost for primary-care doctors was about $100, compared with $232 for a cardiologist, $210 for an orthopedist, and $206 for an ophthalmologist.

Other findings:

• Private insurance paid for 48 percent of doctor office visits, Medicare paid for 21 percent, and 14 percent was paid out-of-pocket by patients and families.
• On average, patients paid 20 percent of total expenses out-of-pocket when seeing a primary-care doctor, compared with 16 percent for an orthopedist visit, 13 percent for a cardiologist visit, and about 25 percent when seeing dermatologists, psychiatrists and ophthalmologists.

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FDA Probing Data on Antipsychotic Drug Zyprexa

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating whether Eli Lilly & Company provided accurate data about the safety of the antipsychotic drug Zyprexa, The New York Times reported.

Concerns about the drug's link to diabetes and weight gain have contributed to a 50 percent decline in the number of Zyprexa prescriptions written in the United States since 2003.

The FDA wants to find out more about a Feb. 2000 Lilly document that noted that patients taking Zyprexa in clinical trials had a 3.5 times greater risk of developing high blood sugar than people who didn't take the drug. That document was not given to the FDA, The Times reported.

A few months later, Lilly submitted data to the FDA showing similar blood sugar levels in patients who took Zyprexa and in those who didn't take the drug.

The FDA told The Times that it's still looking into the matter and has not yet decided whether to take any action against Lilly.

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Improve Disabled People's Access to Health Coverage: Report

Outdated regulations often hinder disabled Americans' access to health care coverage and assistive devices, concludes a new report by the Institute of Medicine.

Congress and the appropriate federal agencies need to improve decision making about what and who Medicare and Medicaid will cover in order to eliminate waiting periods for qualified disabled people to receive Medicare coverage, the report said.

In addition, the federal government needs to ease restrictions that prevent disabled people from getting assistive services and technologies that help promote independence and participation in work and other activities outside the home.

Currrently, at least one in seven Americans (40 million) have physical mobility, sensory or other impairments or limitations, the report said.

"The number of Americans who have disabilities will grow significantly in the next 30 years as the baby boom generation enters late life. If one considers people who now are disabled, those likely to develop a future disability, and people who are or will be affected by the disabilities of family members or others close to them, it becomes clear that disability will eventually affect the lives of most Americans," Alan M. Jette, director of the Health and Disability Research Institute, Boston University School of Public Health, and chair of the committee that wrote the report, said in a prepared statement.

"Increasingly, scientific evidence reveals that disability results, in large part, from actions society and individuals take. The sobering reality, however, is that over the past two decades, far too little progress has been made in adopting major public policy and practice advances to reduce disability in America," Jette said.

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Hospice Inspections Lagging in Some States

A U.S. federal report released Tuesday found that some Medicare hospice programs had not been checked by state inspectors for many years and were long past their date for certification, the Associated Press reported.

The report was issued by the inspector general's office of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Hospices give care to terminally-ill patients. The report looked at data on 2,537 Medicare hospice providers across the country and found that 14 percent were past due for certification. On average, they hadn't been checked for nine years.

Three states -- California, Illinois and Michigan -- accounted for 41 percent of the past-due certifications, the AP reported.

Inspections by state officials are the federal government's main way of monitoring the quality of care in Medicare-funded hospices. In 2004, Medicare payments to hospices that were overdue for inspection averaged $2.7 million each.

Health Headlines - April 25

Blood Clot in Cheney's Leg Shrinking

Doctors say the blood clot in U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney's left leg is gradually shrinking, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

An ultrasound of the vice president's clot was done at his doctor's office Tuesday morning. Cheney, 66, then returned to the White House to resume his normal schedule, his spokeswoman Megan McGinn told the Associated Press.

"The ultrasound was reassuring and showed that the clot is gradually resolving," McGinn said. "His blood-thinning medication was found to be in the desired range. The vice president's doctors advised him to continue the current course of treatment."

The clot in Cheney's lower left leg was discovered March 5. This type of blood clot -- deep venous thrombosis -- can prove fatal if it breaks away and travels through the bloodstream to the lungs.

Cheney has experienced a number of health problems, including four heart attacks, quadruple bypass surgery, two artery-clearing angioplasties and implantation of a special pacemaker in his chest, the AP reported.

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Bird Flu Pandemic Could Kill Millions: WHO

A billion people could be infected and two million to seven million could die if there's a worldwide bird flu pandemic, says the World Health Organization (WHO).

The estimates were arrived at from models based on previous flu epidemics, Jean-Marc Olive, the WHO's representative for the Philippines, said Tuesday at a forum in Manila organized by the Australian embassy.

Agence France Presse reported that Olive also said even "a modest pandemic lasting over one year might cause losses as high as three percent of Asia's GDP (gross domestic product) and 0.5 percent of the world GDP."

Mass culls of infected poultry flocks may help avert a human pandemic, Olive said. He also recommended that countries improve preventive and surveillance measures, as well as make preparations for an outbreak, such as stockpiling anti-viral drugs, AFP reported.

Since 2003, the H5N1 bird flu virus has killed at least 172 people, mostly in Southeast Asia. Experts fear that the virus could cause a pandemic if it mutates into a form that's easily transmitted between humans.

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High Fat Meals Boost Blood Pressure

A single high fat meal can quickly boost a person's blood pressure, says a Canadian study published this week in the Journal of Nutrition.

University of Calgary researchers found that blood pressure in people who ate high fat meals increased 1.25 to 1.5 times higher than people who ate low fat meals when both groups underwent several standard stress tests, the Toronto Star reported.

"We can measure this response after only one meal, which is remarkable," said study author Tavis Campbell, a health psychology professor. If blood pressure is affected after just one high fat meal, "it's really striking to think about people who do this (two or three times a week)," Campbell said.

The study included 30 healthy volunteers, ages 18 to 25, who had no history of blood pressure or heart problems.

Campbell said this immediate increase in blood pressure after a high fat meal could help explain why this kind of food causes heart disease over time, the Star reported.

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Many Problems With Lethal Injection: Report

There are numerous problems with the use of lethal injection to execute prisoners in the United States, concludes a report published online Monday by the journal PLoS Medicine.

It said the drugs used in lethal injections sometimes fail to work as planned, which leads to slow painful deaths that likely violate constitutional bans on cruel and unusual punishment, the Associated Press reported.

In some cases, inmates have suffocated while they were conscious and unable to move, instead of having their hearts stop beating while they're sedated, said the authors, who reviewed dozens of executions.

The researchers concluded that the typical "one-size-fits-all" doses of anesthetic fail to factor in an inmate's weight and other important factors, the AP reported.

The study authors also noted that no scientific groups have ever validated that lethal injection is a humane form of execution.

In 37 states, lethal injection has been implemented as a less costly and more humane alternative to other methods of execution, such as the gas chamber and electrocution. However, 11 states have stopped using lethal injection after critics charged that it was cruel and ineffective, the AP reported.

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Breastfeeding Won't Reduce Risk of Being Overweight

Breast feeding does not prevent children from becoming overweight as adults, according to a Harvard Medical School study that contradicts information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

The study looked at nearly 14,500 women who were breast-fed as infants and about 21,000 women who were not breast-fed, the Associated Press reported. Women who were breast-fed for at least a week were about as likely to be overweight or obese as women who were bottle-fed. Women who had been breast-fed for more than nine months were about as likely to be overweight or obese as women who'd been breast-fed for less than a week.

While this study included only women, the researchers said they believe the results also apply to men. This is the largest study to date to look at the link between breast feeding and adult weight, the AP reported.

"I'm the first to say breast-feeding is good. But I don't think it's the solution to reducing childhood or adult obesity," said study lead author Karin Michels.

The CDC says breast feeding is one way of reducing excess weight in childhood. Many previous studies have found an association between breast feeding and lower rates of childhood obesity, Larry Grummer-Strawn, chief of the CDC's maternal and child nutrition branch, told the AP.

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Trustees Issue Warning on Medicare's Financial Health

U.S. Medicare faces a financial crisis as the nation's 78 million baby boomers move closer to retirement, the program's trustees warned Monday.

They said that Medicare's hospitalization trust fund would likely be in the red by 2019. The trustees' formal warning this year follows a similar warning last year, which means that the president and Congress are now legally required to work toward a solution that could include spending cuts and tax increases, the Los Angeles Times reported.

"While the (Medicare) warning is new, it simply reflects the same dire fiscal reality we've been reporting for years, and that has been exacerbated by the addition of the new prescription drug benefit," trustee John L. Palmer, an economics professor at Syracuse University, told the Times.

Under a 2003 law passed by the Republican-led Congress, trustees must issue a warning if two consecutive reports project that Medicare will draw 45 percent or more of its financing from the general fund within seven years.

Many Democrats and seniors' advocates say the Medicare warning is little more than a gimmick. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Fremont), chairman of a health subcommittee, described the warning as "an arbitrary threshold designed to scare people."

Health Headlines - April 24

Generic Ambien Approved by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Monday the first generic versions of the sleep aid Ambien -- generic name zolpidem tartrate. It's a sedative-hypnotic drug indicated for the short-term treatment of insomnia.

"This approval offers Americans more alternatives when choosing their prescription drugs," said Gary J. Buehler, director of the FDA's Office of Generic Drugs.

Zolpidem tartrate tablets in formulations of 5 milligrams and 10 milligrams are manufactured by a variety of generic drug companies in the United States. The following 13 manufacturers have received FDA approval for zolpidem tartrate tablets: Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc.; TEVA Pharmaceuticals USA; Roxane Laboratories Inc.; Watson Laboratories Inc.; Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd.; Dr. Reddys Laboratories Ltd.; Apotex Inc.; Synthon Pharmaceuticals Inc.; Genpharm Inc.; Mutual Pharmaceutical Company Inc.; Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories Ltd.; Carlsbad Technology Inc.; and Lek Pharmaceuticals, the FDA said in a statement.

In March, the FDA requested that all manufacturers of sedative-hypnotic drug products -- a class of drugs used to induce and/or maintain sleep -- strengthen their product labeling to include stronger warnings about potential risks. Those risks include severe allergic reactions and complex sleep-related behaviors, which may include sleep-driving. Sleep driving is defined as driving while not fully awake after taking a sedative-hypnotic drug, with no memory of the event.

According to the online magazine Drug Topics, in 2006, Ambien was the 13th best selling brand name drug. The sanofi-aventis (formerly Sanofi-Synthelabo, Inc.) patent for zolpidem tartrate expired on April 21, the FDA said.

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Free Cervical Cancer Vaccine in Demand in New Hampshire

In New Hampshire, demand is outpacing supply of free vaccine to protect against human papillomavirus (HPV), which can cause cervical cancer, the Associated Press reported.

New Hampshire was the first state to approve free distribution of the Gardasil vaccine. The program began in January and state officials expected to vaccinate about 25 percent of eligible girls this year. However, advertising has spurred demand.

New Hampshire is offering the vaccine free to girls ages 9 to 18. The vaccine is approved for use in females ages 9 to 26. The normal cost is about $360 for three shots over six months, the AP reported.

In response to the high demand for the free vaccine, some medical practices have created lists that rank patients according to priority, while others are suggesting that patients find out if their health insurance will pay for the shots, which would help take pressure off the free program.

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Medical Journal Criticizes Supreme Court Abortion Ruling

The New England Journal of Medicine on Monday published online two commentaries and an editorial that criticized last week's U.S. Supreme Court decision to uphold the federal ban on the controversial abortion procedure that opponents call "partial-birth abortion," the Boston Globe reported.

"With this decision the Supreme Court has sanctioned the intrusion of legislation into the day-to-day practice of medicine," wrote Dr. Jeffrey M. Drazen, editor of the journal. Physicians are amenable to oversight and discussion of controversial matters, he said, but those discussions should occur "among informed and knowledgeable people who are acting in the best interests of a specific patient," the newspaper reported.

The furor surrounding the right-to-die showdown involving Terri Schiavo in 2005 demonstrated "the disastrous consequences of congressional interference" in a medical case, Drazen wrote. "The judicial branch has regrettably joined the legislative branch in practicing medicine without a license."

The controversial abortion procedure, known medically as intact dilatation and evacuation (intact D&E), is usually performed after 12 weeks of pregnancy. It accounted for less than 1 percent of all U.S. abortions in 2000, according to a survey from the Alan Guttmacher Institute, a nonprofit group focused on sexual reproductive health.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 857,475 abortions were performed in the United States in 2003.

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Asia Faces Dramatic Increase in Cancer Cases

Longer life spans and changing diet and lifestyles are among the factors that could lead to a dramatic increase in cancer cases in Asia by 2020, experts attending a conference in Singapore warn.

If current trends continue, the total number of new cancer cases in Asia could climb from 4.5 million in 2002 to 7.1 million in 2020, the Associated Press reported.

That increase could cause a major health crisis as poorer Asian countries struggle to pay the cost of cancer screening, vaccines and treatment, the experts said.

"This will put a tremendous burden on patients, their families and the health-care system in each country," said Singapore Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan, the AP reported.

Smoking is a major cancer threat. In a number of Asian nations, more than 60 percent of males smoke, said Dr. Donald Max Parkin, a research fellow at the University of Oxford's Clinical Trial Service Unit and Epidemiological Studies Unit.

In many Asian nations, large numbers of people have moved from rural areas to the cities. That switch has led to more sedentary lifestyles, increased consumption of meat and fried foods, and fewer vegetables in the diet.

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Cyclist's 'B' Samples Positive: French Paper

The French newspaper L'Equipe reported Monday that follow-up tests on backup urine samples from American cyclist Floyd Landis tested positive for synthetic testosterone, the Associated Press said.

The tests were conducted at France's national anti-doping laboratory of Chatenay-Malabry outside Paris. The results on the seven "B" samples were sent directly to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which requested the tests.

After Landis won the 2006 Tour de France, it was revealed that he'd tested positive for elevated testosterone to epitestosterone levels after the 17th stage of the world's premier cycling race, the AP reported.

Landis, 31, will have an arbitration hearing May 14 in California. If the doping allegations are upheld, he faces a two-year ban from competition and he would become the first rider in the 104-year history of the Tour de France to be stripped of the title.

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U.S. Nursing Homes Standards Not Properly Enforced: Report

U.S. government oversight of nursing homes is criticized in a new report to be released next week by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an investigative arm of Congress.

The report said that nursing homes repeatedly cited for mistreatment of patients receive only minimal penalties, The New York Times reported. As a result of the weak penalties, some nursing homes don't consistently meet federal standards and pose an ongoing threat to patient health and safety, the GAO said.

The U.S. Health and Human Services Department "fails to hold homes with a long history of harming residents accountable for the poor care provided," the report said.

"Some of these homes repeatedly harmed residents over a six-year period and yet remain in the Medicare and Medicaid program," the report noted.

In 1987, Congress established strict standards for nursing homes, the Times reported. In 1998, a GAO report said that "homes can repeatedly harm residents without facing sanctions."

Since then, a number of new initiatives to improve care were announced by the federal government and nursing home industry.

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FDA Knew About Food Problems Before Outbreaks: Report

For years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration knew about contamination problems on California spinach farms and at a ConAgra Foods peanut butter plant in Georgia that resulted in serious salmonella and E. coli outbreaks within the last year, according to documents and interviews.

Even though it knew about the problems, the FDA took only marginal steps to correct the issues and relied heavily on food makers to police themselves, the Washington Post reported. The FDA did this because it didn't have adequate resources.

The salmonella outbreak in Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter sickened more than 400 people in 44 states. The plant that made the peanut butter has been closed. The E. coli outbreak in California spinach caused 205 illnesses and at least three deaths in 26 states and Canada.

The farm that grew the spinach and the companies that processed and marketed it just settled lawsuits with the families of three women who died.

FDA officials told the Post that changes need to be made in order for the agency to meet the huge growth in the number of food processors and imports. But they said the FDA could not have done anything to prevent the outbreaks caused by the contaminated peanut butter and spinach.

The FDA, which is responsible for safeguarding 80 percent of the United States' food supply, oversees 60,000 to 80,000 facilities a year.

On Tuesday, a House of Representatives' Energy and Commerce subcommittee is scheduled to hold a hearing on the recent wave of food recalls in the United States, the Post reported.

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School Food Rules Reduce Number of Overweight Students

Within four years after banning soft drinks and sweets and introducing healthier lunches, 10 Stockholm, Sweden schools saw a six percent decline in the number of overweight students, says a study presented Monday at an international obesity conference in Budapest, Hungary.

The number of overweight or obese children ages 6 to 10 decreased from 22 percent to 16 percent, said the study by researchers at the Karolinska Institute, Agence France Presse reported.

In a control group of students in schools that did not introduce food restrictions, the number of overweight/obese children increased from 18 percent to 21 percent.

"Our results show that programs to reduce the increasing rate of obesity can be carried out within the schools' existing budgets," researcher Professor Claude Marcus said in a prepared statement. "We also interpret the results to mean that clear regulations in schools can help parents to set standards for their children and improve dietary habits at home."

Health Headlines - April 23

Baby Boomers Say They're Not So Healthy After All

Despite more health benefit options available to them than at any time in history, America's Baby Boomers may not be even so healthy as their parents.

The Washington Post reports that as the first wave of Baby Boomers -- a generation of Americans born between 1948 and 1964 -- heads toward retirement, surveys indicate they describe their own health as less than ideal.

As a matter of fact, the Post reports, a major study indicates that Boomers say they have more problems with cholesterol, diabetes, blood pressure and physical exertion than the previous generation born between 1936 and 1941.

"We're seeing some very powerful evidence all pointing to parallel findings," the newspaper quotes Mark Hayward, a sociologist at the University of Texas at Austin, as saying. "The trend seems to be that people are not as healthy as they approach retirement as they were in older generations. It's very disturbing."

One of the primary reasons for the decline in good health, researchers speculate, is that previous generations were much more physically active in their daily routines, the Post reports. The number of Baby Boomers who said they were overweight might be a key to the decline in good health, the newspaper said.

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Obesity, Poverty Spur Infant Death Rate Hike in the South

The adage "the South will rise again" has taken on a new and foreboding meaning.

The New York Times reports that after years of progress, the infant mortality rates in Mississippi and neighboring states have started to increase.

Mississippi's infant mortality rate is particularly alarming, the Times reports. Between 2004 and 2005 it jumped from an average of 9.7 deaths of babies per 1,000 to 11.4. And while the infant death rate increased for both whites and blacks, it was dramatically higher among blacks, the newspaper said.

The number of infant deaths among blacks in Mississippi in 2004 was 14.2 per 1,000 births; in 2005 it was 17. For whites the rate was 6.1 deaths per 1,000 in 2004, and in 2005 it was 6.6. Both of these figures are considerably above the national average.

Researchers say that diet and poverty go hand-in-hand in causing the infant mortality increase, the Times reports. Obesity has reached epidemic levels, the newspaper says. "The mothers in general, black or white, are not as healthy," says Dr. Bouldin Marley, one of the Mississippi physicians interviewed for the story. He said complications from obesity were the primary causes of health problems.

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FDA Reaffirms Aspartame Not A Carcinogen

After reviewing findings first presented in 2005 by an Italian-based research group, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has concluded that there isn't enough evidence to conclude that the artificial sweetener aspartame causes cancer.

Aspartame, which is used in the sweetener Equal, among others and in a variety of soft drinks and other products, had already been found safe to use after a 2005 U.S. study of half a million participants.

But when the laboratory rat study conducted by the European Ramazzini Foundation (ERF) of Bologna, Italy said a few months later that there was evidence of increased tumor activity when aspartame was consumed, the FDA asked that the research be sent to it for review.

"... the data that were provided to FDA do not appear to support the aspartame-related findings reported by ERF," the FDA says in a statement on its Web site. "Based on our review, pathological changes were incidental and appeared spontaneously in the study animals, and none of the histopathological changes reported appear to be related to treatment with aspartame."

The FDA also said that repeated requests for additional information on the study from the ERF, including pathology slides, was never honored.

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Drug Maker: No Mortality Hike When Anemia Drug Was Used in Clinical Trial

The pharmaceutical company Amgen says it has good news for patients and investors alike.

The New York Times reports that Amgen issued an overview Friday of a closely-watched clinical trial of its anemia drug Aranesp, saying that the medicine did not increase the death rate of lung cancer patients who were using it.

Earlier studies had indicated that Aranesp and other drugs in the same class might cause blood clots, worsen cancer or increase the risk of death if overused. In fact, the U.S. Congress had already entered into the discussion about the safety of these anemia drugs.

Last month, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce sent letters to drug makers Amgen (Epogen and Aranesp) and Johnson & Johnson (Procrit), asking them to clarify when they knew about the possible risks associated with the drugs and how they have promoted the drugs, the Times reported. The drugs are used by nearly a million Americans a year, mainly to treat anemia from kidney disease or cancer chemotherapy.

On March 9, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the drug makers agreed to put a "black box" warning (the most serious kind) on the labels of the anemia drugs to warn about the newly identified risks. An FDA advisory panel is scheduled to meet May 10 to discuss the safety of the drugs.

While the results from the lung cancer trial are encouraging, the Times reports that a number medical experts say more research is needed to ensure that these drugs are safe to use with other diseases as well.

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Surgeons Remove Woman's Gallbladder Vaginally

In a procedure that required only minimal external incisions, surgeons used a flexible endoscope to remove a woman's gallbladder through her vagina. This new procedure, which is being used in an ongoing clinical trail, may help reduce pain, visible scarring and recovery time.

The NOTES (natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery) procedure was performed by doctors at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. They inserted the endoscope through the woman's vaginal wall and into her body cavity. Using the endoscope, along with laparoscopic instruments inserted through the abdomen, the surgeons detached the gallbladder and removed it through the vagina.

"Advances in minimally invasive surgical techniques over the last 15 years have dramatically reduced the number of open abdominal surgeries necessary -- eliminating a great deal of the associated discomfort. This latest revolutionary advance -- abdominal surgery through a natural orifice -- represents the culmination of this progression," Dr. Marc Bessler, who led the surgery, said in a prepared statement.

"This technique allows us to make smaller and fewer skin incisions. And, in the future, some abdominal surgeries will be possible without any external incisions," said Bessler, director of laparoscopic surgery and director of the Center for Obesity Surgery at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia and assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Bessler is scheduled to make a presentation on the procedure this Sunday at the annual meeting of the Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons in Las Vegas.

New York Presbyterian/Columbia is also using the NOTES technique for appendectomy, abdominal exploration and biopsy. In the future, NOTES may be performed through the mouth or rectum.

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Rabies Treatment Failed to Save 3 Children

A combination of drugs used to save the life of a teen infected with rabies did not help three other infected youngsters, says an article published Friday in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

In 2004, 15-year-old Jeanna Giese of Wisconsin was infected with rabies after she was bitten by a bat. She had not been vaccinated against the disease. Doctors in Milwaukee used drugs to induce a coma and then treated Giese with antiviral drugs, including ribavirin, ketamine and amantadine, the Associated Press reported.

She survived and the successful treatment was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

However, the MMWR article said that the so-called Wisconsin protocol failed to save the lives of three U.S. children infected with rabies last year, the AP reported.

Reasons for the failure in those cases could include the strain of rabies virus, the drug dosing, and the time between infection and treatment, said Dr. Charles Rupprecht, co-author of the MMWR report and chief of the CDC's rabies program.

Health Headlines - April 22

FDA Reaffirms Aspartame Not A Carcinogen

After reviewing findings first presented in 2005 by an Italian-based research group, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has concluded that there isn't enough evidence to conclude that the artificial sweetener aspartame causes cancer.

Aspartame, which is used in the sweetener Equal, among others and in a variety of soft drinks and other products, had already been found safe to use after a 2005 U.S. study of half a million participants.

But when the laboratory rat study conducted by the European Ramazzini Foundation (ERF) of Bologna, Italy said a few months later that there was evidence of increased tumor activity when aspartame was consumed, the FDA asked that the research be sent to it for review.

"... the data that were provided to FDA do not appear to support the aspartame-related findings reported by ERF," the FDA says in a statement on its Web site. "Based on our review, pathological changes were incidental and appeared spontaneously in the study animals, and none of the histopathological changes reported appear to be related to treatment with aspartame."

The FDA also said that repeated requests for additional information on the study from the ERF, including pathology slides, was never honored.

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Drug Maker: No Mortality Hike When Anemia Drug Was Used in Clinical Trial

The pharmaceutical company Amgen says it has good news for patients and investors alike.

The New York Times reports that Amgen issued an overview Friday of a closely-watched clinical trial of its anemia drug Aranesp, saying that the medicine did not increase the death rate of lung cancer patients who were using it.

Earlier studies had indicated that Aranesp and other drugs in the same class might cause blood clots, worsen cancer or increase the risk of death if overused. In fact, the U.S. Congress had already entered into the discussion about the safety of these anemia drugs.

Last month, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce sent letters to drug makers Amgen (Epogen and Aranesp) and Johnson & Johnson (Procrit), asking them to clarify when they knew about the possible risks associated with the drugs and how they have promoted the drugs, the Times reported. The drugs are used by nearly a million Americans a year, mainly to treat anemia from kidney disease or cancer chemotherapy.

On March 9, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the drug makers agreed to put a "black box" warning (the most serious kind) on the labels of the anemia drugs to warn about the newly identified risks. An FDA advisory panel is scheduled to meet May 10 to discuss the safety of the drugs.

While the results from the lung cancer trial are encouraging, the Times reports that a number medical experts say more research is needed to ensure that these drugs are safe to use with other diseases as well.

-----

Surgeons Remove Woman's Gallbladder Vaginally

In a procedure that required only minimal external incisions, surgeons used a flexible endoscope to remove a woman's gallbladder through her vagina. This new procedure, which is being used in an ongoing clinical trail, may help reduce pain, visible scarring and recovery time.

The NOTES (natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery) procedure was performed by doctors at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. They inserted the endoscope through the woman's vaginal wall and into her body cavity. Using the endoscope, along with laparoscopic instruments inserted through the abdomen, the surgeons detached the gallbladder and removed it through the vagina.

"Advances in minimally invasive surgical techniques over the last 15 years have dramatically reduced the number of open abdominal surgeries necessary -- eliminating a great deal of the associated discomfort. This latest revolutionary advance -- abdominal surgery through a natural orifice -- represents the culmination of this progression," Dr. Marc Bessler, who led the surgery, said in a prepared statement.

"This technique allows us to make smaller and fewer skin incisions. And, in the future, some abdominal surgeries will be possible without any external incisions," said Bessler, director of laparoscopic surgery and director of the Center for Obesity Surgery at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia and assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Bessler is scheduled to make a presentation on the procedure this Sunday at the annual meeting of the Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons in Las Vegas.

New York Presbyterian/Columbia is also using the NOTES technique for appendectomy, abdominal exploration and biopsy. In the future, NOTES may be performed through the mouth or rectum.

-----

Rabies Treatment Failed to Save 3 Children

A combination of drugs used to save the life of a teen infected with rabies did not help three other infected youngsters, says an article published Friday in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

In 2004, 15-year-old Jeanna Giese of Wisconsin was infected with rabies after she was bitten by a bat. She had not been vaccinated against the disease. Doctors in Milwaukee used drugs to induce a coma and then treated Giese with antiviral drugs, including ribavirin, ketamine and amantadine, the Associated Press reported.

She survived and the successful treatment was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

However, the MMWR article said that the so-called Wisconsin protocol failed to save the lives of three U.S. children infected with rabies last year, the AP reported.

Reasons for the failure in those cases could include the strain of rabies virus, the drug dosing, and the time between infection and treatment, said Dr. Charles Rupprecht, co-author of the MMWR report and chief of the CDC's rabies program.

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Increasing Hypertension Rates Could Cause Heart Disease Epidemic

Increasing rates of high blood pressure caused by modern lifestyles threaten to create a global epidemic of cardiovascular disease, warn international experts in a study unveiled at the European Parliament in Brussels.

Currently, about 25 percent of adults have high blood pressure and that figure could increase to 60 percent over the next 20 years if nothing is done to tackle the issue, such as encouraging people to adopt healthier, less-hectic lifestyles, BBC News reported.

Rates of hypertension are increasing most rapidly in emerging nations with westernized economies, such as China, India, Russia and Central European countries.

High blood pressure is a major risk factor for developing heart disease. Each year, high blood pressure contributes to an estimated 7.1 million deaths worldwide, the researchers noted.

They said that public policy efforts need to focus on earlier diagnosis of high blood pressure and addressing its underlying causes, BBC News reported.

Health Headlines - April 21

Surgeons Remove Woman's Gallbladder Through Vagina

In a procedure that required only minimal external incisions, surgeons used a flexible endoscope to remove a woman's gallbladder through her vagina. This new procedure, which is being used in an ongoing clinical trail, may help reduce pain, visible scarring and recovery time.

The NOTES (natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery) procedure was performed by doctors at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center. They inserted the endoscope through the woman's vaginal wall and into her body cavity. Using the endoscope, along with laparoscopic instruments inserted through the abdomen, the surgeons detached the gallbladder and removed it through the vagina.

"Advances in minimally invasive surgical techniques over the last 15 years have dramatically reduced the number of open abdominal surgeries necessary -- eliminating a great deal of the associated discomfort. This latest revolutionary advance -- abdominal surgery through a natural orifice -- represents the culmination of this progression," Dr. Marc Bessler, who led the surgery, said in a prepared statement.

"This technique allows us to make smaller and fewer skin incisions. And, in the future, some abdominal surgeries will be possible without any external incisions," said Bessler, director of laparoscopic surgery and director of the Center for Obesity Surgery at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia and assistant professor of surgery at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Bessler is scheduled to make a presentation on the procedure this Sunday at the annual meeting of the Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons in Las Vegas.

New York Presbyterian/Columbia is also using the NOTES technique for appendectomy, abdominal exploration and biopsy. In the future, NOTES may be performed through the mouth or rectum.

-----

Rabies Treatment Failed to Save 3 Children

A combination of drugs used to save the life of a teen infected with rabies did not help three other infected youngsters, says an article published Friday in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

In 2004, 15-year-old Jeanna Giese of Wisconsin was infected with rabies after she was bitten by a bat. She had not been vaccinated against the disease. Doctors in Milwaukee used drugs to induce a coma and then treated Giese with antiviral drugs, including ribavirin, ketamine and amantadine, the Associated Press reported.

She survived and the successful treatment was published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

However, the MMWR article said that the so-called Wisconsin protocol failed to save the lives of three U.S. children infected with rabies last year, the AP reported.

Reasons for the failure in those cases could include the strain of rabies virus, the drug dosing, and the time between infection and treatment, said Dr. Charles Rupprecht, co-author of the MMWR report and chief of the CDC's rabies program.

-----

Increasing Hypertension Rates Could Cause Heart Disease Epidemic

Increasing rates of high blood pressure caused by modern lifestyles threaten to create a global epidemic of cardiovascular disease, warn international experts in a study unveiled at the European Parliament in Brussels.

Currently, about 25 percent of adults have high blood pressure and that figure could increase to 60 percent over the next 20 years if nothing is done to tackle the issue, such as encouraging people to adopt healthier, less-hectic lifestyles, BBC News reported.

Rates of hypertension are increasing most rapidly in emerging nations with westernized economies, such as China, India, Russia and Central European countries.

High blood pressure is a major risk factor for developing heart disease. Each year, high blood pressure contributes to an estimated 7.1 million deaths worldwide, the researchers noted.

They said that public policy efforts need to focus on earlier diagnosis of high blood pressure and addressing its underlying causes, BBC News reported.

-----

132 Million Flu Vaccine Doses for U.S. Next Season

A record 132 million doses of flu vaccine are expected to be ready for the 2007-08 flu season in the United States, according to estimates announced Wednesday at a meeting in Atlanta of flu vaccine makers, public health officials, and health professionals.

Sanofi Pasteur Inc. said it will have 50 million doses ready, Novartis Vaccines plans to have 40 million doses, and GlaxoSmithKline expects to have 30 million to 35 million doses. All those doses are in the form of flu shots, the Associated Press reported.

In addition, MedImmune Vaccines says it will produce about seven million doses of FluMist. This nasal spray product, which contains a live flu virus and therefore carries a slight risk of causing flu symptoms, is recommended only for healthy people ages 5 to 49.

But even this large number of flu doses falls short of U.S. guidelines that call for 218 million Americans to get flu vaccinations, noted Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease.

The number of flu doses available for the next flu season may increase if another company, CSL Biotherapies, receives federal approval to sell its vaccine in the United States this fall, the AP reported. The company has asked for expedited FDA approval.

Nearly 121 million flu vaccine doses -- the most ever -- were produced for the United States during the 2006-07 flu season, but more than 18 million doses weren't used and are to be destroyed after their June 30 expiration date.

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Flu Can Increase Heart Attack Risk: Study

Having the flu can increase the risk of heart attack, and doctors need to make sure that people at high risk of heart disease get annual flu shots, says a study by U.S. researchers who examined 1993-2000 autopsy reports from St. Petersburg, Russia.

The researchers found that people 50 and older were one-third more likely to die of a heart attack during peak flu season than in non-flu weeks, CBC News reported.

Few people in St. Petersburg receive flu shots or take anti-cholesterol drugs, the study authors noted. Their findings appear in this week's online issue of the European Heart Journal.

"My public health message is that flu is an important killer in cardiac patients," study leader Mohammad Madjid, a professor at the University of Texas, said in a prepared statement. "If people can recognize that the flu vaccine has specific cardio-protective effects, then high-risk people will be more likely to make sure they receive the influenza vaccine every year."

The researchers noted that flu-related inflammation in the body can destabilize arterial plaque, which can then block arteries in the heart and cause a heart attack, CBC News reported.

Health Headlines - April 20

132 Million Flu Vaccine Doses for U.S. Next Season

A record 132 million doses of flu vaccine are expected to be ready for the 2007-08 flu season in the United States, according to estimates announced Wednesday at a meeting in Atlanta of flu vaccine makers, public health officials, and health professionals.

Sanofi Pasteur Inc. said it will have 50 million doses ready, Novartis Vaccines plans to have 40 million doses, and GlaxoSmithKline expects to have 30 million to 35 million doses. All those doses are in the form of flu shots, the Associated Press reported.

In addition, MedImmune Vaccines says it will produce about seven million doses of FluMist. This nasal spray product, which contains a live flu virus and therefore carries a slight risk of causing flu symptoms, is recommended only for healthy people ages 5 to 49.

But even this large number of flu doses falls short of U.S. guidelines that call for 218 million Americans to get flu vaccinations, noted Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Disease.

The number of flu doses available for the next flu season may increase if another company, CSL Biotherapies, receives federal approval to sell its vaccine in the United States this fall, the AP reported. The company has asked for expedited FDA approval.

Nearly 121 million flu vaccine doses -- the most ever -- were produced for the United States during the 2006-07 flu season, but more than 18 million doses weren't used and are to be destroyed after their June 30 expiration date.

-----

Flu Can Increase Heart Attack Risk: Study

Having the flu can increase the risk of heart attack, and doctors need to make sure that people at high risk of heart disease get annual flu shots, says a study by U.S. researchers who examined 1993-2000 autopsy reports from St. Petersburg, Russia.

The researchers found that people 50 and older were one-third more likely to die of a heart attack during peak flu season than in non-flu weeks, CBC News reported.

Few people in St. Petersburg receive flu shots or take anti-cholesterol drugs, the study authors noted. Their findings appear in this week's online issue of the European Heart Journal.

"My public health message is that flu is an important killer in cardiac patients," study leader Mohammad Madjid, a professor at the University of Texas, said in a prepared statement. "If people can recognize that the flu vaccine has specific cardio-protective effects, then high-risk people will be more likely to make sure they receive the influenza vaccine every year."

The researchers noted that flu-related inflammation in the body can destabilize arterial plaque, which can then block arteries in the heart and cause a heart attack, CBC News reported.

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Many Playgrounds, Athletic Facilities Locked on Weekends: Study

School playgrounds and athletic facilities could play a major role in reducing U.S. childhood obesity rates, but many of them are locked and inaccessible to children on weekends, says a RAND Corporation study released Thursday.

In 2003, researchers looked at schools and parks within a half mile of the homes of 1,556 sixth-grade girls in six communities: Washington D.C./Baltimore; Columbia, S.C.; Minneapolis; New Orleans; Tucson, Ariz.; and San Diego.

The 407 schools in the girls' neighborhoods represented 44 percent of potential nearby sites for physical activity. On average, 66 percent of the schools were unlocked on weekends. But the study also found that only 57 percent of schools were both unlocked on weekends and had accessible facilities such as playgrounds, athletic fields, basketball courts and paved playing surfaces.

The percentage of unlocked schools with accessible facilities were: Minneapolis, 93 percent; Columbia, 77 percent; San Diego, 74 percent; Washington/Baltimore, 54 percent; Tucson, 50 percent; New Orleans, 23 percent.

"Girls who lived near locked schools tended to be heavier, and neighborhoods with locked schools were disproportionately poor and had larger minority populations," lead author Molly M. Scott, a RAND research analyst, said in a prepared statement.

"These neighborhoods, where risk of obesity is high and public parks and playgrounds are often lacking, could benefit from convenient and safe places for physical activity. And making schools accessible doesn't require construction. It's a policy change," Scott said.

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CDC Improves Its Web Site

Improvements to its home page and major topic Web pages were unveiled Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

CDC officials said the changes to the site, which include improved layout and a more powerful search engine, are meant to make it easier for users to more quickly find health information and resources.

The Web site (www.cdc.gov) averages nine million visits a month. About 37 million pages on the site are viewed monthly.

Among the new features on the home page:

• Health and safety information is now grouped in broad, easy-to-browse topic areas.
• There is improved access to data and statistics, recent news, tools and resources, and new publications.
• An interactive features area at the top of the home page uses photos or videos to highlight current issues, events and health topics.
• A "Top 20 at CDC.gov" section provides users with a list of the most popular health topics, along with direct access to those topics from the home page.

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U.S. Senate Blocks Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Proposal

Democrats failed Wednesday to get the 60 U.S. Senate votes they needed to proceed with a bill to give Medicare the power to negotiate lower drug prices for millions of older Americans, The New York Times reported.

A Democratic motion to limit debate and proceed to consideration of the bill received 55 votes in favor and 42 votes against.

Current law forbids Medicare from negotiating drug prices with pharmaceutical companies.

The bill, a priority for the new Democratic majority in Congress, faced strong opposition from Republicans, who said private insurers and their agents already negotiate significant discounts for Medicare beneficiaries, the Times reported.

The push to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices fell short due to the "power of the insurance industry and the pharmaceutical industry," which spent hundreds of thousands of dollars opposing the measure, said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada).

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4 Million More Magnetix Building Sets Recalled

Four million more Magnetix magnetic building sets are being recalled due to the threat that children will swallow tiny magnets in the sets and suffer serious injury, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said Thursday.

In March 2006, 3.8 million Magnetix magnetic building sets were recalled by Montreal-based maker Mega Brands after one child died and four others were seriously injured after they swallowed tiny magnets in the toys, the Associated Press reported.

If a child swallows more than one magnet, the magnets can attach to one another and cause intestinal perforation, infection or blockage.

Overall, the company and the CPSC say they know of one death, one aspiration and 27 intestinal injuries among children who swallowed the magnets. In all but one of the cases, the children required emergency surgery. The CPSC said it has received reports of at least 1,500 incidents in which small magnets separated from the toy.

The expanded recall covers all Magnetix sets except those sold since March 31, 2006, the AP reported. These newer sets have a caution label and material and design changes that make it less likely that magnets will become loose, the AP reported.

For more information, contact Mega Brands at 800-779-7122.

Health Headlines - April 19

Major Disparities Seen Among State Medicaid Programs

There are a wide range of disparities in eligibility requirements, benefits and performance among U.S. state Medicaid programs, according to a report released Wednesday by the watchdog group Public Citizen.

These differences between states mean that a number of the 55 million mostly low-income Americans who rely on Medicaid fail to receive adequate services, said the report, which ranked the state programs, United Press International reported.

Even the highest-scoring states received only 64.6 percent of the maximum possible points possible under the scoring system used by Public Citizen.

Federal standards are so inadequate that no state has a truly excellent Medicaid program," Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's health research group, said in a prepared statement.

The highest ranking state Medicaid programs were in Massachusetts, Nebraska, Vermont, Alaska, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Minnesota, New York, Washington and New Hampshire, UPI reported.

The lowest-ranked programs were in Mississippi, Idaho, Texas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Indiana, South Carolina, Colorado, Alabama and Missouri.

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Britain Has Highest Rate of Drug Abuse in Europe

Britain has the highest level of drug abuse in Europe and the second highest rate of drug-related deaths, according to a study that estimated the value of the illegal drug trade in Britain to be about five billion pounds a year.

Poland and Germany have the lowest rates of drug abuse, Agence France Presse reported.

In Britain, about 25 percent of adults ages 26 to 30 have tried banned drugs such as cocaine or heroin at least once, and about 45 percent of young people have used cannabis, the study said. Britain has more than twice the number of addicts (0.85 percent of the population) than France and Sweden (0.4 percent) or Germany and the Netherlands (0.3 percent), AFP reported.

In Europe, Britain is second only to Denmark in terms of drug-related deaths. The rate in Britain is 34 people per million of the adult population. But drug-related death rates in Britain and Denmark are still well below those of the United States and Australia, the study noted.

The study was commissioned for Wednesday's launch of the independent UK Drug Policy Commission.

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Few Teenage Girls Use Illegal Steroids

Flawed survey questions are likely leading to false reports that anabolic steroid use is widespread among teenage girls in the United States, concludes an analysis published in the May 11 issue of the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

Some surveys have indicated that as many as 7.3 percent of Grade 9 girls reported "illegal steroid use," and such findings have sparked widespread concern.

However, researchers at the Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital said their analysis suggests that the use of anabolic steroids by teenage girls is actually rare, but flawed wording in some surveys produces alarming findings.

"In reality, teenage girls almost never use anabolic steroids, because they cause masculinizing effects, such as deepening of the voice, bulging muscles and beard growth," author Dr. Harrison Pope, director of McLean's Biological Psychiatry Laboratory, said in a prepared statement.

He said that "national surveys of teenage drug use seem to have erroneously concluded that girls were using steroids because (the surveys) did not phrase the questions properly."

Pope said the student surveys asked "about the use of 'steroids' without cautioning respondents that the question referred exclusively to illegal anabolic steroids, and not to corticosteroids or sports supplements." This resulted in many students incorrectly answering "yes" to the steroid question.

Corticosteroids are drugs routinely prescribed to treat problems such as poison ivy, asthma and inflammatory conditions. Sports supplements that contain creatine, amino acids and other substances are legally sold in supplement stores.

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FDA Seizes New Jersey Company's Implantable Medical Devices

All implantable medical devices and products made by Shelhigh, Inc. of Union, N.J. were seized Tuesday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration after the agency found major problems in the company's manufacturing processes that may compromise the safety and effectiveness of the items.

Sterility was a particular area of concern, the FDA said.

Shelhigh products targeted in the seizure included pediatric heart valves and conduits (tube-like devices for blood flow); surgical patches; dural patches (to aid in tissue recovery after neurosurgery); annuloplasty rings (to help repair heart valves); and arterial grafts.

Critically ill patients, pediatric patients and patients with weakened immune systems may be at greatest risk from the products, said the FDA, which recommended that doctors monitor patients with Shelhigh implantable devices/products for infections and proper device functioning.

The FDA said violations by the company include manufacturing products in a facility with a poorly constructed and poorly maintained clean room where sterilized devices are further processed; failing to adequately monitor critical manufacturing environments for possible microbial contamination; failing to properly test products for sterility and fever-causing contaminants; and failing to scientifically support product expiration dates.

Concerned patients should contact their doctor. The FDA said it will soon post more information for patients and doctors on its Web site.

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Melamine Found in Another Pet Food Ingredient

The industrial chemical melamine has been found in a second pet food ingredient, resulting in the recall of more pet food and treats.

Melamine was previously identified as the contaminant in wheat gluten used by six manufacturers of dog and cat food and treats. That led to a massive recall of the products and the FDA banned imports of wheat gluten from China.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said that melamine is believed to have contaminated rice protein concentrate used to make a number of Natural Balance Pet Foods products for cats and dogs, the Associated Press reported.

The company, based in Pacoima, Calif., said it's recalling all its Venison and Brown Rice canned and bagged dog foods, Venison and Brown Rice dog treats, and Venison and Green Pea dry cat food.

Natural Balance, which does not use wheat gluten, said it detected melamine in the products and believes rice protein concentrate was the source of contamination, the AP reported.

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U.S., Canadian Patients Have Similar Outcomes: Study

Health care spending on individuals is much higher in the United States than in Canada, but Canadian patients have as good or better outcomes than Americans, says a study in the journal Open Medicine.

The study found that slightly more than $7,100 per person per year is spent in the U.S., compared with slightly more than $2,900 per person in Canada, the Canadian Press reported.

"In looking at patients in Canada with a specific diagnosis compared to Americans with the same diagnosis, in Canada patients had at least as good an outcome as their American counterparts -- and in many situations, a better health outcome," said study co-author Dr. P.J. Devereaux, a cardiologist and clinical epidemiologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont.

He and his colleagues reviewed the findings from 38 studies and found that 14 showed better outcomes in Canada, five showed better outcomes in the U.S., and 19 showed equivalent or mixed results in both countries, the CP reported.

Devereaux said Canada's publicly-funded universal health system offers administrative cost-saving efficiencies that can't be had in a system that relies on private insurance. He also noted that controls on drug prices help Canada keep prescription drug costs in check.

Health Headlines - April 18

Bill Would Allow Two-Year Ban on Ads for New Drugs

Under a bill moving through the U.S. Congress this week, drug companies could be prohibited from advertising new prescription medicines directly to consumers for the first two years the products are on the market, the Associated Press reported.

The bill would give the Food and Drug Administration the power to impose such a ban.

Proponents say the new law would help guarantee that new medicines are safe before drug companies advertise them to consumers with the goal of getting patients to ask their doctors for prescriptions for the drugs.

"We don't know, and we won't know, how truly safe a drug is until it's been used in millions of people," Consumer Reports analyst Bill Vaughn told the AP. "The real testing of these drugs takes place after a pill hits the market and that's why the advertising needs to be regulated."

The drug industry says the ads provide patients with important information about diseases and treatment options.

On Wednesday, the Senate committee that oversees the FDA will put the finishing touches to the bill, the AP reported.

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Most Poor People With HIV Don't Get Antiretroviral Drugs

Worldwide, only 28 percent of poor people with HIV have access to antiretroviral drugs that could save their lives, says a new report by the World Health Organization, Unicef and UNAids. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

The report also said there are still a number of obstacles standing in the way of the United Nations' target of universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment programs by 2010, BBC News reported.

By the end of 2006, just over two million people with HIV in low- and middle-income nations were receiving antiretroviral drugs. While that's 54 percent more than the previous year, the report noted that 7.1 million people with HIV still did not have access to the drugs.

The WHO had set a goal of providing antiretroviral drugs to three million poor people by the end of 2005, BBC News reported.

While the overall coverage rate for antiretroviral drugs was 28 percent, it was just six percent in the North Africa and Middle East regions. The report also said that just 11 percent of pregnant women with HIV are getting the drugs they need to reduce the risk that they'll pass the virus to their babies.

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Doctors Considering Removing Corzine's Breathing Tube

Doctors on Tuesday were trying to assess whether New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine could breathe on his own and be taken off a ventilator. But they've said there's no timetable for when the breathing tube may be removed.

There are also plans to reduce Corzine's level of sedation and to give him some control over the amount of pain medication he receives, the Associated Press reported.

Corzine, 60, suffered multiple injuries last Thursday when the sport utility vehicle he was riding in crashed on the Garden State Parkway. As of Tuesday, he remained in critical but stable condition at Cooper University Hospital.

His injuries included: a broken left thigh bone; a dozen broken ribs; broken collarbone and chest bone; and a fractured vertebrae in his lower back. Doctors said he doesn't have any brain damage or paralysis, the AP reported.

So far, the governor has had three operations on his broken left leg. In the first surgery, doctors inserted a titanium rod. The other two operations were to clean wounds in the leg.

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Climate Change-Related Water Problems Will Affect U.S.

Climate change will cause major water-related problems for Americans, scientists and military experts conclude.

States will have disputes over control of rivers, lakes and other water sources, and floods and water shortages elsewhere in the world will result in increased conflict and terrorism that pose national security challenges for the U.S., the Associated Press reported.

U.S. scientists who helped write an international report on the effects of climate change said that the Great Lakes will shrink, coastal areas in the eastern U.S. will face increased flooding, and some areas of the U.S. Southwest will have to find new sources of drinking water.

On Monday, the scientists released their 67-page chapter on the effects of climate change in North America.

A separate report by a panel of retired U.S. military leaders also released Monday warned that water problems caused by climate change will increase conflict, terrorism and the need for international intervention in poor, unstable regions of the world, including Africa, the Middle East and South Asia, the AP reported.

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FDA Seeks 31 Percent Rise in Fees from Medical Device Makers

Under a U.S. Food and Drug Administration proposal, the medical device industry would have to pay 31 percent more in fees next year to help offset the costs of having their products reviewed by the FDA.

The agency wants to collect 31 percent more in 2008 and then 8.5 percent more each year through 2012 in order to collect $287 million in fees from the industry over those five years. That would cover only about 23 percent of the $1.2 billion the FDA estimates it will spend during that time to review medical devices, the Associated Press reported. The rest of the tab would be paid for by taxpayers.

The increased fees will help the FDA provide manufacturers with faster and more predictable review times for their devices, the agency says.

Some critics charge that the FDA's growing reliance on drug and medical device industry fees give companies undue influence over the agency's approval process, the AP reported.

The fee increase is included in the FDA's recommendations to Congress for reauthorizing the Medical Device User Fee and Modernization Act, which will expire Sept. 30 unless it's renewed by Congress. Public comments on the proposal are being accepted by the FDA for the next 30 days and a public meeting will be held April 30.

Health Headlines - April 17

Americans Want Stronger Drug Safety Laws: Poll

Most Americans believe the federal government has failed to protect them from dangerous prescription drugs and they support drug safety reforms, says a Consumer Reports poll released Monday.

The survey was released in advance of a U.S. Senate Health Committee vote Wednesday on what Consumer Reports called the most significant prescription drug safety legislation in 45 years.

The telephone survey of 1,026 adults found that 92 percent of respondents agree that all clinical trial results should be made public, and 96 percent said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration should have the power to require warning labels and follow-up studies on drugs with safety problems.

Currently, the FDA must negotiate safety warnings with drug makers.

More than 60 percent of the respondents agreed that the FDA and Congress have failed to adequately protect consumers from harmful prescription drugs.

"The message we're hearing from consumers couldn't be clearer -- they want strong laws to ensure our prescription drugs are as safe and effective as possible," Jim Guest, CEO of Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports, said in a prepared statement.

"Right now drug companies can game the system by touting the positive results from their drug studies, while downplaying information about harmful side effects. Americans are fed up with being kept in the dark about critical health and safety information, and they overwhelmingly want change," Guest said.

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FDA Seeks Reauthorization of Medical Device User Fee Program

A proposal to reauthorize the Medical Device User Fee and Modernization Act has been released by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The current law expires Sept. 30, United Press International reported.

The FDA said the act helps ensure that safe and effective medical devices become available to patients in a timely manner. Under the act, medical device makers cover a portion of the costs of the FDA's pre-market review program.

The proposal would provide device makers with predictable fees and improved review times and would also give the FDA a steady source of additional funding for its medical device review program, said Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach, the FDA commissioner.

The agency will accept public comments on the proposal for the next 30 days and will hold a public meeting on April 30, UPI reported.

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N.J. Gov. Corzine Has Second Leg Surgery

New Jersey Gov. Jon S. Corzine, 60, remained in critical but stable condition Monday after undergoing a second operation to treat the broken leg he suffered last Thursday in a car crash.

He also suffered 12 broken ribs, a broken collarbone and chest bone, and a number of minor injuries. During the surgery Monday at Cooper University Hospital, doctors cleaned out the 6-inch wound inflicted in Corzine's left leg when the femur broke, the Associated Press reported.

The operation was "uneventful," said Andrew Poag, a spokesman for Corzine. Doctors operated Saturday to clean the same leg wound. On Sunday, doctors performed a brief procedure to remove fluid that had collected outside Corzine's left lung.

The governor, who was riding in the passenger's seat, apparently was not wearing his seat belt when the sport utility vehicle crashed on the Garden State Parkway just north of Atlantic City, the AP reported.

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U.S. Screens Only Small Amount of Imported Foods

Food safety experts say the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cannot adequately ensure that foods imported from other countries are safe, according to the Associated Press.

"FDA doesn't have enough resources or control over this situation presently," Mike Doyle, director of the University of Georgia's Center for Food Safety, told the AP.

U.S. inspectors check only a small percentage of imported foods and often find products unfit for human consumption. For example, last month the FDA detained nearly 850 shipments of imported foods for problems including unsafe food coloring, filth and contamination with salmonella and pesticides.

Those problems were detected in just 1.3 percent of food imports inspected by U.S. officials. The remaining 98.7 percent of imports, ranging from fresh produce to processed foods, are not inspected, the AP reported.

Each year, the average American eats about 260 pounds of imported foods. That represents about 13 percent of a person's annual diet.

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EPA Increases Scrutiny of Lead in Children's Products

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says it will increase scrutiny of companies that make or distribute toys, zippers and other children's products that contain lead, which can kill youngsters or harm their brain development.

In response to legal pressure from advocacy groups, the EPA agreed to send letters to as many as 120 manufacturers and importers telling them to provide health and safety studies if there is lead in any products they market to children, the Associated Press reported.

The EPA will also inform the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission that an information review by the EPA "raises questions about the adequacy of quality control measures by companies importing and/or distributing children's jewelry."

While the EPA can ban a substance such as lead, only the CPSC can ban a product that contains lead.

Last year, the Sierra Club and another advocacy group, Improving Kids' Environment, sued the EPA to force it to take stronger action to keep lead out of children's products, the AP reported.

In December, the CPSC moved to ban, rather than recall, children's jewelry that contained more than 0.06 percent lead by weight.

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Injured U.S. Soldiers Face Too Much Bureaucracy: Commission

An unacceptable tangle of paperwork and bureaucracy is making it difficult for injured American soldiers to get proper medical treatment, said leaders of a presidential commission on veterans' health care.

The nine-member panel held its first meeting Saturday, where it heard from veterans, spouses and advocacy groups who said the system was failing injured soldiers. The commission members said they wanted to work quickly to find solutions, the Associated Press reported.

The commission will deliver a pragmatic and "solution-driven" report by late July, said member Donna Shalala, who was health and human services secretary during the Clinton administration.

The report will address a number of areas including providing institutional support to family members looking after injured soldiers; reforming a disability benefits system that critics say shortchanges injured soldiers; and improving cooperation between the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Over the next few weeks, the commission plans to hold more than a dozen hearings and site visits to military and VA facilities across the country, the AP reported.

Health Headlines - April 16

Blood Pressure Regulation May Be 'All in Your Head'

Can the brain control Blood pressure?

As improbable as that sounds, BBC News reports that scientists at Bristol University in England say their research on laboratory rats indicates that a protein known as JAM-1 could actually be the substance that determines a person's blood pressure.

JAM-1 appears to trap white blood cells in the brain, obstructing blood flow, which in turn, causes inflammation in the brain, the scientists found. And this condition triggered elevated blood pressure, also known as hypertension.

The researchers don't know why this happens, BBC News reports, but the finding could initiate new methods for treating hypertension.

"We are looking at the possibility of treating those patients that fail to respond to conventional therapy for hypertension with drugs that reduce blood vessel inflammation and increase blood flow within the brain," Bristol University professor Julian Paton is quoted as saying.

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DNA Marker for Early Detection of Liver Cancer Identified

Using a DNA component, Columbia University scientists say they've discovered a new way to detect liver cancer much earlier than before, a finding that may successfully fight what has been considered a death sentence for most people who get the disease.

According to a news release from the university's Mailman School of Public Health, hepatocellular or liver carcinomas (HCC) are usually diagnosed at such an advanced stage that survival is usually not possible. Using blood from 24,000 Taiwanese people from a study begun in 1991, the researchers were able to isolate a DNA biomarker from blood serum.

The researchers then were able to identify the gene changes that identified malignancy in the liver. The change was detected one-to-nine years before actual clinical diagnosis, according to the University news release.

"Having the tools to identify hepatocellular carcinoma at earlier stages, is truly a breakthrough for addressing the challenges that result from this highly lethal form of cancer," the news release quotes Regina Santella, the principal investigator, as saying.

The study results are published in the April 15, 2007 issue of Clinical Cancer Research.

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Possibility of Botulism Prompts Imported Italian Olives Recall

The latest U.S. government alert about food that may cause serious illness concerns olives imported from Italy.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that olives made by Charlie Brown di Rutigliano and Figli S.r.l, of Bari, Italy may contain the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. C. botulinum, which causes botulism, a disease that often leads to death. The olives were initially recalled by the maker on March 27. They had been distributed in the United States to both restaurants and retail stores.

Although no illnesses have been reported in the United States, the FDA says the olives should be discarded, even if they appear not to be spoiled. They are sold under the following brands: Borrelli, Bonta di Puglia, Cento, Corrado's, Dal Raccolto, Flora, Roland and Vantia, and have codes that start with the letter "G" and are followed by 3 or 4 digits. All sizes of cans, glass jars and pouches of Cerignola, Nocerella and Castelvetrano type olives are affected, the FDA says.

Botulism symptoms include weakness, dizziness, double vision, trouble speaking or swallowing, difficulty in breathing, weakness of other muscles, abdominal distension and constipation.

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Teen Sexual Abstinence Education Program Not Working, Report Says

It doesn't appear that teenagers are getting the message about sexual abstinence.

The Associated Press reports that the U.S. government-funded program, costing about $176 million annually to alert teenagers to the problems of sexual promiscuity, isn't getting the desired results.

Just as many teens who attended one of four abstinence classes surveyed were as likely to have sex as those who didn't attend the program, the wire service reports. The study was ordered by Congress to determine whether the sexual abstinence classes, begun in 1999, were making a difference.

The classes were designed to encourage teens to abstain from having sex until they got married. While acknowledging the report's accuracy, a Bush administration official also says that follow-up is needed to make the program effective.

"This report confirms that these interventions are not like vaccines," Harry Wilson, the commissioner of the Family and Youth Services Bureau at the Administration for Children and Families, is quoted as saying. "You can't expect one dose in middle school, or a small dose, to be protective all throughout the youth's high school career."

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Court Won't Order FDA to Tighten Rules on Mercury Fillings

A U.S. federal appeals court unanimously ruled Friday that it can't compel the Food and Drug Administration to tighten rules on dental fillings that contain mercury, the Associated Press reported.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said that it has no jurisdiction to review the agency's handling of the issue.

Advocacy groups went to court in an attempt to ban mercury fillings and to force the FDA to reclassify the products and impose stricter regulations on them, the AP reported.

The groups argue that mercury vapors from the fillings can harm patients and the dental office employees who handle the fillings.

Significant levels of mercury exposure can damage the kidneys and brain. But the FDA has steadfastly insisted that mercury fillings pose no threat to patients, except in rare cases when patients have allergic reactions, the AP reported.

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New HIV Drug Shows Promise

A new drug called raltegravir shows promise in combatting drug-resistant HIV, concludes an international study in The Lancet medical journal. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

Raltegravir belongs to a new class of drugs called integrase-inhibitors, which block an enzyme essential for HIV to replicate itself, BBC News reported.

The study included 178 patients with advanced HIV who failed to respond to the antiretroviral drugs they'd been taking for about 10 years. The patients were assigned to take their usual drugs plus either raltegravir or a non-medicinal placebo.

After 24 weeks, patients taking raltegravir showed a 98 percent drop in the amount of HIV genetic material in their blood, compared to a 45 percent drop among the placebo group. Those taking raltegravir also showed a significant boost in the number of CD4 cells, an indication of immune response, BBC News reported.

"This drug has the potential to become an important component of combination treatment regimens...for patients failing current therapies with multidrug-resistant virus and limited treatment options," wrote the study's authors at Merck Research Laboratories in Pennsylvania.

Health Headlines - April 15

Possibility of Botulism Prompts Imported Italian Olives Recall

The latest U.S. government alert about food that may cause serious illness concerns olives imported from Italy.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says that olives made by Charlie Brown di Rutigliano and Figli S.r.l, of Bari, Italy may contain the bacterium Clostridium botulinum. C. botulinum, which causes botulism, a disease that often leads to death. The olives were initially recalled by the maker on March 27. They had been distributed in the United States to both restaurants and retail stores.

Although no illnesses have been reported in the United States, the FDA says the olives should be discarded, even if they appear not to be spoiled. They are sold under the following brands: Borrelli, Bonta di Puglia, Cento, Corrado's, Dal Raccolto, Flora, Roland and Vantia, and have codes that start with the letter "G" and are followed by 3 or 4 digits. All sizes of cans, glass jars and pouches of Cerignola, Nocerella and Castelvetrano type olives are affected, the FDA says.

Botulism symptoms include weakness, dizziness, double vision, trouble speaking or swallowing, difficulty in breathing, weakness of other muscles, abdominal distension and constipation.

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Teen Sexual Abstinence Education Program Not Working, Report Says

It doesn't appear that teenagers are getting the message about sexual abstinence.

The Associated Press reports that the U.S. government-funded program, costing about $176 million annually to alert teenagers to the problems of sexual promiscuity, isn't getting the desired results.

Just as many teens who attended one of four abstinence classes surveyed were as likely to have sex as those who didn't attend the program, the wire service reports. The study was ordered by Congress to determine whether the sexual abstinence classes, begun in 1999, were making a difference.

The classes were designed to encourage teens to abstain from having sex until they got married. While acknowledging the report's accuracy, a Bush administration official also says that follow-up is needed to make the program effective.

"This report confirms that these interventions are not like vaccines," Harry Wilson, the commissioner of the Family and Youth Services Bureau at the Administration for Children and Families, is quoted as saying. "You can't expect one dose in middle school, or a small dose, to be protective all throughout the youth's high school career."

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Court Won't Order FDA to Tighten Rules on Mercury Fillings

A U.S. federal appeals court unanimously ruled Friday that it can't compel the Food and Drug Administration to tighten rules on dental fillings that contain mercury, the Associated Press reported.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said that it has no jurisdiction to review the agency's handling of the issue.

Advocacy groups went to court in an attempt to ban mercury fillings and to force the FDA to reclassify the products and impose stricter regulations on them, the AP reported.

The groups argue that mercury vapors from the fillings can harm patients and the dental office employees who handle the fillings.

Significant levels of mercury exposure can damage the kidneys and brain. But the FDA has steadfastly insisted that mercury fillings pose no threat to patients, except in rare cases when patients have allergic reactions, the AP reported.

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New HIV Drug Shows Promise

A new drug called raltegravir shows promise in combatting drug-resistant HIV, concludes an international study in The Lancet medical journal. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

Raltegravir belongs to a new class of drugs called integrase-inhibitors, which block an enzyme essential for HIV to replicate itself, BBC News reported.

The study included 178 patients with advanced HIV who failed to respond to the antiretroviral drugs they'd been taking for about 10 years. The patients were assigned to take their usual drugs plus either raltegravir or a non-medicinal placebo.

After 24 weeks, patients taking raltegravir showed a 98 percent drop in the amount of HIV genetic material in their blood, compared to a 45 percent drop among the placebo group. Those taking raltegravir also showed a significant boost in the number of CD4 cells, an indication of immune response, BBC News reported.

"This drug has the potential to become an important component of combination treatment regimens...for patients failing current therapies with multidrug-resistant virus and limited treatment options," wrote the study's authors at Merck Research Laboratories in Pennsylvania.

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U.S. Woman Has Baby Conceived with Frozen Egg and Sperm

A 36-year-old California woman has given birth to the first baby in the United States to be conceived using a frozen egg and frozen sperm.

Adrienne Domasin gave birth to Noah Peter Domasin (8 pounds, 4 ounces) at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Laguna Hills, Calif., the Associated Press reported.

While there have been about 200 documented births from frozen eggs worldwide, the only other birth from a frozen egg and frozen sperm took place in Australia. That birth was reported last year in the Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics.

Domasin decided to take part in the California study after she learned two years ago that her fallopian tubes were blocked. She was unable to afford in-vitro fertilization but was determined to have a baby, the AP reported.

After eggs were harvested from Domasin, they were frozen for four months, then injected with thawed donor sperm. A fertilized egg was then placed inside Domasin.

The freezing of sperm has been done for decades but attempts to use frozen eggs have a low success rate, the AP reported.

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Senate Panel OKs Bill to Negotiate Medicare Drug Prices

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee has approved legislation to permit Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies, the Associated Press reported.

The bill, approved Thursday by a vote of 13-8, eliminates a clause that forbids the secretary of Health and Human Services from taking part in negotiations between drug companies, insurers, and pharmacies, the AP reported. The bill is expected to go before the full Senate next week.

While the Bush administration opposes the measure, supporters said the ban on federal government negotiations with drug makers goes too far.

"When you're negotiating on behalf of 43 million people, that's leverage," Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) told the wire service.

Health Headlines - April 14

Court Won't Order FDA to Tighten Rules on Mercury Fillings

A U.S. federal appeals court unanimously ruled Friday that it can't compel the Food and Drug Administration to tighten rules on dental fillings that contain mercury, the Associated Press reported.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said that it has no jurisdiction to review the agency's handling of the issue.

Advocacy groups went to court in an attempt to ban mercury fillings and to force the FDA to reclassify the products and impose stricter regulations on them, the AP reported.

The groups argue that mercury vapors from the fillings can harm patients and the dental office employees who handle the fillings.

Significant levels of mercury exposure can damage the kidneys and brain. But the FDA has steadfastly insisted that mercury fillings pose no threat to patients, except in rare cases when patients have allergic reactions, the AP reported.

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New HIV Drug Shows Promise

A new drug called raltegravir shows promise in combatting drug-resistant HIV, concludes an international study in The Lancet medical journal. HIV is the virus that causes AIDS.

Raltegravir belongs to a new class of drugs called integrase-inhibitors, which block an enzyme essential for HIV to replicate itself, BBC News reported.

The study included 178 patients with advanced HIV who failed to respond to the antiretroviral drugs they'd been taking for about 10 years. The patients were assigned to take their usual drugs plus either raltegravir or a non-medicinal placebo.

After 24 weeks, patients taking raltegravir showed a 98 percent drop in the amount of HIV genetic material in their blood, compared to a 45 percent drop among the placebo group. Those taking raltegravir also showed a significant boost in the number of CD4 cells, an indication of immune response, BBC News reported.

"This drug has the potential to become an important component of combination treatment regimens...for patients failing current therapies with multidrug-resistant virus and limited treatment options," wrote the study's authors at Merck Research Laboratories in Pennsylvania.

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U.S. Woman Has Baby Conceived with Frozen Egg and Sperm

A 36-year-old California woman has given birth to the first baby in the United States to be conceived using a frozen egg and frozen sperm.

Adrienne Domasin gave birth to Noah Peter Domasin (8 pounds, 4 ounces) at Saddleback Memorial Medical Center in Laguna Hills, Calif., the Associated Press reported.

While there have been about 200 documented births from frozen eggs worldwide, the only other birth from a frozen egg and frozen sperm took place in Australia. That birth was reported last year in the Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics.

Domasin decided to take part in the California study after she learned two years ago that her fallopian tubes were blocked. She was unable to afford in-vitro fertilization but was determined to have a baby, the AP reported.

After eggs were harvested from Domasin, they were frozen for four months, then injected with thawed donor sperm. A fertilized egg was then placed inside Domasin.

The freezing of sperm has been done for decades but attempts to use frozen eggs have a low success rate, the AP reported.

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Senate Panel OKs Bill to Negotiate Medicare Drug Prices

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee has approved legislation to permit Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices with pharmaceutical companies, the Associated Press reported.

The bill, approved Thursday by a vote of 13-8, eliminates a clause that forbids the secretary of Health and Human Services from taking part in negotiations between drug companies, insurers, and pharmacies, the AP reported. The bill is expected to go before the full Senate next week.

While the Bush administration opposes the measure, supporters said the ban on federal government negotiations with drug makers goes too far.

"When you're negotiating on behalf of 43 million people, that's leverage," Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) told the wire service.

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FDA Approves Ointment to Treat Impetigo

An antibiotic ointment called Altabax (retapamulin) has been approved to treat children and adults with a bacterial skin infection called impetigo, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Friday.

The drug, a new molecular entity not previously approved in the United States, can be used on people aged nine months or older, the FDA said.

The approval was based on a study of about 3,000 people who received either Altabax, different antibiotics, or a non-medicinal placebo. The most common side effect among those using Altabax was irritation at the site where it was applied. This occurred in less than two percent of people who used the ointment, the FDA said.

Altabax, which will be available by prescription, is made by North Carolina-based GlaxoSmithKline.

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Scientists Identify Genetic Mutations Linked to ADHD

Three gene mutations may be associated with cases of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), say German researchers.

They studied 329 families in which one child had ADHD, finding that about 70 percent of the children had a combination of three mutations in the gene for a dopamine transporter linked to hyperactivity, Agence France Presse reported.

"People who have this combination in both copies of the gene have a 2.5 increased ADHD risk. People with only one copy of this variant still have almost twice the risk," team leader Dr. Johannes Hebebrand of the University of Duisburg-Essen said in a prepared statement.

"Of course, this doesn't mean that everyone who has the genetic variants will automatically get the disease," he added.

Hebebrand said this is the strongest genetic evidence found to date linking the dopamine transporter to hyperactivity, AFP reported.

Stroke Guidelines Focus on Critical First Hours

Intravenous delivery of the clot-busting drug tPA is still the best treatment for patients in the crucial first few hours after an ischemic stroke, say new guidelines released by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association.

Ischemic strokes, the most common kind of stroke, are caused by a clot that blocks blood flow in an artery in the brain.

"We are pushing for the fastest possible treatment, because 'time is brain.' For every minute that goes by, the likelihood of a poorer outcome increases," Dr. Harold P. Adams Jr., chairman of the guidelines' writing group, said in a prepared statement.

He and his colleagues noted that intravenous delivery of the clot-busting drug tPA (tissue plasminogen activator) is only approved to be used within three hours of the onset of ischemic stroke symptoms.

Other techniques, such as mechanical devices to remove blood clots and intra-arterial administration of tPA, show promise and should be considered for patients with moderate-to-severe ischemic stroke who arrive too late at the hospital to receive intravenous tPA treatment, the writing group said. They also noted that information on these techniques is limited, and more research is needed.

The guidelines also recommend that emergency medical personnel do a quick stroke assessment, draw blood and alert the hospital about the impending arrival of a patient with a suspected stroke. Stroke patients should be transported to the nearest "appropriate" hospital for emergency stroke care, even if this means bypassing the nearest medical center or calling for air evacuation.

Among the new or revised recommendations in the guidelines:

• Hospitals should develop emergency stroke protocols so that patients can be assessed and treated within 60 minutes of arrival.
• More medical centers should seek certification as primary or comprehensive stroke centers.
• Patients should receive early and carefully chosen treatments for abnormal blood pressure, fever or abnormal blood sugar levels, which can have a negative effect on a stroke patient's outcome.

Health Headlines - April 13

Gleevec Prevents Gastro Tumor Recurrence: Study

People who took the drug Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) after having a particular type of gastrointestinal tumor removed were significantly less likely to have the cancer recur than people who didn't take the drug, the U.S. National Institutes of Health said Thursday in announcing results of a new study.

Some 97 percent of people who took Gleevec after removal of a primary gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) did not have a recurrence of their cancer, versus 83 percent of GIST patients who took a placebo for one year, the NIH said in a statement. The five-year trial was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, and conducted by the American College of Surgeons Oncology Group.

The drug was generally well tolerated, and side effects were similar to those observed in prior trials of the drug for other uses. The side effects included nausea, diarrhea, and swelling.

Experts said the results had major implications for people with this type of cancer. "Conventional chemotherapy agents have been notoriously ineffective in GIST," said Dr. Ronald DeMatteo at New York City's Memorial Sloan-Ketting Cancer Center. "This study for the first time demonstrated that targeted molecular therapy reduces the rate of recurrence after complete removal of a primary GIST."

Gleevec belongs to a class of drugs that block cellular communication, preventing tumor growth. It was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2002 to treat GIST tumors that couldn't be removed by surgery or had spread to other parts of the body.

Gleevec has earned a reputation as a cancer "wonder drug," for its ability to beat back leukemia and certain types of stomach tumors. It also shows promise against autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

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U.S. Soldiers Said to be 'Shortchanged' by Disability Ratings System

There are inconsistencies in the way the Pentagon and Veterans Affairs rate military service members' disabilities, and injured U.S. Army soldiers may be getting shortchanged on retirement and health care benefits, says the chairman of the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission.

Testifying before a Senate panel on Thursday, retired Lt. Gen. James Terry Scott outlined problems in the ratings systems, the Associated Press reported.

"It is apparent that service members are not well-served," Scott told the joint hearing of the Senate Armed Services and Veterans Affairs committees. The hearing was scheduled to look at problems in the system.

Critics charge that the ratings can be easily manipulated to limit disability payments to service members and create unnecessary confusion in a system already under tremendous stain, the AP reported.

The Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission conducted a preliminary review of VA and Pentagon data and found that the Army was most likely to give an injured service member a disability rating of less than 30 -- the cutoff point for lifetime retirement payments and health care. Disability ratings assigned by the VA tended to be higher.

Different standards may explain some differences in ratings, but, Scott said, "It is also apparent that DOD (Department of Defense) has strong incentive to assign ratings less than 30 percent so that only separation pay is required."

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U.S. Senate Passes Stem Cell Research Bill

Ignoring President George W. Bush's threat of a veto, the U.S. Senate on Wednesday passed a bill to ease restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research, the Associated Press reported.

The bill would provide federal funding for research on stem cells from unused embryos at in-vitro fertilization clinics that would otherwise be destroyed. Currently, federal money is limited to research on 21 embryonic stem cell lines that existed as of August 2001. However, scientists say most of these lines have been contaminated and are useless for research.

In a statement released after the Senate vote, Bush said the bill "crosses a moral line that I and many others find troubling. If it advances all the way through Congress to me desk, I will veto it." Bush vetoed a similar bill last year, the AP reported.

Bush and other opponents of embryonic stem cell research liken it to abortion because embryos have to be destroyed to harvest the stem cells.

The Senate also voted 70-28 to pass a measure that supports research in adult stem cells, the AP reported.

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Pollutants May Be Linked to Diabetes: Study

There may be a link between pollutants called persistent organic pesticides (POPs) and type 2 diabetes, says an international study published in the journal Diabetes Care.

The study found high levels of POPs in the blood were associated with insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes. The study authors noted that POPs are stored in fatty tissues and suggested that this may be why obese people have an increased risk of developing diabetes, BBC News reported.

People with insulin resistance are unable to remove excess glucose from their blood. This is often a major step in the development of type 2 diabetes.

However, some experts said this study does not offer conclusive evidence of a link between POPs and the development of diabetes, BBC News reported. It may be that insulin resistance may hinder a person's ability to clear POPs from the body.

Matt Hunt, head of science information at Diabetes UK, said this is a complex area of research and this study and others have offered no details of a mechanism by which POPs could cause insulin resistance, BBC News reported.

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Too Many Spanish Doctors and Nurses Drink and Drive: Study

Spanish doctors and nurses admit to disturbingly high levels of drinking and driving, says a study in the current issue of the journal BMC Public Health.

The study of 16,171 Spanish university graduates found that female nurses and doctors and male nurses were all 1.2 times more likely to drink and drive than university graduates who did not work in the health field. Male doctors were even worse -- they were twice as likely to drink and drive.

"The role of these health professionals in educating the population regarding the health consequences of drinking and of drinking and driving has long been advocated. Yet their capability to do so may be impaired due to their own lifestyles," wrote the study authors from the Universidad de Navarra in Pamplona.

Overall, 30 percent of the 16,171 university graduates reported that they "sometimes" drove after drinking. The study also found that drinking and driving was associated with other unsafe behaviors, such as binge drinking, drinking daily, not wearing seat belts, and being a former smoker.

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Groups Demand End to Two-Year Medicare Wait for Disabled People

The U.S. Congress must eliminate the current two-year wait for Medicare coverage for people whose severe and debilitating disabilities prevent them from working, dozens of patient advocacy groups contend.

The groups' position came in response to a report released Wednesday that found 600,000 disabled people go without health care or go into debt while waiting for Medicare coverage.

"Congress must eliminate the cruel and arbitrary two-year wait for Medicare, which punishes Americans who are hit by severe illness or injuries that make it impossible to keep working," report co-author Robert M. Hayes, president of the Medicare Rights Center, said in a prepared statement. The Medicare Rights Center is a national consumer service organization.

People who are deemed unable to work due to incapacitating health problems are not eligible for Medicare until two years after they receive their first Social Security Disability Income benefit. Currently, about 1.5 million Americans with severe and permanent disabilities are in the Medicare waiting period. Each year, about 12 percent of disabled people die before their Medicare coverage begins.

"The report chronicles the devastating health and financial toll that the waiting period takes on the lives of hard-working Americans who are stranded without health coverage after they become disabled," Hayes said.

The report, which includes the experiences of 21 disabled people while waiting for Medicare coverage, was published by The Commonwealth Fund.

Health Headlines - April 12

Groups Demand End to Two-Year Medicare Wait for Disabled People

The U.S. Congress must eliminate the current two-year wait for Medicare coverage for people whose severe and debilitating disabilities prevent them from working, dozens of patient advocacy groups contend.

The groups' position came in response to a report released Wednesday that found 600,000 disabled people go without health care or go into debt while waiting for Medicare coverage.

"Congress must eliminate the cruel and arbitrary two-year wait for Medicare, which punishes Americans who are hit by severe illness or injuries that make it impossible to keep working," report co-author Robert M. Hayes, president of the Medicare Rights Center, said in a prepared statement. The Medicare Rights Center is a national consumer service organization.

People who are deemed unable to work due to incapacitating health problems are not eligible for Medicare until two years after they receive their first Social Security Disability Income benefit. Currently, about 1.5 million Americans with severe and permanent disabilities are in the Medicare waiting period. Each year, about 12 percent of disabled people die before their Medicare coverage begins.

"The report chronicles the devastating health and financial toll that the waiting period takes on the lives of hard-working Americans who are stranded without health coverage after they become disabled," Hayes said.

The report, which includes the experiences of 21 disabled people while waiting for Medicare coverage, was published by The Commonwealth Fund.

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New York City Produces 1% of U.S. Greenhouse Gases

New York City produces almost 1 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States, according to a just-release report by the mayor's Office of Long-term Planning and Sustainability.

That means that the city pumps out the same amount of emissions as some small countries, such as Ireland and Portugal, the Associated Press reported.

New York, the largest city in the United States and home to 2.7 percent of the nation's population, produced 58.3 million metric tons of the 7.26 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases emitted in the country in 2005, the report said.

Buildings, subways, buses, cars and the decomposition of waste are major sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the city, the AP reported.

But the report also noted that the average New York City resident actually produces less than a third of the greenhouse emissions generated by their fellow average Americans. That's largely because the city's mass transit system enables many residents to get around without cars.

The report was ordered by Mayor Michael Bloomberg to provide a benchmark for his goal of reducing the city's greenhouse gas emissions by 30 percent by 2030.

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Actor, Politician Fred Thompson Reveals Cancer Diagnosis

Actor and former U.S. Senator Fred Dalton Thompson, widely believed to be considering running for the Republican presidential nomination, revealed Wednesday that he was diagnosed with lymphoma more than two years ago, Bloomberg News reported.

The indolent lymphoma is in remission and Thompson, 64, says he has had no symptoms or illness from the cancer. His office released a statement from his physician, Dr. Bruce Cheson, head of hematology at Georgetown University Hospital. Cheson said that Thompson's form of lymphoma is so slow-growing that people with the disease often die "from natural causes associated with old age."

On an Internet site popular with conservative Republicans, Thompson wrote: "My life expectancy should not be affected. I am in remission, and it is very treatable with drugs if treatment is needed in the future -- and with no debilitating side effects."

Thompson was first elected to the Senate in 1994 in a special election in Tennessee to replace Al Gore, who'd been elected vice-president. Thompson then won a full six-year term in 1996 but did not seek re-election after that, Bloomberg reported.

As an actor, Thompson has appeared in dozens of movies and has a major role in the television series "Law and Order."

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U.S. Diabetes-Related Costs Hit $22.9 Billion

About three of five people (57.9 percent) in the United States with type 2 diabetes have serious health problems associated with the disease, and those complications amounted to $22.9 billion in direct medical costs in 2006, says a new report made public by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) at its annual meeting in Seattle.

Heart disease, stroke, eye damage, chronic kidney disease, and serious foot problems were among the complications mentioned in the report.

The analysis, based on data from two large national studies, also found that annual healthcare costs for people with type 2 diabetes and its complications were about three times more than those of the average person without diabetes.

These complication can cost almost $10,000 a year, and the average person with type 2 diabetes paid nearly $1,600 in out-of-pocket costs, including deductibles and co-payments.

The report said one-third of people with type 2 diabetes had one other serious health problem, 10.3 percent had two others, 6.7 percent had three others, and 7.6 percent had four or more other serious health problems.

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Glass Fragments Prompt Grifulvin Recall

Reports of glass fragments in Grifulvin -- a medication used to treat ringworm and other fungal infections -- have prompted a recall by U.S. manufacturer Ortho-McNeil.

The recall involves lots of the liquid formulation of Grifulvin and griseofulvin oral suspension, which has a Patriot Pharmaceuticals label, distributed between Aug. 23, 2005 and March 14, 2007, United Press International reported.

Ortho-McNeil said the recall is a precaution and that there have been no reports of anyone being harmed by the glass fragments. The company said it has two reports of glass fragments in Grifulvin bottles, which Ortho-McNeil believes were caused by bottles breaking during shipment, UPI reported.

Specific lot numbers included in the recall are listed at http://www.aboutgrifulvin.com/recall.asp.

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Journal Removes Wolf-Cloning Study From Web Site

A South Korean research report on wolf cloning has been pulled from the Web site of the international journal Cloning and Stem Cells, pending an investigation into incorrect data, Agence France Presse reported.

In a message posted on its Web site, the journal said the study's authors had requested corrections and that the journal was awaiting results of a Seoul National University (SNU) investigation into the research.

On March 26, an SNU team led by Lee Byung-Chun and Shin Nam-Shik announced that it had created the world's first two cloned wolves in October 2005. However, it's been revealed that the researchers provided incorrect data in a table analyzing the mitochondrial DNA sequence of the two wolves and their surrogate mother dogs.

Another error describing the team's past attempts to clone dogs appeared to make its progress more impressive than it actually was, AFP reported.

Researcher Lee said both errors were inadvertent.

Health Headlines - April 11

30 Percent Hike in Kidney Failure Among Cats Recorded in Pet Food Recall

During the three months that contaminated pet food was sold in the United States, there was a 30 percent increase in kidney failure among cats, the Associated Press reported.

The finding was reported Monday by Banfield, The Pet Hospital, a large veterinary hospital chain, from data out of more than 615 of its clinics. The chain's analysis showed that 3 out of every 10,000 cats and dogs seen at the clinics developed kidney disease during the time that more than 100 brands of pet food contaminated with the chemical melamine were on the market.

The Canadian pet food company, Menu Foods, initiated a massive, nationwide recall March 16 after finding that imported wheat gluten, used to make gravy in its moist pet foods, was tainted with melamine, a toxin used in plastic kitchenware. That recall was followed by others, including 20 brands of popular dog biscuits, as more pet food companies tracked their own batches of wheat gluten back to one single company in China.

During the period when the now-recalled pet food was being sold, Banfield clinics saw an extra 284 cases of kidney failure among cats, about 30 percent higher than normal. But it's not clear whether those cats actually ate the contaminated pet food, the AP reported.

Since the first pet food recall was announced three weeks ago, Banfield clinics have seen 1,605 cats and dogs reported to have eaten the recalled food. Five of the cats and one dog died, the clinic reported.

In related news, the founder of the Veterinary Information Network said Monday that 5,000 to 10,000 pets may have fallen ill after eating the contaminated food, and 1,000 to 2,000 pets may have died, the AP reported. The estimate is based on a survey of 1,400 members of the network.

The Web site petconnection.com, meanwhile, said that it has received reports of 3,5987 pet deaths linked to the contaminated food, but noted that those numbers have not been confirmed.

As of last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration still did not have an official tally of pet deaths, beyond the 16 confirmed in the initial days of the recall. But officials said, the agency had received more than 12,000 complaints that it was investigating.

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FDA Memo Warns on Vioxx Successor

If safer alternatives are available, U.S. regulators should not approve new painkiller drugs in the same class as Vioxx that boost the risk of heart attack and stroke, according to a Food and Drug Administration document.

The March 21 memorandum was released Tuesday, ahead of an FDA advisory panel meeting Thursday to consider a new painkiller called Arcoxia, which is the successor to Merck now-withdrawn blockbuster Vioxx, the Associated Press reported.

Vioxx, a Cox-2 inhibitor, was pulled from the market in 2004 after it was linked to increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Arcoxia is also a Cox-2 inhibitor. Merck, which wants FDA approval to sell Arcoxia to treat the signs and symptoms of osteoarthritis, already sells the drug in 60 other countries.

Cox-2 inhibitors are a type of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). In the March 21 memorandum, the FDA said NSAIDS should only be approved if they fill an unmet need for a particular group of patients for whom there are no safer treatment options, the AP reported.

The FDA said potential risks to the cardiovascular system will be the focus on any evaluation of Arcoxia and similar drugs.

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Canadians Consume Too Much Salt: Report

A new report says that 85 percent of adult males and 60 percent of adult females in Canada eat too much salt, which increases their risk for health problems such as high blood pressure.

The new issue of Statistics Canada's Health Reports said that average daily salt intake in 2004 for Canadians ages 19 to 70 was 3,093 mg. Males ages 14 to 30 consumed more than 4,000 mg a day.

The maximum daily intake for people aged 9 to 50 should be 1,500 mg, and less for younger and older people, the National Post reported.

People in Quebec and British Columbia had the highest salt consumption (more than 3,300 mg per day), while people in Ontario had the lowest (2,871 mg).

But it could be worse. A similar study in the United States found that Americans consume an average of about 200 mg more salt a day than Canadians, the Post reported.

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Most Dieters Gain More Weight Than They Lose: Report

People who diet can end up gaining back more weight than they originally lost, a new U.S. study reports.

University of California, Los Angeles researchers reviewed 31 previous studies and found that people typically lose between 5 percent and 10 percent of their weight during the first six months of a diet. But within five years, two-thirds of dieters had put on more weight than they lost, BBC News reported.

This is potentially dangerous, because losing and gaining weight is associated with heart disease and stroke, the researchers said. Their findings appear in the April issue of the journal American Psychologist.

"Diets do not lead to sustained weight loss or health benefits for the majority of people," said lead researcher Traci Mann. "We concluded most of them would have been better off not going on the diet at all. Their weight would have been pretty much the same, and their bodies would not suffer the wear and tear of losing weight and gaining it all back."

Too many people approach dieting as a short-term measure, Dr. Ian Campbell, medical director of Weight Concern in the U.K., told BBC News. He was not involved in the study.

"Keeping weight off is a lifelong challenge. It is just like heart disease or mental health problems, if you stop taking your medicine you can get worse," Campbell said.

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U.S. Senate Set to Pass Stem Cell Research Bill

The U.S. Senate this week is expected to pass another stem cell research bill, which will be vetoed by President George Bush, the St. Petersburg Times in Florida reported.

The bill would permit the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund research on stem cells harvested from unused embryos that would otherwise be discarded at in-vitro fertilization clinics. Currently, federal funding is limited to research on 21 lines of embryonic stem cells, all created before Aug. 9, 2001. Those stem cell lines are limited in number and quality.

The House passed the bill in January. Bush vetoed the same bill last year and said he will veto this one, even though polls show that more than 60 percent of Americans support the proposal, the Times reported. Bush and other opponents of this approach liken it to abortion because the embryo has to be destroyed in order to collect the stem cells.

Another stem cell bill proposed by conservatives is also expected to be passed by the Senate this week. The bill instructs the NIH to gather stem cells from other sources, including amniotic fluid and embryos that are no longer viable, the Times reported.

Health Headlines - April 10

Advocacy Group Attacks New Celebrex TV Ad

A new television commercial for the painkiller Celebrex was launched last week, two years after ads for the drug were pulled off the air at the request of U.S. regulators because the drug was linked to increased heart attack and stroke risk.

But at least one group is demanding that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration order the manufacturer, Pfizer, to pull the new ad as well.

New York-based Pfizer Inc. spent more than a year discussing the content of the new commercial with the FDA, according to Bloomberg News. The company decided to launch a new ad campaign after internal research showed that 40 percent of U.S. consumers thought Celebrex was no longer on the market.

The 2 1/2 minute ad begins with a warning that Celebrex and competing drugs such as naproxen and ibuprofen all may cause heart attack, stroke and death. The ad then lists the benefits of Celebrex, including the claim that the drug causes less indigestion, abdominal pain and nausea than naproxen and ibuprofen, Bloomberg reported.

The nonprofit advocacy group Public Citizen on Monday sent a letter to the FDA demanding that the agency order Pfizer to immediately stop airing the ad.

"The overall purpose of the ad is to make it appear, contrary to scientific evidence, that the cardiovascular dangers of Celebrex are not greater than those of any of the other NSAID painkillers. Further, it asserts that certain gastrointestinal problems are, if anything, less frequent with Celebrex than with two popular over-the-counter (OTC) painkillers," wrote Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group.

"The ad violates FDA law and regulations because it contains several false or misleading statements that will lead many viewers to underestimate the cardiovascular and gastrointestinal risks of Celebrex and use it in preference to equally effective, safer alternatives such as OTC naproxen," Wolfe wrote.

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Alcohol Consumption in Russia Triples Since 1990

Average annual alcohol consumption in Russia nearly tripled between 1990 and 2006, from 5.4 liters to 15 liters per person, according to the country's consumer protection agency.

The agency, called Rospotrebnadzor, noted that the 2006 average was far higher than the 2005 average of 9.7 liters per person, Agence France Presse reported. In 2005, about 2.3 million of Russia's 142 million people were considered alcoholics.

In total, 12 billion liters of alcohol were sold in Russia in 2006. Of that, 75 percent was beer, 16 percent vodka and other hard liquor, 8t percent wine, and 1 percent cognac.

The agency said that while alcohol-related deaths actually declined to 28,386 in 2006 from 40,877 in 2005, alcohol was still a factor in 12 percent of all deaths in Russia last year, AFP reported.

Home-brewed alcohol killed 1,074 people in 2006, and 5 percent of alcohol sold in 2006 didn't meet sanitary standards, up from 2.6 percent in 2005.

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Fat Impairs Cancer-Fighting Effects of Vitamin C: Study

The cancer-fighting effects of vitamin C may be nullified when fat is present in the stomach, suggests a study by researchers at the University of Glasgow in Scotland.

In laboratory experiments, the scientists found that vitamin C (ascorbic acid) clears away potential cancer-causing compounds that are created when food and saliva mix with stomach acid, BBC News reported.

However, when fat is present in the stomach, vitamin C is no longer able to prevent the formation of such hazardous compounds. The findings show how diet may be associated with certain stomach cancers, the researchers said.

"These results show that the presence of lipid can markedly alter the protective effects of antioxidants, and how a diet rich in fat can directly influence gastric biochemistry," said study lead author Emilie Combet.

The study was presented at the annual meeting of the Society of Experimental Biology.

Bridget Aisbitt, a nutrition scientist for the British Nutrition Foundation, told BBC News that this was interesting research but no one factor can cause cancer, which is a complex disease the develops over many years due to a number of genetic and environmental factors.

She said the study does help "underline the importance of a healthy balanced diet where meals high in fat should not be frequent and five portions of fruit and vegetables -- our main source of vitamin C -- are eaten each day."

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PTSD Patients Less Sensitive to Pain: Study

People with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) appear to be less sensitive to pain than those without the condition, says a Dutch study in the journal Archives of General Pyshiatry.

The study included 24 military veterans -- half with PTSD and half without -- who were given hot objects to hold while their brain activity was monitored using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), BBC News reported.

Compared to those without PTSD, the veterans with PTSD said the objects felt less hot and reported significantly less pain. The fMRI scans showed that those with PTSD had much less activity in parts of the brain that process pain while they were holding the hot objects.

The researchers did not offer any explanations for the differences in pain regulation between the veterans with PTSD and those without the condition, BBC News reported. Some previous studies have suggested that PTSD patients may have differences in the structure of certain parts of the brain.

People with PTSD suffer flashbacks, panic attacks, anxiety and depression following a traumatic event.

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Baby Turtles Pose Serious Health Risk: FDA

In response to the recent death of 4-week-old infant in Florida, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a reminder that baby turtles can pose a serious health risk to infants, small children and adults with impaired immune systems.

Baby turtles can carry salmonella, a group of bacteria that can cause severe illness and death, the FDA said. Salmonella can be found on the outer skin and shell surfaces of the turtles and can infect people who do not properly wash their hands after handling the animals.

The FDA said that parents and others who care for children need to remember that:

• Salmonella infection can be caused by contact with turtles in petting zoos, parks, day-care facilities and other locations.
• It's important to wash hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling or touching turtles and their housing.
• The sale of turtles with a shell less than 4 inches long is illegal. Exceptions include sales of turtles intended for export only, or for bona fide scientific, educational, or exhibition purposes.

Each year in the United States, there are an estimated 74,000 cases of turtle-associated salmonellosis in humans, the FDA said. Gastrointestinal symptoms caused by salmonella bacteria usually begin 12 to 36 hours after exposure and generally last for two to seven days.

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Asian Herb May Help Fight Urinary Infections

An Asian herb often identified as a weight loss aid may be beneficial in reducing urinary tract infections even after antibiotic treatment, a Duke University study has found.

One of the problems with treating urinary tract infections is that colonies of E. coli bacteria can "hide" in cells lining the bladder even after antibiotics have killed 90 percent of them, a Duke University Medical Center news release says. But the use of forskolin, an extract from the Indian coleus plant, flushes out hiding colonies of bacteria, and then antibiotics can finish them off.

The research was conducted on laboratory mice, and "... there are small numbers of bacteria that survive antibiotic treatment because they sneak into the lining of the bladder, waiting for the opportunity, after antibiotic treatment, to come out and start multiplying again," Duke microbiologist Soman Abraham, who led the research, said in the news release.

"This herb has been used in Asia for centuries for a wide variety of ailments," Abraham said. "However, one of its constant uses has been for treating painful urination."

Forskolin is a popular supplement for weight loss and body building and is available in most stores selling herbal products. Abraham said that a person with a urinary tract infection who wants to try forskolin should first consult a physician.

Health Headlines - April 9

Asian Herb May Help in Fighting Urinary Infections

An Asian herb often identified as a weight loss aid may be beneficial in reducing urinary tract infections even after antibiotic treatment, a Duke University study has found.

One of the problems with treating urinary tract infections is that colonies of E. coli bacteria can "hide" in cells lining the bladder even after antibiotics have killed 90 percent of them, a Duke University Medical Center news release says. But the use of forskolin, an extract from the Indian coleus plant, flushes out hiding colonies of bacteria, and then antibiotics can finish them off.

The research was conducted on laboratory mice, and "... there are small numbers of bacteria that survive antibiotic treatment because they sneak into the lining of the bladder, waiting for the opportunity, after antibiotic treatment, to come out and start multiplying again," Duke microbiologist Soman Abraham, who led the research, said in the news release.

"This herb has been used in Asia for centuries for a wide variety of ailments," Abraham said. "However, one of its constant uses has been for treating painful urination."

Forskolin is a popular supplement for weight loss and body building and is available in most stores selling herbal products. Abraham says that a person with a urinary tract infection who wants to try forskolin should first consult a physician.

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Fat Cell Hormone May Cause Increase in Colon Cancer Risk in Obese People

Leptin, a chemical produced by fat cells, may be the cause for accelerating the growth of cancer in the colon, according to a new study.

BBC News reports that research conducted by scientists at the University of California at San Diego and published in the latest edition of the British Journal of Surgery, gives indications as to why overweight people seem to be more susceptible to getting colon cancer.

Previous studies indicated that the hormone leptin appears to accelerate the activity of colorectal cancer cells, the BBC reports, and the University of California researchers conducted laboratory experiments to confirm original findings.

The results showed that leptin appeared to impede the way the body replaces normal cells, allowing malignant cells to form. Lead researcher Dr. Kim Barrett is quoted as saying, "These results may explain why obesity increases a person's risk of colonic cancer."

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Partners of Cancer Survivors May Have Even More Emotional Suffering, Study Says

As if cancer weren't difficult enough for the patient, its psychological fallout may be even more devastating for the partner, a new study says.

University of Florida researchers found that partners of cancer survivors can suffer even greater quality of life problems than the victims themselves. The study is being published online April 10 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, a press release from the journal says.

The study centered around cancer patients who had undergone blood and marrow transplant. Researchers examined the psychological effects of this treatment on partners of the cancer patients.

According to the news release, the study found "... while partners of cancer survivors reported better physical health, less fatigue, and less cognitive dysfunction than cancer survivors, they experienced equal levels of mental health impairment. The study further found that while similar numbers of partners and survivors suffered from clinical depression (20 percent vs. 22 percent), depressed partners were less likely than depressed survivors to receive mental health treatment."

The partners also said they received less "social support, spiritual well-being, marital satisfaction, and more loneliness than survivors," the report concluded. "These findings highlight the importance of addressing the needs of family members who care for cancer patients, and who may be suffering in silence," the news release quotes lead researcher Michelle M. Bishop as saying.

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New FDA Web Page Gives Update on Medical Devices

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's image is so tied to the drug approval process that one of its other duties -- the approval and monitoring of medical devices -- is often forgotten or misunderstood.

In order to let the public know more about how it approves medical devices and monitors clinical trials on their effectiveness, the FDA has announced a new link on its Web site where the public can keep updated.

The site, called Post Approval Studies, is designed specifically to monitor how well medical devices are performing since their approval, the FDA said in a news release.

"Electronic access will give the public an opportunity to see progress being made on a company's post-market commitments," Dr. Daniel Schultz, director of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in the news release.

The idea for the Web site came in 2005 when the FDA issued a series of reports on post-pediatric medical devices. According to the news release, "Each listing includes the company's name, the product's name, the approval number and date, and describes the study and whether it is meeting its reporting deadlines. No information on clinical data is available because the studies may be ongoing and include personal and confidential information."

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High-Deductible Health Plans Increase Women's Costs: Study

Because of the kinds of routine medical exams they require, women face much higher costs than men in high-deductible health insurance plans that are increasingly popular with American employers, says a Harvard Medical School study.

The researchers noted that women need services such as birth control, Pap tests, mammograms, cervical cancer vaccine, and pregnancy-related care, the Associated Press reported.

The study of nearly 33,000 people found that the median expense for men ages 18-45 in high-deductible plans was $463, compared to $1,266 for women. A third of men in that age group spent more than $1,050 in annual medical costs, compared to 55 percent of women in the same age group.

The median cost for women ages 45-64 was $2,871, compared with $1,849 for men. The study appears in the April issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

"High deductible plans punish women for having breasts and uteruses and having babies," study lead author Dr. Steffie Woolhandler told the AP. "When an employer switches all his employees into a consumer-driven health plan, it's the same as giving all the women a $1,000 pay cut, on average, because women on average have $1,000 more in health costs than men."

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Dire Forecast in Climate Change Report

Massive floods and avalanches in Asia, along with increased hunger and water shortages in the world's poorest nations are among the major threats facing the Earth unless action is taken to adapt to climate change and stop it from worsening, says a report released Friday by delegates at an international conference.

The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report also warned that up to 30 percent of species worldwide face an increased risk of extinction if global temperatures increase 3.6 degrees above the average temperatures of the 1980s and 1990s, the Associated Press reported.

The environmental group Greenpeace said the document was "a glimpse into an apocalyptic future."

The final report was released after five days of intense negotiations, in which government delegates from the United States, China and Saudi Arabia often sought to tone down some of the more ominous projections about the impact of climate change, the AP reported.

"The poorest of the poor in the world -- and this includes poor people in prosperous societies -- are going to be the worst hit. People who are poor are least able to adapt to climate change," said IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri.

Health Headlines - April 8

Happy Easter!

Partners of Cancer Survivors May Have Even More Emotional Suffering, Study Says

As if cancer weren't difficult enough for the patient, its psychological fallout may be even more devastating for the partner, a new study says.

University of Florida researchers found that partners of cancer survivors can suffer even greater quality of life problems than the victims themselves. The study is being published online April 10 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, a press release from the journal says.

The study centered around cancer patients who had undergone blood and marrow transplant. Researchers examined the psychological effects of this treatment on partners of the cancer patients.

According to the news release, the study found "... while partners of cancer survivors reported better physical health, less fatigue, and less cognitive dysfunction than cancer survivors, they experienced equal levels of mental health impairment. The study further found that while similar numbers of partners and survivors suffered from clinical depression (20 percent vs. 22 percent), depressed partners were less likely than depressed survivors to receive mental health treatment."

The partners also said they received less "social support, spiritual well-being, marital satisfaction, and more loneliness than survivors," the report concluded. "These findings highlight the importance of addressing the needs of family members who care for cancer patients, and who may be suffering in silence," the news release quotes lead researcher Michelle M. Bishop as saying.

-----

New FDA Web Page Gives Update on Medical Devices

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's image is so tied to the drug approval process that one of its other duties -- the approval and monitoring of medical devices -- is often forgotten or misunderstood.

In order to let the public know more about how it approves medical devices and monitors clinical trials on their effectiveness, the FDA has announced a new link on its Web site where the public can keep updated.

The site, called Post Approval Studies, is designed specifically to monitor how well medical devices are performing since their approval, the FDA said in a news release.

"Electronic access will give the public an opportunity to see progress being made on a company's post-market commitments," Dr. Daniel Schultz, director of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in the news release.

The idea for the Web site came in 2005 when the FDA issued a series of reports on post-pediatric medical devices. According to the news release, "Each listing includes the company's name, the product's name, the approval number and date, and describes the study and whether it is meeting its reporting deadlines. No information on clinical data is available because the studies may be ongoing and include personal and confidential information."

-----

High-Deductible Health Plans Increase Women's Costs: Study

Because of the kinds of routine medical exams they require, women face much higher costs than men in high-deductible health insurance plans that are increasingly popular with American employers, says a Harvard Medical School study.

The researchers noted that women need services such as birth control, Pap tests, mammograms, cervical cancer vaccine, and pregnancy-related care, the Associated Press reported.

The study of nearly 33,000 people found that the median expense for men ages 18-45 in high-deductible plans was $463, compared to $1,266 for women. A third of men in that age group spent more than $1,050 in annual medical costs, compared to 55 percent of women in the same age group.

The median cost for women ages 45-64 was $2,871, compared with $1,849 for men. The study appears in the April issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

"High deductible plans punish women for having breasts and uteruses and having babies," study lead author Dr. Steffie Woolhandler told the AP. "When an employer switches all his employees into a consumer-driven health plan, it's the same as giving all the women a $1,000 pay cut, on average, because women on average have $1,000 more in health costs than men."

-----

Dire Forecast in Climate Change Report

Massive floods and avalanches in Asia, along with increased hunger and water shortages in the world's poorest nations are among the major threats facing the Earth unless action is taken to adapt to climate change and stop it from worsening, says a report released Friday by delegates at an international conference.

The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report also warned that up to 30 percent of species worldwide face an increased risk of extinction if global temperatures increase 3.6 degrees above the average temperatures of the 1980s and 1990s, the Associated Press reported.

The environmental group Greenpeace said the document was "a glimpse into an apocalyptic future."

The final report was released after five days of intense negotiations, in which government delegates from the United States, China and Saudi Arabia often sought to tone down some of the more ominous projections about the impact of climate change, the AP reported.

"The poorest of the poor in the world -- and this includes poor people in prosperous societies -- are going to be the worst hit. People who are poor are least able to adapt to climate change," said IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri.

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New Epilepsy Drug Shows Promise

A new drug called eslicarbazepine (ESL) shows promise in treating epilepsy patients whose symptoms aren't controlled by existing medications, says a study in the latest issue of the journal Epilepsia.

The study, conducted at 19 sites in five European countries, found that a daily dose of the drug fully eliminated seizures in 24 percent of patients with at least four partial-onset seizures per month who did not respond to other treatments.

There were no gender- or age-related differences noted in the drug's effectiveness. The daily doses tested in the study ranged from 400 milligrams to 1,200 milligrams.

"Our study shows that ESL was safe and well tolerated," study co-author Patricio Soares-da-Silva said in a prepared statement. "We believe that ESL may have the potential to become an important new central nervous system drug not only for the treatment of epilepsy, but also for patients suffering from bipolar disorder and neuropathic pain."

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Betty Ford Recovering From Surgery

Former U.S. first lady Betty Ford, 88, is recovering at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif. after she had unspecified surgery earlier this week, the Associated Press reported.

Mrs. Ford, wife of the late president Gerald Ford, was "recovering well," said a statement from the office of the late president. No other information will be released for several days.

After Gerald Ford died on Dec. 26, 2006, Mrs. Ford traveled across the country with her husband's body for services in California, Washington, D.C., and to his final resting place in Michigan.

Mrs. Ford, whose birthday is Sunday, was first lady from 1974 to 1977. She garnered wide respect for her openness about her struggles with breast cancer, arthritis and addictions to drugs and alcohol, the AP reported.

Health Headlines - April 7

High-Deductible Health Plans Increase Women's Costs: Study

Because of the kinds of routine medical exams they require, women face much higher costs than men in high-deductible health insurance plans that are increasingly popular with American employers, says a Harvard Medical School study.

The researchers noted that women need services such as birth control, Pap tests, mammograms, cervical cancer vaccine, and pregnancy-related care, the Associated Press reported.

The study of nearly 33,000 people found that the median expense for men ages 18-45 in high-deductible plans was $463, compared to $1,266 for women. A third of men in that age group spent more than $1,050 in annual medical costs, compared to 55 percent of women in the same age group.

The median cost for women ages 45-64 was $2,871, compared with $1,849 for men. The study appears in the April issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

"High deductible plans punish women for having breasts and uteruses and having babies," study lead author Dr. Steffie Woolhandler told the AP. "When an employer switches all his employees into a consumer-driven health plan, it's the same as giving all the women a $1,000 pay cut, on average, because women on average have $1,000 more in health costs than men."

-----

Dire Forecast in Climate Change Report

Massive floods and avalanches in Asia, along with increased hunger and water shortages in the world's poorest nations are among the major threats facing the Earth unless action is taken to adapt to climate change and stop it from worsening, says a report released Friday by delegates at an international conference.

The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report also warned that up to 30 percent of species worldwide face an increased risk of extinction if global temperatures increase 3.6 degrees above the average temperatures of the 1980s and 1990s, the Associated Press reported.

The environmental group Greenpeace said the document was "a glimpse into an apocalyptic future."

The final report was released after five days of intense negotiations, in which government delegates from the United States, China and Saudi Arabia often sought to tone down some of the more ominous projections about the impact of climate change, the AP reported.

"The poorest of the poor in the world -- and this includes poor people in prosperous societies -- are going to be the worst hit. People who are poor are least able to adapt to climate change," said IPCC Chairman Rajendra Pachauri.

-----

New Epilepsy Drug Shows Promise

A new drug called eslicarbazepine (ESL) shows promise in treating epilepsy patients whose symptoms aren't controlled by existing medications, says a study in the latest issue of the journal Epilepsia.

The study, conducted at 19 sites in five European countries, found that a daily dose of the drug fully eliminated seizures in 24 percent of patients with at least four partial-onset seizures per month who did not respond to other treatments.

There were no gender- or age-related differences noted in the drug's effectiveness. The daily doses tested in the study ranged from 400 milligrams to 1,200 milligrams.

"Our study shows that ESL was safe and well tolerated," study co-author Patricio Soares-da-Silva said in a prepared statement. "We believe that ESL may have the potential to become an important new central nervous system drug not only for the treatment of epilepsy, but also for patients suffering from bipolar disorder and neuropathic pain."

-----

Betty Ford Recovering From Surgery

Former U.S. first lady Betty Ford, 88, is recovering at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, Calif. after she had unspecified surgery earlier this week, the Associated Press reported.

Mrs. Ford, wife of the late president Gerald Ford, was "recovering well," said a statement from the office of the late president. No other information will be released for several days.

After Gerald Ford died on Dec. 26, 2006, Mrs. Ford traveled across the country with her husband's body for services in California, Washington, D.C., and to his final resting place in Michigan.

Mrs. Ford, whose birthday is Sunday, was first lady from 1974 to 1977. She garnered wide respect for her openness about her struggles with breast cancer, arthritis and addictions to drugs and alcohol, the AP reported.

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Genetic Disease May Have Fueled Hatfield-McCoy Feud

A rare, inherited disease that can cause sudden rage and violence may have helped fuel the famous long-running feud between the Hatfields and McCoys in the hill country of eastern Kentucky and West Virginia.

Dozens of McCoy descendents have Von Hippel-Lindau disease, which can cause high blood pressure, rapid heartbeat, and high levels of adrenaline and other "fight or flight" stress hormones, the Associated Press reported.

While the disease may not be the sole factor for the feud, which lasted for decades and left at least a dozen people dead, it could help explain some of the aggressive behavior exhibited by the McCoy clan, according to doctors.

"This condition can certainly make anybody short-tempered, and if they are prone because of their personality, it can add fuel to the fire," Dr. Revi Mathew, a Vanderbilt endocrinologist treating a McCoy descendent, told the AP.

However, other experts said they're skeptical that the disease played much of a role in the Hatfield-McCoy feud. They noted that there were many feuds between different clans in other places.

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Maker Reveals Source of Peanut Butter Contamination

A leaky roof and faulty sprinkler system at a Georgia plant owned by ConAgra Foods led to last year's outbreak of salmonella bacteria in peanut butter that caused more than 400 people across the United States to become sick, the company said Thursday.

ConAgra said it was now confident of the safety of its Peter Pan peanut butter, which is slated to return to stores in mid-July, the Associated Press reported.

The company said a nearly two-month investigation concluded that moisture from the leaky roof and faulty sprinkler system allowed bacteria-laden moisture to gather at the Sylvester, Ga., plant last summer.

A spokeswoman said although the plant had been cleaned after the roof and sprinkler system were repaired, salmonella remained and wound up contaminating the peanut butter, the AP reported.

In February, ConAgra recalled all supplies of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter made at the Georgia plant. The salmonella outbreak sickened at least 425 people in 44 states, the wire service said.

Health Headlines - April 6

Maker Reveals Source of Peanut Butter Contamination

A leaky roof and faulty sprinkler system at a Georgia plant owned by ConAgra Foods led to last year's outbreak of salmonella bacteria in peanut butter that caused more than 400 people across the United States to become sick, the company said Thursday.

ConAgra said it was now confident of the safety of its Peter Pan peanut butter, which is slated to return to stores in mid-July, the Associated Press reported.

The company said a nearly two-month investigation concluded that moisture from the leaky roof and faulty sprinkler system allowed bacteria-laden moisture to gather at the Sylvester, Ga., plant last summer.

A spokeswoman said although the plant had been cleaned after the roof and sprinkler system were repaired, salmonella remained and wound up contaminating the peanut butter, the AP reported.

In February, ConAgra recalled all supplies of Peter Pan and Great Value peanut butter made at the Georgia plant. The salmonella outbreak sickened at least 425 people in 44 states, the wire service said.

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Arsenic Found in Herbal Kelp Supplements

People who use herbal kelp supplements are at risk of arsenic poisoning, California researchers concluded from a new study.

Scientists at the University of California, Davis, said their research was prompted by the case of a 54-year-old woman who had a two-year history of hair loss, fatigue, and memory loss. School doctors had traced the woman from relatively minor symptoms that got progressively worse as she began to use a variety of herbal therapies, including a kelp supplement.

In a statement, the scientists noted that over a period of several months, the woman's memory problems became so bad that she could no longer remember her home address. Other symptoms included rash, nausea, and vomiting. The woman actually increased her use of the kelp supplements from two to four pills daily as doctors continued to search for a diagnosis.

Subsequent tests revealed arsenic in the woman's blood and urine. When the woman stopped the kelp supplements, her symptoms cleared within weeks, the researchers said.

The study is published in the April issue of the journal, Environmental Health Perspectives.

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Eating and Exercise Habits Vary by Race: Report

Getting enough exercise and eating enough fruits and vegetables -- habits that can shield people from chronic disease -- vary significantly depending on a person's racial/ethnic background, a new U.S. government report found.

Only one in seven American adults who participated in a 2005 survey said they practiced both habits consistently, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Thursday in its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Among men, those classified as multi-racial or of races that were not Caucasian, African American, Hispanic or Asian were significantly more likely (16.5 percent) to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day and get regular physical exercise than were white men (12.6 percent).

Among women, significantly more whites (17.4 percent) got more regular exercise and ate fruits and vegetables than did black women (12.6 percent) or Hispanic women (14.8 percent), the agency report said.

Respondents were asked questions including, "How often do you drink fruit juices such as orange, grapefruit, or tomato?" and "Not counting juice, how often do you eat fruit?" To measure physical activity, respondents were asked how often they engaged in moderate-intensity exercise such as brisk walking, bicycling, vacuuming, or gardening for at least 10 minutes at a time in a usual week.

Last month, HealthDay reported the results of two studies, which concluded that despite public campaigns urging Americans to eat a healthier diet, most still aren't eating the recommended daily amounts of fruits and vegetables.

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Japanese Confirm Abnormal Behavior in People Taking Tamiflu

Abnormal behavior occurred in 128 Japanese people who took the flu drug Tamiflu, says a report submitted Wednesday to a national health ministry panel investigating the matter.

The report's authors checked 1,079 potential cases reported since 2001 and confirmed that 128 people, mostly young children and teenagers, behaved abnormally after taking Tamiflu, Agence France Presse reported. Of those 128 people, five teens and three adults died after falling from buildings or exhibiting extreme behavior such as dashing in front of cars.

Japan, the largest importer of Tamiflu, buys 60 percent of the world's supply of the drug, which is made by Switzerland-based Roche. After a previous probe, Japanese officials said taking Tamiflu posed no danger. U.S. officials came to the same conclusion.

But the Japanese government decided to launch a new investigation after a recent wave of deaths among people taking Tamiflu that led officials to issue an emergency order suspending prescriptions of the drug to young people, AFP reported.

Roche denies that Tamiflu causes any dangerous side effects.

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Elizabeth Edwards Says She Let Family and Country Down by Not Getting Mammograms

Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, told an audience in Iowa that she feels she let down her family and the country by not getting mammogram screenings that could have detected her cancer at an early stage.

Mrs. Edwards, who urged women to get mammograms, said that by the time she noticed a lump in her breast in 2004 and had it removed, the lump was nine centimeters in size and the cancer had spread to other areas in her body, the Associated Press reported.

She announced two weeks ago that her breast cancer had returned and spread to her rib bones.

"I do not have to be in this situation. I am responsible for putting myself, this man, my family and, frankly, putting you all at risk, too, because I think you deserve the chance to vote for this man," Mrs. Edwards told about 500 people in Davenport, the AP reported.

"(The cancer) had the chance to migrate because I sat at home doing whatever I thought was important and didn't get mammograms," she said. "It wasn't that I didn't know. There are women in this audience who know perfectly well whether or not they're doing what they need to do and get mammograms. If you are one of the people who knew but aren't doing it, obviously you need a new strategy."

"Women often put themselves at the bottom (of the) list of things to do. When I put my health at the bottom of the list, I was putting (Mr. Edwards) at the bottom of the list, my children at the bottom of the list, the country at the bottom of the list," Mrs. Edwards said.

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Indonesia Confirms Another Human Case of Bird Flu

A second test has confirmed that a 15-year-old Indonesian girl was infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus, making her the 93rd case in the country, a health ministry official said Thursday. Of the 93 people who've been infected, 72 have died.

The girl, from central Jakarta, had a high fever and was admitted to a hospital in the city on March 30, the Chinese news agency Xinhua reported. On April 2, the girl was transferred to a designated bird flu hospital in Jakarta.

The health ministry official said the girl had looked after chickens and other birds.

After a few months of calm, Indonesia has recently reported a number of new cases of bird flu infection in humans, Xinhua reported. Five people died of bird flu in Indonesia in March and one died early this month. More people have died of bird flu in Indonesia than in any other country.

Health Headlines - April 5

Foundation Pledges $500 Million to Fight Childhood Obesity

Over the next five years, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation plans to spend more than $500 million to reverse the alarming increase in childhood obesity in the United States, making it one of the largest public health efforts ever launched by a private philanthropy.

The foundation will fund a number of initiatives, including: programs to improve access to healthy food and to encourage the development of safe play spaces; obesity research; and efforts to push governments to address the problem, The New York Times reported.

"This is an epidemic that is going to cost the country in terms of morbidity and mortality and economically. The younger generation is going to live sicker and die younger than their parents because of obesity," said Dr. Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, the foundation's president and chief executive.

She noted that many obese children are poor. They have limited access to fresh fruits and vegetables and live in neighborhoods where it's not safe to play outside, the Times reported.

"In many cases, the environment makes it almost impossible for them to choose healthy lifestyles. We're going to try to change that," Lavizzo-Mourey said.

In the United States, about one-third (25 million) of all children 17 and younger are obese or overweight, according to Census Bureau data and a 2006 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

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Low-Dose Steroid Helps Prolong Multiple Myeloma Survival: Study

Preliminary results from a large U.S. study of patients with newly diagnosed multiple myeloma found that a low dose of the steroid dexamethasone (brand named Decadron), in combination with lenalidomide (brand name Revlimid), improved survival when compared to a treatment regimen with lenalidomide and a higher, standard dose of dexamethasone.

Researchers reported Wednesday that patients in the study who received low-dose dexamethasone and lenalidomide had a one-year survival of 96 percent, compared to 86 percent for patients treated with the standard-dose of dexamethasone and lenalidomide. Also, there were fewer side effects associated with the low-dose dexamethasone and lenalidomide, according to the U.S. National Cancer Institute.

Lenalidomide, a derivative of thalidomide, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2006 to be used in tandem with dexamethasone for the treatment of multiple myeloma in patients who had received at least one prior therapy for their disease. Dexamethasone is a steroid that acts as an anti-inflammatory and as an immunosuppressant.

Multiple myeloma is a cancer of plasma cells that are found in blood and bone marrow. In 2007, an estimated 19,900 people in the United States will be diagnosed with multiple myeloma and an estimated 10,790 people will die of the disease.

Results of the new study, sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, will be presented in June at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago. But the researchers released the findings early because they were so promising.

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Wal-Mart Ensures Access to Birth Control

Wal-Mart has revised its U.S. corporate policy to ensure that customers receive emergency contraception and other forms of birth control without discrimination, delay or judgment, according to the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA).

The group said Wal-Mart's assurances, contained in a survey the company returned to PPFA on Wednesday, were in response to PPFA's grassroots advocacy campaign "Fill My Pills Now."

"This is a huge victory for women's health and for Planned Parenthood's campaign for accessible birth control," PPFA President Cecile Richards said in a prepared statement. "We're pleased that Wal-Mart has changed its policy to meet the real-life health-care needs of women and families."

"With its new and improved policy, Wal-Mart joins other women-friendly pharmacy chains like CVS, Eckerd and Medicine Shoppe, RiteAid and Walgreens," Richards said. "Our Planned Parenthood Pill Patrol will continue to focus on getting more major retailers to follow in Wal-Mart's footsteps -- including Target, Giant, Safeway and Winn Dixie, which have a long way to go."

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Joan of Arc's Bone Actually From Egyptian Mummy

A rib bone purported to be from Joan of Arc is actually from an Egyptian mummy, say scientists who used high-tech tests to learn the truth about the fake relic, the Associated Press reported.

The rib bone was dated to between the seventh and third centuries B.C. The scientists also found pine pollen, likely from resin used in Egyptian embalming. In medieval times, powdered mummy remains were used as medicine.

The bone was purported to have been recovered after Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in Rouen, France, in 1431. In 1909, some scientists declared that it was "highly probable" that the rib bone came from Joan of Arc, who was beatified that same year and canonized as a saint in 1920 by the Roman Catholic Church, the AP reported.

It's possible that the rib bone was touted as coming from Joan of Arc to boost her recognition by the church, suggested research team leader Philippe Charlier. The finding that the bone was a fake was first reported in the journal Nature.

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Test Can Help Verify Organic Foods

A test that could help verify whether food that's labeled organic is authentic has been developed by British researchers.

The test checks for differences in the nitrogen isotope composition of foods. Synthetic nitrogen fertilizer is widely used in conventional agriculture but forbidden in organic agriculture.

The researchers said their test detected differences in organically and conventionally grown tomatoes, lettuce and carrots. The results appear in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Currently, authentication of organic foods relies on enforcement of production standards through certification and inspection, which involves a paper trail from the farm to the plate, the researchers noted. This new test could be used to provide additional confirmation that products are organic in order to protect consumers and honest growers.

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New Cancer Cases to Double by 2030: Report

Between 2000 and 2030, the number of cancer cases diagnosed worldwide each year will more than double, and most of the increase will occur in developing nations, says the director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

In 2000, the agency estimated 11 million newly diagnosed cancer cases worldwide, seven million cancer deaths, and 25 million people living with cancer. By 2030, the agency estimates there will be 27 million newly diagnosed cancer cases, 17 million cancer deaths, and 75 million people living with cancer, the Associated Press reported.

Population growth, longer life expectancies, and increased prevalence of cancer risk factors such as smoking and alcohol in developing countries are among the reasons for the expected increase in cancer cases, said Dr. Peter Boyle, director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer.

"We've been concentrating on cancer in high-resource countries and until essentially AIDS came along, we haven't looked too closely at what's going on in low-resource countries," Boyle said at a news conference Tuesday.

He said research has shown an increasing shift of cancer to poor countries, the AP reported.

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Depression During Pregnancy May Increase Risk for Early Birth

Women who suffer depression during pregnancy may be more likely to give birth early, says a British study presented at an Institute of Psychiatry meeting.

The small study compared 25 pregnant women with major depression (but not on medication) to a control group of 35 women without depression. On average, the mothers with depression gave birth two days earlier than the mothers without depression. The study also said that three of the mothers with depression had a premature birth (under 37 weeks gestation). None of the mothers in the control group had a premature birth, BBC News reported.

The study also found that the depressed mothers had much higher levels of the stress hormone corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH), which is known to initiate birth. CRH is also naturally secreted by the placenta during pregnancy.

When the researchers checked the women's babies eight weeks after birth, they found that the babies born to mothers who were depressed during pregnancy had elevated levels of another stress hormone called cortisol, BBC News reported.

Experts noted that depression is common during pregnancy and that a possible link between depression during pregnancy and early birth needs to be examined in a larger study.

Health Headlines - April 4

FDA Bans Wheat Gluten From China Firm Linked to Pet Food Deaths

Imports of wheat gluten from a Chinese company have been banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration after an investigation implicated the wheat gluten in the recent pet food-related deaths of dogs and cats, the Associated Press reported.

The action against Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. in Wangdian comes after the recall of nearly 100 brands of pet food tainted with the chemical melamine. An unknown number of pets have suffered kidney failure after eating contaminated food.

The FDA has found melamine in samples of wheat gluten used in the recalled pet foods and treats. The chemical has also been found in cats that died after eating contaminated food, the AP reported. Melamine is used in a number of products, including plastics, glue and fire retardants.

"The wheat gluten that is positive for melamine all has come from this manufacturer," said Neal Bataller, director of the division of compliance with the FDA's veterinary medicine office.

It appears unlikely that the contaminated wheat gluten was used in any human food, the FDA said.

Also Monday, the Eight in One pet food company announced a nationwide recall of dog, cat and ferret treats because they may be contaminated with salmonella. The bacteria could infect both animals and people handling the food, the AP reported.

The company is recalling all packages of Dingo Chick'N Jerky, Dingo Kitty Chicken Jerky and Dingo Ferret Chicken Jerky.

Salmonella is a bacteria that produces an infection called salmonellosis. Most persons infected with the germ develop diarrhea, fever, and abdominal cramps 12 to 72 hours after infection. The illness typically lasts four to seven days, and most persons recover without treatment.

But for some, the diarrhea may be so severe that the patient needs to be hospitalized. In these patients, the infection may spread from the intestines to the blood stream, and then to other body sites, and can cause death unless the person is treated promptly with antibiotics, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Study Links Smoking and Mental Disorders in Pregnant Women

There's a significant link between smoking and mental disorders in pregnant women and the presence of these disorders may make it more difficult for these women to quit smoking, says a U.S. study in the April issue of the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Researchers found that 21.7 percent of the 1,516 pregnant women in the study smoked cigarettes and of those, 57.2 percent were nicotine dependent. Based on those figures, the researchers estimated that 12.4 percent of pregnant women in the United States are addicted to cigarettes.

The study also found that pregnant women who were nicotine dependent were more likely to meet the criteria for at least one mental disorder than pregnant women who did not smoke. Researchers said there were significant associations between smoking and panic disorder, major depression, and dysthymia (a chronic depressive condition).

"Understanding that these co-morbidities exist may shed light on why some women are unable to abstain from smoking during pregnancy even though they understand the negative health impact for them and their unborn children," Dr. Nora D. Volkow, director of the U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse, said in a prepared statement. The institute helped fund the study.

"There is tremendous value in screening pregnant women who are unable to abstain from smoking for mental disorders -- to not only identify and treat those who have been undiagnosed but also to improve successful quit-smoking attempts," Volkow said.

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Religion Can Help Cut HIV Infection Rates: Study

HIV-positive people who are religious tend to have fewer sexual partners and engage in risky sexual behavior less often than other people with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. This means that HIV-positive people with stronger religious ties are less likely to spread the virus, says a study released Tuesday by the RAND Corporation.

The finding may help in efforts to reduce HIV infection rates.

The study did not examine specific factors of religiosity that may affect the sexual activity of HIV-positive people. But moral beliefs and membership in a faith community may be two important components, suggested principal investigator and RAND senior behavior scientist David Kanouse.

"Moral beliefs may indicate an underlying altruism and a desire to make sure no one else is infected with HIV. Promoting these feelings could then be used as a component of HIV prevention programs," Kanouse said in a prepared statement.

"The study suggests that there's a role for religious institutions to play in the fight against the spread of HIV," study lead author Frank H. Galvan, assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and human behavior at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles, said in a prepared statement.

"They have these core belief systems that do have a positive impact on the lives of people who are HIV-positive and who are sexually active. Religiosity is an untapped resource in the whole struggle against HIV and AIDS, and should be looked at more thoroughly," Galvan said.

The study was published in the February issue of the Journal of Sex Research.

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Medicare Advantage Providers Get Payment Increase

Insurance companies that operate private Medicare plans will receive a higher-than-expected payment increase next year, the U.S. government announced late Monday.

Preliminary payments to companies that run Medicare Advantage programs will increase by 3.5 percent in 2008, said the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Market analysts had predicted an increase of between 2 percent and 3 percent, the Associated Press reported.

Medicare Advantage programs run by private insurers cover about 8 million of the 43 million Americans 65 years and older who receive health care through Medicare. Medicare Advantage was created to expand Medicare and better manage costs.

A nonpartisan advisory group recently reported that the federal government spends 12 percent more on patients in Medicare Advantage than on those in traditional Medicare. That prompted a Congressional hearing into whether Medicare Advantage providers are overpaid, the AP reported.

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Humira Effective Against Psoriasis: Drug Maker

The arthritis drug Humira eased symptoms of psoriasis of patients in two clinical trials and drug maker Abbott Laboratories says it will apply for U.S. and European approval to market the drug to treat the skin disease.

One study found that Humira cleared up all symptoms of psoriasis while the other study found the drug led to an 80 percent improvement in patients, Bloomberg News reported.

Symptoms of psoriasis include inflamed, scaly skin lesions that can crack and bleed. The disease affects about 125 million people worldwide.

Currently, Humira is approved to treat the immune system disorders rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, spinal arthritis, and Crohn's disease. The drug works by blocking the activity of a protein called TNF. Too much TNF can cause the immune system to attack healthy tissue, Bloomberg News reported.

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Weight Gain in Pregnancy Linked to Overweight Children

Women who gain the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy are four times more likely to have a child who is overweight by age 3, a U.S. study finds. Outcomes are similar for women who gain more weight than suggested by guidelines established by the U.S. Institute of Medicine.

The guidelines call for women with a "normal" body mass index (BMI) to gain 25 to 35 pounds during pregnancy. Women with higher BMIs are advised to gain less, while those with lower BMIs are told to gain more, the Associated Press reported.

The study, which included 1,044 and their 3-year-olds, compared the mothers' weight gains during pregnancy to their toddlers' BMIs. The children were defined as overweight if they had a BMI greater than 95 percent of children of the same age and sex.

About half the mothers in the study gained more than the recommended amount of weight during pregnancy, about one-third gained the recommended amount, and 14 percent gained less than the recommended amount, the AP reported.

It's not clear why greater weight gain during pregnancy may increase the risk that a child will be overweight, said study lead author Dr. Emily Oken of Harvard Medical School. The study appears in the April issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Health Headlines - April 3

FDA Extends Comment Period on Foods From Cloned Animals

A month-long extension for comments about the safety of food from cloned animals was announced Monday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The original deadline of April 2 has been extended to May 3.

The FDA issued a preliminary assessment last December that said meat and milk from cloned animals and their offspring were "as safe to eat as food from conventionally bred animals," suggesting that food from cloned animals would soon be allowed on store shelves, BusinessWeek reported.

But the FDA decided to extend the original 90-day comment period after several organizations asked for more time to study the issue. The groups include the public advocacy group Center for Food Safety, and food industry associations such as the American Frozen Food Institute and the Food Marketing Institute.

So far, nearly 4,000 comments about food from cloned animals have been submitted to the FDA's Web site. Many are from individuals who expressed ethical, safety and moral concerns about allowing food from cloned animals into the general food supply, BusinessWeek reported.

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'Friendly' Soil Bacteria May Boost Mood

Exposure to "friendly" bacteria in soil may help improve mood and fight depression, say researchers at Bristol University in Great Britain.

They found that mice exposed to Mycobacterium vaccae made more of the brain chemical serotonin. A lack of serotonin is linked with depression and common antidepressants work by increasing serotonin levels, BBC News reported.

The findings appear in the journal Neuroscience.

More research needs to be conducted to determine whether Mycobacterium vaccae helps boost mood by activating serotonin neurons, the researchers noted.

"These studies help us understand how the body communicates with the brain and why a healthy immune system is important for maintaining mental health," said lead researcher Dr. Chris Lowry.

Lung cancer patients treated with Mycobacterium vaccae have anecdotally reported improved quality of life, BBC News reported.

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Scientists Identify DNA Changes Linked to Prostate Cancer

DNA changes linked to many cases of prostate cancer have been identified by U.S. researchers, the Boston Globe reported.

These DNA changes are common in the American population and, together, can increase the risk of prostate cancer by more than five times, said the study in the journal Nature Genetics.

The scientists said these DNA changes may underlie up to two-thirds of prostate cancer cases in black Americans and one-third of cases in whites, the Globe reported.

The finding could eventually lead to improved methods of screening and treating prostate cancer, which is the second leading cause of death among American men.

Interestingly, all these changes are in so-called junk DNA, which contain no genes and have no known biological function. It's possible that the scientists may have uncovered a new mechanism behind this and other forms of cancer, the Globe reported.

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Scientists Grow Human Heart Valve From Stem Cells

In a world first, British scientists grew a human heart valve from stem cells. The breakthrough, which took a decade to achieve, was led by internationally renowned heart surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub, a professor of cardiac surgery at Imperial College London.

Animals tests are scheduled for later this year. If they prove successful, this method could be available within a few years to treat heart disease patients, the Daily Mail reported.

Yacoub and his team used chemical and physical means to coax bone marrow stem cells to grow into heart valve cells. They then placed the cells into scaffolds made of collagen and grew small discs of heart valve tissue.

This research is a major advance toward the goal of growing an entire beating heart, the Daily Mail reported.

"It is an ambitious project but not impossible. If you want me to guess I'd say 10 years," Yacoub said. "But experience has shown that the progress that is happening nowadays makes it possible to achieve milestones in a shorter time. I wouldn't be surprised if it was some day sooner than we think."

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FDA Approves Combination Diabetes Drug

A 2-in-1 tablet called Janumet to treat diabetes has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, drug maker Merck & Co. said.

Janumet contains a new Merck diabetes drug called Januvia and an older diabetes drug called metformin, the Associated Press reported. Some type 2 diabetes patients already take Januvia and metformin separately. This combined drug is designed to make it easier for patients to control their blood sugar levels, according to Merck.

Januvia, approved by the FDA last October, enhances the body's own ability to lower blood sugar levels.

Novartis AG has applied to the FDA for approval of a similar drug called Galvus, the AP reported.

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Simple Tests Detect Placental Damage

A combination of simple, non-invasive tests early in pregnancy can detect placental damage that may cause stillbirth or a severely underweight premature infant, says a Canadian study that included 212 women with high-risk pregnancies.

Standard blood tests for Down syndrome and spina bifida, as well as a uterine Doppler flow test to check maternal blood flow in the placenta, and an ultrasound to check the shape of the placenta can help doctors determine if a pregnant woman has a damaged placenta, said the team at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, the Canadian Press reported.

The study appears in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.

Through the placenta, a developing fetus receives oxygen, nutrients and antibodies from the mother. An improperly formed or ill-functioning placenta can lead to a number of fetal problems.

"This strategy allows us to identify women that we should study to try to prevent placental damage. The first way to prevent it is to diagnoses it," principal investigator Dr. John Kingdom, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist, told the CP.

There are a number of methods for treating a damaged placenta.

Health Headlines - April 2

Gender May Be Reason Why More Men Get Skin Cancer

Ohio State University researchers have found that a naturally occurring amount of antioxidants in females may be the reason that males are three times more likely to get skin cancer.

The university scientists, led by assistant professor Dr. Tatiana Oberyszyn, investigated the incidence of squamous cell cancer -- a common type of skin cancer in humans -- in a controlled experiment on laboratory mice.

According to an Ohio State University news release, the researchers exposed the animals to UVB, a type of ultraviolet light that causes the most damage to the skin. They found that the naturally occurring amount of antioxidants produced by the female mice not only protected them three times as much from squamous malignancy, but also may have caused tumors that developed in females to be smaller than those in the male mice.

"It's given us clear evidence of a biological basis for the gender bias in developing squamous cell carcinoma," Oberyszyn is quoted as saying in the news release.

The study appears in the April 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research.

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Why Isn't Everyone Attractive? UK Scientists Say They Have the Answer

British scientists say they think they've figured out why Darwin's theory of natural selection hasn't made every human good looking.

BBC News reports that New Castle University researchers have discovered a natural mutation in genetic selection that explains why even if the most attractive men and women were selected by their future mates, the so-called "good genes" wouldn't become commonplace and everyone would be pretty or handsome.

The very act of people selecting each other through sexual attraction allows for greater diversity of DNA and genetic makeup, the lead researchers professor Marion Petrie and Dr. Gilbert Roberts maintain.

"We find that sexual selection can promote genetic diversity despite expectations to the contrary," BBC News quotes Petrie as saying.

The findings are published in the latest edition of the journal Heredity.

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Dramatic Increase of Deadly Dengue Fever in Mexico

A particularly deadly type of dengue fever is spreading rapidly in Mexico and other parts of Latin America, caused in part by climate changes and new migration patterns of mosquitoes that carry it.

The Associated Press reports that dengue fever, which causes high fever, nausea, severe joint pain and rashes, has increased by more than 600 percent in Mexico since 2001. To make matters worse, one-in-four cases of dengue is a particularly bad strain, a hemorrhagic type that causes both internal and external bleeding, increasing the chances of fatality.

In addition to the environmental changes, the wire service quotes Mexican health officials as saying that a failure in mosquito control has also caused an increase in dengue fever. An intensified effort to spray with insecticides in tourist areas before the Easter holiday season begins is being made, the A.P. reports.

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Biologic Drug Gets FDA OK to Fight Rare Clotting Disorder

Ceprotin, a protein-based biologic drug that combats a rare clotting disorder, has been given government approval.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration licensed Ceprotin, which the FDA describes as a concentrated form of Protein C, so it can attack a genetic defect that allows potentially life-threatening blood clots to form in the patient's body.

Ceprotin, made by Baxter Healthcare Corp. of Deerfield, Ill., prevents blood clots from forming in people who have the rare Protein C deficiency. According to an FDA news release, clinical trials demonstrated that Ceprotin was effective in stemming dangerous clotting in patients preparing for surgery and patients who were living with the Protein C deficiency.

About two newborns in every one million births have the deficiency, the FDA says, so the drug was granted "orphan drug" status, meaning that the pharmaceutical company was given special financial incentives to develop it.

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Mass. Gov to Ease Stem Cell Restrictions

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said he plans to reverse stem cell research restrictions put in place by his predecessor, Republican Mitt Romney.

Patrick, a Democrat, said Friday at a meeting of the Life Sciences Collaborative that he would ask the Public Health Council to change the stem cell research rules, the Associated Press reported.

"I believe that life sciences should be guided by science, not politics," Patrick said at the gathering of biotechnology officials.

The restrictions put in place last August by Romney, a presidential hopeful, said that embryos could not be created for the sole purpose of using them for research. That prompted complaints from researchers who said that could prohibit them from using some embryonic stem cells, the AP reported.

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HIV Cases in Asia Could Double in Five Years

Unless governments in Asia take action to halt the spread of HIV, the number of people infected with the virus could double within five years, experts warned Friday.

Currently, about 8.6 million people in Asia are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. If current levels of inadequate government response continue, that number could increase to about 20 million within five years, said the independent Commission on Aids in Asia.

The commission, which is funded by UNAIDS, issued the warning during a two-day workshop in Manila, Philippines, the Associated Press reported.

HIV/AIDS kills about 500,000 people a year in Asia and causes financial losses of about $10 billion a year. The commission said the economic cost could reach $29 billion a year if the epidemic is not brought under control within five years.

Despite the serious threat posed by HIV/AIDS, the commission noted that current spending on HIV control in Asia is only about 10 percent of the required $5 billion a year, the AP reported.

Health Headlines - April 1

Dramatic Increase of Deadly Dengue Fever in Mexico

A particularly deadly type of dengue fever is spreading rapidly in Mexico and other parts of Latin America, caused in part by climate changes and new migration patterns of mosquitoes that carry it.

The Associated Press reports that dengue fever, which causes high fever, nausea, severe joint pain and rashes, has increased by more than 600 percent in Mexico since 2001. To make matters worse, one-in-four cases of dengue is a particularly bad strain, a hemorrhagic type that causes both internal and external bleeding, increasing the chances of fatality.

In addition to the environmental changes, the wire service quotes Mexican health officials as saying that a failure in mosquito control has also caused an increase in dengue fever. An intensified effort to spray with insecticides in tourist areas before the Easter holiday season begins is being made, the A.P. reports.

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Biologic Drug Gets FDA OK to Fight Rare Clotting Disorder

Ceprotin, a protein-based biologic drug that combats a rare clotting disorder, has been given government approval.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration licensed Ceprotin, which the FDA describes as a concentrated form of Protein C, so it can attack a genetic defect that allows potentially life-threatening blood clots to form in the patient's body.

Ceprotin, made by Baxter Healthcare Corp. of Deerfield, Ill., prevents blood clots from forming in people who have the rare Protein C deficiency. According to an FDA news release, clinical trials demonstrated that Ceprotin was effective in stemming dangerous clotting in patients preparing for surgery and patients who were living with the Protein C deficiency.

About two newborns in every one million births have the deficiency, the FDA says, so the drug was granted "orphan drug" status, meaning that the pharmaceutical company was given special financial incentives to develop it.

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Mass. Gov to Ease Stem Cell Restrictions

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick said he plans to reverse stem cell research restrictions put in place by his predecessor, Republican Mitt Romney.

Patrick, a Democrat, said Friday at a meeting of the Life Sciences Collaborative that he would ask the Public Health Council to change the stem cell research rules, the Associated Press reported.

"I believe that life sciences should be guided by science, not politics," Patrick said at the gathering of biotechnology officials.

The restrictions put in place last August by Romney, a presidential hopeful, said that embryos could not be created for the sole purpose of using them for research. That prompted complaints from researchers who said that could prohibit them from using some embryonic stem cells, the AP reported.

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HIV Cases in Asia Could Double in Five Years

Unless governments in Asia take action to halt the spread of HIV, the number of people infected with the virus could double within five years, experts warned Friday.

Currently, about 8.6 million people in Asia are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. If current levels of inadequate government response continue, that number could increase to about 20 million within five years, said the independent Commission on Aids in Asia.

The commission, which is funded by UNAIDS, issued the warning during a two-day workshop in Manila, Philippines, the Associated Press reported.

HIV/AIDS kills about 500,000 people a year in Asia and causes financial losses of about $10 billion a year. The commission said the economic cost could reach $29 billion a year if the epidemic is not brought under control within five years.

Despite the serious threat posed by HIV/AIDS, the commission noted that current spending on HIV control in Asia is only about 10 percent of the required $5 billion a year, the AP reported.

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Sedative Drugs Increase Risk of Early Death in Alzheimer's Patients

The inappropriate use of sedative drugs called neuroleptics to control the behavior of dementia patients in nursing homes is causing the early death of many of those patients, concludes a study released by the Alzheimer's Research Trust in the U.K.

A five-year investigation found that patients prescribed neuroleptics died an average of six months earlier than normal, BBC News reported. It's known that dementia patients who take these drugs are three times more likely to have a stroke.

Neuroleptics include chlorpromazine, haloperidol, risperidone, thioridazine and trifluoperazine. Guidelines recommend that these drugs be given to patients who are severely agitated or violent. But study lead researcher Professor Clive Ballard of King's College London said the drugs are used inappropriately in most cases and cause more harm than good.

He and his colleagues studied 165 Alzheimer's disease patients at more than 100 nursing homes who were being prescribed neuroleptics. The researchers switched half the patients to dummy (placebo) pills, while the other half kept taking neuroleptic drugs.

At 24 months, 78 percent of the patients in the placebo group were still alive, compared with 55 percent of those in the neuroleptic group. At 36 months, the survival rates were 62 percent vs. 35 percent and at 42 months, 60 percent vs. 25 percent, BBC News reported.

The findings were presented at the Alzheimer's Research Trust conference in Edinburgh.

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Investigators Mull NIH Conflict-of-Interest Policies

A wide-ranging review of conflict-of-interest policies at the U.S. National Institutes of Health being conducted by federal investigators could have a major impact on scientists who don't work for the agency but receive government funding for their research, the Associated Press reported.

Currently, NIH conflict-of-interest rules don't apply to grantees outside the agency. The institutions, such as universities, where those researchers work are expected to enforce their own ethics rules and report any conflicts of interest to the NIH.

In a letter to Rep. Joe Barton of Texas, the top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Health and Human Services inspector general Daniel Levinson outlined the plans for the review, which will "determine the extent to which the NIH oversees grantee institutions' financial conflict-of-interest issues."

Taking a closer look at conflict-of-interest among government-funded scientists at outside institutions is necessary, experts said.

"Many senior scientists in academia supported by NIH also have well-paid private arrangements with drug companies, arrangements that may harm their medical research," Ned Feder, an investigator for the advocacy group Project on Government Oversight, told the AP.

In his letter, Levinson said criminal investigators in his office are also looking into potential conflicts of interest by 103 NIH scientists who received payments from drug and biotech companies and were previously the focus of internal NIH investigations last year, the AP reported.

In 2005, the NIH banned agency employees from consulting for drug companies.