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.