Obama uses jobs report to press health care reform (AP)

AP - Using better-than-expected jobs numbers to press his top domestic priority, President Barack Obama argued Saturday that overhauling the nation's costly health care system is essential to the country's economic well-being.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Aug 2009 | 4:28 am

Drug industry helping Obama overhaul health care (AP)

AP - The nation's drugmakers stand ready to spend $150 million to help President Barack Obama overhaul health care this fall, according to numerous officials, a staggering sum that could dwarf attempts to derail Obama's top domestic priority.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Aug 2009 | 4:16 am

Obese TX inmate hides gun in his flabs of fat (AP)

AP - An obese inmate in Texas has been charged after officials learned he had a gun hidden under flabs of his own flesh.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Aug 2009 | 2:29 am

Swine Flu Should Not Close Most Schools, Federal Officials Say

Most schools should be able to stay open even if swine flu outbreaks occur again this fall, government health officials said.


Source: NYT > Health | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:20 am

Health Debate Turns Hostile at Town Hall Meetings

Members of Congress have been shouted down, hanged in effigy and taunted by crowds at town hall meetings on health care.


Source: NYT > Health | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:17 am

Underlying Viral Infection Identied By Genomic Signature In Blood

Scientists have identified a genomic "signature" in circulating blood that reveals exposure to common upper respiratory viruses, like the cold or flu, even before symptoms appear. The tell-tale viral signature reflects a set of subtle but robust changes in genes that are activated as the body responds to infection.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

More Insulin-Producing Cells, At The Flip Of A 'Switch'

Researchers have found a way in mice to convert another type of pancreas cell into the critical insulin-producing beta cells that are lost in those with type I diabetes. The secret ingredient is a single transcription factor, according to the report in the August 7th issue of Cell, a Cell Press journal.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Research On Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia Yields Surprises

Sprouting. Branching. Pruning. Neuroscientists have borrowed heavily from botanists to describe the way that neurons grow, but analogies between the growth of neurons and plants may be more than superficial. A new study from the National Institutes of Health and Harvard Medical School suggests that neurons and plant root cells may grow using a similar mechanism.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Study Finds Pharmacy Pamphlets Apparently More About Looks Than Legibility

It seems like common sense that an information leaflet for vision loss would have large print and appropriate contrast, but that's not the case a new study done at the University of Alberta has found.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Key To Strengthening Immune Response To Chronic Infection Discovered By Wistar Scientists

A team of researchers from The Wistar Institute has identified a protein that could serve as a target for reprogramming immune system cells exhausted by exposure to chronic viral infection into more effective "soldiers" against certain viruses like HIV, hepatitis C, and hepatitis B, as well as some cancers, such as melanoma.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Trial Finds New Expensive Back Procedure Ineffective

A world-first study involving Monash University and the Cabrini Research Institute in Melbourne has revealed the injection of bone cement into broken vertebrae is not an effective treatment for patients suffering painful osteoporotic fractures. The treatment, known as percutaneous vertebroplasty, is regularly recommended by doctors and specialists around the world.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Converting Noninsulin-Producing Alpha Cells In The Pancreas To Insulin-Producing Beta Cells

In findings that add to the prospects of regenerating insulin-producing cells in people with type 1 diabetes, researchers in Europe -- co-funded by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation -- have shown that insulin-producing beta cells can be derived from non-insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Diverse Methods Yield Clues In Protein Folding

Rice University physicists have written the next chapter in an innovative approach for studying the forces that shape proteins -- the biochemical workhorses of all living things. New research featured on the cover of the Journal of Physical Chemistry illustrates the value of studying proteins with a new method that uses the tools of nanotechnology to grab a single molecule and pull it apart.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Phosphorylated Signaling Proteins Identified In Human Embryonic Stem Cells

Investigators at the Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham) and The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have made the first comparative, large-scale phosphoproteomic analysis of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and their differentiated derivatives.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Common Trigger In Cancer And Normal Stem Cell Reproduction Discovered By Stanford Scientists

Researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered, for the first time, a common molecular pathway that is used by both normal stem cells and cancer stem cells when they reproduce themselves. In a paper published Aug. 7 in the journal Cell, Michael Clarke, MD, the Karel H. and Avice N.
Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 8 Aug 2009 | 1:00 am

Recession means fewer babies; US births fell 2 pct (AP)

AP - There aren't just fewer jobs in a recession. There are fewer babies, too. U.S. births fell in 2008, the first full year of the recession, marking the first annual decline in births since the start of the decade and ending an American baby boomlet.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 8 Aug 2009 | 12:40 am

Patient Money: A Guide Through a Medical Wilderness

When you’re ill, it’s good to have someone in your corner to see errors in medical bills, argue for lower fees and appeal coverage denials.


Source: NYT > Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:53 pm

Health Tip: Preventing Complications From Diabetes (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) -- If you've been diagnosed with diabetes, eating a healthy diet and getting enough exercise could be just what the doctor ordered.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:48 pm

Health Tip: Eating Right While You're Pregnant (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) - While a healthy diet is always important, it becomes even more crucial during pregnancy, when you're eating for two.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:48 pm

Clinical Trials Update: Aug. 7, 2009 (HealthDay)

HealthDay - (HealthDay News) -- Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com:
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:48 pm

When Kids Are Hospitalized, Parents Fret About Errors (HealthDay)

HealthDay - FRIDAY, Aug. 7 (HealthDay News) -- Many parents worry that their child may be the victim of medical errors while in the hospital, a new study has found.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:48 pm

Alberta lab service employees vote in favour of strike to back contract demands

EDMONTON - Hundreds of unionized workers at Edmonton-based Dynalife laboratory and diagnostic services have voted in favour of strike action to back contract demands. The Health...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 8:51 pm

CEO of B.C.'s Interior Health quits; board says not related to financial woes

KAMLOOPS, B.C. - The chief executive officer of the regional health authority for British Columbia's Interior is quitting at the end of the year. The chair of Interior Health's board...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 8:50 pm

RHJ may sweeten bid for GM's Opel/Vauxhall--WSJ

NEW YORK, Aug 7 (Reuters) - RHJ International SA , a Belgian investment firm, plans to sweeten its bid for General Motors Co's [GM.UL] European unit to overcome German government opposition to its bid,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:39 pm

RHJ may sweeten bid for GM's Opel/Vauxhall--WSJ

NEW YORK, Aug 7 (Reuters) - RHJ International SA , a Belgian investment firm, plans to sweeten its bid for General Motors Co's [GM.UL] European unit to overcome German government opposition to its bid,...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:39 pm

US man who lied to sick people about organ transplants pleads guilty to wire fraud

SYRACUSE, New York - A man accused of swindling desperately ill patients out of $400,000 by making false promises of organ transplants in the Philippines has pleaded guilty in New York to
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:34 pm

UPDATE 1-New bidder emerges for Boston Globe - source

NEW YORK, Aug 7 (Reuters) - A new bidder has emerged to buy the 137-year-old Boston Globe from New York Times Co , a person familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:13 pm

UPDATE 1-New bidder emerges for Boston Globe - source

NEW YORK, Aug 7 (Reuters) - A new bidder has emerged to buy the 137-year-old Boston Globe from New York Times Co , a person familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:13 pm

'Dead' Paraguay baby wakes up

A premature baby declared dead at a hospital in Paraguay is found to be alive hours later after being taken home for burial.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:12 pm

Don't rush to close schools for swine flu — Gov't (AP)

AP - Don't panic, schools. The government is urging school officials to stay calm when swine flu strikes this fall, closing buildings only in drastic cases and allowing sick students to return as soon as 24 hours after their fever is gone.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:41 pm

Amputee runner

'I can run faster on just one leg than many other people'
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 7 Aug 2009 | 5:06 pm

People 'get happier as they age'

Most people get happier as they grow older, studies on people aged up to their mid-90s suggest.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 7 Aug 2009 | 5:06 pm

Duane Reade Holdings, Inc. Announces Closing of Offering of $300 Million of 11.75% Senior Secured Notes Due 2015

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 3:30 pm

Duane Reade Holdings, Inc. Announces Expiration and Results of Tender Offers for Senior Secured Floating Rate Notes and Senior Subordinated Notes and Solicitation of Consents to Related Indentures

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 3:30 pm

Autopsy: Cocaine a factor in Billy Mays' death

An autopsy report issued Friday by Hillsborough County, Florida, cites cocaine as a contributing factor in the death of TV pitchman Billy Mays, who died last month at age 50.
Source: CNN.com - Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 3:23 pm

KV Pharmaceutical Announces Stockholder Action to Amend By-Laws is Invalid

Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 7 Aug 2009 | 3:23 pm

CDC: Keep Schools Open if H1N1 Flu Hits

New guidelines also say sick kids can go back to school 24 hours after fever goes away.
WebMD Health News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 2:40 pm

Budget cuts threaten girl's life-sustaining care

Anthony and Lisa Leoni have little time to worry about whether California's budget crisis will affect their daughter's life-sustaining care.
Source: CNN.com - Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 1:54 pm

Governors Fear Added Costs in Health Care Overhaul

Some worry that Congress will give the states expensive new Medicaid obligations without providing enough new money to pay for them.


Source: NYT > Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 1:11 pm

Moderate Alcohol Consumption Increases Breast Cancer Risk

Older women who consume even moderate amounts of alcohol have an increased risk of breast cancer, according to a new study.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 12:12 pm

US FDA Chief Vows to Speed up Inspections, Warnings

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's top official vowed on Thursday to warn companies more quickly about problems found during inspections and act more aggressively in serious cases.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Salmonella Illnesses Prompt Beef Recall: USDA

An outbreak of salmonellosis in Colorado prompted the recall of 825,769 lbs of ground beef by a California beef company, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Debate Over Obama Healthcare Plan Turns Rancorous

August is do-or-die month for both President Barack Obama and his hopes of overhauling U.S. healthcare, and the battle will be fought not in Washington, but across the country.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Bill Clinton, Drugmakers Announce Cheaper HIV Drugs

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton and drugmakers Pfizer and Matrix Laboratories Ltd announced a deal on Thursday to lower the cost of treatments for patients with drug-resistant forms of HIV/AIDS.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

WHO Sees Swine Flu Vaccination From Next Month

The first vaccines to combat H1N1 swine flu should be approved and ready for use in some countries from September, the World Health Organisation said on Thursday.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Iran Bans Ramadan Umra Pilgrimage as Swine Flu Spreads

Iran has banned Iranians from performing the umra pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia during the holy month of Ramadan to slow spread of swine flu in the country, a health ministry official said Thursday.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Rapid Tests Not Dependable for Detecting Novel Influenza A H1N1 Virus

Three models of rapid influenza diagnostic tests are relatively insensitive when testing for novel influenza A (H1N1) virus (swine influenza), particularly when viral titers in the clinical specimens are low, investigators report.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Brain Neurotrophin Predicts Death in Elderly Women

Diminished circulating levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor is an indicator of increased mortality risk in 85-year-old women, according to researchers in Denmark.
Reuters Health Information
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 7 Aug 2009 | 11:06 am

Cancer gene complexity revealed

Scientists decode the DNA of a second leukaemia patient - revealing key mutations driving cancer development.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 7 Aug 2009 | 10:43 am

With High-Profile Death, Focus on High-Risk Drug

Michael Jackson’s death has brought a new spotlight to the anesthetic propofol, which experts say is being abused.


Source: NYT > Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 9:46 am

Town hall meeting on health care turns ugly

A health care town hall meeting in Florida on Thursday dissolved into bouts of heckling and violent pushing and shoving among attendees.
Source: CNN.com - Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 7:20 am

Sanofi Pasteur starts testing swine flu vaccine (AP)

AP - French drugmaker Sanofi Pasteur began human trials of its swine flu vaccine this week in about 2,000 people in the United States, the company said Friday — becoming the third company conducting clinical trials on swine flu vaccines.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 7 Aug 2009 | 6:21 am

Democrats Say No to Cost Cap for Drug Makers

Squeezing more money out of the health care system, and from the drug industry, is still a goal for top Democrats.


Source: NYT > Health | 7 Aug 2009 | 5:17 am