Health and Medical News Headlines for April 30, 2010

Adult death rates lowest in Iceland, Cyprus (AP)

AP - Men in Iceland and women in Cyprus have the lowest risk of dying worldwide, a new study says.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 30 Apr 2010 | 4:00 am

UPDATE 2-Fujitsu sees profit jump, ex-chief ouster may hurt

* Sees 2010/11 op profit at Y185 bln vs consensus Y177 bln
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 2:14 am

UPDATE 1-Exxon starts 6-wk shutdown at Singapore refinery

(For refinery outages in the new Reuters Oil Fundamentals Database see http://bond.views.session.rservices.com/CE/ or go to <OFD/INFO>) (Adds background on Asia spring maintenance, Exxon's...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 2:10 am

UPDATE 1-Gulfsands rejects further proposal at same level

* Receives reiteration of original bid from Indian suitors
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 2:08 am

UPDATE 2-WPP raises forecasts after U.S. turnaround

* Seen biggest turnaround in U.S. (Adds reaction, further details)
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 2:03 am

UPDATE 1-AIG Taiwan deal could face further delay-regulator

* Main buyer China Strategic yet to give requested paperwork
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:55 am

UPDATE 2-Pearson confident for year after strong Q1

* Q1 constant-currency growth of 12 pct to 1.08 bln pounds
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:46 am

UPDATE 2-Pearson confident for year after strong Q1

* Q1 constant-currency growth of 12 pct to 1.08 bln pounds
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:46 am

GE, AMEC eye stake in S.Korea KEPCO unit -report

SEOUL, April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. industrial group General Electric Co and British engineering group AMEC are interested in buying an about $230 million stake in a South Korea utility services firm, South...
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:29 am

UPDATE 1-Essar Energy cuts London IPO price to 420p -sources

* Likely to have mkt value of about $8.5 bln on listing (Adds details, background)
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:21 am

Exxon starts 6-wk maintenance at Singapore refinery

(For refinery outages in the new Reuters Oil Fundamentals Database see http://bond.views.session.rservices.com/CE/ or go to <OFD/INFO>)
Source: RSS feed - channel BNewsHealth | 30 Apr 2010 | 1:02 am

Life sentence?

Would condoms in Zambian prisons reduce HIV spread?
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 30 Apr 2010 | 12:47 am

ASP Sterrad Technology Approved By AFSSAPS For Total Inactivation Of Prions

Advanced Sterilization Products (ASP) announced today that the French Health Products Safety Agency, AFSSAPS, will approve the low-temperature hydrogen peroxide gas plasma STERRAD® NX™ and the STERRAD® 100NX™ Sterilization Systems for total inactivation of prions. Prions, which are protein-based infectious agents, cause neurodegenerative brain diseases characterized by the formation of "holes" in brain tissue...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 11:00 pm

Australia Fights Tobacco With Plain Packaging

Proposed rules would increase a tax on tobacco products and, starting July 2012, restrict the use of logos and colors on packaging.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 10:35 pm

Promise Seen in Drug for Retardation Syndrome

Researchers said substantial improvements were made in the behaviors of people with fragile X syndrome in a small clinical trial.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 10:30 pm

Johnson & Johnson Units to Pay $81 Million Fine

Two subsidiaries of the pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson were accused of promoting the epilepsy drug Topamax for psychiatric uses.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 10:26 pm

Depuy Spine Launches EXPEDIUM(R) Vertebral Body Derotation Instrument Set To Help Surgeons Address Rib Deformity During Scoliosis Correction Surgery

DePuy Spine, Inc. announced the launch of the EXPEDIUM® Vertebral Body Derotation (VBD) Set to help surgeons correct spinal alignment and decrease rib rotation in patients with scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine that affects about 6 million people in the U.S. The new instrumentation is the latest addition to the EXPEDIUM® Spine System and features the EXPEDIUM® Derotation Quick Stick, an extension to pedicle screws that attaches quickly and securely to facilitate three-dimensional spine correction...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 10:00 pm

Adding Surgery to Meds May Improve Life With Parkinson's (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Parkinson's disease patients do better if they undergo deep brain stimulation surgery in addition to treatment with medication, new research suggests.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

New Finding Could Mark Shift in Alzheimer's Research (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- New research could change the way scientists view the causes -- and potential prevention and treatment -- of Alzheimer's disease.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

Low Testosterone Raises Heart Death Rates in Impotent Men (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Among men with erectile dysfunction, those who also have low testosterone levels face a higher than normal risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, a new study has found.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

Record Number of Americans Got Flu Shots, CDC Says (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Apparently spurred by concerns about the recently discovered H1N1 swine flu virus, a record number of Americans -- especially children and younger adults -- got seasonal flu shots during the just-concluded flu season, U.S. health officials reported Thursday.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

Cancer Risk After Kidney Transplant Unaffected by Type of Drug Treatment (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- The type of drug treatment used to prevent organ rejection in kidney transplant patients doesn't affect cancer risk, a new study finds.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

Sunlight May Play Role in Multiple Sclerosis Risk (HealthDay)

HealthDay - THURSDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- When and where people are born may affect their odds of developing multiple sclerosis, according to researchers who found that children born in the early summer months in the Southern Hemisphere are more likely to develop multiple sclerosis than those born in early winter.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:48 pm

Ensure States Don't Short-change Rural, Doctors Urge Rudd Government, Australia

The Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) has warned the Federal Government that it will need to be "extremely vigilant" to ensure some state governments don't short-change rural hospitals and health services when allocating health funding from the single funding pool agreed to at the COAG meeting last week...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 9:00 pm

Doctor and Patient: Fueling the Anger of Doctors

Physicians devote as much as a third of their yearly income to interactions with health plans; no wonder so many are unhappy.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 8:58 pm

States Decide on Running New Pools for Insurance

Friday is the deadline for states to tell the Obama administration whether they want to run the high-risk insurance pool for uninsured people with pre-existing conditions.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 8:46 pm

College Of GPs Welcomes Government Anti-smoking Action, Australia

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) congratulates the Federal Government for its commitment in providing a comprehensive anti-smoking package, which will increase the tobacco excise of 25 per cent and introduce plain packaging for tobacco products. RACGP President Dr Chris Mitchell said this move was an important step to ensure that smoking rates continued to decline steadily. "Smoking remains the risk factor with the highest levels of disease - such as lung and other cancers, heart disease, stroke, emphysema and other chronic lung diseases - and death...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 8:00 pm

F.D.A. Approves ‘Vaccine’ to Fight Prostate Cancer

The treatment is the first to use a so-called cancer vaccine that trains the body’s immune system to fight the disease.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 7:45 pm

Nurses Searching For Equipment - UNISON Response, UK

UNISON, the UK's leading public sector trade union, called on hospital managers to consult with staff to deliver improvements to services, after a survey revealed that nurses spend nearly four hours a week looking for missing equipment. Gail Adams, UNISON Head of Nursing, said: "If these stats are true, nurses are losing a lot of time which would be better spent caring for patients. "We know that the NHS will have to do more with less money. This survey shows that efficiency savings can be made without Trusts jumping the gun and cutting staff...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 7:00 pm

Why this man knows his genetic destiny

A scientist has had all his DNA screened for what diseases he may succumb to in later life.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 29 Apr 2010 | 6:51 pm

Anti-smoking Package Will Save Lives And Improve Health, Australia

AMA President, Dr Andrew Pesce, said today that the Government's package of anti-smoking measures would save lives and improve the health of many Australians. Dr Pesce said the AMA has been an advocate for higher taxes on tobacco for many years. "It is well known that the price of tobacco products has a significant impact on demand," Dr Pesce said. "Increasing the tax on tobacco products will hopefully put tobacco further out of reach of children, and encourage people to quit smoking or deter them from taking it up...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 6:00 pm

Doctors use gene sequence to predict health risks (AP)

AP - The next time Stephen Quake is prescribed a drug, he says he won't worry about having a bad reaction. The Stanford University professor will simply consult his genome to see if there are any warning signs in his DNA.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 5:57 pm

Family pregnancy sickness 'link'

Pregnant women are three times more likely to suffer from severe morning sickness if their mothers did, say Norwegian researchers.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 29 Apr 2010 | 5:17 pm

Blood protein boosts heart risk

A protein in the blood is found to carry the same increased risk of heart disease as high blood pressure and cholesterol.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 29 Apr 2010 | 5:11 pm

UK 'has a high early death rate'

People in the UK have a higher risk of early death than those in many other wealthy countries, a study shows.
Source: BBC News | Health | World Edition | 29 Apr 2010 | 5:00 pm

Momentum Building On Sebelius' Challenge To Insurers To Ban Rescission Before Law Takes Effect In September

More insurers are heeding Secretary Sebelius' call to voluntarily implement key provisions of the Affordable Care Act before the law requires them to do so. Today, UnitedHealthcare announced they will join with other insurers and stop using rescissions - the practice of dropping patients' health coverage. This announcement follows a letter that Secretary Sebelius sent to the nation's largest insurer, WellPoint, after seeing reports that they were targeting women with breast cancer with the goal of canceling their coverage...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 5:00 pm

Gene scan shows man's risk for heart attack, cancer (Reuters)

Reuters - A California college professor who sequenced his own genome has had it analyzed -- and discovered he has a high risk of dropping dead of a sudden heart attack, as well as a high prostate cancer risk.
Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 4:53 pm

FDA approves breakthrough cancer therapy Provenge (AP)

AP - A first-of-a-kind prostate cancer treatment that uses the body's immune system to fight the disease received federal approval Thursday, offering an important alternative to more taxing treatments like chemotherapy.

Source: Yahoo! News: Health News | 29 Apr 2010 | 4:22 pm

Giant Step Forward For Tobacco Control As Australia Announces Plans To Ban Branding From Tobacco Packs

A requirement to sell tobacco products in plain packaging is set to become law in Australia. This is a major advance in tobacco control as it will stop the industry misleading smokers. The Australian law could pave the way for similar bans in other countries including the UK. [1] Martin Dockrell, Director of Policy and Research said: "There is no regulation the tobacco companies fear more than plain packs...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 4:00 pm

2 Convicted of Blocking New York Abortion Clinic

A 1994 federal law, Freedom of Access to Clinics Entrances Act, was used to successfully prosecute a case in New York City for the first time.

Source: NYT > Health | 29 Apr 2010 | 3:59 pm

Pink "Buckets for the Cure" Collaboration Between KFC and Komen Draws Sharp Criticism

Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 3:04 pm

Almost 20% of Stroke Drug Trials Never Published in Full

A review concludes that nearly 20% of completed trials of drug treatment for acute stroke are not ultimately published, but experts debate the relevance of this finding.
Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 3:02 pm

'Why Can't I Fly?' By Trisha Bridger - Diabetes UK

Launched this week on ITV1's 'This Morning' programme, 'Why Can't I Fly?' is a new children's book written by Trisha Bridger, mother of seven-year-old Niamh who has Type 1 diabetes. Trisha has written and published the book to raise funds for Diabetes UK. Positive, emotional and inspiring "Aimed at pre-school children, this wonderfully positive and inspiring book is a fantasy story of a girl's dream to fly and how she realises that dream," explained Trisha...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 3:00 pm

Court Rejects Boston Scientific/Guidant Plea Deal

The US District Court in Minnesota has rejected a plea deal between Boston Scientific and the Department of Justice that would have resolved charges that Guidant withheld important product information from the FDA in 2005.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

Salt to Go: US Fast Food Contains Excessive Levels of Sodium

Meals from fast-food chains in New York City contain excessive amounts of salt, a new study has shown. Sandwich and fried-chicken outlets and one pizza chain were the worst culprits.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

Long-Term Use of Anabolic Steroids Associated With Reduced LV Ejection Fraction

Long-term users of anabolic androgenic steroids have a high risk of developing cardiac dysfunction, which may be severe enough to increase the risk of heart failure, a new study suggests.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

MESA: Coronary Calcium Score Improves CV Risk Assessment

A follow-up analysis of the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis finds that coronary artery calcium score improves coronary disease risk classification.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

Almost Half of US Adults Have Diabetes, Hypertension, or Hypercholesterolemia

The prevalence of high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol levels, and diabetes varied by ethnicity, with non-Hispanic black individuals more likely than non-Hispanic white and Mexican American individuals to have at least one of these three conditions.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

Could Gamma-Prime Fibrinogen Add to Cardiovascular Risk Assessment?

Individuals with the highest levels of gamma-prime fibrinogen, those in the top tertile, had an approximately sevenfold increased risk of coronary artery disease, and levels of this novel biomarker were not correlated with total cholesterol.
Heartwire
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:38 pm

PPIs Plus Phosphate Binders May Decrease Phosphorus Levels in Hemodialysis Patients

Medscape Medical News
Source: Medscape Medical News Headlines | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:01 pm

MDRNA, Inc. Announces Combinations Of UsiRNAs In Proprietary DiLA2 Delivery Technology Show Improved Efficacy In Bladder Cancer Model

MDRNA, Inc. (NASDAQ: MRNA), a leading RNAi-based drug discovery and development company, today reported data demonstrating greater efficacy in tumor reduction in an orthotopic model of bladder cancer with multiple combinations of two UsiRNAs as compared to single target therapy. The data were presented by Michael V. Templin, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Preclinical Development at MDRNA, Inc., at TIDES Oligonucleotide and Peptide® Technology and Product Development/IBC's 2nd Annual Oligonucleotide Therapeutic Discovery April 25-28, 2010 in Boston, MA...

Source: Health News from Medical News Today | 29 Apr 2010 | 2:00 pm

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