Strep Throat :: Parents Tips To Keep Children Strep-Free During Peak Months

With six out of 10 Pittsburgh-area elementary school students testing positive for strep throat in previous studies and another strep season approaching, Children?s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC wants families to take steps to avoid the painful and potentially dangerous infection.

November/December 2006 Annals of Family Medicine tip sheet

This tip sheet provides summaries of the studies published in the November/December issue of Annals of Family Medicine and cover topics such as antibiotic use for rhinosinusitis and sore throat, the impact of the 2004 flu vaccine shortage and other clinical topics.

Rheumatoid Arthritis :: ORENCIA, abatacept demonstrate continued efficacy in adults with rheumatoid arthritis

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) today announced that two-year data from three Phase III pivotal trials demonstrate the long-term efficacy of ORENCIA? (abatacept) in adult patients with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who have had an inadequate response to one or more disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) such as methotrexate and TNF antagonists. The data also demonstrate that ORENCIA provided clinically meaningful improvements in multiple aspects of health-related quality of life and physical function, sustained improvements in pain and had a consistent safety and tolerability profile through two years of treatment. These data will be presented at the upcoming 2006 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Annual Scientific Meeting.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome :: Promoting awareness of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today launched a national public education and awareness campaign on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), a weakening and often devastating illness for millions of Americans. The campaign, called “Get Informed. Get Diagnosed. Get Help”, is designed to increase awareness among clinicians and the public, because 80 percent of Americans afflicted with CFS illness may not know they have it.

Lung Cancer :: Minister launches Lung Cancer Awareness Month

To highlight the symptoms of lung cancer health minister Rosie Winterton today launched Lung Cancer Awareness Month at the Royal Mail’s South London Mail Centre, where she heard first hand the experiences of lung cancer patients and met representatives from Royal Mail, the voluntary sector and health professionals.

Flu :: Cognis Targets Cold, Flu Season with Arsenal of Immunity-Enhancing Ingredients

A compromised immune system makes people more prone to contracting a cold or flu, and Cognis is helping companies meet the growing demand worldwide for immunity boosting dietary supplements and functional foods. Colds and flu are the most frequent infections across all age groups. Each year, Americans suffer from one billion colds, 100,000 are hospitalized and about 36,000 die from the flu and its complications. Immune health is also a global concern with frequent colds and flu ranked as one of the top three health problems by consumers in China, India and Latin America.

Diabetes :: JANUVIA, sitagliptin phosphate – the First and Only DPP-4 Inhibitor for Type 2 Diabetes

Merck & Co., Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved JANUVIA (sitagliptin phosphate), the first and only DPP-4 inhibitor available in the United States for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. JANUVIA has been approved as monotherapy and as add-on therapy to either of two other types of oral diabetes medications, metformin or thiazolidinediones (TZDs), to improve blood sugar (glucose) control in patients with type 2 diabetes when diet and exercise is not enough. The recommended dose of JANUVIA is 100 mg once daily. JANUVIA should not be used in patients with type 1 diabetes or for the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis, as it would not be effective in these settings.

Health :: MassTag PCR – new tool helps identify mysterious viruses – respiratory infection

A fast, sensitive and inexpensive diagnostic tool called MassTag PCR has been developed that can identify the specific pathogen that causes a particular case of respiratory infection, according to a new study funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The research team ? headed by scientists in the Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and their colleagues at the Wadsworth Center of the New York State Department of Health ? used MassTag PCR to identify previously undiagnosed pathogens that caused influenza-like illnesses in New York State during the winter of 2004.