Scientists supported by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, part of the National Institutes of Health, report in this week?s New England Journal of Medicine that pregnant women who received non-surgical treatment for their periodontal, or gum, disease did not also significantly lower their risk of delivering a premature or low-birthweight baby.
An extensive NIH-supported study has found that low-intensity laser treatment, thought to be possibly beneficial in slowing or preventing the loss of vision from age-related macular degeneration (AMD), is ineffective in preventing complications of AMD or loss of vision. This is the major conclusion of the Complications of Age-Related Macular Degeneration Prevention Trial (CAPT), a research study of more than 1,000 people that will be published in the November 2006 issue of the journal Ophthalmology. The study was supported by grants from the National Eye Institute (NEI) of the National Institutes of Health.
Patients with a potentially fatal disease are being offered the UK?s first treatment for the condition at the Royal Free. Pompe disease is a neuro-muscular disorder caused by an enzyme deficiency. The lysosomal storage disorders unit at the hospital recently began a programme using Myozyme, the first licensed enzyme replacement therapy for this condition.
The Public Health Agency of Canada is recommending that health care providers in Canada not prescribe amantadine to treat and prevent influenza during the current flu season. This recommendation is based on test results from the 2005-2006 flu season and initial results from the 2006-2007 season.
The Food and Drug Administration approved the first generic version of MetroGel-Vaginal (metronidazole vaginal gel), a treatment for bacterial vaginosis. The approval is an important step in the agency’s effort to increase the availability of lower-cost generic medications.
New plans for faster, better and more convenient care for the millions of people who suffer from bone and joint ailments such as arthritis, back pain and fractures were announced today by Health Minister Andy Burnham.
A public interest litigation has been filed in Kolkata, demanding that the West Bengal government foot the bill for the medical treatment of any one who has contracted HIV, Hepatitis B or C in the last one year. This is because those suffering may have contracted the disease because the state health department was using faulty diagnostic kits.
Researchers have used a single compound to increase the lifespan of obese mice, and found that the drug reversed nearly all of the changes in gene expression patterns found in mice on high calorie diets–some of which are associated with diabetes, heart disease, and other significant diseases related to obesity. The research, led by investigators at Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging, is the first time that the small molecule resveratrol has been shown to offer survival benefits in a mammal. The study is reported in the November 1 advanced online edition of Nature.
Merck & Co., Inc. announced that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has added Merck’s cervical cancer vaccine, GARDASIL? [Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus (Types 6, 11, 16, 18) Recombinant Vaccine] to the CDC’s Vaccines for Children (VFC) contract for girls and women aged 9 to 18. GARDASIL was approved on June 8 by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in girls and women ages 9 to 26 years. GARDASIL is the world’s first and only vaccine available for the prevention of HPV types 16- and 18-related cervical cancer, cervical pre-cancers (CIN 2/3 and AIS), vulvar pre-cancers (VIN 2/3) and vaginal pre-cancers (VaIN 2/3) and for the prevention of genital warts and low-grade cervical lesions (CIN 1) caused by HPV types 6, 11, 16 and 18.
Chemotherapy for breast cancer was first introduced 30 years ago, and doctors have been refining the treatment ever since. Countless studies have asked which drugs work best and when they should be given, but many women still have not realized the full benefits of chemotherapy.