HEALTH NEWS
Chicken producers debate 'natural' label
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A disagreement among poultry producers about whether chicken injected with salt, water and other ingredients can be promoted as "natural" has prompted federal officials to consider changing labeling guidelines. ...Read More
Hands-only CPR, pushy dispatchers are lifesavers
ATLANTA (AP) — More bystanders are willing to attempt CPR if an emergency dispatcher gives them firm and direct instructions — especially if they can just press on the chest and skip the mouth-to-mouth, according to new research. ...Read More
DC pushes female condoms to fight HIV epidemic
WASHINGTON (AP) — Charlene Cotton will talk to anyone about sex. Several days a week she stands behind a table decorated with a bowl of flavored condoms and safer sex pamphlets, calling to women passing on the street, "Come check out my table. Don't be scared." ...Read More
UN taps big names for HIV prevention panel
VIENNA (AP) — The U.N. AIDS agency has tapped some big names — including former basketball star Magic Johnson — to boost global efforts to prevent the spread of HIV. ...Read More
FDA issues hold on much-debated Avandia study
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health officials are barring new patients from enrolling in a safety study of GlaxoSmithKline's controversial diabetes pill Avandia, a week after a panel of experts ruled that the drug increases heart risks. ...Read More
94 charged in Medicare scams totaling $251M
MIAMI (AP) — Elderly Russian immigrants lined up to take kickbacks from the backroom of a Brooklyn clinic. Claims flooded in from Miami for HIV treatments that never occurred. One professional patient was named in nearly 4,000 false Medicare claims. ...Read More
Obama, Clinton pledge US support for AIDS fight
VIENNA (AP) — President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have pledged the support of the United States in the global fight against AIDS. ...Read More
New program rebuilding faces of soldiers, veterans
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Master Sgt. Todd Nelson lost his right eye and ear in a flash when a car bomb in Afghanistan exploded, sending fire up his arm and over his head. ...Read More
Tests aim to settle if fresher blood works better
WASHINGTON (AP) — Facing surgery? You could receive blood that's been stored for a week, or three weeks, or nearly six — and there's growing concern that people who get the older blood might not fare as well. ...Read More
FDA panel rejects experimental weight loss pill
GAITHERSBURG, MD. (AP) — A panel of federal health experts dealt a surprising setback Thursday to a highly anticipated anti-obesity pill from Vivus Inc., saying the drug's side effects outweigh its ability to help patients lose weight. ...Read More
Duke scientist's cancer research is questioned
Concerns are being raised about the validity of research done by a Duke University cancer scientist who recently was placed on leave while the school investigates whether he falsely claimed to be a Rhodes scholar. ...Read More
FDA cites quality problems at NY brain-imaging lab
NEW YORK (AP) — A respected brain-imaging center run by Columbia University has halted some research after federal officials repeatedly complained that patients were getting drugs that failed purity tests. ...Read More
In midst of river cleanup, supporters are divided
LENOX, Mass. (AP) — Once a dumping ground for chemicals, a stretch of the Housatonic River that winds near this Berkshires hamlet is being scoured in a lengthy, expensive cleanup. Now, dredging other parts of the riverbed is under consideration, but the fishers, bird watchers and swimmers who would benefit are wondering how much effort is too much. ...Read More
Treating HIV also prevents its spread, study finds
Provocative new research shows that treating people with the AIDS virus can provide a powerful bonus: It cuts the risk that they will infect others. ...Read More
FDA panel: Study did not show benefit with Avastin
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health advisers said unanimously Tuesday that a follow-up study of the Roche drug Avastin failed to show meaningful benefits for breast cancer patients. ...Read More
Test-tube kids and cancer? Method unlikely a cause
CHICAGO (AP) — For the first time, a large study suggests a higher rate of childhood cancer among test-tube babies, but researchers say the reason probably has nothing to do with how the infants were conceived. ...Read More
Study: Poverty, more than race, tied to HIV
ATLANTA (AP) — Poverty is perhaps the most important factor in whether inner-city heterosexuals are infected with the AIDS virus, according to the first government study of its kind. ...Read More
In US cities, HIV linked more to poverty than race
ATLANTA (AP) — Poverty is perhaps the most important factor in whether inner-city heterosexuals are infected with the AIDS virus, according to the first government study of its kind. ...Read More
Bill Clinton speaks at int'l AIDS conference
VIENNA (AP) — Former U.S. President Bill Clinton called for more efficient use of funding in the fight against AIDS to ensure that people who need it actually get it. ...Read More
Medical marijuana to be OK in some VA clinics
WASHINGTON (AP) — Patients treated at Veterans Affairs hospitals and clinics will be able to use medical marijuana in the 14 states where it's legal, according to new federal guidelines. ...Read More
FDA approves larger dose of Pfizer's Aricept
NEW YORK (AP) — Drugmakers Eisai Inc. and Pfizer Inc. said on Saturday that government regulators have given them permission to make a larger dose of its Alzheimer's disease drug Aricept for patients who have already been taking the smaller dose. ...Read More
NYC looks to stop spreading bedbug infestations
NEW YORK (AP) — One of every 15 New Yorkers battled bedbugs last year, officials said Wednesday as they announced a plan to fight the spreading infestation, including a public-awareness campaign and a top entomologist to head the effort. ...Read More
Can deciphering your doctor's notes improve care?
WASHINGTON (AP) — Don't be offended if your doctor writes that you're SOB, or that an exam detected BS. ...Read More
Panel wants Avastin withdrawn for breast cancer
GAITHERSBURG, Md. (AP) — Federal health advisers said overwhelmingly that the Roche drug Avastin's approval for breast cancer should be withdrawn after follow-up studies failed to show meaningful benefits for patients. ...Read More
Panel says Avastin doesn't help breast cancer
GAITHERSBURG (AP) — A panel of cancer experts said Tuesday that the government should remove its endorsement of Roche's drug Avastin for breast cancer, after follow-up studies failed to show benefits for patients. ...Read More
FDA panel: data did not show benefits with Avastin
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health advisers say unanimously that a follow-up study of the Roche drug Avastin failed to show meaningful benefits for breast cancer patients. ...Read More
Microneedles may make getting flu shots easier
WASHINGTON (AP) — One day your annual flu shot could come in the mail. ...Read More
Japanese women extend life expectancy to new high
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese women are expected to live almost 86 1/2 years, topping the world longevity ratings for the 25th straight year, the government reported Monday. ...Read More
Full face transplant Spaniard displays new look
MADRID (AP) — A Spanish man who underwent the world's first full face transplant appeared before TV cameras Monday for the first time since his surgery, thanking his doctors and the family of the donor. ...Read More
AIDS breakthrough: Gel helps prevent infection
For the first time, a vaginal gel has proved capable of blocking the AIDS virus: It cut in half a woman's chances of getting HIV from an infected partner in a study in South Africa. Scientists called it a breakthrough in the long quest for a tool to help women whose partners won't use condoms. ...Read More
Rehab-first promising for amateur athlete ACL tear
NEW YORK (AP) — Attention, weekend athletes: Don't be too quick to agree to surgery for a common type of knee ligament tear. ...Read More
Tiny mushrooms blamed for 400 deaths in SW China
BEIJING (AP) — Every year during the height of the rainy season, villagers of all ages in a corner of southwestern China would suddenly die of cardiac arrest. ...Read More
New guidelines aim to reduce repeated C-sections
WASHINGTON (AP) — Most women who've had a C-section, and many who've had two, should be allowed to try labor with their next baby, say new guidelines — a step toward reversing the "once a cesarean, always a cesarean" policies taking root in many hospitals. ...Read More
WHO: 5.2 million people on AIDS drugs in 2009
VIENNA (AP) — The number of people taking crucial AIDS drugs climbed by a record 1.2 million last year to 5.2 million overall, the World Health Organization said Monday — but Bill Clinton says that's still not nearly enough. ...Read More
AIDS conference chief lashes out at world leaders
VIENNA (AP) — World leaders lack the political will to ensure that everyone infected with HIV and AIDS gets treatment, the head of a meeting dedicated to the disease said Sunday. ...Read More
CDC: 15 US deaths tied to rare tropical fungus
ATLANTA (AP) — A fungus usually found in the tropics has taken root in the Pacific Northwest and has been blamed in the deaths of 15 people over the last six years, health officials said Thursday. ...Read More
FDA panel sees greater heart risks with Avandia
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health experts said Wednesday the much-debated diabetes pill Avandia increases the risk of heart attack compared to other diabetes drugs. ...Read More
FDA panel: Diabetes drug should stay on market
WASHINGTON (AP) — GlaxoSmithKline's drug Avandia should stay on the market, federal health experts voted Wednesday, but the controversial diabetes pill should be subject to new restrictions due to risky heart side effects. ...Read More
Anti-AIDS gel helps prevent infection, study finds
Researchers are reporting a breakthrough against AIDS. A vaginal gel containing an AIDS drug cut in half a woman's chances of getting HIV from an infected partner. ...Read More
Bill Clinton, Gates: Fight AIDS more efficiently
VIENNA (AP) — Two heavy hitters on the world health stage — Bill Clinton and Bill Gates — called Monday for a more efficient fight worldwide against the AIDS virus. ...Read More
Funding woes overshadow AIDS conference
VIENNA (AP) — Rich countries must give more for the fight against AIDS or risk jeopardizing progress in battling the disease, participants at an international conference urged Thursday. ...Read More
Experimental diet pill shows promise, little risk
ATLANTA (AP) — An experimental diet pill helped about half the people who tried it lose some weight and keep it off a year later, without the heart problems that some earlier drugs caused, a study found. ...Read More
Some preventive care to have no out-of-pocket cost
WASHINGTON (AP) — From counseling for kids who struggle with their weight, to cancer screenings for their parents, preventive health care will soon be available at no out-of-pocket cost under consumer rules the Obama administration unveiled Wednesday. ...Read More
Gov't says abuse of prescription meds skyrocketing
WASHINGTON (AP) — A new government study finds a 400 percent increase in the number of people admitted to treatment for abusing prescription pain medication. ...Read More
UN expert: AIDS crisis in the world's prisons
VIENNA (AP) — The U.N.'s top investigator on torture and punishment warned Friday that overcrowded prisons are breeding grounds for AIDS. ...Read More
UN warning on AIDS in prisons
VIENNA (AP) — The U.N.'s top investigator on torture and punishment warned Friday that overcrowded prisons are breeding grounds for AIDS. ...Read More
FDA says breast cancer drug did not extend lives
WASHINGTON (AP) — Follow-up studies of a Roche breast cancer drug showed that it failed to extend the lives of patients, federal health scientists said Friday, opening the door for it to be potentially withdrawn for use in treating that disease. ...Read More
WHO criticizes Amnesty report into NKorea health
GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization found itself Friday in the strange position of defending North Korea's health care system from an Amnesty International report, three months after WHO's director described medicine in the totalitarian state as the envy of the developing world. ...Read More
Medical device problems hurt 70,000+ kids annually
CHICAGO (AP) — More than 70,000 children and teens go to the emergency room each year for injuries and complications from medical devices, and contact lenses are the leading culprit, the first detailed national estimate suggests. ...Read More
