Month: September 2012

Novartis’s smokers’ cough treatment gets European nod

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An employee smokes a cigarette beside the logo of Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG in front of a plant in BaselZURICH (Reuters) – Swiss drugmaker Novartis said on Monday the European Commission had approved its Seebri Breezhaler as a once-daily treatment for adult patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, more commonly known as smoker's cough, in the European Union. Trials showed that the treatment significantly improved lung function over the first four hours after morning dosing when compared to placebo, and that this benefit was sustained for 24 hours over a 52-week period, Novartis said. …

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Background TV a threat to U.S. kids, researchers say

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NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – That clamor in the background? It’s probably the TV, and it might be taking a toll on your toddler’s development, researchers say. According to the first national estimate of background television exposure, children in the U.S. spend nearly as much time around a switched-on television as they do in school. Between the age of eight months and eight years, kids spend an average of 232 minutes a day with the TV droning on in the background, researchers found. …

Injuries due to child abuse on the rise

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A Penn State helmet sits on the turf before their NCAA football game against Ohio University in State College, PennsylvaniaNEW YORK (Reuters Health) – More kids were hospitalized for serious injuries resulting from abuse in 2009 than in 1997, according to a new study – despite previous research suggesting fewer kids are maltreated now than in the past. Researchers found the increase in serious injuries was due to more babies under a year old being hospitalized. The number of abused, injured kids and teenagers held relatively steady. The findings are based on a survey of records from 2,500 or more U.S. hospitals conducted every three years. "We're looking at the most seriously injured kids," said lead author Dr. …

California bans gay "conversion" therapy for minors

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SACRAMENTO (Reuters) – Governor Jerry Brown has signed a bill banning a controversial therapy that aims to reverse homosexuality in minors, his office announced on Sunday, making California the first state to ban a practice many say is psychologically damaging. The move marked a major victory for gay rights advocates who say so-called conversion therapy, also called reparative therapy, has no medical basis because homosexuality is not a disorder. …

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