Month: March 2013

By Andrew M. Seaman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – Doctors need to give antibiotics to more than 12,000 people with acute respiratory infections to prevent just one of them from being hospitalized with pneumonia, according to a new study. And that small benefit is outweighed by the very real risks that go along with antibiotics – both from serious side effects and the promotion of resistant “superbugs,” researchers say. “This study is actually reassuring to both doctors and patients. …

By Toni Clarke (Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration said its plans for regulating certain healthcare apps used on smartphones and tablets will not impose undue burdens on developers or stifle the growing mobile health industry. Christy Foreman, director of the FDA's device evaluation division, told a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday that the agency's goal is to foster technological innovation while protecting public safety. The agency would not, as some had feared, regulate the sale or general consumer use of mobile devices, she said. …

Call them “frankenfish,” but don’t look for genetically engineered salmon at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods.

By Genevra Pittman NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – People infected with chronic hepatitis C are less likely to develop liver cancer if they are taking cholesterol-lowering drugs, new research from Taiwan suggests. The report doesn’t prove statins ward off cancer, and one researcher not involved in the study says it’s not reason enough to recommend using the popular medications solely for liver cancer prevention. Previous studies have come to ambiguous and conflicting conclusions on the question of statins’ cancer-preventing abilities, researchers noted. …

The subject was nothing at the Isaac Asimov Memorial Debate at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Steve Mirsky reports.

By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) – The United Nations launched an investigation on Thursday into what it said were widespread and systematic human rights violations in North Korea, some of which "may amount to crimes against humanity". The U.N. Human Rights Council unanimously passed a resolution brought by the European Union and Japan, and backed by the United States, condemning alleged North Korean torture, food deprivation and labor camps for political prisoners. …

By Susan Heavey and Genevra Pittman WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – Gay and lesbian couples should be able to get married for the health and well-being of their children and families, the nation's leading group for pediatricians said on Thursday in a policy statement that also backs adoption rights. The American Academy of Pediatrics, in calling on the legal right for same-sex couples to marry, said children's well-being is affected far more by other factors such as their parents' health and economic security than their sexual orientation. …

WASHINGTON (AP) — Three years, two elections, and one Supreme Court decision after President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act, its promise of health care for the uninsured may be delayed or undercut in much of the country because of entrenched opposition from many Republican state leaders.

In a trend that may make your eyes water just thinking about it, seasonal allergy experts are confirming that 2013 allergies are going to start sooner—and last longer—in most parts of the country.

LONDON (Reuters) – AstraZeneca is evaluating whether to enter the so-called biosimilars market, its new CEO Pascal Soriot said on Thursday. “You’ll hear more from us in the next few months as we conclude what we should be doing here. We may decide to not proceed but certainly this is something we are looking at very closely,” he told analysts during a strategy update. The expiry of patents on expensive biotech medicines to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases is opening up a new market for lower-cost copies known as “biosimilars” because they are not identical matches of branded medicines. …

Scientists have developed a drug dubbed successful in killing a deadly cancer in a late-stage clinical trial. The new drug is the first medication recognized as achieving success in a late-stage melanoma trial.