Family Practice News articles from July 2007

Family Practice News archives from July 2007

Melanoma trends can inform practice.(Skin Disorders)
July 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] SANTA ANA PUEBLO, N.M. -- For the first time in about 25 years, the number of malignant melanoma cases in the United States has dropped, Dr. Darrell S. Rigel said at a meeting of the American Society for Mohs...

Childhood cancer survivors receive subpar follow-up: only 18% of survivors received screening.(News)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Barely a third of adult survivors of childhood cancers receives follow-up care based on their cancer history,, according to results of an 8,522-survivor survey reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical...

Waist circumference flags health problems in men.(Metabolic Disorders)
July 1, 2007... ANAHEIM, CALIF. -- A tape measure may be one of the most useful tools to predict whether male patients have diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, coronary artery disease, a large prostate, a high prostate-specific-antigen level, erectile...

Top therapeutic categories contributing to 2006 drug spending.(VITAL SIGNS)(Table)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Top Therapeutic Categories Contributing To 2006 Drug Spending Endocrine and diabetes 8% Respiratory and allergy 9% Gastroenterology 10% Neurology, mental health, and pain 23%...

Combo treatment ups survival in kidney cancer.(News)(Clinical report)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Bevacizumab in combination with interferon-[alpha] nearly doubled survival in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma in a phase III trial reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. ...

MRI doubles the sensitivity for high-grade DCIS.(News)(ductal carcinoma in situ)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Magnetic resonance imaging is more sensitive than is mammography in diagnosing ductal carcinoma, particularly in women with high-grade breast lesions, according to a report at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical...

Sorafenib extends survival in liver cancer patients.(News)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- The oral multikinase inhibitor sorafenib significantly extended overall survival by 44%, compared with placebo in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma in a phase III trial presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of...

Panel votes down rimonabant on safety concerns.(NEWS FROM THE FDA)
July 1, 2007... SILVER SPRING, MD. -- The Food and Drug Administrations Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted unanimously against recommending approval of Sanofi-Aventis' weight-loss drug Zimulti (rimonabant). Though panel members...

Neupro, Lovenox.(New & Approved)(Medical condition overview)
July 1, 2007... Neupro (Rotigotine Transdermal System, Schwarz Pharma) A transdermal patch containing rotigotine, a nonergotamine dopamine agonist, for treating the signs and symptoms of early-stage idiopathic Parkinson's disease. This is the first...

Gastric bypass linked with neurologic sequelae: all 26 patients in the retrospective review showed signs and symptoms of multiple nutritional deficiencies.(News)(Disease/Disorder overview)
July 1, 2007... A retrospective review of 26 patients presenting with disabling neurologic symptoms weeks to years after undergoing bariatric surgery illustrates the breadth of the potential neurologic sequelae and the lifelong risk of nutritional deficiencies...

Primary care management of asthma, COPD found flawed.(News)(chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
July 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- Only 33% of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and only 53% of patients with asthma were receiving appropriate medications from their primary care physicians in the year before visiting a subspecialty clinic,...

Give patients the full picture.(Letters)(Letter to the editor)
July 1, 2007... I realize that statins are likely to lower even an elderly person's lipids and thereby lower that person's cardiovascular risks, but I would ask what that means to an elderly person ("Elderly Benefit From Aggressive Statin Therapy;" May 15,...

Is a low-carbohydrate diet the best diet for metabolic syndrome? Restricting carbs also lowers calorie intake.(Point/Counterpoint)(Clinical report)
July 1, 2007... The increase in obesity in the United States over last 30 years parallels an increase in carbohydrate consumption over the same time period, data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) show. I became interested...

Is a low-carbohydrate diet the best diet for metabolic syndrome? It's a short-term solution to a long-term problem.(Point/Counterpoint)
July 1, 2007... The clinically measurable variables in the metabolic syndrome make it a prime target for lifestyle therapy. It is a construct that identifies, in a clinically definable way, patients at high risk for coronary heart disease and diabetes. ...

Fish oil, secondary CVD prevention link still murky.(cardiovascular disease)
July 1, 2007... NEW ORLEANS -- The value of fish oil for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular-disease events was placed in some doubt with results from a diet study that involved about 200 patients. "We saw no difference between the American Heart...

Diesel exhaust fumes promote myocardial ischemia in CHD.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(coronary heart disease)
July 1, 2007... NEW ORLEANS -- Brief inhalation Of dilute diesel exhaust at levels comparable with those encountered curbside along city streets promotes myocardial ischemia in patients with coronary heart disease, said Dr. David E. Newby at the annual meeting...

Weight gain in migraineurs may raise cardiovascular risks.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Patients who gain at least 5% of body weight while taking prophylactic migraine medications experienced changes in clinical markers that could indicate increased risk of cardiovascular disease, said Dr. Marcelo Bigal at the annual...

ICD programming safely slashes needless shocks.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(implantable cardioverter defibrillator)(Clinical report)
July 1, 2007... DENVER -- Implantable cardioverter defibrillators can be programmed to safely eliminate three-quarters of unnecessary shocks in patients with a primary prevention indication for the device, according to a study presented at the annual...

Methadone at therapeutic levels linked to SCD.(Cardiovascular Medicine)
July 1, 2007... DENVER -- Methadone in therapeutic doses appears to be associated with increased risk of sudden cardiac death, Dr. Carmen Socoteanu reported at the annual meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society. This observation from a prospective case-control...

Race drives path of peripartum cardiomyopathy.(Cardiovascular Medicine)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... NEW ORLEANS -- Full recovery of left ventricular function is significantly less likely in black patients than in white patients with peripartum cardiomyopathy, Dr. Sorel Goland said at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology....

HIV care sees metabolic syndrome uptick.(Metabolic Disorders)
July 1, 2007... BARCELONA -- Patients with HIV who are treated with antiretrovirals are more likely to have metabolic syndrome than are their untreated counterparts, Dr. Julian Falutz said at an international congress on prediabetes and the metabolic syndrome....

Sleep apnea may triple Type 2 diabetes risk.(Metabolic Disorders)
July 1, 2007... SAN FRANCISCO -- People with obstructive sleep apnea have almost three times the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to a poster presentation by Dr. Nader Botros at the International Conference of the American Thoracic Society. ...

No improvement in mortality in diabetic women.(Metabolic Disorders)
July 1, 2007... Despite marked drops in all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in men with diabetes between 1971 and 2000, no such improvements were seen in women with diabetes in those periods, a study has shown. "The improvements seen in men suggest that...

Universal flu shots will warrant all hands on deck.(Infectious Diseases)
July 1, 2007... TORONTO -- Alternative settings, such as schools, should be considered if universal influenza vaccination is recommended for all U.S. school-age children, Dr. Cynthia Rand said in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the Pediatric...

Combination vaccines: simpler or more complex?(Expert Commentary)
July 1, 2007... Combination vaccines make life easier for our patients. But until the payment and regulatory issues are resolved, the same is not true for us. In January, the Food and Drug Administration's Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory...

Hep B vaccine immunity may wane after 15 years.(Infectious Diseases)
July 1, 2007... BALTIMORE -- Immunity to hepatitis B might wane 15 years after vaccination among those who received the vaccine series beginning at birth, Dr. Stephanie R. Bialek said at a conference on vaccine research sponsored by the National Foundation for...

Analysis refutes hepatitis B vaccine, RA link.(Infectious Diseases)(rheumatoid arthritis)
July 1, 2007... BALTIMORE -- The hepatitis B vaccine does not appear to be associated with an increased risk for rheumatoid arthritis, Dr. Roger P. Baxter and his associates reported at a vaccine research conference sponsored by the National Foundation for...

Vesiculopustular disorders in infants a diagnostic challenge.(Infectious Diseases)
July 1, 2007... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] MIAMI BEACH -- Several neonatal vesiculopustular disorders can be life threatening, yet difficult to diagnose, Dr. Ronald C. Hansen said at the annual Masters of Pediatrics conference sponsored by the University of...

Early treatment of port-wine stains deemed ideal.(Skin Disorders)
July 1, 2007... GRAPEVINE, TEX. -- Treatment with a pulsed dye laser is safe and effective for clearing port-wine stains in children aged younger than 2 years, according to two independent studies presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for...

Outcomes worse for melanomas on scalp, neck.(Skin Disorders)
July 1, 2007... LOS ANGELES -- Only 6% of patients with melanoma present with the disease on the scalp or neck, but these patients account for 10% of melanoma deaths, Anne M. Lachiewicz reported in a poster presentation at the annual meeting of the Society for...

Daily sunscreen may block later BCC, melanoma: data from an Australian clinical trial offer the first evidence of a protective effect against skin cancer.(Skin Disorders)
July 1, 2007... AMSTERDAM -- A landmark Australian study has provided the first glimmer of evidence that daily sunscreen use might reduce the incidence of both basal cell carcinoma and melanoma years later, Dr. Adele Green reported at the 11th World Congress...

Dermoscopy, total body photos close to new standard of care.(Skin Disorders)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... MAUI, HAWAII -- If dermoscopy and total body photography for early detection of melanoma aren't now the clinical and legal standard of care in dermatology, they're awfully dose, Dr. Allan C. Halpern said at the annual Hawaii Dermatology seminar...

Antidepressants, metabolic syndrome may be tied.(Mental Health)
July 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Antidepressant use could be associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome among adult psychiatric inpatients, Stephen B. Woolley, D.Sc., reported at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. Dr....

Migraine associated with psychiatric disorders.(Mental Health)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- Major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, panic disorder, and social phobia were diagnosed twice as often in those with migraine as in those without headache in a major Canadian population survey, Dr. Nathalle Jette said at the...

Depressive symptoms linked to CAD.(Clinical Capsules)(coronary artery disease)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Depressive symptoms appear to correlate with the development of coronary artery disease, but hostility and anxiety may not, reported Jesse C. Stewart, Ph.D., and his associates. Several studies have linked various negative emotions with the...

Grief begins to ease at 6 months.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... The normal grief response to the natural death of a loved one seems to start declining within 6 months of the loss, said Paul K. Maciejewski, Ph.D., of Yale University, New Haven, Conn., and his associates. "The notion that a natural...

Delinquent teens at risk for suicide.(Clinical Capsules)
July 1, 2007... Teenage delinquency was significantly associated with an increased risk for suicidal behavior in girls, according to data from a sample of American teens. Previous studies have shown an association between delinquency and suicide, but none...

Fewer heavy days with extended-cycle OC use.(Women's Health)(oral contraceptive)(Clinical report)
July 1, 2007... RENO, NEV. -- Patients taking extended-cycle oral contraceptives had about the same number of total bleeding days over 6 months as women taking a standard, 28-day oral contraception regimen but had significantly fewer days of moderate to heavy...

Low-dose OCs may impair teen bone health.(Women's Health)(oral contraceptives)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... ATLANTA -- Impaired bone mass acquisition associated with certain oral contraceptives may be a hidden problem affecting adolescent girls, Dr. Barbara Cromer said at the annual meeting of the North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent...

Implanon's efficacy in obese still not known.(Women's Health)
July 1, 2007... MIAMI BEACH -- Nearly a year after the approval of a contraceptive implant, its advantages and disadvantages are becoming better known, but there are still no data on its efficacy in overweight or obese women, according to a presentation at an...

Rate of sleep aid use higher in young females than in young males.(DATA WATCH)(Table)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Rate of Sleep Aid Use Higher in Young Females Than in Young Males (per 1,000) Females aged Males aged 10-19 years 10-19 years 2001 2.4 1.8 2002 2.8 2.0 2003 3.2 ...

Hypnotic sleep aids.(Drugs, Pregnancy, And Lactation)
July 1, 2007... The physical discomforts of pregnancy Induced by the surge of progesterone and the expanding uterus can result in sleep deprivation in pregnancy. An increased need to urinate, nausea and vomiting, heartburn, difficulty in finding a comfortable...

Severe exacerbations seen in mild pediatric asthma.(Pulmonary Medicine)
July 1, 2007... TORONTO -- Current classifications of pediatric asthma fail to capture the potential for severe exacerbations in patients with mild disease, according to Dr. Christopher Carroll of Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford. In a...

Asthma combo as needed cuts steroid exposure.(Pulmonary Medicine)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Symptom-driven "rescue" use of a single inhaler containing beclomethasone plus albuterol was as effective at controlling mild persistent asthma as was regular twice-daily use of inhaled beclomethasone alone in a prospective, randomized study....

Methylnaltrexone rapidly resolves constipation: in a study of 288 frail hospice patients with opioid-induced constipation, 60% responded within 4 hours.(Digestive Disorders)(Medical condition overview)
July 1, 2007... DALLAS -- Backed by two positive phase III randomized trials, methylnaltrexone is now under Food and Drug Administration review for treatment of opiold-induced constipation in patients with advanced illness. The investigational drug, a...

Behavioral therapy of no benefit in constipated children.(Digestive Disorders)
July 1, 2007... MILWAUKEE -- Intensive behavioral therapy with laxatives is no better than conventional therapy in the treatment of childhood constipation, data from a randomized controlled trial show. Little is known about the effectiveness of behavioral...

Guidelines spell out pediatric obesity treatment.(Obesity)
July 1, 2007... TORONTO -- Diet and exercise remain the first-line treatment for overweight and obese children, according to guidelines on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of pediatric obesity developed by the Endocrine Society. Although selective...

Most well-child visits skip obesity prevention.(Obesity)
July 1, 2007... WASHINGTON -- Even as pediatric obesity is on the rise, fewer than a third of nonobese children in the United States are likely to be receiving obesity prevention counseling at well-child visits, based on a representative sample presented in a...

Valproate, birth defects update.(Clinical Rounds)
July 1, 2007... BOSTON -- Two new data sets reinforce the recommendation to avoid valproate as a first-line therapy for any indication in women of childbearing years. The findings, presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology,...

Supprelin LA, Xyzal tablets.(New & Approved)(Drug overview)
July 1, 2007... Supprelin LA (histrelin acetate, Indevus Pharmaceuticals Inc.) The Food and Drug Administration approved Supprelin LA (histrelin acetate subcutaneous implant) 50 mg for treatment of central precocious puberty in children. *...

Diagnostic criteria offered for refractory migraine.(Clinical Rounds)
July 1, 2007... CHICAGO -- A proposed definition and diagnostic criteria aim to help physicians deal with the growing number of patients presenting with refractory migraine, said Dr. Elliott A. Schulman at the annual meeting of the American Headache Society....

Surgery eases spondylolisthesis pain.(Clinical Capsules)(Medical condition overview)
July 1, 2007... Surgery was found to be superior to nonsurgical treatment in relieving pain and restoring function for patients with degenerative lumbar spondylolisthesis and spinal stenosis, according to James N. Weinstein, D.O., of Dartmouth Medical School,...

New Bartonella species identified.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... A new species of Bartonella bacteria has been identified, after it caused an illness resembling Oroya fever in an American woman returning from a trip to Peru, reported Dr. Marina E. Eremeeva of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

Autism, Rh immunoglobulin not linked.(Clinical Capsules)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Exposure to thimerosal-containing Rh immunoglobulin (RhIg) during pregnancy is not associated with an increased risk of having a child with an autism spectrum disorder, said Dr. Judith H. Miles and T. Nicole Takahashi of the University of...

AAFP, other groups seek tobacco tax to fund SCHIP.(Practice Trends)
July 1, 2007... Federal lawmakers were called upon to approve a tobacco tax increase of 61 cents to fund an expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program by the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American Medical Association, along with...

Rural children's need for SCHIP outweighs urban counterparts'.(Practice Trends)(State Children's Health Insurance Program)
July 1, 2007... Rural children are much more dependent on the State Children's Health Insurance Program than are urban children and also have less of a safety net to fall back on if the popular public insurance program is cut, a new study found. The...

IOM offers smoking measures.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... A combination of increased excise taxes, nationwide indoor smoking bans, and other measures would significantly lower the U.S. smoking rate, which now hovers at around 21% of the adult population, according to a report from the Institute of...

Retiree plans offer Rx coverage.(Policy & Practice)
July 1, 2007... A majority of retiree health benefit sponsors said that for 2006 they continued to offer prescription drug coverage, despite the availability of the new Medicare Part D drug benefit, according to a Government Accountability Office report. Most...

Group medical costs rise.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... The cost of providing group health benefits to employees increased sharply during the past 6 months, with the vast majority of employers, regardless of business size, paying significantly more for account renewals than in the fall of 2006,...

AMA fights Medicare cuts.(Policy & Practice)
July 1, 2007... Physicians report that they will severely limit the numbers of Medicare patients they treat if Congress doesn't act to avert planned Medicare physician payment cuts, which will total 10% on Jan. 1, 2008, and will reach about 40% over the next 9...

Call to share student mental info.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives would allow schools and universities to share a student's mental health information with parents or guardians, but only if the student is considered a danger to himself or others. Rep. Tim Murphy...

Bipolar disorder more common.(Policy & Practice)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... A new survey indicates that as many as 4% of American adults might have bipolar disorder at some point in their lifetime, higher than the 1% prevalence found in previous surveys. Researchers from the National Institute of Mental Health queried...

On genes and justice.(Genomic Medicine)
July 1, 2007... Consider the following scenario: At your next job interview, the senior partner in the practice asks about your family history of hereditary colorectal cancer and then requests that you have a genetic test to define your risk. That same day,...

Two physicians show there's more than one path to success.(Practice Trends)(Kevin D. Egly and Barbara E. Magera)
July 1, 2007... SAN DIEGO -- Physicians are finding ways to redesign their practices and improve efficiency, both with and without the use of electronic medical records. Dr. Kevin D. Egly of Sandwich, Ill., has used his comprehensive electronic medical...

Addiction medicine seeks ABMS recognition.(Practice Trends)
July 1, 2007... MIAMI -- The field of addiction medicine is preparing to take a major step to enhance its authority and expand its professional ranks. The American Society of Addiction Medicine plans to form a certification board and seek official...

Logistics of new addiction medicine board are likely to evolve over time.(Practice Trends)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... The planned addiction medicine board may start out as a conjoint board that is tied to existing boards, according to American Society of Addiction Medicine leaders. The new board could eventually evolve into an independent one, in the same...

Justice, ostrich burger served.(Indications)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... A German court has found three teenagers not liable for damages claimed by the owner of an ostrich who said the teens' firecrackers caused the bird to have a 6-month case of erectile dysfunction, the Associated Press reports. The ostrich farmer...

Ch-ch-ch-chirp.(Indications)(study of human stuttering using birds' calls)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Continuing the avian theme: An analysis of birds' calls offers insight into the causes of human stuttering, according to researchers who recently published their findings in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Santosh A....

Breathless with anger.(Indications)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... Losing your temper may make you lose some breathing capacity, according to research published in the journal Health Psychology. Benita Jackson, Ph.D., a psychologist at Smith College, Northampton, Mass., and colleagues analyzed a subset of 629...

Caste-based medicine.(Indications)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... From the Department of Unwittingly Hilarious Public Relations E-Mails comes an announcement that architectural firm EwingCole will create a "Caste-Themed Design" for a children's hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D. One wonders: Who will be the...

WHO pipes up about hookahs.(Indications)(World Health Organization)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... The World Health Organization Study Group on Tobacco Product Regulation has released an "advisory note" to explain that use of water pipes to smoke tobacco is not any safer than smoking cigarettes. In addition to a list of adverse health...

In from the cold, still in the shade.(Indications)(Brief article)
July 1, 2007... According to a survey conducted by the American Academy of Dermatology, the nation's capital may rightly claim the mantle of top sun-safe region. The AAD sent a questionnaire to adults in 31 U.S. metropolitan areas regarding knowledge and...

Cutaneous cancer: combination treatment strategies.
July 1, 2007... Combination treatments with surgery, radiation, and medical modalities are typically used by oncologists when treating patients with malignancies in general. In the past, dermatologic oncologists have been limited to surgery and radiation as...

Cutaneous oncology and immunomodulator therapy: from warts to skin cancers.(Disease/Disorder overview)
July 1, 2007... The therapeutic benefits of immune modulation treatment in dermatologic diseases derive from either of two basic mechanisms. The first involves inhibiting or downregulating undesirable immune responses--for example, topical calcineurin...

Molluscum contagiosum: an evidence-based review.(Disease/Disorder overview)
July 1, 2007... Molluscum contagiosum (MC) is a highly infectious poxvirus that infects the skin and, rarely, the mucous membranes. (1) The estimated incidence of MC in the United States has not been well studied, but a study from the Netherlands showed that...

Meningitis vaccine for all aged 11-18.(Menactra from Sanofi Pasteur)
July 15, 2007... ATLANTA -- The tetravalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine is now recommended for all 11- to 18-year-olds instead of select age groups, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted at its...

Vital signs.
July 15, 2007... The Majority of Drugs Dispensed in 2006 Were Generic PERCENT Generic 58.0% Brands with no generic alternatives 17.4%...

'Normal' maternal glucose levels up adverse outcomes: stage is set for new diagnostic criteria.
July 15, 2007... CHICAGO -- Elevated blood glucose levels during pregnancy increased the risk of a negative outcome for both mother and child in a multinational observational trial of 23,325 pregnancies. Results of the Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy...

CMS projects a 9.9% cut to medicare payments.(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services)
July 15, 2007... Physicians will face a nearly 10% cut in Medicare payments in 2008 if Congress does not act to reverse it in the next few months. Officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services published a proposed rule outlining the projected...

Varicella breaks out despite double vaccine doses: cases tended to be milder in children who had received two doses, but the difference was not significant.(News)
July 15, 2007... ATLANTA -- Children who had received two doses of varicella vaccine comprised nearly a third of the cases in a varicella outbreak among elementary school children in Arkansas. "This was one of the largest varicella outbreaks investigated...

Hepatitis A vaccine endorsed for postexposure prophylaxis.(News)
July 15, 2007... ATLANTA -- The hepatitis A vaccine should now be the first choice for postexposure prevention of hepatitis A infection in otherwise healthy people aged 12 months to 40 years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Advisory...

Test screens for problem drinking in primary care.(News)
July 15, 2007... MIAMI -- A new test for heavy alcohol consumption identifies twice as many men and 50% more women, compared with a widely used liver enzyme test, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Addiction...

Rimonabant application voluntarily withdrawn.(News)(Sanofi-Aventis S.A.)(Brief article)
July 15, 2007... Shortly after an expert panel voted unanimously against approving rimonabant (Zimulti), Sanofi Aventis withdrew its new drug application for this weight-loss drug from the Food and Drug Administration. The company will "quickly approach the...

FDA: Xolair must be given under supervision.(News)
July 15, 2007... Patients treated with Xolair for asthma must now receive injections under direct medical supervision in a health care setting so they can be monitored for signs of anaphylaxis. On July 2, the Food and Drug Administration announced this and...