Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA articles from December 2001

Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA archives from December 2001

Levels Of Antibodies At Liver Stage May Predict Resistance To Disease.(malaria)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- High levels of antibodies against the liver stage of the malaria parasite appear to predict resistance to the disease say researchers from Brown University and the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute....

Immunization Rates Remain High Among Vulnerable Children.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Recent changes in routine infant vaccination procedures that require a greater number of shots do not appear to reduce immunization rates in low-income communities, a new study reports. This...

Inspectors Find Security Lapses At CDC Lab In Colorado.(Centers for Disease Control lab at Colorado State University)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Inspectors have uncovered security lapses at a federal laboratory where scientists are studying deadly bacteria. In the wake of the September 11 attacks, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and...

Hopkins Sanctions Scientist For Cancer Drug Trial.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Johns Hopkins University sanctioned a researcher who tested experimental cancer drugs on patients in India without the approval of a university review board, the school announced. The sanctions,...

Hepatitis E Recovered From Rats In Los Angeles.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have recovered a virus similar to the hepatitis E virus (HEV) from rats in Los Angeles, California, a finding that may explain high levels of HEV...

Researchers Identify Gene In Burkina Faso Population That Prevents Disease.(resistance to malaira)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- One in 10 people in the West African country of Burkina Faso have a gene that defends them against malaria - one of the region's biggest killers - researchers report in Nature. The gene codes for a...

Hepatitis A Epidemic Linked to Child Care Facilities.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - U.S. government officials have concluded a hepatitis A outbreak that occurred in Arizona was linked to child care facilities. After studying an outbreak of...

Injured, Intoxicated Car Crash Passengers Need Intervention, Too.(recurring hospitalization of drunk accident victims)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Intoxicated passengers injured in motor vehicle crashes are at the same risk as intoxicated drivers of ending up in hospitals and emergency departments and are at increased risk of death for five years...

Bayer Commits To Supply 200 Million Cipro Tablets Over Next Three Months.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Bayer Corp. has committed to increase manufacturing to supply 200 million Cipro tablets over the next three months, 15 million tablets a week. Cipro (ciprofloxacin) is an effective antibiotic for 14...

Cel-Sci Signs Agreement With Biomedex To Develop Faster Diagnostic Test.(anthrax)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cel-Sci Corp. has signed a joint development agreement with Biomedex to develop and manufacture rapid anthrax human screening diagnostic tests. The deal brings together Cel-Sci, which has extensive...

Early Recognition And Prompt Treatment Critical In Inhaled Anthrax.
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Detailed examination of four recent cases of patients in the Washington, DC, area with inhalational anthrax, two of which ended in death, indicate that early diagnosis of a person with nonspecific...

Former Head Of FDA To Lead PhRMA's Office For Biomedical Preparedness.(Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) has appointed a three-decade veteran of the Public Health Service and former head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Michael...

GlaxoSmithKline Presents Proposals For Bioterrorism Response Effort.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) is working with the U.S. government to receive expeditious review for two of its antibiotics - Amoxil (amoxicillin) and Augmentin (amoxicillin/clavulanate potassium) - to be used...

Johnson & Johnson Seeks Anthrax Indication For Levaquin.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is seeking U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) permission to add anthrax as an approved indication for its broad-spectrum anti-infective Levaquin. The company said it is...

All-Purpose Drugs Tested for Germ, Radiation, Chemical Agents.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- American smart bombs zero in on programmed targets in Afghanistan. Bioterrorism protection at home may demand drugs that do just the opposite - kill just about any germ target in sight. Some...

Americans Aren't Panicking But Have Weak Trust In Officials.(survey measure's Americans' response to threat of bioterrorism)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)(Polling Data)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The first in a series of surveys by the Harvard School of Public Health/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Survey Project on Americans' Response to Biological Terrorism finds that most Americans think they...

CDC Testing Blood Of New Jersey Physician.(who suspects he may have had anthrax)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is testing the blood of a New Jersey physician who believes he might have contracted skin anthrax in the first week of September 2001. The...

Old Smallpox Vaccines May Still Help.(concern over effectiveness of vaccinations received before 1972)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- With the anthrax scare stirring fears of a far deadlier smallpox attack, health officials are trying to reassure the public that people vaccinated decades ago are probably still protected. The...

Terror War Diverts Resources Needed For Other Disease Battles.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- For months, epidemiologist Nancy Rosenstein worked doggedly on a new meningitis vaccine, thrilled by a foundation grant that might help drive the deadly scourge from Africa. But now Rosenstein, an...

Missing Immune Gene Associated With vCJD Incidence.(new-variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease )(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- People who lack a gene involved in immune responses may be three times more likely to suffer new-variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), according an article in Nature. The result, if borne out...

Female Vulnerability To Drugs Tied To Estrogen, Researchers Say.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Estrogen may make the brain more vulnerable to addiction, with the effects of this heightened susceptibility persisting even in the hormone's absence, according to a University of Michigan study...

OxyContin Maker Readies Ad Campaign Against Painkiller's Abusers.(Purdue Pharma)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The manufacturer of a powerful painkiller fast gaining a reputation as a deadly recreational drug is starting an advertising campaign to discourage illegal use of prescription drugs. As of November...

China Confronts Growing AIDS Problem At First National Conference.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fear of discrimination prevents farmer Zhang Jianqi from telling his new neighbors in Beijing that his 8-year-old daughter has AIDS. Despair at finding treatment drove the two from their home...

Panel Presents Consent Document, Brochure For Use In Research.(Office of Genetics and Disease Prevention, informing participants in genetic research studies)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A panel of experts has prepared a consent document and a supplemental information brochure aimed at helping bridge the gap between gene discovery and the ability to use genetic information to improve...

Kentucky's Chandler Medical Center Gets Grant For HIV/AIDS Research.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The University of Kentucky's Chandler Medical Center has received a 3-year, $1.5 million grant to expand health care services for patients with HIV and AIDS. The federal grant from the U.S....

Oxfam Lauds U.S. Effort To Make Anthrax Medicine Available.(Oxfam America, United States policy on Cirpo patent)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Oxfam America is praising recent efforts by the U.S. government to provide a much-needed antibiotic by asking Bayer Corp. to relax its patent on the antianthrax medicine Cipro (ciprofloxacin). "We...

American Home Products Submits Plan To Produce Vaccine.(smallpox vaccine)(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- American Home Products Corp. will submit a plan to the U.S. government to develop and manufacture a smallpox vaccine. Should AHP enter into an agreement with the U.S. government, a new smallpox vaccine...

Volunteers Stand In Line For Diluted Smallpox Vaccine.(Brief Article)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Volunteers are lining up to be vaccinated against smallpox, a once routine occurrence now considered extraordinary yet necessary because of recent events. A total of 684 healthy individuals will...

Underage Smokers Respond To Threat Of Legal Penalties.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 9, 2001... 2001 DEC 9 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Middle school and high school students are more likely to pass up cigarettes when faced with the prospect of being fined or losing their drivers licenses, according to a study of a Florida program that...

New Finding May Help Physicians Prevent HIV Drug Resistance.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- When an individual starts taking antiretroviral drugs for HIV infection, it is important to know as soon as possible if the drugs are adequately suppressing the virus. If they are not, some...

Low-Tech Handheld Device Detects Counterfeit Drugs.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have adapted a simple low-tech device normally used to examine urine specimens to test and detect counterfeit drugs. They...

Nanoparticles Pose Greater Cardiopulmonary Risk Than Thought.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Tiny airborne particles too small to see are more plentiful and may pose a greater health hazard than previously thought, says an Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher studying airborne particles in...

Guinea Pigs Could Be Early Detectors Of Anthrax.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- No high-tech devices exist to detect aerosol anthrax, but Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, physicists have come up with the short-term solution of using guinea pigs. The small...

U.S. Opts To Keep Smallpox Stock.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Bush administration says it will keep the government's stock of smallpox virus in case it should be needed to develop new vaccines or treatments, putting off yet again a commitment eventually to...

Utah Outbreak Of Soil Fungus Surprises Scientists.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A soil-borne fungus was responsible for making 10 people sick at Dinosaur National Monument in northeastern Utah this summer, health officials said. The fungus has never infected anyone in northern...

Despite Declines In Heart Disease Deaths, Racial Gap Remains.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Despite recent declines in coronary heart disease (CHD) death rates, a disparity between African Americans and whites has increased, according to a study reported at the American Heart Association's...

CDC Director Discusses Federal Role In States' Emergency.(Center for Disease Control director Jeffrey Koplan)(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- During a crisis, local and state public health agencies need to take the lead, and the federal government will follow in support, the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said....

Maternal Antiretroviral Resistance Does Not Raise Risk.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States say that HIV drug resistance mutations do not yet have a significant impact on the chance of maternal transmission. Dr....

China's First AIDS Conference Ends With Call For Education.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Participants in China's first AIDS conference called for education of sex workers, installation of condom-dispensing machines and more open discussion in schools, saying such measures will reduce...

Pain, Price, Insurance Delays Associated With Vaccines Worry Doctors.(physicians concerned about introduction and cost of Prevnar)(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- When a new vaccine to protect infants and children against meningitis, pneumonia and ear infections was introduced last year, the public's response was overwhelming: parents clamored to get their...

Unwarranted Use Of Cipro Means Unnecessary Risk Of Kidney Damage.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The American Kidney Fund (AKF) is warning Americans who may wish to take Cipro as a precautionary measure against anthrax that they could be exposing their kidneys to serious harm. With numerous...

Doxycycline Gets Anthrax Labeling.(Bioglan Pharma Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is in the process of approving new labeling for doxycycline and other antibiotics to treat anthrax, in response to increasing national interest in antibiotic...

CDC To Test Western Farms For Safe Level Of Anthrax.(Centers for Disease Control)(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists say trace amounts of anthrax in a building aren't harmful, but just how much is safe? Government scientists are headed to North Dakota and Texas to try to find out. Those states have...

Lawmakers Request $10 Million For Security At Fort Collins Lab.(Colorado)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard and Rep. Bob Schaffer have requested $10 million to strengthen security at a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) laboratory in Colorado. Allard (R-Colo.)...

Poll Finds That Americans Fear Bioterror, Want Vaccinations.(Brief Article)(Polling Data)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Three-fifths of Americans say they would want a smallpox vaccination if it were widely available, according to an Associated Press poll that suggests continued nervousness about bioterrorism. ...

New Rules Force Registration Of Herds With Federal Government.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A new program designed to eliminate an illness related to mad cow disease is forcing farmers, herders, and ranchers to register their sheep and goats with the federal government. Under rules that...

Public Uninformed, Unconcerned About Bioengineered Food.(survey finds)(Brief Article)(Polling Data)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Most Americans believe they lack information about genetically engineered food, but they are not overly concerned about it, according to a new study. Bill Hallman, a Rutgers University psychologist...

Number Of Infections Drops Across The West.(hantavirus infections)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The number of people infected with potentially fatal hantavirus fell significantly across the West this year, along with a drop in rodent populations and changing weather patterns, researchers say. ...

New WHO Guidelines Challenge Mainstream Ideas On Health, Disability.(World Health Organization)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A new World Health Organization (WHO) publication to classify the functioning, health and disability of people across the world challenges mainstream ideas on how we understand health and disability....

Healthy Americans Now Encouraged To Get Immunized.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Healthy persons - those not considered at high risk for influenza complications - are encouraged to seek vaccination, according to new recommendations issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and...

Scientists Identify How Mosquito Smells Its Targets.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The mosquito may be nature's most effective bioterrorist, accounting for millions of deaths each year, but the end of its eons' long reign of terror may be in sight. Scientists have begun to apply...

Solvent In Car Maintenance Products Can Cause Nerve Damage.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Repeated exposure to a chemical found in some car maintenance products can cause nerve problems, including numbness in the hands, feet and forearms, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

Canadian Health Minister Launches National Campaign.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Canadian Health Minister Allan Rock has launched a national public education campaign focusing on six highly dangerous chemicals released when cigarettes are smoked. Rock made the announcement...

Old Drugs Could Treat African Sleeping Sickness.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- By sorting through libraries of existing drugs, scientists have identified a subset of old medicines that may help combat a prevailing problem: the parasitic microbes that cause African sleeping...

Report Encourages New TB Drug Development For $700 Million Market.(Brief Article)
December 16, 2001... 2001 DEC 16 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fueled by the growing tuberculosis epidemic, the market for drugs to treat TB will approach $700 million by 2010, according to a new report issued by the Global Alliance for TB Drug Development, a...

Despite Efforts, Pediatric Hepatitis B Vaccine Rates Don't Meet Goals.(National Immunization Survey, United States)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Intensive efforts to attain a 90% hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine rate among children has fallen short, according to investigators at the U.S. Centers for...

FDA Warns Against Dietary Supplement.(Food and Drug Administration, Lipokinetix)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Americans should immediately stop using a chemical mix masquerading as a dietary supplement that was blamed for poisoning the livers of at least six people, the government warned. The victims,...

NIH Begins New $20 Million Program In AIDS and Tuberculosis.(National Institutes of Health's Fogarty International Center developing research training program)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- On World AIDS Day, the Fogarty International Center (FIC) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced a new building program to provide extended support for collaborative, multidisciplinary,...

Alliance Urges Joint Approach To AIDS And Tuberculosis.(Global Alliance for TB Drug Development)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fighting the converging epidemics of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis (TB) will require improved anti-TB drugs as well as wide access to antiretrovirals, with an integrated approach to treating both diseases,...

FDA Gets Record Funding Under New Fiscal Bill.(Food and Drug Administration to prevent Mad Cow Disease)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- For the first time in several years Congress has provided a budget for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over and above increases requested for the salaries and expense account. The biggest...

Scientists Say Flu Pandemic Remains A World Threat.(European Union conference)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- At a time of bioterrorism fears, influenza should not be overlooked as a force of nature or a potential weapon of terrorists, disease specialists say. Flu has the potential to become a pandemic,...

Even If Bovine Disease Has Reached U.S., Precautions Have Stopped Spread.(Mad Cow Disease)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- There's a small chance that mad cow disease has reached the United States undetected - brought by British cattle during the 1980s - but government prevention measures would have stopped it from...

Pfizer Clarifies Vibramycin (Doxycycline) Label.(Pfizer Inc. announces antibiotic drug is also anthrax treatment)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Pfizer, Inc., is updating prescribing instructions for its antibiotic Vibramycin (doxycycline) to highlight the drug's utility in treating inhaled anthrax. Separately, the company said it is donating...

ABS Negotiates Anthrax And Smallpox Vaccine Agreement.(American Biogenetic Sciences Inc. contracts Russia)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- American Biogenetic Sciences, Inc., (MABA, ABS) has negotiated a 10-year agreement with the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation covering human vaccines for anthrax, smallpox, botulism and...

Anthrax Scare Is Posing Problems For Legitimate Research.(laboratory security and time allowances, United States)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An anthrax researcher with a small company recently came to Paul Keim seeking more samples he needed for his work. Keim, a microbiologist at Northern Arizona University, politely said he was too...

Anthrax Trace Found In Dead Woman's Neighbor's Home.(Ottilie Lundgren, United States)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Investigators searching for the source of the anthrax that killed a 94-year-old woman said that they had found the germ on a letter sent to a nearby home. Connecticut Gov. John Rowland said a...

Cautious Scientists Won't Open Leahy Letter For Safety Reasons.(Senator Patrick J. Leahy, anthrax contaminated mail)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The anthrax-laden letter to Sen. Patrick Leahy will be opened only when scientists feel confident they can recover all of the anthrax in the envelope, the FBI says. "No one wants to go forward...

Health Groups Call For Protection For Front-Line Emergency Medical Workers.(United States)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A joint statement by leaders of three national health organizations calls for government action to protect emergency medical personnel who deal with biological or chemical disasters. The statement...

House Okays $20 Billion Antiterror Package.(United States government)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The House overwhelmingly approved a $20 billion antiterrorism package November 28, 2001, after derailing a Democratic drive to defy President Bush and add billions for domestic security, defense and...

Large-Scale Quarantine Is Not Recommended In Most Cases.(after a bioterrorist attack)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Imposing a large-scale quarantine after a bioterrorist attack in the United States should not be considered a primary public health strategy in most currently imaginable circumstances. In the...

New York City Anthrax Search Short On Clues.(death cases)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- When even the subways tested negative for anthrax, the search for the source of the germs that killed a New York City hospital clerk seemed to nearly stop in its tracks. Medical and criminal...

Success Of Afghanistan Reconstruction Depends On Health Support.(World Health Organization)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health sector reconstruction in Afghanistan must be guided by a strong international commitment to save and improve lives, the World Health Organization (WHO) says. It also called for generous...

Computerized Maps Are Latest Weapon In Battle Against Diseases.(tracking outbreaks of infectious diseases)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fever, fatigue, sore throat, muscle aches, runny nose, and an all-over miserable feeling. It's the time of year for influenza and other sicknesses, and we are all at risk. But, there is an even...

Flu Shots Are Safe For People With Asthma, Study Finds.(American Lung Association)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- For the first time, a study reveals that influenza vaccines are safe for children and adults with asthma. The study conducted by the American Lung Association's Asthma Clinical Research Centers...

Worse Of Outbreak May Be Over In Britain, According To Study.(French National Institute of Health and Medical Research)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Britain may have seen the worst of its epidemic of a form of mad cow disease, according to a French study that says the number of cases may not rise much above 200, far fewer than previous estimates....

Nearly 30% Of Those At Risk For AIDS Virus Haven't Been Tested.(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Nearly 30% of Americans deemed at risk for HIV have never been tested, the U.S. government says. The study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, involved more than 30,000 people...

CDC Releases U.S. Plan For Bioterror Outbreak.(Centers for Disease Control)(Brief Article)
December 23, 2001... 2001 DEC 23 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health authorities should not force people to be vaccinated against smallpox, even if the virus reappears and begins to spread, the government's top bioterrorism adviser said November 26, 2001, as...

Resistant African Sex Workers May Have Specific Antibody Responses.(HIV infection)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - African sex workers who become resistant to HIV infection can develop antibodies that target the virus in vaginal fluid, researchers say. Prof. Laurent...

New CDC Guidelines Help Schools Prevent Injuries In Children.(Centers for Disease Control report)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- School Health Guidelines to Prevent Unintentional Injuries and Violence appear in the December 7, 2001, issue of U.S. Centers For Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report,...

No Relationship Between Sepsis, Hepatitis B Vaccine Researchers Report.(Centers for Disease Control study released)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Citing the results of a two and a half year investigation, research collaborators at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Kaiser Permanente...

FDA Issues Anesthesia Drug Warning.(Federal Drug Administration warns against droperidol)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A drug anesthesiologists commonly use apparently can cause fatal irregular heartbeats at far lower doses than expected, prompting the government to urge doctors to try different medications. At...

WHO Says Africa Has Scored Some Victories Against Polio's Spread.(World Health Organization report)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The World Health Organization Regional Director for Africa, Dr. Ebrahim M. Samba, says that the WHO African Region in 2001 recorded impressive results in the drive to eradicate polio, with the number...

1989 Nobel Laureate Harold Varmus Calls For Global Medical Research Corps.(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A Nobel medicine laureate has proposed the establishment of a Peace Corps-type international program for medical researchers, saying it would narrow the health care gap between rich and poor nations....

Anthrax Testing Slows Detection, Reporting On West Nile Cases.(Centers for Disease Control capacity tested)(Brief Article)
December 30, 2001... 2001 DEC 30 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Four Georgia men fell ill with West Nile virus as long ago as September, but the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was so backed up with anthrax testing it couldn't confirm the diagnosis...