Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA articles from May 2001

Medical Letter on the CDC & FDA archives from May 2001

Immunization Safety Net Needs Reinforcement.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health department clinics play a large role in caring for vulnerable children, but could stand to improve certain aspects of their service, suggest the results of a new survey. These clinics...

Hepatitis C Infection Rates In U.S. Military Personnel Are Low.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, staff medical writer - U.S. government researchers say the hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection rate among military troops serving in the U.S. military is very low. Medical...

Many Heterosexuals Are Unaware Of HIV Risk Factors And Their Partner's HIV Status.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Many adults are unaware of their partner's HIV status and HIV risks, suggest the results of a study of heterosexuals with AIDS. "High-risk heterosexual adults may not perceive themselves to be...

One More Visit Could Close Demographic Gaps In Infant Vaccination Efforts.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Although America has made rapid strides toward achieving goals for infant immunization set by the Healthy People initiative, many African-American and poor infants have been left behind, according...

First Sexually Transmitted Outbreak Reported In U.S.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials say they have documented the first sexually transmitted outbreak in the U.S. of typhoid fever, a rare bacterial disease - at least in...

CDC Releases Strategies To Prevent Diseases Transmitted To Humans From Farm Animals.(United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has released new strategies designed to reduce the risk of disease transmission from animals to people at venues where people have contact...

First Fatal Case Of Hepatitis Associated With Combination Treatment For TB.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The first known death associated with a new two-month drug regimen of rifampin and pyrazinamide for the treatment of latent tuberculosis infection has been reported by the U.S. Centers for Disease...

CDC Launches New Center To Prevent Defects And Disabilities.(United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention open new center,)(National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD))(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has established a new center which will focus on growing public health concerns: birth defects and disabilities. Created by the...

CDC Opens New Facility in Puerto Rico For Study And Prevention.(United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, research dengue fever)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) inaugurated its new facility in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on April 18, 2001. These facilities, occupied since August 2000, are the third...

Study Says U.S. Regulations Don't Adequately Protect Public From Associated Risks.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Tough new rules are needed to monitor the sale and use of dietary supplements, the vitamins and herbs now used by about 60% of Americans, a U.S. government study says. A draft report of the...

CDC Reports Fatal And Non-Fatal Injury Rates.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The data are included in an April 2001 CDC report titled "Surveillance for Fatal and Nonfatal Firearm-Related Injures, United States, 1993-1998." Information obtained from studying injuries...

U.S. Geological Survey Issues Wildlife Health Alert For FMD.(foot-and-mouth disease)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Although no cases of foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease have been found in the United States, given the recent outbreaks in the European Union and South America, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) wildlife...

Higher Order Multiple Births Drop In The U.S. For First Time In A Decade.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Triplet and other higher order multiple births (triplet/+) declined in 1999 for the first time in a decade after more than doubling between 1990 and 1998, according to the latest natality...

NewsRx.net Is Preferred Site for Cancer, Malaria, AIDS, Other Health Searches, Audience Measurement Shows.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx Network, Atlanta, Georgia, the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news, announced on April 17, 2001, the results of audience measurements based on its...

FDA Caught In Lotronex Battle.(United States. Food and Drug Administration)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A group of patients is petitioning the U.S. government to allow distribution to resume of a drug that was withdrawn from the market last fall after it caused dozens of patients to be hospitalized,...

New U.S. Law To Reinforce Needle Safety.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Health care workers who handle needles will have more say about the safety of the devices they use under a new federal law that was to take effect during April 2001. Employers also will be...

U.S. Waiting List Tops 75,000.(for transplants)(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The number of people waiting to receive a lifesaving organ transplant in the United States has surpassed the unprecedented 75,000 mark. There are now 75,069 men, women, and children on the...

U.S. Government Announces Task Force To Improve Data Collection.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary Tommy G. Thompson announced on April 23, 2001, the formal establishment of a new Patient Safety Task Force within HHS that will...

'Rabbit Fever' Outbreak Traced To Landscaping.(Brief Article)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Lawnmowers and brush-cutters stirred up an outbreak of rare "rabbit fever" that killed one man and sickened nine others on Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, last summer, U.S. health officials said...

Combination Therapy May Be Effective Prevention, But Adverse Effects Also Occur.(anti-AIDS drugs zidovudine and lamivudine)
May 13, 2001... 2001 MAY 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Combination therapy with the anti-AIDS drugs zidovudine and lamivudine may be effective in preventing transmission of HIV from mothers to babies, but severe adverse effects and the emergence of...

Hospitals, Clinicians Troubled By Vulnerable Production System.(shortage of anesthetic drugs)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A critical shortage of anesthetic drugs, which led to a fact-finding meeting of doctors, pharmacists, and manufacturing representatives April 16, 2001, in Washington, DC, may be just a symptom of...

Panel Releases Assessment Of Effect Of Climate Change On Human Health In The U.S.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A research team composed of health scientists from academia, government, and private industry has released its assessment of climate change health impacts in the United States. The report...

Imprisoned Youth At High Risk For Viral Hepatitis.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The estimated 106,000 adolescents and young adults in U.S. correctional facilities are at especially high risk for viral hepatitis, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...

FDA Issues Addiction Drug Warning.(Roxane Laboratories Inc.'s opiate addiction treatment Orlaam)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a stronger warning about a drug used to treat opiate addiction. The agency said on April 20, 2001, that the new warning is the result of...

Study Finds Men - Not Women - Are Under-Represented In Most Research Studies.(scientific clinical research trials)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Contrary to longstanding public perception, women do not appear to be under-represented or understudied in scientific clinical research trials in the United States, according to a new study by...

Clinical Trials Start For Ventricular Assist Device.(MicroMed Technology Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- MicroMed Technology, Inc., announced April 18, 2001, that it has received conditional approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to begin its pivotal multi-center clinical study of...

Revamped Food Safety Program Leads To Higher Inspection Scores.(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - Changes to a large county food safety program have led to better inspection scores among food retailers, more frequent inspection of high-risk retailers,...

Blood Assay Can Be Modified To Test Saliva.(HIV testing)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States have successfully modified an HIV blood test for use with saliva, increasing its feasibility for use in developing...

American Cancer Society Endorses Hepatitis B 'Catch-up' Immunization for Children.(liver cancer prevention)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Citing hepatitis B virus infection (HBV) as the most significant risk factor for later development of liver cancer, the American Cancer Society has endorsed greater efforts to foster immunization...

Health Officials Fail To Uncover Source Of Ford Plant Infection.(Ford Motor Co. plant investigated for Legionnaires Disease)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- An independent examination of water samples failed to show the source of Legionnaires' disease at a Cleveland, Ohio, Ford Motor Co. plant, a health official said April 13, 2001. Ford closed...

Enzyme-Replacement Drug Is Granted Orphan Drug Status For Mucopolysaccharidosis I.(Novazyme Pharmaceuticals Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Novazyme Pharmaceuticals, Inc., announced April 17, 2001, that the company was granted orphan drug status for its proprietary treatment for mucopolysaccharidosis I (MPS I). This notification...

Research and Training Benefits Global Community.(malaria)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Malaria kills 2.7 million people each year, according to the most recent estimates, and is responsible for enormous economic burdens in malaria-endemic regions. Ninety percent of those who die...

Conference Lets Investigators Share First Look At Perplexing Health Concerns.(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's current Epidemic Intelligence Service)(Brief Article)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Protecting health care workers from Ebola, making pork barbecues safer, and asking why America's children don't ride bikes to school are just three of 80 investigations conducted by the U.S....

Health Officials Plan Less Spraying, More Public Education.(West Nile Fever)
May 20, 2001... 2001 MAY 20 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- It is spring, and an epidemiologist's thoughts turn to the West Nile virus - the virus that arrived in the U.S. two years ago, imperiling lives and causing alarm along the East Coast. This...

Condom Misconceptions Abound Among Sexually Active Adolescents.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by N.R. Saltmarsh, staff medical writer - The combustible mix of ignorance and sexual activity is underscored by new data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, which reveal...

Parents And Physicians Report Increased Concerns About Some Vaccines.
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In the wake of recent publicity surrounding vaccine safety issues, parents and the physicians who treat their children are reporting more concern about some vaccines, and even refusing certain...

United States. Food and Drug Administration Advisors Say Three Prescription Drugs Are Safe Enough To Be Over-The-Counter.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A advisory panel to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has decided that three popular allergy drugs are safe enough to sell without prescription, but experts say the path to...

Gay/Bisexual Men Sexually Abused As Children Are More Likely To Engage In Unsafe Sex.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Men who have sex with men (MSM) who are victims of childhood sexual abuse are more likely to engage in risky sexual behavior than other MSMs, say researchers from the University of California, San...

Vaccine Proves Effective Against Streptococcus Strains In Native Americans.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Two separate studies conducted by Johns Hopkins School of Public Health researchers concluded that the new conjugated pneumococcal vaccine, which is sold under the brand name Prevnar, effectively...

'Back To Sleep' Campaign More Effective Among Some Racial Groups Than Others.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Back to Sleep campaign ongoing in the U.S., which recommends that caretakers place healthy babies on their backs to sleep, has been credited with recent declines in Sudden Infant Death...

Costs Of Caring For Patients In California Projected To Triple By 2040.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The costs of caring for California community residents with Alzheimer's disease will increase 83% by 2020 and an additional 59% by 2040, according to University of California, San Francisco (UCSF),...

Tetracyline-Resistant Genes In Groundwater Illustrate Potential For Spreading Resistance.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Genes resistant to tetracycline have been found in groundwater as far as a sixth of a mile downstream from two swine facilities that use antibiotics as growth promoters. The finding is significant...

Hospitals Unprepared For Biological And Chemical Terrorism.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Fewer than 20% of U.S. hospitals have plans to treat victims of chemical or biological weapons incidents, the U.S. Public Health Service reports. Fewer than half (45%) have indoor or outdoor...

Low-Income, Hungry Children Sick More Often.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- One of the objectives of the U.S. government's Healthy People 2010 report is to increase the food security of American households; in other words, to ensure that all families have enough to eat....

NIH Branch Announces Plan To Fight Malaria, HIV, and Tuberculosis.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The NIAID Global Health Research Plan for HIV/AIDS, Malaria, and Tuberculosis provides short-, mid-, and long-term objectives for battling these diseases by building on the Institute's strong...

Firm Fined for Selling Unapproved AIDS Test.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A Florida company has been ordered to pay $347,500 in penalties for selling HIV saliva test kits without federal approval. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not licensed any...

CDC Reports U.S. Trend Data.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The latest data on national trends in hospitalization in the United States show that the number of hospital discharges stabilized during the 1990s - after peaking in the early 1980s - but that the...

NewsRx Network Chosen As Source For 'Information Therapy'.(Company Profile)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx Network, Atlanta, Georgia, the leading provider of life science databases and daily and weekly health news, now is a major source for "information therapy." NewsRx databases are derived...

Many Workers Unaware Of Hazards Of Baling Or Compacting Equipment.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says workers operating baling and compacting equipment are being killed using these machines primarily because they are unaware of the...

Over Three Million Non-Fatal Worker Injuries, Illness In U.S. Require Emergency Medical Treatment.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Each year, U.S. workers experience about 3.6 million nonfatal injuries and illnesses that require medical treatment in an emergency department. According to a report in the U.S. Centers for...

U.S. National Infant Immunization Week Targeted Children Who Lack Vaccinations.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- More than 900,000 American children are not routinely immunized, the consequence of which may be a revival of nearly eradicated diseases, say University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at...

Study Finds Racial Disparity In Use Of Key Treatment.
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers led by University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), scientists are reporting that a highly effective clot busting drug for stroke is significantly underutilized in all patient...

Behavior Linked To Depression In U.S. Minority Students.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Symptoms of depression were strongly related to smoking, binge drinking, and other drug use among a group of predominantly Hispanic middle-school students in the U.S., a new study found. ...

Immigrant Children In U.S. Less Likely to Use Alcohol, Marijuana.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Compared with students who have always lived in the United States, immigrant middle school students (particularly those living in the U.S. six years or less) report lower alcohol and marijuana use,...

Lowered Blood Alcohol Limits For Teens Reduces Drinking And Driving.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- U.S. states with lower blood alcohol limit policies for drivers under age 21 have seen a 19% decrease in the frequency of teenagers who drive after drinking and a 23% decrease in the frequency of...

Update On Outbreak Of Acute Febrile Respiratory Illness Among U.S. Travellers To Mexico.(Abstract)(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Mexican Ministry of Health and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating in a joint investigation of an outbreak of acute febrile respiratory illness among...

Education Program In U.S. To Launch Hispanic/Latino Nutrition Campaign.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP), sponsored by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. National Institutes of Health, has launched a nutrition campaign aimed...

Higher Chickenpox Vaccination Rates Decrease Disease Even In The Unvaccinated.(Brief Article)
May 27, 2001... 2001 MAY 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- With more than 60% of children being vaccinated, the "vaccine has been administered to a high enough proportion of the children in the population that incidence of varicella disease has decreased...