February News in Health
The February NIH News in Health is now available. Articles include:
Stop the Spread of Superbugs
Gripped by Gout
Distracted Driving Raises Crash Risk
Caring for a Seriously Ill Child
Featured Website: NIDA for Teens
Read these articles and access past issues: http://1.usa.gov/1fab6a9 (Source: BHIC)
Source: BHIC - February 10, 2014 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Kate Flewelling Tags: Articles Children and Teens General Source Type: blogs
Recent FDA Moves Suggests Agency Is Again Taking Its Role of "Protecting Public Health" Seriously
As a patient with type 1 diabetes, I have found myself at odds with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on a number of things the agency has done in recent years (actually since the 1980s), and perhaps even more so in recent years. In fact, I once joked (only halfheartedly) that the acronym "FDA" stood for Fatal Drug Administration. Indeed, for a number of years (under the leadership of chief Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach especially, he pushed for FDA to serve what he called its "clients", meaning the companies that the FDA regulates, rather than protecting public safety). Staff in areas for brand new...
Source: Scott's Web Log - January 28, 2014 Category: Diabetes Tags: 2014 Antibiotics Crisco FDA Trans Fats Source Type: blogs
Recent FDA Moves Suggests Agency Is Again Taking Its Role of " Protecting Public Health " Seriously
As a patient with type 1 diabetes, I have found myself at odds with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on a number of things the agency has done in recent years (actually since the 1980s), and perhaps even more so in recent years. & nbsp;In fact, I once joked (only halfheartedly) that the acronym " FDA " stood for Fatal Drug Administration. & nbsp;Indeed, for a number of years (under the leadership of chief Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach especially, he pushed for FDA to serve what he called its " clients " , meaning the companies that the FDA regulates, rather than protecting public safety). & nbsp;Staff in areas for ...
Source: Scott's Web Log - January 28, 2014 Category: Endocrinology Tags: 2014 Antibiotics Crisco FDA Trans Fats Source Type: blogs
A better business model for antibiotics
For the past couple of decades antibiotics have generally been a low margin, low revenue business that big pharma has stayed away from. Lack of new drug development activity combined with an increase in antibiotic resistance and the rise of “superbugs” are leading us rapidly to a frightening place where we lack effective drugs to stop many dangerous infections.
A Wall Street Journal article (Drug makers tiptoe back into antibiotic R&D) provides the welcome news that drug makers are starting to invest in this area again. One reason: they are hopeful that when the new products get to market there will be a gr...
Source: Health Business Blog - January 24, 2014 Category: Health Managers Authors: David Williams Tags: Economics Pharma Policy and politics antibiotic resistance antibiotics new antibiotics Source Type: blogs
Are antibacterial soaps safe? – the Beauty Brains Show Episode 11
Perry and I discuss breaking news on the safety of antibacterial soaps including an explanation of what the FDA is doing about it and what that means for you. This is not just another crappy year end review show – it’s all brand new material!
Win a free copy of our book just by reviewing the show on iTunes!
(We’ll pick one lucky winner from all the reviews left on iTunes in the next week.)
Click below to play Episode 11: “Are antibacterial soaps safe?” or click “download” to save the MP3 file to your computer.
SHOW NOTES
In December the FDA announced that it’s going to tak...
Source: thebeautybrains.com - December 31, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Randy SchuellerThe Beauty Brains Tags: Podcast Safety Source Type: blogs
INFOGRAPHIC: A Close Look at How Prepared We Are for the Next Outbreak
From the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation:
From antibiotic-resistant superbugs to the seasonal flu to Salmonella, infectious diseases are a serious health threat that also cost individuals and the health care industry billions. A new report from Trust for America’s Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Outbreaks: Protecting Americans from Infectious Diseases, assesses gaps in our public health system that could severely limit our ability to effectively respond to an outbreak.
For the complete report, visit the Outbreaks report page: http://bit.ly/1bcG27m
For the infographic, visit the RWJF website: http://bit.l...
Source: BHIC - December 20, 2013 Category: Databases & Libraries Authors: Naomi Gonzales Tags: Public Health Source Type: blogs
Why IPAB is a good idea
IPAB – the independent payment advisory board is a key feature of the ACA. This board will do what many countries already do – have an independent expert panel to assess the effectiveness of procedures, imaging studies, pharmaceuticals, etc.
Why do we need this board? We need careful assessments of new trends in medicine. Let me suggest two situations.
We have read much about increasing colonoscopy costs. We have a controversy about anesthesia – conscious sedation versus a more standard anesthesia with propofol. The former only requires the gastroenterologist; the latter adds an anesthesiologist, a...
Source: DB's Medical Rants - November 29, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: rcentor Tags: Medical Rants Source Type: blogs
I basically have respect for the medical profession but this is ridiculous
Using data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care surveys (there are two because on covers outpatient practices and the other ambulatory care delivered in hospitals, mostly EDs), Drs. Barnett and Linder (no link because you need a subscription to JAMA Internal Medicine) give us some disturbing news.Only 10% of people with sore throats have an infection that is treatable by antibiotics. And almost all of them have group A streptococcus. Good news about good ol' group A strep -- it's not antibiotic resistant, in fact it's 100% susceptible to good ol' penicillin, which by now isn't good for much else, and is also very chea...
Source: Stayin' Alive - November 27, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Source Type: blogs
The antibiotics crisis
Why are antibiotics so important?Without them, modern medicine would not be possible. Arguably the most important factor in the 30-year jump in American life expectancy in the 20th century, these "wonder drugs" allow us to fight the whole gamut of bacterial illness, from everyday ear infections to diseases such as syphilis, typhoid, and tuberculosis that used to kill millions of people. Their discovery about 100 years ago also revolutionized the world of surgery: As antibiotics drastically reduced the number of post-operative infections, standard operations that used to be considered perilous — such as appendix removals ...
Source: PharmaGossip - November 18, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: insider Source Type: blogs
Bacterial Contamination Of Chicken
Contamination of chicken with antibiotic resistant E. coli is common regardless how the chicken is raised and processed. That makes it important how the chicken is handled and cooked in your kitchen. (Source: Fixin' Healthcare)
Source: Fixin' Healthcare - November 5, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Source Type: blogs
Pharmalot... Pharmalittle... Good Morning
Good morning and welcome to another working week. We hope the weekend was refreshing and you had a chance to enjoy. Now, though, that familiar routine of meetings and deadlines is upon us once again. You know what this means - a cup of stimulation is at hand. So please join us as we gear up for a busy day. And we can tell already that this will be a particularly busy one. Better than being bored, of course. Anyway, here are some tidbits. Have a grand day and do stay in touch...
Roche To Pay Up To $548M For Superbug Antibiotic (Bloomberg News)
Merck Oral Hepatitis C Drugs Show High Cure Rates In Study (Reuters)
Bristol F...
Source: Pharmalot - November 4, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: esilverman Source Type: blogs
"A Post-antibiotic Era"
Jonathan Turley: We have previously discussed how Congress and the White House continues to spend hundreds of billions on foreign wars without pause but have failed to address an emerging global threat to humanity: antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria. It is part of the lunacy that governs this nation. We spend wildly on wars while largely ignoring a threat that could endanger the entire population. Recently, Thomas Frieden, director of the Center of Disease Control and Prevention, put it in the... (Source: Dr. X's Free Associations)
Source: Dr. X's Free Associations - October 23, 2013 Category: Psychiatrists and Psychologists Authors: DrX Tags: Front Page Source Type: blogs
Antibiotic resistance documentary tonight in the US.
Tonight at 10:00 Eastern/9:00 Central, PBS Frontline will air a documentary about the growing threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
http://boingboing.net/2013/10/22/antibiotic-resistance-watch-a.html (Source: PharmaGossip)
Source: PharmaGossip - October 23, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: insider Source Type: blogs
Not all sore throats are self-limited – the role of antibiotics
This article is written in French, but the translate button allowed me to read the article clearly.
These ENTs note increasing numbers of peritonsillar abscess. They argue that sore patients deserve more than a rapid test. They argue for a history and physical done by a physician who looks for complications and explains red flags to the patient.
Long time readers know that I lament the term “just a sore throat”. While most sore throats are self-limited, we still should respect the possibilities for either suppurative or non-suppurative complications. I argue regularly that our sore throat treatment nihilism...
Source: DB's Medical Rants - October 22, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: rcentor Tags: Medical Rants Source Type: blogs
While Rome burns . . .
Of course, the wingnuts don't believe in the fire even as it scorches their own asses. BMJ today reminds us that antibiotics will stop working for us unless we stop feeding them to livestock. The Brits actually have pretty good policies about this but it doesn't matter because lots of other countries don't and antibiotic resistant pathogens cross international borders as freely as the wind. We might want to do something about this before our kids start dying of staph infections. We might.Of course, that might actually be merciful if we don't urgently start to deal with climate change. But you know, it's a hoax. Thanks, I f...
Source: Stayin' Alive - October 11, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Source Type: blogs
