FDA granted tentative approval to Matrix Laboratories' fixed-dose abacavir, lamivudine and zidovudine tablet for treating HIV-1 in adults. Patent rights bar US marketing, but the tablet becomes eligible for purchase under PEPFAR, and fixed-dose tablets cut pill burden and may aid adherence.
Food Consumer
Drug
Brain tumors: New gene clues
Two Northwestern studies in JAMA report genetic clues to brain tumours: one identified 31 genes involved in tumour proliferation, and another found patients with only one copy of the tumour-fighting gene ANXA7 may be at a disadvantage. The blood-brain barrier still blocks chemotherapy.
Food
Dietary patterns affect risk of Alzheimer's disease
A Polish case-control study of 71 Alzheimer's patients and 71 matched controls found the patients' diets leaned toward meat, butter, high-fat dairy, eggs and refined sugar, while the healthy participants ate more grains and vegetables.
Healthcare
Tele-health plans virtual house calls
UnitedHealth Group and Cisco have launched Connected Care, a national tele-health network linking patients by video and audio to the insurer's 590,000 doctors. A seven-month San Jose pilot drew a 90 percent recommendation rating; a mobile unit is planned for New Mexico.
Drug
Hormone therapy raises ovarian cancer risk
Among Danish women aged 50 to 79 followed from 1995 to 2005, current hormone therapy users were 38 percent more likely to develop ovarian cancer than never-users, and former users 15 percent more likely. Risk did not vary significantly by formulation, regimen or route.
Miscellaneous
Heart transplant may normalize damaged heart in British teen
Hannah Clark received a donor heart at 11 months while her own was left in place. It regained normal function by age 4, and at 10 the graft was removed. She is now off immunosuppressants and in remission from a transplant-related cancer, a Lancet case report says.
Drug
HRT Increases Ovarian Cancer Risk
A Danish study reported in JAMA found women on hormone replacement therapy had a 38 percent greater risk of ovarian cancer than never-users. The absolute risk stays low, about one extra case per 8,300 women, and returns to normal two years after stopping.
Cooking
Healthy Recipes:Broiled Portobello Mushrooms
A vegetarian recipe: portobello mushrooms marinated in broth, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, thyme, oregano and sage, then broiled six to eight minutes. Four servings at 80 calories each.
Disease
1918 Spanish Flu Survivors Immune to Swine Flu
University of Wisconsin researcher Yoshihiro Kawaoka found that survivors of the 1918 pandemic are immune to the current swine flu, though not necessarily to seasonal flu, and that in animals both viruses multiply more in the respiratory tract than in the head and sinuses.
Miscellaneous
NHTSA Roadside Survey Shows Drunk Driving Decrease
A 2007 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration roadside survey found 2.2 percent of drivers on a weeknight were over the legal limit, down from 7.5 percent in 1973. Between 1 and 3 a.m. the share rose to 4.8 percent. Interviewers were not police and paid volunteers for samples.
Food
Can drinking alcohol prevent dementia?
Adults aged 75 and older who drank eight to 14 drinks a week were 37 percent less likely to develop dementia over six years, a Wake Forest study of 3,069 people found. Those who already had cognitive impairment declined faster at any intake, and heavy drinkers nearly doubled their risk.
Chemical
Is bottled water healthier?
The Environmental Working Group says fewer than 2 percent of bottlers disclose their water's source, purification and pollutants, and a congressional report found the FDA has little authority over the industry. The NRDC says a quarter of bottled water starts as tap water.
Lifestyle
Swearing helps relieve pain
Richard Stephens at Keele had more than 60 undergraduates hold their hands in icy water and found they lasted longer and felt less pain while repeating a curse word than a neutral one. Why swearing helps is unknown; exercise is offered as another option.
Disease
Alzheimer's conference yields hints on brain health
Researchers at the International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Vienna said exercise and a brain-healthy diet can help. One study found older adults having one to two drinks a day had about a 37 percent lower dementia risk, with no benefit for those already impaired.
Miscellaneous
Half of all bathtub injuries involve toddlers
A national survey analyzed by Columbia Children's Hospital found most toddler bathtub injuries happen with a parent present, and about 43,000 toddlers a year are hurt. Cuts accounted for 60 percent of injuries and sprains or soft tissue damage for 50 percent.
Obesity
Childhood obesity: Your children are what YOU eat
A study in the International Journal of Obesity found obese mothers were 10 times more likely to have obese daughters and fathers six times more likely to have obese sons. Researcher Terry Wilkin says the gender pattern points toward learned behavior rather than genes.
Minerals
Manganese linked to cancer deaths
A North Carolina ecological study correlated groundwater manganese with 28 percent more colon cancer deaths and 26 percent more lung cancer deaths at county level, while airborne manganese tracked with fewer total, breast and lung cancer deaths.
Supplements
Omega 3 fatty acid helps healthy people, but not Alzheimer's patients
Two studies at an Alzheimer's Association conference pulled in opposite directions: DHA did not help 402 people with mild to moderate Alzheimer's, while another found the omega-3 improved memory in healthy older people over six months. Treatment may need to start earlier, the association says.
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