Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease of birds and mammals caused by an RNA virus of the family Orthomyxoviridae, the influenza viruses. In people, common symptoms of influenza are fever, sore throat, muscle pains, severe headache, coughing, and weakness and fatigue.
US FDA approves new orphan drug Kynamro to treat inherited cholesterol disorder – Kynamro – mipomersen sodium – injection approved as an addition to lipid-lowering medications and diet to treat patients with a rare type of high cholesterol called homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HoFH). Kynamro is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Flu Season ‘Bad One for the Elderly,’ CDC Says — US flu epidemic – 29 children dead – An unusually severe flu season is exacting a heavy toll on older people in New York and across USA. This year’s edition of influenza is hitting the elderly hard, putting many in hospitals, even as overall flu activity is showing signs of slowing down.
US FDA approves new seasonal influenza vaccine made using novel technology – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that it has approved Flublok, the first trivalent influenza vaccine made using an insect virus (baculovirus) expression system and recombinant DNA technology. Flublok is approved for the prevention of seasonal influenza in people 18 through 49 years of age.
Social media may be an effective way to help children overcome obesity — Parental involvement and online interaction with counselors and peers led to greater success for overweight and obese children and teens in some studies – Social media like Facebook may be an effective tool to help children overcome obesity, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement published in the journal Circulation.
Baxter Enhances Renal Therapies Portfolio with Acquisition of Gambro — Acquisition Expands Baxter’s Role as Global Provider of Dialysis Products – Baxter International Inc. (NYSE:BAX) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Gambro AB, a privately held dialysis product company based in Lund, Sweden, for total consideration of 26.5 billion SEK (approximately $4.0 billion USD at current exchange rates).
U.S. Flu Season Off To Early Start, CDC Urges Vaccination — Early Vaccine Coverage Data Shows Millions Unprotected Still – Significant increases in flu activity in the United States have occurred in the last two weeks, indicating that an early flu season is upon us. These increases in activity overlap with National Influenza Vaccination Week (NIVW) being observed December 2-8, 2012.
Fungal meningitis outbreak in US due to NECC contaminated epidural steroid injection – A multistate outbreak of fungal meningitis among patients who received an epidural steroid injection with a potentially contaminated product has been notified in USA. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are currently coordinating the investigation of this outbreak of fungal meningitis.
Child-free women feel intense pressure to have kids — but rarely stress over it — New study uncovers effects of social pressure to have children on different groups of US women – Women who choose to be permanently childfree perceive more social pressures to become mothers than other women, but feel less distress about not having kids than women who are childless from infertility or other reasons, a new national study shows.
Language learning makes the brain grow – At the Swedish Armed Forces Interpreter Academy in the city of Uppsala, young people with a flair for languages go from having no knowledge of a language such as Arabic, Russian or Dari to speaking it fluently in the space of 13 months. From morning to evening, weekdays and weekends, the recruits study at a pace unlike on any other language course.
FDA takes action against thousands of illegal Internet pharmacies — Agency participates in international Operation Pangea V to protect consumers from potentially dangerous, unapproved drugs – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, in partnership with international regulatory and law enforcement agencies, took action this week against more than 4,100 Internet pharmacies that illegally sell potentially dangerous, unapproved drugs to consumers. Actions taken include civil and criminal charges, seizure of illegal products, and removal of offending websites.
Smoking, heavy drinking linked to earlier onset of pancreatic cancer — University of Michigan Health System study makes step toward learning when cancer screenings should start – Those who smoke and drink heavily may develop pancreatic cancer at an earlier age than those who don’t. In a recent study, published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology, heavy smokers with pancreatic cancer were diagnosed around age 62 and heavy drinkers at age 61 ? almost a decade earlier than the average age of 72.
Glass shape influences how quickly we drink alcohol — Want to cut down your drinking? Try a straight beer glass instead – The shape of your glass is probably the last thing on your mind when you are down the pub. If you want to cut down on your drinking without sacrificing nights out, the answer could be straight forward.
