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Quasi-experimental data supports argument that air pollution may be a global risk factor for CVD

During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, changes in air pollution were associated with changes in biomarkers of systemic inflammation and thrombosis (formation of blood clot) as well as measures of cardiovascular physiology in healthy young persons, according to a study in the May 16 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on Global Health.

16 May 2012

Dual prevalence of STIs/RTIs and malaria in pregnancy found among women in sub-Saharan Africa

A review of studies reporting estimates of the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections/reproductive tract infections (STIs/RTIs) and malaria over the past 20 years suggests that a considerable burden of malaria and STIs/RTIs exists among pregnant women attending antenatal (before birth) facilities in sub-Saharan Africa, according to a review and meta-analysis of previous studies published in the May 16 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on Global Health.

16 May 2012

Reuters examines use of statistics in public health ahead of WHO report

"Above all else, analyzing the state of the world's health -- be it by looking at obesity rates, cancer cases, malaria deaths, or HIV-free births -- requires decent statistics," Reuters reports in an article examining the use of statistics in public health ahead of the release of the WHO's World Health Statistics report.

16 May 2012

Policy Innovation Memorandum examines safety of world drug, vaccine supply

"The world is facing two immediate health crises concerning drugs and vaccines: affordable and reliable access to life-sparing medicines and the safety and reliability of those medicines," Laurie Garrett, senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), writes in the council's Policy Innovation Memorandum No. 21, titled, "Ensuring the Safety and Integrity of the World's Drug, Vaccine, and Medicines Supply."

16 May 2012

Micronutrients, early food supplementation during pregnancy improve survival of newborns

Pregnant women in poor communities in Bangladesh who received multiple micronutrients, including iron and folic acid combined with early food supplementation, had substantially improved survival of their newborns, compared to women in a standard program that included usual food supplementation, according to a study in the May 16 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on Global Health.

16 May 2012

U.N. Office on Drugs, Interpol better equipped than WHO to combat counterfeit drug trade

"The worldwide counterfeit drug market is huge and growing," Tim Mackey and Brian Liang of the Institute of Health Law Studies at the California Western School of Law and Thomas Kubic of the Pharmaceutical Security Institute write in a Foreign Policy opinion piece, noting such "drugs occupy a wide spectrum of medications, and their quality is suspect; they can be mislabeled, tainted, adulterated, ineffective, or, in the worst cases, all of the above."

16 May 2012

Thermo Fisher signs asset purchase agreement with Nephromics for PlGF assay

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced it has signed an asset purchase agreement with Nephromics LLC, which includes a patent license for exclusive rights to use PlGF for the diagnosis of pre-eclampsia or eclampsia. Clinical trials have shown that PlGF supports the diagnosis and risk prediction for preeclampsia.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 16 May 2012

Rice University students create mechanism to regulate IV fluids for children

Instead of building a better mousetrap, a team of Rice University freshmen took a mousetrap and built a better way to treat dehydration among children in the developing world.

16 May 2012

USAID reports to congress on global health, child survival

"In the last 20 years, the world has saved more than 50 million children's lives and reduced maternal mortality by one-third," "accomplishments [that] have been the result of good science, good management, bipartisan political support, the engagement of USAID and many other U.S. Government agencies, and the participation of faith-based organizations, civil society, and the private sector," according to a summary of USAID's "Global Health and Child Survival: Progress Report to Congress 2010-2011."

14 May 2012

Examining health sector funding agreement between Liberia, USAID

"[A] new and complementary agreement between Liberia and USAID, called the Fixed Amount Reimbursement Agreement (FARA)," is "quite revolutionary," Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a research fellow at the Center for Global Development (CGD), and Jacob Hughes, write in CGD's "Global Health Policy" blog.

14 May 2012

JHSPH wins GCE grant for global health and development research project

The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Alain Labrique, PhD, director of the Johns Hopkins University Global mHealth Initiative, will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled "mTIKKA - Harnessing a Mobile - Cloud System to Achieve Universal Vaccination."

14 May 2012

Study looking at impact of HIV funding on Rwanda's health system has 'serious limitations'

In this post on the Center for Global Development's (CGD) "Global Health Policy" blog, Research Fellow Victoria Fan, Director of Global Health Policy Amanda Glassman, and Research Assistant Rachel Silverman of the Center for Global Development (CGD) examine what they call the "serious limitations" of a study published recently in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine & Hygiene that looked at the impact of HIV/AIDS funding on Rwanda's health system.

11 May 2012

FDA panel recommends approval of Truvada as preventive treatment for HIV

"In a move that could lead to a new milestone for treatment in the evolution of the worldwide AIDS epidemic," a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel on Thursday recommended Gilead Sciences' Truvada as a treatment for preventing HIV infection among healthy people at risk of contracting the virus, Reuters reports, noting, "It already has FDA approval to treat people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus".

11 May 2012

U.S. investment in global health has been successful, deserves continued congressional support

"Over the next few weeks, appropriators will be engaged in the challenging task of evaluating U.S. foreign assistance funding, including how effectively Congress' global health investments are being used," Charles Lyons, president and CEO of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation; Molly Joel Coye, interim president and CEO of PATH; Carolyn Miles, president and CEO of Save the Children; and Richard Stearns, president of World Vision, write in this Roll Call opinion piece.

11 May 2012

Increased investment in nurses will help strengthen health systems worldwide

"It is in poor countries and communities, where health needs are greatest and physicians are scarce, that nurses take an even greater role in health care delivery, often serving as the sole providers in rural villages or urban slums," Sheila Davis, director of global nursing at Partners In Health, writes in a Huffington Post "Impact Blog" opinion piece, noting this is International Nurses Week.

10 May 2012

New approach to advance quality of pregnancy monitoring

The University of California, San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Bioengineering Professor Todd Coleman, in collaboration with Materials Science and Engineering Professor John A. Rogers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will pursue an innovative global health and development research project, titled "Epidermal Electronics for Continuous Pregnancy Monitoring."

10 May 2012

Georgia Tech project to design new warehousing and storage system for vaccines, drugs

The Georgia Institute of Technology has received a $100,000 Grand Challenges Explorations grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The program funds individuals worldwide to explore ideas that can break the mold in how persistent global health and development challenges are solved.

10 May 2012

Examining the need for WHO today

Responding to an opinion piece published in Nature Medicine last week in which Tikki Pang, a visiting professor at the National University of Singapore and former director of research policy and cooperation at the WHO, and Laurie Garrett, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on Foreign Relations, argue the case for reforming and improving the WHO, KPLU's Tom Paulson writes in a post on KPLU 88.5's "Humanosphere" blog.

10 May 2012

International community, U.S. should increase resources, mandate for fighting NCDs in developing world

In this Foreign Affairs essay, Thomas Bollyky, a senior fellow for global health, economics and development at the Council on Foreign Relations, examines the increase of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in the developing world.

10 May 2012

IDRI, Aeras partner to develop new TB vaccine candidate

Aeras and the Infectious Disease Research Institute (IDRI) announce today a new agreement to conduct joint development activities with respect to IDRI's novel tuberculosis vaccine candidate. This collaboration reflects the missions of the two non-profit product development partnerships to use cutting-edge science to develop products that address critical diseases of underserved populations around the world, including tuberculosis.

10 May 2012

Global Health News and Research

Quasi-experimental data supports argument that air pollution may be a global risk factor for CVD

Dual prevalence of STIs/RTIs and malaria in pregnancy found among women in sub-Saharan Africa

Reuters examines use of statistics in public health ahead of WHO report

Policy Innovation Memorandum examines safety of world drug, vaccine supply

Micronutrients, early food supplementation during pregnancy improve survival of newborns

U.N. Office on Drugs, Interpol better equipped than WHO to combat counterfeit drug trade

Thermo Fisher signs asset purchase agreement with Nephromics for PlGF assay

Rice University students create mechanism to regulate IV fluids for children

USAID reports to congress on global health, child survival

Examining health sector funding agreement between Liberia, USAID

JHSPH wins GCE grant for global health and development research project

Study looking at impact of HIV funding on Rwanda's health system has 'serious limitations'

FDA panel recommends approval of Truvada as preventive treatment for HIV

U.S. investment in global health has been successful, deserves continued congressional support

Increased investment in nurses will help strengthen health systems worldwide

New approach to advance quality of pregnancy monitoring

Georgia Tech project to design new warehousing and storage system for vaccines, drugs

Examining the need for WHO today

International community, U.S. should increase resources, mandate for fighting NCDs in developing world

IDRI, Aeras partner to develop new TB vaccine candidate

Leveraging the power of automation to boost research

Automating research - solutions and best practices

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

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