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Rush University Medical Center tests new drug therapy for West Nile fever

Neurological and infectious disease experts at Rush University Medical Center are testing a new drug therapy for the treatment of individuals with West Nile fever or suspected central nervous system infection due to the West Nile virus. Rush is the only site in the Midwest enrolling patients into the $50 million dollar, NIH-funded, Phase II clinical trial called PARADIGM.

18 Aug 2010

NASN encourages parents to vaccinate their children against meningococcal disease

More than half of adolescents 13 to 17 years of age have not been vaccinated against meningococcal disease, a rare but serious disease that can cause meningitis and take the life of a child in just a single day. In a recent Ipsos national survey, the majority of mothers with children in this age group had not vaccinated their children because they were not fully aware of the need for vaccination.

18 Aug 2010

Serious funding shortfalls jeopardize UNICEF's humanitarian operation in Pakistan

UNICEF warned today that serious funding shortfalls are jeopardizing its humanitarian operation in Pakistan. UNICEF is extremely concerned at the lack of funds for its water and sanitation operation, with millions of children at risk from water-borne diseases.

18 Aug 2010

World Bank to provide $900M in emergency funding for Pakistan floods, country's High Commissioner provides rough damage estimate

The World Bank on Monday "pledged to reroute money from other projects to provide $900 million in emergency funding to help Pakistan" with its flood recovery efforts, the New York Times reports (Ellick, 8/17).

18 Aug 2010

Policies, practices concerning MRSA differ among acute-care hospitals in the U.S.: Researchers

Hospitals vary in how they detect and treat drug-resistant staph infections, but most follow national guideline recommendations, according to researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

18 Aug 2010

MDA awards $14.1 million in new grants to advance treatments and cures for muscle diseases

The Muscular Dystrophy Association, which has invested almost $39 million in 2010 in worldwide research seeking treatments and cures for muscle diseases, today announced that it has awarded $14.1 million in new grants.

18 Aug 2010

ASEAN representatives participate in week-long exercise aimed at improving region's pandemic response

A group of experts from Southeast Asia gathered in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on Monday for the start of a four-day exercise to help bolster "the capabilities of [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] ASEAN member states, both individually and collectively, to prepare for and respond to a severe pandemic with potentially devastating effects on the region," Agence France-Presse/The Independent reports (8/17).

18 Aug 2010

Uniform adoption of national HIV quality performance measures needed

To improve the quality of HIV care and treatment nationwide, 17 measures such as screening and prevention for infections and monitoring of antiretroviral therapy should be adopted uniformly, according to a work group led by a Kaiser Permanente researcher.

18 Aug 2010

Scientists develop rapid diagnostic test for detecting meningococcal bacteria

Researchers at Queen's University Belfast and the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust have developed a groundbreaking test for meningitis which could help save lives.A rapid diagnostic test for meningococcal bacteria that can produce results within an hour has been developed by scientists from Queen's Centre for Infection and Immunity and the Trust. The speed of this new test is a vital factor in the treatment of young children with meningococcal meningitis and septicaemia who become very ill over a short period.

18 Aug 2010

Pharmacists in all states authorized to administer influenza vaccines

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) is encouraging consumers to get immunized against influenza and to consider their local pharmacy as the site to receive their vaccine. Pharmacists in all 50 states including the District of Columbia are authorized to administer influenza vaccines and, as of June 30, 2010, more than 120,000 U.S. pharmacists have been trained to administer immunizations.

18 Aug 2010

Genome-wide study identifies key genetic variant associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital found that patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) who carry an allele of the PNPLA3 gene have an increased risk of developing advanced disease, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), fibrosis, and cirrhosis. A second study supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) validates these findings and further concludes that in pediatric patients, the same allele is associated with earlier disease presentation.

18 Aug 2010

FACES receives grant to expand care for HIV/AIDS people in Kenya

A joint project of UCSF and the Kenya Medical Research Institute has received $7 million-the first award of a five year grant that will total about $35 million to expand its care and support of people affected by HIV/AIDS in Kenya.The project is named Family AIDS Care and Education Services, known as FACES, and it provides a comprehensive program of HIV treatment, care, prevention and support. The grant is awarded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from funding provided through the President's Emergency Plan for HIV and AIDS Relief.

18 Aug 2010

Physician recommends vaccination for Meningitis before children start school

Freshmen all across the nation have begun packing in preparation for college. Along with their laptops, notebooks, pens and binders, there is one more essential item they need - a meningitis vaccination. "If a student hasn't gotten a meningitis vaccination, they absolutely should get one before they start school," said Dr. Michael Koller, associate professor of medicine, division of general internal medicine, Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood. "Meningitis is not a common disease but it can be tragic."

18 Aug 2010

Luminex donates new MAGPIX system to Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Luminex Corporation, the worldwide leader in multiplexed solutions, today announced it has donated the first commercial unit of its newly launched MAGPIX® instrument to Professor Peter Siba and his scientific team at the Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research. The instrument will be used onsite in Papua New Guinea to progress malaria research led by Dr. Peter Zimmerman, Professor of International Health, Genetics and Biology at the Center for Global Health and Diseases at Case Western Reserve University.

From Luminex 18 Aug 2010

Study deems gentamicin-collagen sponge ineffective in reducing sternal wound infections

Contradicting previous study results, insertion of a sponge that contains the antibiotic gentamicin at the time of surgical closure following cardiac surgery did not reduce the rate of sternal wound infections after 3 months, compared to patients who did not receive the intervention, according to a study in the August 18 issue of JAMA.

18 Aug 2010

Long-term entecavir therapy suppresses HBV DNA, normalizes ALT and improves liver histology

Researchers from this international study found that patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection who received at least 3 years of cumulative entecavir (antiviral) therapy achieved substantial histologic improvement and regression of fibrosis or cirrhosis. Full details of the study appear in the September issue of Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD).

18 Aug 2010

Sec. of State Clinton discusses Global Health Initiative

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke about President Barack Obama's $63 billion Global Health Initiative (GHI) during a speech on Monday at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Reuters' "Front Row Washington" blog reports (Ashburn, 8/16).

18 Aug 2010

Researchers discover sugars that fight body's natural defenses, vaccines

A special set of sugars found on some disease-causing pathogens helps those pathogens fight the body's natural defenses as well as vaccines, say two Iowa State University researchers.This discovery may be a first step in understanding a disease family that includes tuberculosis for which there are currently no good vaccines or cures.Nicola Pohl, professor of chemistry, and Christine Petersen, assistant professor of veterinary pathology, discovered that a natural coating of sugar interacts with the body's defense cells to dampen its own immune response.

18 Aug 2010

New Superbug emphasises ill-preparedness across Europe to meet this emerging public health challenge

Research just published that identifies new highly antibiotic-resistant bacteria reinforces the frequency with which similar strains of so-called “superbugs” are being discovered across Europe, according to the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID).

17 Aug 2010

TRI awarded RSC contract to support domestic, international clinical research programs

Technical Resources International, Inc. is pleased to announce that TRI has been awarded the Regulatory Support Center contract by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services.

17 Aug 2010

Disease/Infection News

Rush University Medical Center tests new drug therapy for West Nile fever

NASN encourages parents to vaccinate their children against meningococcal disease

Serious funding shortfalls jeopardize UNICEF's humanitarian operation in Pakistan

World Bank to provide $900M in emergency funding for Pakistan floods, country's High Commissioner provides rough damage estimate

Policies, practices concerning MRSA differ among acute-care hospitals in the U.S.: Researchers

MDA awards $14.1 million in new grants to advance treatments and cures for muscle diseases

ASEAN representatives participate in week-long exercise aimed at improving region's pandemic response

Uniform adoption of national HIV quality performance measures needed

Scientists develop rapid diagnostic test for detecting meningococcal bacteria

Pharmacists in all states authorized to administer influenza vaccines

Genome-wide study identifies key genetic variant associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

FACES receives grant to expand care for HIV/AIDS people in Kenya

Physician recommends vaccination for Meningitis before children start school

Luminex donates new MAGPIX system to Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Study deems gentamicin-collagen sponge ineffective in reducing sternal wound infections

Long-term entecavir therapy suppresses HBV DNA, normalizes ALT and improves liver histology

Sec. of State Clinton discusses Global Health Initiative

Researchers discover sugars that fight body's natural defenses, vaccines

New Superbug emphasises ill-preparedness across Europe to meet this emerging public health challenge

TRI awarded RSC contract to support domestic, international clinical research programs

How can microdialysis benefit drug development

Global and Local Efforts to Take Action Against Hepatitis

Addressing Important Cardiac Biology Questions with Shotgun Top-Down Proteomics

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