Diarrhea News and Research

Latest Diarrhea News and Research

NEJM publishes results from Celgene’s REVLIMID phase III studies on MM

Celgene International Sàrl, a subsidiary of Celgene Corporation, today announced that results from three phase III studies evaluating the use of continuous REVLIMID(lenalidomide) treatment in newly diagnosed multiple myeloma (MM) patients or maintenance treatment with lenalidomide following autologous stem cell transplant were published online in the May 10, 2012 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine.

11 May 2012

Efforts to stem childhood mortality in Ghana will not be enough to reach MDG, UNICEF official says

Anirban Chatterjee, chief of health and nutrition for UNICEF in Ghana, said the country "is doing a lot" to fight child mortality -- referring to a recently launched vaccination campaign and an initiative to educate mothers about nutrition -- but "I don't think it's enough" to reach the fourth U.N. Millennium Development Goal (MDG) to reduce the under-five mortality rate by two thirds by 2015, Inter Press Service reports.

11 May 2012

FDA ADAC recommends approval of Gilead’s Truvada for HIV

Gilead Sciences, Inc. today announced that the Antiviral Drugs Advisory Committee of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has voted to support approval of once-daily oral Truvada(emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) to reduce the risk of HIV-1 infection among uninfected adults, an HIV prevention strategy called pre-exposure prophylaxis or PrEP.

11 May 2012

$Onconova advances rigosertib into new Phase II study for refractory MDS$

Onconova advances rigosertib into new Phase II study for refractory MDS

Onconova Therapeutics, Inc., announced today the advancement of the oral formulation of rigosertib, an anti-cancer agent with demonstrated activity in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies, into a new Phase II study. The intravenous (IV) formulation of rigosertib is currently in a pivotal Phase III trial for refractory myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) in the U.S. and EU.

11 May 2012

Probiotics may reduce the risk of antibiotic associated diarrhoea

Probiotics are live microorganisms intended to boost health, such as the bacteria in some yogurts. These are popular among the health conscious. One of probiotics' most popular uses is in preventing and treating digestive problems.

9 May 2012

Probiotics may reduce risk of antibiotic-associated diarrhea

Consumption of probiotics (live microorganisms, which may occur naturally in foods such as yogurt, intended to confer a health benefit when consumed) is associated with a reduced risk of antibiotic-associated diarrhea, a common adverse effect of antibiotic use, according to a review and meta-analysis of previous studies published in the May 9 issue of JAMA.

9 May 2012

Reusable grocery bag can play a role in spreading norovirus infection

Oregon investigators recently mapped the trail of an outbreak of a nasty stomach bug among participants in a girls' soccer tournament to a reusable open top grocery bag stored in a hotel bathroom. Their findings, which illustrate the role that inanimate objects can play in spreading norovirus infection, appear in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.

9 May 2012

VOA News examines South Africa's rural public health sector

VOA News features a five-part series on South Africa's rural public health sector, which the news service writes is "plagued by a high burden of infectious diseases, severe doctor and nurse shortages, lack of medicines and essential medical equipment and incompetent management," resulting in high patient death rates.

8 May 2012

Everett Labs announces availability of Pregnitude for women with fertility problems

A new non-prescription Reproductive Support Dietary Supplement, Pregnitude, which contains myo-inositol (2 g), plus folic acid (200 mcg), is now available for women who are having difficulty conceiving, Everett Laboratories announced today. In clinical studies, Pregnitude has been shown to help support ovulation function and menstrual cycle regularity as well as support the quality of a woman's eggs.

8 May 2012

Salix first quarter total product revenue increases 62% to $171.1M

Salix Pharmaceuticals, Ltd. today announced financial and operating results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012 and other business updates.

8 May 2012

Health Canada announces labelling update for Cipralex

Health Canada is informing Canadians of a labelling update for the prescription drug Cipralex (the brand name of the drug escitalopram) regarding a dose-related risk of abnormal heart rhythms. Cipralex is used to treat depression and belongs to a family of drugs known as Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs).

7 May 2012

Vertex reports interim data from VX-809 and KALYDECO combination Phase 2 study for cystic fibrosis

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated announced today an interim analysis of data from an ongoing Phase 2 study of VX-809 and KALYDECO (ivacaftor) that showed significant improvements in lung function (FEV1) among adults with cystic fibrosis (CF) who have two copies.

7 May 2012

Hot water pasteurisation reduces amount of E. coli on meat

Following the E. coli case in Norway in 2006, when 17 people fell ill and one child died after eating mutton sausages, the meat industry introduced a number of measures in order to reduce the risk of food poisoning from meat. Clean animals and good hygiene during slaughtering are essential preconditions for food safety.

7 May 2012

CSL Behring commences C1-INH phase I/II study in hereditary angioedema

CSL Behring announced today that it has initiated an international phase I/II study of a volume-reduced, subcutaneous formulation of C1-esterase inhibitor (C1-INH) concentrate in patients with hereditary angioedema.

4 May 2012

Lexicon first quarter revenues decrease 50% to $0.3 million

Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering breakthrough treatments for human disease, today updated its drug development progress and reported financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2012.

3 May 2012

SC formulation of Genentech’s ACTEMRA shows promise against RA

Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, today announced that the SUMMACTA study met its primary endpoint, showing comparable efficacy (non-inferiority) of the subcutaneous (SC) formulation of ACTEMRA (tocilizumab) 162mg weekly compared to 8 mg/kg ACTEMRA intravenous (IV) formulation every four weeks.

3 May 2012

'Taboo' surrounding toilets, sanitation hindering progress toward improved access

"Governments are failing to fund projects to improve access to toilets and other sanitation services in poor countries because the subject remains 'taboo,' a director at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation said on Monday," Reuters reports. "About 1.1 billion people across the world still defecate in the open because they have no toilets, according to the United Nations," Reuters writes.

2 May 2012

FDA clears Great Basin’s first C. diff molecular diagnostic test

Great Basin Corporation, a privately-held life sciences company developing sample-to-result molecular diagnostic solutions, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted approval for its first molecular diagnostic test for Clostridium difficile.

2 May 2012

Antibiotic effective for plague gets FDA nod

Federal regulators – The Food and Drugs Administration (FDA), have approved use of an antibiotic to treat plague, an extremely rare, sometimes-fatal bacterial infection.

30 Apr 2012

Amoxicillin-clavulanate may improve small bowel function in children experiencing motility disturbances

The common antibiotic, amoxicillin-clavulanate, may improve small bowel function in children experiencing motility disturbances, according to a study appearing in the June print edition of the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition from Nationwide Children's Hospital.

30 Apr 2012