►January 8, 2004 - DoD resumes anthrax shots after judge lifts ban - CIPRAP News

►January 8, 2004 - CDC to lose top vaccine expert to Emory University - AP via www.accessnorthga.com - "The governments top expert on immunizations will leave government service and join the faculty of Emory University, school officials said Thursday...Dr. Walter Orenstein, director of the National Immunization Program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will retire from the federal agency on March 1, said Holly Korschun, Emory spokeswoman."

►January 8, 2004 - Flu vaccine sits unused - about 2,000 doses - The News-Sentinel via www.fortwayne.com - "Nearly 2,000 doses of flu vaccine are available in Allen County, yet local clinics are having trouble even giving them away...State and national health experts tracking the virus say complacency is going to catch many people off guard."

►January 7, 2004 - First ever population-based study of genetics of autism - PRNewswire via www.awares.org

►December 2003 - On the Hunt for Breakthrough Therapies - journal article (Psychiatric Times) - "The new center will continue that work by enhancing research collaborations and developing novel methods for data analysis that will help in the replication of genetic discoveries, according to Steven Moldin, Ph.D., NIMH project director for the Center. 'The Center's activities are expected to greatly accelerate gene discovery in mental disorders such as autism, mood disorders and schizophrenia, and lead to the identification of novel targets for new therapies,' Molding stated in a press release. 'Ultimately, we expect these results to revolutionize the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of these disorders.'"

►January 8, 2004 - How to Recognize Someone With Autism - www.wboc.com

►January 8, 2004 - Parents facing a difficult choice; Say they will fight to keep gov’t aid for their disabled children - Citizen Online - "Without the Katie Beckett waiver giving the family eligibility for Medicaid, DiMartino said she said her family would essentially be broke..."We want our son to be with us forever," she said as tears welled up in her eyes. 'I want to take care of my son. It would be very hard to do without the safety net of the Katie Beckett waiver.'...However, budget cuts at the state Department of Health and Human Services may jeopardize the current eligibility requirements, leaving many families without access to Medicaid."

►January 9, 2004 - Nakanishi backs bill to warn of mercury in fish - Lodi News - "Nakanishi is sponsoring a bill that would have the state post signs along all waterways warning of the dangers of eating too much fish because of the levels of mercury...Actually, it's been a warning that's been around since 1994, when the Environmental Protection Agency began warning fishers of the mercury level in some of their catches, particularly the older and darker fish. But the warning hasn't spread throughout the state's waterways where people fish."

►January 9, 2004 - Genome Therapeutics Enters Agreement to Transfer Streptococcus pneumoniae Patent Portfolio to Aventis - Aventis pays $3 million for certain intellectual property related to a leading pathogenic cause of respiratory tract infections - Business Wire

►January 8, 2004 - HEALTH: South Unprepared for 'Flu' Pandemic - Experts - IPS

►January 9, 2004 - Worst of Flu Epidemic May Be Over, CDC Says - Washington Post via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►January 7, 2004 - Central African Republic: Measles Kills 37 Children in Northwest - Africa News Service via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►January 7, 2004 - Nigeria Overtakes India as Nation With Most Polio Cases - Xinhua News Agency via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►January 9, 2004 - Sydney given measles warning - NSW Health Department via Herald Sun, Australia

►January 9, 2004 - UK proposes HIV, TB screening for asylum seekers, immigrants - www.vanguardngr.com

►January 1, 2004 - Hepatitis B - American Academy of  Family Physicians

►January 9, 2004 - Worst of Flu Epidemic May Be Over, CDC Says - Vigilance Urged, as Second Wave Is Possible  - The Washington Post - "The flu has killed at least 93 young Americans so far this winter -- about double the count as of last month -- but there are indications that the epidemic may have peaked, federal health officials said yesterday... Gerberding stressed, however, that because flu deaths are not routinely tallied by the federal government, it remains unclear whether this year's flu season has been unusually deadly for children."

Comment:  According to the CDC, mathematical modeling predicted about 92 influenza related deaths each year for the period 1990-1999 just among children less than 5.  Although not based on serological confirmation, it suggests that the recent numbers are still below what might be predicted or expected. 

►January 6, 2004 - Five Killed in Cholera Outbreak in Mozambique Capital - Agence France Presse via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract)

►January 8, 2004 - Hospitals get funds to fight bioterrorism - Area facilities will create rooms for infection cases - The Post-Crescent

►January 9, 2004 - UN health agency sends team to China to probe SARS - United Nations via www.scoop.co.nz

►January 8, 2004 - An Issue Comes to a Head - www.commondreams.org - "One mad cow is messy; two are messier. And in the next few months, if and when North American regulators actually begin to gather some real science by testing thousands of cows, the picture will likely get even dirtier...Many experts on bovine spongiform encephalopathy now suspect that BSE/mad cow has been in North America for at least a decade, that the beef industry and regulators have fought proper regulation from day one, that the current surveillance system is a don't-look-don't-find model and that the public-health risk from contaminated meat could be greater than most are prepared to admit."

►January 8, 2004 - Air pollution may significantly worsen respiratory allergies in individuals with genetic risk - Study in Lancet points to how diesel exhaust might trigger more sneezing, coughing - University of Southern California via www.eurekalert.org

►January 8, 2004 - 208 cases of CWD (chronic wasting disease) found last season - Number of heads tested down 10,000 from 2002 figures - Rocky Mountain News

►January 8, 2004 - Nothing elementary about DNA scientist Watson - Chicago Sun Times

►January 9, 2004 - AVI BioPharma Reports Inhibition of SARS Coronavirus With NEUGENE Antisense Drugs - BIOWIRE2K Keystone Symposium on Bioterrorism and Emerging InfectiousDiseases - Data Presented at the Keystone Symposium on Bioterrorism and Emerging Infectious Diseases By Collaborators at The Scripps Research Institute - Business Wire

►January 9, 2004 - Macandrews & Forbes and Transtech Pharma Complete 10,000,000 Investment in Siga Following Stockholder Approval - Business Wire via The Scotsman - "SIGA Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ: SIGA and FRANKFURT: SGW 919 473), a biopharmaceuticals company developing products for the prevention and treatment of serious infectious diseases, including products for use against biological warfare agents such as smallpox, announced today that MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc., a corporation wholly-owned by Ronald O. Perelman, and TransTech Pharma, Inc., a privately held drug discovery company, have funded the final portion of their 10,000,000 investment in SIGA following the approval by SIGA’s stockholders at today’s meeting."
 

►January 9, 2004 - New warning over monkeypox threat - The US could face further outbreaks of dangerous monkeypox if the virus has gained a foothold among native animals, say experts. - BBC

►January 9, 2004 - Safe Water Handling Key in Controlling Cholera - While a safe water source is important to prevent the transmission of cholera, a recent outbreak in the Marshall Islands shows that handling and storing the water safely is also critical. - Reuters via www.planetark.com

►January 9, 2004 - Researchers unlock key secrets showing how tumors hide from immune system - University of South Florida Health Sciences Center via www.eurekalert.org

►January 7, 2004 - Satellites to Monitor Epidemic Diseases - Economic Times of India via www.immunizationinfo.org (abstract) - "The system uses Geographical Information Systems and mathematical modeling to map disease locations."

►January 9, 2004 - MedImmune Executive Steps Down - Exit Follows Weak FluMist Rollout - Washington Post - "His tenure overlapped with MedImmune's purchase and commercial launch of FluMist, a nasal spray influenza vaccine that the company had predicted would sell at least 4 million doses and generate $120 million to $140 million in revenue in 2003...Instead, it sold just 400,000 doses by December, and MedImmune cut its FluMist revenue forecast to between $55 million and $85 million. Sales picked up steadily after manufacturers ran out of the traditional flu shot, but analysts still consider the vaccine's first season a disappointment...'It is an inopportune time for him to be leaving,' said Dennis R. Harp, an analyst at Deutsche Bank Securities Inc."

►January 9, 2004 - Immune Molecule Might Warn of Miscarriage - HealthDay via Yahoo!

►January 8, 2004 - Buyer Beware: Echinacea - Consumer Reports via www.wistv.com

►January 9, 2004 - Debert girl's house had mould problems, family friend says - The Halifax Herald Limited

►January 9, 2004 - Farmed salmon may pose health risk - Albuquerque Tribune Online