Posted September 18, 2008

►Winter 2008 - FDA Drug Safety Newsletter - FDA/CDER

* ►November 2008 - An uncertain revolution: Why the rise of a genetic model of mental illness has not increased tolerance - journal article (Social Science & Medicine)

* ►October 2008 - Education about human papillomavirus and human papillomavirus vaccines in adolescents. - journal article (Current Opinion in Obstetrics & Gynecology)

* ►October 2008 - DNA vaccines: ready for prime time? - journal article (Nature Reviews Genetics)

* ►October 2008 - Association between the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene and autism: relationship to Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales and cognition - journal article (Molecular Psychiatry) - "This is the third association study, in a third ethnic group, showing that SNPs and haplotypes in the OXTR gene confer risk for ASD. The current investigation also shows association with IQ and total VABS scores (as well as the communication, daily living skills and socialization subdomains), suggesting that this gene shapes both cognition and daily living skills that may cross diagnostic boundaries."

►October 2008 - Inflicted Traumatic Brain Injury in Infants and Young Children - journal article (Brain Pathology)

►October 2008 - Melatonin Attenuates Hypoxia-Induced Ultrastructural Changes and Increased Vascular Permeability in the Developing Hippocampus - journal article (Brain Pathology) - "Melatonin administration reduced VEGF and NO levels as well as leakage of RhIC, suggesting that it has a therapeutic potential in reducing hypoxia-associated damage in the developing hippocampus."

►October 2008 - Sex chromosome anomalies in childhood onset schizophrenia: an update - journal article (Molecular Psychiatry)

►October 2008 - Antipsychotic drug mechanisms: links between therapeutic effects, metabolic side effects and the insulin signaling pathway - journal article (Molecular Psychiatry)

►October 2008 - mGluR7 facilitates extinction of aversive memories and controls amygdala plasticity - journal article (Molecular Psychiatry)

►October 2008 - Antibodies to flagellin indicate reactivity to bacterial antigens in IBS patients - journal article (Neurogastroenterology and Motility)

* ►September 19, 2008 - 5-month-old boy dies hours after vaccination - ENS via Express Buzz - "A five-month-old boy died within a day of being administered Hepatitis B, DPT vaccines and polio drops. Suriya’s parents suspect that a mix up of vaccines at the Corporation’s primary health centre (PHC) in Ayyanavaram is to blame for his death. However, the alleged negligence may go unpunished because they have not lodged a complaint with the police to avoid a post-mortem."

* ►September 19, 2008 - Web creator to filter fact from fiction - Contractor UK - "A new organisation should label websites for their trustworthiness once they have been proved reliable sources, so internet users can ‘filter good information from bad.’ Such was the call this week from Sir Tim Berners-Lee, creator of the first website in 1991, who will launch an internet foundation early next year to do just that job. He said his online kite mark-style system would not restrict freedom of speech, but would seek to advance the Web, which he wants to keep as ‘open, free and neutral.’ But he argued that too many online campaigns and 'cults' have already swayed thousands of people into believing falsities, which could prove 'deeply damaging.' Evidencing his claim, Mr Berners-Lee said the Large Hadron Collider was said to cause the end of the world and that the MMR vaccine was said to give children autism."

►September 19, 2008 - Federal Air Travel Restrictions for Public Health Purposes --- United States, June 2007--May 2008 - MMWR/CDC

►September 19, 2008 - Impact of Expanded Newborn Screening --- United States, 2006 - MMWR/CDC

►September 19, 2008 - Thallium Poisoning from Eating Contaminated Cake --- Iraq, 2008 - MMWR/CDC

►September 19, 2008 - QuickStats: Rates* of Cesarean Deliveries --- Selected Countries,† 2005 - MMWR/CDC

►September 19, 2008 - Notifiable Diseases/Deaths in Selected Cities Weekly Information - MMWR/CDC

►September 19, 2008 - Recommendations for Identification and Public Health Management of Persons with Chronic Hepatitis B Virus Infection - MMWR/CDC

* ►September 19, 2008 - Two polio cases detected in Battagram, Khyber - The News International, Pakistan - "Talking to The News, Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI) NWFP Coordinator Dr Mqueem Khilji said Shakeela had received seven dozes of vaccination while 20 doses of polio vaccination were given to five-year-old Zulekha of Khyber Agency. Khilji said though poliovirus was detected in tests of Zulekha, it did not affect her physically due to 20 doses of anti-polio vaccine that she had taken."

* ►September 19, 2008 - Biodefense lab presents public health risk - opinion - San Antonio Express-News

* ►September 19, 2008 - Mayor in China fired in baby formula scandal - International Herald Tribune

* ►September 18, 2008 - CDC-sponsored MMR study supports Wakefield’s findings - By F. Edward Yazbak MD, FAAP - The CDC tried again and …failed again But this time, it validated Andrew Wakefield’s findings. Note from the author: The following critique was to be published on the Web Site of the Vaccine Autoimmune Project on Monday September 15, 2008. Unfortunately the VAP web site was the target of malicious hacking. I am grateful to John and Jackie Fletcher for their invitation to feature it on JABS. FEY - www.jabs.org.uk - "The recent study in fact supports Andrew Wakefield’s findings. The children described in the Uhlmann 2002 study, including my grandson, really and truly had evidence of measles virus genomic RNA in their ileal biopsies as confirmed by the now-vindicated O’Leary laboratory. Obviously I never doubted that… not for a second. Andrew Wakefield would have never published doubtful results and he certainly would have never reported findings to me that he was not absolutely certain of. He is simply not that kind of a researcher. He is certainly not that kind of a man."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Get a Deep Insight into the World Human Vaccines Market - Reportlinker.com via Market Wire via COMTEX via MarketWatch - "This report analyzes the worldwide markets for Human Vaccines in Millions of US$. The major product segments analyzed are Prophylactic Vaccines (Pediatric Prophylactic Vaccines, & Adult Prophylactic Vaccines), and Therapeutic Vaccines."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Immunization Alliance Call to Action - American Academy of Pediatrics via PRNewswire-USNewswire

* ►September 18, 2008 - BJC will require staff get flu shots - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

* ►September 18, 2008 - Infants to be administered Hib vaccine from next month - New vaccine to offer additional protection to children from Hepatitis B and Hib | EPI Punjab to target at least 3.4 children - The Post, Pakistan

* ►September 18, 2008 - Waxman attacks FDA preemption rule - Fierce Pharma - "Meanwhile, the FDA may be attempting an end run on preemption--but Rep. Henry Waxman wants to stop it. In a letter sent yesterday, the chairman of the House oversight committee attacked a rule change that would preempt people from suing drug companies over risks disclosed on a drug's label. And this, Waxman said, "At a time in which FDA's own Science Board warns that 'American lives are at risk' due to chronic underfunding of the agency." The FDA hasn't replied to Waxman yet,  but whatever the agency says, this argument is far from over."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Vermont Groups Want More Pharma & Doc Data - Pharmalot - "Two months ago, the Vermont Attorney General’s Office issued its annual report on gifts and donations from drugmakers to Vermont docs and medical professionals, but critics say the report is incomplete and hard to access. Ken Libertoff, who heads the Vermont Association for Mental Health, argues a trade secret clause in state law allows some docs to mask the amount of money they receive."

* ►September 18, 2008 - FDA Issues Draft Guidance on Regulating Genetically Engineered Animals - FDA

* ►September 18, 2008 - Public needs to know vaccines are safe, docs say - AP via Yahoo!

►September 18, 2008 - Public Needs To Know Vaccines Safe, Docs Say - Concern Stems From Measles Outbreaks In Several Cities - NBC4.com

* ►September 18, 2008 - Is Your Sen. or Rep. Attending Rep. Maloney's Vaccine-Autism Meeting? - Age of Autism - "The following provides a running tally of the Senators and Representatives who are attending Representative Carolyn Maloney's (D-NY) vaccine-autism meeting on Wednesday, September 24th at 2:00pm."

* ►September 18, 2008 - "The Doctors" TV Show Cancels Vaccine Program By Julia Berle - Age of Autism

* ►September 18, 2008 - NIH Cancels Study of Chelation as Autism Treatment - Wall Street Journal Health Blogs

* ►September 18, 2008 - Chelation Study for Autism Called Off - Controversial Trial Too Risky, Panel Says - WebMD - "'Our phones have been ringing off the hook since this was announced,' Rebecca Estepp of the autism support group Talk About Curing Autism tells WebMD. 'We are dumbfounded and saddened that this study of a promising autism treatment will not happen. The government has pulled the rug out from under us with no explanation.' Estepp, whose 10-year-old son is autistic, says she knows of thousands of children who have improved and even had their autism symptoms disappear following chelation therapy. 'Do we have to have thousands more before they take us seriously?' she asks. 'When does the anecdotal evidence get so large that they have to listen to us?'"

* ►September 18, 2008 - NIH Calls Off Chelation Study; Autism Community Offers Cheers and Jeers - http://autism.about.com

* ►September 18, 2008 - Cancellation of Controversial Autism Study Causes Both Relief and Outrage - Discover Magazine Blog

* ►September 18, 2008 - Health: Controversial Treatment For Autism (includes video) - CBS 3 - "Chelation has long been used to treat lead poisoning, but now some are using it for autism, based on a theory that metals, including mercury from vaccines, contribute to the condition. 'Verbal skills are the first that we see. Improvements in eye contact, cooperation,' said Dr. Giuseppina Feingold, the boy's pediatrician."

►September 18, 2008 - Nixa woman named to Missouri Advisory Committee on Autism - News-Leader.com - "A Nixa woman who has autism has been appointed a state alternate on the Missouri Advisory Committee on Autism. Tiffany L. Daniels, 23, was named by Gov. Matt Blunt’s office with 13 other private individuals and 11 elected and appointed state officials to serve on the committee."

►September 18, 2008 - Autism Society Puts Research Into Practice - eMaxHealth - "National Autistic Society International Conference is planned to take place between 19 and 20 of ►September 2008...For further details and online bookings please go to the conference website www.nas2008.org.uk."

►September 18, 2008 - Autistic Kids Allegedly Cuffed, Told to Fight - A North Carolina Advocacy Group Alleges Special Needs Students Suffered Abuse (includes video) - ABC News

►September 18, 2008 - Helios Education Foundation awards $1M grant to Phoenix autism group - Phoenix Business Journal

* ►September 18, 2008 - Asian Baby Death Toll From Infant Formula Rises - FDA claims U.S. formula is safe, despite pet deaths last year - Consumer Affairs - "At least three babies have died in China from acute kidney failure and more than 6,200 others have fallen ill while at least 158 are in critical condition after consuming baby formula that contained the dangerous chemical melamine."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Political Vaccinology: A Full Time Job by Barbara Loe Fisher - Vaccine Awakening

* ►September 18, 2008 - U.S. Requiring Controversial Vaccine - TheStreet.com - "Jon Abramson, an infectious diseases expert and chairman of the CDC's Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices, or ACIP, when Homeland Security implemented the requirement in April 2007, advised against making the HPV vaccine mandatory at the time. 'I am stunned. It was not the intention of the policy to mandate vaccination of immigrants,' Abramson said, adding that vaccination policies are designed to protect the populace, not individuals. 'This is not a disease that is communicable like SARS or pandemic flu or even measles.'"

* ►September 18, 2008 - US Government Requires Gardasil For Immigrants - Age of Autism

►September 18, 2008 - Waxing philosophical - HPV vaccine helpful - Paris Post-Intelligencer - "'That’s just the way some parents are, Dr. Yanuck,' the nurse responded. 'They get something in their head, and the best thing to do is back off. Because if you try to push them, they’re just gonna put up even more of a wall.' Still, it’s difficult for me to resist regarding this mother as unreasonable; although I have no children of my own, I have participated in the care of other people’s children."

►September 18, 2008 - Gardasil Disappoints Merck As Blockbuster - InjuryBoard.com

►September 18, 2008 - Gardasil Requirement for Immigrants Questioned - Newsinferno.com

►September 18, 2008 - Drug company official says prepare now for flu outbreak - Missourinet.com

* ►September 18, 2008 - iBioPharma, Inc. Selects Influenza Vaccine as Its First Clinical Candidate - GlobeNewswire via COMTEX via MarketWatch - "Over the last five years, CMB has successfully demonstrated preclinical efficacy of vaccine candidates produced in green plants for influenza, human papilloma virus (HPV), anthrax, plague and other infectious disease targets."

* ►September 18, 2008 - New vaccine element could generate better protection from avian influenza - Journal of Clinical Investigation via EurekAlert!

* ►September 18, 2008 - Dynavax shares fall after issuing FDA response - AP via Forbes - "Shares of Dynavax Technologies Corp. fell Thursday as the biotechnology company responded to a Food and Drug Administration request for more information on a halted study of the developing hepatitis B vaccine Heplisav."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Health Canada, FDA halt Stem Cell's stroke trial - Reuters

►September 18, 2008 - CDC airs results for new public health 'no fly' list - CIDRAP News

►September 18, 2008 - Ready to take on the flu (includes video) - KLEW CBS 3

* ►September 18, 2008 - Study: Flu shots in pregnant women benefit newborns - CIDRAP News - "Englund, who serves on the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, said one caveat is that the study was conducted in a tropical country where flu circulates year-round, unlike the United States, with its winter flu season."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Measles surge not down to vaccine failure - Ongoing surges in measles cases in the UK are a result of falling immunisation rates and not a failure of the MMR vaccine, research from the Health Protection Agency has confirmed. - Pulse, UK

►September 18, 2008 - College: Mumps case no cause for alarm - Rutland Herald

►September 18, 2008 - DOH: Hepatitis B cases on the rise - ABS-CBN News - "'Those who get hepatitis B at birth or at a young age have higher chances of getting chronic infection as compared to when you get it later,' Tayag said in a media information session at the GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Building in Makati City."

►September 18, 2008 - CDC Expands Hepatitis B Testing Recommendations - MedPage Today

►September 18, 2008 - 2 more Wash. residents probably had West Nile - Seattle Times

►September 18, 2008 - West Nile Virus Survivor Tells His Story - 89.3 KPCC Southern California Public Radio

►September 18, 2008 - Two West Nile virus infections reported in Suffolk - Newsday

* ►September 18, 2008 - Looking Out for Bogus Cancer Cures - Federal Trade Commission Sues Five Companies It Says Sell Fake Cures Online - ABC News

* ►September 18, 2008 - FTC Launches Operation False Cures to Suppress Natural Cancer Remedies (opinion) - NaturalNews.com - "The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) today launched 'Operation False Cures,' a coordinated scheme to censor natural cancer remedies and financially destroy companies offering them for sale."

►September 18, 2008 - ‘A Lot of Unknowns’ - Medical advances are helping many HIV patients live into old age. But that blessing presents its own unique set of tribulations. - Newsweek

* ►September 18, 2008 - Paracetamol use found to increase risk of asthma three-fold - Taking paracetamol weekly increases the risk of asthma three-fold, research has found. - The Telegraph, UK

►September 18, 2008 - Crucell Signs Exclusive License Agreement with Talecris Biotherapeutics - Crucell via Market Wire via Street Insider - "Crucell's core portfolio includes a vaccine against hepatitis B, a fully-liquid vaccine against five important childhood diseases and a virosome-adjuvanted vaccine against influenza. Crucell also markets travel vaccines, such as the only oral anti-typhoid vaccine, an oral cholera vaccine and the only aluminum-free hepatitis A vaccine on the market."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Antibiotic 'cerebral palsy link' - A study has linked a small number of cases of cerebral palsy to antibiotics given to women in premature labour. - BBC

►September 18, 2008 - NSF, NIH Award Ecology of Infectious Disease Grants - Scientists to study links between environmental changes, spread of infectious diseases - US National Science Foundation

►September 18, 2008 - U.S. Barred 33 TB-Infected People From Flying Over Past Year - CDC's new 'do not board' list comes as a surprise to infectious disease experts - HealthDay News via U.S. News & World Report

* ►September 18, 2008 - Vytorin Researcher Accuses Congress of Harassment - Pharmalot

►September 18, 2008 - J&J’s Procrit Linked To Deaths In Stroke Patients - Pharmalot

►September 18, 2008 - FDA Proposes Label Requirements for Refused Imported Foods - Measure would further protect the nation’s food supply - FDA

►September 18, 2008 - Schering-Plough Eliminating 1,000 Sales Reps - Pharmalot

►September 18, 2008 - Memory to cut half of its jobs - The Record via NorthJersey.com

* ►September 18, 2008 - Old medicines put patients at risk, says study - Financial Times

* ►September 18, 2008 - Beyond Pay for Performance — Emerging Models of Provider-Payment Reform (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - No Place Like Home — Testing a New Model of Care Delivery (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - Building a Medical Neighborhood for the Medical Home (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - Socioeconomic Inequalities in Health in 22 European Countries (free full text) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - Beating the Germ Insurgency - National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA)

►September 18, 2008 - Anti-IgE for the Treatment of Allergic Rhinitis - and Eventually Nasal Polyps? - journal article (International Archives of Allergy and Immunology)

►September 18, 2008 - The Merck Manual of Patient Symptoms Empowers a New Generation - Just Published Reference Facilitates the Evaluation and Treatment Of Common Patient Symptoms - CSRwire

►September 18, 2008 - Worldwide survey seeks MS answers - The number of people suffering from the neurological disease multiple sclerosis (MS) worldwide could be far more than the estimated 1.3m, researchers say. - BBC

►September 18, 2008 - Novartis launches healthcare project for rural markets - Moneycontrol.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - Health department gets few takers on mandatory shots - More free clinics set next week for sixth-grade students - Burlington Times News

* ►September 17, 2008 - American Nurse Today publishes Community Acquired Pneumonia (CAP) continuing education program to coincide with vaccination time and review latest guidelines on therapy. - American Nurse Today via I-Newswire

* ►September 17, 2008 - Overzealous vaccination can lead to cancer - The Norman Transcript - "When I took her in last year for her shots, she developed a lump on the backside of her right front leg. The vet said I should have it removed right away because it was cancerous. After putting my cat through surgery, I found out the lump was caused by the rabies vaccination."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Waxman To Eschenbach: Whose Side Are You On? - Pharmalot - "Henry Waxman continues to have his suspicions about the FDA. In a letter today to FDA Commish Andy von Eschenbach (pictured to the left) after receiving internal FDA e-mails about agency decisions over the couple of years. His conclusion? “Political appointees at the agency may be promoting industry priorities at the expense of FDA’s core public health mission,” according to Waxman".

►September 17, 2008 - Ontario HPV program to run through school year - The Windsor Star

* ►September 17, 2008 - $500 million NIH funds boost? (requires registration) - The Scientist

►September 17, 2008 - Drug Regulatory Agencies Collaborate On Counterfeits, New Medical Products - Intellectual Property Watch

►September 17, 2008 - Why Some Primates, But Not Humans, Can Live With Immunodeficiency Viruses And Not Progress To AIDS - Key differences in immune system signaling and the production of specific immune regulatory molecules may explain why some primates are able to live with an immunodeficiency virus infection without progressing to AIDS-like illness, unlike other primate species, including rhesus macaques and humans, that succumb to disease. - Emory University, via EurekAlert! via ScienceDaily

* ►September 17, 2008 - Mice Missing 'Fear' Gene Slow To Protect Offspring - First, he discovered a gene that controls innate fear in animals. Now Rutgers geneticist Gleb Shumyatsky has shown that the same gene promotes "helicopter mom" behavior in mice. The gene, known as stathmin or oncoprotein 18, motivates female animals to protect newborn pups and interact cautiously with unknown peers. - Emory University, via EurekAlert! via ScienceDaily

►September 17, 2008 - Is Re-emerging Superbug The Next MRSA? - Dr. Ed Corboy had no idea what was afflicting his 80-year-old mother, Joan Corboy. All he knew for certain was that since being treated for what was a routine diarrheal infection, she seemed to be wasting away and none of her doctors or other health specialists could explain why. - Loyola University Health System, via EurekAlert! via ScienceDaily

►September 17, 2008 - Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: A Nonpharmacologic Treatment for Pediatric Anxiety - When CBT is used in a standardized way by trained therapists, the results in children and adolescents with anxiety disorders are stunning. - journal article (Journal Watch Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine)

►September 17, 2008 - Down's test miscarriage warning - The number of healthy babies lost as a result of Down's syndrome testing is "unjustifiable", a charity has claimed. - BBC

►September 17, 2008 - U.S. Merck's Japan unit to slash sales branches - The Washington Post

►September 17, 2008 - Ticked Off by Lyme Disease: Staying safe in the waning days of tick season - The Source Weekly

►September 17, 2008 - Wheeze season: Childhood asthma's September peak - Every September in Halifax, a fundamental change occurs in the respiratory health of children. Asthma returns. - CBC News

►September 17, 2008 - Sir Peto Defends Vytorin Analysis - The Vytorin Saga - Forbes

►September 17, 2008 - Mylan Jumps on Ranbaxy's Warning for Generic Drugs (Update2) - Bloomberg

►September 17, 2008 - Refile-Update 1-Ranbaxy hires Giuliani to help it with FDA ban - Reuters

►September 17, 2008 - Asthma and paracetamol link - Irish Health

►September 17, 2008 - Schering-Plough To Cut Animal Health Reps - Pharmalot

►September 17, 2008 - Did NZ drug regulator do some laundering for GlaxoSmithKline? - Scientific Misconduct Blog

►September 17, 2008 - DTaP - Exploring Vaccines

* ►September 17, 2008 - EPA Unresponsive On Children's Health - Agency has disregarded recommendations from its own advisory group, GAO finds - Chemical & Engineer News

►September 17, 2008 - EPA Lets Electronic Waste Flow Freely, GAO Report Says (requires registration) - Washington Post

* ►September 17, 2008 - Advocates for Autism Research - Autism Speaks via Community Coaching Center Blog - "Today is a critical time for you to take action on behalf of funding for autism research!  Right now, members of the House and Senate are debating the final version of the Fiscal 2009 Defense Appropriations bill.  We are seeking $15 million for the Department of Defense (DoD)-funded Autism Spectrum Disorders Research Program (ASDRP) in the Appropriations bill.  This critical program will further the field of autism research and help improve treatments and interventions for children with autism."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Hospital Warning: Antibacterial Wipes Found to Spread Superbugs - NaturalNews.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - Lawmaker Proposes Banning Fragrance Products in Public Schools - NaturalNews.com - "Rep. Karen Clark initially proposed placing an outright ban on all fragrances in Minneapolis schools, out of concern for the effects that those chemicals have on children with asthma and other health problems. According to Mary Heiman, the nursing service manager in charge of the Minneapolis school district's asthma program, 12.5 percent of the city's students suffer from asthma."

►September 17, 2008 - Rally urges politicians to support children's issues - Richmond Times-Dispatch

* ►September 16, 2008 - Vaccines: To Heal or Not to Heal - Health Supreme via www.newmediaexplorer.org - "I can already hear the question coming. What about epidemics? I will ask a question in return, can you show me one epidemic that is not the result of some disturbance on a mass scale? The epidemics that have reared their heads in recent memory have come after wars, after large scale immigration that led to squalid conditions, that led to malnourishment. Modern epidemics, including polio, can be traced to poverty, unclean conditions, lack of nourishment, and toxins that have become central to our lives. Had these not been the prime cause, and bacteria and viruses been the sole reason for disease, mankind would have been wiped off the face of the earth."

* ►September 16, 2008 - Not All School Children Are Vaccinated - Martha's Vineyard Gazette

►September 16, 2008 - Morgellons Disease: The Result of Genetically Modified Food? - May Not Be a Psychological Disorder After All - Associated Content

* ►September 16, 2008 - Scientists working to protect NI from Bird Flu - Queen's scientists are involved in two international projects aimed to protect Northern Ireland's agri-food industry from bird flu and African swine fever, a disease which kills pigs - Queen's University Belfast via EurekAlert!

►September 15, 2008 - First seizure – to treat or not to treat? - journal article (International Journal of Clinical Practice)

►September 15, 2008 - Zinc concentration in serum and cerebrospinal fluid simultaneously decrease in children with febrile seizure: Findings from a prospective study in Bangladesh - journal article (Acta Paediatrica)

►September 15, 2008 - International TGen-Led Team Finds Link between Brain Protein and Alzheimer's disease - Evidence for an association between KIBRA and late-onset Alzheimer's disease - The Translational Genomics Research Institute via Biocompare

►September 15, 2008 - It takes a fence to raise this child - Press of Atlantic City

* ►September 15, 2008 - South Africa Begins Introduction of PREVENAR into Childhood Immunization Program - First African Nation Plans to Phase in Routine Vaccination Program Against Pneumococcal Disease for Infants and Young Children - press release - Wyeth Pharmaceuticals via PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX via MarketWatch

►September 12, 2008 - A newly detected tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) focus in south-east Sweden: A follow-up study of TBE virus (TBEV) seroprevalence - journal article (Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases)

►September 11, 2008 - Deganwy boy fighting fit after battle with meningitis - North Wales Weekly News

►September 10, 2008 - Mum shares shocking truth about meningitis - Midweek Herald

►September 9, 2008 - Facing challenges head-on - Research and technology could hold the key to unlocking the secrets of the enigma that is autism - Telegraph Herald

►September 9, 2008 - AUDIO from Medialink and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases: S.T.O.P. Meningitis - press release - Medialink and National Foundation for Infectious Diseases via PRNewswire

►September 8, 2008 - Immunisation drive still faces hurdles - TheCitizen, Tanzania

►September 4, 2008 - Get meningitis jab for your children -- we nearly lost our own little girl to it - Herald.ie

►September 3, 2008 - Vaccine mandate may save New Jersey lives - Press of Atlantic City

►September 2, 2008 - Bereaved aunt launches meningitis awareness campaign - Bucks Free Press

* ►September 2008 - Practitioner Review: How can epidemiology help us plan and deliver effective child and adolescent mental health services? - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

* ►September 2008 - Celiac disease: From gluten to autoimmunity - journal article (Autoimmunity Reviews)

►September 2008 - Fetal origins of child non-right-handedness and mental health - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

►September 2008 - Stevens–Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis - journal article (Autoimmunity Reviews)

* ►September 2008 - Innate immunity and acetaminophen-induced liver injury: Why so many controversies? - journal article (Hepatology)

* ►September 2008 - Cognitive functioning in affected sibling pairs with ADHD: familial clustering and dopamine genes - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

►September 2008 - Neuropsychological outcome in adolescents/young adults with childhood ADHD: profiles of persisters, remitters and controls - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

►September 2008 - Poor utility of the age of onset criterion for DSM-IV attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: recommendations for DSM-V and ICD-11 - journal article (Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines)

►September 2008 - Reye Syndrome and Reye-Like Syndrome - journal article (Pediatric Neurology)

►September 2008 - Understanding causation of cerebral palsy by using magnetic resonance imaging - journal article (Paediatrics and Child Health)

►September 2008 - Febrile Myoclonus: An Underreported, Benign Condition in Infancy Often Misinterpreted as Febrile Seizures. - journal article (Pediatric Emergency Care)

* ►August 2008 - The effect of vitamin A supplementation administered with missing vaccines during national immunization days in Guinea-Bissau - journal article (International Journal of Epidemiology)

* ►Volume 40 Issue 3, 2008 - Strategies to increase influenza vaccine uptake among health care workers in Greece - journal article (Scandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases)

* ►May 6, 2008 - Autism: Cause and Therapy - Part 1 - An in depth discussion on the role of stealth adapted viruses in the growing epidemic of autism; and how the cell damaging effects of these viruses can be reduced by activation (or restoring) a functional alternative cellular energy (ACE) pathway. - video - YouTube

* ►May 6, 2008 - Autism: Cause and Therapy - Part 2 - Dr. Martin continues explaining his research that ascribes autism to brain damage caused by stealth adapted viruses acquired during pregnancy. - video - YouTube

* ►The ACE Pathway Study - Dr. W. John Martin, MD, PhD - A transparent double blind investigational research study to evaluate the safety and effectivness of methods aimed at activating an alternative cellular energy (ACE) pathway in the therapy of autism and related childhood disorders. - www.acepathway.ca

* ►Jenny McCarthy will be LIVE on Oprah.com Wednesday, September 24 at 7 p.m. CT and she wants hear from YOU! What questions do you have for Jenny? What stories would you like to share? If you want to speak to Jenny McCarthy LIVE, we want to hear from you! - Oprah.com
 

►September 18, 2008 - Inside Health - NHS staff need sharp reminder on flu risk - The Scotsman

►September 18, 2008 - Compulsory vaccine for bluetongue - The Scotsman

►September 18, 2008 - Bovine Mastitis: Could A Vaccine Be On The Way? - University of Nottingham via ScienceDaily

►September 18, 2008 - Rules on Bioengineered Animals - FDA to Release Guidelines for Stages of Genetic Modification (requires registration) - Washington Post

* ►September 18, 2008 - No new Indian vaccine for WHO as regulator fails test - Business Standard - "Companies like Shanta Biotech, Panacea Biotec and Serum Institute of India are among the leading vaccine-makers which have not been able to file any fresh application to the WHO due to this temporary de-recognition of the country’s drug regulatory system. The WHO pre-qualification is essential for companies to supply vaccines to national immunisation programmes funded by the WHO or UNICEF outside the country."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Immunisation payments to be split - AAP via The West Australian - "The federal government is to split its immunisation allowance to encourage parents to ensure older children have booster shots. Families are now paid an indexed $243.30 for having their children aged between 18 months and two years immunised to the recommended level."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Centre's vaccines unfit for use: UP - Times of India

* ►September 18, 2008 - Vaccinated girl new victim of polio - Pakistan Dawn - "Health officials said Zaleeqa, 5, of Ghundo village of Jamrud tehsil, had received several doses of oral polio vaccine but the National Institute of Health confirmed that she had got P1 virus."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Vaccine's 'cancer-melting' success offers bright hope - The Age - "His team's research has identified molecules unique to the stem cells behind melanoma cancers. They developed a vaccine to target those stem cells, allowing the body's immune system to do the bulk of the work disposing of the tumour."

* ►September 18, 2008 - Anti-Cancer Vaccine A Tough Sell To Parents - Morning Edition via NPR

* ►September 18, 2008 - Autism Spectrum Disorders in Infants and Toddlers: Diagnosis, Assessment, and Treatment (book review) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - Pediatric Inflammatory Bowel Disease (book review) - journal article (NEJM)

►September 18, 2008 - We must oppose the HIV-Aids deniers - letter - The Guardian, UK

* ►September 18, 2008 - Effectiveness of Maternal Influenza Immunization in Mothers and Infants (full text) - journal article (NEJM)

* ►September 17, 2008 - Immunizing Pregnant Women a Defense Against Infant Flu - NEJM via MedPage Today - "The study recruited 340 mothers to receive inactivated influenza vaccine or 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (controls). ... The study was supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, the National Vaccine Program Office, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, the Thrasher Research Fund, Aventis Pasteur, the International Center for Diarrheal Disease Research, and the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University."

►September 17, 2008 - Pregnant Mom's Flu Shot Protects Baby - 2-for-1 Shot Cuts Infant Flu Risk by 63% - NEJM via WebMD

* ►September 17, 2008 - NVIC Vaccine E-Newsletter
 
Political Vaccinology: A Full Time Job by Barbara Loe Fisher

http://www.vaccineawakening.blogspot.com/
http://www.nvic.org/
http://www.standupbecounted.org/

Taxpayer dollars funding the multi-billion dollar budget at the CDC are increasingly being used to jerk the media and the public around like puppets on a string. Keeping the politics of mandatory vaccination on the front pages of newspapers and in the broadcast booths is a full time job for the CDC's spin doctors.

As soon as August rolled around, the usual cast of characters promoting forced vaccination got children ready for school by targeting parents making informed vaccine choices and blaming them for 131 cases of measles in the U.S. this year. In a state of high anxiety about the high level of vaccine education in America, officials employed by government health agencies attacked the religious, philosophical and conscientious belief exemptions in state vaccine laws because they are not subject to the legal blessing of medical doctors. Some journalists were prompted to ask whether unvaccinated children should be allowed to play with unvaccinated children although others examined whether public resistance to vaccine mandates might have something to do with gaps in scientific evidence proving vaccines policies are safe.

The doctors pushing "no exceptions" mandatory vaccination laws have had a great time whipping up hysteria about the freedom to choose by alleging that runaway numbers of vaccine resisters are threatening the public health. Along with suggesting that non- medical exemptions should be removed from state laws, they are now calling for an end to medical contraindications to vaccination to give a green light to pediatricians to vaccinate even children who have suffered life threatening allergic reactions to vaccines.

The pathological fear of germs driving those pushing for a license to re-vaccinate children who have suffered life threatening vaccine reactions is nothing more than a license to kill and get away with it. It is a perfect example of why we cannot trust them with our children's lives much less give medical doctors the sole legal authority to decide whether or not any of us can be exempt from government vaccine mandates.

At the end of the month-long "the sky is falling" charade, how did CDC spin doctors decide to end it? By issuing a press release announcing that child vaccination rates in America have reached an all-time record level and that less than one percent of American children are totally unvaccinated!

The question all Americans should be asking is this: Who is going to stop doctors and public health idealogues from playing vaccine politics with our children's lives and our civil rights?
__________________________________________

"From the vaccinating parent perspective, it's a little infuriating because you don't know who these kids are," says Brown, a vaccine proponent and co- author of the book "Baby 411." But do others have the right to know such personal medical information? Should parents inquire about vaccination status before a play date? Some say that's taking things too far. "Do I think it's inappropriate to put a mark on people and kick them out from being able to participate in society, yeah I think it's inappropriate - it's inappropriate and it's dangerous," says Barbara Loe Fisher, cofounder and president of the National Vaccine Information Center, a group in Vienna, Va., that describes itself as "America's Vaccine Safety Watchdog" and opposes forced vaccinations." - Jacqueline Stenson, NBC 11.com (August 25, 2008) http://www.nbc11.com/msnbchealth/17289208/detail.html

"In the meantime, "parents simply have to be educated and put in the best position to consider the risks and benefits of vaccines and the various diseases. And they have to be free to make informed, voluntary decisions for their children. That includes being able to get exemptions and work with physicians to adjust vaccination schedules. Bigger and bigger government clubs are not going to work,'' Fisher said. Dr. Saad Omer, assistant professor at Emory University's School of Public Health in Atlanta, said he agrees that the public health community needs to do a better job communicating both the risks and benefits of vaccines. "And I think government and industry need to spend more, be more proactive, on vaccine safety research. "On the front lines, no provider should be dismissive of parents with concerns about vaccines. You should listen and try to address them, not kick them out of your practice,'' he added. Fisher notes, "The safety movement was largely launched by middle class moms who had the education and time to analyze the medical literature. But now we're in a third generation of parents dealing with these issues, and it's a more diverse group with a much broader reach because of the Internet. They can see that adverse reaction reports are similar around the world." - Lee Bowman, Scripps Howard News Service (August 27, 2008) http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/35756

"The American Academy of Pediatrics says extensive reports from several leading researchers have found no "proven association" between autism and measles vaccines. Experts recently told the Chicago Tribune that autism "tends to emerge at the same age children receive their shots, leading to a false sense of cause and effect." "Parental suspicion is now so high that public health officials fear it could undermine one of the most important advances in medical history," the Tribune reported. "Although vaccination rates have remained fairly steady, pockets of vaccine rejection can lead to outbreaks of childhood diseases that were once thought conquered." - Derek Kravitz, Washington Post (August 28, 2008)
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/washingtonpostinvestigations/2008/08/measles_back_with_a_vengeance.html

"With close monitoring and a few standard precautions, nearly all children with known or suspected vaccine allergies can be safely immunized, according to a team of vaccine safety experts led by the Johns Hopkins Children's Center. Writing in the September issue of Pediatrics, the multicenter research team offers pediatricians a step- by-step tool for quickly identifying children with allergic reactions to vaccines, and a much-needed guide, they say, to safely immunize those who are allergic....Children who have had one allergic reaction are believed to be at a higher risk for future reactions, typically more serious than the first. "We cannot reiterate enough that the vaccines used today are extremely safe, but in a handful of children certain vaccine ingredients can trigger serious allergic reactions," says Robert Wood, M.D., lead author on the paper and chief of pediatric Allergy and Immunology at Hopkins Children's. "For the most part, even children with known allergies can be safely vaccinated." - Johns Hopkins Medicine, Newswise.com (September 2, 2008) http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/543816/

"U.S. toddlers got the recommended vaccinations against childhood diseases at record levels in 2007, federal health officials said on Thursday, as they urged parents to continue to trust vaccine safety. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued its report on vaccination rates for ages 1-1/2 through 3 a day after another study came out showing no link between autism and the vaccine given to guard against measles, mumps and rubella. A record 77.4 percent of children in this age group received the full recommended series of vaccinations, the CDC said. Ninety percent of children got all but one of the six individual vaccines in the series, the CDC said. The one exception was the four doses of diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis or whooping cough vaccine, received by 84.5 percent of toddlers, the CDC said. The CDC report, based on data on 17,017 children, found that fewer than 1 percent got no vaccines." - Will Dunham, Reuters (September 4, 2008) http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSN0427308520080904
__________________________________________
 
* ►September 17, 2008 - Rep. Maloney To Host Autism Vaccine Briefing - Age of Autism - "PLEASE CONTACT YOUR US SENATORS (HERE) AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS (HERE) AND URGE THEM TO ATTEND OR SEND A STAFF MEMBER TO THIS IMPORTANT AUTISM-VACCINE BRIEFING ON CAPITOL HILL - Thursday, September 24 at 2:00 PM 210 Cannon House Office Building Independence Avenue, Washington, DC."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Expert sees no link between vaccines and autism - Philadelphia Inquirer - "Plotkin, Offit's co-inventor and former boss, lauds his teaching efforts and his 'intestinal fortitude' but worries about his shouldering such a public burden. 'I have talked to him about trying to find other people, younger people who will also take up the cudgel, so he is not the most obvious target,' said Plotkin, who also developed the rubella vaccine."

* ►September 17, 2008 - US researchers call off controversial autism study - AP via International Herald Tribune - "Dr. Paul Offit, chief of infectious diseases at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, agreed with the decision to cancel. 'Suppose that a child suffers a severe side effect from chelation,' said Offit, author of 'Autism's False Prophets,' a new book on autism research. 'Without any evidence it's helpful, I think it's unethical.'"

* ►September 17, 2008 - Officials call off controversial autism study - Reuters - "'NIMH has decided that resources are better directed at this time to testing other potential therapies for autism spectrum disorders, and is not pursuing the additional review required to begin the study,' the institute said."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Chelation Study Cancelled - Age of Autism

* ►September 17, 2008 - Stealth Viruses - The Secret Face of Autism? By Kent Heckenlively, Esq. - Age of Autism

* ►September 17, 2008 - ABC News Philadelphia Offers Fair Coverage By Anne Dachel - Age of Autism

* ►September 17, 2008 - Interim Study on Autism Thursday - KTOK.com - "After refusing to hold a hearing on Nick's Law during the last legislative session, the House Economic Development and Financial Services Committee will be holding an interim study Thursday dealing with autism. Wayne Rohde is the father of Nick for whom the proposed law is named."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Autism is caused by a 'supercharged' mind, scientists claim - Children who develop autism have "supercharged" brains that are so clever and sensitive that they make everyday experiences utterly overwhelming, new research claims. - The Telegraph, UK - "'When I was younger, the school bell was like a dentist's drill hitting a nerve,' said Temple Grandin, an animal scientist at Colorado State University in Fort Collins well known for being autistic. 'I think it's difficult for people to imagine a reality where sounds hurt your ears and a fluorescent light is like a discotheque.'"

* ►September 17, 2008 - Legislation hopes to mandate health coverage for autism - KRNV.com - "Health insurance coverage for children with autism would be required under terms of legislation planned by Nevada Senate Democrats, according to the founder of the Autism Coalition of Nevada."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Curemark CEO Presents Autism Findings at Prestigious Neurobiology Conference at Oxford - press release - Curemark, LLC via Business Wire via MarketWatch

►September 17, 2008 - What we're up against: Aluminum as the new mercury and end of expertise - Respectful Insolence via Science Blogs

►September 17, 2008 - Gavin Gibbons: Column misleading on dangers of mercury in fish - Report cited prepared by lobbying group - letter - News-Press

* ►September 17, 2008 - No Vaccine, No School Starting Next Week - MyFox WGHP

* ►September 17, 2008 - Winnipeg schools pick religion over HPV vaccine - Four private institutions opt out of program to prevent cervical cancer - Winnipeg Free Press via Vancouver Sun via Canada.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - Gardasil Jab Linked to Pancreatitis - Australian Doctors Demand a Review - NaturalNews.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - U.S. Government Mandates HPV Vaccine For New US Residents - NaturalNews.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - Arms race: Health department gets few takers Wednesday on mandatory shots - More free clinics set next week for sixth-grade students - TheTimesNews.com - "But despite the new state requirement - and a deadline that is a week away - sixth-graders in need of the Tdap (tetanus/diphtheria/pertussis) were few and far between at the clinic."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Kids without shots face suspension - Greensboro News-Record

►September 17, 2008 - More on vaccines - letters - Chesterfield Observer

* ►September 17, 2008 - Vaccines could prevent quarter of child deaths - Reuters - "Julian Lob-Levyt, of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), said the crisis now gripping financial markets was unlikely to dampen demand for the AAA-rated 'vaccine bonds' that raise money for his group's multi-year programmes."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Measles Epidemics Could Return: Low Vaccination Rates to Blame - Synapse, The University of California, San Francisco - "Vaccination is unquestionably one of the most efficacious, low-risk, cost-effective medical interventions, period. But that rational argument isn’t enough to compete with Hollywood celebrities telling parents that immunization causes autism. Perhaps Americans need to witness an epidemic of measles to start vaccinating their children again. The old adage 'out of sight, out of mind' may explain why parents who have never seen or known a child infected with measles are reluctant to vaccinate. I hope Americans have the foresight to realize that the benefits far outweigh the risks before an epidemic strikes. Otherwise, our children will pay the price for our poor judgment. - Alison Silvis is a second-year medical student."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Multi-Pronged Therapeutic Cancer Vaccine Regimen to be Studied in Melanoma Patients - press release - sanofi pasteur via Canada NewsWire via COMTEX via FOX Business

* ►September 17, 2008 - Senate Judiciary Hearing 9/17/2008 - Anthrax Vaccine -- posts by Meryl Nass, M.D.

* ►September 17, 2008 - Jahrling: Honest Mistake - Anthrax Vaccine -- posts by Meryl Nass, M.D.

* ►September 17, 2008 - Scientist concedes 'honest mistake' about weaponized anthrax - Peter B. Jahrling, who aided the federal probe of the 2001 mailings, says he erred when he told White House officials that material he examined probably had been altered to make it more deadly. (requires registration) - Los Angeles Times

* ►September 17, 2008 - Lawmakers Question Results of Anthrax Investigation - Sen. Leahy Says He Thinks Ivins Had Help With Attacks (requires registration) - Washington Post Investigations

►September 17, 2008 - Key senators dispute FBI's anthrax case against Bruce Ivins - Salon.com

►September 17, 2008 - Anthrax killer, dead or alive (requires registration) - Chicago Tribune

►September 17, 2008 - Senator Doubts Anthrax Scientist Acted Alone (requires registration) - Washington Post Investigations

►September 17, 2008 - Senate Judiciary Committee demands more insight on anthrax attacks - Talk Radio News Service

►September 17, 2008 - FBI’s Anthrax Evidence Will Get Peer Reviewed - Discover Magazine

►September 17, 2008 - FBI director anticipates independent review of anthrax investigation - JURIST

►September 17, 2008 - Senators press for more Hill oversight of anthrax probe - GovExec.com

►September 17, 2008 - Ranbaxy Laboratories, Ltd., Retains Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani to Lead Team in Resolution of Issues Raised by U. S. Food & Drug Administration - Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. via PRNewswire via COMTEX via MarketWatch

* ►September 17, 2008 - Emory to help evaluate bird flu vaccines (requires registration) - The Atlanta Journal-Constitution - "The VTEU network clinical trial will involve 500 healthy persons who have not been previously vaccinated against the H5 influenza strain, including 112 at the Emory clinical research site."

►September 17, 2008 - Age range expanded for flu vaccination - KTKA.com

►September 17, 2008 - Give blood, get a flu shot - Tracy Press

►September 17, 2008 - King County expects ample supply of flu shots - All King County residents seeking influenza vaccinations this season should be able to get them. The county is receiving more flu vaccine doses, and earlier than usual. - Seattle Times

►September 17, 2008 - Togo confirms H5N1 caused poultry outbreak - CIDRAP News

►September 17, 2008 - Watch out for the other bird flu (requires subscription for full article) - New Scientist

►September 17, 2008 - Goring boy saved by speedy doctors - Shoreham Today, UK - "She said parents should be aware of the symptoms of meningitis, and urged them to seek medical advice if they were worried."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Measles claims six children in J&K - Times of India - "Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Raiz Ahmed Zargar confirmed that six children died due to 'some mysterious disease' in Mangli and Afti remote hamlets of Warwan belt of Kishtwar."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Parton Health Center confirms a case of mumps in Middlebury student - No outbreak reported; student is no longer considered infectious and has returned to the campus community - Middlebury.edu

►September 17, 2008 - Middlebury student infected with mumps (requires registration) - AP via Boston Globe

►September 17, 2008 - Mumps Turns Up On Middlebury Campus - Fox44 News

►September 17, 2008 - WHO says Afghan polio campaign to go ahead despite killings - AFP via Google

►September 17, 2008 - Three more Manitobans test positive for West Nile virus - Winnipeg Free Press

►September 17, 2008 - Iowa Man Dies From West Nile Virus - KPTH.com

* ►September 17, 2008 - Human rabies vaccines harder to find this year - ScrippsNews - "In recent years, U.S. doctors have tended to err on the side of vaccinating rather than not vaccinating when people come in with bites or even exposure to saliva from an animal behaving erratically. A few celebrated cases of people dying after apparent bat exposure may be one factor, along with concern over medical liability. So even though the series of shots can be painful and costly -- $1,000 or more -- unless a bite turned out to be from an insect or a bird (critters that don't transmit rabies), patients got the shots."

►September 17, 2008 - Media Advisory: SF Hep B Free Announces Enhanced Program in Step With Release of National CDC Hepatitis B Recommendations - press release - U.S. Asian Wire

►September 17, 2008 - Brazil to produce generic AIDS drug - USA Today

* ►September 17, 2008 - Politics & Policy | CDC Needs Additional $4.8B To Reduce Annual Number of New Infections, Officials Say - www.kaisernetwork.org - "Although the $4.8 billion request is a significant amount of money, it would be more expensive not to treat HIV, Fauci said."

►September 17, 2008 - Press Conference to Announce September 18, 2008 as the Launch of the First Annual National HIV/AIDS and Aging Awareness Day - press release - The AIDS Institute via Business Wire via MarketWatch

►September 17, 2008 - Experts Say Public Health Legislation Transcends Budget Politics - Governor Schwarzenegger Should Sign AB 1894 to Save Lives and Set an Example to the Nation - AIDS Healthcare Foundation via Business Wire via MarketWatch

►September 17, 2008 - Testifying Before Congress, Trust for America's Health Urges FDA Spending Cap Until Realistic Budget Request is Made - Trust for America's Health via PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX via MarketWatch

►September 17, 2008 - Consumers Union Calls on FDA to Require Medical Device Ads to Include Warnings About Infection Risks & Other Complications - press release - Consumers Union via PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX via MarketWatch

►September 17, 2008 - Ranbaxy, Statement on FDA Letters - Business Standard

* ►September 17, 2008 - Bad vaccines risk encephalitis epidemic in India - The Stamford Advocate - "India's government sent thousands of ineffective vaccines to a northern Indian state, halting a planned immunization drive against a deadly outbreak of Japanese encephalitis that has killed more than 200 children since June, officials said Wednesday."

►September 17, 2008 - Sanofi: Cancer Vaccine To Be Studied In Melanoma Patients - Dow Jones via easyBourse

* ►September 17, 2008 - Millennium Enjoying New Era, Novartis Boosting Vaccine Effort, Living Proof Offering Frizz Fighters Online, & More Life Sciences News - Xconomy Boston

* ►September 17, 2008 - NAS to review anthrax evidence - The Scientist

* ►September 17, 2008 - Drug makers ignoring key gender differences, immunologist warns - The Globe And Mail - "Mounting evidence that the immune systems of men and women work differently isn't being taken into account by pharmaceutical companies when they develop new drugs, a leading Canadian immunologist says."

►September 17, 2008 - Influenza Virus Vaccine 2008-2009 Season - FDA/CDER

* ►September 17, 2008 - Cervical cancer jabs start on Monday - EPD24

►September 17, 2008 - Wyeth Vs. Levine: Preemption Posturing Continues - Pharmalot

►September 17, 2008 - Public Workshop Animal Models for the Treatment of Acute Radiation Syndrome - FDA/CBER

►September 17, 2008 - Guidance for Industry S1C(R2) Dose Selection for Carcinogenicity Studies (pdf) - FDA/CDER

►September 17, 2008 - West Nile cases down by half - The Wichita Eagle

►September 17, 2008 - ‘More cases’ of infectious diseases among Qataris - Gulf Times

►September 17, 2008 - 20% Of The Population Have A Herpes Virus - Marathon.com

►September 16, 2008 - Australia Boosts Bio-Security Defenses - Australia has opened a new National Center for Bio-Security to build its defenses against infectious diseases and biological weapons. Medical experts say it will help protect the country from threats such as SARS and bird flu as well as attacks by terrorists or rogue scientists. From Sydney, Phil Mercer reports. - Voice of America

►September 16, 2008 - Fighting Disease with Numbers and Tiny Mirrors - BU nabs two state grants for cutting-edge medical science - Boston University

►September 16, 2008 - Merck completes enrollment in Phase III multiple sclerosis trial - Merck KGaA via Trading Markets

* ►September 16, 2008 - Kids’ healthcare must improve - A recent report by Ofsted suggests children’s trusts still have a long way to go to deliver healthcare provision for children. Petra Barnby reports. - Localgov.co.uk

►September 16, 2008 - Online support grows for women with chronic ills - Star-Banner

►September 16, 2008 - Cytokinetics cuts work force, ends cancer research - Cytokinetics slashes work force by 29 percent, ends cancer research in reorganization move - AP via CNN Money

* ►September 16, 2008 - Sinovac Strikes Deal for Hepatitis Vaccine Trials in the Ukraine - Seeking Alpha - "Sinovac Biotech (SVA) has licensed the Biolik Biopharmaceutical Company, a Ukraine-located vaccine manufacturer, to conduct clinical trials of Healive, Sinovac’s inactivated hepatitis A vaccine, in the Ukraine."

* ►September 16, 2008 - Infection control linked to hepatitis B in care homes - Outbreaks of hepatitis B in residential care homes are often caused by serious breakdowns in infection control procedures, investigations have revealed. - Nursing Times - "'It is suspected that transmission in these incidents resulted from staff incorrectly using individual patient finger-stick lancet devices for blood-glucose testing. Cross contamination is likely to have occurred during this process,' she said."

* ►September 16, 2008 - FOX News Exclusive: Anonymous Note Casts Doubt on Anthrax Probe - FBI Director Robert Mueller told Congress on Tuesday that the bureau is submitting its scientific findings in the anthrax probe to an independent review, as new evidence appears to continue to unravel the law enforcement investigation. - FOX News

* ►September 16, 2008 - FBI seeks independent review of anthrax probe - CIDRAP News - "The FBI plans to ask the National Academy of Sciences to review the bureau's investigation that led to its conclusion that government microbiologist Bruce E. Ivins committed the 2001 anthrax attacks, FBI Director Robert Mueller III told Congress today."

►September 16, 2008 - Anthrax Aftermath: Hatfill’s in the Clear, But Whither Toni Locy? - Wall Street Journal Law Blog

►September 16, 2008 - Mueller on The Hill - editorial - Frederick News-Post

* ►September 16, 2008 - Ike renews fears for biodefense lab on Galveston - The Dallas Morning News

►September 16, 2008 - NCW schools’ dilemma: Taking state grant comes with a catch - Districts may reject funds over concerns about promoting birth control - The Wenatchee World Online - "School boards in Omak, Brewster and Bridgeport will decide in the next two months whether to apply for a state grant that would let kids get immunizations, tests for strep throat or sessions with a mental health counselor right at school."

►September 16, 2008 - Three stories of survival featuring autistic boys - News of Delaware County

►September 16, 2008 - Hepatitis E death toll hits 126 - New Vision, Uganda

* ►September 15, 2008 - GP encouraged to report drug effects - Irish Health

►September 15, 2008 - Six Different Liver Diseases, All Known by a Common Name: Hepatitis - Learn about the different viruses, and how some can be prevented. Transcript of radio broadcast: - Voice of America

►September 15, 2008 - Key protein molecule linked to diverse human chronic inflammatory diseases - Virginia Tech via EurekAlert!

►September 15, 2008 - Clean living 'slows cell ageing' - Taking more exercise and eating the right foods may help increase levels of an enzyme vital for guarding against age-related cell damage, work suggests. - BBC

►September 15, 2008 - Insurance Lawsuits Surface in Las Vegas Hepatitis Outbreak - EndoNurse

►September 12, 2008 - New life for hepatitis C treatment - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal

►September 11, 2008 - Evidence to support belief in transmission of hepatitis C by sharing drug sniffing equipment - Aidsmap

►September 11, 2008 - Hepatitis C patients may have abnormal blood sugar - Reuters India

►September 11, 2008 - Doctors running out of antibiotics to fight some infections, say experts · Don't quit less profitable research, drug firms urged · Remedies critical for public health, says agency - The Guardian, UK

* ►September 10, 2008 - Neonatal jaundice: a risk factor for infantile autism? - journal article (Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology)

►September 10, 2008 - Altor BioScience Licenses T-cell Receptors Targeting HIV and Hepatitis C from Massachusetts General Hospital - press release - Altor BioScience Corporation via Business Wire

►September 10, 2008 - A potential approach to treatment of hepatitis B virus infection - World Journal of Gastroenterology via EurekAlert!

►September 9, 2008 - Show Summary - HPV Vaccine - The Doctors

►September 8, 2008 - Anthrax serum boosts Cangene profits - UPI via Times of the Internet

* ►September 3, 2008 - Effects of acute exposure to aluminum on blood-brain barrier and the protection of zinc. - journal article (Neuroscience Letters)

►September 2, 2008 - InterMune earns $15 mln development milestone in hepatitis C virus protease inhibitor Collaboration With Roche - Quick Facts - RTTNews

►September 1, 2008 - 50,000 women to benefit from cancer initiative - Press Release: New Zealand Government via Scoop.co.nz

►September 1, 2008 - Doctors: Gardasil is good for girls - Greensboro News Record

* ►September 2008 - Is targeted hepatitis B vaccination working? - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood)

* ►September 2008 - Varicella vaccination for HIV-infected children - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood)

* ►September 2008 - Influenza-associated encephalopathy - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood)

►September 2008 - Rapid increase in childhood diabetes in Finland - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood)

* ►September 2008 - Approach to milk protein allergy in infants (full text) - journal article (Canadian Family Physician)

►August 30, 2008 - Sindh, Northern Areas and Fata described as polio nurseries - Pakistan Dawn

►August 25, 2008 - Bayer Pesticides Cause Mass Death of Bees - Organic Consumers Association

* ►August 25, 2008 - Autism and Stealth-Adapted Viruses - Science or Non-Sense? - Facing Autism in New Brunswick

►August 15, 2008 - Neurodevelopmental delay in children exposed to antiepileptic drugs in utero: A critical review directed at structural study-bias - journal article (Journal of the Neurological Sciences)

►August 2008 - Spray bacteriotherapy decreases middle ear fluid in children with secretory otitis media - journal article (Archives of Disease in Childhood)

* ►Winter 2005 - A Glimpse into the Scary World of Vaccine Adjuvants By Edda West - Published in VRAN Newsletter - Vaclib.org

►Characteristics of Hepatitis B Associated with Risk of Liver Cancer - Cancer Consultants

►October 2008 - Vaccinia virus anti-apoptotic F1L is a novel Bcl-2-like domain-swapped dimer that binds a highly selective subset of BH3-containing death ligands - journal article (Cell Death and Differentiation)

►October 2008 - Bid-induced release of AIF from mitochondria causes immediate neuronal cell death - journal article (Cell Death and Differentiation)

►October 2008 - Classification of pediatric headache. - journal article (Current Pain and Headache Reports)

►October 2008 - Sudden cardiac death in pediatrics. - journal article (Current Opinion in Pediatrics)

* ►September 17, 2008 - Vaccine victory for rebel parents with a cause - The Sydney Morning Herald - "The baby, born at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, is four weeks old and can no longer be given the first stage of the vaccine, but the parents agreed in court to have him screened for hepatitis B when he is six months old."..."A spokeswoman for the lobby group the Australian Vaccination Network, Meryl Dorey, said the case was "a sign that justice can win out". "What [the father] did was within the law because vaccination is not compulsory and NSW Health policy states the vaccine should be offered but not forced on anyone, so to my mind, DOCS and the Government were acting outside the law," Ms Dorey said. "This sends a message to parents that when it comes to health matters, and particularly vaccination, they are free to make informed choices." Vaccinations are not compulsory in Australia but it is NSW Health policy that parents of all babies born to hepatitis-B-positive mothers are offered immunoglobulin for the child within 12 hours of birth and four doses of the vaccine over six months."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Debate to focus on health worker compulsory vaccination - The compulsory vaccination of all health care workers will be debated by leading medical practitioners and health authorities on the Gold Coast today. - www.abc.net.au

* ►September 17, 2008 - Association of Urinary Bisphenol A Concentration With Medical Disorders and Laboratory Abnormalities in Adults (full text) - journal article (JAMA)

* ►September 17, 2008 - Role of Physicians and Mental Health Professionals in Discussions of Public Figures - journal article (JAMA)

* ►September 17, 2008 - Bisphenol A and Risk of Metabolic Disorders - journal article (JAMA)

►September 17, 2008 - Integrative Pain Medicine: The Science and Practice of Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Pain Management - journal article (JAMA)

►September 17, 2008 - Mindfulness in Medicine - journal article (JAMA)

►September 17, 2008 - Behaviors of Highly Professional Resident Physicians - journal article (JAMA)

►September 17, 2008 - Clues to Bipolar Disorder - journal article (JAMA)

►September 17, 2008 - Studies Probe Potential of Experimental Therapies for Alzheimer Disease - journal article (JAMA)

* ►September 17, 2008 - No cancer vaccine for boys: report - AAP via The Age - "'We still don't know whether it even works in boys like it does in girls - but even if it does there's a very big question mark around whether it's cost effective to give it to them,' said Dr Matthew Law, from the National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research in Sydney."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Davao dad calls for probe of reported mercury poisoning in Davao Gulf - Philippine Information Agency
 
* ►September 17, 2008 - A cure for flu (from beyond the grave) - Eighty-nine years after he died in a flu pandemic, the body of Sir Mark Sykes was dug up last week – in the hope that his uniquely preserved remains may help provide a weapon against the killer virus. - Independent, UK

►September 17, 2008 - Vaccination campaign successful in Mwanza - DailyNewsOnline, Tanzania - "A total of 1,767,480 children aged under five years have been vaccinated against measles and given Vitamin A and de-worming drugs in Mwanza Region, surpassing the target of 1,699,448."

* ►September 17, 2008 - Qld Health says chicken pox increase normal - Queensland Health says an increase in the number of chicken pox cases in the Gladstone region in the past three months is not unusual. - www.abc.net.au - "Dr Young says even though a chickenpox vaccination is now given to children at 18 months of age, it is no guarantee....'For every 100 children that you vaccinate with the chickenpox vaccine some of them, and it could be as high as 20 in 100, may still be vulnerable to getting infection.'"

* ►September 16, 2008 - NY Rep. Carolyn Maloney Questions Vaccine Reactions in Military By David Kirby - Age of Autism

* ►September 16, 2008 - More than 1,000 county sixth-graders face possible suspension - New state immunization rule deadline is Sept. 23 - Burlington Times-News

* ►September 16, 2008 - Emory Begins Testing Vaccines Against Pandemic Influenza Threat -  Emory University via HealthNewsDigest

* ►September 16, 2008 - Genetically engineered Merck Cancer Vaccine Made Mandatory For Immigrants - Infowars.net - "Merck were unable to sell the “benefits” of the vaccine to make enough profit out of it, so instead they turned to state legislature and attempted to pay off Governors and other officials to curry favor and force eleven year old girls (and in other states children as young as eight) who aren’t even sexually active to take the shot."

* ►September 16, 2008 - CBER Update 13th Annual GMP by the Sea August 27, 2008 (pdf) - FDA/CBER - "Rules and Guidance Live Virus Processing – 21 CFR 600.11(e)(4) – effective date 3/18/08 Old rule required separate areas and equipment for production of live viruses (vaccines) up until filling New rule allows greater flexibility for manufacturers regarding the buildings and equipment used for live virus processing at allstages of manufacture. Same principles as Spore Former Rule"

* ►September 16, 2008 - New data for GlaxoSmithKline’s pre-pandemic H5N1 influenza vaccine, Prepandrix™, show administration flexibility for pandemic planning - Prepandrix™, Europe’s only approved pre-pandemic influenza vaccine, confers persistent immune response against a number of H5N1 strains - WebWire

* ►September 16, 2008 - Does the body of an aristocrat buried 90 years ago hold the key to a bird flu vaccine? - Daily Mail, UK

* ►September 16, 2008 - Study: Some Water Bottles Linked to Diabetes - Doctors Say BPA Shows Up Too Often in Diabetics and Heart Patients - ABC News - "'There has always been an argument, similar to the tobacco companies' arguments, that a link between this product and adverse health outcomes 'has not been proven,'' Spangler said.  Stanford University School of Medicine professor of health research and policy, Dr. John Farquhar, agreed. 'Cigarette use was not proven to be harmful through evidence gained via a randomized clinical trial -- the gold standard for proof in clinical medicine,' said Farquhar. 'But through numerous associative studies that were complemented by animal and cell culture studies. 'In issues of human safety, an agent which can be avoided and which has no redeeming features is 'guilty until proven otherwise,'' he said."

* ►September 16, 2008 - Study: BPA linked to heart disease, diabetes, liver problems - Research says chemical found in food containers affect adults as well as children (requires registration) - Chicago Tribune

* ►September 16, 2008 - Mixed messages over plastic chemical safety - NBC's Robert Bazell explains the controversy over bisphenol A - MSNBC

* ►September 16, 2008 - FDA defends plastic linked with health risks - AP via MLive.com

►September 16, 2008 - DeLauro Rails Against FDA for Decision on BPA (blog) - Hartford Courant

* ►September 16, 2008 - Class Action Against Therapeutic Goods Administration for Unfair Targeting of Natural Supplements - NaturalNews.com

* ►September 16, 2008 - Stunning New Link Between Vaccines and Autism Rates - Age of Autism

* ►September 16, 2008 - Dan Olmsted's Monthly Radio Interview (includes audio) - Age of Autism

* ►September 16, 2008 - Cystic Fibrosis, Autism and Flu Vaccine - Age of Autism

* ►September 16, 2008 - Gearing Up Again - The Science Blogs Book Club - "From October 1 through October 10, we'll be discussing Autism's False Prophets, by Dr. Paul Offit. Dr. Offit will be joined on the blog by a panel of experts, and we're inviting all of you to join in by reading the book at home, and contributing your thoughts, questions, and comments in the 'comments' section of the posts."

* ►September 16, 2008 - Please Help ACHAMP Continue the Fight for Our Kids - Your Help is Needed Now - The Autism Action Coalition

* ►September 16, 2008 - Eyes: A New Window on Mental Disorders - Clues about autism, Williams syndrome and the social brain come from tracking eye movements - Scientific American

* ►September 16, 2008 - Autism 'may be missed in girls' - Girls with mild autism are less likely to be identified and diagnosed than boys, a study suggests. - BBC

* ►September 16, 2008 - The Illinois Autism Coverage that Almost Was By Julie Obradovic - Age of Autism

* ►September 16, 2008 - Autism legislation gets caught up in politics - The Doings - Clarendon Hills via PioneerLocal.com - "The future is not bright for legislation that would require insurance companies to cover care for Illinois children with autism spectrum disorder. Four attempts to pass the legislation in the Illinois General Assembly, the most recent one Sept. 10, were thwarted by political maneuvers, which frustrates supporters."

►September 16, 2008 - State: Autism insurance bills canned - My Web Times

►September 16, 2008 - Child-saving vaccines get first roll-out in East Cape - The Herald Eastern Cape, New Zealand

►September 16, 2008 - Nation's 30 Leading Child Groups Plead For Election-Year Focus By Candidates, News Media on Plight of Millions of At-Risk U.S. Youths - "Invisible" Issue:  Since Start of Afghan/Iraq Wars:  28,000 U.S. Children Dead Due to Abuse, Homicide or Suicide, 1.1 Million More Kids in Poverty, Another 4.4 Million Families Uninsured. - press release - Every Child Matters Education Fund, Washington, D.C. via PRNewswire-USNewswire via The Earth Times

* ►September 16, 2008 - Chickenpox parties popping up - Despite vaccine, some parents still want kids to get illness (requires registration) - Chicago Tribune

* ►September 16, 2008 - U.S. Sen. Grassley: Nearly $2 million to Iowa from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services - IowaPolitics.com - "Newlink Genetics Corporation in Ames will receive $287,565 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to help pay for an allergy, immunology and transplantation research project titled, 'Improved Influenza A Virus Vaccines Using Alpha-Gal Epitope Modification.'"

* ►September 16, 2008 - Novavax Commences Clinical Testing of its Seasonal Influenza VLP Vaccine Candidate - Development of influenza VLP vaccines gains momentum with launch of a Phase IIa study of Seasonal Influenza Vaccine - press release - Novavax, Inc. via PRNewswire-FirstCall - "Specifically, the vaccine will be studied in approximately 300 healthy adults between the ages of 18 to 49 years, who will receive a single injection of either a placebo or an influenza vaccine at doses of 5 mcg, 15 mcg or 30 mcg."

* ►September 16, 2008 - Scientists exhume British diplomat to study flu - AP via International Herald Tribune - "Scientists have exhumed the body of a British diplomat who died of Spanish flu to discover clues that might help fight a possible future global influenza outbreak. The BBC said Tuesday that it had filmed virologist John Oxford exhuming Sir Mark Sykes, who died of flu in 1919. Oxford's team took some tissue samples before reburying the body in its grave in East Yorkshire in northeast England last week."

* ►September 16, 2008 - CDC Admits Flu Vaccine Failure: Even Vaccinated People Got Sick - NaturalNews.com

* ►September 16, 2008 - Vote & Vax Clinics Offer Flu Shots on Election Day - press release - Vote & Vax via PRNewswire-USNewswire via Comtex via MarketWatch

►September 16, 2008 - Prices for Flu Vaccine Increasing - KIMT.com

►September 16, 2008 - Flu Vaccine Should Be Plentiful This Season (includes video) - KRDO.com

►September 16, 2008 - Alternative Remedy May Help Battle Influenza - CityNews

►September 16, 2008 - Vaccination now recommended for children ages 2-4 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch via Bradenton Herald

►September 16, 2008 - Amid doubts about anthrax suspect, FBI asks scientists to review evidence - AP via Star Tribune

* ►September 16, 2008 - United States citizens are increasingly enslaved, manipulated and murdered by corporations, and very few of them seem to realize it! - US Attorney Jeff Taylor was sweating on August 6, as he laid out his case against the late Dr. Bruce Ivins at a news conference ­and with good reason. Anyone familiar with the case is well aware that Dr. Ivins was railroaded, and that the news conference was a flimsy web of lies. - press release - VHeadline Venezuela News via PR-Inside.com

* ►September 16, 2008 - FBI Director Mueller Not Forthcoming - Anthrax Vaccine -- posts by Meryl Nass, M.D.

* ►September 16, 2008 - FBI Director To Testify On Anthrax Case (requires registration) - Washington Post

►September 16, 2008 - Two outbreaks of anthrax reported in Kyrgyzstan - RIA Novosti

►September 16, 2008 - W Yorks girls get cancer immunity jab - Yorkshire Evening Post

►September 16, 2008 - Cancer vaccination programme for schools - Bucks Free Press, UK

►September 16, 2008 - Parents Want Their Kids to Get Sick - Chicagoist

* ►September 16, 2008 - Pentacel vaccine - Exploring Vaccines - "There are similar five-in-one vaccines such as Pediarix and Pediacel. However, controversy has arisen over the use of the Pentacel vaccine, because the polio portion of this vaccine is grown on the MRC-5 cell line - derived from human fetuses."

►September 16, 2008 - Gilead Sciences receives FDA response letter - Reuters

* ►September 16, 2008 - FDA Bars Generic Drugs From Indian Company - Poor manufacturing conditions at 2 plants to blame, agency says - HealthDay via U.S. News & World Report

* ►September 16, 2008 - The bug that can kill within hours - Harry was a fit and healthy 27-year-old, who thought he was suffering from flu-like symptoms after a foot infection but within hours his life was hanging in the balance. - BBC - "As hospitals battle with superbugs like MRSA and C-Diff, some microbiologists are concerned about the growing incidence of PVL-MRSA in the community and whether enough priority is being given to spot and prevent it."

►September 16, 2008 - Update: Health department unable to isolate virus that caused meningitis in Howard students - Macon.com

►September 16, 2008 - Rise in potentially fatal whooping cough - Whooping cough is on the rise, prompting calls for all South Australians to consider getting a vaccine booster. - Adelaidenow via www.news.com.au

►September 16, 2008 - Whooping Cough Cases in Nebraska - AP via www.kolnkgin.com

►September 16, 2008 - WHO cancels polio jabs for Afghan children after doctors killed - AFP via Google

* ►September 16, 2008 - Measles epidemic hits two village of Jammu and Kashmir - 6 children died, dozens others taken ill, Teams of doctors rushed to spot - News Agency of Kashmir

►September 16, 2008 - Vaccination Against HIV May Now Be Possible - Amateur Economists

►September 16, 2008 - Vaccination keeps Marek's disease under control - FarmersWeekly, UK

►September 16, 2008 - FDA to Take a Close Look at Food Labels - Critics Say 'May Contain' Labels Don't Do Enough to Protect People With Allergies - ABC News

►September 16, 2008 - Coal plants, mines are biggest mercury polluters in NM - New Mexico Business Weekly

►September 16, 2008 - Test your flu IQ - The Daily News Tribune

►September 16, 2008 - Intervet introduces new swine vaccine - Pig Progress

* ►September 16, 2008 - Antipsychotic Use Among Children Is Soaring - Pharmalot

* ►September 16, 2008 - Glaxo May Have Violated EU Trade Rules - Pharmalot - "Greek drugmakers sued Glaxo as part of an eight-year dispute over its refusal to supply them with three drugs in Greece and limit the stock they could export to higher-priced countries, Bloomberg News notes. The cases went to the EU court after a Greek tribunal asked it how far dominant companies can go in blocking the parallel drug trade."
 
* ►September 16, 2008 - Merck, Vioxx & Cox In Paradise: Tom Nesi Explains - By now, the Vioxx saga is well known, and still contentious. A big drugmaker scrambles to develop and promote a blockbuster painkiller that is, ultimately, withdrawn over heart attacks and strokes. Lawsuits, recriminations and scandal ensue. Lives are damaged. Careers are threatened. Money continues to change hands. Now, though, a book has arrived that tells the tale, although ‘Poison Pills’ is written by a public relations consultant - Tom Nesi, a former exec at Bristol-Myers Squibb - not a journalist. Nesi, who relied on court documents and, for awhile, was an expert witness for plaintiffs’ lawyers, expresses outrage at Merck’s behavior. This is an excerpt from our conversation… - Pharmalot

* ►September 16, 2008 - Crystal’s Response From Merck - Gardasil: Women Hurt by Medicine - women tell their stories about 'cervical cancer vaccines'

* ►September 16, 2008 - A case of mistaken identity (requires registration) - A cell line used in more than 650 published breast cancer studies may not be a breast cancer cell line at all - The Scientist

* ►September 16, 2008 - Bisphenol A linked to disease in humans - More studies of the controversial chemical are on the way. - news (Nature)

* ►September 16, 2008 - Why some primates, but not humans, can live with immunodeficiency viruses and not progress to AIDS - Emory University via EurekAlert!

►September 16, 2008 - FDA Issues Warning Letters to Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd., and an Import Alert for Drugs from Two Ranbaxy Plants in India - Actions affect over 30 different generic drugs; cites serious manufacturing deficiencies - FDA

►September 16, 2008 - Early daycare linked to lower asthma risk - Reuters Health

►September 16, 2008 - Simple steps can ease diarrhea in children - Dr. Joseph Croffie is director of the gastrointestinal motility laboratory at Riley Hospital for Children and Riley North Hospital. He also is an associate professor of clinical pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine. - Indianapolis Star

►September 16, 2008 - Probiotics benefit health? - NewsOk.com

* ►September 15, 2008 - Group With Big Pharma Ties Wants to Shut Down Vaccine "Conspiracy Theories" - Kingpins of Military-Industrial complex say they will "brand" websites they consider "trustworthy and reliable sources of information" - Infowars.net

* ►September 15, 2008 - Pandemic influenza in Australia: Using telephone surveys to measure perceptions of threat and willingness to comply (pdf) journal article (BMC Infectious Diseases) - "When the indicators for willing to receive vaccination, isolate themselves, and wear a face mask were combined, as shown in Figure 2, 48.3% reported being willing to receive vaccination, isolate themselves, and wear a face mask if pandemic influenza were to occur; 13.7% would not be willing to receive vaccination, isolate themselves and wear a face mask; 13.1% would be willing to receive vaccination, isolate themselves but not wear a face mask; and 10.4% would be willing to receive vaccination and wear a face mask but not isolate themselves."

* ►September 15, 2008 - Label Expansion Likely Of Little Benefit For Gardasil - Forbes - "In its second-quarter 2008 earnings call, Merck focused on the 9.0% sales decrease in Gardasil to $326.0 million, citing its inability to make a dent in the 19- to 26-year old female market. Prior to the most recent FDA approval, Merck had expected worldwide sales of Gardasil to total $1.4 billion to $1.6 billion in 2008. The current approval may not affect those numbers."

* ►September 15, 2008 - Psychiatric Practice: A March from the Brainless to the Mindless? - When fewer psychiatrists provide psychotherapy, what is the effect on the patient — and on the field of psychiatry? - journal article (Journal Watch Psychiatry)

* ►September 15, 2008 - Antipsychotics & State Lawsuits: Stallard Explains - More states are filing lawsuits against drugmakers over allegations they failed to disclose side effects caused by their antipsychotics and improperly marketed the pills, therefore, causing state Medicaid programs to overpay for the medications. Meanwhile, many of these same state programs have been paying for antipsychotic prescriptions for unapproved uses in children, such as ADHD. We spoke with David Stallard, a special assistant attorney general in Utah, which sued Eli Lilly last year, about a state’s view of the problem… - Pharmalot

* ►September 15, 2008 - Controversial Supreme Court Docket On Tap - North Country Gazette

* ►September 15, 2008 - FDA’s Cleveland Clinic and Duke Connection - The involvement of Robert Califf and Steven Nissen on an FDA advisory committee on diabetes drugs shouldn’t be surprisingly, given the experience the academics bring on cardiovascular issues. But the level of their involvement was surprising—and underscores the reliance FDA is placing on their institutions as it grapples with drug safety. - The RPM Report

►September 15, 2008 - Wistar researchers invigorate 'exhausted' immune cells - In battles against chronic infections, the body's key immune cells often become exhausted and ineffective. Researchers at The Wistar Institute have found a way to restore vigor to these killer T cells by blocking a key receptor on their surface, findings that may advance the development of new therapies for diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B and C, and cancer. - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences  via Physorg

►September 15, 2008 - Gene chips unmask cryptic diseases - Microarrays zero in on small DNA defects. - news (Nature)

►September 15, 2008 - Most Cancer Treatment Studies Aren't Published, Study Finds - Concern Raised about 'Cancer Publication Bias'  - AlphaMed Press via PRNewswire via COMTEX via MarketWatch

►September 15, 2008 - Design Considerations for Evaluating the Impact of PEPFAR. Workshop Summary - Institute of Medicine - "...is the summary of a 2-day workshop on methodological, policy, and practical design considerations for a future evaluation of human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) interventions carried out under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which was convened by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) on April 30 and May 1, 2007."

* ►September 15, 2008 - Risks Found for Youths in New Antipsychotics (requires registration) - The New York Times - "Studies have found that more than 80 percent of prescriptions for atypical antipsychotics for children are to treat something other than schizophrenia, like autism-related aggression, bipolar disorder or attention-deficit problems. Some of these are approved uses; others are not."

►September 15, 2008 - Officials to drain Arizona lake, kill mercury-tainted fish - ABC15.com

►September 15, 2008 - Whooping cough case reported in Upper St. Clair schools - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

►September 14, 2008 - Update 1-U.S. court vacates Teva exclusivity on Risperdal - Reuters

►September 12, 2008 - Why Merck’s Problems are Also Your Problems - Vioxx has been off the market for four years, but the negative headlines keep on coming. The damage to Merck’s reputation is not an issue for Merck alone: the attacks on marketing practices involving Vioxx are aimed at the whole industry. - The RPM Report

* ►September 12, 2008 - Is Big Pharma Ready For Minibusters? - Greater postmarket controls and a push towards personalized medicine means smaller, more targeted products. Can Big Pharma live with that? One biotech CEO says no. - The RPM Report

* ►September 11, 2008 - Aberrations in Chromosome 1q21.1 Associated With Range of Developmental Disorders in Children - Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center via Doctor's Guide

* ►September 11, 2008 - FDA’s Real Risk Communication Challenge - FDA’s new policy on reporting emerging drug safety risks prompted questions as to whether early communication to patients is actually better communication. But before addressing that issue, FDA may need to tackle communication challenges within the agency itself. - The RPM Report

* ►September 11, 2008 - Celgene and FDA’s Drug Safety List - FDA is notifying the public at the “earliest stage” about potential links between certain drugs and voluntary adverse event reports. Celgene’s MDS drug Revlimid is one of the 20 drugs on the first list issued by the agency. So what does it mean? - The RPM Report

* ►September 11, 2008 - Workshop on Assessment of Future Scientific Needs for Live Variola Virus - Event Date: October 02, 2008 - October 03, 2008 - Institute of Medicine

►September 11, 2008 - Pakistan: Delay in vaccine procurement puts newborns at risk - IRIN Asia

►September 11, 2008 - Sanofi-Aventis shares rise as exec changes - Hays Pharma

►September 11, 2008 - How much thiamin is needed to feed at 60 percent DDGS? - Farm & Ranch Guide - "Sulfur toxicity can also lead to polio. According to the National Research Council, finishing lamb diets should contain only 0.4 percent total dietary sulfur. Increasing sulfur levels above this can be a problem, possibly causing polio and sulfur toxicity."

►September 10, 2008 - Almond Growers Sue USDA to Halt Mandatory Chemical Fumigation of Raw Almonds - NaturalNews.com

►September 10, 2008 - Puberty at 8 years old - News Anchor Mom

►September 9, 2008 - The way forward: Mobile health in Kenya - ZDNet

►September 8, 2008 - Vaccine subsidy falls short of cost - New Zealand Doctor Online

►September 8, 2008 - HPV vaccine joins publicly funded school immunization program - Miramichi Leader 

►September 7, 2008 - Living history event - Hometownlife.com - "Time is running out for Kimberly Gimmarro to reach patients who received treatment at a children's hospital in Farmington between the 1920s and early 1950s when the polio epidemic peaked, crippling and killing thousands."

►September 5, 2008 - S-x, cancer and virginity: unpicking the Gardasil hype - Online Opinion, Australia - "Governments around the globe have been wooed and wowed, rushing to pay for the expensive vaccine with billions of dollars diverted from already-stretched public health budgets. This has been a remarkable act of faith because significant uncertainties remain over Gardasil's cost-effectiveness."

►September 5, 2008 - 2nd polio mop-up round in Dimapur, Kohima - The Morung Express

►September 4, 2008 - Polio legacy lingers long - They survived a disease that caused terror wherever it struck and were so determined to be "the same as other people" afterwards, that they now have difficulty convincing doctors they are still ill. - Manawatu Standard via Stuff.co.nz

►September 4, 2008 - Canada Helps Eradicate Polio in Sub-Saharan Africa and Afghanistan - press release - Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) via Market Wire via MarketWatch

* ►September 3, 2008 - New polio victim - Pakistan Dawn - "Nine-month-old Mohammad, of Zindai refugee camp, was diagnosed with the disease by the National Institute of Health in Islamabad. The child had received 11 doses of polio drops. Officials said four of the 16 cases involved Afghans. Of the 12 local children, three had not received any dose of oral polio vaccine. The other nine contracted the disease despite having received between 1 and 14 doses of OPV."

►September 3, 2008 - Should You Give Your Daughters the HPV Vaccine? - The Juggle, Wall Street Journal Blogs

►September 3, 2008 - Supplement makers need stricter FDA oversight (requires registration) - Los Angeles Times

►September 3, 2008 - Substance Found In Fruits And Vegetables Reduces Likelihood Of The Flu - Mice given quercetin, a naturally occurring substance found in fruits and vegetables, were less likely to contract the flu, according to a study published by The American Physiological Society. The study also found that stressful exercise increased the susceptibility of mice to the flu, but quercetin canceled out that negative effect. - American Physiological Society, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS via ScienceDaily

►September 3, 2008 - Final NTP Report Provides Sound Scientific Support for Bisphenol A Safety Assessments - press release - American Chemistry Council via PRNewswire-USNewswire via Comtex via MarketWatch

►September 3, 2008 - Should children with a history of anaphylaxis to foods undergo challenge testing? - journal article (Clinical and Experimental Allergy)

►September 2, 2008 - Drug Monitoring in Children Led to Recommendations on Safety - Bloomberg

►September 1, 2008 - 372 polio cases in India, fresh immunisation round in Delhi - Fresh News

►September 1, 2008 - For Widely Used Drug, Question of Usefulness Is Still Lingering (requires registration) - The New York Times

* ►August 31, 2008 - MMR Vaccine: Is it Dangerous? (includes video) - Doctor Is In Sunday via KIII TV3 South Texas

►August 31, 2008 - TV star keen to raise awareness of cancer - New Zealand Herald

►August 29, 2008 - Knowledge and attitudes towards HIV vaccines among Soweto adolescents (pdf) - journal article (BMC Research Notes)

►August 19, 2008 - Food Allergy: Recent Advances in Pathophysiology and Treatment. - journal article (Annual Review of Medicine)

* ►Vaccines - Risks vs. Benefits - Doctors say, "the benefits outweigh the risks" of vaccines, but is that true of ALL vaccines for everyone? - blog

* ►Why Schools Should Remove GE-Tainted Foods from Their Cafeterias - Institute for Responsible Technology Newsletter on GM Foods, Spilling the Beans - www.comanchecountychronicle.com

►Flu shot - Body & Health via Canada.com