August 31, 2007

• Family Speaks About Tragic Loss Of 4-Year-Old To Heart Attack
  (My Fox Colorado.com) -- She died of pulmonary hypertension. It's a disease that causes high blood pressure in the blood vessels in the lungs, which results in an enlarged heart that stops pumping. It's unknown what caused it in Skyler.
  

• Kentucky Fen-Phen Collections Can Begin
  (Kentucky.com) -- More than 400 former clients of three suspended Lexington lawyers accused of taking more than $64 million from their clients could start proceedings to collect their money in the next 30 days.
  

• Sleep Apnea Device May Help Save Heart
  (WebMD) -- CPAP machine may help prevent heart attack, stroke in people with obstructive sleep apnea.
  

• Diet-Drug Lawyers To Pay $42 Million
  (Louisville Courier-Journal) -- The order, issued Monday by Judge William Wehr, means that more than 400 plaintiffs who have sued lawyers Shirley Cunningham Jr., Melbourne Mills Jr. and William Gallion can now try to force them to turn over the money -- if they don't file an appeal.
  

• Specialists Studying Innovative Surgery For Effectively Treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea
  (Newswise) -- In the procedure, known as Genial Bone Advancement Trephine (GBAT), a small portion of the lower jaw which attaches to the tongue is moved forward, to pull the tongue away from the back of the airway, increasing the airway space.
  

• The Solvable Problem Of Organ Shortages
  (New York Times) -- Although willingness to donate organs has risen in recent years, major hurdles remain.
  

• Safety Information Regarding Thelin And The Occurrence Of Liver Toxicity, Risks To The Foetus, And Important Drug-Drug Interactions
  (Doctors Guide) -- Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc., in consultation with Health Canada, has sent a letter to health care professionals to highlight important safety information for the safe and appropriate prescribing and use of Thelin™ (sitaxsentan sodium).
  

• A Life In Delicate Balance
  (Times Online) -- Barker, now 45, a vicar’s wife from South London and a former advertising manager for Harpers & Queen magazine, eventually was told she had pulmonary hypertension, a rare and incurable lung disorder. It affects about 4,000 people in the UK, but it is estimated that there are another 4,000 undiagnosed cases.
  

• Liver Transplant Recipients Benefit From Nitric Oxide
  (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- A new study reveals patients who inhaled NO prior to and during liver transplant surgeries had restored liver function sooner than patients who did not inhale NO. Subsequently, the liver transplant patients who inhaled NO had shorter hospital recoveries.
  

• Human Stem Cells Heal The Hearts Of Rats
  (Reuters) -- The experiment provides the best evidence yet that the powerful but controversial stem cells might be used to repair the ravages of heart attacks and heart failure, the researchers said.
  

• Lung Transplantation In The U.S.
  (WSOC TV) -- The United Network for Organ Sharing reports more than 1,400 lung transplants were performed in the U.S. last year. A transplant is needed for patients with irreversible lung damage, limiting the ability of the lungs to take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide.
  

• Better Life Support For Artificial Liver Cells
  (Ohio State University) -- Researchers at Ohio State University are developing technology for keeping liver cells alive and functioning normally inside bioartificial liver-assist devices. Such devices enable people who are suffering from acute liver failure to survive while their own liver cells regenerate, or until they receive a liver transplant.
  

• Vein Viewer Means Fewer Ouches
  (New Orleans Times-Picayune) -- The 6-foot-tall machine shines a patch of neon green light on the skin, and veins that may otherwise be hard to see or not at all visible through the skin glow like dark black roads on a map.

• PNH Patients Treated With Soliris(TM) Experienced Dramatic Reduction In Blood Clots During Clinical Trials
  (PR Newswire) -- Patients with a rare blood disorder called PNH experienced a 92 percent reduction in the incidence of life-threatening blood clots (thromboses) following treatment with Soliris(TM) (eculizumab), according to an analysis of clinical studies recently published online in Blood, the journal of the American Society of Hematology.
  

• Antwerp Surgeons Successfully Treat Patients With OSA With New Surgical Procedure
  (PR Newswire) -- Physicians at Antwerp University Hospital, Belgium, have successfully treated patients with obstructive sleep apnea with a novel surgical procedure. The procedure involves the Advance(tm) System which consists of an implant in the tongue and lower jaw to prevent upper airway collapse during sleep.
  

• Age Alone Does Not Increase Risk Of Death Following Liver Transplant Among Selected Septuagenarians
  (EurekAlert) -- “As longevity has increased, the burden of liver disease in patients of advancing age has also increased and is associated with a higher mortality than in younger adults,” the authors write. “In the 1980s, the death rate from chronic liver disease was highest in patients 65 to 74 years of age. This has led to more older patients undergoing liver transplantation.”
  

• Web Site Assesses Options For The Uninsured
  (Washington Post) -- "It's a useful Web site, and I think it will help people locate sources of insurance," said Kathleen Stoll, director of health policy for Families USA, a Washington-based health advocacy group.
  

• Artificial Lung Saves Lives
  (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Yen Tran is lucky to be alive. Last December, she was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension. “I would say it was like drowning without water,” Tran says. She was 20 years old, had three kids and was planning her own funeral. “It was difficult doing it,” she says. “I was not expecting to live.”
  

• Robot Performs Advanced Heart Valve Repair
  (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- On Aug. 14, 2007, at The Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas, surgeons used the daVinci robot to successfully repair the mitral valve of a 62-year-old man using a technique known as the "American Correction."
  

• Where's The Money Is $60 Million Question
  (Cincinnati Post) -- Three Central Kentucky attorneys might have to start accounting next week for more than $60 million they are accused of stealing from their clients in the settlement of a massive lawsuit against the makers of the diet drug fen-phen.
  

• Genetic Testing Cited for Blood Thinner
  (New York Times) -- Federal health officials are stopping short of recommending genetic tests for patients on the blood-thinner warfarin, even though they have said such screenings could prevent thousands of complications each year.
  

• Gratitude Is Good Medicine For Organ Recipients
  (University of California-Davis) -- "We found that increased feelings of gratitude can cause people's well-being and quality of life to improve," said Robert Emmons, a UC Davis professor who specializes in the study of gratitude.
  

• Study Reports Epratuzumab Affects B-Cells From Patients With Lupus In A Unique Manner
  (CNN) -- Immunomedics, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing monoclonal antibodies to treat cancer and other serious diseases, today reported results from a study showing epratuzumab inhibits the activation of B-cells from patients suffering from systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) but not normal subjects.
  

• Preclinical Study Suggests Organ-Transplant Drug May Aid In Lupus Fight
  (Southwestern Medical Center) -- “We found that an analog of rapamycin is very effective in improving all aspects of the disease in lupus-prone mice,” said Dr. Chandra Mohan, professor of internal medicine and senior author of a study appearing in the August issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

• Sildenafil Therapy For Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
  (Medscape) -- At what pulmonary artery (PA) pressure is sildenafil therapy indicated? Does 50 mm Hg seem reasonable?
  

• Calcium Channel Blockers And Pulmonary Hypertension
  (Medscape) -- Is there any difference between the calcium channel blockers (CCBs) you should choose to treat pulmonary hypertension?
  

• Two Fen-Phen Lawyers Appeal Judge's Revocation Of Bond
  (Cincinnati Post) -- William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham Jr. filed notices of appeal Monday, three days after U.S. District Judge William Bertelsman, during a hearing in Covington, revoked their bonds and delayed their trial.

• Drug Interactions With Warfarin
  (Canadian Medical Association) -- Anticoagulants and antiplatelet drugs (e.g., warfarin, clopidogrel and acetylsalicylic acid) are key therapeutic agents in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. However, drug–drug interactions may lead to a greatly increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding when these drugsare combined. We assessed whether antithrombotic drug combinations increased the risk of such bleeding in a general practice population.
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• TV Docs Playing With Life And Death: Organ Donors Being Scared Off, Critics Say
  (Boston Herald) -- Convincing Hollywood dramas like “Grey’s Anatomy” and “House” fuel falsehoods and myths about organ donation so much so that some viewers are scared away from giving the gift of life, even as nearly 100,000 would-be transplant patients languish, according to a new study.
  

• Judge Jails Fen-Phen Lawyers
  (Cincinnati Post) -- Melbourne Mills, William Gallion and Shirley Cunningham Jr. now sit in a Boone County Jail cell, there until their January trial date unless Bertelsman reinstates their bonds.
  

• Medical Therapy For Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
  (Medscape) -- Pulmonary arterial hypertension treatment guidelines were published by the American College of Chest Physicians in 2004. Recent advances in research and therapy have led to updated recommendations.
  

• University Of Washington's First Heart-Lung Transplant Gives Family Fresh Hope
  (Seattle Times) -- The UW Medical Center has been performing lung transplants and heart transplants separately for many years.
  

• Lung Transplant Program Offers Hope To Iowans
  (KCRG-TV) -- The University of Iowa just reopened its lung transplant program. Eleven years ago the lung transplant program at UIHC ended when a surgeon moved on. One year ago, the program was reinstated. It's the only one in the state.
  

• Proteo Biotech, Germany And Minapharm, Egypt Enter Into Development And License Agreement For Elafin
  (Canada Newswire) -- Proteo and Rhein Minapharm have entered into a license agreement for clinical development, production and marketing of Elafin. Rhein Minapharm will exclusively market Elafin in Egypt, Middle Eastern and African countries. Proteo will receive an upfront payment, milestone-payments and royalties on net product sales. In addition, Minapharm will take over the funding of clinical research activities for the designated region.
  

• La Jolla Says In Partnership Talks On Lupus Drug
  (Reuters) -- La Jolla Pharmaceutical Co said on Thursday it is in "serious" partnership discussions with big pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies over its experimental drug to treat Lupus.
  

• Letairis Could Help Pulmonary Hypertension Patients
  (Pittsburgh Channel.com) -- Doctors say the drug called Letairis is not only more convenient than other drugs they use for pulmonary hypertension, but it is less toxic.
  

• Court Rejects The Right To Use Drugs Being Tested
  (New York Times) -- The 8-to-2 decision by the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit came in a closely watched and emotional case that pitted desperate patients willing to try unproven, even risky, therapies against those arguing that drugs should be proved safe and effective before they are made available.
  

• Granting Elizabeth’s Wish
  (Waxahachie Daily Light) -- While it would take years for doctors to diagnose Elizabeth, she had pinpointed part of her problem at a very young age. When Elizabeth pointed to her aching heart, she was really pointing to an enlarged pulmonary artery meant to carry blood from her heart to her lungs — Elizabeth was living with primary pulmonary hypertension but wouldn’t be diagnosed until September 2005.
  

• Swimming Star Symptom Free After Diagnosis Of Scleroderma
  (The Loomis News) -- Ferguson, a Loomis resident, became an advocate on her daughter's behalf spending countless hours on the computer investigating a variety of Web sites until she discovered an alternative method she felt would better treat her daughter's illness that was offered on the other side of the country. Today her 17-year-old daughter, Jessica, is symptom-free.
  

• EPIX Pharmaceuticals Announces Positive Results From Phase 2a Clinical Trial Of First-In-Class 5-HT2B Antagonist In Patients With PH Associated With COPD
  (EPIX) -- “This is the first 5-HT2B antagonist to be developed to treat this patient population and the first clinical trial in patients,” said Michael G. Kauffman, M.D., Ph.D., chief executive officer of EPIX. “We believe these results are very exciting for the COPD community and look forward to continuing to advance the clinical development of PRX-08066 for the treatment of PH associated with COPD.”
  

• Inhaled Nitric Oxide Safe For Tiny Preemie Lungs, UCSF Study Finds
  (EurekAlert) -- A nationwide study led by researchers at UCSF provides evidence that inhaled nitric oxide is safe and effective for the prevention of the most common type of long-term lung disease of very premature infants.
  

• Encysive Pharmaceuticals Files Request For Formal Dispute Resolution With U.S. FDA
  (Encysive) -- Encysive Pharmaceuticals Inc. today announced that it has filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration a request for formal dispute resolution to contest the third approvable letter that the Company received for its New Drug Application for Thelin(tm).
  

• University of Michigan Laboratory Receives Grant To Prepare Artificial Lung For Clinical Trial
  (HealthNewsDigest.com) -- The University of Michigan Medical School laboratory working to develop an implantable artificial lung that can serve as a bridge to lung transplantation is entering the home stretch.
  

• New USA Clinic Can Be A Lifesaver
  (Mobile Register) -- Before the USA pulmonary hypertension clinic opened late last year, southwest Alabama PH patients wishing to participate in clinical trials or be treated by a PH-specific facility had to travel to Birmingham, Atlanta, Jacksonville, Fla., or Nashville, Tenn.
  

• Fen-Phen Lawyers Must Pay Millions
  (The Cincinnati Post) -- Special Judge William Wehr ordered William J. Gallion, 56, Shirley A. Cunningham Jr., 52, and Melbourne Mills Jr., 76, to repay $42 million taken from the settlement and $20.5 that they put into a corporation they set up, the Kentucky Fund for Healthy Living.
  

• Echocardiography And Pulmonary Hypertension
  (Medscape) -- If a patient is symptomatic of pulmonary hypertension (PH) but their echocardiogram is normal, should you still do a cardiac catheter?
  

•   Organ Collaborative Sees Donations Jump
  (ABC Online) -- Organ donation rates have improved by more than 32 per cent around Australia in the last year.
  

• Off To College--And Off Lung Transplant List
  (Robertson County Times) -- Faenza was first diagnosed with lupus, then that was changed to pulmonary hypertension with sceloderma complicating the issue.
  

• Controlling Stress Helps Fight Chronic Diseases Such As Lupus
  (Psychosomatic Medicine) -- A study conducted in the Department of Medicine at the University of Granada determined that daily stress (which occurs in circumstances of little importance but of high frequency) could exacerbate the symptoms of patients suffering from lupus.
  

• Experts Predict High Mortality Rates From Pulmonary Fibrosis Will Continue To Rise
  (EurekAlert) -- Between 1992 and 2003, the age-adjusted mortality rate from PF—an often fatal disease which involves scarring of the lung—rose by nearly 28.4 percent in men, and 41.3 percent in women. Over the same time period, an increasing percentage of patients with PF died of the disease itself rather than of coexisting conditions.
  

• Genetic Mutations Linked To Lupus
  (Science Daily) -- A gene discovered by scientists at Wake Forest University School of Medicine has been linked to lupus and related autoimmune diseases. The finding, reported in Nature Genetics, is the latest in a series of revelations that shed new light on what goes wrong in human cells to cause the diseases.
  

• North Dakota Teens Can Be Donors Too
  (KFYR-TV) -- A new law allows minors in North Dakota to register as organ donors on a driver`s license or state ID card.
  

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