The AHEAD II study found that the milk-based product produced a mean drop in daytime, ambulatory systolic blood pressure of 3.6 mmHg for the active group after 6 weeks of treatment. The change was both statistically and clinically significant. According to JNC 7 (The Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure), just a 2 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure results in a 6% reduction in mortality due to stroke and a 4% reduction in mortality due to coronary heart disease (CHD).

The medicine, PS433540, demonstrated statistically significant blood pressure reductions in patients with mild to moderate hypertension, according to data presented at the American Society of Hypertension (ASH) scientific meeting in New Orleans.

“The magnitude of the blood pressure reductions we saw in this study were very impressive, and we look forward to further evaluating the benefits of this novel compound,” Dr. Joel Neutel, associate professor of medicine at the University of California in Irvine and the study’s lead researcher, said in a statement.

The Phase II trial compared Avastin, also known as bevicizumab, combined with irinotecan chemotherapy, to Avastin alone in patients with relapsed glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and aggressive type of brain cancer.

Genentech said results to be presented at a meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology show median survival was 9.2 months in the Avastin-only arm and 8.7 months in the Avastin and irinotecan arm.

The FDA is especially squeezed as the United States imports a growing number of catheters, heart devices, soaps, shampoos and other items, members of a U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce panel said at a hearing.

“While the market for these products becomes increasingly global, the FDA has no requirement to inspect foreign establishments manufacturing medical devices,” said Rep. Frank Pallone, a New Jersey Democrat who led the panel.

Norris Alderson, the FDA’s associate commissioner for science, said although the regulatory agency is reviewing safety concerns about the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, “a large body of available evidence” shows that products such as liquid or food containers made with it are safe.

In testimony before a Senate subcommittee, Alderson also defended the FDA’s reliance on two industry-funded studies in determining that products containing BPA are safe.

Expensive new treatments, an increasing number of patients on chemotherapy in major markets and evidence that more people in emerging markets are gaining access to modern targeted therapies will contribute to sales of cancer drugs growing at a compound rate of 12 to 15 percent, IMS said.

In 2008, sales of oncology products will exceed $48 billion, contributing nearly 17 percent of global pharmaceutical sales growth this year, according to the IMS Global Oncology Forecast released on Thursday.

COX-2 inhibitors treat pain and inflammation by selectively blocking the COX-2 enzyme, which prevents the production of chemical messengers that cause pain and swelling. They include drugs such as Celebrex (celecoxib). Two other COX-2 inhibitors (Vioxx and Bextra) were taken off the market in the U.S. because of safety concerns.

NSAIDs are non-specific inhibitors and also block chemical messengers that protect the stomach and play a role in blood clotting. Therefore, these drugs can cause bleeding and stomach irritation.

The results also could help researchers predict whether drugs intended for other conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy, would have either the detrimental effect of increasing blood pressure or the beneficial effect of lowering blood pressure. The findings could apply to drugs that are under development or already on the market.

“The implications are broad,” said Kenneth Byron, associate professor in the department of pharmacology at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine.

The study is the largest, most rigorous to date looking at whether beta blockers do more harm than good in reducing surgery-related risks. Other, smaller studies have had mixed results.

“There is a real potential that beta blockers are causing serious harm in the surgical setting,” said Dr. P.J. Devereaux of McMaster University in Ontario, whose study appears in the journal The Lancet.

The interactive online course is meant as a refresher for physicians on the best ways to diagnose, prevent and treat the respiratory infection that spreads through coughs and sneezes and can be especially deadly for people with HIV or AIDS.

“This will allow more physicians around the world to acquire the basic knowledge on standard TB management at a time when there is a resurgence of the epidemic,” Eli Lilly said in a joint statement with the World Medical Association.

[UPDATE 04/10/2008] The FDA notified healthcare professionals and patients that it has found hazardous levels of selenium in samples of certain flavors of the dietary supplement products “Total Body Formula” and “Total Body Mega Formula.”

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) also said it plans to ban cold-calling and door-to-door solicitation by the companies to sell the Medicare Advantage plans.

A 2003 law created the Medicare Advantage program, in which companies like Humana Inc and UnitedHealth Group contract with Medicare to sell private fee-for-service or managed-care plans to beneficiaries. Under traditional Medicare, the government pays for care through a system letting beneficiaries choose doctors and hospitals.

People with IBS suffer chronic discomfort with cramping, diarrhea or constipation. The causes of IBS are unclear and there has been debate whether it is mostly due to psychological factors or biological triggers, or perhaps a combination.

“While research has shown that amitriptyline is effective for adults with IBS, only peppermint oil has been studied in children with this disorder in a double-blind, placebo-controlled fashion,” Dr. Ron J. Bahar, from the University of California at Los Angeles, said in a statement. 

Just eight months after a free clinic opened in Karonga Town in June 2005, the death rate in a rural area 80 km (50 miles) away had fallen enough to be detected at the general population level, they wrote in the Lancet medical journal.

“I think people didn’t expect to see an effect that quickly,” investigator Judith Glynn of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine told Reuters.