Considerable attention has been given to this week’s news about hospital (healthcare) acquired infections (HAI) at NIH with a “superbug.” *There has been probably misplaced criticism of NIH for not making its finding of transmission of a bacteria between patients public, as well as wonder at the high-tech tools that enabled NIH to track down this killer organism.These articles all overlook the more basic underlying problems, which I am aware of because of my practice as an Infectious Disease physician.These relatively new, highly resistant strains of bacteria—carbapenem resistant Gram negative bacteria as Klebsiella and Acinetobacter—are not just at NIH...
Counterfeit drugs appear to be “all the rage.” For some time there have been problems with counterfeit antimalarials, as I learned when I studied in Bangkok at the Asian Tropical Medicine Course in 2006...
For past decades I’ve vacationed in mid-coast Maine, an enjoyable respite from sweltering Washington, D.C. weather. When I returned to Boothbay Harbor last week, I was dismayed to learn that local St...
As expected, the FDA recently announced approval of a second drug for obesity within a month, Vivus’ Qnexa, now renamed Qsymia. This approval is less of a surprise, as the data appeared somewhat stronger than that for Arena’s lorcaserin (Belviq)...
First, a confession—I’m a mathphobe, traumatized by growing up in a family skewed with an overabundance of math genes for whom math skills came as naturally as breathing.
The FDA has just announced approval for the OraQuick In-Home HIV test, by OraSure Technologies. That’s great news on some fronts, but the test raises new questions, as well.As I’ve just been catching up on my vacation reading with Marya Zilberberg’s helpful new book, “Between the Lines,” the first thing that caught my eye were the statistics on the test’s accuracy...
G'morning! You've already met me, but I'd like to get to know you better and have this column to be a conversation between us. So, in the tradition of Ed Yong's Not Exactly Rocket Science: the Who Are You thread,"1) Tell me about you...
On June 27, the FDA approved the first new weight-loss drug in 13 years, Arena’s lorcaserin (Belviq). The track record for anti-obesity drugs has not been very good—each has been withdrawn from the market, after approval, due to safety concerns...
Sometimes it seems like new drugs suddenly appear like magic. Have you ever wondered if there was something special going on behind the scenes? Earlier in Clinical Trials for Beginners, we looked briefly at why drug studies came into being, then at how a drug is developed, from test tube to your tissues...
In an earlier post I tackled some of the tougher issues that made the stage at TEDMED. Now it’s time for dessert and I’ll share an array of the tasty treats that were presented in Washington.One of the highlights for me, already mentioned in my first post, was the acrobatic performance of Traces by Les 7 doigts de la main...
Having looked at the rampant conflicts of interest surrounding the anthrax vaccine and a bit at the logistics of the proposed pediatric vaccine trial let’s look at the trial in the context of ethical principles...
In my last post, we began to play “Follow the Money” to better understand the history of the anthrax vaccine and the current proposal to test the vaccine on children.
This past week brought news about another successful bioterrorism response drill, effectively delivering hypothetical medicines to protect the citizens of Baltimore from a hypothetical anthrax attack...
With earlier posts about TEDMED, I hope I whet your appetite and energized you to take on the tougher topics. There were several talks that either particularly resonated with me or that left a sour aftertaste.Ivan Oransky, executive editor of Reuters Health, offered excellent perspective on the current trend of treating “preconditions” more aggressively, noting facetiously that “subclinical acne is the easiest type to treat.” He focused on the medicalization of even trivial problems leading to unnecessary interventions...
I’m Dr. Judy Stone, an infectious diseases physician and author. I love helping people understand issues and look at things from a different perspective.
Today's news starkly juxtaposed this countries' priorities. First was news of the approval of yet another look-alike drug for erectile dysfunction, avanafil (Stendra).
Today’s news starkly juxtaposed this countries’ priorities.First was news of the approval of yet another look-alike drug for erectile dysfunction, avanafil (Stendra).Then “From First Cold To Grave: How Two-Month-Old Brady Died Of Pertussis.” Brady was too young to have been protected by receiving immunizations, but there are strategies for protecting newborns from pertussis, or whooping cough...
Seeing a reminder that International Clinical Trials Day will soon occur, I wanted to recognize and thank the clinical research teams and volunteers that make this possible.
Seeing a reminder that International Clinical Trials Day will soon occur, I wanted to recognize and thank the clinical research teams and volunteers that make this possible.
The initial fare at TEDMED 2012 whet my appetite for the sessions that followed. Howard-Yana Shapiro, a plant scientist wizard, focused on how to improve nutrition in crops, rather than just the volume of the yield, and the coming crisis in feeding the world's population...
