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MOM, Metal Ions And Lymphopenia
Metal-on-metal hip replacement and resurfacing have become the most commonly used type of procedure in the United Kingdom for patients who are Read the full text article.
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7 Out Of 10 Women Too Embarrassed To Discuss Vaginal Dryness And Pain With Their Physician
The majority of post-menopausal women are uncomfortable talking about vaginal dryness and pain and are reluctant to seek medical help, according to results from a new international survey presented today at the European Congress on Menopause in London. Results from the survey show that over a third (39 percent) of post-menopausal women experience these symptoms of vaginal atrophy and 40 percent of women who have recently experienced vaginal dryness and pain said it interferes with their sex life, yet seven out of ten would not discuss the problem with their physician (only 30 percent of women would consider talking to a gynaecologist, and only 29 percent would consider talking to a GP).
News of the day
Utah Bill Would Offer Parents Choice Of Two Sex Education Options
A bill (H.B. 189) before the Utah Legislature"s Health and Human Services Interim Committee would allow parents to choose between two sex education curriculums, the Salt Lake City Deseret News reports. The first curriculum would be "abstinence-based and teach strategies for waiting until marriage but also offer information about issues such as sexually transmitted" infections. The "other class would emphasize abstinence but also offer facts," including STI prevention and contraceptive options.State Rep. Lynn Hemingway (D), who proposed the bill, cited data from the state Department of Health showing that 4,356 young women became pregnant in 2007 and that there were 1,805 reported cases of chlamydia among girls ages 15 to 19 in 2008, an increase from 1,332 in 2005. Hemingway said, "These numbers are frightening. This isn"t a moral issue anymore. This is a health issue." Hemingway"s bill is modeled after similar legislation under consideration in North Carolina.According to the Deseret News, the state Office of Education"s rule on sex education currently states that educators are allowed to instruct on contraception options if they have parental consent. Some advocates, policymakers and teens argue that students are receiving inadequate sex education because instructors are leaving out important information over concern that they will be accused of advocating sex. Hemingway"s bill allows instructors to provide information on contraception "without fear of reprimand," according to the Desert News (Stewart, Salt Lake City Deseret News, 6/18).
Medical Devices

Chembio Awarded Three-Year $3MM NIH SBIR Phase II Grant To Complete DPP(R) Test For Human Leptospirosis

Chembio Diagnostic Systems, Inc. (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chembio Diagnostics, Inc.) (OTCBB: CEMI) has been awarded a three-year $3 million Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) Phase II grant from the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fully develop, validate, and commercialize a rapid diagnostic test for leptospirosis for general use worldwide. The test will be developed utilizing Chembio"s patented Dual Path Platform (DPP®) technology together with proprietary reagents developed by Cornell University and the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation at the Brazilian Ministry of Health. Development of the test will be in collaboration with the Division of Infectious Diseases, Weill Medical College, Cornell University in New York and the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, the largest biomedical research institution in Latin America. In the Phase I work completed in 2008, which occurred with this same collaborative group, novel diagnostic targets were identified and evaluated in a prototype test in Chembio"s patented DPP® format. The studies demonstrated that the test prototype had an overall sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 90% using serum samples of leptospirosis patients from Brazil and Thailand. Furthermore, the DPP® prototype had a sensitivity of 78% in identifying leptospirosis in the first 7 days of illness, the "window-of-opportunity" during which initiation of antimicrobial therapy provides the greatest benefit. The lack of an effective diagnostic test has been one of the major barriers to addressing leptospirosis, a life-threatening zoonotic disease, whose global burden is estimated to be as high as 500,000 cases annually. Leptospirosis is an emerging infectious disease problem in industrialized countries such as the US, and is a significant cause of mortality and morbidity among impoverished populations in developing countries. Leptospirosis, especially in the early stage of illness, is often misdiagnosed as dengue, malaria and other causes of acute fever. The delay in detecting leptospirosis has potentially severe consequences since the disease progresses to cause life-threatening manifestations such as pulmonary hemorrhage syndrome and acute renal failure. Dr. Albert Ko, Associate Professor of Medicine at Weill Medical College, Cornell University and Visiting Researcher at Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, commented, "The collaboration with Chembio has been successful in applying the selected markers to Chembio"s DPP format. This grant enables us to complete development of the assay and make it available to health professionals and public health authorities as part of an effort in combating this important global infectious disease problem." Javan Esfandiari, Senior Vice President of R&D of Chembio, commented, "We are pleased with the recognition that the awarding of this grant by NIH provides Chembio and to our patented DPP® technology. I am most appreciative of the excellent work of Dr. Albert Ko from Cornell and Dr. Konstantin Lyashchenko, Chembio"s Senior R&D Director, as well as the rest of Chembio"s R&D team." About DPP® The Dual Path Platform immunoassay is a recent innovation in the field of rapid testing for which Chembio received a US patent in 2007. DPP® technology employs two separate and distinct membrane strips, one for the sample migration and one for the test reagents. This unique dual-flow design allows for improved control and management of the sample flow. As a result, the immunological reaction is more efficient than lateral flow tests based upon studies performed by Chembio. About Weill Cornell Medical College The Division of Infectious Diseases at Weill Medical College mission encompasses clinical care, research, and education. The Division has 50 full-time and voluntary faculty members and is responsible for the New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center"s Infectious Diseases Clinical Service, the HIV/AIDS Program and the Weill Cornell Travel Medicine Clinic (WCTMC). The Weill Cornell HIV/AIDS Program provides care to ~2,000 HIV-infected persons, in addition to conducting basic and clinical research. The WCTMC is staffed by the faculty and provides travel advice and immunizations for ~3,000 persons annually, in addition to infectious diseases consultations. The Infectious Diseases Fellowship Training Program provides individualized training through faculty guidance, clinical rotations, mentored research, and didactic coursework. The Division has a cadre of internationally recognized physician-scientists who are devoted to basic laboratory and patient-centered research, education and service, both in the United States and abroad (Brazil, Haiti, India, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Tunisia). About Oswaldo Cruz Foundation Bio-Manguinhos/ Oswaldo Cruz ("FIOCRUZ") is the largest immuno-biological producer (vaccines, kits for diagnosis of infectious and parasitic diseases, and bio-pharmaceuticals, such as erytropoetin and interferon) in Latin America. With a physical infrastructure comprising nearly 600,000 square feet and a workforce of approximately 1,000, Bio-Manguinhos was created in 1976. The unit is capable of processing over 120 million doses of vaccines per year, supplying up to 30 million doses per year of yellow fever vaccine alone to meet Brazilian and export requirements. In 2006, FIOCRUZ was awarded the Prize for Best Public Health Institution in the world granted by the World Federation of Public Health. Up to 2.5 million kits are produced each year through agreements with the Health Surveillance Secretariat and the National Program on Sexually Transmitted Diseases and Aids, both from the Ministry of Health. In 2004, Bio-Manguinhos entered into a technology transfer, supply and license agreement with Chembio for one of Chembio"s rapid HIV tests, and in January 2008, entered into similar agreements for DPP® rapid tests for Leishmania and Leptospirosis, and a third agreement for a multiplex DPP® test for the confirmation of HIV-1 that could be performed at the point of care. Chembio Diagnostics


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