Reuters Health News Summary
Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
Weight-loss surgery between pregnancies tied to better outcomes
(Reuters Health) - Obese women who have weight-loss surgery between pregnancies may be less likely to experience complications like high blood pressure and preterm births in their second pregnancy, a recent study suggests. Researchers examined hospital records from 2002 to 2014 for more than 1.6 million women 15 to 45 years old in New South Wales, Australia. The study focused on 326 women who had bariatric surgery between their first and second pregnancies and 461,917 women who had two pregnancies without a weight-loss operation in between.
Biohaven Pharma to continue late-stage study of Alzheimer's treatment
Biohaven Pharmaceutical said on Friday it would continue testing its Alzheimer's disease treatment in a late-stage study as the drug had passed a so-called "futility analysis", sending shares up 4.1%. This comes a day after rival Biogen Inc built a case for its Alzheimer's drug, which it had previously planned to shelve on the basis of a futility analysis that suggested the trials would not meet their goals.
FDA approves Amgen's biosimilar to J&J's rheumatoid arthritis drug
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved Amgen Inc's biosimilar copy of Johnson & Johnson's blockbuster rheumatoid arthritis drug, Remicade, according to the regulator's website. The biosimilar, Avsola, has the same chemical components, dosage form and strength as Remicade and would treat a range of autoimmune disorders.
Grifols says trial shows positive effects in slowing Alzheimer's
Spain's Grifols said on Friday the latest results from a clinical trial of its Alzheimer's treatment show positive effects by achieving a reduction of the disease's progression in patients with mild and moderate conditions. The results of its AMBAR trial were unveiled at a conference in San Diego, the Barcelona-based company said in a statement to the Spanish stock regulator.
Bayer reaches agreement to postpone more glyphosate lawsuits for settlement talks
Germany's Bayer has agreed with plaintiffs to postpone its next two U.S. lawsuits over the alleged cancer-causing effects of its glyphosate-based weed killers to allow more time for talks on a settlement. The company, which is facing 42,700 U.S. plaintiffs, is widely expected to eventually buy itself out of the litigation, with analysts currently estimating the size of a future settlement at $8-$12 billion.
WHO decries 'collective failure' as measles kills 140,000
Measles infected nearly 10 million people in 2018 and killed 140,000, mostly children, as devastating outbreaks of the viral disease hit every region of the world, the World Health Organization said on Thursday. In figures described by its director general as "an outrage", the WHO said most of last year's measles deaths were in children under five years old who had not been vaccinated.
Samoa says almost 90% of people vaccinated against measles after deadly outbreak
Samoa said on Saturday nearly 90% of eligible people had been vaccinated against measles as it lifted a two-day curfew imposed amid an outbreak that has killed 65 in recent weeks. There were, however, 103 new cases of measles reported since Friday, Samoa's Health Ministry said it a statement.
U.S. recorded 15 cases of measles over the past month
The United States recorded 15 measles cases over about a month as of Dec. 5, taking the total cases for the year to 1,276 in the worst outbreak since 1992, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday. The measles outbreak, which began in New York in October 2018, has largely been linked to children who did not receive vaccination. (http://bit.ly/2miVZvw)
Swiss approve insurance cover for Novartis, Gilead cell therapies
The Swiss government approved on Friday health insurance coverage for CAR-T cell therapies from Novartis and Gilead Sciences, which can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per patient. In this form of therapy, patients' white blood cells are genetically modified to attack cancer cells.
Brushing your teeth could be good for your heart
(Reuters Health) - People who brush their teeth three times a day are less likely to develop atrial fibrillation or heart failure than those with less consistent oral hygiene habits, a Korean study suggests. Researchers examined data on 161,286 people with national health coverage and no history of atrial fibrillation, heart failure or other cardiovascular diseases. After following at least half for about 10.5 years, a total of 4,911 people, or 3% of the study population, developed atrial fibrillation and 7,971 people, or 4.9%, developed heart failure.
