Health

Ratiopharm fields decisive takeover bids-sources

Generic-drug makers Teva and Actavis, backed by Swedish buyout firm EQT, have placed make-or-break bids for German peer Ratiopharm but drug major Pfizer is expected to also be a contender, sources said.

That would make the deal the biggest generics takeover since Tevas 7.5 billion purchase of U.S. rival Barr, announced in July 2008.

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Obese People Lose Weight at High Altitudes

Heres a possible future diet tip: Move to a mountaintop.

The researchers suspect part of the weight loss can be attributed to the thin air, which may have decreased participants appetites and increased their metabolism, meaning they burned more calories sans a workout. While at high altitudes, the obese subjects also showed an increase in levels of leptin, a hormone that when present can make one feel full.

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Clinical Trials Update: Feb. 5, 2010

Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy of ClinicalConnection.com:

The research site is in Boise, Id.

This seven-month study is for people with severe nodular acne. Researchers will compare an investigational treatment to an FDA-approved drug and placebo.

High Blood Pressure with Diabetes Type 2

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Artificial Pancreas Helps Type 1 Diabetics During Sleep

New research suggests that young children and teenagers with type 1 diabetes could benefit by using an artificial pancreas device to lower the risk of dangerously low blood sugar levels during sleep and help them control their disease.

The device, which combines blood sugar sensors and insulin pumps, give doses of insulin as needed to patients as they sleep.

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Screening for Spinal Muscular Atrophy Not Cost-Effective: Study

Its not cost-effective to screen couples genetically to determine if theyre at risk of having children with spinal muscular atrophy , says a U.S. study.

In this study, researchers created an analytical model to compare a policy of universal SMA screening to that of no screening. Baseline assumptions used in the model included a disease prevalence of 1 in 10,000 for a carrier rate of 1 in 50, 70 percent of affected children having severe disease.

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Hormone replacement tied to lower colon cancer risk

Hormone replacement therapy can carry serious health risks, but a new study adds to evidence that menopausal women who use the hormones may have lower odds of developing colon cancer.

Of the 34,433 HRT users, 193 were diagnosed with colon cancer during the study period; that compared with 151 cases among the 13,778 women who had never used hormone replacement.

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Men have key role in ending female circumcision: experts

Experts and workers on the ground said Friday that men had a key role to play in the fight against female circumcision in Africa, a day before the International Day against Female Genital Mutilation.

Elise Johansen from the World Health Organisation said in many countries it had been found that men were often more opposed to the practice than women, so the “approach must be one that involves the whole community.

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