DISCOUNT Pharmacy

A new study suggests that a vaccine targeting Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may prevent infectious mononucleosis, commonly known as “mono” or “glandular fever”.

The study is published in the December 15 issue of The Journal of Infectious Diseases, now available online.

EBV is a member of the herpes virus family and one of the most common viruses in humans, with nearly all adults in developed countries such as the United States having been infected. EBV is often asymptomatic but commonly causes infectious mononucleosis, with 30 to 40 percent of adolescents who contract the virus developing the disease.

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Diovan (valsartan), an angiotensin receptor blocker or ARB, has been approved following a priority review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of high blood pressure in children and adolescents ages six to 16.

High blood pressure has become a multigenerational health issue. Thirty percent of American adults are currently living with high blood pressure and now there are reports that nearly five percent of children and adolescents may have this condition(1).

Experts suggest that the increase in incidence of high blood pressure among children and adolescents is linked to the growing pediatric obesity epidemic(2,3).

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Mental Health America has released its report, “Ranking America’s Mental Health: An Analysis of Depression Across the States,” a first-of-its-kind study examining state and national data for statistical associations between factors that govern access to mental health care and actual mental health outcomes, including suicide rates.

Included in the study is a ranking of the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on rates of depression and suicide. South Dakota is found to lead the nation with the best depression status while Utah ranks last. For the complete rankings, visit www.mentalhealthamerica.net.

“It is important to note that regardless of where each state ranks, there is much room for improvement,” said Dr.

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Recent congressional and public attention has focused on access problems at the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, which provides medical care to servicemen and women once they have left active duty in a time of war or an official period of hostility. Although investigators note that improvements are under way, they say the VA has a long way to go. With this article

Nearly , active-duty personnel and reservists who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Afghanistan’s Operation Enduring Freedom have been eligible for VA health care since healthhealth. More than health, have sought it out so far, the Congressional Budget Office reported in October.

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Pharmaceutical researchers are testing 92 medicines and vaccines to treat or prevent HIV/AIDS and related conditions, according to a report released by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA).

December 1 marks the 20th anniversary of “World AIDS Day” — a global awareness campaign that originated at the 1988 World Summit of Ministers of Health on Programmes for AIDS Prevention.

“We are greatly encouraged by the new, critically-important medicines and vaccines in development to treat and prevent HIV infection,” says PhRMA President and CEO Billy Tauzin.

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The biotechnology company Celgene said Sunday that it would pay $2.9 billion in cash and stock to acquire Pharmion, strengthening Celgene's cancer drug portfolio and its distribution in Europe.

It is one of the first big acquisitions for Celgene, a company most known for reviving the drug thalidomide, which caused birth defects in the 1950s and 1960s, as an effective cancer treatment.

Celgene's biggest-selling drug is Revlimid, a derivative of thalidomide intended to be more potent and have fewer side effects.

The acquisition will help Celgene expand from mainly an American company to a global one. Pharmion distributes Celgene's thalidomide in Europe under the brand name Thalomid.

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Schering-Plough Corporation has announced that it has completed the acquisition of Organon BioSciences N.V., creating a stronger combined company with broader human and animal health portfolios, an enhanced pipeline and increased R&D capabilities. Schering-Plough’s agreement to acquire Organon BioSciences was announced on March 12, 2007.

“By bringing together complementary businesses, we will be growing even stronger and even better in our people, products and science,” said Fred Hassan, chairman and chief executive officer, Schering-Plough Corporation. “The promise of this combination is profound.

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PARIS: The volume of greenhouse gases emitted by industrialized nations rose to near-record levels in 2005, the United Nations said Tuesday, two weeks before political leaders meet in Bali, Indonesia, to agree on a road map for negotiations on a new global treaty to fight climate change.

Among the nations responsible for the rising trend was the United States and a number of former Soviet bloc countries that advanced economically without restraining their pollution levels, said Yvo de Boer, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

“The story is that emissions are going up in a worrying way,” de Boer said.

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Two teams of scientists are reporting Tuesday that they turned human skin cells into what appear to be embryonic stem cells without having to make or destroy an embryo — a feat that could quell the ethical debate troubling the field.

All they had to do, the scientists said, was add four genes. The genes reprogrammed the chromosomes of the skin cells, making the cells into blank slates that should be able to turn into any of the 220 cell types of the human body, be it heart, brain, blood or bone.

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Patricia used to approach the holidays with an overwhelming sense of dread, because she never knew what her alcoholic brother might do to ruin them. As Thanksgiving floral arrangements gave way to sparkling Christmas ornaments and the drone of holiday music, her stomach would clench more each day and her mood would grow darker.

“Some years were just awful,” she recalls. “So often my brother would show up drunk and make a scene at family gatherings. He’d scare his kids, embarrass his wife, and break my mother’s heart over and over again. One year he got arrested a week before Christmas for driving under the influence and for disorderly conduct.

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