Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:

NIH Scientists Face Ban on Work With Drug Firms

In response to concerns about conflict of interest, the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) unveiled a proposal to forbid its scientists from doing consulting work with drug companies for a year.

The moratorium, outlined in a memo sent to employees on Friday, comes as the NIH investigates dealings between about 120 of its scientists and pharmaceutical firms.

The ban would give the NIH time to develop tighter regulations on work done by NIH scientists for these companies, and how that work would be monitored, the Associated Press reported.

It's been revealed that some NIH scientists have arranged secret consulting deals with drug companies.

The proposed one-year ban will take effect only if it's approved by Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.

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Pfizer Executive Blasts Industry's Stand Against Imported Drugs

The U.S. drug industry was criticized from within for its attempts to fight legislation to permit imports of low-cost prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.

Dr. Peter Rost is an executive with Pfizer, Inc., the world's largest drugmaker. At a news conference Thursday on Capitol Hill, he chided U.S. drug companies for their efforts to block drug imports, the New York Times reported.

"Holding up a vote on importation, stopping good importation bills has a high, high cost not just in money, but in American lives. Every day we delay, Americans die because they cannot afford lifesaving drugs," Rost said at the news conference.

He said these were his personal views and that we wasn't speaking for his employer.

Rost said that the U.S. government could regulate imported drugs in order to ensure their safety. The drug industry says it opposes imported drugs because there's no way to guarantee their safety.

In a letter sent to Congress on Wednesday, Chuck Hardwick, senior vice president of Pfizer, wrote: "Dr. Rost has no qualifications to speak on importation, no responsibilities in this area at Pfizer, no knowledge of the information and analysis Pfizer has provided to the government on this issue, and no substantive grasp of how importation may impact the safety of this nation's drug supply."

At Pfizer, Rost is a vice president involved in the marketing of growth hormone products.

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Online Flu Shot Locator Launched

The American Lung Association has launched an expanded online flu shot locator to help people across the nation find and get flu vaccinations in their neighborhoods.

The locator includes more than 20,000 flu-shot locations. Users enter their ZIP code and the locator provides them with flu-shot locations within a 50-mile radius. The locator can also provide consumers with reminders about when flu vaccinations are available in their area.

Here's where you can find the flu shot locator.

Last year, millions of people used the flu shot locator.

"Approximately 200,000 hospitalizations and 36,000 deaths are due to influenza-associated illness each year, so it is imperative for people to receive the flu shot annually, and October and November is the time to do it," John Kirkwood, president of the American Lung Association, said in prepared statement.

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Woman Gives Birth After Tissue Transplant

A 32-year-old Belgian cancer survivor has given birth to a healthy daughter after having her own ovarian tissue reimplanted to correct infertility, researchers reported Friday in The Lancet medical journal.

Ouarda Touirat delivered an 8-pound, 3-ounce daughter Thursday at a Brussels hospital. In 1997, suffering from Hodgkin's lymphoma, she had ovarian tissue removed and frozen before undergoing extensive chemotherapy that was to leave her infertile. Doctors hoped that once she finished the cancer treatment and was pronounced healthy, the tissue could be reimplanted.

The strategy worked, said her doctors, as the woman became pregnant naturally 11 months after the tissue was re-inserted.

Lead surgeon Dr. Jacque Donnez issued a statement saying this new option, though still considered experimental, should become more widely available. "Our findings open new perspectives for young cancer patients facing premature ovarian failure," he said.

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FDA Poised to Rule on Antidepressant Warnings

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration will reveal its decision "within a few days" about issuing stronger labels on antidepressant medications warning of an increased risk of suicide among young users, an agency official told Congress on Thursday.

The FDA seems poised to follow the recent advice of its expert advisory panel, which recommended the so-called "black box" warnings on antidepressant drugs like Paxil, Zoloft, Celexa, and Prozac. Shortly after the recommendation, the full agency announced it generally agreed with the panel's findings and would move quickly to implement them.

According to the Associated Press, Dr. Robert Temple, director of the FDA's Office of Medical Policy, denied allegations that the agency was slow to move on the issue. "We take this advice very seriously," he told members of the House Energy and Commerce subcommittee.

The FDA is defending itself against allegations that it covered up a government epidemiologist's recommendation that most antidepressant use among children and teens be discouraged because of an increased risk of suicide. Andrew Mosholder told Congressional investigators that by last December, his research had confirmed that children taking eight antidepressants had increased suicidal thoughts and behavior, as compared to children who had taken nonmedicinal sugar pills, the AP reported.

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Not Enough High-Risk Patients Getting Flu Shots

Not enough people at high risk of flu -- including the elderly, young children, and patients with chronic illness -- are getting flu shots each year, U.S. government officials worry.

As the elderly population increases and strains of flu become more severe, the number of hospitalizations and deaths from the disease are on the rise, reported HealthDay.

"There has been a startling increase in the number of hospitalizations for flu, to approximately 200,000 last year, and Americans need to do better to protect themselves and their families," Dr. Walter Orenstein, director of the National Immunization Program, told a press conference on Thursday.

Last year only 60 percent of those 65 and older received a flu shot, and only 4 percent of children between the ages of 6 months and 2 years were properly vaccinated, officials told reporters.

One hundred million doses of the vaccine will be ready by the end of October -- 13 million more than last year, the government said.

Last Updated: Sep-24-2004