Health Highlights: June 1, 2009
June 2 -- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by editors of HealthDay:
FDA Approves Reclast Use Once Every Two Years
Reclast has received U.S. approval as an osteoporosis treatment that can be used once every two years, drug maker Novartis AG announced Monday.
The Associated Press reported that the drug was already being used in the U.S. and Europe as a once-a-year infusion therapy to treat postmenopausal osteoporosis in women, to increase bone mass in men with osteoporosis, and to treat and prevent osteoporosis caused by steroid treatment.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for use of Reclast once every two years is based on research involving more than 500 post-menopausal women with low bone mass, Novartis said. A single infusion of the drug significantly increased bone mineral density at two years, the study found.
According to Novartis, osteoporosis affects about 10 million women and men in the United States, the AP reported.
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Low Glycogen Linked to Drinking-Related Violence: Study
People who always become aggressive or violent when they drink may have low glycogen levels, a problem that could be remedied with medication and regular meals, suggest Finnish researchers.
They analyzed the insulin and glycogen levels of 49 men with alcohol problems who committed violent acts when drinking and compared them to a control group of 40 healthy men, Agence France Presse reported.
During eight years of follow-up, 17 of the 49 men with alcohol problems committed at least one new act of violence while drinking. The study found that those men had higher insulin levels and lower glycogen levels than the other men with alcohol problems who didn't commit any additional acts of violence, or men in the control group.
The findings "might suggest that substances increasing glycogen formation and decreasing the risk of hypoglycemia might be potential treatments for impulsive violent behavior," wrote researchers at the University of Helsinki, and those at Helsinki University Hospital, AFP reported.
