Posts Tagged 'pulmonary embolism'

Warnings issued about IVC filter

An article on TheHeart.org discusses more than 900 reports of adverse events that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received about inferior vena cava (IVC) filters.

According to the report, the FDA has warned clinicians that the devices should be removed as soon as safely possible.

It quotes the following FDA statement: “The FDA is concerned that these retrievable IVC filters, intended for short-term placement, are not always ...

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Gel shows promise as male birth control

According to a report in ScienceDaily, a hormone skin gel is showing promise as a form of male birth control.

At The Endocrine Society’s 94th Annual Meeting in Houston, scientists unveiled preliminary research indicating that an application of both testosterone and a synthetic progestin hormone called Nestorone to the skin significantly lowered the sperm counts in men tested.

The report quotes principal investigator Christine Wang, MD, professor at Los Angeles Biomedical Research ...

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Yasmin among most problematic drugs

The current issue of the Institute for Safe Medication Practices’ QuarterWatch report lists Yaz/Yasmin birth control pills as the drug with the second-highest number of adverse events reported in connection with lawsuits in 2011.

Quarterwatch says 8,354 Yaz/Yasmin-related cases were reported in 2011. That puts the contraceptive second only to anti-nausea drug Metoclopramide, which was the subject of 11,450 such reports.

The report says Yaz ...

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Blood clot filters endanger patients

Of all medical devices, according to an article by the Consumers Union, cardiac devices dominate the list of reports to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration of deaths and injuries.

The report spotlights IVC filters, which are placed in the vessel that returns blood from the lower body to the heart to prevent pulmonary embolism — a life-threatening condition caused by blood clots breaking loose and traveling to the ...

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New technology treats clots more quickly

A report in the Florida Sun Sentinel describes a new treatment for deep vein thrombosis, or a major blood clot. According to the article, DVT claims more lives each year than AIDS and car accidents combined.

The technology is called the EKOS Ultrasound Accelerated Thrombolysis machine, which uses ultrasound waves to distribute a powerful clot-busting medication throughout the blockage.

The report quotes Warren Swee, an interventional radiologist, as saying that EKOS treatment ...

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Drug shows promise as male birth control

A drug developed as a cancer treatment proved to be an effective form of birth control for male mice, according to a Bloomberg report.

Scientists don’t intend to test that particular compound, called JQ1, in humans. But they hope their findings may eventually point the way toward male birth control.

The report quotes James Bradner, the senior author on the study and an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School, as saying: “These ...

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