The FDA has issued a serious public health advisory warning of an article published on Friday in Annals of Internal Medicine reporting that three patients experienced serious liver toxicity after taking Ketek (telithromycin). These cases have also been reported to FDA MedWatch.

Telithromycin is an antibiotic of the ketolide class. It was the first ketolide antibiotic to be approved by the FDA in April, 2004 for the treatment of respiratory infections in adults. It is marketed and is widely used in several countries including Japan and countries in Europe.
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The generic drug warfarin (brand name Coumadin) is a widely used anticoagulant (blood-thinner) that reduces the formation and size of blood clots, which is important in the prevention of heart attacks, strokes, and blockage of major veins and arteries. It is often prescribed for patients with certain types of irregular heartbeat and after a heart attack or heart valve replacement surgery. It works by stopping the formation of substances that cause clots. 
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The Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) and Homelite Consumer Products Inc., of Anderson, South Carolina, have announced the voluntary recall of some 1,550 Homelite Vac Attack II Blowers because they are missing the doors covering the vacuum inlet. This exposes the blower’s fan blade, posing a risk of finger laceration to the user.

Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately. To date, no incidents or injuries have been reported.
The products were manufactured in China and sold at Home Depot stores nationwide from September 2005 through November 2005 for about $99.
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An article in MedPage Today, discusses the findings of a recent survey which shows that many patients would not recognize the more subtle symptoms associated with heart attack (MI-myocardial infarction) and that many of the actions they would take when confronted with a potential heart attack would not be what is recommended.
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Mammograms are unquestionably a vital diagnostic tool in the war against breast cancer. Since early detection of the deadly disease is the single most important factor in a successful course of treatment, women around the world are encouraged to undergo the procedure on a regular basis.

After a woman do their part by having the test done, she waits anxiously for a trained radiologist to read the scans and tell her if she is cancer-free or if there is any reason for concern and additional diagnostic procedures.
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The Consumer Products Safety Commission and L.L. Bean of Freeport, Maine, are recalling some 4,100 Auto Safety Kits, Auto Aid in a Bottle, Winter Safety Kits, and Outdoorsman in a Bottle.

The products include a flashlight that relies on a powerful magnet and copper coil for manual recharging. The magnet could be powerful enough to disrupt a heart patient’s Implantable Cardiac Defibrillator (ICD) and render compasses unreliable. The products’ packaging lacks appropriate warning information regarding these risks. Consumers should stop using the recalled products immediately.
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According to the FDA, a blood clotting drug for hemophiliacs has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, deaths, and other health complications in patients given the medicine for other types of out-of-control bleeding, such as cerebral hemorrhages.

NovoSeven, manufactured by Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk (Novo), was released on the market in 1999 after gaining fast-track approval from the FDA.

Originally designed for and approved by the FDA for stopping bleeding in hemophiliacs, the drug has shown promise as a treatment for cerebral hemorrhages, which is a potentially deadly kind of stroke caused by bleeding in the brain.
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The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Fisher-Price of East Aurora, New York, have announced the recall of some 614,000 Fisher-Price® Laugh & Learn™ Musical Learning Chairs™ because a child can become stuck between the seatback and side table of the chair, possibly leading to becoming trapped by the neck. This can pose a strangulation hazard to young children.

Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately and make certain it is not accessible to children.

The products were manufactured in China and sold at Discount department and toy stores nationwide from May 2005 through January 2006 for about $27.
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If ever there was a misnomer, it is referring to the inserts that accompany drugs as labels. Those “labels” invariably consist of tiny origami-like creations that, when unfolded, yield massive, tissue-thin, two-sided information sheets in microscopic print, often up to 10 or 20 pages in length.

Couple that with the fact that no attempt is ever made to make the data comprehensible to anyone without a degree in medicine or pharmacology and you have the “label” patients are presented with and expected to read and understand before taking drugs that can have deadly side-effects, the potential for dangerous interactions with other drugs, foods, alcohol, or environmental conditions (like sunlight), or other critical warnings.
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A study conducted by researchers at the University of Leuven in Belgium reveals that exposure to the metal cadmium considerably appears to increase significantly the risk of developing lung cancer and other malignancies.

Cadmium, a metal with toxic effects, is found in rechargeable batteries and is a byproduct of zinc smelting.

The study, published in The Lancet Oncology, consisted of 500 individuals who lived in northeast Belgium near three zinc-smelting plants.  Researchers found that the risk of lung cancer for people living near the zinc-smelting plant was over 300% higher than individuals in the control group who lived in areas with little or no exposure to cadmium.
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