Two U.S. Senators from Florida and Louisiana have sponsored legislation aimed at initiating a recall of Chinese drywall. The legislation filed by Florida Sen. Bill Nelson and Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu, both Democrats, also calls for an immediate, temporary ban on some types of drywall from China.

As of last week, the Florida Health Department had received at least 155 complaints about Chinese drywall that produces a “rotten eggs” odor in homes. The fumes from the drywall have also been linked to corroding metals in many of the homes, and people living with the material have reported sinus and respiratory problems. Many Florida homeowners have had to leave their homes because the Chinese drywall has made them unlivable, and some builders in the state are scrambling to gut homes and replace the drywall. (more…)

Last week’s recall by Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese of Reading, Michigan has been expanded. The recall, which was announced by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) involves certain Asadero and Oaxaca soft Mexican-style cheeses due to potential Listeria contamination.

The original recall indicated that the Torres Hillsdale Country Cheese products were distributed in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin. The expanded recall now also includes possibly Listeria-contaminated cheeses shipped to New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, and Alabama, as well. (more…)

The American Medical Association (AMA) is responding to allegations that two top editors of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) attempted to intimidate a critic of a Lexapro study it published. According to The Wall Street Journal, the AMA has asked its oversight committee to investigate the charges.

The controversy centers on Dr. Jonathan Leo’s criticism of a Lexapro study published in the JAMA. Dr. Leo is a professor of neuroanatomy at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn. (more…)

Babson College in Wellesley, near Boston, Massachusetts, is closing until at least Wednesday following what is believed to be a norovirus outbreak there. NBC News reported that about 100 students and staff fell ill with severe nausea and vomiting and the Examiner reported that some students have been hospitalized with dehydration.

Tom Lyons, a spokesman for the State Department of Health in Massachusetts, described the norovirus as being “miserable,” but not life-threatening, explaining that most people recover after a few days, reported NBC News. Babson College has about 3,400 under-graduate and graduate students, all are permitted to remain in their dorms; however, classes and athletic events have been canceled while campus buildings are cleaned and sanitized, said NBC News. Dorm students have been supplied with disinfectants, said the Examiner, so that they can sanitize their rooms and lavatories. (more…)

Genentech’s rational for fast-track approval of Avastin as a treatment for a deadly type of brain tumor is being questioned by Food & Drug Administration (FDA) staffers. According to the Associated Press, an FDA advisory panel will consider whether or not to approve Avastin as as a treatment for recurring glioblastoma multiforme, a form of brain cancer that is generally fatal within six months, at a meeting tomorrow.

Avastin was the first approved therapy designed to inhibit angiogenesis, the process by which new blood vessels develop and carry vital nutrients to a tumor. Avastin was approved by the FDA in 2004 to treat colon cancer, and in 2006, the agency approved it as a treatment for non-small cell lung cancer. Last year, the FDA also approved Avastin as a breast cancer treatment. (more…)

The investigation into Bernard Madoff’s historic Ponzi scheme has revealed serious international implications. Madoff’s so-called investment business had operations in London, which, say United Kingdom prosecutors, played “a significant role” in the multi-billion dollar fraud perpetrated by Madoff, reported Bloomberg.com.

Madoff—once a chairman of the NASDAQ stock exchange—is the founder and primary owner of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC who pleaded guilty to 11 fraud counts earlier this month. Madoff’s firm is primarily known for its business in market-making, or serving as the middleman between buyers and sellers of shares. Madoff also oversaw an investment-advisory business that managed money for high-net-worth individuals, hedge funds, and other institutions. According to the FBI complaint against Madoff, that business was largely a Ponzi scheme. (more…)

A construction truck traveling across the Bronx-Whitestone Bridge in New York City hit an overhead sign last Friday afternoon, causing it to crash onto all five lanes of the bridge deck. Two people in the truck were injured, and the bridge was closed for several hours.

The accident resulted in the closure of the Whitestone Bridge in both directions, and traffic was rerouted to the Throgs Neck or Robert F. Kennedy Bridges. The bridge was reopened around 7:00 p.m. Friday. (more…)

A class I recall has been issued for Medtronic BioGlide Ventricular Shunt Catheters. A class I recall is issued when a device poses a risk of serious injury and death.

The recalled Medtronic BioGlide Ventricular Shunt Catheter is part of a system used to treat a condition called hydrocephalus, which is characterized by an excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. While hydrocephalus occurs in adults, it is most common in children. (more…)

We’ve long been writing about the problems with lead wires and implanted defibrillators, but now, a surprising situation is emerging out of Denmark, HealthDay News reports, citing a New England Journal of Medicine report.

“We recently cared for a patient who, after receiving an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, was readmitted shortly after hospital discharge because of two shocks delivered while the patient was showering,” said the March 26 article, reported HealthDay. There was no clear reason for the device to have activated; however, according to the report, a review “raised suspicion that electrical noise had caused an inappropriate ICD discharge.” The Danish doctors had an electrician analyze the home’s electrical wiring, said HealthDay. (more…)

The safety and effectiveness of medications used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are being questioned with the release of new study data that shows such drugs to be ineffective – and possibly harmful – in the long term. According to The Washington Post, the findings are also raising questions about the conduct of some involved in the research, because they are very different than initial findings that were released in 1999.

The study, known as the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children (MTA), was designed to test whether children diagnosed with ADHD do better when treated with drugs, with drugs plus talk therapy, with talk therapy alone or with routine medical care alone. (more…)