Lamisil, a medication used to treat nail fungus,  should be monitored for side effects in children, according to a report by  Food & Drug Administration (FDA) staff.   According to the document, children treated with Lamisil have experienced a variety of side effects, including skin reactions, neurological problems, and psychiatric events.  The FDA’s  Pediatric Advisory Committee is scheduled to  discuss the  Lamisil side effect reports and make recommendations at a meeting today.

According to the FDA staff report, 47 postmarketing reports of  adverse events associated with pediatric use of Lamisil were submitted to the FDA since approval through January 4, 2008. The majority of problems reported with pediatric use of Lamisil involved skin reactions.  These included skin rashes (some with blisters) and a case each of erythema multiforme (EM), Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS), toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), skin striae, hives, pruritus, and alopecia. The report noted that skin reactions, including SJS and TEN, are listed as potential side effects on the Lamisil label. Continue »

Canada’s CBC News is now reporting that the number of deaths linked to China’s ongoing melamine scandal may be higher than first reported by the Chinese government.  According to the CBC, no less than five more children died after drinking melamine-tainted formula.

One twin baby girl died of kidney failure in early September, and four other infants, as reported by the Associated Press (AP), died and were not included in the numbers of those who died and which have long been reported out of China, said the CBC. CBC stated that because there were such large time lags between the initial poisonings and the scandal breaking, it is possible that the number of those affected are greater than firs suspected.  CBC notes that those families who are unable to link the cause of death to tainted milk are unable to “sue for compensation.” Continue »

Huliq News is reporting that the University of Wisconsin Madison has issued information and tips to its students in the wake of the ongoing norovirus outbreak there.  University Health Services (UHS) feels that the outbreak of gastroentiritis plaguing the college is likely from a strain of norovirus, says Huliq.

The Badger Herald is also reporting that while the current count of those who have fallen ill is at 63 cases within Sellery Hall—a dormitory building housing over 1,000 people—the norovirus has now spread to some of the fraternity houses and off-campus apartments.  “There may be some scattered cases … in off-campus housing and a couple of other Lakeshore dorms,” said University Health Services spokesperson Mary Makarushka to The Badger, adding, “But there are no cases that are as clearly linked as the ones in Sellery.” Continue »

Toxic trailers used to house Hurricane Katrina victims are being sold as scrap by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  At least one lawmaker has already expressed concern that the trailers, which are likely contaminated with formaldehyde, could end up as housing once again, even though FEMA has designated them as scrap.

In 2005, thousands of people in Mississippi and Louisiana were given FEMA trailers as temporary housing following hurricanes Katrina and Rita. But by 2006 FEMA was getting reports from field workers along the Gulf Coast that residents of FEMA trailers where getting sick from the air in the toxic trailers. The first suspect was formaldehyde, which is used in the manufacture of the trailers. Despite the reports, e-mails uncovered last summer during a congressional investigation into the trailers showed that FEMA lawyers told the agency to drag its feet on air quality testing. FEMA’s Office of General Council also advised the agency not to test the trailers because doing so “would imply FEMA’s ownership of the issue”. Continue »

In a press release issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Chairman Hal Stratton issued a warning to consumers as we approach this year’s holiday season.  Stratton warns consumers to be aware of toys and children’s products, which have been recently recalled that pose serious safety threats to children.  Stratton also announced the launch of a new federal government inter-agency Website—www.Recalls.gov—developed to give consumers easier access to recall releases.

“Before purchasing or giving any gift, particularly one intended for a child, double-check to make sure it does not pose a hazard,” Stratton said, also suggesting consumers, “Visit CPSC’s Website to determine if it has been recalled.  Another option is to go to … www.Recalls.gov.  It’s a ‘one-stop shop’ for the latest information on all federal government recalls.”  The new site, said Stratton, has links to all federal agencies with statutory authority to issue recalls, such as the CPSC, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Coast Guard, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Continue »

Bisphenol A, commonly referred to as BPA, that ubiquitous, estrogenic chemical that has long been making headlines and has been written about by us for some time, may affect also human reproduction, according to one of some new recent research reports, says MedicineNet.com’s HealthDay News.  BPA is found in a wide variety of consumer and children’s products, including baby bottles, the linings of food cans, and some sport drink bottles.  An industrial chemical, BPA is used to harden plastics.

In one report presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, researchers state that BPA could adversely affect successful vitro fertilization, or the ability of embryos to attach to the uterus, said HealthDay news.  “The issue of environmental toxicants upon human reproduction is very important,” said Dr. Richard J. Paulson, chief of the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, who was not involved in the studies, but was quoted in the HealthDay News report. Continue »

Investors in failed Regions Morgan Keegan  bond funds have started bringing their cases to arbitration, and there have been decisions in four such suits.  According to a report in “The Commercial Appeal”, investors have won two cases so far, but Morgan Keegan has been successful in two others.  Morgan Keegan, like most investment firms, requires brokerage clients to agree to submit disputes to arbitration when they first open accounts.

Since 2007, the Regions Morgan Keegan Select Intermediate Bond Fund and Regions Morgan Keegan Select High Income Fund  lost up to 95 percent of their value, thanks to losing bets on high-risk collateralized debt obligations.   Last month, the Securities Litigation and Consulting Group, Inc, a financial economics consulting firm that provides expert witnesses to parties involved in securities litigation,  issued a report that found Regions Morgan Keegan misrepresented hundreds of millions of dollars of leveraged asset-backed securities as corporate bonds and preferred stocks.  This made the funds seem more diversified and less risky than they actually were, the report said. Continue »

The poor performance of government regulators who investigated this summer’s massive Salmonella outbreak highlighted serious problems with the way produce is regulated in the U.S., a new report says.    The report, compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Produce Safety Project, faults federal agencies, including the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), for failing to investigate other produce as a possible source of the Salmonella outbreak sooner, and for maintaining a focus on tomatoes as the culprit for far too long.

This past summer’s Salmonella Saintpaul outbreak sickened 1,448 people across the country.  Initially, the outbreak was blamed on certain varieties of raw tomatoes, but even after the tomatoes were taken off the market, illnesses continued. What’s more, the FDA was unable to identify the Salmonella strain responsible for the outbreak on any of the tomato samples it tested.  Still, the FDA continued to maintain that tomatoes were at the center of the outbreak until mid-July.   Continue »

Crib recalls are occurring with increasing frequency.  According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC),  more than 3 million dangerously defective cribs have been recalled in just the past two years.  Unfortunately, many of the those faulty cribs weren’t recalled until they had killed children.

In many instances, when a crib is recalled, consumers are told to contact the manufacturer to obtain a kit that is meant to fix a defect.  That solution is controversial with many consumer advocates who believe defective cribs should be removed from the market altogether.  Now, a Chicago Tribune investigation has found that in at least one instance, a repair kit alone was not enough to make a recalled crib safe. Continue »

WKOWTV.com is reporting that University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) Health officials are confirming that the number of confirmed cases of on-campus norovirus has increased by three to a total of 48.

The norovirus can cause nausea, vomiting, stomach cramping, fever, headaches, chills, muscle ache, tiredness, and diarrhea.  The norovirus strikes quickly, but generally only lasts for one or two days, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.  Norovirus is not one, but actually a group of viruses, that spreads easily and swiftly through direct contact with an infected person or through contaminated food, drink, or objects. Continue »