Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Poland hit by another bird flu outbreak on goose farm

A new outbreak of bird flu was reported in Poland on Monday, with around 6,000 geese now set to be exterminated, a regional spokesman confirmed to Reuters, adding to about half a dozen cases already detected across the country since December. "Six thousand geese at the farm (are) set for extermination, the state veterinary inspectorate has already taken steps," Tomasz Stube, the spokesman for the Wielkopolska region told Reuters. Swim regulations for oceans, lakes tied to lower drowning rates

(Reuters Health) - Drowning death rates are three to four times lower in states that regulate swimming in oceans, rivers and lakes, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers examined data on so-called open-water drownings for all 50 states from 2012 to 2017. They also looked at regulations in 30 states in 2017 for things like lifeguards, rescue equipment, warning signs, tracking and reporting safety issues, and water quality. Acasti's krill oil-derived drug fails late-stage study, shares tumble

Acasti Pharma Inc said on Monday its krill oil-derived drug had failed to beat placebo by a large margin in reducing a type of fat found in blood that increases the risk of heart diseases, sending its shares spiraling down nearly 67%. The company said the drug, CaPre, derived from shrimp-like crustaceans called krill, showed a 36.7% median reduction in triglyceride levels after 26 weeks of treatment, compared with an average of 28% reduction among those on placebo. Disparities in pain medication given to kidney-stone emergency patients

Black and Latino patients treated for kidney stones in emergency departments around the U.S. tend to get less pain-killing medication compared to whites, a new study finds. After reviewing the medical histories of more than 250,000 patients, researchers found that black patients who had been diagnosed with kidney stones were more likely to get lower doses of opioid medications and less likely to be given an intravenous anti-inflammatory drug compared to whites. Black patients were also more likely to get no pain medication at all. Novartis to speed access to $10 billion heart drug via NHS deal

Novartis and Britain's National Health Service (NHS) on Monday announced a pact that will clear the way for accelerated review by the country's health watchdog NICE for heart drug inclisiran, which could make it broadly available as soon as 2021. Novartis hopes the NHS deal will boost sales of cholesterol-lowering inclisiran, which the Swiss drugmaker bought in a deal announced last year for nearly $10 billion and predicts will be a top seller. Doctors average 16 minutes on the computer for every patient

For each patient they see, doctors spend about 16 minutes using electronic health records, a U.S. study finds. Researchers examined approximately 100 million patient encounters with about 155,000 physicians from 417 health systems. They collected data on every keystroke, mouse click and second of time spent on various tasks in electronic health records (EHR) throughout 2018. Coaches can help curb middle school dating violence

Coaches who teach young male athletes about respectful relationship behaviors may be able to help prevent dating violence and aggressive behavior toward female peers, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers tested the effectiveness of Coaching Boys Into Men, a program that seeks to prevent dating violence and sexual assault by enlisting coaches to speak frankly with middle-school male athletes about how they should - and should not - treat the opposite sex. Chinese woman with mystery virus quarantined in Thailand

A Chinese woman has been quarantined in Thailand with a mystery strain of coronavirus, authorities said on Monday, the first time it has been detected outside China. Thai authorities are stepping up monitoring at airports ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, beginning on Jan. 25, when hundreds of thousands of Chinese tourists are expected to visit. AstraZeneca to discontinue Epanova trial, expects $100 million writedown

AstraZeneca said on Monday it will discontinue a late-stage trial for heart disease drug Epanova to treat patients with mixed dyslipidaemia and expects a $100 million writedown to hit its core profit in the fourth quarter. The biggest British drugmaker by market value said the decision, which followed recommendations from an independent data monitoring committee, was due to low likelihood of Epanova's benefit to patients with mixed dyslipidaemia. Biogen to buy early-stage potential Alzheimer's, Parkinson's treatment from Pfizer

Biogen Inc said on Monday it has agreed to buy an early-stage experimental treatment from Pfizer Inc that it aims to test in patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Under the deal, Pfizer will get $75 million upfront and will be eligible for $635 million in potential milestone payments.

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