All you need to know about African Swine fever, weight loss surgery and much more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

China detects more African swine fever cases in cities already infected

China discovered three more outbreaks of the deadly African swine fever on Thursday in Heilongjiang and Anhui provinces as the highly contagious disease spreads further in cities that have already reported infections. In a statement, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said 29 hogs have died and 54 were infected in three separate cases in Jiamusi city in Heilongjiang in China's northeast and in the cities of Wuhu and Xuancheng in the eastern province of Anhui.

Novartis unloads U.S. assets at loss to bargain-hunting Aurobindo

New Novartis Chief Executive Vas Narasimhan has further reshaped the Swiss drugmaker, announcing on Thursday he is selling U.S. dermatology and generic pill assets to India's Aurobindo Pharma Ltd for up to $1 billion. The deal, which comes after price pressure hurt the U.S. pills business, includes some 300 products. An initial $900 million cash payment could be followed by $100 million in performance-based payments to the Basel-based drugmaker.

Type of weight loss surgery matters for people with severe obesity

People who have weight-loss surgery for extreme obesity may lose more weight with an older operation known as Roux-en-Y gastric bypass than with a newer sleeve gastrectomy procedure, a small U.S. study suggests. Researchers followed 59 obese patients who had sleeve gastrectomy operations between 2006 and 2009 before this type of weight-loss operation was widely accepted or covered by insurance. Back then, this operation was generally reserved for patients who were either "super-obese" or who had other medical conditions that made Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) too risky.

Akcea Therapeutics to cut about 10 percent of the workforce

Akcea Therapeutics Inc said on Thursday it planned to cut its workforce by about 10 percent after the U.S. health regulator declined to approve its Waylivra drug for treating a genetic disease that causes fat accumulation in the blood. The company said it expected to book charges of $2 million to $2.5 million in the third quarter https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1662524/000114036118037945/form8k.htm, as a result of the decision, which affects only U.S. employees involved in functions focused on Waylivra.

Most U.S. colleges are not tobacco- and smoke-free

Most U.S. four-year colleges and universities, as well as community colleges, don't have tobacco-free or smoke-free policies on campus, a new study finds. About 35 percent have tobacco-free policies that prohibit all tobacco use. Ten percent have smoke-free policies that prohibit cigarettes but not all tobacco. And 54 percent don't have any policy, researchers report in the American Journal of Public Health.

FDA extends the review of Roche's Eccentric by three months

Roche said on Thursday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had extended by three months the review period for Tecentriq in combination therapy as a first-line treatment for a form of lung cancer. The news is a sign that U.S. approval of the Swiss drugmaker's immunotherapy may not go as smoothly as hoped.

French drugmakers urge Brexit negotiators to safeguard supply chain

French drugmakers are urging European and British negotiators ahead of a crunch Brexit meeting next month to ensure the free circulation of medicines is maintained if Britain leaves the bloc without a deal next year. Supplies of thousands of medicines risk disruption if Britain leaves the European Union without an accord on March 29, 2019, forcing manufacturers to prepare duplicate product-testing and licensing arrangements to keep drugs on the market.

IVF kids may have a higher risk of high blood pressure

Kids born through in vitro fertilization may be more likely to develop high blood pressure, a new study suggests. Researchers found a higher average blood pressure among teens born through IVF than in children conceived naturally, according to a report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Maryland charges Insys with engaging in a deceptive opioid scheme

Maryland on Thursday charged Insys Therapeutics Inc with deceptively marketing a powerful opioid painkiller so that it was prescribed inappropriately beyond its intended use with cancer patients. Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh announced that he had filed administrative charges against Arizona-based Insys, which he said provided thousands of dollars in inducements to doctors to promote prescribing its medication Subsys to their patients.

Dementia risk doubles right after a stroke

People who have recently experienced a stroke may be more than twice as likely to develop dementia than individuals who haven't had a stroke, a new study suggests. While stroke has long been linked to a heightened risk of dementia, particularly in older adults, the exact magnitude of the increased risk hasn't been consistent across previous studies investigating this connection. For the current study, researchers pooled data from 48 previous studies with a total of 3.2 million participants worldwide.