Health News Roundup: Amgen says experimental obesity drug has promising durability; Chinese cities ease curbs but full zero-COVID exit seen some way off and more

The small Phase I trial found that patients maintained their weight loss for 70 days after receiving the highest tested dose of the injected drug, currently known as AMG133. Protests in Malta as parliament debates abortion amendment A large picture of an unborn baby was placed outside the office of Malta's prime minister on Sunday as demonstrators called on the government to halt plans to amend the country's strict anti-abortion laws.


Devdiscourse News Desk | Updated: 05-12-2022 10:32 IST | Created: 05-12-2022 10:30 IST
Health News Roundup: Amgen says experimental obesity drug has promising durability; Chinese cities ease curbs but full zero-COVID exit seen some way off and more
Representative image Image Credit: ANI

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Amgen says experimental obesity drug has promising durability

Amgen Inc's experimental obesity drug demonstrated promising durability trends in an early trial, paving the way for a larger mid-stage study early next year, company officials said ahead of a data presentation on Saturday. The small Phase I trial found that patients maintained their weight loss for 70 days after receiving the highest tested dose of the injected drug, currently known as AMG133.

Chinese cities ease curbs but full zero-COVID exit seen some way off

More Chinese cities including Urumqi in the far west announced an easing of coronavirus curbs on Sunday as China tries to make its zero-COVID policy more targeted and less onerous after unprecedented protests against restrictions last weekend. Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region and where the protests first erupted, will reopen malls, markets, restaurants, and other venues from Monday, authorities said, ending strict lockdowns after months.

Protests in Malta as parliament debates abortion amendment

A large picture of an unborn baby was placed outside the office of Malta's prime minister on Sunday as demonstrators called on the government to halt plans to amend the country's strict anti-abortion laws. The protest, the biggest in years, attracted several thousand people including Malta's top Catholic bishop and the leader of the conservative opposition but was led by a former center-left president, Marie Louise Coleiro Preca.

New Zealand announces review of its handling of the COVID-19 pandemic

The New Zealand government said on Monday it would launch an inquiry into the country's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic so future governments could learn from the experience. A Royal Commission, a public inquiry of the highest level in New Zealand, would look at the overall response, the government said in a statement. That would include considering economic measures, such as fiscal and monetary policy responses but without reviewing particular central bank decisions.

Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 maturing - state media

Conditions for China to downgrade its management of COVID-19 as a serious contagious disease improving as the coronavirus weakens, state media outlet Yicai reported, among the first to float the idea. Since January 2020, China has classified COVID-19 as a Category B infectious disease but has managed it under Category A protocols, which give local authorities the power to put patients and their close contacts into quarantine and lock down affected regions.

(With inputs from agencies.)

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