Health News Roundup: Drug-resistant staph in households; US life expectancy declining and more

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Drug-resistant staph spreads easily in households

(Reuters Health) - The superbug MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) can spread easily from people to household pets, according to a new study that underscores the importance of frequent handwashing. MRSA was once rare, and so-called staph infections used to be more easily treated with antibiotics, researchers note in the Lancet Infectious Diseases. But due in part to overuse of antibiotics, MRSA now infects hundreds of thousands of people and kills about 20,000 people each year in the U.S. alone.

U.S. prosecutors open criminal probe of opioid makers, distributors

Federal prosecutors are investigating six pharmaceutical companies for potential criminal charges in connection with shipping big quantities of opioid painkillers that contributed to a healthcare crisis, according to regulatory filings. Five companies have received subpoenas from the U.S. Attorney's office in the Eastern District of New York as part of the investigation: drugmakers Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd , Mallinckrodt Plc, Johnson & Johnson and Amneal Pharmaceuticals Inc, and distributor McKesson Corp, regulatory filings showed.

U.S. life expectancy declining due to more deaths in middle age

(Reuters Health) - After rising for decades, life expectancy in the U.S. decreased for three straight years, driven by higher rates of death among middle aged Americans, a new study suggests. Midlife all-cause mortality rates were increasing between 2010 and 2017, driven by higher numbers of deaths due to drug overdoses, alcohol abuse, suicides and organ system diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes, according to the report published in JAMA.

Banning large-capacity gun magazines could reduce mass shooting deaths: study

(Reuters Health) - A ban on gun magazines that hold a large number of bullets could lower the number of deaths during mass shootings in the U.S., a new study suggests. Attacks with large-capacity magazines had more than a 60% higher average death toll, researchers write in the American Journal of Public Health.

Judge partly vacates convictions of opioid maker Insys' founder, executives

A federal judge on Tuesday partially overturned the convictions of Insys Therapeutics Inc's founder and three former executives accused of bribing doctors to prescribe an addictive opioid, but declined to disturb the remainder of the jury's verdict. U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston ruled the evidence prosecutors presented at trial did not support finding that John Kapoor and the others intended for doctors to prescribe the drug, Subsys, to patients who did not need it.

Zimbabwe senior doctors stop work as public hospital strike spreads

Senior doctors at Zimbabwe's public hospitals went on strike on Tuesday to protest against the dismissal of junior colleagues who have boycotted work over pay for nearly three months, deepening a crisis in the country's health sector. Zimbabwe is experiencing its worst economic crisis in a decade that has seen resurgent inflation soaring to three-digit levels, eroding salaries and savings and re-igniting memories of the hyperinflation era of a decade ago.

Pfizer, Novartis lead pharma spending spree on gene therapy production

Eleven drugmakers led by Pfizer and Novartis have set aside a combined $2 billion to invest in gene therapy manufacturing since 2018, according to a Reuters analysis, in a drive to better control production of the world's priciest medicines. The full scope of Novartis' $500 million plan, revealed to Reuters in an interview with the company's gene therapy chief, has not been previously disclosed. It is second only to Pfizer, which has allocated $600 million to build its own gene therapy manufacturing plants, according to filings and interviews with industry executives.

New Roche flu drug can drive resistance in influenza viruses: researchers

Roche's influenza treatment Xofluza, a one-dose pill that can clear flu symptoms within days, may cause a mutation of the virus that leads to drug resistance, researchers reported on Monday. Results of their study suggest that common flu strains can quickly acquire resistance to the drug. They caution patients who receive it - especially children - should be watched for drug resistance.

U.S. medical schools training more students with disabilities

(Reuters Health) - A growing number of doctors in training have psychological disorders and chronic health problems, a U.S. study suggests. Researchers analyzed data on disabilities reported by students at 64 U.S. medical schools in 2016 and 2019. The proportion of students reporting disabilities climbed 69% during this period, from 2.7% to 4.6%.

Teva partners with Israeli institutes for early-stage drug research

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries on Monday signed research agreements with two leading Israeli academic institutes, a move to boost its early-stage drug development with a focus on cancer treatments. The world's largest generic drugmaker has been looking to expand its specialty portfolio and said it is seeking more than 400 new laboratories within Israeli academia. 

(With inputs from agencies.)