Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. Expired drugs may remain effective, safe to use in a pinch

Even medicines that are years past their expiration date and haven't always been kept in strict climate-controlled conditions may still retain their original potency, a small study suggests. That is good news for people working in remote areas of the world where sometimes an expired medication is the only one available and the alternative is having no way to treat a serious illness, the study authors write in the journal Wilderness & Environmental Medicine. Pharmacist follow-up calls could help curb repeat hospitalizations

Patients sent home from the hospital and taking multiple prescription drugs may be less likely to have repeat hospitalizations when they receive follow-up calls from a pharmacist, a small experiment suggests. Telephone outreach from pharmacists has long been linked to higher odds that patients will take all of their medicines as prescribed, researchers note in The British Journal of Clinical Pharmacy. But research to date hasn't provided a clear picture of whether there could be additional benefits like reducing complications that send recently discharged patients back to the hospital. U.S. health spending to rise 5.5 percent per year over next decade: CMS

U.S. health spending is expected to grow at an average rate of 5.5 percent every year from 2018 over the next decade and will reach nearly $6 trillion by 2027 as more people become eligible for Medicare, a government health agency said on Wednesday. Rising income levels, better employment rate and more people enrolling for Medicare, the federal health insurance program for people aged 65 and above and the disabled, will cause healthcare spending to rise to 19.4 percent of the U.S. economy by 2027, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) said. One in four pre-teen suicides may be LGBT youth

Youth 12 to 14 years old who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) are much more likely to die by suicide than their heterosexual peers, a disparity that persists but becomes less pronounced by early adulthood, a U.S. study suggests. While 24 percent of the suicide deaths in the 12 to 14 age group were among LGBT youth in 2013-2015, this dropped to 8 percent of suicides among young adults 25 to 29 years old, researchers report in the Journal of Adolescent Health. Friendly texts tied to fewer suicide attempts in the military

Military service members who are at risk for suicide may be less likely to attempt to harm themselves when they receive supportive text messages, a U.S. study suggests. Soldiers in the study had all received behavioral health services for considering or attempting suicide in the past, and all were on active duty, in the Reserve or in the National Guard. They all received standard treatments like medication or psychotherapy as needed; half of the 650 participants were also randomly assigned to received occasional texts with messages like "hope you're having a good day." Catalyst Pharmaceuticals defends $375,000 drug price after Bernie Sanders rebuke

Catalyst Pharmaceuticals Inc, rebuked by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders for its high drug prices, on Thursday defended its $375,000 treatment for a rare disease, saying the price was in line with similar products in the industry. Sanders, a vocal critic of high drug prices, had written to Florida-based Catalyst earlier this month, asking it to justify its price for Firdapse, a medication for a rare neuromuscular disease that affects about one in 100,000 people in the United States. China reports new African swine fever outbreak in Yunnan province

China has confirmed a new outbreak of African swine fever in Yunnan province, authorities said on Thursday, as the highly contagious disease spreads through the world's largest hog herd. The outbreak in Lushui city killed two animals on a farm of 300 pigs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said in a statement on its website. Whole grains might help ward off liver cancer

Yet another benefit of eating a diet containing high amounts of whole grains may be a reduced risk of liver cancer, a new U.S. study suggests. The analysis of data on more than 125,000 men and women followed for an average of 24 years found that those who ate the most whole grains had nearly 40 percent lower odds of developing liver cancer compared to those who ate the least. Johnson & Johnson receives federal subpoenas related to baby powder litigation

Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday it has received subpoenas from the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to litigation involving alleged asbestos contamination in its signature Baby Powder product line. The company said it intends to "cooperate fully with these inquiries and will continue to defend the Company in the talc-related litigation." Flu season may play a role in kidney failure deaths

When influenza-like illnesses spread in the community, death rates go up for patients on dialysis, a new study shows. In an average year, severe respiratory infections likely contribute to more than a thousand deaths among people with end-stage kidney failure in the U.S., the authors estimate.