Reuters Health News Summary

Following is a summary of current health news briefs. FDA allows sale of certain blood pressure drugs amid shortage

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Wednesday said it will temporarily allow certain manufacturers to sell blood pressure medications containing specified levels of a probable cancer-causing impurity in order to maintain adequate supplies of the drug. The agency said losartan medicines remaining on the market that contain the impurity N-Nitroso-N-methyl-4-aminobutyric acid (NMBA) above the acceptable limit of 0.96 parts per million (ppm) and below 9.82 ppm will be allowed until the impurity can be eliminated. WHO panel calls for registry of all human gene editing research

It would be irresponsible for any scientist to conduct human gene-editing studies in people, and a central registry of research plans should be set up to ensure transparency, World Health Organization experts said on Tuesday. After its first two-day meeting in Geneva, the WHO panel of gene editing experts - which was established in December after a Chinese scientist said he had edited the genes of twin babies - said it had agreed a framework for setting future standards. Canada to create national drug agency to help cut cost of medicines

Canada will create a national drug agency to help cut the cost of prescription medications as part of a plan to broaden the state-funded healthcare program, the finance ministry said in its budget on Tuesday. Unlike other countries with universal healthcare, Canada does not cover prescription drugs, leaving most Canadians to rely on a mixture of public and private insurance plans. U.S. jury hears more evidence as second phase of Roundup cancer trial begins

A lawyer for a man who sued Bayer AG unit Monsanto after developing cancer on Wednesday told a jury about the company's alleged efforts to influence scientists and regulators, a day after the jury found Bayer's glyphosate-based weed killer Roundup to have caused the man's disease. The jury in San Francisco federal court on Tuesday found Roundup to be a "substantial factor" in causing California resident Edwin Hardeman's non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, but did not find Bayer liable. Novo Nordisk submits diabetes pill for U.S. approval

Novo Nordisk has submitted its oral semaglutide drug, a pill it hopes will transform the diabetes market, for approval in the United States. The once-daily pill for treatment of type 2 diabetes is an important growth prospect for the Danish drugmaker, which faces pressure on prices from competitors and U.S. lawmakers, who have been critical of rising drug prices. Opioid prescriptions after plastic surgery tied to long-term use

Opioids account for more than 90 percent of the painkillers used after plastic surgery, according to a U.S. study that questions how often these addictive narcotics are necessary to ease discomfort after operations. Researchers examined data on 466,677 people who had plastic and reconstructive procedures for the nose, eye, breast, abdomen or soft tissue from 2007 to 2015. Almost 55 percent of patients received painkiller prescriptions afterwards, and 92 percent of the prescriptions filled were for opioids. Study finds key details about 'punch drunk syndrome' and Alzheimer's

Scientists studying damaged brains of boxers and other sports people have found key details about a head injury-linked disease called "punch drunk syndrome" that could help the development of new diagnostics and treatments for Alzheimer's. The syndrome, also known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), is linked to repeated blows to the head and causes a type of dementia similar to Alzheimer's, which is characterized by behavioral changes, confusion and memory loss. Zambia bans energy drink with male sex booster Viagra

Zambia banned an energy drink on Wednesday after it was shown to have been adulterated with the male sex booster Viagra, according to authorities in Ndola, the city of manufacture. The prohibition followed a complaint from Zambia's medicine regulator in December suggesting that the Power Natural High Energy Drink SX had been spiked with Viagra. San Francisco officials look to ban sale of e-cigarettes

San Francisco officials on Tuesday proposed legislation that would ban the sale of e-cigarettes from companies such as Juul until a review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, as part of the city's efforts to tackle underage vaping. District Supervisor Shamann Walton will also introduce legislation at a meeting of the city's board of supervisors to prohibit the manufacture and distribution of all tobacco products, including e-cigarettes, on city property. Piles of pigs: Swine fever outbreaks go unreported in rural China

When pigs on the Xinda Husbandry Co. Ltd breeding farm in northern China began dying in growing numbers in early January, it looked increasingly likely that the farm had been struck by the much feared African swine fever, an incurable disease that has spread rapidly across the country since last year. But after taking samples from some pigs, local officials in the Xushui district of Baoding city, about an hour's drive from Beijing, said their tests came back negative, said Sun Dawu, chairman of Hebei Dawu Agriculture Group, the farm owner.