Here’s another very sad but apparently very true tidbit about how far pharmaceutical companies will go to market their products. An article that is about to be published in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) claims that research studies published by Merck citing authorship by various medical experts, including a paper claiming that the popular pain killer Vioxx may also be a deterrent to the progression of Alzheimer’s may have actually been written by Merck itself. Upon investigation, the article claims that there appears to be scant evidence that the supposed authors of the study made any significant contribution to the study. There are also questions as to whether the clinical trials cited in this and other reports actually took place at all.

April 17, 2008 (NY TImes) - The drug maker Merck drafted dozens of research studies for a best-selling drug, then lined up prestigious doctors to put their names on the reports before publication, according to an article to be published Wednesday in a leading medical journal. (more…)

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Tuesday, April 15 (NY Times) - Few products are hated as much as hearing aids.

The devices can squeal with feedback and overamplify background noises like the click of a turn signal or whir of a ceiling fan. They must be removed for showering or sleeping, and their batteries die frequently. Many users, out of exasperation, decide they’d rather live with hearing loss.

But now scientists have come up with a different kind of hearing aid. While the device, called the Lyric, is being used in only 500 patients, it appears to have overcome many of the problems associated with traditional hearing aids — without the expense and uncertainty of surgery and anesthesia. (more…)

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TUESDAY, April 15 (HealthDay News) — Alzheimer’s patients who consume very high levels of vitamin E seem to live longer than those who do not, new research suggests. (more…)

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(photo - courtesy of paraflyer and flickr)

Please join us for the 2008 Governor’s Conference on Aging

Myth Busters - Breaking the Myths of Aging -  May 14 - 16, 2008 (more…)

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