Health News Roundup: Menopause hormone pills associated with dementia, causation unclear; Scientists isolate human gene able to fend off most bird flu viruses and more

During a multi-day court hearing in Trenton, New Jersey, attorneys for plaintiffs alleging that J&J's baby powder and other talc products sometimes contained asbestos and caused ovarian cancer and mesothelioma drilled down on J&J's public statements that it has "secured commitments from over 60,000 current claimants" for the settlement, and that the "majority" of talc claimants support it. U.S. judges block bans on transgender youth healthcare in Kentucky, Tennessee Federal judges in Kentucky and Tennessee on Wednesday blocked state laws prohibiting the use of puberty-blocking drugs and hormones for transgender children from taking effect while lawsuits challenging the bans proceed.

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Menopause hormone pills associated with dementia, causation unclear

Use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to ease the effects of menopause, even for short periods, was associated with a higher risk for dementia in a nationwide study from Denmark, but the cognitive declines may not have been due to the treatment, researchers said on Wednesday. The study, published in The BMJ, contradicts some earlier studies that suggest HRT may protect against cognitive decline if the treatments are started near menopause onset.

Scientists isolate human gene able to fend off most bird flu viruses

UK researchers have homed in on a human gene implicated in thwarting most bird flu viruses from infecting people. Bird flu chiefly spreads among wild birds such as ducks and gulls and can also infect farmed birds and domestic poultry such as chickens, turkeys and quails.

EU must prevent medical devices for children from disappearing, say doctors groups

Brussels must act to prevent essential medical devices for children from disappearing in the European Union in the next year, by correcting a new law that is inadvertently causing the problem, the European Academy of Paediatrics warned on Tuesday. The academy and 22 other medical associations wrote that the unintended consequences of the law will likely harm children's health in a June 27 letter to EU Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides.

Bayer claims early lead in Parkinson's stem cell therapy

Bayer subsidiary BlueRock has become the first company to report initial success treating Parkinson's disease in humans using an experimental stem cell therapy, the drugmaker said on Wednesday. The hunt for Parkinson's treatments has seen many setbacks over decades.

US announces charges in $2.5 billion healthcare fraud takedown

The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday announced federal and local criminal charges targeting 78 defendants across 16 states as part of a law enforcement action involving $2.5 billion in alleged healthcare fraud schemes targeting elderly and disabled people, HIV patients and even pregnant women. The cases range from allegations of falsely billing the federal Medicare insurance program for elderly and disabled Americans and paying illegal kickbacks, to the illicit diversion of expensive prescription medications and the improper dispensing of highly addictive opioid pain killers.

Pfizer-OPKO's growth hormone drug gets US approval in kids

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Pfizer Inc and partner OPKO Health Inc's treatment for growth hormone deficiency in children, the companies said on Wednesday.

The approval, which comes after an initial rejection from the FDA in January last year, lifted Pfizer's shares marginally and Opko Health's nearly 19% in premarket trading.

Exclusive-Indian firm used toxic industrial-grade ingredient in syrup - sources

The Indian manufacturer of cough syrups that Uzbekistan said last year had poisoned 19 children used a toxic industrial-grade ingredient rather than the legitimate pharmaceutical version, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The company, Marion Biotech, bought the ingredient — propylene glycol (PG) — from trader Maya Chemtech India, as reported by Reuters. But Maya did not have a licence to sell pharmaceutical-grade materials and "dealt in industrial-grade only," according to a source at the firm with knowledge of the Marion investigation.

Funding brings first new TB vaccine in a century a step closer

Two major players in global health philanthropy are joining forces to fund the final stage of trials for what could be the first new vaccine against tuberculosis (TB) in more than 100 years. Wellcome and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will invest around $550 million in total for the Phase III trials of the M72 vaccine.

Cancer plaintiffs drill down on J&J's support for $8.9 billion talc deal

The lead negotiators for Johnson & Johnson's proposed $8.9 billion settlement of thousands of talc lawsuits faced intense questioning in U.S. bankruptcy court on Wednesday about how much support the company has for the deal. During a multi-day court hearing in Trenton, New Jersey, attorneys for plaintiffs alleging that J&J's baby powder and other talc products sometimes contained asbestos and caused ovarian cancer and mesothelioma drilled down on J&J's public statements that it has "secured commitments from over 60,000 current claimants" for the settlement, and that the "majority" of talc claimants support it.

U.S. judges block bans on transgender youth healthcare in Kentucky, Tennessee

Federal judges in Kentucky and Tennessee on Wednesday blocked state laws prohibiting the use of puberty-blocking drugs and hormones for transgender children from taking effect while lawsuits challenging the bans proceed. They are the latest in a series of similar rulings around the country, with laws in seven states now prevented from taking effect.