Takeda Global Research & Development Center, a wholly owned U.S. subsidiary of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, received on June 26 a complete response letter from the FDA, rejecting its new drug application for alogliptin, a selective dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitor, under investigation for the treatment of type 2 diabetes as an adjunct to diet and exercise.

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the leading cause of death in the U.S., accounting for nearly 300,000 deaths every year more than lung cancer, breast cancer and HIV/AIDS combined.The chance of survival decreases by about 10 percent for every minute that a defibrillation shock from an AED is not received, however, AEDs are still not widely available and their use is often unknown.

Its increasingly clear that improved outcomes after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest depend on having a host of protocols in place, rather than relying on one therapy or benchmark. The combined use of an automated CPR device and an impedance threshold device is proving to be beneficial in this patient population.

The FDA has notified patients and healthcare professionals that some stolen vials of the long-acting insulin Levemir, made by Novo Nordisk, and being sold in the U.S. market, may not have been stored and handled properly and may be dangerous for patients.

In people with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) and/or impaired fasting glucose (IFG) without cardiovascular disease and diabetes, treatment with ramipril had a neutral effect on carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), whereas rosiglitazone modestly reduced CIMT progression, according to the STARR trial results released June 2 issue in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

The use of aspirin in people with no history of relevant disease can reduce non-fatal MIs by approximately one-fifth, but it also can increase the risk of internal bleeding by about one-third. Thus, its long-term use for primary prevention is uncertain since its risks and benefits could potentially cancel each other out, according to a study in the May 29 issue of the Lancet.

Physicians who treat patients with multiple,co-existing, chronic health problems will fare well under pay-for-performance (P4P) initiatives, according to a report in the June 2 issue of Circulation.

Bristol-Myers Squibb has reported its 2009 first quarter net earnings from continuing operations attributable to the shareholders of $638 million, compared to $647 million for the same period in 2008.