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Common Autism Medication Is Ineffective For Repetitive Behaviors, Study Finds
June 1, 2009: Citalopram (Celexa), a medication commonly prescribed to children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), was no more effective than a placebo at reducing repetitive behaviors, according to a multi-site clinical trial guided by lead author Bryan H. King, MD, director of child and adolescent psychiatry at Seattle Children"s Hospital and professor and vice chair of psychiatry at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Because citalopram is also prescribed for patients with obsessive compulsive disorders (OCD), these study results may challenge the widely held premise that repetitive behaviors in children with ASD are similar to repetitive behaviors often found in cases of OCD. The study "Lack of Efficacy of Citalopram in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and High Levels of Repetitive Behavior" was published in the June 2009 issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.
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Clinton Heads To Kenya As Africa Visit Begins
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton kicked off a seven country, 11-day trip - "her longest overseas journey to date as the top U.S. diplomat - by flying Monday night to Kenya where she will address an African trade and development forum, meet top Kenyan officials and see the beleaguered president of lawless Somalia"s interim government," the Associated Press reports. During the trip, Clinton is expected to "underscore the importance of efforts to combat HIV/AIDS and pledge continuing U.S. backing for health care initiatives in Africa," the AP writes (Lee, 8/3).
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AGTC And National Neurovision Research Institute Collaborate, Funding Research In Two Genetic Retinal Diseases
Applied Genetic Technologies Corporation (AGTC), a privately-held, clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel systems to deliver human therapeutics, announces that AGTC has entered into an agreement with the National Neurovision Research Institute (NNRI), the clinical trial support organization for the Foundation Fighting Blindness(FFB), to collaborate in experiments using the AAV delivery system in the treatment of two genetic retinal diseases known to cause blindness at an early age. The research will be coordinated by AGTC and will be conducted at The University of Florida, Oregon Health & Science University, The University of Pennsylvania, and The University of British Columbia.
Public Health

Sebelius, DeParle Ready To Tackle Health Care Overhaul

The friendship between "working moms" Kathleen Sebelius and Nancy-Ann DeParle "could pay big dividends for President Obama now," USA Today reports. The two have a lot in common in the policy world as well. Sebelius, the secretary of Health and Human Services, and DeParle, director of the White House Office of Health Reform, "first met at the White House mess in 1997, during the battle for a patients" bill of rights to combat the constraints of managed care." Their relationship was then "built over a dozen years on topics ranging from the children"s health insurance program to raising their own children. Now, they are the "tag team for Obama"s most ambitious domestic policy goal: an overhaul of the nation"s health care system." Sebelius and DeParle are "two pragmatists" who aim to "work with Congress rather than dictate it, as the Clinton administration did." This means "spending more time with lawmakers." And while "their goal is to get something passed that includes Obama"s principles," "on the most controversial points, the two are willing to negotiate." For example, "they want a public insurance plan to compete with private insurers but say it doesn"t need to be a rigid, Medicare-like model. They want more employers to offer health insurance but have not insisted on a mandate. They want to cover more uninsured but have not dictated how many. They want to pay for the expansion but aren"t saying what taxes to raise or spending to cut." Sebelius and DeParle sat down with USA Today for a "joint interview," in which "the two occasionally finish each other"s sentences." The two joked that many people still believe they are hiding a completed health care bill, but insisted it will be Congress who writes it "by consensus." "So far, many members are pleased with the tag team"s light touch," but there is still significant concern and disagreement in Congress over the reform efforts in the White House. DeParle says the issue of health care "hits very close to home" for both women. "It"s part of what makes this work so important and wonderful, I think, for both of us - being able to be involved in something that could really make a difference in people"s lives" (Wolf, 6/2). This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org. © Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.


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