HEALTH

WSJ: FDA to discuss updating monograph system
SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration will host a public meeting in March to discuss updating the OTC monograph system, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

According to the report, the FDA will consider improving the agency's ability to initiate label changes quickly, allowing for faster innovation from manufacturers and imposing new pediatric dosing limits based on the most recent science.
CDC: Working-age Americans hit hard by flu, only 1-in-3 getting flu shot
ATLANTA — Only one-third of adults between the ages of 18 and 64 have gotten their flu shot this season, which is a contributing factor to why this year's flu activity has hit young adults particularly hard, according to Tom Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Ferndale Healthcare partners with Colon Cancer Alliance

FERNDALE, Mich. — Ferndale Healthcare recently announced a three-year partnership on behalf of its RectiCare (lidocaine 5%) Anorectal Cream brand and the Colon Cancer Alliance. This nonprofit corporation is the nation’s leading patient advocacy organization dedicated to increasing colon cancer screening rates and survivorship.
Larry the Cable Guy teams with Prilosec OTC on monster truck sweepstakes

CINCINNATI — Comedian Larry the Cable Guy has teamed up with Prilosec OTC to show racing fans that “You Can’t Beat Zero” by offering them great “Zero Experiences” at two top stock car races and a chance at winning Prilosec OTC’s hottest wheels: a “monster” utility vehicle.
ERSP recommends truDERMA discontinue certain claims supporting Troxyphen

NEW YORK — The Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program on Tuesday recommended that truDERMA discontinue certain claims for the company’s Troxyphen dietary supplement, including claims that the product is “safe and clinically researched.”

As support for the performance and establishment claims at issue, the marketer submitted testing on its key ingredient. After reviewing the evidence, ERSP concluded that truDERMA provided a reasonable basis for claims relating to an “increased sex drive.”
West Virginia prescription-only PSE bill passes Senate, heads to House of Delegates

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The West Virginia Senate on Tuesday voted 25-to-9 to make pseudoephedrine a Schedule IV prescription drug and exempt medicines that can’t easily be diverted to methamphetamine, according to published reports. A similar bill is being considered by the West Virginia House of Delegates.

According to reports, the two exceptions to the prescription-only requirement would include Acura Pharmaceuticals' Nexafed and Westport Pharmaceuticals' Zephrex-D.
Mucinex to tap into robust nighttime market

PARSIPPANY, N.J. — Reckitt Benckiser this season extended its line of popular Mucinex Fast-Max to include a product for nighttime cold and flu relief in both liquid and tablet form.

According to the company, nighttime relief is a $600 million market in the United States, and Mucinex Fast-Max is differentiated from its competitors because it contains an active ingredient for nasal decongestion.
Segmentation on the horizon

Retailers were preparing for the imminent launch of Chattem’s Nasacort Allergy 24HR nasal spray (triamcinolone intranasal) last month, clearing out quite a bit of shelf space for the new allergy remedy.

(For the full category review, including sales data, click here.)
CDC: Flu rates on the decline but still prevalent across 13 states

ATLANTA — While flu activity declined slightly from the week prior, incidence of influenza-like illness rates remained above the national baseline for the week ended Feb. 8, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday.

Six states were still experiencing high ILI activity, including Arkansas, Connecticut, Kansas, New York, Oklahoma and Texas.
Study: Vitamin D supplementation may augment chronic hive therapy

OMAHA, Neb. — A study by researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center found that vitamin D as an add-on therapy could provide some relief for chronic hives, a condition with no cure and few treatment options.

Jill Poole, associate professor in the UNMC Department of Internal Medicine, was principal investigator of a study in the Feb. 7 edition of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. The two-year study looked at the role of over-the-counter vitamin D3 as a supplemental treatment for chronic hives.