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VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Conventional wisdom holds that when the risk of catching a disease is high, people are more likely to get vaccinated to protect themselves. This may not be the case, however, according to a study presented May 5 at the Pediatric Academic Societies' annual meeting.

Researchers, led by Elizabeth Wolf, compared rates of infant vaccination with the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine before and during an epidemic of pertussis (whooping cough) in Washington state. Surprisingly, they found no difference in vaccination rates.

CHICAGO — Although some guidelines recommend lipid screening for children and adolescents of certain ages, data indicate that only about 3% are having their cholesterol tested during health visits, according to a study in the May 7 issue of JAMA, a themed issue on child health. 

HORSHAM, Pa. — Symphony Health Solutions last week announced it now offers weekly views of pharmaceutical sales and prescription activity. The company launched PHAST 2.0 Institutional Weekly and PHAST 2.0 Integrated Weekly, weekly audits of U.S. institutional sales and overall market activity.

CHICAGO — In a study released Saturday that included data from more than 3 million children and adolescents from diverse geographic regions of the United States, researchers found that the prevalence of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes increased significantly between 2001 and 2009. The study was published in the May 7 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on child health. This issue was released early to coincide with the Pediatric Academic Societies Annual Meeting.

LENOIR, N.C. — Greer Labs announced the launch and commmercial availability of Oralair (Sweet Vernal, Orchard, Perennial Rye, Timothy, and Kentucky Blue Grass mixed pollens allergen extract) sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablets. The drug is used for the treatment of grass pollen-induced allergic rhinitis with or without conjunctivitis.

WILMINGTON, Del. — AstraZeneca on Tuesday announced the Food and Drug Administration approved Epanova (omega-3-carboxylic acids) as an adjunct to diet to reduce triglyceride levels in adults with severe hypertriglyceridemia (triglyceride levels greater than or equal to 500 mg/dL).

NEW YORK — Last winter's flu season was fairly typical of other winters over the last decade, with the prevalence of the flu and the number of people who had flu shots both fairly close to the averages for that time period, the Harris Poll reported Tuesday. The effectiveness of flu vaccines also seems to have been fairly typical.

NEW YORK — Pfizer early Friday morning upped the ante in its bid for AstraZeneca, which is now valued at $106 billion. Pfizer’s Chairman and CEO contacted AstraZeneca’s Chairman prior to the issuance of the announcement and AstraZeneca indicated it would respond after its board has reviewed the proposal.