M.U has failed to come to Indonesia.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Shaq O'neal to star in sports reality series
Shaquille O'Neal will star in a TV series where the NBA centre will challenge top athletes such as Michael Phelps in their respective sports.
During one episode of "Shaq Vs.," which debuts on Aug. 18 on ABC, Shaq will swim against Olympic superstar Phelps.
O'Neal, now with the Cleveland Cavaliers, also will try his football skills against Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, box retired world champion Oscar De La Hoya, bat against St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols, trade tennis volleys with Wimbledon champ Serena Williams and play volleyball against Olympic gold medallists Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor.
O'Neal will negotiate a handicap with his opponents and train with a coach for one week leading up to each challenge.
"These athletes may be on top of their game, but I am up for the challenge," O'Neal said. "I plan to train hard and win, so look out."
O'Neal came up with the idea for the competition as a way of training for the upcoming season.
His first opponent will be Roethlisberger, the Steelers' Super Bowl-winning QB. They'll compete in a 7-on-7 passing drill to be filmed later this week in the Pittsburgh area. Also, there will be a news conference leading up to the event as well as before future challenges.
A four-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat, O'Neal was traded from Phoenix to Cleveland last month. The 37-year-old has just one season left on his contract but said he wants to play three more years and is hoping he can help Cleveland superstar LeBron James win his first league title.
LeBron James reveals struggle with early fame in new book
LeBron James struggled with sudden fame after appearing on Sports Illustrated's cover as a 17-year-old and admits he smoked marijuana in high school.
Those are two of the revelations in a book chronicling James' rise from Ohio basketball prodigy to NBA superstar.
In "Shooting Stars," written by James and co-author Buzz Bissinger, James said the SI cover and the media attention he and his high school teammates received was difficult to handle.
"We had become big-headed jerks, me in particular," James said, "and we are to blame for that, but so are adults who treated us that way and then sat back and smugly watched the self-destruction."
In the book, scheduled for release in September, the NBA's reigning MVP recounts the media circus that enveloped his final two years at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School following his SI cover appearance, which called him "The Chosen One." James said he and close friends Dru Joyce, Sian Cotton, Romeo Travis and Willie McGee - nicknamed the Fab Five - became "rock stars" and took advantage of their celebrity.
"I was arrogant, dubbing myself 'The Chosen One,"' James said. "In hindsight, I should have kept quiet, but I also was what I was, a teenager where every reporter in the world seemed to be rushing toward me at once."
James also revealed he and his teammates smoked marijuana one night after getting access to a hotel room in Akron, Ohio.
James feels he was unfairly targeted by the media, which he described as "excited spectators at a car crash" after it was learned that his mother, Gloria, obtained a loan to buy him a $US50,000 Hummer for his birthday. He said the scrutiny was humiliating for his mother, who was living with him in a rental-assistance apartment.
"Was the vehicle excessive, with its bank of three televisions? Maybe. Probably. Of course it was," James said. "So were the BMWs parked in the St. V lot, belonging to fellow students. But nobody ever questioned those."
James also recounts being suspended by the Ohio High School Athletic Association for accepting two jerseys as gifts from a Cleveland area clothing store. He describes the OHSAA as "ravenous" and is highly critical of former commissioner Clair Muscaro.
James said Muscaro, whose suspension of him was later reduced in court, wanted to put James and his school "in our place. ... "this was a witch hunt, one-man posse's attempt to humiliate me, subject me to ridicule, rip open rumours that I was corrupt and ruin a dream."
James said the experiences drew he and his friends closer and proved to be valuable life lessons, many of which he attributes to "karma."
All Blacks' biggest problem a simple one: not enough points
The All Blacks have struggled to cross the chalk in the first two matches of the Tri-Nations, scoring just two tries.
If they are going to defend their title they need to crank up their attack this weekend in Durban.
Today was the team's day off, time to relax and for the backs coach time to worry about catching some waves rather than his misfiring attack.
"I think we’re improving," says Wayne Smith. "We're playing with a bit of width and there is better understanding of what we want to do. Execution has been our big thing under pressure, where we’ve made some critical errors."
Those errors have blunted the All Blacks' attack. They averaged two tries a game in the three June tests, and just one per test in the Tri-Nations. They have halved their points per match from two years ago, down from 41 to just under 21 points this year.
Smith says the absence of Daniel Carter is not an issue - the errors are to blame, along with improved defence and more kicking.
"We are trying to play that expansive of game that we have always played, but we have had to modify as well."
The attack has not been helped by the misfiring lineout. The best attacking ball is off the top, and at the end - two things the All Blacks regularly fail to achieve.
"Having said that there were enough opportunities to score tries from. We didn't quite manage it," says Smith.
If unlocking the Springbok defence is not challenge enough, against the backdrop of strikes, violence and riots that are quite sadly almost the norm in South Africa, Springbok coach Peter de Villiers says a second victory against the All Blacks on Sunday will be a welcome tonic for the country.
"You play the game for quite a few reasons," he says. "One, to be the leaders and to assert yourself on the field and make people respect you, the second and the most important one for me is to build a nation."
"It's a difficult place to play," says Smith, "but it's a great place to play because the game is so significant and you feel significant being a part of it."
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
FDA Investigating Safety of Asthma Drug Xolair
THURSDAY, July 16 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has begun a safety review of the asthma drug Xolair (omalizumab) after reports of an increased risk of heart attack, abnormal heart rhythm, heart failure and stroke, the agency said Thursday.
Early results from the what's known as the EXCELS trial (Evaluating the Clinical Effectiveness and Long-Term Safety in Patients with Moderate to Severe Asthma) spurred the investigation, the FDA said. The results indicate that Xolair boosts the risk of heart problems among users of the drug compared with nonusers.
The data from the trial was supplied to the FDA by Genentech, the maker of Xolair. The trial includes some 5,000 people taking the drug and an additional 2,500 people who are not using Xolair, according to the FDA.
Xolair, which is given by injection, is intended for people whose asthma is not controlled by inhaled corticosteroids.
Currently, the FDA is not telling people using Xolair to stop taking the drug. However, the agency believes that patients and doctors should be aware of potential problems when taking Xolair, including the possible risk for heart attack and stroke.
The final results of the study are not expected until 2012, and the FDA pointed out that factors other than the drug could be responsible for the increase in heart attack and stroke seen among users of Xolair.
Genentech spokeswoman Tara Cooper said the preliminary study results are not sufficient to prove the drug causes increased risk for heart attack and stroke.
"Limitations of the existing data preclude a definitive association with Xolair use," Cooper said. "At this time, there is insufficient information for the companies to change their assessment of the benefit-risk profile for Xolair. Physicians should continue to assess whether Xolair is appropriate for their individual patients."
One asthma expert was surprised by the FDA's action.
"In my experience, in properly selected patients, [Xolair] has been a great benefit and clinical improvement can be dramatic, on a case-by-case basis," said Dr. Clifford Bassett, a fellow at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York.
"As far as the possible events associated as indicated by the FDA release, I am surprised as I have not observed or seen those type of problems to date," he said.
Mike Tringale, director of external affairs for the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, said that there was nothing in the FDA's statement that called for stopping the trial or adding a "black box" warning to the drug.
"The statement today was a usual and customary keeping [of] patients in the loop," he said.
"I am not overly concerned," Tringale said. "But it would be irresponsible not to keep an eye on the accumulating data. It's an opportunity for patients to discuss this with their doctor."
Two years ago, the FDA warned of a connection between Xolair and anaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis is a sudden, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that can include trouble breathing, tightness in the chest, dizziness, fainting, itching and hives, and swelling of the mouth and throat.
At that time, the FDA asked Genentech to update the existing label warning and to provide a Patient Medication Guide with a strengthened warning for anaphylaxis.
Early results from the what's known as the EXCELS trial (Evaluating the Clinical Effectiveness and Long-Term Safety in Patients with Moderate to Severe Asthma) spurred the investigation, the FDA said. The results indicate that Xolair boosts the risk of heart problems among users of the drug compared with nonusers.
The data from the trial was supplied to the FDA by Genentech, the maker of Xolair. The trial includes some 5,000 people taking the drug and an additional 2,500 people who are not using Xolair, according to the FDA.
Xolair, which is given by injection, is intended for people whose asthma is not controlled by inhaled corticosteroids.
Currently, the FDA is not telling people using Xolair to stop taking the drug. However, the agency believes that patients and doctors should be aware of potential problems when taking Xolair, including the possible risk for heart attack and stroke.
The final results of the study are not expected until 2012, and the FDA pointed out that factors other than the drug could be responsible for the increase in heart attack and stroke seen among users of Xolair.
Genentech spokeswoman Tara Cooper said the preliminary study results are not sufficient to prove the drug causes increased risk for heart attack and stroke.
"Limitations of the existing data preclude a definitive association with Xolair use," Cooper said. "At this time, there is insufficient information for the companies to change their assessment of the benefit-risk profile for Xolair. Physicians should continue to assess whether Xolair is appropriate for their individual patients."
One asthma expert was surprised by the FDA's action.
"In my experience, in properly selected patients, [Xolair] has been a great benefit and clinical improvement can be dramatic, on a case-by-case basis," said Dr. Clifford Bassett, a fellow at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York.
"As far as the possible events associated as indicated by the FDA release, I am surprised as I have not observed or seen those type of problems to date," he said.
Mike Tringale, director of external affairs for the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, said that there was nothing in the FDA's statement that called for stopping the trial or adding a "black box" warning to the drug.
"The statement today was a usual and customary keeping [of] patients in the loop," he said.
"I am not overly concerned," Tringale said. "But it would be irresponsible not to keep an eye on the accumulating data. It's an opportunity for patients to discuss this with their doctor."
Two years ago, the FDA warned of a connection between Xolair and anaphylaxis.
Anaphylaxis is a sudden, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction that can include trouble breathing, tightness in the chest, dizziness, fainting, itching and hives, and swelling of the mouth and throat.
At that time, the FDA asked Genentech to update the existing label warning and to provide a Patient Medication Guide with a strengthened warning for anaphylaxis.
Parental Stress Boosts Kids' Asthma Risk
TUESDAY, July 21 (HealthDay News) -- Air pollution from cars can increase a child's chances of developing asthma, but add parental stress and the odds for asthma get even higher, a new study finds.
For children exposed to smoking while still in the womb, another asthma risk, parental stress also increases the risk for asthma, the researchers noted.
"There is an association between air pollution and asthma, and it grows with increasing exposure to stress in the household," said lead researcher Ketan Shankardass, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Research on Inner City Health at The Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.
"The cause of asthma is still unknown," Shankardass said. "It's a major illness that affects a lot of people all around the world and we still don't really have a handle on what causes it so we can't control it very well. But this finding contributes to our understanding of that causal process."
The report is published in this week's online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
For the study, Shankardass and his colleagues collected data on 2,497 children in southern California. The children, aged 5 to 9, had no history of asthma or wheeze when the study started. Over three years, the researchers tracked whether or not the children developed asthma.
In addition, the researchers had the parents fill out a questionnaire that measured stress. The questionnaire asked the child's mother about whether she felt in control of her life and whether she felt she was able to handle problems or whether she had problems coping with her life, Shankardass said.
The study authors also collected data on the children's exposure to traffic-related pollution and whether the children were exposed to tobacco smoke before birth.
By itself, stress or socioeconomic status did not increase the risk of developing asthma, the researchers found.
However, when parental stress was combined with traffic pollution or exposure to smoking before birth, the risk of asthma increased more than it did for children exposed to pollution or smoke, but not stress.
Shankardass noted that exposure to traffic pollution and prenatal smoking as well as stress are more common in lower socioeconomic areas, which may help explain why asthma may disproportionately affect children of disadvantaged parents.
"For once, we may have a piece of the puzzle that would explain the social disparities in asthma," he said.
Dr. Clifford Bassett, medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York, said it is not surprising that parental stress can have an impact on children and asthma.
"Stress does have an impact on the immune system. Clearly, the relationship between stress, tobacco and air pollution are all bad guys," Bassett said.
"There are many different variables -- behavioral, socioeconomic, environmental and physiologic -- that dictate whether a child will develop asthma," Bassett added. "There are a lot of biologic pathways that are involved in the relationship of asthma and stress and the immune system."
Bassett also thinks gauging household stress should be part of treating children with asthma.
For children exposed to smoking while still in the womb, another asthma risk, parental stress also increases the risk for asthma, the researchers noted.
"There is an association between air pollution and asthma, and it grows with increasing exposure to stress in the household," said lead researcher Ketan Shankardass, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Centre for Research on Inner City Health at The Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto.
"The cause of asthma is still unknown," Shankardass said. "It's a major illness that affects a lot of people all around the world and we still don't really have a handle on what causes it so we can't control it very well. But this finding contributes to our understanding of that causal process."
The report is published in this week's online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
For the study, Shankardass and his colleagues collected data on 2,497 children in southern California. The children, aged 5 to 9, had no history of asthma or wheeze when the study started. Over three years, the researchers tracked whether or not the children developed asthma.
In addition, the researchers had the parents fill out a questionnaire that measured stress. The questionnaire asked the child's mother about whether she felt in control of her life and whether she felt she was able to handle problems or whether she had problems coping with her life, Shankardass said.
The study authors also collected data on the children's exposure to traffic-related pollution and whether the children were exposed to tobacco smoke before birth.
By itself, stress or socioeconomic status did not increase the risk of developing asthma, the researchers found.
However, when parental stress was combined with traffic pollution or exposure to smoking before birth, the risk of asthma increased more than it did for children exposed to pollution or smoke, but not stress.
Shankardass noted that exposure to traffic pollution and prenatal smoking as well as stress are more common in lower socioeconomic areas, which may help explain why asthma may disproportionately affect children of disadvantaged parents.
"For once, we may have a piece of the puzzle that would explain the social disparities in asthma," he said.
Dr. Clifford Bassett, medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York, said it is not surprising that parental stress can have an impact on children and asthma.
"Stress does have an impact on the immune system. Clearly, the relationship between stress, tobacco and air pollution are all bad guys," Bassett said.
"There are many different variables -- behavioral, socioeconomic, environmental and physiologic -- that dictate whether a child will develop asthma," Bassett added. "There are a lot of biologic pathways that are involved in the relationship of asthma and stress and the immune system."
Bassett also thinks gauging household stress should be part of treating children with asthma.
CDC Panel to Recommend Who Should Get Swine Flu Shot
TUESDAY, July 28 (HealthDay News) -- With the first trials of a vaccine against the new H1N1 swine flu set to begin shortly, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will convene a panel of experts Wednesday to recommend a priority list of candidates for the vaccine.
Those recommendations will assume that a safe and effective vaccine will be available by October in sufficient quantity to start a mass vaccination program in the United States. If all goes well, the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine should be known by late August or September, federal officials said.
"The panel will get an update on the H1N1 in the United States," said CDC spokesman Tom Skinner. "They will get an update on where things stand with the development of a vaccine against novel H1N1 and an update on the steps being taken to plan for a potential vaccination campaign in the fall."
By meeting's end, the CDC expects to have a good idea of who should be given priority for the vaccine, Skinner said.
"We won't have final guidelines for use of the vaccine, [but] we will have a pretty good idea of who is going to be first in line to get a vaccine if we get to the point of having a vaccine that is safe and effective by late fall or early winter," he said.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will consider various scenarios, including a vaccine shortage, Skinner said. And once a vaccine has been approved, the panel will vote on final recommendations for its use, he said.
Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at New York University Langone Medical Center in New York City, thinks he has a pretty good idea of what the recommendation for the H1N1 vaccine will be.
"We should target health-care workers, those under 2 [years of age], pregnant women, those chronically ill, those with asthma," Siegel said. "The next category should be school children. Not only is schools where flu spreads, but there isn't as much immunity in the younger population."
All these groups have been the most susceptible to the H1N1 swine flu, with the majority of hospitalizations and deaths. Unlike seasonal flu, which typically strikes hardest at the very young and the elderly, H1N1 swine flu has proven more troublesome for children and young adults. Scientists believe that older people might have some immunity to H1N1 viruses, which haven't been predominant flu strains for several decades.
Another infectious-disease expert said the twin threats of seasonal flu and the new H1N1 strain will require many people to get shots for both diseases and could pose management problems.
"This coming flu season will be quite different than those in the recent past as the new H1N1 swine flu strain will in all probability re-emerge and cause significant illness in at-risk people, such as young children and adolescents," said Dr. Pascal James Imperato, dean and distinguished service professor in the School of Public Health at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in New York City.
The seasonal flu vaccine will offer no protection against the H1N1 swine flu, he said.
"This means that some groups in the population will need to receive more than just one flu shot in order to be protected against all of the influenza strains in circulation," Imperato said. "This is an unusual circumstance and will require additional documentation effort on the part of those administering the flu vaccines and people receiving them to be sure that the appropriate immunizations are given."
"There may also be logistical challenges for patients and health-care providers as we attempt to deliver two different influenza vaccines during the same season," he added.
Then there's the lingering memory of the 1976 swine flu vaccination program, during which some 500 Americans came down with a rare neurodegenerative condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome, which many experts believe was linked to the shot. Twenty-five of those 500 people died.
"The potential for more severe illness and many more deaths caused by this new strain of influenza weighs heavily on our minds -- as does the unfortunate outcome of the 1976 swine flu vaccination program," said CDC spokeswoman Arleen Porcell-Pharr.
The H1N1 flu vaccines will be very much like seasonal flu vaccines, which have an excellent safety profile, Porcell-Pharr said. "However, no vaccine is 100 percent safe. This vaccine will be no exception," she said.
If the vaccines are recommended for use, those who choose to be inoculated will receive information sheets describing the vaccines' risks and benefits, signs of side effects to look for after vaccination, and information on how to report adverse events, she added.
"We will be watching very closely for any signs that the vaccine is causing unexpected side effects, and we have systems in place to investigate those signals rapidly," Porcell-Pharr said.
Those recommendations will assume that a safe and effective vaccine will be available by October in sufficient quantity to start a mass vaccination program in the United States. If all goes well, the safety and effectiveness of the vaccine should be known by late August or September, federal officials said.
"The panel will get an update on the H1N1 in the United States," said CDC spokesman Tom Skinner. "They will get an update on where things stand with the development of a vaccine against novel H1N1 and an update on the steps being taken to plan for a potential vaccination campaign in the fall."
By meeting's end, the CDC expects to have a good idea of who should be given priority for the vaccine, Skinner said.
"We won't have final guidelines for use of the vaccine, [but] we will have a pretty good idea of who is going to be first in line to get a vaccine if we get to the point of having a vaccine that is safe and effective by late fall or early winter," he said.
The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices will consider various scenarios, including a vaccine shortage, Skinner said. And once a vaccine has been approved, the panel will vote on final recommendations for its use, he said.
Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at New York University Langone Medical Center in New York City, thinks he has a pretty good idea of what the recommendation for the H1N1 vaccine will be.
"We should target health-care workers, those under 2 [years of age], pregnant women, those chronically ill, those with asthma," Siegel said. "The next category should be school children. Not only is schools where flu spreads, but there isn't as much immunity in the younger population."
All these groups have been the most susceptible to the H1N1 swine flu, with the majority of hospitalizations and deaths. Unlike seasonal flu, which typically strikes hardest at the very young and the elderly, H1N1 swine flu has proven more troublesome for children and young adults. Scientists believe that older people might have some immunity to H1N1 viruses, which haven't been predominant flu strains for several decades.
Another infectious-disease expert said the twin threats of seasonal flu and the new H1N1 strain will require many people to get shots for both diseases and could pose management problems.
"This coming flu season will be quite different than those in the recent past as the new H1N1 swine flu strain will in all probability re-emerge and cause significant illness in at-risk people, such as young children and adolescents," said Dr. Pascal James Imperato, dean and distinguished service professor in the School of Public Health at SUNY Downstate Medical Center in New York City.
The seasonal flu vaccine will offer no protection against the H1N1 swine flu, he said.
"This means that some groups in the population will need to receive more than just one flu shot in order to be protected against all of the influenza strains in circulation," Imperato said. "This is an unusual circumstance and will require additional documentation effort on the part of those administering the flu vaccines and people receiving them to be sure that the appropriate immunizations are given."
"There may also be logistical challenges for patients and health-care providers as we attempt to deliver two different influenza vaccines during the same season," he added.
Then there's the lingering memory of the 1976 swine flu vaccination program, during which some 500 Americans came down with a rare neurodegenerative condition called Guillain-Barre syndrome, which many experts believe was linked to the shot. Twenty-five of those 500 people died.
"The potential for more severe illness and many more deaths caused by this new strain of influenza weighs heavily on our minds -- as does the unfortunate outcome of the 1976 swine flu vaccination program," said CDC spokeswoman Arleen Porcell-Pharr.
The H1N1 flu vaccines will be very much like seasonal flu vaccines, which have an excellent safety profile, Porcell-Pharr said. "However, no vaccine is 100 percent safe. This vaccine will be no exception," she said.
If the vaccines are recommended for use, those who choose to be inoculated will receive information sheets describing the vaccines' risks and benefits, signs of side effects to look for after vaccination, and information on how to report adverse events, she added.
"We will be watching very closely for any signs that the vaccine is causing unexpected side effects, and we have systems in place to investigate those signals rapidly," Porcell-Pharr said.
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