Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:
FDA Commissioner Resigns
The commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Lester Crawford, resigned Friday.
In a three-paragraph note sent to everyone in the agency, Crawford said, "It is time at the age of 67, to step aside."
Crawford had been confirmed two months ago by the Senate after serving as deputy and acting commissioner for the last three years.
His tenure was marked by the withdrawal of several high-profile drugs, including the painkiller Vioxx, over safety concerns, the Associated Press reported. He also faced accusations that the agency has held up over-the-counter access to the Plan B emergency contraceptive for political reasons.
The resignation was seen as a surprise, the AP said, since at a Washington speech on Monday, Crawford showed no sign that he was planning to leave.
A spokeswoman for Crawford's boss, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt, said Leavitt accepted Crawford's resignation "with sadness" and wished him well.
Asked if he was forced to resign, the spokeswoman declined further comment, calling it a personnel issue.
-----
Learning From Katrina, Texas Hospitals to Stay Open
Most of Houston's 72 hospitals plan to stay open during Hurricane Rita, hospital officials told CNN on Friday.
Learning from the mistakes made during Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, all but 25 of the Houston hospitals with a combined bed count of about 16,000 said they would stay open and were preparing for the worst.
The hospitals this week began to stock up with three to four days worth of food and water and enough diesel fuel to run their electric generators for several days, a hospital association spokesman told the news network.
Patients that could be sent home already have been discharged, although many staff members and their families planned to camp out at the hospital until at least Rita passes. Family pets, as they long are in their containers, are also welcome, a Harris County Hospital District spokesman told CNN.
The electric generators at the county's hospitals are above ground, where they are in less danger of shorting out as happened in New Orleans during Katrina, county hospital spokesman John Martinez told the network.
Sharing other lessons learned from Katrina, the Texas hospitals are being told to lock up their narcotic drugs, and to ensure that administrators track exactly where all of their patients end up. Precautions include writing patients' names on their hospital gowns and arms.
-----
Medicare Taps 9 Insurers for Drug Coverage
Nine insurers across the United States have been approved to provide Medicare's prescription drug coverage beginning New Year's Day, the Associated Press reported Friday.
"Scores" of other companies have been approved by the Bush Administration to provide coverage on a regional basis, the wire service said. All beneficiaries will have at least 11 drug plans to choose from, and in larger states, up to 20 plans, the AP said.
All of this competition represents good news for consumers, officials said. "Forty-nine states will have a drug plan with a premium below $20," Dr. Mark McClellan, administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, told the wire service.
Fewer than half of those eligible for the coverage have submitted the required application forms, however, the Pittsbugh Post-Gazette reported.
Companies can begin marketing their plans to millions of elderly and disabled Medicare beneficiaries on Oct. 1, and enrollment will begin Nov. 15, the AP said. McClellan said Medicare would try to help eligible beneficiaries select a plan that's best for them.
According to the AP, companies approved to offer drug coverage nationwide are: Aetna Life Insurance Co., Connecticut General Life Insurance Co., Medco, Memberhealth Inc., Pacificare Life and Health Insurance Co., Silverscript Insurance Co., Unicare, UnitedHealth Group Inc., and Wellcare Health Plans.
-----
Cheney Slated for Artery Surgery in Knee
Vice President Dick Cheney was scheduled for surgery at a Washington, D.C., hospital Saturday to repair a weak spot in an artery behind his right knee. The problem, known as an aneurysm, will mean up to a 48-hour stay at George Washington University Hospital, a Cheney spokeswoman told the Associated Press.
The condition, if left untreated, could lead to a ballooning artery that is at risk of bursting. Typical surgery involves sewing a fabric patch on the weak spot to reinforce it, the wire service said.
The vice president will have similar surgery on his left knee at a later date to repair the same problem, his spokeswoman said. The problems in both knees were discovered during a routine checkup earlier this year, the AP said.
Cheney, 64, had four heart attacks before he assumed his office in 2001. He has an implanted defibrillator to regulate his heartbeat if necessary, although a recent exam showed the device had never been activated, the wire service said.
-----
Cancer Drug Trial Enrollment Halted Early
Genentech Inc. has stopped enrolling ovarian cancer patients in a clinical study of its prescription drug Avastin because of more frequent instances of gastrointestinal perforations than were seen in previous trials, the company told the Associated Press on Friday.
Five of the 44 ovarian cancer patients given Avastin developed signs of gastrointestinal perforations during the Phase II trial. The study had been expected to enroll as many as 53 patients who hadn't responded to chemotherapy.
People already participating in the trial are being given the option of continuing or dropping out, the wire service said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration last year approved Avastin for colon cancer, but it's also being studied as a treatment for cancers of the prostate, kidney and pancreas, the AP said.
-----
Motor Oil Exposure Seems to Increase Arthritis Risk
Occupational exposure to motor and hydraulic oil and other mineral oils is associated with a 30 percent increased risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA), says a Swedish study in the current issue of the journal Arthritis Research & Therapy.
For the study, 1,419 RA patients and 1,674 healthy people in a control group filled out a questionnaire that collected information about their occupational exposure to different kinds of mineral oils, such as motor oil, hydraulic oil, cutting oil, form oil and asphalt.
Men were the only ones to report high occupational exposure to these oils -- mostly motor and hydraulic oil. The researchers selected a group of 135 male RA patients who reported high exposure and 132 healthy males for further study.
The findings confirm previous research that found that exposure to mineral oil induced arthritis in rats. The researchers also said their study raises questions about a link between arthritis and exposure to other environmental or occupational substances that may activate the immune system in similar ways as mineral oils.
