An illustration explaining how malaria infects humans. An outbreak of malaria in northern Nigeria's Katsina state has killed 401 people in the last four weeks, a health official told AFP Friday.(AFP/Graphic)

KANO, Nigeria (AFP) -
An outbreak of malaria in northern Nigeria's Katsina state has killed 401 people in the last four weeks, a health official told [...]

A view of the Belgian headquarters of U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, in Brussels in this January 23, 2007 file photo. (Francois Lenoir/Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) -
Pfizer Inc said on Friday it plans to pay $894 million to settle lawsuits alleging that its withdrawn Bextra painkiller and widely used Celebrex arthritis drug harmed U.S. patients and defrauded [...]

Generic Aspirin pain medication pills are shown in the pharmacy of the J.W.C.H. safety-net clinic in the center of skid row in downtown Los Angeles, July 30, 2007. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) -
Doctors should not routinely give aspirin to people with diabetes to help guard against a heart attack or stroke, a British study found on [...]

TOKYO - Japanese drug maker Daiichi Sankyo Co. and U.S. partner Eli Lilly & Co. sought to reassure investors Friday that a highly anticipated blood thinner remains on track for approval, despite escalating concerns of further delays by federal health regulators.
Wall Street has big hopes for the potential blockbuster medication, called prasugrel, but its enthusiasm [...]

- (HealthDay News) — Your mother probably urged you to eat a
healthy breakfast, noting it was the day's most important meal.

She was right, says the Nemours Foundation, which offers these
suggestions on how to refuel your kids to begin their day:

Keep your kitchen full of healthy, quick and easy breakfast
choices.
If morning time is at [...]

A woman chooses Halloween goods at a shopping mall in Tokyo October 17, 2008. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon(JAPAN)

- (HealthDay News) — Before you and your child head out for a
night of trick or treat, make sure you choose a Halloween costume that
will keep your child safe.

The U.S. National Safety Council offers these suggestions:

Only choose [...]

- FRIDAY, Oct. 17 (HealthDay News) — Almost half of the patients
who die in the intensive care units of hospitals do so after a prolonged
withdrawal of life support, a process doctors refer to as “stuttering,” a
new study found.

And even though families were often more satisfied after such a
process, doctors feel this was frequently not [...]

- FRIDAY, Oct. 17 (HealthDay News) — Mammograms detect 80 percent
to 90 percent of breast cancers in women without symptoms, and all women
40 and older should get a yearly mammogram, says the American Cancer
Society (ACS) as it marks National Mammography Day on Friday, Oct. 17.

“Mammography remains the most effective screening test for the early
detection [...]

- (HealthDay News) — Here are the latest clinical trials, courtesy
of CenterWatch:

Multiple Sclerosis

If you are aged 18 to 80, weigh at least 110 pounds,
and have either a spinal cord injury or a clinically stable diagnosis of
multiple sclerosis, you may qualify for this study.

The research
site is in Lawrenceville, N.J.

More information

Please see http://www.centerwatch.com/patient/studies/cat102.html.

—–

Crohn's [...]

- Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments,
compiled by editors of HealthDay:

Democratic Fundraiser Gets Unapproved Multiple
Myeloma Drug

Despite a drug maker's refusal to grant permission, a prominent
Democratic fundraiser is being treated with a drug that's unapproved to
treat multiple myeloma.

A “legal basis” was found that cleared the way for the drug [...]