Weekly Roundup: 12 Health Press Releases You Need to See

A roundup of the week's most newsworthy healthcare press releases from PR Newswire, including findings from the largest study on cannabis and brain function, FDA approval of LEQEMBI^® maintenance dosing and a new CVS Health app.

NEW YORK, Jan. 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- With thousands of press releases published each week, it can be difficult to keep up with everything on PR Newswire. To help healthcare journalists and consumers stay on top of the week's most newsworthy and popular releases, here's a recap of some major stories from the week that shouldn't be missed.

The list below includes the headline (with a link to the full text) and an excerpt from each story. Click on the press release headlines to access accompanying multimedia assets that are available for download.

1. FDA approves Ozempic^® (semaglutide) as the only GLP-1 RA to reduce the risk of worsening kidney disease and cardiovascular death in adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease
   The FDA has expanded the benefits of Ozempic^® to a new patient population that needs critical treatment options to reduce the risk of kidney disease worsening, kidney failure (end-stage kidney disease), and death due to cardiovascular disease. "With this new indication, Ozempic^® stands out uniquely as the most broadly indicated GLP-1 RA in its class," said Anna Windle, PhD, Senior Vice President Clinical Development, Medical & Regulatory Affairs at Novo Nordisk.
2. Introducing the CVS Health^® app: Your go-to companion for health & wellness
   The app, a successor to the CVS Pharmacy^® app and one of many initiatives underway at CVS Health to improve the health care experience, is designed to become a single app for consumers' whole health.
3. Largest Study Ever Done on Cannabis and Brain Function Finds Impact on Working Memory
   The researchers found that 63% of heavy lifetime cannabis users exhibited reduced brain activity during a working memory task, while 68% of recent users also demonstrated a similar impact.
4. Zimmer Biomet Announces Definitive Agreement to Acquire Paragon 28
   "This proposed transaction further diversifies Zimmer Biomet's portfolio outside of core orthopedics and positions us well in one of the highest growth specialized segments in musculoskeletal care, while creating cross-selling opportunities in the rapidly growing ASC space," said Ivan Tornos, President and Chief Executive Officer of Zimmer Biomet.
5. AUA's Urology Practice Publishes PHEN's Peer-Reviewed Study: Black Men Not Being Asked to Participate in Prostate Cancer Clinical Trials
   The main finding and conclusion from the peer-reviewed study is that Black males are not taking part in prostate cancer clinical trials because they are not being asked. PHEN study authors hope this finding will bring greater collaboration between the patients, healthcare providers, and clinical trial investigators to ensure more Black men can enroll in prostate cancer clinical trials.
6. FDA Approves LEQEMBI^® (lecanemab-irmb) IV Maintenance Dosing for the Treatment of Early Alzheimer's Disease
   Ongoing treatment can slow disease progression and prolong the benefit of therapy, with the goal of helping patients maintain who they are for longer. For maintenance treatment, once every four weeks dosing regimen may be easier than once every two weeks dosing for patients and care partners to continue treatment for early Alzheimer's Disease.
7. Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Experts Unveil Innovative Fetal Medicine Data Platform
   The Clinical Outcomes Data Archive (CODA) platform offers clinicians real-time data to help inform earlier interventions and treatment strategies. "CODA's success in merging EHR-sourced and manually abstracted data will transform how healthcare providers manage and study pregnancy-related outcomes," said Holly Hedrick, MD, Primary Investigator and lead clinical sponsor and an attending pediatric and fetal surgeon in the Division of Pediatric General, Thoracic and Fetal Surgery at CHOP.
8. Lantheus to Acquire Evergreen Theragnostics for Upfront Payment of $250 Million to Drive Strategic Evolution into Fully Integrated Radiopharmaceutical Leader
   The addition of Evergreen's scalable manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure enhances Lantheus' ability to meet the complex demands of radiopharmaceutical development and production. 
9. Horne Announces Fully-Funded Mental Telehealth Program Available in Rural Arizona Counties
   The Arizona Department of Education announced a new statewide partnership with Cartwheel to provide mental health services to all schools in rural counties at no cost to districts.
10. Smartphone App Predicts Cardiovascular Damage from Vaping
    A new app uses carotid waveform measurements, making it faster and more affordable to detect cardiovascular changes. Findings showed nicotine-containing vapes negatively impacted vascular function and left ventricle-arterial coupling ­— key indicators of cardiovascular health, contributing to accelerated aging of the vascular system.
11. Nine hours of scrolling: UAE's longest film shines light on the negative influence of excessive smartphone use on kids, pre-teens, and teens
    Through its deliberately extended runtime, designed to mimic the endless scroll of social media, the film challenges audiences to confront the stark realities of smartphone addiction. "It's crucial for parents to understand the full impact excessive smartphone use can have on their children's mental health, social development, and academic performance," said Dr. Alison Burrows, an expert in screen time, professor, and parent coach.
12. Physician-Researchers at Phoenix Children's Pioneer Use of Minimally Invasive Tool to Monitor Chronic Esophageal Disease in Children
    Physician researchers at Phoenix Children's have pioneered the use of the esophageal string test (EST), a minimally invasive tool offering a sedation-free alternative to traditional methods for monitoring inflammation in eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) in children.

For more news like this, check out all of the latest health-related releases from PR Newswire.

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