The Product Code and Use-by Date are in the upper right-hand corner of the package; the UPC code is on the back of the package, below the barcode. The salads were distributed in fifteen U.S. states (Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin).

No illnesses have been reported in association with the recall. This precautionary recall notification is being issued due to an isolated instance in which a sample of Seven Lettuces salad yielded a positive result for Salmonella in a random sample test collected and conducted by the State of New York.

No other Dole salads are included in the recall. Only the specific Product Codes, UPC codes and April 11, 2012 Use-by-Date of Seven Lettuces salads identified above are included in the recall. Consumers who have any remaining product with these Product Codes should not consume it, but rather discard it. Retailers and consumers with questions may call the Dole Food Company Consumer Response Center at (800) 356-3111, which is open 8:00 am to 3:00 pm (PDT) Monday – Friday.

Retailers should check their inventories and store shelves to confirm that none of the product is mistakenly present or available for purchase by consumers or in warehouse inventories. Dole Fresh Vegetables customer service representatives are already contacting retailers and are in the process of confirming that the recalled product is not in the stream of commerce.

Salmonella is an organism that can cause foodborne illness in a person who eats a food item contaminated with it. Symptoms of infection may experience fever and gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, vomiting or abdominal pain. The illness primarily impacts young children, frail and elderly people and those with weakened immune systems. Most healthy adults and children rarely become seriously ill.

“When approved by the FDA in 2002, BOTOX® Cosmetic changed the way that physicians could treat patients who were interested in improving the appearance of their vertical frown lines between the brows,” said David E.I. Pyott, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO, Allergan, Inc. “BOTOX® Cosmetic has become the number-one neuromodulator in the United States and the number of patients considering talking to their doctor about treatment has more than quadrupled to 5.8 million since 2002”

BOTOX secured its first FDA approval more than 22 years ago as a treatment for two rare eye muscle disorders, making it the first product of its kind approved in the world. In 2002, the same formulation with dosing specific to frown lines was approved under the name BOTOX® Cosmetic.

“The FDA approval of BOTOX® Cosmetic enhanced the practice of plastic surgery by providing plastic surgeons with a new treatment option for patients seeking to reduce the appearance of vertical frown lines between the eyebrows,” said Malcolm Z. Roth, MD, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

In the decade since BOTOX® Cosmetic was approved, aesthetic specialty physicians – which include dermatologists, oculoplastic surgeons and facial plastic surgeons – have developed extensive experience in the art and science of administering BOTOX® Cosmetic to yield predictable results for their patients. These physicians have performed approximately 11 million BOTOX® Cosmetic treatment sessions since 2002 and have also contributed to the extensive clinical database demonstrating the safety and efficacy of the drug.

“The approval of BOTOX® Cosmetic in 2002 dramatically changed our ability to treat our patients by giving them an effective option to treat the appearance of moderate to severe vertical frown lines with a minimally invasive procedure,” said Susan Weinkle, MD, president of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery. “BOTOX® Cosmetic has become more accepted by the public, and this treatment has brought more patients into aesthetic practices to learn about other treatments available.”

The compatibility of both technologies offers surgeons better orientation in the OR and enables minimally invasive surgeries with higher accuracy. NeuroLogica’s BodyTomTM and Brainlab’s surgical navigation system platforms will assist with a wide variety of medical procedures including spine, trauma and neurosurgery.

“We are pleased to announce this integration. Now customers worldwide can benefit from this combination of outstanding technology in imaging and surgical navigation,” said Dr. Eric Bailey, President & CEO for NeuroLogica Corporation.

NeuroLogica’s BodyTom™ is a completely portable, full body, 32 slice CT that boasts an impressive 85cm gantry and 60cm field of view (FOV). The battery powered BodyTom™ can be easily transported from room to room, similar to the widely used portable chest X-ray systems. Its unique capabilities provide high quality CT images wherever needed, including the clinic, ICU, OR and Emergency/Trauma Department. BodyTom™ is DICOM 3.1 compliant and compatible with all PACS, surgical navigation, electronic medical records, and planning systems. BodyTom™ is the newest offering in NeuroLogica’s portable computed tomography imaging line.

The complaint includes but is not limited to:

Misappropriation of trade secrets
Breach of contract
Unfair competition
Intentional interference with prospective economic advantage
Intentional interference with contract

CEO and founder of Consumer Health Technologies (CHT) Pradeep Goel stated “We welcome fair and open competition because it drives constant improvement of solutions and delivers greater value to customers. However, there are laws to prevent unfair practices, and clearly we have no choice but to defend our business and our reputation from the actions taken by the parties named in our legal claim.”

The law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP filed the legal complaint on behalf of CHT-P&W Software Inc..

Consumer Health Technologies continues to grow as a leading provider of high-performance software solutions to healthcare payors, third-party administrators, and state and federal payors, to improve healthcare benefits management. The users of the company’s software solutions include CMS, state Medicaid payors, commercial insurance carriers, third-party administrators and other healthcare stakeholders.

The benefits you’ll receive from fruits and vegetables are quite numerous. For starters, you’ll be ingesting a lot less fat, a lot less carbohydrates, far fewer calories, and you’ll be receiving the essential vitamins and minerals that your body needs to thrive. You’ll start to look better and feel better. And with the amount of fiber in produce, you’ll actually feel fuller than eating a piece of fatty meat.

There’s no replacement for fresh produce; you’ll simply get more nutrients out of it. So it’s always best to buy in season. Of course, some products aren’t available depending on the season, while others will be. So you should plan your menu around what’s locally available.

A farmer’s market is more likely going to give you organic produce that hasn’t been treated with harsh chemicals. And since they cut out the middleman and the subsequent shipping costs, you can buy the product for less money. Best of all, homegrown items taste better than mass-produced items.

Fruits and veggies that aren’t organic may have come from China or somewhere else where they’ve long passed their peak of ripeness. Secondly, and more obviously, the herbicides and pesticides used on non-organic produce can harm you.

Apples are great, but Brussels sprouts are even better for you. Swiss chard is a great vegetable. Opting for turnips and carrots and other root veggies instead of potatoes will give you a more nutritious option. You just have to look beyond the obvious choices.

When you juice produce, you’re actually pulling out more of the essential vitamins and minerals, because you’re juicing the skin, stem, core and seeds of the item in some cases and not just eating the flesh. This obviously gives you a lot more bang for your buck.

Being creative will make fruits and vegetables more appealing to you and to your family. Try removing the noodles from spaghetti and using spaghetti squash instead. Use fresh berries to make cold smoothies instead of eating ice cream or drinking a milk shake. Grill pineapple for a filling, smoky, tasty snack. The sky is the limit here.

If you cannot find a fruit or vegetable in season but really want to purchase it anyway, then you should always opt for a frozen item over a canned item. Frozen items are usually picked at the peak of freshness and are instantly flash frozen when they’re still raw. With most canned items, however, they’re cooked inside of the can to pasteurize the items, and they lose all their freshness.

Reading these tips, you should have a good idea of what to look out for in the store and why you should be eating more fruits and vegetables. It’s easy to incorporate these items into a healthy diet. You only have to want to make the change.

Increase your intake of protein. Protein is key to building muscle, and increased muscle helps your body effectively burn fat. Make lean protein choices, such as lean chicken, fish, legumes and dairy products. Include these items in all three of your meals, as well as your between meal snacks.

Remember the importance of fiber. Fiber is key to weight loss because it fills you up. In addition, fiber has been scientifically proven to help in the fight against cancer, heart disease and diabetes. Whole grains, oatmeal, beans and fruit are wonderful choices to make when you are trying to add fiber to your diet.

Eat a variety of fruit every day, and make your diet colorful. Color is key to a healthy diet because a plate that contains a variety of colors is rich in vitamins and nutrients. Try to consume red fruits like apples, green fruits like kiwi and orange fruits like tangerines. This will help to ensure that you are providing your body with a variety of vitamins and minerals, while consuming low calorie foods that can help you reach your weight loss goals.

Try to make low calorie choices. Everyone has a favorite recipe, and when you are on a diet, it is sometimes difficult to give up those fattening, favorite foods. Instead of giving them up, modify the recipes. Use margarine instead of butter, and try low-fat milk instead of whole. Cut down on the amount of cheese in a recipe, or try a sugar substitute. This is a great way to reduce your overall caloric intake while still enjoying your favorite foods.

Avoid empty calorie foods. When you are on a diet, your goal should be to make every meal a healthy one. When you consume processed foods with little or no nutritional value, you are not doing your body any favors. Try to consume whole foods that have not been processed, and choose items that will meet your overall nutritional goals. In addition to feeling healthier, you will likely be consuming lower calorie meals, which will help you to reach your weight loss goals sooner.

Keep your portions small. Modern day meals are huge and contain about three times as many calories as a person needs. Instead of eating a huge meal, try to keep your portions small. When you are at a restaurant, immediately box up half of your food to take home for later. When you are at home, eat off of a salad plate instead of a dinner plate. This will reduce your intake of food and help you to lose weight.

Dietary decisions are important if weight loss is your goal. Make sure to hold them as a priority while still continuing to exercise. This is a great way to reach your personal weight loss goals while also maintaining a healthy body.

American Sentinel University has identified four ways GIS is improving the health care industry.

The health care industry has long mapped events for epidemiological research. But now with GIS technology, hospitals can map where their patients are coming from and the most prevalent disease processes and procedures. GIS plays a crucial role in tracking diseases and contagions so governments can better track and respond to outbreaks.

“GIS allows for greater understanding of the spread of geological phenomena, including the spread and clustering of contagious diseases,” says Gabriel Schmidbauer, GIS professor at American Sentinel University. “This greater understanding will increase the efficiency of resource allocation within the health care system.”

For example, Wellcome Trust scientists working in Kathmandu, Nepal, have recently mapped the spread of typhoid and traced its source. Research was done by combining DNA sequencing technology and GPS signaling data and then mapping it out on Google Earth™ mapping service.

“Until now, it has been extremely difficult to study how organisms such as the typhoid-causing bacteria evolve and spread at a local level,” says Dr. Stephen Baker from the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit in Vietnam in a press release issued by Wellcome Trust. “Without this information, our ability to understand the transmission of these diseases has been significantly hampered. Now, advances in technology have allowed us for the first time to create accurate geographical and genetic maps of the spread of typhoid and trace it back to its sources.”

In Australia, GIS technology helped researchers determine that rural women are more at risk for obesity and diabetes, while the United States, CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) uses GIS to track everything from suicide hotbed areas to exposure to chemicals.

In fact, the CDC regularly uses GIS in data collection, mapping and communication to respond to national crisis, including the World Trade Center collapse, Hurricane Katrina, Avian flu, SARS and Rift Valley Fever.

But, GIS is used for much more than just emergency response or tracking disasters.

According to Esri, which has more than 5,000 health care clients worldwide, GIS plays a critical role in determining where and when to intervene, improving the quality of care, increasing accessibility of service, finding more cost-effective delivery modes and preserving patient confidentiality while satisfying the needs of the research community for data accessibility.

Nursing Case Management
Kathy K. Wright, MSN, RN, C-PNP, assistant professor, nursing at American Sentinel University says using GIS for public health and nursing case management can be a tremendous asset to the community.

Through the use of GIS, a nurse case manager can see where the community resources are in proximity to their patients such as therapy providers, home health agencies and pharmacies. This information is beneficial for patients in rural locations who need care and for a community to access the need for expanding resources or seeing where there is a need for a certain resource they might lack.

The use of GIS technology can actively address disparities in access to health care. And GIS tools can grant health care resources to more of the community without exhausting public resources.

Human Resources for Nursing
The nursing shortage has been well documented, but traditional HR routes don’t always work to find good nurses. That’s why Stanford University Medical Center used GIS to analyze the nurse population density of various geographic areas.

“Recruiters have had hunches for decades about which features – such as pay, shift, and location – would be attractive to nurses,” says David Schutt, who handles human resources workforce planning and analytics for Stanford University Medical Center. “GIS analysis has once and for all laid the location controversy to rest. We found that the nurse comfort zone for Stanford University Medical Center is about a 12-mile radius. Looked at another way, this is also a retention factor.”

Since practically every external clinical professional at any hospital must be state-licensed and registered, Schutt says it is easy to map the geographic location of nurses. GIS analysis and mapping of this external data, combined with internal human resources workforce data, provides an overview of the hospital nursing supply and demand, as well as employee commute patterns and distance traveled to work.

This knowledge helps anticipate and mitigate potential interruptions to continuity of care to avoid the astronomical costs associated with hiring and training replacements, Schutt said. “Because of GIS analysis, we can potentially free up approximately $22.5 million over the next two years that would otherwise be spent on replacement and training costs,” he says.

Geomedicine
In its free Geomedicine e-book, ‘Geomedicine: Can Geographic Information Make Me Healthy,’ Esri notes that patients benefit from a more precise clinical understanding of the links between their health and where they live, work and play and found that there is currently little health-relevant geographical information available to the clinician.

But, that is changing.

The e-book’s author, Bill Davenhall, is the global manager of Esri’s Health and Human Solutions Group and is one of the leading advocates for the use of GIS to help solve the challenges in health and human services, argues that geographical information will help clinicians better understand their patients just as they look for predispositions to diseases.

“Geographic place will provide the context within which the clinician can assess environmental factors and make judgments about diagnosis, treatment and prognosis,” says Davenhall. “Geomedicine has the potential to transform the way physicians see patients and the potential to provide a more holistic view of the many hidden factors that often defeat achieving successful long-term health outcomes.”

GIS technology offers tremendous potential to benefit the health care industry and its many uses are is just now beginning to be realized. The need for GIS professionals will be even greater as organizations develop innovative ways to harness the data integration and spatial visualization power of GIS.

“As health care becomes more digitized, GIS professionals will play a more vitally important tool in understanding the health care provision,” says Schmidbauer.

PENTAX has been an industry leader in high definition endoscopy and the latest EB-1990i HD bronchoscope is the first HD bronchoscope with a megapixel CCD that delivers clear high resolution images with accurate colour reproduction.

The EB-1990i HD bronchoscope is the latest in the family of HD endoscopes from PENTAX. The EB-1990i HD bronchoscope provides users with excellent image quality and leading ergonomics. Built on PENTAX’s industry leading HD processors the EB-1990i helps physicians clearly visualize the bronchial airways for increased clinical confidence in their diagnosis.

Dr Foccoli, Director of Respiratory Endoscopy in “Spedali Civili di Brescia”, Italy said “The PENTAX EB-1990i HD bronchoscope provides a significant improvement in image resolution over standard systems, with clear enhancement of anatomical details of the bronchial mucosa like longitudinal elastic bands, mucosal glands and vascularity.”

“Instilling greater clinical confidence by delivering high performance, reliability and value to our customers is at the core of everything we do,” said Chris Japp, Global President of PENTAX Lifecare. “Bronchoscopy has proved to be an important and indispensable diagnostic tool in pneumology and PENTAX took giant strides to offer the technological advances in the field of bronchoscopy to our customers and the patients they care for.”

The EB-1990i is currently only available for sale in Europe.

Pr. Philippe Merle, Professor of hepatology at the Hospices Civils de Lyon and principal investigator of the Phase II trial, presented preliminary survival results observed in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (primary liver cancer). Out of the total 50 patients planned, 28 were randomized and have received intra-arterial injection of Livatag (n=17) or chemoembolization (n=11), according to a 2/1 scheme (2 patients with Livatag for 1 patient with chemoembolization). Livatag® was administered every 4 weeks, up to 3 injections.

Although the trial had been put on hold due to severe pulmonary adverse events, the assessment of survival has been continued based upon the recommendation of the Independent Data Safety Monitoring Board.

The survival results for patients treated with Livatag showed a significant increase compared to the control group with 31.7 months median survival versus 15 months (p<0.05). Patients who received 3 injections had an even better response with an increased median survival (33 versus 15 months) (p<0.05).

Pr. Philippe Merle concluded on the promising opportunities offered by the new slow intravenous administration route, enabling a better control of pulmonary effects, considering the substantial survival benefits showed in a pathology where therapeutic solutions are rare.

These results have also been accepted for a presentation during the AFEF (Association Française pour l’Etude du Foie) congress in Paris, from September 28 to October 1, 2011.

« Livatag is the leading product of our « orphan oncology products » portfolio that comprises also two other products in clinical phase (clonidine Lauriad in phase II in the treatment of mucositis and AMEP, in phase I in the treatment of metastatic melanoma)”, declared Judith Greciet, CEO of BioAlliance Pharma. “This development strategy in an orphan disease is a key driver of the Company growth. The strong interest for Livatag from the scientific and medical community confirms our choice to expand in such area where there is a crucial medical need”.

About Livatag

Primary liver cancer, or hepatocellular carcinoma, is the fifth cancer in incidence and the third leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide. This cancer is highly chemo-resistant, very often diagnosed at an advanced stage and still represents a high unmet medical need. Livatag is a treatment presented in nanoparticles able to deliver doxorubicin in chemoresistant cells. Livatag was granted an orphan drug status in Europe and in the United States.

Livatag is today the leader in the orphan oncology products portfolio, also including clonidine Lauriad in the prevention of radiotherapy-induced oral mucositis in patients with head and neck cancer (phase II) and AMEP® in metastatic melanoma (phase I).

Since September is National Cholesterol Education Month, AstraZeneca is encouraging adults to have their cholesterol levels checked. Adults with high cholesterol and additional risk factors–such as high blood pressure, diabetes, or family history of early heart disease–may be at increased risk for more plaque buildup in their arteries and should take steps to manage their high cholesterol. People who may have high cholesterol should work with their doctors to develop a cholesterol-management plan to help them reach their cholesterol goals.

When doctors check cholesterol levels using a blood test, they evaluate both LDL (bad) cholesterol and HDL (good) cholesterol plus another substance called ‘triglycerides’.3,4 LDL cholesterol is considered “bad” because too much of it in the blood can contribute to the slow buildup of plaque in the arteries over time, a serious disease called atherosclerosis.1

Adults over the age of 20 should have their cholesterol levels checked at least once every five years, according to the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) guidelines.3 Total cholesterol is based on LDL cholesterol (LDL-C), HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglyceride counts.3,4 Generally, lower total cholesterol levels (under 200 mg/dL) are considered desirable.2

If you or someone you know has high cholesterol, a doctor will likely recommend lifestyle changes, which can include quitting smoking, eating more healthy foods, and exercising more often.5 For some people, diet and exercise alone may not be enough, so it is important that people talk with their health care provider about their treatment options.

A doctor may recommend CRESTOR® (rosuvastatin calcium) when diet and exercise alone are not enough. Along with diet, CRESTOR is proven in adults to lower bad cholesterol by up to 52% (at the 10-mg dose vs 7% with placebo). CRESTOR is also FDA approved to slow plaque buildup in arteries as part of a treatment plan to lower cholesterol to goal.6 CRESTOR is not right for everyone, including anyone who has previously had an allergic reaction to CRESTOR, anyone with liver problems, or women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. Please see additional important safety information below.

The AstraZeneca-sponsored survey described in the first paragraph was conducted by StrategyOne using Toluna field services, was fielded online between May 19 and May 23, 2011 among a nationwide cross-section of 1,000 adults in the US aged 18 and older. The overall margin of error was ± 3.1 percentage points at a 95 percent confidence interval.

About CRESTOR (rosuvastatin calcium) Tablets

In adults, CRESTOR is prescribed along with diet to lower high cholesterol, and to slow the buildup of plaque in arteries as part of a treatment plan to lower cholesterol to goal.

Important Safety Information about CRESTOR (rosuvastatin calcium) Tablets

CRESTOR is not right for everyone, including anyone who has previously had an allergic reaction to CRESTOR, anyone with liver problems, or women who are nursing, pregnant, or who may become pregnant. Your doctor should do blood tests before and during treatment with CRESTOR to monitor your liver function. Unexplained muscle pain or weakness could be a sign of a rare but serious side effect and should be reported to your doctor right away. Elevated blood sugar levels have been reported with statins, including CRESTOR. Be sure to tell your doctor if you are taking any medications. The most common side effects are headache, muscle aches, abdominal pain, weakness, and nausea.