Health Highlights: July 3, 2007

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

Asthma Drug Label Gets Anaphylaxis Warning

Labeling on the Genentech asthma medication Xolair (omalizumab) has been updated to include the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's strongest possible "black box" warning, advising doctors and consumers of the risk of anaphylaxis, the agency said Tuesday.

Anaphylaxis is a sudden, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction, with possible symptoms including trouble breathing, chest tightness, dizziness, fainting, itching, hives, and swelling of the mouth and throat.

Xolair, an injected medication, was approved in 2003 for people 12 years and older with moderate-to-severe persistent asthma that is inadequately controlled with inhaled corticosteroids.

In a statement, the FDA said it also ordered that a "new medication guide" warning of the anaphylaxis risks be distributed with each dose of Xolair.

Anaphylaxis has occurred in some Xolair users as early as the first dose, but it has occurred in others one year or more after the medication was begun, the agency said. Moreover, the reaction can occur more than 24 hours after administration of a dose.

The FDA, which ordered the warning earlier this year, recommended that Xolair only be administered in a healthcare setting under direct supervision by a medical professional who understands the drug's risks.

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Drug May Help Bad Memories Fade

A drug frequently used in heart patients can quash memories of a traumatic event, U.S. and Canadian researchers report.

The drug, a beta blocker called propranolol, was injected while study participants were asked to recall a traumatic memory from a decade earlier,BBC Newsreported. Nineteen participants involved in either a vehicle crash or sexual assault were injected with either the drug or a non-medicinal placebo for 10 days.