CAPSULES

study

The congested road to dementia

Dementia is more common in people who live within 50 m of a major road than those who live further away, according to a Canadian study looking at 6.6 million people, published in The Lancet . However, the study found no link between traffic exposure and Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis. The observational study estimated that up to one in 10 (7-11 per cent ) cases of dementia among those who live within 50 m of a major road could be attributable to traffic exposure, a note from the journal said.

drug approval

Now, treatment for SMA

The US FDA has approved Spinraza (nusinersen), the first drug approved to treat children and adults with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a rare and often fatal genetic disease affecting muscle strength and movement. Spinraza is an injection administered into the fluid surrounding the spinal cord. SMA is a hereditary disease that causes weakness and muscle wasting due to loss of lower motor neurons controlling movement.

on the web

EMA eases navigation for vet meds

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has simplified the navigation structure of the regulatory information on veterinary medicine on its website, to help users from pharma companies find the information they need more quickly and easily. The new menu reflects the three main stages of the medicinal product lifecycle, because most industry users said they prefer to look for information on medicines regulation in this way: R&D, marketing authorisation, post-authorisation. EMA has already reorganised its regulatory information on human medicines in a similar manner.

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