ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Five-year results of the Action to Control Cardiovascular Risk in Diabetes (ACCORD) study confirm that neither more intensive lowering of blood glucose (sugar) levels, more intensive lowering of blood pressure, nor treatment of blood lipids with a fibrate and a statin drug reduce cardiovascular risk in people with established type 2 diabetes who are at severely high risk for cardiovascular events. However, the study did find improvements to microvascular conditions, such as progression of diabetic eye disease (retinopathy), visual acuity, and renal and nerve function. The landmark study is sponsored by the federal government through the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Speaking at the American Diabetes Association’s 70th Scientific Sessions^®, the ACCORD Study Group cautioned that any potential benefits must be weighed against the increased risk of mortality and episodes of seriously low blood glucose that were seen to accompany intensive lowering of blood glucose levels — which in ACCORD was focused on achieving normal A1C levels in the study population. They emphasized that both the positive and negative results of the study apply only to this population of middle-aged or older people with type 2 diabetes for an average of 10 years, who also had a history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) or at least two risk factors for CVD.

“These results underscore the importance of patient-centered care that stresses individual treatment choices made in consultation with a physician,” said Denise Simons-Morton, MD, Ph.D, Director of the Division for the Application of Research Discoveries at the NIH’s National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the primary sponsor of the study. “Within this group, it’s important for patients and doctors to decide the highest priority for the patient,” she said. “Is improved eye health worth a higher risk of death and low blood sugar episodes? That’s a question only a fully informed patient can answer.”

The ACCORD researchers set out to investigate whether cardiovascular risk in people with type 2 diabetes could be reduced using one of the following strategies, each compared with standard treatment: intensive lowering of blood glucose to near-normal levels (target A1C less than 6%), intensive lowering of blood pressure to near-normal levels, or treatment of blood lipids with a combination of fibrate and statin drugs. It also looked at how each of these treatments would affect other outcomes such as mortality and microvascular outcomes (e.g., eye, kidney and nerve complications). 

NHLBI prematurely halted the intensive blood-glucose lowering strategy after 3.5 years, in February 2008, due to safety concerns caused by an unexpected higher incidence of death in the intensive glucose lowering treatment group compared with the standard treatment group. Patients in the intensive treatment arm of the study were transitioned into the standard treatment arm for the remainder of the trial’s five years, which has now concluded.

Intensively Lowering Blood Glucose: Increased Mortality and No Cardio Benefit, But Possible Benefits to Eyes, Kidneys and Nerves

Results of intensive glucose lowering on microvascular outcomes were published today in the Lancet and presented at a symposium at the American Diabetes Association’s 70^th Scientific Sessions in Orlando.

The study examined patients who underwent intensive glucose-lowering treatment for 3.5 years (increased medication aimed at lowering A1C levels to less than 6 percent) and were then given standard treatments (aimed at achieving A1C levels of 7.0-7.9%) for the remaining 1.5 years, compared with standard treatment for the duration of the study. The intensively treated patients did not see a reduced incidence of cardiovascular disease.

In addition, the groups did not differ in overall measures of microvascular health, for example, in the progression rates to kidney failure, major vision loss, or advanced peripheral neuropathy, a common nerve problem in diabetes that usually begins as tingling or numbness in the feet. However, there were some microvascular improvements noted, such as a reduced incidence of albuminuria (protein in the urine, a marker of kidney disease) in the intensive group, compared to those receiving standard treatment, along with fewer cataract extractions during the study period. Visual acuity (sharpness of vision) and nerve function scores were also better for the intensive group than for the standard-treatment group, suggesting that intensive lowering of blood glucose may also help prevent eye and nerve damage.

“Patients who develop macroalbuminuria are prone to renal failure and cardiovascular events,” said Faramarz Ismail-Beigi, MD, Ph.D, of Case Western Reserve University and the lead researcher on this portion of the study. “Less protein in the urine is a very good sign.”

Though the visual acuity tests were somewhat subjective, Ismail-Beigi said, they could indicate that intensive glucose lowering helps to prevent eye damage.

Intensively Lowering Blood Glucose, Treating Lipids: Slows Retinopathy Progression

That finding is further supported by a substudy of ACCORD chaired by Emily Chew, MD, chief of the Clinical Trials Branch of the Division of Epidemiology and Clinical Applications at the NIH’s National Eye Institute (NEI). Results of the study were published online in the New England Journal of Medicine today. Chew and her colleagues investigated whether each treatment arm of the ACCORD trial — blood glucose, blood pressure, and blood lipids — would reduce the progression of diabetic eye disease (or retinopathy) in a subset of about 3,000 ACCORD study participants, compared to that treatment’s standard approach. Disease progression was identified through retinal photographs that indicated blood vessel changes or by the need for laser or vitrectomy surgery to treat abnormal blood vessels.

The study found that people in the intensive blood glucose lowering arm, as well as those who received a combination of a fibrate and a statin for blood lipids, experienced slower progression in diabetic retinopathy than those in each standard treatment arm. Those who were in the intensive blood pressure lowering arm did not see a reduction in eye disease progression when compared to people receiving standard blood pressure control.

Compared with standard blood glucose control, intensive control decreased the progression of diabetic retinopathy by about one-third, from 10.4 percent to 7.3 percent, over four years. Participants in the intensive control group had a median blood glucose level of 6.4 percent hemoglobin A1C — a level close to values in people without diabetes. The standard blood glucose control group maintained a median level of 7.5 percent.

In addition, compared with simvastatin treatment alone, combination lipid therapy with fenofibrate plus simvastatin also reduced disease progression by about one-third, from 10.2 percent to 6.5 percent, over four years. No prior clinical trial has shown that the combination of fenofibrate and simvastatin reduces diabetic eye disease progression.

Contrary to predictions, there was no difference in diabetic retinopathy progression among participants treated to an intensive systolic blood pressure (the top number in a blood pressure reading) target of less than 120 mm Hg, compared with those treated to a standard target of less than 140 mm Hg.

“The results of the ACCORD Eye Study indicate that intensive blood sugar control and combination fibrate plus statin treatment of lipids independently reduce diabetic retinopathy progression,” Chew said. “However, patients and their doctors should work together to develop an individual treatment plan, taking into account the potential risks of intensive glucose treatment.”

Combination Lipid Treatment: No Cardio Benefits Overall, But Subgroup May See Reduced Risk

Combination lipid therapy with a statin plus a fibrate did not help lower cardiovascular risks overall, but the results did suggest that a subgroup of the study — those with high triglycerides and low HDL (the so-called “good” cholesterol) — may benefit by such treatment.

In this subpopulation of the investigation, which included about 15 percent of the 5,518 people studied in the ACCORD Lipid Trial, those who had triglyceride levels of more than 200 and HDL levels below 34 saw a reduced incidence of cardiovascular events of 30 percent. These findings are supported by similar findings of subgroup populations in several large previously published clinical studies.

“If it were an isolated finding in our study I’d be less enthusiastic,” said Henry Ginsberg, MD, Irving Professor of Medicine and Director of the Irving Institute for Clinical and Translational Research at Columbia University. “But this finding is in line with subgroup analyses in several other trials.”

A second subgroup analysis of this arm of the study found that women and men respond differently to combination lipid therapy, Ginsberg said. Though overall the study found no cardiovascular benefits for the study population, when broken down by gender, the results showed men experienced a 20 percent reduction in cardiovascular events, while women experienced a 38 percent increase in cardiovascular events.

However, when examined for statistical significance, “the data for men showed a strong indication that they benefitted, while the data for women were not as conclusive,” Ginsberg said. “This raises possibilities that need to be further examined.”

These results were published in the April 29, 2010, issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Intensively Lowering Blood Pressure: No Cardio Benefits, But Suggested Reduction in Stroke

Results from the intensive blood pressure control arm of the study were also published in April in the New England Journal of Medicine. In this treatment arm, participants lowered blood pressure levels to “normal” levels of less than 120 mm Hg, to see if doing so would reduce major cardiovascular events, compared with standard treatment of levels less than 140 mm Hg. No significant reduction in overall CVD events was found.

The study did find a significant (41 percent) reduction in stroke, which was consistent with other BP-lowering clinical trials. However, because this was not the primary focus of the study, and because the overall rate of stroke was low, the researchers are hesitant to recommend a strategy of lowering blood pressure to this degree without further study.

“Older patients with known cardiovascular disease, higher blood pressure to begin with, and African Americans may benefit from such a treatment plan,” said William Cushman, MD, of the Memphis Veterans Affairs Medical Center, “but we’re going to have to do further analyses.”

The NHLBI is the primary sponsor of ACCORD, with additional funding and scientific expertise contributed by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Other components of the NIH — including the National Institute of Aging — as well as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, support substudies. The following companies provided study medications, equipment, or supplies: Abbott Laboratories, Amylin Pharmaceutical, AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP, Bayer HealthCare LLC, Closer Healthcare Inc., GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, King Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Novo Nordisk, Inc., Omron Healthcare, Inc., Sanofi-Aventis U.S., and Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

Symposium, June 29, 10:15 a.m.

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NEW YORK, NY–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Interactivation Health Networks, parent company of the Newborn Channel and Patient Channel, the nation’s most comprehensive in-hospital TV networks, today announced the appointment of Chana Stern as Account Executive, Ad Sales, for both channels.

Formerly with Everwell TV, Chana joins Interactivation with over 10 years experience in the Out-of-Home media space. A seasoned executive, Chana will provide agencies with an additional point of contact for advertisers seeking expertise in point of care, place based media, as demand for both networks continues to grow.

“Demand for digital out-of-home video advertising, particularly as it relates to hospitals as a fourth screen location, has grown significantly over the past year,” said Suzanne Fleming SVP of Sales at Interactivation Health Networks. “Chana’s familiarity with both place based media advertising and the health industry at large will be key assets for us as we continue to meet the needs of our growing list of advertisers.”

Newborn Channel and Patient Channel provide marketers with unparalleled access to their target consumers in a highly trusted environment. 

About Interactivation Health Networks
The Patient Channel and The Newborn Channel are the most comprehensive in-hospital TV networks. Delivered directly to patient rooms and waiting areas, the Channels provide viewers with original, award-winning health programs and advertisers with the unique ability to integrate brand messaging with content that is compelling and endorsed by healthcare professionals. The Newborn Channel broadcasts baby care and postpartum programming for new parents, reaching 60% of new moms. The Patient Channel features both condition-specific and preventative health programming to empower and inform patients. The channels are currently available in over 2,700 hospitals nationwide.

ROCKVILLE, MD–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  MarketResearch.com has announced the addition of Kalorama Information’s new report “Long Term Care Market: Nursing Homes, Home Care, Hospice Care, and Assisted Living,” to their collection of Home Healthcare market reports. For more information, visit http://www.marketresearch.com/product/display.asp?ProductID=2578516

Kalorama Information publishes its third edition of this detailed report on the long term care industry at a time of growth but also change and concern for the long term care industry. The economy has challenged the business strategies of key players, while the recent healthcare legislation introduces changes that may affect revenues. These twin challenges are addressed in The Long-Term Care Market: Nursing Homes, Home Care, Hospice Care, and Assisted Living The report provides an in-depth examination of the market for long-term care today. The following segments are broken out in detail: This report covers the most important segments of the long term care industry, each of which provide medical care and/or assistance with the activities of daily living (ADLs) on an ongoing basis:

• Nursing care;
• Home Care;
• Hospice Care;
• Assisted Living.

Excluded are markets that address temporary care needs such as physical or mental rehabilitation. Residential living programs and facilities that do not generally provide care such as retirement communities.

For each of the segments of long term care the report provides:

• Market Size and Forecast
• Number of Facilities/Providers and Growth Trends
• Patient Statistics
• Forms of Payment and Reimbursement Levels
• Trends Affecting the Marketplace
• Competitors and Competitive Analysis

Sales estimates for each market segment represent U.S. revenues and are expressed in current dollars. Estimates are provided for the historic 2005 to 2009 period and forecasts are provided through 2015.

As part of the report’s analysis of the state of the industry, the report covers the Recent Healthcare Reform and its Impact on Nursing Homes and the Effects of the Economy. Other issues and trends discussed in the report include:

• Medicare & Health Care Reform
• Patient Dumping
• Quality of Care
• Federal Quality Improvement Initiatives
• State Quality Improvement Initiatives
• Legal Actions
• Safety
• Aging of the Population
• Marital and Living Arrangements
• Geographic Concentrations
• Certification and Accreditation
• Fees and Payment
• Long Term Care Insurance
• Cost of Coverage and Affordability
• Staffing and Human Resources
• Building of New Facilities 

Historical information for this report was gathered from a wide variety of published sources including company reports and filings, government documents, legal filings, trade journals, newspapers and business press, analysts’ reports and other sources. Interviews with company representatives were conducted to capture the perspectives from industry participants’ point of view and assess trends, and form the basis of the forecasting and competitive analysis.

As part of its coverage of the industry, the following long term care companies were profiled in this report:

• Apria Healthcare Group Inc./ Blackstone Group
• Brookdale Senior Living
• Emeritus Corporation
• Extendicare, Inc.
• Genesis Healthcare
• Golden Living
• Manor Care, Inc.
• Sun Healthcare Group Inc.
• Sunrise Senior Living Inc.

For more information, visit http://www.marketresearch.com/product/display.asp?ProductID=2578516.

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BOCA RATON, FL–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) – Banyan Corporation (PINKSHEETS: BNYN) announced that its board of directors has agreed to the formation of a new operating unit of the company called “America’s Dentist.”

This operating division will focus on the multi-billion dollar dental industry and is establishing itself to provide marketing, finance, practice management and branding to the dental community. The company feels that it will be able to bring significant value added to a broad array of dental practices.

Banyan Corporation believes it can leverage off its significant experience with Chiropractic USA, as well as with its existing operations in its diagnostic imaging business, to move into the dental arena.

About Banyan Corporation:

Banyan Corporation is a publicly traded holding company focused on investing in and building a network of operating subsidiaries engaged in various innovative businesses. Currently the company’s subsidiaries, Premier Medical Group, Inc. and affiliated companies, provide diagnostic testing services to physicians nationwide.

This Press Release contains or incorporates by reference forward-looking statements including certain information with respect to plans and strategies of Banyan Corporation. For this purpose, any statements contained herein or incorporated herein by references that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed forward-looking statements. Without limiting the foregoing, the words “believes,” “suggests,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. There are a number of events or actual results of Banyan Corporation operations that could differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements.

DALLAS, TX–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) – As a result of the health care reform law that was recently passed, organizations that process health care claims must take action to comply with the new regulation. To assist organizations, SOURCECORP, Incorporated, a premier business process outsourcing company, has released a new white paper, “Is Your Claims Processing Destined for Success in the Face of Government-Driven Change?” This complimentary document explains some of the law’s requirements and demonstrates why outsourcing is an efficient and cost-savvy way for organizations to adhere to the new standards.

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is expected to cause an increase in enrollments, which will lead to growth in claims processing and customer service assistance. Payer companies and organizations must also convert to HIPAA 5010 standards and enact changes in medical coding from ICD-9 to ICD-10 as of October 1, 2013. In order to meet these mandates, these organizations will need to upgrade their software systems and implement other new processes.

There are many benefits of outsourcing the administrative burden that will come with the predicted surge in enrollment. Utilizing a subcontracting model will lower the operational cost of processing claims and responding to customer needs, and reduce the cost associated with the technology that must be used in order to comply with the law. It also helps ensure that organizations will meet the terms of the legislation, giving companies expert advice on this new platform.

Outsourcing will help organizations meet the demands of the rapid increase in enrollment, as well as the costs to manage additional insured customers. While HIPAA implementation and migration to ICD-10 codes are not required until 2013, the Department of Health and Human Services is expecting providers to complete testing by the end of this year.

To execute new HIPAA standards and code changes, most companies will have to update their infrastructure and expend the resources to evaluate and test new software systems. By subcontracting, organizations can eliminate the need for an additional capital expense and make sure the systems are implemented correctly.

Another benefit of outsourcing is that organizations will not need additional space to house equipment or provide additional staff to run the systems. Instead, health care payer companies can optimize their space for revenue-generating activities instead of storing bulky equipment and hosting mailroom operations.

Outsourcing will enable companies to speed up and efficiently process new enrollments and serve customers. Staff members will be able to focus more on customer care rather than tedious administrative tasks. In addition, employees of companies that subcontract can maintain accuracy despite spikes in enrollment and claim processing. Administrative expenses and time can be reduced by nearly 50 percent as a result of hiring a company that specializes in claims processing to meet the new health care reform guidelines.

John Nixon, Senior Vice President of Business Development for SOURCECORP’s BPS division, stated, “Outsourcing to SOURCECORP has helped many companies save on per claim capture costs by an average of $1.2 million to $4.5 million annually. Best of all, we can help ensure that a company will avoid penalties that can be issued from not implementing systems correctly, and from not deploying a new system on time.”

For a complimentary white paper on migrating to the new health care reform standards, visit www.sourcecorp.com/newsroom/white-papers.aspx

About SOURCECORP®
SOURCECORP, Incorporated provides business process outsourcing solutions and specialized high value consulting services to clients throughout the United Sates. SOURCECORP focuses on business processes in information-intensive industries including commercial, financial, government, healthcare, and legal. Headquartered in Dallas, the company serves clients throughout the United States through a network of locations in the U.S., Mexico, Philippines and India.

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CHARLOTTE, NC–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Patient Care Technology Systems (PCTS), a subsidiary of Consulier Engineering, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSLR), today announced the availability of an upgrade to its software for tracking patients, staff and equipment. The new release of Amelior Tracker 2.8 features multiple improved user interfaces with enhanced search and identification tools to help healthcare staff locate resources as efficiently as possible.

Some key software enhancements include advanced “Map View” configuration options such as popup balloons that enable users to customize the contents and the number of items displayed for each entity when in hover-mode. This allows for a quick view of the details of each entity in its location including: name, serial number, workflow status (clean, in use, dirty), asset type and hospital ID to name a few. Users will also be able to view the actual number of entities in a specific location, rather than just a dot indicating that there is a piece of equipment nearby. Another key feature is a new RTLS Component Health Monitoring module that will enable the user to more effectively and efficiently monitor the status and functionality of the RTLS equipment deployed. Other enhancements include improved zone tree displays, application to use globalization settings to configure date formatting, a textbox available for quick tag id search, and a powerful new keyword search feature that dynamically searches over all attributes of an entity.

Amelior Tracker 2.8 advanced utilization reports help drive purchasing, rental and allocation decisions by analyzing whether the facility is making the best use of the assets it has. The PCTS workflow engine receives and interprets data from the RTLS system applying client-specific business rules to assess status and provide feedback that is critical to drive business processes and asset workflow. These reports provide managers, administrators and process improvement teams with movement, interaction and flow data that assists in spotting trends and identifying situations that may require corrective action, thus providing real-time business intelligence to our clients.

The Amelior Tracker® solution is part of the Amelior Enterprise Visibility and Workflow Automation Suite™ which comprises department to facility-wide software solutions and services designed to more efficiently and safely orchestrate patient care through the real-time visualization of patient flow. Hospitals can scale their implementations by the entities they wish to track (movable medical equipment, patients, staff), purpose (temperature monitoring, asset management, patient flow, infection control) and by the scope of hospital workflow (acute care, inpatient floors, outpatient services, enterprise-wide). 

Amelior Tracker is interoperable with all major locating technologies including active-RFID, infrared, ultrasound, ultra-wideband, Wi-Fi and ZigBee. PCTS also works closely with a network of successful locating hardware partners and provides consulting services so the best locating technology or technologies are chosen to match the client’s particular needs. In addition, the Amelior Interface Gateway™ supports the exchange of data between an Amelior tracking or documentation solution and virtually any hospital information system. Key functions include sending/receiving, data transformation, transaction logging, administration/monitoring and notifications. These platforms work together to offer extensive performance and workflow advantages to the healthcare industry.

“Recent enhancements to our Amelior Tracker software allows us to continue to provide an improved system that requires less time spent locating resources needed to support patient flow and improve staff workflow,” says Chad Sallee, vice president of information technology at PCTS. “The real-time identification and visualization of asset location can help eliminate redundant equipment purchases and leases, improve equipment utilization and preventative maintenance, and track assets as part of infection control protocols.”

About Patient Care Technology Systems

Patient Care Technology Systems, a subsidiary of Consulier Engineering, Inc. (NASDAQ: CSLR), helps health care providers to improve patient flow, increase capacity and improve patient and staff safety by visualizing the real-time location and status of people and equipment throughout their facility. PCTS solutions have supported over 2 million patient visits annually and have shown a proven return on investment in high turnover, high-acuity units such as the emergency department and perioperative suites. The Amelior Enterprise Visibility and Workflow Automation Suite™ is interoperable with all leading locating technologies, including active-RFID, infrared, ultrasound, ultra-wideband, Wi-Fi and ZigBee. PCTS customers have been recognized nationally for improvements in efficiency and clinical excellence. For more information, visit www.pcts.com. 

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws. PCTS and CSLR caution you that any statements contained in this press release which are not strictly historical statements constitute forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, those related to PCTS’s and CSLR’s expectations regarding continued business growth. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, and involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking statements, (copies of which may be obtained at the SEC’s website at: http://www.sec.gov) — could impact the forward-looking statements contained in this press release. Readers should not place undue reliance on any such forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date they are made. PCTS and CSLR disclaim any obligation to publicly update or revise any such statements to reflect any change in PCTS and CSLR’s expectations, or in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements may be based, or that may affect the likelihood that actual results will differ from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

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NEW YORK, NY–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Healthnostics, Inc. (PINKSHEETS: HNSS), a medical and biotechnology analytics company, has initiated its acquisition strategy with cash investments in a medical manufacturing company.

The Company will continue to provide additional details as its acquisition strategy continues to unfold.

“We have now moved from the planning stage to the implementation stage of our acquisition strategy, which means that the positive impact on our sales and earnings will come sooner than originally planned,” said Alan Grofe, President.

About Healthnostics

Healthnostics, Inc. is a medical and biotechnology analytics company that provides comprehensive patient clinical monitoring and risk management systems to acute care hospitals and utilizes its Internet portals to deliver medical and biotechnology resource information to industry professionals as well as to the general public. Healthnostics’ major products include: MedGuardian, a patient care monitoring and risk management system for hospitals that is fully Web-based; and through the MedBioWeb subsidiary, MedBioWorld™, one of the largest professional medical and biotechnology directory resource and reference portal sites on the Internet, and FamilyMedicalNet, a companion consumer healthcare information portal.

For further information please visit Healthnostics www.healthnostics.com, MedBioWorld www.medbioworld.com, and FamilyMedicalNet www.familymedicalnet.com.

And visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Healthnostics.

This press release may contain certain statements that are not descriptions of historical information, but are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements refer to matters that involve risks and uncertainties. Such statements reflect management’s current views and are based on certain assumptions. Actual results could differ materially from the assumptions currently anticipated.

FAIRFAX, VA–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Avaya Government Solutions, a wholly owned subsidiary of Avaya, today announced the company’s participation in the recently-released study to modernize the healthcare system used by the Department of Veterans Affairs (V.A.). The V.A. relies heavily on this system to ensure America’s Veterans receive the treatment they require. Called the “VistA Modernization Report – Legacy to Leadership,” it is focused on improving the V.A.’s VistA (V.A. Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture) healthcare network.

The V.A. has seen an uptake in the demands of its healthcare system; which must serve nearly eight million veterans, 153 V.A. hospitals and 768 outpatient clinics. VistA is the integrated health information system — recognized as one of the best in the nation — that supports the V.A. in its work.

“The V.A. relies on the best doctors and medical technology,” said Joel Hackney, president, Avaya Government Solutions. “We are honored to be chosen to contribute to the success of this study and help the V.A. make its next-generation, information network the best available. We support the work of the VistA study participants and thank them for their unique contributions in helping define the next-generation Healthcare IT vision.”

“Providing for those who have served this great nation is more than our mandate, it is our passion,” said the Honorable Roger Baker, assistant secretary for Information and Technology and Chief Information Officer, Veterans Affairs. “The VistA study provides critical insight from the leaders in industry as to how we can do this better, more effectively and more comprehensively. This is planned to enable us to employ our resources with laser precision, eliminating waste in terms of time to service and completely eliminating every unused or underused resource.”

Included in the recommendations of the VistA study is the need to migrate the design of the information system of the Veterans Affairs to an open, plug-and-play architecture so that the most modern and “built for purpose” components that enhance functionality can be incorporated. In addition, by moving to an open-standards approach, the VistA system can utilize the best technology from standards-compliant vendors as well as other open source communities that will provide the best, most innovative products in the future.

The VistA study was spearheaded by the American Council for Technology (ACT) – Industry Advisory Council (IAC), which promotes government and industry collaboration. It was managed by the V.A. and Andy Robinson, IAC executive vice chair, for the IAC Executive Committee. Ed Meagher, chair of the IAC VistA Modernization Working Group, led the working group of healthcare and IT professionals from 34 companies for the six-month study, which included co-chair of the VistA Modernization & Architecture subcommittee, Srinath Godavarthi, technical director, Avaya Government Solutions.

Enterprise network modernization is critical for all healthcare entities. HIPPA compliance has mandated that all such systems be ultra-secure in their totality with no margin for error. Avaya is focused on serving the needs of both the Civil Government and Federal Government as well as the Healthcare industry.

About Avaya Government Solutions
Avaya Government Solutions is a network-centric integrator, providing the services expertise, mission-critical systems and secure communications that empower government to ensure the security, livelihood, and well being of its citizens. Headquartered in Fairfax, Va., Avaya Government Solutions offers a one-stop shop for solutions designed to improve workforce productivity, reduce operating costs, and streamline inter-agency communications. Please visit www.Avayagov.com for more information.

About Avaya
Avaya is a global leader in enterprise communications systems. The company provides unified communications, contact centers, data solutions, and related services directly and through its channel partners to leading businesses and organizations around the world. Enterprises of all sizes depend on Avaya for state-of-the-art communications that improve efficiency, collaboration, customer service and competitiveness. For more information please visit www.avaya.com.

ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  A community-based lifestyle intervention program, modeled after one used in a landmark government funded diabetes-prevention study, can help participants in a group setting achieve weight loss and blood glucose reductions comparable to those achieved with individual counseling from health professionals, according to data presented by researchers at the American Diabetes Association’s 70th Scientific Sessions®.

In the Healthy Living Partnerships to Prevent Diabetes (HELP PD) study, participants were divided into two groups: a lifestyle weight loss group, which received six months of weekly behavioral weight loss sessions in a group setting, followed by monthly follow-up meetings, at which they were encouraged to change eating behaviors and exercise up to 180 minutes per week; and a usual care group, which received two visits with a dietitian and a quarterly newsletter with tips for lifestyle changes. The group weight loss sessions were delivered by lay community health workers trained and supervised by dietitians at the Wake Forest Diabetes Care Center in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The study found that those in the lifestyle intervention group achieved and maintained significantly greater weight loss (an average of 7.3 percent of body weight) than those in the regular care group (who achieved an average loss of just 1.3 percent of body weight) after 12 months. The lifestyle intervention group also reduced blood glucose levels by an average of over 4 mg/dl, from 105.8 mg/dl to 101.2 mg/dl, after 12 months, compared to an average drop of less than 2 mg/dl (to 104 mg/dl) for the regular care group. The results for the lifestyle group mirrored those achieved over three years by participants in the landmark National Institutes of Health-sponsored Diabetes Prevention Program, in which individuals with glucose levels in the pre-diabetic range were able to reverse the course of their disease by losing 5-7% of body weight and exercising 150 minutes per week, in addition to receiving individual counseling sessions with trained behavioralists. In the Diabetes Prevention Program, the weight loss program led to a 58% reduction in the development of diabetes, from about 11% a year to about 5% a year.

“In the Diabetes Prevention Program, professional behavioral specialists worked with participants with pre-diabetes in one-on-one sessions. We trained some of our patients with diabetes to work as lay community health workers with groups of participants with pre-diabetes, so we really didn’t expect to see quite as good a weight loss result as we did, but we were very pleased to see it,” said David Goff, MD, Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and lead researcher on the study. “Given that our weight loss results look as good as the DPP, this approach shows great promise for preventing diabetes. It’s a very translatable intervention to deliver in public health settings. We think this approach could be replicated at Diabetes Care Centers across the country.”

There are more than 3,000 such centers in the United States, with on-site physicians, diabetes educators and facilities that can be used for delivering the type of group intervention employed in this study. However, the intervention can be delivered in any setting where community health workers have access to a room large enough for about a dozen people to meet, a television, a DVD player, and a scale, Dr. Goff said.

The HELP PD model relies upon DVDs developed by the research team that give participants information about healthy eating, proper stretching and exercise tips, how to eat “mindfully” (i.e. not out of boredom or habitually in front of the television) and other lifestyle-related topics. Dr. Goff said that training community health workers to coach participants on how to set goals, solve problems and use the information in the DVDs could be accomplished by others interested in starting such a program in their own community. Reimbursement for these programs is a barrier.

Study participants will be followed for an additional five years to see whether individuals can maintain weight loss and blood glucose reductions independently, or if they need continued group counseling to do so. The study is being funded by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health.

HELP PD is one of numerous community-centered intervention models being developed based upon a program used during the DPP. Several different programs, tested in a variety of community settings, will be discussed and presented during the Association’s 70^th Scientific Sessions, including the Group Lifestyle Balance Program, which helped significantly reduce diabetes risk factors through group settings at a primary care practice in California and also through DVDs that could be viewed at home (105-OR). This program was also successful when delivered by diabetes educators (417-PP). Another focused on Arab Americans in the Detroit, Michigan area, who successfully reached weight loss and physical activity goals through a program culturally modified to suit Middle Eastern diet and values (110-OR). And African Americans recruited during Sunday services at 42 churches in Georgia and Connecticut showed promising initial weight loss and a high willingness to participate in a church-based, culturally adapted lifestyle change program, according to preliminary data (109-OR).

The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

Oral Presentation, Tuesday, June 29, 8:25 a.m.

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KANSAS CITY, MO–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius and other national leaders are coming together on July 6, 2010 for a first-of-its-kind town hall-style meeting with the goal of accelerating the discovery and development of new cancer drugs.

The event will bring together other senior government officials and thought leaders from industry, venture capital, academia, venture philanthropy and non-profit sectors to spur innovation and move discoveries more quickly from the laboratory to the clinic, where they can benefit patients battling cancer. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, Margaret Hamburg, commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and Richard Gephardt, former U.S. House Majority Leader and Chairman of the Council for American Medical Innovation, are among those who will participate.

Reflecting the growing shift away from the model of large pharmaceutical companies developing drugs internally from start to finish, the town hall is titled, “The New Role of Academia in Drug Discovery and Development.” It is being sponsored by Friends of Cancer Research and the University of Kansas Cancer Center, with support from the Kansas Bioscience Authority, Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and Council for American Medical Innovation.

Where: The Kauffman Foundation Conference Center, 4801 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, Mo., 64110

When: July 6, 2010, 7:45 a.m. – 3:45 p.m. CDT

Many key participants and organizational leadership will be available for press prior to the conference.

Press Contacts:
Friends of Cancer Research: Ryan Hohman, [email protected] or 717-333-6248

The University of Kansas Cancer Center: Marci Nielsen, [email protected], 913-961-0759 or Stephanie Sharp, [email protected], 913-579-4376

Kansas Bioscience Authority: Chad Bettes, [email protected] or 913-397-8300

Kauffman Foundation: Barb Pruitt, [email protected] or 816-932-1288

Council for American Medical Innovation: Sean Donahue, [email protected] or 202-347-7947

About Friends of Cancer Research

Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) is a cancer research think tank based in the Washington, D.C. area. Working with the entire cancer research and advocacy community, Friends pioneers innovative public-private partnerships, organizes critical policy forums, educates the public, and brings together key stakeholders to overcome the barriers standing between patients and the most promising cancer treatments.

About The University of Kansas Cancer Center

At The University of Kansas Cancer Center, we are more than an academic cancer center; we are a unique community-based cancer research and care partnership focused on one mission: eliminating the burden of cancer. The University of Kansas Cancer Center is transforming cancer research and clinical care by linking our innovative approach to drug discovery, delivery and development to our nationally accredited patient care program.

About the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private nonpartisan foundation that works to harness the power of entrepreneurship and innovation to grow economies and improve human welfare. 

About the Council for American Medical Innovation

The United States faces serious challenges to maintaining its leadership position in innovation. The Council for American Medical Innovation is bringing together leaders in research, medicine, public health, academia, education, labor, investment, and business, who are working in partnership toward a national policy agenda aimed at preserving U.S. leadership in medical innovation. American medical innovators create millions of high-paying jobs, and their discoveries are integral in the fight to cure cancer and other illnesses. The Council for American Medical Innovation views leadership in medical innovation as a key part of America’s economic recovery, future prosperity and health.

About the Kansas Bioscience Authority

The KBA is a $581 million initiative that is advancing Kansas’ national bioscience leadership by building world-class research capacity; fostering the formation and growth of bioscience startups; supporting expansion of the state’s bioscience clusters; and facilitating industrial expansion and attraction.

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NASHVILLE, TN–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Vanguard Health Systems, Inc. (“Vanguard”) announced today that its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Vanguard Health Holding Company II, LLC (“VHS Holdco II”), and Vanguard Holding Company II, Inc. (“VHS Holdco II Inc.” and, together with VHS Holdco II, the “Issuers”), plan to issue an aggregate principal amount of up to $225.0 million of 8% senior notes due 2018 (the “New Notes”) in a private placement. 

The Issuers intend to use the net proceeds from the offering of the New Notes, together with cash on hand, to finance Vanguard’s acquisition of substantially all of the assets of The Detroit Medical Center, a Michigan non-profit corporation, consisting primarily of eight acute care and specialty hospitals in the Detroit, Michigan metropolitan area and related healthcare facilities and to pay fees and expenses in connection with the foregoing. If the acquisition is not consummated, the proceeds of the offering of the New Notes will be used for general corporate purposes, including other acquisitions.

The New Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The New Notes may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. persons, except to “qualified institutional buyers” in reliance on the exemption from registration provided by Rule 144A and to certain persons in offshore transactions in reliance on Regulation S. You are hereby notified that sellers of the New Notes may be relying on the exemption from the provisions of Section 5 of the Securities Act provided by Rule 144A. This announcement does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy New Notes in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or sale would be unlawful.

Company Information and Forward Looking Statements

About Vanguard

Vanguard owns and operates 15 acute care hospitals with 4,135 licensed beds and complementary facilities and services in Chicago, Illinois; Phoenix, Arizona; San Antonio, Texas; and Massachusetts. Vanguard’s strategy is to develop locally branded, comprehensive healthcare delivery networks in urban markets. Vanguard will pursue acquisitions where there are opportunities to partner with leading delivery systems in new urban markets or to increase its presence in existing markets. Upon acquiring a facility or network of facilities, Vanguard implements strategic and operational improvement initiatives including expanding services, strengthening relationships with physicians and managed care organizations, recruiting new physicians and upgrading information systems and other capital equipment. These strategies improve quality and network coverage in a cost effective and accessible manner for the communities Vanguard serves.

This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws which are intended to be covered by the safe harbors created thereby. Forward-looking statements are those statements that are based upon management’s current plans and expectations as opposed to historical and current facts and are often identified in this report by use of words including but not limited to “may,” “believe,” “will,” “project,” “expect,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” and “plan.” These statements are based upon estimates and assumptions made by Vanguard’s management that, although believed to be reasonable, are subject to numerous factors, risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to be materially different from those projected. These factors, risks and uncertainties include, among others, Vanguard’s high degree of leverage and interest rate risk; Vanguard’s ability to incur substantially more debt; operating and financial restrictions in Vanguard’s debt agreements; the enactment in March 2010 of major healthcare reform legislation and the future possible enactment of additional federal or state health care reform and changes in federal, state or local laws or regulations affecting the healthcare industry; Vanguard’s ability to generate cash necessary to service Vanguard’s debt; weakened economic conditions and volatile capital markets; post-payment claim reviews by governmental agencies could result in additional costs to us; Vanguard’s ability to successfully implement Vanguard’s business strategies; Vanguard’s ability to grow its business and successfully integrate future acquisitions, including the assets of The Detroit Medical Center; potential acquisitions, including the assets of The Detroit Medical Center, could be costly, unsuccessful or subject Vanguard to material unexpected liabilities; conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of Vanguard’s control by a small number of stockholders; the highly competitive nature of the healthcare industry; governmental regulation of the industry, including Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement levels; pressures to contain costs by managed care organizations and other insurers and Vanguard’s ability to negotiate acceptable terms with these third party payers; Vanguard’s ability to attract and retain qualified management and healthcare professionals, including physicians and nurses; future governmental investigations; the availability of capital to fund Vanguard’s corporate growth strategy; potential lawsuits or other claims asserted against Vanguard; Vanguard’s ability to maintain or increase patient membership and control costs of its managed healthcare plans; Vanguard’s exposure to the increased amounts of and collection risks associated with uninsured accounts and the co-pay and deductible portions of insured accounts; dependence on Vanguard’s senior management team and local management personnel; volatility of professional and general liability insurance for Vanguard and the physicians who practice at its hospitals and increases in the quantity and severity of professional liability claims; Vanguard’s ability to maintain and increase patient volumes and control the costs of providing services, including salaries and benefits, supplies and bad debts; increased costs from further regulation of healthcare and potential liability from Vanguard’s failure to comply, or allegations of Vanguard’s failure to comply, with applicable laws and regulations; the geographic concentration of Vanguard’s operations; Vanguard’s failure to adequately enhance Vanguard’s facilities with technologically advanced equipment; technological and pharmaceutical improvements that increase the cost of providing, or reduce the demand for, healthcare services and shift demand for inpatient services to outpatient settings; costs and compliance risks associated with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act; a failure of Vanguard’s information systems that would adversely impact its ability to manage its operations; material non-cash charges to earnings from impairment of goodwill associated with declines in the fair market values of Vanguard’s reporting units; and volatility of materials and labor costs for potential construction projects that may be necessary for future growth.

Although Vanguard believes that the assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements contained in this press release are reasonable, any of these assumptions could prove to be inaccurate, and, therefore, there can be no assurance that the forward-looking statements included in this press release will prove to be accurate. In light of the significant uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included herein, you should not regard the inclusion of such information as a representation by Vanguard that its objectives and plans anticipated by the forward-looking statements will occur or be achieved, or if any of them do, what impact they will have on Vanguard’s results of operations and financial condition. Vanguard undertakes no obligation to publicly release any revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events and circumstances occurring after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Custom health communications company StayWell Custom Communications (SCC), a division of MediMedia USA, has announced an exclusive strategic alliance with SEO.com, a leading provider of search marketing strategies including search engine optimization, pay-per-click management, social media, and SEO Web design. 

Through this strategic alliance, StayWell Custom Communications will be offering a range of search marketing strategies designed to increase website traffic, build loyal customers and drive online transactions for its clients, which include health care providers, health plans, and retailers such as pharmacies and supermarket chains.

The increasing demand for online health information and services is fueling a growing need for health care organizations and health care retailers to focus on programs and tactics that make it easier for consumers to navigate the Internet and find information, which ultimately builds business for their organization. Search Engine Optimization and online advertising programs are becoming an increasingly important part of the mix when it comes to driving prospective patients and consumers to a health care site.

“As organizations continue to invest heavily in developing a robust online presence, ensuring that consumers can find them is critical to a successful e-business strategy,” said StayWell Custom Communications president and CEO Trent Sterling. “The need for such specialized search marketing strategies in order to optimize healthcare content and services have become ever more important.”

SCC established the alliance with SEO.com in order to meet this need and help its clients improve site performance. “We partner with our clients to deliver robust interactive health content solutions designed to achieve business results,” said Sterling. “The excellent search marketing strategies offered by SEO.com will enable our clients to maximize their ROI by helping them boost their Web traffic, and turn that traffic into revenue for their organization. With 80 percent of consumers going online to look for health information, the potential for our clients to use their content to attract visitors is unlimited.” 

SEO.com, an SEO company, is based just outside Salt Lake City, just minutes away from the headquarters of SCC’s Interactive Solutions. SEO.com’s clients include Dell, H&R Block, AlphaGraphics, Hugo Boss and Mrs. Field’s Cookies. Website Magazine ranked SEO.com the No. 2 SEO firm in the country in April 2010.

“Good content with the right keywords is critical for search engine optimization,” said Dave Bascom, CEO of SEO.com. “We’re excited to have joined forces with StayWell to help many respected organizations in the health industry achieve their goals.”

About StayWell Custom Communications (SCC)
StayWell Custom Communications is the leader in custom health content solutions delivered via a variety of sophisticated technology platforms. Our interactive offerings include robust web platforms, online health libraries, e-mail and SMS (or mobile) marketing programs, and an extensive range of multimedia tools including video, podcasts and animations. The company serves hundreds of clients representing several channels in the healthcare industry: hospitals and health systems; health plans; employers; and retail organizations. StayWell Custom Communications also offers a comprehensive range of print and print/interactive integrated solutions to meet a broad range of clients’ marketing and communication needs. 

SCC is a member of the StayWell family of companies, which includes Krames, StayWell Health Management, StayWell Consumer Health Publishing (A Harvard Medical School Strategic Alliance), Vitality Communications, StayWell Productions and StayWell Safety Solutions (a Red Cross Strategic Business Alliance). StayWell, which is a division of MediMedia USA, represents the largest patient education and consumer health information publisher in North America.

For more information, visit www.staywellcustom.com.

About MediMedia
Headquartered in Yardley, PA, with 1,700 employees in offices throughout the U.S., MediMedia changes consumer and professional behaviors through superior engagement, education and end-user preferences. Our health information services group creates, publishes, distributes, and syndicates on and off-line health information to help consumers make informed health decisions on behalf of a variety of sponsors, including providers — both hospitals and physicians, payers, and online media companies. Our health management services group provides population health management services which help consumers lower their health risk, enabling employers to lower their risks, utilization and ultimately their health care expenses. And finally, our professional segment derives its revenues from providing online/off-line professional promotion, engagement, and education services targeted to healthcare professionals and their patients.

MediMedia is a Vestar Capital Partners portfolio company.

About SEO.Com
SEO.com is a search marketing firm that makes its clients money by driving traffic to their websites through aggressive search engine optimization, pay per click management, and social media marketing. SEO.com then turns those visitors into sales through search-optimized Web design and conversion optimization. Clients range from small startups to Fortune 100 companies. For more information, visit http://www.seo.com/.

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KANKAKEE, IL–(Marketwire – June 29, 2010) –  Riverside Healthcare is proud to have their new website up and running. Current users of www.RiversideHealthcare.org will notice that the new website has maintained the overall look and feel of the original site and also offers new information in an easy to navigate format. As one of the top hospitals in Illinois, this website only makes Riverside’s services that much better.

With just a quick visit to this website you will see that they offer a wide range of services online. This Chicago south suburbs healthcare provider allows you to find a physician online with a basic search. Whether you need a dentist, family doctor, oncologist or even a plastic surgeon, this website can help you find one. If you need to schedule a mammogram or bone density scan, you can make this appointment directly online. There is no need to make telephone call and wait on hold anymore. Simply logon to get started today.

We all know that paying our medical bills can get hectic at times. Through Riverside Healthcare’s new website you can pay your medical bills with their bill payment center. This system makes paying your bills simple and convenient.

If you are not a patient at the hospital, but know someone staying at the southern Chicago healthcare center, there are services online that can help you as well. This website is great for those people who live out of town and can’t make it to the hospital to be there in person. You can go online and order flowers to be sent to your loved one. You can choose from a wide range of beautiful arrangements that will be delivered directly to their room. The website also offers access to The Market Place, where you can shop for all different types of medical goods. If you need books, gifts, strollers, or vitamins, this website has it all. One of the most popular features of the website is the online nursery. If someone you are close to just had a baby you can access the online nursery through their website as well.

Riverside Healthcare’s new website has something to offer everyone. You can visit the website every day to read up on the latest medical news. www.RiversideHealthcare.org is just what the doctor ordered!

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VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) – Funding for maternal health care must stay front and centre as the G8 and G20 summits conclude. Approximately 500,000 women around the globe die each year from pregnancy related causes that are preventable. Another 70,000 die from complications of unsafe abortions. When their mothers die, 80% of children under age one will also die, usually within two years.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper demonstrated Canadian leadership when addressing the goal of improving maternal health and lowering maternal and child mortality. Women around the world need Canada’s commitment and that of the other G8 countries.

As physicians, we are committed to evidence based solutions and realize that to reach this goal the strategy must include access to a full range of reproductive health programs including access to safe abortion where legal. There must be development of strong health care systems, supported by trained health care providers and integrated into whichever local health systems already exist. There need to be community based programs for maternal and child health including preventative programs such as nutrition, public health and vaccination programs. There also need to be programs that continue to work on the big three diseases that ravage sub-Saharan Africa, namely TB, malaria and HIV/AIDS, as these diseases contribute significantly to maternal and child mortality.

As world leaders leave Canada and prepare for the upcoming meeting in South Korea, there needs to be a commitment from all G8 countries for $30 billion over five years to fund maternal health. Saving women makes economic sense. Women make up half of the world’s population, and as women, produce the other half.

The Medical Women’s International Association has been in existence since 1919 and is an organization of women physicians from around the world whose mandate is to improve the health of women and children. The national branch is the Federation of Medical Women of Canada.

ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  Rosiglitazone, a commonly used diabetes drug, poses no significant increased risk of death, stroke or heart attack, though it does increase the risk of fractures, according to a new analysis of thousands of patients with established cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. The findings are being presented at the American Diabetes Association’s 70^th Scientific Sessions^®, and are part of the Bypass Angioplasty Revascularization Investigation in Type 2 Diabetes (BARI 2D) study, a landmark multicenter trial focusing exclusively on patients with both diabetes and established heart disease.

The safety of rosiglitazone, marketed as Avandia, a medication in the class of thiazolidinedione (TZD) drugs, has been a controversial topic since a 2007 meta-analysis published in the New England Journal of Medicine concluded that rosiglitazone “was associated with a significant increase in the risk of myocardial infarction and with an increase in the risk of death from cardiovascular causes.” The strength of this study, which reviewed the results of 42 previously published investigations but did no independent testing of the drug, has been questioned by others in the field but ultimately led to a review of the drug’s safety by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In November 2007, the FDA added a warning label to the drug regarding potential heart risks.

The following year, however, researchers conducting the Veterans Affairs Diabetes Trial (VADT), a large-scale clinical trial in which 80 percent of patients were taking rosiglitazone, added further, while still inconclusive, information to this discussion. During the American Diabetes Association’s 68^th Scientific Sessions, the VADT researchers reported that a specific analysis of rosiglitazone found that it did not appear to cause excess cardiovascular events and may in fact provide protective benefits for cardiovascular health.

Now a post-hoc analysis of the BARI 2D findings also shows no increased risk of heart attack or cardiovascular death with rosiglitazone treatment. Analyzing 4.5 years of follow-up data for patients who were being treated with rosiglitazone, compared to those not taking any TZD drugs, the study found no increase in risk of death or heart attack from taking rosiglitazone. While no protective cardiovascular benefit was shown, the analysis found that the rate of death, heart attack and stroke tended to be lower — about 28 percent lower in fact — among patients taking rosiglitazone. As has been seen with other studies of TZDs, the rate of congestive heart failure was significantly higher among patients taking rosiglitazone, but this difference was not statistically significant. 

As seen in previous studies, the analysis of BARI 2D reported a 45 percent increase in fracture rates for those taking rosiglitazone, compared to those not taking any TZD medications.

“I think these data are important because they suggest there is no significant cardiovascular harm posed by taking rosiglitazone for patients with type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease,” said lead researcher Richard Bach, M.D., Associate Professor of Medicine at the Washington University School of Medicine. “There is an increase in fractures, but when one considers the dramatic morbidity and mortality associated with ischemic cardiovascular events in patients with diabetes, these data are reassuring.”

The BARI 2D study, led by principal investigator Sheryl Kelsey, Ph.D, of the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, evaluated both a cardiovascular treatment approach as well as a diabetes control approach in 2,368 persons with type 2 diabetes and stable coronary artery disease (CAD) to reduce deaths or deaths and cardiovascular events (heart attacks and stroke) combined. The first component compared intensive medical treatment with prompt coronary revascularization by either bypass surgery or angioplasty (which opens blocked arteries by inserting metal stents or balloons through the arteries, without recourse to surgery) to intensive medical treatment alone. The second component compared whether controlling diabetes with drugs to make insulin work better (insulin sensitization) had an advantage for heart health or survival compared to using a strategy emphasizing drugs increasing insulin itself (insulin provision).

Nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes, a group of serious diseases characterized by high blood glucose levels that result from defects in the body’s ability to produce and/or use insulin. Diabetes can lead to severely debilitating or fatal complications, such as heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease and amputation. It is a leading cause of death by disease in the United States. Type 2 diabetes involves insulin resistance — the body’s inability to properly use its own insulin — and occurs mainly in adults who are overweight and age 40 and older. More than 65 percent of people with diabetes die from heart disease or stroke. With diabetes, heart attacks occur earlier in life and often result in death.

The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

Oral presentation, Tuesday, 8:50 a.m.

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TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) – FMX Ventures Inc. (the “Company“) (TSX VENTURE:FXX.H)announced today that, subject to regulatory approval, it has appointed Mr. Carmelo Marrelli as its Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Marrelli replaces Jon Kelly who has resigned to pursue other interests. Mr. Kelly served as Chief Financial Officer of the Company prior to the sale of its orthotics business in 2007 and assisted with the Company’s transition from an operating company to its current form. The board of directors of the Company wishes to thank Mr. Kelly for his contributions.

Mr. Marrelli holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto and is a qualified Chartered Accountant and Certified General Accountant. Mr. Marrelli is currently President of Marrelli Support Services, a bookkeeping firm based in Toronto, Ontario.

Number of Common Shares Outstanding – 3,934,296

ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  The American Diabetes Association has announced a change in the embargo time of the rosiglitazone study being presented at the 70^th Scientific Session in Orlando, FL. This is part of the Bypass Angioplasty Revascularization Investigation in Type 2 Diabetes (BARI 2D) study, a landmark multicenter trial focusing exclusively on patients with both diabetes and established heart disease. The new embargo time is 4:30 pm (EDT).

The American Diabetes Association thanks the BARI 2D investigators for their collaboration and appreciates their willingness to present this important scientific information to the diabetes community during the 70^th Scientific Sessions. The full scientific disclosure and discussion of these data will be featured at the Late Breaking Clinical Trials session on Tuesday, June 29, 2010 at 8:50 am.

The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information, please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

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WASHINGTON, DC and WILLIAMSBURG, VA–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  GuideStar, the leading source of nonprofit information, encourages any exempt organization whose fiscal year ends June 30 to verify that it is compliant with IRS reporting requirements in order to maintain its exemption.

Most tax-exempt organizations except churches are required to file an annual information return (IRS Form 990-N, 990-EZ, 990, or 990-PF). Organizations required to file that fail to do so for three consecutive years will automatically lose tax-exempt status, as mandated by a provision of the Pension Protection Act of 2006. 

The deadline for filing Form 990 and its variants is determined by the end of the filing organization’s fiscal year. The filing deadline for an organization whose fiscal year ends on June 30, 2010, is November 15, 2010. 

“The first time the revocation provision of the Pension Protection Act was put in effect was last May, when returns for organizations whose fiscal year ended December 31, 2009, were due,” said Bob Ottenhoff, GuideStar’s president and CEO. “We learned then that thousands of nonprofits, particularly smaller ones, did not realize they needed to file and were at risk of losing their exemptions. That’s why GuideStar created a nonprofit resource center about the revocations. Nonprofits can use the resource center to stay up to date on what they must do in terms of filing an annual information return.”

An organization’s annual gross revenue and assets determine which version of the 990 it must file. Filing extensions are available for Forms 990-EZ, 990, and 990-PF, but not for Form 990-N. (See the accompanying table.)

GuideStar’s nonprofit resource center provides an overview of the revocations issue and several quick links, including ones to a Form 990-N filing status database, the mechanics of filing Form 990-N, filing exceptions, filing thresholds, filing deadlines and extensions, and IRS and GuideStar revocation FAQs. The resource center is updated as new developments related to the revocations occur.

“We hope every exempt organization will use these resources to ensure that they are not at risk of losing their exemptions for failure to file an annual return,” Ottenhoff said. “Nonprofits play vital roles in our society, and losing tax-exempt status will hurt not only the organizations but also the causes and people they serve.” 

About GuideStar

GuideStar, www.guidestar.org, connects people and organizations with information on the programs and finances of more than 1.8 million IRS-recognized nonprofits. GuideStar serves a wide audience inside and outside the nonprofit sector, including individual donors, nonprofit leaders, grantmakers, government officials, academic researchers, and the media.

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POCATELLO, ID–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  TetriDyn Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB: TDYS), a multi-channel technology innovator in the Information Technologies sector, announced today that it has delivered its latest revenue and business process improvements tool targeted specifically for hospital environments — Charge Catcher.

Charge Catcher enables hospitals to improve their revenue generation by identifying lost charges in an accurate and timely manner. Hospitals can improve their revenue by reviewing and correcting the identified and missed charges quickly and accurately. Charge Catcher uses a combination of rule-based logic and artificial intelligence techniques to detect potential missing charges before the patient bill is generated. 

Bear Lake Memorial Hospital increased its earnings by more than one percent of gross revenues in its first full year of using Charge Catcher. Bear Lake Memorial Hospital also found additional benefits of using Charge Catcher included lower administrative costs due to fewer re-billings, improvements in departments’ billings and procedures, and enhanced levels of compliance. TetriDyn has also recently signed a contract with Steele Memorial Medical Center to implement the latest version of Charge Catcher in their facility so that they can begin to appreciate increased revenues as well.

In addition, past charges can be reviewed in the initial stages of deployment to recoup lost revenue from previous billing cycles as much as one year later. Charge Catcher has been proven to incrementally increase revenue reimbursement, improve billing accuracy, and reduce business office expenses.

Dave Hempstead, CEO of TetriDyn Solutions, commented, “We are excited to be delivering to our customers a product that generates added revenue on a daily basis. The Charge Catcher tool creates revenue improvements for hospitals and reduces accounts receivable days throughout the revenue cycle.” 

For more information about Charge Catcher, visit www.chargecatcher.com.

About TetriDyn Solutions, Inc.
TetriDyn Solutions, Inc. (OTCBB: TDYS) specializes in providing business information technology (IT) solutions to its customers. TetriDyn Solutions optimizes business and IT processes by utilizing systems engineering methodologies, strategic planning, and system integration to add efficiencies and value to its customers’ business processes and to help its customers identify critical success factors in their business. For more information about the company, visit www.tetridyn.com.

ATLANTA, GA–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  Armando L. Vilches, CPCU, a sales executive with 25 years of experience in property/casualty insurance, has joined Uni-Ter Underwriting Management Corporation as Vice President-Marketing, Nadeene Wood-Clater, Senior Vice President-Marketing, announced.

Vilches spent 20 years with the Willis Insurance Group and its subsidiary Stewart Smith where he was named the Company’s Most Valuable Producer in 2000. As Nashville Marketing Manager, he led a team that placed $250 million in commercial premium.

“Armando has an outstanding track record marketing and underwriting all lines of liability insurance. He will be a valuable addition to the Uni-Ter team as the Company grows,” Wood-Clater said.

Vilches will work in marketing and new business development for Lewis & Clark LTC RRG, Inc., provider of liability insurance to long-term care facilities and nurses nationwide and Ponce de Leon LTC RRG, Inc. that writes liability insurance for long-term care facilities in Florida. He will work also on new business development for J.M. Woodworth Risk Retention Group, Inc., medical malpractice insurance writer in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

Vilches is a graduate of DePaul University. He holds the CPCU (Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter) Designation and is a recognized speaker on risk management and liability insurance.

Learn more about Uni-Ter at www.uni-ter.com.

MUNDELEIN, IL–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  Medline Industries, Inc., the nation’s largest privately held manufacturer and distributor of medical supplies, today announced the launch of a new, completely redesigned and expanded company website that vastly improves the user experience for its healthcare customers. The newly revamped medline.com features improved navigation enabling direct access to key information regarding Medline products, programs and education.

“While we’ve refined the design, we’ve also improved the use of technology so users can engage directly with our content, products and services faster than ever,” said Jignesh Thakkar, Medline’s Director of E-Business Marketing. “The redesigned website vastly improves the customer experience. Visitors can now get much more information quickly and easily through expanded content, videos, product search capabilities and more.”

With users accessing medline.com content more than two million times a month, a critical outcome for the redesign was to not only create an updated interactive environment for customers, but to help them find what they are looking for easier and faster. The new site achieves this by not only increasing product search performance by more than 50 percent, but by also adding more features such as:

• 200-plus pages of fresh content that provides valuable information and resources to customers.
• Thousands of additional product images and updated descriptions
• New detailed product specification pages — in full page format
• Ability to select preferred product page views in thumbnail, column or table formats
• Filtered product category functionality to reduce product search results
• Selection categories of top products and manufacturers from the products results page.

“It is so much more user friendly. I like the options at the top (thumbnails) as to how you can view the items,” said Cali Yocom of Bethany Hospice in Valdosta, GA. “I also love the pictures. It is so nice to have that when you want to get a better view of the item.”

The medline.com redesign is the second major upgrade the company has made to its core group of websites. Last month significant enhancements were added to Medline University (MU), its online resource for clinical education and product training for healthcare providers. That site (www.medlineuniversity.com) now includes free unlimited access to CE credit courses, live webinars, downloadable podcasts, real-time news feeds and innovative interactive competency tools. Additionally, the company also recently added a free CE iPhone^® and iPod Touch^® app, now available for download from Apple’s iTunes store.

“Medline is committed to helping customers make profitable, educated decisions through engaging, interactive experiences,” said Mike Penny, Medline Chief Information Officer. “Our focus on innovation in online interaction will continue to increase over time as we see strong results from our efforts to date.”

About Medline Industries, Inc.

Medline, the nation’s largest privately held manufacturer and distributor of healthcare products, manufactures and distributes more than 100,000 products to hospitals, extended-care facilities, surgery centers, home care dealers and agencies. Headquartered in Mundelein, Ill., Medline has more than 900 dedicated sales representatives nationwide to support its broad product line and cost management services.

Over the past five years, Medline has been the fastest-growing distributor of medical and surgical supplies in the U.S., serving as the primary distributor to over 450 major hospitals and healthcare systems. As a leading distributor, Medline offers a comprehensive array of consulting and management services encompassing the supply chain and logistics, utilization and standardization, business tools and enhanced reporting capabilities and on-staff clinicians.

BETHESDA, MD–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  GetWellNetwork, Inc. will host a webinar on Tuesday, June 29th to demonstrate how children’s hospitals can improve patient satisfaction and enhance patients’ and families’ experience through using GetWell Town™, an interactive patient care solution.

GetWell Town was developed in collaboration with GetWellNetwork’s National Children’s Hospital Task Force, comprised of 15 pediatric facilities across the U.S., and direct input from pediatric patients and their families. GetWell Town is designed to complement the kid-friendly spaces that children’s hospitals have worked hard to create and features exclusive content in partnership with KidsHealth®, part of The Nemours Foundation’s Center for Children’s Health Media.

“Since the launch of GetWell Town, we’ve been honored to help many pediatric facilities improve patient care processes and drive better outcomes as a result,” said Shannon O’Neil, MSW, Director of Pediatrics at GetWellNetwork, Inc. “This webinar is designed to share with other children’s hospitals how they can realize the same benefits for their patients and gain efficiencies in core nursing activities such as education, patient documentation, and patient safety.”

To register for this webinar please visit http://www.getwellnetwork.com/webinar.asp.

When: June 29, 2010.
Time: 12:00-1:00 PM, EDT.
Who: Chief Nursing Officers, Child Life Specialists, Discharge Planners, Environmental Services, and Safety Services.

More information about GetWell Town is available at http://www.getwellnetwork.com/pdfs/getwell_town.pdf.

About GetWellNetwork
GetWellNetwork, Inc. uses the bedside TV to entertain, educate and empower hospital patients and caregivers to be more actively engaged in their care. This patient-centered approach improves both satisfaction and outcomes for patients and hospitals. GetWellNetwork is the leader in interactive patient care solutions and exclusively endorsed by the American Hospital Association. More information about GetWellNetwork can be found at www.GetWellNetwork.com.

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ATLANTA, GA–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) – ALR Technologies Inc. (OTCBB: ALRT) announces the appointment of Lawrence (Larry) Weinstein to be President and Chief Operating Officer effective July 1, 2010, replacing Sidney Chan who will become Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Stan Cruitt is retiring as Chairman of the Company.

Larry has extensive experience in the development and launch of medical products. His experience includes 11 years with Cordis Corporation (a Johnson & Johnson company), 6 years with DHD Healthcare Corporation and most recently, 9 years with Pari Respiratory Equipment. He is leaving Pari as Senior Vice President of Operations at PRE Holding, Inc. and as President, Hydrate, Inc.

Mr. Chan says that, “Larry Weinstein brings a skill set and experience that will be invaluable as the company introduces the ALRT Health-e-Connect (HeC) monitoring system. Our product will be invaluable for the healthcare industry to achieve better health outcomes and contain costs.”

About ALR Technologies Inc.
ALRT Health-e-Connect (HeC) System is the principal product of the Company. HeC is a web-based application for medical professionals to improve compliance and adherence of care plans of patients in their homes. HeC is programmed to assist healthcare providers caring for diabetes patients. The platform will be expanded to cover patients with other chronic diseases. More information on ALR Technologies and its products can be found at http://www.alrt.com. 

This release contains certain “forward-looking statements” relating to ALR Technologies’ business, and these statements reflect the current views of ALR Technologies with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. When used, the words “estimate,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe” and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. There are many factors that could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of ALR Technologies and its products to be materially different from any future results, performances or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Further management discussions of risks and uncertainties can be found in the company’s quarterly filings with the Securities Exchange Commission.

DEERFIELD BEACH, FL–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) –  MedChoice Financial, a national medical financial company, announces new functionality for healthcare and medical providers to truly leverage its Platinum Provider Portal and go paperless. The secure, web-based provider portal enables a medical practice or clinic to dynamically manage its financing programs through automated processes, application submissions and reporting.

The portal now allows for more visibility into the current state of a patient’s account by showing in real time availability of funds. Healthcare providers can service patients faster when they know what funds can be applied to their patients’ procedures, whether it be medical, cosmetic, dental, laser hair removal or restoration. Additionally, MedChoice’s enhanced reporting benefits practices by allowing them to export data to an Excel spreadsheet and allows for the integration with other business applications.

“The enhancements we have made to our portal support our mission for a customer driven, flexible and responsive support system for a practice’s needs. Our investment in automation will benefit practices nationwide by not having to delay performing procedures and will give them an instant overview of a patient’s financing options,” said Valerie Harding, MedChoice Financial Marketing Spokesperson.

Healthcare practices today find physicians and their staff juggling more patients and paperwork, with fewer resources. MedChoice’s Platinum Provider Portal simplifies, accelerates and automates administrative tasks that drain precious resources. It allows staff and physicians to focus their energies on better serving their patients and brings the practice one step closer to achieving a paperless environment. Other benefits include increased efficiencies and accuracies, improved access to information, better collaboration and communication between colleagues and patients.

About MedChoice Financial

MedChoice Financial, headquartered in Deerfield Beach, FL, is a national medical financial institution that services the medical community (medical, dental, cosmetic) and its patients with flexible, convenient financing solutions. Dedicated foremost to superior customer service and partnered with World Financial Network National Bank (WFNNB), MedChoice Financial has become one of the largest and fastest growing elective medical financing companies in the nation. For more information, visit www.medchoicefinancial.com

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SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS, FRANCE–(Marketwire – June 28, 2010) – www.nicox.com

NicOx S.A. (NYSE Euronext Paris: COX) today announced that new preclinical
results for NCX 434 were presented at the Retina International World
Congress in Stresa, Italy. NCX 434 is a nitric oxide (NO)-donating new
molecular entity (NME) and a potential preclinical candidate in Diabetic
Macular Edema (DME). It was shown to reduce retinal damage due to ischemia
(restriction of blood flow) and reperfusion (return of blood supply
following ischemia) in a preclinical model without inducing a significant
increase of intraocular pressure (IOP), in contrast to a reference steroid.

DME is a form of diabetic retinopathy, which results from high blood sugar
causing progressive damage to retinal cells and can lead to blindness. In
addition to laser surgery, DME is often treated with injections of steroids
inside the eye (intravitreal injections), which tend to increase IOP,
presenting a significant safety concern. Additionally, local ischemia
resulting from an imbalance between NO, known for its vasodilation
properties, and a vasoconstrictor substance called endothelin-1 (ET-1)
appears to play a pivotal role in DME progression.

This presentation showed that NCX 434 was efficient in reducing several
biochemical and functional aspects of retinal damage in a preclinical model
of ischemia/reperfusion induced by the injection of ET-1. NCX 434 did not
significantly change IOP in this model, while triamcinolone acetonide, a
reference steroid, resulted in significant increase in IOP.

Previous preclinical results showing that NCX 434 enhanced oxygen
saturation in various optic nerve head structures in contrast to a
reference steroid were presented recently at the Ocular Diseases & Drug
Discovery conference in Boston (NicOx press release dated June 1, 2010).

Risks factors which are likely to have a material effect on NicOx’s
business are presented in the 4th chapter of the ” Document de
référence, rapport financier annuel et rapport de gestion 2009 ”
filed with the French Autorité des Marchés Financiers (AMF) on
March 5, 2010 and available on NicOx’s website (www.nicox.com) and on the
AMF’s website (www.amf-france.org).

The Company notably draws the investors’ attention to the following risk
factors:

– Risques liés à la dépendance de la Société
à l’égard du naproxcinod (Risks related to the Company’s
dependence on the success of its lead product naproxcinod)

– Risques commerciaux et développements cliniques (Clinical
developments and commercial risk)

– Risques liés aux contraintes réglementaires et à la
lenteur des procédures d’approbation (Risks linked to regulatory
constraints and slow approval procedures)

– Manque de capacités dans les domaines de la vente et du marketing
(Lack of sales and marketing capabilities)

– Incertitude relative aux prix des médicaments et aux régimes de
remboursement, ainsi qu’en matière de réforme des régimes
d’assurance maladie (Uncertainty on drug pricing and reimbursement policies
and on the reforms of the health insurance systems)

NicOx (Bloomberg: COX:FP, Reuters: NCOX.PA) is a pharmaceutical company
focused on the research, development and future commercialization of drug
candidates. NicOx is applying its proprietary nitric oxide-donating R&D
platform to develop an internal portfolio of New Molecular Entities (NME)
for the potential treatment of inflammatory, cardio-metabolic and
ophthalmological diseases.

NicOx’s lead investigational compound is naproxcinod, an NME and a first-
in-class CINOD (Cyclooxygenase-Inhibiting Nitric Oxide-Donating) anti-
inflammatory drug candidate developed for the relief of the signs and
symptoms of osteoarthritis (OA), which is currently under review by
regulatory authorities, following the submission and filing of a New Drug
Application (NDA) to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and a
Marketing Authorization Application (MAA) to the European Medicines Agency
(EMA). The FDA and the EMA are evaluating the data submitted. The FDA has
set an action date of July 24, 2010, under the Prescription Drug User Fee
Act (PDUFA).

In addition to naproxcinod, NicOx’s pipeline includes several nitric oxide-
donating NMEs, which are in development internally and with partners,
including Merck & Co., Inc. and Bausch + Lomb, for the treatment of
hypertension, cardiometabolic diseases, eye diseases and dermatological
diseases.

NicOx S.A. is headquartered in France and is listed on Euronext Paris
(Compartment B: Mid Caps).

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements. Although
the Company believes its expectations are based on reasonable assumptions,
these forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and
uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from
those anticipated in the forward-looking statements.

For a discussion of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual
results, financial condition, performance or achievements of NicOx S.A. to
differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, please refer
to the Risk Factors (“Facteurs de Risque”) section of the Document de
Reference filed with the AMF, which is available on the AMF website
(http://www.amf-france.org) or on NicOx S.A.’s website
(http://www.nicox.com).

CONTACTS

www.nicox.com

NicOx

Gavin Spencer – Vice President Business Development

Tel +33 (0)4 97 24 53 00 – [email protected]

Media Relations

Financial Dynamics

Europe

Guillaume Granier (France) – Tel: +33 (0)1 47 03 68 10 –
[email protected]

Stéphanie Bia (France) – Tel: +33 (0)1 47 03 68 10 –
[email protected]

Jonathan Birt (UK) – Tel +44 (0)20 7269 7205 – [email protected]

United States

Robert Stanislaro – Tel +1 212 850 5657 – [email protected]

Irma Gomez-Dib – Tel +1 212 850 5761 – [email protected]

NicOx S.A.,

Les Taissounières – Bât HB4 – 1681 route des Dolines – BP313,
06906 Sophia Antipolis cedex, France. Tel. +33 (0)4 97 24 53 00 – Fax +33
(0)4 97 24 53 99

This information is provided by HUGIN

ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 27, 2010) –  Research into whether an “artificial pancreas” can effectively control blood glucose levels in children and adults with type 1 diabetes continues to make rapid advances, leading those in the field to predict that technology could become commercially available within the next few years, according to speakers at a joint American Diabetes Association — Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) symposium at the Association’s 70^th Scientific Sessions^®.

Results, presented for the first time at today’s symposium, show that adults with type 1 diabetes can use the artificial pancreas technology to significantly improve overnight blood glucose control without increasing the risk for hypoglycemia, across a range of real-life situations — even after eating a large meal and drinking a glass of white wine. Lead researcher Roman Hovorka, Ph.D, Principal Research Associate at the University of Cambridge Metabolic Research Laboratories, noted that such a system could greatly improve the lives of those who are insulin-dependent.

A second study, also presented for the first time at the Association’s 70^th Scientific Sessions, helped to identify the psychosocial characteristics of people with type 1 diabetes most likely to successfully utilize continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices, an important component of an artificial pancreas system. This data, presented by Marilyn Ritholz, Ph.D, Senior Psychologist at the Joslin Diabetes Center and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School, should help physicians and other diabetes care providers to identify patients for whom the new devices are most likely to be beneficial.

Both studies are part of the JDRF’S Artificial Pancreas Project, a partnership that brings together diabetes researchers and businesses focused on making the artificial pancreas a reality. The American Diabetes Association joined forces with JDRF at its Scientific Sessions to promote the research behind this project and to raise awareness of efforts underway to improve the lives of people with diabetes who are insulin-dependent.

“This joint symposium highlights how major organizations working together can move these technologies forward,” said Richard Bergenstal, MD, Executive Director of the International Diabetes Center and American Diabetes Association’s President, Medicine & Science. “It’s going to require collaboration between many different organizations to come together to tackle this problem.”

“It’s very exciting to work together to help people with diabetes achieve their outcomes,” said Aaron Kowalski, Ph.D, Research Director of the Artificial Pancreas Project. “We’re all interested in people with diabetes achieving better glucose control. The community needs to hear what’s happening and where we are headed.”

The JDRF research involving artificial pancreas technology combines CGM with an insulin pump and a sophisticated computer program (called an algorithm) that can automate when and how much insulin to deliver. All but the computer program are technologies already commercially available to people with diabetes. Research trials performed so far within the JDRF Artificial Pancreas Project have tested various levels of automation, multiple computer programs, and a range of in-clinic situations, including large and small meals, nighttime control, and exercise.

However, “a fully automated system that administers insulin as needed during the night without human intervention is planned to be tested on children in their homes in the United Kingdom. Nobody has done such a study before,” Hovorka said.

“I think artificial pancreas systems are going to turn out to be among the most promising short-term clinical benefits of diabetes research,” said Richard Insel, Executive Vice President of Research at JDRF. “They are going to obviously allow individuals to more effectively manage their blood glucose levels, especially after eating, when exercising, and during the night while they sleep. Not only will that help prevent long-term complications of the disease, but low blood sugars will be prevented, and living with diabetes will be easier. Just preventing the swings in glucose levels will help. The benefits are countless.”

Partially Automated Systems in Development

Hovorka and his team from the University of Cambridge have completed several recent studies of the artificial pancreas that hold promise for both children and adults with type 1 diabetes. Earlier this year, The Lancet published their landmark study of children and teenagers with type 1 diabetes who experienced better control of blood glucose levels and lower incidence of hypoglycemia while sleeping, using a closed loop artificial pancreas system.

Today, during the joint American Diabetes Association-JDRF symposium, Hovorka outlined results of his most recent study, which showed these benefits remain consistent even after adults with type 1 eat a large meal and drink a glass of white wine before bedtime. The study found that using the artificial pancreas system, these adults spent 70 percent of their time within their target blood glucose range, up from 47 percent of the time they spend within target overnight without use of the artificial pancreas system. As in the other studies, time spent in hypoglycemia tended to be reduced, even though alcohol is known to increase the risk of nocturnal/next morning hypoglycemia for people with type 1 diabetes. Full results will be presented on Monday.

The Cambridge team has also begun preliminary research into how such a system might work for pregnant women with type 1 diabetes. Early results have examined overnight glucose control in this population to establish a baseline against which they can measure effectiveness using the closed loop artificial pancreas system. These preliminary results were discussed in a poster presentation here on Saturday.

Barriers to Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM)

A major component of the technology needed to produce an artificial pancreas is a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system, which relates blood glucose levels and the direction they are trending throughout the day and night, compared to the “snapshots” that are currently taken by pricking the skin and using test strips on a periodic basis. CGM involves inserting a glucose-sensing device called a “sensor” under the skin of the abdomen, where it takes a glucose reading from the tissue every few seconds and relays it to a handheld device or insulin pump.

“CGM has the potential to be one of the most important breakthroughs in diabetes management in many years, especially for type 1, probably since pump therapies were developed in the 1980s,” said William Tamborlane, MD, of Yale University, and co-chair of JDRF’s Continuous Glucose Monitoring Group. Holding back more wide scale adoption of the technology at present, he said, are technical imperfections that make the devices cumbersome to use and require frequent calibrations and manual confirmations to ensure accuracy. “What we have now are imperfect simulations of the perfect system,” he said. But the technology holds great promise because even while not yet perfected, research has shown that using it regularly can significantly reduce A1C levels without increasing severe hypoglycemia in those who used it as directed.

JDRF-funded studies have shown that adults over the age of 25 were able to reduce their A1C levels from 7.6 to 7.1, using CGM in conjunction with an insulin pump, he said. In children ages 8-14, A1C levels dropped from 8.0 to 7.6 using CGM. Teenagers did not see a benefit, but that is likely because they were less likely to comply with using the technology than the other two groups, Tamborlane said. Participants in the trials who used the technology regularly — more than six days per week — saw similar improvement regardless of age.

“To get a benefit from a device, you actually have to use it,” he said.

Most importantly, when using CGM, A1C levels were reduced half a percentage point without increasing the risk of severe hypoglycemia, Tamborlane said. Hypoglycemia is perhaps the biggest concern for people with diabetes looking to significantly lower blood glucose levels and can have serious negative consequences, such as loss of consciousness.

The Joslin Center’s Ritholz said her team studied the psycho-social barriers that can prevent people from successful use of a CGM system and found that those who used problem-solving skills for coping with frustration and anger; who saw CGM as a mechanism for better understanding glucose patterns; and who had good support from a spouse or significant other were most likely to achieve good results with using this technology. Conversely, those who had anger and impulse control issues, who failed to synthesize the data from CGM and who didn’t have good emotional support were less likely to benefit from CGM use.

Success was defined, in this study, as lowering A1C levels by at least half a percentage point (if levels were above 7 percent at baseline) or decreasing the amount of hypoglycemia (if levels were below 7 percent at baseline), Ritholz said.

“There needs to be attention paid to the people using CGM,” she said. “We can’t just focus on the technology. In determining individualized patient care, it’s important to pay attention to who is most likely to succeed with this technology. It’s not for everybody.”

The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, our mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

About JDRF
JDRF is the leader in research leading to a cure for type 1 diabetes in the world. It sets the global agenda for diabetes research, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of diabetes science worldwide.

The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that strikes children and adults suddenly, and can be fatal. Until a cure is found, people with type 1 diabetes have to test their blood sugar and give themselves insulin injections multiple times or use a pump — each day, every day of their lives. And even with that intensive care, insulin is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications, which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation. The goal of the JDRF Artificial Pancreas Project is to speed the development of automated diabetes management systems. Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.4 billion to diabetes research, including more than $100 million in 20 countries last year alone.

Symposium, Sunday June 27, 2 P.M.

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TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – June 26, 2010) – The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care has deployed Ontario’s Emergency Medical Assistance Team (EMAT) to support capacity at the Huntsville District Memorial Hospital site of Muskoka Algonquin Healthcare. In anticipation of the many visitors expected in the region, the ministry has been working with the North Simcoe Muskoka Local Health Integration Network (LHIN) and local health service providers in the Simcoe-Muskoka region for over a year to develop plans to ensure there are minimal disruptions during the G8 summit.

The EMAT is funded by the ministry and is operated by the Sunnybrook-Osler Centre for Prehospital Care (SOCPC), a division of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

“The EMAT is providing additional critical care capacity in the region as part of a comprehensive health care plan to support the needs of this community”, said Robert Burgess, SOCPC Senior Director.

The EMAT mobile field hospital has been erected directly adjacent to the Huntsville District Memorial Hospital.

The Emergency Medical Assistance Team (EMAT)

Backgrounder

Q1. What is the Emergency Medical Assistance Team (EMAT)?

The EMAT is a part of the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s (the ministry) health emergency response program and is an important component of Ontario’s overall emergency response capacity. The EMAT is funded by the ministry and is operated by Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. The EMAT is a 56-bed mobile field hospital that may be deployed by the ministry within 24-hours to any road-accessible community in Ontario. The unit provides the capacity to provide ongoing treatment for up to 20 acute care and 36 intermediate care patients and/or a staging and triage base for patients prior to transporting them to acute care hospitals and is medically self-sustainable (supplies, equipment, power, and personnel) for 72 hours.

Q2. What kind of health emergency response services does the EMAT provide?

The EMAT has the capacity to provide ongoing treatment for up to 20 acute care and 36 intermediate care patients and/or triage. The EMAT has expertise in: patient isolation in the case of an infectious disease outbreak; the provision of medical support and first receiver cold zone decontamination in the case of a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear (CBRN) incidents; and assisting with managing patients in a mass casualty situation. If any jurisdiction in Ontario finds that it does not have the capacity to respond effectively to a health incident or emergency, the EMAT may be deployed to support the local health system.

Q3. How is the EMAT staffed?

The EMAT uses on-call professional health care providers from across the province who volunteer to work on the EMAT. Team members come from a variety of locations so that no single area is without vital health human resources at any given time. There are approximately 90 members including physicians, nurses, critical and advanced care paramedics and social workers, who are specially trained through the EMAT in health emergency management and response. Once the EMAT is activated, on-call volunteer workers are alerted and transported to the emergency site.

Q4. Who determines when the EMAT is deployed?

Deployment is based on an established set of criteria, including an immediate assessment of the local health care system’s ability to respond to the incident/ emergency, the availability of accommodations, water and food supplies for the EMAT volunteer workers, and an assessment of the emergency site (e.g., safety assessment for the mobile unit and EMAT volunteer workers). To deploy the EMAT, the local hospital and/or health system contacts the ministry with the initial request for EMAT support. If the situation meets the criteria, the ministry activates the EMAT.

Q5. How is the EMAT trained?

The EMAT team has the appropriate training and skills to function as a team in a health emergency environment involving infectious diseases outbreaks, natural disasters, CBRN, and mass causality incidents. The EMAT team trains regularly through full-scale exercises, which involve the participation of local health care organizations, and may also include local police, fire and ambulance services, as well as local municipalities.

Q6. What is the EMAT’s role at the G8?

The EMAT is a mobile field hospital that has been deployed to the G8 in Huntsville, ON to support capacity for the Huntsville hospital. It is onsite as part of the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s work to ensure there is capacity for care for all patients.

ORLANDO, FL–(Marketwire – June 25, 2010) –  Bret Michaels, lead vocalist of Poison and winner of this season of “Celebrity Apprentice,” has received the American Diabetes Association’s prestigious Chair’s Citation Award in Orlando, FL. Bret will be the first recipient of the Award, which recognizes the outstanding accomplishments of individuals, corporations, institutions or organizations who have demonstrated significant dedication and commitment in their local market and have had a positive impact in advancing the mission of the American Diabetes Association.

“We are proud of Bret’s passion and commitment to raising funds for the American Diabetes Association. His efforts this year will truly help us change the future of this deadly disease,” said Larry Hausner, CEO, American Diabetes Association. “We are also very excited to continue our relationship with Bret and, together, help Stop Diabetes^SM.”

Bret, who has type 1 diabetes, chose the American Diabetes Association as his charity during this season of “Celebrity Apprentice.” He raised $390,000 for the Association and has helped put a face to diabetes by raising critical awareness about the seriousness of diabetes and the importance of diabetes prevention and management.

The American Diabetes Association is the largest voluntary health organization committed to the fight to stop diabetes. Each year the Association honors volunteers who have made a significant contribution to this fight at its Community Volunteer Leadership Conference and National Board Meeting. Immediately following this conference, the Association hosts its Scientific Sessions with more than 13,000 top scientists, physicians and other health care professionals from around the world to share cutting edge research, treatment recommendations and advances toward a cure for diabetes.

Nearly 24 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. Diabetes contributes to the deaths of more than 230,000 Americans each year. The American Diabetes Association estimates that the total cost of diagnosed diabetes in the United States is more than $174 billion; further published studies suggest that when additional costs for gestational diabetes, pre-diabetes and undiagnosed diabetes are included, the total diabetes-related costs in the United States could exceed $218 billion. 

About Bret Michaels
Bret Michaels, lead vocalist of Poison and winner of this season’s “Celebrity Apprentice,” has an album coming out on July 6, 2010 called “Custom Built.” Bret will also be producing and appearing in a new reality show on VH1 called “Bret Michaels: Life as You Know It.”

About the American Diabetes Association
The American Diabetes Association is leading the fight to stop diabetes and its deadly consequences and fighting for those affected by diabetes. The Association funds research to prevent, cure, and manage diabetes; delivers services to hundreds of communities; provides objective and credible information; and gives voice to those denied their rights because of diabetes. Founded in 1940, its mission is to prevent and cure diabetes and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes. For more information, please call the American Diabetes Association at 1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383) or visit www.diabetes.org. Information from both these sources is available in English and Spanish.

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