PHA-Exch> NEW FUNDING ENABLES UN AGENCIES TO FURTHER RESEARCH CHILDREN’S MEDICINES

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: Vern Weitzel <vern.weitzel at gmail.com>
crossposrted from : "[health-vn discussion group]" <
health-vn at cairo.anu.edu.au>


sent to health-vn MDG List by Vern Weitzel <vern.weitzel at gmail.com>

Subject: NEW FUNDING ENABLES UN AGENCIES TO FURTHER RESEARCH CHILDREN'S
MEDICINES
Date: Wed, 21 Jan 2009 10:00:12 -0500
From: UNNews <UNNews at un.org>
To: <news9 at secint00.un.org>

NEW FUNDING ENABLES UN AGENCIES TO FURTHER RESEARCH CHILDREN'S MEDICINES
New York, Jan 21 2009 10:00AM
Two United Nations agencies will be able to boost research into "child size"
medicines designed and formulated specifically for children thanks to a $9.7
million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

"The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation grant will contribute to accelerating
work on investigating, clarifying and communicating to partners, including
industry, what the needs of children are in terms of medicines and dosages
to more effectively fight child morbidity and mortality," said Hanne Bak
Pedersen, Deputy-Director for the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) Supply
Division.

UNICEF and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) noted in a joint news <"
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2009/childsize_medicines_20090121/en/index.html">release
that many medicines available today are only designed for adults.

"More than 50 per cent of medicines prescribed for children have either not
been developed specifically for children or have not been proven to be
effective and safe for their use," the agencies stated.

As a result, many children lack access to essential treatment because no
suitable paediatric dosage or formulation of the necessary medicine exists,
or those that do exist are not available or are too expensive. Also,
sometimes healthcare workers and parents use fractions of adult dosage forms
or prepare "makeshift" prescriptions of medicines by crushing tablets or
dissolving portions of capsules in water.

"We must take the guesswork out of medicines for children," said WHO
Assistant Director-General Carissa Etienne. "Children are suffering and
dying from diseases we can treat, and yet we lack the critical evidence
needed to deliver appropriate, effective, affordable medicines that might
save them."

Dr. Hans Hogerzeil, Director of Essential Medicines and Pharmaceutical
Policies at WHO, noted that some progress has been made on children's
medicines but too many medicines are still given to children that have never
been properly tested for them. "This work is an excellent example of
coordination of United Nations agencies and key experts in the world to
address this urgent problem."

The grant will enable research to determine the optimum dosage forms for
paediatric medicines; develop dosing guides; and develop guidelines for
testing, treatment and use of medicines in children, including guidelines on
conducting clinical trials in children.

This work follows the WHO-led "make medicines child size" initiative
launched in December 2007, which focuses on improving access to better
medicines for children.
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