Trending News Today: Shingrix Vaccine Effective at Preventing Shingles, Reducing Severity

RedHill BioPharma announced positive results from a late-stage clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of its treatment for Crohn disease, Reuters reported. According to the article, the drug, called RHB-104, demonstrated superiority over a placebo in achieving remission of the gastrointestinal disease at week 26. Patients treated with RHB-104 also experienced a statistically significant benefit in achieving early remission at week 16 and in durable remission over weeks 16 to 52, the article reported.

Two new studies have demonstrated that the vaccine Shingrix prevents shingles and lessens the severity of illness for those who do contract the virus, Reuters reported. According to the article, in 1 late-stage trial, 9 of the 7340 individuals given Shingrix developed shingles, compared with 254 of 7413 participants who received a placebo. In another trial, 25 of the 8250 individuals given Shingrix developed shingles, compared with 284 of 8346 who received a placebo. Researchers determined that the vaccine was 98% effective at reducing the burden of illness in 1 trial and 92% effective in the other trial, the article reported.

Oklahoma health officials released newly proposed medical marijuana rules that removed some of the legislation’s previously criticized provisions, the Associated Press reported. According to the article, the new rules recommend eliminating provisions proposing restrictions on the sale of smokable pot and a requirement that female patients receive a pregnancy test. Other rule changes that raised concerns were limits on levels of THC in products and plants, and a requirement for a pharmacist in every dispensary, the article reported.