Osteoarthritis Cases Projected to Balloon Over Next 30 Years

 Nearly 600 million people worldwide (7.6% of the world's population) have osteoarthritis, and numbers are expected to rise starkly by 2050, especially knee/hip disease.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers estimated the prevalence of osteoarthritis in 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2020 and projected prevalence levels for the year 2050.

• Population-based surveys offered data from 26 countries for knee osteoarthritis, 23 countries for hip osteoarthritis, and 42 countries for hand osteoarthritis. Researchers used US insurance claims to estimate prevalence for other osteoarthritis types.

• Similar analyses were conducted in 2010 and 2017.

TAKEAWAY:

• Osteoarthritis cases worldwide have grown by an estimated 132.2% since 1990. Population growth and aging were identified as major contributing factors.

• In 2020, an estimated 595 million people had osteoarthritis. From 2020 to 2050, cases of osteoarthritis in the knee are expected to grow by 74.9%, in the hand by 48.6%, in the hip by 78.6%, and in other locations by 95.1%.  

• Years lived with disability (age-standardized rate) grew from an estimated 233 per 100,000 in 1990 to 255 per 100,000 in 2020, an increase of 9.5%.

• High body mass index contributed to 20.4% of cases.

IN PRACTICE:

In "a major challenge to health systems," osteoarthritis may affect nearly
1 billion people in 2050.

SOURCE:

The Global Burden of Disease 2021 Osteoarthritis Collaborators, led by Jaimie D. Steinmetz, PhD, MSc, of the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, Seattle, Washington, conducted the study, which was published in the September 2023 issue of The Lancet Rheumatology.

LIMITATIONS:

Limited data, heavy reliance on US insurance data, and other factors may have skewed the results.

DISCLOSURES:

The study was supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Institute of Bone and Joint Research, and the Global Alliance for Musculoskeletal Health. Multiple authors report various disclosures. The full list can be found with the original article.

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/996110

Corrupt Billionaire Behind Zelensky's Rise To Fame & Power Arrested

 With an estimated fortune of just under $1.7 billion, Ihor Kolomoisky is among Ukraine's top five richest citizens. Over the weekend he was arrested by Ukraine authorities on an array of fraud and money laundering charges, at a sensitive moment the government is trying to show the world it can tackle deeply rooted corruption.

A Saturday statement from the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said that the billionaire, referred to as the "de facto owner of a large financial and industrial group" – had allegedly tried to launder over 500 million Ukrainian hryvnia ($13.5 million) by "transferring it abroad, while using the infrastructure of banking institutions controlled by him."

A Kyiv court has ordered him to pretrial detention for two months amid an ongoing investigation, with bail having been set at a whopping $14 million.

Importantly, The New York Times in its Tuesday coverage of Kolomoisky's arrest highlighted that he was an early major backer of now President Volodymyr Zelensky who had a hand in bringing him to power. He's also widely believed to have funded extremist private militia armies at various times.

Writes the NY Times: "His business interests have included oil and banking, and he was once considered a patron of Mr. Zelensky, a former comedian whose popular shows were broadcast on Mr. Kolomoisky’s television channel before he successfully ran for the presidency."

And further very revealing details are included in the Times report as follows:

Suspicions of corruption and embezzlement have dogged Mr. Kolomoisky for years. In 2017, he left Ukraine for Switzerland and Israel after the government of then-President Petro O. Poroshenko seized a bank he co-owned and accused him of a large-scale fraud that threatened to destabilize Ukraine’s economy.

He returned in 2019 after Mr. Zelensky’s defeat of Mr. Poroshenko, raising fears that his ties to the new president would help him regain his economic and political clout.

So naturally, Western mainstream press is now presenting this as a "big fish" prosecution showing Zelensky is getting "tough" and finally going gloves-off on exposing long-standing corruption.

The timing is also interesting given Zelensky just sacked his own defense minister, an announcement which came the same weekend as billionaire Kolomoisky's arrest. "This week, parliament will be asked to make a personnel decision … I have decided to replace the minister of defense of Ukraine. Oleksii Reznikov has gone through more than 550 days of full-scale war," Zelensky said over the weekend. 

And guess who was degrees of separation away from Hunter Biden, related to shady Bursima relationships? "Besides being connected through the Burisma energy giant, Hunter Biden did business with Igor Kolomoisky's bank," one prior report reads.

As for the dismissed defense minister, Reznikov was at the center of an anti-graft probe into the military's paying inflated prices for imported items, sometimes at triple or more the cost, the profits of which are believed to have lined the pockets of top military officials. There's also the recent recruiting scandal, where top military recruiters were given large bribes to allow individuals to avoid conscription.

In the backdrop is Ukraine's application to join the European Union. Of course, the fact that Ukraine tops the list of Europe's most corrupt societies will remain a major hurdle likely for years to come.

Russian media has meanwhile pointed out that Kolomoysky has personally entered the political arena at times, and that his money has hugely impacted the country in ways known and unknown:

Kolomoysky burst on to the political scene in 2014, when he was appointed governor of the southeastern Dnepropetrovsk Region following a Western-backed coup in Kiev. A year later, however, he was dismissed from his post over a conflict with then-Ukrainian President Pyotr Poroshenko amid a struggle for control of Ukrnafta and state-owned oil pipeline operator Ukrtransnafta.

In 2016, Ukrainian authorities also nationalized Kolomoysky’s PrivatBank, after declaring it a major threat to the country’s financial system, following allegations of large-scale fraud.

Kolomoysky is also widely considered to have played a major role in the rise to power of President Vladimir Zelensky. Before launching his political campaign in 2019, Zelensky was a comedian, whose show was hosted by a Kolomoysky-controlled media holding. The magnate himself said he “wanted” Zelensky to become president, but denied close contacts with him.

In this particular case it's very likely Washington has brought pressure to bear on Kyiv, given that as far back as 2021 the US State Dept. sanctioned Kolomoysky and his family members. A US statement at the time said he was engaged "in corrupt acts that undermined rule of law and the Ukrainian public’s faith in their government’s democratic institutions."

He may have at one point even been stripped of his Ukrainian passport, but he's personally dismissed these reports as well as the widespread allegations of corruption as being "nonsense" and without merit.

* * *

Perhaps this is why it was easy for Zelensky to now (after all these years of "open" corruption) deliver him to the courts? Starting in 2019 Kolomoisky began making some pro-Moscow statements, in a major reverse-course...

Ukraine should give up on the West and go back into Russia’s fold, influential Ukrainian billionaire Ihor Kolomoisky said in an interview with The New York Times Wednesday.

Kolomoisky’s business ties to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy have been under heavy scrutiny since the start of the former comedian’s election campaign this year. Both men have rejected suggestions that Kolomoisky has behind-the-scenes influence over Zelenskiy. 

The Moscow Times picked out quotes from Kolomoisky’s emotional and profanity-laced interview that The New York Times says marks a “remarkable change of heart” for Russia’s former opponent.

Meanwhile...

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/corrupt-billionaire-behind-zelenskys-rise-fame-power-arrested

Abbott to Acquire Bigfoot Biomedical, Furthering Connected Solutions for Diabetes

 

• Bigfoot developed Bigfoot Unity, a smart insulin management system that features the first and only FDA-cleared connected insulin pen caps that turn data from a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) into clear and reliable insulin dosing recommendations displayed right on the insulin pen cap

• Acquisition will bring together two leaders in different aspects of diabetes care: CGM and insulin injection support

• Together, Abbott and Bigfoot will continue to advance technology-driven solutions for making diabetes management even more personal and precise

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/abbott-acquire-bigfoot-biomedical-furthering-203000744.html

MacroGenics: $15 M Milestone Related to Gilead’s Nomination of Bispecific Research

MacroGenics, Inc. (NASDAQ: MGNX), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing, manufacturing and commercializing innovative antibody-based therapeutics for the treatment of cancer, today announced that its partner, Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD), nominated the first of two research programs, leveraging MacroGenics’ DART® and TRIDENT® platforms for generating bispecific antibodies. This nomination grants Gilead an exclusive option, upon achievement of a pre-defined preclinical milestone, to license worldwide rights to the research program.

Under the October 2022 agreement, MacroGenics will receive $15 million related to the nomination of a bispecific research program to be conducted by MacroGenics and funded by Gilead. Pursuant to this agreement, which covers MGD024, an investigational, bispecific antibody that binds CD123 and CD3 using MacroGenics’ DART platform, and up to two additional bispecific research programs, MacroGenics remains eligible to receive up to $1.7 billion in target nomination, option fees, and development, regulatory and commercial milestones. MacroGenics will also be eligible to receive tiered, double-digit royalties on worldwide net sales of MGD024 and a flat royalty on worldwide net sales of products under the two research programs.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/macrogenics-announces-achievement-15-million-110000592.html

Sidney Powell Alleges Falsehoods In Georgia Trump Indictment

 by Petr Svab via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

Lawyer and former prosecutor Sidney Powell alleged false claims in the indictment against former President Donald Trump in Georgia.

Ms. Powell, who’s a co-defendant in the case, contradicted several claims in the indictment in an Aug. 30 court filing, asking for her case to be tried separately from the other 18 defendants, including President Trump.

Most of the charges don’t involve her and those that do “fatally depend on demonstrably false premises,” the filing said.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis alleged in the Aug. 14 indictment that Ms. Powell participated in a racketeering conspiracy by tampering with election machines and computers and stealing data from them.

She “entered into a contract” with data forensic company SullivanStrickler and “caused” its employees to copy data from election equipment in Coffee County, Georgia, after the 2020 election, the indictment said.

In fact, Ms. Powell asserted, that though her name was printed on the SullivanStrickler contract, she never signed it.

“There was no contract for SullivanStrickler to conduct forensic imaging of the Coffee County Voting Systems,” her filing said.

“Ms. Powell signed no such contract. … Ms. Powell did not plan or organize the Coffee County trip. … Ms. Powell did not request SullivanStrickler to undertake that project,” it said.

As for the breach of the equipment, the firm claimed in a separate lawsuit that its employees believed they were authorized to copy the data. They said at least one Coffee County election official was present during their work.

“A unanimous Coffee County Election Board gave permission for the forensic inspection, and nothing was stolen,” the Powell filing said.

The prosecution rests on the assertion that the county officials themselves weren’t authorized to make such a decision.

Ms. Powell also argued that she wasn’t a part of any conspiracy on behalf of President Trump because she wasn’t involved in most of the actions alleged in the indictment, wasn’t in contact with most of the people allegedly involved, and was in fact mostly at odds with them.

“Ms. Powell did not agree with any of her purported coconspirators to do anything improper, and many of her purported coconspirators publicly shunned and disparaged Ms. Powell beginning in November 2020. Others she does not know or had no contact with at all,” the filing said.

The main thrust of the indictment focuses on a strategy devised by several lawyers advising President Trump to arrange alternative slates of electors in several states and thus delay the counting of the electoral votes. It alleges the strategy amounted to a criminal enterprise.

Ms. Powell said she had no involvement in those efforts.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/sidney-powell-alleges-falsehoods-georgia-trump-indictment

Father of woman killed in Maui wildfires sues government for negligence

 The father of a woman killed in the deadly wildfires last month in Hawaii has sued the state, local government of Maui, his local utility company and large landowners in a first-of-its-kind lawsuit alleging they are responsible for the disaster.

Harold Wells filed suit Monday against the group, alleging the government and Hawaiian Electric were negligent and responsible for the death and destruction caused by a raging wildfire that destroyed the town of Lahaina and ended up killing more than 100 people.

The fire was speculated to have started due to downed power lines owned by the electric company in the hills east of Lahaina. Multiple suits have alleged the utility’s infrastructure caused the blaze. 

Wells argues in the filing that government officials and the utility were aware that nonnative vegetation, dried out by weather, posed a serious fire risk to communities.

“The combination of weather, uncontrolled vegetation and aging electrical infrastructure created a tinderbox ready to explode in Maui.” the suit reads. “The risk was not theoretical.”

The lawsuit also argues the officials and Hawaiian Electric should have learned from a 2018 fire that burned over 20 homes near Lahaina and changed policies. The owners of the land in the hills above the town where the fire started should have also been aware of the risks of unmanaged vegetation, it reads.

“Despite this history of serious fires caused by predictable weather conditions, no one in a position to effect change did anything to prevent or substantially mitigate the risk,” the suit states. “The result of these years of neglecting and disregarding the risk that the 2018 Fires would be repeated when similar conditions inevitably occurred was the greatest single-day loss of life and property in Hawai‘i history on August 8, 2023, a catastrophe and tragedy for which all Defendants named herein should share in the fault.”

The filing also cites reports from the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization that note the Lahaina region as one of “high concern” for fires and recommend methods to reduce flammable vegetation. It claims about 30 percent of landowners in the area did not make any attempt to control vegetation on their properties.

Reports from Maui County cited in the lawsuit also mark West Maui as an area with a “high likelihood” of wildfires.

Hawaiian Electric was also aware of the risk caused by weakening infrastructure, Wells claimed in his suit. He also cited 2022 requests for funds to improve the power infrastructure statewide to help prevent wildfires, as well as lessons learned from California wildfires that have been blamed on similar utility infrastructure.

“[Hawaiian Electric] should have planned for such improvements long before 2022,” the suit reads. “Energy experts have long called for the utility to harden its grid, and despite the cost, to put more of it underground.”

“Had they done so, the capital improvements would have enabled the grid to withstand the hurricane level winds that whipped across Maui on August 8, 2023 and in so doing, prevented a deadly fire,” Wells added.

The suit also criticizes local government authorities for responding to the fires poorly, specifically alleging the city didn’t adequately warn its residents. The county has come under widespread criticism for its response, including the choice not to use warning sirens as the fire approached.

Wells’s demands in the suit include burial expenses for his daughter, compensation for her death and additional penalties as determined by a judge, if he wins the case.

https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/4188005-father-of-woman-killed-in-maui-wildfires-sues-government-for-negligence/

U.S. FDIC says started marketing process for $33 bln commercial real estate

 The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has started the marketing process for a $33 billion commercial real estate (CRE) loan portfolio of failed New York lender Signature Bank, the regulator said on Tuesday.

The majority of the CRE loan portfolio being marketed is comprised of multifamily properties, primarily located in New York City, the FDIC said. Approximately $15 billion of the CRE loans secured by multifamily residences are rent stabilized or rent controlled, it added.

https://www.reuters.com/article/usa-fdic-signaturebank/u-s-fdic-says-started-marketing-process-for-33-bln-commercial-real-estate-idINL1N3AH227