Johnson & Johnson psoriasis drug ustekinumab (also called Stelara) gave better results than Enbrel, now a leading drug for psoriasis, a new study has found. The study by Johnson & Johnson's biotech unit, Centocor Inc., will give the company more market share in the treatment of psoriasis, a painful skin condition.

Enbrel, an equally safe drug which is jointly marketed by Wyeth and Amgen, currently commands 75 percent of the global market. The study was the first to help Johnson & Johnson's psoriasis treatment challenge that of Enbrel

Giving antibiotics to pregnant women to delay the premature labor may increase the child's risk for cerebral palsy, U.K. researchers said.

The drugs each increased the risk when given singly but to a lesser degree, the Oracle study carried out by the University of Leicester of more than 4,000 pregnant women found. The researchers now add that the drugs shouldn't be given to women who show signs of premature labor unless there is clear evidence of an infection

A new study has found that flu shots for pregnant women can help protect babies from the flu until six months of age.

There is currently no flu vaccine for babies under six-months-old, but babies in that age group are more likely to be hospitalized for the virus than any other age group

Virtual colonoscopy, colon cancer screening using CT scans, is more successful in detecting large, precancerous polyps and could serve as a primary screening option for colorectal cancer, new studies suggest.

The method to screen for colorectal cancer has been in use in clinical trials for several years but a study published in this week's New England Journal of Medicine says it identified nine out of 10 people who had cancers and large growths seen by regular colonoscopies

Amgen's experimental bone drug denosumab reduced the risk of spinal fractures in women with osteoporosis by 68 percent in an important clinical trial raising hope to enter the drug market.

If the drug gets marketing approval, it could provide a new alternative to patients who can't take Fosamax or who don't respond to that class of drugs. Merck & Co.'s Fosamax has been the most popular, but it recently became available as a generic known as alendronate. However, a cheap generic version of Merck & Co.'s Fosamax will still be used as the leading initial therapy