— The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voiced concerns Tuesday about two drugs, Omniscan and Optimark, used to improve the contrast of images from MRI scans. The agency pointed to evidence that these drugs carry a risk of causing serious skin disease among patients with kidney problems. Adding on to fears of enclosed spaces, patients seem to have been overexposed to radiation from CT scanners at three hospitals in the Los Angeles area; the FDA is now investigating. (Reuters, LA Times)

— A study suggests that money in the fight against AIDS might be better spent on more patients receiving antiretroviral therapy, rather than monitoring side effects for those already receiving it. The use of routine lab tests for toxicity showed no difference in survival rates among treated populations in Uganda and Zimbabwe. (BBC)

— The National Institutes of Health could see a 2010 budget of $31 billion, according to developing bills in Congress; the number is a full $250 million more than President Obama’s original proposal, and $692 million more than current spending. See this previous Nature story for more on how the money from Obama’s proposal would potentially be distributed. (Politico)

— The US Government Accountability Office released a report noting that the FDA has yet to reform its safety monitoring after the Vioxx scandal of 2004. Three years after suggestions to improve drug monitoring after market introduction, the FDA says it still lacks the staff to give its surveillance system greater responsibility. (AP)

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