A new gene therapy technique tested on a dozen patients in the United States may keep symptoms of Parkinson's disease from getting worse.

The study, published in the current issue of the journal Lancet, was led by Dr. Andrew Feigin, director of Neuroscience Experimental Therapeutics at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research in collaboration with New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Medical Center.

The gene therapy would be used to reduce symptoms and not alter the underlying disease process, the Feinstein Institute said Friday in a release.

One woman and 11 men with advanced Parkinson's disease received a surgical infusion of fluid containing a viral vector and genes for a protein called glutamic acid decarboxylase that is critical in controlling a neurotransmitter called GABA that is reduced in patients with Parkinson's disease, the study said.

Feigin said that patients had about a 27 percent improvement in symptoms. The scientists are designing a double-blind placebo controlled trial that would enroll far more patients in an attempt to see whether the gene therapy is effective in reducing symptoms.

FDA approves fibromyalgia drug

WASHINGTON, June 22 (UPI) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved pregabalin as the first drug to treat fibromyalgia.

The FDA said the drug, which is manufactured by Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) under the name Lyrica, reduces pain and improves daily functions for some patients with fibromyalgia.

Fibromyalgia is typically characterized by chronic pain, muscle stiffness and tenderness.

The disorder, which affects about 3 million to 6 million people in the United States each year, mostly affects women in early-to-middle adulthood.

Studies have shown that patients have decreased pain after taking Lyrica but the mechanism by which Lyrica produces such an effect is unknown, the FDA said in a release.

Lyrica already is approved for treating partial seizures, pain following the rash of shingles and pain associated with diabetes nerve damage, the FDA said.

Gallbladder removed through woman's mouth

PORTLAND, Ore., June 22 (UPI) -- An Oregon doctor is the first surgeon in the United States to remove a woman's gallbladder through her mouth.

Dr. Lee Swanstrom performed the surgery last month at Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital and Medical Center in Portland, Ore.

Using special endoscopic tools that include a camera, Swanstrom cut a hole in the patient's stomach to reach the gallbladder. He cut away the diseased gallbladder and pulled it through the incision and her throat and out her mouth, the Oregonian newspaper said Friday.

Swanstrom said the surgery has been performed in Brazil but this was the first time it was performed in the United States.

The newspaper said he is a member of a group of doctors and medical device manufacturers working to develop "natural orifice" surgeries to help eliminate pain and scarring and reduce recovery time.

In April, a team of surgeons in New York removed a woman's gallbladder through her vagina.

Insulin pill may mean end to daily shots

CHICAGO, June 22 (UPI) -- A British company has developed an insulin pill that may provide better control of diabetes symptoms than daily insulin injections.

The company Diabetology said it has found a way to enclose the insulin in a capsule that resists stomach acids and passes intact into the small intestine, where it dissolves. The insulin is then transported to the liver, where the body uses it as needed, The Times of London said Friday.

A Cardiff University team found that an oral dose taken before breakfast and before dinner controlled glucose levels successfully in 16 patients with type 2 diabetes.

The newspaper said the insulin pill more closely approximates the behavior of the pancreas, which is the source of insulin in people who don't have diabetes.

The findings were to be presented at the American Diabetes Association meeting in Chicago.