Lack of Chlamydia testing can threaten reproductive health
Posted by on April 4, 2012 - 12:40pm

Just 38 percent of sexually active young women were screened for chlamydia in the previous year in the United States, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC recommends annual screening for all sexually active women aged 25 and under.   If recent policies related to health care reform that focus on preventive care are cut, this problem could become worse.

Overall testing rates remain low, although testing was most common among African-American women, those who had multiple sex partners, and those who received public insurance or were uninsured. Researchers find this encouraging because these are some of the groups at highest risk for chlamydia.

“This new research makes it clear that we are missing too many opportunities to protect young women from health consequences that can last a lifetime,” said Kevin Fenton, M.D., from the CDC.   “Annual chlamydia screening can protect young women’s reproductive health now and safeguard it for the future.”

Chlamydia is the most commonly reported infectious disease in the United States, and young people are most affected. Because people often do not have symptoms, many infections go undetected and untreated. Untreated chlamydia can have severe long-term health consequences, particularly for young women, including chronic pelvic pain, potentially fatal ectopic pregnancy and infertility. Rates of chlamydia in the the US are relatively low compared to third world countries where the incidence rate soar and screening programs are rare.

CDC recommends that anyone diagnosed with chlamydia be retested three months after initial treatment to ensure that those who may have become reinfected can be promptly treated with antibiotics. However, additional data presented at the conference show that retesting rates remain low and many reinfections likely are being missed.  Chlamydia can be easily treated and cured with antibiotics, and retesting plays a vital role in preventing serious future health consequences.

 

Autism on the rise
Posted by on April 2, 2012 - 2:17pm

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1 in 88 children in the United States has been identified as having an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to a new study released today that looked at data from 14 communities.  Autism spectrum disorders are almost five times more common among boys than girls – with 1 in 54 boys identified.

The number of children identified with ASDs ranged from 1 in 210 children in Alabama to 1 in 47 children in Utah.  The largest increases were among Hispanic and black children.  The report, Prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorders – Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 14 Sites, United States, 2008, provides autism prevalence estimates from 14 areas.

“This information paints a picture of the magnitude of the condition across our country and helps us understand how communities identify children with autism,” said Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.  To address this, the National Institutes of Health has invested in research to identify possible risk factors and effective therapies for people with ASDs.

Study results from the 2008 surveillance year show 11.3 per 1,000 8-year-old children have been identified as having an ASD.  This marks a 23 percent increase since the last report in 2009.  Some of this increase is due to the way children are identified, diagnosed and served in their communities, although exactly how much is due to these factors is unknown.  “To understand more, we need to keep accelerating our research into risk factors and causes of autism spectrum disorders,” said Coleen Boyle, Ph.D., M.S.Hyg., director of CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities.  The study also shows more children are being diagnosed by age 3, an increase from 12 percent for children born in 1994 to 18 percent for children born in 2000. “Unfortunately, 40 percent of the children in this study aren’t getting a diagnosis until after age 4. We are working hard to change that,” said Boyle.

The most important thing for parents to do is to act quickly whenever there is a concern about a child’s development and to talk you your doctor if there is a concern.

For information on CDC’s tools to help families track their child’s development, visit HERE.

To learn more about the research CDC is doing on autism, visit www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/research.html.

Locker room anxiety
Posted by on April 1, 2012 - 1:57pm

More women work out at coed gyms and are comfortable sweating side by side with men. But what about the women's locker room?   A recent study found that when it comes changing in the locker room, the acts of disrobing, dressing, showering and being naked in front of others, can be very discomfiting. It's a complex experience as women are faced with an awareness of their bodies different than in any other space. Some women seek privacy while others are very comfortable changing in front of others.

Author Marianne Clark, a doctoral student in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta, says it was her own experience as a dancer and frequent user of fitness facilities with public dressing rooms that led her to explore how other women felt. "Using these facilities, I've always felt an unarticulated discomfort," says Clark.

The act of undressing and being naked, and particularly where there is the potential to be observed by others, can be daunting.   Undressing in front of others, can, according to Clark, "disrupt" our experience of ourselves, because it reveals an intimate self we don't usually freely display.

According to Clark,  one woman described being pre-occupied walking into the gym, then suddenly becoming aware of the presence of others in the change room and being reluctant to reveal her more intimate self. She said, "I angle my body this way and that as I undress and dress in the locker room. I look down to button my pants, I see my small breasts, my protruding stomach, no longer held in, contained and covered by my control top nylons and stylish skirt. This naked me is almost unfamiliar to me, so different than who I am all day, when I march around and am busy and efficient and in charge. But now, as I stand practically naked in the change room, no one can see that part of me, all there is to see is my body."

Not every woman feels this sense of discomfort. Some found the experience of being surrounded by many other women's bodies together after a workout comforting. "I like the time in the change room after a workout," said one participant. "I like being in a space where my body is just a body among other bodies. I know people might see me naked or partly naked but it doesn't bother me, this is who I am, this is my body, this is how I am in the world. I like being around all these other women of all shapes and sizes, it makes me feel connected to who I am, and somehow close to them."

"Women also talked about their body as an entity over which they have no control - it was sagging or aging, or it just did not comply with standards of conventional beauty. And while they were OK with that, they didn't want anyone else to see it."

Many women said they first became self-conscious about their bodies while teenagers. "A lot of the women I spoke to, if not every single one of them, could recall feeling painfully self-conscious in phys-ed class and said changing in the fitness centre reminded them of changing after gym class at school," says Clark.

Also, in North American society where the "body beautiful" is celebrated - both dressed and undressed, as something to look at and a reason to be seen - its ideal is young, thin and toned. Clark said she found plenty of social and cultural layers in the women's stories that indicated their awareness of the societal notions of beautiful, healthy bodies influenced their own feelings about the shared undressing experience of the change room. "I think even in the change room, women are carrying with them these knowledges and understandings (of the fit female body) that society has constructed," she says.

Readers,  want to wade into this discussion?    Do you have locker room anxiety?

Source:
University of Alberta - Faculty of Physical Education and RecreationUniversity of Alberta - Faculty of Physical Educat. (2012, March 19). "Public Changing Rooms Can Cause Body Anxieties For Women." Medical News Today. Retrieved from
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/243014.php.

Sjogren's syndrome more common in women
Posted by on March 29, 2012 - 7:17am

If your eyes and mouth feel as dry as a desert, there are many possible causes, such as bad air quality and certain medications. But if you have long-lasting, uncomfortable dryness in your eyes and mouth, along with fatigue or pain and swelling in some of your joints, you may have a condition called Sjögren’s syndrome.

Sjögren’s (pronounced SHOW-grins) syndrome affects as many as 4 million people nationwide. Men and women of all ages can develop the condition, but it most often shows up in women in their 50s and 60s. The disorder is 9 times more common in women than in men.

Sjögren’s syndrome arises when the body’s immune system, which ordinarily attacks invading bacteria and viruses, starts killing off the body’s own moisture-producing cells. The condition can occur on its own or alongside other diseases, such as lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, in which the immune system mistakenly attacks parts of the body.

In some cases of Sjögren’s, the immune system attacks several parts of the body, including the eyes, mouth, joints and internal organs. Because the disorder has such varying effects, diagnosing Sjögren’s syndrome can take a long time.  “The average time to diagnose Sjögren’s is about 7 years from the first symptoms, because the symptoms can be very subtle,” says Dr. Gabor Illei, head of the Sjögren’s Clinic on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland.

Physicians use several tests to make a diagnosis. These include measuring tear and saliva flow, blood tests, and biopsies. In the biopsy test, a surgeon removes a small saliva-producing gland from the lip and looks at it under a microscope. The blood tests and biopsies let physicians know if the body’s immune system is attacking saliva-producing cells.

Since so many of the body’s systems can be affected, people with Sjögren’s syndrome often need to see several specialists. These can include an ophthalmologist for the eyes, an oral disease specialist or a dentist who has experience with dry mouth, and a rheumatologist, who can manage and coordinate care.

Many treatments for Sjögren’s syndrome aim to relieve the symptoms of dryness. For patients with mild dryness, over-the-counter artificial tears can help with dry eye. Sips of water and sugar-free candies can help with dry mouth. Because saliva usually protects teeth from decay, people with dry mouth need to be careful to avoid sugary candies, and to take care of their teeth.

For more severe symptoms, several medications are available or in development. Two current drugs boost saliva production, and another can increase tear production. Some promising new drugs are being tested to treat symptoms that affect other parts of the body.   The Sjögren’s Clinic at NIH has several ongoing clinical trials under way. “We do clinical studies. Some are just observational, so we follow the disease over time. " If you have Sjögren’s syndrome and are interested in participating in a clinical trial, learn more about trials near you at http://clinicaltrials.gov.

Sjögren’s syndrome is a chronic condition, and there is no cure. However, treatment can improve symptoms and prevent problems like cavities and eye infections. Sjögren’s syndrome can be complex, but a primary care doctor or rheumatologist can help you manage your treatments and all the hurdles along the way.

Source:  NIH

Menopause film now available on the big screen
Posted by on March 27, 2012 - 3:42pm

A year ago our Institute hosted a private showing of Hot Flash Havoc, an award winning documentary on menopause.  The long awaited release of this film in U.S. theaters begins later this month.  To learn more about the sites and dates, visit the film website at:  http://www.hotflashhavoc.net/

International Women's Day- time to salute a hero!
Posted by on March 26, 2012 - 10:33am

Last week Senator Barbara Mikulski of Maryland became the longest serving US Congresswoman!   She was elected to the US House of Representative in 1976 and, 10 years later, became the first woman elected to the Senate who stood on her own merit and not put in office because she was the spouse or daughter of a previous senator.

When I spent time in Washington in the early 1990's advocating for women's health issues, one of the first people we went to for help, was Barbara Mikulski.   She was something!   Only 4'11"  we had to put a stepstool behind the dias whenever she spoke so the audience could see her.  She grew up in  Baltimore, Maryland  where her family  ran a grocery store.  She  was raised Catholic and even considered becoming a nun but she has always taken a progressive stance on women's issues.  Over her tenure she supported legislation that:

  • Helped create the National Institutes of Health Office of Women’s Health to study women’s needs and health issues
  • Created the Mammogram Quality Standards Act and continues to fight for strong standards and yearly facility inspections
  • Ended gender discrimination by insurance companies, so being a woman is not considered a pre-existing condition
  • Required screening and preventative care -- including annual mammograms for women over 40 -- for no co-pay and no-deductible
  • Made maternity services part of essential benefits package
  • Allowed women to see their OB/GYN without a referral
  • Supports no cost access to contraception

CLICK HERE  to see this feisty woman in action (and standing on a platform!).   She is definitely a women's health hero!

 

FDA warns of mercury in skin cream
Posted by on March 26, 2012 - 9:08am

Consumers should avoid skin lighteners, "anti-aging" creams, and other cosmetics that may contain toxic levels of mercury, the FDA advised in an alert issued recently.    Products that list "mercurous chloride," "calomel," "mercuric," "mercurio," or "mercury" among their ingredients -- or that don't list ingredients in English, or at all -- should not be used, the FDA warned.

The alert came after the Minnesota Department of Health tested 27 products marketed as skin lighteners, finding that 11 exceeded the FDA's allowable limit of 1 ppm of mercury compounds.   Several of these contained mercury at concentrations thousands of times higher -- one, an imported Asian product called "Lemon Herbal Whiting Cream," tested at 33,000 ppm, or 3.3% mercury.

Individuals who have already purchased products that might contain mercury should throw them away immediately, the FDA urged. The agency said it had received several reports of people who were treated for mercury poisoning after using skin-care products.

Specific products identified by the FDA and the Minnesota health department as containing excessive mercury included creams and soaps with brand names such as Diana, Fasco, and Stillman's. Others had labels that were only in Chinese or Arabic scripts.

All the offending products had been imported, but the FDA emphasized that the warning applied to cosmetics originating from anywhere.

The agency also noted that persons using such products are not the only ones affected. Family members may inhale mercury vapors emanating from users' skin. Also, young children may ingest mercury after touching a user's skin and then putting their fingers in their mouths.

White rice may not be a healthy option
Posted by on March 24, 2012 - 4:45pm

 

Eating more white rice may increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, especially for Asian populations, Qi Sun, PhD, of Harvard and colleagues reported in the British Medical Journal.  Patients who ate the greatest amounts of the grain had a 27% greater risk of developing the disease than those who ate the least, and the relative risk was higher among Asian patients.

"Although rice has been a staple food in Asian populations for thousands of years, this transition [to more sedentary lifestyles and greater availability of food] may render Asian populations more susceptible to the adverse effects of high intakes of white rice, as well as other sources of refined carbohydrates, such as pastries, white bread, and sugar sweetened beverages," they wrote.

The glycemic index of white rice is higher than that of other whole grains, largely due to processing. It's also the primary contributor to dietary glycemic load for populations that consume rice as a staple food, such as Asians.   Sun and colleagues conducted a meta-analysis of four prospective cohort analyses in Asian and Western populations, totaling 352,384 patients with follow-up ranging from 4 to 22 years.

Overall, Sun and colleagues found a positive association between white rice intake and type 2 diabetes, which was stronger in Asian populations.   Asians with the highest intake had a 55% greater risk of diabetes than Asian patients who ate the least rice.   The risk was also heightened in Western populations, but the confidence interval was not significant..

In secondary analyses, the association appeared to be more pronounced in women than in men, they added.

They cautioned, however, that the meta-analysis was limited by the observational nature of the included studies and by their reliance on food frequency questionnaires to assess dietary intake. Also, they did not analyze consumption of brown rice, since only one of the four studies examined this food.

In an accompanying editorial, Bruce Neal, MD, of the University of Sydney in Australia, cautioned that the "interpretation of the observed association, and, in particular, determination of the likelihood of causality, are problematic."   Neal warned that the highest and lowest levels of rice intake varied greatly between studies, and that what's really needed is a "more sophisticated analysis based on primary rather than summary data."    Hopefully, we will have better research tools in the future to better assess dietary factors.

Sources:

Hu EA, et al "White rice consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes: meta-analysis and systematic review" BMJ 2012; DOI: 10.1136/bmj.e1454.
Neal B "White rice and risk of type 2 diabetes" BMJ 2012; DOI: 10.1136/bmj.e2021.

Ketamine club drug cause cystitis symptoms
Posted by on March 22, 2012 - 12:36pm


A cystitis caused by abuse of the club drug ketamine looks very much like interstitial cystitis according to a new study done in Taiwan.  This drug is especially popular among young people in Asia, where the study urologists practice . Be aware that this is why your doctor may ask you about your recreational drug use, especially if you are young. The article describes the issue and reports specifically on the type of bladder damage ketamine causes. Symptoms include painful urination, fluctuating lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), lower abdominal or perineal pain, and impaired functional bladder capacities. Blood and pus in the urine are typical. In addition, bladder ulcers, diffuse bleeding, and low capacity are also typical—similar to IC. Treatment entails stopping abuse and use of pentosan polysulfate (Elmiron) or hyaluronic acid (Cystistat). The outcome of treatment depends on how severe the damage is.

Institute Director Teresa Woodruff receives alumni merit award
Posted by on March 21, 2012 - 9:35am

Since 1932, the Northwestern Alumnae Association  has honored alumni who have distinguished themselves as outstanding professional and personal achievers in their fields and who have loyally dedicated their time and service to their alma mater. This year’s award recipients have earned acclaim in business, engineering, journalism, the arts, law, athletics, medicine and health care. Among this year's winners is Teresa K. Woodruff, the Thomas J. Watkins Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Feinberg School of Medicine, and professor of Molecular Biosciences at the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. Woodruff received a Ph.D. from Weinberg in 1989. Woodruff has devoted the better part of her research career to female reproductive health and infertility. She also serves as chief of the newly created Division of Fertility Preservation at Feinberg and is the founder and director of the Institute for Women’s Health Research at Northwestern (IWHR) the organization that sponsors this blog site.  Congratulations, Dr. Woodruff!

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