Click here to listen to this podcast
Sharing syringes is a big no-no. But despite the warnings, needle sharing among injection drug users is still a significant cause for the spread of HIV and other infectious diseases.
But HIV transmission due to needle sharing could be nearly eradicated by merely changing the design of the syringe. So says a study in the International Journal of Drug Policy. [William A. Zule et al, Are major reductions in new HIV infections possible with people who inject drugs? The case for low dead-space syringes in highly affected countries]
When the plunger on a syringe is fully depressed, a small amount of fluid stays trapped in what is known as the 'dead space.' By reducing the amount of dead space in the syringe design, researchers say they can reduce the amount of infectious blood trapped inside by a factor of a thousand-and thus vastly reduce the numbers of viral particles available to spread disease.
Using a simulation model, the authors found that switching to low-dead-space syringes could reduce annual HIV infections from syringe sharing to nearly zero within eight years.
Although there are still a number of barriers to making low-dead-space syringes available worldwide, the authors say this low-cost intervention could help keep drug users-and their families-disease free.
-Gretchen Cuda Kroen
[The above text is a transcript of this podcast]
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Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Monday, January 28, 2013
EU agency to review safety of newer contraceptive pills
LONDON (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency is to review the safety of third and fourth-generation combined oral contraceptives to decide if there is a need to restrict their use.
Monday's move followed a request by France, where authorities have already taken steps to reduce use of the drugs in favor of second-generation birth control pills.
The newer pills, which include Bayer's Meliane or Yasmin, have proved popular because they reduce side effects seen with earlier versions, such as weight gain and acne.
But France wants the European Union regulator to restrict their use because of concerns they carry a higher risk of dangerous blood clots.
While all oral contraceptives are associated with some danger of blood clots, a number of studies suggest the most recent third- and fourth-generation pills carry a higher risk than their predecessors.
The London-based European Medicines Agency (EMA), which said earlier this month there was no new evidence of safety risks, said the blood-clot risk with all birth control pills was 'very small', although it was higher for third- and fourth-generation ones.
'There is no reason for any woman to stop taking her contraceptive. If a woman has concerns, she can discuss this with her doctor,' the EMA said in its latest statement.
The French government earlier this month said it would stop reimbursing prescription costs of the third- and fourth-generation pills and would restrict their use after a woman sued Bayer over alleged side effects.
About 2.5 million women in France take third- and fourth-generation pills, roughly half all those on oral contraceptives. French health authorities argue this use of the newer pills is excessive.
(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Anthony Barker)
This article is sponsored by real estate news.
Monday's move followed a request by France, where authorities have already taken steps to reduce use of the drugs in favor of second-generation birth control pills.
The newer pills, which include Bayer's Meliane or Yasmin, have proved popular because they reduce side effects seen with earlier versions, such as weight gain and acne.
But France wants the European Union regulator to restrict their use because of concerns they carry a higher risk of dangerous blood clots.
While all oral contraceptives are associated with some danger of blood clots, a number of studies suggest the most recent third- and fourth-generation pills carry a higher risk than their predecessors.
The London-based European Medicines Agency (EMA), which said earlier this month there was no new evidence of safety risks, said the blood-clot risk with all birth control pills was 'very small', although it was higher for third- and fourth-generation ones.
'There is no reason for any woman to stop taking her contraceptive. If a woman has concerns, she can discuss this with her doctor,' the EMA said in its latest statement.
The French government earlier this month said it would stop reimbursing prescription costs of the third- and fourth-generation pills and would restrict their use after a woman sued Bayer over alleged side effects.
About 2.5 million women in France take third- and fourth-generation pills, roughly half all those on oral contraceptives. French health authorities argue this use of the newer pills is excessive.
(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Anthony Barker)
This article is sponsored by real estate news.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Unplanned Pregnancies Higher Among Military Women
Women in the military have access to some of the nation's best health care, which includes free birth control. But a new study shows that many women are not using it and the rate of unintended pregnancy is double that of the general population.
And today, with the Department of Defense's ending its longtime ban on women serving in combat roles, an unplanned pregnancy could have wider ramifications not only for a woman's health, but for her opportunities for advancement.
An estimated 10.5 percent of active duty women, ages 18 to 44, reported an unplanned pregnancy in the prior 12 months in 2008, the last year for which there are statistics, according to researchers at Ibis Reproductive Health, a nonprofit organization that supports women's sexual and reproductive rights.
That number was higher than in 2005, when the rate was 9.7 percent.
In the non-military population, about 5.2 percent of women of reproductive age report an unintended pregnancy each year, according to the study, published this week in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The Ibis study was based on surveys of more than 7,000 active-duty women; the statistics were obtained from the Department of Defense under the Freedom of Information Act. Rates were equal among those women who were deployed and those serving stateside.
Women make up 202,400 of the U.S. military's 1.4 million active duty personnel; more than 280,000 women have deployed over the last decade to Iraq and Afghanistan.
'It's terrific that women are getting recognition for their role in combat missions and are being considered for all types of promotions in the armed services,' said lead author Kate Grindlay, senior project manager at Ibis. 'But for women to reach their potential, they must be able to access birth control for their personal health and well-being.'
Military warned to maintain readiness as women move toward combat.
About 900 women had been unable to deploy in the past year due to a pregnancy, either planned or unplanned, according to the study. The highest rates were among younger women with less education who were either married or cohabitating, researchers said.
The authors of the study say that an unwanted pregnancy not only disrupts a woman's military career, but takes a toll on military readiness because pregnant women cannot be deployed or must be evacuated from war zones. They say the military needs to take a more 'comprehensive approach' to address the problem.
A July 2012 Ibis study, based on women deployed over the last decade, revealed they face a variety of barriers to accessing contraception. Women said they did not speak with a military medical provider about birth control before they deployed overseas -- either it was never offered or the woman never asked.
Military policies that forbid sexual activity between fellow service members 'led some women to think contraception was not available or not needed,' said the report.
Others said they had trouble getting preferred types of birth control -- the IUD, for example -- or adequate supplies before deployment.
'In addition to these access barriers, the high rate of sexual assault in the military also puts women at risk of unintended pregnancy,' said the July study.
New documentary explores rape in the military.
Abortions are only provided at military hospitals in cases of rape, incest or life endangerment. A woman must either risk an abortion at a local hospital during deployment or be sent home. Tricare, the military insurance plan, does not cover an abortion.
'Women who are deployed in Iraq wouldn't have any abortion options and must be evacuated and it could compromise confidentiality and access to care,' said Grindlay.
'It has a huge impact on mission readiness, especially as we are changing to a defense where women can serve and it becomes even more important to enable them to protect themselves,' she told ABCNews.com.
Pilip-Florea says that the Ibis survey is based on data that is five years old and many changes have been underway since 2008.
The Navy's own data shows that the number of unintended pregnancies is now 'closer to the general population' -- at about 6 percent, according to Pilip-Florea.
The Navy's Sexual Health and Responsibility Program now provides pre-deployment education on birth control and family planning, in accordance with a campaign by the Department of Health and Human Services to combat unintended pregnancies.
Navy surveys show women had a wide variety of reasons for not using birth control which contributed to an unintended pregnancy: 1 in 4 said she was 'not sexually active,' according to Pilip-Florea.
'These data suggest that women who are not currently in a relationship may not feel the need for birth control, and that it's important for health educators and clinicians to help young women think about the benefits of being ready when and if she does become involved in a sexual relationship,' she said.
Pilip-Florea also said many young women have an 'old perception' about the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives like an IUD and the injectable hormone Depo-Provera. At one time, the IUD was not given to women who had not previously had children, but new recommendations have changed that.
Other young women are misinformed about the reliability of the birth control pill, which must be taken at the same time each day, or condoms, which can break.
Popular forms of contraception, like the 'ring,' also have to be refrigerated, which can be difficult when serving for months at a time on a ship.
'The study cited a couple of instances of misinformation and fear of reprisal, but from the Navy's perspective, we believe it is central to the equipment of our sailors and Marines to protect against unwanted pregnancies for mission readiness,' said Pilip-Florea.
Since December 2012, Navy policy requires that women are offered contraceptive services before they receive their orders for operational duties.
Service members usually get three to six months between time of orders and actual deployment, allowing 'ample time to stabilize' and physically adjust to their chosen form of birth control,' said Pilip-Florea. The Navy also provides a long-term supply of birth control pills, for example, including 'a couple of months extra.'
ABCNews.com contacted the Army for comment, but did not get an immediate response.
Advocacy groups have pushed for legislation to give women better access to birth control and to abortion, according to Greg Jacob, policy director for the Service Women's Rights Action Network (SWAN), whose mission is to secure equal opportunities for active-duty military women and veterans.
The Department of Defense now gives women access to the so-called 'day after pill,' Plan B, which is available over-the-counter at medical treatment facilities.
SWAN also supported the 2011 March for Military Act, sponsored by Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand, D-New York, which pushed for lifting the ban on elective abortions at military hospitals, but was not enacted.
But the very nature of military life and its chain of command can make obtaining birth control onerous,' said Jacob.
'They allow you to go to the hospital, but you have to ask permission,' he said. 'Particularly with the younger troops, they have to check with a platoon sergeant, get a pass, and get a chit that says what you were treated for and what your duty status is, and turn that in. The system is in place for millions of people to be accountable, but the level of privacy is not the same as in civilian life.'
Women have access to regular preventive care, but educating military doctors to ask a woman if she is sexually active or needs birth control is important, he said.
Jacob suggested the military look to universities as models for educating about reproductive services. 'It's the same sort of demographic -- young people in a restrictive controlled environment,' he said.
Jacob said the end of the longstanding ban on women serving in combat will have a positive effect in empowering young women.
Over the years, critics of full integration have argued that men and women serving in combat could be distracting and create a 'sexually charged atmosphere.' But Jacobs said the new policy will go a long way to end sexual assault and, as a consequence, some unintended pregnancies.
The military already has strict rules forbidding sexual relationships between fellow soldiers, according to Jacob. 'They have all the tools in place for dealing with issues of behaviors.'
'From a harassment and an assault perspective, one of the key things we have found is the issue of the two-tiered second-class soldier culture,' he said. 'By fully integrating the troops and members feeling a part of the team, that type of behavior is reduced.'
For Jacob, who served 10 years in the Marines, overseeing and reporting to women, a fully integrated military raises standards for all.
'Some of the women who I worked with are the best Marines I ever served with,' he said. 'My philosophy is there should be one standard for the Marines, not a separate one for men. It raises the entire performance standard of the regiment.'
Also Read
And today, with the Department of Defense's ending its longtime ban on women serving in combat roles, an unplanned pregnancy could have wider ramifications not only for a woman's health, but for her opportunities for advancement.
An estimated 10.5 percent of active duty women, ages 18 to 44, reported an unplanned pregnancy in the prior 12 months in 2008, the last year for which there are statistics, according to researchers at Ibis Reproductive Health, a nonprofit organization that supports women's sexual and reproductive rights.
That number was higher than in 2005, when the rate was 9.7 percent.
In the non-military population, about 5.2 percent of women of reproductive age report an unintended pregnancy each year, according to the study, published this week in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The Ibis study was based on surveys of more than 7,000 active-duty women; the statistics were obtained from the Department of Defense under the Freedom of Information Act. Rates were equal among those women who were deployed and those serving stateside.
Women make up 202,400 of the U.S. military's 1.4 million active duty personnel; more than 280,000 women have deployed over the last decade to Iraq and Afghanistan.
'It's terrific that women are getting recognition for their role in combat missions and are being considered for all types of promotions in the armed services,' said lead author Kate Grindlay, senior project manager at Ibis. 'But for women to reach their potential, they must be able to access birth control for their personal health and well-being.'
Military warned to maintain readiness as women move toward combat.
About 900 women had been unable to deploy in the past year due to a pregnancy, either planned or unplanned, according to the study. The highest rates were among younger women with less education who were either married or cohabitating, researchers said.
The authors of the study say that an unwanted pregnancy not only disrupts a woman's military career, but takes a toll on military readiness because pregnant women cannot be deployed or must be evacuated from war zones. They say the military needs to take a more 'comprehensive approach' to address the problem.
A July 2012 Ibis study, based on women deployed over the last decade, revealed they face a variety of barriers to accessing contraception. Women said they did not speak with a military medical provider about birth control before they deployed overseas -- either it was never offered or the woman never asked.
Military policies that forbid sexual activity between fellow service members 'led some women to think contraception was not available or not needed,' said the report.
Others said they had trouble getting preferred types of birth control -- the IUD, for example -- or adequate supplies before deployment.
'In addition to these access barriers, the high rate of sexual assault in the military also puts women at risk of unintended pregnancy,' said the July study.
New documentary explores rape in the military.
Abortions are only provided at military hospitals in cases of rape, incest or life endangerment. A woman must either risk an abortion at a local hospital during deployment or be sent home. Tricare, the military insurance plan, does not cover an abortion.
'Women who are deployed in Iraq wouldn't have any abortion options and must be evacuated and it could compromise confidentiality and access to care,' said Grindlay.
Navy Addresses Unplanned Pregnancies Head-On
Navy medical spokesperson Shoshona Pilip-Florea acknowledged that unintended pregnancy rates had been high, but the Navy's own surveys had 'noticed the trend' and implemented programs to address the problem.'It has a huge impact on mission readiness, especially as we are changing to a defense where women can serve and it becomes even more important to enable them to protect themselves,' she told ABCNews.com.
Pilip-Florea says that the Ibis survey is based on data that is five years old and many changes have been underway since 2008.
The Navy's own data shows that the number of unintended pregnancies is now 'closer to the general population' -- at about 6 percent, according to Pilip-Florea.
The Navy's Sexual Health and Responsibility Program now provides pre-deployment education on birth control and family planning, in accordance with a campaign by the Department of Health and Human Services to combat unintended pregnancies.
Navy surveys show women had a wide variety of reasons for not using birth control which contributed to an unintended pregnancy: 1 in 4 said she was 'not sexually active,' according to Pilip-Florea.
'These data suggest that women who are not currently in a relationship may not feel the need for birth control, and that it's important for health educators and clinicians to help young women think about the benefits of being ready when and if she does become involved in a sexual relationship,' she said.
Pilip-Florea also said many young women have an 'old perception' about the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives like an IUD and the injectable hormone Depo-Provera. At one time, the IUD was not given to women who had not previously had children, but new recommendations have changed that.
Other young women are misinformed about the reliability of the birth control pill, which must be taken at the same time each day, or condoms, which can break.
Popular forms of contraception, like the 'ring,' also have to be refrigerated, which can be difficult when serving for months at a time on a ship.
'The study cited a couple of instances of misinformation and fear of reprisal, but from the Navy's perspective, we believe it is central to the equipment of our sailors and Marines to protect against unwanted pregnancies for mission readiness,' said Pilip-Florea.
Since December 2012, Navy policy requires that women are offered contraceptive services before they receive their orders for operational duties.
Service members usually get three to six months between time of orders and actual deployment, allowing 'ample time to stabilize' and physically adjust to their chosen form of birth control,' said Pilip-Florea. The Navy also provides a long-term supply of birth control pills, for example, including 'a couple of months extra.'
ABCNews.com contacted the Army for comment, but did not get an immediate response.
Advocacy groups have pushed for legislation to give women better access to birth control and to abortion, according to Greg Jacob, policy director for the Service Women's Rights Action Network (SWAN), whose mission is to secure equal opportunities for active-duty military women and veterans.
The Department of Defense now gives women access to the so-called 'day after pill,' Plan B, which is available over-the-counter at medical treatment facilities.
SWAN also supported the 2011 March for Military Act, sponsored by Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand, D-New York, which pushed for lifting the ban on elective abortions at military hospitals, but was not enacted.
But the very nature of military life and its chain of command can make obtaining birth control onerous,' said Jacob.
'They allow you to go to the hospital, but you have to ask permission,' he said. 'Particularly with the younger troops, they have to check with a platoon sergeant, get a pass, and get a chit that says what you were treated for and what your duty status is, and turn that in. The system is in place for millions of people to be accountable, but the level of privacy is not the same as in civilian life.'
Women have access to regular preventive care, but educating military doctors to ask a woman if she is sexually active or needs birth control is important, he said.
Jacob suggested the military look to universities as models for educating about reproductive services. 'It's the same sort of demographic -- young people in a restrictive controlled environment,' he said.
Jacob said the end of the longstanding ban on women serving in combat will have a positive effect in empowering young women.
Over the years, critics of full integration have argued that men and women serving in combat could be distracting and create a 'sexually charged atmosphere.' But Jacobs said the new policy will go a long way to end sexual assault and, as a consequence, some unintended pregnancies.
The military already has strict rules forbidding sexual relationships between fellow soldiers, according to Jacob. 'They have all the tools in place for dealing with issues of behaviors.'
'From a harassment and an assault perspective, one of the key things we have found is the issue of the two-tiered second-class soldier culture,' he said. 'By fully integrating the troops and members feeling a part of the team, that type of behavior is reduced.'
For Jacob, who served 10 years in the Marines, overseeing and reporting to women, a fully integrated military raises standards for all.
'Some of the women who I worked with are the best Marines I ever served with,' he said. 'My philosophy is there should be one standard for the Marines, not a separate one for men. It raises the entire performance standard of the regiment.'
Also Read
Unplanned Pregnancies HigherAmong Military Women
Women in the military have access to some of the nation's best health care, which includes free birth control. But a new study shows that many women are not using it and the rate of unintended pregnancy is double that of the general population.
And today, with the Department of Defense's ending its longtime ban on women serving in combat roles, an unplanned pregnancy could have wider ramifications not only for a woman's health, but for her opportunities for advancement.
An estimated 10.5 percent of active duty women, ages 18 to 44, reported an unplanned pregnancy in the prior 12 months in 2008, the last year for which there are statistics, according to researchers at Ibis Reproductive Health, a nonprofit organization that supports women's sexual and reproductive rights.
That number was higher than in 2005, when the rate was 9.7 percent.
In the non-military population, about 5.2 percent of women of reproductive age report an unintended pregnancy each year, according to the study, published this week in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The Ibis study was based on surveys of more than 7,000 active-duty women; the statistics were obtained from the Department of Defense under the Freedom of Information Act. Rates were equal among those women who were deployed and those serving stateside.
Women make up 202,400 of the U.S. military's 1.4 million active duty personnel; more than 280,000 women have deployed over the last decade to Iraq and Afghanistan.
'It's terrific that women are getting recognition for their role in combat missions and are being considered for all types of promotions in the armed services,' said lead author Kate Grindlay, senior project manager at Ibis. 'But for women to reach their potential, they must be able to access birth control for their personal health and well-being.'
Military warned to maintain readiness as women move toward combat.
About 900 women had been unable to deploy in the past year due to a pregnancy, either planned or unplanned, according to the study. The highest rates were among younger women with less education who were either married or cohabitating, researchers said.
The authors of the study say that an unwanted pregnancy not only disrupts a woman's military career, but takes a toll on military readiness because pregnant women cannot be deployed or must be evacuated from war zones. They say the military needs to take a more 'comprehensive approach' to address the problem.
A July 2012 Ibis study, based on women deployed over the last decade, revealed they face a variety of barriers to accessing contraception. Women said they did not speak with a military medical provider about birth control before they deployed overseas -- either it was never offered or the woman never asked.
Military policies that forbid sexual activity between fellow service members 'led some women to think contraception was not available or not needed,' said the report.
Others said they had trouble getting preferred types of birth control -- the IUD, for example -- or adequate supplies before deployment.
'In addition to these access barriers, the high rate of sexual assault in the military also puts women at risk of unintended pregnancy,' said the July study.
New documentary explores rape in the military.
Abortions are only provided at military hospitals in cases of rape, incest or life endangerment. A woman must either risk an abortion at a local hospital during deployment or be sent home. Tricare, the military insurance plan, does not cover an abortion.
'Women who are deployed in Iraq wouldn't have any abortion options and must be evacuated and it could compromise confidentiality and access to care,' said Grindlay.
'It has a huge impact on mission readiness, especially as we are changing to a defense where women can serve and it becomes even more important to enable them to protect themselves,' she told ABCNews.com.
Pilip-Florea says that the Ibis survey is based on data that is five years old and many changes have been underway since 2008.
The Navy's own data shows that the number of unintended pregnancies is now 'closer to the general population' -- at about 6 percent, according to Pilip-Florea.
The Navy's Sexual Health and Responsibility Program now provides pre-deployment education on birth control and family planning, in accordance with a campaign by the Department of Health and Human Services to combat unintended pregnancies.
Navy surveys show women had a wide variety of reasons for not using birth control which contributed to an unintended pregnancy: 1 in 4 said she was 'not sexually active,' according to Pilip-Florea.
'These data suggest that women who are not currently in a relationship may not feel the need for birth control, and that it's important for health educators and clinicians to help young women think about the benefits of being ready when and if she does become involved in a sexual relationship,' she said.
Pilip-Florea also said many young women have an 'old perception' about the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives like an IUD and the injectable hormone Depo-Provera. At one time, the IUD was not given to women who had not previously had children, but new recommendations have changed that.
Other young women are misinformed about the reliability of the birth control pill, which must be taken at the same time each day, or condoms, which can break.
Popular forms of contraception, like the 'ring,' also have to be refrigerated, which can be difficult when serving for months at a time on a ship.
'The study cited a couple of instances of misinformation and fear of reprisal, but from the Navy's perspective, we believe it is central to the equipment of our sailors and Marines to protect against unwanted pregnancies for mission readiness,' said Pilip-Florea.
Since December 2012, Navy policy requires that women are offered contraceptive services before they receive their orders for operational duties.
Service members usually get three to six months between time of orders and actual deployment, allowing 'ample time to stabilize' and physically adjust to their chosen form of birth control,' said Pilip-Florea. The Navy also provides a long-term supply of birth control pills, for example, including 'a couple of months extra.'
ABCNews.com contacted the Army for comment, but did not get an immediate response.
Advocacy groups have pushed for legislation to give women better access to birth control and to abortion, according to Greg Jacob, policy director for the Service Women's Rights Action Network (SWAN), whose mission is to secure equal opportunities for active-duty military women and veterans.
The Department of Defense now gives women access to the so-called 'day after pill,' Plan B, which is available over-the-counter at medical treatment facilities.
SWAN also supported the 2011 March for Military Act, sponsored by Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand, D-New York, which pushed for lifting the ban on elective abortions at military hospitals, but was not enacted.
But the very nature of military life and its chain of command can make obtaining birth control onerous,' said Jacob.
'They allow you to go to the hospital, but you have to ask permission,' he said. 'Particularly with the younger troops, they have to check with a platoon sergeant, get a pass, and get a chit that says what you were treated for and what your duty status is, and turn that in. The system is in place for millions of people to be accountable, but the level of privacy is not the same as in civilian life.'
Women have access to regular preventive care, but educating military doctors to ask a woman if she is sexually active or needs birth control is important, he said.
Jacob suggested the military look to universities as models for educating about reproductive services. 'It's the same sort of demographic -- young people in a restrictive controlled environment,' he said.
Jacob said the end of the longstanding ban on women serving in combat will have a positive effect in empowering young women.
Over the years, critics of full integration have argued that men and women serving in combat could be distracting and create a 'sexually charged atmosphere.' But Jacobs said the new policy will go a long way to end sexual assault and, as a consequence, some unintended pregnancies.
The military already has strict rules forbidding sexual relationships between fellow soldiers, according to Jacob. 'They have all the tools in place for dealing with issues of behaviors.'
'From a harassment and an assault perspective, one of the key things we have found is the issue of the two-tiered second-class soldier culture,' he said. 'By fully integrating the troops and members feeling a part of the team, that type of behavior is reduced.'
For Jacob, who served 10 years in the Marines, overseeing and reporting to women, a fully integrated military raises standards for all.
'Some of the women who I worked with are the best Marines I ever served with,' he said. 'My philosophy is there should be one standard for the Marines, not a separate one for men. It raises the entire performance standard of the regiment.'
Also Read
And today, with the Department of Defense's ending its longtime ban on women serving in combat roles, an unplanned pregnancy could have wider ramifications not only for a woman's health, but for her opportunities for advancement.
An estimated 10.5 percent of active duty women, ages 18 to 44, reported an unplanned pregnancy in the prior 12 months in 2008, the last year for which there are statistics, according to researchers at Ibis Reproductive Health, a nonprofit organization that supports women's sexual and reproductive rights.
That number was higher than in 2005, when the rate was 9.7 percent.
In the non-military population, about 5.2 percent of women of reproductive age report an unintended pregnancy each year, according to the study, published this week in the February issue of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The Ibis study was based on surveys of more than 7,000 active-duty women; the statistics were obtained from the Department of Defense under the Freedom of Information Act. Rates were equal among those women who were deployed and those serving stateside.
Women make up 202,400 of the U.S. military's 1.4 million active duty personnel; more than 280,000 women have deployed over the last decade to Iraq and Afghanistan.
'It's terrific that women are getting recognition for their role in combat missions and are being considered for all types of promotions in the armed services,' said lead author Kate Grindlay, senior project manager at Ibis. 'But for women to reach their potential, they must be able to access birth control for their personal health and well-being.'
Military warned to maintain readiness as women move toward combat.
About 900 women had been unable to deploy in the past year due to a pregnancy, either planned or unplanned, according to the study. The highest rates were among younger women with less education who were either married or cohabitating, researchers said.
The authors of the study say that an unwanted pregnancy not only disrupts a woman's military career, but takes a toll on military readiness because pregnant women cannot be deployed or must be evacuated from war zones. They say the military needs to take a more 'comprehensive approach' to address the problem.
A July 2012 Ibis study, based on women deployed over the last decade, revealed they face a variety of barriers to accessing contraception. Women said they did not speak with a military medical provider about birth control before they deployed overseas -- either it was never offered or the woman never asked.
Military policies that forbid sexual activity between fellow service members 'led some women to think contraception was not available or not needed,' said the report.
Others said they had trouble getting preferred types of birth control -- the IUD, for example -- or adequate supplies before deployment.
'In addition to these access barriers, the high rate of sexual assault in the military also puts women at risk of unintended pregnancy,' said the July study.
New documentary explores rape in the military.
Abortions are only provided at military hospitals in cases of rape, incest or life endangerment. A woman must either risk an abortion at a local hospital during deployment or be sent home. Tricare, the military insurance plan, does not cover an abortion.
'Women who are deployed in Iraq wouldn't have any abortion options and must be evacuated and it could compromise confidentiality and access to care,' said Grindlay.
Navy Addresses Unplanned Pregnancies Head-On
Navy medical spokesperson Shoshona Pilip-Florea acknowledged that unintended pregnancy rates had been high, but the Navy's own surveys had 'noticed the trend' and implemented programs to address the problem.'It has a huge impact on mission readiness, especially as we are changing to a defense where women can serve and it becomes even more important to enable them to protect themselves,' she told ABCNews.com.
Pilip-Florea says that the Ibis survey is based on data that is five years old and many changes have been underway since 2008.
The Navy's own data shows that the number of unintended pregnancies is now 'closer to the general population' -- at about 6 percent, according to Pilip-Florea.
The Navy's Sexual Health and Responsibility Program now provides pre-deployment education on birth control and family planning, in accordance with a campaign by the Department of Health and Human Services to combat unintended pregnancies.
Navy surveys show women had a wide variety of reasons for not using birth control which contributed to an unintended pregnancy: 1 in 4 said she was 'not sexually active,' according to Pilip-Florea.
'These data suggest that women who are not currently in a relationship may not feel the need for birth control, and that it's important for health educators and clinicians to help young women think about the benefits of being ready when and if she does become involved in a sexual relationship,' she said.
Pilip-Florea also said many young women have an 'old perception' about the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives like an IUD and the injectable hormone Depo-Provera. At one time, the IUD was not given to women who had not previously had children, but new recommendations have changed that.
Other young women are misinformed about the reliability of the birth control pill, which must be taken at the same time each day, or condoms, which can break.
Popular forms of contraception, like the 'ring,' also have to be refrigerated, which can be difficult when serving for months at a time on a ship.
'The study cited a couple of instances of misinformation and fear of reprisal, but from the Navy's perspective, we believe it is central to the equipment of our sailors and Marines to protect against unwanted pregnancies for mission readiness,' said Pilip-Florea.
Since December 2012, Navy policy requires that women are offered contraceptive services before they receive their orders for operational duties.
Service members usually get three to six months between time of orders and actual deployment, allowing 'ample time to stabilize' and physically adjust to their chosen form of birth control,' said Pilip-Florea. The Navy also provides a long-term supply of birth control pills, for example, including 'a couple of months extra.'
ABCNews.com contacted the Army for comment, but did not get an immediate response.
Advocacy groups have pushed for legislation to give women better access to birth control and to abortion, according to Greg Jacob, policy director for the Service Women's Rights Action Network (SWAN), whose mission is to secure equal opportunities for active-duty military women and veterans.
The Department of Defense now gives women access to the so-called 'day after pill,' Plan B, which is available over-the-counter at medical treatment facilities.
SWAN also supported the 2011 March for Military Act, sponsored by Sen. Kirsten Gillebrand, D-New York, which pushed for lifting the ban on elective abortions at military hospitals, but was not enacted.
But the very nature of military life and its chain of command can make obtaining birth control onerous,' said Jacob.
'They allow you to go to the hospital, but you have to ask permission,' he said. 'Particularly with the younger troops, they have to check with a platoon sergeant, get a pass, and get a chit that says what you were treated for and what your duty status is, and turn that in. The system is in place for millions of people to be accountable, but the level of privacy is not the same as in civilian life.'
Women have access to regular preventive care, but educating military doctors to ask a woman if she is sexually active or needs birth control is important, he said.
Jacob suggested the military look to universities as models for educating about reproductive services. 'It's the same sort of demographic -- young people in a restrictive controlled environment,' he said.
Jacob said the end of the longstanding ban on women serving in combat will have a positive effect in empowering young women.
Over the years, critics of full integration have argued that men and women serving in combat could be distracting and create a 'sexually charged atmosphere.' But Jacobs said the new policy will go a long way to end sexual assault and, as a consequence, some unintended pregnancies.
The military already has strict rules forbidding sexual relationships between fellow soldiers, according to Jacob. 'They have all the tools in place for dealing with issues of behaviors.'
'From a harassment and an assault perspective, one of the key things we have found is the issue of the two-tiered second-class soldier culture,' he said. 'By fully integrating the troops and members feeling a part of the team, that type of behavior is reduced.'
For Jacob, who served 10 years in the Marines, overseeing and reporting to women, a fully integrated military raises standards for all.
'Some of the women who I worked with are the best Marines I ever served with,' he said. 'My philosophy is there should be one standard for the Marines, not a separate one for men. It raises the entire performance standard of the regiment.'
Also Read
Thursday, January 24, 2013
2nd NY hospital warns of insulin pen infection
OLEAN, N.Y. (AP) - A second western New York hospital is notifying patients that they may have been exposed to HIV, hepatitis B or hepatitis C through the improper sharing of insulin pens, hospital officials said Thursday.
Olean General Hospital was mailing letters to 1,915 patients who received insulin at the hospital from November 2009 through last week, advising them to call to arrange for blood testing. The risk of infection is very low, hospital officials said, but they wanted patients to be aware of the possibility.
Hospital officials said the action follows an internal review conducted after the Veterans Affairs hospital in Buffalo discovered more than 700 patients may have been exposed to blood-borne pathogens over a two-year period when multi-use pens intended for use by a single patient may have been used on more than one person.
'Interviews with nursing staff indicated that the practice of using one patient's insulin pen for other patients may have occurred on some patients,' said Timothy Finan, president and chief executive of Upper Allegheny Health System, the parent company of the Olean hospital.
Olean General had not identified any specific patients who may have received an injection from another patient's pen and knew of no cases of infection, Finan said in a news release.
'Regardless, to the extent there may be a chance, however remote, that any patient was provided insulin from an insulin pen other than their own, Olean General Hospital has decided to be proactive and aggressive with respect to notification of our patients,' the release said.
As was the case in Buffalo, needles were changed with each use of the insulin pens, the Olean hospital said. The risk of infection remained, however, because stored insulin in the pen cartridge could have become contaminated by a back flow of blood with each use.
'We are very aware that while the risk of infection from insulin pen re-use is extremely small, cross-contamination from an insulin pen is possible,' Finan said.
Federal health agencies have been warning against sharing insulin pens for several years. The Food and Drug Administration issued an alert in March 2009 after learning that more than 2,000 patients may have been exposed at a Texas hospital between 2007 and 2009.
A clinical alert from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year came amid continued reports of the practice.
The pens have been removed from use at Olean General. They were never used at a second hospital in the Upper Allegheny Health System, Bradford Regional Medical Center in Pennsylvania, Finan said.
Revelations of the issue at the VA hospital led the Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General to initiate a review of the Buffalo hospital.
Olean General Hospital was mailing letters to 1,915 patients who received insulin at the hospital from November 2009 through last week, advising them to call to arrange for blood testing. The risk of infection is very low, hospital officials said, but they wanted patients to be aware of the possibility.
Hospital officials said the action follows an internal review conducted after the Veterans Affairs hospital in Buffalo discovered more than 700 patients may have been exposed to blood-borne pathogens over a two-year period when multi-use pens intended for use by a single patient may have been used on more than one person.
'Interviews with nursing staff indicated that the practice of using one patient's insulin pen for other patients may have occurred on some patients,' said Timothy Finan, president and chief executive of Upper Allegheny Health System, the parent company of the Olean hospital.
Olean General had not identified any specific patients who may have received an injection from another patient's pen and knew of no cases of infection, Finan said in a news release.
'Regardless, to the extent there may be a chance, however remote, that any patient was provided insulin from an insulin pen other than their own, Olean General Hospital has decided to be proactive and aggressive with respect to notification of our patients,' the release said.
As was the case in Buffalo, needles were changed with each use of the insulin pens, the Olean hospital said. The risk of infection remained, however, because stored insulin in the pen cartridge could have become contaminated by a back flow of blood with each use.
'We are very aware that while the risk of infection from insulin pen re-use is extremely small, cross-contamination from an insulin pen is possible,' Finan said.
Federal health agencies have been warning against sharing insulin pens for several years. The Food and Drug Administration issued an alert in March 2009 after learning that more than 2,000 patients may have been exposed at a Texas hospital between 2007 and 2009.
A clinical alert from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last year came amid continued reports of the practice.
The pens have been removed from use at Olean General. They were never used at a second hospital in the Upper Allegheny Health System, Bradford Regional Medical Center in Pennsylvania, Finan said.
Revelations of the issue at the VA hospital led the Department of Veterans Affairs Inspector General to initiate a review of the Buffalo hospital.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Ob-gyns sound alarm on "contraceptive sabotage"
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Doctors should ask teen girls and women whether their partners are trying to force them to get pregnant or otherwise 'reproductively coercing' them, according to a group of ob-gyns.
That could include pressuring women to have sex - possibly without a condom or other birth control, forcing them to continue (or end) a pregnancy or intentionally exposing them to sexually transmitted infections, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
'What we're talking about is specific to women and girls' ability to contracept, to control their reproductive health,' said Jay Silverman, who studies violence against women at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine.
'What we've found is that many male partners are more actively involved than we would have thought in really blocking women and girls' ability to do that, as a form of control that's part of a larger picture of violence against women and girls,' added Silverman, who wasn't part of the ACOG committee.
One study of the National Domestic Violence Hotline found a fourth of callers had experienced reproductive coercion.
'All the different forms of violence and coercion of women and girls from male partners are based in the entitlement to control their lives, physically and otherwise,' Silverman said. 'They also feel entitled to decide whether she's going to get pregnant or not.'
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports close to three in 10 U.S. women have experienced rape, stalking or physical violence by a partner. Other studies suggest as many as half of women will experience psychological aggression from an intimate partner at some point in their lives.
OFFERING 'SAFE SPACE'
Earlier this month, the government-backed U.S. Preventive Services Task Force called on doctors to screen women of childbearing age for domestic violence and refer those who need it to intervention services.
'I think this is a very common problem - it's extremely underreported,' said Dr. Eduardo Lara-Torre, a member of the ACOG committee from the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, of reproductive coercion.
In cases of reproductive coercion or 'contraceptive sabotage,' the ob-gyn group said doctors can help women obtain safe and concealable birth control, such as emergency contraceptive pills packaged in plain envelopes or intrauterine devices with trimmed strings.
Doctors can also give women safety cards, hotline numbers and referrals to domestic violence services, according to the committee opinion published in Obstetrics & Gynecology.
'For this particular scenario, (doctors need to) be able to offer them a safe space to discuss it, number one. as well as offer them alternatives and strategies so they don't get sabotaged,' Lara-Torre told Reuters Health
In addition, he said, doctors should 'offer them help and assistance, including shelters, for whatever else they might need.'
Silverman agreed that doctors and other clinic staff should ask women and girls about reproductive coercion, especially when they come to the office for contraception.
'It is incredibly important that these are issues that are asked about, because if we don't understand the context in which a woman is attempting to contracept, then we are not often giving her the tools to be effective to do that,' he told Reuters Health.
'It may be that she needs a long-acting control method that her partner has no control over and may not be able to detect.'
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/s3TyE Obstetrics & Gynecology, online January 23, 2013.
That could include pressuring women to have sex - possibly without a condom or other birth control, forcing them to continue (or end) a pregnancy or intentionally exposing them to sexually transmitted infections, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG).
'What we're talking about is specific to women and girls' ability to contracept, to control their reproductive health,' said Jay Silverman, who studies violence against women at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine.
'What we've found is that many male partners are more actively involved than we would have thought in really blocking women and girls' ability to do that, as a form of control that's part of a larger picture of violence against women and girls,' added Silverman, who wasn't part of the ACOG committee.
One study of the National Domestic Violence Hotline found a fourth of callers had experienced reproductive coercion.
'All the different forms of violence and coercion of women and girls from male partners are based in the entitlement to control their lives, physically and otherwise,' Silverman said. 'They also feel entitled to decide whether she's going to get pregnant or not.'
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports close to three in 10 U.S. women have experienced rape, stalking or physical violence by a partner. Other studies suggest as many as half of women will experience psychological aggression from an intimate partner at some point in their lives.
OFFERING 'SAFE SPACE'
Earlier this month, the government-backed U.S. Preventive Services Task Force called on doctors to screen women of childbearing age for domestic violence and refer those who need it to intervention services.
'I think this is a very common problem - it's extremely underreported,' said Dr. Eduardo Lara-Torre, a member of the ACOG committee from the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine, of reproductive coercion.
In cases of reproductive coercion or 'contraceptive sabotage,' the ob-gyn group said doctors can help women obtain safe and concealable birth control, such as emergency contraceptive pills packaged in plain envelopes or intrauterine devices with trimmed strings.
Doctors can also give women safety cards, hotline numbers and referrals to domestic violence services, according to the committee opinion published in Obstetrics & Gynecology.
'For this particular scenario, (doctors need to) be able to offer them a safe space to discuss it, number one. as well as offer them alternatives and strategies so they don't get sabotaged,' Lara-Torre told Reuters Health
In addition, he said, doctors should 'offer them help and assistance, including shelters, for whatever else they might need.'
Silverman agreed that doctors and other clinic staff should ask women and girls about reproductive coercion, especially when they come to the office for contraception.
'It is incredibly important that these are issues that are asked about, because if we don't understand the context in which a woman is attempting to contracept, then we are not often giving her the tools to be effective to do that,' he told Reuters Health.
'It may be that she needs a long-acting control method that her partner has no control over and may not be able to detect.'
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/s3TyE Obstetrics & Gynecology, online January 23, 2013.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
'Avenue Q,' Logo Partner on HIV-Awareness PSAs
LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - 'Avenue Q' is partnering with Logo on a series of public service announcements designed to create awareness about HIV, the show's producer and the cable channel announced Monday.
The campaign will include six on-air spots by Tony Award winner Jeff Whitty, who wrote the book for 'Avenue Q,' and it will feature puppets from the Broadway musical.
In the PSAs, 'Avenue Q' characters Lucy the Slut, Rod and Ricky will appear alongside human actors, as they do in the musical that tells the story of 20-somethings who move to New York with big dreams and tiny bank accounts while trying to find their purpose in life.
The television spots, which will debut on January 28 during the season premiere of 'RuPaul's Drag Race,' will cover a range of topics, including erasing the stigma of HIV, talking frankly about sex with your partner(s), the importance of being tested and adhering to HIV treatment if tested positive. Separate online segments also will be available at LogoTV.com.
'We are very proud to be partnering with Logo on this important effort,' 'Avenue Q' producer Robyn Goodman said in a statement. 'Throughout its run, the 'Avenue Q' puppets have been able to tackle key issues - from Presidential elections to same-sex marriage and now HIV awareness - in their own, singular heart-'felt' way.'
'Avenue Q' won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Musical, as well as Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score (by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx). It closed in 2009 after playing 2,534 regular performances and 22 previews. It is currently running off-Broadway at New World Stages.
The campaign will include six on-air spots by Tony Award winner Jeff Whitty, who wrote the book for 'Avenue Q,' and it will feature puppets from the Broadway musical.
In the PSAs, 'Avenue Q' characters Lucy the Slut, Rod and Ricky will appear alongside human actors, as they do in the musical that tells the story of 20-somethings who move to New York with big dreams and tiny bank accounts while trying to find their purpose in life.
The television spots, which will debut on January 28 during the season premiere of 'RuPaul's Drag Race,' will cover a range of topics, including erasing the stigma of HIV, talking frankly about sex with your partner(s), the importance of being tested and adhering to HIV treatment if tested positive. Separate online segments also will be available at LogoTV.com.
'We are very proud to be partnering with Logo on this important effort,' 'Avenue Q' producer Robyn Goodman said in a statement. 'Throughout its run, the 'Avenue Q' puppets have been able to tackle key issues - from Presidential elections to same-sex marriage and now HIV awareness - in their own, singular heart-'felt' way.'
'Avenue Q' won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Musical, as well as Best Book of a Musical and Best Original Score (by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx). It closed in 2009 after playing 2,534 regular performances and 22 previews. It is currently running off-Broadway at New World Stages.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Incurable Gonorrhea Only One Sign We've Overdosed on Antibiotics
COMMENTARY | Well this is very unsettling news. According to the Centers for Disease Control, gonorrhea may soon become an incurable disease. A new strain of the most common STD appears to be resistant to the only antibiotic known to treat it. The findings were published by the Journal of the American Medical Association.
So who or what is to blame? Are we having too much unprotected sex? Perhaps. Or are superbugs becoming all too common? That's a more likely scenario. And if that's the case, how did these superbugs come about? The answer is simple: we've overdosed on antibiotics.
Sir Alexander Fleming must surely be turning in his grave. What was once one of the greatest medical discoveries of the 20th century is slowly becoming useless to our modern world. Yes, antibiotics are effective in treating numerous diseases and infections. But we have come to view them as the ultimate cure for all our ailments. The truth is, antibiotics cannot treat many illnesses. One example is influenza. That's because the flu is a virus and antibiotics do not work on viruses.
Nevertheless, we continue to beg our doctors for more penicillin every time we have a cold. As a nurse, I've seen patients do this firsthand. Unfortunately, all this antibiotic dependency has done is make our bodies less able to fight illness on its own and increase our resistance to antibiotics. Instead of reaching for antibiotics at every turn, here are some suggestions as to what we can do when we feel sick.
- Stop begging doctors to feed us more antibiotics when we don't need them. Your doctor will tell you which conditions can be treated with antibiotics and which ones can't.
- Doctors, don't give in to pressure from nervous patients and overprotective parents who demand antibiotics with every sneeze. Educate, don't placate.
- Let nature take its course with certain illnesses. You don't need penicillin every time you get a sore throat. Gargling with warm water and salt kills germs too.
Antibiotics are still some of the most powerful drugs we have to protect our health. But let's stop misusing them to our disadvantage.
J Budd is a registered nurse and a former broadcast journalist in the NYC/NJ area.
This article is sponsored by Travel to France.
Friday, January 11, 2013
U.S. top court to review free speech of HIV/AIDS groups
(Reuters) - The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to consider whether the government can require groups that receive federal funding for overseas HIV/AIDS programs to have explicit policies that oppose prostitution and sex trafficking.
The requirement that the U.S. Agency for International Development wants enforced was the result of legislation aimed at fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, but some aid groups argue that it violates their free speech rights.
In a brief order, the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by the Obama administration and various federal agencies to overturn a lower court decision that had voided the requirement, which is contained in the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003.
Judge Barrington Parker wrote for a 2-1 panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York that the challenged provision improperly 'compels recipients to espouse the government's viewpoint.' He also said advocacy against prostitution is not central to the fight against HIV and AIDS.
The dissenting judge, Chester Straub, countered that the policy requirement was 'entirely rational,' and neither imposed a coercive penalty on protected rights nor discriminated as a means to suppress ideas.
In its appeal, the government said the 2nd Circuit decision conflicted directly with a 2007 decision by a federal appeals court in Washington.
The funding recipients, including the Alliance for Open Society International Inc, said the 2nd Circuit decision was correct.
A decision is expected by the end of June.
The case is U.S. Agency for International Development et al v. Alliance for Open Society International Inc et al, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 12-10.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Eddie Evans)
This news article is brought to you by RELATIONSHIPS ADVICE - where latest news are our top priority.
The requirement that the U.S. Agency for International Development wants enforced was the result of legislation aimed at fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, but some aid groups argue that it violates their free speech rights.
In a brief order, the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by the Obama administration and various federal agencies to overturn a lower court decision that had voided the requirement, which is contained in the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003.
Judge Barrington Parker wrote for a 2-1 panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York that the challenged provision improperly 'compels recipients to espouse the government's viewpoint.' He also said advocacy against prostitution is not central to the fight against HIV and AIDS.
The dissenting judge, Chester Straub, countered that the policy requirement was 'entirely rational,' and neither imposed a coercive penalty on protected rights nor discriminated as a means to suppress ideas.
In its appeal, the government said the 2nd Circuit decision conflicted directly with a 2007 decision by a federal appeals court in Washington.
The funding recipients, including the Alliance for Open Society International Inc, said the 2nd Circuit decision was correct.
A decision is expected by the end of June.
The case is U.S. Agency for International Development et al v. Alliance for Open Society International Inc et al, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 12-10.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Eddie Evans)
This news article is brought to you by RELATIONSHIPS ADVICE - where latest news are our top priority.
Supreme Court to review free speech of HIV/AIDS groups
(Reuters) - The Supreme Court agreed to consider whether the government can require groups that receive federal funding for overseas HIV/AIDS programs to have explicit policies that oppose prostitution and sex trafficking.
The requirement that the U.S. Agency for International Development wants enforced was the result of legislation aimed at fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, but some aid groups argue that it violates their free speech rights.
In a brief order, the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by the Obama administration and various federal agencies to overturn a lower court decision that had voided the requirement, which is contained in the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003.
Judge Barrington Parker wrote for a 2-1 panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York that the challenged provision improperly 'compels recipients to espouse the government's viewpoint.' He also said advocacy against prostitution is not central to the fight against HIV and AIDS.
The dissenting judge, Chester Straub, countered that the policy requirement was 'entirely rational,' and neither imposed a coercive penalty on protected rights nor discriminated as a means to suppress ideas.
In its appeal, the government said the 2nd Circuit decision conflicted directly with a 2007 decision by a federal appeals court in Washington.
The funding recipients, including the Alliance for Open Society International Inc, said the 2nd Circuit decision was correct.
A decision is expected by the end of June.
The case is U.S. Agency for International Development et al v. Alliance for Open Society International Inc et al, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 12-10.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Eddie Evans)
This news article is brought to you by STOCK MARKET BLOG - where latest news are our top priority.
The requirement that the U.S. Agency for International Development wants enforced was the result of legislation aimed at fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS, but some aid groups argue that it violates their free speech rights.
In a brief order, the Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear an appeal by the Obama administration and various federal agencies to overturn a lower court decision that had voided the requirement, which is contained in the U.S. Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act of 2003.
Judge Barrington Parker wrote for a 2-1 panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York that the challenged provision improperly 'compels recipients to espouse the government's viewpoint.' He also said advocacy against prostitution is not central to the fight against HIV and AIDS.
The dissenting judge, Chester Straub, countered that the policy requirement was 'entirely rational,' and neither imposed a coercive penalty on protected rights nor discriminated as a means to suppress ideas.
In its appeal, the government said the 2nd Circuit decision conflicted directly with a 2007 decision by a federal appeals court in Washington.
The funding recipients, including the Alliance for Open Society International Inc, said the 2nd Circuit decision was correct.
A decision is expected by the end of June.
The case is U.S. Agency for International Development et al v. Alliance for Open Society International Inc et al, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 12-10.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel; Editing by Eddie Evans)
This news article is brought to you by STOCK MARKET BLOG - where latest news are our top priority.
EU agency sees no new risks with combined contraceptives
LONDON (Reuters) - European drug regulators said on Friday there was no reason for women to stop using combined contraceptives like Bayer's Meliane or Yasmin pills since there was no new evidence pointing to safety risks.
The move comes after French health regulators said last week they were considering limiting use of some birth control pills after a woman sued the German drugmaker over alleged side-effects.
In a statement responding to reports about the so-called 'third-generation' contraceptive pills and blood clots known as venous thromboembolisms, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it was already well known that the pills 'carry a very rare risk of blood clots'.
It said that risk differs between types of combined contraceptives.
'These products are constantly and rigorously kept under close monitoring. There is currently no new evidence that would suggest any change to the known safety profile of any combined contraceptives marketed today,' the agency said. 'There is no reason for any woman to stop using her contraception.'
EMA says the risk of a blood clot is twice as high for women using third and fourth-generation pills than for those using earlier versions, although it remains low. The risk of a stroke is the same.
France's health ministry said on January 3 it would stop reimbursing prescription costs of third-generation pills from March 31 after a 25-year-old woman sued Bayer and a French official over a stroke she suffered following use of the third-generation contraceptive pill Meliane.
An inquiry found her use of the pill could have been responsible for the stroke, which led to partial paralysis. Her lawyers argue Bayer should have withdrawn its pill from the market.
The EMA said Europe's regulatory network had a robust system in place to deal with safety issues with medicines.
'Under this system, any new safety-related evidence that a member state has, should be made available to the European Medicines Agency so that it can be assessed and appropriate actions can be taken to protect patients right across the European Union,' it said.
(Reporting by Kate Kelland; Editing by Mark Potter)
This news article is brought to you by TECHNOLOGY NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
The move comes after French health regulators said last week they were considering limiting use of some birth control pills after a woman sued the German drugmaker over alleged side-effects.
In a statement responding to reports about the so-called 'third-generation' contraceptive pills and blood clots known as venous thromboembolisms, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it was already well known that the pills 'carry a very rare risk of blood clots'.
It said that risk differs between types of combined contraceptives.
'These products are constantly and rigorously kept under close monitoring. There is currently no new evidence that would suggest any change to the known safety profile of any combined contraceptives marketed today,' the agency said. 'There is no reason for any woman to stop using her contraception.'
EMA says the risk of a blood clot is twice as high for women using third and fourth-generation pills than for those using earlier versions, although it remains low. The risk of a stroke is the same.
France's health ministry said on January 3 it would stop reimbursing prescription costs of third-generation pills from March 31 after a 25-year-old woman sued Bayer and a French official over a stroke she suffered following use of the third-generation contraceptive pill Meliane.
An inquiry found her use of the pill could have been responsible for the stroke, which led to partial paralysis. Her lawyers argue Bayer should have withdrawn its pill from the market.
The EMA said Europe's regulatory network had a robust system in place to deal with safety issues with medicines.
'Under this system, any new safety-related evidence that a member state has, should be made available to the European Medicines Agency so that it can be assessed and appropriate actions can be taken to protect patients right across the European Union,' it said.
(Reporting by Kate Kelland; Editing by Mark Potter)
This news article is brought to you by TECHNOLOGY NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Bioengineer developing needle-free "nanopatch" vaccines
LONDON (Reuters) - When it comes to protecting millions of people from deadly infectious diseases, Mark Kendall thinks a fingertip-sized patch covered in thousands of vaccine-coated microscopic spikes is the future.
A biomedical engineer with a fascination for problem solving, he has developed the so-called 'nanopatch' to try to transform delivery of life-saving vaccines against potential killers like flu and the HPV virus that causes cervical cancer.
After 160 years of using needles and syringes for immunization, he says, at-risk people - especially those living in poorer, tropical, remote countries - need something simpler, stabler and easier to use. And he thinks he has the answer.
'Most current vaccines are delivered via the needle and syringe system that was developed in 1853,' the scientist said in an interview from his laboratory in Australia. 'It's effective on many levels but it also has many downsides.'
Kendall's nanopatch has yet to prove itself in human clinical trials, but has had impressive results in animal tests.
Those have been enough to persuade U.S. pharmaceutical giant Merck, maker of many of the world's top-selling vaccines, to give Kendall a three-year research grant to take the device into human trials.
NO COLD CHAIN
The nanopatch is designed to place a tiny amount of vaccine just under the skin without the need for a needle jab. Because it delivers the active ingredient right to where it is needed, tests have shown it can generate same immune response with only a fraction of the dose needed in a conventional vaccine.
And because it uses the vaccine in dried form, it does not need cold-chain refrigeration or trained staff to deliver it.
Kendall says one key limitation of needle and syringe vaccines, beside needing expensive cold-chains and specialist staff to deliver them, is that the needle puts the vaccine into muscle, which has relatively few immune cells.
In the last 30 years or so, immunologists have discovered that skin, unlike muscle, is rammed full of immune cells, making it a far more effective place to apply vaccines. 'You could argue the skin is our immune sweet spot,' Kendall said.
So far, Kendall's research team at the University of Queensland's Institute for Biotechnology and Nanotechnology have tested the nanopatch on mice using various inoculations - including against flu, the human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes cervical cancer, and even with a potential new vaccine against mosquito-borne viral disease chikungunya.
'We demonstrated that you need only a tiny fraction of the dose, perhaps a hundredfold less' to get the same immune response, Kendall said.
Among other potential advantages of the nanopatch are that it is pain free, low cost - it could be made for under $1 a dose compared with more than $50 for many current vaccines - and easily transportable. Kendall even ponders whether it might be mailed to remote places for people to administer it themselves.
PATCHY HISTORY
But he also recognizes there is a long way to go to bring what is still an experimental device to market - and he is aware of previous attempts at vaccine patches that had little success.
The Austrian biotech firm Intercell, now owned by France's Vivalis, saw its share price slump in 2010 after its experimental vaccine enhancement patch (VEP) system against pandemic flu failed in a mid-stage trial.
Kendall says, however, that Intercell's VEP system had a very different mode of action. The patch was applied after a needle vaccination and designed to boost the jab's effect by putting an adjuvant, or booster, into the skin.
His nanopatch applies the vaccine direct, with no adjuvant. 'We apply the patch against the skin with an applicator ... and we have a high level of control of the antigen delivered.'
Kendall is keen to ensure that if his patch does make it to market, it will not follow the pattern of many previous vaccine developments, which have seen life-saving shots go first to people in the wealthy world and only after several years start to reach those who need them in poorer countries.
There are still 17 million deaths a year from infectious diseases, mostly in poor countries that often cannot afford the pricey vaccines that could prevent them.
Kendall has just returned from a feasibility study using prototypes of the nanopatch in Papua New Guinea, which has one of the world's highest rates of infection with HPV - a virus that can lead to cervical cancer, the biggest cause of death in young women in developing countries.
He travelled in daytime temperatures of 30 to 40 degrees Celsius and up to 100 percent humidity 'and when we got back and tested the patches we found there had been no loss in activity'.
This success means Kendall now wants to push on to full clinical trials on humans, starting this year in Australia and followed swiftly with parallel trials in Papua New Guinea. An enterprise award of $100,000 from the luxury watchmaker Rolex is helping him along that path.
'This could potentially change the world of vaccinations. But we still have a very long way to go,' he says.
(Editing by Louise Ireland)
This article is brought to you by DATING ADVICE.
A biomedical engineer with a fascination for problem solving, he has developed the so-called 'nanopatch' to try to transform delivery of life-saving vaccines against potential killers like flu and the HPV virus that causes cervical cancer.
After 160 years of using needles and syringes for immunization, he says, at-risk people - especially those living in poorer, tropical, remote countries - need something simpler, stabler and easier to use. And he thinks he has the answer.
'Most current vaccines are delivered via the needle and syringe system that was developed in 1853,' the scientist said in an interview from his laboratory in Australia. 'It's effective on many levels but it also has many downsides.'
Kendall's nanopatch has yet to prove itself in human clinical trials, but has had impressive results in animal tests.
Those have been enough to persuade U.S. pharmaceutical giant Merck, maker of many of the world's top-selling vaccines, to give Kendall a three-year research grant to take the device into human trials.
NO COLD CHAIN
The nanopatch is designed to place a tiny amount of vaccine just under the skin without the need for a needle jab. Because it delivers the active ingredient right to where it is needed, tests have shown it can generate same immune response with only a fraction of the dose needed in a conventional vaccine.
And because it uses the vaccine in dried form, it does not need cold-chain refrigeration or trained staff to deliver it.
Kendall says one key limitation of needle and syringe vaccines, beside needing expensive cold-chains and specialist staff to deliver them, is that the needle puts the vaccine into muscle, which has relatively few immune cells.
In the last 30 years or so, immunologists have discovered that skin, unlike muscle, is rammed full of immune cells, making it a far more effective place to apply vaccines. 'You could argue the skin is our immune sweet spot,' Kendall said.
So far, Kendall's research team at the University of Queensland's Institute for Biotechnology and Nanotechnology have tested the nanopatch on mice using various inoculations - including against flu, the human papillomavirus (HPV) that causes cervical cancer, and even with a potential new vaccine against mosquito-borne viral disease chikungunya.
'We demonstrated that you need only a tiny fraction of the dose, perhaps a hundredfold less' to get the same immune response, Kendall said.
Among other potential advantages of the nanopatch are that it is pain free, low cost - it could be made for under $1 a dose compared with more than $50 for many current vaccines - and easily transportable. Kendall even ponders whether it might be mailed to remote places for people to administer it themselves.
PATCHY HISTORY
But he also recognizes there is a long way to go to bring what is still an experimental device to market - and he is aware of previous attempts at vaccine patches that had little success.
The Austrian biotech firm Intercell, now owned by France's Vivalis, saw its share price slump in 2010 after its experimental vaccine enhancement patch (VEP) system against pandemic flu failed in a mid-stage trial.
Kendall says, however, that Intercell's VEP system had a very different mode of action. The patch was applied after a needle vaccination and designed to boost the jab's effect by putting an adjuvant, or booster, into the skin.
His nanopatch applies the vaccine direct, with no adjuvant. 'We apply the patch against the skin with an applicator ... and we have a high level of control of the antigen delivered.'
Kendall is keen to ensure that if his patch does make it to market, it will not follow the pattern of many previous vaccine developments, which have seen life-saving shots go first to people in the wealthy world and only after several years start to reach those who need them in poorer countries.
There are still 17 million deaths a year from infectious diseases, mostly in poor countries that often cannot afford the pricey vaccines that could prevent them.
Kendall has just returned from a feasibility study using prototypes of the nanopatch in Papua New Guinea, which has one of the world's highest rates of infection with HPV - a virus that can lead to cervical cancer, the biggest cause of death in young women in developing countries.
He travelled in daytime temperatures of 30 to 40 degrees Celsius and up to 100 percent humidity 'and when we got back and tested the patches we found there had been no loss in activity'.
This success means Kendall now wants to push on to full clinical trials on humans, starting this year in Australia and followed swiftly with parallel trials in Papua New Guinea. An enterprise award of $100,000 from the luxury watchmaker Rolex is helping him along that path.
'This could potentially change the world of vaccinations. But we still have a very long way to go,' he says.
(Editing by Louise Ireland)
This article is brought to you by DATING ADVICE.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Retooling Pap test to spot more kinds of cancer
WASHINGTON (AP) - For years, doctors have lamented that there's no Pap test for deadly ovarian cancer. Wednesday, scientists reported a tantalizing hint that one day, there might be.
Researchers are trying to retool the Pap, a test for cervical cancer that millions of women get, so that it could spot early signs of other gynecologic cancers, too.
How? It turns out that cells can flake off of tumors in the ovaries or the lining of the uterus, and float down to rest in the cervix, where Pap tests are performed. These cells are too rare to recognize under the microscope. But researchers from Johns Hopkins University used some sophisticated DNA testing on the Pap samples to uncover the evidence - gene mutations that show cancer is present.
In a pilot study, they analyzed Pap smears from 46 women who already were diagnosed with either ovarian or endometrial cancer. The new technique found all the endometrial cancers and 41 percent of the ovarian tumors, the team reported Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine.
This is very early-stage research, and women shouldn't expect any change in their routine Paps. It will take years of additional testing to prove if the so-called PapGene technique really could work as a screening tool, used to spot cancer in women who thought they were healthy.
'Now the hard work begins,' said Hopkins oncologist Dr. Luis Diaz, whose team is collecting hundreds of additional Pap samples for more study and is exploring ways to enhance the detection of ovarian cancer.
But if it ultimately pans out, 'the neat part about this is, the patient won't feel anything different,' and the Pap wouldn't be performed differently, Diaz added. The extra work would come in a lab.
The gene-based technique marks a new approach toward cancer screening, and specialists are watching closely.
'This is very encouraging, and it shows great potential,' said American Cancer Society genetics expert Michael Melner.
'We are a long way from being able to see any impact on our patients,' cautioned Dr. Shannon Westin of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She reviewed the research in an accompanying editorial, and said the ovarian cancer detection would need improvement if the test is to work.
But she noted that ovarian cancer has poor survival rates because it's rarely caught early. 'If this screening test could identify ovarian cancer at an early stage, there would be a profound impact on patient outcomes and mortality,' Westin said.
More than 22,000 U.S. women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year, and more than 15,000 die. Symptoms such as pain and bloating seldom are obvious until the cancer is more advanced, and numerous attempts at screening tests have failed.
Endometrial cancer affects about 47,000 women a year, and kills about 8,000. There is no screening test for it either, but most women are diagnosed early because of postmenopausal bleeding.
The Hopkins research piggybacks on one of the most successful cancer screening tools, the Pap, and a newer technology used along with it. With a standard Pap, a little brush scrapes off cells from the cervix, which are stored in a vial to examine for signs of cervical cancer. Today, many women's Paps undergo an additional DNA-based test to see if they harbor the HPV virus, which can spur cervical cancer.
So the Hopkins team, funded largely by cancer advocacy groups, decided to look for DNA evidence of other gynecologic tumors. It developed a method to rapidly screen the Pap samples for those mutations using standard genetics equipment that Diaz said wouldn't add much to the cost of a Pap-plus-HPV test. He said the technique could detect both early-stage and more advanced tumors. Importantly, tests of Paps from 14 healthy women turned up no false alarms.
The endometrial cancers may have been easier to find because cells from those tumors don't have as far to travel as ovarian cancer cells, Diaz said. Researchers will study whether inserting the Pap brush deeper, testing during different times of the menstrual cycle, or other factors might improve detection of ovarian cancer.
This article is brought to you by DATING ADVICE.
Researchers are trying to retool the Pap, a test for cervical cancer that millions of women get, so that it could spot early signs of other gynecologic cancers, too.
How? It turns out that cells can flake off of tumors in the ovaries or the lining of the uterus, and float down to rest in the cervix, where Pap tests are performed. These cells are too rare to recognize under the microscope. But researchers from Johns Hopkins University used some sophisticated DNA testing on the Pap samples to uncover the evidence - gene mutations that show cancer is present.
In a pilot study, they analyzed Pap smears from 46 women who already were diagnosed with either ovarian or endometrial cancer. The new technique found all the endometrial cancers and 41 percent of the ovarian tumors, the team reported Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine.
This is very early-stage research, and women shouldn't expect any change in their routine Paps. It will take years of additional testing to prove if the so-called PapGene technique really could work as a screening tool, used to spot cancer in women who thought they were healthy.
'Now the hard work begins,' said Hopkins oncologist Dr. Luis Diaz, whose team is collecting hundreds of additional Pap samples for more study and is exploring ways to enhance the detection of ovarian cancer.
But if it ultimately pans out, 'the neat part about this is, the patient won't feel anything different,' and the Pap wouldn't be performed differently, Diaz added. The extra work would come in a lab.
The gene-based technique marks a new approach toward cancer screening, and specialists are watching closely.
'This is very encouraging, and it shows great potential,' said American Cancer Society genetics expert Michael Melner.
'We are a long way from being able to see any impact on our patients,' cautioned Dr. Shannon Westin of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She reviewed the research in an accompanying editorial, and said the ovarian cancer detection would need improvement if the test is to work.
But she noted that ovarian cancer has poor survival rates because it's rarely caught early. 'If this screening test could identify ovarian cancer at an early stage, there would be a profound impact on patient outcomes and mortality,' Westin said.
More than 22,000 U.S. women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year, and more than 15,000 die. Symptoms such as pain and bloating seldom are obvious until the cancer is more advanced, and numerous attempts at screening tests have failed.
Endometrial cancer affects about 47,000 women a year, and kills about 8,000. There is no screening test for it either, but most women are diagnosed early because of postmenopausal bleeding.
The Hopkins research piggybacks on one of the most successful cancer screening tools, the Pap, and a newer technology used along with it. With a standard Pap, a little brush scrapes off cells from the cervix, which are stored in a vial to examine for signs of cervical cancer. Today, many women's Paps undergo an additional DNA-based test to see if they harbor the HPV virus, which can spur cervical cancer.
So the Hopkins team, funded largely by cancer advocacy groups, decided to look for DNA evidence of other gynecologic tumors. It developed a method to rapidly screen the Pap samples for those mutations using standard genetics equipment that Diaz said wouldn't add much to the cost of a Pap-plus-HPV test. He said the technique could detect both early-stage and more advanced tumors. Importantly, tests of Paps from 14 healthy women turned up no false alarms.
The endometrial cancers may have been easier to find because cells from those tumors don't have as far to travel as ovarian cancer cells, Diaz said. Researchers will study whether inserting the Pap brush deeper, testing during different times of the menstrual cycle, or other factors might improve detection of ovarian cancer.
This article is brought to you by DATING ADVICE.
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Treatment-resistant gonorrhea threat rises in North America
CHICAGO (Reuters) - The only remaining oral antibiotic used for gonorrhea failed to cure the infection in nearly 7 percent of patients treated at a clinic in Toronto, Canadian researchers said on Monday in the first published study of treatment-resistant gonorrhea in North America.
The study raised alarm among U.S. health officials, who have ordered doctors to stop prescribing the antibiotic known as cefixime because lab cultures showed gonorrhea was starting to develop resistance to the drug.
That left U.S. doctors with only one effective treatment for most cases of gonorrhea, an injectible antibiotic known as ceftriaxone.
'We've been very concerned about the threat of potentially untreatable gonorrhea in the United States,' Dr. Gail Bolan, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's division for sexually transmitted diseases, said in a telephone interview
There have been a number of cases in Europe, but 'this is the first time we've had such a report in the actual North American continent,' she said. 'We feel it's only a matter of time until resistance will occur in the United States.'
Until now, signs of antibiotic resistance in North America have been detected mostly through lab tests, which have shown a steady increase in the amount of antibiotic cefixime - marketed by Lupin Ltd as Suprax - that was needed to kill gonorrhea.
'We had seen one case beforehand, but this is the first published report, and it's also the first series of cases in North America,' said Dr. Vanessa Allen of Public Health Ontario in Canada, who led the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Allen and colleagues studied nearly 300 individuals with gonorrhea between May 2010 and April 2011 who were treated with cefixime at a clinic in Toronto, looking for any patients who were still infected during a follow-up visit.
Of the initial 300, 133 returned for retesting. Of those, 13 were still infected, but only nine said they had not had sexual contact that might have reinfected them. That left a failure rate of 6.7 percent.
Allen said the study is a preliminary finding, but still important because it offers some confirmation that people treated with cefixime are not being cured.
It also points out a weakness of newer DNA-based tests commonly used to test for gonorrhea.
Previously, doctors would take fluid samples from patients and grow cultures of gonorrhea bacteria in lab dishes, which could then be used to identify drug resistance. More advanced DNA-based tests, such as nucleic acid amplification tests, cannot be used to test for antibiotic resistance.
'I do think reinvesting in culture-based methodologies is warranted,' Allen said, adding that doctors should consider sending patients for retesting to make sure they have been properly treated.
If left untreated, gonorrhea can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, stillbirths, severe eye infections in babies and infertility in both men and women.
In the United States, there are approximately 300,000 reported cases of gonorrhea each year. But because infected people often have no symptoms, the actual number of cases is likely closer to 600,000, Bolan said.
So-called 'superbug' drug-resistant strains of gonorrhea accounted for almost one in 10 cases of sexually transmitted disease in Europe in 2010, more than double the rate of the year before, health officials from the Stockholm-based European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said in June.
In addition to closely monitoring for resistance, Bolan said the CDC it is working with its partners at the National Institutes of Health and pharmaceutical companies to encourage the development of new antibiotics and test new combinations of existing drugs.
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; editing by Christopher Wilson)
This news article is brought to you by TECHNOLOGY NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
The study raised alarm among U.S. health officials, who have ordered doctors to stop prescribing the antibiotic known as cefixime because lab cultures showed gonorrhea was starting to develop resistance to the drug.
That left U.S. doctors with only one effective treatment for most cases of gonorrhea, an injectible antibiotic known as ceftriaxone.
'We've been very concerned about the threat of potentially untreatable gonorrhea in the United States,' Dr. Gail Bolan, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's division for sexually transmitted diseases, said in a telephone interview
There have been a number of cases in Europe, but 'this is the first time we've had such a report in the actual North American continent,' she said. 'We feel it's only a matter of time until resistance will occur in the United States.'
Until now, signs of antibiotic resistance in North America have been detected mostly through lab tests, which have shown a steady increase in the amount of antibiotic cefixime - marketed by Lupin Ltd as Suprax - that was needed to kill gonorrhea.
'We had seen one case beforehand, but this is the first published report, and it's also the first series of cases in North America,' said Dr. Vanessa Allen of Public Health Ontario in Canada, who led the study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Allen and colleagues studied nearly 300 individuals with gonorrhea between May 2010 and April 2011 who were treated with cefixime at a clinic in Toronto, looking for any patients who were still infected during a follow-up visit.
Of the initial 300, 133 returned for retesting. Of those, 13 were still infected, but only nine said they had not had sexual contact that might have reinfected them. That left a failure rate of 6.7 percent.
Allen said the study is a preliminary finding, but still important because it offers some confirmation that people treated with cefixime are not being cured.
It also points out a weakness of newer DNA-based tests commonly used to test for gonorrhea.
Previously, doctors would take fluid samples from patients and grow cultures of gonorrhea bacteria in lab dishes, which could then be used to identify drug resistance. More advanced DNA-based tests, such as nucleic acid amplification tests, cannot be used to test for antibiotic resistance.
'I do think reinvesting in culture-based methodologies is warranted,' Allen said, adding that doctors should consider sending patients for retesting to make sure they have been properly treated.
If left untreated, gonorrhea can lead to pelvic inflammatory disease, ectopic pregnancy, stillbirths, severe eye infections in babies and infertility in both men and women.
In the United States, there are approximately 300,000 reported cases of gonorrhea each year. But because infected people often have no symptoms, the actual number of cases is likely closer to 600,000, Bolan said.
So-called 'superbug' drug-resistant strains of gonorrhea accounted for almost one in 10 cases of sexually transmitted disease in Europe in 2010, more than double the rate of the year before, health officials from the Stockholm-based European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said in June.
In addition to closely monitoring for resistance, Bolan said the CDC it is working with its partners at the National Institutes of Health and pharmaceutical companies to encourage the development of new antibiotics and test new combinations of existing drugs.
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; editing by Christopher Wilson)
This news article is brought to you by TECHNOLOGY NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
Monday, January 7, 2013
Major Cancer Death Rates Are Lower; Throat and Anal Cancer Incidence on the Rise
While the latest Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer reveals positive news in the fact that the overall death rate from cancer has decreased during the period of 2000 through 2009, the statistics mean little to anyone has lost a loved one to the disease. Physicians and researchers have noted an increase in cancers of the throat and anus related to human papillomavirus, HPV. An additional concern about future cancer diagnoses is related to the high rate of obesity in the United States and the aging of its population, both factors in the development of cancer.
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer is a collaborative effort of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries and published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Each collaborating body provides its data on both cancer incidence and deaths resulting from the disease, then examines the full body of statistics to determine changing trends.
As TribLive.com reported, this annual report demonstrated that the overall cancer death rate for men dropped 1.8 percent; the overall cancer death rate for women dropped 1.4 percent.
Disturbing New Trend: Increase in Esophageal and Anal Cancers Cause by HPV, Obesity
Last year's Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer noted an increase in the incidence of cancers of the esophagus, kidney, uterus and pancreas caused by obesity; that trend was again noted in the newest report on the status of cancer.
The most recent report featured a special focus on HPV and cancer. More than 40 types of HPV have been identified, although not all of the types may lead to cancer. The sexually transmitted illness can be transmitted orally, vaginally and anally, with many people who have one or more forms of HPV having no symptoms. Increases in the rate of throat cancer caused by HPV among white men and women, while anal cancer rates caused by HPV are increasing in white and black men and women.
CBSNews.com reported that Dr. Michael B. Prsytowsky, chairman of the department of pathology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, N.Y., explained that although smoking and alcohol use are also known to cause cancers in the area of the base of the tongue, 70 percent of the cancers diagnosed in the area are caused by HPV.
Bottom Line
Prsytowsky stressed the importance of the use of the HPV vaccine in both boys and girls before they become sexually active and that it is crucial for the adolescents to receive all three of the recommended doses of the vaccination to decrease the likelihood of these teens and pre-teens developing cancer later in life caused by HPV.
Baby boomers and their seniors, unable to do anything about the fact they are aging, a risk factor for cancer, can take charge of other health factors such as lowering their rates of being overweight or obese, eating recommended amounts of fiber daily and getting regular physical activity.
As a nation, we cannot count on medicine alone for our good health, or for curing an illness that might have been prevented through accepted methods.
This news article is brought to you by INTERNET NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer
The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer is a collaborative effort of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries and published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Each collaborating body provides its data on both cancer incidence and deaths resulting from the disease, then examines the full body of statistics to determine changing trends.
As TribLive.com reported, this annual report demonstrated that the overall cancer death rate for men dropped 1.8 percent; the overall cancer death rate for women dropped 1.4 percent.
Disturbing New Trend: Increase in Esophageal and Anal Cancers Cause by HPV, Obesity
Last year's Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer noted an increase in the incidence of cancers of the esophagus, kidney, uterus and pancreas caused by obesity; that trend was again noted in the newest report on the status of cancer.
The most recent report featured a special focus on HPV and cancer. More than 40 types of HPV have been identified, although not all of the types may lead to cancer. The sexually transmitted illness can be transmitted orally, vaginally and anally, with many people who have one or more forms of HPV having no symptoms. Increases in the rate of throat cancer caused by HPV among white men and women, while anal cancer rates caused by HPV are increasing in white and black men and women.
CBSNews.com reported that Dr. Michael B. Prsytowsky, chairman of the department of pathology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, N.Y., explained that although smoking and alcohol use are also known to cause cancers in the area of the base of the tongue, 70 percent of the cancers diagnosed in the area are caused by HPV.
Bottom Line
Prsytowsky stressed the importance of the use of the HPV vaccine in both boys and girls before they become sexually active and that it is crucial for the adolescents to receive all three of the recommended doses of the vaccination to decrease the likelihood of these teens and pre-teens developing cancer later in life caused by HPV.
Baby boomers and their seniors, unable to do anything about the fact they are aging, a risk factor for cancer, can take charge of other health factors such as lowering their rates of being overweight or obese, eating recommended amounts of fiber daily and getting regular physical activity.
As a nation, we cannot count on medicine alone for our good health, or for curing an illness that might have been prevented through accepted methods.
This news article is brought to you by INTERNET NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
Friday, January 4, 2013
Julia Roberts to star in HBO film on early AIDS epidemic
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Julia Roberts will star as a paraplegic physician treating patients early in the AIDS epidemic in the stage-to-screen adaptation of the Tony Award-winning drama 'The Normal Heart,' U.S. cable television network HBO said on Friday.
'The Normal Heart,' set to air on HBO in 2014, tells the story of the dawning of the epidemic in 1980s New York.
Oscar-winner Roberts plays Dr. Emma Brookner, who treats several early patients infected with the HIV virus that causes AIDS. Co-star Mark Ruffalo plays Ned Weeks, an eyewitness to how the disease ravaged the city's gay community.
The film will be directed by 'Glee' creator Ryan Murphy and was adapted by the play's author, Larry Kramer, an early advocate for AIDS prevention and care.
'Ryan has assembled an extraordinary cast to bring Larry Kramer's landmark theatrical achievement to the screen for the first time, and we couldn't be more thrilled to bring this important film to HBO,' Michael Lombardo, HBO's president of programming, said in a statement.
'The Normal Heart' debuted on stage in 1985 in New York and was revived on Broadway in 2011, winning the Tony Award for best revival.
The movie version was originally envisioned as big screen release before HBO took it up as a television film.
(Reporting by Eric Kelsey; Editing by Will Dunham)
This news article is brought to you by SHOCKING DATING ADVICE - where latest news are our top priority.
'The Normal Heart,' set to air on HBO in 2014, tells the story of the dawning of the epidemic in 1980s New York.
Oscar-winner Roberts plays Dr. Emma Brookner, who treats several early patients infected with the HIV virus that causes AIDS. Co-star Mark Ruffalo plays Ned Weeks, an eyewitness to how the disease ravaged the city's gay community.
The film will be directed by 'Glee' creator Ryan Murphy and was adapted by the play's author, Larry Kramer, an early advocate for AIDS prevention and care.
'Ryan has assembled an extraordinary cast to bring Larry Kramer's landmark theatrical achievement to the screen for the first time, and we couldn't be more thrilled to bring this important film to HBO,' Michael Lombardo, HBO's president of programming, said in a statement.
'The Normal Heart' debuted on stage in 1985 in New York and was revived on Broadway in 2011, winning the Tony Award for best revival.
The movie version was originally envisioned as big screen release before HBO took it up as a television film.
(Reporting by Eric Kelsey; Editing by Will Dunham)
This news article is brought to you by SHOCKING DATING ADVICE - where latest news are our top priority.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Annual Pap tests? For some in U.S., old habits die hard
CHICAGO (Reuters) - An increasing number of younger women in the United States are delaying their first Pap test for cervical cancer until after they reach 21, reflecting new U.S. guidelines, health officials said on Thursday.
But 60 percent of U.S. women who have had a total hysterectomy and no longer have a cervix are still getting the tests, a sign that old habits may die hard, experts said.
Although an annual Pap test was once the standard of care, most professional groups including the American Cancer Society, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a government-backed panel, now recommend that most women get tested every three to five years, and that younger women delay their first test until 21.
And these same three groups agree that screening is unnecessary for most women who have had a total hysterectomy - the removal of the uterus and cervix - for non-cancerous reasons. Likewise, women over 65 who have had years of negative tests no longer need to be screened.
The guidelines are meant to curb overscreening, which increases the risk of unnecessary surgery and preterm birth in younger women, and adds unnecessary cost to the care of women over 65 who have never had a problem Pap and those who have had their cervix removed.
In light of the changes, two teams at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed Pap test data from 2000 to 2010 to see how well doctors were adjusting to the call for less frequent screening.
They found the number of women aged 18 to 21 who had never been screened doubled, rising to 47.5 percent in 2010. The team also found that in 2010, women age 30 and older were less likely to report having a Pap test in the last three years.
And while Pap testing fell among women who had a hysterectomy, dropping to 60 percent in 2010 from 73 percent in 2000, the number still reflects significant overtreatment.
Meg Watson, an epidemiologist with CDC's Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, said there are some women who need to continue screening after a hysterectomy, including those whose surgery was done to remove cancers. But that number is small.
'We feel that this would still be a minority of women, and it should not be the 60 percent that we're seeing now,' she said.
CDC researchers said the guideline changes are recent, but the trends do reflect a shift toward adhering to them.
TEST 'DEEPLY ENTRENCHED'
Dr. David Chelmow, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, who helped write the latest ACOG guidelines, concedes that it makes little sense to continue to give regular Pap smears to so many women who already have had a hysterectomy.
'It's tough to get cervical cancer without a cervix,' he said.
Chelmow said widespread cervical cancer screening has significantly reduced cervical cancer rates in the United States, which have fallen by 70 percent in the last four decades.
The practice of annual Pap tests is 'deeply, deeply entrenched,' he said.
Although overscreening adds to health costs and unneeded worry and procedures for everyone, overscreening young women may carry even greater risks because treatments can weaken the cervix and hamper a young woman's chances of carrying a child full term, said Watson of the CDC.
Cervical cancer is a slow-growing cancer caused by exposure to certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted disease that causes precancerous abnormalities of the cervix.
In women under 21, HPV infection is very common, but cancer itself is 'vanishingly rare,' occurring at a rate of about one in 1 million, Chelmow said.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women worldwide, with about 500,000 new cases and 250,000 deaths each year, according to the World Health Organization.
In the United States, about 12,000 women developed new cases of cervical cancer last year, and 4,220 women died from their cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
Most deaths occur in women who were infrequently screened or were not screened at all.
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Editing by Eric Beech)
This news article is brought to you by MOVIE CRITIC NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
But 60 percent of U.S. women who have had a total hysterectomy and no longer have a cervix are still getting the tests, a sign that old habits may die hard, experts said.
Although an annual Pap test was once the standard of care, most professional groups including the American Cancer Society, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a government-backed panel, now recommend that most women get tested every three to five years, and that younger women delay their first test until 21.
And these same three groups agree that screening is unnecessary for most women who have had a total hysterectomy - the removal of the uterus and cervix - for non-cancerous reasons. Likewise, women over 65 who have had years of negative tests no longer need to be screened.
The guidelines are meant to curb overscreening, which increases the risk of unnecessary surgery and preterm birth in younger women, and adds unnecessary cost to the care of women over 65 who have never had a problem Pap and those who have had their cervix removed.
In light of the changes, two teams at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analyzed Pap test data from 2000 to 2010 to see how well doctors were adjusting to the call for less frequent screening.
They found the number of women aged 18 to 21 who had never been screened doubled, rising to 47.5 percent in 2010. The team also found that in 2010, women age 30 and older were less likely to report having a Pap test in the last three years.
And while Pap testing fell among women who had a hysterectomy, dropping to 60 percent in 2010 from 73 percent in 2000, the number still reflects significant overtreatment.
Meg Watson, an epidemiologist with CDC's Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, said there are some women who need to continue screening after a hysterectomy, including those whose surgery was done to remove cancers. But that number is small.
'We feel that this would still be a minority of women, and it should not be the 60 percent that we're seeing now,' she said.
CDC researchers said the guideline changes are recent, but the trends do reflect a shift toward adhering to them.
TEST 'DEEPLY ENTRENCHED'
Dr. David Chelmow, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, who helped write the latest ACOG guidelines, concedes that it makes little sense to continue to give regular Pap smears to so many women who already have had a hysterectomy.
'It's tough to get cervical cancer without a cervix,' he said.
Chelmow said widespread cervical cancer screening has significantly reduced cervical cancer rates in the United States, which have fallen by 70 percent in the last four decades.
The practice of annual Pap tests is 'deeply, deeply entrenched,' he said.
Although overscreening adds to health costs and unneeded worry and procedures for everyone, overscreening young women may carry even greater risks because treatments can weaken the cervix and hamper a young woman's chances of carrying a child full term, said Watson of the CDC.
Cervical cancer is a slow-growing cancer caused by exposure to certain strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV), a common sexually transmitted disease that causes precancerous abnormalities of the cervix.
In women under 21, HPV infection is very common, but cancer itself is 'vanishingly rare,' occurring at a rate of about one in 1 million, Chelmow said.
Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women worldwide, with about 500,000 new cases and 250,000 deaths each year, according to the World Health Organization.
In the United States, about 12,000 women developed new cases of cervical cancer last year, and 4,220 women died from their cancer, according to the American Cancer Society.
Most deaths occur in women who were infrequently screened or were not screened at all.
(Reporting by Julie Steenhuysen; Editing by Eric Beech)
This news article is brought to you by MOVIE CRITIC NEWS - where latest news are our top priority.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Most countries offer the Pill over-the-counter
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Unlike women in the U.S., Canada and much of Europe, most women in the world can access the birth control pill without a prescription, according to a new study.
As medical organizations and other groups push to ease the prescription requirements for the Pill in the U.S. and elsewhere, 'we can start to use this information to... get a sense of the safety of women having access to this method where no prescription is required,' said Kari White, who studies birth control at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.
The Pill is generally considered safe, said White, who was not involved in the new work, and some studies have shown that, without a doctor's input, women can accurately screen themselves for risk factors to steer away from using the Pill if it's not appropriate for them.
Earlier this year, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a leading group of women's doctors, endorsed the idea of making the birth control pill available without a prescription (see Reuters Health report of November 20, 2012 here: http://reut.rs/UH0Zz9).
In a survey of government health officials, pharmaceutical companies, family planning groups, medical providers and other experts in 147 countries Dr. Daniel Grossman, of Ibis Reproductive Health in Oakland, California, and his colleagues found that women in the U.S. and 44 other countries need a prescription to get birth control pills.
The group reported in the medical journal Contraception that while another 56 countries had laws requiring prescriptions, in practice women could access the contraception over-the-counter.
Thirty-five countries legally allowed access to oral contraceptives over-the-counter, and 11 countries allowed over-the-counter access as long as the woman is screened to ensure that she is a good candidate.
'The patterns we saw were interesting,' said Grossman. 'Higher income countries - western Europe, Australia, Japan and North America - generally require a prescription.'
Grossman told Reuters Health he couldn't explain why these patterns have emerged.
'Perhaps in places like China and India that have pills available over-the-counter formally without a prescription might be consistent with strong national family planning programs,' he speculated.
Dr. Ward Cates, of FHI 360, a research organization in Durham, North Carolina, said the lack of a prescription requirement might also reflect a general approach to making health care more accessible in countries where it is less available.
In some countries, 'healthcare tends to be more fragmented and healthcare oversight tends to be more fragmented. Therefore the availability of products tends to percolate to outlets that tend to be more accessible to the public,' said Cates, who was not part of the study.
Grossman said it will be useful for countries looking to ease restrictions on birth control access to look to the experiences of these countries.
'Will this information about the availability of pills being over-the-counter in other countries influence policy here? Probably not,' Grossman told Reuters Health.
'But I do think it helps to put it in perspective that this is not something revolutionary.'
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/S51BnH Contraception, online December 10, 2012.
This news article is brought to you by PARENTING KIDS - where latest news are our top priority.
As medical organizations and other groups push to ease the prescription requirements for the Pill in the U.S. and elsewhere, 'we can start to use this information to... get a sense of the safety of women having access to this method where no prescription is required,' said Kari White, who studies birth control at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.
The Pill is generally considered safe, said White, who was not involved in the new work, and some studies have shown that, without a doctor's input, women can accurately screen themselves for risk factors to steer away from using the Pill if it's not appropriate for them.
Earlier this year, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, a leading group of women's doctors, endorsed the idea of making the birth control pill available without a prescription (see Reuters Health report of November 20, 2012 here: http://reut.rs/UH0Zz9).
In a survey of government health officials, pharmaceutical companies, family planning groups, medical providers and other experts in 147 countries Dr. Daniel Grossman, of Ibis Reproductive Health in Oakland, California, and his colleagues found that women in the U.S. and 44 other countries need a prescription to get birth control pills.
The group reported in the medical journal Contraception that while another 56 countries had laws requiring prescriptions, in practice women could access the contraception over-the-counter.
Thirty-five countries legally allowed access to oral contraceptives over-the-counter, and 11 countries allowed over-the-counter access as long as the woman is screened to ensure that she is a good candidate.
'The patterns we saw were interesting,' said Grossman. 'Higher income countries - western Europe, Australia, Japan and North America - generally require a prescription.'
Grossman told Reuters Health he couldn't explain why these patterns have emerged.
'Perhaps in places like China and India that have pills available over-the-counter formally without a prescription might be consistent with strong national family planning programs,' he speculated.
Dr. Ward Cates, of FHI 360, a research organization in Durham, North Carolina, said the lack of a prescription requirement might also reflect a general approach to making health care more accessible in countries where it is less available.
In some countries, 'healthcare tends to be more fragmented and healthcare oversight tends to be more fragmented. Therefore the availability of products tends to percolate to outlets that tend to be more accessible to the public,' said Cates, who was not part of the study.
Grossman said it will be useful for countries looking to ease restrictions on birth control access to look to the experiences of these countries.
'Will this information about the availability of pills being over-the-counter in other countries influence policy here? Probably not,' Grossman told Reuters Health.
'But I do think it helps to put it in perspective that this is not something revolutionary.'
SOURCE: http://bit.ly/S51BnH Contraception, online December 10, 2012.
This news article is brought to you by PARENTING KIDS - where latest news are our top priority.
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