http://www.health.am/gyneco/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/white-house-sticking-to-contraception-plan/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/white-house-sticking-to-contraception-plan/ President Barack Obama will not make any more changes to the rule announced last week requiring health insurance plans to provide women with coverage for contraception, although U.S. Catholic bishops have said it violates the Church’s religious principles. “We put out the plan that reflects where the president intended to go. This is our plan,” White House chief of staff Jacob Lew said on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday. Lew said no religious organization will be required to pay for or facilitate the coverage that it disagrees with since the insurance companies are the ones who will pay. Gynecology news 2012-02-12T19:52:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/lower-risk-of-infection-or-respiratory-problems-in-newbor/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/lower-risk-of-infection-or-respiratory-problems-in-newbor/ In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting ™, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that suggest that induction of labor in patients who suffer a rupture of membranes between the 34th and 37th week of gestation (before the onset of labor) does not reduce the risk of infection or respiratory problems in the newborn. “Our research indicates that in patients who underwent close monitoring, known as expectant management, versus those whose labor was induced, there was no difference in the risk for infection in the newborn, breathing problems in the newborn or caesarean section rates,” said David van der Ham, MD, with the Maastricht University Medical Center, Obstetrics & Gynecology, GROW School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht, Netherlands, and one of the study’s authors. “Due to these findings, we suggested expectant management as opposed to induced labor when possible.” For the study, entitled Induction of Labor Versus Expectant Management in Women with Preterm Prelabor Rupture of Membranes Between 34 and 37 Weeks– the PPROMEXIL-2 trial, van der Ham and his colleagues observed 536 women from January 2007 until September 2009, and 195 women from December 2009 until January 2011. The study was performed in a multicenter setting within the Dutch obstetric research consortium, in which 60 hospitals in the Netherlands collaborated. After 24 hours of ruptured membranes, patients were allocated to either immediate delivery or expectant management until 37 weeks of gestational age.  Gynecology news 2012-02-09T06:58:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/morning-after-pill-available-to-girls/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/morning-after-pill-available-to-girls/ Reproductive rights advocates on Wednesday asked a federal judge in Brooklyn to make the “morning-after pill” immediately available to girls of all ages without a prescription. The move by a coalition headed by the Center for Reproductive Rights attempts to override a decision by U.S. Secretary for Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius that maintains the requirement of a prescription for girls age 16 and younger. The group asked to add Sebelius as a defendant to an existing federal lawsuit that has been dormant for six years and was reawakened by Sebelius’s unprecedented move two months ago to restrict the availability of Plan B emergency contraceptives for minors. Gynecology news 2012-02-08T22:52:01-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/breast-cancer-prevention-drug-shown/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/breast-cancer-prevention-drug-shown/ Exemestane, a drug used in the prevention of breast cancer in postmenopausal women, has a negative effect on bone density and structure in these women, despite calcium and vitamin D supplements. This first-ever study examined the effect of this drug on women’s bone health and found that on three major outcome measures, taking exemestane for two years worsens age-related bone loss in postmenopausal women. The results are in an article entitled, “Bone Density and Structure in Healthy Postmenopausal Women treated with Exemestane for the Primary Prevention of Breast Cancer: a nested substudy of the MAP.3 trial”, published Online First in The Lancet Oncology. “The study is important because of the potential for wide-spread use of this medication by women at increased risk of developing breast cancer,” said Dr. Lianne Tile, one of the authors of the study, Medical Director of the Osteoporosis Clinic and Staff General Internist at University Health Network (UHN).  Gynecology news 2012-02-08T10:13:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/treating-bladder-infection-in-women/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/treating-bladder-infection-in-women/ Short-term use of the antibiotic cefpodoxime for the treatment of women with uncomplicated cystitis (bladder infection) did not meet criteria for noninferiority for achieving clinical cure compared with ciprofloxacin, a drug in the fluoroquinolone class of antibiotics for which there have been concerns about overuse and a resulting increase in resistance rates, according to a study in the February 8 issue of JAMA. The criteria for noninferiority was if the efficacy of cefpodoxime had been shown to be within a pre-specified margin of 10 percent of the efficacy of ciprofloxacin. Fluoroquinolones have high rates of efficacy and minimal adverse drug reactions when used in a 3-day regimen as recommended to treat uncomplicated cystitis. However, increasing rates of antimicrobial resistance among fluoroquinolones have been reported. To prevent further emergence of fluoroquinolone resistance, there are calls for restricting fluoroquinolones to those specific instances of uncomplicated cystitis when other first-line urinary tract infection (UTI) antimicrobials are not suitable, according to background information in the article. “Cefpodoxime, with its broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity, would provide a useful alternative to fluoroquinolones for the treatment of cystitis if demonstrated to be similar in efficacy to fluoroquinolones and without adverse ecological effects (such as the selection of drug-resistant organisms).” Thomas M. Hooton, M.D., of the University of Miami, and colleagues conducted a clinical trial to assess whether cefpodoxime would have clinically acceptable efficacy and tolerance compared with ciprofloxacin. Gynecology news 2012-02-08T08:27:02-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/injuries-and-menstrual-dysfunction-in-girls/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/injuries-and-menstrual-dysfunction-in-girls/ In the U.S., there are nearly three million youth soccer players, and half of them are female. New research presented today at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) found that despite reporting appropriate body perception and attitudes toward eating, elite youth soccer athletes (club level or higher) face an increased risk for delayed or irregular menstruation. In addition, female soccer players are more likely to suffer a stress fracture or ligament injury. A separate study found that a consistent 15-minute warm-up substantially decreases knee injury risk. The Female Triad (Menstrual Dysfunction, Eating Attitudes, Stress Fractures) in Soccer Athletes” The “female athlete triad” – menstrual dysfunction, eating attitudes and stress fractures – puts female athletes at risk for diminished performance and long-term health problems. Gynecology news 2012-02-07T20:04:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/pfizer-birth-control-recall/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/pfizer-birth-control-recall/ It didn’t take long for the speculation to start: if women unintentionally get pregnant while taking the defective birth control pills that Pfizer recalled this week, could they, would they, sue? Earlier this week, Pfizer recalled 1 million packages of pills - 14 lots of Lo/Ovral-28 tablets and 14 lots of generic Norgestrel and Ethinyl Estradiol tablets - after uncovering a packaging error that included too many active tablets in some packets and not enough in others. It cautioned women to use alternate contraceptive methods because they were at greater risk of becoming pregnant. In a statement, the company said that the recalled pills don’t pose “any immediate health risks.” That, of course, depends completely upon how you define “health risks.” Assuming you’re taking the pills to avoid having a baby but end up faced with what to do about an unwanted pregnancy, the ensuing stress could arguably count as a mental health risk, at the least. An unanticipated pregnancy is certainly more than just a minor inconvenience. For most women, it’s likely too early to know if the packaging defect has resulted in unintended pregnancy. But already, bloggers have begun running scenarios. Gynecology news 2012-02-06T10:57:01-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/a-moms-guide-to-birth-control/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/a-moms-guide-to-birth-control/ If you’re considering using birth control, you have many options - from natural family planning and over-the-counter birth control products to prescription contraceptives or sterilization. To help determine which birth control method would be best for you, consider your lifestyle, personal preferences and health status. How do you feel about planning for sex? Inserting birth control devices into your body? Taking a pill at the same time every day or tracking your fertile days? Permanently ending the ability to conceive or father a child? It’s also important to make an honest assessment of yourself, your partner and your relationship. You may have different birth control needs if you have sex often or you’re not in a monogamous relationship. Ideally, you and your partner will discuss the options and reach a mutually beneficial decision. Gynecology news 2012-02-01T11:35:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/evidence-on-soy-and-menopause/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/evidence-on-soy-and-menopause/ Middle-aged women may find some relief from hot flashes and other menopause problems with soy supplements, according to Chinese researchers. They found daily supplements of soy germ isoflavones reduced the sudden sweats more than inactive placebo pills after six months. But a U.S. expert wasn’t convinced by the results, which run counter to other published studies. “The majority of them are showing no benefit,” said William W. Wong, a nutrition researcher at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston who wasn’t involved in the new work. Gynecology news 2012-01-31T10:58:00-08:00 http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/dont-blame-c-sections-for-fat-children/ http://www.health.am/gyneco/more/dont-blame-c-sections-for-fat-children/ Children born by Cesarean section are no more likely to become obese than if they are born vaginally, according to a Brazilian study. Past research from Brazil had found a link between excessive weight and C-sections, leading some scientists to suggest that not being exposed to bacteria from the birth canal could make children fatter, but the latest findings - published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition - suggest this doesn’t appear to be the case. The research is of particular interest in Brazil, because in 2009 more than half of the babies there were born by C-section. In the United States, the number has been on the rise for years and is now over 30 percent. Gynecology news 2012-01-30T09:09:00-08:00