An increase in the number of Caesarean sections performed in the U.S. coincides with an increase in severe complications during birth, according to a study scheduled to be published in the February issue of the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, USA Today reports.
For the study, researchers analyzed data from the largest U.S. inpatient database, which sampled hospitals from 37 states in 2005, to examine the rate of severe complications among women who gave birth during two time periods: 1998 to 1999 and 2004 to 2005. The researchers found a 90% increase in blood transfusions; a 50% increase in pulmonary embolisms; and a 20% increase in kidney failure, respiratory disease, shock and the need for a ventilator. The percentage of c-section deliveries with at least one complication increased from 0.64% in 1998 to 1999 to 0.81% in 2004 to 2005.
The researchers found the increased number of c-sections led to an increase in kidney failure, respiratory distress syndrome and ventilation and played a minor role in the increase in cases of shock, pulmonary embolisms and transfusions. The researchers said that although the average age of women giving birth has increased, this did not have a significant effect on the rate of complications.
Susan Meikle, a medical officer at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and co-author of the study, said, "Even though the absolute numbers [of complications] are low, the rates are increasing," adding, "We could do a better job at tracking these complications. There may be short-term trade-offs and long-term trade-offs" for vaginal and c-section deliveries (Rubin, USA Today, 1/21). Meikle added that the study found "an amazing consistency” from vaginal delivery, where complication rates were the lowest, to repeat c-sections, where researchers saw an increase, to primary c-section delivery, where the increases in complications were the highest. "What we were trying to do is make sure that women and families are aware of all the risks so when they make these decisions they are making informed decisions and doctors are able to give them good information," Meikle said (Shelton, Chicago Tribune/Albany Times Union, 1/21).
Michael Kramer, scientific director of the Canadian Institute of Human Development, Child and Youth Health, said it is possible that a complication could trigger the need for a c-section. However, he added that physicians often underestimate the risks of c-sections (USA Today, 1/21).
Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families, published by The Advisory Board Company.
© 2009 The Advisory Board Company. All rights reserved.
вторник, 31 января 2012 г.
вторник, 24 января 2012 г.
Depression Symptoms Increase Over Time For Addiction-Prone Women
Unlike alcohol problems and antisocial behavior, depression doesn't decline with age in addiction-prone women in their 30s and 40s it continues to increase, a new study led by University of Michigan Health System researchers found.
The longitudinal analysis examined the influences of the women's histories, family life and neighborhood instability on their alcoholism symptoms, antisocial behavior and depression over a 12-year period covering the earlier years of marriage and motherhood.
The research, published in Development and Psychopathology, is part of an ongoing project focusing on families at high risk for substance abuse and associated disorders that has already collected more than 20 years worth of data.
Among the current study's other top findings:
-- The women's partners' struggles with addiction and antisocial behavior, such as run-ins with the law, worsened the women's own symptoms and behaviors.
-- Children's behavior also had a negative impact on their mothers. When children exhibited behaviors that included acting out and getting into trouble, their mothers' alcohol problems and antisocial behavior tended to worsen. Meanwhile, when children were sad, withdrawn or isolated, their mothers' depression increased.
-- Living in an unstable neighborhood, where residents move in and out frequently, also had a significant effect on the women's alcoholism symptoms and level of depression.
"Our findings demonstrate the complexity of the factors affecting changes in alcohol problems, antisocial behavior and depression for these women," says the study's senior author Robert Zucker, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Michigan Medical School and director of the U-M Addiction Research Center.
The findings challenge common notions that depression, alcoholism and antisocial behavior, are either just genetic disorders, or alternatively, that they are caused by environmental factors, Zucker adds.
"It's really the network of these relationships -- at the biological, social and at the community level -- that influences these disorders over time," he says.
The research also shows that unlike alcohol abuse and antisocial behavior, depression does not, by itself, get better over time it actually gets worse, at least in this high risk population, Zucker notes.
"Unlike the other two disorders, biological differences appear to be more of a constant factor in depression," he says.
The research sample included 273 adult women and their families from communities in the Midwest. Drunk driving convictions involving the father were used to find the highest risk portion of the sample; a blood alcohol content of .15 was required to help ensure that the men had long standing difficulties with alcohol abuse, rather than just having been out drinking heavily for one night. The remaining families were recruited from the neighborhoods where the drunk drivers lived.
The findings also underscore the relationship between alcohol abuse and antisocial behavior over long periods of time, says study lead author Anne Buu, Ph.D., Ph.D., a research assistant professor in the Substance Abuse Section of the U-M Department of Psychiatry. As a result, she notes, interventions targeting antisocial behavior could benefit by also systematically targeting addiction.
"Based on these findings, interventions for women with young children might have the most impact if they improve social supports, educational opportunities, access to family counseling and neighborhoods environments," Buu says.
Funding: grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Additional U-M Authors: Wei Wang, M.P.H.; Jing Wang, M.S.; Leon I. Puttler, Ph.D.
Additional Authors: Hiram E. Fitzgerald, Ph.D., Michigan State University.
Citation: "Changes in women's alcoholic, antisocial, and depressive symptomatology over 12 years: A multilevel network of individual, familial, and neighborhood influences," Development and Psychopathology. DOI: 10.1017/S0954579410000830
Source: University of Michigan Health System
The longitudinal analysis examined the influences of the women's histories, family life and neighborhood instability on their alcoholism symptoms, antisocial behavior and depression over a 12-year period covering the earlier years of marriage and motherhood.
The research, published in Development and Psychopathology, is part of an ongoing project focusing on families at high risk for substance abuse and associated disorders that has already collected more than 20 years worth of data.
Among the current study's other top findings:
-- The women's partners' struggles with addiction and antisocial behavior, such as run-ins with the law, worsened the women's own symptoms and behaviors.
-- Children's behavior also had a negative impact on their mothers. When children exhibited behaviors that included acting out and getting into trouble, their mothers' alcohol problems and antisocial behavior tended to worsen. Meanwhile, when children were sad, withdrawn or isolated, their mothers' depression increased.
-- Living in an unstable neighborhood, where residents move in and out frequently, also had a significant effect on the women's alcoholism symptoms and level of depression.
"Our findings demonstrate the complexity of the factors affecting changes in alcohol problems, antisocial behavior and depression for these women," says the study's senior author Robert Zucker, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry and psychology at the University of Michigan Medical School and director of the U-M Addiction Research Center.
The findings challenge common notions that depression, alcoholism and antisocial behavior, are either just genetic disorders, or alternatively, that they are caused by environmental factors, Zucker adds.
"It's really the network of these relationships -- at the biological, social and at the community level -- that influences these disorders over time," he says.
The research also shows that unlike alcohol abuse and antisocial behavior, depression does not, by itself, get better over time it actually gets worse, at least in this high risk population, Zucker notes.
"Unlike the other two disorders, biological differences appear to be more of a constant factor in depression," he says.
The research sample included 273 adult women and their families from communities in the Midwest. Drunk driving convictions involving the father were used to find the highest risk portion of the sample; a blood alcohol content of .15 was required to help ensure that the men had long standing difficulties with alcohol abuse, rather than just having been out drinking heavily for one night. The remaining families were recruited from the neighborhoods where the drunk drivers lived.
The findings also underscore the relationship between alcohol abuse and antisocial behavior over long periods of time, says study lead author Anne Buu, Ph.D., Ph.D., a research assistant professor in the Substance Abuse Section of the U-M Department of Psychiatry. As a result, she notes, interventions targeting antisocial behavior could benefit by also systematically targeting addiction.
"Based on these findings, interventions for women with young children might have the most impact if they improve social supports, educational opportunities, access to family counseling and neighborhoods environments," Buu says.
Funding: grants from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Additional U-M Authors: Wei Wang, M.P.H.; Jing Wang, M.S.; Leon I. Puttler, Ph.D.
Additional Authors: Hiram E. Fitzgerald, Ph.D., Michigan State University.
Citation: "Changes in women's alcoholic, antisocial, and depressive symptomatology over 12 years: A multilevel network of individual, familial, and neighborhood influences," Development and Psychopathology. DOI: 10.1017/S0954579410000830
Source: University of Michigan Health System
вторник, 17 января 2012 г.
Hip Fractures Far Riskier To Women Than Breast, Ovarian And Uterine Cancer Combined
Osteoporosis is now a significant public health issue in the United States. In the special J. Robert Gladden Society supplement of the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Patricia A. Thomas, MD, a professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the University of Kansas, School of Medicine, reviewed the racial and ethic differences in osteoporosis for women.
"Osteoporosis tops the list of important public health concerns," said Dr. Thomas, "because of the significant morbidity and mortality associated with osteoporotic fracture-specifically, hip fractures."
According to national statistics following a hip fracture:
- 20 percent of women die within one year
- 20 percent become permanently disabled
- More women will die of hip fractures nationally than will die of breast cancer.
- In the U.S. hip fractures cost 18 billion dollars a year in hospital care expenditures.
Approximately 20 percent of non-Hispanic white and Asian women aged 50 years and older have osteoporosis, compared with five to 10 percent of non-Hispanic black women and 10 to 15 percent of Hispanic women the same age.
"Often, unless an individual experiences a fracture, osteoporosis remains silent and undiagnosed, particularly for women in racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States," said Dr. Thomas.
Awareness of osteoporosis for minority groups is also a concern. Although an increasing number of women in the United States say they are very familiar with the disease only:
- 25 percent of African American women
- 19 percent of Hispanic American women
- 17 percent of Asian American women are, in fact, very familiar with the disease compared to:
- 41 per cent of non-Hispanic White women
The review also states that African American and Hispanic women may not be as familiar with behaviors that promote and help maintain optimal bone mass. "Of greatest importance is that minority women may suffer disproportionately poorer outcomes than their non-minority counterparts," said Dr. Thomas. Several studies point to the facts that African American women are twice as likely as white women to die within the first year after a hip fracture and are more than 1.5 times more likely to die while hospitalized for that fracture.
Dr. Thomas also said, "Every women regardless of race, ethnicity or presumed risk, should be aware of osteoporosis and the importance of prevention. It is important for all women to be familiar with the risks and know which risks are preventable. Women should be empowered to seek out this information and treatment for themselves. Health care professionals should apply culturally competent care to increase the level of care provided to all women, particularly women in racial and ethnic minority populations."
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
"Osteoporosis tops the list of important public health concerns," said Dr. Thomas, "because of the significant morbidity and mortality associated with osteoporotic fracture-specifically, hip fractures."
According to national statistics following a hip fracture:
- 20 percent of women die within one year
- 20 percent become permanently disabled
- More women will die of hip fractures nationally than will die of breast cancer.
- In the U.S. hip fractures cost 18 billion dollars a year in hospital care expenditures.
Approximately 20 percent of non-Hispanic white and Asian women aged 50 years and older have osteoporosis, compared with five to 10 percent of non-Hispanic black women and 10 to 15 percent of Hispanic women the same age.
"Often, unless an individual experiences a fracture, osteoporosis remains silent and undiagnosed, particularly for women in racial and ethnic minority groups in the United States," said Dr. Thomas.
Awareness of osteoporosis for minority groups is also a concern. Although an increasing number of women in the United States say they are very familiar with the disease only:
- 25 percent of African American women
- 19 percent of Hispanic American women
- 17 percent of Asian American women are, in fact, very familiar with the disease compared to:
- 41 per cent of non-Hispanic White women
The review also states that African American and Hispanic women may not be as familiar with behaviors that promote and help maintain optimal bone mass. "Of greatest importance is that minority women may suffer disproportionately poorer outcomes than their non-minority counterparts," said Dr. Thomas. Several studies point to the facts that African American women are twice as likely as white women to die within the first year after a hip fracture and are more than 1.5 times more likely to die while hospitalized for that fracture.
Dr. Thomas also said, "Every women regardless of race, ethnicity or presumed risk, should be aware of osteoporosis and the importance of prevention. It is important for all women to be familiar with the risks and know which risks are preventable. Women should be empowered to seek out this information and treatment for themselves. Health care professionals should apply culturally competent care to increase the level of care provided to all women, particularly women in racial and ethnic minority populations."
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons
вторник, 10 января 2012 г.
Nearly 60 Percent Of Women Trafficked And Sexually Exploited Suffered From Posttraumatic Stress
Study is first to quantitatively document the health symptoms of trafficked women and adolescent girls in Europe.
Researchers interviewed 192 women and adolescent girls within 14 days of accessing post-trafficking services to investigate the health of women trafficked for sexual exploitation in Europe. Almost 60 percent of participants reported experiences of sexual or physical violence before being trafficked, and 12 percent had a forced or coerced sexual experience before the age of 15. Ninety-five percent of participants reported physical or sexual violence while in the trafficking situation. Symptoms associated with depression were most often reported, with 39 percent of participants acknowledging having suicidal thoughts within the past seven days.
"The severe symptom patterns identified suggest that diagnostic and treatment services should be made immediately available to survivors of trafficking," said the study's authors. "However, dissecting the constellation of women's symptoms and formulating treatment plans are not likely to be easy or short-term tasks." [From: "The Health of Trafficked Women: A Survey of Women Entering Post-trafficking Services in Europe." Contact: Cathy Zimmerman, PhD, Gender Violence and Health Centre, LondonSchool of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, England, cathy.zimmermanlshtm.ac .]
The American Journal of Public Health is the monthly journal of the American Public Health Association (APHA), the oldest organization of public health professionals in the world. APHA is a leading publisher of books and periodicals promoting sound scientific standards, action programs and public policy to enhance health.
American Journal of Public Health
Researchers interviewed 192 women and adolescent girls within 14 days of accessing post-trafficking services to investigate the health of women trafficked for sexual exploitation in Europe. Almost 60 percent of participants reported experiences of sexual or physical violence before being trafficked, and 12 percent had a forced or coerced sexual experience before the age of 15. Ninety-five percent of participants reported physical or sexual violence while in the trafficking situation. Symptoms associated with depression were most often reported, with 39 percent of participants acknowledging having suicidal thoughts within the past seven days.
"The severe symptom patterns identified suggest that diagnostic and treatment services should be made immediately available to survivors of trafficking," said the study's authors. "However, dissecting the constellation of women's symptoms and formulating treatment plans are not likely to be easy or short-term tasks." [From: "The Health of Trafficked Women: A Survey of Women Entering Post-trafficking Services in Europe." Contact: Cathy Zimmerman, PhD, Gender Violence and Health Centre, LondonSchool of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, England, cathy.zimmermanlshtm.ac .]
The American Journal of Public Health is the monthly journal of the American Public Health Association (APHA), the oldest organization of public health professionals in the world. APHA is a leading publisher of books and periodicals promoting sound scientific standards, action programs and public policy to enhance health.
American Journal of Public Health
вторник, 3 января 2012 г.
Imaging Diagnostic Systems' Director Of Clinical Research Cautions Against Excess Radiation Dose To Breasts
Imaging
Diagnostic Systems, Inc., (OTC Bulletin Board: IMDS) a pioneer in laser
optical breast imaging systems, announced that Professor Eric Milne, M.D.,
IDSI Director of Clinical Research, has contributed to a comprehensive new
book, "Cancer Imaging: Lung and Breast Carcinomas," edited by Professor
M.A. Hayat.
Professor Milne's chapter, "Breast Dose in Thoracic Computed
Tomography," examines the risks of inducing breast cancer as a result of
the ionizing radiation received during CT exams of the thorax and upper
abdomen. Citing results stemming from his original 1992 study, which
demonstrated that large doses of ionizing radiation, equivalent to the dose
from 15 to 60 mammograms, are absorbed by the female breast as a result of
each chest CT exam, Milne suggests that referring physicians should
carefully weigh the clinical necessity for thoracic scans in female and
pediatric patients and cautions against the use of CT scans as a screening
procedure for lung cancer, coronary artery calcification, or pediatric lung
disease.
"The number of CT scans performed per year, for every 1,000 persons,
has increased enormously in the USA over the last five years," Milne
explains. "We now hold the world record at 172.5 scans for every group of
1,000 people. A conservative estimate of the carcinogenic effects of this
massive irradiation would indicate an increase of 16,000 breast cancers."
Commented Tim Hansen, IDSI President and CEO: "We believe that imaging
the angiogenesis process using lasers not only presents new information to
the diagnostician, but also avoids adding to the patient's cumulative
carcinogenic radiation dose. As Dr. Milne notes, physicians should be aware
of the dose consequences and examine alternatives that are available."
The book, which will be published by Elsevier, is currently in press.
About Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc.
Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc. has developed a revolutionary new
imaging device to aid in the detection and management of breast cancer. The
CTLM(R) system is a breast imaging system that utilizes patented continuous
wave laser technology and computer algorithms to create 3-D images of the
breast. The procedure is non-invasive, painless, and does not expose the
patient to ionizing radiation or painful breast compression. CT Laser
Mammography (CTLM(R)) is designed to be used in conjunction with
mammography. It reveals information about blood distribution in the breast
and may visualize the process of angiogenesis, which usually accompanies
tumor growth.
Imaging Diagnostic Systems is currently collecting data from clinical
sites for the future filing of an FDA Premarket Approval (PMA) for the
Computed Tomography Laser Mammography (CTLM(R)) system to be used as an
adjunct to mammography. The FDA has determined that the Company's clinical
study is a non-significant risk (NSR) investigational device study under
812.3(m) of the investigational device exemptions (IDE) regulation (21 CFR
812). The CTLM system is limited by United States Federal Law to
investigational use only in the United States. The CTLM system has received
other registrations including CE, CMDCAS Canadian License, China SFDA, UL,
ISO 9001:2000, ISO 13485:2003 and FDA export certification.
As contemplated by the provisions of the Safe Harbor section of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, this news release may
contain forward-looking statements pertaining to future, anticipated, or
projected plans, performances and developments, as well as other statements
relating to future operations. All such forward-looking statements are
necessarily only estimates or predictions of future results or events and
there can be no assurance that actual results or events will not materially
differ from expectations. Further information on potential factors that
could affect Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc., is included in the Company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We expressly disclaim
any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
www.imds
Diagnostic Systems, Inc., (OTC Bulletin Board: IMDS) a pioneer in laser
optical breast imaging systems, announced that Professor Eric Milne, M.D.,
IDSI Director of Clinical Research, has contributed to a comprehensive new
book, "Cancer Imaging: Lung and Breast Carcinomas," edited by Professor
M.A. Hayat.
Professor Milne's chapter, "Breast Dose in Thoracic Computed
Tomography," examines the risks of inducing breast cancer as a result of
the ionizing radiation received during CT exams of the thorax and upper
abdomen. Citing results stemming from his original 1992 study, which
demonstrated that large doses of ionizing radiation, equivalent to the dose
from 15 to 60 mammograms, are absorbed by the female breast as a result of
each chest CT exam, Milne suggests that referring physicians should
carefully weigh the clinical necessity for thoracic scans in female and
pediatric patients and cautions against the use of CT scans as a screening
procedure for lung cancer, coronary artery calcification, or pediatric lung
disease.
"The number of CT scans performed per year, for every 1,000 persons,
has increased enormously in the USA over the last five years," Milne
explains. "We now hold the world record at 172.5 scans for every group of
1,000 people. A conservative estimate of the carcinogenic effects of this
massive irradiation would indicate an increase of 16,000 breast cancers."
Commented Tim Hansen, IDSI President and CEO: "We believe that imaging
the angiogenesis process using lasers not only presents new information to
the diagnostician, but also avoids adding to the patient's cumulative
carcinogenic radiation dose. As Dr. Milne notes, physicians should be aware
of the dose consequences and examine alternatives that are available."
The book, which will be published by Elsevier, is currently in press.
About Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc.
Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc. has developed a revolutionary new
imaging device to aid in the detection and management of breast cancer. The
CTLM(R) system is a breast imaging system that utilizes patented continuous
wave laser technology and computer algorithms to create 3-D images of the
breast. The procedure is non-invasive, painless, and does not expose the
patient to ionizing radiation or painful breast compression. CT Laser
Mammography (CTLM(R)) is designed to be used in conjunction with
mammography. It reveals information about blood distribution in the breast
and may visualize the process of angiogenesis, which usually accompanies
tumor growth.
Imaging Diagnostic Systems is currently collecting data from clinical
sites for the future filing of an FDA Premarket Approval (PMA) for the
Computed Tomography Laser Mammography (CTLM(R)) system to be used as an
adjunct to mammography. The FDA has determined that the Company's clinical
study is a non-significant risk (NSR) investigational device study under
812.3(m) of the investigational device exemptions (IDE) regulation (21 CFR
812). The CTLM system is limited by United States Federal Law to
investigational use only in the United States. The CTLM system has received
other registrations including CE, CMDCAS Canadian License, China SFDA, UL,
ISO 9001:2000, ISO 13485:2003 and FDA export certification.
As contemplated by the provisions of the Safe Harbor section of the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, this news release may
contain forward-looking statements pertaining to future, anticipated, or
projected plans, performances and developments, as well as other statements
relating to future operations. All such forward-looking statements are
necessarily only estimates or predictions of future results or events and
there can be no assurance that actual results or events will not materially
differ from expectations. Further information on potential factors that
could affect Imaging Diagnostic Systems, Inc., is included in the Company's
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We expressly disclaim
any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
www.imds
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