Journal of women's health
-
Journal of women's health · Oct 2010
"something we'd rather not talk about": findings from CDC exploratory research on sexually transmitted disease communication with girls and women.
Chlamydia is a leading cause of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), which can lead to ectopic pregnancy, chronic pelvic pain, and infertility. Annual Chlamydia screening is recommended for all sexually active women aged ≤ 25 years, yet only about 40% of eligible women are screened each year in the United States. To promote Chlamydia screening for the prevention of infertility, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is developing direct-to-consumer efforts for sexually active young women and key influencers. To inform this effort, CDC sought to explore girls'/women's understandings of sexually transmitted disease (STD) and Chlamydia testing and STD communications and information sources. ⋯ Providers, family members, friends, and partners may serve as important intermediaries for reaching young women and encouraging STD/Chlamydia screening. Resources are identified that could be leveraged and/or developed to facilitate such interactions.
-
Journal of women's health · Sep 2010
Pathways of chronic pain in survivors of intimate partner violence.
To examine the roles of lifetime abuse-related injury, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom severity, and depressive symptom severity in mediating the effects of severity of assaultive intimate partner violence (IPV), psychological IPV, and child abuse on chronic pain severity in women survivors of IPV. ⋯ These findings can inform clinical care of women with chronic pain in all areas of healthcare delivery by reinforcing the importance of assessing for a history of child abuse and IPV. Moreover, they highlight the relevance of routinely assessing for abuse-related injury and PTSD and depressive symptom severity when working with women who report chronic pain.
-
Journal of women's health · Sep 2010
Earlier stage at diagnosis and improved survival among Medicare HMO patients with breast cancer.
We sought to evaluate differences in the stage at diagnosis and the survival of breast cancer patients enrolled in two different Medicare healthcare delivery systems: fee for service (FFS) and health maintenance organizations (HMO). ⋯ Improved survival among breast cancer patients in HMOs compared with FFS is likely due to a combination of factors, including but not limited to earlier stage at the time of diagnosis.
-
Journal of women's health · Sep 2010
Effects of smoking cessation on body composition in postmenopausal women.
Smoking cessation is associated with weight gain, but the effects of smoking cessation on measures of body composition (BC) have not been adequately evaluated. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of 16 months of cigarette abstinence on areas of BC measured by dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA). ⋯ Smoking cessation may be associated with increased fat and muscle mass in postmenopausal women. The novel finding of an increase in functional muscle mass suggests that smoking cessation could increase functional capacity. Further studies need to replicate these findings and examine mechanisms of these effects.
-
Journal of women's health · Jul 2010
ReviewFemale genital cosmetic surgery: a critical review of current knowledge and contemporary debates.
Female genital cosmetic surgery procedures have gained popularity in the West in recent years. Marketing by surgeons promotes the surgeries, but professional organizations have started to question the promotion and practice of these procedures. Despite some surgeon claims of drastic transformations of psychological, emotional, and sexual life associated with the surgery, little reliable evidence of such effects exists. ⋯ First, reviewing the published academic work on the topic, it identifies the current state of knowledge around female genital cosmetic procedures, as well as limitations in our knowledge. Second, examining a body of critical scholarship that raises sociological and psychological concerns not typically addressed in medical literature, it summarizes broader issues and debates. Overall, the article demonstrates a paucity of scientific knowledge and highlights a pressing need to consider the broader ramifications of surgical practices. "Today we have a whole society held in thrall to the drastic plastic of labial rejuvenation."( 1 ) "At the present time, the field of female cosmetic genital surgery is like the old Wild, Wild West: wide open and unregulated"( 2 ).