Alphabetical list:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U V W X Y Q Z 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
News: December 5, 2009
Half of teen girls have STIs by 2 years of first sex
December 5, 2009Within 2 years of having sex for the first time, half of teenage girls may be at least one of three common sexually transmitted infections (STIs), according to results of a study published today. Often, those girls are infected by the age of 15.
Researchers followed 386 urban adolescent girls aged 14 to 17 for up to 8 years. Within 2 years of becoming sexually active, half of the girls were infected with at least one of three common sexually transmitted organisms: Chlamydia trachomatis, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, or Trichomonas vaginalis -- the organisms that cause chlamydia, gonorrhea and trichomoniasis, respectively.
The researchers found that a quarter of the women had acquired their first STI by age 15, most often Chlamydia.
"Repeated infections were very common," study investigator Dr. Wanzhu Tu, of Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis told Reuters Health by email. "Within 4 to 6 months (depending on the organism) after treatment of the previous infection, a quarter of the women were re-infected with the same organism."
Tu said young women are at risk of STIs as soon as they become sexually active, but recommendations are lacking about when it is appropriate to begin screening.
"These young women are vulnerable to STIs, but because of their younger age, they may not be perceived by health care providers as having STI risk, and thus are not screened in a timely manner."
The current findings, Tu said, highlight the importance of early STI screening and treatment. "For urban adolescent women, STI screening (especially for chlamydia) should begin within 1 year after first intercourse and infected individuals should be retested frequently, preferably every 3 to 4 months," the researcher said.
"To my knowledge, this study provides the first data on the timing of the initial STI and subsequent STIs following the onset of sexual activity in urban adolescent women," Tu added.
The study findings appear in the latest issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, published by the American Medical Association.
A companion paper in the journal details a program that proved successful in curbing risky sexual behavior among 15- to 21-year-old African American adolescent girls and young women.
The participants, all of whom where visiting a sexual health clinic in Atlanta, took part in two group counseling sessions and received telephone support and vouchers to give to their partners to encourage them to get tested and treated for STIs.
This study is "exciting" for several reasons, Dr. Bonita Stanton from Wayne State University in Detroit wrote in a commentary. First, the program reduced first and recurrent chlamydia infections and led to higher rates of self-reported condom use, she points out.
Second, it got the teen girls cut back on douching, which has been linked to increased risk of STIs.
But perhaps "most intriguing," Stanton wrote, is that the young adolescent girls who participated in the program were able to convince their sexual partners to get tested for STIs.
Archive issues: (47)
Archive list: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 [9] 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
November 20, 2009 | Yes, Cats Can Catch the Swine FluOur cut little and cuddly cats that purr at us and give us so much love seems be susceptible to catch the swine flu. In fact, a cat in Iowa has tested positive for the H1N1 virus, state officials confirmed this morning, "marking the first time a cat has been diagnosed with this strain of influenza," the association said in a statement. "The cat, which has recovered, is believed to have ...
November 19, 2009 | Embryonic Stem Cells May Be Used To Create New SkinBoston (SmartAboutHealth) - A new study out of France has revealed that embryonic stem cells may be used to actually create new skin for humans. The belief is that by using these embryonic stem cells to create new skin, that it could prove extremely helpful in the treatment of burn victims. Burn victims usually have to wait for skin grafts when they suffer their injuries, but these can take quite some time to develop. This i sbecause ...
November 18, 2009 | Back Pain Linked To Everyday ActivitesWhile that occasional back pain may go away after some rest and pain medication, many back pain sufferers are not aware that everyday activities - from wearing high heels to long work hours - can repeatedly strain the spine may lead to more serious consequences later. According to White Plains based neurosurgeon Dr. Jack Stern, M.D., Ph.D., some activities that repeatedly strain the spine may ...
Related articles:
Risk-taking
Men, significantly more so than women, tend to drink and drive, not to wear a seat belt, to be aggressive and fight, to drive fast and dangerously. Men are also more likely to be involved in a homicide, to be involved in a motor vehicle accident and other accidents. Men are in fact three times more likely to die of accidents than females. Men make up 93% of workplace deaths. While many argue that ...Section: Mens health risks
Chronic bacterial prostatitis - signs and symptoms
Chronic bacterial prostatitis is a relatively rare condition - occurs in less than 5% of patients with prostate-related non-BPH lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) - that usually presents with an intermittent UTI-type picture and that is defined as recurrent urinary tract infections in men originating from a ...Section: Prostatitis
Chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome - physical and psychological therapy
For chronic nonbacterial prostatitis (Cat III), also known as CP/CPPS, which makes up the majority of men diagnosed with "prostatitis", a treatment called the "Wise-Anderson Protocol" (aka the "Stanford Protocol"), has recently been published. This is a combination of: Medication (using tricyclic antidepressants and ...Section: Prostatitis