Lower Risk of False Positive With Digital Mammography
March 9th 2011The risk of false-positive results is lower with digital mammography compared to screen-film mammography, with no significant difference in the cancer detection rate between the two, according to a study published in the February issue of Radiology.
Hyperprolactinemia Diagnosis Sufficient With Single Test
March 9th 2011One serum blood test is sufficient to diagnose hyperprolactinemia, and dynamic testing of prolactin secretion should be avoided, according to new guidelines published in the February issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
Alcohol Intoxication Increases Sleep Disruption in Women
March 8th 2011Alcohol intoxication elevates subjective sleepiness and disrupts sleep objectively in women more than in men, regardless of family history of alcoholism, according to a study published online Feb. 15 in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
Oral Bisphosphonates May Lower Colorectal Cancer Risk
March 8th 2011Use of oral bisphsphonates ofr more than one year in postmenopausal women is associated with a 59 percent decrease in the relative risk of colorectoal cancer, according to a study published online Feb. 14 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Researchers Explore Nature of Difficult Clinical Encounters
March 8th 2011Both patients and physicians can bring qualities to a clinical encounter that result in its being perceived as difficult, and patients involved in these types of encounters have worse short-term outcomes, according to research published online Jan. 25 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
Screening Tool Can Help Detect Bleeding Disorder in Women With Menorrhagia
March 2nd 2011Approximately 5% of women who seek medical assistance for menorrhagia from their primary care physicians or gynecologists never make their way to a hematologist, even though many of these women have such underlying hemostatic abnormalities as decreased von Willebrand factor (VWF), platelet dysfunction, and decreased coagulation factors. These women in turn are in danger of experiencing bleeding complications during surgery, childbirth, or other invasive procedures.
Distress Before Fertility Treatment Not Tied to Outcome
March 2nd 2011Emotional distress some women experience prior to undergoing fertility treatment appears to have no bearing on the likeihood that the treatment will result in a successful pregnancy, according to a literature analysis published Feb. 23 in BMJ.
Trastuzumab Tied to Disease-Free Survival at Four Years
March 2nd 2011In women with human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive early breast cancer, treatment with trastuzumab for one year after chemotherapy is associated with significant disease-free survival at a four-year follow-up, according to a study published online Feb. 25 in The Lancet Oncology.
SSRI shows efficacy in reducing menopausal symptoms
March 1st 2011Escitalopram, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of anxiety and depression, significantly reduces the frequency, severity, and bother of hot flashes, according to study findings.
Does cigarette smoking increase breast cancer risk?
March 1st 2011In the latest study to attempt to determine whether cigarette smoking increases or decreases a woman's risk for breast cancer, researchers from Harvard University found that active smoking, particularly before giving birth for the first time, modestly increases the risk for the disease.
Recommendations on home birth issued by American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
March 1st 2011The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recently issued a committee opinion stating that although the absolute risk associated with planned home births is low, published medical evidence shows that it is associated with a 2- to 3-fold increase in the risk for newborn death compared with planned hospital births.
Eating Breakfast Tied to Lower BMI in Postpartum Teens
March 1st 2011Postpartum teens who eat breakfast on most days consume fewer calories from snacks and sweetened drinks, and have a lower body mass index (BMI) than those who tend to skip breakfast, according to a study published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
Metastatic Breast Cancer Treatment Guidelines Updated
March 1st 2011The American Society of Clinical Oncology has issued updated guidelines for the use of bone-modifying agents (BMAs) in treating breast cancer patients with bone metastases to include a new drug, denosumab, and provide new advice regarding a potentially serious complication of treatment, osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ); an overview of the guideline update was published online Feb. 22 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Nitroglycerin Strengthens Bones in Older Women
March 1st 2011Nitroglycerin ointment appears to increase bone mineral density (BMD) and decrease bone resorption in postmenopausal women when administered daily, according to research published in the Feb. 23 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Type 1 Diabetes Tied to Shorter Breast-Feeding Duration
March 1st 2011Although mothers with type 1 diabetes are less likely to partially or exclusively breast-feed at two months, diabetes is not an independent risk factor for the initiation and maintenance of breast-feeding, according to a study published in the February issue of Diabetes Care.