Feature Channels: Women's Health

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Costing $172 billion a year for health care and research funding, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) affects one in three families and has a widespread impact on our economy and aging population. Most notably, this disease plagues women twice as much as men. At a congressional briefing held by the Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR), experts in Alzheimer’s research discussed the need to examine the sex differences in AD, both for the cause, prevention and treatment as well as the caregiver role.

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Having both ovaries removed before age 45 is strongly associated with low-bone mineral density and arthritis in later years, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins oncologists and epidemiologists. The analysis covered several thousand women who took part in a U.S. government-sponsored, multiyear national health study, and excluded women whose ovaries were removed due to cancer.

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• MRI is valuable in assessing the extent of breast cancer and monitoring treatment response. • Diffusion-weighted MRI and dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI reflect tumor cellularity and vascularity. • Both correlated with histopathological markers and prognostic factors

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• In the overall group, obese patients had an increased risk for worse survival. • Obese patients who received chemotherapy had significantly worse survival outcomes. • Overweight patients who received tamoxifen had significantly better survival outcomes.

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• Hispanic women had a 20 percent increased risk for death from breast cancer. • Tumor-related factors may primarily account for this difference. • Hispanic women may be more likely to have a tumor phenotype resistant to chemotherapy.

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UMHS moved patients, staff, and equipment to new children's and women's hospital.

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Seizures in women of childbearing age commonly show patterns of exacerbation that involve hormones as a factor. Investigators today reported the favorable outcome of a multicenter randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled phase III clinical trial of progesterone therapy in reducing these perimenstrually exacerbated (catamenial) seizures. Results of the NIH-sponsored study are being presented during the American Epilepsy Society’s 65th annual meeting at the Baltimore Convention Center. (Abstract 3.191).

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In women of childbearing age with epilepsy, seizure exacerbation may occur either at the time of menstruation or ovulation. Investigators in a specialized epilepsy center have analyzed the data on a group of patients with seizures associated with their menstrual cycles (catamenial seizures) for type of epilepsy, seizure frequency, response to medication, neuroimaging findings, and seizures during pregnancy. (Abstract 3.168)

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U.S. Rep. Lois Capps, D-Calif., today reintroduced vital legislation aimed at improving the cardiovascular health of millions of women nationwide. The HEART for Women Act would require the U.S. Health and Human Services secretary to submit an annual report to Congress on the quality of and access to care for women with cardiovascular disease.

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Purchasing gifts for loved ones consumes much of our time in the weeks leading up to the holidays. Luckily, there are lots of tricks and tips that you can employ to help you get the best deals on the perfect gifts while saving yourself time and money.

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WASHINGTON – A new report from The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services’ Department of Health Policy (GW) uncovered an overall wage differential between those of normal weight and those who are obese, especially when it comes to women. The research, released today, demonstrates the impact obesity may have on a person’s paycheck.

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Many women suffer memory loss and/or confusion at some point in their lives, but as many as 5 million Americans suffer from a much more serious disease, Alzheimer’s. According to statistics from the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia in older people. Alzheimer’s is a progressive brain disease; it is irreversible and causes a decline in memory and cognitive skills.

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A Florida State University clinical psychologist has identified factors that could cause some women with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to have chronic, persistent symptoms while others recover naturally over time.

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Students heading home for the holidays should seek out opportunities to "network before they need work" and plant the seeds for a successful career search, advises Brett Woodard, director of the Career Development Center at Saiint Joseph's University.

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A study by researchers at UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has found that women taking the combination estrogen and progestin menopausal hormone therapy who experienced new onset breast tenderness had a 33 percent greater subsequent risk of developing breast cancer than women who did not experience breast tenderness.

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When you’re the boss, the holidays can mean more than a long-awaited vacation. Managers, supervisors, and executives often find themselves having to set the tone for the holidays for everything from determining who gets time off to hosting the holiday party. Wake Forest University’s Evelyn Williams says finding the balance can be the difference between leading through the holidays and landing in the pitfalls.

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Infertility is common among obese women, but the reasons remain poorly understood and few treatments exist. Now a team of Johns Hopkins Children's Center scientists, conducting experiments in mice, has uncovered what they consider surprising evidence that insulin resistance, long considered a prime suspect, has little to do with infertility in women with type-2 diabetes, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and metabolic syndrome, all obesity-related conditions in which the body becomes desensitized to insulin and loses the ability to regulate blood sugar.

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A recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) found that consumption of dairy foods and higher protein resulted in improvements in markers of bone formation and reductions in markers of bone degradation in overweight and obese young women over 16 weeks of diet- and exercise-induced weight loss.

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Postmenopausal women with osteoarthritis have a 20 percent higher risk of bone fractures and experience almost 30 percent more falls than those without the disease, according to research presented this week at the American College of Rheumatology Annual Scientific Meeting in Chicago.

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Women under 50 with rheumatoid arthritis are at greater risk of breaking bones than women without the condition, according to a Mayo Clinic study being presented at the American College of Rheumatology annual scientific meeting in Chicago.

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A new Supplement of the peer-reviewed journal, Women’s Health Issues, a publication of the Jacobs Institute of Women’s Health at the GW School of Public Health and Health Services, provides in-depth information about gender-specific health considerations of U.S. women and girls in the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The special Supplement, which includes recommendations for national strategic programmatic improvements to meet their needs, was sponsored by the Office on Women’s Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Additional funding support for the Supplement was provided by the HHS Health Resources and Services Administration and the NIH National Institute on Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

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Cigarette smoking appears to impair pancreatic duct cell function--even for those who quit--putting all smokers at risk of compromised digestive function regardless of age, gender and alcohol intake, according to the results of a study unveiled today. In a separate smoking-related study also released today, researchers from the University of Connecticut found that the risk of advanced pre-cancerous tissue changes (neoplasia) was significantly elevated for women —even if they stopped smoking—but not for men--suggesting that the impact of smoking in women has a longer effect than in men.

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Starting November 15, Ryerson’s Holiday Media Room will be filled with seasonal tip sheets particularly relevant for the upcoming holiday season.

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A Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study comparing perceptions of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) among teen girls and parents has found that parents seriously underestimate the emotional and medical impact this sexually transmitted disease has on teenagers.

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From the brownstones of New York to the favelas of Brazil, the health of women is inextricably linked to the cities in which they live.

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An estimated 12.1 million women age 18 and older reported suffering from chronic pain in 2008 as a result of underlying medical conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome, endometriosis, fibromyalgia and vulvodynia.

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A recent UT Southwestern Medical Center study found that estrogen regulates energy expenditure, appetite and body weight, while insufficient estrogen receptors in specific parts of the brain may lead to obesity.

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Low-income women with children who move from high-poverty to lower-poverty neighborhoods experience notable long-term improvements in in diabetes and extreme obesity, according to a new study, the first to employ a randomized experimental design to learn about the connections between neighborhood poverty and health.

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An anonymous survey of more than 1,000 women on pregnancy loss message boards opens a new window into who is using the forums and why.

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Debilitating. Destructive. Life-altering. These are just a few words used to describe autoimmune disease. Autoimmune diseases affect women 8 times more often than men, with lupus being one of the most disruptive. Lupus is a disease that occurs when a person’s immune system attacks its own tissues and organs instead of attacking foreign invaders such as common viruses and bacteria. Lupus often results in wide-spread inflammation, pain, swelling and organ/tissue damage throughout the body.

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Study suggests exercise before conception and in the early stages of pregnancy may protect a mother-to-be by stimulating the expression of two proteins thought to play a role in blood vessel health.

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Study of teens in rural California suggests that obesity has greater impact on girls.

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After a heart attack, women’s hearts are more likely to maintain their systolic function—their ability to contract and pump blood from the chambers into the arteries. This suggests that heart disease manifests differently in women, affecting the small blood vessels, instead of the major blood vessels as it does in men.

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In a study of 300 post-menopausal women, obese participants performed better on three cognitive tests than participants of normal weight, leading researchers to speculate about the role of sex hormones and cognition.

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Cardiovascular disease and other gender-specific conditions – such as menopause, pregnancy, depression, and obesity – will be explored in depth at a two day conference being sponsored by the American Physiology Society

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Estrogen may prevent strokes in premature or early menopausal women, Mayo Clinic researchers say. Their findings challenge the conventional wisdom that estrogen is a risk factor for stroke at all ages. The study was published in the journal Menopause.

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50:1, 9:1, 2:1 these are just some ratios of autoimmune disease disparities between women and men. The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) hosted the Capitol Hill briefing, The War Within: Women and Autoimmunity, on Tuesday, October 11 to address these concerns. The briefing featured two panelists who spoke about autoimmune diseases in women, and the efforts needed to advance the understanding and treatment of these often serious conditions.

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Getting women to meet the U.S. federal government's recommended level of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity remains a huge challenge. A large new study shows that where women live affects just how likely they are to exercise.

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A veterinary researcher who led an NIH study is available to discuss the impact of the banned pregnancy drug, DES, on the fetal immune system.

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Iron accumulates in our bodies as we age, says Dr. George Bartzokis, and may contribute to the development of abnormal deposits of proteins associated with several prevalent neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's. Men have more iron in their bodies and brains than women. But why? One possible explanation for the gender difference is that during menstruation, iron is eliminated through the loss of blood.

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A new study from the University of Adelaide shows the parents of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are more likely to have some form of cardiovascular disease.

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Smoking leads to earlier heart attacks for women, according to a University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study, and women are more likely than men to suffer complications afterwards.

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Kentucky women who smoke heavily may experience more chronic musculoskeletal pain, suggests a new study led by University of Kentucky researchers.

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According to a recent poll of 1,000 American voters conducted for the American College of Radiology, nearly 9-in-10 women reported that having a regular mammogram gave them a feeling of control over their own health care. Nearly 90 percent of women who had a mammogram considered mammograms important to their health and well-being.

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The risk of depression appears to decrease for women with increasing consumption of caffeinated coffee, according to a report in the September 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Hip fracture is associated with an increase in short-term mortality (death within one year) for women ages 65 to 79 years and healthy women ages 80 years and older, although the risk returns to previous levels after one year for women ages 70 years and older, according to a report published Online First by Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Visiting a primary care clinician every two weeks was associated with greater control of blood glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol levels among patients with diabetes, according to a report in the September 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

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Researchers at the Cardiac & Vascular Institute at NYU Langone Medical Center have identified a hidden culprit in the battle against women’s heart disease. Plaque disruption, a rupture or ulceration of cholesterol plaque in a coronary artery, has been discovered as the mechanism behind myocardial infarction (heart attack) in some women without significant coronary artery disease (CAD) – that is, open rather than closed arteries on an angiogram. The study is published in the September 27th issue of the journal Circulation.

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Pick up any newspaper, magazine or online publication and news about obesity is everywhere. While some parents feel helpless in the fight to keep their family physically fit and healthy, other parents are taking action. Studies show that exercising as a family not only promotes good health but also helps strengthen the emotional bonds between family members.

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A new study finds that the leg strength and power of overweight older women is significantly less than that of normal-weight older women, increasing their risk for disability and loss of independence. The study dispels the popular image of the bird-thin elder being at greatest risk of becoming disabled due to loss of muscle mass.