Birth Control Sticker Shock
http://insidehighered.com/news/2007/03/22/birthcontrol
You've heard the complaints about paying more for tuition and textbooks. The latest sticker shock to be upsetting students: the rising cost of birth control.
A little known provision in a deficit reduction law enacted in 2005 is taking effect this year and leading to sharp increases in costs for students who use prescription birth control. Exact costs vary from campus to campus, but students whose birth control needs could have been financed with $10 to $20 a month now find themselves facing bills as much as $50 a month. That may not sound like a huge increase, but health educators report that many students don't have an extra few hundred dollars a year in their budgets and are furious about the change.
Those frustrations upset health educators, who already worry about students having sex without birth control, and who don't want any unwanted pregnancies on their campuses. In addition, health educators note that students who seek prescription birth control typically receive guidance on sexual health issues, guidance that might disappear if students are discouraged from these froms of birth control.
Sexual Diseases Often Strike Again
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/128/117129.htm
1 in 4 Women, 1 in 7 Men Get New Sexually Transmitted Disease Soon After First STD Cured
By Daniel J. DeNoon, WebMD Health News. Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
Oct. 16, 2006 -- One in four women and one in seven men get a new sexually transmitted disease within a year of their last STD. Many get these new infections within just three months of getting their first STD cured. Yet most people don't realize they have a new STD. That's because two-thirds of the new infections are still without symptoms.
The findings come from a CDC study of 2,419 people attending STD clinics for chlamydia, gonorrhea, and/or vaginal trichomoniasis. Researchers Thomas A. Peterman, MD, and colleagues paid the volunteers $25 (later raised to $50) to return to the clinic for retesting.
Ortho Evra Patch: Clot Risk Updated
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/127/116767.htm
Label Adds Details From 2 Conflicting Studies on Nonfatal Blood Clots
By Miranda Hitti, WebMD Health News. Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD
Sept. 20, 2006 -- The Ortho Evra patch is getting new labeling with more information on the risk of nonfatal blood clots associated with the patch. The clotting risk isn't new, and the patch's warning about that risk isn't being strengthened. The label change simply adds information from two observational studies, publicized by the FDA in February, about clotting risk in women using the patch or birth control pills containing 35 micrograms of estrogen.
Plan B: 11 Questions, 11 Answers
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/126/116442
What you need to know about Plan B, the emergency contraceptive.
By Miranda Hitti, WebMD Feature. Reviewed by Celia E. Dominguez, MD
11 questions and answers on the emergency contraceptive Plan B and its FDA approval for over-the-counter sales to women aged 18 and older.
Prevalence of intimate partner violence
Findings from the WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence
Energy Drinks and Alcohol Don't Mix
http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/EMIHC254/333/20789/456067.html?d=dmtICNNews
(The New York Times News Service) -- Mixing alcohol and energy drinks such as Red Bull have become increasingly popular, but the combination can result in a disconnect between perception and reality, Brazilian researchers report.
Women and Medicines: What You Need to Know
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/wommed.htm
Be aware of how your medicines—both prescription and non-prescription medicines—affect your body. Discuss any questions or symptoms you may have with your pharmacist or provider. Work together to keep your medicine safe and effective.
- Women's bodies are different from men's. This affects the way chemicals are processed in the body.
- Hormones can affect how medicines work in women's bodies. For example, medication levels vary at different times of the menstrual cycle.
- Pregnant women need to consult their health care provider before taking any medicine to avoid risks to the fetus.
- As women age, their bodies process medicines differently, including the same medicines they used at younger ages.
Download: http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/wommed.pdf