The Intermediate People's Court in China's Shandong Province on Friday rejected an appeal by human rights advocate Chen Guangcheng -- who was arrested in China after attempting to bring a class-action lawsuit against the government for alleged human rights abuses associated with the enforcement of the country's one-child-per-family policy -- to reverse a four-year, three-month prison sentence, Xinhuanet reports (Xinhuanet, 1/12). For his lawsuit, Chen recorded testimony from men and women in communities in and around China's Linyi province who experienced forced abortions and sterilizations. In August 2006, he was sentenced by a court in Shandong to four years and three months in prison for allegedly "willfully damaging property" and "organizing a mob to disturb traffic." An appeals court in Shandong in October ordered a retrial. According to Li Jingsong, one of Chen's attorneys, the court overturned the sentence "because the process of the first trial was unfair, and facts and evidence ... were not tenable and did not hold water." However, in the retrial, a court in Shandong in December upheld prison sentence (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 12/1/2006). The verdict from the Intermediate People's Court said "the facts were clear and the evidence was sufficient" at the retrial, according to Li. Li said Chen is not permitted another appeal; however, Li said he plans to petition China's high court and possibly the central leadership to have the sentence reversed. Chen also plans to apply for medical parole because he is legally blind, the AP/International Herald Tribune reports (Olesen, AP/International Herald Tribune, 1/12). Li said, "We are not about to give up until these people are fully exposed," adding, "This case is about local officials abusing their powers and using illegal methods to implement policy." Human Rights Watch in its annual report released Thursday highlighted Chen's case as an example of the "significant deterioration" of human rights conditions in China," Agence France-Presse reports (Agence France-Presse, 1/12). Chen's wife Yuan Weijing said the court had not notified her of the final verdict, but she added, "I am really angry. It is just lawless here. They can make up whatever charges and put you behind bars" (Reuters, 1/12).
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
четверг, 24 ноября 2011 г.
четверг, 17 ноября 2011 г.
Chinese Officials Dispatched To Handle Complaints Concerning Penalties For One-Child Policy Violations
Recent clashes between police and residents in southwest China's Guangxi province over a campaign to enforce penalties, including fines and forced abortion, for couples who violate China's one-child-per-family policy has prompted the country to dispatch officials to address complaints concerning the penalties, the New York Times reports (Kahn, New York Times, 5/24).
China's one-child-per-family policy seeks to keep the country's population, now 1.3 billion, at about 1.7 billion by 2050. Methods of enforcing the policy, such as fines and work demotions, vary among Chinese provinces and cities. Dozens of women in southwest China last month reported being forced to undergo abortions as late as nine months into their pregnancies. Some women from Guangxi said they were forced to have abortions because they were unmarried, while other women were married and pregnant with their second child.
The Bobai county government in Guangxi recently increased fines for people who violate the policy and have been seizing or destroying the property of people who cannot pay the fines. Several people have said Guangxi officials have issued fines from 500 yuan, or about $65, to 70,000 yuan, or about $9,000, on families who violated the policy at any time since 1980. Some people said the fine, called a "social child-raising fee," was collected despite the fact most violators of the policy had already paid a fine. If violators failed to pay the fine within three days, their homes would be destroyed and their belongings seized.
Residents of Guangxi recently attacked family planning officials, overturned cars and set fire to government buildings. Witnesses and Hong Kong media reported on Monday that riot police entered at least four towns in the province. Twenty-eight residents were detained and are suspected of passing on details of the demonstration, as well as instigating and participating in the riots (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/23).
According to Huang Shaoming, chief of Bobai county, the recent violence is because of "backward ideas about birth control and the rule of law" among residents. He added, "It's also possible that problems exist in the government's birth control work, which led to the frustration of the people." Huang pledged to address residents' complaints and also to push for stricter enforcement of the one-child policy (New York Times, 5/24).
The Los Angeles Times on Thursday examined the situation. The article is available online.
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
China's one-child-per-family policy seeks to keep the country's population, now 1.3 billion, at about 1.7 billion by 2050. Methods of enforcing the policy, such as fines and work demotions, vary among Chinese provinces and cities. Dozens of women in southwest China last month reported being forced to undergo abortions as late as nine months into their pregnancies. Some women from Guangxi said they were forced to have abortions because they were unmarried, while other women were married and pregnant with their second child.
The Bobai county government in Guangxi recently increased fines for people who violate the policy and have been seizing or destroying the property of people who cannot pay the fines. Several people have said Guangxi officials have issued fines from 500 yuan, or about $65, to 70,000 yuan, or about $9,000, on families who violated the policy at any time since 1980. Some people said the fine, called a "social child-raising fee," was collected despite the fact most violators of the policy had already paid a fine. If violators failed to pay the fine within three days, their homes would be destroyed and their belongings seized.
Residents of Guangxi recently attacked family planning officials, overturned cars and set fire to government buildings. Witnesses and Hong Kong media reported on Monday that riot police entered at least four towns in the province. Twenty-eight residents were detained and are suspected of passing on details of the demonstration, as well as instigating and participating in the riots (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/23).
According to Huang Shaoming, chief of Bobai county, the recent violence is because of "backward ideas about birth control and the rule of law" among residents. He added, "It's also possible that problems exist in the government's birth control work, which led to the frustration of the people." Huang pledged to address residents' complaints and also to push for stricter enforcement of the one-child policy (New York Times, 5/24).
The Los Angeles Times on Thursday examined the situation. The article is available online.
"Reprinted with permission from kaisernetwork. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at kaisernetwork/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation . © 2005 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
четверг, 10 ноября 2011 г.
FDA Scientists Cite Ineffectiveness, Side Effects In Review Of Female Libido Drug
An FDA background document released Wednesday found that a pill aimed at treating female sexual dysfunction failed to make a significant difference in two studies, although some women reported slightly more sexually satisfying experiences, the AP/Detroit Free Press reports. On Friday, an FDA panel of experts will consider the drug -- flibanserin -- for premenopausal women who report a lack of sexual desire. The agency is not required to follow the panel's advice.
According to the FDA document, two studies conducted by the drug's maker, Boehringer Ingelheim, failed to show a significant increase in female participants' libido, as recorded by the women in a daily journal. Although some women reported a boost in satisfying sexual experiences, the FDA document said agency scientists "wanted to see that an effect of treatment is an overall increase in sexual desire regardless of whether a sexual event occurred or not" (Perrone, AP/Detroit Free Press, 6/16).
FDA also noted that certain side effects -- fatigue, sedation and drowsiness -- were "commonly reported." The review said that "it is not clear if labeling alone will be sufficient to alert women to the numerous drug interactions that exist" with the drug, adding that nearly 15% of women who participated in the study stopped taking the drug before the study ended because of possible side effects (Richwine, Reuters, 6/16).
Debate on Sexual Desire Surrounds Approval Efforts
The effort to obtain FDA approval of flibanserin has triggered a debate on female sexual dysfunction, with some critics saying that Boehringer "is trying to turn a low libido into a medical pathology," the New York Times reports. In seeking approval for the drug, the company cites a legitimate psychiatric condition called hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or HSDD.
Although there is "no dispute" that some women experience lower levels of sexual desire, sexual dysfunction issues are "much harder" to diagnose and treat in women than in men, the Times reports. Critics argue that the company's marketing campaign for the pill overstates the prevalence of female sexual dysfunction and falsely leads women to think they need medical treatment, the Times reports (Wilson, New York Times, 6/16).
NBC News Examines Flibanserin Debate
NBC's "Nightly News" on Wednesday also reported on the FDA review and efforts to treat HSDD (Snyderman, "Nightly News," NBC, 6/17).
Reprinted with kind permission from nationalpartnership. You can view the entire Daily Women's Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery here. The Daily Women's Health Policy Report is a free service of the National Partnership for Women & Families.
© 2010 National Partnership for Women & Families. All rights reserved.
четверг, 3 ноября 2011 г.
Young Professionals Put Career Ahead Of Motherhood, While Older Women Are Still Waiting For Mr. Right
Women of different ages differ in their reasons for wishing to undergo egg freezing, show two studies presented to the 26th annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology. A large number of female university students would be prepared to undertake egg freezing in an attempt to combine career success and motherhood, said Dr. Srilatha Gorthi, a research fellow at the Leeds Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Leeds, UK, adding that her team's research emphasised the importance of educating young women about their biological clocks in order that they could take informed decisions about future reproduction.
Dr. Gorthi surveyed 98 medical students (group A) and 97 students of education and sports studies (group B) from the University of Leeds. Information regarding egg freezing was provided, including the fact that they would have to finance their own egg freezing. The average age was 21 with age range from 18-30 years in both the groups; 63.3% of the medical students were not in a relationship, as opposed to 25.8% in group B, probably reflecting the level of commitment and time needed for their courses.
While 85.7% in group A said that they would be prepared to delay starting a family, only 49.5% in group B said they would consider this. Eight out of ten from group A said they would undergo egg collection and freezing, compared with only half as many (four out of ten) from group B. In group A, 85.3% were prepared to undergo up to three cycles of egg collection to bank enough eggs to give them a realistic chance of pregnancy. In contrast, the majority (79%) of those who would bank their eggs from group B said they would be prepared to undergo only one cycle of egg collection.
"Career considerations were given as the commonest reason to delay starting a family in group A, followed by financial stability and marriage or a stable relationship," said Dr. Gorthi. "However, in group B, financial stability came first, followed by a stable relationship and then career reasons. We think that this is the first time that young women's attitudes to egg freezing have been studied in this way."
Egg freezing is still a relatively new technology; a woman has to go through an IVF treatment cycle, which takes two to four weeks and carries certain risks: ovarian hyperstimulation, haemorrhage, infection and a possible, albeit small, effect on future natural fertility.
Until a few years ago, egg freezing was largely restricted to women undergoing chemotherapy for cancer because the chances of an egg surviving the slow freezing and thawing process was as low as two percent. Now, thanks to new techniques such as vitrification, where water from the eggs is removed and they are flash-frozen, frozen eggs are as good as the fresh ones. Women seem to have a realistic prospect of delaying motherhood if they wish to do so, similar to men. The average cost of egg freezing is around ??3000 per attempt and some women may have to undergo up to three cycles in order to cryopreserve a good number of eggs.
At a time when women are increasingly delaying having children until their late 30s and even 40s, clinics offering egg freezing are in need of information on the attitudes and expectations of young women in order to enable them to tailor counselling more appropriately. "There has been a vogue for offering freezing for social reasons to women, especially those embarking on their careers, or those who haven't found their Prince Charming, as a kind of insurance policy for later life. Research has proven that young eggs have a better genetic competency than older ones, and the chance of egg freezing working also declines with age. While the best results are likely to be in those under 30 years old, in reality it is predominantly women in their late thirties who are requesting egg freezing," said Dr. Gorthi.
"There is still a lot of misinformation about the age at which the women could start their families, the likelihood of success of treatment and the number of oocytes that need to be retrieved and frozen in order to give a realistic prospect for future success. Women thinking about undergoing this procedure must be provided with accurate information and have counselling to both the benefits and limitations of oocyte freezing compared with other options. This will enable them to take the decision which is right for their circumstances," she said.
"In addition, support from society is warranted for young women who choose to have a family when they are ready without compromising their careers. Experience from clinics who offer egg freezing for social reasons has shown that the use of frozen eggs is considered the last resort when women fail to conceive naturally," Dr. Gorthi said.
In a second study, Dr. Julie Nekkebroeck*, a senior psychologist at the Centre for Reproductive Medicine, UZ Brussel, Brussels, Belgium, found that a group of highly educated and financially secure women with an average age of just over 38 years had applied to have their eggs frozen because they had not yet found the right partner with whom to have children. Dr. Nekkebroeck and colleagues interviewed the 15 egg-freezing candidates in order to ascertain their reasons for wishing to undergo the procedure.
"We found that they had all had partners in the past, and one was currently in a relationship, but they had not fulfilled their desire to have a child because they thought that they had not found the right man," she said. The women found out about the possibility of egg freezing via the internet; before that, 46.7% had thought about becoming a single mother through the use of donor sperm, and 26.7% of them had considered adoption or staying childless.
The main reasons for opting for oocyte freezing were taking the pressure off the search for the right partner (53.3%), and giving a future relationship more time to blossom before bringing up the subject of their desire for a child (26.7%), whereas for 33.3% it was an insurance against future infertility. All 15 candidates had shared their intentions with their family and close friends and none of them felt discouraged by their entourage.
Out of the 15 women, 53.3% felt that the financial cost was a disadvantage of undergoing treatment, and 26.7% considered that the use of hormones was a deterrent. However, all of them accepted that they needed to undergo treatment while they were still healthy and fertile and they were also willing to repeat the treatment at least twice.
"The average age that the women thought they would use their frozen oocytes was 43.4 years, an age at which, for most women, there is considerable difficulty in achieving a spontaneous conception. But if they found a suitable partner, most of them would prefer to try to become pregnant spontaneously, rather than perform IVF with fresh material or, in the last instance, use their frozen oocytes," said Dr. Nekkebroeck.
If the women did not need their oocytes, 46.7% said that they would donate them for scientific research, 13.3% would donate them to another woman, and 26.7% were unsure about what to do with them.
"We intend to continue interviewing these women in order to confirm our preliminary results and will also arrange follow-up interviews after their egg collection and freezing, and when they return to the hospital to collect and use their vitrified eggs. Because women have only just gained access to this efficient method of preserving their fertility, we believe that our results will add to the continuing debate about egg freezing for social reasons. Such research seems to indicate that social freezing might be added to the list of preventive measures to be taken against future age-related subfertility in women, besides fertility awareness campaigns, but only on the understanding that these women are properly counselled and educated about success rates, fees, treatment procedure etc.," Dr. Nekkebroeck concluded.
Source:
Mary Rice
European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
Dr. Gorthi surveyed 98 medical students (group A) and 97 students of education and sports studies (group B) from the University of Leeds. Information regarding egg freezing was provided, including the fact that they would have to finance their own egg freezing. The average age was 21 with age range from 18-30 years in both the groups; 63.3% of the medical students were not in a relationship, as opposed to 25.8% in group B, probably reflecting the level of commitment and time needed for their courses.
While 85.7% in group A said that they would be prepared to delay starting a family, only 49.5% in group B said they would consider this. Eight out of ten from group A said they would undergo egg collection and freezing, compared with only half as many (four out of ten) from group B. In group A, 85.3% were prepared to undergo up to three cycles of egg collection to bank enough eggs to give them a realistic chance of pregnancy. In contrast, the majority (79%) of those who would bank their eggs from group B said they would be prepared to undergo only one cycle of egg collection.
"Career considerations were given as the commonest reason to delay starting a family in group A, followed by financial stability and marriage or a stable relationship," said Dr. Gorthi. "However, in group B, financial stability came first, followed by a stable relationship and then career reasons. We think that this is the first time that young women's attitudes to egg freezing have been studied in this way."
Egg freezing is still a relatively new technology; a woman has to go through an IVF treatment cycle, which takes two to four weeks and carries certain risks: ovarian hyperstimulation, haemorrhage, infection and a possible, albeit small, effect on future natural fertility.
Until a few years ago, egg freezing was largely restricted to women undergoing chemotherapy for cancer because the chances of an egg surviving the slow freezing and thawing process was as low as two percent. Now, thanks to new techniques such as vitrification, where water from the eggs is removed and they are flash-frozen, frozen eggs are as good as the fresh ones. Women seem to have a realistic prospect of delaying motherhood if they wish to do so, similar to men. The average cost of egg freezing is around ??3000 per attempt and some women may have to undergo up to three cycles in order to cryopreserve a good number of eggs.
At a time when women are increasingly delaying having children until their late 30s and even 40s, clinics offering egg freezing are in need of information on the attitudes and expectations of young women in order to enable them to tailor counselling more appropriately. "There has been a vogue for offering freezing for social reasons to women, especially those embarking on their careers, or those who haven't found their Prince Charming, as a kind of insurance policy for later life. Research has proven that young eggs have a better genetic competency than older ones, and the chance of egg freezing working also declines with age. While the best results are likely to be in those under 30 years old, in reality it is predominantly women in their late thirties who are requesting egg freezing," said Dr. Gorthi.
"There is still a lot of misinformation about the age at which the women could start their families, the likelihood of success of treatment and the number of oocytes that need to be retrieved and frozen in order to give a realistic prospect for future success. Women thinking about undergoing this procedure must be provided with accurate information and have counselling to both the benefits and limitations of oocyte freezing compared with other options. This will enable them to take the decision which is right for their circumstances," she said.
"In addition, support from society is warranted for young women who choose to have a family when they are ready without compromising their careers. Experience from clinics who offer egg freezing for social reasons has shown that the use of frozen eggs is considered the last resort when women fail to conceive naturally," Dr. Gorthi said.
In a second study, Dr. Julie Nekkebroeck*, a senior psychologist at the Centre for Reproductive Medicine, UZ Brussel, Brussels, Belgium, found that a group of highly educated and financially secure women with an average age of just over 38 years had applied to have their eggs frozen because they had not yet found the right partner with whom to have children. Dr. Nekkebroeck and colleagues interviewed the 15 egg-freezing candidates in order to ascertain their reasons for wishing to undergo the procedure.
"We found that they had all had partners in the past, and one was currently in a relationship, but they had not fulfilled their desire to have a child because they thought that they had not found the right man," she said. The women found out about the possibility of egg freezing via the internet; before that, 46.7% had thought about becoming a single mother through the use of donor sperm, and 26.7% of them had considered adoption or staying childless.
The main reasons for opting for oocyte freezing were taking the pressure off the search for the right partner (53.3%), and giving a future relationship more time to blossom before bringing up the subject of their desire for a child (26.7%), whereas for 33.3% it was an insurance against future infertility. All 15 candidates had shared their intentions with their family and close friends and none of them felt discouraged by their entourage.
Out of the 15 women, 53.3% felt that the financial cost was a disadvantage of undergoing treatment, and 26.7% considered that the use of hormones was a deterrent. However, all of them accepted that they needed to undergo treatment while they were still healthy and fertile and they were also willing to repeat the treatment at least twice.
"The average age that the women thought they would use their frozen oocytes was 43.4 years, an age at which, for most women, there is considerable difficulty in achieving a spontaneous conception. But if they found a suitable partner, most of them would prefer to try to become pregnant spontaneously, rather than perform IVF with fresh material or, in the last instance, use their frozen oocytes," said Dr. Nekkebroeck.
If the women did not need their oocytes, 46.7% said that they would donate them for scientific research, 13.3% would donate them to another woman, and 26.7% were unsure about what to do with them.
"We intend to continue interviewing these women in order to confirm our preliminary results and will also arrange follow-up interviews after their egg collection and freezing, and when they return to the hospital to collect and use their vitrified eggs. Because women have only just gained access to this efficient method of preserving their fertility, we believe that our results will add to the continuing debate about egg freezing for social reasons. Such research seems to indicate that social freezing might be added to the list of preventive measures to be taken against future age-related subfertility in women, besides fertility awareness campaigns, but only on the understanding that these women are properly counselled and educated about success rates, fees, treatment procedure etc.," Dr. Nekkebroeck concluded.
Source:
Mary Rice
European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
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