St. Lawrence writes that she initially did not plan on having children and that the idea of embryo freezing occurred to her while she was researching ways to donate her eggs. "My husband and I could create embryos, freeze them and, essentially, donate them to our future selves," she states.
Through her research on IVF, St. Lawrence "learned that the younger the parents are when they produce the eggs and sperm involved in any conception, whether in the womb or in vitro, the better the chance of a healthy baby." The Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology reports that 47% of IVF pregnancies derived from fresh embryos resulted in live births, compared with 35% of pregnancies from frozen embryos that resulted in live births. "Initially, those success rates did not sound high," St. Lawrence writes, adding, "But the numbers referred to a single cycle; most couples ... produce several embryos during IVF, and if the first implantation is unsuccessful, they try again, and the cumulative success rate is much higher" (St. Lawrence, Washington Post, 7/6).
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, 29 декабря 2011 г.
Washington Post Commentary Explores Embryo Freezing
The Washington Post on Tuesday featured a commentary from Gillian St. Lawrence, a 30-year-old woman who underwent in vitro fertilization and embryo freezing as "a way to postpone parenthood without risking the higher miscarriage and genetic disorder rates that occur in babies conceived from parents older than 35." Typically, women who undergo IVF take hormones to produce several blastocyts -- five- to seven-day-old embryos -- and one or two of the embryos are implanted into the woman shortly thereafter. The remaining embryos can be frozen for future pregnancy attempts.
четверг, 22 декабря 2011 г.
Women Account For Nearly 60% Of US Hospital Admissions - Leading Reasons Are Pregnancy And Childbirth
Women accounted for nearly 60 percent of the 39.4 million admissions to U.S. hospitals in 2007, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. According to the analysis by the federal agency, the leading reasons that women are admitted to the hospital are for pregnancy and childbirth. About 5 million of the 23.2 million hospital admissions for women were related to delivery.
Nearly 2 million hospital stays for women involved cardiovascular disease - the number one killer of women. They included treatment of coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, heart attacks, atrial fibrillation and other types of irregular heart beat, and chest pain with no determined cause.
Other leading reasons why women were hospitalized in 2007 included:
- Pneumonia - 608,000 admissions
- Osteoarthritis - 498,000 admissions
- Depression and bipolar disorder - 442,000 admissions
- Urinary tract infection - 383,000 admissions
- Blood infection (septicemia) - 354,000 admissions
- Skin infections - 282,000 admissions
This AHRQ News and Numbers summary is based on Exhibit 2.3 in HCUP Facts and Figures 2007 , which provides highlights of the latest data from the 2007 Nationwide Inpatient Sample, a part of AHRQ's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.
Source
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
Nearly 2 million hospital stays for women involved cardiovascular disease - the number one killer of women. They included treatment of coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, heart attacks, atrial fibrillation and other types of irregular heart beat, and chest pain with no determined cause.
Other leading reasons why women were hospitalized in 2007 included:
- Pneumonia - 608,000 admissions
- Osteoarthritis - 498,000 admissions
- Depression and bipolar disorder - 442,000 admissions
- Urinary tract infection - 383,000 admissions
- Blood infection (septicemia) - 354,000 admissions
- Skin infections - 282,000 admissions
This AHRQ News and Numbers summary is based on Exhibit 2.3 in HCUP Facts and Figures 2007 , which provides highlights of the latest data from the 2007 Nationwide Inpatient Sample, a part of AHRQ's Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.
Source
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
четверг, 15 декабря 2011 г.
Clashes In Southwest China Over One-Child Policy Prompt Officials To Ease Penalties
Recent violent clashes between police and 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 local officials to ease "tough measures," officials said on Wednesday, Reuters AlertNet reports. Officials added that they will continue efforts to curb population growth (Buckley, Reuters AlertNet, 5/23).
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 (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/22). According to Xinhua News Agency, 28 residents were detained and are suspected of passing on details of the demonstration, as well as instigating and participating in the riots, the AP/International Herald Tribune reports (AP/International Herald Tribune, 5/23).
"Family planning is a national policy, and Yulin City has demanded that residents stop flouting laws and regulations," a Bobai official -- who only gave his surname, Luo -- said, adding, "There has been a lot of pressure on officials who don't understand family planning work and the situation got out of hand, but that's stopped now." Luo said the goal of curbing population growth "won't change, but the methods will be adjusted" (Reuters AlertNet, 5/23).
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 (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 5/22). According to Xinhua News Agency, 28 residents were detained and are suspected of passing on details of the demonstration, as well as instigating and participating in the riots, the AP/International Herald Tribune reports (AP/International Herald Tribune, 5/23).
"Family planning is a national policy, and Yulin City has demanded that residents stop flouting laws and regulations," a Bobai official -- who only gave his surname, Luo -- said, adding, "There has been a lot of pressure on officials who don't understand family planning work and the situation got out of hand, but that's stopped now." Luo said the goal of curbing population growth "won't change, but the methods will be adjusted" (Reuters AlertNet, 5/23).
Washington Post Examines Events Leading to Clashes
The Washington Post on Wednesday examined actions taken on enforcing the family planning policy in the region and details of the clashes. According to the Post, the "brutal fine-collection drive" is the "latest example of abusive local enforcement" of the one-child policy (Cody, Washington Post, 5/23).
NBC's "Nightly News" on Tuesday reported on the clashes in southwest China. The segment includes comments from Carl Minzner of the Council on Foreign Relations (Mullen, "Nightly News," NBC, 5/22). Video of the segment 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, 8 декабря 2011 г.
Caffeine's Use In Cosmetic Dermatology
A new study recently published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology reports on the discovery of caffeine's novel benefit in slenderizing thighs.
The Brazilian researchers studied 99 women treated with a cream consisting mostly of a 7 percent caffeine solution. The women used the cream twice daily for 30 days.
When the researchers took their subjects' measurements at the end of the study, the slimming effect was clear. More than 80 percent of the women had a reduction in the circumference of their upper and lower thighs. Nearly 68 percent also reduced their hip measurements.
Whether caffeine banishes cellulite is less clear. The researchers assessed cellulite changes with a handheld imaging instrument that reveals microcirculation in fat tissue. Imaging showed little change in cellulite even in the hips and thighs that slimmed down. The researchers speculate that the 30-day trial might not have been long enough for the cream to act on cellulite.
"This is no cure for cellulite", said lead researcher Omar Lupi of the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro. "But it can help women who want to look thinner. Exercise is still the best way to go."
This study is published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.
Professor Omar Lupi, MD, PhD is affiliated with the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology is the official journal of the European Society for Cosmetic and Aesthetic Dermatology (ESCAD). Both the Journal and ESCAD wish to foster the highest standards of patient care in cosmetic dermatology. Each aims to facilitate continuing professional development and provide a forum for the exchange of scientific research and innovative techniques.
Wiley-Blackwell was formed in February 2007 as a result of the acquisition of Blackwell Publishing Ltd. by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and its merger with Wiley's Scientific, Technical, and Medical business. Together, the companies have created a global publishing business with deep strength in every major academic and professional field. Wiley-Blackwell publishes approximately 1,400 scholarly peer-reviewed journals and an extensive collection of books with global appeal. For more information on Wiley-Blackwell, please visit blackwellpublishing/ or interscience.wiley/ .
Source: Amy Molnar
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
The Brazilian researchers studied 99 women treated with a cream consisting mostly of a 7 percent caffeine solution. The women used the cream twice daily for 30 days.
When the researchers took their subjects' measurements at the end of the study, the slimming effect was clear. More than 80 percent of the women had a reduction in the circumference of their upper and lower thighs. Nearly 68 percent also reduced their hip measurements.
Whether caffeine banishes cellulite is less clear. The researchers assessed cellulite changes with a handheld imaging instrument that reveals microcirculation in fat tissue. Imaging showed little change in cellulite even in the hips and thighs that slimmed down. The researchers speculate that the 30-day trial might not have been long enough for the cream to act on cellulite.
"This is no cure for cellulite", said lead researcher Omar Lupi of the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro. "But it can help women who want to look thinner. Exercise is still the best way to go."
This study is published in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.
Professor Omar Lupi, MD, PhD is affiliated with the Federal University of then State of Rio de Janeiro.
Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology is the official journal of the European Society for Cosmetic and Aesthetic Dermatology (ESCAD). Both the Journal and ESCAD wish to foster the highest standards of patient care in cosmetic dermatology. Each aims to facilitate continuing professional development and provide a forum for the exchange of scientific research and innovative techniques.
Wiley-Blackwell was formed in February 2007 as a result of the acquisition of Blackwell Publishing Ltd. by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., and its merger with Wiley's Scientific, Technical, and Medical business. Together, the companies have created a global publishing business with deep strength in every major academic and professional field. Wiley-Blackwell publishes approximately 1,400 scholarly peer-reviewed journals and an extensive collection of books with global appeal. For more information on Wiley-Blackwell, please visit blackwellpublishing/ or interscience.wiley/ .
Source: Amy Molnar
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
четверг, 1 декабря 2011 г.
Egg Donation: Most Women Report Satisfaction; Some Claim Problems
Two-thirds of women who donated eggs to fertility clinics reported satisfaction with the process, but 16 percent complained of subsequent physical symptoms and 20 percent reported lasting psychological effects, according to the first study to examine the long-term effects of donation.
The research by scientists at the University of Washington included women who donated eggs at clinics in 20 states and is the largest study to explore the effects of donation in the United States, where the practice is not regulated.
"We don't know how many egg donors there are because no official records are kept and reporting is on a voluntary basis to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," said Nancy Kenney, UW associate professor of psychology and women studies and lead author of the study.
The researchers were surprised at the low number of women who reported an awareness of possible physical risk prior to donation. Nearly 63 percent viewed the potential physical risk as minor and 20 percent did not recall being made aware of physical risks at the time of their first donation.
"Many of these women may be forgetting that they were warned of the lesser risks, such as bloating and the discomfort from hormone injections," said Kenney. "It has been quite a while since they read the material handed out by clinics or heard the risk lecture and it could be that they simple forgot. The age of the women also could be a factor. Risks don't mean much to young women. They may be discounting the risk. If you are 25 and are told that something may cause cancer when you are 45 that may seem to be forever."
Of those women who reported physical problems in the donation process, bloating, pain and cramping, ovarian hyperstimulation, mood changes and irritability, and weight gain or loss were the most common complaints. Several women claimed infertility or decreased fertility or damage to their ovaries.
However, most of the women - 73 percent - however, reported being aware of some of psychological risks associated with egg donation prior to donating. These included the chance they might develop concern for or attachment to their eggs or to a potential or resulting offspring, concern that the donor or resulting child might want a future relationship with them, the possibility of having a genetic child in the world or the stress resulting from the donation process.
The women were split in their reasons for donating eggs. Nearly one-third (32 percent) said their motivations were completely based on helping others while almost 19 percent said financial concerns were their sole reason. The remainder cited a combination of altruistic and monetary factors for donation.
The research drew on the experiences of 80 women who donated eggs for the first time at least two years before filling out an 84-item questionnaire. Respondents donated eggs for the first time two to 15 years before completing the questionnaire and were an average of 30.6 years old when surveyed.
The study also found that:
The average payment was $3,965, with fees ranging from $1,104 to $7,313. (The most recent first donation year was 2002 and payments were converted to 2002 dollars).
Donors who said money was a very significant factor in donation received higher payments on average ($4,453) compared to those who said money was not important ($3,413).
Seventy percent of the women donated eggs more than once. Most repeat donors underwent the procedure two or three times. One woman donated eggs on nine occasions.
Forty-five percent of the women were students when they first donated.
Ninety-four percent of the students said financial compensation was a significant factor in deciding to donate compared to 57 percent of the women who were not students.
Most of the donations took place in California (23), Massachusetts (7), New York (7), Washington (7) and New Jersey (7).
Kenney said a higher percentage of women who cited altruistic reasons as their primary motivation (84 percent) reported feeling happy about their donation experiences than did the women whose decisions were mainly financial (61 percent).
"We were asking these women years later and a feeling of helping may last longer than money," she said. "We know if clinics don't offer money most women won't donate. Great Britain, where there is no paid egg donation program, for example, has a tremendous shortage of donors. But, as one of our donors said, 'if you do this just for money, you'll be sorry.'"
Kenney noted that a number of women offered suggestions to improve the donation process and complained about unequal treatment from clinics.
"Some women talked about how they were treated like delivery suppliers. Some clinics had separate entrances at the rear for donors and poorer waiting room facilities than for egg recipients. Some said they were handed a check at the end of he procedure and told 'see you around.' Others complained that they were offered limited extra health insurance for only a very limited time after a serious procedure," she said.
The study is in the current issue of the journal Fertility and Sterility and was funded by the UW's Royalty Research Fund. Co-author of the study is Michelle McGowan, who earned her doctorate at UW and is now a post-doctoral researcher in bioethics at Case Western Reserve University.
Source: Joel Schwarz
University of Washington
The research by scientists at the University of Washington included women who donated eggs at clinics in 20 states and is the largest study to explore the effects of donation in the United States, where the practice is not regulated.
"We don't know how many egg donors there are because no official records are kept and reporting is on a voluntary basis to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," said Nancy Kenney, UW associate professor of psychology and women studies and lead author of the study.
The researchers were surprised at the low number of women who reported an awareness of possible physical risk prior to donation. Nearly 63 percent viewed the potential physical risk as minor and 20 percent did not recall being made aware of physical risks at the time of their first donation.
"Many of these women may be forgetting that they were warned of the lesser risks, such as bloating and the discomfort from hormone injections," said Kenney. "It has been quite a while since they read the material handed out by clinics or heard the risk lecture and it could be that they simple forgot. The age of the women also could be a factor. Risks don't mean much to young women. They may be discounting the risk. If you are 25 and are told that something may cause cancer when you are 45 that may seem to be forever."
Of those women who reported physical problems in the donation process, bloating, pain and cramping, ovarian hyperstimulation, mood changes and irritability, and weight gain or loss were the most common complaints. Several women claimed infertility or decreased fertility or damage to their ovaries.
However, most of the women - 73 percent - however, reported being aware of some of psychological risks associated with egg donation prior to donating. These included the chance they might develop concern for or attachment to their eggs or to a potential or resulting offspring, concern that the donor or resulting child might want a future relationship with them, the possibility of having a genetic child in the world or the stress resulting from the donation process.
The women were split in their reasons for donating eggs. Nearly one-third (32 percent) said their motivations were completely based on helping others while almost 19 percent said financial concerns were their sole reason. The remainder cited a combination of altruistic and monetary factors for donation.
The research drew on the experiences of 80 women who donated eggs for the first time at least two years before filling out an 84-item questionnaire. Respondents donated eggs for the first time two to 15 years before completing the questionnaire and were an average of 30.6 years old when surveyed.
The study also found that:
The average payment was $3,965, with fees ranging from $1,104 to $7,313. (The most recent first donation year was 2002 and payments were converted to 2002 dollars).
Donors who said money was a very significant factor in donation received higher payments on average ($4,453) compared to those who said money was not important ($3,413).
Seventy percent of the women donated eggs more than once. Most repeat donors underwent the procedure two or three times. One woman donated eggs on nine occasions.
Forty-five percent of the women were students when they first donated.
Ninety-four percent of the students said financial compensation was a significant factor in deciding to donate compared to 57 percent of the women who were not students.
Most of the donations took place in California (23), Massachusetts (7), New York (7), Washington (7) and New Jersey (7).
Kenney said a higher percentage of women who cited altruistic reasons as their primary motivation (84 percent) reported feeling happy about their donation experiences than did the women whose decisions were mainly financial (61 percent).
"We were asking these women years later and a feeling of helping may last longer than money," she said. "We know if clinics don't offer money most women won't donate. Great Britain, where there is no paid egg donation program, for example, has a tremendous shortage of donors. But, as one of our donors said, 'if you do this just for money, you'll be sorry.'"
Kenney noted that a number of women offered suggestions to improve the donation process and complained about unequal treatment from clinics.
"Some women talked about how they were treated like delivery suppliers. Some clinics had separate entrances at the rear for donors and poorer waiting room facilities than for egg recipients. Some said they were handed a check at the end of he procedure and told 'see you around.' Others complained that they were offered limited extra health insurance for only a very limited time after a serious procedure," she said.
The study is in the current issue of the journal Fertility and Sterility and was funded by the UW's Royalty Research Fund. Co-author of the study is Michelle McGowan, who earned her doctorate at UW and is now a post-doctoral researcher in bioethics at Case Western Reserve University.
Source: Joel Schwarz
University of Washington
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