by Sue Johanson

May 28, 2006 Need for Better Education about Chlamydia A study from the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta has shown the need for education about Chlamydia for young people. The survey of 789 students found that freshmen younger than 20 were 70% more likely to pick up Chlamydia than those aged 20 to 24. Women are especially vulnerable since they often have no symptoms, but infection can lead to infertility. The CDC recommends that all sexually active women under age 25 be tested. Source: Scoutnews LLC

May 21, 2006 Study Links Birth Defects to Nicotine Replacement Therapies In a study of 77,000 pregnant women from Denmark, researchers found that nicotine substitutes can threaten normal, fetal development. Former smokers who were using nicotine replacement therapy, such as gum or a patch, during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy had a 60% higher risk of having a baby with birth defects than non-smokers. It appears that the safest option for expectant mothers is to give up nicotine totally. Source: Daily Mail

May 14, 2006 New Low-Dose Birth Control Pill Passes Trials The third stage of a medical trial on a new, low-dose, non-cyclic birth control pill has ended successfully at Columbia University Medical Center. This new pill is designed to be taken daily, eliminating the usual 28-day cycle regimen with sugar pills. Of the 187 women who participated, 185 of them returned to normal menstrual cycles and even pregnancy within 90 days after taking the medication for one year. When the drug is approved, it will be a good option for women who don't like to stop a regular regimen in order to have a period. Source: Columbia University Medical Center

May 7, 2006 College Study Finds Disturbing Trend A new study of 234 college-aged men in Chicago found that a surprising 13% had experienced erectile difficulties. More distressing was the fact that many had used Viagra in combination with alcohol or illegal drugs, and then engaged in unsafe sex. This risky sexual behaviour can result in unwanted pregnancies and a further spread of STI's. The study also found that of the men who had used erectile medications, 54% had purchased the product online without consulting their doctors. Source: ScoutNews LLC

April 30, 2006 STI's On Rise in Over-40's The rising divorce rate has resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of sexually transmitted infections in males and females over the age of 40. In particular, doctors have noted a 20% rise in rates of Chlamydia both in Europe and Australia. Middle-aged adults believe that “condoms are for the kids” and their new lover would know and tell them if they were infected. Wrong on all counts. Tell your doctor if you have a new partner and do not get upset if your doctor suggests testing you for STI's. Source: Toronto Sun

April 23, 2006 Standard Osteoporosis Drug Offers Beneficial Treatment for Breast Cancer In a study of nearly 20,000 postmenopausal women, the National Cancer Institute has found that an osteoporosis drug is as effective as the standard drug treatment for invasive breast cancer. Both drugs – Raloxifene, used to treat osteoporosis, and Tamoxifen, the current cancer treatment – reduced the risk of invasive breast cancer by 50%. However, Raloxifene had further benefits – women taking it had 36% fewer uterine cancers and 29% fewer blood clots. These are rare, but serious, side effects of Tamoxifen. Talk with your doctor. Source: medicalnewstoday.com

April 9, 2006 New Study Proves Kegel Exercises Work Studies from New Zealand have shown that women who do Kegel exercises regularly are able to reduce their urinary incontinence. The cure rate varied from 2.5 to 17 times better than those who received no treatment. Kegel exercises also help men with incontinence and erectile control. You can find the instructions for Kegels in our Sex Information section. Source: medicalnewstoday.com

April 2, 2006 "Soft" on Smoking It's been known for some time that smoking affects erectile performance, but a new Australian study has quantified the damage. Over 8,000 male smokers, ranging in age from 16 to 59, participated in the study. Experts found that men who smoke a pack or more per day have a 40% increased risk of erectile dysfunction. Just another reason to butt out! Source: ScoutNews LLC

March 26, 2006 Hysterectomy Study Warns of Sex-Drive Loss A large European study of nearly 1,700 women has found that those who had a hysterectomy where both ovaries were removed had much lower sexual desire than women who underwent natural menopause. They also had decreased sexual pleasure and orgasms, and were more dissatisfied with their sex lives. This type of surgery is more prevalent in the U.S. than Europe. The study concludes that women need to be informed about the potential detrimental effects on their sexual function because of the surgery. Source: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

March 19, 2006 New Nasal Spray for Low Sex Drive They call it “bed death” - low sex-drive for men and women. Of course, always on the ready to exploit a human failing, an American drug company is developing a solution. It's a new nasal spray that targets the central nervous system affecting the arousal center of the brain. Called PT 141, it lasts for 10 hours and works on both genders. It will not solve relationship problems, but you have until 2009 to deal with those before the spray is available. Source: Maclean's Magazine

March 12, 2006 Onset of Menopause = Twins! The chances of giving birth to fraternal twins increase as mothers age, with the highest rate of multiple births between the ages of 35 to 39. A new study from the Vrije University Medical Centre in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. has confirmed the cause - fluctuating hormones at the onset of menopause cause the ovaries to release more than one egg at a time. Source: “Human Reproduction” Magazine, online edition

March 5, 2006 Wal-Mart Wises Up Will wonders never cease? Faced with impending lawsuits and political pressure, Wal-Mart has announced that it will now carry the emergency contraception pill, Plan B. This reverses their earlier policy of preserving the 'sanctity of life', while selling ammo in the next aisle.

February 26, 2006 New Non-stop Birth Control Pill Waiting for Approval Coming soon to a doctor near you: a new, very low dose birth control pill that you take non-stop for years. It's called LYBREL, and oh joy, oh rapture, you do not menstruate until you stop taking it, just to refresh your memory of what a period is like, or if you want to get pregnant. Manufactured by Wyeth, the drug is currently under review by the F.D.A. Source: Wyeth

February 19, 2006 Tests on Vaginal Gel against HIV Promising Preliminary tests on a vaginal gel designed to protect against HIV have been promising. The gel contains tenofovir, a drug normally used orally by people who are already infected by the virus. It stops HIV from hijacking healthy cells to replicate itself. The gel test, conducted by the Family Health Institute, studied whether the vagina was capable of tolerating the drug in a gel form. However, its effectiveness has yet to be proven, and researchers caution that this alternative to condoms is years away. Source: ScoutNews LLC

February 12, 2006 Oral HIV Test May Be Inaccurate The “OraQuick” oral HIV test, approved in 2004, has turned up a large percentage of “false positive” readings in people who were tested. The San Francisco Department of Public Health found a 25% rate of inaccurate positive readings. This is significant because the F.D.A. is considering approving OraQuick as an over-the-counter product available in pharmacies. Customers would be able to buy the kit, take it home and test themselves. Since a diagnosis of HIV is so traumatic, professionals are concerned about the unsupervised consequences of such a reading, especially when it may be wrong. If you have used OraQuick in the past and received a positive reading, make sure you follow up with your doctor right away for a more accurate diagnosis. Source: ScoutNews LLC

February 5, 2006 HRT May Lower Heart Disease Rate in Younger Women Hormone Replacement Therapy, HRT, which is used to lessen the negative effects of menopause, was seriously criticized in 2002 when a study found it raised the risk of heart attack, stroke, and breast cancer. However, a new study has found that age makes the difference. Women who took HRT at the onset of menopause when they were younger had a 30% lower risk of heart disease than women who did not take the therapy. The researchers at Harvard Medical School caution that further study is required. Talk with your doctor. Source: Reuters

January 29, 2006 Syphilis Rates on Rise in Gay/Bisexual Men The C.D.C. has reported that rates of syphilis have climbed 29% over the last 4 years. 64% of new cases are gay or bisexual men. Many believe that members of the gay community are suffering from “AIDS fatigue”, and that they no longer hear the safer sex message. As high-risk behaviour increases, so do sexually transmitted diseases. The C.D.C. is increasing its effort to educate gay men and others about syphilis in order to stop the infection trend. So, guys - please don't give up on Safer Sex. Stick with the condoms. Source: Associated Press

January 22, 2006 Males Susceptible to Urethral Inflammation from Oral Sex An Australian study has found that males can acquire urethritis, an inflammation of the urethra, from receiving oral sex. Research indicates that the condition may be caused by ordinary mouth germs. The symptoms of urethritis are similar to gonorrhea – burning at urination, genital discharge, and swelling at the tip of the penis. Although it may clear up on its own, it is best to be treated by a doctor. It can result in serious complications. Interestingly, the researchers found no evidence that females will develop urethritis after cunnilingus. Source: sexualhealth.com

January 15, 2006 Non-invasive Treatment Offers New Hope for Men with Bent Penises Due to the number of calls and emails we receive from males concerned about a bent penis, we booked an expert on the show to discuss the topic. Dr. Anil Kapoor is a urologist and surgeon, an Associate Professor of Surgery at McMaster University, and he performs surgeries and treatments at St. Joseph's Hospital in Hamilton, Ontario and the PainFree-ESWT Clinic in Oakville, Ontario. He's a busy guy! A severely bent penis is a condition known as 'Peyronie's Disease'. It can make intercourse extremely painful - or impossible - for both partners, and it's a condition that may develop in men after age 45. The bend is caused by a build-up of plaque and scar tissue inside the penis, usually due to an earlier injury. According to Dr. Kapoor, this injury often occurs during 'woman-on-top' type of sex. During vigorous sex, the penis can slip out of the vagina and then smash into the female's perineum on the return thrust. This can permanently injure the penis, although the bend may not develop for years as plaque builds up around the injury. Dr. Kapoor talked about what treatments are available, amongst them surgery, or a simple regimen of taking Vitamin E orally - 400 I.U. twice a day. The newest technique is 'Shock Wave Therapy'. He specializes in this at the PainFree-ESWT Clinic in Oakville. This procedure involves 6 sessions of treating the area of plaque with a shock-wave device, the same clinical tool used to break up kidney stones without surgery. This non-invasive technique is highly successful for some types of Peyronie's, and it has the advantage over surgery of no nerves being severed. You can find out more from the Clinic directly at www.painfree-eswt.com. Source: Talk Sex Productions Inc.

January 8, 2006 Sex-Drive May Remain Lower after Birth Control Pill A new study from the Lahey Clinic in Boston has found that women who take birth control pills may have a loss of sex-drive for up to a year after stopping medication. By its nature, the Pill lowers circulating levels of testosterone. This study of 124 women found that, even after the Pill was discontinued, levels remained lower than for women who never used it at all. Subjects were monitored for up to a year, but there is a possibility that libido may never return to what it was. Note that this was a small study, and far from conclusive. Further research is continuing, so don't throw your pills out yet! Source: HealthDay

December 11, 2005 Antidepressants and Pregnancy Warning The preliminary results of a new study indicate that pregnant women who take Paxil or other SSRI antidepressants during their first trimester have twice the risk of having major cardiac malformations in their babies. This research was conducted by manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline Inc. It involved 3,581 pregnant women studied from January 1995 to June 2003. It is important to note that this study was designed to evaluate the relative risk and did not include a comparison to infants who were not exposed to any antidepressants. In the general U.S. population, cardiovascular malformations occur in 1% of babies. This study found that rate to be 2% in babies who were exposed to SSRI's. Source: Health Canada

December 4, 2005 FDA Sets New Restrictions on Popular Acne Medication Women of child-bearing age who take Accutane for severe acne run the risk of having a deformed fetus. The FDA has established a new regulatory system, called iPLEDGE, that will oversee the distribution and prescribing of the drug. Starting March 1, 2006, pharmacies must obtain authorization from the iPLEDGE system before filling any Accutane prescriptions. Females with child bearing potential must present a valid negative pregnancy test before receiving the drug. In addition, women taking Accutane must also be on two methods of birth control, or abstain from sex altogether during the treatment.

November 27, 2005 'Invisible Condoms' on Horizon Researchers in Britain are developing two gels that act like invisible condoms preventing the HIV Virus from attaching to human cells. Testing continues and the gels could be approved by 2008. Meanwhile, the University of Massachusetts is beginning trials of a new HIV vaccine that will stimulate the body's immune response. It won't be available for 5 years, so you still have to practice safer sex.

November 20, 2005 FDA Warns about Ortho-Evra Patch After approving the Ortho-Evra birth control patch in 2001, the FDA has now ordered the manufacturer, Ortho-McNeil, to add a label warning that users will be exposed to 60% more estrogen than those on birth control pills. Estrogen can cause blood clots, stroke and heart attack, especially in women who smoke and women with a family history of those problems. Although the patch delivers the same amount of estrogen as the pill, it is delivered directly to the blood-stream, whereas the pill is filtered through the digestive system, losing some of its potency. However, the patch is still a good alternative for many women, so talk with your doctor.

November 13, 2005 Men Treating their own Partners A study from Tulane University has found that males with chlamydia or gonorrhea were more likely to inform their female partners if they were given the medication to pass on to the females themselves. With these infections, both partners need to be treated. When simply told to inform their female partners, only 48% of the men in the study complied. By contrast, 70% of the men who were actually given medication to pass along did so.

November 6, 2005 Big News for Micropenis Micropenis is defined as a penis that is 2” or less when erect, and it affects approximately 0.6% of the male population. Now, urologists have a new surgical procedure, called 'phalloplasty', to treat it. Skin from the forearm is shaped into a 4 – 5 inch tube and the original glans is transplanted to the tip in order to preserve erogenous sensation. An artificial urethra is embedded down the centre. In order to achieve an erection for intercourse, an inflatable penile prosthesis is also implanted.

October 30, 2005 New Treatment for Premature Ejaculation The most common male sexual dysfunction is not inability to attain or maintain an erection – wait for it, it is premature ejaculation. Researchers believe that 20% of males, aged 18 to 59, experience P.E. Drug companies know a gold-mine when they see one, and a new drug to treat P.E., called Dapoxetine, is expected to be approved in 2006.

October 23, 2005 New Test for Onset of Menopause If you are worried about your biological clock running out, you'll be glad to hear that researchers at the University of Sheffield have developed a new fertility test that measures when menopause is getting close. The test uses three different hormone levels to determine declining fertility. The mail-order kit will be available in 2006.

October 16, 2005 Cervical Cancer Vaccine Announced Each year, cervical cancer kills an estimated 275,000 women worldwide. It is one of the few cancers that is known to be directly caused by a virus, in this case, two strains of HPV. Last week, researchers in Australia announced that they have developed a vaccine that protects against the virus. The drug trial involved 25,000 women in 33 countries, and the vaccine had no side effects. Called Gardasil, this tremendous breakthrough should be commercially available early in 2006.

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