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Hopes for AIDS Vaccine Still Alive Despite Setbacks

December 1, 2008

MONDAY, Dec. 1 (HealthDay News) — Nobody said HIV would give up without a fight.

As World AIDS Day arrives Dec. 1, scientists are taking a sobering look back at what went wrong in recent, high-profile failures of two human trials of candidate AIDS vaccines.

The consensus: A viable vaccine is still very possible, and with it comes the potential to wipe out HIV/AIDS. But the science behind any new candidate vaccine must be much stronger than it has been in the past before testing begins in humans. Read More

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U.S. Lags on HIV Testing Goals

November 24, 2008

THURSDAY, Nov. 20 (HealthDay News) — Two years after U.S. health officials recommended routine HIV testing for Americans 13 to 64, such testing remains hit-and-miss, and the AIDS epidemic marches on.

This, despite the new testing guidelines and better testing methods, according to participants at a conference in suburban Washington D.C. The meeting was designed to review the state of the AIDS epidemic and the unmet role that routine testing can play. Read More

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Pelvic Inflammation Puts Girls at Risk for Repeat STIs

November 14, 2008

THURSDAY, Nov. 13 (HealthDay News) — Teenage girls treated for pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) become highly vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections (STIs), sometimes just weeks or months after treatment, researchers at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center report.

The findings, according to the researchers, suggest that treating PID “with a prescription and a brochure” isn’t enough to change behavior and prevent future repeat infections, which can increase the risk of chronic pelvic pain, ectopic (outside the uterus) pregnancies and infertility. Read More

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Chemical in Plastics May Cause Fertility Problems

November 13, 2008

THURSDAY, Nov. 13 (HealthDay News) — Bisphenol A, a controversial chemical used to harden plastic packaging for many foods and beverages, may affect human reproduction, researchers report.

Bisphenol A (BPA) could hurt the chances of successful in vitro fertilization, or the ability of embryos to attach to the uterus, according to presentations at the American Society for Reproductive Medicine’s annual meeting, which concluded Wednesday in San Francisco. Read More

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Most Single Adults Not Using Condoms

November 12, 2008

TUESDAY, Nov. 11 (HealthDay News) — Six out of every 10 middle-aged Britons do not use a condom during a first-time sexual encounter, a new study shows.

Those numbers might be similar for Americans, one expert said. “Data in the U.S. are likely comparable and, given prevailing policies with regard to contraception, may be worse,” said Dr. David L. Katz, director of the Prevention Research Center at Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn.

In fact, U.S. rates of all STDs, including HIV, have been increasing with an estimated 19 million new cases each year and more than 1 million people living with HIV. Almost half of the new cases of STDs are among people 15 to 24, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Read More

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Testosterone Patch May Kick-Start Sex Drive in Women

November 5, 2008
patch

Procter & Gamble
By Anne Harding

WEDNESDAY, Nov. 5, 2008 (Health.com) — Postmenopausal women who have lost interest in sex may be able to bring their libidos back to life with a testosterone patch, according to new research published Wednesday in The New England Journal of Medicine.

However, the use of the male hormone to boost sex drive in women may not be risk-free. Four women in the study who were taking testosterone developed breast cancer, but none of the women on placebo did. It’s not clear whether this was a statistical blip or a warning sign that excess testosterone could cause or spur the growth of a malignancy. Some women also reported excess hair growth, although none stopped using the hormone for this reason. Read More

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U.S. Reported 25,000 Cases of HPV-Related Cancers Annually

November 4, 2008

MONDAY, Nov. 3 (HealthDay News) — An estimated 25,000 cases of cancers associated with human papillomavirus (HPV) occurred in 38 states and the District of Columbia between 1998 and 2003, U.S. officials reported Monday.

HPV is a group of viruses that includes more than 100 different types, more than 30 of which can be sexually transmitted. Most people with HPV infections don’t develop symptoms or health problems, but some HPV types can cause cancer. Read More

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Sexually Charged TV Might Raise Risk of Teen Pregnancy

November 4, 2008

MONDAY, Nov. 3 (HealthDay News) — New research suggests that teens who spend the most time watching sexually charged television shows are twice as likely to become pregnant or impregnate someone else.

The findings, reported in the November issue of Pediatrics, don’t prove that sexy programming leads directly to pregnancy.

Still, parents should pay close attention to what their kids watch, said study author Anita Chandra, a researcher with Rand Corp. Read More

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Special Mouth Rinse Spots, Tracks Human Papillomavirus Infection

November 3, 2008

FRIDAY, Oct. 31 (HealthDay News) — A simple mouth rinse can spot specific types of human papillomavirus, some of which cause genital warts and increase the risk of developing certain types of cancer, new research shows.

The study, published in the Nov. 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, reaffirms that people exposed to human papillomavirus (HPV-16), the variant that causes cervical cancer, are more likely to develop cancers of the head and neck.

The researchers followed 135 patients with head and neck cancer over five years, and found that the patients with HPV-16 positive tumors were far more likely to test positive for oral HPV-16 infections before, during, and after therapy. Read More

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Almost Half of Women Have Sexual Problems

October 31, 2008

FRIDAY, Oct. 31 (HealthDay News) — In a double whammy for the female gender, new research shows that 40 percent of women report sexual problems, but only 12 percent are distressed about it.

“The good news is that 12 percent is a very different number than 40 percent,” said study author Dr. Jan Shifren, an associate professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive biology at Harvard Medical School and director of the Vincent Menopause Program at Massachusetts General Hospital, both in Boston. Read More

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