June 29th, 2010 by GarySchwitzer in Better Health Network, Health Policy, News, Opinion, Research
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An article on the Knight Science Journalism Tracker comments on German media coverage of the “Is there male menopause?” question. An excerpt:
One study, but very different types of headlines: “‘Male Menopause’ discovered” and “Men have no Menopause.” Both types of headlines are based on one study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, which analyzed 3219 European males between 40 and 79. Blood samples provided testosterone levels and questionnaires (!) asked about the “general, sexual, physical, and psychological health.”
What the scientists found was nothing more and nothing less than a correlation between a low testosterone level and three clinical symptoms (“decreased frequency of morning erection, decreased frequency of sexual thoughts, and erectile dysfunction”). So, one could call it an age-related testosterone deficiency, affecting only a minority (about 2%) of elderly men.
But one shouldn’t name it “andropause” or “male menopause” — and the scientists themselves did NOT use the term in the whole article — because this term immediately suggests a relation to menopause, which is a completely different and natural developmental phenomenon for every woman above the age of 50. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Gary Schwitzer's HealthNewsReview Blog*
April 30th, 2010 by Shadowfax in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Humor, Opinion, True Stories
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A patient was brought in around midnight as a “possible stroke.” She was a 60-something woman who had suddenly become unresponsive.
She and her husband had been making love at the time, and he noticed that she was no longer conscious. Unable to revive her, he had called 911. She looked bad — but it was strange. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Movin' Meat*
April 6th, 2010 by DrRob in Better Health Network, Health Tips, Opinion
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April is “Embarrassing Subject Month” for my podcast. I am covering the following problems:
- Hemorrhoids
- Digestive problems (constipation/diarrhea)
- Urinary incontinence
- “Male problems”
It should be fun, and it will be promoted on iTunes, so it should drum up more subscribers and downloads.
But it begs the question: Why are certain conditions embarrassing to people? Why can people open up to me about so many personal things, yet be embarrassed to discuss hemorrhoids? Why is it easier to talk about your marriage falling apart than your urinary “accidents?” Why is diarrhea more embarrassing than vomiting? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Musings of a Distractible Mind*
March 30th, 2010 by Shadowfax in Better Health Network, Health Policy, Humor, News, Opinion
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There’s been some buzz on Twitter that the Democrats in the Senate have killed an amendment which would have prohibited federal funding for erectile dysfunction (ED) medications for sex offenders, which means in the upside-down logic of Washington D.C. that the Democrats favor giving Viagra to pedophiles. Right? Well, not exactly.
First, just a point of procedure: Remember, healthcare reform (HCR) is now a law, on the books, signed by the President. But there was this reconciliation sidecar bill which was meant to fix the HCR law as originally passed—it was passed in the House pretty much as soon as the Senate bill was passed. But it had to pass the Senate in the identical form, word for word, in order to go directly to Obama’s desk for signing. If the Senate mucked things up by tacking on amendments, it would have to go back to the House for approval, and given the razor-thin margin in the House, Democrats very much wanted to avoid that. Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Movin' Meat*
March 27th, 2010 by Medgadget in Better Health Network, News, Research
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The New York Times profiles research by Harvey A. Liu and Kenneth J. Balkus Jr. of the University of Texas at Dallas to create a therapeutic nitric oxide releasing bandage. Nitric oxide can play a significant role in peripheral vasodilation, relaxation of pulmonary vasculature, and other physiological processes, such as penile erection. Therefore, an effective method of delivering this free radical should allow the development of new types of vascular stockings, bandages, and other therapeutic (or recreational) devices.
A snippet from NYT:
As they describe in a paper in Chemistry of Materials, the researchers use a zeolite, an aluminosilicate mineral that has a three-dimensional cage structure. Zeolites have been shown to be able to store and release nitric oxide and other chemicals. They embed the mineral in fibers of a biocompatible polymer, polylactic acid, as they are spun and form a tissue-like mat. The fibers are then infused with nitric oxide; by controlling the porosity of the fibers, the researchers could control the release of the gas.
The researchers say the resulting material could be incorporated into socks for diabetics that would deliver nitric oxide through the skin. It might also prove useful before transplants as a wrapping for organs to help preserve them outside the body for longer.
More from the New York Times…
Abstract in Chemistry of Materials: Novel Delivery System for the Bioregulatory Agent Nitric Oxide
*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*
