Residents as Good as Fully Trained Docs if Properly Supervised: Study

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Gay or Straight, Parents Too Tired for Sex, Study Suggests

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 FRIDAY, June 29 (HealthDay News) -- Heterosexual couples often have trouble with sex and intimacy issues after they become parents, and a new study suggests that gay parents face some of the same challenges.

"When gay couples become parents, they become very focused on the kids, they are tired, there is less time for communication and less desire for sex," Colleen Hoff, a professor of sexuality studies at San Francisco State University, said in a university news release. "They go through a lot of the same changes as heterosexual couples who have kids."

An estimated one in five gay male couples nationwide is raising children. For the new study, 48 gay male couples who are raising children together were interviewed and asked questions about their lives.

"We found that gay fathers have less time for sex and less emphasis on sexuality, which could mean they are at less risk for HIV," Hoff said. "Many fathers said they feel a sense of responsibility toward their children which motivates them to avoid risky sexual behavior."

Not many of the men were concerned about the changes in their sex lives, according to the report published in the June issue of the journal Couple and Family Psychology.

"From the fathers we studied, there was this pragmatic acceptance that this is what happens at this stage of life," Hoff pointed out.

Hoff and colleagues also found that the men tended to follow the same rules about sexual activity outside their partnership after becoming parents as they did before.

"There wasn't the shift that we thought we might find," Hoff said. "For the most part, those who were monogamous before becoming parents said they stayed with that arrangement. Those who had open relationships before having children reported that they kept to that agreement."

The findings suggest that gay male parents who are in open relationships might be less willing to talk to others, such as physicians, about the choices they've made.

"Some men felt that there is this assumption that if you are a gay parent you are monogamous," Hoff explained. "This kind of stigma around gay parents' sexuality could be a concern if gay fathers are reluctant to talk to their physician about their sexual agreement and get tested for HIV."

More information

For more about parenting, visit the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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Court's Verdict on Health-Care Reform Holds Surprises, Legal Experts Say

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Few Patients Should Get Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants, FDA Panel Says

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Minorities Less Likely to Use Hospice Care: Study

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 FRIDAY, June 29 (HealthDay News) --Minority patients with heart failure are less likely to use hospice care than whites, new research finds.

Hospice provides palliative care for the terminally ill. The goal is to ease pain and discomfort, and to focus on quality of life as death approaches. Overall, use of hospice care is increasing, according to researchers from Indiana University School of Medicine.

Their study found that nonwhite Medicare patients with heart failure were 20 percent less likely to enroll in hospice than white patients. Nonwhite patients were also more likely to drop out of hospice care than whites.

"When considering end-of-life care options, it is important to consider hospice services at home, in nursing homes or in hospice facilities," study author Dr. Kathleen Unroe, a scientist with the Indiana University Center for Aging Research, said in a university news release. "Our findings highlight that there is a significant difference between how white patients and nonwhite patients and their families utilize hospice services."

The study, which looked at records on nearly 220,000 heart failure patients on Medicare, was published in the June issue of the American Heart Journal.

Nearly 1.6 million people received hospice services in 2010, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization. About 42 percent of all deaths in the United States were under the care of a hospice program in 2010.

More information

The U.S. National Institutes of Health provides more information on hospice care.

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Health Tip: Reduce Your Risk of a Herniated Disk

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 (HealthDay News) -- The spine is comprised of a series of hard bones called vertebrae. Sandwiched between them are soft, spongy pads called disks, which allows the spinal column to bend.

But if a disk ruptures (herniates) and the center pushes through the outer edge toward the spinal canal, it can put pressure on nearby nerves, causing pain and discomfort.

The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons offers these suggestions to help prevent a herniated disk:

Avoid lifting with your back. Lift with your leg muscles instead, holding the object close to you.Don't smoke.Shed excess weight, which can strain the back.Avoid strenuous activities that are repetitive in nature.

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Gene Boosts Tomato's Color, But May Make It Less Tasty

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Health Highlights: June 29, 2012

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 Here are some of the latest health and medical news developments, compiled by the editors of HealthDay:

Daily 'Quad' Pill Should Help Patients With HIV

A once-a-day pill that combines four different anti-HIV medicines may make it easier for patients to adhere to treatment and fight the virus that causes AIDS, researchers say.

Reporting June 28 in The Lancet, study author Paul Sax told BBC News that "Patient adherence to medication is vital, especially for patients with HIV, where missed doses can quickly lead to the virus becoming resistant to medication."

Patients infected with HIV often must take several pills a day, although some drugs have been combined into single pills. But the new four-in-one "quad" pill is the first to include a type of medication known as an integrase inhibitor, which blocks HIV from replicating.

Sax, who is clinical director at Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, led a team that tested the new pill in 700 patients. He told the BBC that the drug did appear safe and effective, although people taking it had a higher risk for kidney problems.

Responding to the finding, Dr Steve Taylor, an HIV specialist at Birmingham Heartland Hospital in the U.K., told the BBC that, "We've come a long way from people taking up to 40 pills three times a day." He called the quad pill "great news" for people fighting HIV.

The study was funded by biotech company Gilead Sciences.

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CDC Launches Free Drugstore HIV Testing

Drugstore testing for HIV may someday become routine if a government-sponsored pilot program catches on across the United States.

Free rapid HIV tests -- like those used in doctor's office and health clinics -- are available now at seven sites around the country, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced Tuesday that it plans to add 17 more pharmacies and in-store clinics in cities and rural regions, the Associated Press reported.

"By bringing HIV testing into pharmacies, we believe we can reach more people by making testing more accessible and reduce the stigma associated with HIV," Dr. Kevin Fenton, director of CDC's HIV prevention program, said in a statement.

The HIV saliva test, which involves swabbing the mouth, provides preliminary results in 20 minutes. Customers with positive results will be referred for laboratory testing and, if the results are confirmed, counseling and treatment, the AP said.

While gay men and injectable drug users are considered at highest risk, the CDC currently recommends all teenagers and adults up to age 64 get tested at least once. The agency estimates that one-fifth of the 1.1 million Americans infected with HIV don't know they carry the virus that causes AIDS.

CDC, which is training drugstore personnel to administer the tests, will review the program results next summer.

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Asthma Rates Higher Near Busy Highway

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 FRIDAY, June 29 (HealthDay News) -- Residents of homes that are located near congested highways have higher rates of asthma, new research finds.

Living close to a busy highway was not linked to seasonal allergies, which suggests that emissions from cars could increase the risk for inflammatory lung disease, researchers from SUNY Downstate Medical Center and Lutheran Medical Center in New York said.

Researchers investigated the prevalence of asthma among 62 Brooklyn residents living close to Interstate 278, also known as the Gowanus Expressway, and those living in the same area but farther from the highway. The researchers found higher rates of asthma among the people living closer to the Interstate.

"Our participants were randomly recruited and we observed that the patients who reported asthma live significantly closer to the Gowanus Expressway, compared to the healthy controls who live in the same area, but at a longer distance from the Gowanus," Dr. Maria-Anna Vastardi, of SUNY Downstate, said in a university news release.

The study was to be presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology meeting in Orlando. The research was also published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

More information

The U.S. National Institutes of Health provides more information on asthma.

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Shorter Arms May Explain Why Women Need Glasses Sooner Than Men

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Hot Flashes Don't Signal Poor Heart Health for Most Women: Study

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Summertime Is Tonsillectomy Time

HealthDay – Fri, Jun 29, 2012 FRIDAY, June 29 (HealthDay News) -- Summer may seem like paradise for many kids, but sometimes their health can put a crimp in the fun: Summer can be the perfect season to get a tonsillectomy.

"Kids need from 10 days to two weeks recovery time, so summer offers an ideal opportunity to get tonsil removal out of the way without interfering with school or winter holidays," Dr. Laura Cozzi, an ear, nose and throat specialist at Gottlieb Memorial Hospital in Maywood, Ill., said in a Loyola University Health System news release.

"Improving breathing, eliminating snoring and reducing colds and ear infections are usually the reasons for having tonsils removed -- usually nothing life threatening or urgent -- so the surgery can be arranged when it is most convenient," Cozzi added.

If your child is one of the estimated 500,000 who will get a tonsillectomy this year, what should you know? Here are some tips, courtesy of Cozzi:

Snoring and disrupted sleep could be a sign that your child -- or even yourself, as an adult -- needs a tonsillectomy. "This lack of healthful sleep can cause irritability, poor performance in school and even in very rare cases, developmental delays," she said.A child's age is an important factor, with many surgeries being performed between ages 3 and 7. "Tonsils usually shrink between the ages of 7 and 8. If they don't, many parents of these school-age children want them removed to prevent existing or recurring health problems," Cozzi said.The surgery is now an outpatient procedure. "Many parents remember staying in a hospital overnight as children after having tonsils removed but, today, the surgery takes about one hour and children go home to continue their recovery, which is less traumatic and preferred by parents and young patients," Cozzi explained. Symptoms that could spell tonsil trouble include: regularly breathing through the mouth; loud snoring and awakenings during sleep; repeated ear infections or sore throat; persistent runny nose or cough; white spots on the tonsils or foul odor and enlarged tonsils.Though parents may promise their kids they can have lots of ice cream after surgery, liquids are more important to avoid dehydration, Cozzi pointed out. "But my patients like the idea that they can watch TV, play video games and surf the net more than usual, during their recovery," she added.

More information

For more about tonsils, visit the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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