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Talking about postnatal depression

Ongoing media and community campaigns have helped to destigmatise, and inform about, a wide range of mental illnesses. However new Macquarie University research into postnatal depression has revealed that the identification and uptake of treatment for this disorder remains a serious problem among sufferers.

10 Jan 2006

More women need to know about folic acid's ability to prevent birth defects

Each year in Minnesota, more than 2,000 babies are born with birth defects. Many of those birth defects likely could have been prevented if the mother had taken enough folic acid.

10 Jan 2006

Eating disorders linked to perinatal complications

Certain complications during and immediately after birth are associated with the development of the eating disorders anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, according to a study in the January issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

2 Jan 2006

A good year for breast cancer detection and treatment

It was a good year in women’s health, notably breast cancer treatment and detection. The December issue of Mayo Clinic Women’s HealthSource hails these important advances of 2005.

29 Dec 2005

Implantable defibrillators benefit women as much as men after heart attack

Women who have had a heart attack get as much survival benefit as men from implanted cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs), devices designed to monitor the heart's pumping rhythm and shock it back to normal when needed, according to a study published in the December edition of the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology.

22 Dec 2005

Women suffering lupus OK to take oral contraceptives

Major study of women with either inactive or stable systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) – a disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks and damages healthy tissues of the skin, joints and internal organs – were able to take oral contraceptives without increased risk of flares, or periods of increased disease activity, that characterize the disease.

22 Dec 2005

Earlier hormone therapy trial scared women - but it was wrong!

According to new research the widely publicised 2002 study which apparently proved that hormone replacement therapy raised the risk of heart disease and breast cancer, was fundamentally flawed.

19 Dec 2005

Good results with cervical cancer vaccine in young girls

Drug company GlaxoSmithKline have had a good result with their new vaccine which was designed to prevent infection with the virus that causes cervical cancer.

19 Dec 2005

Common gene variation lessens Tamoxifen’s benefit

Researchers have discovered that one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for breast cancer, tamoxifen, may not be as effective for women who inherit a common genetic variation.

19 Dec 2005

Increase in pregnancy obesity

A growing number of women are overweight or obese when they become pregnant, a condition that is risky to both mother and baby, a new study conducted by researchers at the University at Buffalo has shown.

15 Dec 2005

Caesarean section births on the rise in Australia

The number of caesarean section births is continuing to rise, according to data presented in a new report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

15 Dec 2005

Tea lowers ovarian cancer risk

Women who drank at least two cups of tea a day had a lower risk of ovarian cancer than those who did not drink tea, according to a study in the December 12/26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine.

13 Dec 2005

Women experience mental distress over abortions for years to come

Researchers say that women who have an abortion can suffer mental distress, anxiety, guilt and shame for years afterwards.

12 Dec 2005

Treating breast cancer when pregnant does not increase the risk of congenital anomalies

"The treatment of breast cancer when the patient is pregnant does not increase the risk of congenital anomalies", assures Dr. Guillermo López, director of the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics at the University Hospital of the University of Navarra.

7 Dec 2005

Australian breast cancer study seeks participants

RMIT University researchers are seeking healthy, postmenopausal women to participate in a study to determine if diet and lifestyle can reduce the risk breast cancer.

6 Dec 2005

Taking HRT before the menopause may prevent heart disease

According to American researcher Jay Kaplan, taking the "Pill" before the menopause or starting hormone replacement therapy before menopausal symptoms begin could actually help prevent heart disease in women.

6 Dec 2005

More mums would stick with breastfeeding if they had more support

The perfectly natural procedure of breast feeding does not always come that easy to every mum and babe.

6 Dec 2005

Mum's the Word: Exploring Early Motherhood

Mums are the focus of a new study being undertaken by RMIT University researcher Leanne Sheeran.

5 Dec 2005

Childbirth not linked to urinary incontinence

Postmenopausal women who have given birth vaginally do not appear to suffer from urinary incontinence at higher rates than their sisters who have never given birth, according to a University of Rochester Medical Center study published in the December Obstetrics and Gynecology journal.

2 Dec 2005

Treatment of breast cancer in pregnancy

"The treatment of breast cancer when the patient is pregnant does not increase the risk of congenital anomalies", assures Dr. Guillermo Lopez, director of the Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics at the University Hospital of the University of Navarra.

30 Nov 2005