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Challenges to achieving an AIDS-free generation

In a plenary presentation at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI) in Seattle on Wednesday, Dorothy Mbori-Ngacha of UNICEF examined the challenges to reaching the goal of an AIDS-free generation, by "eliminating 90 percent of HIV infections among children by 2015," and "outlined the four pillars of achieving that goal," including preventing HIV among women, preventing unintended pregnancies, preventing mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), and supporting HIV-positive women and their families, the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" reports.

9 Mar 2012

Va. Gov. signs pre-abortion ultrasound bill

Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has signed a contentious bill mandating women who want an abortion get an ultrasound before the procedure.

9 Mar 2012

Contraception, abortion issues crop up in state legislatures, political races

The debate over the birth control mandate is seeping into West Virginia's governor race as reproductive-rights supporters assess their place amid losses in state legislatures.

9 Mar 2012

Some House GOP lawmakers threatening to walk away from last year's budget pact

Conservative Republicans are seeking deeper cuts in both discretionary and mandatory spending. The White House and Democratic lawmakers are "crying foul" and some GOP veterans caution it could produce gridlock. In the background, three key departures from the Senate Finance Committee could make that panel, which oversees Medicare and much of the health law, less centrist.

9 Mar 2012

VA honors women Veterans for courage and sacrifice

The Department of Veterans Affairs joins the Nation in observing Women's History Month in March by honoring women Veterans for their significant historical contributions and encouraging them to take advantage of the VA benefits they've earned.

9 Mar 2012

Maternal obesity may contribute to cognitive impairment in extremely premature babies

Maternal obesity may contribute to cognitive impairment in extremely premature babies, according to a new study by researchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

9 Mar 2012

Enrollment complete in Palatin's bremelanotide Phase 2B trial for FSD

Palatin Technologies, Inc. today announced it has completed enrollment in its Phase 2B clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of bremelanotide for treatment of female sexual dysfunction.

9 Mar 2012

Infection with M. genitalium may double African women's HIV risk

A common sexually transmitted bacterial infection more than doubles the risk of HIV infection in African women, reports a study in the March issue of AIDS.

9 Mar 2012

Estrogen only HRT in some postmenopausal women could lower breast cancer risk: Study

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8 Mar 2012

Africare hosts panel discussion on issues of health care, women and economic development

In honor of International Women's Day, Africare in partnership with Global Health & Diplomacy (GHD) and the United Nations Foundation (UNF), hosted a panel discussion and press conference focused on issues of health care, women and economic development in Africa and the developing world.

8 Mar 2012

Progress made in talks with North Korea regarding food aid, U.S. envoys say

"U.S. envoys said there was progress in talks Wednesday on arrangements for the first U.S. government food aid shipment to impoverished North Korea in three years, part of an agreement aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear programs," the Associated Press reports.

8 Mar 2012

International Women's Day provides opportunity to renew commitment to world's girls

In this Huffington Post "Global Motherhood" opinion piece, Kate Roberts, vice president of corporate marketing, communications and advocacy at Population Services International, marks International Women's Day, to be recognized on March 8, and its 2012 theme, "Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures."

8 Mar 2012

Study highlights challenges of adherence in successful deployment of PrEP interventions

"Data presented from the FEM-PrEP trial by Dr. Lut Van Damme Tuesday at the 19th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Seattle highlighted the challenge that adherence plays in successfully deploying effective Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) interventions," HIV Medicine Association Executive Director Andrea Weddle writes in this guest post in the Center for Global Health Policy's "Science Speaks" blog.

8 Mar 2012

Obama fields questions on Limbaugh, 'war on women'

During his "Super Tuesday" press conference, the president talked about contraception coverage and the Rush Limbaugh flap, saying that Democrats have "a better story to tell women."

8 Mar 2012

Texas plan to defund women's health program draws protest; Other abortion and contraception news

Texas' move and subsequently imminent loss of federal Medicaid money has sparked a protest. Lawmakers in New Hampshire and Minnesota are examining the federal contraception coverage requirement.

8 Mar 2012

Women with chronic heart failure survive longer than their male counterparts

Women with chronic heart failure survive longer than their male counterparts, according to a large analysis of studies comprising data on more than 40,000 subjects. The analysis represents the largest assessment of gender and mortality risk in heart failure - and provides evidence which many randomised trials have failed to do because they have been dominated by male patients.

8 Mar 2012

Women with breast pain do not gain benefit from imaging

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have found that women with breast pain who receive imaging (mammograms, MRIs or ultrasounds) as part of breast pain evaluation, undergo follow-up diagnostic testing, but do not gain benefit from these additional studies.

8 Mar 2012

Women with multiple pregnancies may have reduced risk of MS

Women who have multiple pregnancies may have a lower risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to research published in the March 7, 2012, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

8 Mar 2012

World Bank should re-evaluate programs to reduce maternal mortality

"The World Bank boasts that it has positioned itself as a 'global leader' in reproductive health, especially for youth and the poor," but in 2011, it dedicated "just 0.2 percent of its $43 billion budget" to reproductive health projects, and much of that money was provided as loans, which can "leave poor countries indebted and threaten to divert domestic spending away from vital public health services," Elizabeth Arend, program coordinator at Gender Action, writes in the Guardian's "Poverty Matters Blog."

7 Mar 2012

New clinical trial: Pycnogenol improves signs and symptoms of menopause

Half the population experiences menopause, and for those women, it is a condition they will experience for approximately one third of their lifetime. Alternative or natural remedies are an easy, effective way to improve signs and symptoms linked to the menopausal transition, without side effects.

7 Mar 2012