Archives for November 2012

MONDAY, Nov. 19 (HealthDay News) -- Couples who adopt children after unsuccessful treatment for fertility problems typically have a high quality of life, a new study finds. Swedish researchers compared outcomes for a variety of types of couples: those whose in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment failed; those whose IVF treatment resulted in children; couples who decided to adopt after unsuccessful IVF treatment; and couples with no fertility … [Read more...]

Catherine Pearson (Huffington Post) Emergency contraception is safe and effective for teenage girls, and pediatricians should push for increased access to this type of birth control, regardless of age and insurance, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. The organization issued a new policy statement on Monday. "Emergency contraception should be available, and it should be available over the counter," Dr. Cora Collette Breuner, a … [Read more...]

by Eric Whitney (NPR) November 21, 2012 Uncle Sam wants you to email your doctor. A federal law passed in 2009 says that physicians have to start offering their patients online communication, or Medicare will start docking how much it pays them in the future. Some patients hope that having online access to their doctors will mean they can cut down on how often they have to go to the doctor's office. But fresh research suggests that patients … [Read more...]

by Richard Knox (NPR) November 21, 2012 The endless debate over routine mammograms is getting another kick from an analysis that sharply questions whether the test really does what it's supposed to. Dr. H. Gilbert Welch, coauthor of the analysis of mammography's impact, which was just published in The New England Journal of Medicine, tell Shots that the aim was to "get down to a very basic question." That is, do annual mammograms among women … [Read more...]

Chris Woolston, Special to the Los Angeles Times Your family doctor doesn't work with a teleprompter. And there wasn't a live studio audience the last time you put on a hospital gown — thankfully. Television is great for sports, reality shows and reruns of "The Big Bang Theory," but if you're getting your health information from TV, you might not be as well-informed — or as healthy — as you could be. One problem, says Dr. Steven Woloshin, … [Read more...]