Therapist Unlimited Blog

Medical researchers has recently discovered that men diagnosed with infertility suffer intense negative sexual, personal and social strains that might be considered typical for other medical illnesses, including cancer.
Based on the study, the researchers found out that from being a "silent disease" in men the findings makes clear, for the first time, that male infertility is a ‘disease’ like any other, silent or not, and can have a serious effect on the overall well-being of the individual, the couple, and the family.
The researchers revealed the study also shows that the diagnosis of infertility increases social strain in male partners of infertile couples.
The team who conducted the study explained male partners in couples with perceived, isolated male factor infertility have a lower sexual and personal quality of life compared to male partners of couples without perceived male factor infertility.

The family of those men suffering from infertility should provide 100 percent love to their loves ones since these people are suffering big due to their medical condition.

According to the latest statistics, about one in eight couples around 7.3 million Americans have trouble conceiving.
It is said that half of those cases have male infertility issues often easily treatable ones.
Furthermore, the statistics also shows that male infertility affects 10% to 15% of reproductive aged couples worldwide and is treatable in many cases.
The medical experts hoped the data gathered in the research should serve as driving force for the family of men facing infertility to understand and care more this person in connection with the ordeal he is facing.

Middle-aged white women in the United States had reasons to be careful these days.
This developed after recent data has shown that death rate from unintentional poisoning already triples in the US for these people.
Based on the study made by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Injury Research and Policy it was discovered that white women between 45 and 64 years old experienced a 230 percent increase in the rate of poisoning mortality over the study period.
The data they gathered also showed that white men in this age group experienced an increase of 137 percent.
The researchers also discovered that mortality rates from falls varied widely across age and gender.
The researchers revealed the death rate from falls increased 38 percent for white men and 48 percent for white women 65 and older.
The research team explained mortality rate did not increase significantly for older blacks of either sex.
The researchers said overall, 89 percent of the total increase in unintentional injury deaths in the U.S. between 1999 and 2005 was due to poisoning among those 15 to 64 years old and falls among those 45 and older, which increased by about 11,200 and 6,600, respectively.

Middle-aged white women need to be careful since they are prone to unintentional poisoning.

Study co-author Susan P. Baker, MPH, a professor with the Bloomberg School’s Center for Injury Research and Policy said the large increases in the number of deaths attributable to poisoning and falls underscore the need for more research on the specific circumstances involved.
Baker added that while we don’t know the cause behind the recent increase in falls mortality, it appears that the increase in poisonings is largely due to prescription drugs.
She said national prevention efforts are needed to control the abuse of prescription drugs and limit access.
She added prescriptions for opioid analgesics to address pain have increased dramatically in the past decade, and data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) show that prescription drugs have replaced illegal drugs such as cocaine as the most prominent substances in fatal drug overdoses.
In addition to falls and poisonings, four other leading causes of intentional injury deaths were identified for subsequent analyses: suffocation, drowning, fire/burns and motor vehicle crashes. Suffocation rates generally decreased or had no significant change, but they greatly increased in white children less than one year old.
Drowning rates increased among white men 65 and older and among white middle-aged women, but decreased in black males 5 to 24 years old, black females 5 to14 years old, and whites females 15 to 24 years.
Mortality from fires and burns decreased the most.
The rate of dying due to a motorcycle crash more than doubled in Hispanic males 15 to 24 years and in white males ages 45 to 64 years.

Here is a piece of advice to parents to keep their child away from depression from preschool.
This developed after a recent study has shown that depression in preschool could last until childhood.
According to the study, depression among preschoolers appears to be a continuous, chronic condition rather than a transient developmental stage.
The researchers revealed the validity of major depressive disorder in childhood has been well established, with the disorder now widely recognized and treated in mental health settings.
Joan L. Luby, M.D., and colleagues at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis studied 306 preschoolers age 3 to 6. Of these, 75 met criteria for major depressive disorder, 79 had anxiety or disruptive disorders but not depression and 146 did not meet criteria for any psychiatric disorder.
It is said that a comprehensive three- to four-hour laboratory assessment was completed at the beginning of the study.
While children completed measures of emotional, cognitive and social development, primary caregivers were interviewed separately about the preschoolers’ psychiatric symptoms and developmental skills.
Similar developmental and behavioral assessments were conducted 12 and 24 months later.

Parents should do their best to help their children cope up with depression in preschool, so that their medical condition could not last until childhood.

The researchers explained preschoolers with depression at baseline had the highest likelihood of subsequent depression 12 and/or 24 months later compared with preschoolers with no baseline disorder and with those who had other psychiatric disorders.
After controlling for other demographic variables and risk factors, preschoolers with depression at the beginning of the study had a four times greater likelihood of having depression one and two years later than preschoolers without depression.
The condition also showed a chronic and recurrent course among preschoolers-in a subset of 119 preschoolers with depression or depressive symptoms who were screened by phone at six and 18 months, 57 percent of those with depression had an episode during at least two follow-up points during study and 18 percent followed a chronic course, defined as having an episode in at least four waves of the study.
Furthermore, the researchers said these results underscore the clinical and public health importance of identification of depression as early as preschool.
The researchers explained early intervention during the preschool period has proved effective in other childhood disorders.
The researchers added the study findings that demonstrate longitudinal stability and homotypic continuity of preschool major depressive disorder suggest that earlier interventions for major depressive disorder during the preschool period may be an important area for investigation in the search for more effective treatments for childhood major depressive disorder.

Medical experts in the United States are now finding out ways to reduce and effectively stop the spread of childhood obesity which according to latest data already tripled.
Based on the study made by Brenner Children’s Hospital, part of Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center it was discovered that the rate of severe childhood obesity have tripled in the last 25 years, putting many children at risk for diabetes and heart  disease.
Joseph Skelton, M.D., lead author and director of the Brenner FIT (Families in Training) Program revealed children are not only becoming obese, but becoming severely obese, which impacts their overall health.
Skelton said these findings reinforce the fact that medically-based programs to treat obesity are needed throughout the United States and insurance companies should be encouraged to cover this care.
To get the data, Skelton and his team looked at the prevalence of obesity and severe obesity in a study population of 12,384 children, representing approximately 71 million U.S. children ages 2 to 19 years.
According to them severe childhood obesity is a new classification for children and describes those with a body mass index (BMI) that is equal to or greater than the 99th percentile for age and gender.
He takes the case of a 10-year-old child with a BMI of 24 who would be considered severely obese, whereas in an adult, that is considered a normal BMI.

Proper measures should be done to stop childhood obesity which according to the latest data already tripled in the United States of America.

It was revealed that an expert committee convened by the American Medical Association, the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of Health and Human Services proposed the new classification in 2007.
The research by Skelton and colleagues is the first of its kind to use the new classification and detail the severity of the problem.
The team found out that the prevalence of severe obesity tripled (from 0.8 percent to 3.8 percent) in the period from 1976-80 to 1999-2004.
According to the data, there are 2.7 million children in the U.S. who are considered severely obese.
It was also discovered that increases in severe obesity were highest among blacks and Mexican-Americans and among those below the poverty level.
For example, the percentage of Mexican-American children in the severely obese category was 0.9 percent in 1976-80 and 5.2 percent in 1999-2004.
Moreover, the researchers also looked at the impact of severe obesity and found that a third of children in the severely obese category were classified as having metabolic syndrome, a group of risk factors for heart attack, stroke and diabetes.
These risk factors include higher-than normal blood pressure, cholesterol and insulin levels.
The researchers said these findings demonstrate the significant health risks facing this morbidly obese group.
The researchers added this places demands on health care and community services, especially because the highest rates are among children who are frequently underserved by the health care system.

According to a latest medical data one in every 25 persons who died around the world is due to alcohol addiction.
In the research conducted by Dr. Jürgen Rehm, of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, and the University of Toronto, and colleagues they found out that in 2004, the net effect of alcohol consumption on health is harmful, accounting for 3.8 per cent of deaths globally (6.3 per cent for men and 1.8 per cent for women), and 4.6 per cent of years lived with disability.
The team of experts revealed most of the alcohol-related deaths were due to cancer, cardiovascular disease, liver disorders like cirrhosis, plus injuries and violence.
Based on the result of their research, the medical experts suggested that the level of alcohol-related disease is linked to the amount consumed, the effect being strongest on poor people and those marginalized from society, for every extra unit consumed.

People who are addicted to drinking better stop their habit now since latest data has shown that one in 25 deaths worldwide are caused by alcohol.

According to the researchers, the cost of this burden is equal to more than one per cent of gross national product in high income and middle-income countries and most of this is not the health care cost but the social harm caused.
The researchers said they looked at two different aspects of alcohol consumption: the total amount drunk and the pattern of drinking, such as binge drinking where a lot is consumed in a short time.
The researchers explained they calculated the average global alcohol consumption per person per year is about 6.2 liters of pure ethanol, which is a rate of a dozen or so units of 10 mls each per week. One unit is roughly the amount of alcohol in a shot of spirits, a medium strength bottle of beer or a medium glass of wine.

According to the latest medical research blacks had 51 percent higher prevalence of obesity, and Hispanics had 21 percent higher obesity prevalence compared with whites.

Based on the research conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention it was learned that greater prevalence of obesity for blacks and whites were found in the South and Midwest than in the West and Northeast.
Hispanics in the Northeast had lower obesity prevalence than Hispanics in the Midwest, South or West.
To get the result the researchers examined data from 2006-2008.
Doctor William H. Dietz, Director of CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity, explained this study highlights that in the United States, blacks and Hispanics are disproportionately affected by obesity.
Diaz added if we have any hope of stemming the rise in obesity, we must intensify our efforts to create an environment for healthy.

Black people around the world need to be careful with regards to their health since study shows they are prone to eating disorders.

Moreover, the researchers said in their research they also found out that in 40 states, obesity prevalence among blacks was 30 percent or more.
In five of those states, Alabama, Maine, Mississippi, Ohio, and Oregon, obesity prevalence among blacks was 40 percent or greater.
For blacks, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 23 percent to 45.1 percent among all states and the District of Columbia; among Hispanics in 50 states and DC, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 21 percent to 36.7 percent, with 11 states having an obesity prevalence of 30 percent or higher. Among whites in 50 states and the District of Columbia, the prevalence of obesity ranged from 9 percent to 30.2 percent, with only West Virginia having a prevalence of 30 percent or more.

Those people who have no job are most likely to get sick as well.
This was the observation of a group of researchers based in Australia.
According to the result of their study, there is a clear connection between unemployment and health.
The data gathered by researchers also shows a direct relationship between poor health and earning potential.
With their findings, the researchers hoped that the government will add more money in the health programs to help those who are unemployed.
 Dr. Andrew Pesce, the head of the researchers then renewed calls for the governments to invest in health as a national priority.
Pesce said their research highlighted the impact unemployment has on health underlining the debilitating stress and emotional impacts experienced by individuals and communities in tough economic times.

Pesce added the research also shows the other side of that coin that ill health prevents people from contributing to the economy
He said their research is a further proof that investing in health not only contributes to longer, happier and healthier lives, but that investment has a direct and lasting impact on the productivity of the workforce.
He added the report’s finding, that the financial consequences of ill health are ‘clearly great’, comes as no surprise to the medical profession, citing that they have long been urging the government to include health in stimulus investment, but to no avail.
Furthermore, Pesce hoped the piece of evidence they gather will convince governments that there is no better investment than health.
 

Medical experts revealed if not treated and detected earlier groin injuries could be more serious than a pulled muscle.
Based on a recent research it was also uncovered that a number of athletes around the world are diagnosed with a pulled groin muscle when they actually might be suffering from a much more serious hip injury.
Dr. Kaare Kolstad, an orthopaedic surgeon with The Methodist Hospital in Houston explained because the hip is located closely to the groin area, many people mistake hip injuries for groin pulls and is misdiagnosed.
It is said that the groin muscles consist of six muscles that cover the area from the inner pelvis to the inner part of the femur (thigh bone).
These muscles pull the leg together and help with other movements of the hip joint. This is why a hip injury is sometimes mistaken for a groin pull, an injury to the inner thigh.
Recent studies revealed the two most common sports-related hip injuries are a labral tear, which can be caused by sudden stops and turns on the field and cause pain in the groin area, and a stress fracture, which are hairline cracks in the bone that can get worse over time.

Patients around the world should not take groin injuries easy since it could be worse than a pulled muscle.

The study also showed that a hip injury brought on by athletic activity would cause deep, persistent pain that can last for weeks.
Physicians and orthopaedics said the pain can get so bad that it can even hurt to sit down.
The medical personnel around the world can determine from an X-ray or MRI if the problem is a groin pull or hip injury that would require either physical therapy, cortisone injections or surgery.
 If hip surgery is necessary, a minimally invasive procedure is now available that will get athletes back on their feet in four to six weeks as opposed to four to five months with open surgery.
Kolstad said to avoid further complications it is important to see a physician if pain in the groin area persists for a week or two.
He added if doctors catch it, early enough, he or she could fix the problem and get the patient to his or her feet.
He explained the longer the patient wait to have the problem fixed, the higher the risk that degeneration of the hip will occur, which will eventually lead to a hip replacement.
 

Those patients suffering from prostate cancer need to be careful since a recent study has shown that an intake of high levels of selenium could worsen their medical condition.
Selenium is a mineral found widely in rocks and dirt. Small amounts of selenium are essential for health: 40 to 70 micrograms is the recommended daily intake.
In recent years, supplemental selenium has been sold and promoted, as a means of preventing prostate cancer, largely based on observational studies that found higher risk of prostate cancer incidence and mortality in areas of the country that are naturally low in selenium.
Based on the research conducted by the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the University of California, San Francisco it was discovered that a higher risk of more-aggressive prostate cancer was seen in men with a certain genetic variant found in about 75 percent of the prostate cancer patients in the study.
The researchers said in those subjects, having a high level of selenium in the blood was associated with a two-fold greater risk of poorer outcomes than men with the lowest amounts of selenium were.
The researchers revealed by contrast, the 25 percent of men with a different variant of the same gene and who had high selenium levels were at 40 percent lower risk of aggressive disease.

Men suffering from prostate cancer need to be careful in using selenium since it could further worsen their medical condition.

The group added the variants are slightly different forms of a gene that instructs cells to make manganese superoxide dismutase (SOD2), an enzyme that protects the body against harmful oxygen compounds.
Philip Kantoff, MD, director of Dana-Farber’s Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology and senior author of the study said the research findings suggest that if you already have prostate cancer, it may be a bad thing to take selenium.
Kantoff explained the unexpected results are the first to raise concern about this potentially harmful consequence of taking supplemental selenium.
Kantoff added the findings are interesting particularly in light of the recent negative results from the SELECT prevention study, which asked if selenium could protect against prostate cancer.
He said the new study also reveals the strong interaction between selenium and SOD2 to influence the biology of prostate cancer, a finding that these investigators had shown in a previous study.
Furthermore, the researchers said the current research demonstrated that variations in the make up of the SOD2 gene dramatically alter the effects of selenium on the risk of aggressive prostate cancer.

According to a recent medical study, gaining weight during pregnancy is not only normal but also necessary as well among women.
Based on the data gathered by the German Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG) it was discovered that gaining weight in pregnancy is not only normal, it is necessary.
The mother’s body has to nourish the growing baby. Her body needs to take on more fluid to support the extra circulation the placenta and baby need.
Some of this added weight will usually be lost as soon as the baby is born.
Institute’s Director, Professor Peter Sawicki said often, the extra effort women have to make to look after a new baby and breastfeed after giving birth means the kilos just melt away without effort.
Sawicki added about half of all women; the weight will not go away as quickly.

Pregnant women do not need to worry about their weight gain since it is necessary during pregnancy.

The Institute analysed recent evidence and new US national guidelines on weight gain in pregnancy, and the message is clear: women who have become overweight or more overweight during pregnancy have a higher chance of ongoing weight problems if they are not back to a normal weight within six months or a year after having a baby.
The institute director explained avoiding weight problems after birth means already being careful about balanced and healthy eating during pregnancy.
The institute director added it is not a good idea to ‘eat for two’ in pregnancy and forget about your weight until after the baby is born if you are at all overweight - or prone to overweight - already. He added women need to eat well enough for themselves and their baby, but pregnancy is not a time to overeat.
Moreover, Sawicki said exercise is important when people are overweight, but after pregnancy, a lot of exercise does not necessarily help a great deal.
Sawicki and his team concluded that the best ways to lose weight after childbirth is balanced diet with or without extra exercise.
The researchers said very strenuous exercise programmes soon after childbirth did not lead to extra weight loss.
This means that women do not need to have a bad conscience if they take it easy in the busy weeks after giving birth.
However, Sawicki stresses that even though the birth of a baby can throw life completely out of kilter, it is important for women not to leave it too long before they start looking after themselves again.