Important questions to ask when choosing hormonal contraception. Myths about contraception

GYNECOLOGY ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera N. Prilepskaya ◽  
Lana L. Bostandzhian

Due to the introduction of modern methods of contraception in Europe and, in particular, in Russia, the abortion rate has decreased significantly. This is largely due to the use of such a progressive method as hormonal contraception. However, the level of use of modern methods of contraception in Russia remains low, which is often due to fear of side effects and existing myths, especially in relation to hormonal contraception. Combined oral contraceptives are well studied, have a favorable profile of efficacy and safety, the risks of taking them are minimal and are reflected in the instructions for use. When properly prescribed, hormonal contraception is a reliable method of protection against unwanted pregnancy, which also has additional benefits, including therapeutic effects.

2004 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 279-287 ◽  
Author(s):  
DUOLAO WANG ◽  
HONG YAN ◽  
ZHONGHUI FENG

Contraceptive failure rates for modern methods including sterilization are reported to be high in China, but little is known about the consequence of contraceptive failure and characteristics of women who decide to have an abortion if a contraceptive failure occurs. Using 6225 contraceptive failures from the 1988 Chinese Two-per-Thousand Fertility Survey, this study examines the resolution of contraceptive failure and assesses the impact of some women’s sociodemographic characteristics on the decision to terminate contraceptive failure in abortion. This study has three important findings: (1) The abortion rate was 50·1%, 75·3% and 80·2% for IUD, condom and pill failures, respectively; (2) The abortion rates differed by contraceptive method and women’s social and demographic characteristics. In particular, a woman with just one child was most likely to have the contraceptive failure aborted; (3) Some women experienced repeated abortions because of contraceptive failure. The results suggest that abortion was a backup method if contraception failed in China and the correlates of aborting an unwanted pregnancy reflect the strong impact of the Chinese family planning programme.


2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-14
Author(s):  
I. V. Kuznetsova

Contraception is a unique tool that helps not only to avoid unwanted pregnancy and its termination, but also to get additional health benefits. However, the prevalence of the use of contraceptives as a whole and the resource itself, in terms of additional benefits, hormonal contraception, is far from the actual needs. The presented review substantiates the algorithm for the individual selection of a hormonal drug depending on the clinical portrait of a woman in order to solve the problem of reliable and safe protection from pregnancy with preventive and therapeutic effects.


Author(s):  
Bente Træen ◽  
Nantje Fischer

AbstractThis study describes the use of contraception and protection for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in six different birth cohorts of the general population in Norway. The results are based on a 2020 national web panel survey among 18–89 year-olds in Norway (n = 4160). For respondents born within 1931–1950 versus those born within 1990–2002, there was a significant increase in the use of protection against unwanted pregnancy and STIs during sexual intercourse, and a significant drop in the proportion of those who did not use any protection at all. More women today (than in previous decades) are using hormonal contraception. The main reason for not using condoms during intercourse was both parties felt safe that they were healthy, especially those born within 1990–2002. To prevent unwanted pregnancy and STIs, it is beneficial to continue to increase the availability of free or subsidized hormonal contraception, including emergency contraception, and free condoms in public arenas that people frequent and where they meet their partners.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. e2020021
Author(s):  
Kun Yang ◽  
Yi Wu ◽  
Yali Zhou ◽  
Tianhong Zhou ◽  
Li Wang ◽  
...  

Objective: This study focused on the efficacy and safety of thalidomide for patients with thalassemia intermedia (TI) in a multicenter trial. Methods:Clinical and laboratory data of 62 patients subjected to thalidomide therapy in four centers were retrospectively analyzed. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of thalidomide in the short-term (three months) and long-term follow-up (12 and 24 months). Response to thalidomide was defined as follows: Main Responder (MaR) showing an increase in Hb level of >2.0 g/dl or removal from blood transfusion and Minor Responder (MiR) achieving elevated hemoglobin (Hb) level of 1.0-2.0 g/dl or ≥50% reduction in blood transfusion frequency. Results:The overall response rate (ORR) of 62 patients with TI was 93.5% (58/62), with MaR and MiR rates accounting for 62.9% (39/62) and 30.6% (19/62) in short-term follow-up and 66.1% (41/62) and 27.4% (17/62) in long-term follow-up, respectively. The clinical response during long-term follow-up was maintained and the Hb level remained stable during the observation period. The response was still observed in patients with dose reduction despite a slight decrease in Hb level. However, Hb decreased rapidly to the baseline level after drug discontinuation. No effect of thalidomide on spleen size in nonsplenectomized patients was evident. Minimal side-effects were documented throughout, except peripheral neurotoxicity in one patient. Nevertheless, the mean serum ferritin (SF) level was significantly increased after treatment. Conclusion: Thalidomide had significant therapeutic effects on patients with TI, and the response was sustained with acceptable short-term and long-term adverse reactions. While these preliminary results support the potential long-term efficacy and safety of thalidomide as a therapeutic agent for TI, several issues need to be addressed before its application in the clinic.


2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gilbert Lazarus ◽  
Jessica Audrey ◽  
Anthony William Brian Iskandar

Triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) is associated with worse prognosis, with limited treatment regiments available and higher mortality rate. Immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) or programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) showed great potentials in treating malignancies and may serve as potential therapies for TNBC. This systematic review aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety profiles of PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors in the treatment of TNBC. Literature search was performed via PubMed, EBSCOhost, Scopus, and CENTRAL databases, selecting studies which evaluated the use of anti-PD-1/PDL1 for TNBC from inception until February 2019. Risk of bias was assessed by the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS). Overall, 7 studies evaluating outcomes of 1395 patients with TNBC were included in this systematic review. Anti-PD-1/PD-L1 showed significant antitumor effect, proven by their promising response (objective response rate (ORR), 18.5-39.4%) and survival rates (median overall survival (OS), 9.2-21.3 months). Moreover, anti- PD-1/PD-L1 yielded better outcomes when given as first-line therapy, and overexpression of PD-L1 in tumors showed better therapeutic effects. On the other hands, safety profiles were similar across agents and generally acceptable, with grade ≥3 treatment- related adverse effects (AEs) ranging from 9.5% to 15.6% and no new AEs were experienced by TNBC patients. Most grade ≥3 AEs are immune-mediated, which are manifested as neutropenia, fatigue, peripheral neuropathy, and anemia. PD-1/PD-L1 inhibitors showed promising efficacy and tolerable AEs, and thus may benefit TNBC patients. Further studies of randomized controlled trials with larger populations are needed to better confirm the potential of these agents.


2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 125 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Mommers ◽  
W.M. Kersemaekers ◽  
J. Elliesen ◽  
E.J.H. Meuleman ◽  
M. Kepers ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Kong ◽  
Yuxue Cao ◽  
Zhen Gao ◽  
Jing Sun ◽  
Hongying Zhang ◽  
...  

Abstract Introduction Inhaled glucocorticoid Corticosteroids(ICS), long-acting β2-adrenoceptor agonists(LABA)and other drugs have limited therapeutic effects on COPD with significant individual differences. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) modified Bushen Yiqi formulas༈MBYF༉demonstrates advantages in COPD management in China. This study aims to confirm the related genes affecting the therapeutic effect in the treatment of COPD and evaluate the efficacy and safety of MBYF as an add-on to budesonide/ formoterol on COPD patients. Methods and analysis In this multicenter, randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study, eligible patients with COPD will randomly receive 360-day placebo or MBYF as an add-on to budesonide/ formoterol in 1:1 ratio, and followed-up bimonthly. The primary outcomes are frequency, times and severity of acute exacerbation of COPD (AECOPD), COPD assessment test (CAT) score, pulmonary function tests(PFTs). The secondary outcomes include the modified medical research council (mMRC) dyspnea scale、six minutes walking test (6MWT)、BODE index、quantitative scores of TCM syndrome、inflammation indexes and hypothalamic pituitary adrenaline (HPA) axis function. We also test the genotype to find the relationship between drugs and efficacy. All the data will be recorded in case report forms(CRFs) and analyzed by SPSS V.20.0. Trial registration number ChiCTR1900026124, Prospective registration. Protocol version 2019-09-15


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 112
Author(s):  
Adriane Cordeiro Trevisani ◽  
João Pedro Cordeiro Trevisani ◽  
Moacir Haverroth ◽  
Ailton Da Cruz Melo ◽  
Isabela Carvalho dos Santos ◽  
...  

Ayahuasca is a drink of indigenous origin made as a decoction obtained from medicinal plants found mainly in Acre, state of Brazil, which are the leaves of Psychtoria viridis, popularly known as “chacrona” in Brazil, and the stem of Banisteriopsis caapi, commonly known as mariri or jagube. The decoction is used in religious practices for the therapy of diseases that affect the human being, such as psychological disorders, neurological, parasitic and bacterial infections. Considering the existing bioactive compounds and the therapeutic potential of ayahuasca, this study aims to carry out a literature review of scientific articles (PubMed, Scielo and LILACS) in order to gather knowledge within 30 years of study about the therapeutic potentials of ayahuasca. In the current literature, the studies focus on the area of neuropsychology, dealing with ayahuasca as a form of therapy for neurological and neuromotor disorders. In addition, antimicrobial, antiparasitic, immunomodulatory, and antioxidant actions have already been reported. However, new studies are still needed in these areas in order to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ayahuasca and its component plant species, in order to use it as an alternative therapy, especially in the population from which the traditional knowledge about this beverage came from.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinmiao Wang ◽  
Heping Wang ◽  
Luchang Cao ◽  
Jingyuan Wu ◽  
Taicheng Lu ◽  
...  

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is one of the most common digestive tract cancers and ranks fifth in the incidence of malignant tumors worldwide. Brucea javanica oil emulsion injection (BJOEI), a Chinese patent medicine extracted from Brucea javanica (Yadanzi in Chinese Pinyin), is widely used as an adjuvant treatment for GC in China. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the available data on the efficacy and safety of BJOEI in the treatment of GC and assess the quality of the synthesized evidence.Methods: A comprehensive search was performed on PubMed, EMBASE, CENTRAL, Web of Science, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang database and Chinese Scientific Journals Database (VIP database), and other potential resources, such as the Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR) and ClinicalTrials.gov from their inception to July 31, 2021. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the therapeutic effects of BJOEI combined with conventional therapy to those of conventional therapy alone were included. We used RevMan 5.3 for data analysis and quality evaluation of the included studies and assessed the evidence quality based on the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria.Results: Eighteen RCTs involving 1,210 patients were included, and the meta-analysis results demonstrated that compared with the control group (conventional therapy), the experimental group (BJOEI combined with conventional therapy) showed a significantly improved overall response rate (ORR) (risk ratio [RR] = 1.52, 95% CI: 1.36–1.69, P < 0.00001), clinical benefit rate (CBR) (RR = 1.17, 95% CI: 1.11–1.23, P < 0.00001), performance status (RR = 1.72, 95% CI: 1.46–2.01, P < 0.00001), and reduced incidence of the following adverse drug reactions (ADRs): neutropenia, leukopenia, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, liver damage, hand-foot syndrome, and peripheral sensory nerve toxicity. Subgroup analysis showed that the BJOEI intervention could significantly improve the ORR and CBR in patients with GC when combined with FOLFOX4, XELOX, and other chemotherapeutics.Conclusion: The evidence presented in this study supports the fact that BJOEI combined with conventional chemotherapy provides a statistically significant and clinically important effect in the improvement of ORR, CBR, performance status, and ADR reduction in patients with GC. To further support this conclusion, more rigorously designed, large-scale, and multicenter RCTs are needed in the future.


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