PCOS can result in excessive hair growth and it normally affects 1 in 10 women in the UK. It is the result of hormonal imbalance that causes the sufferer’s ovaries to produce excessive amounts of male hormone testosterone. This condition can also lead to small, harmless cysts forming on the ovaries as well as irregular periods, fertility issues, acne and weight gain.

The women may also  feel the need to shave or wax very regularly in order to fight hair growth on body and the face. The laser hair removal treatment is a very effectual way to target this unwanted hair.

Some of the well-known hair removal specialists will also offer discounts to PCOS patients who are able to provide a medical certificate.

An endocrinologist at St George’s Hospital School in London, Professor Helen Mason stated that the condition can have serious impact on the woman’s lifestyle and also her state of mind. She is a specialist in PCOS.  Professor Helen also said, “I have come across women who simply refuse to leave the house.” She adds, “Some GPs are unwilling to diagnose it because they worry that patients will panic about the infertility.”

Professor Mason suggests that it is better for women to know that they have PCOS because there are steps they can take to lessen their symptoms .

Polycystic ovary syndrome is the most common female endocrine disorder. It produces symptoms in approximately 5-10% of women of reproductive age.

The study, published in a BioMed Central journal, found that children should not watch more than two hours of television a day. Every extra weekly hour, according to researchers, could add half a millimetre to a child’s waist circumference and reduce muscle fitness.

In a study of 1,314 children, researchers discovered that the average amount of television watched was 8.8 hours a week.

This increased on average by six hours over the next two years, to reach 14.8 hours a week by age 4 and a half, with fifteen percent of the children studied watching more than 18 hours per week.

The findings demonstrated that at 4.5 years of age, the effect of watching 18 hours of television per week would add an extra 7.6mm to their waist measurement.

In addition to this finding, researchers also discovered that muscular may be decreased by increased television viewing. On a standing long jump test, each child’s muscular fitness and athletic ability was measured.

Results showed that the extra weekly hour of television could decrease the distance a child is able to jump from standing by 0.36cm, yet the researchers believe that more information is required to work out whether watching television is directly responsible for the health issues they observed.  

Dr Linda Pagani, study co-author from the University of Montreal, told the BBC that her findings were a warning about the factors which could lead to childhood obesity.

"The bottom line is that watching too much television - beyond the recommended amounts - is not good," Dr Pagani said.

She blamed a more sedentary lifestyle and pre-prepared calorie dense foods as contributing to weight increases, and warns that habits and behaviours can become entrenched in small children.

"Watching more television not only displaces other forms of educational and active leisurely pursuits but also places them at risk of learning inaccurate information about proper eating."

GUIDELINES EMPHASIZE TESTING

The Guidelines for the Treatment of Malaria (second edition) provide evidence-based and current recommendations for countries on malaria diagnosis and treatment. The main changes from the first edition of the guidelines (published in 2006) are the emphasis on testing before treating and the addition of a new ACT to the list of recommended treatments.

"The world now has the means to rapidly diagnose malaria and treat it effectively” said Dr Robert Newman, Director of the WHO Global Malaria Programme (GMP). "WHO now recommends diagnostic testing in all cases of suspected malaria. Treatment based on clinical symptoms alone should be reserved for settings where diagnostic tests are not available," he added.

In 2008, just 22% of suspected malaria cases were tested in 18 of 35 African countries reporting. Until now, most clinics had to rely on microscopy, but the recent development of quality-assured Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) using a dip stick and a drop of blood means a policy change is possible. The tests can reliably demonstrate the presence or absence of malaria parasites in the blood and can be performed at all levels of the health system, including community settings.

UNIVERSAL DIAGNOSTIC TESTING

The move towards universal diagnostic testing of malaria is a critical step forward in the fight against malaria as it will allow for the targeted use of ACTs for those who actually have malaria. The aim is to reduce the emergence and spread of drug resistance and to help identify patients who have fever, but do not have malaria, so that alternative diagnoses can be made and appropriate treatment provided. Therefore, better management of malaria has a positive impact on management of other childhood illness and overall child survival.

WHO is supporting malaria endemic countries to improve the quality of their diagnostic services using both microscopy and RDTs, and urging the manufacturers of RDTs to continue improving the accuracy and quality of these critically important diagnostic tests.

WHO estimates that 80 countries have adopted ACTs for first-line treatment of uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria. In the guidelines, WHO emphasizes the importance of treating this deadliest form of the disease with artemisinin-based combination therapies. WHO has now added a fifth ACT - dihydroartemisinin plus piperaquine - to the previous list of recommended medicines.

PREVENTING DRUG RESISTANCE

WHO recommends oral artemisinin-based monotherapy should be removed from the market because their use will hasten the development of parasite resistance. Countries need to ensure that patients are diagnosed properly and take the full dose of ACTs to prevent the development of drug resistance.

PROCUREMENT QUALITY

The first ever guidelines on Good procurement practices for artemisinin-based antimalarial medicines are based on the newest stringent internationally agreed production and procurement quality standards. This manual aims to improve the capacities of national and international procurement officers in the understanding of key quality elements and required documentation. The content is presented as a practical and concise 16-step practical checklist to guide the selection and procurement of safe and effective medicines meeting international quality standards.

"Pharmaceutical markets in malaria endemic countries are often unregulated and national authorities need practical help to assess the quality of malaria medicines before they buy them" says Dr Andrea Bosman, Coordinator of the Medicines and Diagnostics Unit at GMP. "Procurement channels are highly fragmented and so there are too many antimalarials of varying quality on the market."

Poor-quality medicines affect the health and lives of patients, damage the credibility of health services and, by generating sub-therapeutic drug levels in malaria patients, help develop resistance to this important life-saving class of pharmaceuticals.

"These guidelines will help countries select and procure effective medicines of good quality and save lives by improving the way patients are diagnosed and treated," says Dr George Ki-Zerbo, Malaria Programme Manager at the WHO Regional Office for Africa in Brazzaville.

Half of the world's population is at risk from malaria. Each year almost 250 million cases occur, causing 860 000 deaths. Approximately 85% of these deaths are among children, and most occur in Africa.

Press release: http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2010/malaria_20100308/en/index.html


 

Speaking at the occasion, Dr Sambo noted that in 2009, a 29 percent reduction of polio cases was recorded in the African Region as whole, and a 50 percent reduction in Nigeria.

This necessitates the organization of mass campaigns of this nature in order to ensure that the goal of polio eradication is achieved, he said.

The Regional Director called on countries to redouble their efforts in order to ensure that wild poliovirus transmission was interrupted by June 2010 in all re-infected countries in the Region; by December 2010 in the three countries with prolonged transmission (Angola, Chad and D.R. Congo), and, finally, by 2011 in Nigeria, the Region’s only polio-endemic country.

The campaign is spearheaded by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, a network of partners including national governments, WHO, UNICEF, Rotary International, the Centers for Disease Control and the International Federation of the Red Cross.

Press release: http://www.afro.who.int/en/media-centre/pressreleases/2243-synchronized-polio-campaign-west-and-central-africa.html

This month marks the debut of the first issue of the new African Health Monitor. The peer-reviewed magazine, to be issued as a quarterly, has been redesigned and revamped to make it more lively and contemporary.

“This magazine is a result of a collaborative effort, not only on the part of editors and production personnel but also authors who generally work as a team, collaborating on a paper relating to their work”, WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Sambo, wrote in the editorial of the maiden issue of the new Monitor.

The authoritative articles in the new Monitor are written by WHO technical staff and experts region-wide, who contribute articles in English, French or Portuguese (abstracts are provided in all languages).

However, articles in future issues will be accepted from co-authors, including non-WHO experts in the Region and elsewhere who bring their specialized knowledge to bear on issues of significant concern in the region.

One new feature of the new Monitor is the presentation of Communicable Diseases and Epidemiological Report of the WHO African Region. The report focuses a particular disease or public health event and epidemiological updates on selected priority diseases in the Region. Its aim is to provide information for action by technical partners and public health authorities.

The new magazine contains some features of the former Monitor such as focusing on keeping their teeming readers worldwide informed about recent developments and the evolution of activities in closing the knowledge gap in order to strengthen health systems and services and better deliver health to African populations.

Commending the publication to WHO staff and other readers worldwide, the Regional Director wrote in the editorial: “The African Health Monitor can only continue to serve its purpose by the active participation of the staff (by submit-ting or reviewing papers) and readers (by sending their comments). We hope you will find this magazine of direct practical use and interest.”

To download African Health Monitor issue no. 11, please click here

Press release: http://www.afro.who.int/en/media-centre/pressreleases/2199-the-african-health-monitor-takes-a-new-look-and-form.html