What does the Supreme Court Decision mean to women?

The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the health care law (Affordable Care Act) will keep in place important benefits to women:

Original Article

Mammography and prostate screening debate continues

The American Medical Association’s House of Delegates has come out in support of routine screening mammography for women starting at age 40.

The new policy is in direct conflict with the controversial 2009 recommendation of the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) that routine screening mammography for breast cancer was unnecessary in women younger than 50.

Original Article

TEDxNU event: A great success!

Thank you to all who attended TEDxNU: The Complex World of Fertility last night. We had a great time listening to the speakers and even got a chance to see some entertaining and enlightening clips from other TED talks. A special thanks to Sharon Green, the emcee for the evening, and to Dr. Uzzi, Dr. O’Halloran, and Dr. Woodruff, who blew us away with their discussions of collaborative science, reproductive health, and breakthroughs in fertility preservation research.

Original Article

Gender differences in salaries of researchers

Female physician researchers make less money than their male counterparts, researchers found. Among recipients of National Institutes of Health (NIH) career development awards, the average reported annual salary was $167,669 for women and $200,433 for men, according to Reshma Jagsi, MD, DPhil, of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues.

Original Article

High blood pressure at mid age may raise risk for heart attacks and stroke

A hike in your blood pressure during middle age significantly raises the risk of having a heart attack or a stroke during your lifetime, according to new Northwestern Medicine research. The study offers a new understanding on the importance of maintaining low blood pressure early in middle age to prevent heart disease later in life.

Men and women who developed high blood pressure in middle age or who started out with high blood pressure had an estimated 30 percent increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke compared to those who kept their blood pressure low.

Original Article

Bisphosphonate use may increase risk of esophageal cancer

The esophageal cancer risk with bisphosphonate bone drugs may be a bigger problem than thought, particularly with use of alendronate (Fosamax), an adverse event surveillance study suggested. Overall, 128 cases of bisphosphonate-associated esophageal cancer were reported to the FDA’s adverse event reporting system (AERS) from 1995 through 2010, Beatrice J. Edwards, MD, of Northwestern University and colleagues found.

Original Article

Playing helps kids grow

My daughter teaches dance to preschool children and recently I went to observe one of her classes. I was really surprised to see that some of the children could not follow a simple dance movement pattern and could not jump on one foot. Their inability to concentrate and follow directions was also concerning though I certainly am not a child development expert. On the other hand, preschoolers can work complicated electronic equipment and iphones. I found this article that further explores and addresses my concerns and ask for comments from our readers on their observations.

Original Article

Therapy by smart phone?

Brooding in your apartment on Saturday afternoon? A new smart phone intuits when you’re depressed and will nudge you to call or go out with friends.

It’s the future of therapy at a new Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine center where scientists are inventing web-based, mobile and virtual technologies to treat depression and other mood disorders. The phone and similar projects bypass traditional weekly therapy sessions for novel approaches that provide immediate support and access to a much larger population.

Original Article

Less couch time means fewer cookies

Simply ejecting your rear from the couch means your hand will spend less time digging into a bag of chocolate chip cookies.

That is the simple but profound finding of a new Northwestern Medicine study, which reports simply changing one bad habit has a domino effect on others. Knock down your sedentary leisure time and you’ll reduce junk food and saturated fats because you’re no longer glued to the TV and noshing. It’s a two-for-one benefit because the behaviors are closely related.

Original Article