HEALTHY LIVING

What Is a Pap Smear?
A Pap smear (Pap test) is a way to look at a sample of cells taken from a woman's cervix. The test is used to look for changes in the cells of the cervix that show cervical cancer or conditions that may develop into cancer.
All women who are or who have been sexually active, or who have reached age 21, should have an annual Pap smear. It is your best tool to detect pre-cancerous conditions and hidden, small tumors that may lead to cervical cancer. If detected early, cervical cancer can be cured.

How Is a Pap Smear Performed?
The Pap smear is done during a pelvic exam. A doctor uses a device called a speculum to widen the opening of the vagina so that the cervix can be examined. A plastic spatula and small brush are used to collect cells from the cervix. After the cells are taken, they are placed into a solution. The solution is sent to a lab for testing.

Is the Pap Smear Painful?
A Pap smear is not painful, but the pelvic exam may be a little uncomfortable.
When Will I Know the Results of the Pap Smear?
It may take several weeks to get the test results. If you haven't heard from your doctor's office after 3 weeks, give them a call to see if your results have come back.

What Do the Results of a Pap Smear Mean?
A normal Pap smear means the cells from the cervix look normal. An abnormal Pap smear means the cells do not look normal. Sometimes repeat Pap smears are needed. Different tests also may need to be done, such as a colposcopy (the use of a special microscope to examine the cervix and vagina). Pap smears can occasionally show signs of infection but cannot be relied on to screen for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). Other tests are necessary to determine the presence of an STD.There are several things you can do to help make the Pap smear as accurate as possible. These include avoidance of sex, douching, and vaginal creams for 48 hours before the test.

What Happens If the Results Are Abnormal?
An abnormal Pap smear does not necessarily mean that cancer cells were found during the examination. There are many causes for abnormal Pap smear results. Your doctor will evaluate the results to determine if further testing is necessary.
Why Would I Need to Repeat the Pap Smear?
A repeat Pap smear may be necessary if you had an infection at the time of the test or if there were not enough cells collected during the test. Since decreased levels of the female hormone estrogen also can influence Pap smear results, menopausal women may need to take estrogen before they repeat the test.
If the results of the repeat Pap smear are still abnormal, your doctor may recommend that you have a colposcopy to further evaluate the problem.

What Is a Colposcopy?
Colposcopy is an examination of the cervix and the walls of the vagina. During the examination, a speculum is inserted into the vagina (as done in a Pap smear). Your doctor looks through a magnifying instrument called a colposcope to detect cervical problems that cannot be seen by the eye alone. During the colposcopy, the colposcope remains outside the vagina. Biopsies (tissue samples) of the abnormal cervical area may be taken.
Colposcopy is not always necessary immediately after an abnormal Pap smear. Be sure to ask your doctor about other options.

How Often Should I Get a Pap Smear?
You should get a Pap smear once a year if you are having or have had sex or if you have reached the age of 21. Some women who have a higher risk of cancer may need a Pap smear more often. Women who have had normal Pap smears for several years in a row, and have had only one sex partner may need the test less often.
Women with certain risk factors, such as being HIV positive (carrying the virus that causes AIDS), a weakened immune system due to chemotherapy, organ transplant, chronic steroid use, or have a history of diethylstilbestrol (DES) exposure before birth, should continue to be screened more frequently.

What Symptoms Should I Watch for Between Pap Smears?
Pre-cancerous conditions of the cervix seldom cause symptoms. For problems to be detected, a pelvic examination and a Pap smear are usually required.
When cancer is present in the cervix, the most common symptom is abnormal bleeding. Bleeding may start and stop between regular menstrual periods, or it may occur after sexual intercourse or douching. Abnormal vaginal discharge is another symptom. Pain is NOT an early warning sign of the disease. These symptoms are not sure signs of cancer. But be sure to see your doctor if any of these symptoms develop.

Do I Need to Get Pap Smears If I Have Had a Hysterectomy?
Pap smears may be discontinued after a total hysterectomy (removal of the uterus and cervix), unless the surgery was performed for cervical pre-invasive or invasive cancer or other uterine cancers. Women who have had a partial hysterectomy with the cervix remaining should continue to have routine Pap smears. Check with your doctor to determine if you still need Pap smears. Even women who no longer require Pap smears should see their doctor annually for pelvic exams.


Source:www.webmd.com

Hair is considered one of the most defining aspects of human appearance. Hair loss, or alopecia, in women is often met with significant emotional distress and anxiety (Cash, Price, & Savin, 1993). Clinicians play a key role in providing women with a thorough evaluation, a specific diagnosis, evidence-based treatment options, and counseling. In this review article, a systematic approach to history taking, examination, and diagnosis of hair loss is provided. Specific types of hair loss are discussed in the context of disturbances of the hair cycle, damage to the hair shaft, and disorders affecting the follicle. Lastly, recommendations for effectively counseling women with hair loss are provided.


Hair is considered one of the most defining aspects of hu man appearance. Through out history, hair length, style, and color have been used to make statements about virility, sexuality, religion, military status, and more. Alopecia, or hair loss, is a common and distressing problem and is often met with feelings of grief and a lost sense of "self" (Cash et al., 1993). Women with alopecia must not only face the loss of their hair, but they often feel isolated, embarrassed to seek care, and may be frustrated by misdiagnosis or poor treatment options. Clinicians play a key role in providing women with a thorough evaluation, a specific diagnosis, evidence-based treatment options, and counseling.

During our lifetime, each hair follicle undergoes continuous cycles of growth (anagen), resorption (catagen), and rest (telogen). The portion of hair that is seen is called the hair shaft. That which is below the surface of skin is the follicle. Hair loss can occur due to disturbances of the hair cycle, damage to the hair shaft, or disorders affecting the follicle. A systematic approach to the patient with hair loss will enable the clinician to classify and diagnose the hair problem accurately in the majority of cases. The correct diagnosis is based on a detailed history, physical examination, and in some cases, scalp biopsy and pertinent laboratory tests. With the appropriate diagnosis, proper patient counseling and treatment can be initiated (Han & Mirmirani, 2006).

More article ....

1. Getting angry at us for not reading your mind is like getting angry at yourself for not being able to fly. It's not just futile, it's physically impossible.
2. Yes, we do think Jessica Alba is hot. Sometimes we're even dumb enough to admit it.
3. Don't ask us to understand your shoe fetish. Asking us to respect it is even sort of pushing it.
4. You do look good without makeup, just not as good as you look with it.
5. Ever notice how we don't fight with our male friends? That's why we get so frustrated when we fight with you.
6. You care what you're wearing infinitely more than we do. In fact, if you're naked when you open the front door, you won't hear an argument from us.
7. You don't like to get hit on in public, you don't want to date online and you don't want to be set up on blind dates. Tell us if sending messenger pigeons is an appropriate way of courting. Because if it is, we're all over it.
8.
There should a statute of limitations on stupid things that we said that can come back to haunt us
There should a statute of limitations on stupid things that we said that can come back to haunt us. I propose 24 hours.
9. Cooking dinner for a man is like buying flowers for a woman, except it takes a lot more time, effort and thought for you to do it. Thanks. We appreciate it.
10. We actually like your girly pet-names for us, but please, not in front of the guys!
11. Just because we like looking at the women in Maxim doesn't mean we want to actually converse with the women in Maxim. Not for long, anyway.
12. Your nice guy friends are the most reliable source for telling you if your new boyfriend's a jerk. And he probably is. (By the way, you might want to consider marrying that nice guy who's giving you advice about the jerk.)

The male impotence drug Viagra may be useful for treating jet lag as well, according to Argentine researchers who gave it to hamsters made to feel like rodent globe-trotters.

The researchers manipulated the schedule of turning lights on and off to induce jet lag in the laboratory animals, they reported on Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Adult male hamsters given Viagra, also called sildenafil, recovered from jet lag up to 50 percent faster than hamsters that were not given it, the researchers said.

The scientists stopped giving the hamsters the highest dose they had been using in the experiment due to a certain side effect.

"However, we used the intermediate dose for the rest of the experiments because at that dose animals did not manifest the effects of sildenafil-induced penile erections," they wrote.

Flying across multiple time zones can confuse one's sleep-wake cycle, resulting in the condition called jet lag, marked by insomnia, sleepiness and difficulty concentrating.

Researchers Patricia Agostino, Santiago Plano and Diego Golombek of the Universidad Nacional de Quilmes in Buenos Aires gave doses of Viagra to the hamsters at night, then switched on bright lights six hours early to simulate eastbound flight.

They judged how well the hamsters adjusted to the changes by observing when they began running on exercise wheels.Continue to Reuters

Most cervical cancer is associated with the human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection. But not all cervical cancers are due to HPV infection. So, yes, it is possible to have cervical cancer if you've never had sex.
HPV is primarily transmitted during vaginal intercourse. However, it is important to know that it may also be transmitted during oral sex. Factors that put you at increased risk of HPV infection include:
-Multiple sexual partners
-A history of other sexually transmitted infections
-Cigarette smoking

Regular Pap tests are the best tool for early detection of cervical cancer. The American Cancer Society recommends that you have your first Pap test about three years after first having sexual relations or at age 21 if you haven't been sexually active. After age 21, the guidelines recommend annual Pap tests until age 29 and every two to three years from ages 30 to 69.

Human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection, is the most common cause of cervical cancer. When a woman is exposed to HPV, her immune system usually prevents the virus from doing any harm. But in a small number of women, the virus survives for years and eventually converts some cells on the surface of the cervix into cancer cells. These changes happen very slowly. At first, the cells only show signs of a viral infection. Later, the cells become precancerous. Doctors refer to this as cervical intraepithelial neoplasia. In time, it progresses to invasive cervical cancer.

It's not clear why some women are more likely to develop cervical cancer. Some types of HPV are more aggressive than others and that plays a role. Cigarette smoking increases the risk of both precancerous changes and cancer of the cervix. The best way to prevent sexually transmitted infections is to have fewer sexual partners and use condoms.
In June 2006, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Gardasil, a vaccine that offers protection from the most dangerous types of HPV. The national Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends routine vaccination for girls age 11 and 12, as well as girls and women ages 13 to 26 if they haven't received the vaccine already. The vaccine is most effective if given to girls before they become sexually active.

Children of mothers who ate more fish and other seafood while pregnant are smarter and have better developmental skills than kids of women who ate less or none, researchers said on Thursday in findings they called surprising.

The study, sure to be controversial, sought to assess whether it is wise, as some experts and the U.S. government have recommended, for pregnant women to limit their seafood intake to avoid mercury, a toxin that can harm the nervous system of developing foetuses.

Dr. Joseph Hibbeln, a U.S. National Institutes of Health researcher who led the study in The Lancet medical journal, said seafood is a key source of omega-3 fatty acids, important for fetal brain development.

The researchers said limiting pregnant women's weekly intake to 340 grams (12 ounces) of fish and seafood, as advised by the U.S. government, did not protect their children from developmental problems. Women who avoid seafood, they said, may actually be harming their babies by depriving them of essential nutrients needed for the developing fetal brain.

"It was very surprising," Hibbeln said in a telephone interview. "We did not expect such clear-cut results of the harm of low seafood consumption."

The study looked at the children of more than 8,000 British women tracked by the University of Bristol to determine how kids fared if their mothers ate more than 12 ounces -- about two average meals.
Source: Reuters

SAN FRANCISCO, California (AP) -- Scientists reported Sunday they had found a plentiful source of stem cells in the fluid that cushions babies in the womb.
The announcement may make it easier to sidestep the controversy over destroying embryos for research.
Researchers at Wake Forest University and Harvard University reported the stem cells they drew from amniotic fluid donated by pregnant women hold much the same promise as embryonic stem cells.
They reported they were able to extract the stem cells without harm to mother or fetus and turn their discovery into several different tissue cell types, including brain, liver and bone.
"Our hope is that these cells will provide a valuable resource for tissue repair and for engineered organs as well," said Dr. Anthony Atala, head of Wake Forest's regenerative medicine institute and senior researcher on the project.
It took Atala's team some seven years of research to determine the cells they found were truly stem cells that "can be used to produce a broad range of cells that may be valuable for therapy."

However, the scientists noted they still don't know exactly how many different cell types can be made from the stem cells found in amniotic fluid. They also said that even preliminary tests in patients are years away.
Still, Atala said the research reported in the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology expands far beyond similar work discussed at a heart research conference in November.
Swiss researcher Simon Hoerstrup said at the conference that he had managed to turn amniotic fluid stem cells into heart cells that could be grown into replacement valves.
Hoerstrup has yet to publish his work in a scientific journal.
Atala said the new research has found even more promising stem cells with the potential to turn into many more medically useful replacement parts.

"We have other cell lines cooking," Atala said.
The hallmark of human embryonic stem cells, which are created in the first days after conception, is the ability to turn into any of the more than 220 cell types that make up the human body.
Researchers are hopeful they can train these primordial cells to repair damaged organs in need of healthy cells.
However, many people, including President Bush, oppose the destruction of embryos for any reason.
The Bush administration has severely restricted federal funding for the embryo work since 2001, leading many scientists to search for alternative stem cell sources.

Generating other cell typesThe cells from amniotic fluid "can clearly generate a broad range of important cell types, but they may not do as many tricks as embryonic stem cells," said Dr. Robert Lanza, chief scientist at the stem cell company Advanced Cell Technology.
"Either way, I think this work represents a giant step forward for stem cell research," he said.
It's the latest advance in the so-called regenerative medicine field that has sprung from Atala's lab in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
In April, Atala and his colleagues rebuilt bladders for seven young patients using live tissue grown in the lab.

Most recently, Atala's team extracted a small number of stem cells swimming among the many other cell types in the amniotic fluid.
One of the more promising aspects of the research is that some of the DNA of the amnio stem cells contained Y chromosomes, which means the cells came from the babies rather than the pregnant moms.
Dr. George Daley, a Harvard University stem cell researcher, said that finding raises the possibility that someday expectant parents can freeze amnio stem cells for future tissue replacement in a sick child without fear of immune rejection.
Nonetheless, Daley said the discovery shouldn't be used as a replacement for human embryonic stem cell research.
"While they are fascinating subjects of study in their own right, they are not a substitute for human embryonic stem cells, which allow scientists to address a host of other interesting questions in early human development," said Daley.
He began work last year to clone human embryos to produce stem cells.

Source: CNN 08/01/2007

Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in both the developed and the developing world. The incidence of breast cancer in Karachi, Pakistan is 69.1 per 100,000 with breast cancer presentation in stages III and IV being common (≥ 50%). The most pragmatic solution to early detection lies in breast cancer education of women. Nurses constitute a special group having characteristics most suited for disseminating breast cancer information to the women. We assessed the level of knowledge of breast cancer risk factors among registered female nurses in teaching hospitals of Karachi. We also identified whether selected factors among nurses were associated with their knowledge of breast cancer risk factors, so that relevant measures to improve knowledge of nurses could be implemented.www.nursingtheory.blogspot.com