Comment: The HPV dilemma
Paul Woolley
pp 3-3
At a recent meeting for primary care physicians on sexually transmitted infections (STIs), I was sought out by two female GPs who asked for my thoughts on the safety and efficacy of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine. Having given my professional opinion, I became almost invisible to them as they eagerly discussed plans to vaccinate each other’s daughter. The last I saw of them, they were making a beeline for the pharmaceutical company representative to obtain supplies.
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The myths and risks of HRT
Martyn Walling
pp 4-5
The female menopause is a natural physiological event. However, for some women the experience can be difficult. The gold standard of treatment to ameliorate and treat the hot flushes, lack of sleep, joint aches and psychological features is hormone replacement therapy (HRT). Over the last five years, following the publication of the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) trial and the Million Women Study, the number of women being denied – or not using – HRT has fallen dramatically. Unfortunately, uninformed media articles took over from informed medical opinion, grossly exaggerating the risks of HRT.
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A GP's guide to genital psoriasis
Mrinalini Mahto
pp 6-7
Psoriasis is a multigenic disease, primarily of the skin, with chronic and relapsing courses. It has been estimated to affect between 1–3% of the population. Although the aetiology of psoriasis is unknown, it is considered that it is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait with incomplete penetrance and that environmental factors are responsible for precipitating clinical manifestations. The lower extremities are most frequently affected by well-defined homogeneous erythematous plaques, followed by the trunk, elbow and scalp. Characteristic nail changes include small pits on the surface of the nail plate, yellow discoloration due to onycholysis and subungual hyperkeratosis.
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Potions, pariahs and pre-war prophylactics
Michelle Bocarro
pp 8-10
'Doctors are often asked questions relating to the suitability of certain persons for purposes of matrimony. Many want to know, for instance, whether they may marry a man or woman who is, or has been, troubled with some disease or other, or whose relatives have suffered, or are suffering, from a particular illness, either physical or mental. It is always advisable, when one is in doubt on the matter, to consult a doctor and put all the facts before him.’
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Sex and the community pharmacy: good, local advice
Beth Taylor
pp 11-13
Community pharmacists provide sexual health advice and related products and services to a potential six million community pharmacy visitors every day. The government has recognised the greater role that a service as convenient and accessible as the community pharmacy can play in sexual health. The Choosing Health Through Pharmacy White Paper, published in April 2005, suggested that the development of appropriate sexual health services in pharmacies could significantly increase access to confidential professional advice and testing, leading to higher rates of detection of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and improved self-care.
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Managing menopausal hot flushes – is HRT OTT?
Paola Albertazzi
pp 14-15
Oestrogen was first approved by the USA Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of hot flushes and night sweats in 1941. Over the following 60 years, the popularity of this hormone grew to such an extent that by the 1990s it was being hailed as a remedy for almost all ailments related to aging. However, with the abrupt halt of the Women’s Health Initiative study in 2002, the public’s perception of oestrogen changed almost overnight: it was no longer a panacea, more like a deadly poison.
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Penile bead implantation
Michael St John Floyd (Jnr), Donagh Cotter and Michael O Corcoran
pp 16-17
Implantation of foreign bodies in the penis is rare. However, in Asia, this unusual form of genital mutilation is commonplace among the criminal fraternity. Pain is one of the main reasons for elective intervention and little is known regarding acute complications. Penile implantation of beads was first described in Japan in 1962. In Ireland this is a relatively new phenomenon. We describe a case, the reasons underlying this unusual form of genital mutilation and comment briefly on its management.
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Active support for men and women with sexual problems
Janis Troup
pp 18-18
The Sexual Dysfunction Association (SDA), the only national patient association of its kind, is committed to helping and supporting people, and partners of people, with all forms of sexual dysfunction. The charity aims to raise awareness of sexual functioning and wellbeing, provide information and education on male and female sexual problems and improve the public’s understanding of the seriousness and causes of male and female sexual disorders.
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Like a virgin?
David Hicks
pp 19-19
It came to me as a stream of consciousness while I was being calibrated for a made-to-measure suit. I was reminded of that old joke about the tailor who, running the tape measure over the front of his client’s trousers asks, ‘On what side does sir dress?’ The client looks at the tailor and says, ‘Just make them baggy at the knees’. I suppose that led to my next thought, which was about something that I had read recently in the medical press about the ‘designer vagina’.
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