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At least 469 records · Page 26Linked to original sources
PubMed2005

"I'm going to die of something anyway": women's perceptions of tamoxifen for breast cancer risk reduction.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate how ethnically diverse women who are eligible for tamoxifen prophylaxis because of their breast cancer risk decide about tamoxifen use for risk reduction. DESIGN: A qualitative intervention pilot study used focus groups to discuss the use of tamoxifen and to identify the concerns of ethnically diverse women about the preventive use of this drug. Focus group discussion involved exploration of the benefits and risks of tamoxifen prophylaxis, presentation of a standardized educational intervention, and focused discussion on attitudes about tamoxifen for prevention. Prominent themes emerged from iterative review of focus group transcripts. RESULTS: Fear of breast cancer was not prominent, and participants were less inclined to take tamoxifen as preventive therapy after receiving information. Decisions were based on participants' understandings of competing risks and benefits. Specifically, participants expressed limited willingness to take medication with potential serious side effects for risk reduction and were unwilling to discontinue hormone replacement therapy. Uneasiness about the reliability of scientific studies surfaced in the focus groups comprised of White and Latina women. African-American women described faith as important to prevention. CONCLUSIONS: Women were wary of taking a drug for a disease they might not develop. Women felt they had options other than tamoxifen to reduce their risk of breast cancer, including early detection, diet, faith, and complementary and alternative therapies.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Optimum screening interventions for gynecologic malignancies.

The availability of screening modalities and improvements in prevention have reduced the risk of developing some cancers over the last few decades. Methods for optimal screening of gynecologic cancers are still being investigated. Cervical cancer is the only gynecologic malignancy for which a screening modality is widely accepted and recommended to all women. Annual screening of cervical cells has been shown to reduce the incidence of cervical cancer by 78%. Unfortunately, more than 50% of cervical cancers occur in women who have not been screened optimally. In the year 2000, an estimated 12,800 women developed cervical cancer. Of these women, 89% were seen by a physician but not screened. Vaginal cancer is associated with a similar etiology, pathobiology, and symptomatology as is cervical cancer. Vaginal dysplasia and cancer can also be detected by the Pap test, but the prevalence of the disease is low. Endometrial carcinoma is the most common gynecologic cancer. The widespread availability of outpatient biopsy devices has been the most significant advance in the early diagnosis of corpus cancers. Ovarian cancer is the gynecologic malignancy associated with the highest death rate. No modality has been shown as an effective screening method for this cancer. Women with a family history of ovarian cancer may benefit from combined modality screening; prophylactic oophorectomy should be offered to those with hereditary ovarian cancer syndromes. A complete physical examination by the physician offers the best method for early detection of vulvar cancer. Awareness and implementation of recommended screening guidelines for gynecologic cancers by primary care and specialty physicians can decrease the incidence and mortality of cervical cancer. Including the genital tract in the complete examination of the female patient could decrease markedly the mortality from the other gynecologic cancers.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Women and alcohol problems: a critical analysis of the literature and unanswered questions.

The evaluation of alcohol treatment services for women that emerged from the deliberations of the expert panel and RSA roundtable clearly documents the importance of interdisciplinary research. This research considers the particular social and physical context of women's lives and uses measurement tools and outcome measures appropriate for women. Development of gender-tested measurements, gender-relevant treatment services, and gender-appropriate outcome evaluations is necessary to ensure that women receive the services they need. The inclusion of women from geographically and ethnically diverse subject populations, as well as from subgroups who have traditionally been excluded from health research, is critical in the development of scientifically sound, research-based knowledge of the treatment of women with alcohol problems. The papers that follow include critical reviews of the literature by members of the expert panel, and these reviews were enriched by the roundtable discussion at RSA. Schmidt and McCarty evaluate the research on women supported on welfare. The unique challenges for pregnant women on Medicaid are discussed by Hankin, McCaul, and Heussner. The research on alcohol treatment specific to older women is critiqued by Blow, and the barriers and need for alcohol service for women in rural populations are discussed by Booth and McLaughlin. The relationships between substance abuse and violence are assessed by Miller, Wilsnack, and Cunradi. Finally, Sinha and O'Malley discuss critical gaps in understanding the impact on treatment outcomes of co-occurring disorders such as depression, anxiety, and eating disorders.

Alcoholism↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Cancer and pathologic hyperplasia of endometrial mucosa. Clinical study].

The authors carried out a tentative evaluation of the factors regarded as increasing the proneness to endometrial cancer development. Particular attention was paid to pathological hyperplasia of the endometrium. The studied material consisted of 592 women (76 with endometrial cancer and 516 with endometrial hyperplasia). The incidence of pathological hyperplasia of the endometrium was six times higher than that of endometrial cancer. Endometrial cancer was found mainly in postmenopausal women. Apart from pathological hyperplasia of the endometrium, among other factors characterizing women developing endometrial cancer, hypertension should be mentioned in the first place. In the postoperative material obtained from women operated on for endometrial cancer (76 cases) and pathological endometrial hyperplasia (244 cases) the character of pathological changes in removed ovaries in 2/3 of the cases pointed to hyperplastic non-malignant lesions. In 1/3 of the women either no pathological changes or only fibrosis and ovarian tissue atrophy were found in the ovaries.

Adult↗
PubMed2006

Modifiable risk factors for developing diabetes among women with previous gestational diabetes.

INTRODUCTION: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) affects approximately 2% to 4% of all pregnant women in the United States each year. Women who have had GDM are at high risk for developing nongestational diabetes. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of modifiable risk factors for developing diabetes among women with previous GDM only. METHODS: Cross-sectional data for nonpregnant women from the 2003 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System were used to estimate and compare the prevalence of modifiable risk factors among three groups: nonpregnant women with previous GDM only, nonpregnant women with current diabetes, and nonpregnant women without diabetes. RESULTS: In 2003, 7.6% of nonpregnant women aged 18 years and older in the United States had current self-reported physician-diagnosed diabetes, and 1.5% had previous GDM only. Compared with women without diabetes, women with previous GDM only had higher prevalence of no leisure-time physical activity (32.0% vs 25.7%), overweight (62.2% vs 49.0%), and obesity (29.4% vs 20.0%). After adjusting for sociodemographic variables, women with previous GDM only were more likely to have no leisure-time physical activity (prevalence odds ratio [POR], 1.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2-1.7) and more likely to be overweight (POR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.6-2.2) or obese (POR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.4-2.1), compared with women with no diabetes. CONCLUSION: Women with previous GDM are more likely to have modifiable risk factors for developing diabetes than women without diabetes. More attention to this issue is needed from health care providers and public health officials to encourage the promotion of healthy lifestyles during and after pregnancy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Viral load as a predictor of the risk of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia.

HPV infections are believed to be a necessary cause of cervical cancer. Viral burden, as a surrogate indicator for persistence, may help predict risk of subsequent SIL. We used results of HPV test and cytology data repeated every 4-6 months in 2,081 women participating in a longitudinal study of the natural history of HPV infection and cervical neoplasia in São Paulo, Brazil. Using the MY09/11 PCR protocol, 473 women were positive for HPV DNA during the first 2 visits. We retested all positive specimens by a quantitative, low-stringency PCR method to measure viral burden in cervical cells. Mean viral loads and 95% CIs were calculated using log-transformed data. RRs and 95% CIs of incident SIL were calculated by proportional hazards models, adjusting for age and HPV oncogenicity. The risk of incident lesions increased with viral load at enrollment. The mean number of viral copies/cell at enrollment was 2.6 for women with no incident lesions and increased (trend p = 0.003) to 15.1 for women developing 3 or more SIL events over 6 years of follow-up. Compared to those with <1 copy per cell in specimens tested during the first 2 visits, RRs for incident SIL increased from 1.9 (95% CI 0.8-4.2) for those with 1-10 copies/cell to 4.5 (95% CI 1.9-10.7) for those with >1,000 copies/cell. The equivalent RR of HSIL for >1,000 copies/cell was 2.6 (95% CI 0.5-13.2). Viral burden appears to have an independent effect on SIL incidence. Measurement of viral load, as a surrogate for HPV persistence, may identify women at risk of developing cervical cancer precursors.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

The efficacy of biobehavioral and compliance interventions in the adjunctive treatment of mild pregnancy-induced hypertension.

This investigation assessed the efficacy of a biobehavioral intervention in the adjunctive treatment of mild pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), a potentially serious complication of pregnancy in which normotensive women develop hypertension, proteinuria, and edema of unknown etiology late in gestation. Forty-five women with symptoms of PIH were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: bed rest alone (the most common obstetrical treatment), bed rest with individualized compliance enhancement training, or a four-session biobehavioral treatment consisting of bed rest, compliance enhancement training, and individualized thermal biofeedback-assisted relaxation training. Results indicated that while blood pressure for the bed rest and compliance enhancement groups continued to rise and pose an increasing health risk to maternal and fetal well-being, subjects in the biobehavioral group maintained their blood pressure at a significantly lower, and presumably safer, level. The biobehavioral treatment is hypothesized to affect blood pressure levels in subjects with mild PIH through the mediation of the sympathetic nervous system, decreasing peripheral vascular resistance and cardiac output. The results of this investigation suggest that the biobehavioral intervention may be an effective adjunct to bed rest in the treatment of mild PIH remote from term.

Adult↗
PubMed1987

Sudden death risk in overt coronary heart disease: the Framingham Study.

Over 30 years of surveillance of 5127 subjects free of CHD, 760 men and 574 women developed overt CHD, and there were 160 sudden deaths in men and 73 in women. Among those who sustained clinically manifest CHD, the sudden death risk was increased 6.7 times that of those without an interim event. Although the relative risk was comparable in the two sexes, CHD did not eliminate the female advantage over men. Myocardial infarction imposed a greater sudden death risk than angina pectoris, and silent infarctions were as dangerous as symptomatic infarctions. Onset of CHD put young and old at equal risk of sudden death. Some 40% of sudden deaths occurred in the 4% of the general population with overt CHD. The proportion of coronary attacks presenting as sudden death increased from 13% at ages 35 to 64 years to 20% at ages 65 to 94 years. The fraction of CHD deaths classified as sudden deaths was lower in those with than without interim CHD. In those with established CHD, factors reflecting ischemic myocardial damage and cardiac failure were the chief predictors of sudden death. The proportion of CHD deaths presenting as sudden deaths has not declined in subjects with prior CHD over three decades, despite a national decline in the overall CHD mortality rate.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Maternal hypertension and associated pregnancy complications among African-American and other women in the United States.

OBJECTIVE: To characterize maternal hypertension and related pregnancy complications among African-American and other women in the United States. METHODS: Using data from the National Hospital Discharge Survey, we analyzed the incidence and clinical spectrum of maternal hypertension among African-American women who delivered in hospital during 1988-1992. Maternal hypertension consisted of pregnancy-induced hypertension and chronic hypertension preceding pregnancy, including pregnancy-aggravated hypertension. Pregnancy-induced hypertension included preeclampsia, eclampsia, and transient hypertension. Incidence rates (per 1000 deliveries) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated by type of hypertension and demographic characteristics. Risk ratios and 95% CIs for adverse pregnancy outcomes among women with hypertension were also calculated. RESULTS: The overall incidence of all causes of maternal hypertension was 64.2, and of chronic hypertension preceding pregnancy it was 25.0 per 1000 deliveries among African-American women, an excess of 15.6 and 14.5 cases per 1000 deliveries, respectively, compared with rates for other women. The risks of preterm delivery and inadequate fetal growth were similarly increased for all hypertensive women, regardless of race. However, hypertensive African-American women were at a threefold greater risk of pregnancies complicated by antepartum hemorrhage, an association that was not observed, in other women. Development of preeclampsia and eclampsia irrespective of race was about four times higher among women with chronic hypertension preceding pregnancy than among those without chronic hypertension. CONCLUSION: The excess incidence of maternal hypertension, particularly chronic hypertension, may contribute to adverse maternal and fetal pregnancy outcomes and the disparity in outcomes observed between African-American and other women in the U.S. These findings provide a specific focus for further clinical outcomes research and assessment of prenatal management in African-American women.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2006

Some thoughts on the vasculopathy of women with ischemic heart disease.

Considerable experimental and clinical data indicate that sex has an important influence on cardiovascular physiology and pathology. This report integrates selected literature with new data from the Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) on vascular findings in women with ischemic heart disease (IHD) and how these findings differ from those in men. A number of common vascular disease-related conditions are either unique to (e.g., hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, gestational diabetes, peripartum dissection, polycystic ovarian syndrome, etc.) or more frequent (e.g., migraine, coronary spasm, lupus, vasculitis, Raynaud's phenomenon, etc.) in women than men. Post-menopausal women more frequently have many traditional vascular disease risk conditions (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, obesity, inactivity, and so on), and these conditions cluster more frequently in them than men. Considerable evidence supports the notion that, with these requisite conditions, women develop a more severe or somewhat different form of vascular disease than men. Structurally, women's coronary vessels are smaller in size and appear to contain more diffuse atherosclerosis, their aortas are stiffer (fibrosis, remodeling, and so on), and their microvessels appear to be more frequently dysfunctional compared with men. Functionally, women's vessels frequently show impaired vasodilator responses. Limitations of existing data and higher risks in women with acute myocardial infarction, need for revascularization, or heart failure create uncertainty about management. A better understanding of these findings should provide direction for new algorithms to improve management of the vasculopathy underlying IHD in women.

Cardiovascular System↗
PubMed2001

Bone mineral density and endogenous hormones and risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women (United States).

OBJECTIVE: This case-cohort study was designed to examine whether total hip bone mineral density (BMD) is independently associated with breast cancer over and above its association with other determinants, including levels of total and bioavailable estradiol and testosterone and sex-hormone binding globulin. METHODS: Our study population was selected from a cohort of 8,203 postmenopausal women who were screened for the Fracture Intervention Trial in 1992, at which time BMD was assessed, and blood samples were obtained. A total of 109 women developed breast cancer during four years of follow-up; 173 other randomly selected women from the larger cohort were also selected. Cox proportional hazards with robust variance adjustment was used for these analyses. RESULTS: Relative to women in the lower fourth of the BMD distribution, the risk associated with being in the upper fourth was 2.6 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1-5.8). After adjusting for serum hormone levels, the corresponding relative risk was 2.5 (95% CI 0.9-5.2). With body mass index and number of years since menopause added to the multivariate analysis, the relative risk decreased to 1.4 (95% CI 0.5-4.0). CONCLUSIONS: BMD may not influence breast cancer risk independent of its relationship with endogenous hormones and measured covariates.

Aged↗
PubMed2003

Qualitative and quantitative assessments of HAART adherence of substance-abusing women.

This study was set up to examine factors affecting adherence to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) by substance abusing women and to conduct a pilot study of a reminder device intervention. Three focus groups totaling 24 HIV-positive women developed priority lists of issues affecting adherence. Another group of 24 HIV-positive women received a timer-reminder with structured interviews on adherence at baseline and two monthly follow up intervals. Focus groups described key barriers to HAART adherence as substance abuse, forgetting, feeling ill, others' negative attitudes, obtaining refills and confidentiality. Primary disadvantages to HAART were side effects, pill-taking schedule and burden of taking medications. Facilitators included reminders (e.g. pill boxes) and spirituality. After receiving the reminder, missing a dose was less common (p < 0.05) due to sleeping through dose, being busy and feeling too good while a favourable trend (p = 0.07) was seen for change in daily routine and having too many pills to take. Although well accepted, the reminder did not affect the proportion missing a dose in the past two weeks: baseline (33%), first follow-up (30%) and second follow-up (30%). Forgetting to take HAART was only one of many cited barriers to adherence in these HIV-positive women; well-received reminder devices did not affect adherence. To improve substance-abusing women's adherence, multidimensional interventions are warranted.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Bioreductive activation of catechol estrogen-ortho-quinones: aromatization of the B ring in 4-hydroxyequilenin markedly alters quinoid formation and reactivity.

There is a clear association between excessive exposure to estrogens and the development of cancer in several tissues including breast and endometrium. The risk factors for women developing these cancers are all associated with longer estrogen exposure, as may be facilitated by early menses, late menopause and long-term estrogen replacement therapy. Equilenin (1,3,5(10),6,8-estrapentaen-3-ol-17-one) or its 17-hydroxylated analogs make up 15% of the most widely prescribed estrogen replacement formulation, Premarin, and yet there is very little information on the human metabolism of these estrogens. In this study, we synthesized the catechol metabolite of equilenin, 4-hydroxyequilenin, and examined how aromatization of the B ring affects the formation and reactivity of the o-quinone (3,5-cyclohexadien-1,2-dione). 4-Hydroxyequilenin-o-quinone is much more redox-active and longer-lived than the endogenous catechol estrone-o-quinones, which suggests that the mechanism(s) of toxicity of the former could be quite different. Interestingly, the rate of reduction of the 4-hydroxyequilenin-o-quinone is increased at least 13-fold in the presence of NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase (DT-diaphorase). Once NADH is consumed however, the catechol auto-oxidized rapidly to the o-quinone. NADH consumption was accompanied by dicumarol-sensitive oxygen uptake both with the purified enzyme and with cytosol from human melanoma cells with high levels of DT-diaphorase activity. P450 reductase and rat liver microsomes also catalyzed NADPH consumption and oxygen uptake. 4-Hydroxyestrone-o-quinone was also rapidly reduced by NAD(P)H; however, this o-quinone does not auto-oxidize and once the o-quinone is reduced the reaction terminates. Including oxidative enzymes in the incubation completes the redox couple and 4-hydroxyestrone-o-quinone behaves like 4-hydroxyequilenin-o-quinone. These data suggest that reduction of estrogen-o-quinones may not result in detoxification. Instead this could represent a cytotoxic mechanism involving consumption of reducing equivalents (NADH/NADPH) as well as formation of superoxide and other reactive oxygen species leading to oxidative stress. Finally, we have compared the cytotoxicity of 4-hydroxyequilenin with that of the estrone catechols in human melanoma cells. 4-Hydroxyequilenin is 5-fold more toxic in these cells compared with 4-hydroxyestrone (ED50 = 7.8 versus 38 microM, respectively) suggesting that formation of the longer-lived redox-active 4-hydroxyequilenin-o-quinone was responsible for the cytotoxic differences. These results substantiate the conclusion that the involvement of quinoids in catechol estrogen toxicity depends on a combination of the rate of formation of the o-quinone, the lifetime of the o-quinone, and the electrophilic/redox reactivity of the quinoids.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Gender differences in the balance of healthy elderly as demonstrated by dynamic posturography.

BACKGROUND: Prior studies indicate that older women fall more often than men although there is no evidence of gender-based balance differences. Using a force platform, we measured the effects of restricted sensory input and support surface movement to detect gender differences in balance. METHODS: Healthy, elderly community dwellers (N = 234, mean age = 76 +/- 5 years, 52% female) were administered the following perturbations on the balance platform: The platform and/or visual surround were fixed or tilted proportionally to the subject's sway with the eyes open or closed, forward or backward horizontal translations, and toes-up and toes-down rotations. RESULTS: Gender-based balance differences were not present during quiet standing, or when the support surface or visual input were manipulated separately. Women swayed and lost their balance more than men when the surface was sway-referenced while vision was compromised, but by the third trial their sway control was comparable to the men. Women also initially lost their balance more frequently than men during toes-up and -down rotations, and compared to men continued to lose their balance more often during repeated toes-up rotations. Finally, women developed less angular momentum than men in response to forward platform rotations. DISCUSSION: Elderly women show impairments of balance when simultaneously deprived of visual and somatosensory inputs or during a backwards destabilization. Since there is little evidence for a CNS source for such gender differences, biomechanical origins (e.g., dorsiflexion strength and range of motion) are a more likely cause. Limited postural control of women under conditions stressing balance may explain their greater frequency of falling.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2000

Building data systems for monitoring and responding to violence against women. Recommendations from a workshop.

This report provides recommendations regarding public health surveillance and research on violence against women developed during a workshop, "Building Data Systems for Monitoring and Responding to Violence Against Women." The Workshop, which was convened October 29-30, 1998, was co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Justice.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Treatment with 2% clindamycin vaginal cream prior to first trimester surgical abortion to reduce signs of postoperative infection: a prospective, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial vaginosis (BV) and intermediate flora is known risk-factor for postoperative infection after surgical termination of pregnancy. Vaginal application of 2% clindamycin cream is an efficacious treatment for BV, but it is not known whether preoperative administration of clindamycin cream might reduce the signs of post-abortion infection after surgical termination of pregnancy. AIM: To evaluate whether preoperative treatment with clindamycin cream might reduce the signs of post-abortion infection after legal abortion. DESIGN: Prospective, double-blinded, placebo-controlled, multicenter study. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Consecutive women attending for surgical termination prior to 11+4 gestational weeks were approached. We randomized participants to preoperative vaginal treatment with 2% clindamycin cream or placebo cream in a double-blinded fashion. At all visits vaginal smears were air dried on microscopy slides to be stored. The rate of postoperative pelvic infection according to our definition was the main outcome variable, the cure rates of BV and of intermediate flora were secondary outcome variables. RESULTS: Of 1655 enrolled women, 1102 were evaluable for analyses. Fifty-eight women developed signs of post-abortion infection. Preoperative treatment with clindamycin cream significantly (RR: 4.2, 95% C.I. 1.2-15.9) reduced the risk of post-abortion infection among women with abnormal vaginal flora (BV and intermediate flora). Treatment with clindamycin cream in women with normal lactobacilli flora did not demonstrate any difference compared to the non-treatment group. CONCLUSION: Preoperative treatment for at least three days with clindamycin cream significantly reduced the risk for developing signs of post-abortion infection only among women with preoperative abnormal vaginal flora (BV and intermediate flora).

Abortion, Induced↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Adverse reactions and interactions of antiepileptic drugs in epileptic women].

OBJECTIVE: To review the present knowledge related with gender differences in drug effects, with special emphasis concerning antiepileptic drugs (AEDs). DEVELOPMENT: Women and men differ in their response to drugs and these differences can be sometimes clinically relevant. Adverse drug reactions are noticeably more frequent in women, probably due to a combination of cultural and biological factors. Gender differences related to antiepileptic treatment have been observed concerning alterations in bone mineral density and lipid profile due to several AEDs, lamotrigine induced rash and visual field loss caused by vigabatrin. It is also important to study potential drug interactions between AEDs and contraceptives, as well as hormonal replacement therapy (HRT). At this respect, the influence of AEDs on the pharmacokinetics and efficacy of contraceptives are well known, but no data are available concerning the effect of contraceptives on AEDs pharmacology. Likewise, data relative to the eventual interactions arising between HRT and anticonvulsant are lacking. CONCLUSION: The knowledge about gender differences in the adverse drug reactions and interactions of AEDs is still limited; more information is necessary to optimize anticonvulsant treatment in epileptic women.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

[Health care services for women with postpartum mental disorders--assessment of current options in Austria].

For many women childbirth is one of the most impressive life-events, but this period of life may also be a phase of increased vulnerability for psychiatric illness. 10-15% of women develop a postnatal depression (PND) after the birth of a child, and 1@1000 suffer from a puerperal psychosis. Despite the high prevalence, with estimates of approximately 10,000 women suffering annually from postnatal psychiatric disturbances in Austria, there has been a lack of medical attendance for these women and their children. Motivated by a research initiative from the EU on transcultural aspects of postnatal depression (PND) with 17 participating research centers world-wide, a research team at the Vienna University Clinic for Psychiatry initiated the investigation of conditions for mother-child-admissions at 31 psychiatric wards in Austria. These departments were asked about the possibility of conjoint mother-child-admission, and their experiences with this form of admission; 23 departments (74.2%) provided information. A total of 12 departments responded that they theoretically accepted mothers with their babies; however, they also indicated that until now these conjoint admissions had been performed only very rarely or not at all. Based on many years of experience in the field of postpartum mental health in Great Britain, British researchers have developed guidelines for need assessment and health care provision for women with postpartum psychiatric disorders. With the help of these guidelines, the Viennese team of psychiatrists tried to develop fundamental concepts for need assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of patients suffering from postpartum mental illness in Austria.

Austria↗