Agenda set on women's health for the 21st century
Agenda set on women's health for the 21st century
Health professionals prioritize issues for research
The Office of Research on Women's Health at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD, recently brought together more than 400 advocates, policy makers, researchers, and other national leaders in women's health to set the women's health research agenda for the 21st century. Some of the recommendations for research include:
· Alcohol and other drug use. Learn more about predisposing factors.
· Bone and musculoskeletal disorders. Learn why arthritis is more common in women and what triggers it. Understand factors that contribute to developing peak bone mass. Determine the type, intensity, duration, and frequency of physical activity that is important to musculoskeletal health.
· Cancer. Address the "gaps" in cancer treatment. For example, lung cancer mortality has increased in women while decreasing in men. Women receive colon cancer screening less frequently than men. There are discrepancies in group outcomes.
· Cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases. Focus on detection and management of cardiovascular disease in high-risk populations, such as ethnic minorities, the aging, and the disabled.
· Digestive diseases. Promote and fund existing tools and develop new technologies to address irritable bowel syndrome, which affects 15% of the population, with a prevalence in women of 2:1. Develop strategies to improve colorectal cancer screening in women, the third leading cause of cancer death in women. Identify gender-specific factors in gallstone disease, which affects 21 million Americans with a 2:1 female prevalence.
· Immunity and autoimmune diseases. Study genetics, environmental influences, and hormonal effects.
· Mental disorders. Continue studies of disorders that are prevalent in women, such as mood, anxiety, and eating disorders.
· Neuroscience. Raise awareness in the neuroscience research community about the importance of sex differences and hormonal influences on all aspects of brain function.
· Pharmacologic issues. Examine what contributes to gender differences in drug action and disposition.
· Reproductive issues. Study biology of pregnancy and implantation. Address improving contraceptive use behavior and develop new contraceptives. Research fertility and infertility issues. Study the effect of hormone replacement therapy.
· Urologic and kidney conditions. Conduct basic science research on bladder and pelvic floor disorders.
Subscribe Now for Access
You have reached your article limit for the month. We hope you found our articles both enjoyable and insightful. For information on new subscriptions, product trials, alternative billing arrangements or group and site discounts please call 800-688-2421. We look forward to having you as a long-term member of the Relias Media community.