The pathophysiology and therapy of menopausal symptoms

Menopause is generally experienced as a biopsychosocial process involving physiological changes, and influenced by a wide range of psychological, social and cultural factors. The loss of ovarian oestrogen production may cause debilitating symptoms, including hot flushes, night sweats, sleep disturbance, vaginal dryness, dyspareunia, bladder dysfunction, loss of libido, and mood changes. Experience of the menopause transition varies widely between individuals, depending on the age of onset, personal health and wellbeing, social context, environment and culture.Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) remains the most effective treatment for the management of vasomotor symptoms and vaginal dryness, but has no proven role in the treatment of chronic diseases of ageing. Treatment should be individualized, and for most healthy women aged 50–59 years the risks of HRT are low. An understanding of the pathophysiology of menopausal symptoms and the risks and benefits of both hormonal and non-hormonal treatments assists in the individual management of patients.     

Constructing robust selves after brain injury: positive identity work among members of a female self-help group

Despite common experiences of identity damage, decline, and deterioration, many brain injury survivors succeed in reconstructing robust identities in the wake of injury. Yet, while this accomplishment greatly benefits survivors’ quality of life, little is known about how positive identity work might be facilitated or enhanced in therapeutic institutions. Drawing on data from a women’s self-help group, we argue that an egalitarian, reflective, strength-focused, and gender-segregated environment can provide female ABI (acquired brain injury) survivors with a fertile scene for identity enhancement and offer unique opportunities for collective identity development. Sociolinguistic interactional analysis revealed four types of positive identity work undertaken within the group: constructing competent selves; tempering the threat of loss and impairment; resisting infantilisation and delegitimisation; and asserting a collective gender identity. This identity work was facilitated by specific programme attributes and activities and contributed to the global project of decentring disability and destigmatising impairments and losses. We call for increased attention to identity issues in brain injury rehabilitation and argue that gender-segregated programming can provide a unique space for female survivors to construct empowering individual and collective identities after injury.     

绝经管理的整体观

        绝经是一个古老的概念，见诸于文献，最早可以追溯到春秋时期中医的重要文献之一《黄帝内经》。其中，《素问·上古天真论》有这样的描述：“女子二七而天葵至，任脉通，太冲脉盛，月事以时下，故有子……七七任脉虚，太冲脉衰少，天葵竭，地道不通，故形坏而无子也。”绝经是卵巢功能衰竭所造成的一种生命现象，从理论上讲，经过长期的进化的洗礼，人体所有的器官和组织，都是维持人体生命活动不可或缺的重要组成部分。时至今日，在不同的流行病学调查中，女性平均绝经年龄仍保持在50岁左右［1-2］，可谓亘古未变，而变化的是人类寿命的延长，2018年北京女性预期寿命已经达84.63岁。 浏览更多请关注本刊微信公众号及当期杂志。     

Reducing sexual risk and promoting acceptance of men who have sex with men living with HIV in India: Outcomes and process evaluation of a pilot randomised multi-level intervention

ABSTRACT

HIV-positive men who have sex with men (HIV+MSM) in India need culturally-relevant interventions to promote safer sex. We tested a multi-level intervention among HIV+MSM that targeted individual, interpersonal, and community factors, based on the Social-Personal and Social Ecological Models. We conducted a 2?×?2 factorial RCT with 119 HIV+MSM randomised to receive either an individual-level intervention (ILI) using motivational interviewing to promote safer sex, a community-level intervention (CLI) to strengthen community norms toward safer sex and reduce stigma among MSM communities, a multi-level intervention combining the individual- and community-level interventions (ILI?+?CLI), or standard-of-care control. Participants completed pre- and post-intervention assessments of a composite sexual risk score and a process evaluation to assess fidelity and satisfaction. Out of the 119 HIV+MSM, 106 (89.0%) completed pre- and post-intervention assessments. Generalised Estimating Equation models showed that both CLI (Incidence Rate Ratio [IRR]?=?.67, 95% CI .47 to .96) and ILI?+?CLI (IRR?=?.66, 95% CI .48 to .91) groups had a statistically significant decrease in sexual risk compared to the standard-of-care. The interventions had high levels of fidelity and satisfaction. This pilot RCT demonstrated feasibility and potential effectiveness of a multi-level intervention that addresses individual, interpersonal and community-level contributors of sexual risk among HIV+MSM.     

甲状旁腺激素对大鼠牵张成骨过程中O NC、OPN、C-FOS、COL1、VEGF、RUNX2、ALP基因表达的影响

目的：探讨甲状旁腺激素（PTH）对大鼠牵张成骨（DO）过程中ONC、OPN、C-FOS、COL1、VEGF、RUNX2、ALP基因表达的影响。方法30只雄性大鼠制备大鼠下颌骨DO模型。随机分5组，每组6只。第1组（只有牵张无PTH），术后8周取材，应用HE染色及微CT检测，以确定成骨情况。第2组（有牵张无PTH），第3组（有牵张有PTH），第4组（无牵张有PTH），第5组（对照组：无牵张无PTH）。2、3、4组及对照组术后1周取材，RT-PCR测定ONC、OPN、C-FOS、COL1、VEGF、RUNX2、ALP基因的表达。结果第1组，新骨形成，骨质充满牵张区，骨质连续，大鼠建模成功。RT-PCR检测结果显示，2、3、4组与对照组比较，OPN、COL1、RUNX2、ALP基因表达有明显提高（P＜0．05），其中第3组最为明显。ONC、C-FOS、VEGF基因2、3、4组与对照组比较差异无统计学意义（P＞0．05）。结论 PTH在 DO 过程中，间歇性给以 PTH的作用只有在牵张期发挥作用，其对 OPN、COL1、RUNX2、ALP基因表达能够获得理想的协同作用。