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Professional recommendations against routine prostate cancer screening have little effect — ScienceDaily

The study, published as a research letter online in JAMA Internal Medicine, focused on the use of PSA — prostate-specific antigen — to test for prostate cancer. “We found that the effect of the guidelines recommending against the routine screening of elderly men in particular has been minimal at best,” says Jesse Sammon, D.O., a researcher at Henry Ford’s Vattikuti Urology Institute and lead author of the study. The researchers found an estimated 17 million men age 50 or older without a history of prostate cancer or prostate problems who reported undergoing PSA screening…

Colonoscopy withdrawal times linked to polyp detection rates

"There has been controversy over whether longer withdrawal times could lead to detection of increased numbers of polyps of various types," said Lynn F. Butterly, MD, director of Colorectal Cancer Screening at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and NCCC, and associate professor of Medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. "Since the rate of discovery of polyps is a critical quality measure for colonoscopy, examining whether or not there is an association between withdrawal time and finding more polyps may contribute evidence leading to improved quality in screening through colonoscopy." During a colonoscopy, a lighted tube (colonoscope) is passed through the colon to find and remove polyps…

Sibling bullying is under-recognized, study finds

Across the U.S., parents, educators, doctors and other experts have rallied to protect children from bullies. However, bullying by brothers and sisters is often chalked up to normal sibling behavior. Now a new study finds that sibling aggression, like peer aggression, causes mental distress, which can lead to anger, depression and anxiety in the child who is being targeted. The researchers found that 32 percent of the children and adolescents had experienced one type of sibling aggression during the previous year. Further, the study showed that regardless of whether the aggression was mild or severe, bullied kids had significantly worse mental health than children who were not bullied. “There is a natural emotional intensity to sibling relationships,” said lead author Corinna Jenkins Tucker, an associate professor of family studies at the University of New Hampshire. “There is a lot of love, but also the potential for a lot of conflicts.” More from LiveScience The researchers analyzed information from telephone interviews with nearly 3,600 adolescents ages 10 to 17, and with adult caregivers of children 9 and under. Each youngster had at least one sibling under 18 who was living at home. The data were obtained as part of The National Survey of Children's Exposure to Violence, which documents the incidence and prevalence of youngsters' exposure to violence. During the interviews, the researcher asked if the adolescent or child had been bullied by a sibling during the past year. As the researchers defined it, bullying included physical assault, property victimization (such as forcibly taking something a child was wearing, or destroying something belonging to the child), or psychological aggression (such as name-calling, or telling the child he or she wasn't wanted around). In addition, researchers asked the youngsters if they had experienced anger, depression or anxiety during the previous month. Eight percent of the children interviewd had experienced two or more types of sibling bullying duringthe previous year. Children who were even mildly physically assaulted by a sibling had greater mental distress than adolescents who were not assaulted. However, all the kids were similarly affected by the other types of sibling aggression. Tucker said that parents and other adults often downplay sibling aggression. As a result, it's “under-recognized and under-estimated,” she said. “Our work is showing that in some cases, the mental distress associated with sibling aggression is similar to what we see with peer aggression. It is something to be taken seriously.”  Mark E. Feinberg, a research professor at the Prevention Research Center at Penn State University, said “while our society has been working to eliminate bullying, it has not touched the relationship that is most violent — the sibling relationship.” The findings are “are not news to those of us who have been paying attention to sibling relationships,” but because the study involved a large, nationally representative sample, the findings should focusattention on sibling aggression, said Feinberg, who was not involved with the study. “The question then is, what do we do about it?” he said. “Nobody yet has the answer on how to deal with this problem.” According to Tucker, when parents notice bullying, they should step in. “It is an opportunity for parents to act as a mediator, and teach constructive conflict skills,” she said. Parenting programs, Tucker added, should include discussions about sibling bullying as well. “There is a big push now to stop aggression, particularly between peers, and we are suggesting that these programs include a focus on siblings,” she said. The study is published June 17 in the journal Pediatrics. Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/06/17/sibling-bullying-is-under-recognized-study-finds/

Nearly all US states see hefty drop in teen births

NEW YORK – & The nation's record-low teen birth rate stems from robust declines in nearly every state, but most dramatically in several Mountain States and among Hispanics, according to a new government report. All states but West Virginia and North Dakota showed significant drops over five years. But the Mountain States of Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada and Utah saw rates fall by 30 percent or more. In 22 states, teen Hispanic birth rates plunged at least 40 percent, which was described as “just amazing,” by the report's lead author, Brady Hamilton of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What's driving the declines? No one can say for sure. Experts believe the explanation is complicated and probably varies a bit from state to state. The national figure has been falling since 1991, aside from a brief interruption in 2006 and 2007. The CDC report released Thursday is based on birth certificates for 2007 through 2011. Last year, the CDC announced the overall improvement in teen births: a record low of 31 births per 1,000 teens ages 15 to 19. That compares to 42 births per 1,000 five years earlier. The new report focuses on state figures in 2011: -- Lowest rates are in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Vermont, each with rates under 17 per 1,000. -- Highest rates overall continue to be in the South, led by Arkansas and Mississippi, each with rates of about 50 per 1,000. In Arkansas, the majority of teen births are to white moms. In Mississippi, the majority are black. -- White teens continue to have the lowest birth rate nationally -- about 22 births per 1,000. Black teens saw a larger improvement, but their rate was still more than twice the white rate, at 47 per 1,000. -- Overall, the Hispanic rate plummeted from 75 to 49 per 1,000, now virtually a tie with the black rate. The teen drop in the last five years coincided with an overall decline in births, which experts attribute to a weak economy that dampened enthusiasm for having children. Hispanic women have been part of that trend, possibly due to the economy and to illegal immigration crackdowns in some states that reduce the number of young Hispanic females entering the country from Mexico and other nations, said John Santelli, a Columbia University professor of population and family health. That means new immigrants are having less impact on birth statistics, and second- and third-generation families are having more influence. As time goes on, Hispanics -- like other immigrant groups before them -- tend to adopt American customs and practices. “There is more attention on education, career, and the future,” said Dr. Janet Realini, head of Healthy Futures of Texas, a San Antonio-based organization focused on preventing teen and unplanned pregnancies. Hispanic rates, though, continue to be much higher than those for blacks and whites in most of the states with the largest Hispanic populations, including California, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Georgia. Texas has the highest number of teen births in the nation, with nearly 43,000 in 2011. Nearly two-thirds were to Hispanic moms. The overall improvement, though, is something to celebrate, said Bill Albert, chief program officer of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy. “Geography, politics, or policy alone simply cannot explain the widespread declines,” Albert said in an email. “Credit goes to teens themselves who are clearly making better decisions about sex, contraception, and their future.”source : http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/05/23/nearly-all-us-states-see-hefty-drop-in-teen-births/