Reuters Health - New York -
One in 20 men who
have their prostate gland removed may need a second surgery for severe
loss of bladder control, new research from Canada suggests.
Based on more than 25,000 men
who had prostate surgery, the study also found that rates of subsequent
surgery for urinary incontinence doubled between five and 15 years after
the first operation.
The study, published in the Journal of
Urology, is the first to suggest that urinary incontinence may be a
long-term problem for men many years after their prostate surgery,
according to the researchers.
"Doctors
should discuss with patients the risk of needing incontinence surgery
after radical prostatectomy," said Nam, adding that physicians
themselves need to be more aware that bladder issues can persist even 15
years after prostate surgery.
Read the full Reuters report here
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
German verdict to delay circumcision, not ban it, jurist says
Reuters - Paris -
A widely criticized German court verdict on religious circumcision this week aims only to delay the act, not ban it, and is not directed against any faith, a jurist with a leading role in the legal debate said on Friday.
The operation does serious bodily harm and only males old enough to consent to it freely should undergo it, said Holm Putzke, law professor at Passau University in southern Germany.
Using arguments Putzke has published in recent years, a court in the western city of Cologne ruled on Tuesday that the circumcision there of a Muslim boy who suffered post-operative bleeding had violated a German law against causing bodily harm.
Read the full Reuters report here
A widely criticized German court verdict on religious circumcision this week aims only to delay the act, not ban it, and is not directed against any faith, a jurist with a leading role in the legal debate said on Friday.
The operation does serious bodily harm and only males old enough to consent to it freely should undergo it, said Holm Putzke, law professor at Passau University in southern Germany.
Using arguments Putzke has published in recent years, a court in the western city of Cologne ruled on Tuesday that the circumcision there of a Muslim boy who suffered post-operative bleeding had violated a German law against causing bodily harm.
Read the full Reuters report here
German court circumcision ban meets wave of criticism
Reuters - Berlin -
Germany's foreign minister added his voice on Thursday to a chorus of criticism of a court decision to ban the circumcision of young boys for religious reasons, arguing that such traditions must be permitted in a tolerant society.
The Central Council of Jews in Germany called the ruling an "unprecedented and dramatic intrusion" on religious freedom and the Central Council of Muslims in Germany called it "blatant and inadmissible interference" in the rights of parents.
Germany's two main Christian churches also criticized the Cologne court ruling, the Catholic Episcopal Conference calling it "extremely disconcerting".
"To ban circumcision is a serious attack on religious freedom," said Catholic Bishop Heinrich Mussinghoff.
Read the full Reuters report here
Germany's foreign minister added his voice on Thursday to a chorus of criticism of a court decision to ban the circumcision of young boys for religious reasons, arguing that such traditions must be permitted in a tolerant society.
The Central Council of Jews in Germany called the ruling an "unprecedented and dramatic intrusion" on religious freedom and the Central Council of Muslims in Germany called it "blatant and inadmissible interference" in the rights of parents.
Germany's two main Christian churches also criticized the Cologne court ruling, the Catholic Episcopal Conference calling it "extremely disconcerting".
"To ban circumcision is a serious attack on religious freedom," said Catholic Bishop Heinrich Mussinghoff.
Read the full Reuters report here
German court bans circumcision of young boys
Reuters - Berlin -
Jewish and Muslim groups protested on Wednesday after a German court banned the circumcision of young boys for religious reasons in the first ruling of its kind in the country.
The court ruled involuntary religious circumcision should be made illegal because it could inflict serious bodily harm on people who had not consented to it.
However the ruling, which applies only to the Cologne area, said boys who consciously decided to be circumcised could have the operation. No age restriction was given, or any more specific details.
Read the full Reuters report here
Jewish and Muslim groups protested on Wednesday after a German court banned the circumcision of young boys for religious reasons in the first ruling of its kind in the country.
The court ruled involuntary religious circumcision should be made illegal because it could inflict serious bodily harm on people who had not consented to it.
However the ruling, which applies only to the Cologne area, said boys who consciously decided to be circumcised could have the operation. No age restriction was given, or any more specific details.
Read the full Reuters report here
Side effects persist after prostate cancer treatment
Reuters Health
NEW YORK |
Men who are treated for prostate cancer may still suffer side effects from treatment up to a decade later, a new study found.
Up to 10 years after treatment, more than 95 percent of men had some degree of sexual dysfunction, Taylor's team found. And about half had urinary symptoms.
Past studies have found such lingering side effects, too. But they have been shorter-term - following men for as far as five years. And they've left some question as to whether the sexual and urinary problems could just be a product of aging, rather than prostate cancer treatment, Taylor explained.
These latest findings, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, suggest it's not simply the aging process that's to blame.
Read the full Reuters Health report here
NEW YORK |
Men who are treated for prostate cancer may still suffer side effects from treatment up to a decade later, a new study found.
Up to 10 years after treatment, more than 95 percent of men had some degree of sexual dysfunction, Taylor's team found. And about half had urinary symptoms.
Past studies have found such lingering side effects, too. But they have been shorter-term - following men for as far as five years. And they've left some question as to whether the sexual and urinary problems could just be a product of aging, rather than prostate cancer treatment, Taylor explained.
These latest findings, reported in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, suggest it's not simply the aging process that's to blame.
Read the full Reuters Health report here
'Important Errors' in USPSTF Report on PSA Testing
The USPSTF's characterization of the evidence against screening as
being of "moderate or high certainty," and thus deserving of its D
rating, is a "critical error," suggest the authors, led by Sigrid
Carlsson, MD, PhD, from the Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in
New York City and Göteborg University in Sweden.
The USPSTF did not competently assess the mortality benefit of screening, the authors say, and this error alone casts doubt on their grading of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing.
Read the full Medscape Medical News report here
(May require free sign-up)
The USPSTF did not competently assess the mortality benefit of screening, the authors say, and this error alone casts doubt on their grading of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing.
Read the full Medscape Medical News report here
(May require free sign-up)
Low Testosterone Levels Can Improve With Weight Loss, Exercise
Researchers evaluated 891 middle-aged men with impaired glucose
tolerance and low testosterone levels who undertook a 1-year lifestyle
modification program involving 150 minutes per week of exercise and
calorie and fat reductions in their diets.
Participants had a nearly 50% increase in testosterone levels, researchers announced.
Although noting that the study reinforces existing knowledge of the effect obesity has on blood testosterone levels, and that reversing the excesses weight improves the effect, Dr. Handelsman cautioned that the remedy is not testosterone treatment.
"It is important to state clearly that the lower blood testosterone levels are not a true deficiency state; rather, they are a barometer of ill health, as opposed to a real deficiency state," he told Medscape Medical News.
"An important implication is that such men should not be treated with testosterone."
Read the full Medscape Medical News report here
(May require free sign-up)
Participants had a nearly 50% increase in testosterone levels, researchers announced.
Although noting that the study reinforces existing knowledge of the effect obesity has on blood testosterone levels, and that reversing the excesses weight improves the effect, Dr. Handelsman cautioned that the remedy is not testosterone treatment.
"It is important to state clearly that the lower blood testosterone levels are not a true deficiency state; rather, they are a barometer of ill health, as opposed to a real deficiency state," he told Medscape Medical News.
"An important implication is that such men should not be treated with testosterone."
Read the full Medscape Medical News report here
(May require free sign-up)
Is Quality of Life Better With Active Surveillance?
Way too many men who are undergoing radical prostatectomy are being
told, "Well, you may have a little trouble with some sexual function."
They are given the impression that there is a high chance that
functioning will return to normal, and they may underestimate their risk
for problems in both urinary and sexual functioning.
We need to provide better counseling for men who are going to have these therapies so they understand the potential tradeoffs of surgery or seed implantation. For surgery, outcomes are not as good as patients have been led to believe in the past. This is going to depend on many factors, such as the patient population, and maybe most important, on the surgeon who is providing the treatment.
Read the full commentary from Dr. G. Chodak here
(May require free sign up)
We need to provide better counseling for men who are going to have these therapies so they understand the potential tradeoffs of surgery or seed implantation. For surgery, outcomes are not as good as patients have been led to believe in the past. This is going to depend on many factors, such as the patient population, and maybe most important, on the surgeon who is providing the treatment.
Read the full commentary from Dr. G. Chodak here
(May require free sign up)
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