News in brief - Sept. 12, 2011

AAP urges pediatricians to discourage youths from boxing - Ob-gyns should treat male partners of women with a STD, ACOG says

AAP urges pediatricians to discourage youths from boxing

Pediatricians should educate patients interested in boxing on the dangers of the sport and encourage them to participate in safer activities, such as basketball and swimming, says an American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement.

Because the sport encourages deliberate blows to the head, participants are at risk of head injuries that could be fatal, said the policy statement published online Aug. 28 in Pediatrics. Also concerning are the methods boxers use to maintain a certain weight (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21873697). Such measures include restricting fluid consumption and taking diuretics, the statement said.

The AAP encourages pediatricians to advocate that boxing organizations ensure that appropriate medical care is provided for children and adolescents who participate in the activity.

Ob-gyns should treat male partners of women with a STD, ACOG says

Obstetrician-gynecologists should prescribe antibiotics for the male partners of their female patients who are diagnosed with chlamydia or gonorrhea to reduce the high infection rate among young females, said the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

The practice, known as expedited partner therapy, is permissible in 27 states and should be reserved for male partners who are unlikely to visit a physician to be examined and treated, ACOG said. Ob-gyns who work in states where expedited partner therapy is not allowed should push for its approval, ACOG said.

Sexually transmitted diseases disproportionately affect women and pose a significant, yet preventable, threat to their fertility, according to the committee opinion published in the September issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology (journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Citation/2011/09000/
Committee_Opinion_No__506___Expedited_Partner.45.aspx). Chlamydia and gonorrhea are the two most commonly reported STDs in the United States, and rates for these infections are highest in females age 15 to 24, ACOG said.