News by Subject Medicine & Health

A study of the victimization of women who were living in areas of high poverty and HIV prevalence in multiple cities across the US has shown that high-risk-sex, characterized by one or more HIV risk factors, was associated with a significantly greater likelihood of physical violence against the female participant within the subsequent six months.

Researchers found that a form of the estrogen hormone can contribute to drug relapse in females by worsening withdrawal symptoms. The study looked at the interaction of the female sex hormone estradiol and methamphetamine.

Scientists have identified a key enhancer of Sox9 -- a gene critical for male sex development -- and demonstrated that deleting this non-coding DNA results in male-to-female sex reversal.

Threatened by the mosquito-borne Zika virus in 2016, Florida residents felt more susceptible than others in the United States to getting the virus, were more knowledgeable about it, and were more likely to support taking community action against it. Floridians were nearly twice as likely as non-Floridians to say they took steps to protect themselves from Zika. Even so, fewer than half of Floridians said they actually did take preventive measures.

A new report from Medscape finds that more than one in 10 female physicians and 16 percent of female residents have experienced sexual harassment within the past three years. Overall, 7 percent of physicians (12 percent women, 4 percent men), and 9 percent of medical residents (16 percent women, 4 percent men) reported harassment. This is the first in a series of Medscape surveys examining this issue.

To prevent and treat Alzheimer's disease, scientists need to better understand how the disease differs between women and men, according to a paper published June 12 in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association.

Multiple barriers may stop high-risk individuals from accessing an HIV drug that can reduce the subsequent risk of infection, according to a new University of Michigan study.