Health related information and news from around the world.

Progesterone, given in the first half of the cycle, prevents ovulation and is the basis for oral contraceptives.

Headaches often come on soon after starting the first course of the contraceptive pill. Rarely they can be very severe and accompanied by signs of malfunction of the nervous system such as the temporary loss of use of a limb or transient blindness, presumably due to a drop in blood flow to the appropriate part of the brain. These symptoms must always be taken seriously.

Some women taking the pill become severely depressed; this is of interest in the light of the relationship of migraine and depression.

Analysis of sufferers attending Migraine Clinics suggest that taking oral contraceptives is a major factor among those who come during an acute attack of migraine; this finding supports the hypothesis that oral contraceptives alter the threshold to migraine making people taking them more susceptible to attacks. On the other hand in some women, migraine attacks cease soon after they start to take the pill.

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The hymen, or maidenhead, or, as commonly known, cherry, is a membrane which covers the entrance to the vagina. It usually has a small opening in it for vaginal and menstrual discharge. In some cases, a woman’s hymen has no opening. The imperforate hymen, as this is called, can be opened by a fairly simple surgical procedure. The hymen has a dubious mythical status, in which it is commonly believed that an intact hymen is a positive sign of virginity. Some cultures, for example, in the Middle East, have employed the ritual of exhibiting the bloodstained sheets on the morning after a marriage ceremony, testifying that the bride has come to the groom in an unsullied state. Some cultures meted out heavy punishment, including death, to the woman whose hymen was not appropriately present. Other cultures have practiced ritual “deflowering” of the bride-to-be by religious figures or older women of the tribe; during feudal times in Europe, this proceeding was the prerogative of the lord of the manor. This practice was known as droit du seigneur in French, or jus primae noctis (“right of the first night”) in Latin.

The relationship between an intact hymen and virginity, however, is not all that simple. In some cases the hymen is highly elastic, and gentle insertion of the penis might not cause it to rupture. In general, the tearing of the hymen may cause bleeding and possibly some pain but is usually not physically traumatic. Conversely, a torn hymen is not necessarily a sign that the woman has had sexual intercourse, since various activities, such as athletics, bicycle riding, and horseback riding, can similarly cause this tissue to tear. Even after the hymen has been stretched and broken, small folds of this tissue, known as hymenal tags, will remain.

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For many people with HIV infection, choice of a hospital is limited. Participants in HMOs are required to use specific hospitals. People from small cities or from rural areas often have only one hospital near enough to choose. In medical emergencies, a public ambulance is required to take the patient to the nearest hospital, leaving the family and the patient little say in the matter, unless they hire a private ambulance.

In most instances, the physician responsible for the care of the person with HIV infection will make a recommendation depending on which hospital has the resources necessary for that person, and in which hospital the physician has admitting privileges (meaning the physician is

allowed to admit and treat patients).

A large teaching hospital might best be chosen by a person who has unusual complications that require specialized services. If you have a strong wish to go to a certain hospital, you should tell your physician. In the event that your physician is not on the admitting staff of that hospital, he or she can often transfer your medical care to another physician.

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