The Malaysian Insider :: Features
The Malaysian Insider :: Features |
| Study finds epilepsy drug has long-term effect on child IQ Posted: 23 Jan 2013 06:34 AM PST  By taking folic acid supplements, expectant mothers with epilepsy may improve IQ scores, according to a new study. — shutterstock.com pic Researchers in the United States carried out follow-up tests among the same group of children whose investigation in 2009 led to warning by the US health watchdog about the potential risks of the drug valproate in pregnancy. The children — examined at the age of three — had below-par cognitive skills, which prompted the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to issue a warning about its use in pregnancy. The new research, published in the journal The Lancet Neurology, examined the same children at the age of six. Children born to mothers who had used valproate in pregnancy had an IQ that was seven to 10 points lower than children whose mothers had used one of three other epilepsy drugs, it found. The higher the dose of valproate the mother took in pregnancy, the greater the IQ discrepancy. Verbal skills and memory were also affected. The study, conducted between October 1999 and February 2004, by Kimford Meador at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, covered 305 pregnant women who had been using either valproate, carbamazepine, lamotrigine, or phenytoin. The first analysis looked at 311 children in the United States and Britain; in the followup at the age of six, it covered 224 of them. However, the study also suggested that IQ may improve with age for infants exposed to any of these drugs. And by taking folic acid supplements, expectant mothers may improve IQ scores. This is the first time a boost has been shown in a study of pregnant women with epilepsy. Valproate is, for some people, the only drug that can control their epilepsy, so the findings on dosage and the beneficial effects of folic acid could be useful. "Valproate usage during pregnancy has a significant negative effect on children's IQ, which lasts beyond their earliest years. IQ at age six is strongly predictive of adult IQ and school performance, so our research suggests that valproate use during pregnancy is likely to have long-term negative effects on a child's IQ and other cognitive abilities," Meador said. "For many antiepileptic drugs, there is simply no research available on their effects on women and their children during pregnancy, and given that many women do not have the option of stopping medication during pregnancy, more research in this area is urgently needed." — AFP-Relaxnews |
| Sex with condoms is just as good, says study Posted: 23 Jan 2013 06:15 AM PST  A new study finds that for men, sex with condoms is just as pleasurable as sex without. — shutterstock.com pic Findings also showed that men said they did not struggle to maintain erections when putting on condoms. In a separate study, women also said they felt positively about lubricants, adding that they felt more orgasmic when sex was wetter. Scientists from the School of Public Health-Bloomington at Indiana University in the US looked at data from more than 1,800 heterosexual men and nearly 2,500 heterosexual women who participated in an internet-based daily diary study on condom and lubricant use and sexual behavior. Results showed that men and women consistently rate sex as highly arousing and pleasurable with few differences based on condom or lubricant use. More than twice as many women, however, were unsure whether the condom was lubricated or from what material it was made. "This may be because men are more likely than women to purchase condoms and to apply condoms," says Dr. Debby Herbenick. "However, it's important for more women to become familiar with the condoms they use with their partner so that they can make choices that enhance the safety and pleasure of their sexual experiences." Findings are published online in the Journal of Sexual Medicine. A review of studies published last February in the journal Sexual Health suggests that when it comes to condom use, most people use them incorrectly. Frequent mistakes include putting a condom on partway through intercourse, using oil-based lubricants which degrade latex condoms, failing to leave space at the tip of the condom for semen, and failing to look for damage before use. — AFP-Relaxnews |
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