Emergency Contraception

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Recently there has been a lot of publicity about the launch of a pill which can prevent unwanted pregnancy. A lot of viewers have asked about the safety profile of such drugs. I though it would be prudent to examine this today and try to answer some commonly asked questions. Emergency contraception - also called post-coital contraception - is a form of birth control that may be used by women who have had unprotected sex or if a contraceptive method fails. The treatment generally is reserved for emergency situations and is not a regular method of birth control. How Does It Work? Emergency contraception may prevent pregnancy by temporarily blocking eggs from being produced, by stopping fertilization, or keeping a fertilized egg from becoming implanted in the uterus. Emergency contraception can be provided in two ways: using hormonal contraceptive pills or inserting a copper-releasing IUD (intrauterine device).

• Emergency Contraceptive Pills....
  
  
  Monday , October 15, 2007

  Your Top 6 Hospital Risks

  
  

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  It's a fact of life: people checking into the hospital face risks. Expecting to get better, some actually wind up getting worse. While you might feel out of control when you go into the hospital, you're really not. So what can you do to cut your risks? Here's a list of the six top hospital risks and - more importantly - what you can do to avoid them. Hospital Risk No. 1: Medication Errors Far and away, the most serious hospital risk is a medication error. A 2006 report from the Institute of Medicine estimated that every year, there are 450,000 injuries resulting from medication errors in hospitals, and perhaps many more that are unreported. But there are things you can do to reduce this hospital risk. Before surgery, you need to make sure that your doctor, your surgeon, and everyone else involved in your care know about....