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Biomedical subjects

F T Sai

Publications and source records attributed to F T Sai.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Reproductive health: towards a brighter future.

In 1972 the World Health Organization initiated the Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction. Now cosponsored by the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Population Fund, the World Bank and WHO, the Programme has become the main instrument of research in reproductive health in the United Nations system. The progress that has been made, and the prospects for the future, are reviewed below.

Contraception

Political and economic factors influencing contraceptive uptake.

International, national and local level politics influence the uptake of contraception through consensuses, laws, financial and moral support or the creation of an enabling atmosphere. Opposition to contraception generally comes from some churches and groups opposed to particular technologies. Socio-economic factors, particularly education, the health care system and the perceived or actual cost of fertility regulation as compared to benefits expected from children also powerfully influence contraceptive use. For many poor women in developing countries their powerlessness in relation to their male partners is an important obstacle.

Contraception

The need for a reproductive health approach.

A reproductive health approach recognizes that the foundations of women's health are laid in childhood and adolescence, and are influenced by factors such as nutrition, education, sexual roles and social status, cultural practices, and the socioeconomic environment. Reproductive health care strategies to meet women's multiple needs include education for responsible and healthy sexuality, safe and appropriate contraception, and services for sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, delivery, and abortion.

Abortion, Legal

Australia antigen and hepatitis in Accra, Ghana.

Viral hepatitis in young adults in Accra, Ghana, is associated with Australia antigen (H.A.A.). Sera from 85 patients in hospital with viral hepatitis were available for determinations of H.A.A. Of the 16 patients whose serum was obtained within the first week of symptoms, 15 were positive. The only factor related to finding H.A.A. was the time between onset of symptoms and the collection of the serum sample. Persistence of H.A.A. was associated with persistence of jaundice in men but not in women. Previous epidemiological studies in Accra found no evidence for parenteral transmission of viral hepatitis and showed a shanty-town predilection pointing to faecal-oral transmission. It thus seems that H.A.A.-associated hepatitis is transmitted in West Africa either faecal-orally or by shanty-town associated arthropods. The finding that H.A.A. hepatitis is the usual hepatitis in young adults in Accra is in accord with the high prevalence of H.A.A. elsewhere in the general population in Africa and may be related to the high rate of cirrhosis and hepatoma in Africa.

Adolescent