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by Dr Susan Towns
News Articles
Becoming sexually active
Emerging trends in modern teenage sexual experience. AN interesting phenomenon of westernised societies is the significant prolongation of adolescence. Some studies indicate a trend towards younger age at menarche and an established trend towards earlier age at first sexual intercourse, and this is associated with postponement of marriage and childbirth. Sexual activity from a younger age, and having more lifetime sexual partners, carries sexual and reproductive health risks, such as sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancy. An Australian study by Skinner et al in the Journal of Adolescent Health aimed “to better ...
Fertile ground for training
New adolescent health training initiatives are imminent. AN interesting study in The Journal of Adolescent Health published in November 2008 highlights the importance of training in adolescent health for all doctors. The study investigated the ability of specialist registrars (at least two years of basic training in paediatrics completed and 3-8 years post qualification) to “recognise, diagnose and manage three key areas of exploratory behaviours: (1) sexual health, (2) substance misuse and (3) self-harm”. A validated questionnaire was used, Perceptions of Adolescent Issues and Resources , and the results were compared with the ...
When fatigue becomes chronic
FATIGUE is a very common presenting problem among teenagers. It may be readily dismissed due to lifestyle factors involving late nights, television or computer time, and the physiological changes of puberty affecting sleep with resultant relative sleep deprivation. However, if your teenage patient appears to be having good quality and duration of sleep, yet has persisting fatigue, further assessment is required. A recent article in Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine ( 2008;162:469-75 ) looked at persisting fatigue in a longitudinal population-based survey of 1880 adolescents in the UK to assess whether sedentary behaviour, obesity, ...
Cyber bullying
What is the best intervention for this increasingly common social phenomenon? CYBER bullying is a form of bullying carried out through Internet services such as email, chat rooms or web pages or via mobile phone technologies. It is becoming increasingly common, is distressing to the victim and can be very dangerous. According to research undertaken by the NSW Department of Education and Training (2007) on the prevalence of cyber bullying, more than two-thirds of adolescents have attempted to conceal non-essential Internet use from parents; one in four have been bullied or harassed online; 17% have used ...
Breast distress
CONCERNS regarding breast development are very common among both male and female teenagers. Adolescent boys may be alarmed by the temporary gynaecomastia they commonly experience, while adolescent girls worry about the size, shape and symmetry of the developing breast. Many teenagers may be extremely reluctant to disclose their concern to their doctor, but they may be relieved by the opportunity to discuss common breast problems if raised during the consultation. This becomes an excellent opportunity to establish trust and provide reassurance to adolescent patients that can extend into other areas of their health, such as weight ...