Woman's Health: Safeguarding against chlamydia ♦ New biomarker identified in women with mental illness ♦ Why the bloating during menopause

New biomarker identified in women with mental illness Psychiatric disorders can be difficult to diagnose because clinicians must rely upon interpreted clues, such as a patient's behaviors and feelings Researchers report identifying a biological marker: the overproduction of specific genes that could be a diagnostic indicator of mental illness in female psychiatric patients.

Safeguarding against chlamydia Chlamydia trachomatis is a formidable foe. It's the most common sexually transmitted pathogen, infecting more than 100 million people each year. In the developing world, it is the leading cause of preventable blindness. Around the world, it ranks as the number one cause of infertility and ectopic pregnancy. A vaccine that generates two waves of protective immune cells needed to eliminate chlamydial infection has been developed by researchers.

Pregnancy safer for women with lupus than previously thought Most women with lupus whose disease is not very active will have a safe pregnancy, new research concludes. The study also identified several risk factors that might put some women with systemic lupus erythematosus at higher risk for bad outcomes in pregnancy.

Why the bloating during menopause? Blame the hormones or the lack of them Many women experience water retention and bloating when their hormone levels change, but how sex hormones affect water balance is not understood. A new study offers an explanation, finding that sex hormones can directly control how the body reabsorbs water.

Minor obstetric and gynecologic procedure linked to increased risk of preterm delivery Dilatation and curettage (D&C) is one of the most common minor surgical procedures in obstetrics and gynecology, used mainly for miscarriage or terminations. Today, use of the 15-minute procedure is declining in favor of less invasive medical methods, but it still remains common in O&G. An analysis 21 cohort studies which included almost 2 million women has found that a D&C performed in cases of miscarriage or induced abortion increases the chance of preterm birth (under 37 weeks) in a subsequent pregnancy by 29%, and of very preterm birth (under 32 weeks) by 69%.