Australian Family Physician June - Sexual Health
Vol 38, (6) 369 - 464
The theme for the June issue of AFP is Sexual Health. This
month's articles include Sexual health, Catching up on contraception,
Syphilis, the great mimicker, is back, Lesbian and bisexual women's
sexual health and Bacterial vaginosis - more questions than answers.
Sexually transmissible infections – old enemies and a new friend
Siobhan Bourke, Tina Schmidt
History is repeating itself. Syphilis largely disappeared from
the radar of general practitioners following a precipitous fall
with the onset of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
epidemic in the early 1980s; however, infection rates are once
again rising dramatically, both in Australia and in other parts of
the developed world.
AFP in a changing environment
Patrick Byrnes
As Australian general practice evolves, the role of Australian Family
Physician needs to be continually re-evaluated. AFP aims to provide
relevant, evidence based, clearly articulated information to Australian
GPs that is applicable to the varied geographic and social contexts in
which they work and to all their roles as clinician, researcher, educator
and practice team member, to assist them in providing the highest quality
patient care.
Letters to the editor
The opinions expressed by correspondents in this column are in no way endorsed by either the Editors or The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners.
Sexual health
Christopher Harrison, Janice Charles, Helena Britt
The problems were split into two subgroups: sexually
transmissible infections (STIs) and risk factor/screening
management.
Catching up on contraception
Katrina Allen
Providing contraceptive advice is a core activity in general
practice. There have been numerous changes to the
contraceptive options available in Australia over the past 10
years.
Syphilis, the great mimicker, is back
Melanie Bissessor, Marcus Chen
Syphilis, which had been uncommon in Australian cities until recently, has re-emerged as a major sexually transmissible infection among men who have sex with men.
Lesbian and bisexual women’s sexual health
Ruth McNair
Lesbian and bisexual women have specific sexual health
needs, including the need for information about transmission
and prevention of sexually transmissible infections (STIs)
between women, contraceptive and conception advice, and
support regarding any abuse experiences.
Bacterial vaginosis - More questions than answers
Marie Pirotta, Kath A Fethers, Catriona S Bradshaw
Bacterial vaginosis is the commonest cause of abnormal vaginal
discharge in women of reproductive age and is associated with
serious pregnancy related sequelae and increased transmission
of sexually transmissible infections, including HIV.
Postprostatectomy stress urinary incontinence - Current and evolving therapies
Ian A R Smith, Elizabeth Shaw, Prem Rashid
Postprostatectomy stress urinary incontinence (PPSUI) is a clinically
significant problem with an incidence of 3–60%.
Can a dietician help?
Claire Hewat
This is the first article in a series looking at the relationship between
diet and good health, and the role of the dietician in the primary
health care team.
Pelvic instability - Painful pelvic girdle in pregnancy
David A Mitchell, Danielle M Esler
Pelvic instability is a term describing a group of conditions causing
pelvic girdle pain in pregnancy. Although a common problem in
pregnancy, it is easily overlooked and sometimes dismissed as
‘normal’ by primary care professionals.
Spontaneous pneumomediastinum
Steven Chung, Lucy Morgan
A male furniture removalist, 23 years of age, presented to his local
doctor with neck swelling. He had an upper respiratory tract infection
2 weeks previously and was prescribed a course of oral antibiotics.
Clinical Challenge
Questions for this month's clinical challenge are based on articles in this issue. The style and scope of questions is in keeping with the MCQ of the College Fellowship exam. The quiz is endorsed by the RACGP Quality Assurance and Continuing Professional Development Program and has been allocated 4 CPD points per issue.
Dermatoscopy for in vivo diagnosis of malignant melanoma
Sergio Vano-Galvan, Elena de las Heras, Ingrid Aguayo-Leyva, Pedro Jaén
A man, 59 years of age, presented with a pigmented lesion that was
discovered on lung auscultation by a family physician.
AFP in Practice
AFP in Practice questions are designed to get you started in a small group learning (SGL) activity in your practice or with colleagues. Requirements to earn 40 Category 1 CPD points for a SGL activity are: minimum of four and a maximum of 10 people, minimum of 8 hours of discussion in a year, and at least two GPs.
Dietary intervention to lower serum cholesterol
Peter Clifton, David Colquhoun, Claire Hewat, Peter Jones, John Litt, Manny Noakes, Richard O’Brien, Bill Shrapnel, Murray Skeaff
Dietary intervention to lower serum LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) is
effective, yet underutilised in general practice.
Book reviews
Books reviewed this month are Fundamental Skills for Surgery by Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and Contraception: an Australian Clinical Practice Handbook, Second edition by Sexual Health & Family Planning Australia.
Medical journals - What are they good for?
Kath O'Connor
In 2007 Kath O’Connor completed a 12 month GPET funded editorial
and research training post at Australian Family Physician and the
University of Melbourne. In this article, she reflects on the role of
medical journals.
Telephone interpreters in general practice - Bridging the barriers to their use
Yu-Ting Huang, Christine Phillips
Although the Australian Translating and Interpreting Service offers
the world's largest free telephone health interpreter service, it
remains underused.
Attitudes of WA GPs to chlamydia partner notification - A survey
Revle D Bangor-Jones, Jenny McCloskey, Levinia Crooks AM, Lisa A Bastian, Donna B Mak, Christine Dykstra, Lewis J Marshall, Simona R Achitei
Partner notification is essential to interrupt transmission of sexually
transmissible infections.
Using meditation for less stress and better wellbeing - A seminar for GPs
Ramesh Manocha, Amy Gordon, Deborah Black, Gin Malhi, Raymond Seidler
General practitioner stress is a recognised problem for which
meditation is a potential intervention.
Barriers to the management of obesity in children - A cross sectional survey of GPs
Helen Dettori, Helen Elliott, Janette Horn, Gary Leong
General practitioners have been identified as having a key role in
promoting healthy weight.
