Supporting the Sexual Rights of Women Living With HIV: A Critical Analysis of Sexual Satisfaction and Pleasure Across Five Relationship Types

In the context of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a focus on protecting others has overridden concern about women’s own sexual well-being. Drawing on feminist theories, we measured sexual satisfaction and pleasure across five relationship types among women living with HIV in Canada. Of the 1,230 women surveyed, 38.1% were completely or very satisfied with their sexual lives, while 31.0% and 30.9% were reasonably or not very/not at all satisfied, respectively. Among those reporting recent sexual experiences (n = 675), 41.3% always felt pleasure, with the rest reporting usually/sometimes (38.7%) or seldom/not at all (20.0%). Sex did not equate with satisfaction or pleasure, as some women were completely satisfied without sex, while others were having sex without reporting pleasure. After adjusting for confounding factors, such as education, violence, depression, sex work, antiretroviral therapy, and provider discussions about transmission risk, women in long-term/happy relationships (characterized by higher levels of love, greater physical and emotional intimacy, more equitable relationship power, and mainly HIV-negative partners) had increased odds of sexual satisfaction and pleasure relative to women in all other relational contexts. Those in relationships without sex also reported higher satisfaction ratings than women in some sexual relationships. Findings put focus on women’s rights, which are critical to overall well-being.     

Heterosexual vs. homosexual attitudes: Male partners' perception of the feminine image of male transexuals∗

This paper explores and discusses the social and emotional conflicts engendered by a sample of twelve passing phase transsexuals (four females and eight males) and the coping mechanisms which they have adopted to meet the demands of this period. “Passing phase” is defined as that period prior to sex change in which the surgical candidate is required to live and work as a member of the opposite anatomical sex.

The transsexuals in this study were deeply alienated individuals who received negative support in their dilemma, both from society as well as from the individuals close to them. There seemed to be virtually no means of tension reduction available to these transsexuals. Anger and loneliness were overriding factors in their emotional distress, as well as was the constant fear of being discovered and discredited.

Differences were found among four subgroups of transsexuals in regard to several areas.     

Adult penile circumcision: Erotosexual and cosmetic sequelae

Five men underwent circumcision in adulthood for reasons of infection, inflammation, or phimosis. Several years later, they reported on the erotosexual sequelae. All reported a prolongation of the period prior to ejaculation, though none had been genuine premature ejaculators. Other variable sequelae were diminished penile sensitivity, less penile gratification, more penile pain, and cosmetic deformity. Orgasm frequency was the same or less, and there was no postsurgical impotence. Loss of stretch receptors and reflexes might explain the major erotosexual changes. In most instances, a dorsal cut and/or antibiotic treatment achieves the same effect as circumcision, and is less risky in terms of possible pathological sequelae.     

Integrated Approaches for the Public Health Prioritization of Foodborne and Zoonotic Pathogens

To address the persistent problems of foodborne and zoonotic disease, public health officials worldwide face difficult choices about how to best allocate limited resources and target interventions to reduce morbidity and mortality. Data‐driven approaches to informing these decisions have been developed in a number of countries. Integrated comparative frameworks generally share three methodological components: estimating incidence of acute illnesses, chronic sequelae, and mortality; attributing pathogen‐specific illnesses to foods; and calculating integrated measures of disease burden such as cost of illness, willingness to pay, and health‐adjusted life years (HALYs). To discuss the similarities and differences in these approaches, to seek consensus on principles, and to improve international collaboration, the E.U. MED‐VET‐NET and the U.S.‐based Food Safety Research Consortium organized an international conference convened in Berlin, Germany, on July 19–21, 2006. This article draws in part on the deliberations of the conference and discusses general principles, data needs, methodological issues and challenges, and future research needs pertinent to objective data‐driven analyses and their potential use for priority setting of foodborne and zoonotic pathogens in public health policy.     

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Blood volume pulse (BVP) recordings were obtained from a 47‐year‐old hysterectomized woman prior to, during, and following a hot flash (HP). She displayed a relatively smaller BVP 120 seconds prior to the HF, as compared to a marked BVP increase during the HF. The woman's report of subjective “warmth” and observed perspiration 120 seconds prior to the HF appeared to correspond to a period of peripheral vasoconstriction. It was theorized that HF is associated with sympathetically mediated peripheral constriction in anticipation of the HF and may be exacerbated by the person's anticipatory fear that a HF is soon to occur. Learning principles may be relevant for considering both the development and partial relief of intense and frequent HF in hysterectomized women.     

How does information sharing affect first-tier suppliers’ flexibility? Evidence from the automotive industry in Sweden

This study addresses the critical research issue of how supplier delivery performance can be enhanced by integrating information sharing into volume and delivery flexibility. This study developed a research model to relate information sharing on demand forecasts and inventory data between original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and first-tier suppliers. Based on a sample of 52 suppliers from automotive industry in Sweden, partial least squares structural equations modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to assess the model. The results confirm that sharing demand forecasts is a key enabler of supplier volume and delivery flexibility while sharing inventory data is not. The study contributes to enlarging the knowledge about supply chain management from the suppliers’ perspective. It also contributes to knowledge by validating the conceptual model and operationalisation of constructs. The study also has practical contribution in which management should focus on improving communication and collaboration practices with OEMs for effective sharing of demand forecasts.     

Salmonella Enteritidis Surveillance by Egg Immunology: Impact of the Sampling Scheme on the Release of Contaminated Table Eggs

Design of surveillance programs to detect infections could benefit from more insight into sampling schemes. We address the effect of sampling schemes for Salmonella Enteritidis surveillance in laying hens. Based on experimental estimates for the transmission rate in flocks, and the characteristics of an egg immunological test, we have simulated outbreaks with various sampling schemes, and with the current boot swab program with a 15‐week sampling interval. Declaring a flock infected based on a single positive egg was not possible because test specificity was too low. Thus, a threshold number of positive eggs was defined to declare a flock infected, and, for small sample sizes, eggs from previous samplings had to be included in a cumulative sample to guarantee a minimum flock level specificity. Effectiveness of surveillance was measured by the proportion of outbreaks detected, and by the number of contaminated table eggs brought on the market. The boot swab program detected 90% of the outbreaks, with 75% fewer contaminated eggs compared to no surveillance, whereas the baseline egg program (30 eggs each 15 weeks) detected 86%, with 73% fewer contaminated eggs. We conclude that a larger sample size results in more detected outbreaks, whereas a smaller sampling interval decreases the number of contaminated eggs. Decreasing sample size and interval simultaneously reduces the number of contaminated eggs, but not indefinitely: the advantage of more frequent sampling is counterbalanced by the cumulative sample including less recently laid eggs. Apparently, optimizing surveillance has its limits when test specificity is taken into account.