Women’s health is an important topic that is commonly ignored. It includes a myriad of precise and tremendous worries that impact their well-being and quality of life. From hormonal imbalances to reproductive health, and from the threat of persistent illnesses to mental health struggles, women face a various range of challenges that demands utmost care and interest. As we delve into the complex panorama of women’s health worries, it will become evident that understanding and addressing these troubles are vital steps in the direction of reaching gender equality and empowering women to lead healthy and pleasurable lives. In this article, we will discover some of the major health concerns that affect women, shedding light on their causes, signs, prevention techniques, and the significance of healthcare strategies tailor-made to women’s precise needs.
Breast cancer is an incurable form of metastatic cancer that frequently spreads to organs like the bone, liver, lung, and brain. Every year, more than 1.5 million women worldwide—25% of all cancer patients—are given a breast cancer diagnosis. Family history is a contributing factor in nearly a quarter of all breast cancer cases. Women are more likely to contract the condition if either their mother or sister has the disease. According to a study, women that have one first-degree relative suffering from breast cancer are 1.75 times more likely to get the disease than women who don’t have any affected relatives. The mutations of breast cancer-related genes like BRCA1 and BRCA2 are partially to blame for the inherited inclined for breast cancer (Sun et al., 2017).
The clinical history of breast cancer patients aims to investigate cancer threat and show the presence or absence of symptoms suggestive of breast illness. Clinicians can perform a physical examination that includes checking the breasts, the region around the neck and collarbone, and the axillae. The goal of breast cancer treatment is to prolong life expectancy while maintaining quality of life (Akram, Iqbal, Daniyal, & Khan, 2017).
Despite the decline in ischemic heart disease(IHD) in both men and women, it is estimated that 515,000 women are diagnosed with coronary heart disease (CHD) each year, making women the majority of people who die from cardiovascular disease (CVD). Risk factors like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, tobacco use, unhealthy eating patterns, and sedentary lifestyles can all be changed. The importance of educating women in both the community and the workplace cannot be overstated because early risk factor management can lessen the burden of IHD in women (Mehta, Wei, & Wenger, 2015).
Reduced bone mass and modified bone architecture, which increase the risk of fractures due to fragility, which are the disease’s primary side effects, are the hallmarks of osteoporosis. Using the Hologic database authors discovered that osteoporosis at the spine and hip was present in 42.7% and 11.4% of subjects respectively while the Indian reference data gave percentages of 27.7% and 8.3% of subjects respectively. In postmenopausal women, bone mass density(BMD) testing is based on the risk profile, while BMD measurement is advised for women over 65. For the prevention of vertebral fractures, yearly height measurements are also advised (Khadilkar & Mandlik, 2015). Bone densitometry can be used to identify osteoporosis, calculate bone loss, assess the efficacy of therapy, and encourage women to get treatment. Calcium supplements may help prevent fractures and slow down bone loss. Together with calcium, vitamin D also boosts bone density while lowering fracture rates. Estrogen is considered the drug of choice to reduce osteoporosis (Willhite, 1998).
Fertility is commonly defined as the ability of a couple to achieve pregnancies that survive to birth (Tingen et al., 2004). It has been estimated that 15% of the population in industrially developed countries is affected by infertility (Evers, 2002). For a very long time, it has been known that lead, mercury, nickel, and manganese are toxic to reproduction. Another established risk factor is prenatal exposure to ionizing radiation. Practically all anesthetic gases, including nitrous oxide, cyclopropane, methoxyflurane, halothane, and ether, cause congenital defects as well as embryonic and fetal loss (Figa-Talamanca, 2006). To keep women healthy and leading active lives, it is crucial that they have knowledge about contraception, safe sexual practices, healthy pregnancy and postpartum behaviors, and preventive care (Kilfoyle, Vitko, O’Conor, & Bailey, 2016).
Recent epidemiologic studies of menopausal women are providing accurate and consistent data on the frequency, occurrence, and severity of various menopausal symptoms (Santoro, Epperson, & Mathews, 2015). In addition to weight gain, joint pain, short-term memory issues, urinary tract infection, itchy skin, sexual dysfunction, bowel upset, hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, reduced libido, sleep disturbance, headaches, palpitations, foggy thinking, poor concentration, and fatigue are common menopause symptoms reported by women. Menopause symptoms are experienced differently by women, with 25% of western women reporting severe symptoms and 50% reporting mild-moderate symptoms (Bauld & Brown, 2009). Vaginal atrophy and dryness can be effectively treated with menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). Systemic or vaginal estrogen can be used for this purpose, although local estrogen application is advised and can be given in very small dosages (Santoro et al., 2015)
WHO estimates that 499 million new cases of curable sexually transmitted infections(STIs). Sexual and reproductive health is significantly impacted by STI complications, which disproportionately affect women, especially in areas with few resources. 305,000 fetal and neonatal mortality from syphilis infection occur each year. An estimated 530,000 instances of cervical cancer are brought on by human papillomavirus(HPV) infection each year (Gottlieb, Newman, Amin, Temmerman, & Broutet, 2013). The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved nucleic acid amplification testing (NAATs) as the preferred and most sensitive diagnostic test for analyzing female urine, vaginal, or endocervical materials. While HSV-1 and HSV-2 rates in the US have decreased, rates of gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis have grown. Treatments for gonorrhea, chlamydia, and syphilis include ceftriaxone, doxycycline, penicillin, moxifloxacin, and the nitroimidazoles (Tuddenham, Hamill, & Ghanem, 2022).
The prevalence of sadness, anxiety, and somatic symptoms, which are common mental disorders (CMDs), is disproportionately higher in women. Women are twice as likely to experience unipolar depression, which is expected to overtake chronic pain as the second-leading cause of disability burden by 2020. Additionally, women are 2-3 times more likely than men to experience an anxiety condition throughout their lifetimes, such as generalized anxiety disorder (Malhotra & Shah, 2015). Every aspect of health and social policy, health-system planning, and healthcare delivery must incorporate mental health. Additionally, primary healthcare providers must receive adequate supervision and training in the identification and treatment of mental problems using evidence-based practices (Prince et al., 2007). Over these years, the field has expanded and changed as women’s health has gained prominence on our country’s health agenda (Kornstein, Clayton, & Wilson, 2003)
Although several aspects of women’s health have significantly improved over the past few decades, there are still significant unmet needs. We demonstrated in this article the critical value of the women and health perspective in advancing both national and international sustainable development. Women are affected by gender discrimination, a disproportionate amount of poverty, and other elements of disparities in their dual roles as both consumers and suppliers of health care, all of which limit their ability to contribute to sustainable development. It is urgently important, not optional, to value and enable women to exercise their fundamental human rights and achieve their full potential (Langer et al., 2015).
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