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Daily Rounds: Contraceptive Ups HIV Risk; Vaccine Registry Questions; More HPV Cancers; The Problem With Eels

Contraceptive Used in Africa May Double Risk of H.I.V. - NYTimes.com "The most popular contraceptive for women in eastern and southern Africa, a hormone shot given every three months, appears to double the risk the women will become infected with H.I.V., according a large study published Monday. And when it is used by H.I.V. positive women, their male partners are twice as likely to become infected than if the women had used no contraception." (nytimes.com)

Mass. moves closer to vaccination registry - Boston.com "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says Massachusetts and New Hampshire are the only states without a registry, which physicians say makes it easier to notify parents that their children are due for vaccines. Doctors say that is especially important for low-income families. State lawmakers have failed to act on proposals to set up a registry because of opposition from health insurers, who do not want to pay an extra fee that would be used to run the registry." (boston.com)

Study Cites Increase In Cancers From HPV (The New York Times) "The researchers estimated that over all, throat cancers caused by the virus have increased to 2.6 per 100,000 people in 2004 from 0.8 cases per 100,000 people in 1988. If the trend continues, by 2020 the virus will be causing more throat cancer than cervical cancer, the study concluded. Doctors in the United States and other countries had already noticed increases in throat cancers caused by HPV, but the extent was unclear." (nytimes.com)

Eel enters man's penis in spa treatment, is surgically removed - latimes.com "Zhang Nan, a 56-year-old resident of Hubei province, was bathing with live eels, in the hopes that the tiny, serpentine critters would nibble away layers of dead skin, revealing more youthful-looking skin below. Anyway, Nan felt a sharp pain, realized a 6-inch eel had entered his penis and was wriggling up through his urethra. He tried to pull it out but its tiny body was too slippery to hold, and it disappeared up his penis and into his bladder, according to the story." (Los Angeles Times)

This program aired on October 4, 2011. The audio for this program is not available.

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