Top in women's health: Mistreatment common during childbirth; impact of early menopause

A cross-sectional study revealed that mistreatment by health care providers during childbirth is a common experience in the United States, with one in eight women with a live birth in 2020 reporting mistreatment.

“There is a need for the development and evaluation of patient-centered, multifaceted interventions that address implicit biases, cultural competence, health care workforce conditions, the inclusivity of clinical settings and other structural factors, including health system factors, to improve childbirth experiences,” Chen Liu, MHS, staff associate in the department of health policy and management at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, and colleagues wrote.

It was the top story in women’s health last week.

In another top story, researchers found that earlier menopause was tied to worse self-perceived work ability and higher risk for disability retirement.

“In working life, employers should consider making working conditions more flexible for women undergoing the menopausal transition to help them manage their symptoms,” Tiia Saarinen, BM, from the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Oulu University Hospital, Wellbeing Services County of North Ostrobothnia, and the research unit of clinical medicine at the University of Oulu, Finland, and colleagues wrote. “In addition, employers should provide these women with increased support; doing so could help minimize their risk of prematurely ending their work careers.”

Read these and more top stories in women’s health below:

Mistreatment by health care providers during childbirth ‘common’ in US

Mistreatment by health care professionals during childbirth is “common” in the U.S., with one in eight women with a live birth in 2020 reporting mistreatment, according to study results published in JAMA Network Open. Read more.

Earlier menopause transition negatively impacts work life

Earlier menopause — by age 46 years — was tied to worse self-perceived work ability, long-term work participation impairment and higher disability retirement risk, according to study data from women in Finland published in Menopause. Read more.

Gestational hypertension may predict maternal neurocognitive decline later in life

Among Hispanic women, gestational hypertension was associated with decreased processing speed and executive functioning after age 45 years, according to results of an analysis published in Obstetrics & Gynecology. Read more.

Pregnant women report increased COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy during omicron wave

Pregnant and recently pregnant women reported increased COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy and changes in perceptions of vaccine safety from 2021 to 2023, according to survey results published in JAMA Network Open. Read more.

CDC: Health-related social needs negatively impact access to mammography screening

Only 30% of women with health-related social needs underwent mammography screening for breast cancer in the previous 2 years, according to a newly released CDC Vital Signs report. Read more.