This article evaluates the burden of Postpartum hemorrhage, the single most common cause of maternal death and calls for bold new policies.

The fact that the mother’s access to contraception can improve the educational opportunities of her children, as well as her health and that of her infants, is an insight we should always value

This article compares current practices for the active management of the third stage of labor (AMTSL) with the use of 600 Ag of oral misoprostol

San Francisco Chronicle: Open Forum comment by Malcolm Potts and Martha Campbell Monday, February 27, 2006.
The Bush administration intends to cut the modest funding the United States gives to international family planning by almost one-fifth. For those of us who are interested in looking 15 to 20 years ahead, this is the dumbest action possible.

Conflicts between male and female reproductive agendas continue to play out in contemporary issues of sex, power, and politics. Viewing gender through the lens of biologic evolutionary psychology reveals persistent con- troversies surrounding women’s rights. The history of oral contraceptives com- pared with that of erectile dysfunction drugs is just one example of the disparity [...]

This groundbreaking pilot study demonstrates the potential impact of misoprostol for women in rural settings. In this community-based intervention trial, misoprostol was delivered by traditional birth attendants (TBAs) for PPH treatment in rural Kigoma, Tanzania. Results show that TBAs successfully administered misoprostol. Women given misoprostol to treat PPH were far less likely to need additional intervention.

Since the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), a majority of theologians and the vast majority of the laity have accepted sexual intercourse as an intrinsic part of a loving relationship. However, the white puff of smoke coming from the Sistine Chapel signifying the election of Pope Benedict XVI will turn into a black cloud for reproductive freedom for a billion Catholics. In the short term it may also hurt non-Catholics, as the new Pope’s stand on these basic human issues may encourage other fundamentalists to impose new constraints.

This article explores the role of Community-based distribution (CBD) programs. Community-based distribution are the optimum way of reaching people in rural areas of developing countries where conventional methods of delivery do not exist or fail.

This commentary article refers to the meeting of the International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynaecology (FIGO) in Santiago, Chile in 2003, which made reducing post-partum hemorrhage a priority, and two meetings supported by Venture Strategies in May and July 2004 in Kampala, Uganda and Nairobi, Kenya, which took the first steps toward meeting that goal

In Japan, it took over 30 years to register the contraceptive Pill, but it took only six months to approve Viagra. The Pill was developed in an academic institution and no large pharmaceutical manufacturer wished to market it. Viagra was developed inside a big company and actively promoted. In the USA, the Pill was almost removed from the market because of widely publicized reports of deaths, but mortalities associated with Viagra do not make the headlines. Viagra has been promoted by the famous, whilst those who use the Pill do not appear in advertisements. Even theologians have treated these two drugs according to different standards. It is suggested that this asymmetry is not accidental, but is an expression of a deep-seated dual standard that is ultimately driven by biosocial differences in male and female power, and reproductive agendas rooted in human evolution.