Mitzi Perdue

Cognitive Function And Menopause MENOPAUSE CAN IMPACT COGNITIVE FUNCTION It’s widely recognized that menopause affects mood and sleeping. However, menopause can also have a measurable impact on how a woman performs cognitively. This includes tests used clinically for...

Women & Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular DiseaseWOMEN NEED TO BECOME MORE AWARE OF ATHEROSCLEROTIC CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE (ASCVD) A typical woman is more likely to be afraid of breast cancer than heart disease. Yet in this country, roughly 50,000 women will die each...

Contraception: A Call To ActionPOPULATION GROWTH IS DEPLETING RESOURCES NEEDED FOR OUR SURVIVAL The global population is currently 7.2 billion people, and by 2050, it’s projected to be 10 billion. This may have effects we can’t reverse. Humans are the biggest users of...

Dyslipidimia: Problems and Treatments EFFECTIVE LIPID CONTROL CAN INCREASE BOTH THE QUALITY AND LENGTH OF A WOMAN’S LIFE Too many women with dyslipidemia are never discovered or are undertreated. Often they don’t know they have a problem until after they’ve had an...

Breast Cancer: Current StrategiesWITH BREAST CANCER THERE IS NEW REASON FOR OPTIMISM More than two million American women will develop breast cancer in their lifetimes and 39,000 of them will die from it every year. However, even though women who are newly diagnosed...

Sex and Gender Differences In StrokeWOMEN ARE DISPROPORTIONATELY AFFECTED BY STROKE Stroke is the third leading cause of death for women. For men, it’s the fifth leading cause. Women have a higher lifetime risk of stroke and they are more likely to die from one. In...

Breastfeeding: It’s Not Just Babies Who BenefitBREASTFEEDING BENEFITS FOR MOTHERS MAY EXCEED THE BENEFITS FOR THEIR BABIES Doctors have long understood the benefits of breastfeeding for infants. Today, more and more people are recognizing the immense benefits of...

Overactive Bladder and Urinary Incontinence OVERACTIVE BLADDER AND INCONTINENCE ARE MAJOR PROBLEMS FOR WOMEN Almost 31% of women between the ages of 42 and 50 and 38% of women over age 60 suffer from overactive bladder (OAB) and/or urinary incontinence (UI). These...

Vulvodynia: We Don't Have A Cure, but We Can Manage ItVULVODYNIA IS OFTEN UNDIAGNOSED OR MISDIAGNOSED Vulvodynia is chronic vulvar nerve pain affecting the external female genital organs including the labia, clitoris, and vaginal opening. Women describe it as a...

Bariatric SurgeryBARIATRIC SURGERY CAN BE EXTREMELY HELPFUL AS A LAST RESORT Bariatric surgery is generally only available for severely obese individuals who have not succeeded in controlling their weight using diet and exercise. Almost all of our patients at Penn...

Health of American Women: It's ProblematicTHINGS ARE NOT WHAT YOU EXPECT IN U.S. HEALTHCARE There’s a widespread perception that the United States has the best health care in the world. After all, we spend more on health care per person, we have cutting-edge...

Cardiology TipsNOT EVERYONE WITH AN ABNORMAL STRESS TEST NEEDS AN ANGIOGRAM OR REVASCULARIZATION It may seem logical that opening a narrowed artery or bypassing it would prevent heart attacks and prolong life. However, recent clinical trials in stable patients, such...