Relationship of Estradiol and Progesterone with Partnership and Parity Among Bangladeshi and British Women of European Origin.

Recent studies in social endocrinology have explored the effects of social relationships on female reproductive steroid hormones-estradiol and progesterone-investigating whether they are suppressed in partnered and parous women. Results have been mixed for these hormones although evidence is more consistent that partnered women and women with young children have lower levels of testosterone. These studies were sequential to earlier research on men, based on Wingfield's Challenge Hypothesis, which showed that men in committed relationships, or with young children, have lower levels of testosterone than unpartnered men or men with older or no children. The study described here explored associations between estradiol and progesterone with partnership and parity among women from two different ethnicities: South Asian and white British. We hypothesized that both steroid hormones would be lower among partnered and/or parous women with children ≤3 years old, regardless of ethnicity. In this study we analyzed data from 320 Bangladeshi and British women of European origin aged 18 to 50 who participated in two previous studies of reproductive ecology and health. Levels of estradiol and progesterone were assayed using saliva and/or serum samples and the body mass index calculated from anthropometric data. Questionnaires provided other covariates. Multiple linear regressions were used to analyze the data. The hypotheses were not supported. We argue here that, unlike links between testosterone and male social relationships, theoretical foundations for such relationships with female reproductive steroid hormones are lacking, especially given the primary role of these steroids in regulating female reproductive function. Further longitudinal studies are needed to explore the bases of independent relationships between social factors and female reproductive steroid hormones.

Actual availability of general practice appointments for mildly ill children.

OBJECTIVE: To determine actual availability and cost of general practitioner appointments for children with conditions of low acuity and low urgency, from the perspective of the child's family. DESIGN, PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A "secret shopper" method, whereby research assistants posing as parents seeking appointments for mildly ill children telephoned a random sample of 225 general practice clinics within three Melbourne Medicare Local catchments, which included urban, suburban and regional areas; the study was conducted between 1 August and 30 September 2014. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Availability of same-day appointments and time until appointment; bulk-billing status of the clinic and/or the potential cost of an appointment. RESULTS: High availability of appointments was found in all three catchment areas (range, 72%-81% of clinics contacted). About half (49%) had appointments available within 4 hours. Between 72% and 80% of clinics contacted in the three Medicare Local catchment areas offered bulk-billing for paediatric appointments. CONCLUSION: There is extensive same-day new-patient GP appointment availability for mildly ill children in the catchment areas of Melbourne studied. Further, as most of the available appointments are in clinics that bulk bill, financial access should not affect this availability. Increased paediatric presentations to emergency departments are not likely to be the result of limited GP availability. These findings provide an important base for developing data-driven policy approaches to the development and use of primary care.