BACKGROUND To obtain normal references for growth and pubertal development in a given population, assessment of pubertal stages is of great importance. This study aimed to determine the age of appearance of secondary sexual characteristics in a representative sample of Iranian girls. METHODS This cross-sectional study was conducted during 2005-2006 in 3192 girl students, aged 6-17 years, in I...

The toxicity and estrogenicity of a final treated municipal effluent was examined while flowing through a constructed wetland in north-central Texas, USA. Fish data were collected, and a baseline wetland characterization was performed to assess wetland treatment potential for these effluent properties. Vitellogenin (VTG), gonadosomatic index (GSI), hepatosomatic index (HSI), and secondary sexua...

Introduction Puberty is a defining developmental stage of every child’s life, both physically and psychosocially. Concerns about the normalcy of pubertal development and menstrual patterns are among the most common questions posed to every physician caring for children. This article reviews the primary physiologic changes in the hypothalamicpituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis and in adrenal androgen a...

Medaka (Oryzias latipes) were continuously exposed to various concentrations of two alkylphenols, 4-nonylphenol (NP) and 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), from fertilized eggs to 60 d posthatch. The effects on sexual differentiation and hepatic vitellogenin (VTG) induction in medaka were assessed to elucidate the lowest-observed-effect concentrations (LOECs) of NP and OP for these events during early li...

a bstract background:  during the menopausal period, sexual desire may decrease. therefore, restoring the sexual desire may help to  improve sexual functioning in this group of women. the aim of this study was to examine the effect of ginkgo biloba  extract (gbe) on sexual desire in postmenopausal women.           materials and methods:  in this triple-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled tria...

Gender Differences in Education This paper surveys the trends in gender gaps in education, their causes and potential policy implications. I show that female educational attainment has surpassed, or is about to surpass, male educational attainment in most industrialized countries. These gaps reflect male overrepresentation among secondary school drop-outs and female overrepresentation among ter...

AIM To investigate the prevalence, nature, and context of physical punishment and other forms of parental discipline, as reported by study members (SMs) of the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study. METHODS 962 26-year-old adults (born in Dunedin, New Zealand) were interviewed about their experiences of discipline in childhood. Study members were asked about the usual forms o...

BACKGROUND Research has shown the importance of careful teacher support during collaborative group work to promote productive discourse between students (Webb, 2009). However, this research has traditionally focused on face-to-face communication. The role of online teacher guidance of small-group computer-mediated discussions has received little attention, especially in secondary school classro...

To investigate the differences between adolescent boys and girls, the rates of depression and associated factors were determined for secondary school adolescents in 2 different samples, 552 in South Sharqiya, Oman, and 1577 in Alexandria, Egypt. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to investigate the correlates of depression. In Alexandria, the rate of having depressive symptoms in...