Women's Health | St. Louis Public Radio

Women's Health

Infant mortality rate in St. Louis stagnant despite improvements across state, US

By • Apr 2, 2017
According to the new study, a woman's weight before her first pregnancy may have long-term effects.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases | National Institutes of Health

The number of infants in Missouri who die in their first year is slowly dropping alongside national numbers, but St. Louis’ infant mortality rate has remained nearly stagnant, according to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services.

Planned Parenthood Sues To Overturn Missouri Abortion Restrictions

By • Nov 30, 2016

Missouri’s two Planned Parenthood affiliates on Wednesday morning sued to overturn the state’s highly restrictive abortion laws, a move expected since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down similar laws in Texas in June. 

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Jefferson City, sets up a showdown over state statutes that were enacted in the wake of the Supreme Court’s landmark Roe v. Wade decision, which held that the right to an abortion in the early stages of pregnancy is rooted in the Constitution.

Next spring is earliest that Planned Parenthood can be tossed out of Missouri's Medicaid program

By • Jul 1, 2016
Planned Parenthood supporters rally in 2015 outside the agency's clinic in St. Louis after a mass shooting at a clinic in Colorado Springs.
Camille Phillips | St. Louis Public Radio

State officials charged with overseeing Missouri’s changes in its women’s health program for the poor are officially estimating it will be next April before a new state-funded program is in place that bars Planned Parenthood from participating.

Missouri’s Department of Social Services has posted its phase-out plan on its website. It comes after Gov. Jay Nixon announced Thursday that it will take months for the state to replace its federally funded women’s health program – which must include Planned Parenthood – with a state-funded program that does not.

McCaskill proud of pro-Akin moves in 2012, leaning toward Iran deal

By • Aug 12, 2015
U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., has promised to help get a contribution limit measure on next year's ballot. But other Democratic officials have promised such a move and haven't delivered.
Courtesy of Claire McCaskill's Flickr

(Updated Friday, Aug. 14)

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill is claiming a sizable share of credit for the 2012 GOP primary victory of rival Todd Akin, who then lost to McCaskill in that year's general election by a sizeable margin.

But she denies that her indirect aid broke any campaign laws. A group filed a complaint Friday with the Federal Election Commission, alleging otherwise.

“I think it was high risk, and very strategic,” McCaskill said during a radio interview Thursday with host Don Marsh on St. Louis On the Air.

Wash U Analysis Links Chemical Exposure With Earlier Menopause

By • Jan 28, 2015
PLOS ONE

A new analysis led by Washington University has shown a possible link between exposure to certain common, long-lasting chemicals and the earlier onset of menopause.

The researchers analyzed information from 1,442 menopausal women who had been tested for what are known as endocrine disrupting chemicals -- chemicals that can affect how hormones work in the body. The data were collected between 1999 and 2008 by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as part of a national health and nutrition study.

Kiener Plaza Fountain Turns Teal For Ovarian Cancer Awareness

By • Sep 5, 2014
St. Louis Ovarian Cancer Awareness president Lisa Sienkiewicz stands next to the Kiener Fountain in downtown St. Louis, which has been dyed teal in honor of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
Durrie Bouscaren / St. Louis Public Radio

To kick off National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, local organizers dyed the water in the Kiener Plaza Fountain in downtown St. Louis teal -- the trademark color of the awareness campaign.

Sometimes called the ‘silent killer,’ ovarian cancer can be difficult to recognize before it’s in an advanced stage.

The rate of survival is low: 20,593 American women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011. 14,346 women died, according to the Center for Disease Control. But treatments are most effective when the cancer is diagnosed in its earliest stages.