South African Menopause Society revised consensus position statement on menopausal hormone therapy, 2014.

The South African Menopause Society (SAMS) consensus position statement on menopausal hormone therapy (HT) 2014 is a revision of the SAMS Council consensus statement on menopausal HT published in the SAMJ in May 2007. Information presented in the previous statement has been re-evaluated and new evidence has been incorporated. While the recommendations pertaining to HT remain similar to those in the previous statement, the 2014 revision includes a wider range of clinical benefits for HT, the inclusion of non-hormonal alternatives such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin noradrenaline reuptake inhibitors for the management of vasomotor symptoms, and an appraisal of bioidentical hormones and complementary medicines used for treatment of menopausal symptoms. New preparations that are likely to be more commonly used in the future are also mentioned. The revised statement emphasises that commencing HT during the 'therapeutic window of opportunity' maximises the benefit-to-risk profile of therapy in symptomatic menopausal women.

Carbohydrate metabolism in African women with twin pregnancy.

Carbohydrate metabolism was evaluated in 21 twin pregnancies and in 21 women with singleton pregnancies. The groups were matched for age, weight, parity, and period of gestation. A 100-g oral glucose tolerance test was performed on all 42 subjects. No significant differences in venous plasma glucose responses were found between singleton and twin pregnancies. The only significant difference between the insulin responses of the two groups was a lower plasma insulin concentration at 60 min in the twin group (P less than 0.03).