Management Of Genital Disease Research Articles

A Knight’s Thrust: Was the Use of a Codpiece for Protection or for Exertion of Masculinity? An Evaluation through History and its Reemergence in Modern Times

Objectives Medieval military history is marked by an evolution of armor design and protection that was driven by advances in weaponry. The codpiece was a 14th century innovation to provide a genital shield in battle but was used in civilian life as well. Our objective was to clarify whether the codpiece served as an essential component of a knight’s safe keeping or as a mere outward display of virility. Methods A comprehensive literature search was performed using PubMed and Google Scholar. Primary historical texts, museum archives, scholarly works, popular media, documentaries, and artwork were reviewed. Results The armor used in the early Middle Ages was chain mail, which covered the neck, trunk, and upper arms and legs but failed to protect against blunt injury to the groin as weaponry became increasingly powerful. Full plate armor, developed by the 1300s, eventually included the codpiece, a small metal pouch to house the genitalia. In the late 1400s, however, codpieces appeared in civilian wear, modestly laced to men’s stockings as upper body shirts and tunics became shorter. Codpieces quickly became more ostentatious and bulkier in an ‘Arms Race’ of masculinity, were soon ridiculed in contemporary satires including works by Shakespeare and Rabelais and inspired royal edicts limiting their use. However, the codpiece was used in the management of genital disease as well, as the bulky wraps and ointments used to treat endemic syphilis were thus more easily concealed. The codpiece fell out of fashion by the late 16th century but its descendants, in sports and the performing arts, still have practical use today in genital protection and in men’s haute couture clothing design. Conclusions In the medieval battlefield, the codpiece was both protective and assertive of masculinity. Its military popularity eventually waned as armored battle proved no match for more modern weaponry, but the codpiece had a long influence on sartorial culture. The codpiece’s modern descendant, the athletic ‘cup’, has therefore a long and most unusual history in the pages of war and Renaissance clothing.

A Knight’s Thrust: Was the Use of a Codpiece for Protection or for Exertion of Masculinity? An Evaluation through History and its Reemergence in Modern Times

Objectives Medieval military history is marked by an evolution of armor design and protection that was driven by advances in weaponry. The codpiece was a 14th century innovation to provide a genital shield in battle but was used in civilian life as well. Our objective was to clarify whether the codpiece served as an essential component of a knight’s safe keeping or as a mere outward display of virility. Methods A comprehensive literature search was performed using PubMed and Google Scholar. Primary historical texts, museum archives, scholarly works, popular media, documentaries, and artwork were reviewed. Results The armor used in the early Middle Ages was chain mail, which covered the neck, trunk, and upper arms and legs but failed to protect against blunt injury to the groin as weaponry became increasingly powerful. Full plate armor, developed by the 1300s, eventually included the codpiece, a small metal pouch to house the genitalia. In the late 1400s, however, codpieces appeared in civilian wear, modestly laced to men’s stockings as upper body shirts and tunics became shorter. Codpieces quickly became more ostentatious and bulkier in an ‘Arms Race’ of masculinity, were soon ridiculed in contemporary satires including works by Shakespeare and Rabelais and inspired royal edicts limiting their use. However, the codpiece was used in the management of genital disease as well, as the bulky wraps and ointments used to treat endemic syphilis were thus more easily concealed. The codpiece fell out of fashion by the late 16th century but its descendants, in sports and the performing arts, still have practical use today in genital protection and in men’s haute couture clothing design. Conclusions In the medieval battlefield, the codpiece was both protective and assertive of masculinity. Its military popularity eventually waned as armored battle proved no match for more modern weaponry, but the codpiece had a long influence on sartorial culture. The codpiece’s modern descendant, the athletic ‘cup’, has therefore a long and most unusual history in the pages of war and Renaissance clothing.

The burden and costs of prevention and management of genital disease caused by HPV in women: A population-based registry study in Finland

The aim of this study was to evaluate the total burden and health care provider costs of prevention, management and treatment of HP-related genital disease outcomes including all organized and opportunistic screening tests. Information about HPV-related disease outcomes in the Finnish female population of 2.7 million was obtained from nationwide population-based registry data. We estimated the incidence, health care resource use, health provider costs and life years lost due to cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancer and intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN, VaIN, VIN), cervical adenocarcinoma in situ, and external genital warts. The average annual disease burden of HPV-related genital disease in the female population of Finland comprises altogether 241 cases of cervical, vaginal and vulvar cancer, 2,898 new cases of CIN, 34,432 cases of minor cytological abnormalities, and almost 4,000 cases of external genital warts. The total annual costs of screening, further diagnostics and treatment of HPV-related genital disease were € 44.7 million of which the annual costs due to cervical cancer screening were € 22.4 million and due to diagnostics, management and treatment of HPV-related genital disease outcomes were € 22.3 million. The latter included € 8.4 million due to minor cervical abnormalities detected by the current cervical screening practice. The extensive opportunistic Pap testing fails to keep the incidence of cervical cancer from increasing among women aged 30-34. In addition opportunistic screening among this and younger age group detects a significant number of cytological abnormalities, most of which are probably treated unnecessarily.