Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 57110
From: bed@intacc.uucp (Deb Waddington)
Subject: INFO NEEDED: Gaucher's Disease


I have a 42 yr old male friend, misdiagnosed as having
 osteopporosis for two years, who recently found out that his
 illness is the rare Gaucher's disease. 

Gaucher's disease symptoms include: brittle bones (he lost 9 
 inches off his hieght); enlarged liver and spleen; internal
 bleeding; and fatigue (all the time). The problem (in Type 1) is
 attributed to a genetic mutation where there is a lack of the
 enzyme glucocerebroside in macrophages so the cells swell up.
 This will eventually cause death.

Enyzme replacement therapy has been successfully developed and
 approved by the FDA in the last few years so that those patients
 administered with this drug (called Ceredase) report a remarkable
 improvement in their condition. Ceredase, which is manufactured
 by biotech biggy company--Genzyme--costs the patient $380,000
 per year. Gaucher's disease has justifyably been called "the most
 expensive disease in the world".

NEED INFO:
I have researched Gaucher's disease at the library but am relying
 on netlanders to provide me with any additional information:
**news, stories, reports
**people you know with this disease
**ideas, articles about Genzyme Corp, how to get a hold of
   enough money to buy some, programs available to help with
   costs.
**Basically ANY HELP YOU CAN OFFER

Thanks so very much!

Deborah 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58043
From: mcdonald@aries.scs.uiuc.edu (J. D. McDonald)
Subject: Re: jiggers

In article <78846@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:

>This wouldn't happen to be the same thing as chiggers, would it?
>A truly awful parasitic affliction, as I understand it.  Tiny bugs
>dig deeply into the skin, burying themselves.  Yuck!  They have these
>things in Oklahoma.

Close. My mother comes from Gainesville Tex, right across the border.
They claim to be the chigger capitol of the world, and I believe them.
When I grew up in Fort Worth it was bad enough, but in Gainesville
in the summer an attack was guaranteed.

Doug McDonald

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58045
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Breech Baby Info Needed

In article <1993Apr5.151818.27409@trentu.ca> xtkmg@trentu.ca (Kate Gregory) writes:
>In article <1993Apr3.161757.19612@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>>
>>Another uncommon problem is maternal hemorrhage.  I don't remember the
>>incidence, but it is something like 1 in 1,000 or 10,000 births.  It is hard
>>to see how you could handle it at home, and you wouldn't have very much time.
>>
>>thing you might consider is that people's risk tradeoffs vary.  I consider
>>a 1/1,000 risk of loss of a loved one to require considerable effort in
>>the avoiding.
>
>Mark, you seem to be terrified of the birth process

That's ridiculous!

>and unable to
>believe that women's bodies are actually designed to do it.

They aren't designed, they evolved.  And, much as it discomforts us, in
humans a trouble-free birth process was sacrificed to increased brain and
cranial size.  Wild animals have a much easier time with birth than humans do.
Domestic horses and cows typically have a worse time.  To give you an idea:
my family tree is complicated because a few of my pioneer great-great-
grandfathers had several wives, and we never could figure out which wife
had each child.  One might ask why this happened.  My great-great-
grandfathers were, by the time they reached their forties, quite prosperous
farmers.  Nonetheless, they lost several wives each to the rigors of
childbirth; the graveyards in Spencer, Indiana, and Boswell, North Dakota,
contain quite a few gravestones like "Ida, wf. of Jacob Liptrap, and
baby, May 6, 1853."

>You wanted
>to section all women carrying breech in case one in a hundred or a
>thousand breech babies get hung up in second stage,

More like one in ten.  And the consequences can be devastating; I have
direct experience of more than a dozen victims of a fouled-up breech birth.

>and now you want
>all babies born in hospital based on a guess of how likely maternal
>hemorrhage is and a false belief that it is fatal.

It isn't always fatal.  But it is often fatal, when it happens out of
reach of adequate help.  More often, it permanently damages one's health.

Clearly women's bodies _evolved_ to give birth (I am no believer in divine
design); however, evolution did not favor trouble-free births for humans.  

>You have your kids where you want. You encourage your wife to
>get six inch holes cut through her stomach muscles, expose herself
>to anesthesia and infection, and whatever other "just in case" measures
>you think are necessary.

My, aren't we wroth!  I haven't read a more outrageous straw man attack
in months!  I can practically see your mouth foam.

We're statistically sophisticated enough to balance the risks.  Although
I can't produce exact statistics 5 years after the last time we looked
them up, rest assured that we balanced C-section risks against other risks.
I wouldn't encourage my wife to have a Caesarean unless it was clearly
indicated; on the other hand, I am opposed (on obvious grounds) to waiting
until an emergency to give in.

And bear this in mind: my wife took the lead in all of these decisions.
We talked things over, and I did a lot of the leg work, but the main
decisions were really hers.

>But I for one am bothered by your continued
>suggestions, especially to the misc.kidders pregnant for the first
>time, that birth is dangerous, even fatal, and that all these
>unpleasant things are far better than the risks you run just doing
>it naturally.

I don't know of very many home birth advocates, even, that think that
a first-time mother should have her baby at home.

>I'm no Luddite. I've had a section. I'm planning a hospital birth
>this time. But for heaven's sake, not everyone needs that!

But people should bother to find out the relative risks.  My wife was
unwilling to take any significant risks in order to have nice surroundings.
In view of the intensity of the birth experience, I doubt surroundings
have much importance anyway.  Somehow the values you're advocating seem
all lopsided to me: taking risks, even if fairly small, of serious
permanent harm in order to preserve something that is, after all,
an esthetic consideration.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58046
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Analgesics with Diuretics

I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
combine aspirin with a diuretic. The idea seems to be to reduce
inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

Thanks,
-Larry C. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58047
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho
Leung Ng) wrote:
> 
> 
>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
> 
> Ho Leung Ng
> ng4@husc.harvard.edu

You became older and your intestine normalized to the weaned state.  That
is, lactose tolerance is an unusual state for adults of most mammals
except for h. sapiens of northern European origin.  As a h. sapiens of 
asian descent (assumption based on name) the loss of lactase is normal
for you.  

Steve Holland
gila005@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58048
From: bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Smoker's Lungs

How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
a considerable amount of time for that to happen?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58049
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Re: Blood Cholesterol -  Gabe Mirkin's advice

In article <1pka0uINNnqa@mojo.eng.umd.edu>, georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
|> Forget about total cholesterol when assessing health risk factors.
|> Instead, use a relationship between LDL and HDL cholesterol:
|> 
|> If your LDL is       You need an HDL of at least
|> 
|>       90                 35
|>      100                 45
|>      110                 50
|>      120                 55
|>      130                 60
|>      140                 70

Gee, what do I do?  My LDL is only 50-60. (and my HDL is only 23-25)
I must be risking something, but Is it the same risk as those with 
very high LDL?

|> If your triglycerides are above 300, and your HDL is below 30, the
|> drug of choice is gemfibrozil (Lopid) taken as a 600mg tablet
|> thirty minutes before your morning and evening meals.

What about exercise and a low-fat diet?  What are the long-term 
effects of this drug?

-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58050
From: cliff@buster.stafford.tx.us (Cliff Tomplait)
Subject: Re: sex problem.

ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg) writes:
>I have question that I hope is taken seriously, despite the subject content.

>Problem:  My long time girlfriend lately has not been initiating any sexual
>	activity.  For the last four months things have changed dramatically.
>       ...
>	--to make this shorter-- Summary: nothing that I can think of has
>				changed....
>       ...
>She suggested we go to a sex counselor, but I really don't want to (just yet).
>Any suggestions would be appreciated.
>If you think you can help me, please contact me by e-mail for further info.
>PLEASE serious replies only.
>Thanks, Larry

Larry:

The subject content IS serious; as is the question.

On one hand you state that "things have changed dramatically" but, at the
same time nothing you "can think of has changed".  Your girlfriend seems
to want to see a counselor, but you don't.  

I'd recommend that you examine your hesitation to see a counselor.  It's
a very good environment to examine issues.  

The fact of the matter is:  your girlfriend has a different perception than
you.  The TWO of you need to address the issue in order to resolve it.

Please consider going to a counselor with your girlfriend.  What could it
possibly hurt?

Cliff  (the paramedic)


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58051
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Prednisone...what are the significant long term side effects?

> >I have been taking prednisone 5mg twice a day for a while to control
> >Ulcerative Colitis. It seems like if I reduce the dosage, the problem
> >becomes worse. At this point, i see myself taking prednisone for a long
> >long time, perhaps for ever. I was wondering about long term major side
> >effects, things like potential birth defects, arthritis etc. I have been
> >putting on weight, my face looks puffed and round, experience sudden mood
> >swings. As I understand, these are all short term.

I second what Spenser Aden said in reply.  Additionally, it is hard to say
what type of response you ar3e having to prednisone since you did not say
how long you have been on it.  Patients are generally kept on steroids for
months before thinking about tapering.  Alternatives to daily dosing are 
every other day dosing, in your case 20mg every other day would be a start.
Another option if it is not possible to get you off prednisone is to start
azathioprine.  Like Spenser said, you should generally be on another drug
in addition to your prednisone, like asulfidine.  A lot of the specifics
about options, though, depends on severity, location, and duration of 
disease, as well as histology, so take advice off the net for what it
is worth.  

I treat patients with UC and Crohn's.  An educated patient is a good 
patient, but let your doctor know where the advice came from so things
can be put in context.  You should also be a member of the Crohn's and
Colitis Foundation of America.  1-800-932-2423 office / 1-800-343-3637
info hotline.

Best of Luck to you.

Steve Holland.
gila005@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58054
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Mental Illness

[reply to dabbott@augean.eleceng.adelaide.edu.AU (Derek Abbott)]
 
>Are there any case histories of severe mental illness cases remarkably
>recovering after a tragic accident or trauma (eg. through nobody's fault,
>being trapped in a fire and losing your legs, say)?
 
I know of a patient who was severely and chronically depressed and tried
to kill himself with a bullet to the temple.  He essentially gave
himself a prefrontal lobotomy, curing the depression.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58055
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

[reply to ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)]
 
>While you're right that the S vertebrae are attached to each other,
>the sacrum, to my knowledge, *can* be adjusted either directly, or
>by applying pressure on the pubic bone...
 
Ron, you're an endless source of misinformation!  There ARE no sacral
vertebrae.  There is a bone called the sacrum at the end of the spine.
It is a single, solid bone except in a few patients who have a
lumbarized S1 as a normal variant.  How do you adjust a solid bone,
break it?  No, don't tell me, I don't want to know.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58056
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng) writes:
> 
>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
> 
> Ho Leung Ng
> ng4@husc.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58057
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <1993Apr5.165716.59@immunex.com>, rousseaua@immunex.com writes:
> In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng) writes:
>> 
>>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
>> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
>> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
>> 
>> Ho Leung Ng
>> ng4@husc.harvard.edu


OOPS. My original message died. I'll try again...
I always understood (perhaps wrongly...:)) that the bacteria in our digestive
tracts help us break down the components of milk. Perhaps the normal flora of 
the intestine changes as one passes from childhood.
Is there a pathologist or microbiologist in the house?

Anne-Marie Rousseau
e-mail: rousseaua@immunex.com
(Please note that these opinions are mine, and only mine.)

         
            
           
           



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58058
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Smoker's Lungs

In article <1993Apr5.123315.48837@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
>How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
>Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
>a considerable amount of time for that to happen?

The answer to your first question is rather difficult to answer without
doing a lot of autopsies.  The second question is something that's been
known for some time.  It appears that within about 15 years of quitting
smoking a person's risk for developing lung cancer drops to that of the
person who never smoked (assuming you do not get lung cancer in the
interim!).  The risk to someone who smoked the equivalent of a pack per
day for 40 years is around 20 times as high as a non-smoker.  Still
rather low overall, but significant.  Personally, I'd be more concerned
about heart disease secondary to smoking -- it's much more common, and
even a small increase in risk is significant there.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58059
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu) wrote:
: [reply to ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)]
:  
: >While you're right that the S vertebrae are attached to each other,
: >the sacrum, to my knowledge, *can* be adjusted either directly, or
: >by applying pressure on the pubic bone...
:  
: Ron, you're an endless source of misinformation!  There ARE no sacral
: vertebrae.  There is a bone called the sacrum at the end of the spine.
: It is a single, solid bone except in a few patients who have a
: lumbarized S1 as a normal variant.  How do you adjust a solid bone,
: break it?  No, don't tell me, I don't want to know.
:  
Oh come now, surely you know he only meant to measure the flow of
electromagnetic energy about the sacrum and then adjust these flows
with a crystal of chromium applied to the right great toe.  Don't
you know anything?

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58060
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: Anti-Viral Herbs

kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:

>Unfortunately it was rather poorly researched, and would not be available
>today if it were just invented.  Keep in mind however that those were
>the days when a bottle of Coca Cola really did contain coca extract and
>a certain amount of active cocaine.  Times have changed, and our attitudes
>need to change with them.
 Well, yes.  That was a part of my point.  Aspirin has its problems, but
in some situations it is useful.  Ditto stuff like licorice root.  Taking
anything as a drug for theraputic purposes implicitly carries the idea
of taking a dose where the benefits are not exceeded by any unwanted,
additional effects.  Taking any drug when the potential ill-effects are
not known is a risk assumed by the parties involved, and it may be that
in a given situation the risk is worthwhile.
   Like Prozac, for instance; Prozac has been shown to be theraputic in
some cases where the tri-cyclics fail.  But Prozac hasn't been in use
that long, and it really isn't clear what if any effects it may have
when taken over long periods of time, even though it has been tested
by present day standards.  Should Prozac be taken off the market because
long-term effects, if any, are not known?  IMHO, i'd say no.

euclid

>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert                |          University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine    --*--        Pittsburgh, PA             =
>=  kxgst1+@pitt.edu               |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>-- 
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert                |          University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine    --*--        Pittsburgh, PA             =
>=  kxgst1+@pitt.edu               |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58061
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: ringing ears



A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing.  The ringing is so loud
that she has great difficulty sleeping at night.  She says that she hasn't 
had a normal night's sleep in about 6 months (she looks like it too :-().
This is making her depressed so her doctor has put her on anti-depressants.

The ringing started rather suddenly about 6 months ago.  She is quickly losing
sleep, social life and sanity over this.

Does anyone know of any treatments for this?  Any experience?  Coping
mechanisms?  Any opinions on the anti-depressant drugs?

                                              [J.F.]


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58062
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Twitching eyelid

I'm surprised nobody mentioned that twitching of the eyelid can be a
symptom of an infection, especially if it also itches or stings.
(It happened to me, and antibiotic eyedrops cleared it up nicely.)

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington         internet mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs       phone 706 542-0358 :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia                fax 706 542-0349 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58063
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: fibromyalgia

In article <93Apr5.133521edt.1231@smoke.cs.toronto.edu> craig@cs.toronto.edu (Craig MacDonald) writes:
>>  It may be extremely
>>common, something like 5% of the population.  It is treatable with
>>tricyclic antidepressant-type drugs (Elavil, Pamelor).  
>
>Why is it treated with antidepressants?  Is it considered a
>psychogenic condition?

No.  That these drugs happen to be useful as antidepressants is neither
here nor there.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58064
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Analgesics with Diuretics

In article <ofk=lve00WB2AvUktO@andrew.cmu.edu> Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
>combine aspirin with a diuretic.

You certainly do not see OTC preparations advertised as such.
The only such ridiculous concoctions are nostrums for premenstrual
syndrome, ostensibly to treat headache and "bloating" simultaneously.
They're worthless.

>The idea seems to be to reduce
>inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

That's not the idea, and no, they don't work.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58065
From: jmilhoan@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (JT)
Subject: Re: ringing ears

In article <10893@ncrwat.Waterloo.NCR.COM> jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare) writes:
>
>
>A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing.  The ringing is so loud
>that she has great difficulty sleeping at night.  She says that she hasn't 
>had a normal night's sleep in about 6 months (she looks like it too :-().
>This is making her depressed so her doctor has put her on anti-depressants.

Sometimes I have a problem with doctor's prescribing medicine like
this.  I of course don't know the exact situation, and
anti-depressants may work, but it isn't helping the ringing at all, is it?


>The ringing started rather suddenly about 6 months ago.  She is quickly losing
>sleep, social life and sanity over this.

Mine started about three years back.  Turns out I have tinnitus
bilateral (translation: ringing in both ears, basically ;).  If this
is what it is, she'll probably get used to it.  It would keep me up
and drive me nuts too, but nowadays, I have to plug both my ears with
my fingers to check to see if they are ringing.  Usually they are, but
you get so used to it, it just gets tuned out.  Yes, this is what I've
read about it... not just from my own personal experience.


>Does anyone know of any treatments for this?  Any experience?  Coping
>mechanisms?  Any opinions on the anti-depressant drugs?

Millions have it, according to my physician.  You just learn to cope
with it (like I mentioned earlier) by ignoring it.  It eventually
becomes unconscious.

The doc also said it could be caused by diet (ie: too much caffeine)
and stress, but I haven't changed my lifestyle much, and it just comes
and goes (it is always there somewhat, but now I rarely notice it when
it really "kicks in").

Also, it doesn't necessarily mean there is any hearing loss, either
caused by it or causing it.  I had an ENT (ear/nose/throat) exam, and
passed.  In fact, my hearing is quite good considering I don't take as
good of care of my hearing as I should.

Her reaction is normal.  If it is tinnitus, chances are good she'll
begin to not even notice it.  

This info is taken mostly from a few "experts", my own experience, and
some readings (sorry, it was a few years back and don't have any
specifics handy).

JT

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58066
From: amigan@cup.portal.com (Mike - Medwid)
Subject: Emphysema question

A friend of mine is going in later this week for tests to see if has
emphysema.  His lung capacity has decreased over time.  His father died
of the disease.  He works in woodworking.  I believe he has a very
occasional cigarette, perhaps one cigarette a day or even less.  He tells
me this..I've never seen him light up.  He has some pretty healthy
life style habits, good diet, exercise, meditation, retreats, therapy
etc.  Anyhow..he is very concerned with this check up.  I know really
nothing about the disease.  I believe it interferes with the lining
of the lung being able to exchange oxygen.  

Is a diagnosis of emphysema a death sentence?  If he were to give up smoking
entirely would that better his chances for recovery?  What are some 
modern therapies used in people with this disease?  I would appreciate 
any information.  Thanks.  amigan@cup.portal.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58067
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: Re: Oily skin - problem?

In article <1993Apr5.044140.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu> u92_hwong@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:
>	I have a very oily skin.  My problem is when I wash my face, it becomes
>oily in half an hour.  Especially in the nose region.  Is this an illness?  How
>can I prevent it from occuring in such short time?  Is there a cleanser out
>there that will do a better job -- that is after cleaning, my face won't become
>oily in such a short time.

I don't think that's a problem.  My face is quite oily too.  I had a moderate
acne problem for many years.  I then found that if I vigorously scrub my face
with a nail brush and soap (Irish Spring) twice a day the acne was not a 
problem.  I can still leave a pretty health nose print on a mirror after 45 min
(don't ask ;->) but acne is not a real problem anymore. 

                                          [J.F.]


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58069
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Migraines and scans

DN> From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
DN> A neurology
DN> consultation is cheaper than a scan.

And also better, because a neurologist can make a differential
diagnosis between migraine, tension-type headache, cluster, benign
intracranial hypertension, chronic paroxysmal hemicrania, and other
headache syndromes that all appear normal on a scan.  A neurologist
can also recommend a course of treatment that is appropriate to the
diagnosis.

DN> >>Also, since many people are convinced they have brain tumors or other
DN> >>serious pathology, it may be cheaper to just get a CT scan then have
DN> >>them come into the ER every few weeks.
DN> And easier than taking the time to reassure the patient, right?
DN> Personally, I don't think this can ever be justified.

Sigh.  It may never be justifiable, but I sometimes do it.  Even
after I try to show thoroughness with a detailed history, neurologic
examination, and discussion with the patient about my diagnosis,
salted with lots of reassurance, patients still ask "why can't you
order a scan, so we can be absolutely sure?"  Aunt Millie often gets
into the conversation, as in "they ignored Aunt Millie's headaches
for years", and then she died of a brain tumor, aneurysm, or
whatever.  If you can get away without ever ordering imaging for a
patient with an obviously benign headache syndrome, I'd like to hear
what your magic is.

Every once in a while I am able to bypass imaging by getting an EEG.
Mind you, I don't think EEG is terribly sensitive for brain tumor,
but the patient feels like "something is being done" (as if the
hours I spent talking with and examining the patient were
"nothing"), the EEG has no ionizing radiation, it's *much* cheaper
than CT or MRI, and the EEG brings in some money to my department.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                         

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58070
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: migraine and exercise

JL> From: jlecher@pbs.org
JL> > I would not classify a mild headache that was continuous for weeks
JL> > as migraine, even if the other typical features were there (e.g.,
JL> > unilateral, nausea and vomiting, photophobia).  Migraines are, by
JL> > common agreement, episodic rather than constant.
JL> >
JL> Well, I'm glad that you aren't my doctor, then, or I'd still be suffering.
JL> Remember, I was tested for any other cause, and there was nothing. I'm
JL> otherwise very healthy.
JL> The nagging pain has all of the qualifications: it's on one side, and
JL> frequently included my entire right side: right arm, right leg, right eye,
JL> even the right side of my tongue hurt or tingled. Noise hurt, light hurt,
JL> thinking hurt. When it got bad, I would lose my ability to read.

The differential diagnosis between migraine and non-migranous pain
is not *always* important, because some therapies are effective in
both (e.g., tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline,
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen).  Other
therapies may be more specific: beta-blockers such as propranolol
work better in migraine than tension-type headache.

The most important thing, from your perspective, is that you got
relief.  Also, please understand that a diagnosis other than
migraine does not necessarily mean "psychogenic"; I suspect that
organic factors play as large a role in tension-type headache as in
migraine.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58071
From: julkunen@messi.uku.fi (Antero Julkunen)
Subject: What about sci.med.chemistry


There is this newsgroup sci.med.physics and there has been quite a lot
discussion in this group about many chemical items e.g. prolactin
cholesterol, TSH etc. Should there also be a newsgroup sci.med.chemistry?


-- 
Antero Julkunen, Dept Clinical Chemistry, University of Kuopio, Finland
e-mail: julkunen@messi.uku.fi, phone +358-71-162680, fax +358-71-162020


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58072
From: kturner@copper.denver.colorado.edu (Kathleen J Turner)
Subject: Mystery Illness with eye problems


	A friend has the following symptoms which have occurred periodically
every few months for the last 3 years.  An episode begins with extreme
tiredness followed by:

	1. traveling joint pains and stiffness affecting mostly the elbows,
	knees, and hips.
	2. generalized muscle pains
	3. tinnitus and a feeling of pressure in her ears
	4. severe sweating occuring both at night and during the day
	5. hemorrhaging in both eyes.  Her opthamologist calls it peripheral
   retinal hemorhages and says it looks similar to diabetic retinopathy.  (She
        isn't diabetic--they checked.
	6. distorted color vision and distorted vision in general (telephone
	   poles do not appear to be straight)
	7. loss of peripheral vision.
 	
	Many tests have been run and all are normal except for something 
called unidentified bright objects found on a MRI of her brain.  The only
thing that seems to alleviate one of these episodes is prednisone.  At
times she had been on 60 mg per day.  Whenever she gets down to 10-15 mg
the symptoms become acute again.

	She is quite concerned because the retinal hemorrhages are becoming
worse with each episode and her vision is suffering.  None of the docs she
has seen have any idea what this condition is or what can be done to stop
it.  Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in 
advance.  Kathy Turner
	

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58073
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr5.191712.7543@inmet.camb.inmet.com> mazur@bluefin.camb.inmet.com (Beth Mazur) writes:
>In <1993Apr03.1.6627@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>Gordon, your experience is valid for many, but not all.  The
>>fact that you know a few people who have been overweight and are
>>now stable at a lower (normal or just less?) weight does not
>>contradict the observation that only 5-10 per cent can maintain
>>ideal weight with current technology.
>
>Actually, the observation is that only 5-10% of those who seek help
>from your so-called "diet evangelists" can maintain their weight.  I
>happen to agree with Keith Lynch that there are many people who can
>and do lose weight on their own, and who are not reflected in the
>dismal failure rate that is often quoted.
>
>Wasn't there a study where a researcher asked a more general population,
>perhaps some part of a university community, about weight loss and he/she
>found that a much higher percentage had lost and maintained? 

In fact Adiposity 101 mentions a similar study (search for "life
events" in any recent version of Adiposity 101).

The problem with anecdotal reports about individuals who have
lost weight and kept it off is that we don't know what caused
the weight gain in the first place.  This is critical because
someone who gains weight because of something temporary (drug
effect, life event, etc.) may appear successful at dieting when
the weight loss was really the result of reversing the temporary
condition that caused the weight gain.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58074
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

Getting back to the original question in this thread:

I experienced breathing difficulties a few years ago similar to those
described.  In my case, it turned out that I was developing Type I
diabetes.  Although I never sought direct confirmation of this from my
doctor, I think that the breathing problem was associated with the
presence of ketones due to the diabetes.

I think that ketosis can occur in lesser degree if one is restricting
their food intake drastically.  I don't know if this relevant in this
case, but you might ask your daughter if she has been eating
properly.
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58075
From: jperkski@kentcomm.uucp (Jim Perkowski)
Subject: Re: jiggers

In article <1ppae1$bt0@bigboote.WPI.EDU> susan@wpi.WPI.EDU (susan) writes:
> a friend of mine has a very severe cause of jiggers -
> for over a year now - they cause him a lot of pain.
>
> i recently read (i don't know where) about a possible
> cure for jiggers.  does anyone have any information on
> this?  i can't remember the name of the treatment, or
> where i read it.
>

I'll probably get flamed for this, but when I was a kid we would go to
my uncles cabin on Middle Bass Island on Lake Erie. We always came home
with a nasty case of jiggers (large red bumps where the buggers had
burrowed into the skin). My mother would paint the bumps with clear
finger nail polish. This was repeated daily for about a week or so. The
application of the polish is supposed to suffocate them as it seals of
the skin. All I can say is it worked for us. One word of caution
though. Putting finger nail polish on a jigger bite stings like hell.

(If I do get flamed for this just put jam in my pockets and call me
toast.:)

--
_______________________________________________________________________________
kentcomm!jperkski@aldhfn.akron.oh.us (and) kentcomm!jperkski@legend.akron.oh.us


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58076
Subject: Teenage acne
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)


My 14-y-o son has the usual teenage spotty chin and greasy nose.  I
bought him Clearasil face wash and ointment.  I think that is probably
enough, along with the usual good diet.  However, he is on at me to
get some product called Dalacin T, which used to be a
doctor's-prescription only treatment but is not available over the
chemist's counter.  I have asked a couple of pharmacists who say
either his acne is not severe enough for Dalacin T, or that Clearasil
is OK.  I had the odd spots as a teenager, nothing serious.  His
father was the same, so I don't figure his acne is going to escalate
into something disfiguring.  But I know kids are senstitive about
their appearance.  I am wary because a neighbour's son had this wierd
malady that was eventually put down to an overdose of vitamin A from
acne treatment.  I want to help - but with appropriate treatment.

My son also has some scaliness around the hairline on his scalp.  Sort
of teenage cradle cap.  Any pointers/advice on this?  We have tried a
couple of anti dandruff shampoos and some of these are inclined to
make the condition worse, not better.

Shall I bury the kid till he's 21 :)

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58077
From: rog@cdc.hp.com (Roger Haaheim)
Subject: Re: sex problem.

larry silverberg (ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet) wrote:
> Hello out there,

> She suggested we go to a sex counselor, but I really don't want to (just yet).

Interesting.  Does she know you have placed this info request on the
net for the world to see?  If not, how do you think she would react
if she found out?  Why would you accept the advice of unknown entities
rather than a counselor?

> Any suggestions would be appreciated.

See the counselor.

Well, you asked.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58078
From: news&aio.jsc.nasa.gov (USENET News System)
Subject: Re: Oily skin - problem?

In article <1993Apr5.044140.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu>, u92_hwong@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:
> 
> Hi there,
> 
> 	I have a very oily skin.  My problem is when I wash my face, it becomes
> oily in half an hour.  Especially in the nose region.  Is this an illness?  How
> can I prevent it from occuring in such short time?  Is there a cleanser out
> there that will do a better job -- that is after cleaning, my face won't become
> oily in such a short time.
> 
> 	Thank you for any suggestion.
> 
>if this is a disease, everyone should have it.  My skin has always been oily -
i used to say "if i were hot enough, you could fry an egg on my oily face".
i am now 50 yrs old and my skin looks younger (i'm told) than some people's
skin at 30 (it's still oily).  i have only a very few tiny wrinkles.  Thank
your lucky stars for that skin. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58079
From: jec@watson.ibm.com
Subject: Contraceptive pill

A very simple question : it seems to me that the contraceptive
pill just prevents the ovule to nest in the vagina and forces it to
fall every month. But it does not prevent the fertilzation of the 
ovule. Is it true ? If yes, is there a risk of extra-uterine
pregnancy, that is the development of the ovule inside the Fallopian
tube ?

J.Cherbonnier
jec@zurich.ibm.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58080
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Brain Tumor Treatment (thanks)

There were a few people who responded to my request for info on
treatment for astrocytomas through email, whom I couldn't thank
directly because of mail-bouncing probs (Sean, Debra, and Sharon).  So
I thought I'd publicly thank everyone.

Thanks! 

(I'm sure glad I accidentally hit "rn" instead of "rm" when I was
trying to delete a file last September. "Hmmm... 'News?' What's
this?"....)

-Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58081
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe -- Update
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

Thanks to all those who responded to my original post on this question.  The
final diagnosis was Stress.  I did not take her for a chiropractic adjustment.
(Rachel receives all her medical care at Keller Army Hospital since she is a
military dependant, and the Army does not yet provide chiropractic adjustments
as part of its regular health care.)  I am hoping that the arrival of (1)
Spring Break, and (2) College Acceptance Letters, will help.  *UNFORTUNATELY*
she was wait-listed at the college she most dearly wanted to attend, so it
seems as though that stressor may just continue for a while.  :-(

Meanwhile she is going on a camping trip with her religious youth group for
spring break, which seems like a good stress-reliever to me.

Thanks again for everybody's help/advice/suggestions/ideas.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58082
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: What about sci.med.chemistry

In <julkunen.734086202@messi.uku.fi> julkunen@messi.uku.fi (Antero
Julkunen) writes:

>There is this newsgroup sci.med.physics and there has been quite a lot
>discussion in this group about many chemical items e.g. prolactin
>cholesterol, TSH etc. Should there also be a newsgroup sci.med.chemistry?

It's got potential.  Instead of *.chemistry, how about splitting the
classification into *.biochemistry (which are probably the topics
you're thinking of) and *.pharmaceutical (which otherwise might end up
in *.(bio)chemistry)?

(This is separate from the issue of whether there is sufficient potential
news volume to support either or both groups.)

I'll add 'em to my medical/health newsgroup wish list (which I'm looking
forward to posting and discussing -- but not for another 10 days or so).

Pete

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58083
From: shafer@rigel.dfrf.nasa.gov (Mary Shafer)
Subject: Re: Inner Ear Problems from Too Much Flying?

On 5 Apr 93 23:27:26 GMT, vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) said:

Vida> Can one develop inner-ear problems from too much flying?  I hear
Vida> that pilots and steward/esses have a limit as to the maximum
Vida> number of flying hours -- what are these limits?  What are the
Vida> main problems associated with too many long-haul (over 4 hours)
Vida> trips?

The crew rest requirements are to prevent undue fatigue.  The cockpit
crew (pilot) limits are somewhat more stringent than the cabin crew
limits for this reason.  Crew rest requirements address amount of time
on duty plus rest time.  A tired crew is an accident-prone crew.

The only limits I know of for inner-ear problems are in military
aircraft, which are frequently unpressurized or less reliably
pressurized.  Not being able to clear the ears renders aircrew members
DNIF (duties not involving flying) or grounded until the ears clear.

Flying can accentuate problems if ears don't clear.  If you don't have
big pressure changes, you may not know that you've got a problem.  But
if you zip up to 5,000 or 6,000 ft (the usual cabin altitude in an
airliner) and then back down to sea level, you may discover a problem.
Ears don't clear readily because of allergies, colds, infections, and
anatomical problems.  The last won't change; the first three can.
Medication (decongestants or antihistimines, usually) can help.
Chewing gum, sucking hard candy (or a bottle for babies),
yawning--these will help all four causes.


--
Mary Shafer  DoD #0362 KotFR NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, CA
shafer@rigel.dfrf.nasa.gov                    Of course I don't speak for NASA
 "A MiG at your six is better than no MiG at all."  Unknown US fighter pilot

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58084
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Contraceptive pill

jec@watson.ibm.com wrote:
: A very simple question : it seems to me that the contraceptive
: pill just prevents the ovule to nest in the vagina and forces it to
: fall every month. But it does not prevent the fertilzation of the 
: ovule. Is it true ? If yes, is there a risk of extra-uterine
: pregnancy, that is the development of the ovule inside the Fallopian
: tube ?

Actually that is not how the pill works, but it *is* how the IUD works.
The oral contraceptive pill actually *prevents* ovulation from occuring
by providing negatve feedback to the pituitary gland, and thus preventing
the LH surge that normally occurs at the time of ovulation.  With the IUD
what happens is that fertilization may occur, but the device prevents
implantation within the wall of the uterus (*not* the vagina).

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58085
From: bytor@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
Subject: Lupus


I have a friend who has just been diagnosed with Lupus, and I know nothing
about this disease. The only thing I do know is that this is some sort of
skin disease, and my friend shows no skin rashes - in fact, they used a 
blood test to determine what had been wrong with an on going sacro-
illiac joint problem. 
I am finding a hard time finding information on this disease. Could
anyone please enlighten me as to the particulars of this disease. 
please feel free to E-mail me at 
bytor@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us

Thanks in advance.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58086
From: bbesler@ouchem.chem.oakland.edu (Brent H. Besler)
Subject: Is an oral form of Imitrex(sumatriptan) available in CA

Sumatriptan(Imitrex) just became available in the US in a subcutaneous
injectable form.  Is there an oral form available in CA?  A friend(yes
really not me!)  has severe migranes about 2-3 times per week.  We
live right by the CA border and he has gotten drugs for GERD prescribed
by a US physician and filled in a CA pharmacy, but not yet FDA approved
in the US.  What would be the cost of the oral form in CA$ also if
anyone would have that info?    

Thanks

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58087
From: jmetz@austin.ibm.com ()
Subject: Re: Twitching eye?


  I had this one time.  I attributed it to a lack of sleep since it disappeared
after a few nights of good zzz's.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58088
From: vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas)
Subject: Inner Ear Problems from Too Much Flying?

Can one develop inner-ear problems from too much flying?  I hear that pilots
and steward/esses have a limit as to the maximum number of flying hours --
what are these limits?  What are the main problems associated with too many
long-haul (over 4 hours) trips?

Frequent Flyer.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58089
From: rjb3@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (robert.j.brown)
Subject: Re: Human breast-feeding : Myths or reality ?

In article <C4vHwo.HLt@tripos.com>, homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes:
> rjasoar@vnet.IBM.COM (Robert J. Alexander MD) writes:
> 
> I have an additional question. How long should a mother breast feed her
> child? A friend of mine is still nursing her two year old. Is this beneficial?
> Her ex-husband is trying to use her coninued nursing of a two year old as
> "proof" of her being unfit to be a mother. What studies have been done
> on breast feeding past a year etc... upon the psychological health of the
> child? 
> 
> 
> Web Homer
> 

My wife breast-fed my three boys 12 months, 16 months, and 29 months
respectively and they are 18, 16, and 10 years old respectively.  So
far everybody seems fairly normal.  I noticed a negative correlation
with ear infections and length of time nursed in my very small sample.
I do notice that the 16 and 18 year old seem to eat a lot, could that
be from the breast feeding :-)  ?

I don't understand the "unfit mother" charge other than any tactic is
not too low down for some folks during divorce/child custody battles.

Most of the developing nations practice breast feeding to 3 and 4 years
old.  Are they screwed up because of it ?  Would they be much better
off if they could use cow's milk or commercial formula ?  Doctors ?

Bobby - akgua!rjb




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58090
From: jose@csd.uwo.ca (Jose Thekkumthala)
Subject: recurrent volvulus

    Recurrent Volvulus
    -------------------
    
 This is regarding recurrent volvulus which our little boy
 has been suffering from ever since he was an infant. He had
 a surgery when he was one year old. Another surgery had
 to be performed one year after, when he was two years old.
 He turned three this February and he is still getting
 afflicted by this illness, like having to get hospitalised
 for vomitting and accompanying stomach pain.He managed
 not having a third surgery so far.
 
 *  	One thing me and my wife noticed is that his affliction
 	peaks around the time he was born, on nearabouts, like in
 	March every year.  Any significance to this?
 
 *	Why does this recur? Me and my family go through severe pain
 	when our little boy have to undergo surgery. Why does surgery
 	not rectify the situation? 
 
 *	Also, which hospital in US or Canada specialize in this malady?
 
 *	What will be a good book explaining this disease in detail?
 
 *	Will keeping a particular diet keep down the probability of 
 	recurrence?
 
 *	As time goes on, will the probability of recurrence go down
 	considering he is getting stronger and healthier and probably
 	less prone to attacks? Or is this assumption wrong?
 
 *	Any help throwing light on these queries will be highly appreciated.
 	Thanks very much!
 
 jose@csd.uwo.ca

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58091
From: mrb@cbnewsj.cb.att.com (m..bruncati)
Subject: Re: Smoker's Lungs

In article <1993Apr5.123315.48837@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>, bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
> How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
> Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
> a considerable amount of time for that to happen?



Seems to me that I read in either a recent NY Times
Science Times or maybe it was Science News that there is
evidence that ex-smoker's risk of lung cancer never returns
to that of a person who has never smoked (I think it may
get close).  I'll find the article and post it since my
memory is hazy on the specifics - if you are interested.

Michael

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58092
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: various migraine therapies

In article <C4HtMw.H3J@olsen.ch> lindy@olsen.ch (Lindy Foster) writes:
>I've been treated to many therapies for migraine prophylaxis and treatment,
>and it looks like they'll try a few more on me.  I have taken propanolol
>(I think it was 10mg 3xdaily) with no relief.  I have just been started


30mg per day of propranolol is a homeopathic dose in migraine. 
If you got fatigued at that level, it is unlikely that you will
tolerate enough beta blocker to help you.  
>
>If we go the antidepressant route, what is it likely to be?  How do
>antidepressants work in migraine prophylaxis?
>

Probably a single nightime dose.  We don't know how they work in migraine, but
it probably has something to do with seratonin.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58093
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: vangus nerve (vagus nerve)

In article <52223@seismo.CSS.GOV> bwb@seismo.CSS.GOV (Brian W. Barker) writes:

>mostly right. Is there a connection between vomiting
>and fainting that has something to do with the vagus nerve?
>
Stimulation of the vagus nerve slows the heart and drops the blood
pressure.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58094
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Migraines

In article <DRAND.93Mar26112932@spinner.osf.org> drand@spinner.osf.org (Douglas S. Rand) writes:

>So I'll ask this,  my neurologist just prescribed Cafergot and
>Midrin as some alternatives for me to try.  He stated that
>the sublingual tablets of ergotamine were no longer available.
>Any idea why?  He also suggested trying 800 mg ibuprophen.
>

I just found out about the sublinguals disappearing too.  I don't
know why.  Perhaps because they weren't as profitable as cafergot.
Too bad, since tablets are sometimes vomited up by migraine patients
and they don't do any good flushed down the toilet.  I suspect
we'll be moving those patients more and more to the DHE nasal
spray, which is far more effective.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58095
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: 3 AIDS Related Questions

In article <93087.011308PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu> PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu (Paula Ford) writes:
>A friend of mine was a regular volunteer blood donor.  During surgery, he
>was given five units of blood, and after a suitable recovery time, he went
>to donate blood at a "bloodmobile." He was HIV+, and did not know it.
>
>The Red Cross notified him with a _registered letter_.  That's all.  No
>counselling, no nothing.  He died two years ago, this week.  He left behind

How long ago was this?  When I said you'd get counselling, I meant if
you did it now.  Long ago, practices varied and agencies had to gear
up to provide the counselling.

>a wife and a four-year-old son.  Many people have suggested that his wife
>should sue the Red Cross, but she would not.  She says that without the
>blood transfusions he would have died during the surgery.
>

Good for her.  What we don't need is everyone suing community service
agencies that provide blood that people need.  Testing is not fool proof.
The fact that he got AIDS from a transfusion (if he really did) does
not mean the Red Cross screwed up.  Prior to 1983 or so, there wasn't
a good test and a lot of bad blood got through.  This wasn't the fault
of the Red Cross.  When did he get the transfusions?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58096
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <LMC001@wrc.wrgrace.com> custer@wrc.wrgrace.com (Linda Custer) writes:
>This is my first post, and I am not even sure it will work. Here goes.
>
>Did anyone read the editorial on page 70 in the 29 march 1993 edition of Time
>Magazine, noting that managed care is extremely inefficient?  Of all the possible
>clients that Billary could be pandering to, the insurance industry is the worst!
>
>Comments?
 
I agree. Adding layers of managers and bureaucrats simply eat up
money that could be spent on those who actually are doing the work
such as doctors and nurse, and supplies.  The most efficient system
is probably one that has limited management and a fixed budget such
as England's or even Canada's.  I'm afraid we are on the wrong
track.  The problem may be that the insurance lobby is too powerful.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58097
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <1993Mar28.200619.5371@cnsvax.uwec.edu> nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

>and may be a total disaster and that the Canadian model is preferable, a
>position with which I agree.  The other is surprising sympathy for the
>physicians in all of this, to the effect that beating up on us won't
>help anything.
> 

I'm not sure about that.  Did you see the "poll" they took that showed
that most people thought physicians should be paid $80,000 per year
tops?  That's all I make, but I doubt that most physicians are going
to work very hard for that kind of bread.  Many wouldn't be able
to service their med school debts on that.  Mike Royko had a good
column about it.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58098
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar24.182145.11004@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:
>IMHO, you have Lyme disease.  I told you this in private email and predicted
>that you might next start having the migrating pains and further joint

IMHO, the original poster has no business soliciting diagnoses off the net,
nor does Dr./Mr.  O'Donnell have any business supplying same. This is one
major reason real physicians avoid this newsgroup like the plague. It is
also another example of the double standard: if I as a physician offered
to diagnose and treat on the net, I can be sued. But people without
qualifications are free to do whatever they want and disclaim it all with
"I'm not a doctor."

Get and keep this crap off the net. Period.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58099
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Patient-Physician Diplomacy

In article <C4Hyou.1Iz@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin) writes:
>In article <188@ky3b.UUCP> km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
>
>>Ditto. Disease is a great leveling experience, however. Some people
>>are very much afronted to find out that all the money in the world
>>does not buy one health. Everyone looks the same when they die.
>
>If money does not buy one health, why are we talking about paying
>for medical expenses for those not currently "adequately covered"?

Herman, I would think you of all people would/could distinguish
between "health" and "treatment of disease." All the prevention
medicine people preach this all the time. You cannot buy health.
You can buy treatment of disease, assuming you are lucky enough
to have a disease which can be treated. A rich person with a
terminal disease is a bit out of luck. There is no such thing
as "adequately covered" and there never will be. 

And for what it's worth, I'll be the first to admit that all my
patients die.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58100
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Immotile Cilia Syndrome

In article <1993Mar26.213522.26224@ncsu.edu> andrea@unity.ncsu.edu (Andrea M Free-Kwiatkowski) writes:
>I would like to know if there is any new information out there about the
>subject or any new studies being conducted.  I am confident in my
>pediatrician and her communication with the people in Chapel Hill, but
>since this is a life-long disorder and genetically transferred I would
>like keep current.  I do realize that since this is a relatively new
>disorder (first documented in 1974 in a fertility clinic in Scandanavia)
>and is therefore "controversial".

I do not know a lot about this, except from seeing one patient with
"Kartagener's syndrome", which is a form of immotile cilia syndrome
in which there is situs inversus, bronchiectasis, and chronic
infections. "Situs inversus" means that organs are on the wrong
side of the body, and can be complete or partial. It is interesting
medically because the normal location of organs is caused in part
by the "normal" rotation associated with ciliary motion, so that in
absence of this, laterality can be "random." People with situs
inversus are quite popular at medical schools, because of their
rarity, and the fact that most doctors get a bit upset when they
can't find the patient's heart sounds (because they're on the wrong
side). 

According to Harrison's, immotile cilia syndrom is an autosomal
recessive, which should imply that on average one child in four
in a family would be affected. But there may be much more current
information on this, and as usual in medicine, we may be talking
about more than one conditiion. I would suggest that you ask your
pediatrician about contacting a medical geneticics specialist, of
which there is probably one at NCSU.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58101
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Lung disorders and clubbing of fingers

In article <SLAGLE.93Mar26205915@sgi417.msd.lmsc.lockheed.com> slagle@lmsc.lockheed.com writes:
>Can anyone out there enlighten me on the relationship between
>lung disorders and "clubbing", or swelling and widening, of the
>fingertips?  What is the mechanism and why would a physician
>call for chest xrays to diagnose the cause of the clubbing?

Purists often distinguish between "true" clubbing and "pseudo"
clubbing, the difference being that with "true" clubbing the
angle of the nail when viewed from the side is constantly
negative when proceeding distally (towards the fingertip).
With "pseudo" clubbing, the angle is initially positive, then
negative, which is the normal situation. "Real" internists
can talk for hours about clubbing. I'm limited to a couple
of minutes.

Whether this distinction has anything to do with reality is
entirely unclear, but it is one of those things that internists
love to paw over during rounds. Supposedly, only "true" clubbing
is associated with disease. The problem is that the list of
diseases associated with clubbing is quite long, and includes
both congenital conditions and acquired disease. Since many of
these diseases are associated with cardiopulmonary problems
leading to right to left shunts and chronic hypoxemia, it is
very reasonable to get a chest xray. However, many of the 
congenital abnormalities would only be diagnosed with a cardiac
catheterization. 

The cause of clubbing is unclear, but presumably relates to
some factor causing blood vessels in the distal fingertip to
dilate abnormally. 

Clubbing is one of those things from an examination which is
a tipoff to do more extensive examination. Often, however,
the cause of the clubbing is quite apparent.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58102
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Open letter to Hillary Rodham Clinton (#7)

How about posting one of her replies to your letters?

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58103
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <C4nzn6.Mzx@crdnns.crd.ge.com> brooksby@brigham.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Glen W Brooksby) writes:
>This past weekend a friend of mine lost his 13 month old
>daughter in a matter of hours to a form of menangitis.  The
>person informing me called it 'Nicereal Meningicocis' (sp?).
>In retrospect, the disease struck her probably sometime on 
>Friday evening and she passed away about 2:30pm on Saturday.
>The symptoms seemed to be a rash that started small and
>then began progressing rapidly. She began turning blue
>eventually which was the tip-off that this was serious
>but by that time it was too late (this is all second hand info.).
>
>My question is:
>Is this an unusual form of Menangitis?  How is it transmitted?
>How does it work (ie. how does it kill so quickly)?

There are many organisms, viral, bacterial, and fungal, which can
cause meningitits, and the course of these infections varies
widely. The causes of bacterial meningitis vary with age: in adults
pneumococcus (the same organism which causes pneumococcal pneumonia)
is the most common cause, while in children Hemophilus influenzae
is the most common cause.

What you are describing is meningitis from Neisseria meningitidis,
which is the second most common cause of bacterial meningitis in
both groups, but with lower incidence in infants. This organism
is also called the "meningococcus", and is the source of the
common epidemics of meningitis that occur and are popularized in
the press. Without prompt treatment (and even WITH it in some cases),
the organism typically causes death within a day. 

This organism, feared as it is, is actually grown from the throats
of many normal adults. It can get to the meninges by different
ways, but blood borne spread is probably the usual case. 

Rifampin (an oral antibiotic) is often given to family and contacts
of a case of meningococcal meningitis, by the way.

Sorry, but I don't have time for a more detailed reply. Meningitis
is a huge topic, and sci.med can't do it justice.


-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58104
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: 3 AIDS Related Questions

In article <93088.130924PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu> PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu (Paula Ford) writes:

>we know ours is not HIV+ and people need it.  I think my husband should give
>blood, especially, because his is O+, and I understand that's a very useful
>blood type.
>

It's O- that is especially useful.  Still, he isn't punishing the
Red Cross but some O+ person that needed his blood and couldn't
get it.  You are right, nagging probably won't help.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58105
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar29.181958.3224@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:
>
>I shouldn't have to be posting here.  Physicians should know the Lyme
>literature beyond Steere & co's denial merry-go-round.  Patients
>should get correctly diagnosed and treated.
>

Why do you think Steere is doing this?  Isn't he acting in good faith?
After all, as the "discoverer" of Lyme for all intents and purposes,
the more famous Lyme gets, the more famous Steere gets.  I don't
see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
There is a lot of money involved.

>I'm a computer engineer, not a doctor (,Jim).  I was building a 
>computer manufacturing company when I got Lyme. I lost several 
>years of my life to near-total disability; partially as a result,
>the company failed, taking with it over 150 jobs, my savings,
>and everything I'd worked for for years.  I'm one of the "lucky"
>ones in that I found a physician through the Lyme foundation
>and now can work almost full-time, although I have persistent
>infection and still suffer a variety of sypmtoms.  And now
>I try to follow the Lyme literature.
>

Well, it is tragic what has happened to you, but it doesn't
necessarily make you the most objective source of information
about it.  If your whole life is focussed around this, you
may be too emotionally involved to be advising other people
who may or may not have Lyme.  Certainly advocacy of more research
on Lyme would not be out of order, though, and people like you
can be very effective there.





-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58106
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: CAN'T BREATHE

In article <1p8t1p$mvv@agate.berkeley.edu> romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

>
>Re: the prostate treatment is worse than the disease...In medicine there 
>really is something histologically identified as prostate tissue and 
>there are observable changes which take place, that whenever they occur, 
>can be identified as prostate cancer. What if I told you that most chiropractorstreat Subluxation (Spinal Demons), which don't exist at all. Therefore any 
>tissue damage incurred in a chiropractic treatment performed 
>in an effort to exorcise this elusive Silent Killer, such as ligamentous
>damage and laxity, microfracture of the joint surfaces, rib fractures, 
>strokes, paralysis,etc., is by definition worse than non-treatment.
>
>John Badanes, DC, CA
>email: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

What does "DC" stand for?  Couldn't be an antichiropractic posting
from a chiropractor, could it?  My curiosity is piqued.

Prostate CA is an especially troublesome entity for chiropractors.
It so typically causes bone pain due to spinal metastases that it
gets manipulated frequently.  Manipulating a cancer riddled bone
is highly dangerous, since it can then fracture.  I've seen at
least three cases where this happened with resulting neurologic
damage, including paraplegia.  This is one instance where knowing
how to read x-rays can really help a chiropractor stay out of trouble.
DO chiropractors know what bony mets from prostate look like?


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58107
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <C4nzn6.Mzx@crdnns.crd.ge.com> brooksby@brigham.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Glen W Brooksby) writes:
>This past weekend a friend of mine lost his 13 month old
>daughter in a matter of hours to a form of menangitis.  The
>person informing me called it 'Nicereal Meningicocis' (sp?).
>In retrospect, the disease struck her probably sometime on 
>Friday evening and she passed away about 2:30pm on Saturday.
>The symptoms seemed to be a rash that started small and
>then began progressing rapidly. She began turning blue
>eventually which was the tip-off that this was serious
>but by that time it was too late (this is all second hand info.).
>
>My question is:
>Is this an unusual form of Menangitis?  How is it transmitted?
>How does it work (ie. how does it kill so quickly)?
>

No, the neiseria meningococcus is one of the most common
forms of meningitis.  It's the one that sometimes sweeps
schools or boot camp.  It is contagious and kills by attacking
the covering of the brain, causing the blood vessels to thrombose
and the brain to swell up.

It is very treatable if caught in time.  There isn't much time,
however.  The rash is the tip off.  Infants are very susceptible
to dying from bacterial meningitis.  Any infant with a fever who
becomes stiff or lethargic needs to be rushed to a hospital where
a spinal tap will show if they have meningitis.  Seizures can also
occur.

>Immediate family members were told to take some kind of medication
>to prevent them from being carriers, yet they didn't have
>any concerns about my wife and I coming to visit them.
>

It can live in the throat of carriers.  Don't worry, you won't get 
it from them, especially if they took the medication.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58108
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "CAN'T BREATHE"

In article <1993Mar29.204003.26952@tijc02.uucp> pjs269@tijc02.uucp (Paul Schmidt) writes:
>I think it is important to verify all procedures with proper studies to
>show their worthiness and risk.  I just read an interesting tidbit that 
>80% of the medical treatments are unproven and not based on scientific 
>fact.  For example, many treatments of prostate cancer are unproven and
>the treatment may be more dangerous than the disease (according to the
>article I read.)

Where did you read this?  I don't think this is true.  I think most
medical treatments are based on science, although it is difficult
to prove anything with certitude.  It is true that there are some
things that have just been found "to work", but we have no good
explanation for why.  But almost everything does have a scientific
rationale.  The most common treatment for prostate cancer is
probably hormone therapy.  It has been "proven" to work.  So have
radiation and chemotherapy.  What treatments did the article say
are not proven?  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58109
From: jer@prefect.cc.bellcore.com (rathmann,janice e)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)


I noticed several years ago that when I took analgesics fairly regularly,
(motrin at the time), I seemed to get a lot of migraines.  But had
forgotten about that until I started reading some of the posts here.
I generally don't take NSAIDS or Tylenol for headaches, because I've
found them to be ineffective.  However, I have two other pain sources
that force me to take NSAIDS (currently Naprosyn).  First, is some
pelvic pain that I get at the beginning of my period, and then much
worse at midcycle.  I have had surgery for endometriosis in the past
(~12 years ago), so the Drs. tell me that my pain is probably due
to the endometriosis coming back.  I've tried Synarel, it reduced
the pain while I took it (3 mos), but the pain returned immediately
after I stopped.  Three doctors have suggested hysterectomy as the
only "real solution" to my problem.  Although I don't expect to have
any more children, I don't like the idea of having my uterus and
one remaining ovary removed (the first ovary was removed when I had
the surgery for endometriosis).  One of the Drs that suggested
I get a hysterectomy is an expert in laser surgery, but perhaps thinks
that type of procedure is only worthwhile on women who still plan
to have children.  So basically all I'm left with is toughing out
the pain.  This would be impossible without Naprosyn (or something
similar - but not aspirin, that doesn't work, and Motrin gave me
horrible gastritis a few years ago, so I'm through with it).  In
fact, Naprosyn works very well at eliminating the pain if I take
it regularly as I did when I had severe back pain (and pain in both 
legs) as I'll discuss in a moment.  Generally though, I wait until
I have the pain before I take the Naprosyn, but then it takes
several hours for it reduce the pain (it's actually quite effective
at reducing the pain, it just takes quite a while).  In the meantime
I'm frequently in severe pain.

The other pain source I have is chronic lower back pain resulting in
bilateral radiculopathy.  I've had MRIs, Xrays, CT scan, and EMGs
(I've had 2 of them, and don't intend to ever do that again) with
nerve conduction tests.  The tests have not been conclusive as to
what is causing my back and leg pain.  The MRI reports both say I have
several bulging, degeneratig disks, and from the Xrays (and MRI, I think)
it is apparent that I have arthritis.  The reading on the CT scan
was that there are two herniations (L3-L4, and L4-L5), but others
hav looked at the films and concluded that there are no herniations.
The second EMG and nerve conduction studies shows significant denervation
compared to the first EMG.  Oh yeah, I had some other horrible test,
called something like Somatic Evoked Response which showed that the
"internal nerves" are working fine.   Anyway, the bottom line is that
I sometimes have severe pain in both legs and back pain.  The back pain
is there all the time, but I can live with it.  When the leg pain is there,
I need some analgesic/anti-inflammatory medication to reduce the pain
to a level where I can work.  So I took Naprosyn regulary for 6-9
months (every time I tried to stop the leg pain got worse, so I'd 
always resume).  Since last November I have taken it much less frequently,
and primarily for the pelvic pain.  I have been going to physical
therapy for the last 8 months (2-3 times a week).  After the first month
or so, my therapist put me on pelvic traction (she had tried it earlier,
but it had caused a lot of pain in my back, this time she tried it at
a lower weight).  After a month or two, the pain in my legs began going
away (but the traction aways caused discomfort in my lower back, which
could be reduced with ultrasound and massage).  So now, I don't have
nearly as much pain in my legs, in fact my therapist took me off
traction about 2 weeks ago.

Getting back to my original reason for this post...  Even if I can avoid
taking analgesic for headaches, I really can't avoid them entirely because
I have other pain sources, that "force" me to use them (Oh, I forgot
to mention that it has been suggested to me that I have back surgery,
but I'm avoiding that too).  I find the migraines difficult to deal with,
occassionally I have to take off work, but usually I can work, but at
a reduced capacity (I'm a systems engineer and do a lot of reading
and writing).  When the pelvic pain is bad, I can't concentrate much,
I usually end up jumping out of my chair every few minutes, because
the pain is so bothersome.  When the pain in my back is bad, it can
cause severe burning in both legs, shooting pains in my legs, electric
shock type of pain in my feet and toes, and basically when it gets bad
I can't really sit at all.  Then I end up spending most of my time home
and in bed.  So even if the analgesics contribute to the migraines, the
migraines are more tolerable than the other pain sources.  I get a lot
of migraines, an average of 3 to 4 a month, which last 1-3 days.
I've taken cafergot (the first time the caffiene really got to me so
I reduced the dosage), but I don't like the side effects (if I take
more than two I get diahrea).  If I get a very bad headache, I will
eventually take the cafergot.  My neurologist wasn't very helpful when
I told him my problems with cafergot, he said that when sumatriptan
becomes available, I should try that.  I've tried several other medications
(fiornal, midrin, fiornal with codeine, tegretol, and inderal) but
they either didn't work, or I couldn't tolerate them.  So what can I do?
My doctor's seem to be satisfied with me just trying to tolerate the
pain, which I agree with most of the time, but not when I have a lot of
pain.  I've had some bad experiences with surgery (my heart stopped
once from the anesthesia - I was told that it was likely the
succinylcholine), and I've already had surgery several times.

Anyway, the point of what I'm saying is that even if analgesics can contribute
to migraines, some people NEED to take them to tolerate other pain.

Janice Rathmann


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58110
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Teenage acne

pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill) writes:


>My 14-y-o son has the usual teenage spotty chin and greasy nose.  I
>bought him Clearasil face wash and ointment.  I think that is probably
>enough, along with the usual good diet.  However, he is on at me to
>get some product called Dalacin T, which used to be a
>doctor's-prescription only treatment but is not available over the
>chemist's counter.  I have asked a couple of pharmacists who say
>either his acne is not severe enough for Dalacin T, or that Clearasil
>is OK.  I had the odd spots as a teenager, nothing serious.  His
>father was the same, so I don't figure his acne is going to escalate
>into something disfiguring.  But I know kids are senstitive about
>their appearance.  I am wary because a neighbour's son had this wierd
>malady that was eventually put down to an overdose of vitamin A from
>acne treatment.  I want to help - but with appropriate treatment.

>My son also has some scaliness around the hairline on his scalp.  Sort
>of teenage cradle cap.  Any pointers/advice on this?  We have tried a
>couple of anti dandruff shampoos and some of these are inclined to
>make the condition worse, not better.

>Shall I bury the kid till he's 21 :)

:) No...I was one of the lucky ones. Very little acne as a teenager. I
didn't have any luck with clearasil. Even though my skin gets oily it
really only gets miserable pimples when it's dry. 

Frequent lukewarm water rinses on the face might help. Getting the scalp
thing under control might help (that could be as simple as submerging under
the bathwater till it's softened and washing it out). Taking a one a day
vitamin/mineral might help. I've heard iodine causes trouble and that it  
is used in fast food restaurants to sterilize equipment which might be
where the belief that greasy foods cause acne came from. I notice grease 
on my face, not immediately removed will cause acne (even from eating
meat).

Keeping hair rinse, mousse, dip, and spray off the face will help. Warm
water bath soaks or cloths on the face to soften the oil in the pores will
help prevent blackheads. Body oil is hydrophilic, loves water and it
softens and washes off when it has a chance. That's why hair goes limp with
oilyness. 

Becoming convinced that the best thing to do with
a whitehead is leave it alone will save him days of pimple misery. Any
prying of black or whiteheads can cause infections, the red spots of
pimples. Usually a whitehead will break naturally in a day and there won't
be an infection afterwards.

Tell him that it's normal to have some pimples but the cosmetic industry
makes it's money off of selling people on the idea that they are an
incredible defect to be hidden at any cost (even that of causing more pimples). 


-Jackie-



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58111
From: Mark W. Dubin
Subject: Re: ringing ears

jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare) writes:

>A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing. [etc.]


A.  Folks, do we have an FAQ on tinnitus yet?

B.  As a lo-o-o-ong time sufferer of tinnitus and as a neuroscientist
who has looked over the literature carefully I believe the following
are reasonable conclusions:

1. Millions of people suffer from chronic tinnitus.
2. The cause it not understood.
3. There is no accepted treatment that cures it.
4. Some experimental treatments may have helped some people a bit, but
there have be no reports--even anecdotal--of massive good results with
any of these experimental drugs.
5. Some people with chronic loud tinnitus use noise blocking to get to sleep.
6. Sudden onset loud tinnitus can be caused by injuries and sometimes
abates or goes away after a few months.
7. Aspirin is well known to exacerbate tinnitus in some people.
8. There is a national association of tinnitus sufferers in the US.
9. One usually gets used to it.  Especially when concentrating on
something else the tinnitus becomes unnoticed.
10.  Stress and lack of sleep make tinnitus more annoying, sometimes.
11.  I'm sure those of us who have it wish there was a cure, but there
is not.

Mark dubin
the ol' professor


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58112
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: jiggers


I may not be the world's greatest expert on chiggers (a type of
mite indigenous to the south), but I certainly have spent a lot
of time contemplating the little buggers over the past six years
(since we moved to N.C.).  Here are some observations gained from
painful experience:

  1. Reactions to chiggers vary greatly from person to person.
     Some people get tiny red bites.  Others (like me) are more
     sensitive and get fairly large swollen sore-like affairs.

  2. Chigger bites are the gift that keeps on giving.  I swear
     that these things will itch for months.

  3. There is a lot of folklore about chiggers.  I think most of
     it is fiction.  I have tried to do research on the critters,
     since they have such an effect on me.  The only book I could
     find on the subject was a *single* book in UNC's special
     collections library.  I have not yet gone through what is
     required to get it.

  4. Based on my experience and that of my family members, the old
     folk remedy of fingernail polish simply doesn't work.  I recall
     reading that the theory upon which it is based (that the chiggers
     burrow into your skin and continue to party there) is false.  I
     think it is more likely that the reaction is to toxins of some
     sort the little pests release.  But this is speculation.

  5. The *best* approach is prevention.  A couple of things work well.
     A good insect repellent (DEET) such as Deep Woods Off liberally
     applied to ankles, waistband, etc. is a good start.  There is
     another preparation called "Chig Away" that is a combination of
     sulfur and some kind of cream (cortisone?) that originally was
     prepared for the Army and is not commercially available.  In
     the summer I put this on my ankles every morning when I get
     up on weekends since I literally can't go outside where we
     live (in the country) without serious consequences.  (They
     apparently don't like sulfur much at all.  You can use sulfur
     as a dust on your body or clothing to repel them.)

  6. No amount of prevention will be *completely* successful.  Forget
     the fingernail polish.  I have finally settled upon a treatment
     that involves topical application of a combination of cortisone
     creme (reduces the inflamation and swelling) and benzocaine
     (relieves the itch).  I won't tell you all the things I've tried.
     Nor will I tell you some of the things my wife does since this
     counts as minor surgery and is best not mentioned (I also think
     it gains nothing).

  7. The swelling and itching can also be significantly relieved
     by the application of hot packs, and this seems to speed recovery
     as well.

Doctors seem not to care much about chiggers.  The urban and suburban
doctors apparently don't encounter them much.  And the rural doctors
seem to regard them as a force of nature that one must endure.  I
suspect that anyone who could come up with a good treatment for chiggers
would make a *lot* of money.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58113
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Mar27.142431.25188@inmet.camb.inmet.com> mazur@bluefin.camb.inmet.com (Beth Mazur) writes:
>In article <1ov4toINNh0h@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>
>On the other hand, we do a good job of implying that the person who
>weighs 400lbs is "overeating" when in fact, the body probably doesn't
>make any moral judgements about its composition.  Conceivably, the 
>body works just as hard maintaining its weight at 400 as someone else's
>does at 200.
>

Undoubtedly it does, to maintain such a weight.  And it does so
primarily by overeating.  If it didn't, the weight would drop
back to normal.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58114
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <werner-240393161954@tol7mac15.soe.berkeley.edu> werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner) writes:
>In article <19213@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:
>> 
>> Explain.  I thought there were 3 types of cones, equivalent to RGB.
>
>You're basically right, but I think there are just 2 types.  One is
>sensitive to red and green, and the other is sensitive to blue and yellow. 
>This is why the two most common kinds of color-blindness are red-green and
>blue-yellow.
>

Yes, I remember that now.  Well, in that case, the cones are indeed
color sensitive, contrary to what the original respondent had claimed.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58115
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)

In article <Lauger-240393141539@lauger.mdc.com> Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger) writes:
>In article <19201@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:

>What's the best approach to getting off the analgesics.  Is there something

Two approaches that I've used: Tofranil, 50 mg qhs, Naproxen 250mg bid.
The Naproxen doesn't seem to be as bad as things like Tylenol in promoting
the analgesic abuse Headache.  DHE IV infusions for about 3 days (in
hospital).  Cold turkey is the only way I think.  Tapering doesn't
help. I wouldn't know how you can do this without your doctor.  I haven't
seen anyone successfully do it alone.  Doesn't mean it can't be done.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58116
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)

In article <1993Mar26.001004.10983@news.eng.convex.com> cash@convex.com (Peter Cash) writes:
>
>By the way, does the brain even have pain receptors? I thought not--I heard
>that brain surgery can be performed while the patient is conscious for
>precisely this reason.
>
No, no, we aren't talking about receptors for the brain's sensory 
innervation, but structures such as the thalamus that handle pain
for the entire organism.  Apples and oranges.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58117
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar25.020646.852@news.columbia.edu> jhl14@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Jonathan H. Lin) writes:
>I was wondering what steps are being taken to prevent the spread of
>multi-drug resistant tuberculosis.  I've heard that some places are
>thinking of incarcerating those with the disease.  Doesn't this violate
>the civil rights of these individuals?  Are there any legal precedents
>for such action?
>

Who knows in this legal climate, but there is tremendous legal precendent
for forcibly quarantining TB patients in sanitariums.  100 yrs ago
it was done all the time.  It has been done sporadically all along
in patients who won't take their medicine.  If you have TB you
may find yourself under surveilence of the Public Health Department
and you may find they have the legal power to insist you make your
clinic visits.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58118
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <1993Mar26.185117.21400@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>In article <33587@castle.ed.ac.uk> hrvoje@castle.ed.ac.uk (H Hecimovic) writes:
>compensation?  Or are lesions localized to the SC too rare to be able
>to tell?

Extremely rare in humans.  Usually so much else is involved you'd
just have a mess to sort out.  Birds do all vision in the tectum,
don't they?  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58119
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Name of MD's eyepiece?

In article <C4IHM2.Gs9@watson.ibm.com> clarke@watson.ibm.com (Ed Clarke) writes:
>|> |It's not an eyepiece.  It is called a head mirror.  All doctors never
>
>A speculum?

The speculum is the little cone that fits on the end of the otoscope.
There are also vaginal specula that females and gynecologists are
all too familiar with.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58120
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Patient-Physician Diplomacy

In article <1993Mar29.130824.16629@aoa.aoa.utc.com> carl@aoa.aoa.utc.com (Carl Witthoft) writes:

>What is "unacceptable" about this is that hospitals and MDs by law
>have no choice but to treat you if you show up sick or mangled from
>an accident.  If you aren't rich and have no insurance, who is going
>to foot your bills?  Do you actually intend to tell the ambulance
>"No, let me die in the gutter because I can't afford the treatment"??

By law, they would not be allowed to do that anyhow.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58121
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "Exercise" Hypertension

In article <93084.140929RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes:
>I took a stress test a couple weeks back, and results came back noting
>"Exercise" Hypertension.  Fool that I am, I didn't ask Doc what this meant,
>and she didn't explain; and now I'm wondering.  Can anyone out there
>enlighten.  And I promise, next time I'll ask!

Probably she meant that your blood pressure went up while you were on
the treadmill.  This is normal.  You'll have to ask her if this is
what she meant, since no one else can answer for another person.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58122
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Striato Nigral Degeneration

In article <9303252134.AA09923@walrus.mvhs.edu> ktodd@walrus.mvhs.edu ((Ken Todd)) writes:
>I would like any information available on this rare disease.  I understand
>that an operation referred to as POLLIDOTOMY may be in order.  Does anyone
>know of a physician that performs this procedure.  All responses will be
>appreciated.  Please respond via email to ktodd@walrus.mvhs.edu

It isn't that rare, actually.  Many cases that are called Parkinson's
Disease turn out on autopsy to be SND.  It should be suspected in any
case of Parkinsonism without tremor and which does not respond to
L-dopa therapy.  I don't believe pallidotomy will do much for SND.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58123
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <lindaeC4JGLK.FxM@netcom.com> lindae@netcom.com writes:

>
>My biggest resentment is the doctor who makes it seem like most
>people with dizziness can be cured.  That's definitely not the
>case.  In most cases, like I said above, it is a long, tedious
>process that may or may not end up in a partial cure.  
>

Be sure to say "chronic" dizziness, not just dizziness.  Most
patients with acute or subacute dizziness will get better.
The vertiginous spells of Meniere's will also eventually go
away, however, the patient is left with a deaf ear.


>To anyone suffering with vertigo, dizziness, or any variation
>thereof, my best advice to you (as a fellow-sufferer) is this...
>just keep searching...don't let the doctors tell you there's
>nothing that can be done...do your own research...and let your

This may have helped you, but I'm not sure it is good general
advice.  The odds that you are going to find some miracle with
your own research that is secret or hidden from general knowledge
for this or any other disease are slim.  When good answers to these
problems are found, it is usually in all the newspapers.  Until
then, spending a great deal of time and energy on the medical
problem may divert that energy from more productive things
in life.  A limited amount should be spent to assure yourself
that your doctor gave you the correct story, but after it becomes
clear that you are dealing with a problem for which medicine
has no good solution, perhaps the best strategy is to join
the support group and keep abreast of new findings but not to
make a career out of it.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58124
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Donating organs

In article <1993Mar25.161109.13101@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:

>Dr. Banks, 
>	I don't know if you make a point of keeping up with liver transplant
>research but you're certainly in the right place for these questions.  Has 
>there been anything recent in "Transplant Proceedings" or somesuch, on 
>xenografts?  How about liver section transplants from living donors? 
>

I'm sure the Pittsburgh group has published the baboon work, but I
don't know where.  In Chicago they were doing lobe transplants from
living donors, and I'm sure they've published.  I don't read the
transplant literature.  I just see the liver transplant patients
when they get into neurologic trouble (pretty frequent), so that
and the newspapers and scuttlebutt is the way I keep up with what
they are doing.  Howard Doyle works with them, and can tell you more.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58125
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar24.182145.11004@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:

>IMHO, you have Lyme disease. 


>I sent you in private email a summary of the treatment protocols put
>forth by the Lyme Disease Foundation.  I respectfully suggest that you
>save yourself a great deal of suffering by contacting them for a
>Lyme-knowledgeable physician referral and seek treatment at once.
>You'll know in 2 weeks if you're on the right course; and the clock is
>ticking on your 6 weeks if you have it. 1-800-886-LYME.

If these folks are who I think they are, Lyme-knowledgeable may
mean a physician to whom everything that walks in the door is
lyme disease, and you will be treated for lyme, whether or not
you have it.  Hope you have good insurance.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58126
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Use of codine in narcolepsy.

In article <1993Mar26.005148.7899@aio.jsc.nasa.gov> stevel@aio.jsc.nasa.gov (Steve Lancaster) writes:

>3) Is there any way around the scheduled drug mess so that he can use
>just the substance that works and not one adulterated with Tylenol? 
>Can the MD perscribe a year long supply on one script? His doctor
>basically refused to prescribe it, saying "His clinic does not prescribe
>controled substances. Its is 'company' rule.!"
>
Short of changes by the feds, there is no way.  Codeine alone is very
difficult to prescribe without a lot of hassles.  Tylenol #3 is the
best compromise.  That way he can get refills.  The amount of acetominophen
he is getting with his codeine won't hurt him any.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58127
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Migraines and Estrogen

In article <3FB51B6w165w@jupiter.spk.wa.us> pwageman@jupiter.spk.wa.us (Peggy Wageman) writes:
>I read that hormonal fluctuations can contribute to migraines, could 
>taking supplemental estrogen (ERT) cause migraines?  Any information 

I'm not sure it is the fluctuation so much as the estrogen level.
Taking Premarin can certainly cause migraines in some women.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58128
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: migraine and exercise

In article <C4Iozx.7wx@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>I have two questions. Is there any obvious connection between the
>flushed appearance and the migraine? Was I foolish to play through
>the migraine (aside from the visual disturbance affecting my play)?
>I just prefer to ignore it when possible.
>

The flushing is due to vascular dilation, part of a migraine attack.
Some people event get puffy and swollen.  As long as you are careful
you can see well enough to avoid getting hit in the face or eye by
the ball, migraine will not hurt your health.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58129
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: new Multiple Sclerosis drug?

In article <12252@news.duke.edu> adm@neuro.duke.edu (Alan Magid) writes:
>Disclaimer: I speak only for myself.


So just what was it you wanted to say?



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58130
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Need Info on RSD

In article <1993Mar27.004627.21258@rmtc.Central.Sun.COM> lrd@rmtc.Central.Sun.COM writes:
>I just started working for a rehabilitation hospital and have seen RSD
>come up as a diagnosis several times.  What exactly is RSD and what is
>the nature of it?  If there is a FAQ on this subject, I'd really
>appreciate it if someone would mail it to me.  While any and all

Reflex sympathetic dystrophy.  I'm sure there's an FAQ, as I have
made at least 10 answers to questions on it in the last year or so.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58131
From: km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar25.085526.914@news.wesleyan.edu>, RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg) writes:
|> 
|> But I'll be damned, his "rights" to be sick & to fail to treat his disease & to
|> spread it all over the place were, indeed preserved.  Happy?

Several years ago I tried to commit a patient who was growing Salmonella out of his
stool, blood, and an open ulcer for treatment. The idea was that the guy was a
walking public health risk, and that forcing him to receive IV antibiotics for
a few days was in the public interest. I will make a long story short by saying
that the judge laughed at my idea, yelled at me for wasting his time, and let
the guy go.

I found out that tuberculosis appears to be the only MEDICAL (as oppsed to psychiatric)
condition that one can be committed for, and this is because very specific laws were
enacted many years ago regarding tb. I am certain these vary from state to state.

Any legal experts out there to help us on this?

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58132
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: amitriptyline

In article <1993Mar27.010702.8176@julian.uwo.ca> roberts@gaul.csd.uwo.ca (Eric Roberts) writes:
>Could someone please tell me, what effect an overdose (900-1000mg) of
>amitriptyline would have?

Probably would not be fatal in an adult at that dose, but could kill
a child.  Patient would be very somnolent, with dilated pupils, low
blood pressure.  Possibly cardiac arrhythmias.  


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58133
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Medication For Parkinsons

In article <19621.3049.uupcb@factory.com> jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) writes:

>If you want to throw around names, Drs. Donald Calne, Terry Elizan,
>and Jesse Cedarbaum don't recommend selegiline (not to mention Dr.
>William Landau).
>

Gosh, Jesse is that famous now?  He was my intern.  Landau not liking
it makes me like it out of spite.  (Just kidding, Bill).  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58134
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Fingernail "moons"

In article <733196190.AA00076@calcom.socal.com> Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince) writes:

>I only have lunulas on my thumbs.  Is there any medical 
>significance to that finding?  Thank you in advance for all 
>replies.
>

Try peeling the skin back at the base of your other fingernails
(not too hard, now, don't want to hurt yourself).  You'll find
nice little lunulas there if you can peel it back enough.  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58135
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <LMC006@wrc.wrgrace.com> custer@wrc.wrgrace.com (Linda Custer) writes:
>
>Also, I'm not sure that physician fees at the very, very highest levels
>don't have to come down. (I'm not talking about the bulk of physicians
>making good but not great salaries who have mega-loans from medical school
>debts.) I'd also like to see some strong ethics with teeth for physicians

I agree that some specialties have gotten way out of line.  The main
problem is the payment method for procedures rather than time distorts
the system.  I hope they will fix that.  But I'm afraid, as usual,
the local doc is going to take the brunt.  People grouse about paying
$50 to see their home doctor in his office, but don't mind paying
$20,000 to have brain surgery.  They think their local doc is cheating
them but worship the feet of the neurosurgeon who saved their life.
What they don't realize is that we need more local docs and fewer
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58136
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: High Prolactin

In article <93088.112203JER4@psuvm.psu.edu> JER4@psuvm.psu.edu (John E. Rodway) writes:
>Any comments on the use of the drug Parlodel for high prolactin in the blood?
>

It can suppress secretion of prolactin.  Is useful in cases of galactorrhea.
Some adenomas of the pituitary secret too much.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58137
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Toxoplasmosis

In article <1240002@isoit109.BBN.HP.COM> sude@isoit109.BBN.HP.COM (#Susanne Denninger) writes:
>
>1. How dangerous is it ? From whom is it especially dangerous ?
>
Dangerous only to immune suppressed persons and fetuses.  To them,
it is extremely dangerous.  Most of the rest of us have already had
it and it isn't dangerous at all.

>2. How is it transmitted (I read about raw meat and cats, but I'd like to
>   have more details) ?
>
Cat feces are the worst.  Pregnant women should never touch the litter box.

>3. What can be done to prevent infection ?
>
Cook your meat.  Watch it with pets.

>4. What are the symptoms and long-term effects ?
>
You'll have to read up on it.  

>5. What treatments are availble ?
>

There is an effective antibiotic that can keep it in check.
Of course, it can't reverse damage already done, such as in
a fetus.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58138
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Mar30.030105.26772@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:

>Sometime in the future diet evangelists may get off their "our
>diet will work if only the obese would obey it" mode and do
>useful research to allow prediction of which types of diet might
>be useful to a given individual.
>

"Diet Evangelist".  Good term.  Fits Atkins to a "T".  


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58139
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Should patients read package inserts (PDR)?

In article <1993Mar29.113528.930@news.wesleyan.edu> RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg) writes:

>Hmmmm... here's one place where I really think the patient ought to take more
>responsibility for him- or herself.  There is absolutely no reason why you
>can't ask the pharmacist filling the prescription for the "Physicians' Package
>Insert" for the medication when you pick it up at the pharmacy.  Make sure to
>tell the pharmacist that you want the "Physicians' Package Insert" *NOT* the

If people are going to do this, I really wish they would tell me first.
I'd be happy to go over the insert (in the PDR) with them and explain
everything.  All too many patients read the insert and panic and then
on the next visit sheepishly admit they were afraid to take the drug
and we are starting over again at square one.  Some of them probably
didn't even come back for followup because they didn't want to admit
they wouldn't take the drug or thought I was trying to kill them or
something.  What people don't understand about the inserts is that they
report every adverse side effect ever reported, without substantiating
that the drug was responsible.  The insert is a legal document to slough
liability from the manufacturer to the physician if something was to
happen.  If patients want to have the most useful and reliable information
on a drug they would be so much better off getting hold of one of the
AMA drug evaluation books or something similar that is much more scientific.
There are very few drugs that someone hasn't reported a death from taking.
Patients don't realize that and don't usually appreciate the risks
to themselves properly.  I'm sure Herman is going to "go ballistic",
but so be it.  Another problem is that probably most drugs have been
reported to cause impotence.  Half the males who read that will falsely assume
it could permanently cause them to lose sexual function and so will
refuse to take any drug like that.  This can be a real problem for
PDR readers.  There needs to be some way of providing patients with
tools geared to them that allow them to get the information they need.
I am involved in a research project to do that, with migraine as the
domain.  It involves a computer system that will provide answers to questions
about migraine as well as the therapy prescribed for the patient.
For common illnesses, such as migraine and hypertension, this may help
quite a bit.  The patient could spend as much time as needed with the
computer and this would then not burden the physician.  Clearly,
physicians in large part fail to answer all the questions patients have,
as is demonstrated over and over here on the net where we get asked
things that the patients should have found out from their physician
but didn't.  Why they didn't isn't always the physician's fault either.
Sometimes the patients are afraid to ask.  They won't be as afraid to
ask the system, we hope.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58140
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <206@ky3b.UUCP> km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
>
>I found out that tuberculosis appears to be the only MEDICAL (as oppsed to psychiatric)
>condition that one can be committed for, and this is because very specific laws were
>enacted many years ago regarding tb. I am certain these vary from state to state.

I think in Illinois venereal disease (the old ones, not AIDS) was included.
Syphillis was, for sure.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58141
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar29.181406.11915@iscsvax.uni.edu> klier@iscsvax.uni.edu writes:

>
>Multiple drug resistance in TB is a relatively new phenomenon, and
>one of the largest contributing factors is that people are no longer
>as scared of TB as they were before antibiotics.  (It was roughly as
>feared as HIV is now...)
>

Not that new.  20 years ago, we had drug addicts harboring active TB
that was resistant to everything (in Chicago).  The difference now
is that such strains have become virulent.  In the old days, such
TB was weak.  It didn't spread to other people very easily and just
infected the one person in whom it developed (because of non-compliance
with medications).  Non-compliance and development of resistant strains
has been a problem for a very long time.  That is why we have like 9
drugs against TB.  There is always a need to develop new ones due to
such strains.  Now, however, with a virulent resistant strain, we
are in more trouble, and measures to assure compliance may be necessary
even if they entail force.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58142
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Fungus "epidemic" in CA?

>In article steward@cup.portal.com (John Joseph Deltuvia) writes:
>
>>There was a story a few weeks ago on a network news show about some sort
>>of fungus which supposedly attacks the bone structure and is somewhat
>>widespread in California.  Anybody hear anything about this one?
>

The only fungus I know of from California is Coccidiomycosis.  I
hadn't heard that it attacked bone.  It attacks lung and if you
are especially unlucky, the central nervous system.  Nothing new
about it.  It's been around for years.  THey call it "valley
fever", since it is found in the inland valleys, not on the coast.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58143
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Travel outside US (Bangladesh)

In article <1p7ciqINN3th@tamsun.tamu.edu> covingc@ee.tamu.edu (Just George) writes:
>I will be traveling to Bangaldesh this summer, and am wondering
>if there are any immunizations I should get before going.
>

You can probably get this information by calling your public health
department in your county (in Pittsburgh, they give the shots free,
as well).  There are bulletins in medical libraries that give
recommendations, or you could call the infectious diseases section
of the medicine department of your local medical school.  You also
will probably want to talk about Malaria prophylaxis.  You will
need your doctor to get the prescription.  
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58144
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: compartment syndrome - general information, references, etc.

In article <639@cfdd50.boeing.com> lry1219@cfdd50.boeing.com (Larry Yeagley) writes:
>I have an acquaintance who has been diagnosed as having blood clots and
>"compartment syndrome". I searched the latest edition of the Columbia medical
>encyclopedia and found nothing. Mosby's medical dictionary gives a very brief
>description which suggests it's an arterial condition. Can someone point me (an

Compartment syndrome occurs when swelling happens in a "compartment"
bounded by fascia.  The pressure rises in the compartment and blood
supply and nerves are compromised.  The treatment is to open the
compartment surgically.  THe most common places for compartment
syndromes are the forearm and calf.  It is an emergency, since
if the pressure is not relieved, stuff will die.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58145
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: x-rays

In article <1993Mar30.195242.8070@leland.Stanford.EDU> iceskate@leland.Stanford.EDU ( Lin) writes:
>

>	First question - how bad is x-ray?  i've heard that it's nothing 
>compared to the amount of time spent under the sun and i've also heard that it
>is very harmful.  second question - is there anyway out of this yearly test for
>me?

The yearly chest x-ray provides a minute amount of radiation.  It is
a drop in the bucket as far as increased risk is concerned.  Who can
tell you whether you can get out of it or not?  No one here controls
that.  It may well be a matter of the law, in which case, write your
legislator, but don't hold your breath.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58146
From: wright@duca.hi.com (David Wright)
Subject: Re: Name of MD's eyepiece?

In article <19387@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <C4IHM2.Gs9@watson.ibm.com> clarke@watson.ibm.com (Ed Clarke) writes:
>>|> |It's not an eyepiece.  It is called a head mirror.  All doctors never
>>
>>A speculum?
>
>The speculum is the little cone that fits on the end of the otoscope.
>There are also vaginal specula that females and gynecologists are
>all too familiar with.

In fairness, we should note that if you look up "speculum" in the
dictionary (which I did when this question first surfaced), the first
definition is "a mirror or polished metal plate used as a reflector in
optical instruments."

Which doesn't mean the name fits in this context, but it's not as far
off as you might think.

  -- David Wright, Hitachi Computer Products (America), Inc.  Waltham, MA
     wright@hicomb.hi.com  ::  These are my opinions, not necessarily 
     Hitachi's, though they are the opinions of all right-thinking people

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58147
From: ritley@uimrl7.mrl.uiuc.edu ()
Subject: MYSTERY ILLNESS WITH SPOTS



I attended high school in the San Jose, California area in the early 1980's,
and I remember a (smallish) outbreak of a strange illness, in which
people developed measles-like spots on their bodies.  This condition
seemed to last only a few days, and I don't recall anyone reporting any other
symptoms.  I seem to recall reading somewhere that this was believed to have
been viral in nature, but I don't know for sure.

However, I have been curious since then about this.

Anyone have any ideas about what this might have been?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58148
From: walkup@cs.washington.edu (Elizabeth Walkup)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <19439@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>... the neiseria meningococcus is one of the most common
>forms of meningitis.  It's the one that sometimes sweeps
>schools or boot camp.  It is contagious and kills by attacking
>the covering of the brain, causing the blood vessels to thrombose
>and the brain to swell up.
>
>	...
>
>It can live in the throat of carriers.  Don't worry, you won't get 
>it from them, especially if they took the medication.

Assuming one has been cultured as having a throat laden with
neiseria meningococcus and given (and taken) a course of ERYC 
without the culture becoming negative, should one worry about
being a carrier?  

-- Elizabeth
   walkup@cs.washington.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58149
From: ns14@crux3.cit.cornell.edu (Nathan Otto Siemers)
Subject: Re: Analgesics with Diuretics

>>>>> On Tue, 6 Apr 1993 03:28:57 GMT, dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) said:

 | In article <ofk=lve00WB2AvUktO@andrew.cmu.edu> Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
|>I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
|>combine aspirin with a diuretic.

 | You certainly do not see OTC preparations advertised as such.
 | The only such ridiculous concoctions are nostrums for premenstrual
 | syndrome, ostensibly to treat headache and "bloating" simultaneously.
 | They're worthless.

|>The idea seems to be to reduce
|>inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

 | That's not the idea, and no, they don't work.

	I *believe* there is a known synergism between certain
analgesics and caffiene.  For treating pain, not inflammation.

	Now that I am an ibuprofen convert I haven't taken it for some
time, but excedrin really works! (grin)

Nathan



 | -- 
 | Steve Dyer
 | dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
--
  ......:bb|`:||,	nathan@chemres.tn.cornell.edu
    ...  .||:   `||bbbbb
   ..   ,:`     .``"P$$$
      .||. ,  .  `  .`P$

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58150
From: eb3@world.std.com (Edwin Barkdoll)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <19382@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <werner-240393161954@tol7mac15.soe.berkeley.edu> werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner) writes:
>>In article <19213@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:
>>> 
>>> Explain.  I thought there were 3 types of cones, equivalent to RGB.
>>
>>You're basically right, but I think there are just 2 types.  One is
>>sensitive to red and green, and the other is sensitive to blue and yellow. 
>>This is why the two most common kinds of color-blindness are red-green and
>>blue-yellow.
>>
>
>Yes, I remember that now.  Well, in that case, the cones are indeed
>color sensitive, contrary to what the original respondent had claimed.


	I'm not sure who the "original respondent" was but to
reiterate cones respond to particular portions of the spectrum, just
as _rods_ respond to certain parts of the visible spectrum (bluegreen
in our case, reddish in certain amphibia), just as the hoseshoe crab
_Limulus polyphemus_ photoreceptors respond to a certain portion of
the spectrum etc.  It is a common misconception to confound wavelength
specificity with being color sensitive, however the two are not
synonymous.
	So in sum and to beat a dead horse:
	(1) When the outputs of a cone are matched for number of
absorbed photons _irrespective_ of the absorbed photons wavelength,
the cone outputs are _indistinguishable_.
	(2) Cones are simply detectors with different spectral
sensitivities and are not any more "color sensitive" than are rods,
ommatidia or other photoreceptors.
	(3) Color vision arises because outputs of receptors which
sample different parts of the spectrum (cones in this case) are
"processed centrally".  (The handwave is intentional)

	I've worked and published research on rods and cones for over
10 years so the adherence to the belief that cones can "detect color"
is frustrating.  But don't take my word for it.  I'm reposting a few
excellent articles together with two rather good but oldish color
vision texts.

The texts:
Robert Boynton (1979) _Human Color Vision_ Holt, Rhiehart and Winston

Leo M. Hurvich (1981) _Color Vision_, Sinauer Associates.


The original articles:
Baylor and Hodgkin (1973) Detection and resolution of visual stimuli by
turtle phoreceptors, _J. Physiol._ 234 pp163-198.

Baylor Lamb and Yau (1978) Reponses of retinal rods to single photons.
_J. Physiol._ 288 pp613-634.

Schnapf et al. (1990) Visual transduction in cones of the monkey
_Macaca fascicularis_. J. Physiol. 427 pp681-713.

-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu
eb3@world.std.com
-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
eb3@world.std.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58151
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Donating organs

In article <19393@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1993Mar25.161109.13101@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:
>
>>there been anything recent in "Transplant Proceedings" or somesuch, on 
>>xenografts?  How about liver section transplants from living donors? 
>>
>
>I'm sure the Pittsburgh group has published the baboon work, but I
>don't know where.  In Chicago they were doing lobe transplants from
>living donors, and I'm sure they've published.  



The case report of the first xenotransplant was published in Lancet 1993; 341:65-71.
I can send you a reprint if you are interested.
There was  another paper, sort of a tour of the horizon, written by Starzl and
published in the Resident's Edition of the Annals of Surgery (vol 216, October 1992).
It's in the Surgical Resident's Newsletter section, so you won't find it in the regular
issue of the Annals. I don't have any reprints of that one.
A paper has been accepted for publication by Immunology Today, though I'm not sure
when it's coming out, describing our experience with the two xenografts done to date.


As for segmental liver transplants from living related donors I must confess to a total
ignorance of that literature. We are philosophically opposed to those, and I don't keep 
up with that particular field.

=====================================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58152
From: mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu
Subject: NATURAL ANTI-cancer/AIDS Remedies



     The biggest reason why the cost of medical care is so EXTREMELY high and
increasing is that NATURAL methods of treatment and even diagnosis are still
being SYSTEMATICALLY IGNORED and SUPPRESSED by the MONEY-GRUBBING and POWER-
MONGERING "medical" establishment.
     Some examples of very low cost NATURAL ANTI-cancer Remedies are listed in
the following article:


                          NATURAL ANTI-CANCER REMEDIES
                                 A 3RD OPINION
          
               ( Some of these Remedies also work against AIDS. )


          DISCLAIMER: This list was compiled from unorthodox sources 
          that have shown themselves to be reliable.  The compiler of 
          this list is NOT a doctor of any kind, but is exercising his 
          First Amendment Constitutional RIGHT of FREE SPEECH on the 
          subjects of his choice. 


          ( MOST of these Remedies can be found in ANY Grocery Store.  
          MOST of the rest of them can be found in ANY Health Food 
          Store.  What is important is HOW they are used, and what 
          else is EXCLUDED DURING their use. )


          (1) THE 7-DAY FAST. 
               1st day: Eat as much fresh fruit as you want, one kind 
          at a time, preferably grapes. 
               2nd day: Eat all the vegetables you want, at least half 
          raw, including GARLIC; also, whole kernel corn to help scrape 
          clean the intestinal linings. 
               3rd day: Drink all the fresh fruit and vegetable juice 
          you want.  Preferably start with 16 to 32 ounces of prune 
          juice WITH PULP, followed by a gallon of pure (NOT from 
          concentrate) apple juice, then grape juice.  (Stay close to 
          your home bathroom.) 
               4th day: Eat all the UN-salted nuts (NO peanuts) and 
          dried fruit you want, preferably raisins and almonds (ALMONDS 
          CONTAIN LAETRILE.). 
               5th day: ONE GALLON OF LEMONADE.  Squeeze the juice from 
          two lemons into a gallon of water (preferably distilled), and 
          add 2 to 4 tablespoons of locally-made honey, (NO sugar).  
          Drink one glass per hour.
          [EVERYone, including healthy people, should do this one day 
          every week, preceded by a large glass of prune juice WITH 
          PULP.] 
               6th day: Same as 5th day. 
               7th day: Same as 6th day. 
               All 7 days, eat ONLY the foods listed above for each 
          day, along with your usual vitamin and mineral supplements, 
          plus as much DISTILLED WATER as you want. 

          (2) THE GRAPE DIET. 
               Eat 2 to 3 ounces of fresh grapes every 2 hours, 8 AM to 
          8 PM, every day for six days.  Eat NOTHING else during the 
          six days, but drink as much DISTILLED WATER as you want. 
      
          (3) APPLE CIDER VINEGAR.
               Mix a teaspoon of pure apple cider vinegar (NOT apple 
          cider "flavored" vinegar.  Regular vinegar is HARMFUL.) in a 
          glass of water (preferably distilled) and drink all of it.  
          Do this 3 or 4 times per day, for 3 weeks; then stop for a 
          week.  Repeat if desired.  Do this along with a normal 
          healthy diet of natural foods.  This remedy is especially 
          effective against those types of cancer that resemble a 
          FUNGUS, as well as against other kinds of fungus infections. 
        
          (4) THE SEA-SALT & SODA BATH.  [Please keep an OPEN MIND.]
               Fill a bathtub with moderately warm water so the level 
          comes up almost to the overflow drain when you get in.  
          Immerse yourself in it for a minute, and then completely 
          dissolve in the bath water 1 pound of SUN-evaporated SEA-salt 
          (regular salt won't work.) and 1 pound of fresh baking-soda. 
               Soak in this bath for 10 to 20 minutes, while exercising 
          your fingers, toes, and limbs, turning sideways and onto your 
          stomach, dunking your head, sitting up and laying back down, 
          chomping your teeth together, etc.. 
               Among other things, the SEA-salt & Soda Bath neutralizes 
          the accumulated effects of X-rays, etc., as described in the 
          book "Born To Be Magnetic, Vol. 2", by Frances Nixon, 1973. 
               PRECAUTIONS: Only the ONE person using each bath should 
          prepare it and drain it.
          For at least 30 minutes after taking the bath, stay away 
          from, and even out of sight of, other people.  (Your greatly 
          expanded Aura energy-field during that time could disrupt 
          other people's fields.)  Two hours after the bath, eat at 
          least 8 ounces of yogurt containing ACTIVE Yogurt Cultures.  
          (The bath may kill FRIENDLY bacteria also.)  Better yet, take 
          a 2-Billion-bacteria "Acidophilus" capsule, which is also an 
          EXCELLENT DAILY REMEDY AGAINST THE EFFECTS OF "A.I.D.S." 
          (because it kills all kinds of harmful bacteria in the 
          digestive tract, taking a big load off the remaining immune 
          system).  [Because this external bath can kill IN-ternal 
          bacteria, it may also be a CURE for "Lyme disease".]
          Do NOT take this bath within a few hundred miles of a thunder 
          storm, within 3 days of a full moon, nor during "Major" or 
          "Minor Periods" as listed in the "Solunar Tables" published 
          bimonthly in "Field & Stream" Magazine, (because of the 
          measurable disruptive ambient environmental energy-fields 
          present at those times).
          Do NOT take this bath more than four times per year. 
       
          (5) MISCELLANEOUS NATURAL ANTI-CANCER REMEDIES: 
       
               For skin cancer, apply STABILIZED Aloe Vera Jel to the 
               affected skin twice daily, and take 2 to 4 tablespoons 
               per day of STABILIZED Aloe Vera Juice internally, for 
               about 2 months. 
        
               D.M.S.O. (Dimethyl Sulfoxide) causes cancer cells to 
               perform NORMAL cell functions. 

               ALMONDS (UN-blanched, UN-roasted) CONTAIN LAETRILE.  
               To help prevent cancer, eat several almonds every day.  
               To help cure cancer, eat several OUNCES of almonds per 
               day.
               [NEVER take large concentrated doses of Laetrile orally.  
               IT WILL KILL YOU!  Take it INTRAVENOUSLY ONLY.  (Cancer 
               cells contain a certain enzyme which converts Laetrile 
               into cyanide, which then kills the cell.  This enzyme is 
               ALSO present in the digestive system.)] 

               ANTI-OXIDANTS are FREE-RADICAL SCAVENGERS, and include 
               Vitamin E, Selenium (200 mcg. per day is safe for most 
               people.), Chromium (up to 100 mcg. per day), Vitamin A 
               (25,000 IU per day is safe for most people.), Superoxide 
               Dismutase (up to 4,000,000 Units per day), Vitamin C (up 
               to 3000 mg. per day), and BHT (Butylated Hydroxy-
               toluene), [1 to 4 capsules of BHT every night at bedtime 
               will also MAKE ONE IMMUNE AGAINST HERPES (BOTH types), 
               suppress herpes symptoms if one already has herpes, 
               prevent spreading herpes to other people, but will not 
               cure herpes.  BHT MIGHT ALSO DO THESE THINGS AGAINST 
               "A.I.D.S.", which is really a form of cancer similar to 
               leukemia.]  (See the book "Life Extension", by Durk 
               Pearson and Sandy Shaw.) 

               HYDROGEN-PEROXIDE.  Dilute twelve(12) drops of 3% 
               hydrogen-peroxide in a glass of pure water (preferably 
               DISTILLED) and drink it.  Do this once or twice per day, 
               hours before or after eating or drinking anything else.  
               Apply 3% hydrogen-peroxide directly to skin cancers 
               several times per day.
               Use hydrogen-peroxide ONLY if you are taking a good 
               daily dose of some of the various anti-oxidants 
               described above. 

               VITAMIN & MINERAL SUPPLEMENTS are more effective, and 
               much less expensive, when COMBINED together in MEGA 
               doses into SINGLE tablets made from NATURAL sources. 

               Cancer cells can NOT live in a strong (100,000 Maxwell) 
               NORTH MAGNETIC FIELD, especially if it is pulsating on 
               and off.  [A strong south magnetic field is an 
               aphrodisiac.]  In my opinion, ALL types of ionizing-
               radiation treatments for cancer should be REPLACED with 
               daily 30-minute doses of pulsating 100,000-Maxwell NORTH 
               magnetic fields. 

               Properly made and operated RADIONICS/PSIONICS MACHINES 
               can both diagnose and cure all forms of cancer, as well 
               as most other medical problems.  Some Radionics/Psionics 
               Machines can even take cross-sectional X-ray-like photos 
               of cancer tumors, etc., with-OUT X-rays! 

               INTERFERON tablets.

               TAHEEBO TEA, (Lapacho). 
           
               HOMEOPATHY can cure cancer, and many other medical 
               problems (even drug addiction!). 

               50 mg. per day of CHELATED ZINC can help prevent or cure 
               prostate trouble. 

               This list is NOT exhaustive. 


          The above NATURAL Remedies can CURE both diagnosed AND UN-
          DIAGNOSED cancers, as well as PREVENT them, and also prevent 
          and cure many other medical problems including heart-
          diseases.  They are NOT too simple and inexpensive to work 
          effectively. 

          Besides acting on a person biologically and chemically, these 
          remedies, especially The 7-Day Fast and The Grape Diet, send 
          a strong message to one's subconscious mind, PROGRAMMING it 
          to CURE the cancer. 

          In my opinion, if a person finds out that s/he has cancer, 
          then s/he should promptly try at least the first 4 remedies 
          described above, in sequence (starting with The 7-Day Fast), 
          BEFORE resorting to the UN-natural and expensive mutilations 
          and agonies [POISON, BURN, and MUTILATE!] of orthodox cancer 
          treatment [organi$ed-CRIME!]. 
          
          
          DISCLAIMER: This list was compiled from unorthodox sources 
          that have shown themselves to be reliable.  The compiler of 
          this list is NOT a doctor of any kind, but is exercising his 
          First Amendment Constitutional RIGHT of FREE SPEECH on the 
          subjects of his choice. 


          FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Cancer Control Society, 2043 N. 
          Berendo St., Los Angeles, CA  90027, and/or other organiza-
          tions listed in the "Alternative Medicine" and "Holistic 
          Medicine" portions of the "Health and Medical Organizations" 
          Section (Section 8) of the latest edition of the "Encyclope-
          dia of Associations" reference book in your local public or 
          university library. 


               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 

          
                                   Robert E. McElwaine
         


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58153
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: Fungus "epidemic" in CA?

In article <19435@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>In article steward@cup.portal.com (John Joseph Deltuvia) writes:
>>
>>>There was a story a few weeks ago on a network news show about some sort
>>>of fungus which supposedly attacks the bone structure and is somewhat
>>>widespread in California.  Anybody hear anything about this one?
>>
>
>The only fungus I know of from California is Coccidiomycosis.  I
>hadn't heard that it attacked bone.  It attacks lung and if you
>are especially unlucky, the central nervous system.  Nothing new
>about it.  It's been around for years.  THey call it "valley
>fever", since it is found in the inland valleys, not on the coast.

There is a mini-epidemic of Coccidiodes that is occurring in,
I believe, the Owen's Valley/ Bishop area east of the Sierras.
I don't believe there has been any great insight into the
increased incidence in that area. There is a low-level
of endemic infection in that region. Many people with
evidence of past exposure to the organism did not have
serious disease.

Brian
>



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58154
From: bshelley@ucs.indiana.edu ()
Subject: Xanax...please provide info

I am currently doing a group research project on the drug Xanax.  I would
be exponentially gracious to receive any and all information you could
provide
me regarding its usage, history, mechanism of reaction, side effects, and
other pertinent information.  I don't care how long or how short your 
response is.

Thanks in advance!
Brent E. Shelley

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58155
From: lindae@netcom.com
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <19392@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <lindaeC4JGLK.FxM@netcom.com> lindae@netcom.com writes:
>
>>
>>My biggest resentment is the doctor who makes it seem like most
>>people with dizziness can be cured.  That's definitely not the
>>case.  In most cases, like I said above, it is a long, tedious
>>process that may or may not end up in a partial cure.  
>>
>
>Be sure to say "chronic" dizziness, not just dizziness.  Most
>patients with acute or subacute dizziness will get better.
>The vertiginous spells of Meniere's will also eventually go
>away, however, the patient is left with a deaf ear.

All true.  And all good points.

>
>>To anyone suffering with vertigo, dizziness, or any variation
>>thereof, my best advice to you (as a fellow-sufferer) is this...
>>just keep searching...don't let the doctors tell you there's
>>nothing that can be done...do your own research...and let your
>
>This may have helped you, but I'm not sure it is good general
>advice.  The odds that you are going to find some miracle with
>your own research that is secret or hidden from general knowledge
>for this or any other disease are slim.  When good answers to these

>then, spending a great deal of time and energy on the medical
>problem may divert that energy from more productive things
>in life.  A limited amount should be spent to assure yourself
>that your doctor gave you the correct story, but after it becomes
>clear that you are dealing with a problem for which medicine
>has no good solution, perhaps the best strategy is to join
>the support group and keep abreast of new findings but not to
>make a career out of it.

Well, making a career out of it is a bit strong.  I still believe
that doing your own research is very, very necessary.  I would
not have progressed as much as I have today, unless I had spent
the many hours in Stanford's Med Library as I have done.
And 5 years ago, it was clear that there was no medicine that 
would help me.  So should I have stopped searching.  Thank
goodness I didn't.  Now I found that there is indeed medicine
that helps me.  

I think that what you've said is kind of idealistic.  That you
would go to one doctor, get a diagnosis, maybe get a second
opinion, and then move on with your life.
Just as an example... having seen 6 of the top specialists in 
this field in the country, I have received 6 different diagnoses.
These are the top names, the ones that people come to from all over
the country.  I have HAD to sort all of this out myself.  Going
to a support group (and in fact, HEADING that support group) was 
helpful for a while, but after a point, I found it very
unproductive.  It was much more productive to do library research,
make phone calls and put together the pieces of the puzzle myself.

A recent movie, Lorenzo's Oil, offers a perfect example of what
I'm talking about.  If you haven't seen it, you should.  It's not
a put down of doctor's and neither is what I'm saying.  Doctors are
only human and can only do so much.  But there are those of us
out here who are intelligent and able to sometimes find a missing
piece of the puzzle that might have otherwise gone unnoticed.

I guess I'm biased because dizziness is one of those weird things
that is still so unknown.  If I had a broken arm, or a weak heart,
or failing kidneys, I might not have the same opinion.  That's because 
those things are much more tangible and have much more concise 
definitions and treatments.  With dizziness, you just have to
decide to live with it or decide to live with it while trying to
find your way out of it.


I have chosen the latter.


Linda
lindae@netcom.netcom.com


>
>-- 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58568
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (3/4): Keyboard Alternatives [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/keyboards
Version: $Revision: 5.11 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 01:20:43 $

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Answers To Frequently Asked Questions about Keyboard Alternatives
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Alternative Keyboard FAQ
Copyright 1992,1993 By Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.

[Current distribution: sci.med.occupational, sci.med, comp.human-factors,
 {news,sci,comp}.answers, and e-mail to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu,
 sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu, and cstg-L@vtvm1.cc.vt.edu]

Changes since previously distributed versions are marked with change        ||
bars to the right of the text, as is this paragraph.                        ||

Information in this FAQ has been pieced together from phone conversations,
e-mail, and product literature.  While I hope it's useful, the information
in here is neither comprehensive nor error free.  If you find something
wrong or missing, please mail me, and I'll update my list.  Thanks.

All phone numbers, unless otherwise mentioned, are U.S.A. phone numbers.
All monetary figures, unless otherwise mentioned, are U.S.A. dollars.

Products covered in this FAQ:
    Using a PC's keyboard on your workstation / compatibility issues
    Apple Computer, Inc.
    Key Tronic FlexPro
    Dragon Systems
    The Bat
    DataHand
    Comfort Keyboard System
    Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard
    Maltron
    The Tony! Ergonomic KeySystem
    The Vertical
    The MIKey
    The Wave
    The Minimal Motion Computer Access System
    Twiddler
    Half-QWERTY
    Microwriter
    Braille 'n Speak
    Octima
    AccuKey

GIF pictures of many of these products are available via anonymous ftp
from soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury.  (128.32.149.19)  I highly
recommend getting the pictures.  They tell much more than I can fit
into this file.

If you can't ftp, send me mail, and I'll uuencode and mail them to you
(they're pretty big...)

==============
Using a PC's keyboard on your workstation / compatibility issues

    Mini outline:
        1. Spoofing a keyboard over the serial port
        2. X terminals
        3. NeXT
        4. Silicon Graphics
        5. IBM RS/6000
	6. Other stuff

    1. Spoofing a keyboard over the serial port

	If you've got a proprietary computer which uses its own keyboard
	(Sun, HP, DEC, etc.) then you're going to have a hard time finding
	a vendor to sell you a compatible keyboard.  If your workstation
	runs the X window system, you're in luck.  You can buy a cheap used
	PC, hook your expensive keyboard up to it, and run a serial cable
	to your workstation.  Then, run a program on the workstation to read
	the serial port and generate fake X keyboard events.

	The two main programs I've found to do this are KT and A2X.

	a2x is a sophisticated program, capable of controlling the mouse, and
	even moving among widgets on the screen.  It requires a server
	extension (XTEST, DEC-XTRAP, or XTestExtension1).  To find out if your
	server can do this, run 'xdpyinfo' and see if any of these strings
	appear in the extensions list.  If your server doesn't have this,
	you may want to investigate compiling X11R5, patchlevel 18 or later,
	or bugging your vendor.

	kt is a simpler program, which should work with unextended X servers.
	Another program called xsendevent also exists, but I haven't seen it.

	Both a2x and kt are available via anonymous ftp from soda.berkeley.edu.

    2. X terminals

	Also, a number of X terminals (NCD, Tektronics, to name a few) use
	PC-compatible keyboards.  If you have an X terminal, you may be all
	set.  Try it out with a normal PC keyboard before you go through the
	trouble of buying an alternative keyboard.  Also, some X terminals add
	extra buttons -- you may need to keep your original keyboard around
	for the once-in-a-blue-moon that you have to hit the Setup key.

    3. NeXT

	NeXT had announced that new NeXT machines will use the Apple Desktop
	Bus, meaning any Mac keyboard will work.  Then, they announced they
	were cancelling their hardware production.  If you want any kind of
	upgrade for an older NeXT, do it now!

    4. Silicon Graphics

	Silicon Graphics has announced that their newer machines (Indigo^2 and
	beyond) will use standard PC-compatible keyboards and mice.  I don't
	believe this also applies to the Power Series machines.  It's not
	possible to upgrade an older SGI to use PC keyboards, except by
	upgrading the entire machine.  Contact your SGI sales rep for more
	details.

    5. IBM RS/6000

	IBM RS/6000 keyboards are actually similar to normal PC keyboards.  ||
	Unfortunately, you can't just plug one in.  You need two things: a  ||
	cable converter to go from the large PC keyboard connector to the   ||
	smaller PS/2 style DIN-6, and a new device driver for AIX.  Believe ||
	it or not, IBM wrote this device driver recently, I used it, and it ||
	works.  However, they don't want me to redistribute it.  I've been  ||
	told Judy Hume (512) 823-6337 is a potential contact.  If you learn ||
	anything new, please send me e-mail.				    ||
    
    6. Other stuff

	Some vendors here (notably: Health Care Keyboard Co. and AccuCorp)
	support some odd keyboard types, and may be responsive to your
	queries regarding supporting your own weird computer.  If you can
	get sufficient documention about how your keyboard works (either
	from the vendor, or with a storage oscilloscope), you may be in
	luck.  Contact the companies for more details.


Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    Apple Computer, Inc.
    Sales offices all over the place.

    Availability: February, 1993
    Price: $219
    Supports: Mac only

    Apple has recently announced their new split-design keyboard.  The
    keyboard has one section for each hand, and the sections rotate
    backward on a hinge.  The sections do not tilt upward.  The keys are
    arranged in a normal QWERTY fashion.

    The main foldable keyboard resembles a normal Apple Keyboard.
    A separate keypad contains all the extended key functions.

    The keyboard also comes with matching wrist rests, which are not
    directly attachable to the keyboard.

    As soon as soda comes back up, I'll have a detailed blurb from
    TidBITS available there.


FlexPro Keyboard
    Key Tronic
    Phone: 800-262-6006
    Possible contact: Denise Razzeto, 509-927-5299
    Sold by many clone vendors and PC shops

    Availability: Spring, 1993 (?)
    Price: $489 (?)
    Supports: PC only (highly likely)

    Keytronic apparently showed a prototype keyboard at Comdex.  It's
    another split-design.  One thumb-wheel controls the tilt of both
    the left and right-hand sides of the main alphanumeric section.
    The arrow keys and keypad resemble a normal 101-key PC keyboard.

    Keytronic makes standard PC keyboards, also, so this product will
    probably be sold through their standard distribution channels.


DragonDictate-30K (and numerous other Dragon products)
    Dragon Systems, Inc.
    320 Nevada Street
    Newton, MA  02160

    Phone: 800-TALK-TYP or 617-965-5200
    Fax: 617-527-0372

    Shipping: Now.

    Price: DragonDictate-30K -- $4995 (end user system)
	   DragonWriter 1000 -- $1595 / $2495 (end user/developer system)
	   various other prices for service contracts, site licenses, etc.
    
    Compatibility: 386 (or higher) PC only
		   (3rd party support for Mac)

	Free software support for X windows is also available -- your
	PC with Dragon hardware talks to your workstation over a
	serial cable or network.  The program is called a2x, and is
	available via anonymous ftp:

	soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/a2x.tar.Z
	export.lcs.mit.edu:contrib/a2x.tar.Z (most current)

	If you want to use your Dragon product with X windows, you may want
	to ask for Peter Cohen, an salesman at Dragon who knows more about
	this sort of thing.

    Dragon Systems sells a number of voice recognition products.
    Most (if not all) of them seem to run on PC's and compatibles
    (including PS/2's and other MicroChannel boxes).  They sell you
    a hardware board and software which sits in front of a number
    of popular word processors and spreadsheets.

    Each user `trains' the system to their voice, and there are provisions
    to correct the system when it makes mistakes, on the fly.  Multiple
    people can use it, but you have to load a different personality file
    for each person.  You still get the use of your normal keyboard, too.
    On the DragonDictate-30K you need to pause 1/10th sec between
    words.  Dragon claims typical input speeds of 30-40 words per minute.
    I don't have specs on the DragonWriter 1000.

    The DragonDictate-30K can recognize 30,000 words at a time.
    The DragonWriter 1000 can recognize (you guessed it) 1000 words at a time.

    Dragon's technology is also part of the following products
    (about which I have no other info):

	Microsoft Windows Sound System (Voice Pilot)
	IBM VoiceType
	Voice Navigator II (by Articulate Systems -- for Macintosh)
	EMStation (by Lanier Voice Products -- "emergency medical workstation")


The Bat
    old phone number: 504-336-0033
    current phone number: 504-766-8082

    Infogrip, Inc.
    812 North Blvd.
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802, U.S.A.

    Ward Bond (main contact)
    David Vicknair (did the Unix software)  504-766-1029

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: Mac, IBM PC (serial port -- native keyboard port version
    coming very soon...).  No other workstations supported, but serial
    support for Unix with X Windows has been written.  PC and Mac are
    getting all the real attention from the company.

    A chording system.  One hand is sufficient to type everything.
    The second hand is for redundancy and increased speed.

    Price:
	$495 (dual set -- each one is a complete keyboard by itself)
	$295 (single)

	(cheaper prices were offered at MacWorld Expo as a show-special.)


DataHand   602-860-8584
    Industrial Innovations, Inc.
    10789 North 90th Street
    Scottsdale, Arizona 85260-6727, U.S.A.

    Mark Roggenbuck (contact)

    Supports: PC and Mac

    Shipping: In beta.  "Big backlog" -- could take 3+ months.

    Price: $2000/unit (1 unit == 2 pods). (new price!)			    ||

    Each hand has its own "pod".  Each of the four main fingers has five
    switches each: forward, back, left, right, and down.  The thumbs have
    a number of switches.  Despite appearances, the key layout resembles
    QWERTY, and is reported to be no big deal to adapt to.  The idea is
    that your hands never have to move to use the keyboard.  The whole pod
    tilts in its base, to act as a mouse.

    (see also: the detailed review, written by Cliff Lasser <cal@THINK.COM>
     available via anonymous ftp from soda.berkeley.edu)


Comfort Keyboard System   414-253-4131
    FAX: 414-253-4177

    Health Care Keyboard Company
    N82 W15340 Appleton Ave
    Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin 53051 U.S.A.


    Jeffrey Szmanda (Vice President -- contact)

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: PC (and Mac???)						    ||
    
    Planned future support:
	IBM 122-key layout (3270-style, I believe)
	Sun Sparc
	Decision Data
	Unisys UTS-40
	Silicon Graphics

	Others to be supported later.  The hardware design is relatively
	easy for the company to re-configure.

    Price: $690, including one system "personality module".		    ||

    The idea is that one keyboard works with everything.  You purchase
    "compatibility modules", a new cord, and possibly new keycaps, and
    then you can move your one keyboard around among different machines.

    It's a three-piece folding keyboard.  The layout resembles the
    standard 101-key keyboard, except sliced into three sections.  Each
    section is on a "custom telescoping universal mount."  Each section
    independently adjusts to an infinite number of positions allowing each
    individual to type in a natural posture.  You can rearrange the three
    sections, too (have the keypad in the middle if you want).  Each
    section is otherwise normal-shaped (i.e.: you put all three sections
    flat, and you have what looks like a normal 101-key keyboard).


Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard   206-455-9220
    206-455-9233 (fax)

    Kinesis Corporation
    15245 Pacific Highway South,
    Seattle, Washington 98188, U.S.A.

    Shirley Lunde (VP Marketing -- contact)

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: PC.  Mac and Sun Sparc in the works.

    Price: $690.  Volume discounts available.  The $690 includes one foot
	pedal, one set of adhesive wrist pads, and a TypingTutor program.
	An additional foot pedal and other accessories are extra.

    The layout has a large blank space in the middle, even though the
    keyboard is about the size of a normal PC keyboard -- slightly
    smaller.  Each hand has its own set of keys, laid out to minimize
    finger travel.  Thumb buttons handle many major functions (enter,
    backspace, etc.).

    You can remap the keyboard in firmware (very nice when software won't
    allow the reconfig).

    Foot pedals are also available, and can be mapped to any key on the
    keyboard (shift, control, whatever).


Maltron		(+44) 081 398 3265 (United Kingdom)
    P.C.D. Maltron Limited
    15 Orchard Lane
    East Molesey
    Surrey KT8 OBN
    England

    Pamela and Stephen Hobday (contacts)

    U.S. Distributor:
	Jim Barrett
	Applied Learning Corp.
	1376 Glen Hardie Road
	Wayne, PA  19087

	Phone: 215-688-6866

    Supports: PC's, Amstrad 1512/1640, BBC B, BBC Master,
	      Mac apparently now also available


    Price: 375 pounds
	   $735 shipped in the U.S.A. (basically, converted price + shipping)

	   The cost is less for BBC computers, and they have a number of 
	   accessories, including carrying cases, switch boxes to use both
	   your normal keyboard and the Maltron, an articulated arm that
	   clamps on to your table, and training 'courses' to help you learn
	   to type on your Maltron.

	   You can also rent a keyboard for 10 pounds/week + taxes.
	   U.S. price: $120/month, and then $60 off purchase if you want it.

    Shipping: Now (in your choice of colors: black or grey)
    
    Maltron has four main products -- a two-handed keyboard, two one-handed
    keyboards, and a keyboard designed for handicapped people to control with
    a mouth-stick.

    The layout allocates more buttons to the thumbs, and is curved to
    bring keys closer to the fingers.  A separate keypad is in the middle.


AccuKey
    AccuCorp, Inc.
    P.O. Box 66
    Christiansburg, VA  24073, U.S.A.
 
    703-961-3576 (Pete Rosenquist -- Sales)
    703-961-2001 (Larry Langley -- President)
 
    Shipping: Now.
    Supports: PC, Mac, IBM 3270, Sun Sparc, and TeleVideo 935 and 955.
    Cost: $495 + shipping.
 
    Doesn't use conventional push-keys.  Soft rubber keys, which rock
    forward and backward (each key has three states), make chords for
    typing keys.  Learning time is estimated to be 2-3 hours, for getting
    started, and maybe two weeks to get used to it.

    Currently, the thumbs don't do anything, although a thumb-trackball
    is in the works.
 
    The company claims it takes about a week of work to support a
    new computer.  They will be happy to adapt their keyboard to
    your computer, if possible.


Twiddler	516-474-4405, or 800-638-2352
    Handykey
    141 Mt. Sinai Ave.
    Mt. Sinai, NY 11766

    Chris George (President)

    Shipping: now.

    Price: $199.

    Supports: PC only.  Mac and X Windows in the works.

    The Twiddler is both a keyboard and a mouse, and it fits in one hand.
    You type via finger chords.  Shift, control, etc. are thumb buttons.
    When in "mouse" mode, tilting the Twiddler moves the mouse, and mouse
    buttons are on your fingers.

    The cabling leaves your normal keyboard available, also.

    Most applications work, and Windows works fine.  DESQview has trouble.
    GEOWorks also has trouble -- mouse works, keyboard doesn't.


Braille 'n Speak     301-879-4944
    Blazie Engineering
    3660 Mill Green Rd.
    Street, Md 21154, U.S.A.

    (information provided by Doug Martin <martin@nosc.mil>)

    The Braille N Speak uses any of several Braille codes for entering
    information: Grade I, Grade II, or computer Braille.  Basically,
    letters a-j are combinations of dots 1, 2, 4, and 5.  Letters k-t are
    the same combinations as a-j with dot 3 added. Letters u, v, x, y, and
    z are like a-e with dots 3 and 6 added.  (w is unique because Louis
    Braille didn't have a w in the French alphabet.)


The Tony! Ergonomic KeySystem        415-969-8669
    Tony Hodges
    The Tony! Corporation
    2332 Thompson Court
    Mountain View, CA  94043, U.S.A.

    Supports: Mac, PC, IBM 3270, Sun, and DEC.
    
    Shipping: ???

    Price: $625 (you commit now, and then you're in line to buy the
    keyboard.  When it ships, if it's cheaper, you pay the cheaper price.
    If it's more expensive, you still pay $625)

    The Tony! should allow separate positioning of every key, to allow
    the keyboard to be personally customized.  A thumb-operated mouse
    will also be available.


The Vertical
    Contact: Jeffrey Spencer or Stephen Albert, 619-454-0000
    P.O. Box 2636
    La Jolla, CA  92038, U.S.A.

    Supports: no info available, probably PC's
    Available: Summer, 1993
    Price: $249

    The Vertical Keyboard is split in two halves, each pointing straight up.
    The user can adjust the width of the device, but not the tilt of each
    section.  Side-view mirrors are installed to allow users to see their
    fingers on the keys.


The MIKey     301-933-1111
    Dr. Alan Grant
    3208 Woodhollow Drive
    Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815, U.S.A.

    Shipping: As of July, 1992: "Should be Available in One Year."

    Supports: PC, Mac (maybe)

    Price: $200 (estimated)

    The keyboard is at a fixed angle, and incorporates a built-in mouse
    operated by the thumbs.  Function keys are arranged in a circle at
    the keyboard's left.


The Wave	(was: 213-)  310-644-6100
    FAX: 310-644-6068

    Iocomm International Technology
    12700 Yukon Avenue
    Hawthorne, California 90250, U.S.A.

    Robin Hunter (contact -- in sales)

    Cost: $99.95 + $15 for a set of cables

    Supports: PC only.

    Shipping: now.

    Iocomm also manufactures "ordinary" 101-key keyboard (PC/AT) and
    84-key keyboard (PC/XT), so make sure you get the right one.

    The one-piece keyboard has a built-in wrist-rest.  It looks *exactly*
    like a normal 101-key PC keyboard, with two inches of built-in wrist
    rest.  The key switch feel is reported to be greatly improved.
    

The Minimal Motion Computer Access System 	508-263-6437
    508-263-6537 (fax)

    Equal Access Computer Technology
    Dr. Michael Weinreigh
    39 Oneida Rd.
    Acton, MA  01720, U.S.A.

    Price: InfoGrip-compatible: "a few hundred dollars" + a one-handed Bat
	  For their own system: $300 (DOS software) + "a few hundred dollars"
    
    Shipping: these are custom-made, so an occupational therapist would
	  make moulds/do whatever to make it for you.  You can buy one now.
    
    Supports: PC only, although the InfoGrip-compatible version might
	  work with a Mac.

    In a one-handed version, there is exactly one button per finger.  In a
    two-handed version, you get four buttons per finger, and the thumbs
    don't do anything.  You can also get one-handed versions with three
    thumb buttons -- compatible with the InfoGrip Bat.  Basically, get it
    any way you want.

    They also have a software tutorial to help you learn the chording.

    Works on a PC under DOS, not Windows.  Planning on Macintosh and
    PC/Windows support.  No work has been done on a Unix version, yet.


Half-QWERTY	(Canada) 416-749-3124
    The Matias Corporation
    178 Thistledown Boulevard
    Rexdale, Ontario, Canada
    M9V 1K1

    E-mail: ematias@dgp.toronto.edu

    Supports: Mac and PC (but, not Windows)

    Demo for anonymous ftp: explorer.dgp.toronto.edu:/pub/Half-QWERTY	    ||

    Price:   $129.95 (higher in Canada, quantity discounts available)
    Shipping: Now.
    
    This thing is purely software.  No hardware at all.

    The software will mirror the keyboard when you hold down the space
    bar, allowing you type one-handed.


Octima	(Israel) 972-4-5322844
    FAX: (+972) 3 5322970

    Ergoplic Keyboards Ltd.
    P.O. Box 31
    Kiryat Ono 55100, Israel

    (info from Mandy Jaffe-Katz <RXHFUN@HAIFAUVM.BITNET>)
    A one-handed keyboard.


Microwriter AgendA (U.K.) (+44) 276 692 084
    FAX: (+44) 276 691 826

    Microwriter Systems plc
    M.S.A. House
    2 Albany Court
    Albany Park
    Frimley
    Surrey GU15 2XA, United Kingdom

    (Info from Carroll Morgan <Carroll.Morgan@prg.oxford.ac.uk>)

    The AgendA is a personal desktop assistant (PDA) style machine.  You
    can carry it along with you.  It has chording input.  You can also
    hook it up to your PC, or even program it.

    It costs just under 200 pounds, with 128K memory.
===========

Thanks go to Chris Bekins <AS.CCB@forsythe.stanford.edu> for providing
the basis for this information.

Thanks to the numerous contributors:

Doug Martin <martin@nosc.mil>
Carroll Morgan <Carroll.Morgan@prg.oxford.ac.uk>
Mandy Jaffe-Katz <RXHFUN@HAIFAUVM.BITNET>
Wes Hunter <Wesley.Hunter@AtlantaGA.NCR.com>
Paul Schwartz <pschwrtz@cs.washington.edu>
H.J. Woltring <WOLTRING@NICI.KUN.NL>
Dan Sorenson <viking@iastate.edu>
Chris VanHaren <vanharen@MIT.EDU>
Ravi Pandya <ravi@xanadu.com>
Leonard H. Tower Jr. <tower@ai.mit.edu>
Dan Jacobson <Dan_Jacobson@ATT.COM>
Jim Cheetham  <jim@oasis.icl.co.uk>
Cliff Lasser <cal@THINK.COM>
Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk>
Paul Rubin <phr@napa.Telebit.COM>
David Erb <erb@fullfeed.com>
Bob Scheifler <rws@expo.lcs.mit.edu>
Chris Grant <Chris.Grant@um.cc.umich.edu>
Scott Mandell <sem1@postoffice.mail.cornell.edu>

and everybody else who I've probably managed to forget.

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.
-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58569
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (4/4): Software Monitoring Tools [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/software
Version: 1.8, 7th December 1992

This FAQ is actually maintained by Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk>.
I post it, along with the other FAQ stuff.  If you have questions, you want
to send mail to Richard, not me.  -- Dan
 
 
		    Software Tools to help with RSI
		    -------------------------------
 
This file describes tools, primarily software, to help prevent or manage RSI.
This version now includes information on such diverse tools as calendar
programs and digital watches...
 
Please let me know if you know any other tools, or if you have information
or opinions on these ones, and I will update this FAQ.

I am especially interested in getting reviews of these products from people
who have evaluated them or are using them.  
 
Richard Donkin                           
Internet mail: richardd@hoskyns.co.uk              
Tel: +44 71 814 5708 (direct)
Fax: +44 71 251 2853

Changes in this version:

     Added information on StressFree, another typing management tool 
     for Windows.


TYPING MANAGEMENT TOOLS: these aim to help you manage your keyboard use,
by warning you to take a break every so often.  The better ones also include
advice on exercises, posture and workstation setup.  Some use sound hardware to
 
warn of a break, others use beeps or screen messages.

Often, RSI appears only after many years of typing, and the pain has
a delayed action in the short term too: frequently you can be typing
all day with little problem and the pain gets worse in the evening.
These tools act as an early warning system: by listening to their
warnings and taking breaks with exercises, you don't have to wait for your 
body to give you a more serious and painful warning - that is, getting RSI.

 
    Tool: At Your Service (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Bright Star
	Tel: +1 (206) 451 3697
    Platforms: Mac (System 6.0.4), Windows
    Description:
	Provides calendar, keyboard watch, email watch, and system info. 
	Warns when to take a break (configurable).  Has a few recommendations
	on posture, and exercises.  Sound-oriented, will probably work best 
	with sound card (PC) or with microphone (Mac).  Should be possible
	to record your own messages to warn of break.
 
    Tool: AudioPort (sound card and software)
    Available from:
	Media Vision
	Tel: +1 (510) 226 2563
    Platforms: PC
    Description:
	A sound card to plug into your PC parallel port.
	Includes 'At Your Service'.
 
    Tool: Computer Health Break (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Escape Ergonomics, Inc
	1111 W. El Camino Real
	Suite 109
	Mailstop 403
	Sunnyvale, CA
	Tel: +1 (408) 730 8410
    Platforms: DOS
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval, based on clock time, or
	after a set number of keystrokes -- whichever is earlier.
	It gives you 3 exercises to do each time, randomly selected from
	a set of 70.  Exercises are apparently tuned to the type of work
	you do - data entry, word processing, information processing.
	Exercises are illustrated and include quite a lot of text on
	how to do the exercise and on what exactly the exercise does.

	CHB includes hypertext information on RSI that you can use 
	to learn more about RSI and how to prevent it.  Other information
	on non-RSI topics can be plugged into this hypertext viewer.
	A full glossary of medical terms and jargon is included.

	CHB can be run in a DOS box under Windows, but does not then
	warn you when to take a break; it does not therefore appear
	useful when used with Windows.

	Cost: $79.95; quantity discounts, site licenses.

    Comments:
	The keystroke-counting approach looks good: it seems better
	to measure the activity that is causing you problems than to
	measure clock time or even typing time.  The marketing stuff
	is very good and includes some summaries of research papers,
	as well as lots of arguments you can use to get your company 
	to pay up for RSI management tools.  

    Tool: EyerCise (commercial software)
    Available from:
	RAN Enterprises
	One Woodland Park Dr.
	Haverhill, MA  01830, US
	Tel: 800-451-4487 (US only)
    Platforms: Windows (3.0/3.1), OS/2 PM (1.3/2.0) [Not DOS]
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI and eye strain, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval (or at fixed times). Optionally
	displays descriptions and pictures of exercises - pictures are
	animated and program beeps you to help you do exercises at the
	correct rate.  Includes 19 stretches and 4 visual training 
	exercises, can configure which are included and how many repetitions
	you do - breaks last from 3 to 7 minutes.  Also includes online help 
	on workplace ergonomics.  

	Quote from their literature:

	"EyerCise is a Windows program that breaks up your day with periodic
	sets of stretches and visual training exercises.  The stretches work
	all parts of your body, relieving tension and helping to prevent
	Repetitive Strain Injury.  The visual training exercises will improve
	your peripheral vision and help to relieve eye strain.  Together these
	help you to become more relaxed and productive."
 
	"The package includes the book _Computers & Visual Stress_ by Edward C.
	Godnig, O.D. and John S. Hacunda, which describes the ergonomic setup
	for a computer workstation and provides procedures and exercises to
	promote healthy and efficient computer use. 
	
	Cost: $69.95 including shipping and handling, quantity discounts
	for resellers.  Free demo ($5 outside US).
 
    Comments:
	I have a copy of this, and it works as advertised: I would say
	it is better for RSI prevention than RSI management, because it
	does not allow breaks at periods less than 30 minutes.  Also, it
	interrupts you based on clock time rather than typing time, which
	is not so helpful unless you use the keyboard all day.  Worked OK on
	Windows 3.0 though it did occasionally crash with a UAE - not sure
	why. Also refused to work with the space bar on one PC, and has
	one window without window controls.  Very usable though, and does not
	require any sound hardware.

    Tool: Lifeguard (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Visionary Software
	P.O. Box 69447
	Portland, OR  97201, US
	Tel: +1 (503) 246-6200
    Platforms: Mac, DOS (Windows version underway)
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI.  Warns you to take a break
	with dialog box and sound.  Includes a list of exercises
	to do during breaks, and information on configuring your
	workstation in an ergonomic manner.  Price: $59;
	quantity discounts and site licenses.  The DOS product is
	bought in from another company, apparently; not sure how
	equivalent this is to the Mac version.
	
	The Mac version got a good review in Desktop Publisher 
	Magazine (Feb 1991).  Good marketing stuff with useful 
	2-page summaries of RSI problems and solutions, with 
	references.
 
    Tool: StressFree (commercial software, free usable demo)
    Available from:
	LifeTime Software
	P.O. Box 87522
	Houston
	Texas 77287-7522, US
	Tel: 800-947-2178 (US only)
	Fax: +1 (713) 474-2067
	Mail: 70412.727@compuserve.com

	Demo (working program but reduced functions) available from:
	    Compuserve: Windows Advanced Forum, New Uploads section, or 
			Health and Fitness Forum, Issues At Work section. 
	    Anon FTP:   ftp.cica.indiana.edu (and mirroring sites)

    Platforms: Windows (3.0/3.1) (Mac and DOS versions underway)
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval (or at fixed times). 
	Displays descriptions and pictures of exercises - pictures are
	animated and program paces you to help you do exercises at the
	correct rate.  Quite a few exercises, can configure which ones
	are included to some extent.  Online help.

	Version 2.0 is out soon, Mac and DOS versions will be based
	on this.

	Cost: $29.95 if support via CompuServe or Internet, otherwise $39.95.  
              Site license for 3 or more copies is $20.00 each.
	      (NOTE: prices may have gone up for V2.0).
 
    Comments:
	I have had a play with this, and it works OK.  Its user interface
	design is much better in 2.0, though still a bit unusual.
	expensive tool around and it does the job.  It is also the only
	tool with a redistributable demo, so if you do get the demo, post it
	on your local bulletin boards, FTP servers and Bitnet servers!
	Does not include general info on RSI and ergonomics, but it does 
	have the ability to step backward in the exercise sequence,
	which is good for repeating the most helpful exercises.

    Tool: Typewatch (freeware), version 3.8 (October 1992)
    Available from:
	Email to richardd@hoskyns.co.uk
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/typewatch.shar
    Platforms: UNIX (tested on SCO, SunOS, Mach; character and X Window mode)
    Description:
	This is a shell script that runs in the background and warns you
	to stop typing, based on how long you have been continuously
	typing.  It does not provide exercises, but it does check
	that you really do take a break, and tells you when you
	can start typing again.  

	Typewatch now tells you how many minutes you have been typing
	today, each time it warns you, which is useful so you
	know how much you *really* type.  It also logs information
	to a file that you can analyse or simply print out.  

	The warning message appears on your screen (in character mode),
	in a pop-up window (for X Windows), or as a Zephyr message
	(for those with Athena stuff).   Tim Freeman <tsf@cs.cmu.edu> 
	has put in a lot of bug fixes, extra features and support for 
	X, Zephyr and Mach.

	Not formally supported, but email richardd@hoskyns.co.uk
	(for SCO, SunOS, character mode) or tsf@cs.cmu.edu (for Mach,
	X Window mode, Zephyr) if you have problems or want to give 
	feedback.

    Tool: Various calendar / batch queue programs
    Available from:
	Various sources
    Platforms: Various
    Description:
	Any calendar/reminder program that warns you of an upcoming
	appointment can be turned into an ad hoc RSI management tool.
	Or, any batch queue submission program that lets you submit
	a program to run at a specific time to display a message to
	the screen.

	Using Windows as an example: create a Calendar file, and
	include this filename in your WIN.INI's 'load=' line so
	you get it on every startup of Windows.  Suppose you
	want to have breaks every 30 minutes, starting from 9 am.
	Press F7 (Special Time...) to enter an appointment, enter
	9:30, hit Enter, and type some text in saying what the break
	is for.  Then press F5 to set an alarm on this entry, and repeat 
	for the next appointment.

	By using Windows Recorder, you can record the keystrokes
	that set up breaks throughout a day in a .REC file.  Put this
	file on your 'run=' line, as above, and you will then, with
	a single keypress, be able to set up your daily appointments
	with RSI exercises.

	The above method should be adaptable to most calendar programs. 
	An example using batch jobs would be to submit a simple job
	that runs at 9:30 am and warns you to take a break; this will
	depend a lot on your operating system.

	While these approaches are not ideal, they are a good way of forcing 
	yourself to take a break if you can't get hold of a suitable RSI 
	management tool.  If you are techie enough you might want to
	write a version of Typewatch (see above) for your operating
	system, using batch jobs or whatever fits best.

    Tool: Digital watches with count-down timers
    Available from:
	Various sources, e.g. Casio BP-100.
    Description:
	Many digital watches have timers that count down from a settable
	number of minutes; they usually reset easily to that number, either
	manually or automatically.  

	While these are a very basic tool, they are very useful if you
	are writing, reading, driving, or doing anything away from
	a computer which can still cause or aggravate RSI.  The great
	advantage is that they remind you to break from whatever you
	are doing.
	
    Comments:
	My own experience was that cutting down a lot on my typing led to
	my writing a lot more, and still reading as much as ever, which
	actually aggravated the RSI in my right arm though the left
	arm improved.  Getting a count-down timer watch has been
	very useful on some occasions where I write a lot in a day.

	I have tried an old fashioned hour-glass type egg timer, but
	these are not much good because they do not give an audible
	warning of the end of the time period!


KEYBOARD REMAPPING TOOLS: these enable you to change your keyboard mapping
so you can type one-handedly or with a different two-handed layout.  
One-handed typing tools may help, but be VERY careful about how 
you use them -- if you keep the same overall typing workload you
are simply doubling your hand use for the hand that you use for typing,
and may therefore make matters worse.

    Tool: hsh (public domain)
    Available from:
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/hsh.shar
    Platforms: UNIX (don't know which ones)
    Description:
	Allows one-handed typing and other general keyboard remappings.
	Only works through tty's (so, you can use it with a terminal or
	an xterm, but not most X programs).

    Tool: Dvorak keyboard tools (various)
    Available from:
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/xdvorak.c
	Also built into Windows 3.x. 
    Description:
	The Dvorak keyboard apparently uses a more rational layout
	that involves more balanced hand use.   It *may* help prevent
	RSI a bit, but you can also use it if you have RSI, since 
	it will slow down your typing a *lot* :-)  

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58570
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <lsj4gnINNl6c@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*-----
>I wrote:
>>> ... Or, to use a phrasing that I think is more accurate, science 
>>> is the investigation of phenomena that avoids methods and reasoning 
>>> that are known to be erroneous from past foul-ups. 
>
>In article <C57Iu2.HBn@bunyip.cc.uq.oz.au> bd@psych.psy.uq.oz.au writes:
>> I can agree with this if you are talking about the less fundamental
>> aspects of scientific method. ...
>    ...
>> ... In fact, I don't see the alternative, as I don't think that the 
>> fundamentals are capable of experimental investigation.  In saying
>> this I am agreeing with the work of people like Kuhn (1970), 
>> Feyerabend (1981) and Lakatos (1972).
>      ....
>While methodology cannot be subject to the same kind of "experimental
>investigation," as that to which it is applied, it *can* be critically
>appraised.  Methodologies can be compared to each other, sometimes by
>the conflicting results they produce.  This kind of critical appraisal
>and comparison, together with the inappropriateness of existing
>methodologies for new fields of study, is what drives the evolution of
>methodologies and how we think about them.  

As usual, you are missing the whole point, Russell, because you are not
willing to even consider questionning your basic article of faith, which
is that science is merely a matter of methodology and that the highest
purpose of science is to avoid making mistakes.  

This is like saying that the most important aspect of business management
is accurate bookkeeping.  

If science were no more than methodology and not making mistakes, it
would be a poor thing indeed.  What was the methodology of Darwin?  What
was the methodology of Einstein?  What was, for that matter, the
methodology of Jenner and Pasteur?  


In an earlier article, Russell Turpin writes:  

>None of the foregoing should be read as meaning that we should
>open the door to practitioners of quackery and psuedo-science.
>Modern advocates of homeopathy, chiropracty, and traditional
>Chinese medicine receive little respect because, for the most
>part, they use methods and reasoning that the kind of research
>Lee Lady recommends has shown to be terribly faulty.  (This does
>*not* imply that all their treatments are ineffective.  It *does*
>imply that those who rely on faulty methodology and reasoning are
>incapable of discovering *which* treatments are effective and
>which are not.)

First of all, I think you are arguing against a straw man, because I
don't think that anyone here is arguing that quackery, pseudo-science,
homeopathy, chiropracty, and traditional Chinese medicine should be
accepted as science.  I, in particular, think the basic ideas of
homeopathy and chiropracty seem extremely flaky.  

What some of us do believe, however, is that some of these things
(including some of the flaky ideas) are deserving of serious scientific
attention.  

If in fact it were true, as you have stated above, that those who do not
use the currently fashionable methodology can have no idea what is
effective and what is not, then science today would not exist.  For all
of current science is based on the past work of scientists whose
methodology, by current standards, was seriously flawed.  

It is certainly true that as methodology improves, we need to re-examine
those results derived in the past using less perfect methodologies.  It is
also true that the results obtained by people today who still rely on 
those early methodologies needs to be re-examined in a more rigorous 
fashion by those qualified to do so credibly.  

But to say that nobody who fails to do elaborate double-blind studies is
capable of knowing their ass from a hole in the ground and to say that no
ideas that come from outside the scientific establishment could possibly
be worthy of serious investigation ... this truly marks one's attitude as
doctrinaire, cultist.  This attitude is not compatible with a belief in
reason.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58577
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (1/4): Changes since last month [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/changes
Version: $Revision: 1.3 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 04:12:33 $

This file details changes to the soda.berkeley.edu archive and summarizes
what's new in the various FAQ (frequently asked questions) documents.
This will be posted monthly, along with the full FAQ to the various net
groups.  The various mailing lists will either receive the full FAQ
every month, or every third month, but will always get this file, once
per month.  Phew!

============================================================================
Changes to the Typing Injuries FAQ and soda.berkeley.edu archive, this month
============================================================================

a few new files on the soda.berkeley.edu archive
    the TidBITS "Caring for your wrists" document
    RSI Network #11
    Advice about "adverse mechanical tension"
    More details about the new Apple keyboard
    more info about carpal tunnel syndrome (carpal.explained)
    more general info about RSI (rsi.details, rsi.physical)

    marketing info on the Vertical
    MacWeek article the Bat

new details on hooking a normal PC keyboard to an RS/6000

updated pricing info on the DataHand and Comfort

Half-QWERTY now available for anonymous ftp on explorer.dgp.toronto.edu

new GIF picutures!
    The Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    The Key Tronic FlexPro
    another picture of the Kinesis
    The Vertical
    The Tony!

============================================================================

If you'd like to receive a copy of the FAQ and you didn't find it in the
same place you found this document, you can either send e-mail to 
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu, or you can anonymous ftp to soda.berkeley.edu
(128.32.149.19) and look in the pub/typing-injury directory.

Enjoy!

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58578
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (2/4): General Info [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/general
Version: $Revision: 4.28 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 04:17:58 $

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         Answers To Frequently Asked Questions about Typing Injuries
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Typing Injury FAQ -- sources of information for people with typing
injuries, repetitive stress injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, etc.

Copyright 1992,1993 by Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>

Many FAQs, including this one, are available on the archive site
pit-manager.mit.edu (alias rtfm.mit.edu) [18.172.1.27] in the directory
pub/usenet/news.answers.  The name under which a FAQ is archived appears
in the Archive-name line at the top of the article.  This FAQ is archived
as typing-injury-faq/general.Z

There's a mail server also.  Just e-mail mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu
with the word 'help' on a line by itself in the body.

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.  I'm not a medical
doctor, so my advice should be taken with many grains of salt.

[Current distribution: sci.med.occupational, sci.med, comp.human-factors,
 {news,sci,comp}.answers, and e-mail to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu,
 sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu, and cstg-L@vtvm1.cc.vt.edu]

Changes since previously distributed versions are marked with change        ||
bars to the right of the text, as is this paragraph.                        ||

Table of Contents:
    ==1== Mailing lists, newsgroups, etc.
    ==2== The soda.berkeley.edu archive
    ==3== General info on injuries
    ==4== Typing posture, ergonomics, prevention, treatment
    ==5== Requests for more info
    ==6== References

==1== Mailing lists, newsgroups, etc.

USENET News:
-----------
comp.human-factors occasionally has discussion about alternative input devices.
comp.risks has an occasional posting relevant to injuries via computers.
sci.med and misc.handicap also tend to have relevant traffic.

There's a Brand New newsgroup, sci.med.occupational, chartered specifically
to discuss these things.  This would be the recommended place to post.

Mailing lists:
-------------
The RSI Network: Available both on paper and via e-mail, this publication
    covers issues relevant to those with repetitive stress injuries.  For
    a sample issue and subscription information, send a stamped, self-
    addressed business envelope to Caroline Rose, 970 Paradise Way, Palo
    Alto CA 94306.

    E-mail to <crose@applelink.apple.com>

    $2 donation, requested.

    All RSI Network newsletters are available via anonymous ftp from
    soda.berkeley.edu (see below for details).

c+health and sorehand are both IBM Listserv things.  For those familiar
    with Listserv, here's the quick info:

    c+health -- subscribe to listserv@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu
		post to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu

    sorehand -- subscribe to listserv@vm.ucsf.edu
		post to sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu

Quick tutorial on subscribing to a Listserv:
    % mail listserv@vm.ucsf.edu
    Subject: Total Listserv Mania!

    SUBSCRIBE SOREHAND J. Random Hacker
    INFO ?
    .
That's all there is to it.  You'll get bunches of mail back from the Listserv,
including a list of other possible commands you can mail.  Cool, huh?  What'll
those BITNET people think of, next?

==2== The soda.berkeley.edu archive

I've started an archive site for info related to typing injuries.  Just
anonymous ftp to soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury.  (128.32.149.19)
Currently, you'll find:

Informative files:
    typing-injury-faq/
        general           -- information about typing injuries
        keyboards         -- products to replace your keyboard
        software          -- software to watch your keyboard usage
	changes		  -- changes since last month's edition (new!)	    ||

    keyboard-commentary   -- Dan's opinions on the keyboard replacements
    amt.advice		  -- about Adverse Mechanical Tension
    caringforwrists.sit.hqx -- PageMaker4 document about your wrists
    caringforwrists.ps	  -- PostScript converted version of above...
    carpal.info           -- info on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
    carpal.explained	  -- very detailed information about CTS
    carpal.surgery	  -- JAMA article on CTS surgery
    carpal.tidbits	  -- TidBITS article on CTS
    tendonitis.info       -- info on Tendonitis
    rsi.biblio		  -- bibliography of RSI-related publications

    rsi-network/*         -- archive of the RSI Network newsletter
			     (currently, containing issues 1 through 11)    ||
    
    rsi.details		  -- long detailed information about RSI
    rsi.physical	  -- study showing RSI isn't just psychological

    Various product literature:

    apple-press		  -- press release on the Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    apple-tidbits	  -- extensive info about Apple's Adjustable Keybd
    bat-info		  -- MacWeek review on the Bat			    ||
    comfort-*		  -- marketing info on the Comfort Keyboard
    datahand-review	  -- detailed opinions of the DataHand
    datahand-review2	  -- follow-up to above
    datahand-desc	  -- description of the DataHand's appearance
    kinesis-review	  -- one user's personal opinions
    maltron-*		  -- marketing info on various Maltron products
    maltron-review	  -- one user's personal opinions
    vertical-info	  -- marketing info on the Vertical (new!)	    ||

Programs:
    (With the exception of accpak.exe, everything here is distributed as
     source to be compiled with a Unix system.  Some programs take advantage
     of the X window system, also.)

    hsh.shar		  -- a program for one-handed usage of normal keyboards
    typewatch.shar	  -- tells you when to take a break
    xdvorak.c		  -- turns your QWERTY keyboard into Dvorak
    xidle.shar		  -- keeps track of how long you've been typing
    rest-reminder.sh      -- yet another idle watcher
    kt15.tar  		  -- generates fake X keyboard events from the
			     serial port -- use a PC keyboard on anything!
			     (new improved version!)
    accpak.exe		  -- a serial port keyboard spoofer for MS Windows

    (Note: a2x.tar and rk.tar are both from export.lcs.mit.edu:contrib/
     so they may have a more current version than soda.)

    a2x.tar  		  -- a more sophisticated X keyboard/mouse spoofing
			     program.  Supports DragonDictate.
			     (note: a new version is now available)	    ||
    rk.tar  		  -- the reactive keyboard -- predicts what you'll
			     type next -- saves typing

Pictures (in the gifs subdirectory):
    howtosit.gif	  -- picture of good sitting posture
			     (the caringforwrists document is better for this)

    accukey1.gif	  -- fuzzy picture
    accukey2.gif	  -- fuzzy picture with somebody using it
    apple.gif		  -- the Apple Adjustable Keyboard		    ||
    bat.gif               -- the InfoGrip Bat
    comfort.gif           -- the Health Care Comfort Keyboard
    datahand1.gif	  -- fuzzy picture
    datahand2.gif	  -- key layout schematic
    datahand3.gif	  -- a much better picture of the datahand
    flexpro.gif		  -- the Key Tronic FlexPro keyboard		    ||
    kinesis1.gif          -- the Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard
    kinesis2.gif	  -- multiple views of the Kinesis		    ||
    maltron[1-4].gif      -- several pictures of Maltron products
    mikey1.gif            -- the MIKey
    mikey2.gif            -- Schematic Picture of the MIKey
    tony.gif		  -- The Tony! Ergonomic Keysystem		    ||
    twiddler1.gif	  -- "front" view
    twiddler2.gif	  -- "side" view
    vertical.gif	  -- the Vertical keyboard			    ||
    wave.gif		  -- the Iocomm `Wave' keyboard

Many files are compressed (have a .Z ending).  If you can't uncompress a file
locally, soda will do it.  Just ask for the file, without the .Z extension.

If you're unable to ftp to soda, send me e-mail and we'll see what we
can arrange.

==3== General info on injuries

First, and foremost of importance: if you experience pain at all, then
you absolutely need to go see a doctor.  As soon as you possibly can.  The
difference of a day or two can mean the difference between a short recovery
and a long, drawn-out ordeal.  GO SEE A DOCTOR.  Now, your garden-variety
doctor may not necessarily be familiar with this sort of injury.  Generally,
any hospital with an occupational therapy clinic will offer specialists in
these kinds of problems.  DON'T WAIT, THOUGH.  GO SEE A DOCTOR.

The remainder of this information is paraphrased, without permission, from
a wonderful report by New Zealand's Department of Labour (Occupational
Safety and Health Service): "Occupational Overuse Syndrome. Treatment and
Rehabilitation: A Practitioner's Guide".

First, a glossary (or, fancy names for how you shouldn't have your hands):
(note: you're likely to hear these terms from doctors and keyboard vendors :)

  RSI: Repetitive Strain Injury - a general term for many kinds of injuries
  OOS: Occupational Overuse Syndrome -- synonym for RSI
  CTD: Cumulative Trauma Disorder -- another synonym for RSI
  WRULD: Work-Related Upper Limb Disorders -- yet another synonym for RSI
  CTS: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (see below)
  Hyperextension:  Marked bending at a joint.
  Pronation: Turning the palm down.
  Wrist extension: Bending the wrist up.
  Supination: Turning the palm up.
  Wrist flexion: Bending the wrist down.
  Pinch grip: The grip used for a pencil.
  Ulnar deviation: Bending the wrist towards the little finger.
  Power grip: The grip used for a hammer.
  Radial Deviation: Bending the wrist toward the thumb.
  Abduction: Moving away from the body.
  Overspanning: Opening the fingers out wide.

Now then, problems come in two main types: Local conditions and diffuse
conditions.  Local problems are what you'd expect: specific muscles,
tendons, tendon sheaths, nerves, etc. being inflamed or otherwise hurt.
Diffuse conditions, often mistaken for local problems, can involve muscle
discomfort, pain, burning and/or tingling; with identifiable areas of
tenderness in muscles, although they're not necessarily "the problem."

--- Why does Occupational Overuse Syndrome occur?  Here's the theory.

Normally, your muscles and tendons get blood through capillaries which
pass among the muscle fibers.  When you tense a muscle, you restrict
the blood flow.  By the time you're exerting 50% of your full power,
you're completely restricting your blood flow.

Without fresh blood, your muscles use stored energy until they run out,
then they switch to anaerobic (without oxygen) metabolism, which generates
nasty by-products like lactic acid, which cause pain.

Once one muscle hurts, all its neighbors tense up, perhaps to relieve the
load.  This makes sense for your normal sort of injury, but it only makes
things worse with repetitive motion.  More tension means less blood flow,
and the cycle continues.

Another by-product of the lack of blood flow is tingling and numbness from
your nerves.  They need blood too.

Anyway, when you're typing too much, you're never really giving a change
for the blood to get back where it belongs, because your muscles never
relax enough to let the blood through.  Stress, poor posture, and poor
ergonomics, only make things worse.

--- Specific injuries you may have heard of:

(note: most injuries come in two flavors: acute and chronic.  Acute
injuries are severely painful and noticable.  Chronic conditions have
less pronounced symptoms but are every bit as real.)

Tenosynovitis -- an inflamation of the tendon sheath.  Chronic tenosynovitis
occurs when the repetitive activity is mild or intermittent: not enough to
cause acute inflamation, but enough to exceed the tendon sheath's ability
to lubricate the tendon.  As a result, the tendon sheath thickens, gets
inflamed, and you've got your problem.

Tendonitis -- an inflammation of a tendon.  Repeated tensing of a tendon
can cause inflamation.  Eventually, the fibers of the tendon start separating,
and can even break, leaving behind debris which induces more friction, more
swelling, and more pain.  "Sub-acute" tendonitis is more common, which entails
a dull ache over the wrist and forearm, some tenderness, and it gets worse
with repetitive activity.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome -- the nerves that run through your wrist into your
fingers get trapped by the inflamed muscles around them.  Symptoms include
feeling "pins and needles", tingling, numbness, and even loss of sensation.
CTS is often confused for a diffuse condition.

Adverse Mechanical Tension -- also known as 'neural tension', this is where
the nerves running down to your arm have become contracted and possibly
compressed as a result of muscle spasms in the shoulders and elsewhere.
AMT can often misdiagnosed as or associated with one of the other OOS 
disorders.  It is largely reversible and can be treated with physiotherapy 
(brachial plexus stretches and trigger point therapy).

Others: for just about every part of your body, there's a fancy name for
a way to injure it.  By now, you should be getting an idea of how OOS
conditions occur and why.  Just be careful: many inexperienced doctors
misdiagnose problems as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, when in reality, you
may have a completely different problem.  Always get a second opinion
before somebody does something drastic to you (like surgery).

==4== Typing posture, ergonomics, prevention, treatment

The most important element of both prevention and recovery is to reduce
tension in the muscles and tendons.  This requires learning how to relax.
If you're under a load of stress, this is doubly important.  Tune out
the world and breath deep and regular.  Relaxing should become a guiding
principle in your work: every three minutes take a three second break.
EVERY THREE MINUTES, TAKE A THREE SECOND BREAK.  Really, do it every
three minutes.  It's also helpful to work in comfortable surroundings,
calm down, and relax.

If you can't sleep, you really need to focus on this.  Rest, sleep, and
relaxation are really a big deal.

There are all kinds of other treatments, of course.  Drugs can reduce
inflamation and pain.  Custom-molded splints can forcefully prevent bad
posture.  Surgery can fix some problems.  Exercise can help strengthen
your muscles.  Regular stretching can help prevent injury.  Good posture
and a good ergonomic workspace promote reduced tension.  Ice or hot-cold
contrast baths also reduce swelling.  Only your doctor can say what's best
for you.

--- Posture -- here are some basic guidelines.  [I so liked the way this was
written in the New Zealand book that I'm lifting it almost verbatim from
Appendix 10. -- dwallach]

. Let your shoulders relax.
. Let your elbows swing free.
. Keep your wrists straight.
. Pull your chin in to look down - don't flop your head forward.
. Keep the hollow in the base of your spine.
. Try leaning back in the chair.
. Don't slouch or slump forward.
. Alter your posture from time to time.
. Every 20 minutes, get up and bend your spine backward.

Set the seat height, first.  Your feet should be flat on the floor.  There 
should be no undue pressure on the underside of your thighs near the knees,
and your thighs should not slope too much.

Now, draw yourself up to your desk and see that its height is comfortable
to work at.  If you are short, this may be impossible.  The beest remedy
is to raise the seat height and prevent your legs from dangling by using a
footrest.

Now, adjust the backrest height so that your buttocks fit into the space
between the backrest and the seat pan.  The backrest should support you in
the hollow of your back, so adjust its tilt to give firm support in this
area.

If you operate a keyboard, you will be able to spend more time leaning
back, so experiment with a chair with a taller backrest, if available.

[Now, I diverge a little from the text]

A good chair makes a big difference.  If you don't like your chair, go
find a better one.  You really want adjustments for height, back angle,
back height, and maybe even seat tilt.  Most arm rests seem to get in
the way, although some more expensive chairs have height adjustable arm
rests which you can also rotate out of the way.  You should find a good
store and play with all these chairs -- pick one that's right for you.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, I highly recommend "Just Chairs."  The
name says it all.

--- Keyboard drawers, wrist pads, and keyboard replacements:

There is a fair amount of controvery on how to get this right.  For some
people, wrist pads seem to work wonders.  However, with good posture, you
shouldn't be resting your wrists on anything -- you would prefer your
keyboard to be "right there".  If you drop your arms at your side and then
lift your hands up at the elbow, you want your keyboard under your hands
when your elbows are at about 90 degrees.  Of course, you want to avoid
pronation, wrist extension, and ulnar deviation at all costs.  Wrist pads
may or may not help at this.  You should get somebody else to come and
look at how you work: how you sit, how you type, and how you relax.  It's
often easier for somebody else to notice your hunched shoulders or
deviated hands.

Some argue that the normal, flat keyboard is antiquated and poorly
designed.  A number of replacements are available, on the market, today.
Check out the accompanying typing-injury-faq/keyboards for much detail.

==5== Requests for more info

Clearly, the above information is incomplete.  The typing-injury archive
is incomplete.  There's always more information out there.  If you'd like
to submit something, please send me mail, and I'll gladly throw it in.

If you'd like to maintain a list of products or vendors, that would be
wonderful!  I'd love somebody to make a list of chair/desk vendors.  I'd
love somebody to make a list of doctors.  I'd love somebody to edit the
above sections, looking for places where I've obviously goofed.

==6== References

I completely rewrote the information section here, using a wonderful
guide produced in New Zealand by their Occupational Safety & Health
Service, a service of their Department of Labour.  Special thanks
to the authors: Wigley, Turner, Blake, Darby, McInnes, and Harding.

Semi-bibliographic reference:
    . Occupational Overuse Syndrome
    . Treatment and Rehabilitation:
      A Practitioner's Guide
    
    Published by the Occupational Safety and Health Service
    Department of Labour
    Wellington,
    New Zealand.

    First Edition: June 1992
    ISBN 0-477-3499-3

    Price: $9.95 (New Zealand $'s, of course)

Thanks to Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk> for reviewing this posting.

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58719
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

In article <1993Apr11.015518.21198@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu 
    (Michael Holloway) writes:
>In article <C552Jv.GGB@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu 
    (Lee Lady) writes:
>>I would also like to point out that most of the arguments about science
>>in sci.med, sci.psychology, etc. are not about cases where people are
>>rejecting scientific argument/evidence/proof.  They are about cases where
>>no adequate scientific research has been done.   (In some cases, there is
>>quite a bit of evidence, but it isn't in a format to fit doctrinaire
>>conceptions of what science is.)  
>
>Here it is again.  This indicates confusion between "proof" and the process
>of doing science.  

You are making precisely one of the points I wanted to make.
I fully agree with you that there is a big distinction between the
*process* of science and the end result.  

As an end result of science, one wants to get results that are
objectively verifiable.  But there is nothing objective about the
*process* of science.  

If good empirical research were done and showed that there is some merit
to homeopathic remedies, this would certainly be valuable information.
But it would still not mean that homeopathy qualifies as a science.  This
is where you and I disagree with Turpin.  In order to have science, one
must have a theoretical structure that makes sense, not a mere
collection of empirically validated random hypotheses.

Experiment and empirical studies are an important part of science, but
they are merely the culmination of scientific research.  The most
important part of true scientific methodology is SCIENTIFIC THINKING.  
Without this, one does not have any hypotheses worth testing.  (No,
hypotheses do not just leap out at you after you look at enough data.
Nor do they simply come to you in a flash one day while you're shaving or
looking out the window.  At least not unless you've done a lot of really
good thinking beforehand.)  

The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  

It really bothers me that so many graduate students seem to believe that
they are doing science merely because they are conducting empirical
studies.  And it bothers me even more that there are many fields, such as
certain parts of psychology, where there seems to be no thinking at all, 
but mere studies testing ad hoc hypotheses.  

And I'm especially offended by Russell Turpin's repeated assertion that
science amounts to nothing more than avoiding mistakes.  Simply avoiding
mistakes doesn't get you anywhere.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58758
From: wright@duca.hi.com (David Wright)
Subject: Re: NATURAL ANTI-cancer/AIDS Remedies

In article <19604@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
|In article <1993Apr6.165840.5703@cnsvax.uwec.edu> mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:
|>     The biggest reason why the cost of medical care is so EXTREMELY high and
|>increasing is that NATURAL methods of treatment and even diagnosis are still
|>being SYSTEMATICALLY IGNORED and SUPPRESSED by the MONEY-GRUBBING and POWER-
|>MONGERING "medical" establishment.

|That's not the half of it.  Did you realize that all medical doctors have
|now been replaced by aliens?

Yup.  By the way, what planet are you from, and once you got here, did
you encounter those prejudices against foreign medical graduates?

  -- David Wright, Hitachi Computer Products (America), Inc.  Waltham, MA
     wright@hicomb.hi.com  ::  These are my opinions, not necessarily 
     Hitachi's, though they are the opinions of all right-thinking people

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58759
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qi2h1INNr3o@roundup.crhc.uiuc.edu>, mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison) writes:
|> 
|> Two different Tuesdays (two weeks apart we used the same day of the
|> week just for consistancies sake) we ordered food from the local 
|> Chinese take out - same exact food except ONE of the days we had them
|> hold the MSG.  I did not know which time the food was ordered without
|> the MSG but one time I had the reaction and one time I did not.  
|> 
|> NOW - you can TRY to tell me that it wasn't "scientific" enough and
|> that I have not PROVEN beyond the shadow of a doubt that I have a
|> reaction to MSG - but it was proof enough for ME and I'll have you
|> know that I do NOT wish to get sick from eating food thank you very
|> much.  
|> 
If you could not tell which one had MSG, why restaurants bother to
use it at all? 

If you can taste the difference, psychological reaction might play a role.

The fact is, MSG is part of natural substance. Everyone, I mean EVERYONE,
consumes certain amount of MSG every day through regular diet without
the synthesized MSG additive.

Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.

Baring MSG is just like baring sugar which many people react to.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58760
From: cdm@pmafire.inel.gov (Dale Cook)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <19607@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>A recent movie, Lorenzo's Oil, offers a perfect example of what
>>I'm talking about.  If you haven't seen it, you should.  It's not
>
>I saw it.  It is almost a unique case in history.  First, ALD
>is a rare but fatal disease. [...] 
>Their accomplishment was significant.  (Of course, it was overplayed
>in the movie for dramatic effect.  The oil is not curative, and doesn't even
>prevent progression, only slows it.) 

There's a pretty good article in the the March 6, 1993 New Scientist titled
"Pouring cold water on Lorenzo's oil".  The article states that research
has shown that the oil has no discernable effect on the progression of the
disease in patients in which demyelination has begun.  In patients with
AMN (a less acute form of the same disease) there is some improvement
seen in the ability of nerve fibres to conduct impulses.  In ALD patients
who have not yet begun demyelination, the jury is still out.

---Dale Cook

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58761
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: podiatry School info?

Hello,

I am planning on attending Podiatry School next year.

I have narrowed my choices to the Pennsylvania College of Podiatric
Medicine, in Philadelphia, or the California College of Podiatric
Medicine in San Francisco.  

If anyone has any information or oppinions about these two schools, please
tell me.  I am having a hard time deciding which one to attend, and must
make a decision very soon.  

thank you, Larry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58762
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: food-related seizures?

I am posting to this group in hopes of finding someone out there in
network newsland who has heard of something similar to what I am going
to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
Flakes.  She is perfectly healthy, had never experienced anything like
this before, and there is no history of seizures in either side of the
family.  All the tests (EEG, MRI, EKG) came out negative so the decision
was made to do nothing and just wait to see if it happened again.

Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am
embarrassed to admit that I even bought that junk but every once
in a while...) So I pour it in her bowl and think "Oh, oh, this is the
same kind of junk she was eating when she had that seizure."  Ten 
minutes later she had a full blown seizures. This was her first exposure
to a sugar coated cereal since the last seizure.

When I mentioned what she ate the first time as a possible reason for
the seizure the neurologist basically negated that as an idea.  Now
after this second episode, so similar in nature to the first, even
he is scratching his head.  Once again her EEG looks normal which I
understand can happen even when a person has a seizure.

Once again we are waiting. I have been thinking that it would be good
to get to as large a group as possible to see if anyone has any
experience with this kind of thing.  I know that members of the medical
community are sometimes loathe to admit the importance that diet and
foods play in our general health and well-being.  Anyway, as you can
guess, I am worried sick about this, and would appreciate any ideas
anyone out there has.  Sorry to be so wordy but I wanted to really get
across what is going on here.

Thanks.







--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58763
From: rogers@calamari.hi.com (Andrew Rogers)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.153729.13738@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:
>Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
>MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
>they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
>extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.

And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

Andrew

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58764
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
>
>What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
>from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
>specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
>phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
>hypothesizing. 

And has been rather thoroughly demolished as myth by Robert Scott Root-
Bernstein.  See his book, "Discovering".  Ring structures for benzene
had been proposed before Kekule', after him, and at the same time as him.
The current models do not resemble Kekule's.  Many of the predecessors
of Kekule's structure resemble the modern model more.

I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.  Extra-rational
is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.

For example, Pasteur discovered that racemic acid was a mixture of
enantiomers (the origin of stereochemistry) partly because he liked a
friend's crank theory of chemical action.  The friend was wrong, but
Pasteur's discovery stood.  A prior investigator (Mitscherlich), looking
at the same phenomenon, had missed a crucial detail; presumably because he
lacked Pasteur's motivation to find something that distinguished racemic
acid from tartaric (now we say: d-tartaric) acid.

Again, Pasteur discovered the differential fermentation of enantiomers
(tartaric acid again) not because of some rational conviction, but because
he was trying to produce yeast that lived on l-tartaric acid.  His notebooks
contained fantasies of becoming the "Newton of mirror-image life," which
he never admitted publically.

Perhaps the best example is the discovery that DNA carries genes.  Avery
started this work because of one of his students, and ardent Anglophile
and Francophobe Canadian, defended Fred Griffiths' discoveries in mice.
Most of Griffiths' critics were French, which decided the issue for the
student.  Avery told him to replicate Griffiths' work in vitro, which the
student eventually did, whereupon Avery was convinced and started the
research program which, in 15 or so years, produced the famous discovery
(Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty, JEM 1944).
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58765
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Apr7.221357.12533@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu> brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner) writes:
>> see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
>> those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
>> There is a lot of money involved.
>
>	You keep bringing this up. But I don't understand what's in it
>financially for the physician to go ahead and treat. Unless the physician
>has an investment in (or is involved in some kickback scheme with) the
>home infusion company, where is the financial gain for the doctor?

Well, let me put it this way, based on my own experience.  A
general practitioner with no training in infectious diseases,
by establishing links to the "Lyme community", treating patients
who come to him wondering about lyme or having decided they
have lyme as if they did, saying that diseases such as MS
are probably spirochetal, if not Lyme, giving talks at meetings
of users groups, validating the feelings of even delusional
patients, etc.  This GP can go from being a run-of-the-mill
$100K/yr GP to someone with lots of patients in the hospital
and getting expensive infusions that need monitoring in his
office, and making lots of bread.  Also getting the adulation
of many who believe his is their only hope (if not of cure,
then of control) and seeing his name in publications put out
by support groups, etc.  This is a definite temptation.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58766
From: ndallen@r-node.hub.org (Nigel Allen)
Subject: Water supplies vulnerable to Milwaukee-type disease outbreak

Here is a press release from the Natural Resources Defense Council.

 New Data Show About 100 Major U.S. Water Supplies Vulnerable To
Milwaukee-Type Disease Outbreak
 To: National Desk, Environment Writer
 Contact: Erik Olson or Sarah Silver, 202-783-7800, both
          of the Natural Resources Defense Council

   WASHINGTON, April 14  -- Internal EPA data released
today by the Natural Resources Defense Council reveals that about
100 large water systems -- serving cities from Boston to San
Francisco -- do not filter to remove disease-carrying organisms
leaving those communities potentially vulnerable to a disease
outbreak similar to the one affecting Milwaukee.
   The EPA list is attached.
   "These internal EPA documents reveal that the safety of water
supplies in many American cities is threatened by inadequate
pollution controls or filtration," said Erik Olson, a senior
attorney with NRDC.  "Water contamination isn't just a problem in
Bangladesh, it's also a problem in Bozeman and Boston."
   "As of June 29, 1993, about 100 large surface water systems on
EPA's list probably will be breaking the law.  The 1986 Safe
Drinking Water Act requires all surface water systems to either
filter their water or fully protect the rivers or lakes they use
from pollution," Olson continued.  Some systems are moving
towards eventually implementing filtration systems but are
expected to miss the law's deadline.
   Olson pointed out that the threat of contamination is already
a reality in other cities.  A 1991 survey of 66 U.S. surface
water systems by water utility scientists found that 87 percent
of raw water samples contained the Milwaukee organism
cryptosporidium, and 81 percent contained a similar parasite
called giardia.
   Adding to the level of concern, a General Accounting Office
study released today by House Health and Environment Subcommittee
Chairman Henry Waxman indicates serious deficiencies in the
nation's system for conducting and following through on sanitary
surveys of water systems.
   "This new information raises a huge warning sign that millions
of Americans can no longer simply turn on their taps and be
assured that their water is safe to drink.  We must immediately
put into place programs to protect water sources from
contamination and where this is not assured, filtration equipment
must be installed to protect the public," Olson noted.  "The time
has come for many of the nation's water utilities to stop
dragging their feet and to aggressively protect their water from
contamination; consumers are prepared to pay the modest costs
needed to assure their water is safe to drink."
   NRDC is a national non-profit environmental advocacy organization.

   Systems EPA Indicates Require Filtration and Do Not Adequately
Protect Watersheds

 CONNECTICUT

 Bridgeport            Bridgeport Hydraulic Co.

 MASSACHUSETTS
 Boston                H2O Resource Author (MWRA)
 Medford               MWRA-Medford Water Dept
 Melrose               MWRA-Melrose Water Dept
 Hilton                MWRA-Hilton Water Dept
 Needham               MWRA-Needham Water Division
 Newtoncenter          MWRA-Newton Water Dept.
 Marblehead            MWRA-Marblehead Water Dept
 Quincy                MWRA-Quincy Water Dept
 Norwood               MWRA-Norwood Water Dept
 Framingham            MWRA-Framingham Water Div
 Cambridge             MWRA-Cambridge Water Dept
 Canton                MWRA-Canton Water Div-DPW
 Chelsea               MWRA-Chelsea Water Dept
 Everett               MWRA-Everett Water Dept
 Lexington             MWRA-201 Bedford (PUO WRKS)
 Lynn                  MWRA-Lynn Water & Sewer Co
 Malden                MWRA-Malden Water Division
 Revere                MWRA-Revere Water Dept
 Woburn                MWRA-Woburn Water Dept
 Swampscott            MWRA-Swampscott Water Dept
 Saugus                MWRA-Saugus Water Dept
 Somerville            MWRA-Somerville Water Dept
 Stoneman              MWRA-Stoneman Water Dept
 Brookline             MWRA-Brookline Water Dept
 Wakefield             MWRA-Same as Above
 Waltham               MWRA-Waltham Water Division
 Watertown             MWRA-Watertown Water Division
 Weston                MWRA-Weston Water Dept
 Dedham                MWRA-Dedham-Westwood District
 Winchester            MWRA-Winchester Water & Sewer
 Winthrop              MWRA-Winthrop Water Dept
 Boston                MWRA-Boston Water & Sewer Co
 S. Hadley             MWRA-South Hadley Fire Dist
 Arlington             MWRA-Arlington Water Dept
 Belmont               MWRA-Belmont Water Dept
 Clinton               MWRA-Clinton Water Dept
 Attleboro             Attleboro Water Dept
 Fitchburg             Fitchburg Water Dept
 Northampton           Northampton Water Dept
 North Adams           North Adams Water Dept
 Amherst               Amherst Water Division DPW
 Gardner               Gardner Water Dept
 Worcester             Worcester DPW, Water Oper
 Westboro              Westboro Water Dept
 Southbridge           Southbridge Water Supply Co
 Newburyport           Newburyport Water Dept
 Hingham               Hingham Water Co
 Brockton              Brockton Water Dept

 MAINE
 Rockland              Camden & Rockland Water Co
 Bath                  Bath Water District

 NEW HAMPSHIRE
 Keene                 City of Keene
 Salem                 Salem Water Dept

 VERMONT
 Barre City            Barre City Water System
 Rutland City          Rutland City Water Dept

 NEW YORK
 Glens Falls           Glens Falls City
 Yorktown Hts          Yorktown Water Storage & Dist
 Rochester             Rochester City
 Henrietta             Henrietta WD
 Rochester             MCWA Upland System
 Rochester             Greece Consolidated
 New York              NYC-Aquaduct Sys (Croton)
 Chappaqua             New Castle/Stanwood WD
 Beacon                Beacon City
 Mamaronek             Westchester Joint Water Works

 PENNSYLVANIA
 Bethlehem             Bethlehem Public Water Sys
 Johnstown             Greater Johnstown Water Auth
 Lock Haven            City of Lock Haven-Water Dept
 Shamokin              Roaring Creek Water Comp
 Harrisburg            Harrisburg City
 Hazleton              Hazleton City Water Dept
 Wind Gap              Blue Mt Consolidated
 Apollo                Westmoreland Auth
 Fayettville           Guilford Water Auth
 Humlock Creek         PG&W-Ceasetown Reservoir
 Springbrook           PG&W-Waters Reservoir
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Gardners Creek
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Hill Creek
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Plymouth Relief
 Altoona               Altoona City Auth
 Tamaqua               Tamaqua Municipal water
 Waynesboro            Waynesboro Borough Auth
 Pottsville            Schuykill Co Mun Auth

 VIRGINIA
 Covington             City of Covington
 Fishersville          South River Sa Dist-ACSA

 SOUTH CAROLINA
 Greenville            Greenville Water Sys

 MICHIGAN
 Sault Ste Marie       Sault Ste Marie
 Marquette             Marquette

 MONTANA
 Butte                 Butte Water Co
 Bozeman               Bozeman City

 CALIFORNIA
 San Francisco         City & County of San Fran

 NEVADA
 Reno                  Westpac

 IDAHO
 Twin Falls            Twin Falls City

 WASHINGTON
 Aberdeen              Aberdeen Water Dept
 Centralia             Centralia Water Dept

 -30-
-- 
Nigel Allen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada    ndallen@r-node.hub.org

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58767
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*-----
In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
> What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
> from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
> specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
> phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
> hypothesizing. 

I think the question is: What is extra-scientific about this?  

It has been a long time since anyone has proposed restrictions on
where one comes up with ideas in order for them to be considered
legitimate hypotheses.  The point, in short, is this: hypotheses and
speculation in science may come from wild flights of fancy, 
daydreams, ancient traditions, modern quackery, or anywhere else.

Russell


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58768
From: janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys)
Subject: Exercise and Migraine

We were talking about Migraine and Exercise (I'm the one who can't
fathom the thought of exercise during migraine...).  Anyway, turning
the thread around, the other day I played tennis during my lunch
hour.  I'm out of tennis shape so it was very intense exercise.  I
got overheated, and dehydrated.  Afterwards, I noticed a tingling
sensation all over my head then about 2 hours later, I could feel
a migraine start.  (I continued to drink water in the afternoon.)
I took cafergot, but it didn't help and the pain started although
it wasn't as intense as it usually is and about 9pm that night, the
pain subsided.

This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

Thanks,
-- 
**********************************************************************
Janet Jakstys         UUCP:{ames,mcdcup}!ntmtv!janet
Northern Telecom      INTERNET:janet@ntmtv.com
Mtn. View, CA.
**********************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58769
From: wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman)
Subject: erythromycin

Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?

-fm


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58770
From: colby@oahu.cs.ucla.edu (Kenneth Colby)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

     If the nose culture shows Staph, then Ceftin or even Ceclor
     are better. Suprax does not kill Staph. Treating bacterial
     infections involves a lot of try-and-fail because the
     infections often involve multiple organisms with many resistant
     strains. Some 60% of Hemophilus Influenza strains are now
     resistant. What works for me and my organisms may not work
     for you and yours. Keep experimenting.
	       Ken Colby


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58771
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

| article <1qjc0fINN841@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
|| Now, if instead of using the MSG as a food additive, you put the MSG 
|| in gelatin capsules or whatever, there may not
|| be a reaction, becasue the _sensory_response_ might be
|| a necessary element in the creation of the MSG reaction.  (I'll bet 
|| the bogus medical researchers never even thought about 
|| that obvious fact.)

| Gee.  He means "placebo effect."  Sorry, but the researchers DO know about
| this.

Carl, it is not "placebo effect" if as hypothesised the 
sensory response to MSG's effect on flavor is responsible
for the MSG reaction.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58772
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!


Gordon Banks:

>a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.  I think all
>of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the fluctuations
>in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.  Unfortunately,
>I'm not one of them.
>
>
This certainly describes my situation perfectly. For me there is
a constant dynamic between my tendency to eat, which appears to
be totally limitless, and the purely conscious desire to not
put on too much weight. When I get too fat, I just diet/exercise
more (with varying degrees of success) to take off the
extra weight. Usually I cycle within a 15 lb range, but
smaller and larger cycles occur as well. I'm always afraid
that this method will stop working someday, but usually
I seem to be able to hold the weight gain in check.
This is one reason I have a hard time accepting the notion
of some metabolic derangement associated with cycle dieting
(that results in long-term weight gain). I have been cycle-
dieting for at least 20 years without seeing such a change.

I think a vigorous exercise program can go a long way toward
keeping the cycles smaller and the baseline weight low.

Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58773
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58774
From: dmp1@ukc.ac.uk (D.M.Procida)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <19609@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:

>Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
>in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
>In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
>What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.

I am told (by the person who I care a lot about and who I am worried
is going to start putting his health and money into homeopathy without
really knowing what he is getting into and who is the reason I posted
in the first place about homeopathy) that in Britain homeopathy is
available on the National Health Service and that there are about 6000
GPs who use homeopathic practices. True? False? What?

Have there been any important and documented investigations into
homeopathic principles?

I was reading a book on homeopathy over the weekend. I turned to the
section on the principles behind homeopathic medicine, and two
paragraphs informed me that homeopaths don't feel obliged to provide
any sort of explanation. The author stated this with pride, as though
it were some sort of virtue! Why am I sceptical about homeopathy? Is
it because I am a narrow-minded bigot, or is it because homeopathy
really looks more like witch-doctory than anything else?

Daniele.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58775
From: tomca@microsoft.com (Tom B. Carey)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>ted@marvin.dgbt.doc.ca (Ted Grusec) writes:
>|> Gary: By "extra-scientific" I did not mean to imply that hypothesis
>|> generation was not, in most cases extremely closely tied to the
>|> state of knowledge within a scientific area.  I meant was that there
>|> was no "scientific logic" involved in the process.  It is inductive,
>|> not deductive.  
>
>I am further puzzled by the proposed distinction between "scientific
>logic" and "inductive logic".  At this point I don't have a clue
>what you mean by "extra-scientific" -- unless you mean that at *some*
>times someone seems to come up with an idea that we can't trace to
>prior theories, concepts, knowledge, etc.  This is a fairly common
>observation, but just for grins I'd like to see some genuine examples.

OK, just for grins:
- Kekule hypothesized a resonant structure for the aromatic benzene
ring after waking from a dream in which a snake was swallowing his tail.
- Archimedes formalized the principle of buoyancy while meditating in
his bath.

In neither case was there "no connection to prior theories, concepts, etc."
as you stipulated above. What there was was an intuitive leap beyond
the current way of thinking, to develop ideas which subsequently proved
to have predictive power (e.g., they stood the test of experimental
verification).

pardon my kibbutzing...

Tom

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58776
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1qk4qqINNgvs@im4u.cs.utexas.edu>, turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
|> -*-----
|> In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
|> > What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
|> > from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
|> > specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
|> > phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
|> > hypothesizing. 
|> 
|> I think the question is: What is extra-scientific about this?  
|> 
|> It has been a long time since anyone has proposed restrictions on
|> where one comes up with ideas in order for them to be considered
|> legitimate hypotheses.  The point, in short, is this: hypotheses and
|> speculation in science may come from wild flights of fancy, 
|> daydreams, ancient traditions, modern quackery, or anywhere else.
|> 
|> Russell
|> 

Yes, but typically they *don't*.  Not every wild flight of fancy serves
(or can serve) in the appropriate relation to a hypothesis.  It is
somewhat interesting that when anyone is challanged to provide an
example of this sort the *only* one they come up with is the one about
Kekule.  Surely, there must be others.  But apparently this is regarded
as an *extreme* example of a "non-rational" process in science whereby
a successful hypothesis was proposed.  But how non-rational is it?

Of course we can't hope (currently at least) to explain how or why
Kekule had the daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails.
Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream he had.  What was special about
*this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
*analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
geometry of molecules?  Is such analogical reasoning "extra-scientific"?
Or is it rather at the very heart of science (Perice's notion of abduction,
the use of models within and across disciplines)?  Upon close examination,
is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58777
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

Thanks for all your assistance. I'll see if he can try a
different brand of patches, although he's tried two brands
already. Are there more than two?

Melissa

---
                        mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu

"After a time you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing
after all as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true."

Spock to Stonn

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58778
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

-*----
In article <C5I2Bo.CG9@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
> scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
> It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  
>
> It really bothers me that so many graduate students seem to believe that
> they are doing science merely because they are conducting empirical
> studies. ...
>
> And I'm especially offended by Russell Turpin's repeated assertion that
> science amounts to nothing more than avoiding mistakes.  Simply avoiding
> mistakes doesn't get you anywhere.  

I think that Lee Lady and I are talking at cross purposes.
Above, Lady seems concerned with the contrast between great
science that makes big advances in our knowledge and mediocre
science that makes smaller steps.  In most of this thread, I have
been concerned with the difference between what is science and
what is not. 

Lee Lady is correct when she asserts that the difference between
Einstein and the average post-doc physicist is the quality of
their thought.  But what is the difference between Einstein and a
genius who would be a great scientist but whose great thoughts
are scientifically screwy?  (Some would give Velikovsky or
Korzybski as examples.  If you don't like these, choose your
own.)  I say it is the same as the difference between the mediocre
physicist and the mediocre proponent of qi.  Both Einstein and
the mediocre physcists have disciplined their work from the
cumulative knowledge of how previous researchers went wrong.
Both Velikovsky and the mediocre proponent of qi have failed to
do this.  

Let me approach this from a second direction.  When one is asked
to review a paper for a journal or conference, there are many
kinds of criticism that one can make.  One kind of criticism is
that the work is just wrong or misinformed.  Another kind of
criticism is that the work, while technically correct, is either
not important or not interesting.  The first difference is the
one that I have been pointing to.  The second difference is the
one that Lee Lady seems to be discussing. 

> If good empirical research were done and showed that there is some merit
> to homeopathic remedies, this would certainly be valuable information.
> But it would still not mean that homeopathy qualifies as a science.  This
> is where you and I disagree with Turpin.  

I have often pointed out that for homeopathy to be considered 
scientific, what is needed is a test of its theoretical claims,
not just of some of its proposed remedies.  Similarly, I suspect
that traditional Chinese medicine has many remedies that work;
what it lacks (as one example) is any experiment that tests the
presence of qi.

> ... In order to have science, one must have a theoretical
> structure that makes sense, not a mere collection of empirically
> validated random hypotheses.

Certainly a "theoretical structure that makes sense" is the goal.
In areas where we do not yet have this, I see nothing wrong with
forming and testing smaller hypotheses.  Let's face it: we cannot
always wait for an Einstein to come along and make everything
clear for us.  Sometimes those of us who are not Einstein have to
plug along and make small amounts of progress as best we can. 

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58779
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.161112.21772@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
|> of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.  Extra-rational
|> is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
|> of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.

Yeah, but the problem with holding up the "extra-rational" examples as
exemplars, or as refutations of well founded methodology, is that you
run smack up against such unuseful directions as Lysenko.  Such "extra-
rational" cases are curiosities -- not guides to methodology.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58780
From: georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58781
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com>, david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
|> cnavarro@cymbal.calpoly.edu (CLAIRE) writes:

|> >>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
|> >>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
|> >>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
|> >>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
|> >>
|> >>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
|> >>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
|> >>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
|> >>always used it.

|> So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
|> no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
|> work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
|> using double-blind trials?  

Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
not allergic to anything that I know of.  

Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
I haven't gotten sick yet.

-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58782
From: vilok@bmerh322.bnr.ca (Vilok Kusumakar)
Subject: Future of methanol

I hope this is the correct newsgroup for this.

What is the scoop on Methanol and its future as an alternative fuel for
vehicles ?  How does it compare to ethanol ?

There was some news about health risks involved.  Anybody know about
that.  How does the US Clean Air act impact the use of Methanol by the
year 1995 ?

I think its Methyl Tertiary butyl ether which the future industries will
use as a substitute for conventional fuels.

There is company Methanex which produces 12% of the world's supply of
Methanol. Does anybody know about it ?

Please reply by e-mail as I do not read these newsgroups.

Thanks in advance.
--
Vilok Kusumakar                    OSI Protocols for tomorrow......
vilok@bnr.ca                       Bell-Northern Research, Ltd.
Phone: (613) 763-2273              P.O. Box 3511, Station C 
Fax:   (613) 765-4777              Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4H7

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58783
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.163923.25120@microsoft.com>, tomca@microsoft.com (Tom B. Carey) writes:
|> OK, just for grins:
|> - Kekule hypothesized a resonant structure for the aromatic benzene
|> ring after waking from a dream in which a snake was swallowing his tail.
|> - Archimedes formalized the principle of buoyancy while meditating in
|> his bath.

Well, certainly in Archimedes case the description "while observing the
phenomena in his bath" seems more accurate than "while meditating in
his bath" -- it was, after all, a rather buoyancy intense environment.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58784
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:

|> I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
|> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
|> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
|> not allergic to anything that I know of.  

The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while. Some reacted with
headache, some stomach ache. Some had watery eyes or running nose, some
had itchy skin or rashes. More serious accusations include respiration 
difficulty and brain damage. 

Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

Jason Chen



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58785
From: mossman@cea.Berkeley.EDU (Amy Mossman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
|> 
|> Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
|> try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
|> girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
|> syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
|> dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
|> home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
|> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
|> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
|> not allergic to anything that I know of.  
|> 
|> Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
|> physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
|> a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
|> through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
|> I haven't gotten sick yet.
|> 
|> -- 

I had a similar reaction to Chinese food but came to a completly different
conclusion. I've eaten Chinese food for ages and never had problems. I went
with some Chinese Malaysian friends to a swanky Chinses rest. and they ordered
lots of stuff I had never seen before. The only thing I can remember of that
meal was the first course, scallops served in the shell with a soy-type sauce.
I thought, "Well, I've only had scallops once and I was sick after but that
could have been a coincidence". That night as I sat on the bathroom floor,
sweating and emptying my stomach the hard way, I decided I would never touch
another scallop. I may not be allergic but I don't want to take the chance.

Amy Mossman

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58786
From: snichols@adobe.com (Sherri Nichols)
Subject: Re: Exercise and Migraine

In article <1993Apr15.163133.25634@ntmtv> janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys) writes:
>This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
>I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
>what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
>I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
>shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

I've gotten migraines after exercise, though for me it seems to be related
to exercising without having eaten recently.  

Sherri Nichols
snichols@adobe.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58787
From: hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

In article <1qk92lINNl55@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:

>In article <C5I2Bo.CG9@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
>> The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
>> scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
>> It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  

			....................

>Lee Lady is correct when she asserts that the difference between
>Einstein and the average post-doc physicist is the quality of
>their thought.  But what is the difference between Einstein and a
>genius who would be a great scientist but whose great thoughts
>are scientifically screwy?

This example is probably wrong.  There is the case of one famous
physicist telling another that he was probably wrong.  As I recall
the quote:

	Your ideas are crazy, to be sure.  But they are not crazy
	enough to be right.

The typical screwball is only somewhat screwy.
-- 
Herman Rubin, Dept. of Statistics, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette IN47907-1399
Phone: (317)494-6054
hrubin@snap.stat.purdue.edu (Internet, bitnet)  
{purdue,pur-ee}!snap.stat!hrubin(UUCP)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58788
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JE94.KrL@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr15.161112.21772@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>
>|> I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
>|> of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.
>|> Extra-rational
>|> is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
>|> of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.
>
>Yeah, but the problem with holding up the "extra-rational" examples as
>exemplars, or as refutations of well founded methodology, is that you
>run smack up against such unuseful directions as Lysenko.  Such "extra-
>rational" cases are curiosities -- not guides to methodology.

As has been noted before, there is the distinction between _motivation_
and _method_.  No experimental result should be accepted unless it is
described in sufficient detail to be replicated, and the replications
do indeed reproduce the result.  No theoretical argument should be
accepted unless it is presented in sufficient detail to be followed, and
reasonable, knowlegeable, people agree with the force of the logic.

But people try experiments, and pursue arguments, for all sorts of crazy
reasons.  Irrational motivations are not just curiousities; they are a
large part of the history of science.

There are a couple of negative points to make here:

1) A theory of qi could, conceivably, become accepted without direct
verification of the existence of qi.  For example, quarks are an accepted
part of the standard model of physics, with no direct verification.  What
would be needed would be a theory, based on qi, that predicted medical
reality better than the alternatives.  The central theoretical claim could
lie forever beyond experiment, as long as there was a sufficient body of
experimental data that the qi theory predicted better than any other.

(I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for the triumph of qi, though.
I don't think that there is even a coherent theory based on it, much less
a theory that explains anything at all better than modern biology.  And it
is hard to imagine a qi theory that would not predict some way of rather
directly verifying the existence of qi.)

2) Science has not historically progressed in any sort of rational
experiment-data-theory sequence.  Most experiments are carried out, and
interpreted, in pre-existing theoretical frameworks.  The theoretical
controversies of the day determine which experiments get done.  Overall,
there is a huge messy affair of personal jealousies, crazy motivations,
petty hatreds, and the like that determines which experiments, and which
computations, get done.  What keeps it going forward is the critical
function of science: results don't count unless they can be replicated.

The whole system is a sort of mechanism for generate-and-test.  The generate
part can be totally irrational, as long as the test part works properly.

Pasteur could believe whatever he liked about chemical activity and crystals;
but even Mitscherlich had to agree that racemic acid crystals were handed;
that when you separate them by handedness, you get two chemicals that rotate
polarized light in opposite directions; and the right-rotating version was
indistinguishable from tartaric acid.  Pasteur's irrational motivation had
led to a replicable, and important, result.

This is where Lysenko, creationists, etc. fail.  They have usually not
even produced coherent theories that predict much of anything.  When their
theories do predict, and are contradicted by experiment, they do not
concede the point and modify their theories; rather they try to suppress
the results (Lysenko) or try to divert attention to other evidence they
think supports their position (creationists).
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58789
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Steve Holland)
Subject: Re: Crohn's Disease

In article <1993Apr14.174824.12295@westminster.ac.uk>, kxaec@sun.pcl.ac.uk
(David Watters) wrote:
> 
> Dear all,
> 
> I am a Crohn's Disease sufferer and I'm interested if anyone knows of any current research that is going on into the subject. I've done some investigation myself so you don't need to spare me any details. I've had the fistulas, the ileostomy, etc..
> 
> Is a "cure" on the horizon ?
> 
> I am not in the medical profession so if you do reply I would appreciate plain speak.
> 
> I'd prefer to be mailed direct as I don't always get a chance to read the news.
> 
> Thank you in advance.
> 
> Dave.
The best group to keep you informed is the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation
of America.  I do not know if the UK has a similar organization.  The
address of
the CCFA is 

CCFA
444 Park Avenue South
11th Floor
New York, NY  10016-7374
USA

They have a lot of information available and have a number of newsletters.
 
Good Luck.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58790
From: sue@netcom.com (Sue Miller)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

In article <19617@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
>Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.
>

Sure, as long as they'll make one for me.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58791
From: lehr@austin.ibm.com (Ted Lehr)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


Gary Merrill writes:
> .. Not every wild flight of fancy serves
> (or can serve) in the appropriate relation to a hypothesis.  It is
> somewhat interesting that when anyone is challanged to provide an
> example of this sort the *only* one they come up with is the one about
> Kekule.  Surely, there must be others.  But apparently this is regarded
> as an *extreme* example of a "non-rational" process in science whereby
> a successful hypothesis was proposed.  But how non-rational is it?

Indeed, an extreme example.  It came "out of nowhere."  The connection
Kekule saw between it and his problem is fortunate but not extraordinary.
I, for example, often receive/conjure solutions (hypotheses for solutions) 
to my everyday problems at moments when I appear to myself to be occupied 
with activities quite removed.  Algorithms for that new software feature come
when I trample the meadow on my occasional runs.  Alternative (better>) ways 
to instruct and rear my sons arrive while I weed the garden.  I'll swear I am 
not thinking about any of it when ideas come.   

These ideas are not the stuff of "great" discoveries, of course, but my
connecting them to particular problems is fraught with deliberation and
occasional fits of rationality.

> Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream [Kekule] had.  What was special about
> *this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
> *analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
> geometry of molecules?  

Yes.  And he was lucky to have such a colorful, vivid image.  I, alas, will
never figure out why returning worms to the loose soil of my garden brought, 
"have him count objects instead of merely count" to mind regarding my 2 
year-old's fledging arithmetic skills.

> ... Upon close examination,
> is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
> closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?

The latter.  Worms wiggling around in the dirt fascinate my son.

Regards,

Ted 
-- 
Ted Lehr                             | "...my thoughts, opinions and questions..."
Future Systems Technology Group, AWS |   
IBM 				     | Internet: lehr@futserv.austin.ibm.com
Austin, TX  78758		     |   

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58792
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


Avoiding mistakes is certainly highly desirable.  However it is also 
widely acknowledged that perfectionism is inimicable to creativity. 
And in ordinary life, perfectionism carried beyond a certain point is 
indicative of a psychological disorder.  In the extreme case, a  
perfectionist becomes so paralyzed by all the possible mistakes he might 
make that he is unable to even leave the house.  

In science, we want to discover as much truth about the world as possible 
and we also want to have as much certainty as possible about these 
discoveries.  Usually there is some trade-off between these two desiderata 
--- the search for scope and the search for certainty.  

If 18th century mathematicians had demanded total rigor from Newton and 
Leibniz then there would probably be no calculus today, because neither 
of the two could explain calculus in a way that really made sense, since 
they lacked the concept of a limit.  And in fact, because of the lack of 
a rigorous foundation, they made a number of errors in their use of calculus. 
It was only a hundred years later that Weistrass was able to give a solid 
grounding for the ideas of Newton and Leibniz.  Nonetheless, what Newton 
and Leibniz did was undoubtedly science and mathematics gained a great 
deal more from the application of their important ideas than it lost 
through the mistakes they made.  

In article <1993Apr14.171230.16138@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com 
    (Dick King) writes:
>  [ Somebody writes: ]
>>I doubt if Einstein used any formal methodology.  ....
>  ....
>He also proposed numerous experiments which if performed would distinguish a
>universe in which special relativity holds from one in which it does not.
>         ....
>Einstein played by the rules, which demand that hypotheses only be put out
>there if there exists a specific experiment that could disprove them.

These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."

Taken to the extreme, I believe that the attitude that empirical studies 
are everything and ideas are nothing results in a complete stultification 
of science.  

For one thing, an insistence on an elaborate and expensive methodology 
results in a sort of scientific trade-unionism, where those outside 
the establishment and lacking institutional or corporate support have 
no chance to obtain a hearing.  (I don't in the least believe that this 
is the intention of the arbiters of scientific methodology.  Nonetheless, 
it is one of the results.)   And although institutional science has 
certainly produced many wonderful results, I think it is a foolish 
arrogance for scientists to believe that no one outside the establishment 
--- and using less than perfect empirical methodology --- will ever come 
with anything worthwhile.  

Furthermore, the big bucks approach to science promotes what I think is
one of the most significant errors in science:  choosing to investigate
questions because they can be readily handled by the currently
fashionable methodology (or because one can readily get institutional
or corporate sponsorship for them) instead of directing attention to
those questions which seem to have fundamental significance.

For instance, certain questions cannot be easily investigated with
statistical methods because the relevant factors are not quantitative.
(One could argue that this is the case for almost all questions in many
areas of psychology.  In my opinion, a perusal of many of the papers
resulting from the attempt by psychologists to force these questions
into a statistical framework gives the lie to Russell Turpin's
assertion that current scientific methods "avoid all known errors.")

I think that asking the wrong question is probably the most fundamental 
error in science.  (Ignoring potentially valuable ideas is one of the 
others.)  And I think that scientific journals are full of all 
too many studies done with impeccable empirical methods but which are 
worthless because the wrong question was asked in the first place.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58793
From: johnf@HQ.Ileaf.COM (John Finlayson)
Subject: Re: Exercise and Migraine

In article <1993Apr15.163133.25634@ntmtv> janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys) writes:
>               ... the other day I played tennis during my lunch
>hour.  I'm out of tennis shape so it was very intense exercise.  I
>got overheated, and dehydrated.  Afterwards, I noticed a tingling
>sensation all over my head then about 2 hours later, I could feel
>a migraine start.  (I continued to drink water in the afternoon.)
>I took cafergot, but it didn't help and the pain started although
>it wasn't as intense as it usually is and about 9pm that night, the
>pain subsided.
>
>This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
>I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
>what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
>I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
>shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

Hi Janet,

Sounds exactly like mine.  Same circumstance, same onset symptoms, 
same cafergot uselessness, same duration.  In fact, of all the people
I know who have migraines, none have been so similar.  There is such
a wide variation between people with respect to what causes their
headaches, that I generally don't bother sharing what I've learned
about mine, but since ours seem to be alike, here are my observations.

I don't think it's heat, per se (I've had more in winter than summer).
Dehydration could conceivably figure, though.  Try tanking up before
playing rather than after.

Being in shape doesn't seem to help me much, either.

I've identified four factors that do make a difference (listed in 
descending order of importance):

1) Heavy exercise
2) Sleep deprivation
3) Fasting		(e.g., skipped breakfast)
4) Physical trauma	(e.g., head bonk)

Heavy exercise has preceded all of my post-adolescent migraines, but I 
don't get migraines after every heavy exercise session.  One or more of 
the other factors *must* be present (usually #2).  Since I discovered 
this, I've been nearly migraine-free -- relapsing only once every two 
or three years when I get cocky ("It's been so long, maybe I just don't 
get them anymore") and stop being careful.

Hope this is helpful.

John.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58794
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: erythromycin

In article <47974@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
:Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?
:
:-fm


Not only is it effective, it is in fact the drug of choice for
uncomplicated cases of community-acquired penumonia.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58795
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

In article <1993Apr15.180621.29465@radford.vak12ed.edu> mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:
:Thanks for all your assistance. I'll see if he can try a
:different brand of patches, although he's tried two brands
:already. Are there more than two?

The brands I can come up with off the top of my head are Nicotrol,
Nicoderm and Habitrol.  There may be a fourth as well.


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58796
From: dmp@fig.citib.com (Donna M. Paino)
Subject: Psoriatic Arthritis - Info Needed Please!



A friend of mine has been diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis, as a result of
trauma sustained in a car accident several years ago.  The psoriasis is under
control but the arthritis part of the illness is not.

Ansaid (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) worked pretty well for three years but
isn't helping much now.  My friend is now taking Meclomen (another NSAID) but
this isn't helping control the pain at all.  In the past two months my friend
has also started taking Azulfadine along with the NSAID medicines, but the
effects of the combined drugs aren't supposed to be realized for several months.

As a result of the pain, my friend is having problems sleeping.  Staying in
one position too long is an ordeal.  Another major contributor to pain is that
tendonitis has now developed (left thumb and hand with numbness at the base of
the palm; bottom of feet; shoulders and outer thighs).  The tendonitis is
quite painful yet my friend's doctor has not recommended any form of treatment
to relieve it.

The latest twist is that the doctor has dropped the anti-inflammatories and is
now recommending Prednisone.  The hope is that the Prednisone will relieve some
of the pain from the tendonitis.

My friend is a 41 year old male who feels like he's 80 (his words, not mine).


If anyone is aware of any new treatments for Psoriatic Arthritis, alternative
courses of action, support groups or literature on it, I would be extremely
grateful if you could e-mail to me.  If anyone is interested, I'll post a
summary to this newsgroup.

thanks in advance,
Donna
dmp@fig.citib.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58797
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: erythromycin

In article <47974@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
>Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?

It depends on the cause of the pneumonia.  For treating bacterial
pneumonia in young otherwise-healthy non-smokers, erythromycin
is usually considered the antibiotic of choice, since it covers
the two most-common pathogens: strep pneumoniae and mycoplasma
pneumoniae.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58798
From: slyx0@cc.usu.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.190711.22190@walter.bellcore.com>, jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen) writes:
> In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
> 
> |> I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
> |> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
> |> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
> |> not allergic to anything that I know of.  
> 
> The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
> greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
> claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while. Some reacted with
> headache, some stomach ache. Some had watery eyes or running nose, some
> had itchy skin or rashes. More serious accusations include respiration 
> difficulty and brain damage. 
> 
> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
however, because that's not written in their little rule book.

I would not be surprised in the least to find out the SOME people have bad
reactions to MSG, including headaches, stomachaches and even vomiting. Not that
the stuff is BAD or POISON and needs to be banned, but people need to be aware
that it can have a bad effect on SOME people.

Lone Wolf

                                      Happy are they who dream dreams,
Ed Philips                            And pay the price to see them come true.
slyx0@cc.usu.edu                                              
                                                              -unknown
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58799
From: milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <C5H74z.9v4@crdnns.crd.ge.com> meltsner@crd.ge.com writes:
>
>
>I wouldn't call it a double-blind, but one local restaurant's soup
>provokes an impressive migraine headache for my wife -- that one
>take-out and no other... 

Nothing unisual.
Quote:
"
Chinese Restaurant Syndrome (CRS):
a transient syndrome, associated with arterial dilatation, due to ingestion
of monosodium glutamate, which is used liberally in seasoning chinese
food; it is characterized by throbbing of the head, lightheadedness,
tightness of the jaw, neck and shoulders, and bachache.
"
End quote.
Source: Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 27th edition, 1988, W.B. Saunders, p 1632.

This was known long ago.  Brain produces and uses some MSG naturally,
but not in doses it is served at some chinese places. 
Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
I order food without MSG.  Goos places will do it for you.
A prerequisite for such a service would be a waiter, capable of
understanding, what you want.


Good Luck.


am
-- 
Alexander M. Milshteyn M.D.   <milsh@cipr-server.mgh.harvard.edu>
CIPR, MGH in Boston, MA.     (617)724-9507 Vox  (617)726-7830 Fax

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58800
From: neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org (Neal Howard)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
>
>What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
>from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
>specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
>phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
>hypothesizing. 

I sometimes wonder if Kekule's dream wasn't just a wee bit influenced by
aromatic solvent vapors ;-) heh heh.


-- 
=============================================================================
Neal Howard   '91 XLH-1200      DoD #686      CompuTrac, Inc (Richardson, TX)
	      doh #0000001200   |355o33|      neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org
	      Std disclaimer: My opinions are mine, not CompuTrac's.
         "Let us learn to dream, gentlemen, and then perhaps
          we shall learn the truth." -- August Kekule' (1890)
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58801
From: dwebb@unl.edu (dale webb)
Subject: Re: THE BACK MACHINE - Update

   I have a BACK MACHINE and have had one since January.  While I have not 
found it to be a panacea for my back pain, I think it has helped somewhat. 
It MAINLY acts to stretch muscles in the back and prevent spasms associated
with pain.  I am taking less pain medication than I was previously.  
   The folks at BACK TECHNOLOGIES are VERY reluctant to honor their return 
policy.  They extended my "warranty" period rather than allow me to return 
the machine when, after the first month or so, I was not thrilled with it. 
They encouraged me to continue to use it, abeit less vigourously. 
   Like I said, I can't say it is a cure-all, but it keeps me stretched out
and I am in less pain.
--
***********************************************************************
Dale M. Webb, DVM, PhD           *  97% of the body is water.  The
Veterinary Diagnostic Center     *  other 3% keeps you from drowning.
University of Nebraska, Lincoln  *

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58802
From: rjf@lzsc.lincroftnj.ncr.com (51351[efw]-Robert Feddeler(MT4799)T343)
Subject: Re: centrifuge

Mr. Blue (car@access.digex.com) wrote:
: Could somebody explain to me what a centrifuge is and what it is
: used for? I vaguely remembre it being something that spins test tubes
: around really fast but I cant remember why youd want to do that?


Purely recreational.  They get bored sitting in that
rack all the time.



--
bob.					   | I only smile when I lie,
You can learn more in a bar		   | And I'll tell you why...
	than you can in a lawyer's office. |
Were these more than just my opinions, they would have cost a bit more.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58803
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1qk6v3INNrm6@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>
>Gordon Banks:
>
>>a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.  I think all
>>of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the fluctuations
>>in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.  Unfortunately,
>>I'm not one of them.
>>
>>
>This certainly describes my situation perfectly. For me there is
>a constant dynamic between my tendency to eat, which appears to
>be totally limitless, and the purely conscious desire to not
>put on too much weight. When I get too fat, I just diet/exercise
>more (with varying degrees of success) to take off the
>extra weight. Usually I cycle within a 15 lb range, but
>smaller and larger cycles occur as well. I'm always afraid
>that this method will stop working someday, but usually
>I seem to be able to hold the weight gain in check.
>This is one reason I have a hard time accepting the notion
>of some metabolic derangement associated with cycle dieting
>(that results in long-term weight gain). I have been cycle-
>dieting for at least 20 years without seeing such a change.

As mentioned in Adiposity 101, only some experience weight
rebound.  The fact that you don't doesn't prove it doesn't
happen to others.
-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58804
From: smithmc@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Lost Boy)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

In article <noringC5Fnx2.2v2@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom) writes:
>
>>Here's a potentially stupid question to possibly the wrong news group, but. .
>>
>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?
>>Similar as women's?  I have a yeast infection and my husband (who is a
>>natural paranoid on a good day) is sure he's gonna catch it and keeps
>>asking me what it's like.  I'm not sure what his symptoms would be. . 
>
>The answer is yes and no.  I'm sure others on sci.med can expand on this.
>
>Jon

I know from personal experience that men CAN get yeast infections. I 
get rather nasty ones from time to time, mostly in the area of the
scrotum and the base of the penis. They're nowhere near as dangerous
for me as for many women, but goddamn does it hurt in the summertime!
Even in the wintertime, when I sweat I get really uncomfy down there. The
best thing I can do to keep it under control is keep my weight down and
keep cool down there. Shorts in 60 degree weather, that kind of thing. And
of course some occasional sun. 

Lost Boy


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58805
From: black@sybase.com (Chris Black)
Subject: cystic breast disease

My mom has just been diagnosed with cystic breast disease -- a big
relief, as it was a lump that could have been cancer.  Her doctor says
she should go off caffeine and chocolate for 6 months, as well as
stopping the estrogen she's been taking for menopause-related reasons.
She's not thrilled with this, I think especially because she just gave
up cigarettes -- soon she won't have any pleasures left!  Now, I thought
I'd heard that cystic breasts were common and not really a health risk.
Is this accurate?  If so, why is she being told to make various
sacrifices to treat something that's not that big of a deal?

Thanks for any information.

-- Chris

-- 
black@sybase.com

Note:  My mailer tends to garble subject lines.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58806
From: naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter)
Subject: Endometriosis


can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
of a specialist/surgeon in  the north carolina research triangle  park
area (raleigh/durham/chapel  hill) who is familiar with the condition,
i would really appreciate it.

thanks. 

--Naomi
-- 
Naomi L.T. Courter
Network Services Specialist
MCNC - Center for Communications
CONCERT Network 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58807
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Migraines and scans

[reply to geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)]
 
>>If you can get away without ever ordering imaging for a patient with
>>an obviously benign headache syndrome, I'd like to hear what your magic
>>is.
 
>I certainly can't always avoid it (unless I want to be rude, I suppose).
 
I made a decision a while back that I will not be bullied into getting
studies like a CT or MRI when I don't think they are indicated.  If the
patient won't accept my explanation of why I think the study would be a
waste of time and money, I suggest a second opinion.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58808
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: klonopin and pregnancy

A(> From: adwright@iastate.edu ()
A(> A woman I know is tapering off klonopin. I believe that is one of the
A(> benzodiazopines. She is taking a very minimal dose right now, half a tablet
A(> a day. She is also pregnant. My question is Are there any known cases where
A(> klonopin or similar drug has caused harmful effects to the fetus?
A(>  How about cases where the mother took klonopin or similar substance and had
A(> normal baby. Any information is appreciated. She wants to get a feel for
A(> what sort of risk she is taking. She is in her first month of pregnancy.

Klonopin, according to the PDR (Physician's Desk Reference), is not a
proven teratogen.  There are isolated case reports of malformations,
but it is impossible to establish cause-effect relationships.  The
overwhelming majority of women that take Klonopin while pregnant have
normal babies.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                               

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58809
From: C599143@mizzou1.missouri.edu (Matthew Q Keeler de la Mancha)
Subject: Infant Immune Development Question

As an animal science student, I know that a number of animals transfer
immunoglobin to thier young through thier milk.  In fact, a calf _must_
have a sufficient amount of colostrum (early milk) within 12 hours to
effectively develop the immune system, since for the first (less than)
24 hours the intestines are "open" to the IG passage.  My question is,
does this apply to human infants to any degree?
 
Thanks for your time responding,
Matthew Keeler
c599143@mizzou1.missouri.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58810
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.173902.66278@cc.usu.edu>, slyx0@cc.usu.edu writes:
=Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
=slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
=he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
=swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
=however, because that's not written in their little rule book.

Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
in other people.

Similarly, Chinese food isn't just MSG.  There are a lot of other ingredients
in it.  Why, when someone eats something with lots of ingredients they don't
normally consume, one of which happens to be MSG, do they immediately conclude
that any negative reaction is to the MSG?

=I would not be surprised in the least to find out the SOME people have bad
=reactions to MSG, including headaches, stomachaches and even vomiting.

I'd be surprised if some of these reactions weren't due to other ingredients.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58811
From: texx@ossi.com (Robert "Texx" Woodworth)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

>In article Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom) writes:

>>Here's a potentially stupid question to possibly the wrong news group, but. .
>>
>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?
>>Similar as women's?  I have a yeast infection and my husband (who is a
>>natural paranoid on a good day) is sure he's gonna catch it and keeps
>>asking me what it's like.  I'm not sure what his symptoms would be. . 

>The answer is yes and no.  I'm sure others on sci.med can expand on this.

Recently someone posted an account of this.
Unfortunately it was posted to alt.tasteless so the gross details were emphasized
instead of th e actual scientific facts.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58812
From: dfitts@carson.u.washington.edu (Douglas Fitts)
Subject: Re: RA treatment question

eulenbrg@carson.u.washington.edu (Julia Eulenberg) writes:

>I'm assuming that you mean Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).  I've never heard 
>of the "cold treatment" you mentioned.  I can't imagine how it would 
>work, since most of us who have Rh.Arthr./RA seem to have more problems
>in cold weather than in warm weather.  Would be interested to hear more!
>Z
>Z


No, obviously talking about Research Assistants.  I favor a high protein,
low fat diet, barely adequate salary on a fixed time schedule, four hours
of sleep a night, continuous infusion of latte, unpredictable praise 
mixed randomly with anxiety-provoking, everpresent glances with 
lowered eyebrows, unrealistic promises of rapid publication, and 
every three months a dinner consisting of nothing but microbrewery ale
and free pretzels.  Actually, mine hails from San Diego, and indeed 
has more problems in Seattle in cold weather than in warm.

Doug Fitts
dfitts@u.washington.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58813
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

I love the FAQ.       

The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?

Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
95%?  Why such a difference?  I thought the proceedures were simmilar
with the exception of a laser being the cutting tool in PRK.  I must not
be understanding all of the differences.

In the FAQ, the vision was considered less clear after the surgery than
with glasses alone.  If this is completly attributable to the
intentional slight undercorrection, then it can be compensated for when
necessary with glasses (or contacts, if they CAN be worn afterall!).  It
is important to know if that is not the case, however, and some other
consequence of the surgery would often interfere with clear vision.  The
first thing that came to my mind was a fogging of the lense, which
glasses couldn't help. 

would not help.

-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | I'm just a lowly phlebe.              |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        |                                       |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    | I'm at the phlebottom                 |
| California Polytechnic State U | of the medical totem pole.            | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58814
From: ghilardi@urz.unibas.ch
Subject: left side pains

Hello to everybody,
I write here because I am kind of desperate. For about six weeks, I've been
suffering on pains in my left head side, the left leg and sometimes the left 
arm. I made many tests (e.g. computer tomography, negative, lyme borreliosis,
negative, all electrolytes in the blood in their correct range), they're
all o.K., so I should be healthy. As a matter of fact, I am not feeling so.
I was also at a Neurologist's too, he considered me healthy too.

The blood tests have shown that I have little too much of Hemoglobin (17.5,
common range is 14 to 17, I unfortunately do not know about the units).
Could these hemi-sided pains be the result of this or of a also possible
block of the neck muscles ?

I have no fever, and I am not feeling entirely sick, but neither entirely 
healthy. 

Please answer by direct email on <ghilardi@urz.unibas.ch>

Thanks for every hint

Nico

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58815
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Sarchoidosis 

>>       Hello,
>>Does anybody know if sarchoidosis is a mortem desease ?
>>(i.e if someone who tooke this desease can be kill
>>bye this one ?)
>
>People have died from sarcoid, but usually it is not
>fatal and is treatable.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi there
I'm suffering from Sarcoidosis at present.  Although it's shown as a
chronic & rare tissue disorder, it is thankfully NOT life threatening.

The very worsed thing that can happen to a non-treated sufferer is
glaucoma.  My specialists are bombarding me with Prednisolone E.C. (a
cortico-steriod) and after four months at 20mg a day, it's totally done
away with my enlarged lymph glands, so somethings happening for the
good!

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk  | MEXICAN FOOD      *
   * BOURNEMOUTH    | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI  | GUINNESS ON TAP   *
   * UNITED KINGDOM | AMAZING! and all down two wires | TALL SKINNY WOMEN *
   ************************************************************************
    Two penguins are walking along an iceberg. The first penguin turns to
    the second penguin and says "it looks like you are wearing a tuxedo."
    The second penguin turns to the first penguin and says, "maybe I am."
   ************************************************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58816
From: ken@sugra.uucp (Kenneth Ng)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <szikopou.734725851@cunews: szikopou@superior.carleton.ca (Steven Zikopoulos) writes:
:In <1993Apr13.144340.3549@news.cs.brandeis.edu> reynold@binah.cc.brandeis.edu ("Susan Reynold (w/out the s)") writes:
:>I think the scientists are biased towards the food industry or something.
:>Was the article long? Would anyone be interested in posting it?
:a neuroscientist told me that MSG is used as a neurotoxin...that's
:right...some labs use it to "kill" neurons in mice and rats

Vitamin A (and I think vitamin D) in strong enough amounts can kill.  The key
words are DOSAGE and EXPOSURE MECHANISM.

-- 
Kenneth Ng
Please reply to ken@blue.njit.edu for now.
"All this might be an elaborate simulation running in a little device sitting
on someone's table" -- J.L. Picard: ST:TNG

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58817
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: pointer for info (long shot)

In article <ZONKER.93Apr14174640@splinter.coe.northeastern.edu>, Regis M Donovan <zonker@silver.lcs.mit.edu> writes:
> This is something of a long shot... but what the hell.  the net is
> full of people with strange knowledge...
>
> I'm looking for suggestions as to what could be causing health
> problems one of my relatives is having.
>
> One of my cousins has had health problems for much of her life.
> Around the age of 10 she had some gynecological problems.  Now she's
> in her early/mid twenties and she is going blind.
>
> Her eyes are not producing enough (if any) moisture.  She's been going
> to Mass Eye and Ear and the doctors there have no clue what the actual
> cause is.  THey have apparently tried eyedrops and such.  She is just
> about completely blind in one eye and the other is massively
> deteriorated.


Sjogren's syndrome has been known to induce dryness in vaginal tissue as well
as induce primary biliary cirrhosis. Otherwise the abdominal swelling could be
due to a complication of Sjogren's known as pseudolymphoma which *can* produce
a splenomegaly (enlarged spleen). She should definitely see a rheumatologist.

Since you don't mention skin disorder, anemia, or joint pain you'd probably
rule out erythema nodosum or scleroderma.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL



>
> Also, and this may or may not be related, she is having some changes
> in her abdomen.  her stomach has swelled (i'm not sure if this is
> stomach the organ or stomach teh area of the body).
>
> I guess the step they're going to take next is to do a whole battery
> of tests to check all the other internal systmes besides just the
> eyes...
>
> but just because the net is a source of large amounts of bizarre
> knowledge, i'm going to ask: has anyone ever heard of anything like
> this?  suggestions of things to ask about (since much of my knowledge
> about her state comes second or third hand)?
>
> Thanks.
> --Regis
>   zonker@silver.lcs.mit.edu
>

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58818
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> 2) Science has not historically progressed in any sort of rational
|> experiment-data-theory sequence.  Most experiments are carried out, and
|> interpreted, in pre-existing theoretical frameworks.  The theoretical
|> controversies of the day determine which experiments get done.  Overall,
|> there is a huge messy affair of personal jealousies, crazy motivations,
|> petty hatreds, and the like that determines which experiments, and which
|> computations, get done.  What keeps it going forward is the critical
|> function of science: results don't count unless they can be replicated.
|> 
|> The whole system is a sort of mechanism for generate-and-test.  The generate
|> part can be totally irrational, as long as the test part works properly.

I think we agree on much.  However the paragraphs above seem to repeat
uncritically the standard Kuhn/Lakatos/Feyerabend view of "progress" and
"rationality" in science.  Since I've addressed these issues in this
newsgroup in the not too distant past, I won't go into them again now.

What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
petty hatreds.  It further at least implicitly advances the position that
sciences goes "forward" (and it is not clear what this means given the
context in which it occurs) by generating in a completely non-rational
and even random way a plethora of hypotheses and theories that are then
weeded out via the "critical function" of science.  (Though why this critical
function should be less subject to the non-rational forces is a mystery.
If experimental design, hypotheses creation, and theory construction are
subject to jealousies and petty hatreds, then this must be equally true
of the application of any "critical function" concerning replication.
This is what leads one (ala Feyerabend) to an "anything goes" view.)

True, the generation part *can* be totally irrational.  But typically it is
*not*.  Anecdotes concerning instances where a hypothesis seems to have
resulted in some way from a dream or from one's political views simply
do not generalize well to the actual history of science.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58819
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Seeking advice/experience with back problem

In article <C5FI9r.7yz@cbnewsk.cb.att.com> janet.m.cooper,
jmcooper@cbnewsk.cb.att.com writes:
>The mother of a friend of mine is experiencing a disabling back
>pain.  After MRIs, CT scans, and doctors visits she has been
presented
>with 2 alternatives: 
>(1) live with the pain
>or (2) undergo a somewhat
>risky operation which may leave her paralyzed.  She also has a 

Since her symptoms are only pain she would do weel to seek the
advice of a good, multi-disciplinary pain clinic. It is distressing
to think that people are stll being told they have to "live with the
pain" when many options for pain management (rather than treating
MRI findings) are available. A good pain clinic will accept that
this lady's problem is her pain and set about finding ways of
relieveing that.

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58820
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: options before back surgery for protruding disc at L4-L5

Subject: options before back surgery for protruding disc at L4-L5
From: Alex Miller, amiller@almaden.ibm.com
Date: 13 Apr 93 18:30:42 GMT
In article <2241@coyote.UUCP> Alex Miller, amiller@almaden.ibm.com
writes:
>After two weeks of limping around with an acute pain in my low back
>and right leg, my osteopath sent me to get an MRI which revealed
>a protruding (and extruded) disc at L4-L5.  I went to a neurosurgeon
>who prescribed prednisole (a steroidal anti-inflamitory) and bed
rest
>for several days.  It's been nearly a week and overall I feel 
>slightly worse - I take darvocet three times a day so I can
>deal with daily activities like preparing food and help me
>get to sleep.  
> 
>I'll see the neurosurgeon tomorrow and of course I'll be asking
>whether or not this rest is helpful or if surgery is the next 
>step.  What are my non-surgical options if my goal is to resume
>full activity, including competitive cycling.  I should add this
>condition is, in my opinion, the result of commulative wear and
>tear - I've had chronic low-back pain for years - but I managed

You don't say whether or not you have any symptoms other than pain.
If you have numbness, weakness or bladder problems, for example,
these would suggest a need for surgery. If pain is your only symptom
you might do well to find a reputable, multi-disciplinary pain
clinic in your area. Chronic low back pain generally doesn't do well
with surgery, acute on chronic pain (as only symptom) doesn't fare
much better.
e correlation between MRI findings and symptoms is controversial.

Don Mackie -  his opinions
UM will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58821
From: rcj2@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (ray.c.jender)
Subject: Looking for a doctor


	I was kind of half watching Street Stories last night
	and one of the segments was about this doctor in
	S.F. who provides a service of investigating treatment
	for various diseases. I'm pretty sure his name is
	Dr. Mark Renniger (sp?) or close to that. 
	Did anyone else watch this? I'd like to get his
	correct name and address/phone number if possible.
	Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58822
From: dbc@welkin.gsfc.nasa.gov (David Considine)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.180459.17852@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu> milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn) writes:
>This was known long ago.  Brain produces and uses some MSG naturally,
>but not in doses it is served at some chinese places. 
>Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
>flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
>I order food without MSG.  Goos places will do it for you.
 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	I just wanted to point out that some of the food, particularly
	the soups, are prepared in a big batch, so the restaurant
	won't be able to take the MSG out of it.  Sometimes its
	pretty hard to find out if this is the case or not.


>Alexander M. Milshteyn M.D.   <milsh@cipr-server.mgh.harvard.edu>
>CIPR, MGH in Boston, MA.     (617)724-9507 Vox  (617)726-7830 Fax

David B. Considine
dbc@welkin.gsfc.nasa.gov

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58823
From: debbie@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Debbie Forest)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

In article <1993Apr14.184444.24065@galileo.cc.rochester.edu> jkis_ltd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Da' Beave) writes:
>
>Well folks, I currently have a yeast infection. I am male.
>[...] your best bet (or at least your husband's)
>is to treat and cure your infection before any intercourse. If you must, use
>a condom. Also, consider other forms of sexual release (ie. handjobs) until
>you are cured. 

Though I can't imagine WANTING to have intercourse during a full-blown
yeast infection :-) chances of it being transmitted to the male are quite
low, especially if he's circumcised.  But it can happen. 
At one point I was getting recurrent yeast infections and the Dr suspected
my boyfriend might have gotten it from me and be reinfecting me.  The
prescription was interesting.  For each day of the medication (a week) I 
was to insert the medication, then to have intercourse.  The resulting 
action would help the medicine be spread around in me better, and would 
simultaneously treat him.  


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58824
From: sdbsd5@cislabs.pitt.edu (Stephen D Brener)
Subject: Intensive Japanese at Pitt

In article <C5KxIx.5Ct@cbnewsd.cb.att.com> rcj2@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (ray.c.jender) writes:
>
>	I was kind of half watching Street Stories last night
>	and one of the segments was about this doctor in
>	S.F. who provides a service of investigating treatment
>	for various diseases. I'm pretty sure his name is
>	Dr. Mark Renniger (sp?) or close to that. 
>	Did anyone else watch this? I'd like to get his
>	correct name and address/phone number if possible.
>	Thanks.


    INTENSIVE JAPANESE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH THIS SUMMER
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


The University of Pittsburgh is offering two intensive Japanese language
courses this summer.  Both courses, Intensive Elementary Japanese and 
Intensive Intermediate Japanese, are ten week, ten credit courses 
each equivalent to one full year of Japanese language study.  They begin 
June 7 and end August 13.  The courses meet five days per week, five hours 
per day.  There is a flat rate tuition charge of $1600 per course.  
Fellowships available for science and engineering students.  Contact 
Steven Brener, Program Manager of the Japanese Science and Technology
Management Program, at the University of Pittsburgh at the number or
address below.  
ALL INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY, THIS IS NOT LIMITED TO 
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS.



  

#######################################################################
#################   New Program Announcement   ########################
#######################################################################


            JAPANESE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The Japanese Science and Technology Management Program (JSTMP) is a new
program jointly developed by the University of Pittsbugh and Carnegie Mellon 
University.  Students and professionals in the engineering and scientific 
communitites are encouraged to apply for classes commencing in June 1993 and 
January 1994.


PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
The program intends to promote technology transfer between Japan and the 
United States.  It is also designed to let scientists, engineers, and managers
experience how the Japanese proceed with technological development.  This is 
facilitated by extended internships in Japanese research facilities and
laboratories that provide participants with the opportunity to develop
long-term professional relationships with their Japanese counterparts.


PROGRAM DESIGN
To fulfill the objectives of the program, participants will be required to 
develop advanced language capability and a deep understanding of Japan and
its culture.  Correspondingly, JSTMP consists of three major components:

1. TRAINING IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE
Several Japanese language courses will be offered, including intensive courses
designed to expedite language preparation for scientists and engineers in a
relatively short time.

2. EDUCATION IN JAPANESE BUSINESS AND SOCIAL CULTURE
A particular enphasis is placed on attaining a deep understanding of the
cultural and educational basis of Japanese management approaches in 
manufacturing and information technology.  Courses will be available in a 
variety of departments throughout both universities including Anthropology,
Sociology, History, and Political Science.  Moreover, seminars and colloquiums
will be conducted.  Further, a field trip to Japanese manufacturing or 
research facilities in the United States will be scheduled.


3. AN INTERNSHIP OR A STUDY MISSION IN JAPAN
Upon completion of their language and cultural training at PITT and CMU, 
participants will have the opportunity to go to Japan and observe,
and participate in the management of technology.  Internships in Japan
will generally run for one year; however, shorter ones are possible.


FELLOWSHIPS COVERING TUITION FOR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE COURSES, AS WELL AS
STIPENDS FOR LIVING EXPENSES ARE AVAILABLE.

        FOR MORE INFORMATION AND APPLICATION MATERIALS CONTACT

STEVEN BRENER				SUSIE BROWN
JSTMP					Carnegie Mellon University, GSIA
University of Pittsburgh		Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
4E25 Forbes Quadrangle			Telephone: (412) 268-7806
Pittsburgh, PA 15260			FAX:	   (412) 268-8163
Telephone: (412) 648-7414		
FAX:       (412) 648-2199		

############################################################################
############################################################################ 


Interested individuals, companies and institutions should respond by phone or
mail.  Please do not inquire via e-mail.
Please note that this is directed at grads and professionals, however, advanced
undergrads will be considered.  Further, funding is resticted to US citizens
and permanent residents of the US.

Steve Brener






Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58825
From: anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello)
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA


Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood
test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
glycemic?  TIA.


Anthony Anello
Fermilab
Batavia, Illinois


-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58826
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com> david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:

>>In article <13APR199308003715@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov>, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>>>
>>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>>always used it.
>
>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>using double-blind trials?  

Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own. Maybe you missed
it amidst the flurry of responses? Yet again, the use of this
newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
they have substantial knowledge of.

For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.

                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58827
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5Kv7p.JM3@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
>impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
>even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
>having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
>petty hatreds.

Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.

(Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
that occurs about 500,000 times in the human genome.  Unfortunately for
Warren's fantasy, it turns out to be a transposon that is present in
so many copies because it replicates itself and copies itself back into
the genome.  On the other hand, the characteristics of transposons were
much elucidated; the necessity of a cellular reverse transcriptase was
recognized; and the standard method of recognizing human DNA was created.
Other species have different sets of transposons.  Fortunately for me,
Warren and I used to eat dinner at T.G.I. Fridays all the time.)

>It further at least implicitly advances the position that
>sciences goes "forward" (and it is not clear what this means given the
>context in which it occurs) by generating in a completely non-rational
>and even random way a plethora of hypotheses and theories that are then
>weeded out via the "critical function" of science.

I'm not sure that it's random.  But there is no known rational mechanism
for generating a rich set of interesting hypotheses.  If you are really
working in an unknown area, it is unlikely that you will have much sense
of what might or might not be true; under those circumstances, the best
thing to do is just follow whatever instincts you have.  If they are wrong,
you will find out soon enough; but at least, you will find out _something_.
If you try to do experiments at random, with no prior conceptions at all
in mind, you will probably get nowhere.

>(Though why this critical
>function should be less subject to the non-rational forces is a mystery.

Unfortunately, the critical function does sometimes become hostage to
non-rational forces.  Then we get varieties of pathological science:
Lysenko, Mirsky's opposition to DNA-as-gene, cold fusion, and so forth.

>If experimental design, hypotheses creation, and theory construction are
>subject to jealousies and petty hatreds, then this must be equally true
>of the application of any "critical function" concerning replication.
>This is what leads one (ala Feyerabend) to an "anything goes" view.)

I don't agree that this follows.  In fact, this is _exactly_ the point at
which I disagree with Feyerabend.  It is a most important part of the
culture of science that one keeps one's jealousies out of the refereeing
process.  Failures there are aplenty, but, on the whole, things work out.

Another point: there are a couple of senses of the phrase ``experimental
design''.  I'd say that the less rational part is in experimental _choice_,
not design.  Alexander Fleming (Proc. Royal Soc., 1922) chose to look for
bacteriophage in his own mucus for strange reasons (Phage had previously
been found in locust diarrhea; Fleming probably thought runny bottom, runny
nose, what the hell, it's worth a try.) but his method of looking for phage
was well-designed to detect anything phage-like; in fact, he found lysozyme.

>True, the generation part *can* be totally irrational.  But typically it is
>*not*.  Anecdotes concerning instances where a hypothesis seems to have
>resulted in some way from a dream or from one's political views simply
>do not generalize well to the actual history of science.

It is not clear to me what you mean by rational vs. irrational.  Perhaps
you can give a few examples of surprising experiments that were tried out
for perfectly rational reasons, or interesting new theories that were first
advanced from logical grounds.  The main examples I can think of are from
modern high-energy physics which is not typical of science as a whole.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58828
From: cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


Jason Chen writes:
> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

----------

Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

You complain that people blame MSG automatically, since it's an unknown and
therefore must be the cause.  It is equally (if not more) unreasonable to
defend it, automatically assuming that it CAN'T be the culprit.

Pepper makes me sneeze.  If it doesn't affect you the same way, fine.
Just don't tell me I'm wrong for saying so.

These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
(optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58829
From: francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis)
Subject: Re: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

In article <1993Apr16.063425.163999@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I love the FAQ.       
>
>The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
>correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
>this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?

I've had PRK.

I would suggest asking a doctor about contacts. Mine said yes to
contacts. I think the scars from RK would preclude contacts.

>Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
>only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
>95%?  Why such a difference?  I thought the proceedures were simmilar
>with the exception of a laser being the cutting tool in PRK.  I must not
>be understanding all of the differences.

No. RK makes radial cuts around the circumference of the cornea, up to
8 I think, and these change the curvature of the cornea through stress
chages. PRK vaporizes (burns) away a thin layer from the front of the
cornea making the optical axis of the eye shorter. The laser doesn't
cut in PRK, it vaporizes. In RK, the eye is cut into.

>In the FAQ, the vision was considered less clear after the surgery than
>with glasses alone.  If this is completly attributable to the
>intentional slight undercorrection, then it can be compensated for when
>necessary with glasses (or contacts, if they CAN be worn afterall!).  It
>is important to know if that is not the case, however, and some other
>consequence of the surgery would often interfere with clear vision.  The
>first thing that came to my mind was a fogging of the lense, which
>glasses couldn't help. 
>
>would not help.

I find my vision is more clear for some things, and less clear for
others, only at night. I notice a definite haloing at night in the
darkness when I look at automobile headlamps, though this is not
something I spend inordinate amounts of time doing. For ordinary
things, my vision, in particular having a fully-operating peripheral
vision, is clearer than with glasses, or contacts.

-- 
| Le Jojo: Fresh 'n' Clean, speaking out to the way you want to live
| today; American - All American; doing, a bit so, and even more so.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58830
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JDuo.K13@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>Of course we can't hope (currently at least) to explain how or why
>Kekule had the daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails.
>Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream he had.  What was special about
>*this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
>*analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
>geometry of molecules?  Is such analogical reasoning "extra-scientific"?
>Or is it rather at the very heart of science (Perice's notion of abduction,
>the use of models within and across disciplines)?  Upon close examination,
>is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
>closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?

I feel the need to repeat myself: Kekule's dream is a rather bad example
of much of anything.  Read Root-Bernstein's book on the history of the
benzene ring.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58831
From: turner@reed.edu (Havok impersonated)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qlgdrINN79b@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>In article <1993Apr15.173902.66278@cc.usu.edu>, slyx0@cc.usu.edu writes:
>=Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
>=slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
>=he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
>=swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
>=however, because that's not written in their little rule book.
>Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
>reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
>in other people.

Hmmm.  The last time I got stung by a bee I experienced the same reaction
the first poster's brother did.  We went off to the doctor to see if I
should worry about the fact that my foot was now about 3 times it's normal
size.  (And itched!!!  Ow!)  He basically said I shouldn't this time, but
that bee sting allergy was not something you tended to get aclimatized to,
but were something that each time got progressively worse generally and that
next time could be the time I go into anaphylactic shock.  Admittedly this
was many years ago when I was young.  Since then I just make sure I don't
get stung.  I also should carry a bee sting kit with me, but I don't.  

This isn't scientific or proof, but this would lead me to believe it's not a
different reaction, just a different degree of reaction.  Allergies work
that way.  People have various reactions.  Sort of like diabetes, some
people can get by with just monitoring their diet, others have to monitor
their diet and use insulin sometimes while others have to watch their diet
like a hawk and use insulin regularly.  

I think MSG is probably similar...some people have allergic reactions to
it.  Some people are allergic to fermented things and can't use soy
sauce...but the chinese have been using it for centuries... that doesn't
necessarily mean that it's safe for everyone.  

	Johanna
turner@reed.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58832
From: DEHP@calvin.edu (Phil de Haan)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

In article <1qk708INNa12@mojo.eng.umd.edu> georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
>You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
>Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
>ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
>it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

I have a new doctor who gave me a prescription today for something called 
Septra DS.  He said it may cause GI problems and I have a sensitive stomach 
to begin with.  Anybody ever taken this antibiotic.  Any good?  Suggestions 
for avoiding an upset stomach?  Other tips?


       Phil de Haan (DoD #0578) Why yes.  That is my 1974 Honda CL360.
=============================================================================
  "That's the nature of being an executive in America.  You have to rely on
    other people to do something you used to do yourself." -- Donald Fehr,
        executive director, Major League Baseball Players Association.
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58833
From: mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) writes:

>Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
>reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
>in other people.

>Similarly, Chinese food isn't just MSG.  There are a lot of other
>ingredients in it.  Why, when someone eats something with lots of
>ingredients they don't normally consume, one of which happens to be
>MSG, do they immediately conclude that any negative reaction is to
>the MSG? 

ARGHHHHHHHHHh

READ THE MEMOS!!!!

I said that I PERSONALLY had other people order the EXACT SAME FOOD at
TWO DIFFERENT TIMES from the SAME RESTAURANT and the people that
ordered the food for me did NOT TELL ME which time the MSG was in the
food and which time it was not in the food.

ONE TIME I HAD A REACTION

ONE TIME I DID NOT

THE REACTION CAME THE TIME THE MSG WAS IN THE FOOD

THAT WAS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE

SAME RESTAURANT - SAME INGREDIENTS!!!

>Why, when someone eats something with lots of ingredients they don't
>normally consume, one of which happens to be MSG, do they immediately
>conclude that any negative reaction is to the MSG? 

I eat lots of Chinese food - I LOVE Chinese food.  I've just learned
the following

IF I get food at one of the restaurants that DOES NOT USE MSG or

IF I prepare the food myself without MSG or 

IF I order the food from a restaurant that will hold the MSG (and I
never get soup unless it's from a restaurant that cooks without the
MSG)

I DO NOT GET A REACTION!!!!

OKAY

DO YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!

I GET A REACTION FROM MSG

I DO NOT GET A REACTION WHEN THERE IS NO MSG

If you're having trouble understand this, please tell me which of the
words you do not understand and I'll look them up in the dictionary
for you.

--
The great secret of successful marriage is to treat all disasters
as incidents and none of the incidents as disasters.    
  -- Harold Nicholson

    Mary Allison (mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu) Urbana, Illinois

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58834
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qmlgaINNjab@hp-col.col.hp.com>, cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best) writes:
|> 
|> Jason Chen writes:
|> > Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
|> > suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
|> > if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.
|> 
|> ----------
|> 
|> Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
|> out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

Food poisoning is only one of the many possible causes. Yes, even other people
share the food. 
|> 
|> You complain that people blame MSG automatically, since it's an unknown and
|> therefore must be the cause.  It is equally (if not more) unreasonable to
|> defend it, automatically assuming that it CAN'T be the culprit.

Boy, you computer people only know 1s and 0s, but not much about logic. :-)

No. I did not said MSG was not the culprit. What I argued was that that
there was enough reasonable doubt to convict MSG.  

If you want to convict MSG, show me the evidence, not quilty by suspicion.

|> Pepper makes me sneeze.  If it doesn't affect you the same way, fine.
|> Just don't tell me I'm wrong for saying so.

Nobody is forcing you to change what you believe.  But I certainly don't
want to see somebody preach to ban pepper because that makes him/her
sneeze. That is exactly what some anti-MSG activitiests are doing

|> These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
|> (optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

Look, people with a last Chen don't necessarily own a Chinese restaurant.
I am not interested if you enjoy Chinese food or not. Exploiting my last
name to discredit me on the issue is hitting below the belt.

What I am interested in is the truth. Let me give you an excert from
a recent FDA hearing:

           ``There is no evidence orally consumed glutamate has any effect
on the brain,'' said Dr. Richard Wurtman of Massachusetts Institute
of Technology. The anecdotal experiences of individuals is
``superstition, not science,'' he said. ``I don't think glutamate
has made them sick.''

And Dr. Robert Kenney of George Washington University conducted an double
blind test in 1980 showing that the 35 people who reacted to MSG also
had similar reaction when they thought they had MSG but actually not.

Although there are many contradicting personal stories told in this group,
some of them might have been due to other causes. But because the anti MSG
emotion runs so high, that some blame it for anything and everything. 

My purpose is to present a balance view on the issue, although I am probably
20-1 outnumbered.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58835
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

In article <1993Apr16.063425.163999@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I love the FAQ.       
>
>The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
>correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
>this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?
>
>Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
>only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
>95%?  Why such a difference?

In myopia the cornea is too curved.  There is too much of a bulge in the
center.

In PRK the laser removes a small amount of material from the center.

In RK the surgeon cuts incisions near the edge.  They heal, and the scarring
reshapes the cornea.

Entirely different mechanisms, and the action is in a different place.

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58836
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qmlgaINNjab@hp-col.col.hp.com>, cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best) writes:
=
=Jason Chen writes:
=> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
=> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
=> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.
=
=----------
=
=Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
=out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

Perhaps.  Now, just what leads you to believe that it was MSG and not some
other ingredient in the food that made you ill?

=These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
=(optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

And you're condemning one particular ingredient without any evidence that
that's the ingredient to which you reacted.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58837
Subject: prozac
From: agilmet@eis.calstate.edu (Adriana Gilmete)

Can anyone help me find any information on the drug Prozac?  I am writing
a report on the inventors , Eli Lilly and Co., and the product.  I need as
much help as I can get.   Thanks a lot, Adriana Gilmete.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58838
From: libman@hsc.usc.edu (Marlena Libman)
Subject: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

I need advice with a situation which occurred between me and a physican
which upset me.  I saw this doctor for a problem with recurring pain.
He suggested medication and a course of treatment, and told me that I
need to call him 7 days after I begin the medication so that he may
monitor its effectiveness, as well as my general health.

I did exactly as he asked, and made the call (reaching his secretary).
I explained to her that I was following up at the doctor's request,
and that I was worried because the pain episodes were becoming more
frequent and the medication did not seem effective.

The doctor called me back, and his first words were, "Whatever you want,
you'd better make it quick.  I'm very busy and don't have time to chit-
chat with you!"  I told him I was simply following his instructions to
call on the 7th day to status him, and that I was feeling worse.  I 
then asked if perhaps there was a better time for us to talk when he
had more time.  He responded, "Just spit it out now because no time is
a good time."  (Said in a raised voice.)  I started to feel upset and
tried to explain quickly what was going on with my condition but my
nervousness interfered with my choice of words and I kind of stuttered
and then said "well, never mind" and he said he'll talk to various
colleagues about other medications and he'll call me some other time.

This doctor called me that evening and said because I didn't express
myself well, he was confused about what I wanted.  At this point I
was pretty upset and I told him (in an amazingly polite voice considering
how angry I felt) that his earlier manner had hurt my feelings.  He told
me that he just doesn't have time to "rap with patients" and thought
that was what I wanted.  I told him that to assume I was calling to
"rap" was insulting, and said again that I was just following through
on his orders.  He responded that he resented the implication that he 
felt I was making that he was not interested in learning about what his
patients have to say about their condition status.  He then gave me
this apology: "I am sorry that there was a miscommunication and you
mistakenly thought I was insulting.  I am not trying to insult you
but I am not that knowledgeable about pain, and I don't have a lot of
time to deal with that."  He then told me to call him the next day
for further instructions on how do deal with my pain and medication.

I am still upset and have not yet called.

My questions: (1) Should I continue to have this doctor manage my care?
(2) Since I am in pain off and on, I realize that this may cause me to
be more anxietous so am I perhaps over-reacting or overly sensitive?
If this doctor refers me to his colleague who knows more about the type
of pain I have, he still wants me to status him on my condition but
now I am afraid to call him.

			--Marlena
















Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58839
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: sore throat

In article <47835@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
>I have had a sore throat for almost a week.  When I look into
>the mirror with the aid of a flash light, I see white plaques in
>the very back of my throat (on the sides).  I went to a health
>center to have a throat culture taken.  They said that I do not
>have strep throat.  Could a viral infection cause white plaques
>on the sides of my throat?

First, I am not a doctor.  I know about this because I have been
through it.

It sounds like tonsilitis (lit. swollen tonsils).  Feel under your jaw
hinge for a swelling on each side.  If you find them, its tonsilitis.
I've had this a couple of times in the past.  The doctor prescribed a
weeks course of penicillin and that cleared it up.

In my case it was associated with glandular fever, which is a viral
infection which (from my point of view) resembled flu and tonsilitis
that kept coming back for a year or so.  There is a blood test for
this.

In conclusion, see a doctor (if you have not done so already).

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58840
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: centrifuge

In article <C5JsM5.Hrs@lznj.lincroftnj.ncr.com> rjf@lzsc.lincroftnj.ncr.com
 (51351[efw]-Robert Feddeler(MT4799)T343) writes:

>: Could somebody explain to me what a centrifuge is and what it is
>: used for? I vaguely remembre it being something that spins test tubes
>: around really fast but I cant remember why youd want to do that?

>Purely recreational.  They get bored sitting in that
>rack all the time.

No, this is wrong.  The purpose is to preserve the substances in
the tubes longer by creating relativistic speeds and thus
time dilatation.  Of course, by slowing the subjective time of
the test tubes they get less bored, which is probably what you
were thinking of.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58841
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58842
From: jimj@contractor.EBay.Sun.COM (Jim Jones)
Subject: Post-fever rashes:  I get 'em every time

The subject-line says it:  every time I run a fever, I get an amazing
rosy rash over my torso and arms.  Fortunately, it doesn't itch.

The rash  always comes on the day after the
fever breaks and no matter what the illness was:  cold, flu, whatever.
It started happening about four years ago after I moved to my current
town, although I don't know if that has anything to do with anything.

Severity and persistance of the rash seems to vary with the fever:
a severe or long-lasting fever brings a long-lasting rash.  A mild fever
seems to bring rashes that go away faster.  

Anybody know what might be causing this?  It's no more than an 
embarassment, but I'd be curious to know what's going on.  Am I carrying
some kind of fever-resistant bug that goes wild when fever knocks out
its competition?

Jim Jones

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58843
From: pan@panda.Stanford.EDU (Doug Pan)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qkdpk$5k6@agate.berkeley.edu> mossman@cea.Berkeley.EDU (Amy Mossman) writes:

>   I had a similar reaction to Chinese food but came to a completly different
>   conclusion. I've eaten Chinese food for ages and never had problems. I went
>   with some Chinese Malaysian friends to a swanky Chinses rest. and they ordered
>   lots of stuff I had never seen before. The only thing I can remember of that
>   meal was the first course, scallops served in the shell with a soy-type sauce.
>   I thought, "Well, I've only had scallops once and I was sick after but that
>   could have been a coincidence". That night as I sat on the bathroom floor,
>   sweating and emptying my stomach the hard way, I decided I would never touch
>   another scallop. I may not be allergic but I don't want to take the chance.

I don't react to scallops, but did have discomforts with clam juice
served at (American) waterfront seafood bars.  I don't know whether
the juice is homemade or from cans.

The following is my first encounter with the Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome.  Ten years ago, about an hour after having Won Ton Soup I
collapsed in a chair with my face feeling puffed up, my scalp
tingling, my feet too weak to stand up.  The symptoms lasted for about
20 minutes.  Determined to find out the cause of my first reaction, I
went back to the Chinese restuarant and ordered the same dish.  The
same thing happened.  A quick look inside the kitchen revealed nothing
out of the ordinary.

I've also had a mild attack after having soup at a Thai restuarant.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58844
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
|> thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
|> unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
|> whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
|> out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.
|> 
|> (Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
|> electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
|> he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
|> genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
|> binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence

But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?
While I am unfamiliar with the scientific context here, it appears obvious
that his speculation (for lack of a better or more neutral word) was
at least in significant part a consequence of his knowledge of and acceptance
of current theory coupled with his observations.  It would appear that
something quite rational was going on as he attempted to fit his observation
into that theory (or to tailor the theory to cover the observation).  This
does not seem like an example of what most would normally call a flight of
fancy or a fantasy.

|> 
|> It is not clear to me what you mean by rational vs. irrational.  Perhaps
|> you can give a few examples of surprising experiments that were tried out
|> for perfectly rational reasons, or interesting new theories that were first
|> advanced from logical grounds.  The main examples I can think of are from
|> modern high-energy physics which is not typical of science as a whole.

Well, I think someone else in this thread was the first to use the word (also,
"extra-scientific", etc.).  Nor am I prepared to give a general account of
rationality.  In terms of examples, there is some danger of beginning to quibble
over what a "surprising" experiment is, what counts as "surprising", etc.
The same may be said about "logical grounds".  My point is that quite frequently
(perhaps even most frequently) the roots of a new theory can be traced to
previously existing theories (or even to previously rejected hypotheses of
some other theory or domain).  I would offer some rather well known examples
such as Toricelli's Puy de Dome experiment done for the sake of his "sea of air"
hypothesis.  Was this theory (and the resulting experimental test) "surprising"?
Well, given the *prior* explanations of the phenomena involved it certainly must
be counted as so.  Was the theory constructed (and the experiment designed)
out of "perfectly rational grounds"?  Well, there was a pretty successful and
well know theory of fluids.  The analogy to fluids by Toricelli is explicit.
The novelty was in thinking of air as a fluid (but this was *quite* a novelty
at the time).  Was the theory interesting?  Yes.  Was it "new"?  Well, one
could argue that it was merely the extension of an existing theory to a new
domain, but I think this begs certain questions.  We can debate that if you
like.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58845
Subject: EXPERTS on PENICILLIN...LOOK!
From: ndacumo@eis.calstate.edu (Noah Dacumos)

My name is Noah Dacumos and I am a student at San Leandro High.  I am
doing a project for my physics class and I would like some info on the
discovery of penicillin, its discoverer(Sir Alexander Fleming), and how it
helps people with many incurable bacterias.  Also how it effects those who
are allergic to it.  Any info will be greatly appreciated.

					Noah Dacumos


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58846
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

In article <1993Apr16.032251.6606@rock.concert.net> naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter) writes:
>can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
>it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
>...
>--Naomi

Endometriosis is where cells that would normally be lining the uteris exist
outside the uteris.  Sometimes this causes problems, often it doesn't.
There is generally no need to remove pockets of endometriosis unless they are
causing other problems.  One lady I know had Endometriosis in an ovary.  
This caused her a _great_ deal of pain.  Another lady I know has an     
endometrial cyst in her abdominal wall; she is not having it removed.

The American Fertility Society has information on this and they probably 
maintain a list of physicians in all parts of the continent that deal with
endometriosis.  You can reach them at:

The American Fertility Society
2140 11th Ave South
Suite 200
Birmingham, Alabama 35205-2800
(205)933-8494

                                     [J.F.]



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58847
From: szikopou@superior.carleton.ca (Steven Zikopoulos)
Subject: Re: prozac

In <C5L2x5.4B7@eis.calstate.edu> agilmet@eis.calstate.edu (Adriana Gilmete) writes:

>Can anyone help me find any information on the drug Prozac?  I am writing
>a report on the inventors , Eli Lilly and Co., and the product.  I need as
>much help as I can get.   Thanks a lot, Adriana Gilmete.

PDR and CPS are good places to starts.

do a medline search... lots of interesting debates going on (remember
when Prozac was impicated in suicidal behaviour?)

steve z

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58848
From: mdf0@shemesh.GTE.com (Mark Feblowitz)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qhu7s$d3u@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:

   It's worse than that -- there *is* no such thing as
   a double-blind study on the effects of MSG, by
   virtue of the fact that MSG changes the taste of food in
   a characteristic way that is detectable by the subject and
   that cannot be duplicated by a placebo.

Common! You can easily disguise  to flavor of  MSG by putting  it in a
capsule. Then,  the  study  becomes  a  double  blind of  MSG capsules
against control  capsules (containing exactly  the same contents minus
the MSG).
--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mark Feblowitz,   GTE Laboratories Inc., 40 Sylvan Rd.  Waltham, MA 02254
mfeblowitz@GTE.com, (617) 466-2947, fax: (617) 890-9320


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58849
From: tong@ohsu.edu (Gong Tong)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com> david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
>
>>>In article <13APR199308003715@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov>, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>>>>
>>>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>>>always used it.
>>
>>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>>using double-blind trials?  
>
>Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own. Maybe you missed
>it amidst the flurry of responses? Yet again, the use of this
>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>they have substantial knowledge of.
>
>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
>off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>
>                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca

In order to excitotoxin effects of MSG, MSG that in blood must go through 
blood-brain barrier that I am not sure MSG can go through or not. In normal condition, the concentration of glutamate in the cerebrospinal fluid is about 
2 uM that is high enough to activate one type of glutamate receptor-the NMDA
receptor. But the question is Neuron and glial cell in the brain have a lots of transport to get glutamate into Neuron or glial. So no one know exact concentration of glutamate is around neurons. 

Glutamate is most important neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. It is involved in not only in daily life like the controling of movement, it is alsoinvolved in develpoment, memory and learn (it is involved in Logn-term potentialtion that be thought is the basis of learning). 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58850
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>>using double-blind trials?  
>
>Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own.

Um, I hate to break this to you, but article numbers are unique per site.
They have no meaning on other machines.

>Maybe you missed it amidst the flurry of responses?

You mean the responses some of which pointed to double-blind tests
which show no such "chinese restaurant effect" unique to MSG
(it's elicited by the placebo as well.)

>Yet again, the use of this
>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>they have substantial knowledge of.

Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?

>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>excitotoxic food additive,

No, it's undisputed in the literature that glutamate is an amino acid
which is an excitatory neurotransmitter.  There is also evidence that
excessive release of glutamate may be involved in the pathology of certain
conditions like stroke, drowning and Lou Gehrig's disease, just to name a few.
This is a completely different issue than the use of this ubiquitous amino acid
in foods.  People are not receiving intra-ventricular injections of glutamate.

>and that its major constituent, glutamate
>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>(humans included).

I don't know about premier, but it's certainly an important one.

>Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown off.

Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

>Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>encountered in a ny single food.

Wrong.  Do you know how much aspartate or phenylalanine is in a soft drink?
Milligrams worth.  Compare that to a glass of milk.  Do you know how much
glutamate is present in most protein-containing foods compared to that
added by the use of MSG?

>By eating lots of junk food,
>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 

Notice the subtle covering of her ass here: "anyone _with a sensitivity_..."
We're disputing the size of that class.

>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.

Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58851
From: drand@spinner.osf.org (Douglas S. Rand)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

In article <DEHP.117@calvin.edu> DEHP@calvin.edu (Phil de Haan) writes:

   In article <1qk708INNa12@mojo.eng.umd.edu> georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
   >You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
   >Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
   >ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
   >it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

   I have a new doctor who gave me a prescription today for something called 
   Septra DS.  He said it may cause GI problems and I have a sensitive stomach 
   to begin with.  Anybody ever taken this antibiotic.  Any good?  Suggestions 
   for avoiding an upset stomach?  Other tips?

I've taken Septra.  My daughter has taken it many times for ear
infections.  It works sometimes.  It is a sulfa drug.  About the only
problem I found was that I'm sensitive and developed a rash after nine
days of a ten day course.  No more Septra for me.  My doctor was
remiss in not telling me to watch out for a rash.  I was quite in the
dark and didn't realize that it could be a drug reaction.  No harm
done though.

Doug


--
Douglas S. Rand <drand@osf.org>		OSF/Motif Dev.
Snail:         11 Cambridge Center,  Cambridge,  MA  02142
Disclaimer:    I don't know if OSF agrees with me... let's vote on it.
Amateur Radio: KC1KJ

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58852
From: richard@tis.com (Richard Clark)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>
>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>
>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>always used it.
>

	My blood pressure soars, my heart pounds, and I can't get to sleep
for the life of me... feels about like I just drank 8 cups of coffee.

	I avoid it, and beet sugar, flavor enhancers, beet powder, and
whatever other names it may go under. Basicaly I read the ingredients, and
if I don't know what they all are, I don't buy the product.

	MSG sensitivity is definately *real*.



-----------------------Relativity Schmelativity-----------------------------
 Richard H. Clark				My opinions are my own, and
 LUNATIK - watch for me on the road...		ought to be yours, but under
 It's not my fault... I voted PEROT!		no circumstances are they
 richard@tis.com				those of my company...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58853
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*----
I agree with everything that Lee Lady wrote in her previous post in
this thread.  In case this puzzles people, I would like to expand
on two of her comments.

In article <C5JoDH.9IG@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> Avoiding mistakes is certainly highly desirable.  However it is also 
> widely acknowledged that perfectionism is inimicable to creativity. 
> ... In the extreme case, a perfectionist becomes so paralyzed by all
> the possible mistakes he might make that he is unable to even leave
> the house.  

One of the most important (and difficult) aspects of reasoning
about empirical investigation lies in understanding the context,
scope, and importance of the various arguments and pieces of
evidence that are marshalled for a claim.  Some errors break the
back of a piece of research, some leave a hole that needs to be
filled in, and some are trivial in their importance.  It is a
grave mistake to confuse these.

Past snippets from this thread:

>>> I doubt if Einstein used any formal methodology.  ....

>> He also proposed numerous experiments which if performed would
>> distinguish a universe in which special relativity holds from
>> one in which it does not. ...

Back to Lee Lady:

> These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
> sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
> carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."

These posters are making the mistake that I have previously
criticized of adhering to a methodological recipe.  A "carefully
designed and controlled study" is neither always possible nor
always important.  (On the other hand, if someone is proposing a
remedy that supposedly alleviates a chronic medical problem, we
have enough knowledge of the errors that have plagued *this* kind
of claim to ask for a "carefully designed and controlled study"
to alleviate our skepticism.)

Rules such as "support the hypothesis by a carefully designed and
controlled study" are too narrow to apply to *all* investigation.
I think that the requirements for particular reasoning to be
convincing depends greatly on the kinds of mistakes that have
occurred in past reasoning about the same kinds of things.  (To
reuse the previous example, we know that conclusions from
uncontrolled observations of the treatment of chronic medical
problems are notoriously problematic.)  

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58854
From: Mark-Tarbell@suite.com
Subject: Amniocentesis, et. al.

Is there some difference between the purposes behind
amniocentesis and chorionic villi sampling? They sound
similar to me, but are intended to detect different
things?

Thanks.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58855
Subject: Need Help in Steroid Research
From: tthomps@eis.calstate.edu (Thomas Thompson)

     I am doing a term paper on steroids, actually the scientist who
helped crate the drug. I discovered that Joseph Fruton is one of the
researchers who helped create anabolic steroids. The only information on 
this person I know is he was a biochemist that did research in the 1930's.
I already did research at my local libraries, but I still need more
information. My instructor is requiring resources from the computer
networks. Please write back concerning my subject, any books, articles,
etc., will be appreciated.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58856
From: brein@jplpost.jpl.nasa.gov (Barry S. Rein)
Subject: Need survival data on colon cancer

A relative of mine was recently diagnosed with colon cancer.  I would like
to know the best source of survival statistics for this disease when
discovered at its various stages.

I would prefer to be directed to a recent source of this data, rather than
receive the data itself.

Thank you,
****************************************************************************
*                              Barry Rein                                 
*
*                       brein@jplpost.jpl.nasa.gov                        
*
****************************************************************************
*                            No clever comment.                           
* 
****************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58857
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5L9ws.Jn2@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>|> genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
>|> binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
>
>But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?

The fantasy was that he had found something of fundamental importance to
one of the hot questions of the day ('77).  He really had very little
reason to believe it, other than raw hope.  By fantasy, I certainly don't
mean Velikovskian manias.

>some other theory or domain).  I would offer some rather well known examples
>such as Toricelli's Puy de Dome experiment done for the sake of his
>"sea of air" hypothesis.

I'm not familiar with the history of this experiment, although, arguably,
I should be.

>"surprising"?
>Well, given the *prior* explanations of the phenomena involved it certainly
>be counted as so.  Was the theory constructed (and the experiment designed)
>out of "perfectly rational grounds"?  Well, there was a pretty successful and
>well know theory of fluids.  The analogy to fluids by Toricelli is explicit.
>The novelty was in thinking of air as a fluid (but this was *quite* a novelty
>at the time).  Was the theory interesting?  Yes.  Was it "new"?  Well, one
>could argue that it was merely the extension of an existing theory to a new
>domain, but I think this begs certain questions.  We can debate that if you
>like.

I think that it is enough if his contemporaries found the result surprising.
That's not what I'd quibble about.  What I'd like to know are Toricelli's
reasons for doing his experiment; not the post hoc _constructed_ reasons,
but the thoughts in his head as he considered the problem.  It may be
impossible to know much about Toricelli's thoughts; that's too bad if
it is so.  One of Root-Bernstein's services to science is that he has gone
rooting about in Pasteur's and Fleming's (and other people's) notes, and has
discovered some surprising clues about their motivations.  Pasteur never
publicly admitted his plan to create mirror-image life, but the dreams are
right there in his notebooks (finally public after many years), ready for
anyone to read.  And I and my friends often have the most ridiculous
reasons for pursuing results; one of my best came because I was mad at
a colleague for a poorly-written claim (I disproved the claim).

Of course, Toricelli's case may be an example of a rarety: where the
fantasy not only motivates the experiment, but turns out to be right
in the end.

Mark
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58858
From: sdbsd5@cislabs.pitt.edu (Stephen D Brener)
Subject: Japanese for Scientists and Engineers


    INTENSIVE JAPANESE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH THIS SUMMER
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


The University of Pittsburgh is offering two intensive Japanese language
courses this summer.  Both courses, Intensive Elementary Japanese and 
Intensive Intermediate Japanese, are ten week, ten credit courses 
each equivalent to one full year of Japanese language study.  They begin 
June 7 and end August 13.  The courses meet five days per week, five hours 
per day.  There is a flat rate tuition charge of $1600 per course.  
Fellowships available for science and engineering students.  Contact 
Steven Brener, Program Manager of the Japanese Science and Technology
Management Program, at the University of Pittsburgh at the number or
address below.  
ALL INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY, THIS IS NOT LIMITED TO 
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS.



  

#######################################################################
#################   New Program Announcement   ########################
#######################################################################


            JAPANESE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The Japanese Science and Technology Management Program (JSTMP) is a new
program jointly developed by the University of Pittsbugh and Carnegie Mellon 
University.  Students and professionals in the engineering and scientific 
communitites are encouraged to apply for classes commencing in June 1993 and 
January 1994.


PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
The program intends to promote technology transfer between Japan and the 
United States.  It is also designed to let scientists, engineers, and managers
experience how the Japanese proceed with technological development.  This is 
facilitated by extended internships in Japanese research facilities and
laboratories that provide participants with the opportunity to develop
long-term professional relationships with their Japanese counterparts.


PROGRAM DESIGN
To fulfill the objectives of the program, participants will be required to 
develop advanced language capability and a deep understanding of Japan and
its culture.  Correspondingly, JSTMP consists of three major components:

1. TRAINING IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE
Several Japanese language courses will be offered, including intensive courses
designed to expedite language preparation for scientists and engineers in a
relatively short time.

2. EDUCATION IN JAPANESE BUSINESS AND SOCIAL CULTURE
A particular enphasis is placed on attaining a deep understanding of the
cultural and educational basis of Japanese management approaches in 
manufacturing and information technology.  Courses will be available in a 
variety of departments throughout both universities including Anthropology,
Sociology, History, and Political Science.  Moreover, seminars and colloquiums
will be conducted.  Further, a field trip to Japanese manufacturing or 
research facilities in the United States will be scheduled.


3. AN INTERNSHIP OR A STUDY MISSION IN JAPAN
Upon completion of their language and cultural training at PITT and CMU, 
participants will have the opportunity to go to Japan and observe,
and participate in the management of technology.  Internships in Japan
will generally run for one year; however, shorter ones are possible.


FELLOWSHIPS COVERING TUITION FOR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE COURSES, AS WELL AS
STIPENDS FOR LIVING EXPENSES ARE AVAILABLE.

        FOR MORE INFORMATION AND APPLICATION MATERIALS CONTACT

STEVEN BRENER				SUSIE BROWN
JSTMP					Carnegie Mellon University, GSIA
University of Pittsburgh		Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
4E25 Forbes Quadrangle			Telephone: (412) 268-7806
Pittsburgh, PA 15260			FAX:	   (412) 268-8163
Telephone: (412) 648-7414		
FAX:       (412) 648-2199		

############################################################################
############################################################################ 


Interested individuals, companies and institutions should respond by phone or
mail.  Please do not inquire via e-mail.
Please note that this is directed at grads and professionals, however, advanced
undergrads will be considered.  Further, funding is resticted to US citizens
and permanent residents of the US.

Steve Brener






Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58859
From: georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

You may want to inquire about taking Lupron as a medication. It's
supposed to be a new treatment, and it's described in Nov. 1992
issue of J. of Obst. and Gyn.

Lupron is taken as a monthly injection, whereas other drugs such
as danazol are taken daily as pills.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58860
From: cps@generali.harvard.edu (Chris Schaeffer)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

In article <19617@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
>[...should] we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
>Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Two thoughts.

	- I think that psychologically it will be easier for the next 
generation to accept genetic manipulation.  It seems that people frown
upon 'messing with Nature', ignoring our eons-old practice of doing just that.
Any new human intervention is 'arrogance and hubris' and manipulation
we routinely do is 'natural' and certainly 'not a big deal'.

	- Most interesting human traits will probably be massively
polygenetic and be full of trade-offs.  In addition, without a positive
social environment for the cultivation of genetic gifts, having them won't
be the advantage it's made out to be.  Some people will certainly pursue it
as if it is the Grail, but we know how most of those quests turn out.

Chris Schaeffer



 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58861
From: akins@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (kay.a.akins)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <PAULSON.93Apr15082558@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov>, paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson) writes:
> I am posting to this group in hopes of finding someone out there in
> network newsland who has heard of something similar to what I am going
> to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
> a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
> Flakes.  She is perfectly healthy, had never experienced anything like
> this before, and there is no history of seizures in either side of the
> family.  All the tests (EEG, MRI, EKG) came out negative so the decision
> was made to do nothing and just wait to see if it happened again.
> 
> Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
> a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am
> embarrassed to admit that I even bought that junk but every once
> in a while...) So I pour it in her bowl and think "Oh, oh, this is the
> same kind of junk she was eating when she had that seizure."  Ten 
> minutes later she had a full blown seizures. This was her first exposure
> to a sugar coated cereal since the last seizure.......

My daughter has Epilepsy and I attend a monthly parent support group.
Just Wednesday night, a mother was telling how she decided to throw
all the junk food out and see if it made a difference in her 13 year-old's
seizures.  He was having about one seizure per week.  She reported that
she did this on Thursday (3/11), he had a seizure on Saturday and then
went 4 weeks without a seizure!!  On Easter he went to Grandma's and ate 
candy, pop - anything he wanted.  He had a seizure the next day.  She 
sees sensitivity to nutrasweet, sugar, colors, caffine and corn.  With
corn she says, he gets very nervous and aggresive.  

With my own daughter (age 7) , I think she is also sensitive and stays
away from those foods on her own.  She has never had gum, won't eat
candy, prefers an apple to a cookie, doesn't like chocolate and won't
even use toothpaste!!!  Her brother, on the other hand, is a junk food
addict!  

Hope this helps.  Good Luck.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58862
From: mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: Bouncing LymeNet newsletters...

The following 4 addresses are on the LymeNet mailing list, but are rejecting
mail.  Since the list server originally accepted these addresses successfully,
I assume these addresses have since been eliminated.  Improperly functioning
mail gateways might also be responsible.

If you are listed here and would still like to remain on the list, please
write to me.  Otherwise, I will remove these addresses from the list before the
next newsletter goes out.

As a general rule, please remember to *unsubscribe* from all your mailing
lists before your account is closed.  This will save the listserv maintainer
from many headaches.

Lezliel@Sitka.Sun.COM
Kenneth_R_Hall@Roch817.Xerox.COM
Westmx!ayoub@uunet.uu.net
Absol.absol.com!rsb@panix.COM
-- 
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
              Marc C. Gabriel        -  U.C. Box 545  -
              (215) 882-0138         Lehigh University

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58863
From: andersom@spot.Colorado.EDU (Marc Anderson)
Subject: Miracle Berries anyone?

[From Kalat, J.W.. (1992):  _Biological Psychology_. Wadsworth Publishing Co.
Belmont, CA.  Pg. 219.  Reproduced without permission.]



Digression 6.1:  Miracle Berries and the Modification of Taste Receptors

Although the _miracle berry_, a plant native to West Africa is practically
tasteless, it temporarily changes the taste of other substances.  Miracle
berries contain a protein, _miraculin_, that modifies sweet receptors in
such a way that they can be stimulated by acids (Bartoshuk, Gentile, 
Moskowitz, & Meiselman, 1974).  If you ever get a chance to chew a miracle
berry (and I do recommend it), for about the next half an hour all acids 
(which are normally sour) will taste sweet.  They will continue to taste
sour as well.

Miraculin was, for a time, commercially available in the United States as a
diet aid.  The idea was that dieters could coat their tongue with a miraculin
pill and then eat and drink unsweetened, slightly acidic substances.  Such
substances would taste sweet without providing many calories.

A colleague and I once spent an evening experimenting with miracle berries.
We drank straight lemon juice, sauerkraut juice, even vinegar.  All tasted
extremely sweet.  Somehow we forgot how acidic these substances are.  We 
awoke the next day to find our mouths full of ulcers.

[... continued discussion of a couple other taste-altering substances ...]


Refs:  

Bartoshuk, L.M., Gentile, R.L., Moskowitz, H.R., & Meiselman, H.L.  (1974):
   Sweet taste induced by miracle fruit (_Synsephalum dulcificum_). 
   _Physiology & Behavior_.  12(6):449-456.


-------------


Anyone ever hear of these things or know where to get them?


-marc
andersom@spot.colorado.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58864
From: vonwaadn@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Panic Disorder - more success stories

I posted this to sci.psychology on April 3, and after seeing
your post here on panice disorder thought it would be
relevant.

-----

My research indicates that two schools of thought exist.
the literature promoting medication says it's the superior
treatment.  Not surprisingly, literature promoting cognitive
therapy also claims to be superior.

What are the facts?  Early in my research I didn't have a
bias towards either medication or cognitive therapy.  I
was interested in a treatment that worked.  After reading
journals published after 1986, the cognitive therapy camp
claims a higher success rate (approx 80%), a lower drop-out
rate, and no side effects associated with medication.

Lars-Goran Ost published an excellent article titled
"Applied Relaxation: Description of a coping technique and
a review of controlled studies."  This is from Behav. Res. Ther.,
vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 397-409, 1987.  The article provides
instructions on how to perform applied relaxation (AR).
Briefly, you start with two 15 minute sessions daily, and
progress in 8-12 weeks to performing 10-15 thirty second sessions
daily.

I'll snail mail this article to anyone interested (USA only please;
International please pay for postage).

Mark
vonwaadn@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58865
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

I'm told that corn allergy is fairly common.  My wife has it and it seems
to be exacerbated if sugar is eaten with the corn.

I suppose that in a person just on the verge of having epilepsy, an
allergic reaction might cause a seizure, but I don't really know.
Gordon?

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58866
Subject: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!
From: keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)

My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio Syndrome
This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different symptons ( eg
chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have any information on
it

Thanks


Keith

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58867
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Carl Lydick:

> And you're condemning one particular ingredient without any 
> evidence that that's the ingredient to which you reacted.

Believe what you will.

The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
most likely explanation for events.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58868
From: Simon.N.McRae@dartmouth.edu (Simon N McRae)
Subject: re: hepatitis-b

In article <1993Apr14.4274.32512@dosgate>
russell.sinclair-day@canrem.com (russell sinclair-day) writes:

> What we are really worried about is not knowing the facts. The doctor 
> has stated that things will not be good if she is a carrier and avoids 
> further questions on the subject. We really would like to know so we 
> can take steps and plan in advance for any eventualities.
> 
> Thank-you for your very informative post. Right now I am just trying 
> to find out everything that I can.
> 
>                         Russ.

Unfortunately, Hep B infection can eventuate in chronic hepatitis and
subsequent cirrhosis.  Although not many patients with Hep B go on to
chronic hepatitis, it does still occur in a good number (20%?) and is
something to keep in mind.  Hepatitis C (was: non-A, non-B Hep) much
more frequently leads to chronic hep and cirrhosis.  There is also an
autimmune chronic hepatitis that affects mostly younger women which
also leads to cirrhosis.  

Of course, cirrhosis is a most unkind disease.  The most dangerous
effects relate to portal hypertension and loss of liver function. 
Patients develop life-threatening variceal bleeds and hepatic comas,
among many other problems, as a result of disturbances in hepatic
circulation.  Less ominously, they can exhibit the effects of
hyperestrogenemia which often characterize patients with cirrhosis. 
These effects include telangiactasias (small red skin lesions) and, in
men, gynecomastia (breast development).  The only real treatment for
cirrhosis is liver transplant.

Keep in mind that cirrhosis is not expected, at least statistically, in
your friend's case.  Nevertheless you might want to bring up the
subject of chronic disease and cirrhosis with the doctor.  Hopefully he
or she can then carefully explain these sequelae of Hep B infection to
you, and offer you support.

Simon.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58869
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: food-related seizures?

SP> From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
SP> to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
SP> a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
SP> Flakes.

SP> Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
SP> a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am

SP> When I mentioned what she ate the first time as a possible reason for
SP> the seizure the neurologist basically negated that as an idea.  Now
SP> after this second episode, so similar in nature to the first, even
SP> he is scratching his head.

There's no data that sugar-coated cereals cause seizures.  I haven't
even seen anything anecdotal on it.  Given how common they are eaten
- do you know any child or adolescent who *doesn't* eat the stuff? -
I think that if there were a relationship we would know it by now.
Also, there's nothing weird in those cereals.  As far as the brain
is concerned (except for a few infantile metabolic disorders such as
galactosemia), sugar is sugar, regardless if it is coated on cereal,
sprinkled onto cereal, or dissolved in soda, coffee or whatever.

There was some interest a few years ago in aspartame lowering
seizure thresholds, but I don't believe anything ever came of it.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                         

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58870
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine????

GB> From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
GB> The HMO would stop the over-ordering, but in HMOs, tests are
GB> under-ordered.

That's a somewhat overbroad statement.  I'm sure there are HMOs in
which the fees for lab tests are subtracted from the doctor's
income.  In most, however, including the one I work for, there is no
direct incentive to under-order.  Profits of the group are shared
among all partners, but the group is so large that an individual's
generated costs have a miniscule effect.  I don't believe that we
under-order.  Then again, I'm not really sure what the right amount
of ordering is or should be.  Relative to the average British
neurologist, I suspect that I rather drastically over-order.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58871
From: npm@netcom.com (Nancy P. Milligan)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

I'd dump him.  Rude is rude and it seems he enjoys belittling and
humiliating you.  But don't just dump him, write to him and tell
him why you are firing him.  If you can, think about sending a copy
of your letter to whoever is in charge of the clinic where he works, 
if applicable, or maybe even to the AMA.  Don't be vindictive in
your letter, be truthful but VERY firm.

But don't be a victim and just put up with it.  Take control!  It'll
make you feel great!

Nancy M.
-- 
Nancy P. Milligan					npm@netcom.com
							      or
							npm@dale.cts.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58872
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5HLBu.I3A@tripos.com> homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes:
>mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:
>
>>Here's your error.  I really do think this shows some confusion on your
>>part.  (Drum roll please)  Science isn't so much the gathering of evidence
>>to support an "assertion" (read: hypothesis) as it is the gathering of
>>empirical observations IN ORDER TO MAKE AN HYPOTHESIS.  What should
>>convince you (or not) shouldn't be the final product so much as *HOW* the
>>product was made. 
>>
>Here's your error. There is no observation or hypothesis that is not tainted
>by theory. I have a theory, I make observations, those observations will be
>made with my theory in mind. 

Yes, absolutely, though I'd make the observation in a more general sense of
all observations are made by human beings and therefore made with various
biases. 

But here your message leaves talk of hypothesis and gets back, once again, 
to equating the business of science with the end result, the gizmo produced.

>Science works very well at developing theories
>within paradigms, but is very poor at dealing with paradigm shifts. If I 
>develop a novel paradigm that explains homeopathy, chinese medicine, or 
>spontaneous combustion. If the paradigm is useful it will show me the way
>to make observations that "prove" or "disprove" it.

My point isn't so much whether or not you have a novel paradigm but *how* 
you come about developing it.

>The paradigm of modern medicine is that the body can be reduced to a set of
>essentially mechanical operations wherein disease is seen as malfunctions in
>the machinery, essentially the old Newtonian model of the world. It seems
>likely that theories based upon this paradigm do not give a complete 
>discription of the universe, medicine, healing etc... Indeed we now 
>recognize an important psychological component to healing. 

Perhaps you'd admit that this is an oversimplification on your part (the topic
of the philosophy of science is made for them, I'm making them too) but I
think that it also summarizes popular misconceptions of science and the 
business of doing science.  Biomedical research doesn't make any basic 
assumptions that aren't the same as any other discipline of scientific
research.  That is, that you make empirical observations, form an hypothesis
and test it.  Modern medicine has much more to do with biochemistry than 
"the old Newtonian model of the world".  And I doubt that many psychologists
would appreciate being put outside this empirical "world view".  Psychology
also has more to do with biochemistry than spoon bending. 

>It is also important to distinguish reason from science. Science may be
>reasonable, but so are many non-scientific methodologies. Aristotle reasoned
>that frogs came from mud by observing one hop out of a puddle. 

Oversimplified, of course, but a good example.  This is an empirical observa-
tion.  It was then tested, though perhaps not by Aristotle, and eventually 
found wanting.  In the meantime, some folk will 
have continued to believe in the spontaneous generation of animal life.  
There's nothing at all surprising about this, it's the way the gathering of
knowledge works.  There are probably more than a few things in my own 
discipline of molecular biology that will be found to be totally off-base,
even idiotic, to someone in the future.  These future people won't have come
to these relevations because they had suddenly gone all Zen-like and had 
a vision in an LSD trip.  Someone will have thought of something new and 
tested it.  This is the bit that people who seem to relish misrepresenting
science and research can't seem to wrap their minds around.  Science is a 
creative process.  What I think of as factual and good research can be totally
turned on its head tommorrow by new results and theories.  

Again, I think it gets down to defining what you mean by "science".  I often
don't recognize what it is that I do, and am involved in, in the way science
is portrayed by popular media or writings of people in the humanities.  They
portray science as a collection of immutable facts, pronouncements of TRUTH
in big gold letters.  That's silly.  Its as though we just go into the lab,
turn over a stone, and come up with a mechanism for transcriptional regula-
tion.  Its much more interesting than that.  It really is a very human
process.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58873
From: ak949@yfn.ysu.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: ORGAN DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION FACT SHEET


In a previous article, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) says:

>In article <1993Apr12.205726.10679@sbcs.sunysb.edu>, mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu 
>|> Organ donors are healthy people who have died suddenly, usually 
>|> through accident or head injury.  They are brain dead.  The 
>|> organs are kept alive through mechanical means.
>
>OK, so how do you define healthy people?
>
>My wife cannot donate blood because she has been to a malarial region
>in the past three years.  In fact, she tried to have her bone marrow
>typed and they wouldn't even do that!  Why?
>
>I can't donate blood either because not only have I been to a malarial
>region, but I have also been diagnosed (and surgically treated) for
>testicular cancer.  The blood bank wont accept blood from me for 10
>years.  

Obviously, it wouldn't be of much help to treat one problem by knowingly 
introducing another.  Cancer mestastizes.  My imperfect understanding of 
the facts are that gonadal cancer is particularly dangerous in this regard. 
I haven't done the research on it, but I don't recall ever hearing of a 
case of cancer being transmitted by a blood transfusion.  Probably just a 
common sense kind of arbitrary precaution.  Transmissable diseases like 
malaria though are obviously another story.


-- 
Michael Holloway
E-mail: mhollowa@ccmail.sunysb.edu (mail to freenet is forwarded)
phone: (516)444-3090

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58874
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.194316.25522@ohsu.edu> tong@ohsu.edu (Gong Tong) writes:
>In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>>
>>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>>excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
>>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>>(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
>>off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>>encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
>>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>>
>>                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca
>
>In order to excitotoxin effects of MSG, MSG that in blood must go through 
>blood-brain barrier that I am not sure MSG can go through or not.

Elevated levels of Glu and Asp in the blood are able to bypass the
Blood-brain barrier through the circumventricular organs (or CVO), in
particular the adeno and neurohypophysis (pituitary gland) areas.  The
arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, and the median eminence regions
are particularly effected.  CVO areas are not subject to the
blood-brain barrier. These areas control the release of gonadotropin,
which controls the release and flux of steroids governing development,
especially sexual development. Changes in adult rats, which are less
sensitive to Glu than humans, have been observed: after ingesting Glu,
on a chronic basis, cycles of several steroids are disrupted. Blood
levels of somatostatin are significantly reduced, and cyclic release
of steroids becomes flattened.

                    Hope this helps.
                    --Dianne Murray: wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58875
From: lindae@netcom.com
Subject: Friend Needs Advice...


A friend of mine is having some symptoms and has asked me to post
the following information.

A few weeks ago, she noticed that some of her hair was starting
to fall out.  She would touch her head and strands of hair would
just fall right out. (by the way, she is 29 or 30 years old).  
It continued to occur until she had a bald spot about the
size of a half dollar.  Since that time, she  has gotten two
more bald spots of the same size.  Other symptoms she's
described include:  several months of an irregular menstrual
cycle (which is strange for her, because she has always been
extremely regular); laryngitis every few days -- she will wake
up one morning and have almost no voice, and then the next day
it's fine; dizzy spells -- she claims that she's had 4 or 5
very bad dizzy spells early in the morning, including one that
knocked her to the ground; and general fatigue.

She went to a dermatologist first who couldn't find any reason
for the symptoms and sent her to an internist who suspected
thyroid problems.  He did the blood work and claims that everything
came back normal.  

She's very concerned and very confused.  Does anyone have any
ideas or suggestions?  I told her that I thought she should
see an endocrinologist.  Does that sound like the right idea?

** By the way, in case you are going to ask...no, she has recently
taken any medications that would cause these symptoms...no, she hasn't
recently changed her hair products and she hasn't gotten a perm, 
coloring, or other chemical process that might cause hair to fall
out.

Thanks in advance for any help!





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58876
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

> Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
> Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
> then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
> engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
> No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
> we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
> Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.

Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.

What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?

Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
which are the units of genetics.

We stand on the brink of new meme-amplification technologies!  Harmful
memes which formerly were restricted in their destructive power will
run rampant over the countryside, laying waste to the real benefits that
future technology has to offer.

For example, Jeremy Rifkin has been busy trying to whip up emotions
against the new genetically engineered tomatoes under development at
CALGENE.  This guy is inventing harmful memes, a virtual memetic Typhoid
Mary.

We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
with harmful memes.  They should not be allowed to infect other people
with their memes against genetically-engineered food, electromagnetic
fields, and the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58877
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

[reply to mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)]
 
>Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
>expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
>Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...
 
The guy didn't sound too shy to me.  He sounded like a jerk.  I say ditch
him for someone more knowledgeable and empathetic.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58878
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JoDH.9IG@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
>
>Furthermore, the big bucks approach to science promotes what I think is
>one of the most significant errors in science:  choosing to investigate
>questions because they can be readily handled by the currently
>fashionable methodology (or because one can readily get institutional
>or corporate sponsorship for them) instead of directing attention to
>those questions which seem to have fundamental significance.

Shades of James Watson!  That's exactly the way many workers have described
their misgivings about the Human Genome Project.  If you take a rigid 
definition of scientific research, the mere accumulation of data is not 
doing science.  One of the early arguments against the project were that the 
resources would be better used to focus on specific genetics-related 
problems rather than just going off and collecting maps and sequence.  
The project can't be so narrowly defined or easily described now though.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58879
From: mckay@alcor.concordia.ca (John McKay)
Subject: Lasers for dermatologists


Having had limited tinea pedis for more than 30 years, and finding
it resistant to ALL creams and powders I have tried, I wonder why
dermatologists do not use lasers to destroy the fungus. It would
seem likely to be effective and inexpensive. Are there good reasons
for not using lasers?
I was told that dermatology had not yet reached the laser age.

John McKay
vax2.concordia.ca

-- 
Deep ideas are simple.
                      Odd groups are even.
                                           Even simples are not.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58880
From: mjliu@csie.nctu.edu.tw (Ming-zhou Liu)
Subject: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

I have bad luck and got a VD called <Granuloma ingunale>, which involves
the growth of granules in the groin.  I found out about it by checking medicine
books and I found the prescriptions.  And I know I can just go to a clinic to
get it cured.  BUT unfortunately I am serving my duty in the army right now and
I think it's impossible to prevent anyone from knowing this if I take leaves 
every day for two weeks for treatment.  Thus I bought the prescribed tablets
at some drugstore, but to cure it I must get INJECTION of <Streptomycin>, with
a dose of 1g every 12 hours, for at least 10 days.  I can probably buy the 
tools and this solution somewhere but I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO INJECTION BY MYSELF
!
Can any kind people here tell me:

If it's possible to do it? Can I do it on my arm? or it must be done on the hip
only??  Any info is welcome and please write me or post your help SOON!! (I am
already taking the tablets ..and I can't wait!!)

Please don't flame me for posting this, and don't judge me. I've learned a 
lesson and all I need now is REAL MEDICAL HELP.

Desperate from Taipei 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58881
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

 From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

JB>    RR> "I don't doubt that the placebo effect is alive and well with
JB>    RR>  EVERY medical modality - estimated by some to be around 20+%,
JB>    RR>  but why would it be higher with alternative versus conventional
JB>    RR>  medicine?"
JB>  
JB>  Because most the the time, closer to 90% in my experience, there is no
JB>  substance to the 'alternative' intervention beyond the good intentions of the
JB>  practitioner, which in itself is quite therapeutic. [.......]
JB>
JB>  John Badanes, DC, CA
JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

   Well, if that's the case in YOUR practice, I have a hard time 
   figuring out how you even managed to make it into the bottom half
   of your class, or did you create your diplomas with crayons?
 
   If someone runs a medical practice with only a 10% success rate,
   they either tackle problems for which they are not qualified to
   treat, or they have no conscience and are only in business for
   fraudulent purposes.

   OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
   ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
   Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
   No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
   the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
   practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: Purranoia: the fear your cat is up to something
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58882
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Scientific Yawn

     Gordon Rubenfeld responds to Ron Roth:
GR>  ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) wrote:
GR>
GR> RR> Well, Gordon, I look at the RESULTS, not at anyone's *scientific*
GR> RR> stamp of approval.
GR>  
GR>    If you and your patients (followers?) are convinced (as you've written)
GR>  by your methods of uncontrolled, undocumented, unreported, unsubstantiated,
GR>  subjective endpoint research - great.  But, why should the rest of us care?

 Gordon, even if you are trying to beat this issue to death, you'll 
 never get more than a stalemate out of this one!
 I have never tried to force my type of medicine on any of you. Why 
 should I?  My patients are happy. I'm happy. You and your peers seem 
 to be the only miserable ones around bemoaning the steady loss of 
 patients to the alternative camp.
 Just look at Europe. There has been a steady exodus from 'synthetic' 
 medicine for over a decade now, and it'll be just a matter of time
 before more people on this continent will abandon their drug and white 
 coat worship as well and visit different doctors for different needs.

GR>     You see Ron, the point isn't whether YOU and your patients are
GR>  convinced that whatever it is you do works; it's whether what you do is
GR>  MORE effective in similar cases (of whatever it is you think you are
GR>  treating) than cupping, bloodletting, and placebo.

 This is very interesting. I have come exactly to the same conclusions
 but in regards to *conventional* medicine.

 You see, I don't just treat little old ladies that wouldn't know any
 different of what is being done, but a bulk of my patients consist of
 teachers, lawyers, judges, nurses, accountants, university graduates,
 and various health practitioners.
 If these people have gotten results with my method after having been
 unsuccessful with yours or their own, I certainly wouldn't lose any 
 sleep over whether you or your peers approve of my treatments --- 
 let's face it, with all the blunders committed by "scientific" MDs 
 over the years, I know a lot of people who hold your *scientific* 
 method in much lower esteem than they hold mine!

GR>  As far as we know ayurveda = crystals = homeopathy = Ron Roth
GR>  which may all equal placebo administered with appropriate
GR>  trappings...
     
  Sorry, but I'm not familiar OR interested with what appears to be 
 'NEW AGE' medicine (ayurveda, crystals), with the exception of homeo-
 pathy, of which I took a course. But Gordon, you already knew that -
 you just wanted to make my system look a bit more far out, right?
 
 I use homeopathy very little, since my cellular test (EMR) is hard to
 beat for accuracy and minerals are more predictable, while homeopathy
 does have a problem with reliability, especially in acute conditions.
 An exception perhaps are homeopathic nosodes which act fairly quickly
 and are more dependable in certain viral or bacterial situations. 

GR>  My colleagues and I spend hours debating study design
GR>  and results, even of therapies currently accepted as "standard".
GR>  As good (well, adequate) scientists, we are prepared, *if 
GR>  presented with appropriate data*, to abandon our most deeply held 
GR>  beliefs in favor of new ideas.

 I have met the challenges of hundreds of sceptics by verifying the
 accuracy of measuring their mineral status to their total satisfac-
 tion --- in other words EVERYONE INVOLVED is happy!
 If you were to cook a meal, would you worry over whether EVERYONE 
 in this world would find it to their liking, or only those that end 
 up eating it?
 Since I have financed every research project that I have undertaken 
 entirely myself, I don't need to follow any of your rules or guide-
 lines to satisfy any aspects of a grant application, which YOU may 
 have to; neither am I concerned of whether or not my study designs 
 meet your or anyone else's criteria or acceptance. 

GR>    Sorry Ron, if conviction were the ruler of truth, a flat Earth would
GR>  still be the center of the Universe and epilepsy a curse of the gods.
                         
 I think there would be more justification for an uneducated person
 growing up in an uncivilized environment to believe in a flat earth,
 than for a civilized, well educated and scientifically trained mind
 to follow the doctrine of evolution.
 Genetic engineering of course is now the final frontier to show God
 how it is (properly) done. Now we've become capable of creating our
 own paradise and give disease (and God) the boot, right?

 But just before we get rid of Him for good, perhaps He could leave us
 some pointers on how to solve a couple of tiny problems, such as war, 
 poverty, racism, crime, riots, substance abuse... And one last thing, 
 could He also give us a hint on how to control natural disasters, the
 weather, and last, but not least --- peace?

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228:  The Lab called: Your brain is ready.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58883
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

T(> Russell Turpin responds to article by Ron Roth:
T(>
T(> R> ... I don't doubt that the placebo effect is alive and well with
T(> R> EVERY medical modality - estimated by some to be around 20+%,
T(> R> but why would it be higher with alternative versus conventional 
T(> R> medicine?"
T(>  
T(>  How do you know that it is?  If you could show this by careful 
T(>  measurement, I suspect you would have a paper worthy of publication
T(>  in a variety of medical journals.  
T(>  
T(>  Russell 

 If you notice the question mark at the end of the sentence, I was
 addressing that very question to that person (who has a dog named
 sugar) and a few other people who seem to be of the same opinion.

 I would love to have anyone come up with a study to support their
 claims that the placebo effect is more prevalent with alternative
 compared to conventional medicine.
 Perhaps the study could also include how patients respond if they
 are dissatisfied with a conventional versus an alternative doctor,
 i.e. which practitioner is more likely to get punched in the face
 when the success of the treatment doesn't meet the expectations of 
 the patient!

  --Ron-- 
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: When in doubt, make it sound convincing!
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58884
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

-*----
Cross-posted and with followups directed to talk.politics.theory.

-*----
In article <79700@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
> but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
> which are the units of genetics.
>
> We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
> with harmful memes. ...

In other words, we should jail people who say the wrong 
things.  In this advocacy, we can see a truly ugly meme.
Does Mark Robert Thorson advocate jailing himself?

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58885
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

-*----
In article <1993Apr17.115716.19963@debbie.cc.nctu.edu.tw> mjliu@csie.nctu.edu.tw (Ming-zhou Liu) writes:
> I have bad luck and got a VD called <Granuloma ingunale>, which involves
> the growth of granules in the groin.  I found out about it by checking 
> medicine books and I found the prescriptions. ...

Ming-zhou Liu's main problem is that he has an incompetent
physician -- himself.  This physician has diagnosed a problem,
even though he probably has never seen the diagnosed disease
before and has no idea of what kinds of problems can present
similar symptoms.  This physician now wants to treat his first
case of this disease without any help from the medical community.

The best thing Ming-zhou Liu could do is fire his current
physician and seek out a better one.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58886
From: rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver)
Subject: Barbecued foods and health risk


Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
to know more. Thanks. 


 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58887
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

[reply to keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)]
 
>My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio
>Syndrome This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different
>symptons ( eg chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have
>any information on it
 
It would help if you (and anyone else asking for medical information on
some subject) could ask specific questions, as no one is likely to type
in a textbook chapter covering all aspects of the subject.  If you are
looking for a comprehensive review, ask your local hospital librarian.
Most are happy to help with a request of this sort.
 
Briefly, this is a condition in which patients who have significant
residual weakness from childhood polio notice progression of the
weakness as they get older.  One theory is that the remaining motor
neurons have to work harder and so die sooner.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58888
From: km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: How about a crash program in basic immunological research?

In article <93099.141148C09630GK@wuvmd.wustl.edu>, C09630GK@WUVMD (Gary Kronk) writes:
|> I have been contemplating this idea for some time as well. I am not a
|> doctor, but my wife is a nurse and I know a lot of doctors and nurses.
|> The point here being that doctors and nurses do not seem to get sick
|> nearly as much as people outside the medical profession.

This is a lovely area for anecdotes, but I am sure you are on to something.
As a physician, I almost never get sick: usually, when something horrendous
is going around, I either don't get it at all or get a very mild case.
When I do get really sick, it is always something unusual.

This was not the situation when I was in medical school, particularly on
pediatrics. I never had younger siblings myself, and when I went on the
pediatric wards I suddenly found myself confronting all sorts of infectious
challenges that my body was not ready for. Pediatrics for me was three solid
months of illness, and I had a temp of 104 when I took the final exam!

I think what happens is that during training, and beyond, we are constantly
exposed to new things, and we have the usual reactions to them, so that later
on, when challenged with something, it is more likely a re-exposure for us,
so we deal with it well and get a mild illness. I don't think it is that
the immune system is hyped up in any way. Also, don't forget that the
hospital flora is very different from the home, and we carry a lot of that
around.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58889
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>In article <C5Kv7p.JM3@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>>
>>In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>>What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
>>impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
>>even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
>>having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
>>petty hatreds.
>
>Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
>thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
>unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
>whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
>out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.

The danger in philosophizing about science is that theory and generalization 
can end up being far removed from the actual day-to-day of the grunt at the
bench.  Yes, its great to be involved in a process were I can walk into the
lab after a heavy night of dreaming and just do something for the hell of it
(as long as my advisor doesn't catch me - which is easy enough to do), but 
stamping out such behavior seems to be the purpose in life of grant review 
committees and the peer review process in general.  In today's world that's 
what determines what science is: what gets funded.  And a damn good thing to.
Flights of fantasy just don't have much chance of producing anything, at 
least not in biomedical research.  The surest way for a graduate student to
ruin their life is to work in a lab where the boss is more concerned with 
fleshing out his/her fantasies than with having the student work on a project
that actually has a good chance of producing some results.  MD's seem to 
be particularly prone to this aberrant behavior.  

>(Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
>electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
>he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
>genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
>binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
>that occurs about 500,000 times in the human genome.  Unfortunately for
>Warren's fantasy, it turns out to be a transposon that is present in
>so many copies because it replicates itself and copies itself back into
>the genome.  On the other hand, the characteristics of transposons were
>much elucidated; the necessity of a cellular reverse transcriptase was
>recognized; and the standard method of recognizing human DNA was created.
>Other species have different sets of transposons.  Fortunately for me,
>Warren and I used to eat dinner at T.G.I. Fridays all the time.)

I have to agree with Gary Merrill's response to this.  I've read alot of the
Alu and middle repetitive sequence work and it's really very interesting, 
good work with implications for many fields in molecular genetics.  It's 
really an example of how a well reasoned project turned up interesting 
results that were unexpected.

Mike



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58890
From: jeffp@vetmed.wsu.edu (Jeff Parke)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

kathleen richards (kilty@ucrengr) wrote:
> My nearly-13 year old Pomeranian had a nasty reaction to this vaccination.
> ...  Suffice it to say, we will not
> vaccinate her for Lyme disease again.  She's been camping through some 6
> states and has backpacked with us as well and we are used to watching for ticks
> and dealing with them and we simply won't take her to really active Lyme
> disease areas....

Not to drag this out anymore, but....

Many veterinarians feel that Lyme Disease in dogs is so easy to treat that
in an endemic area, they often just give the appropriate antibiotics to dogs
presenting with lameness, swollen joints, +/- fever.

A recent paper (March 1993) has finally established that Lyme disease in dogs
can be reproduced in a controlled experimentaly setting.  This has been
an ellusive matter for researchers, and is one of the fundamental requirements
for many to acknowledge an agent as being causitive of a particular disease.
Up to now, only the vaccine manufacturer has been able to "prove" that
the disease exists.

This paper is noteworthy in two other regards:

1) None of the animals they infected were treated in any way.  The dogs
had episodes of lameness during a 6-8 week period which occurred 2-5
months after exposure.  After this period, none showed any further
clinical signs up to the 17 month observation period of the study.  So
these are proven, clinically sick Lyme patients showing spontaneous
recovery without the benefit of drug treatment. Of course, observations
longer than 17 months will be necessary to be sure the disease doesn't
have the same chronicity that some see in humans.

2)  The addendum to the paper calls into question the techniques used by the
vaccine manufacturer to validate the vaccine.  Of course, they want
the world to use the model they developed in order to test vaccine
efficacy.

Anyway, maybe we will see some independent, scientifically sound evaluations
of this vaccine in the next year or so.

--
Jeff Parke <jeffp@pgavin1.vetmed.wsu.edu>
also:   jeffp@WSUVM1.bitnet    AOL: JeffParke
Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine class of 1994
Pullman, WA  99164-7012

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58891
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <19600@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> Keith is the only person I have ever heard of that keeps the weight
> off without any conscious effort to control eating behavior.  ... most
> of us have to diet a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.

I attribute my success to several factors:

Very low fat.  Except when someone else has cooked a meal for me,
I only eat fruit, vegetables, and whole grain or bran cereals.  I
estimate I only get about 5 to 10 percent of my calories from fat.

Very little sugar or salt.

Very high fiber.  Most Americans get about 10 grams.  25 to 35 are
recommended.  I get between 50 and 150.  Sometimes 200.  (I've heard
of people taking fiber pills.  It seems unlikely that pills can
contain enough fiber to make a difference.  It would be about as
likely as someone getting fat by popping fat pills.  Tablets are
just too small, unless you snarf down hundreds of them daily.)

My "clean your plate" conditioning works *for* me.  Eating the last
10% takes half my eating time, and gives satiety a chance to catch
up, so I don't still feel hungry and go start eating something else.

I don't eat when I'm not hungry (unless I'm sure I'll get hungry
shortly, and eating won't be practical then).

I bike to work, 22 miles a day, year round.  Fast.  I also bike to
stores, movies, and everywhere else, as I've never owned a car.
I estimate this burns about 1000 calories a day.  It also helps
build and maintain muscle mass, prevent insulin resistance (diabetes
runs in my family), and increase my metabolism.  (Even so, my
metabolism is so low that when I'm at rest I'm most comfortable
with a temperature in the 90s (F), and usually wear a sweater if
it drops to 80.)  Cycling also motivates me to avoid every excess
ounce.  (Cyclists routinely pay a premium for cycling products that
weigh slightly less than others.  But it's easier and cheaper to trim
weight from the rider than from the vehicle.)

There's no question in my mind that my metabolism is radically
different from that of most people who have never been fat.  Fortunately,
it isn't different in a way that precludes excellent health.

Obviously, I can't swear that every obese person who does what I've
done will have the success I did.  But I've never yet heard of one who
did try it and didn't succeed.

> I think all of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the
> fluctuations in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.

I'm sure everyone's weight cycles, whether or not they've ever been fat.
I usually eat extremely little salt.  When I do eat something salty,
my weight can increase overnight by as much as ten pounds.  It comes
off again over a week or two.
-- 
Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com

f p=2,3:2 s q=1 x "f f=3:2 q:f*f>p!'q  s q=p#f" w:q p,?$x\8+1*8

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58892
From: amigan@cup.portal.com (Mike - Medwid)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

Thanks to all who replied to my initial question.  I've been away in 
New Jersey all week and was surprised to see all the responses
when I got back.  

To the person asking about nicotine patches, there are four on the
market:

Habitrol - Ciba Pharmaceuticals
Nicoderm - Marion Merill Dow (Alza made)
Nicotrol - Warner Lambert (Cygnus made)
ProStep - Made by Elan and marketed by ??

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58893
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58894
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: What are the problems with Nutrasweet (Aspartame)?

Phenylketonuria is a disease in which the body cannot process phenylalanine.
It can build up in the blood and cause seizures and neurological damage.
An odd side effect is that the urine can be deeply colored, like red wine.
People with the condition must avoid Nutrasweet, chocolate, and anything
else rich in phenylalanine.

Aspartame is accused of having caused various vague neurological symptoms.
Pat Robertson's program _The_700_Club_ was beating the drum against
aspartame rather vigorously for about a year, but that issue seems to
have been pushed to the back burner for the last year or so.  Apparently,
the evidence is not very strong, or Pat would still be flailing away.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58895
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>most likely explanation for events.

You forgot the smiley-face.

I can't believe this is what they turn out at Berkeley.  Tell me
you're an aberration.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58896
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Blood Glucose test strips

In article <1993Apr12.151035.22555@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr11.192644.29219@clpd.kodak.com> young@serum.kodak.com writes:
>>
>>	Human glucose: 70 - 110 mg./dL. (fasting) [2]
>
>Are these numbers for whole blood, or plasma?

	Serum, actually, but plasma numbers are the same.  Whole blood
	numbers for humans tend to be somewhat lower (roughly 5 to 10 
	percent lower).  I find the following range for whole blood in
	FUNDAMENTALS OF CLINICAL CHEMISTRY: N. W. Teitz, editor; W. B.
	Saunders, 1987:

	Human glucose (whole blood, fasting levels) --> 60 - 95 mg./dL.

>Which are the strips calibrated for?  (Obviously they measure whole blood)

	Indeed, they do measure whole blood levels, although they are not
	as accurate as a serum test done in a laboratory.  One problem is
	that cells in the sample continue to metabolize glucose after the
	sample is drawn, reducing the apparent level.  According to Teitz,
	however, results compare "reasonably well" with laboratory results,
	although "values below 80 mg./dL. tend to be lower with strip tests,
	whereas values above 240 mg./dL. can be very erratic."

>What is the conversion factor between human plasma glucose and
>whole blood (pin prick) glucose concentration?

	As stated above, whole blood levels tend to be roughly 5 to 10 
	percent lower than serum levels.  Sample freshness will affect
	whole blood levels, however.  I don't believe there is a well-
	defined "conversion factor," since cell metabolism will affect
	samples to varying degrees.  The serum/plasma test is much 
	preferred for any except general "ball park" testing.


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58897
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.190447.8242@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca>
wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>
>>Maybe you missed it amidst the flurry of responses?
>
>You mean the responses some of which pointed to double-blind tests
>which show no such "chinese restaurant effect" unique to MSG
>(it's elicited by the placebo as well.)

Many people responded with more anecdotal stories; I think its safe to
say the original poster is already familiar with such stories.
Presumably, he wants hard info to substantiate or refute claims about
MSG making people ill. 

Similarly, debunking such claims without doing research (whether
literature and lab), is equally beside the point. The original poster
no doubt already knows that some people think 'Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome' is bogus.

Placebos are all very interesting, but irrelevant to the question of
what effects MSG has. You could have real effects *and* placebo
effects; people may have allergies in addition. 

>
>>Yet again, the use of this
>>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>>they have substantial knowledge of.
>
>Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
>come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
>do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?

Have you read Olney's work? I fail to see how citing results from
peer-reviewed studies qualifies as "bizarrely cracked".

>>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>>excitotoxic food additive,
>
>No, it's undisputed in the literature that glutamate is an amino acid
>which is an excitatory neurotransmitter.  There is also evidence that
>excessive release of glutamate may be involved in the pathology of certain
>conditions like stroke, drowning and Lou Gehrig's disease, just to name a few.
>This is a completely different issue than the use of this ubiquitous amino acid
>in foods.  People are not receiving intra-ventricular injections of glutamate.

Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
injection bunk.

>>Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown off.
>
>Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
>controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
>as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
>not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
>ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
>that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?

But, you're right, mice aren't the best to study this on. They're four
times less sensitive than humans to MSG.

>>Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>>encountered in a ny single food.
>
>Wrong.  Do you know how much aspartate or phenylalanine is in a soft drink?
>Milligrams worth.  Compare that to a glass of milk.  Do you know how much
>glutamate is present in most protein-containing foods compared to that
>added by the use of MSG?

The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.

Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.


>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>
>Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.

Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 

>
>Steve Dyer
>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?

- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58898
From: hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*)
Subject: re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

Phenylalanine is
nothing for you to worry about.  It is an amino acid, and everyone uses small
quantities of it for protein synthesis in the body.  Some people have a disease
known as phenylketoneurea, and they are missing the enzyme necessary to 
degrade this compound and eliminate it from the body.  For them, it will 
accumulate in the body, and in high levels this is toxic to growing nerve
cells.  Therefore, it is Only a major problem in young children (until around
age 10 or so) or women who are pregnant and have this disorder.  It used to
be a leading cause of brain damage in infants, but now it can be easily 
detected at birth, and then one must simply avoid comsumption of phenylalanine
as a child, or when pregnant.  

-heather

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58899
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <79727@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
>which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
>from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
>results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
>chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
>with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

Yeah, the "Feingold Diet" is a load of crap.  Children diagnosed with ADD
who are placed on this diet show no improvement in their intellectual and
social skills, which in fact continue to decline.  Of course, the parents
who are enthusiastic about this approach lap it up at the expense of their
children's development.  So much for the value of "interesting anecdotal
results".  People will believe anything if they want to.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58900
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5L9ws.Jn2@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com 
    (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu 
    (Mark Fulk) writes:
>
>|> Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
>|> thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
>|> unless they make you do some experiments.  ....
>|> 
>|> (Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
>|> electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, .....
>
>But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?
>While I am unfamiliar with the scientific context here, it appears obvious
>that his speculation (for lack of a better or more neutral word) was
>at least in significant part a consequence of his knowledge of and acceptance
>of current theory coupled with his observations.  It would appear that
>something quite rational was going on as he attempted to fit his observation
>into that theory (or to tailor the theory to cover the observation).  ...

Whether a scientific idea comes while one is staring out the window, or
dreaming, or having a fantasy,  or watching an apple fall (Newton), or
sitting in a bath (Archimedes) ... it is ultimately the result of a lot of
intense scientific thinking done beforehand.  Letting one's mind roam
freely and giving rein to one's intuition can be a useful way of coming
up with new ideas, but only when one has done a lot of rational analysis
of the problem first.  

Scientific intuition is not something one is born with.  It is something
that one learns.  Maybe we don't understand completely how it is learned,
but training in systematic scientific thinking is certainly one of the 
key elements in developing it.  

Informal exploration is also often an important element in finding new
scientific ideas.  One thinks, for instance, of Darwin's naturalistic
studies in the Galapagos islands, which led him to the ideas for the 
theory of evolution.  

This is why I am offended by a definition of science that emphasizes
empirical verification and does not recognize thinking and informal
exploration as important scientific work.  I agree that mere speculation
does not deserve to be called science.  I also think that mere empirical
studies not directed by good scientific thinking are at best a very
poor kind of science.  

In article <1qk92lINNl55@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu 
    (Russell Turpin) writes:
>    ...
>I think that Lee Lady and I are talking at cross purposes.
>  ... Lady seems concerned with the contrast between great
>science that makes big advances in our knowledge and mediocre
>science that makes smaller steps.  In most of this thread, I have
>been concerned with the difference between what is science and
>what is not. 

I don't think that science should be defined in a way that some of the
activities that lead to really important science --- namely thinking and
informal exploration --- are not recognized as scientific work.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58901
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Bursitis and laser treatment


My family doctor and the physiotherapist (PT) she sent me to agree that the
pain in my left shoulder is bursitis. I have an appointment with an orthpod
(I love that, it's short for 'orthopedic surgeon, apparently) but while I'm
waiting the PT is treating me.

She's using hot packs, ultrasound, and lasers, but there's no improvement
yet. In fact, I almost suspect it's getting worse.

My real question is about the laser treatment. I can't easily imagine what
the physical effect that could have on a deep tissue problem. Can anyone
shed some light (so to speak) on the matter?
-- 
Robert Allison
Ottawa, Ontario CANADA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58902
From: dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>>most likely explanation for events.

>You forgot the smiley-face.

>I can't believe this is what they turn out at Berkeley.  Tell me
>you're an aberration.

>-- 
>Steve Dyer
>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
 
HEY, KEEP YOUR FU---NG FLAMING OUT OF THIS GROUP- THAT GOES FOR YOU, MR.
DYER, AS WELL AS SEVERAL OTHER NASTY, SARCASTIC PEOPLE, REGARDING THIS
SUBJECT.  Shoot, now I'm all riled up, too, and I was just going to ask if
we can keep our discussion about MSG a little more civil; blasting a school
or an idea through simple insults as demonstrated above is not necessary,
and otherwise out of line.  If you want to continue your insult war, take
it elsewhere and stop wasting everyone else's time.
Most sincerely,
	Dan Checkman

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58903
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Frequent nosebleeds


I have between 15 and 25 nosebleeds each week, as a result of a genetic
predisposition to weak capillary walls (Osler-Weber-Rendu). Fortunately,
each nosebleed is of short duration.

Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger brothers
each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their nosebleeds
soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin that is
supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, or other
techniques.
-- 
Robert Allison
Ottawa, Ontario CANADA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58904
From: brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <19613@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> In article <1993Apr7.221357.12533@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu> brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner) writes:
> >> see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
> >> those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
> >> There is a lot of money involved.
> >
> >	You keep bringing this up. But I don't understand what's in it
> >financially for the physician to go ahead and treat. Unless the physician
> >has an investment in (or is involved in some kickback scheme with) the
> >home infusion company, where is the financial gain for the doctor?
> 
> Well, let me put it this way, based on my own experience.  A
> general practitioner with no training in infectious diseases,
> by establishing links to the "Lyme community", treating patients
> who come to him wondering about lyme or having decided they
> have lyme as if they did, saying that diseases such as MS
> are probably spirochetal, if not Lyme, giving talks at meetings
> of users groups, validating the feelings of even delusional
> patients, etc.  This GP can go from being a run-of-the-mill
> $100K/yr GP to someone with lots of patients in the hospital
> and getting expensive infusions that need monitoring in his
> office, and making lots of bread.  Also getting the adulation
> of many who believe his is their only hope (if not of cure,
> then of control) and seeing his name in publications put out
> by support groups, etc.  This is a definite temptation.

	Harumph. Getting published in these newsletters is hardly something
to aspire to. :-)
	I can't really argue with your logic, though I think you may be
extrapolating a bit recklessly from what appears to be a sample size of
one. Even if what you say about this local Pittsburgh guy is true, it is
not logical or fair to conclude that this is true of all doctors who
treat Lyme disease.
	By your logic, I could conclude that all of the physicians who
consult for insurance companies and make money by denying benefits to
Lyme patients are doing it for the money, rather than because they believe
they are encouraging good medicine. I have no idea how sincere these guys
are, but their motives are as suspect as the physicians you excoriate for
what you believe to be indiscriminate treatment.
	I would really feel more comfortable discussing the medical issues
in Lyme, rather than speculating as to the motives of the various parties
involved.

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
> geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carl Brenner


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58905
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Transplant Recipients Newsletter, April `93[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[DInternational Newsletter, April `93

This will be the first of monthly postings of the newsletter of 
the Long Island Chapter of the Transplant Recipients 
International Organization (TRIO).  Unfortunately, I was unable 
to post it before the date of this month's meeting.  I'm 
posting it anyway, and posting it world-wide instead of 
regional, in the hopes that some of the information may be 
useful or illustrative.  Also, I hope it can be used as an 
example and inspiration for the posting of other newsletters 
and data related to organ transplantation and donation.  

Mike

Transplant Recipients
International Organization
Long Island Chapter
P.O. Box 922
Huntington, NY 11743-0922		 NEWSLETTER
516/421-3258
                                         APRIL 1993 
                                         VOLUME IV   No. 8


NEXT MEETING


The next meeting is WEDNESDAY APRIL 14 at 8 pm at the Knights 
of Columbus Emerald Manor, 517 Uniondale Avenue in Uniondale.  
Our guest speaker will be Dr. Lewis Teperman.  Dr. Teperman 
trained in Pittsburgh under Dr. Starzl and is now the Assistant 
Director of the Liver Transplant Program at New York University 
Medical Center.  Dr. Teperman will discuss current trends in 
transplantation and treatment and will answer questions.  He is 
a long time friend of TRIO, surgeon to many of our members, and 
always a gracious and delightful guest.   It is sure to be a 
very informative, interesting and engaging evening.  Our 
hospitality committee,  Bette and Vito Suglia and Jim Spence 
will be well prepared, and at last the weather should be 
cooperative. We hope to see a very large gathering to welcome 
Dr. Teperman. 

          WEDNESDAY    APRIL 14  K of C   UNIONDALE


LAST MEETING

It has been noted here before that the Long Island Chapter of 
TRIO has extraordinary power in predicting bad weather, being 
able to forecast rain, sleet and snow fully a month in advance.  
No TV weatherman can match us. This time we not only scored 
again, but we were also able to disable the Long Island 
Railroad, making travel REALLY difficult.  None the less, many 
braved the snow and we had an interesting meeting and good 
conversation.  Our scheduled speaker, Mrs. Elizabeth Linnehan, 
a professional nutritionist, had a family emergency and was not 
able to attend.  She hope she will be with us in the fall to 
discuss diet and medications.  However,  Ms. Jennifer Friedman, 
an image consultant and sister of a liver transplant recipient 
was kind enough to step in on very short notice.  Ms. Friedman 
gave us a lot of good advice about choosing clothes and makeup, 
(even a bit for men) to help us look well and healthy and to 
minimize some of the cosmetic effects of some of the medicine 
and drugs we take.  We are most grateful to Jennifer and thank 
her for an entertaining evening.



ANNUAL MEETING

In addition to welcoming Dr. Teperman, the April meeting is 
also the Annual meeting of the Chapter.  This is the official 
notice of the meeting as required by our By-Laws. The main 
purpose of the meeting is to review the past year, solicit 
member views and ideas for better ways to meet their needs, and 
to elect members of the Board of Directors for the coming two 
year term.  The nominating committee has prepared the following 
slate for the Board.

         Anne (Liver Recipient) and Don Treffeisen
         Robert (Heart Recipient) and Eulene Smith
         Vito (Kidney Recipient) and Bette Suglia
         Kay Grenzig (Liver Recipient)
         Jan Schichtel (Kidney Recipient)
         Larry Juliano (Kidney Recipient)
         David Bekofsky (Director Public Education LITP)

Those remaining on the Board for another year are:

         Robert Carroll (Liver, Kidney & Pancreas Recipient)
         Jerry (Kidney Recipient) and Jeanne Eichhorn
         Ron (Kidney Donor) and Marie Healy
         Peter Smith (Bone Marrow Recipient)
         Patricia Ann Yankus (Kidney and Pancreas Recipient)
         Walter Ruzak (Kidney Recipient)

This may seem to be a big Board, but many hands make light work 
and with our various medical uncertainties, it is good to have 
backups for all the jobs on the Board.  Therefore, in addition 
to the slate being presented for voting, nominations will also 
be accepted from the floor.  There is no set number of Board 
members and there is plenty of work. 

In addition,  brief treasurer's and membership reports will be 
given and the floor will be open for any new business, 
suggestions, or comments anyone would like to bring up.

We will keep the formal meeting short so that we can spend the 
majority of the time with Dr. Teperman.

FUTURE MEETINGS

Remember the scheduled guests for the rest of the year.  

     May  12      Dr. Peter Shaprio, Chief of Psychiatry
                  Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center

     June  9      Dr. Felix Rappaport, Director of the Stony 
                  Brook Kidney Transplant Program. 

Plan on being with us the second Wednesday of each month.

NOTDAW

The week of April 18-24 is National Organ and Tissue Donor 
Awareness Week. NOTDAW. While we are planning news releases, 
speaking engagements and meetings with Supervisors Gullata and 
Gaffney, we have decided not to have our softball game   
because of two year's experience with miserable weather. 

We all can help spread the word on donor awareness, however. We 
have found it effective to ask your pastor, or rabbi to publish 
a letter or announcement in the parish bulletin, allow you to 
address the congregation, or include mention of the gift of 
life in his sermon.  Attached to this Newsletter is a sample 
letter and fact sheet you can use.   Thank you.

DR. STARZL TO BE HONORED 

The Long Island Chapter of the American Liver Foundation will 
hold its annual Auction and Dinner Dance on May 7th at the 
Fountainbleu  on Jericho Turnpike in Jericho.  Dr. Thomas 
Starzl will be the honored guest.  Tickets are $50 person and 
are going fast.  If you'd like to meet Dr. Starzl,  call Anne 
Treffeisen at (516) 421-3258 for details.

MEMBERSHIP NEWS 

Congratulations to Al Reese.  Al received his heart transplant 
in Pittsburgh after waiting 3 1/2 years.  He is home and doing 
well after only 12 days in hospital.

Arthur Michaels, liver recipient, is planning to run the Boston 
Marathon in April. What fantastic proof that transplantation 
works!  We hope the national press notices. 
     
Bob McCormack, after a persistent bout with infection, had his 
transplanted kidney removed.  He is home now, back on dialysis 
and feeling better.  

Nicole Healy, kidney recipient and daughter of Ron and Marie, 
spent the past several weeks in hospital in Miami with problems 
encountered on vacation.  Marie has been with her in Florida.  
They are back in New York where Nicole's treatment will 
continue.  We wish Nicole a speedy recovery. 

Kay Grenzig, liver recipient, is mending now after a bad fall 
that resulted in a broken arm and a broken leg. Kay is a 
candidate for the Board so we need her well soon.
 
And best wishes to all coming out of the flu. It was a tough 
winter for many, but the tulips are just under the snow.

SEE YOU......WEDNESDAY   APRIL 14  8 PM   K of C UNIONDALE            
                   DR. LEWIS TEPERMAN








Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58906
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

In article <1993Apr17.181013.3743@uvm.edu> hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

Aspartame is the methyl ester of a dipeptide, so a product of its
hydrolysis is going to be methanol, which can then be oxidized to
formaldehyde.  The amounts of methanol formed from the ingestion of
aspartame-containing foods are completely in the metabolic noise,
since you're forming equally minute amounts of methanol from other
components of food all the time.  In studies involving administration
of high doses of the additive, blood methanol levels were undetectable.
Methanol is a poison only in quantities seen in human poisonings,
say 5ml and above.  This is a consequence of its oxidation to formaldehyde
and formic acid, two quite reactive compounds which at high enough levels
can damage tissues like the retina and kidney, because at such high doses
the body's detoxification system is overwhelmed.  Interestingly, one
treatment for early methanol poisoning is to get the person drunk on
ethyl alcohol--vodka or an equivalent.  That's because ethanol is
metabolized preferentially over methanol by the enzymes in the liver.
If the methanol stays as methanol and isn't metabolized to formaldehyde,
it is actually relatively non-toxic.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58907
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr17.184435.19725@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>Many people responded with more anecdotal stories; I think its safe to
>say the original poster is already familiar with such stories.
>Presumably, he wants hard info to substantiate or refute claims about
>MSG making people ill. 

There has been NO hard info provided about MSG making people ill.
That's the point, after all.

>>Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
>>come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
>>do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?
>Have you read Olney's work? I fail to see how citing results from
>peer-reviewed studies qualifies as "bizarrely cracked".

That's because these "peer-reviewed" studies are not addressing
the effects of MSG in people, they're looking at animal models.
You can't walk away from this and start ranting about gloom and
doom as if there were any documented deleterious health effects
demonstrated in humans.  Note that I wouldn't have any argument
with a statement like "noting that animal administration has pro-
duced the following [blah, blah], we must be careful about its
use in humans."  This is precisely NOT what you said.

>Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
>study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
>and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
>Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
>for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
>that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
>injection bunk.

It most certainly is for neurotoxicology.  You know, studies of
glutamate involve more than "food science".

>Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
>journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?

So, point us to the studies in humans, please.  I'm familiar with
the literature, and I've never seen any which relate at all to
Olney's work in animals and the effects of glutamate on neurons.

>The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
>Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.

Well, actually, they HAVE to tolerate some phenylalanine; it's a
essential amino acid.  They just try to get as little as is healthy
without producing dangerous levels of phenylalanine and its metabolites
in the blood.

>Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
>of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
>vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
>soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
>for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
>foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.

Goodness, I'm not saying that it's good to feed infants a lot of
glutamate-supplemented foods.  It's just that this "projected safety
margin" is a construct derived from animal models and given that,
you can "prove" anything you like.  We're talking prudent policy in
infant nutrition here, yet you're misrepresenting it as received wisdom.

>>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>>
>>Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.
>
>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 

You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.

>>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com 
>Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?
>- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca

Probably one of the dumber remarks you've made.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58908
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <1993Apr17.195202.28921@freenet.carleton.ca> ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:
>Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger brothers
>each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their nosebleeds
>soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin that is
>supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, or other
>techniques.

Rutin is a bioflavonoid, compounds found (among other places) in the
rinds of citrus fruits.  These have been popular, especially in Europe,
to treat "capillary fragility", and seemingly in even more extreme cases--
a few months ago, a friend was visiting from Italy, and he said that he'd
had hemorrhoids, but his pharmacist friend sold him some pills.  Incredulously,
I asked to look at them, and sure enough these contained rutin as the active
ingredient.  I probably destroyed the placebo effect from my skeptical
sputtering.  I have no idea how he's doing hemorrhoid-wise these days.
The studies which attempted to look at the effect of these compounds in
human disease and nutrition were never very well controlled, so the
reports of positive results with them is mostly anecdotal.

This stuff is pretty much non-toxic, and probably inexpensive, so there's
little risk of trying it, but I wouldn't expect much of a result.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58909
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>Superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?
>>
 
As a person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!

Somebody in the industry GIVE ME SOME REASONS WHY!  

IS IT AN INDUSTRIAL BYPRODUCT THAT NEEDS GETTING GET RID OF?

IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD OR THE FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?

DO SOME OF YOU GET A SADISTIC PLEASURE OUT OF MAKING SOME OF US SICK?

DO THE TASTE TESTERS HAVE SOME DEFECT IN THEIR FLAVOR SENSORS (MOUTH etc...)
  THAT MSG CORRECTS?

I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!

ALSO ... Nitrosiamines (sp) and sulfites...   Why them?  There are
 safer ways to preserve food, wines, and beers!

I think 
1) outlaw the use of these substances without warning labels as
large as those on cig. packages.
2) Require 30% of comparable products on the market to be free of these
substances and state that they are free of MSG, DYES, NITROSIAMINES and SULFITES on the package.
3) While at it outlaw yellow dye #5.  For that matter why dye food?  
4) Take the dyes and flavorings out of vitamins.  (In my OSCO only Stress
Tabs (tm) didn't have yellow dye #5)  { My doctor says Yellow Dye #5 is
responsible for 1/2 of all nasal polyps !!! }

KEEP FOOD FOOD!  QUIT PUTTING IN JUNK!

JUST MY TWO CENTS WORTH.

Sig:  A person tired of getting sick from this junk!

-- 
Walter Lundby



-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58910
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <lsu7q7INNia5@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*----
>I agree with everything that Lee Lady wrote in her previous post in
>this thread.  

Gee!  Maybe I've misjudged you, Russell.  Anyone who agrees with something 
I say can't be all bad.  ;-)

Seriously, I'm not sure whether I misjudged you or not, in one respect.  
I still have a major problem, though, with your insistence that science 
is mainly about avoiding mistakes.  And I still disagree with your 
contention that nobody who doesn't use methods deemed "scientific" 
can possibly know what's true and what's not.  

>  [Deleted material which I agree with.]  
>
>Back to Lee Lady:
>
>> These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
>> sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
>> carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."
>
>These posters are making the mistake that I have previously
>criticized of adhering to a methodological recipe.  A "carefully ...
>     ....  
>Rules such as "support the hypothesis by a carefully designed and
>controlled study" are too narrow to apply to *all* investigation.
>I think that the requirements for particular reasoning to be
>convincing depends greatly on the kinds of mistakes that have
>occurred in past reasoning about the same kinds of things.  (To
>reuse the previous example, we know that conclusions from
>uncontrolled observations of the treatment of chronic medical
>problems are notoriously problematic.)  

Okay, so let's see if we agree on this: FIRST of all, there are degrees 
of certainty.  It might be appropriate, for instance, to demand carefully 
controlled trials before we accept as absolute scientific truth (to the 
extent that there is any such thing) the effectiveness of a certain 
treatment. On the other hand, highly favorable clinical experience, even 
if uncontrolled, can be adequate to justify a *preliminary* judgement that
a treatment is useful.  This is often the best evidence we can hope for
from investigators who do not have institutional or corporate support.
In this case, it makes sense to tentatively treat claims as credible
but to reserve final judgement until establishment scientists who are
qualified and have the necessary resources can do more careful testing.

SECONDLY, it makes sense to be more tolerant in our standards of 
evidence for a pronounced effect than for one that is marginal.  


I come to this dispute about what science is  not only as a
mathematician but as a veteran of many arguments in sci.psychology (and
occasionally in sci.med) about NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming).  Much
of the work done to date by NLPers can be better categorized as
informal exploration than as careful scientific research.  For years
now I have been trying to get scientific and clinical psychologists to
just take a look at it, to read a few of the books and watch some of
the videotapes (courtesy of your local university library).  Not for
the purpose of making a definitive judgement, but simply to look at the
NLP methodology (especially the approach to eliciting information from
subjects) and look for ideas and hypotheses which might be of
scientific interest.  And most especially to be aware of the
*questions* NLP suggests which might be worthy of scientific
investigation.

Over and over again the response I get in sci.pychology is  "If this
hasn't been thoroughly validated by the accepted form of empirical
research then it can't be of any interest to us."  

To me, the ultimate reducio ad absurdum of the extreme "There've got to
be controlled studies" position is an NLP technique called the Fast
Phobia/Trauma Cure.

Simple phobias (as opposed to agoraphobia) may not be the world's most 
important psychological disorder, but the nice thing about them is that 
it doesn't take a sophisticated instrument to diagnose them or tell 
when someone is cured of one.  The NLP phobia cure is a simple 
visualization which requires less than 15 minutes.  (NLPers claim that
it can also be used to neutralize a traumatic memory, and hence is
useful in treating Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome.)  It is essentially
a variation on the classic desensitization process used by behavioral
therapists.  A subject only needs to be taken through the technique once
(or, in the case of PTSD, once for each traumatic incident).  The
process doesn't need to be repeated and the subject doesn't need to
practice it over again at home.

Now to me, it seems pretty easy to test the effectiveness of this cure. 
(Especially if, as NLPers claim, the success rate is extremely high.)  
Take someone with a fear of heights (as I used to have).  Take them up 
to a balcony on the 20th floor and observe their response.  Spend 15 
minutes to have them do the simple visualization.  Send them back up to 
the balcony and see if things have changed.  Check back with them in a 
few weeks to see if the cure seems to be lasting.  (More long term 
follow-up is certainly desirable, but from a scientific point of view 
even a cure that lasts several weeks has significance.  In any case, 
there are many known cases where the cure has lasted years.  To the best 
of my knowledge, there is no known case where the cure has been reversed 
after holding for a few weeks.)  (My own cure, incidentally, was done
with a slightly different NLP technique, before I learned of the Fast 
Phobia/Trauma Cure.  Ten years later now, I enjoy living on the 17th
floor of my building and having a large balcony.)  

The folks over in sci.psychology have a hundred and one excuses not to
make this simple test.  They claim that only an elaborate outcome study
will be satisfactory --- a study of the sort that NLP practitioners, 
many of whom make a barely marginal living from their practice, can ill 
afford to do.  (Most of them are also just plain not interested, because 
the whole idea seems frivolous.  And since they're not part of the
scientific establishment, they have no tangible rewards to gain 
from scientific acceptance.) 

The Fast Phobia/Trauma Cure is over ten years old now and the clinical 
psychology establishment is still saying "We don't have any way of 
knowing that it's effective."  

These academics themselves have the resources to do a study as elaborate 
as anyone could want, of course, but they say  "Why should I prove your 
theory?"  and  "The burden of proof is on the one making the claim."  
One academic in sci.psychology said that it would be completely 
unscientific for him to test the phobia cure since it hasn't 
been described in a scientific journal.  (It's described in a number of 
books and I've posted articles in sci.psychology describing it in as much 
detail as I'm capable of.)  

Actually, at least one fairly careful academic study has been done (with 
favorable results), but it's apparently not acceptable because it's a
doctoral dissertation and not published in a refereed journal.

To me, this sort of attitude does not advance science but hinders it.  
This is the kind of thing I have in mind when I talk about "doctrinnaire" 
attitudes about science.  

Now maybe I have been unfair in imputing such attitudes to you, Russell.  
If so, I apologize. 
 
--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58911
From: steveo@world.std.com (Steven W Orr)
Subject: Need to find information about current trends in diabetes.


I looked for diab in my .newsrc and came up with nuthin. Anyone have
any good sources for where I can read? In particular, I'm interested
in finding out more about intravenous insulin injection for hepatic
vein liver activation. (Whew! Wotta mouthful!)

Anything that smells like a pointer would be helpful: newsgroup,
mailinglist, etc....

Many thanks.

-- 
----------Time flies like the wind. Fruit flies like bananas.------------------
Steven W. Orr      steveo@world.std.com     uunet!world!steveo
----------Everybody repeat after me: "We are all individuals."-----------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58912
From: Mark W. Dubin
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:


>Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
>associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
>are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
>of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
>the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
>to know more. Thanks. 

I recall that the issue is that fat on the meat liquifies and then
drips down onto the hot elements--whatever they are--that the extreme
heat then catalyzes something in the fat into one or more
carcinogens which then are carried back up onto the meat in the smoke.

--the ol' professor

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58913
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

This reminds me of the last Graham Kerr cooking show I saw.  Today he
smoked meat on the stovetop in a big pot!  He used a strange technique
I'd never seen before.

He took a big pot with lid, and placed a tray in it made from aluminum foil.
The tray was about the size and shape of a typical coffee-table ash tray,
made by crumpling a sheet of foil around the edges.

In the tray, he placed a couple spoonfuls of brown sugar, a similar
quantity of brown rice (he said any rice will do), the contents of two
teabags of Earl Grey tea, and a few cloves.

On top of this was placed an ordinary aluminum basket-type steamer, with
two chicken breasts in it.  The lid was put on, and the whole assembly
went on the stovetop at high heat for 10 or 12 minutes.

Later, he removed what looked like smoked chicken breasts.  What surprises
and concerns me are:

1)  No wood chips.  Where does the smoke flavor come from?

2)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember hearing that carmel color
    (obtained by caramelizing sugar -- a common coloring and flavoring
    agent) had been found to be carcinogenic.  I believe they injected
    it under the skin of rats, or something.  If the results were conclusive,
    caramel color would not be legal in the U.S., yet it is still being
    used.  Was the initial research result found to be incorrect, or what?

3)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember Earl Grey tea being implicated
    as carcinogenic, because it contains oil of bergamot (an extract
    from the skin of a type of citrus fruit).  Does anyone know whatever
    happened with that story?  If it were carcinogenic, Earl Grey tea
    could not have it as an additive, yet it apparently continues to do
    so.

WRT natural wood smoke (I've smoking a duck right now, as it happens),
I've noticed that a heavily-smoked food item will have an unpleasant tangy
taste when eaten directly out of the smoker if the smoke has only recently
stopped flowing.  I find the best taste to be had by using dry wood chips,
getting lots of smoke right up at the beginning of the cooking process,
then slowly barbequing for hours and hours without adding additional wood chips.

My theory is that the unpleasant tangy molecules are low-molecular weight
stuff, like terpenes, and that the smoky flavor molecules are some sort
of larger molecule more similar to tar.  The long barbeque time after
the initial intensive smoke drives off the low-molecular weight stuff,
just leaving the flavor behind.  Does anyone know if my theory is correct?

I also remember hearing that the combustion products of fat dripping
on the charcoal and burning are carcinogenic.  For that reason, and because
it covers the product with soot and some unpleasant tanginess, I only grill
non-drippy meats like prawns directly over hot coals.  I do stuff like this
duck by indirect heat.  I have a long rectangular Weber, and I put the coals
at one end and the meat at the other end.  The fat drops directly on the
floor below the meat, and next time I use the barbeque I make the fire
in that end to burn off the fat and help ignite the coals.

And yet another reason I've heard not to smoke or barbeque meat is that
smoked cured meat, like pork sausage and bacon, contains
nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.  I'm pretty sure this claim actually
has some standing, don't know about the others.

An amusing incident I recall was the Duncan Hines scandal, when it was
discovered that the people who make Duncan Hines cake mix were putting
a lot of ethylene dibromide (EDB) into the cake mix to suppress weevils.
This is a fumigant which is known to be carcinogenic.
The guy who represented the company in the press conference defended
himself by saying that the risk from eating Duncan Hines products every day
for a year would be equal to the cancer risk from eating two charcoal-
broiled steaks.  What a great analogy!  When I first heard that, my
immediate reaction was we should make that a standard unit!  One charcoal
broiled steak would be equivalent to 0.5 Duncans!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58914
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "Brain abscess" definition needed

In article <1993Apr8.123213.1@tardis.mdcorp.ksc.nasa.gov> fresa@tardis.mdcorp.ksc.nasa.gov writes:
>Could someone please define a "brain abscess" for me? A relative has one near
>his cerebellum.


A brain abscess is an infection deep in the brain substance.  It is
hard to cure with antibiotics, since it gets walled off, and usually,
it needs surgical drainage.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58915
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA

>From: anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello)
>Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
>dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
>other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood

Blood glucose levels of 40 or so are common several hours after a
big meal.  This level will usually not cause symptoms.

>test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
>glycemic?

If you mean "reactive" hypoglycemia, there are usually no symptoms,
hence there is no disease, hence the dietary recommendations are the
same as for anyone else.  If a patient complains of dizziness,
faintness, sweating, palpitations, etc. reliably several hours after
a big meal, the recommendations are obvious - eat smaller meals.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                             

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58916
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

ML> From: libman@hsc.usc.edu (Marlena Libman)
ML> I need advice with a situation which occurred between me and a physican
ML> which upset me.

ML> My questions: (1) Should I continue to have this doctor manage my care?

That's easy:  No.  You wouldn't take your computer into a repair
shop where they were rude to you, even if they were competent in
their business.  Why would you take your own body into a "repair
shop" where the "repairman" has such a bad attitude?
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                              

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58917
From: slyx0@cc.usu.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 
> 
> You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
> plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
> have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
> for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
> whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
> studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
> reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
> of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
> inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.


Okay Mr. Dyer, we're properly impressed with your philosophical skills and
ability to insult people. You're a wonderful speaker and an adept politician.
However, I believe that all you were asked to do, was simply provide scientific
research refuting the work of Olney. I don't think the original poster sought
to start a philisophical debate. she wanted some information. Given a little
effort one could justify that shooting oneself with a .45 before breakfast is a
healthy practice. But we're not particularily interested in what you can
verbally prove/disprove or rationalize. Where's the research? Where are the
studies?

I appoligize if this sounds flamish. I simply would like to see the thread get
back on track. 


Lone Wolf

                                      Happy are they who dream dreams,
Ed Philips                            And pay the price to see them come true.
slyx0@cc.usu.edu                                              
                                                              -unknown

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58918
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <dubin.735083450@spot.Colorado.EDU> dubin@spot.colorado.edu writes:

>
>I recall that the issue is that fat on the meat liquifies and then
>drips down onto the hot elements--whatever they are--that the extreme
>heat then catalyzes something in the fat into one or more
>carcinogens which then are carried back up onto the meat in the smoke.
>
 

Hmmm. Care to be more vague?


=======================================
Howard  Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58919
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sleeping Pill OD

In article <1993Apr9.051039.715@scott.skidmore.edu> dfederma@scott.skidmore.edu (daniel federman) writes:
>
>A friend of mine took appoximately 60 CVS sleeping pills, each
>containing 25mg of diphenhydramine, I think.  That's 1500 mg, total.

>	I'm worried, though, about the long-term effects.  Since he
>never had his stomach pumped, will he have liver or brain damage?  Any
>information would be greatly appreciated.

Shouldn't have.  But he may need to see the shrink about why he
wanted to kill himself.  Depressed people can be succesfully treated
usually.





-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58920
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: request for information on "essential tremor" and Indrol?

In article <1q1tbnINNnfn@life.ai.mit.edu> sundar@ai.mit.edu writes:

Essential tremor is a progressive hereditary tremor that gets worse
when the patient tries to use the effected member.  All limbs, vocal
cords, and head can be involved.  Inderal is a beta-blocker and
is usually effective in diminishing the tremor.  Alcohol and mysoline
are also effective, but alcohol is too toxic to use as a treatment.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58921
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:

>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

>Phenylalanine is
>nothing for you to worry about.  It is an amino acid, and everyone uses small
>quantities of it for protein synthesis in the body.  Some people have a disease
>known as phenylketoneurea, and they are missing the enzyme necessary to 
>degrade this compound and eliminate it from the body.  For them, it will 
>accumulate in the body, and in high levels this is toxic to growing nerve
>cells.  Therefore, it is Only a major problem in young children (until around
>age 10 or so) or women who are pregnant and have this disorder.  It used to
>be a leading cause of brain damage in infants, but now it can be easily 
>detected at birth, and then one must simply avoid comsumption of phenylalanine
>as a child, or when pregnant.  

>-heather

If I remember rightly PKU syndrome in infants is about 1/1200 ? They lack
two genes. And people who lack one gene are supposed to be 1/56 persons?
Those with PKU have to avoid naturally occuring phenylalanine. And those
who only have one gene and underproduce whatever it is they are supposed to
be producing are supposed to be less tolerant of aspartame. 

The methol, formaldahyde thing was supposed to occur with heating?

I don't drink it. I figure sugar was made for a reason. To quickly and
easily satiate hungry people. If you don't need the calories it's just as
easy to drink water.  Used to drink a six pack a aday of aspartame soda. Don't
even drink one coke a day when sugared.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58922
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: NIH offers "Exploratory Grants For Alternative Medicine"

In article <1993Apr9.172945.4578@island.COM> green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein) writes:
>In article <19493@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>One problem is very few scientists are interested in alternative medicine.
>
>So Gordon, why do you think this is so?
>-- 

Probably because most of them come packaged with some absurd theory
behind them.  E.G. homoeopathy: like cures like.  The more you dilute
things, the more powerful they get, even if you dilute them so much
there is no ingredient but water left.  Chiropractic: all illness
stems from compressions of nerves by misaligned vertebrae.  Such
systems are so patently absurd, that any good they do is accidental
and not related to the theory.  The only exception is probably herbalism,
because scientists recognize the potent drugs that derive from plants
and are always interested in seeing if they can find new plants
that have active and useful substances.  But that isn't what 
is meant by alternative medicine, usually.  If you get into the Qi,
accupuntunce charts, etc, you are now back to silly theories that
probably have nothing to do with why accupuncture works in some cases.

Perhaps another reason they are reluctant is the Rhine experience.
Rhine was a scientist who wanted to investigate the paranormal
and his lab was filled with so much chacanery and fakery that 
people don't want to be associated with that sort of thing.  
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58923
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Dislocated Shoulder

In article <1993Apr9.181944.5353@e2big.mko.dec.com> steve@caboom.cbm.dec.com (Steve Katz) writes:
>
>Recently I managed to dislocate my shoulder while
>sking.  The injury also seems to have damaged the nerves
>in my arm.  I was wondering if someone could point me towards
>some literature that would give me some background into
>these types of injuries.  Please respond by EMAIL if possible.
>

Your medical school library should have books on peripheral nerve
injuries.  Probably it was your brachial plexus, so look that up.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58924
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1q6rie$mo2@access.digex.net> kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch) writes:

>So, why are the scans so expensive, and what can be done to reduce the
>expense?  Isn't it just a box with some big magnets, a radio transmitter,
>and an attached PC?

The magnets are huge!  Good MRI sets with big (>1.5 Tesla) magnets
cost millions of dollars.  Then, the radiologist wants $400 for
reading each scan.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58925
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Helium non-renewable??  (was: Too many MRIs?)

In article <lsj1gdINNkor@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*----
>How does the helium get consumed?  I would have thought that failure
>to contain it perfectly would result in its evaporation .. back into 
>the atmosphere.  Sounds like a cycle to me.  Obviously, it takes 
>energy to run the cycle, but I seriously doubt that helium consumption
>is a resource issue.
>
It's not a cycle.  Free helium will escape from the atmosphere due to
its high velocity.  It won't be practical to recover it.  It has
to be mined.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58926
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: Need to find information about current trends in diabetes.

In <C5nF2r.KpJ@world.std.com> steveo@world.std.com (Steven W Orr) writes:

>I looked for diab in my .newsrc and came up with nuthin. Anyone have
>any good sources for where I can read?

Check out the DIABETIC mailing list -- a knowledgable, helpful, friendly,
voluminous bunch.  Send email to LISTSERV@PCCVM.BITNET, with this line
in the body:

SUBSCRIBE DIABETIC <your name here>

Also, the vote for misc.health.diabetes, a newsgroup for general discussion
of diabetes, is currently underway, and will close on 29 April.  From the
2nd CFV, posted to news.announce.newgroups, news.groups, and sci.med,
message <1q1jshINN4v1@rodan.UU.NET>:

>To place a vote FOR the creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
>email message to yes@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>To place a vote AGAINST creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
>email message to no@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>The contents of the message should contain the line "I vote
>for/against misc.health.diabetes as proposed".  Email messages sent to
>the above addresses must constitute unambiguous and unconditional
>votes for/against newsgroup creation as proposed.  Conditional votes
>will not be accepted.  Only votes emailed to the above addresses will
>be counted; mailed replies to this posting will be returned.  In the
>event that more than one vote is placed by an individual, only the
>most recent vote will be counted.  One additional CFV will be posted
>during the course of the vote, along with an acknowledgment of those
>votes received to date.  No information will be supplied as to how
>people are voting until the final acknowledgment is made at the end,
>at which time the full vote will be made public.
>
>Voting will continue until 23:59 GMT, 29 Apr 93.
>Votes will not be accepted after this date.
>
>Any administrative inquiries pertaining to this CFV may be made by
>email to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>The proposed charter appears below.
>
>--------------------------
>
>Charter:  
>
>misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
>
>1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
>discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
>activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
>medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
>management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
>dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
>discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
>
>2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
>purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
>Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
>by a primary health care physician.  
>
>-----(end of charter)-----

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58927
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Foreskin Troubles

What can be done, short of circumcision, for an adult male
whose foreskin will not retract?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58928
From: joel@cs.mcgill.ca (Joel MALARD)
Subject: Bone marrow sclerosis.

I am looking for information on possible causes and long term effects
of bone marrow sclerosis. I would also be thankful if anyone reading
this newsgroup could list some recognized treatment centers if anything
else than massive blood transfusion can be effective. If you plan on
a "go to the library"-style reply, please be kind enough to add a list 
of suggested topics or readings: Medicine is not my field.

Regards,
Joel Malard.
joel@cs.mcgill.ca

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58929
From: <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: quality control in medicine

Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
 quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
 health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
interest, I will post the responses.
        Thank You
        Abhin Singla MS BioE, MBA, MD
        President AC Medcomp Inc

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58930
From: kilty@ucrengr (kathleen richards)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

Jeff, 

If you have time to type it in I'd love to have the reference for that
paper!  thanks!

--

kathleen richards   email:  karicha@eis.calstate.edu

   ~Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug!~
                                                  -dire straits


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58931
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <93108.003258U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> U19250@uicvm.uic.edu writes:
:Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
: quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
: health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
:interest, I will post the responses.


This is in fact a hot topic in medicine these days, and much of the
medical literature is devoted to this.  The most heavily funded studies
these days are for outcome research, and physicians (and others!) are
constantly questionning whether what we do it truly effective in any given
situation.  QA activities are a routine part of every hospital's
administrative function and are required by accreditation agencies.  There
are even entire publications devoted to QA issues.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58932
From: rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

Gordon Banks (geb@cs.pitt.edu) wrote:
: In article <3794@nlsun1.oracle.nl> rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch) writes:
: >
: >: From a business point of view, it might make sense.  It depends on
: >: the personality of the practitioner.  If he can charm the patients
: >: into coming, homeopathy can be very profitable.  It won't be covered
: >: by insurance, however.  Just keep that in mind.  Myself, I'd have 
: >^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
: >
: >In many European countries Homepathy is accepted as a method of curing
: >(or at least alleiating) many conditions to which modern medicine has 
: >no answer. In most of these countries insurance pays for the 
: >treatments.
: >

: Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
: in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
: In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
: What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.

In Holland insurences pay for Homeopathic treatment. In Germany they do
so as well. I Austria they do if you have a condition which can not be 
helped by "normal" medicine (happened to me). Switzerland seems to be 
the same as Austria (I have direct experience in the Swiss case).

At the Univeristy of Vienna (I believe Innsbruck as well) homeopathy
can be taken in Med. school.

I found that in combination with Acupuncture it changed my life from
living hell to a condition which enables me to lead a relatively 
normal life. I found that modern medicine was powerless to cure me
of a *severe* case of Neurodermitis (Note: I mean cure, not 
surpress the symptoms, which is what modern medicine attempts to 
do in the case of Neurodermitis). 

I'm not saying that Homeopathy is scientific, but that it can offer 
help in areas in which modern medicine is absolutely helpless.

From reading your aritcle it seems that your have some deeply rooted
beliefs about this issue (this is not intended to be offensive or 
sarcastic - it just sounded like that to me) which makes me doubt 
if you can read this with an open mind. If you do/can, please excuse
my last comment.

---> Robert
rgasch@nl.oracle.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58933
From:  Gia Kiria <gkiria@kiria.kheta.georgia.su>
Subject: help

  HELP!
Maybe anybody know names of conferences in
Please help Me find any information for next keywords:
echocardiography and cardiology+dopler
I hawe no informatins on this subjects 2 years becouse i leave in
Tbilisy.
sorry for my bad english!
MY adress: irina@kiria.kheta.georgia.su


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58934
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA

     anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello) writes:

A(>  Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
A(>  dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
A(>  other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood
A(>  test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
A(>  glycemic?  TIA.
A(>  
A(>  
A(>  Anthony Anello
A(>  Fermilab
A(>  Batavia, Illinois

   Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the proper 
   channels, you might consider ther following:

   1) Chelated Manganese   25-50mg/day.
   2) Chelated Chromium    400-600mcg/day.
   3) Increase protein through foods or supplements.
   4) Avoid supplements/foods high in Potassium, Calcium, Zinc.
   5) Avoid Vit C supplements in excess of 100mg.
   6) Avoid honey and foods high in simple sugars.
   7) Enjoy breads, cereals, grains...

   Discuss the above with your health practitioner for compatibility
   with your body chemistry and safety.

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: BEER - It's not just for breakfast anymore.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58935
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Subject: Glutamate

In article <lso15qINNkpr@news.bbn.com> sher@bbn.com (Lawrence D. Sher) writes:
> From the N.E.J.Med.  editorial:  "The dicarboxylic amino acid glutamate
> is not only an essential amino acid ...

Glutamate is not an essential amino acid.  People can survive quite well
without ever eating any.
-- 
Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com

f p=2,3:2 s q=1 x "f f=3:2 q:f*f>p!'q  s q=p#f" w:q p,?$x\8+1*8

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58936
From: jeffp@vetmed.wsu.edu (Jeff Parke)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

kathleen richards (kilty@ucrengr) wrote:

> If you have time to type it in I'd love to have the reference for that
> paper!  thanks!

Experimental Lyme Disease in Dogs Produces Arthritis and Persistant Infection,
The Journal of Infectious Diseases, March 1993, 167:651-664

--
Jeff Parke <jeffp@pgavin1.vetmed.wsu.edu>
also:   jeffp@WSUVM1.bitnet    AOL: JeffParke
Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine class of 1994
Pullman, WA  99164-7012

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58937
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

In article <1993Apr17.125545.22457@rose.com> ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:
>
>   OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
>   ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
>   Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
>   No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
>   the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
>   practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...

1: "90% of diseases" is not the same thing as "90% of patients".

   In a world with one curable disease that strikes 100 people, and nine
   incurable diseases which strikes one person each, medical science will cure
   91% of the patients and report that 90% of diseases have no therapy.

2: A disease would be counted among the 90% untreatable if nothing better than
   a placebo were known.  Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly
   dispense placebos...

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58938
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Glutamate

In article <1qrsr6$d59@access.digex.net> kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch) writes:
>In article <lso15qINNkpr@news.bbn.com> sher@bbn.com (Lawrence D. Sher) writes:
>> From the N.E.J.Med.  editorial:  "The dicarboxylic amino acid glutamate
>> is not only an essential amino acid ...
>
>Glutamate is not an essential amino acid.  People can survive quite well
>without ever eating any.

There is no contradiction here. It is essential in the sense that your
body needs it. It is non-essential in the sense that your body can
produce enough of it without supplement.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58939
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Glutamate

In article <1993Apr18.163212.9577@walter.bellcore.com>, jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen) writes:
=There is no contradiction here. It is essential in the sense that your
=body needs it. It is non-essential in the sense that your body can
=produce enough of it without supplement.

And when you're in a technical discussion of amino acids, it's the latter
definition that's used almost universally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58940
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5Mv3v.2o5@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>
>Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
>associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
>are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
>of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
>the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
>to know more. Thanks. 

   From THE TUFTS UNIVERSITY GUIDE TO TOTAL NUTRITION: Stanley Gershoff, 
   Ph.D., Dean of Tufts University School of Nutrition; HarperPerennial, 1991
   (ISBN #0-06-272007-4):

	"The greatest hazard of barbecuing is that the cook will not use
	 enough caution and get burned.  Some people suggest that the
	 barbecuing itself is dangerous, because the smoke, which is 
	 absorbed by the meat, contains benzopyrene, which, in its pure form,
	 has been known to cause cancer in laboratory animals.  However,
	 in order to experience the same results, people would have to
	 consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a
	 time."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58941
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

In article <1993Apr17.181013.3743@uvm.edu> hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

[...]

   In the September 1992 issue of THE TUFTS UNIVERSITY DIET AND NUTRITION
   LETTER, there is a three page article about artificial sweeteners.  What
   follows are those excerpts which deal specifically with Nutrasweet.

   [Reproduced without permission]

	   The controversy [over aspartame] began six years ago in England,
	where a group of researchers found that aspartame, marketed under
	the tradename Nutrasweet, appears to stimulate appetite and,
	presumably, the eating of more calories in the long run than if
	a person simply consumed sugar.  When researchers asked a group
	of 95 people to drink plain water, aspartame-sweetened water, and
	sugared water, they said that overall they felt hungriest after
	drinking the artificially sweetened beverage.
	   The study received widespread media attention and stirred a
	good deal of concern among the artificial-sweetener-using public.
	However, its results were questionable at best, since the researchers
	did not go on to measure whether the increase in appetite did
	actually translate into an increase in eating.  The two do not
	necessarily go hand in hand.
	   In the years that followed, more than a dozen studies examining
	the effect of aspartame on appetite -- and eating -- were conducted.
	And after reviewing every one of them, the director of the
	Laboratory of the Study of Human Ingestive Behavior at Johns Hopkins
	University, Barbara Rolls, Ph.D., concluded that consuming aspartame-
	sweetened foods and drinks is not associated with any increase in
	the amount of food eaten afterward.

	   One artificial sweetener that is not typically accused of causing
	cancer is aspartame.  But it most certainly has been blamed for a
	host of other ills.  Since its introduction in 1981, the government
	has received thousands of complaints accusing it of causing
	everything from headaches to nausea to mood swings to anxiety.
	Still, years of careful scientific study conducted both before and
	after the sweetener's entering the market have failed to confirm
	that it can bring about adverse health effects.  That's why the
	Centers for Disease Control (the government agency charged with
	monitoring public health), the American Medical Association's
	Council on Scientific Affairs, and the Food and Drug Administration
	have given aspartame, one of the most studied food additives, a
	clean bill of health.
	   Granted, the FDA has set forth an "acceptable daily intake" of
	50 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram of body weight.  To exceed
	the limit, however, a 120-pound (55 kg.) woman would have to take
	in 2,750 milligrams of aspartame -- the amount in 15 cans of
	aspartame-sweetened soda pop, 14 cups of gelatin, 22 cups of yogurt,
	or 55 six-ounce servings of aspartame-containing hot cocoa,...
	A 175-pound (80 kg.) man would have to consume some 4,000 milligrams
	of the sweetener -- the amount in 22 cans of soda pop or 32 cups
	of yogurt -- to go over the limit.  [chart with aspartame content
	of selected foods omitted]
	   Only one small group of people must be certain to stay away
	from aspartame: those born with a rare metabolic disorder called
	phenylketonuria, or PKU.  The estimated one person in every 12,000
	to 15,000 who has it is unable to properly metabolize an essential
	amino acid in aspartame called phenylalanine.  Once a child
	consumes it, it builds up in the body and can ultimately cause
	such severe problems as mental retardation.  To help people with
	PKU avoid the substance, labels on cans of soda pop and other
	aspartame-sweetened foods must carry the warning "Phenylketonurics:
	Contains Phenylalanine."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58942
From: Isabelle.Rosso@Dartmouth.edu (Isabelle Rosso)
Subject: Hunchback

I have a friend who has a very pronounced slouch of his upper back. He
always walks and sits this way so I have concluded that he is
hunchback.
Is this a genetic disorder, or is it something that people can correct.
i.e. is it just bad posture that can be changed with a bit of will
power?





Isabelle.Rosso@Dartmouth.edu
          
     

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58943
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

KS> From: keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)
KS>My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio Syndrome
KS>This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different symptons ( eg
KS>chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have any information

I'm not sure that this condition is "recognised" anywhere (in the
sense of a disease with diagnostic criteria, clear boundaries
between it and other diseases, unique pathologic or physiologic
features, etc), but here goes with what many neurologists agree on.

Post-polio syndrome patients have evidence of motor neuron disease
by clinical examination, EMG, and muscle biopsy.  The abnormalities
are mostly chronic (due to old polio) but there is evidence of
ongoing deterioration.  Clinically, the patients complain of
declining strength and endurance with everyday motor tasks.
Musculoskeletal pain is a nearly universal feature that doubtless
contributes to the impaired performance.  The examination shows
muscle weakness and atrophy.  The EMG shows evidence of old
denervation with reinnervation (giant and long-duration motor unit
action potentials) *and* evidence of active denervation
(fibrillation potentials).  The biopsy also shows old denervation
with reinnervation (fiber-type grouping) *and* evidence of active
denervation (small, angulated fibers with dense oxidative enzyme
staining) - but curiously, little or no group atrophy.

Post-polio patients do not have ALS.  In ALS, there is clinically
evident deterioration from one month to the next.  In post-polio,
the patients are remarkably stable in objective findings from one
year to the next.  Of course, there are patients who had polio
before who develop genuine ALS, but ALS is no more common among
polio survivors than among people who never had polio.

The cause of post-polio syndrome is unknown.  There is little
evidence that post-polio patients have active polio virus or
destructive immunologic response to virus antigen.

There is no solid evidence that patients with post-polio have
anything different happening to the motor unit (anterior horn cells,
motor axons, neuromuscular junctions, and muscle fibers) than
patients with old polio who are not complaining of deterioration.
Both groups can have the same EMG and biopsy findings.  The reason
for these "acute" changes in a "chronic" disease (old polio) is
unknown.  Possibly spinal motor neurons (that have reinnervated huge
numbers of muscle fibers) start shedding the load after several
years.

There are a couple of clinical features that distinguish post-polio
syndrome patients from patients with old polio who deny
deterioration.  The PPS patients are more likely to have had severe
polio.  The PPS patients are *much* more likely to complain of pain.
They also tend to score higher on depression scales of
neuropsychologic tests.

My take on this (I'm sure some will disagree):  after recovery from
severe polio there can be abnormal loading on muscles, tendons,
ligaments, bones, and joints, that leads to inflammatory and/or
degenerative conditions affecting these structures.  The increasing
pain, superimposed on the chronic (but unchanging) weakness, leads
to progressive impairment of motor performance and ADL.  I am
perhaps biased by personal experience of having never seen a PPS
patient who was not limited in some way by pain.  I do not believe
that PPS patients have more rapid deterioration of motor units than
non-PPS patients (i.e., those with old polio of similar severity but
without PPS complaints).
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58944
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

DN> From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
DN> Briefly, this is a condition in which patients who have significant
DN> residual weakness from childhood polio notice progression of the
DN> weakness as they get older.  One theory is that the remaining motor
DN> neurons have to work harder and so die sooner.

If this theory were true, the muscle biopsy would show group atrophy
(evidence of acute loss of enlarged motor units); it doesn't.
Instead, the biopsy shows scattered, angulated, atrophic fibers.
This is more consistent with load-shedding by chronically overworked
motor neurons - the neurons survive, at the expense of increasingly
denervated muscle.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58945
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
: 
: Once again we are waiting. I have been thinking that it would be good
: to get to as large a group as possible to see if anyone has any
: experience with this kind of thing.  I know that members of the medical
: community are sometimes loathe to admit the importance that diet and
: foods play in our general health and well-being.  Anyway, as you can
: guess, I am worried sick about this, and would appreciate any ideas
: anyone out there has.  Sorry to be so wordy but I wanted to really get
: across what is going on here.
: 
: 
I don't know anything specifically, but I have one further anecdote. A
colleague of mine had a child with a serious congenital disease, tuberous
sclerosis. Along with mental retardation comes a serious seizure disorder.
The parents noticed that one thing that would precipitate a seizure was
a meal with corn in it. I have always wondered about the connection, and
further about other dietary ingredients that might precipitate seizures.
Other experiences would be interesting to hear about from netters.

--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58946
From: ruegg@med.unc.edu (Robert G. Ruegg)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Subject: Re: Eugenics
(Gordon Banks) writes:
/
;Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible. 
;Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will 
;then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
;engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
;No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
;we?
 
Two past problems with eugenics have been 
1) reducing the gene pool and 
2) defining the status of the eugenized.
 
Inserting genes would not seem to reduce the gene pool unless the inserted
genes later became transmissible to progeny. Then they may be able to
crowd out "garbage genes." This may in the future become possible. Even if
it does, awareness of the need to maintain the gene pool would hopefully
mean provisions will be made for saving genes that may come in handy
later. Evidently the genes for sickle cell disease in equatorial Africa
and for diabetes in the Hopi *promoted* survival in some conditions. We
don't really know what the future may hold for our environment. The
reduced wilderness- and disease-survival capacity of our relatively inbred
domesticated animals comes to mind. Vulcanism, nuclear winter, ice age,
meteor impact, new microbiological threats, famine, global warming, etc.,
etc., are all conceivable. Therefore, having as many genes as possible
available is a good strategy for species survival. 
 
Of course, the status of genetically altered individuals would start out
as no different than anyone else's. But if we could make
"philosopher-kings" with great bodies and long lives, would we (or they)
want to give them elevated status? We could. The Romans did it with their
kings *without* the benefits of such eugenics. The race eventually
realized and dealt with the problems which that caused, but for a while,
it was a problem. Orwell introduced us to the notion of what might happen
to persons genetically altered for more menial tasks. But there is nothing
new under the sun. We treated slaves the same way for millennia before
"1984."   
 
I see no inherent problem with gene therapy which avoids at least these 2
problems. Humans have always had trouble having the virtue and wisdom to
use any power that falls into their hands to good ends all the time. That
hasn't stopped the race as a whole yet. Many are the civilizations which
have died from inability to adapt to environmental change. However, also
many are the civilizations which have died from the abuse of their own
power. The ones which survived have hopefully learned a lesson from the
fates of others, and have survived by making better choices when their
turns came.
 
Not that I don't think that this gene altering power couldn't wipe us off
the face of the earth or cause endless suffering. Nuclear power or global
warming or whatever could and may still do that, too. 
 
The real issue is an issue of wisdom and virtue. I personally don't think
man has enough wisdom and virtue to pull this next challenge off any
better than he did the for last few. We, as eugenists, may make it, an we
may not. If we don't, I hope there are reservoirs of "garbage" people out
in some backwater with otherwise long discarded "garbage" genes which will
pull us through. 
 
I believe that the real problem is and will probably always be the same.
Man needs to accept input from the great spirit of God to overcome his
lacks in the area of knowing how to use the power he has. Some men have,
and I believe all men may, listen to and obey the still small voice of God
in their hearts. This is the way to begin to recieve the wisdom and virtue
needed to escape the problems consequent to poor choices. Peoples have
died out for many reasons. The societies which failed to accept enough
input from God to safely use the power they had developed have destroyed
themselves, and often others in the process. It is self-evident that the
ones which survive today have either accepted enough input from the Spirit
to use their powers wisely enough to avoid or survive their own mistakes
thus far, or else haven't had enough power for long enough. 
 
In summary, I would say that the question of whether to use this new
technology is really an ancient one. And the answer, in some ways hard, in
some ways easy, is the same ancient answer. It isn't the power, it is the
Spirit.
 
Sorry for the long post. Got carried away.
 
Bob (ruegg@med.unc.edu)




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58947
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology  (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <ls8lnvINNrtb@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu 
    (Russell Turpin) writes:
>            ... 
>*not* imply that all their treatments are ineffective.  It *does*
>imply that those who rely on faulty methodology and reasoning are
>incapable of discovering *which* treatments are effective and
>which are not.)

To start with, no methodology or form of reasoning is infallible.  So
there's a question of how much certainty we are willing to pay for in a
given context.  Insistence on too much rigor bogs science down completely
and makes progress impossible.  (Expenditure of sufficiently large sums
of money and amounts of time can sometimes overcome this.)  On the other
hand, with too little rigor much is lost by basing work on results which
eventually turn out to be false.  There is a morass of studies
contradicting other studies and outsiders start saying  "You people call
THIS science?"   (My opinion, for what it's worth, is that one sees both
these phenomena happening simultaneously in some parts of psychology.)  

Some subjective judgement is required to decide on the level of rigor
appropriate for a particular investigation.  I don't believe it is 
ever possible to banish subjective judgement from science.  


My second point, though, is that highly capable people can often make
extremely reliable judgements about scientific validity even when using
methodology considered inadequate by the usual standards.  I think this
is true of many scientists and I think it is true of many who approach
their discipline in a way that is not generally recognized as scientific.

Within mathematics, I think there are several examples, especially before
the twentieth century.  One conspicuous case is that of Riemann, who is
famous for many theorems he stated but did not prove.  (Later 
mathematicians did prove them, of course.)  

I think that for a good scientist, empirical investigation is often not
so much a matter of determining what is true and what's not  as it is a 
matter of convincing other people.  (People have proposed lots of 
incompatible definitions of science here, but I think the ability to 
objectively convince others of the validity of one's results is an
essential element.  Not that one can necessarily do that at every step 
of the scientific process, but I think that if one is not moving toward 
that goal then one is not doing science.)

When a person other than a scientist is quite good at what he does and
seems to be very successful at it, I think that his judgements are also
worthy of respect and that his assertions are well worth further
investigation.  

In article <C53By5.HD@news.Hawaii.Edu> I wrote: 
> Namely, is there really justification for the belief that
> science is a superior path to truth than non-scientific approaches?  

Admittedly, my question was not at all well posed.  A considerable
amount of effort in a "serious scholarly investigation" such as I
suggested would be required simply to formulate an appropriately 
specific question to try and answer.  

The "science" I was thinking of in my question is the actual science 
currently practiced now in the last decade of the twentieth century.  
I certainly wasn't thinking of some idealized science or the mere use 
of "reason and observation."

One thing I had in mind in my suggestion was the question as to whether
in many cases the subjective judgements of skilled and experienced
practitioners might be more reliable than statistical studies.  

Since Russell Turpin seems to be much more familiar than I am with
the study of scientific methodology, perhaps he can tell us if there 
is any existing research related to this question.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58948
From: ruegg@med.unc.edu (Robert G. Ruegg)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Thanks to Tarl Neustaedter of MA for kindly letting me know that my
reference in prior post to Orwell and "1984" should probably have been to
Huxley and "Brave New World." 

Sorry, Al.

Bob (ruegg@med.unc.edu)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58949
From: marcbg@feenix.metronet.com (Marc Grant)
Subject: Adult Chicken Pox

I am 35 and am recovering from a case of Chicken Pox which I contracted
from my 5 year old daughter.  I have quite a few of these little puppies
all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

Is there any medications which can promote healing of the pox?  Speed up
healing?  Please e-mail replies, and thanks in advance.

-- 
|Marc Grant          | Internet: marcbg@feenix.metronet.com |
|POB 850472          | Amateur Radio Station N5MEI          |
|Richardson, TX 75085| Voice/Fax: 214-231-3998              |
    - .... .- - ...  .- .-.. .-..    ..-. --- .-.. -.- ...

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58950
From: <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: Re: Foreskin Troubles

This is generally called phimosis..usually it is due to an inflammation, and ca
n be retracted in the physician's offfice rather eaaasily.  One should see a GP
, or in complicated cases, a urologist.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58951
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

  Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the 
                        proper channels, you might consider ther following:..."
                        [diet omitted]

1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously
like a blood chemistry...glucose tolerance and the like...suddenly chemistry 
exists? You know perfectly well that this person can be saved needless trouble 
and expense with simple muscle testing and hair analysis to diagnose...no
"CONFIRM" any aberrant physiology...but then again...maybe that's what you meantby "proper channels."

2) Were you able to understand Dick King's post that "90% of diseases is not thesame thing as 90% of patients" which was a reply to your inability to critically
evaluate the statistic you cited from the New England Journal of Medicine. Couldyou figure out what is implied by the remark "Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly dispense placebos..."?

3) Ron...have you ever thought about why you never post in misc.health.alterna-
tive...and insist instead upon insinuating your untrained, non-medical, often 
delusional notions of health and disease into this forum? I suspect from your
apparent anger toward MDs and heteropathic medicine that there may be an
underlying 'father problem'...of course I can CONFIRM this by surrogate muscle
testing one of my patients while they ponder my theory to see if one of their  
previously weak 'indicator' muscles strengthens...or do you have reservations
about my unique methods of diagnosis? Oh..I forgot what you said in an earlier
post.."neither am I concerned of whether or not my study designs meet your or
anyone else's criteria of acceptance." 

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu







 
ideas 



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58952
From: twong@civil.ubc.ca (Thomas Wong)
Subject: Image processing software for PC



I am posting the following for my brother. Please post your replies or
send him email to his address at the end of his message. Thank you.
____________________________________________________________________

My supervisor is looking for a image analysis software for
MS DOS. We need something to measure lengths and areas on
micrographs. Sometime in the future, we may expand to do
some densitometry for gels, etc. We've found lots of ads and
info for the Jandel Scientific products: SigmaScan and Java.

But we have not been able to find any competing products. We
would appreciate any comments on these products and

suggestions / comments on other products we should consider.
Thanks.

 

Donald

UserDONO@MTSG.UBC.CA





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58953
From: robin@ntmtv.com (Robin Coutellier)
Subject: Critique of Pressure Point Massager

As promised, below is a personal critique of a Pressure Point Massager 
I recently bought from the Self Care Catalog.  I am very pleased with 
the results.  The catalog description is as follows:

	The Pressure Point Massager is an aggressive physical massager 
	that actually kneads the tension out of muscles ... much like a
	professional shiatsu masseur.  The powerful motor drives two
	counter-rotating "thumbs" that move in one-inch orbits --
	releasing tension in the neck, back, legs and arms.

	Pressure Point Massager    A2623   $109

To order or receive a catalog, call (24 hours, 7 days) 1-800-345-3371 or
fax at 1-800-345-4021.

********
NOTE:
When I ordered the massager, the item number was different, and the price
was $179, not $109.  When I received it, I glanced thru the newer catalog
enclosed with it to see anything was different from the first one.  I was  
QUITE annoyed to see a $70 difference in price.  I called them about it,
and the cust rep said that they had switched manufacturers, although it
looks and works exactly the same.  He told me to go ahead and return the
first one and order the cheaper one, using the price difference as a
reason for return.  In fact, since the newer ones might take a while to
ship from the factory (I received this one in 3 days), he told me I could 
use the one I already have until the new one arrives, then return the old 
one.  VERY reasonable people.
********

I have long-term neck, shoulder and back pain (if I were a building, I 
would be described as "structurally unsound :-) ).  I have stretches 
and exercises to do that help, but the problem never really goes away.  
If, for whatever reason, I do not exercise for a while (illness, not enough
time, lazy, etc.), the muscles become quite stiff and painful and, thus, 
more prone to further strain.  Even with exercise, I sometimes require 
physical therapy to get back on track, which 1st requires a doctor visit 
to get the prescription for p.t.  

The tension in my neck, if not released, eventually causes a headache
(sometimes confused with a sinus headache) over my left eye.  When my 
physical therapist has massaged my neck, and the sub-occipital muscles 
in particular (the 2 knobby areas near the base of the skull), the 
headache usually eased within a day, although it hurts like hell to 
while it is being massaged.

I ordered this device because it seemed to be exactly what I was wishing
someone would invent --a machine that would massage, NOT VIBRATE, my 
neck and sub-occipital muscles like my physical therapist has done in 
the past, that I could use by myself.  No doctor visit or inconvenient 
p.t. appts for a week later would be needed to use it.  I could get up 
in the middle of the night and use it, if necessary.

I have been using it for about a week or so now, and LOVE it.  The base
unit is about a 14" x 9" rectangle, about 3-3/4" high, with handles on each
side, and it plugs into an average outlet.  The two metal "thumbs" are about 
1-1/2" in diameter and protrude about 2-1/2" above the base.  The thumbs 
are covered with a gray cloth that is non-removable.  They are located more 
toward one end, rather than centered (see figure below).  They move in 
either clockwise or counter-clockwise directions, depending on which side 
of the switch is pushed, and are very quiet.  It can be used from either
side.  For instance, the thumbs can be positioned at the base of the neck
or the top of the neck, depending on which direction you approach it.


                 _______________________________
                |  __    _______________    __  |
                | |  |  |		|  |  | |
                | |  |  |  \^^/   \^^/  |  |  | |
                | |  |  |   ||     ||   |  |  | |
                | |  |  |		|  |  | |
                | |  |  |_______________|  |  | |
                | |__|			   |__| |
                |_______________________________|


For the neck/head, the user varies the amount of pressure used by (if 
laying down) allowing all or part of the full weight of the head and/or 
neck to rest on the thumbs.  The handles can also be used if sitting or
standing, applying pressure with the arms/wrists.  Since my wrists are
also impaired (I'm typing this over an extended period of time), and I 
don't have someone living with me who can apply it, laying down works 
well for me.

For my back, I sit in a high-backed kitchen chair, position the massager
behind me at whatever point I want massaged, and lean back lightly (or
not so lightly) against it.  The pressure of leaning back holds it in place.  
If I want to massage the entire spine, I simply move it down a few inches 
whenever I feel like it.  For my back, this machine is far superior to use 
than the commonly used "home-made" massager of 2 tennis balls taped together 
(with the balls, position (against a wall or door) them over the spine and 
move the body up and down against them).  The tennis balls are better than 
nothing, but difficult to use for very long, especially if your quads are 
not in good shape, and my long hair gets (painfully) in the way if I don't 
pin it up first.  As far as I'm concerned, the easier something like this 
is to use, the more likely I'll use/do it.  If there are multiple 
considerations/hassles, I'm more likely to not bother with it.

Not only has this machine helped with my headaches, but my range of motion 
for my neck and back are greatly increased.  The first time I used it on my
neck/sub-occipital muscles, however, I overdid it and pressed too hard
against it, which resulted in a very tender, almost bruised area for a
few days.  I laid off it for about 3 days and applied ice, which helped.  
After that, I was more gradual about applying pressure.  At this point, 
the pain in the sub-occipital area is now minimal while being massaged.  
I also learned to use VERY LIGHT pressure on my lower back, which is the 
most vulnerable point for me.

It also eased some painful knots of tension between my shoulder blades,
although, again, it took a few days of massaging (just a few minutes at
a time) to really work it out.

I highly recommend this product if you have similar problems, although I
cannot vouch for its durability (it seems pretty sturdy), since I've had
it such a short time.  I plan to use it not only to ease tension, but also 
to loosen the muscls BEFORE exercising (and maybe after, too).  I have
been ill recently and not able to exercise much for a few weeks, so this 
was very timely  for me.

This is the 1st product I've ordered from this company and only recently
became aware of it thru a co-worker.  The catalog states they have been
in business since 1976.  It contains quite a few health care products and,
while they appear to be more expensive than the average health care catalog
products, they also appear to be of much higher quality with more thought
put into what they actually do.  Definitely a step above some other ones
I've seen such as "Dr. Leonards Health Care Catalog" or "Mature Wisdom".
I'm only 37, but have ended up on some geriatric-type mailing lists (no
big surprise here :-) ).  I consider many of those products to be rip-offs, 
particularly targeted toward the elderly, with dubious health benefits.

I apologize for the length of this, but it's the kind of info _I_ would 
like to know before ordering something thru the mail.


Robin Coutellier                   
Northern Telecom, Mountain View, CA
INTERNET: robin@ntmtv.com
UUCP:portal!ntmtv!robin




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58954
From: cash@convex.com (Peter Cash)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

In article <C5L9qB.4y5@athena.cs.uga.edu> mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes:
>Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
>expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
>Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...

His _heart_? This jerk doesn't have a heart, and it beats me why you're
apologizing for him. In my book, behavior like this is unprofessional,
inexcusable, and beyond the pale. If he's overworked, it's because he's too
busy raking in the bucks. More likely, he just likes to push women around.
I'd fire the s.o.b., and get myself another doctor.

-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             |      Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist.     |
Peter Cash   |       (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein)      |cash@convex.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58955
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Placebo effects

I know that the placebo effect is where a patient feels better or 
even gets better because of his/her belief in the medicine and 
the doctor administering it.  Is there also an anti-placebo 
effect where the patient dislikes/distrusts doctors and medicine 
and therefore doesn't get better or feel better in spite of the 
medicine?

Is there an effect where the doctor believes so strongly in a 
medicine that he/she sees improvement where the is none or sees 
more improvement than there is?  If so, what is this effect 
called?  Is there a reverse of the above effect where the doctor 
doesn't believe in a medicine and then sees less improvement than 
there is?  What would this effect be called?  Have these effects 
ever been studied?  How common are these effects?  Thank you in 
advance for all replies. 

... Information is very valuable but dis-information is MUCH more common.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58956
From: GAnderson@Cmutual.com.au  (Gavin Anderson)
Subject: Help - Looking for a Medical Journal Article - Whiplash/Cervical Pain

Hi,
I am not sure where to post this message, please contact me if I'm way off
the mark.
On 19.3.93 my wife went to her General Practitioner (Doctor). He mentioned
an article from a medical journal that is of great interest to us. He had
read it in the previous three months but has been unable to find it again.
The article was about Whiplash Injury/Cervical Pain. It mentions the use of
a MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imagery) machine as a diagnostic tool and the work
of a neurosurgeon who relived cervical pain.
This article is most likely in an Australian medical journal. I very much
want to obtain the name of the article, journal and author because the case
matches my wife. We would very much appreciate anyone's help in this matter
via email preferably.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gavin Anderson                              email: GAnderson@cmutual.com.au
Analyst/Programmer.                         phone: +61-3-607-6299
Colonial Mutual Life Aust. (ACN 004021809)  fax  : +61-3-283-1095
-----------Some people never consciously discover their antipodes----------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gavin Anderson                              email: GAnderson@cmutual.com.au
Analyst/Programmer.                         phone: +61-3-607-6299
Colonial Mutual Life Aust. (ACN 004021809)  fax  : +61-3-283-1095
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58957
From: dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung)
Subject: _The Andromeda Strain_

Just had the opportunity to watch this flick on A&E -- some 15 years
since I saw it last.  

I was very interested in the technology demonstrated in this film
for handling infectious diseases (and similar toxic substances).
Clearly they "faked" a lot of the computer & robotic technology;
certainly at the time it was made most of that was science fiction
itself, let alone the idea of a "space germ".  

Quite coincidentally [actually this is what got me wanted to see
the movie again] I watched a segment on the otherwise awful _How'd
They Do That?_ dealing with a disease researcher at the CDC's top
lab.  There was description of the elaborate security measures taken
so that building will never be "cracked" so to speak by man or
nature (short of deliberate bombing from the air, perhaps).  And
the researchers used "spacesuits" similar to that in the film.

I'm curious what people think about this film -- short of "silly".
Is such a facility technically feasible today?  

As far as the plot, and the crystalline structure that is not Life
As We Know It, that's a whole 'nother argument for rec.arts.sf.tech
or something.
-- 
 | Next: a Waco update ... an Ohio prison update ... a Bosnia update ... a  |
 | Russian update ... an abortion update ... and a Congressional update ... |
 | here on SNN: The Standoff News Network.  All news, all standoff, all day |
 Daniel A. Hartung  --  dhartung@chinet.chinet.com  --  Ask me about Rotaract

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58958
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: Re: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

>I can probably buy the 
>tools and this solution somewhere but I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO INJECTION BY
>MYSELF

You may also want to buy a 'self injector' or something like that.
My friend is diabetic.  You load the hyperdermic, put it in a plastic case
and set a spring to automatically push the needle into the skin and depress
the plunger.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58959
From: markmc@halcyon.com (Mark McWiggins)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Also, don't forget that it's better for your health to enjoy your steak
than to resent your sprouts ...
-- 
Mark McWiggins        Hermes & Associates		+1 206 632 1905 (voice)
markmc@halcyon.com    Box 31356, Seattle WA 98103-1356  +1 206 632 1738 (fax)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58960
From: sandy@nmr1.pt.cyanamid.COM (Sandy Silverman)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

From my reading of the popular, and scientific, literature,  I think that the
benzopyrene-from-burned-fat problem is probably real but very small compared to
other kinds of risks.  (This type of problem also occurs with stove-top pan
grilling.)  One possible remedy I have read about is to take some vitamin C with your meal of barbecue (or bacon, e.g.).  This MAY make sense because vit. C
is an antioxidant which could counteract the adverse affect of some of the 
chemicals in question.  Bon Apetit!     

--
Sanford Silverman                      >Opinions expressed here are my own<
American Cyanamid  
sandy@pt.cyanamid.com, silvermans@pt.cyanamid.com     "Yeast is Best"

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58961
From: gmiller@worldbank.org (Gene C. Miller)
Subject: Immunotherapy for Recurrent Miscarriage


     Following a series of miscarriages, my wife was given a transfusion of
my white cells. (The theory as I understand it is that there is some kind
of immune blocking that prevents the body from attacking the pregnancy as
it normally would a "foreign" body. Where this blocking is deficient, the
body evicts the "intruder", resulting in a miscarriage. The white cells
apparently enhance the blocking capability.) Following the transfusion, she
successfully carried the next pregnancy to term, and Jake is now an active
9 month-old who cannot wait to walk.
     We're now thinking about having another child, but no one (including
the OBGYN who supervised the first transfusion) really seems to know
whether or not the transfusion process needs to be repeated for successive
pregnancies.
     Is there anyone in net-land who has experience with this?
Thanks...Gene (and Jane and Jake)

P.S. I've also posted this in misc.kids.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58962
From: harvey@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Betty Harvey)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In rec.food.cooking, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before
>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?
>
I know that there is MSG sensitivity.  When I eat foods with MSG I get
very thirsty and my hands swell and get a terrible itchy rash. I first
experienced this problem when I worked close to Chinatown and ate Chinese
food almost everyday for lunch.  Now I can't tolerate MSG at all.  I can
notice immediately when I have eaten any.  I try to avoid MSG completely.

Interesting fact though is that all three of my children started experiencing
the exact same rash on their hands.  I couldn't understand why because I
don't MSG in cooking and we ask for no MSG when we do eat Chinese (I still
love it).  After some investigation I knew that Oodles of Noodles where
one of their favorite foods.  One of the main ingredients in the flavor
packets is MSG.  Now I look at all labels.  You would be surprised at
places you find MSG.


/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Betty Harvey  <harvey@oasys.dt.navy.mil>     | David Taylor Model Basin
ADP, Networking and Communication Assessment | Carderock Division
     Branch                                  | Naval Surface Warfare
Code 1221                                    |   Center
Bethesda, Md.  20084-5000                    | DTMB,CD,NSWC   
                                             |   
(301)227-3379   FAX (301)227-3343            |          
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\\/\/

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58963
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr16.210916.6958@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> I'm not familiar with the history of this experiment, although, arguably,
|> I should be.

For a brief, but pretty detailed account, try Hempel's _Philosophy of
Natural Science_.

|> I think that it is enough if his contemporaries found the result surprising.
|> That's not what I'd quibble about.  What I'd like to know are Toricelli's
|> reasons for doing his experiment; not the post hoc _constructed_ reasons,
|> but the thoughts in his head as he considered the problem.  It may be

This smacks a bit of ideology -- the supposition being that Toricelli's
subsequent descriptions of his reasoning are not veridical.  It gets dangerously
close to an unfalsifiable view of the history and methodology of science if
we deny that no subsequent reports of experimenters are reliable descriptions
of their "real" reasons.

|> impossible to know much about Toricelli's thoughts; that's too bad if
|> it is so.  One of Root-Bernstein's services to science is that he has gone
|> rooting about in Pasteur's and Fleming's (and other people's) notes, and has
|> discovered some surprising clues about their motivations.  Pasteur never
|> publicly admitted his plan to create mirror-image life, but the dreams are
|> right there in his notebooks (finally public after many years), ready for
|> anyone to read.  And I and my friends often have the most ridiculous
|> reasons for pursuing results; one of my best came because I was mad at
|> a colleague for a poorly-written claim (I disproved the claim).
|> 
|> Of course, Toricelli's case may be an example of a rarety: where the
|> fantasy not only motivates the experiment, but turns out to be right
|> in the end.

But my point is that this type of case is *not* a rarity.  In fact, I was
going to point to Pasteur as yet another rather common example -- particularly
the studies on spontaneous generation and fermentation.  I will readily
concede that "ridiculous reasons" can play an important role in how
scientists spend their time.  But one should not confuse motivation with
methodology nor suppose that ridiculous reasons provide the impetus in the
majority of cases based on relatively infrequent anecdotal evidence.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58964
From: sbrenner@cbnewsb.cb.att.com (scott.d.brenner)
Subject: What's the Difference Between an M.D. and a D.O.?

My wife and I are in the process of selecting a pediatrician for our
first child (due June 15th).  We interviewed a young doctor last week
and were very impressed with her.  However, I discovered that she is
actually not an Medical Doctor (M.D.) but rather a "Doctor of 
Osteopathy" (D.O.).  What's the difference?  I believe the pediatrician
*I* went to for many years was a D.O. and he didn't seem different from
any other doctor I've seen over the years.

My dictionary says that osteopathy is "a medical therapy that emphasizes
manipulative techniques for correcting somatic abnormalities thought
to cause disease and inhibit recovery."

Jeez, this sounds like chiropractic.  I remember getting shots and
medicine from *my* pediatrician D.O., and don't remember any 
"manipulative techniques".  Perhaps someone could enlighten me as to
the real, practical difference between an M.D. and a D.O.  Also, I'm
interesting in hearing any opinions on choosing a pediatrician who
follows one or the other medical philosophy.

Readers of sci.med:  Please respond directly to sbrenner@attmail.com;
I do not read this group regularly and probably won't see your response
if you just post it here.  Sorry for the cross-posting, but I'm hoping
there's some expertise here.

a T d H v A a N n K c S e

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scott D. Brenner                  AT&T Consumer Communications Services
sbrenner@attmail.com                          Basking Ridge, New Jersey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58965
From: davallen@vms.macc.wisc.edu
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <79738@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes...

>This reminds me of the last Graham Kerr cooking show I saw.  Today he
>smoked meat on the stovetop in a big pot!  He used a strange technique
>I'd never seen before.
> 
>He took a big pot with lid, and placed a tray in it made from aluminum foil.
>The tray was about the size and shape of a typical coffee-table ash tray,
>made by crumpling a sheet of foil around the edges.
> 
>In the tray, he placed a couple spoonfuls of brown sugar, a similar
>quantity of brown rice (he said any rice will do), the contents of two
>teabags of Earl Grey tea, and a few cloves.
> 
>On top of this was placed an ordinary aluminum basket-type steamer, with
>two chicken breasts in it.  The lid was put on, and the whole assembly
>went on the stovetop at high heat for 10 or 12 minutes.
> 
>Later, he removed what looked like smoked chicken breasts.  What surprises
>and concerns me are:
> 
>1)  No wood chips.  Where does the smoke flavor come from?
> 
>2)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember hearing that carmel color
>    (obtained by caramelizing sugar -- a common coloring and flavoring
>    agent) had been found to be carcinogenic.  I believe they injected
>    it under the skin of rats, or something.  If the results were conclusive,
>    caramel color would not be legal in the U.S., yet it is still being
>    used.  Was the initial research result found to be incorrect, or what?
> 
>3)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember Earl Grey tea being implicated
>    as carcinogenic, because it contains oil of bergamot (an extract
>    from the skin of a type of citrus fruit).  Does anyone know whatever
>    happened with that story?  If it were carcinogenic, Earl Grey tea
>    could not have it as an additive, yet it apparently continues to do
>    so.
> 
>WRT natural wood smoke (I've smoking a duck right now, as it happens),
>I've noticed that a heavily-smoked food item will have an unpleasant tangy
>taste when eaten directly out of the smoker if the smoke has only recently
>stopped flowing.  I find the best taste to be had by using dry wood chips,
>getting lots of smoke right up at the beginning of the cooking process,
>then slowly barbequing for hours and hours without adding additional wood chips.
> 
>My theory is that the unpleasant tangy molecules are low-molecular weight
>stuff, like terpenes, and that the smoky flavor molecules are some sort
>of larger molecule more similar to tar.  The long barbeque time after
>the initial intensive smoke drives off the low-molecular weight stuff,
>just leaving the flavor behind.  Does anyone know if my theory is correct?
> 
>I also remember hearing that the combustion products of fat dripping
>on the charcoal and burning are carcinogenic.  For that reason, and because
>it covers the product with soot and some unpleasant tanginess, I only grill
>non-drippy meats like prawns directly over hot coals.  I do stuff like this
>duck by indirect heat.  I have a long rectangular Weber, and I put the coals
>at one end and the meat at the other end.  The fat drops directly on the
>floor below the meat, and next time I use the barbeque I make the fire
>in that end to burn off the fat and help ignite the coals.
> 
>And yet another reason I've heard not to smoke or barbeque meat is that
>smoked cured meat, like pork sausage and bacon, contains
>nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.  I'm pretty sure this claim actually
>has some standing, don't know about the others.
> 
>An amusing incident I recall was the Duncan Hines scandal, when it was
>discovered that the people who make Duncan Hines cake mix were putting
>a lot of ethylene dibromide (EDB) into the cake mix to suppress weevils.
>This is a fumigant which is known to be carcinogenic.
>The guy who represented the company in the press conference defended
>himself by saying that the risk from eating Duncan Hines products every day
>for a year would be equal to the cancer risk from eating two charcoal-
>broiled steaks.  What a great analogy!  When I first heard that, my
>immediate reaction was we should make that a standard unit!  One charcoal
>broiled steak would be equivalent to 0.5 Duncans!

I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
naturally occuring substances (excluding "controlled" substances) are
pretty much unregulated in terms of their use as food, food additives
or other "consumption".  It's only when the chemists concoct (sp?) an
ingredient that it falls under FDA regulations.  Otherwise, if they 
really looked closely they would find a reason to ban almost everything.
How in the world do you suppose it's legal to "consume" tobacco products
(which probably SHOULD be banned)?

	Dave Allen
	Space Science & Engr. Ctr.
	UW-Madison

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58966
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Placebo effects

-*-----
In article <735157066.AA00449@calcom.socal.com> Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince) writes:
> Is there an effect where the doctor believes so strongly in a 
> medicine that he/she sees improvement where the is none or sees 
> more improvement than there is?  If so, what is this effect 
> called?  Is there a reverse of the above effect where the doctor 
> doesn't believe in a medicine and then sees less improvement than 
> there is?  What would this effect be called?  Have these effects 
> ever been studied?  How common are these effects?  Thank you in 
> advance for all replies. 

These effects are a very real concern in conducting studies of new
treatments.  Researchers try to limit this kind of effect by 
performing studies that are "blind" in various ways.  Some of these
are:

  o  The subjects of the study do not know whether they receive a 
     placebo or the test treatment, i.e., whether they are in the
     control group or the test group.

  o  Those administering the treatment do not know which subjects 
     receive a placebo or the test treatment.

  o  Those evaluating individual results do not know which subjects
     receive a placebo or the test treatment.

Obviously, at the point at which the data is analyzed, one has to 
differentiate the test group from the control group.  But the analysis
is quasi-public: the researcher describes it and presents the data on
which it is based so that others can verify it.  

It is worth noting that in biological studies where the subjects are
animals, such as mice, there were many cases of skewed results because
those who performed the study did not "blind" themselves.  It is not
considered so important to make mice more ignorant than they already
are, though it is important that in all respects except the one tested,
the control and test groups are treated alike.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58967
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>
>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?

There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58968
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Surgery of damaged tendons and median nerve

In article <BHATT.93Apr12161425@wesley.src.honeywell.com> bhatt@src.honeywell.com writes:
>I thought I will explore the net wisdom with the following questions:
>
>  Is there any better way to control the pain than what the surgeon suggested?
>  How long will such pain last?  Will the pain recur in the future?
>
No one can answer that.  If she gets reflex sympathetic dystrophy,
it could last forever.  Just hope she does not.  Most don't.

>  Do damaged (partially cut) tendons heal completely and is all of the finger
>  strength regained?  How long does it take for the complete healing process?
>

Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't.  You just have to do the
best job you can reattaching and hope.  You should know in a few
months.






-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58969
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <1993Apr17.184305.18758@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!saimiri.primate.wisc.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!think.com!hsdndev!spdcc!dyer
   From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
   Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA
   References: <20996.3049.uupcb@factory.com> <79727@cup.portal.com>
   Date: Sat, 17 Apr 1993 18:43:05 GMT
   Lines: 18

   In article <79727@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
   >I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
   >which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
   >from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
   >results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
   >chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
   >with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

   Yeah, the "Feingold Diet" is a load of crap.  Children diagnosed with ADD
   who are placed on this diet show no improvement in their intellectual and
   social skills, which in fact continue to decline.  Of course, the parents
   who are enthusiastic about this approach lap it up at the expense of their
   children's development.  So much for the value of "interesting anecdotal
   results".  People will believe anything if they want to.

   -- 
   Steve Dyer
   dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer


Thanks for all the interest in this problem of mine. I don't think it
is a reaction to sugar or junk food per se since Kathryn has never shown
any signs of hyperactivity or changes in behavior in response to food.
She has always been very calm and dare I say, a neat, smart kid.

The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 

Anyway, our next trip is to an endocrinologist to check out the body
chemistry.  But so far, no more sugar coated cereals and no more seizures
either.  Every day that goes by without one makes me heave a sigh of
relief.  Thanks again.

--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58970
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: ORGAN DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION FACT SHEET

In article <1993Apr13.150018.641@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com writes:

>My wife cannot donate blood because she has been to a malarial region
>in the past three years.  In fact, she tried to have her bone marrow
>typed and they wouldn't even do that!  Why?
>
The FDA, I believe.  Rules say no blood or blood products donations
from anyone who has been in a malarial area for 3 years.  I was a platelet
donor until my Thailand trip and my blood bank was very disappointed
to find out they couldn't use me for 3 years.

>
>When the secretary of state asked me if I wanted to donate my
>organs I said no because I figured that no one would want them
>given my history.  Was I correct?
>
Not necessarily.  The same rules may not apply to organ donation
as to blood donation.  In fact, I'm sure they don't.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58971
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Mississippi River water and catfish: safe?

In article <1993Apr12.204033.126645@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I've been invited to spend a couple weeks this summer rafting down the
>Mississippi.  My journey partners want to live off of river water and
>catfish along the route.  Should I have any concerns about pollution or
>health risks in doing this?

You'd have to purify the river water first.  I'm not sure how practical
that is with the Mississippi.  You'd better check with health agencies
along the way to see if there are toxic chemicals in the river.  If
it is just microorganisms, those can be filtered or killed, but you
may need activated charcoal or other means to purify from chemicals.
Better be same than sorry.  Obviously, drinking the river without
processing it is likely to make you sick from bacteria and parasites.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58972
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1993Apr12.231544.5990@cnsvax.uwec.edu> nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

> 
>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against FMGs.  I


Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.  
Most programs discriminate, in that given an FMG equally
qualified as an American they will take the American.  What
rights do they actually have?  Does it matter if they are
US citizens (most are not)?  We have had good luck with FMGs
and bad luck.  SOme of our very best residents have been FMGs.
Also, our very worst.  As it turns out, the worst FMGs are often
US citizens that studied in off-shore medical schools.  Of the
5 residents fired for incompetence in the 12 years I've been here 
in my department, all have been FMGs.  3 were US citizens who studied 
in Guadalajara, 1 was a US citizen but was trained in the Soviet Union, 
and one was Philipina.  Unfortunately, all are now practicing medicine
somewhere, 3 of them in Neurology after having been picked up by 
other programs, 1 in psychiatry, and the other in emergency medicine.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58973
From: cash@convex.com (Peter Cash)
Subject: "liver" spots

What causes those little brown spots on older people's hands? Are they
called "liver spots" because they're sort of liver-colored, or do they
indicate some actual liver dysfunction?
-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             |      Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist.     |
Peter Cash   |       (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein)      |cash@convex.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58974
From: thomasd@tps.COM (Thomas W. Day)
Subject: Re: _The Andromeda Strain_

In article <C5pvp5.82L@chinet.chi.il.us> dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung) writes:

>Just had the opportunity to watch this flick on A&E -- some 15 years
>since I saw it last.  

Wow, the WWII channel did something not-WWII?

>I was very interested in the technology demonstrated in this film
>for handling infectious diseases (and similar toxic substances).
>Clearly they "faked" a lot of the computer & robotic technology;
>certainly at the time it was made most of that was science fiction
>itself, let alone the idea of a "space germ".  

The graphics capabilities of the computers were very faked for movie 
audiences who have not ability or patience with numbers.  The book was more 
realistic in that respect.  In all respects, actually.  The robotics are 
still out of range, but not impossible.

>Quite coincidentally [actually this is what got me wanted to see
>the movie again] I watched a segment on the otherwise awful _How'd
>They Do That?_ dealing with a disease researcher at the CDC's top
>lab.  There was description of the elaborate security measures taken
>so that building will never be "cracked" so to speak by man or
>nature (short of deliberate bombing from the air, perhaps).  And
>the researchers used "spacesuits" similar to that in the film.

SF (and I"ve always wondered how Crichton escapes this classification) is 
usually ahead of science in both prediction and precaution.  NASA's 
decontaimination processes were supposedly taken to prevent SF story 
disasters.  I mean, NASA scientists were often SF readers (and 
sometimes writers) and felt pre-warned by their reading.

>I'm curious what people think about this film -- short of "silly".
>Is such a facility technically feasible today?  

I think the film still holds up among the best of SF films, but that isn't 
saying a whole lot.

>As far as the plot, and the crystalline structure that is not Life
>As We Know It, that's a whole 'nother argument for rec.arts.sf.tech
>or something.

Yep.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58975
From: calzone@athena.mit.edu
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)



>Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
>re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
>cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.
>
>What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
>goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
>favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
>check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
>VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?


You are absolutely daft.  No flame required.  You lack a brain.

> ...[sic]...
>Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
>which are the units of genetics.


Well... at least you're educated, it seems.  But give credit
where credit is due: to Richard Dawkin(s?) 
(the meme is a meme he invented)

-zone

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58976
From: sheffner@encore.com (Steve Heffner)
Subject: Hernia

A bit more than a year ago, a hernia in my right groin was
discovered.  It had produced a dull pain in that area.  The hernia
was repaired using the least intrusive (orthoscopic?) method and a
"plug and patch".

The doctor considered the procedure a success.

A few months later the same pain returned.  The doctor said that
he could find nothing wrong in the area of the hernia repair.

Now the pain occurs more often.  My GP couldn't identify any
specific problem.  The surgen who performed the original procedure
now says that yes there is a "new" hernia in the same area and he
said that he has to cut into the area for the repair this time.

My question to the net:  Is there a nonintrusive method to
determine if in fact there is a hernia or if the pain is from
something else?

Steve Heffner

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58977
From: davpa@ida.liu.se (David Partain)
Subject: Candida Albicans: what is it?


Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

Thanks.
-- 
David Partain                   |  davpa@ida.liu.se
IDA, University of Link\"oping  |  work phone:  +46 (013) 28 26 08
S-581 83 Link\"oping, Sweden    |  telefax:     +46 (013) 28 26 66

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58978
From: jil@donuts0.uucp (Jamie Lubin)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <19671@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>>
>>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>
>There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
>same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.

I recall reading/seeing that former baseball star Chris Chambliss' hitting
abilities were (in part) attributed to a combination of left-handedness &
right-eye dominance.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58979
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <1993Apr18.175802.28548@clpd.kodak.com> Rich Young,
young@serum.kodak.com writes:

Stuff deleted

>	 ... have to
>	 consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a
>	 time."

I have to confess that this is one of my few unfulfilled ambitions.
No matter how much I eat, it still seems realistic.

Don Mackie - his opinion

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58980
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <9307@blue.cis.pitt.edu> Kenneth Gilbert,
kxgst1+@pitt.edu writes:
>situation.  QA activities are a routine part of every hospital's
>administrative function and are required by accreditation agencies.
 There
>are even entire publications devoted to QA issues.


Indeed. I spend about 60% of my time dealing with quality stuff. It
is a hot number. 
Two journals worth looking at are:-
Quality Review Bulletin. Pub:Joint Commission on Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations, one Renaissance boulevard, Oakbrook
Terrace, IL 60181
Quality in Health Care. BMJ Publishing Group, Box No. 560B,
Kennebunkport, ME 04046

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58981
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*----
I think that part of the problem is that I have proposed a
definition of science that I intended to be interpreted broadly
and that Lee Lady has interpreted fairly narrowly.  My definition
is this: Science is the investigation of the empirical that avoids
mistakes in reasoning and methodology discovered from previous
work.  Lee Lady writes:

> I don't think that science should be defined in a way that some 
> of the activities that lead to really important science --- namely
> thinking and informal exploration --- are not recognized as
> scientific work.  

Unless one classifies "thinking and informal exploration" as a
mistake, they fall under my definition.  I hope no one would
consider speculation, thinking, and informal exploration as
unscientific.  

In article <C5nAsF.MH7@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> Seriously, I'm not sure whether I misjudged you or not, in one respect.  
> I still have a major problem, though, with your insistence that science 
> is mainly about avoiding mistakes. ...

Here is where I think we are talking at cross-purposes.  It is not
clear to me that the kind of definition I have proposed should be
taken as describing what "science is mainly about."  Consider,
for example, a definition of invertebrates as all animals lacking
a backbone.  This fairly tells what is an invertebrate and
what is not an invertebrate, but it hardly tells you what
invertebrates are all about.  One can read this definition and
still not know that 95% of all animal species are invertebrates,
that invertebrates possess a remarkably broad range of form, that
some invertebrate groups -- such as insects and nematodes -- are
ubiquitous in all ecosystems, etc.  In short, knowing the
definition of invertebrates does *not* tell one what they are
"mainly about."

The misunderstanding here is my fault.  I did not give sufficient
context for people to understand my proposed definition.

> Okay, so let's see if we agree on this: FIRST of all, there are degrees 
> of certainty.  It might be appropriate, for instance, to demand carefully 
> controlled trials before we accept as absolute scientific truth (to the 
> extent that there is any such thing) the effectiveness of a certain 
> treatment. On the other hand, highly favorable clinical experience, even 
> if uncontrolled, can be adequate to justify a *preliminary* judgement that
> a treatment is useful. ...
>
> SECONDLY, it makes sense to be more tolerant in our standards of 
> evidence for a pronounced effect than for one that is marginal.  

I agree on both counts.  As an example of the second, it would only
take a few cases of curing rabies to convince most veterinarians
that a treatment was effective, despite a lack of controls.  

As to the first, I do not think it is useful to talk about
"absolute scientific truth."  I think it is more useful to talk
about the kinds of evidence that various claims have and the
kinds of evidence IN PARTICULAR FIELDS that in the past have
proven faulty or reliable.  The latter is obviously a matter of
degree, and in each field, practitioners try to discover the
relevance of different kinds of evidence.  

One of the primary mistakes that marks the advocacy of an idea as
psuedo-science is that the advocacy lacks any sense of proportion
regarding the kinds of evidence related to the proposed claim,
the kinds of evidence that are actually relevant to it, and the
historical reasons in the field that certain kinds of evidence
are given more weight than others.  It is perfectly alright to
speculate.  I have read quite a few refereed papers that
speculated left and right.  But the authors were careful to
identify the notions as speculative, to list what little evidence
was presently available for them, and to describe how research
could proceed to either put the notion on more firm footing or to
uncover its problems.  Often what distinguishes whether a paper
of this sort passes muster is the thoughtfulness with which the
author sets the context and paves the way for future work.  (It
is in this area that many proponents of speculative ideas fail.)

> The folks over in sci.psychology have a hundred and one excuses not to
> make this simple test.  They claim that only an elaborate outcome study
> will be satisfactory --- a study of the sort that NLP practitioners, 
> many of whom make a barely marginal living from their practice, can ill 
> afford to do.  (Most of them are also just plain not interested, because 
> the whole idea seems frivolous.  And since they're not part of the
> scientific establishment, they have no tangible rewards to gain 
> from scientific acceptance.) 

I think a lot of scientists steer away from things that --
deserving or not -- garner a patina of kookiness.  When
proponents of some practice see no value in more careful
investigation of that practice, that sets alarms ringing in many
researchers' minds.  

This is unfortunate, because there is undoubtedly some
intersection between things that are worth investigating and
things that are advocated by those who seem careless or
unreasonable in their advocacy.  On the other hand, I can
understand why many scientists would just as soon select other
directions for research.  As Gordon Banks has pointed out, no one
wants to become this generation's Rhine.

> One academic in sci.psychology said that it would be completely 
> unscientific for him to test the phobia cure since it hasn't 
> been described in a scientific journal. ...

I think this is absurd.  

> Actually, at least one fairly careful academic study has been done 
> (with favorable results), but it's apparently not acceptable because
> it's a doctoral dissertation and not published in a refereed journal.

I wonder why the results were not published.  In my field,
dissertation results are typically summarized in papers that are
submitted to journals.  Often the papers are accepted for
publication before the dissertation is finished.  (This certainly
eases one's defense.)

Finally, I hope Lee Lady will forgive me from commenting either
on NLP or the discussion of it in sci.psychology.  I know little
about either and so have nothing to offer.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58982
From: proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts)
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>
>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>

I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
show up in any chemical test.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58983
From: kutuzova@venus.iteb.serpukhov.su
Subject: THE RESEACHING OF STARVATION.

I am very interested in investigations of starvation for improving health.
I am the young Russian reseacher  and have highest medical education
 and expierence in reseach work in biological field and would like
 to work on this problem.
Can anybody send me the adresses of the hospitals or Medical Centers where  
scientific problems of human starvation for the health are investigated?  
Also I would like to set scientific contacts with colleagues who
deals with investigations in this field.
I would be very appreciated anyone reply me. 

Pls, contact by post: 142292, Russia, 
                        Moscow Region,
                        Puschino,
                        P.O. box 46, 
                        for Kravchenko N.      ;

       or by e-mail: kutuzova@venus.iteb.serpukhov.su
                                           
                                            Thank you advance,   
                                             Natalja Kravchenko.
  
 
                







Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58984
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr17.202011.21443@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr17.184435.19725@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>
>There has been NO hard info provided about MSG making people ill.
>That's the point, after all.

Why don't you just look it up in the Merk? Or check out the medical dictionary
cite which a doctor mentioned earlier in this thread?


>
>That's because these "peer-reviewed" studies are not addressing
>the effects of MSG in people, they're looking at animal models.
>You can't walk away from this and start ranting about gloom and
>doom as if there were any documented deleterious health effects
>demonstrated in humans.  Note that I wouldn't have any argument
>with a statement like "noting that animal administration has pro-
>duced the following [blah, blah], we must be careful about its
>use in humans."  This is precisely NOT what you said.

Among others, see Olney's  "Excitotoxic Food Aditives - Relevance of
Animal Studies to Human Safety" (1982) Neurobehav. Toxicol. Teratol.
vol 6: 455-462.

I'm sure PETA would love to hear your arguments.

>>Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
>>study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
>>and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
>>Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
>>for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
>>that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
>>injection bunk.
>
>It most certainly is for neurotoxicology.  You know, studies of
>glutamate involve more than "food science".

Whose talking about "food science"? What is this comment supposed to
mean? *Neurotoxicology and Tratology*, *Brain Research*, *Nature*,
*Progress in Brain Research*: all fine food science journals. ;-)

>>Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
>>journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?
>
>So, point us to the studies in humans, please.  I'm familiar with
>the literature, and I've never seen any which relate at all to
>Olney's work in animals and the effects of glutamate on neurons.

Then you would know that Olney himself has casually  referred to
"Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" in a few articles. Why don't *you* point
us to some studies? Maybe then this exchange could be productive.

>>The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
>>Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.
>
>Well, actually, they HAVE to tolerate some phenylalanine; it's a
>essential amino acid.  They just try to get as little as is healthy
>without producing dangerous levels of phenylalanine and its metabolites
>in the blood.

They're unable to metabolise it.

>>Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
>>of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
>>vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
>>soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
>>for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
>>foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.
>
>Goodness, I'm not saying that it's good to feed infants a lot of
>glutamate-supplemented foods.  It's just that this "projected safety
>margin" is a construct derived from animal models and given that,
>you can "prove" anything you like.  We're talking prudent policy in
>infant nutrition here, yet you're misrepresenting it as received wisdom.

Who said anything about 'received wisdom'? There is no question that
orally administered doses of MSG are capable of destroying nearly all
neurons in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus and the median
eminence. These areas are responsible for the production of
hormones critical to normal neuroendocrine function and the normal
development of the vertabrate organism. Humans are vertebrates. Now
what, pray tell, do you think will happen when the area of the brain
necessary for the normal rhythm of gonadotropin release is missing?
Are you trying to say that humans have no need of their pituitary,
ANH, and ME, of that part of the brain that is responsible for
controlling the realease (albeit indirectly) of estradiol and testosterone? 

How do you expect anyone to do the studies on this? It's unethical to
"sacrifice" humans to check out what effects chronic, acute, etc doses
of these compounds are having on the brain tissue in humans.  The food
industry knows this. That's why the animal model is used in medicine
and psych.  If you're talking about straight sensitivity, it would be
useful to define the term.  There are plenty of studies on
psychoneuroimmunology showing the link between attitude and
physiology.

I suspect we may be arguing about separate things; *only* adult sensitivities
(You), and late-occuring sequelae of childhood ingestion and its
implication for adults (me).  Certainly
the doses for excitotoxicity in adults are considerably larger than
for the young, but the additivity of Glu and Asp, and their copious
and increased presence in modern processed foods (jointly), and their
hidden presence in HVP, necessitates extreme caution. Why would anyone
want to eat compounds which have been shown to markedly perturb the
endocrine system in adults?  The main point is *blood levels*
attained, and oral doses would likely have to be greater than SC. 

>>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 
>
>You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
>plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
>have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
>for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
>whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
>studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
>reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
>of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
>inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.

Olney's work provides a putative causal mechanism for some
sensitivities. Terry, Epelbaum and Martin have shown that orally
administered MSG causes changes in normal gonadotropic hormone
fluctutations in adults. Glu also was found to induce immediate and persistant
supression of rhythmic GH secretion, and to induce rapid and transient
release of prolactin in adults chronically exposed to MSG. GH is
responsible not only for control of growth during development, but
also converts glycogen into glucose. Could this be the cause of
headaches? I don't know.

>>>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com 
>>Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?
>>- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca
>
>Probably one of the dumber remarks you've made.

If you had read Olney's review article, especially the remarks I
already quoted in an earlier post, you would know to what I was
alluding. May I ask exactly for whom you do computer consulting? :-)


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58985
From: bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <1993Apr17.195202.28921@freenet.carleton.ca>, 
ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:

> 
> 
> I have between 15 and 25 nosebleeds each week, as a result of a genetic 
> predisposition to weak capillary walls (Osler-Weber-Rendu). 
> Fortunately, each nosebleed is of short duration. 
> 
> Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger 
> brothers each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their 
> nosebleeds soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin 
> that is supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, 
> or other techniques. 
> -- 


My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.


Bev Zalan

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58986
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

K(>  king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
K(>
K(> RR>  ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) wrote:
K(> RR>  OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
K(> RR>  ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
K(> RR>  Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
K(> RR>  No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
K(> RR>  the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
K(> RR>  practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...
K(>  
K(>  1: "90% of diseases" is not the same thing as "90% of patients".
K(>  
K(>     In a world with one curable disease that strikes 100 people, and nine
K(>     incurable diseases which strikes one person each, medical science will cure
K(>     91% of the patients and report that 90% of diseases have no therapy.
K(>  
K(>  2: A disease would be counted among the 90% untreatable if nothing better than
K(>     a placebo were known.  Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly
K(>     dispense placebos...
K(>  
K(>     -dk
 
 Hmmm... even  *without*  the  ;-)  at the end, I didn't think anyone
 was going to take the mathematics or statistics of my post seriously.
 
 I only hope that you had the same thing in mind with your post, 
 otherwise you would need at least TWO  ;-)'s  at the end to help 
 anyone understand your calculations above...

  --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228:  This mind intentionally left blank.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58987
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

While in grad school, I remember a biochemistry friend of mine working with
"heat shock proteins". Apparently, burning protein will induce changes in he
DNA. Whether these changes survive the denaturing that occurs during digestion
I don't know, but I never eat burnt food because of this. 

Also, many woods contain toxins. As they are burnt, it would seem logical that
some may volatilise, and get into the BBQed food. Again, I don't know if these
toxins (antifungal and anti-woodeater compounds) would survive the rather harsh
conditions of the stomach and intestine, and then would they be able to cross
the intestinal mucosa?

Maybe someone with more biochemical background than myself (which is almost
*anyone*... :)) can shed some light on heat shock proteins and the toxins that
may be in the wood used to make charcoal and BBQ.

Anne-Marie Rousseau
e-mail: rousseaua@immunex.com
What I say has nothing to do with Immunex.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58988
From: todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey)
Subject: Krillean Photography

I think that's the correct spelling..
	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
appreciated.
	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.


-- 
_D_I_S_C_L_A_I_M_E_R_: I can neither confirm nor deny any opinions
expressed in this article directly reflect my own personal or
political views and furthermore, if they did, I would not be at
liberty to yield such an explanation of these alleged opinions.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58989
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

My comments about the Feingold Diet have no relevance to your
daughter's purported FrostedFlakes-related seizures.  I can't imagine
why you included it.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58990
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)
Subject: Re: eye dominance


> In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
> >
> >Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
> >overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
> >people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
> >other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?

I have a long sighted eye and a short sighted eye. My right eye tends
to cut out when I look at distant things, my left eye when I am close
up.  I had specs to balance things up a bit but could do without them.
I thought that, one way or another, I would always be able to see
clearly.  Unfortunately middle age is rearing its ugly head and I can
no longer see close up objects clearly.  Maybe it's just that my arms
are getting shorter :-)

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand     
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58991
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Adult Chicken Pox

In article <C5pM3o.BDo@feenix.metronet.com> marcbg@feenix.metronet.com
 (Marc Grant) writes:
>all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
>office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

Yes.

>Is there any medications which can promote healing of the pox?  Speed up
>healing?

Acyclovir started in the first 1-2 days probably speeds recovery and
decreases the formation of new pox.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58992
From: wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

I have heard that epileptic patients go into seizures if they
eat anything with MSG added.  This may have something to do with
the excitotoxicity of neurons.

-fm

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58993
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

>[reply to rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver)]
> 
>>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an overall
>>right-handedness in the population? I mean do most people require less
>>lens corrections for the one eye than the other? If so, what kinds of
>>percentages can be attached to this?  Thanks.
> 
>There is an "eyedness" analogous to handedness but it has nothing to do
>with refractive error.  To see whether you are right or left eyed, roll
>up a sheet of paper into a tube and hold it up to either eye like a
>telescope.  The eye that you feel more comfortable putting it up to is
>your dominant eye.  Refractive error is often different in the two eyes
>but has no correlation with handedness.
> 
>David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
>This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
>must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell


What do you mean "more comfortable putting it up to."  That seems a bit
hard to evaluate.  At least for me it is.  

Stare straight Point with both hands together and clasp so that only the
pointer fingers are pointing straight forward to a a spot on the wall about
eight feet away.  First stare at the spot with both eyes open.  Now
close your left eye.  Now open your left eye.  Now close your right eye.
now open your right eye.

If the image jumped more when you closed your right eye, you are right
eye dominant.

If the image jumped more when you closed your left eye, you are left eye
dominant.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58994
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

As nobody in the food industry has even bothered to address my previous
question "WHY DO YOU NEED TO PUT MSG IN ALMOST EVERY FOOD?" I must assume
that my wife's answer is closer to the truth than I hoped it was.

She believes that MSG is added to food to cause people to eat more of it
and not quit when they shoud be sated.  To put it a different way, she 
believes that for some people MSG causes them to act toward food like an addict.  
(Eat all the chips, chow down on several packages of noodle soup .... you get the
idea! }  IF she is right, then the moral and ethical standards of the 
food, chemical and regulatory groups need to be addressed!!!  Can MSG
be considered a conditioning substance (not addictive but sort of habit
forming) ?

This brings up a side question of mine.   I have noticed that cats (my
children's and my parent's) seem to fixate on a particular brand of pet
food. The cat will eat any product within one brand and not any other
brand.  I have wondered if this is not a case of preference, but, some
sort of chemical training or addiction. My questions, for the net, are:
Does the FDA regulate the contents of pet food?  Is it allowed for pet
food to contain addictive or conditioning substances?  Is MSG put in 
pet food?

-----------------------------------
I speak for myself and not Motorola
-----------------------------------
 
-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58995
From: tarl@sw.stratus.com (Tarl Neustaedter)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
> I think that's the correct spelling..

The proper spelling is Kirlian. It was an effect discoverd by
S. Kirlian, a soviet film developer in 1939.

As I recall, the coronas visible are ascribed to static discharges
and chemical reactions between the organic material and the silver
halides in the films.

-- 
         Tarl Neustaedter       Stratus Computer
       	 tarl@sw.stratus.com    Marlboro, Mass.
Disclaimer: My employer is not responsible for my opinions.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58996
From: leisner@wrc.xerox.com (Marty Leisner 71348 )
Subject: Intravenous antibiotics

I recently had a case of shingles and my doctors wanted to give me
intravenous Acyclovir.

It was a pain finding IV sites in my arms...can I have some facts about
how advantageous it is to give intravenous antibiotics rather than oral?

marty

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58997
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Betty Harvey writes,

> I am not a researcher or a medical person but it amazes me that 
> when they can't find a scientific or a known fact they automatically 
> assume that the reaction is psychological.  It is mind boggling.

This, simply stated, is a result of the bankrupt ethics in
the healthcare and scientific medicine industries.

America is fed up with the massive waste and fraud that is costing
us 15% of our GNP to support these industries, while delivering 
marginal health care to the community.

Unfortunately, the "Clinton Plan", in whatever form it
takes, will probably cost us an even greater sum.  Bleah.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58998
From: evanh@sco.COM (Evan Hunt)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


In article <1993Apr19.215342.16930@sco.com> evanh@sco.COM (Evan Hunt) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr13.201942.26058@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com> sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com (Sharen A. Rund) writes:
 
>>restaurants advertize "No MSG") - many restaurants that feature salad
>>bars use MSG to "keep" the veggies looking fresh longer, also, a number
 
>This brings up an important question for me - could pre-made salads, the
>kind sold in supermarkets, have MSG added without mentioning it? Legally,
>I mean - anyone know what the law is in this area?


Steve Dyer points out that Sharen was probably thinking of Sulfites. But
the question still stands.
-- 
Evan Hunt, Asst. Editor, THE WEB
For more information about THE WEB, e-mail to evanh@sco.COM.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 58999
From: ski@wpi.WPI.EDU (Joseph Mich Krzeszewski)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

I seem to recall that there was an article in Radio Electronics about this
subject. In fact I have a copy of the article in front of me, but I can't
find anywhere in the article a refrence as to what month it was in. The system
they describe uses an automobile ignition coil for the high voltage. The 
article even includes some information on what kind of film to use and where 
to get it. 

Hope this helps.

Joseph M. Krzeszewski
ski@WPI.wpi.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59000
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: How about a crash program in basic immunological research?

In article <221@ky3b.UUCP>, km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
> As a physician, I almost never get sick: usually, when something horrendous
> is going around, I either don't get it at all or get a very mild case.
> When I do get really sick, it is always something unusual.
> 
> This was not the situation when I was in medical school, particularly on
> pediatrics.... Pediatrics for me was three solid
> months of illness, and I had a temp of 104 when I took the final exam!
> 
> I think what happens is that during training, and beyond, we are constantly
> exposed to new things, and we have the usual reactions to them, so that later
> on, when challenged with something, it is more likely a re-exposure for us,
> so we deal with it well and get a mild illness. 

This is also commonly seen in new teachers.  The first few years, they're
sick a lot, but gradually seem to build up immunities to almost everything
common.  Come to think of it, I was about my healthiest when I was
working in a pathogens lab, exposed to who-knows-what all the time.  Pre-OSHA,
of course.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59001
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Intravenous antibiotics

In article <1993Apr19.144358.28376@spectrum.xerox.com> leisner@eso.mc.xerox.com writes:
:I recently had a case of shingles and my doctors wanted to give me
:intravenous Acyclovir.
:
:It was a pain finding IV sites in my arms...can I have some facts about
:how advantageous it is to give intravenous antibiotics rather than oral?
:

I think some essential information must be missing here, i.e., you must be
suffering from a condition which has caused immunosuppression.  There is
no indication for IV acyclovir for shingles in an otherwise healthy
person.  The oral form can help to reduce the length of symptoms, and may
even help prevent the development of post-herpetic neuralgia, but I
certainly would not subject someone to IV therapy without a good reason.

To address your more general question, IV therapy does provide higher and
more consistently high plasma and tissue levels of a drug.  For treating a
serious infection this is the only way to be sure that a patient is
getting adequate drug levels.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59002
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

> I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
> be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
> naturally occuring substances (excluding "controlled" substances) are
> pretty much unregulated in terms of their use as food, food additives
> or other "consumption".  It's only when the chemists concoct (sp?) an
> ingredient that it falls under FDA regulations.  Otherwise, if they 
> really looked closely they would find a reason to ban almost everything.
> How in the world do you suppose it's legal to "consume" tobacco products
> (which probably SHOULD be banned)?

No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
1950's, before stuff like mass spectrometry became available, which increased
detectable levels of substances by a couple orders of magnitude.

This is why things like cyclamates and Red #2 were banned.  They are very
weakly carcinogenic in huge quantities in rats, so under the Act they are
banned.

This also applies to natural carcinogens.  Some of you might remember a
time back in the 1960's when root beer suddenly stopped tasting so good,
and never tasted so good again.  That was the time when safrole was banned.
This is the active flavoring ingredient in sassafras leaves.

If it were possible to market a root beer good like the old days, someone
would do it, in order to make money.  The fact that no one does it indicates
that enforcement is still in effect.

An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59003
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr19.204855.10818@rtsg.mot.com> lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby) writes:
>As nobody in the food industry has even bothered to address my previous
>question "WHY DO YOU NEED TO PUT MSG IN ALMOST EVERY FOOD?" I must assume
>that my wife's answer is closer to the truth than I hoped it was.
I don't mean to be disrespectful to your concerns, but it seems to me 
that you're getting all wound up in a non-issue.  

As many knowledgeable people have pointed out, msg is a naturally 
occurring substance in a lot, if not most, foods.  When food 
manufacturers add it to a preparation, they do so because it's a 
known flavor enhancer. 

Your wife's theory, that MSG is added to food to stimulate appetite, 
may well be true.  But I don't believe it's ALWAYS the reason it's 
added.  People are (largely, for the most part) in charge of their 
own appetites. 

>children's and my parent's) seem to fixate on a particular brand of pet
>food. The cat will eat any product within one brand and not any other
>brand.  I have wondered if this is not a case of preference, but, some
>sort of chemical training or addiction. My questions, for the net, are:
>Does the FDA regulate the contents of pet food?  Is it allowed for pet
>food to contain addictive or conditioning substances?  Is MSG put in 
>pet food?
>
You don't know much about cats, do you? 

Cats will Take Advantage of You.  Resign yourself:  you will never  
understand a cat.  Their tastes are whimsical.  

I also suspect, though it's been a while since I've checked ingredients 
on commercial cat food, that there are much more stringent requirements 
on pet food additives than human.  

See, the FDA has this stupid idea that human beings have the intelligence 
to look out after their own interests.  

Barbara, wondering how her cat would take care of *her*

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59004
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

[Newsgroups: m.h.a added, followups set to most appropriate groups.]

In <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M.
Huey) writes:

>I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures.

(It's "Kirlian".  "Krillean" pictures are portraits of tiny shrimp. :)

[...]

>One might extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object
>within the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

I think it's safe to say that anything that's not at 0 degrees Kelvin
will have its own "energy signature" -- the interesting questions are
what kind of energy, and what it signifies.

I'd check places like Edmund Scientific (are they still in business?) --
or I wonder if you can find ex-Soviet Union equipment for sale somewhere
in the relcom.* hierarchy.

Some expansion on Kirlian photography:

From the credulous side: [Stanway, Andrew, _Alternative Medicine: A Guide
To Natural Therapies_, ISBN 0-14-008561-0, New York: Viking Penguin, 1986,
p211, p188.  A not-overly critical but still useful overview of 32
alternative health therapies.]

  ...the Russian engineer Semyon Kirlian and his wife Valentina during the
  1950s.  Using alternating currents of high frequency to 'illuminate'
  their subjects, they photographed them.  They found that if an object
  was a good conductor (such as a metal) the picture showed only its
  surface, while the pictures of poor conductors showed the inner
  structure of the object even if it were optically opaque.  They found
  too that these high frequency pictures could distinguish between dead
  and living objects.  Dead ones had a constant outline whilst living ones
  were subject to changes.  The object's life activity was also visible in
  highly variable colour patterns.

  High frequency photography has now been practised for twenty years in
  the Soviet Union but only a few people in the West have taken it up
  seriously.  Professor Douglas Dean in New York and Professor Philips at
  Washington University in St Louis have produced Kirlian photographs and
  others have been produced in Brazil, Austria and Germany.

  Using Kirlian photography it is possible to show an aura around people's
  fingers, notably around those of healers who are concentrating on
  healing someone.  Normally, blue and white rays emanate from the fingers
  but, when a subject becomes angry or excited, the aura turns red and
  spotty.  The Soviets are now using Kirlian photography to diagnose
  diseases which cannot be diagnosed by any other method.  They argue that
  in most illnesses there is a preclinical stage during which the person
  isn't actually ill but is about to be.  They claim to be able to
  foretell a disease by photographing its preclinical phase.

  But the most exciting phenomenon illustrated by Kirlian photography is
  the phantom effect.  During high frequency photography of a leaf from
  which a part had been cut, the photograph gave a complete picture of the
  leaf with the removed part showing up faintly.  This is extremely
  important because it backs up the experiences of psychics who can 'see'
  the legs of amputees as if they were still there.  The important thing
  about the Kirlian phantoms though is that the electromagnetic pattern
  can't possibly represent a secondary phenomenon -- or the field would
  vanish when the piece of leaf or leg vanished.  The energy grid
  contained in a living object must therefore be far more significant than
  the actual object itself.

  [...]

  Kirlian photography has shown how water mentally 'charged' by a healer
  has a much richer energy field around it than ordinary water...


From the incredulous side: [MacRobert, Alan, "Reality shopping; a
consumer's guide to new age hokum.", _Whole Earth Review_, Autumn 1986,
vNON4 p4(11).  An excellent article providing common-sense guidelines for
evaluating paranormal claims, and some of the author's favorite examples
of hokum.]

  The crank usually works in isolation from everyone else in his field of
  study, making grand discoveries in his basement.  Many paranormal
  movements can be traced back to such people -- Kirlian photography, for
  instance.  If you pump high-voltage electricity into anything it will
  emit glowing sparks, common knowledge to electrical workers and
  hobbyists for a century.  It took a lone basement crank to declare that
  the sparks represent some sort of spiritual aura.  In fact, Kirlian
  photography was subjected to rigorous testing by physicists John O.
  Pehek, Harry J. Kyler, and David L. Faust, who reported their findings
  in the October 15, 1976, issue of Science.  Their conclusion: The
  variations observed in Kirlian photographs are due solely to moisture on
  the surface of the body and not to mysterious "auras" or even
  necessarily to changes in mood or mental state.  Nevertheless,
  television shows, magazines, and books (many by famous
  parapsychologists) continue to promote Kirlian photography as proof of
  the unknown.

-- 
Peter Kaminski
kaminski@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59006
Subject: What are knots?
From: ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng)

    What exactly are knots, those sore, tight spots in your muscles?
In certain kinds of massage, people try and break up these knots; it this
really helpful?


Ho Leung Ng
ng4@husc.harvard.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59007
From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Mark McWiggins <markmc@halcyon.com> reminds us:

MM> Also, don't forget that it's better for your health 
MM> to enjoy your steak than to resent your sprouts ...

YES!

I call this notion "psychological health food" and, in fact, have
determined that the Four Food Groups are Ice Cream, Pizza, Barbecue, and
Chocolate.  Ideally, every meal should contain something from at least two
of these four groups.  Food DOES serve functions other than nutrition, and
one of them is keeping the organism happy and thus aiding its immune
system. 

And I didn't spend a million bucks commissioning a study that told me to
redraw my silly little pyramid in different colors and with a friendlier
typeface, either.  (Ref: Consumer Reports' back page--one of the best
things ever to turn up there.)

Rich Young <young@serum.kodak.com> writes of one of six impossible things:
RY> to consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a time."

Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> confesses:
DM> I have to confess that this is one of my few unfulfilled ambitions.
DM> No matter how much I eat, it still seems realistic.

Yeah, I want to try one of those 42oz steaks (cooked over applewood) at
Wally's Wolf Lodge Inn in Coeur d'Alene.  That seems quite
unrealistic--unrealistically SMALL.  And a few slabs of ribs from the East
Texas Smoker (RIP, again) in Louisville is not at all unrealistic either.  

What say we have a rec.food.cooking dinner at the Moonlite Bar-B-Que Inn in
Owensboro? (It's all you can eat including lamb ribs & mutton for about
$10.)  We could invite Julie Kangas as guest of honor and see if the
Moonlite's Very Hot Sauce is too hot for her.  (It IS too hot for me, and I
don't say that very often.)  And she could bring ice cream with crushed
dried chiltepins for dessert.  

And we could see if there IS such a thing as an "unrealistically large
quantity" of barbecue--the owner of the Moonlite estimates that the
Owensboro restaurants serve a hundred thousand pounds of meat a week in the
summer, and forty thousand in the winter--in a town of 50 000 or so.  Two
pounds per person per week?   Again, sure sounds unrealistic to me--thats
just too meager to be healthy.

~ Kiran (Now a two-pound slab of ribs a day, THAT's realistic.)

-- 
FUZZY PINK NIVEN'S LAW:  Never Waste Calories.  Potato chips, candy,
whipped cream, or hot fudge sundae consumption may involve you, your
dietician, your wardrobe, and other factors.  But Fuzzy Pink's Law implies:
Don't eat soggy potato chips, or cheap candy, or fake whipped cream, or an
inferior hot fudge sundae.
                Larry Niven, NIVEN'S LAWS, N-SPACE


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59008
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <9304191126.AA21125@seastar.seashell> bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan) writes:
>
>My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
>to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
>days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
>vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.
>
If you can get it, you might want to try a Canadian over-the-counter product
called Secaris, which is a water-soluble gel.  Compared to Vaseline or other
greasy ointments, Secaris seems more compatible with the moisture that's
already there.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59009
From: myers@cs.scarolina.edu (Daniel Myers)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Frequently of late, I have been reacting to something added to
restaurant foods.  What happens is that the inside of my throat starts
to feel "puffy", like I have a cold, and also at times the inside of my
mouth (especially the tongue) and lips also feel puffy.

The situations around these symptoms almost always involve restaurants
(usually chinese), the most notable cases:  a cheap chinese fast food
chain, a japanese steak house (I had the steak), and another chinese
fast food chain where I SAW the cook put about a tablespoon or two of
what looked like sugar or salt into my fried rice.

I am under the impression that MSG "enhances" flavor by causing the
taste buds to swell.  If this is correct, I do not find it unreasonable
to assume that high doses of MSG can cause other mouth tissues to swell.

Also, as the many of the occurances (including two of the above)
involved beef, and as beef is frequently tenderized with MSG, this is
what I suspect as being the cause.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if toxicity studies of MSG in animals
showed it as being harmless, as it would be very startling to hear a lab
rat or rhesus monkey complain about their throats feeling funny.

Anyone who wishes to explain how the majority of food additives are
totally harmless is welcome to e-mail me with the results of any studied
they know of.  I will probably respond to them however with a reminder
of how long it took to prove that smoking causes cancer (which the
tobacco companies still deny).

- DM

(If I sound grumpy, it's because I had beef with broccoli for lunch
today, and now it hurts to swallow)

--
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dan Myers (Madman)		| If the creator had intended us to walk 
myers@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu	| upright, he wouldn't have given us knuckles
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59010
Subject: Origin of Morphine
From: chinsz@eis.calstate.edu (Christopher Hinsz)

	I am sorry to once again bother those of you on this newsgroup. 
If you have any suggestions as to where I might find out about the subject
of this letter (the origin of Morphine, ie. who first isolsted it, and why
he/she attempted such an experiment).  Once agian any suggestion would be
appreciated.
	CSH
p.s. My instructer insists that I get 4 rescources from this newsgroup, so
please send me and info you think may be helpful.  Facts that you know,
but don't know what book they're from are ok.
ATTENTION: If you do NOT like seeing letters such as this one on your
newsgroup direct all complaints to my instructor at <bshayler@eis.CalStat.Edu>


--
 "Kilimanjaro is a pretty tricky climb. Most of it's up, until you reach
the very, very top, and then it tends to slope away rather sharply."
					Sir George Head, OBE (JC)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOGIC: "The point is frozen, the beast is dead, what is the difference?"
					Gavin Millarrrrrrrrrr (JC)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59011
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

[reply to geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)]
 
>>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against FMGs.
 
>Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.
 
I think a case could be made that this is discriminatory, particularly
if an applicant had good board scores and recommendations but wasn't
offered an interview, but I don't know if it has ever gone to court.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59012
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

[reply to todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey)]
 
>I think that's the correct spelling..
 
Kirilian.
 
>The picture will show energy patterns or spikes around the object
>photographed, and depending on what type of object it is, the spikes or
>energy patterns will vary. One might extrapolate here and say that this
>proves that every object within the universe (as we know it) has its
>own energy signature.
 
There turned out to be a very simple, conventional explanation for the
phenomenon.  I can't recall the details, but I believe it had to do with
the object between the plates altering the field because of purely
mechanical properties like capacitance.  The "aura" was caused by direct
exposure of the film from variations in field strength.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59013
From: mstern@lindsay.Princeton.EDU (Marlene J. Stern)
Subject: Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis


We will be holding a bake and craft sale at Communiversity in Princeton on  
Nassau Street, Saturday April 24th 12-4 p.m. to benefit the Recurrent  
Respiratory Papillomatosis Foundation, a nonprofit foundation established to  
encourage research toward a cure for Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis.  Our  
three year old daughter suffers from this disease.  Below is a press release  
that appeared in local newspapers.  Hope you can join us.


On Saturday, April 24 as part of Communiversity in Princeton, a local family  
will be having a bake and craft sale to raise money for and create public  
awareness about a rare disease called Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis.

Bill and Marlene Stern's daughter Lindsay is afflicted with this disease  
characterized by tumors attacking the inside of the larynx, vocal cords and  
trachea.  Caused by a virus, the tumors grow, block the air passages and would  
lead to death from suffocation without continual surgery to remove the growths.   
Three year old Lindsay has undergone 11 operations thus far since her diagnosis  
last year and faces the prospect of over a hundred operations throughout her  
lifetime.  

Even though the disease is hardly a household word, it has affected the lives  
of enough people to inspire the formation of the Recurrent Respiratory  
Papillomatosis Foundation,  a non-profit foundation whose goals are to provide  
support for patients and families by networking patients and publishing a  
newsletter, enhance  awareness of RRP at the local and national level, and aid  
in the prevention, cure, and treatment.

Since medical researchers know that the virus causing the disease is similar to  
those viruses causing warts, they feel a cure would be within reach if money  
were available for research.  Because RRP is rare, it not only gets scant  
attention but also paltry funds to search for a cure.  Part of the RRP  
Foundation's mission is to change that. 

Anyone interested in contributing items to the bake and craft sale, please call  
Marlene or Bill at 609-890-0502.  Monetary donations can be made at the  
Foundation's booth during Communiversity, April 24th, 12 to 4 p.m., in downtown  
Princeton, or sent directly to:

			The Recurrent Respiratory Foundation
	                50 Wesleyan Drive
	                Hamilton Sq., NJ  08690.
Thanks   mstern@lindsay.princeton.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59014
From: med50003@nusunix1.nus.sg (WANSAICHEONG KHIN-LIN)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

It would be nice to think that individuals can somehow 'beat the system'
and like a space explorer, boldly go where no man has gone before and
return with a prize cure. Unfortunately, too often the prize is limited
and the efficacy of the 'cure' questionable when applied to all
sufferers.

This applies to both medical researchers and non-medical individuals.
Just because it appears in an obscure journal and may be of some use
does not make the next cure-all. What about the dozens of individuals
who have courageously participated in clinical trials? Did they have any
guarentee of cures? Are they any less because they didn't trumpet their
story all over the world?

As a parting note, wasn't there some studies done on Gingko seeds for
Meniere's? (To the original poster : what about trying for a trial of
that? It's probably not a final answer but it certainly may alleviate
some of the discomfort. And you'd be helping answer the question for
future sufferers.)

gervais


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59015
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Hernia

In article <C5qopx.5Mq@encore.com> sheffner@encore.com (Steve Heffner) writes:
>A bit more than a year ago, a hernia in my right groin was
>discovered.  It had produced a dull pain in that area.  The hernia
>was repaired using the least intrusive (orthoscopic?) method and a
>"plug and patch".



I suspect you mean laparoscopic instead of orthoscopic.



>Now the pain occurs more often.  My GP couldn't identify any
>specific problem.  The surgen who performed the original procedure
>now says that yes there is a "new" hernia in the same area and he
>said that he has to cut into the area for the repair this time.
>
>My question to the net:  Is there a nonintrusive method to
>determine if in fact there is a hernia or if the pain is from
>something else?


By far the (still) best method to diagnose a hernia is old fashioned
physical examination. If you have an obvious hernia sac coming down 
into your scrotum, or a bulge in your groin that is brought about by
increasing intra-abdominal pressure....
Sometimes is not that obvious. The hernia is small and you can only 
detect it by putting your finger into the inguinal canal. 
Whether you have a recurrent hernia, or this is related to the previous
operation, I can't tell you. The person that examined you is in  the best
position to make that determination.

Are there non-invasive ways of diagnosing a hernia? Every now and then 
folks write about CT scans and ultrasounds for this. But these are far
too expensive, and unlikely to be better than a trained examining finger.


====================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59016
From: med50003@nusunix1.nus.sg (WANSAICHEONG KHIN-LIN)
Subject: Re: Lasers for dermatologists

It is not true that dermatologists gave not reached the laser age, in
fact, lasers in dermatological surgery is a very new and exciting field.

It probably won't be effective in tinea pedis because the laser is
usually a superficial burn (to avoid any deeper damage). Limited tinea
pedis can be cured albeit sometimes slowly by topical antifungals as
well as systemic medication i.e. tablets. Finally, a self-diagnosis is
not always reliable, lichen simplex chronicus can look like a fungal
infection and requires very different treatment.

gervais


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59017
From: jer@prefect.cc.bellcore.com (rathmann,janice e)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <1993Apr19.171938.17930@porthos.cc.bellcore.com>, jil@donuts0.uucp (Jamie Lubin) writes:
> In article <19671@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> >In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
> >>
> >>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
> >>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
> >>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
> >>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
> >
> >There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
> >same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.
> 
> I recall reading/seeing that former baseball star Chris Chambliss' hitting
> abilities were (in part) attributed to a combination of left-handedness &
> right-eye dominance.
 
I was part of a study a few years ago at the University of Arizona to
see whether cross dominant individuals (those with a particular handedness
but who had dominance in the opposite eye) were better hitters than
those with same side dominance of hand and eye.  I was picked from
my softball class because I was cross dominant (right hand, left eye)
which put me in a small minority (and the grad student was trying to get
an equal number of cross dominant and same side dominant people).  To
control the study, she used a pitching machine - fast pitch.  Since
I was used to slow pitch, I didn't come close (actually I think
I foul tipped a few) to hitting the ball.  If there were a lot of people
like me in her study (i.e., those who can't hit fast pitch, or are
not used to hitting off a machine),  I would seriously question the
results of that study!!  I think there have been some studies of major
league players (across a fairly large cross section of players) to test
whether eye dominance being the same or opposite side was "better" -
but I don't know the results.  (The woman who ran the study I was in
said that there was a higher incidence of crossdominance in major
leaguers than across the general population - but I'm not sure
whether I'd believe her.)

Janice Rathmann




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59018
From: plebrun@minfminf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Bursitis and laser treatment

In article <1993Apr17.190104.14072@freenet.carleton.ca>, ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:
|> 
|> My family doctor and the physiotherapist (PT) she sent me to agree that the
|> pain in my left shoulder is bursitis. I have an appointment with an orthpod
|> (I love that, it's short for 'orthopedic surgeon, apparently) but while I'm
|> waiting the PT is treating me.
|> 
|> She's using hot packs, ultrasound, and lasers, but there's no improvement
|> yet. In fact, I almost suspect it's getting worse.
|> 
|> My real question is about the laser treatment. I can't easily imagine what
|> the physical effect that could have on a deep tissue problem. Can anyone
|> shed some light (so to speak) on the matter?

If it works it's only due to the heat produced by the laser.

-philippe


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59019
From: francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>I think that's the correct spelling..

Crullerian.

>	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.

Crullerian photography isn't educational, except in a purely satiric
sense.

>	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
>knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
>object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
>or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
>of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
>extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
>the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

Crullerian photography involves putting donuts between grease-covered
hot metal plates while illuminating them with a Krypton Stroboscope.
Through a unique iteration involving the 4th-dimensional projection of
a torus through the semi-stochastic interactions of hot monomolecular
lipid layers covering the metal plates (the best metal is iron since
it repels Vampires and Succubi) the donuts start developing flutes,
and within moments actually become poly-crenellated hot greasy
breadtubes. Some people believe that food is the way to a man's heart,
but most psychics agree that there is nothing like hot Crullers for
breakfast; the chemical composition of crullers is a mystery, some
thought evidence of Charles Fort's channeling in Stevie Wonder's
production of "The Secret Life of Plants" when played backwards in the
theatre of unnaturally fertile Findhorn Farms has deduced that they
are complex carbohydrates ordinarily only found by spectoscopy in the
Magellenic Clouds. I called Devi on my Orgone Box and asked her if
this was really the case, and she TM levitated me a letter across the
Atlantic to tell me it was indeed not just another case of
misunderstanding Tesla, though the Miskatonic University hasn't
confirmed anything at all. At least the Crullers taste good; I got the
recipe from Kaspar Hauser.





-- 
| Le Jojo: Fresh 'n' Clean, speaking out to the way you want to live
| today; American - All American; doing, a bit so, and even more so.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59020
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: 3rd CFV and VOTE ACK: misc.health.diabetes

This is the third and final call for votes for the creation of the
newsgroup misc.health.diabetes.  A mass acknowledgement of valid votes
received as of April 19th 14:00 GMT appears at the end of this
posting.  Please check the list to be sure that your vote has been
registered.  Read the instructions for voting carefully and follow
them precisely to be certain that you place a proper vote.
 
Instructions for voting:
 
To place a vote FOR the creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
email message to yes@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
To place a vote AGAINST creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
email message to no@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
The contents of the message should contain the line "I vote
for/against misc.health.diabetes as proposed".  Email messages sent to
the above addresses must constitute unambiguous and unconditional
votes for/against newsgroup creation as proposed.  Conditional votes
will not be accepted.  Only votes emailed to the above addresses will
be counted; mailed replies to this posting will be returned.  In the
event that more than one vote is placed by an individual, only the
most recent vote will be counted.
 
Voting will continue until 23:59 GMT, 29 Apr 93.
Votes will not be accepted after this date.
 
Any administrative inquiries pertaining to this CFV may be made by
email to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
The proposed charter appears below.
 
--------------------------
 
Charter:  
 
misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
 
1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
 
2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
by a primary health care physician.  
 
-----(end of charter)-----
 
The following individuals have sent in valid votes:
 
9781BMU@VMS.CSD.MU.EDU                  Bill Satterlee
a2wj@loki.cc.pdx.edu                    Jim Williams
ac534@freenet.carleton.ca               Colin Henein
ad@cat.de                               Axel Dunkel
al198723@academ07.mty.itesm.mx          Jesus Eugenio S nchez Pe~a
anugula@badlands.NoDak.edu              RamaKrishna Reddy Anugula
apps@sneaks.Kodak.com                   Robert W. Apps
arperd00@mik.uky.edu                    alicia r perdue
baind@gov.on.ca                         Dave Bain
balamut@morris.hac.com                  Morris Balamut
bch@Juliet.Caltech.Edu
BGAINES@ollamh.ucd.ie                   Brian Gaines
Bjorn.B.Larsen@delab.sintef.no
bobw@hpsadwc.sad.hp.com                 Bob Waltenspiel
bruce@uxb.liverpool.ac.uk               bruce
bspencer@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca           Brian SPENCER
cline@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu          Ernest A. Cline
coleman@twin.twinsun.com                Mike Coleman
compass-da.com!tomd@compass-da.com      Thomas Donnelly
csc@coast.ucsd.edu                      Charles Coughran
curtech!sbs@unh.edu                     Stephanie Bradley-Swift
debrum#m#_brenda@msgate.corp.apple.com  DeBrum, Brenda
dlb@fanny.wash.inmet.com                David Barton
dlg1@midway.uchicago.edu                deborah lynn gillaspie
dougb@comm.mot.com                      Douglas Bank
ed@titipu.resun.com                     Edward Reid
edmoore@hpvclc.vcd.hp.com               Ed Moore
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                  Eric J. Olson
emcguire@intellection.com               Ed McGuire
ewc@hplb.hpl.hp.com                     Enrico Coiera
feathr::bluejay@ampakz.enet.dec.com
franklig@GAS.uug.Arizona.EDU            Gregory C Franklin 
FSSPR@acad3.alaska.edu                  Hardcore Alaskan
gabe@angus.mi.org                       Gabe Helou
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                   Isaac Kohane
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                   Isaac Kohane
Geir.Millstein@TF.tele.no
ggurman@cory.Berkeley.EDU               Gail Gurman
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                 Gregory G. Woodbury
greenlaw@oasys.dt.navy.mil              Leila Thomas
grm+@andrew.cmu.edu                     Gretchen Miller
halderc@cs.rpi.edu
HANDELAP%DUVM.BITNET@pucc.Princeton.EDU Phil Handel
hansenr@ohsu.EDU
hc@Nyongwa.cam.org                      hc
heddings@chrisco.nrl.navy.mil           Hubert Heddings
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com         B.J.
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                 Herbert M Petro
HOSCH2263@iscsvax.uni.edu
hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu              Herman Rubin
HUDSOIB@AUDUCADM.DUC.AUBURN.EDU         Ingrid B. Hudson
huff@MCCLB0.MED.NYU.EDU                 Edward J. Huff
huffman@ingres.com                      Gary Huffman
HUYNH_1@ESTD.NRL.NAVY.MIL               Minh Huynh
ishbeld@cix.compulink.co.uk             Ishbel Donkin
James.Langdell@Eng.Sun.COM              James Langdell
jamyers@netcom.com                      John A. Myers
jc@crosfield.co.uk                      jerry cullingford
jesup@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com          Randell Jesup
jjmorris@gandalf.rutgers.edu            Joyce Morris
joep@dap.csiro.au                       Joe Petranovic
John.Burton@acenet.auburn.edu           John E. Burton Jr.
johncha@comm.mot.com
JORGENSONKE@CC.UVCC.EDU
jpsum00@mik.uky.edu                     joey p sum
JTM@ucsfvm.ucsf.edu                     John Maynard
julien@skcla.monsanto.com
kaminski@netcom.com                     Peter Kaminski
kerry@citr.uq.oz.au                     Kerry Raymond
kieran@world.std.com                    Aaron L Dickey
knauer@cs.uiuc.edu                      Rob Knauerhase
kolar@spot.Colorado.EDU                 Jennifer Lynn Kolar
kriguer@tcs.com                         Marc Kriguer
lau@ai.sri.com                          Stephen Lau
lee@hal.com                             Lee Boylan
lmt6@po.cwru.edu
lunie@Lehigh.EDU
lusgr@chili.CC.Lehigh.EDU               Stephen G. Roseman
M.Beamish@ins.gu.edu.au                 Marilyn Beamish
M.Rich@ens.gu.edu.au                    Maurice H. Rich.
maas@cdfsga.fnal.gov                    Peter Maas
macridis_g@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz           Gerry Macridis
markv@hpvcivm.vcd.hp.com                Mark Vanderford
MASCHLER@vms.huji.ac.il
mcb@net.bio.net                         Michael C. Berch
mcday@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
mcookson@flute.calpoly.edu
mfc@isr.harvard.edu                     Mauricio F Contreras
mg@wpi.edu                              Martha Gunnarson
mhollowa@libserv1.ic.sunysb.edu         Michael Holloway
misha@abacus.concordia.ca               MISHA GLOUBERMAN 
mjb@cs.brown.edu                        Manish Butte
MOFLNGAN@vax1.tcd.ie
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us               David Muir Sharnoff
Nancy.Block@Eng.Sun.COM                 Nancy Block
ndallen@r-node.hub.org                  Nigel Allen
nlr@B31.nei.nih.gov                     Rohrer, Nathan
owens@cookiemonster.cc.buffalo.edu      Bill Owens
pams@hpfcmp.fc.hp.com                   Pam Sullivan
papresco@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca    Paul Prescod
paslowp@cs.rpi.edu
pillinc@gov.on.ca                       Christopher Pilling
pkane@cisco.com                         Peter Kane
popelka@odysseus.uchicago.edu           Glenn Popelka
pulkka@cs.washington.edu                Aaron Pulkka
pwatkins@med.unc.edu                    Pat Watkins
rbnsn@mosaic.shearson.com               Ken Robinson
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu            Richard H. Miller
robyn@media.mit.edu                     Robyn Kozierok
rolf@green.mathematik.uni-stuttgart.de  Rolf Schreiber
sageman@cup.portal.com
sasjcs@unx.sas.com                      Joan Stout
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
scrl@hplb.hpl.hp.com
scs@vectis.demon.co.uk                  Stuart C. Squibb
shan@techops.cray.com                   Sharan Kalwani
sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com         Sharen A. Rund
shazam@unh.edu                          Matthew T Thompson
shipman@csab.larc.nasa.gov              Floyd S. Shipman
shoppa@ERIN.CALTECH.EDU                 Tim Shoppa
slillie@cs1.bradley.edu                 Susan Lillie
steveo@world.std.com                    Steven W Orr
surendar@ivy.WPI.EDU                    Surendar Chandra
swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil            Steven Kirchoefer
S_FAGAN@twu.edu
TARYN@ARIZVM1.ccit.arizona.edu          Taryn L. Westergaard
Thomas.E.Taylor@gagme.chi.il.us         Thomas E Taylor
tima@CFSMO.Honeywell.COM                Timothy D Aanerud
tsamuel%gollum@relay.nswc.navy.mil      Tony Samuel
U45301@UICVM.UIC.EDU                    M. Jacobs  
vstern@gte.com                          Vanessa Stern
wahlgren@haida.van.wti.com              James Wahlgren
waterfal@pyrsea.sea.pyramid.com         Douglas Waterfall
weineja1@teomail.jhuapl.edu
wgrant@informix.com                     William Grant
YEAGER@mscf.med.upenn.edu
yozzo@watson.ibm.com                    Ralph E. Yozzo
Z919016@beach.utmb.edu                  Molly Hamilton
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59021
From: bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: RESULT: sci.life-extension passes 237:28

The vote to create the proposed group, Sci.life-extension, was
affirmative.

Yes votes:    237.
No votes:      28.

What follows is a list of the people who voted, by vote ("no" or "yes").

Here are the people who voted NO:

bailey@utpapa.ph.utexas.edu               (Ed Bailey)
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu          (Edwin Barkdoll)
msb@sq.com                                (Mark Brader)
carr@acsu.buffalo.edu                     (Dave Carr)
desj@ccr-p.ida.org                        (David desJardins)
jbh@Anat.UMSMed.Edu                       (James B. Hutchins)
rsk@gynko.circ.upenn.edu                  (Rich Kulawiec)
stu@valinor.mythical.com                  (Stu Labovitz)
lau@ai.sri.com                            (Stephen Lau)
plebrun@minf8.vub.ac.be                   (Philippe Lebrun)
jmaynard@nyx.cs.du.edu                    (Jay Maynard)
emcguire@intellection.com                 (Ed McGuire)
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu              (Richard H. Miller)
smarry@zooid.guild.org                    (Marc Moorcroft)
dmosher@nyx.cs.du.edu                     (David Mosher)
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                    (Eric J. Olson)
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                   (Herbert M Petro)
smith-una@YALE.EDU                        (Una Smith)
mmt@RedBrick.COM                          (Maxime Taksar KC6ZPS)
urlichs@smurf.sub.org                     (Matthias Urlichs)
ac999266@umbc.edu                         (a Francis Uy)
werner@SOE.Berkeley.Edu                   (John Werner)
wick@netcom.com                           (Potter Wickware)
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                   (Gregory G. Woodbury)
D.W.Wright@bnr.co.uk                      (D. Wright)
yarvin-norman@CS.YALE.EDU                 (Norman Yarvin)
ask@cblph.att.com
spm2d@opal.cs.virginia.edu

Here are the people who voted YES:

FSSPR@ACAD3.ALASKA.EDU                    (Hardcore Alaskan)
kalex@eecs.umich.edu                      (Ken Alexander)
ph600fht@sdcc14.UCSD.EDU                  (Alex Aumann)
franklin.balluff@Syntex.Com               (Franklin Balluff)
barash@umbc.edu                           (Mr. Steven Barash)
build@alan.b30.ingr.com               (Alan Barksdale (build))
lion@TheRat.Kludge.COM                    (John H. Barlow)
pbarto@UCENG.UC.EDU                       (Paul Barto)
ryan.bayne@canrem.com                     (Ryan Bayne)
mignon@shannon.Jpl.Nasa.Gov               (Mignon Belongie)
beaudot@tirf.grenet.fr                    (william Beaudot)
lavb@lise.unit.no                         (Olav Benum)
ross@bryson.demon.co.uk                   (Ross Beresford)
ben.best@canrem.com                       (Ben Best)
levi@happy-man.com                        (Levi Bitansky)
jsb30@dagda.Eng.Sun.COM                   (James Blomgren)
gbloom@nyx.cs.du.edu                      (Gregory Bloom)
mbrader@netcom.com                        (Mark Brader)
ebrandt@jarthur.Claremont.EDU             (Eli Brandt)
doom@leland.stanford.edu                  (Joseph Brenner)
rc@pos.apana.org.au                       (Robert Cardwell)
jeffjc@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca               (Jeffrey CHANCE)
sasha@cs.umb.edu                          (Alexander Chislenko)
mclark@world.std.com                      (Maynard S Clark)
100042.2703@CompuServe.COM                ("A.J. Clifford")
coleman@twinsun.com                       (Mike Coleman)
steve@constellation.ecn.uoknor.edu        (Steve Coltrin)
collier@ivory.rtsg.mot.com                (John T. Collier)
compton@plains.NoDak.edu                  (Curtis M. Compton) 
bobc@master.cna.tek.com                   (Bob Cook)
cordell@shaman.nexagen.com                (Bruce Cordell)
cormierj@ERE.UMontreal.CA                 (Cormier Jean-Marc)
djcoyle@macc.wisc.edu                     (Douglas J. Coyle)
dass0001@student.tc.umn.edu               ("John R Dassow-1")
bdd@onion.eng.hou.compaq.com              (Bruce Davis)
demonn@emunix.emich.edu                   (Kenneth Jubal DeMonn)
desilets@sj.ate.slb.com                   (Mark Desilets)
markd@sco.COM                             (Mark Diekhans)
kari@teracons.teracons.com                (Kari Dubbelman)
lhdsy1!cyberia.hou281.chevron.com!hwdub@uunet.UU.NET (Dub Dublin)
willdye@helios.unl.edu                    (Will Dye)
155yegan%jove.dnet.measurex.com@juno.measurex.com (TERRY EGAN)
eder@hsvaic.boeing.com                    (Dani Eder)
glenne@magenta.HQ.Ileaf.COM               (Glenn Ellingson)
farrar@adaclabs.com                       (Richard Farrar)
ghsvax!hal@uunet.UU.NET                   (Hal Finney)
lxfogel@srv.PacBell.COM                   (Lee Fogel)
afoxx@foxxjac.b17a.ingr.com               (Foxx)
i000702@disc.dla.mil               (sam frajerman,sppb,x3026,)
mpf@medg.lcs.mit.edu                      (Michael P. Frank)
Martin.Franklin@Corp.Sun.COM              (Martin Franklin)
tiff@CS.UCLA.EDU                          (Tiffany Frazier)
Ailing_Zhu_Freeman@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU      (Ailing Freeman)
Timothy_Freeman@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU         (Tim Freeman)
gt0657c@prism.gatech.edu                  (geoff george)
mtvdjg@rivm.nl                            (Daniel Gijsbers)
exusag@exu.ericsson.se                    (Serena Gilbert)
rlglende@netcom.com                (Robert Lewis Glendenning)
goetz@cs.Buffalo.EDU                      (Phil Goetz)
goolsby@dg-rtp.dg.com                     (Chris Goolsby)
dgordon@crow.omni.co.jp                   (David Gordon)
bgrahame@eris.demon.co.uk                 (Robert D Grahame)
sascsg@unx.sas.com                        (Cynthia Grant)
green@srilanka.island.COM                 (Robert Greenstein)
johng@oce.orst.edu                        (John A. Gregor)
roger@netcom.com                          (roger gregory)
evans-ron@CS.YALE.EDU                     (Ron Hale-Evans)
brent@vpnet.chi.il.us                     (Brent Hansen)
Ron.G.Hay@med.umich.edu                   (Ron G. Hay)
akh@empress.gvg.tek.com                   (Anna K. Haynes)
claris!qm!Bob_Hearn@ames.arc.nasa.gov     (Robert Hearn)
fheyligh@vnet3.vub.ac.be                  (Francis Heylighen)
hin9@midway.uchicago.edu                  (P. Hindman)
fishe@casbah.acns.nwu.edu                 (Carwil James)
janzen@mprgate.mpr.ca                     (Martin Janzen)
karp@skcla.monsanto.com                   (Jeffery M Karp)
rk2@elsegundoca.ncr.com                   (Richard Kelly)
merklin@gnu.ai.mit.edu                    (Ed Kemo)
kessner@rintintin.Colorado.EDU            (KESSNER ERIC M)
mapam@csv.warwick.ac.uk                   (Mr R A Khwaja)
koski@sunset.cs.utah.edu                  (Keith Koski)
kathi@bridge.com                          (Kathi Kramer)
benkrug@jupiter.fnbc.com                  (Ben Krug)
farif@eskimo.com                          (David Kunz)
edsr!edsdrd!sel@uunet.UU.NET              (Steve Langs)
pa_hcl@MECENG.COE.NORTHEASTERN.EDU        (Henry Leong)
S.Linton@pmms.cam.ac.uk                   (Steve Linton)
alopez@cs.ep.utexas.EDU                   (Alejandro Lopez 6330)
kfl@access.digex.com                      ("Keith F. Lynch")
KAMCHAR@msu.edu                           (Charles MacDonald)
rob@vis.toronto.edu                       (Robert C. Majka)
phil@starconn.com                         (Phil Marks)
cam@jackatak.raider.net                   (Cameron Marshall)
mmay@mcd.intel.com                        (Mike May ~)
drac@uumeme.chi.il.us                     (Bruce Maynard)
i001269@discg2.disc.dla.mil               (john mccarrick)
xyzzy@imagen.com                          (David McIntyre)
cuhes@csv.warwick.ac.uk                   (Malcolm McMahon)
mcpherso@macvax.UCSD.EDU                  (John Mcpherson)
merkle@parc.xerox.com                     (Ralph Merkle)
eric@Synopsys.COM                         (Eric Messick)
pmetzger@shearson.com                     (Perry E. Metzger)
gmichael@vmd.cso.uiuc.edu                 (Gary R. Michael)
dat91mas@ludat.lth.se                     (Asker Mikael)
MILLERL@WILMA.WHARTON.UPENN.EDU           ("Loren J. Miller")
minsky@media.mit.edu                      (Marvin Minsky)
pmorris@lamar.ColoState.EDU               (Paul Morris)
Mark_Muhlestein@Novell.COM                (Mark Muhlestein)
david@staff.udc.upenn.edu                 (R. David Murray)
gananney@mosaic.uncc.edu                  (Glenn A Nanney)
anthony@meaddata.com                      (Anthony Napier)
dniman@panther.win.net                    (Donald E. Niman)
nistuk@unixg.ubc.ca                       (Richard Nistuk)
Jonathan@RMIT.EDU.AU                      (Jonathan O'Donnell)
martino@gomez.Jpl.Nasa.Gov                (Martin R. Olah)
cpatil@leland.stanford.edu          (Christopher Kashina Patil)
crp5754@erfsys01.boeing.com               (Chris Payne)
sharon@acri.fr                            (Sharon Peleg)
php@rhi.hi.is                             (Petur Henry Petersen)
chrisp@efi.com                            (Chris Phoenix)
pierce@CS.UCLA.EDU                        (Brad Pierce)
julius@math.utah.edu                      ("Julius Pierce")
dplatt@cellar.org                         (Doug Platt)
Mitchell.Porter@lambada.oit.unc.edu       (Mitchell Porter)
cpresson@jido.b30.ingr.com                (Craig Presson)
price@price.demon.co.uk                   (Michael Clive Price)
U39554@UICVM.BITNET                       (Edward S. Proctor)
stevep@deckard.Works.ti.com               (Steve Pruitt)
MJQUINN@PUCC.BITNET                       (Michael Quinn)
rauss@nvl.army.mil                        (Patrick Rauss)
remke@cs.tu-berlin.de                     ("Jan K. Remke")
ag167@yfn.ysu.edu                         (Barry H. Rodin)
ksackett@cs.uah.edu                       (Karl R. Sackett)
rcs@cs.arizona.edu                        (Richard Schroeppel)
fschulz@pyramid.com                       (Frank Schulz)
kws@Thunder-Island.kalamazoo.MI.US        (Karel W. Sebek)
bseewald@gozer.idbsu.edu                  (Brad Seewald)
shapard@manta.nosc.mil                    (Thomas D. Shapard)
habs@Panix.Com                            (Harry Shapiro)
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us                 (David Muir Sharnoff)
dasher@well.sf.ca.us                      (D Anton Sherwood)
zero@netcom.com                           (Richard Shiflett)
AP201160@BROWNVM.BITNET                   (Elaine Shiner)
robsho@robsho.Auto-trol.COM               (Robert Shock)
rshvern@gmuvax2.gmu.edu                   (Rob Shvern)
wesiegel@cie-2.uoregon.edu                (William Siegel)
ggyygg@mixcom.mixcom.com                  (Kenton Sinner)
bsmart@bsmart.tti.com                     (Bob Smart)
tonys@ariel.ucs.unimelb.EDU.AU            (Anthony David Smith)
sgccsns@citecuc.citec.oz.au               (Shayne Noel Smith)
dsnider@beta.tricity.wsu.edu              (Daniel L Snider)
snyderg@spot.Colorado.EDU                 (SNYDER GARY EDWIN JR)
blupe@ruth.fullfeed.com                   (Brian Arthur Stewart)
lhdsy1!usmi02.midland.chevron.com!tsfsi@uunet.UU.NET (Sigrid
Stewart)
nat@netcom.com                            (Nathaniel Stitt)
tps@biosym.com                            (Tom Stockfisch)
stodolsk@andromeda.rutgers.edu            (David Stodolsky)
gadget@dcs.warwick.ac.uk                  (Steve Strong)
carey@CS.UCLA.EDU                         (Carey Sublette)
jsuttor@netcom.com                        (Jeff Suttor)
swain@cernapo.cern.ch                     (John Swain)
szabo@techbook.com                        (Nick Szabo)
ptheriau@netcom.com                       (P. Chris Theriault)
ak051@yfn.ysu.edu                         (Chris Thompson)
gunnar.thoresen@bio.uio.no                (Gunnar Thoresen)
dreamer@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu                  (Andrew Trapp)
jerry@cse.lbl.gov                         (Jerry Tunis)
music@parcom.ernet.in                     (Rajeev Upadhye)
treon@u.washington.edu                    (Treon Verdery)
evore@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu           (Eric J Vore)
U13054@UICVM.BITNET                       (Howard Wachtel)
susan@wpi.WPI.EDU                         (Susan C Wade)
70023.3041@CompuServe.COM                 (Paul Wakfer)
ewalker@it.berklee.edu                    ("Elaine Walker")
jew@rt.sunquest.com                       (James Ward)
jeremy@ai.mit.edu                         (Jeremy M. Wertheimer)
bw@ws029.torreypinesca.NCR.COM            (Bruce White 3807)
weeds@strobe.ATC.Olivetti.Com             (Mark Wiedman)
wiesel-elisha@CS.YALE.EDU                 (Elisha Wiesel)
WILLINGP@gar.union.edu                    (WILLING, PAUL)
smw@alcor.concordia.ca                    (Steven Winikoff)
wright@hicomb.hi.com                      (David Wright)
ebusew@anah.ericsson.com                  (Stephen Wright 66667)
liquidx@cnexus.cts.com                    (Liquid-X)
xakellis@uivlsisl.csl.uiuc.edu            (Michael G. Xakellis)
cs012113@cs.brown.edu                     (Ion Yannopoulos)
yazz@lccsd.sd.locus.com                   (Bob Yazz)
lnz@lucid.com                             (Leonard N. Zubkoff)
62RSE@npd1.ufpe.br
adwyer@mason1.gmu.edu
ART@EMBL-Hamburg.DE
atfurman@cup.portal.com
billw@attmail.att.com
carl@red-dragon.umbc.edu
carlf@ai.mit.edu
cccbbs!chris.thompson@UCENG.UC.EDU
CCGARCIA@MIZZOU1.BITNET
clayb@cellar.org
dack@permanet.org
daedalus@netcom.com
danielg@autodesk.com
Dave-M@cup.portal.com
F_GRIFFITH@CCSVAX.SFASU.EDU
garcia@husc.harvard.edu
gav@houxa.att.com
hammar@cs.unm.edu
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com
hhuang@Athena.MIT.EDU
hkhenson@cup.portal.com
irving@happy-man.com
jeckel@amugw.aichi-med-u.ac.jp
jgs@merit.edu
jmeritt@mental.mitre.org
Jonas_Marten_Fjallstam@cup.portal.com
kqb@whscad1.att.com
LPOMEROY@velara.sim.es.com
lubkin@apollo.hp.com
kunert@wustlb.wustl.edu
LINYARD_M@XENOS.a1.logica.co.uk
M.Michelle.Wrightwatson@att.com
moselecw@elec.canterbury.ac.nz
naoursla@eos.ncsu.edu
ng4@husc.harvard.edu
pase70!dchapman@uwm.edu
pocock@math.utah.edu
RUDI@HSD.UVic.CA
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
stanton@ide.com
steveha@microsoft.com
stu1016@DISCOVER.WRIGHT.EDU
SYang.ES_AE@xerox.com
tim.hruby@his.com
Todd.Kaufmann@FUSSEN.MT.CS.CMU.EDU
tom@genie.slhs.udel.edu
UC482529@MIZZOU1.BITNET
WMILLER@clust1.clemson.edu
yost@mv.us.adobe.com

(The group still passes if you don't count the people for
whom I just have email address.)

-Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59022
From: filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch (VINCI)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr20.125920.15005@ircam.fr>, francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis) writes...
>In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>>I think that's the correct spelling..
> 
>Crullerian.
> 
 How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
 has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
 on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
 supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)

 Filipe Santos
 CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
 Switzerland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59023
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?

In article <1993Apr19.084258.1040@ida.liu.se> davpa@ida.liu.se
 (David Partain) writes:
>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

Candida albicans can cause severe life-threatening infections, usually
in people who are otherwise quite ill.  This is not, however, the sort
of illness that you are probably discussing.

"Systemic yeast syndrome" where the body is allergic to
yeast is considered a quack diagnosis by mainstream medicine.  There
is a book "The Yeast Connection" which talks about this "illness".

There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59024
From: marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qk1taINNmr4@calamari.hi.com> rogers@calamari.hi.com (Andrew Rogers) writes:
>In article <1993Apr15.153729.13738@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:
>>Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
>>MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
>>they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
>>extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.
>
>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
there other sources of MSG?

I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.


-- 
Steve Giammarco/5330 Peterson Lane/Dallas TX 75240
marco@sdf.lonestar.org
loveyameanit.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59025
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1993Apr20.004158.6122@cnsvax.uwec.edu> David Nye,
nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:
> 
>>>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against
FMGs.
> 
>>Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.
> 
>I think a case could be made that this is discriminatory,
particularly
>if an applicant had good board scores and recommendations but wasn't
>offered an interview, but I don't know if it has ever gone to court.

FMGs who are not citizens are, like all aliens, in a difficult
situation. Only citizens get to vote here, so non-citizens are of
little or no interest to legislators. Also, the non-citizen may well
be in the middle of processing for resident alien status. There is a
stron sense that rocking the boat (eg. suing a residency program)
will delay the granting of that status, perhaps for ever.

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59026
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <myers.735287742@peach.cs.scarolina.edu> myers@cs.scarolina.edu (Daniel Myers) writes:
>I am under the impression that MSG "enhances" flavor by causing the
>taste buds to swell.

No, that's not how it works.

>If this is correct, I do not find it unreasonable
>to assume that high doses of MSG can cause other mouth tissues to swell.

This may be through a different mechanism.

>Also, as the many of the occurances (including two of the above)
>involved beef, and as beef is frequently tenderized with MSG, this is
>what I suspect as being the cause.

Tenderizing beef involves sprinking or marinading it in papain, an enzyme.
"Meat tenderizer" packets might contain papain and MSG and seasonings, but
MSG doesn't act as a tenderizer.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59027
From: dstock@hpqmoca.sqf.hp.com (David Stockton)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

VINCI (filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch) wrote:



:  How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
:  has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
:  on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
:  supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)

:  Filipe Santos
:  CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
:  Switzerland


    This has to be THE only, generally accepted, method of using common 
physics lab equipment to find certain answers to all the questions about
afterlifes, heavens, hells, purgatory, gods etc. Krillean photography
will probably be ignored as insignificant compared to these larger
eternal verities. Publishing your results could be a bit of a problem,
though.

   Cheers
             David

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59028
From: michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)

So, when we put one and one together, it can be safely assumed that
MSG may cause some allergic reactions in some people.

Stick with natural things.  MSG doesn't do body any good (and possibly
harms, for that matter).  So, why bother with it?  Taste food as it should
be tasted, and don't cloud the flavor with an imaginary cloak of MSG.

-michael

-- 
Michael M. Huang               | Don't believe what your eyes are  telling you.
ICEMT, Iowa State Univ.        | All they show is  limitation.   Look with your
michael@iastate.edu            | understanding, find out what you already know,
#include <standard.disclaimer> | and you'll see the way to fly. - J. L. Seagull 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59029
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
=I think that's the correct spelling..
=	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
=do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
=that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
=sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
=appreciated.
=	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
=knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
=object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
=or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
=of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
=extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
=the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

Go to the library and look up "corona discharge."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59030
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: OCD


In article <C5r3n6.FG4@news.Hawaii.Edu>, sharynk@Hawaii.Edu () writes...
>I recently heard of a mental disorder called Obsessive Compulsive
>Disorder.  What is it?  What causes it?  Could it be caused by a
>nervous breakdown?
> 
Obesssive Compulsive Disorder (not to be confused with Obsessive Compulsive
_Personality_ Disorder !) is an acute anxiety disorder characterized by
either obsessions (persistent intrusive thoughts that cause anxiety when
not entertained), or compulsions (repetitive, ritualistic actions that
similarly cause intense psychological discomfort when resisted).  

OCD is often associated with certain forms of depression.  

Examples of obsessive thoughts are repeated impulses to kill a loved
one (though not accompanied by anger), or a religious person having 
recurrent blasphemous thoughts.  Generally, the individual attempts to ignore
or suppress the intrusive thoughts by engaging in other activities.  
The individual realizes that the thoughts originate from the own mind, rather
than being from an external source.

Examples of compulsive actions are constant repetitive hand washing,
or other activity that is not realistically related to alleviating a
source of the anxiety.

In OCD, the obsessions or compulsions are highly distressing to the
individual, take an hour or more per day, and significantly impair their
daily routine and social relationships.

Treatments include psychotherapy, behavioral methods, and sometimes
certain anti-depressants which have recently been found effective in alleviating
obsessions and compulsions.

The standard diagnostic code for OCD, if you want to look it up in the
DSM-III manual of psychiatric diagnosis is 300.30 .

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59031
From: julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <michael.735318247@vislab.me.iastate.edu> michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang) writes:
>MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
>restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
>go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
>a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
>of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
>time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)
>
>So, when we put one and one together, it can be safely assumed that
>MSG may cause some allergic reactions in some people.
>
>Stick with natural things.  MSG doesn't do body any good (and possibly
>harms, for that matter).  So, why bother with it?  Taste food as it should
>be tasted, and don't cloud the flavor with an imaginary cloak of MSG.

As I understood it, MSG *is* natural.  Isn't it found in 
tomatoes?

Anyway, lots of people are terribly allergic to lots of natural
things; peanuts, onions, tomatoes, milk, etc.  Just because something
is 'natural' doesn't mean it won't cause problems with some folks.

As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
has an ulcer.

People have long modified the taste of food by additives, whether
they be chiles, black pepper, salt, cream sauces, etc.  All of these
things cloud the flavor of the food.  Why do we bother with them?
How should food be tasted?  Isn't it better left to the diner?

Julie
DISCLAIMER:  All opinions here belong to my cat and no one else

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59032
From: jhoskins@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (James M Hoskins)
Subject: Cost of Roxonal


Does anyone know the approximate prescription cost
of a 250 ml bottle of Roxonal (morphine)?

Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59033
From: dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD)
Subject: seizures ( infantile spasms )


	The reason I'm posting this article to this newsgroup is to:
1. gather any information about this disorder from anyone who might
   have recently been *e*ffected by it ( from being associated with
   it or actually having this disorder ) and
2. help me find out where I can access any medical literature associated
   with seizures over the internet.

Recently, I had a baby boy born with seizures which occured 12-15 hours
after birth. He was immediately transferred to a major hospital in Boston
and has since been undergoing extensive drug treatment for his condition.
This has been a major learning experience for me and my wife not only in
learning the medical problems that faced our son but also in dealing with
hospitals, procedures...etc.

I don't want to go into a lot of detail, but his condition was termed 
quite severe at first then slowly he began to grow and put on weight
as a normal baby would. He was put on the standard anti-convulsion drugs
and that did not seem to help out. His MRI, EKG, cat-scans are all normal,
but the EEG's show alot of seizure activity. After many metabolic tests,
body structure tests, and infection/virus tests the doctors still do not
know quite what type of siezures he is having (although they do have alot
of evidence that it is now pointing to infantile spasms ). This is where
we stand right now....

If anyone knows of any database or newsgroup or as I mentioned up above,
any information relating to this disorder I would sure appreciate hearing
from you. I am not trying to play doctor here, but only trying to gather
information about it. As I know now, these particular types of disorders
are still not really well understood by the medical community, and so I'm
going to see now....if somehow the internet can at least give me alittle
insight. Thanks. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59034
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>In article davpa@ida.liu.se  (David Partain) writes:

>>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

>Candida albicans can cause severe life-threatening infections, usually
>in people who are otherwise quite ill.  This is not, however, the sort
>of illness that you are probably discussing.
>
>"Systemic yeast syndrome" where the body is allergic to
>yeast is considered a quack diagnosis by mainstream medicine.  There
>is a book "The Yeast Connection" which talks about this "illness".
>
>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.

There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,
before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
program.

In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
would have perceptible symptoms.  Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
such toxins can cause problems in some people.  In my case it was sinus
since that's the center of my allergic response.  Of course, the $60,000
question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
stress of infections and allergies, etc.), can develop excessive yeast
colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
far as I am concerned.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59035
From: RICK@ysub.ysu.edu (Rick Marsico)
Subject: Proventil Inhaler

Does the Proventil inhaler for asthma relief fall into the steroid
or nonsteroid category?  Looking at the product literature it's
not clear.
 
rick@ysu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59036
From: SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
 
>
>> I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
>> be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
>
>No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
>food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
>1950's, before stuff like mass spectrometry became available, which increased
>detectable levels of substances by a couple orders of magnitude.
>
>This is why things like cyclamates and Red #2 were banned.  They are very
>weakly carcinogenic in huge quantities in rats, so under the Act they are
>banned.
>
>This also applies to natural carcinogens.  Some of you might remember a
>time back in the 1960's when root beer suddenly stopped tasting so good,
>and never tasted so good again.  That was the time when safrole was banned.
>This is the active flavoring ingredient in sassafras leaves.
>
>If it were possible to market a root beer good like the old days, someone
>would do it, in order to make money.  The fact that no one does it indicates
>that enforcement is still in effect.
>
>An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
>This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
>is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
>form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
>was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.
 
I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?
 
 
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59037
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!


In article <1993Apr13.093300.29529@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>"Weight rebound" is a term used in the medical literature on
>obesity to denote weight regain beyond what was lost in a diet
>cycle.  There are any number of terms which mean one thing to

Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
is shared only among you obesity researchers?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59038
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really


In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel) writes:

>Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
>hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
>"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
>No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
>and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
>
Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
pattern.  They are usually GPs.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59039
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine?


In article <20773.3049.uupcb@factory.com> jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) writes:

>Headaches that seriously interfere with activities of daily living
>affect about 15% of the population.  Doesn't that sound like
>something a "primary care" physician should know something about?  I
>tend to agree with HMO administrators - family physicians should
>learn the basics of headache management.
>
Absolutely.  Unfortunately, most of them have had 3 weeks of neurology
in medical school and 1 month (maybe) in their residency.  Most
of that is done in the hospital where migraines rarely are seen.
Where are they supposed to learn?  Those who are diligent and
read do learn, but most don't, unfortunately.

>Sometimes I wonder what tension-type headaches have to do with
>neurology anyway.

We are the only ones, sometimes, who have enough interest in headaches
to spend the time to get enough history to diagnose them.  Too often,
the primary care physician hears "headache" and loses interest in
anything but giving the patient analgesics and getting them out of
the office so they can get on to something more interesting.


>(I am excepting migraine, which is arguably neurologic).  Headaches

I hope you meant "inarguably".

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59040
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Cause of mental retardation?

In article <1993Apr13.111834.1@cc.uvcc.edu> harrisji@cc.uvcc.edu writes:

>
>Chromosome studies have shown no abnormalities.  Enzyme studies and
>urine analyses have not turned up anything out of the ordinary. 
>MRI images of the brain show scar tissue in the white matter. 
>Subsequent MRI analysis has shown that the deterioration of the
>white matter is progressive.
>
>Because neither family has a history of anything like this, and
>because two of our four children are afflicted with the disorder,
>we believe that it is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder of
>some kind.  Naturally, we would like to know exactly what the
>disease is so that we may gain some insight into how we can expect
>the disorder to progress in the future.  We would also like to be
>able to provide our normal children with some information about
>what they can expect in their own children.
>

It could be one of the leukodystrophies (not adrenal, only
boys get that).  Surely you've been to a university pediatric
neurology department.  If not that is the next step.  Biopsies
might help, especially if peripheral nerves are also affected.
There are so many of these diseases that would fit the symptoms
you gave that more can't be said at this time.

I agree with your surmise that it is an autosomal recessive.
If so, your normal children won't have to worry too much unless
they marry near relatives.  Most recessive genes are rare
except in inbred communities (e.g. Lithuanian Jews).
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59041
From: 880506s@dragon.acadiau.ca (James R. Skinner)
Subject: Re: Paxil (request)

880506s@dragon.acadiau.ca (James R. Skinner) writes:

>	
>	I have seen a couple of postings refering to an SRI called paxil.  I
>have been on Prozac for a number of years and recently switched to Zolf.  I
>have seen a bit of comparsion of Prozac to Paxil but none on Zolft to Prozac
>Can some one enlight me on the differences/ side effect profile/ etc...

does anyone know?

-- 

-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------------
        James Robie Skinner        |     Jodrey School of Computer Science        James.Skinner@dragon.acadiau.ca  |  Acadia University, Wolfville, NS, Canada
-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59042
From: sandy@nmr1.pt.cyanamid.COM (Sandy Silverman)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Heat shock proteins are those whose expression is induced in response to
elevated temperature.  Some are also made when organisms are subjected to
other stress conditions, e.g. high salt.  They have no obvious connection
to what happens when you burn proteins.
--
Sanford Silverman                      >Opinions expressed here are my own<
American Cyanamid  
sandy@pt.cyanamid.com, silvermans@pt.cyanamid.com     "Yeast is Best"

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59043
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When
the doctor couldn't hear a fetal heartbeat (13 weeks) she used
the ultrasound to see if everything was ok.  (it was)

On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!

My wife is concerned about this.  She saw a TV show a couple months
back (something like 20/20 or Dateline NBC, etc.) where an expert
on fetal ultrasounds (a radiologist) was showing all the different
deffects that could be detected using the ultrasound.

Should my wife be concerned?  Should we take the pictures to a 
radiologist for a second opinion? (and if so, where would we find
such an expert in Chicago?)  We don't really have any special medical
reason to be concerned, but if a radiologist will be able to see
things the ob-gyn can't, then I don't see why we shouldn't use one.

Any thoughts?


-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59044
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com>, noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>In article davpa@ida.liu.se  (David Partain) writes:
>
>>>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>>>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>>>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>>>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

I have a lot of info about this disease.  I am posting a small amount of
it that I extracted.  If more is required, e-mail me @
ls8139@gemini.albany.edu.  Please, it takes me some time to upload it, so
be advised, only request it if you *really* want it.

here is some info from InfoTrac - Health Reference Center

Also, check you local of univeristy library.  They most likely have the
InfoTrac cd-rom this info was taken from......
====================================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92

 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS
             !Dictionary Definition

    1.    Mosby's Medical and Nursing Dictionary, 2nd edition
               COPYRIGHT 1986 The C.V. Mosby Company         
                                                             
      Candida albicans                                       
      -------------------------------------------------------
      A common, budding,  yeastlike, microscopic fungal      
      organism normally present in the mucous membranes of   
      the mouth, intestinal tract, and vagina and on the skin
      of healthy people. Under certain circumstances, it may 
      cause superficial infections of the mouth or vagina    
      and, less commonly, serious invasive systemic infection
      and toxic reaction. See also candidiasis.

==============================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92
  THE MATERIAL CONTAINED IN Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92 IS PROVIDED
  ONLY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS
  MEDICAL ADVICE OR INSTRUCTION.  CONSULT YOUR HEALTH PROFESSIONAL
  FOR ADVICE RELATING TO A MEDICAL PROBLEM OR CONDITION.


 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS

    1.     Yogurt cure for Candida. (acidophilus) il v22 East
       West Natural Health July-August '92 p17(1)            
           TEXT AVAILABLE
 TEXT 
COPYRIGHT East West Partners 1992                                       
  Another folk remedy receives the blessing of medical study.           
Researchers have found that eating a cup of yogurt a day drastically    
reduces a woman's chances of getting vaginal candida, a yeast infection.
  For the year-long study, researchers at Long Island Jewish Medical    
Center in New Hyde Park, New York, recruited 13 women who suffered from 
chronic yeast infections. For the first 6 months, the women each day ate
8 ounces of yogurt containing Lactobacillus acidophilus. For the second 
6 months, the women did not eat yogurt. The researchers examined the    
women each month and found that incidents of colonization and infection 
were significantly lower during the period when the women ate yogurt.   
  The fungus Candida albicans can live in the body without doing harm.  
It is an overproliferation of the fungus that leads to infection. The   
researchers concluded that the L. acidophilus bacteria found in some    
brands of yogurt retard overgrowth of the fungus. Streptococcus         
thermophilus and L. bulgaricus are the two bacteria most commonly used  
in commercial yogurt production. Neither one appears to exert a         
protective effect against Candida albicans, however. Women who want to  
try yogurt as a preventive measure should choose a brand that lists     
acidophilus in its contents.                                            
--- end ---
              

                              
===================================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92
  THE MATERIAL CONTAINED IN Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92 IS PROVIDED
  ONLY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS
  MEDICAL ADVICE OR INSTRUCTION.  CONSULT YOUR HEALTH PROFESSIONAL
  FOR ADVICE RELATING TO A MEDICAL PROBLEM OR CONDITION.


 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS

    1.     Candida (Monilia). (Infections Caused by Fungi)   
       (Infectious Diseases) by Harold C. Neu The Columbia   
       Univ. Coll. of Physicians & Surgeons Complete Home    
       Medical Guide Edition 2 '89 p472(1)                   
           TEXT AVAILABLE
 TEXT 
COPYRIGHT Crown Publishers Inc. 1989                                    
  Candida (Monilia)                                                     
  This disease is usually caused by Candida albicans, a fungus that we  
all carry at one time or another. In some circumstances, though, the    
organisms proliferate, producing symptomatic infection of the mouth,    
intestines, vagina, or skin. When the mouth or vagina are infected, the 
disease is commonly called thrush.                                      
  Vaginitis caused by Candida often afflicts women on birth control     
pills or antibiotics. There is itching and a white, cheesy discharge.   
Among narcotic addicts, Candida infections can lead to heart valve      
inflammation.                                                           
  Diagnosis of Candida infections is confirmed by cultures and blood    
tests. Treatment can be with amphotericin B or orally with ketoconazole.
There is no evidence that Candida in the intestine of normal individuals
leads to disease. All people at one time or another have Candida in     
their intestines. Claims for any benefit from special diets or chronic  
antifungal agents is not based on any solid evidence.                   
--- end ---



==========================
I hope this is informative.
Larry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59045
From: yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

In article <19688@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel) writes:
>
>>Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
>>hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
>>"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
>>No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
>>and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
>>
>Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
>They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
>seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
>now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
>Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
>pattern.  They are usually GPs.
>-- 
 
Are you arguing that the Lyme lab test is accurate?
The books that I've read say that in general the tests
have a 50-50 chance of being correct.  (The tests
result in a large number of both false positives and
false negatives.  I am in the latter case.)

We could get those same odds by "rolling the dice".

-- 
 Ralph Yozzo (yozzo@watson.ibm.com)  
 From the beautiful and historic New York State Mid-Hudson Valley.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59046
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5sqv8.EDB@acsu.buffalo.edu> SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu writes:
>In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
>mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> 
>>
>>No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
>>food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
> 
>I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
>commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
>for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?
> 
Whoa. What did you say your name was? Address, SSN? Smoking foods, eh?
I think the gov't would like to know about this...

Brian
:-) 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59047
From: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM DRAPER)
Subject: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis



I recently attended an allery seminar.  Steroid Nasal sprays were 
discussed.  Afterward on a one-on-one basis, I asked the speaker what if 
none of the Vancanese, Beconase, Nasalide, Nasalcort, or Nasalchrom work 
nor do any oral decongestants work.  She replied that she saw an article on 
Vasomotor Rhinitis.  That this is not an allergic reaction and that nothing 
other than the Afrin's and such would work.  (Which in my case is true).

I want to find out as much as possible about this, since I am going to see 
my allergist in May and want to be armed to the hilt with information; 
since nothing he has done with me has helped me at all and I have had no 
relief for 14 months.

Please respond if you know anything about this and/or please let me know 
what articles might be helpful that I could look up in the library.





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59048
From: liny@sun13.scri.fsu.edu (Nemo)
Subject: Bates Method for Myopia

Does the Bates method work?  I first heard about it in this newsgroup 
several years ago, and I have just got hold of a book, "How to improve your
sight - simple daily drills in relaxation", by Margaret D. Corbett, 
('Authorized instructor of the Bates method), published in 1953.  It 
talks about vision improvement by relaxation and exercise.  Has there been
any study on whether this method actually works?  If it works, is it by 
actually shortening the previously elongated eyeball, or by increasing 
the lens's ability to flatten itself in order to compensate for the 
too-long eyeball?

Since myopia is the result of eyeball elongation, seems to me the most
logical approach for correction is to find a way to reverse the process,
i.e., shorten it somehow (preferably non-surgically).  Has there been
any recent studies on this?  Where can I find them?  I know RK works by 
changing the curvature of the cornea to compensate for the shape of 
eyeball, but if there is a way to train the muscles to shorten the 
eyeball back to its correct length that would be even better (Bates's 
idea, right?)

Thanks for any information.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59049
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.

>For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,

Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!

>before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
>new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
>in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
>2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
>of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
>program.

Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.

Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.

>In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
>symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
>written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
>I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
>of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
>now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
>*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
responds to "miracle cures."

>Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
>molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
>if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
>natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
>would have perceptible symptoms.

Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
Snort.

>Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
>sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
>such toxins can cause problems in some people.

Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".

>Of course, the $60,000
>question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
>from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
>stress of infections and allergies, etc.),

Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.

>can develop excessive yeast
>colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
>testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
>take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
>safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
>no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.

>BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
>too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
>a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
the "yeast" problem once and for all.

>In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>far as I am concerned.

Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
your symptoms.

Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59050
Subject: "STAR GARTDS" <sp?> Info wanted
From: kmcvay@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (Ken Mcvay)

A friend's daughter has been diagnosed with an eye disease called "Star
Gartds" (or something close) - it is apparently genetic, according to her,
and affects every fourth generation.

She would appreciate any information about this condition. If anything is
available via ftp, please point me in the right direction..
-- 
The Old Frog's Almanac - A Salute to That Old Frog Hisse'f, Ryugen Fisher 
     (604) 245-3205 (v32) (604) 245-4366 (2400x4) SCO XENIX 2.3.2 GT 
  Ladysmith, British Columbia, CANADA. Serving Central Vancouver Island  
with public access UseNet and Internet Mail - home to the Holocaust Almanac

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59051
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

[reply to dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD)]
 
>After many metabolic tests, body structure tests, and infection/virus
>tests the doctors still do not know quite what type of siezures he is
>having (although they do have alot of evidence that it is now pointing
>to infantile spasms ).  This is where we stand right now....As I know
>now, these particular types of disorders are still not really well
>understood by the medical community.
 
Infantile spasms have been well understood for quite some time now.  You
are seeing a pediatric neurologist, aren't you?  If not, I strongly
recommend it.  There is a new anticonvulsant about to be released called
felbamate which may be particularly helpful for infantile spasms.  As
for learning more about seizures, ask your doctor or his nurse about a
local support group.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59052
From: aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor)
Subject: accupuncture and AIDS

A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
wants to know if there is any danger of getting
AIDS from the needles.

Thanks,

	-alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59053
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis

(Disclaimer: I'm a sufferer, not a doctor.)

I'm not sure there's a really sharp distinction between allergic and
vasomotor rhinitis.  Basically, vasomotor rhinitis means your nose is
stuffy when it has no reason to be (not even an identifiable allergy).

Decongestants and steroid sprays work for vasomotor rhinitis.  Also,
I can get surprising relief from purely superficial measures such as
saline moisturizing spray and moisturizing gel.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59054
Subject: Ovarian cancer treatment centers
From: <RBPRMA@rohvm1.rohmhaas.com>

A relative of mine has recently been diagnosed with "stage 3 papillary cell
ovarian cancer".  We are urgently seeking the best place in the country for
treatment for this.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

As you might suspect, time is of the essence.

Thanks for your help.                                      Bob

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59055
Subject: Broken rib
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Hello,  I am not sure if this is the right conference to ask this
question, however, Here I go..  I am a commercial fisherman and I 
fell about 3 weeks ago down into the hold of the boat and broke or
cracked a rib and wrenched and bruised my back and left arm.
  My question,  I have been to a doctor and was told that it was 
best to do nothing and it would heal up with no long term effect, and 
indeed I am about 60 % better, however, the work I do is very 
hard and I am still not able to go back to work.  The thing that worries me
is the movement or "clunking" I feel and hear back there when I move 
certain ways...  I heard some one talking about the rib they broke 
years ago and that it still bothers them..  any opinions?
thanx and cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59056
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: accupuncture and AIDS

aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor) writes:

>A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
>wants to know if there is any danger of getting
>AIDS from the needles.

	Ask the practitioner whether he uses the pre-sterilized disposable
needles, or if he reuses needles, sterilizing them between use.  In the
former case there's no conceivable way to get AIDS from the needles.  In
the latter case it's highly unlikely (though many practitioners use the
disposable variety anyway).

euclid
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59057
From: kjiv@lrc.edu
Subject: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
prevent asthma); Vancenase.

Also:
You may have guessed, I'm an allergy sufferer--but I'm beginning to 
suspect I'm also the victim of a Dr. toliberal with the prescription 
p. The allergist I went to last Oct. simply inquired about my symptons 
( I was suffering chronic asthma attacks), gave me a battery of 
allergy tests, and went down a checklist of drugs (a photocopied 
sheet).  I've gained out 30 lbs. since then though I haven't eaten 
more or much differently than before; I'vsuffered depression; , 
fatigue; and I've experienced a foul smell and sense of taste for 
about the last two months.  I mentioned the lack of smell and taste to 
this Dr. in Feb. and he said my sinuses did look a bit swollen (he 
just looked up my nose with his little light--the same one used for 
ears), and prescribed Prednisone and Sulfatrim DS (severe headaches 
and a rash resulted, particularly after my week's worth of Prednisone 
ran out).  Now he wants to do a rhinoscopy to see if I have a bleeding 
ulcer or polyps in my sinus cavities.  I'm considering seeing another 
doctor.  Any suggestions/advice?  I'd really appreciate it!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59058
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

In article <1993Apr16.032251.6606@rock.concert.net> naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter) writes:
>
>can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
>it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
>of a specialist/surgeon in  the north carolina research triangle  park
>area (raleigh/durham/chapel  hill) who is familiar with the condition,
>i would really appreciate it.
>thanks. 
>--Naomi

Naomi, your best bet is to look in the Yellow Pages and find a listing
for OBGyn doc in the area you wish.  Any OBGyn doc is familiar with
endometriosis and its treatments.
Shalom                                    Len Howard MD




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59059
From: eliezer@physics.llnl.gov (David A Eliezer)
Subject: Questions about SPECT imaging


I have become involved in a project to further develop and 
improve the performance of SPECT (Single Photon Emission
Computerized Tomography) imaging.  We will eventually have
to peddle this stuff somewhere, and so as I move this thing
along, I would like to know --

What is the current resolution of SPECT imaging?  What kinds
of jobs is SPECT used for, specifically?  What kind of specific jobs
could I hope
that SPECT could be used for, if its resolution improved,
say, to close to that of PET (Positron Emission Tomography)?
And how much does a SPECT machine cost?  How much does a single
SPECT image cost?  

If anyone knows the answer to any or all of these questions, OR
where I could find that answer, I would be very grateful, indeed.  
Thanks in advance for any replies

					Dave Eliezer
					eliezer@physics.llnl.gov





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59060
From: homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer)
Subject: Mind Machines?

I recently learned about these devices that supposedly induce specific 
brain wave frequencies in their users simply by wearing them. Mind machines
consist of LED gogles, head phones, and a microprocessor that controls them.
They strobe the (closed) eye and send sound pulses in sync with the flashing
LEDs. I understand that these devices are experimental, but they are available.
I've heard claims that they can induce sleep, and light trance states for
relaxation. Essentially they are supposed to work without aid of drugs etc...
I would think that if they work as reported they would be incredibly useful,
The few sources I've seen are biased (they are selling the things, and a
friend who has tried them claims that "every home should have one"). So 
do these mind machines (aka Light and Sound machines) work? can they induce
alpha, theta, and/or delta waves in a person wearing them? What research if
any has been done on them? Could they be used in lieu of a tranquilizer?
Or are they just another bit of quackery?

Web Homer

homer@tripos.com
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59061
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Paxil (request)

I don't know much and in fact, have asked questions here
myself. My doctor told me that Paxil is a "cleaner" SRI in that
it produces fewer side effects. As to a comparison between
Zoloft and Prozac, I'm not able to remember what he said about
the differences between those two drugs. Sorry

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59062
Subject: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"
From: jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer)

I've recently listened to a tape by Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, in which he 
claims to have discovered a series naturally occuring peptides with anti-
cancer properties that he names antineoplastons.  Burzynski says that his 
work has met with hostility in the United States, despite the favorable 
responses of his subjects during clinical trials.

What is the generally accepted opinion of Dr. Burzynski's research?  He 
paints himself as a lone researcher with a new breakthrough battling an 
intolerant medical establishment, but I have no basis from which to judge 
his claims.  Two weeks ago, however, I read that the NIH's Department of 
Alternative Medicine has decided to focus their attention on Burzynski's 
work.  Their budget is so small that I imagine they wouldn't investigate a 
treatment that didn't seem promising.

Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
status of his research would be appreciated.

--
Joshua Schwimmer
jschwimmer@eagle.wesleyan.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59063
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

In article <1993Apr20.180835.24033@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com writes:
:My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When
:the doctor couldn't hear a fetal heartbeat (13 weeks) she used
:the ultrasound to see if everything was ok.  (it was)
:
:On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
:they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
:read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
:were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!
:
:[stuff deleted]

This is one of those sticky areas of medicine where battles frequently
rage.  With respect to your OB, I suspect that she has been certified in
ultrasound diagnostics, and is thus allowed to use it and bill for its
use.  Many cardiologists also use ultrasound (echocardiography), and are
in fact considered by many to be the 'experts'.  I am not sure where OBs
stand in this regard, but I suspect that they are at least as good as the
radioligists (flame-retardant suit ready).
    
   
   
   
   


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59064
From: vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas)
Subject: Altitude adjustment

I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.

Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
Is there something else that I could do?

A long time ago (possibly two years ago) there was a discussion here about
altitude adjustment.  Has anyone saved the messages?

Many thanks,

Vida.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59065
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis

In article <1r1t1a$njq@europa.eng.gtefsd.com> draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com writes:
:I recently attended an allery seminar.  Steroid Nasal sprays were 
:discussed.  Afterward on a one-on-one basis, I asked the speaker what if 
:none of the Vancanese, Beconase, Nasalide, Nasalcort, or Nasalchrom work 
:nor do any oral decongestants work.  She replied that she saw an article on 
:Vasomotor Rhinitis.  That this is not an allergic reaction and that nothing 
:other than the Afrin's and such would work.  (Which in my case is true).

There has been some recent research on vasomotor rhinitis that shows that
ipratroprium bromide (Atrovent) inhaled nasally is an effective treatment
for many sufferers.  It has been approved for this use and is available
with a nasal adaptor in Canada.  In the US the FDA has yet to approve this
use of the drug, but it is available as an oral inhaler (for COPD), and
these can be adapted for intranasal use.


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59066
From: vgwlu@dunsell.calgary.chevron.com (greg w. luft)
Subject: Relief of Pain Caused by Cancer


 I am not sure if this is the proper group to post this to but here goes anyway.

 About five years ago my mother was diagnosed with having cancer in the lymph nodes
 under one of her arms. After the doctors removed the cancerous area she had full movement
 of her arm with only slight aching under her arm when she moved it. Over the course of
 the next two years the aching got more severe and her complaining to the doctors produced
 the explanation that it was scar tissue causing the pain. At this time her doctor 
 suggested that some physiotherapy should be employed to break up the scar tissue.

 While attending one of her therapy sessions, while her arm was being 
 manipulated, some damage occured (nerve?) which caused the level of pain to permanently
 increase severly (controlled by Tylenol 3s) and some loss of use of the arm (
 palsied wrist and almost no outward lateral movement). With great persistence on her part
 the doctors looked further into the issue and discovered that not all of the cancer had
 been removed and another tumor had grown under the arm. This was removed also but the
 pain in the arm has not decreased. The doctors are not sure exactly why the pain is 
 persisting but feel some sort of nerve damage has occured and they have employed Tylenol 3
 and soon Morphine to relieve the pain. She has tried acupuncture by this only provides
 minor reductions in pain and is only short term.  

 My questions are: 

     Has anyone has heard of similar cases and what, if anything, was done to reduce the
     levels of pain?

     Are their methods to block nerves so that the pain can be reduced?

     Are their methods to restore nerves so that loss of arm function can be restored?


  Any general suggestions on pain reduction would be greatly appreciated.
  
  
  Please respond by email because I do not always get chance to read this group.

  If anyone knows of some literature that may be useful to this case or another newsgroup
  that I should be posting this to it would also be appreciated.
   
     






-- 
Gregory W. Luft                              Internet: vgwlu@calgary.chevron.com
Chevron Petroleum Techonology Company             Tel: (403) 234-6238
500, Fifth Ave. S.W.                              Fax: (403) 234-5215
Calgary, Alberta, Canada   T2P 0L7

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59067
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

 To: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)

There is a person on the FIDO CFS echo who claims that he was 
cured of CFS by taking accutane.  He also claims that you are 
using it in the treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome.  Are you 
using accutane in the treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome?  Have 
you used it for CFS?  Have you gotten good results with it?  Are 
you aware of any double blind studies on the use of accutane in 
these conditions?  Thank you in advance for all replies.

... I think they should rename Waco TX to Wacko TX!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59068
From: berryh@huey.udel.edu (John Berryhill, Ph.D.)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


I think he means Girlie Photography.  A good place to find it is in
non-descript little places that usually just say "Books" on the
outside of the building in black and white.


-- 

                                              John Berryhill


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59069
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
>>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

>Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.

>>For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,

>Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!

>>before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
>>new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
>>in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
>>2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
>>of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
>>program.

>Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.

>Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.

>>In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
>>symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
>>written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
>>I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
>>of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
>>now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
>>*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

>I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
>responds to "miracle cures."

>>Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
>>molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
>>if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
>>natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
>>would have perceptible symptoms.

>Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
>Snort.

>>Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
>>sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
>>such toxins can cause problems in some people.

>Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".

>>Of course, the $60,000
>>question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
>>from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
>>stress of infections and allergies, etc.),

>Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
>More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.

>>can develop excessive yeast
>>colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
>>testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
>>take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
>>safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
>>no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

>You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
>in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
>The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.

>>BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
>>too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
>>a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

>The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
>and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
>systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
>any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
>IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
>the "yeast" problem once and for all.

>>In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
>>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>>actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>>far as I am concerned.

>Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
>your symptoms.

>Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
>to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

>Steve Dyer

Dyer, you're rude. Medicine is not a totallly scientific endevour. It's
often practiced in a disorganized manner. Most early treatment of
non-life threatening illness is done on a guess, hazarded after anecdotal
evidence given by the patient. It's an educated guess, by a trained person,
but it's still no more than a guess.
It's cheaper and simpler to medicate first and only deal further with those
people who don't respond.

There are diseases that haven't been described yet and the root cause of many
diseases now described aren't known. (Read a book on gastroenterology
sometime if you want to see a lot of them.) After scientific methods have
run out then it's the patient's freedom of choice to try any experimental
method they choose. And it's well recognized by many doctors that medicine
doesn't have all the answers.

This person said that they had relief by taking the medicine. Maybe it's a
miracle cure, maybe it's valid. How do you know?  

You might argue with the reasoning, the conclusions. But your disparaging
attack is unwarranted. Why don't you present an convincing argument for you
r beliefs, instead of wasting our time in an ad hominem attack.

-Jackie-
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59070
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>prevent asthma); Vancenase.

Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
drowsiness.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59071
From: wcsbeau@superior.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.190711.22190@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:


>The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
>greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
>claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while.

Both of these symptoms are related - tachycardia. Getting a flushed
face is due to the heart pumping the blood faster than a regular
pulse.  I suspect this is related to an increase in sodium levels in
the blood, since note *sodium chloride* monosodium glutamate. Both are
sodium compounds. Our bodies require sodium, but like everything else,
one can get too much of a good thing.

>Some reacted with headache, 

Again, this could be related to increased blood flow from increased
heart rate, from the sodium in the MSG. Distended crainial arteries,
essentially. One of many causes of headaches. There is no discrepency
her, necessarily.


>some stomach ache.

Well stomache ache and vomiting tend to be related. Again, not
necessarily a discrepency. More likely a related reaction. Vomiting
occurs as a response to get rid of a noxious compound an organism has
eaten. If a person can't digest the stuff (entirely possible - the
list of stuff people are allergic to is quite long), and lacks an
enzyme to break it down, gastrointestinal distress (stomach or belly
ache) would be expected.


> Some had watery eyes or running nose,


These are respiratory reactions, and are now considered to be similar
to vomitting. They are a way for the body to dispose of noxious
compounds. They are adaptiove responses. Of course, it is possible
some other food or environmental compound could be responsible for the
symptoms. But it's important to remember that a lot opf these effets
can be additive, synergystic, subtractive, etc, etc. It would be
necessary to know exactly what was in a dish, and what else the person
was exposed to. Respiratory does sound suspicious BUT  resopiration
and heart rate are connected.  Things in the body are far from
simple...very inetractive place, the vertebrate body.
 
> some
>had itchy skin or rashes. 

People respond in a myriad of ways to the same compound. It depends
upon what it is about the compound that "pisses off" their body.
Pollen, for example, of some plants aggrivates breathing in many
people, because, when inhaled, it sets of the immune system, and an
histamine attack is launched. The immune system goes overboard,
causing the allergic person a lot of misery. And someone with an
allergy to some pollens will have trouble with some herb teas that
contain pollens (Chamomile, linden, etc). Drinking the substance can
perturb that person's system as much as inhaling it. 

>More serious accusations include respiration 
>difficulty 

See above. And don't think that heart rate changes, and circulatory
problems are not serious. They can be deadly.

and brain damage. 

The area of the brain effected is the neuroendocrine system
controlling the release of gonadotropin, the supra-hormone controlling
the cyclical release of testosterone and estradiol, as well as somatostatin,
and other steroids. Testing for effective dose would be, uh, a wee bit unethical.


>Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
>suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food
poisoning. 

Absolutely. But it could also be some synergystic mess from eating ,
say, undetected shrimp or mushrooms (to which many are allergic), plus
too much alcohol, and inhaling too much diesel fumes biking home,
plus, let's say, having contracted flu from one's sig. other 3 days
before from drinking out of the same glass. Could be all sorts of
things.

But it might be the MSG. 

>if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

If noone else got sick, its likely not food poisoning. Probably
stomach flu or an undetected thing the guy's allergic to.


Anyway, the human body's not a machine; people vary widely in their
responses, and a lot of reactions are due to combinations of things.

          Dianne Murray  wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59072
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

A person posted certain stuff to this newsgroup, which were highly
selected quotes stripped of their context.  Here is the complete
posting which was quoted (lacking the context of other postings in 
which it was made):

> Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
> Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
> then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
> engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
> No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
> we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
> Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.

Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.

What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?

Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
which are the units of genetics.

We stand on the brink of new meme-amplification technologies!  Harmful
memes which formerly were restricted in their destructive power will
run rampant over the countryside, laying waste to the real benefits that
future technology has to offer.

For example, Jeremy Rifkin has been busy trying to whip up emotions
against the new genetically engineered tomatoes under development at
CALGENE.  This guy is inventing harmful memes, a virtual memetic Typhoid
Mary.

We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
with harmful memes.  They should not be allowed to infect other people
with their memes against genetically-engineered food, electromagnetic
fields, and the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59073
From: brian@quake.sylmar.ca.us (Brian K. Yoder)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Have you ever met a chemist?  A food industry businessman?  You must
personally know a lot of them for you to be able to be so certain that they
are evil mosters whose only goal is to inflict as much pain and disease
as possible into the general public.  Gimme a break.
 
In article <1993Apr15.215826.3401@rtsg.mot.com> lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. L
undby) writes:
>
>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>Superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?

 person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
>too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!
 
Because it makes the food TASTE BETTER!  Why does it put salt in food?
Same reason.

>I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!

Obviously.
 
>Somebody in the industry GIVE ME SOME REASONS WHY!

>IS IT AN INDUSTRIAL BYPRODUCT THAT NEEDS GETTING GET RID OF?
 
Of course not!  (Although I would think that a person like you would be a
big fan of such recycling if that were the case).

>IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD OR THE 
>FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?
 
On occasion that's probably the case, but in general the idea is that MSG
improves the flavor of certain foods.
 
>DO SOME OF YOU GET A SADISTIC PLEASURE OUT OF MAKING SOME OF US SICK?
 
No.
 
>DO THE TASTE TESTERS HAVE SOME DEFECT IN THEIR FLAVOR SENSORS (MOUTH etc...)
>  THAT MSG CORRECTS?
 
No.
 
>I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!
 
Obviously.
 
>ALSO ... Nitrosiamines (sp)
 
As I recall, these are natural by-products of heating up certain foods.
They don't "put it in there".
 
 
have a number of criteria in choosing how to process food.  They want to
make it taste good, look good, sell for a good price, etc.  The fact that they
use it tells me that THEY think that it contributes to those goals they are
interested in.  One of those goals is NOT "making people sick".  Such a goal
woud quickly drive them out of business and for no benefit.
 
>I think
>1) outlaw the use of these substances without warning labels as
>large as those on cig. packages.
 
Warning of what?  In California there is a law requiring that ANYTHING which
contains a carcinogen be labeled.  That includes every gasline pump, most
foods, and even money cleaning machines (because Nickel is a mild carcinogen).
The result is that now nobody pays any attention to ANY of the warnings.
 
>2) Require 30% of comparable products on the market to be free of these
>substances and state that they are free of MSG, DYES, NITROSIAMINES and
>SULFITES on the package.
 
Why?  What if not 30% of people wanted to buy this ugly, rotten, not-as-tasty
food?  I guess it will just be wasted, huh?  How terribly efficient.
 
>3) While at it outlaw yellow dye #5.  For that matter why dye food?
 
Because it makes food look better.  I LIKE food that looks good.
If vitamin companies want to do that it is fine, but who are you to
tell THEM how to make vitamins?  Who are you to tell ME whether I should
buy flavored vitamins for my kids (who can't swallow the conventional ones
whole).
 
>KEEP FOOD FOOD!  QUIT PUTTING IN JUNK!
 
How do you define "junk"?  Is putting "salt" in food bad?  What about
Pepper?  What about alcohol as a preservative?  What about sealing jars
with wax?  What about vinegar?  You seem to think that "chemicals" are
somehow different than "food".  The fact is that all foods are 100% chemicals.
You are just expressing an irrational prejudice against food processing.
 
--Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59074
From: bls101@keating.anu.edu.au (The New, Improved Brian Scearce)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In-reply-to: todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu's message of Mon, 19 Apr 93 20:56:15 GMT
Newsgroups: sci.energy,sci.image.processing,sci.anthropology,alt.sci.physics.new-theories,sci.skeptic,sci.med,alt.alien.visitors
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography
References: <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>
Distribution: 
--text follows this line--
todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:

	   I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
   do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
   that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
   sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
   appreciated.
	   In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
   knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
   object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
   or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
   of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
   extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
   the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

There have been a number of scientific papers (in peer-reviewed journals)
published about Kirlian photography in the early 1970s.  Sorry I can't be
more specific but it is a long time since I read them.  They would describe
what is needed and how to set up the apparatus.  

These papers demonstrate that the auras obtained by Kirlian photography can
be completely explained by the effect of the electric currents used on the
moisture in the object being photographed.  It has nothing to do with the
"energy signature" of organic objects.

I did a science project on Kirlian photography when I was in high school.
I was able to obtain wonderful auras from rocks and pebbles and the like by
first dunking them in water.

Barbara
--



--
bls101@syseng.anu.edu.au
"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it."                
 - Mae West 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59075
From: bj368@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Mike E. Romano)
Subject: Home Medical Tests


I am looking for current sources for lists of all the home
medical tests currently legally available.
I believe this trend of allowing tests at home where
feasible, decreased medical costs by a factor of 10 or
more and allows the patient some time and privacy to
consider the best action from the results of such tests.
In fact I believe home medical tests and certain basic
tests for serious diseases such as cancer, heart disease,
should be offered free to the American public.
This could actually help to reduce national medical costs
since many would have an earlier opportunity to know
about and work toward recuperation or cure.
Mike Romano


-- 
Sir, I admit your gen'ral rule
That every poet is a fool;
But you yourself may serve to show it,
That every fool is not a poet.    A. Pope

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59076
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
JB>  
JB>    Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the
JB>                          proper channels, you might consider the following:..."
JB>                          [diet omitted]
JB>  
JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously

  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
 educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
 is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
 otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
 consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.

JB>  like a blood chemistry...glucose tolerance and the like...suddenly chemistry
JB>  exists? You know perfectly well that this person can be saved needless trouble
JB>  and expense with simple muscle testing and hair analysis to diagnose...no
JB>  "CONFIRM" any aberrant physiology...but then again...maybe that's what you mean"

 Muscle testing and hair analysis, eh?  So what other fascinating 
 space-age medical techniques do you use?  Do you sit under a pyramid
 over night as well to shrink your brain back to normal after a mind-
 expanding day at your 'Save the Earth' clinic?

JB>  2) Were you able to understand Dick King's post that "90% of diseases is not thy
JB>  evaluate the statistic you cited from the New England Journal of Medicine. Coul?

 Once I figure out what *you* are trying to say, I'll still have 
 to wrestle with the possibility of you conceivably not being able
 to understand my answer to your question?!

JB>  3) Ron...have you ever thought about why you never post in misc.health.alterna-
JB>  tive...and insist instead upon insinuating your untrained, non-medical, often
JB>  delusional notions of health and disease into this forum? I suspect from your
JB>  apparent anger toward MDs and heteropathic medicine that there may be an
              ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 You little psychoanalytical rascal you!  Got me all figured out, ja? 
 
JB>  underlying 'father problem'...of course I can CONFIRM this by surrogate muscle
JB>  testing one of my patients while they ponder my theory to see if one of their
JB>  previously weak 'indicator' muscles strengthens...or do you have reservations
JB>  about my unique methods of diagnosis? [......]
JB>  
JB>  John Badanes, DC, CA
JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

 Oh man, when are you going to start teaching all this stuff?  I'll
 bet everyone on this net must be absolutely dying to learn more about 
 going beyond spinal adjustments and head straight for the mind for
 some Freudian subluxation.

  --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: In the next world, you're on your own.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59077
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr13.093300.29529@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>
>>"Weight rebound" is a term used in the medical literature on
>>obesity to denote weight regain beyond what was lost in a diet
>>cycle.  There are any number of terms which mean one thing to
>
>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>is shared only among you obesity researchers?

Not one, but two:

Obesity in Europe 88,
proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity

Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987


>-- 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------


-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59078
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Broken rib

In article <D0ZB3B1w164w@oneb.almanac.bc.ca> jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca writes:
>

>fell about 3 weeks ago down into the hold of the boat and broke or
>cracked a rib and wrenched and bruised my back and left arm.
>  My question,  I have been to a doctor and was told that it was 
>best to do nothing and it would heal up with no long term effect, and 
>indeed I am about 60 % better, however, the work I do is very 
>hard and I am still not able to go back to work.  The thing that worries me
>is the movement or "clunking" I feel and hear back there when I move 
>certain ways...  I heard some one talking about the rib they broke 
>years ago and that it still bothers them..  any opinions?



Your doctor is right. It is best to do nothing, besides taking some pain
medication initially. Some patients don't like this and expect, or demand,
to have something done. In these cases some physicians will "tape" the 
patient (put a lot of heavy adhesive tape around the chest), or prescribe
an elastic binder. All this does is make it harder to breath, but the
patient doesn't feel cheated, because soemthing is being done about the
problem. Either way, the end results are the same.

==================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59079
From: balick@nynexst.com (Daphne Balick)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment



In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Mexico City, Bogota, La Paz?
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>

>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

---

An unconventional remedy that you might try for altitude sickness in the Andes is
chewing coca leaves or taking teas made from coca leaves. You might notice that
many of the natives have wads in their mouths... the tea can be obtained in S.
American pharmacies. This remedy alleviates some of the lightheadedness and
dizziness - but don't try to jog with it. I've tried this when travelling and
hiking in Peru and Ecuador. The amount of cocaine you would ingest are too minute
to cause any highs...

Also it is a good idea to eat lightly and dress warm while adjusting to high altitudes.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59080
From: pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu
Subject: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.

My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,
etc...)

Thank you,

Dave Carvell
pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59081
Subject: STARGARDTS DISEASE
From: kmcvay@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (Ken Mcvay)

Thanks to aldridge@netcom.com, I now know a bit more about Stargardt's
disease, aka juvenile macular distrophy, but I would like to learn more.

First, what is the general prognosis - is blindness the result?
Second, what treatments, if any, are available?


-- 
The Old Frog's Almanac - A Salute to That Old Frog Hisse'f, Ryugen Fisher 
     (604) 245-3205 (v32) (604) 245-4366 (2400x4) SCO XENIX 2.3.2 GT 
  Ladysmith, British Columbia, CANADA. Serving Central Vancouver Island  
with public access UseNet and Internet Mail - home to the Holocaust Almanac

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59082
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:

|JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
|JB>  
|JB>    Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the
|JB>                          proper channels, you might consider the following:..."
|JB>                          [diet omitted]
|JB>  
|JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously

|  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
| educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
| is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
| otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
| consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.

An apt description of the content of just about all ronroth's posts to
date.  At least there's entertainment value (though it is
diminishing).

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59083
From: molnar@Bisco.CAnet.CA (Tom Molnar)
Subject: sudden numbness in arm

I experienced a sudden numbness in my left arm this morning.  Just after
I completed my 4th set of deep squats.  Today was my weight training
day and I was just beginning my routine.  All of a sudden at the end of
the 4th set my arm felt like it had gone to sleep.  It was cold, turned pale,
and lost 60% of its strength.  The weight I used for squats wasn't that
heavy, I was working hard but not at 100% effort.  I waited for a few 
minutes, trying to shake the arm back to life and then continued with
chest exercises (flyes) with lighter dumbells than I normally use.  But
I dropped the left dumbell during the first set, and experienced continued
arm weakness into the second.  So I quit training and decided not to do my
usual hour on the ski machine either.  I'll take it easy for the rest of
the day.

My arm is *still* somewhat numb and significantly weaker than normal --
my hand still tingles a bit down to the thumb. Color has returned to normal
and it is no longer cold. 

Horrid thoughts of chunks of plaque blocking a major artery course through
my brain.  I'm 34, vegetarian, and pretty fit from my daily exercise
regimen.  So that can't be it.  Could a pinched nerve from the bar
cause these symptoms (I hope)?

Has this happened to anyone else?
Nothing like this has ever happened to me before.  Does it come with age?

Thanks,
Tom
-- 
Tom Molnar
Unix Systems Group, University of Toronto Computing & Communications.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59084
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

   >If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my face that there is no
   >evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee their safety.
   >For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as far as
   >I am concerned.

This doesn't sound like Candida Albicans to me.

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59085
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

Good grief again.

Why the anger?  I must have really touched a raw nerve.

Let's see:  I had symptoms that resisted all other treatments.  Sporanox
totally alleviated them within one week.  Hmmm, I must be psychotic.  Yesss!
That's it - my illness was all in my mind.  Thanks Steve for your correct
diagnosis - you must have a lot of experience being out there in trenches,
treating hundreds of patients a week.  Thank you.  I'm forever in your
debt.

Jon

(oops, gotta run, the men in white coats are ready to take me away, haha,
to the happy home, where I can go twiddle my thumbs, basket weave, and
moan about my sinuses.)

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59086
From: lunger@helix.enet.dec.com (Dave Lunger)
Subject: Modified sense of taste in Cancer pt?


What does a lack of taste of foods, or a sense of taste that seems "off"
when eating foods in someone who has cancer mean? What are the possible
causes of this? Why does it happen?

Pt has Stage II breast cancer, and is taking tamoxifin. Also has Stage IV
lung cancer with known CNA metastasis, and is taking klonopin (also had
cranial radiation treatments).

Thanks!

[not a doctor, but trying to understand family member's illness]


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59087
From: mryan@stsci.edu
Subject: Should I be angry at this doctor?

Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?

Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
doctor that we were there, and came back and told us the doctor would not 
see us because she had someplace to go at 6:00 and did not want to be delayed 
here.  During the next few minutes, in response to my questions, with several 
trips to the back room, the receptionist told me:
	- the doctor was doing paperwork in the back,
	- the doctor would not even look at his finger to advise us on going
	  to the emergency room;
	- the doctor would not even speak to me;
	- she would not tell me the doctor's name, or her own name;
	- when asked who is in charge of the clinic, she said "I don't know."

I realize that a private clinic is not the same as an emergency room, but
I was quite angry at being turned away because the doctor did not want to
be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  I'm still 
trying to find out who is in charge of that clinic so I can write them a 
letter.   We will certainly never set foot in that clinic again.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mary Ryan				mryan@stsci.edu
Space Telescope Science Institute
Baltimore, Maryland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59088
From: billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen)
Subject: RE:  alt.psychoactives

FYI...I just posted this on alt.psychoactives as a response to
what the group is for......


A note to the users of alt.psychoactives....

This group was originally a takeoff from sci.med.  The reason for
the formation of this group was to discuss prescription psychoactive
drugs....such as antidepressents(tri-cyclics, Prozac, Lithium,etc),
antipsychotics(Melleral(sp?), etc), OCD drugs(Anafranil, etc), and
so on and so forth.  It didn't take long for this group to degenerate
into a psudo alt.drugs atmosphere.  That's to bad, for most of the
serious folks that wanted to start this group in the first place have
left and gone back to sci.med, where you have to cypher through
hundreds of unrelated articles to find psychoactive data.

It was also to discuss real-life experiences and side effects of
the above mentioned.

Oh well, I had unsubscribed to this group for some time, and I decided
to check it today to see if anything had changed....nope....same old
nine or ten crap articles that this group was never intended for.

I think it is very hard to have a meaningfull group without it
being moderated...too bad.

Oh well, obviously, no one really cares.

Bill Claussen


Would anyone be interested in starting a similar moderated group?

Bill Claussen


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59089
From: billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?


Report them to your local BBB (Better Business Bureau).

Bill Claussen


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59090
From: ray@engr.LaTech.edu (Bill Ray)
Subject: Re: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

Daniel Prince (Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com) wrote:

: ... I think they should rename Waco TX to Wacko TX!

I know it is just a joke, but please remember: the people of Waco
did not ask David Koresh to be a lunatic there, he just happened.
Waco is a lovely town.  I would think someone living in the home
of flakes and nut would be more sensitive :-)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59091
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

>   >If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my face that there is no
>   >evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee their safety.
>   >For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as far as
>   >I am concerned.
>
>This doesn't sound like Candida Albicans to me.

No, just a little anger.  Normally I don't rip people's lips off, except
when my candida has overcolonized and I become:  "Fungus Man"!  :^)

Jon

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59092
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.) writes:
>Dyer is beyond rude. 

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I didn't threaten to rip your lips off, did I?
Snort.

>There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
>knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
>the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

Duh.

>For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
>past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
>deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

Listen: thrush is a recognized clinical syndrome with definite
characteristics.  If you have thrush, you have thrush, because you can
see the lesions and do a culture and when you treat it, it generally
responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

So?

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59093
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Need Reference:  Multiple Personalities Disorders and Allergies

I heard third-hand (not the best form of information) that there was recently
published results of a study on Multiple-Personality-Disorder Syndrome
patients revealing some interesting clues that the root cause of allergy may
have a psychological trigger or basis.  What I heard about this study was that
in one 'personality', a MPDS patient exhibited no observable or clinical signs
of inhalant allergy (scratch tests were used, according to what I heard),
while in other personalities they showed obvious allergy symptoms, including
testing a full ++++ on scratch tests for particular inhalants.

If this is true, it is truly fascinating.

But, I'd like to know if this study was ever done, and if so, what the study
really showed, and where the study is published.  Any help out there?

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59094
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr21.091844.4035@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>
>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>
>Not one, but two:
>
>Obesity in Europe 88,
>proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity
>
>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>
Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)

Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59095
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
>
>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.

Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
"acute corn intoxication."


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59096
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <1993Apr21.143910.5826@wvnvms.wvnet.edu> pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu writes:
>My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
>medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
>
>My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
>their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,

Morphine or demerol is about the only effective way of stopping pain
that severe.  Obviously, she'll need a prescription to get such drugs.
Can't she go to the county hospital or something?


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59097
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

   someone wrote in expressing concern about getting AIDS from acupuncture
   needles.....

Unless your friend is sharing fluids with their acupuncturist who               
themselves has AIDS..it is unlikely (not impossible) they will get AIDS         
from acupuncture needles. Generally, even if accidently inoculated, the normal
immune response should be enough to effectively handle the minimal contaminant 
involved with acupuncture needle insertion. 

Most acupuncturists use disposable needles...use once and throw away. They      
do this because you are not the only one concerned about transmission of 
diseases via this route...so it's good business to advertise "disposable needlesused here." These needles tend to be of a lower quality however, 
being poorly manufactured and too "sharp" in my opinion. They tend to snag bloodvessels on insertion compared to higher quality needles.                                                                        
If I choose to use acupuncture for a given complaint, that patient will get 
their own set of new needles which are sterilized between treatments.      
The risk here for hepatitis, HIV, etc. transmission is that I could mistakenly 
use an infected persons needles accidently on the wrong              
patient...but clear labelling and paying attention all but eliminates 
this risk. Better quality needles tend to "slide" past vessels and            
nerves avoiding unpleasant painful snags..and hematomas...so I use them.                        
Acupuncture needles come in many lengths and thicknesses...but they are all 
solid when compared to their injection-style cousins. In China, herbal solutionsand western pharmaceuticals are occasionally injected into 
meridian points purported to have TCM physiologic effects and so require 
the same hollow needles used for injecting fluid medicine. This means...thinkingtiny...that a samll amount of tissue, the diameter of the needle bore, will be 
injected into the body as it would  be in a typical "shot." when the skin is 
puntured. On the other hand when the solid 
acupuncture needle is inserted, the skin tends to "squeeze" the needle 
from the tip to the level of insertion such that any 'cooties' that 
haven't been schmeared away with alcohol before insertion, tend to remain 
on the surface of the skin minimizing invasion from the exterior. 

Of course in TCM...the body's exterior is protected by the Wei (Protective) Qi..so infection is unlikely....or in other words...there is a normal inflammatory 
and immune response that accompanies tissue damage incurred at the puncture 
site.


While I'm fairly certain your friend will not have a transferable disease 
transmitted to them via acupuncture needle insertion, I would like to know for 
what complaint they have consulted the acupuncturist...not to know  if it would be harmful.. but to know if it would be helpful. 

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu
                                                                                                    
  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59098
From: E.J. Draper <draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu>
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

In article <9551@blue.cis.pitt.edu> Kenneth Gilbert, kxgst1+@pitt.edu
writes:
>This is one of those sticky areas of medicine where battles frequently
>rage.  With respect to your OB, I suspect that she has been certified in
>ultrasound diagnostics, and is thus allowed to use it and bill for its
>use.  Many cardiologists also use ultrasound (echocardiography), and are
>in fact considered by many to be the 'experts'.  I am not sure where OBs
>stand in this regard, but I suspect that they are at least as good as the
>radioligists (flame-retardant suit ready).

If it were my wife, I would insist that a radiologist be involved in the
process.  Radiologist are intensively trained in the process of
interpreting diagnostic imaging data and are aware of many things that
other physicians aren't aware of.  Would you want a radiologist to
deliver your baby?  If you wouldn't, then why would you want a OB/GYN to
read your ultrasound study?


In my opinion the process should involve a OB/GYN and a radiologist.


      |E|J-  ED DRAPER
 rEpar|D|<-  Radiologic/Pathologic Institute
             The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
             draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59099
From: mrl@pfc.mit.edu (Mark London)
Subject: Corneal erosion/abrasions.

For several years I have been dealing with reccurring corneal  erosion.    There
does  not  seem  to be much known about the cause of such a problem.  My current
episode is pretty bad since it is located in the middle of the cornea.  If  it's
bad  enough, the usual treatment for it is puncture therapy.  However, my doctor
this time is trying to let it heal by  itself  by  putting  a  contact  lens  to
protect the area.  Apparently the problem is not that common, but I'd be curious
if anyone else out there has a similar problem, perhaps to see if a cause can be
found. 

Mark London
MRL@NERUS.PFC.MIT.EDU

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59100
From: russ@pmafire.inel.gov (Russ Brown)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment

In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Mexico City, Bogota, La Paz?
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>

>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

Go three days early.  Preliminary acclimatization takes 3-4 days.  It
takes weeks or months for full acclimatization.  Could you be
experiencing some jet lag, too?



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59101
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.

>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

No, there's no evidence that would convince any but the most credulous.

The "evidence" is identical to the sort of evidence that has been
used to justify all sorts of quack treatments for quack diseases
in the past.

>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>actually treating patients.

I like the implication here.  It must not be that the quacks making
millions off such "diseases" are biased -- rather that those who
doubt their existence don't understand the real world.  It seems
easy to picture a 19th centure snake oil salesman saying the same
thing.

However, I have been in the trenches long enough to have seen multiple
quack diseases rise and fall in popularity.  "Systemic yeast syndome"
seems to be making a resurgence (it had fallen off a few years ago).
There will be new such "diseases" I'm sure with best-selling books
and expensive therapies.

>If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>far as I am concerned.

Well this, of course, is convincing.  I guess I'd better start diagnosing
any illnesses that people want so that I can keep my lips.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59102
From: <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

A good source of information on Burzynski's method is in *The Cancer Industry*
by pulitzer-prize nominee Ralph Moss. Also, a non-profit organization called
"People Against Cancer," which was formed for the purpose of allowing cancer
patients to access information regarding cancer therapies not endorsed by the
cancer industry, but which have shown highly promising results (all of which
are non-toxic). Anyone interested in cancer therapy should contact this organi-
zation ASAP:              People Against Cancer
                          PO Box 10
                          Otho IA 50569-0010
(515)972-4444
FAX (515)972-4415


peace

greg nigh

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59103
From: gmark@cbnewse.cb.att.com (gilbert.m.stewart)
Subject: oxaprozin?

Anyone have any information on the effects/origin of oxaprozin?
It's marketed under the name "DAYpro", and appears to be an
anti-inflammatory.  Is it similar to naproxin?  Stronger?

TIA

GMS

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59104
From: mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.)
Subject: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

In article <aldridgeC5tH63.7yA@netcom.com>, aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldri writes...
>dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
> 

etc. ...

> 
>Dyer, you're rude. Medicine is not a totallly scientific endevour. It's
>often practiced in a disorganized manner. Most early treatment of
>non-life threatening illness is done on a guess, hazarded after anecdotal
>evidence given by the patient. It's an educated guess, by a trained person,
>but it's still no more than a guess.
>It's cheaper and simpler to medicate first and only deal further with those
>people who don't respond.
> 

Dyer is beyond rude. 

There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:

After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

* Mike McCurdy                       
* University Computing Services     Disclaimer:
* San Diego State University
* mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu            "Everything I say may be wrong"

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59105
From: jason@ab20.larc.nasa.gov (Jason Austin)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5Mv3v.2o5@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
-> 
-> Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
-> associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
-> are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
-> of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
-> the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
-> to know more. Thanks. 

	I've read mixed opinions on this.  Singed meat can contain
carcinogens, but unless you eat barbecued meat every meal, you're
probably not at much risk.  I think I will live life on the edge and
grill my food.

	I've also read that using petroleum based charcoal starter can
put some unwanted toxins in your food, or at least unwanted odor.
I've been using egg carton cups dipped in paraffin for fire starters,
and it actually lights faster and easier than lighter fluid.  Several
people have told me that they have excellent results with a chimney,
basically a steel cylinder with wholes punched in the side.  I've been
meaning to get one of these, but one hasn't presented itself while
I've been out shopping.  You can make one from a coffee can, but I buy
my coffee as whole beans in a bag, so I haven't had a big enough can
laying around.
--
Jason C. Austin
j.c.austin@larc.nasa.gov


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59106
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

In article <1993Apr20.184034.13779@dbased.nuo.dec.com> dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD) writes:
>
>If anyone knows of any database or newsgroup or as I mentioned up above,
>any information relating to this disorder I would sure appreciate hearing
>from you. I am not trying to play doctor here, but only trying to gather
>information about it. As I know now, these particular types of disorders
>are still not really well understood by the medical community, and so I'm
>going to see now....if somehow the internet can at least give me alittle
>insight. Thanks. 


There is no database for infantile spasms, nor a newsgroup, that I
know of.  The medical library will be the best source of information
for you.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59107
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

In article <C5sy24.LF4@watson.ibm.com> yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo) writes:

>>Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
>>They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've

> 
>Are you arguing that the Lyme lab test is accurate?

If you culture out the spirochete, it is virtually 100% certain
the patient has Lyme.  I suppose you could have contamination
in an exceptionally sloppy lab, but normally not.  There are no
false positives.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59108
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1r12bv$55e@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu> Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu (Donald Mackie) writes:
>
>FMGs who are not citizens are, like all aliens, in a difficult
>situation. Only citizens get to vote here, so non-citizens are of
>little or no interest to legislators. Also, the non-citizen may well
>be in the middle of processing for resident alien status. There is a
>stron sense that rocking the boat (eg. suing a residency program)
>will delay the granting of that status, perhaps for ever.
>

One should be aware that foreign doctors admitted for training
are ineligible to apply for resident alien status.  In order
to get the green card they have to return to their country and
apply at the embassy there.  Of course, many somehow get around
this problem.  Often it is by agreeing to practice in a town
with a need and then the congressman from that district tacks
a rider onto a bill saying "Dr. X will be allowed to have permanent
residency in the US."  A lot of bills in congress have such riders
attached to them.  Marrying a US citizen is the most common, although
now they are even cracking down on that and trying to tell US
citizens they must follow their spouse back to the Phillipines, or
whereever.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59109
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "liver" spots

In article <1993Apr19.162502.29802@news.eng.convex.com> cash@convex.com (Peter Cash) writes:
>What causes those little brown spots on older people's hands? Are they
>called "liver spots" because they're sort of liver-colored, or do they
>indicate some actual liver dysfunction?

Senile keratoses.  Have nothing to do with the liver.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59110
From: karl@anasazi.com (Karl Dussik)
Subject: Re: Dana-Faber Cancer Institute 

In article <1993Apr14.090306.3352@etek.chalmers.se> e2salim@etek.chalmers.se (Salim Chagan) writes:
>	Can anyone send me the adress to 
>	Dana-Faber Cancer Institute in Boston, USA.
              ^^ missing "r"

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
44 Binney Street
Boston, MA  02115

(617)732-3000

Karl Dussik
("Alumnus" - Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1983-1986)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59111
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
: 
{much deleted]
: 
: 
: The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
: by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
: something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
: immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
: nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
: including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 
: 

Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59112
From: Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger)
Subject: Imitrex and heart attacks?

My girlfriend just started taking Imitrex for her migraine headaches.  Her
neurologist diagnosed her as having depression and suffering from rebound
headaches due to daily doses of analgesics.  She stopped taking all
analgesics and caffine as of last Thursday (4/15).  The weekend was pretty
bad, but she made it through with the help of Imitrex about every 18 hours.
 Her third injection of Imitrex, during the worst of the withdrawl on
Friday and six hours after the first of the day, left her very sick.  Skin
was flushed, sweating, vomiting and had severe headache pain.  It subsided
in an hour or so.  Since then, she has been taking Imitrex as needed to
control the pain.  Immediately after taking it, she has increased head pain
for ten minutes, dizziness and mild nausea and mild chest pains.  A friend
of hers mentioned that her doctor was wary of Imitrex because it had caused
heart attacks in several people.  Apparently the mild chest pains were
common in these other people prior to there attacks.  Is this just rumor? 
Has anyone else heard of these symptoms?  My girlfriend also has Mitral
Valve Prolapse.

Opinions are mine or others but definately not MDA's!
Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com
McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, Huntington Beach, California, USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59113
From: nash@biologysx.lan.nrc.ca (John Nash)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
>From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
>Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?
>Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1993 13:59:41 GMT

>In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com>, david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
[lots of editing out of previuos posts]

>Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
>try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
>girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
>syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
>dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
>home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
>I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
>my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
>not allergic to anything that I know of.  

>Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
>physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
>a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
>through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
>I haven't gotten sick yet.

Funny about that... my wife (my girlfriend at the time) used to get sick 
after eating certain foods at various Asian restaurants, and never knew 
why.  She'd go pale, and sweaty and then vomit copiously.  A couple of us 
ventured a connection with MSG, and her response was: "MSG?  What's that?".  
It also happened when she pigged out on some brands of savoury crackers and 
chips... which I noticed (later) had MSG on the label.  Don't know about 
double blinds, but avoiding MSG has stopped her being sick at restaurants.


cheers, John

John Nash                           | Email: Nash@biologysx.lan.nrc.ca.
Institute for Biological Sciences,  | National Research Council of Canada,
Cell Physiology Group.              | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
             *** Disclaimer:  All opinions are mine, not NRC's! ***

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59114
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: How to interview a doctor


My insurance company encourages annual physicals, and at my age [42] i'm
thinking that BIannual physicals, at least, might be a good idea.  Therefore,
i'm shopping for a GP.  Might as well get a good one.

Could the Assembled Net Wisdom suggest things i should look for, or point me to
the FAQ archive if on this topic if there is one?  

Please EMail; i suspect that this topic is real Net Clutter bait.

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59115
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: sudden numbness in arm

In article <C5u5LG.C3G@gpu.utcc.utoronto.ca> molnar@Bisco.CAnet.CA (Tom Molnar) writes:
>I experienced a sudden numbness in my left arm this morning.  Just after
>I completed my 4th set of deep squats.  Today was my weight training
>day and I was just beginning my routine.  All of a sudden at the end of
>the 4th set my arm felt like it had gone to sleep.  It was cold, turned pale,
>and lost 60% of its strength.  The weight I used for squats wasn't that
>heavy, I was working hard but not at 100% effort.  I waited for a few 
>minutes, trying to shake the arm back to life and then continued with
>chest exercises (flyes) with lighter dumbells than I normally use.  But
>I dropped the left dumbell during the first set, and experienced continued
>arm weakness into the second.  So I quit training and decided not to do my
>usual hour on the ski machine either.  I'll take it easy for the rest of
>the day.
>
>My arm is *still* somewhat numb and significantly weaker than normal --
>my hand still tingles a bit down to the thumb. Color has returned to normal
>and it is no longer cold. 
>
>Horrid thoughts of chunks of plaque blocking a major artery course through
>my brain.  I'm 34, vegetarian, and pretty fit from my daily exercise
>regimen.  So that can't be it.  Could a pinched nerve from the bar
>cause these symptoms (I hope)?

It likely has nothing to do with "chunks of plaque" but it sounds like
you may have a neurovascular compromise to your arm and you need medical
attention *before* doing any more weight lifting.  

















-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59116
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1993Apr19.043654.13068@informix.com> proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts) writes:
>In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>>
>>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>>
>
>I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
>'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
>show up in any chemical test.

That would be a very expensive toxin indeed!
-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | Joe: "Are you late?"                |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        | Dan: "No, but I'm working on it!"   |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    |                                     |
| California Polytechnic State U |                                     | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59117
From: ghica@fig.citib.com (Renato Ghica)
Subject: seek sedative information



has any one heard of a sedative called "Rhoepnol"? Made by LaRouche,
I believe. Any info as to side effects or equivalent tranquillizers?

thanks....
-- 

"This will just take a minute."
"I'm 90% done."
"It worked on my machine."

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59118
From: jnielsen@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (John F Nielsen)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5u638.Bvy@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>>In article noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>
>Good grief again.
>
>Why the anger?  I must have really touched a raw nerve.
>
>Let's see:  I had symptoms that resisted all other treatments.  Sporanox
>totally alleviated them within one week.  Hmmm, I must be psychotic.  Yesss!
>That's it - my illness was all in my mind.  Thanks Steve for your correct
>diagnosis - you must have a lot of experience being out there in trenches,
>treating hundreds of patients a week.  Thank you.  I'm forever in your
>debt.
>
>Jon
>
>(oops, gotta run, the men in white coats are ready to take me away, haha,
>to the happy home, where I can go twiddle my thumbs, basket weave, and
>moan about my sinuses.)

Ever heard of something called the placebo effect? I think Dyer is
reacting because it looks to be yet another case of the same old
quackery over and over again.

It true that current medical knowledge is limited, but do you realize
just HOW MANY quacks exist eager to suck your $$$$. It's playing the
lottery at best.

If the results you got were so clear and obvious, would you mind
trying a little experiment to see if it is true? It would be quite
simple. Have sugar pills and have real pills.  Take one set for one
week and the other set for another week without knowing which ones are
the real pills. Then at the end of the 2 weeks compare the results.
Let's say you're wife would know which are the real ones. If what you
are experiencing is true there should be a marked difference between
each week. 
 
john

-- 
John Nielsen   MAGNUS Consultant            ______   ______   __  __	
"To you Baldrick, the Renaissance was just /\  __ \ /\  ___\ /\ \/\ \
something that happened to other people,   \ \ \/\ \\ \___  \\ \ \_\ \
wasn't it?" - The Black Adder               \ \_____\\/\_____\\ \_____\

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59119
Subject: Re: Bates Method for Myopia
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Dr. willian Horatio Bates born 1860 and graduated from med school
1885.  Medical career hampered by spells of total amnesia.  Published in
1920, his great work "The Cure of Imperfect Eyesight by Treatment With-
out Glasses", He made claims about how the eye actually works that are
simply NOT TRUE.  Aldous Huxley was one of the more "high profile"
beleivers in his system.  Mr. Huxley while giving a lecture on Bates system
forgot the lecture that he was supposedely reading and had to put the
paper right up to his eyes and then resorted to a magnifying glass from
his pocket.  book have been written debunking this technique, however
they remain less read than the original fraud.  cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59120
From: kelley@vet.vet.purdue.edu (Stephen Kelley)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

In article <1993Apr21.155714.1@stsci.edu> mryan@stsci.edu writes:
- Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
- 
- Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
- I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 

	[story deleted]

- be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  I'm still 
- trying to find out who is in charge of that clinic so I can write them a 
- letter.   We will certainly never set foot in that clinic again.
- 

The people in charge already know what kind of 'care' they are 
providing, and they don't give a rat's ass about your repeat business.

You are much more likely to do some good writing to local newspapers,
and broadcast news shows.  If you do, keep the letter short and to the point
so they don't discard it out of hand, and emphasize exactly what you
are upset about.

It's possible that the local health department can help you complain to 
someone official, but really, that 'clinic' exists for the sole purpose 
of generating walk-in income through advertising, and *nothing* you can do 
will change them -- all you can hope for is to help someone else avoid them.

I'm glad it sounds like your son did ok, anyway.

My opinion only, of course,
Steve



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59121
From: sbrun@oregon.uoregon.edu (Sarah Anne Brundage)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

>I did a science project on Kirlian photography when I was in high school.
>I was able to obtain wonderful auras from rocks and pebbles and the like by
>first dunking them in water.
> 
 I know this is a little weird, but I know that World magazine (you know,
National Geo. for children) did a very simple and concise article on Kirlian
photography.  They had some neat pictures, too.  A friend of mine's mother had
a book on Kirlian photography, only it's photographs took a radiologist to 
interpret.  They (World magazine) warned us all that it was very dangerous,
probably to stop curious children from experimenting with it.  Mind you, this
was 10 years ago, at least.  (And boy, does that say something about my age)

Sarah Brundage
sbrun@oregon.uoregon.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59122
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical Newsletter, Part 2/4


------------- cut here -----------------









HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 13
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                       Gonorrhea -- Colorado, 1985-1992
                       ================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     The number of reported cases of gonorrhea in Colorado increased 19.9% 
from 1991 to 1992 after declining steadily during the 1980s. In comparison, in 
the United States, reported cases of gonorrhea in 1992 continued an overall 
decreasing trend (1). This report summarizes an analysis of the increase in 
gonorrhea in Colorado in 1992 and characterizes trends in the occurrence of 
this disease from 1985 through 1992. 
     In 1992, 4679 cases of gonorrhea were reported to the Colorado Department 
of Health (CDH) compared with 3901 cases reported in 1991. During 1992, 
reported cases increased 22.7% and 17.5% among females and males, respectively 
(Table 1). Similar increases occurred among blacks, whites, and Hispanics 
(15.6%, 15.1%, and 15.9%, respectively); however, the number of reported cases 
with race not specified increased 88% from 1991 to 1992 and constituted 9.7% 
of all reported cases in 1992. Although the largest proportional increases by 
age groups occurred among persons aged 35-44 years (80.4%) and greater than or 
equal to 45 years (87.7%), these age groups accounted for only 11.0% of all 
reported cases in 1992. Persons in the 15-19-year age group accounted for the 
largest number of reported cases of gonorrhea during 1992 and the highest age 
group-specific rate (639 per 100,000). 
     Reported cases of gonorrhea increased 32.9% in the five-county Denver 
metropolitan area (1990 population: 1,629,466) but decreased elsewhere in the 
state (Table 1). Half the cases of gonorrhea in the Denver metropolitan area 
occurred in 8.4% (34) of the census tracts; these represent neighborhoods 
considered by sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)/acquired immunodeficiency 
syndrome (AIDS) field staff to be the focus of gang and drug activity. 
     When compared with 1991, the number of gonorrhea cases diagnosed among 
men in the Denver Metro Health Clinic (DMHC, the primary public STD clinic in 
the Denver metropolitan area) increased 33% in 1992, and the number of visits 
by males to the clinic increased 2.4%. Concurrently, the number of cases 
diagnosed among women increased by 1%. Among self-identified heterosexual men, 
the number of gonorrhea cases diagnosed at DMHC increased 33% and comprised 
94% of all cases diagnosed in males, while the number of cases diagnosed among 
self-identified homosexual men remained low (71 and 74 in 1991 and 1992, 
respectively). 
     Four selected laboratories in the metropolitan Denver area (i.e., HMO, 
university hospital, nonprofit family planning, and commercial) were contacted 
to determine whether gonorrhea culture-positivity rates increased. Gonorrhea 
culture-positivity rates in three of four laboratories contacted increased 
23%-33% from 1991 to 1992, while the rate was virtually unchanged in the 
fourth (i.e., nonprofit family planning). 
     From 1985 through 1991, reported cases of gonorrhea among whites and 
Hispanics in Colorado decreased; in comparison, reported cases among blacks 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 14
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

increased since 1988 (Figure 1). During 1988-1992, the population in Colorado 
increased 9.9% for blacks, 9.8% for Hispanics, and 4.5% for whites. In 1992, 
the gonorrhea rate for blacks (1935 per 100,000 persons) was 57 times that for 
whites (34 per 100,000) and 12 times that for Hispanics (156 per 100,000) 
(Table 1). Among black females, reported cases of gonorrhea increased from 
1988 through 1992 in the 15-19-year age group; among black males, cases 
increased from 1989 through 1992 in both the 15-19-and 20-24-year age groups. 

Reported by: KA Gershman, MD, JM Finn, NE Spencer, MSPH, STD/AIDS Program; RE 
Hoffman, MD, State Epidemiologist, Colorado Dept of Health. JM Douglas, MD, 
Denver Dept of Health and Hospitals. Surveillance and Information Systems Br, 
Div of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and HIV Prevention, National Center for 
Prevention Svcs, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The increase in reported gonorrhea cases in Colorado in 1992 
may represent an overall increase in the occurrence of this disease or more 
complete reporting stimulated by visitations to laboratories by CDH 
surveillance staff during 1991-1992. The increases in confirmed gonorrhea 
cases at DMHC and in culture-positivity rates in three of four laboratories 
suggest a real increase in gonorrhea rather than a reporting artifact. 
However, the stable culture-positivity rate in the nonprofit family planning 
laboratory (which serves a network of clinics statewide) indicates that the 
gonorrhea increase did not uniformly affect all segments of the population. 
     One possible explanation for the increased occurrence of gonorrhea in 
Colorado may be gang- and drug-related sexual behavior, as implicated in a 
recent outbreak of drug-resistant gonorrhea and other STDs in Colorado Springs 
(2). Although the high morbidity census tracts in the Denver metropolitan area 
coincide with areas of gang and drug activity, this hypothesis requires 
further assessment. To examine the possible role of drug use -- implicated 
previously as a factor contributing to the national increase in syphilis (3-6) 
-- the CDH STD/AIDS program is collecting information from all persons in whom 
gonorrhea is diagnosed regarding drug use, exchange of sex for money or drugs, 
and gang affiliation. 
     The gonorrhea rate for blacks in Colorado substantially exceeds the 
national health objective for the year 2000 (1300 per 100,000) (objective 
19.1a) (7). Race is likely a risk marker rather than a risk factor for 
gonorrhea and other STDs. Risk markers may be useful for identifying groups at 
greatest risk for STDs and for targeting prevention efforts. Moreover, race-
specific variation in STD rates may reflect differences in factors such as 
socioeconomic status, access to medical care, and high-risk behaviors. 
     In response to the increased occurrence of gonorrhea in Colorado, 
interventions initiated by the CDH STD/AIDS program include 1) targeting 
partner notification in the Denver metropolitan area to persons in groups at 
increased risk (e.g., 15-19-year-old black females and 20-24-year-old black 
males); 2) implementing a media campaign (e.g., public service radio 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 15
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

announcements, signs on city buses, newspaper advertisements, and posters in 
schools and clinics) to promote awareness of STD risk and prevention targeted 
primarily at high-risk groups, and 3) developing teams of peer educators to 
perform educational outreach in high-risk neighborhoods. The educational 
interventions are being developed and implemented with the assistance of 
members of the target groups and with input from a forum of community leaders 
and health-care providers. 

References

1. CDC. Table II. Cases of selected notifiable diseases, United States, weeks 
ending December 26, 1992, and December 28, 1991 (52nd week). MMWR 1993;41:975. 

2. CDC. Gang-related outbreak of penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae 
and other sexually transmitted diseases -- Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1989-
1991. MMWR 1993;42:25-8. 

3. CDC. Relationship of syphilis to drug use and prostitution -- Connecticut 
and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MMWR 1988;37:755-8, 764. 

4. Rolfs RT, Goldberg M, Sharrar RG. Risk factors for syphilis: cocaine use 
and prostitution. Am J Public Health 1990;80:853-7. 

5. Andrus JK, Fleming DW, Harger DR, et al. Partner notification: can it 
control epidemic syphilis? Ann Intern Med 1990;112:539-43. 

6. Gershman KA, Rolfs RT. Diverging gonorrhea and syphilis trends in the 
1980s: are they real? Am J Public Health 1991;81:1263-7. 

7. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives--full report, with commentary. Washington, DC: 
US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS 
publication no. (PHS)91-50212. 












HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 16
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                Effectiveness in Disease and Injury Prevention
            Impact of Adult Safety-Belt Use on Restraint Use Among
            Children less than 11 Years of Age -- Selected States,
                                 1988 and 1989
            ======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Motor-vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among children and 
young adults in the United States and account for more than 1 million years of 
potential life lost before age 65 annually (1). Child safety seats and safety 
belts can substantially reduce this loss (2). From 1977 through 1985, all 50 
states passed legislation requiring the use of child safety seats or safety 
belts for children. Although these laws reduce injuries to young children by 
an estimated 8%-59% (3,4), motor-vehicle crash-related injuries remain a major 
cause of disability and death among U.S. children (1), while the use of 
occupant restraints among children decreases inversely with age (84% usage for 
those aged 0-4 years; 57%, aged 5-11 years; and 29%, aged 12-18 years) (5). In 
addition, parents who do not use safety belts themselves are less likely to 
use restraints for their children (6). To characterize the association between 
adult safety-belt use and adult-reported consistent use of occupant restraints 
for the youngest child aged less than 11 years within a household, CDC 
analyzed data obtained from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 
(BRFSS) during 1988 and 1989. This report summarizes the findings from this 
study. 
     Data were available for 20,905 respondents aged greater than or equal to 
18 years in 11 states * that participated in BRFSS -- a population-based, 
random-digit-dialed telephone survey -- and administered a standard Injury 
Control and Child Safety Module developed by CDC. Of these respondents, 5499 
(26%) had a child aged less than 11 years in their household. Each respondent 
was asked to specify the child's age and the frequency of restraint use for 
that child. The two categories of child restraint and adult safety-belt use in 
this analysis were 1) consistent use (i.e., always buckle up) and 2) less than 
consistent use (i.e., almost always, sometimes, rarely, or never buckle up). 
Data were weighted to provide estimates representative of each state. Software 
for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) (7) was used to calculate point estimates 
and confidence intervals. Statistically significant differences were defined 
by p values of less than 0.05. 
     Each of the 11 states had some type of child restraint law. Of these, six 
(Arizona, Kentucky, Maine, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and West Virginia) had no 
law requiring adults to use safety belts; four (Idaho, Maryland, Pennsylvania, 
and Washington) had a secondary enforcement mandatory safety-belt law (i.e., a 
vehicle had to be stopped for a traffic violation before a citation for nonuse 
of safety belts could be issued); and one state (New York) had a primary 
enforcement mandatory safety-belt law (i.e., vehicles could be stopped for a 
safety-belt law violation alone). In nine states, child-passenger protection 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 17
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

laws included all children aged less than 5 years, but the other two states 
used both age and size of the child as criteria for mandatory restraint use. 
The analysis in this report subgrouped states into 1) those having a law 
requiring adult safety-belt use (law states), and 2) those without such a law 
(no-law states). 
     Overall, 21% of children aged less than 11 years reportedly were not 
consistently restrained during automobile travel. Both child restraint use and 
adult restraint use were significantly higher (p less than 0.05, chi-square 
test) in law states than in no-law states (81.1% versus 74.3% and 58.7% versus 
43.2%, respectively). 
     High rates of restraint use for children aged less than or equal to 1 
year were reported by both adults indicating consistent and less than 
consistent safety-belt use (Figure 1). Adults with consistent use reported 
high rates of child-occupant restraint use regardless of the child's age 
(range: 95.5% for 1-year-olds to 84.7% for 10-year-olds). In comparison, for 
adults reporting less than consistent safety-belt use, the rate of child-
occupant restraint use declined sharply by the age of the child (range: 93.1% 
for 1-year-olds to 28.8% for 10-year-olds). When comparing children of 
consistent adult safety-belt users with children of less than consistent adult 
safety-belt users, 95% confidence intervals overlap for the two youngest age 
groups (i.e., aged less than 1 and 1 year). 
     Reported child-occupant restraint use in law states generally exceeded 
that in no-law states, regardless of age of child (Table 1). In addition, 
higher adult educational attainment was significantly associated with 
increased restraint use for children, a factor that has also been associated 
with increased adult safety-belt use (8). 

Reported by: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; National 
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The findings in this report are consistent with others 
indicating that adults who do not use safety belts themselves are less likely 
to employ occupant restraints for their children (6,9). Because these 
nonbelted adults are at increased risk of crashing and more likely to exhibit 
other risk-taking behaviors, children traveling with them may be at greater 
risk for motor-vehicle injury (10). 
     Educational attainment of adult respondents was inversely associated with 
child restraint use in this report. Accordingly, occupant-protection programs 
should be promoted among parents with low educational attainment. Because low 
educational attainment is often associated with low socioeconomic status, such 
programs should be offered to adults through health-care facilities that serve 
low-income communities or through federal programs (i.e., Head Start) that are 
directed at parents with young children. 
     Injury-prevention programs emphasize restraining young children. In 
addition, however, efforts must be intensified to protect child occupants as 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 18
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

they become older. Parents, especially those with low educational attainment, 
those who do not consistently wear safety belts, and those from states that do 
not have mandatory safety-belt use laws, should be encouraged to wear safety 
belts and to protect their children by using approved child safety seats and 
safety belts. Finally, the increased use of restraints among children may 
increase their likelihood of using safety belts when they become teenagers -- 
the age group characterized by the lowest rate of safety-belt use and the 
highest rate of fatal crashes (5). 

References

1. CDC. Childhood injuries in the United States. Am J Dis Child 1990;144:627-
46. 

2. Partyka SC. Papers on child restraints: effectiveness and use. Washington, 
DC: US Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 1988; report no. DOT-HS-807-286. 

3. Guerin D, MacKinnon D. An assessment of the California child passenger 
restraint requirement. Am J Public Health 1985;75:142-4. 

4. Hall W, Orr B, Suttles D, et al. Progress report on increasing child 
restraint usage through local education and distribution programs. Chapel 
Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Highway 
Safety Research Center, 1983. 

5. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Occupant protection trends 
in 19 cities. Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation, National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1991. 

6. Wagenaar AC, Molnar LJ, Margolis LH. Characteristics of child safety seat 
users. Accid Anal Prev 1988;20:311-22. 

7. Shah BV, Barnwell BG, Hunt PN, LaVange LM. Software for Survey Data 
Analysis (SUDAAN) version 5.50 Software documentation. Research Triangle 
Park, North Carolina: Research Triangle Institute, 1991. 

8. Lund AK. Voluntary seat belt use among U.S. drivers: geographic, 
socioeconomic and demographic variation. Accid Anal Prev 1986;18:43-50. 

9. Margolis LH, Wagenaar AC, Molnar LJ. Use and misuse of automobile child 
restraint devices. Am J Dis Child 1992;146:361-6. 

10. Hunter WW, Stutts JC, Stewart JR, Rodgman EA. Characteristics of seatbelt 
users and non-users in a state with a mandatory use law. Health Education 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 19
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Research 1990;5:161-73. 

* Arizona, Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, New York, Pennsylvania, 
Rhode Island, Washington, and West Virginia. 









































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 20
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                   Publication of CDC Surveillance Summaries
                   =========================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Since 1983, CDC has published the CDC Surveillance Summaries under 
separate cover as part of the MMWR series. Each report published in the CDC 
Surveillance Summaries focuses on public health surveillance; surveillance 
findings are reported for a broad range of risk factors and health conditions. 
     Summaries for each of the reports published in the most recent (March 19, 
1993) issue of the CDC Surveillance Summaries (1) are provided below. All 
subscribers to MMWR receive the CDC Surveillance Summaries, as well as the 
MMWR Recommendations and Reports, as part of their subscriptions.

 SURVEILLANCE FOR AND COMPARISON OF BIRTH DEFECT PREVALENCES
                               IN TWO GEOGRAPHIC 
                        AREAS -- UNITED STATES, 1983-88 

     Problem/Condition: CDC and some states have developed surveillance 
systems to monitor the birth prevalence of major defects. 
     Reporting Period Covered: This report covers birth defects surveillance 
in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, and selected jurisdictions in California for 
the years 1983-1988. 
     Description of System: The California Birth Defects Monitoring Program 
and the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program are two population-
based surveillance systems that employ similar data collection methods. The 
prevalence estimates for 44 diagnostic categories were based on data for 1983-
1988 for 639,837 births in California and 152,970 births in metropolitan 
Atlanta. The prevalences in the two areas were compared, adjusting for race, 
sex, and maternal age by using Poisson regression. 
     Results: Regional differences in the prevalence of aortic stenosis, fetal 
alcohol syndrome, hip dislocation/dysplasia, microcephalus, obstruction of the 
kidney/ureter, and scoliosis/lordosis may be attributable to general 
diagnostic variability. However, differences in the prevalences of arm/hand 
limb reduction, encephalocele, spina bifida, or trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) are 
probably not attributable to differences in ascertainment, because these 
defects are relatively easy to diagnose. 
     Interpretation: Regional differences in prenatal diagnosis and pregnancy 
termination may affect prevalences of trisomy 21 and spina bifida. However, 
the reason for differences in arm/hand reduction is unknown, but may be 
related to variability in environmental exposure, heterogeneity in the gene 
pool, or random variation. 
     Actions Taken: Because of the similarities of these data bases, several 
collaborative studies are being implemented. In particular, the differences in 
the birth prevalence of spina bifida and Down syndrome will focus attention on 
the impact of prenatal diagnosis. Authors: Jane Schulman, Ph.D., Nancy 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 21
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Jensvold, M.P.H, Gary M. Shaw, Dr.P.H., California Birth Defects Monitoring 
Program, March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation. Larry D. Edmonds, M.S.P.H., 
Anne B. McClearn, Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, 
National Center for Environmental Health, CDC. 

                      INFLUENZA -- UNITED STATES, 1988-89

     Problem/Condition: CDC monitors the emergence and spread of new influenza 
virus variants and the impact of influenza on morbidity and mortality annually 
from October through May. 
     Reporting Period Covered: This report covers U.S. influenza surveillance 
conducted from October 1988 through May 1989. 
     Description of System: Weekly reports from the vital statistics offices 
of 121 cities provided an index of influenza's impact on mortality; 58 WHO 
collaborating laboratories reported weekly identification of influenza 
viruses; weekly morbidity reports were received both from the state and 
territorial epidemiologists and from 153 sentinel family practice physicians. 
Nonsystematic reports of outbreaks and unusual illnesses were received 
throughout the year. 
     Results: During the 1988-89 influenza season, influenza A(H1N1) and B 
viruses were identified in the United States with essentially equal frequency 
overall, although both regional and temporal patterns of predominance shifted 
over the course of the season. Throughout the season increases in the indices 
of influenza morbidity in regions where influenza A(H1N1) predominated were 
similar to increases in regions where influenza B predominated. Only 7% of 
identified viruses were influenza A(H3N2), but isolations of this subtype 
increased as the season waned, and it subsequently predominated during the 
1989-90 season. During the 1988-89 season outbreaks in nursing homes were 
reported in association with influenza B and A(H3N2) but not influenza 
A(H1N1). 
     Interpretation: The alternating temporal and geographic predominance of 
influenza strains A(H1N1) and B during the 1988-89 season emphasizes the 
importance of continual attention to regional viral strain surveillance, since 
amantadine is effective only for treatment and prophylaxis of influenza A. 
     Actions Taken: Weekly interim analyses of surveillance data produced 
throughout the season allow physicians and public health officials to make 
informed choices regarding appropriate use of amantadine. CDC's annual 
surveillance allows the observed viral variants to be assessed as candidates 
for inclusion as components in vaccines used in subsequent influenza seasons. 
Authors: Louisa E. Chapman, M.D., M.S.P.H., Epidemiology Activity, Office of 
the Director, Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for 
Infectious Diseases; Margaret A. Tipple, M.D., Division of Quarantine, 
National Center for Prevention Services, CDC. Suzanne Gaventa Folger, M.P.H., 
Health Investigations Branch, Division of Health Studies, Agency for Toxic 
Substances and Disease Registry. Maurice Harmon, Ph.D., Connaught 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 22
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Laboratories, Pasteur-Mirieux Company, Swiftwater, Pennsylvania. Alan P. 
Kendal, Ph.D., European Regional Office, World Health Organization, 
Copenhagen, Denmark. Nancy J. Cox, Ph.D., Influenza Branch, Division of Viral 
and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases; Lawrence B. 
Schonberger, M.D., M.P.H., Epidemiology Activity, Office of the Director, 
Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious 
Diseases, CDC. 

Reference

1. CDC. CDC surveillance summaries (March 19). MMWR 1993;42(no. SS-1).


































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 23
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                            Clinical Research News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                          Clinical Research News for
                              Arizona Physicians

                 Vol. 4, No. 4, April 1993     Tucson, Arizona

Published monthly by the Office of Public Affairs at The University of Arizona
                            Health Sciences Center.   
                   Copyright 1993, The University of Arizona

                 High Tech Assisted Reproductive Technologies

Following the birth of the first in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-
ET) baby in 1978, a host of assisted reproductive technologies have been 
developed that include IVF-ET, gamete intrafallopian tube transfer (GIFT), 
embryo cryopreservation (freezing) and gamete micromanipulation. Together, 
these technologies are referred to as the high-tech assisted reproductive 
technology (ART) procedures. 

Ovulation induction, sperm insemination and surgery for tubal disease and/or 
pathology still are the mainstays of the therapies available for infertility 
management. However, when these fail, it almost always is appropriate to 
proceed with one of the ART procedures. 

Therefore, in addition to a comprehensive basic and general infertility 
service at The University of Arizona Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and 
Infertility, there is a program of Assisted Reproduction that specializes in 
ART procedures. This program serves as a tertiary provider for those patients 
in the state of Arizona whose infertility problems cannot be resolved by the 
traditional therapies. 

The following article (on back) describes the ART procedures available in our 
Center, clarifies appropriate applications for each, and considers the 
realistic expectations for their success. Procedures included are: 

o in vitro 
o fertilization - embryo transfer (IVF-ET),  gamete intrafallopian tube 
  transfer 
o (GIFT),  cryopreservation of human embryos and  gamete micromanipulation. 
This article also considers ongoing research in our program that is directed 
towards improved success of these technologies. 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 24
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                           Future Areas of Research

In addition to ongoing research that is directed exclusively toward the 
management of infertile couples, we are developing the technology to assist 
couples who are at risk for producing embryos with a serious hereditary 
disease. 

This technology involves biopsying the preimplantation human embryo and then 
subjecting the biopsied cells to genetic analysis using either DNA 
amplification or fluorescent in situ hybridization. 

There are recent reports of the successful application of DNA amplification by 
other centers, for example, for diagnosis of the genes for cystic fibrosis and 
hemophilia. We hope to apply and further focus fluorescent in situ 
hybridization technology for probing the X chromosome, the identification of 
which will provide a scientific basis for counselling patients who exhibit 
sex-linked disorders. 

The considerable clinical application of such technology lies in the fact that 
it circumvents the need for prenatal diagnosis, in addition to the possibility 
of a subsequent termination of affected fetuses, in order to avoid the birth 
of affected children. 


Catherine Racowsky, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Director of Research
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
College of Medicine 
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona

               Applications, Success Rates and Advances for the
                           Management of Infertility

The following are the ART procedures available at The University of Arizona 
Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. 

     In Vitro Fertilization - Embryo Transfer is the core ART procedure of our 
Assisted Reproduction Program.  This procedure involves retrieval of 
unfertilized eggs from the ovary, their insemination in vitro in a dish, and 
the culture of resultant embryos for 1 or 2 days, before they are transferred 
to the patient's uterus. All cultures are maintained in an incubator under 
strictly controlled atmospheric and temperature conditions. Before being 
processed for use in insemination, semen samples are evaluated in our 
andrology laboratory using both subjective light microscopy and computer-

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 25
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

assisted semen analyses. To ensure an adequate number of eggs with which to 
perform IVF-ET, or indeed, GIFT, follicular development is typically 
stimulated, with gonadotropins (perganol, metrodin), gonadotropin releasing 
hormone (GnRH, Factrel, lutrepulse) and/or GnRH analogues (lupron, Depo 
lupron, synarel). Occasionally, however, IVF-ET is accomplished with eggs 
obtained in non-stimulated cycles. While some programs utilize laparoscopic 
egg retrieval in the operating room with the patient under general anesthesia, 
we undertake the less costly approach of ultrasound-guided retrieval in our 
Infertility Unit, with the patient sedated.  
     Couples who resort to IVF-ET exhibit such pathologies as tubal 
deficiencies, ovulatory dysfunction, endometriosis, and/or mild forms of male 
factor infertility.  According to the United States IVF Registry, the overall 
success rate for IVF-ET nationwide has stabilized at about 14 percent per 
cycle. Results from our program, involving 86 patients who have undergone 173 
IVF-ET cycles, reflect a comparable success rate. 
     Nevertheless, the overall incidence of success with this procedure is 
disconcertingly low and emphasizes the need to address those physiological 
factors that limit achievement of a higher percentage of pregnancies.  Well 
recognized predictors of outcome include patient age, response to exogenous 
ovarian stimulation, quality of sperm and number of repeated IVF-ET cycle 
attempts. However, among these, age is the single most significant determinant 
of conception. Therefore, it is critical that such patients are referred to an 
Assisted Reproduction Program at the earliest opportunity following failure of 
traditional therapies. 
     The underlying basis for the negative effect of age on fertility has not 
been clearly delineated beyond recognition that: 1) the number of eggs 
available for retrieval declines markedly with age; 2) fertilization rates 
significantly decrease in eggs retrieved from patients who are over 40 years; 
and 3) provided the appropriate hormonal background is present, age is 
unrelated to uterine competency to sustain pregnancy. Ongoing research in our 
Center, therefore, is investigating physiological changes in the egg that may 
be impacted by age. We have determined that more than 50 percent of eggs that 
fail to fertilize in vitro are chromosomally abnormal, and that a significant 
proportion of these abnormalities are accountable to patient age. Currently, 
the only recourse for such patients is to use eggs obtained from a donor. Our 
program has initiated recruitment of volunteer egg donors to satisfy the needs 
of a list of recipients interested in this form of therapy. 

     GIFT - This high-tech ART procedure is performed in the operating room, 
usually with the use of a laparoscope and, in contrast to IVF-ET, involves 
introducing sperm and freshly retrieved eggs into the lumen of the Fallopian 
tube (an average of 3 eggs/tube). Under these circumstances, fertilization 
occurs in vivo and, if excess eggs are retrieved, the remainder undergo IVF, 
with subsequent options for embryo transfer in that cycle, or freezing for 
transfer in a subsequent cycle. This ART procedure is applied to cases in 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 26
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

which there is at least one patent Fallopian tube but the couple has such 
pathologies as ovulatory dysfunction, endometriosis, male factor infertility 
and/or idiopathic infertility.    
     The data reported in the United States IVF Registry for 1985 through 1990 
indicate that the overall success rate with GIFT is higher than that obtained 
with the IVF-ET technique (range of clinical pregnancies for GIFT is 24 to 36 
percent and for IVF-ET 14 to 18 percent). In view of this fact, one might 
expect more patients to be treated with GIFT than IVF-ET. However, in our 
program we have taken into account three basic concerns which, while 
substantially reducing the number of GIFT cycles performed, benefit the 
patient. These concerns are: 1) the increased costs associated with performing 
a procedure in the operating room; 2) the risks, albeit minimal, of undergoing 
general anesthesia; and 3) the considerable benefits to be accrued from 
obtaining direct information on the quality and fertilizability of the eggs, 
and the developmental competency of resultant embryos. 
     The increased success with GIFT undoubtedly reflects the artificial 
environment provided by the laboratory in the IVF-ET procedure. Between 
January 1, 1991, and December 31, 1992, we have performed a total of 12 GIFT 
cycles, with an overall success rate of 20 percent. 
     Embryo cryopreservation, or freezing, is applied in our program when 
embryos result from residual GIFT eggs or from non-transferred IVF embryos. 
This procedure not only provides patients with a subsequent opportunity for 
success at much reduced costs, but also circumvents the legal and ethical 
issues relating to disposal of supernumerary embryos. Therefore, as stipulated 
by the American Fertility Society ethical guidelines for ART programs, from 
both a practical and an ethical standpoint, all Assisted Reproduction programs 
should have the capability of cryopreserving human embrys. 
     Gamete Micromanipulation - This ART procedure, which is still very new, 
is applied to couples who are unaccepting of insemination with donor semen but 
who have severe male factor infertility (less than 10 million sperm/ml in 
combination with fewer than 20 perccent motile sperm, and/or less than 10 
percent sperm with normal morphology). We are currently developing the 
procedure of sub-zonal insertion (SZI), which entails injecting sperm under 
the coating around the egg, the barrier normally penetrated by the sperm 
through enzymatic digestion. 
     Available data from SZI programs world-wide indicate that only 5 to 10 
percent of SZI cycles result in a pregnancy. This statistic undoubtedly 
relates to limitations imposed by abnormalities inherent in the sperm. 
Therefore, we are currently focusing on the development of improved techniques 
for the recognition and selection of sperm chosen for manipulation. Such 
efforts are unquestionably worthwhile in view of the fact that this technology 
offers the only realistic opportunity for severe male factor patients to 
establish conception. 

Catherine Racowsky, Ph.D.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 27
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Associate Professor and Director of Research
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
College of Medicine 
--------- end of part 2 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59123
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical News Part 4/4

------------- cut here -----------------
limits of AZT's efficacy and now suggest using the drug  either sequentially 
with other drugs or in a kind of AIDS  treatment "cocktail" combining a number 
of drugs to fight the  virus all at once.  "Treating people with AZT alone 
doesn't  happen in the real world anymore," said Dr. Mark Jacobson of the  
University of California--San Francisco.  Also, with recent  findings 
indicating that HIV replicates rapidly in the lymph  nodes after infection, 
physicians may begin pushing even harder  for early treatment of HIV-infected 
patients.
==================================================================    

"New Infectious Disease Push" American Medical News (04/05/93) Vol. 36, No. 
13, P. 2 

     The Center for Disease Control will launch a worldwide network to track 
the spread of infectious diseases and detect drug-resistant or new strains in 
time to help prevent their spread.  The network is expected to cost between 
$75 million and $125 million but is  an essential part of the Clinton 
administration's health reform  plan, according to the CDC and outside 
experts.  The plan will  require the CDC to enhance surveillance of disease in 
the United  States and establish about 15 facilities across the world to  
track disease. 

     =====================================================================  
                                April 13, 1993 
     =====================================================================  

"NIH Plans to Begin AIDS Drug Trials at Earlier Stage" Nature (04/01/93) Vol. 
362, No. 6419, P. 382  (Macilwain, Colin) 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 42
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

     The National Institutes of Health has announced it will start  treating 
HIV-positive patients as soon as possible after  seroconversion, resulting 
from recent findings that show HIV is  active in the body in large numbers 
much earlier than was  previously believed.  Anthony Fauci, director of the 
U.S.  National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID),  said, 
"We must address the question of how to treat people as  early as we possibly 
can with drugs that are safe enough to give  people for years and that will 
get around microbial resistance."  He said any delay would signify questions 
over safety and  resistance rather than a lack of funds.  Fauci, who co-
authored  one of the two papers published last week in Nature, rejects the  
argument by one of his co-authors, Cecil Fox, that the new  discovery 
indicates that "$1 billion spent on vaccine trials" has been "a waste of time 
and money" because the trials were started  too long after the patients were 
infected and were ended too  quickly.  John Tew of the Medical College of 
Virginia in Richmond claims that the new evidence strongly backs the argument 
for  early treatment of HIV-infected patients.  AIDS activists  welcomed the 
new information but said the scientific community  has been slow to understand 
the significance of infection of the  lymph tissue.  "We've known about this 
for five years, but we're  glad it is now in the public domain," said Jesse 
Dobson of the  California-based Project Inform.  But Peter Duesberg, who  
believes that AIDS is independent of HIV and is a result of drug  abuse in the 
West, said, "We are several paradoxes away from an  explanation of AIDS--even 
if these papers are right." 

    ======================================================================   
                                April 14, 1993 
    ======================================================================   

"Risk of AIDS Virus From Doctors Found to Be Minimal" Washington Post 
(04/14/93), P. A9 

     The risk of HIV being transmitted from infected health-care  
professionals to patients is minimal, according to new research  published in 
today's Journal of the American Medical Association  (JAMA).  This finding 
supports previous conclusions by health  experts that the chance of 
contracting HIV from a health care  worker is remote.  Three studies in the 
JAMA demonstrate that  thousands of patients were treated by two HIV-positive 
surgeons  and dentists without becoming infected with the virus.  The  studies 
were conducted by separate research teams in New  Hampshire, Maryland, and 
Florida.  Each study started with an  HIV-positive doctor or dentist and 
tested all patients willing to participate.  The New Hampshire study found 
that none of the  1,174 patients who had undergone invasive procedures by an  
HIV-positive orthopedic surgeon contracted HIV.  In Maryland, 413 of 1,131 
patients operated on by a breast surgery specialist at  Johns Hopkins Hospital 
were found to be HIV-negative.  Similarly  in Florida, 900 of 1,192 dental 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 43
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

patients, who all had been  treated by an HIV-positive general dentist, were 
tested and found to be negative for HIV.  The Florida researchers, led by 
Gordon  M. Dickinson of the University of Miami School of Medicine, said, 
"This study indicates that the risk for transmission of HIV from  a general 
dentist to his patients is minimal in a setting in  which universal 
precautions are strictly observed."   Related Story: Philadelphia Inquirer 
(04/14) P. A6 
======================================================================   
"Alternative Medicine Advocates Divided Over New NIH Research  Program" AIDS 
Treatment News (04/02/93) No. 172, P. 6  (Gilden, Dave) 

     The new Office of Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of 
Health has raised questions about the NIH's commitment to an  effort that uses 
unorthodox or holistic therapeutic methods.  The OAM is a small division of 
the NIH, with its budget only at $2  million dollars compared to more than $10 
billion for the NIH as  a whole.  In addition, the money for available 
research grants is even smaller.  About $500,000 to $600,000 total will be 
available this year for 10 or 20 grants.  Kaiya Montaocean, of the Center  for 
Natural and Traditional Medicine in Washington, D.C., says  the OAM is afraid 
to become involved in AIDS.  "They have to look successful and there is no 
easy answer in AIDS," she said.    There is also a common perception that the 
OAM will focus on  fields the NIH establishment will find non-threatening, 
such as  relaxation techniques and acupuncture.  When the OAM called for  an 
advisory committee conference of about 120 people last year,  the AIDS 
community was largely missing from the meeting.  In  addition, activists' 
general lack of contact with the Office has  added suspicion that the epidemic 
will be ignored.  Jon  Greenberg, of ACT-UP/New York, said, "The OAM advisory 
panel is  composed of practitioners without real research experience.  It  
will take them several years to accept the nature of research."   
Nevertheless,  Dr. Leanna Standish, research director and AIDS  investigator 
at the Bastyr College of Naturopathic Medicine in  Seattle, said, "Here is a 
wonderful opportunity to fund AIDS  research.  It's only fair to give the 
Office time to gel, but  it's up to the public to insist that it's much, much 
more [than  public relations]." 
======================================================================   
"Herpesvirus Decimates Immune-cell Soldiers" Science News (04/03/93) Vol. 143, 
No. 14, P. 215   (Fackelmann, Kathy A.) 

     Scientists conducting test tube experiments have found that  herpesvirus-
6 can attack the human immune system's natural killer cells.  This attack 
causes the killer cells to malfunction,  diminishing an important component in 
the immune system's fight  against diseases.  Also, the herpesvirus-6 may be a 
factor in  immune diseases, such as AIDS.  In 1989, Paolo Lusso's research  
found that herpesvirus-6 attacks another white cell, the CD4  T-lymphocyte, 
which is the primary target of HIV.  Lusso also  found that herpesvirus-6 can 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 44
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

kill natural killer cells.   Scientists previously knew that the natural 
killer cells of  patients infected with HIV do not work correctly.  Lusso's  
research represents the first time scientists have indicated that natural 
killer cells are vulnerable to any kind of viral attack,  according to Anthony 
L. Komaroff, a researcher with Harvard  Medical School.  Despite the test-tube 
findings, scientists are  uncertain whether the same result occurs in the 
body.  Lusso's  team also found that herpesvirus-6 produces the CD4 receptor  
molecule that provides access for HIV.  CD4 T-lymphocytes express this surface 
receptor, making them vulnerable to HIV's attack.   Researchers concluded that 
herpesvirus-6 cells can exacerbate the affects of HIV. 

    ======================================================================   
                                April 15, 1993 
     ====================================================================   

"AIDS and Priorities in the Global Village: To the Editor" Journal of the 
American Medical Association (04/07/93) Vol. 269,  No. 13, P. 1636  (Gellert, 
George and Nordenberg, Dale F.) 

     All health-care workers are obligated and responsible for not  only 
ensuring that politicians understand the dimensions of  certain health 
problems, but also to be committed to related  policies, write George Gellert 
and Dale F. Nordenberg of the  Orange County Health Care Agency, Santa Ana, 
Calif., and the  Emory University School of Public Health in Atlanta, Ga.,  
respectively.  Dr. Berkley's editorial on why American doctors  should care 
about the AIDS epidemic beyond the United States  details several reasons for 
the concerted interest that all  countries share in combating AIDS.  It should 
be noted that while AIDS leads in hastening global health interdependence, it 
is not  the only illness doing so.  Diseases such as malaria and many  
respiratory and intestinal pathogens have similarly inhibited the economic 
development of most of humanity and acted to marginalize large populations.  
Berkley mentions the enormous social and  economic impact that AIDS will have 
on many developing countries, and the increased need for international 
assistance that will  result.  Berkley also cites the lack of political 
aggressiveness  toward the AIDS epidemic in its first decade.  But now there 
is a new administration with a promise of substantial differences in  approach 
to international health and development in general, and  HIV/AIDS in 
particular.  Vice President Al Gore proposes in his  book "Earth in the 
Balance" a major environmental initiative that includes sustainable 
international development, with programs to  promote literacy, improve child 
survival, and disseminate  contraceptive technology and access throughout the 
developing  world.  If enacted, this change in policy could drastically  
change the future of worldwide health. 
====================================================================   
"AIDS and Priorities in the Global Village: In Reply" Journal of the American 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 45
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Medical Association (04/07/93) Vol. 269,  No. 13, P. 1636  (Berkley, Seth) 

     Every nation should tackle HIV as early and aggressively as    possible 
before the disease reaches an endemic state, even at a  cost of diverting less 
attention to some other illnesses, writes  Seth Berkley of the Rockefeller 
Foundation in New York, N.Y., in  reply to a letter by Drs. Gellert and 
Nordenberg.  Although it is true that diseases other than AIDS, such as 
malaria and  respiratory and intestinal illnesses, have similarly inhibited  
economic development in developing countries and deserve much  more attention 
than they are getting, Berkley disagrees with the  contention that AIDS is 
receiving too much attention.  HIV  differs from other diseases, in most 
developing countries because it is continuing to spread.  For most endemic 
diseases, the  outcome of neglecting interventions for one year is another 
year  of about the same level of needless disease and death.  But with  AIDS 
and its increasing spread, the cost of neglect, not only in  disease burden 
but financially, is much greater.  Interventions  in the early part of a 
rampantly spreading epidemic like HIV are  highly cost-effective because each 
individual infection prevented significantly interrupts transmission.  Berkley 
says he agrees  with Gellert and Nordenberg about the gigantic social and  
economic effects of AIDS and about the need for political  leadership.  But he 
concludes that not only is assertive  political leadership needed in the 
United States for the AIDS  epidemic, but even more so in developing countries 
with high  rates of HIV infection and where complacency about the epidemic  
has been the rule.





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 46
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                               AIDS/HIV Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

            First HIV Vaccine Trial Begins in HIV-Infected Children
                                H H S   N E W S
     ********************************************************************
                 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
                                March 29, 1993


        First HIV Vaccine Therapy Trial Begins In HIV-Infected Children


The National Institutes of Health has opened the first trial of experimental 
HIV vaccines in children who are infected with the human immunodeficiency 
virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. 

The trial will compare the safety of three HIV experimental vaccines in 90 
children recruited from at least 12 sites nationwide. Volunteers must be HIV-
infected but have no symptoms of HIV disease. 

HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala said this initial study can be seen as "a 
hopeful milestone in our efforts to ameliorate the tragedy of HIV-infected 
children who now face the certainty they will develop AIDS." 

Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and 
Infectious Diseases and of the NIH Office of AIDS Research, said the trial "is 
the first step in finding out whether vaccines can help prevent or delay 
disease progression in children with HIV who are not yet sick."  If these 
vaccines prove to be safe, more sophisticated questions about their 
therapeutic potential will be assessed in Phase II trials. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 10,000 children in 
the United States have HIV.  By the end of the decade, the World Health 
Organization projects 10 million children will be infected worldwide. 

The study will enroll children ages 1 month to 12 years old.  NIAID, which 
funds the AIDS Clinical Trials Group network, anticipates conducting the trial 
at nine ACTG sites around  the country and three sites participating in the 
ACTG but funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human 
Development. 

Preliminary evidence from similar studies under way in infected adults shows 
that certain vaccines can boost existing HIV-specific immune responses and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 47
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

stimulate new ones.  It will be several years, however, before researchers 
know how these responses affect the clinical course of the disease. 

The results from the pediatric trial, known as ACTG 218, will be examined 
closely for other reasons as well.  "This trial will provide the first insight 
into how the immature immune system responds to candidate HIV vaccines," said 
Daniel Hoth, M.D., director of NIAID's division of AIDS.  "We need this 
information to design trials to test whether experimental vaccines can prevent 
HIV infection in children." 

In the United States, most HIV-infected children live in poor inner-city 
areas, and more than 80 percent are minorities, mainly black or Hispanic. 

Nearly all HIV-infected children acquire the virus from their mothers during 
pregnancy  or at birth.  An infected mother in the United States has more than 
a one in four chance of transmitting the virus to her baby.  As growing 
numbers of women of childbearing age become exposed to HIV through injection 
drug use or infected sexual partners, researchers expect a corresponding 
increase in the numbers of infected children. 

HIV disease progresses more rapidly in infants and children than in adults.  
The most recent information suggests that 50 percent of infants born with HIV 
develop a serious AIDS-related infection by 3 to 6 years of age.  These 
infections include severe or frequent bouts of common bacterial illnesses of 
childhood that can result in seizures, pneumonia, diarrhea and other symptoms 
leading to nutritional problems and long hospital stays. 

At least half of the children in the trial will be 2 years of age or younger 
to enable comparison of the immune responses of the younger and older 
participants.  All volunteers must have well-documented HIV infection but no 
symptoms of HIV disease other than swollen lymph glands or a mildly swollen 
liver or spleen.  They cannot have received any anti-retroviral or immune-
regulating drugs within one month prior to their entry into the study. 

Study chair John S. Lambert, M.D., of the University of Rochester Medical 
School, and co- chair Samuel Katz, M.D., of Duke University School of 
Medicine, will coordinate the trial assisted by James McNamara, M.D., medical 
officer in the pediatric medicine branch of NIAID's division of AIDS. 

"We will compare the safety of the vaccines by closely monitoring the children 
for any side effects, to see if one vaccine produces more swollen arms or 
fevers, for example, than another," said Dr. McNamara.  "We'll also look at 
whether low or high doses of the vaccines stimulate immune responses or other 
significant laboratory or clinical effects."   He emphasized that the small 
study size precludes comparing these responses or effects among the three 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 48
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

products. 

The trial will test two doses each of three experimental vaccines made from 
recombinant HIV proteins.  These so-called subunit vaccines, each genetically 
engineered to contain only a piece of the virus, have so far proved well-
tolerated in ongoing trials in HIV-infected adults. 

One vaccine made by MicroGeneSys Inc. of Meriden, Conn., contains gp160--a 
protein  that gives rise to HIV's surface proteins--plus alum adjuvant.  
Adjuvants boost specific immune responses to a vaccine.  Presently, alum is 
the only adjuvant used in human vaccines licensed by the Food and Drug 
Administration. 

Both of the other vaccines--one made by Genentech Inc. of South San Francisco 
and the other by Biocine, a joint venture of Chiron and CIBA-Geigy, in 
Emeryville, Calif.--contain the major HIV surface protein, gp120, plus 
adjuvant.  The Genentech vaccine contains alum, while the Biocine vaccine 
contains MF59, an experimental adjuvant that has proved safe and effective in 
other Phase I vaccine trials in adults. 

A low dose of each product will be tested first against a placebo in 15 
children.  Twelve children will be assigned at random to be immunized with the 
experimental vaccine, and three children will be given adjuvant alone, 
considered the placebo.  Neither the health care workers nor the children will 
be told what they receive. 

If the low dose is well-tolerated, controlled testing of a higher dose of the 
experimental vaccine and adjuvant placebo in another group of 15 children will 
begin. 

Each child will receive six immunizations--one every four weeks for six 
months--and be followed-up for 24 weeks after the last immunization.  

For more information about the trial sites or eligibility for enrollment, call 
the AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service, 1-800-TRIALS-A, from 9 a.m. to 7 
p.m., EST weekdays.  The service has Spanish-speaking information specialists 
available.  Information on NIAID's pediatric HIV/AIDS research is available 
from the Office of Communications at (301) 496- 5717.  

NIH, CDC and FDA are agencies of the U.S. Public Health Service in HHS. For 
press inquiries only, please call Laurie K. Doepel at (301) 402-1663.




HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 49
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

           NEW EVIDENCE THAT THE HIV CAN CAUSE DISEASE INDEPENDENTLY
              News from the National Institute of Dental Research

There is new evidence that the human immunodeficiency virus can cause disease 
independently of its ability to suppress the immune system, say scientists at 
the National Institues of Health. 

They report that HIV itself, not an opportunistic infection, caused scaling 
skin conditions to develop in mice carrying the genes for HIV.  Although the 
HIV genes were active in the mice, they did not compromise the animals' 
immunity, the researchers found.  This led them to conclude that the HIV 
itself caused the skin disease. 

Our findings support a growing body of evidence that HIV can cause disease 
without affecting the immune system, said lead author Dr. Jeffrey Kopp of the 
National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR).  Dr. Kopp and his colleagues 
described their study in the March issue of AIDS Research and Human 
Retroviruses. 

Developing animal models of HIV infection has been difficult, since most 
animals, including mice, cannot be infected by the virus.  To bypass this 
problem, scientists have developed HIV-transgenic mice, which carry genes for 
HIV as well as their own genetic material. 

NIDR scientists created the transgenic mice by injecting HIV genes into mouse 
eggs and then implanting the eggs into female mice.  The resulting litters 
contained both normal and transgenic animals. 

Institute scientists had created mice that carried a complete copy of HIV 
genetic material in l988.  Those mice, however, became sick and died too soon 
after birth to study in depth.  In the present study, the scientists used an 
incomplete copy of HIV, which allowed the animals to live longer. 

Some of the transgenic animals developed scaling, wart-like tumors on their 
necks and backs.  Other transgenic mice developed thickened, crusting skin 
lesions that covered most of their bodies, resembling psoriasis in humans.  No 
skin lesions developed in their normal, non-transgenic littermates. 

Studies of tissue taken from the wart-like skin tumors showed that they were a 
type of noncancerous tumor called papilloma. Although the papillomavirus can 
cause these skin lesions, laboratory tests showed no sign of that virus in the 
animals. 

Tissue samples taken from the sick mice throughout the study revealed the 
presence of a protein-producing molecule made by the HIV genetic material.  

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 50
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Evidence of HIV protein production proved that the viral genes were "turned 
on," or active, said Dr. Kopp. 

The scientists found no evidence, however, of compromised immunity in the 
mice:  no increase in their white blood cell count and no signs of common 
infections.  The fact that HIV genes were active but the animals' immune 
systems were not suppressed confirms that the virus itself was causing the 
skin lesions, Dr. Kopp said. 

Further proof of HIV gene involvement came from a test in which the scientists 
exposed the transgenic animals to ultraviolet light.  The light increased HIV 
genetic activity causing papillomas to develop on formerly healthy skin.  
Papilloma formation in response to increased HIV genetic activity proved the 
genes were responsible for the skin condition, the scientists said.  No 
lesions appeared on normal mice exposed to the UV light. 

The transgenic mice used in this study were developed at NIDR by Dr. Peter 
Dickie, who is now with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 
Diseases. 

Collaborating on the study with Dr. Kopp were Mr. Charles Wohlenberg, Drs. 
Nickolas Dorfman, Joseph Bryant, Abner Notkins, and Paul Klotman, all of NIDR; 
Dr. Stephen Katz of the National Cancer Institute; and Dr. James Rooney, 
formerly with NIDR and now with Burroughs Wellcome.





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 51
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

               Clinical Consultation Telephone Service for AIDS
                                H H S   N E W S
                 ********************************************
                 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

                                 March 4, 1993


     HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today announced the first nationwide 
clinical consultation telephone service for doctors and other health care 
professionals who have questions about providing care to people with HIV 
infection or AIDS. 
     The toll-free National HIV Telephone Consulting Service is staffed by a 
physician, a nurse practitioner and a pharmacist. It provides information on 
drugs, clinical trials and the latest treatment methods.  The service is 
funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration and operates out of 
San Francisco General Hospital. 
     Secretary Shalala said, "One goal of this project is to share expertise 
so patients get the best care.  A second goal is to get more primary health 
care providers involved in care for people with HIV or AIDS, which reduces 
treatment cost by allowing patients to remain with their medical providers and 
community social support networks.  Currently, many providers refer patients 
with HIV or AIDS to specialists or other providers who have more experience." 
     Secretary Shalala said, "This clinical expertise should be especially 
helpful for physicians and providers who treat people with HIV or AIDS in 
communities and clinical sites where HIV expertise is not readily available." 
     The telephone number for health care professionals is 1-800-933-3413, and 
it is accessible from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST (7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST) 
Monday through Friday.  During these times, consultants will try to answer 
questions immediately, or within an hour.  At other times, physicians and 
health care providers can leave an electronic message, and questions will be 
answered as quickly as possible. 
     Health care professionals may call the service to ask any question 
related to providing HIV care, including the latest HIV/AIDS drug treatment 
information, clinical trials information, subspecialty case referral, 
literature searches and other information.  The service is designed for health 
care professionals rather than patients, families or others who have alternate 
sources of information or materials. 
     When a health care professional calls the new service, the call is taken 
by either a clinical pharmacist, primary care physician or family nurse 
practitioner.  All staff members have extensive experience in outpatient and 
inpatient primary care for people with HIV-related diseases.  The consultant 
asks for patient-specific information, including CD4 cell count, current 
medications, sex, age and the patient's HIV history. 
     This national service has grown out of a 16-month local effort that 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 52
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

responded to nearly 1,000 calls from health care providers in northern 
California.  The initial project was funded by HRSA's Bureau of Health 
Professions, through its Community Provider AIDS Training (CPAT) project, and 
by the American Academy of Family Physicians. 
     "When providers expand their knowledge, they also improve the quality of 
care they are able to provide to their patients," said HRSA Administrator 
Robert G. Harmon. M.D., M.P.H.  "This project will be a great resource for 
health care professionals and the HIV/AIDS patients they serve." 
     "This service has opened a new means of communication between health care 
professionals and experts on HIV care management," said HRSA's associate 
administrator for AIDS and director of the Bureau of Health Resources 
Development, G. Stephen Bowen, M.D., M.P.H.  "Providers who treat people with 
HIV or AIDS have access to the latest information on new drugs, treatment 
methods and therapies for people with HIV or AIDS." 
     HRSA is one of eight U.S. Public Health Service agencies within HHS.  


                      AIDS Hotline Numbers for Consumers

                  CDC National AIDS Hotline -- 1-800-342-AIDS
                  for information in Spanish - 1-800-344-SIDA
          AIDS Clinical Trials (English & Spanish) -- 1-800-TRIALS-A























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 53

------------- cut here -----------------
-- This is the last part ---------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59124
From: sbishop@desire.wright.edu
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com>, dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
> In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>>prevent asthma); Vancenase.
> 
> Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
> It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
> and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
> doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
> drowsiness.

It also gave me lots of problems with joint and muscle pain.  Seemed to
trigger arthritis-like problems.

Sue

> 
> -- 
> Steve Dyer
> dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59125
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical Newsletter Part 1/4


------------- cut here -----------------
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

              +------------------------------------------------+
              !                                                !
              !              Health Info-Com Network           !
              !                Medical Newsletter              !
              +------------------------------------------------+
                         Editor: David Dodell, D.M.D.
    10250 North 92nd Street, Suite 210, Scottsdale, Arizona 85258-4599 USA
                          Telephone +1 (602) 860-1121
                              FAX +1 (602) 451-1165

Compilation Copyright 1993 by David Dodell,  D.M.D.  All  rights  Reserved.  
License  is  hereby  granted  to republish on electronic media for which no 
fees are charged,  so long as the text of this copyright notice and license 
are attached intact to any and all republished portion or portions.  

The Health Info-Com Network Newsletter is  distributed  biweekly.  Articles 
on  a medical nature are welcomed.  If you have an article,  please contact 
the editor for information on how to submit it.  If you are  interested  in 
joining the automated distribution system, please contact the editor.  

E-Mail Address:
                                    Editor:  
                          Internet: david@stat.com
                              FidoNet = 1:114/15
                           Bitnet = ATW1H@ASUACAD 
LISTSERV = MEDNEWS@ASUACAD.BITNET (or internet: mednews@asuvm.inre.asu.edu) 
                         anonymous ftp = vm1.nodak.edu
               Notification List = hicn-notify-request@stat.com
                 FAX Delivery = Contact Editor for information


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                       T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S


1.  Comments & News from the Editor
     OCR / Scanner News ...................................................  1

2.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
     [16 April 1993] Emerging Infectious Diseases .........................  3
     Outbreak of E. coli Infections from Hamburgers .......................  5
     Use of Smokeless Tobacoo Among Adults ................................ 10
     Gonorrhea ............................................................ 14
     Impact of Adult Safety-Belt Use on Children less than 11 years Age ... 17
     Publication of CDC Surveillance Summaries ............................ 21

3.  Clinical Research News
     High Tech Assisted Reproductive Technologies ......................... 24

4.  Articles
     Low Levels Airborne Particles Linked to Serious Asthma Attacks ....... 29
     NIH Consensus Development Conference on Melanoma ..................... 31
     National Cancer Insitute Designated Cancer Centers ................... 32

5.  General Announcments
     UCI Medical Education Software Repository ............................ 40

6.  AIDS News Summaries
     AIDS Daily Summary April 12 to April 15, 1993 ........................ 41

7.  AIDS/HIV Articles
     First HIV Vaccine Trial Begins in HIV-Infected Children .............. 47
     New Evidence that the HIV Can Cause Disease Independently ............ 50
     Clinical Consultation Telephone Service for AIDS ..................... 52





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                            Page    i
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                        Comments & News from the Editor
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

I would like to continue to thank everyone who has sent in a donation for the 
Mednews OCR/Scanner Fund.  We have reached our goal!  A Hewlett Packard
Scanjet IIp was purchased this week.

Thank you to the following individuals whose contributions I just received:

John Sorenson
Carol Sigelman
Carla Moore
Barbara Moose
Judith Schrier

Again, thank you to all who gave!

I have been using Wordscan Plus for the past couple of weeks and would like to 
review the product.  Wordscan Plus is a product of Calera Recognition Systems.  
It runs under Windows 3.1 and supports that Accufont Technology of the Hewlett 
Packard Scanners.  

When initially bringing up the software, it lets you select several options; 
(1) text / graphics (2) input source ie scanner, fax file, disk file (3) 
automatic versus manual decomposition of the scanned image. 

I like manual decomposition since the software then lets me select which 
parts of the document I would like scanned, and in what order.

Once an image is scanned, you can bring up the Pop-Up image verification.  The 
software gives you two "errors" at this point.  Blue which are words that were 
converted reliability, but do not match anything in the built-in dictionary.  
Yellow shade, which are words that Wordscan Plus doesn't think it converted 
correctly at all.  I have found that the software should give itself more 
credit.  It is usually correct, instead of wrong.  If a word is shaded blue, 
you can add it to your personal dictionary.  The only problem is the personal 
dictionary will only handle about 200 words.  I find this to be very limited, 
considering how many medical terms are not in a normal dictionary. 

After a document is converted, you can save it in a multitude of word 
processor formats.  Also any images that were captured can be stored in a 
seperate TIFF or PCX file format.

I was extremely impressed on the percent accuracy for fax files.  I use 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  1
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

an Intel Satisfaxtion card, which stores incoming faxs in a PCX/DCX format.  
While most of my faxes were received in "standard" mode (200x100 dpi), the 
accuracy of Wordscan Plus was excellent. 

Overall, a very impressive product.  The only fault I could find is the 
limitations of the size of the user dictionary.  200 specialized words is just 
too small. 

If anyone has any specific questions, please do not hesitate to send me email.




































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  2
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
               Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                         Emerging Infectious Diseases
                         ============================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

                                 Introduction

     Despite predictions earlier this century that infectious diseases would 
soon be eliminated as a public health problem (1), infectious diseases remain 
the major cause of death worldwide and a leading cause of illness and death in 
the United States. Since the early 1970s, the U.S. public health system has 
been challenged by a myriad of newly identified pathogens and syndromes (e.g., 
Escherichia coli O157:H7, hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, 
Legionnaires disease, Lyme disease, and toxic shock syndrome). The incidences 
of many diseases widely presumed to be under control, such as cholera, 
malaria, and tuberculosis (TB), have increased in many areas. Furthermore, 
control and prevention of infectious diseases are undermined by drug 
resistance in conditions such as gonorrhea, malaria, pneumococcal disease, 
salmonellosis, shigellosis, TB, and staphylococcal infections (2). Emerging 
infections place a disproportionate burden on immunocompromised persons, those 
in institutional settings (e.g., hospitals and child day care centers), and 
minority and underserved populations. The substantial economic burden of 
emerging infections on the U.S. health-care system could be reduced by more 
effective surveillance systems and targeted control and prevention programs 
(3). 
     This issue of MMWR introduces a new series, "Emerging Infectious 
Diseases." Future articles will address these diseases, as well as 
surveillance, control, and prevention efforts by health-care providers and 
public health officials. This first article updates the ongoing investigation 
of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 in the western United States (4). 

References

1. Burnet M. Natural history of infectious disease. Cambridge, England: 
Cambridge University Press, 1963. 

2. Kunin CM. Resistance to antimicrobial drugs -- a worldwide calamity. Ann 
Intern Med 1993;118:557-61. 

3. Lederberg J, Shope RE, Oaks SC Jr, eds. Emerging infections: microbial 
threats to health in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academy 
Press, 1992. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  3
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993


4. CDC. Preliminary report: foodborne outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 
infections from hamburgers --western United States, 1993. MMWR 1993;42:85-6.










































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  4
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

            Update: Multistate Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7
             Infections from Hamburgers -- Western United States,
                                   1992-1993
            =======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     From November 15, 1992, through February 28, 1993, more than 500 
laboratory-confirmed infections with E. coli O157:H7 and four associated 
deaths occurred in four states -- Washington, Idaho, California, and Nevada. 
This report summarizes the findings from an ongoing investigation (1) that 
identified a multistate outbreak resulting from consumption of hamburgers from 
one restaurant chain. Washington 
     On January 13, 1993, a physician reported to the Washington Department of 
Health a cluster of children with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and an 
increase in emergency room visits for bloody diarrhea. During January 16-17, a 
case-control study comparing 16 of the first cases of bloody diarrhea or 
postdiarrheal HUS identified with age- and neighborhood-matched controls 
implicated eating at chain A restaurants during the week before symptom onset 
(matched odds ratio OR=undefined; lower confidence limit=3.5). On January 
18, a multistate recall of unused hamburger patties from chain A restaurants 
was initiated. 
     As a result of publicity and case-finding efforts, during January-
February 1993, 602 patients with bloody diarrhea or HUS were reported to the 
state health department. A total of 477 persons had illnesses meeting the case 
definition of culture-confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection or postdiarrheal HUS 
(Figure 1). Of the 477 persons, 52 (11%) had close contact with a person with 
confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection during the week preceding onset of 
symptoms. Of the remaining 425 persons, 372 (88%) reported eating in a chain A 
restaurant during the 9 days preceding onset of symptoms. Of the 338 patients 
who recalled what they ate in a chain A restaurant, 312 (92%) reported eating 
a regular-sized hamburger patty. Onsets of illness peaked from January 17 
through January 20. Of the 477 casepatients, 144 (30%) were hospitalized; 30 
developed HUS, and three died. The median age of patients was 7.5 years 
(range: 0-74 years). Idaho 
     Following the outbreak report from Washington, the Division of Health, 
Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, identified 14 persons with culture-
confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection, with illness onset dates from December 
11, 1992, through February 16, 1993 (Figure 2A). Four persons were 
hospitalized; one developed HUS. During the week preceding illness onset, 13 
(93%) had eaten at a chain A restaurant. California 
     In late December, the San Diego County Department of Health Services was 
notified of a child with E. coli O157:H7 infection who subsequently died. 
Active surveillance and record review then identified eight other persons with 
E. coli O157:H7 infections or HUS from mid-November through mid-January 1993. 
Four of the nine reportedly had recently eaten at a chain A restaurant and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  5
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

four at a chain B restaurant in San Diego. After the Washington outbreak was 
reported, reviews of medical records at five hospitals revealed an overall 27% 
increase in visits or admissions for diarrhea during December 1992 and January 
1993 compared with the same period 1 year earlier. A case was defined as 
postdiarrheal HUS, bloody diarrhea that was culture negative or not cultured, 
or any diarrheal illness in which stool culture yielded E. coli O157:H7, with 
onset from November 15, 1992, through January 31, 1993. 
     Illnesses of 34 patients met the case definition (Figure 2B). The 
outbreak strain was identified in stool specimens of six patients. Fourteen 
persons were hospitalized, seven developed HUS, and one child died. The median 
age of case-patients was 10 years (range: 1-58 years). A case-control study of 
the first 25 case-patients identified and age- and sex-matched community 
controls implicated eating at a chain A restaurant in San Diego (matched 
OR=13; 95% confidence interval CI=1.7-99). A study comparing case-patients 
who ate at chain A restaurants with well meal companions implicated regular-
sized hamburger patties (matched OR=undefined; lower confidence limit=1.3). 
Chain B was not statistically associated with illness. Nevada 
     On January 22, after receiving a report of a child with HUS who had eaten 
at a local chain A restaurant, the Clark County (Las Vegas) Health District 
issued a press release requesting that persons with recent bloody diarrhea 
contact the health department. A case was defined as postdiarrheal HUS, bloody 
diarrhea that was culture negative or not cultured, or any diarrheal illness 
with a stool culture yielding the Washington strain of E. coli O157:H7, with 
onset from December 1, 1992, through February 7, 1993. Because local 
laboratories were not using sorbitol MacConkey (SMAC) medium to screen stools 
for E. coli O157:H7, this organism was not identified in any patient. After 
SMAC medium was distributed, the outbreak strain was detected in the stool of 
one patient 38 days after illness onset. 
     Of 58 persons whose illnesses met the case definition (Figure 2C), nine 
were hospitalized; three developed HUS. The median age was 30.5 years (range: 
0-83 years). Analysis of the first 21 patients identified and age- and sex-
matched community controls implicated eating at a chain A restaurant during 
the week preceding illness onset (matched OR=undefined; lower confidence 
limit=4.9). A case-control study using well meal companions of case-patients 
also implicated eating hamburgers at chain A (matched OR=6.0; 95% CI=0.7-
49.8). Other Investigation Findings 
     During the outbreak, chain A restaurants in Washington linked with cases 
primarily were serving regular-sized hamburger patties produced on November 
19, 1992; some of the same meat was used in "jumbo" patties produced on 
November 20, 1992. The outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 was isolated from 11 
lots of patties produced on those two dates; these lots had been distributed 
to restaurants in all states where illness occurred. Approximately 272,672 
(20%) of the implicated patties were recovered by the recall. 
     A meat traceback by a CDC team identified five slaughter plants in the 
United States and one in Canada as the likely sources of carcasses used in the 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  6
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

contaminated lots of meat and identified potential control points for reducing 
the likelihood of contamination. The animals slaughtered in domestic slaughter 
plants were traced to farms and auctions in six western states. No one 
slaughter plant or farm was identified as the source. 
     Further investigation of cases related to secondary transmission in 
families and child day care settings is ongoing. 

Reported by: M Davis, DVM, C Osaki, MSPH, Seattle-King County Dept of Public 
Health; D Gordon, MS, MW Hinds, MD, Snohomish Health District, Everett; K 
Mottram, C Winegar, MPH, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Dept; ED Avner, MD, PI 
Tarr, MD, Dept of Pediatrics, D Jardine, MD, Depts of Anesthesiology and 
Pediatrics, Univ of Washington School of Medicine and Children's Hospital and 
Medical Center, Seattle; M Goldoft, MD, B Bartleson, MPH; J Lewis, JM 
Kobayashi, MD, State Epidemiologist, Washington Dept of Health. G Billman, MD, 
J Bradley, MD, Children's Hospital, San Diego; S Hunt, P Tanner, RES, M 
Ginsberg, MD, San Diego County Dept of Health Svcs; L Barrett, DVM, SB Werner, 
MD, GW Rutherford, III, MD, State Epidemiologist, California Dept of Health 
Svcs. RW Jue, Central District Health Dept, Boise; H Root, Southwest District 
Health Dept, Caldwell; D Brothers, MA, RL Chehey, MS, RH Hudson, PhD, Div of 
Health, Idaho State Public Health Laboratory, FR Dixon, MD, State 
Epidemiologist, Div of Health, Idaho Dept of Health and Welfare. DJ Maxson, 
Environmental Epidemiology Program, L Empey, PA, O Ravenholt, MD, VH Ueckart, 
DVM, Clark County Health District, Las Vegas; A DiSalvo, MD, Nevada State 
Public Health Laboratory; DS Kwalick, MD, R Salcido, MPH, D Brus, DVM, State 
Epidemiologist, Div of Health, Nevada State Dept of Human Resources. Center 
for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration. Food 
Safety Inspection Svc, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Svc, US Dept of 
Agriculture. Div of Field Epidemiology, Epidemiology Program Office; Enteric 
Diseases Br, Div of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, National Center for 
Infectious Diseases, CDC. 

Editorial Note: E. coli O157:H7 is a pathogenic gram-negative bacterium first 
identified as a cause of illness in 1982 during an outbreak of severe bloody 
diarrhea traced to contaminated hamburgers (2). This pathogen has since 
emerged as an important cause of both bloody diarrhea and HUS, the most common 
cause of acute renal failure in children. Outbreak investigations have linked 
most cases with the consumption of undercooked ground beef, although other 
food vehicles, including roast beef, raw milk, and apple cider, also have been 
implicated (3). Preliminary data from a CDC 2-year, nationwide, multicenter 
study revealed that when stools were routinely cultured for E. coli O157:H7 
that organism was isolated more frequently than Shigella in four of 10 
participating hospitals and was isolated from 7.8% of all bloody stools, a 
higher rate than for any other pathogen. 
     Infection with E. coli O157:H7 often is not recognized because most 
clinical laboratories do not routinely culture stools for this organism on 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  7
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

SMAC medium, and many clinicians are unaware of the spectrum of illnesses 
associated with infection (4). The usual clinical manifestations are diarrhea 
(often bloody) and abdominal cramps; fever is infrequent. Younger age groups 
and the elderly are at highest risk for clinical manifestations and 
complications. Illness usually resolves after 6-8 days, but 2%-7% of patients 
develop HUS, which is characterized by hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, 
renal failure, and a death rate of 3%-5%. 
     This report illustrates the difficulties in recognizing community 
outbreaks of E. coli O157:H7 in the absence of routine surveillance. Despite 
the magnitude of this outbreak, the problem may not have been recognized in 
three states if the epidemiologic link had not been established in Washington 
(1). Clinical laboratories should routinely culture stool specimens from 
persons with bloody diarrhea or HUS for E. coli O157:H7 using SMAC agar (5). 
When infections with E. coli O157:H7 are identified, they should be reported 
to local health departments for further evaluation and, if necessary, public 
health action to prevent further cases. 
     E. coli O157:H7 lives in the intestines of healthy cattle, and can 
contaminate meat during slaughter. CDC is collaborating with the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service to identify 
critical control points in processing as a component of a program to reduce 
the likelihood of pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7 entering the meat supply. 
Because slaughtering practices can result in contamination of raw meat with 
pathogens, and because the process of grinding beef may transfer pathogens 
from the surface of the meat to the interior, ground beef is likely to be 
internally contaminated. The optimal food protection practice is to cook 
ground beef thoroughly until the interior is no longer pink, and the juices 
are clear. In this outbreak, undercooking of hamburger patties likely played 
an important role. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued interim 
recommendations to increase the internal temperature for cooked hamburgers to 
155 F (86.1 C) (FDA, personal communication, 1993). 
     Regulatory actions stimulated by the outbreak described in this report 
and the recovery of thousands of contaminated patties before they could be 
consumed emphasize the value of rapid public health investigations of 
outbreaks. The public health impact and increasing frequency of isolation of 
this pathogen underscore the need for improved surveillance for infections 
caused by E. coli O157:H7 and for HUS to better define the epidemiology of E. 
coli O157:H7. 

References

1. CDC. Preliminary report: foodborne outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 
infections from hamburgers --western United States, 1993. MMWR 1993;42:85-6. 

2. Riley LW, Remis RS, Helgerson SD, et al. Hemorrhagic colitis associated 
with a rare Escherichia coli serotype. N Engl J Med 1983;308:681-5. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  8
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993


3. Griffin PM, Tauxe RV. The epidemiology of infections caused by Escherichia 
coli O157:H7, other enterohemorrhagic E. coli, and the associated hemolytic 
uremic syndrome. Epidemiol Rev 1991;13:60-98. 

4. Griffin PM, Ostroff SM, Tauxe RV, et al. Illnesses associated with 
Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections: a broad clinical spectrum. Ann Intern Med 
1988;109:705-12. 

5. March SB, Ratnam S. Latex agglutination test



































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  9
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

            Use of Smokeless Tobacco Among Adults -- United States,
                                     1991
            =======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Consumption of moist snuff and other smokeless tobacco products in the 
United States almost tripled from 1972 through 1991 (1). Long-term use of 
smokeless tobacco is associated with nicotine addiction and increased risk of 
oral cancer (2) -- the incidence of which could increase if young persons who 
currently use smokeless tobacco continue to use these products frequently (1). 
To monitor trends in the prevalence of use of smokeless tobacco products, 
CDC's 1991 National Health Interview Survey-Health Promotion and Disease 
Prevention supplement (NHIS-HPDP) collected information on snuff and chewing 
tobacco use and smoking from a representative sample of the U.S. civilian, 
noninstitutionalized population aged greater than or equal to 18 years. This 
report summarizes findings from this survey. 
     The 1991 NHIS-HPDP supplement asked "Have you used snuff at least 20 
times in your entire life?" and "Do you use snuff now?" Similar questions were 
asked about chewing tobacco use and cigarette smoking. Current users of 
smokeless tobacco were defined as those who reported snuff or chewing tobacco 
use at least 20 times and who reported using snuff or chewing tobacco at the 
time of the interview; former users were defined as those who reported having 
used snuff or chewing tobacco at least 20 times and not using either at the 
time of the interview. Ever users of smokeless tobacco included current and 
former users. Current smokers were defined as those who reported smoking at 
least 100 cigarettes and who were currently smoking and former smokers as 
those who reported having smoked at least 100 cigarettes and who were not 
smoking now. Ever smokers included current and former smokers. Data on 
smokeless tobacco use were available for 43,732 persons aged greater than or 
equal to 18 years and were adjusted for nonresponse and weighted to provide 
national estimates. Confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by using 
standard errors generated by the Software for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) 
(3). 
     In 1991, an estimated 5.3 million (2.9%) U.S. adults were current users 
of smokeless tobacco, including 4.8 million (5.6%) men and 533,000 (0.6%) 
women. For all categories of comparison, the prevalence of smokeless tobacco 
use was substantially higher among men. For men, the prevalence of use was 
highest among those aged 18-24 years (Table 1); for women, the prevalence was 
highest among those aged greater than or equal to 75 years. The prevalence of 
smokeless tobacco use among men was highest among American Indians/Alaskan 
Natives and whites; the prevalence among women was highest among American 
Indians/Alaskan Natives and blacks. Among both men and women, prevalence of 
smokeless tobacco use declined with increasing education. Prevalence was 
substantially higher among residents of the southern United States and in 
rural areas. Although the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use was higher among 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 10
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

men and women below the poverty level, * this difference was significant only 
for women (p less than 0.05) (Table 1). 
     Among men, the prevalence of current use of snuff was highest among those 
aged 18-44 years but varied considerably by age; the prevalence of use of 
chewing tobacco was more evenly distributed by age group (Table 2). Although 
women rarely used smokeless tobacco, the prevalence of snuff use was highest 
among those aged greater than or equal to 75 years. 
     An estimated 7.9 million (4.4% 95% CI=4.1-4.6) adults reported being 
former smokeless tobacco users. Among ever users, the proportion who were 
former smokeless tobacco users was 59.9% (95% CI=57.7-62.1). Among persons 
aged 18-24 years, the proportion of former users was lower among snuff users 
(56.2% 95% CI=49.4-63.0) than among chewing tobacco users (70.4% 95% 
CI=64.2-76.6). Among persons aged 45-64 years, the proportion of former users 
was similar for snuff (68.9% 95% CI=63.1-74.7) and chewing tobacco (73.5% 
95% CI=68.9-78.1). 
     Among current users of smokeless tobacco, 22.9% (95% CI=19.9-26.0) 
currently smoked, 33.3% (95% CI=30.0-36.5) formerly smoked, and 43.8% (95% 
CI=39.9-47.7) never smoked. In comparison, among current smokers, 2.6% (95% 
CI=2.3-3.0) were current users of smokeless tobacco. 
     Daily use of smokeless tobacco was more common among snuff users (67.3% 
95% CI=63.2-71.4) than among chewing tobacco users (45.1% 95% CI=40.6-
49.6). 

Reported by: Office on Smoking and Health, National Center for Chronic Disease 
Prevention and Health Promotion; Div of Health Interview Statistics, National 
Center for Health Statistics, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The findings in this report indicate that the use of smokeless 
tobacco was highest among young males. Adolescent and young adult males, in 
particular, are the target of marketing strategies by tobacco companies that 
link smokeless tobacco with athletic performance and virility. Use of oral 
snuff has risen markedly among professional baseball players, encouraging this 
behavior among adolescent and young adult males and increasing their risk for 
nicotine addiction, oral cancer, and other mouth disorders (4). 
     Differences in the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use among 
racial/ethnic groups may be influenced by differences in educational levels 
and socioeconomic status as well as social and cultural phenomena that require 
further explanation. For example, targeted marketing practices may play a role 
in maintaining or increasing prevalence among some groups, and affecting the 
differential initiation of smokeless tobacco use by young persons (5,6). 
     In this report, one concern is that nearly one fourth of current 
smokeless tobacco users also smoke cigarettes. In the 1991 NHIS-HPDP, the 
prevalence of cigarette smoking was higher among former smokeless tobacco 
users than among current and never smokeless tobacco users. In a previous 
study among college students, 18% of current smokeless tobacco users smoked 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 11
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

occasionally (7). In addition, approximately 7% of adults who formerly smoked 
reported substituting other tobacco products for cigarettes in an effort to 
stop smoking (8). Health-care providers should recognize the potential health 
implications of concurrent smokeless tobacco and cigarette use. 
     The national health objectives for the year 2000 have established special 
population target groups for the reduction of the prevalence of smokeless 
tobacco use, including males aged 12-24 years (to no more than 4% by the year 
2000 objective 3.9) and American Indian/Alaskan Native youth (to no more 
than 10% by the year 2000 objective 3.9a) (9). Strategies to lower the 
prevalence of smokeless tobacco use include continued monitoring of smokeless 
tobacco use, integrating smoking and smokeless tobacco-control efforts, 
enforcing laws that restrict minors' access to tobacco, making excise taxes 
commensurate with those on cigarettes, encouraging health-care providers to 
routinely provide cessation advice and follow-up, providing school-based 
prevention and cessation interventions, and adopting policies that prohibit 
tobacco use on school property and at school-sponsored events (5). 

References

1. Office of Evaluations and Inspections. Spit tobacco and youth. Washington, 
DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector 
General, 1992; DHHS publication no. (OEI-06)92-00500. 

2. National Institutes of Health. The health consequences of using smokeless 
tobacco: a report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General. Bethesda, 
Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 
1986; DHHS publication no. (NIH)86-2874. 

3. Shah BV. Software for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) version 5.30 Software 
documentation. Research Triangle Park, North Carolina: Research Triangle 
Institute, 1989. 

4. Connolly GN, Orleans CT, Blum A. Snuffing tobacco out of sport. Am J Public 
Health 1992;82:351-3. 

5. National Cancer Institute. Smokeless tobacco or health: an international 
perspective. Bethesda, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, 
Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health, 1992; DHHS publication 
no. (NIH)92-3461. 

6. Foreyt JP, Jackson AS, Squires WG, Hartung GH, Murray TD, Gotto AM. 
Psychological profile of college students who use smokeless tobacco. Addict 
Behav 1993;18:107-16. 

7. Glover ED, Laflin M, Edwards SW. Age of initiation and switching patterns 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 12
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

between smokeless tobacco and cigarettes among college students in the United 
States. Am J Public Health 1989;79:207-8. 

8. CDC. Tobacco use in 1986: methods and tabulations from Adult Use of Tobacco 
Survey. Rockville, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, 
Public Health Service, CDC, 1990; DHHS publication no. (OM)90-2004. 

9. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and 
Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS publication no. (PHS)91-
50213.

























--------- end of part 1 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59126
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical News Part 3/4


------------- cut here -----------------
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona



                               Suggested Reading

Tan SL, Royston P, Campbell S, Jacobs HS, Betts J, Mason B, Edwards RG (1992).  
Cumulative conception and Livebirth rates after in-vitro fertilization. Lancet 
339:1390-1394. 

For further information, call:
                        Physicians' Resource Line
                             1-800-328-5868
                               in Tucson:
                                694-5868


























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 28
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                   Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                    LOW LEVELS OF AIRBORNE PARTICLES LINKED
                           TO SERIOUS ASTHMA ATTACKS
                           American Lung Association 

     A new study published by the American Lung Association has shown that 
surprisingly low concentrations of airborne particles can send people with 
asthma rushing to emergency rooms for treatment.  
     The Seattle-based study showed that roughly one in eight emergency visits 
for asthma in that city was linked to exposure to particulate air pollution.  
The actual exposure levels recorded in the study were far below those deemed 
unsafe under federal air quality laws.  
     "People with asthma have inflamed airways, and airborne particles tend to 
exacerbate that inflammation," said Joel Schwartz, Ph.D., of the Environmental 
Protection Agency, who was the lead author of the study.  "When people are on 
the threshold of having, a serious asthma attack, particles can push them over 
the edge." 
     The Seattle Study correlated 13 months of asthma emergency room visits 
with daily levels of PM,,,. or particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter 
of 10 microns or less.  These finer particles are considered hazardous because 
they are small enough penetrate into the lung.  Cities are considered out of 
compliance with clean air laws if the 24-hour average concentration of PM10 
exceeds 150 micrograms per cubic millimeter of air.  
     In Seattle however, a link between fine particles and asthma was found at 
levels as low as 30 micrograms.  The authors concluded that for every 30 
microgram increase in the four-day average of PM10, the odds of someone with 
asthma needing emergency treatment increased by 12 percent.  
     The findings were published in the April American Review of Respiratory 
Disease, an official journal of the American Thoracic Society, the Lung 
Association's medical section.  
     The study is the latest in a series of recent reports to suggest that 
particulate matter is a greatly under appreciated health threat.  A 1992 study 
by Dr. Schwartz and Douglas Dockery, Ph.D., of Harvard found that particles 
may be causing roughly 60,000 premature deaths each year in the United States.  
Other studies have linked particulate matter to increased respiratory symptoms 
and bronchitis in children.  
     "Government officials and the media are still very focused on ozone," 
says Dr. Schwartz.  "But more and more research is showing that particles are 
bad actors as well."      One problem in setting, standards for particulate 
air pollution is that PMIO is difficult to study.  Unlike other regulated 
pollutants such as ozone and carbon monoxide, particulate matter is a complex 
and varying mixture of substances, including carbon, hydrocarbons, dust, and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 29
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

acid aerosols.  
     "Researchers can't Put people in exposure chambers to study the effects 
of particulate air pollution," says Dr. Schwartz.  "We have no way of 
duplicating the typical urban mix of particles.  " Consequently, most of what 
is known about particulates has been learned through population-based research 
like the Seattle study.  
     Given that the EPA's current priority is to review the ozone and sulfur 
dioxide standards, the agency is unlikely to reexamine the PM10 standard any 
time soon.  Until changes are made, there appears to be little people with 
asthma can do to protect themselves from airborne particles.
     "In some areas, you can get reports on air quality, but the reports only 
cover the pollutant that is closest to violating its standard, and that's 
rarely particulate matter," says Dr.  Schwartz.  "However, PM10 doesn't have 
to be near its violation range to be unhealthy."































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 30
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

               NIH Consensus Development Conference on Melanoma

The National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference on 
Diagnosis and Treatment of Early Melanoma brought together experts in 
dermatology, pathology, epidemiology, public education, surveillance 
techniques, and potential new technologies as well as other health care 
professionals and the public to address (1) the clinical and histological 
characteristics of early melanoma; (2) the appropriate diagnosis, management, 
and followup of patients with early melanoma; (3) the role of dysplastic nevi 
and their significance; and (4) the role of education and screening in 
preventing melanoma morbidity and mortality.  Following 2 days of 
presentations by experts and discussion by the audience, a consensus panel 
weighed the scientific evidence and prepared their consensus statement. 
 
Among their findings, the panel recommended that (1) melanoma in situ is a 
distinct entity effectively treated surgically with 0.5 centimeter margins; 
(2) thin invasive melanoma, less than 1 millimeter thick, has the potential 
for long-term survival in more than 90 percent of patients after surgical 
excision with a 1 centimeter margin; (3) elective lymph node dissections and 
extensive staging evaluations are not recommended in early melanoma; (4) 
patients with early melanoma are at low risk for relapse but may be at high 
risk for development of subsequent melanomas and should be followed closely; 
(5) some family members of patients with melanoma are at increased risk for 
melanoma and should be enrolled in surveillance programs; and (6) education 
and screening programs have the potential to decrease morbidity and mortality 
from melanoma. 
 
A copy of the full text of the consensus panel's statement is available by 
calling the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research at (301) 496-1143 
or by writing to:  Office of Medical Applications of Research, National 
Institutes of Health, Federal Building, Room 618, Bethesda, MD 20892.














HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 31
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                         NCI-Designated Cancer Centers

The Cancer Centers Program is comprised of 55 NCI-designated Cancer Centers 
actively engaged in multidisciplinary research efforts to reduce cancer 
incidence, morbidity, and mortality.  Within the program, there are four types 
of cancer centers:  basic science cancer centers (14), which engage primarily 
in basic cancer research; clinical cancer centers (12), which focus on 
clinical research; "comprehensive" cancer centers (28), which emphasize a 
multidisciplinary approach to cancer research, patient care, and community 
outreach; and consortium cancer centers (1), which specialize in cancer 
prevention and control research. 
 
Although some cancer centers existed in the late 1960s and the 1970s, it was 
the National Cancer Act of 1971 that authorized the establishment of 15 new 
cancer centers, as well as continuing support for existing ones.  The passage 
of the act also dramatically transformed the centers' structure and broadened 
the scope of their mission to include all aspects of basic, clinical, and 
cancer control research.  Over the next two decades, the centers' program grew 
progressively. 
 
In 1990, there were 19 comprehensive cancer centers in the nation. Today, 
there are 28 of these institutions, all of which meet specific NCI criteria 
for comprehensive status. 
 
To attain recognition from the NCI as a comprehensive cancer center, an 
institution must pass rigorous peer review.  Under guidelines newly 
established in 1990, the eight criteria for "comprehensiveness" include the 
requirement that a center have a strong core of basic laboratory research in 
several scientific fields, such as biology and molecular genetics, a strong 
program of clinical research, and an ability to transfer research findings 
into clinical practice. 
 
Moreover, five of the criteria for comprehensive status go significantly 
beyond that required for attaining a Cancer Center Support Grant (also 
referred to as a P30 or core grant), the mechanism of choice for supporting 
the infrastructure of a cancer center's operations.  These criteria encompass 
strong participation in NCI-designated high-priority clinical trials, 
significant levels of cancer prevention and control research, and important 
outreach and educational activities--all of which are funded by a variety of 
sources. 
 
The other types of cancer centers also have special characteristics and 
capabilities for organizing new programs of research that can exploit 
important new findings or address timely research questions. 
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 32
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Of the 55 NCI-designated Cancer Centers, 14 are of the basic science type.  
These centers engage almost entirely in basic research, although some centers 
engage in collaborative research with outside clinical research investigators 
and in cooperative projects with industry to generate medical applications 
from new discoveries in the laboratory. 
 
Clinical cancer centers, in contrast, focus on both basic research and 
clinical research within the same institutional framework, and frequently 
incorporate nearby affiliated clinical research institutions into their 
overall research programs.  There are 12 such centers today. 
 
Finally, consortium cancer centers, of which there is one, are uniquely 
structured and concentrate on clinical research and cancer prevention and 
control research.  These centers interface with state and local public health 
departments for the purpose of achieving the transfer of effective prevention 
and control techniques from their research findings to those institutions 
responsible for implementing population-wide public health programs.  
Consortium centers also are heavily engaged in collaborations with 
institutions that conduct clinical trial research and coordinate community 
hospitals within a network of cooperating institutions in clinical trials. 
 
Together, the 55 NCI-Designated Cancer Centers continue to work toward 
creating new and innovative approaches to cancer research, and through 
interdisciplinary efforts, to effectively move this research from the 
laboratory into clinical trials and into clinical practice. 
 
Comprehensive Cancer Centers (Internet addresses are given where available) 
 
University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center
Basic Health Sciences Building, Room 108
1918 University Boulevard
Birmingham, Alabama 35294
(205) 934-6612
 
University of Arizona Cancer Center
1501 North Campbell Avenue
Tucson, Arizona 85724
(602) 626-6372
Internet:  syd@azcc.arizona.edu
 
Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of California at Los Angeles
200 Medical Plaza
Los Angeles, California 90027
(213) 206-0278

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 33
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Internet:  rick@jccc.medsch.ucla.edu
 
Kenneth T. Norris Jr. Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of Southern California
1441 Eastlake Avenue
Los Angeles, California  90033-0804
(213) 226-2370
 
Yale University Comprehensive Cancer Center
333 Cedar Street
New Haven, Connecticut 06510
(203) 785-6338
 
Lombardi Cancer Research Center
Georgetown University Medical Center
3800 Reservoir Road, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20007
(202) 687-2192
 
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of Miami Medical School
1475 Northwest 12th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33136
(305) 548-4800
Internet:  hlam@mednet.med.miami.edu
 
Johns Hopkins Oncology Center
600 North Wolfe Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21205
(410) 955-8638
 
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
44 Binney Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02115
(617) 732-3214
Internet:  Kristie_Stevenson@macmailgw.dfci.harvard.edu
 
Meyer L. Prentis Comprehensive Cancer Center of Metropolitan
Detroit
110 East Warren Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48201
(313) 745-4329
Internet:  cummings%oncvx1.dnet@rocdec.roc.wayne.edu
 
University of Michigan Cancer Center

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 34
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

101 Simpson Drive
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-0752
(313) 936-9583
BITNET:  kallie.bila.michels@um.cc.umich.edu
 
Mayo Comprehensive Cancer Center
200 First Street Southwest
Rochester, Minnesota 55905
(507) 284-3413
 
Norris Cotton Cancer Center
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
One Medical Center Drive
Lebanon, New Hampshire 03756
(603) 646-5505
BITNET:  edward.bresnick@dartmouth.edu
 
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Elm and Carlton Streets
Buffalo, New York 14263
(716) 845-4400
 
Columbia University Comprehensive Cancer Center
College of Physicians and Surgeons
630 West 168th Street
New York, New York 10032
(212) 305-6905
Internet:  janie@cuccfa.ccc.columbia.edu
 
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
1275 York Avenue
New York, New York 10021
(800) 525-2225
 
Kaplan Cancer Center
New York University Medical Center
462 First Avenue
New York, New York 10016-9103
(212) 263-6485
 
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
(919) 966-4431
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 35
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center
P.O. Box 3814
Durham, North Carolina 27710
(919) 286-5515
 
Cancer Center of Wake Forest University at the Bowman Gray School
of Medicine
300 South Hawthorne Road
Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27103
(919) 748-4354
Internet:  ccwfumail@phs.bgsm.wfu.edu
 
Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center
300 West 10th Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43210
(614) 293-5485
Internet:  dyoung@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
 
Fox Chase Cancer Center
7701 Burholme Avenue
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19111
(215) 728-2570
Internet:  s_davis@fccc.edu
 
University of Pennsylvania Cancer Center
3400 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
(215) 662-6364
 
Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
200 Meyran Avenue
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213-2592
(800) 537-4063
 
The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
1515 Holcombe Boulevard
Houston, Texas 77030
(713) 792-3245
 
Vermont Cancer Center
University of Vermont
1 South Prospect Street
Burlington, Vermont 05401
(802) 656-4580
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 36
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
1124 Columbia Street
Seattle, Washington 98104
(206) 667-4675
Internet:  sedmonds@cclink.fhcrc.org
 
University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center
600 Highland Avenue
Madison, Wisconsin 53792
(608) 263-8600
BITNET:  carbone@uwccc.biostat.wisc.edu
 
 
 
Clinical Cancer Centers
 
 
University of California at San Diego Cancer Center
225 Dickinson Street
San Diego, California 92103
(619) 543-6178
Internet:  dedavis@ucsd.edu
 
City of Hope National Medical Center
Beckman Research Institute
1500 East Duarte Road
Duarte, California 91010
(818) 359-8111 ext. 2292
 
University of Colorado Cancer Center
4200 East 9th Avenue, Box B188
Denver, Colorado 80262
(303) 270-7235
 
University of Chicago Cancer Research Center
5841 South Maryland Avenue, Box 444
Chicago, Illinois 60637
(312) 702-6180
Internet:  judith@delphi.bsd.uchicago.edu
 
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
1300 Morris Park Avenue
Bronx, New York 10461
(212) 920-4826
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 37
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

University of Rochester Cancer Center
601 Elmwood Avenue, Box 704
Rochester, New York 14642
(716) 275-4911
Internet:  rickb@wotan.medicine.rochester.edu
 
Ireland Cancer Center Case Western Reserve University
University Hospitals of Cleveland
2074 Abington Road
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
(216) 844-5432
 
Roger Williams Cancer Center
Brown University
825 Chalkstone Avenue
Providence, Rhode Island 02908
(401) 456-2071
 
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
332 North Lauderdale Street
Memphis, Tennessee 38101-0318
(901) 522-0306
Internet:  meyer@mbcf.stjude.org
 
Institute for Cancer Research and Care
4450 Medical Drive
San Antonio, Texas 78229
(512) 616-5580
 
Utah Regional Cancer Center
University of Utah Health Sciences Center
50 North Medical Drive, Room 2C110
Salt Lake City, Utah 84132
(801) 581-4048
BITNET:  hogan@cc.utah.edu
 
Massey Cancer Center
Medical College of Virginia
Virginia Commonwealth University
1200 East Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23298
(804) 786-9641
 
 
Consortia

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 38
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

 
Drew-Meharry-Morehouse Consortium Cancer Center
1005 D.B. Todd Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37208
(615) 327-6927








































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 39
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                             General Announcments
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                 THE UCI MEDICAL EDUCATION SOFTWARE REPOSITORY 

This is to announce the establishment of an FTP site at the University of 
California, for the collection of shareware, public-domain software and other 
information relating to Medical Education.  

Specifically, we are interested in establishing this site as a clearinghouse 
for personally developed software that has been developed for local medical 
education programs.  We welcome all contributions that may be shared with 
other users.  

To connect to the UCI Medical Education Software Repository, ftp to: 

                     FTP.UCI.EDU

The Repository currently offers both MSDOS and Macintosh software, and we hope 
to support other operating systems (UNIX, MUMPS, AMIGA?).  

Uploads are welcome.  We actively solicit information and software which you 
have personaly developed or have found useful in your local medical education 
efforts, either as an instructor or student.  

Once you have connected to the site via FTP, cd (change directory) to either 
the med-ed/mac/incoming or the med-ed/msdos/incoming directories, change the 
mode to binary and "send" or "put" your files.  Note that you won't be able to 
see the files with the "ls" or "dir" commands.  Please compress your files as 
appropriate to the operating system (ZIP for MSDOS; Compactor or something 
similar for Macintosh) to save disk space.  

After uploading, please send email to Steve Clancy (slclancy@uci.edu) (for 
MSDOS) or Albert Saisho (saisho@uci.edu) (for MAC) describing the file(s) you 
have uploaded and any other information we might need to describe it.

Note that we can only accept software or information that has been designated 
as shareware, public-domain or that may otherwise be distributed freely.  
Please do not upload commercial software!  Doing so may jeopardize the 
existence of this FTP site.  

If you wish to upload software for other operating systems, please contact 
either Steve Clancy, M.L.S. or Albert Saisho, M.D. at the addresses above.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 40
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                              AIDS News Summaries
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                              AIDS Daily Summary

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS  
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public  service 
only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement  by the CDC, 
the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction  of this text 
is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold.  Copyright 1993, Information, 
Inc., Bethesda, MD 

      ==================================================================    
                                April 12, 1993 
      ==================================================================    

"NIH Set to Test Multiple AIDS Vaccines" Reuters (04/08/93)  (Frank, 
Jacqueline) 

     Washington--The Clinton administration will permit the National  
Institutes of Health to test multiple AIDS vaccines instead of  only allowing 
the Army to test a single vaccine, administration  sources said Thursday.  The 
decision ends the controversy between Army AIDS researchers who had hoped to 
test a vaccine made by  MicroGeneSys Inc. and the National Institutes of 
Health, which  contended that multiple vaccines should be tested.  Health and  
Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala said a final announcement  on the 
therapeutic vaccine trials was expected to be made last  Friday.  Companies 
including Genentech Inc., Chiron Corp., and  Immuno AG have already told NIH 
that they are prepared to  participate in the vaccine tests.  The testing is 
intended to  demonstrate whether AIDS vaccines are effective in thwarting the  
replication of HIV in patients already infected.  Shalala refuted last week's 
reports that the Clinton administration had decided  the Army's test of the 
MicroGeneSys VaxSyn should proceed without tests of others at the same time.  
"The report was inaccurate,  and I expect there to be some announcement in the 
next 24 hours  about that particular AIDS research project," said Shalala.   
Administration sources subsequently confirmed that NIH director  Dr. Bernadine 
Healy and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler had 
convinced the White House that multiple  vaccines should be tested 
simultaneously.  But MicroGeneSys  president Frank Volvovitz said a test of 
multiple vaccines could  triple the cost of the trial and delay it by two 
years.

==================================================================    


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 41
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

"The Limits of AZT's Impact on HIV" U.S. News & World Report (04/12/93) Vol. 
114, No. 14, P. 18 

     AZT has become the most widely used drug to fight AIDS since it  was 
approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1987.   Burroughs Wellcome, 
the manufacturer of AZT, made $338 million  last year alone from sales of the 
drug.  However, a team of  European researchers recently reported that 
although HIV-positive patients taking AZT demonstrated a slightly lower risk 
of  developing AIDS within the first year of treatment, that benefit  
disappeared two years later.  The Lancet published preliminary  findings of 
the three-year study, which could give more reason  for critics to argue the 
drug's cost, side effects, and general  efficacy.  Even though U.S. 
researchers concede the study was  more comprehensive than American trials, 
many argue the European  researchers' suggestion that HIV-positive patients 
experience  little improvement in their illness before the development of  
AIDS symptoms.  In addition, researchers have long been familiar  with the 
--------- end of part 3 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59127
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1r3ks8INNica@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>In article <1993Apr21.091844.4035@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>>
>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>
>>Not one, but two:
>>
>>Obesity in Europe 88,
>>proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity
>>
>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>
>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>
>Brian

I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59128
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine?

GB> From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
GB> >(I am excepting migraine, which is arguably neurologic).
GB> I hope you meant "inarguably".

Given the choice, I would rather argue <g>.

No arguments about migranous aura; in fact, current best evidence is
that aura is intrinsicially neuronal (a la spreading depression of
Leao) rather than vascular (something causing vasoconstriction and
secondary neuronal ischemia).

Migraine without aura, however, is a fuzzier issue.  There do not
seem to be objectively measurable changes in brain function.  The
Copenhagen mafia (Lauritzen, Olesen, et al) have done local CBF
studies on migraine without aura, and (unlike migraine with aura,
but like tension-type) they found no changes in LCBF.

From one (absurd) perspective, *all* pain is neurologic, because in
the absence of a nervous system, there would not be pain.  From
another (tautologic) perspective, any disease is in the domain of
the specialty that treats it.  Neurologists treat headache,
therefore (at least in the USA) headache is neurologic.

Whether neurologic or not, nobody would disagree that disabling
headaches are common.  Perhaps my fee-for-service neurologic
colleagues, scrounging for cases, want all the headache patients
they can get.  Working on a salary, however, I would rather not fill
my office with patients holding their heads in pain.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                       

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59129
From: thom@morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Thomas Clancy)
Subject: Re: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.) writes:
>>Dyer is beyond rude. 

I'll drink to that.

>Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I didn't threaten to rip your lips off, did I?
>Snort.

>>There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
>>knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
>>the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

>Duh.

Nice to see Steve still has his high and almighty intellectual prowess 
in tact.

>>For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
>>past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
>>deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

>Listen: thrush is a recognized clinical syndrome with definite
>characteristics.  If you have thrush, you have thrush, because you can
>see the lesions and do a culture and when you treat it, it generally
>responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
>anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
>is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
>who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

Yawn...

>>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

>So?

Exactly my question to you, Steve. What's your point? This person had
one, you didn't

>-- 
>Steve Dyer

Nice to see that some things never change, Steve, if you aren't being
ignorant in one group [*.alternative] you're into another. One positive
thing came out of it, you are no longer bothering the folks in 
*.alternative, it's just a shame that these people have to suffer so
that others may breath freely. 
 
Sorry for wasting bandwidth folks. Don't forget to bow down once
every second day, and to offer your first born to the almight 
omniscient, omnipotent, Mr. Steve.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59130
From: dsc@gemini.gsfc.nasa.gov (Doug S. Caprette)
Subject: CS chemical agent



Can anyone provide information on CS chemical agent--the tear gas used recently
in WACO.  Just what is it chemically, and what are its effects on the body?

dsc@gemini.gsfc.nasa.gov  
 |  Regards,         |   Hughes STX                |    Code 926.9 GSFC        |
 |  Doug Caprette    |   Lanham, Maryland          |    Greenbelt, MD  20771   |
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"A path is laid one stone at a time" -- The Giant

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59131
From: annick@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au (Annick Ansselin)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In <C5nFDG.8En@sdf.lonestar.org> marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco) writes:

>>
>>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

MSG is mono sodium glutamate, a fairly straight forward compound. If it is
pure, the source should not be a problem. Your comment suggests that 
impurities may be the cause.
My experience of MSG effects (as part of a double blind study) was that the
pure stuff caused me some rather severe effects.

>I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
>our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
>there other sources of MSG?

Soya bean, fermented cheeses, mushrooms all contain MSG. 

>I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
>I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
>causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
>and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.

The symptoms I had were numbness of jaw muscles in the first instance
followed by the arms then the legs, headache, lethargy and unable to keep
awake. I think it may well affect people differently.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59132
From: lmegna@titan.ucs.umass.edu (Lisa Megna)
Subject: Neurofibromatosis

Hello,

I am writing a grant proposal for a Developmental Genetics class and I
have chose to look at the Neurofibromatosis 1 gene and its variable
expressivity.  I am curious what has already been done on this subject,
especially the relationship between specific mutations and the resulting
phenotype.  My literature search has produce many references, but I want to
make sure I am proposing new research.  If anyone knows aything that has been
recently or key peopl doing research to search for using MEDLINE, I would
apprciate being informed.

Thank you.

Lisa Megna
lmegna@titan.ucc.umass.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59133
From: x92lee22@gw.wmich.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <annick.735440726@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au>, annick@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au (Annick Ansselin) writes:
> In <C5nFDG.8En@sdf.lonestar.org> marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco) writes:
> 
>>>
>>>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>>>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>>>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>>>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>>>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?
> 
> MSG is mono sodium glutamate, a fairly straight forward compound. If it is
> pure, the source should not be a problem. Your comment suggests that 
> impurities may be the cause.
> My experience of MSG effects (as part of a double blind study) was that the
> pure stuff caused me some rather severe effects.
> 
>>I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
>>our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
>>there other sources of MSG?
> 
> Soya bean, fermented cheeses, mushrooms all contain MSG. 
> 
>>I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
>>I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
>>causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
>>and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.
> 
> The symptoms I had were numbness of jaw muscles in the first instance
> followed by the arms then the legs, headache, lethargy and unable to keep
> awake. I think it may well affect people differently.

Well, I think msg is made from a kind of plant call "tapioca" and not those
staff you mentiond above.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59134
Subject: Re: Broken rib
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Hello , I think you are probaly right, in spite of the movement
it is getting better each day.  cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59135
From: u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu
Subject: Arythmia

I don't know if anyone knows about this topic: electrical heart 
failure. One of my friends has had to go to the doctor because
he had chest pains. The Doc said it was Arythmia. So he had to
go to a new york hospital for a lot of money to get treated. His
doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused
cancer ( that he was taking). Well, I suggested that he run, excersize
and eat more, ( he is very skinny) but he says that has nothing
to do with it. Does anyone know what causes arythmia and how 
it can be treated?
			Thanks 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59136
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

[reply to Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince]
 
>There is a person on the FIDO CFS echo who claims that he was cured of
>CFS by taking accutane.  He also claims that you are using it in the
>treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome.  Are you using accutane in the
>treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome?
 
Yes.
 
>Have you used it for CFS?
 
It seems to work equally well for CFS, another hint that these may be
different facets of the same underlying process.
 
>Have you gotten good results with it?
 
Yes.  The benefit is usually evident within a few days of starting it.
Most of the patients for whom it has worked well continued low-dose
amitriptyline, daily aerobic excersise, and a regular sleep schedule
(current standard therapy).  Because of the cost (usually > $150/mo.,
depending on dose) and potential for significant side effects like
corneal injury and birth defects, I currently reserve it for those who
fail conventional treatment.  It is important that the person
prescribing it have some experience with it and follow the patient
closely.
 
>Are you aware of any double blind studies on the use of accutane in
>these conditions?  Thank you in advance for all replies.
 
As far as I know, I am the only person looking at it currently.  I
should get off my duff and finish writing up some case reports.  I'm not
an academic physician, so I don't feel the pressure to publish or perish
and I don't have the time during the work day for such things.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59137
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

[reply to aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)]
 
>Medicine is not a totally scientific endevour.
 
The acquisition of scientific knowledge is completely scientific.  The
application of that knowledge in individual cases may be more art than
science.
 
>There are diseases that haven't been described yet and the root cause
>of many diseases now described aren't known. (Read a book on
>gastroenterology sometime if you want to see a lot of them.) After
>scientific methods have run out then it's the patient's freedom of
>choice to try any experimental method they choose. And it's well
>recognized by many doctors that medicine doesn't have all the answers.
 
Certainly we don't have all the answers.  The question is, what is the
most reliable means of acquiring further medical knowledge?  The
scientific method has proven itself to be reliable.  The *only* reason
alternative therapies are shunned by physicians is that their
practitioners refuse to submit their theories to rigorous scientific
scrutiny, insisting that "tradition" or anecdotal evidence are
sufficient.  These have been shown many times in the past to be very
unreliable ways of acquiring reliable knowledge.  Crook's ideas have
never been backed up by scientific evidence.  His unwillingness to do
good science makes the rest of us doubt the veracity of his contentions.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59138
From: des@helix.nih.gov (David E. Scheim)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <jschwimmer.123.735362184@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu> jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer) writes:

>I've recently listened to a tape by Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, in which he 
>claims to have discovered a series naturally occuring peptides with anti-
>cancer properties that he names antineoplastons.  Burzynski says that his 
>work has met with hostility in the United States, despite the favorable 
>responses of his subjects during clinical trials.

>What is the generally accepted opinion of Dr. Burzynski's research?  He 
>paints himself as a lone researcher with a new breakthrough battling an 
>intolerant medical establishment, but I have no basis from which to judge 
>his claims.  Two weeks ago, however, I read that the NIH's Department of 
>Alternative Medicine has decided to focus their attention on Burzynski's 
>work.  Their budget is so small that I imagine they wouldn't investigate a 
>treatment that didn't seem promising.

>Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
>status of his research would be appreciated.

>--
>Joshua Schwimmer
>jschwimmer@eagle.wesleyan.edu

There's been extensive discussion on the CompuServe Cancer Forum about Dr. 
Burzynski's treatment as a result of the decision of a forum member's father 
to undertake his treatment for brain glioblastoma.  This disease is 
universally and usually rapidly fatal.  After diagnosis in June 1992, the 
tumor was growing rapidly despite radiation and chemotherapy.  The forum 
member checked extensively on Dr. Burzynki's track record for this disease.  
He spoke to a few patients in complete remission for a few years from 
glioblastoma following this treatment and to an NCI oncologist who had 
audited other such case histories and found them valid and impressive.  
After the forum member's father began Dr. Burzynski's treatment in 
September, all subsequent scans performed under the auspices of his 
oncologist in Chicago have shown no tumor growth with possible signs of 
shrinkage or necrosis.

The patient's oncologist, although telling him he would probably not live 
past December 1992, was vehemently opposed to his trying Dr. Burzynski's 
treatment.  Since the tumor stopped its rapid growth under Dr. Burzynski's 
treatment, she's since changed her attitude toward continuing these 
treatments, saying "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Dr. Burzynski is an M.D., Ph.D. with a research background who found a 
protein that is at very low serum levels in cancer patients, synthesized it, 
and administers it to patients with certain cancer types.  There is little 
understanding of the actual mechanism of activity.

/*********************************************************************/
/*                      --- David E. Scheim ---                      */
/* BITNET: none                                                      */
/* INTERNET: desl@helix.nih.gov          PHONE: 301 496-2194         */
/* CompuServe: 73750,3305                  FAX: 301 402-1065         */
/*                                                                   */
/* DISCLAIMER: These comments are offered to share knowledge based   */
/*   upon my personal views.  They do not represent the positions    */
/*   of my employer.                                                 */
/*********************************************************************/

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59139
From: cerulean@access.digex.com (Bill Christens-Barry)
Subject: cytoskeleton dynamics

I'm looking for good background and review paper references that can help me
understand the dynamics of cytoskeleton in normal and transformed cells.  In
particular, I'm not interested in translational behavior and cell motility,
but rather in the internal motions of the cytoskeleton and its components
under normal and transformed circumstances.

Also, I'd appreciate any data on force constants, mechanical, and elastic
properties of microtubules, and viscous properties of cytoplasm.  Any other
info relevant to the vibrational or acoustical properties of these would
be useful to me.

Thanks...

Bill Christens-Barry
cerulean@access.digex.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59140
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

L(>  levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin) writes:
L(>  John Badanes wrote:
L(>  |JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...
L(>  
L(>  |  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
L(>  | educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
L(>  | is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
L(>  | otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
L(>  | consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.
L(>  
L(>  An apt description of the content of just about all Ron Roth's 
L(>  posts to date.  At least there's entertainment value (though it 
L(>  is diminishing).

     Well, that's easy for *YOU* to say.  All *YOU* have to do is sit 
     back, soak it all in, try it out on your patients, and then brag
     to all your colleagues about that incredibly success rate you're
     having all of a sudden...

     --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: For real sponge cake, borrow all ingredients.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59141
From: sheryl@seas.gwu.edu (Sheryl Coppenger)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>>prevent asthma); Vancenase.
>
>Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
>It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
>and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
>doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
>drowsiness.
>

So antihistamines can cause weight gain.  NOW they tell me. :-)
Is there any way to find out which do & which don't?  My doctor
obviously is asleep at the wheel.

The original poster mentioned fatigue.  I had that too, but it was
mostly due to the really bizarre dreams I was having -- I wasn't getting
any rest.  My doctor said that was a common reaction.  If astemizole
doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier, how does it cause that side
effect?  Any ideas?

-- 

Sheryl Coppenger    SEAS Computing Facility Staff	sheryl@seas.gwu.edu
		    The George Washington University	(202) 994-6853          

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59142
From: bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

smjeff@lerc05.lerc.nasa.gov (Jeff Miller) writes:
>Even properly controlled studies (e.g. double blind studies) are almost
>useless if you are trying to prove that something does not affect anyone.

-- and --

>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>most likely explanation for events.
>

Good grief; has no one ever heard of Biostatistics??  The University of
Washington (plus 3 or 4 others [Harvard, UNC]) has a department and
advanced degree program in Biostatistics.  My wife has an MS Biostat, and
there are plenty of MDs, PhDs, and postdocs doing Biostatistical work.
People do this for a living.  Really bright people study for decades to do
this sort of study well.

Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

The last study on which my wife worked employed 200 nurses, 100 doctors,
and a dozen Ph.Ds at one University and at 70 hospitals in five nations.  I
would think the MSG question could be settled by one lowly Biostat MS
student in a thesis.

--bruce

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59143
From: stgprao@st.unocal.COM (Richard Ottolini)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Living things maintain small electric fields to (1) enhance certain
chemical reactions, (2) promote communication of states with in a cell,
(3) communicate between cells (of which the nervous system is a specialized
example), and perhaps other uses.  These electric fields change with location
and time in a large organism.  Special photographic techniques such as applying
external fields in Kirillian photography interact with these fields or the resistances
caused by these fields to make interesting pictures. Perhaps such pictures will
be diagonistic of disease problems in organisms when better understood. Perhaps not.

Studying the overall electric activity of biological systems is several hundred
years old, but not a popular activity.  Perhaps, except in the case of a few
tissues like nerves and the electric senses of fishes, it is hard to reduce the
investigation into small pieces that can be clearly analyzed.  There are some
hints that manipulating electric fields is a useful therapy such as speeding
the healing of broken bones, but not understood why.

Bioelectricity has a long association with mysticism. Ideas such as Frankenstein
reanimation go back to the most early electrical experiments on tissue such as
when Volta invented the battery.  I personally don't care to revert to supernatural
cause to explain things we don't yet understand.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59144
From: Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom)
Subject: sore spot on testicles

My husband woke up three days ago with a small sore spot
(a spot about the size of a nickel) on one of his testicles. Bottom side,
no knots or lumps, just a little sore spot.  He says it reminds him of 
how a bruise feels.  He has no recollection of hitting it or anything like
that that would cause a bruise. (He asssures me he'd remember something
like that :-) 

Any clues as to what it might be?  He's somewhat of a hypochondriac (sp?)
so he's sure he's gonna die. . .

Thanks!!

--
   The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the University of
     North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Campus Office for Information
        Technology, or the Experimental Bulletin Board Service.
           internet:  laUNChpad.unc.edu or 152.2.22.80

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59145
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Thrush (was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu
 (McCurdy M.) writes:
>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

This is the second post which seems to be blurring the distinction
between real disease caused by Candida albicans and the "disease"
that was being asked about, systemic yeast syndrome.

There is no question that Candida albicans causes thrush.  It also
seems to be the case that active yogurt cultures with acidophilous
may reduce recurrences of thrush at least for vaginal thrush -- I've 
never heard of anyone taking it for oral thrush before (though 
presumably it would work by the same mechanism).

Candida is clearly a common minor pathogen and a less common major
pathogen.  That does not mean that there is evidence that it causes
the "systemic yeast syndrome".

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59146
From: jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier )
Subject: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?


Hello,

I am interested in trying this "desensitization" (?) method
against hay fever.
What is the state of affairs about this. I went to a doctor and
paid $85 for a 10 minute interview + 3 scratches, leading to the
diagnostic that I am allergic to (June and Timothy) grass.
I believe this. From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
Thanks for information.
Ej   



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59147
From: williamt@athena.Eng.Sun.COM (William Turnbow)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

In article <1r4bhsINNhaf@hp-col.col.hp.com> billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen) writes:
>
>This group was originally a takeoff from sci.med.  The reason for
>the formation of this group was to discuss prescription psychoactive
>drugs....such as ...
>
>Oh well, obviously, no one really cares.
---

	Then let me ask you for a "workable" solution.  We have a name
here that implies certain things to many people.  Rather than trying
to educate each and every person that comes to the group -- is there
some "name" that would imply what this group was originally
intended for?  

	My dad was a lawyer -- as such I grew up with being a stickler
for "meaning".  In my "reality", psychoactives *technically* could 
range from caffeine to datura to the drugs you mention to more
standard recreational drugs.  In practice I had hoped to see it
limited to those that were above some psychoactive level -- like
some of the drugs you mention, but also possibly including *some*
recreational drugs -- but with conversation limited to their psychoactive 
effects -- the recent query about "bong water", I thought was a bit
off topic -- so I just hit "k".

	But back to the original question -- what is a workable solution --
what is a workable name that would imply the topic you with to
discuss?  It sounds like there should be a alt.smartdrugs, or something
similar -- I don't feel psychoactives would generally be used to
describe alot of those drugs.  There is a big difference between a
drug that if taken in "certain doses, over a period of days may have
a psychoactive effect in some people", vs. many of the drugs in
PIHKAH which *are* psychoactive.


wm
-- 

:: If pro-choice means choice after conception, does this apply to men too? ::

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59148
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

In article <1r4f8b$euu@agate.berkeley.edu> romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
>
>   someone wrote in expressing concern about getting AIDS from acupuncture
>   needles.....
>
>Unless your friend is sharing fluids with their acupuncturist who   
>themselves has AIDS..it is unlikely (not impossible) they will get AIDS        
>from acupuncture needles. Generally, even if accidently inoculated, the normal
>immune response should be enough to effectively handle the minimal contaminant 
>involved with acupuncture needle insertion. 
>
Isn't this what HIV is about - the "normal immune response" to an exposure?

>Most acupuncturists use disposable needles...use once and throw away.

I had electrical pulse nerve testing done a while back.  The needles were taken
from a dirty drawer in an instrument cart and were most certainly NOT
sterile or even clean for that matter.  More than likely they were fresh
from the previous patient.  I WAS concerned, but I kept my mouth shut.  I
probably should have raised hell!

Any comments?  No excuses.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59149
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:

   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!darwin.sura.net!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!linac!att!bu.edu!dozonoff
   From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Date: 21 Apr 93 16:18:19 GMT
   References: <PAULSON.93Apr19081647@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov>
   Sender: news@bu.edu
   Lines: 22
   X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL5

   Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
   : 
   {much deleted]
   : 
   : 
   : The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
   : by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
   : something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
   : immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
   : nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
   : including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 
   : 

   Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
   literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
   tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
   potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
   Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
   --
   David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
   dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
   (617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 


A couple of folks have suggested the "corn connection".  In the five month
period between the two seizures, my daughter had eaten a fair amount of
Kix and Berry Berry Kix in the mornings and never had a problem.  I checked
the labels and the first ingredient is corn.  She has also never had a problem
eating corn or corn on the cob but of course, that is usually later in the day
with a full stomach so the absorption would not be so high.  I do believe that
Frost Flakes have corn in them but I will have to check the Fruit Loops.  But
the fact that she has eaten this other corny cereal in the morning makes me
wonder.

Thanks for checking into this.  All information at this point is valuable to me.

Sharon
--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59150
From: Andrew T. Robinson <ANDY@MAINE.MAINE.EDU>
Subject: Reasons for hospitals to join Internet?

What resources and services are available on Internet/BITNET which
would be of interest to hospitals and other medical care providers?
I'm interested in anything relelvant, including institutions and
businesses of interest to the medical profession on Internet,
special services such as online access to libraries or diagnostic
information, etc. etc.

Please reply directly to ANDY@MAINE.EDU

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59151
From: roos@Operoni.Helsinki.FI (Christophe Roos)
Subject: Wanted: Rat cell line (adrenal gland/cortical c.)

I am looking for a rat cell line of adrenal gland / cortical cell  -type. I 
have been looking at ATCC without success and would very much appreciate any 
help.

Thank you for reading this.

Christophe Roos

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Institute of Biotechnology          Fax:                   +358 0 4346028
POBox 45, Valimotie 7               E-mail:   Christophe.Roos@Helsinki.Fi
University of Helsinki              X-400:           /G=Christophe/S=Roos
SF-00014 Finland                                /O=Helsinki/A=fumail/C=Fi
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59152
From: mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

Gordon Banks (geb@cs.pitt.edu) wrote:
: In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (
Marc Gabriel) writes:

: >Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
: >hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
: >"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
: >No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
: >and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
: >
: Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
: They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
: seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
: now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
: Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
: pattern.  They are usually GPs.

No, he does not exclusively treat LD patients.  However, in some parts of the
country, you don't need to be known as an LD "specialist" to see a large
number of LD patients walk through your office.  Given the huge problem of
underdiagnosis, orthopedists encounter late manifestations of the disease just
about every day in their regular practices.  Dr. N. told me that last year,
he sent between 2 and 5 patients a week to the LD specialists... and he is not
the only orthopedists in the town.

Let's say that only 2 people per week actually have LD.  That means at the
*very minimum* 104 people in our town (and immediate area) develop late stage
manifestations of LD *every year*.  Add in the folks who were diagnosed by
neurologists, rheumatologists, GPs, etc, and you can see what kind of problem
we have.  No wonder just about everybody in town personally knows an LD
patient.

He refers most patients to LD specialists, but in extreme cases he puts the
patient on medication immediately to minimize the damage (in most cases, to
the knees).

Gordon is correct when he states that most LD specialists are GPs.

-Marc.
-- 
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
              Marc C. Gabriel        -  U.C. Box 545  -
              (215) 882-0138         Lehigh University

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59153
From: debbie@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Debbie Forest)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.231301.3050@seas.gwu.edu> sheryl@seas.gwu.edu (Sheryl Coppenger) writes:
<In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
<>Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
<>It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
<>and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
<>doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
<>drowsiness.
<
<The original poster mentioned fatigue.  I had that too, but it was
<mostly due to the really bizarre dreams I was having -- I wasn't getting
<any rest.  My doctor said that was a common reaction.  If astemizole
<doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier, how does it cause that side
<effect?  Any ideas?

It made me really BITCHY for the first few weeks.  Now that I think about
it I was having some bizarre dreams too.  My doctor said it made him feel
like he had to be DOING something all the time.  But if you keep taking it,
after a few weeks these symptoms seem to go away, he said hang in there.  
I did and they did.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59154
From: shavlik@cs.wisc.edu (Jude Shavlik)
Subject: Program & Reg Forms: 1st Int Conf on Intell Sys for Molecular Biology

[For those attending the AAAI conf this summer, note that
this conference is immediately preceding it.]


         PRELIMINARY PROGRAM AND REGISTRATION MATERIALS

              First International Conference on
          Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology

                       Washington, D.C.
                        July 6-9, 1993

Sponsored by:
  The National Institutes of Health, 
     National Library of Medicine

  The Department of Energy, 
     Office of Health and Environmental Research

  The Biomatrix Society

  The American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI)

Poster Session and Tutorials:  
  Bethesda Ramada Hotel

Technical Sessions:
  Lister Hill Center Auditorium, National Library of Medicine

For more information contact ISMB@nlm.nih.gov or FAX (608)262-9777

                           PURPOSE
This, the First International Conference on Intelligent Systems 
for Molecular Biology, is the inaugural meeting in a series 
intended to bring together scientists who are applying the 
technologies of artificial intelligence, robotics, machine 
learning, massively parallel computing, advanced data modelling, 
and related methods to problems in molecular biology.  The scope 
extends to any computational or robotic system supporting a 
biological task that is cognitively challenging, involves a 
synthesis of information from multiple sources at multiple levels, 
or in some other way exhibits the abstraction and emergent 
properties of an "intelligent system."  

                          FACILITIES
The conference will be held at
   Lister Hill Center 
   National Library of Medicine
   8600 Rockville Pike
   NIH, Building 38A
   Bethesda MD 20894
Seating in the conference center is strictly limited, so 
registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis. 
Accomodations, as well as a reception and poster session, will be 
at the
   Bethesda Ramada Hotel 
   8400 Wisconsin Avenue
   Bethesda MD 20814
A special room rate has been negotiated with the hotel, of $92/day 
(expires 6/21).  Attendees must make their own reservations, by 
writing the hotel or calling (800)331-5252 and mentioning the 
ISMB conference.  To participate in a roommate-matching service, 
e-mail opitz@cs.wisc.edu.

                         TRANSPORTATION
The two facilities are within easy walking distance, convenient to 
the subway (Metro Red Line, Medical Center stop), and from there 
to the Amtrak station.  Nearby airports include Dulles, National, 
and Baltimore-Washington International. 

                           PROCEEDINGS
Full-length papers from both talks and posters will be published in
archival proceedings.  The citation is: 

  Proceedings of the First International 
  Conference on Intelligent Systems for 
  Molecular Biology (eds. L. Hunter, 
  D. Searls, and J. Shavlik) AAAI/MIT
  Press, Menlo Park CA, 1993.  

Copies will be distributed at the conference to registered 
attendees, and will be available for purchase from the publisher 
afterwards.

                             TALKS
Wednesday, July 7, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-9:15am     Opening Remarks

9:15-10:30am    Invited Talk
 "Statistics, Protein Cores, and Predicted Structures"
 Prof. Temple Smith (Boston University)

10:30-11:00am	Break

11:00am	"Constructive Induction and Protein Structure Prediction"
 T.R. Ioerger, L. Rendell, & S. Surbramaniam

11:30am	"Protein Secondary-Structure Modeling with Probabilistic 
 Networks"  A.L. Delcher, S. Kasif, H.R. Goldberg, & W. Hsu

12:00-1:30pm	Lunch

1:30pm	"Protein Secondary Structure using Two-Level Case-Based 
 Reasoning"  B. Leng, B.G. Buchanan, & H.B. Nicholas

2:00pm 	"Automatic Derivation of Substructures Yields Novel 
 Structural Building Blocks in Globular Proteins" 
 X. Zhang, J.S. Fetrow, W.A. Rennie, D.L. Waltz, & G. Berg

2:30pm 	"Using Dirichlet Mixture Priors to Derive Hidden Markov 
 Models for Protein Families" M. Brown, R. Hughey, A. Krogh, 
 I.S. Mian, K. Sjolander, & D. Haussler

3:00-3:30pm	Break

3:30pm	"Protein Classification using Neural Networks" 
 E.A. Ferran, B. Pflugfelder, & P. Ferrara

4:00pm	"Neural Networks for Molecular Sequence Classification"
 C. Wu, M. Berry, Y-S. Fung, & J. McLarty

4:30pm	"Computationally Efficient Cluster Representation in 
 Molecular Sequence Megaclassification"  D.J. States, N. Harris, 
 & L. Hunter

7:00-7:30pm     Poster Setup
7:30-10:00pm    Reception & Poster Session 

Thursday, July 8, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-10:15am    Invited Talk
 "Large-Scale DNA Sequencing:  A Tale of Mice and Men"
 Prof. Leroy Hood (University of Washington)

10:15-10:45am	Break

10:45am	"Pattern Recognition for Automated DNA Sequencing: 
 I. On-Line Signal Conditioning and Feature Extraction for 
 Basecalling"  J.B. Bolden III, D. Torgersen, & C. Tibbetts

11:15am	"Genetic Algorithms for Sequence Assembly" 
 R. Parsons, S. Forrest, & C. Burks

11:45am	"A Partial Digest Approach to Restriction Site Mapping"
 S.S. Skiena & G. Sundaram

12:15-2:00pm	Lunch

2:00pm	"Integrating Order and Distance Relationships from 
 Heterogeneous Maps"  M. Graves 

2:30pm	"Discovering Sequence Similarity by the Algorithmic 
 Significance Method"  A. Milosavljevic

3:00pm	"Identification of Human Gene Functional Regions Based on 
 Oligonucleotide Composition"  V.V. Solovyev & C.B. Lawrence

3:30pm	"Knowledge Discovery in GENBANK"
 J.S. Aaronson, J. Haas, & G.C. Overton

4:00-4:30pm	Break

4:30pm	"An Expert System to Generate Machine Learning 
 Experiments: Learning with DNA Crystallography Data"
 D. Cohen, C. Kulikowski, & H. Berman 

5:00pm 	"Detection of Correlations in tRNA Sequences with 
 Structural Implications"  T.M. Klingler & D. Brutlag

5:30pm	"Probabilistic Structure Calculations: A Three-
 Dimensional tRNA Structure from Sequence Correlation Data" 
 R.B. Altman

Friday, July 9, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-10:15am    Invited Talk
 "Artificial Intelligence and a Grand Unified Theory of 
 Biochemistry" Prof. Harold Morowitz (George Mason University)

10:15-10:45am	Break

10:45am	"Testing HIV Molecular Biology in in silico Physiologies" 
 H.B. Sieburg & C. Baray

11:15am	"Identification of Localized and Distributed Bottlenecks 
 in Metabolic Pathways"  M.L. Mavrovouniotis

11:45am	"Fine-Grain Databases for Pattern Discovery in Gene 
 Regulation"  S.M. Veretnik & B.R. Schatz

12:15-2:00pm	Lunch

2:00pm	"Representation for Discovery of Protein Motifs"
 D. Conklin, S. Fortier, & J. Glasgow

2:30pm	"Finding Relevant Biomolecular Features"  
 L. Hunter & T. Klein

3:00pm	"Database Techniques for Biological Materials and 
 Methods"  K. Baclawski, R. Futrelle, N. Fridman, 
 & M.J. Pescitelli

3:30pm	"A Multi-Level Description Scheme of Protein 
 Conformation"  K. Onizuka, K. Asai, M. Ishikawa, & S.T.C. Wong

4:00-4:30pm	Break

4:30pm	"Protein Topology Prediction through Parallel Constraint 
 Logic Programming"  D.A. Clark, C.J. Rawlings, J. Shirazi, 
 A. Veron, & M. Reeve

5:30pm	"A Constraint Reasoning System for Automating Sequence-
 Specific Resonance Assignments in Multidimensional Protein
 NMR Spectra"  D. Zimmerman, C. Kulikowski, & G.T. Montelione

5:30-5:45pm	Closing Remarks

                         POSTER SESSION
The following posters will be on display at the Bethesda Ramada 
Hotel from 7:30-10:00pm, Wednesday, July 7.

[1] "The Induction of Rules for Predicting Chemical
 Carcinogenesis in Rodents"  D. Bahler & D. Bristol

[2] "SENEX: A CLOS/CLIM Application for Molecular Pathology"  
 S.S. Ball & V.H. Mah

[3] "FLASH: A Fast Look-Up Algorithm for String Homology"
 A. Califano & I. Rigoutsos

[4] "Toward Multi-Strategy Parallel Learning in Sequence 
 Analysis"  P.K. Chan & S.J. Stolfo

[5] "Protein Structure Prediction: Selecting Salient Features 
 from Large Candidate Pools"  K.J. Cherkauer & J.W. Shavlik

[6] "Comparison of Two Approaches to the Prediction of Protein 
 Folding Patterns"  I. Dubchak, S.R. Holbrook, & S.-H. Kim

[7] "A Modular Learning Environment for Protein Modeling"
 J. Gracy, L. Chiche & J. Sallantin

[8] "Inference of Order in Genetic Systems" 
 J.N. Guidi & T.H. Roderick

[9] "PALM - A Pattern Language for Molecular Biology"
 C. Helgesen & P.R. Sibbald

[10] "Grammatical Formalization of Metabolic Processes"  
 R. Hofestedt

[11] "Representations of Metabolic Knowledge"  
 P.D. Karp & M. Riley

[12] "Protein Sequencing Experiment Planning Using Analogy"
 B. Kettler & L. Darden

[13] "Design of an Object-Oriented Database for Reverse Genetics"  
 K.J. Kochut, J. Arnold, J.A. Miller, & W.D. Potter

[14] "A Small Automaton for Word Recognition in DNA Sequences"
 C. Lefevre & J.-E Ikeda

[15] "MultiMap:  An Expert System for Automated Genetic Linkage 
 Mapping"  T.C. Matise, M. Perlin & A. Chakravarti

[16] "Constructing a Distributed Object-Oriented System with 
Logical Constraints for Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting"
 T. Matsushima

[17] "Prediction of Primate Splice Junction Gene Sequences with 
 a Cooperative Knowledge Acquisition System"
 E.M. Nguifo & J. Sallantin

[18] "Object-Oriented Knowledge Bases for the Analysis of 
 Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Genomes" 
 G. Perriere, F. Dorkeld, F. Rechenmann, & C. Gautier

[19] "Petri Net Representations in Metabolic Pathways"
 V.N. Reddy, M.L. Mavrovouniotis, & M.L. Liebman

[20] "Minimizing Complexity in Cellular Automata Models of 
 Self-Replication"  J.A. Reggia, H.-H. Chou, S.L. Armentrout, 
 & Y. Peng

[21] "Building Large Knowledge Bases in Molecular Biology"
 O. Schmeltzer, C. Medigue, P. Uvietta, F. Rechenmann, 
 F. Dorkeld, G. Perriere, & C. Gautier

[22] "A Service-Oriented Information Sources Database for the 
 Biological Sciences"  G.K. Springer & T.B. Patrick

[23] "Hidden Markov Models and Iterative Aligners: Study of their 
 Equivalence and Possibilities" H. Tanaka, K. Asai, M. Ishikawa,
 & A. Konagaya

[24] "Protein Structure Prediction System Based on Artificial 
 Neural Networks"  J. Vanhala & K. Kaski

[25] "Transmembrane Segment Prediction from Protein Sequence 
 Data"  S.M. Weiss, D.M. Cohen & N. Indurkhya

                      TUTORIAL PROGRAM
Tutorials will be conducted at the Bethesda Ramada Hotel on 
Tuesday, July 6.

12:00-2:45pm "Introduction to Molecular Biology for Computer 
 Scientists"  Prof. Mick Noordewier (Rutgers University)

This overview of the essential facts of molecular biology is 
intended as an introduction to the field for computer scientists 
who wish to apply their tools to this rich and complex domain.  
Material covered will include structural and informational 
molecules, the basic organization of the cell and of genetic 
material, the "central dogma" of gene expression, and selected 
other topics in the area of structure, function, and regulation as 
relates to current computational approaches.  Dr. Noordewier has 
appointments in both Computer Science and Biology at Rutgers, and 
has extensive experience in basic biological research in addition 
to his current work in computational biology.

12:00-2:45pm "Introduction to Artificial Intelligence for 
 Biologists"  Dr. Richard Lathrop (MIT & Arris Corp.)

An overview of the field of artificial intelligence will be 
presented, as it relates to actual and potential biological 
applications.  Fundamental techniques, symbolic programming 
languages, and notions of search will be discussed, as well as 
selected topics in somewhat greater detail, such as knowledge 
representation, inference, and machine learning.  The intended 
audience includes biologists with some computational background, 
but no extensive exposure to artificial intelligence.  Dr. 
Lathrop, co-developer of ARIADNE and related technologies, has 
worked in the area of artificial intelligence applied to 
biological problems in both academia and industry.

3:00-5:45pm "Neural Networks, Statistics, and Information Theory 
 in Biological Sequence Analysis" Dr. Alan Lapedes (Los Alamos 
 National Laboratory) 

This tutorial will cover the most rapidly-expanding facet of 
intelligent systems for molecular biology, that of machine 
learning techniques applied to sequence analysis.  Closely 
interrelated topics to be addressed include the use of artifical 
neural networks to elicit both specific signals and general 
characteristics of sequences, and the relationship of such 
approaches to statistical techniques and information-theoretic 
views of sequence data.  Dr. Lapedes, of the Theoretical 
Division at Los Alamos, has long been a leader in the use of such 
techniques in this domain.

3:00-5:45pm "Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming" 
 Prof. John Koza (Stanford University)

The genetic algorithm, an increasingly popular approach to highly 
non-linear multi-dimensional optimization problems, was originally 
inspired by a biological metaphor.  This tutorial will cover both 
the biological motivations, and the actual implementation and 
characteristics of the algorithm.  Genetic Programming, an 
extension well-suited to problems where the discovery of the size 
and shape of the solution is a major part of the problem, will 
also be addressed.  Particular attention will be paid to 
biological applications, and to identifying resources and software 
that will permit attendees to begin using the methods.  Dr. Koza, 
a Consulting Professor of Computer Science at Stanford, has taught 
this subject since 1988 and is the author of a standard text in 
the field.

3:00-5:45pm "Linguistic Methods in Sequence Analysis" 
 Prof. David Searls (University of Pennsylvania) 
 & Shmuel Pietrokovski (Weizmann Institute)

Approaches to sequence analysis based on linguistic methodologies 
are increasingly in evidence.  These involve the adaptation of 
tools and techniques from computational linguistics for syntactic 
pattern recognition and gene prediction, the classification of 
genetic structures and phenomena using formal language theory, the 
identification of significant vocabularies and overlapping codes 
in sequence data, and sequence comparison reflecting taxonomic and 
functional relatedness.  Dr. Searls, who holds research faculty 
appointments in both Genetics and Computer Science at Penn, 
represents the branch of this field that considers higher-order 
syntactic approaches to sequence data, while Shmuel Pietrokovski 
has studied and published with Prof. Edward Trifinov in the area 
of word-based analyses.

                      REGISTRATION FORM
Mail, with check made out to "ISMB-93", to:

               ISMB Conference, c/o J. Shavlik
               Computer Sciences Department
               University of Wisconsin
               1210 West Dayton Street
               Madison, WI 53706  USA

        ================================================

        Name____________________________________________
	
        Affiliation_____________________________________
	
        Address_________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        Phone___________________________________________

        FAX_____________________________________________

        Electronic Mail_________________________________
	
        Registration Status: ____ Regular   ____ Student

        Presenting?          ____ Talk      ____  Poster
        ================================================
        TUTORIAL REGISTRATION 

        ____"Molecular Biology for Computer Scientists"
         or
        ____"Artificial Intelligence for Biologists"
         -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  - 
        ____"Neural Networks, Statistics, and 
         or     Information Theory in Sequence Analysis"
        ____"Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming"
         or 
        ____"Linguistic Methods in Sequence Analysis"
        ================================================
        PAYMENT       (Early Registration Before June 1)

        Registration:  Early   Late	    $___________
              Regular  $100    $125	
              Student  $75     $100	
        Tutorials:     One      Two         $___________
              Regular  $50      $65	
              Student  $25      $35	
        Total:                              $___________
        ================================================
        Registration fees include conference proceedings, 
        refreshments, and general program expenses. 


                      ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
        Lawrence Hunter                              NLM 
        David Searls                  U. of Pennsylvania
        Jude Shavlik                     U. of Wisconsin

                        PROGRAM COMMITTEE
        Douglas Brutlag                      Stanford U.
        Bruce Buchanan                  U. of Pittsburgh
        Christian Burks          Los Alamos National Lab
        Fred Cohen                    U.C.-San Francisco
        Chris Fields           Inst. for Genome Research
        Michael Gribskov                  U.C.-San Diego
        Peter Karp                     SRI International
        Toni Kazic                         Washington U.
        Alan Lapedes             Los Alamos National Lab
        Richard Lathrop                MIT & Arris Corp.
        Charles Lawrence                          Baylor 
        Michael Mavrovouniotis            U. of Maryland
        George Michaels                              NIH
        Harold Morowitz                  George Mason U.
        Katsumi Nitta                               ICOT
        Mick Noordewier                       Rutgers U.
        Ross Overbeek               Argonne National Lab
        Chris Rawlings                              ICRF
        Derek Sleeman                     U. of Aberdeen
        David States                       Washington U.
        Gary Stormo                       U. of Colorado
        Ed Uberbacher             Oak Ridge National Lab
        David Waltz              Thinking Machines Corp.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59155
From: green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein)
Subject: Re: accupuncture and AIDS

In article <C5t76D.2x6@news.cso.uiuc.edu> euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.) writes:
>aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor) writes:
>
>>A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
>>wants to know if there is any danger of getting
>>AIDS from the needles.
>
>	Ask the practitioner whether he uses the pre-sterilized disposable
>needles, or if he reuses needles, sterilizing them between use.  In the
>former case there's no conceivable way to get AIDS from the needles.  In
>the latter case it's highly unlikely (though many practitioners use the
>disposable variety anyway).

It is illegal to perform acupuncture with unsterilized needles. No licensed
practitioner would dare do this. Also there is not a single documented case
of transmission of AIDS via acupuncture needles. I wouldn't worry about it.
-- 
******************************************************************************
Robert Greenstein           What the fool cannot learn he laughs at, thinking
green@srilanka.island.com   that by his laughter he shows superiority instead
                            of latent idiocy - M. Corelli

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59156
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: diet for Crohn's (IBD)


A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
disease.

But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.

Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
problems of people with Crohn's disease ?

(I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).

Thanks in advance,
John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59157
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Neurasthenia

In article <1993Apr21.174553.812@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
>anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
>is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
>who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

Speaking of which, has anyone else been impressed with how much the 
descriptions of neurasthenia published a century ago sound like CFS?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59158
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr22.001642.9186@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:

>>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>>
>>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>>
>>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>
>I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
>study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.
>

Good story, Chuck, but it won't wash.  I have read the NY Acad Sci
one (and have it).  This AM I couldn't find any reference to
"weight rebound".  I'm not saying it isn't there, but since you
cited it, it is your responsibility to show me where it is in there.
There is no index.  I suspect you overstepped your knowledge base,
as usual.








-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59159
Subject: good book
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

Having been gone for 10 days, I'm way behind on my News reading, so many
pardons if I am repeating something that has been said already.

I read a good book while I was away, THE ANTIBIOTIC PARADOX: HOW MIRACLE DRUGS
ARE DESTROYING THE MIRACLE, Stuart B. Levy, M.D., 1992, Plenum Press,
ISBN:0-306-44331-7.

It is about drug resistant microorganisms & the history of antibiotics.  It
is interesting & written at a level which I think many sci.med readers would
appreciate -- which is:  it assumes an intelligent reader who is capable of
understanding scientific concepts, but who may not yet have been exposed to
this particular information. I.e., it assumes you are smart enough to
understand it, but it does not assume that you already have a degree in
microbiology or medicine. Table of contents:

Chapter 1
	From Tragedy the Antibiotic Age is Born
Chapter 2
	The Disease and the Cure:  The Microscopic World of Bacteria and
	Antibiotics
Chapter 3
	Reliance on Medicine and Self-Medication: The Seeds of Antibiotic
	Misuse
Chapter 4
	Antibiotic Resistance:  Microbial Adaptation and Evolution
Chapter 5
	The Antibiotic Myth
Chapter 6
	Antibiotics, Animals and the Resistance Gene Pool
Chapter 7
	Further Ecological Considerations:  Antibiotic Use in Agriculture,
	Aquaculture, Pets, and Minor Animal Species
Chapter 8
	Future Prospects:  New Advances Against Potential Disaster
Chapter 9
	The Individual and Antibiotic Resistance
Chapter 10
	Antibiotic Resistance: A Societal Issue at Local, National, and
	International Levels.

Includes bibliography and index.

I personally found that it made very good Airplane-Reading.
-rg

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59160
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>>most likely explanation for events.

   The following is from a critique of a "60 Minutes" presentation on MSG
   which was aired on November 3rd, 1991.  The critique comes from THE TUFTS
   DIET AND NUTRITION LETTER, February 1992.  [...edited for brevity...]

	"Chances are good that if you watched '60 Minutes' last November
	3rd [1991], you came away feeling MSG is bad for you. [...] In
	the segment entitled 'No MSG,' for instance, show host Ed Bradley
	makes alarming statements without adequately substantiating them
	('millions are suffering a host of symptoms, and some get violently
	sick'); peppers his report with sensational but clinically unproven
	personal testimony...; and speaks of studies on MSG that make the
	substance seem harmful without explaining just how inconclusive 
	those studies are.

	Consider his making reference at the beginning of the program to
	a study conducted at the Eastern Virginia Medical School in order
	to back up his comment that there is 'a lot of evidence' that MSG,
	a flavor enhancer in Chinese and other Asian cuisines as well as
	in many supermarket items, causes headaches.  What he does NOT
	make reference to is the fact that the study was performed not on
	humans but on rabbits.

	One of the researchers who conducted the study, pharmacologist
	Patricia Williams, Ph.D., says it certainly is conceivable that
	a small minority of people are sensitive enough to MSG to get 
	headaches from it.  'But,' she explains, 'the show probably 
	overemphasized the extent of the problem.'

	A second lapse comes with mention of Dr. John Olney, a professor
	at the Washington University School of Medicine who, Mr. Bradley
	remarks, 'says that his 20 years of research with laboratory
	animals shows MSG is a hazard for developing youngsters' because
	it poses a threat of irreversible brain damage.  Dr. Olney's
	research with lab animals does not 'show' anything about human
	youngsters.

	In fact, only under extreme circumsrtances did Dr. Olney's 
	experiments ever bring about any brain damage: when he injected
	extremely high doses of MSG into rodents, completely bypassing 
	their digestive tracts and entering their bloodstreams more directly,
	and when he used tubes to force-feed huge amounts of the substance
	to very young animals on an empty stomach.  Of course, neither
	of those procedures occurs with humans; they simply take in MSG 
	with food.  And most of what they take in is broken down by
	enzymes in the wall of the small intestine, so that very little
	reaches the bloodstream -- much to little, in fact, for human
	blood levels of MSG to come anywhere near the high concentrations
	found in Dr. Olney's lab animals.....

	The World Health Organization appears to be very much aware of
	that fact.  And so does the European Communities' Scientific
	Committee for Food....Both, after examining numerous studies,
	have concluded that MSG is safe.

	Their determination makes sense, considering that MSG has never
	been proven to cause all the symptoms that have been attributed
	to it -- headaches, swelling, a tightness in the chest, and a
	burning sensation, among others.  In fact, the most fail-safe
	of clinical studies, the double-blind study..., has consistently
	exonerated the much-maligned substance.

	That's quite fortunate since the alleged hazardous component of
	monosodium glutamate, glutamate, enters our systems whenever
	we eat any food that contains protein.  The reason is that one
	of the amino acids that make up protein, glutamic acid, is broken
	down into glutamate during digestion.

	It's a breakdown that occurs frequently.  Glutamic acid is the
	most abundant of the 20 or so amino acids in the diet.  It makes
	up about 15 percent of the protein in flesh foods, 20 percent in
	milk, 25 percent in corn, and 29 percent in whole wheat.

	That doesn't mean it's entirely unimaginable that a small number
	of people have trouble metabolizing MSG properly and are therefore
	sensitive to it...The consensus reached by large, international
	professional organizations [is that MSG is safe], the same consensus
	reached by the FDA and the biomedical community at large."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59161
From: neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org (Neal Howard)
Subject: Re: seek sedative information

In article <C5uBrn.F0u@fig.citib.com> ghica@fig.citib.com (Renato Ghica) writes:
>
>has any one heard of a sedative called "Rhoepnol"? Made by LaRouche,
>I believe. Any info as to side effects or equivalent tranquillizers?

You probably mean "RoHypnol", a member of the benzodiazepine family,
chemical name is flunitrazepam. It is such a strong tranquilizer that it is
probably best refered to as a hypnotic, rather than a tranquilizer. Just one
pill will knock you on your ass. Side effects may be similar to valium, xanax,
serax, librium and other benzodiazepines. 
-- 
=============================================================================
Neal Howard   '91 XLH-1200      DoD #686      CompuTrac, Inc (Richardson, TX)
	      doh #0000001200   |355o33|      neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org
	      Std disclaimer: My opinions are mine, not CompuTrac's.
         "Let us learn to dream, gentlemen, and then perhaps
          we shall learn the truth." -- August Kekule' (1890)
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59162
From: brandon@caldonia.nlm.nih.gov (Brandon Brylawski)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

mryan@stsci.edu writes:
: Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
: 
: Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
: I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
: clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
: doctor that we were there, and came back and told us the doctor would not 
: see us because she had someplace to go at 6:00 and did not want to be delayed 
: here.  During the next few minutes, in response to my questions, with several 
: trips to the back room, the receptionist told me:
: 	- the doctor was doing paperwork in the back,
: 	- the doctor would not even look at his finger to advise us on going
: 	  to the emergency room;
: 	- the doctor would not even speak to me;
: 	- she would not tell me the doctor's name, or her own name;
: 	- when asked who is in charge of the clinic, she said "I don't know."
: 
: I realize that a private clinic is not the same as an emergency room, but
: I was quite angry at being turned away because the doctor did not want to
: be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  

Speaking as a physician who works in an urgent care center, the above
behavior is completely inappropriate. If a patient who requires extensive
care shows up at the last minute, we always see them and give them appropriate
care. It is reasonable for a clinic to refuse to see patients outside of its
posted hours, but what you describe is misbehavior. Ask to speak to the
clinic director, and complain. Whatever their attitude, they have nothing to
gain from angering patients.

Brandon Brylawski

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59163
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
wrote:
> 
> 
> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> disease.
> 
> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> 
> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> 
> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> John Eyles
> jge@cs.unc.edu

If she is having problems with fresh vegetables, the guess is that there
is some obstruction of the intestine.  Without knowing more it is not
possible to say whether the obstruction is permanent due to scarring,
or temporary due to swelling of inflammed intestine.  In general, there are
no dietary limitations in patients with Crohn's except as they relate
to obstruction.  There is no evidence that any foods will bring on 
recurrence of Crohn's.  It is important to distinguish recurrence from
recurrent symptoms.  A physician would think of new inflammation as 
recurrence, while pains from raw veggies just imply a narrowing of the
intestine.  

Your friend should look into membership in the Crohn's and Colitis 
Foundation of America.   1-800-932-2423

Good luck to your friend.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59164
From: HOLFELTZ@LSTC2VM.stortek.com
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>
todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>> I think that's the correct spelling..
>
>The proper spelling is Kirlian. It was an effect discoverd by
>S. Kirlian, a soviet film developer in 1939.
>
>As I recall, the coronas visible are ascribed to static discharges
>and chemical reactions between the organic material and the silver
>halides in the films.
>
>--
>         Tarl Neustaedter       Stratus Computer
>         tarl@sw.stratus.com    Marlboro, Mass.
>Disclaimer: My employer is not responsible for my opinions.
>
>I think that's the correct spelling..
>        I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.
>        In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
>knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
>object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
>or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
>of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
>extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
>the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.
>
>
To construct a Kirlian device find a copy of _Handbook of Psychic
Discoveries_ by Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder 1975 Library of
Congress 73-88532.  It describes the necessary equipment and
 suppliers for the Tesla coil or alternatives, the copper plate and
setup. I used a pack of SX-70 film and removed a single pack in a
dark room, then made the exposure, put it back in the film pack and
ran it out through the rollers of the camera forinstant developing
and very high quality.  It is a good way to experience what Kirlian
Photography is really and what it is not.  As you know all ready,
it is the pattern in the bioplasmic energy fieldthat is significant.
Variations caused by exposure time, distance from the plate, or
pressure on the plate, or variations in the photo materials are not
important.
 
Hard copy mail; Mark C. High
                P O Box  882
                Parowan,  UT
                       84761
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59165
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

I can not believe the way this thread on candida(yeast) has progressed.
Steve Dyer and I have been exchanging words over the same topic in Sci. 
Med. Nutrition when he displayed his typical reserve and attacked a women 
poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

Let me tell you who the quacks really are, these are the physicans who have 
no idea how the human body interacts with it's environment and how that 
balance can be altered by diet and antibiotics.  These are the physicians 
who dismiss their patients with difficult symptomatology and make them go 
from doctor to doctor to find relief(like Elaine in Sci. Med. Nutrition) and 
then when they find one that solves their problem, the rest start yelling 
quack.  Could it just be professional jealousy?  I couldn't help Elaine or Jon
but somebody else did.  Could they know more than Me?  No way, they must be a 
quack.  

I've been teaching a human nutrition course for Medical students for over ten 
years now and guess who the most receptive students are?  Those that were 
raised on farms and saw first-hand the effect of diet on the health of their 
farm animals and those students who had made a dramatic diet change prior to 
entering medical school(switched to the vegan diet).  Typically, this is 
about 1/3 of my class of 90 students.  Those not interested in nutrition 
either tune me out or just stop coming to class.  That's okay because I 
know that some of what I'm teaching is going to stick and there will be at 
least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
medical profession.

In animal husbandry, an animal is reinnoculated with "good" bacteria after 
antibiotics are stopped.  Medicine has decided that since humans do not 
have a ruminant stomach, no such reinnoculation with "good" bacteria is 
needed after coming off a braod spectrum antibiotic.  Humans have all 
kinds of different organisms living in the GI system(mouth, stomach, small 
and large intestine), sinuses, vagina and on the skin.  These are 
nonpathogenic because they do not cause disease in people unless the immune 
system is compromised.  They are also called nonpathogens because unlike 
the pathogenic organisms that cause human disease, they do not produce 
toxins as they live out their merry existence in and on our body.  But any of 
these organisms will be considered pathogenic if it manages to take up 
residence within the body.  A poor mucus membrane barrier can let this 
happen and vitamin A is mainly responsible for setting up this barrier.
Steve got real upset with Elaine's doctor because he was using anti-fungals 
and vitamin A for her GI problems.  If Steve really understoood what 
vitamin A does in the body, he would not(or at least should not) be calling 
Elaine's doctor a quack.

Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
yeast-like fungus.  An infection caused by this organism is called candidiasis.
Candidiasis is a very rare occurance because, like an E. Coli infection, it 
requires that the host immune system be severly depressed.  

Candida is frequently found on the skin and all of the mucous membranes of 
normal healthy people and it rarely becomes a problem unless some predisposing
factor is present such as a high blood glucose level(diabetes) or an oral 
course of antibiotics has been used.  In diabetics, their secretions contain 
much higher amounts of glucose.  Candida, unlike bacteria, is very limited in 
it's food(fuel) selection.  Without glucose, it can not grow, it just barely 
survives.  If it gets access to a lot of glucose, it blooms and over rides 
the other organisms living with it in the sinuses, GI tract or vagina.  In 
diabetics, skin lesions can also foster a good bloom site for these little 
buggers.  The bloom is usually just a minor irritant in most people but 
some people do really develop a bad inflammatory process at the mucus 
membrane or skin bloom site.  Whether this is an allergic like reaction to 
the candida or not isn't certain.  When the bloom is in the vagina or on 
the skin, it can be easliy seen and some doctors do then try to "treat" it.
If it's internal, only symptoms can be used and these symptoms are pretty 
nondiscript.  


Candida is kept in check in most people by the normal bacterial flora in 
the sinuses, the GI tract(mouth, stomach and intestines) and in the 
vaginal tract which compete with it for food.  The human immune system 
ususally does not bother itself with these(nonpathogenic organisms) unless 
they broach the mucus membrane "barrier".  If they do, an inflammatory 
response will be set up.  Most Americans are not getting enough vitamin A 
from their diets.  About 30% of all American's die with less Vitamin A than 
they were born with(U.S. autopsy studies).  While this low level of vitamin 
A does not cause pathology(blindness) it does impair the mucus membrane 
barrier system.  This would then be a predisposing factor for a strong 
inflammatory response after a candida bloom.  

While diabetics can suffer from a candida "bloom" the  most common cause of 
this type of bloom is the use of broad spectrum antibiotics which 
knock down many different kinds of bacteria in the body and remove the main 
competition for candida as far as food is concerned.  While drugs are 
available to handle candida, many patients find that their doctor will not 
use them unless there is evidence of a systemic infection.  The toxicity of 
the anti-fungal drugs does warrant some caution.  But if the GI or sinus 
inflammation is suspected to be candida(and recent use of a broad spectrum 
antibiotic is the smoking gun), then anti-fungal use should be approrpriate 
just as the anti-fungal creams are an appropriate treatment for recurring 
vaginal yeast infections, in spite of what Mr. Steve Dyer says.

But even in patients being given the anti-fungals, the irritation caused by 
the excessive candida bloom in the sinus, GI tract or the vagina tends to 
return after drug treatment is discontinued unless the underlying cause of 
the problem is addressed(lack of a "good" bacterial flora in the body and/or 
poor mucus membrane barrier).  Lactobacillus acidophilus is the most effective 
therapy for candida overgrowth.  From it's name, it is an acid loving 
organism and it sets up an acidic condition were it grows.  Candida can not 
grow very well in an acidic environment.  In the vagina, L. acidophilius is 
the predominate bacteria(unless you are hit with broad spectrum 
antibiotics).  

In the GI system, the ano-rectal region seems to be a particularly good 
reservoir for candida and the use of pantyhose by many women creates a very 
favorable environment around the rectum for transfer(through moisture and 
humidity) of candida to the vaginal tract.  One of the most effctive ways to 
minimmize this transfer is to wear undyed cotton underwear.  

If the bloom occurs in the anal area, the burning, swelling, pain and even 
blood discharge make many patients think that they have hemorroids.  If the 
bloom manages to move further up the GI tract, very diffuse symptomatology 
occurs(abdominal discomfort and blood in the stool).  This positive stool 
for occult blood is what sent Elaine to her family doctor in the first 
place.  After extensive testing, he told her that there was nothing wrong 
but her gut still hurt.  On to another doctor, and so on.  Richard Kaplan 
has told me throiugh e-mail that he considers occult blood tests in stool 
specimens to be a waste of time and money because of the very large number of 
false positives(candida blooms guys?).  If my gut hurt me on a constant 
basis, I would want it fixed.  Yes it's nice to know that I don't have 
colon cancer but what then is causing my distress?  When I finally find a 
doctor who treats me and gets me 90% better, Steve Dyer calls him a quack.

Candida prefers a slightly alkaline environment while bacteria 
tend to prefer a slightly acidic environment.  The vagina becomes alkaline 
during a woman's period and this is often when candida blooms in the vagina. 
Vinegar and water douches are the best way of dealing with vaginal 
problems.  Many women have also gotten relief from the introduction of 
Lactobacillus directly into the vaginal tract(I would want to be sure of 
the purity of the product before trying this).  My wife had this vagina 
problem after going on birth control pills and searched for over a year 
until she found a gynocologist who solved the problem rather than just writting 
scripts for anti-fungal creams.  This was a woman gynocologist who had had 
the same problem(recurring vaginal yeast infections).  This M.D. did some 
digging and came up with an acetic acid and L. Acidophilis douche which she 
used in your office to keep it sterile.  After three treatments, sex 
returned to our marraige.  I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
patients is a non-existent syndrome.

The nonpathogenic bacteria L. acidophilus is an acid producing bacteria 
which is the most common bacteria found in the vaginal tract of healthy women.  
If taken orally, it can also become a major bacteria in the gut.  Through 
aresol sprays, it has also been used to innoculate the sinus membranes.
But before this innoculation occurs, the mucus membrane barrier system 
needs to be strengthened.  This is accomplished by vitamin A, vitamin C and 
some of the B-complex vitamins.  Diet surveys repeatedly show that Americans 
are not getting enough B6 and folate.  These are probably the segement of 
the population that will have the greatest problem with this non-existent 
disorder(candida blooms after antibiotic therapy).
 
Some of the above material was obtained from "Natural Healing" by Mark 
Bricklin, Published by Rodale press, as well as notes from my human 
nutrition course.  I will be posting a discussion of vitamin A  sometime in 
the future, along with reference citings to point out the extremely 
important role that vitamin A plays in the mucus membrane defense system in 
the body and why vitamin A should be effective in dealing with candida 
blooms.  Another effective dietary treatment is to restrict carbohydrate 
intake during the treatment phase, this is especially important if the GI 
system is involved.  If candida can not get glucose, it's not going to out 
grow the bacteria and you then give bacteria, which can use amino acids and 
fatty acids for energy, a chance to take over and keep the candida in check 
once carbohydrate is returned to the gut.

If Steve and some of the other nay-sayers want to jump all over this post, 
fine.  I jumped all over Steve in Sci. Med. Nutrition because he verbably 
accosted a poster who was seeking advice about her doctor's use of vitamin 
A and anti-fungals for a candida bloom in her gut.  People seeking advice 
from newsnet should not be treated this way.  Those of us giving of our 
time and knowledge can slug it out to our heart's content.  If you saved 
your venom for me Steve and left the helpless posters who are timidly 
seeking help alone, I wouldn't have a problem with your behavior. 
 
Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 West 17th St.
Tulsa, Ok. 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance".

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59166
From: egb7390@ucs.usl.edu (Boutte Erika G)
Subject: M. contagiosem


I was wondering if anyone had any information about Molluscous contagiosem.
I acquired it, and fortunately got rid of it, but the question still lingers
in my mind: Where did it come from?  The little bit of info that I have 
received about it in the past states that it can be transmitted sexually, but
also occurs in small children on the hands, feet and genitalia.

Any information will be greatly appreciated.



"I grow old, I grow old;
I shall wear my trousers rolled."

               -T. S. Eliot


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59167
From: sdr@llnl.gov (Dakota)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <1993Apr21.143910.5826@wvnvms.wvnet.edu> 
pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu writes:
> My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she 
has no
> medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
> 
> My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least 
mitigate
> their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to 
literature,
> etc...)
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> Dave Carvell
> pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

First, let me offer you my condolences.  I've had kidney stones 4 times 
and I know the pain she is going through.  First, it is best that she see 
a doctor.  However, every time I had kidney stones, I saw my doctor and the
only thing they did was to prescribe some pain killers and medication for a
urinary tract infection.  The pain killers did nothing for me...kidney stones
are extremely painful.  My stones were judged passable, so we just waited it
out.  However the last one took 10 days to pass...not fun.  Anyway, if she
absolutely won't see a doctor, I suggest drinking lots of fluids and perhaps
an over the counter sleeping pill.  But, I do highly suggest seeing a doctor.
Kidney stones are not something to fool around with.  She should be x-rayed 
to make sure there is not a serious problem.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59168
From: spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov (S. Spenser Aden)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-220493145727@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
>wrote:
>> 
>> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
>> disease.
>> 
>> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
>> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
>> 
>> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
>> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
>
>If she is having problems with fresh vegetables, the guess is that there
>is some obstruction of the intestine.  Without knowing more it is not
>possible to say whether the obstruction is permanent due to scarring,
>or temporary due to swelling of inflammed intestine.  In general, there are
>no dietary limitations in patients with Crohn's except as they relate
>to obstruction.  There is no evidence that any foods will bring on 
>recurrence of Crohn's. 

Interesting statements, simply because I have been told otherwise.  I'm
certainly not questioning Steve's claims, as for one I am not a doctor, and I
agree that foods don't bring on the recurrence of Crohn's.  But inflammation
can be either mildly or DRASTICALLY enhanced due to food.

Having had one major obstruction resulting in resection (is that a good enough
caveat :-), I was told that a *LOW RESIDUE* diet is called for.  Basically,
the idea is that if there is inflammation of the gut (which may not be
realized by the patient), any residue in the system can be caught in the folds
of inflammation and constantly irritate, thus exacerbating the problem.
Therefore, anything that doesn't digest completely by the point of common
inflammation should be avoided.  With what I've been told is typical Crohn's,
of the terminal ileum, my diet should be low residue, consisting of:

Completely out - never again - items:
	o corn (kernel husk doesn't digest ... most of us know this :-)
	o popcorn (same)
	o dried (dehydrated) fruit and fruit skins
	o nuts (Very tough when it comes to giving up some fudge :-)

Discouraged greatly:
	o raw vegetables (too fibrous)
	o wheat and raw grain breads
	o exotic lettuce (iceberg is ok since it's apparently mostly water)
	o greens (turnip, mustard, kale, etc...)
	o little seeds, like sesame (try getting an Arby's without it!)
	o long grain and wild rice (husky)
	o beans (you'll generate enough gas alone without them!)
	o BASICALLY anything that requires heavy digestive processing

I was told that the more processed the food the better! (rather ironic in this
day and age).  The whole point is PREVENTATIVE ... you want to give your
system as little chance to inflame as possible.  I was told that among the
NUMEROUS things that were heavily discouraged (I only listed a few), to try
the ones I wanted and see how I felt.  If it's bad, don't do it again!
Remember though that this was while I was in remission.  For Veggies: cook the
daylights out of them.  I prefer steaming ... I think it's cooks more
thoroughly - you're mileage may vary.

As with anything else, CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR.  Don't just take my word.  But
this is the info I've been given, and it may be a starting point for
discussion.  Good luck!

-Spenser


-- 
S. Spenser Aden --- Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Co. --- (713) 483-2028
NASA --- Flight Data and Evaluation Office --- Johnson Space Center, Houston
spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov    (Internet) ---  Opinions herein are mine alone.
aden@vf.jsc.nasa.gov (if above bounces) ---  "Eschew obfuscation." - unknown

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59169
From: SASTLS@MVS.sas.com (Tamara Shaffer)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

In article <1993Apr20.184034.13779@dbased.nuo.dec.com>,
dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD) writes:
 
>
>        The reason I'm posting this article to this newsgroup is to:
>1. gather any information about this disorder from anyone who might
>   have recently been *e*ffected by it ( from being associated with
>   it or actually having this disorder ) and
>2. help me find out where I can access any medical literature associated
>   with seizures over the internet.
 
I tried to e-mail you but it bounced back.  Please e-mail me and
I will give you someone's name who might be very helpful.  You might
also post your message to misc.kids.
TAMARA
sastls@mvs.sas.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59170
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:

>I had electrical pulse nerve testing done a while back.  The needles were taken
>from a dirty drawer in an instrument cart and were most certainly NOT
>sterile or even clean for that matter.  More than likely they were fresh
>from the previous patient.  I WAS concerned, but I kept my mouth shut.  I
>probably should have raised hell!
	Could you describe in more detail the above procedure?  I've never
heard about it.
	And yes, if they pierced you with the needles you probably should have
protested. 

euclid
 
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59171
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Foreskin Troubles

In article <1993Apr18.042100.2720@radford.vak12ed.edu> mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:
>What can be done, short of circumcision, for an adult male
>whose foreskin will not retract?
>
Melissa, there is a simpler procedure called a "Dorsal slit" that is
really the first step of the usual circumcision.  It is simpler and
quicker, but the pain is about the same as circumcision after the
anesthetic wears off and the aesthetic result post healing is not as
good.  See your friendly urologist for more details.
                                                Len Howard
.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59172
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <93108.003258U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> writes:
>Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
> quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
> health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
>interest, I will post the responses.
>        Thank You
>        Abhin Singla MS BioE, MBA, MD
>        President AC Medcomp Inc

Dr Singla, you might contact Kaiser Health Plan either in the area
closest to you or at the central office in Oakland CA.  We have been
doing QA, QoS, concurrent UR, and TQM for some time now in the Hawaii
Region, and I suspect it is nationwide in the system.
Len Howard MD

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59173
From: tron@fafnir.la.locus.com (Michael Trofimoff)
Subject: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce


Hi All,

Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

Thanks,

-=< tron >=-
e-mail: tron@locus.com		*Vidi, vici, veni*


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59174
From: akins@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (kay.a.akins)
Subject: Seizure information - infant

Here is the tollfree hotline for the Epilepsy Foundation
of America - 1-800-EFA-1000.  They will be able to answer
your questions and send you information and references on
seizure types, medication, etc.  They can also give you references
for a pediatric neorologist in your area.  Also ask for the 
number of your local Foundation who can put you in touch with
a Parent Support Group and social workers.
Good Luck.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59175
From: koreth@spud.Hyperion.COM (Steven Grimm)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

I had allergy shots for about four years starting as a sophomore in high
school.  Before that, I used to get bloody noses, nighttime asthma attacks,
and eyes so itchy I couldn't get to sleep.  After about 6 months on the
shots, most of those symptoms were gone, and they haven't come back.  I
stopped getting the shots (due more to laziness than planning) in college.
My allergies got a little worse after that, but are still nowhere near as
bad as they used to be.  So yes, the shots do work.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59176
Subject: Re: Arythmia
From: perry1@husc10.harvard.edu (Alexis Perry)

In article <1993Apr22.031423.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu> u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:

>doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused
>
	Is it that serious?  My EKG often comes back with a few irregular
beats.  Another question:  Is a low blood potassium level very bad?  My
doctor seems concerned, but she tends to worry too much in general.


___________________________________________________________________________
Alexis Perry				"The less I want the more I get
perry1@husc.harvard.edu			 Make me chaste, but not just yet.
eliot house box 413			 It's a promise or a lie
(617) 493-6300				 I'll repent before I die."
"Work? Have you lost your mind?!" 
			-Ren				-Sting

   Nobody really admits to sharing my opinions - last of all Harvard College

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59178
From: melewitt@cs.sandia.gov (Martin E. Lewitt)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment

In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>
>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

I saw a Lifetime Medical Television show a few months back on travel
medicine.  It briefly mentioned some drugs which when started two or
three days before getting to altitude could assist in acclimitazation.

Unfortunately all that I can recall is that the drug stimulated
breathing at night???  I don't know if that makes sense, it seems
to me that the new drug which stimulates red blood cell production
would be a more logical approach, erythropoiten (sp?).

Alas, I didn't record the program, but wish I had, since I live
at over 7000ft. and my mother gets sick when visiting.

Please let me know if you get more informative responses.
--
Phone:  (505) 845-7561           Martin E. Lewitt             My opinions are
Domain: lewitt@ncube.COM         P.O. Box 513                 my own, not my
Sandia: melewitt@cs.sandia.GOV   Sandia Park, NM 87047-0513   employer's. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59179
From: robg@citr.uq.oz.au (Rob Geraghty)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.
>Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!
>Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.
>Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.
>I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
>responds to "miracle cures."
>Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
>Snort.
>Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".
>Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
>More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.
>You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
>in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
>The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.
>The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
>and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
>systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
>any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
>IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
>the "yeast" problem once and for all.
>Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
>your symptoms.
>Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
>to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

Steve, take a look at what you are saying.  I don't see one construvtive
word here.  If you don't have anything constructive to add, why waste
the bandwidth - yeah, sure, flame me for doing it myself.  Is this
sci.med or alt.flame?  Like it or not, medical science does *not* know
categorically everything about everything.  I'm not flaming your
knowledge, just asking you to sit back and ask yourself "what if?"

"Minds are like parachutes - they only function when they are open."

Oh - and if you *do* want to flame me or anyone else, how about using
email?

Rob
Who doesn't claim any relevant qualifications, just interest
--
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rob Geraghty               | 3 things are important to me 
robg@citr.uq.oz.au         | The gift of love, the joy of life
CITR                       | And the making of music in all its forms

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59180
From: pete@smtl.demon.co.uk (Pete Phillips)
Subject: Nebulisers and particle Size


Hi,

we are just completing a project on nebuliser performance, and have a
wealth of data on particle size and output which we are going to use
to adjudicate a contract next week.

Although the output data is easy for us to present, there seems to be
little concensus on the optimum diameter of the nebulised droplets for
straightforward inhalation therapy (eg: for asthmatics).

Some say that the droplets must be smaller than 5 microns, whilst
others say that if they are too small they will not be effective.

Anyone up on this topic who could summarise the current status ?

Cheers,
Pete
-- 
Pete Phillips, Deputy Director, Surgical Materials Testing Lab, 
Bridgend General Hospital, S. Wales. 0656-652166 pete@smtl.demon.co.uk   
--
"The Four Horse Oppressors of the Apocalypse were Nutritional
Deprivation, State of Belligerency, Widespread Transmittable Condition
and Terminal Inconvenience" - Official Politically Correct Dictionary

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59181
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
> 
> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> disease.
> 
> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> 
> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> 
> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> John Eyles

All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While 
most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who 
are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their 
patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get 
your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for 
the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The 
better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's 
plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to 
control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and 
lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but 
I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For 
bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects 
are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing 
a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with 
inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.

Marty B. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59182
From: krishnas@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Subject: RE: HELP ME INJECT...

The best way of self injection is to use the right size needle
and choose the correct spot. For Streptomycin, usually given intra
muscularly, use a thin needle (23/24 guage) and select a spot on
the upper, outer thigh (no major nerves or blood vessels there). 
Clean the area with antiseptic before injection, and after. Make
sure to inject deeply (a different kind of pain is felt when the
needle enters the muscle - contrasted to the 'prick' when it 
pierces the skin).

PS: Try to go to a doctor. Self-treatment and self-injection should
be avoided as far as possible.
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59183
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)


GREAT post Martin.  Very informative, well-balanced, and humanitarian
without neglecting the need for scientific rigor.


(Cross-posted to alt.psychology.personality since some personality typing
will be discussed at the beginning - Note: I've set all followups to sci.med
since most of my comments are more sci.med oriented and I'm sure most of the
replies, if any, will be med-related.)


In article banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>I can not believe the way this thread on candida(yeast) has progressed.
>Steve Dyer and I have been exchanging words over the same topic in Sci. 
>Med. Nutrition when he displayed his typical reserve and attacked a woman 
>poster for being treated by a licenced physician for a disease that did 
>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible, Steve, and I 
>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

They are just responding in their natural way:  Hyper-Choleric Syndrome (HCS).
Oops, that is not a recognized "illness" in the psychological community,
better not say that since it therefore must not, and never will, exist.  :^)

Actually, it is fascinating that a disproportionate number of physicians
will type out as NT (for those not familiar with the Myers-Briggs system,
just e-mail me and I'll send a summary file to you).  In the general
population, NT's comprise only about 12% of the population, but among
physicians it is much much higher (I don't know the exact percentage -
any help here a.p.p.er's?)

One driving characteristic of an NT, especially an NTJ, is their obvious
choleric behavior (driver, type A, etc.) - the extreme emotional need to
control, to lead, and/or to be the best or the most competent.  If they are
also extroverted, they are best described as "Field Marshalls".  This trait
is very valuable and essential in our society - we need people who want to
lead, to strive to overcome the elements, to seek and thirst for knowledge,
to raise the level of competency, etc.  The great successes in science and
technology are in large part due to the vision (an N trait) and scientifically-
minded approach (T trait) of the NT personality (of course, the other types
and temperaments have their own positive contributions as well).  However,
when the NT person has self-image challenges, the "dark-side" of this
personality type usually comes out, which should be obvious to all.

A physician who is a strong NT and who has not learned to temper their
temperament will be extremely business-like (lack of empathy or feeling),
and is very compelled to have total control over their patient (the patient
must be obedient to their diagnosis and prescription without question).  I've
known many M.D.'s of this temperament and suffice to say I don't oblige them
with a followup visit, no matter how competent I think they are (and they
usually are very competent from a knowledge viewpoint since that is an
extreme drive of theirs - to know the most, to know it all).

Maybe we need more NF doctor's.  :^)

Enough on this subject - let's move on to candida bloom.


>Let me tell you who the quacks really are, these are the physicans who have 
>no idea how the human body interacts with it's environment and how that 
>balance can be altered by diet and antibiotics...  Could it just be
>professional jealousy?  I couldn't help Elaine or Jon but somebody else did.

You've helped me already by your post.  Of course, I believe that I have
been misdiagnosed on the net as suffering from 'anal retentivitis', but being
the phlegmatic I am, maybe I was just a little too harsh on a few people
myself in past posts.  Let's all try to raise the level of this discussion
above the level of anal effluent.


>...Humans have all 
>kinds of different organisms living in the GI system (mouth, stomach, small 
>and large intestine), sinuses, vagina and on the skin.  These are 
>nonpathogenic because they do not cause disease in people unless the immune 
>system is compromised.  They are also called nonpathogens because unlike 
>the pathogenic organisms that cause human disease, they do not produce 
>toxins as they live out their merry existence in and on our body.  But any of 
>these organisms will be considered pathogenic if it manages to take up 
>residence within the body.  A poor mucus membrane barrier can let this 
>happen and vitamin A is mainly responsible for setting up this barrier.

In my well-described situation (in prior posts), I definitely was immune
stressed.  Blood tests showed my vitamin A levels were very low.  My sinuses
were a mess - no doubt the mucosal lining and the cilia were heavily damaged.
I also was on antibiotics 15 times in 4 years!  In the end, even two weeks
of Ceftin did not work and I had confirmed diagnoses of a chronic bacterial
infection of the sinuses via cat-scans, mucus color (won't get into the
details), and other symptoms.  Three very traditional ENT's made this
diagnosis (I did not have any cultures done, however, because of the
difficulty of doing this right and because my other symptoms clearly showed
a bacterial infection).  Enough of this background (provided to help you
understand where I was when I make comments about my Sporanox anti-fungal
therapy below).


The first question I have is this.  Can fungus penetrate a little way into poor
mucus membrane tissue, maybe via hyphae, thus causing symptoms, without being
considered 'systemic' in the classic sense?  It is sort of an inbetween
infection.


>Steve got real upset with Elaine's doctor because he was using anti-fungals 
>and vitamin A for her GI problems.  If Steve really understoood what 
>vitamin A does in the body, he would not(or at least should not) be calling 
>Elaine's doctor a quack.

I was concerned, too, because of the toxicity of vitamin A.  My doctor, after
my blood tests, put me on 75,000 IU of vitamin A for one week only, then
dropped it down to 25,000 IU for the next couple of weeks.  I also received
zinc and other supplementation, since all of these interrelate in fairly
complex ways as my doctor explained (he's one of those 'evil' orthomolecular
specialists).  I had a blood test three weeks later and vitamin A was normal,
he then stopped me on all vitamin A (except for some in a multi-vitamin)
supplement), and made sure that I maintain a 50,000 IU/day of beta carotene.
Call me carrot face.  :^)

Hopefully, Elaine's doctor will take a similar, careful approach and to
all supplements.  I'm even reevaluating some supplements I'm taking, for
example, niacin in fairly large dosages, 1 gram/day, which Steve Dyer had
good information about on sci.med.nutrition.  If niacin only has second-order
improvement in symptomatic relief of my sinus allergies, then it probably is
not worth taking such a large dose long-term and risking liver damage.


>survives.  If it gets access to a lot of glucose, it blooms and over rides 
>the other organisms living with it in the sinuses, GI tract or vagina.  In 

Though I do now believe, based on my successful therapy with Sporanox, that
I definitely had some excessive growth of fungus (unknown species) in my
sinuses, I still want to ask the question:  have there been any studies that
demonstrate candida "blooms" in the sinuses with associated sinus irritation
(sinusitis/rhinitis)?  (My sinus irritation reduced significantly after one
week of Sporanox and no other new treatments were implemented during this
time - I did not have any noticeable GI track problems before starting on
Sporanox, but some for a few days after which then went away - considered
normal).

BTW, my doctor dug out one of his medical reference books (sorry, can't
remember which one), and found an obscure comment dating back into the 1950's
which stated that people can develop contained (non-lethal or non-serious)
aspergillis infestations (aspergiliosis) of the sinuses leading to sinus
inflammation symptoms.  I'll have to dig out that reference again since it
is relevant to this discussion.


>some people do really develop a bad inflammatory process at the mucus 
>membrane or skin bloom site.  Whether this is an allergic like reaction to 
>the candida or not isn't certain.

My doctor tested me (I believe a RAST or RAST similar test) for allergic
response to specificially Candida albicans, and I showed a strong positive.
Another question, would everybody show the same strong positive so this test
is essentially useless?  And, assuming it is true that Candida can grow
part-way into the mucus membrane tissue, and the concentration exceeds a 
threshold amount, could not a person who tests as having an allergy to
Candida definitely develop allergic symptoms, such as mucus membrane
irritation due to the body's allergic response?  As I said in an earlier post,
one does not need to be a rocket scientist, or have a M.D. degree or a 
Ph.D. in biochemistry to see the plausibility of this hypothesis.

BTW, and I'll repost this again.  Dr. Ivker, in his book, "Sinus Survival",
has routinely given, before anything else, Nizoral (a pre-Sporanox systemic
anti-fungal, not as safe and not as good as Sporanox) to his new chronic
sinusitis patients IF they have been on antibiotics four or more times in
the last two years.  He claims that out of 2000 or so patients, well over
90% notice some relief of sinus inflammation and other symptoms, but it
doesn't cure it by any means, implying the so-called yeast/fungus infection
is not the primary cause, but a later complication.  He's also found that
nystatin, whether taken internally, or put into a sinus spray, does not help.

This implies (of course assuming that excessive yeast/fungus bloom is
aggravating the sinus inflammation) that the yeast/fungus has grown partway
into the tissue since nystatin will not kill yeast/fungus other than by
direct contact - it is not absorbed into the blood stream.  Again, I admit,
lots of 'ifs', and 'implies', which doesn't please the hard-core NT who
has to have the double-blind study or it's a non-issue, but one has to start
with some plausible hypothesis/explanation, a strawman, if you will.


>If it's internal, only symptoms can be used and these symptoms are pretty 
>nondescript.  

This brings up an interesting observation used by those who will deny
and reject any and all aspects of the 'yeast hypothesis' until the
appropriate studies are done.  And that is if you can't observe or culture
the yeast "bloom" in the gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or
even recognize the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body that cannot
be easily observed since candida is everywhere in the body.

It's a real Catch-22.

Another Catch-22:  Those who totally reject the 'yeast hypothesis' say that
no studies have been done (actually studies have been done, but if it's not
up to a certain standard then it is, from their perspective, a non-study which
should not even be considered).  I agree that the appropriate studies should
be done, and that will take big $ to do it right.  However, in order to
convince the funding agencies in these austere times to open their wallets,
you literally have to give them evidence, and the only acceptable evidence to
compete with other proposals is paradoxically to do almost the exact study
needed funding.  That is, you have to do 90% of the study before you even get
funding (as a scientist at a National Lab, I'm very aware of this for the
smaller funded projects).  I'm afraid that even if Dr. Ivker and 100 other
doctors got together, pooled their practice's case histories and anecdotes
into a compelling picture, and approach the funding agencies, they would get
nowhere, even if they were able to publish their statistical results.

It is obvious from the comments by some of the doctors here is that they have
*decided* excessive yeast colonization in the gut or sinuses leading to
noticeable non-lethal symptoms does not exist, and is not even a tenable
hypothesis, so any amount of case histories or compiled anecdotal evidence
to the contrary will never change their mind, and not only that, they would
also oppose the needed studies because in their minds it's a done issue - 
excessive yeast growth leading to diffuse allergic symptoms does not, will
not, and cannot exist.  Period.  Kind of tough to dialog with those who hold
such a viewpoint.  Kind of reminds me of Lister...


>Candida is kept in check in most people by the normal bacterial flora in 
>the sinuses, the GI tract(mouth, stomach and intestines) and in the 
>vaginal tract which compete with it for food.  The human immune system 
>ususally does not bother itself with these(nonpathogenic organisms) unless 
>they broach the mucus membrane "barrier".  If they do, an inflammatory 
>response will be set up.  Most Americans are not getting enough vitamin A 
>from their diets.  About 30% of all American's die with less Vitamin A than 
>they were born with(U.S. autopsy studies).  While this low level of vitamin 
>A does not cause pathology(blindness) it does impair the mucus membrane 
>barrier system.  This would then be a predisposing factor for a strong 
>inflammatory response after a candida bloom.  

Aren't there also other nutrients necessary to the proper working of the
sinus mucus membranes and cilia?


>While diabetics can suffer from a candida "bloom" the  most common cause of 
>this type of bloom is the use of broad spectrum antibiotics which 
>knock down many different kinds of bacteria in the body and remove the main 
>competition for candida as far as food is concerned.  While drugs are 
>available to handle candida, many patients find that their doctor will not 
>use them unless there is evidence of a systemic infection.  The toxicity of 
>the anti-fungal drugs does warrant some caution.  But if the GI or sinus 
>inflammation is suspected to be candida(and recent use of a broad spectrum 
>antibiotic is the smoking gun), then anti-fungal use should be approrpriate 
>just as the anti-fungal creams are an appropriate treatment for recurring 
>vaginal yeast infections, in spite of what Mr. Steve Dyer says.

Again, the evidence from mycological studies indicate that many yeast/fungus
species can grow hyphae ("roots") into deep tissue, similar to mold growing
in bread.  You can continue to kill the surface, such as nystatin does, but
you can't kill that which is deeper in the tissue without using a systemic
anti-fungal such as itraconazole (Sporanox) or some of the older ones such
as Nizoral which are more toxic and not as effective.  This is why, as has
been pointed out by recent studies (sent to me by a doctor I've been in
e-mail contact with - thanks), that nystatin is not effective in the long-
term treatment of GI tract "candidiasis".  It's like trying to weed a garden
by cutting off what's above the ground but leaving the roots ready to come
out again once you walk away.

The $60000 question is whether a contained candida "bloom" can partially
grow into tissue through the mucus membranes, causing some types of symptoms
in susceptible people (e.g., allergy), without becoming "systemic" in the
classical sense of the word - something in between strictly an excessive
bloom not causing any problems and the full-blown systemic infection that
is potentially lethal.


>In the GI system, the ano-rectal region seems to be a particularly good 
>reservoir for candida and the use of pantyhose by many women creates a very 
>favorable environment around the rectum for transfer(through moisture and 
>humidity) of candida to the vaginal tract.  One of the most effctive ways to 
>minimmize this transfer is to wear undyed cotton underwear.  

Also, if one is an 'anal retentive', like I've been diagnosed in a prior
post, that can also provide more sites for excessive candida growth.  ;^)


>If the bloom occurs in the anal area, the burning, swelling, pain and even 
>blood discharge make many patients think that they have hemorroids.  If the 
>bloom manages to move further up the GI tract, very diffuse symptomatology 
>occurs(abdominal discomfort and blood in the stool).  This positive stool 
>for occult blood is what sent Elaine to her family doctor in the first 
>place.  After extensive testing, he told her that there was nothing wrong 
>but her gut still hurt.  On to another doctor, and so on.  Richard Kaplan 
>has told me throiugh e-mail that he considers occult blood tests in stool 
>specimens to be a waste of time and money because of the very large number of 
>false positives(candida blooms guys?).  If my gut hurt me on a constant 
>basis, I would want it fixed.  Yes it's nice to know that I don't have 
>colon cancer but what then is causing my distress?  When I finally find a 
>doctor who treats me and gets me 90% better, Steve Dyer calls him a quack.

As I've said in private e-mail, there are flaws in our current medical system
that make it difficult or even impossible for a physician to attempt
alternative therapies AFTER the approved/proven/accepted therapies don't work.
For example, I went to three ENT's, who all said that I will just have to live
with my acute/chronic sinusitis after the ab's failed (they did mention
surgery to open up the ostia, but my ostia weren't plugged and it would not
get to the root cause of my condition).  After three months of aggressive and
fairly non-standard therapy (Sporanox, body nutrient level monitoring and
equalization, vitamin C, lentinen, echinacea, etc.), my health has vastly
improved to where I was two years ago, before my health greatly deteriorated.
Of course, skeptics would say that maybe if I did nothing I would have
improved anyway, but that view is stretching things quite far because of the
experience of the three ENT's I saw who said that I'd just have to "live with
it".  I'm confident I will reach what one could call a total "cure".  The
anti-fungal program I undertook was one necessary step in that direction
because of my overuse of ab's for the last four years.  (Note:  for those
having sinus problems, may I suggest the book by Dr. Ivker I mention above.
Be sure to get the revised edition.)


>...I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
>GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
>patients is a non-existent syndrome.

Dr. Ivker started off having chronic and severe sinus problems, and his
visits to several ENT's totally floored him when they said "you'll just have
to live with it".  He spent several years trying everything - standard and
non-standard, until he was essentially cured of chronic sinusitis.  He now
shares his approach in his book and I can honestly say that I am on the road
to recovery following some parts of it.  His one recommendation to take a
systemic anti-fungal at the beginning of treatment IF you have a history of
anti-biotic overuse has been proven to him time and time again in his own
practice.  I'm sure if I commented to him of the hard-core beliefs of the anti-
"yeast hypothesis" posters that he would have definite things to say, such as,
"it's worked wonders for me in almost two thousand cases", to put it mildly.
I also would not be surprised if he would say that they are the ones violating
their moral obligations to help the patient.

Maybe those doctors who are reading this who have a practice and are
confronted by a patient having symptoms that could be due to the "hypothetical
yeast overgrowth" (e.g., they fit some of the profiles the pro-yeast people
have identified), should consider anti-fungal therapy IF all other avenues
have been exhausted.  Remember, theory and practice are two different things -
you cannot have one without the other, they are synergistic.  If a doctor does
something non-standard yet produces noticeable symptomatic relief in over a
thousand of his patients, shouldn't you at least sit up and take notice?
Maybe you ought to trust what he says and begin hypothesizing why it works
instead of why it shouldn't work.  I'm afraid a lot of doctors have become
so enamored with "scientific correctness" that they are ignoring the patients
they have sworn to help.  You have to do both;  both have to be balanced, which
we don't see from some of the posters to this group.  There comes a point when
you just have to use a little common sense, and maybe an empirical approach
(such as trying a good systemic anti-fungal such as Sporanox) after having
exhausted all the other avenues.  I was one of those who the traditional
medical establishment was not able to help, so I did the natural thing:  I
went to a couple of doctor's who are (somewhat) outside this establishment,
and as a result I have found significant relief.

Would it not be better if the traditional medical establishment can set up
some kind of mechanism where any doctor, without fear of being sued or having
his license pulled, can try experimental and unproven (beyond a doubt)
therapies for his/her patients that finally reach the point where all the
accepted therapies are ineffective?  I'd like to hear a doctor tell me:
"well, I've tried all the therapies that are approved and accepted in this
country, and since they clearly don't work for you, I now have the authority
to use experimental, unproven techniques that seem to have helped others.  I
can't promise anything, and there are some risks.  You will have to sign
something saying you understand the experimental and possibly risky nature of
these unproven therapies, and I'll have to register your case at the State
Board."  Anyway, if my ENT had suggested this to me, I would've jumped on this
pronto instead of going to one of those doctors who, for either altruistic
reasons, or for greed, is practicing these alternative therapies with much
risk to him/her (risk meaning losing their license) and possibly to the
patient.  Such a mechanism would keep control in the more mainstream medicine,
and also provide valuable data that would essentially be free.  It also would
be morally and ethically better than the current system by showing the
compassion of the medical community to the patient - that it's doing everything
it can within reason to help the patient.  It is the lack of such a mechanism
that is leading large numbers of people to try alternative therapies, some of
which seem to work (like my case), and others of which will never work at all
(true quackery).

I better get off my soapbox before this post reaches 500K in size.


>If taken orally, it can also become a major bacteria in the gut.  Through 
>aresol sprays, it has also been used to innoculate the sinus membranes.
>But before this innoculation occurs, the mucus membrane barrier system 
>needs to be strengthened.  This is accomplished by vitamin A, vitamin C and 
>some of the B-complex vitamins.  Diet surveys repeatedly show that Americans 
>are not getting enough B6 and folate.  These are probably the segement of 
>the population that will have the greatest problem with this non-existent 
>disorder(candida blooms after antibiotic therapy).

What dosage of B6 appears to be necessary to promote the healing and proper
working of the mucos memebranes?


>Some of the above material was obtained from "Natural Healing" by Mark 
>Bricklin, Published by Rodale press, as well as notes from my human 
>nutrition course.  I will be posting a discussion of vitamin A  sometime in 
>the future, along with reference citings to point out the extremely 
>important role that vitamin A plays in the mucus membrane defense system in 
>the body and why vitamin A should be effective in dealing with candida 
>blooms.  Another effective dietary treatment is to restrict carbohydrate 
>intake during the treatment phase, this is especially important if the GI 
>system is involved.  If candida can not get glucose, it's not going to out 
>grow the bacteria and you then give bacteria, which can use amino acids and 
>fatty acids for energy, a chance to take over and keep the candida in check 
>once carbohydrate is returned to the gut.

I'd like to see the role of complex carbohydrates, such as starch.


>If Steve and some of the other nay-sayers want to jump all over this post, 
>fine.  I jumped all over Steve in Sci. Med. Nutrition because he verbably 
>accosted a poster who was seeking advice about her doctor's use of vitamin 
>A and anti-fungals for a candida bloom in her gut.  People seeking advice 
>from newsnet should not be treated this way.  Those of us giving of our 
>time and knowledge can slug it out to our heart's content.  If you saved 
>your venom for me Steve and left the helpless posters who are timidly 
>seeking help alone, I wouldn't have a problem with your behavior. 

Brave soul you are.  The venom on Usenet can be quite toxic unless one
develops an immunity to it.  One year ago, my phlegmatic self would have
backed down right away from an attack of cholericitis.  But my immune
system, and my computer system, have been hardened from gradual
desensitization.  I now kind of like being called "anal retentive" - it has
a nice ring to it.  I also was very impressed by how it just flowed into the
post - truly classic, worthy of a blue (or maybe brown) ribbon.  I might
even cross-post it to alt.best.of.internet.  Hmmm...


>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

Thanks again for a great and informative post.  I hope others who have
researched this area and are lurking in the background will post their
thoughts as well, no matter their views on this subject.

Jon Noring


-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59184
From: dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds) writes:

>Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
>or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
>at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
>reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

I tend to disagree- I think anecdotal evidence, provided there is a lot of it,
and it is fairly consistent, will is very important.  First, it points to the
necessity of doing a study, and second, it at least says that the effects are
all psychological (or possibly allergy in this case).  As I've pointed out 
before, pyschological effects are no less real than other effects.  One       
person's "make-believe" can easily be another person's reality.  Using 
psychadelic drugs in a bizarre and twisted example, the hallucinations one
person experiences on an acid trip cannot be guaranteed to another person on
an acid trip- there is no clinical evidence that those effects are always going
to happen.  Anyhow, that was a pretty lame example, but hopefully I made my
point- it's all a matter of perception, and as long as someone ingesting MSG
perceives it as causing bad effects, then s/he can definitely experience those
affects.  On the other hand, it could just be an allergy to the food it's in,   or something.  Still, anecdotal evidence is not worthless- it's the stuff that
leads to the study being done.
-Dan

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59185
From: eulenbrg@carson.u.washington.edu (Julia Eulenberg)
Subject: Re: Arythmia

Alexis Perry asked if low blood potassium could be dangerous.  Yes.
ZZ

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59186
From: hahn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (David James Hahn)
Subject: Re: RE: HELP ME INJECT...

From article <1993Apr22.233001.13436@vax.oxford.ac.uk>, by krishnas@vax.oxford.ac.uk:
> The best way of self injection is to use the right size needle
> and choose the correct spot. For Streptomycin, usually given intra
> muscularly, use a thin needle (23/24 guage) and select a spot on
> the upper, outer thigh (no major nerves or blood vessels there). 
> Clean the area with antiseptic before injection, and after. Make
> sure to inject deeply (a different kind of pain is felt when the
> needle enters the muscle - contrasted to the 'prick' when it 
> pierces the skin).
> 
> PS: Try to go to a doctor. Self-treatment and self-injection should
> be avoided as far as possible.
>  
The areas that are least likely to hurt are where you have a little 
fat.  I inject on my legs and gut, and prefer the gut.  I can stick
it in at a 90 degree angle, and barely feel it.  I'm not fat, just
have a little gut.  My legs however, are muscular, and I have to pinch
to get anything, and then I inject at about a 45 degree angle,and it
still hurts.  The rate of absorbtion differs for subcutaneous and  
muscular injections however--so if it's a daily thing it would be
best not to switch places every day to keep consistencey.  Although
some suggest switch legs or sides of the stomach for each shot, to prevent 
irritation.  When you clean the spot off with an alcohol prep, 
wait for it to dry somewhat, or you may get the alcohol in the
puncture, and of course, that doesn't feel good.  A way to prevent
irratation is to mark the spot that you injected.  A good way to
do this is use a little round bandage and put it over the 
spot.  This helps prevent you from injecting in the same spot,
and spacing the sites out accuartely (about 1 1/2 " apart.)

This is from experience, so I hope it'll help you.  (I have
diabetes and have to take an injection every morning.)

			Later,
				David
-- 
David Hahn
University of Wisconsin : Milwaukee 
hahn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59187
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
>>
>>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
>>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
>>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
>>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
>>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
>
>Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
>the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
>why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
>what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
>After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
>"acute corn intoxication."
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and

How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???



-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59188
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <C5wC7G.4EG@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.001642.9186@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>>>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>>>
>>>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>>>
>>>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>>>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>>
>>I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
>>study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.
>>
>
>Good story, Chuck, but it won't wash.  I have read the NY Acad Sci
>one (and have it).  This AM I couldn't find any reference to
>"weight rebound".  I'm not saying it isn't there, but since you
>cited it, it is your responsibility to show me where it is in there.
>There is no index.  I suspect you overstepped your knowledge base,
>as usual.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's on page 315, about 2 1/2 inches up from the bottom and an inch in
from the right.

At least we know what some people *haven't* read and remembered.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59189
From: heart@access.digex.com (G)
Subject: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

Hi,

I've just returned from a visit with my OB/GYN and I have a few 
concerns that maybe y'all can help me with.  I've been seeing 
her every 4 weeks for the past few months (I'm at week 28) 
and during the last 2 visits I've gained 9 to 9 1/2 pounds every 
4 weeks.  She said this was unacceptable over any 4 week period. 
As it stands I've thus far gained 26 pounds.  Also she says that 
though I'm at 28 weeks the baby's size is 27 weeks, I think she 
mentioned 27 inches for the top of the fundus.  When I was 13 
weeks the baby's size was 14 weeks.  I must also add, that I had 
an operation a few years ago for endometriosis and I've had no 
problems with endometriosis but apparently it is causing me pain 
in my pelvic region during the pregnancy, and I have a very 
difficult time moving, and the doc has recommended I not walk or 
move unless I have to. (I have a little handicapped sticker for 
when I do need to go out.) 

Anyway that's 1/2 of the situation the other is that almost from 
the beginning of pregnancy I was getting sick (throwing up) about 
2-3 times a day and mostly it was bile that was being eliminated.  
(I told her about this).  I know this because I wasn't eating 
very much due to the nausea and could see the 'results'.  Well 
now I only get sick about once every 1-2 weeks, and it is still bile 
related.  But in addition I had begun to feel movement near my 
upper right abdomen, just below the right breast, usually when I 
was lying on my right side.  It began to get worse though because 
it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
wasn't as much of a problem.

So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 
I'm not taking in fat, is she expecting the baby will take it 
from my stores?  And why this restriction on carbohydrates if 
she's concerned about fat?  I'm not clear how much of her 
recommendation is based on my weight gain and how much on 
cholistatis, which I can't seem to find any information on.  She 
originally said that I should only gain 20 pounds during the 
entire pregnancy since I was about 20 lbs overweight when I 
started.  But my sister gained 60 lbs during her pregnancy and 
she's taken it all off and hasn't had any problems.  She also 
asked if any members of my family were obese, which none of them 
are.  Anyway I think she is overly concerned about weight gain, 
and feel like I'm being 'punished' by a severe diet.  She did 
want to see me again in one week so I think she the diet may be 
temporary for that one week. 

What I want to know is how reasonable is this non-fat diet?  I 
would understand if she had said low-fat diet, since I'm trying 
that anyway, even if she said really low-fat diet.  I think she 
assumes I must be eating a high-fat diet, but really it is that 
because of the endometriosis and the operation I'm not able to 
use the energy from the food I do eat. 

Any opinions, info and experiences will be appreciated.  I'm 
truly going stark raving mad trying to meet this new strict diet 
because fruits and vegetables go through my system in a few 
minutes and I'll end up having to eat constantly.  Thus far I 
don't find any foods satisfying.

Thanks 

G

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59190
From: bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz)
Subject: PRK (Photo Refractive Keratostomy)

For those of you interested in the above Procedure, I am able to add the
following facts:

1) This Procedure is not done in Philadelphia.

2) It is performed in Maryland at Johns Hopkins for corrections between
   0 and -5 and from -10 to -20 (diopters, I think are the units).

3) It is performed in New York City at Manhattan Eye and Ear for corrections
   between 0 and -6.

The magic words to use when requesting information on this is not PRK (they
think you mean RK) but the excimer laser study (or protocol). This will get 
you to the proper people.


-- 
Barry D. Benowitz
EMail:	bbenowit@telesciences.com (...!pyrnj!telesci!bbenowit)
Phone:	+1 609 866 1000 x354
Snail:	Telesciences CO Systems, 351 New Albany Rd, Moorestown, NJ, 08057-1177

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59191
From: etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............


   Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
   a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
   into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
   I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
   painless and effective treatment.
   A couple of weeks ago I visited a hospital here in Stockholm and
   saw big signs showing the way to the "Kidney stone chrusher" ...



   Mats Winberg
   Stockholm, Sweden

	     

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59192
From: ske@pkmab.se (Kristoffer Eriksson)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1quqlgINN83q@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
> My definition is this: Science is the investigation of the empirical
>that avoids mistakes in reasoning and methodology discovered from previous
>work.

Reading this definition, I wonder: when should you recognize something
as being a "mistake"? It seems to me, that proponents of pseudo-sciences
might have their own ideas of what constitutes a "mistake" and which
discoveries of such previous mistakes they accept.

-- 
Kristoffer Eriksson, Peridot Konsult AB, Stallgatan 2, S-702 26 Oerebro, Sweden
Phone: +46 19-33 13 00  !  e-mail: ske@pkmab.se
Fax:   +46 19-33 13 30  !  or ...!mail.swip.net!kullmar!pkmab!ske

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59193
From: bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:

>I think that's the correct spelling..
>	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.

Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.

Bill from oz



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59194
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
>Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
>authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
>is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
the major ingredients.   :-)

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59195
From: sjha+@cs.cmu.edu (Somesh Jha)
Subject: What is "intersection syndrome" near the forearm/wrist?


Hi:

I went to the orthopedist on Tuesday. He diagnosed me as having
"intersection syndrome". He prescribed Feldene for me. I want
to know more about the disease and the drug.

Thanks


Somesh







Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59196
From: choueiry@liasun1.epfl.ch (Berthe Y. Choueiry)
Subject: French to English translation of medical terms

Dear Netters,

I am not sure whether this is the right place to post my query, but I
thought there may be some bilingual physicians in this newsgroup that
could help. Please, excuse me for overloading the bandwidth.

I am trying to build a resource allocation program for managing a
surgical operating unit in a hospital. The user interface is in
English, however the terms of medical specialties I was given are in
French :-( I have no medical dictionary handy, mine is a technical
university :-((

I need to get the translation into English (when there is one) of the
following words. They refer to medical categories of operating rooms
(theaters). I admit they may not be universally "used".

1- sceptique
2- orl
3- brulure/brule'
4- ne'onatal
5- pre'natal
6- pre'mature'
7- neurochirurgie (neuro-surgery??)
8- chirurgie ge'ne'rale
9- chirurgie plastique
10- urologie (urology??)

Thank you for you help.
Cheers,

---------
Berthe Y. Choueiry

choueiry@lia.di.epfl.ch
LIA-DI, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Ecublens
CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Voice: +41-21-693.52.77 and +41-21-693.66.78 	Fax: +41-21-693.52.25

--------
ps: please reply by e-mail if possible since I scan too quickly
through the messages of this newsgroup.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59197
From: jgd@dixie.com (John De Armond)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

E.J. Draper <draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu> writes:

>If it were my wife, I would insist that a radiologist be involved in the
>process.  Radiologist are intensively trained in the process of
>interpreting diagnostic imaging data and are aware of many things that
>other physicians aren't aware of.  

Maybe, maybe not.  A new graduate would obviously be well trained (but
perhaps without sufficient experience). A radiologist trained 10 or
15 years ago who has not kept his continuing education current is a 
whole 'nuther matter.  A OB who HAS trained in modern radiology technology
is certainly more qualified than the latter and at least equal to 
the former.

>Would you want a radiologist to
>deliver your baby?  If you wouldn't, then why would you want a OB/GYN to
>read your ultrasound study?

If the radiologist is also trained in OB/GYN, why not?

John

-- 
John De Armond, WD4OQC               |Interested in high performance mobility?  
Performance Engineering Magazine(TM) | Interested in high tech and computers? 
Marietta, Ga                         | Send ur snail-mail address to 
jgd@dixie.com                        | perform@dixie.com for a free sample mag
Lee Harvey Oswald: Where are ya when we need ya?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59198
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: HELP ME INJECT...

According to a previous poster, one should seek a doctor's
assistance for injections. But what about Sumatriptin [sp?]?
Doesn't one have to inject oneself immediately upon the onset
of a migraine?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59199
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr22.202051.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
> In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
>>
>> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
>> disease.
>>
>> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
>> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
>>
>> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
>> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
>>
>> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
>>
>> Thanks in advance,
>> John Eyles
>
> All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While
> most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who
> are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their
> patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get
> your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for
> the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The
> better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's
> plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to
> control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
> Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and
> lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but
> I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For


If you do a MEDLINE search on "turmeric" you'll see that it is a potent
lipoxygenase inhibitor which is being investigated in a number of areas.
I'm in cardiology and about 4 years ago the cardiothoracic surgery lab at my
hospital compared the effect of a teaspoon of dissolved turmeric vs. a $2000
bolus of tPA in preventing myocardial reperfusion injury in a perfused
Langendorff sheep heart. The turmeric was more effective :-)


A colleague of mine in the School of Pharmacy (Dr. Ron Kohen) has a paper "in
press" on the free radical scavenging activity and antioxidant activity of tea.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL


> bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects
> are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing
> a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with
> inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.
>
> Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59200
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Wanted: Rat cell line (adrenal gland/cortical c.)

In article <roos.49@Operoni.Helsinki.FI> roos@Operoni.Helsinki.FI (Christophe Roos) writes:
>I am looking for a rat cell line of adrenal gland / cortical cell  -type. I 
>have been looking at ATCC without success and would very much appreciate any 
>help.

I shot off a response to this last night that I've tried to cancel.  It was 
only a few minutes later while driving home that I remembered that your 
message does specifically say cortical.  My first reaction had been to suggest
the PC12 pheochromocytoma line.  That may still be a good compromise, depending
on what you're doing.  Have you concidered using a mouse cell line from one 
of the SV40 T antigen transgenic lines?  Another alternative might be primary
cells from bovine adrenal cortex.  

Mike

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59201
From: jkjec@westminster.ac.uk (Shazad Barlas)
Subject: NEED HELP ON SCARING PLEASE

Hi...

I need information on scaring. Particularly as a result of grazing the skin
I really wanted to know of 

	1. would a scar occur as a result of grazing
	2. if yes, then would it disappear?
	3. how long does a graze take to heal?
	4. will hair grow on it once it has healed?
	5. what is 'scar tissue'?
	6. should antiseptic cream be applied to it regularly?
	7. is it better to keep it exposed and let fresh air at it?

Please help - any info - no matter how small will be appreciated greatly. 

BUT PLEASE E-MAIL ME DIRECTLY because I dont read this newsgroup often (this
is my first time).  
  						....Shaz....

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59202
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

Summary of thread:
A person has Crohns, raw vegetables cause problems (unspecified)
Steve Holland replies:  patient may have mild obstruction.  Avoid things
that would plug her up.  Crohn's has no dietary restriction in general.

In article <1993Apr22.210631.13300@aio.jsc.nasa.gov>,
spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov (S. Spenser Aden) wrote:
> 
> Interesting statements, simply because I have been told otherwise.  I'm
> certainly not questioning Steve's claims, as for one I am not a doctor, and I
> agree that foods don't bring on the recurrence of Crohn's.  But inflammation
> can be either mildly or DRASTICALLY enhanced due to food.

The feeling obout this has changed in the GI community.  The current
feeling
is that inflammation is not induced by food.  There is even evidence that
patients deprived of food have mucosal atrophy due to lack of stimulation
of
intestinal growth factors.  There is now interest in providing small
amounts
of nasogastric feeding to patients on IV nutrition.  But I digress.  
Symptoms can be drastically enhanced by food, but not inflammation.

> Having had one major obstruction resulting in resection (is that a good enough
> caveat :-), I was told that a *LOW RESIDUE* diet is called for.  Basically,
> the idea is that if there is inflammation of the gut (which may not be
> realized by the patient), any residue in the system can be caught in the folds
> of inflammation and constantly irritate, thus exacerbating the problem.
> Therefore, anything that doesn't digest completely by the point of common
> inflammation should be avoided.  With what I've been told is typical Crohn's,
> of the terminal ileum, my diet should be low residue, consisting of:
>
> Completely out - never again - items:
> 	o corn (kernel husk doesn't digest ... most of us know this :-)
> 	o popcorn (same)
> 	o dried (dehydrated) fruit and fruit skins
> 	o nuts (Very tough when it comes to giving up some fudge :-)

The low residue diet is appropriate for you if you still have obstructions.
Again, it is not felt that food causes inflammation.  These foods are
avoided because they may get stuck.  I'd go ahead and have the
fudge, though ;-)  .

> Discouraged greatly:
> 	o raw vegetables (too fibrous)
> 	o wheat and raw grain breads
> 	o exotic lettuce (iceberg is ok since it's apparently mostly water)
> 	o greens (turnip, mustard, kale, etc...)
> 	o little seeds, like sesame (try getting an Arby's without it!)
> 	o long grain and wild rice (husky)
> 	o beans (you'll generate enough gas alone without them!)
> 	o BASICALLY anything that requires heavy digestive processing
> 
> I was told that the more processed the food the better! (rather ironic in this
> day and age).  The whole point is PREVENTATIVE ... you want to give your
> system as little chance to inflame as possible.  I was told that among the
> NUMEROUS things that were heavily discouraged (I only listed a few), to try
> the ones I wanted and see how I felt.  If it's bad, don't do it again!
> Remember though that this was while I was in remission.  For Veggies: cook the
> daylights out of them.  I prefer steaming ... I think it's cooks more
> thoroughly - you're mileage may vary.
> 
> As with anything else, CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR.  Don't just take my word.  But
> this is the info I've been given, and it may be a starting point for
> discussion.  Good luck!
> 
Spencer makes an especially good point in having an observant and
informed patient.  Would that many patients be able to tell what
causes them problems.  The digestive processing idea is changing, but
if a food causes problems, avoid them.  Be sure that the foods are 
tested a second time to be sure the food is a real cause.  Crohn's
commonly causes intermittent symptoms and some patients end up with
severly restricted diets that take months to renormalize.

There was a good article in the CCFA newsletter recently that discussed
the issue of dietary restriction of fiber.  It would be worth reading
to anyone with an interest in Crohn's.

And, as I always say when dealing with Crohn's, as does Spencer, Good Luck!

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59203
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr22.202051.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>,
banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu wrote:
> 
> In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
> > 
> > A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> > disease.
> > 
> > But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> > without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> > 
> > Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> > problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> > 
> > (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> > 
> > Thanks in advance,
> > John Eyles
> 
> All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While 
> most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who 
> are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their 
> patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get 
> your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for 
> the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The 
> better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's 
> plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to 
> control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
> Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and 
> lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but 
> I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For 
> bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects 
> are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing 
> a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with 
> inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.
> 
> Marty B. 

Be sure a dietician is up to date on Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.  
Previously, low residue diets were recommended, but this advice has
now changed.  Also, there will be differences in advice in patients with
and without obstructuon remaining, so input by the physician will be 
important.  I find the dietician very important in my practice, and 
I send most of my patients to a dietician in the course of seeing
them, since dieticians know so much better how to get diet histories
and evaluate the contents of a diet than I do.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59204
From: jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <19609@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <3794@nlsun1.oracle.nl> rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch) writes:
>>
>>In many European countries Homepathy is accepted as a method of curing
>>(or at least alleiating) many conditions to which modern medicine has 
>>no answer. In most of these countries insurance pays for the 
>>treatments.
>>
>
>Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
>in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
>In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
>What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.
>
>

When were you in Britain?, my information is different.

From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.

From Page 10,
.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
of treatment.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59205
From: tony@nexus.yorku.ca (Anthony Wallis)
Subject: "Choleric" and The Great NT/NF Semantic War.

[Cross-posted from alt.psychology.personality since it talks about
 physician's personalities.  Apologies to sci.med readers not
 familiar with the Myers-Briggs "NT/NF" personality terms.  But,
 in a word or two, the NTs (iNtuitive->Thinkers) are approximately your
 philosophy/science/tech pragmatic types, and the NFs (iNtuitive-Feelers)
 are your humanities/social-"science"/theology idealistic types.  They
 hate each others' guts (:-)) but tend to inter-marry.
 The letter "J" is a reference to conscienciousness/decisiveness.]

Jon Noring emits typical NF-type stuff 
> [Physicians] are just responding in their natural way:
> Hyper-Choleric Syndrome (HCS).  ..
> ..it is fascinating that a disproportionate number of
> physicians will type out as NT ..
> One driving characteristic of an NT, especially an NTJ, is their obvious
> choleric behavior (driver, type A, etc.) - the extreme emotional need to
> control, to lead, and/or to be the best or the most competent. ..

Please get it right, Jon.
(This NTJ has a strong desire to correct semantic mistakes,
 because the NFs of this world are fouling the once-pristine NT
 intellectual nest with their verbal poop.)

The dominant correlation is NT <-> Phlegmatic (and _not_ NT <-> Choleric).
One of the semantic roots of "choleric" is the idea of "hot" (emotional)
and one of the semantic roots of "phlegmatic" is "cold" (unemotional).

Here is a thumbnail sketch (taken from Hans Eysenck, refering to Wundt)
relating the Ancient Greek quadratic typology with modern terms:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 Emotional   
                                     ^
     ("Melancholic")                 |                     ("Choleric")
                                     |              
           Thoughtful Suspicious     |    Quickly-aroused Hotheaded
                  Unhappy Worried    |   Egocentric Histrionic
                           Anxious   |  Exhibitonist 
                             Serious | Active           
 Unchangeable < ------------------------------------------------> Changeable
                                Calm | Playful          
                         Reasonable  |  Carefree
              Steadfast Persistent   |   Hopeful Sociable
     Highly-principled Controlled    |    Controlled Easy-going
                                     |              
    ("Phlegmatic")                   |                     ("Sanguine")
                                     |
                                     v
                               Non-emotional
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I suspect that your characterisation of NTs as "choleric" is what
you psych-types call a "projection" of your own NF-ness onto us.

> Maybe we need more NF doctor's.  :^)

Perhaps in serious pediatics and "my little boy's got a runny
nose, doctor" general practice, but, please God, not in neurology,
opthamology, urology, etc. etc.  And NF-psychiatry should seperate
from NT-(i.e. real) psychiatry and be given a new name .. something 
like "channeling"  :-).

--
tony@nexus.yorku.ca = Tony Wallis, York University, Toronto, Canada


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59206
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman) writes:
>bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds) writes:
>
>>Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
>>or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
>>at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
>>reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

But it is quite a leap in logic to observe one situation where anecdotal
evidence led nowhere and therefore conclude that anecdotal evidence will
NEVER lead anywhere.  I'm sure somebody here can provide an example where
anecdotal evidence (and the interpretation of it) was upheld/verified by
follow-on rigorous clinical trials.


>I tend to disagree- I think anecdotal evidence, provided there is a lot of it,
>and it is fairly consistent, will is very important.  First, it points to the
>necessity of doing a study, and second, it at least says that the effects are
>all psychological (or possibly allergy in this case).  As I've pointed out 
>person's "make-believe" can easily be another person's reality...

Good point.  There has been a tendency by some on this newsgroup to "circle
the wagons" to the viewpoint that anecdotal medical evidence is worthless
(maybe to counter the claims of those who are presenting anecdotal evidence
to support controversial subjects, such as the "yeast hypothesis").  But
evidence is evidence - it requires a "jury" or a process to sort it out and
determine the truth from the junk.  Medicine must continue to strive to better
understand the workings of the body/mind for the purpose of alleviating
illness - anecdotal evidence is just one piece of the puzzle;  it is not
worthless.  Rather, it can help focus limited resources in the right direction.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59207
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: How To Prevent Kidney Stone Formation

I got asked in Sci. Med. Nutrition about vitamin C and oxalate production(
toxic, kidney stone formation?).  I decided to post my answer here as well 
because of the recent question about kidney stones.  Not long after I got 
into Sci. Med. I got flamed by a medical fellow for stating that magnesium 
would prevent kidney stone formation.  I'm going to state it again here.
But the best way to prevent kidney stones from forming is to take B6 
supplements.  Read on to find out why(I have my asbestos suit on now guys).

Vitamin C will form oxalic acid.  But large doses are needed (above 6 grams 
per day).

	1. Review Article "Nutritional factors in calcium containing kidney 
	   stones with particular emphasis on Vitamin C" Int. Clin. Nutr. Rev.
	   5(3):110-129(1985).

But glycine also forms oxalic acid(D-amino acid oxidases).  For both 
glycine and vitamin C, one of the best ways to drastically reduce this 
production is not to cut back on dietary intake of vitamin C or glycine, 
but to increase your intake of vitamin B6.

	2. "Control of hyperoxaluria with large doses of pyridoxine in 
	    patients with kidney stones" Int. Urol. Nephrol. 20(4):353-59(1988)
	    200 to 500 mg of B6 each day significasntly decreased the urinary 
	    excretion of oxalate over the 18 month treatment program.

	3. The action of pyridoxine in primary hyperoxaluria" Clin. Sci. 38
	   :277-86(1970).  Patients receiving at least 150mg B6 each day 
	   showed a significant reduction in urinary oxalate levels.

For gylcine, this effect is due to increased transaminase activity(B6 is 
required for transaminase activity) which makes less glycine available for 
oxidative deamination(D-amino acid oxidases).  For vitamin C, the effect is 
quite different.  There are different pathways for vitamin C catabolism.  
The pathway that leads to oxalic acid formation will usually have 17 to 40% 
of the ingested dose going into oxalic acid.  But this is highly variable 
and the vitamin C review article pointed out that unless the dose gets upto 
6 grams per day, not too much vitamin C gets catabolized to form oxalic 
acid.  At very high doses of vitamin C(above 10 grams per day), more of the 
extra vitamin C (more than 40% conversion) can end up as oxalic acid.  In a 
very early study on vitamin C and oxalic production(Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. 
Med. 85:190-92(1954), intakes of 2 grams per day up to 9 grams per day 
increased the average oxalic acid excretion from 38mg per day up to 178mg 
per day.  Until 8 grams per day was reached, the average excreted was 
increased by only 3 to 12mg per day(2 gram dose, 4 gram dose, 8 gram dose 
and 9gram dose). 8 grams jumped it to 45mg over the average excretion 
before supplementation and 9 grams jumped it to 150 mg over the average 
before supplementation.

B6 is required by more enzymes than any other vitamin in the body.  There 
are probably some enzymes that require vitamin B6 that we don't know about 
yet.  Vitamin C catabolism is still not completely understood but the 
speculation is that this other pathway that does not form oxalic acid must 
have an enzyme in it that requires B6.  Differences in B6 levels could then 
explain the very variable production of oxalic acid from a vitamin C 
challenge(this is not the preferred route of catabolism).  Increasing your 
intake of B6 would then result in less oxalic acid being formmed if you 
take vitamin C supplements.  Since the typical American diet is deficient 
in B6, some researchers believe that the main cause of calcium-oxalate 
kidney stones is B6 deficiency(especially since so little oxalic acid gets 
absorbed from the gut).  Diets providing 0 to 130mg of oxalic acid per day 
showed absolutely no change in urinary excretion of oxalate(Urol Int.35:309
-15,1980).  If 400mg was present each day, there was a significant increase 
in urinary oxalate excretion.

	Here are the high oxalate foods:

	1. Beans, coca, instant coffee, parsley, rhubarb, spinach and tea.
	   Contain at least 25mg/100grams

	2. Beet tops, carrots, celery, chocolate, cumber, grapefruit, kale, 
	   peanuts, pepper, sweet potatoe.
	   Contain 10 to 25 mg/100grams.

If the threshold is 130mg per day, you can see that you really have a lot 
of latitude in food selection.  A recent N.Eng.J. Med. article also points 
out that one good way to prevent kidney stone formation is to increase your 
intake of calcium which will prevent most of the dietary oxalate from being 
absorbed at all.  If you also increase your intake of B6, you shouldn't 
have to worry about kidney stones at all. The RDA for B6 is 2mg per day for 
males and 1.6mg per day for females(directly related to protein intake).
B6 can be toxic(nerve damage) if it is consumed in doses of 500mg or more 
per day for an extended peroid(weeks to months).  

The USDA food survey done in 1986 had an average intake of 1.87 mg per day 
for males and 1.16mg per day for females living in the U.S.  Coupled with 
this low intake was a high protein diet(which greatly increases the B6 
requirement), as well as the presence of some of the 40 different drugs that 
either block B6 absorption, are metabolic antagonists of B6, or promote B6 
excretion in the urine.  Common ones are: birth control pills, alcohol,
isoniazid, penicillamine, and corticosteroids.  I tell my students to 
supplement all their patients that are going to get any of the drugs that 
increase the B6 requirement.  The dose recommended for patients taking 
birth control pills is 10-15mg per day and this should work for most of the 
other drugs that increase the B6 requirement(this would be on top of your 
dietary intake of B6).  Any patient that has a history of kidney stone 
formation should be given B6 supplements.

One other good way to prevent kidney stone formation is to make sure your 
Ca/Mg dietary ratio is 2/1.  Magnesium-oxalate is much more soluble than is 
calcium-oxalate.

	4. "The magnesium:calcium ratio in the concentrated urines of 
patients with calcium oxalate calculi"Invest. Urol 10:147(1972)

	5. "Effect of magnesium citrate and magnesium oxide on the 
crystallization of calcium in urine: changes producted by food-magnesium 
interaction"J. Urol. 143(2):248-51(1990).

	6.Review Article, "Magnesium in the physiopathology and treatment 
of renal calcium stones" J. Presse Med. 161(1):25-27(1987).

There are actually about three times as many articles published in the 
medical literature on the role of magnesium in preventing kidney stone 
formation than there are for B6.  I thought that I was being pretty safe in 
stating that magnesium would prevent kidney stone formation in an earlier 
post in this news group but good old John A. in Mass. jumped all over me. I 
guess that he doesn't read the medical literature.  Oh well, since kidney 
stones can be a real pain and a lot of people suffer from them, I thought 
I'd tell you how you can avoid the pain and stay out of the doctor's office.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 W. 17th Street
Tulsa, Ok. 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance".  From a wise man 
who lived in China, many, many years ago.  I think that it still has 
meaning in today's world.
























Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59208
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu> Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu (Donald Mackie) writes:
:In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
:tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
:>Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
:>authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
:>is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
:
:I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
:the major ingredients.   :-)
:

The only recipies I've ever seen for this include plain yogurt, finely
chopped cucumber and a couple of crushed cloves of garlic -- yummy.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59209
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

In article <noringC5wzM4.41n@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

Hate to wreck your elaborate theory, but Steve Dyer is not an MD.
So professional jealosy over doctors who help their patients with
Nystatin, etc., can't very well come into the picture.  Steve
doesn't have any patients.



>response to specificially Candida albicans, and I showed a strong positive.
>Another question, would everybody show the same strong positive so this test
>is essentially useless?  And, assuming it is true that Candida can grow

Yes, everyone who is normal does that.  We use candida on the other arm
when we put a tuberculin test on.  If people don't react to candida,
we assume the TB test was not conclusive since such people may not
react to anything.  All normal people have antibodies to candida.
If not, you would quickly turn into a fungus ball.

>This brings up an interesting observation used by those who will deny
>and reject any and all aspects of the 'yeast hypothesis' until the
>appropriate studies are done.  And that is if you can't observe or culture
>the yeast "bloom" in the gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or
>even recognize the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
>impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body that cannot
>be easily observed since candida is everywhere in the body.
>
>It's a real Catch-22.
>

You've just discovered one of the requirements for a good quack theory.
Find something that no one can *disprove* and then write a book saying
it is the cause of whatever.  Since no one can disprove it, you can
rake in the bucks for quite some time.  

>>...I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
>>GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
>>patients is a non-existent syndrome.
>

That is odd, isn't it?  Why do you suppose it is that MDs with these
common problems don't go for these crazy ideas?  Does the "professional
jealosy" extend to suffering in silence, even though they know they
could be cured if they just followed this quack book?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59210
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5qMJJ.yB@ampex.com> jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani) writes:

>
>From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
>ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.
>
>From Page 10,
>.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
>homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
>of treatment.

I was there in 1976.  I suppose it must have died out since 1946,
then.  Certainly I never heard of any homeopaths or herbalists in
the employ of the NHS.  Perhaps the law codified it but the authorities
refused to hire any homeopaths.  A similar law in the US allows
chiropractors to practice in VA hospitals but I've never seen one
there and I don't know of a single VA that has hired a chiropractor.
There are a lot of Britons on the net, so someone should be able to
tell us if the NHS provides homeopaths for you.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59211
From: jcherney@envy.reed.edu (Joel Alexander Cherney)
Subject: Epstein-Barr Syndrome questions

Okay, this is a long shot.

My friend Robin has recurring bouts of mononucleosis-type symptoms, very  
regularly.  This has been going on for a number of years.  She's seen a  
number of doctors; six was the last count, I think.  Most of them have  
said either "You have mono" or "You're full of it; there's nothing wrong  
with you."  One has admitted to having no idea what was wrong with her,  
and one has claimed that it is Epstein-Barr syndrome.

Now, what she told me about EBS is that very few doctors even believe that  
it exists.  (Obviously, this has been her experience.)  So, what's the  
story?  Is it real?  Does the medical profession believe it to be real?

Has anyone had success is treating EBS?  Or is it just something to live  
with?  Thanks for your assistance.

Joel "The Ogre" Cherney
jcherney@reed.edu
Of the Horde

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59212
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <C5x3L0.3r8@athena.cs.uga.edu> mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes:

   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!saimiri.primate.wisc.edu!sdd.hp.com!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!emory!athena!aisun3.ai.uga.edu!mcovingt
   From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
   Sender: usenet@athena.cs.uga.edu
   Nntp-Posting-Host: aisun3.ai.uga.edu
   Organization: AI Programs, University of Georgia, Athens
   References: <PAULSON.93Apr19081647@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov> <116305@bu.edu> <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us>
   Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1993 03:41:24 GMT
   Lines: 27

   In article <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
   >In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
   >>
   >>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
   >>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
   >>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
   >>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
   >>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
   >
   >Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
   >the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
   >why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
   >what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
   >After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
   >"acute corn intoxication."
   >----------------------------------------------------------------------------
   >Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and

   How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???



   -- 
   :-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
   :-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
   :-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
   :-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

What is aflatoxin?

Sharon
--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59213
From: ffujita@s.psych.uiuc.edu (Frank Fujita)
Subject: Re: "Choleric" and The Great NT/NF Semantic War.

Also remember that most people map the
sanguine/choleric/melencholic/phlegmatic division onto the extraversion
and neuroticism dimensions (Like Eysenck) and that the MBTI does not
deal with neuroticism (Costa & McCrae).

Frank Fujita

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59214
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

stgprao@st.unocal.COM (Richard Ottolini) writes:

: Living things maintain small electric fields to (1) enhance certain
: chemical reactions, (2) promote communication of states with in a
: cell, (3) communicate between cells (of which the nervous system is
: a specialized example), and perhaps other uses.

True.

: These electric fields change with location and time in a large
: organism.

Also True.


: Special photographic techniques such as applying external fields in
: Kirillian photography interact with these fields or the resistances
: caused by these fields to make interesting pictures.

Not really.  

Kirlian photography is taking pictures of the corona discharge from
objects (animate or inanimate).  The fields applied to the objects are
millions of times larger than any biologically created fields.  If you
want to record the biologically created electric fields, you've got to
use low-noise, high-gain sensors typical of EEGs and EKGs.  Kirlian
photography is just phun-with-physics type stuff (right up there with
soaking chunks of extra-fine steel wool in liquid oxygen then hitting
them with a hammer -- which, like a Kirlean setup, is fun but possibly
dangerous).

: Perhaps such pictures will be diagonistic of disease problems in
: organisms when better understood. Perhaps not.

Probably not.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Vote for ME -- I'm
Rosemount Inc.                                |well-tapered, half-cocked,
                                              |ill-conceived and
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |TAX-DEFERRED!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59215
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Arrhythmia

In article <1993Apr22.205509.23198@husc3.harvard.edu>
 perry1@husc10.harvard.edu (Alexis Perry) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.031423.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu>
 u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:

>>doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused

>	Is it that serious?  My EKG often comes back with a few irregular
>beats.  Another question:  Is a low blood potassium level very bad?  My
>doctor seems concerned, but she tends to worry too much in general.

The term arrhythmia is usually used to encompass a wide range of abnormal
heart rhythms (cardiac dysrhythmias).  Some of them are very serious
while others are completely benign.  Having "a few irregular beats"
on an EKG could be serious depending on what those beats were and
when they occurred, or could be of no significance.

Low blood potassium levels probably predispose people with underlying
heart disease to develop arrhythmias.  Very low potassium levels are
clearly dangerous, but it is not clear how much of a problem
low-end-of-normal levels are:  a lot of cardiologists seem to treat
anyone with even a mildly low-normal potassium level.

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59216
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
people.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59217
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5y5zr.B11@toads.pgh.pa.us>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> In article <C5qMJJ.yB@ampex.com> jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani) writes:
> 
>>
>>From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
>>ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.
>>
>>From Page 10,
>>.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
>>homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
>>of treatment.
> 
> I was there in 1976.  I suppose it must have died out since 1946,
> then.  Certainly I never heard of any homeopaths or herbalists in
> the employ of the NHS.  Perhaps the law codified it but the authorities
> refused to hire any homeopaths.  A similar law in the US allows
> chiropractors to practice in VA hospitals but I've never seen one
> there and I don't know of a single VA that has hired a chiropractor.
> There are a lot of Britons on the net, so someone should be able to
> tell us if the NHS provides homeopaths for you.
> 
> 
> -- 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I don't think they provide homeopaths, heck the heir apparent was trying to 
promote Osteopaths to the ranks of eligibility a couple of years back... It 
pleased my family no end, since I'm at an Osteopathic school, sort of 
validated it for them...then I told them that the name was the same but the 
practice was different....oh.
	If you're seeking validation for your philosophy on the strength of 
the national health service adopting it, I suggest that you are not very 
sure of the validity of your philosophy. I believe in 1946, the NHS was 
still having its nurses taught the fine art of "cupping", which is the 
vacuum extraction of intradermal fluids by means of heating a cup, placing 
it on the afflicted site and allowing it to cool.
	I wouldn't take my sick daughter to a homeopath.


David N. Chorley
***************************************************************************
Yikes, I'm agreeing with Gordon Banks
**************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59218
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: Modified sense of taste in Cancer pt?

In article <1993Apr21.134848.19017@peavax.mlo.dec.com>, lunger@helix.enet.dec.com (Dave Lunger) writes:
> 
> What does a lack of taste of foods, or a sense of taste that seems "off"
> when eating foods in someone who has cancer mean? What are the possible
> causes of this? Why does it happen?

I can't answer most of your questions, but I've seen it happen in 
family members who are being treated with radiation and/or chemotherapy.
Jory Graham published a cookbook many years ago (in cooperation with 
the American Cancer Society, I think) called "Something has to taste
good" (as I recall).

The cookbook was just what we needed several times when favorite foods
suddenly became "yech".

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59219
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

-*-----
In article <noringC5wzM4.41n@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>> ... if you can't observe or culture the yeast "bloom" in the
>> gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or even recognize
>> the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
>> impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body 
>> that cannot be easily observed since candida is everywhere in 
>> the body.

In article <C5y5nM.Axv@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> You've just discovered one of the requirements for a good quack theory.
> Find something that no one can *disprove* and then write a book saying
> it is the cause of whatever.  Since no one can disprove it, you can
> rake in the bucks for quite some time.  

I hope Gordon Banks did not mean to imply that notions such as
hard-to-see candida infections causing various problems should not
be investigated.  Many researchers have made breakthroughs by 
figuring out how to investigate things that were previously thought
"virtually impossible to test for."

Indeed, I would be surprised if "candida overbloom" were such a
phenomena.  I would think that candida would produce signature
byproducts whose measure would then set a lower bound on the 
extent of recent infection.  I realize this might get quite 
tricky and difficult, probably expensive, and likely inconvenient
or uncomfortable to the subjects, but that is not the same as 
"virtually impossible."

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59220
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
acids (FAs).

I was diagnosed last May w/Crohn's of the terminal ileum. When I got
out of the hospital I read up on it a bit, and came across several
studies investigating the role of EPA (an essentially FA) in reducing
inflammation. The evidence was mixed. [Many of these studies are
discussed in "Inflammatory Bowel Disease," MacDermott, Stenson. 1992.]

But if I recall correctly, there were some methodological bones to be
picked with the studies (both the ones w/pos. and w/neg. results). In
the studies patients were given EPA (a few grams/day for most of the
studies), but, if I recall correctly, there was no restriction of the
_other_ FAs that the patients could consume. From the informed
layperson's perspective, this seems mistaken. If lots of n-6 FAs are
consumed along with the EPA, then the ratio of "bad" prostanoid
products to "good" prostanoid products could still be fairly "bad."
Isn't this ratio the issue?

What's the view of the gastro. community on EPA these days? EPA
supplements, along with a fairly severe restriction of other FAs
appear to have helped me significantly (though it could just be the
low absolute amount of fat I eat -- 8-10% calories).

-Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59221
From: andrew@calvin.dgbt.doc.ca (Andrew Patrick)
Subject: Any Interest in a Mailing List on Epilepsy and Seizures?


I have seen a fair bit of traffic recently concerning Epilepsy and
seizures.  I am also interested in this subject -- I have a son with
Epilepsy and I am very active with the local association.  I posted a
message like this a few months ago and received no replies, but here it
is again.

Is anyone interested in participating in a mailing list on Epilepsy and
seizures?  This would allow us to hold discussions and share
information via electronic mail.  I already run a Listserver for two
other groups, so the mechanics would be easy.

If you are interested, mail me a note.  If I get enough replies, I will
make it happen and provide you with the details.

BTW, I have also started a database on Epilepsy.  This is part of my
research on natural language question answering systems.  Users of this
service are able to ask questions about Epilepsy and the program
searches the database and retrieves its best response.  The technology
works by comparing your question against a set of questions that have
been seen before.  All new questions that are not answered are recorded
and used to improve the system.

This database is still small and sparse, but we are adding new
information.  To try it out, do the following

	telnet debra.dgbt.doc.ca
	login: chat

	Then select the Epilepsy item from the menu of databases.

-- 
Andrew Patrick, Ph.D.       Communications Research Centre, Ottawa, CANADA
                       andrew@calvin.dgbt.doc.CA
                       
  For a good time, run "telnet debra.dgbt.doc.ca" and login as "chat".

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59222
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: Epstein-Barr Syndrome questions

In article <1993Apr23.034226.2284@reed.edu> jcherney@reed.edu writes:
>Okay, this is a long shot.
>
>My friend Robin has recurring bouts of mononucleosis-type symptoms, very  
>regularly.  This has been going on for a number of years.  She's seen a  
>number of doctors; six was the last count, I think.  Most of them have  
>said either "You have mono" or "You're full of it; there's nothing wrong  
>with you."  One has admitted to having no idea what was wrong with her,  
>and one has claimed that it is Epstein-Barr syndrome.
>
>Now, what she told me about EBS is that very few doctors even believe that  
>it exists.  (Obviously, this has been her experience.)  So, what's the  
>story?  Is it real?  Does the medical profession believe it to be real?
>
>Has anyone had success is treating EBS?  Or is it just something to live  
>with?  Thanks for your assistance.

Outbreaks of a chronic-mono-like entity were originally called EBS (or
some variant thereof) because most of the people with this disease had
elevated levels of antibodies to the EBV virus. But not all of them
did, which prompted an official renaming of the disease to Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome (this renaming took place in the Annals of Internal
Medicine, Jan. 1988, I believe). Now it's also called Chronic Fatigue
and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS), since it seems clear that
some sort of immune disregulation is causing the probs.

Astonishly, there are still docs who tell people with massively
swollen glands, recurrent fevers and nightsweats, etc., that there's
nothing wrong with them. This is not the same thing as saying that the
syndrome may have a (at least partly) psychological cause. The
disagreement among people whose thoughts are worth considering centers
on just what the cause is. No one knows, but theories include:
psychological stress, some sort of virus (a retrovirus, say most --
maybe one of the newly discovered herpes viruses), environmental
toxins, bacteria (and, yes, candida), genes, (and/)or some combo of
these.

There's no outright cure at the moment, but different docs try
different things, some of which seem to help.

Massive amounts of info on the condition are available these days.
Post your Q to alt.med.cfs, and you will be flooded w/facts.

Note: There are lots of far better understood (and better treatable)
diseases that look like CFIDS. Make sure these get ruled-out by a good
doc.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59223
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Frozen shoulder and lawn mowing

Ihave had a frozen shoulder for over a year or about a year.  It is still
partially frozen, and I am still in physical therapy every week.  But the
pain has subsided almost completely.  UNTIL last week when I mowed the
lawn for twenty minutes each, two days in a row.  I have a push type power
mower.  The pain started back up a little bit for the first time in quite
a while, and I used ice and medicine again.  Can anybody explain why this
particular activity, which does not seem to stress me very much generally,
should cause this shoulder problem?

Thanks.

Alice

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59224
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

In article turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:

>I hope Gordon Banks did not mean to imply that notions such as
>hard-to-see candida infections causing various problems should not
>be investigated.  Many researchers have made breakthroughs by 
>figuring out how to investigate things that were previously thought
>"virtually impossible to test for."
>
>Indeed, I would be surprised if "candida overbloom" were such a
>phenomena.  I would think that candida would produce signature
>byproducts whose measure would then set a lower bound on the 
>extent of recent infection.  I realize this might get quite 
>tricky and difficult, probably expensive, and likely inconvenient
>or uncomfortable to the subjects, but that is not the same as 
>"virtually impossible."

I recall reading in the recently revised edition of the "Yeast Connection"
that there is indeed work by researchers to do this.  Of course, they are
working on the theory that candida overbloom with penetration into mucus
membrane tissue with associated "mild" inflammatory response can and does
occur in a large number of people.  If you reject this "yeast hypothesis",
then I'd guess you'd view this research as one more wasteful and quixotic
endeavor.  Stay tuned.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59225
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1r9j33$4g8@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  
> 
> Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
> being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
> a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
> other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
> commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
> or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
> need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
> people.
> -- 
> David Rind

I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).
I'll give you some examples.

	1. Prescribing controlled substances to patients with no 
	   demonstrated need(other than a drug addition) for the medication.

	2. Prescribing thyroid preps for patients with normal thyroid 
	   function for the purpose of quick weight loss.

	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
	   the NCI.

These are errors of commission that competently trained physicians should 
not committ but sometimes do.  There are also errors of omission(some of 
which result in malpractice suits).  I don't think that using anti-fungal 
agents to try to relieve discomfort in a patient who you suspect may be 
having a problem with candida(or another fungal growth) is an error of 
commission or omission.  Healers have had a long history of trying to 
relieve human suffering.  Some have stuck to standard, approved procedures,
others have been willing to try any reasonable treatment if there is a 
chance that it will help the patient.  The key has to be tied to the 
healer's oath, "I will do no harm".  But you know David that very few 
treatments involve no risk to the patient.  The job of the physician is a 
very difficult one when risk versus benefit has to be weighed.  Each 
physician deals with this risk/benefit paradox a little differently.  Some 
are very conservative while others are more agressive.  An agressive 
approach may be more costly to the patient and carry more risk but as long 
as the motive is improving the patient's health and not an attempt to rake 
in lots of money(through some of the schemes that have been uncovered in 
the medicare fraud cases), I don't see the need to label these healers as 
quacks or even unethical.

What do I reserve the term quack for?  Pseudo-medical professionals.  
These people lurk on the fringes of the health care system waiting for the 
frustrated patient to fall into their lair.  Some of these individuals are 
really doing a pretty good job of providing "alternative" medicine.  But 
many lack any formal training and are in the "business" simply to make a 
few fast bucks.   While a patient can be reasonably assured of getting 
competent care when a liscenced physician is consulted, this alternative 
care area is really a buyer's beware arena.  If you are lucky, you may find 
someone who can help you.  If you are unlucky, you can loose a lot of 
money and develop severe disease because of the inability of these pseudo-
medical professional to diagnose disease(which is the fortay of the 
liscened physicians).

I hope that this clears things up David.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59226
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr23.211108.26887@midway.uchicago.edu>,
bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney) wrote:
> 
> One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
> relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
> acids (FAs).
> 
> I was diagnosed last May w/Crohn's of the terminal ileum. When I got
> out of the hospital I read up on it a bit, and came across several
> studies investigating the role of EPA (an essentially FA) in reducing
> inflammation. The evidence was mixed. [Many of these studies are
> discussed in "Inflammatory Bowel Disease," MacDermott, Stenson. 1992.]
> 
> But if I recall correctly, there were some methodological bones to be
> picked with the studies (both the ones w/pos. and w/neg. results). In
> the studies patients were given EPA (a few grams/day for most of the
> studies), but, if I recall correctly, there was no restriction of the
> _other_ FAs that the patients could consume. From the informed
> layperson's perspective, this seems mistaken. If lots of n-6 FAs are
> consumed along with the EPA, then the ratio of "bad" prostanoid
> products to "good" prostanoid products could still be fairly "bad."
> Isn't this ratio the issue?
> 
> What's the view of the gastro. community on EPA these days? EPA
> supplements, along with a fairly severe restriction of other FAs
> appear to have helped me significantly (though it could just be the
> low absolute amount of fat I eat -- 8-10% calories).
> 
> -Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>

As you note, the research is mixed, so there is no consensus on the
role of fatty acids in Ulcerative colitis.  There is a role for short
chain fatty acids in patients with colostomies and rectal pouches
that are inflammed (Short is butyrate and shorter).  There may be a role
for treatment of UC with Short chain fatty acids, and I am looking 
forward to the upcoming AGA meeting in Boston to see what people are
doing.  

You raise a hypothesis about the studies and restriction of other
fatty acids.  You should contact the authors directly about that or
even write a letter to the editor - it is a good point.  By the way,
the abbreviation EPA is not in general use, so I do not know what 
fatty acid you are speaking about.

And to Brian an U of C ---  There is a physician named Stephen Hanauer
there who is a recognized expert in the treatment of IBD.  You might 
give him a call.  He is interested in new combinations of drugs for 
the treatment of IBD.  If you call please say hello to him from me,
I was looking at U of C for a position, and perhaps still am.  And
be sure to look into joining the CCFA.

Best of Luck.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59227
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>has an ulcer.
>
 Nobody is saying that you shouldn't be allowed to use msg.  Just
don't force it on others. If you have food that you want to 
enhance with msg just put the MSG on the table like salt.  It is
then the option of the eater to use it.  If you make a commerical
product, just leave it out. You can include a packet (like some
salt packets) if you desire.

Salt, pepper, mustard, ketchup, pickles ..... are table options.
Treat MSG the same way.  I wouldn't shove my condiments down your
throat, don't shove yours down mine.

WFL

-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59228
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:

>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
>commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
>or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
>need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
>people.


I would say there are also significant numbers of unscrupulous doctors (of
the squeaky-clean, traditional crew-cut, talk to the AMA before starting
any treatment, kind) who recommend treatments that, though "accepted", may
not be necessary for the patient at the time.  And all for making a quick
buck.  I would not be surprised if the cost of medical services in the U.S. is
significantly inflated by these "quacks of a different color".  In fact, I'd
say these doctors are the most dangerous since they call into question the
true focus of the medical profession.  The AMA and the Boards should focus
on these "quacks" instead of devoting unbelievable energy on 'search-and-
destroy-missions' to pull the licenses of those doctors who are trying non-
traditional or not fully accepted treatments for their desperate patients
that traditional/accepted medicine cannot help.


***************************************************
Now to make a general comment on many recent posts:
***************************************************

Lately I've seen the word "quack" bandied about recklessly.  When a doctor or
doctor-wanna-be has decided to quit discussing any controversial medical
subject in a civilized manner, all he/she has to do is say "quack-quack" and
somehow they magically expect the readership of this newsgroup to roll over
on their backs and pee-pee on themselves in obedience.  What do they teach
you in medical school - how to throw your authority around?

Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
lacking in any precision.  Its sole use is to obfuscate the issues at hand.
The indiscriminate use of this word is a sure sign of incompetency;  and coming
from any medical doctor (or wanna-be), where competency is expected, is real
scary.

But what do I know, I've already been diagnosed by the sci.med.gods in this
newsgroup as being 'anal retentive', and 'psychotic'.  I look forward to more
net.diagnoses.  Hey, they're free.


Jon "Quacks 'R Us" Noring


(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.
You can call it sci.med.traditional.moderated or sci.med.AMA-approved, so you
can keep anal-retentives like me out of it.)

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59229
From: Pat Lydon <pat@netmanage.com>
Subject: HELP...REFLUX ESOPHAGITIS


I am writing this to find out the following:

1.)	Any information on surgery to prevent reflux esophagitis.

2.)	The name(s) of a doctor(s) who specialize in such surgery.

3.)	Information on reflux esophagitis which leads to cancer.

My boyfriend, age 34 and otherwise in good health, was diagnosed with 
reflux esophagitis and a hiatal hernia about 2 years ago.  At that time he 
saw a gastroenterologist and has tried acid controllers (Mylanta, 
Tagamet), as well as a restricted diet and raising the head of his bed.  
These treatments were not effective and because the damage was 
worsening, he opted for a surgical repair 3 months ago.  He was told 
there were two repair techniques that could fix the problem; a Nissen 
wrap and a "Hill Repair".  He opted for the "Hill Repair". He recovered 
very well from the surgery itself but the pain he had originally is worse 
and in addition he now has trouble swallowing (including saliva).

The doctor now wants to do an endoscopy and has also informed him 
that a biopsy might be necessary if he has a pre-cancerous condition 
which he called "Barrett's Syndrome". If he can't avoid having reflux will 
he necessarily get cancer?

Basically, if anyone has any information on what he should do now, I'd 
appreciate it.

Thanks,

Pat Lydon/ NetManage, Inc./ Pat@netmanage.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59230
From: davel@davelpcSanDiego.NCR.com (Dave Lord)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu>, Donald Mackie
<Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> writes:
> In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
> tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
> >Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
> >authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
> >is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
> 
> I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
> the major ingredients.   :-)

It's plain yoghurt with grated cucumber and coriander (other spices are
sometimes used). Some people use half yoghurt and half mayonaise.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59231
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-230493173928@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1993Apr23.211108.26887@midway.uchicago.edu>,
>bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney) wrote:
>> 
>> One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
>> relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
>> acids (FAs).
>> [....]

> [....]
>even write a letter to the editor - it is a good point.  By the way,
>the abbreviation EPA is not in general use, so I do not know what 
>fatty acid you are speaking about.

Sorry -- I mean eicosapentaenoic acid.

>And to Brian an U of C ---  There is a physician named Stephen Hanauer
>there who is a recognized expert in the treatment of IBD.  You might 
>give him a call.

Coincidentaly, just yesterday I was (finally) referred from the clinic
to Hanauer. I'm seeing him on May 24. I'll report what he says about
this question.

>the treatment of IBD.  If you call please say hello to him from me,
>I was looking at U of C for a position, and perhaps still am.

Will do.

-Brian Delaney


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59232
From: solmstead@PFC.Forestry.CA (Sherry Olmstead)
Subject: Re: Heat Shock Proteins

rousseaua@immunex.com writes about heat shock proteins (HSP's) and DNA.

I hate to be derogatory, but in this case I think it's warranted.

HSP's are part of the cellular response to stress.  The only reason they
are called 'heat shock proteins' is because they were first demonstrated
using heat shock.  Dead tissue (ie. meat) is not going to produce ANY
protein- because it's DEAD!  

Also, who cares if the DNA you are ingesting is mutated!?  It will be 
completely digested in your stomach, which is about pH 2.  

Some of you worry WAY too much.  Eat a healthy, balanced diet and relax.

My advice is, if you don't know what you are talking about, it is better
to keep your mouth shut than to open it and remove all doubt about your
ignorance.  Don't speculate, or at least get some concrete information
before you do!

Sherry Olmstead
Biochemist

  SHERRY OLMSTEAD                   Title: Lab Technician
  Forestry Canada                   Phone: (604) 363-0600
  Victoria, B.C.                    Internet: SOLMSTEAD@A1.PFC.Forestry.CA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59233
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Poisoning with heavy water (was Re: Too many MRIs?)

In article <1993Apr19.043654.13068@informix.com> proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts) writes:
>In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>>
>>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>>
>
>I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
>'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
>show up in any chemical test.

No one else seems to know, so I'll post this.

This topic came up on sci.physics.fusion shortly after the cold-fusion
flap started.  As I recall, its been done to some experimental mice.
They showed various ill effects and eventually died.  The reason is
that deuterium does not have exactly the same reaction rates as
hydrogen due to its extra mass (which causes lower velocity, Boltzman
constant, mumble).  This throws various bits of body biochemistry out
of kilter, and you get sick and die.

I've never heard of anyone being poisened this way, in or out of real
life.  The process takes quite a while.  If anyone wants to write this
book, I would imagine you would have to:

1: Replace a significant fraction of the water in the body with heavy
   water.

2: Wait while normal breakdown and repair processes cause other
   molecules in the body to be synthesised using the deuterium.

During this process the victim would gradually deteriorate and
eventually die, but I imagine it would take weeks during which the
poisoner would have to ensure that a significant proportion of the
water the victim ingested was heavy.

You would get such a mess of symptoms that the doctors would be both
alarmed and confused.  Why should every organ in the body suddenly
begin to deteriorate?  If you can figure out how the poisoner gets the
heavy water into the victim in a hospital then you could have a real
story here.

Come to think of it, <2> would continue even after the heavy water was
no longer being ingested, so hospitalisation might be too late.

The most detectable effect would be that the victim's body fluids
would literally be "heavy".  Water has a molecular weight of 18 and
heavy water has a MW of 20.  Thus the victim's weight will increase by
about 1% for every 10% of body water replaced by heavy water.  Maybe
the detection occurs because some pathologist in the lab notices that
the victim's urine is strangely dense.  Is there any medical test
involving the specific gravity of a body fluid?

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59234
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

heart@access.digex.com (G) writes:

>Hi,

>I've just returned from a visit with my OB/GYN and I have a few 
>concerns that maybe y'all can help me with.  I've been seeing 
>her every 4 weeks for the past few months (I'm at week 28) 
>and during the last 2 visits I've gained 9 to 9 1/2 pounds every 
>4 weeks.  She said this was unacceptable over any 4 week period. 
>As it stands I've thus far gained 26 pounds.  Also she says that 
>though I'm at 28 weeks the baby's size is 27 weeks, I think she 
>mentioned 27 inches for the top of the fundus.  When I was 13 
>weeks the baby's size was 14 weeks.  I must also add, that I had 
>an operation a few years ago for endometriosis and I've had no 
>problems with endometriosis but apparently it is causing me pain 
>in my pelvic region during the pregnancy, and I have a very 
>difficult time moving, and the doc has recommended I not walk or 
>move unless I have to. (I have a little handicapped sticker for 
>when I do need to go out.) 

>Anyway that's 1/2 of the situation the other is that almost from 
>the beginning of pregnancy I was getting sick (throwing up) about 
>2-3 times a day and mostly it was bile that was being eliminated.  
>(I told her about this).  I know this because I wasn't eating 
>very much due to the nausea and could see the 'results'.  Well 
>now I only get sick about once every 1-2 weeks, and it is still bile 
>related.  But in addition I had begun to feel movement near my 
>upper right abdomen, just below the right breast, usually when I 
>was lying on my right side.  It began to get worse though because 
>it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
>no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
>ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
>turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
>I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
>wasn't as much of a problem.

>So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
>fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
>of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
>been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
>foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

>But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
>except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
>fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
>should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
>have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
>potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
>a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
>steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
>some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 
>I'm not taking in fat, is she expecting the baby will take it 
>from my stores?  And why this restriction on carbohydrates if 
>she's concerned about fat?  I'm not clear how much of her 
>recommendation is based on my weight gain and how much on 
>cholistatis, which I can't seem to find any information on.  She 
>originally said that I should only gain 20 pounds during the 
>entire pregnancy since I was about 20 lbs overweight when I 
>started.  But my sister gained 60 lbs during her pregnancy and 
>she's taken it all off and hasn't had any problems.  She also 
>asked if any members of my family were obese, which none of them 
>are.  Anyway I think she is overly concerned about weight gain, 
>and feel like I'm being 'punished' by a severe diet.  She did 
>want to see me again in one week so I think she the diet may be 
>temporary for that one week. 

>What I want to know is how reasonable is this non-fat diet?  I 
>would understand if she had said low-fat diet, since I'm trying 
>that anyway, even if she said really low-fat diet.  I think she 
>assumes I must be eating a high-fat diet, but really it is that 
>because of the endometriosis and the operation I'm not able to 
>use the energy from the food I do eat. 

>Any opinions, info and experiences will be appreciated.  I'm 
>truly going stark raving mad trying to meet this new strict diet 
>because fruits and vegetables go through my system in a few 
>minutes and I'll end up having to eat constantly.  Thus far I 
>don't find any foods satisfying.

>Thanks 

>G

For one week, she probably wants to see how you react to the diet. If it
changes anything. 

You can live on the diet but you need to up your calories. Where before you
had a pat of butter now you need a medium apple (probably microwave
cooked).  Smaller meals but more of them. Not terrific amounts of meat, it's
hard to digest anyway. 

For comfort and to make the carbohydrate meal "last" longer eat pasta or
rice which give their calories up slowly rather than bread or corn. Maybe
smaller meals as you may be getting less room in the stomach area. Is the
baby still coming up. Is it starting to push or rub under your ribs? How
tight are your clothes. You shouldn't be wearing any clothing that compresses 
your middle. Be sure not to "suck in" your stomach when sitting, again it
will put pressure on the digestive tract. 

Try laying on your sides, back,
and stay in reclining positions for the many hours you are being inactive.
Easier on your legs (circulation) as well. You might try letting the baby
"turn" or at least not be forced under the ribs during the last months.
When you are shortwaisted it's easy for that baby to end up right under the
diaphram, especially if you have tight abdominal muscles. If I had my
second one to do over again I think I'd have tried to loosen up since he
didn't turn sideways until late and the relief was enormous.


Maybe this doctor does have a thing about weight gain in pregnancy or maybe
she just nags all her patients this way. Especially if she's young. 
But this gallbladder/whatever problem that might be coming up is something
to be avoided if possible. 

Nausea, etc. can vary from person to person and with each pregnancy. My
first pregnancy was miserable. During the second I had very little trouble.
Some articles have said that women with nausea had a statistically better
chance of carrying their baby. (grain of salt here) 

Good luck

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59235
From: bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>   Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>   overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>   people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>   other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>   Thanks. 


Yes, there is such a thing as eye dominance, although I am not sure if
this dominance refers to perscription strength.

As i recall, if you selectively close your dominant eye, you will percieve
that the image shifts. This will not happen if you close your other eye.

I believe that which eye is dominant is related to handedness, but I
can't recall the relation at the moment.


--
Barry D. Benowitz
EMail:	bbenowit@telesciences.com (...!pyrnj!telesci!bbenowit)
Phone:	+1 609 866 1000 x354
Snail:	Telesciences CO Systems, 351 New Albany Rd, Moorestown, NJ, 08057-1177

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59236
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:

>In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
>commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
>or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
>need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
>people.
>-- 
>David Rind

Sure there are quacks. There are quacks who don't treat and quacks who
treat. One's that refuse to diagnose and ones that diagnose improperly. 
There are lucky quacks and unlucky quacks. Smart quacks and dumb ones. 

There are people ahead of their time, with unprobable or unproven theories
and rationals. There are ill-reasoned, absurd, theorists. 

Sometimes it's hard to tell who's who.  

Reading a book of ancient jokes it seems that doctors called other doctors
quacks in Babylon. 

Arguments abound when there aren't any firm answers. Plenty of illnesses
aren't, or can't, be diagnosed or treated. But I think it's better to argue
against the theory, as was originally done with postings on candida a month
or so ago. Stating the facts usually works better than simply asserting an
opinion about someone's competency. And you can't convince everybody. 

Sometimes a correct diagnosis
takes years for people: they don't run into a doctor who recognizes the
disease, they haven't developed something recognizable yet, or they have
something that no one is going to recognize, because it hasn't been
described yet. Sometimes they get a cure, sometimes the illness wears out,
sometimes they stumble on an improper diagnosis with the right treatment,
sometimes they find it's incurable.  

There is no profit in a patient accepting a hopeless attitude about an 
illness. Unless it's a rock solid diagnosis of terminal disease it's is
more like ly that a person will find a cure if they keep looking. 

-Jackie-



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59237
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <noringC5yL3I.3qo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>
>>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>>other people shouldn't say so?

>I would say there are also significant numbers of unscrupulous doctors (of
>the squeaky-clean, traditional crew-cut, talk to the AMA before starting
>any treatment, kind)

Umm, weren't you the one objecting to someone who is a "licensed
physician" being called a quack?  Or is it just that being a licensed
physician is a good defense against charges of quackery when the
physician agrees with your system of beliefs?

>Lately I've seen the word "quack" bandied about recklessly.

Actually, I almost never use the term quack.  When I discuss
"systemic yeast syndrome", however, I always point out that
mainstream medicine views this as a quack diagnosis (and I agree
with that characterization).

>Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
>lacking in any precision.

Really?  I bet virtually everyone reading these posts understands what
Steve Dyer, Gordon Banks, and I am implying when we have talked about
systemic yeast syndrome as a quack diagnosis.  Would you prefer the
word "charlatan"?  (I don't happen to think that all quacks are
charlatans since I suspect that some believe in the "diseases" they
are diagnosing.)

>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.

Why?  Is there some reason why you feel that it shouldn't be pointed out
in SCI.med that there is no convincing empirical evidence to support the 
existence of systemic yeast syndrome?
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59238
From: vortex@zikzak.apana.org.au (Paul Anderson)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:

>My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When

>On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
>they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
>read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
>were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!

>My wife is concerned about this.  She saw a TV show a couple months
>back (something like 20/20 or Dateline NBC, etc.) where an expert
>on fetal ultrasounds (a radiologist) was showing all the different
>deffects that could be detected using the ultrasound.

>Should my wife be concerned?  Should we take the pictures to a 
>radiologist for a second opinion? (and if so, where would we find
>such an expert in Chicago?)  We don't really have any special medical
>reason to be concerned, but if a radiologist will be able to see
>things the ob-gyn can't, then I don't see why we shouldn't use one.

>Any thoughts?

 As far as I can see if your obstetrition has an ultrasound in his rooms
and is expirienced its use and interpretation, he should be just as
capable of reading it as any radiologist. All doctors are "qualified" to
read x-rays, u/s, ct scans etc. it is just that a radiologist does nothing
else, and thus, is only better at reading them because of all this time
spent doing this (skill in reading x-rays etc. just comes from plenty of
practice). If your obstetrition reads heaps of obstetric ultrasounds he
should be able to pick up any abnormalities that can be demonstrated by
this technique.

- Paul.


--
           | Zikzak public access UNIX, Melbourne, Australia.   |
  ^^^^^^^  |                                                    |
  |     |  |                                                    |          ///
  < O O >  |     ##########################################     |         ///

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59239
From:  Alla V. Kotenko <avk@lst.msk.su>
Subject: SALE! MELITTIN (see letter)

                                MELITTIN

        In cooperation with the State Scientific Center on Antibiotics
 we have elaborated our own technology of bee venom components isolation,
 particularly melitin, using modern chromatographic eduipment by "Pharmacia"
 and "Millipore" Companies, with application of only the materials, admitted
 for manufacturing pharmaceutic production. High quality of our product is
 acknowledged by the expertise of the Accredited test laboratory firm "Test"
v/o "Souzexpertisa" TPP RF.
        littin - no less than 92% of the primary substance content.
Quantity:from 100 g up to 5 kg.
Date of manufacture: March 1993.
Price:2500 dol.USA per 1g.
Certificate:Is on sale
Adress:105094,Moscow,Semyenovskiy Val,10-a,
"BOST"Partnership Ltd.Tel/fax 194-86-04,369-46-68


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59240
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Adult Chicken Pox 


>I am 35 and am recovering from a case of Chicken Pox which I contracted
>from my 5 year old daughter.  I have quite a few of these little puppies
>all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
>office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

I have been in the same boat as you last year. I've tried four times to
send you an email response, but your end doesn't seem to accept my mail?
Please let me know if you receive this.

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk  |    VACANT LOT     *
   * BOURNEMOUTH UK | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI  |     FOR RENT      *
   ************************************************************************
                           DIARIES OF THE FAMOUS...
     Colonel Custer...Surrounded by Indians, just when I fancied a Chinese!


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59241
From: ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu (Ken Miller)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <1rag61$1cb@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>In article <noringC5yL3I.3qo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
>>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
>>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.
>
>Why?  Is there some reason why you feel that it shouldn't be pointed out
>in SCI.med that there is no convincing empirical evidence to support the 
>existence of systemic yeast syndrome?

I don't know the first thing about yeast infections but I am a scientist.
No scientist would take your statement --- "no convincing empirical evidence
to support the existence of systemic yeast syndrome" --- to tell you
anything except an absence of data on the question.  Noring has pointed out
the catch-22 that if the "crazy" theory were true, you probably couldn't
find any direct evidence of it --- that you couldn't observe those yeastie
beasties with present methods even if they were there.  Noring and the
fellow from Oklahoma (sorry, forgot your name) have also suggested one set
of anecdotal evidence in favor based on their personal experiences ---
namely, that when people with certain conditions are given anti-fungals,
many of them appear to get better.  

So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
disbelief on the other.  In which case, please, there is no point in yelling
back and forth at each other any longer since neither side has any
convincing evidence either positive or negative.  

And I understand that your abject disbelief is based on the existence of
people who may get famous or make money applying the diagnosis to everything
in sight, making wild claims with no evidence, and always refusing to do
controlled studies.  But that has absolutely no bearing on the apparently
sincere experiences of the people on the net observing anti-fungals working
on themselves and other people in certain specific cases.  There are also
quacks who sell oral superoxide dismutase, in spite of the fact that it's
completely broken down in the guts, but this doesn't change the genuine
scientific knowledge about the role of superoxide dismutase in fighting
oxidative damage.  Same thing.  Just cause there are candida quacks, that
doesn't establish evidence against the candida hypothesis.  If there's some
other reason (besides the quacks), if only anecdotal, to think it could be
true, then that is what has to be considered, that is what the net people
have been talking about.

But again, there is no point in arguing about it.  There is anecdotal
evidence, and there is no convincing evidence, and there are also some
candida quacks out there, I hope everyone can agree on all of that.  Thus,
it appears to me the main question now is whether the proponents can
marshall enough anecdotal evidence in a convincing and documented enough
manner to make a good case for carrying out a good controlled double-blind
study of antifungals (or else, forget convincing anybody else to carry out
the test, just carry it out themselves!) --- and also, whether they can
adequately define the patient population or symptoms on which such a study
should be carried out to provide a fair test of the hypothesis.

Ken
-- 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59242
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz) writes:

>In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>>   Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>>   overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>>   people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>>   other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>>   Thanks. 


>Yes, there is such a thing as eye dominance, although I am not sure if
>this dominance refers to perscription strength.

>As i recall, if you selectively close your dominant eye, you will percieve
>that the image shifts. This will not happen if you close your other eye.

>I believe that which eye is dominant is related to handedness, but I
>can't recall the relation at the moment.

>Barry D. Benowitz

I read a great book about eye dominance several years ago. So there is one
book out there..at least one :).

There were several types of eye dominance. Where a person looks in their
memory usually indicates a type of eye dominanc Another type is related to
coordination activities like hitting a ball. Another for reading. 

I didn't read one that discussed prescription strength. Although people
with bad vision, near or far sighted would tend to depend on the stronger
eye. 

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59243
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Sweet's Syndrome ?


	My brother's affine has recently been diagnosed with Sweet's
syndrome. Also called steroid resistant Sweet's syndrome.

	This syndrome started after she had had Iodine 131 treatment for
hyperthyroidism. She'd been reluctant to have treatment for the
hyperthyroidism for many years and apparently started to show exaustion
from it. 

	I understand that she may still be testing high in thyroid level
but she's isn't being treated by an endocrinologist. Her previous
endocrinologist bowed out when she entered the hospital. She entered the
hospital because of the Sweet's syndrome symptoms (skin lesions).

I've looked through the last two years of Medline and didn't find an
abstract mentioning a correlation between thyroid and Sweets. . 

I checked a handbook which said that Sweet's was associated with leukemia.

I'd like a reccomndation for experts who are in New York City or who travel
to New York City. For the sweets and perhaps for the endocrinology.

Any information that might help. Apparently there hasn't been much
improvement in her condition over the past several months. 

-Jackie-

 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59244
From: candee@brtph5.bnr.ca (Candee Ellis P885)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

If you think you have kidney stones or your doctor tells you that you do,
DEFINITELY follow up on it.  My sister was diagnosed with kidney stones
1 1/2 years ago and given medication to take to dissolve them.  After that
failed and she continued to be in great pain, they decided she had
endometriosis.  When they did exploratory surgery, they discovered she
had a tumor, which turned out to be rhabdomyosarcoma -- a very rare 
and agressive cancer.  I realize this is not what happens in the majority
of cases, but you never know what can happen and shouldn't take chances!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59245
From: sharon@world.std.com (Sharon M Gartenberg)
Subject: From Srebrenica: "Doctoring" in Hell


SREBRENICA'S DOCTOR RECOUNTS TOWN'S LIVING HELL
 
    By Laura Pitter
    TUZLA, Bosnia, Reuter - Neret Mujanovic was a pathologist
when he trekked through the mountains to the besieged Muslim
town of Srebrenica last August.
    But after treating 4,000 mangled victims of Bosnia's bloody
war, he considers himself a surgeon.
    ``Now I'm a surgeon with great experience although I have no
license to practice. But if I operate on a person and he lives
normally that's the greatest license a surgeon could have.''
    Evacuated by the U.N. this week to his home town of Tuzla,
the Muslim physician gave an eyewitness medical assessment of
the horrors of the year-long Serb siege of Srebrenica and the
suffering of the thousands trapped there.
    ``I lived through hell together with the people of
Srebrenica. All those who lived through this are the greatest
heroes that humanity can produce,'' he told reporters.
    Mujanovic, 31, had practiced for two months as an assistant
at a local hospital in Tuzla, but before going to Srebrenica he
had never performed a surgical operation on his own. Now he says
he has performed major surgery 1,396 times, relying on books for
guidance, amputating arms and legs 150 times, usually without
anesthetic, delivering 350 babies and performing four cesarean
sections.
    He worked 18-to-19-hour days, slept in the hospital for the
first 10 weeks after his arrival last Aug. 5 and treated  4,000
patients.
    He arrived after making the trek over mountains on foot from
Tuzla, 60 miles northwest of Srebrenica. About 50 other people
carried in supplies and 350 soldiers guided and protected him
through guerrilla terrain, he said.
    His worst memory was of 10 days ago when seven Serb shells
landed within one minute in an area half the size of a football
field, killing 36 people immediately and wounding 102. Half of
the dead were women and children.
    The people had come out for a rare day of sunshine and the
children were playing soccer. ``There was no warning ... the
blood flowed like a river in the street,'' he said.
    ``There were pieces of women all around and you could not
piece them together. One woman holding her two children in her
hands was lying with them on the ground dead. They had no
heads.''
    Before Mujanovic arrived with his supplies conditions were
deplorable, he said. Many deaths could have been prevented had
the hospital had surgical tools, facilities and medicine.
    The six general practitioners who had been operating before
he arrived had even less surgical experience than he did. ``They
didn't know the basic principles for amputating limbs.''
    Once he arrived the situation improved, he said, but by
mid-September he had run out of supplies.
    ``Bandages were washed and boiled five times ... sometimes
they were falling apart in my hands,'' he said. Doctors had no
anesthetic and could not give patients alcohol to numb the pain
because it increased bleeding.
    ``People were completely conscious during amputations and
stomach operations,'' he said. Blood transfusions were
impossible because they had no facilities to test blood types.
    ``I felt destroyed psychologically,'' Mujanovic said.
    The situation improved after Dec. 4, when a convoy arrived
from the Belgian medical group Medecins Sans Frontieres.
    But Mujanovic said the military predicament worsened in
mid-December after Bosnian Serbs began a major offensive in the
region. ``Every day we had air strikes and shellings.''
    Then the hunger set in.
    Between mid-December and mid-March, when U.S. planes began
air dropping food, between 20 and 30 people were dying every day
from complications associated with malnutrition, he said.
    ``I know for sure that the air drop operation saved the
people from massive death by hunger and starvation,'' he said.
    According to Mujanovic, around 5,000 people died in
Srebrenica, 1,000 of them children, during a year of siege.
    Mujanovic plans to return to Srebrenica in three weeks after
visiting his wife, who is ill in Tuzla.
    ``They say I'm a hero,'' he said. ``There were thousands of
people standing at the sides of the road, crying and waving when
I left. And I cried too.''

-- 
Sharon Machlis Gartenberg
Framingham, MA  USA
e-mail: sharon@world.std.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59246
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Great Post!  (was: Candida bloom...)

-*----
In article <noringC5yGw1.F1M@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
> ...  Of course, they are working on the theory that candida
> overbloom with penetration into mucus membrane tissue with
> associated "mild" inflammatory response can and does occur 
> in a large number of people.  If you reject this "yeast 
> hypothesis", then I'd guess you'd view this research as one
> more wasteful and quixotic endeavor.  Stay tuned.

I do not have enough medical expertise to have much of an opinion
one way or another on hidden candida infections.  I can
understand the skepticism of those who see this associated with
various general kinds of symptoms, while there is a lack of solid
demonstration that this happens and causes such general symptoms.
(To understand this skepticism, one only needs to know of past
failures that shared these characteristics with the notion of
hidden candida infection.  There have been quite a few, and the
proponents of all thought that the skeptics were overly skeptical.)

On the other hand, I am happy to read that some people are
sufficiently interested in this possibility, spurred by
suggestive clinical experience, to research it further.  The
doubters may be surprised.  (It has happened before.)

I realize that admitting ignorance in the face of ignorance may
not endear me to those who are so sure they know one way or
another.  (And, indeed, perhaps some of them do know -- I am the
one who is currently ignorant.)  But I find this the most honest
route, and so I am happy with it.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59247
From: jgnassi@athena.mit.edu (John Angelo Gnassi)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In an article Jon Noring writes:

>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is

>true focus of the medical profession.  The AMA and the Boards should focus
>on these "quacks" instead of devoting unbelievable energy on 'search-and-
>destroy-missions' to pull the licenses of those doctors who are trying non-
>traditional or not fully accepted treatments for their desperate patients
>that traditional/accepted medicine cannot help.

If I prescribe itraconazole for a patient's sinusitis neither the AMA,
FDA, State Licensing Board, nor ABFP will be knocking on my door to ask
why.  This is a specious argument.

>on their backs and pee-pee on themselves in obedience.  What do they teach
>you in medical school - how to throw your authority around?

Among other things, how to evaluate new theories and treatments.

>Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
>lacking in any precision.  Its sole use is to obfuscate the issues at hand.

Funny, I thought it meant "one who fraudulently misrepresents his
ability and experience in the diagnosis and treatment of disease or
the effects to be achieved by the treatment he offers" (Dorland's
27th).  Certainly more precision than conveyed by "chronic yeast".

>The indiscriminate use of this word is a sure sign of incompetency;  and coming
>from any medical doctor (or wanna-be), where competency is expected, is real
>scary.

The inability to discriminate between fraudulent or erroneous
representations is far more frightening.  It is fraud to promote a
treatment where the evidence for it is either lacking or against it
and the quacksalver knows so, or error if the honest practitioner
doesn't know so.  Failure to speak out against either bespeaks
incompetency.

>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on 
>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and 
>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.

May I reply - seriously - that if the practitioners and proponents of
non-scientific medicine have left their minds so open that the parts
of their brains that do critical evaluation have fallen out, they should
learn to edit their newsgroup headers to conform to the existing
hierarchy and divisions.

--
     John Angelo Gnassi                 Lab of Computer Science
   jgnassi@hstbme.mit.edu               Massachusetts General Hospital
     "Eternal Student"                  Boston, Massachusetts, USA
     "The Earth be spanned, connected by a Network" - Walt Whitman

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59248
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds


In a previous article, mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) says:

>In article <9304191126.AA21125@seastar.seashell> bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan) writes:
>>
>>My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
>>to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
>>days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
>>vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.
>>
>If you can get it, you might want to try a Canadian over-the-counter product
>called Secaris, which is a water-soluble gel.  Compared to Vaseline or other
>greasy ointments, Secaris seems more compatible with the moisture that's
>already there.
>

Secaris is reasonably inexpensive ($6.00 Cdn for a tube), and is indeed an
over the counter medication. Why it does not appear to be available in the
US, I don't know. It's manufactured in Montreal.

It's a nasal lubricant, and is intended to help nosebleeds that result from
dry mucous membranes.

From some of the replies to my original posting, it's evident that some
people do not secrete enough mucous to keep their nose lining protected
from environmental influences (ie, dry air). But I've had no responses
from anyone with experience with Rutin. Is there another newsgroup that
might have specifics on herbal remedies?

But thanks to all those who did reply with their experiences.
-- 
Robert Allison

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59249
From: elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu (Elizabeth Glaser)
Subject: net address for WHO

I am looking for the email address of the World Health Organization,
in particular the address for the Department of Nursing or the Chief
Scientist for Nursing: Dr. Miriam Hirschfeld. The snail-mail address I
have is the following:

    World Health Organization
    20 Avenue Appia
    1211 Geneva 27
    Switzerland

Please respond directly to me. Thank you for your assistance.



   ---   elg   ---

Elizabeth Glaser, RN
elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59250
Subject: Why isolate it?
From: chinsz@eis.calstate.edu (Christopher Hinsz)

	Does anyone on this newsgroup happen to know WHY morphine was
first isolated from opium?  If you know why, or have an idea for where I
could look to find this info, please mail me.
	CSH
any suggestionas would be greatly appreciated

--
 "Kilimanjaro is a pretty tricky climb. Most of it's up, until you reach
the very, very top, and then it tends to slope away rather sharply."
					Sir George Head, OBE (JC)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOGIC: "The point is frozen, the beast is dead, what is the difference?"
					Gavin Millarrrrrrrrrr (JC)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59251
From: mutrh@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (Todd R. Haverstock)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1993Apr23.181051.4023@donner.SanDiego.NCR.COM> davel@davelpcSanDiego.NCR.com (Dave Lord) writes:
>In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu>, Donald Mackie
><Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> writes:
>> In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
>> tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
>> >Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
>> >authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
>> >is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
>> 
>> I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
>> the major ingredients.   :-)
>
>It's plain yoghurt with grated cucumber and coriander (other spices are
>sometimes used). Some people use half yoghurt and half mayonaise.

In the kind I have made I used a Lite sour cream instead of yogurt.  May not
be as good for you, but I prefer the taste.  A few small bits of cuke in
addition to the grated cuke may also finish the sauce off nicely.


---
TRH
mutrh@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59252
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu  writes:
> I don't know the first thing about yeast infections but I am a scientist.
> No scientist would take your statement --- "no convincing empirical evidence
> to support the existence of systemic yeast syndrome" --- to tell you
> anything except an absence of data on the question.
The burden of proof rests upon those who claim the existence
of this "syndrome".  To date, these claims are unsubstantiated
by any available data.  Hopefully, as a scientist, you would
take issue with anyone overstating their conclusions based
upon their data.

> beasties with present methods even if they were there.  Noring and the
> fellow from Oklahoma (sorry, forgot your name) have also suggested one set
> of anecdotal evidence in favor based on their personal experiences ---
> namely, that when people with certain conditions are given anti-fungals,
> many of them appear to get better.  
Gee, I have many interesting and enlightening anecdotes about
myself, my friends, and my family, but in the practice of
medicine I expect and demand more rigorous rationales for
basing therapy than "Aunt Susie's brother-in-law ...".

Anecdotal evidence may provide inspiration for a hypothesis,
but rarely proves anything in a positive sense.  And unlike
mathematics, boolean logic rarely applies directly to medical
issues, and so evidence of 'exceptions' does not usually
disprove but rather modifies current concepts of disease.

> So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
> controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
> better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
> have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
> disbelief on the other.  In which case, please, there is no point in yelling
> back and forth at each other any longer since neither side has any
> convincing evidence either positive or negative.  
I would characterize it not as 'abject disbelief' but rather 
'scientific outrage over vastly overstated conclusions'.

> it appears to me the main question now is whether the proponents can
> marshall enough anecdotal evidence in a convincing and documented enough
> manner to make a good case for carrying out a good controlled double-blind
> study of antifungals (or else, forget convincing anybody else to carry out
> the test, just carry it out themselves!) --- and also, whether they can
> adequately define the patient population or symptoms on which such a study
> should be carried out to provide a fair test of the hypothesis.
I have no problem with such an approach; but this is NOT what
is happening in the 'trenches' of this diagnosis.

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59253
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Adenocarcinoma of the Lungs

Putting aside our substantial differences, I'd like to ask the knowledgeable
ones to give feedback on this.  Let me explain.

One of my family members last week was discovered to have a brain tumor after
having some difficulties with walking and writing (she is 64 years old).
Otherwise, she is in fine health.  The discovery was made via CAT scans.

She then had MRI scans done, where small cancerous areas were discovered
in her lungs.  Biopsies showed it to be adenocarcinoma.  One spot is
in the lungs, and another in the pneumothorax.  The oncologists believe
the cancer started in the lungs and caused the brain tumor (she smoked
until four years ago).

Anyway, I'd like feedback as to what adenocarcinoma is, how it is different
from other cancers, how she will be treated (luckily the tumor is right
below the skull and can be easily removed), and statistically what are
the chances for full remission/recovery?

Thanks.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59254
From: x91hozak@gw.wmich.edu
Subject: PRK referral in Canada

Could some please refer me to someone who can perform PRK (Photo Refractive 
Keratostomy) in Canada (preferably eastern portion).  I've looked in
the yellow pages with little success, and if someone has had a good (or
bad, for that matter) experience, that would be especially helpful if you
could please let me know.

Thanks,
Kurt Hozak
92hozak@lab.cc.wmich.edu (preferred address)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59255
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge) writes:

I decided to come back and amend this so it quotes me and has added
comments...

>heart@access.digex.com (G) writes:

>>Hi,

>>it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
>>no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
>>ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
>>turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
>>I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
>>wasn't as much of a problem.

>>So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
>>fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
>>of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
>>been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
>>foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

>>But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
>>except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
>>fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
>>should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
>>have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
>>potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
>>a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
>>steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
>>some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 

>>G

>For one week, she probably wants to see how you react to the diet. If it
>changes anything. 

>You can live on the diet but you need to up your non-fat calories. Where
before you had a pat of butter, now you need a medium apple (probably microwave
>cooked).  Smaller meals but more of them. Not terrific amounts of meat, it's
>hard to digest anyway. First, even fish, fowl and breads have fat. Second,
the body will make fat out of carbohydrates if it needs them. Third, your
body, like most peoples, wasn't bred to live on a high fat, modern diet.
If you read texts about ancient and primative people you will read about
the luxury of eating fat, how people enjoyed it. This was because it was so
rare. Even cows didn't put out nearly the amount of butterfat in milk that
they do now.  

>For comfort and to make the carbohydrate meal "last" longer eat pasta or
>rice which give their calories up slowly rather than bread or corn. Maybe
>smaller meals as you may be getting less room in the stomach area. Is the
>baby still coming up. Is it starting to push or rub under your ribs? How
>tight are your clothes. You shouldn't be wearing any clothing that compresses 
>your middle. Be sure not to "suck in" your stomach when sitting, again it
>will put pressure on the digestive tract. 

>Try laying on your sides, back,
>and stay in reclining positions for the many hours you are being inactive.
>Easier on your legs (circulation) as well. You might try letting the baby
>"turn" or at least not be forced under the ribs during the last months.
>When you are shortwaisted it's easy for that baby to end up right under the
>diaphram, especially if you have tight abdominal muscles. If I had my
>second one to do over again I think I'd have tried to loosen up since he
>didn't turn sideways until late and the relief was enormous.


>Maybe this doctor does have a thing about weight gain in pregnancy or maybe
>she just nags all her patients this way. Especially if she's young.  
>But this gallbladder/whatever problem that might be coming up is something
>to be avoided if possible. You don't want to become ill with it while you
are pregnant. If you are lucky you can work on getting rid of it after the
baby. (It is said that doctors have less gallbadder surgery than the rest
of the population, a good part of it is that they are willing to do the
dieting, etc that helps them avoid surgery. Also, I don't think the surgery
lets a person go back to eating a high fat diet. ) 

>Nausea, etc. can vary from person to person and with each pregnancy. My
>first pregnancy was miserable. During the second I had very little trouble.
>Some articles have said that women with nausea had a statistically better
>chance of carrying their baby. (grain of salt here) 

>Good luck

>-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59256
From: mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

These are MY last words on the subject

From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby) writes:


> As a person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
> too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!

Some people think it enhances the flavor.  I personally don't think it
helps the taste, it makes me sick, so I try to avoid it.

> From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

> Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
> controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
> as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
> not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
> ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
> that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

Well, I know that MSG effects ME adversely - maybe not permanently but
at least temporarily enough that I like to try to avoid the stuff.

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle) Writes:

> If you don't like additives, then for godsake, 
> get off the net and learn to cook from scratch.  Sheesh.

EXCUSE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why can't people learn to cook from scratch *ON* the net.  I've gotten
LOTS of recipes off the net that don't use additives.

If you LIKE additives then get off the net and go to your local
supermarket, buy lots of packaged foods, and YOU get OFF THE NET!!

> >IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD 
> >OR THE FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?
> 
> Yes, and YOU buy it.  Says something about your taste, eh?

I don't!!

> 
> And what happens when the companies forced to submit to your silly notions
> go out of business because nobody wants to buy their overpriced bad food? 
> (Removing preservatives directly raises food costs by reducing shelf life.)

HEY - I'll pay *MY* hard earned dollars to buy food that costs more
but does NOT have preservatives.  I choose to speak with my pocketbook
in many ways.

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> You have a good point.  MSG is commonly used in soups, in bottled
> sauces, in seasoning mixtures, and in the coating on barbecue potato
> chips.  

Nacho cheese Doritos, breading for MANY frozen fried foods (like fish
and chicken), etc. ad naseum.

> If MSG is really the problem, we should call this "barbecue potato
> chip syndrome" or maybe "diner syndrome."   

Or the "and other natural flavorings syndrome."  It's been a few years
since I've bought anything labelled with "and other natural
flavorings".  

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> >THE REACTION CAME THE TIME THE MSG WAS IN THE FOOD
> >THAT WAS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE
> >SAME RESTAURANT - SAME INGREDIENTS!!!
> 
> How do you know this?
> 
> In order to demonstrate your claim, you would have had to supervise the
> preparation on both occasions.  Perhaps they used MSG both times, and lied
> about it.  Perhaps once they used something that had begun to spoil, and
> produced some bizarre toxin that you're allergic to. 

Well, I had had similar reactions many times.  That was when I really
started WATCHING CAREFULLY - reaction to Doritos - hey guess what's in
there - reaction to Lawry's season salt - guess what's in THERE

I'll give you a hint - I've had enough problems with MANY MANY MANY
different products with MSG that I figured out one thing.

UNLESS I plan on getting sick - I won't eat the stuff without my
Seldane.  And did I ever learn to read labels.

> PLEASE note that I am NOT saying you are making it up, I am just
> trying to point out that the situation is not always as simple as it
> might seem.  

Which was why I started checking EVERY time I got sick.  And EVERY
time I got sick MSG was somehow involved in one of the food products.
And consider there were no other similar ingredients (to my knowledge)
- it might not please a medical researcher - but it pleased my own
personal physician enough for him to give me allergy medicine and MOST
IMPORTANTLY it's enough proof for ME to avoid it (and enough proof
that my INCREDIBLY frugal fiance didn't flinch when I literally threw
out or gave away all the food products in his pantry that had msg -
and he always flinches when there's waste - but it was a simple
explanation - I won't eat this stuff, I WON'T cook with this stuff, so
I can either throw it out or give it away.)

> From: pattee@ucsu.Colorado.EDU (Donna Pattee)

> My guess was that the spice mix on the fries contained MSG, 

Probably Lawry's seasoning salt.  I LOVE the way that tastes.  

I'm not saying I NEVER consume ANYTHING with MSG.  I've noticed that I
have a certain tolerance level - like a (small) bag of bbq chips once
a month or so it not a problem - but that same bag of chips will
bother me if I also had chicken bouillon yesterday and lunch at one of
the Chinese restaurants the day before.  

> From: kelley@healthy.uwaterloo.ca (Catherine L. Kelley)
> >

> All that's needed now is that final step, a double-blind study done
> on humans.  There isn't even an ethical question about "possible
> harm", as this is a widely used and approved food additive.

But - some say that only 2% of the population has a problem with MSG -
some say it's more like 20% - but let's say that it's 5%.  How many
people would have to be tested that would have a problem?  Also - I
KNOW I have a problem with it, and I wouldn't VOLUNTEER for a test.
Like thanks guys but I don't WANT to get sick.  Also - I'm sure that
most people probably have varying degrees of sensitivities at
different times.  If I have a cold I'm MUCH more susceptible to the
reaction than when I'm healthy (as proven today - when I'm stuffy but
for some silly reason I still gave in and decided to have the BBQ
chips ;}).

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> Because too many of you (generic rhetorical 'you,' not 'you Cathy') go
> around calling this "Chinese restaurant syndrome," thus suggesting to the
> people you complain to that you experience this ONLY from Chinese food. 
> MSG is prevalent in a LOT more things than Chinese food--thats why I
> suggested calling this "Diner syndrome."  

Cathy doesn't - I haven't saved all my postings but I NEVER called it
"chinese restaurant syndrome" and I NEVER stated I got it only from
Chinese food.  I just thought it would be easiest to conduct my
personal test at a Chinese take out place that I knew would hold (or
not hold) the MSG.  I can't call up whoever makes Doritos and ask them
to make me ONE back of chips without MSG.

> On the other hand, if one complains about potatoes from a mix, or
> restaurant spice mixes, I'm going to believe them, and if anyone says they
> got (MSG-)sick after eating too many barbecue potato chips at a party, I'm
> REALLY going to believe them.  

Well, I believe I mentioned that in an earlier post 

Let's see you wrote this message at

Date: 20 Apr 1993 00:09:31 -0500

but on 

Date: 19 Apr 1993 16:33:18 GMT

I wrote:

> >Has anyone had an MSG reaction from something *other than* a
> >Chinese restaurant?  

> LOTS of times - that's why it was so hard for me to pin down.  I
> would probably have been EASIER if I'd only have the reaction in a
> certain type of restaurant but I've had the reaction in Chinese
> restaurants and Greek restaurants and Italian restaurants and Steak
> places (I can tell you when a steak joint uses Accent to tenderize
> their meat).   

OH - and just in case anyone thinks I'm prejudice against either
Chinese food or Asian people - I'm not going home to cook some Chinese
food for the guy I'm marrying next week.  Incidentally, his last name
is Wu.

SO STOP IT WITH THE FLAME MAIL

--
Why does a woman work ten years to change a man's habits and then 
complain that he's not the man she married?    
  -- Barbra Streisand

    Mary Allison (mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu) Urbana, Illinois

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59257
From: jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov (J. Porter Clark)
Subject: Annual inguinal hernia repair

Last year, I was totally surprised when my annual physical disclosed an
inguinal hernia.  I couldn't remember doing anything that would have
caused it.  That is, I hadn't been lifting more than other people do,
and in fact probably somewhat less.  Eventually the thing became more
painful and I had the repair operation.

This year I developed a pain on the other side.  This turned out to be
another inguinal hernia.  So I go back to the hospital Monday for
another fun 8-) operation.

I don't know of anything I'm doing to cause this to happen.  I'm 38
years old and I don't think I'm old enough for things to start falling
apart like this.  The surgeon who is doing the operation seems to
suspect a congenital weakness, but if so, why did it suddenly appear
when I was 37 and not really as active as I was when I was younger?

Does anyone know how to prevent a hernia, other than not lifting
anything?  It's rare that I lift more than my 16-month-old or a sack
full of groceries, and you may have noticed that your typical grocery
sack is fairly small these days.  Is there some sort of exercise that
will reduce the risk?

Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
the computer, reading news...
-- 
J. Porter Clark    jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov or jpc@gaia.msfc.nasa.gov
NASA/MSFC Flight Data Systems Branch

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59258
Subject: CALCIUM deposits on heart valve
From: john.greze@execnet.com (John Greze)


A friend, a 62 year old man, has calcium deposits on one of his
heart valves .   What causes this to happen and what can be done about
it?

John.Greze@execnet.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59259
From: vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu (Vinay Rao)
Subject: Density of the skull bone

Could someone tell me what the density of skull bone is or direct me to 
a reference that contains this info?  I would appreciate it very much.
Thanks.

Vinay


--
**********************************************
Vinay J. Rao                vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu
**********************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59260
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

HOLFELTZ@LSTC2VM.stortek.com writes:

: As you know all ready, it is the pattern in the bioplasmic energy
: field that is significant.

No, I didn't already know that.  I've never even heard of a
"bioplasmic energy field."  Care to explain it?  It's been a few years
since my last fields class so I may have forgotten (or maybe I skipped
that day).  Anyway, as Ross Perot said, I'm all ears.  Well, eyes in
this case.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Is something VIOLENT
Rosemount Inc.                                |going to happen to a GARBAGE
                                              |CAN?
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59261
From: vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu (Vinay Rao)
Subject: Perception of doctors and health care

The following article by columnist Mike Royko is his humorous commentary
on some of the public's perception of doctors and their salaries.
I hope some of you will find it as amusing as I did.

____________________________________________________________________________
[Reprinted w/o permission]


"There's no cure for stupidity of poll on doctors' salaries"

By Mike Royko
Tribune Media Services


     On a stupidity scale, a recent poll about doctors' earnings 
is right up there.  It almost scored a perfect brain-dead 10.
     It  was  commissioned by some whiny consumers  group  called 
Families USA.
      The  poll tells us that the majority of  Americans  believe 
that doctors make too much money.
     The  pollsters  also asked what a fair income would  be  for 
physicians.  Those polled said, oh, about $80,000 a year would be 
OK.
     How generous.  How sporting.  How stupid.
     Why is this poll stupid?   Because it is based on resentment 
and envy, two emotions that ran hot during the political campaign 
and are still simmering.
     You could conduct the same kind of poll about any group that 
earns $100,000-plus and get the same results.  Since the majority 
of Americans don't make those bucks,  they assume that those  who 
do are stealing it from them.
     Maybe  the Berlin Wall came down,  but don't  kid  yourself.  
Karl Marx lives.
     It's also stupid because it didn't ask key  questions,  such 
as:  Do  you  know how much education and training  it  takes  to 
become a physician?
     If those polled said no,  they didn't know, then they should 
have  been disqualified.   If they gave the wrong  answers,  they 
should have been dropped.   What good are their views on how much 
a doctor should earn if they don't know what it takes to become a 
doctor?
     Or maybe a question should have been phrased this way:  "How 
much  should  a person earn if he or she must (a)  get  excellent 
grades and a fine educational foundation in high school in  order 
to (b) be accepted by a good college and spend four years  taking 
courses heavy in math, physics, chemistry, and other lab work and 
maintain a 3.5 average or better,  and (c) spend four more  years 
of  grinding study in medical school,  with the third and  fourth 
years in clinical training,  working 80 to 100 hours a week,  and 
(d) spend another year as a low-pay,  hard-work intern,  and  (e) 
put  in  another  three to 10 years  of  post-graduate  training, 
depending  on  your specialty and (f) maybe wind up  $100,000  in 
debt  after  medical school and (g) then work an  average  of  60 
hours  a week,  with many family doctors putting in 70  hours  or 
more until they retire or fall over?"
     As  you have probably guessed by now,  I  have  considerably 
more  respect for doctors than does the law firm of  Clinton  and 
Clinton,  and all the lawyers and insurance executives they  have 
called together to remake America's health care.
     Based  on what doctors contribute to society,  they are  far 
more useful than the power-happy,  ego-tripping, program-spewing, 
social tinkerers who will probably give us a medical plan that is 
to health what Clinton's first budget is to frugality.
     But propaganda works.   And,  as the stupid poll  indicates, 
many Americans wrongly believe that profiteering doctors are  the 
major cause of high medical costs.
     Of  course doctors are well-compensated.   They  should  be.  
Americans now live longer than ever.   But who is responsible for 
our longevity--lawyers,  Congress, or the guy flipping burgers in 
a McDonald's?
     And the doctors prolong our lives despite our having  become 
a  nation  of  self-indulgent,   lard-butted,   TV-gaping   couch 
cabbages.
     Ah,  that  is not something you heard President  Clinton  or 
Super  Spouse  talk  about during the  campaign  or  since.   But 
instead of trying to turn the medical profession into a  villain, 
they might have been more honest if they had said:
     "Let  us  talk  about medical care and one  of  the  biggest 
problems we have.   That problem is you, my fellow American. Yes, 
you,  eating  too much and eating the wrong foods;  many  of  you 
guzzling  too  much hooch;  still puffing away at $2.50  a  pack; 
getting  your daily exercise by lumbering from the fridge to  the 
microwave to the couch; doing dope and bringing crack babies into 
the  world;  filling  the big city emergency rooms  with  gunshot 
victims;  engaging  in unsafe sex and catching a  deadly  disease 
while blaming the world for not finding an instant cure.
     "You  and  your habits,  not the  doctors,  are  the  single 
biggest  health  problem in this country.   If  anything,  it  is 
amazing that the docs keep you alive as long as they do.
     "In fact,  I don't understand how they can stand looking  at 
your blubbery bods all day.
     "So as your president,  I call upon you to stop whining  and 
start living cleanly.   Now I must go get myself a triple cheesy-
greasy with double fries.  Do as I say, not as I do."
     But  for those who truly believe that doctors are  overpaid, 
there is another solution: Don't use them.
     That's right.   You don't feel well?   Then try one of those 
spine poppers,  needle twirlers, or have Rev. Bubba lay his hands 
upon your head and declare you fit.
     Or  there is the do-it-yourself approach.   You  have  chest 
pains?   Then sit in front of a mirror,  make a slit here, a slit 
there, and pop in a couple of valves.
     You're  going to have a kid?   Why throw your money at  that 
overpaid  sawbones so he can buy a better car and a bigger  house 
than  you  will  ever  have  (while  paying  more  in  taxes  and 
malpractice insurance than you will ever earn)?
     Just have the kid the old-fashioned way.   Squat and do  it.  
And if it survives,  you can go to the library and find a book on 
how to give it its shots.
     By  the  way,  has  anyone  ever done a  poll  on  how  much 
pollsters should earn?


Royko  is  a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for  Tribune  Media 
Services.

____________________________________________________________________________


--
**********************************************
Vinay J. Rao                vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu
**********************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59262
From: oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>has an ulcer.

Julie, it doesn't necessarily follow that you should use it (MSG or
something else for that matter) simply because you are not allergic
to it. For example you might not be allergic to (animal) fats, and
like their taste, yet it doesn't follow that you should be using them
(regularly). MSG might have other bad (or good, I am not up on 
knowledge of MSG) effects on your body in the long run, maybe that's
reason enough not to use it. 

Altho' your example of the ulcer is funny, it isn't an
appropriate comparison at all.

-Prakash Das

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59263
From: ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <20APR199315574161@vxcrna.cern.ch> filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch (VINCI) writes:

> How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
> has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
> on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
> supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)
>
> Filipe Santos
> CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
> Switzerland

Please sign the relevant documents and forward the remaining parts
to our study 'Effect of 120 Kv on Human Tissue wrapped in Film'.
Thanks for your support...
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
*Dr. Thomas Trusk                    *                              *
*Dept. of Cellular Biology & Anatomy * Email to ttrusk@its.mcw.edu  *
*Medical College of Wisconsin        *                              *
*Milwaukee, WI  53226              DISCLAIMER (ala Foghorn Leghorn):*
*(414) 257-8504                     It's a joke, son. A joke I say! *
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59264
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: net address for WHO

In article <1993Apr24.162351.4408@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>, elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu (Elizabeth Glaser) writes:
> I am looking for the email address of the World Health Organization,
> in particular the address for the Department of Nursing or the Chief
> Scientist for Nursing: Dr. Miriam Hirschfeld. The snail-mail address I
> have is the following:
>
>     World Health Organization
>     20 Avenue Appia
>     1211 Geneva 27
>     Switzerland

The domain address of the WHO is:  who.arcom.ch
So try sending email to  postmaster@who.arcom.ch

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL







>
> Please respond directly to me. Thank you for your assistance.
>
>
>
>    ---   elg   ---
>
> Elizabeth Glaser, RN
> elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59265
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

 To: milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn)

 AM> Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
 AM> flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
 AM> I order food without MSG.  

To me, MSG tastes just like a mixture of salt and sugar.  I don't 
think that is the case with most people.  What does it taste like 
to you? 

... If wishes were horses, we'd all have to wear hip boots!
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59266
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

 To: smithmc@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Lost Boy)

 LB> I know from personal experience that men CAN get yeast infections. I 
 LB> get rather nasty ones from time to time, mostly in the area of the
 LB> scrotum and the base of the penis. 

I used to have problems with recurrent athlete's foot until I 
started drying between my toes with my blow drier after each time 
I bathe.  I also dry my pubic area while I am at it to prevent 
problems.  You might want to try it.

... My cat types with his tail.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59267
From: westes@netcom.com (Will Estes)
Subject: Use of haldol in elderly

Does anyone know of research done on the use of haldol in the elderly?  Does 
short-term use of the drug ever produce long-term side-effects after
the use of the drug?  My grandmother recently had to be hospitalized
and was given large doses of haldol for several weeks.  Although the
drug has been terminated, she has changed from a perky, slightly
senile woman into a virtual vegetable who does not talk to anyone
and who cannot even eat or brush her teeth without assistance.  It
seems incredible to me that such changes could take place in the
course of just one and one-half months.  I have to believe that the
combination of the hospital stay and some drug(s) are in part
catalysts for this.  Any comments?

-- 
Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59268
Subject: hypodermic needle
From: bolsen@eis.calstate.edu (Becky Olsen)

Hi, I am doing a term paper on the syringe and I have found some
information.  It is said that Charles Pravaz has invented the hypodermic
needle, but then I have also found that Alexander Wood has invented it. 
Does anyone know which one it is, of if it was anyone else?  If there is
anymore information that is out there could you please send it to me.
Thank you very much.
Becky Olsen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59269
From: haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (Jim Haynes)
Subject: Re: Poisoning with heavy water (was Re: Too many MRIs?)


All I can remember is that there was an article in Scientific American
maybe 20 years ago.  As someone else noted rats or mice fed nothing
but heavy water eventually died, and the explanation was given.
-- 
haynes@cats.ucsc.edu
haynes@cats.bitnet

"Ya can talk all ya wanna, but it's dif'rent than it was!"
"No it aint!  But ya gotta know the territory!"
        Meredith Willson: "The Music Man"


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59270
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: hypodermic needle

In article <C60vIJ.Co6@eis.calstate.edu> Becky Olsen,
bolsen@eis.calstate.edu writes:
>Hi, I am doing a term paper on the syringe and I have found some
>information.  It is said that Charles Pravaz has invented the
hypodermic
>needle, but then I have also found that Alexander Wood has invented
it. 
>Does anyone know which one it is, of if it was anyone else?  If
there is
>anymore information that is out there could you please send it to
me.
>Thank you very much.
>Becky Olsen

Looking in The Evolution of Anaesthesia by M.H. Armstrong Davison
(pub Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore 1965) I found the following
chronology:

"1853.  Charles-Gabriel Pravaz (1791-1853), inventor of the
galvanocautery, describes a glass syringe with tapered nozzle. This
syringe was intended to be used with a special trocar for injecting
ferric chloride into aneurysms, and thus to heal them by coagulation.

1853.  Alexander Wood (1817-84)  of Edinburgh invents the hypodermic
needle and adapts Pravaz's syringe for use with it."

You might also be interested to read about the experiments of Sir
Christopher Wren in 1656, described by Oldenberg & Clarck in the
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society in 1665. Using a
sharpened quill and a pig's bladder he injected opium, wine and beer
into the veins of dogs.

Don Mackie 
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59271
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1rcfj2INNmds@roundup.crhc.uiuc.edu>, mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison) writes:
=Which was why I started checking EVERY time I got sick.  And EVERY
=time I got sick MSG was somehow involved in one of the food products.

Which points up the "studies" made by amateurs:  Did you ALSO check EVERY TIME
YOU DID *NOT* get sick?  "No," you say?  Why not check every thing you eat when
you don't get sick and find out how much MSG you're actually consuming?

=> All that's needed now is that final step, a double-blind study done
=> on humans.  There isn't even an ethical question about "possible
=> harm", as this is a widely used and approved food additive.
=
=But - some say that only 2% of the population has a problem with MSG -
=some say it's more like 20% - but let's say that it's 5%.  How many
=people would have to be tested that would have a problem?  Also - I
=KNOW I have a problem with it, and I wouldn't VOLUNTEER for a test.

If you knew enough about what the test was about to decide that you didn't want
to participate because it involved MSG, you'd've already made yourself
ineligible (since MSG IS detectable by taste). How can anybody be so clueless
as to what double blind studies are all about?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59272
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr22.143929.26131@midway.uchicago.edu>,
jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier ) says:
>
>From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
>6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
>$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
>call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
>here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
>Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
>that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
>
You might look for an allergy doctor in your area who uses sublingual
drops instead of shots for treatment. (You are given a small bottle of
antigens; 3 drops are placed under the tongue for 5 minutes.) My
allergy to bermuda grass was neutralized this way. Throughout the treatment
process I had to return to the doctor's office every month for re-testing
and a new bottle of antigens. After the allergy was completely neutralized
a bottle of maintenance antigens lasts me about 4 months (the sublingual
drops are then taken 3 times per week), and costs $20. So the cost is
less than shots and it is more convenient just to take the drops at home.

Bruce Long

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59273
From: hchung@nyx.cs.du.edu (H. Anthony Chung)
Subject: Localized fat reduction due to exercise (question).

I was just wondering if exercises specific to particular regions of the
body (such as thighs) will basically only tone the thighs, or if fat
from other parts of the body (such as breasts) would be affected just as
much.
--
   ___  ___  ________  _______+--------H. Anthony Chung--------+--C= AMIGAs--+
  / //_/ // / ___  // / ____//|Case Western Reserve University |  /\/\ R The |
 / ___  // / ___  // / //___~ |       School of Dentistry      |  \  / Future|
/_// /_// /_// /_// /_____//  +-hac@po.CWRU.Edu-(Cabal on IRC)-+-ac\/is------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59274
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: re:use of haldol and the elderly

I'm a nursing student, and I would like to respond to #66966 on haldol
and the elderly.
Message-ID: <25APR199316225142@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu>
Organization: Florida State University - School of Higher Thought
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1  

First, I'm sorry to hear that you have had to see your grandmother go
through this.  I know it has to have been tough.

There are many things that can cause long term confusion in elderly
adults.  The change in environment can cause problems.  Anesthetic agents
can cause confusion because the body cannot clear the medicines out of
the body as easily.  In addition, medications and interactions between
medications can cause confusion.

As far as whether or not haldol can have long lasting effects even after
the drug has been discontinued, I do not know.  I have not _seen_ anything
to that effect.  However, I also had not been looking for that information.
I can see what I can find...

I can tell you that haldol is an antipsychotic drug, and, according to
the Nursing93 Drug handbook, it is "Especially useful for agitation
associated with senile dementia"  (p. 400).  It also should not be 
discontinued abruptly.  It did not say anything about long lasting
effects.

Because so many things can cause confusion, it is hard for me to know
what else was going on at the time; if I had more history, i might be able
to answer you better.  If you want to send me e-mail with more information,
I would be happy to try to  help you piece together what might have
happened.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59275
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: ROC curves software


I understand Robert Centor has a program called ROC ANALYZER, that can be
used to do receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Does 
anyone know if this is avaliable from an FTP site? If not, does anyone
know how to get a copy of it?

==============================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59276
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: re:use of haldol and the elderly

In article <C623Az.M85@mailer.cc.fsu.edu> PICL account_25,
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu writes:
>adults.  The change in environment can cause problems.  Anesthetic
agents
>can cause confusion because the body cannot clear the medicines out
of
>the body as easily.

The original poster did not say why his mother had been in hospital
but I can answer a few general points.

Elderly patients may exhibit a marked difficulty in coping after
being in hospital for a few days. The drastic change of environment
will often unmask how marginally they have been coping at home. Even
young people find the change unsettling.

Though we have thought that this decrement in function after - say -
anaesthesia and surgery for a fractured hip (a common event in the
elderly) was due to anaesthesia there is good evidence that the
change of situation is much more important. Some hospitals have
tried a 'rapid transit' system for hip fractures, aiming to have the
patient back at home within 24 hours of admission. The selection of
the anaesthetic has no effect on the ability to discharge these
patients early.

Anaesthetists who work with the elderly (which is almost all of us)
generally take care to tailor the choice and dose of drugs used to
the individual patient. Even so, there is some evidence that full
mental recovery may take a surprisingly long time to return. This is
the sort of thing which is detected by setting quite difficult
tasks, not the gross change that the original poster noted.

Haloperidol (Haldol TM) is a long acting drug. The plasma half life
of the drug is up to 35 hours. If the decanoate (a sort of slow
release formulation) is used it may be weeks. The elderly are
sensitive to haloperidol for a number of reasons. Without knowing
more it is hard to comment.

Don Mackie - his opinions
esiology will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59277
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
definitely involved. 

My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
medications. The family protested, but the doctors were adamant, telling
us that none of the drugs interact. They even took the attitude that, if
he was disoriented, they should put him on something else as well! With
the help of an MD friend of the family, we had all his medication
discontinued. He had a seizure that night, and was put back on one drug.
Two days later, he was his old self again. I guess there aren't many
medical texts that address the subject of 21-way interactions.

I don't mean this as a cheap shot at the medical profession. It is an
aspect of hospitals that is very frightening to me. Docs seem to believe
that, because they have close control of you, it's quite all right to
take your bodily equilibria into their own hands. That control reduces
the chance that the patient will make a mistake, but health care
providers can make mistakes too, and mistakes can be deadly under those
circumstances. 

I grant you that sometimes there's no choice. Nevertheless, I suggest
you procure a list of the drugs your grandmother is getting, and discuss
it with an independent doc. Her problems may not be the effect of HALDOL
at all. HALDOL may have been used validly, or it may have been
prescribed because OTHER medication confused her, and because the
hospital normally prescribes HALDOL for the confused elderly.

Just my opinion,

-Larry (obviously not a doc) C.

  

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59278
From: jowalker@polyslo.csc.calpoly.edu (The Thespian)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

I got this recipe from a watier on the greek island of samos.
They use it as a spread for bread there butit is excellent on
gyro's as well. By the way, the actual name is tzatziki.
Here is the recipe:

yoghurt, chopped garlic, peeled chopped cucumber, salt, white
pepper, a little olive oil and a little vinegar.

I would love to hear of any other good greek recipes out there.

-- 
Jon Walker
jowalker@oboe.calpoly.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59279
From: dbaker@utkvx.utk.edu (Baker, David)
Subject: Hypodermic Syringe



While I don't have an answer for you, I reckon Blaise Pascal is generally
credited with inventing the syringe per se.  I don't know much about the
needles; however, I do know of a southwest Virginia country doctor who
some thrity or more years ago invented, patented, used, and sold a syringe/
hypodermic needle combination that retracted, injected with the flip of a
trigger, then retracted, giving a near-painless injection.  The fellow was
Dr. Daniel Gabriel, and it was termed the Gabriel--somebody else syringe. 
Did you come across that one.  (Plastic, disposable syringes came onto the
market about that time and his product went by the wayside, to my knowledge.)



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59280
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

In article <YfqmleK00iV185Co5L@andrew.cmu.edu>, Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes...
>I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
>demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
>definitely involved. 
> 
>My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
>hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
>drugs...

No wonder he became confused!  With so many drugs, it is almost impossible
to know which one is causing the problem.  And because some drugs 
potentiate the effect of each other, they can make the side effects
all the worse, and even dangerous.  (kinda like mixing alcohol and 
antihistamines!)

>...he was disoriened [the doctors thougt ] they should put him on something
>else as well!

Unfortunately, doctors prescribe drugs to treat the side effects of
the drugs a patient is receiving.  If one drug they are taking causes
the patient's blood pressure to go up, many times an antihypertensive
is prescribed instead of re-evaluating the need for the original drug.
This is why many older adults are trying to take a dozen or so drugs
at home!!!!

>....procure a list of the drugs your grandmother is getting, and discuss
>it with an independent doc. Her problems may not be the effect of HALDOL
>at all. HALDOL may have been used validly, or it may have been
>prescribed because OTHER medication confused her, and because the
>hospital normally prescribes HALDOL for the confused elderly.

I fully agree.  In addition, she proably should be examined by another
doctor who can re-evaluate the need for the medications she is taking.
I can't remember the guidelines I either saw in a text or heard during
a lecture, but any elderly adult who is receiving medications should have
the need for the drug re-evaluated regularly.  If her current physician
is unwilling to do this, find one who will.  Either check the phone 
book for a physician who specializes in geriatric medicine or gerontology, 
or contact a physician referral line or the American Medical Society.
By finding a geriatric specialist, he (she) will more likely be in tune
with the special needs of elderly adults and maybe can help.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59281
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Fibromyalgia, CFS and sleep levels

I know that there is a relationship between Fibromyalgia and deep 
sleep.  I believe that there are five levels of sleep.  I think 
that R.E.M. sleep is the third deepest level of sleep and that 
there are two deeper levels of sleep.  If I am in error in any of 
this, please let me know.

Which level of sleep is thought to be deficient in people with 
Fibromyalgia?  Are there any known sleep disturbances associated 
with CFS?  What sleep disturbances (if any) are associated with 
clinical depression?  Do antidepressants correct the sleep 
disturbances in these diseases?  Are there any good books or 
medical journal articles about sleep disturbances and these 
diseases?  Thank you in advance for all replies.

... The more inconvenient it is to answer the phone, the more it rings.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59282
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Pregnency without sex?

When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.

Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
occur?

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59283
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 1/4

------------- cut here -----------------
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

              +------------------------------------------------+
              !                                                !
              !              Health Info-Com Network           !
              !                Medical Newsletter              !
              +------------------------------------------------+
                         Editor: David Dodell, D.M.D.
    10250 North 92nd Street, Suite 210, Scottsdale, Arizona 85258-4599 USA
                          Telephone +1 (602) 860-1121
                              FAX +1 (602) 451-1165

Compilation Copyright 1993 by David Dodell,  D.M.D.  All  rights  Reserved.  
License  is  hereby  granted  to republish on electronic media for which no 
fees are charged,  so long as the text of this copyright notice and license 
are attached intact to any and all republished portion or portions.  

The Health Info-Com Network Newsletter is  distributed  biweekly.  Articles 
on  a medical nature are welcomed.  If you have an article,  please contact 
the editor for information on how to submit it.  If you are  interested  in 
joining the automated distribution system, please contact the editor.  

E-Mail Address:
                                    Editor:  
                          Internet: david@stat.com
                              FidoNet = 1:114/15
                           Bitnet = ATW1H@ASUACAD 
LISTSERV = MEDNEWS@ASUACAD.BITNET (or internet: mednews@asuvm.inre.asu.edu) 
                         anonymous ftp = vm1.nodak.edu
               Notification List = hicn-notify-request@stat.com
                 FAX Delivery = Contact Editor for information


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                       T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S


1.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
     [23 April 1993] Rates of Cesarean Delivery ...........................  1
     Malaria Among U.S. Embassy Personnel .................................  5
     FDA Approval of Hib Vaccine for Children/Infants .....................  8

2.  Dental News
     Workshop Explores Oral Manifestations of HIV Infection ............... 11

3.  Food & Drug Administration News
     FDA Approves Depo Provera, injectable contraceptive .................. 14
     New Rules Speed Approval of Drugs for Life-Threatening Illnesses ..... 16

4.  Articles
     Research Promises Preventing/Slowing Blindness from Retinal Disease .. 18
     Affluent Diet Increases Risk Of Heart Disease ........................ 20

5.  General Announcments
     Publications for Health Professionals from National Cancer Institute . 23
     Publications for Patients Available from National Cancer Institute ... 30

6.  AIDS News Summaries
     AIDS Daily Summary for April 19 to April 23, 1993 .................... 38

7.  AIDS Statistics
     Worldwide AIDS Statistics ............................................ 48





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                            Page    i
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
               Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               Rates of Cesarean Delivery -- United States, 1991
               =================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     Cesarean deliveries have accounted for nearly 1 million of the 
approximately 4 million annual deliveries in the United States since 1986 
(Table 1). The cesarean rate in the United States is the third highest among 
21 reporting countries, exceeded only by Brazil and Puerto Rico (1). This 
report presents data on cesarean deliveries from CDC's National Hospital 
Discharge Survey (NHDS) for 1991 and compares these data with previous years. 
     Data on discharges from short-stay, nonfederal hospitals have been 
collected annually since 1965 in the NHDS, conducted by CDC's National Center 
for Health Statistics. For 1991, medical and demographic information were 
abstracted from a sample of 274,000 inpatients discharged from 484 
participating hospitals. The 1991 cesareans and vaginal births after a prior 
cesarean (VBAC) presented in this report are based on weighted national 
estimates from the NHDS sample of approximately 31,000 (11%) women discharged 
after delivery. The estimated numbers of live births by type of delivery were 
calculated by applying cesarean rates from the NHDS to live births from 
national vital registration data. Therefore, estimates of the number of 
cesareans in this report will not agree with previously published data based 
solely on the NHDS (2). Stated differences in this analysis are significant at 
the 95% confidence level, based on the two-tailed t-test with a critical value 
of 1.96. 
     In 1991, there were 23.5 cesareans per 100 deliveries, the same rate as 
in 1990 and similar to rates during 1986-1989 (Table 1). The primary cesarean 
rate (i.e., number of first cesareans per 100 deliveries to women who had no 
previous cesareans) for 1986-1991 also was stable, ranging from 16.8 to 17.5. 
In 1991, the cesarean rate in the South was 27.6, significantly (p<0.05) 
higher than the rates for the West (19.8), Midwest (21.8), and Northeast 
(22.6). Rates were higher for mothers aged greater than or equal to 30 years 
than for younger women; in proprietary hospitals than in nonprofit or 
government hospitals; in hospitals with fewer than 300 beds than in larger 
hospitals; and for deliveries for which Blue Cross/Blue Shield * and other 
private insurance is the expected source of payment than for other sources of 
payment (Table 2). The same pattern characterized primary cesarean deliveries. 
     Since the early 1970s, the number and percentage of births to older women 
increased; however, if the age distribution of mothers in 1991 had remained 
the same as in 1986, the overall cesarean rate in 1991 would have been 23.3, 
essentially the same as the 23.5 observed. 
     Based on the NHDS, of the approximately 4,111,000 live births in 1991, an 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  1
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

estimated 966,000 (23.5%) were by cesarean delivery. Of these, an estimated 
338,000 (35.0%) births were repeat cesareans, and 628,000 (65.0%) were primary 
cesareans. Since 1986, approximately 600,000 primary cesareans have been 
performed annually. In 1986, 8.5% of women who had a previous cesarean 
delivered vaginally, compared with 24.2% in 1991. Of all cesareans in 1991, 
35.0% were associated with a previous cesarean, 30.4% with dystocia (i.e., 
failure of labor to progress), 11.7% with breech presentation, 9.2% with fetal 
distress, and 13.7% with all other specified complications. 
     The average hospital stay for all deliveries in 1991 was 2.8 days. In 
comparison, the hospital stay for a primary cesarean delivery was 4.5 days, 
and for a repeat cesarean, 4.2 days -- nearly twice the duration for VBAC 
deliveries (2.2 days) or for vaginal deliveries that were not VBACs (2.3 
days). In 1986, the average hospital stay for all deliveries was 3.2 days, for 
primary cesareans 5.2 days, for repeat cesareans 4.7 days, and for VBAC and 
non-VBAC vaginal deliveries 2.7 and 2.6 days, respectively. 

Reported by: Office of Vital and Health Statistics Systems, National Center 
for Health Statistics, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The cesarean rate in the United States steadily increased from 
1965 through 1986; however, the findings in this report indicate that rates 
have been stable since 1986 (3). Because there is little evidence that 
maternal and child health status has improved during this time and because 
cesareans are associated with an increased risk for complications of 
childbirth, a national health objective for the year 2000 (4) is to reduce the 
overall cesarean rate to 15 or fewer per 100 deliveries and the primary 
cesarean rate to 12 or fewer per 100 deliveries (objective 14.8). 
     Postpartum complications -- including urinary tract and wound infections 
-- may account in part for the longer hospital stays for cesarean deliveries 
than for vaginal births (5). Moreover, the prolonged hospital stays for 
cesarean deliveries substantially increase health-care costs. For example, in 
1991, the average costs for cesarean and vaginal deliveries were $7826 and 
$4720, respectively. The additional cost for each cesarean delivery includes 
$611 for physician fees and $2495 for hospital charges (6). If the cesarean 
rate in 1991 had been 15 (the year 2000 objective) instead of 23.5, the number 
of cesarean births would have decreased by 349,000 (617,000 versus 966,000), 
resulting in a savings of more than $1 billion in physician fees and hospital 
charges. 
     Despite the steady increase in VBAC rates since 1986, several factors may 
impede progress toward the year 2000 national health objectives for cesarean 
delivery. For example, VBAC rates substantially reflect the number of women 
offered trial of labor, which has been increasingly encouraged since 1982 (7). 
Of women who are offered a trial of labor, 50%-70% could deliver vaginally (7) 
--a level already achieved by many hospitals (8). Trial of labor was routinely 
offered in 46% of hospitals surveyed in 1984 (the most recent year for which 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  2
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

national data are available) (9) when the VBAC rate (according to NHDS data) 
was 5.7%. The year 2000 objective specifies a VBAC rate of 35%, based on all 
women who had a prior cesarean, regardless of whether a trial of labor was 
attempted. To reach the overall cesarean rate goal, however, increases in the 
VBAC rate will need to be combined with a substantial reduction in the primary 
rate. 
     One hospital succeeded in reducing the rate of cesarean delivery by 
applying objective criteria for the four most common indications for cesarean 
delivery, by requiring a second opinion, and by instituting a peer-review 
process (10). Other recommendations for decreasing cesarean delivery rates 
include eliminating incentives for physicians and hospitals by equalizing 
reimbursement for vaginal and cesarean deliveries; public dissemination of 
physician- and hospital-specific cesarean delivery rates to increase public 
awareness of differences in practices; and addressing malpractice concerns, 
which may be an important factor in maintaining the high rates of cesarean 
delivery (4). 

References

1. Notzon FC. International differences in the use of obstetric interventions. 
JAMA 1990; 263:3286-91. 

2. Graves EJ, NCHS. 1991 Summary: National Hospital Discharge Survey. 
Hyattsville, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public 
Health Service, CDC, 1993. (Advance data no. 227). 

3. Taffel SM, Placek PJ, Kosary CL. U.S. cesarean section rates, 1990: an 
update. Birth 1992;19:21-2. 

4. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives -- full report, with commentary. Washington, DC: 
US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS 
publication no. (PHS)91-50212. 

5. Danforth DN. Cesarean section. JAMA 1985;253:811-8. 

6. Hospital Insurance Association of America. Table 4.15: cost of maternity 
care, physicians' fees, and hospital charges, by census region, based on 
Consumer Price Index (1991). In: 1992 Source book of health insurance data. 
Washington, DC: Hospital Insurance Association of America, 1992. 

7. Committee on Obstetrics. ACOG committee opinion no. 64: guidelines for 
vaginal delivery after a previous cesarean birth. Washington, DC: American 
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 1988. 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  3
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

8. Rosen MG, Dickinson JC. Vaginal birth after cesarean: a meta-analysis of 
indicators for success. Obstet Gynecol 1990;76:865-9. 

9. Shiono PH, Fielden JG, McNellis D, Rhoads GG, Pearse WH. Recent trends in 
cesarean birth and trial of labor rates in the United States. JAMA 
1987;257:494-7. 

10. Myers SA, Gleicher N. A successful program to lower cesarean-section 
rates. N Engl J Med 1988;319:1511-6. 

* Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and 
does not imply endorsement by the Public Health Service or the U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services.
































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  4
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

         Malaria Among U.S. Embassy Personnel -- Kampala, Uganda, 1992
         =============================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     The treatment and prevention of malaria in Africa has become a 
challenging and complex problem because of increasing drug resistance. 
Although the risk of acquiring malaria for U.S. citizens and their dependents 
stationed overseas generally has been low, this risk varies substantially and 
unpredictably. During May 1992, the Office of Medical Services, Department of 
State (OMS/DOS), and CDC were notified of an increased number of malaria cases 
among official U.S. personnel stationed in Kampala, Uganda. A review of the 
health records from the Embassy Health Unit (EHU) in Kampala indicated that 27 
cases of malaria were diagnosed in official personnel from March through June 
1992 compared with two cases during the same period in 1991. EHU, OMS/DOS, and 
CDC conducted an investigation to confirm all reported malaria cases and 
identify potential risk factors for malaria among U.S. Embassy personnel. This 
report summarizes the results of the investigation. 
     Malaria blood smears from 25 of the 27 reported case-patients were 
available for review by OMS/DOS and CDC. A case of malaria was confirmed if 
the slide was positive for Plasmodium sp. Of the 25 persons, 17 were slide-
confirmed as having malaria. 
     A questionnaire was distributed to all persons served by the EHU to 
obtain information about residence, activities, use of malaria 
chemoprophylaxis, and use of personal protection measures (i.e., using bednets 
and insect repellents, having window and door screens, and wearing long 
sleeves and pants in the evening). Of the 157 persons eligible for the survey, 
128 (82%) responded. 
     Risk for malaria was not associated with sex or location of residence in 
Kampala. Although the risk for malaria was higher among children aged less 
than or equal to 15 years (6/32 19%) than among persons greater than 15 
years (11/94 12%), this difference was not significant (relative risk 
RR=1.6; 95% confidence interval CI=0.6-4.0). Eighty-two percent of the 
cases occurred among persons who had been living in Kampala for 1-5 years, 
compared with those living there less than 1 year. Travel outside of the 
Kampala area to more rural settings was not associated with increased risk for 
malaria. 
     Four malaria chemoprophylaxis regimens were used by persons who 
participated in the survey: mefloquine, chloroquine and proguanil, chloroquine 
alone, and proguanil alone. In addition, 23 (18%) persons who responded were 
not using any malaria chemoprophylaxis. The risk for malaria was significantly 
lower among persons using either mefloquine or chloroquine and proguanil (8/88 
9%) than among persons using the other regimens or no prophylaxis (9/37 
24%) (RR=0.4; 95% CI=0.2-0.9). Twelve persons not using prophylaxis reported 
side effects or fear of possible side effects as a reason. 
     The risk for malaria was lower among persons who reported using bednets 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  5
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

all or most of the time (2/27 7%) than among persons who sometimes or rarely 
used bednets (15/99 15%) (RR=0.5; 95% CI=0.1-2.0). The risk for malaria was 
also lower among persons who consistently used insect repellent in the evening 
(0/16), compared with those who rarely used repellent (17/110 15%) (RR=0; 
upper 95% confidence limit=1.2). Risk for malaria was not associated with 
failure to have window or door screens or wear long sleeves or pants in the 
evening. 
     As a result of this investigation, EHU staff reviewed with all personnel 
the need to use and comply with the recommended malaria chemoprophylaxis 
regimens. EHU staff also emphasized the need to use personal protection 
measures and made plans to obtain insecticide-impregnated bednets and to 
provide window and door screens for all personnel. 

Reported by: U.S. Embassy Health Unit, Kampala, Uganda; Office of Medical 
Svcs, Dept of State, Washington, D.C. Malaria Br, Div of Parasitic Diseases, 
National Center for Infectious Diseases, CDC. 

Editorial Note: In Uganda, the increase in malaria among U.S. personnel was 
attributed to poor adherence to both recommended malaria chemoprophylaxis 
regimens and use of personal protection measures during a period of increased 
malaria transmission and intensified chloroquine resistance in sub-Saharan 
Africa. The findings in this report underscore the need to provide initial and 
continued counseling regarding malaria prevention for persons living abroad in 
malaria-endemic areas -- preventive measures that are also important for 
short-term travelers to such areas. 
     Mefloquine is an effective prophylaxis regimen in Africa and in most 
other areas with chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum; however, in some areas 
(e.g., Thailand), resistance to mefloquine may limit its effectiveness. In 
Africa, the efficacy of mefloquine, compared with chloroquine alone, in 
preventing infection with P. falciparum is 92% (1 ). Mefloquine is safe and 
well tolerated when given at 250 mg per week over a 2-year period. The risk 
for serious adverse reactions possibly associated with mefloquine prophylaxis 
(e.g., psychosis and convulsions) is low (i.e., 1.3-1.9 episodes per 100,000 
users 2), while the risk for less severe adverse reactions (e.g., dizziness, 
gastrointestinal complaints, and sleep disturbances) is similar to that for 
other antimalarial chemoprophylactics (1). 
     Doxycycline has similar prophylactic efficacy to mefloquine, but the need 
for daily dosing may reduce compliance with and effectiveness of this regimen 
(3,4). Chloroquine alone is not effective as prophylaxis in areas of intense 
chloroquine resistance (e.g., Southeast Asia and Africa). In Africa, for 
persons who cannot take mefloquine or doxycycline, chloroquine and proguanil 
is an alternative, although less effective, regimen. Chloroquine should be 
used for malaria prevention in areas only where chloroquine-resistant P. 
falciparum has not been reported. 
     Country-specific recommendations for preventing malaria and information 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  6
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

on the dosage and precautions for malaria chemoprophylaxis regimens are 
available from Health Information for International Travel, 1992 (i.e., 
"yellow book") (5) or 24 hours a day by telephone or fax, (404) 332-4555. 

References

1. Lobel HO, Miani M, Eng T, et al. Long-term malaria prophylaxis with weekly 
mefloquine in Peace Corps volunteers: an effective and well tolerated regimen. 
Lancet 1993;341:848-51. 

2. World Health Organization. Review of central nervous system adverse events 
related to the antimalarial drug, mefloquine (1985-1990). Geneva: World Health 
Organization, 1991; publication no. WHO/MAL/91.1063. 

3. Pang L, Limsomwong N, Singharaj P. Prophylactic treatment of vivax and 
falciparum malaria with low-dose doxycycline. J Infect Dis 1988;158:1124-7. 

4. Pang L, Limsomwong N, Boudreau EF, Singharaj P. Doxycycline prophylaxis for 
falciparum malaria. Lancet 1987;1:1161-4. 

5. CDC. Health information for international travel, 1992. Atlanta: US 
Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1992:98; DHHS 
publication no. (CDC)92-8280.






















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  7
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

      FDA Approval of Use of a New Haemophilus b Conjugate Vaccine and a
       Combined Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis and Haemophilus b Conjugate
                       Vaccine for Infants and Children
      ==================================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccines have been 
recommended for use in infants since 1990, and their routine use in infant 
vaccination has contributed to the substantial decline in the incidence of Hib 
disease in the United States (1-3). Vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus, and 
pertussis during infancy and childhood have been administered routinely in the 
United States since the late 1940s and has been associated with a greater than 
90% reduction in morbidity and mortality associated with infection by these 
organisms. Because of the increasing number of vaccines now routinely 
recommended for infants, a high priority is the development of combined 
vaccines that allow simultaneous administration with fewer separate 
injections. 
     The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently licensed two new products 
for vaccinating children against these diseases: 1) the Haemophilus b 
conjugate vaccine (tetanus toxoid conjugate, ActHIB Trademark), * for 
vaccination against Hib disease only and 2) a combined diphtheria and tetanus 
toxoids and whole-cell pertussis vaccine (DTP) and Hib conjugate vaccine 
(TETRAMUNE Trademark), a combination of vaccines formulated for use in 
vaccinating children against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and Hib disease. 

                               ActHIB Trademark 

     On March 30, 1993, the FDA approved a new Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine, polyribosylribitol phosphate-tetanus toxoid conjugate (PRP-T), 
manufactured by Pasteur Merieux Serum et Vaccins and distributed as ActHIB 
Trademark by Connaught Laboratories, Inc. (Swiftwater, Pennsylvania). This 
vaccine has been licensed for use in infants in a three-dose primary 
vaccination series administered at ages 2, 4, and 6 months. Previously 
unvaccinated infants 7-11 months of age should receive two doses 2 months 
apart. Previously unvaccinated children 12-14 months of age should receive one 
dose. A booster dose administered at 15 months of age is recommended for all 
children. Previously unvaccinated children 15-59 months of age should receive 
a single dose and do not require a booster. More than 90% of infants receiving 
a primary vaccination series of ActHIB Trademark (consecutive doses at 2, 4, 
and 6 months of age) develop a geometric mean titer of anti-Haemophilus b 
polysaccharide antibody greater than 1 ug/mL (4). This response is similar to 
that of infants who receive recommended series of previously licensed 
Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines for which efficacy has been demonstrated in 
prospective trials. Two U.S. efficacy trials of PRP-T were terminated early 
because of the concomitant licensure of other Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  8
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

for use in infants (4). In these studies, no cases of invasive Hib disease 
were detected in approximately 6000 infants vaccinated with PRP-T. These and 
other studies suggest that the efficacy of PRP-T vaccine will be similar to 
that of the other licensed Hib vaccines. TETRAMUNE Trademark 
     On March 30, 1993, the FDA approved a combined diphtheria and tetanus 
toxoids and whole-cell pertussis vaccine (DTP) and Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine. TETRAMUNE Trademark, available from Lederle-Praxis Biologicals (Pearl 
River, New York), combines two previously licensed products, DTP (TRIIMMUNOL 
Registered, manufactured by Lederle Laboratories Pearl River, New York) and 
Haemophilus b conjugate vaccine (HibTITER Registered, manufactured by Praxis 
Biologics, Inc. Rochester, New York). 
     This vaccine has been licensed for use in children aged 2 months-5 years 
for protection against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and Hib disease when 
indications for vaccination with DTP vaccine and Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine coincide. Based on demonstration of co mparable or higher antibody 
responses to each of the components of the two vaccines, TETRAMUNE Trademark 
is expected to provide protection against Hib, as well as diphtheria, tetanus, 
and pertussis, equivalent to that of already licensed formulations of other 
DTP and Haemophilus b vaccines. 
     The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that 
all infants receive a primary series of one of the licensed Haemophilus b 
conjugate vaccines beginning at 2 months of age and a booster dose at age 12-
15 months (5). The ACIP also recommends that all infants receive a four-dose 
primary series of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and pertussis vaccine at 2, 
4, 6, and 15-18 months of age, and a booster dose at 4-6 years (6-8). A 
complete statement regarding recommendations for use of ActHIB Trademark and 
TETRAMUNE Trademark is being developed. 

Reported by: Office of Vaccines Research and Review, Center for Biologics 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration. Div of Immunization, 
National Center for Prevention Svcs; Meningitis and Special Pathogens Br, Div 
of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, 
CDC. 

References

1. Adams WG, Deaver KA, Cochi SL, et al. Decline of childhood Haemophilus 
influenzae type b (Hib) disease in the Hib vaccine era. JAMA 1993;269:221-6. 

2. Broadhurst LE, Erickson RL, Kelley PW. Decrease in invasive Haemophilus 
influenzae disease in U.S. Army children, 1984 through 1991. JAMA 
1993;269:227-31. 

3. Murphy TV, White KE, Pastor P, et al. Declining incidence of Haemophilus 
influenzae type b disease since introduction of vaccination. JAMA 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  9
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

1993;269:246-8. 

4. Fritzell B, Plotkin S. Efficacy and safety of a Haemophilus influenzae type 
b capsular polysaccharide-tetanus protein conjugate vaccine. J Pediatr 
1992;121:355-62. 

5. ACIP. Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines for prevention of Haemophilus 
influenzae type b disease among infants and children two months of age and 
older: recommendations of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee 
(ACIP). MMWR 1991;40(no. RR-1). 

6. ACIP. Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis -- recommendations for vaccine use 
and other preventive measures: recommendations of the Immunization Practices 
Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 1991;40(no. RR-10). 

7. ACIP. Pertussis vaccination: acellular pertussis vaccine for reinforcing 
and booster use -- supplementary ACIP statement: recommendations of the 
Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 1992;41(no. RR-1). 

8. ACIP. Pertussis vaccination: acellular pertussis vaccine for the fourth and 
fifth doses of the DTP series -- update to supplementary ACIP statement: 
recommendations of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 
1992;41(no. RR-15). 

* Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and 
does not imply endorsement by the Public Health Service or the U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services.


















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 10
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                  Dental News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

            International Workshop Explores Oral Manifestations of
                                 HIV Infection

                             NIDR Research Digest
                             written by Jody Dove
                                  March 1993
                     National Institute of Dental Research

     At the Second International Workshop on the Oral Manifestations of HIV 
Infection, held January 31-February 3 in San Francisco, participants explored 
issues related to the epidemiology, basic molecular virology, mucosal 
immunology, and oral clinical presentations of HIV infection. 
     The workshop was organized by Dr. John Greenspan and Dr. Deborah 
Greenspan of the Department of Stomatology, School of Dentistry, University of 
California, San Francisco.  An international steering committee and scientific 
program committee provided guidance. 
     The conference drew more than 260 scientists from 39 countries, including 
Asia, Africa, Europe, Central America, South America, as well as the United 
States and Canada.  Support tor the workshop was provided by the National 
Institute of Dental Research, the National Cancer Institute, the National 
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the NIH Office of AIDS Research, 
and the Procter and Gamble Company. 
     Among the topics discussed were: the epidemiology of HIV lesions; ethics, 
professional responsibility, and public policy; occupational issues; provision 
of oral care to the HIV-positive population; salivary HIV transmission and 
mucosal immunity; opportunistic infections; pediatric HIV infection; and 
women's issues. 

                                Recommendations

     Recommendations emerged from the workshop to define the association 
between the appearance of oral lesions and rate of progression of HIV, to 
establish a universal terminology for HIV-associated oral lesions, to look for 
more effective treatments for oral manifestations, to expand molecular biology 
studies to understand the relationship between HIV infection and common oral 
lesions, and to study the effects of HIV therapy on oral lesions. 

                                 Epidemiology

     Since the First International Workshop on Oral Manifestations of HIV 
Infection was convened five years ago, the epidemiology of HIV infection has 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 11
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

radically changed.  In 1988, HIV infection was detected and reported largely 
in homosexual and bisexual males, intravenous drug users, and hemophiliacs.  
Today, more HIV infection is seen in heterosexual males and females and in 
children and adolescents. 
     While the predominant impact of HIV infection has been felt in Africa, a 
major increase in infection rate is being seen in Southeast Asia as well.  
Five hundred thousand cases have been reported to date in this region and more 
are appearing all the time. 
     Researchers are continuing to document the epidemiology of oral lesions 
such as hairy leukoplakia and candidiasis.  They also are beginning to explore 
the relationships between specific oral lesions and HIV disease progression 
and prognosis. 

                            Social/political Issues

     Discussion on the social and political implications of HIV infection 
focused on changing the public's attitude that AIDS is retribution for 
indiscriminate sexual behavior and drug use.  Speakers also addressed health 
care delivery for HIV-infected patients, and the need to educate the public 
about what AIDS is, and how it is acquired. 

                          Saliva and Salivary Glands

     Conference speakers described transmission issues and the HIV-inhibitory 
activity of saliva, the strength of which varies among the different salivary 
secretions.  Whole saliva has a greater inhibitory effect than submandibular 
secretions, which in turn have a greater inhibitory effect than parotid 
secretions.  Research has shown that at least two mechanisms are responsible 
for salivary inhibitory activity.  They attributed the HIV-inhibitory effect 
of saliva to the 1) aggregation/agglutination of HIV by saliva, which may both 
promote clearance of virus and prevent it reaching a target cell, and 2) 
direct effects on the virus or target cells. 
     Other topics discussed were the manifestation of salivary gland disease 
in HIV-infected persons and current research on oral mucosal immunity. 

                               Pediatric Issues

     Pediatric AIDS recently has emerged as an area of intense interest.  With 
early and accurate diagnosis and proper treatment, the life expectancy of HIV-
infected children has tripled.  The prevention of transmission of HIV from 
mother to child may be possible in many cases, particularly if the mother's 
sero-status is known prior to giving birth. 

                    Periodontal and Gingival Tissue Disease


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 12
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     Oral health researchers continue to explore periodontal diseases and 
gingivitis found in individuals with HIV infection.  Recommendations made at 
the workshop include the standardization of terminology, refinement of 
diagnostic markers, standardization of study design, and proper consideration 
of confounding variables resulting from periodontal therapy. 

                       Occupational and Treatment Issues

     Occupational issues surrounding the treatment of HIV-infected individuals 
and treatment rendered by HIV-infected health care professionals still command 
considerable attention.  Factors under consideration include the cost/benefit 
of HIV testing, patient-to-health care provider transmission of HIV infection 
and the reverse, and the use of mainstream versus dedicated facilities for the 
treatment of HIV-infected patients. 
     Conference participants anticipate that a third International Workshop on 
the Oral Manifestations of HIV Infection will be held in five years or less.  
Proceedings from the second workshop will be published by the Quintessence 
Company in late 1993.






















--------- end of part 1 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59284
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 2/4

------------- cut here -----------------





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 13
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                        Food & Drug Administration News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

              FDA Approves Depo Provera, injectable contraceptive
                      P92-31 Food and Drug Administration
              FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Susan Cruzan - (301) 443-3285


The Food and Drug Administration today announced the approval of Depo Provera, 
an injectable contraceptive drug. 

The drug, which contains a synthetic hormone similar to the natural hormone 
progesterone, protects women from pregnancy for three months per injection. 
The hormone is injected into the muscle of the arm or buttock where it is 
released into the bloodstream to prevent pregnancy. It is more than 99 percent 
effective.

"This drug presents another long-term, effective option for women to prevent 
pregnancy," said FDA Commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D. "As an injectable, 
given once every three months, Depo Provera eliminates problems related to 
missing a daily dose."

Depo Provera is available in 150 mg. single dose vials from doctors and 
clinics and must be given on a regular basis to maintain contraceptive 
protection. If a patient decides to become pregnant, she discontinues the 
injections.

As with any such products, FDA advises patients to discuss the benefits and 
risks of Depo Provera with their doctor or other health care professional 
before making a decision to use it.

Depo Provera's effectiveness as a contraceptive was established in extensive 
studies by the manufacturer, the World Health Organization and health agencies 
in other countries. U.S. clinical trials, begun in 1963, also found Depo 
Provera effective as an injectable contraceptive.

The most common side effects are menstrual irregularities and weight gain. In 
addition, some patients may experience headache, nervousness, abdominal pain, 
dizziness, weakness or fatigue. The drug should not be used in women who have 
acute liver disease, unexplained vaginal bleeding, breast cancer or blood 
clots in the legs, lungs or eyes.

The labeling advises doctors to rule out pregnancy before prescribing the 
drug, due to concerns about low birth weight in babies exposed to the drug. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 14
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Recent data have also demonstrated that long-term use may contribute to 
osteoporosis. The manufacturer will conduct additional research to study this 
potential effect.

Depo Provera was Developed in the 1960s and has been approved for 
contraception in many other countries. The UpJohn Company of Kalamazoo, Mich., 
which will market the drug under the name, Depo Provera Contraceptive 
Injection, first submitted it for approval in the United States in the 1970s. 
At that time, animal studies raised questions about its potential to cause 
breast cancer. Worldwide studies have since found the overall risk of cancer, 
including breast cancer in humans, to be minimal if any.


































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 15
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

       New Rules Speed Approval of Drugs for Life-Threatening Illnesses
                      P92-37 Food and Drug Administration
                        Monica Revelle - (301) 443-4177

The Food and Drug Administration today announced that it will soon publish new 
rules to shed the approval of drugs for patients with serious or life-
threatening illnesses, such as AIDS, cancer and Alzheimer's disease. 

"These final rules will help patients who are suffering the most serious 
illnesses to get access to new drugs months or even years earlier than would 
otherwise be possible," said HHS Secretary Louis W. Sullivan, M.D. "The effort 
to accelerate FDA review for these drugs has been a long-term commitment and 
indeed a hallmark of this administration." 

These rules establish procedures for the Food and Drug Administration to 
approve a drug based on "surrogate endpoints" or markers. They apply when the 
drug provides a meaningful benefit over currently available therapies. Such 
endpoints would include laboratory tests or physical signs that do not in 
themselves constitute a clinical effect but that are judged by qualified 
scientists to be likely to correspond to real benefits to the patient. 

Use of surrogate endpoints for measurement of drug efficacy permits approval 
earlier than if traditional endpoints -- such as relief of disease symptoms or 
prevention of disability and death from the disease -- are used. 

The new rules provide for therapies to be approved as soon as safety and 
effectiveness, based on surrogate endpoints, can be reasonably established. 
The drug's sponsor will be required to agree to continue or conduct 
postmarketing human studies to confirm that the drug's effect on the surrogate 
endpoint is an indicator of its clinical effectiveness. 

One new drug -- zalcitabine (also called ddC) -- was approved June 19, using a 
model of this process, for treating the human immunodeficiency virus, HIV, the 
cause of AIDS. 

Accelerated approval can also be used, if necessary, when FDA determines that 
a drug, judged to be effective for the treatment of a disease, can be used 
safely only under a restricted distribution plan. 

"The new rules will help streamline the drug development and review process 
without sacrificing goad science and rigorous FDA oversight," said FDA 
commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D. "While drug approval will be accomplished 
faster, these drugs and biological products must still meet safety and 
effectiveness standards required by law." 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 16
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

The new procedures also allow for a streamlined withdrawal process if the 
postmarketing studies do not verify the drug's clinical benefit, if there is 
new evidence that the drug product is not shown to be safe and effective, or 
if other specified circumstances arise that necessitate expeditious withdrawal 
of the drug or biologic.








































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 17
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                   Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               Research Shows Promise for Preventing or Slowing
                       Blindness due to Retinal Disease

                   National Retinitis Pigmentosa Foundation

        Neutrophilic Factors Rescue Photoreceptor Cells in Animal Tests

     Baltimore, MD - Researchers at the University of California San Francisco 
and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. [NASDAQ: REGN] have discovered that 
certain naturally occurring substances known as neurotrophic factors can 
prevent the degeneration of light-sensing cells in the retina of the eye. The 
degeneration of these cells, known as photoreceptors, is a major cause of 
visual impairment 
     This research, published to in the December issue of the Proceedings of 
the National Academy of Science (PNAS), holds promise for people who may lose 
their sight due to progressive retinal degeneration -- currently, no drug 
treatment for retinal degeneration exists. It is estimated that 2.5 million 
Americans have severe vision loss due to age-related macular degeneration and 
100,000 Americans are affected by retinitis pigmentosus, a hereditary disease 
that causes blindness. In addition, each year more than 15,000 people undergo 
surgical procedures to repair retinal detachments and other retinal traumas. 
     The research was funded in part by the RP (Retinitis Pigmentosa) 
Foundation Fighting Blindness, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and the National Eye 
Institute. It was conducted by Drs. Matthew M. LaVail, Kazuhiko Unoki, Douglas 
Yasurnura, Michael T. Matthes and Roy H. Steinberg at UCSF, arld Dr. C;eorge 
Yancoooulos, Regeneron's Vice President for Discovery. Regeneron holds an 
exclusive license for this research from UCSF.
     In the research described in the PNAS , a light-damage model was used to 
assess the survival-promoting activity of a number of naturally occurring 
substances. Experimental rats were exposed to constant light for one week. 
Eyes that had not been treated with an effective factor lost most of their 
photoreceptor cells -- the rods and cones of the retina -- after light 
exposure. Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and Ciliary Neurotrophic 
Factor (CNTF) were particularly effective in this model without causing 
unwanted side effects; other factors such as Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and 
Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1) were not effective in these experiments. 
     Discussing the research, Dr. Jesse M. Cedarbaum, Regeneron's Director of 
Clinical Research, said, "BDNF's ability to rescue neurons in the retina that 
have been damaged by light exposure may hold promise for the treatment of age-
related macular degeneration, one of the leading causes of vision impairment, 
and for retinal detachment. Following detachment, permanent vision loss may 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 18
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

result frorn the death of detached retinal cells. It is possible that BDNF 
could play a role in rescuing those cells once the retina has been reattached 
surgically." 
     "Retinitis pigmentosa is a slowly progressing disease that causes the 
retina to degenerate over a period of years or even decades. Vision decreases 
to a small tunnel of sight and can result in total blindness. It is our hope 
that research on growth factors will provide a means to slow the progression 
and preserve useful vision throughout life," stated Jeanette S. Felix, Ph.D., 
Director of Science for the RP Foundation Fighting Blindness. 
     In addition to the work described , Regeneron is developing BDNF in 
conjunction with Aingen Inc. [NASDAQ:AMGN] as a possible treatment for 
peripheral neuropathies associated with diabetes and cancer chemotherapy, 
motor neuron diseases, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease. By 
itself, Regeneron is testing CNTF in patients with arnyotrophic lateral 
sclerosis (commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease). 
     Regeneron Pharlnaceuticals, Inc., based in Tarrytown, New York, is a 
leader in the discovery and development of biotechnology-based compounds for 
the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, peripheral neuropathies and nerve 
injuries, which affect more than seven million Americans. Drs. LaVail and 
Steinberg of UCSF are consultants to Regeneron.

























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 19
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

                 Affluent Diet Increases Risk Of Heart Disease

                          Research Resources Reporter
                           written by Mary Weideman
                                 Nov/Dec 1992
                         National Institutes of Health


     High-fat, high-calorie diets rapidly increase risk factors for coronary 
heart disease in native populations of developing countries that have 
traditionally consumed diets low in fat.  These findings, according to 
investigators at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, have 
serious implications for public health in both industrialized and developing 
countries. 
     "This study demonstrates why we can develop coronary heart disease and 
have higher blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.  It shows also the 
importance of diet and particularly the potential of the diet to increase body 
weight, thereby leading to a whole host of other health problems in developing 
countries and affluent nations as well," explains principal investigator Dr. 
William E. Connor, head of the section of clinical nutrition and lipid 
metabolism at Oregon Health Sciences University. 
     Over the past 25 years Dr. Connor and his team have characterized the 
food and nutrient intakes of the Tara humara Indians in Mexico, while 
simultaneously documenting various aspects of Tarahumara lipid metabolism.  
These native Mexicans number approximately 50,000 and reside in the Sierra 
Madre Occidental Mountains in the state of Chihuahua.  The Tarahumaras have 
coupled an agrarian diet to endurance racing.  Probably as a result, coronary 
heart disease, which is so prevalent in Western industrialized nations, is 
virtually non existent in their culture.  Loosely translated, the name 
Tarahumara means "fleet of foot," reflecting a tribal passion for betting on 
"kickball" races, in which participants run distances of 100 miles or more 
while kicking a machete-carved wooden ball.
     The typical Tarahumara diet consists primarily of pinto beans, tortillas, 
and pinole, a drink made of ground roasted corn mixed with cold water, 
together with squash and gath ered fruits and vegetables.  The Tara humaras 
also eat small amounts of game, fish, and eggs.  Their food contains 
approximately 12 percent of total calories as fat of which the majority (69 
percent) is of vegetable origin.  Dietician Martha McMurry, a coinvestigator 
in the study, describes their diet as simple and very rich in nutrients while 
low in cholesterol and fat.
     The Tarahumaras have average plasma cholesterol levels of 121 mg/ dL, 
low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol levels of 72 mg/dl, and high-density 
lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol levels of 32 to 42 mg/dl.  All of those values 
are in the good, low-risk range, according to the researchers.  Elevated 
cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels are considered risk factors for heart 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 20
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

disease.  HDL-cholesterol is considered beneficial.  In previous studies the 
Tarahumaras had been found to be at low risk for cardiac disease, although 
able to respond to high-cholesterol diets with elevations in total and LDL-
cholesterol. 
     Clinical Research Center dietitian McMurry and coinvestigator Maria 
Teresa Cerqueira established a metabolic unit in a Jesuit mission school 
building near a community hospital in the small village of Sisoguichi.  Food 
was weighed, cooked, and fed to the study participants under the 
investigators' direct supervision, ensuring that subjects ate only food 
stipulated by the research protocol.  Fasting blood was drawn twice weekly, 
and plasma samples were frozen and shipped to Dr. Connors laboratory for 
cholesterol, triglyceride, and lipoprotein analyses.  Regular measurements 
included participant body weight, height, and triceps skin fold thickness.  
Thirteen Tarahumaras, five women and eight men, including one adolescent, were 
fed their native diet for 1 week, followed by 5 weeks of an "affluent" diet. 
     "In this study we went up to a concentration of dietary fat that was 40 
percent of total calories.  This is the prototype of the holiday diet that 
many Americans consume a diet high in fat, sugar, and cholesterol, low in 
fiber," elaborates Dr. Conners. Such dietary characteristics are reflected in 
the cholesterol-saturation index, or CSI, recently devised research dietitian 
Sonja Conner working with Dr. Connor.  "The CSI is a single number that 
incorporates both the amount of cholesterol and the amount of saturated fat in 
the diet.  CSI indicates the diet's potential to elevate the cholesterol 
level, particularly the LDL," Dr. Connor explains.  The Tarahumaran diet 
averages a very low CSI of 20; Dr. Connor's "affluent" diet used in the study 
ranks a CSI of 149. 
     The experimental design of this study reflects the importance of 
establishing baseline plasma lipid levels, typical of the native diet, before 
exposing subjects to the experimental diet.  The standard curve relating 
dietary food intake to plasma cholesterol demonstrates a leveling off, or 
plateau, for consumption of large amounts of fat.  Changes in dietary fat 
and/or cholesterol in this range have little effect on plasma levels.  "You 
must have the baseline diet almost free of the variables you are going to put 
into the experimental diet.  The Framingham study, for example, did not 
discriminate on the basis of diet between individuals who got heart disease 
because the diet was already high in fat.  All subjects were already eating on 
a plateau," Dr. Connor says. 
     After 5 weeks of consuming the "affluent" diet, the subjects' mean plasma 
cholesterol levels had in creased by 31 percent, primarily in the LDL 
fraction, which rose 39 percent.  HDL-cholesterol increased by 31 per cent, 
and LDL to HDL ratios changed therefore very little.  Plasma triglyceride 
levels increased by 18 percent, and subjects averaged an 8-pound gain in 
weight.  According to Dr. Connor, lipid changes occurred surprisingly soon, 
yielding nearly the same results after 7 days of affluent diet as after 35 
days. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 21
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     The increase in HDL carries broad dietary implications for industrialized 
nations.  "We think HDL-cholesterol increased because we increased the amount 
of dietary fat over the fat content used in the previous Tarahumara metabolic 
study.  In that study we saw no change in HDL levels after raising the dietary 
cholesterol but keeping the fat relatively consistent with native consumption.  
In the present study we increased fat intake to 40 percent of the total 
calories.  We reached the conclusion in the Tarahumara study that HDL reflects 
the amount of dietary fat in general and not the amount of dietary 
cholesterol.  HDL must increase to help metabolize the fat, and it increased 
quite a bit in this study," Dr. Connor explains.
     Low HDL in the Tarahumarans is not typically an important predictor of 
coronary heart disease because they do not normally consume large amounts of 
fat or cholesterol.  HDL remains an important predictor to Americans because 
of their usual high fat intake. 
     Dr. Connor recommends a diet for Americans that contains less than 20 
percent of total calories as fat, less than 100 mg of cholesterol, and a CSI 
around 20, varying in accordance with caloric needs.  Such a diet is low in 
meat and dairy fat, high in fiber.  Dr. Connor also comments on recent 
suggestions that Americans adopt a "Mediterranean-style" diet.  "The original 
Mediterranean diet, in its pristine state, consisted of a very low intake of 
fat and very few animal and dairy products.  We are already eating a lot of 
meat and dairy products.  Simply to continue that pattern while switching to 
olive oil is not going to help the situation." 
     The World Health Organization (WHO) is focusing much attention on the 
emergence of diseases such as coronary heart disease in nations and societies 
undergoing technological development.  Dr. Connor says that coronary heart 
disease starts with a given society's elite, who typically eat a different 
diet than the average citizen.  "If the pattern of afluence increases, the 
entire population will have have a higher incidence of coronary heart disease, 
which places a termendous health care burden on a society.  WHO would like the 
developing countries to prevent coronary heart disease, so they can 
concentrate on other aspects of their economic development and on public 
health measures to improve general well-being, rather than paying for 
unnecessary, expensive medical technology," Dr. Connors says.
     "The overall implication of this study is that humans can readily move 
their plasma lipids and lipoprotein values into a high-risk range within a 
very short time by an affluent, excessive diet.  The present rate of coronary 
heart disease in the United States is 30 percent less than it was 20 years 
ago, so a lot has been accomplished.  We are changing rapidly," he concludes.






HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 22
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                             General Announcments
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

        Publications for Health Professionals Available from NCI (1/93)

Unless otherwise noted, the following materials are provided free of charge by 
calling the NCI's Publication Ordering Service, 1-800-4-CANCER.  Because 
Federal Government publications are not subject to copyright restriction, you 
are free to photocopy NCI material. 
 
 
GENERAL INFORMATION
 
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
     sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide
     information about side effects of common drugs used to treat
     cancer, their proper usage, and precautions for patients.
     The fact sheets were prepared by the United States
     Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for distribution by the
     National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only may be ordered.
 
     CANCER RATES AND RISKS, 3RD EDITION (85-691).  This book is
     a compact guide to statistics, risk factors, and risks for
     major cancer sites.  It includes charts and graphs showing
     incidence, mortality, and survival worldwide and in the
     United States.  It also contains a section on the costs of
     cancer. 136 pages.
 
     DIET, NUTRITION & CANCER PREVENTION: A GUIDE TO FOOD CHOICES
     (87-2778).  This booklet describes what is now known about
     diet, nutrition, and cancer prevention.  It provides
     information about foods that contain components like fiber,
     fat, and vitamins that may affect a person's risk of getting
     certain cancers.  It suggests ways to use that information
     to select from a broad variety of foods--choosing more of
     some foods and less of others. Includes recipes and sample
     menus.  39 pages.
 
     NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE FACT BOOK.  This book presents
     general information about the National Cancer Institute
     including budget data, grants and contracts, and historical
     information.
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 23
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE GRANTS PROCESS (91-1222) (Revised
     3/90).  This booklet describes general NCI grant award
     procedures; includes chapters on eligibility, preparation of
     grant application, peer review, eligible costs, and post-
     award activities.  62 pages.
 
     PHYSICIAN TO PHYSICIAN: PERSPECTIVE ON CLINICAL TRIALS. This
     15-minute videocassette discusses why and how to enter
     patients on clinical trials.  It was produced in
     collaboration with the American College of Surgeons
     Commission on Cancer.
 
 
     STUDENTS WITH CANCER: A RESOURCE FOR THE EDUCATOR (91-2086).
     (Revised 4/87) This booklet is designed for teachers who
     have students with cancer in their classrooms or schools. It
     includes an explanation of cancer, its treatment and
     effects, and guidelines for the young person's re-entry to
     school and for dealing with terminally ill students.
     Bibliographies are included for both educators and young
     people.  22 pages.
 
     UNDERSTANDING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM (92-529). This booklet
     describes the complex network of specialized cells and
     organs that make up the human immune system. It explains how
     the system works to fight off disease caused by invading
     agents such as bacteria and viruses, and how it sometimes
     malfunctions, resulting in a variety of diseases from
     allergies, to arthritis, to cancer. It was developed by the
     National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and
     printed by the National Cancer Institute.  This booklet
     presents college level instruction in immunology.  It is
     appropriate for nursing or pharmacology students and for
     persons receiving college training in other areas within the
     health professions.  36 pages.
 
 
MATERIALS TO HELP STOP TOBACCO USE
 
     CHEW OR SNUFF EDUCATOR PACKAGE (91-2976).  Each package
     contains:
 
          Ten copies of CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF, a
          brochure designed for seventh and eighth graders that
          describes the health and social effects of using

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 24
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

          smokeless tobacco products.  When fully opened, the
          brochure can be used as a poster.
 
          One copy of CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF:  A GUIDE
          TO MAKE YOUNG PEOPLE AWARE OF THE DANGERS OF USING
          SMOKELESS TOBACCO.  This booklet is a lesson plan for
          teachers.  It contains facts about smokeless tobacco,
          suggested classroom activities, and selected
          educational resources.
 
     HOW TO HELP YOUR PATIENTS STOP SMOKING: A NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE MANUAL FOR PHYSICIANS (92-3064).  This is a step-
     by-step handbook for instituting smoking cessation
     techniques in medical practices.  The manual, with resource
     lists and tear-out materials, is based on the results of NCI
     clinical trials.  75 pages.
 
     HOW TO HELP YOUR PATIENTS STOP USING TOBACCO: A NATIONAL
     CANCER INSTITUTE MANUAL FOR THE ORAL HEALTH TEAM (91-3191).
     This is a handbook for dentists, dental hygienists, and
     dental assistants.  It complements the physicians' manual
     and includes additional information on smoking prevention
     and on smokeless tobacco use.  58 pages.
 
     PHARMACISTS HELPING SMOKERS QUIT KIT.  A packet of materials
     to help pharmacists encourage their smoking patients to
     quit.  Contains a pharmacist's guide and self-help materials
     for 25 patients.
 
     SCHOOL PROGRAMS TO PREVENT SMOKING: THE NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE GUIDE TO STRATEGIES THAT SUCCEED (90-500).  This
     guide outlines eight essential elements of a successful
     school-based smoking prevention program based on NCI
     research.  It includes a list of available curriculum
     resources and selected references.  24 pages.
 
 
     SELF-GUIDED STRATEGIES FOR SMOKING CESSATION: A PROGRAM
     PLANNER'S GUIDE (91-3104). This booklet outlines key
     characteristics of successful self-help materials and
     programs based on NCI collaborative research.  It lists
     additional resources and references. 36 pages.
 
 
     SMOKING POLICY: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. These ten fact sheets

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 25
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     provide basic information about the establishment of
     worksite smoking policies. Topics range from the health
     effects of environmental tobacco smoke to legal issues
     concerning policy implementation.
 
     STRATEGIES TO CONTROL TOBACCO USE IN THE UNITED STATES:  A
     BLUEPRINT FOR PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION IN THE 1990s (92-3316:
     Smoking and Control Monograph No. 1).  This volume provides
     a summary of what has been learned from 40 years of a public
     health effort against smoking, from the early trial-and-
     error health information campaigns of the 1960s to the NCI's
     science-based project, American Stop Smoking Intervention
     Study for Cancer Prevention, which began in 1991.  It offers
     reasons why comprehensive smoking control strategies are now
     needed to address the smoker's total environment and to
     reduce smoking prevalence significantly over the next
     decade.
 
 
MATERIALS FOR OUTREACH PROGRAMS
 
     CANCER PREVENTION AND EARLY DETECTION:  COMMUNITY OUTREACH
     PROGRAMS FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS
 
        Three kits are available for community program planners
        and health professionals to set up local cancer
        prevention and early detection education projects:
 
           DO THE RIGHT THING. . . GET A NEW ATTITUDE ABOUT
           CANCER COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM.  This community
           outreach kit targets Black American audiences.  It
           contains materials to help health professionals
           conduct community education programs for black
           audiences.  The kit emphasizes the early detection of
           breast cancer by mammography and of cervical cancer by
           the Pap test.  It also discusses smoking and
           nutrition.  The kit includes helpful program guidance,
           facts, news articles, visuals, and brochures.
 
           HAGALO HOY COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM.  This community
           outreach kit targets Hispanic audiences.  It contains
           bilingual and Spanish language materials to help
           health professionals conduct community education
           programs.  The materials educate Hispanic audiences
           about early detection of breast cancer by mammography

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 26
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

           and of cervical cancer by Pap tests.  The kit also
           discusses smoking and related issues.  The kit
           includes helpful guidance, facts, news articles,
           visuals and brochures.
 
           ONCE A YEAR..FOR A LIFETIME COMMUNITY OUTREACH
           MAMMOGRAPHY PROGRAM.  This community outreach kit
           targets all women age 40 or over.  It supplies
           community program planners and health professionals
           with planning guidance, facts about mammography, news
           articles, visuals and brochures.
 
 
     MAKING HEALTH COMMUNICATION PROGRAMS WORK: A PLANNER'S GUIDE
     (92-1493).  This handbook presents key principles and steps
     in developing and evaluating health communications programs
     for the public, patients, and health professionals.  It
     expands upon and replaces "Pretesting in Health
     Communications" and "Making PSAs Work." 131 pages.
 
     SUPPORT MATERIAL FOR COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAMS
 
     The video and slide presentations listed below support the
     mammography outreach programs.
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME VIDEOTAPE.  This 5-minute
        VHS videotape uses a dramatic format to highlight the
        important facts about the early detection of breast
        cancer by mammography.
 
        UNA VEZ AL ANO...PARA TODA UNA VIDA VIDEOTAPE.  This 27-
        minute Spanish videotape informs Spanish-speaking women
        of the need for medical screening, particularly
        mammography.  It explains commonly misunderstood facts
        about breast cancer and early detection.  The program, in
        a dramatic format, features Edward James Olmos and
        Cristina Saralegui.
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME SPEAKER'S KIT (SLIDE SHOW).
        This kit includes 66 full-color slides and a number-
        coded, ready-to-read script suitable for a mammography
        presentation to a large group.  It addresses the
        misconceptions prevalent about mammography and urges
        women age 40 and older to get regular mammograms so that
        breast cancer can be detected as early as possible.  Kit

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 27
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

        includes a guide, poster, media announcement, news
        feature, flyer, and pamphlets on mammography.  This kit
        is available directly by writing to:  Modern, 5000 Park
        Street North, St. Petersburg, FL 33709-9989.
--------- end of part 2 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59285
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 4/4

------------- cut here -----------------
call for employers to keep  information about the HIV status of health-care 
workers  confidential.  But doctors who know of an HIV-positive colleague  who 
has not sought advice must inform the employing authority and the appropriate 
professional regulatory body.  The guidelines  also emphasize the significance 
of notifying all patients on whom an invasive procedure has been done by an 
infected health-care  worker.  A model letter to patients who have come into 
contact  with such an individual is provided, along with suggestions for  
health officials on how to deal with the media.  In addition, a  U.K. advisory 
panel on HIV infection in health-care workers has  been formed to provide 
specific occupational recommendations to  those treating such patients. 
==================================================================    
"Properties of an HIV 'Vaccine'" Nature (04/08/93) Vol. 362, No. 6420, P. 504   
(Volvovitz, Franklin and Smith, Gale) 

     The questions raised by Moore et al. about recombinant gp160  envelope 
glycoprotein precursor from HIV-1 produced by  MicroGeneSys are advantages 
rather than disadvantages, write  Franklin Volvovitz and Gale Smith of 
MicroGeneSys in Meriden,  Conn.  Moore et al. says that gp160 in a baculovirus 
expression  system does not bind strongly to the CD4 receptor, and that this  
recombinant gp160 does not stimulate the same antibodies as the  HIV-1 virus 
does in natural infection.  But vaccination with  recombinant gp160 in 
patients infected with HIV-1 broadens HIV-1  specific envelope-directed immune 
responses, including  crossreactive antibodies to gp160 epitopes and CD4 and 
CD8  cytotoxic T-cell responses.  Volvovitz and Smith claim that they  never 
intended their gp160 molecule to be identical to the native protein.  Antibody 
responses against native HIV-1 proteins,  including the types described by 
Moore et al., exist in nearly  all AIDS patients but do not prevent 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 42
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

progression of HIV disease.  In addition, the binding of gp120 or gp120-
antibody complexes to  CD4 has been shown to interfere with antigen specific 
activation  of CD4 cells and trigger programmed cell death in vitro, which  
may contribute to the pathogenesis of HIV infection.  The absence of CD4 
binding by the MicroGeneSys gp160 vaccine may therefore be viewed as an added 
safety feature.  Phase I studies have  demonstrated stable CD4 counts, 
stimulation of cytotoxic T cells, and the suggestion of restoration of immune 
function.  Based on  these and other clinical results, MicroGeneSys gp160 was 
chosen  by researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden for the  first 
phase III vaccine therapy studies, conclude Volvovitz and  Smith. 
==================================================================    
"HIV-1 Infection: Breast Milk and HIV-1 Transmission" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 
341, No. 8850, P. 930  (Mok, Jacqueline) 

     There are still more questions than answers regarding  HIV-1-positive 
women breastfeeding their babies, writes  Jacqueline Mok of the Lancet.  The 
anti-infective properties of  milk are well documented.  While the numbers of 
leukocytes,  concentrations of lactoferrin and IgA, and lymphocyte mitogenic  
activity decline sharply during the first two to three months of  lactation to 
barely detectable levels, lactoferrin and IgA then  increase from three to 
twelve months, with 90 percent of total  IgA in milk being secretory IgA.  
Breastfeeding protects infants  against gastrointestinal and respiratory 
illnesses, in both  normal and uninfected children born to HIV-positive 
mothers.  The Italian National Registry of AIDS discovered that breastfed HIV-
1 infected children had a longer median incubation time (19 months) than 
bottlefed infants (9.7 months).  Breastfed children also had a slower 
progression to AIDS.  There is no agreement on which  antibodies offer 
protection against HIV-1 infection.  Studies of  the biological properties of 
milk from 15 HIV-1 infected women  showed the presence of IgG and IgA 
antibodies against envelope  glycoproteins, as well as IgA antibodies against 
core antigens.   Binding of HIV-1 to the CD4 receptor can be inhibited by a 
human  milk factor.  In the developing world, where infectious disease  and 
malnutrition contribute significantly to infant mortality,  breast milk is 
still the best food for infants, regardless of the mother's HIV status.  
Transmission might be restricted by  breastfeeding after colostrum and early 
milk have been expressed  and discarded.  The possibility remains that breast 
milk could  protect the infant who is already infected with HIV at birth and  
may even delay progression to AIDS, concludes Mok. 
==================================================================    
"Absence of HIV Transmission From an Infected Dentist to His Patients" Journal 
of the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 269,  No. 14, P. 1802  
(Dickinson, Gordon M. et al.) 

     If universal precautions are practiced, the risk of HIV  transmission 
from dentist to patient appears to be infinitesimal, write Gordon M. Dickinson 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 43
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

et al. of the University of Miami  School of Medicine in Miami, Fla.  The 
researchers contacted all  patients treated by a dentist with AIDS and 
attempts were made to contact all patients for HIV testing.  Living patients 
with newly detected HIV infection were interviewed, and DNA sequence  analysis 
was performed to compare genetic relatedness of their  HIV to that of the 
dentist.  Death certificates were obtained for deceased patients, and the 
medical records of those with  diagnoses suggestive of HIV disease or drug 
abuse and those dying under the age of 50 years were examined in detail.  
There were  1,192 patients who had undergone 9,267 procedures, of whom 124  
were deceased.  An examination of the death certificates of  patients 
identified five who had died with HIV infection, all of  whom were either 
homosexuals or IV-drug users.  The researchers  were able to detect 962 of the 
remaining 1,048 patients, and 900  agreed to be tested.  HIV infection was 
reported in five of the  900 patients, including four who had clear evidence 
of risk  factors for the disease.  One patient who had only a single  
evaluation by the dentist denied high-risk behavior.  Comparative DNA sequence 
analysis showed that the viruses from the dentists  and these five patients 
were not closely related.  The study  suggests the potential for HIV 
transmission from a general  dentist to his patients is minimal in a setting 
in which  universal precautions are strictly observed, conclude Dickinson  et 
al. 
       ================================================================   
                                April 22, 1993 
       ================================================================   
"AIDS Patients are Susceptible to Recurrences of TB, Study Says" Washington 
Post (04/22/93), P. A13 

     Tuberculosis can strike AIDS patients more than once, which makes the 
resurging health hazard harder to control, according to a  study published in 
today's New England Journal of Medicine.   People who contract TB usually 
develop an immunity that protects  them if they are exposed to the bacteria 
again.  But a person  whose immune system is depleted may not be able to fight 
off a  new TB infection, doctors found.  Peter M. Small of the Howard  Hughes 
Medical Institute at Stanford University, director of the  study, said that in 
order to protect against reinfection, it may  be necessary for some people to 
use TB medicines permanently.   The study examined the genetic makeup of TB 
bacteria and how the  germs changed over time in 17 patients at Kings County 
Hospital  in New York. 
================================================================    
"HIV-1 Infection: Breast Milk and HIV-1 Transmission" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 
341, No. 8850, P. 930  (Mok, Jacqueline) 

     There are still more questions than answers regarding  HIV-1-positive 
women breastfeeding their babies, writes  Jacqueline Mok of the Lancet.  The 
anti-infective properties of  milk are well documented.  While the numbers of 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 44
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

leukocytes,  concentrations of lactoferrin and IgA, and lymphocyte mitogenic  
activity decline sharply during the first two to three months of  lactation to 
barely detectable levels, lactoferrin and IgA then  increase from three to 
twelve months, with 90 percent of total  IgA in milk being secretory IgA.  
Breastfeeding protects infants  against gastrointestinal and respiratory 
illnesses, in both  normal and uninfected children born to HIV-positive 
mothers.  The Italian National Registry of AIDS discovered that breastfed HIV-
1 infected children had a longer median incubation time (19 months) than 
bottlefed infants (9.7 months).  Breastfed children also had a slower 
progression to AIDS.  There is no agreement on which  antibodies offer 
protection against HIV-1 infection.  Studies of  the biological properties of 
milk from 15 HIV-1 infected women  showed the presence of IgG and IgA 
antibodies against envelope  glycoproteins, as well as IgA antibodies against 
core antigens.   Binding of HIV-1 to the CD4 receptor can be inhibited by a 
human  milk factor.  In the developing world, where infectious disease  and 
malnutrition contribute significantly to infant mortality,  breast milk is 
still the best food for infants, regardless of the mother's HIV status.  
Transmission might be restricted by  breastfeeding after colostrum and early 
milk have been expressed  and discarded.  The possibility remains that breast 
milk could  protect the infant who is already infected with HIV at birth and  
may even delay progression to AIDS, concludes Mok. 
================================================================   
"HIV and the Aetiology of AIDS" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 957  
(Duesberg, Peter) 

     Because there is no proof that HIV is the cause of AIDS, the  hypothesis 
that drug use leads to AIDS will hopefully become a  hindrance to the 
physiologically (AZT) and psychologically  (positive AIDS test) toxic public 
health initiatives, writes  Peter Duesberg of the University of California--
Berkeley.  In the Lancet's March 13 issue, Schechter et al. call Duesberg's  
hypothesis that injected and orally used recreational drugs and  AZT lead to 
AIDS, "a hindrance to public health initiatives."   However, their hypothesis 
that HIV is the cause of AIDS has not  attained any public health benefits.  
The U.S. government spends  $4 billion annually, but no vaccine, no therapy, 
no prevention,  and no AIDS control have resulted from work on this 
hypothesis.   Schechter et al. conclude that HIV has a key role in CD4  
depletion and AIDS based on epidemiological correlations with  antibodies 
against HIV and with self reported recreational drug  use among homosexuals 
from Vancouver.  However, their survey  neglects to disprove Duesberg's drug-
AIDS hypothesis, because it  does not provide controls--i.e., confirmed drug-
free AIDS  cases--and because it does not quantify drug use and ignores AZT  
use altogether.  To refute Duesberg's hypothesis Schechter would  have to 
produce a controlled study demonstrating that over a  period of up to 10 years 
HIV-positive patients who use  recreational drugs or AZT or both have the same 
AIDS risks as  positives who do not do so.  The 10 year period is claimed by  

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 45
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

proponents of the HIV hypothesis to be the time needed for HIV to cause AIDS.  
Alternatively, they could show that HIV-free  individuals who have used drugs 
for 10 years never get  AIDS-defining illnesses, concludes Duesberg. 
================================================================   
"Rapid Decline of CD4+ Cells After IFNa Treatment in HIV-1  Infection" 
Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 959   (Vento, Sandro et al.) 

     Interferon (IFN), which induces autoantibodies and autoimmune  diseases 
in some settings, may hasten CD4 T-cell loss in some  HIV-1 infected 
individuals through the amplification of harmful  "autoimmune" reactions, 
write Sandro Vento et al. of the A.  Pugliese Hospital in Catanzaro, Italy.  
The researchers report  three asymptomatic HIV-1 infected individuals with 
hepatitis C  Virus related chronic active hepatitis (CAH) who had a rapid,  
profound decline of CD4 cells after IFN.  All three patients  throughout the 
observation were consistently negative for serum  HIV p24 antigen and had 
circulating antibodies to p24.  Sera from all three patients, obtained at the 
end of IFN treatment and  testing in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, 
contained high  titres of antibodies reacting to a sequence located in the  
aminoterminal of the beta chain of all human HLA class II  antigens, 
homologous to a sequence located in the carboxy  terminus of HIV-1 gp41.  
These autoantibodies, which also  recognize "native" class II molecules and 
may contribute to the  elimination of CD4 T cells "in vivo", were at low tires 
(50-100)  in all three patients six months after stopping IFN.  Such  
autoantibodies were not detected in 28 other patients with HIV  infection and 
HCV related CAH treated with IFN and who did not  experience CD4 T-cell loss 
in some HIV-1 infected individuals  through the amplification of harmful 
"autoimmune" reactions.  The subjects had A1; B8; DR3; and B35, DR1 HLA 
antigen combinations  which are linked with a more rapid fall in CD4 cell 
counts and  clinical progression of HIV-1 disease.  IFN can induce a very  
rapid decline of CD4 cells and should be used cautiously in  patients with 
these HLA haplotypes, the researchers conclude. 
       ================================================================   
                                April 23, 1993 
       ================================================================    
"TB Makes a Comeback" State Government News (04/93) Vol. 36, No. 4, P. 6   
(Voit, William and Knapp, Elaine S.) 

     Although tuberculosis was once believed to be eliminated in the  United 
States, it is emerging again among the homeless, AIDS  patients, immigrants, 
minorities, and prisoners.  Dr. Lee B.  Reichman, professor of medicine at the 
University of New Jersey  Medical School and president of the American Lung 
Association,  said, "Right now, it's a big city problem, but potentially it's  
everyone's problem."  The ALA predicts that 10 million Americans  are infected 
with TB, and about 10 percent of them will develop  the disease because their 
immune systems are depressed,  especially those with AIDS or HIV.  Gene 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 46
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Tammes, a Centers for  Disease Control expert, said that is why the CDC has 
issued  guidelines warning hospitals and institutions not to mix AIDS  with TB 
patients.  State health officials believe the TB is also  spreading because 
those who are most susceptible are the least  likely to follow through with 
treatment.  In addition, the  increase is attributed to a shortage of public 
health services.   In New York City, TB is an epidemic "because the number of 
cases  is increasing faster than we can treat people," said Dr. George  
Diferdinando, director of the New York State TB Control.   According to 
Diferdinando, curbing the spread of TB entails  keeping 85 percent or more of 
diagnosed TB cases in treatment.   About 40 percent of infected New York City 
residents don't  complete therapy.  When TB patients don't finish taking their  
medication, multi-drug resistant TB can develop, which requires  taking more 
expensive drugs and can take two years instead of the normal six months to 
treat.
 ================================================================    
 "Increasing Frequency of Heterosexually Transmitted AIDS in  Southern 
Florida: Artifact or Reality?" American Journal of Public Health (04/93) Vol. 
83, No. 4, P. 571  (Nwanyanwu, Okey C. et al.) 

     The alarmingly high rate of heterosexually acquired AIDS cases in 
southern Florida was partially related to misclassification of  risk, write 
Okey C. Nwanyanwu et al. of the Centers for Disease  Control in Atlanta, Ga.  
The researchers investigated 168 such  AIDS cases from Broward and coastal 
Palm Beach counties.  All of  these cases attributed to heterosexual 
transmission reported  sexual contact with bisexual men, injecting drug users, 
or  persons born in countries where heterosexual contact is the  primary route 
of HIV transmission.  Medical records of patients,  in addition to records 
from social services, HIV counseling and  testing centers, and sexually 
transmitted disease (STD) clinics  were reviewed.  If no other HIV risk factor 
was found from  medical record review, patients were interviewed using a  
standardized questionnaire.  Once STD clinic and other medical  records were 
reviewed, 29 men and 7 women were reclassified into  other HIV transmission 
categories.  After adjustments were made  for the reclassification, the 
percentage of AIDS cases reported  from Palm Beach and Broward counties 
between January 1, 1989, and March 31, 1990, that was attributed to 
heterosexual transmission  decreased from 10 percent to 6 percent among men 
and from 33  percent to 28 percent among women.  While the percentage of  
heterosexually transmitted AIDS cases in southern Florida  decreased after 
adjustment was made for reclassified cases, it  still remained above the 
national average, the researchers  conclude.





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 47
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                AIDS Statistics
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                            World Health Organization, Geneva
                        Organisation mondiale de la Sante, Geneve

                              WEEKLY EPIDEMIOLOGICAL RECORD
                           RELEVE EPIDEMIOLOGIQUE HEBDOMADAIRE

15 January 1993 - 68th Year

                        ACQUIRED IMMUNODEFICIENCY SYNDROME (AIDS)
                               DATA AS AT 31 December 1992

                       SYNDROME D'IMMUNODEFICIENCE ACQUISE (SIDA)
                               DONNEES AU 31 Decembre 1992

                                           NUMBER                 DATE OF
                                         OF CASES                 REPORT
COUNTRY/AREA -                             NOMBRE                 DATE
        PAYS/TERRITOIRE                    DE CAS                 DE
                                                                  NOTIFI-
                                                                  CATION
AFRICA - AFRIQUE

Algeria - Algerie                              92                 31.08.91
Angola                                        514                 24.09.92
Benin - Benin                                 247                 31.03.92
Botswana                                      353                 30.06.92
Burkina Faso                                1,263                 20.03.92
Burundi                                     6,052                 20.03.92
Cameroon - Cameroun                         1,407                 05.10.92
Cape Verde - Cap-Vert                          52                 08.02.92
Central African Republic -
        Republique centrafricaine           1,864                 20.03.92
Chad - Tchad                                  382                 17.09.92
Comoros - Comores                               3                 11.03.92
Congo                                       3,482                 30.01.92
Cote d'Ivoire                              10,792                 09.03.92
Djibouti                                      265                 17.12.92
Egypt - Egypte                                 57                 17.12.92
Equatorial Guinea - 
        Guinee equatoriale                     13                 16.05.92
Ethiopia - Ethiopie                         3,978                 11.11.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 48
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Gabon                                         215                 31.05.92
Gambia - Gambie                               180                 25.02.92
Ghana                                       3,612                 01.07.92
Guinea - Guinee                               338                 20.03.92
Guinea-Bissau - Guinee-Bissau                 189                 13.07.92
Kenya                                      31,185                 01.10.92
Lesotho                                        64                 31.03.92
Liberia - Liberia                              28                 31.03.92
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya -
        Jamahiriya arabe libyenne               7                 17.12.92
Madagascar                                      2                 06.11.92
Malawi                                     22,300                 02.12.92
Mali                                        1,111                 17.07.92
Mauritania - Mauritanie                        36                 19.07.92
Mauritius - Maurice                            11                 29.02.92
Morocco - Maroc                               121                 17.12.92
Mozambique                                    538                 10.10.92
Namibia - Namibie                             311                 20.03.92
Niger                                         497                 07.02.92
Nigeria - Nigeria                             184                 12.03.92
Reunion - Reunion                              65                 20.03.92
Rwanda                                      8,483                 12.11.92
Sao Tome and Principe -
        Sao Tome-et-Principe                   11                 03.07.92
Senegal - Senegal                             648                 09.03.92
Seychelles                                    ---                 18.02.92
Sierra Leone                                   40                 20.03.92
Somalia - Somalie                              13                 17.12.92
South Africa - 
        Afrique du Sud                      1,316                 30.06.92
Sudan - Soudan                                650                 17.12.92
Swaziland                                     197                 08.07.92
Togo                                        1,278                 03.04.92
Tunisia - Tunisie                             114                 17.12.92
Uganda - Ouganda                           34,611                 01.11.92
United Republic of Tanzania -
        Republique-Unie de
        Tanzanie                           34,605                 31.05.92
Zaire - Zaire                              18,186                 14.05.92
Zambia - Zambie                             6,556                 15.10.92
Zimbabwe                                   12,514                 31.03.92

TOTAL                                     211,032



HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 49
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

AMERICAS - AMERIQUES

Anguilla                                        6                 10.12.92
Antigua and Barbuda - 
        Antigua-et-Barbuda                      6                 10.12.92
Argentina - Argentine                       1,820                 10.12.92
Bahamas                                       934                 10.12.92
Barbados - Barbade                            315                 10.12.92
Belize                                         53                 10.12.92
Bermuda - Bermudes                            199                 10.12.92
Bolivia - Bolivie                              49                 10.12.92
Brazil - Bresil                            31,364                 10.12.92
British Virgin Islands -
        Iles Vierges 
        britanniques                            4                 10.12.92
Canada                                      6,889                 10.12.92
Cayman Islands - Iles Caimanes                 13                 10.12.92
Chile - Chili                                 573                 10.12.92
Colombia - Colombie                         2,957                 10.12.92
Costa Rica                                    419                 10.12.92
Cuba                                          137                 10.12.92
Dominica - Dominique                           12                 10.12.92
Dominican Republic -
        Republique dominicaine              1,809                 10.12.92
Ecuador - Equateur                            224                 10.12.92
El Salvador                                   382                 10.12.92
French Guiana -
        Guyane francaise                      232                 10.12.92
Grenada - Grenade                              32                 10.12.92
Guadeloupe                                    182                 10.12.92
Guatemala                                     273                 10.12.92
Guyana                                        333                 10.12.92
Haiti - Haiti                               3,086                 10.12.92
Honduras                                    1,976                 10.12.92
Jamaica - Jamaique                            361                 10.12.92
Martinique                                    227                 10.12.92
Mexico - Mexique                           11,034                 10.12.92
Montserrat                                      1                 10.12.92
Netherlands Antilles and Aruba -
        Antilles neerlandaises et
        Aruba                                 110                 10.12.92
Nicaragua                                      31                 10.12.92
Panama                                        388                 10.12.92
Paraguay                                       51                 10.12.92
Peru - Perou                                  614                 10.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 50
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Saint Kitts and Nevis -
        Saint-Kitts-et-Nevis                   37                 10.12.92
Saint Lucia - Sainte-Lucie                     48                 10.12.92
Saint Vincent and the
        Grenadines - Saint-
        Vincent-et-Grenadines                  41                 10.12.92
Suriname                                      122                 10.12.92
Trinidad and Tobago -
        Trinite-et-Tobago                   1,085                 10.12.92
Turks and Caicos Islands -
        Iles Turques et
        Caiques                                25                 10.12.92
United States of America -
        Etats-Unis d'Amerique             242,146                 10.12.92
Uruguay                                       310                 10.12.92
Venezuela                                   2,173                 10.12.92

TOTAL                                     313,083


ASIA - ASIE

Afghanistan                                   ---                 17.12.92
Bahrain - Bahrein                               3                 31.03.92
Bangladesh                                      1                 30.11.92
Bhutan - Bhoutan                              ---                 30.11.92
Brunei Darussalam - 
        Brunei Darussalam                       2                 19.12.91
Burma see Myanmar -
        Birmanie voir Myanmar
Cambodia - Cambodge                           ---                 31.10.92
China(a) - Chine(a)                            11                 28.04.92
Cyprus - Chypre                                24                 17.12.92
Democratic People's Republic
        of Korea -  Republique
        populaire democratique
        de Coree                              ---                 30.11.92
Hong Kong                                      61                 26.09.92
India - Inde                                  242                 30.11.92
Indonesia - Indonesie                          24                 30.11.92
Iran (Islamic Republic of) -
        Iran (Republique
        islamique d')                          56                 17.12.92
Iraq                                            7                 17.12.92
Israel - Israel                               192                 17.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 51
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Japan - Japon                                 508                 04.12.92
Jordan - Jordanie                              24                 17.12.92
Kuwait - Koweit                                 7                 17.12.92
Lao People's Democratic Republic -
        Republique democratique
        populaire lao                           1                 23.04.92
Lebanon - Liban                                35                 17.12.92
Macao                                           2                 03.11.92
Malaysia - Malaisie                            46                 25.05.92
Maldives                                      ---                 30.11.92
Mongolia - Mongolie                             1                 30.11.92
Myanmar                                        16                 30.11.92
Nepal - Nepal                                  12                 30.11.92
Oman                                           27                 17.12.92
Pakistan                                       25                 17.12.92
Philippines                                    80                 07.10.92
Qatar                                          31                 17.12.92
Republic of Korea -
        Republique de Coree                    10                 19.11.92
Saudi Arabia - Arabie saoudite                 46                 17.12.92
Singapore - Singapour                          43                 05.08.92
Sri Lanka                                      20                 30.11.92
Syrian Arab Republic - 
        Republique arabe syrienne              19                 17.12.92
Thailand - Thailande                          909                 30.11.92
Turkey - Turquie                               89                 17.12.92
United Arab Emirates - Emirats
        arabes unis                             8                 17.12.92
Viet Nam                                      ---                 28.04.92
Yemen - Yemen                                 ---                 17.12.92

TOTAL                                       2,582



EUROPE

Albania - Albanie                             ---                 30.09.92
Austria - Autriche                            828                 30.09.92
Belarus - Belarus                               6                 30.09.92
Belgium - Belgique                          1,224                 17.12.92
Bulgaria - Bulgarie                            16                 17.12.92
Czechoslovakia - Tchecoslovaquie               32                 17.12.92
Denmark - Danemark                          1,072                 17.12.92
Finland - Finlande                            112                 17.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 52
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

France                                     21,487                 17.12.92
Germany - Allemagne                         8,893                 17.12.92
Greece - Grece                                689                 17.12.92
Hungary - Hongrie                             105                 17.12.92
Iceland - Islande                              22                 17.12.92
Ireland - Irlande                             294                 17.12.92
Italy - Italie                             14,783                 17.12.92
Latvia - Lettonie                               2                 30.09.92
Lithuania - Lituanie                            2                 30.09.92
Luxembourg                                     55                 17.12.92
Malta - Malte                                  25                 17.12.92
Monaco                                          9                 17.12.92
Netherlands - Pays-Bas                      2,330                 17.12.92
Norway - Norvege                              283                 17.12.92
Poland - Pologne                              118                 17.12.92
Portugal                                    1,007                 17.12.92
Romania - Roumanie                          2,073                 17.12.92
Russian Federation - Federation
        de Russie                              94                 30.09.92
San Marino - Saint-Marin                        1                 17.12.92
Spain - Espagne                            14,991                 17.12.92
Sweden - Suede                                743                 17.12.92
Switzerland - Suisse                        2,691                 17.12.92
United Kingdom - Royaume-Uni                6,510                 17.12.92
Yugoslavia(b) - Yougoslavie(b)                313                 30.09.92

TOTAL                                      80,810



OCEANIA - OCEANIE

American Samoa - Samoa americaines            ---                 18.11.92
Australia - Australie                       3,615                 02.12.92
Cook Islands - Iles Cook                      ---                 18.02.92
Federated States of Micronesia -
        Etats federes de Micronesie             2                 01.09.92
Fiji - Fidji                                    4                 28.11.91
French Polynesia - Polynesie francaise         27                 28.11.91
Guam                                           10                 13.09.91
Kiribati                                      ---                 08.11.91
Mariana Islands - Iles Mariannes                4                 14.10.92
Marshall Islands - Iles Marshall                2                 18.03.91
Nauru                                         ---                 17.12.92
New Caledonia and Dependencies -

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 53
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

        Nouvelle-Caledonie et
        dependances                            22                 26.08.92
New Zealand - Nouvelle-Zelande                348                 03.11.92
Niue                                          ---                 18.02.92
Palau                                         ---                 15.10.92
Papua New Guinea - Papouasie-
        Nouvelle-Guinee                        45                 10.08.92
Samoa                                           1                 18.02.92
Solomon Islands - Iles Salomon                ---                 19.12.91
Tokelau                                       ---                 18.02.92
Tonga                                           2                 24.07.92
Tuvalu                                        ---                 22.11.92
Vanuatu                                       ---                 08.06.92
Wallis and Futuna Islands - Iles
        Wallis et Futuna                      ---                 27.05.91

TOTAL                                       4,082


WORLD TOTAL - 
        TOTAL MONDIAL                     611,589

(a) The above statistics relating to China do not include 48 cases of AIDS in
the Province of Taiwan. -- Les statistiques ci-dessus se rapportant a la Chine
ne comprennent pas 48 cas de SIDA dans la province de Taiwan.

(b) Refers to Republics and areas of the former Socialist Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia:  Bosnia and Herzegovina; Croatia; Macedonia; Montenegro;
Serbia; Slovenia. -- Se refere aux republiques et territoires de l'ancienne
Republique federative socialiste de Yougoslavie: Bosnie-Herzegovine; Croatie;
Macedoine; Montenegro; Serbie; Slovenie.                                        














HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 54
------------- cut here -----------------
-- This is the last part ---------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59286
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 3/4

------------- cut here -----------------
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME VIDEO KIT.  This kit
        includes a 25-minute VHS videotape that presents common
        misconceptions about mammography.  It tells of the
        benefits gains by the early detection of breast cancer.
        Jane Pauley and Phylicia Rashad are the narrators.  Kit
        includes a guide, poster, flyer, and pamphlets on
        mammography.  This kit is available directly by writing
        to:  Modern, 5000 Park Street North, St. Petersburg, FL
        33709-9989.
 
 
 
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
 
 
     COMBINED HEALTH INFORMATION DATABASE (CHID).  A computerized
     bibliographic database developed and managed by agencies of
     the U.S. Public Health Service.  It contains references to
     health information and health education resources.  The
     database provides bibliographic citations and abstracts for
     journal articles, books, reports, pamphlets, audiovisuals,
     product descriptions, hard-to-find information sources, and
     health promotion and education programs under way in state
     and local health departments and other locations.  In
     addition, CHID provides source and availability information
     for these materials, so that users may obtain them directly.
 
     At present, there are twenty-one subfiles on CHID. The
     National Cancer Institute created the Cancer Patient
     Education subfile in 1990. It serves as a resource for the
     CHID user who is interested in identifying patient education
     programs for specific cancer patient populations, as well as
     for the user who is trying to locate educational resources
     available for patient or family cancer education.  Citations
     include the contact person at cancer centers, so the user
     can follow up directly with the appropriate person.
 
     To access CHID, check with your local library.  Most medical
     school, university, hospital, and public libraries subscribe
     to commercial database vendors.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 28
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     FINAL REPORT:  AN INTEGRATED ONCOLOGY WORKSTATION (revised
     5/92).  This book provides a conceptual overview of what a
     clinical information system for practicing oncologists might
     include:  a database of electronic patient chart records
     combined with access to a knowledge base of information
     resources such as PDQ, CANCERLIT, and MEDLINE--an
     integration of data and knowledge combined to create a
     clinical "oncology workstation."  The concept was developed
     as a means to assist the oncologist and his or her office
     staff in the daily management of patient care and clinical
     trials.  This book can be obtained by contacting:  Dr.
     Robert Esterhay, Project Officer, Computer Communications
     Branch, Building 82, Room 201, Bethesda, MD 20892.
 
     SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION SERVICES OF THE NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE. (91-2683). This booklet from the International
     Cancer Information Center (ICIC) describes each ICIC product
     or service, including scientific journals (Journal of the
     National Cancer Institute and NCI Monographs), specialized
     current awareness publications (CANCERGRAMS, and ONCOLOGY
     OVERVIEWS), and online databases (PDQ and CANCERLIT). To
     obtain copies of the booklet, write to: International Cancer
     Information Center, Dept. JJJ, National Cancer Institute,
     Bldg. 82, Rm. 123, Bethesda, Maryland 20892 or fax your
     request to 301-480-8105.



















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 29
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

            Publications for Patients Available from the NCI (1/93)
 
Free copies of the following patient education materials are available (in 
single copy or bulk) by calling the NCI's Publication Ordering Service, 1-800-
4-CANCER. 
 
 
CANCER PREVENTION
 
     CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF.  This brochure, designed
for seventh and eighth graders, describes the health and social
effects of using smokeless tobacco products.  When fully opened,
the brochure can be used as a poster.
 
     CLEARING THE AIR:  A GUIDE TO QUITTING SMOKING.  This
pamphlet, designed to help the smoker who wants to quit, offers a
variety of approaches to cessation. [24 pages]
 
     DIET, NUTRITION & CANCER PREVENTION:  THE GOOD NEWS.  This
booklet provides an overview of dietary guidelines that may
assist individuals in reducing their risks for some cancers.  It
identifies certain foods to choose more often and others to
choose less often in the context of a total health-promoting
diet. [16 pages]
 
     WHY DO YOU SMOKE?  This pamphlet contains a self-test to
determine why people smoke and suggests alternatives and
substitutes that can help them stop.
 
 
EARLY DETECTION
 
 
     BREAST EXAMS:  WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.  This pamphlet provides
answers to questions about breast cancer screening methods,
including mammography, the medical checkup, breast self-
examination, and future technologies.  Includes instructions for
breast self-examination. [10 pages]
 
     CANCER TESTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT:  A GUIDE FOR PEOPLE 65
AND OVER.  This pamphlet describes the cancer tests important for
people age 65 and older.  It informs men and women of the exams
they should be requesting when they schedule checkups with their
doctors.  It provides a checklist for men and women to record
when the cancer tests occur, and it describes the steps to follow

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 30
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

should cancer be found. [14 pages]
 
     DO THE RIGHT THING:  GET A MAMMOGRAM.  This brochure targets
black women age 40 or older.  It describes the importance of
regular mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It
states the NCI guidelines for mammography.
 
     ONCE A YEAR FOR A LIFETIME.  This brochure targets all women
age 40 or older.  It describes the importance of regular
mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It states
the NCI guidelines for mammography.
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT BREAST LUMPS.  This pamphlet
describes some of the most common noncancerous breast lumps and
what can be done about them.  Includes instructions for breast
self-examination. [22 pages]
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT CHOOSING A MAMMOGRAPHY FACILITY.
This brochure lists questions to ask in selecting a quality
mammography facility.  Also discusses typical costs and coverage.
 
     TESTICULAR SELF-EXAMINATION.  This pamphlet contains
information about risks and symptoms of testicular cancer and
provides instructions on how to perform testicular self-
examination.
 
     THE PAP TEST:  IT CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE!  This easy-to-read
pamphlet tells women the importance of getting a Pap test.  It
explains who should request one, how often it should be done, and
where to go to get a Pap test.
 
 
GENERAL
 
 
     RESEARCH REPORTS.  In-depth reports covering current
knowledge of the causes and prevention, symptoms, detection and
diagnosis, and treatment of various types of cancer.  Individual
reports are available on the following topics:
 
     Bone Marrow Transplantation
     Cancer of the Colon and Rectum
     Cancer of the Lung
     Cancer of the Pancreas
     Melanoma

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 31
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     Oral Cancers
 
     THE IMMUNE SYSTEM - HOW IT WORKS.  This booklet, written at
a high school level, explains the human immune system for the
general public.  It describes the sophistication of the body's
immune responses, the impact of immune disorders, and the
relation of the immune system to cancer therapies present and
future. [28 pages]
 
 
     WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CANCER.  This series of
pamphlets discusses symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, emotional
issues, and questions to ask the doctor.  Includes glossary of
terms and other resources.  Individual pamphlets are available on
the following topics:
 
     Bladder
     Bone
     Brain
     Breast
     Cervix
     Colon and Rectum
     Dysplastic Nevi
     Esophagus
     Hodgkin's Disease
     Kidney
     Larynx
     Lung
     Melanoma
     Multiple Myeloma
     Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
     Oral Cancers
     Ovary
     Pancreas
     Prostate
     Skin
     Testis
     Uterus
 
 
PATIENT EDUCATION
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide information
about side effects of common drugs used to treat cancer, their

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 32
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

proper usage, and precautions for patients.  The fact sheets were
prepared by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for
distribution by the National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only
may be ordered.
 
     ADVANCED CANCER:  LIVING EACH DAY.  This booklet addresses
coping with a terminal illness by discussing practical
considerations for the patient, the family, and friends. [30
pages]
 
     CHEMOTHERAPY AND YOU:  A GUIDE TO SELF-HELP DURING
TREATMENT. This booklet, in question-and-answer format, addresses
problems and concerns of patients receiving chemotherapy.
Emphasis is on explanation and self-help. [64 pages]
 
     EATING HINTS:  RECIPES AND TIPS FOR BETTER NUTRITION DURING
CANCER TREATMENT.  This cookbook-style booklet includes recipes
and suggestions for maintaining optimum nutrition during
treatment.  All recipes have been tested. [92 pages]
 
     FACING FORWARD: A GUIDE FOR CANCER SURVIVORS.  This booklet
presents a concise overview of important survivor issues,
including ongoing health needs, psychosocial concerns, insurance,
and employment.  Easy-to-use format includes cancer survivors'
experiences, practical tips, recordkeeping forms, and resources.
It is recommended for cancer survivors, their family, and
friends. [43 pages]
 
     PATIENT TO PATIENT:  CANCER CLINICAL TRIALS AND YOU.  This
15-minute videocassette provides simple information for patients
and families about the clinical trials process (produced in
collaboration with the American College of Surgeons Commission on
Cancer).
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT PAIN CONTROL:  A GUIDE FOR
PEOPLE WITH CANCER AND THEIR FAMILIES.  This booklet discusses
pain control using both medical and nonmedical methods.  The
emphasis is on explanation, self-help, and patient participation.
This booklet is also available from the American Cancer Society.
[44 pages]
 
     RADIATION THERAPY AND YOU:  A GUIDE TO SELF-HELP DURING
TREATMENT. This booklet addresses concerns of patients receiving
forms of radiation therapy.  Emphasis is on explanation and
self-help. [52 pages]

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 33
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     TAKING TIME:  SUPPORT FOR PEOPLE WITH CANCER AND THE PEOPLE
WHO CARE ABOUT THEM.  This sensitively written booklet for
persons with cancer and their families addresses the feelings and
concerns of others in similar situations and how they have coped.
[68 pages]
 
     WHAT ARE CLINICAL TRIALS ALL ABOUT?  This booklet is
designed for patients who are considering taking part in research
for new cancer treatments.  It explains clinical trials to
patients in easy-to-understand terms and gives them information
that will help them decide about participating. [24 pages]
 
     WHEN CANCER RECURS:  MEETING THE CHALLENGE AGAIN.  This
booklet details the different types of recurrence, types of
treatment, and coping with cancer's return. [28 pages]
 
 
BREAST CANCER EDUCATION SERIES
 
     BREAST BIOPSY:  WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.  This booklet
     discusses biopsy procedures.  It describes what to expect in
     the hospital and while awaiting a diagnosis. [16 pages]
 
     BREAST CANCER:  UNDERSTANDING TREATMENT OPTIONS. This
     booklet summarizes the biopsy procedure and examines the
     pros and cons of various types of breast surgery.  It
     discusses lumpectomy and radiation therapy as primary
     treatment, adjuvant therapy, and the process of making
     treatment decisions. [19 pages]
 
     MASTECTOMY:  A TREATMENT FOR BREAST CANCER.  This booklet
     presents information about the different types of breast
     surgery.  It explains what to expect in the hospital and
     during the recovery period following breast cancer surgery.
     Breast self-examination for mastectomy patients is also
     described. [25 pages]
 
     AFTER BREAST CANCER:  A GUIDE TO FOLLOWUP CARE.  This
     booklet is for the woman who has completed treatment.  It
     explains the importance of checking for possible signs of
     recurring cancer by receiving regular mammograms, getting
     breast exams from a doctor, and continuing monthly breast
     self-exams.  It offers advice for managing the physical and
     emotional side effects that may accompany surviving breast

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 34
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     cancer. [15 pages]
 
     PEDIATRIC CANCER EDUCATION SERIES
 
     HELP YOURSELF:  TIPS FOR TEENAGERS WITH CANCER. This
     magazine-style booklet is designed to provide information
     and support to adolescents with cancer.  Issues addressed
     include reactions to diagnosis, relationships with family
     and friends, school attendance, and body image. [37 pages]
 
     HOSPITAL DAYS, TREATMENT WAYS. This hematology-oncology
     coloring book helps orient the child with cancer to hospital
     and treatment procedures. [26 pages]
 
     MANAGING YOUR CHILD'S EATING PROBLEMS DURING CANCER
     TREATMENT.  This booklet contains information about the
     importance of nutrition, the side effects of cancer and its
     treatment, ways to encourage a child to eat, and special
     diets. [32 pages]
 
     TALKING WITH YOUR CHILD ABOUT CANCER.  This booklet is
     designed for the parent whose child has been diagnosed with
     cancer.  It addresses the health-related concerns of young
     people of different ages; it suggests ways to discuss
     disease-related issues with the child. [16 pages]
 
     WHEN SOMEONE IN YOUR FAMILY HAS CANCER.  This booklet is
     written for young people whose parent or sibling has cancer.
     It includes sections on the disease, its treatment, and
     emotional concerns. [28 pages]
 
     YOUNG PEOPLE WITH CANCER:  A HANDBOOK FOR PARENTS.
     This booklet discusses the most common types of childhood
     cancer, treatments and side effects, and issues that may
     arise when a child is diagnosed with cancer.  Offers medical
     information and practical tips gathered from the experience
     of others. [86 pages]
 
 
SPANISH LANGUAGE PUBLICATIONS
 
Si desea hablar con un especialista en informacion sobre el
cancer, por favor llame al 1-800-422-6237 (1-800-4-CANCER).
 
CANCER PREVENTION

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 35
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     A TIME OF CHANGE/DE NINA A MUJER.  This bilingual fotonovela
     was developed specifically for young women.  It discusses
     various health promotion issues such as nutrition, no
     smoking, exercise, and pelvic, Pap, and breast examinations.
     [34 pages]
 
     DATOS SOBRE EL HABITO DE FUMAR Y RECOMENDACIONES PARA DEJAR
     DE FUMAR.  This bilingual pamphlet describes the health
     risks of smoking and tips on how to quit and how to stay
     quit. [8 pages]
 
     GUIA PARA DEJAR DE FUMAR.  This booklet is a full-color,
     self-help smoking cessation booklet prepared specifically
     for Spanish-speaking Americans.  It was developed by the
     University of California, San Francisco, under an NCI
     research grant. [36 pages]
 
 
EARLY DETECTION
 
     HAGASE LA PRUEBA PAP: HAGALO HOY...POR SU SALUD Y SU
     FAMILIA.  This bilingual brochure tells women why it is
     important to get a Pap test.  It gives brief, clear
     information about who needs a Pap test, where to go to get
     one, and how often the Pap test should be done.
 
     HAGASE UN MAMOGRAMA: UNA VEZ AL ANO...PARA TODA UNA VIDA.
     This bilingual brochure describes the importance of
     mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It
     gives brief information about who is at risk for breast
     cancer, how a mammogram is done, and how to get one.
 
     LA PRUEBA PAP: UN METODO PARA DIAGNOSTICAR CANCER DEL CUELLO
     DEL UTERO.  This booklet in Spanish answers questions about
     the Pap test, including how often it should be done,
     significance of results, and other diagnostic tests and
     treatments. [16 pages]
 
     LO QUE USTED DEBE SABER SOBRE LOS EXAMENES DE LOS SENOS.
     This booklet in Spanish explains the importance of the three
     actions recommended by the NCI to detect breast cancer as
     early as possible:  requesting regular mammography, getting
     an annual breast exam from the doctor, and performing a
     monthly breast self-exam. [6 pages]

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 36
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     PREGUNTAS Y RESPUESTAS SOBRE LA SELECCION DE UN CENTRO DE
     MAMOGRAFIA.  This brochure lists questions and answers to
     ask in selecting a quality mammography facility.
 
PATIENT EDUCATION
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
     sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide
     information about side effects of common drugs used to treat
     cancer, their proper usage, and precautions for patients.
     The fact sheets were prepared by the United States
     Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for distribution by the
     National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only may be ordered.
 
     DATOS SOBRE EL TRATAMIENTO DE QUIMIOTERAPIA CONTRA EL
     CANCER.  This flyer in Spanish provides a brief introduction
     to cancer chemotherapy. [12 pages]
 
     EL TRATAMIENTO DE RADIOTERAPIA:  GUIA PARA EL PACIENTE
     DURANTE EL TRATAMIENTO.  This booklet in Spanish addresses
     the concerns of patients receiving radiation therapy for
     cancer.  Emphasis is on explanation and self-help. [48
     pages]





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 37
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                              AIDS News Summaries
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               AIDS Daily Summary for April 19 to April 23, 1993           

 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS  
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public  service 
only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement  by the CDC, 
the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction  of this text 
is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold.  Copyright 1993, Information, 
Inc., Bethesda, MD 

       =================================================================     
                                April 19, 1993 
       =================================================================     
 "Absence of HIV Transmission From an Infected Orthopedic Surgeon" Journal of 
the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 269,  No. 14, P. 1807  (von 
Reyn, C. Fordham) 

     The risk of HIV transmission from an HIV-positive surgeon to  patient is 
extremely low, provided that the surgeon strictly  adheres to universal 
infection control procedures, write C.  Fordham von Reyn et al. of the 
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H.  The researchers contacted 
2,317 former patients on whom an HIV-positive orthopedic surgeon performed 
invasive  procedures between January 1, 1978 and June 30, 1992.  The  
orthopedic surgeon voluntarily withdrew from practice after  testing positive 
for HIV.  A total of 1,174 former patients  underwent HIV testing, 
representing 50.7 percent of patients on  whom the orthopedic surgeon 
performed invasive procedures during  the 13.5-year period.  Patients were 
tested from each year and  from each category of invasive procedure.  All 
patients were  found to be negative for HIV by enzyme-linked-immunosorbent  
assay.  Two former patients reported known HIV infection prior to surgery.  
The examination of AIDS case registries and vital  records neglected to detect 
cases of HIV infection among former  surgical patients.  The estimated cost of 
the initial patient  notification and testing was $158,000, with the single 
most  expensive activity being counseling and testing.  This accounted  for 37 
percent of the total expense.  The patient notification  and testing were 
conducted while maintaining the confidentiality  of the orthopedic surgeon who 
was an active participant in the  planning and execution of the study.  
Notifying patients of the  infected surgeon's HIV-status is both disruptive 
and expensive  and is not routinely recommended, the researchers conclude. \ 
       =================================================================     
"Investigation of Potential HIV Transmission to the Patients of  an HIV-
Infected Surgeon" Journal of the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 38
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

269,  No. 14, P. 1795  (Smith Rogers, Audrey et al.) 

     The risk of HIV transmission during surgery is so remote that it  will be 
quantified only by gathering data from multiple,  methodologically similar 
investigations, writes Audrey Smith  Rogers et al. of the Johns Hopkins 
University School of Medicine  in Baltimore, Md.  The researchers identified a 
total of 1,131  persons in hospital databases who underwent invasive surgical  
procedures between 1984 and 1990 and for whom the HIV-positive  surgeon was 
listed as the operating surgeon.  The AIDS case  registries were reviewed for 
all patients having undergone  invasive procedures and death certificates were 
obtained.  Among  the 1,131 patients, 101 were dead, 119 had no address, 413 
had  test results known, and 498 did not respond to the questionnaire. No 
study patient name was found in reported AIDS case registries. One newly 
detected, HIV-positive patient was determined to have  been most probably 
infected in 1985 during a transfusion.  There  was no HIV transmission in 369 
person-hours of surgical exposure, suggesting that HIV transmission to 
patients is unlikely to occur more frequently than once per 1000 person-hours 
of surgical  exposure.  The researchers determined there is no evidence to  
suggest that the surgeon failed to adhere to standard  infection-control 
guidelines; over 50 percent of the patients  with invasive procedures chose to 
be tested, and of those whose  results were revealed, only one person was 
found to be infected  with HIV.  The study patient's infection was probably 
the result  of a tainted blood transfusion received in 1985.  As a result,  
there is no evidence that the transmission of HIV from the  HIV-positive 
surgeon to any patient transpired, the researchers  conclude. 
      ==================================================================
                                April 20, 1993 
      ==================================================================
 "Drug Concerns to Share AIDS Data" New York Times (04/20/93), P. C10  
(Kolata, Gina) 

     A total of 15 major pharmaceutical companies have decided, in a  highly 
unusual move, to share AIDS drugs and information while  the drugs are 
undergoing early clinical testing.  Dr. Edward  Scolnick, president of the 
Merck Research Laboratory in Rahway,  N.J., arranged the collaboration.  He 
said that cooperation  between companies seemed increasingly significant as it 
had  become clear that combinations of drugs were likely to be more  effective 
in fighting HIV than any drug used alone.  The  researchers are hopeful that 
HIV, when faced with a combination  of several drugs requiring mutation at 
different sites for  resistance to develop, will be unable to evolve all the 
mutations at the same time.  Therefore, several drugs taken together or one 
after the other could halt the spread of HIV.  Currently, the  drug companies 
do not know what other drugs their competitors are developing.  The new 
agreement allows companies to routinely  exchange animal data and safety data 
on new AIDS drugs.  "An  agreement like this will greatly facilitate 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 39
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

companies' ability to choose the best drug combinations much faster and in a 
much more  efficient way," said Scolnick.  He also said that the  
collaboration would not violate antitrust laws.  In creating the  agreement, 
Merck spoke frequently to members of AIDS advocacy  groups, including ACT-UP.  
Dr. Daniel Hoth, director of the  division on AIDS at the National Institute 
of Allergy and  Infectious Disease said, "We're delighted to see the  
pharmaceutical industry take this step because we think that  increasing the 
information flow will likely accelerate the  discovery of better compounds for 
AIDS."  Related Stories: Wall Street Journal (04/20) P. B1; Philadelphia  
Inquirer (04/20) P. A3; USA Today (04/20) P. 1B 
================================================================== 
"The Next Step in AIDS Treatment" Nature (04/08/93) Vol. 362, No. 6420, P. 493  
(Maddox, John) 

     Although AZT was found to be ineffective in prolonging the lives  of 
people infected with HIV, the findings do not indicate that  AZT should not be 
administered in people with full-blown AIDS,  writes columnist John Maddox.  
AZT has been used in the United  States in asymptomatic HIV-positive people on 
the basis that  administration of the drug appeared to abate the decline of  
T-cell counts.  However, a report in the Lancet demonstrated that AZT should 
not be used early in the course of disease.  While the CD4 counts of the 877 
people given AZT were consistently greater  than those of patients receiving 
only placebo, the first three  years of follow-up have shown that the 
proportions of people in  the two groups progressing to overt AIDS or even to 
death were  not significantly different at roughly 18 percent.  The  
conclusions are that AZT is not an effective AIDS drug in  HIV-infected 
individuals, and that CD4 cell count may not be a  reliable proxy for the 
progression to AIDS in infected people.   But nothing is implied by the study 
of the utility of AZT in the  treatment of those in whom symptoms have already 
appeared--there  is no case for abandoning that treatment, at least on the  
evidence now available.  It is much more alarming that the CD4  count has 
proven to be an unreliable mark of the efficacy of drug treatment in HIV 
infection.  AIDS researchers should acknowledge  HIV is alive from the 
beginning of infection and turn it into a  workable assay of the progress of 
disease.  The general  application of such an assay will probably in itself 
provide a  better understanding of the pathogenesis of AIDS, concludes  
Maddox. 
      ================================================================== 
"Infective and Anti-Infective Properties of Breastmilk From  HIV-1-Infected 
Women" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 914   (Van de Perre, Philippe 
et al.) 

     A vaccine preparation inducing a persistent immune response of  the IgM 
type in the mother's body fluids could be valuable to  prevent transmission of 
HIV-1 from mother to child, write  Philippe Van de Perre et al. of the 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 40
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

National AIDS Control Program in Kigali, Rwanda.  The researchers hypothesized 
that  transmission of HIV-1 through breastmilk could be favored by the  
presence of infected cells, by deficiency of anti-infective  substances in 
breastmilk, or both factors.  A total of 215  HIV-1-infected women were 
enrolled at delivery in Kigali, Rwanda; milk samples were collected 15 days, 6 
months, and 18 months post partum.  HIV-1 IgG, secretory IgA, and IgM were 
assayed by  western blot, for the latter two after removal of IgG with  
protein G.  In the 15-day and 6-month samples, the researchers  sought viral 
genome in milk cells by double polymerase chain  reaction with three sets of 
primers (gag, pol, and env).  At 15  days, 6 months, and 18 months post 
partum, HIV-1 specific IgG was detected in 95 percent, 98 percent, and 97 
percent of breastmilk  samples; IgA in 23 percent, 28 percent, and 41 percent; 
and IgM  in 66 percent, 78 percent, and 41 percent.  In children who  survived 
longer than 18 months the risk of infection was  associated with lack of 
persistence of IgM and IgA in their  mothers' milk.  The presence of HIV-1-
infected cells in the milk  15 days post partum was strongly predictive of 
HIV-1 infection in the child by both univariate and multivariate analysis.  
The  combination of HIV-1 infected cells in breastmilk and a defective IgM 
response was the strongest predictor of infection.  IgM and  IgA anti-HIV-1 in 
breastmilk may protect against postnatal  transmission of HIV, the researchers 
conclude. 
      ==================================================================    
                                April 21, 1993 
      ==================================================================    
"Firms to Share AIDS Research in Global Venture" Journal of Commerce 
(04/21/93), P. 7A 

     A total of fifteen U.S. and European pharmaceutical companies  announced 
Tuesday they will swap drug supplies and information on early-stage AIDS 
research to hasten the search for combination  therapies to fight HIV 
infection and AIDS.  The companies said  the unusual move resulted primarily 
from the increasing  concentration of AIDS research on combination therapies 
since  realizing that HIV is likely to develop resistance to every  individual 
AIDS drug.  Edward Scolnick, president of Merck & Co.  Research Laboratories, 
led the collaborative effort that took a  year of negotiations to come 
together, said participants.  In  addition to Merck, the other companies 
involved in the  Inter-Company Collaboration for AIDS Drug Development are  
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Burroughs Wellcome, Glaxo Inc.,  Hoffman-La Roche, 
Eli Lilly & Co., Pfizer Inc., Smithkline  Beecham, AB Astra, Du Pont Merck, 
Syntex Inc., Boehringer  Ingelheim, Miles Inc., and Sigma-Tau.  The 
participants said that all companies involved in AIDS drug development they 
were aware  of had joined the collaboration, and that any company actively  
involved in HIV anti-viral development may participate.  Scolnick said the 
collaborators would most likely meet every couple of  months for a daylong 
scientific meeting where they will review  for one another their preclinical 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 41
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

and early clinical data.  The  American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR) 
was pleased with  the news of the collaboration, which it hopes will lead to 
the  development of drug combinations that will reduce viral  resistance.   
Related Story: Financial Times (04/21) P. 1 
==================================================================    
"Guidance Over HIV-Infected Health-Care Workers" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, 
No. 8850, P. 952  (Horton, Richard) 

     The United Kingdom's Department of Health recently followed the  advice 
of AIDS experts that there is no scientific reason for  routine HIV testing 
among health-care workers.  Following recent  highly publicized reports of 
health professionals who contracted  HIV, the department issued revised 
guidelines on the management  of such cases.  Dr. Kenneth Calman, Chief 
Medical Officer, said  doctors, dentists, nurses, and other health-care 
workers have an  ethical duty to seek advice if they have been exposed to HIV  
infection, including, if appropriate, diagnostic HIV testing.  He said, 
"Infected health care workers should not perform invasive  procedures that 
carry even a remote risk of exposing patients to  the virus."  The guidelines 
--------- end of part 3 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59287
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: FREQUENT NOSEBLEEDS

A >  From some of the replies to my original posting, it's evident that some
A >  people do not secrete enough mucous to keep their nose lining protected
            ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^            
 Include small amounts of hot, spicy foods with your meals. It's
 not a cure, but many people find it helpful to create extra mucus.
 You may also consider taking a few drops of iodine in juice or water 
 (consult your doctor first!), which is available OTC in Canada.
 If you have a sedentary lifestyle, exercising sometimes helps.

A >  from environmental influences (ie, dry air). But I've had no responses
A >  from anyone with experience with Rutin. Is there another newsgroup that
                      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
A >  might have specifics on herbal remedies?
A > 
A >  Robert Allison

 I tried to e-mail you, but our board is having internet problems,
 so I'm not sure whether you got the information on rutin or not.
 
 Rutin is NOT a herb, but part of the bioflavonoid complex. You should
 generally *not* take rutin by itself, but take the whole bioflavonoid 
 complex instead. If you don't (and there are some exceptions to that)
 you'll eventually create a hesperidin deficiency, which is the other
 major component of the bioflavonoid complex.
 I found out the hard way years ago when I recommended rutin, after it
 showed deficient in patients who were NOT deficient in hesperidin be-
 fore. A later retest almost always showed a subsequent deficiency in 
 hesperidin, which, from then on, made me always *add* bioflavonoids 
 to anyone that had *very* low levels of rutin.
 Most of the time people are equally low in rutin *and* hesperidin, so
 there is really no reason to take rutin by itself, but use the whole
 bioflavonoid complex instead.

 I have several thousand patients taking them with many claiming that 
 they had been helped with hemorrhoids, varicose veins, chronic nose 
 bleeds, aneurysms, gastro-intestinal bleeding (due to drugs), etc...
 One patient in desperation took a whole bottle (100's) in one day
 for his painful, bleeding hemorrhoids, without any ill effects.
  
 They are also non-toxic in very high amounts, that's why they can
 be safely recommended. If you are allergic to citrus fruit (they are
 made from their peels), pine bark sources are available as well.

 About 90% of patients tested show a bioflavonoid deficiency, 
 with the average daily dosage needed being about 1 - 2,000mg.
 For major complaints, 4 - 6,000mg+/day is common.
 
 In case they cannot be taken, because of their size and taste (they
 are big, and they don't taste that great), a product made from pine 
 bark extract gives you the same effect and the tablets are quite
 small and taste much better, however the cost is about seven times
 higher for the equivalent effect. One 25mg tablet of the pine bark
 extract gives you about the same effect as 1,000mg of bioflavonoids.
 The name for the pine bark product is 'Pycnogenol.'
  
   Some Canadian brands carrying bioflavonoids are:
 
   Quest.............1,000mg   big, bitter, not chewable
   Swiss Herbal........600mg   smooth, easier swallowing 
   Jamieson............500mg   medium, bitter, chewable 

   SISU.................25mg   (Pycnogenol) small, easy swallowing
 
   Give them a try and see what happens.....and good luck!

   -- Ron Roth --
 =====================================================================
 --  Internet: rn.3228@rose.com  -  Rosenet: ron roth@rosehamilton  --

 *   "Eating Radium has strange results,"  Tom said brightly.
---
   RoseReader 2.10  P003228 Entered at [ROSEHAMILTON]
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59288
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
:
:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
:occur?

Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
to your biology teacher.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59289
From: ipj@unix.brighton.ac.uk ((( Fleg Software )))
Subject: Artificial Intelligence in Medicine

If you have any information on artificial intelligence in medicine, then I
would appreciate it if you could mail me with whatever it is. The informations
is needed for a project.

Thank you, Ian.
-- 
.____________________________________________________________________________.
|  Ian Jukes BSc. Computer Science (Hons) Year 2 The University of Brighton  |
|           janet e-mail : ipj@uk.ac.bton.unix, ipj@uk.ac.bton.vms           |
`----------------------------------------------------------------------------'

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59290
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Sleep in hospitals (WAS Re: EUse of haldol in elderly

In article <YfqmleK00iV185Co5L@andrew.cmu.edu>, you say:
> I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
>demented during hospital stays.  In the examples I've seen, drugs were
>definitely involved.


 Speaking from experience, one doesn't need drugs to become disoriented
during hospital stays. I was in hosp for 5 days in late Jan; what with
general noise at all hours of night, staff coming every time I turned over,
or whatever, to check me out, I didn't get much sustained sleep at night.
Spent days groggy & dozing, and all it was from my perspective was that I
was TIRED!

   BobM - Let's *REINVENT* hospital organization!s

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59291
Subject: Re: Localized fat reduction due to exercise (question
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

In <1993Apr25.203223.28534@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> hchung@nyx.cs.du.edu writes:

> I was just wondering if exercises specific to particular regions of the
> body (such as thighs) will basically only tone the thighs, or if fat
> from other parts of the body (such as breasts) would be affected just as
> much.

There are two different mechanisms here:  toning of muscles and reduction of
fat.  Exercises specific to particular muscles will tone only those muscles
exercised (example: look at differences in arm circumferences between pitching
arms and non-pitching arms in major league pitchers).  However, if exercise
also leads to reduction of body fat, the loss of body fat will be equally
distributed over the entire body.  There is no way to "spot reduce" body fat
other than surgically, through liposuction. Distribution of body fat is
genetically determined.  Sometimes a very flabby muscle will look like "fat",
so when that muscle gains some muscle tone it may *appear* as though the "fat"
is "changing" into "muscle", but really fat and muscle tissues are totally
separate, and one does not ever "change into" the other.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59292
From: gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
|> 
|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
|> >appreciated.
|> 
|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
|> 
|> Bill from oz
|> 


Bill,
No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
it takes pictures of your aura.
|> 

-- 
Greg 

--  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59293
From: dh@fncrd6.fnal.gov (don husby)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


Poor person's Kirlian Photography (try this at home)

1. Hold your hand up to a cold window.
2. Look closely at the stunning corona effects around
   your fingertips.
3. Remove hand (from window) and observe after image.  
4. Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59294
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr23.180430.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
>Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).

>	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
>	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
>	   the NCI.

Hmm.  This is certainly among the things I would refer to as quack
therapy and would tend to refer to any practitioner who prescribed
laetrile (whether licensed or not) as a quack.  There are unethical
behaviors (such as ordering unneccessary tests to increase fees)
which I would not lable as quackish, but prescribing known ineffective
therapies seems to me to be one of the hallmarks of a quack.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59295
From: garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com (gary.schuetter)
Subject: A Good place for Back Surgery?


	
        Hello,

        Just one quick question:
        My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
        have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
        Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
        the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
        kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
        in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
        appreciated a whole lot!...


                Thanks in Advance.

                        Gary Sheutter.
                        AT&T Bell Labs.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59296
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <1ravpeINNah4@gap.caltech.edu> ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu
 (Ken Miller) writes:
>So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
>controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
>better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
>have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
>disbelief on the other.

I don't have any evidence against water from Lourdes curing MS --
I'm sure there is anecdotal evidence that it does.  Do you really think
that in the absence of a double-blind study I should be indifferent
to the hypothesis that water from Lourdes cures MS?

For what it's worth, I know of only one double blind study of Nystatin
for "candida hypersensitivity syndrome."  It was published in the 
New England Journal (I think 1990) and showed no benefit on systemic
symptoms (though I think it reduced vaginal yeast infections, not
surprisingly).  As I recall, the yeast crowd had some major objections
to the study, though I don't remember what they were.

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59297
From: jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca (Jeff Poupore)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Hi,

Thought I'd add something to the conversation. 

My girlfriend used to work in a lab studying different natural carcinogens.
She mentioned once about the cancerous effect of barbecued food.
Basically, she said that if you eat barbecued foods with strawberries
(a natural carcinogen) the slight carcinogenic properties of both
cancel out each other.

--
Jeff Poupore
jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca

-- 
Jeff Poupore
jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59298
From: trones@dxcern.cern.ch (Jostein Lodve Trones)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org>, gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik) writes:
  
|> In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:

|> |> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident  |> |> in  
|> |> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
|> |> 
|> |> Bill from oz
|> |> 
|> 
|> 
|> Bill,
|> No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
|> photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
|> it takes pictures of your aura.
|> 
|> 
|> -- 
|> Greg 
|> 
|> --  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --
|> 

Greg,
No flame intended, but I think you just missed one of the rare attempts of
humor in sci.skeptic.
"Krillean" against "Kirilian". Get it?
;-)

BTW, I think you're a bit of base yourself, since, to my knowledge, the
electromagnetic field around a stone is rather abscent. But still, a stone
has a nice "aura" on the Kirilian photographs.

Don't remember excactly, but "corona discharge" I think is a more fitting
expression than aura. Think you'll find something on this in the skeptic-faq.


Cheers,
	Jostein

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59299
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: OCD


This is to followup my previous reply on this topic, which it has been
pointed out to me might have been dangerously misleading in two spots.

1.  I stated that psychotherapy (meaning talking therapy and so on) was used 
    to treat Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which though sometimes true is 
    misleading.  It is not often found effective, particularly by itself.
    Primary treatment today usually consists at least in part of drug
    therapy.  The most current theories of this condition attribute 
    it to more to biological causes than psychological, in places where this
    distinction becomes important.

2.  I mentioned that the DSM-IIIR mentions 'impulses' as a possible 
	diagnostic marker.  However, this might look like something
	people associate with psychotic conditions, uncontrollable or
	unpredictable behaviors, which is NOT the case with OCD.  
	One of the diagnostic criteria of OCD is that the individual
	can and does suppress some of their 'impulses,' although they
	are an unending source of anxiety.  
	The obsessive thoughts and ritualistic actions usually associated with 
	OCD are most frequently very mundane and predictable, closer to
	a superstitious nature than a dangerous nature for the most part.

	Some references (one non-technical and several technical)
	that someone was kind enough to supply for me
	but was unable to post themself :

|"The boy who couldn't stop washing" by judith rapaport.   ***

	(technical refs) :

|	pharmacotherapy of o-c disorder
|	donna m jermain and lynn crismon
|	pharmacotherapy 1990; 10(3):175-198

|	epidemiology of ocd
|	seteven a rasmussen and jane eisen
|	j clin psychiatry 1990;51(2, suppl.):10-13

|	the waking nightmare: an overview of ocd
|	judith l rapoport
|	j clin psychiatry 1990; 51(11, suppl.):25-28

|	absence of placebo response in ocd
|	matig r mavissakalian, bruce jones, stephen olson
|	j nerv ment disease 1990 vol 178 no. 4

	And thanks very much to those who supplied constructive  
	criticism to my first post on OCD.  I hope this helps clarify
	the parts that were misleading.

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59300
From: mechalas@gn.ecn.purdue.edu (John P. Mechalas)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rgnn6$lli@fnnews.fnal.gov> dh@fncrd6.fnal.gov (don husby) writes:
>
>Poor person's Kirlian Photography (try this at home)
>
>1. Hold your hand up to a cold window.
>2. Look closely at the stunning corona effects around
>   your fingertips.
>3. Remove hand (from window) and observe after image.  
>4. Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect.

Advanced Kirlian Photography (try this at home, too)

1.  Get a camera
2.  Have your subject face you with his/her back to the sun.
3.  Take photo
4.  Observe the glow behind their silhouetted image on the photo
5.  Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect

-- 
John Mechalas                                          "I'm not an actor, but
mechalas@gn.ecn.purdue.edu                                 I play one on TV."
Aero Engineering, Purdue University                     #include disclaimer.h

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59301
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: Mind Machines?


In article <C5snww.5GA@tripos.com>, homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes...
>I recently learned about these devices that supposedly induce specific 
>brain wave frequencies in their users simply by wearing them. 

The principle underlying these devices is a well establish principle in
psychology called 'entrainment,' whereby external sensory stimuli
influence gross electrical patterns of brain function.

They are 'experimental' in that people experiment with them and they
are _not_ widely (if at all) used in medicine for therapeutic purposes.  
Given the exception of TENS and similar units used for external electrical 
stimulation, usually for pain relief, not really a light and sound machine.

They are _not_ experimental in the sense of a specific medical 
category to that effect, as with experimental drugs, as the FDA does not 
specifically regulate medical devices in the way it does pharmaceuticals.   

>I would think that if they work as reported they would be incredibly useful,

There are few reliable studies of therapeutic or enhancement effects
for mind machines, other than those relaxation-related effects found with 
meditation or self-hypnosis as well.  Reported benefits are mostly anecdotal and
subjective so far, so it's hard to generalize about their potential value.

A pretty good general non-technical introduction to a wide variety
of these devices may be found in "Would the Buddha Wear a Walkman ?"
Some interesting background material, names of suppliers, and capsule reviews
of specific equipment.  

>do these mind machines (aka Light and Sound machines) work? can they induce
>alpha, theta, and/or delta waves in a person wearing them? What research if
>any has been done on them? Could they be used in lieu of a tranquilizer?
>Or are they just another bit of quackery?

A more important question might be whether they have enough additional
value to be worth investing in.  'Biofeedback' was found to be a legitimate
and reliable effect experimentally under certain conditions, (in that
it demonstrated that we can influence physiological processes previously 
considered purely autonomic) but never panned out as a particularly valuable 
therapeutic tool because of the skill level required and the subtlety and
temporary nature of the effects in most cases.   Maybe someone else 
has more, there used to be a whole mailing list devoted to mind machines,
somewhere on the net.

>Web Homer
>homer@tripos.com

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59302
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org>, gpivar@maestro.mitre.org
(Greg Pivarnik) writes:
=In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
=|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
=|> 
=|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
=|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
=|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
=|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
=|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
=|> >appreciated.
=|> 
=|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
=|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
=|> 
=|> Bill from oz
=|> 
=
=
=Bill,
=No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
=photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
=it takes pictures of your aura.

Greg:  Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
with inanimate objects.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59303
From: julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <C60KrL.59t@dartvax.dartmouth.edu> oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das) writes:
>In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>>
>>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>>has an ulcer.
>
>Julie, it doesn't necessarily follow that you should use it (MSG or
>something else for that matter) simply because you are not allergic
>to it. For example you might not be allergic to (animal) fats, and
>like their taste, yet it doesn't follow that you should be using them
>(regularly). MSG might have other bad (or good, I am not up on 
>knowledge of MSG) effects on your body in the long run, maybe that's
>reason enough not to use it. 

Perhaps I should quit eating mushrooms, soya beans, and brie cheese
which all have MSG in them.  It occurs naturally.

I'm not going to quit eating something that I like just because
it *might* cause me trouble later or causes problems in *some*
people.  I would much rather avoid stress by not worrying over
what goes in my mouth and not spending every day reading conflicting
reports of what is good/bad for you.

I may eat some things in quantities that may not be good for me.
Fine.  I've made my decision and I don't think it's appropriate
for anyone to try to 'convert' me.  "It's for your own good" are
the most obnoxious and harmful words, IMO, in the English (or
any other) language.

>
>Altho' your example of the ulcer is funny, it isn't an
>appropriate comparison at all.

I think it is.  I get tired of people saying 'don't eat X because
it's BAD!'  Well, X may not be bad for everyone.  And even if
it is, so what?  Give people all the information but don't ram
your decisions down their throats.

Julie
DISCLAIMER:  All opinions here belong to my cat and no one else

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59304
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rgo4b$et4@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr23.180430.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
>>Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).
> 
>>	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
>>	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
>>	   the NCI.
> 
> Hmm.  This is certainly among the things I would refer to as quack
> therapy and would tend to refer to any practitioner who prescribed
> laetrile (whether licensed or not) as a quack.  There are unethical
> behaviors (such as ordering unneccessary tests to increase fees)
> which I would not lable as quackish, but prescribing known ineffective
> therapies seems to me to be one of the hallmarks of a quack.
> -- 
> David Rind

One of the responsibilities of a licensed physician is to read the medical 
literature to keep up with changes in medical practice.  All the clamor 
over laetril resulted in the NCI spending quite a bit of money on clinical 
trials which proved(to me anyway) that laetril was ineffective against 
cancer.  A physician who continued to use it, when better, more effective, 
treatments are available, may deserve to be called a quack.  Anti-fungals 
are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
yet a standard part of medical practice.  He deals with critical care 
patients where fungal infection(systemic) is a real problem and just 
because he tries to keep *good* bacteria in his patients does not mean that 
all physicians do this.  I think that aspergillis is more likely to be 
found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.

The problem we have here David is proof that GI discomfort can be caused by 
a candida bloom.  The arguement is that without proof, no action is 
warrented.

Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
restricting calcium intake.

The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
infections should decline.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59305
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: CS "gas" and allergic response- Ques.

This question derives from the Waco incident:
	Could CS ("gas") particles create an allergic response which would 
result in laryngospasm and asphyxiation?- especially in children.

	DNC in Ok.
	OSU-COM will disavow my opinion, and my existence, if necessary.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59306
From: mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods
> resident in the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by
> them, perhaps.

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik) writes:
> No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms
> Kirilian photography registers the electromagnetical fields around
> objects, in simple, it takes pictures of your aura.

	Greg, no flame intended, but you have no discernible sense of
humor.  What Bill wrote was intended to be funny.  It's called a
"joke", Greg.  Look into it.
	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?

-- 
Mark Meyer                                               | mmeyer@dseg.ti.com |
Texas Instruments, Inc.,  Plano TX                       +--------------------+
Every day, Jerry Junkins is grateful that I don't speak for TI.
      "You have triggered primary defense mechanism."  "Blast!"  "Affirmative."

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59307
From:  ()
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5sqv8.EDB@acsu.buffalo.edu>, SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu wrote:
> In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> >An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
> >This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
> >is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
> >form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
> >was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.

One possible reason is that file' is made with sassafras leaves, while root
beer was made with sassafras bark or root bark.  The leaves contain either
no
or less saffrole than the bark.

There is also some sort of treatment which putatively removes saffrole from
sassafras products.  I have some concentrated sassafras tea extract which
is
claimed to have the saffrole removed.

> I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
> commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
> for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?

Well, the last time that I went to the store to buy sassafras bark to make 
root beer, there was a sign saying that it wasn't sold for human
consumption.
Also, when I asked the person if they had wild cherry bark and wintergreen
bark,
she made a point of telling me that I couldn't buy sassafras for human 
consumption.

I find the fact that some people reckless enough to step into an automobile
live
in fear of dropping dead because of a pork rib quite funny, in a sick way.

Eric Pepke                                     INTERNET:
pepke@gw.scri.fsu.edu
Supercomputer Computations Research Institute  MFENET:   pepke@fsu
Florida State University                       SPAN:     scri::pepke
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4052                     BITNET:   pepke@fsu

Disclaimer: My employers seldom even LISTEN to my opinions.
Meta-disclaimer: Any society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59308
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Mind Machines? 


I use a ZYGON Mind Machine as bought in the USA last year.  Although
it's no wonder cure for what ail's you.  It is however VERY good at
stopping you thinking!

Sound strange?  Well suppose you're tired and want to go to bed/sleep.
BUT your head is full of niggling problems to resolve, you lay in the
bed, and quickly they all come to the surface, churning around from one
unresolved thing to the next and then back again.  Been there, bought
the t-shirt?

I slip on the Zygon and select a soothing pattern of light & sound, and
quickly I just can't concentrate on the previous stuff. Your brain's
cache kinda get's flushed, and you start on a whole new set of stuff.

A useful addition, is the facility to feed the output of a tape player
or CD through the box, I use New Age elevator muzak to enhance the
overall effect.

DEFFO better than a pill.

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk |      I'M PINK      *
   * BOURNEMOUTH UK | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI | THEREFORE I'M SPAM *
   ************************************************************************



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59309
From: n3022@cray.com (Jim Knoll)
Subject: Patti Duke's Problem

Does anyone have information about the struggles that Patti
Duke went through in her personal life with severe mood swings.
Did she have some form of chemical imbalance that triggered
these problems?  I recall that she wrote a book about her troubles.
Does someone have the title of that book?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59310
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: tick fever (aka rocky mtn spotted)

Any rocky mountain spotted fever experts out there ?

The doctor thinks a friend might have this.
The question is, doesn't the tick have to bite you ?

You frequently find a tick crawling on you after a walk
in the woods around here, but you tend to notice it before
it bites you; pulling one out of your skin is something
you're not likely to forget.

Can you get the fever without it biting you ?  Do they
sometimes bite you and then let go so you don't realize
you were bitten ?  I know they will let go once they've had
their fill, but you certainly would notice this (arggh).

So how do you get the fever if you never pulled a tick
off yourself (as opposed to finding one merely crawling
on you) ?

John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59311
From: Renee <rme1@cornell.edu>
Subject: Chelation therapy

Does anyone here know anything about chelation therapy using EDTA?  My
uncle has emphesema, and a doctor wants to try it on him.  We are
wondering if:

1.  Is there any evidence EDTA chelation therapy is beneficial for his
condition, or any condition?

2.  What possible side effects are there.  How can they be mimimized?

Please respond via e-mail to    rme1@cornell.edu

Thanks,
Renee

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59312
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Patti Duke's Problem

In article <1993Apr26.070649.2138@hemlock.cray.com> n3022@cray.com writes:
>Does anyone have information about the struggles that Patti
>Duke went through in her personal life with severe mood swings.
>Did she have some form of chemical imbalance that triggered
>these problems?  I recall that she wrote a book about her troubles.
>Does someone have the title of that book?

She's published two books about her manic-depressive illness: 

_Call Me Anna: the Autobiography of Patty Duke_, Patty Duke and 
Kenneth Turan, Bantam Books 1987 

and

_A Brilliant Madness:  Living with Manic-Depressive Illness_, Patty 
Duke and Gloria Hochman, Bantam Books 1992


--Barbara 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59313
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Annual inguinal hernia repair

In article <jpc.735692207@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov>, jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov
(J. Porter Clark) wrote:
[synopsis] Young man with inguianl hernia on one side, repaired, now has
new hernia on other side.  What gives, he asks?  [and he continues...] 
> Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
> the computer, reading news...

There is the possibility that there is some degree of constipation causing
chronic straining which has caused the bowel movements.  The classic 
problems that are supposed to be looked for in someone with a hernia are
constipation, chronic cough, colon cancer (and you're not too young for
that) and sitting for long periods of time at the computer, reading news.

Good Luck with your surgery!

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59314
From: aj2a@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Amir Anthony Jazaeri)
Subject: Re: Heat Shock Proteins

by the way ms. olmstead dna is not degraded in the stomach nor
under pH of 2.  its degraded in the duodenum under approx.
neutral pH by DNAase enzymes secreted by the pancreas.  my
point:  check your facts before yelling at other people for not
doing so.  just a friendly suggestion.


aaj 4/26/93

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59315
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Celery and Hypertension

Somewhere or other I read that when a person of Chinese heritage was
told that he had high blood pressure he responded by eating celery
(sorry, I don't recall the "dosage").  Apparently this is supposed to
work in reducing hypertension.

Can anyone out there verify this?  And if it does work, does anyone
know the appropriate amounts and possible side-effects?

Thanks,
Leon Traister (lmtra@uts.amdahl.com)


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59316
From: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM DRAPER)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <93115.120409ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>, <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes...
>>
>You might look for an allergy doctor in your area who uses sublingual
>drops instead of shots for treatment. (You are given a small bottle of
>antigens; 3 drops are placed under the tongue for 5 minutes.) My


This homeopathic remedies.  I tried the dander one for a month. 15 drops 
three times a day.  I didn't notice any change whats so ever.  How long 
were you using the drops before you noticed a difference?

For me this treatment is more expensive because my insurance will cover 
tradiitional medicine.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59317
From: lumensa@lub001.lamar.edu
Subject: Precocious Puberty 

Am looking for network access to recent research into treatments for
precocious puberty.  If you know of specifics, would appreciate email. 
I have plenty of general textbook type references.  Have a niece whose
daughter is afflicted.  The mother is an RN and has done a rather
exhaustive search of printed material. 

Pls Email suggestions to 
lumensa@lub001.lamar.edu

Thanx.
-- 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dale Parish - Orange, Texas            | Is the surface of a planet the
Lamar's Token Perpetual Student        | proper place for a developing 
(409)745-(vox)3899;(rec)1581;dat(2507) | industrial civilization?
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59318
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.103242.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
>use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?

I guess I'm still not clear on what the term "candida bloom" means,
but certainly it is well known that thrush (superficial candidal
infections on mucous membranes) can occur after antibiotic use.
This has nothing to do with systemic yeast syndrome, the "quack"
diagnosis that has been being discussed.


>found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
>for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
>women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.

Lucky how?  Since a recent article (randomized controlled trial) of
oral yogurt on reducing vaginal candidiasis, I've mentioned to a 
number of patients with frequent vaginal yeast infections that they
could try eating 6 ounces of yogurt daily.  It turns out most would
rather just use anti-fungal creams when they get yeast infections.

>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>infections should decline.

Again, this just isn't what the systemic yeast syndrome is about, and
has nothing to do with the quack therapies that were being discussed.
There is some evidence that attempts to reinoculate the GI tract with
bacteria after antibiotic therapy don't seem to be very helpful in
reducing diarrhea, but I don't think anyone would view this as a
quack therapy.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59319
From: rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller)
Subject: Resound Hearing aids (and others)

I have a fairly severe high frequency hearing loss. A recent rough test
showed a gently sloping loss to 10-20db down at 1000cps. Then it falls off
a cliff to 70-80dbs down from 1500cps on.  This type of loss is difficult
to fit. I am currently using some old siemens behind the ear aids which
keep me roughly functional, but leave a lot to be desired.

Recently I had an opportunity to test the Widex Q8 behind the ear aids for
several weeks. These have four independent programs which are intended to
be customized for different hearing situations and can be reprogramed. I
found them to be a definite improvement over my current aids and was about
to go ahead with them until another local outfit advertised a free trial of
another programmable system called ReSound.

Unfortunately I was only able to try the ReSound aids in their office for
about 30 minutes and I couldn't compare them 'head to head' with the Widex.
Nevertheless, it did appear to me that they were superior and I was
impressed by what I was able to read about the theory behind them which I
will give in a separate posting. They also carry the Widex aids and had one
patient (presumably wealthy) who decided to go ahead and get the ReSound
even though he had purchased the Widex only 6 months ago.

The problem is that the ReSound aids are about twice as expensive as the
Widex and other programmable aids. I could take a trip to Europe on the
difference!  Being a lover of bargains and hating to spend money, I am
having a hard time persuading myself to go with the ReSounds. I would
appreciate any opinions on this and other hearing aids and projections
about when and if I might see improvements in technology that aren't quite
so expensive.

-Rich Haller <rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu>   University of Oregon, Eugene, OR,
USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59320
From: andersom@spot.Colorado.EDU (Marc Anderson)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

In article <0fpzY=S00WBOM2Vn1u@andrew.cmu.edu> "Charles D. Nichols" <cn0p+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>>From: herzog@sierra.lbl.gov (Hanan Herzog)
>>Subject: Discussions on alt.psychoactives
>>Date: 20 Apr 1993 19:16:25 GMT
>> 
>>Could the people discussing recreational drugs such as mj, lsd, mdma, etc.,
>>take their discussions to alt.drugs? Their discussions will receive greatest
>>contribution and readership there. The people interested in strictly
>>"smart drugs" (i.e. Nootropics) should post to this group. The two groups
>>(alt.drugs & alt.psychoactives) have been used interchangably lately.
>>I do think that alt.psychoactives is a deceiving name. alt.psychoactives
>>is supposedly the "smart drug" newsgroup according to newsgroup lists on
>>the Usenet. Should we establish an alt.nootropics or alt.sdn (smart drugs &
>>nutrients)? I have noticed some posts in sci.med.nutrition regarding
>>"smart nutrients." We may lower that groups burden as well.
>
>I beg to disagree with you on this subject.  If I recall correctly,
>alt.drugs was being flodded by posts like "how do I grow MJ" "How do I
>use a bong?" "wow, man, I just had the coolest trip" etc...  There were
>quite a few people out there who were versed in pharmacology and biology
>who wanted to discuss centrally active substabces at a higher level
>without all the other crap filling the bandwidth.    I would suggest
>that you proceed to create a newsgroup dedicated to Nootropics if you
>must have one dedicated to them, and leave alt.psychoactives to the
>discussion of psychoactives (including nootropics, which are but a small
>portion of the realm of centrally active substances).

I was wondering if a group called 'sci.pharmacology' would be relevent.
This would be used for a more formal discussion about pharmacological
issues (pharmacodynamics, neuropharmacology, etc.)

Just an informal proposal (I don't know anything about the net.politics
for adding a newsgroup, etc.)

[more alt.psychoactives stuff deleted]

-marc
andersom@spot.colorado.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59321
From: rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller)
Subject: ReSound hearing aid theory as I understand it

The following is based on copies I was given of some articles published in
Hearing Instruments. I would appreciate any comments about this and other
'new' technology for hearing aids.

The ReSound system was developed on the basis of some research at AT&T and
appears to take a different approach from other aids. It appears to me that
a new 'programmable' aid like the Widex just uses a more flexible (and
programmable) version of the classical approach of amplifying some parts of
the spectrum more than others and adding some compression to try and help
out in 'noisy' situations.

The major difference in the ReSound approach is that it divides the
spectrum into low and high frequencies (splitting point is programmable),
apparently based on the fact that lots of vowel information can be found in
the low frequencies, while the important consonant information
(unfortunately for me) is in the high frequencies. The two bands then are
treated with different compression schemes which are programable. They have
also developed a new fitting algorythm that builds on what they call
'abnormal growth of loudness'.

This latter is interesting and fits my own personal experience, though I
think the phrase is missleading. What appears to be the case is that as you
exceed the minimum threshold for a person with hearing loss, the deficit
becomes progresslively less compared to normals and by the time you reach
the 'too loud' point the sensitivity curves appear to converge.  This means
that if you just boost all sound levels, you are overloading at the high
end for people with hearing losses. Hence what you want is progressively
less amplification as the signal get closer to the maximum tolerable point.
You want to boost low volume sounds more than high and do so potentially
differently for the low and high frequency parts of the spectrum (specially
for someone like me who is relatively normal up to 1000 cps and then falls
off a cliff).

Aids with simple compressors don't descriminate between energy in the low
and high frequencies and can therefor 'compress' useful high frequency
information because of high volume of low frequency components.
Particularly impressive was the ReSound performance with whispered speech
and in simulated restaurant noise situations. 

-Rich Haller <rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu>   University of Oregon, Eugene, OR,
USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59322
From: nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
>Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
>the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
>and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
>restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
>yet a standard part of medical practice.  

  Nor is it mine.  What I tried to explain to Marty was that it is clearly
understood that antibiotic exposure is a risk factor for fungal infections
- which is not the same as saying bacteria prevent fungal infections. 
Marty made this sound like a secret  known only to veternarians and
biochemists.  Anyone who has treated a urinary tract infection knowns
this. At some centers pre-op liver transplant patients receive bowel
decontamination directed at retaining "good" anaerobic flora in an attempt
to prevent fungal colonization in this soon-to-be high risk group.  I also
use lactobacillus to treat enteral nutrition associated diarrhea (that may
be in part due to alterations in gut flora).  However, it is NOT part of
my routine practice to "reinnoculate" patients with "good" bacteria after
antibiotics.  I have seen no data on this practice preventing or treating
fungal infections in at risk patients.  Whether or not it is a "logical
extension" from the available observations I'll leave to those of you who
base strong opinions and argue over such speculations in the absence of
clinical trials. 
  One place such therapy has been described is in treating particularly
recalcitrant cases of C. difficile colitis (NOT a fungal infection). There
are case reports of using stool (ie someone elses) enemas to repopulate
the patients flora.  Don't try this at home. 

>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
>colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
>than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.

  Except that it isn't. At least symptomatically apparent disease.

>Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
>has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
>kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
>done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
>intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
>from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
>breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
>Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
>increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
>restricting calcium intake.

  Seems like this is an excellent argument for ignoring anecdotal
conventional wisdom (a euphemism for no data) and doing a good clinical
trial, like: 

AU   Dismukes-W-E.  Wade-J-S.  Lee-J-Y.  Dockery-B-K.  Hain-J-D.
TI   A randomized, double-blind trial of nystatin therapy for the
     candidiasis hypersensitivity syndrome [see comments]
SO   N-Engl-J-Med.  1990 Dec 20.  323(25).  P 1717-23.
     psychological tests. RESULTS. The three active-treatment regimens
     and the all-placebo regimen
     significantly reduced both vaginal and systemic symptoms (P less than
     0.001), but nystatin did not reduce the systemic symptoms
     significantly more than placebo. [ . . . ]
     CONCLUSIONS. In women with presumed candidiasis
     hypersensitivity syndrome, nystatin does not reduce systemic or
     psychological symptoms significantly more than placebo. Consequently,
     the empirical recommendation of long-term nystatin therapy for such
     women appears to be unwarranted.

  Does this trial address every issue raised here, no.  Jon Noring was not
surprised at this negative trial since they didn't use *Sporanox* (despite
Crook's recommendation for Nystatin).  Maybe they didn't avoid those
carbohydrates . . . 

>The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
>be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
>If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
>David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>infections should decline.

  Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
          
                           I'm lost!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59323
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: PMS-Can It Be Prevented By A Diet Change?

This question came up in Sci. Med. Nutrition and I'm posting my answer 
here.  Only 22 medical schools in the U.S. teach courses on human 
nutrition.  We have already seen what a lack of nutrition education can do 
when candida and kidney stones present themselves to the medical community.
I think that the best example of where U.S. medicine is really missing the 
mark when it comes to a knowledge of nutrition is PMS.  So many women(and 
their husbands) suffer from this disorder that it is really criminal that 
most physicians in the U.S. are not taught that PMS is primarily caused by 
diet and diet changes can prevent it from ever happpening.  Before shooting 
your flames, read the entire article and then decide if flaming is 
justified.

From A Poster In Sci. Medi. Nutrition:
> 	In a psychological anthropology course I am taking, we got 
> sidetracked onto a short conversation about PMS.  Some rumors shared
> by several of the students included ideas that vitamin levels, sugar
> intake, and caffeine intake might affect PMS symptoms.
> 	Is there any data on this, or is it just so much hooey?
> 
> Many thanks,
> 
> Michael, I've wanted to reply to this post ever since I saw it but I got 
side-tracked with candida.  PMS is a lot like Candida blooms, most 
physicians don't recognize it as a specific "disease" entity.  Here is 
everything that you would ever want to know about PMS.

Premenstrual syndrome has been divided into four specific subgroups:

	PMT-A(Anxiety)		PMT-D(depression)
	anxiety			depression
	irritability		forgetfulness
	insomnia		confusion
	depression		lethargy

	PMT-C(Craving)		PMT-H(Hyperhydration)
	craving for sweets	weight gain
	increased appetite	breast congestion and tenderness
	sugar ingestion causes: abdominal bloating and tenderness
	 1. headache		edema of the face and extremities
	 2. palpitations
	 3. fatigue or fainting
 
PMT-A is characterized by elevated blood estrogen levels and low 
progesterone levels during the luteal phase of a women's cycle.

PMT-C is caused by the ingestion of large amounts of refined simple 
carbohydrates.  During the luteal phase of a women's cycle, there is 
increased glucose tolerance with a flat glucose curve after oral glucose 
challenge.  The metabolic findings believed to be responsible for PMT-C are 
a low magnesium and a low prostaglandin E1.  This condition of hypoglycemia 
is not unique to PMS but there are a number of different causes of 
hypoglycemia, magnesium and PGE1 seem to be specific to PMS hypoglycemia.
	A. Am. J. Psychiatry 147(4):477-80(1990).
Unrefined complex carbohydrate should be substituted for sugar, magnesium 
supplementation and alpha linoleic acid supplementation(increased to 5-6% of 
the total calories) using safflower oil or evening primrose oil as sources 
of alpha linoleic acid.

PMT-D is characterized by elevated progesterone levels during the midluteal 
phase of a women's cycle.  Another cause of PMT-D has been found to be lead 
toxicity(in women without elevated progesterone levels during the midluteal 
phase). "Effect of metal ions on the binding of estridol to human 
endometrial cystol" Fertil. Steril. 28:312-18(1972).

PMT-H is associated with water and salt retention along with an elevated 
serum aldosterone level.  Salt restriction, B6, magnesium and vitamin E 
for breast tenderness have all been effective in treating PMT-H

This general discussion of the PMS syndromes came form:

	A. "Management of the premenstrual tension sundromes: Rational for 
	    a nutritional approach". 1986, A Year in Nutritional Medicine. 
	    J. Bland, Ed. Keats, Publishing, 1986.

	B. "Nutritional factors in the etiology of premenstrual tension 
	    syndromes", J. Reprod. Med.28(7):446-64(1983).

	C. "Premenstrual tension", Prob. Obstet. Gynecol. 3(12):1-39(1980)

Treatment has traditionally involved progesterone administration if you can 
find a doctor who will treat you for PMS(just about as hard as finding one 
that will treat you for candida blooms).  While progesterone will work, 
supplementation with vitamins and minerals works even better.  There really 
has been an awful lot of research done on PMS(much more than candida 
blooms).  Many of these studies have been what are called experimental 
controlled studies(the type of rigorous clinical studies that doctors like to 
see done).

Here are a few of these studies:

	CARBOHYDRATE: Experimental Controlled Study, "Effect of a low-fat, 
	high-carbohydrate diet on symptoms of cyclical mastopathy" Lancet 
	2:128-32(1988).  21 pts with severe persistent cyclical mastopathy 
	of at least 5 years duration were randomly selected to receive 
	specific training to reduce dietary fat to 15% of total calories 
	and increase complex carbohydrate ingestion or given general dietary 
	advise with no training.  After 6 months, there was a significant 
	reduction in the severity of the breast swelling and tenderness in 
	the trained group as reported by self-reported symptoms as well as 
	physical exams which quantitated the degree of breast swelling, 
	tenderness and nodularity.

	VITAMIN A: Experimental Controlled Study, "The use of Vitamin A in 
	premenstrual tension" Acta Obstet. Gynecol Scand. 39:586-92(1960).  
	218 pts with severe recurring PMS received 200,000 to 300,000IU 
	vitamin A daily or a placebo.  Serum retinol levels were monitored 
	and high dose supplementation was discontinued when evidence of 
	toxicity occured(serum retinol above 450ug/ml).  The intent of the 
	study was to load the liver up with vitamin A and get a normal pool 
	size(500,000IU to 1,000,000IU) and then see if this 
	normal vitamin A pool could prevent PMS.  48% getting the high dose 
	vitamin A had complete remission of the symptoms of PMS.  Only 10% 
	getting the placebo reported getting complete relief of PMS sysmptoms.
  	10% of the vitamin A treated group reported no improvement in PMS 
	symptoms.

	Experimental Controlled Study, "Premenstrual tension treated with 
	vitamin A" J. Clinical Endocrinology 10:1579-89(1950). 30 pts 
	received 200,000IU of vitamin A daily starting on day 15 of their 
	cycle with supplementation continuing until the onset of PMS symptoms.
  	After 2-6 months, all 30 pts reported a significant improvement in 
	PMS symptoms.  Vitamin A supplementation was stopped once evidence of 
	toxicity was demonstrated and all 30 pts were followed for one year 
	after high dose vitamin A supplementation was stopped.  PMS symptoms 
	did not reoccur in any of these 30 pts for upto one year after the 
	vitamin A supplementation was stopped.

Most Americans do not have a normal store of vitamin A in their liver.  
These studies and several others were designed to see if getting a normal 
store of vitamin A into the liver could eliminate PMS.  Of all the vitamins 
given for PMS(vitamin A, B6, and vitamin E), vitamin A has shown the best 
single effect.  This is probably because vitamin A is involved in steroid 
(estrogen/progesterone) metabolism in the liver.  Getting your liver full 
of vitamin A seems to be one of the best things that you can do to prevent 
the symptoms of PMS.  But vitamin A is toxic and you don't want to be trying 
to do this without being seen by a physician who can monitor you for vitamin 
A toxicity.

	VITAMIN B6: Experimental Double-blind Crossoverr Study, "Pyridoxine
	(vitamin B6) and the premenstrual syndrome: A randomized crossover 
	trial"J.R. Coll. Gen. Pract. 39:364-68(1989).  32 women aged 18-49 
	with moderate to severe PMS randomly received 50mg B6 daily or placebo.
  	After 3 months the groups were switched and followed for another 
	3 months.  B6 had a significant effect on the emotional aspects of 
	PMS(depression, irritability and tiredness).  Other symptoms of PMS 
	were not significanttly affected by B6 supplementation.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "The efects of vitamin B6 
	supplementation on premenstrual sysmptoms" Obstet. Gynecol 
	70(2):145-49(1987).  55 pts with moderate to severe PMS received 
	150mg B6 daily or placebo for 2 months.  Analysis of convergence 
	showed that B6 significantly improved premenstrual symptoms related 
	to the autonomic nervous system(dizziness and vomiting) as well as 
	behavior changes(poor mental performance, decreased social interaction)
  	Anxiety, depression and water retention were not improved by B6 
	supplementation.

Vitamin B6 is below the RDA for both American men and women.  Birth control 
pills and over 40 different drugs increase the B6 requirement in man.  
Women on birth control pills should be supplemented with 10-15 mg of B6 per 
day.  The dose should be increased if symptoms of PMS appear.  Dr. David R. 
Rubinow who heads the biological psychiatry branch of NIMH was quoted in 
Clin. Psychiatry News, December, 1987 as stating that B6 should be 
considered the "first-line" drug for PMS(over progesterone) and if the 
patient does not respond, then other treatments should be tried.  Vitamin 
B6 can be toxic(nerve damage) if consumed in doses of 500mg or more each 
day. 


	VITAMIN E: Experimental Double-blind Study, "Efficacy of alpha-
	tocopherol in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome" J. Reprod. 
	Med. 32(6):400-04(1987). 35 pts received 400IU vitamin E daily for 3 
	cycles or a placebo.  Vitamin E treated pts had 33% who reported a 
	significant reduction in physical symptoms(weight gain and breast 
	tenderness) while the placebo group had 14% who reported a significant
 	reduction in physical symptoms. The vitamin E group reported that 38% 
	had a significant reduction in anxiety versus 12% for the placebo 
	group.  For depression, the vitamin E group had 27% with a significant
	decrease in depression compared with 8% for the placebo group.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "The effect of alpha-tocopherol on 
	premenstrual symptomalogy: A double blind study" J. Am. Coll. Nutr. 
	2(2):115-122(1983). 75pts with benign breast disease and PMT randomly 
	received vitamin E at 75IU, 150IU, or 300IU daily or placebo.  After 
	2 months of supplementation, 150IU of vitamin E or higher significantly 
	improved PMT-A and PMT-C.  The 300IU dose was needed to significantly 
	improve PMT-D.  No dose of vitamin E significantly improved PMT-H
	(other studies have shown that a higher vitamin E doses will relieve 
	PMT-H symptoms).
	
	MAGNESIUM: Experimental Double-blind Study, "Magnesium prophylaxis 
	of menstrual migraine: effects on itracellular magnesium" Headache 
	31:298-304(1991). 20 pts with perimenstrual headache received 360 mg 
	daily of magnesium as magnesium pyrrolidone carboxylic acid or a 
	placebo.  Treatment was started on the 15th day of the cycle and 
	continued until menstruation. After 2 months, the Pain Total Index 
	was significantly lower in the magnesium group.  Magnesium treatment 
	was also assocoiated with a significant reduction in the Menstrual 
	Distress Questionnaire scores.  Pretreatment magnesium levels in  
	lymphocytes and polymorphonuclear leukocytes were significantly lower 
	in this group of 20 pts compared to control women who did not suffer 
	from PMS.  After treatment, magnesium levels in these cells was raised 
	into the normal range.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Oral Magnesium successfully 
	relieves premenstrual mood changes" Obstet. Gynecol 78(2):177-81(1991). 
	32pts aged 24-39 randomly received either magnesium carboxylic acid 
	360mg of Mg per day or a placebo from the 15th day of the cycle to the 
	onset of the menstrual flow.  After 2 cycles, both groups received 
	magnesium.  The Menstrual Distress Questionnaire score of the cluster 
	pain was significantly reduced during the second cycle(month) for the 
	magnesium treatment group as well as the placebo group once they were 
	switched to magnesium supplementation.  In addition, the total score on 
	the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire was significantly decreased by 
	magnesium supplementation.  The authors suggest that magnesium 
	supplemenation should become a routine treatment for the mood changes 
	that occur during PMS.

There are numerous observational studies that have been published in the 
medical literature which also suggest that PMS is primarily a disorder 
that arises out of a hormone imbalance that is dietary in nature.  But 
since observational studies are considered by most physicians in Sci. Med. 
to be anecdotal in nature, I have not bothered to cite them.  There are 
also over a half dozen good experimental studies that have been done on 
multivitamin and mineral supplementation to prevent PMS.  I've chosen the 
best specific studies on individual vitamins and minerals to try to point out 
that PMS is primarily a nutritional disorder.  But doctors don't recognize 
nutritional disorders unless they can see clinical pathology(beri-beri, 
pellagra, scruvy, etc.).  PMS is probably the best reason why every doctor 
being trained in the U.S. should get a good course on human nutrition.  PMS 
is really only the tip if the iceberg when it comes to nutritional 
disorders.  It's time that medicine woke up and smelled the roses.

Here's some studies which show the importance in multivitamin/mineral 
supplementation and/or diet change in preventing PMS.

	Experimental Study, "Effect of a nutritional programme on 
	premenstrual syndrome: a retrospective analysis", Complement. Med. 
	Res.5(1):8-11(1991).  200pts were given dietary instructions and 
	supplemented with Optivite(R) plus additional vitamin C, vitamin E, 
	magnesium, zinc and primrose oil.  The dietary instructions were to 
	take the supplements and switch to a low fat, complex carbohydrate 
	diet.  On a retrospective analysis, 96.5% of the 200pts reported an 
	improvement in their PMS symptoms with 30% of the sample stating that 
	they no longer suffered from PMS. 


	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Role of Nutrition in managing 
	premenstrual tension syndromes", J Reprod. Med. 32(6):405-22(1987).  
	A low fat, high complex carbohydrate diet along with Optivite 
	supplementation significantly decreased PMS scores compared with diet 
	change and placebo.  After 6 months on the experimental program, the 
	vitamin/mineral supplementated group had significantly decreased 
	estradiol and increased progesterone in serum during the midlutel 
	phase of their cycle.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Clinical and biochemical effects 
	of nutritional supplementation on the premenstrual syndrome", J. 
	Reprod. Med. 32(6):435-41(1987). 119pts randomly given Optivite(12 
	tablets per day) or a placebo.  The treated groups showed a 
	significant decrease in PMS symptoms compared to the placebo.  Another
 	group of 104pts got Optivite(4 tablets per day) or placebo.  For this 
	second group of patients, no significant effect of supplementation on 
	PMS symptoms was observed.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 W. 17th St.
Tulsa, Ok 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance" 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59324
From: brown@spk.hp.com (Pat R. Brown)
Subject: Re: HELP...REFLUX ESOPHAGITIS

Please post your results, a close friend has this condition and
has asked these same questions. 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59325
From: mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>
>Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>occur?

Ohboy. Here we go again. And one wonders why the American
education system is in such abysmal shape?



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59326
From: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>:
>:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>:occur?
>
>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
>to your biology teacher.
>
>-- 
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

 what is the likely hood of conception if sperm is deposited just outside
the vagina?  ie.  __% chance.
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------

-- 
_____________________________________________________________________________
*                  J e n n i f e r      S c h e i b e r                     *
email: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu      School of Nursing - Purdue University
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59327
From: eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>with inanimate objects.

True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
"corona discharge"?



-- 
"THAT is a DRY turtle.  That turtle is NOT moist!"
Ezra Story, a student at RIT, and
eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu, his trusty(?) mailing address.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59328
From: grenus@pasture.ecn.purdue.edu (Karen M Grenus)
Subject: thermogenics

Hi,
	I'm an avid dieter and the new miracle drug seems to involve thermo-
genics. The drug is claimed to stimulate the brown fat to burn food 
creating eat as opposed to the fat being stored. There are all sorts of
warnings about fevers, elevated blood pressure and heart rate, ect..
	The silver lining is that apparently some weight loss does not 
require a change in diet. Is this possible? Are the pills dangerous or just
hoaxes?

Karen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59329
From: dsew@troi.cc.rochester.edu (David Sewell)
Subject: Theophylline/ephedrine and water bio-availability

Does anyone know if either theophylline or ephedrine, or the two in
combination, can reduce the body's ability to make use of 
available water?  I had kind of an odd experience on a group hike
recently, becoming dehyrated after about 9 hours of rigorous
hiking despite having brought 1 1/2 gallons of water (c. 6 liters).
I drank close to twice as much as anyone else, and no one else was
dehydrated.  I don't think general physical condition was an issue,
since I was in at least the middle of the pack in terms of general
stamina, so far as I could tell.

It may be that I just plain need more water than most people.  But I am
wondering if theophylline and/or ephedrine might be aggravating things.
I took a couple of Primatene tablets during the hike to control asthma
(24 mg. ephedrine, 100 mg. theophylline).  I gather that both those
drugs are diuretics.  So now I'm wondering: does that mean they can
reduce the body's ability to utilize available water?  Would it be a
particularly  stupid thing to take that medication during hot-weather
exercise?  (I always assumed diuresis just meant you urinated a lot, but
that wasn't the case yesterday.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59330
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Chelation therapy

In article <1rh3seINNfkc@newsstand.cit.cornell.edu>, Renee <rme1@cornell.edu> writes:
> Does anyone here know anything about chelation therapy using EDTA?  My
> uncle has emphesema, and a doctor wants to try it on him.  We are
> wondering if:
> 
> 1.  Is there any evidence EDTA chelation therapy is beneficial for his
> condition, or any condition?
> 
> 2.  What possible side effects are there.  How can they be mimimized?
> 
> Please respond via e-mail to    rme1@cornell.edu
> 
> Thanks,
> Renee

EDTA(chelation therapy) has been used by some physicians to try to remove 
calcium from calcified plaques in the arterial system(not approved for such 
use).  There is also the possibility that lung tissue in patients with lung 
disease has become calcified(chest x-rays would show this).  There are side
-effects to the use of EDTA because it is not specific for calcium(it also 
binds other minerals).  I think that there have been some deaths when 
EDTA chelation therapy has been used because of mineral imbalances that 
were not detected and corrected.  In animal studies, the best way to remove 
calcium from plaques in rabbits was to supplement the rabbits with vitamin C 
and magnesium(rabbits already synthesize their own vitamin C, the extra 
vitamin C was given in their diets to help the magnesium displace the calcium 
from the plaques).

The calcification process that occurs in both plaques and the lung probably 
can be prevented if magnesium is used in supplemental form.  Most patietns 
with calcium deposits are found to be deficient in calcium.

	1. "Magnesium interrationships in ischemic heart disease: A review"
	   Am J Clin Nutr 27(1):59-79(1974).  Supplementation with 
	   magnesium will prevent clacification of blood vessels. 

	2. "The importance of magnesium deficiency in cardiovascular 
	    disease" Am. Heart J 94:649-57(1977).  The need to measure the 
	    serum concentration in all patients with heat disease cannot be 
	    overemphasized.  This is a review article.

	3. "Effect of dietary magnesium on development of atherosclerosis 
	   in cholesterol-fed rabbits" Atherosclerosis 10:732-7(1990).  
	   Magnesium supplementation greatly decreased the formation of 
	   plaques in rabbits feed a diet that had 1% by weight cholesterrol 
	   added to their normal food.

Since EDTA will also bind magnesium, I've never really liked it's use for 
the reversal of athersclerosis or now apparently in emphesema patients.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59331
From: blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu (Gunnar Blix)
Subject: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
penile cancer.

Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
I will summarize to the net.

******************************************************************
* Gunnar Blix      * Good advice is one of those insults that    *
* blix@cs.uiuc.edu * ought to be forgiven.              -Unknown *
******************************************************************
--
******************************************************************
* Gunnar Blix      * Good advice is one of those insults that    *
* blix@cs.uiuc.edu * ought to be forgiven.              -Unknown *
******************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59332
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rhb58$9cf@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr26.103242.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
>>use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
>>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?
> 
> I guess I'm still not clear on what the term "candida bloom" means,
> but certainly it is well known that thrush (superficial candidal
> infections on mucous membranes) can occur after antibiotic use.
> This has nothing to do with systemic yeast syndrome, the "quack"
> diagnosis that has been being discussed.
> 
> 
>>found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
>>for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
>>women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
>>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.
> 
> Lucky how?  Since a recent article (randomized controlled trial) of
> oral yogurt on reducing vaginal candidiasis, I've mentioned to a 
> number of patients with frequent vaginal yeast infections that they
> could try eating 6 ounces of yogurt daily.  It turns out most would
> rather just use anti-fungal creams when they get yeast infections.
> 
>>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>>infections should decline.
> 
> Again, this just isn't what the systemic yeast syndrome is about, and
> has nothing to do with the quack therapies that were being discussed.
> There is some evidence that attempts to reinoculate the GI tract with
> bacteria after antibiotic therapy don't seem to be very helpful in
> reducing diarrhea, but I don't think anyone would view this as a
> quack therapy.
> -- 
> David Rind

Yogurt contains Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. bulgaricus.  L. 
acidophilus is the major bacteria in the vaginal tract and is primarily 
responsible for keeping the vaginal tract acidic and yeast free.  Most of 
the commercial yogurt sold in the U.S. has a very low L. acidophilus and L. 
bulgaricus count.  Neither of these bacteria are obligate anaerobes with are 
much more important in dealing with the diarrhea problem.  Gordon R. has told 
me through e-mail that he gives his patients L. acidophilus and several 
different obligate anaerobes(which set-up shop in the colon) but he hasn't 
told me which ones yet.  The Lactobacillus genera are mostly facultative 
anaerobes and will set-up shop where they have access to oxygen if given a 
chance(mouth, anus, sinus cavity and vagina).  Having these good bacteria 
around will greatly decrease the chance of candida blooms in the anal 
region or the vagina.  I have not proposed a systemic action for candida 
blooms.  I know that others swear that all kinds of symptoms arise from 
the evil yeast blooms in the body.  I'm not ready to buy that yet.  I do 
believe that complications at specific sites(vagina, anal and maybe lower 
colon, sinus and mouth) can result from antibiotic use which removes the 
competing bacteria from these sites and thus lets candida grow unchecked.
Restoring the right bacterial balance is the best way(in my opinion) to get 
rid of the problem.  Anti-fungals, a low carbohydrate diet and vitamin A 
supplementation may all help to minimize the local irritation until the 
good bacteria can take over control of the food supply again and lower the 
pH to basically starve the candida out.


Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59333
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rhfrkINN816@shelley.u.washington.edu>, nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld) writes:
> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
> 
>>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
>>Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
>>the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
>>and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
>>restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
>>yet a standard part of medical practice.  
> 
>   Nor is it mine.  What I tried to explain to Marty was that it is clearly
> understood that antibiotic exposure is a risk factor for fungal infections
> - which is not the same as saying bacteria prevent fungal infections. 
> Marty made this sound like a secret  known only to veternarians and
> biochemists.  Anyone who has treated a urinary tract infection knowns
> this. At some centers pre-op liver transplant patients receive bowel
> decontamination directed at retaining "good" anaerobic flora in an attempt
> to prevent fungal colonization in this soon-to-be high risk group.  I also
> use lactobacillus to treat enteral nutrition associated diarrhea (that may
> be in part due to alterations in gut flora).  However, it is NOT part of
> my routine practice to "reinnoculate" patients with "good" bacteria after
> antibiotics.  I have seen no data on this practice preventing or treating
> fungal infections in at risk patients.  Whether or not it is a "logical
> extension" from the available observations I'll leave to those of you who
> base strong opinions and argue over such speculations in the absence of
> clinical trials. 
>   One place such therapy has been described is in treating particularly
> recalcitrant cases of C. difficile colitis (NOT a fungal infection). There
> are case reports of using stool (ie someone elses) enemas to repopulate
> the patients flora.  Don't try this at home. 
> 
>>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
>>colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
>>than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.
> 
>   Except that it isn't. At least symptomatically apparent disease.
> 
>>Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
>>has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
>>kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
>>done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
>>intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
>>from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
>>breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
>>Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
>>increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
>>restricting calcium intake.
> 
>   Seems like this is an excellent argument for ignoring anecdotal
> conventional wisdom (a euphemism for no data) and doing a good clinical
> trial, like: 
> 
> AU   Dismukes-W-E.  Wade-J-S.  Lee-J-Y.  Dockery-B-K.  Hain-J-D.
> TI   A randomized, double-blind trial of nystatin therapy for the
>      candidiasis hypersensitivity syndrome [see comments]
> SO   N-Engl-J-Med.  1990 Dec 20.  323(25).  P 1717-23.
>      psychological tests. RESULTS. The three active-treatment regimens
>      and the all-placebo regimen
>      significantly reduced both vaginal and systemic symptoms (P less than
>      0.001), but nystatin did not reduce the systemic symptoms
>      significantly more than placebo. [ . . . ]
>      CONCLUSIONS. In women with presumed candidiasis
>      hypersensitivity syndrome, nystatin does not reduce systemic or
>      psychological symptoms significantly more than placebo. Consequently,
>      the empirical recommendation of long-term nystatin therapy for such
>      women appears to be unwarranted.
> 
>   Does this trial address every issue raised here, no.  Jon Noring was not
> surprised at this negative trial since they didn't use *Sporanox* (despite
> Crook's recommendation for Nystatin).  Maybe they didn't avoid those
> carbohydrates . . . 
> 
>>The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
>>be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
>>If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
>>David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
>>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>>infections should decline.
> 
>   Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
> itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
> hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
> therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
> systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
> risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
> candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
> of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
> effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
> an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
> focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
>           
>                            I'm lost!

Candida can do that to you. :-)  Gordon, I think that the best clinical 
trial for candida blooms would involve giving women with chronic vaginal 
candida blooms L. Acidophilus orally and see it it can decrease the 
frequency and extent of candida blooms in the vagina since most of the 
candida seems to be migrating in from the anal region and L. acidophilus 
should be able keep the candida in check if it can make it through the 
intestinal tract and colonize in the anus where it will have access to 
oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.


The calcium and kidney stone story is not a good reason to throw all 
conventional wisdom out the window.  Where would medicine be if 
conventional wisdom had not been used to develop many of the standard 
medical practices that could not be confirmed through clinical trials?
The clinical trial is a very new arrival on the medical scene(and a very 
important one).  The lack of proof that reinnoculation with good bacteria 
after antibiotic use is important to the health of a patient is no reason 
to dismiss it out-of-hand, especially if reinnoculation can be done cleaply 
and safely(like it is in animal husbandry).

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59334
From: FOO@MHFOO.PC.MY (Dr. Foo Meng How)
Subject: How to gain access?

To Whomever who can help me,

	I am a doctor from Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. I have recently hooked up my 
private home computer to EMail via the local telephone company. I am really interested
in corresponding with other Doctors or medical researchers through Email. I also hope
to be able to subscribe to a news network on medicine.

Can someone please tell me what I should do? I am completely new to this and have no 
idea about the vast capabilities of Email.

Thank you for your attention.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59335
From: plebrun@minf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont>, stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
|> When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
|> in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
|> sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
|> cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
|> 
|> Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
|> occur?

Sperm deposited near the entrance of the vagina has been known to cause
pregnancy, even in the presence of a hymen. I doubt that sperm could make 
it through a layer of cloth then find the right path to a waiting ovum,
but it might be possible.

So, it is possible for a woman to be both virgin and pregnant.
Also, some hymens are sufficiently loose to allow near-normal intercourse
without rupturing. The problem when investigating these phenomenae is,
of course, getting an honest account of what exactly happened.

-philippe

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59336
From: plebrun@minf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Frozen shoulder and lawn mowing

In article <1993Apr23.213823.11738@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
|> Ihave had a frozen shoulder for over a year or about a year.  It is still
|> partially frozen, and I am still in physical therapy every week.  But the
|> pain has subsided almost completely.  UNTIL last week when I mowed the
|> lawn for twenty minutes each, two days in a row.  I have a push type power
|> mower.  The pain started back up a little bit for the first time in quite
|> a while, and I used ice and medicine again.  Can anybody explain why this
|> particular activity, which does not seem to stress me very much generally,
|> should cause this shoulder problem?

You need to use your shoulder muscles to push the mower. If you haven't been
doing much exercise, as I suppose you haven't, then a constant 20 minute
long effort can cause stiffness and cramps.

-philippe

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59337
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: Occupational Injuries and Disease: Workers Memorial Day


Here is a press release from the American Federation of State, 
County and Municipal Employees.

 Unions Point To Deadly Workplaces; AFSCME, Other Unions
Commemorate Workers Memorial Day
 To: National Desk, Labor Writer
 Contact: Janet Rivera of the American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO, 202-429-1130

   WASHINGTON, April 23 -- The American Federation of State, 
County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and other unions
of the AFL-CIO on Wednesday, April 28, will commemorate the fifth
annual Workers Memorial Day -- a day to pay homage to the 6
million workers who are killed, injured, or diseased on the job.
   This year, AFSCME will focus its Workers Memorial Day efforts an
the dangerous environment in which corrections officers must work.
Earlier this month, an AFSCME corrections officer, Robert
Vallandingham, was killed by inmates who overtook the corrections
facility in Lucasville, Ohio.
   The law and order agenda of the 1980s has resulted in a steady
increase in the prison population for the past five years.  On
Jn. 1, 1992, the prison population was 709,587. Projections
show a continued increase in the number of inmates, with an
expected prison population of 811,253 in 1994.
   The conditions which this burgeoning prison population has
created for corrections officers is partially reflected in the
number of assaults by inmates against staff.  Assaults against
staff increased dramatically between 1987 and 1989, and remain
high.  In 1987, there were 808 assaults by inmates against staff,
compared to 9,961 such assaults in 1991.
   The increased number of inmates has brought on the dangerous
combination of overcrowding and understaffing.  For example in Ohio
officer-to-inmate ratio is 1 to 8.4 -- the second worst ratio in
the nation. The national average is 1 to 5.3.  Other health and
safety issues facing corrections officers include AIDS, Hepatitis
B, tuberculosis, stress, and chemical hazards.
   AFSCME has more than 50,000 members who work in the nation's
federal, state and local correctional facilities.
   Correction officers are not alone in performing their jobs under
life-threatening conditions.  Every year, 10,000 American workers
die from job-related injuries, and tens of thousands more die from
occupational disease.  Public employees do some of the nation's
most dangerous jobs. Perilous occupations include:

   -- Highway Workers - Highway workers are often injured and
      frequently killed by moving traffic because work zones are
      not barricaded or don't have proper lighting.
   -- Health Care Workers - Hospitals have the highest number of
      job-related injuries and illnesses of any private sector
      employer and nursing homes ranked fifth.  There were more
      than 325,000 job-related illnesses and injuries in private
      sector hospitals in 1991, up almost 10 percent over the
      previous year.  It is generally believed that health care
      workers employed at public sector hospitals and nursing homes
      have a significantly higher rate of injuries and illnesses
      than do their private sector counterparts.  Health and safety
      issues facing health care workers include exposure to
      tuberculosis and the HIV virus, back injuries, and high
      levels of stress.
   -- Social Workers - Social workers who work in mental health
      institutions are often the victims of assaults and,
      sometimes, fatal attacks.  For instance, last October, a man
      carrying a semiautomatic handgun walked into the Schuyler
      County Social Services Building in Watkins Glenn, N.Y.
      and fatally shot social services workers, before turning the
      gun on himself.  There are two basic problems.  First is a
      growing lack of support services for people who don't have
      the help they need.  Because workers are overworked, some
      clients are not given the adequate amount of counselling.
      Such conditions may cause clients to become more frustrated.
      The "quality" of the clients is also becoming more violent,
      as more are moved out of the institutions.

   Nearly 2 million workers have been killed by workplace hazards
since OSHA was passed.  Moreover, as AFSCME President Gerald W.
McEntee explains, OSHA does not provide workplace safety
protections for public employees.
   "More than 1,600 public employees are killed each year on the
job, yet 27 states still provide no federally-approved OSHA
coverage for public employees," said McEntee.  "This, despite the
fact that public employees -- highway workers, health care workers,
corrections officers, to name but a few -- do some of the most
dangerous work in our society.  This year we are fighting for
passage of OSHA reform legislation to give all workers greater
rights and protections, and finally guarantee all public employees
safe workplaces.  We need the public support to be successful."
   Government workers suffer 25 percent more injuries than private
sector workers, and these injuries are almost 75 percent more
severe.
   Public employees were exempted from OSHA when the law was passed
in 1970 and today, public employees in more than half the states
have no OSHA coverage.
 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59338
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld) writes:

>  Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
>itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
>hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
>therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
>systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
>risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
>candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
>of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
>effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
>an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
>focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
>          
>                           I'm lost!

Point 1:

I'm beginning to see that *part* of the disagreements about the whole
"yeast issue" is on differing perceptions and on differing meanings
of words.  Medical doctors have a very specific and specialized "jargon",
necessary for precise communication within their field (which I'm fully
cognizant of since I, too, speak "jargonese" when with my peers).  For the
situation in sci.med, many times the words or phrases used by doctors can
have a different and more specific meaning than the same word used in the
world at large, causing significant miscommunication.  One example word,
and very relevant to the yeast discussion, is the exact meaning of "systemic".
It is now obvious to me that the meaning of this word is very specific, much
more so than its meaning to a non-doctor.  There is also the observation of
this newsgroup that both doctors and non-doctors come together on essentially
equal terms, which, when combined with the jargon issue, can further fan
the flames.  This is probably the first time that practicing doctors get
really "beat up" by non-doctors for their views on medicine, which they
otherwise don't see much of in their practice except for the occasional
"difficult" patient.

Point 2:

I understand the viewpoint among many practicing doctors that they will not
prescribe any treatments/therapies for their patients unless such treatments
have been shown to be effective and the risks understood from well-constructed
clinical trials (usually double-blind), or that such treatments/therapies are
part of an approved and funded clinical trial.  To these doctors, to do any
differently would, in this belief system, be unethical practice.  And it
follows that any therapy not on the "accepted" list is therefore a non-
therapy - it does not even exist, nor does the underlying hypothesis or
theory have any validity, even if it sounds very plausible by extrapolation
of what is currently known.  Anecdotal evidence has no value, either, from
a treatment point-of-view.

And by and large, as a scientist myself, I am glad that medical practice/
science takes such a rigorous approach to medical treatment.  However, as
also being a human being (last I checked), and having been one of those people
that has been significantly helped by a currently unaccepted treatment, where
"standard" medicine was not able to help me, has caused me to sit back and
wonder if holding such an extreme and rigid "scientific" viewpoint is in
itself unethical from humanitarian considerations.  After all, the underlying
intent of the "scientific" approach to medicine is to protect the health of
the patient by providing the best possible care for the patient, so the
patient should come first when considering treatment.

What we need is a slightly modified approach to treatment that satisfies both
the "scientific" and the "humanitarian" viewpoints.  In an earlier post I
outlined a crazy idea for doing just that.  The gist of it was to give any
physician freedom and encouragement by the medical community to prescribe
alternate, not yet proven therapies (maybe supported by anecdotal evidence)
for patients who *all* avenues of accepted therapies have been exhausted
(and not until then).  The patient would be fully informed that such
therapies/treatments are not supported by the proper clinical trials and that
there are real potential risks with real possibilities of no benefit derived
from them.

This approach satisfies the need for scientific rigor.  It also satisfies
the humanitarian needs of the patient.  And the reality is that many patients
who have reached a dead-end in the treatment of their symptoms using accepted
medicine *will* go outside the orthodox medical community:  either to the
doctors who are brave enough to prescribe such treatments at the risk of losing
their license, or worse, to non-doctors who have not had the proper medical
training.  This approach also recognizes this reality and keeps the control
more within orthodox medicine, with the benefits that the information gleaned
could help focus limited resources towards future clinical trials in the most
productive way.  Everybody wins in this admittedly rose-colored approach - I'm
sure there are real problems with this approach as well - it is presented
more as a strawman to stimulate discussion.

Hopefully what I write here may give the sci.med doctors a better idea as to
why I am "open" to alternative therapies, as well as why I have real
difficulty (read "apparent hostility") with the "coldness" of the 99.9% pure
"scientific" approach to medicine.  I believe the best approach to medical
treatment is one where both the "humanitarian" aspects are balanced with and
by the "scientific" aspects.  Anything else is just not good medicine, imho.
Just my 'NF' leanings, I guess.  :^)

Comments?

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59339
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <C63zF3.7n5@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber) writes:
:In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
:>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
:>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
:>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
:>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
:>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
:>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
:>to your biology teacher.
:
: what is the likely hood of conception if sperm is deposited just outside
:the vagina?  ie.  __% chance.
: -------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hmmm.... I really don't know.  Probably quite low overall.  Why don't we
get a couple hundred willing couples together and find out ;->

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59340
From: ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu (Eli Brandt)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <MMEYER.93Apr26102056@m2.dseg.ti.com> mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer) writes:
>	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
>friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?

I think it was a typo for "Karelian photography", which is the
practice of taking pictures of either Finns or Russians, depending
on whom one asks.

   Eli   ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59341
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.172836.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>Neither of these bacteria are obligate anaerobes with are 
>much more important in dealing with the diarrhea problem.

THE diarrhea problem?  WHAT diarrhea problem?  First, candidal overgrowth is
not a frequent problem during antibiotic therapy, and not all cases of
antibiotic-related diarrhea have anything to do with candida.  But a case
of vaginal candidiasis or oral thrush after antibiotic therapy isn't going
to surprise anyone either.  That's not what people are disagreeing with.

>Anti-fungals, a low carbohydrate diet and vitamin A 
>supplementation may all help to minimize the local irritation until the 
>good bacteria can take over control of the food supply again and lower the 
>pH to basically starve the candida out.

Oh, really?  Where'd you come up with this?  You know, it's really
appalling to see you try to comment authoritatively on clinical matters
in a bizarre synthesis from reading reports in the literature.
Bobbing for citations in the research literature isn't medicine.
I hope you're not giving the wrong idea to your medical students.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59342
From: klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663))
Subject: cats and pregnancy

Hello,
I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
have a cat in the same apartment?

Thanks



-- 
Klaus Hofmann
National Institute of Materials and Chemical Research
1-1, Higashi Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305, Japan

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59343
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: A Good place for Back Surgery?

gary.schuetter (garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com) wrote:

: 	
:         Hello,

:         Just one quick question:
:         My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
:         have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
:         Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
:         the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
:         kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
:         in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
:         appreciated a whole lot!...

There is one hospital that is here in New York City that is famous for its
orthopedists, namely the Hospital for Special Surgery. They are located on
the upper east side of manhattan. If you want their address and phone let
me know, i'll get them, i dont know them off hand.

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59344
From: battin@cyclops.iucf.indiana.edu (Laurence Gene Battin)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, E.A. Story (eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu) wrote:
> In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
> >Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
> >Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
> >involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
> >subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
> >with inanimate objects.

> True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
> "corona discharge"?

No. It's called "not wiping off the apparatus after taking a picture of the
whole leaf."

Gene Battin
battin@cyclops.iucf.indiana.edu
no .sig yet


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59345
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Med school admission


hi all, Ive applied for the class of 93 at quite a number of schools (20)
and have gotten 13 rejects, 4 interviews and 3 no responses.
Any one know when the heck these people send out their acceptance letters?
According to the med school admissions book theyre supposed to send out
the number of their class in acceptances by mid March. Whats going on... I
am losing my sanity checking my mailbox every day.

Also does anyone have some useful alternatives in case i dont get in, i
kind of looked into Chiropractic and Podiatry but they really dont
interest me. Thanks.

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59346
From: mymail@integral.stavropol.su (Sidelnikov Igor Vladimirovich)
Subject: PLEASE,HELP A PATIENT!!!

% mail newsserv@kiae.su
Subject:  PLEASE, HELP!!!



                    Dear  Ladies and  Gentlemen!


      We should be grateful for any information about address and (or)
   E-mail address of Loma-Linda Hospital (approximate position: USA,
   California, near Vaimor town, 60 miles from Los-Angelos).
      A patient needs consultation in this clinics before operation.


                With respect,                  Igor V. Sidelnikov
QUIT
.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59347
From: mcg2@Lehigh.EDU (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: LymeNet Newsletter vol#1 #09

*****************************************************************************
*                  Lyme Disease Electronic Mail Network                     *
*                          LymeNet Newsletter                               *
*****************************************************************************
                      Volume 1 - Number 09 - 4/26/93

I.    Introduction
II.   Announcements
III.  News from the wires
IV.   Questions 'n' Answers
V.    Op-Ed Section
VI.   Jargon Index
VII.  How to Subscribe, Contribute and Get Back Issues

I. ***** INTRODUCTION *****

In this issue of the Newsletter, we learn of the CDC's announced concern for
the "resurgence of infectious diseases" in the United States.  Thanks to
Jonathan Lord for sending me the UPI release.  The CDC announced they would
feature a new series of articles in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly
Report on these infectious diseases (LD is one of them).  We will keep you
up to date on this series.

In addition, we feature a The Wall Street Journal article on the legal issues
surrounding LD.  We also look at Lyme's effects from the perspective of
urologists in an abstract entitled "Urinary Dysfunction in Lyme Disease."

Finally, Terry Morse asks an intriguing question about a tick's habitat.

-Marc.


II. ***** ANNOUNCEMENTS *****

SOURCE: The Lyme Disease Update
SUBJECT: Call for Articles

Attention Health Care Professionals:

The Lyme Disease Update would like to publish your articles on Lyme disease
diagnosis, Lyme treatment, and the effects on Lyme on Lyme patients' physical
and mental health.

The LDU has a monthly circulation of 6,000.  Our mailing list includes Lyme
patients, physicians, researchers, county health departments, and over 100
Lyme support groups nationwide.  We strive to give our readers up-to-date
information on Lyme disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, and a
source for support and practical advice on living with Lyme disease.

Articles for the LDU should be approximately 900 to 1200 words and should
address Lyme disease issues in non-scientific language.  To submit your
article, mail to: Lyme Disease Update
                  P.O. Box 15711-0711
                  Evansville, IN 47716
      or FAX to:  812-471-1990

One year subscriptions to the Lyme Disease Update are $19 ($24 outside the
US).  Mail your subscription requests to the above address, or call
812-471-1990 for more information.


III. ***** NEWS FROM THE WIRES ******

Sender: Jonathan Lord <jml4s@uva.pcmail.virginia.edu>
Subject: RESURGENCE OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE CONCERNS CDC
Date: Thursday April 15, 1993

ATLANTA (UPI) --   A resurgence of infectious diseases blamed on newly
emerging viruses and bacteria pose a major challenge for the nation's
health care system, federal health officials said Thursday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reporting its latest
findings in an investigation of contaminated hamburger meat that
sickened hundreds in 4 states and killed at least four, said it will
put renewed emphasis on battling infectious diseases.

Part of that emphasis includes a new series titled "Emerging
Infectious Diseases" to be featured in the CDC's Morbidity & Mortality
Weekly Report, which has a wide circulation in the health community.
The issue also will top the agenda of a two-day meeting of scientific
counselors to update the CDC's draft plan for dealing with the growing
threat of infectious ailments.

"This is an issue that has been coming and we do have a responsibility
to deal with it," said Dr. Ruth Berkelman, deputy director of the CDC's
National Center for Infectious Diseases.

There were more cases of malaria in the U.S. in 1992 than in any year
since the 1960s, and Latin America is experiencing a cholera epidemic,
the first in this century, she said.

Resistance of disease-causing agents to antibiotics is also a problem.
"We are seeing much more antibiotic resistance than we have in the past"
Berkleman said.  She said even common ear infections frequently seen in
children are becoming resistant to antibiotic treatment.

"Despite predictions earlier this century that infectious  diseases
would soon be eliminated as a public health problem, infectious diseases
remain the major cause of death worldwide and a leading cause of illness
and death in the United States," the CDC said.

It  cited  the  emergence since the 1970s of a "myriad" of newly
identified pathogens and syndromes, such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, a
deadly bacterial infection; the hepatitis C virus; HIV, the virus that
causes AIDS; Legionnaires disease; Lyme disease; and toxic shock syndrome.

"The incidences of many diseases widely presumed to be under control,
such as cholera, malaria and tuberculosis, have increased in many areas,"
the CDC said.  It said efforts at control and prevention have been
undermined by drug resistance.

=====*=====

SOURCE:  WALL STREET JOURNAL
REFERENCE: 04/15/93, pB1
HEADLINE: Lyme-Disease Ruling Raises Liability Issues

The tick that causes Lyme disease may have found a new way to cause
damage: legal liability.

A federal judge's decision holding a property owner liable for not
doing enough to protect workers from Lyme disease is getting as much
attention as the latest medical study on the disease, a flu-like
illness that can cause severe physical and mental disabilities and in
rare instances death. The decision last week has put property owners
on notice that they may have to do more than protect themselves from
the ticks-they also may have to protect themselves from litigation if
someone becomes infected while on the property.

The decision by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Ward in New York came
after a week-long trial in a case involving four track workers for the
Long Island Railroad. Judge Ward found that the workers contracted the
disease after they were bitten by ticks while on the job. He ordered
the New York state-owned commuter line to pay the workers more than
$560,000 to compensate for pain and suffering, in addition to medical
expenses and lost wages.

Summer camps, schools, companies with facilities in rural or
semirural areas, and homeowners who rent to vacationers are among the
groups that need to be worried about this ruling, says Stephen L.
Kass, an attorney at New York law firm Berle, Kass & Case, who wrote a
legal article three years ago warning property owners of the potential
liability. Even a family that invites friends over for a backyard
barbecue might be potentially liable.

Lawsuits for insect bites, while rare, aren't unheard-of. A summer
vacationer in Southampton, N.Y., last year sued the owner of the home
she rented, claiming that a tick on the property gave her Rocky
Mountain spotted fever. In 1988, also on Long Island, a jury ordered
an outdoor restaurant to pay more than $3 million to a patron who was
stung by a bee, causing an allergic reaction and permanent
quadriplegia. The judge later threw out the award, citing no evidence
that a beehive was near the restaurant.

But lawyers say that the attention to Lyme disease throughout the
country -- it's most prevalent in New England, the Middle Atlantic
states, Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Northwest -- may make this
particular insect bite a particularly litigious one.

The illness already has proved to be a source of controversy in the
courtroom over such issues as the type of medical care insurers will
cover and medical malpractice claims against doctors for not
diagnosing the disease.

Lawyers say worker's-compensation claims related to Lyme disease
have become common in some states in recent years. Payments in
worker's-compensation cases, however, are limited to medical costs and
lost earnings.

The case before Judge Ward dealt with a potentially much more
lucrative avenue for damages, because it involved the question of
negligence. Unlike the worker's compensation process, the law governing
injuries to rail workers allows for a finding of negligence and, as a
result, for additional payments for pain and suffering. Property
owners and lawyers say that negligence claims can be made in many
other situations where people are exposed to the ticks that carry the
disease.

Ira M. Maurer, a partner at New York law firm Elkind, Flynn &
Maurer, who represented the rail workers, says the decision will help
to establish "the duty of all sorts of property owners to protect
against Lyme disease."

Lawyers caution that despite Judge Ward's decision, winning a
lawsuit for damages caused by Lyme disease may prove difficult. For
one thing, victims have to demonstrate that they have pinned down when
and where they got the tick bite. Judge Ward found that the plaintiffs
in the railroad case got Lyme disease while working on property owned
by the railroad, even though none of the men remembered being bitten.
The workers, who weren't outdoorsmen likely to be exposed elsewhere to
the insects, said they saw ticks in the high grass that surrounded
some work sites.

A spokeswoman for the railroad says that there was no proof that
the four men were bitten while on the job and that the railroad is
considering an appeal. The railroad also disputes Judge Ward's finding
that it didn't do enough to protect employees. The spokeswoman says
the railroad provides track workers with insect repellent and special
pants to protect against bug bites.

Debate in the scientific community over Lyme disease could open up
some legal defenses for property owners, such as questioning whether a
victim actually has the disease rather than some other illness.
Earlier this week, the Journal of the American Medical Association
reported that doctors overly diagnose patients as having Lyme disease.
And damages awarded to a victim also might be influenced by medical
disputes over the degree of harm that Lyme disease causes.

Because of health and safety concerns, some groups and companies
already take special measures to protect against Lyme disease. Last
year, at its headquarters in Franklin Lakes, N.J., Becton, Dickinson &
Co. began using Damminix, a pesticide made by EcoHealth Inc. of Boston
that is designed to kill ticks carrying the disease. The medical-
supply company's headquarters include a 120-acre park, and the company
was worried that employees who walk on its trails for recreation might
get infected.

Ruth Lister, a spokeswoman for the American Camping Association in
Indianapolis, says that many youth camps accredited by her
organization also have begun to check children for ticks. And Carole
Katz, a member of the board of the Fire Island Pines Property Owners
Association, says her group spends $30,000 each year to treat their
100-acre site off the coast of New York with the tick-killing
pesticide.

=====*=====

TITLE: Urinary dysfunction in Lyme disease.
AUTHORS: Chancellor MB; McGinnis DE; Shenot PJ; Kiilholma P; Hirsch IH,
Department of Urology, Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson
University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
REFERENCE: J Urol 1993 Jan; 149 (1): 26-30

Lyme disease, which is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, is
associated with a variety of neurological sequelae.  We describe 7 patients
with neuro-borreliosis who also had lower urinary tract dysfunction.
Urodynamic evaluation revealed detrusor hyperreflexia in 5 patients and
detrusor areflexia in 2.  Detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia was not
noted on electromyography in any patient.  We observed that the urinary tract
may be involved in 2 respects in the course of Lyme  disease: 1) voiding
dysfunction may be part of neuro-borreliosis and 2) the spirochete may
directly invade the urinary tract.  In 1 patient bladder infection by the
Lyme spirochete was documented on biopsy.  Neurological and urological
symptoms in all patients were slow to resolve and convalescence was
protracted.  Relapses of active Lyme disease and residual neurological
deficits were common.  Urologists practicing in areas endemic for Lyme
disease need to be aware of B. burgdorferi infection in the differential
diagnosis of neurogenic bladder dysfunction.  Conservative bladder
management including clean intermittent catheterization guided by urodynamic
evaluation is recommended.


IV. ***** QUESTIONS 'N' ANSWERS *****

Note: If you have a response to this question, please forward it to the
editor.

Sender: Terry Morse <morset@ccmail.orst.edu>
Subject: Question on Lyme Vectors and Compost Piles

  When I visited my sister on Long Island, NY, I was cautioned to avoid the
compost heap in her back yard, as she thinks this is where she became
infected.

  A friend of mine here in Oregon who has a compost heap would like me to
back that claim up with documentation.  Do lyme-carrying ticks hang out in
compost heaps?
Thank you.


V. ***** OP-ED SECTION *****

This section is open to all subscribers who would like to express an opinion.


VI. ***** JARGON INDEX *****

Bb - Borrelia burgdorferi - The scientific name for the LD bacterium.
CDC - Centers for Disease Control - Federal agency in charge of tracking
      diseases and programs to prevent them.
CNS - Central Nervous System.
ELISA - Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assays - Common antibody test
EM - Erythema Migrans - The name of the "bull's eye" rash that appears in
     ~60% of the patients early in the infection.
IFA - Indirect Fluorescent Antibody - Common antibody test.
LD - Common abbreviation for Lyme Disease.
NIH - National Institutes of Health - Federal agency that conducts medical
      research and issues grants to research interests.
PCR - Polymerase Chain Reaction - A new test that detects the DNA sequence
      of the microbe in question.  Currently being tested for use in
      detecting LD, TB, and AIDS.
Spirochete - The LD bacterium.  It's given this name due to it's spiral
      shape.
Western Blot - A more precise antibody test.


VII. ***** HOW TO SUBSCRIBE, CONTRIBUTE AND GET BACK ISSUES *****

SUBSCRIPTIONS:
Anyone with an Internet address may subscribe.
Send a memo to    listserv@Lehigh.EDU
in the body, type:
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FAX subscriptions are also available.  Send a single page FAX to 215-974-6410
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BACK ISSUES:
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in the body, type:
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example:  get LymeNet-L/Newsletters 1-01    (will get vol#1, issue#01)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LymeNet - The Internet Lyme Disease Information Source
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Editor-in-Chief: Marc C. Gabriel <mcg2@Lehigh.EDU>
            FAX: 215-974-6410
Contributing Editors: Carl Brenner <brenner@lamont.ldgo.Columbia.EDU>
                      John Setel O'Donnell <jod@Equator.COM>
Advisors: Carol-Jane Stolow, Director
          William S. Stolow, President
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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59348
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

>>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?

My ENT doctor told me that it is not uncommon for the wife to get a vaginal
yeast infection after the husband takes antibiotics.  In fact this recently
happened to my wife.  Explanation is that the antibiotics kill the yeast's
competition, they then thrive and increased yeast around the penis spread
the infection during intercourse.  I was on ceclor for 30 days, then my wife
got the yeast.

Jay Keller
badboy@netcom.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59350
From: gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor)
Subject: Umbilical Hernia

Could anyone give me information on Umbilical hernias.
The patient is over weight and has a protruding hernia.

Surgery may be risky due to the obesity.
What other remedies could I try?

Thanx in advance

Dr. Gary Taylor

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59351
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

A woman once told me her doctor told her that I
could catch, asymptomatically, her yeast infection
from her, then give it back to her, causing
a relapse.

Probably bogus, but if not, it's another reason to use
latex...

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59352
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Re: Proventil Inhaler

In article <16BB6CDEB.RICK@ysub.ysu.edu> RICK@ysub.ysu.edu (Rick Marsico) 
writes:

>Does the Proventil inhaler for asthma relief fall into the steroid
>or nonsteroid category?  Looking at the product literature it's
>not clear.

Non-steroid.  Proventil is a brand of albuterol, a bronchodilator.  

Regards,

Jay Keller
(asthmatic Proventil-head)



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59353
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Med school admission

hoss@panix.com  writes:
> hi all, Ive applied for the class of 93 at quite a number of schools (20)
> and have gotten 13 rejects, 4 interviews and 3 no responses.

Three possible results after interview:
1) rejection outright
2) acceptance outright
3) the infamous 'wait list'... 

If you are on a 'wait list', your entrance into medical school
is dependent upon some other applicant withdrawing their
acceptance.  This can happen as late as day -1 of starting
classes.  

> Any one know when the heck these people send out their acceptance letters?
> According to the med school admissions book theyre supposed to send out
> the number of their class in acceptances by mid March. Whats going on... I
> am losing my sanity checking my mailbox every day.

You can always call the admissions office.  The secretaries
should have some idea of when a decision might be made on your
application.  Be calm, respectful, and friendly; secretaries
have more power than you might realize, and you never know-
could be the dean of admissions answering the phone.

> Also does anyone have some useful alternatives in case i dont get in, i

If you don't get in this year, sit down and re-evaluate
yourself: your motives, desires, and goals that are directing
you into medicine; your academic and extracurricular
accomplishments.  Make a decision about whether you *really*
want to be a medical doctor.  I had classmates who dropped out
in the first semester of med school because they found it was
not what they wanted to do; I have friends who applied four
years in a row before they were accepted.  Medicine as a
career is a choice you must make for yourself; DON'T be
pushed into it because of your parents/family/significant
other.  

If you still want to be a medical doctor, determine how you
can improve your application.  A letter of recommendation from
a professor who knows you well and can give an honest positive
recommendation is far better than one from a 'big-shot' famous
professor who only vaguely remembers your face.  Also, don't
be afraid to ask these people if they can give you an honest
and positive recommendation; give them a chance to say 'no,
sorry' instead of the medical school saying 'no, sorry'.  I
have turned down writing recommendations for some students
because I did not know them well enough to make any meaningful
comments, and some because I honestly could not recommend them
at that point.  

Rewrite your personal statement; take it by an English
professor or some other friendly person with skill and
experience in writing and proof-reading and get their
criticism, both about what you are saying as well as how you
say it.

Review your academic accomplishments.  If your grades are poor
in some area, don't be afraid to spend some time in further
coursework.  Evidence of determined committment will help
here.  If you filled your pre-medicine curriculum with gut
courses, it usually shows.

Look at your extracurricular involvements.  Participating in
local philanthropic or service organizations is a plus;
substantial leadership roles in an organization help also.
Beware of 'resume padding'; such things are not difficult to
spot and weed out.

Overall, a clear conception of where you wish to head and why
you want to get there, combined with an honest self-appraisal
of skills and aptitude, will be the best path to take in
applying to any program, medical or what-have-you.

Good luck with the process -- as Tom Petty says, 'the waiting
is the hardest part', at least emotionally. :)

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59354
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

My ENT doctor recommended surgery to fix my sinuses.  I have a very deviated
nasal septum (probably the result at least partially from several fractures).
One side has approximately 10-15% of normal flow.  Of course I have known this
for years but recently discovered that I suffer from chronic sinus infection,
discovered during an MRI after a severe migraine.  A CT scan subsequently 
confirmed the problems in the sinuses.

He wants to do endoscopic sinus surgery on the ethmoid, maxillary, frontal,
and sphenoid, along with nasal septoplasty.

He explained the procedure, and the risks.  What I would like to know is if
there is anyone out there who can tell me "I had this surgery, and it helped
me"?

(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
really help them).

I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.

I am 42.

Any relevant information is appreciated.

Regards,

Jay Keller
Sunnyvale, California
badboy@netcom.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59355
From: jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price)
Subject: Iridology - Any credence to it???


I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
"licensed herbologist and iridologist"
What are your opinions?
How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their eyes?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59356
From: chcho@vnet.IBM.COM ( Chul-hee Cho )
Subject: ProHibit for Spiral Meningitis

I like to know how effective ProHibit is to prevent spiral meningitis
for a child who is five years old.  I heard it's from Canada.
What sort of side effects , etc.

Chul-hee Cho

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59357
From: Stephen Dubin <sdubin@igc.apc.org>
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?


I think you must have the same hygiene teacher I had in 1955.  There 
is a story about the Civil War about a soldier who was shot in the
groin.  The bullet, after passing through one of his testes, then entered
the abdomen of a young woman standing nearby.  Later,  when she (a young
woman of unimpeachible virtue) was shown to be pregnant; the soldier did
the honorable thing of marrying her.  According to this story, they lived
happily ever after.  
Perhaps the most famous of Mr. Rau's classes was the time he would come
into class brandishing an aluminum turning mandrel  (tapering from about
3/8" to 1/2" over a 10 inch length).  He would say, "Boys, do you know
what this is?  It's a medical instrument called a 'cock reamer' and it's
used to unclog your penis when you have VD.  They just ram it up there
without an anesthetic!"  Needless to say this had a chilling effect.
I didn't have lascivious thoughts for at least an hour.  Later in life
as I perused medical instrument catelogs and saw the slender flexible
urethral sounds that are actually used, I could not escape thinking
that I might one day see, "Reamer, Cock (style of Rau) ."        
]


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59358
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

Speaking of educational systems, I recently had a colleague
tell me that the reason one of our fifth grade students is so
physically developed is because she was sexually abused as a younger
child. This, she went on to say, kicks the pituitary gland into
action and causes puberty.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59359
From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

I wrote:
KW> If you don't like additives, then for godsake, 
KW> get off the net and learn to cook from scratch.  Sheesh.

Mary Allison exclaims:
MA> EXCUSE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
MA> Why can't people learn to cook from scratch *ON* the net. 
MA> I've gotten LOTS of recipes off the net that don't use additives.

Because one simply _can't_ cook on the net, nor can one cook while ON the
net.  Cooking is best done IN a kitchen, ON a stove.  (Gotcha! *grin*)

(I said this out of general frustration at people (not anyone in particular)
 who seem to expect packaged food to conform to their tastes.  In other
 words, if packaged foods are not to your liking, prepare foods that are.)

MA> If you LIKE additives then get off the net and go to your local
MA> supermarket, buy lots of packaged foods, and YOU get OFF THE NET!!

I don't have strong feelings about additives, as long as I can't taste 'em.

(As for the rest of your reply to me, I am sorry it it seemed as if i was 
 picking on you.  I wasn't trying to do so.  Please accept my apologies.)

~ Kiran 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59360
From: chungy2@rebecca.its.rpi.edu (Yau Felix Chung)
Subject: Nasopharinx Carcenoma...


Hi.  Does anyone know the possible causes of nasoparynx carcenoma
and what are the chances of it being hereditary?

Also, in the advacned cases, what is the general procedure to 
reduce the pain the area as it prevents the patient from eating
due to the excessive pain of swallowing and even talking?

Thanks.

-F.
.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59361
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy

In article <1993Apr27.043035.22609@etl.go.jp> klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663)) writes:
:Hello,
:I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
:can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
:have a cat in the same apartment?
:

Having the cat around is not a problem, but the pregnant woman should not
change the litter box.  Toxoplasmosis can be transmitted from the stool of
some cats.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59362
From: tegarr01@ulkyvx.louisville.edu
Subject: Herpes question?

I am looking for some clarification on a subject that I am trying to find some
information on.

How is HSV-2 (Herpes) transmitted?  I currently know that it can be transmitted
during inflammation but, what I am looking for is if it can be transmitted 
during in other periods.  Also, I want to know if you can be accurately tested 
for it while you are not showing symtoms?

If you can help I would greatly appreciate it.

Teg

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59363
From: lim@graphics.rent.com (Julie Lim)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang) writes:

> MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
> restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
> go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
> a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
> of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
> time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)

        Heck, I seem to feel like that *every* time I eat out. Including 
in the cafeteria at work. About half the time, the headache intensifies 
until nothing will make it go away except throwing up. Ick.

        As you might imagine, I don't eat out a lot. I guess my tolerance 
for food additives has plummeted since I switched to eating mostly 
steamed veggies. They're easy to fix, that's all.

        I won't even mention what happened the last time I ate corned 
beef. (Oops. Too late.)


 The Graphics BBS  908/469-0049  "It's better than a sharp stick in the eye!" 
 ============================================================================
 Internet: lim@graphics.rent.com (Julie Lim)
     UUCP: rutgers!bobsbox!graphics!lim

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59364
From: andrea@unity.ncsu.edu (Andrea M Free-Kwiatkowski)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

Steve Pope (spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu) wrote:
: A woman once told me her doctor told her that I
: could catch, asymptomatically, her yeast infection
: from her, then give it back to her, causing
: a relapse.

: Probably bogus, but if not, it's another reason to use
: latex...

: Steve

It isn't bogus.  I had chronic vaginal yeast infections that would go away
with cream but reappear in about 2 weeks.  I had been on 3 rounds of
antibiotics for a resistant sinus infection and my husband had been on
amoxicillin also for a sinus infection.  After six months of this, I went
to a gynecologist who had me culture my husband seminal fluid.  After 7
days incubation he had quite a bit of yeast growth (it was confirmed by
the lab).  A round of Nizerol for him cleared both of us.

Andrea Kwiatkowski


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59365
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:

>Speaking of educational systems, I recently had a colleague
>tell me that the reason one of our fifth grade students is so
>physically developed is because she was sexually abused as a younger
>child. This, she went on to say, kicks the pituitary gland into
>action and causes puberty.


Nonsense! I've taught fifth, sixth, seventh . There are a few early puberty 
types in fifth and it has nothing to do with early sexual experience. 

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59366
From: russ@pmafire.inel.gov (Russ Brown)
Subject: Re: Nasopharinx Carcenoma...

In article <+y55z0d@rpi.edu> chungy2@rebecca.its.rpi.edu (Yau Felix Chung) writes:
>
>Hi.  Does anyone know the possible causes of nasoparynx carcenoma
>and what are the chances of it being hereditary?

Nasopharyngeal cancer is (roughly, don't have references at hand) 20-30
times more prevalent in Chinese than Caucasians, particularly those Chinese
from southern China.  One province (or region) has an extraordinary excess. 
The Chinese and others have done major studies.  Some association with
the Epstein-Barr virus has been noted.
>
>Also, in the advacned cases, what is the general procedure to 
>reduce the pain the area as it prevents the patient from eating
>due to the excessive pain of swallowing and even talking?
>
Palliative radiotherapy is used.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59367
From: sutton@vxcrna.cern.ch (SUTTON,BERN./SL)
Subject: Hip replacement


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59368
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

-*----
In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu (Gunnar Blix) writes:
> I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
> cons of circumcision (at birth). ...

I pity those who hope that medical knowledge can resolve issues
such as this.  This issue has been rehashed in sci.med time and
time again.  The bottom line is this: in normal circumstances,
both the medical advantages of and the medical risks of
circumcision are minor.  This means that the decision is left to
the religious, cultural, ethical, and aesthetic mores of the
parents, at best, or to the habit of the concerned hospital or
caregivers, at worst. 

As (prospective) parents, you should do what you want in this
regard and not worry about it too much.  In terms of decisions
you make for your child, it will have far less importance than
many -- such as which schools you choose -- that most parents
think about only a little. 

This question will undoubtedly push the buttons of people who
feel that the decision to circumcise your infant or not is a
momentous medical decision.  It is not.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59369
From: tuser@azbuka.kharkov.ua ()
Subject: WE CAN SUPPLY YOU WITH THE TRANSPLANTANTS & OTHER


    The Private Scietific & industrial firm "Intercom 2000" can
supply You with the transplantants that could be delivered according
to Your order.

    Selection and preparation of the materials is carried out by the
qualified personnel having 20-year experience in this sphere.

    We provide:

 - Immunological selection of tissues ( on the special request);

 - AIDS, Syphilis & other infection diseases tests;

 - bio-chemical tests.

    We guarantee deliverance of our products within temperature
habital providing their prime condition.

                O.Yarosha st. 39
                apart. 49
                Kharkov, Ukraine.

                tel. +7 (057)-2-323177
                fax  +7 (057)-2-431651, 231192
                e-mail: tuser%azbuka.kharkov.ua@relay.ussr.eu.net


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59370
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> Janice Price, jprice@dpw.com
writes:
>How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their
eyes?

By looking at the iris (iridology) - virtually nothing.

Looking at the retina allows one to visualise the small blood
vessels and is helpful in assessing various systemic diseases,
hypertension and diabetes for example.

Don Mackie - his opinion
UM will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59371
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: thermogenics

First off, if I'm not mistaken, only hibernating animals have brown fat,
not humans.

Secondly, your description sounds just like 2,4-dinitrophenol.  This is an
uncoupler of respiratory chain oxidative phosphorylation.  Put in layman's
terms, it short-circuits the mitochondria, causing food energy to be
turned into heat.

2,4-DNP was popular in the 1930's for weight reduction.  In controlled
amounts, it raises body temperature as the body compensates for the
reduced amount of useful energy available.  It is very dangerous.
It would be wiser to adjust to your present body form, rather than
play around with 2,4-DNP.

But if you insist, I suggest you look up the literature in your own
university library.  You can obtain 2,4-DNP by taking a first year
organic chemistry lab course and swiping it from the supplies (it's
a commonly-used reagent).

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59372
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: hypodermic needle

Scientific American had a nice short article on the history of the
hypodermic about 10 or 15 years ago.  Prior to liquid injectables,
there were paddle-like needles used to implant a tiny pill under the
skin.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59373
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.174538.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
>lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
>amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.

I've mentioned this study a couple of times now: Ingestion of yogurt
containing Lactobacillus acidophilus as prophylaxis for candidal
vaginitis, Annals of Internal Medicine, 3/1/92 116(5):353-7.  Do you
have a problem with the study because they used yogurt rather than
capsules of lactobacillus (even though it had positive results)?

The study was a crossover trial of daily ingestion of 8 ounces of
yogurt.  There was a marked decrease in infections while women were
ingesting the yogurt.  Problems with the study included very small
numbers (33 patients enrolled) and many protocol violations (only
21 patients were analyzed).  Still, the difference in rates of infection
between the two groups was so large that the study remains fairly
believable.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59374
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

My (then) wife used to get recurrent yeast infections. One day, her
doctor sent her home with medication for her and a pill for me. I took
the pill, upon her insistence, and was very relieved the next day when I
looked it up in the PDR. It only RARELY causes testicular atrophy...

Anyway, men apparently do get yeast infections.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59375
From: wiesel-elisha@cs.yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel)
Subject: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  In
particular, Dr. Bernard Jenssen in his book "Colon Cleansing for
Health and Longevity" -- the title actually escapes me, but it is very
similar to that -- claims that regular self-administered colonics,
along with certain orally ingested "debris-loosening agents", boosts
the immune system to a significant degree.

He also plugs a unique appliance called the "Colema Board", which
facilitates the self-administration of colonics.  It sells for over
$100 from a California-based company.  He also plugs Vitra-Tox
products as his chemical agents of choice: these include volcanic ash,
supposedly for its electrical charge, and psyllium powder, for its
bulkiness.

If anyone knows anything about colon cleansing theory, its
particulars, or the Colema Board and related products, I'd be very
interested to hear about research and personal experience.

This article is crossposted to alt.magick as the issue touches upon
fasting and cleansing through a "ritual" system of purification.

-- Eli

-- 
/-------------------------------------------------------------------------\
![wiesel@cs.yale.edu] Elisha Wiesel, Davenport College '94 Yale University!    
![wiesel@minerva.cis.yale.edu] (203) 436-1338<-School (212) 371-2756<-Home!
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59376
From: wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel)
Subject: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  In
particular, Dr. Bernard Jenssen in his book "Colon Cleansing for
Health and Longevity" -- the title actually escapes me, but it is very
similar to that -- claims that regular self-administered colonics,
along with certain orally ingested "debris-loosening agents", boosts
the immune system to a significant degree.

He also plugs a unique appliance called the "Colema Board", which
facilitates the self-administration of colonics.  It sells for over
$100 from a California-based company.  He also plugs Vitra-Tox
products as his chemical agents of choice: these include volcanic ash,
supposedly for its electrical charge, and psyllium powder, for its
bulkiness.

If anyone knows anything about colon cleansing theory, its
particulars, or the Colema Board and related products, I'd be very
interested to hear about research and personal experience.

This article is crossposted to alt.magick as the issue touches upon
fasting and cleansing through a "ritual" system of purification.

-- Eli

-- 
/-------------------------------------------------------------------------\
![wiesel@cs.yale.edu] Elisha Wiesel, Davenport College '94 Yale University!    
![wiesel@minerva.cis.yale.edu] (203) 436-1338<-School (212) 371-2756<-Home!
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59377
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy

In article <1993Apr27.043035.22609@etl.go.jp>, klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663)) writes...
>I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
>can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
>have a cat in the same apartment?

The disease you are talking about is toxoplasmosis.  It is a protozoan that 
lives and multiplies within cells.  In cats, the protozoan multiplies in the
intestinal cells and eggs are shed in the cat's feces.  The protozoa can
cross the placenta to infect the fetus.  The disease may be asymptomatic
after the baby is born, or it may be very severe.  Toxo may cause blindness
and mental retardation.

Having a cat in the same apartment should not be a problem; however, pregnant
women should not scoop or change the cat's litterbox.  In addition, whoever
does empty the litterbox should thoroughly wash his/her hands before handling
anything else, especially food.

Information came from _The Merck Manual, 15th Ed._

I hope this information is helpful to you.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59378
From: daniel@siemens.com. (Daniel L. Theivanayagam)
Subject: USMLE (formerly National Boards) Part 1- Request to Medical Students

This request goes out to medical students who have done
or are planning to sit the USMLE (or National Boards) Part 1.

My wife is sitting this examination in early June this year and would
like to have a look at some old National Boards, Part 1 questions
found in the following books. These books are currently out of print.
 

The books are:

(1) Retired NBME Basic Medical Science Test Items, NBME;
    Published by NBME in 1991

(2) Self-test in the Part 1 Basic Medical Sciences, NBME;
    Published by NBME in 1989

I would appreciate if anyone who has these books is willing
to loan it to her for a couple of days. Obviously, I would
reimburse for you all postage and related charges. Failing
that it would be beneficial if anyone could point to any
library in the NY, NJ or PA area that may have these books.

Please respond by e-mail since I do not read this newsgroup
regularly.

Thanks in advance.


Daniel


e-mail: daniel@learning.siemens.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59379
From: giamomj@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu (Mike G.)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> Gunnar Blix, blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu
writes:
>I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
>cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
>references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
>that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
>writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
>are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
>penile cancer.
>
>Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
>I will summarize to the net.

I'm very surprised that medical schools still push routine circumcision
of newborn males on the population. Since your friend is not a man, she
can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
appearance...

The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
unnecessary.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59380
From: sjg@maths.warwick.ac.uk (Susannah Gort)
Subject: Allergies and stuff (Was: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?)

 
> UNLESS I plan on getting sick - I won't eat the stuff without my
> Seldane.  And did I ever learn to read labels.

> - it might not please a medical researcher - but it pleased my own
> personal physician enough for him to give me allergy medicine 
 
-Allergy medicine, huh?  Is this just to get rid of the resultant migraine or
whatever, or does it actually suppress allergic reactions? (i.e. like an
antihistamine does?)  As far as doctors over here are concerned, if you slip up
and eat something you're allergic to (even if they won't test you to tell you
what to avoid) then tough; if a _cheap_ medicine will alleviate your symptoms,
then fine, otherwise you just suffer.  One doctor did prescribe me imigran (costs
the NHS #48 for 6 tablets) after having to rehydrate me because I'd been throwing
up for four solid days and couldn't even drink water - but I got taken off it
again when I moved and had to change doctors.  Reasoning: they did not know what
the side-effects were because it was new.  OK, fine - but it has passed the
safety tests to get on the prescription list, and anyway I was prepared to take
the risk to have quality of life now.  The only alternatives I have is to get it
prescribed privately, which I cannot afford, or to pay a private allergy
specialist to test me and tell me what to avoid.  I am fairly certain I am
allergic to more than one chemical additive, as a lot of things I can't eat have
nothing in common except things I know are safe, so testing myself isn't really
an option; there are too many permutations.

> I'm not saying I NEVER consume ANYTHING with MSG.  I've noticed that I
> have a certain tolerance level - like a (small) bag of bbq chips once
> a month or so it not a problem - but that same bag of chips will
> bother me if I also had chicken bouillon yesterday and lunch at one of
> the Chinese restaurants the day before.  

Yes, I've noticed that - and I can work it up by eating just under the tolerance
level fairly regularly.  If I don't eat anything except home cooking for a month
or so I lose it and have to work it up from scratch... a bad experience.  Now I
know what the early-warning symptoms are, though, I can usually tell whether I am
allergic to food before I've eaten too much of it... usually...


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59381
From: kryan@stein.u.washington.edu (Kerry Ryan)
Subject: looking for info on kemotherapy(sp?)


Hello, a friend is under going kemotherapy(sp?) for breast cancer. I'm
trying to learn what I can about it. Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59382
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
=In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
=>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
=>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
=>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
=>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
=>with inanimate objects.
=
=True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
="corona discharge"?

Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59383
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <etxmow.735561695@garboc29> etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg) writes:

>   Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
>   a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
>   into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
>   I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
>   painless and effective treatment.
>   A couple of weeks ago I visited a hospital here in Stockholm and
>   saw big signs showing the way to the "Kidney stone chrusher" ...

I saw this a few years ago on "Tomorrow's World" (low-brow BBC
technology news program).  The patient is lowered into a bath of
de-ionized water and carefully positioned.  High intensity pressure
waves are generated by an electric spark in the water (you don't get
electrocuted because de-ionised water does not conduct).  These waves are
focused on the kidneys by a parabolic reflector and cause the stone to
break up.  This is completely painless.

Of course, you then have to get these little bits of gravel through
the urethra.  Ouch!

Paul.

-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59384
From: hd0022@albnyvms.bitnet (Chip Dunham)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

In article <westesC60xqF.59r@netcom.com>, westes@netcom.com (Will Estes) writes:
>Does anyone know of research done on the use of haldol in the elderly?  Does 
>short-term use of the drug ever produce long-term side-effects after
>the use of the drug?  My grandmother recently had to be hospitalized
>and was given large doses of haldol for several weeks.  Although the
>drug has been terminated, she has changed from a perky, slightly
>senile woman into a virtual vegetable who does not talk to anyone
>and who cannot even eat or brush her teeth without assistance.  It
>seems incredible to me that such changes could take place in the
>course of just one and one-half months.  I have to believe that the
>combination of the hospital stay and some drug(s) are in part
>catalysts for this.  Any comments?
>
>-- 
>Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Haldol, one of the wonder drugs that works wonders.  If you're a carrot that
is.
***************************************************************************
Henry Dunham (Chip) EMT-D, NREMT
Coordinator of EMS Operations
Houston Field House EMS
HD0022@albnyvms.bitnet
***************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59385
From: westes@netcom.com (Will Estes)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

Lawrence Curcio (lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu) wrote:
: I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
: demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
: definitely involved. 

: My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
: hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
: medications. The family protested, but the doctors were adamant, telling
: us that none of the drugs interact. They even took the attitude that, if
: he was disoriented, they should put him on something else as well! With
: the help of an MD friend of the family, we had all his medication
: discontinued. He had a seizure that night, and was put back on one drug.
: Two days later, he was his old self again. I guess there aren't many
: medical texts that address the subject of 21-way interactions.

I saw the same thing happen to my father, and I can more or less validate your
take on hospitals.  It seems to me that medical science understands precious
little about taking care of the human machine.  Drugs are given as a
response to symptoms (and I guess that makes sense since all the studies that 
validate the effectiveness of those drugs are based on a narrow
assessment of the degree of particular symptoms).  But there seems
to be very little appreciation for the well-being of a person
outside of the numbers that appear on a test.  I watched my dad
wither away and lose huge amounts of body fat and muscles tissue
while in the hospital.  There is something a little crazy about a
system in which there is more attention paid to giving you every
latest drug available than there is attention paid to whether you
have had enough to eat to prevent loss of muscle tissue.  It is
really, really bizarre.    

-- 
Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59386
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?

I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
else is going on?



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59387
From: alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

FLAME ON

Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
measure" attitude of many people out there.

I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
drop off the edge of the earth.

FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)

-- Alex

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59388
From: pyan@ehd.hwc.ca (Ping Yan)
Subject: What is the medical term for this sensation?

Dear Netters:

Maybe one of you can explain this.  From time to time I experience 
a strange kind of feeling (I have all kinds of weird feelings) which 
can be best described as the feeling of "losing gravity", like that one 
experiences in a descending elevator.  Needless to say, it is not 
enjoyable.  It sometimes comes with shortness of breath and extreme 
fatigue.  It lasts from a few minutes to an hour and when it lasts 
that long, it makes me sweatening.

Initially I called it "palpitation (spelling?)" until I later learnt that 
the terminology has been reserved for the self-awareness of heart beats.

So, is there a specific term for this feeling, or am I a stragne person?
I always believe I am unique. 

Thanks.

Ping





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59389
From: groleau@e7sa.crd.ge.com (Wes Groleau X7574)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

Re: serious discussion about drugs vs. "Where can I get a good bong, man?"

Why not have the group moderated?  That would eliminate some of the idiots.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59390
Subject: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?
From: eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg)

Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
man's vasectomy on his female partner?

I've seen plenty of study results about vasectomy's effects on men's health,
but what about women? 

For example, might the wife of a vasectomized man become more at risk for,
say, cervical cancer?  Adverse effects from sperm antibodies?  Changes in the
vagina's pH?  Yeast or bacterial infections?

Outside of study results, how about informed speculation?

Thanks in advance for your help!
--
Eric Skagerberg        <eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu>
Santa Rosa, California        Telephone (707) 573-1460

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59391
From: lipofsky@zach.fit.edu (Judy Lipofsky (ACS))
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@mitre.org(The Pancake Emporium) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
>|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>|> 
>|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
>|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>|> >appreciated.
>|> 
>|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
>|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
>|> 
>|> Bill from oz
>|> 
>
>
>Bill,
>No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
>photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
>it takes pictures of your aura.
>|> 
>
>-- 
>Greg 
>
>--  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --

Dear Bill,
I think you forgot the smileys.  SOME of us got the joke!



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59392
From: jhsu@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Jeffrey H. Hsu)
Subject: Re: Med school admission


I'm a fellow applicant and my situation is not too much better.  I applied
to about 20 schools, got two interviews, got one offer, and am waiting to
hear from the other school.

Let me be honest about my experiences and impressions about the medical
school admissions process.  Numbers (GPA, MCATs) are not everything, 
but they are probably more important than anything else.  In fact, some
schools screen out applicants based on these numbers and never even look
at your other qualities.  Of course, when this happens, don't expect a refund
on your $50 application fee.

But, the fact that you got four interviews tells me that you have the numbers
and are very well qualified academically.  You mentioned one response, was it
an acceptance, denial, or wait-list?  If I assume the worst, that it was a
denial, then you still have a great probability of acceptance somewhere.  How
did your interviews go?

As for how long you have to wait, I've called a few schools who never contacted
me for anything.  Many of them told me that the interview season for them was
over and that if I haven't heard by now, I can assume a denial.  Many rejection
letters are not sent out until May or as late as June.  But some schools are
still interviewing. I really don't think you should worry.  Don't become
fixated on the mailbox, go out, have fun, be very proud of yourself.

What do people think of the medical school admissions process?  I had a very
mediocre GPA, but high MCAT scores, and I have been working as a software
engineer for two years.  I majored in Computer Science at Stanford.  Still,
I think the profile of the person who has the best chance of getting admitted
is something like this:

VERY IMPORTANT
--------------
GPA:	3.5 or better
MCAT:   top 15% in all subject

MEDIUM IMPORTANCE
-----------------
Writing/Speaking ability
Maturity
Motivation for going into medicine
Activities

LESS IMPORTANT
--------------
College or University
Major
Work experience
Anything else you want them to know


Anyway, you are in good shape.  I think admissions committees are bound in
many ways by the numbers, but would like very much to understand each
person as an individual.  Sometimes thats just not practical.  But getting 
four interviews is an indicator that you have the numbers.  Hopefully, you
were able to impress them with your character.


Good luck,
Jeff


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59393
From: fzjaffe@hamlet.ucdavis.edu (Rory Jaffe)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg) writes:
: 
:    Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
:    a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
:    into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
:    I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
:    painless and effective treatment.
The use of shock waves (not ultrasound) to break up stones has been
around for a few years.  Depending on the type of machine, and intensity
of the shock waves, it is usually uncomfortable enough to require
something...  The high-power machines cause enough pain to require
general or regional anesthesia.  Afterwards, it feels like someone
slugged you pretty good!


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59394
From: alan@lancaster.nsc.com (The Hepburn)
Subject: Re: Resound Hearing aids (and others)

In article <rhaller-260493122521@rhaller.cc.uoregon.edu>, rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller) writes:
|> I have a fairly severe high frequency hearing loss. A recent rough test
|> showed a gently sloping loss to 10-20db down at 1000cps. Then it falls off
|> a cliff to 70-80dbs down from 1500cps on.  This type of loss is difficult
|> to fit. I am currently using some old siemens behind the ear aids which
|> keep me roughly functional, but leave a lot to be desired.
|> 
|> Recently I had an opportunity to test the Widex Q8 behind the ear aids for
|> several weeks. These have four independent programs which are intended to
|> be customized for different hearing situations and can be reprogramed. I
|> found them to be a definite improvement over my current aids and was about
|> to go ahead with them until another local outfit advertised a free trial of
|> another programmable system called ReSound.
|> 
|> Unfortunately I was only able to try the ReSound aids in their office for
|> about 30 minutes and I couldn't compare them 'head to head' with the Widex.
|> Nevertheless, it did appear to me that they were superior and I was
|> impressed by what I was able to read about the theory behind them which I
|> will give in a separate posting. They also carry the Widex aids and had one
|> patient (presumably wealthy) who decided to go ahead and get the ReSound
|> even though he had purchased the Widex only 6 months ago.
|> 
|> The problem is that the ReSound aids are about twice as expensive as the
|> Widex and other programmable aids. I could take a trip to Europe on the
|> difference!  Being a lover of bargains and hating to spend money, I am
|> having a hard time persuading myself to go with the ReSounds. I would
|> appreciate any opinions on this and other hearing aids and projections
|> about when and if I might see improvements in technology that aren't quite
|> so expensive.
|> 
|> 

Your hearing curve sounds a lot like mine (thanks, Uncle Sam!).  I've been
wearing Miracle Ear canal aids for about 5 months now and I find them to be
acceptable.  They are molded to the shape of your ear canal, and tuned to 
your hearing curve.  They are comfortable to wear and almost invisible, if
you're worried about that (although if you're currently wearing behind the
ear models, that's not an issue).  The cost:  I paid $1200 each for mine,
through the Miracle Ear counter at Sears.  I've heard that there is a
substantial discount for senior citizens, but I haven't researched that, because
I'm not a senior citizen, yet!

Give them a try; you might be pleasantly surprised!


-- 
Alan Hepburn           "A man doesn't know what he knows
National Semiconductor       until he knows what he doesn't know."
Santa Clara, Ca              
alan@berlioz.nsc.com                              Thomas Carlyle

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59395
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rjifg$bgm@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr26.174538.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
>>lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
>>amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.
> 
> I've mentioned this study a couple of times now: Ingestion of yogurt
> containing Lactobacillus acidophilus as prophylaxis for candidal
> vaginitis, Annals of Internal Medicine, 3/1/92 116(5):353-7.  Do you
> have a problem with the study because they used yogurt rather than
> capsules of lactobacillus (even though it had positive results)?
> 
> The study was a crossover trial of daily ingestion of 8 ounces of
> yogurt.  There was a marked decrease in infections while women were
> ingesting the yogurt.  Problems with the study included very small
> numbers (33 patients enrolled) and many protocol violations (only
> 21 patients were analyzed).  Still, the difference in rates of infection
> between the two groups was so large that the study remains fairly
> believable.
> -- 
> David Rind

David, this study looks like a good one.  Gordon Rubenfeld did a Medline 
search and also sent me the same reference through e-mail.  Since 
commercial yogurt does not always have a good Lactobacillus a. or 
bulgaricus culture, a negative finding would not have been too informative.
This is often the reason why Lactobacillus acidophilus tablets are 
recommended rather than yogurt.

I guess the next question is why would this introduction of "good" bacteria 
back into the gut decrease the incidence of vaginal candida blooms if the 
anus was not serving as a candida reservoir(a fact that Gordon R. vehementy
denys)?  I see two possible theories.  One, the L. acidophilus, which is a 
facultatively anaerobic bacterium, could make it through the gut and 
colonize the rectal area to overgrow the candida.  This would not explain 
the reoccurance of candida blooms in the vagina after the yogurt ingestion 
was stopped though.  The other is that the additional bacteria in the 
intestinal tract remove most of the glucose from the feces and candida 
looses it's major food source.

Getting Lactobacillus acidophilus to colonize the vaginal tract(where it is 
normally found) would have a much better effect on the recurrance of vaginal 
yeast blooms though.  An acetic acid, Lactobacillus acidophilus douche has 
been used to get this effect but I've not seen any such treatment reported in 
the medical literature.  This would be an example of physicians conducting 
their own clinical trials to try to come up with treatments that help their 
patients.  When this is done in private practice, the results are rarely, if 
ever published.  It was the hallmark of medicine until the modern age 
emerged with clinical trials.  It really raises a big question.  Does the 
medical profession cast out the adventerous few who try new treatments to 
help patients or does it look the other way.

This particular issue is really a very simple one since no real dangerous 
therapy is involved(even the anti-fungals are not all that dangerous).  But 
there are some areas(like EDTA chelation therapy), where the fire is pretty 
hot and somebody could get burned.  It's really tough.  Do I follow only 
well established protocols and then give up if they don't work that well or 
do it try something that looks like it will work but hasn't been proven to 
work yet?

My stand is to consider other treatment possibilities, especially if they 
involve little or no risk to the patient.  Getting good bacteria back into 
the gut after antibiotic treatment is one treatment possibility.  The other 
is getting L. acidophilus into the vaginal tract of a woman who is having a 
problem with recurring yeast infections.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59396
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <1rjr1uINNh8@gap.caltech.edu>, carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) writes...
>In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>=In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>=>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>=>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>=>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>=>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>=>with inanimate objects.
>=
>=True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>="corona discharge"?
> 
>Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
>the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
>the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
>see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
>nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
>photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
>conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!

	This is true, but it's not quite the whole story.  There were 
	actually some people who were more careful in their methodology
	who also replicated the 'phantom leaf effect.'

    One of the most influential critics of Kirlian Electrophotography
    is a Theosophist (and threfore presumably willing to entertain the
    hypothesis of scientific evidence for a human aura, electromagnetic
    or otherwise), professor of electrical engineering at London's
    City University, and a past president of the Society for Psychic Research 
    named A. J. Ellison.

    After years of studying the method and the claims, Ellison
    came to the conclusion that the photographic images are what we
    calls 'Lichtenberg Figures,' an effect of intermittent ionization of
    the air around the object.  It's a bit more complicated than
    'not wiping off the plates,' but it comes down to the same thing
    in the end, Kirlian electrophotography has much more limited
    value (if any) than was previously widely thought.  Electrical and
    magnetic fields generated by the body are much too small to be
    of much use diagnostically without very elaborate equipment and
    usually also tracer chemicals.

					kind regards,

					todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 542-3573           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59397
From: samuel@paul.rutgers.edu (Empress Carrena Kristina I)
Subject: REQUEST:FAQ

Hi. 
I have a friend who is interested in subscribing to this newsgroup.
Unfortunatly she does not have usenet access. If someone could send
her a faq and info on how to subscribe, we'd be very appreciative If
you want to send it to me, you can and I will get it to her. I do not
read this newsgroup regularly though so e-mail please.
Thank you
Jody
-- 


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jody Rebecca		Colby College		Majors: History/Sociology
			Class o' '94            
E-Mail:  jrgould@colby.edu
	 samuel@paul.rutgers.edu

Fantasy, Music, Colors, and Animals will lead this society out of oppression.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59398
From: samuel@paul.rutgers.edu (Empress Carrena Kristina I)
Subject: Oops. SIlly me.

Sorry. My friend's address who wants the faq and info is
jjsulliv@colby.edu
Sorry about that folks.
Jody
-- 


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jody Rebecca		Colby College		Majors: History/Sociology
			Class o' '94            
E-Mail:  jrgould@colby.edu
	 samuel@paul.rutgers.edu

Fantasy, Music, Colors, and Animals will lead this society out of oppression.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59399
From: werckme1@eecs.uic.edu (robert werckmeister)
Subject: ECG data needed

I need some ECG data , uncompressed,  hopefully in ascii format.
Don't care what it looks like, this is for a signal processing
project.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59400
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Re: PLEASE,HELP A PATIENT!!!

In article <AAghzshe-3@integral.stavropol.su> mymail@integral.stavropol.su writes:
>% mail newsserv@kiae.su
>Subject:  PLEASE, HELP!!!
>                    Dear  Ladies and  Gentlemen!
>      We should be grateful for any information about address and (or)
>   E-mail address of Loma-Linda Hospital (approximate position: USA,
>   California, near Vaimor town, 60 miles from Los-Angelos).
>      A patient needs consultation in this clinics before operation.
>                With respect,                  Igor V. Sidelnikov
>QUIT

This is also being replied to via e-mail.  I dialed my university
librarian, and he looked it up:

Loma Linda University Medical Center
Loma Linda, CA 92350

I don't know an Internet address for them, but they can be reached by
telephone at (714) 824-4300.

Good luck.

-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | "Never believe any experiment until |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        | it has been confirmed by theory."   |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    | -Arthur Eddington                   |
| California Polytechnic State U | Tongue-in-cheek or foot-in-mouth?   | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59401
From: aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu ()
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <1993Apr27.151619.2636@netnews.noc.drexel.edu> giamomj@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu (Mike G.) writes:
>Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros
>
>In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> Gunnar Blix, blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu
>writes:
>>I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
>>cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
>>references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
>>that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
>>writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
>>are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
>>penile cancer.
>>
>>Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
>>I will summarize to the net.
>
>I'm very surprised that medical schools still push routine circumcision
>of newborn males on the population. Since your friend is not a man, she


Money probably has a lot to do with keeping the practice of routine 
circumcision alive... It's another opporitunity to charge a few hundred
extra bucks for a completely unnecessary procedure, the rationale for 
which until recently has been accepted without question by most
parents of newborns.  

One could also imagine that complications arising from circumcision
(infections, sloppy jobs, etc) are far more common than the remote chance
of penile cancer it is purported to prevent.  
 

>can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
>guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
>male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
>appearance...
>
>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>unnecessary.

Peter Schlumpf
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59402
From: OPDBS@vm.cc.latech.edu
Subject: Can I sell my TENS unit?

 
Sci med people:
 
Can I sell my TENS unit or does it have to be sold by a physician or
other liscened person?
 
Doug
opdbs@vm.cc.latech.edu
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59403
From: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU> matthews@oswego.Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:
>All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
>swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?
>
>I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
>else is going on?
>
>

But the sperm would be very diluted in a "x" gallon swimming pool   
-- 
_____________________________________________________________________________
*                  J e n n i f e r      S c h e i b e r                     *
email: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu      School of Nursing - Purdue University
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59404
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
=FLAME ON
=
=Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
=photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
=narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
=measure" attitude of many people out there.

Where have you seen that attitude?

=I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
=so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
=as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
=quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

=I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
=something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
=of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
=were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

Fine, jackass.  Suppose you point out even ONE aspect of Kirlian photography
that's not explained by a corona discharge.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59406
From: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea)
Subject: Persistent vs Chronic

Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
hepatitis.

Thanks,
Horace

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59407
From: brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM (Brenda Bowden)
Subject: feverfew for migraines


I heard a short blurb on the news yesterday about an herb called feverfew (?)
that some say is good for preventing migraines. I think the news said there
were two double-blind studies that found this effective.

Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?
I'm skeptical, but open to trying it if I can find out more about this.
What is feverfew, and how much would you take to prevent migraines (if 
this is a good idea, that is)? Are there any known risks or side effects
of feverfew? 

Thanks in advance for any info!
Brenda

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59408
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

Iridology is descendant from a 19th-century theory which mapped certain
diseases to sectors of the iris of the eye.  There's enough natural
variation in color that a skilled examiner can find indicators of
virtually any disease.

Modern scientists consider it to be complete bunk.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59409
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: WE CAN SUPPLY YOU WITH THE TRANSPLANTANTS & OTHER

Harvested to order?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59410
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Colonics were a health fad of the 19th century, which persists to this day.
Except for certain medical conditions, there is no reason to do this.
Certainly no normal person should do this.

Frequent use of enemas can lead to a condition in which a person is unable
to have normal bowel passage, essentially a person becomes addicted to
enemas.  As I understand it, this is a very unpleasant condition, and it
would be best to avoid it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59411
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Re: Med school admission

Then there are always osteopathy colleges....

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59412
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In <4974@master.CNA.TEK.COM> mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley) writes:

>In article ?????? I write:
>>When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>>in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>>sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>>cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>>
>>Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>>occur?

>Ohboy. Here we go again. And one wonders why the American
>education system is in such abysmal shape?

Actually, this was a school in England.  This same biology teacher also
told me that the reason that stars twinkle is that the small spot of
light on the retina sometimes falls between the light recepive cells.
So his info was suspect from the start.  

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59413
From: pinn@cpqhou.se.hou.compaq.com (Steve Pinn x44304)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

Michael Trofimoff (tron@fafnir.la.locus.com) wrote:

: Hi All,

: Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
: authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
: is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

: Thanks,

I have a receipe at home that was posted to me by one of our fellow
netters about a month ago.  I am recalling this from memory but
I think I'm fairly close (by the way it was GREAT!)

1 	pint of plain yogurt 
1/2	med. sized cucumber finely shredded
3	cloves of garlic (more or less by taste)
1/4 tsp	dill weed

The yogurt is dumped into a strainer lined with a coffee
filter and allowed to drain at least 2 hours (you can
adjust the consistancy of the sauce by increasing this time
up to 24 hours)

The shredded cuc is drained the same way

Mix it all together and let it steep for at least
2 hours (it's better the next day) and enjoy!

Steve



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59414
From: cjh@tinton.ccur.com (Christopher J. Henrich)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu> eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>>with inanimate objects.
>
>True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>"corona discharge"?
>
I think I can explain the "missing part of a leaf" story.

I have actually seen a reproduction of that particular Kirlian
photograph, in a book compiled by people who were enthusiasts of
Kirlian photography.  "That particular photograph" ... ?  That's
right, the effect has been observed only once.  Even the writers of
the book were inclined to disbelieve in it.  

I conjecture that the maker of that photograph began by placing
a whole leaf between two plates and taking its Kirlian photo.
For his next experiment, he cut the leaf in half, put one half down
between the same two plates, and took another K. p.  The
"missing half" effect was created by water, oils, etc. left behind 
after the first photo.

This explanation must be tentative, because after all I wasn't there
when it happened.  

Regards,
Chris Henrich

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59415
From: wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>
>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.

It is one thing to be open-minded about phenomona that have not
be demonstrated to be false, and quite another to "believe" in
something like Krilian photography, where *all* the claimed effects
have be demonstrated to be artifacts.  There is no longer any reason
to adopt a "wait and see" attitude about Krilian photography, it
has been experimentally shown to be nothing but simple coronal
discharge.  The "auras" shown by missing leaf parts came from 
moisture left by the original whole leaf, for example.  

That's what science is, son.

---Bill VanHorne


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59416
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1rhb0e$9ks@europa.eng.gtefsd.com>, draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM
DRAPER) says:
>
>This homeopathic remedies.  I tried the dander one for a month. 15 drops
>three times a day.  I didn't notice any change whats so ever.  How long
>were you using the drops before you noticed a difference?
>
It is NOT a homeopathic remedy. Improvement began in a few months.
I am allergic to bermuda grass and if anyone nearby was mowing a lawn
my nose would start to run.  Now I can walk right by and it doesn't bother
me at all.  The same success with desert ragweed.

   Bruce Long

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59417
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Michael Covington (mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu) wrote:
: 
: How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???
: 
Little alflatoxin on commercial cereal products and certainly wouldn't
cause seizures.

--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59418
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rk5miINNkju@usenet.pa.dec.com>, stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark) writes:
=>Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
=>the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
=>the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
=>see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
=>nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
=>photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
=>conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!
=
=	This is true, but it's not quite the whole story.  There were 
=	actually some people who were more careful in their methodology
=	who also replicated the 'phantom leaf effect.'

You can also replicate the effect with a rock:  Take your first Kirlian
photograph.  Then moisten one edge of the rock.  Lo! and behold!  Phantom rock!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59419
From: joel@cray.com (Joel Broude)
Subject: Mevicore vs. Lopid vs. ?


I used to be on lopid.  It did a good job of reducing cholesterol (295
down to around 214), as well as LDL and triglycerides.  Then, I got
pneumonia, and for some reason, the Lopid stopped working very well;
cholesterol and triglycerides soared.  The levels might have stabilized
over time, but a new doctor had me quit, wait a month, then switch
to Mevicore.  

On Mevicore, my total cholesterol was down to 207,  LDL was 108, 
and HDL was 35; but the trig's were still
very high, around 318, and my liver tests came back slightly abnormal, 
SGOT = 83 (N = 1-35),  GGTP(?hard to read copy) = 42 (N = 0 - 35).

He said the liver numbers were not offbase enough to cause him
concern, and the triglycerides are not as important as the cholesterol
figures.  He had me stop the Mevicore to allow the liver to heal ("Just
to be extra cautious, though I'm sure it's not a problem."),
and wants me to go back on it after that.  I suggested maybe Lopid might
be the better choice, and he said that he wouldn't object if that's what
I want to do.  But Lopid has one particular side effect I'm not fond of.

Should the above liver and trig figures be feared?  What happens to
folks with high trig levels?  Is my liver in danger with the above
results?  Would I be better off on Lopid, despite its inconvenient 
side effect, or, perhaps, some other drug?  (Niacin affected my 
liver, too).

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59420
Subject: EXPERTS ON EDWARD JENNER...LOOK!!!
From: pkwok@eis.calstate.edu (Philip Kwok)

I am a student from San Leandro High school.  I am doing a research
project for physics and I would like information on Edward Jenner and the
vaccination for small pox.  Any information at all would be greatly
apprectiated.  Thank you.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59421
From: kring@pamuk.physik.uni-kl.de (Thomas Kettenring)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>>[..] It
>>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>>with inanimate objects.
>
>True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>"corona discharge"?

This effect disappears if you clean your apparatus after you kirlianed
the whole leaf and before kirlianing the leaf part.

--
thomas kettenring, 3 dan, kaiserslautern, germany
The extraterrestrials don't even know this planet has native inhabitants.
Their government doesn't tell them.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59422
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: med school admission continued.


hi all, i got several emails and a couple news replies and i guess i
shoulda went into more detail... Being my anxiety level is peaking and you
folks have no clue who I am I may as well post the specifics and see what
you people think regarding my previous post.
To recap i applied to 20 schools total, 16 of which were MD and 4 DO.

as it stands now i have had 13 rejects, 4 interviews( 2 MD and 2 DO), the
results of which are 2 waiting lists (1 MD and one DO)

3 schools i heard nothing from at all.

I have contacted all institutions other than the rejects and they have no
info whatsoever to tell me.

I have taken a good mix to apply to.. 2-3 top schools a bunch of middles
and a few "safety"  (funny that most of my safety schools were the first
to reject me)

my index is at like a 3.5 mcats were R7 P9 B10 WQ and R7 P9 B11 WR
I couldnt get the damn reading score up... i never stuff like art
history, politics etc 

Ive done medical research at the undergrad level, done clinical lab work
for years now, but unfortunately i have no patient contact experience.

I cant think of what else i left out... but thats the summary. What
percent of people are usually called from the waiting lists on an average?
I felt that my interviews went quite well yet i dont have a firm
acceptance in my hand... anyone have any suggestions as to calm the
mailbox anxiety?  

If you premeds out there or med students have any questions or comments
for me feel free to send them down... Typing is a form of anti-anxiety
thereapy hehehehe :)


-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59423
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: med school

John Carey (jcarey@news.weeg.uiowa.edu) wrote:
: Actually I am entering vet school next year, but the question is 
: relevant for med students too.

: Memorizing large amounts has never been my strong point academically.
: Since this is a major portion of medical education -- anatomy, 
: histology, pathology, pharmacology, are for the most part mass 
: memorization -- I am a little concerned.  As I am sure most 
: med students are.

: Can anyone suggest techniques for this type of memorization?  I 
: have had reasonable success with nemonics and memory tricks like
: thinking up little stories to associate unrelated things.  But I have
: never applied them to large amounts of "data".

: Has anyone had luck with any particular books, memory systems, or
: cheap software?   

: Can you suggest any helpful organizational techniques?  Being an
: older student who returned to school this year, organization (another
: one of my weak points) has been a major help to my success.

: Please no griping about how all you have to do is "learn" the material
: conceptually.  I have no problem with that, it is one of my strong 
: points.  But you can't get around the fact that much of medicine is
: rote memorization.  

: Thanks for your help.
The only suggestion i can think of off the top of my head is get a large
supply of index cards and memorize small amounts of info at a time, making
flash cards and quesitons. Everytime i get a question wrong I always
manage to get the damn thing right the next time 

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59424
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: A Good place for Back Surgery?

: gary.schuetter (garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com) wrote:

: : 	
: :         Hello,

: :         Just one quick question:
: :         My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
: :         have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
: :         Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
: :         the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
: :         kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
: :         in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
: :         appreciated a whole lot!...

: There is one hospital that is here in New York City that is famous for its
: orthopedists, namely the Hospital for Special Surgery. They are located on
: the upper east side of manhattan. If you want their address and phone let
: me know, i'll get them, i dont know them off hand.

for those who are interested the hospitals i was referring to are: 

The Hospital for Special Surgery
535 East 70th Street
New York, NY 10021
212-606-1555 (Physician Referral Service & info)
 
The Hospital for Joint Diseases
301 East 17th Street
New York, NY 10003
212-598-7600

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59425
From: oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr26.143101.4307@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>I get tired of people saying 'don't eat X because
>it's BAD!'  Well, X may not be bad for everyone.  And even if
>it is, so what?  Give people all the information but don't ram
>your decisions down their throats.
>

It is evident you did not read my post carefully. I wasn't
trying to tell you not to eat MSG products and produce, nor was I
arguing for or against MSG. I was simply questioning the logic of
your statement that simply because
(a) one is not allergic to something, and
(b) likes eating that
it follows that one could keep eating whatever it is. 
In my post, I had clearly said that I don't know enough about MSG.
The statement "don't eat X because its bad" is just _your_ 
interpretation of nutritional info out there.

Prakash Das

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59426
From: tad@ssc.com (Tad Cook)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@mitre.org(The Pancake Emporium) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
>|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>|> 
>|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
>|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>|> >appreciated.
>|> 
>|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
>|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
>|> 
>|> Bill from oz
>|> 
>
>
>Bill,
>No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
>photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
>it takes pictures of your aura.
>|> 
>
>-- 
>Greg 
>
You're confused.  You are talking about KIRILIAN photography.

Bill is talking KRILLEAN photography.


-- 
  |   tad@ssc.com  (if it bounces, use 3288544@mcimail.com)   |
  |   Tad Cook     |  Packet Amateur Radio:  |  Home Phone:   |
  |   Seattle, WA  |  KT7H @ N7DUO.WA.USA.NA |  206-527-4089  |


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59427
From: ac940@Freenet.carleton.ca (Lau Hon-Wah)
Subject: Copper Bracelet (Sabona by Dr. John Sorenson)


I have seen Copper Bracelet by the name of Sabona created by Dr. John
Sorenson.  I am looking for literature on the effectiveness of Copper
Bracelet in dealing with Arthritis. 

I know in one case a 70-year old person developed bruise at the base of her
left thumb after wearing the copper bracelet on her left wrist for several
months.  She was told the bruise is "normal" and would disappear. 

Is the bruise reason to be concerned?
Should the person discontinued wearing the copper bracelet?
Could anyone kindly point me to literature on copper bracelet?
What are the other information on copper bracelet?

Your response would be very much appreciated.

Thank you.

Lau Hon-Wah
-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59428
From: msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder)
Subject: centi- and milli- pedes

Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
be liable to happen to the person?

(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)

Rebecca



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59429
From: help4@dcs2.dc (len ramirez)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

very good.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59430
From: ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov
Subject: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

Can anybody out there provide me with any advice concerning the
following two health problems:

First, I was recently diagnosed (using a UGI series) as having a
Schatzki ring and small sliding hiatal hernia. As I understand it,
the hernia is a relatively minor problem, though I do occasionally
have some nasty heartburn that is probably related to it. The Schatzki
ring, on the other hand, is causing swallowing difficulty. In particular,
if I'm not careful about eating slowly, and thoroughly chewing food,
food occasionally gets "stuck" before reaching my stomach. This results
in a period of painful spasms as the food attempts to pass the obstruction.
Fortunately, the food has always managed to pass, but this is annoying,
and causes frequent discomfort.

My doctor wants to "dilate" the ring using the
following procedure: use an endoscope to examine the esophagus and stomach
for any inflammation, then cut through the ring and dilate it by passing
some kind of balloon or something thru the esophagous. I would like to know
if anyone out there has had this (or a similar) procedure done-if so,
was it painful, successful, etc. Also, can anyone  comment on
safety, advisability, and success rate of this procedure? Has it become
a common procedure? I am kind of leery of having such an invasive-sounding
procedure performed for a (currently) non-threatening condition such as this,
especially considering the possible side effects (bleeding, perforation,
reaction to anesthesia).

The second issue: for the past 3-4 years I have had a large number
of "extra" heartbeats. In particular, during the past month or so there
has been a dramatic increase-a Holter monitor recently showed 50 PVC's in 24
hrs, along with a few PAC's. (Many days, there are far more than this,
however-five to ten per hour). All of them were isolated, and the cardiologist
indicated that such a number was "normal". It certainly doesn't
feel normal. In the past there have also been a couple of episodes of
extended "runs" of these beats, one of which lasted long enough to cause
severe light-headedness. I am relatively young (30-ish), thin and in good
health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
same time.

Thanks for any help/advice!


===============================================================================
===============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59431
From: rmccown@world.std.com (Bob McCown)
Subject: Miscelaneous soon-to-have-baby questions

We're about to have our first baby, and have a few questions that we
dont seem to be able to get answered to our satisfaction. 

Reguarding having a baby boy circumsized, what are the medical pros
and cons?  All we've heard is 'its up to the parents'.

How about the pregnant woman sitting in a tub of water?  We've heard 
stories of infection, etc.  How about after the water has broken?


rmccown@world.std.com
Old MacDonald had an agricultural real estate tax abatement.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59432
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

A student told me today that she has been diagnosed with kidney stones, a
cyst on one kidney, and a kidney infection.  She was upset because her
condition had been misdiagnosed since last fall, and she has been ill all
this time.  During her most recent doctor's appointment at her parents'
HMO clinic, she said that about FORTY! x-rays were made of her kidney.
When she asked why so many x-rays were being made, she was told by a
technician that they need to see the area from different views, but she
says that about five x-rays were made from EACH angle.  She couldn't help
feeling that something must be wrong with the procedure or something.  She
is a pre-med student and feels she could have understood what was
happening if someone would have explained.  When nobody would, she got
worried.
	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
call back her doctor's office / clinic and try to get answers to these
questions.  But I told her I would also write in to sci.med and see what I
could find out about why there were so many x-rays and whether it seems
o.k. to wait in line 3 or more months for surgery for something like this
or whether she should be looking elsewhere for her care.  She does plan to
get a second opinion, too. 

	I will pass info on to her.  It never hurts to get information
from more than one source.  

You can e-mail me or post.

Thanks.

Alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59433
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU> matthews@oswego.Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:
:All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
:swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?
:
:I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
:else is going on?

No dice.  As soon as the sperm cells hit the water they would virtually
explode.  The inside of the cell is hypertonic, and since the membrane is
semipermeable water would rush in and cause the cell to burst.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59435
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: New Method For Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease Discovered


Here is a press release from Huntington Medical Research Institutes.

 New Method For Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease Discovered at
Huntington Medical Research Institutes: Results to Be Reported
 To: National Desk, Health Writer
 Contact: John Lockhart or Belinda Gerber, 310-444-7000, or
          800-522-8877, for the Huntington Medical Research
          Institutes.

   LOS ANGELES, April 28  -- A new method for diagnosing 
and measuring chemical imbalances in the brain
which lead to Alzheimer's disease and other dementias has been
discovered by researchers at the Huntington Medical Research
Institutes (HMRI) in Pasadena, Calif.  Results of their research
will be reported in the May issue of the scientific journal,
Radiology.
   Using an advanced form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
called magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), a research team led
by Brian D. Ross, M.D., D. Phil., conducted a study on 21 elderly
patients who were believed to be suffering from some form of
dementia. The exams used standard MRI equipment fitted with special
software developed at HMRI called Clinical Proton MRS.  Clinical
Proton MRS is easily applied, giving doctors confirmatory diagnoses
in less than 30 minutes.  An automated version of Clinical Proton
MRS called Proton Brain Examination (PROBE) reduces the examination
time yet further, providing confirmatory diagnoses in less than 10
minutes.  By comparison, the current "standard of care" in testing
for Alzheimer's disease calls for lengthy memory function and
neuropsychological tests, which can be very upsetting to the
patient, are not definitive and can only be confirmed by autopsy.
   In addition to Alzheimer's disease, the new Clinical Proton MRS
exam may have applications in diagnosing other dementias, including
AIDS-related dementia, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's
disease.
   "We've developed a simple test which can be administered quickly
and relatively inexpensively using existing MRI equipment fitted
with either the MRS or PROBE software," said Dr. Ross, adding,
"this will help physicians to diagnose Alzheimer's earlier and
intervene with therapeutics before the progression of the disease
causes further damage to the delicate inner workings of the brain."
   Dr. Ross and his HMRI team measured a family of chemicals in the
brain known as inositols, and myo-inositol (MI) acted as a marker
in the study.  In comparison to healthy patients, those diagnosed
with Alzheimer's showed a 22 percent increase in MI, while their
level of another chemical called N-acetylaspartate (NAA) was
significantly lower, indicating a loss of brain-stimulating neurons
believed to be associated with the progression of the disease.
   Current drug therapy for Alzheimer's disease is widely
considered to be inadequate.  This is attributable, Dr. Ross
believes, to the theory that Alzheimer's is caused by an
interruption in the transmission of the chemical acetylcholine to
the nerve cells. This belief has been adhered to over the last 15
years, and consequently, most drugs to treat Alzheimer's were based
on the changing receptors for acetylcholine.
   "Physicians have a real need for a test to differentiate
Alzheimer's from other dementias, to provide the patient and his or
her family with a firm diagnosis and to monitor future treatment
protocols for the treatment of this disease.  For this reason, we
consider this test a major advancement in medicine," said Bruce
Miller, M.D., a noted neurologist at Harbor-UCLA, MRS researcher
and a co-author of the study.
   Other members of the HMRI research team included Rex A. Moats,
Ph.D., Truda Shonk, B.S., Thomas Ernst, Ph.D., and Suzanne Woolley,
R.N.  The PROBE software can be fitted on the approximately 1,200
General Electric MRI units currently in use in the United States,
and will be configured for other manufacturers' MRI units soon.
   For interviews with Dr. Ross, advance copies of the Radiology
May issue, and other information, please contact John Lockhart or
Belinda Gerber for HMRI at 310-444-7000 or 800-522-8877.

   Q & A on Alzheimer's Disease:

   What is Alzheimer's disease and how is it caused?
   Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an incurable degenerative disease of
the brain first described in 1906 by the German neuropathologist
Alois Alzheimer.  As the disease progresses, it leads to loss of
memory and mental functioning, followed by changes in personality,
loss of control of bodily functions, and, eventually, death.
   How many people does it affect?
   Alzheimer's disease affects an estimated 4 million adults in
the United States and is the fourth leading cause of death, taking
approximately 100,000 lives each year.  While Alzheimer's
debilitates its victims, it is equally devastating, both
emotionally and financially, for patients' families.  AD is the
most common cause of dementia in adults.  Symptoms worsen every
year, and death usually occurs within 10 years of initial onset.
   What are its signs and symptoms?
   Although the cause of AD is not known, two risk factors have
been identified: advanced age and genetic predisposition.  The risk
of developing AD is less than one percent before the age of 50
yars old, but increases steeply in each successive decade of life
to reach 30 percent by the age of 90.  In patients with familial
AD, immediate family relatives have a 50 percent chance of
developing AD.  One of its first symptoms is severe "forgetfulness"
caused by short-term memory loss.  Dr. Herman Weinreb of the School
of Medicine at New York University says "whether forgetfulness is
a serious symptom or not is largely a matter of degree" and
suggests the following criteria:

   -- Forgetting the name of someone you see infrequently is
      normal.
   -- Forgetting the name of a loved one is serious.
   -- Forgetting where you left your keys is normal.
   -- Forgetting how to get home is serious.

   Doctors suggest that people with severe symptoms should be
evaluated in order to rule out Alzheimer's disease and other forms
of dementia.
 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59436
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: Results of GUSTO Heart Attack Study to be Released Friday


Here is a press release from Medical Science Communications.

 Results of GUSTO Heart Attack Study to be Released Friday
 To: Assignment Desk, Medical Writer
 Contact: Jim Augustine of Medical Science Communication,
          703-644-6824, or Steve Hull or Tracy Furey,
          800-477-9626 or April 29-30, 202-393-2000 or
          202-662-7592 (J.W. Marriott)

   News Advisory:

   Results of the largest heart attack study ever undertaken,
the Global Utilization of Streptokinase and t-PA for Occluded
Coronary Arteries trial (GUSTO), will be presented Friday, April
30, at the Clinical Research Meeting.
   A press conference will be held at 12:30 p.m.
   GUSTO evaluates the most aggressive emergency-room treatment
strategies available to clear blocked heart arteries and restore
blood flow to the heart, a process called thrombolysis.  The
thrombolytic strategies compared in GUSTO use powerful drugs to break
up blood clots in heart vessels quickly and prevent clots from
recurring.  These strategies have never been compared directly in a
large-scale clinical trial until GUSTO.  The results are expected to
have an important impact on heart attack treatment worldwide.
   The press conference will be held at two locations: live at the
National Press Club, Main Lounge, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., N.W.,
Washington D.C., and via satellite at The Hotel Macklowe, 145 W. 44th
Street, 4th Floor, New York City, between Broadway and 6th Avenue.
   GUSTO results will be presented by Eric Topol M.D., GUSTO Study
Chairman, professor and chairman of the Department of Cardiology at
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation; Robert Califf, M.D., clinical
director, GUSTO Coordinating Center and Associate Professor of
Medicine at Duke University Medical Center; and Allan Ross, M.D.,
coordinator of the GUSTO Angiographic Substudy and professor and
director of the Division of Cardiology at The George Washington
University Medical Center.
    ------
   Editorial Notes/Attention television: The press conference may be
viewed in its entirety via satellite starting at 12:30 p.m. (EDT)
C-band Telestar 302, Transponder 2V (dual audio 6.2, 6.8) or KUSBS6,
Transponder 8.  Following the press conference, there will be a news
package and b-roll feed.  Camera-ready illustrations also will be
available at the press conference.
   Telephone hook up to the press conference is planned.
Availability is limited; please call MCS for more information.
   For reporters who will be at the Sheraton Washington attending the
Clinical Research Meeting on Friday morning, minibus transportation
will be provided to the press conference.  The bus will depart at
12 p.m.; it also will be available for return to the Sheraton
after the press conference.
   For more information, contact Steve Hull or Tracy Furey of MCS,
for the GUSTO Study Group, at 800-477-9626; or at the J.W. Marriott
April 29 to April 30 at 202-393-2000 or 202-662-7592.  For more
information about the Clinical Research Meeting, contact Jim
Augustine of Medical Science Communications at 703-644-6824.

 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59437
From: rrome@nyx.cs.du.edu (Robert Rome)
Subject: Need Prozac info


I'm looking for information regarding dosages of prozac used in minor
depression.  Also any other information regarding the drug is helpful. 
Please send responses direct.  Thanks!

rrome@nyx.cs.du.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59438
From: andrewm@bio.uts.EDU.AU (Andrew Mears)
Subject: sheep in cardiac research


Dear news readers,

Is there anyone using sheep models for cardiac research, specifically
concerned with arrhythmias, pacing or defibrillation? I would like
to hear from you.

Many thanks,
Andrew Mears

*********** Please email me <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au> ***************
*************************************************************************
**  *   Andrew Mears                            h: 61-2-9774245         *
* **    CRC for Cardiac Technology, UTS         w: 61-2-3304091	        *
* **    Westbourne St, GORE HILL                F: 61-2-3304003         *
**  *   N.S.W  2065               email: <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au>  *
*************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59439
From: larpjb@selway.umt.edu (Philip J Bowman)
Subject: Re: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

In article <1993Apr28.173600.21703@organpipe.uug.arizona.edu> ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh) writes:
>Greeting
>
>I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
>bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
>using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
>to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
>seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
>background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
>ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.
>
>Thanks for oyur help in Advance.
>
>Terrance J Dishongh
>ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

It sounds as though you might want to try a product such as "super-glue".
The active ingredient is cynoacrylate, the same compound used to reconstruct
bones.  I have successfully used superglue for a number of procedures on many
different species of animal. If you are simply trying to adhear something
to bone for several months, this would be ideal. It bonds almost immediatly,
is resistant to infection, and is non-irritating to surrounding tissue.

Phil Bowman, Manager
Lab Animal Resources
University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812
larpjb@selway.umt.edu
:wg


-- 

          
               /\---/\          Phil Bowman, Manager
               \ * * /          Laboratory Animal Resources

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59441
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Urine analysis

In article <1rm2bn$kps@transfer.stratus.com> Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com writes:
>
> Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
>an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
>a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
>ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
>If so where can these substances be found. 

You could do what I do: never go near the stuff!  :)


-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59442
From: andrewm@bio.uts.EDU.AU (Andrew Mears)
Subject: sheep models in cardiology


Dear news readers,

Is there anyone using sheep models for cardiac research, specifically
concerned with arrhythmias, pacing or defibrillation? I would like
to hear from you.

Many thanks,

Andrew Mears
*************** PLEASE EMAIL ME *************
-- 
*************************************************************************
**  *   Andrew Mears                            h: 61-2-9774245         *
* **    CRC for Cardiac Technology, UTS         w: 61-2-3304091	        *
* **    Westbourne St, GORE HILL                F: 61-2-3304003         *
**  *   N.S.W  2065               email: <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au>  *
*************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59443
From: eileen@microware.com (Eileen Beck)
Subject: cortisone shots

I need some information on the implications of receiving
cortisone shots for a seasonal allergic condition.  

I've had the usual "skin prick" tests for the
common allergies, but reacted to none of the substances.
So for the last two seasons I've received cortisone shots
but the doctors seem reluctant to give more than two or
three shots.  Why?  What are the dangers?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59444
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: looking for info on kemotherapy(p?) (KINDA LONG)

In article <1rjpu7INNmij@shelley.u.washington.edu>, kryan@stein.u.washington.edu (Kerry Ryan) writes...
> 
>Hello, a friend is under going kemotherapy(sp?) for breast cancer. I'm
>trying to learn what I can about it. Any info would be appreciated.
>Thanks.

You've asked a toughie of a question.  There are many different drugs which
are used for chemotherapy.

The overall purpose of chemotherapy (don't worry about the spelling.  Some of
these crazy medical words are impossible to spell! :-) is to either destroy
cancer cells or to keep them from growing.  Different drugs have different
effects on cancer cells, and therefore, it is not uncommon to use more than
one drug at a time.

Some chemotherapeutic drugs are effective anytime during the growth cycle
of a cell.  Others work only at specific times during the cell cycle.

The first phase of the cell cycle is G1; it is when the protein synthesis
and RNA systhesis occurs.  In the second phase, S, synthesis of DNA occurs.
The third phase is G2; The DNA splits and RNA and protein are synthesized 
aagain.  In the fourth phase, M (or Mitosis), the cell may divide.

There are drugs which are effective in each phase.  Some stop DNA synthesis.
Others stop the cell from dividing. Others wreck protein synthesis.
At any rate, the end result that is being sought is for the cancer cells
to stop growing.

If what you are seeking is "practical" advice, I apologize for rambling
on the techno stuff.  Some side effects are pretty common.  Chemo. drugs
are rather nasty.  It can cause a person to lose their appetite and to 
experience nausea and vomiting.  Things to help this include eating small
frequent meals.  It is also suggested that if nausea/vomiting (hereafter
known as n/v) occurs that the person notify the doctor; there are medicines
tthat help nausea.  Diarrhea can be an effect.  Antidiarrheal medications 
can be given, and good skincare and fluid intake are important.

Probably the one of biggest concsern is hair loss.  This does not always
happen.  It depends on what drugs are being given, and on the person 
themself.  Different people taking the same drug can and do have different
side effects.  I have seen some literature which states that wearing a snug
headband and/or wearing an ice cap can help reduce hair loss, presumably
by reducing blood flow to the scalp.  If anyone has seen research on this
too, I would love to see it, and possibly some bib data.

I highly recommend making contact with the American Cancer Society.
They have a vast selection of literature and information.  In addition,
if your friend has had a mastectomy, I highly recommend "Reach for Recovery".
It is a support group comprised entirely of women who have lost a breast 
because of cancer.  They can offer some excellent support and suggestions.

If you have further questions, please send me E-mail.  I hav some good
access to information, and I enjoy trying to help other people.

I wish the best to you and your friend.



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59445
From: isckbk@nuscc.nus.sg (Kiong Beng Kee)
Subject: Hives


My wife had hives during the first two months
of her pregnancy.  My son (3 months old), breast-fed,
now has the same symptoms.  She has been to a skin-specialist,
but he has merely prescribed various medicines (one
each visit as though by trial and error :-))

Anti-histamines worked on both of them, but looks like
becoming less effective.

Are there other solutions?  Thanks.
-- 
Kiong Beng Kee
Dept of Information Systems and Computer Science
National University of Singapore
Lower Kent Ridge Road, SINGAPORE 0511

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59446
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: Miscelaneous soon-to-have-baby questions

In article <C66919.Inz@world.std.com>, rmccown@world.std.com (Bob McCown) writes...
>We're about to have our first baby, and have a few questions that we
>dont seem to be able to get answered to our satisfaction. 
> 
>Reguarding having a baby boy circumsized, what are the medical pros
>and cons?  All we've heard is 'its up to the parents'.
> 
Unfortonately, that truly is about the best summation of the research
that there is.  Advantages stated of circumcison included probably
prevention of penile cancer, (which, interestingly, occurs mostly in men
whose personal hygiene is exceptionally poor), simplicity of personal
hygiene, prevention of urinary tract infections, and prevention of
a unretractible foreskin,  Disadvantages include infection from the 
procedure, pain, etc.  I apologize; I am trying to pull this off
the top of my head.  I will post what I discovered in research; I did
a paper on the topic in my research class in Nursing school.
It really is a decision that is up to the parents.  Some parents use
the reasoning that they will "look like Daddy" and like their friends
as justification.  There is nothing wrong with this; just be sure it is
what you want to do, since it is rather difficult to uncircumcise
a male, although a major surgical procedure exists.

>How about the pregnant woman sitting in a tub of water?  We've heard 
>stories of infection, etc.  How about after the water has broken?
> 
As long as your membranes have not broken and you have not had any
problems with your pregnancy, it should be OK to sit in a tub of water.
HOWEVER, I WOULD RECOMMEND USING YOUR OWN BATHTUB IN YOUR OWN HOME!
It is nearly impossible to guarantee the cleanliness and safety of "public"
hot tubs.  A nice warm bath can be very relaxing, especially if your back
is killing you!  And it would possibly be advisable to avoid bubble bath
soap , esp. if you are prone to yeast infection.

Hope these tips help you some.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59447
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Kidney Stones

     banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu (Marty Banschbach) writes:
[...]
B >  Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There
B >  has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is
B >  kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been
B >  done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the
B >  intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones
B >  from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to
B >  breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of
B >  Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong,
B >  increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is
B >  restricting calcium intake.    
[...]
B >  Marty B.

 Marty, I personally wouldn't be so quick and take that NEJM article 
 on kidney stones as gospel. First of all, I would want to know who
 sponsored that study.
 I have seen too many "nutrition" bulletins over the years from
 local newspapers, magazines, to TV-guide, with disclaimers on the
 bottom informing us that this great health news was brought to us
 compliments of the Dairy Industries.
 There are of course numerous other interest groups now that thrive
 financially on the media hype created from the supposedly enormous 
 benefits of increasing one's calcium intake.

 Secondly, were ALL the kidney stones of the test subjects involved 
 in that project analysed for their chemical composition?  The study
 didn't say that, it only claimed that "most kidney stones are large-
 ly calcium."
 Perhaps it won't be long before another study comes up with the exact
 opposite findings. A curious phenomenon with researchers is that they
 are oftentimes just plain wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
 
 Sodium/magnesium/calcium/phosphorus ratios are, in my opinion, still 
 the most reliable indicators for the cause, treatment, and prevention 
 of kidney stones.
 I, for one, will continue to recommend the most logical changes in
 one's diet or through supplementation to counteract or prevent kidney
 stones of either type; and they definitely won't include an INCREASE
 in calcium if the stones have been identified as being of the calcium
 type and people's chemical analysis confirms that they would benefit
 from a PHOSPHORUS-raising approach instead!

     Ron Roth
 =====================================================================
 --  Internet: rn.3228@rose.com  -  Rosenet: ron roth@rosehamilton  --

 * A stone on the ground is better than a stone in the body.
---
   RoseReader 2.10  P003228 Entered at [ROSEHAMILTON]
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59448
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Umbilical Hernia

In article <1993Apr27.060740.3068@shannon.ee.wits.ac.za> gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor) writes:
>Could anyone give me information on Umbilical hernias.
>The patient is over weight and has a protruding hernia.
>
>Surgery may be risky due to the obesity.
>What other remedies could I try?


Unless the patient has a very short life expectancy, the possible complications
from a hernia that hasn't been repaired far outweigh the risks of surgery.
The risks of surgery, anyway, are minimal. Unless they are exceedingly large,
hernias can be fixed under local anesthesia. 
Don't forget that hernias are one the leading causes of small bowel obstruction.
And the smaller the hernia is, the higher the chances that a loop of bowel will
become incarcerated or strangulated.


===============================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59449
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)

I am currently in the throes of a hay fever attack.  SO who certainly
never reads Usenet, let alone Sci.med, said quite spontaneously "
There are a lot of mushrooms and toadstools out on the lawn at the
moment.  Sure that's not your problem?"

Well, who knows?  Or maybe it's the sourdough bread I bake?

After reading learned, semi-learned, possibly ignorant and downright
ludicrous stuff in this thread, I am about ready to believe anything :-)

If the hayfever gets any worse, maybe I will cook those toadstools...

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand     
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59450
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr22.143929.26131@midway.uchicago.edu> jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier ) writes:
>
>I am interested in trying this "desensitization" (?) method
>against hay fever.
>What is the state of affairs about this. I went to a doctor and
>paid $85 for a 10 minute interview + 3 scratches, leading to the
>diagnostic that I am allergic to (June and Timothy) grass.
>I believe this. From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
>6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
>$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
>call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
>here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
>Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
>that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
>Thanks for information.
>
>
Go to your public library and get the February, 1988 issue of Consumer
Reports.  An article on allergy shots begins on page 96.  This article
is MUST reading for anyone contemplating allergy shots.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59451
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

In article <badboyC64t0z.FGq@netcom.com> badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:
>
>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>really help them).
>
>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.
>
>
>
Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
of your feet and improve your sex life?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59452
From: rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube)
Subject: allergic reactions against laser printers??

Hello,

does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?

Thanks in advance!

Reinhard

email: rdd@ibma.ipp-garching.mpg.de

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59453
From: pkhalsa@wpi.WPI.EDU (Partap S Khalsa)
Subject: Re: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

In article <1993Apr28.173600.21703@organpipe.uug.arizona.edu> ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh) writes:
>Greeting
>
>I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
>bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
>using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
>to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
>seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
>background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
>ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.
>
>Thanks for oyur help in Advance.
>
>Terrance J Dishongh
>ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

Terrance,

  There is a good article entitled:  "A long-term in vivo bone strain
measurement device,"  Journal of Investigative Surgery 1989; 2(2): 195-206
by Szivek JA & Magee FP.
  I think you can find some others by searching MedLine.

Partap S. Khalsa, MS, DC, FACO
Post-Doc Research Fellow
U.Mass.Med. School


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59454
From: johnf@HQ.Ileaf.COM (John Finlayson)
Subject: Re: feverfew for migraines

In article <ltrdroINNltf@exodus.Eng.Sun.COM> brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM (Brenda Bowden) writes:
>
>Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?
>I'm skeptical, but open to trying it if I can find out more about this.
>What is feverfew, and how much would you take to prevent migraines (if 
>this is a good idea, that is)? Are there any known risks or side effects
>of feverfew? 
>
>Thanks in advance for any info!
>Brenda

I've tried it, and so has one friend of mine.  No known side effects or
risks.  It didn't seem to work for us, but several studies now have 
suggested it does work for many people, so I think it's worth a try.

You can find it in capsule form at health food stores.  Up to six capsules
a day was recommended, if I remember correctly.  It can also be prepared 
as a tea.

Good luck,

John

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59455
From: Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com
Subject: Urine analysis





 Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
If so where can these substances be found. 

            If you know this information, please Email me directly
             
                Thank You Kindly for your support,


                         Randy





















Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59456
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

In article kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf) writes:
>In article badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:

>>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>>really help them).
>>
>>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.

>Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
>of your feet and improve your sex life?

Actually, severe headaches due to stopped up sinuses (plugged ostia) are
possible, and sinus surgery which widens the ostia - from the normal 2
mm to about 10 mm - should relieve this.  There are non-surgical ways,
however, to keep the ostia open (however, in a few individuals, their
ostia are naturally very small), and Dr. Ivker's book talks about this.
The underlying cause of chronic sinusitis is NOT cured by this kind of
sinus surgery, though.

About asthma, that's a little more controversial.  Dr. Ivker, in his book,
"Sinus Survival", *speculates* (and says it's not proven), that many cases
of asthma are triggered by chronic sinusitis due to the excessive drainage
(postnasal drip) from the sinuses.  He's had many patients who've found
relief from asthma when the chronic sinusitis is reduced or eliminated -
not clinical proof, but compelling anecdotal information of this speculation.

Before doing any sinus surgery, first get THE BOOK - it discusses surgery,
as well as a good non-surgical treatment program for chronic sinusitis.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59457
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: What's the origin of "STAT?"

In article <1993Apr28.100131.157926@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>The term "stat" is used not only in medicine, but is a commonly used
>indicator that something is urgent.  
>
>Does anyone know where it came from?  My dictionary was not helpful.
>
>-- 


From the word 'statim' (Latin, I think), meaning immediately.


=========================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59458
From: hartman@informix.com (Robert Hartman)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <1rjn0eINNnqn@MINERVA.CIS.YALE.EDU> wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel) writes:
>Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
>cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  

No doubt the sci.med* folks are getting out their flamethrowers.  I'm
rather certain that the information you got was not medical literature
in the accepted academic/scientific journals.  So, the righteous among
them will no doubt jump on that.

Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.

Then there'll be the ones who call your doctor a raving quack, even
though he, like Linus Pauling, is lucid and robust well into his
nineties--but nevermind about that.  He shouldn't charge for his
equipment and supplies, since they're no doubt not approved by the
FDA.  Of course, with FDA approval an MD or pharmaceutical company can
charge whatever they can get for such safe and effective treatments as
thalidomide.  But nevermind about that either.

Unfortunately, you dared to step into the sacred turf of Net.Medical.
Discussion without a credential and without understanding that the
righteous among them will make certain that you are suitably denounced
before dismissing you as a fool.

But maybe somebody without such a huge chip on their shoulder will
send you some reasonable responses by e-mail.

1/2 ;^)  

1/2 ;^(

Oh yes, I did have a point.  A few years ago an MD with a thriving
practice in a very wealthy part of Silicon Valley once recommended that
I take such treatments to clear up a skin condition.  (Not through his
office, I might add.)  Although I'm sure that's not conclusive, it was
sure an unusual prescription!

-r

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59459
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

In article <1993Apr29.003406.55029@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
> A student told me today that she has been diagnosed with kidney stones, a
> cyst on one kidney, and a kidney infection.  She was upset because her
> condition had been misdiagnosed since last fall, and she has been ill all
> this time.  During her most recent doctor's appointment at her parents'
> HMO clinic, she said that about FORTY! x-rays were made of her kidney.
> When she asked why so many x-rays were being made, she was told by a
> technician that they need to see the area from different views, but she
> says that about five x-rays were made from EACH angle.  She couldn't help
> feeling that something must be wrong with the procedure or something.  She
> is a pre-med student and feels she could have understood what was
> happening if someone would have explained.  When nobody would, she got
> worried.
> 	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
> and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
> She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
> classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
> call back her doctor's office / clinic and try to get answers to these
> questions.  But I told her I would also write in to sci.med and see what I
> could find out about why there were so many x-rays and whether it seems
> o.k. to wait in line 3 or more months for surgery for something like this
> or whether she should be looking elsewhere for her care.  She does plan to
> get a second opinion, too. 
> 
> 	I will pass info on to her.  It never hurts to get information
> from more than one source.  
> 
> You can e-mail me or post.
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> Alice

My opinion(for what it's worth) is that 40 x-rays is *way* too many.  
Guidleines have been set on the number of dental x-rays and chest x-rays 
that one should have over a given period of time because of all the 
environmental factors that can cause cancer in humans, ionizing radiation 
is one of the most potent(splits DNA and causes hydroxyl free radical 
formation in tissue cells).  Ultasound(like that used in seeing the fetus 
in the uterus) has been shown to be extremely good at picking up tumors 
in the prostate and gallstones in the gallbladder.  But kidney tissue may 
be too dense for ultrasound to work for kidney stones(any radiologists care 
to comment?).

Most stones will pass(but it's a very painful process).  Unlike gallstones, 
I don't think that there are many drugs that can help "dissolve" the 
kidney stone(which is probably calcium-oxalate).  Vitamin C and magnesium 
have worked in rabbits to remove calcium from calcified plaques in the 
aterial wall.  I have no idea if a diet change or supplementation could 
speed up the process of kidney stone passage(but I'm pretty confident that 
a diet change and/or supplementation can prevent a reoccurance).  If surgery 
is being contemplated, the stone must be in the kidney tubule.  A second 
opinion is a good idea because there are better(less damaging) ways to break 
up the stone if it's logged within the kidney(sonic blasts).  HMO's are 
notorious for conservative care and long waits for expensvie treatments.  
My condolences to your friend. 

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59460
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Earwax

What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?

Stephen

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59461
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
 enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
>hepatitis.

I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.

Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
is often fairly fuzzy as well.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59462
From: kring@efes.physik.uni-kl.de (Thomas Kettenring)
Subject: Old Sermon (was: Krillean Photography)

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>FLAME ON
>
>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.
>
>FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)

We know that sermon.  It is posted roughly every month or so by different
persons, and that doesn't make it any better.

How did you get the idea that skeptics are closed-minded?  Why don't you
consider the possibility that they came to their conclusions by the
proper methods?  Besides, one can come to a conclusion without closing
one's mind to other possibilities.

I you don't agree with a person, please ask him why he thinks like that,
instead of insulting him.  Perhaps he's right.  Follow your own advice,
be open-minded.

If you don't post a bit of evidence for your claims, I'll complain that
it's always those "neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever" types who 
narrow-mindedly judge others without knowing their motives.

--
thomas kettenring, 3 dan, kaiserslautern, germany
The extraterrestrials don't even know this planet has native inhabitants.
Their government doesn't tell them.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59463
From: bpeters@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Brenda Peters)
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

In sci.med, rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube) writes:
>Hello,
>
>does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
>of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?
>
>Thanks in advance!
>
>Reinhard
>
>email: rdd@ibma.ipp-garching.mpg.de


Do I ever!!!!!!  After 2 years of having health problems that had been
cleared up w/allery shots, and not knowing why, I went and was re-tested.
I actually did better than when I had been tested 2 years ago....
Then putting 2 + 2 together, I realized that it all started back up
when the laser printer came into the office.  I kept track of the usage, and
on hi use days, I was worse.  I got better over the weekends....

The laser printer is gone, I'm 100% better!!!..... Whether it is the toner
dust or chemicals, I dont know (I am highly allergic to dust...), but
it definitely was the laser printer....



		     brenda peters
		     carderock div, nswc, david taylor model basin
		     bethesda, md  20084

		     e-mail :   cape@dtvms.dt.navy.mil
				 or

				 bpeters@oasys.dt.navy.mil

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59464
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Vitamin B6 doses

Forgive me, but just the other day I read on some newsgroup or other a
physician's posting about the theraputic uses of vitamin B6.  I can't
seem to locate the article, but I recall there was mention of some safe
limits.

I looked at a "Balanced 100" time release formulation from Walgreen's
and noted that the 100 mg of B6 was some thousands times the RDA.  Is
this safe?!?.

Also what was the condition that B6 was theraputic for?

Mail would be just fine if you don't want to clog the net.

Thanks,
Leon Traister (lmtra@uts.amdahl.com)


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59465
From: spl@pitstop.ucsd.edu (Steve Lamont)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C64FuM.5B8@news.claremont.edu> ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu (Eli Brandt) writes:
>In article <MMEYER.93Apr26102056@m2.dseg.ti.com> mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer) writes:
>>	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
>>friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?
>
>I think it was a typo for "Karelian photography", which is the
>practice of taking pictures of either Finns or Russians, depending
>on whom one asks.

Think we can lose the sci.image.processing group from this thread,
folks?

Thanks bunches.

							spl
-- 
Steve Lamont, SciViGuy -- (619) 534-7968 -- spl@szechuan.ucsd.edu
San Diego Microscopy and Imaging Resource/UC San Diego/La Jolla, CA 92093-0608
"My other car is a car, too."
                 - Bumper strip seen on I-805

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59466
From: rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com (Henry Melton)
Subject: Chromium as dietary suppliment for weight loss


My wife has requested that I poll the Sages of Usenet to see what is
known about the use of chromium in weight-control diet suppliments.
She has seen multiple products advertising it and would like any kind
real information.

My first impulse was "Yuck! a metal!" but I have zero data on it.

What do you know?

-- 
Henry Melton rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59467
From: gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:

>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>be liable to happen to the person?

>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)

>Rebecca


	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
concerted assault by several million of them.

			G.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59468
From: ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com> alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
>  alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>
>>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>Oooooh.  Bad example.  I'm an atheist.
>
This is not flame, or abuse, nor do I want to start another thread (this
is, after all, supposed to be about IMAGE PROCESSING).

BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.
To be a politically-correct skeptic, better to go with agnostic, like me! :)
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
*Dr. Thomas Trusk                    *                              *
*Dept. of Cellular Biology & Anatomy * Email to ttrusk@its.mcw.edu  *
*Medical College of Wisconsin        *                              *
*Milwaukee, WI  53226                *                              *
*(414) 257-8504                      *                              *
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59469
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

In article <1993Apr27.180334@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov>,
ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov wrote:
> 
> [summarized]
A person with a Schatzki's ring (a membrane partially blocking the 
espphagus) has worsening dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) and the 
doctor proposes dilation by balloow or bougie (using an inflatable
balloon to rupture the ring or a rubber hose to push through it.  

Question: is balloon dilation safe, common, and indicated?  It sounds
pretty invasive.
> [end summary]

Yes, this is a common and safe procedure.  The majority of Schatzki's
rings described by x-ray, however, wnd up being due to inflammation
instead of the congenital Schatzki's ring.  Occassionally a cancer
masquerades as a ring.  You should have the endoscopy to see if it
is due to the heartburn, and if so, you will need treatment for the
heartburn ong term.  The balloon dilation is an alternative to cutting
open your chest and cutting out a section of the esophagus, so dilation
is not at all invasive, considering the alternative.  


> The second issue: [summarized]  He has had extra heartbeats for the past
3 to 4 years, and once was symptomatic from them, with some
lightheadedness.
He is young, (30-ish), thin and in good
> health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
> caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
> want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
> of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
> as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
> down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
> be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
> same time.

I' not an expert on heart problems, but PVC's are common and have been
overtreated in the past.  My personal experience, and I have the same 
history an build you do (related to the heart, that is), is that my PVC's
come and go, with some months causing anxiety.  Taking on more fluids
seems to help, and they seem worse in the summer.  Remember that a slow 
heart rate will allow more PVC's to be apparent, so perhaps it is an 
indication of a healthy cardiac system (but ask an expert about that
last point, especially)

Good luck, hope we don't die of arrhythmias.  (God, what a happy thought)

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59470
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <1993Apr28.023749.9259@informix.com>, hartman@informix.com (Robert Hartman) writes:
> In article <1rjn0eINNnqn@MINERVA.CIS.YALE.EDU> wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel) writes:
>>Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
>>cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  
> 
> No doubt the sci.med* folks are getting out their flamethrowers.  I'm
> rather certain that the information you got was not medical literature
> in the accepted academic/scientific journals.  So, the righteous among
> them will no doubt jump on that.
> 
> Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
> that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
> GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
> maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.
> 
> Then there'll be the ones who call your doctor a raving quack, even
> though he, like Linus Pauling, is lucid and robust well into his
> nineties--but nevermind about that.  He shouldn't charge for his
> equipment and supplies, since they're no doubt not approved by the
> FDA.  Of course, with FDA approval an MD or pharmaceutical company can
> charge whatever they can get for such safe and effective treatments as
> thalidomide.  But nevermind about that either.
> 
> Unfortunately, you dared to step into the sacred turf of Net.Medical.
> Discussion without a credential and without understanding that the
> righteous among them will make certain that you are suitably denounced
> before dismissing you as a fool.
> 
> But maybe somebody without such a huge chip on their shoulder will
> send you some reasonable responses by e-mail.
> 
> 1/2 ;^)  
> 
> 1/2 ;^(
> 
> Oh yes, I did have a point.  A few years ago an MD with a thriving
> practice in a very wealthy part of Silicon Valley once recommended that
> I take such treatments to clear up a skin condition.  (Not through his
> office, I might add.)  Although I'm sure that's not conclusive, it was
> sure an unusual prescription!
> 

The bacteria in your gut are important.  But colonic flushes are not the 
way to improve gut function.  Each person has almost a unique mix of 
bacteria in his/her gut.  Diet affects this mix as does the use of 
antibiotics.  A diet change is a much better way to alter the players in 
your gut than is colonic flushes.  Cross contamination has been a real 
problem in some of the outfits that do this "treatment" since the equipment 
is not always cleaned as well as it should be between patient "treatments".
Dental drills have me a little concerned about HIV infection and I've 
picked a dentist that uses both chemical and autoclave sterilization of his 
instruments(more clostly but much safer).  Full sterile technique is 
also used just like that practiced in an OR(mask, gloves and gowns worn and 
disposed of between patients).  Each visit costs me 15 dollars more than 
the standard and customary fee so I have to pay it out of pocket.  His much 
higher fees do not drive away patients.

I can not think of any good reason why someone should subject themselves to 
this colonic flush procedure.  For very little, if any benefit, you 
subject yourself to hepatitis, cholera, parasitic disease and even HIV.
Just ask yourself why someone might resort to this kind of treatment?
Could they be having GI distress?  Could this distress be due to a 
pathogenic organism?  Could I get this organism if the equipment is not 
cleaned properly between patients?  Do I really want to take this risk?
Food for thought.

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59471
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Hives

In article <1993Apr28.064144.24115@nuscc.nus.sg>, isckbk@nuscc.nus.sg
(Kiong Beng Kee) wrote:
> 
> 
> My wife had hives during the first two months
> of her pregnancy.  My son (3 months old), breast-fed,
> now has the same symptoms.  She has been to a skin-specialist,
> but he has merely prescribed various medicines (one
> each visit as though by trial and error :-))
> 
> Anti-histamines worked on both of them, but looks like
> becoming less effective.
> 
> Are there other solutions?  Thanks.
> -- 
> Kiong Beng Kee
> Dept of Information Systems and Computer Science
> National University of Singapore
> Lower Kent Ridge Road, SINGAPORE 0511

Food products can get through breast milk and cause allergies in the
young.  Since the son is allergic it would be best not to go to
bottle feedings, but rather eliminate foods from mother's diet.  Your
pediatrician should be able to give you a list of foods to avoid.

Good luck, Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59472
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

In article <35004@castle.ed.ac.uk>, gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark) writes:
> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
> 
>>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>>be liable to happen to the person?
> 
>>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)
> 
>>Rebecca
> 
> 
> 	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
> certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
> carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
> would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
> concerted assault by several million of them.
> 
> 			G.
Not sure of this but I think some millipedes cause a toxic reaction (sting?
So I would not assume that they are not dangerous merely on the basis of 
vegetarianism, after all wasps are vegetarian too.
dnc.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59473
From: mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

How about going to a doctor to get some minor surgery done. Doctor
refuses to do it because it's ``to risky'' (still charges me $50!).
I go home and do it myself. No problem.

The ``surgery'' involved digging out a pine needle that had buried
itself under my tongue.

Mike

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59474
From: jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
: My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
: medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
: 
: My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
: their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,
: etc...)
: 
: Thank you,
: 
: Dave Carvell
: pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

First off, I would consider the severity of the pain. I had stones
several years ago, and there's now way I could have made it without
heavy duty doses of morphine and demerol and a two week stay in the
hospital. I was told that there was nothing that I could take that would
dissolve them. If the stones are passible, the best thing she could do
is drink LOTS of water, and hope that they pass, but every time they
move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 
--

Jeff Silva
(707) 577-2681
jeffs@sr.hp.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59475
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty

In article <C670zy.DA@utdallas.edu>, kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf) writes:
> In article <badboyC64t0z.FGq@netcom.com> badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:
>>
>>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>>really help them).
>>
>>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.
>>
>>
>>
> Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
> of your feet and improve your sex life?
>


You probably were trying to be facetious but just for the record partial nasal
obstruction is correlated with a number of chronic disorders such as migraine,
hyperthyroidism, asthma, peptic ulcer, dysmenorrhea, and lack of libido (:-) )
[Riga IN. Rev d'Oto-Neuro-Ophthalmol 1957;24:325-335], cardiac symptoms
[Jackson RT. Annals of Otology 1976;85:65-70  Cvetnic MH, Cvetnic V. Rhinology
1980;18:47-50     Cottle MH. Rhinology 1980;18:67-81], and fever, inadequate
oral intake and electrolyte imbalance [Fairbanks DNF. Otorhinolaryngology Head
and Neck Surgery 1986;94:412-415).

So before you post your inane comments it would be nice if you'd run a MEDLINE
search on the topic say back to 1966. There's been extensive literature on this
for over a 100 years.

I may be in cardiology but I've had a very good working relationship with
my colleagues from ENT.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL






Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59476
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Re: Earwax

stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:

>What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
>it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
>every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
>Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?

Assuming that the wax is causing hearing loss, congestion or popping
in the ears, you can try some cautious tepid water irrigation with a
bulb syringe, but it is awkward to do for oneself and may not work or
may even make things worse.  (My wife would disagree, she does it
successfully every six months or so.)  In any case DO NOT ATTEMPT
ANYTHING WITH Q-TIPS!!!

My experience has been that this is initially best handled by a
Ear/Nose/Throat person.  I say initially, because an ENT can evaluate
whether or not you might have success on your own with a little
instruction.

I am not a physician (obviously, because I eschew the term
otolaryngologist); this posting is based only on personal experience.

========================================================================

<Usual Disclaimer>        "The best is the enemy of the good" - Voltaire

Leon Traister (lmtra@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com)

c/o Amdahl Corporation            (408)737-5449
1250 E. Arques Ave.  M/S 338
P.O. Box 3470
Sunnyvale, CA  94088-3470

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59477
From: ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh)
Subject: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

Greeting

I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.

Thanks for oyur help in Advance.

Terrance J Dishongh
ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59478
From: shell@cs.sfu.ca (Barry Shell)
Subject: Great Canadian Scientists

About two years ago I posted the following:
 
I am planning to write a new book called "Great Canadian Scientists."
Please forward your nominations to me: shell@cs.sfu.ca
 
The rules are that the person must be a Canadian citizen. They don't have
to be born in Canada or even live in Canada, but they must have (or have
had, if they are dead) Canadian citizenship while they are/were great
Canadian scientists.
 
About 70 people have been nominated already and they are listed at the
end of this posting.
 
I'm not quite sure what should constitute greatness, and there may be a
gray area here. If you have any ideas on criteria for greatness, I would be
pleased to hear them. In any event, please nominate people even if you are
not sure they are great. I would like as big a list as possible.
 
Please give me a name and email address, phone number or mail address, so
that I can contact the person. If you don't know any of the above, then
give me their last known whereabouts. Also please give your reason for why
you think the person should be considered a great Canadian scientist.
 
After I have the list, I will choose about six of the most interesting ones
and do in-depth biographies of those individuals in the style of Tracy
Kidder's "Soul of a New Machine" or some other dramatic technique.
The rest of the great Canadian scientists will appear in an appedix with 
one paragraph biographies.
 
If you have any other ideas about this project, I am interested to hear
them.
 
So far, I have received 68 nominations as follows:
 
 
First Name     Last Name      Nominator            Famous For
----------     ---------      ---------            ----------
Sid            Altman         Kuszewski, John      Catalytic RNA(Nobel Chem 89)
Frederick      Banting        me                   Insulin (Nobel U23 medicine)
Davidson       Black          Stanley, Robert      Discovered Peking Man
James R.       Bolton         Warden, Joseph       chemistry?
Raoul          Bott           Smith, Steven        Math: algebraic topology.
Willard        Boyle          Chamm, Craig         Co inventor of CCD
Gerard         Bull           Stanley, Robert      Ballistics and gunnery
Dennis         Chitty         Galindo-Leal, Carlos First animal ecologist
Brian C.       Conway         Tellefsen, Karen     Electrochemistry
Stephen        Cook           Mendelzon, Alberto   NP-completeness, complexity
?              Copp           Kuch, Gerald         biochem aspects of physiol
H.S.M.         Coxeter        Calkin, Neil J.      Regular polytopes (math)
P. N.          Daykin         Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
H. E.          Duckworth      anonymous            Mass Spectroscopy,  admin
Jack           Edmonds        Snoeyink, Jack       Math, Operations research
Reginald       Fessenden      Johnsen, Hans        Wire insulation, light bulb
Ursula         Franklin       McKellin, William    Physics archeol. materials
J. A.          Gray           Gray, Tom            Nuclear physics, The Gray
E. W.          Guptill        Chamm, Craig         Slotted array radar
Donald         Hebb           Lyons, Michael       Learning (Hebbian synapses)
Gerhard        Herzberg       me                   Optical spectr Nobel 71
James          Hillier        me                   Electron Microscope (Can/Am)
Crawford S.    Holling        Galindo-Leal, Carlos Ecology, predators and prey
David          Hubel          Lyons, Michael       Visual cortex (Nobel med ?)
Kenneth        Iverson        Dare, Gary           Invented APL
J. D.          Jackson        Austern, Matt        Elementary Particle Theory
Andre          Joyal          Pananagden, Prakash  Category theory, categ Logic
Martin         Kamen          me                   Carbon-14 (Canadian/Amer.)
Irving         Kaplansky      Knighten, Bob        Algebra, functional analysis
George S.      Kell           Kell, Dave           Hot water freezing
T. E.          Kellogg        Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
Geraldine      Kenney-Wallace Siegman, Anthony     Chemistry ? Administration
Brian          Kernaghan      Brader, Mark         C programming language
Michael L.     Klein          Marchi, Massimo      Theoretical Chemistry
Charles J.     Krebs          Galindo-Leal, Carlos Ecology, Krebs effect
K. J.          Laidler        Tellefsen, Karen     Chemical Kinetics
G. C.          Laurence       Palmer, Bill         Physics ????
Raymond        Lemieux        Smith, Earl          First synthesized glucose
Martin         Levine         Meunier, Robert      Computer vision
Edward S.      Lowry          himself              Computer programming
Pere           Marie-Victorin Meunier, Robert      Jardin Botanique de Montreal
Colin          MacLeod        Turner, Steven       Nobel (?) DNA discovery?
Marshall       McLuhan        Clamen, Stewart      Social sci, communications
Ben            Morrison       Willson, David       Aurora Borealis
Lawrence       Morley         Strome, Murray       Plate Tektonics/Remote sense
Farley         Mowat          Abbott, John         Northern Animal rights?
Kevin          Ogilvie        Kendrick, Kelly      Genetics, cure for herpes?
Sir William    Osler          Lyons, Michael       Medicine
P.J.E.         Peebles        Vishniac, Ethan      Most important cosmologist
Wilder         Penfield       Perri, Marie         Anatomical basis for memory
John           Polanyi        me                   chemiluminescensce Nobel86
Denis          Poussart       Meunier, Robert      Computer Vision
Anatol         Rapoport       Lloyd-Jones, David   conflict theory, game theory
Howard         Rapson         Sutherland, Russell  Pulp chemistry
Hans           Selye          Goel, Anil K.        Psychology of stress.
William        Stephenson     Wilkins, Darin       WW2 Enigma code, Wire photo
Boris          Stoicheff      Siegman, Anthony     Raman Spectroscopy
David          Suzuki         Meister, Darren      Science communication
Henry          Taube          Parker, Wiley        Physical Chemistry Nobel83
Richard        Taylor         Manuel, John         Verified Quark model Nobel90
David          Thompson       Eisler, Michael      Mapped western Canada
Endel          Tulving        Green, Christopher   Psychology of memory
Bill           Tutte          Royle, Gordon        matroid theory (math)
I              Uchida         Palmer, Bill         Down's syndrome
J. Tuzo        Wilson         Collier, John        Continental Drift theory
R. H.          Wright         Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
J.L.(Allen)    Yen            Leone, Pasquale      VL baseline interferometry
Walter         Zinn           me                   Breader Reactor (Can/Amer.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
The list is growing nicely. It's amazing to see just how much was discovered
by Canadians. Actually there are many more who were born in Canada, but
became Americans after graduate school.
 
Please note: a lot of people have nominated Alexander Graham Bell but I
feel he was really a Scottish/American with a summer home in Canada. Now
I know this is debatable, but please don't nominate him again.
 
If anyone can fill in some of the question marks on the list, please drop
me a line.
==================================================
 
That was two years ago. Since then, I have received a grant from Science
Culture Canada, a division of Supply and Services Canada to research the
book. Since my old posting the book has evolved into an educational book
for kids aged 9 - 14 (though this may change again) It will have about
40 two-page spreads with a large graphic in the middle and text/graphic
boxes all around on the following subjects: Vital statistics and photo of
the scientist, Personal statement from the scientist, Narrative of a few
moments in the life of the scientist, "What I was doing when I was 12",
So you want to be a <insert kind of scientist>, Experiment you can do. There 
will be an appendix with 100 - 200 more scientists with one paragraph
biographies who didn't quite make it to the double spreads. The whole thing
will then be published on CD-ROM with video and sound clips for added
richness. I am looking for a CD-ROM publisher as well. The text part may
also be available on the CANARIE electronic highway being developed in
Canada as well.
 
I am still looking for a publisher though Penguin Canada came close 
to being it. Hope to find one soon. 
 
I would like to again ask for more nominations, especially in the
pure sciences of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Also criticisms of 
the list are welcomed. Also women and French-Canadian scientists are needed.
 
I hope this posting will get others to nominate more Great Canadian
Scientists, and to discuss what is "great" what is "Canadian" and what is
"scientist".
 
Please respond to:
shell@sfu.ca
 
or
Barry Shell   604-876-5790
 
4692 Quebec St. Vancouver, B.C.  V5V 3M1 Canada
 
Thanks to all who responded already.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59479
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>FLAME ON
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.

(WITH-COUNTERFLAME-ENABLED

 Columbus was indeed a crank, but not in the manner you think.

 The fact that the world was round was well known when he set sail.  It was
 also well known that the circumference was about 25K miles, and that you could
 not reach Asia bo going west with current technology -- you would neither be
 able to carry enough supplies, nor get a long enough stretch of good sailing
 weather.  Nobody thought he would fall off the edge of the world.  Instead,
 they expected him to die at sea.

 Columbus thought for no good reason that the circumference was only 16K miles,
 making the trip practical.

 Unfortunately for Columbus and his shipmates, the Earth's circumference is
 indeed 25K miles.

 Fortunately for Columbus and his shipmates, there was a stopping place right
 about where Asia would have been had the circumference been 16K miles.


 My source is the recent PBS series on Columbus.

)

>
>FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)
>
>-- Alex



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59480
From: jcarey@news.weeg.uiowa.edu (John Carey)
Subject: med school

Actually I am entering vet school next year, but the question is 
relevant for med students too.

Memorizing large amounts has never been my strong point academically.
Since this is a major portion of medical education -- anatomy, 
histology, pathology, pharmacology, are for the most part mass 
memorization -- I am a little concerned.  As I am sure most 
med students are.

Can anyone suggest techniques for this type of memorization?  I 
have had reasonable success with nemonics and memory tricks like
thinking up little stories to associate unrelated things.  But I have
never applied them to large amounts of "data".

Has anyone had luck with any particular books, memory systems, or
cheap software?   

Can you suggest any helpful organizational techniques?  Being an
older student who returned to school this year, organization (another
one of my weak points) has been a major help to my success.

Please no griping about how all you have to do is "learn" the material
conceptually.  I have no problem with that, it is one of my strong 
points.  But you can't get around the fact that much of medicine is
rote memorization.  

Thanks for your help.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59481
From: daless@di.unipi.it (Antonella Dalessandro)
Subject: Epilepsy and video games

There have been a few postings in the past on alleged pathological 
(esp. neurological) conditions induced by playing video games
(e.g. Nintendo). Apparently, there have been reported several cases of
"photosensitive epilepsy", due to the flashing of some
patterns and the strong attention of the (young) players.
One poster to comp.risks reported some action from
the British Government.

A quick search in a database reported the following two published
references:

1. E.J. Hart, Nintendo epilepsy, in New England J. of Med., 322(20), 1473
2. TK Daneshmend et al., Dark Warrior epilepsy, BMJ 1982; 284:1751-2.

I would appreciate if someone could post (or e-mail) 
any reference to (preferably published) further work on the subject.
Any pointer to other information and/or to possible technical tools 
(if any) for reducing the risks are appreciated.

Many thanks,

Antonella D'Alessandro,
Pisa -- Italy.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59482
From: adwright@iastate.edu ()
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

In <1993Apr29.112642.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu> chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>In article <35004@castle.ed.ac.uk>, gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark) writes:
>> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
>> 
>>>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>>>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>>>be liable to happen to the person?
>> 
>>>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>>>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)
>> 
>>>Rebecca
>> 
>> 
>> 	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
>> certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
>> carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
>> would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
>> concerted assault by several million of them.
>> 
>> 			G.
>Not sure of this but I think some millipedes cause a toxic reaction (sting?
>So I would not assume that they are not dangerous merely on the basis of 
>vegetarianism, after all wasps are vegetarian too.
>dnc.

As a child i can remember picking up a centipede and getting a rather painful 
sting, but it quickly subsided. Much less painful compared to a bee sting. 
Centipedes have a poison claw (one of the front feet) to stun their prey, but
in my single experience it did not have a lot of "bite" to it.

A.





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59483
From: wdh@faron.mitre.org (Dale Hall)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <8frk1ym00Vp5Apxl1q@andrew.cmu.edu> "Gabriel D. Underwood" <gabe+@CMU.EDU> writes:
>I heard a great Civil War story...      A guy on the battlfield is shot
>in the groin,   the bullet continues on it's path, and lodges in the
>abdomen of a female spectator.    Lo and behold....
>
>As the legend goes,   both parents survived,  married,  and raised the child.
>

	....who turned out to be a real son-of-a-gun.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59484
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Depression

>I do believe that depression can have a dietary component.

Depression can also have various chemical (environmental) components.
I noticed that I became depressed in various buildings, and at home
when the air conditioning was on. Subsequent testing revealed that
I was allergic to stemphyllium, a mold commonly found in air conditioners.
After I began taking antigens, that problem disappeared.

Bruce L.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59485
From: mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

Laser printers often emit ozone (which smells sort of like Clorox).
Adequate ventilation is recommended.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59486
From: mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
>pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:

>move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 

One more reason for men to learn the Lamaze breathing techniques, in order
to be able to get some pain reduction instantly, wherever you are.
-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59487
From: brian@ucsd.edu (Brian Kantor)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

As I recall from my bout with kidney stones, there isn't any
medication that can do anything about them except relieve the pain.

Either they pass, or they have to be broken up with sound, or they have
to be extracted surgically.

When I was in, the X-ray tech happened to mention that she'd had kidney
stones and children, and the childbirth hurt less.

Demerol worked, although I nearly got arrested on my way home when I barfed
all over the police car parked just outside the ER.
	- Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59488
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Depression

Some of the MD's in this newsgroup have been riding my butt pretty good
(maybe in some cases with good reason).  In this post on depression, I'm 
laying it all out.  I'll continue to post here because I think that I have 
some knowledge that could be useful.  Once you have read this post, you 
should know where I'm coming from when I post again in the future.

In article <123552@netnews.upenn.edu>, lchaplyn@mail.sas.upenn.edu (Lida Chaplynsky) writes:
> 
> A family member of mine is suffering from a severe depression brought on
> by menopause as well as a mental break down.  She is being treated with
> Halydol with some success but the treatments being provided through her
> psychiatrist are not satisfactory.  Someone suggested contacting a
> nutritionist to
> discuss alternative treatment.  Since she is sensitive to medication, I
> think this is a good suggestion but don't know where to begin.  If anyone
> can suggest a Philly area nutritionist, or else some literature to read,
> I'd appreciate it.
 
Lida,
I can emphasize with your situation.  Both my wife and I suffered from 
bouts of depression.  Her's was brought on by breast cancer and mine was a 
rebound stress reaction to her modified radical mastectomy and 
chemotherapy.  Lida, I used my knowledge of nutrition to get her through 
her six months of chemotherapy(with the approval of her oncologist).  When 
severe depression set in a few months after the chemo stopped, I tried to 
use supplements to bring her out of it.  I had "cured" her PMS using 
supplements and I really thought that I knew enough about the role of diet 
in depression to take care of her depression as well.  It didn't work and 
she was put on Prozac by her oncologist.  Two Winters ago(three years after 
by wife's breast cancer) I got hit with severe depression(pretty typical and 
one reason why many marriages break up after breast cancer or another 
stressor).  I tried to take care of it for several months with 
supplementation.  Didn't work.  My internist ended up putting me on Prozac. 
I was going to give you a list of several studies that have been done using 
B6, niacin, folate and B12 to "cure" depression.  I'm not going to do that 
because all you would be doing is flying blind like I was.

Lida, I do believe that depression can have a dietary component.  But the 
problem is that you need to know exactly what the problem is and then use 
an approach which will "fix" the problem.  For chemotherapy, I knew exactly 
what drugs were going to be used and exactly what nutrients would be 
affected.  Same thing for PMS.  I was flying blind for both of these 
stressors but the literature that I used to devise a treatment program was 
pretty good.  Depression is just too complicated.  What you really need is 
a nutritional scan.  This is not a diet analysis but an analysis of your 
bodies nutrient reserves.  For every vitamin and mineral(except vitamin C), 
you have a reserve.  The RDA is not designed to give you enough of any 
nutrient to keep these reserves full, it is only designed to keep them from 
being emptied which would cause clinical pathology.  Stress will increase 
your need for many vitamins and minerals.  This is when your reserves become 
very important.

Lida, without your permission, I'm going to use your post as a conduit to 
try to explain to the readers in this group and Sci. Med. where I'm coming 
from.  I have taught a course on human nutrition in one of the Osteopathic 
Medical schools for ten years now.  I've written my own textbook because 
none was available.  What I teach is not a rehash of biochemistry.  I 
preach nutrient reserves(yes my lectures in this course are referred to by 
my students as sermons).  Here is what I cover:

Indroduction and Carbohydrates 			Lipids

Proteins I					Proteins II

Energy Balance					Evaluation of Nutritional
						Status I, A Clinical 
						Perspective

Evaluation of Nutritional Status II,            Evaluation of Nutritional		
A Biochemical Perspective			Status III, Homework 
						Assignment Using the 
						Nutritionist IV Diet and 
						Fitness Analysis Software 
						program

Weight Control					Food Fads and Facts

Age-Related Change in Nutrient Requirements	Food Additives, 
						Contaminants and Cancer

Drug-Nutrient Interactions			Mineral and Water Balance

Sodium, Potassium and Chloride			Calcium, Magnesium and 
						Phosphorus

Iron						Zinc and Copper

Iodine and Fluoride				Other Trace Minerals

Vitamin A					Vitamin E

Vitamins D and K				Vitamin C

Thiamin and Niacin				Riboflavin and Pyridoxine

Pantothenic and Folic acids			Biotin and B12

Other Nutrient Factors				Enteral Nutrition

Parenteral Nutrition

Every three years I spend my entire Summer reviewing the Medical literature 
to find material that I can use in my nutrition textbook.  I last did this 
in the Summer of 1991.  I read everything that I can find and then sit down 
and rewrite my lecture handouts which are bound in three separate books 
that have 217, 237 and 122 pages.  Opposite each page of written text(which 
I write myself) I've pulled figures, tables and graphs from various 
copyrighted sources.  Since this material is only being used for 
educational purposes, I can get around the copyright laws (so far).  I can not 
send this material out to newsgroup readers(as I've been asked to do).

I am now in the process of trying to get a grant to setup a nutrition 
assessment lab.  This is the last peice of the nutrition puzzle that I need 
to make my education program complete.  This lab will let me measure the 
nutrient reserve for almost all the vitamins and minerals that are known to 
be required in humans.  The Mayo clinic already uses a similiar lab to 
design supplement programs for their cancer patients.  Cancer Treatment 
Centers of America, which is a private for-profit organization with 
hospitals in Illinois and Oklahoma(Tulsa) also operates a 
nutritional assessment clinical lab.  I also believe that the Pritikin 
Clinic in California has a similiar lab setup.

For physicians reading this post, I would suggest that you get the new 
Clinical Nutrition Textbook that has just been published(Feb) by Mosby.  I 
have been using Alpers Manual of Nutritional Therapeutics(a Little Brown 
series book) as a supplemental text for my course but Alpers is geared more 
to residency training.  Two M.D's have written this new Clinical Nutrition
textbook and it is geared more towards medical student education and it 
does a good job of covering the lab tests that can be run to assess a 
patient's nutritional status.  Let me quote a few sentences from the 
Preface of this new text:

"So-called nutrition specialists were in reality gastroenterologists, 
hematologists, or pediatricians who just happened to profess some knowledge 
of nutrition as it related to their field of practice."  

"Unfortunately, about two thirds of the medical schools in the United 
States require no formal instruction in nutrition."

"But times and medical practice have changed.  More than half of the 
leading causes of death in this country are nutrition related."

"... this monograph should accomplish the following two objectives: (1) it 
should complement your medical training by emphasizing the relevance of 
nutrition to your medical practice; and (2) it should heighten your 
awareness of nutrition as a medical speciality that is vitally important 
for both disease prevention and the treatment of diseases of essentially 
every organ system."

Roland L. Weinsier, MD, DrPH 

Lida, my advise to you is that you tell your family members to try to find 
a physician who has an understanding of the role that vitamins and minerals
(yes even magnesium may play a role in depression) play in depression and 
who could get a nutritional profile run.  Menopause is often a time when 
women suffer depression.  There are a lot of hormonal changes that are 
occuring but they are not the same ones that occur during PMS.  A 
nutritionist may also be able to help.  Not too long ago a poster mentioned 
that his nutritionist had diagnosed a selenium deficiency based on a red 
cell glutathionine peroxidase test(the specific test for the selenium 
reserve).  Most clinical labs will not run this test and I advised him to 
try to make sure that the lab that did the test was certified.  There are 
also a lot of hair and nail analysis labs setup to do trace mineral 
analysis but these labs are not regulated.  Checks of these labs using 
certified standards, and also those doing water lead analysis, showed some 
pretty shoddy testing was going on.  If you or anyone else finds someone 
who will run these speciality nutrition tests, make sure that they are 
using a lab that has been certified under CLIA(the Clinical Laboratory 
Improvement Act).  

A diet analysis may be helpful since many nutrient reserves have been shown 
to correlate fairly well with the dietary intake as monitored by food logging 
and software analysis(Nutritionist IV and other software programs).  But 
there are still about half of the nutrients required by humans that do not 
show a very good correlation between apparent dietary intake and reserve status.
Until we have more nutritional assessment clinical labs in operation in the 
U.S. and physicians who have been trained how to use the nutritional 
profile that these labs provide to devise a treatment approach that uses 
diet changes and supplementation, anti-depressants will probably continue 
to be the best approach to depression.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance."

































Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59489
From: hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*)
Subject: re: earwax

Hi Stephen
Ear wax is a healthy way to help prevent ear infections, both by preventing
a barrier and also with some antibiotic properties.  Too much can block the
external auditory canal (the hole in the outside of the ear) and cause some 
hearing problems.  It is very simple, and safe, to remove excess wax on your
own, or at your physician's office.  You can take a syringe (no needles!) and
fill it with 50% warm water (cold can cause fainting) and 50% OTC hydrogen
peroxide.  Then point the ear towards the ceiling ( about 45 degrees up)
and insert the tip of the syringe (helps to have someone else do this!) and  
firmly expell the solution.  Depending on the size of the syringe and the
tenacity of the wax, this could take several rinses.  If you place a bowl 
under the ear to catch the water, it will be much drier :-).  You can buy
a syringe with a special tip at your local pharmacy, or just use whatever
you may have.  If wax is old, it will be harder, and darker.  You can try
adding a few drops of olive oil into the ear during a shower to soften up
the wax.  Do this for a couple days, then try syringing again.  It is also
safe to point your ear up at the shower head, and allow the water to rinse
it out.
Good Luck
-heather

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59490
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

In article <1993Apr28.095305.3587@rose.com>, ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:
>      banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu (Marty Banschbach) writes:
> [...]
> B >  Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There
> B >  has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is
> B >  kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been
> B >  done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the
> B >  intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones
> B >  from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to
> B >  breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of
> B >  Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong,
> B >  increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is
> B >  restricting calcium intake.    
> [...]
> B >  Marty B.
> 
>  Marty, I personally wouldn't be so quick and take that NEJM article 
>  on kidney stones as gospel. First of all, I would want to know who
>  sponsored that study.
>  I have seen too many "nutrition" bulletins over the years from
>  local newspapers, magazines, to TV-guide, with disclaimers on the
>  bottom informing us that this great health news was brought to us
>  compliments of the Dairy Industries.
>  There are of course numerous other interest groups now that thrive
>  financially on the media hype created from the supposedly enormous 
>  benefits of increasing one's calcium intake.
> 
>  Secondly, were ALL the kidney stones of the test subjects involved 
>  in that project analysed for their chemical composition?  The study
>  didn't say that, it only claimed that "most kidney stones are large-
>  ly calcium."
>  Perhaps it won't be long before another study comes up with the exact
>  opposite findings. A curious phenomenon with researchers is that they
>  are oftentimes just plain wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
>  
>  Sodium/magnesium/calcium/phosphorus ratios are, in my opinion, still 
>  the most reliable indicators for the cause, treatment, and prevention 
>  of kidney stones.
>  I, for one, will continue to recommend the most logical changes in
>  one's diet or through supplementation to counteract or prevent kidney
>  stones of either type; and they definitely won't include an INCREASE
>  in calcium if the stones have been identified as being of the calcium
>  type and people's chemical analysis confirms that they would benefit
>  from a PHOSPHORUS-raising approach instead!
> 
>      Ron Roth

Ron, you are absolutely right.  Not all kidney stones have calcium and not 
all calcium stones are calcium-oxalate.  But the vast majority are calcium-
oxalate.  Calcium is just one piece of the puzzle.  I cited that NEJM article 
as a way of pointing out to some of the physicians in this group that 
conventional wisdom is used in medicine, always has been and probably 
always will be.  If one uses conventional wisdom, there is a chance that 
you will be wrong.  As long as the error is not going to cause a lot of 
damage, what's the big deal(why call a physician who gives anti-fungals to 
sinus suffers or GI distress patients a quack?).

On the kidney stone problem.  I'd want a mineral profile run in a clinical 
chemistry lab.  Balance is much more important than the dietary intake of 
calcium.  I know that you use an electrical conductance technique to 
measure mineral balance in the body.  I know that you don't think that the 
serum levels for minerals are very useful(I agree).  If I can get a good 
nutritional assessment lab setup where I can actually measure the tissue 
reserve for minerals, I'd like to do a collaborative study with you to see 
how your technique compares with mine.


Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59491
From: tung@paaiec.enet.dec.com
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?


I have just started taking allergy shots a month ago and is 
still wondering what I am getting into. A friend of mine told
me that the body change every 7 years (whatever that means)
and I don't need those antibody-building allergy shots at all.
Does that make sense to anyone?

BTW, can someone summarize what is in the Consumer Report
February, 1988 article?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59492
From: mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou)
Subject: cure for dry skin?

Hi all,

My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
cure for this.

At the supermarkets or pharmacies, there are quite a lot of stuffs for
dry skins, but what to chose?

Thanks in advance for all advices and hints.

Reply by email preferred.

Alex



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59493
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

-*----
In article <1993Apr28.081953.21043@nmt.edu> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
> Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? ...

The millipede's around here (Austin) have no sting.  Some of the
centipedes do.  The question Rebecca Snyder asks is much like
asking "How venomous are snakes?"  One either wants to ask "which
snake?" or point to some reference on the many different species
of snake.  Similarly, there are many different species of
millipede and centipede.  (These are different families;
millipedes have two pairs of legs per body segment, while
centipedes have but one pair.)

Sorry if this information is not useful.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59494
From: roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
Subject: Sumatripton (spelling?)


I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called sumatripton
(I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly utilizes a chemical
that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has regular migraines and nothing
seems to help - does anyone know anything about this new drug?  Is it in
a testing phaze or anywhere near approval?  Does it seem to be working?

Any information would help.

Please feel free to e-mail rather than take up bandwidth if you prefer.

Thanks in advance,

-Rox
-- 
roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us


"Virtue is a relative term."

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59496
From: bechtler@asdg.enet.dec.com (Laurie Bechtler)
Subject: Re: Urine analysis


In article <C67t3M.Fxx@athena.cs.uga.edu>, mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes...
>In article <1rm2bn$kps@transfer.stratus.com> Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com writes:
>>
>> Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
>>an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
>>a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
>>ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
>>If so where can these substances be found. 
> 
>You could do what I do: never go near the stuff!  :)
> 
> 
>-- 

There's always the old switcheroo.

My brother works at a dialysis clinic.  They were interviewing 
candidates for a technician job (mainly electronics tech), and a
urine screen was part of the interview.  The bathroom was across
the hall from a lab.  One candidate managed to switch his urine
sample with one he grabbed from the lab.  (No one was in it at
the time.)

Most inner-city dialysis patients have quite a few medical problems,
so it was immediately obvious what had happened.  My brother 
fleetingly considered telling the candidate, "I'm sorry but you
are very ill and need medical attention immediately."  They offered
him another *well-monitored* chance and he declined.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59497
From: markv@pixar.com (Mark T. VandeWettering)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:

>FLAME ON

>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.

	
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

	Accepted by whom?  People who think digital watches are a 
	real good idea?  That 60 channels of television is 10x better 
	than 6 channels of television?  

>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

	You're right.  Keep an open mind to the following:

	1. Taco flavored donuts.
	2. Cannibalism.  Good way to get that extra protein in the diet.
	3. Belief in Yawanga, armadillo god of parking meters.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mark VandeWettering
Truest Servant of Yawanga!  Oh Yawanga!  He who never will become a road-pizza!
All of my quarters and dimes, nay even nickels, will be spent to buy time to 
		park in your eternal parking lot!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59498
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
>pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
>move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 

I've had neither a baby nor a kidney stone, but according to my aunt, 
who has had plenty of both, a kidney stone is worse. 


--Barbara 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59499
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Chromium as dietary suppliment for weight loss

In article <1993Apr29.145140.10559@newsgate.sps.mot.com>, rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com (Henry Melton) writes:
> 
> My wife has requested that I poll the Sages of Usenet to see what is
> known about the use of chromium in weight-control diet suppliments.
> She has seen multiple products advertising it and would like any kind
> real information.
> 
> My first impulse was "Yuck! a metal!" but I have zero data on it.
> 
> What do you know?
> 
> -- 
> Henry Melton 

I'll tell you all that I know about chromium.  But before I do, I want to 
get a few things off my chest.  I just got blasted in e-mail for my kidney 
stone posts.  Kidney stones are primarily caused by diet, as is heart 
disease and cancer.  When I give dietary advise, it is not intended to 
encourage people reading this news group(or Sci. Med. Nutrition where I do 
most of my posting) to avoid seeing a doctor.  Nothing can be further from 
the truth.  Kidney stones can be caused by tumors and this possibility has to 
be ruled out.  But once it is, diet is a good way of preventing a reoccurance.
Same thing with heart disease and cancer, if you suspect that you may have 
a problem with one of these diseases, don't use what I'm going to tell you 
or what you read in some book to avoid going to a doctor.  You have to go.
Hopefully you will find a doctor who knows enough about nutrition to help 
you change your risk factors for both diseases as part of a treatment 
program(but the odds are that you will not and that's why I'm here).  When 
my wife detected a lump in here breast I didn't say, don't worry my vitamin 
E will take care of it.  Any breast lump has to be worked up by a physician, 
plan and simple.  If it's begnin(which most are) fine, then maybe a diet 
change and supplementation will prevent further breast lumps from occuring.
But let me tell you right now, if you have tried diet and supplementation 
and another lump returns, get your butt into the doctor's office as fast as 
your little feet can carry you(better yet, have a mammography done on a 
regular basis, my wife kept putting her's off, both myself and her 
gynocologist told her she needed to have one done).  Her gynocologist even 
scheduled one, but she didn't show up(too busy running the Operating Room for 
the biggest Hospital in Tulsa).

One more thing, I am not an orthomolecular nutritionist.  This group uses 
high dose vitamins and minerals to treat all kinds of disease.  There is 
absolutely no doubt in my mind that vitamins and minerals can and do have 
drug actions in the body.  But you talk about flying blind, man this is 
really blind treatment.  No drug could ever be used as these vitamins and 
minerals are being used.  I'm not saying that some of this stuff couldn't 
be right on the money, it may well be.  But my approach to nutrition is a 
lot like that of Weinsier and Morgan, the two M.D's who wrote the new 
Clinical Nutrition textbook.  My push is the nutrient reserves and the lab 
tests needed to measure these reserves and then supplementation or diet 
changes to get these reserves built up to where they should be to let you 
handle stress.  That's where I'm coming from folks.  Blast away if you want,
I'm not going to change.  Put me in your killfile if you want, I really 
don't care.  I'm averaging 8-10 e-mail messages a day from people who think 
that I've got something important to say.  But I'm also getting hit by a 
few with an axe to grind.  That's life.

Chromium is one of the trace elements.  It has a very limited(but very 
important) role in the body.  It is used to form glucose tolerance factor
(GTF).  GTF is made up of chromium, nicinamide(niacin), glycine, cysteine 
and glutamic.  Only the chromium and the niacin are needed from the diet to 
form GTF.  Some foods already have GTF(Liver, brewers or nutritional yeast,
and black pepper).  When chromium is in GTF, a pretty good absorption is 
seen(about 20%).  But when it is simply present as a mineral or mineral 
chelate(chromium picolinate) it's absorption is much lower(1 to 2%, lowest 
for all the minerals).  I've been posting in Misc. Fitness and chromium has 
come up there several times as a "fat burner".  Chromium is among the least 
toxic of the minerals so you could really load yourself up and not really 
do any harm.  I wouldn't do it though.  The adequate and safe range for 
chromium is 50 to 200ug per day.  The average American is getting about 
30ug per day from his/her diet.  Chromium levels decrease with age and many 
believe that adult onset diabetes is primarily a chromium deficiency.  I 
can cite you several studies that have been done with glucose tolerance in 
Type II diabetes but I'm not going to because for each positive one, there 
also seems to be a negative one as well.  I'm convinced that the problem is 
bioavailability.  When yeast(GTF) is used, good results are obtained but when 
chromium itself is used the results are usually negative.  In addition to 
Type II diabetes, chromiuum has been examined in cardiovascular disease and 
glucoma, again with mixed results as far as cardiovascular disease is 
concerned

Since a high blood glucose level can lead to cardiovascular disease, 
this possible link with chromium isn't too surprising.  Glucoma is a little 
more interesting.  Muscle eye focusing activity is primarily an insulin 
responsive glucose-driven metabolic function.  If this eye focusing activity 
is impaired(by a lack of glucose due to a poor insulin response), intraocular 
pressure is believed to be elevated.  In a fairly large study of 400 pts with 
glaucoma, the one consistent finding was a low RBC chromium. J. Am. Coll. 
Nutr. 10(5):536,(1991).  But this one preliminary study should not prompt 
people to go out and start popping chromium supplements.  For one thing, 
just about every older person is going to have a low RBC chromium unless 
they have been taking chromium suppleemnts(yeast).  Since glucoma is often 
found in older people, it's not too surprising that chromium was low in the 
RBC's.  If chromium supplementation could reverse glucoma, that would 
prompt some attention.  I suspect that there will be a clinical trail to 
check out this possible chromium link to glucoma.

You could find out what your body chromium pool size was by either the RBC 
chromium test or hair analysis.  Most clinical labs are not going to run a 
RBC chromium.  There are plenty of labs that will do a hair and nail 
analysis for you, but I wouldn't use them.  There is just too much funny 
business going on in these unregulated labs right now.

Here's Weinsier and Morgan, advise on chromium.  They do not consider 
chromium to be one of those minerals for which a reliable clinical test is 
available(they don't like the hair and nail analysis labs either, and they 
also recognize the RBC chromium is primarily a research test that is not 
routinely available in most clinical chemistry labs).  This has to change 
and as more labs run a RBC chromiuum, it will.  What then do they suggest?
Make a diagnosis of chromium deficiency based on a documented clinical 
response to chromium(run a glucose tolerance test before and after chromium 
supplementation).  Once you make the diagnosis, put the patient on 200ug of 
CrCl3 orally each day or 10grams of yeast per day.

What's my advise?  Don't take chromium supplements to try to loose weight
(they just do not work that way).  If you want to take them and then 
exercise, that would be great.  Do include yeast as part of your diet(most 
Americans are not getting enough chromium from their diet).  If you do have 
a poor glucose tolerance, ask your doctor to check your chromium status.  
When he or she says, "what in the world are you talking about", just say, 
please get a copy of Weinsier and Morgan's new Clinical Nutrition textbook 
and do what they say to do with patients who present with a poor glucose 
tolerance.  If you can't do that, I'll find a doctor who can, thank you 
very much.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59500
From: jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

Michael Covington (mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu) wrote:
: In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
: >pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
: 
: >move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
: >at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
: >by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
: >really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
: >have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 
: 
: One more reason for men to learn the Lamaze breathing techniques, in order
: to be able to get some pain reduction instantly, wherever you are.
: -- 
: :-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
: :-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
: :-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
: :-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

It would have been pretty difficult to practice my hee hee's while I was
keeled over pukeing my guts out though.

--

Jeff Silva
jeffs@sr.hp.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59501
From: alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Before more bandwidth gets wasted on this:

I APOLOGIZE for my flame.

First, because I distributed the message to so many newsgroups; I did
       not check the crosspostings of the article I followed up on.

Second, for not making my argument clear enough. I reacted to the tone
        of many of the anti-Kirlian posts, not to their content. Right
        or wrong, I found the arguments set in arrogant and sneering words
        (that includes "jokes"), which I still think is unwarranted.

And, obviously, I should not have done the same.

-- Alex


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59502
From: green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price) writes:
>
>I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
>"licensed herbologist and iridologist"

I don't believe any state licenses herbologists or iridologists.
-- 
******************************************************************************
Robert Greenstein           What the fool cannot learn he laughs at, thinking
green@srilanka.island.com   that by his laughter he shows superiority instead
                            of latent idiocy - M. Corelli

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59503
From: meg_arnold@qm.sri.com (Meg Arnold)
Subject: Botulinum Toxin, type A

I am looking for statistics on the prevalence of disorders that are
treatable with Botulinum Type A.  These disorders include: facial
dyskinesia, meige syndrome, hemifacial spasm, apraxia of eyelid openeing,
aberrant regeneration of the facial nerve, facial paralysis, strabismus,
spasmodic torticollis, muscle spasm, occupational dystonia (i.e. writers
cramp, etc.), spasmodic dysphonia, and temporal mandibular joint disease.

I realize many of the disorders I listed (such as "muscle spasm" !!) are
vaguely defined and may encompass a wide range of particular disorders.  My
apologies; the list was provided to me as is.  I have some numbers, but not
reliable.  

Any ideas on sources or, even bbetter, any actual figures (with source
listed)?

Many thanks,

- Meg

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~  Meg Arnold, Business Intelligence Center, SRI International. ~ 
~  333 Ravenswood Avenue, Menlo Park, CA  94025.                ~     
~  phone: (415) 859-3764    internet: meg_arnold@qm.sri.com     ~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59504
From: esd3@po.CWRU.Edu (Elisabeth S. Davidson)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction


In a previous article, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu () says:
>least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
>too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
>they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
>medical profession.

Case Western Reserve Med School teaches nutrition in its own section as
well as covering it in other sections as they apply (i.e. B12
deficiency in neuro as a cause of neuropathy, B12 deficiency in
hematology as a cause of megaloblastic anemia), yet I sill
hold the viewpoint of mainstream medicine:  candida can cause
mucocutaneous candidiasis, and, in already very sick patients
with damaged immune systems like AIDS and cancer patients,
systemic candida infection.  I think "The Yeast Connection" is
a bunch of hooey.  What does this have to do with how well
nutrition is taught, anyway?
>
>Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
>called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
>for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
>yeast-like fungus.  

Well, maybe I'm getting picky, but I always thought that a yeast
was one form that a fungus could exist in, the other being the
mold form.  Many fungi can occur as either yeasts or molds, 
depending on environment.  Candida exibits what is known as
reverse dimorphism - it exists as a mold in the tissues
but exists as a yeast in the environment.  Should we maybe
call it a mold infection?  a fungus infection?  Maybe we
should say it is caused by a mold-like fungus.
 
> 
>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
>1111 West 17th St.
>Tulsa, Ok. 74107
>

You're the chairman of Biochem and Micro and you didn't know 
that a yeast is a form of a fungus?  (shudder)
Or maybe you did know, and were oversimplifying?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59505
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-280493114107@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1993Apr27.180334@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov>,
>ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov wrote:
>> 
>> The second issue: [summarized]  He has had extra heartbeats for the past
>3 to 4 years, and once was symptomatic from them, with some
>lightheadedness.
>He is young, (30-ish), thin and in good
>> health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
>> caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
>> want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
>> of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
>> as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
>> down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
>> be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
>> same time.
>
>I' not an expert on heart problems, but PVC's are common and have been
>overtreated in the past.  My personal experience, and I have the same 
>history an build you do (related to the heart, that is), is that my PVC's
>come and go, with some months causing anxiety.  Taking on more fluids
>seems to help, and they seem worse in the summer.  Remember that a slow 
>heart rate will allow more PVC's to be apparent, so perhaps it is an 
>indication of a healthy cardiac system (but ask an expert about that
>last point, especially)

I too have had premature ventricular heartbeat, starting in 1974.  (These 
are not, by the way, "extra" heartbeats.  This is how they feel, and 
this is how I described them initially to the doctor, but they're 
actually *premature* heartbeats.  I would sometimes experience a lapse 
after one of these that went on for a suffocatingly long period of time, 
making me wonder if my heart were ever going to beat again.) 

I had them persistently for eighteen years.  Then I went on a low-fat 
diet, and they just stopped.  I haven't had a single episode of PVH 
for almost two years.  I know:  correlation does not imply causation. 
This is just FWIW.  

--Barbara 




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59506
From: tysoem@facman.ohsu.edu (Marie E Tysoe)
Subject: Natural Alternatives to Estrogen

Need Diet for Diverticular Disease
and ideas for gastrointestinal distress

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59507
From: tysoem@facman.ohsu.edu (Marie E Tysoe)
Subject: sciatica

Ideas for the relief of sciatica. Please respond to my E-mail

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59508
From: "Gabriel D. Underwood" <gabe+@CMU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

I heard a great Civil War story...      A guy on the battlfield is shot
in the groin,   the bullet continues on it's path, and lodges in the
abdomen of a female spectator.    Lo and behold....

As the legend goes,   both parents survived,  married,  and raised the child.

--
"Death. Taxes.  Math.  Jazz."
- Wean Hall Bathroom Graffiti
Gabriel Underwood
gabe+@cmu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59509
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Placebo effects

 To: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)

 RT> o  Those administering the treatment do not know which subjects 
 RT> receive a placebo or the test treatment.

It seems to me that many drugs have such severe side effects that 
it might not be possible to keep the doctors from knowing who is 
getting the true drug.  This is especially true of the drugs used 
for "mental" illnesses.

... My cat is very smart.  He has ME well trained.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59510
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

brandon@caldonia.nlm.nih.gov (Brandon Brylawski) writes:

>mryan@stsci.edu writes:
>: Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
>: 
>: Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
>: I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
>: clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
<:  ....other good stuff about the Drs idiocy

Ok, much as I hate to do it, here I am posting an EVEN BETTER "Dr. Idiot"
story.


I was in my 18th hour of labor, had been pushing for 4.5 hours and was
exhausted.  My OB and I decided to go for a csec.  The OB called in
the anesthisiologist (sp?) and asked him to help prep me for surgery.

AFTER, watching me go through a couple contractions, the anes (or anus as
I like to refer to him) said, "Well, I am off duty now." (still staring
between my legs at that).  The OB asked to go call whomever it was who
was on duty and ask him/her how long it would take...and if it was going
to take more than a few minutes, to please stay even though he was off duty.

The anes. went out, supposedly to call the on-call anes.   In a couple of
minutes the nurse came running in to tell the OB that the anes. had left
without even trying to get ahold of the on-call.  It was the only time 
during my labor that I swore.  The on-call anes. took 20 minutes to get
there.

Come to find out, the anes. had only just gone off duty (about 2 minutes
before) and technically was supposed to stay in the hospital until the
next on-call got there.  Good thing for all of us (especially him) that
it was not a critical emergency.  But boy would I love to knock that
fellow's ouchie places ...just to let him be in pain a
few little minutes.



I have run into "Dr. Idiots", "Mechanic Idiots", "Clerk Idiots" and "Etc.
Idiots" in my time, but this fellow I would like to have words with.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59511
From: lkherold@athena.mit.edu (Lori K Herold)
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

If the student has a kidney infection, she ought to be on antibiotics.
Kidney infections-- left untreated-- can cause permanent damage to
the kidneys.  I was hospitalized with a kidney infection a while ago
and I was very sick.

In article <1993Apr29.003406.55029@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
......
> 	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
> and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
> She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
> classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59512
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu () writes:

>>can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
>>guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
>>male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
>>appearance...
>>
>>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>>unnecessary.

>Peter Schlumpf
>University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
alt.sex.

Secondly, how absolutely bogus to assume that "American's are just too hung
up on the penis....blah,blah".  I think most American's don't care about
anything so comlicated as that.  They just think it "looks nicer".  Ask 
a few of them and see what response you get.  Others still opt for
circumcision due to religious traditions and beliefs.  Some think it is
easier to clean.  Still others do it because "Daddy was".

Dont' be so naive as to think American's are afraid of sexuality. 

My son is not circumcised, and I can vouch for the argument that it is
more difficult to keep clean than a circumcised kids'.  Not so much that
the foreskin is difficult to pull back (it isn't) but because my son
doesn't want to wait long enough for a thorough check for smega or misplaced
feces.  So, many times it just gets a once over dab.  It worries me
that he might get an infection due to his lack of cooperation.  I am
sure, however, that he will be able to handle cleaning under the foreskin
himself once he is old enough.  Until, there is always the decision at
each diaper change...is this the time to clean or can we wait till next
time.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59513
From: cacci@interlan.interlan.com (Ernie Cacciapuoti)
Subject: Question: Phosphorylase Kinase Deficiency???

If anyone has any information on this deficiency I would very greatly
appreciate a response here or preferably by Email.  All I know at this
point is a deficiency can cause myoglobin to be released, and in times
of stress and high ambient temperature could cause renal failure.
x

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59514
From: atae@spva.ph.ic.ac.uk (Ata Etemadi)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com>, alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
-| In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
-|   alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
-| Okay.  Name one single effect that Kirlian photography gives that
-| can't be explained by corona discharge.

Dozens of very funny postings to sci.image.processing 
[of which this may not be one :-].

	Ata <(|)>

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59516
From: <U18183@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: Re: Chromium for weight loss

  There is no data to show chromium is effective in promoting weight loss.  The
 few studies that have been done using chromium have been very flawed and inher
ently biased (the investigators were making money from marketing it).
  Theoretically it really doesnt make sense either. The claim is that chromium
will increase muscle mass and decrease fat.  Of course, chromium is also used t
o cure diabetes, high blood pressure and increase muscle mass in athletes(just
as well as anabolic steroids). Sounds like snake oil for the 1990's :-)
 On the other hand, it really cant hurt you anywhere but your wallet, and place
bo effects of anything can be pretty dramatic...

                                    -Paul
     ----------------------------------------------------------
    |  Paul Sovcik, Pharm.D. U of Illinois College of Pharmacy |
    |                                                          |
    |    Email- U18183@UICVM.UIC.EDU                           |
    |                                                          |
     ----------------------------------------------------------


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59517
From: bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer)
Subject: Re: Earwax

In <faUk03m6d0Kq00@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com>,
	dated 29 Apr 93 15:43:10 GMT,
	lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister) writes:
> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
> 
> >What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
> >it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
> >every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
> >Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?
> 
> Assuming that the wax is causing hearing loss, congestion or popping
> in the ears, you can try some cautious tepid water irrigation with a
> bulb syringe, but it is awkward to do for oneself and may not work or
> may even make things worse.  (My wife would disagree, she does it
> successfully every six months or so.)  In any case DO NOT ATTEMPT
> ANYTHING WITH Q-TIPS!!!

I'll agree with your wife.  While I was a student, I had doctors remove
rather surprising amounts of wax from my ears by flushing them out a couple
times, usually because they were examining my ears for some other reason, and
said something like "Gee, you've got a lot of wax in there".  In my case,
removal of these large wax buildups did noticeably improve my hearing, and
I've since gotten in the same habit as your wife of flushing them out with
warm water from a little rubber bulb every few months.  You can buy little
bulbs together with ear drops for this express purpose from the drug store -
I don't notice that the drops accomplish much of anything.

One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
comments?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59518
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rp8p1$2d3@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>, esd3@po.CWRU.Edu (Elisabeth S. Davidson) writes:
> 
> In a previous article, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu () says:
>>least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
>>too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
>>they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
>>medical profession.
> 
> Case Western Reserve Med School teaches nutrition in its own section as
> well as covering it in other sections as they apply (i.e. B12
> deficiency in neuro as a cause of neuropathy, B12 deficiency in
> hematology as a cause of megaloblastic anemia), yet I sill
> hold the viewpoint of mainstream medicine:  candida can cause
> mucocutaneous candidiasis, and, in already very sick patients
> with damaged immune systems like AIDS and cancer patients,
> systemic candida infection.  I think "The Yeast Connection" is
> a bunch of hooey.  What does this have to do with how well
> nutrition is taught, anyway?

Elisabeth, let's set the record straight for the nth time, I have not read 
"The Yeast Connection".  So anything that I say is not due to brainwashing 
by this "hated" book.  It's okay I guess to hate the book, by why hate me?
Elisabeth, I'm going to quote from Zinsser's Microbiology, 20th Edition.
A book that you should be familiar with and not "hate". "Candida species 
colonize the mucosal surfaces of all humans during birth or shortly 
thereafter.  The risk of endogenous infection is clearly ever present.  
Indeed, candidiasis occurs worldwide and is the most common systemic 
mycosis."  Neutrophils play the main role in preventing a systemic 
infection(candidiasis) so you would have to have a low neutrophil count or 
"sick" neutrophils to see a systemic infection.  Poor diet and persistent 
parasitic infestation set many third world residents up for candidiasis.
Your assessment of candidiasis in the U.S. is correct and I do not dispute 
it.

What I posted was a discussion of candida blooms, without systemic 
infection.  These blooms would be responsible for local sites of irritation
(GI tract, mouth, vagina and sinus cavity).  Knocking down the bacterial 
competition for candida was proposed as a possible trigger for candida 
blooms.  Let me quote from Zinsser's again: "However, some factors, such as 
the use of a broad-spectrum antibacterial antibiotic, may predispose to 
both mucosal and systemic infections".  I was addressing mucosal infections
(I like the term blooms better).  The nutrition course that I teach covers 
this effect of antibiotic treatment as well as the "cure".  I guess that 
your nutrition course does not, too bad.  


>>Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
>>called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
>>for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
>>yeast-like fungus.  
> 
> Well, maybe I'm getting picky, but I always thought that a yeast
> was one form that a fungus could exist in, the other being the
> mold form.  Many fungi can occur as either yeasts or molds, 
> depending on environment.  Candida exibits what is known as
> reverse dimorphism - it exists as a mold in the tissues
> but exists as a yeast in the environment.  Should we maybe
> call it a mold infection?  a fungus infection?  Maybe we
> should say it is caused by a mold-like fungus.
>  
>> 
>>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
>>1111 West 17th St.
>>Tulsa, Ok. 74107
>>
> 
> You're the chairman of Biochem and Micro and you didn't know 
> that a yeast is a form of a fungus?  (shudder)
> Or maybe you did know, and were oversimplifying?

My, my Elisabeth, do I detect a little of Steve Dyer in you?  If you 
noticed my faculty rank, I'm a biochemist, not a microbiologist.
Candida is classifed as a fungus(according to Zinsser's).  But, as you point 
out, it displays dimorphism.  It is capable of producing yeast cells, 
pseudohyphae and true hyphae.  Elisabeth, you are probably a microbiologist 
and that makes a lot of sense to you.  To a biochemist, it's a lot of 
Greek.  So I called it a yeast-like fungus, go ahead and crucify me.

You know Elisabeth, I still haven't been able to figure out why such a small 
little organism like Candida can bring out so much hostility in people in 
Sci. Med.  And I must admitt that I got sucked into the mud slinging too.
I keep hoping that if people will just take the time to think about what 
I've said, that it will make sense.  I'm not asking anyone here to buy into 
"The Yeast Connection" book because I don't know what's in that book, plain 
and simple. And to be honest with you, I'm beginning to wish that it was never 
written.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59519
From: alan.barclay@almac.co.uk (Alan Barclay)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumci

TO: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)


RO> First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
RO> alt.sex.

Would you like to rephrase that?
  
---
 . ATP/Unix1.40a . G'day mate, throw another cat on the barbie!
                                                                                                        

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59520
From: jhl14@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (Jonathan H. Lin)
Subject: atrial natriuretic factor



ANP is secreted by the atria in response to increases in fluid volume
and acts to facilitate sodium and water excretion from the kidneys.
Can someone tell me the molecular mechanism by which this is done?

Please email your response

Thanks
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                   Po'g Mo Thon                              
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59521
From: Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

In article <5531@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us>, roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
wrote:
> 
> I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called sumatripton
> (I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly utilizes a chemical
> that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has regular migraines and nothing
> seems to help - does anyone know anything about this new drug?  Is it in
> a testing phaze or anywhere near approval?  Does it seem to be working?
> 
My girlfriend just started taking this drug for her migranes.  It really
helped her get through the rebound withdrawl when she got off analgesics. 
She doesn't have a mail account, but asked me to forward this:

"Glaxo is the distributor; Imitrex is the drug's brand name.  It works. 
She can call her pharmacy for more info. The "miracle" drug has been used
for years in Europe and for some time in Canada.  Trials in the U.S. were
completed and the drug hit the US market at the end of March.  Some
pharmacies don't stock it yet.  Presently it needs to be injected
subcutaneously; although testing is starting with a nasal spray form.  It
mimics serotonin (its molecular structure that fits onto pain receptors
looks identical to serotonin on a model I saw)"

Opinions are mine or others but definately not MDA's!
Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com
McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, Huntington Beach, California, USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59522
From: mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu
Subject: BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY

          

                              BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY
                          
                        ( ANOTHER Form of COLD FUSION )

               ( ALTERNATIVE Heavy Element Creation in Universe ) 

               A very simple experiment can demonstrate (PROVE) the 
          FACT of "BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS" (reactions like Mg + O 
          --> Ca, Si + C --> Ca, K + H --> Ca, N2 --> CO, etc.), as 
          described in the BOOK "Biological Transmutations" by Louis 
          Kervran, [1972 Edition is BEST.], and in Chapter 17 of the 
          book "THE SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS" by Peter Tompkins and 
          Christopher Bird, 1973: 

               (1) Obtain a good sample of plant seeds, all of the same 
                   kind.  [Some kinds might work better that others.]

               (2) Divide the sample into two groups of equal weight 
                   and number.

               (3) Sprout one group in distilled water on filter paper 
                   for three or four weeks.

               (4) Separately incinerate both groups.

               (5) Weigh the residue from each group.  [The residue of 
                   the sprouted group will usually weigh at least 
                   SEVERAL PERCENT MORE than the other group.]

               (6) Analyze quantitatively the residue of each group for 
                   mineral content.  [Some of the mineral atoms of the 
                   sprouted group have been TRANSMUTED into heavier 
                   mineral elements by FUSING with atoms of oxygen, 
                   hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, etc..]

          
               BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS occur ROUTINELY, even in our 
          own bodies. 
          
               Ingesting a source of organic silicon (silicon with 
          carbon, such as "horsetail" extract, or radishes) can SPEED 
          HEALING OF BROKEN BONES via the reaction Si + C --> Ca, (much 
          faster than by merely ingesting the calcium directly).  
          
               Some MINERAL DEPOSITS in the ground are formed by micro-
          organisms FUSING together atoms of silicon, carbon, nitrogen, 
          oxygen, hydrogen, etc.. 
          
               The two reactions Si + C <--> Ca, by micro-organisms, 
          cause "STONE SICKNESS" in statues, building bricks, etc..  
          
               The reaction N2 --> CO, catalysed by very hot iron, 
          creates a CARBON-MONOXIDE POISON HAZARD for welder operators 
          and people near woodstoves (even properly sealed ones). 
          
               Some bacteria can even NEUTRALIZE RADIOACTIVITY! 
          

               ALL OF THESE THINGS AND MORE HAPPEN, IN SPITE OF the 
          currently accepted "laws" of physics, (including the law 
          which says that atomic fusion requires EXTREMELY HIGH 
          temperatures and pressures.) 



          "BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS, And Their Applications In 
               CHEMISTRY, PHYSICS, BIOLOGY, ECOLOGY, MEDICINE, 
               NUTRITION, AGRIGULTURE, GEOLOGY", 
          1st Edition, 
          by C. Louis Kervran, Active Member of New York Academy of 
               Science, 
          1972, 
          163 Pages, Illustrated, 
          Swan House Publishing Co.,
               P.O. Box 638, 
               Binghamton, NY  13902 

          
          "THE SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS", 
          by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird, 
          1973, 
          402 Pages, 
          Harper & Row, 
               New York
          [Chapters 19 and 20 are about "RADIONICS".  Entire book is 
               FASCINATING! ]
          

               For more information, answers to your questions, etc., 
          please consult my CITED SOURCES (the two books). 



               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 


                                   Robert E. McElwaine
                                   B.S., Physics and Astronomy, UW-EC



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59523
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

It just received FDA approval a few months ago. I have a
prescription which I haven't had to use yet. I believe the
company [Glaxol] is developing an oral form. At this stage, one
must inject the drug into one's muscle. The doctor said that
within 30 minutes, the migraine is gone for good! 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59524
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

I cured mine with Bag Balm which I bought at the local farm
supply store. It is relatively cheap and works in a few days.
The product was developed to treat sore udders. 


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59525
From: joshm@yang.earlham.edu
Subject: Re: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?

In article <1993Apr27.110440.5069@nic.csu.net>, eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg) writes:
> Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
> man's vasectomy on his female partner?
> 
> I've seen plenty of study results about vasectomy's effects on men's health,
> but what about women? 
> 
> For example, might the wife of a vasectomized man become more at risk for,
> say, cervical cancer?  Adverse effects from sperm antibodies?  Changes in the
> vagina's pH?  Yeast or bacterial infections?
> 
> Outside of study results, how about informed speculation?

I've heard of NO studies, but speculation:

Why on _earth_ would there be any effect on women's health?  That's about 
the most absurd idea I've heard since Ted Kaldis's claim that no more than 
35,000 people would march on Washington.

Ok, _one_ point:  Greatly reduced chance of pregnancy.  But that's it.

--Josh

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59526
From: cindy@berkp.uadv.uci.edu (Cindy Windham)
Subject: What's a bone scan?

My mother has been advised to have a bone scan performed?  What is this
procedure for, and is it painful?  She's been having leg and back pain
which her GP said was sciatica.  Her oncologist listened to her symptoms
and said that it didn't sound like sciatica, and she should get a bone
scan.  

- Cindy W.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59527
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>...I'm not asking anyone here to buy into "The Yeast Connection" book
>because I don't know what's in that book, plain and simple. And to be honest
>with you, I'm beginning to wish that it was never written.

I agree with this consensus that it should not have been written the way
it was.  My doctor - who claims to have introduced Dr. Crook to the
possibility of candida overbloom causing diffuse symptoms way back in
1961 (I have no reason to doubt him on this) - does not like the book
because 1) it makes too many unfounded claims, and 2) is horribly written
from a scientific viewpoint.  On the other hand, my doctor has always kept
an open mind on the subject and does believe in aspects of the "yeast
connection".

But, I believe there is some truth to the book.  Hopefully the right
clinical studies can be done to separate the fact from the fiction.  In
the meantime, I'd still encourage people who have "incurable" chronic sinus
problems (especially if they overused antibiotics), to find a doctor to
administer a systemic-type anti-fungal such as itraconazole (along with
liver panels before, during and after treatment just to play it safe).  It
is an empirical approach for sure, but when all else fails, and your ENT
says "sorry, you'll just have to live with it", it is time to step out and
try an empirical approach backed up with significant anecdotal evidence
(Dr. Ivker), supported by plausible theories (outlined by Marty).  At
this stage you have little to lose, particularly if you use itraconazole and
have the proper monitoring - the health risk has been shown through extensive
clinical studies both in Europe and the U.S. to be very minimal with
relatively healthy (i.e., non-AIDS) patients.  I'm glad I did this, since I
saw remarkable results after only one week on Sporanox (itraconazole).  Of
course, your mileage may vary a lot - everyone is different so it may not
work for you.  Talk to your doctor.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59528
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: What's a bone scan?

In article <cindy.349@berkp.uadv.uci.edu>, cindy@berkp.uadv.uci.edu (Cindy Windham) writes...
>My mother has been advised to have a bone scan performed?  What is this
>procedure for, and is it painful?  She's been having leg and back pain
>which her GP said was sciatica.  Her oncologist listened to her symptoms
>and said that it didn't sound like sciatica, and she should get a bone
>scan. 

Do I assume correctly from the above aricle that your mother has a historyy
of cancer?  I was just wondeing, since you mentioned thhat she has an
oncologist.

A bone scan is a nuclear scan.  Thperson receivving the scan is gven a
dose of a radioactive tracer, and an imaging device is used to track the
distribution of the tracer wwithin the body.  The tracer is usually given
intravenously.  (IV) This means that the physician or his assistant will
insert a needle into a vein and inject  medicine into the vein. 

After a few minutes has passed for the tracer to circulate through the
body, the person is scanned with an imaging device to detect high 
concentrations of the tracer.  The radiologist or doctor is looking for
areas that take up more of the radioactive tracer or less of it.

As far as pain, the only pain comes from the needle stick that is required
to start the IV line.

What the doctor is probably looking for are changes in the bones that may
have resulted from cancer.  This is also why I was wondering if your mother
has had cancer, since cancer can spread from one site and wind up in the
skeletal system.

I hope I have answered some of your questions.  Feel free to e-mail me if
you have more questions related to the bone scan or anything else related
to your mother's care.  I'm a newly graduated nurse, and I enjoy sharing
information with other people to help them understand things that they did
not know about before.

My thoughts are with you both.

Elisa B. Hanson   (picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu)
"The chief function of the body is to carry the head around."
                                        --Albert Einstein


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59529
From: houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle)
Subject: Antihistamine for sleep aid


	For a very long time I've had a problem with feeling really awful
when I try to get up in the morning.  My sleep latency at night is also
pretty long,  ranging from 30 min to an hour.  I get about 7 hours of
bedtime (maybe 6 of actual sleep) a night and more on the weekends.  I
will spend two or three hours laying in bed after this if I can,  because
I feel so tired when I wake up,  even more tired than I was when I
went to bed,  which is usually too tired to work.

	Anyway,  I recently had a really bad flu,  so I called a friend to
get me some cough syrup with both an expectorant and a nasal decongestant;
but he got Vicks formula 44M which has everything but an expectorant.  So
I used that anyway,  and the three nights I used it,  I fell asleep rapidly
and felt that I got really good quality sleep -- that is,  I actually
felt refreshed the next morning.

	So,  I am now trying to look into,  both in the literature and
experimentally,  the use of antihistamines as sleep aids,  since I am
presuming that it was the antihistamine that caused the effect.  The
antihistamine in Vicks formula 44 is Chloriphenamine maleate,  so I bought
some generic tablets of that,  and tried one last night and didn't
notice any improvement.  I might try one with a little alcohol (about
1 beer) to see if it is a synergism effect.  Also,  library research
seems to show that Benadryl is the antihistamine with the strongest
sedative effect of what is availible OTC.  So I might also buy a generic
form of that and try that;  the PDR seems to suggest that 50 mg is a good
dosage level to try.

	For other medical information,  I have allergies but rarely have
an allergic reaction living in New Mexico.  I also have chronically dry
eyes,  which get horrible if I try to use most underarm deoderants.  I did
guess that my problem might be caused by hypoglycemia,  so I made some
changes in my diet consistent with that,  and it didn't help,  so I
went back to a normal diet (Pretty diverse,  also taking vitamin supplements)

	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
(Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59530
From: goldstej@bag_end.pad.otc.com.au (Johnathon Goldstein)
Subject: Bates eye-exercises

Have I mailed this to the correct newsgroup(s)? Are there other newsgroup(s)
which cover the following topic?
--------

Has anyone with myopia (short-sightedness) ever done the Bates eye-exercises?

If so, could you please e-mail me the following information:

	- age and state of sight before exercises were commenced;

	- type, frequency, and length of time spent on exercises performed;

	- improvements noticed immediately after performing exercises;

	- length of period before any improved sight deteriorates;

Thanks in advance for any replies. I'll summarise and post results if there's
enough interest.

 - Jonathan Goldstein

-- 
Jonathan Goldstein       goldstej@nms.otc.com.au       +61 2 339 3683

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59531
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>:occur?
>
>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
>to your biology teacher.
>=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =

Well, now, Doc, I sure would not want to bet my life on those little
critters not being able to get thru one layer of sweat-soaked cotton
on their way to do their programmed task.  Infrequent, yes, unlikely,
yes, but impossible?  I learned a long time ago never to say never in
medicine   <g>                        Len Howard MD, FACOG



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59532
From: davec@ecst.csuchico.edu (Dave Childs)
Subject: Dental Fillings question

I have been hearing bad thing about amalgam dental fillings.  Some say
the lead/ mercury leeches into your system and this is bad.  And I have
recently heard that there is some suspicion that the mercury is a breeding
ground for bacteria that will be resistant to antibiotics.   

My dentist wants to use an amalgam filling for me in a place where I have
two cavaties in one tooth and wants to use one filling to cover both.
He says that composite filling don't hold up well when they are large.
So, I would like to know if there are any other choices besides amalgam
and composite.  And, should I really even be worried about amalgam?  I
heard that some scandanavian country does not even use them any more- 
is this true.

Any information you can give me will be greatly appreciated.


Thanks!

Dave Childs


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59533
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

I'm interested in this from the other angle: what antihistamine can I
take at bedtime for relief of allergies, with the assurance that its
sedative effect will have completely worn off by the next morning, but
preferably with the anti-allergy effect lasting longer?

I'm thinking mainly of OTC products. Which has the least duration of
sedative action: Benadryl, Chlor-Trimeton, or what?
Note that I'm asking about duration, not intensity.
-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59534
From: kcarver@dante.nmsu.edu (Kenneth Carver)
Subject: Isolation amplifiers for EEG/ECG *cheap*

I have several isolation amplifier boards that are the ideal interface
for EEG and ECG.  Isolation is essential for safety when connecting
line-powered equipment to electrodes on the body.  These boards
incorporate the Burr-Brown 3656 isolation module that currently sells
for $133, plus other op amps to produce an overall voltage gain of
350-400.  They are like new and guaranteed good.  $20 postpaid,
schematic included.  Please email me for more data.

--Ken Carver

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59535
From: per-arne.melander@histocel.umu.se (Per-Arne Melander)
Subject: HELP-purification of neutrophils from mice.


Hello!

I need a technique for separation of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN)
from the peripheral blood of mice. Because of the low PMN:Lymphocyte ratio
(approx. 20:80) its not just as easy as the corresponding technique used
with human blood.


																																										Yours,
               
                            													 Per-Arne Melander


Ps. My E-mail address is: per-arne.melander@histocel.umu.se. DS.
       

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59536
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

[reply to roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.u]
 
>I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called
>sumatripton (I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly
>utilizes a chemical that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has
>regular migraines and nothing seems to help - does anyone know anything
>about this new drug?  Is it in a testing phaze or anywhere near
>approval?  Does it seem to be working?
 
I just got back from the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting,
where the consensus was that sumatriptan (Imitrex) has no advantages
over DHE-45 nasal spray, which is much less expensive, has fewer side
effects, is as effective, and works more quickly (5-10 minutes vs. 30).
Besides, who wants to give themselves a shot (sumatriptan) when a nasal
spray works?  DHE nasal spray is not widely available yet -- it has to
be mail ordered from one of a few pharmacies in the country -- but most
neurologists now know about it and know how to order it.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59537
From: barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu (Edwin Barkdoll)
Subject: Re: thermogenics

In article <80389@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>First off, if I'm not mistaken, only hibernating animals have brown fat,
>not humans.

	Human infants do have bown fat deposits while adult humans are
believed not to have brown fat.
	Also while brown fat may play an important role in rousing
hibernators, it is definitely not limited to hibernating animals -- it
is a common energy source for nonshivering thermogenesis.

-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu
eb3@world.std.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59538
From: jlecher@pbs.org
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

In article <1rmn0c$83v@morrow.stanford.edu>, mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou) writes:
> Hi all,
> 
> My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
> from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
> actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
> cure for this.
> 
> At the supermarkets or pharmacies, there are quite a lot of stuffs for
> dry skins, but what to chose?
> 
> Thanks in advance for all advices and hints.
> 
> Reply by email preferred.
> 
> Alex
> 
> 

As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and while I 
was there, I asked him about dry skin. I'd been spending a small fortune
on various creams, lotions, and other dry skin treatments.
He said all I needed was a large jar of vaseline. Soak in a lukewarm tub
of water for 10 minutes (ONLY 10 minutes!) then massage in the vaseline,
to trap the moisture in. That will help. I haven't tried it yet, but you
can bet I will. The hard part will be finding the time to rub in the
vaseline properly. If it's not done right, you remain greasy and stick
to your clothes.
Try it. It's got to be cheaper then spending $30 for 8 oz. of 'natural'
lotion.

Jane


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59539
Subject: Re: Earwax
From: nicholson_s@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz

In article <stephen.736092732@mont>, stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
>it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
>every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
>Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?
>
>Stephen
>

The best thing to do is leave it, it will work its own way out to the surface.
Anything you stick up there to try and clean it is just going to push the wax
up against your eardrum and pack it on there solid, thus impairing your
hearing .

Sean

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59540
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY

mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:

|          

|                              BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY
|                          
|                        ( ANOTHER Form of COLD FUSION )

Gee, I'd FORGOTTEN about THIS NUT.

|               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
|          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 


|                                   Robert E. McElwaine
|                                   B.S., Physics and Astronomy, UW-EC

And we KNOW (CAN PROVE) what B.S. stands for in this case.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59541
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: Earwax

bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer) writes:
|One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
|a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
|trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
|works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
|water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
|out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
|comments?

When I have trouble it's usually because of water trapped by some
remaining wax.  I don't see why you can't just let it evaporate; it
should do this eventually.

	/J
=
Nets: levin@bbn.com  |  "Earn more sessions by sleeving."
pots: (617)873-3463  |
              N1MNF  |                               -- Roxanne Kowalski

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59542
From: theisen@uni-duesseldorf.de (Herr Theisen)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr27.233234.2929@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne) writes:
>Newsgroups: sci.energy,sci.image.processing,sci.anthropology,alt.sci.physics.new-theories,sci.skeptic,sci.med,alt.alien.visitors
>Path: unidus.rz.uni-duesseldorf.de!rrz.uni-koeln.de!gmd.de!newsserver.jvnc.net!howland.reston.ans.net!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!wvhorn
>From: wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne)
>Subject: Re: Krillean Photography
>Message-ID: <1993Apr27.233234.2929@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>
>Sender: news@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Nntp-Posting-Host: bottom.magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Organization: The Ohio State University
>References: <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu> <C64MvG.BoI@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu> <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>
>Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1993 23:32:34 GMT
>Lines: 33
>Xref: unidus.rz.uni-duesseldorf.de sci.energy:6430 sci.image.processing:2668 sci.anthropology:2183 alt.sci.physics.new-theories:1762 sci.skeptic:18848 sci.med:18773 alt.alien.visitors:10138

>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>>
>>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>>
>>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>>
>>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>>
>>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>>drop off the edge of the earth.

>It is one thing to be open-minded about phenomona that have not
>be demonstrated to be false, and quite another to "believe" in
>something like Krilian photography, where *all* the claimed effects
>have be demonstrated to be artifacts.  There is no longer any reason
>to adopt a "wait and see" attitude about Krilian photography, it
>has been experimentally shown to be nothing but simple coronal
>discharge.  The "auras" shown by missing leaf parts came from 
>moisture left by the original whole leaf, for example.  

>That's what science is, son.

>---Bill VanHorne


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59543
From: yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo)
Subject: Cold Sore Location?

I've had cold sores in the past.  But they have always been in the 
corner of my mouth.  Recently,  I've had what appears to be
a cold sore, but on my lower lip in the middle (above the chin).

Can cold sores appear anywhere around the mouth (or body)?

Is there a medical term for cold sore?

-- 
 Ralph Yozzo (yozzo@watson.ibm.com)  
 From the beautiful and historic New York State Mid-Hudson Valley.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59544
From: ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking)
Subject: thyroidal deficiency

Hi.

My wife has aquired some thyroidal (sp?) deficiency over the past year
that gives symptoms such as needing much sleep, coldness and proneness
to gaining weight. She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the 
gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?). The last couple of 
monthes she has been seeing a hoemoepath (sp?) and been given
some drops to re-activate either her thyroidal gland and/or the 
'message-center' in the brain (sorry about the approximate language,
but I haven't got many clues to what the english terms are, but the 
brain-area is called the 'hypofyse' in norwegian.) 

My questions are: has anyone had/heard of success in using this approach?
Her values have been (slowly but) steadily sinking, any comment on the
probability of improvement? Although the doctor has told her to 'eat
normally', my wife has dieted vigorously to keep her weight as she feels
that is part of keeping an edge over the illness/condition, may this
affect the treatment, development?

I can get the exact figures for her tests for anyone interested, and I
will greatly value any information/opinion/experience on this topic.

I don't intend this post to be either a flaming of the established
medical profession or a praise for alternatives, I am just relaying
events as they have happened.

Sincerely,

Erik A. Wolff

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59545
From: resinfo@resinfo.demon.co.uk (resinfo)
Subject: Investigating Phenylanine?

Resinfo (research and information) is currently seeking contact
_IN_ the United Kingdom with researchers of 'phenylanine', or is
this amino acid uninspiring?

Resinfo is not a regular subscriber to sci.med due to the 
excessive load of data and regrettably, our limited ability
to monitor. It would therefore be appreciated if replies
could be sent direct to;
resinfo@resinfo.demon.co.uk
using the ref: mr t.a.t.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59546
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: insensitive technicians

A friend was recently admitted to North Carolina Memorial Hospital
because of suspected meningitis.  Serious business.  They wanted to do
a lumbar puncture, for which a CT scan is a prerequisite.

I arrived in her hospital room about an hour after she had returned
from the CT.   She was in tears.  Evidently the technicians in the CT
lab had been very unpleasant to her.

To begin with, they put her on the apparatus that moves you into the
machine itself, and just pushed a button to slide her straight into the
machine, without any explanation.  Imagine this.  You worried you may
have a deadly disease, and next thing you know you're being put into
this big scary machine, without a word of explanation about what is
going to happen to you.  I believe this is inexcusable.   She waved her
hand as if to say what are you doing to me, and they responded with
annoyance and anger.  Next they inserted, or tried to insert, an IV
catheter.  Apparently she has a lot of trouble with these and complained
of the pain.  The technician just stopped and fixed her with a glare
without any words of explanation.

Is there anything I can do about these pigs ?

I realize that these technicians do this sort of job day in and day
out.  And that some patients can be very irritating and uncooperative.
But this is simply no excuse.  Their purpose for existing is to help
sick people, and there is no excuse for this sort of behavior.
Fortunately my friend is fine.  But I imagine a large proportion of the
people who get CT scans are not fine at all.  They have cancer and that
sort of thing.  They don't need this kind of shit.

Also, since I named the hospital involved, I should also point out that
neither she nor I have any complaints about the competence or compassion
of any of the other personnel at NCMH.

Thanks for listening,
John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59547
From: u2nmh@csc.liv.ac.uk (N.M. Humphries)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Thomas Trusk (ttrusk@its.mcw.edu) wrote:

> In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com> alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
> >In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
> >  alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
> >
> >>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
> >>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
> >>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
> >>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
> >
> >Oooooh.  Bad example.  I'm an atheist.
> >
> This is not flame, or abuse, nor do I want to start another thread (this
> is, after all, supposed to be about IMAGE PROCESSING).

> BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.

-- That means that there cannot be any atheists  since there is NO WAY that you
can prove that there is no god. Atheists are people who BELIEVE that there is no
god, most not only believe, but also are damn sure that there isn't a god (like
me).

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     The Cursor, aka Nick Humphries, u2nmh@csc.liv.ac.uk, at your service.
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
   "What's the use of computers? They'll never play  | "Why pay money to see
   chess, draw art or make music." - Jean Genet.     | bad films? Stay home 
   "Intelligence isn't to make no mistakes, but how  | and see bad TV for
   to make them look good." - Bertolt Brecht.        | free." - Sam Goldwyn.
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59548
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: RE: Robert's Biological Alchemy

Robert,

I'm *so* glad that you posted your Biological Alchemy discussion.  I've 
been compared to the famous Robert McElwaine by some readers of Sci. Med.
I didn't know how to respond since I had not seen one of your posts(just 
like I haven't read "The Yeast Connection").

Let me just start by stating that the authors of the "Cold Fusion" papers of 
recent years are now in scientific exile(I believe that one has actually 
left the country).  Scientific fraud is rare.  I'm still not sure that if a 
review of the research notes of the "cold fusion scientists" actually 
proved fraud or just very shoddy experimentation.

Your sources do not seem to be research articles.  They are more like lay 
texts designed to pique human interest in a subject area(just like the food 
combining and life extension texts).  Robert, I try to keep an open mind.
But some things I just can't buy(one is taking SOD orally to prevent 
oxidative damage in the body).

Your experiment, if conducted by readers of this news group, would prove 
that you are right(more ash after seed sprouting than before).  Unless you 
use a muffle furnance and obtain a very high temperature(above 600 degrees 
I believe), you will get organic residue in the ash.  Even the residue in 
commercial incinerators contains organic residue.  I remember doing this 
kind of experiment in my organic chemistry couurse in College but I 
couldn't find a temperature for mineral ash formation so I'm really 
guessing at 600 degrees F, it may actually be much higher.  The point is 
that no one in their home could ever get a high enough temperature to 
produce *only* a mineral ash.  They also could not measure the minerals so 
they could only weigh the ash and find out that you appear to be correct. 

Chemical reactions abound in our body, in our atmosphere, in our water and 
in our soil.  Are these fusion reactions?  Yes many of them do involve 
fusing oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur to both organics and inorganics.  Do we 
really have the transformation of silicone to calcium if carbon is fused with 
silicon?  Not in my book Robert.

Silicon is the most abundant mineral on our planet.  I've seen speculation 
that man could have evolved to be a silicon based rather than a carbon 
based life-form.  I like reading science fiction, as many people do.  But I 
know enough about biochemistry(and nutrition) to be able(in most cases) to 
separate the fiction from the fact.

Silicon may be one of the trace elements that turns out to be essential in 
humans.  We have several grams of the stuff in our body.  What's it doing 
there?  Only the Lord knows right now.  But I will tell you what I do know 
about silicon and why, as you state, it helps bone healing(and it is not 
because silicon is transformed into calcium).

Almost all of the silicon in the human body is found in the connective 
tissue(collagen and elastin).  There have been studies published which show 
that the very high silicon content in elastin may be an important protective 
factor against atherosclerosis(the higher the silicon content in elastin, 
the more resistant the elastin is to a an age-related loss of elasticity 
which may play a role in the increase in blood pressure that is often seen as 
part of the ageing process in humans).

For bone fracture healing, the first step is a collagen matrix into which 
calcium and phosphate are pumped by osteoblasts.  A high level of silicon 
in the diet seems to speed up this matrix formation.  This first step in the 
bone healing process seems to be the hardest for some people to get going.
Electriacl currents have been used in an attempt to get the matrix forming 
cells oriented in the right direction so that the matrix can be formed in 
the gap(or gaps) between the ends of the broken bone.  A vitamin C deficiency
(by slowing collagen formation as well as causing the prodcution of 
defective collagen) does slow down both bone and wound healing.  Zinc is also 
another big player in bone and wound healing.  And so is silicon(in an  
undetermined role that most likely involes matrix formation and not 
transformation of silicon to calcium).  For you to take this bone healing 
observation and use it as proof that silicon is transformed into 
calcium is an interesting little trick.

But Robert, I have the same problem myself when I read the lay press(and 
yes even some scientific papers).  Is the explanation reasonable?  Without 
a very good science knowledge base, you and most readers of this news group 
are flying blind(you have to take it on faith because you don't know any 
better).

If the explanation seems to make sense to me based on my knowledge base, 
I'm inclined to consider it(this usually means trying to find other sources 
that come to the same conclusion).  If the idea(like a candida bloom) seems 
to make sense to me, I tend to pursue it as long as any advice that I'm 
going to give isn't going to really mess somebody up.  If this makes us 
kindred souls Robert, then I guess I'll have to live with that label.

For the physicians who have decided to read my response to Robert's 
interesting post, I hope that you saw the segment on the pediatric 
neurosurgeon last night on U.S. TV.  I can't remember the network or his 
name(like many nights, I was on my computer and my wife was watching TV in 
our Den where I have my computer setup).  This neurosurgeon takes kids with 
brain tumors that everyone else has given up on and he uses"unconventional"
treatments(his own words).  He says that he has a 70% success rate.  The one 
case that I heard him discussing would normally use radiation(conventional 
treatment).  He was going to go in and cut.  You guys complain about the 
cost of the anti-fungals.  What do you think the cost difference between 
radiation treatment and surgery is guys? 

I'm going to ask you guys one more time, why blast a physician who takes the 
chronic sinus sufferer(like Jon) and the chronic GI sufferer(like Elaine)
and tries to help them using unconventional treatments?  Treatments which 
do not result in death(like those that the neurosurgeon uses?).  Is it 
because candida blooms are not life-threatening while brain tumors are?
How about quality of life guys?  May the candida demon never cross your 
sinus cavity or gut(if it does, you may feel differently about the issue).

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59549
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid


In article <1993Apr29.052044.23918@nmt.edu> houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle) writes:

> 	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
> antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
> (Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
> millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
> a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
> whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
> tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
> lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
> kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
> any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
> many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Antihistamines have been the active ingredient of OTC sleep aids for
decades.  Go to any drugstore and look at the packages of such sleep
aids as Sominex, Nytol, etc.  The active ingredient is:
diphenhydramine, the same antihistamine that's in Benadryl.



--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59550
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Annual inguinal hernia repair

> 
> In article <jpc.735692207@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov>, jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov
> (J. Porter Clark) wrote:
> [synopsis] Young man with inguianl hernia on one side, repaired, now has
> new hernia on other side.  What gives, he asks?  [and he continues...] 
> > Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
> > the computer, reading news...
> 
> There is the possibility that there is some degree of constipation causing
> chronic straining which has caused the bowel movements.  The classic 
> problems that are supposed to be looked for in someone with a hernia are
> constipation, chronic cough, colon cancer (and you're not too young for
> that) and sitting for long periods of time at the computer, reading news.
> 
> Good Luck with your surgery!
> 
> Steve Holland

Well, that post was not that accurate.  People with early life hernias
are felt to have a congenital sack that promotes the formation of hernias.
The hernias of later life may be more associated with chronic straining.  
However, the risk of damage to the intestine without an operation is 
high enough that it ought to be repaired.  The risk of cancer is probably
no higher than the general population, but since you are near 40, it would
be sensible to have some sort of cancer screening, such as a flexible
sigmoidoscopy.  Sorry for the misleading info.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59551
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

In article <1993Apr29.124806.4599@Informatik.TU-Muenchen.DE>, rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube) writes:
> does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
> of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?

Mainly carbon dust with iron in a plastic binder that is melted on to the
paper.  Same stuff as dry paper photocopiers.

Allergies?  Haven't heard of any, but anything's possible with allergies ;-)

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59552
From: gecko@camelot.bradley.edu (Anastasia Defend)
Subject: Physical Therapy Students



I am interested in finding other Physical Therapy Students on the
net...If you are one, or you know anyone could you get into contact
with me via email, my address is

gecko@camelot.bradley.edu


				thankyou

					anastasia
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59553
From: SFB2763@MVS.draper.com (Eileen Bauer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.162636.22327@cc.ic.ac.uk>,
ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking) writes:

>Hi.
>
>My wife has aquired some thyroidal (sp?) deficiency over the past year
>that gives symptoms such as needing much sleep, coldness and proneness
>to gaining weight. She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
>tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
>not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the
>gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?).
>
...
>My questions are: has anyone had/heard of success in using this approach?
>Her values have been (slowly but) steadily sinking, any comment on the
>probability of improvement? Although the doctor has told her to 'eat
>normally', my wife has dieted vigorously to keep her weight as she feels
>that is part of keeping an edge over the illness/condition, may this
>affect the treatment, development?
>

There are several different types of Thyroid diseases which would cause
a hypothyroid condition (reduction in the output of the thyroid, mainly
thyroxin). Except for ones caused by infections, the treatment is
generally thyroxin pills. Hypothyroid conditions caused by infections
usually disappear when the infection does...this doesn't sound like the
case with your wife.
Thyroxin orally does "shut down the thyroid" through a feedback loop
involving the pituitary (I believe). The pituitary "thinks" that the
correct amount of thyroxin is being produced so it doesn't have to
tell the thyroid to produce more. This process is reversable! I have
Hashimoto's thyroiditis (an autoimmune condition) and was on thyroxin
for approx 6 mo when my endocrinologist suggested I not take the pills
for 6 wks. When I was retested for thyroxin levels, they were normal.
I still get tested every 6mo because the condition might reappear.
The pills are safe and have very few side-affects (& those mostly at
beginning of treatment). Having a baby might be a problem and would at
least require closer monitoring of hormone levels.
Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

I am not a doctor, so I'm sure I mistated something, but the important
thing is that thyroid problems are usually easily corrected and if they
aren't corrected can cause problems in the rest of the body. Get a
second opinion from a good endocrinologist and have him/her explain
things in detail to you and your wife.

- Eileen Bauer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59554
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Vitamin A and Infection

I've sent Gordon R. my posts on protein, vitamin C and vitamin A prior to 
posting on internet as a professional courtesy.  Somehow I've managed to 
delete my vitamin A post from my text file.  Gordon R. had promised to send 
it back to me but he's pretty mad at me right now so I'll just retype it.
Since digging through all my references is very time consuming(took me all 
day for that PMS post), I'm not going to cite any references(Gordon R. has 
them).  I'm going to include some of the material from Weinsier and 
Morgan's new Nutrition textbook(which was not in my original material) to 
point out that what I'm going to say has some support in the medical 
community.

Diet has been know to affect the immune system of man for a very, very long 
time.  Protein has always had the biggest role in infection and I've 
already covered the role of protein in protecting you against infection.
Now I'm going to hit what I consider to be the most important nutrient in 
the U.S. as far as infection is concerned(vitamin A).

When vitamin A was originally discovered, it was commonly referred to as 
the anti-infection vitamin.  Many people(Linus Pauling being one) have 
decided to take this title away from vitamin A and give it to vitamin C
(which I've already covered).  Big mistake(in my opinion).  Vitamin A is 
also getting a reputation as an anti-cancer vitamin(with good reason).
The NCI currently has numerous clinical trials in progress to see if 
vitamin A can not only prevent cancer but cure it as well.  It's role in 
both cancer and infection is almost identical(but not quite).

Vitamin A comes in two completely different forms(retinol and 
beta-carotene).  Retinol is the animal form and it's toxic, beta-carotene 
is the plant form and it's completely nontoxic.  Both retinol and beta-
carotene display good absorption in the human gut if bile is present
(60-80%).  The liver stores all of your retinol and doles it out for other 
tissues to use by synthesizing retinol binding protein(RBP).  A normal human 
adult liver should have 500,000IU to 1,000,000IU of retinol stored.  We 
are born with 10,000IU in our liver.  U.S. autopsy has shown that about 
30% of Americans die with the same(or less) amount of vitamin A as they 
were born with.  If you don't believe that nutritional reserves(like that 
of retinol in the liver) are important, then this low vitamin A reserve is 
not going to affect you.  But if you believe(like I do) that the nutrient 
reserves are important, then there is a problem with vitamin A in the U.S.

The U.S. RDA for vitamin A in an adult male is 1,000 RE or 5,000IU of 
vitamin A.  For adult feamles its 800 RE or 4,000IU of vitamin A.  Diet 
surveys show that most Americans are getting this amount of vitamin A
(either retinol or Beta-carotene) from their diet.  But the NRC(National 
Research Council) was going to release a new RDA table in 1985 that had the 
RDA for both vitamin A and vitamin C raised(C to 90mg per day and A to 
7,500IU per day for adult males).  That report and it's recommendations was 
killed.  Why? Concern over the increasing supplementation was the main 
reason.  RDAs are set to prevent clinical disease, not to keep nutrient 
reserves full.  Many scientist in the U.S. feel that the time has come to 
move away from the prevention of clinical pathology concept and move 
towards the promotion of optimum health concept, especially since we have 
some very good data now that show that nutrient reserves are extremely 
important during periods of stress.  The nutritonal concervatives won that 
battle and a new group of scientist were collected to come out with the 
1989 RDA list which lowered the RDA for several nutrients and moved the 
dietary guidelines back to where they were when we first started in the 
1940's(get enough to prevent clinical pathology, but not enough to fill 
the reserves).

We know from autopsy that only about 10% of Americans have a liver with a 
normal vitamin A reserve(500,000IU to 1,000,000IU).  I preach nutrient 
reserves to my students and tell them to measure them in their patients.
But for vitamin A, only a liver biopsy(or autopsy data) will tell you how 
much somebody has stored.  We can tell very easily if someone has 
overfilled his or her liver with vitamin A by measuring the serium retinol 
level(levels above 450ug/dl are highly suggestive that you have filled your 
liver with vitamin A and it's time to stop taking retinol).  The normal 
range of serum retinol will be 20-100ug/dl.  Hypervitaminosis A is 
diagnosed with a serum retinol level of 2,000ug/dl or higher(Interpretation 
of Diagnostic Test, Wallach, M.D., a Little Brown Series book).  This level 
of vitamin A in blood means that medical attention is necessary due to 
vitamin A toxicity.  Weinsier and Morgan take a much more conservative 
approach to vitamin A toxicity than does Wallach, as you will see later in 
this post.  Between 450ug/dl and 2,000ug/dl you should have plenty 
of warning that it's time to eliminate the retinol from your diet(headache, 
redness of the skin, hair loss, joint pain).

I tell all my students that will use vitamin A in their practice that they 
had better monitor the serum retinol level and stop when there are clear 
signs that the liver is full.  You will never really know if the patient 
needs the vitamin A(because you can not measure the pool in liver) but you 
will always know when it's time to stop(just like in those vitamin A for 
PMS studies).

Beta-carotene can be taken to fill up your liver with retinol and you will 
never have to worry about toxicity because the conversion of beta-carotene to 
retinol that occurs in both your gut and your liver will slow down(stops in the 
liver and slows down in the gut) when your liver is full of retinol.  But 
taking Beta-carotene as the source of retinol takes a very long time to 
fill the liver up(I've seen estimates of 20-30 years) if you are in the 30% 
that only has as much as you were born with in your liver(10,000IU).  One 
other problem with beta-carotene, if you have a zinc deficit, you will not 
convert as much beta-carotene to retinol in the gut or the liver because the 
enxzyme that does this conversion requires zinc.  In addition, the release of 
retinol from the liver is a zinc dependent process so a zinc deficit will 
cause a vitamin A deficit even if your liver has plenty of vitamin A.

Now what does vitamin A do in cancer and infection protection?  The body 
uses vitamin A(retinol) for many different things.  Vision(the first to be 
nailed down and where you see overt clinical pathology) uses the aldehyde
(retinal) and alcohol(retinol) form of vitamin A.  Reproduction uses the 
retinol form  and some retinal.  Infection and cancer protection uses 
retinoic acid.  How do you convert retinol(which your white blood cells 
and the mucosal cells get from blood) to retinoic acid?  You use enzymes, 
one of which requires vitamin C(this is why Pauling has tried to pull the 
title of anti-infection vitamin away from vitamin A).  Vitamin C does play 
a role in infection(interferon production for example) but it's biggest role 
is the conversion of retinol to retinoic acid.  If you increase your intake 
of vitamin C, you will increase your formation of retinoic acid.  But 
retinoic acid can not be converted back to retinol(as retinal can) and once 
it's formed, it's used and then lost to the body.  This is why the 1985 NRC 
group wanted to increase both vitamin C and vitamin A RDA's.

Most people taking large amounts of vitamin C really think that they are 
helping themselves.  If they don't have much vitamin A in their liver and 
they are not also increasing their intake of vitamin A, they actually do 
themselves more harm than good.

Retinoic acid functions in white blood cells to promote antibody formation.
In the mucus membrane, it is the main factor in promoting good mucus 
production and a good epithelial cell barrier to prevent infectious agents from 
entering the blood system.  The mucus membrane is referred to as the "first 
line" defense against infection.  For cancer, retinoic acid has been shown 
to act as a cell brake(it counteracts the effect of cell promoters which 
stimulate cells to divide).  Cancer has two distinct steps, DNA alteration 
and cell promotion.  For cells that normally divide all the time, promoters 
are not that important.  But for lung and breast tissue which does not 
normally divide, promoters are real important in the malignant process.
This is the major reason why the NCI has so many different clinical trials 
in progress using retinol and/or beta-carotene.

Chronic infection(irritation) of the mucus membranes is a signal that 
vitamin A may not be adequate.  I tell my students that any patient who 
walks into their office with a complaint of chronic infection has to be 
worked up for vitamin A(along with the other factors that medicine already 
has on it's list of causes for chronic infection).  I drive this home in my 
course at the Osteopathic College in Tulsa, when I teach at the allopathic 
medical school in Tulsa(OU's branch campus) and when I give CME lectures.

Dark adaptation is the best clinical test for vitamin A status since night 
vision is impacted when liver reverves drop to 50,000IU of retinol.  The 
serum level of retinol can also be used, but it does not drop until liver 
reserves drop below 10,000 to 20,000IU.  Asking a patient if they have 
trouble seeing at night is a good initial screen(if cataracts are ruled 
out).  In one study done on U.S. Spanish-Americans where serum retinol levels 
were measured, 25% of the sample population had a serum retinol level below 
20ug/dl.

As more studies are done on serum retinol levels in population groups of 
the U.S. that have had a history of high infection rates, we will probably 
see a much stonger correlation between infection incidence rates and low 
serum retinol levels.

What do Weinsier and Morgan have to say about vitamin A?  Here are excerpts
from their book:

Vitamin A functions in vision in the forrm of retinol, it is necessay for 
growth and differentation of epithelial tissue, and is required for 
reproduction, embryonic development, and bone growth.  Protein-calorie 
malnutrition and zinc deficiency may impair the absorption, transport, and 
metabolism of vitamin A.  Retinaldehyde is converted to retinoic acid, 
which has biological activity in growth and in cell diferentiation but not 
in reproduction or vision.  The most common procedure to evaluate vitamin A 
status is to measure the retinol level in plasma or serum.  The normal 
range for vitamin A content for a child is 20 to 90ug/dl.  Lower values are 
indicators of deficiency or depleted body stores.  Serum levels greater 
than 100ug/dl are indicative of toxic levels of vitamin A.  Dark adaptation 
tests and electroretinogram measurements are also useful but difficult to 
perform on young children.  Rapidly proliferating tissues are sensitive to 
vitamin A deficiency and may revert to an undifferentiated state.  The 
bronchorespiratory tract, skin, genitourinary system, gastrointestinal 
tract and sweat glands are adversely affected.  A daily intake of more than 
7.5mg(about 37,000IU) of retinol is not advised and chronic use of amounts 
over 20mg(100,000IU) can result in a dry and itching skin, desquamation, 
erythematous dermatitis, hair loss, joint pain, chapped lips, hyperostois
(bony depositis), headaches, anorexia, edema and fatigue.  

They recommend 30mg of retinol via IM injection in children for vitamin A 
deficiency but do not discuss treatment for adults.  Their toxic serum retinol 
level is very conservative.  I recommend that my students try 25,000IU in 
adults that are having problems with chronic infection.  They have to rule 
out a zinc deficit first by getting an RBC zinc run(or if their clinical 
lab can't run it, I tell them to do what Weinsier and Morgan suggest, give 
them the zinc along with the vitamin A.  At 25,000IU per day, toxicity 
should not be a problem and you will not have to worry about pulling the 
patient into the office on a regular basis to run a serum retinol.

Both Elaine and Jon found doctors who used a much higher dose of vitamin A.
Recall that the PMS papers were using 100,000IU to 200,000IU of vitamin A.
I don't suggest that my students use these high doses.  If you wanted to 
fill the liver up fast(as part of a clinical trial) and were monitoring the 
serum retinol level, then you would be okay.  But my knowledge of the 
vitamin A literature suggests to me that 25,000IU for patients with a 
demonstrated vitamin A deficit(dark adapatation test or serum retinol) will 
provide a good and steady improvement(as long as zinc and vitamin C status 
are good) without having to worry about toxicity.  If they want to get more 
agressive, fine if they follow my advise to check the serum retinol.  But 
vitamin A(retinol) should never be given in high dose to women who could 
become pregnant since vitamin A shows teratogenicity towards the human 
fetus.  The dose needed to show this effect on the developing fetus is 
18,000IU of retinol per day.  Beta-carotene will never have this effect on 
the human fetus.

Could just taking Beta-carotene instead of retinol supplements help?  Yes 
but the effect will take a long time to develop.  My advise is to use 
retinol to fill the liver up and then switch to beta-carotene to keep it 
full.  Vitamin A is probably one nutrient that is better off left to 
prescription by doctors.  But when we have the M.D.'s in this newsgroup 
jumping all over me and other doctors that propose the use of vitamin A 
supplements for treating patients with chronic sinus and GI distress, I 
think that the most prudent option is to keep vitamin A in the OTC market 
but require manufactors to provide package inserts to educate the general 
public about the dangers of vitamin A supplementation.

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59555
From: donrm@sr.hp.com (Don Montgomery)
Subject: Re: feverfew for migraines

Brenda Bowden (brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM) wrote:

: Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?

I keep an accurate log of my migraine attack frequency; feverfew didn't
seem to do anything for me.  However, eliminating caffeine seems to pre-
vent the onset of migraine in my case.  In other words, no caffeine, no 
migraines.

Don Montgomery
donrm@sr.hp.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59556
From: jhilmer@ruc.dk (Jakob Hilmer)
Subject: NEED VALUES FOR AORTA!


We need following data for human aorta:

  Tear and shear stress for aorta.
  A plot of the aortic cross-sectional area.  
  Stroke-volume at the aortic root.
  Approximate distribution of blood through the major arterial
      branches of the aorta.
  Flow velocity of blood in aorta.
  
We have various values for flow velocity, If you have any data remember to
give us the references too include in our report

--
Stud. Jakob Hilmer		Fax: (+45) 45 93 34 34
Hus 7.1 Gr. 8a			
Roskilde University, Denmark
Postbox 260
DK-4000 Roskilde






  
  


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59557
From: wdw@dragon.acadiau.ca (Bill Wilder)
Subject: Seeking info on retinal detachment

I am quite near sighted.

I've recently received laser treatment for both eyes to seal
holes in the retinas to help prevent retinal detachment. In my
left eye a small detachment had begun already and apparently the
laser was used to "weld" this back in place as well.

My right eye seems fine. In my left eye I was seeing occasional
flashes of bright light prior to the treatment. Since the
treatment (two weeks) these flashes are now occuring more often
- several each hour.

The opthamologist explained the flashes are caused because the
vitreous body has attached to the retina and is pulling on it. He
says this is not treatable and he hopes it may go away on its own
accord - if it tugs enough I may well face retinal detachment.

I am seeking (via sci.med) additional info on retinal detachments.
The Dr. did not wish to spend much time with me in explanations
so I appreciate any further details anyone can provide. Of most
interest to me:

If my retina does detach what should be my immediate course
of action?

If conventional surgery is need to repair the detachment what is
the procedure like and what kind of vision can I expect
afterwards.

Do the symptoms (fairly frequent flashes) imply that detachment
maybe near at hand or is this not necessarily cause for alarm.

Many thanks

Bill
-- 
Bill Wilder, Computer Systems Manager 
Kentville Research Station
Agriculture Canada
Kentville, Nova Scotia

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59558
From: ningeg@leland.Stanford.EDU (Nick Ingegneri)
Subject: Ethics regarding placebo/homeopathic "medicines"

I would like to know if their is any medical consensus
(or consensus within this group) regarding the ethics
of the following:

  1: Prescription of placebo medications when the patient
     did not specifically request any sort of treatment.

  2: Selling a placebo medication for a profit.

  3: Prescribing homeopathic remedies without advising
     a patient of their "controversial nature".

  4: Representing homeopathic remedies as "over the counter"
     medications.

Thanks,
Nick Ingegneri

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59559
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

In article <1993Apr29.052044.23918@nmt.edu> houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle) writes:
>	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
>antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
>(Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
>millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
>a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
>whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
>tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
>lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
>kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
>any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
>many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Well, I think you might want to visit a doctor who is familiar with
sleep disturbances, because antihistamines only help induce sleep when
they're used intermittently; they lose their sedative effect if they're
used on a nightly basis.  Their anticholinergic effects (drying of secretions,
relaxing effects on smooth muscle) can be problematic in some people, such as
those with glaucoma or prostate enlargement.

Antihistamines like diphenhydramine (Benadryl) or doxylamine (Unisom)
are potent sedatives which are useful occasionally.  Chlorpheniramine
(Chlor-Trimeton) is said to be less sedative, but 8mg seems to work
well in some people.  Both chlorpheniramine and doxylamine have long
half-lives compared to diphenhydramine, and so may produce a residual
hangover or "drugged" feeling the next morning.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59560
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.162636.22327@cc.ic.ac.uk> ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking) writes:
>She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
>tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
>not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the 
>gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?).

This is ridiculous, and your doctor sounds like a nut, if what is
reported here is what the doctor actually said.  If your wife's
pancreas stops producing insulin and therefore becomes diabetic, she'll
need insulin replacement.  That doesn't mean she's "dependent" on
insulin, anymore than she was beforehand--if her body doesn't make
enough, she'll have to get it elsewhere.  Oral thyroid replacement
hormone therapy is the cornerstone of treatment for hypothyroidism, and
it's really the only effective therapy available anyway.  Plus, it's
cheap.  Taking thyroid hormone when it isn't needed does cause your
thyroid gland to reduce its own production of the hormone, but that's a
_feature_, not a _bug_, and it's irrelevant in any case in the face of
hypothyroidism, because her problem that her gland isn't producing
enough.  There isn't a clinical phenomenon of "thyroid insufficiency"
caused by a sudden discontinuation of exogenous thyroid hormone
analogous to adrenal insufficiency caused by the sudden cessation of
prolonged administration of corticosteroids, so there should be no
worry about inappropriately "suppressing" the thyroid gland.

>The last couple of 
>monthes she has been seeing a hoemoepath (sp?) and been given
>some drops to re-activate either her thyroidal gland and/or the 
>'message-center' in the brain (sorry about the approximate language,
>but I haven't got many clues to what the english terms are, but the 
>brain-area is called the 'hypofyse' in norwegian.) 

Homeopathy is nonsense.  Tell her to stop wasting her money, health and time,
and get her to a legitimate doctor who will be in a position to make
a proper diagnosis and recommend the right therapy.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59561
From: bai@msiadmin.cit.cornell.edu (Dov Bai-MSI Visitor)
Subject: Re: Earwax

In article <lu2defINNac7@news.bbn.com> levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin) writes:
>bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer) writes:
>|One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
>|a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
>|trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
>|works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
>|water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
>|out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
>|comments?

Perhaps diluting the rubbing alcohol in some water, until you
feels comfortable will do the trick ?



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59562
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

But after you have taken antihistamines for a few nights, doesn't it start
to have a paradoxical effect?  I used to take one every night for
allergies and couldn't figure out why I developed bad insomnia.  Finally
figured out it was the antihistamines.  I would fall asleep for a few
minutes but would awaken at the drop of a pin a little later and could not
get back to sleep.  I don't have that problem since I stopped the
antihistamines at bedtime.  ?

Alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59563
From: george@crayola.East.Sun.COM (George A. Perkins  Sun Microsystems  Tampa FL  Systems Engineer)
Subject: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...


Hi sci.med folks...

I would like to know anything you folks can tell me regarding Lithium.

I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to 
know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.

I have a booklet from the "Lithium Information Center" based at the 
University of Wisconsin, but feel that it is pro-lithium and would be
interested in comments from the "not necessarily PRO" side of the fence.

I am a concerned father and just wish to be well informed...

Thanks for any information you can provide.

Please email me directly...

---
    /\        George A. Perkins
   \\ \       Systems Engineer
  \ \\ /      Sun Microsystems Computer Corporation
 / \/ / /     6200 Courtney Campbell Causeway
/ /   \//\    Suite 840
\//\   / /    Tampa, FL  33607
 / / /\ /     
  / \\ \      Phone:  (813) 289-7228
   \ \\       Fax:    (813) 281-0219
    \/        EMail:  george.perkins@East.Sun.COM


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59564
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

In article <1993Apr30.035235.26613@pbs.org> , jlecher@pbs.org writes:
>As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and
while I 

Seeing a dermatologist sounds like a very good idea if you are
worried about your dry skin.

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59565
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: insensitive technicians

In article <1rrhi9INN2bq@ceti.cs.unc.edu> John Eyles, jge@cs.unc.edu
writes:
Friend's unpleasant experience uring CT scan deleted
>Is there anything I can do about these pigs ?

I'd suggest writing a detailed letter about the incident to the
hospital administrator. Specify the date and time. If possible the
names of the technicians. 

Send a copy to the clinician under whose care your friend was
admitted. I say this because, though your friend has no argument
with the doctor, I have found that administrators sometimes ignore
complaints until the patient becomes litigious. Clinicians may not
have been informed of the complaint and are very surprised to find
themselves named in a suit.

If there is no response within a week send a follow up letter.
Attach a photocopy of the original letter. Do this weekly until you
do get a response.

CAT scans are non-invasive but they can be very scary. The scanner
can be a bad place for the claustrophobic. There was an interesting
study in the BMJ, about 10 years ago, which found that around 10% of
people who had CAT scans found it so unpleasant that they would
never have another. This compares with 15% who said the same about a
lumbar puncture. 

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59566
From: calzone@athena.mit.edu
Subject: Legality of placebos?



How is it that placebos are legal?  It would seem to me that if, as a patient,
you purchase a drug you've been prescribed and it's just sugar (or whatever),
there's a few legal complications that arise:

	1. 
If you have been diagnosed with a condition and you aren't given accepted
treatment for it, it seems like intentional medical malpractice.

	2.
A placebo should fall, legally, under the label of quackery (why not?)

	3.
Getting what you pay for.  (Deceptive "bait and switch" to an extreme...).  False
advertising  (what if McDonalds didn't put 100% pure beef in their hamburgers?)


	So I'm mystified.  Are these assumptions erred?  If they aren't, why the
hell can a doctor knowingly or unknowingly prescribe a placebo?

Thanks
calzone

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59567
From: claude@banana.fedex.com (claude bowie)
Subject: vitamin A and hearing loss

i heard a news report indicating research showing improved         
hearing in people taking vitamin A. the research showed that new    
growth replaced damaged "hairlike" nerves. has anyone heard about
this? 

thanks,
claude
-- 
claude bowie			| voice:  (901)797-6332
federal express corp		| fax:    (901)797-6388
box 727-2891, memphis, tn 38194 | email:  claude@banana.fedex.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59568
From: bitn@kimbark.uchicago.edu (nathan elery bitner)
Subject: Deadly NyQuil???

I originally posted this to alt.suicide.holiday but it was recommended
that I try you guys instead:

My friend insists that Ny-Quil can be deadly if enough is taken -- he
suggested something like 20-30 of the Night-time gelcaps would do someone
in.  Being a NORMAL user of Ny-Quil :), I checked the 'ingredients' and
have a very hard time believing it.  They are:

250 g acetaminophen
30 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl
10 mg Dextromethorphan HBr
6.25 mg Doxylamine Succinate

(per softgel)

Can someone settle our bet (a package of Ny-Quil of course :) -- what 
effect would 20-30 of these babies have?

*-Nathan-*

-- 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
|                         INTER ARMA SILENT LEGES                      |
| "Worship Ditka NOW."                email:  bitn@midway.uchicago.edu |
|______________________________________________________________________| 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59569
From: abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency


In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com  
(Eileen Bauer) writes:
> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59570
From: George <george_paap@email.sps.mot.com>
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <80412@cup.portal.com> Mark Robert Thorson, mmm@cup.portal.com
writes:
> Colonics were a health fad of the 19th century, which persists to this
day.
> Except for certain medical conditions, there is no reason to do this.
> Certainly no normal person should do this.

In article <1993Apr28.023749.9259@informix.com> Robert Hartman,
hartman@informix.com writes:
> Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
> that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
> GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
> maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.

Recently, I completed a 2 week juice fast (with 3 days of water) and had
two colonics as part of it.  My motivation was primarily spiritual, to
de-toxify from all the crap I've been putting in my body (not like thats
enough to clean it all out but it did have an effect).  Personaly, I
didn't find it an uncomfortable experience (the colonic), lost about
15lbs of beer belly (which hasn't come back over the last month), and
feel great.  One of the things that prompted me to get the colonic was
seeing my 90 year old grandmother chair ridden from colitis (?) from
years of indulgence.

Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
my body a hand once in a while.

Just my experience,

George Paap

I am my beliefs.
(which almost certainly are not those of my employer)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59571
From: jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton)
Subject: Re: Legality of placebos?

calzone@athena.mit.edu wrote:
>
>
>How is it that placebos are legal?  It would seem to me that if, as a patient,
>you purchase a drug you've been prescribed and it's just sugar (or whatever),
>there's a few legal complications that arise:
>
>	1. 
>If you have been diagnosed with a condition and you aren't given accepted
>treatment for it, it seems like intentional medical malpractice.

A placebo is an accepted treatment at times. 

>	2.
>A placebo should fall, legally, under the label of quackery (why not?)

Why should it?  Placebos are effective under certain circumstances.  That's
why they're used.  

Actually, I don't know know anyone who has actually gotten a "sugar pill".
I don't know how it could be done, since prescription drugs are always
labeled, and it's easy enough to find out what's in a pill if you have the
name.

It's more common to prescribe a drug which is effective for something, just
not for what you have.  Antibiotics for viral infections are the most
common such placebo. 

>	3.
>Getting what you pay for.  (Deceptive "bait and switch" to an extreme...).  False
>advertising  (what if McDonalds didn't put 100% pure beef in their hamburgers?)

I'm not sure what you mean by this.  What do you think you're paying for?
You're not entitled to a prescription drug just because you pay for a
doctor's appointment.  

-- 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jack Hamilton  KD6TTL  jfh@netcom.com  PO Box 281107  SF, CA  94128  USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59572
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: vitamin A and hearing loss

In article <1993Apr30.194806.10652@banana.fedex.com>, claude@banana.fedex.com (claude bowie) writes:
> i heard a news report indicating research showing improved         
> hearing in people taking vitamin A. the research showed that new    
> growth replaced damaged "hairlike" nerves. has anyone heard about
> this? 
> 
Claude, I've not heard or read anything that would suggest that vitamin A(
retinol) could reverse hearing loss due to nerve damage(usually caused by 
high sound levels, but also occassionally due to severe infection).  The 
types of cells that vitamin A regulates are the general epithelial cells 
and these cell types are not the ones that function in the ear hearing 
process.  The hair cell nerve-like epithelial cells in the ear may respond 
to vitamin A during cellular differentiation(embryogenesis) but I don't 
know if they are still capable of responding in adults.  If they are 
capable of responding with new hair growth, this would be a very major 
breakthrough in hearing loss.  With all of the medical interest in vitamin 
A, it would not be too surprising if a clinical study was done using 
vitamin A to reverse hearing loss.  But with only a news announcement to go 
on(and this type of communication is notoriously bad), I can't comment on 
your question anymore than I already have.  If one study has been done, 
more will need to follow to firm up a link between vitamin A and hearing 
loss if there really is one.

Marty B. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59573
From: SFB2763@MVS.draper.com (Eileen Bauer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.211625.568@adobe.com>,
abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno) writes:

>
>In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com
>(Eileen Bauer) writes:
>> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
>> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
>> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.
>
>Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?

Perhaps the listlessness caused by thyroid deficiency could mimic
depression, or feeling unable to do anything could cause one to get
depressed, but I know of no specific effect on the brain caused by the
thyroid that would cause depression. Note that weight gain is usually
a symptom of both. Simple blood tests would indicate if a thyroid
condition is present.

I don't know if depression would cause a reduction in thyroid output,
but I would tend to doubt it. As far as I know clinical depression is
caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain, and that chemical
imbalance has no direct effect on any other part of the body. A regular
everyday depression IMHO should not cause a chemical imbalance in the
body at all.

The pituitary bases its secretions of Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH)
on the level of circulating Thyroxin (there are two types T3 and T4 -
one is used as a reserve and is changed into the other -active- form in
the liver). The ratio of T3 & T4 can be affected by a number of other
hormones (estrogen, for example). Naturally, changing activity of the
body's cells would cause changes in availabilty of free thyroxin, but
the liver and a healthy thyroid should be able to balance things out in
short order.

Good sources for info on the thyroid are the Merk Manual (a physician's
reference book ) although reading it is enough to get one depressed :-)
and the Encyclopedia Brittanica (should be available in your local
library).

I hope this has been of some help.

-Eileen Bauer

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59574
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: RESULT: misc.health.diabetes passes 155:14

Voting for creation of the newsgroup misc.health.diabetes ended at
23:59 GMT on 29 Apr 93.  At this time, the total response received
consisted of 155 votes for newsgroup creation and 14 votes against
newsgroup creation.  Under the Guidelines for Usenet Group Creation,
this response constitutes a passing vote.

There will be a delay to allow time for the net to respond to this
result, after which the newsgroup misc.health.diabetes should be
created.

Please check the vote acknowledgement list to be sure that your vote
was received and properly credited.  Any inconsistencies or errors
should be reported to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil by email.

I want to thank everyone who participated in the discussion and vote
for this newsgroup proposal.

The following is the voting summary:

Votes received against newsgroup creation:

cline@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu               Ernest A. Cline
coleman@twin.twinsun.com                     Mike Coleman
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                       Eric J. Olson
elharo@shiva.njit.edu                        Elliotte Rusty Harold
emcguire@intellection.com                    Ed McGuire
hansenr@ohsu.EDU
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                      Herbert M. Petro
jjmorris@gandalf.rutgers.edu                 Joyce Morris
julian@bongo.tele.com                        Julian Macassey
knauer@cs.uiuc.edu                           Rob Knauerhase
lau@ai.sri.com                               Stephen Lau
macridis_g@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz                Gerry Macridis
owens@cookiemonster.cc.buffalo.edu           Bill Owens
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu                 Richard H. Miller

Votes received for newsgroup creation:

9781BMU@VMS.CSD.MU.EDU                       Bill Satterlee
a2wj@loki.cc.pdx.edu                         Jim Williams
ac534@freenet.carleton.ca                    Colin Henein
ad@cat.de                                    Axel Dunkel
al198723@academ07.mty.itesm.mx               Jesus Sanchez Pe~a
andrea@unity.ncsu.edu
anugula@badlands.NoDak.edu                   RamaKrishna Reddy Anugula
apps@sneaks.Kodak.com                        Robert W. Apps
arperd00@mik.uky.edu                         Alicia R. Perdue
baind@gov.on.ca                              Dave Bain
balamut@morris.hac.com                       Morris Balamut
bch@Juliet.Caltech.Edu                       Bryan Hathorn
bernsteinn@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL            Norman P. Bernstein
BGAINES@ollamh.ucd.ie                        Brian Gaines
bgeer@beorn.sim.es.com                       Bob Geer
Bjorn.B.Larsen@delab.sintef.no               Bjorn B. Larsen
bobw@hpsadwc.sad.hp.com                      Bob Waltenspiel
bock@VSIKP0.UNI-MUENSTER.DE                  Dirk Bock
bruce@uxb.liverpool.ac.uk                    Bruce Stephens
bspencer@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca                Brian Spencer
claudia@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL               Claudia Servadio-Coyne
compass-da.com!tomd@compass-da.com           Thomas Donnelly
constabiled@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL           Diane Constabile
csc@coast.ucsd.edu                           Charles Coughran
curtech!sbs@unh.edu                          Stephanie Bradley-Swift
debrum#m#_brenda@msgate.corp.apple.com       Brenda DeBrum
dlb@fanny.wash.inmet.com                     David Barton
dlg1@midway.uchicago.edu                     Deborah Lynn Gillaspie
dougb@comm.mot.com                           Douglas Bank
drs@sunsrvr3.cci.com                         Dale R. Seim
dt4%cs@hub.ucsb.edu                          David E. Goggin
ed@titipu.resun.com                          Edward Reid
edmoore@hpvclc.vcd.hp.com                    Ed Moore
emilio@Accurate.COM                          Elizabeth Milio
ewc@hplb.hpl.hp.com                          Enrico Coiera
"feathr::bluejay"@ampakz.enet.dec.com
franklig@GAS.uug.Arizona.EDU                 Gregory C. Franklin
FSSPR@acad3.alaska.edu
gabe@angus.mi.org                            Gabe Helou
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                        Isaac Kohane
gavin@praxis.co.uk                           Gavin Finnie
Geir.Millstein@TF.tele.no                    Geir Millstein
ggurman@cory.Berkeley.EDU                    Gail Gurman
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                      Gregory G. Woodbury
gmalet@surfer.win.net                        Gary Malet
GONZALEZ@SUHEP.PHY.SYR.EDU                   Gabriela Gonzalez
greenlaw@oasys.dt.navy.mil                   Leila Thomas
grm+@andrew.cmu.edu                          Gretchen Miller
halderc@cs.rpi.edu                           Carol Halder
HANDELAP%DUVM.BITNET@pucc.Princeton.EDU      Phil Handel
hc@Nyongwa.cam.org
heddings@chrisco.nrl.navy.mil                Hubert Heddings
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com
HOSCH2263@iscsvax.uni.edu                    Kathleen Hosch
hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu                   Herman Rubin
HUDSOIB@AUDUCADM.DUC.AUBURN.EDU              Ingrid B. Hudson
huff@MCCLB0.MED.NYU.EDU                      Edward J. Huff
huffman@ingres.com                           Gary Huffman
HUYNH_1@ESTD.NRL.NAVY.MIL                    Minh Huynh
ishbeld@cix.compulink.co.uk                  Ishbel Donkin
James.Langdell@Eng.Sun.COM                   James Langdell
jamie@SSD.intel.com                          Jamie Weisbrod
jamyers@netcom.com                           John A. Myers
jc@crosfield.co.uk                           Jerry Cullingford
jcobbe@garnet.acns.fsu.edu                   James Cobbe
jesup@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com               Randell Jesup
joannm@hpcc01.corp.hp.com                    JoAnn McGowan
joep@dap.csiro.au                            Joe Petranovic
John.Burton@acenet.auburn.edu                John E. Burton, Jr.
johncha@comm.mot.com
JORGENSONKE@CC.UVCC.EDU                      Keith Jorgenson
jpsum00@mik.uky.edu                          Joey P. Sum
JTM@ucsfvm.ucsf.edu                          John Maynard
julien@skcla.monsanto.com
kaminski@netcom.com                          Peter Kaminski
kerry@citr.uq.oz.au                          Kerry Raymond
kieran@world.std.com                         Aaron L. Dickey
kolar@spot.Colorado.EDU                      Jennifer Lynn Kolar
kriguer@tcs.com                              Marc Kriguer
laurie@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL                Laurie J. Key
lee@hal.com                                  Lee Boylan
lmt6@po.cwru.edu                             Lia M. Treffman
lunie@Lehigh.EDU
lusgr@chili.CC.Lehigh.EDU                    Stephen G. Roseman
M.Beamish@ins.gu.edu.au                      Marilyn Beamish
M.Rich@ens.gu.edu.au                         Maurice H. Rich
maas@cdfsga.fnal.gov                         Peter Maas
marilyn@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL               Marilyn M. Tucker
markv@hpvcivm.vcd.hp.com                     Mark Vanderford
MASCHLER@vms.huji.ac.il                      Michael Maschler
mcb@net.bio.net                              Michael C. Berch
mcday@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu                       Marrianne C. Day
mcookson@flute.calpoly.edu
melynda@titipu.resun.com                     Melynda Reid
mfc@isr.harvard.edu                          Mauricio F. Contreras
mg@wpi.edu                                   Martha Gunnarson
mhollowa@libserv1.ic.sunysb.edu              Michael Holloway
misha@abacus.concordia.ca                    Misha Glouberman 
mjb@cs.brown.edu                             Manish Butte
MOFLNGAN@vax1.tcd.ie                         Margaret O' Flanagan
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us                    David Muir Sharnoff
N.D.Treby@southampton.ac.uk                  N. D. Treby
N.J.C.Hookey@durham.ac.uk                    N. J. C. Hookey
Nancy.Block@Eng.Sun.COM                      Nancy Block
ndallen@r-node.hub.org                       Nigel Allen
nlemur@eecs.umich.edu                        Nigel Lemur
nlr@B31.nei.nih.gov                          Nathan Rohrer
pams@hpfcmp.fc.hp.com                        Pam Sullivan
papresco@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca         Paul Prescod
paslowp@cs.rpi.edu                           Pam Paslow
phil@unet.umn.edu                            Phil Lindberg
pillinc@gov.on.ca                            Christopher Pilling
pkane@cisco.com                              Peter Kane
pmmuggli@midway.ecn.uoknor.edu               Pauline Muggli
popelka@odysseus.uchicago.edu                Glenn Popelka
pulkka@cs.washington.edu                     Aaron Pulkka
pwatkins@med.unc.edu                         Pat Watkins
rbnsn@mosaic.shearson.com                    Ken Robinson
rmasten@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu            Roger Masten
robyn@media.mit.edu                          Robyn Kozierok
rolf@green.mathematik.uni-stuttgart.de       Rolf Schreiber
sageman@cup.portal.com
sasjcs@unx.sas.com                           Joan Stout
sca@space.physics.uiowa.edu                  Scott Allendorf
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
scrl@hplb.hpl.hp.com
scs@vectis.demon.co.uk                       Stuart C. Squibb
shan@techops.cray.com                        Sharan Kalwani
sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com              Sharen A. Rund
shazam@unh.edu                               Matthew T. Thompson
shipman@csab.larc.nasa.gov                   Floyd S. Shipman
shoppa@ERIN.CALTECH.EDU                      Tim Shoppa
sjsmith@cs.UMD.EDU                           Stephen Joseph Smith
slillie@cs1.bradley.edu                      Susan Lillie
steveo@world.std.com                         Steven W. Orr
surendar@ivy.WPI.EDU                         Surendar Chandra
swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil                 Steven Kirchoefer
S_FAGAN@twu.edu                              Liz Fagan
TARYN@ARIZVM1.ccit.arizona.edu               Taryn L. Westergaard
Thomas.E.Taylor@gagme.chi.il.us              Thomas E. Taylor
tima@CFSMO.Honeywell.COM                     Timothy D. Aanerud
tsamuel%gollum@relay.nswc.navy.mil           Tony Samuel
U45301@UICVM.UIC.EDU                         Mary Jacobs  
vstern@gte.com                               Vanessa Stern
wahlgren@haida.van.wti.com                   James Wahlgren
Waldref@tv.tv.tek.com                        Greg Waldref
waterfal@pyrsea.sea.pyramid.com              Douglas Waterfall
weineja1@teomail.jhuapl.edu
wgrant@informix.com                          William Grant
WINGB@Underdale.UniSA.edu.au                 Brian Wing
YEAGER@mscf.med.upenn.edu
yozzo@watson.ibm.com                         Ralph E. Yozzo
ysharma@yamuna.b11.ingr.com                  Yamuna Sharma
Z919016@beach.utmb.edu                       Molly Hamilton
zulu@iesd.auc.dk                             Bjoern U. Gregersen

The charter for misc.health.diabetes appears below.
 
--------------------------
 
Charter:  
 
misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
 
1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
 
2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
by a primary health care physician.  
 
-----(end of charter)-----
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59575
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk) writes:
: 
: BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.
: To be a politically-correct skeptic, better to go with agnostic, like me! :)
:

As a self-proclaimed atheist my position is that I _believe_ that there is
no god.  I don't claim to have any proof.  I interpret the agnostic position 
as having no beliefs about god's existence.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Are we THERE yet?  My
Rosemount Inc.                                |MIND is a SUBMARINE!!
                                              |
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59576
From: mavmav@mksol.dseg.ti.com (michael a vincze)
Subject: Re: Chromium for weight loss

In article <93119.141946U18183@uicvm.uic.edu>, <U18183@uicvm.uic.edu> writes:
|>   There is no data to show chromium is effective in promoting weight loss.  The
|>  few studies that have been done using chromium have been very flawed and inher
|> ently biased (the investigators were making money from marketing it).
|>   Theoretically it really doesnt make sense either. The claim is that chromium
|> will increase muscle mass and decrease fat.  Of course, chromium is also used t
|> o cure diabetes, high blood pressure and increase muscle mass in athletes(just
|> as well as anabolic steroids). Sounds like snake oil for the 1990's :-)



Where are your references?  I have been unable to find studies that state
that chromium "cures diabetese".  It can reduce the amount of insulin you
have to take.  "High blood pressure" - I have never heard of this claim
before.  "... anabolic steroids" - I have also never heard of this claim
before.  Sounds like you are making things up and stretching the truth
for God knows what reason.  Did somebody piss you off at one time?



|>  On the other hand, it really cant hurt you anywhere but your wallet, and place
|> bo effects of anything can be pretty dramatic...



I agree with you that chromium picolinate by itself isn't likely
to make a fat person thin.  But it can be the decisive component
of an overall strategy for long-term weight control and make an
important contribution to good health.  It is important to
exercise (11, 12) and also avoid fat calories (9, 10).

Chromium picolinate has shown to reduce fat and increase
lean muscle (1, 2, 3).  I will not bore you with the
statistics.  You wouldn't believe these anyway.

Chromium Picolinate is an exceptionally bioactive source of
the essential mineral chromium.  Chromium plays a vital role
in "sensitizing" the body's tissues to the hormone insulin.
Weight gain in the form of fat tends to impair sensitivity
to insulin and thus, in turn, makes it harder to lose
weight (4).

Insulin directly stimulates protein synthesis and retards
protein breakdown in muscles (5, 6).  This "protein sparing"
effect of insulin tends to decline during low calorie diets
as insulin levels decline, which results in loss of muscle
and organ tissue.  By "sensitizing" muscle to insulin,
chromium picolinate helps to preserve muscle in dieters
so that they "burn" more fat and less muscle.  Preservation
of lean body mass has an important long-term positive
effect on metabolic rate, helping dieters keep off the
fat they've lost.

Chromium picolinate promotes efficient metabolism by aiding
the thermogenic (heat producing) effects of insulin.
Insulin levels serve as a rough index of the availability
of food calories, so it's not at all surprising that insulin 
stimulates metabolism (4, 7, 8).  Note that I did not say
that chromium picolinate increases metabolism.

In summary, you need to change your life style in order to
loose weight and stay healthy:

  A. Reduce dietary fat consumption to no more than 20% of calories.
     - Eating fat makes you fat.

  B. Increase dietary fiber
     - low in calories; high in nutrients.

  C. Get regular aerobic exercise at least 3 times a week
     - burn calories.

  D. Take chromium picolinate daily
     - lose fat; keep muscle


References:

1.  Kaats GR, Fisher JA, Blum K. Abstract, American Aging
    Association, 21st Annual Meeting, Denver, October 1991.
2.  Evans, GW. Int J Biosoc Med Res 1989; 11: 163-180.
3.  Page TG, Ward TL, Southern LL. J Animal Sci 69, Suppl 1:
    Abstract 403, 1991.
4.  Felig P. Clin Physiol 1984; 4: 267-273.
5.  Kimball SR, Jefferson LS. Diabetes Metab Rev 4: 773, 1988.
6.  Fukugawa NK, Minaher KL, Rowe JW. et al. J Clin Invest 76:
    2306, 1985.
7.  Fehlmann M, Freychet P. Biol Chem 256: 7449, 1981
8.  Pittman CS, Suda AK, Chambers JB, Jr., Ray GY. Metabolism
    28: 333, 1979.
9.  Danforth E, Jr. Am J Clin Nutr 41: 1132, 1985.
10. McCarty MF. Med Hypoth 20: 183, 1986.
11. Bielinski R, Schutz Y, Jequier E. Am J Clin Nutr 42:69, 1985.
12. Young JC, Treadway JL, Balon TW, Garvas HP, Ruderman NB.
    Metabolism 35: 1048, 1986.


Best regards,
Michael Vincze
mav@asd470.dseg.ti.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59577
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Deadly NyQuil???

bitn@kimbark.uchicago.edu  writes:
> My friend insists that Ny-Quil can be deadly if enough is taken -- he
> suggested something like 20-30 of the Night-time gelcaps would do someone
> in.  Being a NORMAL user of Ny-Quil :), I checked the 'ingredients' and
> have a very hard time believing it.  They are:
> 
> 250 g acetaminophen
        ^^^^^^^^^^
> 30 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl
> 10 mg Dextromethorphan HBr
> 6.25 mg Doxylamine Succinate
> (per softgel)
> 
> Can someone settle our bet (a package of Ny-Quil of course :) -- what 
> effect would 20-30 of these babies have?

The acetaminophen is the agent of concern in overdose of this
OTC medication.  A single dose of acetaminophen of 10 grams or greater
can cause hepatotoxicity, and doses of 25 grams or more are
potentially fatal from hepatic necrosis.  If I recall
correctly, the metabolism of acetaminophen at high doses
involves N-hydroxylation to N-acetyl-benzoquinoneimine, which
is a highly reactive intermediate, which then reacts with
sulfhydryl groups of proteins and glutathione.  When hepatic
glutathione is used up, this intermediate then starts
attacking the hepatic proteins with resulting hepatic
necrosis.  The insidious part of acetaminophen toxicity is the
delay (2-4 days) between ingestion and clinical signs of liver
damage.  This is NOT a nice way to die.

As to taking 20-30 of these tablets, that comes to 5-7.5 grams
of acetaminophen.  In a normal adult, this would probably
cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and loss of appetite.

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59578
From: brb@falcon.is (Bjorn R. Bjornsson)
Subject: Re: earwax

hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>You can try
>adding a few drops of olive oil into the ear during a shower to soften up
>the wax.  Do this for a couple days, then try syringing again.  It is also
>safe to point your ear up at the shower head, and allow the water to rinse
>it out.

About six years ago my ears clogged up with wax, probably as a
result of to much headphone use.  Anyway, the clinic that cleaned
them out used the following procedure:

1. Inject olive oil into ears.
2. Prevent leakage of oil with cotton.
3. Come back in an hour.
4. Rinse ears with warm vater, forcefully injected
   into ear (very strange sensation).
5. Done.

They had special tools to do this, and were evidently quite
familiar with the problem: Very large steel syringe.  Special
bowl with cutout for ear to take the grime coming out without
spillage.

>Good Luck

Seconded,

Bjorn R. Bjornsson
brb@falcon.is

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59579
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Legality of placebos?

In article <jfhC6BG8y.D2x@netcom.com> jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton) writes:
>
>Actually, I don't know know anyone who has actually gotten a "sugar pill".
[...]
>
>It's more common to prescribe a drug which is effective for something, just
>not for what you have.  Antibiotics for viral infections are the most
>common such placebo. 

And presumably this is a matter of degree; it must be common to prescribe
a drug that has _some_ chance of giving _some_ benefit, but not a high
probability of it, and/or not a large benefit.  Right?

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59580
From: sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <93111.145432ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes:

   A good source of information on Burzynski's method is in *The Cancer Industry*
   by pulitzer-prize nominee Ralph Moss.

Interesting. What book got Moss the pulitzer nomination? None of the
flyers for his books mention this, and none of the Cancer Chronicle
Newsletters that I have mention this either.

   Also, a non-profit organization called "People Against Cancer,"
   which was formed for the purpose of allowing cancer patients to
   access information regarding cancer therapies not endorsed by the
   cancer industry, but which have shown highly promising results (all
   of which are non-toxic).

Moss is People Against Cancer's Director of Communications. People
Against Cancer seems to offer pretty questionable information, not
exactly the place a cancer patient should be advised to turn to. Most
(maybe all) of the infomation in their latest catalogue concern
treatments that have been shown to be ineffective against cancer, and
many of the treatments are quite dangerous as well.

sdb
---
sdb@ssr.com




Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59581
From: sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <jschwimmer.123.735362184@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu> jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer) writes:

   Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
   status of his research would be appreciated.

Burzynski's work is not too promising. None of his A-1 through A-5
antineoplastons have been shown to have antineoplastic effects against
experimental cancer. The NCI conducted tests of A-2 and A-5 against
leukemia in mice, with the result that doses high enough to produce
toxic effects in the mice were not effective in inhibiting the growth
of the tumor or killing it. (These were in 1983 and 1985)

Burzynski claims that A-10 is the active factor common to all of A-1
and A-5 (something which he has not shown, A-10 has only been
extracted from A-2. He also hasn't shown that A-1 through A-5 are actually
distinct substances). The NCI conducted a series of tests using A-10
against a standard panel of tumors that included different cell lines
from tumors in the following classes: leukemia, non-small-cell and
small-cell lung cancer, colon cancer, cancer of the central nervous
system, melanoma, ovarian cancer and renal cancer. A-10 exhibited
neither growth inhibition nor cytotoxicity at the dose levels tested.

It is necessary to process A-10 since it is not soluble (Burzynski's
theory requires soluble agents), but this basically hydrolizes it to
PAG (which he calls AS 2.5). PAG is not an information carrying
peptide, something which Byrzynski claims is necessary for
antineoplastic activity. AS 2.1 (also derived from A-10) is a 4:1
mixture of PA and PAG. PA (also not a peptide) can be purchased at a
chemical supply houses for about $0.09 a gram. A-10 is chemically
extremely similar to glutithamide and thalidomide, both of which are
habit forming and can cause peripheral neuropathy. The nasty effects
of thalidomide are widely known. In spite of this similarity, A-10
does not appear to have been tested for it's potential to induce
teratogenicity or peripheral neuropathy.

Many of Burzynski's statements about the origin of his theory, early
research, past and present support by others for his work have been
shown to be untrue.


sdb
---
sdb@ssr.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59582
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price) writes:
>
>I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
>"licensed herbologist and iridologist"
>What are your opinions?
>How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their eyes?


Its bogus.  See the sci.skeptic FAQ (I edit it).

You can diagnose some things by looking at the eyes.  Glaucoma is the
Classic Example, but there are probably others.

Iridology maps parts of the body onto the irises of the eyes.  By
looking at the patterns, striations and occasional blobs in the irises
you are supposed to be able to diagnose illnesses all over the body.

The two questions to ask any alternative therapist are:

1: How does it work?

2: What evidence is there?

The answer to question 1 takes a little knowledge of medicine to
evaluate.  I don't know about iridology, but I've read a book on
reflexology, which is a remarkably similar notion except that the
organs of the body are mapped onto the soles of the feet.  There are
supposed to be channels running down the body carrying information or
energy of some sort.  Anatomists have found no such structures.
(Always beware the words "channel" and "energy" in any spiel put out
by an alternative practitioner.)

The answer to question 2 is rather simpler.  If all they have is
anecdotal evidence then forget it.  Ask for referreed papers in
mainstream medical journals.  Ignore any bull about the conspiracy of
rich doctors suppressing alternative practitioners.  Studies are done
and papers are published.  Some of them are even positive.

The word "licensed" in the flyer is an interesting one.  Licensed by
whom?  For what?  It is quite possible that the herbology is real and
requires a license: you can kill someone by giving them the wrong
plants to eat, and many plants contain very powerful drugs (Foxglove
and Willow spring to mind).  It is not clear whether the license
extends to the iridology, and I suspect that if you ask you will be
told that it means "(Licensed herbologist) and iridologist".

BTW, the usual term is "herbalist".  Why use a different word?

-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59583
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy


>Hello,
>I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
>can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
>have a cat in the same apartment?


See the rec.pets.cats FAQ or any doctor or vet for more information.

I am not any of the above, but we do have a couple of cats.

It is transmitted through the fecal matter, so a pregnant woman should
avoid cleaning the cat tray and you should both wash hands before
preparing or eating meals.  The latter is sound advice at any time of
course.

Apart from that, its no great problem.  You certainly do not need to
get rid of your cats.

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59584
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno) writes:


>In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com  
>(Eileen Bauer) writes:
>> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
>> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
>> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

>Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?
 

There can be. But depression is not diagnositic of thyroid deficiency.
Thyroid blood tests are easy, cheap, and effective in diagnosing thyroid
deficiencies.

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59585
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <1rm29k$i7t@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
:In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
:>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
:>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
:>hepatitis.
:
:I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
:two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
:persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
:term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.
:
:Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
:sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
:is often fairly fuzzy as well.

I beg to differ.  Chronic *active* hepatitis implies that the disease
remains active, and generally leads to liver failure.  At the very
minimum, the patient has persistently elevated liver enzymes (what some
call "transaminitis").  Chronic *persistant* hepatitis simply means that
the patient has HbSag in his/her blood and can transmit the infection, but
shows no evidence of progressive disease.  If I had to choose, I'd much
rather have the persistant type.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59586
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

Len Howard (tas@pegasus.com) wrote:

: Well, now, Doc, I sure would not want to bet my life on those little
: critters not being able to get thru one layer of sweat-soaked cotton
: on their way to do their programmed task.  Infrequent, yes, unlikely,
: yes, but impossible?  I learned a long time ago never to say never in
: medicine   <g>                        Len Howard MD, FACOG

Yes, I suppose a single layer of wet cotton would be feasible.  After all,
we certainly do not make condoms out of cotton!] 
--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59587
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Nose Picking

I have two quations to ask:

1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?

2)  Is it harmful for one to eat one's nose pickings?

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59588
From: taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU>, Harry Matthews writes...
> 
> I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
> else is going on?

    Do you swim nude in a public swimming pool?  :)  I doubt sperm can
penetrate swimsuit material, assuming they aren't immediately dispersed
by water currents.
-- 
Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59589
From: taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, Alexander P. Zijdenbos writes...
> 
> I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
> so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
> as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
> quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

    But no one (or at least, not many people) are trying to pass off God
as a scientific fact.  Not so with Kirlian photography.  I'll admit that
it is possible that some superior intelligence exists elsewhere, and if
people want to label that intelligence "God", I'm not going to stop
them.  Anyway, let's _not_ turn this into a theological debate.  ;-)

> I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
> something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
> of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
> were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

    Read alt.fan.robert.mcelwaine sometime.  I've never been so
closed-minded before subscribing to that group.  :)

-- 
Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59590
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

I remember as a kid visiting my relatives on Kauai, and one of the things
that really frightened me was centipedes.  I'd been told they were poisonous
and infrequently one would pop up and scare the heck out of me.  Once
one came out of the vacuum cleaner and it seemed like it was at least a foot
long and moving at 35 miles an hour!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59591
From: texx@ossi.com ("Texx")
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon) writes:

>aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu () writes:

>>>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>>>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>>>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>>>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>>>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>>>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>>>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>>>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>>>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>>>unnecessary.

>>Peter Schlumpf
>>University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

As I recall, it is a statistical anomaly because of the sample involved in the studies.
I am certain that if it were true the Europeans would be cutting kids right & left.

>First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
>alt.sex.

>Secondly, how absolutely bogus to assume that "American's are just too hung
>up on the penis....blah,blah".  I think most American's don't care about
>anything so comlicated as that.  They just think it "looks nicer".  Ask 
>a few of them and see what response you get.  Others still opt for
>circumcision due to religious traditions and beliefs.  Some think it is
>easier to clean.  Still others do it because "Daddy was".

I think alot do it blindly because "Dad" had it done.  But there are many
who get bamboozled into it with the bogus cancer thing.  Awhile back some
quack told a friend of mine that it would help prevent AIDS.

Yeah...Right! (Sarchasm)

>Dont' be so naive as to think American's are afraid of sexuality. 

Oh YEAH ?

Scene: Navy boot camp

DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
Recruit:	"No Sir !"
DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
DI:		"Why ?"
Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."

This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.

I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59592
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

> Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
> my body a hand once in a while.
> 
> Just my experience,
> 
> George Paap

I've got a very nice collection of historical books on medical quackery,
and on the topic of massage this is a recurring theme.  Ordinary massage
is intended to make a person feel better, especially if they have muscular
or joint problems.  But -- like chiropracty -- there are some practitioners
who take the technique to a far extreme, invoking what seems to me to be
quack science to justify their technique.

In the case of massage, there is a technique called "deep abdominal massage"
in which the masseur is literally attempting to massage the intestines!
The notion is that undigested food adheres to the inner surface of the
intestines and putrifies, releasing poisons which cause various disease
syndromes.  By this vigorous and painful procedure, it is alleged that
these deposits can be loosened up and passed out.

I just can't believe this idea has any truth behind it!  The human intestine
is not a New York City sewer pipe!  And even if it were, you eat half of
a small box of Triscuits, and there ain't gonna be nothin' sticking to the
inner surface of your intestine  :-)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59593
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Data of skull

GT> From: gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor)
GT> Hi, We are trying to develop a image reconstruction simulation for the skull

You could do high resolution CT (computed tomographic) scanning of
the skull.  Many CT scanners have an algorithm to do 3-D
reconstructions in any plane you want.  If you did reconstructions
every 2 degrees or so in all planes, you could use the resultant
images to create user-controlled animation.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                                        

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59594
From: draper@umcc.umcc.umich.edu (Patrick Draper)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <1rsvgr$r13@nym.ossi.com> texx@ossi.com ("Texx") writes:
>Oh YEAH ?
>
>Scene: Navy boot camp
>
>DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
>Recruit:	"No Sir !"
>DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
>Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
>DI:		"Why ?"
>Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."
>
>This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.
>
>I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!


Wow that certainly CONVINCED me that all Americans ar hung up about sex.
Just one example of something that probably ran in a Hustler mag is enough
to convince me.

Sarchasm off.


------------------////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\------------------
| Patrick Draper-ZBT                 We are a nation of laws, not people.  |
| draper@umcc.umich.edu                    Flames > /dev/Koresh            |
|                   University of Michigan Computer Club                   |
------------------\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////------------------


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59595
From: GWGREG01@ukcc.uky.edu
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <C6BotF.137@r-node.hub.org>
taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU>, Harry Matthews writes...
>>
>> I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
>> else is going on?
>
>    Do you swim nude in a public swimming pool?  :)  I doubt sperm can
>penetrate swimsuit material, assuming they aren't immediately dispersed
>by water currents.
>--
>Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
>::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)
 
Here we go again.
 
========================================================================
 
U   UK   K UNIVERSITY                                 GARY W. GREGORY
U   UK  K  OF KENTUCKY                          GWGREG01@UKCC.UKY.EDU
U   UKKK   __________________________________________________________
UU UUK  KK
 UUU K   KK                                      DEPARTMENT OF OB/GYN
                                                MS 335 MEDICAL CENTER
                                       LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY 40536-0084
=====================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59596
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking

I don't know if it causes the body any harm, but in the 23
years I've been teaching nine and ten years olds I've never had
one fall over from eating "boogers" which many kids do on a
regular basis [when they think no one is looking . . .]


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59597
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Meaning of atheism, agnosticism  (was: Krillean Photography)

-*----
Sci.med removed from followups.  (And I do not read any of the
other newsgroups.)

-*----
In article <1993Apr30.170233.12510@rosevax.rosemount.com> grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards) writes:
> As a self-proclaimed atheist my position is that I _believe_ that 
> there is no god.  I don't claim to have any proof.  I interpret
> the agnostic position as having no beliefs about god's existence.

That's fine.  These words have multiple meanings.

As a self-proclaimed atheist, I believe that *some* conceptions
of god are inconsistent or in conflict with fact, and I lack
belief in other conceptions of god merely because there is no
reason for me to believe in these.  I usually use the word
agnostic to mean someone who believes that the existence of
a god is unknown inherently unknowable.  Note that this is a
positive belief that is quite different from not believing in a
god; I do not believe in a god, but I also do not believe the
agnostic claim.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59598
From: ceci@lysator.liu.se (Cecilia Henningsson)
Subject: Q: Repelling wasps?

(This is a cross post to rec.gardens and sci.med. Set the follow-up
(line in the header, depending on what kind of advice you give, or
(e-mail directly to me: ceci@lysator.liu.se.)

I have a problem with wasps -- they seem to love me. Last summer I
couldn't spend more than ten to fifteen minutes at a time in my garden
before one or several wasps would come for me. I am asking for advice
on how to repel wasps.

   This year the wasps have built their nest under a stone next to one
of my tiny ponds. The caretaker (poor fellow!) will have to take care
of them, and that will give me a head start on them. Last year we
couldn't find any nest. Even after the caretaker has gassed the nest
in my tiny garden of 30 square meter, other wasps will most likely vie
for the territory. Is there anything I can grow, rub on my skin or
spread on the soil that will repel the black and yellow bastards?
Never mind if it turns my skin purple or kills off all my beloved
plants, I want to be able to spend time in my garden like everyone
else.

   Would it help to remove the ponds and the bird bath? The wasps seem
to come to drink at them, and I suppose that their prey will breed in
them. The black tits seem to be afraid of the wasps, because as soon
as the wasp season starts, they stop coming to have their bath.

Even when I am not trying to win back my patio from 15-20 wasps, they
seem to love me. The advice I usually get when I ask what to do about
wasps, is to stand still and not wave my arms. I've got some painful
stings when trying to follow that advice. I have also tried to use
hygienic products without perfumes, to no avail. They still love me,
and come for me, even when I'm in the middle of a crowd. So far only
two things seem to work: To kill it dead or to run into the house and
close all doors and windows. 

NB: I don't have a problem with bees or bumble-bees, just wasps.
    Patronizing advice redirected to /dev/null.

--Ceci
--
=====ceci@lysator.liu.se===========================================
"The number of rational hypotheses that can explain any given
 phenomenon is infinite."
Phaedrus' law from RM Pirsig's _Zen_and_the_Art_of_Motorcycle_Maintenance_

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59599
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Re: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...

In article <1rrv7i$7m7@dr-pepper.East.Sun.COM>, george@crayola.East.Sun.COM
>
>I would like to know anything you folks can tell me regarding Lithium.
>
>I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
>difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
>wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to
>know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
>thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.
>
>I have a booklet from the "Lithium Information Center" based at the
>University of Wisconsin, but feel that it is pro-lithium and would be
>interested in comments from the "not necessarily PRO" side of the fence.
>
>I am a concerned father and just wish to be well informed...
>
I get "antsy" about posts like this. Is the concern more for son or about ex-w
ife??? The standard impartial procedure is to ask for a second opinion
about son's condition.
Then too, is son "acting out" games between divorced parents????

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59600
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...

In article <93121.120223RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> writes:
>[Someone writes:]
>>I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
>>difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
>>wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to
>>know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
>>thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.

>I get "antsy" about posts like this. Is the concern more for son or about ex-w
>ife??? The standard impartial procedure is to ask for a second opinion
>about son's condition.
>Then too, is son "acting out" games between divorced parents????

Precisely.  One wonders what unusual strain the boy might be under that
could be causing "difficulty with his behavior".  Standard practice would
be to get a second opinion from a child psychiatrist.  One would want to
rule out the possibility that the "bad behavior" is not psychiatric
illness at all.

(Disclaimer: I am not a medic. But I am a parent.)

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59601
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10535@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <1rm29k$i7t@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>:In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
>: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
>:>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
>:>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
>:>hepatitis.
>:
>:I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
>:two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
>:persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
>:term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.
>:
>:Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
>:sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
>:is often fairly fuzzy as well.
>
>I beg to differ.  Chronic *active* hepatitis implies that the disease
>remains active, and generally leads to liver failure.  At the very
>minimum, the patient has persistently elevated liver enzymes (what some
>call "transaminitis").  Chronic *persistant* hepatitis simply means that
>the patient has HbSag in his/her blood and can transmit the infection, but
>shows no evidence of progressive disease.  If I had to choose, I'd much
>rather have the persistant type.


Being a chronic HBsAg carrier does not necessarily mean the patient has chronic
persistent anything. Persons who are chronic carriers may have no clinical,
biochemical, or histologic evidence of liver disease, or they may have chronic
persistent hepatitis, chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular
carcinoma.

Most cases of chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH) are probably the result of
a viral infection, although in a good number of cases the cause cannot be
determined. The diagnosis of CPH is made on the basis of liver biopsy. It
consists of findings of portal inflammation, an intact periportal limiting
plate, and on occasion isolated foci of intralobular necrosis. But in contrast
to chronic active hepatitis (CAH) there is no periportal inflammation, 
bridging necrosis, or fibrosis. 

CPH has, indeed, an excellent prognosis. If I had to choose between CAH and
CPH there is no question I would also choose CPH. However, as David pointed
out, the distinction between the two is not as neat as some of us would have
it. The histology can sometimes be pretty equivocal, with biopsies showing
areas compatible with both CPH and CAH. Maybe it is a sampling problem. Maybe
it is a continuum. I don't know.

=================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59602
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <80651@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>> Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
>> my body a hand once in a while.
>> 
>> Just my experience,
>> 
>> George Paap
> 
> I've got a very nice collection of historical books on medical quackery,
> and on the topic of massage this is a recurring theme.  Ordinary massage
> is intended to make a person feel better, especially if they have muscular
> or joint problems.  But -- like chiropracty -- there are some practitioners
> who take the technique to a far extreme, invoking what seems to me to be
> quack science to justify their technique.
> 
> In the case of massage, there is a technique called "deep abdominal massage"
> in which the masseur is literally attempting to massage the intestines!
> The notion is that undigested food adheres to the inner surface of the
> intestines and putrifies, releasing poisons which cause various disease
> syndromes.  By this vigorous and painful procedure, it is alleged that
> these deposits can be loosened up and passed out.
> 
> I just can't believe this idea has any truth behind it!  The human intestine
> is not a New York City sewer pipe!  And even if it were, you eat half of
> a small box of Triscuits, and there ain't gonna be nothin' sticking to the
> inner surface of your intestine  :-)

Mark, this is the most reasonable post that I've seen in Sci. Med. on the 
topic of Colonic Flushing.  I'm in a profession that uses manipulation(a 
very refined form of massage) to treat various human diseases.  Proving 
that manipulation works has been extremely difficult(as the MD's delight in 
pointing out).  The Osteopathic Profession seems to be making better 
progress than the chiropractors in proving(scientifically) that their 
techingues work.  The JAOA recently had a study on the use of manipulation 
to relieve mensrual cramps in women with results that were as good or 
better than drug treatment(using physiological measurements, and not just 
the woman's preception of improvement).  This study was hailed by the JAOA 
editors as the turning point in the profession's long struggle to prove 
itself to the medical community.

I'm currently trying to get the AOA(American Osteopathic Association) which 
has supported most of the Osteopathic research in the U.S. to also support 
nutrition education and research.  I've pointed out, in a grant proposal, 
that the founder of Osteopathic Medicine(A.T. Still) embraced both diet and 
manipulation to set himself apart from the MD's of his time who were pushing 
only drugs(Still was himself an MD who got real dissillusioned with drugs 
during his service in the Civil War).  He decided that there had to be a 
better way to treat human disease since he saw the cure(drugs) as being 
worse than the disease.  Through his many years of study of the human body, 
he developed his manipulation techniques that he then taught to his 
students in the U.S's first Osteopathic Medical school.  We now have 17.
Still used manipulation to treat(and also diagnose) human disease but he 
used diet to prevent human disease.  I'm trying to get the Osteopathic 
Profession to return to it's roots and beat the MD's to the punch(so to 
speak).  Both DO's and MD's in current medical practice have very little 
understanding of how diet affects human health.  This has to change.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU COllege of Osteopathic Medicine

"You are what you eat." 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59603
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr29.173817.25867@nntpd2.cxo.dec.com> tung@paaiec.enet.dec.com () writes:
>
>I have just started taking allergy shots a month ago and is 
>still wondering what I am getting into. A friend of mine told
>me that the body change every 7 years (whatever that means)
>and I don't need those antibody-building allergy shots at all.
>Does that make sense to anyone?
>
>BTW, can someone summarize what is in the Consumer Report
>February, 1988 article?

I am reluctant to summarize it, for then you will have my opinion of what the
article says, rather than your own opinion.  I think it is important enough
for you to take the trouble to go to the library and get the article.  The
title is "The shot doctors" and it appears on Pages 96-100 of the February,
1988 issue of Consumer Reports.  The following excerpt from the article may
entice you to read the whole article:
     Too often, shots are overused....."When you put a patient on
     shots, you've got an annuity for life," a former president of
     the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology told CU. [page 97]

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59604
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

texx@ossi.com ("Texx") writes:

>Scene: Navy boot camp

>DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
>Recruit:	"No Sir !"
>DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
>Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
>DI:		"Why ?"
>Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."

>This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.

>I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!

Cute anecdote, but hardly indicative of the population.  From the responses
I've received to that post (all from men, by the way) I get the impression
that unless a person is willing to drop down and masturbate whenever the
need or desire strikes, then that person is very hung up on sex.

With tv programs about "boobs" (Seinfeld) and "masturbation (again Seinfeld)
and with condoms being handed out in high schools and with the teenage
pregnancy rate and the high abortion rate here in the States, I would
not assume that we American's are frightened of sex.  Rather we are a bit
stupid about it.  Healthy sexuality does not require flamboyance or
promiscuity.  It requires responsibility.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59605
From: glskiles@carson.u.washington.edu (Gary Skiles)
Subject: Re: Deadly NyQuil???

In article <C6BK0F.H7I@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg) writes:

[Partial deletion]

>potentially fatal from hepatic necrosis.  If I recall
>correctly, the metabolism of acetaminophen at high doses
>involves N-hydroxylation to N-acetyl-benzoquinoneimine, which
>is a highly reactive intermediate, which then reacts with
>sulfhydryl groups of proteins and glutathione.  When hepatic
>glutathione is used up, this intermediate then starts
>attacking the hepatic proteins with resulting hepatic
>necrosis.  The insidious part of acetaminophen toxicity is the
>delay (2-4 days) between ingestion and clinical signs of liver
>damage.  This is NOT a nice way to die.
>
Nice explanation except that it isn't N-hydroxylation that causes the
formation of the N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine (NAPQI), but rather a
direct two-electron oxidation. In addition, there is one school of thought
that contends that oxidative stress rather than arylation of protein
is the more critical factor in the hapatotoxcity of acetaminophen.  

As far as drug toxicities go, acetaminophen has and continues to be one
of the most intensely scrutinized. An excellent recent review of the topic
can be found in: 

	Vermeulen, Bessems and Van de Straat. 	
	Molecular Aspects of Paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity and its
	Mechanism-Based Prevention. Drug Metabolism Reviews, 24(3) 367-
	407 (1992).

	(Acetaminophen is known as paracetamol in Europe)

I couldn't agree with you more about what an awful way to die a toxic
dose of acetaminophen causes.  I've heard a number of descriptions by
physicians associated with poison control centers, and they describe a
lingering very painful death. 

-Gary-


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59606
From: chungdan@leland.Stanford.EDU (Zhong Qi Iao (Daniel))
Subject: [sleep] the pulse of relaxation; roaming while sleeping

     I posted about a "pulse of (relaxation) electricity".  I now think
it more like a pulse of "relaxation" or comfort than a pulse of
electricity.  It is what you feel if you are overwhelmed by a feeling
of comfort, such as seeing or thinking about something beautiful.

     Another thing.  When you sleep, you lie down facing up, with your
palms aside of you and facing down on the surface of the bed.  Then you
relax, and there start involuntary nerve firings inside your flesh.  So,
you feel a "shiver" below the surface of the skin (not heart-beat).
Then this shiver increases, and comes up to your head, and the roam you
hear loudens.  (Note that you always hear a high-pitch when you lie down
in bed; this is just the noise of your blood running in your ear.)  This
roam is different from the high pitch, but follows the shiver of your
body.

     "Shiver" is not the word.  It may be called a mild vibration or quake.
What is this shiver and roam?  Can I use this to induce out-of-body
experience?

					Daniel Chung (Mr.), U.S.A.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59615
Subject: Help with antidepressants requested.
From: blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz (Gordon Taylor)

Hello all,

          There is a small problem a friend of mine is experiencing and I 
would appreciate any help at all with it.

My friend has been diagnosed as having a severe case of depression requiring 
antidepressants for a cure. The main problem is the side effects of these. 
So far she has been prescribed Prozac, Aurorix, and tryptanol all with 
different but unbearable side effects.

The Prozac gave very bad anxiety/jitters and insomina, it was impossible to 
sit still for more than a minute or so.

The Aurorix whilst having a calming effect, all feelings were lost and the 
body co-ordination was similar to a drunken person. Her brain was clouded 
over.

The tryptanol gave tremors in the legs and panic attacks along with unco- 
ordination occurred. She did not know what she was doing as her brain was 
"closed down".

Has anyone had similar problems and/or have any suggestions as to the next 
step?

Thankyou in advance.

Gordon Taylor
E-mail: blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59616
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10557@blue.cis.pitt.edu> doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle) writes:
:Being a chronic HBsAg carrier does not necessarily mean the patient has chronic
:persistent anything. Persons who are chronic carriers may have no clinical,
:biochemical, or histologic evidence of liver disease, or they may have chronic
:persistent hepatitis, chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular
:carcinoma.
:
:Most cases of chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH) are probably the result of
:a viral infection, although in a good number of cases the cause cannot be
:determined. The diagnosis of CPH is made on the basis of liver biopsy. It
:consists of findings of portal inflammation, an intact periportal limiting
:plate, and on occasion isolated foci of intralobular necrosis. But in contrast
:to chronic active hepatitis (CAH) there is no periportal inflammation, 
:bridging necrosis, or fibrosis. 
:
:CPH has, indeed, an excellent prognosis. If I had to choose between CAH and
:CPH there is no question I would also choose CPH. However, as David pointed
:out, the distinction between the two is not as neat as some of us would have
:it. The histology can sometimes be pretty equivocal, with biopsies showing
:areas compatible with both CPH and CAH. Maybe it is a sampling problem. Maybe
:it is a continuum. I don't know.

Darn.  Just when I think I understand something someone who knows the
pathology has to burst my bubble :-(  We'd better not start talking about
glomerular diseases, then I'll really get depressed.

Seriously though, I wonder how someone with CPH would end up getting a
biopsy in the first place?  My understanding (and feel free to correct me)
is that the enzymes are at worst mildly elevated, with overall normal
hepatic function.  I would think that the only clue might be a history of
prior HepB infection and a positive HepB-sAg.  Or is it indeed on a
continuum with CAH, and the distinction merely one of pathology and
prognosis, but otherwise identical clinical features?

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59617
From: werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner)
Subject: Re: Help with antidepressants requested.

In article <736250544snx@penguin.equinox.gen.nz>,
blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz (Gordon Taylor) wrote:

> The Prozac gave very bad anxiety/jitters and insomina, it was impossible to 
> sit still for more than a minute or so.

I tried Prozac a few months ago, and had some insomnia from it, but no
anxiety or jitters.  I probably could have lived with the insomnia if the
Prozac had done any good, but it only provided a tiny benefit.  Maybe
because the person who prescribed it didn't know much and gave up after a
20mg dose didn't work.

Now I'm seeing a psychiatrist who has put me on Zoloft (another serotonin
reuptake inhibitor like Prozac).  One pill/day (50mg) seemed to help some. 
Now I'm trying 100mg/day.  Zoloft has fewer and milder side effects than
Prozac.  I think my doctor said that only 4% of the people taking Zoloft
have to discontinue it because of side effects.  The only problem I'm
having is some minor GI distress, but nothing too annoying.  Hopefully the
Zoloft will work.  Maybe your friend should try this one next.

My psychiatrist's strategy seems to be to first try one of the serotonin
drugs, usually Prozac.  If that works, great.  If it works but has too many
side effects, try Zoloft or maybe Paxil.  If the serotonin drugs don't work
at all, try one of the tricyclics like desipramine.

>...suggestions as to the next step?

Having a doctor who knows something about antidepressants can make a big
difference.  My psychiatrist claims that most GPs and FPs don't have much
experience in this area, and from what I've seen I'm inclined to believe
him.  I think I know more about antidepressants than the people at my
family practitioner's office.

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor; what I know about this comes from talking to
my psychiatrist and reading sci.med.  

--
John Werner                          werner@soe.berkeley.edu
UC Berkeley School of Education      510-596-5868

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59619
From: stanley@skyking.OCE.ORST.EDU (John Stanley)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C6Bot5.12A@r-node.hub.org> taob@r-node.hub.org writes:
>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, Alexander P. Zijdenbos writes...
>> I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>    But no one (or at least, not many people) are trying to pass off God

Will you please keep this crap out of sci.image.processing?


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59620
From: collopy@leland.Stanford.EDU (Paul Dennis Collopy)
Subject: re: antidepressants

Without restating the thread going here.....

Zoloft is a stimulating antidepressant.

It is unfortunate that antidepressant therapy is trial and error, but
if it is any help, there are a lot of people using the side effects of
the many medications to help manage other conditions.

Hang in there, maybe someday a "brain chemistry set" will be available
and all the serotonin questions will have answers.

Please, no flames........I have enough to deal with   :)



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59621
From: haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (Jim Haynes)
Subject: Is this a total or partial scam?


There's a chiropractor who has a stand in the middle of a shopping
mall, offering free examinations.  Part of the process involves a
multiple-jointed sensor arm and a computer that says in a computer-
sounding voice "digitize left PSIS" "digitize right PSIS" "digitize
C7" "please stand with spine in neutral position".  I'm wondering
whether this doesn't really measure anything and the computer voice
is to impress the victims, or whether it is measuring something
that chiropractors think is useful to measure.
-- 
haynes@cats.ucsc.edu
haynes@cats.bitnet

"Ya can talk all ya wanna, but it's dif'rent than it was!"
"No it aint!  But ya gotta know the territory!"
        Meredith Willson: "The Music Man"


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59622
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: IS THIS A SCAM?

    Jim Haynes wants to know the following is a scam....

       There's a chiropractor who has a stand in the middle of a shopping
       mall, offering free examinations.  Part of the process involves a
       multiple-jointed sensor arm and a computer that says in a computer-
       sounding voice "digitize left PSIS" "digitize right PSIS" "digitize
       C7" "please stand with spine in neutral position".  I'm wondering
       whether this doesn't really measure anything and the computer voice
       is to impress the victims, or whether it is measuring something
       that chiropractors think is useful to measure.

Earth to sci.med....If it looks like a duck...and quacks like a duck......

This is a TOTAL scam. Since the beginning of chiropraxis, the chiropractor has 
tried to sell The Subluxation as The Problem and then sell themselves and
their Adjustments as The Solution. The Chiropractic Subluxation is a delusional 
diagnosis and the Adjustments of Subluxations by extension constitute a 
delusional medicine.

The wide spectrum of chiropractic Techniques ALL have their own methods for 
detecting Spinal Demons and unique methodolgies for Excorcizing Them. The 
computer approach is an attempt to 'sell with science' but this device is 
nothing more than a 'high-tech' Subluxation Detector.....and in the end...
AMAZINGLY...it will show the potential 'patient' to suffer from...VS......
Vertebral Subluxation....The Silent Killer!

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu





Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59623
From: mrbulli@btoy1.rochester.NY.US (Mr. Bulli (private account))
Subject: Re: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?

On 28 Apr 93 20:54:04 GMT joshm@yang.earlham.edu wrote:
: In article <1993Apr27.110440.5069@nic.csu.net>, eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg) writes:
: > Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
: > man's vasectomy on his female partner?
: > 
: > ...
: I've heard of NO studies, but speculation:

: Why on _earth_ would there be any effect on women's health?  That's about 
: the most absurd idea I've heard since Ted Kaldis's claim that no more than 
: 35,000 people would march on Washington.

: Ok, _one_ point:  Greatly reduced chance of pregnancy.  But that's it.

: --Josh

Well, there might be another: Since I'm sterile my wife can enjoy sex 
without fear of getting pregnant.
--
  ______                             __        _  _
    /   /                           /  )      // //                        
   /   /_  __________  __.  _      /--<  . . // // o ____  _,  _  __
(_/   / /_(_) / / / <_(_/|_/_)    /___/_(_/_</_</_<_/ / <_(_)_</_/ (_
       UUCP:     ..rutgers!ur-valhalla!btoy1!mrbulli      /|  Compu$erve:
       Internet:       mrbulli@btoy1.rochester.NY.US     |/    76535,2221

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59624
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid


In article <1993Apr30.202808.19204@ux1.cts.eiu.edu> cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:

> But after you have taken antihistamines for a few nights, doesn't it start
> to have a paradoxical effect?  I used to take one every night for
> allergies and couldn't figure out why I developed bad insomnia.  

Insomnia is a known, but relatively infrequent, side-effect of
diphenhydramine.  

For most people, this does not occur.  On the other hand, most people
can build up a tolerance to an antihistamine with extended use.
(Allergy sufferers are often switched from one antihistamine to
another to avoid this.)


--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59625
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking


In article <stephen.736228799@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:

> 1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
> might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?

It may be a good way to catch a cold.  It's easy to pick up cold
viruses on your fingers, either from touching a contaminated surface,
or by shaking hands with someone that has a cold.  Then putting your
fingers in your nose will transfer the viruses to your nose.


--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59626
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10587@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:

>
>Seriously though, I wonder how someone with CPH would end up getting a
>biopsy in the first place?  My understanding (and feel free to correct me)
>is that the enzymes are at worst mildly elevated, with overall normal
>hepatic function.  I would think that the only clue might be a history of
>prior HepB infection and a positive HepB-sAg.  Or is it indeed on a
>continuum with CAH, and the distinction merely one of pathology and
>prognosis, but otherwise identical clinical features?
>


Chronic persistent hepatitis is usually diagnosed when someone does a liver
biopsy on a patient that has persistently elevated serum transaminases months
after a bout of acute viral hepatitis, or when someone is found to have
persistently elevated transaminases on routine screening tests. The degree of
elevation (in the serum transaminases) can be trivial, or as much as ten times
normal. Other blood chemistries are usually normal. 
As a rule, patients with CPH have no clinical signs of liver disease. 
Chronic active hepatitis can also be asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, at
least initially, and that's why it's important to tell them apart by means of
a biopsy. The patient with CPH only needs to be reassured. The patient with
CAH needs to be treated.

======================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59627
From: sjha+@cs.cmu.edu (Somesh Jha)
Subject: What is intersection syndrome and Feldene?


Hi:

I went to the orthopedist on Tuesday. He diagnosed me as having
"intersection syndrome". He prescribed Feldene for me. I want
to know more about the disease and the drug.

Thanks


Somesh







Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59628
From: j.thornton@hawkesbury.uws.EDU.AU (Jason Thornton       x640)
Subject: Cancer of the testis

Could someone give me some information on the cause, pathophysiology and 
clinical manifestations and treatment of this type of cancer.

Thank you in advance, Jason.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59629
From: ashwin@gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram)
Subject: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
are beginning to wonder how often "more often" really is, whether our
son is more susceptible or has lower immunity than average, what the
longer-term effects of constantly being sick and taking antibiotics are,
and what we can do to build up his resistance.  He really enjoys his day
care and we think it's great too, but we are beginning to wonder whether
we should think about getting a nanny.

Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

-- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections?  Is there any data on
home care vs. day care?

-- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),
does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
not have any long term effect?

-- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
term effects?

-- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
normal, and what does one do about it?

-- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?

Any data, information or advice relating to this would be much
appreciated.  Thanks a lot.

Ashwin.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59630
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Athlete's Heart

I've read that exercise makes the heart pump more blood at a stroke, and
that it also makes the heart pumb slower, in order to make up for the
greater volume. My Internist, who diagnosed my AV block, slow heart rate
and PVC's, told me something different. She says that heart rate is
associated with the electrical properties of the hear muscle, not its
size. Exercise lowers heart rate and increases stroke volume, but the
effects are unrelated except for their common source. The AV block, she
asserts, is another electrical effect, which is irreversable - even when
exercise is dicontinued. PVC's are also common in runners. 

So my EKG puts me in a class with trained athletes and also with heart
patients. Isn't that strange, though? Are there any not-so-beneficial
aspects to athlete's heart? Is it all good?

Not worried, just curious,
-Larry C. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59631
From: Diane.Mayronne@f232.n109.z1.cobaka.com (Diane Mayronne)
Subject: fever blisters

Cause and cures for fever blisters respectfully requested.
Thanks!
            :-D iane

 * Origin: Another PerManNet Kit (1:109/232)

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59632
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

In article <ASHWIN.93May2131021@leo.gatech.edu>, ashwin@[Agatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
> Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
> started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
> not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
> flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
> infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
> 3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
> are beginning to wonder how often "more often" really is, whether our
> son is more susceptible or has lower immunity than average... 
> Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

When kids stayed in the home until kindergarden or 1st grade, infection 
incidence was much lower because exposure was lower.  Some studies suggest 
that early exposure to various infectious diseases is probably beneficial 
because exposure as an adult carries much more risk of morbitity and 
mortality(mumps, measles. etc.).

> -- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
> How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections?  Is there any data on
> home care vs. day care?

Daycare will always carry a higher exposure risk than home care.

> -- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),
> does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
> not have any long term effect?

Exposure to infectious organisms does build immunity.  But many viruses 
mutate and reexposure to the new strain requires another immune response(
new antibody production).  In addition, antibody levels tend to decline 
with time and re-innoculation is needed to keep the antibody levels high.
Chronic overstimulation of the immune response can lead to immunosupression 
but this is rare and very unlikely to occur in children.

> -- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
> term effects?

Yes, chronic use of antibiotics can have an adverse effect on the good 
bacteria that are supposed to be present in and on the body.  Health effects 
of this depletion of the good bacteria is a very hotly debated topic in the 
medical community with most physicians seeming to discount any health effects 
of chronic antibiotic use( a view that I do not support).
 
> -- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
> normal, and what does one do about it?

Chronic infection in an adult or a child needs to be worked up( in my 
opinion).  But most physicians feel that chronic infection in a child is 
normal because of both exposure and lack of prior immunity to many 
infectious diseases.  I do not share this view and there are some 
physicians who also suspect that diet plays a big role in infection 
frequency and severity.  Exposure to an infectious agent does not have to 
result in a severe infection.  A strong immune response can minimize the 
length of time needed to deal with the infection as well as the symptoms 
associated with the infection.

> -- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?

There are five major nutrients that are responsible for a good strong 
immune response to infectious agents.  They are: protein, vitamin C, 
vitamin A, iron and zinc.  The American diet is not low in protein so this 
is rarely a problem.  But vitamin A, vitamin C, iron and zinc are often low 
and this lack of an adequate pool(nutrient reserve) can impair the immune 
response.  Iron is know to be low in most kids(as is vitamin A).  There are 
distinct biochemical tests that can be run to check the status of each of 
these nutrients in a patient who is having a problem with chronic severe 
infection.  Serum ferritin for iron status, dark adaptation for vitamin A 
status, red blood cell zinc for zinc status and leckocyte ascorbate for 
vitamin C status.  I have attempted to work up posts on these five 
nutrients and their role in infection for this news group as well as the 
others that I participate in.  I can e-mail you what I've worked up so far.
But my best advice to you is to try to find a physician who recognizes the 
critical role that diet plays in the human immune response.  You may also 
be able to get help from a nutritionist.  Anyone can call themselves a 
nutritionist so you have to be very carefull.  You want to find someone(
like myself) who has had some formal training and education in nutrition.
Many Ph.D. programs in the U.S. now offer degrees in Nutrition and that's 
what you need to look for.  Some dieticians will also call themselves 
nutritionists but most dieticians have not had the biochemical training 
needed to run specialized nutritional assessment tests.  They are very good 
for getting general dietary advice from however.

> Any data, information or advice relating to this would be much
> appreciated.  Thanks a lot.
> 
> Ashwin.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Graduate degree in Biochemistry and Nutrition from VPI
and developer of a course on human nutrition for medical students


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59633
From: <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

nnget 93122.1300541
In article <C6BJyt.A1K@ssr.com>, sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne) says:
>
>In article <93111.145432ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes:
>
>
>Moss is People Against Cancer's Director of Communications. People
>Against Cancer seems to offer pretty questionable information, not
>exactly the place a cancer patient should be advised to turn to.

And where do you advise people to turn for cancer information?


 Most
>(maybe all) of the infomation in their latest catalogue concern
>treatments that have been shown to be ineffective against cancer, and
>many of the treatments are quite dangerous as well.

It seems to me you've offered a circular refutation of Moss's organization. Who
has shown the information in the latest book of PAC to be questionable? Could
it be those 'regulatory' agencies and medical industries which Moss is showing
to be operating with *major* vested interests. Whether one believes that these
vested interests are real or not, or whether or not they actually shape medical
research is a seperate argument. If one sees a possibility, however, that these
interests exist, then the 'fact' that some of the information put out by PAC
has been refuted by the medical industry doesn't hold much weight.

As for the ineffectiveness of antineoplasteons, the fact that the NIH didn't
find them effective doesn't make much sense here. Of course they didn't! I
tend to have more faith in the word of the patients who are now alive after
being told years ago that they would be dead of cancer soon. They are fighting
like hell to keep that clinic open, and they credit his treatment with their
survival. Anyone who looks at the NIH's record for investigation of 'alterna-
tive' cancer therapies will easily see that they have a strange knack for find-
ing relatively cheap and nontoxic therapies dangerous or useless.

gn

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59634
From: marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco)
Subject: Help. Info: CLARITIN (Allergies)

My doc handed me 10mg samples of CLARITIN (brand of Ioratadine Tablet
from Schering Corp.)  I tried to find it in the PDR to no avail. I
do remember she mentioned this drug was relatively new to the US but
available overseas for quite some time.

Looking mostly for side-effect, contraindications, and mode of action 
such that it differs from Seldane and Hismanal.

Email or newsgroup is fine. Thanx in advance.

-- 
Steve Giammarco/5330 Peterson Lane/Dallas TX 75240
marco@sdf.lonestar.org
loveyameanit.

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59635
From: thomas@mvac23.UUCP (Thomas Lapp)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking

stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
> 1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
> might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?
> 
> 2)  Is it harmful for one to eat one's nose pickings?

I've seen children do this and wondered about something.  If the
mucus in one's nose collects (filters) particles going into the
airway, if a child then picks and ingests this material, might
it have a vaccinatory effect, since if the body ingests airborne
diseases or other 'stuff' on the mucus, the body might generate
antibodies for this small "invasion"?

Maybe this is why some children don't get sick very often? :-)
                         - tom
--
internet     : mvac23!thomas@udel.edu  or  thomas%mvac23@udel.edu (home)
             : lapp@cdhub1.dnet.dupont.com (work)
OSI          : C=US/A=MCI/S=LAPP/D=ID=4398613
uucp         : {ucbvax,mcvax,uunet}!udel!mvac23!thomas
Location     : Newark, DE, USA


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59636
From: rob.welder@cccbbs.UUCP (Rob Welder) 
Subject: Thermoscan ear thermomete

To: ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram)

AR>Does the "Thermoscan" instrument really work?  It is supposed to give you a

ABSOLUTELY!
Ya don't have to do the other end!
(it is accurate - but technique is important)

cccbbs!rob.welder@uceng.uc.edu
---
 . QMPro 1.02 41-4771 . See?... It only hurts for a little while!
                                                                      

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59637
From: wang@ssd.intel.com (Wen-Lin Wang)
Subject: Re: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

In article <ASHWIN.93May2131021@leo.gatech.edu> ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
>Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
>started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
>not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
>flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
>infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
>3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
>...

Sounds pretty familiar.  I posted similar cries about last September when
Caroline just entered daycare.  She was two, then, and have been with 
continuous colds since until last March.  As spring approaches, her colds
slowed down.  Meanwhile we grew more and more relaxed about her colds.
Only once did the doctor diagnosed an ear infection and only twice she
had antibiotics.  (The other time was due to sinus infection, and I wished
that I did not give her that awful Septra.) 

>Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

There are the 'net studies' -- that is, if you read this newsgroup often,
there will be a round of questions like this every month.  There might
be formal studies like that, but bear with my not so academic experience.
Okay?
>
>-- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
>How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections? 

Gee, I bet 50/50 you'll hear cases in all these catagories.

> Is there any data on home care vs. day care?

I am pretty sure, an insulated child at home sicks less.  But, that child 
still will face the world one day. 

>
>-- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),

That's what I believe and comfort myself with.  Caroline will get more
and more colds for sure before she learned not to stick her hand in other 
kid's mouth nor let other kids do the same.  Cold virus mutate easily.
However, I hope that her immune system will be stronger to fight these
diseases, so she would be less severely affected.  Everytime she has a cold,
we make sure she blow her nose frequently and give her Dorcol or Dimetapp 
at night so she can have good rest (thanks to some suggestions from the net).
That's about all the care she needs from us.  I try very hard to keep her
off antibiotics.  Twice her ped. gave me choice to decide whether she would
have antibiotics.  I waited just long enough (3-4 days) to see that she
fought the illness off.  I do understand that you don't have much choice if
the child is in pain and/or high fever. 

>does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
>not have any long term effect?

If the child doesn't rely on antibiotics to fight off the sickness everytime,
then the child should be stronger.

>
>-- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
>term effects?
> 
I'll leave this to expert.

>-- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
>normal, and what does one do about it?
>
If your child just entered daycare, I'm pretty sure the first 6 months will be
the hardest.  (Then, you get more used to it.  Boy, do I hate to see me typing
this sentence.  I recall when I read something like this last September, I said 
to myself, 'oh, sure.'  But, I do get used to it, now.)  However, I do hear 
people say that it does get better after a year or two.  I am looking forward 
to a healthier next winter.  As it gets warmer, I hope you do get some break 
soon.

>-- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?
>
Eat well, sleep well.  Try not to use antibiotics if not absolutely necessary.

Good luck.

Wen-lin


-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59638
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?
From: habersch@husc8.harvard.edu (Oren Haber-Schaim)

jlecher@pbs.org writes:

>In article <1rmn0c$83v@morrow.stanford.edu>, mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou) writes:
>> Hi all,
>> 
>> My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
>> from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
>> actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
>> cure for this.
>> 

>As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and while I 
>was there, I asked him about dry skin. I'd been spending a small fortune
>on various creams, lotions, and other dry skin treatments.
>He said all I needed was a large jar of vaseline. Soak in a lukewarm tub
>of water for 10 minutes (ONLY 10 minutes!) then massage in the vaseline,
>to trap the moisture in. 

That is the standard advice in dermatology texts.
The soak part greatly increases the inconvenience.  Don't bother unless
it doesn't work otherwise.

>The hard part will be finding the time to rub in the
>vaseline properly. 

Exactly, but it adds to the "ritual" aspect, which is important for
us suggestible patients.  (Posters, don't bother to repeat the 
rationale for the soak.)

>If it's not done right, you remain greasy and stick

Greasy no matter what. Vaseline (generically, petrolatum) is 
famous for that.  One text states that the more greasy a dry-skin
cream is, the more effective.  

>Try it. It's got to be cheaper then spending $30 for 8 oz. of 'natural'
>lotion.

Try USP lanolin, at least for maintenance (preventive) therapy.  USP
lanolin is natural and much less greasy AND cheap (don't buy the more
expensive perfumed lanolin mixture).  As I've commented before, petrolatum
is a poorly characterized mixture of hydrocarbons which are not found in
biological systems (that is not inherently bad, but smell it up close,
even on your hand), are partially absorbed into the body and remain there
for months or more, and have associations with cancer.  Don't panic, but
also don't believe it's God's gift to the human skin.


Oren Haber-Schaim

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59639
From: antonio@qualcom.qualcomm.com (Franklin Antonio)
Subject: Re: Thermoscan ear thermometer

In article <ASHWIN.93May1225032@leo.gatech.edu> ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
>Does the "Thermoscan" instrument really work?  It is supposed to give you a
>fast and accurate temperature reading in the ear.  How far in the ear does
>one have to insert the instrument?  Is it worth the $100 it is currently
>selling for?

No, they do not work well.  My doctor started using one recently, and I
thought the concept was so amazing that I bought one too.  

The thing works by reading the infrared emissions from the ear drum.
The ear drum is hotter than the ear canal walls, so you have to point
the thing very carefully.  This means tugging on the top of the ear
to straighten out the ear canal, then inserting the thing snugly, then
pushing a button.  Unfortunately, there are many things that can go wrong.
It is almost impossible to aim the thing correctly when you do it on 
yourself.  I get readings which differ from each other by up to 2 degrees,
and may differ from an oral thermometer by up to 2 degrees.  

I talked to one of the nurses in my doctor's office recently about this,
and she said she didn't like them either, for same reasons.  She did give
me some instruction on how to tug on my ear, and what correct insertion
feels like, but she said she thought it was impossible to do correctly
on one's self.  She also said that she and other nurses had complained to
the company about inaccurate readings, and that someone from the company
had told them to take great care to clean the infrared window at the end
of the probe with alcohol from time to time.  She demonstrated this prior
to reading my temperature, and managed to get a reading within 0.5 degree
of the oral temperature I took at home before driving to the Dr's office.

I have also noticed tha some nurses click the button, then remove the
probe immediately.  This causes wrong readings.  In my experience, you
have to leave the probe in a good 1 to 2 seconds after clicking the button
to get a good measurement.  The nurse I talked with agreed.  I suspect
that many people don't realize this, and therefore get bad readings for
yet another reason.

In short, it's a great idea.  It may work for some folks, but I believe
it doesn't work well for a person who wants to take his own temperature.


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59640
From: Renee@cup.portal.com (Renee Linda Roberts)
Subject: Muscle spasms post-surgically

I had ankle reconstruction (grafting the extensor digitorum
longus to the lateral side of the ankle, along with a video
arthroscopy of the ankle (interesting to watch, to say the
least). Since then, I have had periodic muscle spasms (not
cramping, but twitching that is very fast) in some of the
muscle groups along the lateral side, and along the top of
my foot. 

TX with quinine sulfate produced ringing in my ears, but did
help with the spasms.

I am on flexeril now, but no discernable help with the spasms.

Any ideas?

One thing - I am in a short leg cast, so heat is not the answer.

Renee Roberts

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59641
From: bf455@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bonita Kale)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............



In a previous article, jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) says:
 I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 



I've had three children and the pain was different in degree for each.  I
think it just depends.  I was impressed by how awful a kidney stone seemed
to be, when I saw a relative with one.  I bet they depend, too--some are
probably worse than others.

Pain--yucch.


Bonita Kale


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59642
From: bf455@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bonita Kale)
Subject: arthritis and diabetes




I have osteoarthritis, and my huband has just been diagnosed with diabetes
(type II, I guess--no insulin). 


I've been trying to read up on these two conditions, and what really
surprises me is how few experiments have been done and how little is known. 
Losing weight appears to be imperative for diabetes and advisable for
arthritis (at least, for -women- with arthritis), but, of course, the very
conditions that make weight loss advisable are part of the reason for the
weight gain. 

For myself, I'm almost afraid to lose weight, because no matter how gentle
and sensible a diet I use (the last one was 1800-2000 calories, in about
eight small meals), the weight won't go off gradually and stay off. 
Instead, it drops off precipitously, and then comes back on with much
interest, like bread on the waters.


With this experience, it's hard to be encouraging to my husband.  All I can
suggest is to make it as gradual as possible.

Meanwhile, some experts recommend no sugar, others, no fat, others, just a
balanced diet.  It's almost impossible to tell from their writings -which-
parts of their recommendations are supposed to help the condition, and
which are merely ideas the expert thinks are nifty.

Is it my imagination, or are these very old conditions very poorly
understood?  Is it just that I'm used to pediatrician-talk ("It's strep;
give him this and he'll get well.") and so my expectations are too high? 


Bonita Kale



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59643
From: dkibbe@med.unc.edu (David C. Kibbe)
Subject: quality management



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59644
From: disraeli@leland.Stanford.EDU (Jamie Lara Bronstein)
Subject: Re: Bacteria invasion and swimming pools

I have been struck down this past week by a stomach bug and fever
which went away quickly when treated with an antibiotic. The
pharmacist told me the antibiotic is effective against a wide
variety of "gram-negative bacteria." I was wondering where I
might have acquired such a bacteria. Could they hang out in swimming-
pool water, or would the chlorine kill them? 

Feeling better, I am

J. Bronstein
disraeli@leland.stanford.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59645
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

BULLSHIT ! ! !



Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59646
From: V5113E@VM.TEMPLE.EDU (James Arbuckle)
Subject: Drop your drawers and the doctor will see you

Organization: Temple University
X-Newsreader: NNR/VM S_1.3.2

Last week I went to see a gastroenterologist. I had never met this
doctor before, and she did not know what I was there for. As soon as I
arrived, somebody showed me to an examining room and handed me a gown.
They told me to undress (from the waist down, to be exact) and wait for the
doctor. Is this the usual drill when you go to a doctor for the first
time? I don't have much experience going to doctors (knock on wood), but
on the couple of occasions when I've gone to a new doctor, I met him
with my clothes on. First, he introduced himself, asked what I was there
for and took a history, all before I undressed.
 
Are patients usually expected to get naked before meeting a doctor
for the first time? Personally, I'd prefer to meet the doctor on
something remotely resembling a condition of parity and to establish an
identity as a person who wears clothes before dropping my drawers. If
nothing else, it minimizes the time that I have to spend in the self
conscious, ill at ease and vulnerable condition of a person with a bare
bottom talking to somebody who is fully clothed.
 
Does anybody besides me regard this get-naked-first-and-then-we-can-talk
attitude as insensitive? Also, is it unusual?
 
 
James Arbuckle                          Email:  v5113e@vm.temple.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59648
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10600@blue.cis.pitt.edu> doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle) writes:
:Chronic persistent hepatitis is usually diagnosed when someone does a liver
:biopsy on a patient that has persistently elevated serum transaminases months
:after a bout of acute viral hepatitis, or when someone is found to have
:persistently elevated transaminases on routine screening tests. The degree of
:elevation (in the serum transaminases) can be trivial, or as much as ten times
:normal. Other blood chemistries are usually normal. 
:As a rule, patients with CPH have no clinical signs of liver disease. 
:Chronic active hepatitis can also be asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, at
:least initially, and that's why it's important to tell them apart by means of
:a biopsy. The patient with CPH only needs to be reassured. The patient with
:CAH needs to be treated.

I just went back to the chapter in Cecil on chronic hepatitis.  It seems
that indeed most cases of CPH are persistant viral hepatitis, whereas
there are a multitude of potential and probable causes for CAH (viral,
drugs, alcohol, autoimmune, etc.).  Physicians seem to have a variety of
"thresholds" for electing to biopsy someone's liver.  Personally, I think
that if the patient is asymptomatic, with only slight transaminitis and
normal albumin and PT, one can simply follow them closely and not add the
potential risks of a biopsy.  Others may well biopsy such a patient, thus
providing these samples for study.  It would be interesting to see if
anyone's done any decision analysis on this.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
document_id: 59652
From: bj368@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Mike E. Romano)
Subject: Re: Drop your drawers and the doctor will see you


This is not an unusual practice if the doctor is also a
member of a nudist colony.



-- 
Sir, I admit your gen'ral rule
That every poet is a fool;
But you yourself may serve to show it,
That every fool is not a poet.    A. Pope

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 57110
From: bed@intacc.uucp (Deb Waddington)
Subject: INFO NEEDED: Gaucher's Disease


I have a 42 yr old male friend, misdiagnosed as having
 osteopporosis for two years, who recently found out that his
 illness is the rare Gaucher's disease. 

Gaucher's disease symptoms include: brittle bones (he lost 9 
 inches off his hieght); enlarged liver and spleen; internal
 bleeding; and fatigue (all the time). The problem (in Type 1) is
 attributed to a genetic mutation where there is a lack of the
 enzyme glucocerebroside in macrophages so the cells swell up.
 This will eventually cause death.

Enyzme replacement therapy has been successfully developed and
 approved by the FDA in the last few years so that those patients
 administered with this drug (called Ceredase) report a remarkable
 improvement in their condition. Ceredase, which is manufactured
 by biotech biggy company--Genzyme--costs the patient $380,000
 per year. Gaucher's disease has justifyably been called "the most
 expensive disease in the world".

NEED INFO:
I have researched Gaucher's disease at the library but am relying
 on netlanders to provide me with any additional information:
**news, stories, reports
**people you know with this disease
**ideas, articles about Genzyme Corp, how to get a hold of
   enough money to buy some, programs available to help with
   costs.
**Basically ANY HELP YOU CAN OFFER

Thanks so very much!

Deborah 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58043
From: mcdonald@aries.scs.uiuc.edu (J. D. McDonald)
Subject: Re: jiggers

In article <78846@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:

>This wouldn't happen to be the same thing as chiggers, would it?
>A truly awful parasitic affliction, as I understand it.  Tiny bugs
>dig deeply into the skin, burying themselves.  Yuck!  They have these
>things in Oklahoma.

Close. My mother comes from Gainesville Tex, right across the border.
They claim to be the chigger capitol of the world, and I believe them.
When I grew up in Fort Worth it was bad enough, but in Gainesville
in the summer an attack was guaranteed.

Doug McDonald

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58045
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Breech Baby Info Needed

In article <1993Apr5.151818.27409@trentu.ca> xtkmg@trentu.ca (Kate Gregory) writes:
>In article <1993Apr3.161757.19612@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>>
>>Another uncommon problem is maternal hemorrhage.  I don't remember the
>>incidence, but it is something like 1 in 1,000 or 10,000 births.  It is hard
>>to see how you could handle it at home, and you wouldn't have very much time.
>>
>>thing you might consider is that people's risk tradeoffs vary.  I consider
>>a 1/1,000 risk of loss of a loved one to require considerable effort in
>>the avoiding.
>
>Mark, you seem to be terrified of the birth process

That's ridiculous!

>and unable to
>believe that women's bodies are actually designed to do it.

They aren't designed, they evolved.  And, much as it discomforts us, in
humans a trouble-free birth process was sacrificed to increased brain and
cranial size.  Wild animals have a much easier time with birth than humans do.
Domestic horses and cows typically have a worse time.  To give you an idea:
my family tree is complicated because a few of my pioneer great-great-
grandfathers had several wives, and we never could figure out which wife
had each child.  One might ask why this happened.  My great-great-
grandfathers were, by the time they reached their forties, quite prosperous
farmers.  Nonetheless, they lost several wives each to the rigors of
childbirth; the graveyards in Spencer, Indiana, and Boswell, North Dakota,
contain quite a few gravestones like "Ida, wf. of Jacob Liptrap, and
baby, May 6, 1853."

>You wanted
>to section all women carrying breech in case one in a hundred or a
>thousand breech babies get hung up in second stage,

More like one in ten.  And the consequences can be devastating; I have
direct experience of more than a dozen victims of a fouled-up breech birth.

>and now you want
>all babies born in hospital based on a guess of how likely maternal
>hemorrhage is and a false belief that it is fatal.

It isn't always fatal.  But it is often fatal, when it happens out of
reach of adequate help.  More often, it permanently damages one's health.

Clearly women's bodies _evolved_ to give birth (I am no believer in divine
design); however, evolution did not favor trouble-free births for humans.  

>You have your kids where you want. You encourage your wife to
>get six inch holes cut through her stomach muscles, expose herself
>to anesthesia and infection, and whatever other "just in case" measures
>you think are necessary.

My, aren't we wroth!  I haven't read a more outrageous straw man attack
in months!  I can practically see your mouth foam.

We're statistically sophisticated enough to balance the risks.  Although
I can't produce exact statistics 5 years after the last time we looked
them up, rest assured that we balanced C-section risks against other risks.
I wouldn't encourage my wife to have a Caesarean unless it was clearly
indicated; on the other hand, I am opposed (on obvious grounds) to waiting
until an emergency to give in.

And bear this in mind: my wife took the lead in all of these decisions.
We talked things over, and I did a lot of the leg work, but the main
decisions were really hers.

>But I for one am bothered by your continued
>suggestions, especially to the misc.kidders pregnant for the first
>time, that birth is dangerous, even fatal, and that all these
>unpleasant things are far better than the risks you run just doing
>it naturally.

I don't know of very many home birth advocates, even, that think that
a first-time mother should have her baby at home.

>I'm no Luddite. I've had a section. I'm planning a hospital birth
>this time. But for heaven's sake, not everyone needs that!

But people should bother to find out the relative risks.  My wife was
unwilling to take any significant risks in order to have nice surroundings.
In view of the intensity of the birth experience, I doubt surroundings
have much importance anyway.  Somehow the values you're advocating seem
all lopsided to me: taking risks, even if fairly small, of serious
permanent harm in order to preserve something that is, after all,
an esthetic consideration.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58046
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Analgesics with Diuretics

I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
combine aspirin with a diuretic. The idea seems to be to reduce
inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

Thanks,
-Larry C. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58047
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho
Leung Ng) wrote:
> 
> 
>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
> 
> Ho Leung Ng
> ng4@husc.harvard.edu

You became older and your intestine normalized to the weaned state.  That
is, lactose tolerance is an unusual state for adults of most mammals
except for h. sapiens of northern European origin.  As a h. sapiens of 
asian descent (assumption based on name) the loss of lactase is normal
for you.  

Steve Holland
gila005@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58048
From: bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Smoker's Lungs

How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
a considerable amount of time for that to happen?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58049
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Re: Blood Cholesterol -  Gabe Mirkin's advice

In article <1pka0uINNnqa@mojo.eng.umd.edu>, georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
|> Forget about total cholesterol when assessing health risk factors.
|> Instead, use a relationship between LDL and HDL cholesterol:
|> 
|> If your LDL is       You need an HDL of at least
|> 
|>       90                 35
|>      100                 45
|>      110                 50
|>      120                 55
|>      130                 60
|>      140                 70

Gee, what do I do?  My LDL is only 50-60. (and my HDL is only 23-25)
I must be risking something, but Is it the same risk as those with 
very high LDL?

|> If your triglycerides are above 300, and your HDL is below 30, the
|> drug of choice is gemfibrozil (Lopid) taken as a 600mg tablet
|> thirty minutes before your morning and evening meals.

What about exercise and a low-fat diet?  What are the long-term 
effects of this drug?

-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58050
From: cliff@buster.stafford.tx.us (Cliff Tomplait)
Subject: Re: sex problem.

ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg) writes:
>I have question that I hope is taken seriously, despite the subject content.

>Problem:  My long time girlfriend lately has not been initiating any sexual
>	activity.  For the last four months things have changed dramatically.
>       ...
>	--to make this shorter-- Summary: nothing that I can think of has
>				changed....
>       ...
>She suggested we go to a sex counselor, but I really don't want to (just yet).
>Any suggestions would be appreciated.
>If you think you can help me, please contact me by e-mail for further info.
>PLEASE serious replies only.
>Thanks, Larry

Larry:

The subject content IS serious; as is the question.

On one hand you state that "things have changed dramatically" but, at the
same time nothing you "can think of has changed".  Your girlfriend seems
to want to see a counselor, but you don't.  

I'd recommend that you examine your hesitation to see a counselor.  It's
a very good environment to examine issues.  

The fact of the matter is:  your girlfriend has a different perception than
you.  The TWO of you need to address the issue in order to resolve it.

Please consider going to a counselor with your girlfriend.  What could it
possibly hurt?

Cliff  (the paramedic)


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58051
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Prednisone...what are the significant long term side effects?

> >I have been taking prednisone 5mg twice a day for a while to control
> >Ulcerative Colitis. It seems like if I reduce the dosage, the problem
> >becomes worse. At this point, i see myself taking prednisone for a long
> >long time, perhaps for ever. I was wondering about long term major side
> >effects, things like potential birth defects, arthritis etc. I have been
> >putting on weight, my face looks puffed and round, experience sudden mood
> >swings. As I understand, these are all short term.

I second what Spenser Aden said in reply.  Additionally, it is hard to say
what type of response you ar3e having to prednisone since you did not say
how long you have been on it.  Patients are generally kept on steroids for
months before thinking about tapering.  Alternatives to daily dosing are 
every other day dosing, in your case 20mg every other day would be a start.
Another option if it is not possible to get you off prednisone is to start
azathioprine.  Like Spenser said, you should generally be on another drug
in addition to your prednisone, like asulfidine.  A lot of the specifics
about options, though, depends on severity, location, and duration of 
disease, as well as histology, so take advice off the net for what it
is worth.  

I treat patients with UC and Crohn's.  An educated patient is a good 
patient, but let your doctor know where the advice came from so things
can be put in context.  You should also be a member of the Crohn's and
Colitis Foundation of America.  1-800-932-2423 office / 1-800-343-3637
info hotline.

Best of Luck to you.

Steve Holland.
gila005@uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58054
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Mental Illness

[reply to dabbott@augean.eleceng.adelaide.edu.AU (Derek Abbott)]
 
>Are there any case histories of severe mental illness cases remarkably
>recovering after a tragic accident or trauma (eg. through nobody's fault,
>being trapped in a fire and losing your legs, say)?
 
I know of a patient who was severely and chronically depressed and tried
to kill himself with a bullet to the temple.  He essentially gave
himself a prefrontal lobotomy, curing the depression.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58055
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

[reply to ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)]
 
>While you're right that the S vertebrae are attached to each other,
>the sacrum, to my knowledge, *can* be adjusted either directly, or
>by applying pressure on the pubic bone...
 
Ron, you're an endless source of misinformation!  There ARE no sacral
vertebrae.  There is a bone called the sacrum at the end of the spine.
It is a single, solid bone except in a few patients who have a
lumbarized S1 as a normal variant.  How do you adjust a solid bone,
break it?  No, don't tell me, I don't want to know.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58056
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng) writes:
> 
>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
> 
> Ho Leung Ng
> ng4@husc.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58057
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Lactose intolerance

In article <1993Apr5.165716.59@immunex.com>, rousseaua@immunex.com writes:
> In article <ng4.733990422@husc.harvard.edu>, ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng) writes:
>> 
>>    When I was a kid in primary school, I used to drink tons of milk without
>> any problems.  However, nowadays, I can hardly drink any at all without
>> experiencing some discomfort.  What could be responsible for the change?
>> 
>> Ho Leung Ng
>> ng4@husc.harvard.edu


OOPS. My original message died. I'll try again...
I always understood (perhaps wrongly...:)) that the bacteria in our digestive
tracts help us break down the components of milk. Perhaps the normal flora of 
the intestine changes as one passes from childhood.
Is there a pathologist or microbiologist in the house?

Anne-Marie Rousseau
e-mail: rousseaua@immunex.com
(Please note that these opinions are mine, and only mine.)

         
            
           
           



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58058
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Smoker's Lungs

In article <1993Apr5.123315.48837@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu> bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
>How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
>Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
>a considerable amount of time for that to happen?

The answer to your first question is rather difficult to answer without
doing a lot of autopsies.  The second question is something that's been
known for some time.  It appears that within about 15 years of quitting
smoking a person's risk for developing lung cancer drops to that of the
person who never smoked (assuming you do not get lung cancer in the
interim!).  The risk to someone who smoked the equivalent of a pack per
day for 40 years is around 20 times as high as a non-smoker.  Still
rather low overall, but significant.  Personally, I'd be more concerned
about heart disease secondary to smoking -- it's much more common, and
even a small increase in risk is significant there.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58059
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu) wrote:
: [reply to ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)]
:  
: >While you're right that the S vertebrae are attached to each other,
: >the sacrum, to my knowledge, *can* be adjusted either directly, or
: >by applying pressure on the pubic bone...
:  
: Ron, you're an endless source of misinformation!  There ARE no sacral
: vertebrae.  There is a bone called the sacrum at the end of the spine.
: It is a single, solid bone except in a few patients who have a
: lumbarized S1 as a normal variant.  How do you adjust a solid bone,
: break it?  No, don't tell me, I don't want to know.
:  
Oh come now, surely you know he only meant to measure the flow of
electromagnetic energy about the sacrum and then adjust these flows
with a crystal of chromium applied to the right great toe.  Don't
you know anything?

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58060
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: Anti-Viral Herbs

kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:

>Unfortunately it was rather poorly researched, and would not be available
>today if it were just invented.  Keep in mind however that those were
>the days when a bottle of Coca Cola really did contain coca extract and
>a certain amount of active cocaine.  Times have changed, and our attitudes
>need to change with them.
 Well, yes.  That was a part of my point.  Aspirin has its problems, but
in some situations it is useful.  Ditto stuff like licorice root.  Taking
anything as a drug for theraputic purposes implicitly carries the idea
of taking a dose where the benefits are not exceeded by any unwanted,
additional effects.  Taking any drug when the potential ill-effects are
not known is a risk assumed by the parties involved, and it may be that
in a given situation the risk is worthwhile.
   Like Prozac, for instance; Prozac has been shown to be theraputic in
some cases where the tri-cyclics fail.  But Prozac hasn't been in use
that long, and it really isn't clear what if any effects it may have
when taken over long periods of time, even though it has been tested
by present day standards.  Should Prozac be taken off the market because
long-term effects, if any, are not known?  IMHO, i'd say no.

euclid

>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert                |          University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine    --*--        Pittsburgh, PA             =
>=  kxgst1+@pitt.edu               |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>-- 
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert                |          University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine    --*--        Pittsburgh, PA             =
>=  kxgst1+@pitt.edu               |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58061
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: ringing ears



A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing.  The ringing is so loud
that she has great difficulty sleeping at night.  She says that she hasn't 
had a normal night's sleep in about 6 months (she looks like it too :-().
This is making her depressed so her doctor has put her on anti-depressants.

The ringing started rather suddenly about 6 months ago.  She is quickly losing
sleep, social life and sanity over this.

Does anyone know of any treatments for this?  Any experience?  Coping
mechanisms?  Any opinions on the anti-depressant drugs?

                                              [J.F.]


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58062
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Twitching eyelid

I'm surprised nobody mentioned that twitching of the eyelid can be a
symptom of an infection, especially if it also itches or stings.
(It happened to me, and antibiotic eyedrops cleared it up nicely.)

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington         internet mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs       phone 706 542-0358 :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia                fax 706 542-0349 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58063
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: fibromyalgia

In article <93Apr5.133521edt.1231@smoke.cs.toronto.edu> craig@cs.toronto.edu (Craig MacDonald) writes:
>>  It may be extremely
>>common, something like 5% of the population.  It is treatable with
>>tricyclic antidepressant-type drugs (Elavil, Pamelor).  
>
>Why is it treated with antidepressants?  Is it considered a
>psychogenic condition?

No.  That these drugs happen to be useful as antidepressants is neither
here nor there.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58064
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Analgesics with Diuretics

In article <ofk=lve00WB2AvUktO@andrew.cmu.edu> Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
>combine aspirin with a diuretic.

You certainly do not see OTC preparations advertised as such.
The only such ridiculous concoctions are nostrums for premenstrual
syndrome, ostensibly to treat headache and "bloating" simultaneously.
They're worthless.

>The idea seems to be to reduce
>inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

That's not the idea, and no, they don't work.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58065
From: jmilhoan@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (JT)
Subject: Re: ringing ears

In article <10893@ncrwat.Waterloo.NCR.COM> jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare) writes:
>
>
>A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing.  The ringing is so loud
>that she has great difficulty sleeping at night.  She says that she hasn't 
>had a normal night's sleep in about 6 months (she looks like it too :-().
>This is making her depressed so her doctor has put her on anti-depressants.

Sometimes I have a problem with doctor's prescribing medicine like
this.  I of course don't know the exact situation, and
anti-depressants may work, but it isn't helping the ringing at all, is it?


>The ringing started rather suddenly about 6 months ago.  She is quickly losing
>sleep, social life and sanity over this.

Mine started about three years back.  Turns out I have tinnitus
bilateral (translation: ringing in both ears, basically ;).  If this
is what it is, she'll probably get used to it.  It would keep me up
and drive me nuts too, but nowadays, I have to plug both my ears with
my fingers to check to see if they are ringing.  Usually they are, but
you get so used to it, it just gets tuned out.  Yes, this is what I've
read about it... not just from my own personal experience.


>Does anyone know of any treatments for this?  Any experience?  Coping
>mechanisms?  Any opinions on the anti-depressant drugs?

Millions have it, according to my physician.  You just learn to cope
with it (like I mentioned earlier) by ignoring it.  It eventually
becomes unconscious.

The doc also said it could be caused by diet (ie: too much caffeine)
and stress, but I haven't changed my lifestyle much, and it just comes
and goes (it is always there somewhat, but now I rarely notice it when
it really "kicks in").

Also, it doesn't necessarily mean there is any hearing loss, either
caused by it or causing it.  I had an ENT (ear/nose/throat) exam, and
passed.  In fact, my hearing is quite good considering I don't take as
good of care of my hearing as I should.

Her reaction is normal.  If it is tinnitus, chances are good she'll
begin to not even notice it.  

This info is taken mostly from a few "experts", my own experience, and
some readings (sorry, it was a few years back and don't have any
specifics handy).

JT

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58066
From: amigan@cup.portal.com (Mike - Medwid)
Subject: Emphysema question

A friend of mine is going in later this week for tests to see if has
emphysema.  His lung capacity has decreased over time.  His father died
of the disease.  He works in woodworking.  I believe he has a very
occasional cigarette, perhaps one cigarette a day or even less.  He tells
me this..I've never seen him light up.  He has some pretty healthy
life style habits, good diet, exercise, meditation, retreats, therapy
etc.  Anyhow..he is very concerned with this check up.  I know really
nothing about the disease.  I believe it interferes with the lining
of the lung being able to exchange oxygen.  

Is a diagnosis of emphysema a death sentence?  If he were to give up smoking
entirely would that better his chances for recovery?  What are some 
modern therapies used in people with this disease?  I would appreciate 
any information.  Thanks.  amigan@cup.portal.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58067
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: Re: Oily skin - problem?

In article <1993Apr5.044140.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu> u92_hwong@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:
>	I have a very oily skin.  My problem is when I wash my face, it becomes
>oily in half an hour.  Especially in the nose region.  Is this an illness?  How
>can I prevent it from occuring in such short time?  Is there a cleanser out
>there that will do a better job -- that is after cleaning, my face won't become
>oily in such a short time.

I don't think that's a problem.  My face is quite oily too.  I had a moderate
acne problem for many years.  I then found that if I vigorously scrub my face
with a nail brush and soap (Irish Spring) twice a day the acne was not a 
problem.  I can still leave a pretty health nose print on a mirror after 45 min
(don't ask ;->) but acne is not a real problem anymore. 

                                          [J.F.]


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58069
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Migraines and scans

DN> From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
DN> A neurology
DN> consultation is cheaper than a scan.

And also better, because a neurologist can make a differential
diagnosis between migraine, tension-type headache, cluster, benign
intracranial hypertension, chronic paroxysmal hemicrania, and other
headache syndromes that all appear normal on a scan.  A neurologist
can also recommend a course of treatment that is appropriate to the
diagnosis.

DN> >>Also, since many people are convinced they have brain tumors or other
DN> >>serious pathology, it may be cheaper to just get a CT scan then have
DN> >>them come into the ER every few weeks.
DN> And easier than taking the time to reassure the patient, right?
DN> Personally, I don't think this can ever be justified.

Sigh.  It may never be justifiable, but I sometimes do it.  Even
after I try to show thoroughness with a detailed history, neurologic
examination, and discussion with the patient about my diagnosis,
salted with lots of reassurance, patients still ask "why can't you
order a scan, so we can be absolutely sure?"  Aunt Millie often gets
into the conversation, as in "they ignored Aunt Millie's headaches
for years", and then she died of a brain tumor, aneurysm, or
whatever.  If you can get away without ever ordering imaging for a
patient with an obviously benign headache syndrome, I'd like to hear
what your magic is.

Every once in a while I am able to bypass imaging by getting an EEG.
Mind you, I don't think EEG is terribly sensitive for brain tumor,
but the patient feels like "something is being done" (as if the
hours I spent talking with and examining the patient were
"nothing"), the EEG has no ionizing radiation, it's *much* cheaper
than CT or MRI, and the EEG brings in some money to my department.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                         

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58070
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: migraine and exercise

JL> From: jlecher@pbs.org
JL> > I would not classify a mild headache that was continuous for weeks
JL> > as migraine, even if the other typical features were there (e.g.,
JL> > unilateral, nausea and vomiting, photophobia).  Migraines are, by
JL> > common agreement, episodic rather than constant.
JL> >
JL> Well, I'm glad that you aren't my doctor, then, or I'd still be suffering.
JL> Remember, I was tested for any other cause, and there was nothing. I'm
JL> otherwise very healthy.
JL> The nagging pain has all of the qualifications: it's on one side, and
JL> frequently included my entire right side: right arm, right leg, right eye,
JL> even the right side of my tongue hurt or tingled. Noise hurt, light hurt,
JL> thinking hurt. When it got bad, I would lose my ability to read.

The differential diagnosis between migraine and non-migranous pain
is not *always* important, because some therapies are effective in
both (e.g., tricyclic antidepressants such as amitriptyline,
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen).  Other
therapies may be more specific: beta-blockers such as propranolol
work better in migraine than tension-type headache.

The most important thing, from your perspective, is that you got
relief.  Also, please understand that a diagnosis other than
migraine does not necessarily mean "psychogenic"; I suspect that
organic factors play as large a role in tension-type headache as in
migraine.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58071
From: julkunen@messi.uku.fi (Antero Julkunen)
Subject: What about sci.med.chemistry


There is this newsgroup sci.med.physics and there has been quite a lot
discussion in this group about many chemical items e.g. prolactin
cholesterol, TSH etc. Should there also be a newsgroup sci.med.chemistry?


-- 
Antero Julkunen, Dept Clinical Chemistry, University of Kuopio, Finland
e-mail: julkunen@messi.uku.fi, phone +358-71-162680, fax +358-71-162020


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58072
From: kturner@copper.denver.colorado.edu (Kathleen J Turner)
Subject: Mystery Illness with eye problems


	A friend has the following symptoms which have occurred periodically
every few months for the last 3 years.  An episode begins with extreme
tiredness followed by:

	1. traveling joint pains and stiffness affecting mostly the elbows,
	knees, and hips.
	2. generalized muscle pains
	3. tinnitus and a feeling of pressure in her ears
	4. severe sweating occuring both at night and during the day
	5. hemorrhaging in both eyes.  Her opthamologist calls it peripheral
   retinal hemorhages and says it looks similar to diabetic retinopathy.  (She
        isn't diabetic--they checked.
	6. distorted color vision and distorted vision in general (telephone
	   poles do not appear to be straight)
	7. loss of peripheral vision.
 	
	Many tests have been run and all are normal except for something 
called unidentified bright objects found on a MRI of her brain.  The only
thing that seems to alleviate one of these episodes is prednisone.  At
times she had been on 60 mg per day.  Whenever she gets down to 10-15 mg
the symptoms become acute again.

	She is quite concerned because the retinal hemorrhages are becoming
worse with each episode and her vision is suffering.  None of the docs she
has seen have any idea what this condition is or what can be done to stop
it.  Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in 
advance.  Kathy Turner
	

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58073
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr5.191712.7543@inmet.camb.inmet.com> mazur@bluefin.camb.inmet.com (Beth Mazur) writes:
>In <1993Apr03.1.6627@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>Gordon, your experience is valid for many, but not all.  The
>>fact that you know a few people who have been overweight and are
>>now stable at a lower (normal or just less?) weight does not
>>contradict the observation that only 5-10 per cent can maintain
>>ideal weight with current technology.
>
>Actually, the observation is that only 5-10% of those who seek help
>from your so-called "diet evangelists" can maintain their weight.  I
>happen to agree with Keith Lynch that there are many people who can
>and do lose weight on their own, and who are not reflected in the
>dismal failure rate that is often quoted.
>
>Wasn't there a study where a researcher asked a more general population,
>perhaps some part of a university community, about weight loss and he/she
>found that a much higher percentage had lost and maintained? 

In fact Adiposity 101 mentions a similar study (search for "life
events" in any recent version of Adiposity 101).

The problem with anecdotal reports about individuals who have
lost weight and kept it off is that we don't know what caused
the weight gain in the first place.  This is critical because
someone who gains weight because of something temporary (drug
effect, life event, etc.) may appear successful at dieting when
the weight loss was really the result of reversing the temporary
condition that caused the weight gain.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58074
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe

Getting back to the original question in this thread:

I experienced breathing difficulties a few years ago similar to those
described.  In my case, it turned out that I was developing Type I
diabetes.  Although I never sought direct confirmation of this from my
doctor, I think that the breathing problem was associated with the
presence of ketones due to the diabetes.

I think that ketosis can occur in lesser degree if one is restricting
their food intake drastically.  I don't know if this relevant in this
case, but you might ask your daughter if she has been eating
properly.
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58075
From: jperkski@kentcomm.uucp (Jim Perkowski)
Subject: Re: jiggers

In article <1ppae1$bt0@bigboote.WPI.EDU> susan@wpi.WPI.EDU (susan) writes:
> a friend of mine has a very severe cause of jiggers -
> for over a year now - they cause him a lot of pain.
>
> i recently read (i don't know where) about a possible
> cure for jiggers.  does anyone have any information on
> this?  i can't remember the name of the treatment, or
> where i read it.
>

I'll probably get flamed for this, but when I was a kid we would go to
my uncles cabin on Middle Bass Island on Lake Erie. We always came home
with a nasty case of jiggers (large red bumps where the buggers had
burrowed into the skin). My mother would paint the bumps with clear
finger nail polish. This was repeated daily for about a week or so. The
application of the polish is supposed to suffocate them as it seals of
the skin. All I can say is it worked for us. One word of caution
though. Putting finger nail polish on a jigger bite stings like hell.

(If I do get flamed for this just put jam in my pockets and call me
toast.:)

--
_______________________________________________________________________________
kentcomm!jperkski@aldhfn.akron.oh.us (and) kentcomm!jperkski@legend.akron.oh.us


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58076
Subject: Teenage acne
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)


My 14-y-o son has the usual teenage spotty chin and greasy nose.  I
bought him Clearasil face wash and ointment.  I think that is probably
enough, along with the usual good diet.  However, he is on at me to
get some product called Dalacin T, which used to be a
doctor's-prescription only treatment but is not available over the
chemist's counter.  I have asked a couple of pharmacists who say
either his acne is not severe enough for Dalacin T, or that Clearasil
is OK.  I had the odd spots as a teenager, nothing serious.  His
father was the same, so I don't figure his acne is going to escalate
into something disfiguring.  But I know kids are senstitive about
their appearance.  I am wary because a neighbour's son had this wierd
malady that was eventually put down to an overdose of vitamin A from
acne treatment.  I want to help - but with appropriate treatment.

My son also has some scaliness around the hairline on his scalp.  Sort
of teenage cradle cap.  Any pointers/advice on this?  We have tried a
couple of anti dandruff shampoos and some of these are inclined to
make the condition worse, not better.

Shall I bury the kid till he's 21 :)

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58077
From: rog@cdc.hp.com (Roger Haaheim)
Subject: Re: sex problem.

larry silverberg (ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet) wrote:
> Hello out there,

> She suggested we go to a sex counselor, but I really don't want to (just yet).

Interesting.  Does she know you have placed this info request on the
net for the world to see?  If not, how do you think she would react
if she found out?  Why would you accept the advice of unknown entities
rather than a counselor?

> Any suggestions would be appreciated.

See the counselor.

Well, you asked.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58078
From: news&aio.jsc.nasa.gov (USENET News System)
Subject: Re: Oily skin - problem?

In article <1993Apr5.044140.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu>, u92_hwong@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:
> 
> Hi there,
> 
> 	I have a very oily skin.  My problem is when I wash my face, it becomes
> oily in half an hour.  Especially in the nose region.  Is this an illness?  How
> can I prevent it from occuring in such short time?  Is there a cleanser out
> there that will do a better job -- that is after cleaning, my face won't become
> oily in such a short time.
> 
> 	Thank you for any suggestion.
> 
>if this is a disease, everyone should have it.  My skin has always been oily -
i used to say "if i were hot enough, you could fry an egg on my oily face".
i am now 50 yrs old and my skin looks younger (i'm told) than some people's
skin at 30 (it's still oily).  i have only a very few tiny wrinkles.  Thank
your lucky stars for that skin. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58079
From: jec@watson.ibm.com
Subject: Contraceptive pill

A very simple question : it seems to me that the contraceptive
pill just prevents the ovule to nest in the vagina and forces it to
fall every month. But it does not prevent the fertilzation of the 
ovule. Is it true ? If yes, is there a risk of extra-uterine
pregnancy, that is the development of the ovule inside the Fallopian
tube ?

J.Cherbonnier
jec@zurich.ibm.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58080
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Brain Tumor Treatment (thanks)

There were a few people who responded to my request for info on
treatment for astrocytomas through email, whom I couldn't thank
directly because of mail-bouncing probs (Sean, Debra, and Sharon).  So
I thought I'd publicly thank everyone.

Thanks! 

(I'm sure glad I accidentally hit "rn" instead of "rm" when I was
trying to delete a file last September. "Hmmm... 'News?' What's
this?"....)

-Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58081
Subject: Re: Can't Breathe -- Update
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

Thanks to all those who responded to my original post on this question.  The
final diagnosis was Stress.  I did not take her for a chiropractic adjustment.
(Rachel receives all her medical care at Keller Army Hospital since she is a
military dependant, and the Army does not yet provide chiropractic adjustments
as part of its regular health care.)  I am hoping that the arrival of (1)
Spring Break, and (2) College Acceptance Letters, will help.  *UNFORTUNATELY*
she was wait-listed at the college she most dearly wanted to attend, so it
seems as though that stressor may just continue for a while.  :-(

Meanwhile she is going on a camping trip with her religious youth group for
spring break, which seems like a good stress-reliever to me.

Thanks again for everybody's help/advice/suggestions/ideas.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58082
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: What about sci.med.chemistry

In <julkunen.734086202@messi.uku.fi> julkunen@messi.uku.fi (Antero
Julkunen) writes:

>There is this newsgroup sci.med.physics and there has been quite a lot
>discussion in this group about many chemical items e.g. prolactin
>cholesterol, TSH etc. Should there also be a newsgroup sci.med.chemistry?

It's got potential.  Instead of *.chemistry, how about splitting the
classification into *.biochemistry (which are probably the topics
you're thinking of) and *.pharmaceutical (which otherwise might end up
in *.(bio)chemistry)?

(This is separate from the issue of whether there is sufficient potential
news volume to support either or both groups.)

I'll add 'em to my medical/health newsgroup wish list (which I'm looking
forward to posting and discussing -- but not for another 10 days or so).

Pete

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58083
From: shafer@rigel.dfrf.nasa.gov (Mary Shafer)
Subject: Re: Inner Ear Problems from Too Much Flying?

On 5 Apr 93 23:27:26 GMT, vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) said:

Vida> Can one develop inner-ear problems from too much flying?  I hear
Vida> that pilots and steward/esses have a limit as to the maximum
Vida> number of flying hours -- what are these limits?  What are the
Vida> main problems associated with too many long-haul (over 4 hours)
Vida> trips?

The crew rest requirements are to prevent undue fatigue.  The cockpit
crew (pilot) limits are somewhat more stringent than the cabin crew
limits for this reason.  Crew rest requirements address amount of time
on duty plus rest time.  A tired crew is an accident-prone crew.

The only limits I know of for inner-ear problems are in military
aircraft, which are frequently unpressurized or less reliably
pressurized.  Not being able to clear the ears renders aircrew members
DNIF (duties not involving flying) or grounded until the ears clear.

Flying can accentuate problems if ears don't clear.  If you don't have
big pressure changes, you may not know that you've got a problem.  But
if you zip up to 5,000 or 6,000 ft (the usual cabin altitude in an
airliner) and then back down to sea level, you may discover a problem.
Ears don't clear readily because of allergies, colds, infections, and
anatomical problems.  The last won't change; the first three can.
Medication (decongestants or antihistimines, usually) can help.
Chewing gum, sucking hard candy (or a bottle for babies),
yawning--these will help all four causes.


--
Mary Shafer  DoD #0362 KotFR NASA Dryden Flight Research Facility, Edwards, CA
shafer@rigel.dfrf.nasa.gov                    Of course I don't speak for NASA
 "A MiG at your six is better than no MiG at all."  Unknown US fighter pilot

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58084
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Contraceptive pill

jec@watson.ibm.com wrote:
: A very simple question : it seems to me that the contraceptive
: pill just prevents the ovule to nest in the vagina and forces it to
: fall every month. But it does not prevent the fertilzation of the 
: ovule. Is it true ? If yes, is there a risk of extra-uterine
: pregnancy, that is the development of the ovule inside the Fallopian
: tube ?

Actually that is not how the pill works, but it *is* how the IUD works.
The oral contraceptive pill actually *prevents* ovulation from occuring
by providing negatve feedback to the pituitary gland, and thus preventing
the LH surge that normally occurs at the time of ovulation.  With the IUD
what happens is that fertilization may occur, but the device prevents
implantation within the wall of the uterus (*not* the vagina).

--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!  =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58085
From: bytor@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
Subject: Lupus


I have a friend who has just been diagnosed with Lupus, and I know nothing
about this disease. The only thing I do know is that this is some sort of
skin disease, and my friend shows no skin rashes - in fact, they used a 
blood test to determine what had been wrong with an on going sacro-
illiac joint problem. 
I am finding a hard time finding information on this disease. Could
anyone please enlighten me as to the particulars of this disease. 
please feel free to E-mail me at 
bytor@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us

Thanks in advance.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58086
From: bbesler@ouchem.chem.oakland.edu (Brent H. Besler)
Subject: Is an oral form of Imitrex(sumatriptan) available in CA

Sumatriptan(Imitrex) just became available in the US in a subcutaneous
injectable form.  Is there an oral form available in CA?  A friend(yes
really not me!)  has severe migranes about 2-3 times per week.  We
live right by the CA border and he has gotten drugs for GERD prescribed
by a US physician and filled in a CA pharmacy, but not yet FDA approved
in the US.  What would be the cost of the oral form in CA$ also if
anyone would have that info?    

Thanks

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58087
From: jmetz@austin.ibm.com ()
Subject: Re: Twitching eye?


  I had this one time.  I attributed it to a lack of sleep since it disappeared
after a few nights of good zzz's.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58088
From: vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas)
Subject: Inner Ear Problems from Too Much Flying?

Can one develop inner-ear problems from too much flying?  I hear that pilots
and steward/esses have a limit as to the maximum number of flying hours --
what are these limits?  What are the main problems associated with too many
long-haul (over 4 hours) trips?

Frequent Flyer.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58089
From: rjb3@cbnewsk.cb.att.com (robert.j.brown)
Subject: Re: Human breast-feeding : Myths or reality ?

In article <C4vHwo.HLt@tripos.com>, homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes:
> rjasoar@vnet.IBM.COM (Robert J. Alexander MD) writes:
> 
> I have an additional question. How long should a mother breast feed her
> child? A friend of mine is still nursing her two year old. Is this beneficial?
> Her ex-husband is trying to use her coninued nursing of a two year old as
> "proof" of her being unfit to be a mother. What studies have been done
> on breast feeding past a year etc... upon the psychological health of the
> child? 
> 
> 
> Web Homer
> 

My wife breast-fed my three boys 12 months, 16 months, and 29 months
respectively and they are 18, 16, and 10 years old respectively.  So
far everybody seems fairly normal.  I noticed a negative correlation
with ear infections and length of time nursed in my very small sample.
I do notice that the 16 and 18 year old seem to eat a lot, could that
be from the breast feeding :-)  ?

I don't understand the "unfit mother" charge other than any tactic is
not too low down for some folks during divorce/child custody battles.

Most of the developing nations practice breast feeding to 3 and 4 years
old.  Are they screwed up because of it ?  Would they be much better
off if they could use cow's milk or commercial formula ?  Doctors ?

Bobby - akgua!rjb




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58090
From: jose@csd.uwo.ca (Jose Thekkumthala)
Subject: recurrent volvulus

    Recurrent Volvulus
    -------------------
    
 This is regarding recurrent volvulus which our little boy
 has been suffering from ever since he was an infant. He had
 a surgery when he was one year old. Another surgery had
 to be performed one year after, when he was two years old.
 He turned three this February and he is still getting
 afflicted by this illness, like having to get hospitalised
 for vomitting and accompanying stomach pain.He managed
 not having a third surgery so far.
 
 *  	One thing me and my wife noticed is that his affliction
 	peaks around the time he was born, on nearabouts, like in
 	March every year.  Any significance to this?
 
 *	Why does this recur? Me and my family go through severe pain
 	when our little boy have to undergo surgery. Why does surgery
 	not rectify the situation? 
 
 *	Also, which hospital in US or Canada specialize in this malady?
 
 *	What will be a good book explaining this disease in detail?
 
 *	Will keeping a particular diet keep down the probability of 
 	recurrence?
 
 *	As time goes on, will the probability of recurrence go down
 	considering he is getting stronger and healthier and probably
 	less prone to attacks? Or is this assumption wrong?
 
 *	Any help throwing light on these queries will be highly appreciated.
 	Thanks very much!
 
 jose@csd.uwo.ca

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58091
From: mrb@cbnewsj.cb.att.com (m..bruncati)
Subject: Re: Smoker's Lungs

In article <1993Apr5.123315.48837@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu>, bennett@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu writes:
> How long does it take a smoker's lungs to clear of the tar after quitting? 
> Does your chances of getting lung cancer decrease quickly or does it take
> a considerable amount of time for that to happen?



Seems to me that I read in either a recent NY Times
Science Times or maybe it was Science News that there is
evidence that ex-smoker's risk of lung cancer never returns
to that of a person who has never smoked (I think it may
get close).  I'll find the article and post it since my
memory is hazy on the specifics - if you are interested.

Michael

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58092
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: various migraine therapies

In article <C4HtMw.H3J@olsen.ch> lindy@olsen.ch (Lindy Foster) writes:
>I've been treated to many therapies for migraine prophylaxis and treatment,
>and it looks like they'll try a few more on me.  I have taken propanolol
>(I think it was 10mg 3xdaily) with no relief.  I have just been started


30mg per day of propranolol is a homeopathic dose in migraine. 
If you got fatigued at that level, it is unlikely that you will
tolerate enough beta blocker to help you.  
>
>If we go the antidepressant route, what is it likely to be?  How do
>antidepressants work in migraine prophylaxis?
>

Probably a single nightime dose.  We don't know how they work in migraine, but
it probably has something to do with seratonin.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58093
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: vangus nerve (vagus nerve)

In article <52223@seismo.CSS.GOV> bwb@seismo.CSS.GOV (Brian W. Barker) writes:

>mostly right. Is there a connection between vomiting
>and fainting that has something to do with the vagus nerve?
>
Stimulation of the vagus nerve slows the heart and drops the blood
pressure.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58094
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Migraines

In article <DRAND.93Mar26112932@spinner.osf.org> drand@spinner.osf.org (Douglas S. Rand) writes:

>So I'll ask this,  my neurologist just prescribed Cafergot and
>Midrin as some alternatives for me to try.  He stated that
>the sublingual tablets of ergotamine were no longer available.
>Any idea why?  He also suggested trying 800 mg ibuprophen.
>

I just found out about the sublinguals disappearing too.  I don't
know why.  Perhaps because they weren't as profitable as cafergot.
Too bad, since tablets are sometimes vomited up by migraine patients
and they don't do any good flushed down the toilet.  I suspect
we'll be moving those patients more and more to the DHE nasal
spray, which is far more effective.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58095
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: 3 AIDS Related Questions

In article <93087.011308PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu> PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu (Paula Ford) writes:
>A friend of mine was a regular volunteer blood donor.  During surgery, he
>was given five units of blood, and after a suitable recovery time, he went
>to donate blood at a "bloodmobile." He was HIV+, and did not know it.
>
>The Red Cross notified him with a _registered letter_.  That's all.  No
>counselling, no nothing.  He died two years ago, this week.  He left behind

How long ago was this?  When I said you'd get counselling, I meant if
you did it now.  Long ago, practices varied and agencies had to gear
up to provide the counselling.

>a wife and a four-year-old son.  Many people have suggested that his wife
>should sue the Red Cross, but she would not.  She says that without the
>blood transfusions he would have died during the surgery.
>

Good for her.  What we don't need is everyone suing community service
agencies that provide blood that people need.  Testing is not fool proof.
The fact that he got AIDS from a transfusion (if he really did) does
not mean the Red Cross screwed up.  Prior to 1983 or so, there wasn't
a good test and a lot of bad blood got through.  This wasn't the fault
of the Red Cross.  When did he get the transfusions?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58096
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <LMC001@wrc.wrgrace.com> custer@wrc.wrgrace.com (Linda Custer) writes:
>This is my first post, and I am not even sure it will work. Here goes.
>
>Did anyone read the editorial on page 70 in the 29 march 1993 edition of Time
>Magazine, noting that managed care is extremely inefficient?  Of all the possible
>clients that Billary could be pandering to, the insurance industry is the worst!
>
>Comments?
 
I agree. Adding layers of managers and bureaucrats simply eat up
money that could be spent on those who actually are doing the work
such as doctors and nurse, and supplies.  The most efficient system
is probably one that has limited management and a fixed budget such
as England's or even Canada's.  I'm afraid we are on the wrong
track.  The problem may be that the insurance lobby is too powerful.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58097
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <1993Mar28.200619.5371@cnsvax.uwec.edu> nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

>and may be a total disaster and that the Canadian model is preferable, a
>position with which I agree.  The other is surprising sympathy for the
>physicians in all of this, to the effect that beating up on us won't
>help anything.
> 

I'm not sure about that.  Did you see the "poll" they took that showed
that most people thought physicians should be paid $80,000 per year
tops?  That's all I make, but I doubt that most physicians are going
to work very hard for that kind of bread.  Many wouldn't be able
to service their med school debts on that.  Mike Royko had a good
column about it.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58098
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar24.182145.11004@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:
>IMHO, you have Lyme disease.  I told you this in private email and predicted
>that you might next start having the migrating pains and further joint

IMHO, the original poster has no business soliciting diagnoses off the net,
nor does Dr./Mr.  O'Donnell have any business supplying same. This is one
major reason real physicians avoid this newsgroup like the plague. It is
also another example of the double standard: if I as a physician offered
to diagnose and treat on the net, I can be sued. But people without
qualifications are free to do whatever they want and disclaim it all with
"I'm not a doctor."

Get and keep this crap off the net. Period.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58099
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Patient-Physician Diplomacy

In article <C4Hyou.1Iz@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin) writes:
>In article <188@ky3b.UUCP> km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
>
>>Ditto. Disease is a great leveling experience, however. Some people
>>are very much afronted to find out that all the money in the world
>>does not buy one health. Everyone looks the same when they die.
>
>If money does not buy one health, why are we talking about paying
>for medical expenses for those not currently "adequately covered"?

Herman, I would think you of all people would/could distinguish
between "health" and "treatment of disease." All the prevention
medicine people preach this all the time. You cannot buy health.
You can buy treatment of disease, assuming you are lucky enough
to have a disease which can be treated. A rich person with a
terminal disease is a bit out of luck. There is no such thing
as "adequately covered" and there never will be. 

And for what it's worth, I'll be the first to admit that all my
patients die.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58100
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Immotile Cilia Syndrome

In article <1993Mar26.213522.26224@ncsu.edu> andrea@unity.ncsu.edu (Andrea M Free-Kwiatkowski) writes:
>I would like to know if there is any new information out there about the
>subject or any new studies being conducted.  I am confident in my
>pediatrician and her communication with the people in Chapel Hill, but
>since this is a life-long disorder and genetically transferred I would
>like keep current.  I do realize that since this is a relatively new
>disorder (first documented in 1974 in a fertility clinic in Scandanavia)
>and is therefore "controversial".

I do not know a lot about this, except from seeing one patient with
"Kartagener's syndrome", which is a form of immotile cilia syndrome
in which there is situs inversus, bronchiectasis, and chronic
infections. "Situs inversus" means that organs are on the wrong
side of the body, and can be complete or partial. It is interesting
medically because the normal location of organs is caused in part
by the "normal" rotation associated with ciliary motion, so that in
absence of this, laterality can be "random." People with situs
inversus are quite popular at medical schools, because of their
rarity, and the fact that most doctors get a bit upset when they
can't find the patient's heart sounds (because they're on the wrong
side). 

According to Harrison's, immotile cilia syndrom is an autosomal
recessive, which should imply that on average one child in four
in a family would be affected. But there may be much more current
information on this, and as usual in medicine, we may be talking
about more than one conditiion. I would suggest that you ask your
pediatrician about contacting a medical geneticics specialist, of
which there is probably one at NCSU.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58101
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Lung disorders and clubbing of fingers

In article <SLAGLE.93Mar26205915@sgi417.msd.lmsc.lockheed.com> slagle@lmsc.lockheed.com writes:
>Can anyone out there enlighten me on the relationship between
>lung disorders and "clubbing", or swelling and widening, of the
>fingertips?  What is the mechanism and why would a physician
>call for chest xrays to diagnose the cause of the clubbing?

Purists often distinguish between "true" clubbing and "pseudo"
clubbing, the difference being that with "true" clubbing the
angle of the nail when viewed from the side is constantly
negative when proceeding distally (towards the fingertip).
With "pseudo" clubbing, the angle is initially positive, then
negative, which is the normal situation. "Real" internists
can talk for hours about clubbing. I'm limited to a couple
of minutes.

Whether this distinction has anything to do with reality is
entirely unclear, but it is one of those things that internists
love to paw over during rounds. Supposedly, only "true" clubbing
is associated with disease. The problem is that the list of
diseases associated with clubbing is quite long, and includes
both congenital conditions and acquired disease. Since many of
these diseases are associated with cardiopulmonary problems
leading to right to left shunts and chronic hypoxemia, it is
very reasonable to get a chest xray. However, many of the 
congenital abnormalities would only be diagnosed with a cardiac
catheterization. 

The cause of clubbing is unclear, but presumably relates to
some factor causing blood vessels in the distal fingertip to
dilate abnormally. 

Clubbing is one of those things from an examination which is
a tipoff to do more extensive examination. Often, however,
the cause of the clubbing is quite apparent.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58102
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Open letter to Hillary Rodham Clinton (#7)

How about posting one of her replies to your letters?

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58103
From: km@cs.pitt.edu (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <C4nzn6.Mzx@crdnns.crd.ge.com> brooksby@brigham.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Glen W Brooksby) writes:
>This past weekend a friend of mine lost his 13 month old
>daughter in a matter of hours to a form of menangitis.  The
>person informing me called it 'Nicereal Meningicocis' (sp?).
>In retrospect, the disease struck her probably sometime on 
>Friday evening and she passed away about 2:30pm on Saturday.
>The symptoms seemed to be a rash that started small and
>then began progressing rapidly. She began turning blue
>eventually which was the tip-off that this was serious
>but by that time it was too late (this is all second hand info.).
>
>My question is:
>Is this an unusual form of Menangitis?  How is it transmitted?
>How does it work (ie. how does it kill so quickly)?

There are many organisms, viral, bacterial, and fungal, which can
cause meningitits, and the course of these infections varies
widely. The causes of bacterial meningitis vary with age: in adults
pneumococcus (the same organism which causes pneumococcal pneumonia)
is the most common cause, while in children Hemophilus influenzae
is the most common cause.

What you are describing is meningitis from Neisseria meningitidis,
which is the second most common cause of bacterial meningitis in
both groups, but with lower incidence in infants. This organism
is also called the "meningococcus", and is the source of the
common epidemics of meningitis that occur and are popularized in
the press. Without prompt treatment (and even WITH it in some cases),
the organism typically causes death within a day. 

This organism, feared as it is, is actually grown from the throats
of many normal adults. It can get to the meninges by different
ways, but blood borne spread is probably the usual case. 

Rifampin (an oral antibiotic) is often given to family and contacts
of a case of meningococcal meningitis, by the way.

Sorry, but I don't have time for a more detailed reply. Meningitis
is a huge topic, and sci.med can't do it justice.


-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58104
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: 3 AIDS Related Questions

In article <93088.130924PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu> PXF3@psuvm.psu.edu (Paula Ford) writes:

>we know ours is not HIV+ and people need it.  I think my husband should give
>blood, especially, because his is O+, and I understand that's a very useful
>blood type.
>

It's O- that is especially useful.  Still, he isn't punishing the
Red Cross but some O+ person that needed his blood and couldn't
get it.  You are right, nagging probably won't help.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58105
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar29.181958.3224@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:
>
>I shouldn't have to be posting here.  Physicians should know the Lyme
>literature beyond Steere & co's denial merry-go-round.  Patients
>should get correctly diagnosed and treated.
>

Why do you think Steere is doing this?  Isn't he acting in good faith?
After all, as the "discoverer" of Lyme for all intents and purposes,
the more famous Lyme gets, the more famous Steere gets.  I don't
see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
There is a lot of money involved.

>I'm a computer engineer, not a doctor (,Jim).  I was building a 
>computer manufacturing company when I got Lyme. I lost several 
>years of my life to near-total disability; partially as a result,
>the company failed, taking with it over 150 jobs, my savings,
>and everything I'd worked for for years.  I'm one of the "lucky"
>ones in that I found a physician through the Lyme foundation
>and now can work almost full-time, although I have persistent
>infection and still suffer a variety of sypmtoms.  And now
>I try to follow the Lyme literature.
>

Well, it is tragic what has happened to you, but it doesn't
necessarily make you the most objective source of information
about it.  If your whole life is focussed around this, you
may be too emotionally involved to be advising other people
who may or may not have Lyme.  Certainly advocacy of more research
on Lyme would not be out of order, though, and people like you
can be very effective there.





-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58106
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: CAN'T BREATHE

In article <1p8t1p$mvv@agate.berkeley.edu> romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

>
>Re: the prostate treatment is worse than the disease...In medicine there 
>really is something histologically identified as prostate tissue and 
>there are observable changes which take place, that whenever they occur, 
>can be identified as prostate cancer. What if I told you that most chiropractorstreat Subluxation (Spinal Demons), which don't exist at all. Therefore any 
>tissue damage incurred in a chiropractic treatment performed 
>in an effort to exorcise this elusive Silent Killer, such as ligamentous
>damage and laxity, microfracture of the joint surfaces, rib fractures, 
>strokes, paralysis,etc., is by definition worse than non-treatment.
>
>John Badanes, DC, CA
>email: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

What does "DC" stand for?  Couldn't be an antichiropractic posting
from a chiropractor, could it?  My curiosity is piqued.

Prostate CA is an especially troublesome entity for chiropractors.
It so typically causes bone pain due to spinal metastases that it
gets manipulated frequently.  Manipulating a cancer riddled bone
is highly dangerous, since it can then fracture.  I've seen at
least three cases where this happened with resulting neurologic
damage, including paraplegia.  This is one instance where knowing
how to read x-rays can really help a chiropractor stay out of trouble.
DO chiropractors know what bony mets from prostate look like?


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58107
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <C4nzn6.Mzx@crdnns.crd.ge.com> brooksby@brigham.NoSubdomain.NoDomain (Glen W Brooksby) writes:
>This past weekend a friend of mine lost his 13 month old
>daughter in a matter of hours to a form of menangitis.  The
>person informing me called it 'Nicereal Meningicocis' (sp?).
>In retrospect, the disease struck her probably sometime on 
>Friday evening and she passed away about 2:30pm on Saturday.
>The symptoms seemed to be a rash that started small and
>then began progressing rapidly. She began turning blue
>eventually which was the tip-off that this was serious
>but by that time it was too late (this is all second hand info.).
>
>My question is:
>Is this an unusual form of Menangitis?  How is it transmitted?
>How does it work (ie. how does it kill so quickly)?
>

No, the neiseria meningococcus is one of the most common
forms of meningitis.  It's the one that sometimes sweeps
schools or boot camp.  It is contagious and kills by attacking
the covering of the brain, causing the blood vessels to thrombose
and the brain to swell up.

It is very treatable if caught in time.  There isn't much time,
however.  The rash is the tip off.  Infants are very susceptible
to dying from bacterial meningitis.  Any infant with a fever who
becomes stiff or lethargic needs to be rushed to a hospital where
a spinal tap will show if they have meningitis.  Seizures can also
occur.

>Immediate family members were told to take some kind of medication
>to prevent them from being carriers, yet they didn't have
>any concerns about my wife and I coming to visit them.
>

It can live in the throat of carriers.  Don't worry, you won't get 
it from them, especially if they took the medication.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58108
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "CAN'T BREATHE"

In article <1993Mar29.204003.26952@tijc02.uucp> pjs269@tijc02.uucp (Paul Schmidt) writes:
>I think it is important to verify all procedures with proper studies to
>show their worthiness and risk.  I just read an interesting tidbit that 
>80% of the medical treatments are unproven and not based on scientific 
>fact.  For example, many treatments of prostate cancer are unproven and
>the treatment may be more dangerous than the disease (according to the
>article I read.)

Where did you read this?  I don't think this is true.  I think most
medical treatments are based on science, although it is difficult
to prove anything with certitude.  It is true that there are some
things that have just been found "to work", but we have no good
explanation for why.  But almost everything does have a scientific
rationale.  The most common treatment for prostate cancer is
probably hormone therapy.  It has been "proven" to work.  So have
radiation and chemotherapy.  What treatments did the article say
are not proven?  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58109
From: jer@prefect.cc.bellcore.com (rathmann,janice e)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)


I noticed several years ago that when I took analgesics fairly regularly,
(motrin at the time), I seemed to get a lot of migraines.  But had
forgotten about that until I started reading some of the posts here.
I generally don't take NSAIDS or Tylenol for headaches, because I've
found them to be ineffective.  However, I have two other pain sources
that force me to take NSAIDS (currently Naprosyn).  First, is some
pelvic pain that I get at the beginning of my period, and then much
worse at midcycle.  I have had surgery for endometriosis in the past
(~12 years ago), so the Drs. tell me that my pain is probably due
to the endometriosis coming back.  I've tried Synarel, it reduced
the pain while I took it (3 mos), but the pain returned immediately
after I stopped.  Three doctors have suggested hysterectomy as the
only "real solution" to my problem.  Although I don't expect to have
any more children, I don't like the idea of having my uterus and
one remaining ovary removed (the first ovary was removed when I had
the surgery for endometriosis).  One of the Drs that suggested
I get a hysterectomy is an expert in laser surgery, but perhaps thinks
that type of procedure is only worthwhile on women who still plan
to have children.  So basically all I'm left with is toughing out
the pain.  This would be impossible without Naprosyn (or something
similar - but not aspirin, that doesn't work, and Motrin gave me
horrible gastritis a few years ago, so I'm through with it).  In
fact, Naprosyn works very well at eliminating the pain if I take
it regularly as I did when I had severe back pain (and pain in both 
legs) as I'll discuss in a moment.  Generally though, I wait until
I have the pain before I take the Naprosyn, but then it takes
several hours for it reduce the pain (it's actually quite effective
at reducing the pain, it just takes quite a while).  In the meantime
I'm frequently in severe pain.

The other pain source I have is chronic lower back pain resulting in
bilateral radiculopathy.  I've had MRIs, Xrays, CT scan, and EMGs
(I've had 2 of them, and don't intend to ever do that again) with
nerve conduction tests.  The tests have not been conclusive as to
what is causing my back and leg pain.  The MRI reports both say I have
several bulging, degeneratig disks, and from the Xrays (and MRI, I think)
it is apparent that I have arthritis.  The reading on the CT scan
was that there are two herniations (L3-L4, and L4-L5), but others
hav looked at the films and concluded that there are no herniations.
The second EMG and nerve conduction studies shows significant denervation
compared to the first EMG.  Oh yeah, I had some other horrible test,
called something like Somatic Evoked Response which showed that the
"internal nerves" are working fine.   Anyway, the bottom line is that
I sometimes have severe pain in both legs and back pain.  The back pain
is there all the time, but I can live with it.  When the leg pain is there,
I need some analgesic/anti-inflammatory medication to reduce the pain
to a level where I can work.  So I took Naprosyn regulary for 6-9
months (every time I tried to stop the leg pain got worse, so I'd 
always resume).  Since last November I have taken it much less frequently,
and primarily for the pelvic pain.  I have been going to physical
therapy for the last 8 months (2-3 times a week).  After the first month
or so, my therapist put me on pelvic traction (she had tried it earlier,
but it had caused a lot of pain in my back, this time she tried it at
a lower weight).  After a month or two, the pain in my legs began going
away (but the traction aways caused discomfort in my lower back, which
could be reduced with ultrasound and massage).  So now, I don't have
nearly as much pain in my legs, in fact my therapist took me off
traction about 2 weeks ago.

Getting back to my original reason for this post...  Even if I can avoid
taking analgesic for headaches, I really can't avoid them entirely because
I have other pain sources, that "force" me to use them (Oh, I forgot
to mention that it has been suggested to me that I have back surgery,
but I'm avoiding that too).  I find the migraines difficult to deal with,
occassionally I have to take off work, but usually I can work, but at
a reduced capacity (I'm a systems engineer and do a lot of reading
and writing).  When the pelvic pain is bad, I can't concentrate much,
I usually end up jumping out of my chair every few minutes, because
the pain is so bothersome.  When the pain in my back is bad, it can
cause severe burning in both legs, shooting pains in my legs, electric
shock type of pain in my feet and toes, and basically when it gets bad
I can't really sit at all.  Then I end up spending most of my time home
and in bed.  So even if the analgesics contribute to the migraines, the
migraines are more tolerable than the other pain sources.  I get a lot
of migraines, an average of 3 to 4 a month, which last 1-3 days.
I've taken cafergot (the first time the caffiene really got to me so
I reduced the dosage), but I don't like the side effects (if I take
more than two I get diahrea).  If I get a very bad headache, I will
eventually take the cafergot.  My neurologist wasn't very helpful when
I told him my problems with cafergot, he said that when sumatriptan
becomes available, I should try that.  I've tried several other medications
(fiornal, midrin, fiornal with codeine, tegretol, and inderal) but
they either didn't work, or I couldn't tolerate them.  So what can I do?
My doctor's seem to be satisfied with me just trying to tolerate the
pain, which I agree with most of the time, but not when I have a lot of
pain.  I've had some bad experiences with surgery (my heart stopped
once from the anesthesia - I was told that it was likely the
succinylcholine), and I've already had surgery several times.

Anyway, the point of what I'm saying is that even if analgesics can contribute
to migraines, some people NEED to take them to tolerate other pain.

Janice Rathmann


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58110
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Teenage acne

pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill) writes:


>My 14-y-o son has the usual teenage spotty chin and greasy nose.  I
>bought him Clearasil face wash and ointment.  I think that is probably
>enough, along with the usual good diet.  However, he is on at me to
>get some product called Dalacin T, which used to be a
>doctor's-prescription only treatment but is not available over the
>chemist's counter.  I have asked a couple of pharmacists who say
>either his acne is not severe enough for Dalacin T, or that Clearasil
>is OK.  I had the odd spots as a teenager, nothing serious.  His
>father was the same, so I don't figure his acne is going to escalate
>into something disfiguring.  But I know kids are senstitive about
>their appearance.  I am wary because a neighbour's son had this wierd
>malady that was eventually put down to an overdose of vitamin A from
>acne treatment.  I want to help - but with appropriate treatment.

>My son also has some scaliness around the hairline on his scalp.  Sort
>of teenage cradle cap.  Any pointers/advice on this?  We have tried a
>couple of anti dandruff shampoos and some of these are inclined to
>make the condition worse, not better.

>Shall I bury the kid till he's 21 :)

:) No...I was one of the lucky ones. Very little acne as a teenager. I
didn't have any luck with clearasil. Even though my skin gets oily it
really only gets miserable pimples when it's dry. 

Frequent lukewarm water rinses on the face might help. Getting the scalp
thing under control might help (that could be as simple as submerging under
the bathwater till it's softened and washing it out). Taking a one a day
vitamin/mineral might help. I've heard iodine causes trouble and that it  
is used in fast food restaurants to sterilize equipment which might be
where the belief that greasy foods cause acne came from. I notice grease 
on my face, not immediately removed will cause acne (even from eating
meat).

Keeping hair rinse, mousse, dip, and spray off the face will help. Warm
water bath soaks or cloths on the face to soften the oil in the pores will
help prevent blackheads. Body oil is hydrophilic, loves water and it
softens and washes off when it has a chance. That's why hair goes limp with
oilyness. 

Becoming convinced that the best thing to do with
a whitehead is leave it alone will save him days of pimple misery. Any
prying of black or whiteheads can cause infections, the red spots of
pimples. Usually a whitehead will break naturally in a day and there won't
be an infection afterwards.

Tell him that it's normal to have some pimples but the cosmetic industry
makes it's money off of selling people on the idea that they are an
incredible defect to be hidden at any cost (even that of causing more pimples). 


-Jackie-



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58111
From: Mark W. Dubin
Subject: Re: ringing ears

jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare) writes:

>A friend of mine has a trouble with her ears ringing. [etc.]


A.  Folks, do we have an FAQ on tinnitus yet?

B.  As a lo-o-o-ong time sufferer of tinnitus and as a neuroscientist
who has looked over the literature carefully I believe the following
are reasonable conclusions:

1. Millions of people suffer from chronic tinnitus.
2. The cause it not understood.
3. There is no accepted treatment that cures it.
4. Some experimental treatments may have helped some people a bit, but
there have be no reports--even anecdotal--of massive good results with
any of these experimental drugs.
5. Some people with chronic loud tinnitus use noise blocking to get to sleep.
6. Sudden onset loud tinnitus can be caused by injuries and sometimes
abates or goes away after a few months.
7. Aspirin is well known to exacerbate tinnitus in some people.
8. There is a national association of tinnitus sufferers in the US.
9. One usually gets used to it.  Especially when concentrating on
something else the tinnitus becomes unnoticed.
10.  Stress and lack of sleep make tinnitus more annoying, sometimes.
11.  I'm sure those of us who have it wish there was a cure, but there
is not.

Mark dubin
the ol' professor


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58112
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: jiggers


I may not be the world's greatest expert on chiggers (a type of
mite indigenous to the south), but I certainly have spent a lot
of time contemplating the little buggers over the past six years
(since we moved to N.C.).  Here are some observations gained from
painful experience:

  1. Reactions to chiggers vary greatly from person to person.
     Some people get tiny red bites.  Others (like me) are more
     sensitive and get fairly large swollen sore-like affairs.

  2. Chigger bites are the gift that keeps on giving.  I swear
     that these things will itch for months.

  3. There is a lot of folklore about chiggers.  I think most of
     it is fiction.  I have tried to do research on the critters,
     since they have such an effect on me.  The only book I could
     find on the subject was a *single* book in UNC's special
     collections library.  I have not yet gone through what is
     required to get it.

  4. Based on my experience and that of my family members, the old
     folk remedy of fingernail polish simply doesn't work.  I recall
     reading that the theory upon which it is based (that the chiggers
     burrow into your skin and continue to party there) is false.  I
     think it is more likely that the reaction is to toxins of some
     sort the little pests release.  But this is speculation.

  5. The *best* approach is prevention.  A couple of things work well.
     A good insect repellent (DEET) such as Deep Woods Off liberally
     applied to ankles, waistband, etc. is a good start.  There is
     another preparation called "Chig Away" that is a combination of
     sulfur and some kind of cream (cortisone?) that originally was
     prepared for the Army and is not commercially available.  In
     the summer I put this on my ankles every morning when I get
     up on weekends since I literally can't go outside where we
     live (in the country) without serious consequences.  (They
     apparently don't like sulfur much at all.  You can use sulfur
     as a dust on your body or clothing to repel them.)

  6. No amount of prevention will be *completely* successful.  Forget
     the fingernail polish.  I have finally settled upon a treatment
     that involves topical application of a combination of cortisone
     creme (reduces the inflamation and swelling) and benzocaine
     (relieves the itch).  I won't tell you all the things I've tried.
     Nor will I tell you some of the things my wife does since this
     counts as minor surgery and is best not mentioned (I also think
     it gains nothing).

  7. The swelling and itching can also be significantly relieved
     by the application of hot packs, and this seems to speed recovery
     as well.

Doctors seem not to care much about chiggers.  The urban and suburban
doctors apparently don't encounter them much.  And the rural doctors
seem to regard them as a force of nature that one must endure.  I
suspect that anyone who could come up with a good treatment for chiggers
would make a *lot* of money.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58113
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Mar27.142431.25188@inmet.camb.inmet.com> mazur@bluefin.camb.inmet.com (Beth Mazur) writes:
>In article <1ov4toINNh0h@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>
>On the other hand, we do a good job of implying that the person who
>weighs 400lbs is "overeating" when in fact, the body probably doesn't
>make any moral judgements about its composition.  Conceivably, the 
>body works just as hard maintaining its weight at 400 as someone else's
>does at 200.
>

Undoubtedly it does, to maintain such a weight.  And it does so
primarily by overeating.  If it didn't, the weight would drop
back to normal.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58114
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <werner-240393161954@tol7mac15.soe.berkeley.edu> werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner) writes:
>In article <19213@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:
>> 
>> Explain.  I thought there were 3 types of cones, equivalent to RGB.
>
>You're basically right, but I think there are just 2 types.  One is
>sensitive to red and green, and the other is sensitive to blue and yellow. 
>This is why the two most common kinds of color-blindness are red-green and
>blue-yellow.
>

Yes, I remember that now.  Well, in that case, the cones are indeed
color sensitive, contrary to what the original respondent had claimed.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58115
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)

In article <Lauger-240393141539@lauger.mdc.com> Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger) writes:
>In article <19201@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:

>What's the best approach to getting off the analgesics.  Is there something

Two approaches that I've used: Tofranil, 50 mg qhs, Naproxen 250mg bid.
The Naproxen doesn't seem to be as bad as things like Tylenol in promoting
the analgesic abuse Headache.  DHE IV infusions for about 3 days (in
hospital).  Cold turkey is the only way I think.  Tapering doesn't
help. I wouldn't know how you can do this without your doctor.  I haven't
seen anyone successfully do it alone.  Doesn't mean it can't be done.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58116
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sinus vs. Migraine (was Re: Sinus Endoscopy)

In article <1993Mar26.001004.10983@news.eng.convex.com> cash@convex.com (Peter Cash) writes:
>
>By the way, does the brain even have pain receptors? I thought not--I heard
>that brain surgery can be performed while the patient is conscious for
>precisely this reason.
>
No, no, we aren't talking about receptors for the brain's sensory 
innervation, but structures such as the thalamus that handle pain
for the entire organism.  Apples and oranges.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58117
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar25.020646.852@news.columbia.edu> jhl14@cunixa.cc.columbia.edu (Jonathan H. Lin) writes:
>I was wondering what steps are being taken to prevent the spread of
>multi-drug resistant tuberculosis.  I've heard that some places are
>thinking of incarcerating those with the disease.  Doesn't this violate
>the civil rights of these individuals?  Are there any legal precedents
>for such action?
>

Who knows in this legal climate, but there is tremendous legal precendent
for forcibly quarantining TB patients in sanitariums.  100 yrs ago
it was done all the time.  It has been done sporadically all along
in patients who won't take their medicine.  If you have TB you
may find yourself under surveilence of the Public Health Department
and you may find they have the legal power to insist you make your
clinic visits.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58118
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <1993Mar26.185117.21400@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>In article <33587@castle.ed.ac.uk> hrvoje@castle.ed.ac.uk (H Hecimovic) writes:
>compensation?  Or are lesions localized to the SC too rare to be able
>to tell?

Extremely rare in humans.  Usually so much else is involved you'd
just have a mess to sort out.  Birds do all vision in the tectum,
don't they?  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58119
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Name of MD's eyepiece?

In article <C4IHM2.Gs9@watson.ibm.com> clarke@watson.ibm.com (Ed Clarke) writes:
>|> |It's not an eyepiece.  It is called a head mirror.  All doctors never
>
>A speculum?

The speculum is the little cone that fits on the end of the otoscope.
There are also vaginal specula that females and gynecologists are
all too familiar with.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58120
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Patient-Physician Diplomacy

In article <1993Mar29.130824.16629@aoa.aoa.utc.com> carl@aoa.aoa.utc.com (Carl Witthoft) writes:

>What is "unacceptable" about this is that hospitals and MDs by law
>have no choice but to treat you if you show up sick or mangled from
>an accident.  If you aren't rich and have no insurance, who is going
>to foot your bills?  Do you actually intend to tell the ambulance
>"No, let me die in the gutter because I can't afford the treatment"??

By law, they would not be allowed to do that anyhow.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58121
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "Exercise" Hypertension

In article <93084.140929RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> RFM@psuvm.psu.edu writes:
>I took a stress test a couple weeks back, and results came back noting
>"Exercise" Hypertension.  Fool that I am, I didn't ask Doc what this meant,
>and she didn't explain; and now I'm wondering.  Can anyone out there
>enlighten.  And I promise, next time I'll ask!

Probably she meant that your blood pressure went up while you were on
the treadmill.  This is normal.  You'll have to ask her if this is
what she meant, since no one else can answer for another person.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58122
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Striato Nigral Degeneration

In article <9303252134.AA09923@walrus.mvhs.edu> ktodd@walrus.mvhs.edu ((Ken Todd)) writes:
>I would like any information available on this rare disease.  I understand
>that an operation referred to as POLLIDOTOMY may be in order.  Does anyone
>know of a physician that performs this procedure.  All responses will be
>appreciated.  Please respond via email to ktodd@walrus.mvhs.edu

It isn't that rare, actually.  Many cases that are called Parkinson's
Disease turn out on autopsy to be SND.  It should be suspected in any
case of Parkinsonism without tremor and which does not respond to
L-dopa therapy.  I don't believe pallidotomy will do much for SND.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58123
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <lindaeC4JGLK.FxM@netcom.com> lindae@netcom.com writes:

>
>My biggest resentment is the doctor who makes it seem like most
>people with dizziness can be cured.  That's definitely not the
>case.  In most cases, like I said above, it is a long, tedious
>process that may or may not end up in a partial cure.  
>

Be sure to say "chronic" dizziness, not just dizziness.  Most
patients with acute or subacute dizziness will get better.
The vertiginous spells of Meniere's will also eventually go
away, however, the patient is left with a deaf ear.


>To anyone suffering with vertigo, dizziness, or any variation
>thereof, my best advice to you (as a fellow-sufferer) is this...
>just keep searching...don't let the doctors tell you there's
>nothing that can be done...do your own research...and let your

This may have helped you, but I'm not sure it is good general
advice.  The odds that you are going to find some miracle with
your own research that is secret or hidden from general knowledge
for this or any other disease are slim.  When good answers to these
problems are found, it is usually in all the newspapers.  Until
then, spending a great deal of time and energy on the medical
problem may divert that energy from more productive things
in life.  A limited amount should be spent to assure yourself
that your doctor gave you the correct story, but after it becomes
clear that you are dealing with a problem for which medicine
has no good solution, perhaps the best strategy is to join
the support group and keep abreast of new findings but not to
make a career out of it.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58124
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Donating organs

In article <1993Mar25.161109.13101@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:

>Dr. Banks, 
>	I don't know if you make a point of keeping up with liver transplant
>research but you're certainly in the right place for these questions.  Has 
>there been anything recent in "Transplant Proceedings" or somesuch, on 
>xenografts?  How about liver section transplants from living donors? 
>

I'm sure the Pittsburgh group has published the baboon work, but I
don't know where.  In Chicago they were doing lobe transplants from
living donors, and I'm sure they've published.  I don't read the
transplant literature.  I just see the liver transplant patients
when they get into neurologic trouble (pretty frequent), so that
and the newspapers and scuttlebutt is the way I keep up with what
they are doing.  Howard Doyle works with them, and can tell you more.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58125
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Mar24.182145.11004@equator.com> jod@equator.com (John Setel O'Donnell) writes:

>IMHO, you have Lyme disease. 


>I sent you in private email a summary of the treatment protocols put
>forth by the Lyme Disease Foundation.  I respectfully suggest that you
>save yourself a great deal of suffering by contacting them for a
>Lyme-knowledgeable physician referral and seek treatment at once.
>You'll know in 2 weeks if you're on the right course; and the clock is
>ticking on your 6 weeks if you have it. 1-800-886-LYME.

If these folks are who I think they are, Lyme-knowledgeable may
mean a physician to whom everything that walks in the door is
lyme disease, and you will be treated for lyme, whether or not
you have it.  Hope you have good insurance.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58126
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Use of codine in narcolepsy.

In article <1993Mar26.005148.7899@aio.jsc.nasa.gov> stevel@aio.jsc.nasa.gov (Steve Lancaster) writes:

>3) Is there any way around the scheduled drug mess so that he can use
>just the substance that works and not one adulterated with Tylenol? 
>Can the MD perscribe a year long supply on one script? His doctor
>basically refused to prescribe it, saying "His clinic does not prescribe
>controled substances. Its is 'company' rule.!"
>
Short of changes by the feds, there is no way.  Codeine alone is very
difficult to prescribe without a lot of hassles.  Tylenol #3 is the
best compromise.  That way he can get refills.  The amount of acetominophen
he is getting with his codeine won't hurt him any.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58127
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Migraines and Estrogen

In article <3FB51B6w165w@jupiter.spk.wa.us> pwageman@jupiter.spk.wa.us (Peggy Wageman) writes:
>I read that hormonal fluctuations can contribute to migraines, could 
>taking supplemental estrogen (ERT) cause migraines?  Any information 

I'm not sure it is the fluctuation so much as the estrogen level.
Taking Premarin can certainly cause migraines in some women.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58128
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: migraine and exercise

In article <C4Iozx.7wx@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>I have two questions. Is there any obvious connection between the
>flushed appearance and the migraine? Was I foolish to play through
>the migraine (aside from the visual disturbance affecting my play)?
>I just prefer to ignore it when possible.
>

The flushing is due to vascular dilation, part of a migraine attack.
Some people event get puffy and swollen.  As long as you are careful
you can see well enough to avoid getting hit in the face or eye by
the ball, migraine will not hurt your health.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58129
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: new Multiple Sclerosis drug?

In article <12252@news.duke.edu> adm@neuro.duke.edu (Alan Magid) writes:
>Disclaimer: I speak only for myself.


So just what was it you wanted to say?



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58130
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Need Info on RSD

In article <1993Mar27.004627.21258@rmtc.Central.Sun.COM> lrd@rmtc.Central.Sun.COM writes:
>I just started working for a rehabilitation hospital and have seen RSD
>come up as a diagnosis several times.  What exactly is RSD and what is
>the nature of it?  If there is a FAQ on this subject, I'd really
>appreciate it if someone would mail it to me.  While any and all

Reflex sympathetic dystrophy.  I'm sure there's an FAQ, as I have
made at least 10 answers to questions on it in the last year or so.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58131
From: km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar25.085526.914@news.wesleyan.edu>, RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg) writes:
|> 
|> But I'll be damned, his "rights" to be sick & to fail to treat his disease & to
|> spread it all over the place were, indeed preserved.  Happy?

Several years ago I tried to commit a patient who was growing Salmonella out of his
stool, blood, and an open ulcer for treatment. The idea was that the guy was a
walking public health risk, and that forcing him to receive IV antibiotics for
a few days was in the public interest. I will make a long story short by saying
that the judge laughed at my idea, yelled at me for wasting his time, and let
the guy go.

I found out that tuberculosis appears to be the only MEDICAL (as oppsed to psychiatric)
condition that one can be committed for, and this is because very specific laws were
enacted many years ago regarding tb. I am certain these vary from state to state.

Any legal experts out there to help us on this?

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58132
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: amitriptyline

In article <1993Mar27.010702.8176@julian.uwo.ca> roberts@gaul.csd.uwo.ca (Eric Roberts) writes:
>Could someone please tell me, what effect an overdose (900-1000mg) of
>amitriptyline would have?

Probably would not be fatal in an adult at that dose, but could kill
a child.  Patient would be very somnolent, with dilated pupils, low
blood pressure.  Possibly cardiac arrhythmias.  


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58133
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Medication For Parkinsons

In article <19621.3049.uupcb@factory.com> jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) writes:

>If you want to throw around names, Drs. Donald Calne, Terry Elizan,
>and Jesse Cedarbaum don't recommend selegiline (not to mention Dr.
>William Landau).
>

Gosh, Jesse is that famous now?  He was my intern.  Landau not liking
it makes me like it out of spite.  (Just kidding, Bill).  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58134
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Fingernail "moons"

In article <733196190.AA00076@calcom.socal.com> Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince) writes:

>I only have lunulas on my thumbs.  Is there any medical 
>significance to that finding?  Thank you in advance for all 
>replies.
>

Try peeling the skin back at the base of your other fingernails
(not too hard, now, don't want to hurt yourself).  You'll find
nice little lunulas there if you can peel it back enough.  

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58135
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: health care reform

In article <LMC006@wrc.wrgrace.com> custer@wrc.wrgrace.com (Linda Custer) writes:
>
>Also, I'm not sure that physician fees at the very, very highest levels
>don't have to come down. (I'm not talking about the bulk of physicians
>making good but not great salaries who have mega-loans from medical school
>debts.) I'd also like to see some strong ethics with teeth for physicians

I agree that some specialties have gotten way out of line.  The main
problem is the payment method for procedures rather than time distorts
the system.  I hope they will fix that.  But I'm afraid, as usual,
the local doc is going to take the brunt.  People grouse about paying
$50 to see their home doctor in his office, but don't mind paying
$20,000 to have brain surgery.  They think their local doc is cheating
them but worship the feet of the neurosurgeon who saved their life.
What they don't realize is that we need more local docs and fewer
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58136
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: High Prolactin

In article <93088.112203JER4@psuvm.psu.edu> JER4@psuvm.psu.edu (John E. Rodway) writes:
>Any comments on the use of the drug Parlodel for high prolactin in the blood?
>

It can suppress secretion of prolactin.  Is useful in cases of galactorrhea.
Some adenomas of the pituitary secret too much.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58137
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Toxoplasmosis

In article <1240002@isoit109.BBN.HP.COM> sude@isoit109.BBN.HP.COM (#Susanne Denninger) writes:
>
>1. How dangerous is it ? From whom is it especially dangerous ?
>
Dangerous only to immune suppressed persons and fetuses.  To them,
it is extremely dangerous.  Most of the rest of us have already had
it and it isn't dangerous at all.

>2. How is it transmitted (I read about raw meat and cats, but I'd like to
>   have more details) ?
>
Cat feces are the worst.  Pregnant women should never touch the litter box.

>3. What can be done to prevent infection ?
>
Cook your meat.  Watch it with pets.

>4. What are the symptoms and long-term effects ?
>
You'll have to read up on it.  

>5. What treatments are availble ?
>

There is an effective antibiotic that can keep it in check.
Of course, it can't reverse damage already done, such as in
a fetus.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58138
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Mar30.030105.26772@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:

>Sometime in the future diet evangelists may get off their "our
>diet will work if only the obese would obey it" mode and do
>useful research to allow prediction of which types of diet might
>be useful to a given individual.
>

"Diet Evangelist".  Good term.  Fits Atkins to a "T".  


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58139
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Should patients read package inserts (PDR)?

In article <1993Mar29.113528.930@news.wesleyan.edu> RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg) writes:

>Hmmmm... here's one place where I really think the patient ought to take more
>responsibility for him- or herself.  There is absolutely no reason why you
>can't ask the pharmacist filling the prescription for the "Physicians' Package
>Insert" for the medication when you pick it up at the pharmacy.  Make sure to
>tell the pharmacist that you want the "Physicians' Package Insert" *NOT* the

If people are going to do this, I really wish they would tell me first.
I'd be happy to go over the insert (in the PDR) with them and explain
everything.  All too many patients read the insert and panic and then
on the next visit sheepishly admit they were afraid to take the drug
and we are starting over again at square one.  Some of them probably
didn't even come back for followup because they didn't want to admit
they wouldn't take the drug or thought I was trying to kill them or
something.  What people don't understand about the inserts is that they
report every adverse side effect ever reported, without substantiating
that the drug was responsible.  The insert is a legal document to slough
liability from the manufacturer to the physician if something was to
happen.  If patients want to have the most useful and reliable information
on a drug they would be so much better off getting hold of one of the
AMA drug evaluation books or something similar that is much more scientific.
There are very few drugs that someone hasn't reported a death from taking.
Patients don't realize that and don't usually appreciate the risks
to themselves properly.  I'm sure Herman is going to "go ballistic",
but so be it.  Another problem is that probably most drugs have been
reported to cause impotence.  Half the males who read that will falsely assume
it could permanently cause them to lose sexual function and so will
refuse to take any drug like that.  This can be a real problem for
PDR readers.  There needs to be some way of providing patients with
tools geared to them that allow them to get the information they need.
I am involved in a research project to do that, with migraine as the
domain.  It involves a computer system that will provide answers to questions
about migraine as well as the therapy prescribed for the patient.
For common illnesses, such as migraine and hypertension, this may help
quite a bit.  The patient could spend as much time as needed with the
computer and this would then not burden the physician.  Clearly,
physicians in large part fail to answer all the questions patients have,
as is demonstrated over and over here on the net where we get asked
things that the patients should have found out from their physician
but didn't.  Why they didn't isn't always the physician's fault either.
Sometimes the patients are afraid to ask.  They won't be as afraid to
ask the system, we hope.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58140
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <206@ky3b.UUCP> km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
>
>I found out that tuberculosis appears to be the only MEDICAL (as oppsed to psychiatric)
>condition that one can be committed for, and this is because very specific laws were
>enacted many years ago regarding tb. I am certain these vary from state to state.

I think in Illinois venereal disease (the old ones, not AIDS) was included.
Syphillis was, for sure.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58141
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: tuberculosis

In article <1993Mar29.181406.11915@iscsvax.uni.edu> klier@iscsvax.uni.edu writes:

>
>Multiple drug resistance in TB is a relatively new phenomenon, and
>one of the largest contributing factors is that people are no longer
>as scared of TB as they were before antibiotics.  (It was roughly as
>feared as HIV is now...)
>

Not that new.  20 years ago, we had drug addicts harboring active TB
that was resistant to everything (in Chicago).  The difference now
is that such strains have become virulent.  In the old days, such
TB was weak.  It didn't spread to other people very easily and just
infected the one person in whom it developed (because of non-compliance
with medications).  Non-compliance and development of resistant strains
has been a problem for a very long time.  That is why we have like 9
drugs against TB.  There is always a need to develop new ones due to
such strains.  Now, however, with a virulent resistant strain, we
are in more trouble, and measures to assure compliance may be necessary
even if they entail force.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58142
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Fungus "epidemic" in CA?

>In article steward@cup.portal.com (John Joseph Deltuvia) writes:
>
>>There was a story a few weeks ago on a network news show about some sort
>>of fungus which supposedly attacks the bone structure and is somewhat
>>widespread in California.  Anybody hear anything about this one?
>

The only fungus I know of from California is Coccidiomycosis.  I
hadn't heard that it attacked bone.  It attacks lung and if you
are especially unlucky, the central nervous system.  Nothing new
about it.  It's been around for years.  THey call it "valley
fever", since it is found in the inland valleys, not on the coast.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58143
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Travel outside US (Bangladesh)

In article <1p7ciqINN3th@tamsun.tamu.edu> covingc@ee.tamu.edu (Just George) writes:
>I will be traveling to Bangaldesh this summer, and am wondering
>if there are any immunizations I should get before going.
>

You can probably get this information by calling your public health
department in your county (in Pittsburgh, they give the shots free,
as well).  There are bulletins in medical libraries that give
recommendations, or you could call the infectious diseases section
of the medicine department of your local medical school.  You also
will probably want to talk about Malaria prophylaxis.  You will
need your doctor to get the prescription.  
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58144
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: compartment syndrome - general information, references, etc.

In article <639@cfdd50.boeing.com> lry1219@cfdd50.boeing.com (Larry Yeagley) writes:
>I have an acquaintance who has been diagnosed as having blood clots and
>"compartment syndrome". I searched the latest edition of the Columbia medical
>encyclopedia and found nothing. Mosby's medical dictionary gives a very brief
>description which suggests it's an arterial condition. Can someone point me (an

Compartment syndrome occurs when swelling happens in a "compartment"
bounded by fascia.  The pressure rises in the compartment and blood
supply and nerves are compromised.  The treatment is to open the
compartment surgically.  THe most common places for compartment
syndromes are the forearm and calf.  It is an emergency, since
if the pressure is not relieved, stuff will die.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58145
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: x-rays

In article <1993Mar30.195242.8070@leland.Stanford.EDU> iceskate@leland.Stanford.EDU ( Lin) writes:
>

>	First question - how bad is x-ray?  i've heard that it's nothing 
>compared to the amount of time spent under the sun and i've also heard that it
>is very harmful.  second question - is there anyway out of this yearly test for
>me?

The yearly chest x-ray provides a minute amount of radiation.  It is
a drop in the bucket as far as increased risk is concerned.  Who can
tell you whether you can get out of it or not?  No one here controls
that.  It may well be a matter of the law, in which case, write your
legislator, but don't hold your breath.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58146
From: wright@duca.hi.com (David Wright)
Subject: Re: Name of MD's eyepiece?

In article <19387@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <C4IHM2.Gs9@watson.ibm.com> clarke@watson.ibm.com (Ed Clarke) writes:
>>|> |It's not an eyepiece.  It is called a head mirror.  All doctors never
>>
>>A speculum?
>
>The speculum is the little cone that fits on the end of the otoscope.
>There are also vaginal specula that females and gynecologists are
>all too familiar with.

In fairness, we should note that if you look up "speculum" in the
dictionary (which I did when this question first surfaced), the first
definition is "a mirror or polished metal plate used as a reflector in
optical instruments."

Which doesn't mean the name fits in this context, but it's not as far
off as you might think.

  -- David Wright, Hitachi Computer Products (America), Inc.  Waltham, MA
     wright@hicomb.hi.com  ::  These are my opinions, not necessarily 
     Hitachi's, though they are the opinions of all right-thinking people

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58147
From: ritley@uimrl7.mrl.uiuc.edu ()
Subject: MYSTERY ILLNESS WITH SPOTS



I attended high school in the San Jose, California area in the early 1980's,
and I remember a (smallish) outbreak of a strange illness, in which
people developed measles-like spots on their bodies.  This condition
seemed to last only a few days, and I don't recall anyone reporting any other
symptoms.  I seem to recall reading somewhere that this was believed to have
been viral in nature, but I don't know for sure.

However, I have been curious since then about this.

Anyone have any ideas about what this might have been?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58148
From: walkup@cs.washington.edu (Elizabeth Walkup)
Subject: Re: Menangitis question

In article <19439@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>... the neiseria meningococcus is one of the most common
>forms of meningitis.  It's the one that sometimes sweeps
>schools or boot camp.  It is contagious and kills by attacking
>the covering of the brain, causing the blood vessels to thrombose
>and the brain to swell up.
>
>	...
>
>It can live in the throat of carriers.  Don't worry, you won't get 
>it from them, especially if they took the medication.

Assuming one has been cultured as having a throat laden with
neiseria meningococcus and given (and taken) a course of ERYC 
without the culture becoming negative, should one worry about
being a carrier?  

-- Elizabeth
   walkup@cs.washington.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58149
From: ns14@crux3.cit.cornell.edu (Nathan Otto Siemers)
Subject: Re: Analgesics with Diuretics

>>>>> On Tue, 6 Apr 1993 03:28:57 GMT, dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) said:

 | In article <ofk=lve00WB2AvUktO@andrew.cmu.edu> Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
|>I sometimes see OTC preparations for muscle aches/back aches that
|>combine aspirin with a diuretic.

 | You certainly do not see OTC preparations advertised as such.
 | The only such ridiculous concoctions are nostrums for premenstrual
 | syndrome, ostensibly to treat headache and "bloating" simultaneously.
 | They're worthless.

|>The idea seems to be to reduce
|>inflammation by getting rid of fluid. Does this actually work? 

 | That's not the idea, and no, they don't work.

	I *believe* there is a known synergism between certain
analgesics and caffiene.  For treating pain, not inflammation.

	Now that I am an ibuprofen convert I haven't taken it for some
time, but excedrin really works! (grin)

Nathan



 | -- 
 | Steve Dyer
 | dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
--
  ......:bb|`:||,	nathan@chemres.tn.cornell.edu
    ...  .||:   `||bbbbb
   ..   ,:`     .``"P$$$
      .||. ,  .  `  .`P$

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58150
From: eb3@world.std.com (Edwin Barkdoll)
Subject: Re: Blindsight

In article <19382@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <werner-240393161954@tol7mac15.soe.berkeley.edu> werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner) writes:
>>In article <19213@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) wrote:
>>> 
>>> Explain.  I thought there were 3 types of cones, equivalent to RGB.
>>
>>You're basically right, but I think there are just 2 types.  One is
>>sensitive to red and green, and the other is sensitive to blue and yellow. 
>>This is why the two most common kinds of color-blindness are red-green and
>>blue-yellow.
>>
>
>Yes, I remember that now.  Well, in that case, the cones are indeed
>color sensitive, contrary to what the original respondent had claimed.


	I'm not sure who the "original respondent" was but to
reiterate cones respond to particular portions of the spectrum, just
as _rods_ respond to certain parts of the visible spectrum (bluegreen
in our case, reddish in certain amphibia), just as the hoseshoe crab
_Limulus polyphemus_ photoreceptors respond to a certain portion of
the spectrum etc.  It is a common misconception to confound wavelength
specificity with being color sensitive, however the two are not
synonymous.
	So in sum and to beat a dead horse:
	(1) When the outputs of a cone are matched for number of
absorbed photons _irrespective_ of the absorbed photons wavelength,
the cone outputs are _indistinguishable_.
	(2) Cones are simply detectors with different spectral
sensitivities and are not any more "color sensitive" than are rods,
ommatidia or other photoreceptors.
	(3) Color vision arises because outputs of receptors which
sample different parts of the spectrum (cones in this case) are
"processed centrally".  (The handwave is intentional)

	I've worked and published research on rods and cones for over
10 years so the adherence to the belief that cones can "detect color"
is frustrating.  But don't take my word for it.  I'm reposting a few
excellent articles together with two rather good but oldish color
vision texts.

The texts:
Robert Boynton (1979) _Human Color Vision_ Holt, Rhiehart and Winston

Leo M. Hurvich (1981) _Color Vision_, Sinauer Associates.


The original articles:
Baylor and Hodgkin (1973) Detection and resolution of visual stimuli by
turtle phoreceptors, _J. Physiol._ 234 pp163-198.

Baylor Lamb and Yau (1978) Reponses of retinal rods to single photons.
_J. Physiol._ 288 pp613-634.

Schnapf et al. (1990) Visual transduction in cones of the monkey
_Macaca fascicularis_. J. Physiol. 427 pp681-713.

-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu
eb3@world.std.com
-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
eb3@world.std.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58151
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Donating organs

In article <19393@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1993Mar25.161109.13101@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:
>
>>there been anything recent in "Transplant Proceedings" or somesuch, on 
>>xenografts?  How about liver section transplants from living donors? 
>>
>
>I'm sure the Pittsburgh group has published the baboon work, but I
>don't know where.  In Chicago they were doing lobe transplants from
>living donors, and I'm sure they've published.  



The case report of the first xenotransplant was published in Lancet 1993; 341:65-71.
I can send you a reprint if you are interested.
There was  another paper, sort of a tour of the horizon, written by Starzl and
published in the Resident's Edition of the Annals of Surgery (vol 216, October 1992).
It's in the Surgical Resident's Newsletter section, so you won't find it in the regular
issue of the Annals. I don't have any reprints of that one.
A paper has been accepted for publication by Immunology Today, though I'm not sure
when it's coming out, describing our experience with the two xenografts done to date.


As for segmental liver transplants from living related donors I must confess to a total
ignorance of that literature. We are philosophically opposed to those, and I don't keep 
up with that particular field.

=====================================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58152
From: mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu
Subject: NATURAL ANTI-cancer/AIDS Remedies



     The biggest reason why the cost of medical care is so EXTREMELY high and
increasing is that NATURAL methods of treatment and even diagnosis are still
being SYSTEMATICALLY IGNORED and SUPPRESSED by the MONEY-GRUBBING and POWER-
MONGERING "medical" establishment.
     Some examples of very low cost NATURAL ANTI-cancer Remedies are listed in
the following article:


                          NATURAL ANTI-CANCER REMEDIES
                                 A 3RD OPINION
          
               ( Some of these Remedies also work against AIDS. )


          DISCLAIMER: This list was compiled from unorthodox sources 
          that have shown themselves to be reliable.  The compiler of 
          this list is NOT a doctor of any kind, but is exercising his 
          First Amendment Constitutional RIGHT of FREE SPEECH on the 
          subjects of his choice. 


          ( MOST of these Remedies can be found in ANY Grocery Store.  
          MOST of the rest of them can be found in ANY Health Food 
          Store.  What is important is HOW they are used, and what 
          else is EXCLUDED DURING their use. )


          (1) THE 7-DAY FAST. 
               1st day: Eat as much fresh fruit as you want, one kind 
          at a time, preferably grapes. 
               2nd day: Eat all the vegetables you want, at least half 
          raw, including GARLIC; also, whole kernel corn to help scrape 
          clean the intestinal linings. 
               3rd day: Drink all the fresh fruit and vegetable juice 
          you want.  Preferably start with 16 to 32 ounces of prune 
          juice WITH PULP, followed by a gallon of pure (NOT from 
          concentrate) apple juice, then grape juice.  (Stay close to 
          your home bathroom.) 
               4th day: Eat all the UN-salted nuts (NO peanuts) and 
          dried fruit you want, preferably raisins and almonds (ALMONDS 
          CONTAIN LAETRILE.). 
               5th day: ONE GALLON OF LEMONADE.  Squeeze the juice from 
          two lemons into a gallon of water (preferably distilled), and 
          add 2 to 4 tablespoons of locally-made honey, (NO sugar).  
          Drink one glass per hour.
          [EVERYone, including healthy people, should do this one day 
          every week, preceded by a large glass of prune juice WITH 
          PULP.] 
               6th day: Same as 5th day. 
               7th day: Same as 6th day. 
               All 7 days, eat ONLY the foods listed above for each 
          day, along with your usual vitamin and mineral supplements, 
          plus as much DISTILLED WATER as you want. 

          (2) THE GRAPE DIET. 
               Eat 2 to 3 ounces of fresh grapes every 2 hours, 8 AM to 
          8 PM, every day for six days.  Eat NOTHING else during the 
          six days, but drink as much DISTILLED WATER as you want. 
      
          (3) APPLE CIDER VINEGAR.
               Mix a teaspoon of pure apple cider vinegar (NOT apple 
          cider "flavored" vinegar.  Regular vinegar is HARMFUL.) in a 
          glass of water (preferably distilled) and drink all of it.  
          Do this 3 or 4 times per day, for 3 weeks; then stop for a 
          week.  Repeat if desired.  Do this along with a normal 
          healthy diet of natural foods.  This remedy is especially 
          effective against those types of cancer that resemble a 
          FUNGUS, as well as against other kinds of fungus infections. 
        
          (4) THE SEA-SALT & SODA BATH.  [Please keep an OPEN MIND.]
               Fill a bathtub with moderately warm water so the level 
          comes up almost to the overflow drain when you get in.  
          Immerse yourself in it for a minute, and then completely 
          dissolve in the bath water 1 pound of SUN-evaporated SEA-salt 
          (regular salt won't work.) and 1 pound of fresh baking-soda. 
               Soak in this bath for 10 to 20 minutes, while exercising 
          your fingers, toes, and limbs, turning sideways and onto your 
          stomach, dunking your head, sitting up and laying back down, 
          chomping your teeth together, etc.. 
               Among other things, the SEA-salt & Soda Bath neutralizes 
          the accumulated effects of X-rays, etc., as described in the 
          book "Born To Be Magnetic, Vol. 2", by Frances Nixon, 1973. 
               PRECAUTIONS: Only the ONE person using each bath should 
          prepare it and drain it.
          For at least 30 minutes after taking the bath, stay away 
          from, and even out of sight of, other people.  (Your greatly 
          expanded Aura energy-field during that time could disrupt 
          other people's fields.)  Two hours after the bath, eat at 
          least 8 ounces of yogurt containing ACTIVE Yogurt Cultures.  
          (The bath may kill FRIENDLY bacteria also.)  Better yet, take 
          a 2-Billion-bacteria "Acidophilus" capsule, which is also an 
          EXCELLENT DAILY REMEDY AGAINST THE EFFECTS OF "A.I.D.S." 
          (because it kills all kinds of harmful bacteria in the 
          digestive tract, taking a big load off the remaining immune 
          system).  [Because this external bath can kill IN-ternal 
          bacteria, it may also be a CURE for "Lyme disease".]
          Do NOT take this bath within a few hundred miles of a thunder 
          storm, within 3 days of a full moon, nor during "Major" or 
          "Minor Periods" as listed in the "Solunar Tables" published 
          bimonthly in "Field & Stream" Magazine, (because of the 
          measurable disruptive ambient environmental energy-fields 
          present at those times).
          Do NOT take this bath more than four times per year. 
       
          (5) MISCELLANEOUS NATURAL ANTI-CANCER REMEDIES: 
       
               For skin cancer, apply STABILIZED Aloe Vera Jel to the 
               affected skin twice daily, and take 2 to 4 tablespoons 
               per day of STABILIZED Aloe Vera Juice internally, for 
               about 2 months. 
        
               D.M.S.O. (Dimethyl Sulfoxide) causes cancer cells to 
               perform NORMAL cell functions. 

               ALMONDS (UN-blanched, UN-roasted) CONTAIN LAETRILE.  
               To help prevent cancer, eat several almonds every day.  
               To help cure cancer, eat several OUNCES of almonds per 
               day.
               [NEVER take large concentrated doses of Laetrile orally.  
               IT WILL KILL YOU!  Take it INTRAVENOUSLY ONLY.  (Cancer 
               cells contain a certain enzyme which converts Laetrile 
               into cyanide, which then kills the cell.  This enzyme is 
               ALSO present in the digestive system.)] 

               ANTI-OXIDANTS are FREE-RADICAL SCAVENGERS, and include 
               Vitamin E, Selenium (200 mcg. per day is safe for most 
               people.), Chromium (up to 100 mcg. per day), Vitamin A 
               (25,000 IU per day is safe for most people.), Superoxide 
               Dismutase (up to 4,000,000 Units per day), Vitamin C (up 
               to 3000 mg. per day), and BHT (Butylated Hydroxy-
               toluene), [1 to 4 capsules of BHT every night at bedtime 
               will also MAKE ONE IMMUNE AGAINST HERPES (BOTH types), 
               suppress herpes symptoms if one already has herpes, 
               prevent spreading herpes to other people, but will not 
               cure herpes.  BHT MIGHT ALSO DO THESE THINGS AGAINST 
               "A.I.D.S.", which is really a form of cancer similar to 
               leukemia.]  (See the book "Life Extension", by Durk 
               Pearson and Sandy Shaw.) 

               HYDROGEN-PEROXIDE.  Dilute twelve(12) drops of 3% 
               hydrogen-peroxide in a glass of pure water (preferably 
               DISTILLED) and drink it.  Do this once or twice per day, 
               hours before or after eating or drinking anything else.  
               Apply 3% hydrogen-peroxide directly to skin cancers 
               several times per day.
               Use hydrogen-peroxide ONLY if you are taking a good 
               daily dose of some of the various anti-oxidants 
               described above. 

               VITAMIN & MINERAL SUPPLEMENTS are more effective, and 
               much less expensive, when COMBINED together in MEGA 
               doses into SINGLE tablets made from NATURAL sources. 

               Cancer cells can NOT live in a strong (100,000 Maxwell) 
               NORTH MAGNETIC FIELD, especially if it is pulsating on 
               and off.  [A strong south magnetic field is an 
               aphrodisiac.]  In my opinion, ALL types of ionizing-
               radiation treatments for cancer should be REPLACED with 
               daily 30-minute doses of pulsating 100,000-Maxwell NORTH 
               magnetic fields. 

               Properly made and operated RADIONICS/PSIONICS MACHINES 
               can both diagnose and cure all forms of cancer, as well 
               as most other medical problems.  Some Radionics/Psionics 
               Machines can even take cross-sectional X-ray-like photos 
               of cancer tumors, etc., with-OUT X-rays! 

               INTERFERON tablets.

               TAHEEBO TEA, (Lapacho). 
           
               HOMEOPATHY can cure cancer, and many other medical 
               problems (even drug addiction!). 

               50 mg. per day of CHELATED ZINC can help prevent or cure 
               prostate trouble. 

               This list is NOT exhaustive. 


          The above NATURAL Remedies can CURE both diagnosed AND UN-
          DIAGNOSED cancers, as well as PREVENT them, and also prevent 
          and cure many other medical problems including heart-
          diseases.  They are NOT too simple and inexpensive to work 
          effectively. 

          Besides acting on a person biologically and chemically, these 
          remedies, especially The 7-Day Fast and The Grape Diet, send 
          a strong message to one's subconscious mind, PROGRAMMING it 
          to CURE the cancer. 

          In my opinion, if a person finds out that s/he has cancer, 
          then s/he should promptly try at least the first 4 remedies 
          described above, in sequence (starting with The 7-Day Fast), 
          BEFORE resorting to the UN-natural and expensive mutilations 
          and agonies [POISON, BURN, and MUTILATE!] of orthodox cancer 
          treatment [organi$ed-CRIME!]. 
          
          
          DISCLAIMER: This list was compiled from unorthodox sources 
          that have shown themselves to be reliable.  The compiler of 
          this list is NOT a doctor of any kind, but is exercising his 
          First Amendment Constitutional RIGHT of FREE SPEECH on the 
          subjects of his choice. 


          FOR MORE INFORMATION, contact Cancer Control Society, 2043 N. 
          Berendo St., Los Angeles, CA  90027, and/or other organiza-
          tions listed in the "Alternative Medicine" and "Holistic 
          Medicine" portions of the "Health and Medical Organizations" 
          Section (Section 8) of the latest edition of the "Encyclope-
          dia of Associations" reference book in your local public or 
          university library. 


               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 

          
                                   Robert E. McElwaine
         


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58153
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: Fungus "epidemic" in CA?

In article <19435@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>In article steward@cup.portal.com (John Joseph Deltuvia) writes:
>>
>>>There was a story a few weeks ago on a network news show about some sort
>>>of fungus which supposedly attacks the bone structure and is somewhat
>>>widespread in California.  Anybody hear anything about this one?
>>
>
>The only fungus I know of from California is Coccidiomycosis.  I
>hadn't heard that it attacked bone.  It attacks lung and if you
>are especially unlucky, the central nervous system.  Nothing new
>about it.  It's been around for years.  THey call it "valley
>fever", since it is found in the inland valleys, not on the coast.

There is a mini-epidemic of Coccidiodes that is occurring in,
I believe, the Owen's Valley/ Bishop area east of the Sierras.
I don't believe there has been any great insight into the
increased incidence in that area. There is a low-level
of endemic infection in that region. Many people with
evidence of past exposure to the organism did not have
serious disease.

Brian
>



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58154
From: bshelley@ucs.indiana.edu ()
Subject: Xanax...please provide info

I am currently doing a group research project on the drug Xanax.  I would
be exponentially gracious to receive any and all information you could
provide
me regarding its usage, history, mechanism of reaction, side effects, and
other pertinent information.  I don't care how long or how short your 
response is.

Thanks in advance!
Brent E. Shelley

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58155
From: lindae@netcom.com
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <19392@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <lindaeC4JGLK.FxM@netcom.com> lindae@netcom.com writes:
>
>>
>>My biggest resentment is the doctor who makes it seem like most
>>people with dizziness can be cured.  That's definitely not the
>>case.  In most cases, like I said above, it is a long, tedious
>>process that may or may not end up in a partial cure.  
>>
>
>Be sure to say "chronic" dizziness, not just dizziness.  Most
>patients with acute or subacute dizziness will get better.
>The vertiginous spells of Meniere's will also eventually go
>away, however, the patient is left with a deaf ear.

All true.  And all good points.

>
>>To anyone suffering with vertigo, dizziness, or any variation
>>thereof, my best advice to you (as a fellow-sufferer) is this...
>>just keep searching...don't let the doctors tell you there's
>>nothing that can be done...do your own research...and let your
>
>This may have helped you, but I'm not sure it is good general
>advice.  The odds that you are going to find some miracle with
>your own research that is secret or hidden from general knowledge
>for this or any other disease are slim.  When good answers to these

>then, spending a great deal of time and energy on the medical
>problem may divert that energy from more productive things
>in life.  A limited amount should be spent to assure yourself
>that your doctor gave you the correct story, but after it becomes
>clear that you are dealing with a problem for which medicine
>has no good solution, perhaps the best strategy is to join
>the support group and keep abreast of new findings but not to
>make a career out of it.

Well, making a career out of it is a bit strong.  I still believe
that doing your own research is very, very necessary.  I would
not have progressed as much as I have today, unless I had spent
the many hours in Stanford's Med Library as I have done.
And 5 years ago, it was clear that there was no medicine that 
would help me.  So should I have stopped searching.  Thank
goodness I didn't.  Now I found that there is indeed medicine
that helps me.  

I think that what you've said is kind of idealistic.  That you
would go to one doctor, get a diagnosis, maybe get a second
opinion, and then move on with your life.
Just as an example... having seen 6 of the top specialists in 
this field in the country, I have received 6 different diagnoses.
These are the top names, the ones that people come to from all over
the country.  I have HAD to sort all of this out myself.  Going
to a support group (and in fact, HEADING that support group) was 
helpful for a while, but after a point, I found it very
unproductive.  It was much more productive to do library research,
make phone calls and put together the pieces of the puzzle myself.

A recent movie, Lorenzo's Oil, offers a perfect example of what
I'm talking about.  If you haven't seen it, you should.  It's not
a put down of doctor's and neither is what I'm saying.  Doctors are
only human and can only do so much.  But there are those of us
out here who are intelligent and able to sometimes find a missing
piece of the puzzle that might have otherwise gone unnoticed.

I guess I'm biased because dizziness is one of those weird things
that is still so unknown.  If I had a broken arm, or a weak heart,
or failing kidneys, I might not have the same opinion.  That's because 
those things are much more tangible and have much more concise 
definitions and treatments.  With dizziness, you just have to
decide to live with it or decide to live with it while trying to
find your way out of it.


I have chosen the latter.


Linda
lindae@netcom.netcom.com


>
>-- 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58568
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (3/4): Keyboard Alternatives [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/keyboards
Version: $Revision: 5.11 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 01:20:43 $

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Answers To Frequently Asked Questions about Keyboard Alternatives
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Alternative Keyboard FAQ
Copyright 1992,1993 By Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.

[Current distribution: sci.med.occupational, sci.med, comp.human-factors,
 {news,sci,comp}.answers, and e-mail to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu,
 sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu, and cstg-L@vtvm1.cc.vt.edu]

Changes since previously distributed versions are marked with change        ||
bars to the right of the text, as is this paragraph.                        ||

Information in this FAQ has been pieced together from phone conversations,
e-mail, and product literature.  While I hope it's useful, the information
in here is neither comprehensive nor error free.  If you find something
wrong or missing, please mail me, and I'll update my list.  Thanks.

All phone numbers, unless otherwise mentioned, are U.S.A. phone numbers.
All monetary figures, unless otherwise mentioned, are U.S.A. dollars.

Products covered in this FAQ:
    Using a PC's keyboard on your workstation / compatibility issues
    Apple Computer, Inc.
    Key Tronic FlexPro
    Dragon Systems
    The Bat
    DataHand
    Comfort Keyboard System
    Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard
    Maltron
    The Tony! Ergonomic KeySystem
    The Vertical
    The MIKey
    The Wave
    The Minimal Motion Computer Access System
    Twiddler
    Half-QWERTY
    Microwriter
    Braille 'n Speak
    Octima
    AccuKey

GIF pictures of many of these products are available via anonymous ftp
from soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury.  (128.32.149.19)  I highly
recommend getting the pictures.  They tell much more than I can fit
into this file.

If you can't ftp, send me mail, and I'll uuencode and mail them to you
(they're pretty big...)

==============
Using a PC's keyboard on your workstation / compatibility issues

    Mini outline:
        1. Spoofing a keyboard over the serial port
        2. X terminals
        3. NeXT
        4. Silicon Graphics
        5. IBM RS/6000
	6. Other stuff

    1. Spoofing a keyboard over the serial port

	If you've got a proprietary computer which uses its own keyboard
	(Sun, HP, DEC, etc.) then you're going to have a hard time finding
	a vendor to sell you a compatible keyboard.  If your workstation
	runs the X window system, you're in luck.  You can buy a cheap used
	PC, hook your expensive keyboard up to it, and run a serial cable
	to your workstation.  Then, run a program on the workstation to read
	the serial port and generate fake X keyboard events.

	The two main programs I've found to do this are KT and A2X.

	a2x is a sophisticated program, capable of controlling the mouse, and
	even moving among widgets on the screen.  It requires a server
	extension (XTEST, DEC-XTRAP, or XTestExtension1).  To find out if your
	server can do this, run 'xdpyinfo' and see if any of these strings
	appear in the extensions list.  If your server doesn't have this,
	you may want to investigate compiling X11R5, patchlevel 18 or later,
	or bugging your vendor.

	kt is a simpler program, which should work with unextended X servers.
	Another program called xsendevent also exists, but I haven't seen it.

	Both a2x and kt are available via anonymous ftp from soda.berkeley.edu.

    2. X terminals

	Also, a number of X terminals (NCD, Tektronics, to name a few) use
	PC-compatible keyboards.  If you have an X terminal, you may be all
	set.  Try it out with a normal PC keyboard before you go through the
	trouble of buying an alternative keyboard.  Also, some X terminals add
	extra buttons -- you may need to keep your original keyboard around
	for the once-in-a-blue-moon that you have to hit the Setup key.

    3. NeXT

	NeXT had announced that new NeXT machines will use the Apple Desktop
	Bus, meaning any Mac keyboard will work.  Then, they announced they
	were cancelling their hardware production.  If you want any kind of
	upgrade for an older NeXT, do it now!

    4. Silicon Graphics

	Silicon Graphics has announced that their newer machines (Indigo^2 and
	beyond) will use standard PC-compatible keyboards and mice.  I don't
	believe this also applies to the Power Series machines.  It's not
	possible to upgrade an older SGI to use PC keyboards, except by
	upgrading the entire machine.  Contact your SGI sales rep for more
	details.

    5. IBM RS/6000

	IBM RS/6000 keyboards are actually similar to normal PC keyboards.  ||
	Unfortunately, you can't just plug one in.  You need two things: a  ||
	cable converter to go from the large PC keyboard connector to the   ||
	smaller PS/2 style DIN-6, and a new device driver for AIX.  Believe ||
	it or not, IBM wrote this device driver recently, I used it, and it ||
	works.  However, they don't want me to redistribute it.  I've been  ||
	told Judy Hume (512) 823-6337 is a potential contact.  If you learn ||
	anything new, please send me e-mail.				    ||
    
    6. Other stuff

	Some vendors here (notably: Health Care Keyboard Co. and AccuCorp)
	support some odd keyboard types, and may be responsive to your
	queries regarding supporting your own weird computer.  If you can
	get sufficient documention about how your keyboard works (either
	from the vendor, or with a storage oscilloscope), you may be in
	luck.  Contact the companies for more details.


Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    Apple Computer, Inc.
    Sales offices all over the place.

    Availability: February, 1993
    Price: $219
    Supports: Mac only

    Apple has recently announced their new split-design keyboard.  The
    keyboard has one section for each hand, and the sections rotate
    backward on a hinge.  The sections do not tilt upward.  The keys are
    arranged in a normal QWERTY fashion.

    The main foldable keyboard resembles a normal Apple Keyboard.
    A separate keypad contains all the extended key functions.

    The keyboard also comes with matching wrist rests, which are not
    directly attachable to the keyboard.

    As soon as soda comes back up, I'll have a detailed blurb from
    TidBITS available there.


FlexPro Keyboard
    Key Tronic
    Phone: 800-262-6006
    Possible contact: Denise Razzeto, 509-927-5299
    Sold by many clone vendors and PC shops

    Availability: Spring, 1993 (?)
    Price: $489 (?)
    Supports: PC only (highly likely)

    Keytronic apparently showed a prototype keyboard at Comdex.  It's
    another split-design.  One thumb-wheel controls the tilt of both
    the left and right-hand sides of the main alphanumeric section.
    The arrow keys and keypad resemble a normal 101-key PC keyboard.

    Keytronic makes standard PC keyboards, also, so this product will
    probably be sold through their standard distribution channels.


DragonDictate-30K (and numerous other Dragon products)
    Dragon Systems, Inc.
    320 Nevada Street
    Newton, MA  02160

    Phone: 800-TALK-TYP or 617-965-5200
    Fax: 617-527-0372

    Shipping: Now.

    Price: DragonDictate-30K -- $4995 (end user system)
	   DragonWriter 1000 -- $1595 / $2495 (end user/developer system)
	   various other prices for service contracts, site licenses, etc.
    
    Compatibility: 386 (or higher) PC only
		   (3rd party support for Mac)

	Free software support for X windows is also available -- your
	PC with Dragon hardware talks to your workstation over a
	serial cable or network.  The program is called a2x, and is
	available via anonymous ftp:

	soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/a2x.tar.Z
	export.lcs.mit.edu:contrib/a2x.tar.Z (most current)

	If you want to use your Dragon product with X windows, you may want
	to ask for Peter Cohen, an salesman at Dragon who knows more about
	this sort of thing.

    Dragon Systems sells a number of voice recognition products.
    Most (if not all) of them seem to run on PC's and compatibles
    (including PS/2's and other MicroChannel boxes).  They sell you
    a hardware board and software which sits in front of a number
    of popular word processors and spreadsheets.

    Each user `trains' the system to their voice, and there are provisions
    to correct the system when it makes mistakes, on the fly.  Multiple
    people can use it, but you have to load a different personality file
    for each person.  You still get the use of your normal keyboard, too.
    On the DragonDictate-30K you need to pause 1/10th sec between
    words.  Dragon claims typical input speeds of 30-40 words per minute.
    I don't have specs on the DragonWriter 1000.

    The DragonDictate-30K can recognize 30,000 words at a time.
    The DragonWriter 1000 can recognize (you guessed it) 1000 words at a time.

    Dragon's technology is also part of the following products
    (about which I have no other info):

	Microsoft Windows Sound System (Voice Pilot)
	IBM VoiceType
	Voice Navigator II (by Articulate Systems -- for Macintosh)
	EMStation (by Lanier Voice Products -- "emergency medical workstation")


The Bat
    old phone number: 504-336-0033
    current phone number: 504-766-8082

    Infogrip, Inc.
    812 North Blvd.
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70802, U.S.A.

    Ward Bond (main contact)
    David Vicknair (did the Unix software)  504-766-1029

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: Mac, IBM PC (serial port -- native keyboard port version
    coming very soon...).  No other workstations supported, but serial
    support for Unix with X Windows has been written.  PC and Mac are
    getting all the real attention from the company.

    A chording system.  One hand is sufficient to type everything.
    The second hand is for redundancy and increased speed.

    Price:
	$495 (dual set -- each one is a complete keyboard by itself)
	$295 (single)

	(cheaper prices were offered at MacWorld Expo as a show-special.)


DataHand   602-860-8584
    Industrial Innovations, Inc.
    10789 North 90th Street
    Scottsdale, Arizona 85260-6727, U.S.A.

    Mark Roggenbuck (contact)

    Supports: PC and Mac

    Shipping: In beta.  "Big backlog" -- could take 3+ months.

    Price: $2000/unit (1 unit == 2 pods). (new price!)			    ||

    Each hand has its own "pod".  Each of the four main fingers has five
    switches each: forward, back, left, right, and down.  The thumbs have
    a number of switches.  Despite appearances, the key layout resembles
    QWERTY, and is reported to be no big deal to adapt to.  The idea is
    that your hands never have to move to use the keyboard.  The whole pod
    tilts in its base, to act as a mouse.

    (see also: the detailed review, written by Cliff Lasser <cal@THINK.COM>
     available via anonymous ftp from soda.berkeley.edu)


Comfort Keyboard System   414-253-4131
    FAX: 414-253-4177

    Health Care Keyboard Company
    N82 W15340 Appleton Ave
    Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin 53051 U.S.A.


    Jeffrey Szmanda (Vice President -- contact)

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: PC (and Mac???)						    ||
    
    Planned future support:
	IBM 122-key layout (3270-style, I believe)
	Sun Sparc
	Decision Data
	Unisys UTS-40
	Silicon Graphics

	Others to be supported later.  The hardware design is relatively
	easy for the company to re-configure.

    Price: $690, including one system "personality module".		    ||

    The idea is that one keyboard works with everything.  You purchase
    "compatibility modules", a new cord, and possibly new keycaps, and
    then you can move your one keyboard around among different machines.

    It's a three-piece folding keyboard.  The layout resembles the
    standard 101-key keyboard, except sliced into three sections.  Each
    section is on a "custom telescoping universal mount."  Each section
    independently adjusts to an infinite number of positions allowing each
    individual to type in a natural posture.  You can rearrange the three
    sections, too (have the keypad in the middle if you want).  Each
    section is otherwise normal-shaped (i.e.: you put all three sections
    flat, and you have what looks like a normal 101-key keyboard).


Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard   206-455-9220
    206-455-9233 (fax)

    Kinesis Corporation
    15245 Pacific Highway South,
    Seattle, Washington 98188, U.S.A.

    Shirley Lunde (VP Marketing -- contact)

    Shipping: Now.

    Supports: PC.  Mac and Sun Sparc in the works.

    Price: $690.  Volume discounts available.  The $690 includes one foot
	pedal, one set of adhesive wrist pads, and a TypingTutor program.
	An additional foot pedal and other accessories are extra.

    The layout has a large blank space in the middle, even though the
    keyboard is about the size of a normal PC keyboard -- slightly
    smaller.  Each hand has its own set of keys, laid out to minimize
    finger travel.  Thumb buttons handle many major functions (enter,
    backspace, etc.).

    You can remap the keyboard in firmware (very nice when software won't
    allow the reconfig).

    Foot pedals are also available, and can be mapped to any key on the
    keyboard (shift, control, whatever).


Maltron		(+44) 081 398 3265 (United Kingdom)
    P.C.D. Maltron Limited
    15 Orchard Lane
    East Molesey
    Surrey KT8 OBN
    England

    Pamela and Stephen Hobday (contacts)

    U.S. Distributor:
	Jim Barrett
	Applied Learning Corp.
	1376 Glen Hardie Road
	Wayne, PA  19087

	Phone: 215-688-6866

    Supports: PC's, Amstrad 1512/1640, BBC B, BBC Master,
	      Mac apparently now also available


    Price: 375 pounds
	   $735 shipped in the U.S.A. (basically, converted price + shipping)

	   The cost is less for BBC computers, and they have a number of 
	   accessories, including carrying cases, switch boxes to use both
	   your normal keyboard and the Maltron, an articulated arm that
	   clamps on to your table, and training 'courses' to help you learn
	   to type on your Maltron.

	   You can also rent a keyboard for 10 pounds/week + taxes.
	   U.S. price: $120/month, and then $60 off purchase if you want it.

    Shipping: Now (in your choice of colors: black or grey)
    
    Maltron has four main products -- a two-handed keyboard, two one-handed
    keyboards, and a keyboard designed for handicapped people to control with
    a mouth-stick.

    The layout allocates more buttons to the thumbs, and is curved to
    bring keys closer to the fingers.  A separate keypad is in the middle.


AccuKey
    AccuCorp, Inc.
    P.O. Box 66
    Christiansburg, VA  24073, U.S.A.
 
    703-961-3576 (Pete Rosenquist -- Sales)
    703-961-2001 (Larry Langley -- President)
 
    Shipping: Now.
    Supports: PC, Mac, IBM 3270, Sun Sparc, and TeleVideo 935 and 955.
    Cost: $495 + shipping.
 
    Doesn't use conventional push-keys.  Soft rubber keys, which rock
    forward and backward (each key has three states), make chords for
    typing keys.  Learning time is estimated to be 2-3 hours, for getting
    started, and maybe two weeks to get used to it.

    Currently, the thumbs don't do anything, although a thumb-trackball
    is in the works.
 
    The company claims it takes about a week of work to support a
    new computer.  They will be happy to adapt their keyboard to
    your computer, if possible.


Twiddler	516-474-4405, or 800-638-2352
    Handykey
    141 Mt. Sinai Ave.
    Mt. Sinai, NY 11766

    Chris George (President)

    Shipping: now.

    Price: $199.

    Supports: PC only.  Mac and X Windows in the works.

    The Twiddler is both a keyboard and a mouse, and it fits in one hand.
    You type via finger chords.  Shift, control, etc. are thumb buttons.
    When in "mouse" mode, tilting the Twiddler moves the mouse, and mouse
    buttons are on your fingers.

    The cabling leaves your normal keyboard available, also.

    Most applications work, and Windows works fine.  DESQview has trouble.
    GEOWorks also has trouble -- mouse works, keyboard doesn't.


Braille 'n Speak     301-879-4944
    Blazie Engineering
    3660 Mill Green Rd.
    Street, Md 21154, U.S.A.

    (information provided by Doug Martin <martin@nosc.mil>)

    The Braille N Speak uses any of several Braille codes for entering
    information: Grade I, Grade II, or computer Braille.  Basically,
    letters a-j are combinations of dots 1, 2, 4, and 5.  Letters k-t are
    the same combinations as a-j with dot 3 added. Letters u, v, x, y, and
    z are like a-e with dots 3 and 6 added.  (w is unique because Louis
    Braille didn't have a w in the French alphabet.)


The Tony! Ergonomic KeySystem        415-969-8669
    Tony Hodges
    The Tony! Corporation
    2332 Thompson Court
    Mountain View, CA  94043, U.S.A.

    Supports: Mac, PC, IBM 3270, Sun, and DEC.
    
    Shipping: ???

    Price: $625 (you commit now, and then you're in line to buy the
    keyboard.  When it ships, if it's cheaper, you pay the cheaper price.
    If it's more expensive, you still pay $625)

    The Tony! should allow separate positioning of every key, to allow
    the keyboard to be personally customized.  A thumb-operated mouse
    will also be available.


The Vertical
    Contact: Jeffrey Spencer or Stephen Albert, 619-454-0000
    P.O. Box 2636
    La Jolla, CA  92038, U.S.A.

    Supports: no info available, probably PC's
    Available: Summer, 1993
    Price: $249

    The Vertical Keyboard is split in two halves, each pointing straight up.
    The user can adjust the width of the device, but not the tilt of each
    section.  Side-view mirrors are installed to allow users to see their
    fingers on the keys.


The MIKey     301-933-1111
    Dr. Alan Grant
    3208 Woodhollow Drive
    Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815, U.S.A.

    Shipping: As of July, 1992: "Should be Available in One Year."

    Supports: PC, Mac (maybe)

    Price: $200 (estimated)

    The keyboard is at a fixed angle, and incorporates a built-in mouse
    operated by the thumbs.  Function keys are arranged in a circle at
    the keyboard's left.


The Wave	(was: 213-)  310-644-6100
    FAX: 310-644-6068

    Iocomm International Technology
    12700 Yukon Avenue
    Hawthorne, California 90250, U.S.A.

    Robin Hunter (contact -- in sales)

    Cost: $99.95 + $15 for a set of cables

    Supports: PC only.

    Shipping: now.

    Iocomm also manufactures "ordinary" 101-key keyboard (PC/AT) and
    84-key keyboard (PC/XT), so make sure you get the right one.

    The one-piece keyboard has a built-in wrist-rest.  It looks *exactly*
    like a normal 101-key PC keyboard, with two inches of built-in wrist
    rest.  The key switch feel is reported to be greatly improved.
    

The Minimal Motion Computer Access System 	508-263-6437
    508-263-6537 (fax)

    Equal Access Computer Technology
    Dr. Michael Weinreigh
    39 Oneida Rd.
    Acton, MA  01720, U.S.A.

    Price: InfoGrip-compatible: "a few hundred dollars" + a one-handed Bat
	  For their own system: $300 (DOS software) + "a few hundred dollars"
    
    Shipping: these are custom-made, so an occupational therapist would
	  make moulds/do whatever to make it for you.  You can buy one now.
    
    Supports: PC only, although the InfoGrip-compatible version might
	  work with a Mac.

    In a one-handed version, there is exactly one button per finger.  In a
    two-handed version, you get four buttons per finger, and the thumbs
    don't do anything.  You can also get one-handed versions with three
    thumb buttons -- compatible with the InfoGrip Bat.  Basically, get it
    any way you want.

    They also have a software tutorial to help you learn the chording.

    Works on a PC under DOS, not Windows.  Planning on Macintosh and
    PC/Windows support.  No work has been done on a Unix version, yet.


Half-QWERTY	(Canada) 416-749-3124
    The Matias Corporation
    178 Thistledown Boulevard
    Rexdale, Ontario, Canada
    M9V 1K1

    E-mail: ematias@dgp.toronto.edu

    Supports: Mac and PC (but, not Windows)

    Demo for anonymous ftp: explorer.dgp.toronto.edu:/pub/Half-QWERTY	    ||

    Price:   $129.95 (higher in Canada, quantity discounts available)
    Shipping: Now.
    
    This thing is purely software.  No hardware at all.

    The software will mirror the keyboard when you hold down the space
    bar, allowing you type one-handed.


Octima	(Israel) 972-4-5322844
    FAX: (+972) 3 5322970

    Ergoplic Keyboards Ltd.
    P.O. Box 31
    Kiryat Ono 55100, Israel

    (info from Mandy Jaffe-Katz <RXHFUN@HAIFAUVM.BITNET>)
    A one-handed keyboard.


Microwriter AgendA (U.K.) (+44) 276 692 084
    FAX: (+44) 276 691 826

    Microwriter Systems plc
    M.S.A. House
    2 Albany Court
    Albany Park
    Frimley
    Surrey GU15 2XA, United Kingdom

    (Info from Carroll Morgan <Carroll.Morgan@prg.oxford.ac.uk>)

    The AgendA is a personal desktop assistant (PDA) style machine.  You
    can carry it along with you.  It has chording input.  You can also
    hook it up to your PC, or even program it.

    It costs just under 200 pounds, with 128K memory.
===========

Thanks go to Chris Bekins <AS.CCB@forsythe.stanford.edu> for providing
the basis for this information.

Thanks to the numerous contributors:

Doug Martin <martin@nosc.mil>
Carroll Morgan <Carroll.Morgan@prg.oxford.ac.uk>
Mandy Jaffe-Katz <RXHFUN@HAIFAUVM.BITNET>
Wes Hunter <Wesley.Hunter@AtlantaGA.NCR.com>
Paul Schwartz <pschwrtz@cs.washington.edu>
H.J. Woltring <WOLTRING@NICI.KUN.NL>
Dan Sorenson <viking@iastate.edu>
Chris VanHaren <vanharen@MIT.EDU>
Ravi Pandya <ravi@xanadu.com>
Leonard H. Tower Jr. <tower@ai.mit.edu>
Dan Jacobson <Dan_Jacobson@ATT.COM>
Jim Cheetham  <jim@oasis.icl.co.uk>
Cliff Lasser <cal@THINK.COM>
Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk>
Paul Rubin <phr@napa.Telebit.COM>
David Erb <erb@fullfeed.com>
Bob Scheifler <rws@expo.lcs.mit.edu>
Chris Grant <Chris.Grant@um.cc.umich.edu>
Scott Mandell <sem1@postoffice.mail.cornell.edu>

and everybody else who I've probably managed to forget.

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.
-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58569
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (4/4): Software Monitoring Tools [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/software
Version: 1.8, 7th December 1992

This FAQ is actually maintained by Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk>.
I post it, along with the other FAQ stuff.  If you have questions, you want
to send mail to Richard, not me.  -- Dan
 
 
		    Software Tools to help with RSI
		    -------------------------------
 
This file describes tools, primarily software, to help prevent or manage RSI.
This version now includes information on such diverse tools as calendar
programs and digital watches...
 
Please let me know if you know any other tools, or if you have information
or opinions on these ones, and I will update this FAQ.

I am especially interested in getting reviews of these products from people
who have evaluated them or are using them.  
 
Richard Donkin                           
Internet mail: richardd@hoskyns.co.uk              
Tel: +44 71 814 5708 (direct)
Fax: +44 71 251 2853

Changes in this version:

     Added information on StressFree, another typing management tool 
     for Windows.


TYPING MANAGEMENT TOOLS: these aim to help you manage your keyboard use,
by warning you to take a break every so often.  The better ones also include
advice on exercises, posture and workstation setup.  Some use sound hardware to
 
warn of a break, others use beeps or screen messages.

Often, RSI appears only after many years of typing, and the pain has
a delayed action in the short term too: frequently you can be typing
all day with little problem and the pain gets worse in the evening.
These tools act as an early warning system: by listening to their
warnings and taking breaks with exercises, you don't have to wait for your 
body to give you a more serious and painful warning - that is, getting RSI.

 
    Tool: At Your Service (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Bright Star
	Tel: +1 (206) 451 3697
    Platforms: Mac (System 6.0.4), Windows
    Description:
	Provides calendar, keyboard watch, email watch, and system info. 
	Warns when to take a break (configurable).  Has a few recommendations
	on posture, and exercises.  Sound-oriented, will probably work best 
	with sound card (PC) or with microphone (Mac).  Should be possible
	to record your own messages to warn of break.
 
    Tool: AudioPort (sound card and software)
    Available from:
	Media Vision
	Tel: +1 (510) 226 2563
    Platforms: PC
    Description:
	A sound card to plug into your PC parallel port.
	Includes 'At Your Service'.
 
    Tool: Computer Health Break (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Escape Ergonomics, Inc
	1111 W. El Camino Real
	Suite 109
	Mailstop 403
	Sunnyvale, CA
	Tel: +1 (408) 730 8410
    Platforms: DOS
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval, based on clock time, or
	after a set number of keystrokes -- whichever is earlier.
	It gives you 3 exercises to do each time, randomly selected from
	a set of 70.  Exercises are apparently tuned to the type of work
	you do - data entry, word processing, information processing.
	Exercises are illustrated and include quite a lot of text on
	how to do the exercise and on what exactly the exercise does.

	CHB includes hypertext information on RSI that you can use 
	to learn more about RSI and how to prevent it.  Other information
	on non-RSI topics can be plugged into this hypertext viewer.
	A full glossary of medical terms and jargon is included.

	CHB can be run in a DOS box under Windows, but does not then
	warn you when to take a break; it does not therefore appear
	useful when used with Windows.

	Cost: $79.95; quantity discounts, site licenses.

    Comments:
	The keystroke-counting approach looks good: it seems better
	to measure the activity that is causing you problems than to
	measure clock time or even typing time.  The marketing stuff
	is very good and includes some summaries of research papers,
	as well as lots of arguments you can use to get your company 
	to pay up for RSI management tools.  

    Tool: EyerCise (commercial software)
    Available from:
	RAN Enterprises
	One Woodland Park Dr.
	Haverhill, MA  01830, US
	Tel: 800-451-4487 (US only)
    Platforms: Windows (3.0/3.1), OS/2 PM (1.3/2.0) [Not DOS]
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI and eye strain, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval (or at fixed times). Optionally
	displays descriptions and pictures of exercises - pictures are
	animated and program beeps you to help you do exercises at the
	correct rate.  Includes 19 stretches and 4 visual training 
	exercises, can configure which are included and how many repetitions
	you do - breaks last from 3 to 7 minutes.  Also includes online help 
	on workplace ergonomics.  

	Quote from their literature:

	"EyerCise is a Windows program that breaks up your day with periodic
	sets of stretches and visual training exercises.  The stretches work
	all parts of your body, relieving tension and helping to prevent
	Repetitive Strain Injury.  The visual training exercises will improve
	your peripheral vision and help to relieve eye strain.  Together these
	help you to become more relaxed and productive."
 
	"The package includes the book _Computers & Visual Stress_ by Edward C.
	Godnig, O.D. and John S. Hacunda, which describes the ergonomic setup
	for a computer workstation and provides procedures and exercises to
	promote healthy and efficient computer use. 
	
	Cost: $69.95 including shipping and handling, quantity discounts
	for resellers.  Free demo ($5 outside US).
 
    Comments:
	I have a copy of this, and it works as advertised: I would say
	it is better for RSI prevention than RSI management, because it
	does not allow breaks at periods less than 30 minutes.  Also, it
	interrupts you based on clock time rather than typing time, which
	is not so helpful unless you use the keyboard all day.  Worked OK on
	Windows 3.0 though it did occasionally crash with a UAE - not sure
	why. Also refused to work with the space bar on one PC, and has
	one window without window controls.  Very usable though, and does not
	require any sound hardware.

    Tool: Lifeguard (commercial software)
    Available from:
	Visionary Software
	P.O. Box 69447
	Portland, OR  97201, US
	Tel: +1 (503) 246-6200
    Platforms: Mac, DOS (Windows version underway)
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI.  Warns you to take a break
	with dialog box and sound.  Includes a list of exercises
	to do during breaks, and information on configuring your
	workstation in an ergonomic manner.  Price: $59;
	quantity discounts and site licenses.  The DOS product is
	bought in from another company, apparently; not sure how
	equivalent this is to the Mac version.
	
	The Mac version got a good review in Desktop Publisher 
	Magazine (Feb 1991).  Good marketing stuff with useful 
	2-page summaries of RSI problems and solutions, with 
	references.
 
    Tool: StressFree (commercial software, free usable demo)
    Available from:
	LifeTime Software
	P.O. Box 87522
	Houston
	Texas 77287-7522, US
	Tel: 800-947-2178 (US only)
	Fax: +1 (713) 474-2067
	Mail: 70412.727@compuserve.com

	Demo (working program but reduced functions) available from:
	    Compuserve: Windows Advanced Forum, New Uploads section, or 
			Health and Fitness Forum, Issues At Work section. 
	    Anon FTP:   ftp.cica.indiana.edu (and mirroring sites)

    Platforms: Windows (3.0/3.1) (Mac and DOS versions underway)
    Description:
	Aimed at preventing RSI, this program warns you to take
	breaks after a configurable interval (or at fixed times). 
	Displays descriptions and pictures of exercises - pictures are
	animated and program paces you to help you do exercises at the
	correct rate.  Quite a few exercises, can configure which ones
	are included to some extent.  Online help.

	Version 2.0 is out soon, Mac and DOS versions will be based
	on this.

	Cost: $29.95 if support via CompuServe or Internet, otherwise $39.95.  
              Site license for 3 or more copies is $20.00 each.
	      (NOTE: prices may have gone up for V2.0).
 
    Comments:
	I have had a play with this, and it works OK.  Its user interface
	design is much better in 2.0, though still a bit unusual.
	expensive tool around and it does the job.  It is also the only
	tool with a redistributable demo, so if you do get the demo, post it
	on your local bulletin boards, FTP servers and Bitnet servers!
	Does not include general info on RSI and ergonomics, but it does 
	have the ability to step backward in the exercise sequence,
	which is good for repeating the most helpful exercises.

    Tool: Typewatch (freeware), version 3.8 (October 1992)
    Available from:
	Email to richardd@hoskyns.co.uk
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/typewatch.shar
    Platforms: UNIX (tested on SCO, SunOS, Mach; character and X Window mode)
    Description:
	This is a shell script that runs in the background and warns you
	to stop typing, based on how long you have been continuously
	typing.  It does not provide exercises, but it does check
	that you really do take a break, and tells you when you
	can start typing again.  

	Typewatch now tells you how many minutes you have been typing
	today, each time it warns you, which is useful so you
	know how much you *really* type.  It also logs information
	to a file that you can analyse or simply print out.  

	The warning message appears on your screen (in character mode),
	in a pop-up window (for X Windows), or as a Zephyr message
	(for those with Athena stuff).   Tim Freeman <tsf@cs.cmu.edu> 
	has put in a lot of bug fixes, extra features and support for 
	X, Zephyr and Mach.

	Not formally supported, but email richardd@hoskyns.co.uk
	(for SCO, SunOS, character mode) or tsf@cs.cmu.edu (for Mach,
	X Window mode, Zephyr) if you have problems or want to give 
	feedback.

    Tool: Various calendar / batch queue programs
    Available from:
	Various sources
    Platforms: Various
    Description:
	Any calendar/reminder program that warns you of an upcoming
	appointment can be turned into an ad hoc RSI management tool.
	Or, any batch queue submission program that lets you submit
	a program to run at a specific time to display a message to
	the screen.

	Using Windows as an example: create a Calendar file, and
	include this filename in your WIN.INI's 'load=' line so
	you get it on every startup of Windows.  Suppose you
	want to have breaks every 30 minutes, starting from 9 am.
	Press F7 (Special Time...) to enter an appointment, enter
	9:30, hit Enter, and type some text in saying what the break
	is for.  Then press F5 to set an alarm on this entry, and repeat 
	for the next appointment.

	By using Windows Recorder, you can record the keystrokes
	that set up breaks throughout a day in a .REC file.  Put this
	file on your 'run=' line, as above, and you will then, with
	a single keypress, be able to set up your daily appointments
	with RSI exercises.

	The above method should be adaptable to most calendar programs. 
	An example using batch jobs would be to submit a simple job
	that runs at 9:30 am and warns you to take a break; this will
	depend a lot on your operating system.

	While these approaches are not ideal, they are a good way of forcing 
	yourself to take a break if you can't get hold of a suitable RSI 
	management tool.  If you are techie enough you might want to
	write a version of Typewatch (see above) for your operating
	system, using batch jobs or whatever fits best.

    Tool: Digital watches with count-down timers
    Available from:
	Various sources, e.g. Casio BP-100.
    Description:
	Many digital watches have timers that count down from a settable
	number of minutes; they usually reset easily to that number, either
	manually or automatically.  

	While these are a very basic tool, they are very useful if you
	are writing, reading, driving, or doing anything away from
	a computer which can still cause or aggravate RSI.  The great
	advantage is that they remind you to break from whatever you
	are doing.
	
    Comments:
	My own experience was that cutting down a lot on my typing led to
	my writing a lot more, and still reading as much as ever, which
	actually aggravated the RSI in my right arm though the left
	arm improved.  Getting a count-down timer watch has been
	very useful on some occasions where I write a lot in a day.

	I have tried an old fashioned hour-glass type egg timer, but
	these are not much good because they do not give an audible
	warning of the end of the time period!


KEYBOARD REMAPPING TOOLS: these enable you to change your keyboard mapping
so you can type one-handedly or with a different two-handed layout.  
One-handed typing tools may help, but be VERY careful about how 
you use them -- if you keep the same overall typing workload you
are simply doubling your hand use for the hand that you use for typing,
and may therefore make matters worse.

    Tool: hsh (public domain)
    Available from:
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/hsh.shar
    Platforms: UNIX (don't know which ones)
    Description:
	Allows one-handed typing and other general keyboard remappings.
	Only works through tty's (so, you can use it with a terminal or
	an xterm, but not most X programs).

    Tool: Dvorak keyboard tools (various)
    Available from:
	Anonymous ftp: soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury/xdvorak.c
	Also built into Windows 3.x. 
    Description:
	The Dvorak keyboard apparently uses a more rational layout
	that involves more balanced hand use.   It *may* help prevent
	RSI a bit, but you can also use it if you have RSI, since 
	it will slow down your typing a *lot* :-)  

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58570
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <lsj4gnINNl6c@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*-----
>I wrote:
>>> ... Or, to use a phrasing that I think is more accurate, science 
>>> is the investigation of phenomena that avoids methods and reasoning 
>>> that are known to be erroneous from past foul-ups. 
>
>In article <C57Iu2.HBn@bunyip.cc.uq.oz.au> bd@psych.psy.uq.oz.au writes:
>> I can agree with this if you are talking about the less fundamental
>> aspects of scientific method. ...
>    ...
>> ... In fact, I don't see the alternative, as I don't think that the 
>> fundamentals are capable of experimental investigation.  In saying
>> this I am agreeing with the work of people like Kuhn (1970), 
>> Feyerabend (1981) and Lakatos (1972).
>      ....
>While methodology cannot be subject to the same kind of "experimental
>investigation," as that to which it is applied, it *can* be critically
>appraised.  Methodologies can be compared to each other, sometimes by
>the conflicting results they produce.  This kind of critical appraisal
>and comparison, together with the inappropriateness of existing
>methodologies for new fields of study, is what drives the evolution of
>methodologies and how we think about them.  

As usual, you are missing the whole point, Russell, because you are not
willing to even consider questionning your basic article of faith, which
is that science is merely a matter of methodology and that the highest
purpose of science is to avoid making mistakes.  

This is like saying that the most important aspect of business management
is accurate bookkeeping.  

If science were no more than methodology and not making mistakes, it
would be a poor thing indeed.  What was the methodology of Darwin?  What
was the methodology of Einstein?  What was, for that matter, the
methodology of Jenner and Pasteur?  


In an earlier article, Russell Turpin writes:  

>None of the foregoing should be read as meaning that we should
>open the door to practitioners of quackery and psuedo-science.
>Modern advocates of homeopathy, chiropracty, and traditional
>Chinese medicine receive little respect because, for the most
>part, they use methods and reasoning that the kind of research
>Lee Lady recommends has shown to be terribly faulty.  (This does
>*not* imply that all their treatments are ineffective.  It *does*
>imply that those who rely on faulty methodology and reasoning are
>incapable of discovering *which* treatments are effective and
>which are not.)

First of all, I think you are arguing against a straw man, because I
don't think that anyone here is arguing that quackery, pseudo-science,
homeopathy, chiropracty, and traditional Chinese medicine should be
accepted as science.  I, in particular, think the basic ideas of
homeopathy and chiropracty seem extremely flaky.  

What some of us do believe, however, is that some of these things
(including some of the flaky ideas) are deserving of serious scientific
attention.  

If in fact it were true, as you have stated above, that those who do not
use the currently fashionable methodology can have no idea what is
effective and what is not, then science today would not exist.  For all
of current science is based on the past work of scientists whose
methodology, by current standards, was seriously flawed.  

It is certainly true that as methodology improves, we need to re-examine
those results derived in the past using less perfect methodologies.  It is
also true that the results obtained by people today who still rely on 
those early methodologies needs to be re-examined in a more rigorous 
fashion by those qualified to do so credibly.  

But to say that nobody who fails to do elaborate double-blind studies is
capable of knowing their ass from a hole in the ground and to say that no
ideas that come from outside the scientific establishment could possibly
be worthy of serious investigation ... this truly marks one's attitude as
doctrinaire, cultist.  This attitude is not compatible with a belief in
reason.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58577
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (1/4): Changes since last month [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/changes
Version: $Revision: 1.3 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 04:12:33 $

This file details changes to the soda.berkeley.edu archive and summarizes
what's new in the various FAQ (frequently asked questions) documents.
This will be posted monthly, along with the full FAQ to the various net
groups.  The various mailing lists will either receive the full FAQ
every month, or every third month, but will always get this file, once
per month.  Phew!

============================================================================
Changes to the Typing Injuries FAQ and soda.berkeley.edu archive, this month
============================================================================

a few new files on the soda.berkeley.edu archive
    the TidBITS "Caring for your wrists" document
    RSI Network #11
    Advice about "adverse mechanical tension"
    More details about the new Apple keyboard
    more info about carpal tunnel syndrome (carpal.explained)
    more general info about RSI (rsi.details, rsi.physical)

    marketing info on the Vertical
    MacWeek article the Bat

new details on hooking a normal PC keyboard to an RS/6000

updated pricing info on the DataHand and Comfort

Half-QWERTY now available for anonymous ftp on explorer.dgp.toronto.edu

new GIF picutures!
    The Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    The Key Tronic FlexPro
    another picture of the Kinesis
    The Vertical
    The Tony!

============================================================================

If you'd like to receive a copy of the FAQ and you didn't find it in the
same place you found this document, you can either send e-mail to 
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu, or you can anonymous ftp to soda.berkeley.edu
(128.32.149.19) and look in the pub/typing-injury directory.

Enjoy!

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58578
From: Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>
Subject: FAQ: Typing Injuries (2/4): General Info [monthly posting]

Archive-name: typing-injury-faq/general
Version: $Revision: 4.28 $ $Date: 1993/04/13 04:17:58 $

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
         Answers To Frequently Asked Questions about Typing Injuries
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Typing Injury FAQ -- sources of information for people with typing
injuries, repetitive stress injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, etc.

Copyright 1992,1993 by Dan Wallach <dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu>

Many FAQs, including this one, are available on the archive site
pit-manager.mit.edu (alias rtfm.mit.edu) [18.172.1.27] in the directory
pub/usenet/news.answers.  The name under which a FAQ is archived appears
in the Archive-name line at the top of the article.  This FAQ is archived
as typing-injury-faq/general.Z

There's a mail server also.  Just e-mail mail-server@pit-manager.mit.edu
with the word 'help' on a line by itself in the body.

The opinions in here are my own, unless otherwise mentioned, and do not
represent the opinions of any organization or vendor.  I'm not a medical
doctor, so my advice should be taken with many grains of salt.

[Current distribution: sci.med.occupational, sci.med, comp.human-factors,
 {news,sci,comp}.answers, and e-mail to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu,
 sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu, and cstg-L@vtvm1.cc.vt.edu]

Changes since previously distributed versions are marked with change        ||
bars to the right of the text, as is this paragraph.                        ||

Table of Contents:
    ==1== Mailing lists, newsgroups, etc.
    ==2== The soda.berkeley.edu archive
    ==3== General info on injuries
    ==4== Typing posture, ergonomics, prevention, treatment
    ==5== Requests for more info
    ==6== References

==1== Mailing lists, newsgroups, etc.

USENET News:
-----------
comp.human-factors occasionally has discussion about alternative input devices.
comp.risks has an occasional posting relevant to injuries via computers.
sci.med and misc.handicap also tend to have relevant traffic.

There's a Brand New newsgroup, sci.med.occupational, chartered specifically
to discuss these things.  This would be the recommended place to post.

Mailing lists:
-------------
The RSI Network: Available both on paper and via e-mail, this publication
    covers issues relevant to those with repetitive stress injuries.  For
    a sample issue and subscription information, send a stamped, self-
    addressed business envelope to Caroline Rose, 970 Paradise Way, Palo
    Alto CA 94306.

    E-mail to <crose@applelink.apple.com>

    $2 donation, requested.

    All RSI Network newsletters are available via anonymous ftp from
    soda.berkeley.edu (see below for details).

c+health and sorehand are both IBM Listserv things.  For those familiar
    with Listserv, here's the quick info:

    c+health -- subscribe to listserv@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu
		post to c+health@iubvm.ucs.indiana.edu

    sorehand -- subscribe to listserv@vm.ucsf.edu
		post to sorehand@vm.ucsf.edu

Quick tutorial on subscribing to a Listserv:
    % mail listserv@vm.ucsf.edu
    Subject: Total Listserv Mania!

    SUBSCRIBE SOREHAND J. Random Hacker
    INFO ?
    .
That's all there is to it.  You'll get bunches of mail back from the Listserv,
including a list of other possible commands you can mail.  Cool, huh?  What'll
those BITNET people think of, next?

==2== The soda.berkeley.edu archive

I've started an archive site for info related to typing injuries.  Just
anonymous ftp to soda.berkeley.edu:pub/typing-injury.  (128.32.149.19)
Currently, you'll find:

Informative files:
    typing-injury-faq/
        general           -- information about typing injuries
        keyboards         -- products to replace your keyboard
        software          -- software to watch your keyboard usage
	changes		  -- changes since last month's edition (new!)	    ||

    keyboard-commentary   -- Dan's opinions on the keyboard replacements
    amt.advice		  -- about Adverse Mechanical Tension
    caringforwrists.sit.hqx -- PageMaker4 document about your wrists
    caringforwrists.ps	  -- PostScript converted version of above...
    carpal.info           -- info on Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
    carpal.explained	  -- very detailed information about CTS
    carpal.surgery	  -- JAMA article on CTS surgery
    carpal.tidbits	  -- TidBITS article on CTS
    tendonitis.info       -- info on Tendonitis
    rsi.biblio		  -- bibliography of RSI-related publications

    rsi-network/*         -- archive of the RSI Network newsletter
			     (currently, containing issues 1 through 11)    ||
    
    rsi.details		  -- long detailed information about RSI
    rsi.physical	  -- study showing RSI isn't just psychological

    Various product literature:

    apple-press		  -- press release on the Apple Adjustable Keyboard
    apple-tidbits	  -- extensive info about Apple's Adjustable Keybd
    bat-info		  -- MacWeek review on the Bat			    ||
    comfort-*		  -- marketing info on the Comfort Keyboard
    datahand-review	  -- detailed opinions of the DataHand
    datahand-review2	  -- follow-up to above
    datahand-desc	  -- description of the DataHand's appearance
    kinesis-review	  -- one user's personal opinions
    maltron-*		  -- marketing info on various Maltron products
    maltron-review	  -- one user's personal opinions
    vertical-info	  -- marketing info on the Vertical (new!)	    ||

Programs:
    (With the exception of accpak.exe, everything here is distributed as
     source to be compiled with a Unix system.  Some programs take advantage
     of the X window system, also.)

    hsh.shar		  -- a program for one-handed usage of normal keyboards
    typewatch.shar	  -- tells you when to take a break
    xdvorak.c		  -- turns your QWERTY keyboard into Dvorak
    xidle.shar		  -- keeps track of how long you've been typing
    rest-reminder.sh      -- yet another idle watcher
    kt15.tar  		  -- generates fake X keyboard events from the
			     serial port -- use a PC keyboard on anything!
			     (new improved version!)
    accpak.exe		  -- a serial port keyboard spoofer for MS Windows

    (Note: a2x.tar and rk.tar are both from export.lcs.mit.edu:contrib/
     so they may have a more current version than soda.)

    a2x.tar  		  -- a more sophisticated X keyboard/mouse spoofing
			     program.  Supports DragonDictate.
			     (note: a new version is now available)	    ||
    rk.tar  		  -- the reactive keyboard -- predicts what you'll
			     type next -- saves typing

Pictures (in the gifs subdirectory):
    howtosit.gif	  -- picture of good sitting posture
			     (the caringforwrists document is better for this)

    accukey1.gif	  -- fuzzy picture
    accukey2.gif	  -- fuzzy picture with somebody using it
    apple.gif		  -- the Apple Adjustable Keyboard		    ||
    bat.gif               -- the InfoGrip Bat
    comfort.gif           -- the Health Care Comfort Keyboard
    datahand1.gif	  -- fuzzy picture
    datahand2.gif	  -- key layout schematic
    datahand3.gif	  -- a much better picture of the datahand
    flexpro.gif		  -- the Key Tronic FlexPro keyboard		    ||
    kinesis1.gif          -- the Kinesis Ergonomic Keyboard
    kinesis2.gif	  -- multiple views of the Kinesis		    ||
    maltron[1-4].gif      -- several pictures of Maltron products
    mikey1.gif            -- the MIKey
    mikey2.gif            -- Schematic Picture of the MIKey
    tony.gif		  -- The Tony! Ergonomic Keysystem		    ||
    twiddler1.gif	  -- "front" view
    twiddler2.gif	  -- "side" view
    vertical.gif	  -- the Vertical keyboard			    ||
    wave.gif		  -- the Iocomm `Wave' keyboard

Many files are compressed (have a .Z ending).  If you can't uncompress a file
locally, soda will do it.  Just ask for the file, without the .Z extension.

If you're unable to ftp to soda, send me e-mail and we'll see what we
can arrange.

==3== General info on injuries

First, and foremost of importance: if you experience pain at all, then
you absolutely need to go see a doctor.  As soon as you possibly can.  The
difference of a day or two can mean the difference between a short recovery
and a long, drawn-out ordeal.  GO SEE A DOCTOR.  Now, your garden-variety
doctor may not necessarily be familiar with this sort of injury.  Generally,
any hospital with an occupational therapy clinic will offer specialists in
these kinds of problems.  DON'T WAIT, THOUGH.  GO SEE A DOCTOR.

The remainder of this information is paraphrased, without permission, from
a wonderful report by New Zealand's Department of Labour (Occupational
Safety and Health Service): "Occupational Overuse Syndrome. Treatment and
Rehabilitation: A Practitioner's Guide".

First, a glossary (or, fancy names for how you shouldn't have your hands):
(note: you're likely to hear these terms from doctors and keyboard vendors :)

  RSI: Repetitive Strain Injury - a general term for many kinds of injuries
  OOS: Occupational Overuse Syndrome -- synonym for RSI
  CTD: Cumulative Trauma Disorder -- another synonym for RSI
  WRULD: Work-Related Upper Limb Disorders -- yet another synonym for RSI
  CTS: Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (see below)
  Hyperextension:  Marked bending at a joint.
  Pronation: Turning the palm down.
  Wrist extension: Bending the wrist up.
  Supination: Turning the palm up.
  Wrist flexion: Bending the wrist down.
  Pinch grip: The grip used for a pencil.
  Ulnar deviation: Bending the wrist towards the little finger.
  Power grip: The grip used for a hammer.
  Radial Deviation: Bending the wrist toward the thumb.
  Abduction: Moving away from the body.
  Overspanning: Opening the fingers out wide.

Now then, problems come in two main types: Local conditions and diffuse
conditions.  Local problems are what you'd expect: specific muscles,
tendons, tendon sheaths, nerves, etc. being inflamed or otherwise hurt.
Diffuse conditions, often mistaken for local problems, can involve muscle
discomfort, pain, burning and/or tingling; with identifiable areas of
tenderness in muscles, although they're not necessarily "the problem."

--- Why does Occupational Overuse Syndrome occur?  Here's the theory.

Normally, your muscles and tendons get blood through capillaries which
pass among the muscle fibers.  When you tense a muscle, you restrict
the blood flow.  By the time you're exerting 50% of your full power,
you're completely restricting your blood flow.

Without fresh blood, your muscles use stored energy until they run out,
then they switch to anaerobic (without oxygen) metabolism, which generates
nasty by-products like lactic acid, which cause pain.

Once one muscle hurts, all its neighbors tense up, perhaps to relieve the
load.  This makes sense for your normal sort of injury, but it only makes
things worse with repetitive motion.  More tension means less blood flow,
and the cycle continues.

Another by-product of the lack of blood flow is tingling and numbness from
your nerves.  They need blood too.

Anyway, when you're typing too much, you're never really giving a change
for the blood to get back where it belongs, because your muscles never
relax enough to let the blood through.  Stress, poor posture, and poor
ergonomics, only make things worse.

--- Specific injuries you may have heard of:

(note: most injuries come in two flavors: acute and chronic.  Acute
injuries are severely painful and noticable.  Chronic conditions have
less pronounced symptoms but are every bit as real.)

Tenosynovitis -- an inflamation of the tendon sheath.  Chronic tenosynovitis
occurs when the repetitive activity is mild or intermittent: not enough to
cause acute inflamation, but enough to exceed the tendon sheath's ability
to lubricate the tendon.  As a result, the tendon sheath thickens, gets
inflamed, and you've got your problem.

Tendonitis -- an inflammation of a tendon.  Repeated tensing of a tendon
can cause inflamation.  Eventually, the fibers of the tendon start separating,
and can even break, leaving behind debris which induces more friction, more
swelling, and more pain.  "Sub-acute" tendonitis is more common, which entails
a dull ache over the wrist and forearm, some tenderness, and it gets worse
with repetitive activity.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome -- the nerves that run through your wrist into your
fingers get trapped by the inflamed muscles around them.  Symptoms include
feeling "pins and needles", tingling, numbness, and even loss of sensation.
CTS is often confused for a diffuse condition.

Adverse Mechanical Tension -- also known as 'neural tension', this is where
the nerves running down to your arm have become contracted and possibly
compressed as a result of muscle spasms in the shoulders and elsewhere.
AMT can often misdiagnosed as or associated with one of the other OOS 
disorders.  It is largely reversible and can be treated with physiotherapy 
(brachial plexus stretches and trigger point therapy).

Others: for just about every part of your body, there's a fancy name for
a way to injure it.  By now, you should be getting an idea of how OOS
conditions occur and why.  Just be careful: many inexperienced doctors
misdiagnose problems as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, when in reality, you
may have a completely different problem.  Always get a second opinion
before somebody does something drastic to you (like surgery).

==4== Typing posture, ergonomics, prevention, treatment

The most important element of both prevention and recovery is to reduce
tension in the muscles and tendons.  This requires learning how to relax.
If you're under a load of stress, this is doubly important.  Tune out
the world and breath deep and regular.  Relaxing should become a guiding
principle in your work: every three minutes take a three second break.
EVERY THREE MINUTES, TAKE A THREE SECOND BREAK.  Really, do it every
three minutes.  It's also helpful to work in comfortable surroundings,
calm down, and relax.

If you can't sleep, you really need to focus on this.  Rest, sleep, and
relaxation are really a big deal.

There are all kinds of other treatments, of course.  Drugs can reduce
inflamation and pain.  Custom-molded splints can forcefully prevent bad
posture.  Surgery can fix some problems.  Exercise can help strengthen
your muscles.  Regular stretching can help prevent injury.  Good posture
and a good ergonomic workspace promote reduced tension.  Ice or hot-cold
contrast baths also reduce swelling.  Only your doctor can say what's best
for you.

--- Posture -- here are some basic guidelines.  [I so liked the way this was
written in the New Zealand book that I'm lifting it almost verbatim from
Appendix 10. -- dwallach]

. Let your shoulders relax.
. Let your elbows swing free.
. Keep your wrists straight.
. Pull your chin in to look down - don't flop your head forward.
. Keep the hollow in the base of your spine.
. Try leaning back in the chair.
. Don't slouch or slump forward.
. Alter your posture from time to time.
. Every 20 minutes, get up and bend your spine backward.

Set the seat height, first.  Your feet should be flat on the floor.  There 
should be no undue pressure on the underside of your thighs near the knees,
and your thighs should not slope too much.

Now, draw yourself up to your desk and see that its height is comfortable
to work at.  If you are short, this may be impossible.  The beest remedy
is to raise the seat height and prevent your legs from dangling by using a
footrest.

Now, adjust the backrest height so that your buttocks fit into the space
between the backrest and the seat pan.  The backrest should support you in
the hollow of your back, so adjust its tilt to give firm support in this
area.

If you operate a keyboard, you will be able to spend more time leaning
back, so experiment with a chair with a taller backrest, if available.

[Now, I diverge a little from the text]

A good chair makes a big difference.  If you don't like your chair, go
find a better one.  You really want adjustments for height, back angle,
back height, and maybe even seat tilt.  Most arm rests seem to get in
the way, although some more expensive chairs have height adjustable arm
rests which you can also rotate out of the way.  You should find a good
store and play with all these chairs -- pick one that's right for you.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, I highly recommend "Just Chairs."  The
name says it all.

--- Keyboard drawers, wrist pads, and keyboard replacements:

There is a fair amount of controvery on how to get this right.  For some
people, wrist pads seem to work wonders.  However, with good posture, you
shouldn't be resting your wrists on anything -- you would prefer your
keyboard to be "right there".  If you drop your arms at your side and then
lift your hands up at the elbow, you want your keyboard under your hands
when your elbows are at about 90 degrees.  Of course, you want to avoid
pronation, wrist extension, and ulnar deviation at all costs.  Wrist pads
may or may not help at this.  You should get somebody else to come and
look at how you work: how you sit, how you type, and how you relax.  It's
often easier for somebody else to notice your hunched shoulders or
deviated hands.

Some argue that the normal, flat keyboard is antiquated and poorly
designed.  A number of replacements are available, on the market, today.
Check out the accompanying typing-injury-faq/keyboards for much detail.

==5== Requests for more info

Clearly, the above information is incomplete.  The typing-injury archive
is incomplete.  There's always more information out there.  If you'd like
to submit something, please send me mail, and I'll gladly throw it in.

If you'd like to maintain a list of products or vendors, that would be
wonderful!  I'd love somebody to make a list of chair/desk vendors.  I'd
love somebody to make a list of doctors.  I'd love somebody to edit the
above sections, looking for places where I've obviously goofed.

==6== References

I completely rewrote the information section here, using a wonderful
guide produced in New Zealand by their Occupational Safety & Health
Service, a service of their Department of Labour.  Special thanks
to the authors: Wigley, Turner, Blake, Darby, McInnes, and Harding.

Semi-bibliographic reference:
    . Occupational Overuse Syndrome
    . Treatment and Rehabilitation:
      A Practitioner's Guide
    
    Published by the Occupational Safety and Health Service
    Department of Labour
    Wellington,
    New Zealand.

    First Edition: June 1992
    ISBN 0-477-3499-3

    Price: $9.95 (New Zealand $'s, of course)

Thanks to Richard Donkin <richardd@hoskyns.co.uk> for reviewing this posting.

-- 
Dan Wallach               "One of the most attractive features of a Connection
dwallach@cs.berkeley.edu  Machine is the array of blinking lights on the faces
Office#: 510-642-9585     of its cabinet." -- CM Paris Ref. Manual, v6.0, p48.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58719
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

In article <1993Apr11.015518.21198@sbcs.sunysb.edu> mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu 
    (Michael Holloway) writes:
>In article <C552Jv.GGB@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu 
    (Lee Lady) writes:
>>I would also like to point out that most of the arguments about science
>>in sci.med, sci.psychology, etc. are not about cases where people are
>>rejecting scientific argument/evidence/proof.  They are about cases where
>>no adequate scientific research has been done.   (In some cases, there is
>>quite a bit of evidence, but it isn't in a format to fit doctrinaire
>>conceptions of what science is.)  
>
>Here it is again.  This indicates confusion between "proof" and the process
>of doing science.  

You are making precisely one of the points I wanted to make.
I fully agree with you that there is a big distinction between the
*process* of science and the end result.  

As an end result of science, one wants to get results that are
objectively verifiable.  But there is nothing objective about the
*process* of science.  

If good empirical research were done and showed that there is some merit
to homeopathic remedies, this would certainly be valuable information.
But it would still not mean that homeopathy qualifies as a science.  This
is where you and I disagree with Turpin.  In order to have science, one
must have a theoretical structure that makes sense, not a mere
collection of empirically validated random hypotheses.

Experiment and empirical studies are an important part of science, but
they are merely the culmination of scientific research.  The most
important part of true scientific methodology is SCIENTIFIC THINKING.  
Without this, one does not have any hypotheses worth testing.  (No,
hypotheses do not just leap out at you after you look at enough data.
Nor do they simply come to you in a flash one day while you're shaving or
looking out the window.  At least not unless you've done a lot of really
good thinking beforehand.)  

The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  

It really bothers me that so many graduate students seem to believe that
they are doing science merely because they are conducting empirical
studies.  And it bothers me even more that there are many fields, such as
certain parts of psychology, where there seems to be no thinking at all, 
but mere studies testing ad hoc hypotheses.  

And I'm especially offended by Russell Turpin's repeated assertion that
science amounts to nothing more than avoiding mistakes.  Simply avoiding
mistakes doesn't get you anywhere.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58758
From: wright@duca.hi.com (David Wright)
Subject: Re: NATURAL ANTI-cancer/AIDS Remedies

In article <19604@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
|In article <1993Apr6.165840.5703@cnsvax.uwec.edu> mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:
|>     The biggest reason why the cost of medical care is so EXTREMELY high and
|>increasing is that NATURAL methods of treatment and even diagnosis are still
|>being SYSTEMATICALLY IGNORED and SUPPRESSED by the MONEY-GRUBBING and POWER-
|>MONGERING "medical" establishment.

|That's not the half of it.  Did you realize that all medical doctors have
|now been replaced by aliens?

Yup.  By the way, what planet are you from, and once you got here, did
you encounter those prejudices against foreign medical graduates?

  -- David Wright, Hitachi Computer Products (America), Inc.  Waltham, MA
     wright@hicomb.hi.com  ::  These are my opinions, not necessarily 
     Hitachi's, though they are the opinions of all right-thinking people

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58759
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qi2h1INNr3o@roundup.crhc.uiuc.edu>, mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison) writes:
|> 
|> Two different Tuesdays (two weeks apart we used the same day of the
|> week just for consistancies sake) we ordered food from the local 
|> Chinese take out - same exact food except ONE of the days we had them
|> hold the MSG.  I did not know which time the food was ordered without
|> the MSG but one time I had the reaction and one time I did not.  
|> 
|> NOW - you can TRY to tell me that it wasn't "scientific" enough and
|> that I have not PROVEN beyond the shadow of a doubt that I have a
|> reaction to MSG - but it was proof enough for ME and I'll have you
|> know that I do NOT wish to get sick from eating food thank you very
|> much.  
|> 
If you could not tell which one had MSG, why restaurants bother to
use it at all? 

If you can taste the difference, psychological reaction might play a role.

The fact is, MSG is part of natural substance. Everyone, I mean EVERYONE,
consumes certain amount of MSG every day through regular diet without
the synthesized MSG additive.

Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.

Baring MSG is just like baring sugar which many people react to.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58760
From: cdm@pmafire.inel.gov (Dale Cook)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

In article <19607@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>A recent movie, Lorenzo's Oil, offers a perfect example of what
>>I'm talking about.  If you haven't seen it, you should.  It's not
>
>I saw it.  It is almost a unique case in history.  First, ALD
>is a rare but fatal disease. [...] 
>Their accomplishment was significant.  (Of course, it was overplayed
>in the movie for dramatic effect.  The oil is not curative, and doesn't even
>prevent progression, only slows it.) 

There's a pretty good article in the the March 6, 1993 New Scientist titled
"Pouring cold water on Lorenzo's oil".  The article states that research
has shown that the oil has no discernable effect on the progression of the
disease in patients in which demyelination has begun.  In patients with
AMN (a less acute form of the same disease) there is some improvement
seen in the ability of nerve fibres to conduct impulses.  In ALD patients
who have not yet begun demyelination, the jury is still out.

---Dale Cook

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58761
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: podiatry School info?

Hello,

I am planning on attending Podiatry School next year.

I have narrowed my choices to the Pennsylvania College of Podiatric
Medicine, in Philadelphia, or the California College of Podiatric
Medicine in San Francisco.  

If anyone has any information or oppinions about these two schools, please
tell me.  I am having a hard time deciding which one to attend, and must
make a decision very soon.  

thank you, Larry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58762
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: food-related seizures?

I am posting to this group in hopes of finding someone out there in
network newsland who has heard of something similar to what I am going
to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
Flakes.  She is perfectly healthy, had never experienced anything like
this before, and there is no history of seizures in either side of the
family.  All the tests (EEG, MRI, EKG) came out negative so the decision
was made to do nothing and just wait to see if it happened again.

Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am
embarrassed to admit that I even bought that junk but every once
in a while...) So I pour it in her bowl and think "Oh, oh, this is the
same kind of junk she was eating when she had that seizure."  Ten 
minutes later she had a full blown seizures. This was her first exposure
to a sugar coated cereal since the last seizure.

When I mentioned what she ate the first time as a possible reason for
the seizure the neurologist basically negated that as an idea.  Now
after this second episode, so similar in nature to the first, even
he is scratching his head.  Once again her EEG looks normal which I
understand can happen even when a person has a seizure.

Once again we are waiting. I have been thinking that it would be good
to get to as large a group as possible to see if anyone has any
experience with this kind of thing.  I know that members of the medical
community are sometimes loathe to admit the importance that diet and
foods play in our general health and well-being.  Anyway, as you can
guess, I am worried sick about this, and would appreciate any ideas
anyone out there has.  Sorry to be so wordy but I wanted to really get
across what is going on here.

Thanks.







--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58763
From: rogers@calamari.hi.com (Andrew Rogers)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.153729.13738@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:
>Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
>MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
>they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
>extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.

And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

Andrew

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58764
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
>
>What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
>from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
>specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
>phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
>hypothesizing. 

And has been rather thoroughly demolished as myth by Robert Scott Root-
Bernstein.  See his book, "Discovering".  Ring structures for benzene
had been proposed before Kekule', after him, and at the same time as him.
The current models do not resemble Kekule's.  Many of the predecessors
of Kekule's structure resemble the modern model more.

I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.  Extra-rational
is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.

For example, Pasteur discovered that racemic acid was a mixture of
enantiomers (the origin of stereochemistry) partly because he liked a
friend's crank theory of chemical action.  The friend was wrong, but
Pasteur's discovery stood.  A prior investigator (Mitscherlich), looking
at the same phenomenon, had missed a crucial detail; presumably because he
lacked Pasteur's motivation to find something that distinguished racemic
acid from tartaric (now we say: d-tartaric) acid.

Again, Pasteur discovered the differential fermentation of enantiomers
(tartaric acid again) not because of some rational conviction, but because
he was trying to produce yeast that lived on l-tartaric acid.  His notebooks
contained fantasies of becoming the "Newton of mirror-image life," which
he never admitted publically.

Perhaps the best example is the discovery that DNA carries genes.  Avery
started this work because of one of his students, and ardent Anglophile
and Francophobe Canadian, defended Fred Griffiths' discoveries in mice.
Most of Griffiths' critics were French, which decided the issue for the
student.  Avery told him to replicate Griffiths' work in vitro, which the
student eventually did, whereupon Avery was convinced and started the
research program which, in 15 or so years, produced the famous discovery
(Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty, JEM 1944).
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58765
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <1993Apr7.221357.12533@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu> brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner) writes:
>> see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
>> those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
>> There is a lot of money involved.
>
>	You keep bringing this up. But I don't understand what's in it
>financially for the physician to go ahead and treat. Unless the physician
>has an investment in (or is involved in some kickback scheme with) the
>home infusion company, where is the financial gain for the doctor?

Well, let me put it this way, based on my own experience.  A
general practitioner with no training in infectious diseases,
by establishing links to the "Lyme community", treating patients
who come to him wondering about lyme or having decided they
have lyme as if they did, saying that diseases such as MS
are probably spirochetal, if not Lyme, giving talks at meetings
of users groups, validating the feelings of even delusional
patients, etc.  This GP can go from being a run-of-the-mill
$100K/yr GP to someone with lots of patients in the hospital
and getting expensive infusions that need monitoring in his
office, and making lots of bread.  Also getting the adulation
of many who believe his is their only hope (if not of cure,
then of control) and seeing his name in publications put out
by support groups, etc.  This is a definite temptation.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58766
From: ndallen@r-node.hub.org (Nigel Allen)
Subject: Water supplies vulnerable to Milwaukee-type disease outbreak

Here is a press release from the Natural Resources Defense Council.

 New Data Show About 100 Major U.S. Water Supplies Vulnerable To
Milwaukee-Type Disease Outbreak
 To: National Desk, Environment Writer
 Contact: Erik Olson or Sarah Silver, 202-783-7800, both
          of the Natural Resources Defense Council

   WASHINGTON, April 14  -- Internal EPA data released
today by the Natural Resources Defense Council reveals that about
100 large water systems -- serving cities from Boston to San
Francisco -- do not filter to remove disease-carrying organisms
leaving those communities potentially vulnerable to a disease
outbreak similar to the one affecting Milwaukee.
   The EPA list is attached.
   "These internal EPA documents reveal that the safety of water
supplies in many American cities is threatened by inadequate
pollution controls or filtration," said Erik Olson, a senior
attorney with NRDC.  "Water contamination isn't just a problem in
Bangladesh, it's also a problem in Bozeman and Boston."
   "As of June 29, 1993, about 100 large surface water systems on
EPA's list probably will be breaking the law.  The 1986 Safe
Drinking Water Act requires all surface water systems to either
filter their water or fully protect the rivers or lakes they use
from pollution," Olson continued.  Some systems are moving
towards eventually implementing filtration systems but are
expected to miss the law's deadline.
   Olson pointed out that the threat of contamination is already
a reality in other cities.  A 1991 survey of 66 U.S. surface
water systems by water utility scientists found that 87 percent
of raw water samples contained the Milwaukee organism
cryptosporidium, and 81 percent contained a similar parasite
called giardia.
   Adding to the level of concern, a General Accounting Office
study released today by House Health and Environment Subcommittee
Chairman Henry Waxman indicates serious deficiencies in the
nation's system for conducting and following through on sanitary
surveys of water systems.
   "This new information raises a huge warning sign that millions
of Americans can no longer simply turn on their taps and be
assured that their water is safe to drink.  We must immediately
put into place programs to protect water sources from
contamination and where this is not assured, filtration equipment
must be installed to protect the public," Olson noted.  "The time
has come for many of the nation's water utilities to stop
dragging their feet and to aggressively protect their water from
contamination; consumers are prepared to pay the modest costs
needed to assure their water is safe to drink."
   NRDC is a national non-profit environmental advocacy organization.

   Systems EPA Indicates Require Filtration and Do Not Adequately
Protect Watersheds

 CONNECTICUT

 Bridgeport            Bridgeport Hydraulic Co.

 MASSACHUSETTS
 Boston                H2O Resource Author (MWRA)
 Medford               MWRA-Medford Water Dept
 Melrose               MWRA-Melrose Water Dept
 Hilton                MWRA-Hilton Water Dept
 Needham               MWRA-Needham Water Division
 Newtoncenter          MWRA-Newton Water Dept.
 Marblehead            MWRA-Marblehead Water Dept
 Quincy                MWRA-Quincy Water Dept
 Norwood               MWRA-Norwood Water Dept
 Framingham            MWRA-Framingham Water Div
 Cambridge             MWRA-Cambridge Water Dept
 Canton                MWRA-Canton Water Div-DPW
 Chelsea               MWRA-Chelsea Water Dept
 Everett               MWRA-Everett Water Dept
 Lexington             MWRA-201 Bedford (PUO WRKS)
 Lynn                  MWRA-Lynn Water & Sewer Co
 Malden                MWRA-Malden Water Division
 Revere                MWRA-Revere Water Dept
 Woburn                MWRA-Woburn Water Dept
 Swampscott            MWRA-Swampscott Water Dept
 Saugus                MWRA-Saugus Water Dept
 Somerville            MWRA-Somerville Water Dept
 Stoneman              MWRA-Stoneman Water Dept
 Brookline             MWRA-Brookline Water Dept
 Wakefield             MWRA-Same as Above
 Waltham               MWRA-Waltham Water Division
 Watertown             MWRA-Watertown Water Division
 Weston                MWRA-Weston Water Dept
 Dedham                MWRA-Dedham-Westwood District
 Winchester            MWRA-Winchester Water & Sewer
 Winthrop              MWRA-Winthrop Water Dept
 Boston                MWRA-Boston Water & Sewer Co
 S. Hadley             MWRA-South Hadley Fire Dist
 Arlington             MWRA-Arlington Water Dept
 Belmont               MWRA-Belmont Water Dept
 Clinton               MWRA-Clinton Water Dept
 Attleboro             Attleboro Water Dept
 Fitchburg             Fitchburg Water Dept
 Northampton           Northampton Water Dept
 North Adams           North Adams Water Dept
 Amherst               Amherst Water Division DPW
 Gardner               Gardner Water Dept
 Worcester             Worcester DPW, Water Oper
 Westboro              Westboro Water Dept
 Southbridge           Southbridge Water Supply Co
 Newburyport           Newburyport Water Dept
 Hingham               Hingham Water Co
 Brockton              Brockton Water Dept

 MAINE
 Rockland              Camden & Rockland Water Co
 Bath                  Bath Water District

 NEW HAMPSHIRE
 Keene                 City of Keene
 Salem                 Salem Water Dept

 VERMONT
 Barre City            Barre City Water System
 Rutland City          Rutland City Water Dept

 NEW YORK
 Glens Falls           Glens Falls City
 Yorktown Hts          Yorktown Water Storage & Dist
 Rochester             Rochester City
 Henrietta             Henrietta WD
 Rochester             MCWA Upland System
 Rochester             Greece Consolidated
 New York              NYC-Aquaduct Sys (Croton)
 Chappaqua             New Castle/Stanwood WD
 Beacon                Beacon City
 Mamaronek             Westchester Joint Water Works

 PENNSYLVANIA
 Bethlehem             Bethlehem Public Water Sys
 Johnstown             Greater Johnstown Water Auth
 Lock Haven            City of Lock Haven-Water Dept
 Shamokin              Roaring Creek Water Comp
 Harrisburg            Harrisburg City
 Hazleton              Hazleton City Water Dept
 Wind Gap              Blue Mt Consolidated
 Apollo                Westmoreland Auth
 Fayettville           Guilford Water Auth
 Humlock Creek         PG&W-Ceasetown Reservoir
 Springbrook           PG&W-Waters Reservoir
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Gardners Creek
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Hill Creek
 Wilkes Barre          PG&W-Plymouth Relief
 Altoona               Altoona City Auth
 Tamaqua               Tamaqua Municipal water
 Waynesboro            Waynesboro Borough Auth
 Pottsville            Schuykill Co Mun Auth

 VIRGINIA
 Covington             City of Covington
 Fishersville          South River Sa Dist-ACSA

 SOUTH CAROLINA
 Greenville            Greenville Water Sys

 MICHIGAN
 Sault Ste Marie       Sault Ste Marie
 Marquette             Marquette

 MONTANA
 Butte                 Butte Water Co
 Bozeman               Bozeman City

 CALIFORNIA
 San Francisco         City & County of San Fran

 NEVADA
 Reno                  Westpac

 IDAHO
 Twin Falls            Twin Falls City

 WASHINGTON
 Aberdeen              Aberdeen Water Dept
 Centralia             Centralia Water Dept

 -30-
-- 
Nigel Allen, Toronto, Ontario, Canada    ndallen@r-node.hub.org

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58767
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*-----
In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
> What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
> from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
> specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
> phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
> hypothesizing. 

I think the question is: What is extra-scientific about this?  

It has been a long time since anyone has proposed restrictions on
where one comes up with ideas in order for them to be considered
legitimate hypotheses.  The point, in short, is this: hypotheses and
speculation in science may come from wild flights of fancy, 
daydreams, ancient traditions, modern quackery, or anywhere else.

Russell


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58768
From: janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys)
Subject: Exercise and Migraine

We were talking about Migraine and Exercise (I'm the one who can't
fathom the thought of exercise during migraine...).  Anyway, turning
the thread around, the other day I played tennis during my lunch
hour.  I'm out of tennis shape so it was very intense exercise.  I
got overheated, and dehydrated.  Afterwards, I noticed a tingling
sensation all over my head then about 2 hours later, I could feel
a migraine start.  (I continued to drink water in the afternoon.)
I took cafergot, but it didn't help and the pain started although
it wasn't as intense as it usually is and about 9pm that night, the
pain subsided.

This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

Thanks,
-- 
**********************************************************************
Janet Jakstys         UUCP:{ames,mcdcup}!ntmtv!janet
Northern Telecom      INTERNET:janet@ntmtv.com
Mtn. View, CA.
**********************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58769
From: wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman)
Subject: erythromycin

Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?

-fm


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58770
From: colby@oahu.cs.ucla.edu (Kenneth Colby)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

     If the nose culture shows Staph, then Ceftin or even Ceclor
     are better. Suprax does not kill Staph. Treating bacterial
     infections involves a lot of try-and-fail because the
     infections often involve multiple organisms with many resistant
     strains. Some 60% of Hemophilus Influenza strains are now
     resistant. What works for me and my organisms may not work
     for you and yours. Keep experimenting.
	       Ken Colby


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58771
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

| article <1qjc0fINN841@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
|| Now, if instead of using the MSG as a food additive, you put the MSG 
|| in gelatin capsules or whatever, there may not
|| be a reaction, becasue the _sensory_response_ might be
|| a necessary element in the creation of the MSG reaction.  (I'll bet 
|| the bogus medical researchers never even thought about 
|| that obvious fact.)

| Gee.  He means "placebo effect."  Sorry, but the researchers DO know about
| this.

Carl, it is not "placebo effect" if as hypothesised the 
sensory response to MSG's effect on flavor is responsible
for the MSG reaction.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58772
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!


Gordon Banks:

>a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.  I think all
>of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the fluctuations
>in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.  Unfortunately,
>I'm not one of them.
>
>
This certainly describes my situation perfectly. For me there is
a constant dynamic between my tendency to eat, which appears to
be totally limitless, and the purely conscious desire to not
put on too much weight. When I get too fat, I just diet/exercise
more (with varying degrees of success) to take off the
extra weight. Usually I cycle within a 15 lb range, but
smaller and larger cycles occur as well. I'm always afraid
that this method will stop working someday, but usually
I seem to be able to hold the weight gain in check.
This is one reason I have a hard time accepting the notion
of some metabolic derangement associated with cycle dieting
(that results in long-term weight gain). I have been cycle-
dieting for at least 20 years without seeing such a change.

I think a vigorous exercise program can go a long way toward
keeping the cycles smaller and the baseline weight low.

Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58773
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58774
From: dmp1@ukc.ac.uk (D.M.Procida)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <19609@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:

>Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
>in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
>In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
>What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.

I am told (by the person who I care a lot about and who I am worried
is going to start putting his health and money into homeopathy without
really knowing what he is getting into and who is the reason I posted
in the first place about homeopathy) that in Britain homeopathy is
available on the National Health Service and that there are about 6000
GPs who use homeopathic practices. True? False? What?

Have there been any important and documented investigations into
homeopathic principles?

I was reading a book on homeopathy over the weekend. I turned to the
section on the principles behind homeopathic medicine, and two
paragraphs informed me that homeopaths don't feel obliged to provide
any sort of explanation. The author stated this with pride, as though
it were some sort of virtue! Why am I sceptical about homeopathy? Is
it because I am a narrow-minded bigot, or is it because homeopathy
really looks more like witch-doctory than anything else?

Daniele.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58775
From: tomca@microsoft.com (Tom B. Carey)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>ted@marvin.dgbt.doc.ca (Ted Grusec) writes:
>|> Gary: By "extra-scientific" I did not mean to imply that hypothesis
>|> generation was not, in most cases extremely closely tied to the
>|> state of knowledge within a scientific area.  I meant was that there
>|> was no "scientific logic" involved in the process.  It is inductive,
>|> not deductive.  
>
>I am further puzzled by the proposed distinction between "scientific
>logic" and "inductive logic".  At this point I don't have a clue
>what you mean by "extra-scientific" -- unless you mean that at *some*
>times someone seems to come up with an idea that we can't trace to
>prior theories, concepts, knowledge, etc.  This is a fairly common
>observation, but just for grins I'd like to see some genuine examples.

OK, just for grins:
- Kekule hypothesized a resonant structure for the aromatic benzene
ring after waking from a dream in which a snake was swallowing his tail.
- Archimedes formalized the principle of buoyancy while meditating in
his bath.

In neither case was there "no connection to prior theories, concepts, etc."
as you stipulated above. What there was was an intuitive leap beyond
the current way of thinking, to develop ideas which subsequently proved
to have predictive power (e.g., they stood the test of experimental
verification).

pardon my kibbutzing...

Tom

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58776
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1qk4qqINNgvs@im4u.cs.utexas.edu>, turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
|> -*-----
|> In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
|> > What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
|> > from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
|> > specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
|> > phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
|> > hypothesizing. 
|> 
|> I think the question is: What is extra-scientific about this?  
|> 
|> It has been a long time since anyone has proposed restrictions on
|> where one comes up with ideas in order for them to be considered
|> legitimate hypotheses.  The point, in short, is this: hypotheses and
|> speculation in science may come from wild flights of fancy, 
|> daydreams, ancient traditions, modern quackery, or anywhere else.
|> 
|> Russell
|> 

Yes, but typically they *don't*.  Not every wild flight of fancy serves
(or can serve) in the appropriate relation to a hypothesis.  It is
somewhat interesting that when anyone is challanged to provide an
example of this sort the *only* one they come up with is the one about
Kekule.  Surely, there must be others.  But apparently this is regarded
as an *extreme* example of a "non-rational" process in science whereby
a successful hypothesis was proposed.  But how non-rational is it?

Of course we can't hope (currently at least) to explain how or why
Kekule had the daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails.
Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream he had.  What was special about
*this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
*analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
geometry of molecules?  Is such analogical reasoning "extra-scientific"?
Or is it rather at the very heart of science (Perice's notion of abduction,
the use of models within and across disciplines)?  Upon close examination,
is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58777
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

Thanks for all your assistance. I'll see if he can try a
different brand of patches, although he's tried two brands
already. Are there more than two?

Melissa

---
                        mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu

"After a time you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing
after all as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true."

Spock to Stonn

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58778
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

-*----
In article <C5I2Bo.CG9@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
> scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
> It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  
>
> It really bothers me that so many graduate students seem to believe that
> they are doing science merely because they are conducting empirical
> studies. ...
>
> And I'm especially offended by Russell Turpin's repeated assertion that
> science amounts to nothing more than avoiding mistakes.  Simply avoiding
> mistakes doesn't get you anywhere.  

I think that Lee Lady and I are talking at cross purposes.
Above, Lady seems concerned with the contrast between great
science that makes big advances in our knowledge and mediocre
science that makes smaller steps.  In most of this thread, I have
been concerned with the difference between what is science and
what is not. 

Lee Lady is correct when she asserts that the difference between
Einstein and the average post-doc physicist is the quality of
their thought.  But what is the difference between Einstein and a
genius who would be a great scientist but whose great thoughts
are scientifically screwy?  (Some would give Velikovsky or
Korzybski as examples.  If you don't like these, choose your
own.)  I say it is the same as the difference between the mediocre
physicist and the mediocre proponent of qi.  Both Einstein and
the mediocre physcists have disciplined their work from the
cumulative knowledge of how previous researchers went wrong.
Both Velikovsky and the mediocre proponent of qi have failed to
do this.  

Let me approach this from a second direction.  When one is asked
to review a paper for a journal or conference, there are many
kinds of criticism that one can make.  One kind of criticism is
that the work is just wrong or misinformed.  Another kind of
criticism is that the work, while technically correct, is either
not important or not interesting.  The first difference is the
one that I have been pointing to.  The second difference is the
one that Lee Lady seems to be discussing. 

> If good empirical research were done and showed that there is some merit
> to homeopathic remedies, this would certainly be valuable information.
> But it would still not mean that homeopathy qualifies as a science.  This
> is where you and I disagree with Turpin.  

I have often pointed out that for homeopathy to be considered 
scientific, what is needed is a test of its theoretical claims,
not just of some of its proposed remedies.  Similarly, I suspect
that traditional Chinese medicine has many remedies that work;
what it lacks (as one example) is any experiment that tests the
presence of qi.

> ... In order to have science, one must have a theoretical
> structure that makes sense, not a mere collection of empirically
> validated random hypotheses.

Certainly a "theoretical structure that makes sense" is the goal.
In areas where we do not yet have this, I see nothing wrong with
forming and testing smaller hypotheses.  Let's face it: we cannot
always wait for an Einstein to come along and make everything
clear for us.  Sometimes those of us who are not Einstein have to
plug along and make small amounts of progress as best we can. 

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58779
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.161112.21772@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
|> of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.  Extra-rational
|> is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
|> of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.

Yeah, but the problem with holding up the "extra-rational" examples as
exemplars, or as refutations of well founded methodology, is that you
run smack up against such unuseful directions as Lysenko.  Such "extra-
rational" cases are curiosities -- not guides to methodology.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58780
From: georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58781
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com>, david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
|> cnavarro@cymbal.calpoly.edu (CLAIRE) writes:

|> >>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
|> >>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
|> >>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
|> >>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
|> >>
|> >>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
|> >>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
|> >>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
|> >>always used it.

|> So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
|> no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
|> work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
|> using double-blind trials?  

Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
not allergic to anything that I know of.  

Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
I haven't gotten sick yet.

-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58782
From: vilok@bmerh322.bnr.ca (Vilok Kusumakar)
Subject: Future of methanol

I hope this is the correct newsgroup for this.

What is the scoop on Methanol and its future as an alternative fuel for
vehicles ?  How does it compare to ethanol ?

There was some news about health risks involved.  Anybody know about
that.  How does the US Clean Air act impact the use of Methanol by the
year 1995 ?

I think its Methyl Tertiary butyl ether which the future industries will
use as a substitute for conventional fuels.

There is company Methanex which produces 12% of the world's supply of
Methanol. Does anybody know about it ?

Please reply by e-mail as I do not read these newsgroups.

Thanks in advance.
--
Vilok Kusumakar                    OSI Protocols for tomorrow......
vilok@bnr.ca                       Bell-Northern Research, Ltd.
Phone: (613) 763-2273              P.O. Box 3511, Station C 
Fax:   (613) 765-4777              Ottawa, Ontario, K1Y 4H7

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58783
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.163923.25120@microsoft.com>, tomca@microsoft.com (Tom B. Carey) writes:
|> OK, just for grins:
|> - Kekule hypothesized a resonant structure for the aromatic benzene
|> ring after waking from a dream in which a snake was swallowing his tail.
|> - Archimedes formalized the principle of buoyancy while meditating in
|> his bath.

Well, certainly in Archimedes case the description "while observing the
phenomena in his bath" seems more accurate than "while meditating in
his bath" -- it was, after all, a rather buoyancy intense environment.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58784
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:

|> I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
|> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
|> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
|> not allergic to anything that I know of.  

The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while. Some reacted with
headache, some stomach ache. Some had watery eyes or running nose, some
had itchy skin or rashes. More serious accusations include respiration 
difficulty and brain damage. 

Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

Jason Chen



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58785
From: mossman@cea.Berkeley.EDU (Amy Mossman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
|> 
|> Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
|> try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
|> girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
|> syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
|> dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
|> home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
|> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
|> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
|> not allergic to anything that I know of.  
|> 
|> Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
|> physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
|> a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
|> through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
|> I haven't gotten sick yet.
|> 
|> -- 

I had a similar reaction to Chinese food but came to a completly different
conclusion. I've eaten Chinese food for ages and never had problems. I went
with some Chinese Malaysian friends to a swanky Chinses rest. and they ordered
lots of stuff I had never seen before. The only thing I can remember of that
meal was the first course, scallops served in the shell with a soy-type sauce.
I thought, "Well, I've only had scallops once and I was sick after but that
could have been a coincidence". That night as I sat on the bathroom floor,
sweating and emptying my stomach the hard way, I decided I would never touch
another scallop. I may not be allergic but I don't want to take the chance.

Amy Mossman

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58786
From: snichols@adobe.com (Sherri Nichols)
Subject: Re: Exercise and Migraine

In article <1993Apr15.163133.25634@ntmtv> janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys) writes:
>This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
>I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
>what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
>I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
>shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

I've gotten migraines after exercise, though for me it seems to be related
to exercising without having eaten recently.  

Sherri Nichols
snichols@adobe.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58787
From: hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu (Herman Rubin)
Subject: Re: Science and Methodology

In article <1qk92lINNl55@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:

>In article <C5I2Bo.CG9@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
>> The difference between a Nobel Prize level scientist and a mediocre
>> scientist does not lie in the quality of their empirical methodology.  
>> It depends on the quality of their THINKING.  

			....................

>Lee Lady is correct when she asserts that the difference between
>Einstein and the average post-doc physicist is the quality of
>their thought.  But what is the difference between Einstein and a
>genius who would be a great scientist but whose great thoughts
>are scientifically screwy?

This example is probably wrong.  There is the case of one famous
physicist telling another that he was probably wrong.  As I recall
the quote:

	Your ideas are crazy, to be sure.  But they are not crazy
	enough to be right.

The typical screwball is only somewhat screwy.
-- 
Herman Rubin, Dept. of Statistics, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette IN47907-1399
Phone: (317)494-6054
hrubin@snap.stat.purdue.edu (Internet, bitnet)  
{purdue,pur-ee}!snap.stat!hrubin(UUCP)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58788
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JE94.KrL@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr15.161112.21772@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>
>|> I don't think "extra-scientific" is a very useful phrase in a discussion
>|> of the boundaries of science, except as a proposed definiens.
>|> Extra-rational
>|> is a better phrase.  In fact, there are quite a number of well-known cases
>|> of extra-rational considerations driving science in a useful direction.
>
>Yeah, but the problem with holding up the "extra-rational" examples as
>exemplars, or as refutations of well founded methodology, is that you
>run smack up against such unuseful directions as Lysenko.  Such "extra-
>rational" cases are curiosities -- not guides to methodology.

As has been noted before, there is the distinction between _motivation_
and _method_.  No experimental result should be accepted unless it is
described in sufficient detail to be replicated, and the replications
do indeed reproduce the result.  No theoretical argument should be
accepted unless it is presented in sufficient detail to be followed, and
reasonable, knowlegeable, people agree with the force of the logic.

But people try experiments, and pursue arguments, for all sorts of crazy
reasons.  Irrational motivations are not just curiousities; they are a
large part of the history of science.

There are a couple of negative points to make here:

1) A theory of qi could, conceivably, become accepted without direct
verification of the existence of qi.  For example, quarks are an accepted
part of the standard model of physics, with no direct verification.  What
would be needed would be a theory, based on qi, that predicted medical
reality better than the alternatives.  The central theoretical claim could
lie forever beyond experiment, as long as there was a sufficient body of
experimental data that the qi theory predicted better than any other.

(I wouldn't hold my breath waiting for the triumph of qi, though.
I don't think that there is even a coherent theory based on it, much less
a theory that explains anything at all better than modern biology.  And it
is hard to imagine a qi theory that would not predict some way of rather
directly verifying the existence of qi.)

2) Science has not historically progressed in any sort of rational
experiment-data-theory sequence.  Most experiments are carried out, and
interpreted, in pre-existing theoretical frameworks.  The theoretical
controversies of the day determine which experiments get done.  Overall,
there is a huge messy affair of personal jealousies, crazy motivations,
petty hatreds, and the like that determines which experiments, and which
computations, get done.  What keeps it going forward is the critical
function of science: results don't count unless they can be replicated.

The whole system is a sort of mechanism for generate-and-test.  The generate
part can be totally irrational, as long as the test part works properly.

Pasteur could believe whatever he liked about chemical activity and crystals;
but even Mitscherlich had to agree that racemic acid crystals were handed;
that when you separate them by handedness, you get two chemicals that rotate
polarized light in opposite directions; and the right-rotating version was
indistinguishable from tartaric acid.  Pasteur's irrational motivation had
led to a replicable, and important, result.

This is where Lysenko, creationists, etc. fail.  They have usually not
even produced coherent theories that predict much of anything.  When their
theories do predict, and are contradicted by experiment, they do not
concede the point and modify their theories; rather they try to suppress
the results (Lysenko) or try to divert attention to other evidence they
think supports their position (creationists).
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58789
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Steve Holland)
Subject: Re: Crohn's Disease

In article <1993Apr14.174824.12295@westminster.ac.uk>, kxaec@sun.pcl.ac.uk
(David Watters) wrote:
> 
> Dear all,
> 
> I am a Crohn's Disease sufferer and I'm interested if anyone knows of any current research that is going on into the subject. I've done some investigation myself so you don't need to spare me any details. I've had the fistulas, the ileostomy, etc..
> 
> Is a "cure" on the horizon ?
> 
> I am not in the medical profession so if you do reply I would appreciate plain speak.
> 
> I'd prefer to be mailed direct as I don't always get a chance to read the news.
> 
> Thank you in advance.
> 
> Dave.
The best group to keep you informed is the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation
of America.  I do not know if the UK has a similar organization.  The
address of
the CCFA is 

CCFA
444 Park Avenue South
11th Floor
New York, NY  10016-7374
USA

They have a lot of information available and have a number of newsletters.
 
Good Luck.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58790
From: sue@netcom.com (Sue Miller)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

In article <19617@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
>Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.
>

Sure, as long as they'll make one for me.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58791
From: lehr@austin.ibm.com (Ted Lehr)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


Gary Merrill writes:
> .. Not every wild flight of fancy serves
> (or can serve) in the appropriate relation to a hypothesis.  It is
> somewhat interesting that when anyone is challanged to provide an
> example of this sort the *only* one they come up with is the one about
> Kekule.  Surely, there must be others.  But apparently this is regarded
> as an *extreme* example of a "non-rational" process in science whereby
> a successful hypothesis was proposed.  But how non-rational is it?

Indeed, an extreme example.  It came "out of nowhere."  The connection
Kekule saw between it and his problem is fortunate but not extraordinary.
I, for example, often receive/conjure solutions (hypotheses for solutions) 
to my everyday problems at moments when I appear to myself to be occupied 
with activities quite removed.  Algorithms for that new software feature come
when I trample the meadow on my occasional runs.  Alternative (better>) ways 
to instruct and rear my sons arrive while I weed the garden.  I'll swear I am 
not thinking about any of it when ideas come.   

These ideas are not the stuff of "great" discoveries, of course, but my
connecting them to particular problems is fraught with deliberation and
occasional fits of rationality.

> Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream [Kekule] had.  What was special about
> *this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
> *analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
> geometry of molecules?  

Yes.  And he was lucky to have such a colorful, vivid image.  I, alas, will
never figure out why returning worms to the loose soil of my garden brought, 
"have him count objects instead of merely count" to mind regarding my 2 
year-old's fledging arithmetic skills.

> ... Upon close examination,
> is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
> closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?

The latter.  Worms wiggling around in the dirt fascinate my son.

Regards,

Ted 
-- 
Ted Lehr                             | "...my thoughts, opinions and questions..."
Future Systems Technology Group, AWS |   
IBM 				     | Internet: lehr@futserv.austin.ibm.com
Austin, TX  78758		     |   

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58792
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


Avoiding mistakes is certainly highly desirable.  However it is also 
widely acknowledged that perfectionism is inimicable to creativity. 
And in ordinary life, perfectionism carried beyond a certain point is 
indicative of a psychological disorder.  In the extreme case, a  
perfectionist becomes so paralyzed by all the possible mistakes he might 
make that he is unable to even leave the house.  

In science, we want to discover as much truth about the world as possible 
and we also want to have as much certainty as possible about these 
discoveries.  Usually there is some trade-off between these two desiderata 
--- the search for scope and the search for certainty.  

If 18th century mathematicians had demanded total rigor from Newton and 
Leibniz then there would probably be no calculus today, because neither 
of the two could explain calculus in a way that really made sense, since 
they lacked the concept of a limit.  And in fact, because of the lack of 
a rigorous foundation, they made a number of errors in their use of calculus. 
It was only a hundred years later that Weistrass was able to give a solid 
grounding for the ideas of Newton and Leibniz.  Nonetheless, what Newton 
and Leibniz did was undoubtedly science and mathematics gained a great 
deal more from the application of their important ideas than it lost 
through the mistakes they made.  

In article <1993Apr14.171230.16138@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com 
    (Dick King) writes:
>  [ Somebody writes: ]
>>I doubt if Einstein used any formal methodology.  ....
>  ....
>He also proposed numerous experiments which if performed would distinguish a
>universe in which special relativity holds from one in which it does not.
>         ....
>Einstein played by the rules, which demand that hypotheses only be put out
>there if there exists a specific experiment that could disprove them.

These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."

Taken to the extreme, I believe that the attitude that empirical studies 
are everything and ideas are nothing results in a complete stultification 
of science.  

For one thing, an insistence on an elaborate and expensive methodology 
results in a sort of scientific trade-unionism, where those outside 
the establishment and lacking institutional or corporate support have 
no chance to obtain a hearing.  (I don't in the least believe that this 
is the intention of the arbiters of scientific methodology.  Nonetheless, 
it is one of the results.)   And although institutional science has 
certainly produced many wonderful results, I think it is a foolish 
arrogance for scientists to believe that no one outside the establishment 
--- and using less than perfect empirical methodology --- will ever come 
with anything worthwhile.  

Furthermore, the big bucks approach to science promotes what I think is
one of the most significant errors in science:  choosing to investigate
questions because they can be readily handled by the currently
fashionable methodology (or because one can readily get institutional
or corporate sponsorship for them) instead of directing attention to
those questions which seem to have fundamental significance.

For instance, certain questions cannot be easily investigated with
statistical methods because the relevant factors are not quantitative.
(One could argue that this is the case for almost all questions in many
areas of psychology.  In my opinion, a perusal of many of the papers
resulting from the attempt by psychologists to force these questions
into a statistical framework gives the lie to Russell Turpin's
assertion that current scientific methods "avoid all known errors.")

I think that asking the wrong question is probably the most fundamental 
error in science.  (Ignoring potentially valuable ideas is one of the 
others.)  And I think that scientific journals are full of all 
too many studies done with impeccable empirical methods but which are 
worthless because the wrong question was asked in the first place.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58793
From: johnf@HQ.Ileaf.COM (John Finlayson)
Subject: Re: Exercise and Migraine

In article <1993Apr15.163133.25634@ntmtv> janet@ntmtv.com (Janet Jakstys) writes:
>               ... the other day I played tennis during my lunch
>hour.  I'm out of tennis shape so it was very intense exercise.  I
>got overheated, and dehydrated.  Afterwards, I noticed a tingling
>sensation all over my head then about 2 hours later, I could feel
>a migraine start.  (I continued to drink water in the afternoon.)
>I took cafergot, but it didn't help and the pain started although
>it wasn't as intense as it usually is and about 9pm that night, the
>pain subsided.
>
>This isn't the first time that I've had a migraine occur after exercise.
>I'm wondering if anyone else has had the same experience and I wonder
>what triggers the migraine in this situation (heat buildup? dehydration?).
>I'm not giving up tennis so is there anything I can do (besides get into 
>shape and don't play at high noon) to prevent this?

Hi Janet,

Sounds exactly like mine.  Same circumstance, same onset symptoms, 
same cafergot uselessness, same duration.  In fact, of all the people
I know who have migraines, none have been so similar.  There is such
a wide variation between people with respect to what causes their
headaches, that I generally don't bother sharing what I've learned
about mine, but since ours seem to be alike, here are my observations.

I don't think it's heat, per se (I've had more in winter than summer).
Dehydration could conceivably figure, though.  Try tanking up before
playing rather than after.

Being in shape doesn't seem to help me much, either.

I've identified four factors that do make a difference (listed in 
descending order of importance):

1) Heavy exercise
2) Sleep deprivation
3) Fasting		(e.g., skipped breakfast)
4) Physical trauma	(e.g., head bonk)

Heavy exercise has preceded all of my post-adolescent migraines, but I 
don't get migraines after every heavy exercise session.  One or more of 
the other factors *must* be present (usually #2).  Since I discovered 
this, I've been nearly migraine-free -- relapsing only once every two 
or three years when I get cocky ("It's been so long, maybe I just don't 
get them anymore") and stop being careful.

Hope this is helpful.

John.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58794
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: erythromycin

In article <47974@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
:Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?
:
:-fm


Not only is it effective, it is in fact the drug of choice for
uncomplicated cases of community-acquired penumonia.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58795
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

In article <1993Apr15.180621.29465@radford.vak12ed.edu> mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:
:Thanks for all your assistance. I'll see if he can try a
:different brand of patches, although he's tried two brands
:already. Are there more than two?

The brands I can come up with off the top of my head are Nicotrol,
Nicoderm and Habitrol.  There may be a fourth as well.


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58796
From: dmp@fig.citib.com (Donna M. Paino)
Subject: Psoriatic Arthritis - Info Needed Please!



A friend of mine has been diagnosed with Psoriatic Arthritis, as a result of
trauma sustained in a car accident several years ago.  The psoriasis is under
control but the arthritis part of the illness is not.

Ansaid (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) worked pretty well for three years but
isn't helping much now.  My friend is now taking Meclomen (another NSAID) but
this isn't helping control the pain at all.  In the past two months my friend
has also started taking Azulfadine along with the NSAID medicines, but the
effects of the combined drugs aren't supposed to be realized for several months.

As a result of the pain, my friend is having problems sleeping.  Staying in
one position too long is an ordeal.  Another major contributor to pain is that
tendonitis has now developed (left thumb and hand with numbness at the base of
the palm; bottom of feet; shoulders and outer thighs).  The tendonitis is
quite painful yet my friend's doctor has not recommended any form of treatment
to relieve it.

The latest twist is that the doctor has dropped the anti-inflammatories and is
now recommending Prednisone.  The hope is that the Prednisone will relieve some
of the pain from the tendonitis.

My friend is a 41 year old male who feels like he's 80 (his words, not mine).


If anyone is aware of any new treatments for Psoriatic Arthritis, alternative
courses of action, support groups or literature on it, I would be extremely
grateful if you could e-mail to me.  If anyone is interested, I'll post a
summary to this newsgroup.

thanks in advance,
Donna
dmp@fig.citib.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58797
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: erythromycin

In article <47974@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
>Is erythromycin effective in treating pneumonia?

It depends on the cause of the pneumonia.  For treating bacterial
pneumonia in young otherwise-healthy non-smokers, erythromycin
is usually considered the antibiotic of choice, since it covers
the two most-common pathogens: strep pneumoniae and mycoplasma
pneumoniae.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58798
From: slyx0@cc.usu.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.190711.22190@walter.bellcore.com>, jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen) writes:
> In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com>, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
> 
> |> I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
> |> I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
> |> my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
> |> not allergic to anything that I know of.  
> 
> The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
> greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
> claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while. Some reacted with
> headache, some stomach ache. Some had watery eyes or running nose, some
> had itchy skin or rashes. More serious accusations include respiration 
> difficulty and brain damage. 
> 
> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
however, because that's not written in their little rule book.

I would not be surprised in the least to find out the SOME people have bad
reactions to MSG, including headaches, stomachaches and even vomiting. Not that
the stuff is BAD or POISON and needs to be banned, but people need to be aware
that it can have a bad effect on SOME people.

Lone Wolf

                                      Happy are they who dream dreams,
Ed Philips                            And pay the price to see them come true.
slyx0@cc.usu.edu                                              
                                                              -unknown
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58799
From: milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <C5H74z.9v4@crdnns.crd.ge.com> meltsner@crd.ge.com writes:
>
>
>I wouldn't call it a double-blind, but one local restaurant's soup
>provokes an impressive migraine headache for my wife -- that one
>take-out and no other... 

Nothing unisual.
Quote:
"
Chinese Restaurant Syndrome (CRS):
a transient syndrome, associated with arterial dilatation, due to ingestion
of monosodium glutamate, which is used liberally in seasoning chinese
food; it is characterized by throbbing of the head, lightheadedness,
tightness of the jaw, neck and shoulders, and bachache.
"
End quote.
Source: Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, 27th edition, 1988, W.B. Saunders, p 1632.

This was known long ago.  Brain produces and uses some MSG naturally,
but not in doses it is served at some chinese places. 
Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
I order food without MSG.  Goos places will do it for you.
A prerequisite for such a service would be a waiter, capable of
understanding, what you want.


Good Luck.


am
-- 
Alexander M. Milshteyn M.D.   <milsh@cipr-server.mgh.harvard.edu>
CIPR, MGH in Boston, MA.     (617)724-9507 Vox  (617)726-7830 Fax

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58800
From: neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org (Neal Howard)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr15.150550.15347@ecsvax.uncecs.edu> ccreegan@ecsvax.uncecs.edu (Charles L. Creegan) writes:
>
>What about Kekule's infamous derivation of the idea of benzene rings
>from a daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails?  Is this
>specific enough to count?  Certainly it turns up repeatedly in basic
>phil. of sci. texts as an example of the inventive component of
>hypothesizing. 

I sometimes wonder if Kekule's dream wasn't just a wee bit influenced by
aromatic solvent vapors ;-) heh heh.


-- 
=============================================================================
Neal Howard   '91 XLH-1200      DoD #686      CompuTrac, Inc (Richardson, TX)
	      doh #0000001200   |355o33|      neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org
	      Std disclaimer: My opinions are mine, not CompuTrac's.
         "Let us learn to dream, gentlemen, and then perhaps
          we shall learn the truth." -- August Kekule' (1890)
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58801
From: dwebb@unl.edu (dale webb)
Subject: Re: THE BACK MACHINE - Update

   I have a BACK MACHINE and have had one since January.  While I have not 
found it to be a panacea for my back pain, I think it has helped somewhat. 
It MAINLY acts to stretch muscles in the back and prevent spasms associated
with pain.  I am taking less pain medication than I was previously.  
   The folks at BACK TECHNOLOGIES are VERY reluctant to honor their return 
policy.  They extended my "warranty" period rather than allow me to return 
the machine when, after the first month or so, I was not thrilled with it. 
They encouraged me to continue to use it, abeit less vigourously. 
   Like I said, I can't say it is a cure-all, but it keeps me stretched out
and I am in less pain.
--
***********************************************************************
Dale M. Webb, DVM, PhD           *  97% of the body is water.  The
Veterinary Diagnostic Center     *  other 3% keeps you from drowning.
University of Nebraska, Lincoln  *

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58802
From: rjf@lzsc.lincroftnj.ncr.com (51351[efw]-Robert Feddeler(MT4799)T343)
Subject: Re: centrifuge

Mr. Blue (car@access.digex.com) wrote:
: Could somebody explain to me what a centrifuge is and what it is
: used for? I vaguely remembre it being something that spins test tubes
: around really fast but I cant remember why youd want to do that?


Purely recreational.  They get bored sitting in that
rack all the time.



--
bob.					   | I only smile when I lie,
You can learn more in a bar		   | And I'll tell you why...
	than you can in a lawyer's office. |
Were these more than just my opinions, they would have cost a bit more.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58803
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1qk6v3INNrm6@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>
>Gordon Banks:
>
>>a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.  I think all
>>of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the fluctuations
>>in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.  Unfortunately,
>>I'm not one of them.
>>
>>
>This certainly describes my situation perfectly. For me there is
>a constant dynamic between my tendency to eat, which appears to
>be totally limitless, and the purely conscious desire to not
>put on too much weight. When I get too fat, I just diet/exercise
>more (with varying degrees of success) to take off the
>extra weight. Usually I cycle within a 15 lb range, but
>smaller and larger cycles occur as well. I'm always afraid
>that this method will stop working someday, but usually
>I seem to be able to hold the weight gain in check.
>This is one reason I have a hard time accepting the notion
>of some metabolic derangement associated with cycle dieting
>(that results in long-term weight gain). I have been cycle-
>dieting for at least 20 years without seeing such a change.

As mentioned in Adiposity 101, only some experience weight
rebound.  The fact that you don't doesn't prove it doesn't
happen to others.
-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58804
From: smithmc@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Lost Boy)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

In article <noringC5Fnx2.2v2@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom) writes:
>
>>Here's a potentially stupid question to possibly the wrong news group, but. .
>>
>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?
>>Similar as women's?  I have a yeast infection and my husband (who is a
>>natural paranoid on a good day) is sure he's gonna catch it and keeps
>>asking me what it's like.  I'm not sure what his symptoms would be. . 
>
>The answer is yes and no.  I'm sure others on sci.med can expand on this.
>
>Jon

I know from personal experience that men CAN get yeast infections. I 
get rather nasty ones from time to time, mostly in the area of the
scrotum and the base of the penis. They're nowhere near as dangerous
for me as for many women, but goddamn does it hurt in the summertime!
Even in the wintertime, when I sweat I get really uncomfy down there. The
best thing I can do to keep it under control is keep my weight down and
keep cool down there. Shorts in 60 degree weather, that kind of thing. And
of course some occasional sun. 

Lost Boy


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58805
From: black@sybase.com (Chris Black)
Subject: cystic breast disease

My mom has just been diagnosed with cystic breast disease -- a big
relief, as it was a lump that could have been cancer.  Her doctor says
she should go off caffeine and chocolate for 6 months, as well as
stopping the estrogen she's been taking for menopause-related reasons.
She's not thrilled with this, I think especially because she just gave
up cigarettes -- soon she won't have any pleasures left!  Now, I thought
I'd heard that cystic breasts were common and not really a health risk.
Is this accurate?  If so, why is she being told to make various
sacrifices to treat something that's not that big of a deal?

Thanks for any information.

-- Chris

-- 
black@sybase.com

Note:  My mailer tends to garble subject lines.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58806
From: naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter)
Subject: Endometriosis


can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
of a specialist/surgeon in  the north carolina research triangle  park
area (raleigh/durham/chapel  hill) who is familiar with the condition,
i would really appreciate it.

thanks. 

--Naomi
-- 
Naomi L.T. Courter
Network Services Specialist
MCNC - Center for Communications
CONCERT Network 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58807
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Migraines and scans

[reply to geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)]
 
>>If you can get away without ever ordering imaging for a patient with
>>an obviously benign headache syndrome, I'd like to hear what your magic
>>is.
 
>I certainly can't always avoid it (unless I want to be rude, I suppose).
 
I made a decision a while back that I will not be bullied into getting
studies like a CT or MRI when I don't think they are indicated.  If the
patient won't accept my explanation of why I think the study would be a
waste of time and money, I suggest a second opinion.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58808
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: klonopin and pregnancy

A(> From: adwright@iastate.edu ()
A(> A woman I know is tapering off klonopin. I believe that is one of the
A(> benzodiazopines. She is taking a very minimal dose right now, half a tablet
A(> a day. She is also pregnant. My question is Are there any known cases where
A(> klonopin or similar drug has caused harmful effects to the fetus?
A(>  How about cases where the mother took klonopin or similar substance and had
A(> normal baby. Any information is appreciated. She wants to get a feel for
A(> what sort of risk she is taking. She is in her first month of pregnancy.

Klonopin, according to the PDR (Physician's Desk Reference), is not a
proven teratogen.  There are isolated case reports of malformations,
but it is impossible to establish cause-effect relationships.  The
overwhelming majority of women that take Klonopin while pregnant have
normal babies.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                               

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58809
From: C599143@mizzou1.missouri.edu (Matthew Q Keeler de la Mancha)
Subject: Infant Immune Development Question

As an animal science student, I know that a number of animals transfer
immunoglobin to thier young through thier milk.  In fact, a calf _must_
have a sufficient amount of colostrum (early milk) within 12 hours to
effectively develop the immune system, since for the first (less than)
24 hours the intestines are "open" to the IG passage.  My question is,
does this apply to human infants to any degree?
 
Thanks for your time responding,
Matthew Keeler
c599143@mizzou1.missouri.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58810
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.173902.66278@cc.usu.edu>, slyx0@cc.usu.edu writes:
=Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
=slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
=he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
=swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
=however, because that's not written in their little rule book.

Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
in other people.

Similarly, Chinese food isn't just MSG.  There are a lot of other ingredients
in it.  Why, when someone eats something with lots of ingredients they don't
normally consume, one of which happens to be MSG, do they immediately conclude
that any negative reaction is to the MSG?

=I would not be surprised in the least to find out the SOME people have bad
=reactions to MSG, including headaches, stomachaches and even vomiting.

I'd be surprised if some of these reactions weren't due to other ingredients.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58811
From: texx@ossi.com (Robert "Texx" Woodworth)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

>In article Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom) writes:

>>Here's a potentially stupid question to possibly the wrong news group, but. .
>>
>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?
>>Similar as women's?  I have a yeast infection and my husband (who is a
>>natural paranoid on a good day) is sure he's gonna catch it and keeps
>>asking me what it's like.  I'm not sure what his symptoms would be. . 

>The answer is yes and no.  I'm sure others on sci.med can expand on this.

Recently someone posted an account of this.
Unfortunately it was posted to alt.tasteless so the gross details were emphasized
instead of th e actual scientific facts.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58812
From: dfitts@carson.u.washington.edu (Douglas Fitts)
Subject: Re: RA treatment question

eulenbrg@carson.u.washington.edu (Julia Eulenberg) writes:

>I'm assuming that you mean Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).  I've never heard 
>of the "cold treatment" you mentioned.  I can't imagine how it would 
>work, since most of us who have Rh.Arthr./RA seem to have more problems
>in cold weather than in warm weather.  Would be interested to hear more!
>Z
>Z


No, obviously talking about Research Assistants.  I favor a high protein,
low fat diet, barely adequate salary on a fixed time schedule, four hours
of sleep a night, continuous infusion of latte, unpredictable praise 
mixed randomly with anxiety-provoking, everpresent glances with 
lowered eyebrows, unrealistic promises of rapid publication, and 
every three months a dinner consisting of nothing but microbrewery ale
and free pretzels.  Actually, mine hails from San Diego, and indeed 
has more problems in Seattle in cold weather than in warm.

Doug Fitts
dfitts@u.washington.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58813
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

I love the FAQ.       

The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?

Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
95%?  Why such a difference?  I thought the proceedures were simmilar
with the exception of a laser being the cutting tool in PRK.  I must not
be understanding all of the differences.

In the FAQ, the vision was considered less clear after the surgery than
with glasses alone.  If this is completly attributable to the
intentional slight undercorrection, then it can be compensated for when
necessary with glasses (or contacts, if they CAN be worn afterall!).  It
is important to know if that is not the case, however, and some other
consequence of the surgery would often interfere with clear vision.  The
first thing that came to my mind was a fogging of the lense, which
glasses couldn't help. 

would not help.

-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | I'm just a lowly phlebe.              |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        |                                       |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    | I'm at the phlebottom                 |
| California Polytechnic State U | of the medical totem pole.            | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58814
From: ghilardi@urz.unibas.ch
Subject: left side pains

Hello to everybody,
I write here because I am kind of desperate. For about six weeks, I've been
suffering on pains in my left head side, the left leg and sometimes the left 
arm. I made many tests (e.g. computer tomography, negative, lyme borreliosis,
negative, all electrolytes in the blood in their correct range), they're
all o.K., so I should be healthy. As a matter of fact, I am not feeling so.
I was also at a Neurologist's too, he considered me healthy too.

The blood tests have shown that I have little too much of Hemoglobin (17.5,
common range is 14 to 17, I unfortunately do not know about the units).
Could these hemi-sided pains be the result of this or of a also possible
block of the neck muscles ?

I have no fever, and I am not feeling entirely sick, but neither entirely 
healthy. 

Please answer by direct email on <ghilardi@urz.unibas.ch>

Thanks for every hint

Nico

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58815
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Sarchoidosis 

>>       Hello,
>>Does anybody know if sarchoidosis is a mortem desease ?
>>(i.e if someone who tooke this desease can be kill
>>bye this one ?)
>
>People have died from sarcoid, but usually it is not
>fatal and is treatable.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi there
I'm suffering from Sarcoidosis at present.  Although it's shown as a
chronic & rare tissue disorder, it is thankfully NOT life threatening.

The very worsed thing that can happen to a non-treated sufferer is
glaucoma.  My specialists are bombarding me with Prednisolone E.C. (a
cortico-steriod) and after four months at 20mg a day, it's totally done
away with my enlarged lymph glands, so somethings happening for the
good!

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk  | MEXICAN FOOD      *
   * BOURNEMOUTH    | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI  | GUINNESS ON TAP   *
   * UNITED KINGDOM | AMAZING! and all down two wires | TALL SKINNY WOMEN *
   ************************************************************************
    Two penguins are walking along an iceberg. The first penguin turns to
    the second penguin and says "it looks like you are wearing a tuxedo."
    The second penguin turns to the first penguin and says, "maybe I am."
   ************************************************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58816
From: ken@sugra.uucp (Kenneth Ng)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <szikopou.734725851@cunews: szikopou@superior.carleton.ca (Steven Zikopoulos) writes:
:In <1993Apr13.144340.3549@news.cs.brandeis.edu> reynold@binah.cc.brandeis.edu ("Susan Reynold (w/out the s)") writes:
:>I think the scientists are biased towards the food industry or something.
:>Was the article long? Would anyone be interested in posting it?
:a neuroscientist told me that MSG is used as a neurotoxin...that's
:right...some labs use it to "kill" neurons in mice and rats

Vitamin A (and I think vitamin D) in strong enough amounts can kill.  The key
words are DOSAGE and EXPOSURE MECHANISM.

-- 
Kenneth Ng
Please reply to ken@blue.njit.edu for now.
"All this might be an elaborate simulation running in a little device sitting
on someone's table" -- J.L. Picard: ST:TNG

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58817
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: pointer for info (long shot)

In article <ZONKER.93Apr14174640@splinter.coe.northeastern.edu>, Regis M Donovan <zonker@silver.lcs.mit.edu> writes:
> This is something of a long shot... but what the hell.  the net is
> full of people with strange knowledge...
>
> I'm looking for suggestions as to what could be causing health
> problems one of my relatives is having.
>
> One of my cousins has had health problems for much of her life.
> Around the age of 10 she had some gynecological problems.  Now she's
> in her early/mid twenties and she is going blind.
>
> Her eyes are not producing enough (if any) moisture.  She's been going
> to Mass Eye and Ear and the doctors there have no clue what the actual
> cause is.  THey have apparently tried eyedrops and such.  She is just
> about completely blind in one eye and the other is massively
> deteriorated.


Sjogren's syndrome has been known to induce dryness in vaginal tissue as well
as induce primary biliary cirrhosis. Otherwise the abdominal swelling could be
due to a complication of Sjogren's known as pseudolymphoma which *can* produce
a splenomegaly (enlarged spleen). She should definitely see a rheumatologist.

Since you don't mention skin disorder, anemia, or joint pain you'd probably
rule out erythema nodosum or scleroderma.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL



>
> Also, and this may or may not be related, she is having some changes
> in her abdomen.  her stomach has swelled (i'm not sure if this is
> stomach the organ or stomach teh area of the body).
>
> I guess the step they're going to take next is to do a whole battery
> of tests to check all the other internal systmes besides just the
> eyes...
>
> but just because the net is a source of large amounts of bizarre
> knowledge, i'm going to ask: has anyone ever heard of anything like
> this?  suggestions of things to ask about (since much of my knowledge
> about her state comes second or third hand)?
>
> Thanks.
> --Regis
>   zonker@silver.lcs.mit.edu
>

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58818
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> 2) Science has not historically progressed in any sort of rational
|> experiment-data-theory sequence.  Most experiments are carried out, and
|> interpreted, in pre-existing theoretical frameworks.  The theoretical
|> controversies of the day determine which experiments get done.  Overall,
|> there is a huge messy affair of personal jealousies, crazy motivations,
|> petty hatreds, and the like that determines which experiments, and which
|> computations, get done.  What keeps it going forward is the critical
|> function of science: results don't count unless they can be replicated.
|> 
|> The whole system is a sort of mechanism for generate-and-test.  The generate
|> part can be totally irrational, as long as the test part works properly.

I think we agree on much.  However the paragraphs above seem to repeat
uncritically the standard Kuhn/Lakatos/Feyerabend view of "progress" and
"rationality" in science.  Since I've addressed these issues in this
newsgroup in the not too distant past, I won't go into them again now.

What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
petty hatreds.  It further at least implicitly advances the position that
sciences goes "forward" (and it is not clear what this means given the
context in which it occurs) by generating in a completely non-rational
and even random way a plethora of hypotheses and theories that are then
weeded out via the "critical function" of science.  (Though why this critical
function should be less subject to the non-rational forces is a mystery.
If experimental design, hypotheses creation, and theory construction are
subject to jealousies and petty hatreds, then this must be equally true
of the application of any "critical function" concerning replication.
This is what leads one (ala Feyerabend) to an "anything goes" view.)

True, the generation part *can* be totally irrational.  But typically it is
*not*.  Anecdotes concerning instances where a hypothesis seems to have
resulted in some way from a dream or from one's political views simply
do not generalize well to the actual history of science.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58819
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Seeking advice/experience with back problem

In article <C5FI9r.7yz@cbnewsk.cb.att.com> janet.m.cooper,
jmcooper@cbnewsk.cb.att.com writes:
>The mother of a friend of mine is experiencing a disabling back
>pain.  After MRIs, CT scans, and doctors visits she has been
presented
>with 2 alternatives: 
>(1) live with the pain
>or (2) undergo a somewhat
>risky operation which may leave her paralyzed.  She also has a 

Since her symptoms are only pain she would do weel to seek the
advice of a good, multi-disciplinary pain clinic. It is distressing
to think that people are stll being told they have to "live with the
pain" when many options for pain management (rather than treating
MRI findings) are available. A good pain clinic will accept that
this lady's problem is her pain and set about finding ways of
relieveing that.

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58820
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: options before back surgery for protruding disc at L4-L5

Subject: options before back surgery for protruding disc at L4-L5
From: Alex Miller, amiller@almaden.ibm.com
Date: 13 Apr 93 18:30:42 GMT
In article <2241@coyote.UUCP> Alex Miller, amiller@almaden.ibm.com
writes:
>After two weeks of limping around with an acute pain in my low back
>and right leg, my osteopath sent me to get an MRI which revealed
>a protruding (and extruded) disc at L4-L5.  I went to a neurosurgeon
>who prescribed prednisole (a steroidal anti-inflamitory) and bed
rest
>for several days.  It's been nearly a week and overall I feel 
>slightly worse - I take darvocet three times a day so I can
>deal with daily activities like preparing food and help me
>get to sleep.  
> 
>I'll see the neurosurgeon tomorrow and of course I'll be asking
>whether or not this rest is helpful or if surgery is the next 
>step.  What are my non-surgical options if my goal is to resume
>full activity, including competitive cycling.  I should add this
>condition is, in my opinion, the result of commulative wear and
>tear - I've had chronic low-back pain for years - but I managed

You don't say whether or not you have any symptoms other than pain.
If you have numbness, weakness or bladder problems, for example,
these would suggest a need for surgery. If pain is your only symptom
you might do well to find a reputable, multi-disciplinary pain
clinic in your area. Chronic low back pain generally doesn't do well
with surgery, acute on chronic pain (as only symptom) doesn't fare
much better.
e correlation between MRI findings and symptoms is controversial.

Don Mackie -  his opinions
UM will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58821
From: rcj2@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (ray.c.jender)
Subject: Looking for a doctor


	I was kind of half watching Street Stories last night
	and one of the segments was about this doctor in
	S.F. who provides a service of investigating treatment
	for various diseases. I'm pretty sure his name is
	Dr. Mark Renniger (sp?) or close to that. 
	Did anyone else watch this? I'd like to get his
	correct name and address/phone number if possible.
	Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58822
From: dbc@welkin.gsfc.nasa.gov (David Considine)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.180459.17852@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu> milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn) writes:
>This was known long ago.  Brain produces and uses some MSG naturally,
>but not in doses it is served at some chinese places. 
>Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
>flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
>I order food without MSG.  Goos places will do it for you.
 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

	I just wanted to point out that some of the food, particularly
	the soups, are prepared in a big batch, so the restaurant
	won't be able to take the MSG out of it.  Sometimes its
	pretty hard to find out if this is the case or not.


>Alexander M. Milshteyn M.D.   <milsh@cipr-server.mgh.harvard.edu>
>CIPR, MGH in Boston, MA.     (617)724-9507 Vox  (617)726-7830 Fax

David B. Considine
dbc@welkin.gsfc.nasa.gov

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58823
From: debbie@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Debbie Forest)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

In article <1993Apr14.184444.24065@galileo.cc.rochester.edu> jkis_ltd@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Da' Beave) writes:
>
>Well folks, I currently have a yeast infection. I am male.
>[...] your best bet (or at least your husband's)
>is to treat and cure your infection before any intercourse. If you must, use
>a condom. Also, consider other forms of sexual release (ie. handjobs) until
>you are cured. 

Though I can't imagine WANTING to have intercourse during a full-blown
yeast infection :-) chances of it being transmitted to the male are quite
low, especially if he's circumcised.  But it can happen. 
At one point I was getting recurrent yeast infections and the Dr suspected
my boyfriend might have gotten it from me and be reinfecting me.  The
prescription was interesting.  For each day of the medication (a week) I 
was to insert the medication, then to have intercourse.  The resulting 
action would help the medicine be spread around in me better, and would 
simultaneously treat him.  


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58824
From: sdbsd5@cislabs.pitt.edu (Stephen D Brener)
Subject: Intensive Japanese at Pitt

In article <C5KxIx.5Ct@cbnewsd.cb.att.com> rcj2@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (ray.c.jender) writes:
>
>	I was kind of half watching Street Stories last night
>	and one of the segments was about this doctor in
>	S.F. who provides a service of investigating treatment
>	for various diseases. I'm pretty sure his name is
>	Dr. Mark Renniger (sp?) or close to that. 
>	Did anyone else watch this? I'd like to get his
>	correct name and address/phone number if possible.
>	Thanks.


    INTENSIVE JAPANESE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH THIS SUMMER
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


The University of Pittsburgh is offering two intensive Japanese language
courses this summer.  Both courses, Intensive Elementary Japanese and 
Intensive Intermediate Japanese, are ten week, ten credit courses 
each equivalent to one full year of Japanese language study.  They begin 
June 7 and end August 13.  The courses meet five days per week, five hours 
per day.  There is a flat rate tuition charge of $1600 per course.  
Fellowships available for science and engineering students.  Contact 
Steven Brener, Program Manager of the Japanese Science and Technology
Management Program, at the University of Pittsburgh at the number or
address below.  
ALL INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY, THIS IS NOT LIMITED TO 
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS.



  

#######################################################################
#################   New Program Announcement   ########################
#######################################################################


            JAPANESE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The Japanese Science and Technology Management Program (JSTMP) is a new
program jointly developed by the University of Pittsbugh and Carnegie Mellon 
University.  Students and professionals in the engineering and scientific 
communitites are encouraged to apply for classes commencing in June 1993 and 
January 1994.


PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
The program intends to promote technology transfer between Japan and the 
United States.  It is also designed to let scientists, engineers, and managers
experience how the Japanese proceed with technological development.  This is 
facilitated by extended internships in Japanese research facilities and
laboratories that provide participants with the opportunity to develop
long-term professional relationships with their Japanese counterparts.


PROGRAM DESIGN
To fulfill the objectives of the program, participants will be required to 
develop advanced language capability and a deep understanding of Japan and
its culture.  Correspondingly, JSTMP consists of three major components:

1. TRAINING IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE
Several Japanese language courses will be offered, including intensive courses
designed to expedite language preparation for scientists and engineers in a
relatively short time.

2. EDUCATION IN JAPANESE BUSINESS AND SOCIAL CULTURE
A particular enphasis is placed on attaining a deep understanding of the
cultural and educational basis of Japanese management approaches in 
manufacturing and information technology.  Courses will be available in a 
variety of departments throughout both universities including Anthropology,
Sociology, History, and Political Science.  Moreover, seminars and colloquiums
will be conducted.  Further, a field trip to Japanese manufacturing or 
research facilities in the United States will be scheduled.


3. AN INTERNSHIP OR A STUDY MISSION IN JAPAN
Upon completion of their language and cultural training at PITT and CMU, 
participants will have the opportunity to go to Japan and observe,
and participate in the management of technology.  Internships in Japan
will generally run for one year; however, shorter ones are possible.


FELLOWSHIPS COVERING TUITION FOR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE COURSES, AS WELL AS
STIPENDS FOR LIVING EXPENSES ARE AVAILABLE.

        FOR MORE INFORMATION AND APPLICATION MATERIALS CONTACT

STEVEN BRENER				SUSIE BROWN
JSTMP					Carnegie Mellon University, GSIA
University of Pittsburgh		Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
4E25 Forbes Quadrangle			Telephone: (412) 268-7806
Pittsburgh, PA 15260			FAX:	   (412) 268-8163
Telephone: (412) 648-7414		
FAX:       (412) 648-2199		

############################################################################
############################################################################ 


Interested individuals, companies and institutions should respond by phone or
mail.  Please do not inquire via e-mail.
Please note that this is directed at grads and professionals, however, advanced
undergrads will be considered.  Further, funding is resticted to US citizens
and permanent residents of the US.

Steve Brener






Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58825
From: anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello)
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA


Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood
test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
glycemic?  TIA.


Anthony Anello
Fermilab
Batavia, Illinois


-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58826
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com> david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:

>>In article <13APR199308003715@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov>, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>>>
>>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>>always used it.
>
>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>using double-blind trials?  

Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own. Maybe you missed
it amidst the flurry of responses? Yet again, the use of this
newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
they have substantial knowledge of.

For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.

                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58827
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5Kv7p.JM3@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
>impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
>even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
>having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
>petty hatreds.

Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.

(Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
that occurs about 500,000 times in the human genome.  Unfortunately for
Warren's fantasy, it turns out to be a transposon that is present in
so many copies because it replicates itself and copies itself back into
the genome.  On the other hand, the characteristics of transposons were
much elucidated; the necessity of a cellular reverse transcriptase was
recognized; and the standard method of recognizing human DNA was created.
Other species have different sets of transposons.  Fortunately for me,
Warren and I used to eat dinner at T.G.I. Fridays all the time.)

>It further at least implicitly advances the position that
>sciences goes "forward" (and it is not clear what this means given the
>context in which it occurs) by generating in a completely non-rational
>and even random way a plethora of hypotheses and theories that are then
>weeded out via the "critical function" of science.

I'm not sure that it's random.  But there is no known rational mechanism
for generating a rich set of interesting hypotheses.  If you are really
working in an unknown area, it is unlikely that you will have much sense
of what might or might not be true; under those circumstances, the best
thing to do is just follow whatever instincts you have.  If they are wrong,
you will find out soon enough; but at least, you will find out _something_.
If you try to do experiments at random, with no prior conceptions at all
in mind, you will probably get nowhere.

>(Though why this critical
>function should be less subject to the non-rational forces is a mystery.

Unfortunately, the critical function does sometimes become hostage to
non-rational forces.  Then we get varieties of pathological science:
Lysenko, Mirsky's opposition to DNA-as-gene, cold fusion, and so forth.

>If experimental design, hypotheses creation, and theory construction are
>subject to jealousies and petty hatreds, then this must be equally true
>of the application of any "critical function" concerning replication.
>This is what leads one (ala Feyerabend) to an "anything goes" view.)

I don't agree that this follows.  In fact, this is _exactly_ the point at
which I disagree with Feyerabend.  It is a most important part of the
culture of science that one keeps one's jealousies out of the refereeing
process.  Failures there are aplenty, but, on the whole, things work out.

Another point: there are a couple of senses of the phrase ``experimental
design''.  I'd say that the less rational part is in experimental _choice_,
not design.  Alexander Fleming (Proc. Royal Soc., 1922) chose to look for
bacteriophage in his own mucus for strange reasons (Phage had previously
been found in locust diarrhea; Fleming probably thought runny bottom, runny
nose, what the hell, it's worth a try.) but his method of looking for phage
was well-designed to detect anything phage-like; in fact, he found lysozyme.

>True, the generation part *can* be totally irrational.  But typically it is
>*not*.  Anecdotes concerning instances where a hypothesis seems to have
>resulted in some way from a dream or from one's political views simply
>do not generalize well to the actual history of science.

It is not clear to me what you mean by rational vs. irrational.  Perhaps
you can give a few examples of surprising experiments that were tried out
for perfectly rational reasons, or interesting new theories that were first
advanced from logical grounds.  The main examples I can think of are from
modern high-energy physics which is not typical of science as a whole.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58828
From: cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


Jason Chen writes:
> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

----------

Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

You complain that people blame MSG automatically, since it's an unknown and
therefore must be the cause.  It is equally (if not more) unreasonable to
defend it, automatically assuming that it CAN'T be the culprit.

Pepper makes me sneeze.  If it doesn't affect you the same way, fine.
Just don't tell me I'm wrong for saying so.

These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
(optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58829
From: francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis)
Subject: Re: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

In article <1993Apr16.063425.163999@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I love the FAQ.       
>
>The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
>correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
>this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?

I've had PRK.

I would suggest asking a doctor about contacts. Mine said yes to
contacts. I think the scars from RK would preclude contacts.

>Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
>only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
>95%?  Why such a difference?  I thought the proceedures were simmilar
>with the exception of a laser being the cutting tool in PRK.  I must not
>be understanding all of the differences.

No. RK makes radial cuts around the circumference of the cornea, up to
8 I think, and these change the curvature of the cornea through stress
chages. PRK vaporizes (burns) away a thin layer from the front of the
cornea making the optical axis of the eye shorter. The laser doesn't
cut in PRK, it vaporizes. In RK, the eye is cut into.

>In the FAQ, the vision was considered less clear after the surgery than
>with glasses alone.  If this is completly attributable to the
>intentional slight undercorrection, then it can be compensated for when
>necessary with glasses (or contacts, if they CAN be worn afterall!).  It
>is important to know if that is not the case, however, and some other
>consequence of the surgery would often interfere with clear vision.  The
>first thing that came to my mind was a fogging of the lense, which
>glasses couldn't help. 
>
>would not help.

I find my vision is more clear for some things, and less clear for
others, only at night. I notice a definite haloing at night in the
darkness when I look at automobile headlamps, though this is not
something I spend inordinate amounts of time doing. For ordinary
things, my vision, in particular having a fully-operating peripheral
vision, is clearer than with glasses, or contacts.

-- 
| Le Jojo: Fresh 'n' Clean, speaking out to the way you want to live
| today; American - All American; doing, a bit so, and even more so.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58830
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JDuo.K13@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>Of course we can't hope (currently at least) to explain how or why
>Kekule had the daydream of snakes in the fire biting their tails.
>Surely it wasn't the *only* daydream he had.  What was special about
>*this* one?  Could it have had something to do with a perceived
>*analogy* between the geometry of the snakes and problems concerning
>geometry of molecules?  Is such analogical reasoning "extra-scientific"?
>Or is it rather at the very heart of science (Perice's notion of abduction,
>the use of models within and across disciplines)?  Upon close examination,
>is there a non-rational mystical leap taking place, or is it perhaps
>closer to a formal (though often incomplete) analogy or model?

I feel the need to repeat myself: Kekule's dream is a rather bad example
of much of anything.  Read Root-Bernstein's book on the history of the
benzene ring.
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58831
From: turner@reed.edu (Havok impersonated)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qlgdrINN79b@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>In article <1993Apr15.173902.66278@cc.usu.edu>, slyx0@cc.usu.edu writes:
>=Surprise surprise, different people react differently to different things. One
>=slightly off the subject case in point. My brother got stung by a bee. I know
>=he is allergic to bee stings, but that his reaction is severe localized
>=swelling, not anaphylactic shock. I could not convince the doctors of that,
>=however, because that's not written in their little rule book.
>Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
>reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
>in other people.

Hmmm.  The last time I got stung by a bee I experienced the same reaction
the first poster's brother did.  We went off to the doctor to see if I
should worry about the fact that my foot was now about 3 times it's normal
size.  (And itched!!!  Ow!)  He basically said I shouldn't this time, but
that bee sting allergy was not something you tended to get aclimatized to,
but were something that each time got progressively worse generally and that
next time could be the time I go into anaphylactic shock.  Admittedly this
was many years ago when I was young.  Since then I just make sure I don't
get stung.  I also should carry a bee sting kit with me, but I don't.  

This isn't scientific or proof, but this would lead me to believe it's not a
different reaction, just a different degree of reaction.  Allergies work
that way.  People have various reactions.  Sort of like diabetes, some
people can get by with just monitoring their diet, others have to monitor
their diet and use insulin sometimes while others have to watch their diet
like a hawk and use insulin regularly.  

I think MSG is probably similar...some people have allergic reactions to
it.  Some people are allergic to fermented things and can't use soy
sauce...but the chinese have been using it for centuries... that doesn't
necessarily mean that it's safe for everyone.  

	Johanna
turner@reed.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58832
From: DEHP@calvin.edu (Phil de Haan)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

In article <1qk708INNa12@mojo.eng.umd.edu> georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
>You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
>Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
>ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
>it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

I have a new doctor who gave me a prescription today for something called 
Septra DS.  He said it may cause GI problems and I have a sensitive stomach 
to begin with.  Anybody ever taken this antibiotic.  Any good?  Suggestions 
for avoiding an upset stomach?  Other tips?


       Phil de Haan (DoD #0578) Why yes.  That is my 1974 Honda CL360.
=============================================================================
  "That's the nature of being an executive in America.  You have to rely on
    other people to do something you used to do yourself." -- Donald Fehr,
        executive director, Major League Baseball Players Association.
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58833
From: mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) writes:

>Of course, bee venom isn't a single chemical.  Could be your brother is
>reacting to a different component than the one that causes anaphylactic shock
>in other people.

>Similarly, Chinese food isn't just MSG.  There are a lot of other
>ingredients in it.  Why, when someone eats something with lots of
>ingredients they don't normally consume, one of which happens to be
>MSG, do they immediately conclude that any negative reaction is to
>the MSG? 

ARGHHHHHHHHHh

READ THE MEMOS!!!!

I said that I PERSONALLY had other people order the EXACT SAME FOOD at
TWO DIFFERENT TIMES from the SAME RESTAURANT and the people that
ordered the food for me did NOT TELL ME which time the MSG was in the
food and which time it was not in the food.

ONE TIME I HAD A REACTION

ONE TIME I DID NOT

THE REACTION CAME THE TIME THE MSG WAS IN THE FOOD

THAT WAS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE

SAME RESTAURANT - SAME INGREDIENTS!!!

>Why, when someone eats something with lots of ingredients they don't
>normally consume, one of which happens to be MSG, do they immediately
>conclude that any negative reaction is to the MSG? 

I eat lots of Chinese food - I LOVE Chinese food.  I've just learned
the following

IF I get food at one of the restaurants that DOES NOT USE MSG or

IF I prepare the food myself without MSG or 

IF I order the food from a restaurant that will hold the MSG (and I
never get soup unless it's from a restaurant that cooks without the
MSG)

I DO NOT GET A REACTION!!!!

OKAY

DO YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!

I GET A REACTION FROM MSG

I DO NOT GET A REACTION WHEN THERE IS NO MSG

If you're having trouble understand this, please tell me which of the
words you do not understand and I'll look them up in the dictionary
for you.

--
The great secret of successful marriage is to treat all disasters
as incidents and none of the incidents as disasters.    
  -- Harold Nicholson

    Mary Allison (mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu) Urbana, Illinois

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58834
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qmlgaINNjab@hp-col.col.hp.com>, cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best) writes:
|> 
|> Jason Chen writes:
|> > Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
|> > suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
|> > if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.
|> 
|> ----------
|> 
|> Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
|> out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

Food poisoning is only one of the many possible causes. Yes, even other people
share the food. 
|> 
|> You complain that people blame MSG automatically, since it's an unknown and
|> therefore must be the cause.  It is equally (if not more) unreasonable to
|> defend it, automatically assuming that it CAN'T be the culprit.

Boy, you computer people only know 1s and 0s, but not much about logic. :-)

No. I did not said MSG was not the culprit. What I argued was that that
there was enough reasonable doubt to convict MSG.  

If you want to convict MSG, show me the evidence, not quilty by suspicion.

|> Pepper makes me sneeze.  If it doesn't affect you the same way, fine.
|> Just don't tell me I'm wrong for saying so.

Nobody is forcing you to change what you believe.  But I certainly don't
want to see somebody preach to ban pepper because that makes him/her
sneeze. That is exactly what some anti-MSG activitiests are doing

|> These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
|> (optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

Look, people with a last Chen don't necessarily own a Chinese restaurant.
I am not interested if you enjoy Chinese food or not. Exploiting my last
name to discredit me on the issue is hitting below the belt.

What I am interested in is the truth. Let me give you an excert from
a recent FDA hearing:

           ``There is no evidence orally consumed glutamate has any effect
on the brain,'' said Dr. Richard Wurtman of Massachusetts Institute
of Technology. The anecdotal experiences of individuals is
``superstition, not science,'' he said. ``I don't think glutamate
has made them sick.''

And Dr. Robert Kenney of George Washington University conducted an double
blind test in 1980 showing that the 35 people who reacted to MSG also
had similar reaction when they thought they had MSG but actually not.

Although there are many contradicting personal stories told in this group,
some of them might have been due to other causes. But because the anti MSG
emotion runs so high, that some blame it for anything and everything. 

My purpose is to present a balance view on the issue, although I am probably
20-1 outnumbered.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58835
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Can't wear contacts after RK/PRK?

In article <1993Apr16.063425.163999@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I love the FAQ.       
>
>The comment about contact lenses not being an option for any remaining
>correction after RK and possibly after PRK is interresting.  Why is
>this?  Does anyone know for sure whether this applies to PRK as well?
>
>Also, why is it possible to get a correction in PRK with involvement of
>only about 5% of the corneal depth, while RK is done to a depth of up to
>95%?  Why such a difference?

In myopia the cornea is too curved.  There is too much of a bulge in the
center.

In PRK the laser removes a small amount of material from the center.

In RK the surgeon cuts incisions near the edge.  They heal, and the scarring
reshapes the cornea.

Entirely different mechanisms, and the action is in a different place.

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58836
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qmlgaINNjab@hp-col.col.hp.com>, cab@col.hp.com (Chris Best) writes:
=
=Jason Chen writes:
=> Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
=> suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food poisoning. But
=> if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.
=
=----------
=
=Yeah, it might, if you only read the part you quoted.  You somehow left 
=out the part about "we all ate the same thing."  Changes things a bit, eh?

Perhaps.  Now, just what leads you to believe that it was MSG and not some
other ingredient in the food that made you ill?

=These people aren't condemning Chinese food, Mr. Chen - just one of its 
=(optional) ingredients.  Try not to take it so personally.

And you're condemning one particular ingredient without any evidence that
that's the ingredient to which you reacted.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58837
Subject: prozac
From: agilmet@eis.calstate.edu (Adriana Gilmete)

Can anyone help me find any information on the drug Prozac?  I am writing
a report on the inventors , Eli Lilly and Co., and the product.  I need as
much help as I can get.   Thanks a lot, Adriana Gilmete.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58838
From: libman@hsc.usc.edu (Marlena Libman)
Subject: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

I need advice with a situation which occurred between me and a physican
which upset me.  I saw this doctor for a problem with recurring pain.
He suggested medication and a course of treatment, and told me that I
need to call him 7 days after I begin the medication so that he may
monitor its effectiveness, as well as my general health.

I did exactly as he asked, and made the call (reaching his secretary).
I explained to her that I was following up at the doctor's request,
and that I was worried because the pain episodes were becoming more
frequent and the medication did not seem effective.

The doctor called me back, and his first words were, "Whatever you want,
you'd better make it quick.  I'm very busy and don't have time to chit-
chat with you!"  I told him I was simply following his instructions to
call on the 7th day to status him, and that I was feeling worse.  I 
then asked if perhaps there was a better time for us to talk when he
had more time.  He responded, "Just spit it out now because no time is
a good time."  (Said in a raised voice.)  I started to feel upset and
tried to explain quickly what was going on with my condition but my
nervousness interfered with my choice of words and I kind of stuttered
and then said "well, never mind" and he said he'll talk to various
colleagues about other medications and he'll call me some other time.

This doctor called me that evening and said because I didn't express
myself well, he was confused about what I wanted.  At this point I
was pretty upset and I told him (in an amazingly polite voice considering
how angry I felt) that his earlier manner had hurt my feelings.  He told
me that he just doesn't have time to "rap with patients" and thought
that was what I wanted.  I told him that to assume I was calling to
"rap" was insulting, and said again that I was just following through
on his orders.  He responded that he resented the implication that he 
felt I was making that he was not interested in learning about what his
patients have to say about their condition status.  He then gave me
this apology: "I am sorry that there was a miscommunication and you
mistakenly thought I was insulting.  I am not trying to insult you
but I am not that knowledgeable about pain, and I don't have a lot of
time to deal with that."  He then told me to call him the next day
for further instructions on how do deal with my pain and medication.

I am still upset and have not yet called.

My questions: (1) Should I continue to have this doctor manage my care?
(2) Since I am in pain off and on, I realize that this may cause me to
be more anxietous so am I perhaps over-reacting or overly sensitive?
If this doctor refers me to his colleague who knows more about the type
of pain I have, he still wants me to status him on my condition but
now I am afraid to call him.

			--Marlena
















Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58839
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: sore throat

In article <47835@sdcc12.ucsd.edu> wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman) writes:
>I have had a sore throat for almost a week.  When I look into
>the mirror with the aid of a flash light, I see white plaques in
>the very back of my throat (on the sides).  I went to a health
>center to have a throat culture taken.  They said that I do not
>have strep throat.  Could a viral infection cause white plaques
>on the sides of my throat?

First, I am not a doctor.  I know about this because I have been
through it.

It sounds like tonsilitis (lit. swollen tonsils).  Feel under your jaw
hinge for a swelling on each side.  If you find them, its tonsilitis.
I've had this a couple of times in the past.  The doctor prescribed a
weeks course of penicillin and that cleared it up.

In my case it was associated with glandular fever, which is a viral
infection which (from my point of view) resembled flu and tonsilitis
that kept coming back for a year or so.  There is a blood test for
this.

In conclusion, see a doctor (if you have not done so already).

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58840
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: centrifuge

In article <C5JsM5.Hrs@lznj.lincroftnj.ncr.com> rjf@lzsc.lincroftnj.ncr.com
 (51351[efw]-Robert Feddeler(MT4799)T343) writes:

>: Could somebody explain to me what a centrifuge is and what it is
>: used for? I vaguely remembre it being something that spins test tubes
>: around really fast but I cant remember why youd want to do that?

>Purely recreational.  They get bored sitting in that
>rack all the time.

No, this is wrong.  The purpose is to preserve the substances in
the tubes longer by creating relativistic speeds and thus
time dilatation.  Of course, by slowing the subjective time of
the test tubes they get less bored, which is probably what you
were thinking of.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58841
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58842
From: jimj@contractor.EBay.Sun.COM (Jim Jones)
Subject: Post-fever rashes:  I get 'em every time

The subject-line says it:  every time I run a fever, I get an amazing
rosy rash over my torso and arms.  Fortunately, it doesn't itch.

The rash  always comes on the day after the
fever breaks and no matter what the illness was:  cold, flu, whatever.
It started happening about four years ago after I moved to my current
town, although I don't know if that has anything to do with anything.

Severity and persistance of the rash seems to vary with the fever:
a severe or long-lasting fever brings a long-lasting rash.  A mild fever
seems to bring rashes that go away faster.  

Anybody know what might be causing this?  It's no more than an 
embarassment, but I'd be curious to know what's going on.  Am I carrying
some kind of fever-resistant bug that goes wild when fever knocks out
its competition?

Jim Jones

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58843
From: pan@panda.Stanford.EDU (Doug Pan)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qkdpk$5k6@agate.berkeley.edu> mossman@cea.Berkeley.EDU (Amy Mossman) writes:

>   I had a similar reaction to Chinese food but came to a completly different
>   conclusion. I've eaten Chinese food for ages and never had problems. I went
>   with some Chinese Malaysian friends to a swanky Chinses rest. and they ordered
>   lots of stuff I had never seen before. The only thing I can remember of that
>   meal was the first course, scallops served in the shell with a soy-type sauce.
>   I thought, "Well, I've only had scallops once and I was sick after but that
>   could have been a coincidence". That night as I sat on the bathroom floor,
>   sweating and emptying my stomach the hard way, I decided I would never touch
>   another scallop. I may not be allergic but I don't want to take the chance.

I don't react to scallops, but did have discomforts with clam juice
served at (American) waterfront seafood bars.  I don't know whether
the juice is homemade or from cans.

The following is my first encounter with the Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome.  Ten years ago, about an hour after having Won Ton Soup I
collapsed in a chair with my face feeling puffed up, my scalp
tingling, my feet too weak to stand up.  The symptoms lasted for about
20 minutes.  Determined to find out the cause of my first reaction, I
went back to the Chinese restuarant and ordered the same dish.  The
same thing happened.  A quick look inside the kitchen revealed nothing
out of the ordinary.

I've also had a mild attack after having soup at a Thai restuarant.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58844
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
|> thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
|> unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
|> whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
|> out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.
|> 
|> (Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
|> electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
|> he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
|> genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
|> binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence

But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?
While I am unfamiliar with the scientific context here, it appears obvious
that his speculation (for lack of a better or more neutral word) was
at least in significant part a consequence of his knowledge of and acceptance
of current theory coupled with his observations.  It would appear that
something quite rational was going on as he attempted to fit his observation
into that theory (or to tailor the theory to cover the observation).  This
does not seem like an example of what most would normally call a flight of
fancy or a fantasy.

|> 
|> It is not clear to me what you mean by rational vs. irrational.  Perhaps
|> you can give a few examples of surprising experiments that were tried out
|> for perfectly rational reasons, or interesting new theories that were first
|> advanced from logical grounds.  The main examples I can think of are from
|> modern high-energy physics which is not typical of science as a whole.

Well, I think someone else in this thread was the first to use the word (also,
"extra-scientific", etc.).  Nor am I prepared to give a general account of
rationality.  In terms of examples, there is some danger of beginning to quibble
over what a "surprising" experiment is, what counts as "surprising", etc.
The same may be said about "logical grounds".  My point is that quite frequently
(perhaps even most frequently) the roots of a new theory can be traced to
previously existing theories (or even to previously rejected hypotheses of
some other theory or domain).  I would offer some rather well known examples
such as Toricelli's Puy de Dome experiment done for the sake of his "sea of air"
hypothesis.  Was this theory (and the resulting experimental test) "surprising"?
Well, given the *prior* explanations of the phenomena involved it certainly must
be counted as so.  Was the theory constructed (and the experiment designed)
out of "perfectly rational grounds"?  Well, there was a pretty successful and
well know theory of fluids.  The analogy to fluids by Toricelli is explicit.
The novelty was in thinking of air as a fluid (but this was *quite* a novelty
at the time).  Was the theory interesting?  Yes.  Was it "new"?  Well, one
could argue that it was merely the extension of an existing theory to a new
domain, but I think this begs certain questions.  We can debate that if you
like.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58845
Subject: EXPERTS on PENICILLIN...LOOK!
From: ndacumo@eis.calstate.edu (Noah Dacumos)

My name is Noah Dacumos and I am a student at San Leandro High.  I am
doing a project for my physics class and I would like some info on the
discovery of penicillin, its discoverer(Sir Alexander Fleming), and how it
helps people with many incurable bacterias.  Also how it effects those who
are allergic to it.  Any info will be greatly appreciated.

					Noah Dacumos


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58846
From: jfare@53iss6.Waterloo.NCR.COM (Jim Fare)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

In article <1993Apr16.032251.6606@rock.concert.net> naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter) writes:
>can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
>it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
>...
>--Naomi

Endometriosis is where cells that would normally be lining the uteris exist
outside the uteris.  Sometimes this causes problems, often it doesn't.
There is generally no need to remove pockets of endometriosis unless they are
causing other problems.  One lady I know had Endometriosis in an ovary.  
This caused her a _great_ deal of pain.  Another lady I know has an     
endometrial cyst in her abdominal wall; she is not having it removed.

The American Fertility Society has information on this and they probably 
maintain a list of physicians in all parts of the continent that deal with
endometriosis.  You can reach them at:

The American Fertility Society
2140 11th Ave South
Suite 200
Birmingham, Alabama 35205-2800
(205)933-8494

                                     [J.F.]



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58847
From: szikopou@superior.carleton.ca (Steven Zikopoulos)
Subject: Re: prozac

In <C5L2x5.4B7@eis.calstate.edu> agilmet@eis.calstate.edu (Adriana Gilmete) writes:

>Can anyone help me find any information on the drug Prozac?  I am writing
>a report on the inventors , Eli Lilly and Co., and the product.  I need as
>much help as I can get.   Thanks a lot, Adriana Gilmete.

PDR and CPS are good places to starts.

do a medline search... lots of interesting debates going on (remember
when Prozac was impicated in suicidal behaviour?)

steve z

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58848
From: mdf0@shemesh.GTE.com (Mark Feblowitz)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qhu7s$d3u@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:

   It's worse than that -- there *is* no such thing as
   a double-blind study on the effects of MSG, by
   virtue of the fact that MSG changes the taste of food in
   a characteristic way that is detectable by the subject and
   that cannot be duplicated by a placebo.

Common! You can easily disguise  to flavor of  MSG by putting  it in a
capsule. Then,  the  study  becomes  a  double  blind of  MSG capsules
against control  capsules (containing exactly  the same contents minus
the MSG).
--
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mark Feblowitz,   GTE Laboratories Inc., 40 Sylvan Rd.  Waltham, MA 02254
mfeblowitz@GTE.com, (617) 466-2947, fax: (617) 890-9320


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58849
From: tong@ohsu.edu (Gong Tong)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com> david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
>
>>>In article <13APR199308003715@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov>, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>>>>
>>>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>>>always used it.
>>
>>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>>using double-blind trials?  
>
>Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own. Maybe you missed
>it amidst the flurry of responses? Yet again, the use of this
>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>they have substantial knowledge of.
>
>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
>off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>
>                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca

In order to excitotoxin effects of MSG, MSG that in blood must go through 
blood-brain barrier that I am not sure MSG can go through or not. In normal condition, the concentration of glutamate in the cerebrospinal fluid is about 
2 uM that is high enough to activate one type of glutamate receptor-the NMDA
receptor. But the question is Neuron and glial cell in the brain have a lots of transport to get glutamate into Neuron or glial. So no one know exact concentration of glutamate is around neurons. 

Glutamate is most important neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. It is involved in not only in daily life like the controling of movement, it is alsoinvolved in develpoment, memory and learn (it is involved in Logn-term potentialtion that be thought is the basis of learning). 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58850
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>>So far, I've seen about a dozen posts of anecdotal evidence, but
>>no facts.  I suspect there is a strong psychological effect at 
>>work here.  Does anyone have results from a scientific study
>>using double-blind trials?  
>
>Check out #27903, just some 20 posts before your own.

Um, I hate to break this to you, but article numbers are unique per site.
They have no meaning on other machines.

>Maybe you missed it amidst the flurry of responses?

You mean the responses some of which pointed to double-blind tests
which show no such "chinese restaurant effect" unique to MSG
(it's elicited by the placebo as well.)

>Yet again, the use of this
>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>they have substantial knowledge of.

Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?

>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>excitotoxic food additive,

No, it's undisputed in the literature that glutamate is an amino acid
which is an excitatory neurotransmitter.  There is also evidence that
excessive release of glutamate may be involved in the pathology of certain
conditions like stroke, drowning and Lou Gehrig's disease, just to name a few.
This is a completely different issue than the use of this ubiquitous amino acid
in foods.  People are not receiving intra-ventricular injections of glutamate.

>and that its major constituent, glutamate
>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>(humans included).

I don't know about premier, but it's certainly an important one.

>Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown off.

Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

>Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>encountered in a ny single food.

Wrong.  Do you know how much aspartate or phenylalanine is in a soft drink?
Milligrams worth.  Compare that to a glass of milk.  Do you know how much
glutamate is present in most protein-containing foods compared to that
added by the use of MSG?

>By eating lots of junk food,
>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 

Notice the subtle covering of her ass here: "anyone _with a sensitivity_..."
We're disputing the size of that class.

>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.

Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58851
From: drand@spinner.osf.org (Douglas S. Rand)
Subject: Re: chronic sinus and antibiotics

In article <DEHP.117@calvin.edu> DEHP@calvin.edu (Phil de Haan) writes:

   In article <1qk708INNa12@mojo.eng.umd.edu> georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark) writes:
   >You can also swab the inside of your nose with Bacitracin using a
   >Q tip. Bacitracin is an antibiotic that can be bought OTC as an
   >ointment in a tube. The doctor I listen to on the radio says to apply
   >it for 30 days, while you are taking other antibiotics by mouth.

   I have a new doctor who gave me a prescription today for something called 
   Septra DS.  He said it may cause GI problems and I have a sensitive stomach 
   to begin with.  Anybody ever taken this antibiotic.  Any good?  Suggestions 
   for avoiding an upset stomach?  Other tips?

I've taken Septra.  My daughter has taken it many times for ear
infections.  It works sometimes.  It is a sulfa drug.  About the only
problem I found was that I'm sensitive and developed a rash after nine
days of a ten day course.  No more Septra for me.  My doctor was
remiss in not telling me to watch out for a rash.  I was quite in the
dark and didn't realize that it could be a drug reaction.  No harm
done though.

Doug


--
Douglas S. Rand <drand@osf.org>		OSF/Motif Dev.
Snail:         11 Cambridge Center,  Cambridge,  MA  02142
Disclaimer:    I don't know if OSF agrees with me... let's vote on it.
Amateur Radio: KC1KJ

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58852
From: richard@tis.com (Richard Clark)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>
>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before 
>>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary? 
>
>>I'm old enough to remember that the issue has come up at least
>>a couple of times since the 1960s. Then it was called the
>>"Chinese restaurant syndrome" because Chinese cuisine has
>>always used it.
>

	My blood pressure soars, my heart pounds, and I can't get to sleep
for the life of me... feels about like I just drank 8 cups of coffee.

	I avoid it, and beet sugar, flavor enhancers, beet powder, and
whatever other names it may go under. Basicaly I read the ingredients, and
if I don't know what they all are, I don't buy the product.

	MSG sensitivity is definately *real*.



-----------------------Relativity Schmelativity-----------------------------
 Richard H. Clark				My opinions are my own, and
 LUNATIK - watch for me on the road...		ought to be yours, but under
 It's not my fault... I voted PEROT!		no circumstances are they
 richard@tis.com				those of my company...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58853
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*----
I agree with everything that Lee Lady wrote in her previous post in
this thread.  In case this puzzles people, I would like to expand
on two of her comments.

In article <C5JoDH.9IG@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> Avoiding mistakes is certainly highly desirable.  However it is also 
> widely acknowledged that perfectionism is inimicable to creativity. 
> ... In the extreme case, a perfectionist becomes so paralyzed by all
> the possible mistakes he might make that he is unable to even leave
> the house.  

One of the most important (and difficult) aspects of reasoning
about empirical investigation lies in understanding the context,
scope, and importance of the various arguments and pieces of
evidence that are marshalled for a claim.  Some errors break the
back of a piece of research, some leave a hole that needs to be
filled in, and some are trivial in their importance.  It is a
grave mistake to confuse these.

Past snippets from this thread:

>>> I doubt if Einstein used any formal methodology.  ....

>> He also proposed numerous experiments which if performed would
>> distinguish a universe in which special relativity holds from
>> one in which it does not. ...

Back to Lee Lady:

> These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
> sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
> carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."

These posters are making the mistake that I have previously
criticized of adhering to a methodological recipe.  A "carefully
designed and controlled study" is neither always possible nor
always important.  (On the other hand, if someone is proposing a
remedy that supposedly alleviates a chronic medical problem, we
have enough knowledge of the errors that have plagued *this* kind
of claim to ask for a "carefully designed and controlled study"
to alleviate our skepticism.)

Rules such as "support the hypothesis by a carefully designed and
controlled study" are too narrow to apply to *all* investigation.
I think that the requirements for particular reasoning to be
convincing depends greatly on the kinds of mistakes that have
occurred in past reasoning about the same kinds of things.  (To
reuse the previous example, we know that conclusions from
uncontrolled observations of the treatment of chronic medical
problems are notoriously problematic.)  

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58854
From: Mark-Tarbell@suite.com
Subject: Amniocentesis, et. al.

Is there some difference between the purposes behind
amniocentesis and chorionic villi sampling? They sound
similar to me, but are intended to detect different
things?

Thanks.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58855
Subject: Need Help in Steroid Research
From: tthomps@eis.calstate.edu (Thomas Thompson)

     I am doing a term paper on steroids, actually the scientist who
helped crate the drug. I discovered that Joseph Fruton is one of the
researchers who helped create anabolic steroids. The only information on 
this person I know is he was a biochemist that did research in the 1930's.
I already did research at my local libraries, but I still need more
information. My instructor is requiring resources from the computer
networks. Please write back concerning my subject, any books, articles,
etc., will be appreciated.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58856
From: brein@jplpost.jpl.nasa.gov (Barry S. Rein)
Subject: Need survival data on colon cancer

A relative of mine was recently diagnosed with colon cancer.  I would like
to know the best source of survival statistics for this disease when
discovered at its various stages.

I would prefer to be directed to a recent source of this data, rather than
receive the data itself.

Thank you,
****************************************************************************
*                              Barry Rein                                 
*
*                       brein@jplpost.jpl.nasa.gov                        
*
****************************************************************************
*                            No clever comment.                           
* 
****************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58857
From: fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5L9ws.Jn2@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>|> genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
>|> binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
>
>But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?

The fantasy was that he had found something of fundamental importance to
one of the hot questions of the day ('77).  He really had very little
reason to believe it, other than raw hope.  By fantasy, I certainly don't
mean Velikovskian manias.

>some other theory or domain).  I would offer some rather well known examples
>such as Toricelli's Puy de Dome experiment done for the sake of his
>"sea of air" hypothesis.

I'm not familiar with the history of this experiment, although, arguably,
I should be.

>"surprising"?
>Well, given the *prior* explanations of the phenomena involved it certainly
>be counted as so.  Was the theory constructed (and the experiment designed)
>out of "perfectly rational grounds"?  Well, there was a pretty successful and
>well know theory of fluids.  The analogy to fluids by Toricelli is explicit.
>The novelty was in thinking of air as a fluid (but this was *quite* a novelty
>at the time).  Was the theory interesting?  Yes.  Was it "new"?  Well, one
>could argue that it was merely the extension of an existing theory to a new
>domain, but I think this begs certain questions.  We can debate that if you
>like.

I think that it is enough if his contemporaries found the result surprising.
That's not what I'd quibble about.  What I'd like to know are Toricelli's
reasons for doing his experiment; not the post hoc _constructed_ reasons,
but the thoughts in his head as he considered the problem.  It may be
impossible to know much about Toricelli's thoughts; that's too bad if
it is so.  One of Root-Bernstein's services to science is that he has gone
rooting about in Pasteur's and Fleming's (and other people's) notes, and has
discovered some surprising clues about their motivations.  Pasteur never
publicly admitted his plan to create mirror-image life, but the dreams are
right there in his notebooks (finally public after many years), ready for
anyone to read.  And I and my friends often have the most ridiculous
reasons for pursuing results; one of my best came because I was mad at
a colleague for a poorly-written claim (I disproved the claim).

Of course, Toricelli's case may be an example of a rarety: where the
fantasy not only motivates the experiment, but turns out to be right
in the end.

Mark
-- 
Mark A. Fulk			University of Rochester
Computer Science Department	fulk@cs.rochester.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58858
From: sdbsd5@cislabs.pitt.edu (Stephen D Brener)
Subject: Japanese for Scientists and Engineers


    INTENSIVE JAPANESE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH THIS SUMMER
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


The University of Pittsburgh is offering two intensive Japanese language
courses this summer.  Both courses, Intensive Elementary Japanese and 
Intensive Intermediate Japanese, are ten week, ten credit courses 
each equivalent to one full year of Japanese language study.  They begin 
June 7 and end August 13.  The courses meet five days per week, five hours 
per day.  There is a flat rate tuition charge of $1600 per course.  
Fellowships available for science and engineering students.  Contact 
Steven Brener, Program Manager of the Japanese Science and Technology
Management Program, at the University of Pittsburgh at the number or
address below.  
ALL INTERESTED INDIVIDUALS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY, THIS IS NOT LIMITED TO 
UNIVERSITY STUDENTS.



  

#######################################################################
#################   New Program Announcement   ########################
#######################################################################


            JAPANESE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

The Japanese Science and Technology Management Program (JSTMP) is a new
program jointly developed by the University of Pittsbugh and Carnegie Mellon 
University.  Students and professionals in the engineering and scientific 
communitites are encouraged to apply for classes commencing in June 1993 and 
January 1994.


PROGRAM OBJECTIVES
The program intends to promote technology transfer between Japan and the 
United States.  It is also designed to let scientists, engineers, and managers
experience how the Japanese proceed with technological development.  This is 
facilitated by extended internships in Japanese research facilities and
laboratories that provide participants with the opportunity to develop
long-term professional relationships with their Japanese counterparts.


PROGRAM DESIGN
To fulfill the objectives of the program, participants will be required to 
develop advanced language capability and a deep understanding of Japan and
its culture.  Correspondingly, JSTMP consists of three major components:

1. TRAINING IN THE JAPANESE LANGUAGE
Several Japanese language courses will be offered, including intensive courses
designed to expedite language preparation for scientists and engineers in a
relatively short time.

2. EDUCATION IN JAPANESE BUSINESS AND SOCIAL CULTURE
A particular enphasis is placed on attaining a deep understanding of the
cultural and educational basis of Japanese management approaches in 
manufacturing and information technology.  Courses will be available in a 
variety of departments throughout both universities including Anthropology,
Sociology, History, and Political Science.  Moreover, seminars and colloquiums
will be conducted.  Further, a field trip to Japanese manufacturing or 
research facilities in the United States will be scheduled.


3. AN INTERNSHIP OR A STUDY MISSION IN JAPAN
Upon completion of their language and cultural training at PITT and CMU, 
participants will have the opportunity to go to Japan and observe,
and participate in the management of technology.  Internships in Japan
will generally run for one year; however, shorter ones are possible.


FELLOWSHIPS COVERING TUITION FOR LANGUAGE AND CULTURE COURSES, AS WELL AS
STIPENDS FOR LIVING EXPENSES ARE AVAILABLE.

        FOR MORE INFORMATION AND APPLICATION MATERIALS CONTACT

STEVEN BRENER				SUSIE BROWN
JSTMP					Carnegie Mellon University, GSIA
University of Pittsburgh		Pittsburgh, PA 15213-3890
4E25 Forbes Quadrangle			Telephone: (412) 268-7806
Pittsburgh, PA 15260			FAX:	   (412) 268-8163
Telephone: (412) 648-7414		
FAX:       (412) 648-2199		

############################################################################
############################################################################ 


Interested individuals, companies and institutions should respond by phone or
mail.  Please do not inquire via e-mail.
Please note that this is directed at grads and professionals, however, advanced
undergrads will be considered.  Further, funding is resticted to US citizens
and permanent residents of the US.

Steve Brener






Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58859
From: georgec@eng.umd.edu (George B. Clark)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

You may want to inquire about taking Lupron as a medication. It's
supposed to be a new treatment, and it's described in Nov. 1992
issue of J. of Obst. and Gyn.

Lupron is taken as a monthly injection, whereas other drugs such
as danazol are taken daily as pills.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58860
From: cps@generali.harvard.edu (Chris Schaeffer)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

In article <19617@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
>[...should] we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
>Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Two thoughts.

	- I think that psychologically it will be easier for the next 
generation to accept genetic manipulation.  It seems that people frown
upon 'messing with Nature', ignoring our eons-old practice of doing just that.
Any new human intervention is 'arrogance and hubris' and manipulation
we routinely do is 'natural' and certainly 'not a big deal'.

	- Most interesting human traits will probably be massively
polygenetic and be full of trade-offs.  In addition, without a positive
social environment for the cultivation of genetic gifts, having them won't
be the advantage it's made out to be.  Some people will certainly pursue it
as if it is the Grail, but we know how most of those quests turn out.

Chris Schaeffer



 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58861
From: akins@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (kay.a.akins)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <PAULSON.93Apr15082558@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov>, paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson) writes:
> I am posting to this group in hopes of finding someone out there in
> network newsland who has heard of something similar to what I am going
> to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
> a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
> Flakes.  She is perfectly healthy, had never experienced anything like
> this before, and there is no history of seizures in either side of the
> family.  All the tests (EEG, MRI, EKG) came out negative so the decision
> was made to do nothing and just wait to see if it happened again.
> 
> Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
> a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am
> embarrassed to admit that I even bought that junk but every once
> in a while...) So I pour it in her bowl and think "Oh, oh, this is the
> same kind of junk she was eating when she had that seizure."  Ten 
> minutes later she had a full blown seizures. This was her first exposure
> to a sugar coated cereal since the last seizure.......

My daughter has Epilepsy and I attend a monthly parent support group.
Just Wednesday night, a mother was telling how she decided to throw
all the junk food out and see if it made a difference in her 13 year-old's
seizures.  He was having about one seizure per week.  She reported that
she did this on Thursday (3/11), he had a seizure on Saturday and then
went 4 weeks without a seizure!!  On Easter he went to Grandma's and ate 
candy, pop - anything he wanted.  He had a seizure the next day.  She 
sees sensitivity to nutrasweet, sugar, colors, caffine and corn.  With
corn she says, he gets very nervous and aggresive.  

With my own daughter (age 7) , I think she is also sensitive and stays
away from those foods on her own.  She has never had gum, won't eat
candy, prefers an apple to a cookie, doesn't like chocolate and won't
even use toothpaste!!!  Her brother, on the other hand, is a junk food
addict!  

Hope this helps.  Good Luck.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58862
From: mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: Bouncing LymeNet newsletters...

The following 4 addresses are on the LymeNet mailing list, but are rejecting
mail.  Since the list server originally accepted these addresses successfully,
I assume these addresses have since been eliminated.  Improperly functioning
mail gateways might also be responsible.

If you are listed here and would still like to remain on the list, please
write to me.  Otherwise, I will remove these addresses from the list before the
next newsletter goes out.

As a general rule, please remember to *unsubscribe* from all your mailing
lists before your account is closed.  This will save the listserv maintainer
from many headaches.

Lezliel@Sitka.Sun.COM
Kenneth_R_Hall@Roch817.Xerox.COM
Westmx!ayoub@uunet.uu.net
Absol.absol.com!rsb@panix.COM
-- 
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
              Marc C. Gabriel        -  U.C. Box 545  -
              (215) 882-0138         Lehigh University

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58863
From: andersom@spot.Colorado.EDU (Marc Anderson)
Subject: Miracle Berries anyone?

[From Kalat, J.W.. (1992):  _Biological Psychology_. Wadsworth Publishing Co.
Belmont, CA.  Pg. 219.  Reproduced without permission.]



Digression 6.1:  Miracle Berries and the Modification of Taste Receptors

Although the _miracle berry_, a plant native to West Africa is practically
tasteless, it temporarily changes the taste of other substances.  Miracle
berries contain a protein, _miraculin_, that modifies sweet receptors in
such a way that they can be stimulated by acids (Bartoshuk, Gentile, 
Moskowitz, & Meiselman, 1974).  If you ever get a chance to chew a miracle
berry (and I do recommend it), for about the next half an hour all acids 
(which are normally sour) will taste sweet.  They will continue to taste
sour as well.

Miraculin was, for a time, commercially available in the United States as a
diet aid.  The idea was that dieters could coat their tongue with a miraculin
pill and then eat and drink unsweetened, slightly acidic substances.  Such
substances would taste sweet without providing many calories.

A colleague and I once spent an evening experimenting with miracle berries.
We drank straight lemon juice, sauerkraut juice, even vinegar.  All tasted
extremely sweet.  Somehow we forgot how acidic these substances are.  We 
awoke the next day to find our mouths full of ulcers.

[... continued discussion of a couple other taste-altering substances ...]


Refs:  

Bartoshuk, L.M., Gentile, R.L., Moskowitz, H.R., & Meiselman, H.L.  (1974):
   Sweet taste induced by miracle fruit (_Synsephalum dulcificum_). 
   _Physiology & Behavior_.  12(6):449-456.


-------------


Anyone ever hear of these things or know where to get them?


-marc
andersom@spot.colorado.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58864
From: vonwaadn@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu
Subject: Panic Disorder - more success stories

I posted this to sci.psychology on April 3, and after seeing
your post here on panice disorder thought it would be
relevant.

-----

My research indicates that two schools of thought exist.
the literature promoting medication says it's the superior
treatment.  Not surprisingly, literature promoting cognitive
therapy also claims to be superior.

What are the facts?  Early in my research I didn't have a
bias towards either medication or cognitive therapy.  I
was interested in a treatment that worked.  After reading
journals published after 1986, the cognitive therapy camp
claims a higher success rate (approx 80%), a lower drop-out
rate, and no side effects associated with medication.

Lars-Goran Ost published an excellent article titled
"Applied Relaxation: Description of a coping technique and
a review of controlled studies."  This is from Behav. Res. Ther.,
vol. 25, no. 5, pp. 397-409, 1987.  The article provides
instructions on how to perform applied relaxation (AR).
Briefly, you start with two 15 minute sessions daily, and
progress in 8-12 weeks to performing 10-15 thirty second sessions
daily.

I'll snail mail this article to anyone interested (USA only please;
International please pay for postage).

Mark
vonwaadn@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58865
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

I'm told that corn allergy is fairly common.  My wife has it and it seems
to be exacerbated if sugar is eaten with the corn.

I suppose that in a person just on the verge of having epilepsy, an
allergic reaction might cause a seizure, but I don't really know.
Gordon?

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58866
Subject: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!
From: keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)

My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio Syndrome
This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different symptons ( eg
chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have any information on
it

Thanks


Keith

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58867
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Carl Lydick:

> And you're condemning one particular ingredient without any 
> evidence that that's the ingredient to which you reacted.

Believe what you will.

The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
most likely explanation for events.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58868
From: Simon.N.McRae@dartmouth.edu (Simon N McRae)
Subject: re: hepatitis-b

In article <1993Apr14.4274.32512@dosgate>
russell.sinclair-day@canrem.com (russell sinclair-day) writes:

> What we are really worried about is not knowing the facts. The doctor 
> has stated that things will not be good if she is a carrier and avoids 
> further questions on the subject. We really would like to know so we 
> can take steps and plan in advance for any eventualities.
> 
> Thank-you for your very informative post. Right now I am just trying 
> to find out everything that I can.
> 
>                         Russ.

Unfortunately, Hep B infection can eventuate in chronic hepatitis and
subsequent cirrhosis.  Although not many patients with Hep B go on to
chronic hepatitis, it does still occur in a good number (20%?) and is
something to keep in mind.  Hepatitis C (was: non-A, non-B Hep) much
more frequently leads to chronic hep and cirrhosis.  There is also an
autimmune chronic hepatitis that affects mostly younger women which
also leads to cirrhosis.  

Of course, cirrhosis is a most unkind disease.  The most dangerous
effects relate to portal hypertension and loss of liver function. 
Patients develop life-threatening variceal bleeds and hepatic comas,
among many other problems, as a result of disturbances in hepatic
circulation.  Less ominously, they can exhibit the effects of
hyperestrogenemia which often characterize patients with cirrhosis. 
These effects include telangiactasias (small red skin lesions) and, in
men, gynecomastia (breast development).  The only real treatment for
cirrhosis is liver transplant.

Keep in mind that cirrhosis is not expected, at least statistically, in
your friend's case.  Nevertheless you might want to bring up the
subject of chronic disease and cirrhosis with the doctor.  Hopefully he
or she can then carefully explain these sequelae of Hep B infection to
you, and offer you support.

Simon.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58869
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: food-related seizures?

SP> From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
SP> to describe here.  I have a fourteen year old daugter who experienced
SP> a seizure on November 3, 1992 at 6:45AM after eating Kellog's Frosted
SP> Flakes.

SP> Well, we were going along fine and the other morning, April 5, she had
SP> a bowl of another Kellog's frosted kind of cereal, Fruit Loops (I am

SP> When I mentioned what she ate the first time as a possible reason for
SP> the seizure the neurologist basically negated that as an idea.  Now
SP> after this second episode, so similar in nature to the first, even
SP> he is scratching his head.

There's no data that sugar-coated cereals cause seizures.  I haven't
even seen anything anecdotal on it.  Given how common they are eaten
- do you know any child or adolescent who *doesn't* eat the stuff? -
I think that if there were a relationship we would know it by now.
Also, there's nothing weird in those cereals.  As far as the brain
is concerned (except for a few infantile metabolic disorders such as
galactosemia), sugar is sugar, regardless if it is coated on cereal,
sprinkled onto cereal, or dissolved in soda, coffee or whatever.

There was some interest a few years ago in aspartame lowering
seizure thresholds, but I don't believe anything ever came of it.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                         

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58870
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine????

GB> From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
GB> The HMO would stop the over-ordering, but in HMOs, tests are
GB> under-ordered.

That's a somewhat overbroad statement.  I'm sure there are HMOs in
which the fees for lab tests are subtracted from the doctor's
income.  In most, however, including the one I work for, there is no
direct incentive to under-order.  Profits of the group are shared
among all partners, but the group is so large that an individual's
generated costs have a miniscule effect.  I don't believe that we
under-order.  Then again, I'm not really sure what the right amount
of ordering is or should be.  Relative to the average British
neurologist, I suspect that I rather drastically over-order.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58871
From: npm@netcom.com (Nancy P. Milligan)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

I'd dump him.  Rude is rude and it seems he enjoys belittling and
humiliating you.  But don't just dump him, write to him and tell
him why you are firing him.  If you can, think about sending a copy
of your letter to whoever is in charge of the clinic where he works, 
if applicable, or maybe even to the AMA.  Don't be vindictive in
your letter, be truthful but VERY firm.

But don't be a victim and just put up with it.  Take control!  It'll
make you feel great!

Nancy M.
-- 
Nancy P. Milligan					npm@netcom.com
							      or
							npm@dale.cts.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58872
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5HLBu.I3A@tripos.com> homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes:
>mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway) writes:
>
>>Here's your error.  I really do think this shows some confusion on your
>>part.  (Drum roll please)  Science isn't so much the gathering of evidence
>>to support an "assertion" (read: hypothesis) as it is the gathering of
>>empirical observations IN ORDER TO MAKE AN HYPOTHESIS.  What should
>>convince you (or not) shouldn't be the final product so much as *HOW* the
>>product was made. 
>>
>Here's your error. There is no observation or hypothesis that is not tainted
>by theory. I have a theory, I make observations, those observations will be
>made with my theory in mind. 

Yes, absolutely, though I'd make the observation in a more general sense of
all observations are made by human beings and therefore made with various
biases. 

But here your message leaves talk of hypothesis and gets back, once again, 
to equating the business of science with the end result, the gizmo produced.

>Science works very well at developing theories
>within paradigms, but is very poor at dealing with paradigm shifts. If I 
>develop a novel paradigm that explains homeopathy, chinese medicine, or 
>spontaneous combustion. If the paradigm is useful it will show me the way
>to make observations that "prove" or "disprove" it.

My point isn't so much whether or not you have a novel paradigm but *how* 
you come about developing it.

>The paradigm of modern medicine is that the body can be reduced to a set of
>essentially mechanical operations wherein disease is seen as malfunctions in
>the machinery, essentially the old Newtonian model of the world. It seems
>likely that theories based upon this paradigm do not give a complete 
>discription of the universe, medicine, healing etc... Indeed we now 
>recognize an important psychological component to healing. 

Perhaps you'd admit that this is an oversimplification on your part (the topic
of the philosophy of science is made for them, I'm making them too) but I
think that it also summarizes popular misconceptions of science and the 
business of doing science.  Biomedical research doesn't make any basic 
assumptions that aren't the same as any other discipline of scientific
research.  That is, that you make empirical observations, form an hypothesis
and test it.  Modern medicine has much more to do with biochemistry than 
"the old Newtonian model of the world".  And I doubt that many psychologists
would appreciate being put outside this empirical "world view".  Psychology
also has more to do with biochemistry than spoon bending. 

>It is also important to distinguish reason from science. Science may be
>reasonable, but so are many non-scientific methodologies. Aristotle reasoned
>that frogs came from mud by observing one hop out of a puddle. 

Oversimplified, of course, but a good example.  This is an empirical observa-
tion.  It was then tested, though perhaps not by Aristotle, and eventually 
found wanting.  In the meantime, some folk will 
have continued to believe in the spontaneous generation of animal life.  
There's nothing at all surprising about this, it's the way the gathering of
knowledge works.  There are probably more than a few things in my own 
discipline of molecular biology that will be found to be totally off-base,
even idiotic, to someone in the future.  These future people won't have come
to these relevations because they had suddenly gone all Zen-like and had 
a vision in an LSD trip.  Someone will have thought of something new and 
tested it.  This is the bit that people who seem to relish misrepresenting
science and research can't seem to wrap their minds around.  Science is a 
creative process.  What I think of as factual and good research can be totally
turned on its head tommorrow by new results and theories.  

Again, I think it gets down to defining what you mean by "science".  I often
don't recognize what it is that I do, and am involved in, in the way science
is portrayed by popular media or writings of people in the humanities.  They
portray science as a collection of immutable facts, pronouncements of TRUTH
in big gold letters.  That's silly.  Its as though we just go into the lab,
turn over a stone, and come up with a mechanism for transcriptional regula-
tion.  Its much more interesting than that.  It really is a very human
process.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58873
From: ak949@yfn.ysu.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: ORGAN DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION FACT SHEET


In a previous article, dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) says:

>In article <1993Apr12.205726.10679@sbcs.sunysb.edu>, mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu 
>|> Organ donors are healthy people who have died suddenly, usually 
>|> through accident or head injury.  They are brain dead.  The 
>|> organs are kept alive through mechanical means.
>
>OK, so how do you define healthy people?
>
>My wife cannot donate blood because she has been to a malarial region
>in the past three years.  In fact, she tried to have her bone marrow
>typed and they wouldn't even do that!  Why?
>
>I can't donate blood either because not only have I been to a malarial
>region, but I have also been diagnosed (and surgically treated) for
>testicular cancer.  The blood bank wont accept blood from me for 10
>years.  

Obviously, it wouldn't be of much help to treat one problem by knowingly 
introducing another.  Cancer mestastizes.  My imperfect understanding of 
the facts are that gonadal cancer is particularly dangerous in this regard. 
I haven't done the research on it, but I don't recall ever hearing of a 
case of cancer being transmitted by a blood transfusion.  Probably just a 
common sense kind of arbitrary precaution.  Transmissable diseases like 
malaria though are obviously another story.


-- 
Michael Holloway
E-mail: mhollowa@ccmail.sunysb.edu (mail to freenet is forwarded)
phone: (516)444-3090

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58874
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.194316.25522@ohsu.edu> tong@ohsu.edu (Gong Tong) writes:
>In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>>
>>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>>excitotoxic food additive, and that its major constituent, glutamate
>>is essentially the premierie neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain
>>(humans included).  Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown
>>off.  Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>>encountered in a ny single food.  By eating lots of junk food,
>>packaged soups, and diet soft drinks, it is possible to jack your
>>blood levels so high, that anyone with a sensitivity to these
>>compounds will suffer numerous *real* physi9logical effects. 
>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>>
>>                    --Dianne Murray    wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca
>
>In order to excitotoxin effects of MSG, MSG that in blood must go through 
>blood-brain barrier that I am not sure MSG can go through or not.

Elevated levels of Glu and Asp in the blood are able to bypass the
Blood-brain barrier through the circumventricular organs (or CVO), in
particular the adeno and neurohypophysis (pituitary gland) areas.  The
arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus, and the median eminence regions
are particularly effected.  CVO areas are not subject to the
blood-brain barrier. These areas control the release of gonadotropin,
which controls the release and flux of steroids governing development,
especially sexual development. Changes in adult rats, which are less
sensitive to Glu than humans, have been observed: after ingesting Glu,
on a chronic basis, cycles of several steroids are disrupted. Blood
levels of somatostatin are significantly reduced, and cyclic release
of steroids becomes flattened.

                    Hope this helps.
                    --Dianne Murray: wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58875
From: lindae@netcom.com
Subject: Friend Needs Advice...


A friend of mine is having some symptoms and has asked me to post
the following information.

A few weeks ago, she noticed that some of her hair was starting
to fall out.  She would touch her head and strands of hair would
just fall right out. (by the way, she is 29 or 30 years old).  
It continued to occur until she had a bald spot about the
size of a half dollar.  Since that time, she  has gotten two
more bald spots of the same size.  Other symptoms she's
described include:  several months of an irregular menstrual
cycle (which is strange for her, because she has always been
extremely regular); laryngitis every few days -- she will wake
up one morning and have almost no voice, and then the next day
it's fine; dizzy spells -- she claims that she's had 4 or 5
very bad dizzy spells early in the morning, including one that
knocked her to the ground; and general fatigue.

She went to a dermatologist first who couldn't find any reason
for the symptoms and sent her to an internist who suspected
thyroid problems.  He did the blood work and claims that everything
came back normal.  

She's very concerned and very confused.  Does anyone have any
ideas or suggestions?  I told her that I thought she should
see an endocrinologist.  Does that sound like the right idea?

** By the way, in case you are going to ask...no, she has recently
taken any medications that would cause these symptoms...no, she hasn't
recently changed her hair products and she hasn't gotten a perm, 
coloring, or other chemical process that might cause hair to fall
out.

Thanks in advance for any help!





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58876
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

> Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
> Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
> then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
> engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
> No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
> we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
> Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.

Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.

What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?

Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
which are the units of genetics.

We stand on the brink of new meme-amplification technologies!  Harmful
memes which formerly were restricted in their destructive power will
run rampant over the countryside, laying waste to the real benefits that
future technology has to offer.

For example, Jeremy Rifkin has been busy trying to whip up emotions
against the new genetically engineered tomatoes under development at
CALGENE.  This guy is inventing harmful memes, a virtual memetic Typhoid
Mary.

We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
with harmful memes.  They should not be allowed to infect other people
with their memes against genetically-engineered food, electromagnetic
fields, and the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58877
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

[reply to mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)]
 
>Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
>expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
>Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...
 
The guy didn't sound too shy to me.  He sounded like a jerk.  I say ditch
him for someone more knowledgeable and empathetic.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58878
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5JoDH.9IG@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
>
>Furthermore, the big bucks approach to science promotes what I think is
>one of the most significant errors in science:  choosing to investigate
>questions because they can be readily handled by the currently
>fashionable methodology (or because one can readily get institutional
>or corporate sponsorship for them) instead of directing attention to
>those questions which seem to have fundamental significance.

Shades of James Watson!  That's exactly the way many workers have described
their misgivings about the Human Genome Project.  If you take a rigid 
definition of scientific research, the mere accumulation of data is not 
doing science.  One of the early arguments against the project were that the 
resources would be better used to focus on specific genetics-related 
problems rather than just going off and collecting maps and sequence.  
The project can't be so narrowly defined or easily described now though.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58879
From: mckay@alcor.concordia.ca (John McKay)
Subject: Lasers for dermatologists


Having had limited tinea pedis for more than 30 years, and finding
it resistant to ALL creams and powders I have tried, I wonder why
dermatologists do not use lasers to destroy the fungus. It would
seem likely to be effective and inexpensive. Are there good reasons
for not using lasers?
I was told that dermatology had not yet reached the laser age.

John McKay
vax2.concordia.ca

-- 
Deep ideas are simple.
                      Odd groups are even.
                                           Even simples are not.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58880
From: mjliu@csie.nctu.edu.tw (Ming-zhou Liu)
Subject: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

I have bad luck and got a VD called <Granuloma ingunale>, which involves
the growth of granules in the groin.  I found out about it by checking medicine
books and I found the prescriptions.  And I know I can just go to a clinic to
get it cured.  BUT unfortunately I am serving my duty in the army right now and
I think it's impossible to prevent anyone from knowing this if I take leaves 
every day for two weeks for treatment.  Thus I bought the prescribed tablets
at some drugstore, but to cure it I must get INJECTION of <Streptomycin>, with
a dose of 1g every 12 hours, for at least 10 days.  I can probably buy the 
tools and this solution somewhere but I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO INJECTION BY MYSELF
!
Can any kind people here tell me:

If it's possible to do it? Can I do it on my arm? or it must be done on the hip
only??  Any info is welcome and please write me or post your help SOON!! (I am
already taking the tablets ..and I can't wait!!)

Please don't flame me for posting this, and don't judge me. I've learned a 
lesson and all I need now is REAL MEDICAL HELP.

Desperate from Taipei 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58881
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

 From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

JB>    RR> "I don't doubt that the placebo effect is alive and well with
JB>    RR>  EVERY medical modality - estimated by some to be around 20+%,
JB>    RR>  but why would it be higher with alternative versus conventional
JB>    RR>  medicine?"
JB>  
JB>  Because most the the time, closer to 90% in my experience, there is no
JB>  substance to the 'alternative' intervention beyond the good intentions of the
JB>  practitioner, which in itself is quite therapeutic. [.......]
JB>
JB>  John Badanes, DC, CA
JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

   Well, if that's the case in YOUR practice, I have a hard time 
   figuring out how you even managed to make it into the bottom half
   of your class, or did you create your diplomas with crayons?
 
   If someone runs a medical practice with only a 10% success rate,
   they either tackle problems for which they are not qualified to
   treat, or they have no conscience and are only in business for
   fraudulent purposes.

   OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
   ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
   Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
   No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
   the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
   practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: Purranoia: the fear your cat is up to something
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58882
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Scientific Yawn

     Gordon Rubenfeld responds to Ron Roth:
GR>  ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) wrote:
GR>
GR> RR> Well, Gordon, I look at the RESULTS, not at anyone's *scientific*
GR> RR> stamp of approval.
GR>  
GR>    If you and your patients (followers?) are convinced (as you've written)
GR>  by your methods of uncontrolled, undocumented, unreported, unsubstantiated,
GR>  subjective endpoint research - great.  But, why should the rest of us care?

 Gordon, even if you are trying to beat this issue to death, you'll 
 never get more than a stalemate out of this one!
 I have never tried to force my type of medicine on any of you. Why 
 should I?  My patients are happy. I'm happy. You and your peers seem 
 to be the only miserable ones around bemoaning the steady loss of 
 patients to the alternative camp.
 Just look at Europe. There has been a steady exodus from 'synthetic' 
 medicine for over a decade now, and it'll be just a matter of time
 before more people on this continent will abandon their drug and white 
 coat worship as well and visit different doctors for different needs.

GR>     You see Ron, the point isn't whether YOU and your patients are
GR>  convinced that whatever it is you do works; it's whether what you do is
GR>  MORE effective in similar cases (of whatever it is you think you are
GR>  treating) than cupping, bloodletting, and placebo.

 This is very interesting. I have come exactly to the same conclusions
 but in regards to *conventional* medicine.

 You see, I don't just treat little old ladies that wouldn't know any
 different of what is being done, but a bulk of my patients consist of
 teachers, lawyers, judges, nurses, accountants, university graduates,
 and various health practitioners.
 If these people have gotten results with my method after having been
 unsuccessful with yours or their own, I certainly wouldn't lose any 
 sleep over whether you or your peers approve of my treatments --- 
 let's face it, with all the blunders committed by "scientific" MDs 
 over the years, I know a lot of people who hold your *scientific* 
 method in much lower esteem than they hold mine!

GR>  As far as we know ayurveda = crystals = homeopathy = Ron Roth
GR>  which may all equal placebo administered with appropriate
GR>  trappings...
     
  Sorry, but I'm not familiar OR interested with what appears to be 
 'NEW AGE' medicine (ayurveda, crystals), with the exception of homeo-
 pathy, of which I took a course. But Gordon, you already knew that -
 you just wanted to make my system look a bit more far out, right?
 
 I use homeopathy very little, since my cellular test (EMR) is hard to
 beat for accuracy and minerals are more predictable, while homeopathy
 does have a problem with reliability, especially in acute conditions.
 An exception perhaps are homeopathic nosodes which act fairly quickly
 and are more dependable in certain viral or bacterial situations. 

GR>  My colleagues and I spend hours debating study design
GR>  and results, even of therapies currently accepted as "standard".
GR>  As good (well, adequate) scientists, we are prepared, *if 
GR>  presented with appropriate data*, to abandon our most deeply held 
GR>  beliefs in favor of new ideas.

 I have met the challenges of hundreds of sceptics by verifying the
 accuracy of measuring their mineral status to their total satisfac-
 tion --- in other words EVERYONE INVOLVED is happy!
 If you were to cook a meal, would you worry over whether EVERYONE 
 in this world would find it to their liking, or only those that end 
 up eating it?
 Since I have financed every research project that I have undertaken 
 entirely myself, I don't need to follow any of your rules or guide-
 lines to satisfy any aspects of a grant application, which YOU may 
 have to; neither am I concerned of whether or not my study designs 
 meet your or anyone else's criteria or acceptance. 

GR>    Sorry Ron, if conviction were the ruler of truth, a flat Earth would
GR>  still be the center of the Universe and epilepsy a curse of the gods.
                         
 I think there would be more justification for an uneducated person
 growing up in an uncivilized environment to believe in a flat earth,
 than for a civilized, well educated and scientifically trained mind
 to follow the doctrine of evolution.
 Genetic engineering of course is now the final frontier to show God
 how it is (properly) done. Now we've become capable of creating our
 own paradise and give disease (and God) the boot, right?

 But just before we get rid of Him for good, perhaps He could leave us
 some pointers on how to solve a couple of tiny problems, such as war, 
 poverty, racism, crime, riots, substance abuse... And one last thing, 
 could He also give us a hint on how to control natural disasters, the
 weather, and last, but not least --- peace?

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228:  The Lab called: Your brain is ready.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58883
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

T(> Russell Turpin responds to article by Ron Roth:
T(>
T(> R> ... I don't doubt that the placebo effect is alive and well with
T(> R> EVERY medical modality - estimated by some to be around 20+%,
T(> R> but why would it be higher with alternative versus conventional 
T(> R> medicine?"
T(>  
T(>  How do you know that it is?  If you could show this by careful 
T(>  measurement, I suspect you would have a paper worthy of publication
T(>  in a variety of medical journals.  
T(>  
T(>  Russell 

 If you notice the question mark at the end of the sentence, I was
 addressing that very question to that person (who has a dog named
 sugar) and a few other people who seem to be of the same opinion.

 I would love to have anyone come up with a study to support their
 claims that the placebo effect is more prevalent with alternative
 compared to conventional medicine.
 Perhaps the study could also include how patients respond if they
 are dissatisfied with a conventional versus an alternative doctor,
 i.e. which practitioner is more likely to get punched in the face
 when the success of the treatment doesn't meet the expectations of 
 the patient!

  --Ron-- 
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: When in doubt, make it sound convincing!
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58884
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

-*----
Cross-posted and with followups directed to talk.politics.theory.

-*----
In article <79700@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
> but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
> which are the units of genetics.
>
> We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
> with harmful memes. ...

In other words, we should jail people who say the wrong 
things.  In this advocacy, we can see a truly ugly meme.
Does Mark Robert Thorson advocate jailing himself?

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58885
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

-*----
In article <1993Apr17.115716.19963@debbie.cc.nctu.edu.tw> mjliu@csie.nctu.edu.tw (Ming-zhou Liu) writes:
> I have bad luck and got a VD called <Granuloma ingunale>, which involves
> the growth of granules in the groin.  I found out about it by checking 
> medicine books and I found the prescriptions. ...

Ming-zhou Liu's main problem is that he has an incompetent
physician -- himself.  This physician has diagnosed a problem,
even though he probably has never seen the diagnosed disease
before and has no idea of what kinds of problems can present
similar symptoms.  This physician now wants to treat his first
case of this disease without any help from the medical community.

The best thing Ming-zhou Liu could do is fire his current
physician and seek out a better one.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58886
From: rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver)
Subject: Barbecued foods and health risk


Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
to know more. Thanks. 


 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58887
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

[reply to keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)]
 
>My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio
>Syndrome This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different
>symptons ( eg chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have
>any information on it
 
It would help if you (and anyone else asking for medical information on
some subject) could ask specific questions, as no one is likely to type
in a textbook chapter covering all aspects of the subject.  If you are
looking for a comprehensive review, ask your local hospital librarian.
Most are happy to help with a request of this sort.
 
Briefly, this is a condition in which patients who have significant
residual weakness from childhood polio notice progression of the
weakness as they get older.  One theory is that the remaining motor
neurons have to work harder and so die sooner.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58888
From: km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum)
Subject: Re: How about a crash program in basic immunological research?

In article <93099.141148C09630GK@wuvmd.wustl.edu>, C09630GK@WUVMD (Gary Kronk) writes:
|> I have been contemplating this idea for some time as well. I am not a
|> doctor, but my wife is a nurse and I know a lot of doctors and nurses.
|> The point here being that doctors and nurses do not seem to get sick
|> nearly as much as people outside the medical profession.

This is a lovely area for anecdotes, but I am sure you are on to something.
As a physician, I almost never get sick: usually, when something horrendous
is going around, I either don't get it at all or get a very mild case.
When I do get really sick, it is always something unusual.

This was not the situation when I was in medical school, particularly on
pediatrics. I never had younger siblings myself, and when I went on the
pediatric wards I suddenly found myself confronting all sorts of infectious
challenges that my body was not ready for. Pediatrics for me was three solid
months of illness, and I had a temp of 104 when I took the final exam!

I think what happens is that during training, and beyond, we are constantly
exposed to new things, and we have the usual reactions to them, so that later
on, when challenged with something, it is more likely a re-exposure for us,
so we deal with it well and get a mild illness. I don't think it is that
the immune system is hyped up in any way. Also, don't forget that the
hospital flora is very different from the home, and we carry a lot of that
around.

-km

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58889
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu> fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>In article <C5Kv7p.JM3@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:
>>
>>In article <1993Apr15.200344.28013@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:
>>What is wrong with the above observation is that it explicitly gives the
>>impression (and you may not in fact hold this view) that the common (perhaps
>>even the "correct") approach for a scientist to follow is to sit around
>>having flights of fancy and scheming on the basis of his jealousies and
>>petty hatreds.
>
>Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
>thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
>unless they make you do some experiments.  I've known a lot of scientists
>whose fantasies lead them on to creative work; usually they won't admit
>out loud what the fantasy was, prior to the consumption of a few beers.

The danger in philosophizing about science is that theory and generalization 
can end up being far removed from the actual day-to-day of the grunt at the
bench.  Yes, its great to be involved in a process were I can walk into the
lab after a heavy night of dreaming and just do something for the hell of it
(as long as my advisor doesn't catch me - which is easy enough to do), but 
stamping out such behavior seems to be the purpose in life of grant review 
committees and the peer review process in general.  In today's world that's 
what determines what science is: what gets funded.  And a damn good thing to.
Flights of fantasy just don't have much chance of producing anything, at 
least not in biomedical research.  The surest way for a graduate student to
ruin their life is to work in a lab where the boss is more concerned with 
fleshing out his/her fantasies than with having the student work on a project
that actually has a good chance of producing some results.  MD's seem to 
be particularly prone to this aberrant behavior.  

>(Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
>electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, hoping that
>he'd seen some essential part of the control mechanism for eukaryotic
>genes.  This fantasy led him to sequence samples of the band and carry out
>binding assays.  The result was a well-conserved, 400 or so bp, sequence
>that occurs about 500,000 times in the human genome.  Unfortunately for
>Warren's fantasy, it turns out to be a transposon that is present in
>so many copies because it replicates itself and copies itself back into
>the genome.  On the other hand, the characteristics of transposons were
>much elucidated; the necessity of a cellular reverse transcriptase was
>recognized; and the standard method of recognizing human DNA was created.
>Other species have different sets of transposons.  Fortunately for me,
>Warren and I used to eat dinner at T.G.I. Fridays all the time.)

I have to agree with Gary Merrill's response to this.  I've read alot of the
Alu and middle repetitive sequence work and it's really very interesting, 
good work with implications for many fields in molecular genetics.  It's 
really an example of how a well reasoned project turned up interesting 
results that were unexpected.

Mike



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58890
From: jeffp@vetmed.wsu.edu (Jeff Parke)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

kathleen richards (kilty@ucrengr) wrote:
> My nearly-13 year old Pomeranian had a nasty reaction to this vaccination.
> ...  Suffice it to say, we will not
> vaccinate her for Lyme disease again.  She's been camping through some 6
> states and has backpacked with us as well and we are used to watching for ticks
> and dealing with them and we simply won't take her to really active Lyme
> disease areas....

Not to drag this out anymore, but....

Many veterinarians feel that Lyme Disease in dogs is so easy to treat that
in an endemic area, they often just give the appropriate antibiotics to dogs
presenting with lameness, swollen joints, +/- fever.

A recent paper (March 1993) has finally established that Lyme disease in dogs
can be reproduced in a controlled experimentaly setting.  This has been
an ellusive matter for researchers, and is one of the fundamental requirements
for many to acknowledge an agent as being causitive of a particular disease.
Up to now, only the vaccine manufacturer has been able to "prove" that
the disease exists.

This paper is noteworthy in two other regards:

1) None of the animals they infected were treated in any way.  The dogs
had episodes of lameness during a 6-8 week period which occurred 2-5
months after exposure.  After this period, none showed any further
clinical signs up to the 17 month observation period of the study.  So
these are proven, clinically sick Lyme patients showing spontaneous
recovery without the benefit of drug treatment. Of course, observations
longer than 17 months will be necessary to be sure the disease doesn't
have the same chronicity that some see in humans.

2)  The addendum to the paper calls into question the techniques used by the
vaccine manufacturer to validate the vaccine.  Of course, they want
the world to use the model they developed in order to test vaccine
efficacy.

Anyway, maybe we will see some independent, scientifically sound evaluations
of this vaccine in the next year or so.

--
Jeff Parke <jeffp@pgavin1.vetmed.wsu.edu>
also:   jeffp@WSUVM1.bitnet    AOL: JeffParke
Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine class of 1994
Pullman, WA  99164-7012

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58891
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <19600@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> Keith is the only person I have ever heard of that keeps the weight
> off without any conscious effort to control eating behavior.  ... most
> of us have to diet a lot to keep from going back to morbid obesity.

I attribute my success to several factors:

Very low fat.  Except when someone else has cooked a meal for me,
I only eat fruit, vegetables, and whole grain or bran cereals.  I
estimate I only get about 5 to 10 percent of my calories from fat.

Very little sugar or salt.

Very high fiber.  Most Americans get about 10 grams.  25 to 35 are
recommended.  I get between 50 and 150.  Sometimes 200.  (I've heard
of people taking fiber pills.  It seems unlikely that pills can
contain enough fiber to make a difference.  It would be about as
likely as someone getting fat by popping fat pills.  Tablets are
just too small, unless you snarf down hundreds of them daily.)

My "clean your plate" conditioning works *for* me.  Eating the last
10% takes half my eating time, and gives satiety a chance to catch
up, so I don't still feel hungry and go start eating something else.

I don't eat when I'm not hungry (unless I'm sure I'll get hungry
shortly, and eating won't be practical then).

I bike to work, 22 miles a day, year round.  Fast.  I also bike to
stores, movies, and everywhere else, as I've never owned a car.
I estimate this burns about 1000 calories a day.  It also helps
build and maintain muscle mass, prevent insulin resistance (diabetes
runs in my family), and increase my metabolism.  (Even so, my
metabolism is so low that when I'm at rest I'm most comfortable
with a temperature in the 90s (F), and usually wear a sweater if
it drops to 80.)  Cycling also motivates me to avoid every excess
ounce.  (Cyclists routinely pay a premium for cycling products that
weigh slightly less than others.  But it's easier and cheaper to trim
weight from the rider than from the vehicle.)

There's no question in my mind that my metabolism is radically
different from that of most people who have never been fat.  Fortunately,
it isn't different in a way that precludes excellent health.

Obviously, I can't swear that every obese person who does what I've
done will have the success I did.  But I've never yet heard of one who
did try it and didn't succeed.

> I think all of us cycle.  One's success depends on how large the
> fluctuations in the cycle are.  Some people can cycle only 5 pounds.

I'm sure everyone's weight cycles, whether or not they've ever been fat.
I usually eat extremely little salt.  When I do eat something salty,
my weight can increase overnight by as much as ten pounds.  It comes
off again over a week or two.
-- 
Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com

f p=2,3:2 s q=1 x "f f=3:2 q:f*f>p!'q  s q=p#f" w:q p,?$x\8+1*8

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58892
From: amigan@cup.portal.com (Mike - Medwid)
Subject: Re: Emphysema question

Thanks to all who replied to my initial question.  I've been away in 
New Jersey all week and was surprised to see all the responses
when I got back.  

To the person asking about nicotine patches, there are four on the
market:

Habitrol - Ciba Pharmaceuticals
Nicoderm - Marion Merill Dow (Alza made)
Nicotrol - Warner Lambert (Cygnus made)
ProStep - Made by Elan and marketed by ??

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58893
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58894
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: What are the problems with Nutrasweet (Aspartame)?

Phenylketonuria is a disease in which the body cannot process phenylalanine.
It can build up in the blood and cause seizures and neurological damage.
An odd side effect is that the urine can be deeply colored, like red wine.
People with the condition must avoid Nutrasweet, chocolate, and anything
else rich in phenylalanine.

Aspartame is accused of having caused various vague neurological symptoms.
Pat Robertson's program _The_700_Club_ was beating the drum against
aspartame rather vigorously for about a year, but that issue seems to
have been pushed to the back burner for the last year or so.  Apparently,
the evidence is not very strong, or Pat would still be flailing away.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58895
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>most likely explanation for events.

You forgot the smiley-face.

I can't believe this is what they turn out at Berkeley.  Tell me
you're an aberration.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58896
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Blood Glucose test strips

In article <1993Apr12.151035.22555@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr11.192644.29219@clpd.kodak.com> young@serum.kodak.com writes:
>>
>>	Human glucose: 70 - 110 mg./dL. (fasting) [2]
>
>Are these numbers for whole blood, or plasma?

	Serum, actually, but plasma numbers are the same.  Whole blood
	numbers for humans tend to be somewhat lower (roughly 5 to 10 
	percent lower).  I find the following range for whole blood in
	FUNDAMENTALS OF CLINICAL CHEMISTRY: N. W. Teitz, editor; W. B.
	Saunders, 1987:

	Human glucose (whole blood, fasting levels) --> 60 - 95 mg./dL.

>Which are the strips calibrated for?  (Obviously they measure whole blood)

	Indeed, they do measure whole blood levels, although they are not
	as accurate as a serum test done in a laboratory.  One problem is
	that cells in the sample continue to metabolize glucose after the
	sample is drawn, reducing the apparent level.  According to Teitz,
	however, results compare "reasonably well" with laboratory results,
	although "values below 80 mg./dL. tend to be lower with strip tests,
	whereas values above 240 mg./dL. can be very erratic."

>What is the conversion factor between human plasma glucose and
>whole blood (pin prick) glucose concentration?

	As stated above, whole blood levels tend to be roughly 5 to 10 
	percent lower than serum levels.  Sample freshness will affect
	whole blood levels, however.  I don't believe there is a well-
	defined "conversion factor," since cell metabolism will affect
	samples to varying degrees.  The serum/plasma test is much 
	preferred for any except general "ball park" testing.


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58897
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr16.190447.8242@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr16.155123.447@cunews.carleton.ca>
wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>
>>Maybe you missed it amidst the flurry of responses?
>
>You mean the responses some of which pointed to double-blind tests
>which show no such "chinese restaurant effect" unique to MSG
>(it's elicited by the placebo as well.)

Many people responded with more anecdotal stories; I think its safe to
say the original poster is already familiar with such stories.
Presumably, he wants hard info to substantiate or refute claims about
MSG making people ill. 

Similarly, debunking such claims without doing research (whether
literature and lab), is equally beside the point. The original poster
no doubt already knows that some people think 'Chinese Restaurant
Syndrome' is bogus.

Placebos are all very interesting, but irrelevant to the question of
what effects MSG has. You could have real effects *and* placebo
effects; people may have allergies in addition. 

>
>>Yet again, the use of this
>>newsgroup is hampered by people not restricting their posts to matters
>>they have substantial knowledge of.
>
>Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
>come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
>do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?

Have you read Olney's work? I fail to see how citing results from
peer-reviewed studies qualifies as "bizarrely cracked".

>>For cites on MSG, look up almost anything by John W. Olney, a
>>toxicologist who has studied the effects of MSG on the brain and on
>>development.  It is undisputed in the literature that MSG is an
>>excitotoxic food additive,
>
>No, it's undisputed in the literature that glutamate is an amino acid
>which is an excitatory neurotransmitter.  There is also evidence that
>excessive release of glutamate may be involved in the pathology of certain
>conditions like stroke, drowning and Lou Gehrig's disease, just to name a few.
>This is a completely different issue than the use of this ubiquitous amino acid
>in foods.  People are not receiving intra-ventricular injections of glutamate.

Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
injection bunk.

>>Too much in the diet, and the system gets thrown off.
>
>Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
>controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
>as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
>not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
>ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
>that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?

But, you're right, mice aren't the best to study this on. They're four
times less sensitive than humans to MSG.

>>Glutamate and aspartate, also an excitotoxin are necessary in
>>small amounts, and are freely available in many foods, but the amounts
>>added by industry are far above the amounts that would normally be
>>encountered in a ny single food.
>
>Wrong.  Do you know how much aspartate or phenylalanine is in a soft drink?
>Milligrams worth.  Compare that to a glass of milk.  Do you know how much
>glutamate is present in most protein-containing foods compared to that
>added by the use of MSG?

The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.

Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.


>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>
>Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.

Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 

>
>Steve Dyer
>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?

- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58898
From: hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*)
Subject: re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

Phenylalanine is
nothing for you to worry about.  It is an amino acid, and everyone uses small
quantities of it for protein synthesis in the body.  Some people have a disease
known as phenylketoneurea, and they are missing the enzyme necessary to 
degrade this compound and eliminate it from the body.  For them, it will 
accumulate in the body, and in high levels this is toxic to growing nerve
cells.  Therefore, it is Only a major problem in young children (until around
age 10 or so) or women who are pregnant and have this disorder.  It used to
be a leading cause of brain damage in infants, but now it can be easily 
detected at birth, and then one must simply avoid comsumption of phenylalanine
as a child, or when pregnant.  

-heather

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58899
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <79727@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
>which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
>from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
>results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
>chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
>with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

Yeah, the "Feingold Diet" is a load of crap.  Children diagnosed with ADD
who are placed on this diet show no improvement in their intellectual and
social skills, which in fact continue to decline.  Of course, the parents
who are enthusiastic about this approach lap it up at the expense of their
children's development.  So much for the value of "interesting anecdotal
results".  People will believe anything if they want to.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58900
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <C5L9ws.Jn2@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com 
    (Gary Merrill) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr16.155919.28040@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu 
    (Mark Fulk) writes:
>
>|> Flights of fancy, and other irrational approaches, are common.  The crucial
>|> thing is not to sit around just having fantasies; they aren't of any use
>|> unless they make you do some experiments.  ....
>|> 
>|> (Simple example: Warren Jelinek noticed an extremely heavy band on a DNA
>|> electrophoresis gel of human ALU fragments.  He got very excited, .....
>
>But why do you characterize this as a "flight of fancy" or a "fantasy"?
>While I am unfamiliar with the scientific context here, it appears obvious
>that his speculation (for lack of a better or more neutral word) was
>at least in significant part a consequence of his knowledge of and acceptance
>of current theory coupled with his observations.  It would appear that
>something quite rational was going on as he attempted to fit his observation
>into that theory (or to tailor the theory to cover the observation).  ...

Whether a scientific idea comes while one is staring out the window, or
dreaming, or having a fantasy,  or watching an apple fall (Newton), or
sitting in a bath (Archimedes) ... it is ultimately the result of a lot of
intense scientific thinking done beforehand.  Letting one's mind roam
freely and giving rein to one's intuition can be a useful way of coming
up with new ideas, but only when one has done a lot of rational analysis
of the problem first.  

Scientific intuition is not something one is born with.  It is something
that one learns.  Maybe we don't understand completely how it is learned,
but training in systematic scientific thinking is certainly one of the 
key elements in developing it.  

Informal exploration is also often an important element in finding new
scientific ideas.  One thinks, for instance, of Darwin's naturalistic
studies in the Galapagos islands, which led him to the ideas for the 
theory of evolution.  

This is why I am offended by a definition of science that emphasizes
empirical verification and does not recognize thinking and informal
exploration as important scientific work.  I agree that mere speculation
does not deserve to be called science.  I also think that mere empirical
studies not directed by good scientific thinking are at best a very
poor kind of science.  

In article <1qk92lINNl55@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu 
    (Russell Turpin) writes:
>    ...
>I think that Lee Lady and I are talking at cross purposes.
>  ... Lady seems concerned with the contrast between great
>science that makes big advances in our knowledge and mediocre
>science that makes smaller steps.  In most of this thread, I have
>been concerned with the difference between what is science and
>what is not. 

I don't think that science should be defined in a way that some of the
activities that lead to really important science --- namely thinking and
informal exploration --- are not recognized as scientific work.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58901
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Bursitis and laser treatment


My family doctor and the physiotherapist (PT) she sent me to agree that the
pain in my left shoulder is bursitis. I have an appointment with an orthpod
(I love that, it's short for 'orthopedic surgeon, apparently) but while I'm
waiting the PT is treating me.

She's using hot packs, ultrasound, and lasers, but there's no improvement
yet. In fact, I almost suspect it's getting worse.

My real question is about the laser treatment. I can't easily imagine what
the physical effect that could have on a deep tissue problem. Can anyone
shed some light (so to speak) on the matter?
-- 
Robert Allison
Ottawa, Ontario CANADA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58902
From: dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>>most likely explanation for events.

>You forgot the smiley-face.

>I can't believe this is what they turn out at Berkeley.  Tell me
>you're an aberration.

>-- 
>Steve Dyer
>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
 
HEY, KEEP YOUR FU---NG FLAMING OUT OF THIS GROUP- THAT GOES FOR YOU, MR.
DYER, AS WELL AS SEVERAL OTHER NASTY, SARCASTIC PEOPLE, REGARDING THIS
SUBJECT.  Shoot, now I'm all riled up, too, and I was just going to ask if
we can keep our discussion about MSG a little more civil; blasting a school
or an idea through simple insults as demonstrated above is not necessary,
and otherwise out of line.  If you want to continue your insult war, take
it elsewhere and stop wasting everyone else's time.
Most sincerely,
	Dan Checkman

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58903
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Frequent nosebleeds


I have between 15 and 25 nosebleeds each week, as a result of a genetic
predisposition to weak capillary walls (Osler-Weber-Rendu). Fortunately,
each nosebleed is of short duration.

Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger brothers
each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their nosebleeds
soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin that is
supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, or other
techniques.
-- 
Robert Allison
Ottawa, Ontario CANADA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58904
From: brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner)
Subject: Re: Update (Help!) [was "What is This [Is it Lyme's?]"]

In article <19613@pitt.UUCP>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> In article <1993Apr7.221357.12533@lamont.ldgo.columbia.edu> brenner@ldgo.columbia.edu (carl brenner) writes:
> >> see the ulterior motive here.  It is easy for me to see it the
> >> those physicians who call everything lyme and treat everything.
> >> There is a lot of money involved.
> >
> >	You keep bringing this up. But I don't understand what's in it
> >financially for the physician to go ahead and treat. Unless the physician
> >has an investment in (or is involved in some kickback scheme with) the
> >home infusion company, where is the financial gain for the doctor?
> 
> Well, let me put it this way, based on my own experience.  A
> general practitioner with no training in infectious diseases,
> by establishing links to the "Lyme community", treating patients
> who come to him wondering about lyme or having decided they
> have lyme as if they did, saying that diseases such as MS
> are probably spirochetal, if not Lyme, giving talks at meetings
> of users groups, validating the feelings of even delusional
> patients, etc.  This GP can go from being a run-of-the-mill
> $100K/yr GP to someone with lots of patients in the hospital
> and getting expensive infusions that need monitoring in his
> office, and making lots of bread.  Also getting the adulation
> of many who believe his is their only hope (if not of cure,
> then of control) and seeing his name in publications put out
> by support groups, etc.  This is a definite temptation.

	Harumph. Getting published in these newsletters is hardly something
to aspire to. :-)
	I can't really argue with your logic, though I think you may be
extrapolating a bit recklessly from what appears to be a sample size of
one. Even if what you say about this local Pittsburgh guy is true, it is
not logical or fair to conclude that this is true of all doctors who
treat Lyme disease.
	By your logic, I could conclude that all of the physicians who
consult for insurance companies and make money by denying benefits to
Lyme patients are doing it for the money, rather than because they believe
they are encouraging good medicine. I have no idea how sincere these guys
are, but their motives are as suspect as the physicians you excoriate for
what you believe to be indiscriminate treatment.
	I would really feel more comfortable discussing the medical issues
in Lyme, rather than speculating as to the motives of the various parties
involved.

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
> geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carl Brenner


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58905
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Transplant Recipients Newsletter, April `93[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[D[DInternational Newsletter, April `93

This will be the first of monthly postings of the newsletter of 
the Long Island Chapter of the Transplant Recipients 
International Organization (TRIO).  Unfortunately, I was unable 
to post it before the date of this month's meeting.  I'm 
posting it anyway, and posting it world-wide instead of 
regional, in the hopes that some of the information may be 
useful or illustrative.  Also, I hope it can be used as an 
example and inspiration for the posting of other newsletters 
and data related to organ transplantation and donation.  

Mike

Transplant Recipients
International Organization
Long Island Chapter
P.O. Box 922
Huntington, NY 11743-0922		 NEWSLETTER
516/421-3258
                                         APRIL 1993 
                                         VOLUME IV   No. 8


NEXT MEETING


The next meeting is WEDNESDAY APRIL 14 at 8 pm at the Knights 
of Columbus Emerald Manor, 517 Uniondale Avenue in Uniondale.  
Our guest speaker will be Dr. Lewis Teperman.  Dr. Teperman 
trained in Pittsburgh under Dr. Starzl and is now the Assistant 
Director of the Liver Transplant Program at New York University 
Medical Center.  Dr. Teperman will discuss current trends in 
transplantation and treatment and will answer questions.  He is 
a long time friend of TRIO, surgeon to many of our members, and 
always a gracious and delightful guest.   It is sure to be a 
very informative, interesting and engaging evening.  Our 
hospitality committee,  Bette and Vito Suglia and Jim Spence 
will be well prepared, and at last the weather should be 
cooperative. We hope to see a very large gathering to welcome 
Dr. Teperman. 

          WEDNESDAY    APRIL 14  K of C   UNIONDALE


LAST MEETING

It has been noted here before that the Long Island Chapter of 
TRIO has extraordinary power in predicting bad weather, being 
able to forecast rain, sleet and snow fully a month in advance.  
No TV weatherman can match us. This time we not only scored 
again, but we were also able to disable the Long Island 
Railroad, making travel REALLY difficult.  None the less, many 
braved the snow and we had an interesting meeting and good 
conversation.  Our scheduled speaker, Mrs. Elizabeth Linnehan, 
a professional nutritionist, had a family emergency and was not 
able to attend.  She hope she will be with us in the fall to 
discuss diet and medications.  However,  Ms. Jennifer Friedman, 
an image consultant and sister of a liver transplant recipient 
was kind enough to step in on very short notice.  Ms. Friedman 
gave us a lot of good advice about choosing clothes and makeup, 
(even a bit for men) to help us look well and healthy and to 
minimize some of the cosmetic effects of some of the medicine 
and drugs we take.  We are most grateful to Jennifer and thank 
her for an entertaining evening.



ANNUAL MEETING

In addition to welcoming Dr. Teperman, the April meeting is 
also the Annual meeting of the Chapter.  This is the official 
notice of the meeting as required by our By-Laws. The main 
purpose of the meeting is to review the past year, solicit 
member views and ideas for better ways to meet their needs, and 
to elect members of the Board of Directors for the coming two 
year term.  The nominating committee has prepared the following 
slate for the Board.

         Anne (Liver Recipient) and Don Treffeisen
         Robert (Heart Recipient) and Eulene Smith
         Vito (Kidney Recipient) and Bette Suglia
         Kay Grenzig (Liver Recipient)
         Jan Schichtel (Kidney Recipient)
         Larry Juliano (Kidney Recipient)
         David Bekofsky (Director Public Education LITP)

Those remaining on the Board for another year are:

         Robert Carroll (Liver, Kidney & Pancreas Recipient)
         Jerry (Kidney Recipient) and Jeanne Eichhorn
         Ron (Kidney Donor) and Marie Healy
         Peter Smith (Bone Marrow Recipient)
         Patricia Ann Yankus (Kidney and Pancreas Recipient)
         Walter Ruzak (Kidney Recipient)

This may seem to be a big Board, but many hands make light work 
and with our various medical uncertainties, it is good to have 
backups for all the jobs on the Board.  Therefore, in addition 
to the slate being presented for voting, nominations will also 
be accepted from the floor.  There is no set number of Board 
members and there is plenty of work. 

In addition,  brief treasurer's and membership reports will be 
given and the floor will be open for any new business, 
suggestions, or comments anyone would like to bring up.

We will keep the formal meeting short so that we can spend the 
majority of the time with Dr. Teperman.

FUTURE MEETINGS

Remember the scheduled guests for the rest of the year.  

     May  12      Dr. Peter Shaprio, Chief of Psychiatry
                  Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center

     June  9      Dr. Felix Rappaport, Director of the Stony 
                  Brook Kidney Transplant Program. 

Plan on being with us the second Wednesday of each month.

NOTDAW

The week of April 18-24 is National Organ and Tissue Donor 
Awareness Week. NOTDAW. While we are planning news releases, 
speaking engagements and meetings with Supervisors Gullata and 
Gaffney, we have decided not to have our softball game   
because of two year's experience with miserable weather. 

We all can help spread the word on donor awareness, however. We 
have found it effective to ask your pastor, or rabbi to publish 
a letter or announcement in the parish bulletin, allow you to 
address the congregation, or include mention of the gift of 
life in his sermon.  Attached to this Newsletter is a sample 
letter and fact sheet you can use.   Thank you.

DR. STARZL TO BE HONORED 

The Long Island Chapter of the American Liver Foundation will 
hold its annual Auction and Dinner Dance on May 7th at the 
Fountainbleu  on Jericho Turnpike in Jericho.  Dr. Thomas 
Starzl will be the honored guest.  Tickets are $50 person and 
are going fast.  If you'd like to meet Dr. Starzl,  call Anne 
Treffeisen at (516) 421-3258 for details.

MEMBERSHIP NEWS 

Congratulations to Al Reese.  Al received his heart transplant 
in Pittsburgh after waiting 3 1/2 years.  He is home and doing 
well after only 12 days in hospital.

Arthur Michaels, liver recipient, is planning to run the Boston 
Marathon in April. What fantastic proof that transplantation 
works!  We hope the national press notices. 
     
Bob McCormack, after a persistent bout with infection, had his 
transplanted kidney removed.  He is home now, back on dialysis 
and feeling better.  

Nicole Healy, kidney recipient and daughter of Ron and Marie, 
spent the past several weeks in hospital in Miami with problems 
encountered on vacation.  Marie has been with her in Florida.  
They are back in New York where Nicole's treatment will 
continue.  We wish Nicole a speedy recovery. 

Kay Grenzig, liver recipient, is mending now after a bad fall 
that resulted in a broken arm and a broken leg. Kay is a 
candidate for the Board so we need her well soon.
 
And best wishes to all coming out of the flu. It was a tough 
winter for many, but the tulips are just under the snow.

SEE YOU......WEDNESDAY   APRIL 14  8 PM   K of C UNIONDALE            
                   DR. LEWIS TEPERMAN








Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58906
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

In article <1993Apr17.181013.3743@uvm.edu> hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

Aspartame is the methyl ester of a dipeptide, so a product of its
hydrolysis is going to be methanol, which can then be oxidized to
formaldehyde.  The amounts of methanol formed from the ingestion of
aspartame-containing foods are completely in the metabolic noise,
since you're forming equally minute amounts of methanol from other
components of food all the time.  In studies involving administration
of high doses of the additive, blood methanol levels were undetectable.
Methanol is a poison only in quantities seen in human poisonings,
say 5ml and above.  This is a consequence of its oxidation to formaldehyde
and formic acid, two quite reactive compounds which at high enough levels
can damage tissues like the retina and kidney, because at such high doses
the body's detoxification system is overwhelmed.  Interestingly, one
treatment for early methanol poisoning is to get the person drunk on
ethyl alcohol--vodka or an equivalent.  That's because ethanol is
metabolized preferentially over methanol by the enzymes in the liver.
If the methanol stays as methanol and isn't metabolized to formaldehyde,
it is actually relatively non-toxic.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58907
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr17.184435.19725@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>Many people responded with more anecdotal stories; I think its safe to
>say the original poster is already familiar with such stories.
>Presumably, he wants hard info to substantiate or refute claims about
>MSG making people ill. 

There has been NO hard info provided about MSG making people ill.
That's the point, after all.

>>Like youself?  Someone who can read a scientific paper and apparently
>>come away from it with bizarrely cracked ideas which have nothing to
>>do with the use of this substance in human nutrition?
>Have you read Olney's work? I fail to see how citing results from
>peer-reviewed studies qualifies as "bizarrely cracked".

That's because these "peer-reviewed" studies are not addressing
the effects of MSG in people, they're looking at animal models.
You can't walk away from this and start ranting about gloom and
doom as if there were any documented deleterious health effects
demonstrated in humans.  Note that I wouldn't have any argument
with a statement like "noting that animal administration has pro-
duced the following [blah, blah], we must be careful about its
use in humans."  This is precisely NOT what you said.

>Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
>study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
>and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
>Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
>for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
>that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
>injection bunk.

It most certainly is for neurotoxicology.  You know, studies of
glutamate involve more than "food science".

>Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
>journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?

So, point us to the studies in humans, please.  I'm familiar with
the literature, and I've never seen any which relate at all to
Olney's work in animals and the effects of glutamate on neurons.

>The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
>Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.

Well, actually, they HAVE to tolerate some phenylalanine; it's a
essential amino acid.  They just try to get as little as is healthy
without producing dangerous levels of phenylalanine and its metabolites
in the blood.

>Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
>of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
>vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
>soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
>for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
>foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.

Goodness, I'm not saying that it's good to feed infants a lot of
glutamate-supplemented foods.  It's just that this "projected safety
margin" is a construct derived from animal models and given that,
you can "prove" anything you like.  We're talking prudent policy in
infant nutrition here, yet you're misrepresenting it as received wisdom.

>>>Read Olney's review paper in Prog. Brain Res, 1988, and check *his*
>>>sources. They are impecable. There is no dispute.
>>
>>Impeccable.  There most certainly is a dispute.
>
>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 

You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.

>>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com 
>Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?
>- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca

Probably one of the dumber remarks you've made.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58908
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <1993Apr17.195202.28921@freenet.carleton.ca> ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:
>Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger brothers
>each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their nosebleeds
>soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin that is
>supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, or other
>techniques.

Rutin is a bioflavonoid, compounds found (among other places) in the
rinds of citrus fruits.  These have been popular, especially in Europe,
to treat "capillary fragility", and seemingly in even more extreme cases--
a few months ago, a friend was visiting from Italy, and he said that he'd
had hemorrhoids, but his pharmacist friend sold him some pills.  Incredulously,
I asked to look at them, and sure enough these contained rutin as the active
ingredient.  I probably destroyed the placebo effect from my skeptical
sputtering.  I have no idea how he's doing hemorrhoid-wise these days.
The studies which attempted to look at the effect of these compounds in
human disease and nutrition were never very well controlled, so the
reports of positive results with them is mostly anecdotal.

This stuff is pretty much non-toxic, and probably inexpensive, so there's
little risk of trying it, but I wouldn't expect much of a result.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58909
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>Superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?
>>
 
As a person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!

Somebody in the industry GIVE ME SOME REASONS WHY!  

IS IT AN INDUSTRIAL BYPRODUCT THAT NEEDS GETTING GET RID OF?

IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD OR THE FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?

DO SOME OF YOU GET A SADISTIC PLEASURE OUT OF MAKING SOME OF US SICK?

DO THE TASTE TESTERS HAVE SOME DEFECT IN THEIR FLAVOR SENSORS (MOUTH etc...)
  THAT MSG CORRECTS?

I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!

ALSO ... Nitrosiamines (sp) and sulfites...   Why them?  There are
 safer ways to preserve food, wines, and beers!

I think 
1) outlaw the use of these substances without warning labels as
large as those on cig. packages.
2) Require 30% of comparable products on the market to be free of these
substances and state that they are free of MSG, DYES, NITROSIAMINES and SULFITES on the package.
3) While at it outlaw yellow dye #5.  For that matter why dye food?  
4) Take the dyes and flavorings out of vitamins.  (In my OSCO only Stress
Tabs (tm) didn't have yellow dye #5)  { My doctor says Yellow Dye #5 is
responsible for 1/2 of all nasal polyps !!! }

KEEP FOOD FOOD!  QUIT PUTTING IN JUNK!

JUST MY TWO CENTS WORTH.

Sig:  A person tired of getting sick from this junk!

-- 
Walter Lundby



-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58910
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <lsu7q7INNia5@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*----
>I agree with everything that Lee Lady wrote in her previous post in
>this thread.  

Gee!  Maybe I've misjudged you, Russell.  Anyone who agrees with something 
I say can't be all bad.  ;-)

Seriously, I'm not sure whether I misjudged you or not, in one respect.  
I still have a major problem, though, with your insistence that science 
is mainly about avoiding mistakes.  And I still disagree with your 
contention that nobody who doesn't use methods deemed "scientific" 
can possibly know what's true and what's not.  

>  [Deleted material which I agree with.]  
>
>Back to Lee Lady:
>
>> These are not the rules according to many who post to sci.med and
>> sci.psychology.  According to these posters  "If it's not supported by
>> carefully designed controlled studies then it's not science."
>
>These posters are making the mistake that I have previously
>criticized of adhering to a methodological recipe.  A "carefully ...
>     ....  
>Rules such as "support the hypothesis by a carefully designed and
>controlled study" are too narrow to apply to *all* investigation.
>I think that the requirements for particular reasoning to be
>convincing depends greatly on the kinds of mistakes that have
>occurred in past reasoning about the same kinds of things.  (To
>reuse the previous example, we know that conclusions from
>uncontrolled observations of the treatment of chronic medical
>problems are notoriously problematic.)  

Okay, so let's see if we agree on this: FIRST of all, there are degrees 
of certainty.  It might be appropriate, for instance, to demand carefully 
controlled trials before we accept as absolute scientific truth (to the 
extent that there is any such thing) the effectiveness of a certain 
treatment. On the other hand, highly favorable clinical experience, even 
if uncontrolled, can be adequate to justify a *preliminary* judgement that
a treatment is useful.  This is often the best evidence we can hope for
from investigators who do not have institutional or corporate support.
In this case, it makes sense to tentatively treat claims as credible
but to reserve final judgement until establishment scientists who are
qualified and have the necessary resources can do more careful testing.

SECONDLY, it makes sense to be more tolerant in our standards of 
evidence for a pronounced effect than for one that is marginal.  


I come to this dispute about what science is  not only as a
mathematician but as a veteran of many arguments in sci.psychology (and
occasionally in sci.med) about NLP (Neurolinguistic Programming).  Much
of the work done to date by NLPers can be better categorized as
informal exploration than as careful scientific research.  For years
now I have been trying to get scientific and clinical psychologists to
just take a look at it, to read a few of the books and watch some of
the videotapes (courtesy of your local university library).  Not for
the purpose of making a definitive judgement, but simply to look at the
NLP methodology (especially the approach to eliciting information from
subjects) and look for ideas and hypotheses which might be of
scientific interest.  And most especially to be aware of the
*questions* NLP suggests which might be worthy of scientific
investigation.

Over and over again the response I get in sci.pychology is  "If this
hasn't been thoroughly validated by the accepted form of empirical
research then it can't be of any interest to us."  

To me, the ultimate reducio ad absurdum of the extreme "There've got to
be controlled studies" position is an NLP technique called the Fast
Phobia/Trauma Cure.

Simple phobias (as opposed to agoraphobia) may not be the world's most 
important psychological disorder, but the nice thing about them is that 
it doesn't take a sophisticated instrument to diagnose them or tell 
when someone is cured of one.  The NLP phobia cure is a simple 
visualization which requires less than 15 minutes.  (NLPers claim that
it can also be used to neutralize a traumatic memory, and hence is
useful in treating Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome.)  It is essentially
a variation on the classic desensitization process used by behavioral
therapists.  A subject only needs to be taken through the technique once
(or, in the case of PTSD, once for each traumatic incident).  The
process doesn't need to be repeated and the subject doesn't need to
practice it over again at home.

Now to me, it seems pretty easy to test the effectiveness of this cure. 
(Especially if, as NLPers claim, the success rate is extremely high.)  
Take someone with a fear of heights (as I used to have).  Take them up 
to a balcony on the 20th floor and observe their response.  Spend 15 
minutes to have them do the simple visualization.  Send them back up to 
the balcony and see if things have changed.  Check back with them in a 
few weeks to see if the cure seems to be lasting.  (More long term 
follow-up is certainly desirable, but from a scientific point of view 
even a cure that lasts several weeks has significance.  In any case, 
there are many known cases where the cure has lasted years.  To the best 
of my knowledge, there is no known case where the cure has been reversed 
after holding for a few weeks.)  (My own cure, incidentally, was done
with a slightly different NLP technique, before I learned of the Fast 
Phobia/Trauma Cure.  Ten years later now, I enjoy living on the 17th
floor of my building and having a large balcony.)  

The folks over in sci.psychology have a hundred and one excuses not to
make this simple test.  They claim that only an elaborate outcome study
will be satisfactory --- a study of the sort that NLP practitioners, 
many of whom make a barely marginal living from their practice, can ill 
afford to do.  (Most of them are also just plain not interested, because 
the whole idea seems frivolous.  And since they're not part of the
scientific establishment, they have no tangible rewards to gain 
from scientific acceptance.) 

The Fast Phobia/Trauma Cure is over ten years old now and the clinical 
psychology establishment is still saying "We don't have any way of 
knowing that it's effective."  

These academics themselves have the resources to do a study as elaborate 
as anyone could want, of course, but they say  "Why should I prove your 
theory?"  and  "The burden of proof is on the one making the claim."  
One academic in sci.psychology said that it would be completely 
unscientific for him to test the phobia cure since it hasn't 
been described in a scientific journal.  (It's described in a number of 
books and I've posted articles in sci.psychology describing it in as much 
detail as I'm capable of.)  

Actually, at least one fairly careful academic study has been done (with 
favorable results), but it's apparently not acceptable because it's a
doctoral dissertation and not published in a refereed journal.

To me, this sort of attitude does not advance science but hinders it.  
This is the kind of thing I have in mind when I talk about "doctrinnaire" 
attitudes about science.  

Now maybe I have been unfair in imputing such attitudes to you, Russell.  
If so, I apologize. 
 
--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58911
From: steveo@world.std.com (Steven W Orr)
Subject: Need to find information about current trends in diabetes.


I looked for diab in my .newsrc and came up with nuthin. Anyone have
any good sources for where I can read? In particular, I'm interested
in finding out more about intravenous insulin injection for hepatic
vein liver activation. (Whew! Wotta mouthful!)

Anything that smells like a pointer would be helpful: newsgroup,
mailinglist, etc....

Many thanks.

-- 
----------Time flies like the wind. Fruit flies like bananas.------------------
Steven W. Orr      steveo@world.std.com     uunet!world!steveo
----------Everybody repeat after me: "We are all individuals."-----------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58912
From: Mark W. Dubin
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:


>Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
>associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
>are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
>of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
>the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
>to know more. Thanks. 

I recall that the issue is that fat on the meat liquifies and then
drips down onto the hot elements--whatever they are--that the extreme
heat then catalyzes something in the fat into one or more
carcinogens which then are carried back up onto the meat in the smoke.

--the ol' professor

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58913
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

This reminds me of the last Graham Kerr cooking show I saw.  Today he
smoked meat on the stovetop in a big pot!  He used a strange technique
I'd never seen before.

He took a big pot with lid, and placed a tray in it made from aluminum foil.
The tray was about the size and shape of a typical coffee-table ash tray,
made by crumpling a sheet of foil around the edges.

In the tray, he placed a couple spoonfuls of brown sugar, a similar
quantity of brown rice (he said any rice will do), the contents of two
teabags of Earl Grey tea, and a few cloves.

On top of this was placed an ordinary aluminum basket-type steamer, with
two chicken breasts in it.  The lid was put on, and the whole assembly
went on the stovetop at high heat for 10 or 12 minutes.

Later, he removed what looked like smoked chicken breasts.  What surprises
and concerns me are:

1)  No wood chips.  Where does the smoke flavor come from?

2)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember hearing that carmel color
    (obtained by caramelizing sugar -- a common coloring and flavoring
    agent) had been found to be carcinogenic.  I believe they injected
    it under the skin of rats, or something.  If the results were conclusive,
    caramel color would not be legal in the U.S., yet it is still being
    used.  Was the initial research result found to be incorrect, or what?

3)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember Earl Grey tea being implicated
    as carcinogenic, because it contains oil of bergamot (an extract
    from the skin of a type of citrus fruit).  Does anyone know whatever
    happened with that story?  If it were carcinogenic, Earl Grey tea
    could not have it as an additive, yet it apparently continues to do
    so.

WRT natural wood smoke (I've smoking a duck right now, as it happens),
I've noticed that a heavily-smoked food item will have an unpleasant tangy
taste when eaten directly out of the smoker if the smoke has only recently
stopped flowing.  I find the best taste to be had by using dry wood chips,
getting lots of smoke right up at the beginning of the cooking process,
then slowly barbequing for hours and hours without adding additional wood chips.

My theory is that the unpleasant tangy molecules are low-molecular weight
stuff, like terpenes, and that the smoky flavor molecules are some sort
of larger molecule more similar to tar.  The long barbeque time after
the initial intensive smoke drives off the low-molecular weight stuff,
just leaving the flavor behind.  Does anyone know if my theory is correct?

I also remember hearing that the combustion products of fat dripping
on the charcoal and burning are carcinogenic.  For that reason, and because
it covers the product with soot and some unpleasant tanginess, I only grill
non-drippy meats like prawns directly over hot coals.  I do stuff like this
duck by indirect heat.  I have a long rectangular Weber, and I put the coals
at one end and the meat at the other end.  The fat drops directly on the
floor below the meat, and next time I use the barbeque I make the fire
in that end to burn off the fat and help ignite the coals.

And yet another reason I've heard not to smoke or barbeque meat is that
smoked cured meat, like pork sausage and bacon, contains
nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.  I'm pretty sure this claim actually
has some standing, don't know about the others.

An amusing incident I recall was the Duncan Hines scandal, when it was
discovered that the people who make Duncan Hines cake mix were putting
a lot of ethylene dibromide (EDB) into the cake mix to suppress weevils.
This is a fumigant which is known to be carcinogenic.
The guy who represented the company in the press conference defended
himself by saying that the risk from eating Duncan Hines products every day
for a year would be equal to the cancer risk from eating two charcoal-
broiled steaks.  What a great analogy!  When I first heard that, my
immediate reaction was we should make that a standard unit!  One charcoal
broiled steak would be equivalent to 0.5 Duncans!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58914
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "Brain abscess" definition needed

In article <1993Apr8.123213.1@tardis.mdcorp.ksc.nasa.gov> fresa@tardis.mdcorp.ksc.nasa.gov writes:
>Could someone please define a "brain abscess" for me? A relative has one near
>his cerebellum.


A brain abscess is an infection deep in the brain substance.  It is
hard to cure with antibiotics, since it gets walled off, and usually,
it needs surgical drainage.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58915
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA

>From: anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello)
>Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
>dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
>other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood

Blood glucose levels of 40 or so are common several hours after a
big meal.  This level will usually not cause symptoms.

>test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
>glycemic?

If you mean "reactive" hypoglycemia, there are usually no symptoms,
hence there is no disease, hence the dietary recommendations are the
same as for anyone else.  If a patient complains of dizziness,
faintness, sweating, palpitations, etc. reliably several hours after
a big meal, the recommendations are obvious - eat smaller meals.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                             

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58916
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

ML> From: libman@hsc.usc.edu (Marlena Libman)
ML> I need advice with a situation which occurred between me and a physican
ML> which upset me.

ML> My questions: (1) Should I continue to have this doctor manage my care?

That's easy:  No.  You wouldn't take your computer into a repair
shop where they were rude to you, even if they were competent in
their business.  Why would you take your own body into a "repair
shop" where the "repairman" has such a bad attitude?
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                              

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58917
From: slyx0@cc.usu.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 
> 
> You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
> plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
> have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
> for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
> whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
> studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
> reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
> of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
> inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.


Okay Mr. Dyer, we're properly impressed with your philosophical skills and
ability to insult people. You're a wonderful speaker and an adept politician.
However, I believe that all you were asked to do, was simply provide scientific
research refuting the work of Olney. I don't think the original poster sought
to start a philisophical debate. she wanted some information. Given a little
effort one could justify that shooting oneself with a .45 before breakfast is a
healthy practice. But we're not particularily interested in what you can
verbally prove/disprove or rationalize. Where's the research? Where are the
studies?

I appoligize if this sounds flamish. I simply would like to see the thread get
back on track. 


Lone Wolf

                                      Happy are they who dream dreams,
Ed Philips                            And pay the price to see them come true.
slyx0@cc.usu.edu                                              
                                                              -unknown

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58918
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <dubin.735083450@spot.Colorado.EDU> dubin@spot.colorado.edu writes:

>
>I recall that the issue is that fat on the meat liquifies and then
>drips down onto the hot elements--whatever they are--that the extreme
>heat then catalyzes something in the fat into one or more
>carcinogens which then are carried back up onto the meat in the smoke.
>
 

Hmmm. Care to be more vague?


=======================================
Howard  Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58919
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Sleeping Pill OD

In article <1993Apr9.051039.715@scott.skidmore.edu> dfederma@scott.skidmore.edu (daniel federman) writes:
>
>A friend of mine took appoximately 60 CVS sleeping pills, each
>containing 25mg of diphenhydramine, I think.  That's 1500 mg, total.

>	I'm worried, though, about the long-term effects.  Since he
>never had his stomach pumped, will he have liver or brain damage?  Any
>information would be greatly appreciated.

Shouldn't have.  But he may need to see the shrink about why he
wanted to kill himself.  Depressed people can be succesfully treated
usually.





-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58920
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: request for information on "essential tremor" and Indrol?

In article <1q1tbnINNnfn@life.ai.mit.edu> sundar@ai.mit.edu writes:

Essential tremor is a progressive hereditary tremor that gets worse
when the patient tries to use the effected member.  All limbs, vocal
cords, and head can be involved.  Inderal is a beta-blocker and
is usually effective in diminishing the tremor.  Alcohol and mysoline
are also effective, but alcohol is too toxic to use as a treatment.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58921
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:

>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

>Phenylalanine is
>nothing for you to worry about.  It is an amino acid, and everyone uses small
>quantities of it for protein synthesis in the body.  Some people have a disease
>known as phenylketoneurea, and they are missing the enzyme necessary to 
>degrade this compound and eliminate it from the body.  For them, it will 
>accumulate in the body, and in high levels this is toxic to growing nerve
>cells.  Therefore, it is Only a major problem in young children (until around
>age 10 or so) or women who are pregnant and have this disorder.  It used to
>be a leading cause of brain damage in infants, but now it can be easily 
>detected at birth, and then one must simply avoid comsumption of phenylalanine
>as a child, or when pregnant.  

>-heather

If I remember rightly PKU syndrome in infants is about 1/1200 ? They lack
two genes. And people who lack one gene are supposed to be 1/56 persons?
Those with PKU have to avoid naturally occuring phenylalanine. And those
who only have one gene and underproduce whatever it is they are supposed to
be producing are supposed to be less tolerant of aspartame. 

The methol, formaldahyde thing was supposed to occur with heating?

I don't drink it. I figure sugar was made for a reason. To quickly and
easily satiate hungry people. If you don't need the calories it's just as
easy to drink water.  Used to drink a six pack a aday of aspartame soda. Don't
even drink one coke a day when sugared.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58922
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: NIH offers "Exploratory Grants For Alternative Medicine"

In article <1993Apr9.172945.4578@island.COM> green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein) writes:
>In article <19493@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>One problem is very few scientists are interested in alternative medicine.
>
>So Gordon, why do you think this is so?
>-- 

Probably because most of them come packaged with some absurd theory
behind them.  E.G. homoeopathy: like cures like.  The more you dilute
things, the more powerful they get, even if you dilute them so much
there is no ingredient but water left.  Chiropractic: all illness
stems from compressions of nerves by misaligned vertebrae.  Such
systems are so patently absurd, that any good they do is accidental
and not related to the theory.  The only exception is probably herbalism,
because scientists recognize the potent drugs that derive from plants
and are always interested in seeing if they can find new plants
that have active and useful substances.  But that isn't what 
is meant by alternative medicine, usually.  If you get into the Qi,
accupuntunce charts, etc, you are now back to silly theories that
probably have nothing to do with why accupuncture works in some cases.

Perhaps another reason they are reluctant is the Rhine experience.
Rhine was a scientist who wanted to investigate the paranormal
and his lab was filled with so much chacanery and fakery that 
people don't want to be associated with that sort of thing.  
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58923
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Dislocated Shoulder

In article <1993Apr9.181944.5353@e2big.mko.dec.com> steve@caboom.cbm.dec.com (Steve Katz) writes:
>
>Recently I managed to dislocate my shoulder while
>sking.  The injury also seems to have damaged the nerves
>in my arm.  I was wondering if someone could point me towards
>some literature that would give me some background into
>these types of injuries.  Please respond by EMAIL if possible.
>

Your medical school library should have books on peripheral nerve
injuries.  Probably it was your brachial plexus, so look that up.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58924
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1q6rie$mo2@access.digex.net> kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch) writes:

>So, why are the scans so expensive, and what can be done to reduce the
>expense?  Isn't it just a box with some big magnets, a radio transmitter,
>and an attached PC?

The magnets are huge!  Good MRI sets with big (>1.5 Tesla) magnets
cost millions of dollars.  Then, the radiologist wants $400 for
reading each scan.

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58925
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Helium non-renewable??  (was: Too many MRIs?)

In article <lsj1gdINNkor@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
>-*----
>How does the helium get consumed?  I would have thought that failure
>to contain it perfectly would result in its evaporation .. back into 
>the atmosphere.  Sounds like a cycle to me.  Obviously, it takes 
>energy to run the cycle, but I seriously doubt that helium consumption
>is a resource issue.
>
It's not a cycle.  Free helium will escape from the atmosphere due to
its high velocity.  It won't be practical to recover it.  It has
to be mined.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58926
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: Need to find information about current trends in diabetes.

In <C5nF2r.KpJ@world.std.com> steveo@world.std.com (Steven W Orr) writes:

>I looked for diab in my .newsrc and came up with nuthin. Anyone have
>any good sources for where I can read?

Check out the DIABETIC mailing list -- a knowledgable, helpful, friendly,
voluminous bunch.  Send email to LISTSERV@PCCVM.BITNET, with this line
in the body:

SUBSCRIBE DIABETIC <your name here>

Also, the vote for misc.health.diabetes, a newsgroup for general discussion
of diabetes, is currently underway, and will close on 29 April.  From the
2nd CFV, posted to news.announce.newgroups, news.groups, and sci.med,
message <1q1jshINN4v1@rodan.UU.NET>:

>To place a vote FOR the creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
>email message to yes@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>To place a vote AGAINST creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
>email message to no@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>The contents of the message should contain the line "I vote
>for/against misc.health.diabetes as proposed".  Email messages sent to
>the above addresses must constitute unambiguous and unconditional
>votes for/against newsgroup creation as proposed.  Conditional votes
>will not be accepted.  Only votes emailed to the above addresses will
>be counted; mailed replies to this posting will be returned.  In the
>event that more than one vote is placed by an individual, only the
>most recent vote will be counted.  One additional CFV will be posted
>during the course of the vote, along with an acknowledgment of those
>votes received to date.  No information will be supplied as to how
>people are voting until the final acknowledgment is made at the end,
>at which time the full vote will be made public.
>
>Voting will continue until 23:59 GMT, 29 Apr 93.
>Votes will not be accepted after this date.
>
>Any administrative inquiries pertaining to this CFV may be made by
>email to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
>
>The proposed charter appears below.
>
>--------------------------
>
>Charter:  
>
>misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
>
>1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
>discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
>activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
>medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
>management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
>dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
>discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
>
>2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
>purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
>Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
>by a primary health care physician.  
>
>-----(end of charter)-----

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58927
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Foreskin Troubles

What can be done, short of circumcision, for an adult male
whose foreskin will not retract?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58928
From: joel@cs.mcgill.ca (Joel MALARD)
Subject: Bone marrow sclerosis.

I am looking for information on possible causes and long term effects
of bone marrow sclerosis. I would also be thankful if anyone reading
this newsgroup could list some recognized treatment centers if anything
else than massive blood transfusion can be effective. If you plan on
a "go to the library"-style reply, please be kind enough to add a list 
of suggested topics or readings: Medicine is not my field.

Regards,
Joel Malard.
joel@cs.mcgill.ca

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58929
From: <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: quality control in medicine

Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
 quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
 health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
interest, I will post the responses.
        Thank You
        Abhin Singla MS BioE, MBA, MD
        President AC Medcomp Inc

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58930
From: kilty@ucrengr (kathleen richards)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

Jeff, 

If you have time to type it in I'd love to have the reference for that
paper!  thanks!

--

kathleen richards   email:  karicha@eis.calstate.edu

   ~Sometimes you're the windshield, sometimes you're the bug!~
                                                  -dire straits


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58931
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <93108.003258U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> U19250@uicvm.uic.edu writes:
:Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
: quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
: health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
:interest, I will post the responses.


This is in fact a hot topic in medicine these days, and much of the
medical literature is devoted to this.  The most heavily funded studies
these days are for outcome research, and physicians (and others!) are
constantly questionning whether what we do it truly effective in any given
situation.  QA activities are a routine part of every hospital's
administrative function and are required by accreditation agencies.  There
are even entire publications devoted to QA issues.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58932
From: rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

Gordon Banks (geb@cs.pitt.edu) wrote:
: In article <3794@nlsun1.oracle.nl> rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch) writes:
: >
: >: From a business point of view, it might make sense.  It depends on
: >: the personality of the practitioner.  If he can charm the patients
: >: into coming, homeopathy can be very profitable.  It won't be covered
: >: by insurance, however.  Just keep that in mind.  Myself, I'd have 
: >^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
: >
: >In many European countries Homepathy is accepted as a method of curing
: >(or at least alleiating) many conditions to which modern medicine has 
: >no answer. In most of these countries insurance pays for the 
: >treatments.
: >

: Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
: in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
: In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
: What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.

In Holland insurences pay for Homeopathic treatment. In Germany they do
so as well. I Austria they do if you have a condition which can not be 
helped by "normal" medicine (happened to me). Switzerland seems to be 
the same as Austria (I have direct experience in the Swiss case).

At the Univeristy of Vienna (I believe Innsbruck as well) homeopathy
can be taken in Med. school.

I found that in combination with Acupuncture it changed my life from
living hell to a condition which enables me to lead a relatively 
normal life. I found that modern medicine was powerless to cure me
of a *severe* case of Neurodermitis (Note: I mean cure, not 
surpress the symptoms, which is what modern medicine attempts to 
do in the case of Neurodermitis). 

I'm not saying that Homeopathy is scientific, but that it can offer 
help in areas in which modern medicine is absolutely helpless.

From reading your aritcle it seems that your have some deeply rooted
beliefs about this issue (this is not intended to be offensive or 
sarcastic - it just sounded like that to me) which makes me doubt 
if you can read this with an open mind. If you do/can, please excuse
my last comment.

---> Robert
rgasch@nl.oracle.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58933
From:  Gia Kiria <gkiria@kiria.kheta.georgia.su>
Subject: help

  HELP!
Maybe anybody know names of conferences in
Please help Me find any information for next keywords:
echocardiography and cardiology+dopler
I hawe no informatins on this subjects 2 years becouse i leave in
Tbilisy.
sorry for my bad english!
MY adress: irina@kiria.kheta.georgia.su


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58934
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: HYPOGLYCEMIA

     anello@adcs00.fnal.gov (Anthony Anello) writes:

A(>  Can anyone tell me if a bloodcount of 40 when diagnosed as hypoglycemic is
A(>  dangerous, i.e. indicates a possible pancreatic problem?  One Dr. says no, the
A(>  other (not his specialty) says the first is negligent and that another blood
A(>  test should be done.  Also, what is a good diet (what has worked) for a hypo-
A(>  glycemic?  TIA.
A(>  
A(>  
A(>  Anthony Anello
A(>  Fermilab
A(>  Batavia, Illinois

   Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the proper 
   channels, you might consider ther following:

   1) Chelated Manganese   25-50mg/day.
   2) Chelated Chromium    400-600mcg/day.
   3) Increase protein through foods or supplements.
   4) Avoid supplements/foods high in Potassium, Calcium, Zinc.
   5) Avoid Vit C supplements in excess of 100mg.
   6) Avoid honey and foods high in simple sugars.
   7) Enjoy breads, cereals, grains...

   Discuss the above with your health practitioner for compatibility
   with your body chemistry and safety.

   --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: BEER - It's not just for breakfast anymore.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58935
From: kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch)
Subject: Glutamate

In article <lso15qINNkpr@news.bbn.com> sher@bbn.com (Lawrence D. Sher) writes:
> From the N.E.J.Med.  editorial:  "The dicarboxylic amino acid glutamate
> is not only an essential amino acid ...

Glutamate is not an essential amino acid.  People can survive quite well
without ever eating any.
-- 
Keith Lynch, kfl@access.digex.com

f p=2,3:2 s q=1 x "f f=3:2 q:f*f>p!'q  s q=p#f" w:q p,?$x\8+1*8

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58936
From: jeffp@vetmed.wsu.edu (Jeff Parke)
Subject: Re: Lyme vaccine

kathleen richards (kilty@ucrengr) wrote:

> If you have time to type it in I'd love to have the reference for that
> paper!  thanks!

Experimental Lyme Disease in Dogs Produces Arthritis and Persistant Infection,
The Journal of Infectious Diseases, March 1993, 167:651-664

--
Jeff Parke <jeffp@pgavin1.vetmed.wsu.edu>
also:   jeffp@WSUVM1.bitnet    AOL: JeffParke
Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine class of 1994
Pullman, WA  99164-7012

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58937
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

In article <1993Apr17.125545.22457@rose.com> ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:
>
>   OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
>   ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
>   Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
>   No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
>   the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
>   practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...

1: "90% of diseases" is not the same thing as "90% of patients".

   In a world with one curable disease that strikes 100 people, and nine
   incurable diseases which strikes one person each, medical science will cure
   91% of the patients and report that 90% of diseases have no therapy.

2: A disease would be counted among the 90% untreatable if nothing better than
   a placebo were known.  Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly
   dispense placebos...

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58938
From: jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen)
Subject: Re: Glutamate

In article <1qrsr6$d59@access.digex.net> kfl@access.digex.com (Keith F. Lynch) writes:
>In article <lso15qINNkpr@news.bbn.com> sher@bbn.com (Lawrence D. Sher) writes:
>> From the N.E.J.Med.  editorial:  "The dicarboxylic amino acid glutamate
>> is not only an essential amino acid ...
>
>Glutamate is not an essential amino acid.  People can survive quite well
>without ever eating any.

There is no contradiction here. It is essential in the sense that your
body needs it. It is non-essential in the sense that your body can
produce enough of it without supplement.

Jason Chen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58939
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Glutamate

In article <1993Apr18.163212.9577@walter.bellcore.com>, jchen@wind.bellcore.com (Jason Chen) writes:
=There is no contradiction here. It is essential in the sense that your
=body needs it. It is non-essential in the sense that your body can
=produce enough of it without supplement.

And when you're in a technical discussion of amino acids, it's the latter
definition that's used almost universally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58940
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5Mv3v.2o5@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>
>Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
>associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
>are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
>of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
>the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
>to know more. Thanks. 

   From THE TUFTS UNIVERSITY GUIDE TO TOTAL NUTRITION: Stanley Gershoff, 
   Ph.D., Dean of Tufts University School of Nutrition; HarperPerennial, 1991
   (ISBN #0-06-272007-4):

	"The greatest hazard of barbecuing is that the cook will not use
	 enough caution and get burned.  Some people suggest that the
	 barbecuing itself is dangerous, because the smoke, which is 
	 absorbed by the meat, contains benzopyrene, which, in its pure form,
	 has been known to cause cancer in laboratory animals.  However,
	 in order to experience the same results, people would have to
	 consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a
	 time."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58941
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: what are the problems with nutrasweet (aspartame)

In article <1993Apr17.181013.3743@uvm.edu> hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>Nutrasweet is a synthetic sweetener a couple thousand times sweeter than
>sugar.  Some people are concerned about the chemicals that the  body produces 
>when it degrades nutrasweet.  It is thought to form formaldehyde and known to
>for methanol in the degredation pathway that the body uses to eliminate 
>substances.  The real issue is whether the levels of methanol and formaldehyde
>produced are high enough to cause significant damage, as both are toxic to
>living cells.  All I can say is that I will not consume it.  

[...]

   In the September 1992 issue of THE TUFTS UNIVERSITY DIET AND NUTRITION
   LETTER, there is a three page article about artificial sweeteners.  What
   follows are those excerpts which deal specifically with Nutrasweet.

   [Reproduced without permission]

	   The controversy [over aspartame] began six years ago in England,
	where a group of researchers found that aspartame, marketed under
	the tradename Nutrasweet, appears to stimulate appetite and,
	presumably, the eating of more calories in the long run than if
	a person simply consumed sugar.  When researchers asked a group
	of 95 people to drink plain water, aspartame-sweetened water, and
	sugared water, they said that overall they felt hungriest after
	drinking the artificially sweetened beverage.
	   The study received widespread media attention and stirred a
	good deal of concern among the artificial-sweetener-using public.
	However, its results were questionable at best, since the researchers
	did not go on to measure whether the increase in appetite did
	actually translate into an increase in eating.  The two do not
	necessarily go hand in hand.
	   In the years that followed, more than a dozen studies examining
	the effect of aspartame on appetite -- and eating -- were conducted.
	And after reviewing every one of them, the director of the
	Laboratory of the Study of Human Ingestive Behavior at Johns Hopkins
	University, Barbara Rolls, Ph.D., concluded that consuming aspartame-
	sweetened foods and drinks is not associated with any increase in
	the amount of food eaten afterward.

	   One artificial sweetener that is not typically accused of causing
	cancer is aspartame.  But it most certainly has been blamed for a
	host of other ills.  Since its introduction in 1981, the government
	has received thousands of complaints accusing it of causing
	everything from headaches to nausea to mood swings to anxiety.
	Still, years of careful scientific study conducted both before and
	after the sweetener's entering the market have failed to confirm
	that it can bring about adverse health effects.  That's why the
	Centers for Disease Control (the government agency charged with
	monitoring public health), the American Medical Association's
	Council on Scientific Affairs, and the Food and Drug Administration
	have given aspartame, one of the most studied food additives, a
	clean bill of health.
	   Granted, the FDA has set forth an "acceptable daily intake" of
	50 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram of body weight.  To exceed
	the limit, however, a 120-pound (55 kg.) woman would have to take
	in 2,750 milligrams of aspartame -- the amount in 15 cans of
	aspartame-sweetened soda pop, 14 cups of gelatin, 22 cups of yogurt,
	or 55 six-ounce servings of aspartame-containing hot cocoa,...
	A 175-pound (80 kg.) man would have to consume some 4,000 milligrams
	of the sweetener -- the amount in 22 cans of soda pop or 32 cups
	of yogurt -- to go over the limit.  [chart with aspartame content
	of selected foods omitted]
	   Only one small group of people must be certain to stay away
	from aspartame: those born with a rare metabolic disorder called
	phenylketonuria, or PKU.  The estimated one person in every 12,000
	to 15,000 who has it is unable to properly metabolize an essential
	amino acid in aspartame called phenylalanine.  Once a child
	consumes it, it builds up in the body and can ultimately cause
	such severe problems as mental retardation.  To help people with
	PKU avoid the substance, labels on cans of soda pop and other
	aspartame-sweetened foods must carry the warning "Phenylketonurics:
	Contains Phenylalanine."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58942
From: Isabelle.Rosso@Dartmouth.edu (Isabelle Rosso)
Subject: Hunchback

I have a friend who has a very pronounced slouch of his upper back. He
always walks and sits this way so I have concluded that he is
hunchback.
Is this a genetic disorder, or is it something that people can correct.
i.e. is it just bad posture that can be changed with a bit of will
power?





Isabelle.Rosso@Dartmouth.edu
          
     

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58943
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

KS> From: keith@actrix.gen.nz (Keith Stewart)
KS>My wife has become interested through an acquaintance in Post-Polio Syndrome
KS>This apparently is not recognised in New Zealand and different symptons ( eg
KS>chest complaints) are treated separately. Does anone have any information

I'm not sure that this condition is "recognised" anywhere (in the
sense of a disease with diagnostic criteria, clear boundaries
between it and other diseases, unique pathologic or physiologic
features, etc), but here goes with what many neurologists agree on.

Post-polio syndrome patients have evidence of motor neuron disease
by clinical examination, EMG, and muscle biopsy.  The abnormalities
are mostly chronic (due to old polio) but there is evidence of
ongoing deterioration.  Clinically, the patients complain of
declining strength and endurance with everyday motor tasks.
Musculoskeletal pain is a nearly universal feature that doubtless
contributes to the impaired performance.  The examination shows
muscle weakness and atrophy.  The EMG shows evidence of old
denervation with reinnervation (giant and long-duration motor unit
action potentials) *and* evidence of active denervation
(fibrillation potentials).  The biopsy also shows old denervation
with reinnervation (fiber-type grouping) *and* evidence of active
denervation (small, angulated fibers with dense oxidative enzyme
staining) - but curiously, little or no group atrophy.

Post-polio patients do not have ALS.  In ALS, there is clinically
evident deterioration from one month to the next.  In post-polio,
the patients are remarkably stable in objective findings from one
year to the next.  Of course, there are patients who had polio
before who develop genuine ALS, but ALS is no more common among
polio survivors than among people who never had polio.

The cause of post-polio syndrome is unknown.  There is little
evidence that post-polio patients have active polio virus or
destructive immunologic response to virus antigen.

There is no solid evidence that patients with post-polio have
anything different happening to the motor unit (anterior horn cells,
motor axons, neuromuscular junctions, and muscle fibers) than
patients with old polio who are not complaining of deterioration.
Both groups can have the same EMG and biopsy findings.  The reason
for these "acute" changes in a "chronic" disease (old polio) is
unknown.  Possibly spinal motor neurons (that have reinnervated huge
numbers of muscle fibers) start shedding the load after several
years.

There are a couple of clinical features that distinguish post-polio
syndrome patients from patients with old polio who deny
deterioration.  The PPS patients are more likely to have had severe
polio.  The PPS patients are *much* more likely to complain of pain.
They also tend to score higher on depression scales of
neuropsychologic tests.

My take on this (I'm sure some will disagree):  after recovery from
severe polio there can be abnormal loading on muscles, tendons,
ligaments, bones, and joints, that leads to inflammatory and/or
degenerative conditions affecting these structures.  The increasing
pain, superimposed on the chronic (but unchanging) weakness, leads
to progressive impairment of motor performance and ADL.  I am
perhaps biased by personal experience of having never seen a PPS
patient who was not limited in some way by pain.  I do not believe
that PPS patients have more rapid deterioration of motor units than
non-PPS patients (i.e., those with old polio of similar severity but
without PPS complaints).
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58944
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Post Polio Syndrome Information Needed Please !!!

DN> From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
DN> Briefly, this is a condition in which patients who have significant
DN> residual weakness from childhood polio notice progression of the
DN> weakness as they get older.  One theory is that the remaining motor
DN> neurons have to work harder and so die sooner.

If this theory were true, the muscle biopsy would show group atrophy
(evidence of acute loss of enlarged motor units); it doesn't.
Instead, the biopsy shows scattered, angulated, atrophic fibers.
This is more consistent with load-shedding by chronically overworked
motor neurons - the neurons survive, at the expense of increasingly
denervated muscle.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                            

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58945
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
: 
: Once again we are waiting. I have been thinking that it would be good
: to get to as large a group as possible to see if anyone has any
: experience with this kind of thing.  I know that members of the medical
: community are sometimes loathe to admit the importance that diet and
: foods play in our general health and well-being.  Anyway, as you can
: guess, I am worried sick about this, and would appreciate any ideas
: anyone out there has.  Sorry to be so wordy but I wanted to really get
: across what is going on here.
: 
: 
I don't know anything specifically, but I have one further anecdote. A
colleague of mine had a child with a serious congenital disease, tuberous
sclerosis. Along with mental retardation comes a serious seizure disorder.
The parents noticed that one thing that would precipitate a seizure was
a meal with corn in it. I have always wondered about the connection, and
further about other dietary ingredients that might precipitate seizures.
Other experiences would be interesting to hear about from netters.

--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58946
From: ruegg@med.unc.edu (Robert G. Ruegg)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Subject: Re: Eugenics
(Gordon Banks) writes:
/
;Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible. 
;Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will 
;then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
;engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
;No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
;we?
 
Two past problems with eugenics have been 
1) reducing the gene pool and 
2) defining the status of the eugenized.
 
Inserting genes would not seem to reduce the gene pool unless the inserted
genes later became transmissible to progeny. Then they may be able to
crowd out "garbage genes." This may in the future become possible. Even if
it does, awareness of the need to maintain the gene pool would hopefully
mean provisions will be made for saving genes that may come in handy
later. Evidently the genes for sickle cell disease in equatorial Africa
and for diabetes in the Hopi *promoted* survival in some conditions. We
don't really know what the future may hold for our environment. The
reduced wilderness- and disease-survival capacity of our relatively inbred
domesticated animals comes to mind. Vulcanism, nuclear winter, ice age,
meteor impact, new microbiological threats, famine, global warming, etc.,
etc., are all conceivable. Therefore, having as many genes as possible
available is a good strategy for species survival. 
 
Of course, the status of genetically altered individuals would start out
as no different than anyone else's. But if we could make
"philosopher-kings" with great bodies and long lives, would we (or they)
want to give them elevated status? We could. The Romans did it with their
kings *without* the benefits of such eugenics. The race eventually
realized and dealt with the problems which that caused, but for a while,
it was a problem. Orwell introduced us to the notion of what might happen
to persons genetically altered for more menial tasks. But there is nothing
new under the sun. We treated slaves the same way for millennia before
"1984."   
 
I see no inherent problem with gene therapy which avoids at least these 2
problems. Humans have always had trouble having the virtue and wisdom to
use any power that falls into their hands to good ends all the time. That
hasn't stopped the race as a whole yet. Many are the civilizations which
have died from inability to adapt to environmental change. However, also
many are the civilizations which have died from the abuse of their own
power. The ones which survived have hopefully learned a lesson from the
fates of others, and have survived by making better choices when their
turns came.
 
Not that I don't think that this gene altering power couldn't wipe us off
the face of the earth or cause endless suffering. Nuclear power or global
warming or whatever could and may still do that, too. 
 
The real issue is an issue of wisdom and virtue. I personally don't think
man has enough wisdom and virtue to pull this next challenge off any
better than he did the for last few. We, as eugenists, may make it, an we
may not. If we don't, I hope there are reservoirs of "garbage" people out
in some backwater with otherwise long discarded "garbage" genes which will
pull us through. 
 
I believe that the real problem is and will probably always be the same.
Man needs to accept input from the great spirit of God to overcome his
lacks in the area of knowing how to use the power he has. Some men have,
and I believe all men may, listen to and obey the still small voice of God
in their hearts. This is the way to begin to recieve the wisdom and virtue
needed to escape the problems consequent to poor choices. Peoples have
died out for many reasons. The societies which failed to accept enough
input from God to safely use the power they had developed have destroyed
themselves, and often others in the process. It is self-evident that the
ones which survive today have either accepted enough input from the Spirit
to use their powers wisely enough to avoid or survive their own mistakes
thus far, or else haven't had enough power for long enough. 
 
In summary, I would say that the question of whether to use this new
technology is really an ancient one. And the answer, in some ways hard, in
some ways easy, is the same ancient answer. It isn't the power, it is the
Spirit.
 
Sorry for the long post. Got carried away.
 
Bob (ruegg@med.unc.edu)




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58947
From: lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology  (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <ls8lnvINNrtb@saltillo.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu 
    (Russell Turpin) writes:
>            ... 
>*not* imply that all their treatments are ineffective.  It *does*
>imply that those who rely on faulty methodology and reasoning are
>incapable of discovering *which* treatments are effective and
>which are not.)

To start with, no methodology or form of reasoning is infallible.  So
there's a question of how much certainty we are willing to pay for in a
given context.  Insistence on too much rigor bogs science down completely
and makes progress impossible.  (Expenditure of sufficiently large sums
of money and amounts of time can sometimes overcome this.)  On the other
hand, with too little rigor much is lost by basing work on results which
eventually turn out to be false.  There is a morass of studies
contradicting other studies and outsiders start saying  "You people call
THIS science?"   (My opinion, for what it's worth, is that one sees both
these phenomena happening simultaneously in some parts of psychology.)  

Some subjective judgement is required to decide on the level of rigor
appropriate for a particular investigation.  I don't believe it is 
ever possible to banish subjective judgement from science.  


My second point, though, is that highly capable people can often make
extremely reliable judgements about scientific validity even when using
methodology considered inadequate by the usual standards.  I think this
is true of many scientists and I think it is true of many who approach
their discipline in a way that is not generally recognized as scientific.

Within mathematics, I think there are several examples, especially before
the twentieth century.  One conspicuous case is that of Riemann, who is
famous for many theorems he stated but did not prove.  (Later 
mathematicians did prove them, of course.)  

I think that for a good scientist, empirical investigation is often not
so much a matter of determining what is true and what's not  as it is a 
matter of convincing other people.  (People have proposed lots of 
incompatible definitions of science here, but I think the ability to 
objectively convince others of the validity of one's results is an
essential element.  Not that one can necessarily do that at every step 
of the scientific process, but I think that if one is not moving toward 
that goal then one is not doing science.)

When a person other than a scientist is quite good at what he does and
seems to be very successful at it, I think that his judgements are also
worthy of respect and that his assertions are well worth further
investigation.  

In article <C53By5.HD@news.Hawaii.Edu> I wrote: 
> Namely, is there really justification for the belief that
> science is a superior path to truth than non-scientific approaches?  

Admittedly, my question was not at all well posed.  A considerable
amount of effort in a "serious scholarly investigation" such as I
suggested would be required simply to formulate an appropriately 
specific question to try and answer.  

The "science" I was thinking of in my question is the actual science 
currently practiced now in the last decade of the twentieth century.  
I certainly wasn't thinking of some idealized science or the mere use 
of "reason and observation."

One thing I had in mind in my suggestion was the question as to whether
in many cases the subjective judgements of skilled and experienced
practitioners might be more reliable than statistical studies.  

Since Russell Turpin seems to be much more familiar than I am with
the study of scientific methodology, perhaps he can tell us if there 
is any existing research related to this question.  

--
In the arguments between behaviorists and cognitivists, psychology seems 
less like a science than a collection of competing religious sects.   

lady@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu         lady@uhunix.bitnet

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58948
From: ruegg@med.unc.edu (Robert G. Ruegg)
Subject: Re: Eugenics

Thanks to Tarl Neustaedter of MA for kindly letting me know that my
reference in prior post to Orwell and "1984" should probably have been to
Huxley and "Brave New World." 

Sorry, Al.

Bob (ruegg@med.unc.edu)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58949
From: marcbg@feenix.metronet.com (Marc Grant)
Subject: Adult Chicken Pox

I am 35 and am recovering from a case of Chicken Pox which I contracted
from my 5 year old daughter.  I have quite a few of these little puppies
all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

Is there any medications which can promote healing of the pox?  Speed up
healing?  Please e-mail replies, and thanks in advance.

-- 
|Marc Grant          | Internet: marcbg@feenix.metronet.com |
|POB 850472          | Amateur Radio Station N5MEI          |
|Richardson, TX 75085| Voice/Fax: 214-231-3998              |
    - .... .- - ...  .- .-.. .-..    ..-. --- .-.. -.- ...

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58950
From: <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: Re: Foreskin Troubles

This is generally called phimosis..usually it is due to an inflammation, and ca
n be retracted in the physician's offfice rather eaaasily.  One should see a GP
, or in complicated cases, a urologist.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58951
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

  Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the 
                        proper channels, you might consider ther following:..."
                        [diet omitted]

1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously
like a blood chemistry...glucose tolerance and the like...suddenly chemistry 
exists? You know perfectly well that this person can be saved needless trouble 
and expense with simple muscle testing and hair analysis to diagnose...no
"CONFIRM" any aberrant physiology...but then again...maybe that's what you meantby "proper channels."

2) Were you able to understand Dick King's post that "90% of diseases is not thesame thing as 90% of patients" which was a reply to your inability to critically
evaluate the statistic you cited from the New England Journal of Medicine. Couldyou figure out what is implied by the remark "Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly dispense placebos..."?

3) Ron...have you ever thought about why you never post in misc.health.alterna-
tive...and insist instead upon insinuating your untrained, non-medical, often 
delusional notions of health and disease into this forum? I suspect from your
apparent anger toward MDs and heteropathic medicine that there may be an
underlying 'father problem'...of course I can CONFIRM this by surrogate muscle
testing one of my patients while they ponder my theory to see if one of their  
previously weak 'indicator' muscles strengthens...or do you have reservations
about my unique methods of diagnosis? Oh..I forgot what you said in an earlier
post.."neither am I concerned of whether or not my study designs meet your or
anyone else's criteria of acceptance." 

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu







 
ideas 



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58952
From: twong@civil.ubc.ca (Thomas Wong)
Subject: Image processing software for PC



I am posting the following for my brother. Please post your replies or
send him email to his address at the end of his message. Thank you.
____________________________________________________________________

My supervisor is looking for a image analysis software for
MS DOS. We need something to measure lengths and areas on
micrographs. Sometime in the future, we may expand to do
some densitometry for gels, etc. We've found lots of ads and
info for the Jandel Scientific products: SigmaScan and Java.

But we have not been able to find any competing products. We
would appreciate any comments on these products and

suggestions / comments on other products we should consider.
Thanks.

 

Donald

UserDONO@MTSG.UBC.CA





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58953
From: robin@ntmtv.com (Robin Coutellier)
Subject: Critique of Pressure Point Massager

As promised, below is a personal critique of a Pressure Point Massager 
I recently bought from the Self Care Catalog.  I am very pleased with 
the results.  The catalog description is as follows:

	The Pressure Point Massager is an aggressive physical massager 
	that actually kneads the tension out of muscles ... much like a
	professional shiatsu masseur.  The powerful motor drives two
	counter-rotating "thumbs" that move in one-inch orbits --
	releasing tension in the neck, back, legs and arms.

	Pressure Point Massager    A2623   $109

To order or receive a catalog, call (24 hours, 7 days) 1-800-345-3371 or
fax at 1-800-345-4021.

********
NOTE:
When I ordered the massager, the item number was different, and the price
was $179, not $109.  When I received it, I glanced thru the newer catalog
enclosed with it to see anything was different from the first one.  I was  
QUITE annoyed to see a $70 difference in price.  I called them about it,
and the cust rep said that they had switched manufacturers, although it
looks and works exactly the same.  He told me to go ahead and return the
first one and order the cheaper one, using the price difference as a
reason for return.  In fact, since the newer ones might take a while to
ship from the factory (I received this one in 3 days), he told me I could 
use the one I already have until the new one arrives, then return the old 
one.  VERY reasonable people.
********

I have long-term neck, shoulder and back pain (if I were a building, I 
would be described as "structurally unsound :-) ).  I have stretches 
and exercises to do that help, but the problem never really goes away.  
If, for whatever reason, I do not exercise for a while (illness, not enough
time, lazy, etc.), the muscles become quite stiff and painful and, thus, 
more prone to further strain.  Even with exercise, I sometimes require 
physical therapy to get back on track, which 1st requires a doctor visit 
to get the prescription for p.t.  

The tension in my neck, if not released, eventually causes a headache
(sometimes confused with a sinus headache) over my left eye.  When my 
physical therapist has massaged my neck, and the sub-occipital muscles 
in particular (the 2 knobby areas near the base of the skull), the 
headache usually eased within a day, although it hurts like hell to 
while it is being massaged.

I ordered this device because it seemed to be exactly what I was wishing
someone would invent --a machine that would massage, NOT VIBRATE, my 
neck and sub-occipital muscles like my physical therapist has done in 
the past, that I could use by myself.  No doctor visit or inconvenient 
p.t. appts for a week later would be needed to use it.  I could get up 
in the middle of the night and use it, if necessary.

I have been using it for about a week or so now, and LOVE it.  The base
unit is about a 14" x 9" rectangle, about 3-3/4" high, with handles on each
side, and it plugs into an average outlet.  The two metal "thumbs" are about 
1-1/2" in diameter and protrude about 2-1/2" above the base.  The thumbs 
are covered with a gray cloth that is non-removable.  They are located more 
toward one end, rather than centered (see figure below).  They move in 
either clockwise or counter-clockwise directions, depending on which side 
of the switch is pushed, and are very quiet.  It can be used from either
side.  For instance, the thumbs can be positioned at the base of the neck
or the top of the neck, depending on which direction you approach it.


                 _______________________________
                |  __    _______________    __  |
                | |  |  |		|  |  | |
                | |  |  |  \^^/   \^^/  |  |  | |
                | |  |  |   ||     ||   |  |  | |
                | |  |  |		|  |  | |
                | |  |  |_______________|  |  | |
                | |__|			   |__| |
                |_______________________________|


For the neck/head, the user varies the amount of pressure used by (if 
laying down) allowing all or part of the full weight of the head and/or 
neck to rest on the thumbs.  The handles can also be used if sitting or
standing, applying pressure with the arms/wrists.  Since my wrists are
also impaired (I'm typing this over an extended period of time), and I 
don't have someone living with me who can apply it, laying down works 
well for me.

For my back, I sit in a high-backed kitchen chair, position the massager
behind me at whatever point I want massaged, and lean back lightly (or
not so lightly) against it.  The pressure of leaning back holds it in place.  
If I want to massage the entire spine, I simply move it down a few inches 
whenever I feel like it.  For my back, this machine is far superior to use 
than the commonly used "home-made" massager of 2 tennis balls taped together 
(with the balls, position (against a wall or door) them over the spine and 
move the body up and down against them).  The tennis balls are better than 
nothing, but difficult to use for very long, especially if your quads are 
not in good shape, and my long hair gets (painfully) in the way if I don't 
pin it up first.  As far as I'm concerned, the easier something like this 
is to use, the more likely I'll use/do it.  If there are multiple 
considerations/hassles, I'm more likely to not bother with it.

Not only has this machine helped with my headaches, but my range of motion 
for my neck and back are greatly increased.  The first time I used it on my
neck/sub-occipital muscles, however, I overdid it and pressed too hard
against it, which resulted in a very tender, almost bruised area for a
few days.  I laid off it for about 3 days and applied ice, which helped.  
After that, I was more gradual about applying pressure.  At this point, 
the pain in the sub-occipital area is now minimal while being massaged.  
I also learned to use VERY LIGHT pressure on my lower back, which is the 
most vulnerable point for me.

It also eased some painful knots of tension between my shoulder blades,
although, again, it took a few days of massaging (just a few minutes at
a time) to really work it out.

I highly recommend this product if you have similar problems, although I
cannot vouch for its durability (it seems pretty sturdy), since I've had
it such a short time.  I plan to use it not only to ease tension, but also 
to loosen the muscls BEFORE exercising (and maybe after, too).  I have
been ill recently and not able to exercise much for a few weeks, so this 
was very timely  for me.

This is the 1st product I've ordered from this company and only recently
became aware of it thru a co-worker.  The catalog states they have been
in business since 1976.  It contains quite a few health care products and,
while they appear to be more expensive than the average health care catalog
products, they also appear to be of much higher quality with more thought
put into what they actually do.  Definitely a step above some other ones
I've seen such as "Dr. Leonards Health Care Catalog" or "Mature Wisdom".
I'm only 37, but have ended up on some geriatric-type mailing lists (no
big surprise here :-) ).  I consider many of those products to be rip-offs, 
particularly targeted toward the elderly, with dubious health benefits.

I apologize for the length of this, but it's the kind of info _I_ would 
like to know before ordering something thru the mail.


Robin Coutellier                   
Northern Telecom, Mountain View, CA
INTERNET: robin@ntmtv.com
UUCP:portal!ntmtv!robin




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58954
From: cash@convex.com (Peter Cash)
Subject: Re: Need advice with doctor-patient relationship problem

In article <C5L9qB.4y5@athena.cs.uga.edu> mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes:
>Sounds as though his heart's in the right place, but he is not adept at
>expressing it.  What you received was _meant_ to be a profound apology.
>Apologies delivered by overworked shy people often come out like that...

His _heart_? This jerk doesn't have a heart, and it beats me why you're
apologizing for him. In my book, behavior like this is unprofessional,
inexcusable, and beyond the pale. If he's overworked, it's because he's too
busy raking in the bucks. More likely, he just likes to push women around.
I'd fire the s.o.b., and get myself another doctor.

-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             |      Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist.     |
Peter Cash   |       (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein)      |cash@convex.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58955
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Placebo effects

I know that the placebo effect is where a patient feels better or 
even gets better because of his/her belief in the medicine and 
the doctor administering it.  Is there also an anti-placebo 
effect where the patient dislikes/distrusts doctors and medicine 
and therefore doesn't get better or feel better in spite of the 
medicine?

Is there an effect where the doctor believes so strongly in a 
medicine that he/she sees improvement where the is none or sees 
more improvement than there is?  If so, what is this effect 
called?  Is there a reverse of the above effect where the doctor 
doesn't believe in a medicine and then sees less improvement than 
there is?  What would this effect be called?  Have these effects 
ever been studied?  How common are these effects?  Thank you in 
advance for all replies. 

... Information is very valuable but dis-information is MUCH more common.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58956
From: GAnderson@Cmutual.com.au  (Gavin Anderson)
Subject: Help - Looking for a Medical Journal Article - Whiplash/Cervical Pain

Hi,
I am not sure where to post this message, please contact me if I'm way off
the mark.
On 19.3.93 my wife went to her General Practitioner (Doctor). He mentioned
an article from a medical journal that is of great interest to us. He had
read it in the previous three months but has been unable to find it again.
The article was about Whiplash Injury/Cervical Pain. It mentions the use of
a MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imagery) machine as a diagnostic tool and the work
of a neurosurgeon who relived cervical pain.
This article is most likely in an Australian medical journal. I very much
want to obtain the name of the article, journal and author because the case
matches my wife. We would very much appreciate anyone's help in this matter
via email preferably.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gavin Anderson                              email: GAnderson@cmutual.com.au
Analyst/Programmer.                         phone: +61-3-607-6299
Colonial Mutual Life Aust. (ACN 004021809)  fax  : +61-3-283-1095
-----------Some people never consciously discover their antipodes----------

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gavin Anderson                              email: GAnderson@cmutual.com.au
Analyst/Programmer.                         phone: +61-3-607-6299
Colonial Mutual Life Aust. (ACN 004021809)  fax  : +61-3-283-1095
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58957
From: dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung)
Subject: _The Andromeda Strain_

Just had the opportunity to watch this flick on A&E -- some 15 years
since I saw it last.  

I was very interested in the technology demonstrated in this film
for handling infectious diseases (and similar toxic substances).
Clearly they "faked" a lot of the computer & robotic technology;
certainly at the time it was made most of that was science fiction
itself, let alone the idea of a "space germ".  

Quite coincidentally [actually this is what got me wanted to see
the movie again] I watched a segment on the otherwise awful _How'd
They Do That?_ dealing with a disease researcher at the CDC's top
lab.  There was description of the elaborate security measures taken
so that building will never be "cracked" so to speak by man or
nature (short of deliberate bombing from the air, perhaps).  And
the researchers used "spacesuits" similar to that in the film.

I'm curious what people think about this film -- short of "silly".
Is such a facility technically feasible today?  

As far as the plot, and the crystalline structure that is not Life
As We Know It, that's a whole 'nother argument for rec.arts.sf.tech
or something.
-- 
 | Next: a Waco update ... an Ohio prison update ... a Bosnia update ... a  |
 | Russian update ... an abortion update ... and a Congressional update ... |
 | here on SNN: The Standoff News Network.  All news, all standoff, all day |
 Daniel A. Hartung  --  dhartung@chinet.chinet.com  --  Ask me about Rotaract

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58958
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: Re: H E L P   M E   ---> desperate with some VD

>I can probably buy the 
>tools and this solution somewhere but I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO INJECTION BY
>MYSELF

You may also want to buy a 'self injector' or something like that.
My friend is diabetic.  You load the hyperdermic, put it in a plastic case
and set a spring to automatically push the needle into the skin and depress
the plunger.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58959
From: markmc@halcyon.com (Mark McWiggins)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Also, don't forget that it's better for your health to enjoy your steak
than to resent your sprouts ...
-- 
Mark McWiggins        Hermes & Associates		+1 206 632 1905 (voice)
markmc@halcyon.com    Box 31356, Seattle WA 98103-1356  +1 206 632 1738 (fax)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58960
From: sandy@nmr1.pt.cyanamid.COM (Sandy Silverman)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

From my reading of the popular, and scientific, literature,  I think that the
benzopyrene-from-burned-fat problem is probably real but very small compared to
other kinds of risks.  (This type of problem also occurs with stove-top pan
grilling.)  One possible remedy I have read about is to take some vitamin C with your meal of barbecue (or bacon, e.g.).  This MAY make sense because vit. C
is an antioxidant which could counteract the adverse affect of some of the 
chemicals in question.  Bon Apetit!     

--
Sanford Silverman                      >Opinions expressed here are my own<
American Cyanamid  
sandy@pt.cyanamid.com, silvermans@pt.cyanamid.com     "Yeast is Best"

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58961
From: gmiller@worldbank.org (Gene C. Miller)
Subject: Immunotherapy for Recurrent Miscarriage


     Following a series of miscarriages, my wife was given a transfusion of
my white cells. (The theory as I understand it is that there is some kind
of immune blocking that prevents the body from attacking the pregnancy as
it normally would a "foreign" body. Where this blocking is deficient, the
body evicts the "intruder", resulting in a miscarriage. The white cells
apparently enhance the blocking capability.) Following the transfusion, she
successfully carried the next pregnancy to term, and Jake is now an active
9 month-old who cannot wait to walk.
     We're now thinking about having another child, but no one (including
the OBGYN who supervised the first transfusion) really seems to know
whether or not the transfusion process needs to be repeated for successive
pregnancies.
     Is there anyone in net-land who has experience with this?
Thanks...Gene (and Jane and Jake)

P.S. I've also posted this in misc.kids.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58962
From: harvey@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Betty Harvey)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In rec.food.cooking, packer@delphi.gsfc.nasa.gov (Charles Packer) writes:
>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>I saw in the NY Times Sunday that scientists have testified before
>an FDA advisory panel that complaints about MSG sensitivity are
>superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?
>
I know that there is MSG sensitivity.  When I eat foods with MSG I get
very thirsty and my hands swell and get a terrible itchy rash. I first
experienced this problem when I worked close to Chinatown and ate Chinese
food almost everyday for lunch.  Now I can't tolerate MSG at all.  I can
notice immediately when I have eaten any.  I try to avoid MSG completely.

Interesting fact though is that all three of my children started experiencing
the exact same rash on their hands.  I couldn't understand why because I
don't MSG in cooking and we ask for no MSG when we do eat Chinese (I still
love it).  After some investigation I knew that Oodles of Noodles where
one of their favorite foods.  One of the main ingredients in the flavor
packets is MSG.  Now I look at all labels.  You would be surprised at
places you find MSG.


/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/
Betty Harvey  <harvey@oasys.dt.navy.mil>     | David Taylor Model Basin
ADP, Networking and Communication Assessment | Carderock Division
     Branch                                  | Naval Surface Warfare
Code 1221                                    |   Center
Bethesda, Md.  20084-5000                    | DTMB,CD,NSWC   
                                             |   
(301)227-3379   FAX (301)227-3343            |          
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\\/\/

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58963
From: sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)


In article <1993Apr16.210916.6958@cs.rochester.edu>, fulk@cs.rochester.edu (Mark Fulk) writes:

|> I'm not familiar with the history of this experiment, although, arguably,
|> I should be.

For a brief, but pretty detailed account, try Hempel's _Philosophy of
Natural Science_.

|> I think that it is enough if his contemporaries found the result surprising.
|> That's not what I'd quibble about.  What I'd like to know are Toricelli's
|> reasons for doing his experiment; not the post hoc _constructed_ reasons,
|> but the thoughts in his head as he considered the problem.  It may be

This smacks a bit of ideology -- the supposition being that Toricelli's
subsequent descriptions of his reasoning are not veridical.  It gets dangerously
close to an unfalsifiable view of the history and methodology of science if
we deny that no subsequent reports of experimenters are reliable descriptions
of their "real" reasons.

|> impossible to know much about Toricelli's thoughts; that's too bad if
|> it is so.  One of Root-Bernstein's services to science is that he has gone
|> rooting about in Pasteur's and Fleming's (and other people's) notes, and has
|> discovered some surprising clues about their motivations.  Pasteur never
|> publicly admitted his plan to create mirror-image life, but the dreams are
|> right there in his notebooks (finally public after many years), ready for
|> anyone to read.  And I and my friends often have the most ridiculous
|> reasons for pursuing results; one of my best came because I was mad at
|> a colleague for a poorly-written claim (I disproved the claim).
|> 
|> Of course, Toricelli's case may be an example of a rarety: where the
|> fantasy not only motivates the experiment, but turns out to be right
|> in the end.

But my point is that this type of case is *not* a rarity.  In fact, I was
going to point to Pasteur as yet another rather common example -- particularly
the studies on spontaneous generation and fermentation.  I will readily
concede that "ridiculous reasons" can play an important role in how
scientists spend their time.  But one should not confuse motivation with
methodology nor suppose that ridiculous reasons provide the impetus in the
majority of cases based on relatively infrequent anecdotal evidence.
-- 
Gary H. Merrill  [Principal Systems Developer, C Compiler Development]
SAS Institute Inc. / SAS Campus Dr. / Cary, NC  27513 / (919) 677-8000
sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com ... !mcnc!sas!sasghm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58964
From: sbrenner@cbnewsb.cb.att.com (scott.d.brenner)
Subject: What's the Difference Between an M.D. and a D.O.?

My wife and I are in the process of selecting a pediatrician for our
first child (due June 15th).  We interviewed a young doctor last week
and were very impressed with her.  However, I discovered that she is
actually not an Medical Doctor (M.D.) but rather a "Doctor of 
Osteopathy" (D.O.).  What's the difference?  I believe the pediatrician
*I* went to for many years was a D.O. and he didn't seem different from
any other doctor I've seen over the years.

My dictionary says that osteopathy is "a medical therapy that emphasizes
manipulative techniques for correcting somatic abnormalities thought
to cause disease and inhibit recovery."

Jeez, this sounds like chiropractic.  I remember getting shots and
medicine from *my* pediatrician D.O., and don't remember any 
"manipulative techniques".  Perhaps someone could enlighten me as to
the real, practical difference between an M.D. and a D.O.  Also, I'm
interesting in hearing any opinions on choosing a pediatrician who
follows one or the other medical philosophy.

Readers of sci.med:  Please respond directly to sbrenner@attmail.com;
I do not read this group regularly and probably won't see your response
if you just post it here.  Sorry for the cross-posting, but I'm hoping
there's some expertise here.

a T d H v A a N n K c S e

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Scott D. Brenner                  AT&T Consumer Communications Services
sbrenner@attmail.com                          Basking Ridge, New Jersey
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58965
From: davallen@vms.macc.wisc.edu
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <79738@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes...

>This reminds me of the last Graham Kerr cooking show I saw.  Today he
>smoked meat on the stovetop in a big pot!  He used a strange technique
>I'd never seen before.
> 
>He took a big pot with lid, and placed a tray in it made from aluminum foil.
>The tray was about the size and shape of a typical coffee-table ash tray,
>made by crumpling a sheet of foil around the edges.
> 
>In the tray, he placed a couple spoonfuls of brown sugar, a similar
>quantity of brown rice (he said any rice will do), the contents of two
>teabags of Earl Grey tea, and a few cloves.
> 
>On top of this was placed an ordinary aluminum basket-type steamer, with
>two chicken breasts in it.  The lid was put on, and the whole assembly
>went on the stovetop at high heat for 10 or 12 minutes.
> 
>Later, he removed what looked like smoked chicken breasts.  What surprises
>and concerns me are:
> 
>1)  No wood chips.  Where does the smoke flavor come from?
> 
>2)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember hearing that carmel color
>    (obtained by caramelizing sugar -- a common coloring and flavoring
>    agent) had been found to be carcinogenic.  I believe they injected
>    it under the skin of rats, or something.  If the results were conclusive,
>    caramel color would not be legal in the U.S., yet it is still being
>    used.  Was the initial research result found to be incorrect, or what?
> 
>3)  About 5 or 10 years ago, I remember Earl Grey tea being implicated
>    as carcinogenic, because it contains oil of bergamot (an extract
>    from the skin of a type of citrus fruit).  Does anyone know whatever
>    happened with that story?  If it were carcinogenic, Earl Grey tea
>    could not have it as an additive, yet it apparently continues to do
>    so.
> 
>WRT natural wood smoke (I've smoking a duck right now, as it happens),
>I've noticed that a heavily-smoked food item will have an unpleasant tangy
>taste when eaten directly out of the smoker if the smoke has only recently
>stopped flowing.  I find the best taste to be had by using dry wood chips,
>getting lots of smoke right up at the beginning of the cooking process,
>then slowly barbequing for hours and hours without adding additional wood chips.
> 
>My theory is that the unpleasant tangy molecules are low-molecular weight
>stuff, like terpenes, and that the smoky flavor molecules are some sort
>of larger molecule more similar to tar.  The long barbeque time after
>the initial intensive smoke drives off the low-molecular weight stuff,
>just leaving the flavor behind.  Does anyone know if my theory is correct?
> 
>I also remember hearing that the combustion products of fat dripping
>on the charcoal and burning are carcinogenic.  For that reason, and because
>it covers the product with soot and some unpleasant tanginess, I only grill
>non-drippy meats like prawns directly over hot coals.  I do stuff like this
>duck by indirect heat.  I have a long rectangular Weber, and I put the coals
>at one end and the meat at the other end.  The fat drops directly on the
>floor below the meat, and next time I use the barbeque I make the fire
>in that end to burn off the fat and help ignite the coals.
> 
>And yet another reason I've heard not to smoke or barbeque meat is that
>smoked cured meat, like pork sausage and bacon, contains
>nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic.  I'm pretty sure this claim actually
>has some standing, don't know about the others.
> 
>An amusing incident I recall was the Duncan Hines scandal, when it was
>discovered that the people who make Duncan Hines cake mix were putting
>a lot of ethylene dibromide (EDB) into the cake mix to suppress weevils.
>This is a fumigant which is known to be carcinogenic.
>The guy who represented the company in the press conference defended
>himself by saying that the risk from eating Duncan Hines products every day
>for a year would be equal to the cancer risk from eating two charcoal-
>broiled steaks.  What a great analogy!  When I first heard that, my
>immediate reaction was we should make that a standard unit!  One charcoal
>broiled steak would be equivalent to 0.5 Duncans!

I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
naturally occuring substances (excluding "controlled" substances) are
pretty much unregulated in terms of their use as food, food additives
or other "consumption".  It's only when the chemists concoct (sp?) an
ingredient that it falls under FDA regulations.  Otherwise, if they 
really looked closely they would find a reason to ban almost everything.
How in the world do you suppose it's legal to "consume" tobacco products
(which probably SHOULD be banned)?

	Dave Allen
	Space Science & Engr. Ctr.
	UW-Madison

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58966
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Placebo effects

-*-----
In article <735157066.AA00449@calcom.socal.com> Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince) writes:
> Is there an effect where the doctor believes so strongly in a 
> medicine that he/she sees improvement where the is none or sees 
> more improvement than there is?  If so, what is this effect 
> called?  Is there a reverse of the above effect where the doctor 
> doesn't believe in a medicine and then sees less improvement than 
> there is?  What would this effect be called?  Have these effects 
> ever been studied?  How common are these effects?  Thank you in 
> advance for all replies. 

These effects are a very real concern in conducting studies of new
treatments.  Researchers try to limit this kind of effect by 
performing studies that are "blind" in various ways.  Some of these
are:

  o  The subjects of the study do not know whether they receive a 
     placebo or the test treatment, i.e., whether they are in the
     control group or the test group.

  o  Those administering the treatment do not know which subjects 
     receive a placebo or the test treatment.

  o  Those evaluating individual results do not know which subjects
     receive a placebo or the test treatment.

Obviously, at the point at which the data is analyzed, one has to 
differentiate the test group from the control group.  But the analysis
is quasi-public: the researcher describes it and presents the data on
which it is based so that others can verify it.  

It is worth noting that in biological studies where the subjects are
animals, such as mice, there were many cases of skewed results because
those who performed the study did not "blind" themselves.  It is not
considered so important to make mice more ignorant than they already
are, though it is important that in all respects except the one tested,
the control and test groups are treated alike.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58967
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>
>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?

There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58968
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Surgery of damaged tendons and median nerve

In article <BHATT.93Apr12161425@wesley.src.honeywell.com> bhatt@src.honeywell.com writes:
>I thought I will explore the net wisdom with the following questions:
>
>  Is there any better way to control the pain than what the surgeon suggested?
>  How long will such pain last?  Will the pain recur in the future?
>
No one can answer that.  If she gets reflex sympathetic dystrophy,
it could last forever.  Just hope she does not.  Most don't.

>  Do damaged (partially cut) tendons heal completely and is all of the finger
>  strength regained?  How long does it take for the complete healing process?
>

Sometimes they do and sometimes they don't.  You just have to do the
best job you can reattaching and hope.  You should know in a few
months.






-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58969
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <1993Apr17.184305.18758@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!saimiri.primate.wisc.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!think.com!hsdndev!spdcc!dyer
   From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
   Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA
   References: <20996.3049.uupcb@factory.com> <79727@cup.portal.com>
   Date: Sat, 17 Apr 1993 18:43:05 GMT
   Lines: 18

   In article <79727@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
   >I remember hearing a few years back about a new therapy for hyperactivity
   >which involved aggressively eliminating artificial coloring and flavoring
   >from the diet.  The theory -- which was backed up by interesting anecdotal
   >results -- is that certain people are just way more sensitive to these
   >chemicals than other people.  I don't remember any connection being made
   >with seizures, but it certainly couldn't hurt to try an all-natural diet.

   Yeah, the "Feingold Diet" is a load of crap.  Children diagnosed with ADD
   who are placed on this diet show no improvement in their intellectual and
   social skills, which in fact continue to decline.  Of course, the parents
   who are enthusiastic about this approach lap it up at the expense of their
   children's development.  So much for the value of "interesting anecdotal
   results".  People will believe anything if they want to.

   -- 
   Steve Dyer
   dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer


Thanks for all the interest in this problem of mine. I don't think it
is a reaction to sugar or junk food per se since Kathryn has never shown
any signs of hyperactivity or changes in behavior in response to food.
She has always been very calm and dare I say, a neat, smart kid.

The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 

Anyway, our next trip is to an endocrinologist to check out the body
chemistry.  But so far, no more sugar coated cereals and no more seizures
either.  Every day that goes by without one makes me heave a sigh of
relief.  Thanks again.

--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58970
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: ORGAN DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION FACT SHEET

In article <1993Apr13.150018.641@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com writes:

>My wife cannot donate blood because she has been to a malarial region
>in the past three years.  In fact, she tried to have her bone marrow
>typed and they wouldn't even do that!  Why?
>
The FDA, I believe.  Rules say no blood or blood products donations
from anyone who has been in a malarial area for 3 years.  I was a platelet
donor until my Thailand trip and my blood bank was very disappointed
to find out they couldn't use me for 3 years.

>
>When the secretary of state asked me if I wanted to donate my
>organs I said no because I figured that no one would want them
>given my history.  Was I correct?
>
Not necessarily.  The same rules may not apply to organ donation
as to blood donation.  In fact, I'm sure they don't.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58971
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Mississippi River water and catfish: safe?

In article <1993Apr12.204033.126645@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>I've been invited to spend a couple weeks this summer rafting down the
>Mississippi.  My journey partners want to live off of river water and
>catfish along the route.  Should I have any concerns about pollution or
>health risks in doing this?

You'd have to purify the river water first.  I'm not sure how practical
that is with the Mississippi.  You'd better check with health agencies
along the way to see if there are toxic chemicals in the river.  If
it is just microorganisms, those can be filtered or killed, but you
may need activated charcoal or other means to purify from chemicals.
Better be same than sorry.  Obviously, drinking the river without
processing it is likely to make you sick from bacteria and parasites.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58972
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1993Apr12.231544.5990@cnsvax.uwec.edu> nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

> 
>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against FMGs.  I


Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.  
Most programs discriminate, in that given an FMG equally
qualified as an American they will take the American.  What
rights do they actually have?  Does it matter if they are
US citizens (most are not)?  We have had good luck with FMGs
and bad luck.  SOme of our very best residents have been FMGs.
Also, our very worst.  As it turns out, the worst FMGs are often
US citizens that studied in off-shore medical schools.  Of the
5 residents fired for incompetence in the 12 years I've been here 
in my department, all have been FMGs.  3 were US citizens who studied 
in Guadalajara, 1 was a US citizen but was trained in the Soviet Union, 
and one was Philipina.  Unfortunately, all are now practicing medicine
somewhere, 3 of them in Neurology after having been picked up by 
other programs, 1 in psychiatry, and the other in emergency medicine.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58973
From: cash@convex.com (Peter Cash)
Subject: "liver" spots

What causes those little brown spots on older people's hands? Are they
called "liver spots" because they're sort of liver-colored, or do they
indicate some actual liver dysfunction?
-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
             |      Die Welt ist alles, was Zerfall ist.     |
Peter Cash   |       (apologies to Ludwig Wittgenstein)      |cash@convex.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58974
From: thomasd@tps.COM (Thomas W. Day)
Subject: Re: _The Andromeda Strain_

In article <C5pvp5.82L@chinet.chi.il.us> dhartung@chinet.chi.il.us (Dan Hartung) writes:

>Just had the opportunity to watch this flick on A&E -- some 15 years
>since I saw it last.  

Wow, the WWII channel did something not-WWII?

>I was very interested in the technology demonstrated in this film
>for handling infectious diseases (and similar toxic substances).
>Clearly they "faked" a lot of the computer & robotic technology;
>certainly at the time it was made most of that was science fiction
>itself, let alone the idea of a "space germ".  

The graphics capabilities of the computers were very faked for movie 
audiences who have not ability or patience with numbers.  The book was more 
realistic in that respect.  In all respects, actually.  The robotics are 
still out of range, but not impossible.

>Quite coincidentally [actually this is what got me wanted to see
>the movie again] I watched a segment on the otherwise awful _How'd
>They Do That?_ dealing with a disease researcher at the CDC's top
>lab.  There was description of the elaborate security measures taken
>so that building will never be "cracked" so to speak by man or
>nature (short of deliberate bombing from the air, perhaps).  And
>the researchers used "spacesuits" similar to that in the film.

SF (and I"ve always wondered how Crichton escapes this classification) is 
usually ahead of science in both prediction and precaution.  NASA's 
decontaimination processes were supposedly taken to prevent SF story 
disasters.  I mean, NASA scientists were often SF readers (and 
sometimes writers) and felt pre-warned by their reading.

>I'm curious what people think about this film -- short of "silly".
>Is such a facility technically feasible today?  

I think the film still holds up among the best of SF films, but that isn't 
saying a whole lot.

>As far as the plot, and the crystalline structure that is not Life
>As We Know It, that's a whole 'nother argument for rec.arts.sf.tech
>or something.

Yep.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58975
From: calzone@athena.mit.edu
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)



>Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
>re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
>cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.
>
>What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
>goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
>favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
>check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
>VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?


You are absolutely daft.  No flame required.  You lack a brain.

> ...[sic]...
>Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
>which are the units of genetics.


Well... at least you're educated, it seems.  But give credit
where credit is due: to Richard Dawkin(s?) 
(the meme is a meme he invented)

-zone

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58976
From: sheffner@encore.com (Steve Heffner)
Subject: Hernia

A bit more than a year ago, a hernia in my right groin was
discovered.  It had produced a dull pain in that area.  The hernia
was repaired using the least intrusive (orthoscopic?) method and a
"plug and patch".

The doctor considered the procedure a success.

A few months later the same pain returned.  The doctor said that
he could find nothing wrong in the area of the hernia repair.

Now the pain occurs more often.  My GP couldn't identify any
specific problem.  The surgen who performed the original procedure
now says that yes there is a "new" hernia in the same area and he
said that he has to cut into the area for the repair this time.

My question to the net:  Is there a nonintrusive method to
determine if in fact there is a hernia or if the pain is from
something else?

Steve Heffner

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58977
From: davpa@ida.liu.se (David Partain)
Subject: Candida Albicans: what is it?


Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

Thanks.
-- 
David Partain                   |  davpa@ida.liu.se
IDA, University of Link\"oping  |  work phone:  +46 (013) 28 26 08
S-581 83 Link\"oping, Sweden    |  telefax:     +46 (013) 28 26 66

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58978
From: jil@donuts0.uucp (Jamie Lubin)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <19671@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
>>
>>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>
>There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
>same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.

I recall reading/seeing that former baseball star Chris Chambliss' hitting
abilities were (in part) attributed to a combination of left-handedness &
right-eye dominance.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58979
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <1993Apr18.175802.28548@clpd.kodak.com> Rich Young,
young@serum.kodak.com writes:

Stuff deleted

>	 ... have to
>	 consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a
>	 time."

I have to confess that this is one of my few unfulfilled ambitions.
No matter how much I eat, it still seems realistic.

Don Mackie - his opinion

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58980
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <9307@blue.cis.pitt.edu> Kenneth Gilbert,
kxgst1+@pitt.edu writes:
>situation.  QA activities are a routine part of every hospital's
>administrative function and are required by accreditation agencies.
 There
>are even entire publications devoted to QA issues.


Indeed. I spend about 60% of my time dealing with quality stuff. It
is a hot number. 
Two journals worth looking at are:-
Quality Review Bulletin. Pub:Joint Commission on Accreditation of
Healthcare Organizations, one Renaissance boulevard, Oakbrook
Terrace, IL 60181
Quality in Health Care. BMJ Publishing Group, Box No. 560B,
Kennebunkport, ME 04046

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58981
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

-*----
I think that part of the problem is that I have proposed a
definition of science that I intended to be interpreted broadly
and that Lee Lady has interpreted fairly narrowly.  My definition
is this: Science is the investigation of the empirical that avoids
mistakes in reasoning and methodology discovered from previous
work.  Lee Lady writes:

> I don't think that science should be defined in a way that some 
> of the activities that lead to really important science --- namely
> thinking and informal exploration --- are not recognized as
> scientific work.  

Unless one classifies "thinking and informal exploration" as a
mistake, they fall under my definition.  I hope no one would
consider speculation, thinking, and informal exploration as
unscientific.  

In article <C5nAsF.MH7@news.Hawaii.Edu> lady@uhunix.uhcc.Hawaii.Edu (Lee Lady) writes:
> Seriously, I'm not sure whether I misjudged you or not, in one respect.  
> I still have a major problem, though, with your insistence that science 
> is mainly about avoiding mistakes. ...

Here is where I think we are talking at cross-purposes.  It is not
clear to me that the kind of definition I have proposed should be
taken as describing what "science is mainly about."  Consider,
for example, a definition of invertebrates as all animals lacking
a backbone.  This fairly tells what is an invertebrate and
what is not an invertebrate, but it hardly tells you what
invertebrates are all about.  One can read this definition and
still not know that 95% of all animal species are invertebrates,
that invertebrates possess a remarkably broad range of form, that
some invertebrate groups -- such as insects and nematodes -- are
ubiquitous in all ecosystems, etc.  In short, knowing the
definition of invertebrates does *not* tell one what they are
"mainly about."

The misunderstanding here is my fault.  I did not give sufficient
context for people to understand my proposed definition.

> Okay, so let's see if we agree on this: FIRST of all, there are degrees 
> of certainty.  It might be appropriate, for instance, to demand carefully 
> controlled trials before we accept as absolute scientific truth (to the 
> extent that there is any such thing) the effectiveness of a certain 
> treatment. On the other hand, highly favorable clinical experience, even 
> if uncontrolled, can be adequate to justify a *preliminary* judgement that
> a treatment is useful. ...
>
> SECONDLY, it makes sense to be more tolerant in our standards of 
> evidence for a pronounced effect than for one that is marginal.  

I agree on both counts.  As an example of the second, it would only
take a few cases of curing rabies to convince most veterinarians
that a treatment was effective, despite a lack of controls.  

As to the first, I do not think it is useful to talk about
"absolute scientific truth."  I think it is more useful to talk
about the kinds of evidence that various claims have and the
kinds of evidence IN PARTICULAR FIELDS that in the past have
proven faulty or reliable.  The latter is obviously a matter of
degree, and in each field, practitioners try to discover the
relevance of different kinds of evidence.  

One of the primary mistakes that marks the advocacy of an idea as
psuedo-science is that the advocacy lacks any sense of proportion
regarding the kinds of evidence related to the proposed claim,
the kinds of evidence that are actually relevant to it, and the
historical reasons in the field that certain kinds of evidence
are given more weight than others.  It is perfectly alright to
speculate.  I have read quite a few refereed papers that
speculated left and right.  But the authors were careful to
identify the notions as speculative, to list what little evidence
was presently available for them, and to describe how research
could proceed to either put the notion on more firm footing or to
uncover its problems.  Often what distinguishes whether a paper
of this sort passes muster is the thoughtfulness with which the
author sets the context and paves the way for future work.  (It
is in this area that many proponents of speculative ideas fail.)

> The folks over in sci.psychology have a hundred and one excuses not to
> make this simple test.  They claim that only an elaborate outcome study
> will be satisfactory --- a study of the sort that NLP practitioners, 
> many of whom make a barely marginal living from their practice, can ill 
> afford to do.  (Most of them are also just plain not interested, because 
> the whole idea seems frivolous.  And since they're not part of the
> scientific establishment, they have no tangible rewards to gain 
> from scientific acceptance.) 

I think a lot of scientists steer away from things that --
deserving or not -- garner a patina of kookiness.  When
proponents of some practice see no value in more careful
investigation of that practice, that sets alarms ringing in many
researchers' minds.  

This is unfortunate, because there is undoubtedly some
intersection between things that are worth investigating and
things that are advocated by those who seem careless or
unreasonable in their advocacy.  On the other hand, I can
understand why many scientists would just as soon select other
directions for research.  As Gordon Banks has pointed out, no one
wants to become this generation's Rhine.

> One academic in sci.psychology said that it would be completely 
> unscientific for him to test the phobia cure since it hasn't 
> been described in a scientific journal. ...

I think this is absurd.  

> Actually, at least one fairly careful academic study has been done 
> (with favorable results), but it's apparently not acceptable because
> it's a doctoral dissertation and not published in a refereed journal.

I wonder why the results were not published.  In my field,
dissertation results are typically summarized in papers that are
submitted to journals.  Often the papers are accepted for
publication before the dissertation is finished.  (This certainly
eases one's defense.)

Finally, I hope Lee Lady will forgive me from commenting either
on NLP or the discussion of it in sci.psychology.  I know little
about either and so have nothing to offer.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58982
From: proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts)
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>
>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>

I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
show up in any chemical test.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58983
From: kutuzova@venus.iteb.serpukhov.su
Subject: THE RESEACHING OF STARVATION.

I am very interested in investigations of starvation for improving health.
I am the young Russian reseacher  and have highest medical education
 and expierence in reseach work in biological field and would like
 to work on this problem.
Can anybody send me the adresses of the hospitals or Medical Centers where  
scientific problems of human starvation for the health are investigated?  
Also I would like to set scientific contacts with colleagues who
deals with investigations in this field.
I would be very appreciated anyone reply me. 

Pls, contact by post: 142292, Russia, 
                        Moscow Region,
                        Puschino,
                        P.O. box 46, 
                        for Kravchenko N.      ;

       or by e-mail: kutuzova@venus.iteb.serpukhov.su
                                           
                                            Thank you advance,   
                                             Natalja Kravchenko.
  
 
                







Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58984
From: wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr17.202011.21443@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr17.184435.19725@cunews.carleton.ca> wcsbeau@alfred.carleton.ca (OPIRG) writes:
>
>There has been NO hard info provided about MSG making people ill.
>That's the point, after all.

Why don't you just look it up in the Merk? Or check out the medical dictionary
cite which a doctor mentioned earlier in this thread?


>
>That's because these "peer-reviewed" studies are not addressing
>the effects of MSG in people, they're looking at animal models.
>You can't walk away from this and start ranting about gloom and
>doom as if there were any documented deleterious health effects
>demonstrated in humans.  Note that I wouldn't have any argument
>with a statement like "noting that animal administration has pro-
>duced the following [blah, blah], we must be careful about its
>use in humans."  This is precisely NOT what you said.

Among others, see Olney's  "Excitotoxic Food Aditives - Relevance of
Animal Studies to Human Safety" (1982) Neurobehav. Toxicol. Teratol.
vol 6: 455-462.

I'm sure PETA would love to hear your arguments.

>>Tests have been done on Rhesus monkeys, as well. I have never seen a
>>study where the mode of administration was intra-ventricular.  The Glu
>>and Asp were administered orally. Some studies used IV and SC.
>>Intra-ventricular is not a normal admin. method for food tox. studies,
>>for obvious reasons. You must not have read the peer-reviewed works
>>that I referred to or you would never have come up with this brain
>>injection bunk.
>
>It most certainly is for neurotoxicology.  You know, studies of
>glutamate involve more than "food science".

Whose talking about "food science"? What is this comment supposed to
mean? *Neurotoxicology and Tratology*, *Brain Research*, *Nature*,
*Progress in Brain Research*: all fine food science journals. ;-)

>>Pardon me, but where are you getting this from? Have you read the
>>journals? Have you done a thorough literature search?
>
>So, point us to the studies in humans, please.  I'm familiar with
>the literature, and I've never seen any which relate at all to
>Olney's work in animals and the effects of glutamate on neurons.

Then you would know that Olney himself has casually  referred to
"Chinese Restaurant Syndrome" in a few articles. Why don't *you* point
us to some studies? Maybe then this exchange could be productive.

>>The point is exceeding the window. Of course, they're amino acids.
>>Note that people with PKU cannot tolerate any phenylalanine.
>
>Well, actually, they HAVE to tolerate some phenylalanine; it's a
>essential amino acid.  They just try to get as little as is healthy
>without producing dangerous levels of phenylalanine and its metabolites
>in the blood.

They're unable to metabolise it.

>>Olney's research compared infant human diets. Specifically, the amount
>>of freely available Glu in mother's milk versus commercial baby foods,
>>vs. typical lunch items from the Standard American Diet such as packaged
>>soup mixes. He found that one could exceed the projected safety margin
>>for infant humans by at least four-fold in a single meal of processed
>>foods. Mother's milk was well below the effective dose.
>
>Goodness, I'm not saying that it's good to feed infants a lot of
>glutamate-supplemented foods.  It's just that this "projected safety
>margin" is a construct derived from animal models and given that,
>you can "prove" anything you like.  We're talking prudent policy in
>infant nutrition here, yet you're misrepresenting it as received wisdom.

Who said anything about 'received wisdom'? There is no question that
orally administered doses of MSG are capable of destroying nearly all
neurons in the arcuate nucleus of the hypothalamus and the median
eminence. These areas are responsible for the production of
hormones critical to normal neuroendocrine function and the normal
development of the vertabrate organism. Humans are vertebrates. Now
what, pray tell, do you think will happen when the area of the brain
necessary for the normal rhythm of gonadotropin release is missing?
Are you trying to say that humans have no need of their pituitary,
ANH, and ME, of that part of the brain that is responsible for
controlling the realease (albeit indirectly) of estradiol and testosterone? 

How do you expect anyone to do the studies on this? It's unethical to
"sacrifice" humans to check out what effects chronic, acute, etc doses
of these compounds are having on the brain tissue in humans.  The food
industry knows this. That's why the animal model is used in medicine
and psych.  If you're talking about straight sensitivity, it would be
useful to define the term.  There are plenty of studies on
psychoneuroimmunology showing the link between attitude and
physiology.

I suspect we may be arguing about separate things; *only* adult sensitivities
(You), and late-occuring sequelae of childhood ingestion and its
implication for adults (me).  Certainly
the doses for excitotoxicity in adults are considerably larger than
for the young, but the additivity of Glu and Asp, and their copious
and increased presence in modern processed foods (jointly), and their
hidden presence in HVP, necessitates extreme caution. Why would anyone
want to eat compounds which have been shown to markedly perturb the
endocrine system in adults?  The main point is *blood levels*
attained, and oral doses would likely have to be greater than SC. 

>>Between who? Over what? I would be most interested in seeing you
>>provide peer-reviewed non-food-industry-funded citations to articles
>>disputing that MSG has no effects whatsoever. 
>
>You mean "asserting".  You're being intellectually dishonest (or just
>plain confused), because you're conflating reports which do not necessarily
>have anything to do with each other.  Olney's reports would argue a potential
>for problems in human infants, but that's not to say that this says anything
>whatsoever about the use of MSG in most foods, nor does he provide any
>studies in humans which indicate any deleterious effects (for obvious
>reasons.)  It says nothing about MSG's contribtion to the phenomenon
>of the "Chinese Restaurant Syndrome".  It says nothing about the frequent
>inability to replicate anecdotal reports of MSG sensitivity in the lab.

Olney's work provides a putative causal mechanism for some
sensitivities. Terry, Epelbaum and Martin have shown that orally
administered MSG causes changes in normal gonadotropic hormone
fluctutations in adults. Glu also was found to induce immediate and persistant
supression of rhythmic GH secretion, and to induce rapid and transient
release of prolactin in adults chronically exposed to MSG. GH is
responsible not only for control of growth during development, but
also converts glycogen into glucose. Could this be the cause of
headaches? I don't know.

>>>dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com 
>>Hmm. ".com". Why am I not surprised?
>>- Dianne Murray   wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca
>
>Probably one of the dumber remarks you've made.

If you had read Olney's review article, especially the remarks I
already quoted in an earlier post, you would know to what I was
alluding. May I ask exactly for whom you do computer consulting? :-)


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58985
From: bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <1993Apr17.195202.28921@freenet.carleton.ca>, 
ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:

> 
> 
> I have between 15 and 25 nosebleeds each week, as a result of a genetic 
> predisposition to weak capillary walls (Osler-Weber-Rendu). 
> Fortunately, each nosebleed is of short duration. 
> 
> Does anyone know of any method to reduce this frequency? My younger 
> brothers each tried a skin transplant (thigh to nose lining), but their 
> nosebleeds soon returned. I've seen a reference to an herb called Rutin 
> that is supposed to help, and I'd like to hear of experiences with it, 
> or other techniques. 
> -- 


My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.


Bev Zalan

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58986
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

K(>  king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
K(>
K(> RR>  ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) wrote:
K(> RR>  OTOH, who are we kidding, the New England Medical Journal in 1984
K(> RR>  ran the heading: "Ninety Percent of Diseases are not Treatable by
K(> RR>  Drugs or Surgery," which has been echoed by several other reports.
K(> RR>  No wonder MDs are not amused with alternative medicine, since
K(> RR>  the 20% magic of the "placebo effect" would award alternative 
K(> RR>  practitioners twice the success rate of conventional medicine...
K(>  
K(>  1: "90% of diseases" is not the same thing as "90% of patients".
K(>  
K(>     In a world with one curable disease that strikes 100 people, and nine
K(>     incurable diseases which strikes one person each, medical science will cure
K(>     91% of the patients and report that 90% of diseases have no therapy.
K(>  
K(>  2: A disease would be counted among the 90% untreatable if nothing better than
K(>     a placebo were known.  Of course MDs are ethically bound to not knowingly
K(>     dispense placebos...
K(>  
K(>     -dk
 
 Hmmm... even  *without*  the  ;-)  at the end, I didn't think anyone
 was going to take the mathematics or statistics of my post seriously.
 
 I only hope that you had the same thing in mind with your post, 
 otherwise you would need at least TWO  ;-)'s  at the end to help 
 anyone understand your calculations above...

  --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228:  This mind intentionally left blank.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58987
From: rousseaua@immunex.com
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

While in grad school, I remember a biochemistry friend of mine working with
"heat shock proteins". Apparently, burning protein will induce changes in he
DNA. Whether these changes survive the denaturing that occurs during digestion
I don't know, but I never eat burnt food because of this. 

Also, many woods contain toxins. As they are burnt, it would seem logical that
some may volatilise, and get into the BBQed food. Again, I don't know if these
toxins (antifungal and anti-woodeater compounds) would survive the rather harsh
conditions of the stomach and intestine, and then would they be able to cross
the intestinal mucosa?

Maybe someone with more biochemical background than myself (which is almost
*anyone*... :)) can shed some light on heat shock proteins and the toxins that
may be in the wood used to make charcoal and BBQ.

Anne-Marie Rousseau
e-mail: rousseaua@immunex.com
What I say has nothing to do with Immunex.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58988
From: todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey)
Subject: Krillean Photography

I think that's the correct spelling..
	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
appreciated.
	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.


-- 
_D_I_S_C_L_A_I_M_E_R_: I can neither confirm nor deny any opinions
expressed in this article directly reflect my own personal or
political views and furthermore, if they did, I would not be at
liberty to yield such an explanation of these alleged opinions.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58989
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

My comments about the Feingold Diet have no relevance to your
daughter's purported FrostedFlakes-related seizures.  I can't imagine
why you included it.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58990
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)
Subject: Re: eye dominance


> In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
> >
> >Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
> >overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
> >people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
> >other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?

I have a long sighted eye and a short sighted eye. My right eye tends
to cut out when I look at distant things, my left eye when I am close
up.  I had specs to balance things up a bit but could do without them.
I thought that, one way or another, I would always be able to see
clearly.  Unfortunately middle age is rearing its ugly head and I can
no longer see close up objects clearly.  Maybe it's just that my arms
are getting shorter :-)

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand     
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58991
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Adult Chicken Pox

In article <C5pM3o.BDo@feenix.metronet.com> marcbg@feenix.metronet.com
 (Marc Grant) writes:
>all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
>office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

Yes.

>Is there any medications which can promote healing of the pox?  Speed up
>healing?

Acyclovir started in the first 1-2 days probably speeds recovery and
decreases the formation of new pox.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58992
From: wsun@jeeves.ucsd.edu (Fiberman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

I have heard that epileptic patients go into seizures if they
eat anything with MSG added.  This may have something to do with
the excitotoxicity of neurons.

-fm

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58993
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye) writes:

>[reply to rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver)]
> 
>>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an overall
>>right-handedness in the population? I mean do most people require less
>>lens corrections for the one eye than the other? If so, what kinds of
>>percentages can be attached to this?  Thanks.
> 
>There is an "eyedness" analogous to handedness but it has nothing to do
>with refractive error.  To see whether you are right or left eyed, roll
>up a sheet of paper into a tube and hold it up to either eye like a
>telescope.  The eye that you feel more comfortable putting it up to is
>your dominant eye.  Refractive error is often different in the two eyes
>but has no correlation with handedness.
> 
>David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
>This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
>must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell


What do you mean "more comfortable putting it up to."  That seems a bit
hard to evaluate.  At least for me it is.  

Stare straight Point with both hands together and clasp so that only the
pointer fingers are pointing straight forward to a a spot on the wall about
eight feet away.  First stare at the spot with both eyes open.  Now
close your left eye.  Now open your left eye.  Now close your right eye.
now open your right eye.

If the image jumped more when you closed your right eye, you are right
eye dominant.

If the image jumped more when you closed your left eye, you are left eye
dominant.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58994
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

As nobody in the food industry has even bothered to address my previous
question "WHY DO YOU NEED TO PUT MSG IN ALMOST EVERY FOOD?" I must assume
that my wife's answer is closer to the truth than I hoped it was.

She believes that MSG is added to food to cause people to eat more of it
and not quit when they shoud be sated.  To put it a different way, she 
believes that for some people MSG causes them to act toward food like an addict.  
(Eat all the chips, chow down on several packages of noodle soup .... you get the
idea! }  IF she is right, then the moral and ethical standards of the 
food, chemical and regulatory groups need to be addressed!!!  Can MSG
be considered a conditioning substance (not addictive but sort of habit
forming) ?

This brings up a side question of mine.   I have noticed that cats (my
children's and my parent's) seem to fixate on a particular brand of pet
food. The cat will eat any product within one brand and not any other
brand.  I have wondered if this is not a case of preference, but, some
sort of chemical training or addiction. My questions, for the net, are:
Does the FDA regulate the contents of pet food?  Is it allowed for pet
food to contain addictive or conditioning substances?  Is MSG put in 
pet food?

-----------------------------------
I speak for myself and not Motorola
-----------------------------------
 
-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58995
From: tarl@sw.stratus.com (Tarl Neustaedter)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
> I think that's the correct spelling..

The proper spelling is Kirlian. It was an effect discoverd by
S. Kirlian, a soviet film developer in 1939.

As I recall, the coronas visible are ascribed to static discharges
and chemical reactions between the organic material and the silver
halides in the films.

-- 
         Tarl Neustaedter       Stratus Computer
       	 tarl@sw.stratus.com    Marlboro, Mass.
Disclaimer: My employer is not responsible for my opinions.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58996
From: leisner@wrc.xerox.com (Marty Leisner 71348 )
Subject: Intravenous antibiotics

I recently had a case of shingles and my doctors wanted to give me
intravenous Acyclovir.

It was a pain finding IV sites in my arms...can I have some facts about
how advantageous it is to give intravenous antibiotics rather than oral?

marty

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58997
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Betty Harvey writes,

> I am not a researcher or a medical person but it amazes me that 
> when they can't find a scientific or a known fact they automatically 
> assume that the reaction is psychological.  It is mind boggling.

This, simply stated, is a result of the bankrupt ethics in
the healthcare and scientific medicine industries.

America is fed up with the massive waste and fraud that is costing
us 15% of our GNP to support these industries, while delivering 
marginal health care to the community.

Unfortunately, the "Clinton Plan", in whatever form it
takes, will probably cost us an even greater sum.  Bleah.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58998
From: evanh@sco.COM (Evan Hunt)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?


In article <1993Apr19.215342.16930@sco.com> evanh@sco.COM (Evan Hunt) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr13.201942.26058@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com> sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com (Sharen A. Rund) writes:
 
>>restaurants advertize "No MSG") - many restaurants that feature salad
>>bars use MSG to "keep" the veggies looking fresh longer, also, a number
 
>This brings up an important question for me - could pre-made salads, the
>kind sold in supermarkets, have MSG added without mentioning it? Legally,
>I mean - anyone know what the law is in this area?


Steve Dyer points out that Sharen was probably thinking of Sulfites. But
the question still stands.
-- 
Evan Hunt, Asst. Editor, THE WEB
For more information about THE WEB, e-mail to evanh@sco.COM.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 58999
From: ski@wpi.WPI.EDU (Joseph Mich Krzeszewski)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

I seem to recall that there was an article in Radio Electronics about this
subject. In fact I have a copy of the article in front of me, but I can't
find anywhere in the article a refrence as to what month it was in. The system
they describe uses an automobile ignition coil for the high voltage. The 
article even includes some information on what kind of film to use and where 
to get it. 

Hope this helps.

Joseph M. Krzeszewski
ski@WPI.wpi.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59000
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: How about a crash program in basic immunological research?

In article <221@ky3b.UUCP>, km@ky3b.pgh.pa.us (Ken Mitchum) writes:
> As a physician, I almost never get sick: usually, when something horrendous
> is going around, I either don't get it at all or get a very mild case.
> When I do get really sick, it is always something unusual.
> 
> This was not the situation when I was in medical school, particularly on
> pediatrics.... Pediatrics for me was three solid
> months of illness, and I had a temp of 104 when I took the final exam!
> 
> I think what happens is that during training, and beyond, we are constantly
> exposed to new things, and we have the usual reactions to them, so that later
> on, when challenged with something, it is more likely a re-exposure for us,
> so we deal with it well and get a mild illness. 

This is also commonly seen in new teachers.  The first few years, they're
sick a lot, but gradually seem to build up immunities to almost everything
common.  Come to think of it, I was about my healthiest when I was
working in a pathogens lab, exposed to who-knows-what all the time.  Pre-OSHA,
of course.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59001
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Intravenous antibiotics

In article <1993Apr19.144358.28376@spectrum.xerox.com> leisner@eso.mc.xerox.com writes:
:I recently had a case of shingles and my doctors wanted to give me
:intravenous Acyclovir.
:
:It was a pain finding IV sites in my arms...can I have some facts about
:how advantageous it is to give intravenous antibiotics rather than oral?
:

I think some essential information must be missing here, i.e., you must be
suffering from a condition which has caused immunosuppression.  There is
no indication for IV acyclovir for shingles in an otherwise healthy
person.  The oral form can help to reduce the length of symptoms, and may
even help prevent the development of post-herpetic neuralgia, but I
certainly would not subject someone to IV therapy without a good reason.

To address your more general question, IV therapy does provide higher and
more consistently high plasma and tissue levels of a drug.  For treating a
serious infection this is the only way to be sure that a patient is
getting adequate drug levels.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59002
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

> I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
> be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
> naturally occuring substances (excluding "controlled" substances) are
> pretty much unregulated in terms of their use as food, food additives
> or other "consumption".  It's only when the chemists concoct (sp?) an
> ingredient that it falls under FDA regulations.  Otherwise, if they 
> really looked closely they would find a reason to ban almost everything.
> How in the world do you suppose it's legal to "consume" tobacco products
> (which probably SHOULD be banned)?

No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
1950's, before stuff like mass spectrometry became available, which increased
detectable levels of substances by a couple orders of magnitude.

This is why things like cyclamates and Red #2 were banned.  They are very
weakly carcinogenic in huge quantities in rats, so under the Act they are
banned.

This also applies to natural carcinogens.  Some of you might remember a
time back in the 1960's when root beer suddenly stopped tasting so good,
and never tasted so good again.  That was the time when safrole was banned.
This is the active flavoring ingredient in sassafras leaves.

If it were possible to market a root beer good like the old days, someone
would do it, in order to make money.  The fact that no one does it indicates
that enforcement is still in effect.

An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59003
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr19.204855.10818@rtsg.mot.com> lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby) writes:
>As nobody in the food industry has even bothered to address my previous
>question "WHY DO YOU NEED TO PUT MSG IN ALMOST EVERY FOOD?" I must assume
>that my wife's answer is closer to the truth than I hoped it was.
I don't mean to be disrespectful to your concerns, but it seems to me 
that you're getting all wound up in a non-issue.  

As many knowledgeable people have pointed out, msg is a naturally 
occurring substance in a lot, if not most, foods.  When food 
manufacturers add it to a preparation, they do so because it's a 
known flavor enhancer. 

Your wife's theory, that MSG is added to food to stimulate appetite, 
may well be true.  But I don't believe it's ALWAYS the reason it's 
added.  People are (largely, for the most part) in charge of their 
own appetites. 

>children's and my parent's) seem to fixate on a particular brand of pet
>food. The cat will eat any product within one brand and not any other
>brand.  I have wondered if this is not a case of preference, but, some
>sort of chemical training or addiction. My questions, for the net, are:
>Does the FDA regulate the contents of pet food?  Is it allowed for pet
>food to contain addictive or conditioning substances?  Is MSG put in 
>pet food?
>
You don't know much about cats, do you? 

Cats will Take Advantage of You.  Resign yourself:  you will never  
understand a cat.  Their tastes are whimsical.  

I also suspect, though it's been a while since I've checked ingredients 
on commercial cat food, that there are much more stringent requirements 
on pet food additives than human.  

See, the FDA has this stupid idea that human beings have the intelligence 
to look out after their own interests.  

Barbara, wondering how her cat would take care of *her*

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59004
From: kaminski@netcom.com (Peter Kaminski)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

[Newsgroups: m.h.a added, followups set to most appropriate groups.]

In <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M.
Huey) writes:

>I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures.

(It's "Kirlian".  "Krillean" pictures are portraits of tiny shrimp. :)

[...]

>One might extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object
>within the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

I think it's safe to say that anything that's not at 0 degrees Kelvin
will have its own "energy signature" -- the interesting questions are
what kind of energy, and what it signifies.

I'd check places like Edmund Scientific (are they still in business?) --
or I wonder if you can find ex-Soviet Union equipment for sale somewhere
in the relcom.* hierarchy.

Some expansion on Kirlian photography:

From the credulous side: [Stanway, Andrew, _Alternative Medicine: A Guide
To Natural Therapies_, ISBN 0-14-008561-0, New York: Viking Penguin, 1986,
p211, p188.  A not-overly critical but still useful overview of 32
alternative health therapies.]

  ...the Russian engineer Semyon Kirlian and his wife Valentina during the
  1950s.  Using alternating currents of high frequency to 'illuminate'
  their subjects, they photographed them.  They found that if an object
  was a good conductor (such as a metal) the picture showed only its
  surface, while the pictures of poor conductors showed the inner
  structure of the object even if it were optically opaque.  They found
  too that these high frequency pictures could distinguish between dead
  and living objects.  Dead ones had a constant outline whilst living ones
  were subject to changes.  The object's life activity was also visible in
  highly variable colour patterns.

  High frequency photography has now been practised for twenty years in
  the Soviet Union but only a few people in the West have taken it up
  seriously.  Professor Douglas Dean in New York and Professor Philips at
  Washington University in St Louis have produced Kirlian photographs and
  others have been produced in Brazil, Austria and Germany.

  Using Kirlian photography it is possible to show an aura around people's
  fingers, notably around those of healers who are concentrating on
  healing someone.  Normally, blue and white rays emanate from the fingers
  but, when a subject becomes angry or excited, the aura turns red and
  spotty.  The Soviets are now using Kirlian photography to diagnose
  diseases which cannot be diagnosed by any other method.  They argue that
  in most illnesses there is a preclinical stage during which the person
  isn't actually ill but is about to be.  They claim to be able to
  foretell a disease by photographing its preclinical phase.

  But the most exciting phenomenon illustrated by Kirlian photography is
  the phantom effect.  During high frequency photography of a leaf from
  which a part had been cut, the photograph gave a complete picture of the
  leaf with the removed part showing up faintly.  This is extremely
  important because it backs up the experiences of psychics who can 'see'
  the legs of amputees as if they were still there.  The important thing
  about the Kirlian phantoms though is that the electromagnetic pattern
  can't possibly represent a secondary phenomenon -- or the field would
  vanish when the piece of leaf or leg vanished.  The energy grid
  contained in a living object must therefore be far more significant than
  the actual object itself.

  [...]

  Kirlian photography has shown how water mentally 'charged' by a healer
  has a much richer energy field around it than ordinary water...


From the incredulous side: [MacRobert, Alan, "Reality shopping; a
consumer's guide to new age hokum.", _Whole Earth Review_, Autumn 1986,
vNON4 p4(11).  An excellent article providing common-sense guidelines for
evaluating paranormal claims, and some of the author's favorite examples
of hokum.]

  The crank usually works in isolation from everyone else in his field of
  study, making grand discoveries in his basement.  Many paranormal
  movements can be traced back to such people -- Kirlian photography, for
  instance.  If you pump high-voltage electricity into anything it will
  emit glowing sparks, common knowledge to electrical workers and
  hobbyists for a century.  It took a lone basement crank to declare that
  the sparks represent some sort of spiritual aura.  In fact, Kirlian
  photography was subjected to rigorous testing by physicists John O.
  Pehek, Harry J. Kyler, and David L. Faust, who reported their findings
  in the October 15, 1976, issue of Science.  Their conclusion: The
  variations observed in Kirlian photographs are due solely to moisture on
  the surface of the body and not to mysterious "auras" or even
  necessarily to changes in mood or mental state.  Nevertheless,
  television shows, magazines, and books (many by famous
  parapsychologists) continue to promote Kirlian photography as proof of
  the unknown.

-- 
Peter Kaminski
kaminski@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59006
Subject: What are knots?
From: ng4@husc11.harvard.edu (Ho Leung Ng)

    What exactly are knots, those sore, tight spots in your muscles?
In certain kinds of massage, people try and break up these knots; it this
really helpful?


Ho Leung Ng
ng4@husc.harvard.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59007
From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Mark McWiggins <markmc@halcyon.com> reminds us:

MM> Also, don't forget that it's better for your health 
MM> to enjoy your steak than to resent your sprouts ...

YES!

I call this notion "psychological health food" and, in fact, have
determined that the Four Food Groups are Ice Cream, Pizza, Barbecue, and
Chocolate.  Ideally, every meal should contain something from at least two
of these four groups.  Food DOES serve functions other than nutrition, and
one of them is keeping the organism happy and thus aiding its immune
system. 

And I didn't spend a million bucks commissioning a study that told me to
redraw my silly little pyramid in different colors and with a friendlier
typeface, either.  (Ref: Consumer Reports' back page--one of the best
things ever to turn up there.)

Rich Young <young@serum.kodak.com> writes of one of six impossible things:
RY> to consume unrealistically large quantities of barbecued meat at a time."

Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> confesses:
DM> I have to confess that this is one of my few unfulfilled ambitions.
DM> No matter how much I eat, it still seems realistic.

Yeah, I want to try one of those 42oz steaks (cooked over applewood) at
Wally's Wolf Lodge Inn in Coeur d'Alene.  That seems quite
unrealistic--unrealistically SMALL.  And a few slabs of ribs from the East
Texas Smoker (RIP, again) in Louisville is not at all unrealistic either.  

What say we have a rec.food.cooking dinner at the Moonlite Bar-B-Que Inn in
Owensboro? (It's all you can eat including lamb ribs & mutton for about
$10.)  We could invite Julie Kangas as guest of honor and see if the
Moonlite's Very Hot Sauce is too hot for her.  (It IS too hot for me, and I
don't say that very often.)  And she could bring ice cream with crushed
dried chiltepins for dessert.  

And we could see if there IS such a thing as an "unrealistically large
quantity" of barbecue--the owner of the Moonlite estimates that the
Owensboro restaurants serve a hundred thousand pounds of meat a week in the
summer, and forty thousand in the winter--in a town of 50 000 or so.  Two
pounds per person per week?   Again, sure sounds unrealistic to me--thats
just too meager to be healthy.

~ Kiran (Now a two-pound slab of ribs a day, THAT's realistic.)

-- 
FUZZY PINK NIVEN'S LAW:  Never Waste Calories.  Potato chips, candy,
whipped cream, or hot fudge sundae consumption may involve you, your
dietician, your wardrobe, and other factors.  But Fuzzy Pink's Law implies:
Don't eat soggy potato chips, or cheap candy, or fake whipped cream, or an
inferior hot fudge sundae.
                Larry Niven, NIVEN'S LAWS, N-SPACE


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59008
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds

In article <9304191126.AA21125@seastar.seashell> bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan) writes:
>
>My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
>to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
>days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
>vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.
>
If you can get it, you might want to try a Canadian over-the-counter product
called Secaris, which is a water-soluble gel.  Compared to Vaseline or other
greasy ointments, Secaris seems more compatible with the moisture that's
already there.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59009
From: myers@cs.scarolina.edu (Daniel Myers)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Frequently of late, I have been reacting to something added to
restaurant foods.  What happens is that the inside of my throat starts
to feel "puffy", like I have a cold, and also at times the inside of my
mouth (especially the tongue) and lips also feel puffy.

The situations around these symptoms almost always involve restaurants
(usually chinese), the most notable cases:  a cheap chinese fast food
chain, a japanese steak house (I had the steak), and another chinese
fast food chain where I SAW the cook put about a tablespoon or two of
what looked like sugar or salt into my fried rice.

I am under the impression that MSG "enhances" flavor by causing the
taste buds to swell.  If this is correct, I do not find it unreasonable
to assume that high doses of MSG can cause other mouth tissues to swell.

Also, as the many of the occurances (including two of the above)
involved beef, and as beef is frequently tenderized with MSG, this is
what I suspect as being the cause.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if toxicity studies of MSG in animals
showed it as being harmless, as it would be very startling to hear a lab
rat or rhesus monkey complain about their throats feeling funny.

Anyone who wishes to explain how the majority of food additives are
totally harmless is welcome to e-mail me with the results of any studied
they know of.  I will probably respond to them however with a reminder
of how long it took to prove that smoking causes cancer (which the
tobacco companies still deny).

- DM

(If I sound grumpy, it's because I had beef with broccoli for lunch
today, and now it hurts to swallow)

--
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dan Myers (Madman)		| If the creator had intended us to walk 
myers@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu	| upright, he wouldn't have given us knuckles
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59010
Subject: Origin of Morphine
From: chinsz@eis.calstate.edu (Christopher Hinsz)

	I am sorry to once again bother those of you on this newsgroup. 
If you have any suggestions as to where I might find out about the subject
of this letter (the origin of Morphine, ie. who first isolsted it, and why
he/she attempted such an experiment).  Once agian any suggestion would be
appreciated.
	CSH
p.s. My instructer insists that I get 4 rescources from this newsgroup, so
please send me and info you think may be helpful.  Facts that you know,
but don't know what book they're from are ok.
ATTENTION: If you do NOT like seeing letters such as this one on your
newsgroup direct all complaints to my instructor at <bshayler@eis.CalStat.Edu>


--
 "Kilimanjaro is a pretty tricky climb. Most of it's up, until you reach
the very, very top, and then it tends to slope away rather sharply."
					Sir George Head, OBE (JC)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOGIC: "The point is frozen, the beast is dead, what is the difference?"
					Gavin Millarrrrrrrrrr (JC)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59011
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

[reply to geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)]
 
>>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against FMGs.
 
>Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.
 
I think a case could be made that this is discriminatory, particularly
if an applicant had good board scores and recommendations but wasn't
offered an interview, but I don't know if it has ever gone to court.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59012
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

[reply to todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey)]
 
>I think that's the correct spelling..
 
Kirilian.
 
>The picture will show energy patterns or spikes around the object
>photographed, and depending on what type of object it is, the spikes or
>energy patterns will vary. One might extrapolate here and say that this
>proves that every object within the universe (as we know it) has its
>own energy signature.
 
There turned out to be a very simple, conventional explanation for the
phenomenon.  I can't recall the details, but I believe it had to do with
the object between the plates altering the field because of purely
mechanical properties like capacitance.  The "aura" was caused by direct
exposure of the film from variations in field strength.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59013
From: mstern@lindsay.Princeton.EDU (Marlene J. Stern)
Subject: Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis


We will be holding a bake and craft sale at Communiversity in Princeton on  
Nassau Street, Saturday April 24th 12-4 p.m. to benefit the Recurrent  
Respiratory Papillomatosis Foundation, a nonprofit foundation established to  
encourage research toward a cure for Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis.  Our  
three year old daughter suffers from this disease.  Below is a press release  
that appeared in local newspapers.  Hope you can join us.


On Saturday, April 24 as part of Communiversity in Princeton, a local family  
will be having a bake and craft sale to raise money for and create public  
awareness about a rare disease called Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis.

Bill and Marlene Stern's daughter Lindsay is afflicted with this disease  
characterized by tumors attacking the inside of the larynx, vocal cords and  
trachea.  Caused by a virus, the tumors grow, block the air passages and would  
lead to death from suffocation without continual surgery to remove the growths.   
Three year old Lindsay has undergone 11 operations thus far since her diagnosis  
last year and faces the prospect of over a hundred operations throughout her  
lifetime.  

Even though the disease is hardly a household word, it has affected the lives  
of enough people to inspire the formation of the Recurrent Respiratory  
Papillomatosis Foundation,  a non-profit foundation whose goals are to provide  
support for patients and families by networking patients and publishing a  
newsletter, enhance  awareness of RRP at the local and national level, and aid  
in the prevention, cure, and treatment.

Since medical researchers know that the virus causing the disease is similar to  
those viruses causing warts, they feel a cure would be within reach if money  
were available for research.  Because RRP is rare, it not only gets scant  
attention but also paltry funds to search for a cure.  Part of the RRP  
Foundation's mission is to change that. 

Anyone interested in contributing items to the bake and craft sale, please call  
Marlene or Bill at 609-890-0502.  Monetary donations can be made at the  
Foundation's booth during Communiversity, April 24th, 12 to 4 p.m., in downtown  
Princeton, or sent directly to:

			The Recurrent Respiratory Foundation
	                50 Wesleyan Drive
	                Hamilton Sq., NJ  08690.
Thanks   mstern@lindsay.princeton.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59014
From: med50003@nusunix1.nus.sg (WANSAICHEONG KHIN-LIN)
Subject: Re: MORBUS MENIERE - is there a real remedy?

It would be nice to think that individuals can somehow 'beat the system'
and like a space explorer, boldly go where no man has gone before and
return with a prize cure. Unfortunately, too often the prize is limited
and the efficacy of the 'cure' questionable when applied to all
sufferers.

This applies to both medical researchers and non-medical individuals.
Just because it appears in an obscure journal and may be of some use
does not make the next cure-all. What about the dozens of individuals
who have courageously participated in clinical trials? Did they have any
guarentee of cures? Are they any less because they didn't trumpet their
story all over the world?

As a parting note, wasn't there some studies done on Gingko seeds for
Meniere's? (To the original poster : what about trying for a trial of
that? It's probably not a final answer but it certainly may alleviate
some of the discomfort. And you'd be helping answer the question for
future sufferers.)

gervais


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59015
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Hernia

In article <C5qopx.5Mq@encore.com> sheffner@encore.com (Steve Heffner) writes:
>A bit more than a year ago, a hernia in my right groin was
>discovered.  It had produced a dull pain in that area.  The hernia
>was repaired using the least intrusive (orthoscopic?) method and a
>"plug and patch".



I suspect you mean laparoscopic instead of orthoscopic.



>Now the pain occurs more often.  My GP couldn't identify any
>specific problem.  The surgen who performed the original procedure
>now says that yes there is a "new" hernia in the same area and he
>said that he has to cut into the area for the repair this time.
>
>My question to the net:  Is there a nonintrusive method to
>determine if in fact there is a hernia or if the pain is from
>something else?


By far the (still) best method to diagnose a hernia is old fashioned
physical examination. If you have an obvious hernia sac coming down 
into your scrotum, or a bulge in your groin that is brought about by
increasing intra-abdominal pressure....
Sometimes is not that obvious. The hernia is small and you can only 
detect it by putting your finger into the inguinal canal. 
Whether you have a recurrent hernia, or this is related to the previous
operation, I can't tell you. The person that examined you is in  the best
position to make that determination.

Are there non-invasive ways of diagnosing a hernia? Every now and then 
folks write about CT scans and ultrasounds for this. But these are far
too expensive, and unlikely to be better than a trained examining finger.


====================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59016
From: med50003@nusunix1.nus.sg (WANSAICHEONG KHIN-LIN)
Subject: Re: Lasers for dermatologists

It is not true that dermatologists gave not reached the laser age, in
fact, lasers in dermatological surgery is a very new and exciting field.

It probably won't be effective in tinea pedis because the laser is
usually a superficial burn (to avoid any deeper damage). Limited tinea
pedis can be cured albeit sometimes slowly by topical antifungals as
well as systemic medication i.e. tablets. Finally, a self-diagnosis is
not always reliable, lichen simplex chronicus can look like a fungal
infection and requires very different treatment.

gervais


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59017
From: jer@prefect.cc.bellcore.com (rathmann,janice e)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <1993Apr19.171938.17930@porthos.cc.bellcore.com>, jil@donuts0.uucp (Jamie Lubin) writes:
> In article <19671@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> >In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
> >>
> >>Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
> >>overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
> >>people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
> >>other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
> >
> >There is eye dominance same as handedness (and usually for the
> >same side).  It has nothing to do with refractive error, however.
> 
> I recall reading/seeing that former baseball star Chris Chambliss' hitting
> abilities were (in part) attributed to a combination of left-handedness &
> right-eye dominance.
 
I was part of a study a few years ago at the University of Arizona to
see whether cross dominant individuals (those with a particular handedness
but who had dominance in the opposite eye) were better hitters than
those with same side dominance of hand and eye.  I was picked from
my softball class because I was cross dominant (right hand, left eye)
which put me in a small minority (and the grad student was trying to get
an equal number of cross dominant and same side dominant people).  To
control the study, she used a pitching machine - fast pitch.  Since
I was used to slow pitch, I didn't come close (actually I think
I foul tipped a few) to hitting the ball.  If there were a lot of people
like me in her study (i.e., those who can't hit fast pitch, or are
not used to hitting off a machine),  I would seriously question the
results of that study!!  I think there have been some studies of major
league players (across a fairly large cross section of players) to test
whether eye dominance being the same or opposite side was "better" -
but I don't know the results.  (The woman who ran the study I was in
said that there was a higher incidence of crossdominance in major
leaguers than across the general population - but I'm not sure
whether I'd believe her.)

Janice Rathmann




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59018
From: plebrun@minfminf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Bursitis and laser treatment

In article <1993Apr17.190104.14072@freenet.carleton.ca>, ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison) writes:
|> 
|> My family doctor and the physiotherapist (PT) she sent me to agree that the
|> pain in my left shoulder is bursitis. I have an appointment with an orthpod
|> (I love that, it's short for 'orthopedic surgeon, apparently) but while I'm
|> waiting the PT is treating me.
|> 
|> She's using hot packs, ultrasound, and lasers, but there's no improvement
|> yet. In fact, I almost suspect it's getting worse.
|> 
|> My real question is about the laser treatment. I can't easily imagine what
|> the physical effect that could have on a deep tissue problem. Can anyone
|> shed some light (so to speak) on the matter?

If it works it's only due to the heat produced by the laser.

-philippe


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59019
From: francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>I think that's the correct spelling..

Crullerian.

>	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.

Crullerian photography isn't educational, except in a purely satiric
sense.

>	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
>knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
>object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
>or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
>of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
>extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
>the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

Crullerian photography involves putting donuts between grease-covered
hot metal plates while illuminating them with a Krypton Stroboscope.
Through a unique iteration involving the 4th-dimensional projection of
a torus through the semi-stochastic interactions of hot monomolecular
lipid layers covering the metal plates (the best metal is iron since
it repels Vampires and Succubi) the donuts start developing flutes,
and within moments actually become poly-crenellated hot greasy
breadtubes. Some people believe that food is the way to a man's heart,
but most psychics agree that there is nothing like hot Crullers for
breakfast; the chemical composition of crullers is a mystery, some
thought evidence of Charles Fort's channeling in Stevie Wonder's
production of "The Secret Life of Plants" when played backwards in the
theatre of unnaturally fertile Findhorn Farms has deduced that they
are complex carbohydrates ordinarily only found by spectoscopy in the
Magellenic Clouds. I called Devi on my Orgone Box and asked her if
this was really the case, and she TM levitated me a letter across the
Atlantic to tell me it was indeed not just another case of
misunderstanding Tesla, though the Miskatonic University hasn't
confirmed anything at all. At least the Crullers taste good; I got the
recipe from Kaspar Hauser.





-- 
| Le Jojo: Fresh 'n' Clean, speaking out to the way you want to live
| today; American - All American; doing, a bit so, and even more so.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59020
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: 3rd CFV and VOTE ACK: misc.health.diabetes

This is the third and final call for votes for the creation of the
newsgroup misc.health.diabetes.  A mass acknowledgement of valid votes
received as of April 19th 14:00 GMT appears at the end of this
posting.  Please check the list to be sure that your vote has been
registered.  Read the instructions for voting carefully and follow
them precisely to be certain that you place a proper vote.
 
Instructions for voting:
 
To place a vote FOR the creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
email message to yes@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
To place a vote AGAINST creation of misc.health.diabetes, send an
email message to no@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
The contents of the message should contain the line "I vote
for/against misc.health.diabetes as proposed".  Email messages sent to
the above addresses must constitute unambiguous and unconditional
votes for/against newsgroup creation as proposed.  Conditional votes
will not be accepted.  Only votes emailed to the above addresses will
be counted; mailed replies to this posting will be returned.  In the
event that more than one vote is placed by an individual, only the
most recent vote will be counted.
 
Voting will continue until 23:59 GMT, 29 Apr 93.
Votes will not be accepted after this date.
 
Any administrative inquiries pertaining to this CFV may be made by
email to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil
 
The proposed charter appears below.
 
--------------------------
 
Charter:  
 
misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
 
1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
 
2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
by a primary health care physician.  
 
-----(end of charter)-----
 
The following individuals have sent in valid votes:
 
9781BMU@VMS.CSD.MU.EDU                  Bill Satterlee
a2wj@loki.cc.pdx.edu                    Jim Williams
ac534@freenet.carleton.ca               Colin Henein
ad@cat.de                               Axel Dunkel
al198723@academ07.mty.itesm.mx          Jesus Eugenio S nchez Pe~a
anugula@badlands.NoDak.edu              RamaKrishna Reddy Anugula
apps@sneaks.Kodak.com                   Robert W. Apps
arperd00@mik.uky.edu                    alicia r perdue
baind@gov.on.ca                         Dave Bain
balamut@morris.hac.com                  Morris Balamut
bch@Juliet.Caltech.Edu
BGAINES@ollamh.ucd.ie                   Brian Gaines
Bjorn.B.Larsen@delab.sintef.no
bobw@hpsadwc.sad.hp.com                 Bob Waltenspiel
bruce@uxb.liverpool.ac.uk               bruce
bspencer@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca           Brian SPENCER
cline@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu          Ernest A. Cline
coleman@twin.twinsun.com                Mike Coleman
compass-da.com!tomd@compass-da.com      Thomas Donnelly
csc@coast.ucsd.edu                      Charles Coughran
curtech!sbs@unh.edu                     Stephanie Bradley-Swift
debrum#m#_brenda@msgate.corp.apple.com  DeBrum, Brenda
dlb@fanny.wash.inmet.com                David Barton
dlg1@midway.uchicago.edu                deborah lynn gillaspie
dougb@comm.mot.com                      Douglas Bank
ed@titipu.resun.com                     Edward Reid
edmoore@hpvclc.vcd.hp.com               Ed Moore
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                  Eric J. Olson
emcguire@intellection.com               Ed McGuire
ewc@hplb.hpl.hp.com                     Enrico Coiera
feathr::bluejay@ampakz.enet.dec.com
franklig@GAS.uug.Arizona.EDU            Gregory C Franklin 
FSSPR@acad3.alaska.edu                  Hardcore Alaskan
gabe@angus.mi.org                       Gabe Helou
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                   Isaac Kohane
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                   Isaac Kohane
Geir.Millstein@TF.tele.no
ggurman@cory.Berkeley.EDU               Gail Gurman
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                 Gregory G. Woodbury
greenlaw@oasys.dt.navy.mil              Leila Thomas
grm+@andrew.cmu.edu                     Gretchen Miller
halderc@cs.rpi.edu
HANDELAP%DUVM.BITNET@pucc.Princeton.EDU Phil Handel
hansenr@ohsu.EDU
hc@Nyongwa.cam.org                      hc
heddings@chrisco.nrl.navy.mil           Hubert Heddings
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com         B.J.
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                 Herbert M Petro
HOSCH2263@iscsvax.uni.edu
hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu              Herman Rubin
HUDSOIB@AUDUCADM.DUC.AUBURN.EDU         Ingrid B. Hudson
huff@MCCLB0.MED.NYU.EDU                 Edward J. Huff
huffman@ingres.com                      Gary Huffman
HUYNH_1@ESTD.NRL.NAVY.MIL               Minh Huynh
ishbeld@cix.compulink.co.uk             Ishbel Donkin
James.Langdell@Eng.Sun.COM              James Langdell
jamyers@netcom.com                      John A. Myers
jc@crosfield.co.uk                      jerry cullingford
jesup@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com          Randell Jesup
jjmorris@gandalf.rutgers.edu            Joyce Morris
joep@dap.csiro.au                       Joe Petranovic
John.Burton@acenet.auburn.edu           John E. Burton Jr.
johncha@comm.mot.com
JORGENSONKE@CC.UVCC.EDU
jpsum00@mik.uky.edu                     joey p sum
JTM@ucsfvm.ucsf.edu                     John Maynard
julien@skcla.monsanto.com
kaminski@netcom.com                     Peter Kaminski
kerry@citr.uq.oz.au                     Kerry Raymond
kieran@world.std.com                    Aaron L Dickey
knauer@cs.uiuc.edu                      Rob Knauerhase
kolar@spot.Colorado.EDU                 Jennifer Lynn Kolar
kriguer@tcs.com                         Marc Kriguer
lau@ai.sri.com                          Stephen Lau
lee@hal.com                             Lee Boylan
lmt6@po.cwru.edu
lunie@Lehigh.EDU
lusgr@chili.CC.Lehigh.EDU               Stephen G. Roseman
M.Beamish@ins.gu.edu.au                 Marilyn Beamish
M.Rich@ens.gu.edu.au                    Maurice H. Rich.
maas@cdfsga.fnal.gov                    Peter Maas
macridis_g@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz           Gerry Macridis
markv@hpvcivm.vcd.hp.com                Mark Vanderford
MASCHLER@vms.huji.ac.il
mcb@net.bio.net                         Michael C. Berch
mcday@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu
mcookson@flute.calpoly.edu
mfc@isr.harvard.edu                     Mauricio F Contreras
mg@wpi.edu                              Martha Gunnarson
mhollowa@libserv1.ic.sunysb.edu         Michael Holloway
misha@abacus.concordia.ca               MISHA GLOUBERMAN 
mjb@cs.brown.edu                        Manish Butte
MOFLNGAN@vax1.tcd.ie
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us               David Muir Sharnoff
Nancy.Block@Eng.Sun.COM                 Nancy Block
ndallen@r-node.hub.org                  Nigel Allen
nlr@B31.nei.nih.gov                     Rohrer, Nathan
owens@cookiemonster.cc.buffalo.edu      Bill Owens
pams@hpfcmp.fc.hp.com                   Pam Sullivan
papresco@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca    Paul Prescod
paslowp@cs.rpi.edu
pillinc@gov.on.ca                       Christopher Pilling
pkane@cisco.com                         Peter Kane
popelka@odysseus.uchicago.edu           Glenn Popelka
pulkka@cs.washington.edu                Aaron Pulkka
pwatkins@med.unc.edu                    Pat Watkins
rbnsn@mosaic.shearson.com               Ken Robinson
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu            Richard H. Miller
robyn@media.mit.edu                     Robyn Kozierok
rolf@green.mathematik.uni-stuttgart.de  Rolf Schreiber
sageman@cup.portal.com
sasjcs@unx.sas.com                      Joan Stout
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
scrl@hplb.hpl.hp.com
scs@vectis.demon.co.uk                  Stuart C. Squibb
shan@techops.cray.com                   Sharan Kalwani
sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com         Sharen A. Rund
shazam@unh.edu                          Matthew T Thompson
shipman@csab.larc.nasa.gov              Floyd S. Shipman
shoppa@ERIN.CALTECH.EDU                 Tim Shoppa
slillie@cs1.bradley.edu                 Susan Lillie
steveo@world.std.com                    Steven W Orr
surendar@ivy.WPI.EDU                    Surendar Chandra
swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil            Steven Kirchoefer
S_FAGAN@twu.edu
TARYN@ARIZVM1.ccit.arizona.edu          Taryn L. Westergaard
Thomas.E.Taylor@gagme.chi.il.us         Thomas E Taylor
tima@CFSMO.Honeywell.COM                Timothy D Aanerud
tsamuel%gollum@relay.nswc.navy.mil      Tony Samuel
U45301@UICVM.UIC.EDU                    M. Jacobs  
vstern@gte.com                          Vanessa Stern
wahlgren@haida.van.wti.com              James Wahlgren
waterfal@pyrsea.sea.pyramid.com         Douglas Waterfall
weineja1@teomail.jhuapl.edu
wgrant@informix.com                     William Grant
YEAGER@mscf.med.upenn.edu
yozzo@watson.ibm.com                    Ralph E. Yozzo
Z919016@beach.utmb.edu                  Molly Hamilton
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59021
From: bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: RESULT: sci.life-extension passes 237:28

The vote to create the proposed group, Sci.life-extension, was
affirmative.

Yes votes:    237.
No votes:      28.

What follows is a list of the people who voted, by vote ("no" or "yes").

Here are the people who voted NO:

bailey@utpapa.ph.utexas.edu               (Ed Bailey)
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu          (Edwin Barkdoll)
msb@sq.com                                (Mark Brader)
carr@acsu.buffalo.edu                     (Dave Carr)
desj@ccr-p.ida.org                        (David desJardins)
jbh@Anat.UMSMed.Edu                       (James B. Hutchins)
rsk@gynko.circ.upenn.edu                  (Rich Kulawiec)
stu@valinor.mythical.com                  (Stu Labovitz)
lau@ai.sri.com                            (Stephen Lau)
plebrun@minf8.vub.ac.be                   (Philippe Lebrun)
jmaynard@nyx.cs.du.edu                    (Jay Maynard)
emcguire@intellection.com                 (Ed McGuire)
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu              (Richard H. Miller)
smarry@zooid.guild.org                    (Marc Moorcroft)
dmosher@nyx.cs.du.edu                     (David Mosher)
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                    (Eric J. Olson)
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                   (Herbert M Petro)
smith-una@YALE.EDU                        (Una Smith)
mmt@RedBrick.COM                          (Maxime Taksar KC6ZPS)
urlichs@smurf.sub.org                     (Matthias Urlichs)
ac999266@umbc.edu                         (a Francis Uy)
werner@SOE.Berkeley.Edu                   (John Werner)
wick@netcom.com                           (Potter Wickware)
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                   (Gregory G. Woodbury)
D.W.Wright@bnr.co.uk                      (D. Wright)
yarvin-norman@CS.YALE.EDU                 (Norman Yarvin)
ask@cblph.att.com
spm2d@opal.cs.virginia.edu

Here are the people who voted YES:

FSSPR@ACAD3.ALASKA.EDU                    (Hardcore Alaskan)
kalex@eecs.umich.edu                      (Ken Alexander)
ph600fht@sdcc14.UCSD.EDU                  (Alex Aumann)
franklin.balluff@Syntex.Com               (Franklin Balluff)
barash@umbc.edu                           (Mr. Steven Barash)
build@alan.b30.ingr.com               (Alan Barksdale (build))
lion@TheRat.Kludge.COM                    (John H. Barlow)
pbarto@UCENG.UC.EDU                       (Paul Barto)
ryan.bayne@canrem.com                     (Ryan Bayne)
mignon@shannon.Jpl.Nasa.Gov               (Mignon Belongie)
beaudot@tirf.grenet.fr                    (william Beaudot)
lavb@lise.unit.no                         (Olav Benum)
ross@bryson.demon.co.uk                   (Ross Beresford)
ben.best@canrem.com                       (Ben Best)
levi@happy-man.com                        (Levi Bitansky)
jsb30@dagda.Eng.Sun.COM                   (James Blomgren)
gbloom@nyx.cs.du.edu                      (Gregory Bloom)
mbrader@netcom.com                        (Mark Brader)
ebrandt@jarthur.Claremont.EDU             (Eli Brandt)
doom@leland.stanford.edu                  (Joseph Brenner)
rc@pos.apana.org.au                       (Robert Cardwell)
jeffjc@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca               (Jeffrey CHANCE)
sasha@cs.umb.edu                          (Alexander Chislenko)
mclark@world.std.com                      (Maynard S Clark)
100042.2703@CompuServe.COM                ("A.J. Clifford")
coleman@twinsun.com                       (Mike Coleman)
steve@constellation.ecn.uoknor.edu        (Steve Coltrin)
collier@ivory.rtsg.mot.com                (John T. Collier)
compton@plains.NoDak.edu                  (Curtis M. Compton) 
bobc@master.cna.tek.com                   (Bob Cook)
cordell@shaman.nexagen.com                (Bruce Cordell)
cormierj@ERE.UMontreal.CA                 (Cormier Jean-Marc)
djcoyle@macc.wisc.edu                     (Douglas J. Coyle)
dass0001@student.tc.umn.edu               ("John R Dassow-1")
bdd@onion.eng.hou.compaq.com              (Bruce Davis)
demonn@emunix.emich.edu                   (Kenneth Jubal DeMonn)
desilets@sj.ate.slb.com                   (Mark Desilets)
markd@sco.COM                             (Mark Diekhans)
kari@teracons.teracons.com                (Kari Dubbelman)
lhdsy1!cyberia.hou281.chevron.com!hwdub@uunet.UU.NET (Dub Dublin)
willdye@helios.unl.edu                    (Will Dye)
155yegan%jove.dnet.measurex.com@juno.measurex.com (TERRY EGAN)
eder@hsvaic.boeing.com                    (Dani Eder)
glenne@magenta.HQ.Ileaf.COM               (Glenn Ellingson)
farrar@adaclabs.com                       (Richard Farrar)
ghsvax!hal@uunet.UU.NET                   (Hal Finney)
lxfogel@srv.PacBell.COM                   (Lee Fogel)
afoxx@foxxjac.b17a.ingr.com               (Foxx)
i000702@disc.dla.mil               (sam frajerman,sppb,x3026,)
mpf@medg.lcs.mit.edu                      (Michael P. Frank)
Martin.Franklin@Corp.Sun.COM              (Martin Franklin)
tiff@CS.UCLA.EDU                          (Tiffany Frazier)
Ailing_Zhu_Freeman@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU      (Ailing Freeman)
Timothy_Freeman@U.ERGO.CS.CMU.EDU         (Tim Freeman)
gt0657c@prism.gatech.edu                  (geoff george)
mtvdjg@rivm.nl                            (Daniel Gijsbers)
exusag@exu.ericsson.se                    (Serena Gilbert)
rlglende@netcom.com                (Robert Lewis Glendenning)
goetz@cs.Buffalo.EDU                      (Phil Goetz)
goolsby@dg-rtp.dg.com                     (Chris Goolsby)
dgordon@crow.omni.co.jp                   (David Gordon)
bgrahame@eris.demon.co.uk                 (Robert D Grahame)
sascsg@unx.sas.com                        (Cynthia Grant)
green@srilanka.island.COM                 (Robert Greenstein)
johng@oce.orst.edu                        (John A. Gregor)
roger@netcom.com                          (roger gregory)
evans-ron@CS.YALE.EDU                     (Ron Hale-Evans)
brent@vpnet.chi.il.us                     (Brent Hansen)
Ron.G.Hay@med.umich.edu                   (Ron G. Hay)
akh@empress.gvg.tek.com                   (Anna K. Haynes)
claris!qm!Bob_Hearn@ames.arc.nasa.gov     (Robert Hearn)
fheyligh@vnet3.vub.ac.be                  (Francis Heylighen)
hin9@midway.uchicago.edu                  (P. Hindman)
fishe@casbah.acns.nwu.edu                 (Carwil James)
janzen@mprgate.mpr.ca                     (Martin Janzen)
karp@skcla.monsanto.com                   (Jeffery M Karp)
rk2@elsegundoca.ncr.com                   (Richard Kelly)
merklin@gnu.ai.mit.edu                    (Ed Kemo)
kessner@rintintin.Colorado.EDU            (KESSNER ERIC M)
mapam@csv.warwick.ac.uk                   (Mr R A Khwaja)
koski@sunset.cs.utah.edu                  (Keith Koski)
kathi@bridge.com                          (Kathi Kramer)
benkrug@jupiter.fnbc.com                  (Ben Krug)
farif@eskimo.com                          (David Kunz)
edsr!edsdrd!sel@uunet.UU.NET              (Steve Langs)
pa_hcl@MECENG.COE.NORTHEASTERN.EDU        (Henry Leong)
S.Linton@pmms.cam.ac.uk                   (Steve Linton)
alopez@cs.ep.utexas.EDU                   (Alejandro Lopez 6330)
kfl@access.digex.com                      ("Keith F. Lynch")
KAMCHAR@msu.edu                           (Charles MacDonald)
rob@vis.toronto.edu                       (Robert C. Majka)
phil@starconn.com                         (Phil Marks)
cam@jackatak.raider.net                   (Cameron Marshall)
mmay@mcd.intel.com                        (Mike May ~)
drac@uumeme.chi.il.us                     (Bruce Maynard)
i001269@discg2.disc.dla.mil               (john mccarrick)
xyzzy@imagen.com                          (David McIntyre)
cuhes@csv.warwick.ac.uk                   (Malcolm McMahon)
mcpherso@macvax.UCSD.EDU                  (John Mcpherson)
merkle@parc.xerox.com                     (Ralph Merkle)
eric@Synopsys.COM                         (Eric Messick)
pmetzger@shearson.com                     (Perry E. Metzger)
gmichael@vmd.cso.uiuc.edu                 (Gary R. Michael)
dat91mas@ludat.lth.se                     (Asker Mikael)
MILLERL@WILMA.WHARTON.UPENN.EDU           ("Loren J. Miller")
minsky@media.mit.edu                      (Marvin Minsky)
pmorris@lamar.ColoState.EDU               (Paul Morris)
Mark_Muhlestein@Novell.COM                (Mark Muhlestein)
david@staff.udc.upenn.edu                 (R. David Murray)
gananney@mosaic.uncc.edu                  (Glenn A Nanney)
anthony@meaddata.com                      (Anthony Napier)
dniman@panther.win.net                    (Donald E. Niman)
nistuk@unixg.ubc.ca                       (Richard Nistuk)
Jonathan@RMIT.EDU.AU                      (Jonathan O'Donnell)
martino@gomez.Jpl.Nasa.Gov                (Martin R. Olah)
cpatil@leland.stanford.edu          (Christopher Kashina Patil)
crp5754@erfsys01.boeing.com               (Chris Payne)
sharon@acri.fr                            (Sharon Peleg)
php@rhi.hi.is                             (Petur Henry Petersen)
chrisp@efi.com                            (Chris Phoenix)
pierce@CS.UCLA.EDU                        (Brad Pierce)
julius@math.utah.edu                      ("Julius Pierce")
dplatt@cellar.org                         (Doug Platt)
Mitchell.Porter@lambada.oit.unc.edu       (Mitchell Porter)
cpresson@jido.b30.ingr.com                (Craig Presson)
price@price.demon.co.uk                   (Michael Clive Price)
U39554@UICVM.BITNET                       (Edward S. Proctor)
stevep@deckard.Works.ti.com               (Steve Pruitt)
MJQUINN@PUCC.BITNET                       (Michael Quinn)
rauss@nvl.army.mil                        (Patrick Rauss)
remke@cs.tu-berlin.de                     ("Jan K. Remke")
ag167@yfn.ysu.edu                         (Barry H. Rodin)
ksackett@cs.uah.edu                       (Karl R. Sackett)
rcs@cs.arizona.edu                        (Richard Schroeppel)
fschulz@pyramid.com                       (Frank Schulz)
kws@Thunder-Island.kalamazoo.MI.US        (Karel W. Sebek)
bseewald@gozer.idbsu.edu                  (Brad Seewald)
shapard@manta.nosc.mil                    (Thomas D. Shapard)
habs@Panix.Com                            (Harry Shapiro)
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us                 (David Muir Sharnoff)
dasher@well.sf.ca.us                      (D Anton Sherwood)
zero@netcom.com                           (Richard Shiflett)
AP201160@BROWNVM.BITNET                   (Elaine Shiner)
robsho@robsho.Auto-trol.COM               (Robert Shock)
rshvern@gmuvax2.gmu.edu                   (Rob Shvern)
wesiegel@cie-2.uoregon.edu                (William Siegel)
ggyygg@mixcom.mixcom.com                  (Kenton Sinner)
bsmart@bsmart.tti.com                     (Bob Smart)
tonys@ariel.ucs.unimelb.EDU.AU            (Anthony David Smith)
sgccsns@citecuc.citec.oz.au               (Shayne Noel Smith)
dsnider@beta.tricity.wsu.edu              (Daniel L Snider)
snyderg@spot.Colorado.EDU                 (SNYDER GARY EDWIN JR)
blupe@ruth.fullfeed.com                   (Brian Arthur Stewart)
lhdsy1!usmi02.midland.chevron.com!tsfsi@uunet.UU.NET (Sigrid
Stewart)
nat@netcom.com                            (Nathaniel Stitt)
tps@biosym.com                            (Tom Stockfisch)
stodolsk@andromeda.rutgers.edu            (David Stodolsky)
gadget@dcs.warwick.ac.uk                  (Steve Strong)
carey@CS.UCLA.EDU                         (Carey Sublette)
jsuttor@netcom.com                        (Jeff Suttor)
swain@cernapo.cern.ch                     (John Swain)
szabo@techbook.com                        (Nick Szabo)
ptheriau@netcom.com                       (P. Chris Theriault)
ak051@yfn.ysu.edu                         (Chris Thompson)
gunnar.thoresen@bio.uio.no                (Gunnar Thoresen)
dreamer@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu                  (Andrew Trapp)
jerry@cse.lbl.gov                         (Jerry Tunis)
music@parcom.ernet.in                     (Rajeev Upadhye)
treon@u.washington.edu                    (Treon Verdery)
evore@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu           (Eric J Vore)
U13054@UICVM.BITNET                       (Howard Wachtel)
susan@wpi.WPI.EDU                         (Susan C Wade)
70023.3041@CompuServe.COM                 (Paul Wakfer)
ewalker@it.berklee.edu                    ("Elaine Walker")
jew@rt.sunquest.com                       (James Ward)
jeremy@ai.mit.edu                         (Jeremy M. Wertheimer)
bw@ws029.torreypinesca.NCR.COM            (Bruce White 3807)
weeds@strobe.ATC.Olivetti.Com             (Mark Wiedman)
wiesel-elisha@CS.YALE.EDU                 (Elisha Wiesel)
WILLINGP@gar.union.edu                    (WILLING, PAUL)
smw@alcor.concordia.ca                    (Steven Winikoff)
wright@hicomb.hi.com                      (David Wright)
ebusew@anah.ericsson.com                  (Stephen Wright 66667)
liquidx@cnexus.cts.com                    (Liquid-X)
xakellis@uivlsisl.csl.uiuc.edu            (Michael G. Xakellis)
cs012113@cs.brown.edu                     (Ion Yannopoulos)
yazz@lccsd.sd.locus.com                   (Bob Yazz)
lnz@lucid.com                             (Leonard N. Zubkoff)
62RSE@npd1.ufpe.br
adwyer@mason1.gmu.edu
ART@EMBL-Hamburg.DE
atfurman@cup.portal.com
billw@attmail.att.com
carl@red-dragon.umbc.edu
carlf@ai.mit.edu
cccbbs!chris.thompson@UCENG.UC.EDU
CCGARCIA@MIZZOU1.BITNET
clayb@cellar.org
dack@permanet.org
daedalus@netcom.com
danielg@autodesk.com
Dave-M@cup.portal.com
F_GRIFFITH@CCSVAX.SFASU.EDU
garcia@husc.harvard.edu
gav@houxa.att.com
hammar@cs.unm.edu
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com
hhuang@Athena.MIT.EDU
hkhenson@cup.portal.com
irving@happy-man.com
jeckel@amugw.aichi-med-u.ac.jp
jgs@merit.edu
jmeritt@mental.mitre.org
Jonas_Marten_Fjallstam@cup.portal.com
kqb@whscad1.att.com
LPOMEROY@velara.sim.es.com
lubkin@apollo.hp.com
kunert@wustlb.wustl.edu
LINYARD_M@XENOS.a1.logica.co.uk
M.Michelle.Wrightwatson@att.com
moselecw@elec.canterbury.ac.nz
naoursla@eos.ncsu.edu
ng4@husc.harvard.edu
pase70!dchapman@uwm.edu
pocock@math.utah.edu
RUDI@HSD.UVic.CA
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
stanton@ide.com
steveha@microsoft.com
stu1016@DISCOVER.WRIGHT.EDU
SYang.ES_AE@xerox.com
tim.hruby@his.com
Todd.Kaufmann@FUSSEN.MT.CS.CMU.EDU
tom@genie.slhs.udel.edu
UC482529@MIZZOU1.BITNET
WMILLER@clust1.clemson.edu
yost@mv.us.adobe.com

(The group still passes if you don't count the people for
whom I just have email address.)

-Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59022
From: filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch (VINCI)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr20.125920.15005@ircam.fr>, francis@ircam.fr (Joseph Francis) writes...
>In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>>I think that's the correct spelling..
> 
>Crullerian.
> 
 How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
 has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
 on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
 supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)

 Filipe Santos
 CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
 Switzerland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59023
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?

In article <1993Apr19.084258.1040@ida.liu.se> davpa@ida.liu.se
 (David Partain) writes:
>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

Candida albicans can cause severe life-threatening infections, usually
in people who are otherwise quite ill.  This is not, however, the sort
of illness that you are probably discussing.

"Systemic yeast syndrome" where the body is allergic to
yeast is considered a quack diagnosis by mainstream medicine.  There
is a book "The Yeast Connection" which talks about this "illness".

There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59024
From: marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1qk1taINNmr4@calamari.hi.com> rogers@calamari.hi.com (Andrew Rogers) writes:
>In article <1993Apr15.153729.13738@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:
>>Chinese, and many other Asians (Japanese, Koreans, etc) have used
>>MSG as flavor enhancer for two thousand years. Do you believe that
>>they knew how to make MSG from chemical processes? Not. They just
>>extracted it from natural food such sea food and meat broth.
>
>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
there other sources of MSG?

I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.


-- 
Steve Giammarco/5330 Peterson Lane/Dallas TX 75240
marco@sdf.lonestar.org
loveyameanit.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59025
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1993Apr20.004158.6122@cnsvax.uwec.edu> David Nye,
nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:
> 
>>>I believe it is illegal for a residency to discriminate against
FMGs.
> 
>>Is that true?  I know some that won't even interview FMGs.
> 
>I think a case could be made that this is discriminatory,
particularly
>if an applicant had good board scores and recommendations but wasn't
>offered an interview, but I don't know if it has ever gone to court.

FMGs who are not citizens are, like all aliens, in a difficult
situation. Only citizens get to vote here, so non-citizens are of
little or no interest to legislators. Also, the non-citizen may well
be in the middle of processing for resident alien status. There is a
stron sense that rocking the boat (eg. suing a residency program)
will delay the granting of that status, perhaps for ever.

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59026
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <myers.735287742@peach.cs.scarolina.edu> myers@cs.scarolina.edu (Daniel Myers) writes:
>I am under the impression that MSG "enhances" flavor by causing the
>taste buds to swell.

No, that's not how it works.

>If this is correct, I do not find it unreasonable
>to assume that high doses of MSG can cause other mouth tissues to swell.

This may be through a different mechanism.

>Also, as the many of the occurances (including two of the above)
>involved beef, and as beef is frequently tenderized with MSG, this is
>what I suspect as being the cause.

Tenderizing beef involves sprinking or marinading it in papain, an enzyme.
"Meat tenderizer" packets might contain papain and MSG and seasonings, but
MSG doesn't act as a tenderizer.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59027
From: dstock@hpqmoca.sqf.hp.com (David Stockton)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

VINCI (filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch) wrote:



:  How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
:  has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
:  on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
:  supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)

:  Filipe Santos
:  CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
:  Switzerland


    This has to be THE only, generally accepted, method of using common 
physics lab equipment to find certain answers to all the questions about
afterlifes, heavens, hells, purgatory, gods etc. Krillean photography
will probably be ignored as insignificant compared to these larger
eternal verities. Publishing your results could be a bit of a problem,
though.

   Cheers
             David

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59028
From: michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)

So, when we put one and one together, it can be safely assumed that
MSG may cause some allergic reactions in some people.

Stick with natural things.  MSG doesn't do body any good (and possibly
harms, for that matter).  So, why bother with it?  Taste food as it should
be tasted, and don't cloud the flavor with an imaginary cloak of MSG.

-michael

-- 
Michael M. Huang               | Don't believe what your eyes are  telling you.
ICEMT, Iowa State Univ.        | All they show is  limitation.   Look with your
michael@iastate.edu            | understanding, find out what you already know,
#include <standard.disclaimer> | and you'll see the way to fly. - J. L. Seagull 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59029
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
=I think that's the correct spelling..
=	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
=do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
=that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
=sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
=appreciated.
=	In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
=knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
=object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
=or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
=of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
=extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
=the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

Go to the library and look up "corona discharge."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59030
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: OCD


In article <C5r3n6.FG4@news.Hawaii.Edu>, sharynk@Hawaii.Edu () writes...
>I recently heard of a mental disorder called Obsessive Compulsive
>Disorder.  What is it?  What causes it?  Could it be caused by a
>nervous breakdown?
> 
Obesssive Compulsive Disorder (not to be confused with Obsessive Compulsive
_Personality_ Disorder !) is an acute anxiety disorder characterized by
either obsessions (persistent intrusive thoughts that cause anxiety when
not entertained), or compulsions (repetitive, ritualistic actions that
similarly cause intense psychological discomfort when resisted).  

OCD is often associated with certain forms of depression.  

Examples of obsessive thoughts are repeated impulses to kill a loved
one (though not accompanied by anger), or a religious person having 
recurrent blasphemous thoughts.  Generally, the individual attempts to ignore
or suppress the intrusive thoughts by engaging in other activities.  
The individual realizes that the thoughts originate from the own mind, rather
than being from an external source.

Examples of compulsive actions are constant repetitive hand washing,
or other activity that is not realistically related to alleviating a
source of the anxiety.

In OCD, the obsessions or compulsions are highly distressing to the
individual, take an hour or more per day, and significantly impair their
daily routine and social relationships.

Treatments include psychotherapy, behavioral methods, and sometimes
certain anti-depressants which have recently been found effective in alleviating
obsessions and compulsions.

The standard diagnostic code for OCD, if you want to look it up in the
DSM-III manual of psychiatric diagnosis is 300.30 .

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59031
From: julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <michael.735318247@vislab.me.iastate.edu> michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang) writes:
>MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
>restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
>go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
>a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
>of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
>time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)
>
>So, when we put one and one together, it can be safely assumed that
>MSG may cause some allergic reactions in some people.
>
>Stick with natural things.  MSG doesn't do body any good (and possibly
>harms, for that matter).  So, why bother with it?  Taste food as it should
>be tasted, and don't cloud the flavor with an imaginary cloak of MSG.

As I understood it, MSG *is* natural.  Isn't it found in 
tomatoes?

Anyway, lots of people are terribly allergic to lots of natural
things; peanuts, onions, tomatoes, milk, etc.  Just because something
is 'natural' doesn't mean it won't cause problems with some folks.

As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
has an ulcer.

People have long modified the taste of food by additives, whether
they be chiles, black pepper, salt, cream sauces, etc.  All of these
things cloud the flavor of the food.  Why do we bother with them?
How should food be tasted?  Isn't it better left to the diner?

Julie
DISCLAIMER:  All opinions here belong to my cat and no one else

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59032
From: jhoskins@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (James M Hoskins)
Subject: Cost of Roxonal


Does anyone know the approximate prescription cost
of a 250 ml bottle of Roxonal (morphine)?

Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59033
From: dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD)
Subject: seizures ( infantile spasms )


	The reason I'm posting this article to this newsgroup is to:
1. gather any information about this disorder from anyone who might
   have recently been *e*ffected by it ( from being associated with
   it or actually having this disorder ) and
2. help me find out where I can access any medical literature associated
   with seizures over the internet.

Recently, I had a baby boy born with seizures which occured 12-15 hours
after birth. He was immediately transferred to a major hospital in Boston
and has since been undergoing extensive drug treatment for his condition.
This has been a major learning experience for me and my wife not only in
learning the medical problems that faced our son but also in dealing with
hospitals, procedures...etc.

I don't want to go into a lot of detail, but his condition was termed 
quite severe at first then slowly he began to grow and put on weight
as a normal baby would. He was put on the standard anti-convulsion drugs
and that did not seem to help out. His MRI, EKG, cat-scans are all normal,
but the EEG's show alot of seizure activity. After many metabolic tests,
body structure tests, and infection/virus tests the doctors still do not
know quite what type of siezures he is having (although they do have alot
of evidence that it is now pointing to infantile spasms ). This is where
we stand right now....

If anyone knows of any database or newsgroup or as I mentioned up above,
any information relating to this disorder I would sure appreciate hearing
from you. I am not trying to play doctor here, but only trying to gather
information about it. As I know now, these particular types of disorders
are still not really well understood by the medical community, and so I'm
going to see now....if somehow the internet can at least give me alittle
insight. Thanks. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59034
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>In article davpa@ida.liu.se  (David Partain) writes:

>>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

>Candida albicans can cause severe life-threatening infections, usually
>in people who are otherwise quite ill.  This is not, however, the sort
>of illness that you are probably discussing.
>
>"Systemic yeast syndrome" where the body is allergic to
>yeast is considered a quack diagnosis by mainstream medicine.  There
>is a book "The Yeast Connection" which talks about this "illness".
>
>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.

There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,
before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
program.

In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
would have perceptible symptoms.  Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
such toxins can cause problems in some people.  In my case it was sinus
since that's the center of my allergic response.  Of course, the $60,000
question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
stress of infections and allergies, etc.), can develop excessive yeast
colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
far as I am concerned.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59035
From: RICK@ysub.ysu.edu (Rick Marsico)
Subject: Proventil Inhaler

Does the Proventil inhaler for asthma relief fall into the steroid
or nonsteroid category?  Looking at the product literature it's
not clear.
 
rick@ysu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59036
From: SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
 
>
>> I don't understand the assumption that because something is found to
>> be carcinogenic that "it would not be legal in the U.S.".  I think that
>
>No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
>food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
>1950's, before stuff like mass spectrometry became available, which increased
>detectable levels of substances by a couple orders of magnitude.
>
>This is why things like cyclamates and Red #2 were banned.  They are very
>weakly carcinogenic in huge quantities in rats, so under the Act they are
>banned.
>
>This also applies to natural carcinogens.  Some of you might remember a
>time back in the 1960's when root beer suddenly stopped tasting so good,
>and never tasted so good again.  That was the time when safrole was banned.
>This is the active flavoring ingredient in sassafras leaves.
>
>If it were possible to market a root beer good like the old days, someone
>would do it, in order to make money.  The fact that no one does it indicates
>that enforcement is still in effect.
>
>An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
>This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
>is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
>form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
>was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.
 
I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?
 
 
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59037
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!


In article <1993Apr13.093300.29529@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>"Weight rebound" is a term used in the medical literature on
>obesity to denote weight regain beyond what was lost in a diet
>cycle.  There are any number of terms which mean one thing to

Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
is shared only among you obesity researchers?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59038
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really


In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel) writes:

>Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
>hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
>"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
>No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
>and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
>
Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
pattern.  They are usually GPs.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59039
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine?


In article <20773.3049.uupcb@factory.com> jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) writes:

>Headaches that seriously interfere with activities of daily living
>affect about 15% of the population.  Doesn't that sound like
>something a "primary care" physician should know something about?  I
>tend to agree with HMO administrators - family physicians should
>learn the basics of headache management.
>
Absolutely.  Unfortunately, most of them have had 3 weeks of neurology
in medical school and 1 month (maybe) in their residency.  Most
of that is done in the hospital where migraines rarely are seen.
Where are they supposed to learn?  Those who are diligent and
read do learn, but most don't, unfortunately.

>Sometimes I wonder what tension-type headaches have to do with
>neurology anyway.

We are the only ones, sometimes, who have enough interest in headaches
to spend the time to get enough history to diagnose them.  Too often,
the primary care physician hears "headache" and loses interest in
anything but giving the patient analgesics and getting them out of
the office so they can get on to something more interesting.


>(I am excepting migraine, which is arguably neurologic).  Headaches

I hope you meant "inarguably".

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59040
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Cause of mental retardation?

In article <1993Apr13.111834.1@cc.uvcc.edu> harrisji@cc.uvcc.edu writes:

>
>Chromosome studies have shown no abnormalities.  Enzyme studies and
>urine analyses have not turned up anything out of the ordinary. 
>MRI images of the brain show scar tissue in the white matter. 
>Subsequent MRI analysis has shown that the deterioration of the
>white matter is progressive.
>
>Because neither family has a history of anything like this, and
>because two of our four children are afflicted with the disorder,
>we believe that it is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder of
>some kind.  Naturally, we would like to know exactly what the
>disease is so that we may gain some insight into how we can expect
>the disorder to progress in the future.  We would also like to be
>able to provide our normal children with some information about
>what they can expect in their own children.
>

It could be one of the leukodystrophies (not adrenal, only
boys get that).  Surely you've been to a university pediatric
neurology department.  If not that is the next step.  Biopsies
might help, especially if peripheral nerves are also affected.
There are so many of these diseases that would fit the symptoms
you gave that more can't be said at this time.

I agree with your surmise that it is an autosomal recessive.
If so, your normal children won't have to worry too much unless
they marry near relatives.  Most recessive genes are rare
except in inbred communities (e.g. Lithuanian Jews).
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59041
From: 880506s@dragon.acadiau.ca (James R. Skinner)
Subject: Re: Paxil (request)

880506s@dragon.acadiau.ca (James R. Skinner) writes:

>	
>	I have seen a couple of postings refering to an SRI called paxil.  I
>have been on Prozac for a number of years and recently switched to Zolf.  I
>have seen a bit of comparsion of Prozac to Paxil but none on Zolft to Prozac
>Can some one enlight me on the differences/ side effect profile/ etc...

does anyone know?

-- 

-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------------
        James Robie Skinner        |     Jodrey School of Computer Science        James.Skinner@dragon.acadiau.ca  |  Acadia University, Wolfville, NS, Canada
-----------------------------------+--------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59042
From: sandy@nmr1.pt.cyanamid.COM (Sandy Silverman)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Heat shock proteins are those whose expression is induced in response to
elevated temperature.  Some are also made when organisms are subjected to
other stress conditions, e.g. high salt.  They have no obvious connection
to what happens when you burn proteins.
--
Sanford Silverman                      >Opinions expressed here are my own<
American Cyanamid  
sandy@pt.cyanamid.com, silvermans@pt.cyanamid.com     "Yeast is Best"

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59043
From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
Subject: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When
the doctor couldn't hear a fetal heartbeat (13 weeks) she used
the ultrasound to see if everything was ok.  (it was)

On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!

My wife is concerned about this.  She saw a TV show a couple months
back (something like 20/20 or Dateline NBC, etc.) where an expert
on fetal ultrasounds (a radiologist) was showing all the different
deffects that could be detected using the ultrasound.

Should my wife be concerned?  Should we take the pictures to a 
radiologist for a second opinion? (and if so, where would we find
such an expert in Chicago?)  We don't really have any special medical
reason to be concerned, but if a radiologist will be able to see
things the ob-gyn can't, then I don't see why we shouldn't use one.

Any thoughts?


-- 
Doug Bank                       Private Systems Division
dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com          Motorola Communications Sector
dougb@nwu.edu                   Schaumburg, Illinois
dougb@casbah.acns.nwu.edu       708-576-8207                    

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59044
From: ls8139@albnyvms.bitnet (larry silverberg)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com>, noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>In article davpa@ida.liu.se  (David Partain) writes:
>
>>>Someone I know has recently been diagnosed as having Candida Albicans, 
>>>a disease about which I can find no information.  Apparently it has something
>>>to do with the body's production of yeast while at the same time being highly
>>>allergic to yeast.  Can anyone out there tell me any more about it?

I have a lot of info about this disease.  I am posting a small amount of
it that I extracted.  If more is required, e-mail me @
ls8139@gemini.albany.edu.  Please, it takes me some time to upload it, so
be advised, only request it if you *really* want it.

here is some info from InfoTrac - Health Reference Center

Also, check you local of univeristy library.  They most likely have the
InfoTrac cd-rom this info was taken from......
====================================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92

 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS
             !Dictionary Definition

    1.    Mosby's Medical and Nursing Dictionary, 2nd edition
               COPYRIGHT 1986 The C.V. Mosby Company         
                                                             
      Candida albicans                                       
      -------------------------------------------------------
      A common, budding,  yeastlike, microscopic fungal      
      organism normally present in the mucous membranes of   
      the mouth, intestinal tract, and vagina and on the skin
      of healthy people. Under certain circumstances, it may 
      cause superficial infections of the mouth or vagina    
      and, less commonly, serious invasive systemic infection
      and toxic reaction. See also candidiasis.

==============================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92
  THE MATERIAL CONTAINED IN Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92 IS PROVIDED
  ONLY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS
  MEDICAL ADVICE OR INSTRUCTION.  CONSULT YOUR HEALTH PROFESSIONAL
  FOR ADVICE RELATING TO A MEDICAL PROBLEM OR CONDITION.


 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS

    1.     Yogurt cure for Candida. (acidophilus) il v22 East
       West Natural Health July-August '92 p17(1)            
           TEXT AVAILABLE
 TEXT 
COPYRIGHT East West Partners 1992                                       
  Another folk remedy receives the blessing of medical study.           
Researchers have found that eating a cup of yogurt a day drastically    
reduces a woman's chances of getting vaginal candida, a yeast infection.
  For the year-long study, researchers at Long Island Jewish Medical    
Center in New Hyde Park, New York, recruited 13 women who suffered from 
chronic yeast infections. For the first 6 months, the women each day ate
8 ounces of yogurt containing Lactobacillus acidophilus. For the second 
6 months, the women did not eat yogurt. The researchers examined the    
women each month and found that incidents of colonization and infection 
were significantly lower during the period when the women ate yogurt.   
  The fungus Candida albicans can live in the body without doing harm.  
It is an overproliferation of the fungus that leads to infection. The   
researchers concluded that the L. acidophilus bacteria found in some    
brands of yogurt retard overgrowth of the fungus. Streptococcus         
thermophilus and L. bulgaricus are the two bacteria most commonly used  
in commercial yogurt production. Neither one appears to exert a         
protective effect against Candida albicans, however. Women who want to  
try yogurt as a preventive measure should choose a brand that lists     
acidophilus in its contents.                                            
--- end ---
              

                              
===================================

InfoTrac - Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92
  THE MATERIAL CONTAINED IN Health Reference Center ~ Oct '89 - Oct '92 IS PROVIDED
  ONLY FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS
  MEDICAL ADVICE OR INSTRUCTION.  CONSULT YOUR HEALTH PROFESSIONAL
  FOR ADVICE RELATING TO A MEDICAL PROBLEM OR CONDITION.


 Heading:   CANDIDA ALBICANS

    1.     Candida (Monilia). (Infections Caused by Fungi)   
       (Infectious Diseases) by Harold C. Neu The Columbia   
       Univ. Coll. of Physicians & Surgeons Complete Home    
       Medical Guide Edition 2 '89 p472(1)                   
           TEXT AVAILABLE
 TEXT 
COPYRIGHT Crown Publishers Inc. 1989                                    
  Candida (Monilia)                                                     
  This disease is usually caused by Candida albicans, a fungus that we  
all carry at one time or another. In some circumstances, though, the    
organisms proliferate, producing symptomatic infection of the mouth,    
intestines, vagina, or skin. When the mouth or vagina are infected, the 
disease is commonly called thrush.                                      
  Vaginitis caused by Candida often afflicts women on birth control     
pills or antibiotics. There is itching and a white, cheesy discharge.   
Among narcotic addicts, Candida infections can lead to heart valve      
inflammation.                                                           
  Diagnosis of Candida infections is confirmed by cultures and blood    
tests. Treatment can be with amphotericin B or orally with ketoconazole.
There is no evidence that Candida in the intestine of normal individuals
leads to disease. All people at one time or another have Candida in     
their intestines. Claims for any benefit from special diets or chronic  
antifungal agents is not based on any solid evidence.                   
--- end ---



==========================
I hope this is informative.
Larry

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Live From New York, It's SATURDAY NIGHT...

Tonight's special guest:
Lawrence Silverberg from The State University of New York @ Albany
aka:ls8139@gemini.Albany.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59045
From: yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

In article <19688@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel) writes:
>
>>Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
>>hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
>>"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
>>No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
>>and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
>>
>Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
>They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
>seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
>now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
>Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
>pattern.  They are usually GPs.
>-- 
 
Are you arguing that the Lyme lab test is accurate?
The books that I've read say that in general the tests
have a 50-50 chance of being correct.  (The tests
result in a large number of both false positives and
false negatives.  I am in the latter case.)

We could get those same odds by "rolling the dice".

-- 
 Ralph Yozzo (yozzo@watson.ibm.com)  
 From the beautiful and historic New York State Mid-Hudson Valley.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59046
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5sqv8.EDB@acsu.buffalo.edu> SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu writes:
>In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
>mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> 
>>
>>No, there is something called the "Delany Amendment" which makes carcinogenic
>>food additives illegal in any amount.  This was passed by Congress in the
> 
>I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
>commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
>for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?
> 
Whoa. What did you say your name was? Address, SSN? Smoking foods, eh?
I think the gov't would like to know about this...

Brian
:-) 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59047
From: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM DRAPER)
Subject: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis



I recently attended an allery seminar.  Steroid Nasal sprays were 
discussed.  Afterward on a one-on-one basis, I asked the speaker what if 
none of the Vancanese, Beconase, Nasalide, Nasalcort, or Nasalchrom work 
nor do any oral decongestants work.  She replied that she saw an article on 
Vasomotor Rhinitis.  That this is not an allergic reaction and that nothing 
other than the Afrin's and such would work.  (Which in my case is true).

I want to find out as much as possible about this, since I am going to see 
my allergist in May and want to be armed to the hilt with information; 
since nothing he has done with me has helped me at all and I have had no 
relief for 14 months.

Please respond if you know anything about this and/or please let me know 
what articles might be helpful that I could look up in the library.





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59048
From: liny@sun13.scri.fsu.edu (Nemo)
Subject: Bates Method for Myopia

Does the Bates method work?  I first heard about it in this newsgroup 
several years ago, and I have just got hold of a book, "How to improve your
sight - simple daily drills in relaxation", by Margaret D. Corbett, 
('Authorized instructor of the Bates method), published in 1953.  It 
talks about vision improvement by relaxation and exercise.  Has there been
any study on whether this method actually works?  If it works, is it by 
actually shortening the previously elongated eyeball, or by increasing 
the lens's ability to flatten itself in order to compensate for the 
too-long eyeball?

Since myopia is the result of eyeball elongation, seems to me the most
logical approach for correction is to find a way to reverse the process,
i.e., shorten it somehow (preferably non-surgically).  Has there been
any recent studies on this?  Where can I find them?  I know RK works by 
changing the curvature of the cornea to compensate for the shape of 
eyeball, but if there is a way to train the muscles to shorten the 
eyeball back to its correct length that would be even better (Bates's 
idea, right?)

Thanks for any information.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59049
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.

>For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,

Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!

>before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
>new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
>in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
>2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
>of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
>program.

Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.

Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.

>In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
>symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
>written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
>I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
>of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
>now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
>*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
responds to "miracle cures."

>Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
>molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
>if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
>natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
>would have perceptible symptoms.

Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
Snort.

>Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
>sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
>such toxins can cause problems in some people.

Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".

>Of course, the $60,000
>question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
>from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
>stress of infections and allergies, etc.),

Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.

>can develop excessive yeast
>colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
>testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
>take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
>safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
>no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.

>BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
>too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
>a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
the "yeast" problem once and for all.

>In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>far as I am concerned.

Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
your symptoms.

Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59050
Subject: "STAR GARTDS" <sp?> Info wanted
From: kmcvay@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (Ken Mcvay)

A friend's daughter has been diagnosed with an eye disease called "Star
Gartds" (or something close) - it is apparently genetic, according to her,
and affects every fourth generation.

She would appreciate any information about this condition. If anything is
available via ftp, please point me in the right direction..
-- 
The Old Frog's Almanac - A Salute to That Old Frog Hisse'f, Ryugen Fisher 
     (604) 245-3205 (v32) (604) 245-4366 (2400x4) SCO XENIX 2.3.2 GT 
  Ladysmith, British Columbia, CANADA. Serving Central Vancouver Island  
with public access UseNet and Internet Mail - home to the Holocaust Almanac

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59051
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

[reply to dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD)]
 
>After many metabolic tests, body structure tests, and infection/virus
>tests the doctors still do not know quite what type of siezures he is
>having (although they do have alot of evidence that it is now pointing
>to infantile spasms ).  This is where we stand right now....As I know
>now, these particular types of disorders are still not really well
>understood by the medical community.
 
Infantile spasms have been well understood for quite some time now.  You
are seeing a pediatric neurologist, aren't you?  If not, I strongly
recommend it.  There is a new anticonvulsant about to be released called
felbamate which may be particularly helpful for infantile spasms.  As
for learning more about seizures, ask your doctor or his nurse about a
local support group.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59052
From: aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor)
Subject: accupuncture and AIDS

A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
wants to know if there is any danger of getting
AIDS from the needles.

Thanks,

	-alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59053
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis

(Disclaimer: I'm a sufferer, not a doctor.)

I'm not sure there's a really sharp distinction between allergic and
vasomotor rhinitis.  Basically, vasomotor rhinitis means your nose is
stuffy when it has no reason to be (not even an identifiable allergy).

Decongestants and steroid sprays work for vasomotor rhinitis.  Also,
I can get surprising relief from purely superficial measures such as
saline moisturizing spray and moisturizing gel.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59054
Subject: Ovarian cancer treatment centers
From: <RBPRMA@rohvm1.rohmhaas.com>

A relative of mine has recently been diagnosed with "stage 3 papillary cell
ovarian cancer".  We are urgently seeking the best place in the country for
treatment for this.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

As you might suspect, time is of the essence.

Thanks for your help.                                      Bob

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59055
Subject: Broken rib
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Hello,  I am not sure if this is the right conference to ask this
question, however, Here I go..  I am a commercial fisherman and I 
fell about 3 weeks ago down into the hold of the boat and broke or
cracked a rib and wrenched and bruised my back and left arm.
  My question,  I have been to a doctor and was told that it was 
best to do nothing and it would heal up with no long term effect, and 
indeed I am about 60 % better, however, the work I do is very 
hard and I am still not able to go back to work.  The thing that worries me
is the movement or "clunking" I feel and hear back there when I move 
certain ways...  I heard some one talking about the rib they broke 
years ago and that it still bothers them..  any opinions?
thanx and cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59056
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: accupuncture and AIDS

aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor) writes:

>A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
>wants to know if there is any danger of getting
>AIDS from the needles.

	Ask the practitioner whether he uses the pre-sterilized disposable
needles, or if he reuses needles, sterilizing them between use.  In the
former case there's no conceivable way to get AIDS from the needles.  In
the latter case it's highly unlikely (though many practitioners use the
disposable variety anyway).

euclid
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59057
From: kjiv@lrc.edu
Subject: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
prevent asthma); Vancenase.

Also:
You may have guessed, I'm an allergy sufferer--but I'm beginning to 
suspect I'm also the victim of a Dr. toliberal with the prescription 
p. The allergist I went to last Oct. simply inquired about my symptons 
( I was suffering chronic asthma attacks), gave me a battery of 
allergy tests, and went down a checklist of drugs (a photocopied 
sheet).  I've gained out 30 lbs. since then though I haven't eaten 
more or much differently than before; I'vsuffered depression; , 
fatigue; and I've experienced a foul smell and sense of taste for 
about the last two months.  I mentioned the lack of smell and taste to 
this Dr. in Feb. and he said my sinuses did look a bit swollen (he 
just looked up my nose with his little light--the same one used for 
ears), and prescribed Prednisone and Sulfatrim DS (severe headaches 
and a rash resulted, particularly after my week's worth of Prednisone 
ran out).  Now he wants to do a rhinoscopy to see if I have a bleeding 
ulcer or polyps in my sinus cavities.  I'm considering seeing another 
doctor.  Any suggestions/advice?  I'd really appreciate it!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59058
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Endometriosis

In article <1993Apr16.032251.6606@rock.concert.net> naomi@rock.concert.net (Naomi T Courter) writes:
>
>can anyone give me more information regarding endometriosis?   i heard
>it's a very common disease among women and if anyone can provide names
>of a specialist/surgeon in  the north carolina research triangle  park
>area (raleigh/durham/chapel  hill) who is familiar with the condition,
>i would really appreciate it.
>thanks. 
>--Naomi

Naomi, your best bet is to look in the Yellow Pages and find a listing
for OBGyn doc in the area you wish.  Any OBGyn doc is familiar with
endometriosis and its treatments.
Shalom                                    Len Howard MD




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59059
From: eliezer@physics.llnl.gov (David A Eliezer)
Subject: Questions about SPECT imaging


I have become involved in a project to further develop and 
improve the performance of SPECT (Single Photon Emission
Computerized Tomography) imaging.  We will eventually have
to peddle this stuff somewhere, and so as I move this thing
along, I would like to know --

What is the current resolution of SPECT imaging?  What kinds
of jobs is SPECT used for, specifically?  What kind of specific jobs
could I hope
that SPECT could be used for, if its resolution improved,
say, to close to that of PET (Positron Emission Tomography)?
And how much does a SPECT machine cost?  How much does a single
SPECT image cost?  

If anyone knows the answer to any or all of these questions, OR
where I could find that answer, I would be very grateful, indeed.  
Thanks in advance for any replies

					Dave Eliezer
					eliezer@physics.llnl.gov





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59060
From: homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer)
Subject: Mind Machines?

I recently learned about these devices that supposedly induce specific 
brain wave frequencies in their users simply by wearing them. Mind machines
consist of LED gogles, head phones, and a microprocessor that controls them.
They strobe the (closed) eye and send sound pulses in sync with the flashing
LEDs. I understand that these devices are experimental, but they are available.
I've heard claims that they can induce sleep, and light trance states for
relaxation. Essentially they are supposed to work without aid of drugs etc...
I would think that if they work as reported they would be incredibly useful,
The few sources I've seen are biased (they are selling the things, and a
friend who has tried them claims that "every home should have one"). So 
do these mind machines (aka Light and Sound machines) work? can they induce
alpha, theta, and/or delta waves in a person wearing them? What research if
any has been done on them? Could they be used in lieu of a tranquilizer?
Or are they just another bit of quackery?

Web Homer

homer@tripos.com
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59061
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Paxil (request)

I don't know much and in fact, have asked questions here
myself. My doctor told me that Paxil is a "cleaner" SRI in that
it produces fewer side effects. As to a comparison between
Zoloft and Prozac, I'm not able to remember what he said about
the differences between those two drugs. Sorry

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59062
Subject: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"
From: jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer)

I've recently listened to a tape by Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, in which he 
claims to have discovered a series naturally occuring peptides with anti-
cancer properties that he names antineoplastons.  Burzynski says that his 
work has met with hostility in the United States, despite the favorable 
responses of his subjects during clinical trials.

What is the generally accepted opinion of Dr. Burzynski's research?  He 
paints himself as a lone researcher with a new breakthrough battling an 
intolerant medical establishment, but I have no basis from which to judge 
his claims.  Two weeks ago, however, I read that the NIH's Department of 
Alternative Medicine has decided to focus their attention on Burzynski's 
work.  Their budget is so small that I imagine they wouldn't investigate a 
treatment that didn't seem promising.

Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
status of his research would be appreciated.

--
Joshua Schwimmer
jschwimmer@eagle.wesleyan.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59063
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

In article <1993Apr20.180835.24033@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@ecs.comm.mot.com writes:
:My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When
:the doctor couldn't hear a fetal heartbeat (13 weeks) she used
:the ultrasound to see if everything was ok.  (it was)
:
:On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
:they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
:read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
:were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!
:
:[stuff deleted]

This is one of those sticky areas of medicine where battles frequently
rage.  With respect to your OB, I suspect that she has been certified in
ultrasound diagnostics, and is thus allowed to use it and bill for its
use.  Many cardiologists also use ultrasound (echocardiography), and are
in fact considered by many to be the 'experts'.  I am not sure where OBs
stand in this regard, but I suspect that they are at least as good as the
radioligists (flame-retardant suit ready).
    
   
   
   
   


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59064
From: vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas)
Subject: Altitude adjustment

I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.

Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
Is there something else that I could do?

A long time ago (possibly two years ago) there was a discussion here about
altitude adjustment.  Has anyone saved the messages?

Many thanks,

Vida.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59065
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Any info. on Vasomotor Rhinitis

In article <1r1t1a$njq@europa.eng.gtefsd.com> draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com writes:
:I recently attended an allery seminar.  Steroid Nasal sprays were 
:discussed.  Afterward on a one-on-one basis, I asked the speaker what if 
:none of the Vancanese, Beconase, Nasalide, Nasalcort, or Nasalchrom work 
:nor do any oral decongestants work.  She replied that she saw an article on 
:Vasomotor Rhinitis.  That this is not an allergic reaction and that nothing 
:other than the Afrin's and such would work.  (Which in my case is true).

There has been some recent research on vasomotor rhinitis that shows that
ipratroprium bromide (Atrovent) inhaled nasally is an effective treatment
for many sufferers.  It has been approved for this use and is available
with a nasal adaptor in Canada.  In the US the FDA has yet to approve this
use of the drug, but it is available as an oral inhaler (for COPD), and
these can be adapted for intranasal use.


-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59066
From: vgwlu@dunsell.calgary.chevron.com (greg w. luft)
Subject: Relief of Pain Caused by Cancer


 I am not sure if this is the proper group to post this to but here goes anyway.

 About five years ago my mother was diagnosed with having cancer in the lymph nodes
 under one of her arms. After the doctors removed the cancerous area she had full movement
 of her arm with only slight aching under her arm when she moved it. Over the course of
 the next two years the aching got more severe and her complaining to the doctors produced
 the explanation that it was scar tissue causing the pain. At this time her doctor 
 suggested that some physiotherapy should be employed to break up the scar tissue.

 While attending one of her therapy sessions, while her arm was being 
 manipulated, some damage occured (nerve?) which caused the level of pain to permanently
 increase severly (controlled by Tylenol 3s) and some loss of use of the arm (
 palsied wrist and almost no outward lateral movement). With great persistence on her part
 the doctors looked further into the issue and discovered that not all of the cancer had
 been removed and another tumor had grown under the arm. This was removed also but the
 pain in the arm has not decreased. The doctors are not sure exactly why the pain is 
 persisting but feel some sort of nerve damage has occured and they have employed Tylenol 3
 and soon Morphine to relieve the pain. She has tried acupuncture by this only provides
 minor reductions in pain and is only short term.  

 My questions are: 

     Has anyone has heard of similar cases and what, if anything, was done to reduce the
     levels of pain?

     Are their methods to block nerves so that the pain can be reduced?

     Are their methods to restore nerves so that loss of arm function can be restored?


  Any general suggestions on pain reduction would be greatly appreciated.
  
  
  Please respond by email because I do not always get chance to read this group.

  If anyone knows of some literature that may be useful to this case or another newsgroup
  that I should be posting this to it would also be appreciated.
   
     






-- 
Gregory W. Luft                              Internet: vgwlu@calgary.chevron.com
Chevron Petroleum Techonology Company             Tel: (403) 234-6238
500, Fifth Ave. S.W.                              Fax: (403) 234-5215
Calgary, Alberta, Canada   T2P 0L7

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59067
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

 To: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)

There is a person on the FIDO CFS echo who claims that he was 
cured of CFS by taking accutane.  He also claims that you are 
using it in the treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome.  Are you 
using accutane in the treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome?  Have 
you used it for CFS?  Have you gotten good results with it?  Are 
you aware of any double blind studies on the use of accutane in 
these conditions?  Thank you in advance for all replies.

... I think they should rename Waco TX to Wacko TX!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59068
From: berryh@huey.udel.edu (John Berryhill, Ph.D.)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


I think he means Girlie Photography.  A good place to find it is in
non-descript little places that usually just say "Books" on the
outside of the building in black and white.


-- 

                                              John Berryhill


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59069
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.
>>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

>Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.

>>For example, Dr. Ivker, who wrote the book "Sinus Survival", always gives,

>Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!

>>before any other treatment, a systemic anti-fungal (such as Nizoral) to his
>>new patients IF they've been on braod-spectrum anti-biotics 4 or more times
>>in the last two years.  He's kept a record of the results, and for over 
>>2000 patients found that over 90% of his patients get significant relief
>>of allergic/sinus symptoms.  Of course, this is only the beginning for his
>>program.

>Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.

>Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.

>>In my case, as I reported a few weeks ago, I was developing the classic
>>symptoms outlined in 'The Yeast Connection' (I agree it is a poorly 
>>written book):  e.g., extreme sensitivity to plastics, vapors, etc. which
>>I never had before (started in November).  Within one week of full dosage
>>of Sporanox, the sensitivity to chemicals has fully disappeared - I can
>>now sit on my couch at home without dying after two minutes.  I'm also
>>*greatly* improved in other areas as well.

>I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
>responds to "miracle cures."

>>Of course, I have allergy symptoms, etc.  I am especially allergic to
>>molds, yeasts, etc.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
>>if one has excessive colonization of yeast in the body, and you have a
>>natural allergy to yeasts, that a threshold would be reached where you
>>would have perceptible symptoms.

>Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
>Snort.

>>Also, yeast do produce toxins of various
>>sorts, and again, you don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that
>>such toxins can cause problems in some people.

>Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".

>>Of course, the $60,000
>>question is whether a person who is immune compromised (as tests showed I was
>>from over 5 years of antibiotics, nutritionally-deficiencies because of the
>>stress of infections and allergies, etc.),

>Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
>More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.

>>can develop excessive yeast
>>colonization somewhere in the body.  It is a tough question to answer since
>>testing for excessive yeast colonization is not easy.  One almost has to
>>take an empirical approach to diagnosis.  Fortunately, Sporanox is relatively
>>safe unlike past anti-fungals (still have to be careful, however) so there's
>>no reason any longer to withhold Sporanox treatment for empirical reasons.

>You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
>in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
>The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.

>>BTW, some would say to try Nystatin.  Unfortunately, most yeast grows hyphae
>>too deep into tissue for Nystatin to have any permanent affect.  You'll find
>>a lot of people who are on Nystatin all the time.

>The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
>and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
>systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
>any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
>IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
>the "yeast" problem once and for all.

>>In summary, I appreciate all of the attempts by those who desire to keep
>>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>>actually treating patients.  If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>>far as I am concerned.

>Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
>your symptoms.

>Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
>to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

>Steve Dyer

Dyer, you're rude. Medicine is not a totallly scientific endevour. It's
often practiced in a disorganized manner. Most early treatment of
non-life threatening illness is done on a guess, hazarded after anecdotal
evidence given by the patient. It's an educated guess, by a trained person,
but it's still no more than a guess.
It's cheaper and simpler to medicate first and only deal further with those
people who don't respond.

There are diseases that haven't been described yet and the root cause of many
diseases now described aren't known. (Read a book on gastroenterology
sometime if you want to see a lot of them.) After scientific methods have
run out then it's the patient's freedom of choice to try any experimental
method they choose. And it's well recognized by many doctors that medicine
doesn't have all the answers.

This person said that they had relief by taking the medicine. Maybe it's a
miracle cure, maybe it's valid. How do you know?  

You might argue with the reasoning, the conclusions. But your disparaging
attack is unwarranted. Why don't you present an convincing argument for you
r beliefs, instead of wasting our time in an ad hominem attack.

-Jackie-
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59070
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>prevent asthma); Vancenase.

Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
drowsiness.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59071
From: wcsbeau@superior.carleton.ca (OPIRG)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.190711.22190@walter.bellcore.com> jchen@ctt.bellcore.com writes:


>The funny thing is the personaly stories about reactions to MSG vary so
>greatly. Some said that their heart beat speeded up with flush face. Some
>claim their heart "skipped" beats once in a while.

Both of these symptoms are related - tachycardia. Getting a flushed
face is due to the heart pumping the blood faster than a regular
pulse.  I suspect this is related to an increase in sodium levels in
the blood, since note *sodium chloride* monosodium glutamate. Both are
sodium compounds. Our bodies require sodium, but like everything else,
one can get too much of a good thing.

>Some reacted with headache, 

Again, this could be related to increased blood flow from increased
heart rate, from the sodium in the MSG. Distended crainial arteries,
essentially. One of many causes of headaches. There is no discrepency
her, necessarily.


>some stomach ache.

Well stomache ache and vomiting tend to be related. Again, not
necessarily a discrepency. More likely a related reaction. Vomiting
occurs as a response to get rid of a noxious compound an organism has
eaten. If a person can't digest the stuff (entirely possible - the
list of stuff people are allergic to is quite long), and lacks an
enzyme to break it down, gastrointestinal distress (stomach or belly
ache) would be expected.


> Some had watery eyes or running nose,


These are respiratory reactions, and are now considered to be similar
to vomitting. They are a way for the body to dispose of noxious
compounds. They are adaptiove responses. Of course, it is possible
some other food or environmental compound could be responsible for the
symptoms. But it's important to remember that a lot opf these effets
can be additive, synergystic, subtractive, etc, etc. It would be
necessary to know exactly what was in a dish, and what else the person
was exposed to. Respiratory does sound suspicious BUT  resopiration
and heart rate are connected.  Things in the body are far from
simple...very inetractive place, the vertebrate body.
 
> some
>had itchy skin or rashes. 

People respond in a myriad of ways to the same compound. It depends
upon what it is about the compound that "pisses off" their body.
Pollen, for example, of some plants aggrivates breathing in many
people, because, when inhaled, it sets of the immune system, and an
histamine attack is launched. The immune system goes overboard,
causing the allergic person a lot of misery. And someone with an
allergy to some pollens will have trouble with some herb teas that
contain pollens (Chamomile, linden, etc). Drinking the substance can
perturb that person's system as much as inhaling it. 

>More serious accusations include respiration 
>difficulty 

See above. And don't think that heart rate changes, and circulatory
problems are not serious. They can be deadly.

and brain damage. 

The area of the brain effected is the neuroendocrine system
controlling the release of gonadotropin, the supra-hormone controlling
the cyclical release of testosterone and estradiol, as well as somatostatin,
and other steroids. Testing for effective dose would be, uh, a wee bit unethical.


>Now here is a new one: vomiting. My guess is that MSG becomes the number one
>suspect of any problem. In this case. it might be just food
poisoning. 

Absolutely. But it could also be some synergystic mess from eating ,
say, undetected shrimp or mushrooms (to which many are allergic), plus
too much alcohol, and inhaling too much diesel fumes biking home,
plus, let's say, having contracted flu from one's sig. other 3 days
before from drinking out of the same glass. Could be all sorts of
things.

But it might be the MSG. 

>if you heard things about MSG, you may think it must be it.

If noone else got sick, its likely not food poisoning. Probably
stomach flu or an undetected thing the guy's allergic to.


Anyway, the human body's not a machine; people vary widely in their
responses, and a lot of reactions are due to combinations of things.

          Dianne Murray  wcsbeau@ccs.carleton.ca



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59072
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Eumemics (was: Eugenics)

A person posted certain stuff to this newsgroup, which were highly
selected quotes stripped of their context.  Here is the complete
posting which was quoted (lacking the context of other postings in 
which it was made):

> Probably within 50 years, a new type of eugenics will be possible.
> Maybe even sooner.  We are now mapping the human genome.  We will
> then start to work on manipulation of that genome.  Using genetic
> engineering, we will be able to insert whatever genes we want.
> No breeding, no "hybrids", etc.  The ethical question is, should
> we do this?  Should we make a race of disease-free, long-lived,
> Arnold Schwartzenegger-muscled, supermen?  Even if we can.

Probably within 50 years, it will be possible to disassemble and
re-assemble our bodies at the molecular level.  Not only will flawless
cosmetic surgery be possible, but flawless cosmetic PSYCHOSURGERY.

What will it be like to store all the prices of shelf-priced bar-coded
goods in your head, and catch all the errors they make in the store's
favor at SAFEWAY?  What will it be like to mentally edit and spell-
check your responses to the questions posed by a phone caller selling
VACATION TIME-SHARE OPTIONS?

Indeed, we are today a nation at risk!  The threat is not from bad genes,
but bad memes!  Memes are the basic units of culture, as opposed to genes
which are the units of genetics.

We stand on the brink of new meme-amplification technologies!  Harmful
memes which formerly were restricted in their destructive power will
run rampant over the countryside, laying waste to the real benefits that
future technology has to offer.

For example, Jeremy Rifkin has been busy trying to whip up emotions
against the new genetically engineered tomatoes under development at
CALGENE.  This guy is inventing harmful memes, a virtual memetic Typhoid
Mary.

We must expand the public-health laws to include quarantine of people
with harmful memes.  They should not be allowed to infect other people
with their memes against genetically-engineered food, electromagnetic
fields, and the Space Shuttle solid rocket boosters.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59073
From: brian@quake.sylmar.ca.us (Brian K. Yoder)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

Have you ever met a chemist?  A food industry businessman?  You must
personally know a lot of them for you to be able to be so certain that they
are evil mosters whose only goal is to inflict as much pain and disease
as possible into the general public.  Gimme a break.
 
In article <1993Apr15.215826.3401@rtsg.mot.com> lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. L
undby) writes:
>
>>>Is there such a thing as MSG (monosodium glutamate) sensitivity?
>>>Superstition. Anybody here have experience to the contrary?

 person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
>too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!
 
Because it makes the food TASTE BETTER!  Why does it put salt in food?
Same reason.

>I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!

Obviously.
 
>Somebody in the industry GIVE ME SOME REASONS WHY!

>IS IT AN INDUSTRIAL BYPRODUCT THAT NEEDS GETTING GET RID OF?
 
Of course not!  (Although I would think that a person like you would be a
big fan of such recycling if that were the case).

>IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD OR THE 
>FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?
 
On occasion that's probably the case, but in general the idea is that MSG
improves the flavor of certain foods.
 
>DO SOME OF YOU GET A SADISTIC PLEASURE OUT OF MAKING SOME OF US SICK?
 
No.
 
>DO THE TASTE TESTERS HAVE SOME DEFECT IN THEIR FLAVOR SENSORS (MOUTH etc...)
>  THAT MSG CORRECTS?
 
No.
 
>I REALLY DON'T UNDERSTAND!!!
 
Obviously.
 
>ALSO ... Nitrosiamines (sp)
 
As I recall, these are natural by-products of heating up certain foods.
They don't "put it in there".
 
 
have a number of criteria in choosing how to process food.  They want to
make it taste good, look good, sell for a good price, etc.  The fact that they
use it tells me that THEY think that it contributes to those goals they are
interested in.  One of those goals is NOT "making people sick".  Such a goal
woud quickly drive them out of business and for no benefit.
 
>I think
>1) outlaw the use of these substances without warning labels as
>large as those on cig. packages.
 
Warning of what?  In California there is a law requiring that ANYTHING which
contains a carcinogen be labeled.  That includes every gasline pump, most
foods, and even money cleaning machines (because Nickel is a mild carcinogen).
The result is that now nobody pays any attention to ANY of the warnings.
 
>2) Require 30% of comparable products on the market to be free of these
>substances and state that they are free of MSG, DYES, NITROSIAMINES and
>SULFITES on the package.
 
Why?  What if not 30% of people wanted to buy this ugly, rotten, not-as-tasty
food?  I guess it will just be wasted, huh?  How terribly efficient.
 
>3) While at it outlaw yellow dye #5.  For that matter why dye food?
 
Because it makes food look better.  I LIKE food that looks good.
If vitamin companies want to do that it is fine, but who are you to
tell THEM how to make vitamins?  Who are you to tell ME whether I should
buy flavored vitamins for my kids (who can't swallow the conventional ones
whole).
 
>KEEP FOOD FOOD!  QUIT PUTTING IN JUNK!
 
How do you define "junk"?  Is putting "salt" in food bad?  What about
Pepper?  What about alcohol as a preservative?  What about sealing jars
with wax?  What about vinegar?  You seem to think that "chemicals" are
somehow different than "food".  The fact is that all foods are 100% chemicals.
You are just expressing an irrational prejudice against food processing.
 
--Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59074
From: bls101@keating.anu.edu.au (The New, Improved Brian Scearce)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In-reply-to: todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu's message of Mon, 19 Apr 93 20:56:15 GMT
Newsgroups: sci.energy,sci.image.processing,sci.anthropology,alt.sci.physics.new-theories,sci.skeptic,sci.med,alt.alien.visitors
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography
References: <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>
Distribution: 
--text follows this line--
todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:

	   I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
   do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
   that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
   sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
   appreciated.
	   In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
   knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
   object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
   or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
   of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
   extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
   the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.

There have been a number of scientific papers (in peer-reviewed journals)
published about Kirlian photography in the early 1970s.  Sorry I can't be
more specific but it is a long time since I read them.  They would describe
what is needed and how to set up the apparatus.  

These papers demonstrate that the auras obtained by Kirlian photography can
be completely explained by the effect of the electric currents used on the
moisture in the object being photographed.  It has nothing to do with the
"energy signature" of organic objects.

I did a science project on Kirlian photography when I was in high school.
I was able to obtain wonderful auras from rocks and pebbles and the like by
first dunking them in water.

Barbara
--



--
bls101@syseng.anu.edu.au
"I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it."                
 - Mae West 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59075
From: bj368@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Mike E. Romano)
Subject: Home Medical Tests


I am looking for current sources for lists of all the home
medical tests currently legally available.
I believe this trend of allowing tests at home where
feasible, decreased medical costs by a factor of 10 or
more and allows the patient some time and privacy to
consider the best action from the results of such tests.
In fact I believe home medical tests and certain basic
tests for serious diseases such as cancer, heart disease,
should be offered free to the American public.
This could actually help to reduce national medical costs
since many would have an earlier opportunity to know
about and work toward recuperation or cure.
Mike Romano


-- 
Sir, I admit your gen'ral rule
That every poet is a fool;
But you yourself may serve to show it,
That every fool is not a poet.    A. Pope

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59076
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
JB>  
JB>    Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the
JB>                          proper channels, you might consider the following:..."
JB>                          [diet omitted]
JB>  
JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously

  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
 educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
 is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
 otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
 consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.

JB>  like a blood chemistry...glucose tolerance and the like...suddenly chemistry
JB>  exists? You know perfectly well that this person can be saved needless trouble
JB>  and expense with simple muscle testing and hair analysis to diagnose...no
JB>  "CONFIRM" any aberrant physiology...but then again...maybe that's what you mean"

 Muscle testing and hair analysis, eh?  So what other fascinating 
 space-age medical techniques do you use?  Do you sit under a pyramid
 over night as well to shrink your brain back to normal after a mind-
 expanding day at your 'Save the Earth' clinic?

JB>  2) Were you able to understand Dick King's post that "90% of diseases is not thy
JB>  evaluate the statistic you cited from the New England Journal of Medicine. Coul?

 Once I figure out what *you* are trying to say, I'll still have 
 to wrestle with the possibility of you conceivably not being able
 to understand my answer to your question?!

JB>  3) Ron...have you ever thought about why you never post in misc.health.alterna-
JB>  tive...and insist instead upon insinuating your untrained, non-medical, often
JB>  delusional notions of health and disease into this forum? I suspect from your
JB>  apparent anger toward MDs and heteropathic medicine that there may be an
              ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 You little psychoanalytical rascal you!  Got me all figured out, ja? 
 
JB>  underlying 'father problem'...of course I can CONFIRM this by surrogate muscle
JB>  testing one of my patients while they ponder my theory to see if one of their
JB>  previously weak 'indicator' muscles strengthens...or do you have reservations
JB>  about my unique methods of diagnosis? [......]
JB>  
JB>  John Badanes, DC, CA
JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

 Oh man, when are you going to start teaching all this stuff?  I'll
 bet everyone on this net must be absolutely dying to learn more about 
 going beyond spinal adjustments and head straight for the mind for
 some Freudian subluxation.

  --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: In the next world, you're on your own.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59077
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>
>In article <1993Apr13.093300.29529@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>
>>"Weight rebound" is a term used in the medical literature on
>>obesity to denote weight regain beyond what was lost in a diet
>>cycle.  There are any number of terms which mean one thing to
>
>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>is shared only among you obesity researchers?

Not one, but two:

Obesity in Europe 88,
proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity

Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987


>-- 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------


-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59078
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Broken rib

In article <D0ZB3B1w164w@oneb.almanac.bc.ca> jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca writes:
>

>fell about 3 weeks ago down into the hold of the boat and broke or
>cracked a rib and wrenched and bruised my back and left arm.
>  My question,  I have been to a doctor and was told that it was 
>best to do nothing and it would heal up with no long term effect, and 
>indeed I am about 60 % better, however, the work I do is very 
>hard and I am still not able to go back to work.  The thing that worries me
>is the movement or "clunking" I feel and hear back there when I move 
>certain ways...  I heard some one talking about the rib they broke 
>years ago and that it still bothers them..  any opinions?



Your doctor is right. It is best to do nothing, besides taking some pain
medication initially. Some patients don't like this and expect, or demand,
to have something done. In these cases some physicians will "tape" the 
patient (put a lot of heavy adhesive tape around the chest), or prescribe
an elastic binder. All this does is make it harder to breath, but the
patient doesn't feel cheated, because soemthing is being done about the
problem. Either way, the end results are the same.

==================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59079
From: balick@nynexst.com (Daphne Balick)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment



In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Mexico City, Bogota, La Paz?
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>

>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

---

An unconventional remedy that you might try for altitude sickness in the Andes is
chewing coca leaves or taking teas made from coca leaves. You might notice that
many of the natives have wads in their mouths... the tea can be obtained in S.
American pharmacies. This remedy alleviates some of the lightheadedness and
dizziness - but don't try to jog with it. I've tried this when travelling and
hiking in Peru and Ecuador. The amount of cocaine you would ingest are too minute
to cause any highs...

Also it is a good idea to eat lightly and dress warm while adjusting to high altitudes.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59080
From: pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu
Subject: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.

My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,
etc...)

Thank you,

Dave Carvell
pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59081
Subject: STARGARDTS DISEASE
From: kmcvay@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (Ken Mcvay)

Thanks to aldridge@netcom.com, I now know a bit more about Stargardt's
disease, aka juvenile macular distrophy, but I would like to learn more.

First, what is the general prognosis - is blindness the result?
Second, what treatments, if any, are available?


-- 
The Old Frog's Almanac - A Salute to That Old Frog Hisse'f, Ryugen Fisher 
     (604) 245-3205 (v32) (604) 245-4366 (2400x4) SCO XENIX 2.3.2 GT 
  Ladysmith, British Columbia, CANADA. Serving Central Vancouver Island  
with public access UseNet and Internet Mail - home to the Holocaust Almanac

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59082
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: Selective Placebo

ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:

|JB>  romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
|JB>  
|JB>    Ron Roth recommends: "Once you have your hypoglycemia CONFIRMED through the
|JB>                          proper channels, you might consider the following:..."
|JB>                          [diet omitted]
|JB>  
|JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...this sounds suspiciously

|  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
| educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
| is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
| otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
| consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.

An apt description of the content of just about all ronroth's posts to
date.  At least there's entertainment value (though it is
diminishing).

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59083
From: molnar@Bisco.CAnet.CA (Tom Molnar)
Subject: sudden numbness in arm

I experienced a sudden numbness in my left arm this morning.  Just after
I completed my 4th set of deep squats.  Today was my weight training
day and I was just beginning my routine.  All of a sudden at the end of
the 4th set my arm felt like it had gone to sleep.  It was cold, turned pale,
and lost 60% of its strength.  The weight I used for squats wasn't that
heavy, I was working hard but not at 100% effort.  I waited for a few 
minutes, trying to shake the arm back to life and then continued with
chest exercises (flyes) with lighter dumbells than I normally use.  But
I dropped the left dumbell during the first set, and experienced continued
arm weakness into the second.  So I quit training and decided not to do my
usual hour on the ski machine either.  I'll take it easy for the rest of
the day.

My arm is *still* somewhat numb and significantly weaker than normal --
my hand still tingles a bit down to the thumb. Color has returned to normal
and it is no longer cold. 

Horrid thoughts of chunks of plaque blocking a major artery course through
my brain.  I'm 34, vegetarian, and pretty fit from my daily exercise
regimen.  So that can't be it.  Could a pinched nerve from the bar
cause these symptoms (I hope)?

Has this happened to anyone else?
Nothing like this has ever happened to me before.  Does it come with age?

Thanks,
Tom
-- 
Tom Molnar
Unix Systems Group, University of Toronto Computing & Communications.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59084
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

   >If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my face that there is no
   >evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee their safety.
   >For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as far as
   >I am concerned.

This doesn't sound like Candida Albicans to me.

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59085
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

Good grief again.

Why the anger?  I must have really touched a raw nerve.

Let's see:  I had symptoms that resisted all other treatments.  Sporanox
totally alleviated them within one week.  Hmmm, I must be psychotic.  Yesss!
That's it - my illness was all in my mind.  Thanks Steve for your correct
diagnosis - you must have a lot of experience being out there in trenches,
treating hundreds of patients a week.  Thank you.  I'm forever in your
debt.

Jon

(oops, gotta run, the men in white coats are ready to take me away, haha,
to the happy home, where I can go twiddle my thumbs, basket weave, and
moan about my sinuses.)

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59086
From: lunger@helix.enet.dec.com (Dave Lunger)
Subject: Modified sense of taste in Cancer pt?


What does a lack of taste of foods, or a sense of taste that seems "off"
when eating foods in someone who has cancer mean? What are the possible
causes of this? Why does it happen?

Pt has Stage II breast cancer, and is taking tamoxifin. Also has Stage IV
lung cancer with known CNA metastasis, and is taking klonopin (also had
cranial radiation treatments).

Thanks!

[not a doctor, but trying to understand family member's illness]


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59087
From: mryan@stsci.edu
Subject: Should I be angry at this doctor?

Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?

Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
doctor that we were there, and came back and told us the doctor would not 
see us because she had someplace to go at 6:00 and did not want to be delayed 
here.  During the next few minutes, in response to my questions, with several 
trips to the back room, the receptionist told me:
	- the doctor was doing paperwork in the back,
	- the doctor would not even look at his finger to advise us on going
	  to the emergency room;
	- the doctor would not even speak to me;
	- she would not tell me the doctor's name, or her own name;
	- when asked who is in charge of the clinic, she said "I don't know."

I realize that a private clinic is not the same as an emergency room, but
I was quite angry at being turned away because the doctor did not want to
be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  I'm still 
trying to find out who is in charge of that clinic so I can write them a 
letter.   We will certainly never set foot in that clinic again.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mary Ryan				mryan@stsci.edu
Space Telescope Science Institute
Baltimore, Maryland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59088
From: billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen)
Subject: RE:  alt.psychoactives

FYI...I just posted this on alt.psychoactives as a response to
what the group is for......


A note to the users of alt.psychoactives....

This group was originally a takeoff from sci.med.  The reason for
the formation of this group was to discuss prescription psychoactive
drugs....such as antidepressents(tri-cyclics, Prozac, Lithium,etc),
antipsychotics(Melleral(sp?), etc), OCD drugs(Anafranil, etc), and
so on and so forth.  It didn't take long for this group to degenerate
into a psudo alt.drugs atmosphere.  That's to bad, for most of the
serious folks that wanted to start this group in the first place have
left and gone back to sci.med, where you have to cypher through
hundreds of unrelated articles to find psychoactive data.

It was also to discuss real-life experiences and side effects of
the above mentioned.

Oh well, I had unsubscribed to this group for some time, and I decided
to check it today to see if anything had changed....nope....same old
nine or ten crap articles that this group was never intended for.

I think it is very hard to have a meaningfull group without it
being moderated...too bad.

Oh well, obviously, no one really cares.

Bill Claussen


Would anyone be interested in starting a similar moderated group?

Bill Claussen


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59089
From: billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?


Report them to your local BBB (Better Business Bureau).

Bill Claussen


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59090
From: ray@engr.LaTech.edu (Bill Ray)
Subject: Re: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

Daniel Prince (Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com) wrote:

: ... I think they should rename Waco TX to Wacko TX!

I know it is just a joke, but please remember: the people of Waco
did not ask David Koresh to be a lunatic there, he just happened.
Waco is a lovely town.  I would think someone living in the home
of flakes and nut would be more sensitive :-)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59091
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:

>   >If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my face that there is no
>   >evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee their safety.
>   >For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as far as
>   >I am concerned.
>
>This doesn't sound like Candida Albicans to me.

No, just a little anger.  Normally I don't rip people's lips off, except
when my candida has overcolonized and I become:  "Fungus Man"!  :^)

Jon

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59092
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.) writes:
>Dyer is beyond rude. 

Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I didn't threaten to rip your lips off, did I?
Snort.

>There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
>knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
>the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

Duh.

>For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
>past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
>deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

Listen: thrush is a recognized clinical syndrome with definite
characteristics.  If you have thrush, you have thrush, because you can
see the lesions and do a culture and when you treat it, it generally
responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

So?

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59093
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Need Reference:  Multiple Personalities Disorders and Allergies

I heard third-hand (not the best form of information) that there was recently
published results of a study on Multiple-Personality-Disorder Syndrome
patients revealing some interesting clues that the root cause of allergy may
have a psychological trigger or basis.  What I heard about this study was that
in one 'personality', a MPDS patient exhibited no observable or clinical signs
of inhalant allergy (scratch tests were used, according to what I heard),
while in other personalities they showed obvious allergy symptoms, including
testing a full ++++ on scratch tests for particular inhalants.

If this is true, it is truly fascinating.

But, I'd like to know if this study was ever done, and if so, what the study
really showed, and where the study is published.  Any help out there?

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59094
From: bhjelle@carina.unm.edu ()
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr21.091844.4035@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>
>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>
>Not one, but two:
>
>Obesity in Europe 88,
>proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity
>
>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>
Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)

Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59095
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
>
>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.

Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
"acute corn intoxication."


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59096
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <1993Apr21.143910.5826@wvnvms.wvnet.edu> pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu writes:
>My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
>medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
>
>My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
>their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,

Morphine or demerol is about the only effective way of stopping pain
that severe.  Obviously, she'll need a prescription to get such drugs.
Can't she go to the county hospital or something?


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59097
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

   someone wrote in expressing concern about getting AIDS from acupuncture
   needles.....

Unless your friend is sharing fluids with their acupuncturist who               
themselves has AIDS..it is unlikely (not impossible) they will get AIDS         
from acupuncture needles. Generally, even if accidently inoculated, the normal
immune response should be enough to effectively handle the minimal contaminant 
involved with acupuncture needle insertion. 

Most acupuncturists use disposable needles...use once and throw away. They      
do this because you are not the only one concerned about transmission of 
diseases via this route...so it's good business to advertise "disposable needlesused here." These needles tend to be of a lower quality however, 
being poorly manufactured and too "sharp" in my opinion. They tend to snag bloodvessels on insertion compared to higher quality needles.                                                                        
If I choose to use acupuncture for a given complaint, that patient will get 
their own set of new needles which are sterilized between treatments.      
The risk here for hepatitis, HIV, etc. transmission is that I could mistakenly 
use an infected persons needles accidently on the wrong              
patient...but clear labelling and paying attention all but eliminates 
this risk. Better quality needles tend to "slide" past vessels and            
nerves avoiding unpleasant painful snags..and hematomas...so I use them.                        
Acupuncture needles come in many lengths and thicknesses...but they are all 
solid when compared to their injection-style cousins. In China, herbal solutionsand western pharmaceuticals are occasionally injected into 
meridian points purported to have TCM physiologic effects and so require 
the same hollow needles used for injecting fluid medicine. This means...thinkingtiny...that a samll amount of tissue, the diameter of the needle bore, will be 
injected into the body as it would  be in a typical "shot." when the skin is 
puntured. On the other hand when the solid 
acupuncture needle is inserted, the skin tends to "squeeze" the needle 
from the tip to the level of insertion such that any 'cooties' that 
haven't been schmeared away with alcohol before insertion, tend to remain 
on the surface of the skin minimizing invasion from the exterior. 

Of course in TCM...the body's exterior is protected by the Wei (Protective) Qi..so infection is unlikely....or in other words...there is a normal inflammatory 
and immune response that accompanies tissue damage incurred at the puncture 
site.


While I'm fairly certain your friend will not have a transferable disease 
transmitted to them via acupuncture needle insertion, I would like to know for 
what complaint they have consulted the acupuncturist...not to know  if it would be harmful.. but to know if it would be helpful. 

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu
                                                                                                    
  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59098
From: E.J. Draper <draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu>
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

In article <9551@blue.cis.pitt.edu> Kenneth Gilbert, kxgst1+@pitt.edu
writes:
>This is one of those sticky areas of medicine where battles frequently
>rage.  With respect to your OB, I suspect that she has been certified in
>ultrasound diagnostics, and is thus allowed to use it and bill for its
>use.  Many cardiologists also use ultrasound (echocardiography), and are
>in fact considered by many to be the 'experts'.  I am not sure where OBs
>stand in this regard, but I suspect that they are at least as good as the
>radioligists (flame-retardant suit ready).

If it were my wife, I would insist that a radiologist be involved in the
process.  Radiologist are intensively trained in the process of
interpreting diagnostic imaging data and are aware of many things that
other physicians aren't aware of.  Would you want a radiologist to
deliver your baby?  If you wouldn't, then why would you want a OB/GYN to
read your ultrasound study?


In my opinion the process should involve a OB/GYN and a radiologist.


      |E|J-  ED DRAPER
 rEpar|D|<-  Radiologic/Pathologic Institute
             The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
             draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59099
From: mrl@pfc.mit.edu (Mark London)
Subject: Corneal erosion/abrasions.

For several years I have been dealing with reccurring corneal  erosion.    There
does  not  seem  to be much known about the cause of such a problem.  My current
episode is pretty bad since it is located in the middle of the cornea.  If  it's
bad  enough, the usual treatment for it is puncture therapy.  However, my doctor
this time is trying to let it heal by  itself  by  putting  a  contact  lens  to
protect the area.  Apparently the problem is not that common, but I'd be curious
if anyone else out there has a similar problem, perhaps to see if a cause can be
found. 

Mark London
MRL@NERUS.PFC.MIT.EDU

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59100
From: russ@pmafire.inel.gov (Russ Brown)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment

In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...

Mexico City, Bogota, La Paz?
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>

>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

Go three days early.  Preliminary acclimatization takes 3-4 days.  It
takes weeks or months for full acclimatization.  Could you be
experiencing some jet lag, too?



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59101
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5snsx.KMo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>There is no convincing evidence that such a disease exists.

>There's a lot of evidence, it just hasn't been adequately gathered and
>published in a way that will convince the die-hard melancholic skeptics
>who quiver everytime the word 'anecdote' or 'empirical' is used.

No, there's no evidence that would convince any but the most credulous.

The "evidence" is identical to the sort of evidence that has been
used to justify all sorts of quack treatments for quack diseases
in the past.

>medicine on the right road.  But methinks that some who hold too firmly
>to the party line are academics who haven't been in the trenches long enough
>actually treating patients.

I like the implication here.  It must not be that the quacks making
millions off such "diseases" are biased -- rather that those who
doubt their existence don't understand the real world.  It seems
easy to picture a 19th centure snake oil salesman saying the same
thing.

However, I have been in the trenches long enough to have seen multiple
quack diseases rise and fall in popularity.  "Systemic yeast syndome"
seems to be making a resurgence (it had fallen off a few years ago).
There will be new such "diseases" I'm sure with best-selling books
and expensive therapies.

>If anybody, doctors included, said to me to my
>face that there is no evidence of the 'yeast connection', I cannot guarantee
>their safety.  For their incompetence, ripping off their lips is justified as
>far as I am concerned.

Well this, of course, is convincing.  I guess I'd better start diagnosing
any illnesses that people want so that I can keep my lips.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59102
From: <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

A good source of information on Burzynski's method is in *The Cancer Industry*
by pulitzer-prize nominee Ralph Moss. Also, a non-profit organization called
"People Against Cancer," which was formed for the purpose of allowing cancer
patients to access information regarding cancer therapies not endorsed by the
cancer industry, but which have shown highly promising results (all of which
are non-toxic). Anyone interested in cancer therapy should contact this organi-
zation ASAP:              People Against Cancer
                          PO Box 10
                          Otho IA 50569-0010
(515)972-4444
FAX (515)972-4415


peace

greg nigh

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59103
From: gmark@cbnewse.cb.att.com (gilbert.m.stewart)
Subject: oxaprozin?

Anyone have any information on the effects/origin of oxaprozin?
It's marketed under the name "DAYpro", and appears to be an
anti-inflammatory.  Is it similar to naproxin?  Stronger?

TIA

GMS

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59104
From: mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.)
Subject: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

In article <aldridgeC5tH63.7yA@netcom.com>, aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldri writes...
>dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
> 

etc. ...

> 
>Dyer, you're rude. Medicine is not a totallly scientific endevour. It's
>often practiced in a disorganized manner. Most early treatment of
>non-life threatening illness is done on a guess, hazarded after anecdotal
>evidence given by the patient. It's an educated guess, by a trained person,
>but it's still no more than a guess.
>It's cheaper and simpler to medicate first and only deal further with those
>people who don't respond.
> 

Dyer is beyond rude. 

There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:

After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

* Mike McCurdy                       
* University Computing Services     Disclaimer:
* San Diego State University
* mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu            "Everything I say may be wrong"

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59105
From: jason@ab20.larc.nasa.gov (Jason Austin)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5Mv3v.2o5@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
-> 
-> Some recent postings remind me that I had read about risks 
-> associated with the barbecuing of foods, namely that carcinogens 
-> are generated. Is this a valid concern? If so, is it a function 
-> of the smoke or the elevated temperatures? Is it a function of 
-> the cooking elements, wood or charcoal vs. lava rocks? I wish 
-> to know more. Thanks. 

	I've read mixed opinions on this.  Singed meat can contain
carcinogens, but unless you eat barbecued meat every meal, you're
probably not at much risk.  I think I will live life on the edge and
grill my food.

	I've also read that using petroleum based charcoal starter can
put some unwanted toxins in your food, or at least unwanted odor.
I've been using egg carton cups dipped in paraffin for fire starters,
and it actually lights faster and easier than lighter fluid.  Several
people have told me that they have excellent results with a chimney,
basically a steel cylinder with wholes punched in the side.  I've been
meaning to get one of these, but one hasn't presented itself while
I've been out shopping.  You can make one from a coffee can, but I buy
my coffee as whole beans in a bag, so I haven't had a big enough can
laying around.
--
Jason C. Austin
j.c.austin@larc.nasa.gov


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59106
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

In article <1993Apr20.184034.13779@dbased.nuo.dec.com> dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD) writes:
>
>If anyone knows of any database or newsgroup or as I mentioned up above,
>any information relating to this disorder I would sure appreciate hearing
>from you. I am not trying to play doctor here, but only trying to gather
>information about it. As I know now, these particular types of disorders
>are still not really well understood by the medical community, and so I'm
>going to see now....if somehow the internet can at least give me alittle
>insight. Thanks. 


There is no database for infantile spasms, nor a newsgroup, that I
know of.  The medical library will be the best source of information
for you.




-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59107
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

In article <C5sy24.LF4@watson.ibm.com> yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo) writes:

>>Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
>>They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've

> 
>Are you arguing that the Lyme lab test is accurate?

If you culture out the spirochete, it is virtually 100% certain
the patient has Lyme.  I suppose you could have contamination
in an exceptionally sloppy lab, but normally not.  There are no
false positives.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59108
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: OB-GYN residency

In article <1r12bv$55e@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu> Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu (Donald Mackie) writes:
>
>FMGs who are not citizens are, like all aliens, in a difficult
>situation. Only citizens get to vote here, so non-citizens are of
>little or no interest to legislators. Also, the non-citizen may well
>be in the middle of processing for resident alien status. There is a
>stron sense that rocking the boat (eg. suing a residency program)
>will delay the granting of that status, perhaps for ever.
>

One should be aware that foreign doctors admitted for training
are ineligible to apply for resident alien status.  In order
to get the green card they have to return to their country and
apply at the embassy there.  Of course, many somehow get around
this problem.  Often it is by agreeing to practice in a town
with a need and then the congressman from that district tacks
a rider onto a bill saying "Dr. X will be allowed to have permanent
residency in the US."  A lot of bills in congress have such riders
attached to them.  Marrying a US citizen is the most common, although
now they are even cracking down on that and trying to tell US
citizens they must follow their spouse back to the Phillipines, or
whereever.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59109
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: "liver" spots

In article <1993Apr19.162502.29802@news.eng.convex.com> cash@convex.com (Peter Cash) writes:
>What causes those little brown spots on older people's hands? Are they
>called "liver spots" because they're sort of liver-colored, or do they
>indicate some actual liver dysfunction?

Senile keratoses.  Have nothing to do with the liver.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59110
From: karl@anasazi.com (Karl Dussik)
Subject: Re: Dana-Faber Cancer Institute 

In article <1993Apr14.090306.3352@etek.chalmers.se> e2salim@etek.chalmers.se (Salim Chagan) writes:
>	Can anyone send me the adress to 
>	Dana-Faber Cancer Institute in Boston, USA.
              ^^ missing "r"

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
44 Binney Street
Boston, MA  02115

(617)732-3000

Karl Dussik
("Alumnus" - Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1983-1986)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59111
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
: 
{much deleted]
: 
: 
: The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
: by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
: something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
: immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
: nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
: including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 
: 

Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59112
From: Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger)
Subject: Imitrex and heart attacks?

My girlfriend just started taking Imitrex for her migraine headaches.  Her
neurologist diagnosed her as having depression and suffering from rebound
headaches due to daily doses of analgesics.  She stopped taking all
analgesics and caffine as of last Thursday (4/15).  The weekend was pretty
bad, but she made it through with the help of Imitrex about every 18 hours.
 Her third injection of Imitrex, during the worst of the withdrawl on
Friday and six hours after the first of the day, left her very sick.  Skin
was flushed, sweating, vomiting and had severe headache pain.  It subsided
in an hour or so.  Since then, she has been taking Imitrex as needed to
control the pain.  Immediately after taking it, she has increased head pain
for ten minutes, dizziness and mild nausea and mild chest pains.  A friend
of hers mentioned that her doctor was wary of Imitrex because it had caused
heart attacks in several people.  Apparently the mild chest pains were
common in these other people prior to there attacks.  Is this just rumor? 
Has anyone else heard of these symptoms?  My girlfriend also has Mitral
Valve Prolapse.

Opinions are mine or others but definately not MDA's!
Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com
McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, Huntington Beach, California, USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59113
From: nash@biologysx.lan.nrc.ca (John Nash)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr15.135941.16105@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:
>From: dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank)
>Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?
>Date: Thu, 15 Apr 1993 13:59:41 GMT

>In article <1993Apr14.122647.16364@tms390.micro.ti.com>, david@tms390.micro.ti.com (David Thomas) writes:
[lots of editing out of previuos posts]

>Here is another anecdotal story.  I am a picky eater and never wanted to 
>try chinese food, however, I finally tried some in order to please a
>girl I was seeing at the time.  I had never heard of Chinese restaurant
>syndrome.  A group of us went to the restaurant and all shared 6 different
>dishes.  It didn't taste great, but I decided it wasn't so bad.  We went
>home and went to bed early.  I woke up at 2 AM and puked my guts outs.
>I threw up for so long that (I'm not kidding) I pulled a muscle in
>my tongue.  Dry heaves and everything.  No one else got sick, and I'm
>not allergic to anything that I know of.  

>Suffice to say that I wont go into a chinese restaurant unless I am 
>physically threatened.  The smell of the food makes me ill (and that *is*
>a psycholgical reaction).  When I have been dragged in to suffer
>through beef and broccoli without any sauces, I insist on no MSG.  
>I haven't gotten sick yet.

Funny about that... my wife (my girlfriend at the time) used to get sick 
after eating certain foods at various Asian restaurants, and never knew 
why.  She'd go pale, and sweaty and then vomit copiously.  A couple of us 
ventured a connection with MSG, and her response was: "MSG?  What's that?".  
It also happened when she pigged out on some brands of savoury crackers and 
chips... which I noticed (later) had MSG on the label.  Don't know about 
double blinds, but avoiding MSG has stopped her being sick at restaurants.


cheers, John

John Nash                           | Email: Nash@biologysx.lan.nrc.ca.
Institute for Biological Sciences,  | National Research Council of Canada,
Cell Physiology Group.              | Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
             *** Disclaimer:  All opinions are mine, not NRC's! ***

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59114
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: How to interview a doctor


My insurance company encourages annual physicals, and at my age [42] i'm
thinking that BIannual physicals, at least, might be a good idea.  Therefore,
i'm shopping for a GP.  Might as well get a good one.

Could the Assembled Net Wisdom suggest things i should look for, or point me to
the FAQ archive if on this topic if there is one?  

Please EMail; i suspect that this topic is real Net Clutter bait.

-dk

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59115
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: sudden numbness in arm

In article <C5u5LG.C3G@gpu.utcc.utoronto.ca> molnar@Bisco.CAnet.CA (Tom Molnar) writes:
>I experienced a sudden numbness in my left arm this morning.  Just after
>I completed my 4th set of deep squats.  Today was my weight training
>day and I was just beginning my routine.  All of a sudden at the end of
>the 4th set my arm felt like it had gone to sleep.  It was cold, turned pale,
>and lost 60% of its strength.  The weight I used for squats wasn't that
>heavy, I was working hard but not at 100% effort.  I waited for a few 
>minutes, trying to shake the arm back to life and then continued with
>chest exercises (flyes) with lighter dumbells than I normally use.  But
>I dropped the left dumbell during the first set, and experienced continued
>arm weakness into the second.  So I quit training and decided not to do my
>usual hour on the ski machine either.  I'll take it easy for the rest of
>the day.
>
>My arm is *still* somewhat numb and significantly weaker than normal --
>my hand still tingles a bit down to the thumb. Color has returned to normal
>and it is no longer cold. 
>
>Horrid thoughts of chunks of plaque blocking a major artery course through
>my brain.  I'm 34, vegetarian, and pretty fit from my daily exercise
>regimen.  So that can't be it.  Could a pinched nerve from the bar
>cause these symptoms (I hope)?

It likely has nothing to do with "chunks of plaque" but it sounds like
you may have a neurovascular compromise to your arm and you need medical
attention *before* doing any more weight lifting.  

















-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59116
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Re: Too many MRIs?

In article <1993Apr19.043654.13068@informix.com> proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts) writes:
>In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>>
>>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>>
>
>I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
>'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
>show up in any chemical test.

That would be a very expensive toxin indeed!
-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | Joe: "Are you late?"                |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        | Dan: "No, but I'm working on it!"   |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    |                                     |
| California Polytechnic State U |                                     | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59117
From: ghica@fig.citib.com (Renato Ghica)
Subject: seek sedative information



has any one heard of a sedative called "Rhoepnol"? Made by LaRouche,
I believe. Any info as to side effects or equivalent tranquillizers?

thanks....
-- 

"This will just take a minute."
"I'm 90% done."
"It worked on my machine."

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59118
From: jnielsen@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (John F Nielsen)
Subject: Re: Good Grief!  (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <noringC5u638.Bvy@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>>In article noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>
>Good grief again.
>
>Why the anger?  I must have really touched a raw nerve.
>
>Let's see:  I had symptoms that resisted all other treatments.  Sporanox
>totally alleviated them within one week.  Hmmm, I must be psychotic.  Yesss!
>That's it - my illness was all in my mind.  Thanks Steve for your correct
>diagnosis - you must have a lot of experience being out there in trenches,
>treating hundreds of patients a week.  Thank you.  I'm forever in your
>debt.
>
>Jon
>
>(oops, gotta run, the men in white coats are ready to take me away, haha,
>to the happy home, where I can go twiddle my thumbs, basket weave, and
>moan about my sinuses.)

Ever heard of something called the placebo effect? I think Dyer is
reacting because it looks to be yet another case of the same old
quackery over and over again.

It true that current medical knowledge is limited, but do you realize
just HOW MANY quacks exist eager to suck your $$$$. It's playing the
lottery at best.

If the results you got were so clear and obvious, would you mind
trying a little experiment to see if it is true? It would be quite
simple. Have sugar pills and have real pills.  Take one set for one
week and the other set for another week without knowing which ones are
the real pills. Then at the end of the 2 weeks compare the results.
Let's say you're wife would know which are the real ones. If what you
are experiencing is true there should be a marked difference between
each week. 
 
john

-- 
John Nielsen   MAGNUS Consultant            ______   ______   __  __	
"To you Baldrick, the Renaissance was just /\  __ \ /\  ___\ /\ \/\ \
something that happened to other people,   \ \ \/\ \\ \___  \\ \ \_\ \
wasn't it?" - The Black Adder               \ \_____\\/\_____\\ \_____\

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59119
Subject: Re: Bates Method for Myopia
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Dr. willian Horatio Bates born 1860 and graduated from med school
1885.  Medical career hampered by spells of total amnesia.  Published in
1920, his great work "The Cure of Imperfect Eyesight by Treatment With-
out Glasses", He made claims about how the eye actually works that are
simply NOT TRUE.  Aldous Huxley was one of the more "high profile"
beleivers in his system.  Mr. Huxley while giving a lecture on Bates system
forgot the lecture that he was supposedely reading and had to put the
paper right up to his eyes and then resorted to a magnifying glass from
his pocket.  book have been written debunking this technique, however
they remain less read than the original fraud.  cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59120
From: kelley@vet.vet.purdue.edu (Stephen Kelley)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

In article <1993Apr21.155714.1@stsci.edu> mryan@stsci.edu writes:
- Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
- 
- Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
- I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 

	[story deleted]

- be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  I'm still 
- trying to find out who is in charge of that clinic so I can write them a 
- letter.   We will certainly never set foot in that clinic again.
- 

The people in charge already know what kind of 'care' they are 
providing, and they don't give a rat's ass about your repeat business.

You are much more likely to do some good writing to local newspapers,
and broadcast news shows.  If you do, keep the letter short and to the point
so they don't discard it out of hand, and emphasize exactly what you
are upset about.

It's possible that the local health department can help you complain to 
someone official, but really, that 'clinic' exists for the sole purpose 
of generating walk-in income through advertising, and *nothing* you can do 
will change them -- all you can hope for is to help someone else avoid them.

I'm glad it sounds like your son did ok, anyway.

My opinion only, of course,
Steve



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59121
From: sbrun@oregon.uoregon.edu (Sarah Anne Brundage)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

>I did a science project on Kirlian photography when I was in high school.
>I was able to obtain wonderful auras from rocks and pebbles and the like by
>first dunking them in water.
> 
 I know this is a little weird, but I know that World magazine (you know,
National Geo. for children) did a very simple and concise article on Kirlian
photography.  They had some neat pictures, too.  A friend of mine's mother had
a book on Kirlian photography, only it's photographs took a radiologist to 
interpret.  They (World magazine) warned us all that it was very dangerous,
probably to stop curious children from experimenting with it.  Mind you, this
was 10 years ago, at least.  (And boy, does that say something about my age)

Sarah Brundage
sbrun@oregon.uoregon.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59122
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical Newsletter, Part 2/4


------------- cut here -----------------









HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 13
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                       Gonorrhea -- Colorado, 1985-1992
                       ================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     The number of reported cases of gonorrhea in Colorado increased 19.9% 
from 1991 to 1992 after declining steadily during the 1980s. In comparison, in 
the United States, reported cases of gonorrhea in 1992 continued an overall 
decreasing trend (1). This report summarizes an analysis of the increase in 
gonorrhea in Colorado in 1992 and characterizes trends in the occurrence of 
this disease from 1985 through 1992. 
     In 1992, 4679 cases of gonorrhea were reported to the Colorado Department 
of Health (CDH) compared with 3901 cases reported in 1991. During 1992, 
reported cases increased 22.7% and 17.5% among females and males, respectively 
(Table 1). Similar increases occurred among blacks, whites, and Hispanics 
(15.6%, 15.1%, and 15.9%, respectively); however, the number of reported cases 
with race not specified increased 88% from 1991 to 1992 and constituted 9.7% 
of all reported cases in 1992. Although the largest proportional increases by 
age groups occurred among persons aged 35-44 years (80.4%) and greater than or 
equal to 45 years (87.7%), these age groups accounted for only 11.0% of all 
reported cases in 1992. Persons in the 15-19-year age group accounted for the 
largest number of reported cases of gonorrhea during 1992 and the highest age 
group-specific rate (639 per 100,000). 
     Reported cases of gonorrhea increased 32.9% in the five-county Denver 
metropolitan area (1990 population: 1,629,466) but decreased elsewhere in the 
state (Table 1). Half the cases of gonorrhea in the Denver metropolitan area 
occurred in 8.4% (34) of the census tracts; these represent neighborhoods 
considered by sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)/acquired immunodeficiency 
syndrome (AIDS) field staff to be the focus of gang and drug activity. 
     When compared with 1991, the number of gonorrhea cases diagnosed among 
men in the Denver Metro Health Clinic (DMHC, the primary public STD clinic in 
the Denver metropolitan area) increased 33% in 1992, and the number of visits 
by males to the clinic increased 2.4%. Concurrently, the number of cases 
diagnosed among women increased by 1%. Among self-identified heterosexual men, 
the number of gonorrhea cases diagnosed at DMHC increased 33% and comprised 
94% of all cases diagnosed in males, while the number of cases diagnosed among 
self-identified homosexual men remained low (71 and 74 in 1991 and 1992, 
respectively). 
     Four selected laboratories in the metropolitan Denver area (i.e., HMO, 
university hospital, nonprofit family planning, and commercial) were contacted 
to determine whether gonorrhea culture-positivity rates increased. Gonorrhea 
culture-positivity rates in three of four laboratories contacted increased 
23%-33% from 1991 to 1992, while the rate was virtually unchanged in the 
fourth (i.e., nonprofit family planning). 
     From 1985 through 1991, reported cases of gonorrhea among whites and 
Hispanics in Colorado decreased; in comparison, reported cases among blacks 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 14
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

increased since 1988 (Figure 1). During 1988-1992, the population in Colorado 
increased 9.9% for blacks, 9.8% for Hispanics, and 4.5% for whites. In 1992, 
the gonorrhea rate for blacks (1935 per 100,000 persons) was 57 times that for 
whites (34 per 100,000) and 12 times that for Hispanics (156 per 100,000) 
(Table 1). Among black females, reported cases of gonorrhea increased from 
1988 through 1992 in the 15-19-year age group; among black males, cases 
increased from 1989 through 1992 in both the 15-19-and 20-24-year age groups. 

Reported by: KA Gershman, MD, JM Finn, NE Spencer, MSPH, STD/AIDS Program; RE 
Hoffman, MD, State Epidemiologist, Colorado Dept of Health. JM Douglas, MD, 
Denver Dept of Health and Hospitals. Surveillance and Information Systems Br, 
Div of Sexually Transmitted Diseases and HIV Prevention, National Center for 
Prevention Svcs, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The increase in reported gonorrhea cases in Colorado in 1992 
may represent an overall increase in the occurrence of this disease or more 
complete reporting stimulated by visitations to laboratories by CDH 
surveillance staff during 1991-1992. The increases in confirmed gonorrhea 
cases at DMHC and in culture-positivity rates in three of four laboratories 
suggest a real increase in gonorrhea rather than a reporting artifact. 
However, the stable culture-positivity rate in the nonprofit family planning 
laboratory (which serves a network of clinics statewide) indicates that the 
gonorrhea increase did not uniformly affect all segments of the population. 
     One possible explanation for the increased occurrence of gonorrhea in 
Colorado may be gang- and drug-related sexual behavior, as implicated in a 
recent outbreak of drug-resistant gonorrhea and other STDs in Colorado Springs 
(2). Although the high morbidity census tracts in the Denver metropolitan area 
coincide with areas of gang and drug activity, this hypothesis requires 
further assessment. To examine the possible role of drug use -- implicated 
previously as a factor contributing to the national increase in syphilis (3-6) 
-- the CDH STD/AIDS program is collecting information from all persons in whom 
gonorrhea is diagnosed regarding drug use, exchange of sex for money or drugs, 
and gang affiliation. 
     The gonorrhea rate for blacks in Colorado substantially exceeds the 
national health objective for the year 2000 (1300 per 100,000) (objective 
19.1a) (7). Race is likely a risk marker rather than a risk factor for 
gonorrhea and other STDs. Risk markers may be useful for identifying groups at 
greatest risk for STDs and for targeting prevention efforts. Moreover, race-
specific variation in STD rates may reflect differences in factors such as 
socioeconomic status, access to medical care, and high-risk behaviors. 
     In response to the increased occurrence of gonorrhea in Colorado, 
interventions initiated by the CDH STD/AIDS program include 1) targeting 
partner notification in the Denver metropolitan area to persons in groups at 
increased risk (e.g., 15-19-year-old black females and 20-24-year-old black 
males); 2) implementing a media campaign (e.g., public service radio 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 15
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

announcements, signs on city buses, newspaper advertisements, and posters in 
schools and clinics) to promote awareness of STD risk and prevention targeted 
primarily at high-risk groups, and 3) developing teams of peer educators to 
perform educational outreach in high-risk neighborhoods. The educational 
interventions are being developed and implemented with the assistance of 
members of the target groups and with input from a forum of community leaders 
and health-care providers. 

References

1. CDC. Table II. Cases of selected notifiable diseases, United States, weeks 
ending December 26, 1992, and December 28, 1991 (52nd week). MMWR 1993;41:975. 

2. CDC. Gang-related outbreak of penicillinase-producing Neisseria gonorrhoeae 
and other sexually transmitted diseases -- Colorado Springs, Colorado, 1989-
1991. MMWR 1993;42:25-8. 

3. CDC. Relationship of syphilis to drug use and prostitution -- Connecticut 
and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MMWR 1988;37:755-8, 764. 

4. Rolfs RT, Goldberg M, Sharrar RG. Risk factors for syphilis: cocaine use 
and prostitution. Am J Public Health 1990;80:853-7. 

5. Andrus JK, Fleming DW, Harger DR, et al. Partner notification: can it 
control epidemic syphilis? Ann Intern Med 1990;112:539-43. 

6. Gershman KA, Rolfs RT. Diverging gonorrhea and syphilis trends in the 
1980s: are they real? Am J Public Health 1991;81:1263-7. 

7. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives--full report, with commentary. Washington, DC: 
US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS 
publication no. (PHS)91-50212. 












HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 16
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                Effectiveness in Disease and Injury Prevention
            Impact of Adult Safety-Belt Use on Restraint Use Among
            Children less than 11 Years of Age -- Selected States,
                                 1988 and 1989
            ======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Motor-vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among children and 
young adults in the United States and account for more than 1 million years of 
potential life lost before age 65 annually (1). Child safety seats and safety 
belts can substantially reduce this loss (2). From 1977 through 1985, all 50 
states passed legislation requiring the use of child safety seats or safety 
belts for children. Although these laws reduce injuries to young children by 
an estimated 8%-59% (3,4), motor-vehicle crash-related injuries remain a major 
cause of disability and death among U.S. children (1), while the use of 
occupant restraints among children decreases inversely with age (84% usage for 
those aged 0-4 years; 57%, aged 5-11 years; and 29%, aged 12-18 years) (5). In 
addition, parents who do not use safety belts themselves are less likely to 
use restraints for their children (6). To characterize the association between 
adult safety-belt use and adult-reported consistent use of occupant restraints 
for the youngest child aged less than 11 years within a household, CDC 
analyzed data obtained from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System 
(BRFSS) during 1988 and 1989. This report summarizes the findings from this 
study. 
     Data were available for 20,905 respondents aged greater than or equal to 
18 years in 11 states * that participated in BRFSS -- a population-based, 
random-digit-dialed telephone survey -- and administered a standard Injury 
Control and Child Safety Module developed by CDC. Of these respondents, 5499 
(26%) had a child aged less than 11 years in their household. Each respondent 
was asked to specify the child's age and the frequency of restraint use for 
that child. The two categories of child restraint and adult safety-belt use in 
this analysis were 1) consistent use (i.e., always buckle up) and 2) less than 
consistent use (i.e., almost always, sometimes, rarely, or never buckle up). 
Data were weighted to provide estimates representative of each state. Software 
for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) (7) was used to calculate point estimates 
and confidence intervals. Statistically significant differences were defined 
by p values of less than 0.05. 
     Each of the 11 states had some type of child restraint law. Of these, six 
(Arizona, Kentucky, Maine, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and West Virginia) had no 
law requiring adults to use safety belts; four (Idaho, Maryland, Pennsylvania, 
and Washington) had a secondary enforcement mandatory safety-belt law (i.e., a 
vehicle had to be stopped for a traffic violation before a citation for nonuse 
of safety belts could be issued); and one state (New York) had a primary 
enforcement mandatory safety-belt law (i.e., vehicles could be stopped for a 
safety-belt law violation alone). In nine states, child-passenger protection 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 17
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

laws included all children aged less than 5 years, but the other two states 
used both age and size of the child as criteria for mandatory restraint use. 
The analysis in this report subgrouped states into 1) those having a law 
requiring adult safety-belt use (law states), and 2) those without such a law 
(no-law states). 
     Overall, 21% of children aged less than 11 years reportedly were not 
consistently restrained during automobile travel. Both child restraint use and 
adult restraint use were significantly higher (p less than 0.05, chi-square 
test) in law states than in no-law states (81.1% versus 74.3% and 58.7% versus 
43.2%, respectively). 
     High rates of restraint use for children aged less than or equal to 1 
year were reported by both adults indicating consistent and less than 
consistent safety-belt use (Figure 1). Adults with consistent use reported 
high rates of child-occupant restraint use regardless of the child's age 
(range: 95.5% for 1-year-olds to 84.7% for 10-year-olds). In comparison, for 
adults reporting less than consistent safety-belt use, the rate of child-
occupant restraint use declined sharply by the age of the child (range: 93.1% 
for 1-year-olds to 28.8% for 10-year-olds). When comparing children of 
consistent adult safety-belt users with children of less than consistent adult 
safety-belt users, 95% confidence intervals overlap for the two youngest age 
groups (i.e., aged less than 1 and 1 year). 
     Reported child-occupant restraint use in law states generally exceeded 
that in no-law states, regardless of age of child (Table 1). In addition, 
higher adult educational attainment was significantly associated with 
increased restraint use for children, a factor that has also been associated 
with increased adult safety-belt use (8). 

Reported by: National Center for Injury Prevention and Control; National 
Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The findings in this report are consistent with others 
indicating that adults who do not use safety belts themselves are less likely 
to employ occupant restraints for their children (6,9). Because these 
nonbelted adults are at increased risk of crashing and more likely to exhibit 
other risk-taking behaviors, children traveling with them may be at greater 
risk for motor-vehicle injury (10). 
     Educational attainment of adult respondents was inversely associated with 
child restraint use in this report. Accordingly, occupant-protection programs 
should be promoted among parents with low educational attainment. Because low 
educational attainment is often associated with low socioeconomic status, such 
programs should be offered to adults through health-care facilities that serve 
low-income communities or through federal programs (i.e., Head Start) that are 
directed at parents with young children. 
     Injury-prevention programs emphasize restraining young children. In 
addition, however, efforts must be intensified to protect child occupants as 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 18
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

they become older. Parents, especially those with low educational attainment, 
those who do not consistently wear safety belts, and those from states that do 
not have mandatory safety-belt use laws, should be encouraged to wear safety 
belts and to protect their children by using approved child safety seats and 
safety belts. Finally, the increased use of restraints among children may 
increase their likelihood of using safety belts when they become teenagers -- 
the age group characterized by the lowest rate of safety-belt use and the 
highest rate of fatal crashes (5). 

References

1. CDC. Childhood injuries in the United States. Am J Dis Child 1990;144:627-
46. 

2. Partyka SC. Papers on child restraints: effectiveness and use. Washington, 
DC: US Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration, 1988; report no. DOT-HS-807-286. 

3. Guerin D, MacKinnon D. An assessment of the California child passenger 
restraint requirement. Am J Public Health 1985;75:142-4. 

4. Hall W, Orr B, Suttles D, et al. Progress report on increasing child 
restraint usage through local education and distribution programs. Chapel 
Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Highway 
Safety Research Center, 1983. 

5. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Occupant protection trends 
in 19 cities. Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation, National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1991. 

6. Wagenaar AC, Molnar LJ, Margolis LH. Characteristics of child safety seat 
users. Accid Anal Prev 1988;20:311-22. 

7. Shah BV, Barnwell BG, Hunt PN, LaVange LM. Software for Survey Data 
Analysis (SUDAAN) version 5.50 Software documentation. Research Triangle 
Park, North Carolina: Research Triangle Institute, 1991. 

8. Lund AK. Voluntary seat belt use among U.S. drivers: geographic, 
socioeconomic and demographic variation. Accid Anal Prev 1986;18:43-50. 

9. Margolis LH, Wagenaar AC, Molnar LJ. Use and misuse of automobile child 
restraint devices. Am J Dis Child 1992;146:361-6. 

10. Hunter WW, Stutts JC, Stewart JR, Rodgman EA. Characteristics of seatbelt 
users and non-users in a state with a mandatory use law. Health Education 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 19
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Research 1990;5:161-73. 

* Arizona, Idaho, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, New York, Pennsylvania, 
Rhode Island, Washington, and West Virginia. 









































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 20
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                   Publication of CDC Surveillance Summaries
                   =========================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Since 1983, CDC has published the CDC Surveillance Summaries under 
separate cover as part of the MMWR series. Each report published in the CDC 
Surveillance Summaries focuses on public health surveillance; surveillance 
findings are reported for a broad range of risk factors and health conditions. 
     Summaries for each of the reports published in the most recent (March 19, 
1993) issue of the CDC Surveillance Summaries (1) are provided below. All 
subscribers to MMWR receive the CDC Surveillance Summaries, as well as the 
MMWR Recommendations and Reports, as part of their subscriptions.

 SURVEILLANCE FOR AND COMPARISON OF BIRTH DEFECT PREVALENCES
                               IN TWO GEOGRAPHIC 
                        AREAS -- UNITED STATES, 1983-88 

     Problem/Condition: CDC and some states have developed surveillance 
systems to monitor the birth prevalence of major defects. 
     Reporting Period Covered: This report covers birth defects surveillance 
in metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, and selected jurisdictions in California for 
the years 1983-1988. 
     Description of System: The California Birth Defects Monitoring Program 
and the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program are two population-
based surveillance systems that employ similar data collection methods. The 
prevalence estimates for 44 diagnostic categories were based on data for 1983-
1988 for 639,837 births in California and 152,970 births in metropolitan 
Atlanta. The prevalences in the two areas were compared, adjusting for race, 
sex, and maternal age by using Poisson regression. 
     Results: Regional differences in the prevalence of aortic stenosis, fetal 
alcohol syndrome, hip dislocation/dysplasia, microcephalus, obstruction of the 
kidney/ureter, and scoliosis/lordosis may be attributable to general 
diagnostic variability. However, differences in the prevalences of arm/hand 
limb reduction, encephalocele, spina bifida, or trisomy 21 (Down syndrome) are 
probably not attributable to differences in ascertainment, because these 
defects are relatively easy to diagnose. 
     Interpretation: Regional differences in prenatal diagnosis and pregnancy 
termination may affect prevalences of trisomy 21 and spina bifida. However, 
the reason for differences in arm/hand reduction is unknown, but may be 
related to variability in environmental exposure, heterogeneity in the gene 
pool, or random variation. 
     Actions Taken: Because of the similarities of these data bases, several 
collaborative studies are being implemented. In particular, the differences in 
the birth prevalence of spina bifida and Down syndrome will focus attention on 
the impact of prenatal diagnosis. Authors: Jane Schulman, Ph.D., Nancy 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 21
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Jensvold, M.P.H, Gary M. Shaw, Dr.P.H., California Birth Defects Monitoring 
Program, March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation. Larry D. Edmonds, M.S.P.H., 
Anne B. McClearn, Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, 
National Center for Environmental Health, CDC. 

                      INFLUENZA -- UNITED STATES, 1988-89

     Problem/Condition: CDC monitors the emergence and spread of new influenza 
virus variants and the impact of influenza on morbidity and mortality annually 
from October through May. 
     Reporting Period Covered: This report covers U.S. influenza surveillance 
conducted from October 1988 through May 1989. 
     Description of System: Weekly reports from the vital statistics offices 
of 121 cities provided an index of influenza's impact on mortality; 58 WHO 
collaborating laboratories reported weekly identification of influenza 
viruses; weekly morbidity reports were received both from the state and 
territorial epidemiologists and from 153 sentinel family practice physicians. 
Nonsystematic reports of outbreaks and unusual illnesses were received 
throughout the year. 
     Results: During the 1988-89 influenza season, influenza A(H1N1) and B 
viruses were identified in the United States with essentially equal frequency 
overall, although both regional and temporal patterns of predominance shifted 
over the course of the season. Throughout the season increases in the indices 
of influenza morbidity in regions where influenza A(H1N1) predominated were 
similar to increases in regions where influenza B predominated. Only 7% of 
identified viruses were influenza A(H3N2), but isolations of this subtype 
increased as the season waned, and it subsequently predominated during the 
1989-90 season. During the 1988-89 season outbreaks in nursing homes were 
reported in association with influenza B and A(H3N2) but not influenza 
A(H1N1). 
     Interpretation: The alternating temporal and geographic predominance of 
influenza strains A(H1N1) and B during the 1988-89 season emphasizes the 
importance of continual attention to regional viral strain surveillance, since 
amantadine is effective only for treatment and prophylaxis of influenza A. 
     Actions Taken: Weekly interim analyses of surveillance data produced 
throughout the season allow physicians and public health officials to make 
informed choices regarding appropriate use of amantadine. CDC's annual 
surveillance allows the observed viral variants to be assessed as candidates 
for inclusion as components in vaccines used in subsequent influenza seasons. 
Authors: Louisa E. Chapman, M.D., M.S.P.H., Epidemiology Activity, Office of 
the Director, Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for 
Infectious Diseases; Margaret A. Tipple, M.D., Division of Quarantine, 
National Center for Prevention Services, CDC. Suzanne Gaventa Folger, M.P.H., 
Health Investigations Branch, Division of Health Studies, Agency for Toxic 
Substances and Disease Registry. Maurice Harmon, Ph.D., Connaught 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 22
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Laboratories, Pasteur-Mirieux Company, Swiftwater, Pennsylvania. Alan P. 
Kendal, Ph.D., European Regional Office, World Health Organization, 
Copenhagen, Denmark. Nancy J. Cox, Ph.D., Influenza Branch, Division of Viral 
and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases; Lawrence B. 
Schonberger, M.D., M.P.H., Epidemiology Activity, Office of the Director, 
Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious 
Diseases, CDC. 

Reference

1. CDC. CDC surveillance summaries (March 19). MMWR 1993;42(no. SS-1).


































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 23
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                            Clinical Research News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                          Clinical Research News for
                              Arizona Physicians

                 Vol. 4, No. 4, April 1993     Tucson, Arizona

Published monthly by the Office of Public Affairs at The University of Arizona
                            Health Sciences Center.   
                   Copyright 1993, The University of Arizona

                 High Tech Assisted Reproductive Technologies

Following the birth of the first in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer (IVF-
ET) baby in 1978, a host of assisted reproductive technologies have been 
developed that include IVF-ET, gamete intrafallopian tube transfer (GIFT), 
embryo cryopreservation (freezing) and gamete micromanipulation. Together, 
these technologies are referred to as the high-tech assisted reproductive 
technology (ART) procedures. 

Ovulation induction, sperm insemination and surgery for tubal disease and/or 
pathology still are the mainstays of the therapies available for infertility 
management. However, when these fail, it almost always is appropriate to 
proceed with one of the ART procedures. 

Therefore, in addition to a comprehensive basic and general infertility 
service at The University of Arizona Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and 
Infertility, there is a program of Assisted Reproduction that specializes in 
ART procedures. This program serves as a tertiary provider for those patients 
in the state of Arizona whose infertility problems cannot be resolved by the 
traditional therapies. 

The following article (on back) describes the ART procedures available in our 
Center, clarifies appropriate applications for each, and considers the 
realistic expectations for their success. Procedures included are: 

o in vitro 
o fertilization - embryo transfer (IVF-ET),  gamete intrafallopian tube 
  transfer 
o (GIFT),  cryopreservation of human embryos and  gamete micromanipulation. 
This article also considers ongoing research in our program that is directed 
towards improved success of these technologies. 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 24
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                           Future Areas of Research

In addition to ongoing research that is directed exclusively toward the 
management of infertile couples, we are developing the technology to assist 
couples who are at risk for producing embryos with a serious hereditary 
disease. 

This technology involves biopsying the preimplantation human embryo and then 
subjecting the biopsied cells to genetic analysis using either DNA 
amplification or fluorescent in situ hybridization. 

There are recent reports of the successful application of DNA amplification by 
other centers, for example, for diagnosis of the genes for cystic fibrosis and 
hemophilia. We hope to apply and further focus fluorescent in situ 
hybridization technology for probing the X chromosome, the identification of 
which will provide a scientific basis for counselling patients who exhibit 
sex-linked disorders. 

The considerable clinical application of such technology lies in the fact that 
it circumvents the need for prenatal diagnosis, in addition to the possibility 
of a subsequent termination of affected fetuses, in order to avoid the birth 
of affected children. 


Catherine Racowsky, Ph.D.
Associate Professor and Director of Research
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
College of Medicine 
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona

               Applications, Success Rates and Advances for the
                           Management of Infertility

The following are the ART procedures available at The University of Arizona 
Center for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. 

     In Vitro Fertilization - Embryo Transfer is the core ART procedure of our 
Assisted Reproduction Program.  This procedure involves retrieval of 
unfertilized eggs from the ovary, their insemination in vitro in a dish, and 
the culture of resultant embryos for 1 or 2 days, before they are transferred 
to the patient's uterus. All cultures are maintained in an incubator under 
strictly controlled atmospheric and temperature conditions. Before being 
processed for use in insemination, semen samples are evaluated in our 
andrology laboratory using both subjective light microscopy and computer-

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 25
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

assisted semen analyses. To ensure an adequate number of eggs with which to 
perform IVF-ET, or indeed, GIFT, follicular development is typically 
stimulated, with gonadotropins (perganol, metrodin), gonadotropin releasing 
hormone (GnRH, Factrel, lutrepulse) and/or GnRH analogues (lupron, Depo 
lupron, synarel). Occasionally, however, IVF-ET is accomplished with eggs 
obtained in non-stimulated cycles. While some programs utilize laparoscopic 
egg retrieval in the operating room with the patient under general anesthesia, 
we undertake the less costly approach of ultrasound-guided retrieval in our 
Infertility Unit, with the patient sedated.  
     Couples who resort to IVF-ET exhibit such pathologies as tubal 
deficiencies, ovulatory dysfunction, endometriosis, and/or mild forms of male 
factor infertility.  According to the United States IVF Registry, the overall 
success rate for IVF-ET nationwide has stabilized at about 14 percent per 
cycle. Results from our program, involving 86 patients who have undergone 173 
IVF-ET cycles, reflect a comparable success rate. 
     Nevertheless, the overall incidence of success with this procedure is 
disconcertingly low and emphasizes the need to address those physiological 
factors that limit achievement of a higher percentage of pregnancies.  Well 
recognized predictors of outcome include patient age, response to exogenous 
ovarian stimulation, quality of sperm and number of repeated IVF-ET cycle 
attempts. However, among these, age is the single most significant determinant 
of conception. Therefore, it is critical that such patients are referred to an 
Assisted Reproduction Program at the earliest opportunity following failure of 
traditional therapies. 
     The underlying basis for the negative effect of age on fertility has not 
been clearly delineated beyond recognition that: 1) the number of eggs 
available for retrieval declines markedly with age; 2) fertilization rates 
significantly decrease in eggs retrieved from patients who are over 40 years; 
and 3) provided the appropriate hormonal background is present, age is 
unrelated to uterine competency to sustain pregnancy. Ongoing research in our 
Center, therefore, is investigating physiological changes in the egg that may 
be impacted by age. We have determined that more than 50 percent of eggs that 
fail to fertilize in vitro are chromosomally abnormal, and that a significant 
proportion of these abnormalities are accountable to patient age. Currently, 
the only recourse for such patients is to use eggs obtained from a donor. Our 
program has initiated recruitment of volunteer egg donors to satisfy the needs 
of a list of recipients interested in this form of therapy. 

     GIFT - This high-tech ART procedure is performed in the operating room, 
usually with the use of a laparoscope and, in contrast to IVF-ET, involves 
introducing sperm and freshly retrieved eggs into the lumen of the Fallopian 
tube (an average of 3 eggs/tube). Under these circumstances, fertilization 
occurs in vivo and, if excess eggs are retrieved, the remainder undergo IVF, 
with subsequent options for embryo transfer in that cycle, or freezing for 
transfer in a subsequent cycle. This ART procedure is applied to cases in 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 26
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

which there is at least one patent Fallopian tube but the couple has such 
pathologies as ovulatory dysfunction, endometriosis, male factor infertility 
and/or idiopathic infertility.    
     The data reported in the United States IVF Registry for 1985 through 1990 
indicate that the overall success rate with GIFT is higher than that obtained 
with the IVF-ET technique (range of clinical pregnancies for GIFT is 24 to 36 
percent and for IVF-ET 14 to 18 percent). In view of this fact, one might 
expect more patients to be treated with GIFT than IVF-ET. However, in our 
program we have taken into account three basic concerns which, while 
substantially reducing the number of GIFT cycles performed, benefit the 
patient. These concerns are: 1) the increased costs associated with performing 
a procedure in the operating room; 2) the risks, albeit minimal, of undergoing 
general anesthesia; and 3) the considerable benefits to be accrued from 
obtaining direct information on the quality and fertilizability of the eggs, 
and the developmental competency of resultant embryos. 
     The increased success with GIFT undoubtedly reflects the artificial 
environment provided by the laboratory in the IVF-ET procedure. Between 
January 1, 1991, and December 31, 1992, we have performed a total of 12 GIFT 
cycles, with an overall success rate of 20 percent. 
     Embryo cryopreservation, or freezing, is applied in our program when 
embryos result from residual GIFT eggs or from non-transferred IVF embryos. 
This procedure not only provides patients with a subsequent opportunity for 
success at much reduced costs, but also circumvents the legal and ethical 
issues relating to disposal of supernumerary embryos. Therefore, as stipulated 
by the American Fertility Society ethical guidelines for ART programs, from 
both a practical and an ethical standpoint, all Assisted Reproduction programs 
should have the capability of cryopreserving human embrys. 
     Gamete Micromanipulation - This ART procedure, which is still very new, 
is applied to couples who are unaccepting of insemination with donor semen but 
who have severe male factor infertility (less than 10 million sperm/ml in 
combination with fewer than 20 perccent motile sperm, and/or less than 10 
percent sperm with normal morphology). We are currently developing the 
procedure of sub-zonal insertion (SZI), which entails injecting sperm under 
the coating around the egg, the barrier normally penetrated by the sperm 
through enzymatic digestion. 
     Available data from SZI programs world-wide indicate that only 5 to 10 
percent of SZI cycles result in a pregnancy. This statistic undoubtedly 
relates to limitations imposed by abnormalities inherent in the sperm. 
Therefore, we are currently focusing on the development of improved techniques 
for the recognition and selection of sperm chosen for manipulation. Such 
efforts are unquestionably worthwhile in view of the fact that this technology 
offers the only realistic opportunity for severe male factor patients to 
establish conception. 

Catherine Racowsky, Ph.D.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 27
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Associate Professor and Director of Research
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
College of Medicine 
--------- end of part 2 ------------

---
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Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59123
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical News Part 4/4

------------- cut here -----------------
limits of AZT's efficacy and now suggest using the drug  either sequentially 
with other drugs or in a kind of AIDS  treatment "cocktail" combining a number 
of drugs to fight the  virus all at once.  "Treating people with AZT alone 
doesn't  happen in the real world anymore," said Dr. Mark Jacobson of the  
University of California--San Francisco.  Also, with recent  findings 
indicating that HIV replicates rapidly in the lymph  nodes after infection, 
physicians may begin pushing even harder  for early treatment of HIV-infected 
patients.
==================================================================    

"New Infectious Disease Push" American Medical News (04/05/93) Vol. 36, No. 
13, P. 2 

     The Center for Disease Control will launch a worldwide network to track 
the spread of infectious diseases and detect drug-resistant or new strains in 
time to help prevent their spread.  The network is expected to cost between 
$75 million and $125 million but is  an essential part of the Clinton 
administration's health reform  plan, according to the CDC and outside 
experts.  The plan will  require the CDC to enhance surveillance of disease in 
the United  States and establish about 15 facilities across the world to  
track disease. 

     =====================================================================  
                                April 13, 1993 
     =====================================================================  

"NIH Plans to Begin AIDS Drug Trials at Earlier Stage" Nature (04/01/93) Vol. 
362, No. 6419, P. 382  (Macilwain, Colin) 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 42
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

     The National Institutes of Health has announced it will start  treating 
HIV-positive patients as soon as possible after  seroconversion, resulting 
from recent findings that show HIV is  active in the body in large numbers 
much earlier than was  previously believed.  Anthony Fauci, director of the 
U.S.  National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID),  said, 
"We must address the question of how to treat people as  early as we possibly 
can with drugs that are safe enough to give  people for years and that will 
get around microbial resistance."  He said any delay would signify questions 
over safety and  resistance rather than a lack of funds.  Fauci, who co-
authored  one of the two papers published last week in Nature, rejects the  
argument by one of his co-authors, Cecil Fox, that the new  discovery 
indicates that "$1 billion spent on vaccine trials" has been "a waste of time 
and money" because the trials were started  too long after the patients were 
infected and were ended too  quickly.  John Tew of the Medical College of 
Virginia in Richmond claims that the new evidence strongly backs the argument 
for  early treatment of HIV-infected patients.  AIDS activists  welcomed the 
new information but said the scientific community  has been slow to understand 
the significance of infection of the  lymph tissue.  "We've known about this 
for five years, but we're  glad it is now in the public domain," said Jesse 
Dobson of the  California-based Project Inform.  But Peter Duesberg, who  
believes that AIDS is independent of HIV and is a result of drug  abuse in the 
West, said, "We are several paradoxes away from an  explanation of AIDS--even 
if these papers are right." 

    ======================================================================   
                                April 14, 1993 
    ======================================================================   

"Risk of AIDS Virus From Doctors Found to Be Minimal" Washington Post 
(04/14/93), P. A9 

     The risk of HIV being transmitted from infected health-care  
professionals to patients is minimal, according to new research  published in 
today's Journal of the American Medical Association  (JAMA).  This finding 
supports previous conclusions by health  experts that the chance of 
contracting HIV from a health care  worker is remote.  Three studies in the 
JAMA demonstrate that  thousands of patients were treated by two HIV-positive 
surgeons  and dentists without becoming infected with the virus.  The  studies 
were conducted by separate research teams in New  Hampshire, Maryland, and 
Florida.  Each study started with an  HIV-positive doctor or dentist and 
tested all patients willing to participate.  The New Hampshire study found 
that none of the  1,174 patients who had undergone invasive procedures by an  
HIV-positive orthopedic surgeon contracted HIV.  In Maryland, 413 of 1,131 
patients operated on by a breast surgery specialist at  Johns Hopkins Hospital 
were found to be HIV-negative.  Similarly  in Florida, 900 of 1,192 dental 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 43
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

patients, who all had been  treated by an HIV-positive general dentist, were 
tested and found to be negative for HIV.  The Florida researchers, led by 
Gordon  M. Dickinson of the University of Miami School of Medicine, said, 
"This study indicates that the risk for transmission of HIV from  a general 
dentist to his patients is minimal in a setting in  which universal 
precautions are strictly observed."   Related Story: Philadelphia Inquirer 
(04/14) P. A6 
======================================================================   
"Alternative Medicine Advocates Divided Over New NIH Research  Program" AIDS 
Treatment News (04/02/93) No. 172, P. 6  (Gilden, Dave) 

     The new Office of Alternative Medicine at the National Institutes of 
Health has raised questions about the NIH's commitment to an  effort that uses 
unorthodox or holistic therapeutic methods.  The OAM is a small division of 
the NIH, with its budget only at $2  million dollars compared to more than $10 
billion for the NIH as  a whole.  In addition, the money for available 
research grants is even smaller.  About $500,000 to $600,000 total will be 
available this year for 10 or 20 grants.  Kaiya Montaocean, of the Center  for 
Natural and Traditional Medicine in Washington, D.C., says  the OAM is afraid 
to become involved in AIDS.  "They have to look successful and there is no 
easy answer in AIDS," she said.    There is also a common perception that the 
OAM will focus on  fields the NIH establishment will find non-threatening, 
such as  relaxation techniques and acupuncture.  When the OAM called for  an 
advisory committee conference of about 120 people last year,  the AIDS 
community was largely missing from the meeting.  In  addition, activists' 
general lack of contact with the Office has  added suspicion that the epidemic 
will be ignored.  Jon  Greenberg, of ACT-UP/New York, said, "The OAM advisory 
panel is  composed of practitioners without real research experience.  It  
will take them several years to accept the nature of research."   
Nevertheless,  Dr. Leanna Standish, research director and AIDS  investigator 
at the Bastyr College of Naturopathic Medicine in  Seattle, said, "Here is a 
wonderful opportunity to fund AIDS  research.  It's only fair to give the 
Office time to gel, but  it's up to the public to insist that it's much, much 
more [than  public relations]." 
======================================================================   
"Herpesvirus Decimates Immune-cell Soldiers" Science News (04/03/93) Vol. 143, 
No. 14, P. 215   (Fackelmann, Kathy A.) 

     Scientists conducting test tube experiments have found that  herpesvirus-
6 can attack the human immune system's natural killer cells.  This attack 
causes the killer cells to malfunction,  diminishing an important component in 
the immune system's fight  against diseases.  Also, the herpesvirus-6 may be a 
factor in  immune diseases, such as AIDS.  In 1989, Paolo Lusso's research  
found that herpesvirus-6 attacks another white cell, the CD4  T-lymphocyte, 
which is the primary target of HIV.  Lusso also  found that herpesvirus-6 can 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 44
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

kill natural killer cells.   Scientists previously knew that the natural 
killer cells of  patients infected with HIV do not work correctly.  Lusso's  
research represents the first time scientists have indicated that natural 
killer cells are vulnerable to any kind of viral attack,  according to Anthony 
L. Komaroff, a researcher with Harvard  Medical School.  Despite the test-tube 
findings, scientists are  uncertain whether the same result occurs in the 
body.  Lusso's  team also found that herpesvirus-6 produces the CD4 receptor  
molecule that provides access for HIV.  CD4 T-lymphocytes express this surface 
receptor, making them vulnerable to HIV's attack.   Researchers concluded that 
herpesvirus-6 cells can exacerbate the affects of HIV. 

    ======================================================================   
                                April 15, 1993 
     ====================================================================   

"AIDS and Priorities in the Global Village: To the Editor" Journal of the 
American Medical Association (04/07/93) Vol. 269,  No. 13, P. 1636  (Gellert, 
George and Nordenberg, Dale F.) 

     All health-care workers are obligated and responsible for not  only 
ensuring that politicians understand the dimensions of  certain health 
problems, but also to be committed to related  policies, write George Gellert 
and Dale F. Nordenberg of the  Orange County Health Care Agency, Santa Ana, 
Calif., and the  Emory University School of Public Health in Atlanta, Ga.,  
respectively.  Dr. Berkley's editorial on why American doctors  should care 
about the AIDS epidemic beyond the United States  details several reasons for 
the concerted interest that all  countries share in combating AIDS.  It should 
be noted that while AIDS leads in hastening global health interdependence, it 
is not  the only illness doing so.  Diseases such as malaria and many  
respiratory and intestinal pathogens have similarly inhibited the economic 
development of most of humanity and acted to marginalize large populations.  
Berkley mentions the enormous social and  economic impact that AIDS will have 
on many developing countries, and the increased need for international 
assistance that will  result.  Berkley also cites the lack of political 
aggressiveness  toward the AIDS epidemic in its first decade.  But now there 
is a new administration with a promise of substantial differences in  approach 
to international health and development in general, and  HIV/AIDS in 
particular.  Vice President Al Gore proposes in his  book "Earth in the 
Balance" a major environmental initiative that includes sustainable 
international development, with programs to  promote literacy, improve child 
survival, and disseminate  contraceptive technology and access throughout the 
developing  world.  If enacted, this change in policy could drastically  
change the future of worldwide health. 
====================================================================   
"AIDS and Priorities in the Global Village: In Reply" Journal of the American 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 45
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Medical Association (04/07/93) Vol. 269,  No. 13, P. 1636  (Berkley, Seth) 

     Every nation should tackle HIV as early and aggressively as    possible 
before the disease reaches an endemic state, even at a  cost of diverting less 
attention to some other illnesses, writes  Seth Berkley of the Rockefeller 
Foundation in New York, N.Y., in  reply to a letter by Drs. Gellert and 
Nordenberg.  Although it is true that diseases other than AIDS, such as 
malaria and  respiratory and intestinal illnesses, have similarly inhibited  
economic development in developing countries and deserve much  more attention 
than they are getting, Berkley disagrees with the  contention that AIDS is 
receiving too much attention.  HIV  differs from other diseases, in most 
developing countries because it is continuing to spread.  For most endemic 
diseases, the  outcome of neglecting interventions for one year is another 
year  of about the same level of needless disease and death.  But with  AIDS 
and its increasing spread, the cost of neglect, not only in  disease burden 
but financially, is much greater.  Interventions  in the early part of a 
rampantly spreading epidemic like HIV are  highly cost-effective because each 
individual infection prevented significantly interrupts transmission.  Berkley 
says he agrees  with Gellert and Nordenberg about the gigantic social and  
economic effects of AIDS and about the need for political  leadership.  But he 
concludes that not only is assertive  political leadership needed in the 
United States for the AIDS  epidemic, but even more so in developing countries 
with high  rates of HIV infection and where complacency about the epidemic  
has been the rule.





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 46
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                               AIDS/HIV Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

            First HIV Vaccine Trial Begins in HIV-Infected Children
                                H H S   N E W S
     ********************************************************************
                 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
                                March 29, 1993


        First HIV Vaccine Therapy Trial Begins In HIV-Infected Children


The National Institutes of Health has opened the first trial of experimental 
HIV vaccines in children who are infected with the human immunodeficiency 
virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS. 

The trial will compare the safety of three HIV experimental vaccines in 90 
children recruited from at least 12 sites nationwide. Volunteers must be HIV-
infected but have no symptoms of HIV disease. 

HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala said this initial study can be seen as "a 
hopeful milestone in our efforts to ameliorate the tragedy of HIV-infected 
children who now face the certainty they will develop AIDS." 

Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., director of the National Institute of Allergy and 
Infectious Diseases and of the NIH Office of AIDS Research, said the trial "is 
the first step in finding out whether vaccines can help prevent or delay 
disease progression in children with HIV who are not yet sick."  If these 
vaccines prove to be safe, more sophisticated questions about their 
therapeutic potential will be assessed in Phase II trials. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates 10,000 children in 
the United States have HIV.  By the end of the decade, the World Health 
Organization projects 10 million children will be infected worldwide. 

The study will enroll children ages 1 month to 12 years old.  NIAID, which 
funds the AIDS Clinical Trials Group network, anticipates conducting the trial 
at nine ACTG sites around  the country and three sites participating in the 
ACTG but funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Human 
Development. 

Preliminary evidence from similar studies under way in infected adults shows 
that certain vaccines can boost existing HIV-specific immune responses and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 47
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

stimulate new ones.  It will be several years, however, before researchers 
know how these responses affect the clinical course of the disease. 

The results from the pediatric trial, known as ACTG 218, will be examined 
closely for other reasons as well.  "This trial will provide the first insight 
into how the immature immune system responds to candidate HIV vaccines," said 
Daniel Hoth, M.D., director of NIAID's division of AIDS.  "We need this 
information to design trials to test whether experimental vaccines can prevent 
HIV infection in children." 

In the United States, most HIV-infected children live in poor inner-city 
areas, and more than 80 percent are minorities, mainly black or Hispanic. 

Nearly all HIV-infected children acquire the virus from their mothers during 
pregnancy  or at birth.  An infected mother in the United States has more than 
a one in four chance of transmitting the virus to her baby.  As growing 
numbers of women of childbearing age become exposed to HIV through injection 
drug use or infected sexual partners, researchers expect a corresponding 
increase in the numbers of infected children. 

HIV disease progresses more rapidly in infants and children than in adults.  
The most recent information suggests that 50 percent of infants born with HIV 
develop a serious AIDS-related infection by 3 to 6 years of age.  These 
infections include severe or frequent bouts of common bacterial illnesses of 
childhood that can result in seizures, pneumonia, diarrhea and other symptoms 
leading to nutritional problems and long hospital stays. 

At least half of the children in the trial will be 2 years of age or younger 
to enable comparison of the immune responses of the younger and older 
participants.  All volunteers must have well-documented HIV infection but no 
symptoms of HIV disease other than swollen lymph glands or a mildly swollen 
liver or spleen.  They cannot have received any anti-retroviral or immune-
regulating drugs within one month prior to their entry into the study. 

Study chair John S. Lambert, M.D., of the University of Rochester Medical 
School, and co- chair Samuel Katz, M.D., of Duke University School of 
Medicine, will coordinate the trial assisted by James McNamara, M.D., medical 
officer in the pediatric medicine branch of NIAID's division of AIDS. 

"We will compare the safety of the vaccines by closely monitoring the children 
for any side effects, to see if one vaccine produces more swollen arms or 
fevers, for example, than another," said Dr. McNamara.  "We'll also look at 
whether low or high doses of the vaccines stimulate immune responses or other 
significant laboratory or clinical effects."   He emphasized that the small 
study size precludes comparing these responses or effects among the three 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 48
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

products. 

The trial will test two doses each of three experimental vaccines made from 
recombinant HIV proteins.  These so-called subunit vaccines, each genetically 
engineered to contain only a piece of the virus, have so far proved well-
tolerated in ongoing trials in HIV-infected adults. 

One vaccine made by MicroGeneSys Inc. of Meriden, Conn., contains gp160--a 
protein  that gives rise to HIV's surface proteins--plus alum adjuvant.  
Adjuvants boost specific immune responses to a vaccine.  Presently, alum is 
the only adjuvant used in human vaccines licensed by the Food and Drug 
Administration. 

Both of the other vaccines--one made by Genentech Inc. of South San Francisco 
and the other by Biocine, a joint venture of Chiron and CIBA-Geigy, in 
Emeryville, Calif.--contain the major HIV surface protein, gp120, plus 
adjuvant.  The Genentech vaccine contains alum, while the Biocine vaccine 
contains MF59, an experimental adjuvant that has proved safe and effective in 
other Phase I vaccine trials in adults. 

A low dose of each product will be tested first against a placebo in 15 
children.  Twelve children will be assigned at random to be immunized with the 
experimental vaccine, and three children will be given adjuvant alone, 
considered the placebo.  Neither the health care workers nor the children will 
be told what they receive. 

If the low dose is well-tolerated, controlled testing of a higher dose of the 
experimental vaccine and adjuvant placebo in another group of 15 children will 
begin. 

Each child will receive six immunizations--one every four weeks for six 
months--and be followed-up for 24 weeks after the last immunization.  

For more information about the trial sites or eligibility for enrollment, call 
the AIDS Clinical Trials Information Service, 1-800-TRIALS-A, from 9 a.m. to 7 
p.m., EST weekdays.  The service has Spanish-speaking information specialists 
available.  Information on NIAID's pediatric HIV/AIDS research is available 
from the Office of Communications at (301) 496- 5717.  

NIH, CDC and FDA are agencies of the U.S. Public Health Service in HHS. For 
press inquiries only, please call Laurie K. Doepel at (301) 402-1663.




HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 49
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

           NEW EVIDENCE THAT THE HIV CAN CAUSE DISEASE INDEPENDENTLY
              News from the National Institute of Dental Research

There is new evidence that the human immunodeficiency virus can cause disease 
independently of its ability to suppress the immune system, say scientists at 
the National Institues of Health. 

They report that HIV itself, not an opportunistic infection, caused scaling 
skin conditions to develop in mice carrying the genes for HIV.  Although the 
HIV genes were active in the mice, they did not compromise the animals' 
immunity, the researchers found.  This led them to conclude that the HIV 
itself caused the skin disease. 

Our findings support a growing body of evidence that HIV can cause disease 
without affecting the immune system, said lead author Dr. Jeffrey Kopp of the 
National Institute of Dental Research (NIDR).  Dr. Kopp and his colleagues 
described their study in the March issue of AIDS Research and Human 
Retroviruses. 

Developing animal models of HIV infection has been difficult, since most 
animals, including mice, cannot be infected by the virus.  To bypass this 
problem, scientists have developed HIV-transgenic mice, which carry genes for 
HIV as well as their own genetic material. 

NIDR scientists created the transgenic mice by injecting HIV genes into mouse 
eggs and then implanting the eggs into female mice.  The resulting litters 
contained both normal and transgenic animals. 

Institute scientists had created mice that carried a complete copy of HIV 
genetic material in l988.  Those mice, however, became sick and died too soon 
after birth to study in depth.  In the present study, the scientists used an 
incomplete copy of HIV, which allowed the animals to live longer. 

Some of the transgenic animals developed scaling, wart-like tumors on their 
necks and backs.  Other transgenic mice developed thickened, crusting skin 
lesions that covered most of their bodies, resembling psoriasis in humans.  No 
skin lesions developed in their normal, non-transgenic littermates. 

Studies of tissue taken from the wart-like skin tumors showed that they were a 
type of noncancerous tumor called papilloma. Although the papillomavirus can 
cause these skin lesions, laboratory tests showed no sign of that virus in the 
animals. 

Tissue samples taken from the sick mice throughout the study revealed the 
presence of a protein-producing molecule made by the HIV genetic material.  

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 50
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Evidence of HIV protein production proved that the viral genes were "turned 
on," or active, said Dr. Kopp. 

The scientists found no evidence, however, of compromised immunity in the 
mice:  no increase in their white blood cell count and no signs of common 
infections.  The fact that HIV genes were active but the animals' immune 
systems were not suppressed confirms that the virus itself was causing the 
skin lesions, Dr. Kopp said. 

Further proof of HIV gene involvement came from a test in which the scientists 
exposed the transgenic animals to ultraviolet light.  The light increased HIV 
genetic activity causing papillomas to develop on formerly healthy skin.  
Papilloma formation in response to increased HIV genetic activity proved the 
genes were responsible for the skin condition, the scientists said.  No 
lesions appeared on normal mice exposed to the UV light. 

The transgenic mice used in this study were developed at NIDR by Dr. Peter 
Dickie, who is now with the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious 
Diseases. 

Collaborating on the study with Dr. Kopp were Mr. Charles Wohlenberg, Drs. 
Nickolas Dorfman, Joseph Bryant, Abner Notkins, and Paul Klotman, all of NIDR; 
Dr. Stephen Katz of the National Cancer Institute; and Dr. James Rooney, 
formerly with NIDR and now with Burroughs Wellcome.





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 51
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

               Clinical Consultation Telephone Service for AIDS
                                H H S   N E W S
                 ********************************************
                 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

                                 March 4, 1993


     HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today announced the first nationwide 
clinical consultation telephone service for doctors and other health care 
professionals who have questions about providing care to people with HIV 
infection or AIDS. 
     The toll-free National HIV Telephone Consulting Service is staffed by a 
physician, a nurse practitioner and a pharmacist. It provides information on 
drugs, clinical trials and the latest treatment methods.  The service is 
funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration and operates out of 
San Francisco General Hospital. 
     Secretary Shalala said, "One goal of this project is to share expertise 
so patients get the best care.  A second goal is to get more primary health 
care providers involved in care for people with HIV or AIDS, which reduces 
treatment cost by allowing patients to remain with their medical providers and 
community social support networks.  Currently, many providers refer patients 
with HIV or AIDS to specialists or other providers who have more experience." 
     Secretary Shalala said, "This clinical expertise should be especially 
helpful for physicians and providers who treat people with HIV or AIDS in 
communities and clinical sites where HIV expertise is not readily available." 
     The telephone number for health care professionals is 1-800-933-3413, and 
it is accessible from 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST (7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST) 
Monday through Friday.  During these times, consultants will try to answer 
questions immediately, or within an hour.  At other times, physicians and 
health care providers can leave an electronic message, and questions will be 
answered as quickly as possible. 
     Health care professionals may call the service to ask any question 
related to providing HIV care, including the latest HIV/AIDS drug treatment 
information, clinical trials information, subspecialty case referral, 
literature searches and other information.  The service is designed for health 
care professionals rather than patients, families or others who have alternate 
sources of information or materials. 
     When a health care professional calls the new service, the call is taken 
by either a clinical pharmacist, primary care physician or family nurse 
practitioner.  All staff members have extensive experience in outpatient and 
inpatient primary care for people with HIV-related diseases.  The consultant 
asks for patient-specific information, including CD4 cell count, current 
medications, sex, age and the patient's HIV history. 
     This national service has grown out of a 16-month local effort that 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 52
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

responded to nearly 1,000 calls from health care providers in northern 
California.  The initial project was funded by HRSA's Bureau of Health 
Professions, through its Community Provider AIDS Training (CPAT) project, and 
by the American Academy of Family Physicians. 
     "When providers expand their knowledge, they also improve the quality of 
care they are able to provide to their patients," said HRSA Administrator 
Robert G. Harmon. M.D., M.P.H.  "This project will be a great resource for 
health care professionals and the HIV/AIDS patients they serve." 
     "This service has opened a new means of communication between health care 
professionals and experts on HIV care management," said HRSA's associate 
administrator for AIDS and director of the Bureau of Health Resources 
Development, G. Stephen Bowen, M.D., M.P.H.  "Providers who treat people with 
HIV or AIDS have access to the latest information on new drugs, treatment 
methods and therapies for people with HIV or AIDS." 
     HRSA is one of eight U.S. Public Health Service agencies within HHS.  


                      AIDS Hotline Numbers for Consumers

                  CDC National AIDS Hotline -- 1-800-342-AIDS
                  for information in Spanish - 1-800-344-SIDA
          AIDS Clinical Trials (English & Spanish) -- 1-800-TRIALS-A























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 53

------------- cut here -----------------
-- This is the last part ---------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59124
From: sbishop@desire.wright.edu
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com>, dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
> In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>>prevent asthma); Vancenase.
> 
> Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
> It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
> and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
> doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
> drowsiness.

It also gave me lots of problems with joint and muscle pain.  Seemed to
trigger arthritis-like problems.

Sue

> 
> -- 
> Steve Dyer
> dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59125
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical Newsletter Part 1/4


------------- cut here -----------------
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

              +------------------------------------------------+
              !                                                !
              !              Health Info-Com Network           !
              !                Medical Newsletter              !
              +------------------------------------------------+
                         Editor: David Dodell, D.M.D.
    10250 North 92nd Street, Suite 210, Scottsdale, Arizona 85258-4599 USA
                          Telephone +1 (602) 860-1121
                              FAX +1 (602) 451-1165

Compilation Copyright 1993 by David Dodell,  D.M.D.  All  rights  Reserved.  
License  is  hereby  granted  to republish on electronic media for which no 
fees are charged,  so long as the text of this copyright notice and license 
are attached intact to any and all republished portion or portions.  

The Health Info-Com Network Newsletter is  distributed  biweekly.  Articles 
on  a medical nature are welcomed.  If you have an article,  please contact 
the editor for information on how to submit it.  If you are  interested  in 
joining the automated distribution system, please contact the editor.  

E-Mail Address:
                                    Editor:  
                          Internet: david@stat.com
                              FidoNet = 1:114/15
                           Bitnet = ATW1H@ASUACAD 
LISTSERV = MEDNEWS@ASUACAD.BITNET (or internet: mednews@asuvm.inre.asu.edu) 
                         anonymous ftp = vm1.nodak.edu
               Notification List = hicn-notify-request@stat.com
                 FAX Delivery = Contact Editor for information


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                       T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S


1.  Comments & News from the Editor
     OCR / Scanner News ...................................................  1

2.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
     [16 April 1993] Emerging Infectious Diseases .........................  3
     Outbreak of E. coli Infections from Hamburgers .......................  5
     Use of Smokeless Tobacoo Among Adults ................................ 10
     Gonorrhea ............................................................ 14
     Impact of Adult Safety-Belt Use on Children less than 11 years Age ... 17
     Publication of CDC Surveillance Summaries ............................ 21

3.  Clinical Research News
     High Tech Assisted Reproductive Technologies ......................... 24

4.  Articles
     Low Levels Airborne Particles Linked to Serious Asthma Attacks ....... 29
     NIH Consensus Development Conference on Melanoma ..................... 31
     National Cancer Insitute Designated Cancer Centers ................... 32

5.  General Announcments
     UCI Medical Education Software Repository ............................ 40

6.  AIDS News Summaries
     AIDS Daily Summary April 12 to April 15, 1993 ........................ 41

7.  AIDS/HIV Articles
     First HIV Vaccine Trial Begins in HIV-Infected Children .............. 47
     New Evidence that the HIV Can Cause Disease Independently ............ 50
     Clinical Consultation Telephone Service for AIDS ..................... 52





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                            Page    i
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                        Comments & News from the Editor
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

I would like to continue to thank everyone who has sent in a donation for the 
Mednews OCR/Scanner Fund.  We have reached our goal!  A Hewlett Packard
Scanjet IIp was purchased this week.

Thank you to the following individuals whose contributions I just received:

John Sorenson
Carol Sigelman
Carla Moore
Barbara Moose
Judith Schrier

Again, thank you to all who gave!

I have been using Wordscan Plus for the past couple of weeks and would like to 
review the product.  Wordscan Plus is a product of Calera Recognition Systems.  
It runs under Windows 3.1 and supports that Accufont Technology of the Hewlett 
Packard Scanners.  

When initially bringing up the software, it lets you select several options; 
(1) text / graphics (2) input source ie scanner, fax file, disk file (3) 
automatic versus manual decomposition of the scanned image. 

I like manual decomposition since the software then lets me select which 
parts of the document I would like scanned, and in what order.

Once an image is scanned, you can bring up the Pop-Up image verification.  The 
software gives you two "errors" at this point.  Blue which are words that were 
converted reliability, but do not match anything in the built-in dictionary.  
Yellow shade, which are words that Wordscan Plus doesn't think it converted 
correctly at all.  I have found that the software should give itself more 
credit.  It is usually correct, instead of wrong.  If a word is shaded blue, 
you can add it to your personal dictionary.  The only problem is the personal 
dictionary will only handle about 200 words.  I find this to be very limited, 
considering how many medical terms are not in a normal dictionary. 

After a document is converted, you can save it in a multitude of word 
processor formats.  Also any images that were captured can be stored in a 
seperate TIFF or PCX file format.

I was extremely impressed on the percent accuracy for fax files.  I use 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  1
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

an Intel Satisfaxtion card, which stores incoming faxs in a PCX/DCX format.  
While most of my faxes were received in "standard" mode (200x100 dpi), the 
accuracy of Wordscan Plus was excellent. 

Overall, a very impressive product.  The only fault I could find is the 
limitations of the size of the user dictionary.  200 specialized words is just 
too small. 

If anyone has any specific questions, please do not hesitate to send me email.




































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  2
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
               Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                         Emerging Infectious Diseases
                         ============================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

                                 Introduction

     Despite predictions earlier this century that infectious diseases would 
soon be eliminated as a public health problem (1), infectious diseases remain 
the major cause of death worldwide and a leading cause of illness and death in 
the United States. Since the early 1970s, the U.S. public health system has 
been challenged by a myriad of newly identified pathogens and syndromes (e.g., 
Escherichia coli O157:H7, hepatitis C virus, human immunodeficiency virus, 
Legionnaires disease, Lyme disease, and toxic shock syndrome). The incidences 
of many diseases widely presumed to be under control, such as cholera, 
malaria, and tuberculosis (TB), have increased in many areas. Furthermore, 
control and prevention of infectious diseases are undermined by drug 
resistance in conditions such as gonorrhea, malaria, pneumococcal disease, 
salmonellosis, shigellosis, TB, and staphylococcal infections (2). Emerging 
infections place a disproportionate burden on immunocompromised persons, those 
in institutional settings (e.g., hospitals and child day care centers), and 
minority and underserved populations. The substantial economic burden of 
emerging infections on the U.S. health-care system could be reduced by more 
effective surveillance systems and targeted control and prevention programs 
(3). 
     This issue of MMWR introduces a new series, "Emerging Infectious 
Diseases." Future articles will address these diseases, as well as 
surveillance, control, and prevention efforts by health-care providers and 
public health officials. This first article updates the ongoing investigation 
of an outbreak of E. coli O157:H7 in the western United States (4). 

References

1. Burnet M. Natural history of infectious disease. Cambridge, England: 
Cambridge University Press, 1963. 

2. Kunin CM. Resistance to antimicrobial drugs -- a worldwide calamity. Ann 
Intern Med 1993;118:557-61. 

3. Lederberg J, Shope RE, Oaks SC Jr, eds. Emerging infections: microbial 
threats to health in the United States. Washington, DC: National Academy 
Press, 1992. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  3
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993


4. CDC. Preliminary report: foodborne outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 
infections from hamburgers --western United States, 1993. MMWR 1993;42:85-6.










































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  4
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

            Update: Multistate Outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7
             Infections from Hamburgers -- Western United States,
                                   1992-1993
            =======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     From November 15, 1992, through February 28, 1993, more than 500 
laboratory-confirmed infections with E. coli O157:H7 and four associated 
deaths occurred in four states -- Washington, Idaho, California, and Nevada. 
This report summarizes the findings from an ongoing investigation (1) that 
identified a multistate outbreak resulting from consumption of hamburgers from 
one restaurant chain. Washington 
     On January 13, 1993, a physician reported to the Washington Department of 
Health a cluster of children with hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) and an 
increase in emergency room visits for bloody diarrhea. During January 16-17, a 
case-control study comparing 16 of the first cases of bloody diarrhea or 
postdiarrheal HUS identified with age- and neighborhood-matched controls 
implicated eating at chain A restaurants during the week before symptom onset 
(matched odds ratio OR=undefined; lower confidence limit=3.5). On January 
18, a multistate recall of unused hamburger patties from chain A restaurants 
was initiated. 
     As a result of publicity and case-finding efforts, during January-
February 1993, 602 patients with bloody diarrhea or HUS were reported to the 
state health department. A total of 477 persons had illnesses meeting the case 
definition of culture-confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection or postdiarrheal HUS 
(Figure 1). Of the 477 persons, 52 (11%) had close contact with a person with 
confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection during the week preceding onset of 
symptoms. Of the remaining 425 persons, 372 (88%) reported eating in a chain A 
restaurant during the 9 days preceding onset of symptoms. Of the 338 patients 
who recalled what they ate in a chain A restaurant, 312 (92%) reported eating 
a regular-sized hamburger patty. Onsets of illness peaked from January 17 
through January 20. Of the 477 casepatients, 144 (30%) were hospitalized; 30 
developed HUS, and three died. The median age of patients was 7.5 years 
(range: 0-74 years). Idaho 
     Following the outbreak report from Washington, the Division of Health, 
Idaho Department of Health and Welfare, identified 14 persons with culture-
confirmed E. coli O157:H7 infection, with illness onset dates from December 
11, 1992, through February 16, 1993 (Figure 2A). Four persons were 
hospitalized; one developed HUS. During the week preceding illness onset, 13 
(93%) had eaten at a chain A restaurant. California 
     In late December, the San Diego County Department of Health Services was 
notified of a child with E. coli O157:H7 infection who subsequently died. 
Active surveillance and record review then identified eight other persons with 
E. coli O157:H7 infections or HUS from mid-November through mid-January 1993. 
Four of the nine reportedly had recently eaten at a chain A restaurant and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  5
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

four at a chain B restaurant in San Diego. After the Washington outbreak was 
reported, reviews of medical records at five hospitals revealed an overall 27% 
increase in visits or admissions for diarrhea during December 1992 and January 
1993 compared with the same period 1 year earlier. A case was defined as 
postdiarrheal HUS, bloody diarrhea that was culture negative or not cultured, 
or any diarrheal illness in which stool culture yielded E. coli O157:H7, with 
onset from November 15, 1992, through January 31, 1993. 
     Illnesses of 34 patients met the case definition (Figure 2B). The 
outbreak strain was identified in stool specimens of six patients. Fourteen 
persons were hospitalized, seven developed HUS, and one child died. The median 
age of case-patients was 10 years (range: 1-58 years). A case-control study of 
the first 25 case-patients identified and age- and sex-matched community 
controls implicated eating at a chain A restaurant in San Diego (matched 
OR=13; 95% confidence interval CI=1.7-99). A study comparing case-patients 
who ate at chain A restaurants with well meal companions implicated regular-
sized hamburger patties (matched OR=undefined; lower confidence limit=1.3). 
Chain B was not statistically associated with illness. Nevada 
     On January 22, after receiving a report of a child with HUS who had eaten 
at a local chain A restaurant, the Clark County (Las Vegas) Health District 
issued a press release requesting that persons with recent bloody diarrhea 
contact the health department. A case was defined as postdiarrheal HUS, bloody 
diarrhea that was culture negative or not cultured, or any diarrheal illness 
with a stool culture yielding the Washington strain of E. coli O157:H7, with 
onset from December 1, 1992, through February 7, 1993. Because local 
laboratories were not using sorbitol MacConkey (SMAC) medium to screen stools 
for E. coli O157:H7, this organism was not identified in any patient. After 
SMAC medium was distributed, the outbreak strain was detected in the stool of 
one patient 38 days after illness onset. 
     Of 58 persons whose illnesses met the case definition (Figure 2C), nine 
were hospitalized; three developed HUS. The median age was 30.5 years (range: 
0-83 years). Analysis of the first 21 patients identified and age- and sex-
matched community controls implicated eating at a chain A restaurant during 
the week preceding illness onset (matched OR=undefined; lower confidence 
limit=4.9). A case-control study using well meal companions of case-patients 
also implicated eating hamburgers at chain A (matched OR=6.0; 95% CI=0.7-
49.8). Other Investigation Findings 
     During the outbreak, chain A restaurants in Washington linked with cases 
primarily were serving regular-sized hamburger patties produced on November 
19, 1992; some of the same meat was used in "jumbo" patties produced on 
November 20, 1992. The outbreak strain of E. coli O157:H7 was isolated from 11 
lots of patties produced on those two dates; these lots had been distributed 
to restaurants in all states where illness occurred. Approximately 272,672 
(20%) of the implicated patties were recovered by the recall. 
     A meat traceback by a CDC team identified five slaughter plants in the 
United States and one in Canada as the likely sources of carcasses used in the 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  6
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

contaminated lots of meat and identified potential control points for reducing 
the likelihood of contamination. The animals slaughtered in domestic slaughter 
plants were traced to farms and auctions in six western states. No one 
slaughter plant or farm was identified as the source. 
     Further investigation of cases related to secondary transmission in 
families and child day care settings is ongoing. 

Reported by: M Davis, DVM, C Osaki, MSPH, Seattle-King County Dept of Public 
Health; D Gordon, MS, MW Hinds, MD, Snohomish Health District, Everett; K 
Mottram, C Winegar, MPH, Tacoma-Pierce County Health Dept; ED Avner, MD, PI 
Tarr, MD, Dept of Pediatrics, D Jardine, MD, Depts of Anesthesiology and 
Pediatrics, Univ of Washington School of Medicine and Children's Hospital and 
Medical Center, Seattle; M Goldoft, MD, B Bartleson, MPH; J Lewis, JM 
Kobayashi, MD, State Epidemiologist, Washington Dept of Health. G Billman, MD, 
J Bradley, MD, Children's Hospital, San Diego; S Hunt, P Tanner, RES, M 
Ginsberg, MD, San Diego County Dept of Health Svcs; L Barrett, DVM, SB Werner, 
MD, GW Rutherford, III, MD, State Epidemiologist, California Dept of Health 
Svcs. RW Jue, Central District Health Dept, Boise; H Root, Southwest District 
Health Dept, Caldwell; D Brothers, MA, RL Chehey, MS, RH Hudson, PhD, Div of 
Health, Idaho State Public Health Laboratory, FR Dixon, MD, State 
Epidemiologist, Div of Health, Idaho Dept of Health and Welfare. DJ Maxson, 
Environmental Epidemiology Program, L Empey, PA, O Ravenholt, MD, VH Ueckart, 
DVM, Clark County Health District, Las Vegas; A DiSalvo, MD, Nevada State 
Public Health Laboratory; DS Kwalick, MD, R Salcido, MPH, D Brus, DVM, State 
Epidemiologist, Div of Health, Nevada State Dept of Human Resources. Center 
for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration. Food 
Safety Inspection Svc, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Svc, US Dept of 
Agriculture. Div of Field Epidemiology, Epidemiology Program Office; Enteric 
Diseases Br, Div of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, National Center for 
Infectious Diseases, CDC. 

Editorial Note: E. coli O157:H7 is a pathogenic gram-negative bacterium first 
identified as a cause of illness in 1982 during an outbreak of severe bloody 
diarrhea traced to contaminated hamburgers (2). This pathogen has since 
emerged as an important cause of both bloody diarrhea and HUS, the most common 
cause of acute renal failure in children. Outbreak investigations have linked 
most cases with the consumption of undercooked ground beef, although other 
food vehicles, including roast beef, raw milk, and apple cider, also have been 
implicated (3). Preliminary data from a CDC 2-year, nationwide, multicenter 
study revealed that when stools were routinely cultured for E. coli O157:H7 
that organism was isolated more frequently than Shigella in four of 10 
participating hospitals and was isolated from 7.8% of all bloody stools, a 
higher rate than for any other pathogen. 
     Infection with E. coli O157:H7 often is not recognized because most 
clinical laboratories do not routinely culture stools for this organism on 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  7
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

SMAC medium, and many clinicians are unaware of the spectrum of illnesses 
associated with infection (4). The usual clinical manifestations are diarrhea 
(often bloody) and abdominal cramps; fever is infrequent. Younger age groups 
and the elderly are at highest risk for clinical manifestations and 
complications. Illness usually resolves after 6-8 days, but 2%-7% of patients 
develop HUS, which is characterized by hemolytic anemia, thrombocytopenia, 
renal failure, and a death rate of 3%-5%. 
     This report illustrates the difficulties in recognizing community 
outbreaks of E. coli O157:H7 in the absence of routine surveillance. Despite 
the magnitude of this outbreak, the problem may not have been recognized in 
three states if the epidemiologic link had not been established in Washington 
(1). Clinical laboratories should routinely culture stool specimens from 
persons with bloody diarrhea or HUS for E. coli O157:H7 using SMAC agar (5). 
When infections with E. coli O157:H7 are identified, they should be reported 
to local health departments for further evaluation and, if necessary, public 
health action to prevent further cases. 
     E. coli O157:H7 lives in the intestines of healthy cattle, and can 
contaminate meat during slaughter. CDC is collaborating with the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture's Food Safety Inspection Service to identify 
critical control points in processing as a component of a program to reduce 
the likelihood of pathogens such as E. coli O157:H7 entering the meat supply. 
Because slaughtering practices can result in contamination of raw meat with 
pathogens, and because the process of grinding beef may transfer pathogens 
from the surface of the meat to the interior, ground beef is likely to be 
internally contaminated. The optimal food protection practice is to cook 
ground beef thoroughly until the interior is no longer pink, and the juices 
are clear. In this outbreak, undercooking of hamburger patties likely played 
an important role. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued interim 
recommendations to increase the internal temperature for cooked hamburgers to 
155 F (86.1 C) (FDA, personal communication, 1993). 
     Regulatory actions stimulated by the outbreak described in this report 
and the recovery of thousands of contaminated patties before they could be 
consumed emphasize the value of rapid public health investigations of 
outbreaks. The public health impact and increasing frequency of isolation of 
this pathogen underscore the need for improved surveillance for infections 
caused by E. coli O157:H7 and for HUS to better define the epidemiology of E. 
coli O157:H7. 

References

1. CDC. Preliminary report: foodborne outbreak of Escherichia coli O157:H7 
infections from hamburgers --western United States, 1993. MMWR 1993;42:85-6. 

2. Riley LW, Remis RS, Helgerson SD, et al. Hemorrhagic colitis associated 
with a rare Escherichia coli serotype. N Engl J Med 1983;308:681-5. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  8
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993


3. Griffin PM, Tauxe RV. The epidemiology of infections caused by Escherichia 
coli O157:H7, other enterohemorrhagic E. coli, and the associated hemolytic 
uremic syndrome. Epidemiol Rev 1991;13:60-98. 

4. Griffin PM, Ostroff SM, Tauxe RV, et al. Illnesses associated with 
Escherichia coli O157:H7 infections: a broad clinical spectrum. Ann Intern Med 
1988;109:705-12. 

5. March SB, Ratnam S. Latex agglutination test



































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  9
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

            Use of Smokeless Tobacco Among Adults -- United States,
                                     1991
            =======================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(14)   DATE: Apr 16, 1993

     Consumption of moist snuff and other smokeless tobacco products in the 
United States almost tripled from 1972 through 1991 (1). Long-term use of 
smokeless tobacco is associated with nicotine addiction and increased risk of 
oral cancer (2) -- the incidence of which could increase if young persons who 
currently use smokeless tobacco continue to use these products frequently (1). 
To monitor trends in the prevalence of use of smokeless tobacco products, 
CDC's 1991 National Health Interview Survey-Health Promotion and Disease 
Prevention supplement (NHIS-HPDP) collected information on snuff and chewing 
tobacco use and smoking from a representative sample of the U.S. civilian, 
noninstitutionalized population aged greater than or equal to 18 years. This 
report summarizes findings from this survey. 
     The 1991 NHIS-HPDP supplement asked "Have you used snuff at least 20 
times in your entire life?" and "Do you use snuff now?" Similar questions were 
asked about chewing tobacco use and cigarette smoking. Current users of 
smokeless tobacco were defined as those who reported snuff or chewing tobacco 
use at least 20 times and who reported using snuff or chewing tobacco at the 
time of the interview; former users were defined as those who reported having 
used snuff or chewing tobacco at least 20 times and not using either at the 
time of the interview. Ever users of smokeless tobacco included current and 
former users. Current smokers were defined as those who reported smoking at 
least 100 cigarettes and who were currently smoking and former smokers as 
those who reported having smoked at least 100 cigarettes and who were not 
smoking now. Ever smokers included current and former smokers. Data on 
smokeless tobacco use were available for 43,732 persons aged greater than or 
equal to 18 years and were adjusted for nonresponse and weighted to provide 
national estimates. Confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated by using 
standard errors generated by the Software for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) 
(3). 
     In 1991, an estimated 5.3 million (2.9%) U.S. adults were current users 
of smokeless tobacco, including 4.8 million (5.6%) men and 533,000 (0.6%) 
women. For all categories of comparison, the prevalence of smokeless tobacco 
use was substantially higher among men. For men, the prevalence of use was 
highest among those aged 18-24 years (Table 1); for women, the prevalence was 
highest among those aged greater than or equal to 75 years. The prevalence of 
smokeless tobacco use among men was highest among American Indians/Alaskan 
Natives and whites; the prevalence among women was highest among American 
Indians/Alaskan Natives and blacks. Among both men and women, prevalence of 
smokeless tobacco use declined with increasing education. Prevalence was 
substantially higher among residents of the southern United States and in 
rural areas. Although the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use was higher among 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 10
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

men and women below the poverty level, * this difference was significant only 
for women (p less than 0.05) (Table 1). 
     Among men, the prevalence of current use of snuff was highest among those 
aged 18-44 years but varied considerably by age; the prevalence of use of 
chewing tobacco was more evenly distributed by age group (Table 2). Although 
women rarely used smokeless tobacco, the prevalence of snuff use was highest 
among those aged greater than or equal to 75 years. 
     An estimated 7.9 million (4.4% 95% CI=4.1-4.6) adults reported being 
former smokeless tobacco users. Among ever users, the proportion who were 
former smokeless tobacco users was 59.9% (95% CI=57.7-62.1). Among persons 
aged 18-24 years, the proportion of former users was lower among snuff users 
(56.2% 95% CI=49.4-63.0) than among chewing tobacco users (70.4% 95% 
CI=64.2-76.6). Among persons aged 45-64 years, the proportion of former users 
was similar for snuff (68.9% 95% CI=63.1-74.7) and chewing tobacco (73.5% 
95% CI=68.9-78.1). 
     Among current users of smokeless tobacco, 22.9% (95% CI=19.9-26.0) 
currently smoked, 33.3% (95% CI=30.0-36.5) formerly smoked, and 43.8% (95% 
CI=39.9-47.7) never smoked. In comparison, among current smokers, 2.6% (95% 
CI=2.3-3.0) were current users of smokeless tobacco. 
     Daily use of smokeless tobacco was more common among snuff users (67.3% 
95% CI=63.2-71.4) than among chewing tobacco users (45.1% 95% CI=40.6-
49.6). 

Reported by: Office on Smoking and Health, National Center for Chronic Disease 
Prevention and Health Promotion; Div of Health Interview Statistics, National 
Center for Health Statistics, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The findings in this report indicate that the use of smokeless 
tobacco was highest among young males. Adolescent and young adult males, in 
particular, are the target of marketing strategies by tobacco companies that 
link smokeless tobacco with athletic performance and virility. Use of oral 
snuff has risen markedly among professional baseball players, encouraging this 
behavior among adolescent and young adult males and increasing their risk for 
nicotine addiction, oral cancer, and other mouth disorders (4). 
     Differences in the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use among 
racial/ethnic groups may be influenced by differences in educational levels 
and socioeconomic status as well as social and cultural phenomena that require 
further explanation. For example, targeted marketing practices may play a role 
in maintaining or increasing prevalence among some groups, and affecting the 
differential initiation of smokeless tobacco use by young persons (5,6). 
     In this report, one concern is that nearly one fourth of current 
smokeless tobacco users also smoke cigarettes. In the 1991 NHIS-HPDP, the 
prevalence of cigarette smoking was higher among former smokeless tobacco 
users than among current and never smokeless tobacco users. In a previous 
study among college students, 18% of current smokeless tobacco users smoked 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 11
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

occasionally (7). In addition, approximately 7% of adults who formerly smoked 
reported substituting other tobacco products for cigarettes in an effort to 
stop smoking (8). Health-care providers should recognize the potential health 
implications of concurrent smokeless tobacco and cigarette use. 
     The national health objectives for the year 2000 have established special 
population target groups for the reduction of the prevalence of smokeless 
tobacco use, including males aged 12-24 years (to no more than 4% by the year 
2000 objective 3.9) and American Indian/Alaskan Native youth (to no more 
than 10% by the year 2000 objective 3.9a) (9). Strategies to lower the 
prevalence of smokeless tobacco use include continued monitoring of smokeless 
tobacco use, integrating smoking and smokeless tobacco-control efforts, 
enforcing laws that restrict minors' access to tobacco, making excise taxes 
commensurate with those on cigarettes, encouraging health-care providers to 
routinely provide cessation advice and follow-up, providing school-based 
prevention and cessation interventions, and adopting policies that prohibit 
tobacco use on school property and at school-sponsored events (5). 

References

1. Office of Evaluations and Inspections. Spit tobacco and youth. Washington, 
DC: US Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector 
General, 1992; DHHS publication no. (OEI-06)92-00500. 

2. National Institutes of Health. The health consequences of using smokeless 
tobacco: a report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General. Bethesda, 
Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 
1986; DHHS publication no. (NIH)86-2874. 

3. Shah BV. Software for Survey Data Analysis (SUDAAN) version 5.30 Software 
documentation. Research Triangle Park, North Carolina: Research Triangle 
Institute, 1989. 

4. Connolly GN, Orleans CT, Blum A. Snuffing tobacco out of sport. Am J Public 
Health 1992;82:351-3. 

5. National Cancer Institute. Smokeless tobacco or health: an international 
perspective. Bethesda, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, 
Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health, 1992; DHHS publication 
no. (NIH)92-3461. 

6. Foreyt JP, Jackson AS, Squires WG, Hartung GH, Murray TD, Gotto AM. 
Psychological profile of college students who use smokeless tobacco. Addict 
Behav 1993;18:107-16. 

7. Glover ED, Laflin M, Edwards SW. Age of initiation and switching patterns 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 12
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

between smokeless tobacco and cigarettes among college students in the United 
States. Am J Public Health 1989;79:207-8. 

8. CDC. Tobacco use in 1986: methods and tabulations from Adult Use of Tobacco 
Survey. Rockville, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, 
Public Health Service, CDC, 1990; DHHS publication no. (OM)90-2004. 

9. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives. Washington, DC: US Department of Health and 
Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS publication no. (PHS)91-
50213.

























--------- end of part 1 ------------

---
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Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59126
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN610 Medical News Part 3/4


------------- cut here -----------------
University of Arizona
Tucson, Arizona



                               Suggested Reading

Tan SL, Royston P, Campbell S, Jacobs HS, Betts J, Mason B, Edwards RG (1992).  
Cumulative conception and Livebirth rates after in-vitro fertilization. Lancet 
339:1390-1394. 

For further information, call:
                        Physicians' Resource Line
                             1-800-328-5868
                               in Tucson:
                                694-5868


























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 28
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                   Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                    LOW LEVELS OF AIRBORNE PARTICLES LINKED
                           TO SERIOUS ASTHMA ATTACKS
                           American Lung Association 

     A new study published by the American Lung Association has shown that 
surprisingly low concentrations of airborne particles can send people with 
asthma rushing to emergency rooms for treatment.  
     The Seattle-based study showed that roughly one in eight emergency visits 
for asthma in that city was linked to exposure to particulate air pollution.  
The actual exposure levels recorded in the study were far below those deemed 
unsafe under federal air quality laws.  
     "People with asthma have inflamed airways, and airborne particles tend to 
exacerbate that inflammation," said Joel Schwartz, Ph.D., of the Environmental 
Protection Agency, who was the lead author of the study.  "When people are on 
the threshold of having, a serious asthma attack, particles can push them over 
the edge." 
     The Seattle Study correlated 13 months of asthma emergency room visits 
with daily levels of PM,,,. or particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter 
of 10 microns or less.  These finer particles are considered hazardous because 
they are small enough penetrate into the lung.  Cities are considered out of 
compliance with clean air laws if the 24-hour average concentration of PM10 
exceeds 150 micrograms per cubic millimeter of air.  
     In Seattle however, a link between fine particles and asthma was found at 
levels as low as 30 micrograms.  The authors concluded that for every 30 
microgram increase in the four-day average of PM10, the odds of someone with 
asthma needing emergency treatment increased by 12 percent.  
     The findings were published in the April American Review of Respiratory 
Disease, an official journal of the American Thoracic Society, the Lung 
Association's medical section.  
     The study is the latest in a series of recent reports to suggest that 
particulate matter is a greatly under appreciated health threat.  A 1992 study 
by Dr. Schwartz and Douglas Dockery, Ph.D., of Harvard found that particles 
may be causing roughly 60,000 premature deaths each year in the United States.  
Other studies have linked particulate matter to increased respiratory symptoms 
and bronchitis in children.  
     "Government officials and the media are still very focused on ozone," 
says Dr. Schwartz.  "But more and more research is showing that particles are 
bad actors as well."      One problem in setting, standards for particulate 
air pollution is that PMIO is difficult to study.  Unlike other regulated 
pollutants such as ozone and carbon monoxide, particulate matter is a complex 
and varying mixture of substances, including carbon, hydrocarbons, dust, and 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 29
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

acid aerosols.  
     "Researchers can't Put people in exposure chambers to study the effects 
of particulate air pollution," says Dr. Schwartz.  "We have no way of 
duplicating the typical urban mix of particles.  " Consequently, most of what 
is known about particulates has been learned through population-based research 
like the Seattle study.  
     Given that the EPA's current priority is to review the ozone and sulfur 
dioxide standards, the agency is unlikely to reexamine the PM10 standard any 
time soon.  Until changes are made, there appears to be little people with 
asthma can do to protect themselves from airborne particles.
     "In some areas, you can get reports on air quality, but the reports only 
cover the pollutant that is closest to violating its standard, and that's 
rarely particulate matter," says Dr.  Schwartz.  "However, PM10 doesn't have 
to be near its violation range to be unhealthy."































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 30
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

               NIH Consensus Development Conference on Melanoma

The National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference on 
Diagnosis and Treatment of Early Melanoma brought together experts in 
dermatology, pathology, epidemiology, public education, surveillance 
techniques, and potential new technologies as well as other health care 
professionals and the public to address (1) the clinical and histological 
characteristics of early melanoma; (2) the appropriate diagnosis, management, 
and followup of patients with early melanoma; (3) the role of dysplastic nevi 
and their significance; and (4) the role of education and screening in 
preventing melanoma morbidity and mortality.  Following 2 days of 
presentations by experts and discussion by the audience, a consensus panel 
weighed the scientific evidence and prepared their consensus statement. 
 
Among their findings, the panel recommended that (1) melanoma in situ is a 
distinct entity effectively treated surgically with 0.5 centimeter margins; 
(2) thin invasive melanoma, less than 1 millimeter thick, has the potential 
for long-term survival in more than 90 percent of patients after surgical 
excision with a 1 centimeter margin; (3) elective lymph node dissections and 
extensive staging evaluations are not recommended in early melanoma; (4) 
patients with early melanoma are at low risk for relapse but may be at high 
risk for development of subsequent melanomas and should be followed closely; 
(5) some family members of patients with melanoma are at increased risk for 
melanoma and should be enrolled in surveillance programs; and (6) education 
and screening programs have the potential to decrease morbidity and mortality 
from melanoma. 
 
A copy of the full text of the consensus panel's statement is available by 
calling the NIH Office of Medical Applications of Research at (301) 496-1143 
or by writing to:  Office of Medical Applications of Research, National 
Institutes of Health, Federal Building, Room 618, Bethesda, MD 20892.














HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 31
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

                         NCI-Designated Cancer Centers

The Cancer Centers Program is comprised of 55 NCI-designated Cancer Centers 
actively engaged in multidisciplinary research efforts to reduce cancer 
incidence, morbidity, and mortality.  Within the program, there are four types 
of cancer centers:  basic science cancer centers (14), which engage primarily 
in basic cancer research; clinical cancer centers (12), which focus on 
clinical research; "comprehensive" cancer centers (28), which emphasize a 
multidisciplinary approach to cancer research, patient care, and community 
outreach; and consortium cancer centers (1), which specialize in cancer 
prevention and control research. 
 
Although some cancer centers existed in the late 1960s and the 1970s, it was 
the National Cancer Act of 1971 that authorized the establishment of 15 new 
cancer centers, as well as continuing support for existing ones.  The passage 
of the act also dramatically transformed the centers' structure and broadened 
the scope of their mission to include all aspects of basic, clinical, and 
cancer control research.  Over the next two decades, the centers' program grew 
progressively. 
 
In 1990, there were 19 comprehensive cancer centers in the nation. Today, 
there are 28 of these institutions, all of which meet specific NCI criteria 
for comprehensive status. 
 
To attain recognition from the NCI as a comprehensive cancer center, an 
institution must pass rigorous peer review.  Under guidelines newly 
established in 1990, the eight criteria for "comprehensiveness" include the 
requirement that a center have a strong core of basic laboratory research in 
several scientific fields, such as biology and molecular genetics, a strong 
program of clinical research, and an ability to transfer research findings 
into clinical practice. 
 
Moreover, five of the criteria for comprehensive status go significantly 
beyond that required for attaining a Cancer Center Support Grant (also 
referred to as a P30 or core grant), the mechanism of choice for supporting 
the infrastructure of a cancer center's operations.  These criteria encompass 
strong participation in NCI-designated high-priority clinical trials, 
significant levels of cancer prevention and control research, and important 
outreach and educational activities--all of which are funded by a variety of 
sources. 
 
The other types of cancer centers also have special characteristics and 
capabilities for organizing new programs of research that can exploit 
important new findings or address timely research questions. 
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 32
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Of the 55 NCI-designated Cancer Centers, 14 are of the basic science type.  
These centers engage almost entirely in basic research, although some centers 
engage in collaborative research with outside clinical research investigators 
and in cooperative projects with industry to generate medical applications 
from new discoveries in the laboratory. 
 
Clinical cancer centers, in contrast, focus on both basic research and 
clinical research within the same institutional framework, and frequently 
incorporate nearby affiliated clinical research institutions into their 
overall research programs.  There are 12 such centers today. 
 
Finally, consortium cancer centers, of which there is one, are uniquely 
structured and concentrate on clinical research and cancer prevention and 
control research.  These centers interface with state and local public health 
departments for the purpose of achieving the transfer of effective prevention 
and control techniques from their research findings to those institutions 
responsible for implementing population-wide public health programs.  
Consortium centers also are heavily engaged in collaborations with 
institutions that conduct clinical trial research and coordinate community 
hospitals within a network of cooperating institutions in clinical trials. 
 
Together, the 55 NCI-Designated Cancer Centers continue to work toward 
creating new and innovative approaches to cancer research, and through 
interdisciplinary efforts, to effectively move this research from the 
laboratory into clinical trials and into clinical practice. 
 
Comprehensive Cancer Centers (Internet addresses are given where available) 
 
University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center
Basic Health Sciences Building, Room 108
1918 University Boulevard
Birmingham, Alabama 35294
(205) 934-6612
 
University of Arizona Cancer Center
1501 North Campbell Avenue
Tucson, Arizona 85724
(602) 626-6372
Internet:  syd@azcc.arizona.edu
 
Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of California at Los Angeles
200 Medical Plaza
Los Angeles, California 90027
(213) 206-0278

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 33
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Internet:  rick@jccc.medsch.ucla.edu
 
Kenneth T. Norris Jr. Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of Southern California
1441 Eastlake Avenue
Los Angeles, California  90033-0804
(213) 226-2370
 
Yale University Comprehensive Cancer Center
333 Cedar Street
New Haven, Connecticut 06510
(203) 785-6338
 
Lombardi Cancer Research Center
Georgetown University Medical Center
3800 Reservoir Road, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20007
(202) 687-2192
 
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of Miami Medical School
1475 Northwest 12th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33136
(305) 548-4800
Internet:  hlam@mednet.med.miami.edu
 
Johns Hopkins Oncology Center
600 North Wolfe Street
Baltimore, Maryland 21205
(410) 955-8638
 
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
44 Binney Street
Boston, Massachusetts 02115
(617) 732-3214
Internet:  Kristie_Stevenson@macmailgw.dfci.harvard.edu
 
Meyer L. Prentis Comprehensive Cancer Center of Metropolitan
Detroit
110 East Warren Avenue
Detroit, Michigan 48201
(313) 745-4329
Internet:  cummings%oncvx1.dnet@rocdec.roc.wayne.edu
 
University of Michigan Cancer Center

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 34
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

101 Simpson Drive
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-0752
(313) 936-9583
BITNET:  kallie.bila.michels@um.cc.umich.edu
 
Mayo Comprehensive Cancer Center
200 First Street Southwest
Rochester, Minnesota 55905
(507) 284-3413
 
Norris Cotton Cancer Center
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
One Medical Center Drive
Lebanon, New Hampshire 03756
(603) 646-5505
BITNET:  edward.bresnick@dartmouth.edu
 
Roswell Park Cancer Institute
Elm and Carlton Streets
Buffalo, New York 14263
(716) 845-4400
 
Columbia University Comprehensive Cancer Center
College of Physicians and Surgeons
630 West 168th Street
New York, New York 10032
(212) 305-6905
Internet:  janie@cuccfa.ccc.columbia.edu
 
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
1275 York Avenue
New York, New York 10021
(800) 525-2225
 
Kaplan Cancer Center
New York University Medical Center
462 First Avenue
New York, New York 10016-9103
(212) 263-6485
 
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center
University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599
(919) 966-4431
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 35
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center
P.O. Box 3814
Durham, North Carolina 27710
(919) 286-5515
 
Cancer Center of Wake Forest University at the Bowman Gray School
of Medicine
300 South Hawthorne Road
Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27103
(919) 748-4354
Internet:  ccwfumail@phs.bgsm.wfu.edu
 
Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center
300 West 10th Avenue
Columbus, Ohio 43210
(614) 293-5485
Internet:  dyoung@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
 
Fox Chase Cancer Center
7701 Burholme Avenue
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19111
(215) 728-2570
Internet:  s_davis@fccc.edu
 
University of Pennsylvania Cancer Center
3400 Spruce Street
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
(215) 662-6364
 
Pittsburgh Cancer Institute
200 Meyran Avenue
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213-2592
(800) 537-4063
 
The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
1515 Holcombe Boulevard
Houston, Texas 77030
(713) 792-3245
 
Vermont Cancer Center
University of Vermont
1 South Prospect Street
Burlington, Vermont 05401
(802) 656-4580
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 36
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
1124 Columbia Street
Seattle, Washington 98104
(206) 667-4675
Internet:  sedmonds@cclink.fhcrc.org
 
University of Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Center
600 Highland Avenue
Madison, Wisconsin 53792
(608) 263-8600
BITNET:  carbone@uwccc.biostat.wisc.edu
 
 
 
Clinical Cancer Centers
 
 
University of California at San Diego Cancer Center
225 Dickinson Street
San Diego, California 92103
(619) 543-6178
Internet:  dedavis@ucsd.edu
 
City of Hope National Medical Center
Beckman Research Institute
1500 East Duarte Road
Duarte, California 91010
(818) 359-8111 ext. 2292
 
University of Colorado Cancer Center
4200 East 9th Avenue, Box B188
Denver, Colorado 80262
(303) 270-7235
 
University of Chicago Cancer Research Center
5841 South Maryland Avenue, Box 444
Chicago, Illinois 60637
(312) 702-6180
Internet:  judith@delphi.bsd.uchicago.edu
 
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
1300 Morris Park Avenue
Bronx, New York 10461
(212) 920-4826
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 37
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

University of Rochester Cancer Center
601 Elmwood Avenue, Box 704
Rochester, New York 14642
(716) 275-4911
Internet:  rickb@wotan.medicine.rochester.edu
 
Ireland Cancer Center Case Western Reserve University
University Hospitals of Cleveland
2074 Abington Road
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
(216) 844-5432
 
Roger Williams Cancer Center
Brown University
825 Chalkstone Avenue
Providence, Rhode Island 02908
(401) 456-2071
 
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
332 North Lauderdale Street
Memphis, Tennessee 38101-0318
(901) 522-0306
Internet:  meyer@mbcf.stjude.org
 
Institute for Cancer Research and Care
4450 Medical Drive
San Antonio, Texas 78229
(512) 616-5580
 
Utah Regional Cancer Center
University of Utah Health Sciences Center
50 North Medical Drive, Room 2C110
Salt Lake City, Utah 84132
(801) 581-4048
BITNET:  hogan@cc.utah.edu
 
Massey Cancer Center
Medical College of Virginia
Virginia Commonwealth University
1200 East Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23298
(804) 786-9641
 
 
Consortia

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 38
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

 
Drew-Meharry-Morehouse Consortium Cancer Center
1005 D.B. Todd Boulevard
Nashville, Tennessee 37208
(615) 327-6927








































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 39
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                             General Announcments
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                 THE UCI MEDICAL EDUCATION SOFTWARE REPOSITORY 

This is to announce the establishment of an FTP site at the University of 
California, for the collection of shareware, public-domain software and other 
information relating to Medical Education.  

Specifically, we are interested in establishing this site as a clearinghouse 
for personally developed software that has been developed for local medical 
education programs.  We welcome all contributions that may be shared with 
other users.  

To connect to the UCI Medical Education Software Repository, ftp to: 

                     FTP.UCI.EDU

The Repository currently offers both MSDOS and Macintosh software, and we hope 
to support other operating systems (UNIX, MUMPS, AMIGA?).  

Uploads are welcome.  We actively solicit information and software which you 
have personaly developed or have found useful in your local medical education 
efforts, either as an instructor or student.  

Once you have connected to the site via FTP, cd (change directory) to either 
the med-ed/mac/incoming or the med-ed/msdos/incoming directories, change the 
mode to binary and "send" or "put" your files.  Note that you won't be able to 
see the files with the "ls" or "dir" commands.  Please compress your files as 
appropriate to the operating system (ZIP for MSDOS; Compactor or something 
similar for Macintosh) to save disk space.  

After uploading, please send email to Steve Clancy (slclancy@uci.edu) (for 
MSDOS) or Albert Saisho (saisho@uci.edu) (for MAC) describing the file(s) you 
have uploaded and any other information we might need to describe it.

Note that we can only accept software or information that has been designated 
as shareware, public-domain or that may otherwise be distributed freely.  
Please do not upload commercial software!  Doing so may jeopardize the 
existence of this FTP site.  

If you wish to upload software for other operating systems, please contact 
either Steve Clancy, M.L.S. or Albert Saisho, M.D. at the addresses above.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 40
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                              AIDS News Summaries
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                              AIDS Daily Summary

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS  
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public  service 
only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement  by the CDC, 
the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction  of this text 
is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold.  Copyright 1993, Information, 
Inc., Bethesda, MD 

      ==================================================================    
                                April 12, 1993 
      ==================================================================    

"NIH Set to Test Multiple AIDS Vaccines" Reuters (04/08/93)  (Frank, 
Jacqueline) 

     Washington--The Clinton administration will permit the National  
Institutes of Health to test multiple AIDS vaccines instead of  only allowing 
the Army to test a single vaccine, administration  sources said Thursday.  The 
decision ends the controversy between Army AIDS researchers who had hoped to 
test a vaccine made by  MicroGeneSys Inc. and the National Institutes of 
Health, which  contended that multiple vaccines should be tested.  Health and  
Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala said a final announcement  on the 
therapeutic vaccine trials was expected to be made last  Friday.  Companies 
including Genentech Inc., Chiron Corp., and  Immuno AG have already told NIH 
that they are prepared to  participate in the vaccine tests.  The testing is 
intended to  demonstrate whether AIDS vaccines are effective in thwarting the  
replication of HIV in patients already infected.  Shalala refuted last week's 
reports that the Clinton administration had decided  the Army's test of the 
MicroGeneSys VaxSyn should proceed without tests of others at the same time.  
"The report was inaccurate,  and I expect there to be some announcement in the 
next 24 hours  about that particular AIDS research project," said Shalala.   
Administration sources subsequently confirmed that NIH director  Dr. Bernadine 
Healy and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner David Kessler had 
convinced the White House that multiple  vaccines should be tested 
simultaneously.  But MicroGeneSys  president Frank Volvovitz said a test of 
multiple vaccines could  triple the cost of the trial and delay it by two 
years.

==================================================================    


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 41
Volume  6, Number 10                                           April 20, 1993

"The Limits of AZT's Impact on HIV" U.S. News & World Report (04/12/93) Vol. 
114, No. 14, P. 18 

     AZT has become the most widely used drug to fight AIDS since it  was 
approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1987.   Burroughs Wellcome, 
the manufacturer of AZT, made $338 million  last year alone from sales of the 
drug.  However, a team of  European researchers recently reported that 
although HIV-positive patients taking AZT demonstrated a slightly lower risk 
of  developing AIDS within the first year of treatment, that benefit  
disappeared two years later.  The Lancet published preliminary  findings of 
the three-year study, which could give more reason  for critics to argue the 
drug's cost, side effects, and general  efficacy.  Even though U.S. 
researchers concede the study was  more comprehensive than American trials, 
many argue the European  researchers' suggestion that HIV-positive patients 
experience  little improvement in their illness before the development of  
AIDS symptoms.  In addition, researchers have long been familiar  with the 
--------- end of part 3 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59127
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1r3ks8INNica@lynx.unm.edu> bhjelle@carina.unm.edu () writes:
>In article <1993Apr21.091844.4035@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>>In article <19687@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>>>
>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>
>>Not one, but two:
>>
>>Obesity in Europe 88,
>>proceedings of the 1st European Congress on Obesity
>>
>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>
>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>
>Brian

I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59128
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Re: Could this be a migraine?

GB> From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
GB> >(I am excepting migraine, which is arguably neurologic).
GB> I hope you meant "inarguably".

Given the choice, I would rather argue <g>.

No arguments about migranous aura; in fact, current best evidence is
that aura is intrinsicially neuronal (a la spreading depression of
Leao) rather than vascular (something causing vasoconstriction and
secondary neuronal ischemia).

Migraine without aura, however, is a fuzzier issue.  There do not
seem to be objectively measurable changes in brain function.  The
Copenhagen mafia (Lauritzen, Olesen, et al) have done local CBF
studies on migraine without aura, and (unlike migraine with aura,
but like tension-type) they found no changes in LCBF.

From one (absurd) perspective, *all* pain is neurologic, because in
the absence of a nervous system, there would not be pain.  From
another (tautologic) perspective, any disease is in the domain of
the specialty that treats it.  Neurologists treat headache,
therefore (at least in the USA) headache is neurologic.

Whether neurologic or not, nobody would disagree that disabling
headaches are common.  Perhaps my fee-for-service neurologic
colleagues, scrounging for cases, want all the headache patients
they can get.  Working on a salary, however, I would rather not fill
my office with patients holding their heads in pain.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                       

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59129
From: thom@morgan.ucs.mun.ca (Thomas Clancy)
Subject: Re: Thrush ((was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)))

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu (McCurdy M.) writes:
>>Dyer is beyond rude. 

I'll drink to that.

>Yeah, yeah, yeah.  I didn't threaten to rip your lips off, did I?
>Snort.

>>There have been and always will be people who are blinded by their own 
>>knowledge and unopen to anything that isn't already established. Given what 
>>the medical community doesn't know, I'm surprised that he has this outlook.

>Duh.

Nice to see Steve still has his high and almighty intellectual prowess 
in tact.

>>For the record, I have had several outbreaks of thrush during the several 
>>past few years, with no indication of immunosuppression or nutritional 
>>deficiencies. I had not taken any antobiotics. 

>Listen: thrush is a recognized clinical syndrome with definite
>characteristics.  If you have thrush, you have thrush, because you can
>see the lesions and do a culture and when you treat it, it generally
>responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
>anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
>is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
>who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

Yawn...

>>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

>So?

Exactly my question to you, Steve. What's your point? This person had
one, you didn't

>-- 
>Steve Dyer

Nice to see that some things never change, Steve, if you aren't being
ignorant in one group [*.alternative] you're into another. One positive
thing came out of it, you are no longer bothering the folks in 
*.alternative, it's just a shame that these people have to suffer so
that others may breath freely. 
 
Sorry for wasting bandwidth folks. Don't forget to bow down once
every second day, and to offer your first born to the almight 
omniscient, omnipotent, Mr. Steve.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59130
From: dsc@gemini.gsfc.nasa.gov (Doug S. Caprette)
Subject: CS chemical agent



Can anyone provide information on CS chemical agent--the tear gas used recently
in WACO.  Just what is it chemically, and what are its effects on the body?

dsc@gemini.gsfc.nasa.gov  
 |  Regards,         |   Hughes STX                |    Code 926.9 GSFC        |
 |  Doug Caprette    |   Lanham, Maryland          |    Greenbelt, MD  20771   |
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"A path is laid one stone at a time" -- The Giant

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59131
From: annick@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au (Annick Ansselin)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In <C5nFDG.8En@sdf.lonestar.org> marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco) writes:

>>
>>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?

MSG is mono sodium glutamate, a fairly straight forward compound. If it is
pure, the source should not be a problem. Your comment suggests that 
impurities may be the cause.
My experience of MSG effects (as part of a double blind study) was that the
pure stuff caused me some rather severe effects.

>I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
>our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
>there other sources of MSG?

Soya bean, fermented cheeses, mushrooms all contain MSG. 

>I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
>I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
>causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
>and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.

The symptoms I had were numbness of jaw muscles in the first instance
followed by the arms then the legs, headache, lethargy and unable to keep
awake. I think it may well affect people differently.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59132
From: lmegna@titan.ucs.umass.edu (Lisa Megna)
Subject: Neurofibromatosis

Hello,

I am writing a grant proposal for a Developmental Genetics class and I
have chose to look at the Neurofibromatosis 1 gene and its variable
expressivity.  I am curious what has already been done on this subject,
especially the relationship between specific mutations and the resulting
phenotype.  My literature search has produce many references, but I want to
make sure I am proposing new research.  If anyone knows aything that has been
recently or key peopl doing research to search for using MEDLINE, I would
apprciate being informed.

Thank you.

Lisa Megna
lmegna@titan.ucc.umass.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59133
From: x92lee22@gw.wmich.edu
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <annick.735440726@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au>, annick@cortex.physiol.su.oz.au (Annick Ansselin) writes:
> In <C5nFDG.8En@sdf.lonestar.org> marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco) writes:
> 
>>>
>>>And to add further fuel to the flame war, I read about 20 years ago that
>>>the "natural" MSG - extracted from the sources you mention above - does not
>>>cause the reported aftereffects; it's only that nasty "artificial" MSG -
>>>extracted from coal tar or whatever - that causes Chinese Restaurant
>>>Syndrome.  I find this pretty hard to believe; has anyone else heard it?
> 
> MSG is mono sodium glutamate, a fairly straight forward compound. If it is
> pure, the source should not be a problem. Your comment suggests that 
> impurities may be the cause.
> My experience of MSG effects (as part of a double blind study) was that the
> pure stuff caused me some rather severe effects.
> 
>>I was under the (possibly incorrect) assumption that most of the MSG on
>>our foods was made from processing sugar beets. Is this not true? Are 
>>there other sources of MSG?
> 
> Soya bean, fermented cheeses, mushrooms all contain MSG. 
> 
>>I am one of those folx who react, sometimes strongly, to MSG. However,
>>I also react strongly to sodium chloride (table salt) in excess. Each
>>causes different symptoms except for the common one of rapid heartbeat
>>and an uncomfortable feeling of pressure in my chest, upper left quadrant.
> 
> The symptoms I had were numbness of jaw muscles in the first instance
> followed by the arms then the legs, headache, lethargy and unable to keep
> awake. I think it may well affect people differently.

Well, I think msg is made from a kind of plant call "tapioca" and not those
staff you mentiond above.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59134
Subject: Re: Broken rib
From: jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca

Hello , I think you are probaly right, in spite of the movement
it is getting better each day.  cheers

           jc@oneb.almanac.bc.ca (John Cross)
     The Old Frog's Almanac  (Home of The Almanac UNIX Users Group)    
(604) 245-3205 (v32)    <Public Access UseNet>    (604) 245-4366 (2400x4)
        Vancouver Island, British Columbia    Waffle XENIX 1.64  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59135
From: u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu
Subject: Arythmia

I don't know if anyone knows about this topic: electrical heart 
failure. One of my friends has had to go to the doctor because
he had chest pains. The Doc said it was Arythmia. So he had to
go to a new york hospital for a lot of money to get treated. His
doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused
cancer ( that he was taking). Well, I suggested that he run, excersize
and eat more, ( he is very skinny) but he says that has nothing
to do with it. Does anyone know what causes arythmia and how 
it can be treated?
			Thanks 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59136
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Acutane, Fibromyalgia Syndrome and CFS

[reply to Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince]
 
>There is a person on the FIDO CFS echo who claims that he was cured of
>CFS by taking accutane.  He also claims that you are using it in the
>treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome.  Are you using accutane in the
>treatment of Fibromyalgia Syndrome?
 
Yes.
 
>Have you used it for CFS?
 
It seems to work equally well for CFS, another hint that these may be
different facets of the same underlying process.
 
>Have you gotten good results with it?
 
Yes.  The benefit is usually evident within a few days of starting it.
Most of the patients for whom it has worked well continued low-dose
amitriptyline, daily aerobic excersise, and a regular sleep schedule
(current standard therapy).  Because of the cost (usually > $150/mo.,
depending on dose) and potential for significant side effects like
corneal injury and birth defects, I currently reserve it for those who
fail conventional treatment.  It is important that the person
prescribing it have some experience with it and follow the patient
closely.
 
>Are you aware of any double blind studies on the use of accutane in
>these conditions?  Thank you in advance for all replies.
 
As far as I know, I am the only person looking at it currently.  I
should get off my duff and finish writing up some case reports.  I'm not
an academic physician, so I don't feel the pressure to publish or perish
and I don't have the time during the work day for such things.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59137
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

[reply to aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)]
 
>Medicine is not a totally scientific endevour.
 
The acquisition of scientific knowledge is completely scientific.  The
application of that knowledge in individual cases may be more art than
science.
 
>There are diseases that haven't been described yet and the root cause
>of many diseases now described aren't known. (Read a book on
>gastroenterology sometime if you want to see a lot of them.) After
>scientific methods have run out then it's the patient's freedom of
>choice to try any experimental method they choose. And it's well
>recognized by many doctors that medicine doesn't have all the answers.
 
Certainly we don't have all the answers.  The question is, what is the
most reliable means of acquiring further medical knowledge?  The
scientific method has proven itself to be reliable.  The *only* reason
alternative therapies are shunned by physicians is that their
practitioners refuse to submit their theories to rigorous scientific
scrutiny, insisting that "tradition" or anecdotal evidence are
sufficient.  These have been shown many times in the past to be very
unreliable ways of acquiring reliable knowledge.  Crook's ideas have
never been backed up by scientific evidence.  His unwillingness to do
good science makes the rest of us doubt the veracity of his contentions.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59138
From: des@helix.nih.gov (David E. Scheim)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <jschwimmer.123.735362184@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu> jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer) writes:

>I've recently listened to a tape by Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, in which he 
>claims to have discovered a series naturally occuring peptides with anti-
>cancer properties that he names antineoplastons.  Burzynski says that his 
>work has met with hostility in the United States, despite the favorable 
>responses of his subjects during clinical trials.

>What is the generally accepted opinion of Dr. Burzynski's research?  He 
>paints himself as a lone researcher with a new breakthrough battling an 
>intolerant medical establishment, but I have no basis from which to judge 
>his claims.  Two weeks ago, however, I read that the NIH's Department of 
>Alternative Medicine has decided to focus their attention on Burzynski's 
>work.  Their budget is so small that I imagine they wouldn't investigate a 
>treatment that didn't seem promising.

>Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
>status of his research would be appreciated.

>--
>Joshua Schwimmer
>jschwimmer@eagle.wesleyan.edu

There's been extensive discussion on the CompuServe Cancer Forum about Dr. 
Burzynski's treatment as a result of the decision of a forum member's father 
to undertake his treatment for brain glioblastoma.  This disease is 
universally and usually rapidly fatal.  After diagnosis in June 1992, the 
tumor was growing rapidly despite radiation and chemotherapy.  The forum 
member checked extensively on Dr. Burzynki's track record for this disease.  
He spoke to a few patients in complete remission for a few years from 
glioblastoma following this treatment and to an NCI oncologist who had 
audited other such case histories and found them valid and impressive.  
After the forum member's father began Dr. Burzynski's treatment in 
September, all subsequent scans performed under the auspices of his 
oncologist in Chicago have shown no tumor growth with possible signs of 
shrinkage or necrosis.

The patient's oncologist, although telling him he would probably not live 
past December 1992, was vehemently opposed to his trying Dr. Burzynski's 
treatment.  Since the tumor stopped its rapid growth under Dr. Burzynski's 
treatment, she's since changed her attitude toward continuing these 
treatments, saying "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Dr. Burzynski is an M.D., Ph.D. with a research background who found a 
protein that is at very low serum levels in cancer patients, synthesized it, 
and administers it to patients with certain cancer types.  There is little 
understanding of the actual mechanism of activity.

/*********************************************************************/
/*                      --- David E. Scheim ---                      */
/* BITNET: none                                                      */
/* INTERNET: desl@helix.nih.gov          PHONE: 301 496-2194         */
/* CompuServe: 73750,3305                  FAX: 301 402-1065         */
/*                                                                   */
/* DISCLAIMER: These comments are offered to share knowledge based   */
/*   upon my personal views.  They do not represent the positions    */
/*   of my employer.                                                 */
/*********************************************************************/

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59139
From: cerulean@access.digex.com (Bill Christens-Barry)
Subject: cytoskeleton dynamics

I'm looking for good background and review paper references that can help me
understand the dynamics of cytoskeleton in normal and transformed cells.  In
particular, I'm not interested in translational behavior and cell motility,
but rather in the internal motions of the cytoskeleton and its components
under normal and transformed circumstances.

Also, I'd appreciate any data on force constants, mechanical, and elastic
properties of microtubules, and viscous properties of cytoplasm.  Any other
info relevant to the vibrational or acoustical properties of these would
be useful to me.

Thanks...

Bill Christens-Barry
cerulean@access.digex.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59140
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Selective Placebo

L(>  levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin) writes:
L(>  John Badanes wrote:
L(>  |JB>  1) Ron...what do YOU consider to be "proper channels"...
L(>  
L(>  |  I'm glad it caught your eye. That's the purpose of this forum to
L(>  | educate those, eager to learn, about the facts of life. That phrase
L(>  | is used to bridle the frenzy of all the would-be respondents, who
L(>  | otherwise would feel being left out as the proper authorities to be
L(>  | consulted on that topic. In short, it means absolutely nothing.
L(>  
L(>  An apt description of the content of just about all Ron Roth's 
L(>  posts to date.  At least there's entertainment value (though it 
L(>  is diminishing).

     Well, that's easy for *YOU* to say.  All *YOU* have to do is sit 
     back, soak it all in, try it out on your patients, and then brag
     to all your colleagues about that incredibly success rate you're
     having all of a sudden...

     --Ron--
---
   RoseReader 2.00  P003228: For real sponge cake, borrow all ingredients.
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59141
From: sheryl@seas.gwu.edu (Sheryl Coppenger)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>In article <1993Apr20.212706.820@lrc.edu> kjiv@lrc.edu writes:
>>Can someone tell me whether or not any of the following medications 
>>has been linked to rapid/excessive weight gain and/or a distorted 
>>sense of taste or smell:  Hismanal; Azmacort (a topical steroid to 
>>prevent asthma); Vancenase.
>
>Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
>It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
>and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
>doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
>drowsiness.
>

So antihistamines can cause weight gain.  NOW they tell me. :-)
Is there any way to find out which do & which don't?  My doctor
obviously is asleep at the wheel.

The original poster mentioned fatigue.  I had that too, but it was
mostly due to the really bizarre dreams I was having -- I wasn't getting
any rest.  My doctor said that was a common reaction.  If astemizole
doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier, how does it cause that side
effect?  Any ideas?

-- 

Sheryl Coppenger    SEAS Computing Facility Staff	sheryl@seas.gwu.edu
		    The George Washington University	(202) 994-6853          

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59142
From: bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

smjeff@lerc05.lerc.nasa.gov (Jeff Miller) writes:
>Even properly controlled studies (e.g. double blind studies) are almost
>useless if you are trying to prove that something does not affect anyone.

-- and --

>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>most likely explanation for events.
>

Good grief; has no one ever heard of Biostatistics??  The University of
Washington (plus 3 or 4 others [Harvard, UNC]) has a department and
advanced degree program in Biostatistics.  My wife has an MS Biostat, and
there are plenty of MDs, PhDs, and postdocs doing Biostatistical work.
People do this for a living.  Really bright people study for decades to do
this sort of study well.

Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

The last study on which my wife worked employed 200 nurses, 100 doctors,
and a dozen Ph.Ds at one University and at 70 hospitals in five nations.  I
would think the MSG question could be settled by one lowly Biostat MS
student in a thesis.

--bruce

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59143
From: stgprao@st.unocal.COM (Richard Ottolini)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Living things maintain small electric fields to (1) enhance certain
chemical reactions, (2) promote communication of states with in a cell,
(3) communicate between cells (of which the nervous system is a specialized
example), and perhaps other uses.  These electric fields change with location
and time in a large organism.  Special photographic techniques such as applying
external fields in Kirillian photography interact with these fields or the resistances
caused by these fields to make interesting pictures. Perhaps such pictures will
be diagonistic of disease problems in organisms when better understood. Perhaps not.

Studying the overall electric activity of biological systems is several hundred
years old, but not a popular activity.  Perhaps, except in the case of a few
tissues like nerves and the electric senses of fishes, it is hard to reduce the
investigation into small pieces that can be clearly analyzed.  There are some
hints that manipulating electric fields is a useful therapy such as speeding
the healing of broken bones, but not understood why.

Bioelectricity has a long association with mysticism. Ideas such as Frankenstein
reanimation go back to the most early electrical experiments on tissue such as
when Volta invented the battery.  I personally don't care to revert to supernatural
cause to explain things we don't yet understand.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59144
From: Tammy.Vandenboom@launchpad.unc.edu (Tammy Vandenboom)
Subject: sore spot on testicles

My husband woke up three days ago with a small sore spot
(a spot about the size of a nickel) on one of his testicles. Bottom side,
no knots or lumps, just a little sore spot.  He says it reminds him of 
how a bruise feels.  He has no recollection of hitting it or anything like
that that would cause a bruise. (He asssures me he'd remember something
like that :-) 

Any clues as to what it might be?  He's somewhat of a hypochondriac (sp?)
so he's sure he's gonna die. . .

Thanks!!

--
   The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the University of
     North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the Campus Office for Information
        Technology, or the Experimental Bulletin Board Service.
           internet:  laUNChpad.unc.edu or 152.2.22.80

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59145
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Thrush (was: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

In article <21APR199308571323@ucsvax.sdsu.edu> mccurdy@ucsvax.sdsu.edu
 (McCurdy M.) writes:
>My dentist (who sees a fair amount of thrush) recommended acidophilous:
>After I began taking acidophilous on a daily basis, the outbreaks ceased.
>When I quit taking the acidophilous, the outbreaks periodically resumed. 
>I resumed taking the acidophilous with no further outbreaks since then.

This is the second post which seems to be blurring the distinction
between real disease caused by Candida albicans and the "disease"
that was being asked about, systemic yeast syndrome.

There is no question that Candida albicans causes thrush.  It also
seems to be the case that active yogurt cultures with acidophilous
may reduce recurrences of thrush at least for vaginal thrush -- I've 
never heard of anyone taking it for oral thrush before (though 
presumably it would work by the same mechanism).

Candida is clearly a common minor pathogen and a less common major
pathogen.  That does not mean that there is evidence that it causes
the "systemic yeast syndrome".

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59146
From: jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier )
Subject: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?


Hello,

I am interested in trying this "desensitization" (?) method
against hay fever.
What is the state of affairs about this. I went to a doctor and
paid $85 for a 10 minute interview + 3 scratches, leading to the
diagnostic that I am allergic to (June and Timothy) grass.
I believe this. From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
Thanks for information.
Ej   



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59147
From: williamt@athena.Eng.Sun.COM (William Turnbow)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

In article <1r4bhsINNhaf@hp-col.col.hp.com> billc@col.hp.com (Bill Claussen) writes:
>
>This group was originally a takeoff from sci.med.  The reason for
>the formation of this group was to discuss prescription psychoactive
>drugs....such as ...
>
>Oh well, obviously, no one really cares.
---

	Then let me ask you for a "workable" solution.  We have a name
here that implies certain things to many people.  Rather than trying
to educate each and every person that comes to the group -- is there
some "name" that would imply what this group was originally
intended for?  

	My dad was a lawyer -- as such I grew up with being a stickler
for "meaning".  In my "reality", psychoactives *technically* could 
range from caffeine to datura to the drugs you mention to more
standard recreational drugs.  In practice I had hoped to see it
limited to those that were above some psychoactive level -- like
some of the drugs you mention, but also possibly including *some*
recreational drugs -- but with conversation limited to their psychoactive 
effects -- the recent query about "bong water", I thought was a bit
off topic -- so I just hit "k".

	But back to the original question -- what is a workable solution --
what is a workable name that would imply the topic you with to
discuss?  It sounds like there should be a alt.smartdrugs, or something
similar -- I don't feel psychoactives would generally be used to
describe alot of those drugs.  There is a big difference between a
drug that if taken in "certain doses, over a period of days may have
a psychoactive effect in some people", vs. many of the drugs in
PIHKAH which *are* psychoactive.


wm
-- 

:: If pro-choice means choice after conception, does this apply to men too? ::

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59148
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

In article <1r4f8b$euu@agate.berkeley.edu> romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff) writes:
>
>   someone wrote in expressing concern about getting AIDS from acupuncture
>   needles.....
>
>Unless your friend is sharing fluids with their acupuncturist who   
>themselves has AIDS..it is unlikely (not impossible) they will get AIDS        
>from acupuncture needles. Generally, even if accidently inoculated, the normal
>immune response should be enough to effectively handle the minimal contaminant 
>involved with acupuncture needle insertion. 
>
Isn't this what HIV is about - the "normal immune response" to an exposure?

>Most acupuncturists use disposable needles...use once and throw away.

I had electrical pulse nerve testing done a while back.  The needles were taken
from a dirty drawer in an instrument cart and were most certainly NOT
sterile or even clean for that matter.  More than likely they were fresh
from the previous patient.  I WAS concerned, but I kept my mouth shut.  I
probably should have raised hell!

Any comments?  No excuses.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59149
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:

   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!darwin.sura.net!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!uwm.edu!linac!att!bu.edu!dozonoff
   From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Date: 21 Apr 93 16:18:19 GMT
   References: <PAULSON.93Apr19081647@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov>
   Sender: news@bu.edu
   Lines: 22
   X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL5

   Sharon Paulson (paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov) wrote:
   : 
   {much deleted]
   : 
   : 
   : The fact that this happened while eating two sugar coated cereals made
   : by Kellog's makes me think she might be having an allergic reaction to
   : something in the coating or the cereals.  Of the four of us in our
   : immediate family, Kathryn shows the least signs of the hay fever, running
   : nose, itchy eyes, etc. but we have a lot of allergies in our family history
   : including some weird food allergies - nuts, mushrooms. 
   : 

   Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
   literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
   tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
   potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
   Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
   --
   David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
   dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
   (617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 


A couple of folks have suggested the "corn connection".  In the five month
period between the two seizures, my daughter had eaten a fair amount of
Kix and Berry Berry Kix in the mornings and never had a problem.  I checked
the labels and the first ingredient is corn.  She has also never had a problem
eating corn or corn on the cob but of course, that is usually later in the day
with a full stomach so the absorption would not be so high.  I do believe that
Frost Flakes have corn in them but I will have to check the Fruit Loops.  But
the fact that she has eaten this other corny cereal in the morning makes me
wonder.

Thanks for checking into this.  All information at this point is valuable to me.

Sharon
--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59150
From: Andrew T. Robinson <ANDY@MAINE.MAINE.EDU>
Subject: Reasons for hospitals to join Internet?

What resources and services are available on Internet/BITNET which
would be of interest to hospitals and other medical care providers?
I'm interested in anything relelvant, including institutions and
businesses of interest to the medical profession on Internet,
special services such as online access to libraries or diagnostic
information, etc. etc.

Please reply directly to ANDY@MAINE.EDU

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59151
From: roos@Operoni.Helsinki.FI (Christophe Roos)
Subject: Wanted: Rat cell line (adrenal gland/cortical c.)

I am looking for a rat cell line of adrenal gland / cortical cell  -type. I 
have been looking at ATCC without success and would very much appreciate any 
help.

Thank you for reading this.

Christophe Roos

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
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University of Helsinki              X-400:           /G=Christophe/S=Roos
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Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59152
From: mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: Re: How to Diagnose Lyme... really

Gordon Banks (geb@cs.pitt.edu) wrote:
: In article <1993Apr12.201056.20753@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu> mcg2@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (
Marc Gabriel) writes:

: >Now, I'm not saying that culturing is the best way to diagnose; it's very
: >hard to culture Bb in most cases.  The point is that Dr. N has developed a
: >"feel" for what is and what isn't LD.  This comes from years of experience.
: >No serology can match that.  Unfortunately, some would call Dr. N a "quack"
: >and accuse him of trying to make a quick buck.
: >
: Why do you think he would be called a quack?  The quacks don't do cultures.
: They poo-poo doing more lab tests:  "this is Lyme, believe me, I've
: seen it many times.  The lab tests aren't accurate.  We'll treat it
: now."  Also, is Dr. N's practice almost exclusively devoted to treating
: Lyme patients?  I don't know *any* orthopedic surgeons who fit this
: pattern.  They are usually GPs.

No, he does not exclusively treat LD patients.  However, in some parts of the
country, you don't need to be known as an LD "specialist" to see a large
number of LD patients walk through your office.  Given the huge problem of
underdiagnosis, orthopedists encounter late manifestations of the disease just
about every day in their regular practices.  Dr. N. told me that last year,
he sent between 2 and 5 patients a week to the LD specialists... and he is not
the only orthopedists in the town.

Let's say that only 2 people per week actually have LD.  That means at the
*very minimum* 104 people in our town (and immediate area) develop late stage
manifestations of LD *every year*.  Add in the folks who were diagnosed by
neurologists, rheumatologists, GPs, etc, and you can see what kind of problem
we have.  No wonder just about everybody in town personally knows an LD
patient.

He refers most patients to LD specialists, but in extreme cases he puts the
patient on medication immediately to minimize the damage (in most cases, to
the knees).

Gordon is correct when he states that most LD specialists are GPs.

-Marc.
-- 
--
---------------------------------------------------------------------
              Marc C. Gabriel        -  U.C. Box 545  -
              (215) 882-0138         Lehigh University

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59153
From: debbie@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (Debbie Forest)
Subject: Re: Hismanal, et. al.--side effects

In article <1993Apr21.231301.3050@seas.gwu.edu> sheryl@seas.gwu.edu (Sheryl Coppenger) writes:
<In article <1993Apr21.024103.29880@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
<>Hismanal (astemizole) is most definitely linked to weight gain.
<>It really is peculiar that some antihistamines have this effect,
<>and even more so an antihistamine like astemizole which purportedly
<>doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier and so tends not to cause
<>drowsiness.
<
<The original poster mentioned fatigue.  I had that too, but it was
<mostly due to the really bizarre dreams I was having -- I wasn't getting
<any rest.  My doctor said that was a common reaction.  If astemizole
<doesn't cross the blood-brain barrier, how does it cause that side
<effect?  Any ideas?

It made me really BITCHY for the first few weeks.  Now that I think about
it I was having some bizarre dreams too.  My doctor said it made him feel
like he had to be DOING something all the time.  But if you keep taking it,
after a few weeks these symptoms seem to go away, he said hang in there.  
I did and they did.  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59154
From: shavlik@cs.wisc.edu (Jude Shavlik)
Subject: Program & Reg Forms: 1st Int Conf on Intell Sys for Molecular Biology

[For those attending the AAAI conf this summer, note that
this conference is immediately preceding it.]


         PRELIMINARY PROGRAM AND REGISTRATION MATERIALS

              First International Conference on
          Intelligent Systems for Molecular Biology

                       Washington, D.C.
                        July 6-9, 1993

Sponsored by:
  The National Institutes of Health, 
     National Library of Medicine

  The Department of Energy, 
     Office of Health and Environmental Research

  The Biomatrix Society

  The American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI)

Poster Session and Tutorials:  
  Bethesda Ramada Hotel

Technical Sessions:
  Lister Hill Center Auditorium, National Library of Medicine

For more information contact ISMB@nlm.nih.gov or FAX (608)262-9777

                           PURPOSE
This, the First International Conference on Intelligent Systems 
for Molecular Biology, is the inaugural meeting in a series 
intended to bring together scientists who are applying the 
technologies of artificial intelligence, robotics, machine 
learning, massively parallel computing, advanced data modelling, 
and related methods to problems in molecular biology.  The scope 
extends to any computational or robotic system supporting a 
biological task that is cognitively challenging, involves a 
synthesis of information from multiple sources at multiple levels, 
or in some other way exhibits the abstraction and emergent 
properties of an "intelligent system."  

                          FACILITIES
The conference will be held at
   Lister Hill Center 
   National Library of Medicine
   8600 Rockville Pike
   NIH, Building 38A
   Bethesda MD 20894
Seating in the conference center is strictly limited, so 
registrations will be accepted on a first-come, first-serve basis. 
Accomodations, as well as a reception and poster session, will be 
at the
   Bethesda Ramada Hotel 
   8400 Wisconsin Avenue
   Bethesda MD 20814
A special room rate has been negotiated with the hotel, of $92/day 
(expires 6/21).  Attendees must make their own reservations, by 
writing the hotel or calling (800)331-5252 and mentioning the 
ISMB conference.  To participate in a roommate-matching service, 
e-mail opitz@cs.wisc.edu.

                         TRANSPORTATION
The two facilities are within easy walking distance, convenient to 
the subway (Metro Red Line, Medical Center stop), and from there 
to the Amtrak station.  Nearby airports include Dulles, National, 
and Baltimore-Washington International. 

                           PROCEEDINGS
Full-length papers from both talks and posters will be published in
archival proceedings.  The citation is: 

  Proceedings of the First International 
  Conference on Intelligent Systems for 
  Molecular Biology (eds. L. Hunter, 
  D. Searls, and J. Shavlik) AAAI/MIT
  Press, Menlo Park CA, 1993.  

Copies will be distributed at the conference to registered 
attendees, and will be available for purchase from the publisher 
afterwards.

                             TALKS
Wednesday, July 7, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-9:15am     Opening Remarks

9:15-10:30am    Invited Talk
 "Statistics, Protein Cores, and Predicted Structures"
 Prof. Temple Smith (Boston University)

10:30-11:00am	Break

11:00am	"Constructive Induction and Protein Structure Prediction"
 T.R. Ioerger, L. Rendell, & S. Surbramaniam

11:30am	"Protein Secondary-Structure Modeling with Probabilistic 
 Networks"  A.L. Delcher, S. Kasif, H.R. Goldberg, & W. Hsu

12:00-1:30pm	Lunch

1:30pm	"Protein Secondary Structure using Two-Level Case-Based 
 Reasoning"  B. Leng, B.G. Buchanan, & H.B. Nicholas

2:00pm 	"Automatic Derivation of Substructures Yields Novel 
 Structural Building Blocks in Globular Proteins" 
 X. Zhang, J.S. Fetrow, W.A. Rennie, D.L. Waltz, & G. Berg

2:30pm 	"Using Dirichlet Mixture Priors to Derive Hidden Markov 
 Models for Protein Families" M. Brown, R. Hughey, A. Krogh, 
 I.S. Mian, K. Sjolander, & D. Haussler

3:00-3:30pm	Break

3:30pm	"Protein Classification using Neural Networks" 
 E.A. Ferran, B. Pflugfelder, & P. Ferrara

4:00pm	"Neural Networks for Molecular Sequence Classification"
 C. Wu, M. Berry, Y-S. Fung, & J. McLarty

4:30pm	"Computationally Efficient Cluster Representation in 
 Molecular Sequence Megaclassification"  D.J. States, N. Harris, 
 & L. Hunter

7:00-7:30pm     Poster Setup
7:30-10:00pm    Reception & Poster Session 

Thursday, July 8, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-10:15am    Invited Talk
 "Large-Scale DNA Sequencing:  A Tale of Mice and Men"
 Prof. Leroy Hood (University of Washington)

10:15-10:45am	Break

10:45am	"Pattern Recognition for Automated DNA Sequencing: 
 I. On-Line Signal Conditioning and Feature Extraction for 
 Basecalling"  J.B. Bolden III, D. Torgersen, & C. Tibbetts

11:15am	"Genetic Algorithms for Sequence Assembly" 
 R. Parsons, S. Forrest, & C. Burks

11:45am	"A Partial Digest Approach to Restriction Site Mapping"
 S.S. Skiena & G. Sundaram

12:15-2:00pm	Lunch

2:00pm	"Integrating Order and Distance Relationships from 
 Heterogeneous Maps"  M. Graves 

2:30pm	"Discovering Sequence Similarity by the Algorithmic 
 Significance Method"  A. Milosavljevic

3:00pm	"Identification of Human Gene Functional Regions Based on 
 Oligonucleotide Composition"  V.V. Solovyev & C.B. Lawrence

3:30pm	"Knowledge Discovery in GENBANK"
 J.S. Aaronson, J. Haas, & G.C. Overton

4:00-4:30pm	Break

4:30pm	"An Expert System to Generate Machine Learning 
 Experiments: Learning with DNA Crystallography Data"
 D. Cohen, C. Kulikowski, & H. Berman 

5:00pm 	"Detection of Correlations in tRNA Sequences with 
 Structural Implications"  T.M. Klingler & D. Brutlag

5:30pm	"Probabilistic Structure Calculations: A Three-
 Dimensional tRNA Structure from Sequence Correlation Data" 
 R.B. Altman

Friday, July 9, 1993
-----------------------------------------------------------------
8:00-9:00am     Continental Breakfast

9:00-10:15am    Invited Talk
 "Artificial Intelligence and a Grand Unified Theory of 
 Biochemistry" Prof. Harold Morowitz (George Mason University)

10:15-10:45am	Break

10:45am	"Testing HIV Molecular Biology in in silico Physiologies" 
 H.B. Sieburg & C. Baray

11:15am	"Identification of Localized and Distributed Bottlenecks 
 in Metabolic Pathways"  M.L. Mavrovouniotis

11:45am	"Fine-Grain Databases for Pattern Discovery in Gene 
 Regulation"  S.M. Veretnik & B.R. Schatz

12:15-2:00pm	Lunch

2:00pm	"Representation for Discovery of Protein Motifs"
 D. Conklin, S. Fortier, & J. Glasgow

2:30pm	"Finding Relevant Biomolecular Features"  
 L. Hunter & T. Klein

3:00pm	"Database Techniques for Biological Materials and 
 Methods"  K. Baclawski, R. Futrelle, N. Fridman, 
 & M.J. Pescitelli

3:30pm	"A Multi-Level Description Scheme of Protein 
 Conformation"  K. Onizuka, K. Asai, M. Ishikawa, & S.T.C. Wong

4:00-4:30pm	Break

4:30pm	"Protein Topology Prediction through Parallel Constraint 
 Logic Programming"  D.A. Clark, C.J. Rawlings, J. Shirazi, 
 A. Veron, & M. Reeve

5:30pm	"A Constraint Reasoning System for Automating Sequence-
 Specific Resonance Assignments in Multidimensional Protein
 NMR Spectra"  D. Zimmerman, C. Kulikowski, & G.T. Montelione

5:30-5:45pm	Closing Remarks

                         POSTER SESSION
The following posters will be on display at the Bethesda Ramada 
Hotel from 7:30-10:00pm, Wednesday, July 7.

[1] "The Induction of Rules for Predicting Chemical
 Carcinogenesis in Rodents"  D. Bahler & D. Bristol

[2] "SENEX: A CLOS/CLIM Application for Molecular Pathology"  
 S.S. Ball & V.H. Mah

[3] "FLASH: A Fast Look-Up Algorithm for String Homology"
 A. Califano & I. Rigoutsos

[4] "Toward Multi-Strategy Parallel Learning in Sequence 
 Analysis"  P.K. Chan & S.J. Stolfo

[5] "Protein Structure Prediction: Selecting Salient Features 
 from Large Candidate Pools"  K.J. Cherkauer & J.W. Shavlik

[6] "Comparison of Two Approaches to the Prediction of Protein 
 Folding Patterns"  I. Dubchak, S.R. Holbrook, & S.-H. Kim

[7] "A Modular Learning Environment for Protein Modeling"
 J. Gracy, L. Chiche & J. Sallantin

[8] "Inference of Order in Genetic Systems" 
 J.N. Guidi & T.H. Roderick

[9] "PALM - A Pattern Language for Molecular Biology"
 C. Helgesen & P.R. Sibbald

[10] "Grammatical Formalization of Metabolic Processes"  
 R. Hofestedt

[11] "Representations of Metabolic Knowledge"  
 P.D. Karp & M. Riley

[12] "Protein Sequencing Experiment Planning Using Analogy"
 B. Kettler & L. Darden

[13] "Design of an Object-Oriented Database for Reverse Genetics"  
 K.J. Kochut, J. Arnold, J.A. Miller, & W.D. Potter

[14] "A Small Automaton for Word Recognition in DNA Sequences"
 C. Lefevre & J.-E Ikeda

[15] "MultiMap:  An Expert System for Automated Genetic Linkage 
 Mapping"  T.C. Matise, M. Perlin & A. Chakravarti

[16] "Constructing a Distributed Object-Oriented System with 
Logical Constraints for Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting"
 T. Matsushima

[17] "Prediction of Primate Splice Junction Gene Sequences with 
 a Cooperative Knowledge Acquisition System"
 E.M. Nguifo & J. Sallantin

[18] "Object-Oriented Knowledge Bases for the Analysis of 
 Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Genomes" 
 G. Perriere, F. Dorkeld, F. Rechenmann, & C. Gautier

[19] "Petri Net Representations in Metabolic Pathways"
 V.N. Reddy, M.L. Mavrovouniotis, & M.L. Liebman

[20] "Minimizing Complexity in Cellular Automata Models of 
 Self-Replication"  J.A. Reggia, H.-H. Chou, S.L. Armentrout, 
 & Y. Peng

[21] "Building Large Knowledge Bases in Molecular Biology"
 O. Schmeltzer, C. Medigue, P. Uvietta, F. Rechenmann, 
 F. Dorkeld, G. Perriere, & C. Gautier

[22] "A Service-Oriented Information Sources Database for the 
 Biological Sciences"  G.K. Springer & T.B. Patrick

[23] "Hidden Markov Models and Iterative Aligners: Study of their 
 Equivalence and Possibilities" H. Tanaka, K. Asai, M. Ishikawa,
 & A. Konagaya

[24] "Protein Structure Prediction System Based on Artificial 
 Neural Networks"  J. Vanhala & K. Kaski

[25] "Transmembrane Segment Prediction from Protein Sequence 
 Data"  S.M. Weiss, D.M. Cohen & N. Indurkhya

                      TUTORIAL PROGRAM
Tutorials will be conducted at the Bethesda Ramada Hotel on 
Tuesday, July 6.

12:00-2:45pm "Introduction to Molecular Biology for Computer 
 Scientists"  Prof. Mick Noordewier (Rutgers University)

This overview of the essential facts of molecular biology is 
intended as an introduction to the field for computer scientists 
who wish to apply their tools to this rich and complex domain.  
Material covered will include structural and informational 
molecules, the basic organization of the cell and of genetic 
material, the "central dogma" of gene expression, and selected 
other topics in the area of structure, function, and regulation as 
relates to current computational approaches.  Dr. Noordewier has 
appointments in both Computer Science and Biology at Rutgers, and 
has extensive experience in basic biological research in addition 
to his current work in computational biology.

12:00-2:45pm "Introduction to Artificial Intelligence for 
 Biologists"  Dr. Richard Lathrop (MIT & Arris Corp.)

An overview of the field of artificial intelligence will be 
presented, as it relates to actual and potential biological 
applications.  Fundamental techniques, symbolic programming 
languages, and notions of search will be discussed, as well as 
selected topics in somewhat greater detail, such as knowledge 
representation, inference, and machine learning.  The intended 
audience includes biologists with some computational background, 
but no extensive exposure to artificial intelligence.  Dr. 
Lathrop, co-developer of ARIADNE and related technologies, has 
worked in the area of artificial intelligence applied to 
biological problems in both academia and industry.

3:00-5:45pm "Neural Networks, Statistics, and Information Theory 
 in Biological Sequence Analysis" Dr. Alan Lapedes (Los Alamos 
 National Laboratory) 

This tutorial will cover the most rapidly-expanding facet of 
intelligent systems for molecular biology, that of machine 
learning techniques applied to sequence analysis.  Closely 
interrelated topics to be addressed include the use of artifical 
neural networks to elicit both specific signals and general 
characteristics of sequences, and the relationship of such 
approaches to statistical techniques and information-theoretic 
views of sequence data.  Dr. Lapedes, of the Theoretical 
Division at Los Alamos, has long been a leader in the use of such 
techniques in this domain.

3:00-5:45pm "Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming" 
 Prof. John Koza (Stanford University)

The genetic algorithm, an increasingly popular approach to highly 
non-linear multi-dimensional optimization problems, was originally 
inspired by a biological metaphor.  This tutorial will cover both 
the biological motivations, and the actual implementation and 
characteristics of the algorithm.  Genetic Programming, an 
extension well-suited to problems where the discovery of the size 
and shape of the solution is a major part of the problem, will 
also be addressed.  Particular attention will be paid to 
biological applications, and to identifying resources and software 
that will permit attendees to begin using the methods.  Dr. Koza, 
a Consulting Professor of Computer Science at Stanford, has taught 
this subject since 1988 and is the author of a standard text in 
the field.

3:00-5:45pm "Linguistic Methods in Sequence Analysis" 
 Prof. David Searls (University of Pennsylvania) 
 & Shmuel Pietrokovski (Weizmann Institute)

Approaches to sequence analysis based on linguistic methodologies 
are increasingly in evidence.  These involve the adaptation of 
tools and techniques from computational linguistics for syntactic 
pattern recognition and gene prediction, the classification of 
genetic structures and phenomena using formal language theory, the 
identification of significant vocabularies and overlapping codes 
in sequence data, and sequence comparison reflecting taxonomic and 
functional relatedness.  Dr. Searls, who holds research faculty 
appointments in both Genetics and Computer Science at Penn, 
represents the branch of this field that considers higher-order 
syntactic approaches to sequence data, while Shmuel Pietrokovski 
has studied and published with Prof. Edward Trifinov in the area 
of word-based analyses.

                      REGISTRATION FORM
Mail, with check made out to "ISMB-93", to:

               ISMB Conference, c/o J. Shavlik
               Computer Sciences Department
               University of Wisconsin
               1210 West Dayton Street
               Madison, WI 53706  USA

        ================================================

        Name____________________________________________
	
        Affiliation_____________________________________
	
        Address_________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

        Phone___________________________________________

        FAX_____________________________________________

        Electronic Mail_________________________________
	
        Registration Status: ____ Regular   ____ Student

        Presenting?          ____ Talk      ____  Poster
        ================================================
        TUTORIAL REGISTRATION 

        ____"Molecular Biology for Computer Scientists"
         or
        ____"Artificial Intelligence for Biologists"
         -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  - 
        ____"Neural Networks, Statistics, and 
         or     Information Theory in Sequence Analysis"
        ____"Genetic Algorithms and Genetic Programming"
         or 
        ____"Linguistic Methods in Sequence Analysis"
        ================================================
        PAYMENT       (Early Registration Before June 1)

        Registration:  Early   Late	    $___________
              Regular  $100    $125	
              Student  $75     $100	
        Tutorials:     One      Two         $___________
              Regular  $50      $65	
              Student  $25      $35	
        Total:                              $___________
        ================================================
        Registration fees include conference proceedings, 
        refreshments, and general program expenses. 


                      ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
        Lawrence Hunter                              NLM 
        David Searls                  U. of Pennsylvania
        Jude Shavlik                     U. of Wisconsin

                        PROGRAM COMMITTEE
        Douglas Brutlag                      Stanford U.
        Bruce Buchanan                  U. of Pittsburgh
        Christian Burks          Los Alamos National Lab
        Fred Cohen                    U.C.-San Francisco
        Chris Fields           Inst. for Genome Research
        Michael Gribskov                  U.C.-San Diego
        Peter Karp                     SRI International
        Toni Kazic                         Washington U.
        Alan Lapedes             Los Alamos National Lab
        Richard Lathrop                MIT & Arris Corp.
        Charles Lawrence                          Baylor 
        Michael Mavrovouniotis            U. of Maryland
        George Michaels                              NIH
        Harold Morowitz                  George Mason U.
        Katsumi Nitta                               ICOT
        Mick Noordewier                       Rutgers U.
        Ross Overbeek               Argonne National Lab
        Chris Rawlings                              ICRF
        Derek Sleeman                     U. of Aberdeen
        David States                       Washington U.
        Gary Stormo                       U. of Colorado
        Ed Uberbacher             Oak Ridge National Lab
        David Waltz              Thinking Machines Corp.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59155
From: green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein)
Subject: Re: accupuncture and AIDS

In article <C5t76D.2x6@news.cso.uiuc.edu> euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.) writes:
>aliceb@tea4two.Eng.Sun.COM (Alice Taylor) writes:
>
>>A friend of mine is seeing an acupuncturist and
>>wants to know if there is any danger of getting
>>AIDS from the needles.
>
>	Ask the practitioner whether he uses the pre-sterilized disposable
>needles, or if he reuses needles, sterilizing them between use.  In the
>former case there's no conceivable way to get AIDS from the needles.  In
>the latter case it's highly unlikely (though many practitioners use the
>disposable variety anyway).

It is illegal to perform acupuncture with unsterilized needles. No licensed
practitioner would dare do this. Also there is not a single documented case
of transmission of AIDS via acupuncture needles. I wouldn't worry about it.
-- 
******************************************************************************
Robert Greenstein           What the fool cannot learn he laughs at, thinking
green@srilanka.island.com   that by his laughter he shows superiority instead
                            of latent idiocy - M. Corelli

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59156
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: diet for Crohn's (IBD)


A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
disease.

But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.

Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
problems of people with Crohn's disease ?

(I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).

Thanks in advance,
John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59157
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Neurasthenia

In article <1993Apr21.174553.812@spdcc.com> dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>responds well, if you're not otherwise immunocompromised.  Noring's
>anal-retentive idee fixe on having a fungal infection in his sinuses
>is not even in the same category here, nor are these walking neurasthenics
>who are convinced they have "candida" from reading a quack book.

Speaking of which, has anyone else been impressed with how much the 
descriptions of neurasthenia published a century ago sound like CFS?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59158
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <1993Apr22.001642.9186@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:

>>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>>
>>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>>
>>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>
>I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
>study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.
>

Good story, Chuck, but it won't wash.  I have read the NY Acad Sci
one (and have it).  This AM I couldn't find any reference to
"weight rebound".  I'm not saying it isn't there, but since you
cited it, it is your responsibility to show me where it is in there.
There is no index.  I suspect you overstepped your knowledge base,
as usual.








-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59159
Subject: good book
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

Having been gone for 10 days, I'm way behind on my News reading, so many
pardons if I am repeating something that has been said already.

I read a good book while I was away, THE ANTIBIOTIC PARADOX: HOW MIRACLE DRUGS
ARE DESTROYING THE MIRACLE, Stuart B. Levy, M.D., 1992, Plenum Press,
ISBN:0-306-44331-7.

It is about drug resistant microorganisms & the history of antibiotics.  It
is interesting & written at a level which I think many sci.med readers would
appreciate -- which is:  it assumes an intelligent reader who is capable of
understanding scientific concepts, but who may not yet have been exposed to
this particular information. I.e., it assumes you are smart enough to
understand it, but it does not assume that you already have a degree in
microbiology or medicine. Table of contents:

Chapter 1
	From Tragedy the Antibiotic Age is Born
Chapter 2
	The Disease and the Cure:  The Microscopic World of Bacteria and
	Antibiotics
Chapter 3
	Reliance on Medicine and Self-Medication: The Seeds of Antibiotic
	Misuse
Chapter 4
	Antibiotic Resistance:  Microbial Adaptation and Evolution
Chapter 5
	The Antibiotic Myth
Chapter 6
	Antibiotics, Animals and the Resistance Gene Pool
Chapter 7
	Further Ecological Considerations:  Antibiotic Use in Agriculture,
	Aquaculture, Pets, and Minor Animal Species
Chapter 8
	Future Prospects:  New Advances Against Potential Disaster
Chapter 9
	The Individual and Antibiotic Resistance
Chapter 10
	Antibiotic Resistance: A Societal Issue at Local, National, and
	International Levels.

Includes bibliography and index.

I personally found that it made very good Airplane-Reading.
-rg

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59160
From: young@serum.kodak.com (Rich Young)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

>>In article <1qnns0$4l3@agate.berkeley.edu> spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope) writes:
>>The mass of anectdotal evidence, combined with the lack of
>>a properly constructed scientific experiment disproving
>>the hypothesis, makes the MSG reaction hypothesis the
>>most likely explanation for events.

   The following is from a critique of a "60 Minutes" presentation on MSG
   which was aired on November 3rd, 1991.  The critique comes from THE TUFTS
   DIET AND NUTRITION LETTER, February 1992.  [...edited for brevity...]

	"Chances are good that if you watched '60 Minutes' last November
	3rd [1991], you came away feeling MSG is bad for you. [...] In
	the segment entitled 'No MSG,' for instance, show host Ed Bradley
	makes alarming statements without adequately substantiating them
	('millions are suffering a host of symptoms, and some get violently
	sick'); peppers his report with sensational but clinically unproven
	personal testimony...; and speaks of studies on MSG that make the
	substance seem harmful without explaining just how inconclusive 
	those studies are.

	Consider his making reference at the beginning of the program to
	a study conducted at the Eastern Virginia Medical School in order
	to back up his comment that there is 'a lot of evidence' that MSG,
	a flavor enhancer in Chinese and other Asian cuisines as well as
	in many supermarket items, causes headaches.  What he does NOT
	make reference to is the fact that the study was performed not on
	humans but on rabbits.

	One of the researchers who conducted the study, pharmacologist
	Patricia Williams, Ph.D., says it certainly is conceivable that
	a small minority of people are sensitive enough to MSG to get 
	headaches from it.  'But,' she explains, 'the show probably 
	overemphasized the extent of the problem.'

	A second lapse comes with mention of Dr. John Olney, a professor
	at the Washington University School of Medicine who, Mr. Bradley
	remarks, 'says that his 20 years of research with laboratory
	animals shows MSG is a hazard for developing youngsters' because
	it poses a threat of irreversible brain damage.  Dr. Olney's
	research with lab animals does not 'show' anything about human
	youngsters.

	In fact, only under extreme circumsrtances did Dr. Olney's 
	experiments ever bring about any brain damage: when he injected
	extremely high doses of MSG into rodents, completely bypassing 
	their digestive tracts and entering their bloodstreams more directly,
	and when he used tubes to force-feed huge amounts of the substance
	to very young animals on an empty stomach.  Of course, neither
	of those procedures occurs with humans; they simply take in MSG 
	with food.  And most of what they take in is broken down by
	enzymes in the wall of the small intestine, so that very little
	reaches the bloodstream -- much to little, in fact, for human
	blood levels of MSG to come anywhere near the high concentrations
	found in Dr. Olney's lab animals.....

	The World Health Organization appears to be very much aware of
	that fact.  And so does the European Communities' Scientific
	Committee for Food....Both, after examining numerous studies,
	have concluded that MSG is safe.

	Their determination makes sense, considering that MSG has never
	been proven to cause all the symptoms that have been attributed
	to it -- headaches, swelling, a tightness in the chest, and a
	burning sensation, among others.  In fact, the most fail-safe
	of clinical studies, the double-blind study..., has consistently
	exonerated the much-maligned substance.

	That's quite fortunate since the alleged hazardous component of
	monosodium glutamate, glutamate, enters our systems whenever
	we eat any food that contains protein.  The reason is that one
	of the amino acids that make up protein, glutamic acid, is broken
	down into glutamate during digestion.

	It's a breakdown that occurs frequently.  Glutamic acid is the
	most abundant of the 20 or so amino acids in the diet.  It makes
	up about 15 percent of the protein in flesh foods, 20 percent in
	milk, 25 percent in corn, and 29 percent in whole wheat.

	That doesn't mean it's entirely unimaginable that a small number
	of people have trouble metabolizing MSG properly and are therefore
	sensitive to it...The consensus reached by large, international
	professional organizations [is that MSG is safe], the same consensus
	reached by the FDA and the biomedical community at large."


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59161
From: neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org (Neal Howard)
Subject: Re: seek sedative information

In article <C5uBrn.F0u@fig.citib.com> ghica@fig.citib.com (Renato Ghica) writes:
>
>has any one heard of a sedative called "Rhoepnol"? Made by LaRouche,
>I believe. Any info as to side effects or equivalent tranquillizers?

You probably mean "RoHypnol", a member of the benzodiazepine family,
chemical name is flunitrazepam. It is such a strong tranquilizer that it is
probably best refered to as a hypnotic, rather than a tranquilizer. Just one
pill will knock you on your ass. Side effects may be similar to valium, xanax,
serax, librium and other benzodiazepines. 
-- 
=============================================================================
Neal Howard   '91 XLH-1200      DoD #686      CompuTrac, Inc (Richardson, TX)
	      doh #0000001200   |355o33|      neal@cmptrc.lonestar.org
	      Std disclaimer: My opinions are mine, not CompuTrac's.
         "Let us learn to dream, gentlemen, and then perhaps
          we shall learn the truth." -- August Kekule' (1890)
=============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59162
From: brandon@caldonia.nlm.nih.gov (Brandon Brylawski)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

mryan@stsci.edu writes:
: Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
: 
: Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
: I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
: clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
: doctor that we were there, and came back and told us the doctor would not 
: see us because she had someplace to go at 6:00 and did not want to be delayed 
: here.  During the next few minutes, in response to my questions, with several 
: trips to the back room, the receptionist told me:
: 	- the doctor was doing paperwork in the back,
: 	- the doctor would not even look at his finger to advise us on going
: 	  to the emergency room;
: 	- the doctor would not even speak to me;
: 	- she would not tell me the doctor's name, or her own name;
: 	- when asked who is in charge of the clinic, she said "I don't know."
: 
: I realize that a private clinic is not the same as an emergency room, but
: I was quite angry at being turned away because the doctor did not want to
: be bothered.  My son did get three stitches at the emergency room.  

Speaking as a physician who works in an urgent care center, the above
behavior is completely inappropriate. If a patient who requires extensive
care shows up at the last minute, we always see them and give them appropriate
care. It is reasonable for a clinic to refuse to see patients outside of its
posted hours, but what you describe is misbehavior. Ask to speak to the
clinic director, and complain. Whatever their attitude, they have nothing to
gain from angering patients.

Brandon Brylawski

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59163
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
wrote:
> 
> 
> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> disease.
> 
> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> 
> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> 
> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> John Eyles
> jge@cs.unc.edu

If she is having problems with fresh vegetables, the guess is that there
is some obstruction of the intestine.  Without knowing more it is not
possible to say whether the obstruction is permanent due to scarring,
or temporary due to swelling of inflammed intestine.  In general, there are
no dietary limitations in patients with Crohn's except as they relate
to obstruction.  There is no evidence that any foods will bring on 
recurrence of Crohn's.  It is important to distinguish recurrence from
recurrent symptoms.  A physician would think of new inflammation as 
recurrence, while pains from raw veggies just imply a narrowing of the
intestine.  

Your friend should look into membership in the Crohn's and Colitis 
Foundation of America.   1-800-932-2423

Good luck to your friend.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59164
From: HOLFELTZ@LSTC2VM.stortek.com
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>
todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr19.205615.1013@unlv.edu>, todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>> I think that's the correct spelling..
>
>The proper spelling is Kirlian. It was an effect discoverd by
>S. Kirlian, a soviet film developer in 1939.
>
>As I recall, the coronas visible are ascribed to static discharges
>and chemical reactions between the organic material and the silver
>halides in the films.
>
>--
>         Tarl Neustaedter       Stratus Computer
>         tarl@sw.stratus.com    Marlboro, Mass.
>Disclaimer: My employer is not responsible for my opinions.
>
>I think that's the correct spelling..
>        I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.
>        In case you don't know, Krillean Photography, to the best of my
>knowledge, involves taking pictures of an (most of the time) organic
>object between charged plates. The picture will show energy patterns
>or spikes around the object photographed, and depending on what type
>of object it is, the spikes or energy patterns will vary. One might
>extrapolate here and say that this proves that every object within
>the universe (as we know it) has its own energy signature.
>
>
To construct a Kirlian device find a copy of _Handbook of Psychic
Discoveries_ by Sheila Ostrander and Lynn Schroeder 1975 Library of
Congress 73-88532.  It describes the necessary equipment and
 suppliers for the Tesla coil or alternatives, the copper plate and
setup. I used a pack of SX-70 film and removed a single pack in a
dark room, then made the exposure, put it back in the film pack and
ran it out through the rollers of the camera forinstant developing
and very high quality.  It is a good way to experience what Kirlian
Photography is really and what it is not.  As you know all ready,
it is the pattern in the bioplasmic energy fieldthat is significant.
Variations caused by exposure time, distance from the plate, or
pressure on the plate, or variations in the photo materials are not
important.
 
Hard copy mail; Mark C. High
                P O Box  882
                Parowan,  UT
                       84761
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59165
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

I can not believe the way this thread on candida(yeast) has progressed.
Steve Dyer and I have been exchanging words over the same topic in Sci. 
Med. Nutrition when he displayed his typical reserve and attacked a women 
poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

Let me tell you who the quacks really are, these are the physicans who have 
no idea how the human body interacts with it's environment and how that 
balance can be altered by diet and antibiotics.  These are the physicians 
who dismiss their patients with difficult symptomatology and make them go 
from doctor to doctor to find relief(like Elaine in Sci. Med. Nutrition) and 
then when they find one that solves their problem, the rest start yelling 
quack.  Could it just be professional jealousy?  I couldn't help Elaine or Jon
but somebody else did.  Could they know more than Me?  No way, they must be a 
quack.  

I've been teaching a human nutrition course for Medical students for over ten 
years now and guess who the most receptive students are?  Those that were 
raised on farms and saw first-hand the effect of diet on the health of their 
farm animals and those students who had made a dramatic diet change prior to 
entering medical school(switched to the vegan diet).  Typically, this is 
about 1/3 of my class of 90 students.  Those not interested in nutrition 
either tune me out or just stop coming to class.  That's okay because I 
know that some of what I'm teaching is going to stick and there will be at 
least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
medical profession.

In animal husbandry, an animal is reinnoculated with "good" bacteria after 
antibiotics are stopped.  Medicine has decided that since humans do not 
have a ruminant stomach, no such reinnoculation with "good" bacteria is 
needed after coming off a braod spectrum antibiotic.  Humans have all 
kinds of different organisms living in the GI system(mouth, stomach, small 
and large intestine), sinuses, vagina and on the skin.  These are 
nonpathogenic because they do not cause disease in people unless the immune 
system is compromised.  They are also called nonpathogens because unlike 
the pathogenic organisms that cause human disease, they do not produce 
toxins as they live out their merry existence in and on our body.  But any of 
these organisms will be considered pathogenic if it manages to take up 
residence within the body.  A poor mucus membrane barrier can let this 
happen and vitamin A is mainly responsible for setting up this barrier.
Steve got real upset with Elaine's doctor because he was using anti-fungals 
and vitamin A for her GI problems.  If Steve really understoood what 
vitamin A does in the body, he would not(or at least should not) be calling 
Elaine's doctor a quack.

Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
yeast-like fungus.  An infection caused by this organism is called candidiasis.
Candidiasis is a very rare occurance because, like an E. Coli infection, it 
requires that the host immune system be severly depressed.  

Candida is frequently found on the skin and all of the mucous membranes of 
normal healthy people and it rarely becomes a problem unless some predisposing
factor is present such as a high blood glucose level(diabetes) or an oral 
course of antibiotics has been used.  In diabetics, their secretions contain 
much higher amounts of glucose.  Candida, unlike bacteria, is very limited in 
it's food(fuel) selection.  Without glucose, it can not grow, it just barely 
survives.  If it gets access to a lot of glucose, it blooms and over rides 
the other organisms living with it in the sinuses, GI tract or vagina.  In 
diabetics, skin lesions can also foster a good bloom site for these little 
buggers.  The bloom is usually just a minor irritant in most people but 
some people do really develop a bad inflammatory process at the mucus 
membrane or skin bloom site.  Whether this is an allergic like reaction to 
the candida or not isn't certain.  When the bloom is in the vagina or on 
the skin, it can be easliy seen and some doctors do then try to "treat" it.
If it's internal, only symptoms can be used and these symptoms are pretty 
nondiscript.  


Candida is kept in check in most people by the normal bacterial flora in 
the sinuses, the GI tract(mouth, stomach and intestines) and in the 
vaginal tract which compete with it for food.  The human immune system 
ususally does not bother itself with these(nonpathogenic organisms) unless 
they broach the mucus membrane "barrier".  If they do, an inflammatory 
response will be set up.  Most Americans are not getting enough vitamin A 
from their diets.  About 30% of all American's die with less Vitamin A than 
they were born with(U.S. autopsy studies).  While this low level of vitamin 
A does not cause pathology(blindness) it does impair the mucus membrane 
barrier system.  This would then be a predisposing factor for a strong 
inflammatory response after a candida bloom.  

While diabetics can suffer from a candida "bloom" the  most common cause of 
this type of bloom is the use of broad spectrum antibiotics which 
knock down many different kinds of bacteria in the body and remove the main 
competition for candida as far as food is concerned.  While drugs are 
available to handle candida, many patients find that their doctor will not 
use them unless there is evidence of a systemic infection.  The toxicity of 
the anti-fungal drugs does warrant some caution.  But if the GI or sinus 
inflammation is suspected to be candida(and recent use of a broad spectrum 
antibiotic is the smoking gun), then anti-fungal use should be approrpriate 
just as the anti-fungal creams are an appropriate treatment for recurring 
vaginal yeast infections, in spite of what Mr. Steve Dyer says.

But even in patients being given the anti-fungals, the irritation caused by 
the excessive candida bloom in the sinus, GI tract or the vagina tends to 
return after drug treatment is discontinued unless the underlying cause of 
the problem is addressed(lack of a "good" bacterial flora in the body and/or 
poor mucus membrane barrier).  Lactobacillus acidophilus is the most effective 
therapy for candida overgrowth.  From it's name, it is an acid loving 
organism and it sets up an acidic condition were it grows.  Candida can not 
grow very well in an acidic environment.  In the vagina, L. acidophilius is 
the predominate bacteria(unless you are hit with broad spectrum 
antibiotics).  

In the GI system, the ano-rectal region seems to be a particularly good 
reservoir for candida and the use of pantyhose by many women creates a very 
favorable environment around the rectum for transfer(through moisture and 
humidity) of candida to the vaginal tract.  One of the most effctive ways to 
minimmize this transfer is to wear undyed cotton underwear.  

If the bloom occurs in the anal area, the burning, swelling, pain and even 
blood discharge make many patients think that they have hemorroids.  If the 
bloom manages to move further up the GI tract, very diffuse symptomatology 
occurs(abdominal discomfort and blood in the stool).  This positive stool 
for occult blood is what sent Elaine to her family doctor in the first 
place.  After extensive testing, he told her that there was nothing wrong 
but her gut still hurt.  On to another doctor, and so on.  Richard Kaplan 
has told me throiugh e-mail that he considers occult blood tests in stool 
specimens to be a waste of time and money because of the very large number of 
false positives(candida blooms guys?).  If my gut hurt me on a constant 
basis, I would want it fixed.  Yes it's nice to know that I don't have 
colon cancer but what then is causing my distress?  When I finally find a 
doctor who treats me and gets me 90% better, Steve Dyer calls him a quack.

Candida prefers a slightly alkaline environment while bacteria 
tend to prefer a slightly acidic environment.  The vagina becomes alkaline 
during a woman's period and this is often when candida blooms in the vagina. 
Vinegar and water douches are the best way of dealing with vaginal 
problems.  Many women have also gotten relief from the introduction of 
Lactobacillus directly into the vaginal tract(I would want to be sure of 
the purity of the product before trying this).  My wife had this vagina 
problem after going on birth control pills and searched for over a year 
until she found a gynocologist who solved the problem rather than just writting 
scripts for anti-fungal creams.  This was a woman gynocologist who had had 
the same problem(recurring vaginal yeast infections).  This M.D. did some 
digging and came up with an acetic acid and L. Acidophilis douche which she 
used in your office to keep it sterile.  After three treatments, sex 
returned to our marraige.  I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
patients is a non-existent syndrome.

The nonpathogenic bacteria L. acidophilus is an acid producing bacteria 
which is the most common bacteria found in the vaginal tract of healthy women.  
If taken orally, it can also become a major bacteria in the gut.  Through 
aresol sprays, it has also been used to innoculate the sinus membranes.
But before this innoculation occurs, the mucus membrane barrier system 
needs to be strengthened.  This is accomplished by vitamin A, vitamin C and 
some of the B-complex vitamins.  Diet surveys repeatedly show that Americans 
are not getting enough B6 and folate.  These are probably the segement of 
the population that will have the greatest problem with this non-existent 
disorder(candida blooms after antibiotic therapy).
 
Some of the above material was obtained from "Natural Healing" by Mark 
Bricklin, Published by Rodale press, as well as notes from my human 
nutrition course.  I will be posting a discussion of vitamin A  sometime in 
the future, along with reference citings to point out the extremely 
important role that vitamin A plays in the mucus membrane defense system in 
the body and why vitamin A should be effective in dealing with candida 
blooms.  Another effective dietary treatment is to restrict carbohydrate 
intake during the treatment phase, this is especially important if the GI 
system is involved.  If candida can not get glucose, it's not going to out 
grow the bacteria and you then give bacteria, which can use amino acids and 
fatty acids for energy, a chance to take over and keep the candida in check 
once carbohydrate is returned to the gut.

If Steve and some of the other nay-sayers want to jump all over this post, 
fine.  I jumped all over Steve in Sci. Med. Nutrition because he verbably 
accosted a poster who was seeking advice about her doctor's use of vitamin 
A and anti-fungals for a candida bloom in her gut.  People seeking advice 
from newsnet should not be treated this way.  Those of us giving of our 
time and knowledge can slug it out to our heart's content.  If you saved 
your venom for me Steve and left the helpless posters who are timidly 
seeking help alone, I wouldn't have a problem with your behavior. 
 
Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 West 17th St.
Tulsa, Ok. 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance".

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59166
From: egb7390@ucs.usl.edu (Boutte Erika G)
Subject: M. contagiosem


I was wondering if anyone had any information about Molluscous contagiosem.
I acquired it, and fortunately got rid of it, but the question still lingers
in my mind: Where did it come from?  The little bit of info that I have 
received about it in the past states that it can be transmitted sexually, but
also occurs in small children on the hands, feet and genitalia.

Any information will be greatly appreciated.



"I grow old, I grow old;
I shall wear my trousers rolled."

               -T. S. Eliot


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59167
From: sdr@llnl.gov (Dakota)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <1993Apr21.143910.5826@wvnvms.wvnet.edu> 
pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu writes:
> My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she 
has no
> medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
> 
> My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least 
mitigate
> their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to 
literature,
> etc...)
> 
> Thank you,
> 
> Dave Carvell
> pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

First, let me offer you my condolences.  I've had kidney stones 4 times 
and I know the pain she is going through.  First, it is best that she see 
a doctor.  However, every time I had kidney stones, I saw my doctor and the
only thing they did was to prescribe some pain killers and medication for a
urinary tract infection.  The pain killers did nothing for me...kidney stones
are extremely painful.  My stones were judged passable, so we just waited it
out.  However the last one took 10 days to pass...not fun.  Anyway, if she
absolutely won't see a doctor, I suggest drinking lots of fluids and perhaps
an over the counter sleeping pill.  But, I do highly suggest seeing a doctor.
Kidney stones are not something to fool around with.  She should be x-rayed 
to make sure there is not a serious problem.

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59168
From: spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov (S. Spenser Aden)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-220493145727@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
>wrote:
>> 
>> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
>> disease.
>> 
>> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
>> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
>> 
>> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
>> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
>
>If she is having problems with fresh vegetables, the guess is that there
>is some obstruction of the intestine.  Without knowing more it is not
>possible to say whether the obstruction is permanent due to scarring,
>or temporary due to swelling of inflammed intestine.  In general, there are
>no dietary limitations in patients with Crohn's except as they relate
>to obstruction.  There is no evidence that any foods will bring on 
>recurrence of Crohn's. 

Interesting statements, simply because I have been told otherwise.  I'm
certainly not questioning Steve's claims, as for one I am not a doctor, and I
agree that foods don't bring on the recurrence of Crohn's.  But inflammation
can be either mildly or DRASTICALLY enhanced due to food.

Having had one major obstruction resulting in resection (is that a good enough
caveat :-), I was told that a *LOW RESIDUE* diet is called for.  Basically,
the idea is that if there is inflammation of the gut (which may not be
realized by the patient), any residue in the system can be caught in the folds
of inflammation and constantly irritate, thus exacerbating the problem.
Therefore, anything that doesn't digest completely by the point of common
inflammation should be avoided.  With what I've been told is typical Crohn's,
of the terminal ileum, my diet should be low residue, consisting of:

Completely out - never again - items:
	o corn (kernel husk doesn't digest ... most of us know this :-)
	o popcorn (same)
	o dried (dehydrated) fruit and fruit skins
	o nuts (Very tough when it comes to giving up some fudge :-)

Discouraged greatly:
	o raw vegetables (too fibrous)
	o wheat and raw grain breads
	o exotic lettuce (iceberg is ok since it's apparently mostly water)
	o greens (turnip, mustard, kale, etc...)
	o little seeds, like sesame (try getting an Arby's without it!)
	o long grain and wild rice (husky)
	o beans (you'll generate enough gas alone without them!)
	o BASICALLY anything that requires heavy digestive processing

I was told that the more processed the food the better! (rather ironic in this
day and age).  The whole point is PREVENTATIVE ... you want to give your
system as little chance to inflame as possible.  I was told that among the
NUMEROUS things that were heavily discouraged (I only listed a few), to try
the ones I wanted and see how I felt.  If it's bad, don't do it again!
Remember though that this was while I was in remission.  For Veggies: cook the
daylights out of them.  I prefer steaming ... I think it's cooks more
thoroughly - you're mileage may vary.

As with anything else, CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR.  Don't just take my word.  But
this is the info I've been given, and it may be a starting point for
discussion.  Good luck!

-Spenser


-- 
S. Spenser Aden --- Lockheed Engineering and Sciences Co. --- (713) 483-2028
NASA --- Flight Data and Evaluation Office --- Johnson Space Center, Houston
spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov    (Internet) ---  Opinions herein are mine alone.
aden@vf.jsc.nasa.gov (if above bounces) ---  "Eschew obfuscation." - unknown

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59169
From: SASTLS@MVS.sas.com (Tamara Shaffer)
Subject: Re: seizures ( infantile spasms )

In article <1993Apr20.184034.13779@dbased.nuo.dec.com>,
dufault@lftfld.enet.dec.com (MD) writes:
 
>
>        The reason I'm posting this article to this newsgroup is to:
>1. gather any information about this disorder from anyone who might
>   have recently been *e*ffected by it ( from being associated with
>   it or actually having this disorder ) and
>2. help me find out where I can access any medical literature associated
>   with seizures over the internet.
 
I tried to e-mail you but it bounced back.  Please e-mail me and
I will give you someone's name who might be very helpful.  You might
also post your message to misc.kids.
TAMARA
sastls@mvs.sas.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59170
From: euclid@mrcnext.cso.uiuc.edu (Euclid K.)
Subject: Re: GETTING AIDS FROM ACUPUNCTURE NEEDLES

matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:

>I had electrical pulse nerve testing done a while back.  The needles were taken
>from a dirty drawer in an instrument cart and were most certainly NOT
>sterile or even clean for that matter.  More than likely they were fresh
>from the previous patient.  I WAS concerned, but I kept my mouth shut.  I
>probably should have raised hell!
	Could you describe in more detail the above procedure?  I've never
heard about it.
	And yes, if they pierced you with the needles you probably should have
protested. 

euclid
 
--
Euclid K.       standard disclaimers apply
"It is a bit ironic that we need the wave model [of light] to understand the
propagation of light only through that part of the system where it leaves no
trace."  --Hudson & Nelson (_University_Physics_)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59171
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Foreskin Troubles

In article <1993Apr18.042100.2720@radford.vak12ed.edu> mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:
>What can be done, short of circumcision, for an adult male
>whose foreskin will not retract?
>
Melissa, there is a simpler procedure called a "Dorsal slit" that is
really the first step of the usual circumcision.  It is simpler and
quicker, but the pain is about the same as circumcision after the
anesthetic wears off and the aesthetic result post healing is not as
good.  See your friendly urologist for more details.
                                                Len Howard
.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59172
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: quality control in medicine

In article <93108.003258U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> <U19250@uicvm.uic.edu> writes:
>Does anybody know of any information regarding the implementaion of total
> quality management, quality control, quality assurance in the delivery of
> health care service.  I would appreciate any information.  If there is enough
>interest, I will post the responses.
>        Thank You
>        Abhin Singla MS BioE, MBA, MD
>        President AC Medcomp Inc

Dr Singla, you might contact Kaiser Health Plan either in the area
closest to you or at the central office in Oakland CA.  We have been
doing QA, QoS, concurrent UR, and TQM for some time now in the Hawaii
Region, and I suspect it is nationwide in the system.
Len Howard MD

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59173
From: tron@fafnir.la.locus.com (Michael Trofimoff)
Subject: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce


Hi All,

Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

Thanks,

-=< tron >=-
e-mail: tron@locus.com		*Vidi, vici, veni*


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59174
From: akins@cbnewsd.cb.att.com (kay.a.akins)
Subject: Seizure information - infant

Here is the tollfree hotline for the Epilepsy Foundation
of America - 1-800-EFA-1000.  They will be able to answer
your questions and send you information and references on
seizure types, medication, etc.  They can also give you references
for a pediatric neorologist in your area.  Also ask for the 
number of your local Foundation who can put you in touch with
a Parent Support Group and social workers.
Good Luck.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59175
From: koreth@spud.Hyperion.COM (Steven Grimm)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

I had allergy shots for about four years starting as a sophomore in high
school.  Before that, I used to get bloody noses, nighttime asthma attacks,
and eyes so itchy I couldn't get to sleep.  After about 6 months on the
shots, most of those symptoms were gone, and they haven't come back.  I
stopped getting the shots (due more to laziness than planning) in college.
My allergies got a little worse after that, but are still nowhere near as
bad as they used to be.  So yes, the shots do work.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59176
Subject: Re: Arythmia
From: perry1@husc10.harvard.edu (Alexis Perry)

In article <1993Apr22.031423.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu> u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:

>doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused
>
	Is it that serious?  My EKG often comes back with a few irregular
beats.  Another question:  Is a low blood potassium level very bad?  My
doctor seems concerned, but she tends to worry too much in general.


___________________________________________________________________________
Alexis Perry				"The less I want the more I get
perry1@husc.harvard.edu			 Make me chaste, but not just yet.
eliot house box 413			 It's a promise or a lie
(617) 493-6300				 I'll repent before I die."
"Work? Have you lost your mind?!" 
			-Ren				-Sting

   Nobody really admits to sharing my opinions - last of all Harvard College

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59178
From: melewitt@cs.sandia.gov (Martin E. Lewitt)
Subject: Re: Altitude adjustment

In article <4159@mdavcr.mda.ca> vida@mdavcr.mda.ca (Vida Morkunas) writes:
>I live at sea-level, and am called-upon to travel to high-altitude cities
>quite frequently, on business.  The cities in question are at 7000 to 9000
>feet of altitude.  One of them especially is very polluted...
>
>Often I feel faint the first two or three days.  I feel lightheaded, and
>my heart seems to pound a lot more than at sea-level.  Also, it is very
>dry in these cities, so I will tend to drink a lot of water, and keep
>away from dehydrating drinks, such as those containing caffeine or alcohol.
>
>Thing is, I still have symptoms.  How can I ensure that my short trips there
>(no, I don't usually have a week to acclimatize) are as comfortable as possible?
>Is there something else that I could do?

I saw a Lifetime Medical Television show a few months back on travel
medicine.  It briefly mentioned some drugs which when started two or
three days before getting to altitude could assist in acclimitazation.

Unfortunately all that I can recall is that the drug stimulated
breathing at night???  I don't know if that makes sense, it seems
to me that the new drug which stimulates red blood cell production
would be a more logical approach, erythropoiten (sp?).

Alas, I didn't record the program, but wish I had, since I live
at over 7000ft. and my mother gets sick when visiting.

Please let me know if you get more informative responses.
--
Phone:  (505) 845-7561           Martin E. Lewitt             My opinions are
Domain: lewitt@ncube.COM         P.O. Box 513                 my own, not my
Sandia: melewitt@cs.sandia.GOV   Sandia Park, NM 87047-0513   employer's. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59179
From: robg@citr.uq.oz.au (Rob Geraghty)
Subject: Re: Good Grief! (was Re: Candida Albicans: what is it?)

dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:
>Snort.  Ah, there go my sinuses again.
>Oh, wow.  A classic textbook.  Hey, they laughed at Einstein, too!
>Yeah, I'll bet.  Tomorrow, the world.
>Listen, uncontrolled studies like this are worthless.
>I'm sure you are.  You sound like the typical hysteric/hypochondriac who
>responds to "miracle cures."
>Yeah, "it makes sense to me", so of course it should be taken seriously.
>Snort.
>Yeah, "it sounds reasonable to me".
>Oh, really?  _What_ tests?  Immune-compromised, my ass.
>More like credulous malingerer.  This is a psychiatric syndrome.
>You know, it's a shame that a drug like itraconazole is being misused
>in this way.  It's ridiculously expensive, and potentially toxic.
>The trouble is that it isn't toxic enough, so it gets abused by quacks.
>The only good thing about nystatin is that it's (relatively) cheap
>and when taken orally, non-toxic.  But oral nystatin is without any
>systemic effect, so unless it were given IV, it would be without
>any effect on your sinuses.  I wish these quacks would first use
>IV nystatin or amphotericin B on people like you.  That would solve
>the "yeast" problem once and for all.
>Perhaps a little Haldol would go a long way towards ameliorating
>your symptoms.
>Are you paying for this treatment out of your own pocket?  I'd hate
>to think my insurance premiums are going towards this.

Steve, take a look at what you are saying.  I don't see one construvtive
word here.  If you don't have anything constructive to add, why waste
the bandwidth - yeah, sure, flame me for doing it myself.  Is this
sci.med or alt.flame?  Like it or not, medical science does *not* know
categorically everything about everything.  I'm not flaming your
knowledge, just asking you to sit back and ask yourself "what if?"

"Minds are like parachutes - they only function when they are open."

Oh - and if you *do* want to flame me or anyone else, how about using
email?

Rob
Who doesn't claim any relevant qualifications, just interest
--
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rob Geraghty               | 3 things are important to me 
robg@citr.uq.oz.au         | The gift of love, the joy of life
CITR                       | And the making of music in all its forms

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59180
From: pete@smtl.demon.co.uk (Pete Phillips)
Subject: Nebulisers and particle Size


Hi,

we are just completing a project on nebuliser performance, and have a
wealth of data on particle size and output which we are going to use
to adjudicate a contract next week.

Although the output data is easy for us to present, there seems to be
little concensus on the optimum diameter of the nebulised droplets for
straightforward inhalation therapy (eg: for asthmatics).

Some say that the droplets must be smaller than 5 microns, whilst
others say that if they are too small they will not be effective.

Anyone up on this topic who could summarise the current status ?

Cheers,
Pete
-- 
Pete Phillips, Deputy Director, Surgical Materials Testing Lab, 
Bridgend General Hospital, S. Wales. 0656-652166 pete@smtl.demon.co.uk   
--
"The Four Horse Oppressors of the Apocalypse were Nutritional
Deprivation, State of Belligerency, Widespread Transmittable Condition
and Terminal Inconvenience" - Official Politically Correct Dictionary

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59181
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
> 
> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> disease.
> 
> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> 
> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> 
> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> John Eyles

All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While 
most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who 
are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their 
patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get 
your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for 
the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The 
better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's 
plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to 
control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and 
lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but 
I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For 
bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects 
are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing 
a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with 
inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.

Marty B. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59182
From: krishnas@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Subject: RE: HELP ME INJECT...

The best way of self injection is to use the right size needle
and choose the correct spot. For Streptomycin, usually given intra
muscularly, use a thin needle (23/24 guage) and select a spot on
the upper, outer thigh (no major nerves or blood vessels there). 
Clean the area with antiseptic before injection, and after. Make
sure to inject deeply (a different kind of pain is felt when the
needle enters the muscle - contrasted to the 'prick' when it 
pierces the skin).

PS: Try to go to a doctor. Self-treatment and self-injection should
be avoided as far as possible.
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59183
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)


GREAT post Martin.  Very informative, well-balanced, and humanitarian
without neglecting the need for scientific rigor.


(Cross-posted to alt.psychology.personality since some personality typing
will be discussed at the beginning - Note: I've set all followups to sci.med
since most of my comments are more sci.med oriented and I'm sure most of the
replies, if any, will be med-related.)


In article banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>I can not believe the way this thread on candida(yeast) has progressed.
>Steve Dyer and I have been exchanging words over the same topic in Sci. 
>Med. Nutrition when he displayed his typical reserve and attacked a woman 
>poster for being treated by a licenced physician for a disease that did 
>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible, Steve, and I 
>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

They are just responding in their natural way:  Hyper-Choleric Syndrome (HCS).
Oops, that is not a recognized "illness" in the psychological community,
better not say that since it therefore must not, and never will, exist.  :^)

Actually, it is fascinating that a disproportionate number of physicians
will type out as NT (for those not familiar with the Myers-Briggs system,
just e-mail me and I'll send a summary file to you).  In the general
population, NT's comprise only about 12% of the population, but among
physicians it is much much higher (I don't know the exact percentage -
any help here a.p.p.er's?)

One driving characteristic of an NT, especially an NTJ, is their obvious
choleric behavior (driver, type A, etc.) - the extreme emotional need to
control, to lead, and/or to be the best or the most competent.  If they are
also extroverted, they are best described as "Field Marshalls".  This trait
is very valuable and essential in our society - we need people who want to
lead, to strive to overcome the elements, to seek and thirst for knowledge,
to raise the level of competency, etc.  The great successes in science and
technology are in large part due to the vision (an N trait) and scientifically-
minded approach (T trait) of the NT personality (of course, the other types
and temperaments have their own positive contributions as well).  However,
when the NT person has self-image challenges, the "dark-side" of this
personality type usually comes out, which should be obvious to all.

A physician who is a strong NT and who has not learned to temper their
temperament will be extremely business-like (lack of empathy or feeling),
and is very compelled to have total control over their patient (the patient
must be obedient to their diagnosis and prescription without question).  I've
known many M.D.'s of this temperament and suffice to say I don't oblige them
with a followup visit, no matter how competent I think they are (and they
usually are very competent from a knowledge viewpoint since that is an
extreme drive of theirs - to know the most, to know it all).

Maybe we need more NF doctor's.  :^)

Enough on this subject - let's move on to candida bloom.


>Let me tell you who the quacks really are, these are the physicans who have 
>no idea how the human body interacts with it's environment and how that 
>balance can be altered by diet and antibiotics...  Could it just be
>professional jealousy?  I couldn't help Elaine or Jon but somebody else did.

You've helped me already by your post.  Of course, I believe that I have
been misdiagnosed on the net as suffering from 'anal retentivitis', but being
the phlegmatic I am, maybe I was just a little too harsh on a few people
myself in past posts.  Let's all try to raise the level of this discussion
above the level of anal effluent.


>...Humans have all 
>kinds of different organisms living in the GI system (mouth, stomach, small 
>and large intestine), sinuses, vagina and on the skin.  These are 
>nonpathogenic because they do not cause disease in people unless the immune 
>system is compromised.  They are also called nonpathogens because unlike 
>the pathogenic organisms that cause human disease, they do not produce 
>toxins as they live out their merry existence in and on our body.  But any of 
>these organisms will be considered pathogenic if it manages to take up 
>residence within the body.  A poor mucus membrane barrier can let this 
>happen and vitamin A is mainly responsible for setting up this barrier.

In my well-described situation (in prior posts), I definitely was immune
stressed.  Blood tests showed my vitamin A levels were very low.  My sinuses
were a mess - no doubt the mucosal lining and the cilia were heavily damaged.
I also was on antibiotics 15 times in 4 years!  In the end, even two weeks
of Ceftin did not work and I had confirmed diagnoses of a chronic bacterial
infection of the sinuses via cat-scans, mucus color (won't get into the
details), and other symptoms.  Three very traditional ENT's made this
diagnosis (I did not have any cultures done, however, because of the
difficulty of doing this right and because my other symptoms clearly showed
a bacterial infection).  Enough of this background (provided to help you
understand where I was when I make comments about my Sporanox anti-fungal
therapy below).


The first question I have is this.  Can fungus penetrate a little way into poor
mucus membrane tissue, maybe via hyphae, thus causing symptoms, without being
considered 'systemic' in the classic sense?  It is sort of an inbetween
infection.


>Steve got real upset with Elaine's doctor because he was using anti-fungals 
>and vitamin A for her GI problems.  If Steve really understoood what 
>vitamin A does in the body, he would not(or at least should not) be calling 
>Elaine's doctor a quack.

I was concerned, too, because of the toxicity of vitamin A.  My doctor, after
my blood tests, put me on 75,000 IU of vitamin A for one week only, then
dropped it down to 25,000 IU for the next couple of weeks.  I also received
zinc and other supplementation, since all of these interrelate in fairly
complex ways as my doctor explained (he's one of those 'evil' orthomolecular
specialists).  I had a blood test three weeks later and vitamin A was normal,
he then stopped me on all vitamin A (except for some in a multi-vitamin)
supplement), and made sure that I maintain a 50,000 IU/day of beta carotene.
Call me carrot face.  :^)

Hopefully, Elaine's doctor will take a similar, careful approach and to
all supplements.  I'm even reevaluating some supplements I'm taking, for
example, niacin in fairly large dosages, 1 gram/day, which Steve Dyer had
good information about on sci.med.nutrition.  If niacin only has second-order
improvement in symptomatic relief of my sinus allergies, then it probably is
not worth taking such a large dose long-term and risking liver damage.


>survives.  If it gets access to a lot of glucose, it blooms and over rides 
>the other organisms living with it in the sinuses, GI tract or vagina.  In 

Though I do now believe, based on my successful therapy with Sporanox, that
I definitely had some excessive growth of fungus (unknown species) in my
sinuses, I still want to ask the question:  have there been any studies that
demonstrate candida "blooms" in the sinuses with associated sinus irritation
(sinusitis/rhinitis)?  (My sinus irritation reduced significantly after one
week of Sporanox and no other new treatments were implemented during this
time - I did not have any noticeable GI track problems before starting on
Sporanox, but some for a few days after which then went away - considered
normal).

BTW, my doctor dug out one of his medical reference books (sorry, can't
remember which one), and found an obscure comment dating back into the 1950's
which stated that people can develop contained (non-lethal or non-serious)
aspergillis infestations (aspergiliosis) of the sinuses leading to sinus
inflammation symptoms.  I'll have to dig out that reference again since it
is relevant to this discussion.


>some people do really develop a bad inflammatory process at the mucus 
>membrane or skin bloom site.  Whether this is an allergic like reaction to 
>the candida or not isn't certain.

My doctor tested me (I believe a RAST or RAST similar test) for allergic
response to specificially Candida albicans, and I showed a strong positive.
Another question, would everybody show the same strong positive so this test
is essentially useless?  And, assuming it is true that Candida can grow
part-way into the mucus membrane tissue, and the concentration exceeds a 
threshold amount, could not a person who tests as having an allergy to
Candida definitely develop allergic symptoms, such as mucus membrane
irritation due to the body's allergic response?  As I said in an earlier post,
one does not need to be a rocket scientist, or have a M.D. degree or a 
Ph.D. in biochemistry to see the plausibility of this hypothesis.

BTW, and I'll repost this again.  Dr. Ivker, in his book, "Sinus Survival",
has routinely given, before anything else, Nizoral (a pre-Sporanox systemic
anti-fungal, not as safe and not as good as Sporanox) to his new chronic
sinusitis patients IF they have been on antibiotics four or more times in
the last two years.  He claims that out of 2000 or so patients, well over
90% notice some relief of sinus inflammation and other symptoms, but it
doesn't cure it by any means, implying the so-called yeast/fungus infection
is not the primary cause, but a later complication.  He's also found that
nystatin, whether taken internally, or put into a sinus spray, does not help.

This implies (of course assuming that excessive yeast/fungus bloom is
aggravating the sinus inflammation) that the yeast/fungus has grown partway
into the tissue since nystatin will not kill yeast/fungus other than by
direct contact - it is not absorbed into the blood stream.  Again, I admit,
lots of 'ifs', and 'implies', which doesn't please the hard-core NT who
has to have the double-blind study or it's a non-issue, but one has to start
with some plausible hypothesis/explanation, a strawman, if you will.


>If it's internal, only symptoms can be used and these symptoms are pretty 
>nondescript.  

This brings up an interesting observation used by those who will deny
and reject any and all aspects of the 'yeast hypothesis' until the
appropriate studies are done.  And that is if you can't observe or culture
the yeast "bloom" in the gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or
even recognize the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body that cannot
be easily observed since candida is everywhere in the body.

It's a real Catch-22.

Another Catch-22:  Those who totally reject the 'yeast hypothesis' say that
no studies have been done (actually studies have been done, but if it's not
up to a certain standard then it is, from their perspective, a non-study which
should not even be considered).  I agree that the appropriate studies should
be done, and that will take big $ to do it right.  However, in order to
convince the funding agencies in these austere times to open their wallets,
you literally have to give them evidence, and the only acceptable evidence to
compete with other proposals is paradoxically to do almost the exact study
needed funding.  That is, you have to do 90% of the study before you even get
funding (as a scientist at a National Lab, I'm very aware of this for the
smaller funded projects).  I'm afraid that even if Dr. Ivker and 100 other
doctors got together, pooled their practice's case histories and anecdotes
into a compelling picture, and approach the funding agencies, they would get
nowhere, even if they were able to publish their statistical results.

It is obvious from the comments by some of the doctors here is that they have
*decided* excessive yeast colonization in the gut or sinuses leading to
noticeable non-lethal symptoms does not exist, and is not even a tenable
hypothesis, so any amount of case histories or compiled anecdotal evidence
to the contrary will never change their mind, and not only that, they would
also oppose the needed studies because in their minds it's a done issue - 
excessive yeast growth leading to diffuse allergic symptoms does not, will
not, and cannot exist.  Period.  Kind of tough to dialog with those who hold
such a viewpoint.  Kind of reminds me of Lister...


>Candida is kept in check in most people by the normal bacterial flora in 
>the sinuses, the GI tract(mouth, stomach and intestines) and in the 
>vaginal tract which compete with it for food.  The human immune system 
>ususally does not bother itself with these(nonpathogenic organisms) unless 
>they broach the mucus membrane "barrier".  If they do, an inflammatory 
>response will be set up.  Most Americans are not getting enough vitamin A 
>from their diets.  About 30% of all American's die with less Vitamin A than 
>they were born with(U.S. autopsy studies).  While this low level of vitamin 
>A does not cause pathology(blindness) it does impair the mucus membrane 
>barrier system.  This would then be a predisposing factor for a strong 
>inflammatory response after a candida bloom.  

Aren't there also other nutrients necessary to the proper working of the
sinus mucus membranes and cilia?


>While diabetics can suffer from a candida "bloom" the  most common cause of 
>this type of bloom is the use of broad spectrum antibiotics which 
>knock down many different kinds of bacteria in the body and remove the main 
>competition for candida as far as food is concerned.  While drugs are 
>available to handle candida, many patients find that their doctor will not 
>use them unless there is evidence of a systemic infection.  The toxicity of 
>the anti-fungal drugs does warrant some caution.  But if the GI or sinus 
>inflammation is suspected to be candida(and recent use of a broad spectrum 
>antibiotic is the smoking gun), then anti-fungal use should be approrpriate 
>just as the anti-fungal creams are an appropriate treatment for recurring 
>vaginal yeast infections, in spite of what Mr. Steve Dyer says.

Again, the evidence from mycological studies indicate that many yeast/fungus
species can grow hyphae ("roots") into deep tissue, similar to mold growing
in bread.  You can continue to kill the surface, such as nystatin does, but
you can't kill that which is deeper in the tissue without using a systemic
anti-fungal such as itraconazole (Sporanox) or some of the older ones such
as Nizoral which are more toxic and not as effective.  This is why, as has
been pointed out by recent studies (sent to me by a doctor I've been in
e-mail contact with - thanks), that nystatin is not effective in the long-
term treatment of GI tract "candidiasis".  It's like trying to weed a garden
by cutting off what's above the ground but leaving the roots ready to come
out again once you walk away.

The $60000 question is whether a contained candida "bloom" can partially
grow into tissue through the mucus membranes, causing some types of symptoms
in susceptible people (e.g., allergy), without becoming "systemic" in the
classical sense of the word - something in between strictly an excessive
bloom not causing any problems and the full-blown systemic infection that
is potentially lethal.


>In the GI system, the ano-rectal region seems to be a particularly good 
>reservoir for candida and the use of pantyhose by many women creates a very 
>favorable environment around the rectum for transfer(through moisture and 
>humidity) of candida to the vaginal tract.  One of the most effctive ways to 
>minimmize this transfer is to wear undyed cotton underwear.  

Also, if one is an 'anal retentive', like I've been diagnosed in a prior
post, that can also provide more sites for excessive candida growth.  ;^)


>If the bloom occurs in the anal area, the burning, swelling, pain and even 
>blood discharge make many patients think that they have hemorroids.  If the 
>bloom manages to move further up the GI tract, very diffuse symptomatology 
>occurs(abdominal discomfort and blood in the stool).  This positive stool 
>for occult blood is what sent Elaine to her family doctor in the first 
>place.  After extensive testing, he told her that there was nothing wrong 
>but her gut still hurt.  On to another doctor, and so on.  Richard Kaplan 
>has told me throiugh e-mail that he considers occult blood tests in stool 
>specimens to be a waste of time and money because of the very large number of 
>false positives(candida blooms guys?).  If my gut hurt me on a constant 
>basis, I would want it fixed.  Yes it's nice to know that I don't have 
>colon cancer but what then is causing my distress?  When I finally find a 
>doctor who treats me and gets me 90% better, Steve Dyer calls him a quack.

As I've said in private e-mail, there are flaws in our current medical system
that make it difficult or even impossible for a physician to attempt
alternative therapies AFTER the approved/proven/accepted therapies don't work.
For example, I went to three ENT's, who all said that I will just have to live
with my acute/chronic sinusitis after the ab's failed (they did mention
surgery to open up the ostia, but my ostia weren't plugged and it would not
get to the root cause of my condition).  After three months of aggressive and
fairly non-standard therapy (Sporanox, body nutrient level monitoring and
equalization, vitamin C, lentinen, echinacea, etc.), my health has vastly
improved to where I was two years ago, before my health greatly deteriorated.
Of course, skeptics would say that maybe if I did nothing I would have
improved anyway, but that view is stretching things quite far because of the
experience of the three ENT's I saw who said that I'd just have to "live with
it".  I'm confident I will reach what one could call a total "cure".  The
anti-fungal program I undertook was one necessary step in that direction
because of my overuse of ab's for the last four years.  (Note:  for those
having sinus problems, may I suggest the book by Dr. Ivker I mention above.
Be sure to get the revised edition.)


>...I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
>GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
>patients is a non-existent syndrome.

Dr. Ivker started off having chronic and severe sinus problems, and his
visits to several ENT's totally floored him when they said "you'll just have
to live with it".  He spent several years trying everything - standard and
non-standard, until he was essentially cured of chronic sinusitis.  He now
shares his approach in his book and I can honestly say that I am on the road
to recovery following some parts of it.  His one recommendation to take a
systemic anti-fungal at the beginning of treatment IF you have a history of
anti-biotic overuse has been proven to him time and time again in his own
practice.  I'm sure if I commented to him of the hard-core beliefs of the anti-
"yeast hypothesis" posters that he would have definite things to say, such as,
"it's worked wonders for me in almost two thousand cases", to put it mildly.
I also would not be surprised if he would say that they are the ones violating
their moral obligations to help the patient.

Maybe those doctors who are reading this who have a practice and are
confronted by a patient having symptoms that could be due to the "hypothetical
yeast overgrowth" (e.g., they fit some of the profiles the pro-yeast people
have identified), should consider anti-fungal therapy IF all other avenues
have been exhausted.  Remember, theory and practice are two different things -
you cannot have one without the other, they are synergistic.  If a doctor does
something non-standard yet produces noticeable symptomatic relief in over a
thousand of his patients, shouldn't you at least sit up and take notice?
Maybe you ought to trust what he says and begin hypothesizing why it works
instead of why it shouldn't work.  I'm afraid a lot of doctors have become
so enamored with "scientific correctness" that they are ignoring the patients
they have sworn to help.  You have to do both;  both have to be balanced, which
we don't see from some of the posters to this group.  There comes a point when
you just have to use a little common sense, and maybe an empirical approach
(such as trying a good systemic anti-fungal such as Sporanox) after having
exhausted all the other avenues.  I was one of those who the traditional
medical establishment was not able to help, so I did the natural thing:  I
went to a couple of doctor's who are (somewhat) outside this establishment,
and as a result I have found significant relief.

Would it not be better if the traditional medical establishment can set up
some kind of mechanism where any doctor, without fear of being sued or having
his license pulled, can try experimental and unproven (beyond a doubt)
therapies for his/her patients that finally reach the point where all the
accepted therapies are ineffective?  I'd like to hear a doctor tell me:
"well, I've tried all the therapies that are approved and accepted in this
country, and since they clearly don't work for you, I now have the authority
to use experimental, unproven techniques that seem to have helped others.  I
can't promise anything, and there are some risks.  You will have to sign
something saying you understand the experimental and possibly risky nature of
these unproven therapies, and I'll have to register your case at the State
Board."  Anyway, if my ENT had suggested this to me, I would've jumped on this
pronto instead of going to one of those doctors who, for either altruistic
reasons, or for greed, is practicing these alternative therapies with much
risk to him/her (risk meaning losing their license) and possibly to the
patient.  Such a mechanism would keep control in the more mainstream medicine,
and also provide valuable data that would essentially be free.  It also would
be morally and ethically better than the current system by showing the
compassion of the medical community to the patient - that it's doing everything
it can within reason to help the patient.  It is the lack of such a mechanism
that is leading large numbers of people to try alternative therapies, some of
which seem to work (like my case), and others of which will never work at all
(true quackery).

I better get off my soapbox before this post reaches 500K in size.


>If taken orally, it can also become a major bacteria in the gut.  Through 
>aresol sprays, it has also been used to innoculate the sinus membranes.
>But before this innoculation occurs, the mucus membrane barrier system 
>needs to be strengthened.  This is accomplished by vitamin A, vitamin C and 
>some of the B-complex vitamins.  Diet surveys repeatedly show that Americans 
>are not getting enough B6 and folate.  These are probably the segement of 
>the population that will have the greatest problem with this non-existent 
>disorder(candida blooms after antibiotic therapy).

What dosage of B6 appears to be necessary to promote the healing and proper
working of the mucos memebranes?


>Some of the above material was obtained from "Natural Healing" by Mark 
>Bricklin, Published by Rodale press, as well as notes from my human 
>nutrition course.  I will be posting a discussion of vitamin A  sometime in 
>the future, along with reference citings to point out the extremely 
>important role that vitamin A plays in the mucus membrane defense system in 
>the body and why vitamin A should be effective in dealing with candida 
>blooms.  Another effective dietary treatment is to restrict carbohydrate 
>intake during the treatment phase, this is especially important if the GI 
>system is involved.  If candida can not get glucose, it's not going to out 
>grow the bacteria and you then give bacteria, which can use amino acids and 
>fatty acids for energy, a chance to take over and keep the candida in check 
>once carbohydrate is returned to the gut.

I'd like to see the role of complex carbohydrates, such as starch.


>If Steve and some of the other nay-sayers want to jump all over this post, 
>fine.  I jumped all over Steve in Sci. Med. Nutrition because he verbably 
>accosted a poster who was seeking advice about her doctor's use of vitamin 
>A and anti-fungals for a candida bloom in her gut.  People seeking advice 
>from newsnet should not be treated this way.  Those of us giving of our 
>time and knowledge can slug it out to our heart's content.  If you saved 
>your venom for me Steve and left the helpless posters who are timidly 
>seeking help alone, I wouldn't have a problem with your behavior. 

Brave soul you are.  The venom on Usenet can be quite toxic unless one
develops an immunity to it.  One year ago, my phlegmatic self would have
backed down right away from an attack of cholericitis.  But my immune
system, and my computer system, have been hardened from gradual
desensitization.  I now kind of like being called "anal retentive" - it has
a nice ring to it.  I also was very impressed by how it just flowed into the
post - truly classic, worthy of a blue (or maybe brown) ribbon.  I might
even cross-post it to alt.best.of.internet.  Hmmm...


>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

Thanks again for a great and informative post.  I hope others who have
researched this area and are lurking in the background will post their
thoughts as well, no matter their views on this subject.

Jon Noring


-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59184
From: dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds) writes:

>Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
>or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
>at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
>reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

I tend to disagree- I think anecdotal evidence, provided there is a lot of it,
and it is fairly consistent, will is very important.  First, it points to the
necessity of doing a study, and second, it at least says that the effects are
all psychological (or possibly allergy in this case).  As I've pointed out 
before, pyschological effects are no less real than other effects.  One       
person's "make-believe" can easily be another person's reality.  Using 
psychadelic drugs in a bizarre and twisted example, the hallucinations one
person experiences on an acid trip cannot be guaranteed to another person on
an acid trip- there is no clinical evidence that those effects are always going
to happen.  Anyhow, that was a pretty lame example, but hopefully I made my
point- it's all a matter of perception, and as long as someone ingesting MSG
perceives it as causing bad effects, then s/he can definitely experience those
affects.  On the other hand, it could just be an allergy to the food it's in,   or something.  Still, anecdotal evidence is not worthless- it's the stuff that
leads to the study being done.
-Dan

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59185
From: eulenbrg@carson.u.washington.edu (Julia Eulenberg)
Subject: Re: Arythmia

Alexis Perry asked if low blood potassium could be dangerous.  Yes.
ZZ

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59186
From: hahn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu (David James Hahn)
Subject: Re: RE: HELP ME INJECT...

From article <1993Apr22.233001.13436@vax.oxford.ac.uk>, by krishnas@vax.oxford.ac.uk:
> The best way of self injection is to use the right size needle
> and choose the correct spot. For Streptomycin, usually given intra
> muscularly, use a thin needle (23/24 guage) and select a spot on
> the upper, outer thigh (no major nerves or blood vessels there). 
> Clean the area with antiseptic before injection, and after. Make
> sure to inject deeply (a different kind of pain is felt when the
> needle enters the muscle - contrasted to the 'prick' when it 
> pierces the skin).
> 
> PS: Try to go to a doctor. Self-treatment and self-injection should
> be avoided as far as possible.
>  
The areas that are least likely to hurt are where you have a little 
fat.  I inject on my legs and gut, and prefer the gut.  I can stick
it in at a 90 degree angle, and barely feel it.  I'm not fat, just
have a little gut.  My legs however, are muscular, and I have to pinch
to get anything, and then I inject at about a 45 degree angle,and it
still hurts.  The rate of absorbtion differs for subcutaneous and  
muscular injections however--so if it's a daily thing it would be
best not to switch places every day to keep consistencey.  Although
some suggest switch legs or sides of the stomach for each shot, to prevent 
irritation.  When you clean the spot off with an alcohol prep, 
wait for it to dry somewhat, or you may get the alcohol in the
puncture, and of course, that doesn't feel good.  A way to prevent
irratation is to mark the spot that you injected.  A good way to
do this is use a little round bandage and put it over the 
spot.  This helps prevent you from injecting in the same spot,
and spacing the sites out accuartely (about 1 1/2 " apart.)

This is from experience, so I hope it'll help you.  (I have
diabetes and have to take an injection every morning.)

			Later,
				David
-- 
David Hahn
University of Wisconsin : Milwaukee 
hahn@csd4.csd.uwm.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59187
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
>>
>>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
>>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
>>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
>>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
>>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
>
>Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
>the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
>why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
>what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
>After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
>"acute corn intoxication."
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and

How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???



-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59188
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: My New Diet --> IT WORKS GREAT !!!!

In article <C5wC7G.4EG@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.001642.9186@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX) writes:
>
>>>>>Can you provide a reference to substantiate that gaining back
>>>>>the lost weight does not constitute "weight rebound" until it
>>>>>exceeds the starting weight?  Or is this oral tradition that
>>>>>is shared only among you obesity researchers?
>>>>
>>>>Annals of NY Acad. Sci. 1987
>>>>
>>>Hmmm. These don't look like references to me. Is passive-aggressive
>>>behavior associated with weight rebound? :-)
>>
>>I purposefully left off the page numbers to encourage the reader to
>>study the volumes mentioned, and benefit therefrom.
>>
>
>Good story, Chuck, but it won't wash.  I have read the NY Acad Sci
>one (and have it).  This AM I couldn't find any reference to
>"weight rebound".  I'm not saying it isn't there, but since you
>cited it, it is your responsibility to show me where it is in there.
>There is no index.  I suspect you overstepped your knowledge base,
>as usual.
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's on page 315, about 2 1/2 inches up from the bottom and an inch in
from the right.

At least we know what some people *haven't* read and remembered.

-- 
Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX          ...!tektronix!reed!omen!caf 
Author of YMODEM, ZMODEM, Professional-YAM, ZCOMM, and DSZ
  Omen Technology Inc    "The High Reliability Software"
17505-V NW Sauvie IS RD   Portland OR 97231   503-621-3406

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59189
From: heart@access.digex.com (G)
Subject: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

Hi,

I've just returned from a visit with my OB/GYN and I have a few 
concerns that maybe y'all can help me with.  I've been seeing 
her every 4 weeks for the past few months (I'm at week 28) 
and during the last 2 visits I've gained 9 to 9 1/2 pounds every 
4 weeks.  She said this was unacceptable over any 4 week period. 
As it stands I've thus far gained 26 pounds.  Also she says that 
though I'm at 28 weeks the baby's size is 27 weeks, I think she 
mentioned 27 inches for the top of the fundus.  When I was 13 
weeks the baby's size was 14 weeks.  I must also add, that I had 
an operation a few years ago for endometriosis and I've had no 
problems with endometriosis but apparently it is causing me pain 
in my pelvic region during the pregnancy, and I have a very 
difficult time moving, and the doc has recommended I not walk or 
move unless I have to. (I have a little handicapped sticker for 
when I do need to go out.) 

Anyway that's 1/2 of the situation the other is that almost from 
the beginning of pregnancy I was getting sick (throwing up) about 
2-3 times a day and mostly it was bile that was being eliminated.  
(I told her about this).  I know this because I wasn't eating 
very much due to the nausea and could see the 'results'.  Well 
now I only get sick about once every 1-2 weeks, and it is still bile 
related.  But in addition I had begun to feel movement near my 
upper right abdomen, just below the right breast, usually when I 
was lying on my right side.  It began to get worse though because 
it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
wasn't as much of a problem.

So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 
I'm not taking in fat, is she expecting the baby will take it 
from my stores?  And why this restriction on carbohydrates if 
she's concerned about fat?  I'm not clear how much of her 
recommendation is based on my weight gain and how much on 
cholistatis, which I can't seem to find any information on.  She 
originally said that I should only gain 20 pounds during the 
entire pregnancy since I was about 20 lbs overweight when I 
started.  But my sister gained 60 lbs during her pregnancy and 
she's taken it all off and hasn't had any problems.  She also 
asked if any members of my family were obese, which none of them 
are.  Anyway I think she is overly concerned about weight gain, 
and feel like I'm being 'punished' by a severe diet.  She did 
want to see me again in one week so I think she the diet may be 
temporary for that one week. 

What I want to know is how reasonable is this non-fat diet?  I 
would understand if she had said low-fat diet, since I'm trying 
that anyway, even if she said really low-fat diet.  I think she 
assumes I must be eating a high-fat diet, but really it is that 
because of the endometriosis and the operation I'm not able to 
use the energy from the food I do eat. 

Any opinions, info and experiences will be appreciated.  I'm 
truly going stark raving mad trying to meet this new strict diet 
because fruits and vegetables go through my system in a few 
minutes and I'll end up having to eat constantly.  Thus far I 
don't find any foods satisfying.

Thanks 

G

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59190
From: bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz)
Subject: PRK (Photo Refractive Keratostomy)

For those of you interested in the above Procedure, I am able to add the
following facts:

1) This Procedure is not done in Philadelphia.

2) It is performed in Maryland at Johns Hopkins for corrections between
   0 and -5 and from -10 to -20 (diopters, I think are the units).

3) It is performed in New York City at Manhattan Eye and Ear for corrections
   between 0 and -6.

The magic words to use when requesting information on this is not PRK (they
think you mean RK) but the excimer laser study (or protocol). This will get 
you to the proper people.


-- 
Barry D. Benowitz
EMail:	bbenowit@telesciences.com (...!pyrnj!telesci!bbenowit)
Phone:	+1 609 866 1000 x354
Snail:	Telesciences CO Systems, 351 New Albany Rd, Moorestown, NJ, 08057-1177

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59191
From: etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............


   Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
   a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
   into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
   I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
   painless and effective treatment.
   A couple of weeks ago I visited a hospital here in Stockholm and
   saw big signs showing the way to the "Kidney stone chrusher" ...



   Mats Winberg
   Stockholm, Sweden

	     

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59192
From: ske@pkmab.se (Kristoffer Eriksson)
Subject: Re: Science and methodology (was: Homeopathy ... tradition?)

In article <1quqlgINN83q@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:
> My definition is this: Science is the investigation of the empirical
>that avoids mistakes in reasoning and methodology discovered from previous
>work.

Reading this definition, I wonder: when should you recognize something
as being a "mistake"? It seems to me, that proponents of pseudo-sciences
might have their own ideas of what constitutes a "mistake" and which
discoveries of such previous mistakes they accept.

-- 
Kristoffer Eriksson, Peridot Konsult AB, Stallgatan 2, S-702 26 Oerebro, Sweden
Phone: +46 19-33 13 00  !  e-mail: ske@pkmab.se
Fax:   +46 19-33 13 30  !  or ...!mail.swip.net!kullmar!pkmab!ske

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59193
From: bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:

>I think that's the correct spelling..
>	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>appreciated.

Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.

Bill from oz



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59194
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
>Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
>authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
>is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
the major ingredients.   :-)

Don Mackie - his opinions
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59195
From: sjha+@cs.cmu.edu (Somesh Jha)
Subject: What is "intersection syndrome" near the forearm/wrist?


Hi:

I went to the orthopedist on Tuesday. He diagnosed me as having
"intersection syndrome". He prescribed Feldene for me. I want
to know more about the disease and the drug.

Thanks


Somesh







Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59196
From: choueiry@liasun1.epfl.ch (Berthe Y. Choueiry)
Subject: French to English translation of medical terms

Dear Netters,

I am not sure whether this is the right place to post my query, but I
thought there may be some bilingual physicians in this newsgroup that
could help. Please, excuse me for overloading the bandwidth.

I am trying to build a resource allocation program for managing a
surgical operating unit in a hospital. The user interface is in
English, however the terms of medical specialties I was given are in
French :-( I have no medical dictionary handy, mine is a technical
university :-((

I need to get the translation into English (when there is one) of the
following words. They refer to medical categories of operating rooms
(theaters). I admit they may not be universally "used".

1- sceptique
2- orl
3- brulure/brule'
4- ne'onatal
5- pre'natal
6- pre'mature'
7- neurochirurgie (neuro-surgery??)
8- chirurgie ge'ne'rale
9- chirurgie plastique
10- urologie (urology??)

Thank you for you help.
Cheers,

---------
Berthe Y. Choueiry

choueiry@lia.di.epfl.ch
LIA-DI, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Ecublens
CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Voice: +41-21-693.52.77 and +41-21-693.66.78 	Fax: +41-21-693.52.25

--------
ps: please reply by e-mail if possible since I scan too quickly
through the messages of this newsgroup.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59197
From: jgd@dixie.com (John De Armond)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

E.J. Draper <draper@odin.mda.uth.tmc.edu> writes:

>If it were my wife, I would insist that a radiologist be involved in the
>process.  Radiologist are intensively trained in the process of
>interpreting diagnostic imaging data and are aware of many things that
>other physicians aren't aware of.  

Maybe, maybe not.  A new graduate would obviously be well trained (but
perhaps without sufficient experience). A radiologist trained 10 or
15 years ago who has not kept his continuing education current is a 
whole 'nuther matter.  A OB who HAS trained in modern radiology technology
is certainly more qualified than the latter and at least equal to 
the former.

>Would you want a radiologist to
>deliver your baby?  If you wouldn't, then why would you want a OB/GYN to
>read your ultrasound study?

If the radiologist is also trained in OB/GYN, why not?

John

-- 
John De Armond, WD4OQC               |Interested in high performance mobility?  
Performance Engineering Magazine(TM) | Interested in high tech and computers? 
Marietta, Ga                         | Send ur snail-mail address to 
jgd@dixie.com                        | perform@dixie.com for a free sample mag
Lee Harvey Oswald: Where are ya when we need ya?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59198
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: HELP ME INJECT...

According to a previous poster, one should seek a doctor's
assistance for injections. But what about Sumatriptin [sp?]?
Doesn't one have to inject oneself immediately upon the onset
of a migraine?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59199
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr22.202051.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
> In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
>>
>> A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
>> disease.
>>
>> But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
>> without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
>>
>> Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
>> problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
>>
>> (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
>>
>> Thanks in advance,
>> John Eyles
>
> All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While
> most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who
> are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their
> patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get
> your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for
> the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The
> better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's
> plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to
> control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
> Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and
> lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but
> I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For


If you do a MEDLINE search on "turmeric" you'll see that it is a potent
lipoxygenase inhibitor which is being investigated in a number of areas.
I'm in cardiology and about 4 years ago the cardiothoracic surgery lab at my
hospital compared the effect of a teaspoon of dissolved turmeric vs. a $2000
bolus of tPA in preventing myocardial reperfusion injury in a perfused
Langendorff sheep heart. The turmeric was more effective :-)


A colleague of mine in the School of Pharmacy (Dr. Ron Kohen) has a paper "in
press" on the free radical scavenging activity and antioxidant activity of tea.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL


> bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects
> are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing
> a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with
> inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.
>
> Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59200
From: mhollowa@ic.sunysb.edu (Michael Holloway)
Subject: Re: Wanted: Rat cell line (adrenal gland/cortical c.)

In article <roos.49@Operoni.Helsinki.FI> roos@Operoni.Helsinki.FI (Christophe Roos) writes:
>I am looking for a rat cell line of adrenal gland / cortical cell  -type. I 
>have been looking at ATCC without success and would very much appreciate any 
>help.

I shot off a response to this last night that I've tried to cancel.  It was 
only a few minutes later while driving home that I remembered that your 
message does specifically say cortical.  My first reaction had been to suggest
the PC12 pheochromocytoma line.  That may still be a good compromise, depending
on what you're doing.  Have you concidered using a mouse cell line from one 
of the SV40 T antigen transgenic lines?  Another alternative might be primary
cells from bovine adrenal cortex.  

Mike

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59201
From: jkjec@westminster.ac.uk (Shazad Barlas)
Subject: NEED HELP ON SCARING PLEASE

Hi...

I need information on scaring. Particularly as a result of grazing the skin
I really wanted to know of 

	1. would a scar occur as a result of grazing
	2. if yes, then would it disappear?
	3. how long does a graze take to heal?
	4. will hair grow on it once it has healed?
	5. what is 'scar tissue'?
	6. should antiseptic cream be applied to it regularly?
	7. is it better to keep it exposed and let fresh air at it?

Please help - any info - no matter how small will be appreciated greatly. 

BUT PLEASE E-MAIL ME DIRECTLY because I dont read this newsgroup often (this
is my first time).  
  						....Shaz....

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59202
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

Summary of thread:
A person has Crohns, raw vegetables cause problems (unspecified)
Steve Holland replies:  patient may have mild obstruction.  Avoid things
that would plug her up.  Crohn's has no dietary restriction in general.

In article <1993Apr22.210631.13300@aio.jsc.nasa.gov>,
spenser@fudd.jsc.nasa.gov (S. Spenser Aden) wrote:
> 
> Interesting statements, simply because I have been told otherwise.  I'm
> certainly not questioning Steve's claims, as for one I am not a doctor, and I
> agree that foods don't bring on the recurrence of Crohn's.  But inflammation
> can be either mildly or DRASTICALLY enhanced due to food.

The feeling obout this has changed in the GI community.  The current
feeling
is that inflammation is not induced by food.  There is even evidence that
patients deprived of food have mucosal atrophy due to lack of stimulation
of
intestinal growth factors.  There is now interest in providing small
amounts
of nasogastric feeding to patients on IV nutrition.  But I digress.  
Symptoms can be drastically enhanced by food, but not inflammation.

> Having had one major obstruction resulting in resection (is that a good enough
> caveat :-), I was told that a *LOW RESIDUE* diet is called for.  Basically,
> the idea is that if there is inflammation of the gut (which may not be
> realized by the patient), any residue in the system can be caught in the folds
> of inflammation and constantly irritate, thus exacerbating the problem.
> Therefore, anything that doesn't digest completely by the point of common
> inflammation should be avoided.  With what I've been told is typical Crohn's,
> of the terminal ileum, my diet should be low residue, consisting of:
>
> Completely out - never again - items:
> 	o corn (kernel husk doesn't digest ... most of us know this :-)
> 	o popcorn (same)
> 	o dried (dehydrated) fruit and fruit skins
> 	o nuts (Very tough when it comes to giving up some fudge :-)

The low residue diet is appropriate for you if you still have obstructions.
Again, it is not felt that food causes inflammation.  These foods are
avoided because they may get stuck.  I'd go ahead and have the
fudge, though ;-)  .

> Discouraged greatly:
> 	o raw vegetables (too fibrous)
> 	o wheat and raw grain breads
> 	o exotic lettuce (iceberg is ok since it's apparently mostly water)
> 	o greens (turnip, mustard, kale, etc...)
> 	o little seeds, like sesame (try getting an Arby's without it!)
> 	o long grain and wild rice (husky)
> 	o beans (you'll generate enough gas alone without them!)
> 	o BASICALLY anything that requires heavy digestive processing
> 
> I was told that the more processed the food the better! (rather ironic in this
> day and age).  The whole point is PREVENTATIVE ... you want to give your
> system as little chance to inflame as possible.  I was told that among the
> NUMEROUS things that were heavily discouraged (I only listed a few), to try
> the ones I wanted and see how I felt.  If it's bad, don't do it again!
> Remember though that this was while I was in remission.  For Veggies: cook the
> daylights out of them.  I prefer steaming ... I think it's cooks more
> thoroughly - you're mileage may vary.
> 
> As with anything else, CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR.  Don't just take my word.  But
> this is the info I've been given, and it may be a starting point for
> discussion.  Good luck!
> 
Spencer makes an especially good point in having an observant and
informed patient.  Would that many patients be able to tell what
causes them problems.  The digestive processing idea is changing, but
if a food causes problems, avoid them.  Be sure that the foods are 
tested a second time to be sure the food is a real cause.  Crohn's
commonly causes intermittent symptoms and some patients end up with
severly restricted diets that take months to renormalize.

There was a good article in the CCFA newsletter recently that discussed
the issue of dietary restriction of fiber.  It would be worth reading
to anyone with an interest in Crohn's.

And, as I always say when dealing with Crohn's, as does Spencer, Good Luck!

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59203
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr22.202051.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>,
banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu wrote:
> 
> In article <1r6g8fINNe88@ceti.cs.unc.edu>, jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles) writes:
> > 
> > A friend has what is apparently a fairly minor case of Crohn's
> > disease.
> > 
> > But she can't seem to eat certain foods, such as fresh vegetables,
> > without discomfort, and of course she wants to avoid a recurrence.
> > 
> > Her question is: are there any nutritionists who specialize in the
> > problems of people with Crohn's disease ?
> > 
> > (I saw the suggestion of lipoxygnase inhibitors like tea and turmeric).
> > 
> > Thanks in advance,
> > John Eyles
> 
> All your friend really has to do is find a Registered Dietician(RD).  While 
> most work in hospitals and clinics, many major cities will have RD's who 
> are in "private practice" so to speak.  Many physicans will refer their 
> patients with Crohn's disease to RD's for dietary help.  If you can get 
> your friend's physician to make a referral, medical insurance should pay for 
> the RD's services just like the services of a physical therapist.  The 
> better medical insurance plans will cover this but even if your friend's 
> plan doesn't, it would be well worth the cost to get on a good diet to 
> control the intestinal discomfort and help the intestinal lining heal.
> Crohn's disease is an inflammatory disease of the intestinal lining and 
> lipoxygenase inhibitors may help by decreasing leukotriene formation but 
> I'm not aware of tea or turmeric containing lipoxygenase inhibitors.  For 
> bad inflammation, steroids are used but for a mild case, the side effects 
> are not worth the small benefit gained by steroid use.  Upjohn is developing 
> a new lipoxygenase inhibitor that should greatly help deal with 
> inflammatory diseases but it's not available yet.
> 
> Marty B. 

Be sure a dietician is up to date on Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.  
Previously, low residue diets were recommended, but this advice has
now changed.  Also, there will be differences in advice in patients with
and without obstructuon remaining, so input by the physician will be 
important.  I find the dietician very important in my practice, and 
I send most of my patients to a dietician in the course of seeing
them, since dieticians know so much better how to get diet histories
and evaluate the contents of a diet than I do.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59204
From: jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <19609@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <3794@nlsun1.oracle.nl> rgasch@nl.oracle.com (Robert Gasch) writes:
>>
>>In many European countries Homepathy is accepted as a method of curing
>>(or at least alleiating) many conditions to which modern medicine has 
>>no answer. In most of these countries insurance pays for the 
>>treatments.
>>
>
>Accepted by whom?  Not by scientists.  There are people
>in every country who waste time and money on quackery.
>In Britain and Scandanavia, where I have worked, it was not paid for.
>What are "most of these countries?"  I don't believe you.
>
>

When were you in Britain?, my information is different.

From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.

From Page 10,
.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
of treatment.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59205
From: tony@nexus.yorku.ca (Anthony Wallis)
Subject: "Choleric" and The Great NT/NF Semantic War.

[Cross-posted from alt.psychology.personality since it talks about
 physician's personalities.  Apologies to sci.med readers not
 familiar with the Myers-Briggs "NT/NF" personality terms.  But,
 in a word or two, the NTs (iNtuitive->Thinkers) are approximately your
 philosophy/science/tech pragmatic types, and the NFs (iNtuitive-Feelers)
 are your humanities/social-"science"/theology idealistic types.  They
 hate each others' guts (:-)) but tend to inter-marry.
 The letter "J" is a reference to conscienciousness/decisiveness.]

Jon Noring emits typical NF-type stuff 
> [Physicians] are just responding in their natural way:
> Hyper-Choleric Syndrome (HCS).  ..
> ..it is fascinating that a disproportionate number of
> physicians will type out as NT ..
> One driving characteristic of an NT, especially an NTJ, is their obvious
> choleric behavior (driver, type A, etc.) - the extreme emotional need to
> control, to lead, and/or to be the best or the most competent. ..

Please get it right, Jon.
(This NTJ has a strong desire to correct semantic mistakes,
 because the NFs of this world are fouling the once-pristine NT
 intellectual nest with their verbal poop.)

The dominant correlation is NT <-> Phlegmatic (and _not_ NT <-> Choleric).
One of the semantic roots of "choleric" is the idea of "hot" (emotional)
and one of the semantic roots of "phlegmatic" is "cold" (unemotional).

Here is a thumbnail sketch (taken from Hans Eysenck, refering to Wundt)
relating the Ancient Greek quadratic typology with modern terms:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 Emotional   
                                     ^
     ("Melancholic")                 |                     ("Choleric")
                                     |              
           Thoughtful Suspicious     |    Quickly-aroused Hotheaded
                  Unhappy Worried    |   Egocentric Histrionic
                           Anxious   |  Exhibitonist 
                             Serious | Active           
 Unchangeable < ------------------------------------------------> Changeable
                                Calm | Playful          
                         Reasonable  |  Carefree
              Steadfast Persistent   |   Hopeful Sociable
     Highly-principled Controlled    |    Controlled Easy-going
                                     |              
    ("Phlegmatic")                   |                     ("Sanguine")
                                     |
                                     v
                               Non-emotional
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I suspect that your characterisation of NTs as "choleric" is what
you psych-types call a "projection" of your own NF-ness onto us.

> Maybe we need more NF doctor's.  :^)

Perhaps in serious pediatics and "my little boy's got a runny
nose, doctor" general practice, but, please God, not in neurology,
opthamology, urology, etc. etc.  And NF-psychiatry should seperate
from NT-(i.e. real) psychiatry and be given a new name .. something 
like "channeling"  :-).

--
tony@nexus.yorku.ca = Tony Wallis, York University, Toronto, Canada


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59206
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article dpc47852@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Daniel Paul Checkman) writes:
>bruce@Data-IO.COM (Bruce Reynolds) writes:
>
>>Anecedotal evidence is worthless.  Even doctors who have been using a drug
>>or treatment for years, and who swear it is effective, are often suprised
>>at the results of clinical trials.  Whether or not MSG causes describable,
>>reportable, documentable symptoms should be pretty simple to discover.  

But it is quite a leap in logic to observe one situation where anecdotal
evidence led nowhere and therefore conclude that anecdotal evidence will
NEVER lead anywhere.  I'm sure somebody here can provide an example where
anecdotal evidence (and the interpretation of it) was upheld/verified by
follow-on rigorous clinical trials.


>I tend to disagree- I think anecdotal evidence, provided there is a lot of it,
>and it is fairly consistent, will is very important.  First, it points to the
>necessity of doing a study, and second, it at least says that the effects are
>all psychological (or possibly allergy in this case).  As I've pointed out 
>person's "make-believe" can easily be another person's reality...

Good point.  There has been a tendency by some on this newsgroup to "circle
the wagons" to the viewpoint that anecdotal medical evidence is worthless
(maybe to counter the claims of those who are presenting anecdotal evidence
to support controversial subjects, such as the "yeast hypothesis").  But
evidence is evidence - it requires a "jury" or a process to sort it out and
determine the truth from the junk.  Medicine must continue to strive to better
understand the workings of the body/mind for the purpose of alleviating
illness - anecdotal evidence is just one piece of the puzzle;  it is not
worthless.  Rather, it can help focus limited resources in the right direction.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59207
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: How To Prevent Kidney Stone Formation

I got asked in Sci. Med. Nutrition about vitamin C and oxalate production(
toxic, kidney stone formation?).  I decided to post my answer here as well 
because of the recent question about kidney stones.  Not long after I got 
into Sci. Med. I got flamed by a medical fellow for stating that magnesium 
would prevent kidney stone formation.  I'm going to state it again here.
But the best way to prevent kidney stones from forming is to take B6 
supplements.  Read on to find out why(I have my asbestos suit on now guys).

Vitamin C will form oxalic acid.  But large doses are needed (above 6 grams 
per day).

	1. Review Article "Nutritional factors in calcium containing kidney 
	   stones with particular emphasis on Vitamin C" Int. Clin. Nutr. Rev.
	   5(3):110-129(1985).

But glycine also forms oxalic acid(D-amino acid oxidases).  For both 
glycine and vitamin C, one of the best ways to drastically reduce this 
production is not to cut back on dietary intake of vitamin C or glycine, 
but to increase your intake of vitamin B6.

	2. "Control of hyperoxaluria with large doses of pyridoxine in 
	    patients with kidney stones" Int. Urol. Nephrol. 20(4):353-59(1988)
	    200 to 500 mg of B6 each day significasntly decreased the urinary 
	    excretion of oxalate over the 18 month treatment program.

	3. The action of pyridoxine in primary hyperoxaluria" Clin. Sci. 38
	   :277-86(1970).  Patients receiving at least 150mg B6 each day 
	   showed a significant reduction in urinary oxalate levels.

For gylcine, this effect is due to increased transaminase activity(B6 is 
required for transaminase activity) which makes less glycine available for 
oxidative deamination(D-amino acid oxidases).  For vitamin C, the effect is 
quite different.  There are different pathways for vitamin C catabolism.  
The pathway that leads to oxalic acid formation will usually have 17 to 40% 
of the ingested dose going into oxalic acid.  But this is highly variable 
and the vitamin C review article pointed out that unless the dose gets upto 
6 grams per day, not too much vitamin C gets catabolized to form oxalic 
acid.  At very high doses of vitamin C(above 10 grams per day), more of the 
extra vitamin C (more than 40% conversion) can end up as oxalic acid.  In a 
very early study on vitamin C and oxalic production(Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. 
Med. 85:190-92(1954), intakes of 2 grams per day up to 9 grams per day 
increased the average oxalic acid excretion from 38mg per day up to 178mg 
per day.  Until 8 grams per day was reached, the average excreted was 
increased by only 3 to 12mg per day(2 gram dose, 4 gram dose, 8 gram dose 
and 9gram dose). 8 grams jumped it to 45mg over the average excretion 
before supplementation and 9 grams jumped it to 150 mg over the average 
before supplementation.

B6 is required by more enzymes than any other vitamin in the body.  There 
are probably some enzymes that require vitamin B6 that we don't know about 
yet.  Vitamin C catabolism is still not completely understood but the 
speculation is that this other pathway that does not form oxalic acid must 
have an enzyme in it that requires B6.  Differences in B6 levels could then 
explain the very variable production of oxalic acid from a vitamin C 
challenge(this is not the preferred route of catabolism).  Increasing your 
intake of B6 would then result in less oxalic acid being formmed if you 
take vitamin C supplements.  Since the typical American diet is deficient 
in B6, some researchers believe that the main cause of calcium-oxalate 
kidney stones is B6 deficiency(especially since so little oxalic acid gets 
absorbed from the gut).  Diets providing 0 to 130mg of oxalic acid per day 
showed absolutely no change in urinary excretion of oxalate(Urol Int.35:309
-15,1980).  If 400mg was present each day, there was a significant increase 
in urinary oxalate excretion.

	Here are the high oxalate foods:

	1. Beans, coca, instant coffee, parsley, rhubarb, spinach and tea.
	   Contain at least 25mg/100grams

	2. Beet tops, carrots, celery, chocolate, cumber, grapefruit, kale, 
	   peanuts, pepper, sweet potatoe.
	   Contain 10 to 25 mg/100grams.

If the threshold is 130mg per day, you can see that you really have a lot 
of latitude in food selection.  A recent N.Eng.J. Med. article also points 
out that one good way to prevent kidney stone formation is to increase your 
intake of calcium which will prevent most of the dietary oxalate from being 
absorbed at all.  If you also increase your intake of B6, you shouldn't 
have to worry about kidney stones at all. The RDA for B6 is 2mg per day for 
males and 1.6mg per day for females(directly related to protein intake).
B6 can be toxic(nerve damage) if it is consumed in doses of 500mg or more 
per day for an extended peroid(weeks to months).  

The USDA food survey done in 1986 had an average intake of 1.87 mg per day 
for males and 1.16mg per day for females living in the U.S.  Coupled with 
this low intake was a high protein diet(which greatly increases the B6 
requirement), as well as the presence of some of the 40 different drugs that 
either block B6 absorption, are metabolic antagonists of B6, or promote B6 
excretion in the urine.  Common ones are: birth control pills, alcohol,
isoniazid, penicillamine, and corticosteroids.  I tell my students to 
supplement all their patients that are going to get any of the drugs that 
increase the B6 requirement.  The dose recommended for patients taking 
birth control pills is 10-15mg per day and this should work for most of the 
other drugs that increase the B6 requirement(this would be on top of your 
dietary intake of B6).  Any patient that has a history of kidney stone 
formation should be given B6 supplements.

One other good way to prevent kidney stone formation is to make sure your 
Ca/Mg dietary ratio is 2/1.  Magnesium-oxalate is much more soluble than is 
calcium-oxalate.

	4. "The magnesium:calcium ratio in the concentrated urines of 
patients with calcium oxalate calculi"Invest. Urol 10:147(1972)

	5. "Effect of magnesium citrate and magnesium oxide on the 
crystallization of calcium in urine: changes producted by food-magnesium 
interaction"J. Urol. 143(2):248-51(1990).

	6.Review Article, "Magnesium in the physiopathology and treatment 
of renal calcium stones" J. Presse Med. 161(1):25-27(1987).

There are actually about three times as many articles published in the 
medical literature on the role of magnesium in preventing kidney stone 
formation than there are for B6.  I thought that I was being pretty safe in 
stating that magnesium would prevent kidney stone formation in an earlier 
post in this news group but good old John A. in Mass. jumped all over me. I 
guess that he doesn't read the medical literature.  Oh well, since kidney 
stones can be a real pain and a lot of people suffer from them, I thought 
I'd tell you how you can avoid the pain and stay out of the doctor's office.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 W. 17th Street
Tulsa, Ok. 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance".  From a wise man 
who lived in China, many, many years ago.  I think that it still has 
meaning in today's world.
























Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59208
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu> Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu (Donald Mackie) writes:
:In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
:tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
:>Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
:>authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
:>is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
:
:I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
:the major ingredients.   :-)
:

The only recipies I've ever seen for this include plain yogurt, finely
chopped cucumber and a couple of crushed cloves of garlic -- yummy.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59209
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

In article <noringC5wzM4.41n@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:

Hate to wreck your elaborate theory, but Steve Dyer is not an MD.
So professional jealosy over doctors who help their patients with
Nystatin, etc., can't very well come into the picture.  Steve
doesn't have any patients.



>response to specificially Candida albicans, and I showed a strong positive.
>Another question, would everybody show the same strong positive so this test
>is essentially useless?  And, assuming it is true that Candida can grow

Yes, everyone who is normal does that.  We use candida on the other arm
when we put a tuberculin test on.  If people don't react to candida,
we assume the TB test was not conclusive since such people may not
react to anything.  All normal people have antibodies to candida.
If not, you would quickly turn into a fungus ball.

>This brings up an interesting observation used by those who will deny
>and reject any and all aspects of the 'yeast hypothesis' until the
>appropriate studies are done.  And that is if you can't observe or culture
>the yeast "bloom" in the gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or
>even recognize the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
>impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body that cannot
>be easily observed since candida is everywhere in the body.
>
>It's a real Catch-22.
>

You've just discovered one of the requirements for a good quack theory.
Find something that no one can *disprove* and then write a book saying
it is the cause of whatever.  Since no one can disprove it, you can
rake in the bucks for quite some time.  

>>...I have often wondered what an M.D. with chronic 
>>GI distress or sinus problems would do about the problem that he tells his 
>>patients is a non-existent syndrome.
>

That is odd, isn't it?  Why do you suppose it is that MDs with these
common problems don't go for these crazy ideas?  Does the "professional
jealosy" extend to suffering in silence, even though they know they
could be cured if they just followed this quack book?

-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59210
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5qMJJ.yB@ampex.com> jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani) writes:

>
>From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
>ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.
>
>From Page 10,
>.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
>homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
>of treatment.

I was there in 1976.  I suppose it must have died out since 1946,
then.  Certainly I never heard of any homeopaths or herbalists in
the employ of the NHS.  Perhaps the law codified it but the authorities
refused to hire any homeopaths.  A similar law in the US allows
chiropractors to practice in VA hospitals but I've never seen one
there and I don't know of a single VA that has hired a chiropractor.
There are a lot of Britons on the net, so someone should be able to
tell us if the NHS provides homeopaths for you.


-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  it is shameful to surrender it too soon." 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59211
From: jcherney@envy.reed.edu (Joel Alexander Cherney)
Subject: Epstein-Barr Syndrome questions

Okay, this is a long shot.

My friend Robin has recurring bouts of mononucleosis-type symptoms, very  
regularly.  This has been going on for a number of years.  She's seen a  
number of doctors; six was the last count, I think.  Most of them have  
said either "You have mono" or "You're full of it; there's nothing wrong  
with you."  One has admitted to having no idea what was wrong with her,  
and one has claimed that it is Epstein-Barr syndrome.

Now, what she told me about EBS is that very few doctors even believe that  
it exists.  (Obviously, this has been her experience.)  So, what's the  
story?  Is it real?  Does the medical profession believe it to be real?

Has anyone had success is treating EBS?  Or is it just something to live  
with?  Thanks for your assistance.

Joel "The Ogre" Cherney
jcherney@reed.edu
Of the Horde

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59212
From: paulson@tab00.larc.nasa.gov (Sharon Paulson)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

In article <C5x3L0.3r8@athena.cs.uga.edu> mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes:

   Newsgroups: sci.med
   Path: news.larc.nasa.gov!saimiri.primate.wisc.edu!sdd.hp.com!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!howland.reston.ans.net!europa.eng.gtefsd.com!emory!athena!aisun3.ai.uga.edu!mcovingt
   From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
   Sender: usenet@athena.cs.uga.edu
   Nntp-Posting-Host: aisun3.ai.uga.edu
   Organization: AI Programs, University of Georgia, Athens
   References: <PAULSON.93Apr19081647@cmb00.larc.nasa.gov> <116305@bu.edu> <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us>
   Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1993 03:41:24 GMT
   Lines: 27

   In article <C5uq9B.LrJ@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
   >In article <116305@bu.edu> dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff) writes:
   >>
   >>Many of these cereals are corn-based. After your post I looked in the
   >>literature and located two articles that implicated corn (contains
   >>tryptophan) and seizures. The idea is that corn in the diet might
   >>potentiate an already existing or latent seizure disorder, not cause it.
   >>Check to see if the two Kellog cereals are corn based. I'd be interested.
   >
   >Years ago when I was an intern, an obese young woman was brought into
   >the ER comatose after having been reported to have grand mal seizures
   >why attending a "corn festival".  We pumped her stomach and obtained
   >what seemed like a couple of liters of corn, much of it intact kernals.  
   >After a few hours she woke up and was fine.  I was tempted to sign her out as
   >"acute corn intoxication."
   >----------------------------------------------------------------------------
   >Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "Skepticism is the chastity of the intellect, and

   How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???



   -- 
   :-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
   :-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
   :-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
   :-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

What is aflatoxin?

Sharon
--
Sharon Paulson                      s.s.paulson@larc.nasa.gov
NASA Langley Research Center
Bldg. 1192D, Mailstop 156           Work: (804) 864-2241
Hampton, Virginia.  23681           Home: (804) 596-2362

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59213
From: ffujita@s.psych.uiuc.edu (Frank Fujita)
Subject: Re: "Choleric" and The Great NT/NF Semantic War.

Also remember that most people map the
sanguine/choleric/melencholic/phlegmatic division onto the extraversion
and neuroticism dimensions (Like Eysenck) and that the MBTI does not
deal with neuroticism (Costa & McCrae).

Frank Fujita

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59214
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

stgprao@st.unocal.COM (Richard Ottolini) writes:

: Living things maintain small electric fields to (1) enhance certain
: chemical reactions, (2) promote communication of states with in a
: cell, (3) communicate between cells (of which the nervous system is
: a specialized example), and perhaps other uses.

True.

: These electric fields change with location and time in a large
: organism.

Also True.


: Special photographic techniques such as applying external fields in
: Kirillian photography interact with these fields or the resistances
: caused by these fields to make interesting pictures.

Not really.  

Kirlian photography is taking pictures of the corona discharge from
objects (animate or inanimate).  The fields applied to the objects are
millions of times larger than any biologically created fields.  If you
want to record the biologically created electric fields, you've got to
use low-noise, high-gain sensors typical of EEGs and EKGs.  Kirlian
photography is just phun-with-physics type stuff (right up there with
soaking chunks of extra-fine steel wool in liquid oxygen then hitting
them with a hammer -- which, like a Kirlean setup, is fun but possibly
dangerous).

: Perhaps such pictures will be diagonistic of disease problems in
: organisms when better understood. Perhaps not.

Probably not.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Vote for ME -- I'm
Rosemount Inc.                                |well-tapered, half-cocked,
                                              |ill-conceived and
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |TAX-DEFERRED!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59215
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Arrhythmia

In article <1993Apr22.205509.23198@husc3.harvard.edu>
 perry1@husc10.harvard.edu (Alexis Perry) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.031423.1@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu>
 u96_averba@vaxc.stevens-tech.edu writes:

>>doctors said that he could die from it, and the medication caused

>	Is it that serious?  My EKG often comes back with a few irregular
>beats.  Another question:  Is a low blood potassium level very bad?  My
>doctor seems concerned, but she tends to worry too much in general.

The term arrhythmia is usually used to encompass a wide range of abnormal
heart rhythms (cardiac dysrhythmias).  Some of them are very serious
while others are completely benign.  Having "a few irregular beats"
on an EKG could be serious depending on what those beats were and
when they occurred, or could be of no significance.

Low blood potassium levels probably predispose people with underlying
heart disease to develop arrhythmias.  Very low potassium levels are
clearly dangerous, but it is not clear how much of a problem
low-end-of-normal levels are:  a lot of cardiologists seem to treat
anyone with even a mildly low-normal potassium level.

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59216
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
people.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59217
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Homeopathy: a respectable medical tradition?

In article <C5y5zr.B11@toads.pgh.pa.us>, geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> In article <C5qMJJ.yB@ampex.com> jag@ampex.com (Rayaz Jagani) writes:
> 
>>
>>From Miranda Castro, _The Complete Homeopathy Handbook_,
>>ISBN 0-312-06320-2, oringinally published in Britain in 1990.
>>
>>From Page 10,
>>.. and in 1946, when the National Health Service was established,
>>homeopathy was included as an officially approved method
>>of treatment.
> 
> I was there in 1976.  I suppose it must have died out since 1946,
> then.  Certainly I never heard of any homeopaths or herbalists in
> the employ of the NHS.  Perhaps the law codified it but the authorities
> refused to hire any homeopaths.  A similar law in the US allows
> chiropractors to practice in VA hospitals but I've never seen one
> there and I don't know of a single VA that has hired a chiropractor.
> There are a lot of Britons on the net, so someone should be able to
> tell us if the NHS provides homeopaths for you.
> 
> 
> -- 
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I don't think they provide homeopaths, heck the heir apparent was trying to 
promote Osteopaths to the ranks of eligibility a couple of years back... It 
pleased my family no end, since I'm at an Osteopathic school, sort of 
validated it for them...then I told them that the name was the same but the 
practice was different....oh.
	If you're seeking validation for your philosophy on the strength of 
the national health service adopting it, I suggest that you are not very 
sure of the validity of your philosophy. I believe in 1946, the NHS was 
still having its nurses taught the fine art of "cupping", which is the 
vacuum extraction of intradermal fluids by means of heating a cup, placing 
it on the afflicted site and allowing it to cool.
	I wouldn't take my sick daughter to a homeopath.


David N. Chorley
***************************************************************************
Yikes, I'm agreeing with Gordon Banks
**************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59218
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: Modified sense of taste in Cancer pt?

In article <1993Apr21.134848.19017@peavax.mlo.dec.com>, lunger@helix.enet.dec.com (Dave Lunger) writes:
> 
> What does a lack of taste of foods, or a sense of taste that seems "off"
> when eating foods in someone who has cancer mean? What are the possible
> causes of this? Why does it happen?

I can't answer most of your questions, but I've seen it happen in 
family members who are being treated with radiation and/or chemotherapy.
Jory Graham published a cookbook many years ago (in cooperation with 
the American Cancer Society, I think) called "Something has to taste
good" (as I recall).

The cookbook was just what we needed several times when favorite foods
suddenly became "yech".

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59219
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

-*-----
In article <noringC5wzM4.41n@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>> ... if you can't observe or culture the yeast "bloom" in the
>> gut or sinus, then there's no way to diagnose or even recognize
>> the disease.  And I know they realize that it is virtually
>> impossible to test for candida overbloom in any part of the body 
>> that cannot be easily observed since candida is everywhere in 
>> the body.

In article <C5y5nM.Axv@toads.pgh.pa.us> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
> You've just discovered one of the requirements for a good quack theory.
> Find something that no one can *disprove* and then write a book saying
> it is the cause of whatever.  Since no one can disprove it, you can
> rake in the bucks for quite some time.  

I hope Gordon Banks did not mean to imply that notions such as
hard-to-see candida infections causing various problems should not
be investigated.  Many researchers have made breakthroughs by 
figuring out how to investigate things that were previously thought
"virtually impossible to test for."

Indeed, I would be surprised if "candida overbloom" were such a
phenomena.  I would think that candida would produce signature
byproducts whose measure would then set a lower bound on the 
extent of recent infection.  I realize this might get quite 
tricky and difficult, probably expensive, and likely inconvenient
or uncomfortable to the subjects, but that is not the same as 
"virtually impossible."

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59220
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
acids (FAs).

I was diagnosed last May w/Crohn's of the terminal ileum. When I got
out of the hospital I read up on it a bit, and came across several
studies investigating the role of EPA (an essentially FA) in reducing
inflammation. The evidence was mixed. [Many of these studies are
discussed in "Inflammatory Bowel Disease," MacDermott, Stenson. 1992.]

But if I recall correctly, there were some methodological bones to be
picked with the studies (both the ones w/pos. and w/neg. results). In
the studies patients were given EPA (a few grams/day for most of the
studies), but, if I recall correctly, there was no restriction of the
_other_ FAs that the patients could consume. From the informed
layperson's perspective, this seems mistaken. If lots of n-6 FAs are
consumed along with the EPA, then the ratio of "bad" prostanoid
products to "good" prostanoid products could still be fairly "bad."
Isn't this ratio the issue?

What's the view of the gastro. community on EPA these days? EPA
supplements, along with a fairly severe restriction of other FAs
appear to have helped me significantly (though it could just be the
low absolute amount of fat I eat -- 8-10% calories).

-Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59221
From: andrew@calvin.dgbt.doc.ca (Andrew Patrick)
Subject: Any Interest in a Mailing List on Epilepsy and Seizures?


I have seen a fair bit of traffic recently concerning Epilepsy and
seizures.  I am also interested in this subject -- I have a son with
Epilepsy and I am very active with the local association.  I posted a
message like this a few months ago and received no replies, but here it
is again.

Is anyone interested in participating in a mailing list on Epilepsy and
seizures?  This would allow us to hold discussions and share
information via electronic mail.  I already run a Listserver for two
other groups, so the mechanics would be easy.

If you are interested, mail me a note.  If I get enough replies, I will
make it happen and provide you with the details.

BTW, I have also started a database on Epilepsy.  This is part of my
research on natural language question answering systems.  Users of this
service are able to ask questions about Epilepsy and the program
searches the database and retrieves its best response.  The technology
works by comparing your question against a set of questions that have
been seen before.  All new questions that are not answered are recorded
and used to improve the system.

This database is still small and sparse, but we are adding new
information.  To try it out, do the following

	telnet debra.dgbt.doc.ca
	login: chat

	Then select the Epilepsy item from the menu of databases.

-- 
Andrew Patrick, Ph.D.       Communications Research Centre, Ottawa, CANADA
                       andrew@calvin.dgbt.doc.CA
                       
  For a good time, run "telnet debra.dgbt.doc.ca" and login as "chat".

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59222
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: Epstein-Barr Syndrome questions

In article <1993Apr23.034226.2284@reed.edu> jcherney@reed.edu writes:
>Okay, this is a long shot.
>
>My friend Robin has recurring bouts of mononucleosis-type symptoms, very  
>regularly.  This has been going on for a number of years.  She's seen a  
>number of doctors; six was the last count, I think.  Most of them have  
>said either "You have mono" or "You're full of it; there's nothing wrong  
>with you."  One has admitted to having no idea what was wrong with her,  
>and one has claimed that it is Epstein-Barr syndrome.
>
>Now, what she told me about EBS is that very few doctors even believe that  
>it exists.  (Obviously, this has been her experience.)  So, what's the  
>story?  Is it real?  Does the medical profession believe it to be real?
>
>Has anyone had success is treating EBS?  Or is it just something to live  
>with?  Thanks for your assistance.

Outbreaks of a chronic-mono-like entity were originally called EBS (or
some variant thereof) because most of the people with this disease had
elevated levels of antibodies to the EBV virus. But not all of them
did, which prompted an official renaming of the disease to Chronic
Fatigue Syndrome (this renaming took place in the Annals of Internal
Medicine, Jan. 1988, I believe). Now it's also called Chronic Fatigue
and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS), since it seems clear that
some sort of immune disregulation is causing the probs.

Astonishly, there are still docs who tell people with massively
swollen glands, recurrent fevers and nightsweats, etc., that there's
nothing wrong with them. This is not the same thing as saying that the
syndrome may have a (at least partly) psychological cause. The
disagreement among people whose thoughts are worth considering centers
on just what the cause is. No one knows, but theories include:
psychological stress, some sort of virus (a retrovirus, say most --
maybe one of the newly discovered herpes viruses), environmental
toxins, bacteria (and, yes, candida), genes, (and/)or some combo of
these.

There's no outright cure at the moment, but different docs try
different things, some of which seem to help.

Massive amounts of info on the condition are available these days.
Post your Q to alt.med.cfs, and you will be flooded w/facts.

Note: There are lots of far better understood (and better treatable)
diseases that look like CFIDS. Make sure these get ruled-out by a good
doc.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59223
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Frozen shoulder and lawn mowing

Ihave had a frozen shoulder for over a year or about a year.  It is still
partially frozen, and I am still in physical therapy every week.  But the
pain has subsided almost completely.  UNTIL last week when I mowed the
lawn for twenty minutes each, two days in a row.  I have a push type power
mower.  The pain started back up a little bit for the first time in quite
a while, and I used ice and medicine again.  Can anybody explain why this
particular activity, which does not seem to stress me very much generally,
should cause this shoulder problem?

Thanks.

Alice

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59224
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Great Post! (was Re: Candida (yeast) Bloom...) (VERY LONG)

In article turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:

>I hope Gordon Banks did not mean to imply that notions such as
>hard-to-see candida infections causing various problems should not
>be investigated.  Many researchers have made breakthroughs by 
>figuring out how to investigate things that were previously thought
>"virtually impossible to test for."
>
>Indeed, I would be surprised if "candida overbloom" were such a
>phenomena.  I would think that candida would produce signature
>byproducts whose measure would then set a lower bound on the 
>extent of recent infection.  I realize this might get quite 
>tricky and difficult, probably expensive, and likely inconvenient
>or uncomfortable to the subjects, but that is not the same as 
>"virtually impossible."

I recall reading in the recently revised edition of the "Yeast Connection"
that there is indeed work by researchers to do this.  Of course, they are
working on the theory that candida overbloom with penetration into mucus
membrane tissue with associated "mild" inflammatory response can and does
occur in a large number of people.  If you reject this "yeast hypothesis",
then I'd guess you'd view this research as one more wasteful and quixotic
endeavor.  Stay tuned.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59225
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1r9j33$4g8@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  
> 
> Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
> being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
> a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
> other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
> commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
> or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
> need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
> people.
> -- 
> David Rind

I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).
I'll give you some examples.

	1. Prescribing controlled substances to patients with no 
	   demonstrated need(other than a drug addition) for the medication.

	2. Prescribing thyroid preps for patients with normal thyroid 
	   function for the purpose of quick weight loss.

	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
	   the NCI.

These are errors of commission that competently trained physicians should 
not committ but sometimes do.  There are also errors of omission(some of 
which result in malpractice suits).  I don't think that using anti-fungal 
agents to try to relieve discomfort in a patient who you suspect may be 
having a problem with candida(or another fungal growth) is an error of 
commission or omission.  Healers have had a long history of trying to 
relieve human suffering.  Some have stuck to standard, approved procedures,
others have been willing to try any reasonable treatment if there is a 
chance that it will help the patient.  The key has to be tied to the 
healer's oath, "I will do no harm".  But you know David that very few 
treatments involve no risk to the patient.  The job of the physician is a 
very difficult one when risk versus benefit has to be weighed.  Each 
physician deals with this risk/benefit paradox a little differently.  Some 
are very conservative while others are more agressive.  An agressive 
approach may be more costly to the patient and carry more risk but as long 
as the motive is improving the patient's health and not an attempt to rake 
in lots of money(through some of the schemes that have been uncovered in 
the medicare fraud cases), I don't see the need to label these healers as 
quacks or even unethical.

What do I reserve the term quack for?  Pseudo-medical professionals.  
These people lurk on the fringes of the health care system waiting for the 
frustrated patient to fall into their lair.  Some of these individuals are 
really doing a pretty good job of providing "alternative" medicine.  But 
many lack any formal training and are in the "business" simply to make a 
few fast bucks.   While a patient can be reasonably assured of getting 
competent care when a liscenced physician is consulted, this alternative 
care area is really a buyer's beware arena.  If you are lucky, you may find 
someone who can help you.  If you are unlucky, you can loose a lot of 
money and develop severe disease because of the inability of these pseudo-
medical professional to diagnose disease(which is the fortay of the 
liscened physicians).

I hope that this clears things up David.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59226
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <1993Apr23.211108.26887@midway.uchicago.edu>,
bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney) wrote:
> 
> One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
> relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
> acids (FAs).
> 
> I was diagnosed last May w/Crohn's of the terminal ileum. When I got
> out of the hospital I read up on it a bit, and came across several
> studies investigating the role of EPA (an essentially FA) in reducing
> inflammation. The evidence was mixed. [Many of these studies are
> discussed in "Inflammatory Bowel Disease," MacDermott, Stenson. 1992.]
> 
> But if I recall correctly, there were some methodological bones to be
> picked with the studies (both the ones w/pos. and w/neg. results). In
> the studies patients were given EPA (a few grams/day for most of the
> studies), but, if I recall correctly, there was no restriction of the
> _other_ FAs that the patients could consume. From the informed
> layperson's perspective, this seems mistaken. If lots of n-6 FAs are
> consumed along with the EPA, then the ratio of "bad" prostanoid
> products to "good" prostanoid products could still be fairly "bad."
> Isn't this ratio the issue?
> 
> What's the view of the gastro. community on EPA these days? EPA
> supplements, along with a fairly severe restriction of other FAs
> appear to have helped me significantly (though it could just be the
> low absolute amount of fat I eat -- 8-10% calories).
> 
> -Brian <bmdelane@midway.uchicago.edu>

As you note, the research is mixed, so there is no consensus on the
role of fatty acids in Ulcerative colitis.  There is a role for short
chain fatty acids in patients with colostomies and rectal pouches
that are inflammed (Short is butyrate and shorter).  There may be a role
for treatment of UC with Short chain fatty acids, and I am looking 
forward to the upcoming AGA meeting in Boston to see what people are
doing.  

You raise a hypothesis about the studies and restriction of other
fatty acids.  You should contact the authors directly about that or
even write a letter to the editor - it is a good point.  By the way,
the abbreviation EPA is not in general use, so I do not know what 
fatty acid you are speaking about.

And to Brian an U of C ---  There is a physician named Stephen Hanauer
there who is a recognized expert in the treatment of IBD.  You might 
give him a call.  He is interested in new combinations of drugs for 
the treatment of IBD.  If you call please say hello to him from me,
I was looking at U of C for a position, and perhaps still am.  And
be sure to look into joining the CCFA.

Best of Luck.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59227
From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>has an ulcer.
>
 Nobody is saying that you shouldn't be allowed to use msg.  Just
don't force it on others. If you have food that you want to 
enhance with msg just put the MSG on the table like salt.  It is
then the option of the eater to use it.  If you make a commerical
product, just leave it out. You can include a packet (like some
salt packets) if you desire.

Salt, pepper, mustard, ketchup, pickles ..... are table options.
Treat MSG the same way.  I wouldn't shove my condiments down your
throat, don't shove yours down mine.

WFL

-- 
Walter Lundby


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59228
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:

>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
>commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
>or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
>need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
>people.


I would say there are also significant numbers of unscrupulous doctors (of
the squeaky-clean, traditional crew-cut, talk to the AMA before starting
any treatment, kind) who recommend treatments that, though "accepted", may
not be necessary for the patient at the time.  And all for making a quick
buck.  I would not be surprised if the cost of medical services in the U.S. is
significantly inflated by these "quacks of a different color".  In fact, I'd
say these doctors are the most dangerous since they call into question the
true focus of the medical profession.  The AMA and the Boards should focus
on these "quacks" instead of devoting unbelievable energy on 'search-and-
destroy-missions' to pull the licenses of those doctors who are trying non-
traditional or not fully accepted treatments for their desperate patients
that traditional/accepted medicine cannot help.


***************************************************
Now to make a general comment on many recent posts:
***************************************************

Lately I've seen the word "quack" bandied about recklessly.  When a doctor or
doctor-wanna-be has decided to quit discussing any controversial medical
subject in a civilized manner, all he/she has to do is say "quack-quack" and
somehow they magically expect the readership of this newsgroup to roll over
on their backs and pee-pee on themselves in obedience.  What do they teach
you in medical school - how to throw your authority around?

Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
lacking in any precision.  Its sole use is to obfuscate the issues at hand.
The indiscriminate use of this word is a sure sign of incompetency;  and coming
from any medical doctor (or wanna-be), where competency is expected, is real
scary.

But what do I know, I've already been diagnosed by the sci.med.gods in this
newsgroup as being 'anal retentive', and 'psychotic'.  I look forward to more
net.diagnoses.  Hey, they're free.


Jon "Quacks 'R Us" Noring


(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.
You can call it sci.med.traditional.moderated or sci.med.AMA-approved, so you
can keep anal-retentives like me out of it.)

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59229
From: Pat Lydon <pat@netmanage.com>
Subject: HELP...REFLUX ESOPHAGITIS


I am writing this to find out the following:

1.)	Any information on surgery to prevent reflux esophagitis.

2.)	The name(s) of a doctor(s) who specialize in such surgery.

3.)	Information on reflux esophagitis which leads to cancer.

My boyfriend, age 34 and otherwise in good health, was diagnosed with 
reflux esophagitis and a hiatal hernia about 2 years ago.  At that time he 
saw a gastroenterologist and has tried acid controllers (Mylanta, 
Tagamet), as well as a restricted diet and raising the head of his bed.  
These treatments were not effective and because the damage was 
worsening, he opted for a surgical repair 3 months ago.  He was told 
there were two repair techniques that could fix the problem; a Nissen 
wrap and a "Hill Repair".  He opted for the "Hill Repair". He recovered 
very well from the surgery itself but the pain he had originally is worse 
and in addition he now has trouble swallowing (including saliva).

The doctor now wants to do an endoscopy and has also informed him 
that a biopsy might be necessary if he has a pre-cancerous condition 
which he called "Barrett's Syndrome". If he can't avoid having reflux will 
he necessarily get cancer?

Basically, if anyone has any information on what he should do now, I'd 
appreciate it.

Thanks,

Pat Lydon/ NetManage, Inc./ Pat@netmanage.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59230
From: davel@davelpcSanDiego.NCR.com (Dave Lord)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu>, Donald Mackie
<Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> writes:
> In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
> tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
> >Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
> >authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
> >is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
> 
> I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
> the major ingredients.   :-)

It's plain yoghurt with grated cucumber and coriander (other spices are
sometimes used). Some people use half yoghurt and half mayonaise.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59231
From: bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney)
Subject: Re: diet for Crohn's (IBD)

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-230493173928@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1993Apr23.211108.26887@midway.uchicago.edu>,
>bmdelane@quads.uchicago.edu (brian manning delaney) wrote:
>> 
>> One thing that I haven't seen in this thread is a discussion of the
>> relation between IBD inflammation and the profile of ingested fatty
>> acids (FAs).
>> [....]

> [....]
>even write a letter to the editor - it is a good point.  By the way,
>the abbreviation EPA is not in general use, so I do not know what 
>fatty acid you are speaking about.

Sorry -- I mean eicosapentaenoic acid.

>And to Brian an U of C ---  There is a physician named Stephen Hanauer
>there who is a recognized expert in the treatment of IBD.  You might 
>give him a call.

Coincidentaly, just yesterday I was (finally) referred from the clinic
to Hanauer. I'm seeing him on May 24. I'll report what he says about
this question.

>the treatment of IBD.  If you call please say hello to him from me,
>I was looking at U of C for a position, and perhaps still am.

Will do.

-Brian Delaney


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59232
From: solmstead@PFC.Forestry.CA (Sherry Olmstead)
Subject: Re: Heat Shock Proteins

rousseaua@immunex.com writes about heat shock proteins (HSP's) and DNA.

I hate to be derogatory, but in this case I think it's warranted.

HSP's are part of the cellular response to stress.  The only reason they
are called 'heat shock proteins' is because they were first demonstrated
using heat shock.  Dead tissue (ie. meat) is not going to produce ANY
protein- because it's DEAD!  

Also, who cares if the DNA you are ingesting is mutated!?  It will be 
completely digested in your stomach, which is about pH 2.  

Some of you worry WAY too much.  Eat a healthy, balanced diet and relax.

My advice is, if you don't know what you are talking about, it is better
to keep your mouth shut than to open it and remove all doubt about your
ignorance.  Don't speculate, or at least get some concrete information
before you do!

Sherry Olmstead
Biochemist

  SHERRY OLMSTEAD                   Title: Lab Technician
  Forestry Canada                   Phone: (604) 363-0600
  Victoria, B.C.                    Internet: SOLMSTEAD@A1.PFC.Forestry.CA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59233
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Poisoning with heavy water (was Re: Too many MRIs?)

In article <1993Apr19.043654.13068@informix.com> proberts@informix.com (Paul Roberts) writes:
>In article <1993Apr12.165410.4206@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>>
>>I recall reading somewhere, during my youth, in some science popularization
>>book, that whyle isotope changes don't normally affect chemistry, a consumption
>>of only heavy water would be fatal, and that seeds watered only with heavy
>>water do not sprout.  Does anyone know about this?
>>
>
>I also heard this. I always thought it might make a good eposide of
>'Columbo' for someone to be poisoned with heavy water - it wouldn't
>show up in any chemical test.

No one else seems to know, so I'll post this.

This topic came up on sci.physics.fusion shortly after the cold-fusion
flap started.  As I recall, its been done to some experimental mice.
They showed various ill effects and eventually died.  The reason is
that deuterium does not have exactly the same reaction rates as
hydrogen due to its extra mass (which causes lower velocity, Boltzman
constant, mumble).  This throws various bits of body biochemistry out
of kilter, and you get sick and die.

I've never heard of anyone being poisened this way, in or out of real
life.  The process takes quite a while.  If anyone wants to write this
book, I would imagine you would have to:

1: Replace a significant fraction of the water in the body with heavy
   water.

2: Wait while normal breakdown and repair processes cause other
   molecules in the body to be synthesised using the deuterium.

During this process the victim would gradually deteriorate and
eventually die, but I imagine it would take weeks during which the
poisoner would have to ensure that a significant proportion of the
water the victim ingested was heavy.

You would get such a mess of symptoms that the doctors would be both
alarmed and confused.  Why should every organ in the body suddenly
begin to deteriorate?  If you can figure out how the poisoner gets the
heavy water into the victim in a hospital then you could have a real
story here.

Come to think of it, <2> would continue even after the heavy water was
no longer being ingested, so hospitalisation might be too late.

The most detectable effect would be that the victim's body fluids
would literally be "heavy".  Water has a molecular weight of 18 and
heavy water has a MW of 20.  Thus the victim's weight will increase by
about 1% for every 10% of body water replaced by heavy water.  Maybe
the detection occurs because some pathologist in the lab notices that
the victim's urine is strangely dense.  Is there any medical test
involving the specific gravity of a body fluid?

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59234
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

heart@access.digex.com (G) writes:

>Hi,

>I've just returned from a visit with my OB/GYN and I have a few 
>concerns that maybe y'all can help me with.  I've been seeing 
>her every 4 weeks for the past few months (I'm at week 28) 
>and during the last 2 visits I've gained 9 to 9 1/2 pounds every 
>4 weeks.  She said this was unacceptable over any 4 week period. 
>As it stands I've thus far gained 26 pounds.  Also she says that 
>though I'm at 28 weeks the baby's size is 27 weeks, I think she 
>mentioned 27 inches for the top of the fundus.  When I was 13 
>weeks the baby's size was 14 weeks.  I must also add, that I had 
>an operation a few years ago for endometriosis and I've had no 
>problems with endometriosis but apparently it is causing me pain 
>in my pelvic region during the pregnancy, and I have a very 
>difficult time moving, and the doc has recommended I not walk or 
>move unless I have to. (I have a little handicapped sticker for 
>when I do need to go out.) 

>Anyway that's 1/2 of the situation the other is that almost from 
>the beginning of pregnancy I was getting sick (throwing up) about 
>2-3 times a day and mostly it was bile that was being eliminated.  
>(I told her about this).  I know this because I wasn't eating 
>very much due to the nausea and could see the 'results'.  Well 
>now I only get sick about once every 1-2 weeks, and it is still bile 
>related.  But in addition I had begun to feel movement near my 
>upper right abdomen, just below the right breast, usually when I 
>was lying on my right side.  It began to get worse though because 
>it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
>no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
>ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
>turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
>I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
>wasn't as much of a problem.

>So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
>fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
>of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
>been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
>foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

>But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
>except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
>fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
>should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
>have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
>potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
>a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
>steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
>some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 
>I'm not taking in fat, is she expecting the baby will take it 
>from my stores?  And why this restriction on carbohydrates if 
>she's concerned about fat?  I'm not clear how much of her 
>recommendation is based on my weight gain and how much on 
>cholistatis, which I can't seem to find any information on.  She 
>originally said that I should only gain 20 pounds during the 
>entire pregnancy since I was about 20 lbs overweight when I 
>started.  But my sister gained 60 lbs during her pregnancy and 
>she's taken it all off and hasn't had any problems.  She also 
>asked if any members of my family were obese, which none of them 
>are.  Anyway I think she is overly concerned about weight gain, 
>and feel like I'm being 'punished' by a severe diet.  She did 
>want to see me again in one week so I think she the diet may be 
>temporary for that one week. 

>What I want to know is how reasonable is this non-fat diet?  I 
>would understand if she had said low-fat diet, since I'm trying 
>that anyway, even if she said really low-fat diet.  I think she 
>assumes I must be eating a high-fat diet, but really it is that 
>because of the endometriosis and the operation I'm not able to 
>use the energy from the food I do eat. 

>Any opinions, info and experiences will be appreciated.  I'm 
>truly going stark raving mad trying to meet this new strict diet 
>because fruits and vegetables go through my system in a few 
>minutes and I'll end up having to eat constantly.  Thus far I 
>don't find any foods satisfying.

>Thanks 

>G

For one week, she probably wants to see how you react to the diet. If it
changes anything. 

You can live on the diet but you need to up your calories. Where before you
had a pat of butter now you need a medium apple (probably microwave
cooked).  Smaller meals but more of them. Not terrific amounts of meat, it's
hard to digest anyway. 

For comfort and to make the carbohydrate meal "last" longer eat pasta or
rice which give their calories up slowly rather than bread or corn. Maybe
smaller meals as you may be getting less room in the stomach area. Is the
baby still coming up. Is it starting to push or rub under your ribs? How
tight are your clothes. You shouldn't be wearing any clothing that compresses 
your middle. Be sure not to "suck in" your stomach when sitting, again it
will put pressure on the digestive tract. 

Try laying on your sides, back,
and stay in reclining positions for the many hours you are being inactive.
Easier on your legs (circulation) as well. You might try letting the baby
"turn" or at least not be forced under the ribs during the last months.
When you are shortwaisted it's easy for that baby to end up right under the
diaphram, especially if you have tight abdominal muscles. If I had my
second one to do over again I think I'd have tried to loosen up since he
didn't turn sideways until late and the relief was enormous.


Maybe this doctor does have a thing about weight gain in pregnancy or maybe
she just nags all her patients this way. Especially if she's young. 
But this gallbladder/whatever problem that might be coming up is something
to be avoided if possible. 

Nausea, etc. can vary from person to person and with each pregnancy. My
first pregnancy was miserable. During the second I had very little trouble.
Some articles have said that women with nausea had a statistically better
chance of carrying their baby. (grain of salt here) 

Good luck

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59235
From: bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>   Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>   overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>   people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>   other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>   Thanks. 


Yes, there is such a thing as eye dominance, although I am not sure if
this dominance refers to perscription strength.

As i recall, if you selectively close your dominant eye, you will percieve
that the image shifts. This will not happen if you close your other eye.

I believe that which eye is dominant is related to handedness, but I
can't recall the relation at the moment.


--
Barry D. Benowitz
EMail:	bbenowit@telesciences.com (...!pyrnj!telesci!bbenowit)
Phone:	+1 609 866 1000 x354
Snail:	Telesciences CO Systems, 351 New Albany Rd, Moorestown, NJ, 08057-1177

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59236
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:

>In article <1993Apr22.153000.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>poster for being treated by a liscenced physician for a disease that did 
>>not exist.  Calling this physician a quack was reprehensible Steve and I 
>>see that you and some of the others are doing it here as well.  

>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>other people shouldn't say so?  Can you give an example of a
>commonly diagnosed ailment that you think is a quack diagnosis,
>or have we gotten to the point in civilization where we no longer
>need to worry about unscrupulous "healers" taking advantage of
>people.
>-- 
>David Rind

Sure there are quacks. There are quacks who don't treat and quacks who
treat. One's that refuse to diagnose and ones that diagnose improperly. 
There are lucky quacks and unlucky quacks. Smart quacks and dumb ones. 

There are people ahead of their time, with unprobable or unproven theories
and rationals. There are ill-reasoned, absurd, theorists. 

Sometimes it's hard to tell who's who.  

Reading a book of ancient jokes it seems that doctors called other doctors
quacks in Babylon. 

Arguments abound when there aren't any firm answers. Plenty of illnesses
aren't, or can't, be diagnosed or treated. But I think it's better to argue
against the theory, as was originally done with postings on candida a month
or so ago. Stating the facts usually works better than simply asserting an
opinion about someone's competency. And you can't convince everybody. 

Sometimes a correct diagnosis
takes years for people: they don't run into a doctor who recognizes the
disease, they haven't developed something recognizable yet, or they have
something that no one is going to recognize, because it hasn't been
described yet. Sometimes they get a cure, sometimes the illness wears out,
sometimes they stumble on an improper diagnosis with the right treatment,
sometimes they find it's incurable.  

There is no profit in a patient accepting a hopeless attitude about an 
illness. Unless it's a rock solid diagnosis of terminal disease it's is
more like ly that a person will find a cure if they keep looking. 

-Jackie-



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59237
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <noringC5yL3I.3qo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>
>>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is
>>being a "licensed physician" enough to guarantee that someone is not
>>a quack, or is it just that even if a licensed physician is a quack,
>>other people shouldn't say so?

>I would say there are also significant numbers of unscrupulous doctors (of
>the squeaky-clean, traditional crew-cut, talk to the AMA before starting
>any treatment, kind)

Umm, weren't you the one objecting to someone who is a "licensed
physician" being called a quack?  Or is it just that being a licensed
physician is a good defense against charges of quackery when the
physician agrees with your system of beliefs?

>Lately I've seen the word "quack" bandied about recklessly.

Actually, I almost never use the term quack.  When I discuss
"systemic yeast syndrome", however, I always point out that
mainstream medicine views this as a quack diagnosis (and I agree
with that characterization).

>Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
>lacking in any precision.

Really?  I bet virtually everyone reading these posts understands what
Steve Dyer, Gordon Banks, and I am implying when we have talked about
systemic yeast syndrome as a quack diagnosis.  Would you prefer the
word "charlatan"?  (I don't happen to think that all quacks are
charlatans since I suspect that some believe in the "diseases" they
are diagnosing.)

>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.

Why?  Is there some reason why you feel that it shouldn't be pointed out
in SCI.med that there is no convincing empirical evidence to support the 
existence of systemic yeast syndrome?
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59238
From: vortex@zikzak.apana.org.au (Paul Anderson)
Subject: Re: Do we need a Radiologist to read an Ultrasound?

dougb@comm.mot.com (Doug Bank) writes:

>My wife's ob-gyn has an ultrasound machine in her office.  When

>On her next visit, my wife asked another doctor in the office if
>they read the ultrasounds themselves or if they had a radiologist
>read the pictures.  The doctor very vehemently insisted that they
>were qualified to read the ultrasound and radiologists were NOT!

>My wife is concerned about this.  She saw a TV show a couple months
>back (something like 20/20 or Dateline NBC, etc.) where an expert
>on fetal ultrasounds (a radiologist) was showing all the different
>deffects that could be detected using the ultrasound.

>Should my wife be concerned?  Should we take the pictures to a 
>radiologist for a second opinion? (and if so, where would we find
>such an expert in Chicago?)  We don't really have any special medical
>reason to be concerned, but if a radiologist will be able to see
>things the ob-gyn can't, then I don't see why we shouldn't use one.

>Any thoughts?

 As far as I can see if your obstetrition has an ultrasound in his rooms
and is expirienced its use and interpretation, he should be just as
capable of reading it as any radiologist. All doctors are "qualified" to
read x-rays, u/s, ct scans etc. it is just that a radiologist does nothing
else, and thus, is only better at reading them because of all this time
spent doing this (skill in reading x-rays etc. just comes from plenty of
practice). If your obstetrition reads heaps of obstetric ultrasounds he
should be able to pick up any abnormalities that can be demonstrated by
this technique.

- Paul.


--
           | Zikzak public access UNIX, Melbourne, Australia.   |
  ^^^^^^^  |                                                    |
  |     |  |                                                    |          ///
  < O O >  |     ##########################################     |         ///

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59239
From:  Alla V. Kotenko <avk@lst.msk.su>
Subject: SALE! MELITTIN (see letter)

                                MELITTIN

        In cooperation with the State Scientific Center on Antibiotics
 we have elaborated our own technology of bee venom components isolation,
 particularly melitin, using modern chromatographic eduipment by "Pharmacia"
 and "Millipore" Companies, with application of only the materials, admitted
 for manufacturing pharmaceutic production. High quality of our product is
 acknowledged by the expertise of the Accredited test laboratory firm "Test"
v/o "Souzexpertisa" TPP RF.
        littin - no less than 92% of the primary substance content.
Quantity:from 100 g up to 5 kg.
Date of manufacture: March 1993.
Price:2500 dol.USA per 1g.
Certificate:Is on sale
Adress:105094,Moscow,Semyenovskiy Val,10-a,
"BOST"Partnership Ltd.Tel/fax 194-86-04,369-46-68


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59240
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Adult Chicken Pox 


>I am 35 and am recovering from a case of Chicken Pox which I contracted
>from my 5 year old daughter.  I have quite a few of these little puppies
>all over my bod.  At what point am I no longer infectious?  My physician's
>office says when they are all scabbed over.  Is this true?

I have been in the same boat as you last year. I've tried four times to
send you an email response, but your end doesn't seem to accept my mail?
Please let me know if you receive this.

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk  |    VACANT LOT     *
   * BOURNEMOUTH UK | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI  |     FOR RENT      *
   ************************************************************************
                           DIARIES OF THE FAMOUS...
     Colonel Custer...Surrounded by Indians, just when I fancied a Chinese!


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59241
From: ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu (Ken Miller)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <1rag61$1cb@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>In article <noringC5yL3I.3qo@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
>>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on
>>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and
>>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.
>
>Why?  Is there some reason why you feel that it shouldn't be pointed out
>in SCI.med that there is no convincing empirical evidence to support the 
>existence of systemic yeast syndrome?

I don't know the first thing about yeast infections but I am a scientist.
No scientist would take your statement --- "no convincing empirical evidence
to support the existence of systemic yeast syndrome" --- to tell you
anything except an absence of data on the question.  Noring has pointed out
the catch-22 that if the "crazy" theory were true, you probably couldn't
find any direct evidence of it --- that you couldn't observe those yeastie
beasties with present methods even if they were there.  Noring and the
fellow from Oklahoma (sorry, forgot your name) have also suggested one set
of anecdotal evidence in favor based on their personal experiences ---
namely, that when people with certain conditions are given anti-fungals,
many of them appear to get better.  

So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
disbelief on the other.  In which case, please, there is no point in yelling
back and forth at each other any longer since neither side has any
convincing evidence either positive or negative.  

And I understand that your abject disbelief is based on the existence of
people who may get famous or make money applying the diagnosis to everything
in sight, making wild claims with no evidence, and always refusing to do
controlled studies.  But that has absolutely no bearing on the apparently
sincere experiences of the people on the net observing anti-fungals working
on themselves and other people in certain specific cases.  There are also
quacks who sell oral superoxide dismutase, in spite of the fact that it's
completely broken down in the guts, but this doesn't change the genuine
scientific knowledge about the role of superoxide dismutase in fighting
oxidative damage.  Same thing.  Just cause there are candida quacks, that
doesn't establish evidence against the candida hypothesis.  If there's some
other reason (besides the quacks), if only anecdotal, to think it could be
true, then that is what has to be considered, that is what the net people
have been talking about.

But again, there is no point in arguing about it.  There is anecdotal
evidence, and there is no convincing evidence, and there are also some
candida quacks out there, I hope everyone can agree on all of that.  Thus,
it appears to me the main question now is whether the proponents can
marshall enough anecdotal evidence in a convincing and documented enough
manner to make a good case for carrying out a good controlled double-blind
study of antifungals (or else, forget convincing anybody else to carry out
the test, just carry it out themselves!) --- and also, whether they can
adequately define the patient population or symptoms on which such a study
should be carried out to provide a fair test of the hypothesis.

Ken
-- 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59242
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: eye dominance

bbenowit@telesciences.com (Barry D Benowitz) writes:

>In article <C5E2G7.877@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:

>>   Is there a right-eye dominance (eyedness?) as there is an
>>   overall right-handedness in the population? I mean do most
>>   people require less lens corrections for the one eye than the
>>   other? If so, what kinds of percentages can be attached to this?
>>   Thanks. 


>Yes, there is such a thing as eye dominance, although I am not sure if
>this dominance refers to perscription strength.

>As i recall, if you selectively close your dominant eye, you will percieve
>that the image shifts. This will not happen if you close your other eye.

>I believe that which eye is dominant is related to handedness, but I
>can't recall the relation at the moment.

>Barry D. Benowitz

I read a great book about eye dominance several years ago. So there is one
book out there..at least one :).

There were several types of eye dominance. Where a person looks in their
memory usually indicates a type of eye dominanc Another type is related to
coordination activities like hitting a ball. Another for reading. 

I didn't read one that discussed prescription strength. Although people
with bad vision, near or far sighted would tend to depend on the stronger
eye. 

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59243
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Sweet's Syndrome ?


	My brother's affine has recently been diagnosed with Sweet's
syndrome. Also called steroid resistant Sweet's syndrome.

	This syndrome started after she had had Iodine 131 treatment for
hyperthyroidism. She'd been reluctant to have treatment for the
hyperthyroidism for many years and apparently started to show exaustion
from it. 

	I understand that she may still be testing high in thyroid level
but she's isn't being treated by an endocrinologist. Her previous
endocrinologist bowed out when she entered the hospital. She entered the
hospital because of the Sweet's syndrome symptoms (skin lesions).

I've looked through the last two years of Medline and didn't find an
abstract mentioning a correlation between thyroid and Sweets. . 

I checked a handbook which said that Sweet's was associated with leukemia.

I'd like a reccomndation for experts who are in New York City or who travel
to New York City. For the sweets and perhaps for the endocrinology.

Any information that might help. Apparently there hasn't been much
improvement in her condition over the past several months. 

-Jackie-

 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59244
From: candee@brtph5.bnr.ca (Candee Ellis P885)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

If you think you have kidney stones or your doctor tells you that you do,
DEFINITELY follow up on it.  My sister was diagnosed with kidney stones
1 1/2 years ago and given medication to take to dissolve them.  After that
failed and she continued to be in great pain, they decided she had
endometriosis.  When they did exploratory surgery, they discovered she
had a tumor, which turned out to be rhabdomyosarcoma -- a very rare 
and agressive cancer.  I realize this is not what happens in the majority
of cases, but you never know what can happen and shouldn't take chances!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59245
From: sharon@world.std.com (Sharon M Gartenberg)
Subject: From Srebrenica: "Doctoring" in Hell


SREBRENICA'S DOCTOR RECOUNTS TOWN'S LIVING HELL
 
    By Laura Pitter
    TUZLA, Bosnia, Reuter - Neret Mujanovic was a pathologist
when he trekked through the mountains to the besieged Muslim
town of Srebrenica last August.
    But after treating 4,000 mangled victims of Bosnia's bloody
war, he considers himself a surgeon.
    ``Now I'm a surgeon with great experience although I have no
license to practice. But if I operate on a person and he lives
normally that's the greatest license a surgeon could have.''
    Evacuated by the U.N. this week to his home town of Tuzla,
the Muslim physician gave an eyewitness medical assessment of
the horrors of the year-long Serb siege of Srebrenica and the
suffering of the thousands trapped there.
    ``I lived through hell together with the people of
Srebrenica. All those who lived through this are the greatest
heroes that humanity can produce,'' he told reporters.
    Mujanovic, 31, had practiced for two months as an assistant
at a local hospital in Tuzla, but before going to Srebrenica he
had never performed a surgical operation on his own. Now he says
he has performed major surgery 1,396 times, relying on books for
guidance, amputating arms and legs 150 times, usually without
anesthetic, delivering 350 babies and performing four cesarean
sections.
    He worked 18-to-19-hour days, slept in the hospital for the
first 10 weeks after his arrival last Aug. 5 and treated  4,000
patients.
    He arrived after making the trek over mountains on foot from
Tuzla, 60 miles northwest of Srebrenica. About 50 other people
carried in supplies and 350 soldiers guided and protected him
through guerrilla terrain, he said.
    His worst memory was of 10 days ago when seven Serb shells
landed within one minute in an area half the size of a football
field, killing 36 people immediately and wounding 102. Half of
the dead were women and children.
    The people had come out for a rare day of sunshine and the
children were playing soccer. ``There was no warning ... the
blood flowed like a river in the street,'' he said.
    ``There were pieces of women all around and you could not
piece them together. One woman holding her two children in her
hands was lying with them on the ground dead. They had no
heads.''
    Before Mujanovic arrived with his supplies conditions were
deplorable, he said. Many deaths could have been prevented had
the hospital had surgical tools, facilities and medicine.
    The six general practitioners who had been operating before
he arrived had even less surgical experience than he did. ``They
didn't know the basic principles for amputating limbs.''
    Once he arrived the situation improved, he said, but by
mid-September he had run out of supplies.
    ``Bandages were washed and boiled five times ... sometimes
they were falling apart in my hands,'' he said. Doctors had no
anesthetic and could not give patients alcohol to numb the pain
because it increased bleeding.
    ``People were completely conscious during amputations and
stomach operations,'' he said. Blood transfusions were
impossible because they had no facilities to test blood types.
    ``I felt destroyed psychologically,'' Mujanovic said.
    The situation improved after Dec. 4, when a convoy arrived
from the Belgian medical group Medecins Sans Frontieres.
    But Mujanovic said the military predicament worsened in
mid-December after Bosnian Serbs began a major offensive in the
region. ``Every day we had air strikes and shellings.''
    Then the hunger set in.
    Between mid-December and mid-March, when U.S. planes began
air dropping food, between 20 and 30 people were dying every day
from complications associated with malnutrition, he said.
    ``I know for sure that the air drop operation saved the
people from massive death by hunger and starvation,'' he said.
    According to Mujanovic, around 5,000 people died in
Srebrenica, 1,000 of them children, during a year of siege.
    Mujanovic plans to return to Srebrenica in three weeks after
visiting his wife, who is ill in Tuzla.
    ``They say I'm a hero,'' he said. ``There were thousands of
people standing at the sides of the road, crying and waving when
I left. And I cried too.''

-- 
Sharon Machlis Gartenberg
Framingham, MA  USA
e-mail: sharon@world.std.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59246
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Great Post!  (was: Candida bloom...)

-*----
In article <noringC5yGw1.F1M@netcom.com> noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring) writes:
> ...  Of course, they are working on the theory that candida
> overbloom with penetration into mucus membrane tissue with
> associated "mild" inflammatory response can and does occur 
> in a large number of people.  If you reject this "yeast 
> hypothesis", then I'd guess you'd view this research as one
> more wasteful and quixotic endeavor.  Stay tuned.

I do not have enough medical expertise to have much of an opinion
one way or another on hidden candida infections.  I can
understand the skepticism of those who see this associated with
various general kinds of symptoms, while there is a lack of solid
demonstration that this happens and causes such general symptoms.
(To understand this skepticism, one only needs to know of past
failures that shared these characteristics with the notion of
hidden candida infection.  There have been quite a few, and the
proponents of all thought that the skeptics were overly skeptical.)

On the other hand, I am happy to read that some people are
sufficiently interested in this possibility, spurred by
suggestive clinical experience, to research it further.  The
doubters may be surprised.  (It has happened before.)

I realize that admitting ignorance in the face of ignorance may
not endear me to those who are so sure they know one way or
another.  (And, indeed, perhaps some of them do know -- I am the
one who is currently ignorant.)  But I find this the most honest
route, and so I am happy with it.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59247
From: jgnassi@athena.mit.edu (John Angelo Gnassi)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In an article Jon Noring writes:

>In article rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>>Do you believe that any quacks exist?  How about quack diagnoses?  Is

>true focus of the medical profession.  The AMA and the Boards should focus
>on these "quacks" instead of devoting unbelievable energy on 'search-and-
>destroy-missions' to pull the licenses of those doctors who are trying non-
>traditional or not fully accepted treatments for their desperate patients
>that traditional/accepted medicine cannot help.

If I prescribe itraconazole for a patient's sinusitis neither the AMA,
FDA, State Licensing Board, nor ABFP will be knocking on my door to ask
why.  This is a specious argument.

>on their backs and pee-pee on themselves in obedience.  What do they teach
>you in medical school - how to throw your authority around?

Among other things, how to evaluate new theories and treatments.

>Let me put it another way to make my point clear:  "quack" is a nebulous word
>lacking in any precision.  Its sole use is to obfuscate the issues at hand.

Funny, I thought it meant "one who fraudulently misrepresents his
ability and experience in the diagnosis and treatment of disease or
the effects to be achieved by the treatment he offers" (Dorland's
27th).  Certainly more precision than conveyed by "chronic yeast".

>The indiscriminate use of this word is a sure sign of incompetency;  and coming
>from any medical doctor (or wanna-be), where competency is expected, is real
>scary.

The inability to discriminate between fraudulent or erroneous
representations is far more frightening.  It is fraud to promote a
treatment where the evidence for it is either lacking or against it
and the quacksalver knows so, or error if the honest practitioner
doesn't know so.  Failure to speak out against either bespeaks
incompetency.

>(p.s., may I suggest - seriously - that if the doctors and wanna-be-doctors on 
>the net who refuse to have an open mind on alternative treatments and 
>theories, such as the "yeast theory", should create your own moderated group.

May I reply - seriously - that if the practitioners and proponents of
non-scientific medicine have left their minds so open that the parts
of their brains that do critical evaluation have fallen out, they should
learn to edit their newsgroup headers to conform to the existing
hierarchy and divisions.

--
     John Angelo Gnassi                 Lab of Computer Science
   jgnassi@hstbme.mit.edu               Massachusetts General Hospital
     "Eternal Student"                  Boston, Massachusetts, USA
     "The Earth be spanned, connected by a Network" - Walt Whitman

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59248
From: ab961@Freenet.carleton.ca (Robert Allison)
Subject: Re: Frequent nosebleeds


In a previous article, mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) says:

>In article <9304191126.AA21125@seastar.seashell> bebmza@sru001.chvpkh.chevron.com (Beverly M. Zalan) writes:
>>
>>My 6 year son is so plagued.  Lots of vaseline up his nose each night seems 
>>to keep it under control.  But let him get bopped there, and he'll recur for 
>>days!  Also allergies, colds, dry air all seem to contribute.  But again, the 
>>vaseline, or A&D ointment, or neosporin all seem to keep them from recurring.
>>
>If you can get it, you might want to try a Canadian over-the-counter product
>called Secaris, which is a water-soluble gel.  Compared to Vaseline or other
>greasy ointments, Secaris seems more compatible with the moisture that's
>already there.
>

Secaris is reasonably inexpensive ($6.00 Cdn for a tube), and is indeed an
over the counter medication. Why it does not appear to be available in the
US, I don't know. It's manufactured in Montreal.

It's a nasal lubricant, and is intended to help nosebleeds that result from
dry mucous membranes.

From some of the replies to my original posting, it's evident that some
people do not secrete enough mucous to keep their nose lining protected
from environmental influences (ie, dry air). But I've had no responses
from anyone with experience with Rutin. Is there another newsgroup that
might have specifics on herbal remedies?

But thanks to all those who did reply with their experiences.
-- 
Robert Allison

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59249
From: elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu (Elizabeth Glaser)
Subject: net address for WHO

I am looking for the email address of the World Health Organization,
in particular the address for the Department of Nursing or the Chief
Scientist for Nursing: Dr. Miriam Hirschfeld. The snail-mail address I
have is the following:

    World Health Organization
    20 Avenue Appia
    1211 Geneva 27
    Switzerland

Please respond directly to me. Thank you for your assistance.



   ---   elg   ---

Elizabeth Glaser, RN
elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59250
Subject: Why isolate it?
From: chinsz@eis.calstate.edu (Christopher Hinsz)

	Does anyone on this newsgroup happen to know WHY morphine was
first isolated from opium?  If you know why, or have an idea for where I
could look to find this info, please mail me.
	CSH
any suggestionas would be greatly appreciated

--
 "Kilimanjaro is a pretty tricky climb. Most of it's up, until you reach
the very, very top, and then it tends to slope away rather sharply."
					Sir George Head, OBE (JC)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOGIC: "The point is frozen, the beast is dead, what is the difference?"
					Gavin Millarrrrrrrrrr (JC)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59251
From: mutrh@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (Todd R. Haverstock)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

In article <1993Apr23.181051.4023@donner.SanDiego.NCR.COM> davel@davelpcSanDiego.NCR.com (Dave Lord) writes:
>In article <1r8pcn$rm1@terminator.rs.itd.umich.edu>, Donald Mackie
><Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu> writes:
>> In article <1993Apr22.205341.172965@locus.com> Michael Trofimoff,
>> tron@fafnir.la.locus.com writes:
>> >Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
>> >authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
>> >is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?
>> 
>> I'm not sure of the exact recipe, but I'm sure acidophilus is one of
>> the major ingredients.   :-)
>
>It's plain yoghurt with grated cucumber and coriander (other spices are
>sometimes used). Some people use half yoghurt and half mayonaise.

In the kind I have made I used a Lite sour cream instead of yogurt.  May not
be as good for you, but I prefer the taste.  A few small bits of cuke in
addition to the grated cuke may also finish the sauce off nicely.


---
TRH
mutrh@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59252
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu  writes:
> I don't know the first thing about yeast infections but I am a scientist.
> No scientist would take your statement --- "no convincing empirical evidence
> to support the existence of systemic yeast syndrome" --- to tell you
> anything except an absence of data on the question.
The burden of proof rests upon those who claim the existence
of this "syndrome".  To date, these claims are unsubstantiated
by any available data.  Hopefully, as a scientist, you would
take issue with anyone overstating their conclusions based
upon their data.

> beasties with present methods even if they were there.  Noring and the
> fellow from Oklahoma (sorry, forgot your name) have also suggested one set
> of anecdotal evidence in favor based on their personal experiences ---
> namely, that when people with certain conditions are given anti-fungals,
> many of them appear to get better.  
Gee, I have many interesting and enlightening anecdotes about
myself, my friends, and my family, but in the practice of
medicine I expect and demand more rigorous rationales for
basing therapy than "Aunt Susie's brother-in-law ...".

Anecdotal evidence may provide inspiration for a hypothesis,
but rarely proves anything in a positive sense.  And unlike
mathematics, boolean logic rarely applies directly to medical
issues, and so evidence of 'exceptions' does not usually
disprove but rather modifies current concepts of disease.

> So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
> controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
> better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
> have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
> disbelief on the other.  In which case, please, there is no point in yelling
> back and forth at each other any longer since neither side has any
> convincing evidence either positive or negative.  
I would characterize it not as 'abject disbelief' but rather 
'scientific outrage over vastly overstated conclusions'.

> it appears to me the main question now is whether the proponents can
> marshall enough anecdotal evidence in a convincing and documented enough
> manner to make a good case for carrying out a good controlled double-blind
> study of antifungals (or else, forget convincing anybody else to carry out
> the test, just carry it out themselves!) --- and also, whether they can
> adequately define the patient population or symptoms on which such a study
> should be carried out to provide a fair test of the hypothesis.
I have no problem with such an approach; but this is NOT what
is happening in the 'trenches' of this diagnosis.

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59253
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Adenocarcinoma of the Lungs

Putting aside our substantial differences, I'd like to ask the knowledgeable
ones to give feedback on this.  Let me explain.

One of my family members last week was discovered to have a brain tumor after
having some difficulties with walking and writing (she is 64 years old).
Otherwise, she is in fine health.  The discovery was made via CAT scans.

She then had MRI scans done, where small cancerous areas were discovered
in her lungs.  Biopsies showed it to be adenocarcinoma.  One spot is
in the lungs, and another in the pneumothorax.  The oncologists believe
the cancer started in the lungs and caused the brain tumor (she smoked
until four years ago).

Anyway, I'd like feedback as to what adenocarcinoma is, how it is different
from other cancers, how she will be treated (luckily the tumor is right
below the skull and can be easily removed), and statistically what are
the chances for full remission/recovery?

Thanks.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59254
From: x91hozak@gw.wmich.edu
Subject: PRK referral in Canada

Could some please refer me to someone who can perform PRK (Photo Refractive 
Keratostomy) in Canada (preferably eastern portion).  I've looked in
the yellow pages with little success, and if someone has had a good (or
bad, for that matter) experience, that would be especially helpful if you
could please let me know.

Thanks,
Kurt Hozak
92hozak@lab.cc.wmich.edu (preferred address)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59255
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: cholistasis(sp?)/fat-free diet/pregnancy!!

aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge) writes:

I decided to come back and amend this so it quotes me and has added
comments...

>heart@access.digex.com (G) writes:

>>Hi,

>>it started to hurt when I lay on my right side, and then it hurt  
>>no matter what position I was in.  Next, I noticed that when I 
>>ate greasy or fatty foods I felt like my entire abdomen had 
>>turned to stone, and the pain in the area got worse.  However if 
>>I ate sauerkraut or vinegar or something to 'cut' the fat it 
>>wasn't as much of a problem.

>>So the doctor says I have cholistatis, and that I should avoid 
>>fatty foods.  This makes sense, and because I was already aware 
>>of what seemed to me this cause and effect relationship I have 
>>been avoiding these foods on my own.  But I'm still able to eat 
>>foods with Ricotta cheese for instance and other low fat foods.  

>>But doc wants me to be on a non-fat diet.  This means no meat 
>>except fish and chicken w/o skin (I do this anyway).  No nuts, 
>>fried food, cheese etc.  I am allowed skim milk.  She said I 
>>should avoid anything sweet (e.g. bananas).  Also I must only 
>>have one serving of something high in carbohydrates a day ( 
>>potatoes, pasta, rice)!  She said I can't even cook vegetables in 
>>a little bit of oil and that I should eat vegetables raw or 
>>steamed.  I'm concerned because I understand you need to have 
>>some fat in your diet to help in the digestive process.  And if 

>>G

>For one week, she probably wants to see how you react to the diet. If it
>changes anything. 

>You can live on the diet but you need to up your non-fat calories. Where
before you had a pat of butter, now you need a medium apple (probably microwave
>cooked).  Smaller meals but more of them. Not terrific amounts of meat, it's
>hard to digest anyway. First, even fish, fowl and breads have fat. Second,
the body will make fat out of carbohydrates if it needs them. Third, your
body, like most peoples, wasn't bred to live on a high fat, modern diet.
If you read texts about ancient and primative people you will read about
the luxury of eating fat, how people enjoyed it. This was because it was so
rare. Even cows didn't put out nearly the amount of butterfat in milk that
they do now.  

>For comfort and to make the carbohydrate meal "last" longer eat pasta or
>rice which give their calories up slowly rather than bread or corn. Maybe
>smaller meals as you may be getting less room in the stomach area. Is the
>baby still coming up. Is it starting to push or rub under your ribs? How
>tight are your clothes. You shouldn't be wearing any clothing that compresses 
>your middle. Be sure not to "suck in" your stomach when sitting, again it
>will put pressure on the digestive tract. 

>Try laying on your sides, back,
>and stay in reclining positions for the many hours you are being inactive.
>Easier on your legs (circulation) as well. You might try letting the baby
>"turn" or at least not be forced under the ribs during the last months.
>When you are shortwaisted it's easy for that baby to end up right under the
>diaphram, especially if you have tight abdominal muscles. If I had my
>second one to do over again I think I'd have tried to loosen up since he
>didn't turn sideways until late and the relief was enormous.


>Maybe this doctor does have a thing about weight gain in pregnancy or maybe
>she just nags all her patients this way. Especially if she's young.  
>But this gallbladder/whatever problem that might be coming up is something
>to be avoided if possible. You don't want to become ill with it while you
are pregnant. If you are lucky you can work on getting rid of it after the
baby. (It is said that doctors have less gallbadder surgery than the rest
of the population, a good part of it is that they are willing to do the
dieting, etc that helps them avoid surgery. Also, I don't think the surgery
lets a person go back to eating a high fat diet. ) 

>Nausea, etc. can vary from person to person and with each pregnancy. My
>first pregnancy was miserable. During the second I had very little trouble.
>Some articles have said that women with nausea had a statistically better
>chance of carrying their baby. (grain of salt here) 

>Good luck

>-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59256
From: mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

These are MY last words on the subject

From: lundby@rtsg.mot.com (Walter F. Lundby) writes:


> As a person who is very sensitive to msg and whose wife and kids are
> too, I WANT TO KNOW WHY THE FOOD INDUSTRY WANTS TO PUT MSG IN FOOD!!!

Some people think it enhances the flavor.  I personally don't think it
helps the taste, it makes me sick, so I try to avoid it.

> From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

> Sez you.  Such an effect in humans has not been demonstrated in any
> controlled studies.  Infant mice and other models are useful as far
> as they go, but they're not relevant to the matter at hand.  Which is
> not to say that I favor its use in things like baby food--a patently
> ridiculous use of the additive.  But we have no reason to believe
> that MSG in the diet effects humans adversely.

Well, I know that MSG effects ME adversely - maybe not permanently but
at least temporarily enough that I like to try to avoid the stuff.

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle) Writes:

> If you don't like additives, then for godsake, 
> get off the net and learn to cook from scratch.  Sheesh.

EXCUSE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!

Why can't people learn to cook from scratch *ON* the net.  I've gotten
LOTS of recipes off the net that don't use additives.

If you LIKE additives then get off the net and go to your local
supermarket, buy lots of packaged foods, and YOU get OFF THE NET!!

> >IS IT TO COVER UP THE FACT THAT THE RECIPES ARE NOT VERY GOOD 
> >OR THE FOOD IS POOR QUALITY?
> 
> Yes, and YOU buy it.  Says something about your taste, eh?

I don't!!

> 
> And what happens when the companies forced to submit to your silly notions
> go out of business because nobody wants to buy their overpriced bad food? 
> (Removing preservatives directly raises food costs by reducing shelf life.)

HEY - I'll pay *MY* hard earned dollars to buy food that costs more
but does NOT have preservatives.  I choose to speak with my pocketbook
in many ways.

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> You have a good point.  MSG is commonly used in soups, in bottled
> sauces, in seasoning mixtures, and in the coating on barbecue potato
> chips.  

Nacho cheese Doritos, breading for MANY frozen fried foods (like fish
and chicken), etc. ad naseum.

> If MSG is really the problem, we should call this "barbecue potato
> chip syndrome" or maybe "diner syndrome."   

Or the "and other natural flavorings syndrome."  It's been a few years
since I've bought anything labelled with "and other natural
flavorings".  

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> >THE REACTION CAME THE TIME THE MSG WAS IN THE FOOD
> >THAT WAS THE ONLY DIFFERENCE
> >SAME RESTAURANT - SAME INGREDIENTS!!!
> 
> How do you know this?
> 
> In order to demonstrate your claim, you would have had to supervise the
> preparation on both occasions.  Perhaps they used MSG both times, and lied
> about it.  Perhaps once they used something that had begun to spoil, and
> produced some bizarre toxin that you're allergic to. 

Well, I had had similar reactions many times.  That was when I really
started WATCHING CAREFULLY - reaction to Doritos - hey guess what's in
there - reaction to Lawry's season salt - guess what's in THERE

I'll give you a hint - I've had enough problems with MANY MANY MANY
different products with MSG that I figured out one thing.

UNLESS I plan on getting sick - I won't eat the stuff without my
Seldane.  And did I ever learn to read labels.

> PLEASE note that I am NOT saying you are making it up, I am just
> trying to point out that the situation is not always as simple as it
> might seem.  

Which was why I started checking EVERY time I got sick.  And EVERY
time I got sick MSG was somehow involved in one of the food products.
And consider there were no other similar ingredients (to my knowledge)
- it might not please a medical researcher - but it pleased my own
personal physician enough for him to give me allergy medicine and MOST
IMPORTANTLY it's enough proof for ME to avoid it (and enough proof
that my INCREDIBLY frugal fiance didn't flinch when I literally threw
out or gave away all the food products in his pantry that had msg -
and he always flinches when there's waste - but it was a simple
explanation - I won't eat this stuff, I WON'T cook with this stuff, so
I can either throw it out or give it away.)

> From: pattee@ucsu.Colorado.EDU (Donna Pattee)

> My guess was that the spice mix on the fries contained MSG, 

Probably Lawry's seasoning salt.  I LOVE the way that tastes.  

I'm not saying I NEVER consume ANYTHING with MSG.  I've noticed that I
have a certain tolerance level - like a (small) bag of bbq chips once
a month or so it not a problem - but that same bag of chips will
bother me if I also had chicken bouillon yesterday and lunch at one of
the Chinese restaurants the day before.  

> From: kelley@healthy.uwaterloo.ca (Catherine L. Kelley)
> >

> All that's needed now is that final step, a double-blind study done
> on humans.  There isn't even an ethical question about "possible
> harm", as this is a widely used and approved food additive.

But - some say that only 2% of the population has a problem with MSG -
some say it's more like 20% - but let's say that it's 5%.  How many
people would have to be tested that would have a problem?  Also - I
KNOW I have a problem with it, and I wouldn't VOLUNTEER for a test.
Like thanks guys but I don't WANT to get sick.  Also - I'm sure that
most people probably have varying degrees of sensitivities at
different times.  If I have a cold I'm MUCH more susceptible to the
reaction than when I'm healthy (as proven today - when I'm stuffy but
for some silly reason I still gave in and decided to have the BBQ
chips ;}).

> From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)

> Because too many of you (generic rhetorical 'you,' not 'you Cathy') go
> around calling this "Chinese restaurant syndrome," thus suggesting to the
> people you complain to that you experience this ONLY from Chinese food. 
> MSG is prevalent in a LOT more things than Chinese food--thats why I
> suggested calling this "Diner syndrome."  

Cathy doesn't - I haven't saved all my postings but I NEVER called it
"chinese restaurant syndrome" and I NEVER stated I got it only from
Chinese food.  I just thought it would be easiest to conduct my
personal test at a Chinese take out place that I knew would hold (or
not hold) the MSG.  I can't call up whoever makes Doritos and ask them
to make me ONE back of chips without MSG.

> On the other hand, if one complains about potatoes from a mix, or
> restaurant spice mixes, I'm going to believe them, and if anyone says they
> got (MSG-)sick after eating too many barbecue potato chips at a party, I'm
> REALLY going to believe them.  

Well, I believe I mentioned that in an earlier post 

Let's see you wrote this message at

Date: 20 Apr 1993 00:09:31 -0500

but on 

Date: 19 Apr 1993 16:33:18 GMT

I wrote:

> >Has anyone had an MSG reaction from something *other than* a
> >Chinese restaurant?  

> LOTS of times - that's why it was so hard for me to pin down.  I
> would probably have been EASIER if I'd only have the reaction in a
> certain type of restaurant but I've had the reaction in Chinese
> restaurants and Greek restaurants and Italian restaurants and Steak
> places (I can tell you when a steak joint uses Accent to tenderize
> their meat).   

OH - and just in case anyone thinks I'm prejudice against either
Chinese food or Asian people - I'm not going home to cook some Chinese
food for the guy I'm marrying next week.  Incidentally, his last name
is Wu.

SO STOP IT WITH THE FLAME MAIL

--
Why does a woman work ten years to change a man's habits and then 
complain that he's not the man she married?    
  -- Barbra Streisand

    Mary Allison (mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu) Urbana, Illinois

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59257
From: jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov (J. Porter Clark)
Subject: Annual inguinal hernia repair

Last year, I was totally surprised when my annual physical disclosed an
inguinal hernia.  I couldn't remember doing anything that would have
caused it.  That is, I hadn't been lifting more than other people do,
and in fact probably somewhat less.  Eventually the thing became more
painful and I had the repair operation.

This year I developed a pain on the other side.  This turned out to be
another inguinal hernia.  So I go back to the hospital Monday for
another fun 8-) operation.

I don't know of anything I'm doing to cause this to happen.  I'm 38
years old and I don't think I'm old enough for things to start falling
apart like this.  The surgeon who is doing the operation seems to
suspect a congenital weakness, but if so, why did it suddenly appear
when I was 37 and not really as active as I was when I was younger?

Does anyone know how to prevent a hernia, other than not lifting
anything?  It's rare that I lift more than my 16-month-old or a sack
full of groceries, and you may have noticed that your typical grocery
sack is fairly small these days.  Is there some sort of exercise that
will reduce the risk?

Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
the computer, reading news...
-- 
J. Porter Clark    jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov or jpc@gaia.msfc.nasa.gov
NASA/MSFC Flight Data Systems Branch

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59258
Subject: CALCIUM deposits on heart valve
From: john.greze@execnet.com (John Greze)


A friend, a 62 year old man, has calcium deposits on one of his
heart valves .   What causes this to happen and what can be done about
it?

John.Greze@execnet.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59259
From: vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu (Vinay Rao)
Subject: Density of the skull bone

Could someone tell me what the density of skull bone is or direct me to 
a reference that contains this info?  I would appreciate it very much.
Thanks.

Vinay


--
**********************************************
Vinay J. Rao                vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu
**********************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59260
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

HOLFELTZ@LSTC2VM.stortek.com writes:

: As you know all ready, it is the pattern in the bioplasmic energy
: field that is significant.

No, I didn't already know that.  I've never even heard of a
"bioplasmic energy field."  Care to explain it?  It's been a few years
since my last fields class so I may have forgotten (or maybe I skipped
that day).  Anyway, as Ross Perot said, I'm all ears.  Well, eyes in
this case.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Is something VIOLENT
Rosemount Inc.                                |going to happen to a GARBAGE
                                              |CAN?
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59261
From: vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu (Vinay Rao)
Subject: Perception of doctors and health care

The following article by columnist Mike Royko is his humorous commentary
on some of the public's perception of doctors and their salaries.
I hope some of you will find it as amusing as I did.

____________________________________________________________________________
[Reprinted w/o permission]


"There's no cure for stupidity of poll on doctors' salaries"

By Mike Royko
Tribune Media Services


     On a stupidity scale, a recent poll about doctors' earnings 
is right up there.  It almost scored a perfect brain-dead 10.
     It  was  commissioned by some whiny consumers  group  called 
Families USA.
      The  poll tells us that the majority of  Americans  believe 
that doctors make too much money.
     The  pollsters  also asked what a fair income would  be  for 
physicians.  Those polled said, oh, about $80,000 a year would be 
OK.
     How generous.  How sporting.  How stupid.
     Why is this poll stupid?   Because it is based on resentment 
and envy, two emotions that ran hot during the political campaign 
and are still simmering.
     You could conduct the same kind of poll about any group that 
earns $100,000-plus and get the same results.  Since the majority 
of Americans don't make those bucks,  they assume that those  who 
do are stealing it from them.
     Maybe  the Berlin Wall came down,  but don't  kid  yourself.  
Karl Marx lives.
     It's also stupid because it didn't ask key  questions,  such 
as:  Do  you  know how much education and training  it  takes  to 
become a physician?
     If those polled said no,  they didn't know, then they should 
have  been disqualified.   If they gave the wrong  answers,  they 
should have been dropped.   What good are their views on how much 
a doctor should earn if they don't know what it takes to become a 
doctor?
     Or maybe a question should have been phrased this way:  "How 
much  should  a person earn if he or she must (a)  get  excellent 
grades and a fine educational foundation in high school in  order 
to (b) be accepted by a good college and spend four years  taking 
courses heavy in math, physics, chemistry, and other lab work and 
maintain a 3.5 average or better,  and (c) spend four more  years 
of  grinding study in medical school,  with the third and  fourth 
years in clinical training,  working 80 to 100 hours a week,  and 
(d) spend another year as a low-pay,  hard-work intern,  and  (e) 
put  in  another  three to 10 years  of  post-graduate  training, 
depending  on  your specialty and (f) maybe wind up  $100,000  in 
debt  after  medical school and (g) then work an  average  of  60 
hours  a week,  with many family doctors putting in 70  hours  or 
more until they retire or fall over?"
     As  you have probably guessed by now,  I  have  considerably 
more  respect for doctors than does the law firm of  Clinton  and 
Clinton,  and all the lawyers and insurance executives they  have 
called together to remake America's health care.
     Based  on what doctors contribute to society,  they are  far 
more useful than the power-happy,  ego-tripping, program-spewing, 
social tinkerers who will probably give us a medical plan that is 
to health what Clinton's first budget is to frugality.
     But propaganda works.   And,  as the stupid poll  indicates, 
many Americans wrongly believe that profiteering doctors are  the 
major cause of high medical costs.
     Of  course doctors are well-compensated.   They  should  be.  
Americans now live longer than ever.   But who is responsible for 
our longevity--lawyers,  Congress, or the guy flipping burgers in 
a McDonald's?
     And the doctors prolong our lives despite our having  become 
a  nation  of  self-indulgent,   lard-butted,   TV-gaping   couch 
cabbages.
     Ah,  that  is not something you heard President  Clinton  or 
Super  Spouse  talk  about during the  campaign  or  since.   But 
instead of trying to turn the medical profession into a  villain, 
they might have been more honest if they had said:
     "Let  us  talk  about medical care and one  of  the  biggest 
problems we have.   That problem is you, my fellow American. Yes, 
you,  eating  too much and eating the wrong foods;  many  of  you 
guzzling  too  much hooch;  still puffing away at $2.50  a  pack; 
getting  your daily exercise by lumbering from the fridge to  the 
microwave to the couch; doing dope and bringing crack babies into 
the  world;  filling  the big city emergency rooms  with  gunshot 
victims;  engaging  in unsafe sex and catching a  deadly  disease 
while blaming the world for not finding an instant cure.
     "You  and  your habits,  not the  doctors,  are  the  single 
biggest  health  problem in this country.   If  anything,  it  is 
amazing that the docs keep you alive as long as they do.
     "In fact,  I don't understand how they can stand looking  at 
your blubbery bods all day.
     "So as your president,  I call upon you to stop whining  and 
start living cleanly.   Now I must go get myself a triple cheesy-
greasy with double fries.  Do as I say, not as I do."
     But  for those who truly believe that doctors are  overpaid, 
there is another solution: Don't use them.
     That's right.   You don't feel well?   Then try one of those 
spine poppers,  needle twirlers, or have Rev. Bubba lay his hands 
upon your head and declare you fit.
     Or  there is the do-it-yourself approach.   You  have  chest 
pains?   Then sit in front of a mirror,  make a slit here, a slit 
there, and pop in a couple of valves.
     You're  going to have a kid?   Why throw your money at  that 
overpaid  sawbones so he can buy a better car and a bigger  house 
than  you  will  ever  have  (while  paying  more  in  taxes  and 
malpractice insurance than you will ever earn)?
     Just have the kid the old-fashioned way.   Squat and do  it.  
And if it survives,  you can go to the library and find a book on 
how to give it its shots.
     By  the  way,  has  anyone  ever done a  poll  on  how  much 
pollsters should earn?


Royko  is  a Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for  Tribune  Media 
Services.

____________________________________________________________________________


--
**********************************************
Vinay J. Rao                vrao@nyx.cs.du.edu
**********************************************


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59262
From: oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>has an ulcer.

Julie, it doesn't necessarily follow that you should use it (MSG or
something else for that matter) simply because you are not allergic
to it. For example you might not be allergic to (animal) fats, and
like their taste, yet it doesn't follow that you should be using them
(regularly). MSG might have other bad (or good, I am not up on 
knowledge of MSG) effects on your body in the long run, maybe that's
reason enough not to use it. 

Altho' your example of the ulcer is funny, it isn't an
appropriate comparison at all.

-Prakash Das

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59263
From: ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <20APR199315574161@vxcrna.cern.ch> filipe@vxcrna.cern.ch (VINCI) writes:

> How about Kirlian imaging ? I believe the FAQ for sci.skeptics (sp?)
> has a nice write-up on this. They would certainly be most supportive
> on helping you to build such a device and connect to a 120Kvolt
> supply so that you can take a serious look at your "aura"... :-)
>
> Filipe Santos
> CERN - European Laboratory for Particle Physics
> Switzerland

Please sign the relevant documents and forward the remaining parts
to our study 'Effect of 120 Kv on Human Tissue wrapped in Film'.
Thanks for your support...
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
*Dr. Thomas Trusk                    *                              *
*Dept. of Cellular Biology & Anatomy * Email to ttrusk@its.mcw.edu  *
*Medical College of Wisconsin        *                              *
*Milwaukee, WI  53226              DISCLAIMER (ala Foghorn Leghorn):*
*(414) 257-8504                     It's a joke, son. A joke I say! *
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59264
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: net address for WHO

In article <1993Apr24.162351.4408@mintaka.lcs.mit.edu>, elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu (Elizabeth Glaser) writes:
> I am looking for the email address of the World Health Organization,
> in particular the address for the Department of Nursing or the Chief
> Scientist for Nursing: Dr. Miriam Hirschfeld. The snail-mail address I
> have is the following:
>
>     World Health Organization
>     20 Avenue Appia
>     1211 Geneva 27
>     Switzerland

The domain address of the WHO is:  who.arcom.ch
So try sending email to  postmaster@who.arcom.ch

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL







>
> Please respond directly to me. Thank you for your assistance.
>
>
>
>    ---   elg   ---
>
> Elizabeth Glaser, RN
> elg@silver.lcs.mit.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59265
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

 To: milsh@nmr-z.mgh.harvard.edu (Alex Milshteyn)

 AM> Having said that, i might add, that in MHO, MSG does not enhance
 AM> flavor enoughf for me to miss it.  When I go to chinese places,
 AM> I order food without MSG.  

To me, MSG tastes just like a mixture of salt and sugar.  I don't 
think that is the case with most people.  What does it taste like 
to you? 

... If wishes were horses, we'd all have to wear hip boots!
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59266
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

 To: smithmc@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Lost Boy)

 LB> I know from personal experience that men CAN get yeast infections. I 
 LB> get rather nasty ones from time to time, mostly in the area of the
 LB> scrotum and the base of the penis. 

I used to have problems with recurrent athlete's foot until I 
started drying between my toes with my blow drier after each time 
I bathe.  I also dry my pubic area while I am at it to prevent 
problems.  You might want to try it.

... My cat types with his tail.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59267
From: westes@netcom.com (Will Estes)
Subject: Use of haldol in elderly

Does anyone know of research done on the use of haldol in the elderly?  Does 
short-term use of the drug ever produce long-term side-effects after
the use of the drug?  My grandmother recently had to be hospitalized
and was given large doses of haldol for several weeks.  Although the
drug has been terminated, she has changed from a perky, slightly
senile woman into a virtual vegetable who does not talk to anyone
and who cannot even eat or brush her teeth without assistance.  It
seems incredible to me that such changes could take place in the
course of just one and one-half months.  I have to believe that the
combination of the hospital stay and some drug(s) are in part
catalysts for this.  Any comments?

-- 
Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59268
Subject: hypodermic needle
From: bolsen@eis.calstate.edu (Becky Olsen)

Hi, I am doing a term paper on the syringe and I have found some
information.  It is said that Charles Pravaz has invented the hypodermic
needle, but then I have also found that Alexander Wood has invented it. 
Does anyone know which one it is, of if it was anyone else?  If there is
anymore information that is out there could you please send it to me.
Thank you very much.
Becky Olsen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59269
From: haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (Jim Haynes)
Subject: Re: Poisoning with heavy water (was Re: Too many MRIs?)


All I can remember is that there was an article in Scientific American
maybe 20 years ago.  As someone else noted rats or mice fed nothing
but heavy water eventually died, and the explanation was given.
-- 
haynes@cats.ucsc.edu
haynes@cats.bitnet

"Ya can talk all ya wanna, but it's dif'rent than it was!"
"No it aint!  But ya gotta know the territory!"
        Meredith Willson: "The Music Man"


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59270
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: hypodermic needle

In article <C60vIJ.Co6@eis.calstate.edu> Becky Olsen,
bolsen@eis.calstate.edu writes:
>Hi, I am doing a term paper on the syringe and I have found some
>information.  It is said that Charles Pravaz has invented the
hypodermic
>needle, but then I have also found that Alexander Wood has invented
it. 
>Does anyone know which one it is, of if it was anyone else?  If
there is
>anymore information that is out there could you please send it to
me.
>Thank you very much.
>Becky Olsen

Looking in The Evolution of Anaesthesia by M.H. Armstrong Davison
(pub Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore 1965) I found the following
chronology:

"1853.  Charles-Gabriel Pravaz (1791-1853), inventor of the
galvanocautery, describes a glass syringe with tapered nozzle. This
syringe was intended to be used with a special trocar for injecting
ferric chloride into aneurysms, and thus to heal them by coagulation.

1853.  Alexander Wood (1817-84)  of Edinburgh invents the hypodermic
needle and adapts Pravaz's syringe for use with it."

You might also be interested to read about the experiments of Sir
Christopher Wren in 1656, described by Oldenberg & Clarck in the
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society in 1665. Using a
sharpened quill and a pig's bladder he injected opium, wine and beer
into the veins of dogs.

Don Mackie 
UM Anesthesiology will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59271
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1rcfj2INNmds@roundup.crhc.uiuc.edu>, mary@uicsl.csl.uiuc.edu (Mary E. Allison) writes:
=Which was why I started checking EVERY time I got sick.  And EVERY
=time I got sick MSG was somehow involved in one of the food products.

Which points up the "studies" made by amateurs:  Did you ALSO check EVERY TIME
YOU DID *NOT* get sick?  "No," you say?  Why not check every thing you eat when
you don't get sick and find out how much MSG you're actually consuming?

=> All that's needed now is that final step, a double-blind study done
=> on humans.  There isn't even an ethical question about "possible
=> harm", as this is a widely used and approved food additive.
=
=But - some say that only 2% of the population has a problem with MSG -
=some say it's more like 20% - but let's say that it's 5%.  How many
=people would have to be tested that would have a problem?  Also - I
=KNOW I have a problem with it, and I wouldn't VOLUNTEER for a test.

If you knew enough about what the test was about to decide that you didn't want
to participate because it involved MSG, you'd've already made yourself
ineligible (since MSG IS detectable by taste). How can anybody be so clueless
as to what double blind studies are all about?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59272
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr22.143929.26131@midway.uchicago.edu>,
jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier ) says:
>
>From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
>6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
>$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
>call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
>here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
>Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
>that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
>
You might look for an allergy doctor in your area who uses sublingual
drops instead of shots for treatment. (You are given a small bottle of
antigens; 3 drops are placed under the tongue for 5 minutes.) My
allergy to bermuda grass was neutralized this way. Throughout the treatment
process I had to return to the doctor's office every month for re-testing
and a new bottle of antigens. After the allergy was completely neutralized
a bottle of maintenance antigens lasts me about 4 months (the sublingual
drops are then taken 3 times per week), and costs $20. So the cost is
less than shots and it is more convenient just to take the drops at home.

Bruce Long

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59273
From: hchung@nyx.cs.du.edu (H. Anthony Chung)
Subject: Localized fat reduction due to exercise (question).

I was just wondering if exercises specific to particular regions of the
body (such as thighs) will basically only tone the thighs, or if fat
from other parts of the body (such as breasts) would be affected just as
much.
--
   ___  ___  ________  _______+--------H. Anthony Chung--------+--C= AMIGAs--+
  / //_/ // / ___  // / ____//|Case Western Reserve University |  /\/\ R The |
 / ___  // / ___  // / //___~ |       School of Dentistry      |  \  / Future|
/_// /_// /_// /_// /_____//  +-hac@po.CWRU.Edu-(Cabal on IRC)-+-ac\/is------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59274
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: re:use of haldol and the elderly

I'm a nursing student, and I would like to respond to #66966 on haldol
and the elderly.
Message-ID: <25APR199316225142@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu>
Organization: Florida State University - School of Higher Thought
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1  

First, I'm sorry to hear that you have had to see your grandmother go
through this.  I know it has to have been tough.

There are many things that can cause long term confusion in elderly
adults.  The change in environment can cause problems.  Anesthetic agents
can cause confusion because the body cannot clear the medicines out of
the body as easily.  In addition, medications and interactions between
medications can cause confusion.

As far as whether or not haldol can have long lasting effects even after
the drug has been discontinued, I do not know.  I have not _seen_ anything
to that effect.  However, I also had not been looking for that information.
I can see what I can find...

I can tell you that haldol is an antipsychotic drug, and, according to
the Nursing93 Drug handbook, it is "Especially useful for agitation
associated with senile dementia"  (p. 400).  It also should not be 
discontinued abruptly.  It did not say anything about long lasting
effects.

Because so many things can cause confusion, it is hard for me to know
what else was going on at the time; if I had more history, i might be able
to answer you better.  If you want to send me e-mail with more information,
I would be happy to try to  help you piece together what might have
happened.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59275
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: ROC curves software


I understand Robert Centor has a program called ROC ANALYZER, that can be
used to do receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Does 
anyone know if this is avaliable from an FTP site? If not, does anyone
know how to get a copy of it?

==============================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59276
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: re:use of haldol and the elderly

In article <C623Az.M85@mailer.cc.fsu.edu> PICL account_25,
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu writes:
>adults.  The change in environment can cause problems.  Anesthetic
agents
>can cause confusion because the body cannot clear the medicines out
of
>the body as easily.

The original poster did not say why his mother had been in hospital
but I can answer a few general points.

Elderly patients may exhibit a marked difficulty in coping after
being in hospital for a few days. The drastic change of environment
will often unmask how marginally they have been coping at home. Even
young people find the change unsettling.

Though we have thought that this decrement in function after - say -
anaesthesia and surgery for a fractured hip (a common event in the
elderly) was due to anaesthesia there is good evidence that the
change of situation is much more important. Some hospitals have
tried a 'rapid transit' system for hip fractures, aiming to have the
patient back at home within 24 hours of admission. The selection of
the anaesthetic has no effect on the ability to discharge these
patients early.

Anaesthetists who work with the elderly (which is almost all of us)
generally take care to tailor the choice and dose of drugs used to
the individual patient. Even so, there is some evidence that full
mental recovery may take a surprisingly long time to return. This is
the sort of thing which is detected by setting quite difficult
tasks, not the gross change that the original poster noted.

Haloperidol (Haldol TM) is a long acting drug. The plasma half life
of the drug is up to 35 hours. If the decanoate (a sort of slow
release formulation) is used it may be weeks. The elderly are
sensitive to haloperidol for a number of reasons. Without knowing
more it is hard to comment.

Don Mackie - his opinions
esiology will disavow...

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59277
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
definitely involved. 

My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
medications. The family protested, but the doctors were adamant, telling
us that none of the drugs interact. They even took the attitude that, if
he was disoriented, they should put him on something else as well! With
the help of an MD friend of the family, we had all his medication
discontinued. He had a seizure that night, and was put back on one drug.
Two days later, he was his old self again. I guess there aren't many
medical texts that address the subject of 21-way interactions.

I don't mean this as a cheap shot at the medical profession. It is an
aspect of hospitals that is very frightening to me. Docs seem to believe
that, because they have close control of you, it's quite all right to
take your bodily equilibria into their own hands. That control reduces
the chance that the patient will make a mistake, but health care
providers can make mistakes too, and mistakes can be deadly under those
circumstances. 

I grant you that sometimes there's no choice. Nevertheless, I suggest
you procure a list of the drugs your grandmother is getting, and discuss
it with an independent doc. Her problems may not be the effect of HALDOL
at all. HALDOL may have been used validly, or it may have been
prescribed because OTHER medication confused her, and because the
hospital normally prescribes HALDOL for the confused elderly.

Just my opinion,

-Larry (obviously not a doc) C.

  

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59278
From: jowalker@polyslo.csc.calpoly.edu (The Thespian)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

I got this recipe from a watier on the greek island of samos.
They use it as a spread for bread there butit is excellent on
gyro's as well. By the way, the actual name is tzatziki.
Here is the recipe:

yoghurt, chopped garlic, peeled chopped cucumber, salt, white
pepper, a little olive oil and a little vinegar.

I would love to hear of any other good greek recipes out there.

-- 
Jon Walker
jowalker@oboe.calpoly.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59279
From: dbaker@utkvx.utk.edu (Baker, David)
Subject: Hypodermic Syringe



While I don't have an answer for you, I reckon Blaise Pascal is generally
credited with inventing the syringe per se.  I don't know much about the
needles; however, I do know of a southwest Virginia country doctor who
some thrity or more years ago invented, patented, used, and sold a syringe/
hypodermic needle combination that retracted, injected with the flip of a
trigger, then retracted, giving a near-painless injection.  The fellow was
Dr. Daniel Gabriel, and it was termed the Gabriel--somebody else syringe. 
Did you come across that one.  (Plastic, disposable syringes came onto the
market about that time and his product went by the wayside, to my knowledge.)



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59280
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

In article <YfqmleK00iV185Co5L@andrew.cmu.edu>, Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes...
>I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
>demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
>definitely involved. 
> 
>My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
>hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
>drugs...

No wonder he became confused!  With so many drugs, it is almost impossible
to know which one is causing the problem.  And because some drugs 
potentiate the effect of each other, they can make the side effects
all the worse, and even dangerous.  (kinda like mixing alcohol and 
antihistamines!)

>...he was disoriened [the doctors thougt ] they should put him on something
>else as well!

Unfortunately, doctors prescribe drugs to treat the side effects of
the drugs a patient is receiving.  If one drug they are taking causes
the patient's blood pressure to go up, many times an antihypertensive
is prescribed instead of re-evaluating the need for the original drug.
This is why many older adults are trying to take a dozen or so drugs
at home!!!!

>....procure a list of the drugs your grandmother is getting, and discuss
>it with an independent doc. Her problems may not be the effect of HALDOL
>at all. HALDOL may have been used validly, or it may have been
>prescribed because OTHER medication confused her, and because the
>hospital normally prescribes HALDOL for the confused elderly.

I fully agree.  In addition, she proably should be examined by another
doctor who can re-evaluate the need for the medications she is taking.
I can't remember the guidelines I either saw in a text or heard during
a lecture, but any elderly adult who is receiving medications should have
the need for the drug re-evaluated regularly.  If her current physician
is unwilling to do this, find one who will.  Either check the phone 
book for a physician who specializes in geriatric medicine or gerontology, 
or contact a physician referral line or the American Medical Society.
By finding a geriatric specialist, he (she) will more likely be in tune
with the special needs of elderly adults and maybe can help.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59281
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Fibromyalgia, CFS and sleep levels

I know that there is a relationship between Fibromyalgia and deep 
sleep.  I believe that there are five levels of sleep.  I think 
that R.E.M. sleep is the third deepest level of sleep and that 
there are two deeper levels of sleep.  If I am in error in any of 
this, please let me know.

Which level of sleep is thought to be deficient in people with 
Fibromyalgia?  Are there any known sleep disturbances associated 
with CFS?  What sleep disturbances (if any) are associated with 
clinical depression?  Do antidepressants correct the sleep 
disturbances in these diseases?  Are there any good books or 
medical journal articles about sleep disturbances and these 
diseases?  Thank you in advance for all replies.

... The more inconvenient it is to answer the phone, the more it rings.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59282
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Pregnency without sex?

When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.

Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
occur?

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59283
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 1/4

------------- cut here -----------------
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

              +------------------------------------------------+
              !                                                !
              !              Health Info-Com Network           !
              !                Medical Newsletter              !
              +------------------------------------------------+
                         Editor: David Dodell, D.M.D.
    10250 North 92nd Street, Suite 210, Scottsdale, Arizona 85258-4599 USA
                          Telephone +1 (602) 860-1121
                              FAX +1 (602) 451-1165

Compilation Copyright 1993 by David Dodell,  D.M.D.  All  rights  Reserved.  
License  is  hereby  granted  to republish on electronic media for which no 
fees are charged,  so long as the text of this copyright notice and license 
are attached intact to any and all republished portion or portions.  

The Health Info-Com Network Newsletter is  distributed  biweekly.  Articles 
on  a medical nature are welcomed.  If you have an article,  please contact 
the editor for information on how to submit it.  If you are  interested  in 
joining the automated distribution system, please contact the editor.  

E-Mail Address:
                                    Editor:  
                          Internet: david@stat.com
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                 FAX Delivery = Contact Editor for information


::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                       T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S


1.  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
     [23 April 1993] Rates of Cesarean Delivery ...........................  1
     Malaria Among U.S. Embassy Personnel .................................  5
     FDA Approval of Hib Vaccine for Children/Infants .....................  8

2.  Dental News
     Workshop Explores Oral Manifestations of HIV Infection ............... 11

3.  Food & Drug Administration News
     FDA Approves Depo Provera, injectable contraceptive .................. 14
     New Rules Speed Approval of Drugs for Life-Threatening Illnesses ..... 16

4.  Articles
     Research Promises Preventing/Slowing Blindness from Retinal Disease .. 18
     Affluent Diet Increases Risk Of Heart Disease ........................ 20

5.  General Announcments
     Publications for Health Professionals from National Cancer Institute . 23
     Publications for Patients Available from National Cancer Institute ... 30

6.  AIDS News Summaries
     AIDS Daily Summary for April 19 to April 23, 1993 .................... 38

7.  AIDS Statistics
     Worldwide AIDS Statistics ............................................ 48





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                            Page    i
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
               Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - MMWR
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               Rates of Cesarean Delivery -- United States, 1991
               =================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     Cesarean deliveries have accounted for nearly 1 million of the 
approximately 4 million annual deliveries in the United States since 1986 
(Table 1). The cesarean rate in the United States is the third highest among 
21 reporting countries, exceeded only by Brazil and Puerto Rico (1). This 
report presents data on cesarean deliveries from CDC's National Hospital 
Discharge Survey (NHDS) for 1991 and compares these data with previous years. 
     Data on discharges from short-stay, nonfederal hospitals have been 
collected annually since 1965 in the NHDS, conducted by CDC's National Center 
for Health Statistics. For 1991, medical and demographic information were 
abstracted from a sample of 274,000 inpatients discharged from 484 
participating hospitals. The 1991 cesareans and vaginal births after a prior 
cesarean (VBAC) presented in this report are based on weighted national 
estimates from the NHDS sample of approximately 31,000 (11%) women discharged 
after delivery. The estimated numbers of live births by type of delivery were 
calculated by applying cesarean rates from the NHDS to live births from 
national vital registration data. Therefore, estimates of the number of 
cesareans in this report will not agree with previously published data based 
solely on the NHDS (2). Stated differences in this analysis are significant at 
the 95% confidence level, based on the two-tailed t-test with a critical value 
of 1.96. 
     In 1991, there were 23.5 cesareans per 100 deliveries, the same rate as 
in 1990 and similar to rates during 1986-1989 (Table 1). The primary cesarean 
rate (i.e., number of first cesareans per 100 deliveries to women who had no 
previous cesareans) for 1986-1991 also was stable, ranging from 16.8 to 17.5. 
In 1991, the cesarean rate in the South was 27.6, significantly (p<0.05) 
higher than the rates for the West (19.8), Midwest (21.8), and Northeast 
(22.6). Rates were higher for mothers aged greater than or equal to 30 years 
than for younger women; in proprietary hospitals than in nonprofit or 
government hospitals; in hospitals with fewer than 300 beds than in larger 
hospitals; and for deliveries for which Blue Cross/Blue Shield * and other 
private insurance is the expected source of payment than for other sources of 
payment (Table 2). The same pattern characterized primary cesarean deliveries. 
     Since the early 1970s, the number and percentage of births to older women 
increased; however, if the age distribution of mothers in 1991 had remained 
the same as in 1986, the overall cesarean rate in 1991 would have been 23.3, 
essentially the same as the 23.5 observed. 
     Based on the NHDS, of the approximately 4,111,000 live births in 1991, an 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  1
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

estimated 966,000 (23.5%) were by cesarean delivery. Of these, an estimated 
338,000 (35.0%) births were repeat cesareans, and 628,000 (65.0%) were primary 
cesareans. Since 1986, approximately 600,000 primary cesareans have been 
performed annually. In 1986, 8.5% of women who had a previous cesarean 
delivered vaginally, compared with 24.2% in 1991. Of all cesareans in 1991, 
35.0% were associated with a previous cesarean, 30.4% with dystocia (i.e., 
failure of labor to progress), 11.7% with breech presentation, 9.2% with fetal 
distress, and 13.7% with all other specified complications. 
     The average hospital stay for all deliveries in 1991 was 2.8 days. In 
comparison, the hospital stay for a primary cesarean delivery was 4.5 days, 
and for a repeat cesarean, 4.2 days -- nearly twice the duration for VBAC 
deliveries (2.2 days) or for vaginal deliveries that were not VBACs (2.3 
days). In 1986, the average hospital stay for all deliveries was 3.2 days, for 
primary cesareans 5.2 days, for repeat cesareans 4.7 days, and for VBAC and 
non-VBAC vaginal deliveries 2.7 and 2.6 days, respectively. 

Reported by: Office of Vital and Health Statistics Systems, National Center 
for Health Statistics, CDC. 

Editorial Note: The cesarean rate in the United States steadily increased from 
1965 through 1986; however, the findings in this report indicate that rates 
have been stable since 1986 (3). Because there is little evidence that 
maternal and child health status has improved during this time and because 
cesareans are associated with an increased risk for complications of 
childbirth, a national health objective for the year 2000 (4) is to reduce the 
overall cesarean rate to 15 or fewer per 100 deliveries and the primary 
cesarean rate to 12 or fewer per 100 deliveries (objective 14.8). 
     Postpartum complications -- including urinary tract and wound infections 
-- may account in part for the longer hospital stays for cesarean deliveries 
than for vaginal births (5). Moreover, the prolonged hospital stays for 
cesarean deliveries substantially increase health-care costs. For example, in 
1991, the average costs for cesarean and vaginal deliveries were $7826 and 
$4720, respectively. The additional cost for each cesarean delivery includes 
$611 for physician fees and $2495 for hospital charges (6). If the cesarean 
rate in 1991 had been 15 (the year 2000 objective) instead of 23.5, the number 
of cesarean births would have decreased by 349,000 (617,000 versus 966,000), 
resulting in a savings of more than $1 billion in physician fees and hospital 
charges. 
     Despite the steady increase in VBAC rates since 1986, several factors may 
impede progress toward the year 2000 national health objectives for cesarean 
delivery. For example, VBAC rates substantially reflect the number of women 
offered trial of labor, which has been increasingly encouraged since 1982 (7). 
Of women who are offered a trial of labor, 50%-70% could deliver vaginally (7) 
--a level already achieved by many hospitals (8). Trial of labor was routinely 
offered in 46% of hospitals surveyed in 1984 (the most recent year for which 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  2
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

national data are available) (9) when the VBAC rate (according to NHDS data) 
was 5.7%. The year 2000 objective specifies a VBAC rate of 35%, based on all 
women who had a prior cesarean, regardless of whether a trial of labor was 
attempted. To reach the overall cesarean rate goal, however, increases in the 
VBAC rate will need to be combined with a substantial reduction in the primary 
rate. 
     One hospital succeeded in reducing the rate of cesarean delivery by 
applying objective criteria for the four most common indications for cesarean 
delivery, by requiring a second opinion, and by instituting a peer-review 
process (10). Other recommendations for decreasing cesarean delivery rates 
include eliminating incentives for physicians and hospitals by equalizing 
reimbursement for vaginal and cesarean deliveries; public dissemination of 
physician- and hospital-specific cesarean delivery rates to increase public 
awareness of differences in practices; and addressing malpractice concerns, 
which may be an important factor in maintaining the high rates of cesarean 
delivery (4). 

References

1. Notzon FC. International differences in the use of obstetric interventions. 
JAMA 1990; 263:3286-91. 

2. Graves EJ, NCHS. 1991 Summary: National Hospital Discharge Survey. 
Hyattsville, Maryland: US Department of Health and Human Services, Public 
Health Service, CDC, 1993. (Advance data no. 227). 

3. Taffel SM, Placek PJ, Kosary CL. U.S. cesarean section rates, 1990: an 
update. Birth 1992;19:21-2. 

4. Public Health Service. Healthy people 2000: national health promotion and 
disease prevention objectives -- full report, with commentary. Washington, DC: 
US Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1991; DHHS 
publication no. (PHS)91-50212. 

5. Danforth DN. Cesarean section. JAMA 1985;253:811-8. 

6. Hospital Insurance Association of America. Table 4.15: cost of maternity 
care, physicians' fees, and hospital charges, by census region, based on 
Consumer Price Index (1991). In: 1992 Source book of health insurance data. 
Washington, DC: Hospital Insurance Association of America, 1992. 

7. Committee on Obstetrics. ACOG committee opinion no. 64: guidelines for 
vaginal delivery after a previous cesarean birth. Washington, DC: American 
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 1988. 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  3
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

8. Rosen MG, Dickinson JC. Vaginal birth after cesarean: a meta-analysis of 
indicators for success. Obstet Gynecol 1990;76:865-9. 

9. Shiono PH, Fielden JG, McNellis D, Rhoads GG, Pearse WH. Recent trends in 
cesarean birth and trial of labor rates in the United States. JAMA 
1987;257:494-7. 

10. Myers SA, Gleicher N. A successful program to lower cesarean-section 
rates. N Engl J Med 1988;319:1511-6. 

* Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and 
does not imply endorsement by the Public Health Service or the U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services.
































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  4
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

         Malaria Among U.S. Embassy Personnel -- Kampala, Uganda, 1992
         =============================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     The treatment and prevention of malaria in Africa has become a 
challenging and complex problem because of increasing drug resistance. 
Although the risk of acquiring malaria for U.S. citizens and their dependents 
stationed overseas generally has been low, this risk varies substantially and 
unpredictably. During May 1992, the Office of Medical Services, Department of 
State (OMS/DOS), and CDC were notified of an increased number of malaria cases 
among official U.S. personnel stationed in Kampala, Uganda. A review of the 
health records from the Embassy Health Unit (EHU) in Kampala indicated that 27 
cases of malaria were diagnosed in official personnel from March through June 
1992 compared with two cases during the same period in 1991. EHU, OMS/DOS, and 
CDC conducted an investigation to confirm all reported malaria cases and 
identify potential risk factors for malaria among U.S. Embassy personnel. This 
report summarizes the results of the investigation. 
     Malaria blood smears from 25 of the 27 reported case-patients were 
available for review by OMS/DOS and CDC. A case of malaria was confirmed if 
the slide was positive for Plasmodium sp. Of the 25 persons, 17 were slide-
confirmed as having malaria. 
     A questionnaire was distributed to all persons served by the EHU to 
obtain information about residence, activities, use of malaria 
chemoprophylaxis, and use of personal protection measures (i.e., using bednets 
and insect repellents, having window and door screens, and wearing long 
sleeves and pants in the evening). Of the 157 persons eligible for the survey, 
128 (82%) responded. 
     Risk for malaria was not associated with sex or location of residence in 
Kampala. Although the risk for malaria was higher among children aged less 
than or equal to 15 years (6/32 19%) than among persons greater than 15 
years (11/94 12%), this difference was not significant (relative risk 
RR=1.6; 95% confidence interval CI=0.6-4.0). Eighty-two percent of the 
cases occurred among persons who had been living in Kampala for 1-5 years, 
compared with those living there less than 1 year. Travel outside of the 
Kampala area to more rural settings was not associated with increased risk for 
malaria. 
     Four malaria chemoprophylaxis regimens were used by persons who 
participated in the survey: mefloquine, chloroquine and proguanil, chloroquine 
alone, and proguanil alone. In addition, 23 (18%) persons who responded were 
not using any malaria chemoprophylaxis. The risk for malaria was significantly 
lower among persons using either mefloquine or chloroquine and proguanil (8/88 
9%) than among persons using the other regimens or no prophylaxis (9/37 
24%) (RR=0.4; 95% CI=0.2-0.9). Twelve persons not using prophylaxis reported 
side effects or fear of possible side effects as a reason. 
     The risk for malaria was lower among persons who reported using bednets 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  5
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

all or most of the time (2/27 7%) than among persons who sometimes or rarely 
used bednets (15/99 15%) (RR=0.5; 95% CI=0.1-2.0). The risk for malaria was 
also lower among persons who consistently used insect repellent in the evening 
(0/16), compared with those who rarely used repellent (17/110 15%) (RR=0; 
upper 95% confidence limit=1.2). Risk for malaria was not associated with 
failure to have window or door screens or wear long sleeves or pants in the 
evening. 
     As a result of this investigation, EHU staff reviewed with all personnel 
the need to use and comply with the recommended malaria chemoprophylaxis 
regimens. EHU staff also emphasized the need to use personal protection 
measures and made plans to obtain insecticide-impregnated bednets and to 
provide window and door screens for all personnel. 

Reported by: U.S. Embassy Health Unit, Kampala, Uganda; Office of Medical 
Svcs, Dept of State, Washington, D.C. Malaria Br, Div of Parasitic Diseases, 
National Center for Infectious Diseases, CDC. 

Editorial Note: In Uganda, the increase in malaria among U.S. personnel was 
attributed to poor adherence to both recommended malaria chemoprophylaxis 
regimens and use of personal protection measures during a period of increased 
malaria transmission and intensified chloroquine resistance in sub-Saharan 
Africa. The findings in this report underscore the need to provide initial and 
continued counseling regarding malaria prevention for persons living abroad in 
malaria-endemic areas -- preventive measures that are also important for 
short-term travelers to such areas. 
     Mefloquine is an effective prophylaxis regimen in Africa and in most 
other areas with chloroquine-resistant P. falciparum; however, in some areas 
(e.g., Thailand), resistance to mefloquine may limit its effectiveness. In 
Africa, the efficacy of mefloquine, compared with chloroquine alone, in 
preventing infection with P. falciparum is 92% (1 ). Mefloquine is safe and 
well tolerated when given at 250 mg per week over a 2-year period. The risk 
for serious adverse reactions possibly associated with mefloquine prophylaxis 
(e.g., psychosis and convulsions) is low (i.e., 1.3-1.9 episodes per 100,000 
users 2), while the risk for less severe adverse reactions (e.g., dizziness, 
gastrointestinal complaints, and sleep disturbances) is similar to that for 
other antimalarial chemoprophylactics (1). 
     Doxycycline has similar prophylactic efficacy to mefloquine, but the need 
for daily dosing may reduce compliance with and effectiveness of this regimen 
(3,4). Chloroquine alone is not effective as prophylaxis in areas of intense 
chloroquine resistance (e.g., Southeast Asia and Africa). In Africa, for 
persons who cannot take mefloquine or doxycycline, chloroquine and proguanil 
is an alternative, although less effective, regimen. Chloroquine should be 
used for malaria prevention in areas only where chloroquine-resistant P. 
falciparum has not been reported. 
     Country-specific recommendations for preventing malaria and information 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  6
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

on the dosage and precautions for malaria chemoprophylaxis regimens are 
available from Health Information for International Travel, 1992 (i.e., 
"yellow book") (5) or 24 hours a day by telephone or fax, (404) 332-4555. 

References

1. Lobel HO, Miani M, Eng T, et al. Long-term malaria prophylaxis with weekly 
mefloquine in Peace Corps volunteers: an effective and well tolerated regimen. 
Lancet 1993;341:848-51. 

2. World Health Organization. Review of central nervous system adverse events 
related to the antimalarial drug, mefloquine (1985-1990). Geneva: World Health 
Organization, 1991; publication no. WHO/MAL/91.1063. 

3. Pang L, Limsomwong N, Singharaj P. Prophylactic treatment of vivax and 
falciparum malaria with low-dose doxycycline. J Infect Dis 1988;158:1124-7. 

4. Pang L, Limsomwong N, Boudreau EF, Singharaj P. Doxycycline prophylaxis for 
falciparum malaria. Lancet 1987;1:1161-4. 

5. CDC. Health information for international travel, 1992. Atlanta: US 
Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, 1992:98; DHHS 
publication no. (CDC)92-8280.






















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  7
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

      FDA Approval of Use of a New Haemophilus b Conjugate Vaccine and a
       Combined Diphtheria-Tetanus-Pertussis and Haemophilus b Conjugate
                       Vaccine for Infants and Children
      ==================================================================
                   SOURCE: MMWR 42(15)   DATE: Apr 23, 1993

     Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) conjugate vaccines have been 
recommended for use in infants since 1990, and their routine use in infant 
vaccination has contributed to the substantial decline in the incidence of Hib 
disease in the United States (1-3). Vaccines against diphtheria, tetanus, and 
pertussis during infancy and childhood have been administered routinely in the 
United States since the late 1940s and has been associated with a greater than 
90% reduction in morbidity and mortality associated with infection by these 
organisms. Because of the increasing number of vaccines now routinely 
recommended for infants, a high priority is the development of combined 
vaccines that allow simultaneous administration with fewer separate 
injections. 
     The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently licensed two new products 
for vaccinating children against these diseases: 1) the Haemophilus b 
conjugate vaccine (tetanus toxoid conjugate, ActHIB Trademark), * for 
vaccination against Hib disease only and 2) a combined diphtheria and tetanus 
toxoids and whole-cell pertussis vaccine (DTP) and Hib conjugate vaccine 
(TETRAMUNE Trademark), a combination of vaccines formulated for use in 
vaccinating children against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and Hib disease. 

                               ActHIB Trademark 

     On March 30, 1993, the FDA approved a new Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine, polyribosylribitol phosphate-tetanus toxoid conjugate (PRP-T), 
manufactured by Pasteur Merieux Serum et Vaccins and distributed as ActHIB 
Trademark by Connaught Laboratories, Inc. (Swiftwater, Pennsylvania). This 
vaccine has been licensed for use in infants in a three-dose primary 
vaccination series administered at ages 2, 4, and 6 months. Previously 
unvaccinated infants 7-11 months of age should receive two doses 2 months 
apart. Previously unvaccinated children 12-14 months of age should receive one 
dose. A booster dose administered at 15 months of age is recommended for all 
children. Previously unvaccinated children 15-59 months of age should receive 
a single dose and do not require a booster. More than 90% of infants receiving 
a primary vaccination series of ActHIB Trademark (consecutive doses at 2, 4, 
and 6 months of age) develop a geometric mean titer of anti-Haemophilus b 
polysaccharide antibody greater than 1 ug/mL (4). This response is similar to 
that of infants who receive recommended series of previously licensed 
Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines for which efficacy has been demonstrated in 
prospective trials. Two U.S. efficacy trials of PRP-T were terminated early 
because of the concomitant licensure of other Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  8
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

for use in infants (4). In these studies, no cases of invasive Hib disease 
were detected in approximately 6000 infants vaccinated with PRP-T. These and 
other studies suggest that the efficacy of PRP-T vaccine will be similar to 
that of the other licensed Hib vaccines. TETRAMUNE Trademark 
     On March 30, 1993, the FDA approved a combined diphtheria and tetanus 
toxoids and whole-cell pertussis vaccine (DTP) and Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine. TETRAMUNE Trademark, available from Lederle-Praxis Biologicals (Pearl 
River, New York), combines two previously licensed products, DTP (TRIIMMUNOL 
Registered, manufactured by Lederle Laboratories Pearl River, New York) and 
Haemophilus b conjugate vaccine (HibTITER Registered, manufactured by Praxis 
Biologics, Inc. Rochester, New York). 
     This vaccine has been licensed for use in children aged 2 months-5 years 
for protection against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and Hib disease when 
indications for vaccination with DTP vaccine and Haemophilus b conjugate 
vaccine coincide. Based on demonstration of co mparable or higher antibody 
responses to each of the components of the two vaccines, TETRAMUNE Trademark 
is expected to provide protection against Hib, as well as diphtheria, tetanus, 
and pertussis, equivalent to that of already licensed formulations of other 
DTP and Haemophilus b vaccines. 
     The Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends that 
all infants receive a primary series of one of the licensed Haemophilus b 
conjugate vaccines beginning at 2 months of age and a booster dose at age 12-
15 months (5). The ACIP also recommends that all infants receive a four-dose 
primary series of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and pertussis vaccine at 2, 
4, 6, and 15-18 months of age, and a booster dose at 4-6 years (6-8). A 
complete statement regarding recommendations for use of ActHIB Trademark and 
TETRAMUNE Trademark is being developed. 

Reported by: Office of Vaccines Research and Review, Center for Biologics 
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration. Div of Immunization, 
National Center for Prevention Svcs; Meningitis and Special Pathogens Br, Div 
of Bacterial and Mycotic Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, 
CDC. 

References

1. Adams WG, Deaver KA, Cochi SL, et al. Decline of childhood Haemophilus 
influenzae type b (Hib) disease in the Hib vaccine era. JAMA 1993;269:221-6. 

2. Broadhurst LE, Erickson RL, Kelley PW. Decrease in invasive Haemophilus 
influenzae disease in U.S. Army children, 1984 through 1991. JAMA 
1993;269:227-31. 

3. Murphy TV, White KE, Pastor P, et al. Declining incidence of Haemophilus 
influenzae type b disease since introduction of vaccination. JAMA 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page  9
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

1993;269:246-8. 

4. Fritzell B, Plotkin S. Efficacy and safety of a Haemophilus influenzae type 
b capsular polysaccharide-tetanus protein conjugate vaccine. J Pediatr 
1992;121:355-62. 

5. ACIP. Haemophilus b conjugate vaccines for prevention of Haemophilus 
influenzae type b disease among infants and children two months of age and 
older: recommendations of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee 
(ACIP). MMWR 1991;40(no. RR-1). 

6. ACIP. Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis -- recommendations for vaccine use 
and other preventive measures: recommendations of the Immunization Practices 
Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 1991;40(no. RR-10). 

7. ACIP. Pertussis vaccination: acellular pertussis vaccine for reinforcing 
and booster use -- supplementary ACIP statement: recommendations of the 
Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 1992;41(no. RR-1). 

8. ACIP. Pertussis vaccination: acellular pertussis vaccine for the fourth and 
fifth doses of the DTP series -- update to supplementary ACIP statement: 
recommendations of the Immunization Practices Advisory Committee (ACIP). MMWR 
1992;41(no. RR-15). 

* Use of trade names and commercial sources is for identification only and 
does not imply endorsement by the Public Health Service or the U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services.


















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 10
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                  Dental News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

            International Workshop Explores Oral Manifestations of
                                 HIV Infection

                             NIDR Research Digest
                             written by Jody Dove
                                  March 1993
                     National Institute of Dental Research

     At the Second International Workshop on the Oral Manifestations of HIV 
Infection, held January 31-February 3 in San Francisco, participants explored 
issues related to the epidemiology, basic molecular virology, mucosal 
immunology, and oral clinical presentations of HIV infection. 
     The workshop was organized by Dr. John Greenspan and Dr. Deborah 
Greenspan of the Department of Stomatology, School of Dentistry, University of 
California, San Francisco.  An international steering committee and scientific 
program committee provided guidance. 
     The conference drew more than 260 scientists from 39 countries, including 
Asia, Africa, Europe, Central America, South America, as well as the United 
States and Canada.  Support tor the workshop was provided by the National 
Institute of Dental Research, the National Cancer Institute, the National 
Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the NIH Office of AIDS Research, 
and the Procter and Gamble Company. 
     Among the topics discussed were: the epidemiology of HIV lesions; ethics, 
professional responsibility, and public policy; occupational issues; provision 
of oral care to the HIV-positive population; salivary HIV transmission and 
mucosal immunity; opportunistic infections; pediatric HIV infection; and 
women's issues. 

                                Recommendations

     Recommendations emerged from the workshop to define the association 
between the appearance of oral lesions and rate of progression of HIV, to 
establish a universal terminology for HIV-associated oral lesions, to look for 
more effective treatments for oral manifestations, to expand molecular biology 
studies to understand the relationship between HIV infection and common oral 
lesions, and to study the effects of HIV therapy on oral lesions. 

                                 Epidemiology

     Since the First International Workshop on Oral Manifestations of HIV 
Infection was convened five years ago, the epidemiology of HIV infection has 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 11
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

radically changed.  In 1988, HIV infection was detected and reported largely 
in homosexual and bisexual males, intravenous drug users, and hemophiliacs.  
Today, more HIV infection is seen in heterosexual males and females and in 
children and adolescents. 
     While the predominant impact of HIV infection has been felt in Africa, a 
major increase in infection rate is being seen in Southeast Asia as well.  
Five hundred thousand cases have been reported to date in this region and more 
are appearing all the time. 
     Researchers are continuing to document the epidemiology of oral lesions 
such as hairy leukoplakia and candidiasis.  They also are beginning to explore 
the relationships between specific oral lesions and HIV disease progression 
and prognosis. 

                            Social/political Issues

     Discussion on the social and political implications of HIV infection 
focused on changing the public's attitude that AIDS is retribution for 
indiscriminate sexual behavior and drug use.  Speakers also addressed health 
care delivery for HIV-infected patients, and the need to educate the public 
about what AIDS is, and how it is acquired. 

                          Saliva and Salivary Glands

     Conference speakers described transmission issues and the HIV-inhibitory 
activity of saliva, the strength of which varies among the different salivary 
secretions.  Whole saliva has a greater inhibitory effect than submandibular 
secretions, which in turn have a greater inhibitory effect than parotid 
secretions.  Research has shown that at least two mechanisms are responsible 
for salivary inhibitory activity.  They attributed the HIV-inhibitory effect 
of saliva to the 1) aggregation/agglutination of HIV by saliva, which may both 
promote clearance of virus and prevent it reaching a target cell, and 2) 
direct effects on the virus or target cells. 
     Other topics discussed were the manifestation of salivary gland disease 
in HIV-infected persons and current research on oral mucosal immunity. 

                               Pediatric Issues

     Pediatric AIDS recently has emerged as an area of intense interest.  With 
early and accurate diagnosis and proper treatment, the life expectancy of HIV-
infected children has tripled.  The prevention of transmission of HIV from 
mother to child may be possible in many cases, particularly if the mother's 
sero-status is known prior to giving birth. 

                    Periodontal and Gingival Tissue Disease


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 12
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     Oral health researchers continue to explore periodontal diseases and 
gingivitis found in individuals with HIV infection.  Recommendations made at 
the workshop include the standardization of terminology, refinement of 
diagnostic markers, standardization of study design, and proper consideration 
of confounding variables resulting from periodontal therapy. 

                       Occupational and Treatment Issues

     Occupational issues surrounding the treatment of HIV-infected individuals 
and treatment rendered by HIV-infected health care professionals still command 
considerable attention.  Factors under consideration include the cost/benefit 
of HIV testing, patient-to-health care provider transmission of HIV infection 
and the reverse, and the use of mainstream versus dedicated facilities for the 
treatment of HIV-infected patients. 
     Conference participants anticipate that a third International Workshop on 
the Oral Manifestations of HIV Infection will be held in five years or less.  
Proceedings from the second workshop will be published by the Quintessence 
Company in late 1993.






















--------- end of part 1 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59284
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 2/4

------------- cut here -----------------





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 13
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                        Food & Drug Administration News
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

              FDA Approves Depo Provera, injectable contraceptive
                      P92-31 Food and Drug Administration
              FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Susan Cruzan - (301) 443-3285


The Food and Drug Administration today announced the approval of Depo Provera, 
an injectable contraceptive drug. 

The drug, which contains a synthetic hormone similar to the natural hormone 
progesterone, protects women from pregnancy for three months per injection. 
The hormone is injected into the muscle of the arm or buttock where it is 
released into the bloodstream to prevent pregnancy. It is more than 99 percent 
effective.

"This drug presents another long-term, effective option for women to prevent 
pregnancy," said FDA Commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D. "As an injectable, 
given once every three months, Depo Provera eliminates problems related to 
missing a daily dose."

Depo Provera is available in 150 mg. single dose vials from doctors and 
clinics and must be given on a regular basis to maintain contraceptive 
protection. If a patient decides to become pregnant, she discontinues the 
injections.

As with any such products, FDA advises patients to discuss the benefits and 
risks of Depo Provera with their doctor or other health care professional 
before making a decision to use it.

Depo Provera's effectiveness as a contraceptive was established in extensive 
studies by the manufacturer, the World Health Organization and health agencies 
in other countries. U.S. clinical trials, begun in 1963, also found Depo 
Provera effective as an injectable contraceptive.

The most common side effects are menstrual irregularities and weight gain. In 
addition, some patients may experience headache, nervousness, abdominal pain, 
dizziness, weakness or fatigue. The drug should not be used in women who have 
acute liver disease, unexplained vaginal bleeding, breast cancer or blood 
clots in the legs, lungs or eyes.

The labeling advises doctors to rule out pregnancy before prescribing the 
drug, due to concerns about low birth weight in babies exposed to the drug. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 14
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Recent data have also demonstrated that long-term use may contribute to 
osteoporosis. The manufacturer will conduct additional research to study this 
potential effect.

Depo Provera was Developed in the 1960s and has been approved for 
contraception in many other countries. The UpJohn Company of Kalamazoo, Mich., 
which will market the drug under the name, Depo Provera Contraceptive 
Injection, first submitted it for approval in the United States in the 1970s. 
At that time, animal studies raised questions about its potential to cause 
breast cancer. Worldwide studies have since found the overall risk of cancer, 
including breast cancer in humans, to be minimal if any.


































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 15
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

       New Rules Speed Approval of Drugs for Life-Threatening Illnesses
                      P92-37 Food and Drug Administration
                        Monica Revelle - (301) 443-4177

The Food and Drug Administration today announced that it will soon publish new 
rules to shed the approval of drugs for patients with serious or life-
threatening illnesses, such as AIDS, cancer and Alzheimer's disease. 

"These final rules will help patients who are suffering the most serious 
illnesses to get access to new drugs months or even years earlier than would 
otherwise be possible," said HHS Secretary Louis W. Sullivan, M.D. "The effort 
to accelerate FDA review for these drugs has been a long-term commitment and 
indeed a hallmark of this administration." 

These rules establish procedures for the Food and Drug Administration to 
approve a drug based on "surrogate endpoints" or markers. They apply when the 
drug provides a meaningful benefit over currently available therapies. Such 
endpoints would include laboratory tests or physical signs that do not in 
themselves constitute a clinical effect but that are judged by qualified 
scientists to be likely to correspond to real benefits to the patient. 

Use of surrogate endpoints for measurement of drug efficacy permits approval 
earlier than if traditional endpoints -- such as relief of disease symptoms or 
prevention of disability and death from the disease -- are used. 

The new rules provide for therapies to be approved as soon as safety and 
effectiveness, based on surrogate endpoints, can be reasonably established. 
The drug's sponsor will be required to agree to continue or conduct 
postmarketing human studies to confirm that the drug's effect on the surrogate 
endpoint is an indicator of its clinical effectiveness. 

One new drug -- zalcitabine (also called ddC) -- was approved June 19, using a 
model of this process, for treating the human immunodeficiency virus, HIV, the 
cause of AIDS. 

Accelerated approval can also be used, if necessary, when FDA determines that 
a drug, judged to be effective for the treatment of a disease, can be used 
safely only under a restricted distribution plan. 

"The new rules will help streamline the drug development and review process 
without sacrificing goad science and rigorous FDA oversight," said FDA 
commissioner David A. Kessler, M.D. "While drug approval will be accomplished 
faster, these drugs and biological products must still meet safety and 
effectiveness standards required by law." 


HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 16
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

The new procedures also allow for a streamlined withdrawal process if the 
postmarketing studies do not verify the drug's clinical benefit, if there is 
new evidence that the drug product is not shown to be safe and effective, or 
if other specified circumstances arise that necessitate expeditious withdrawal 
of the drug or biologic.








































HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 17
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                   Articles
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               Research Shows Promise for Preventing or Slowing
                       Blindness due to Retinal Disease

                   National Retinitis Pigmentosa Foundation

        Neutrophilic Factors Rescue Photoreceptor Cells in Animal Tests

     Baltimore, MD - Researchers at the University of California San Francisco 
and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc. [NASDAQ: REGN] have discovered that 
certain naturally occurring substances known as neurotrophic factors can 
prevent the degeneration of light-sensing cells in the retina of the eye. The 
degeneration of these cells, known as photoreceptors, is a major cause of 
visual impairment 
     This research, published to in the December issue of the Proceedings of 
the National Academy of Science (PNAS), holds promise for people who may lose 
their sight due to progressive retinal degeneration -- currently, no drug 
treatment for retinal degeneration exists. It is estimated that 2.5 million 
Americans have severe vision loss due to age-related macular degeneration and 
100,000 Americans are affected by retinitis pigmentosus, a hereditary disease 
that causes blindness. In addition, each year more than 15,000 people undergo 
surgical procedures to repair retinal detachments and other retinal traumas. 
     The research was funded in part by the RP (Retinitis Pigmentosa) 
Foundation Fighting Blindness, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and the National Eye 
Institute. It was conducted by Drs. Matthew M. LaVail, Kazuhiko Unoki, Douglas 
Yasurnura, Michael T. Matthes and Roy H. Steinberg at UCSF, arld Dr. C;eorge 
Yancoooulos, Regeneron's Vice President for Discovery. Regeneron holds an 
exclusive license for this research from UCSF.
     In the research described in the PNAS , a light-damage model was used to 
assess the survival-promoting activity of a number of naturally occurring 
substances. Experimental rats were exposed to constant light for one week. 
Eyes that had not been treated with an effective factor lost most of their 
photoreceptor cells -- the rods and cones of the retina -- after light 
exposure. Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and Ciliary Neurotrophic 
Factor (CNTF) were particularly effective in this model without causing 
unwanted side effects; other factors such as Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) and 
Insulin-like Growth Factor (IGF-1) were not effective in these experiments. 
     Discussing the research, Dr. Jesse M. Cedarbaum, Regeneron's Director of 
Clinical Research, said, "BDNF's ability to rescue neurons in the retina that 
have been damaged by light exposure may hold promise for the treatment of age-
related macular degeneration, one of the leading causes of vision impairment, 
and for retinal detachment. Following detachment, permanent vision loss may 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 18
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

result frorn the death of detached retinal cells. It is possible that BDNF 
could play a role in rescuing those cells once the retina has been reattached 
surgically." 
     "Retinitis pigmentosa is a slowly progressing disease that causes the 
retina to degenerate over a period of years or even decades. Vision decreases 
to a small tunnel of sight and can result in total blindness. It is our hope 
that research on growth factors will provide a means to slow the progression 
and preserve useful vision throughout life," stated Jeanette S. Felix, Ph.D., 
Director of Science for the RP Foundation Fighting Blindness. 
     In addition to the work described , Regeneron is developing BDNF in 
conjunction with Aingen Inc. [NASDAQ:AMGN] as a possible treatment for 
peripheral neuropathies associated with diabetes and cancer chemotherapy, 
motor neuron diseases, Parkinson's disease, and Alzheimer's disease. By 
itself, Regeneron is testing CNTF in patients with arnyotrophic lateral 
sclerosis (commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease). 
     Regeneron Pharlnaceuticals, Inc., based in Tarrytown, New York, is a 
leader in the discovery and development of biotechnology-based compounds for 
the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases, peripheral neuropathies and nerve 
injuries, which affect more than seven million Americans. Drs. LaVail and 
Steinberg of UCSF are consultants to Regeneron.

























HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 19
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

                 Affluent Diet Increases Risk Of Heart Disease

                          Research Resources Reporter
                           written by Mary Weideman
                                 Nov/Dec 1992
                         National Institutes of Health


     High-fat, high-calorie diets rapidly increase risk factors for coronary 
heart disease in native populations of developing countries that have 
traditionally consumed diets low in fat.  These findings, according to 
investigators at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland, have 
serious implications for public health in both industrialized and developing 
countries. 
     "This study demonstrates why we can develop coronary heart disease and 
have higher blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels.  It shows also the 
importance of diet and particularly the potential of the diet to increase body 
weight, thereby leading to a whole host of other health problems in developing 
countries and affluent nations as well," explains principal investigator Dr. 
William E. Connor, head of the section of clinical nutrition and lipid 
metabolism at Oregon Health Sciences University. 
     Over the past 25 years Dr. Connor and his team have characterized the 
food and nutrient intakes of the Tara humara Indians in Mexico, while 
simultaneously documenting various aspects of Tarahumara lipid metabolism.  
These native Mexicans number approximately 50,000 and reside in the Sierra 
Madre Occidental Mountains in the state of Chihuahua.  The Tarahumaras have 
coupled an agrarian diet to endurance racing.  Probably as a result, coronary 
heart disease, which is so prevalent in Western industrialized nations, is 
virtually non existent in their culture.  Loosely translated, the name 
Tarahumara means "fleet of foot," reflecting a tribal passion for betting on 
"kickball" races, in which participants run distances of 100 miles or more 
while kicking a machete-carved wooden ball.
     The typical Tarahumara diet consists primarily of pinto beans, tortillas, 
and pinole, a drink made of ground roasted corn mixed with cold water, 
together with squash and gath ered fruits and vegetables.  The Tara humaras 
also eat small amounts of game, fish, and eggs.  Their food contains 
approximately 12 percent of total calories as fat of which the majority (69 
percent) is of vegetable origin.  Dietician Martha McMurry, a coinvestigator 
in the study, describes their diet as simple and very rich in nutrients while 
low in cholesterol and fat.
     The Tarahumaras have average plasma cholesterol levels of 121 mg/ dL, 
low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol levels of 72 mg/dl, and high-density 
lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol levels of 32 to 42 mg/dl.  All of those values 
are in the good, low-risk range, according to the researchers.  Elevated 
cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels are considered risk factors for heart 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 20
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

disease.  HDL-cholesterol is considered beneficial.  In previous studies the 
Tarahumaras had been found to be at low risk for cardiac disease, although 
able to respond to high-cholesterol diets with elevations in total and LDL-
cholesterol. 
     Clinical Research Center dietitian McMurry and coinvestigator Maria 
Teresa Cerqueira established a metabolic unit in a Jesuit mission school 
building near a community hospital in the small village of Sisoguichi.  Food 
was weighed, cooked, and fed to the study participants under the 
investigators' direct supervision, ensuring that subjects ate only food 
stipulated by the research protocol.  Fasting blood was drawn twice weekly, 
and plasma samples were frozen and shipped to Dr. Connors laboratory for 
cholesterol, triglyceride, and lipoprotein analyses.  Regular measurements 
included participant body weight, height, and triceps skin fold thickness.  
Thirteen Tarahumaras, five women and eight men, including one adolescent, were 
fed their native diet for 1 week, followed by 5 weeks of an "affluent" diet. 
     "In this study we went up to a concentration of dietary fat that was 40 
percent of total calories.  This is the prototype of the holiday diet that 
many Americans consume a diet high in fat, sugar, and cholesterol, low in 
fiber," elaborates Dr. Conners. Such dietary characteristics are reflected in 
the cholesterol-saturation index, or CSI, recently devised research dietitian 
Sonja Conner working with Dr. Connor.  "The CSI is a single number that 
incorporates both the amount of cholesterol and the amount of saturated fat in 
the diet.  CSI indicates the diet's potential to elevate the cholesterol 
level, particularly the LDL," Dr. Connor explains.  The Tarahumaran diet 
averages a very low CSI of 20; Dr. Connor's "affluent" diet used in the study 
ranks a CSI of 149. 
     The experimental design of this study reflects the importance of 
establishing baseline plasma lipid levels, typical of the native diet, before 
exposing subjects to the experimental diet.  The standard curve relating 
dietary food intake to plasma cholesterol demonstrates a leveling off, or 
plateau, for consumption of large amounts of fat.  Changes in dietary fat 
and/or cholesterol in this range have little effect on plasma levels.  "You 
must have the baseline diet almost free of the variables you are going to put 
into the experimental diet.  The Framingham study, for example, did not 
discriminate on the basis of diet between individuals who got heart disease 
because the diet was already high in fat.  All subjects were already eating on 
a plateau," Dr. Connor says. 
     After 5 weeks of consuming the "affluent" diet, the subjects' mean plasma 
cholesterol levels had in creased by 31 percent, primarily in the LDL 
fraction, which rose 39 percent.  HDL-cholesterol increased by 31 per cent, 
and LDL to HDL ratios changed therefore very little.  Plasma triglyceride 
levels increased by 18 percent, and subjects averaged an 8-pound gain in 
weight.  According to Dr. Connor, lipid changes occurred surprisingly soon, 
yielding nearly the same results after 7 days of affluent diet as after 35 
days. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 21
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     The increase in HDL carries broad dietary implications for industrialized 
nations.  "We think HDL-cholesterol increased because we increased the amount 
of dietary fat over the fat content used in the previous Tarahumara metabolic 
study.  In that study we saw no change in HDL levels after raising the dietary 
cholesterol but keeping the fat relatively consistent with native consumption.  
In the present study we increased fat intake to 40 percent of the total 
calories.  We reached the conclusion in the Tarahumara study that HDL reflects 
the amount of dietary fat in general and not the amount of dietary 
cholesterol.  HDL must increase to help metabolize the fat, and it increased 
quite a bit in this study," Dr. Connor explains.
     Low HDL in the Tarahumarans is not typically an important predictor of 
coronary heart disease because they do not normally consume large amounts of 
fat or cholesterol.  HDL remains an important predictor to Americans because 
of their usual high fat intake. 
     Dr. Connor recommends a diet for Americans that contains less than 20 
percent of total calories as fat, less than 100 mg of cholesterol, and a CSI 
around 20, varying in accordance with caloric needs.  Such a diet is low in 
meat and dairy fat, high in fiber.  Dr. Connor also comments on recent 
suggestions that Americans adopt a "Mediterranean-style" diet.  "The original 
Mediterranean diet, in its pristine state, consisted of a very low intake of 
fat and very few animal and dairy products.  We are already eating a lot of 
meat and dairy products.  Simply to continue that pattern while switching to 
olive oil is not going to help the situation." 
     The World Health Organization (WHO) is focusing much attention on the 
emergence of diseases such as coronary heart disease in nations and societies 
undergoing technological development.  Dr. Connor says that coronary heart 
disease starts with a given society's elite, who typically eat a different 
diet than the average citizen.  "If the pattern of afluence increases, the 
entire population will have have a higher incidence of coronary heart disease, 
which places a termendous health care burden on a society.  WHO would like the 
developing countries to prevent coronary heart disease, so they can 
concentrate on other aspects of their economic development and on public 
health measures to improve general well-being, rather than paying for 
unnecessary, expensive medical technology," Dr. Connors says.
     "The overall implication of this study is that humans can readily move 
their plasma lipids and lipoprotein values into a high-risk range within a 
very short time by an affluent, excessive diet.  The present rate of coronary 
heart disease in the United States is 30 percent less than it was 20 years 
ago, so a lot has been accomplished.  We are changing rapidly," he concludes.






HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 22
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                             General Announcments
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

        Publications for Health Professionals Available from NCI (1/93)

Unless otherwise noted, the following materials are provided free of charge by 
calling the NCI's Publication Ordering Service, 1-800-4-CANCER.  Because 
Federal Government publications are not subject to copyright restriction, you 
are free to photocopy NCI material. 
 
 
GENERAL INFORMATION
 
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
     sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide
     information about side effects of common drugs used to treat
     cancer, their proper usage, and precautions for patients.
     The fact sheets were prepared by the United States
     Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for distribution by the
     National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only may be ordered.
 
     CANCER RATES AND RISKS, 3RD EDITION (85-691).  This book is
     a compact guide to statistics, risk factors, and risks for
     major cancer sites.  It includes charts and graphs showing
     incidence, mortality, and survival worldwide and in the
     United States.  It also contains a section on the costs of
     cancer. 136 pages.
 
     DIET, NUTRITION & CANCER PREVENTION: A GUIDE TO FOOD CHOICES
     (87-2778).  This booklet describes what is now known about
     diet, nutrition, and cancer prevention.  It provides
     information about foods that contain components like fiber,
     fat, and vitamins that may affect a person's risk of getting
     certain cancers.  It suggests ways to use that information
     to select from a broad variety of foods--choosing more of
     some foods and less of others. Includes recipes and sample
     menus.  39 pages.
 
     NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE FACT BOOK.  This book presents
     general information about the National Cancer Institute
     including budget data, grants and contracts, and historical
     information.
 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 23
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     NATIONAL CANCER INSTITUTE GRANTS PROCESS (91-1222) (Revised
     3/90).  This booklet describes general NCI grant award
     procedures; includes chapters on eligibility, preparation of
     grant application, peer review, eligible costs, and post-
     award activities.  62 pages.
 
     PHYSICIAN TO PHYSICIAN: PERSPECTIVE ON CLINICAL TRIALS. This
     15-minute videocassette discusses why and how to enter
     patients on clinical trials.  It was produced in
     collaboration with the American College of Surgeons
     Commission on Cancer.
 
 
     STUDENTS WITH CANCER: A RESOURCE FOR THE EDUCATOR (91-2086).
     (Revised 4/87) This booklet is designed for teachers who
     have students with cancer in their classrooms or schools. It
     includes an explanation of cancer, its treatment and
     effects, and guidelines for the young person's re-entry to
     school and for dealing with terminally ill students.
     Bibliographies are included for both educators and young
     people.  22 pages.
 
     UNDERSTANDING THE IMMUNE SYSTEM (92-529). This booklet
     describes the complex network of specialized cells and
     organs that make up the human immune system. It explains how
     the system works to fight off disease caused by invading
     agents such as bacteria and viruses, and how it sometimes
     malfunctions, resulting in a variety of diseases from
     allergies, to arthritis, to cancer. It was developed by the
     National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and
     printed by the National Cancer Institute.  This booklet
     presents college level instruction in immunology.  It is
     appropriate for nursing or pharmacology students and for
     persons receiving college training in other areas within the
     health professions.  36 pages.
 
 
MATERIALS TO HELP STOP TOBACCO USE
 
     CHEW OR SNUFF EDUCATOR PACKAGE (91-2976).  Each package
     contains:
 
          Ten copies of CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF, a
          brochure designed for seventh and eighth graders that
          describes the health and social effects of using

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 24
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

          smokeless tobacco products.  When fully opened, the
          brochure can be used as a poster.
 
          One copy of CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF:  A GUIDE
          TO MAKE YOUNG PEOPLE AWARE OF THE DANGERS OF USING
          SMOKELESS TOBACCO.  This booklet is a lesson plan for
          teachers.  It contains facts about smokeless tobacco,
          suggested classroom activities, and selected
          educational resources.
 
     HOW TO HELP YOUR PATIENTS STOP SMOKING: A NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE MANUAL FOR PHYSICIANS (92-3064).  This is a step-
     by-step handbook for instituting smoking cessation
     techniques in medical practices.  The manual, with resource
     lists and tear-out materials, is based on the results of NCI
     clinical trials.  75 pages.
 
     HOW TO HELP YOUR PATIENTS STOP USING TOBACCO: A NATIONAL
     CANCER INSTITUTE MANUAL FOR THE ORAL HEALTH TEAM (91-3191).
     This is a handbook for dentists, dental hygienists, and
     dental assistants.  It complements the physicians' manual
     and includes additional information on smoking prevention
     and on smokeless tobacco use.  58 pages.
 
     PHARMACISTS HELPING SMOKERS QUIT KIT.  A packet of materials
     to help pharmacists encourage their smoking patients to
     quit.  Contains a pharmacist's guide and self-help materials
     for 25 patients.
 
     SCHOOL PROGRAMS TO PREVENT SMOKING: THE NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE GUIDE TO STRATEGIES THAT SUCCEED (90-500).  This
     guide outlines eight essential elements of a successful
     school-based smoking prevention program based on NCI
     research.  It includes a list of available curriculum
     resources and selected references.  24 pages.
 
 
     SELF-GUIDED STRATEGIES FOR SMOKING CESSATION: A PROGRAM
     PLANNER'S GUIDE (91-3104). This booklet outlines key
     characteristics of successful self-help materials and
     programs based on NCI collaborative research.  It lists
     additional resources and references. 36 pages.
 
 
     SMOKING POLICY: QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. These ten fact sheets

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 25
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     provide basic information about the establishment of
     worksite smoking policies. Topics range from the health
     effects of environmental tobacco smoke to legal issues
     concerning policy implementation.
 
     STRATEGIES TO CONTROL TOBACCO USE IN THE UNITED STATES:  A
     BLUEPRINT FOR PUBLIC HEALTH ACTION IN THE 1990s (92-3316:
     Smoking and Control Monograph No. 1).  This volume provides
     a summary of what has been learned from 40 years of a public
     health effort against smoking, from the early trial-and-
     error health information campaigns of the 1960s to the NCI's
     science-based project, American Stop Smoking Intervention
     Study for Cancer Prevention, which began in 1991.  It offers
     reasons why comprehensive smoking control strategies are now
     needed to address the smoker's total environment and to
     reduce smoking prevalence significantly over the next
     decade.
 
 
MATERIALS FOR OUTREACH PROGRAMS
 
     CANCER PREVENTION AND EARLY DETECTION:  COMMUNITY OUTREACH
     PROGRAMS FOR HEALTH PROFESSIONALS
 
        Three kits are available for community program planners
        and health professionals to set up local cancer
        prevention and early detection education projects:
 
           DO THE RIGHT THING. . . GET A NEW ATTITUDE ABOUT
           CANCER COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM.  This community
           outreach kit targets Black American audiences.  It
           contains materials to help health professionals
           conduct community education programs for black
           audiences.  The kit emphasizes the early detection of
           breast cancer by mammography and of cervical cancer by
           the Pap test.  It also discusses smoking and
           nutrition.  The kit includes helpful program guidance,
           facts, news articles, visuals, and brochures.
 
           HAGALO HOY COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM.  This community
           outreach kit targets Hispanic audiences.  It contains
           bilingual and Spanish language materials to help
           health professionals conduct community education
           programs.  The materials educate Hispanic audiences
           about early detection of breast cancer by mammography

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 26
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

           and of cervical cancer by Pap tests.  The kit also
           discusses smoking and related issues.  The kit
           includes helpful guidance, facts, news articles,
           visuals and brochures.
 
           ONCE A YEAR..FOR A LIFETIME COMMUNITY OUTREACH
           MAMMOGRAPHY PROGRAM.  This community outreach kit
           targets all women age 40 or over.  It supplies
           community program planners and health professionals
           with planning guidance, facts about mammography, news
           articles, visuals and brochures.
 
 
     MAKING HEALTH COMMUNICATION PROGRAMS WORK: A PLANNER'S GUIDE
     (92-1493).  This handbook presents key principles and steps
     in developing and evaluating health communications programs
     for the public, patients, and health professionals.  It
     expands upon and replaces "Pretesting in Health
     Communications" and "Making PSAs Work." 131 pages.
 
     SUPPORT MATERIAL FOR COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAMS
 
     The video and slide presentations listed below support the
     mammography outreach programs.
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME VIDEOTAPE.  This 5-minute
        VHS videotape uses a dramatic format to highlight the
        important facts about the early detection of breast
        cancer by mammography.
 
        UNA VEZ AL ANO...PARA TODA UNA VIDA VIDEOTAPE.  This 27-
        minute Spanish videotape informs Spanish-speaking women
        of the need for medical screening, particularly
        mammography.  It explains commonly misunderstood facts
        about breast cancer and early detection.  The program, in
        a dramatic format, features Edward James Olmos and
        Cristina Saralegui.
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME SPEAKER'S KIT (SLIDE SHOW).
        This kit includes 66 full-color slides and a number-
        coded, ready-to-read script suitable for a mammography
        presentation to a large group.  It addresses the
        misconceptions prevalent about mammography and urges
        women age 40 and older to get regular mammograms so that
        breast cancer can be detected as early as possible.  Kit

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 27
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

        includes a guide, poster, media announcement, news
        feature, flyer, and pamphlets on mammography.  This kit
        is available directly by writing to:  Modern, 5000 Park
        Street North, St. Petersburg, FL 33709-9989.
--------- end of part 2 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59285
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 4/4

------------- cut here -----------------
call for employers to keep  information about the HIV status of health-care 
workers  confidential.  But doctors who know of an HIV-positive colleague  who 
has not sought advice must inform the employing authority and the appropriate 
professional regulatory body.  The guidelines  also emphasize the significance 
of notifying all patients on whom an invasive procedure has been done by an 
infected health-care  worker.  A model letter to patients who have come into 
contact  with such an individual is provided, along with suggestions for  
health officials on how to deal with the media.  In addition, a  U.K. advisory 
panel on HIV infection in health-care workers has  been formed to provide 
specific occupational recommendations to  those treating such patients. 
==================================================================    
"Properties of an HIV 'Vaccine'" Nature (04/08/93) Vol. 362, No. 6420, P. 504   
(Volvovitz, Franklin and Smith, Gale) 

     The questions raised by Moore et al. about recombinant gp160  envelope 
glycoprotein precursor from HIV-1 produced by  MicroGeneSys are advantages 
rather than disadvantages, write  Franklin Volvovitz and Gale Smith of 
MicroGeneSys in Meriden,  Conn.  Moore et al. says that gp160 in a baculovirus 
expression  system does not bind strongly to the CD4 receptor, and that this  
recombinant gp160 does not stimulate the same antibodies as the  HIV-1 virus 
does in natural infection.  But vaccination with  recombinant gp160 in 
patients infected with HIV-1 broadens HIV-1  specific envelope-directed immune 
responses, including  crossreactive antibodies to gp160 epitopes and CD4 and 
CD8  cytotoxic T-cell responses.  Volvovitz and Smith claim that they  never 
intended their gp160 molecule to be identical to the native protein.  Antibody 
responses against native HIV-1 proteins,  including the types described by 
Moore et al., exist in nearly  all AIDS patients but do not prevent 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 42
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

progression of HIV disease.  In addition, the binding of gp120 or gp120-
antibody complexes to  CD4 has been shown to interfere with antigen specific 
activation  of CD4 cells and trigger programmed cell death in vitro, which  
may contribute to the pathogenesis of HIV infection.  The absence of CD4 
binding by the MicroGeneSys gp160 vaccine may therefore be viewed as an added 
safety feature.  Phase I studies have  demonstrated stable CD4 counts, 
stimulation of cytotoxic T cells, and the suggestion of restoration of immune 
function.  Based on  these and other clinical results, MicroGeneSys gp160 was 
chosen  by researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden for the  first 
phase III vaccine therapy studies, conclude Volvovitz and  Smith. 
==================================================================    
"HIV-1 Infection: Breast Milk and HIV-1 Transmission" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 
341, No. 8850, P. 930  (Mok, Jacqueline) 

     There are still more questions than answers regarding  HIV-1-positive 
women breastfeeding their babies, writes  Jacqueline Mok of the Lancet.  The 
anti-infective properties of  milk are well documented.  While the numbers of 
leukocytes,  concentrations of lactoferrin and IgA, and lymphocyte mitogenic  
activity decline sharply during the first two to three months of  lactation to 
barely detectable levels, lactoferrin and IgA then  increase from three to 
twelve months, with 90 percent of total  IgA in milk being secretory IgA.  
Breastfeeding protects infants  against gastrointestinal and respiratory 
illnesses, in both  normal and uninfected children born to HIV-positive 
mothers.  The Italian National Registry of AIDS discovered that breastfed HIV-
1 infected children had a longer median incubation time (19 months) than 
bottlefed infants (9.7 months).  Breastfed children also had a slower 
progression to AIDS.  There is no agreement on which  antibodies offer 
protection against HIV-1 infection.  Studies of  the biological properties of 
milk from 15 HIV-1 infected women  showed the presence of IgG and IgA 
antibodies against envelope  glycoproteins, as well as IgA antibodies against 
core antigens.   Binding of HIV-1 to the CD4 receptor can be inhibited by a 
human  milk factor.  In the developing world, where infectious disease  and 
malnutrition contribute significantly to infant mortality,  breast milk is 
still the best food for infants, regardless of the mother's HIV status.  
Transmission might be restricted by  breastfeeding after colostrum and early 
milk have been expressed  and discarded.  The possibility remains that breast 
milk could  protect the infant who is already infected with HIV at birth and  
may even delay progression to AIDS, concludes Mok. 
==================================================================    
"Absence of HIV Transmission From an Infected Dentist to His Patients" Journal 
of the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 269,  No. 14, P. 1802  
(Dickinson, Gordon M. et al.) 

     If universal precautions are practiced, the risk of HIV  transmission 
from dentist to patient appears to be infinitesimal, write Gordon M. Dickinson 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 43
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

et al. of the University of Miami  School of Medicine in Miami, Fla.  The 
researchers contacted all  patients treated by a dentist with AIDS and 
attempts were made to contact all patients for HIV testing.  Living patients 
with newly detected HIV infection were interviewed, and DNA sequence  analysis 
was performed to compare genetic relatedness of their  HIV to that of the 
dentist.  Death certificates were obtained for deceased patients, and the 
medical records of those with  diagnoses suggestive of HIV disease or drug 
abuse and those dying under the age of 50 years were examined in detail.  
There were  1,192 patients who had undergone 9,267 procedures, of whom 124  
were deceased.  An examination of the death certificates of  patients 
identified five who had died with HIV infection, all of  whom were either 
homosexuals or IV-drug users.  The researchers  were able to detect 962 of the 
remaining 1,048 patients, and 900  agreed to be tested.  HIV infection was 
reported in five of the  900 patients, including four who had clear evidence 
of risk  factors for the disease.  One patient who had only a single  
evaluation by the dentist denied high-risk behavior.  Comparative DNA sequence 
analysis showed that the viruses from the dentists  and these five patients 
were not closely related.  The study  suggests the potential for HIV 
transmission from a general  dentist to his patients is minimal in a setting 
in which  universal precautions are strictly observed, conclude Dickinson  et 
al. 
       ================================================================   
                                April 22, 1993 
       ================================================================   
"AIDS Patients are Susceptible to Recurrences of TB, Study Says" Washington 
Post (04/22/93), P. A13 

     Tuberculosis can strike AIDS patients more than once, which makes the 
resurging health hazard harder to control, according to a  study published in 
today's New England Journal of Medicine.   People who contract TB usually 
develop an immunity that protects  them if they are exposed to the bacteria 
again.  But a person  whose immune system is depleted may not be able to fight 
off a  new TB infection, doctors found.  Peter M. Small of the Howard  Hughes 
Medical Institute at Stanford University, director of the  study, said that in 
order to protect against reinfection, it may  be necessary for some people to 
use TB medicines permanently.   The study examined the genetic makeup of TB 
bacteria and how the  germs changed over time in 17 patients at Kings County 
Hospital  in New York. 
================================================================    
"HIV-1 Infection: Breast Milk and HIV-1 Transmission" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 
341, No. 8850, P. 930  (Mok, Jacqueline) 

     There are still more questions than answers regarding  HIV-1-positive 
women breastfeeding their babies, writes  Jacqueline Mok of the Lancet.  The 
anti-infective properties of  milk are well documented.  While the numbers of 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 44
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

leukocytes,  concentrations of lactoferrin and IgA, and lymphocyte mitogenic  
activity decline sharply during the first two to three months of  lactation to 
barely detectable levels, lactoferrin and IgA then  increase from three to 
twelve months, with 90 percent of total  IgA in milk being secretory IgA.  
Breastfeeding protects infants  against gastrointestinal and respiratory 
illnesses, in both  normal and uninfected children born to HIV-positive 
mothers.  The Italian National Registry of AIDS discovered that breastfed HIV-
1 infected children had a longer median incubation time (19 months) than 
bottlefed infants (9.7 months).  Breastfed children also had a slower 
progression to AIDS.  There is no agreement on which  antibodies offer 
protection against HIV-1 infection.  Studies of  the biological properties of 
milk from 15 HIV-1 infected women  showed the presence of IgG and IgA 
antibodies against envelope  glycoproteins, as well as IgA antibodies against 
core antigens.   Binding of HIV-1 to the CD4 receptor can be inhibited by a 
human  milk factor.  In the developing world, where infectious disease  and 
malnutrition contribute significantly to infant mortality,  breast milk is 
still the best food for infants, regardless of the mother's HIV status.  
Transmission might be restricted by  breastfeeding after colostrum and early 
milk have been expressed  and discarded.  The possibility remains that breast 
milk could  protect the infant who is already infected with HIV at birth and  
may even delay progression to AIDS, concludes Mok. 
================================================================   
"HIV and the Aetiology of AIDS" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 957  
(Duesberg, Peter) 

     Because there is no proof that HIV is the cause of AIDS, the  hypothesis 
that drug use leads to AIDS will hopefully become a  hindrance to the 
physiologically (AZT) and psychologically  (positive AIDS test) toxic public 
health initiatives, writes  Peter Duesberg of the University of California--
Berkeley.  In the Lancet's March 13 issue, Schechter et al. call Duesberg's  
hypothesis that injected and orally used recreational drugs and  AZT lead to 
AIDS, "a hindrance to public health initiatives."   However, their hypothesis 
that HIV is the cause of AIDS has not  attained any public health benefits.  
The U.S. government spends  $4 billion annually, but no vaccine, no therapy, 
no prevention,  and no AIDS control have resulted from work on this 
hypothesis.   Schechter et al. conclude that HIV has a key role in CD4  
depletion and AIDS based on epidemiological correlations with  antibodies 
against HIV and with self reported recreational drug  use among homosexuals 
from Vancouver.  However, their survey  neglects to disprove Duesberg's drug-
AIDS hypothesis, because it  does not provide controls--i.e., confirmed drug-
free AIDS  cases--and because it does not quantify drug use and ignores AZT  
use altogether.  To refute Duesberg's hypothesis Schechter would  have to 
produce a controlled study demonstrating that over a  period of up to 10 years 
HIV-positive patients who use  recreational drugs or AZT or both have the same 
AIDS risks as  positives who do not do so.  The 10 year period is claimed by  

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 45
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

proponents of the HIV hypothesis to be the time needed for HIV to cause AIDS.  
Alternatively, they could show that HIV-free  individuals who have used drugs 
for 10 years never get  AIDS-defining illnesses, concludes Duesberg. 
================================================================   
"Rapid Decline of CD4+ Cells After IFNa Treatment in HIV-1  Infection" 
Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 959   (Vento, Sandro et al.) 

     Interferon (IFN), which induces autoantibodies and autoimmune  diseases 
in some settings, may hasten CD4 T-cell loss in some  HIV-1 infected 
individuals through the amplification of harmful  "autoimmune" reactions, 
write Sandro Vento et al. of the A.  Pugliese Hospital in Catanzaro, Italy.  
The researchers report  three asymptomatic HIV-1 infected individuals with 
hepatitis C  Virus related chronic active hepatitis (CAH) who had a rapid,  
profound decline of CD4 cells after IFN.  All three patients  throughout the 
observation were consistently negative for serum  HIV p24 antigen and had 
circulating antibodies to p24.  Sera from all three patients, obtained at the 
end of IFN treatment and  testing in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, 
contained high  titres of antibodies reacting to a sequence located in the  
aminoterminal of the beta chain of all human HLA class II  antigens, 
homologous to a sequence located in the carboxy  terminus of HIV-1 gp41.  
These autoantibodies, which also  recognize "native" class II molecules and 
may contribute to the  elimination of CD4 T cells "in vivo", were at low tires 
(50-100)  in all three patients six months after stopping IFN.  Such  
autoantibodies were not detected in 28 other patients with HIV  infection and 
HCV related CAH treated with IFN and who did not  experience CD4 T-cell loss 
in some HIV-1 infected individuals  through the amplification of harmful 
"autoimmune" reactions.  The subjects had A1; B8; DR3; and B35, DR1 HLA 
antigen combinations  which are linked with a more rapid fall in CD4 cell 
counts and  clinical progression of HIV-1 disease.  IFN can induce a very  
rapid decline of CD4 cells and should be used cautiously in  patients with 
these HLA haplotypes, the researchers conclude. 
       ================================================================   
                                April 23, 1993 
       ================================================================    
"TB Makes a Comeback" State Government News (04/93) Vol. 36, No. 4, P. 6   
(Voit, William and Knapp, Elaine S.) 

     Although tuberculosis was once believed to be eliminated in the  United 
States, it is emerging again among the homeless, AIDS  patients, immigrants, 
minorities, and prisoners.  Dr. Lee B.  Reichman, professor of medicine at the 
University of New Jersey  Medical School and president of the American Lung 
Association,  said, "Right now, it's a big city problem, but potentially it's  
everyone's problem."  The ALA predicts that 10 million Americans  are infected 
with TB, and about 10 percent of them will develop  the disease because their 
immune systems are depressed,  especially those with AIDS or HIV.  Gene 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 46
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Tammes, a Centers for  Disease Control expert, said that is why the CDC has 
issued  guidelines warning hospitals and institutions not to mix AIDS  with TB 
patients.  State health officials believe the TB is also  spreading because 
those who are most susceptible are the least  likely to follow through with 
treatment.  In addition, the  increase is attributed to a shortage of public 
health services.   In New York City, TB is an epidemic "because the number of 
cases  is increasing faster than we can treat people," said Dr. George  
Diferdinando, director of the New York State TB Control.   According to 
Diferdinando, curbing the spread of TB entails  keeping 85 percent or more of 
diagnosed TB cases in treatment.   About 40 percent of infected New York City 
residents don't  complete therapy.  When TB patients don't finish taking their  
medication, multi-drug resistant TB can develop, which requires  taking more 
expensive drugs and can take two years instead of the normal six months to 
treat.
 ================================================================    
 "Increasing Frequency of Heterosexually Transmitted AIDS in  Southern 
Florida: Artifact or Reality?" American Journal of Public Health (04/93) Vol. 
83, No. 4, P. 571  (Nwanyanwu, Okey C. et al.) 

     The alarmingly high rate of heterosexually acquired AIDS cases in 
southern Florida was partially related to misclassification of  risk, write 
Okey C. Nwanyanwu et al. of the Centers for Disease  Control in Atlanta, Ga.  
The researchers investigated 168 such  AIDS cases from Broward and coastal 
Palm Beach counties.  All of  these cases attributed to heterosexual 
transmission reported  sexual contact with bisexual men, injecting drug users, 
or  persons born in countries where heterosexual contact is the  primary route 
of HIV transmission.  Medical records of patients,  in addition to records 
from social services, HIV counseling and  testing centers, and sexually 
transmitted disease (STD) clinics  were reviewed.  If no other HIV risk factor 
was found from  medical record review, patients were interviewed using a  
standardized questionnaire.  Once STD clinic and other medical  records were 
reviewed, 29 men and 7 women were reclassified into  other HIV transmission 
categories.  After adjustments were made  for the reclassification, the 
percentage of AIDS cases reported  from Palm Beach and Broward counties 
between January 1, 1989, and March 31, 1990, that was attributed to 
heterosexual transmission  decreased from 10 percent to 6 percent among men 
and from 33  percent to 28 percent among women.  While the percentage of  
heterosexually transmitted AIDS cases in southern Florida  decreased after 
adjustment was made for reclassified cases, it  still remained above the 
national average, the researchers  conclude.





HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 47
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                                AIDS Statistics
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

                            World Health Organization, Geneva
                        Organisation mondiale de la Sante, Geneve

                              WEEKLY EPIDEMIOLOGICAL RECORD
                           RELEVE EPIDEMIOLOGIQUE HEBDOMADAIRE

15 January 1993 - 68th Year

                        ACQUIRED IMMUNODEFICIENCY SYNDROME (AIDS)
                               DATA AS AT 31 December 1992

                       SYNDROME D'IMMUNODEFICIENCE ACQUISE (SIDA)
                               DONNEES AU 31 Decembre 1992

                                           NUMBER                 DATE OF
                                         OF CASES                 REPORT
COUNTRY/AREA -                             NOMBRE                 DATE
        PAYS/TERRITOIRE                    DE CAS                 DE
                                                                  NOTIFI-
                                                                  CATION
AFRICA - AFRIQUE

Algeria - Algerie                              92                 31.08.91
Angola                                        514                 24.09.92
Benin - Benin                                 247                 31.03.92
Botswana                                      353                 30.06.92
Burkina Faso                                1,263                 20.03.92
Burundi                                     6,052                 20.03.92
Cameroon - Cameroun                         1,407                 05.10.92
Cape Verde - Cap-Vert                          52                 08.02.92
Central African Republic -
        Republique centrafricaine           1,864                 20.03.92
Chad - Tchad                                  382                 17.09.92
Comoros - Comores                               3                 11.03.92
Congo                                       3,482                 30.01.92
Cote d'Ivoire                              10,792                 09.03.92
Djibouti                                      265                 17.12.92
Egypt - Egypte                                 57                 17.12.92
Equatorial Guinea - 
        Guinee equatoriale                     13                 16.05.92
Ethiopia - Ethiopie                         3,978                 11.11.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 48
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Gabon                                         215                 31.05.92
Gambia - Gambie                               180                 25.02.92
Ghana                                       3,612                 01.07.92
Guinea - Guinee                               338                 20.03.92
Guinea-Bissau - Guinee-Bissau                 189                 13.07.92
Kenya                                      31,185                 01.10.92
Lesotho                                        64                 31.03.92
Liberia - Liberia                              28                 31.03.92
Libyan Arab Jamahiriya -
        Jamahiriya arabe libyenne               7                 17.12.92
Madagascar                                      2                 06.11.92
Malawi                                     22,300                 02.12.92
Mali                                        1,111                 17.07.92
Mauritania - Mauritanie                        36                 19.07.92
Mauritius - Maurice                            11                 29.02.92
Morocco - Maroc                               121                 17.12.92
Mozambique                                    538                 10.10.92
Namibia - Namibie                             311                 20.03.92
Niger                                         497                 07.02.92
Nigeria - Nigeria                             184                 12.03.92
Reunion - Reunion                              65                 20.03.92
Rwanda                                      8,483                 12.11.92
Sao Tome and Principe -
        Sao Tome-et-Principe                   11                 03.07.92
Senegal - Senegal                             648                 09.03.92
Seychelles                                    ---                 18.02.92
Sierra Leone                                   40                 20.03.92
Somalia - Somalie                              13                 17.12.92
South Africa - 
        Afrique du Sud                      1,316                 30.06.92
Sudan - Soudan                                650                 17.12.92
Swaziland                                     197                 08.07.92
Togo                                        1,278                 03.04.92
Tunisia - Tunisie                             114                 17.12.92
Uganda - Ouganda                           34,611                 01.11.92
United Republic of Tanzania -
        Republique-Unie de
        Tanzanie                           34,605                 31.05.92
Zaire - Zaire                              18,186                 14.05.92
Zambia - Zambie                             6,556                 15.10.92
Zimbabwe                                   12,514                 31.03.92

TOTAL                                     211,032



HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 49
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

AMERICAS - AMERIQUES

Anguilla                                        6                 10.12.92
Antigua and Barbuda - 
        Antigua-et-Barbuda                      6                 10.12.92
Argentina - Argentine                       1,820                 10.12.92
Bahamas                                       934                 10.12.92
Barbados - Barbade                            315                 10.12.92
Belize                                         53                 10.12.92
Bermuda - Bermudes                            199                 10.12.92
Bolivia - Bolivie                              49                 10.12.92
Brazil - Bresil                            31,364                 10.12.92
British Virgin Islands -
        Iles Vierges 
        britanniques                            4                 10.12.92
Canada                                      6,889                 10.12.92
Cayman Islands - Iles Caimanes                 13                 10.12.92
Chile - Chili                                 573                 10.12.92
Colombia - Colombie                         2,957                 10.12.92
Costa Rica                                    419                 10.12.92
Cuba                                          137                 10.12.92
Dominica - Dominique                           12                 10.12.92
Dominican Republic -
        Republique dominicaine              1,809                 10.12.92
Ecuador - Equateur                            224                 10.12.92
El Salvador                                   382                 10.12.92
French Guiana -
        Guyane francaise                      232                 10.12.92
Grenada - Grenade                              32                 10.12.92
Guadeloupe                                    182                 10.12.92
Guatemala                                     273                 10.12.92
Guyana                                        333                 10.12.92
Haiti - Haiti                               3,086                 10.12.92
Honduras                                    1,976                 10.12.92
Jamaica - Jamaique                            361                 10.12.92
Martinique                                    227                 10.12.92
Mexico - Mexique                           11,034                 10.12.92
Montserrat                                      1                 10.12.92
Netherlands Antilles and Aruba -
        Antilles neerlandaises et
        Aruba                                 110                 10.12.92
Nicaragua                                      31                 10.12.92
Panama                                        388                 10.12.92
Paraguay                                       51                 10.12.92
Peru - Perou                                  614                 10.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 50
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Saint Kitts and Nevis -
        Saint-Kitts-et-Nevis                   37                 10.12.92
Saint Lucia - Sainte-Lucie                     48                 10.12.92
Saint Vincent and the
        Grenadines - Saint-
        Vincent-et-Grenadines                  41                 10.12.92
Suriname                                      122                 10.12.92
Trinidad and Tobago -
        Trinite-et-Tobago                   1,085                 10.12.92
Turks and Caicos Islands -
        Iles Turques et
        Caiques                                25                 10.12.92
United States of America -
        Etats-Unis d'Amerique             242,146                 10.12.92
Uruguay                                       310                 10.12.92
Venezuela                                   2,173                 10.12.92

TOTAL                                     313,083


ASIA - ASIE

Afghanistan                                   ---                 17.12.92
Bahrain - Bahrein                               3                 31.03.92
Bangladesh                                      1                 30.11.92
Bhutan - Bhoutan                              ---                 30.11.92
Brunei Darussalam - 
        Brunei Darussalam                       2                 19.12.91
Burma see Myanmar -
        Birmanie voir Myanmar
Cambodia - Cambodge                           ---                 31.10.92
China(a) - Chine(a)                            11                 28.04.92
Cyprus - Chypre                                24                 17.12.92
Democratic People's Republic
        of Korea -  Republique
        populaire democratique
        de Coree                              ---                 30.11.92
Hong Kong                                      61                 26.09.92
India - Inde                                  242                 30.11.92
Indonesia - Indonesie                          24                 30.11.92
Iran (Islamic Republic of) -
        Iran (Republique
        islamique d')                          56                 17.12.92
Iraq                                            7                 17.12.92
Israel - Israel                               192                 17.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 51
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

Japan - Japon                                 508                 04.12.92
Jordan - Jordanie                              24                 17.12.92
Kuwait - Koweit                                 7                 17.12.92
Lao People's Democratic Republic -
        Republique democratique
        populaire lao                           1                 23.04.92
Lebanon - Liban                                35                 17.12.92
Macao                                           2                 03.11.92
Malaysia - Malaisie                            46                 25.05.92
Maldives                                      ---                 30.11.92
Mongolia - Mongolie                             1                 30.11.92
Myanmar                                        16                 30.11.92
Nepal - Nepal                                  12                 30.11.92
Oman                                           27                 17.12.92
Pakistan                                       25                 17.12.92
Philippines                                    80                 07.10.92
Qatar                                          31                 17.12.92
Republic of Korea -
        Republique de Coree                    10                 19.11.92
Saudi Arabia - Arabie saoudite                 46                 17.12.92
Singapore - Singapour                          43                 05.08.92
Sri Lanka                                      20                 30.11.92
Syrian Arab Republic - 
        Republique arabe syrienne              19                 17.12.92
Thailand - Thailande                          909                 30.11.92
Turkey - Turquie                               89                 17.12.92
United Arab Emirates - Emirats
        arabes unis                             8                 17.12.92
Viet Nam                                      ---                 28.04.92
Yemen - Yemen                                 ---                 17.12.92

TOTAL                                       2,582



EUROPE

Albania - Albanie                             ---                 30.09.92
Austria - Autriche                            828                 30.09.92
Belarus - Belarus                               6                 30.09.92
Belgium - Belgique                          1,224                 17.12.92
Bulgaria - Bulgarie                            16                 17.12.92
Czechoslovakia - Tchecoslovaquie               32                 17.12.92
Denmark - Danemark                          1,072                 17.12.92
Finland - Finlande                            112                 17.12.92

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 52
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

France                                     21,487                 17.12.92
Germany - Allemagne                         8,893                 17.12.92
Greece - Grece                                689                 17.12.92
Hungary - Hongrie                             105                 17.12.92
Iceland - Islande                              22                 17.12.92
Ireland - Irlande                             294                 17.12.92
Italy - Italie                             14,783                 17.12.92
Latvia - Lettonie                               2                 30.09.92
Lithuania - Lituanie                            2                 30.09.92
Luxembourg                                     55                 17.12.92
Malta - Malte                                  25                 17.12.92
Monaco                                          9                 17.12.92
Netherlands - Pays-Bas                      2,330                 17.12.92
Norway - Norvege                              283                 17.12.92
Poland - Pologne                              118                 17.12.92
Portugal                                    1,007                 17.12.92
Romania - Roumanie                          2,073                 17.12.92
Russian Federation - Federation
        de Russie                              94                 30.09.92
San Marino - Saint-Marin                        1                 17.12.92
Spain - Espagne                            14,991                 17.12.92
Sweden - Suede                                743                 17.12.92
Switzerland - Suisse                        2,691                 17.12.92
United Kingdom - Royaume-Uni                6,510                 17.12.92
Yugoslavia(b) - Yougoslavie(b)                313                 30.09.92

TOTAL                                      80,810



OCEANIA - OCEANIE

American Samoa - Samoa americaines            ---                 18.11.92
Australia - Australie                       3,615                 02.12.92
Cook Islands - Iles Cook                      ---                 18.02.92
Federated States of Micronesia -
        Etats federes de Micronesie             2                 01.09.92
Fiji - Fidji                                    4                 28.11.91
French Polynesia - Polynesie francaise         27                 28.11.91
Guam                                           10                 13.09.91
Kiribati                                      ---                 08.11.91
Mariana Islands - Iles Mariannes                4                 14.10.92
Marshall Islands - Iles Marshall                2                 18.03.91
Nauru                                         ---                 17.12.92
New Caledonia and Dependencies -

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 53
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

        Nouvelle-Caledonie et
        dependances                            22                 26.08.92
New Zealand - Nouvelle-Zelande                348                 03.11.92
Niue                                          ---                 18.02.92
Palau                                         ---                 15.10.92
Papua New Guinea - Papouasie-
        Nouvelle-Guinee                        45                 10.08.92
Samoa                                           1                 18.02.92
Solomon Islands - Iles Salomon                ---                 19.12.91
Tokelau                                       ---                 18.02.92
Tonga                                           2                 24.07.92
Tuvalu                                        ---                 22.11.92
Vanuatu                                       ---                 08.06.92
Wallis and Futuna Islands - Iles
        Wallis et Futuna                      ---                 27.05.91

TOTAL                                       4,082


WORLD TOTAL - 
        TOTAL MONDIAL                     611,589

(a) The above statistics relating to China do not include 48 cases of AIDS in
the Province of Taiwan. -- Les statistiques ci-dessus se rapportant a la Chine
ne comprennent pas 48 cas de SIDA dans la province de Taiwan.

(b) Refers to Republics and areas of the former Socialist Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia:  Bosnia and Herzegovina; Croatia; Macedonia; Montenegro;
Serbia; Slovenia. -- Se refere aux republiques et territoires de l'ancienne
Republique federative socialiste de Yougoslavie: Bosnie-Herzegovine; Croatie;
Macedoine; Montenegro; Serbie; Slovenie.                                        














HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 54
------------- cut here -----------------
-- This is the last part ---------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59286
From: david@stat.com (David Dodell)
Subject: HICN611 Medical News Part 3/4

------------- cut here -----------------
 
        ONCE A YEAR...FOR A LIFETIME VIDEO KIT.  This kit
        includes a 25-minute VHS videotape that presents common
        misconceptions about mammography.  It tells of the
        benefits gains by the early detection of breast cancer.
        Jane Pauley and Phylicia Rashad are the narrators.  Kit
        includes a guide, poster, flyer, and pamphlets on
        mammography.  This kit is available directly by writing
        to:  Modern, 5000 Park Street North, St. Petersburg, FL
        33709-9989.
 
 
 
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
 
 
     COMBINED HEALTH INFORMATION DATABASE (CHID).  A computerized
     bibliographic database developed and managed by agencies of
     the U.S. Public Health Service.  It contains references to
     health information and health education resources.  The
     database provides bibliographic citations and abstracts for
     journal articles, books, reports, pamphlets, audiovisuals,
     product descriptions, hard-to-find information sources, and
     health promotion and education programs under way in state
     and local health departments and other locations.  In
     addition, CHID provides source and availability information
     for these materials, so that users may obtain them directly.
 
     At present, there are twenty-one subfiles on CHID. The
     National Cancer Institute created the Cancer Patient
     Education subfile in 1990. It serves as a resource for the
     CHID user who is interested in identifying patient education
     programs for specific cancer patient populations, as well as
     for the user who is trying to locate educational resources
     available for patient or family cancer education.  Citations
     include the contact person at cancer centers, so the user
     can follow up directly with the appropriate person.
 
     To access CHID, check with your local library.  Most medical
     school, university, hospital, and public libraries subscribe
     to commercial database vendors.

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 28
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     FINAL REPORT:  AN INTEGRATED ONCOLOGY WORKSTATION (revised
     5/92).  This book provides a conceptual overview of what a
     clinical information system for practicing oncologists might
     include:  a database of electronic patient chart records
     combined with access to a knowledge base of information
     resources such as PDQ, CANCERLIT, and MEDLINE--an
     integration of data and knowledge combined to create a
     clinical "oncology workstation."  The concept was developed
     as a means to assist the oncologist and his or her office
     staff in the daily management of patient care and clinical
     trials.  This book can be obtained by contacting:  Dr.
     Robert Esterhay, Project Officer, Computer Communications
     Branch, Building 82, Room 201, Bethesda, MD 20892.
 
     SCIENTIFIC INFORMATION SERVICES OF THE NATIONAL CANCER
     INSTITUTE. (91-2683). This booklet from the International
     Cancer Information Center (ICIC) describes each ICIC product
     or service, including scientific journals (Journal of the
     National Cancer Institute and NCI Monographs), specialized
     current awareness publications (CANCERGRAMS, and ONCOLOGY
     OVERVIEWS), and online databases (PDQ and CANCERLIT). To
     obtain copies of the booklet, write to: International Cancer
     Information Center, Dept. JJJ, National Cancer Institute,
     Bldg. 82, Rm. 123, Bethesda, Maryland 20892 or fax your
     request to 301-480-8105.



















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 29
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

            Publications for Patients Available from the NCI (1/93)
 
Free copies of the following patient education materials are available (in 
single copy or bulk) by calling the NCI's Publication Ordering Service, 1-800-
4-CANCER. 
 
 
CANCER PREVENTION
 
     CHEW OR SNUFF IS REAL BAD STUFF.  This brochure, designed
for seventh and eighth graders, describes the health and social
effects of using smokeless tobacco products.  When fully opened,
the brochure can be used as a poster.
 
     CLEARING THE AIR:  A GUIDE TO QUITTING SMOKING.  This
pamphlet, designed to help the smoker who wants to quit, offers a
variety of approaches to cessation. [24 pages]
 
     DIET, NUTRITION & CANCER PREVENTION:  THE GOOD NEWS.  This
booklet provides an overview of dietary guidelines that may
assist individuals in reducing their risks for some cancers.  It
identifies certain foods to choose more often and others to
choose less often in the context of a total health-promoting
diet. [16 pages]
 
     WHY DO YOU SMOKE?  This pamphlet contains a self-test to
determine why people smoke and suggests alternatives and
substitutes that can help them stop.
 
 
EARLY DETECTION
 
 
     BREAST EXAMS:  WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.  This pamphlet provides
answers to questions about breast cancer screening methods,
including mammography, the medical checkup, breast self-
examination, and future technologies.  Includes instructions for
breast self-examination. [10 pages]
 
     CANCER TESTS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT:  A GUIDE FOR PEOPLE 65
AND OVER.  This pamphlet describes the cancer tests important for
people age 65 and older.  It informs men and women of the exams
they should be requesting when they schedule checkups with their
doctors.  It provides a checklist for men and women to record
when the cancer tests occur, and it describes the steps to follow

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 30
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

should cancer be found. [14 pages]
 
     DO THE RIGHT THING:  GET A MAMMOGRAM.  This brochure targets
black women age 40 or older.  It describes the importance of
regular mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It
states the NCI guidelines for mammography.
 
     ONCE A YEAR FOR A LIFETIME.  This brochure targets all women
age 40 or older.  It describes the importance of regular
mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It states
the NCI guidelines for mammography.
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT BREAST LUMPS.  This pamphlet
describes some of the most common noncancerous breast lumps and
what can be done about them.  Includes instructions for breast
self-examination. [22 pages]
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT CHOOSING A MAMMOGRAPHY FACILITY.
This brochure lists questions to ask in selecting a quality
mammography facility.  Also discusses typical costs and coverage.
 
     TESTICULAR SELF-EXAMINATION.  This pamphlet contains
information about risks and symptoms of testicular cancer and
provides instructions on how to perform testicular self-
examination.
 
     THE PAP TEST:  IT CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE!  This easy-to-read
pamphlet tells women the importance of getting a Pap test.  It
explains who should request one, how often it should be done, and
where to go to get a Pap test.
 
 
GENERAL
 
 
     RESEARCH REPORTS.  In-depth reports covering current
knowledge of the causes and prevention, symptoms, detection and
diagnosis, and treatment of various types of cancer.  Individual
reports are available on the following topics:
 
     Bone Marrow Transplantation
     Cancer of the Colon and Rectum
     Cancer of the Lung
     Cancer of the Pancreas
     Melanoma

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 31
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     Oral Cancers
 
     THE IMMUNE SYSTEM - HOW IT WORKS.  This booklet, written at
a high school level, explains the human immune system for the
general public.  It describes the sophistication of the body's
immune responses, the impact of immune disorders, and the
relation of the immune system to cancer therapies present and
future. [28 pages]
 
 
     WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT CANCER.  This series of
pamphlets discusses symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, emotional
issues, and questions to ask the doctor.  Includes glossary of
terms and other resources.  Individual pamphlets are available on
the following topics:
 
     Bladder
     Bone
     Brain
     Breast
     Cervix
     Colon and Rectum
     Dysplastic Nevi
     Esophagus
     Hodgkin's Disease
     Kidney
     Larynx
     Lung
     Melanoma
     Multiple Myeloma
     Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma
     Oral Cancers
     Ovary
     Pancreas
     Prostate
     Skin
     Testis
     Uterus
 
 
PATIENT EDUCATION
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide information
about side effects of common drugs used to treat cancer, their

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 32
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

proper usage, and precautions for patients.  The fact sheets were
prepared by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for
distribution by the National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only
may be ordered.
 
     ADVANCED CANCER:  LIVING EACH DAY.  This booklet addresses
coping with a terminal illness by discussing practical
considerations for the patient, the family, and friends. [30
pages]
 
     CHEMOTHERAPY AND YOU:  A GUIDE TO SELF-HELP DURING
TREATMENT. This booklet, in question-and-answer format, addresses
problems and concerns of patients receiving chemotherapy.
Emphasis is on explanation and self-help. [64 pages]
 
     EATING HINTS:  RECIPES AND TIPS FOR BETTER NUTRITION DURING
CANCER TREATMENT.  This cookbook-style booklet includes recipes
and suggestions for maintaining optimum nutrition during
treatment.  All recipes have been tested. [92 pages]
 
     FACING FORWARD: A GUIDE FOR CANCER SURVIVORS.  This booklet
presents a concise overview of important survivor issues,
including ongoing health needs, psychosocial concerns, insurance,
and employment.  Easy-to-use format includes cancer survivors'
experiences, practical tips, recordkeeping forms, and resources.
It is recommended for cancer survivors, their family, and
friends. [43 pages]
 
     PATIENT TO PATIENT:  CANCER CLINICAL TRIALS AND YOU.  This
15-minute videocassette provides simple information for patients
and families about the clinical trials process (produced in
collaboration with the American College of Surgeons Commission on
Cancer).
 
     QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT PAIN CONTROL:  A GUIDE FOR
PEOPLE WITH CANCER AND THEIR FAMILIES.  This booklet discusses
pain control using both medical and nonmedical methods.  The
emphasis is on explanation, self-help, and patient participation.
This booklet is also available from the American Cancer Society.
[44 pages]
 
     RADIATION THERAPY AND YOU:  A GUIDE TO SELF-HELP DURING
TREATMENT. This booklet addresses concerns of patients receiving
forms of radiation therapy.  Emphasis is on explanation and
self-help. [52 pages]

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 33
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     TAKING TIME:  SUPPORT FOR PEOPLE WITH CANCER AND THE PEOPLE
WHO CARE ABOUT THEM.  This sensitively written booklet for
persons with cancer and their families addresses the feelings and
concerns of others in similar situations and how they have coped.
[68 pages]
 
     WHAT ARE CLINICAL TRIALS ALL ABOUT?  This booklet is
designed for patients who are considering taking part in research
for new cancer treatments.  It explains clinical trials to
patients in easy-to-understand terms and gives them information
that will help them decide about participating. [24 pages]
 
     WHEN CANCER RECURS:  MEETING THE CHALLENGE AGAIN.  This
booklet details the different types of recurrence, types of
treatment, and coping with cancer's return. [28 pages]
 
 
BREAST CANCER EDUCATION SERIES
 
     BREAST BIOPSY:  WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.  This booklet
     discusses biopsy procedures.  It describes what to expect in
     the hospital and while awaiting a diagnosis. [16 pages]
 
     BREAST CANCER:  UNDERSTANDING TREATMENT OPTIONS. This
     booklet summarizes the biopsy procedure and examines the
     pros and cons of various types of breast surgery.  It
     discusses lumpectomy and radiation therapy as primary
     treatment, adjuvant therapy, and the process of making
     treatment decisions. [19 pages]
 
     MASTECTOMY:  A TREATMENT FOR BREAST CANCER.  This booklet
     presents information about the different types of breast
     surgery.  It explains what to expect in the hospital and
     during the recovery period following breast cancer surgery.
     Breast self-examination for mastectomy patients is also
     described. [25 pages]
 
     AFTER BREAST CANCER:  A GUIDE TO FOLLOWUP CARE.  This
     booklet is for the woman who has completed treatment.  It
     explains the importance of checking for possible signs of
     recurring cancer by receiving regular mammograms, getting
     breast exams from a doctor, and continuing monthly breast
     self-exams.  It offers advice for managing the physical and
     emotional side effects that may accompany surviving breast

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 34
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

     cancer. [15 pages]
 
     PEDIATRIC CANCER EDUCATION SERIES
 
     HELP YOURSELF:  TIPS FOR TEENAGERS WITH CANCER. This
     magazine-style booklet is designed to provide information
     and support to adolescents with cancer.  Issues addressed
     include reactions to diagnosis, relationships with family
     and friends, school attendance, and body image. [37 pages]
 
     HOSPITAL DAYS, TREATMENT WAYS. This hematology-oncology
     coloring book helps orient the child with cancer to hospital
     and treatment procedures. [26 pages]
 
     MANAGING YOUR CHILD'S EATING PROBLEMS DURING CANCER
     TREATMENT.  This booklet contains information about the
     importance of nutrition, the side effects of cancer and its
     treatment, ways to encourage a child to eat, and special
     diets. [32 pages]
 
     TALKING WITH YOUR CHILD ABOUT CANCER.  This booklet is
     designed for the parent whose child has been diagnosed with
     cancer.  It addresses the health-related concerns of young
     people of different ages; it suggests ways to discuss
     disease-related issues with the child. [16 pages]
 
     WHEN SOMEONE IN YOUR FAMILY HAS CANCER.  This booklet is
     written for young people whose parent or sibling has cancer.
     It includes sections on the disease, its treatment, and
     emotional concerns. [28 pages]
 
     YOUNG PEOPLE WITH CANCER:  A HANDBOOK FOR PARENTS.
     This booklet discusses the most common types of childhood
     cancer, treatments and side effects, and issues that may
     arise when a child is diagnosed with cancer.  Offers medical
     information and practical tips gathered from the experience
     of others. [86 pages]
 
 
SPANISH LANGUAGE PUBLICATIONS
 
Si desea hablar con un especialista en informacion sobre el
cancer, por favor llame al 1-800-422-6237 (1-800-4-CANCER).
 
CANCER PREVENTION

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 35
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     A TIME OF CHANGE/DE NINA A MUJER.  This bilingual fotonovela
     was developed specifically for young women.  It discusses
     various health promotion issues such as nutrition, no
     smoking, exercise, and pelvic, Pap, and breast examinations.
     [34 pages]
 
     DATOS SOBRE EL HABITO DE FUMAR Y RECOMENDACIONES PARA DEJAR
     DE FUMAR.  This bilingual pamphlet describes the health
     risks of smoking and tips on how to quit and how to stay
     quit. [8 pages]
 
     GUIA PARA DEJAR DE FUMAR.  This booklet is a full-color,
     self-help smoking cessation booklet prepared specifically
     for Spanish-speaking Americans.  It was developed by the
     University of California, San Francisco, under an NCI
     research grant. [36 pages]
 
 
EARLY DETECTION
 
     HAGASE LA PRUEBA PAP: HAGALO HOY...POR SU SALUD Y SU
     FAMILIA.  This bilingual brochure tells women why it is
     important to get a Pap test.  It gives brief, clear
     information about who needs a Pap test, where to go to get
     one, and how often the Pap test should be done.
 
     HAGASE UN MAMOGRAMA: UNA VEZ AL ANO...PARA TODA UNA VIDA.
     This bilingual brochure describes the importance of
     mammograms in the early detection of breast cancer.  It
     gives brief information about who is at risk for breast
     cancer, how a mammogram is done, and how to get one.
 
     LA PRUEBA PAP: UN METODO PARA DIAGNOSTICAR CANCER DEL CUELLO
     DEL UTERO.  This booklet in Spanish answers questions about
     the Pap test, including how often it should be done,
     significance of results, and other diagnostic tests and
     treatments. [16 pages]
 
     LO QUE USTED DEBE SABER SOBRE LOS EXAMENES DE LOS SENOS.
     This booklet in Spanish explains the importance of the three
     actions recommended by the NCI to detect breast cancer as
     early as possible:  requesting regular mammography, getting
     an annual breast exam from the doctor, and performing a
     monthly breast self-exam. [6 pages]

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 36
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

 
     PREGUNTAS Y RESPUESTAS SOBRE LA SELECCION DE UN CENTRO DE
     MAMOGRAFIA.  This brochure lists questions and answers to
     ask in selecting a quality mammography facility.
 
PATIENT EDUCATION
 
     ANTICANCER DRUG INFORMATION SHEETS IN SPANISH/ENGLISH.  Two-
     sided fact sheets (in English and Spanish) provide
     information about side effects of common drugs used to treat
     cancer, their proper usage, and precautions for patients.
     The fact sheets were prepared by the United States
     Pharmacopeial Convention, Inc., for distribution by the
     National Cancer Institute.  Single sets only may be ordered.
 
     DATOS SOBRE EL TRATAMIENTO DE QUIMIOTERAPIA CONTRA EL
     CANCER.  This flyer in Spanish provides a brief introduction
     to cancer chemotherapy. [12 pages]
 
     EL TRATAMIENTO DE RADIOTERAPIA:  GUIA PARA EL PACIENTE
     DURANTE EL TRATAMIENTO.  This booklet in Spanish addresses
     the concerns of patients receiving radiation therapy for
     cancer.  Emphasis is on explanation and self-help. [48
     pages]





















HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 37
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993



::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
                              AIDS News Summaries
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

               AIDS Daily Summary for April 19 to April 23, 1993           

 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National AIDS  
Clearinghouse makes available the following information as a public  service 
only. Providing this information does not constitute endorsement  by the CDC, 
the CDC Clearinghouse, or any other organization. Reproduction  of this text 
is encouraged; however, copies may not be sold.  Copyright 1993, Information, 
Inc., Bethesda, MD 

       =================================================================     
                                April 19, 1993 
       =================================================================     
 "Absence of HIV Transmission From an Infected Orthopedic Surgeon" Journal of 
the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 269,  No. 14, P. 1807  (von 
Reyn, C. Fordham) 

     The risk of HIV transmission from an HIV-positive surgeon to  patient is 
extremely low, provided that the surgeon strictly  adheres to universal 
infection control procedures, write C.  Fordham von Reyn et al. of the 
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, N.H.  The researchers contacted 
2,317 former patients on whom an HIV-positive orthopedic surgeon performed 
invasive  procedures between January 1, 1978 and June 30, 1992.  The  
orthopedic surgeon voluntarily withdrew from practice after  testing positive 
for HIV.  A total of 1,174 former patients  underwent HIV testing, 
representing 50.7 percent of patients on  whom the orthopedic surgeon 
performed invasive procedures during  the 13.5-year period.  Patients were 
tested from each year and  from each category of invasive procedure.  All 
patients were  found to be negative for HIV by enzyme-linked-immunosorbent  
assay.  Two former patients reported known HIV infection prior to surgery.  
The examination of AIDS case registries and vital  records neglected to detect 
cases of HIV infection among former  surgical patients.  The estimated cost of 
the initial patient  notification and testing was $158,000, with the single 
most  expensive activity being counseling and testing.  This accounted  for 37 
percent of the total expense.  The patient notification  and testing were 
conducted while maintaining the confidentiality  of the orthopedic surgeon who 
was an active participant in the  planning and execution of the study.  
Notifying patients of the  infected surgeon's HIV-status is both disruptive 
and expensive  and is not routinely recommended, the researchers conclude. \ 
       =================================================================     
"Investigation of Potential HIV Transmission to the Patients of  an HIV-
Infected Surgeon" Journal of the American Medical Association (04/14/93) Vol. 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 38
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

269,  No. 14, P. 1795  (Smith Rogers, Audrey et al.) 

     The risk of HIV transmission during surgery is so remote that it  will be 
quantified only by gathering data from multiple,  methodologically similar 
investigations, writes Audrey Smith  Rogers et al. of the Johns Hopkins 
University School of Medicine  in Baltimore, Md.  The researchers identified a 
total of 1,131  persons in hospital databases who underwent invasive surgical  
procedures between 1984 and 1990 and for whom the HIV-positive  surgeon was 
listed as the operating surgeon.  The AIDS case  registries were reviewed for 
all patients having undergone  invasive procedures and death certificates were 
obtained.  Among  the 1,131 patients, 101 were dead, 119 had no address, 413 
had  test results known, and 498 did not respond to the questionnaire. No 
study patient name was found in reported AIDS case registries. One newly 
detected, HIV-positive patient was determined to have  been most probably 
infected in 1985 during a transfusion.  There  was no HIV transmission in 369 
person-hours of surgical exposure, suggesting that HIV transmission to 
patients is unlikely to occur more frequently than once per 1000 person-hours 
of surgical  exposure.  The researchers determined there is no evidence to  
suggest that the surgeon failed to adhere to standard  infection-control 
guidelines; over 50 percent of the patients  with invasive procedures chose to 
be tested, and of those whose  results were revealed, only one person was 
found to be infected  with HIV.  The study patient's infection was probably 
the result  of a tainted blood transfusion received in 1985.  As a result,  
there is no evidence that the transmission of HIV from the  HIV-positive 
surgeon to any patient transpired, the researchers  conclude. 
      ==================================================================
                                April 20, 1993 
      ==================================================================
 "Drug Concerns to Share AIDS Data" New York Times (04/20/93), P. C10  
(Kolata, Gina) 

     A total of 15 major pharmaceutical companies have decided, in a  highly 
unusual move, to share AIDS drugs and information while  the drugs are 
undergoing early clinical testing.  Dr. Edward  Scolnick, president of the 
Merck Research Laboratory in Rahway,  N.J., arranged the collaboration.  He 
said that cooperation  between companies seemed increasingly significant as it 
had  become clear that combinations of drugs were likely to be more  effective 
in fighting HIV than any drug used alone.  The  researchers are hopeful that 
HIV, when faced with a combination  of several drugs requiring mutation at 
different sites for  resistance to develop, will be unable to evolve all the 
mutations at the same time.  Therefore, several drugs taken together or one 
after the other could halt the spread of HIV.  Currently, the  drug companies 
do not know what other drugs their competitors are developing.  The new 
agreement allows companies to routinely  exchange animal data and safety data 
on new AIDS drugs.  "An  agreement like this will greatly facilitate 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 39
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

companies' ability to choose the best drug combinations much faster and in a 
much more  efficient way," said Scolnick.  He also said that the  
collaboration would not violate antitrust laws.  In creating the  agreement, 
Merck spoke frequently to members of AIDS advocacy  groups, including ACT-UP.  
Dr. Daniel Hoth, director of the  division on AIDS at the National Institute 
of Allergy and  Infectious Disease said, "We're delighted to see the  
pharmaceutical industry take this step because we think that  increasing the 
information flow will likely accelerate the  discovery of better compounds for 
AIDS."  Related Stories: Wall Street Journal (04/20) P. B1; Philadelphia  
Inquirer (04/20) P. A3; USA Today (04/20) P. 1B 
================================================================== 
"The Next Step in AIDS Treatment" Nature (04/08/93) Vol. 362, No. 6420, P. 493  
(Maddox, John) 

     Although AZT was found to be ineffective in prolonging the lives  of 
people infected with HIV, the findings do not indicate that  AZT should not be 
administered in people with full-blown AIDS,  writes columnist John Maddox.  
AZT has been used in the United  States in asymptomatic HIV-positive people on 
the basis that  administration of the drug appeared to abate the decline of  
T-cell counts.  However, a report in the Lancet demonstrated that AZT should 
not be used early in the course of disease.  While the CD4 counts of the 877 
people given AZT were consistently greater  than those of patients receiving 
only placebo, the first three  years of follow-up have shown that the 
proportions of people in  the two groups progressing to overt AIDS or even to 
death were  not significantly different at roughly 18 percent.  The  
conclusions are that AZT is not an effective AIDS drug in  HIV-infected 
individuals, and that CD4 cell count may not be a  reliable proxy for the 
progression to AIDS in infected people.   But nothing is implied by the study 
of the utility of AZT in the  treatment of those in whom symptoms have already 
appeared--there  is no case for abandoning that treatment, at least on the  
evidence now available.  It is much more alarming that the CD4  count has 
proven to be an unreliable mark of the efficacy of drug treatment in HIV 
infection.  AIDS researchers should acknowledge  HIV is alive from the 
beginning of infection and turn it into a  workable assay of the progress of 
disease.  The general  application of such an assay will probably in itself 
provide a  better understanding of the pathogenesis of AIDS, concludes  
Maddox. 
      ================================================================== 
"Infective and Anti-Infective Properties of Breastmilk From  HIV-1-Infected 
Women" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, No. 8850, P. 914   (Van de Perre, Philippe 
et al.) 

     A vaccine preparation inducing a persistent immune response of  the IgM 
type in the mother's body fluids could be valuable to  prevent transmission of 
HIV-1 from mother to child, write  Philippe Van de Perre et al. of the 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 40
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

National AIDS Control Program in Kigali, Rwanda.  The researchers hypothesized 
that  transmission of HIV-1 through breastmilk could be favored by the  
presence of infected cells, by deficiency of anti-infective  substances in 
breastmilk, or both factors.  A total of 215  HIV-1-infected women were 
enrolled at delivery in Kigali, Rwanda; milk samples were collected 15 days, 6 
months, and 18 months post partum.  HIV-1 IgG, secretory IgA, and IgM were 
assayed by  western blot, for the latter two after removal of IgG with  
protein G.  In the 15-day and 6-month samples, the researchers  sought viral 
genome in milk cells by double polymerase chain  reaction with three sets of 
primers (gag, pol, and env).  At 15  days, 6 months, and 18 months post 
partum, HIV-1 specific IgG was detected in 95 percent, 98 percent, and 97 
percent of breastmilk  samples; IgA in 23 percent, 28 percent, and 41 percent; 
and IgM  in 66 percent, 78 percent, and 41 percent.  In children who  survived 
longer than 18 months the risk of infection was  associated with lack of 
persistence of IgM and IgA in their  mothers' milk.  The presence of HIV-1-
infected cells in the milk  15 days post partum was strongly predictive of 
HIV-1 infection in the child by both univariate and multivariate analysis.  
The  combination of HIV-1 infected cells in breastmilk and a defective IgM 
response was the strongest predictor of infection.  IgM and  IgA anti-HIV-1 in 
breastmilk may protect against postnatal  transmission of HIV, the researchers 
conclude. 
      ==================================================================    
                                April 21, 1993 
      ==================================================================    
"Firms to Share AIDS Research in Global Venture" Journal of Commerce 
(04/21/93), P. 7A 

     A total of fifteen U.S. and European pharmaceutical companies  announced 
Tuesday they will swap drug supplies and information on early-stage AIDS 
research to hasten the search for combination  therapies to fight HIV 
infection and AIDS.  The companies said  the unusual move resulted primarily 
from the increasing  concentration of AIDS research on combination therapies 
since  realizing that HIV is likely to develop resistance to every  individual 
AIDS drug.  Edward Scolnick, president of Merck & Co.  Research Laboratories, 
led the collaborative effort that took a  year of negotiations to come 
together, said participants.  In  addition to Merck, the other companies 
involved in the  Inter-Company Collaboration for AIDS Drug Development are  
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Burroughs Wellcome, Glaxo Inc.,  Hoffman-La Roche, 
Eli Lilly & Co., Pfizer Inc., Smithkline  Beecham, AB Astra, Du Pont Merck, 
Syntex Inc., Boehringer  Ingelheim, Miles Inc., and Sigma-Tau.  The 
participants said that all companies involved in AIDS drug development they 
were aware  of had joined the collaboration, and that any company actively  
involved in HIV anti-viral development may participate.  Scolnick said the 
collaborators would most likely meet every couple of  months for a daylong 
scientific meeting where they will review  for one another their preclinical 

HICNet Medical Newsletter                                              Page 41
Volume  6, Number 11                                           April 25, 1993

and early clinical data.  The  American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFAR) 
was pleased with  the news of the collaboration, which it hopes will lead to 
the  development of drug combinations that will reduce viral  resistance.   
Related Story: Financial Times (04/21) P. 1 
==================================================================    
"Guidance Over HIV-Infected Health-Care Workers" Lancet (04/10/93) Vol. 341, 
No. 8850, P. 952  (Horton, Richard) 

     The United Kingdom's Department of Health recently followed the  advice 
of AIDS experts that there is no scientific reason for  routine HIV testing 
among health-care workers.  Following recent  highly publicized reports of 
health professionals who contracted  HIV, the department issued revised 
guidelines on the management  of such cases.  Dr. Kenneth Calman, Chief 
Medical Officer, said  doctors, dentists, nurses, and other health-care 
workers have an  ethical duty to seek advice if they have been exposed to HIV  
infection, including, if appropriate, diagnostic HIV testing.  He said, 
"Infected health care workers should not perform invasive  procedures that 
carry even a remote risk of exposing patients to  the virus."  The guidelines 
--------- end of part 3 ------------

---
      Internet: david@stat.com                  FAX: +1 (602) 451-1165
      Bitnet: ATW1H@ASUACAD                     FidoNet=> 1:114/15
                Amateur Packet ax25: wb7tpy@wb7tpy.az.usa.na

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59287
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: FREQUENT NOSEBLEEDS

A >  From some of the replies to my original posting, it's evident that some
A >  people do not secrete enough mucous to keep their nose lining protected
            ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^            
 Include small amounts of hot, spicy foods with your meals. It's
 not a cure, but many people find it helpful to create extra mucus.
 You may also consider taking a few drops of iodine in juice or water 
 (consult your doctor first!), which is available OTC in Canada.
 If you have a sedentary lifestyle, exercising sometimes helps.

A >  from environmental influences (ie, dry air). But I've had no responses
A >  from anyone with experience with Rutin. Is there another newsgroup that
                      ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
A >  might have specifics on herbal remedies?
A > 
A >  Robert Allison

 I tried to e-mail you, but our board is having internet problems,
 so I'm not sure whether you got the information on rutin or not.
 
 Rutin is NOT a herb, but part of the bioflavonoid complex. You should
 generally *not* take rutin by itself, but take the whole bioflavonoid 
 complex instead. If you don't (and there are some exceptions to that)
 you'll eventually create a hesperidin deficiency, which is the other
 major component of the bioflavonoid complex.
 I found out the hard way years ago when I recommended rutin, after it
 showed deficient in patients who were NOT deficient in hesperidin be-
 fore. A later retest almost always showed a subsequent deficiency in 
 hesperidin, which, from then on, made me always *add* bioflavonoids 
 to anyone that had *very* low levels of rutin.
 Most of the time people are equally low in rutin *and* hesperidin, so
 there is really no reason to take rutin by itself, but use the whole
 bioflavonoid complex instead.

 I have several thousand patients taking them with many claiming that 
 they had been helped with hemorrhoids, varicose veins, chronic nose 
 bleeds, aneurysms, gastro-intestinal bleeding (due to drugs), etc...
 One patient in desperation took a whole bottle (100's) in one day
 for his painful, bleeding hemorrhoids, without any ill effects.
  
 They are also non-toxic in very high amounts, that's why they can
 be safely recommended. If you are allergic to citrus fruit (they are
 made from their peels), pine bark sources are available as well.

 About 90% of patients tested show a bioflavonoid deficiency, 
 with the average daily dosage needed being about 1 - 2,000mg.
 For major complaints, 4 - 6,000mg+/day is common.
 
 In case they cannot be taken, because of their size and taste (they
 are big, and they don't taste that great), a product made from pine 
 bark extract gives you the same effect and the tablets are quite
 small and taste much better, however the cost is about seven times
 higher for the equivalent effect. One 25mg tablet of the pine bark
 extract gives you about the same effect as 1,000mg of bioflavonoids.
 The name for the pine bark product is 'Pycnogenol.'
  
   Some Canadian brands carrying bioflavonoids are:
 
   Quest.............1,000mg   big, bitter, not chewable
   Swiss Herbal........600mg   smooth, easier swallowing 
   Jamieson............500mg   medium, bitter, chewable 

   SISU.................25mg   (Pycnogenol) small, easy swallowing
 
   Give them a try and see what happens.....and good luck!

   -- Ron Roth --
 =====================================================================
 --  Internet: rn.3228@rose.com  -  Rosenet: ron roth@rosehamilton  --

 *   "Eating Radium has strange results,"  Tom said brightly.
---
   RoseReader 2.10  P003228 Entered at [ROSEHAMILTON]
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59288
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
:
:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
:occur?

Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
to your biology teacher.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59289
From: ipj@unix.brighton.ac.uk ((( Fleg Software )))
Subject: Artificial Intelligence in Medicine

If you have any information on artificial intelligence in medicine, then I
would appreciate it if you could mail me with whatever it is. The informations
is needed for a project.

Thank you, Ian.
-- 
.____________________________________________________________________________.
|  Ian Jukes BSc. Computer Science (Hons) Year 2 The University of Brighton  |
|           janet e-mail : ipj@uk.ac.bton.unix, ipj@uk.ac.bton.vms           |
`----------------------------------------------------------------------------'

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59290
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Sleep in hospitals (WAS Re: EUse of haldol in elderly

In article <YfqmleK00iV185Co5L@andrew.cmu.edu>, you say:
> I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
>demented during hospital stays.  In the examples I've seen, drugs were
>definitely involved.


 Speaking from experience, one doesn't need drugs to become disoriented
during hospital stays. I was in hosp for 5 days in late Jan; what with
general noise at all hours of night, staff coming every time I turned over,
or whatever, to check me out, I didn't get much sustained sleep at night.
Spent days groggy & dozing, and all it was from my perspective was that I
was TIRED!

   BobM - Let's *REINVENT* hospital organization!s

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59291
Subject: Re: Localized fat reduction due to exercise (question
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)

In <1993Apr25.203223.28534@mnemosyne.cs.du.edu> hchung@nyx.cs.du.edu writes:

> I was just wondering if exercises specific to particular regions of the
> body (such as thighs) will basically only tone the thighs, or if fat
> from other parts of the body (such as breasts) would be affected just as
> much.

There are two different mechanisms here:  toning of muscles and reduction of
fat.  Exercises specific to particular muscles will tone only those muscles
exercised (example: look at differences in arm circumferences between pitching
arms and non-pitching arms in major league pitchers).  However, if exercise
also leads to reduction of body fat, the loss of body fat will be equally
distributed over the entire body.  There is no way to "spot reduce" body fat
other than surgically, through liposuction. Distribution of body fat is
genetically determined.  Sometimes a very flabby muscle will look like "fat",
so when that muscle gains some muscle tone it may *appear* as though the "fat"
is "changing" into "muscle", but really fat and muscle tissues are totally
separate, and one does not ever "change into" the other.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59292
From: gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
|> 
|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
|> >appreciated.
|> 
|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
|> 
|> Bill from oz
|> 


Bill,
No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
it takes pictures of your aura.
|> 

-- 
Greg 

--  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59293
From: dh@fncrd6.fnal.gov (don husby)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


Poor person's Kirlian Photography (try this at home)

1. Hold your hand up to a cold window.
2. Look closely at the stunning corona effects around
   your fingertips.
3. Remove hand (from window) and observe after image.  
4. Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59294
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr23.180430.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
>Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).

>	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
>	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
>	   the NCI.

Hmm.  This is certainly among the things I would refer to as quack
therapy and would tend to refer to any practitioner who prescribed
laetrile (whether licensed or not) as a quack.  There are unethical
behaviors (such as ordering unneccessary tests to increase fees)
which I would not lable as quackish, but prescribing known ineffective
therapies seems to me to be one of the hallmarks of a quack.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59295
From: garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com (gary.schuetter)
Subject: A Good place for Back Surgery?


	
        Hello,

        Just one quick question:
        My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
        have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
        Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
        the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
        kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
        in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
        appreciated a whole lot!...


                Thanks in Advance.

                        Gary Sheutter.
                        AT&T Bell Labs.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59296
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Quack-Quack (was Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction)

In article <1ravpeINNah4@gap.caltech.edu> ken@isis.cns.caltech.edu
 (Ken Miller) writes:
>So, if you have any evidence *against* the hypothesis --- for example,
>controlled double-blind studies showing that the anti-fungals don't do any
>better than sugar water --- then let's hear it.  If you don't, then what we
>have is anecdotal and uncontrolled evidence on one side, and abject
>disbelief on the other.

I don't have any evidence against water from Lourdes curing MS --
I'm sure there is anecdotal evidence that it does.  Do you really think
that in the absence of a double-blind study I should be indifferent
to the hypothesis that water from Lourdes cures MS?

For what it's worth, I know of only one double blind study of Nystatin
for "candida hypersensitivity syndrome."  It was published in the 
New England Journal (I think 1990) and showed no benefit on systemic
symptoms (though I think it reduced vaginal yeast infections, not
surprisingly).  As I recall, the yeast crowd had some major objections
to the study, though I don't remember what they were.

-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59297
From: jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca (Jeff Poupore)
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

Hi,

Thought I'd add something to the conversation. 

My girlfriend used to work in a lab studying different natural carcinogens.
She mentioned once about the cancerous effect of barbecued food.
Basically, she said that if you eat barbecued foods with strawberries
(a natural carcinogen) the slight carcinogenic properties of both
cancel out each other.

--
Jeff Poupore
jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca

-- 
Jeff Poupore
jtpoupor@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59298
From: trones@dxcern.cern.ch (Jostein Lodve Trones)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org>, gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik) writes:
  
|> In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:

|> |> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident  |> |> in  
|> |> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
|> |> 
|> |> Bill from oz
|> |> 
|> 
|> 
|> Bill,
|> No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
|> photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
|> it takes pictures of your aura.
|> 
|> 
|> -- 
|> Greg 
|> 
|> --  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --
|> 

Greg,
No flame intended, but I think you just missed one of the rare attempts of
humor in sci.skeptic.
"Krillean" against "Kirilian". Get it?
;-)

BTW, I think you're a bit of base yourself, since, to my knowledge, the
electromagnetic field around a stone is rather abscent. But still, a stone
has a nice "aura" on the Kirilian photographs.

Don't remember excactly, but "corona discharge" I think is a more fitting
expression than aura. Think you'll find something on this in the skeptic-faq.


Cheers,
	Jostein

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59299
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: OCD


This is to followup my previous reply on this topic, which it has been
pointed out to me might have been dangerously misleading in two spots.

1.  I stated that psychotherapy (meaning talking therapy and so on) was used 
    to treat Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, which though sometimes true is 
    misleading.  It is not often found effective, particularly by itself.
    Primary treatment today usually consists at least in part of drug
    therapy.  The most current theories of this condition attribute 
    it to more to biological causes than psychological, in places where this
    distinction becomes important.

2.  I mentioned that the DSM-IIIR mentions 'impulses' as a possible 
	diagnostic marker.  However, this might look like something
	people associate with psychotic conditions, uncontrollable or
	unpredictable behaviors, which is NOT the case with OCD.  
	One of the diagnostic criteria of OCD is that the individual
	can and does suppress some of their 'impulses,' although they
	are an unending source of anxiety.  
	The obsessive thoughts and ritualistic actions usually associated with 
	OCD are most frequently very mundane and predictable, closer to
	a superstitious nature than a dangerous nature for the most part.

	Some references (one non-technical and several technical)
	that someone was kind enough to supply for me
	but was unable to post themself :

|"The boy who couldn't stop washing" by judith rapaport.   ***

	(technical refs) :

|	pharmacotherapy of o-c disorder
|	donna m jermain and lynn crismon
|	pharmacotherapy 1990; 10(3):175-198

|	epidemiology of ocd
|	seteven a rasmussen and jane eisen
|	j clin psychiatry 1990;51(2, suppl.):10-13

|	the waking nightmare: an overview of ocd
|	judith l rapoport
|	j clin psychiatry 1990; 51(11, suppl.):25-28

|	absence of placebo response in ocd
|	matig r mavissakalian, bruce jones, stephen olson
|	j nerv ment disease 1990 vol 178 no. 4

	And thanks very much to those who supplied constructive  
	criticism to my first post on OCD.  I hope this helps clarify
	the parts that were misleading.

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59300
From: mechalas@gn.ecn.purdue.edu (John P. Mechalas)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rgnn6$lli@fnnews.fnal.gov> dh@fncrd6.fnal.gov (don husby) writes:
>
>Poor person's Kirlian Photography (try this at home)
>
>1. Hold your hand up to a cold window.
>2. Look closely at the stunning corona effects around
>   your fingertips.
>3. Remove hand (from window) and observe after image.  
>4. Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect.

Advanced Kirlian Photography (try this at home, too)

1.  Get a camera
2.  Have your subject face you with his/her back to the sun.
3.  Take photo
4.  Observe the glow behind their silhouetted image on the photo
5.  Invent crackpot theory to explain the effect

-- 
John Mechalas                                          "I'm not an actor, but
mechalas@gn.ecn.purdue.edu                                 I play one on TV."
Aero Engineering, Purdue University                     #include disclaimer.h

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59301
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: Mind Machines?


In article <C5snww.5GA@tripos.com>, homer@tripos.com (Webster Homer) writes...
>I recently learned about these devices that supposedly induce specific 
>brain wave frequencies in their users simply by wearing them. 

The principle underlying these devices is a well establish principle in
psychology called 'entrainment,' whereby external sensory stimuli
influence gross electrical patterns of brain function.

They are 'experimental' in that people experiment with them and they
are _not_ widely (if at all) used in medicine for therapeutic purposes.  
Given the exception of TENS and similar units used for external electrical 
stimulation, usually for pain relief, not really a light and sound machine.

They are _not_ experimental in the sense of a specific medical 
category to that effect, as with experimental drugs, as the FDA does not 
specifically regulate medical devices in the way it does pharmaceuticals.   

>I would think that if they work as reported they would be incredibly useful,

There are few reliable studies of therapeutic or enhancement effects
for mind machines, other than those relaxation-related effects found with 
meditation or self-hypnosis as well.  Reported benefits are mostly anecdotal and
subjective so far, so it's hard to generalize about their potential value.

A pretty good general non-technical introduction to a wide variety
of these devices may be found in "Would the Buddha Wear a Walkman ?"
Some interesting background material, names of suppliers, and capsule reviews
of specific equipment.  

>do these mind machines (aka Light and Sound machines) work? can they induce
>alpha, theta, and/or delta waves in a person wearing them? What research if
>any has been done on them? Could they be used in lieu of a tranquilizer?
>Or are they just another bit of quackery?

A more important question might be whether they have enough additional
value to be worth investing in.  'Biofeedback' was found to be a legitimate
and reliable effect experimentally under certain conditions, (in that
it demonstrated that we can influence physiological processes previously 
considered purely autonomic) but never panned out as a particularly valuable 
therapeutic tool because of the skill level required and the subtlety and
temporary nature of the effects in most cases.   Maybe someone else 
has more, there used to be a whole mailing list devoted to mind machines,
somewhere on the net.

>Web Homer
>homer@tripos.com

						kind regards,

						todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 354-1273           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Olliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.  |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59302
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org>, gpivar@maestro.mitre.org
(Greg Pivarnik) writes:
=In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
=|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
=|> 
=|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
=|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
=|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
=|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
=|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
=|> >appreciated.
=|> 
=|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
=|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
=|> 
=|> Bill from oz
=|> 
=
=
=Bill,
=No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
=photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
=it takes pictures of your aura.

Greg:  Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
with inanimate objects.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59303
From: julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <C60KrL.59t@dartvax.dartmouth.edu> oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das) writes:
>In article <1993Apr20.173019.11903@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>>
>>As for how foods taste:  If I'm not allergic to MSG and I like
>>the taste of it, why shouldn't I use it?  Saying I shouldn't use
>>it is like saying I shouldn't eat spicy food because my neighbor
>>has an ulcer.
>
>Julie, it doesn't necessarily follow that you should use it (MSG or
>something else for that matter) simply because you are not allergic
>to it. For example you might not be allergic to (animal) fats, and
>like their taste, yet it doesn't follow that you should be using them
>(regularly). MSG might have other bad (or good, I am not up on 
>knowledge of MSG) effects on your body in the long run, maybe that's
>reason enough not to use it. 

Perhaps I should quit eating mushrooms, soya beans, and brie cheese
which all have MSG in them.  It occurs naturally.

I'm not going to quit eating something that I like just because
it *might* cause me trouble later or causes problems in *some*
people.  I would much rather avoid stress by not worrying over
what goes in my mouth and not spending every day reading conflicting
reports of what is good/bad for you.

I may eat some things in quantities that may not be good for me.
Fine.  I've made my decision and I don't think it's appropriate
for anyone to try to 'convert' me.  "It's for your own good" are
the most obnoxious and harmful words, IMO, in the English (or
any other) language.

>
>Altho' your example of the ulcer is funny, it isn't an
>appropriate comparison at all.

I think it is.  I get tired of people saying 'don't eat X because
it's BAD!'  Well, X may not be bad for everyone.  And even if
it is, so what?  Give people all the information but don't ram
your decisions down their throats.

Julie
DISCLAIMER:  All opinions here belong to my cat and no one else

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59304
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rgo4b$et4@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr23.180430.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>I don't like the term "quack" being applied to a licensed physician David.
>>Questionable conduct is more appropriately called unethical(in my opinion).
> 
>>	3. Using laetril to treat cancer patients when such treatment has 
>>	   been shown to be ineffective and dangerous(cyanide release) by 
>>	   the NCI.
> 
> Hmm.  This is certainly among the things I would refer to as quack
> therapy and would tend to refer to any practitioner who prescribed
> laetrile (whether licensed or not) as a quack.  There are unethical
> behaviors (such as ordering unneccessary tests to increase fees)
> which I would not lable as quackish, but prescribing known ineffective
> therapies seems to me to be one of the hallmarks of a quack.
> -- 
> David Rind

One of the responsibilities of a licensed physician is to read the medical 
literature to keep up with changes in medical practice.  All the clamor 
over laetril resulted in the NCI spending quite a bit of money on clinical 
trials which proved(to me anyway) that laetril was ineffective against 
cancer.  A physician who continued to use it, when better, more effective, 
treatments are available, may deserve to be called a quack.  Anti-fungals 
are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
yet a standard part of medical practice.  He deals with critical care 
patients where fungal infection(systemic) is a real problem and just 
because he tries to keep *good* bacteria in his patients does not mean that 
all physicians do this.  I think that aspergillis is more likely to be 
found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.

The problem we have here David is proof that GI discomfort can be caused by 
a candida bloom.  The arguement is that without proof, no action is 
warrented.

Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
restricting calcium intake.

The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
infections should decline.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59305
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: CS "gas" and allergic response- Ques.

This question derives from the Waco incident:
	Could CS ("gas") particles create an allergic response which would 
result in laryngospasm and asphyxiation?- especially in children.

	DNC in Ok.
	OSU-COM will disavow my opinion, and my existence, if necessary.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59306
From: mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods
> resident in the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by
> them, perhaps.

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@maestro.mitre.org (Greg Pivarnik) writes:
> No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms
> Kirilian photography registers the electromagnetical fields around
> objects, in simple, it takes pictures of your aura.

	Greg, no flame intended, but you have no discernible sense of
humor.  What Bill wrote was intended to be funny.  It's called a
"joke", Greg.  Look into it.
	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?

-- 
Mark Meyer                                               | mmeyer@dseg.ti.com |
Texas Instruments, Inc.,  Plano TX                       +--------------------+
Every day, Jerry Junkins is grateful that I don't speak for TI.
      "You have triggered primary defense mechanism."  "Blast!"  "Affirmative."

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59307
From:  ()
Subject: Re: Barbecued foods and health risk

In article <C5sqv8.EDB@acsu.buffalo.edu>, SFEGUS@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu wrote:
> In article <79857@cup.portal.com>
> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> >An odd exception to the rule seems to be the product known as "gumbo file'".
> >This is nothing more than coarsely ground dried sassafras leaves.  This
> >is not only a natural product, but a natural product still in its natural
> >form, so maybe that's how they evade Delany.  Or maybe a special exemption
> >was made, to appease powerful Louisiana Democrats.

One possible reason is that file' is made with sassafras leaves, while root
beer was made with sassafras bark or root bark.  The leaves contain either
no
or less saffrole than the bark.

There is also some sort of treatment which putatively removes saffrole from
sassafras products.  I have some concentrated sassafras tea extract which
is
claimed to have the saffrole removed.

> I think what we have to keep in mind is that even though it may be illegal to
> commercially produce/sell food with carcinogenic substances, it is not illegal
> for people to do such to their own food (smoking, etc).  Is this true?

Well, the last time that I went to the store to buy sassafras bark to make 
root beer, there was a sign saying that it wasn't sold for human
consumption.
Also, when I asked the person if they had wild cherry bark and wintergreen
bark,
she made a point of telling me that I couldn't buy sassafras for human 
consumption.

I find the fact that some people reckless enough to step into an automobile
live
in fear of dropping dead because of a pork rib quite funny, in a sick way.

Eric Pepke                                     INTERNET:
pepke@gw.scri.fsu.edu
Supercomputer Computations Research Institute  MFENET:   pepke@fsu
Florida State University                       SPAN:     scri::pepke
Tallahassee, FL 32306-4052                     BITNET:   pepke@fsu

Disclaimer: My employers seldom even LISTEN to my opinions.
Meta-disclaimer: Any society that needs disclaimers has too many lawyers.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59308
From: Nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk (Nigel Ballard)
Subject: Re: Mind Machines? 


I use a ZYGON Mind Machine as bought in the USA last year.  Although
it's no wonder cure for what ail's you.  It is however VERY good at
stopping you thinking!

Sound strange?  Well suppose you're tired and want to go to bed/sleep.
BUT your head is full of niggling problems to resolve, you lay in the
bed, and quickly they all come to the surface, churning around from one
unresolved thing to the next and then back again.  Been there, bought
the t-shirt?

I slip on the Zygon and select a soothing pattern of light & sound, and
quickly I just can't concentrate on the previous stuff. Your brain's
cache kinda get's flushed, and you start on a whole new set of stuff.

A useful addition, is the facility to feed the output of a tape player
or CD through the box, I use New Age elevator muzak to enhance the
overall effect.

DEFFO better than a pill.

Cheers Nigel

   ************************************************************************
   * NIGEL BALLARD  | INT: nigel@dataman.demon.co.uk |      I'M PINK      *
   * BOURNEMOUTH UK | CIS: 100015.2644   RADIO-G1HOI | THEREFORE I'M SPAM *
   ************************************************************************



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59309
From: n3022@cray.com (Jim Knoll)
Subject: Patti Duke's Problem

Does anyone have information about the struggles that Patti
Duke went through in her personal life with severe mood swings.
Did she have some form of chemical imbalance that triggered
these problems?  I recall that she wrote a book about her troubles.
Does someone have the title of that book?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59310
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: tick fever (aka rocky mtn spotted)

Any rocky mountain spotted fever experts out there ?

The doctor thinks a friend might have this.
The question is, doesn't the tick have to bite you ?

You frequently find a tick crawling on you after a walk
in the woods around here, but you tend to notice it before
it bites you; pulling one out of your skin is something
you're not likely to forget.

Can you get the fever without it biting you ?  Do they
sometimes bite you and then let go so you don't realize
you were bitten ?  I know they will let go once they've had
their fill, but you certainly would notice this (arggh).

So how do you get the fever if you never pulled a tick
off yourself (as opposed to finding one merely crawling
on you) ?

John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59311
From: Renee <rme1@cornell.edu>
Subject: Chelation therapy

Does anyone here know anything about chelation therapy using EDTA?  My
uncle has emphesema, and a doctor wants to try it on him.  We are
wondering if:

1.  Is there any evidence EDTA chelation therapy is beneficial for his
condition, or any condition?

2.  What possible side effects are there.  How can they be mimimized?

Please respond via e-mail to    rme1@cornell.edu

Thanks,
Renee

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59312
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Patti Duke's Problem

In article <1993Apr26.070649.2138@hemlock.cray.com> n3022@cray.com writes:
>Does anyone have information about the struggles that Patti
>Duke went through in her personal life with severe mood swings.
>Did she have some form of chemical imbalance that triggered
>these problems?  I recall that she wrote a book about her troubles.
>Does someone have the title of that book?

She's published two books about her manic-depressive illness: 

_Call Me Anna: the Autobiography of Patty Duke_, Patty Duke and 
Kenneth Turan, Bantam Books 1987 

and

_A Brilliant Madness:  Living with Manic-Depressive Illness_, Patty 
Duke and Gloria Hochman, Bantam Books 1992


--Barbara 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59313
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Annual inguinal hernia repair

In article <jpc.735692207@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov>, jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov
(J. Porter Clark) wrote:
[synopsis] Young man with inguianl hernia on one side, repaired, now has
new hernia on other side.  What gives, he asks?  [and he continues...] 
> Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
> the computer, reading news...

There is the possibility that there is some degree of constipation causing
chronic straining which has caused the bowel movements.  The classic 
problems that are supposed to be looked for in someone with a hernia are
constipation, chronic cough, colon cancer (and you're not too young for
that) and sitting for long periods of time at the computer, reading news.

Good Luck with your surgery!

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59314
From: aj2a@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Amir Anthony Jazaeri)
Subject: Re: Heat Shock Proteins

by the way ms. olmstead dna is not degraded in the stomach nor
under pH of 2.  its degraded in the duodenum under approx.
neutral pH by DNAase enzymes secreted by the pancreas.  my
point:  check your facts before yelling at other people for not
doing so.  just a friendly suggestion.


aaj 4/26/93

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59315
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Celery and Hypertension

Somewhere or other I read that when a person of Chinese heritage was
told that he had high blood pressure he responded by eating celery
(sorry, I don't recall the "dosage").  Apparently this is supposed to
work in reducing hypertension.

Can anyone out there verify this?  And if it does work, does anyone
know the appropriate amounts and possible side-effects?

Thanks,
Leon Traister (lmtra@uts.amdahl.com)


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59316
From: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM DRAPER)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <93115.120409ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>, <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes...
>>
>You might look for an allergy doctor in your area who uses sublingual
>drops instead of shots for treatment. (You are given a small bottle of
>antigens; 3 drops are placed under the tongue for 5 minutes.) My


This homeopathic remedies.  I tried the dander one for a month. 15 drops 
three times a day.  I didn't notice any change whats so ever.  How long 
were you using the drops before you noticed a difference?

For me this treatment is more expensive because my insurance will cover 
tradiitional medicine.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59317
From: lumensa@lub001.lamar.edu
Subject: Precocious Puberty 

Am looking for network access to recent research into treatments for
precocious puberty.  If you know of specifics, would appreciate email. 
I have plenty of general textbook type references.  Have a niece whose
daughter is afflicted.  The mother is an RN and has done a rather
exhaustive search of printed material. 

Pls Email suggestions to 
lumensa@lub001.lamar.edu

Thanx.
-- 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dale Parish - Orange, Texas            | Is the surface of a planet the
Lamar's Token Perpetual Student        | proper place for a developing 
(409)745-(vox)3899;(rec)1581;dat(2507) | industrial civilization?
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59318
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.103242.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
>use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?

I guess I'm still not clear on what the term "candida bloom" means,
but certainly it is well known that thrush (superficial candidal
infections on mucous membranes) can occur after antibiotic use.
This has nothing to do with systemic yeast syndrome, the "quack"
diagnosis that has been being discussed.


>found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
>for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
>women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.

Lucky how?  Since a recent article (randomized controlled trial) of
oral yogurt on reducing vaginal candidiasis, I've mentioned to a 
number of patients with frequent vaginal yeast infections that they
could try eating 6 ounces of yogurt daily.  It turns out most would
rather just use anti-fungal creams when they get yeast infections.

>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>infections should decline.

Again, this just isn't what the systemic yeast syndrome is about, and
has nothing to do with the quack therapies that were being discussed.
There is some evidence that attempts to reinoculate the GI tract with
bacteria after antibiotic therapy don't seem to be very helpful in
reducing diarrhea, but I don't think anyone would view this as a
quack therapy.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59319
From: rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller)
Subject: Resound Hearing aids (and others)

I have a fairly severe high frequency hearing loss. A recent rough test
showed a gently sloping loss to 10-20db down at 1000cps. Then it falls off
a cliff to 70-80dbs down from 1500cps on.  This type of loss is difficult
to fit. I am currently using some old siemens behind the ear aids which
keep me roughly functional, but leave a lot to be desired.

Recently I had an opportunity to test the Widex Q8 behind the ear aids for
several weeks. These have four independent programs which are intended to
be customized for different hearing situations and can be reprogramed. I
found them to be a definite improvement over my current aids and was about
to go ahead with them until another local outfit advertised a free trial of
another programmable system called ReSound.

Unfortunately I was only able to try the ReSound aids in their office for
about 30 minutes and I couldn't compare them 'head to head' with the Widex.
Nevertheless, it did appear to me that they were superior and I was
impressed by what I was able to read about the theory behind them which I
will give in a separate posting. They also carry the Widex aids and had one
patient (presumably wealthy) who decided to go ahead and get the ReSound
even though he had purchased the Widex only 6 months ago.

The problem is that the ReSound aids are about twice as expensive as the
Widex and other programmable aids. I could take a trip to Europe on the
difference!  Being a lover of bargains and hating to spend money, I am
having a hard time persuading myself to go with the ReSounds. I would
appreciate any opinions on this and other hearing aids and projections
about when and if I might see improvements in technology that aren't quite
so expensive.

-Rich Haller <rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu>   University of Oregon, Eugene, OR,
USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59320
From: andersom@spot.Colorado.EDU (Marc Anderson)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

In article <0fpzY=S00WBOM2Vn1u@andrew.cmu.edu> "Charles D. Nichols" <cn0p+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>>From: herzog@sierra.lbl.gov (Hanan Herzog)
>>Subject: Discussions on alt.psychoactives
>>Date: 20 Apr 1993 19:16:25 GMT
>> 
>>Could the people discussing recreational drugs such as mj, lsd, mdma, etc.,
>>take their discussions to alt.drugs? Their discussions will receive greatest
>>contribution and readership there. The people interested in strictly
>>"smart drugs" (i.e. Nootropics) should post to this group. The two groups
>>(alt.drugs & alt.psychoactives) have been used interchangably lately.
>>I do think that alt.psychoactives is a deceiving name. alt.psychoactives
>>is supposedly the "smart drug" newsgroup according to newsgroup lists on
>>the Usenet. Should we establish an alt.nootropics or alt.sdn (smart drugs &
>>nutrients)? I have noticed some posts in sci.med.nutrition regarding
>>"smart nutrients." We may lower that groups burden as well.
>
>I beg to disagree with you on this subject.  If I recall correctly,
>alt.drugs was being flodded by posts like "how do I grow MJ" "How do I
>use a bong?" "wow, man, I just had the coolest trip" etc...  There were
>quite a few people out there who were versed in pharmacology and biology
>who wanted to discuss centrally active substabces at a higher level
>without all the other crap filling the bandwidth.    I would suggest
>that you proceed to create a newsgroup dedicated to Nootropics if you
>must have one dedicated to them, and leave alt.psychoactives to the
>discussion of psychoactives (including nootropics, which are but a small
>portion of the realm of centrally active substances).

I was wondering if a group called 'sci.pharmacology' would be relevent.
This would be used for a more formal discussion about pharmacological
issues (pharmacodynamics, neuropharmacology, etc.)

Just an informal proposal (I don't know anything about the net.politics
for adding a newsgroup, etc.)

[more alt.psychoactives stuff deleted]

-marc
andersom@spot.colorado.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59321
From: rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller)
Subject: ReSound hearing aid theory as I understand it

The following is based on copies I was given of some articles published in
Hearing Instruments. I would appreciate any comments about this and other
'new' technology for hearing aids.

The ReSound system was developed on the basis of some research at AT&T and
appears to take a different approach from other aids. It appears to me that
a new 'programmable' aid like the Widex just uses a more flexible (and
programmable) version of the classical approach of amplifying some parts of
the spectrum more than others and adding some compression to try and help
out in 'noisy' situations.

The major difference in the ReSound approach is that it divides the
spectrum into low and high frequencies (splitting point is programmable),
apparently based on the fact that lots of vowel information can be found in
the low frequencies, while the important consonant information
(unfortunately for me) is in the high frequencies. The two bands then are
treated with different compression schemes which are programable. They have
also developed a new fitting algorythm that builds on what they call
'abnormal growth of loudness'.

This latter is interesting and fits my own personal experience, though I
think the phrase is missleading. What appears to be the case is that as you
exceed the minimum threshold for a person with hearing loss, the deficit
becomes progresslively less compared to normals and by the time you reach
the 'too loud' point the sensitivity curves appear to converge.  This means
that if you just boost all sound levels, you are overloading at the high
end for people with hearing losses. Hence what you want is progressively
less amplification as the signal get closer to the maximum tolerable point.
You want to boost low volume sounds more than high and do so potentially
differently for the low and high frequency parts of the spectrum (specially
for someone like me who is relatively normal up to 1000 cps and then falls
off a cliff).

Aids with simple compressors don't descriminate between energy in the low
and high frequencies and can therefor 'compress' useful high frequency
information because of high volume of low frequency components.
Particularly impressive was the ReSound performance with whispered speech
and in simulated restaurant noise situations. 

-Rich Haller <rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu>   University of Oregon, Eugene, OR,
USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59322
From: nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
>Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
>the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
>and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
>restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
>yet a standard part of medical practice.  

  Nor is it mine.  What I tried to explain to Marty was that it is clearly
understood that antibiotic exposure is a risk factor for fungal infections
- which is not the same as saying bacteria prevent fungal infections. 
Marty made this sound like a secret  known only to veternarians and
biochemists.  Anyone who has treated a urinary tract infection knowns
this. At some centers pre-op liver transplant patients receive bowel
decontamination directed at retaining "good" anaerobic flora in an attempt
to prevent fungal colonization in this soon-to-be high risk group.  I also
use lactobacillus to treat enteral nutrition associated diarrhea (that may
be in part due to alterations in gut flora).  However, it is NOT part of
my routine practice to "reinnoculate" patients with "good" bacteria after
antibiotics.  I have seen no data on this practice preventing or treating
fungal infections in at risk patients.  Whether or not it is a "logical
extension" from the available observations I'll leave to those of you who
base strong opinions and argue over such speculations in the absence of
clinical trials. 
  One place such therapy has been described is in treating particularly
recalcitrant cases of C. difficile colitis (NOT a fungal infection). There
are case reports of using stool (ie someone elses) enemas to repopulate
the patients flora.  Don't try this at home. 

>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
>colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
>than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.

  Except that it isn't. At least symptomatically apparent disease.

>Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
>has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
>kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
>done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
>intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
>from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
>breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
>Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
>increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
>restricting calcium intake.

  Seems like this is an excellent argument for ignoring anecdotal
conventional wisdom (a euphemism for no data) and doing a good clinical
trial, like: 

AU   Dismukes-W-E.  Wade-J-S.  Lee-J-Y.  Dockery-B-K.  Hain-J-D.
TI   A randomized, double-blind trial of nystatin therapy for the
     candidiasis hypersensitivity syndrome [see comments]
SO   N-Engl-J-Med.  1990 Dec 20.  323(25).  P 1717-23.
     psychological tests. RESULTS. The three active-treatment regimens
     and the all-placebo regimen
     significantly reduced both vaginal and systemic symptoms (P less than
     0.001), but nystatin did not reduce the systemic symptoms
     significantly more than placebo. [ . . . ]
     CONCLUSIONS. In women with presumed candidiasis
     hypersensitivity syndrome, nystatin does not reduce systemic or
     psychological symptoms significantly more than placebo. Consequently,
     the empirical recommendation of long-term nystatin therapy for such
     women appears to be unwarranted.

  Does this trial address every issue raised here, no.  Jon Noring was not
surprised at this negative trial since they didn't use *Sporanox* (despite
Crook's recommendation for Nystatin).  Maybe they didn't avoid those
carbohydrates . . . 

>The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
>be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
>If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
>David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>infections should decline.

  Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
          
                           I'm lost!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59323
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: PMS-Can It Be Prevented By A Diet Change?

This question came up in Sci. Med. Nutrition and I'm posting my answer 
here.  Only 22 medical schools in the U.S. teach courses on human 
nutrition.  We have already seen what a lack of nutrition education can do 
when candida and kidney stones present themselves to the medical community.
I think that the best example of where U.S. medicine is really missing the 
mark when it comes to a knowledge of nutrition is PMS.  So many women(and 
their husbands) suffer from this disorder that it is really criminal that 
most physicians in the U.S. are not taught that PMS is primarily caused by 
diet and diet changes can prevent it from ever happpening.  Before shooting 
your flames, read the entire article and then decide if flaming is 
justified.

From A Poster In Sci. Medi. Nutrition:
> 	In a psychological anthropology course I am taking, we got 
> sidetracked onto a short conversation about PMS.  Some rumors shared
> by several of the students included ideas that vitamin levels, sugar
> intake, and caffeine intake might affect PMS symptoms.
> 	Is there any data on this, or is it just so much hooey?
> 
> Many thanks,
> 
> Michael, I've wanted to reply to this post ever since I saw it but I got 
side-tracked with candida.  PMS is a lot like Candida blooms, most 
physicians don't recognize it as a specific "disease" entity.  Here is 
everything that you would ever want to know about PMS.

Premenstrual syndrome has been divided into four specific subgroups:

	PMT-A(Anxiety)		PMT-D(depression)
	anxiety			depression
	irritability		forgetfulness
	insomnia		confusion
	depression		lethargy

	PMT-C(Craving)		PMT-H(Hyperhydration)
	craving for sweets	weight gain
	increased appetite	breast congestion and tenderness
	sugar ingestion causes: abdominal bloating and tenderness
	 1. headache		edema of the face and extremities
	 2. palpitations
	 3. fatigue or fainting
 
PMT-A is characterized by elevated blood estrogen levels and low 
progesterone levels during the luteal phase of a women's cycle.

PMT-C is caused by the ingestion of large amounts of refined simple 
carbohydrates.  During the luteal phase of a women's cycle, there is 
increased glucose tolerance with a flat glucose curve after oral glucose 
challenge.  The metabolic findings believed to be responsible for PMT-C are 
a low magnesium and a low prostaglandin E1.  This condition of hypoglycemia 
is not unique to PMS but there are a number of different causes of 
hypoglycemia, magnesium and PGE1 seem to be specific to PMS hypoglycemia.
	A. Am. J. Psychiatry 147(4):477-80(1990).
Unrefined complex carbohydrate should be substituted for sugar, magnesium 
supplementation and alpha linoleic acid supplementation(increased to 5-6% of 
the total calories) using safflower oil or evening primrose oil as sources 
of alpha linoleic acid.

PMT-D is characterized by elevated progesterone levels during the midluteal 
phase of a women's cycle.  Another cause of PMT-D has been found to be lead 
toxicity(in women without elevated progesterone levels during the midluteal 
phase). "Effect of metal ions on the binding of estridol to human 
endometrial cystol" Fertil. Steril. 28:312-18(1972).

PMT-H is associated with water and salt retention along with an elevated 
serum aldosterone level.  Salt restriction, B6, magnesium and vitamin E 
for breast tenderness have all been effective in treating PMT-H

This general discussion of the PMS syndromes came form:

	A. "Management of the premenstrual tension sundromes: Rational for 
	    a nutritional approach". 1986, A Year in Nutritional Medicine. 
	    J. Bland, Ed. Keats, Publishing, 1986.

	B. "Nutritional factors in the etiology of premenstrual tension 
	    syndromes", J. Reprod. Med.28(7):446-64(1983).

	C. "Premenstrual tension", Prob. Obstet. Gynecol. 3(12):1-39(1980)

Treatment has traditionally involved progesterone administration if you can 
find a doctor who will treat you for PMS(just about as hard as finding one 
that will treat you for candida blooms).  While progesterone will work, 
supplementation with vitamins and minerals works even better.  There really 
has been an awful lot of research done on PMS(much more than candida 
blooms).  Many of these studies have been what are called experimental 
controlled studies(the type of rigorous clinical studies that doctors like to 
see done).

Here are a few of these studies:

	CARBOHYDRATE: Experimental Controlled Study, "Effect of a low-fat, 
	high-carbohydrate diet on symptoms of cyclical mastopathy" Lancet 
	2:128-32(1988).  21 pts with severe persistent cyclical mastopathy 
	of at least 5 years duration were randomly selected to receive 
	specific training to reduce dietary fat to 15% of total calories 
	and increase complex carbohydrate ingestion or given general dietary 
	advise with no training.  After 6 months, there was a significant 
	reduction in the severity of the breast swelling and tenderness in 
	the trained group as reported by self-reported symptoms as well as 
	physical exams which quantitated the degree of breast swelling, 
	tenderness and nodularity.

	VITAMIN A: Experimental Controlled Study, "The use of Vitamin A in 
	premenstrual tension" Acta Obstet. Gynecol Scand. 39:586-92(1960).  
	218 pts with severe recurring PMS received 200,000 to 300,000IU 
	vitamin A daily or a placebo.  Serum retinol levels were monitored 
	and high dose supplementation was discontinued when evidence of 
	toxicity occured(serum retinol above 450ug/ml).  The intent of the 
	study was to load the liver up with vitamin A and get a normal pool 
	size(500,000IU to 1,000,000IU) and then see if this 
	normal vitamin A pool could prevent PMS.  48% getting the high dose 
	vitamin A had complete remission of the symptoms of PMS.  Only 10% 
	getting the placebo reported getting complete relief of PMS sysmptoms.
  	10% of the vitamin A treated group reported no improvement in PMS 
	symptoms.

	Experimental Controlled Study, "Premenstrual tension treated with 
	vitamin A" J. Clinical Endocrinology 10:1579-89(1950). 30 pts 
	received 200,000IU of vitamin A daily starting on day 15 of their 
	cycle with supplementation continuing until the onset of PMS symptoms.
  	After 2-6 months, all 30 pts reported a significant improvement in 
	PMS symptoms.  Vitamin A supplementation was stopped once evidence of 
	toxicity was demonstrated and all 30 pts were followed for one year 
	after high dose vitamin A supplementation was stopped.  PMS symptoms 
	did not reoccur in any of these 30 pts for upto one year after the 
	vitamin A supplementation was stopped.

Most Americans do not have a normal store of vitamin A in their liver.  
These studies and several others were designed to see if getting a normal 
store of vitamin A into the liver could eliminate PMS.  Of all the vitamins 
given for PMS(vitamin A, B6, and vitamin E), vitamin A has shown the best 
single effect.  This is probably because vitamin A is involved in steroid 
(estrogen/progesterone) metabolism in the liver.  Getting your liver full 
of vitamin A seems to be one of the best things that you can do to prevent 
the symptoms of PMS.  But vitamin A is toxic and you don't want to be trying 
to do this without being seen by a physician who can monitor you for vitamin 
A toxicity.

	VITAMIN B6: Experimental Double-blind Crossoverr Study, "Pyridoxine
	(vitamin B6) and the premenstrual syndrome: A randomized crossover 
	trial"J.R. Coll. Gen. Pract. 39:364-68(1989).  32 women aged 18-49 
	with moderate to severe PMS randomly received 50mg B6 daily or placebo.
  	After 3 months the groups were switched and followed for another 
	3 months.  B6 had a significant effect on the emotional aspects of 
	PMS(depression, irritability and tiredness).  Other symptoms of PMS 
	were not significanttly affected by B6 supplementation.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "The efects of vitamin B6 
	supplementation on premenstrual sysmptoms" Obstet. Gynecol 
	70(2):145-49(1987).  55 pts with moderate to severe PMS received 
	150mg B6 daily or placebo for 2 months.  Analysis of convergence 
	showed that B6 significantly improved premenstrual symptoms related 
	to the autonomic nervous system(dizziness and vomiting) as well as 
	behavior changes(poor mental performance, decreased social interaction)
  	Anxiety, depression and water retention were not improved by B6 
	supplementation.

Vitamin B6 is below the RDA for both American men and women.  Birth control 
pills and over 40 different drugs increase the B6 requirement in man.  
Women on birth control pills should be supplemented with 10-15 mg of B6 per 
day.  The dose should be increased if symptoms of PMS appear.  Dr. David R. 
Rubinow who heads the biological psychiatry branch of NIMH was quoted in 
Clin. Psychiatry News, December, 1987 as stating that B6 should be 
considered the "first-line" drug for PMS(over progesterone) and if the 
patient does not respond, then other treatments should be tried.  Vitamin 
B6 can be toxic(nerve damage) if consumed in doses of 500mg or more each 
day. 


	VITAMIN E: Experimental Double-blind Study, "Efficacy of alpha-
	tocopherol in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome" J. Reprod. 
	Med. 32(6):400-04(1987). 35 pts received 400IU vitamin E daily for 3 
	cycles or a placebo.  Vitamin E treated pts had 33% who reported a 
	significant reduction in physical symptoms(weight gain and breast 
	tenderness) while the placebo group had 14% who reported a significant
 	reduction in physical symptoms. The vitamin E group reported that 38% 
	had a significant reduction in anxiety versus 12% for the placebo 
	group.  For depression, the vitamin E group had 27% with a significant
	decrease in depression compared with 8% for the placebo group.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "The effect of alpha-tocopherol on 
	premenstrual symptomalogy: A double blind study" J. Am. Coll. Nutr. 
	2(2):115-122(1983). 75pts with benign breast disease and PMT randomly 
	received vitamin E at 75IU, 150IU, or 300IU daily or placebo.  After 
	2 months of supplementation, 150IU of vitamin E or higher significantly 
	improved PMT-A and PMT-C.  The 300IU dose was needed to significantly 
	improve PMT-D.  No dose of vitamin E significantly improved PMT-H
	(other studies have shown that a higher vitamin E doses will relieve 
	PMT-H symptoms).
	
	MAGNESIUM: Experimental Double-blind Study, "Magnesium prophylaxis 
	of menstrual migraine: effects on itracellular magnesium" Headache 
	31:298-304(1991). 20 pts with perimenstrual headache received 360 mg 
	daily of magnesium as magnesium pyrrolidone carboxylic acid or a 
	placebo.  Treatment was started on the 15th day of the cycle and 
	continued until menstruation. After 2 months, the Pain Total Index 
	was significantly lower in the magnesium group.  Magnesium treatment 
	was also assocoiated with a significant reduction in the Menstrual 
	Distress Questionnaire scores.  Pretreatment magnesium levels in  
	lymphocytes and polymorphonuclear leukocytes were significantly lower 
	in this group of 20 pts compared to control women who did not suffer 
	from PMS.  After treatment, magnesium levels in these cells was raised 
	into the normal range.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Oral Magnesium successfully 
	relieves premenstrual mood changes" Obstet. Gynecol 78(2):177-81(1991). 
	32pts aged 24-39 randomly received either magnesium carboxylic acid 
	360mg of Mg per day or a placebo from the 15th day of the cycle to the 
	onset of the menstrual flow.  After 2 cycles, both groups received 
	magnesium.  The Menstrual Distress Questionnaire score of the cluster 
	pain was significantly reduced during the second cycle(month) for the 
	magnesium treatment group as well as the placebo group once they were 
	switched to magnesium supplementation.  In addition, the total score on 
	the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire was significantly decreased by 
	magnesium supplementation.  The authors suggest that magnesium 
	supplemenation should become a routine treatment for the mood changes 
	that occur during PMS.

There are numerous observational studies that have been published in the 
medical literature which also suggest that PMS is primarily a disorder 
that arises out of a hormone imbalance that is dietary in nature.  But 
since observational studies are considered by most physicians in Sci. Med. 
to be anecdotal in nature, I have not bothered to cite them.  There are 
also over a half dozen good experimental studies that have been done on 
multivitamin and mineral supplementation to prevent PMS.  I've chosen the 
best specific studies on individual vitamins and minerals to try to point out 
that PMS is primarily a nutritional disorder.  But doctors don't recognize 
nutritional disorders unless they can see clinical pathology(beri-beri, 
pellagra, scruvy, etc.).  PMS is probably the best reason why every doctor 
being trained in the U.S. should get a good course on human nutrition.  PMS 
is really only the tip if the iceberg when it comes to nutritional 
disorders.  It's time that medicine woke up and smelled the roses.

Here's some studies which show the importance in multivitamin/mineral 
supplementation and/or diet change in preventing PMS.

	Experimental Study, "Effect of a nutritional programme on 
	premenstrual syndrome: a retrospective analysis", Complement. Med. 
	Res.5(1):8-11(1991).  200pts were given dietary instructions and 
	supplemented with Optivite(R) plus additional vitamin C, vitamin E, 
	magnesium, zinc and primrose oil.  The dietary instructions were to 
	take the supplements and switch to a low fat, complex carbohydrate 
	diet.  On a retrospective analysis, 96.5% of the 200pts reported an 
	improvement in their PMS symptoms with 30% of the sample stating that 
	they no longer suffered from PMS. 


	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Role of Nutrition in managing 
	premenstrual tension syndromes", J Reprod. Med. 32(6):405-22(1987).  
	A low fat, high complex carbohydrate diet along with Optivite 
	supplementation significantly decreased PMS scores compared with diet 
	change and placebo.  After 6 months on the experimental program, the 
	vitamin/mineral supplementated group had significantly decreased 
	estradiol and increased progesterone in serum during the midlutel 
	phase of their cycle.

	Experimental Double-blind Study, "Clinical and biochemical effects 
	of nutritional supplementation on the premenstrual syndrome", J. 
	Reprod. Med. 32(6):435-41(1987). 119pts randomly given Optivite(12 
	tablets per day) or a placebo.  The treated groups showed a 
	significant decrease in PMS symptoms compared to the placebo.  Another
 	group of 104pts got Optivite(4 tablets per day) or placebo.  For this 
	second group of patients, no significant effect of supplementation on 
	PMS symptoms was observed.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
1111 W. 17th St.
Tulsa, Ok 74107

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance" 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59324
From: brown@spk.hp.com (Pat R. Brown)
Subject: Re: HELP...REFLUX ESOPHAGITIS

Please post your results, a close friend has this condition and
has asked these same questions. 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59325
From: mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>
>Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>occur?

Ohboy. Here we go again. And one wonders why the American
education system is in such abysmal shape?



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59326
From: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>:
>:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>:occur?
>
>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
>to your biology teacher.
>
>-- 
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
>=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
>=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
>=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

 what is the likely hood of conception if sperm is deposited just outside
the vagina?  ie.  __% chance.
 -------------------------------------------------------------------------

-- 
_____________________________________________________________________________
*                  J e n n i f e r      S c h e i b e r                     *
email: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu      School of Nursing - Purdue University
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59327
From: eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>with inanimate objects.

True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
"corona discharge"?



-- 
"THAT is a DRY turtle.  That turtle is NOT moist!"
Ezra Story, a student at RIT, and
eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu, his trusty(?) mailing address.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59328
From: grenus@pasture.ecn.purdue.edu (Karen M Grenus)
Subject: thermogenics

Hi,
	I'm an avid dieter and the new miracle drug seems to involve thermo-
genics. The drug is claimed to stimulate the brown fat to burn food 
creating eat as opposed to the fat being stored. There are all sorts of
warnings about fevers, elevated blood pressure and heart rate, ect..
	The silver lining is that apparently some weight loss does not 
require a change in diet. Is this possible? Are the pills dangerous or just
hoaxes?

Karen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59329
From: dsew@troi.cc.rochester.edu (David Sewell)
Subject: Theophylline/ephedrine and water bio-availability

Does anyone know if either theophylline or ephedrine, or the two in
combination, can reduce the body's ability to make use of 
available water?  I had kind of an odd experience on a group hike
recently, becoming dehyrated after about 9 hours of rigorous
hiking despite having brought 1 1/2 gallons of water (c. 6 liters).
I drank close to twice as much as anyone else, and no one else was
dehydrated.  I don't think general physical condition was an issue,
since I was in at least the middle of the pack in terms of general
stamina, so far as I could tell.

It may be that I just plain need more water than most people.  But I am
wondering if theophylline and/or ephedrine might be aggravating things.
I took a couple of Primatene tablets during the hike to control asthma
(24 mg. ephedrine, 100 mg. theophylline).  I gather that both those
drugs are diuretics.  So now I'm wondering: does that mean they can
reduce the body's ability to utilize available water?  Would it be a
particularly  stupid thing to take that medication during hot-weather
exercise?  (I always assumed diuresis just meant you urinated a lot, but
that wasn't the case yesterday.)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59330
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Chelation therapy

In article <1rh3seINNfkc@newsstand.cit.cornell.edu>, Renee <rme1@cornell.edu> writes:
> Does anyone here know anything about chelation therapy using EDTA?  My
> uncle has emphesema, and a doctor wants to try it on him.  We are
> wondering if:
> 
> 1.  Is there any evidence EDTA chelation therapy is beneficial for his
> condition, or any condition?
> 
> 2.  What possible side effects are there.  How can they be mimimized?
> 
> Please respond via e-mail to    rme1@cornell.edu
> 
> Thanks,
> Renee

EDTA(chelation therapy) has been used by some physicians to try to remove 
calcium from calcified plaques in the arterial system(not approved for such 
use).  There is also the possibility that lung tissue in patients with lung 
disease has become calcified(chest x-rays would show this).  There are side
-effects to the use of EDTA because it is not specific for calcium(it also 
binds other minerals).  I think that there have been some deaths when 
EDTA chelation therapy has been used because of mineral imbalances that 
were not detected and corrected.  In animal studies, the best way to remove 
calcium from plaques in rabbits was to supplement the rabbits with vitamin C 
and magnesium(rabbits already synthesize their own vitamin C, the extra 
vitamin C was given in their diets to help the magnesium displace the calcium 
from the plaques).

The calcification process that occurs in both plaques and the lung probably 
can be prevented if magnesium is used in supplemental form.  Most patietns 
with calcium deposits are found to be deficient in calcium.

	1. "Magnesium interrationships in ischemic heart disease: A review"
	   Am J Clin Nutr 27(1):59-79(1974).  Supplementation with 
	   magnesium will prevent clacification of blood vessels. 

	2. "The importance of magnesium deficiency in cardiovascular 
	    disease" Am. Heart J 94:649-57(1977).  The need to measure the 
	    serum concentration in all patients with heat disease cannot be 
	    overemphasized.  This is a review article.

	3. "Effect of dietary magnesium on development of atherosclerosis 
	   in cholesterol-fed rabbits" Atherosclerosis 10:732-7(1990).  
	   Magnesium supplementation greatly decreased the formation of 
	   plaques in rabbits feed a diet that had 1% by weight cholesterrol 
	   added to their normal food.

Since EDTA will also bind magnesium, I've never really liked it's use for 
the reversal of athersclerosis or now apparently in emphesema patients.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59331
From: blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu (Gunnar Blix)
Subject: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
penile cancer.

Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
I will summarize to the net.

******************************************************************
* Gunnar Blix      * Good advice is one of those insults that    *
* blix@cs.uiuc.edu * ought to be forgiven.              -Unknown *
******************************************************************
--
******************************************************************
* Gunnar Blix      * Good advice is one of those insults that    *
* blix@cs.uiuc.edu * ought to be forgiven.              -Unknown *
******************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59332
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rhb58$9cf@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr26.103242.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>are in a different class.  The big question seems to be is it reasonable to 
>>use them in patients with GI distress or sinus problems that *could* be due 
>>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?
> 
> I guess I'm still not clear on what the term "candida bloom" means,
> but certainly it is well known that thrush (superficial candidal
> infections on mucous membranes) can occur after antibiotic use.
> This has nothing to do with systemic yeast syndrome, the "quack"
> diagnosis that has been being discussed.
> 
> 
>>found in the sinus mucus membranes than is candida.  Women have been known 
>>for a very long time to suffer from candida blooms in the vagina and a 
>>women is lucky to find a physician who is willing to treat the cause and 
>>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.
> 
> Lucky how?  Since a recent article (randomized controlled trial) of
> oral yogurt on reducing vaginal candidiasis, I've mentioned to a 
> number of patients with frequent vaginal yeast infections that they
> could try eating 6 ounces of yogurt daily.  It turns out most would
> rather just use anti-fungal creams when they get yeast infections.
> 
>>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>>infections should decline.
> 
> Again, this just isn't what the systemic yeast syndrome is about, and
> has nothing to do with the quack therapies that were being discussed.
> There is some evidence that attempts to reinoculate the GI tract with
> bacteria after antibiotic therapy don't seem to be very helpful in
> reducing diarrhea, but I don't think anyone would view this as a
> quack therapy.
> -- 
> David Rind

Yogurt contains Lactobacillus acidophilus and L. bulgaricus.  L. 
acidophilus is the major bacteria in the vaginal tract and is primarily 
responsible for keeping the vaginal tract acidic and yeast free.  Most of 
the commercial yogurt sold in the U.S. has a very low L. acidophilus and L. 
bulgaricus count.  Neither of these bacteria are obligate anaerobes with are 
much more important in dealing with the diarrhea problem.  Gordon R. has told 
me through e-mail that he gives his patients L. acidophilus and several 
different obligate anaerobes(which set-up shop in the colon) but he hasn't 
told me which ones yet.  The Lactobacillus genera are mostly facultative 
anaerobes and will set-up shop where they have access to oxygen if given a 
chance(mouth, anus, sinus cavity and vagina).  Having these good bacteria 
around will greatly decrease the chance of candida blooms in the anal 
region or the vagina.  I have not proposed a systemic action for candida 
blooms.  I know that others swear that all kinds of symptoms arise from 
the evil yeast blooms in the body.  I'm not ready to buy that yet.  I do 
believe that complications at specific sites(vagina, anal and maybe lower 
colon, sinus and mouth) can result from antibiotic use which removes the 
competing bacteria from these sites and thus lets candida grow unchecked.
Restoring the right bacterial balance is the best way(in my opinion) to get 
rid of the problem.  Anti-fungals, a low carbohydrate diet and vitamin A 
supplementation may all help to minimize the local irritation until the 
good bacteria can take over control of the food supply again and lower the 
pH to basically starve the candida out.


Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59333
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rhfrkINN816@shelley.u.washington.edu>, nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld) writes:
> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
> 
>>to candida blooms following the use of broad-spectrum antibiotics?  Gorden 
>>Rubenfeld, through e-mail, has assured me that most physicians recognize 
>>the chance of candida blooms occuring after broad-spectrum antibiotic use 
>>and they therefore reinnoculate their patients with *good* bacteria to 
>>restore competetion for candida in the body.  I do not believe that this is 
>>yet a standard part of medical practice.  
> 
>   Nor is it mine.  What I tried to explain to Marty was that it is clearly
> understood that antibiotic exposure is a risk factor for fungal infections
> - which is not the same as saying bacteria prevent fungal infections. 
> Marty made this sound like a secret  known only to veternarians and
> biochemists.  Anyone who has treated a urinary tract infection knowns
> this. At some centers pre-op liver transplant patients receive bowel
> decontamination directed at retaining "good" anaerobic flora in an attempt
> to prevent fungal colonization in this soon-to-be high risk group.  I also
> use lactobacillus to treat enteral nutrition associated diarrhea (that may
> be in part due to alterations in gut flora).  However, it is NOT part of
> my routine practice to "reinnoculate" patients with "good" bacteria after
> antibiotics.  I have seen no data on this practice preventing or treating
> fungal infections in at risk patients.  Whether or not it is a "logical
> extension" from the available observations I'll leave to those of you who
> base strong opinions and argue over such speculations in the absence of
> clinical trials. 
>   One place such therapy has been described is in treating particularly
> recalcitrant cases of C. difficile colitis (NOT a fungal infection). There
> are case reports of using stool (ie someone elses) enemas to repopulate
> the patients flora.  Don't try this at home. 
> 
>>not give give her advise to use the OTC anti-fungal creams.  Since candida 
>>colonizes primarily in the ano-rectal area, GI symptoms should be more common 
>>than vaginal problems after broad-spectrum antibiotic use.
> 
>   Except that it isn't. At least symptomatically apparent disease.
> 
>>Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There 
>>has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is 
>>kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been 
>>done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the 
>>intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones 
>>from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to 
>>breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of 
>>Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong, 
>>increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is 
>>restricting calcium intake.
> 
>   Seems like this is an excellent argument for ignoring anecdotal
> conventional wisdom (a euphemism for no data) and doing a good clinical
> trial, like: 
> 
> AU   Dismukes-W-E.  Wade-J-S.  Lee-J-Y.  Dockery-B-K.  Hain-J-D.
> TI   A randomized, double-blind trial of nystatin therapy for the
>      candidiasis hypersensitivity syndrome [see comments]
> SO   N-Engl-J-Med.  1990 Dec 20.  323(25).  P 1717-23.
>      psychological tests. RESULTS. The three active-treatment regimens
>      and the all-placebo regimen
>      significantly reduced both vaginal and systemic symptoms (P less than
>      0.001), but nystatin did not reduce the systemic symptoms
>      significantly more than placebo. [ . . . ]
>      CONCLUSIONS. In women with presumed candidiasis
>      hypersensitivity syndrome, nystatin does not reduce systemic or
>      psychological symptoms significantly more than placebo. Consequently,
>      the empirical recommendation of long-term nystatin therapy for such
>      women appears to be unwarranted.
> 
>   Does this trial address every issue raised here, no.  Jon Noring was not
> surprised at this negative trial since they didn't use *Sporanox* (despite
> Crook's recommendation for Nystatin).  Maybe they didn't avoid those
> carbohydrates . . . 
> 
>>The conventional wisdom in animal husbandry has been that animals need to 
>>be reinnoculated with *good* bacteria after coming off antibiotic therapy.
>>If it makes sense for livestock, why doesn't it make sense for humans 
>>David?  We are not talking about a dangerous treatment(unless you consider 
>>yogurt dangerous).  If this were a standard part of medical practice, as 
>>Gordon R. says it is, then the incidence of GI distress and vaginal yeast 
>>infections should decline.
> 
>   Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
> itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
> hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
> therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
> systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
> risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
> candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
> of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
> effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
> an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
> focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
>           
>                            I'm lost!

Candida can do that to you. :-)  Gordon, I think that the best clinical 
trial for candida blooms would involve giving women with chronic vaginal 
candida blooms L. Acidophilus orally and see it it can decrease the 
frequency and extent of candida blooms in the vagina since most of the 
candida seems to be migrating in from the anal region and L. acidophilus 
should be able keep the candida in check if it can make it through the 
intestinal tract and colonize in the anus where it will have access to 
oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.


The calcium and kidney stone story is not a good reason to throw all 
conventional wisdom out the window.  Where would medicine be if 
conventional wisdom had not been used to develop many of the standard 
medical practices that could not be confirmed through clinical trials?
The clinical trial is a very new arrival on the medical scene(and a very 
important one).  The lack of proof that reinnoculation with good bacteria 
after antibiotic use is important to the health of a patient is no reason 
to dismiss it out-of-hand, especially if reinnoculation can be done cleaply 
and safely(like it is in animal husbandry).

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59334
From: FOO@MHFOO.PC.MY (Dr. Foo Meng How)
Subject: How to gain access?

To Whomever who can help me,

	I am a doctor from Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia. I have recently hooked up my 
private home computer to EMail via the local telephone company. I am really interested
in corresponding with other Doctors or medical researchers through Email. I also hope
to be able to subscribe to a news network on medicine.

Can someone please tell me what I should do? I am completely new to this and have no 
idea about the vast capabilities of Email.

Thank you for your attention.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59335
From: plebrun@minf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <stephen.735806195@mont>, stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
|> When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
|> in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
|> sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
|> cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
|> 
|> Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
|> occur?

Sperm deposited near the entrance of the vagina has been known to cause
pregnancy, even in the presence of a hymen. I doubt that sperm could make 
it through a layer of cloth then find the right path to a waiting ovum,
but it might be possible.

So, it is possible for a woman to be both virgin and pregnant.
Also, some hymens are sufficiently loose to allow near-normal intercourse
without rupturing. The problem when investigating these phenomenae is,
of course, getting an honest account of what exactly happened.

-philippe

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59336
From: plebrun@minf.vub.ac.be (Philippe Lebrun)
Subject: Re: Frozen shoulder and lawn mowing

In article <1993Apr23.213823.11738@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
|> Ihave had a frozen shoulder for over a year or about a year.  It is still
|> partially frozen, and I am still in physical therapy every week.  But the
|> pain has subsided almost completely.  UNTIL last week when I mowed the
|> lawn for twenty minutes each, two days in a row.  I have a push type power
|> mower.  The pain started back up a little bit for the first time in quite
|> a while, and I used ice and medicine again.  Can anybody explain why this
|> particular activity, which does not seem to stress me very much generally,
|> should cause this shoulder problem?

You need to use your shoulder muscles to push the mower. If you haven't been
doing much exercise, as I suppose you haven't, then a constant 20 minute
long effort can cause stiffness and cramps.

-philippe

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59337
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: Occupational Injuries and Disease: Workers Memorial Day


Here is a press release from the American Federation of State, 
County and Municipal Employees.

 Unions Point To Deadly Workplaces; AFSCME, Other Unions
Commemorate Workers Memorial Day
 To: National Desk, Labor Writer
 Contact: Janet Rivera of the American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO, 202-429-1130

   WASHINGTON, April 23 -- The American Federation of State, 
County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and other unions
of the AFL-CIO on Wednesday, April 28, will commemorate the fifth
annual Workers Memorial Day -- a day to pay homage to the 6
million workers who are killed, injured, or diseased on the job.
   This year, AFSCME will focus its Workers Memorial Day efforts an
the dangerous environment in which corrections officers must work.
Earlier this month, an AFSCME corrections officer, Robert
Vallandingham, was killed by inmates who overtook the corrections
facility in Lucasville, Ohio.
   The law and order agenda of the 1980s has resulted in a steady
increase in the prison population for the past five years.  On
Jn. 1, 1992, the prison population was 709,587. Projections
show a continued increase in the number of inmates, with an
expected prison population of 811,253 in 1994.
   The conditions which this burgeoning prison population has
created for corrections officers is partially reflected in the
number of assaults by inmates against staff.  Assaults against
staff increased dramatically between 1987 and 1989, and remain
high.  In 1987, there were 808 assaults by inmates against staff,
compared to 9,961 such assaults in 1991.
   The increased number of inmates has brought on the dangerous
combination of overcrowding and understaffing.  For example in Ohio
officer-to-inmate ratio is 1 to 8.4 -- the second worst ratio in
the nation. The national average is 1 to 5.3.  Other health and
safety issues facing corrections officers include AIDS, Hepatitis
B, tuberculosis, stress, and chemical hazards.
   AFSCME has more than 50,000 members who work in the nation's
federal, state and local correctional facilities.
   Correction officers are not alone in performing their jobs under
life-threatening conditions.  Every year, 10,000 American workers
die from job-related injuries, and tens of thousands more die from
occupational disease.  Public employees do some of the nation's
most dangerous jobs. Perilous occupations include:

   -- Highway Workers - Highway workers are often injured and
      frequently killed by moving traffic because work zones are
      not barricaded or don't have proper lighting.
   -- Health Care Workers - Hospitals have the highest number of
      job-related injuries and illnesses of any private sector
      employer and nursing homes ranked fifth.  There were more
      than 325,000 job-related illnesses and injuries in private
      sector hospitals in 1991, up almost 10 percent over the
      previous year.  It is generally believed that health care
      workers employed at public sector hospitals and nursing homes
      have a significantly higher rate of injuries and illnesses
      than do their private sector counterparts.  Health and safety
      issues facing health care workers include exposure to
      tuberculosis and the HIV virus, back injuries, and high
      levels of stress.
   -- Social Workers - Social workers who work in mental health
      institutions are often the victims of assaults and,
      sometimes, fatal attacks.  For instance, last October, a man
      carrying a semiautomatic handgun walked into the Schuyler
      County Social Services Building in Watkins Glenn, N.Y.
      and fatally shot social services workers, before turning the
      gun on himself.  There are two basic problems.  First is a
      growing lack of support services for people who don't have
      the help they need.  Because workers are overworked, some
      clients are not given the adequate amount of counselling.
      Such conditions may cause clients to become more frustrated.
      The "quality" of the clients is also becoming more violent,
      as more are moved out of the institutions.

   Nearly 2 million workers have been killed by workplace hazards
since OSHA was passed.  Moreover, as AFSCME President Gerald W.
McEntee explains, OSHA does not provide workplace safety
protections for public employees.
   "More than 1,600 public employees are killed each year on the
job, yet 27 states still provide no federally-approved OSHA
coverage for public employees," said McEntee.  "This, despite the
fact that public employees -- highway workers, health care workers,
corrections officers, to name but a few -- do some of the most
dangerous work in our society.  This year we are fighting for
passage of OSHA reform legislation to give all workers greater
rights and protections, and finally guarantee all public employees
safe workplaces.  We need the public support to be successful."
   Government workers suffer 25 percent more injuries than private
sector workers, and these injuries are almost 75 percent more
severe.
   Public employees were exempted from OSHA when the law was passed
in 1970 and today, public employees in more than half the states
have no OSHA coverage.
 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59338
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article nodrog@hardy.u.washington.edu (Gordon Rubenfeld) writes:

>  Marty, you've also changed the terrain of the discussion from empiric
>itraconazole for undocumented chronic fungal sinusitis with systemic
>hypersensitivity symptoms (Noring syndrome) to the yoghurt and vitamin
>therapy of undocumented candida enteritis (Elaine Palmer syndrome) with
>systemic symptoms.  There is significant difference between the cost and
>risk of these two empiric therapeutic trials.  Are we talking about "real"
>candida infections, the whole "yeast connection" hypothesis, the efficacy
>of routine bacterial repopulation in humans, or the ability of anecdotally
>effective therapies (challenged by a negative randomized trial) to confirm
>an etiologic hypothesis (post hoc ergo propter hoc).  We can't seem to
>focus in on a disease, a therapy, or a hypothesis under discussion. 
>          
>                           I'm lost!

Point 1:

I'm beginning to see that *part* of the disagreements about the whole
"yeast issue" is on differing perceptions and on differing meanings
of words.  Medical doctors have a very specific and specialized "jargon",
necessary for precise communication within their field (which I'm fully
cognizant of since I, too, speak "jargonese" when with my peers).  For the
situation in sci.med, many times the words or phrases used by doctors can
have a different and more specific meaning than the same word used in the
world at large, causing significant miscommunication.  One example word,
and very relevant to the yeast discussion, is the exact meaning of "systemic".
It is now obvious to me that the meaning of this word is very specific, much
more so than its meaning to a non-doctor.  There is also the observation of
this newsgroup that both doctors and non-doctors come together on essentially
equal terms, which, when combined with the jargon issue, can further fan
the flames.  This is probably the first time that practicing doctors get
really "beat up" by non-doctors for their views on medicine, which they
otherwise don't see much of in their practice except for the occasional
"difficult" patient.

Point 2:

I understand the viewpoint among many practicing doctors that they will not
prescribe any treatments/therapies for their patients unless such treatments
have been shown to be effective and the risks understood from well-constructed
clinical trials (usually double-blind), or that such treatments/therapies are
part of an approved and funded clinical trial.  To these doctors, to do any
differently would, in this belief system, be unethical practice.  And it
follows that any therapy not on the "accepted" list is therefore a non-
therapy - it does not even exist, nor does the underlying hypothesis or
theory have any validity, even if it sounds very plausible by extrapolation
of what is currently known.  Anecdotal evidence has no value, either, from
a treatment point-of-view.

And by and large, as a scientist myself, I am glad that medical practice/
science takes such a rigorous approach to medical treatment.  However, as
also being a human being (last I checked), and having been one of those people
that has been significantly helped by a currently unaccepted treatment, where
"standard" medicine was not able to help me, has caused me to sit back and
wonder if holding such an extreme and rigid "scientific" viewpoint is in
itself unethical from humanitarian considerations.  After all, the underlying
intent of the "scientific" approach to medicine is to protect the health of
the patient by providing the best possible care for the patient, so the
patient should come first when considering treatment.

What we need is a slightly modified approach to treatment that satisfies both
the "scientific" and the "humanitarian" viewpoints.  In an earlier post I
outlined a crazy idea for doing just that.  The gist of it was to give any
physician freedom and encouragement by the medical community to prescribe
alternate, not yet proven therapies (maybe supported by anecdotal evidence)
for patients who *all* avenues of accepted therapies have been exhausted
(and not until then).  The patient would be fully informed that such
therapies/treatments are not supported by the proper clinical trials and that
there are real potential risks with real possibilities of no benefit derived
from them.

This approach satisfies the need for scientific rigor.  It also satisfies
the humanitarian needs of the patient.  And the reality is that many patients
who have reached a dead-end in the treatment of their symptoms using accepted
medicine *will* go outside the orthodox medical community:  either to the
doctors who are brave enough to prescribe such treatments at the risk of losing
their license, or worse, to non-doctors who have not had the proper medical
training.  This approach also recognizes this reality and keeps the control
more within orthodox medicine, with the benefits that the information gleaned
could help focus limited resources towards future clinical trials in the most
productive way.  Everybody wins in this admittedly rose-colored approach - I'm
sure there are real problems with this approach as well - it is presented
more as a strawman to stimulate discussion.

Hopefully what I write here may give the sci.med doctors a better idea as to
why I am "open" to alternative therapies, as well as why I have real
difficulty (read "apparent hostility") with the "coldness" of the 99.9% pure
"scientific" approach to medicine.  I believe the best approach to medical
treatment is one where both the "humanitarian" aspects are balanced with and
by the "scientific" aspects.  Anything else is just not good medicine, imho.
Just my 'NF' leanings, I guess.  :^)

Comments?

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59339
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <C63zF3.7n5@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber) writes:
:In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
:>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
:>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
:>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
:>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
:>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
:>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
:>to your biology teacher.
:
: what is the likely hood of conception if sperm is deposited just outside
:the vagina?  ie.  __% chance.
: -------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hmmm.... I really don't know.  Probably quite low overall.  Why don't we
get a couple hundred willing couples together and find out ;->

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59340
From: ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu (Eli Brandt)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <MMEYER.93Apr26102056@m2.dseg.ti.com> mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer) writes:
>	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
>friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?

I think it was a typo for "Karelian photography", which is the
practice of taking pictures of either Finns or Russians, depending
on whom one asks.

   Eli   ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59341
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.172836.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu> banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>Neither of these bacteria are obligate anaerobes with are 
>much more important in dealing with the diarrhea problem.

THE diarrhea problem?  WHAT diarrhea problem?  First, candidal overgrowth is
not a frequent problem during antibiotic therapy, and not all cases of
antibiotic-related diarrhea have anything to do with candida.  But a case
of vaginal candidiasis or oral thrush after antibiotic therapy isn't going
to surprise anyone either.  That's not what people are disagreeing with.

>Anti-fungals, a low carbohydrate diet and vitamin A 
>supplementation may all help to minimize the local irritation until the 
>good bacteria can take over control of the food supply again and lower the 
>pH to basically starve the candida out.

Oh, really?  Where'd you come up with this?  You know, it's really
appalling to see you try to comment authoritatively on clinical matters
in a bizarre synthesis from reading reports in the literature.
Bobbing for citations in the research literature isn't medicine.
I hope you're not giving the wrong idea to your medical students.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59342
From: klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663))
Subject: cats and pregnancy

Hello,
I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
have a cat in the same apartment?

Thanks



-- 
Klaus Hofmann
National Institute of Materials and Chemical Research
1-1, Higashi Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305, Japan

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59343
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: A Good place for Back Surgery?

gary.schuetter (garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com) wrote:

: 	
:         Hello,

:         Just one quick question:
:         My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
:         have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
:         Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
:         the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
:         kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
:         in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
:         appreciated a whole lot!...

There is one hospital that is here in New York City that is famous for its
orthopedists, namely the Hospital for Special Surgery. They are located on
the upper east side of manhattan. If you want their address and phone let
me know, i'll get them, i dont know them off hand.

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59344
From: battin@cyclops.iucf.indiana.edu (Laurence Gene Battin)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, E.A. Story (eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu) wrote:
> In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
> >Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
> >Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
> >involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
> >subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
> >with inanimate objects.

> True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
> "corona discharge"?

No. It's called "not wiping off the apparatus after taking a picture of the
whole leaf."

Gene Battin
battin@cyclops.iucf.indiana.edu
no .sig yet


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59345
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Med school admission


hi all, Ive applied for the class of 93 at quite a number of schools (20)
and have gotten 13 rejects, 4 interviews and 3 no responses.
Any one know when the heck these people send out their acceptance letters?
According to the med school admissions book theyre supposed to send out
the number of their class in acceptances by mid March. Whats going on... I
am losing my sanity checking my mailbox every day.

Also does anyone have some useful alternatives in case i dont get in, i
kind of looked into Chiropractic and Podiatry but they really dont
interest me. Thanks.

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59346
From: mymail@integral.stavropol.su (Sidelnikov Igor Vladimirovich)
Subject: PLEASE,HELP A PATIENT!!!

% mail newsserv@kiae.su
Subject:  PLEASE, HELP!!!



                    Dear  Ladies and  Gentlemen!


      We should be grateful for any information about address and (or)
   E-mail address of Loma-Linda Hospital (approximate position: USA,
   California, near Vaimor town, 60 miles from Los-Angelos).
      A patient needs consultation in this clinics before operation.


                With respect,                  Igor V. Sidelnikov
QUIT
.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59347
From: mcg2@Lehigh.EDU (Marc Gabriel)
Subject: LymeNet Newsletter vol#1 #09

*****************************************************************************
*                  Lyme Disease Electronic Mail Network                     *
*                          LymeNet Newsletter                               *
*****************************************************************************
                      Volume 1 - Number 09 - 4/26/93

I.    Introduction
II.   Announcements
III.  News from the wires
IV.   Questions 'n' Answers
V.    Op-Ed Section
VI.   Jargon Index
VII.  How to Subscribe, Contribute and Get Back Issues

I. ***** INTRODUCTION *****

In this issue of the Newsletter, we learn of the CDC's announced concern for
the "resurgence of infectious diseases" in the United States.  Thanks to
Jonathan Lord for sending me the UPI release.  The CDC announced they would
feature a new series of articles in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly
Report on these infectious diseases (LD is one of them).  We will keep you
up to date on this series.

In addition, we feature a The Wall Street Journal article on the legal issues
surrounding LD.  We also look at Lyme's effects from the perspective of
urologists in an abstract entitled "Urinary Dysfunction in Lyme Disease."

Finally, Terry Morse asks an intriguing question about a tick's habitat.

-Marc.


II. ***** ANNOUNCEMENTS *****

SOURCE: The Lyme Disease Update
SUBJECT: Call for Articles

Attention Health Care Professionals:

The Lyme Disease Update would like to publish your articles on Lyme disease
diagnosis, Lyme treatment, and the effects on Lyme on Lyme patients' physical
and mental health.

The LDU has a monthly circulation of 6,000.  Our mailing list includes Lyme
patients, physicians, researchers, county health departments, and over 100
Lyme support groups nationwide.  We strive to give our readers up-to-date
information on Lyme disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, and a
source for support and practical advice on living with Lyme disease.

Articles for the LDU should be approximately 900 to 1200 words and should
address Lyme disease issues in non-scientific language.  To submit your
article, mail to: Lyme Disease Update
                  P.O. Box 15711-0711
                  Evansville, IN 47716
      or FAX to:  812-471-1990

One year subscriptions to the Lyme Disease Update are $19 ($24 outside the
US).  Mail your subscription requests to the above address, or call
812-471-1990 for more information.


III. ***** NEWS FROM THE WIRES ******

Sender: Jonathan Lord <jml4s@uva.pcmail.virginia.edu>
Subject: RESURGENCE OF INFECTIOUS DISEASE CONCERNS CDC
Date: Thursday April 15, 1993

ATLANTA (UPI) --   A resurgence of infectious diseases blamed on newly
emerging viruses and bacteria pose a major challenge for the nation's
health care system, federal health officials said Thursday.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reporting its latest
findings in an investigation of contaminated hamburger meat that
sickened hundreds in 4 states and killed at least four, said it will
put renewed emphasis on battling infectious diseases.

Part of that emphasis includes a new series titled "Emerging
Infectious Diseases" to be featured in the CDC's Morbidity & Mortality
Weekly Report, which has a wide circulation in the health community.
The issue also will top the agenda of a two-day meeting of scientific
counselors to update the CDC's draft plan for dealing with the growing
threat of infectious ailments.

"This is an issue that has been coming and we do have a responsibility
to deal with it," said Dr. Ruth Berkelman, deputy director of the CDC's
National Center for Infectious Diseases.

There were more cases of malaria in the U.S. in 1992 than in any year
since the 1960s, and Latin America is experiencing a cholera epidemic,
the first in this century, she said.

Resistance of disease-causing agents to antibiotics is also a problem.
"We are seeing much more antibiotic resistance than we have in the past"
Berkleman said.  She said even common ear infections frequently seen in
children are becoming resistant to antibiotic treatment.

"Despite predictions earlier this century that infectious  diseases
would soon be eliminated as a public health problem, infectious diseases
remain the major cause of death worldwide and a leading cause of illness
and death in the United States," the CDC said.

It  cited  the  emergence since the 1970s of a "myriad" of newly
identified pathogens and syndromes, such as Escherichia coli O157:H7, a
deadly bacterial infection; the hepatitis C virus; HIV, the virus that
causes AIDS; Legionnaires disease; Lyme disease; and toxic shock syndrome.

"The incidences of many diseases widely presumed to be under control,
such as cholera, malaria and tuberculosis, have increased in many areas,"
the CDC said.  It said efforts at control and prevention have been
undermined by drug resistance.

=====*=====

SOURCE:  WALL STREET JOURNAL
REFERENCE: 04/15/93, pB1
HEADLINE: Lyme-Disease Ruling Raises Liability Issues

The tick that causes Lyme disease may have found a new way to cause
damage: legal liability.

A federal judge's decision holding a property owner liable for not
doing enough to protect workers from Lyme disease is getting as much
attention as the latest medical study on the disease, a flu-like
illness that can cause severe physical and mental disabilities and in
rare instances death. The decision last week has put property owners
on notice that they may have to do more than protect themselves from
the ticks-they also may have to protect themselves from litigation if
someone becomes infected while on the property.

The decision by U.S. District Judge Robert J. Ward in New York came
after a week-long trial in a case involving four track workers for the
Long Island Railroad. Judge Ward found that the workers contracted the
disease after they were bitten by ticks while on the job. He ordered
the New York state-owned commuter line to pay the workers more than
$560,000 to compensate for pain and suffering, in addition to medical
expenses and lost wages.

Summer camps, schools, companies with facilities in rural or
semirural areas, and homeowners who rent to vacationers are among the
groups that need to be worried about this ruling, says Stephen L.
Kass, an attorney at New York law firm Berle, Kass & Case, who wrote a
legal article three years ago warning property owners of the potential
liability. Even a family that invites friends over for a backyard
barbecue might be potentially liable.

Lawsuits for insect bites, while rare, aren't unheard-of. A summer
vacationer in Southampton, N.Y., last year sued the owner of the home
she rented, claiming that a tick on the property gave her Rocky
Mountain spotted fever. In 1988, also on Long Island, a jury ordered
an outdoor restaurant to pay more than $3 million to a patron who was
stung by a bee, causing an allergic reaction and permanent
quadriplegia. The judge later threw out the award, citing no evidence
that a beehive was near the restaurant.

But lawyers say that the attention to Lyme disease throughout the
country -- it's most prevalent in New England, the Middle Atlantic
states, Wisconsin, Minnesota and the Northwest -- may make this
particular insect bite a particularly litigious one.

The illness already has proved to be a source of controversy in the
courtroom over such issues as the type of medical care insurers will
cover and medical malpractice claims against doctors for not
diagnosing the disease.

Lawyers say worker's-compensation claims related to Lyme disease
have become common in some states in recent years. Payments in
worker's-compensation cases, however, are limited to medical costs and
lost earnings.

The case before Judge Ward dealt with a potentially much more
lucrative avenue for damages, because it involved the question of
negligence. Unlike the worker's compensation process, the law governing
injuries to rail workers allows for a finding of negligence and, as a
result, for additional payments for pain and suffering. Property
owners and lawyers say that negligence claims can be made in many
other situations where people are exposed to the ticks that carry the
disease.

Ira M. Maurer, a partner at New York law firm Elkind, Flynn &
Maurer, who represented the rail workers, says the decision will help
to establish "the duty of all sorts of property owners to protect
against Lyme disease."

Lawyers caution that despite Judge Ward's decision, winning a
lawsuit for damages caused by Lyme disease may prove difficult. For
one thing, victims have to demonstrate that they have pinned down when
and where they got the tick bite. Judge Ward found that the plaintiffs
in the railroad case got Lyme disease while working on property owned
by the railroad, even though none of the men remembered being bitten.
The workers, who weren't outdoorsmen likely to be exposed elsewhere to
the insects, said they saw ticks in the high grass that surrounded
some work sites.

A spokeswoman for the railroad says that there was no proof that
the four men were bitten while on the job and that the railroad is
considering an appeal. The railroad also disputes Judge Ward's finding
that it didn't do enough to protect employees. The spokeswoman says
the railroad provides track workers with insect repellent and special
pants to protect against bug bites.

Debate in the scientific community over Lyme disease could open up
some legal defenses for property owners, such as questioning whether a
victim actually has the disease rather than some other illness.
Earlier this week, the Journal of the American Medical Association
reported that doctors overly diagnose patients as having Lyme disease.
And damages awarded to a victim also might be influenced by medical
disputes over the degree of harm that Lyme disease causes.

Because of health and safety concerns, some groups and companies
already take special measures to protect against Lyme disease. Last
year, at its headquarters in Franklin Lakes, N.J., Becton, Dickinson &
Co. began using Damminix, a pesticide made by EcoHealth Inc. of Boston
that is designed to kill ticks carrying the disease. The medical-
supply company's headquarters include a 120-acre park, and the company
was worried that employees who walk on its trails for recreation might
get infected.

Ruth Lister, a spokeswoman for the American Camping Association in
Indianapolis, says that many youth camps accredited by her
organization also have begun to check children for ticks. And Carole
Katz, a member of the board of the Fire Island Pines Property Owners
Association, says her group spends $30,000 each year to treat their
100-acre site off the coast of New York with the tick-killing
pesticide.

=====*=====

TITLE: Urinary dysfunction in Lyme disease.
AUTHORS: Chancellor MB; McGinnis DE; Shenot PJ; Kiilholma P; Hirsch IH,
Department of Urology, Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson
University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
REFERENCE: J Urol 1993 Jan; 149 (1): 26-30

Lyme disease, which is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, is
associated with a variety of neurological sequelae.  We describe 7 patients
with neuro-borreliosis who also had lower urinary tract dysfunction.
Urodynamic evaluation revealed detrusor hyperreflexia in 5 patients and
detrusor areflexia in 2.  Detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia was not
noted on electromyography in any patient.  We observed that the urinary tract
may be involved in 2 respects in the course of Lyme  disease: 1) voiding
dysfunction may be part of neuro-borreliosis and 2) the spirochete may
directly invade the urinary tract.  In 1 patient bladder infection by the
Lyme spirochete was documented on biopsy.  Neurological and urological
symptoms in all patients were slow to resolve and convalescence was
protracted.  Relapses of active Lyme disease and residual neurological
deficits were common.  Urologists practicing in areas endemic for Lyme
disease need to be aware of B. burgdorferi infection in the differential
diagnosis of neurogenic bladder dysfunction.  Conservative bladder
management including clean intermittent catheterization guided by urodynamic
evaluation is recommended.


IV. ***** QUESTIONS 'N' ANSWERS *****

Note: If you have a response to this question, please forward it to the
editor.

Sender: Terry Morse <morset@ccmail.orst.edu>
Subject: Question on Lyme Vectors and Compost Piles

  When I visited my sister on Long Island, NY, I was cautioned to avoid the
compost heap in her back yard, as she thinks this is where she became
infected.

  A friend of mine here in Oregon who has a compost heap would like me to
back that claim up with documentation.  Do lyme-carrying ticks hang out in
compost heaps?
Thank you.


V. ***** OP-ED SECTION *****

This section is open to all subscribers who would like to express an opinion.


VI. ***** JARGON INDEX *****

Bb - Borrelia burgdorferi - The scientific name for the LD bacterium.
CDC - Centers for Disease Control - Federal agency in charge of tracking
      diseases and programs to prevent them.
CNS - Central Nervous System.
ELISA - Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assays - Common antibody test
EM - Erythema Migrans - The name of the "bull's eye" rash that appears in
     ~60% of the patients early in the infection.
IFA - Indirect Fluorescent Antibody - Common antibody test.
LD - Common abbreviation for Lyme Disease.
NIH - National Institutes of Health - Federal agency that conducts medical
      research and issues grants to research interests.
PCR - Polymerase Chain Reaction - A new test that detects the DNA sequence
      of the microbe in question.  Currently being tested for use in
      detecting LD, TB, and AIDS.
Spirochete - The LD bacterium.  It's given this name due to it's spiral
      shape.
Western Blot - A more precise antibody test.


VII. ***** HOW TO SUBSCRIBE, CONTRIBUTE AND GET BACK ISSUES *****

SUBSCRIPTIONS:
Anyone with an Internet address may subscribe.
Send a memo to    listserv@Lehigh.EDU
in the body, type:
subscribe LymeNet-L <Your Real Name>

FAX subscriptions are also available.  Send a single page FAX to 215-974-6410
for further information.

DELETIONS:
Send a memo to    listserv@Lehigh.EDU
in the body, type:
unsubscribe LymeNet-L

CONTRIBUTIONS:
Send all contributions to   LymeNet-L@Lehigh.EDU  or FAX them to 215-974-6410.
All are encouraged to submit questions, news items, announcements, and
commentaries.

BACK ISSUES:
Send a memo to    listserv@Lehigh.EDU
in the body, type:
get LymeNet-L/Newsletters x-yy              (where x=vol # and yy=issue #)

example:  get LymeNet-L/Newsletters 1-01    (will get vol#1, issue#01)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LymeNet - The Internet Lyme Disease Information Source
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Editor-in-Chief: Marc C. Gabriel <mcg2@Lehigh.EDU>
            FAX: 215-974-6410
Contributing Editors: Carl Brenner <brenner@lamont.ldgo.Columbia.EDU>
                      John Setel O'Donnell <jod@Equator.COM>
Advisors: Carol-Jane Stolow, Director
          William S. Stolow, President
          The Lyme Disease Network of New Jersey (908-390-5027)
Chief Proofreader: Ed Mackey <elm4@Lehigh.EDU>
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WHEN COMMENTS ARE PRESENTED WITH AN ATTRIBUTION, THEY DO NOT NECESSARILY
REPRESENT THE OPINIONS/ANALYSES OF THE EDITOR.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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AS LONG AS IT IS NOT MODIFIED OR ABRIDGED IN ANY WAY.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SEND ALL BUG REPORTS TO mcg2@Lehigh.EDU.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59348
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

>>>Can men get yeast infections? Spread them? What kind of symptoms?

My ENT doctor told me that it is not uncommon for the wife to get a vaginal
yeast infection after the husband takes antibiotics.  In fact this recently
happened to my wife.  Explanation is that the antibiotics kill the yeast's
competition, they then thrive and increased yeast around the penis spread
the infection during intercourse.  I was on ceclor for 30 days, then my wife
got the yeast.

Jay Keller
badboy@netcom.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59350
From: gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor)
Subject: Umbilical Hernia

Could anyone give me information on Umbilical hernias.
The patient is over weight and has a protruding hernia.

Surgery may be risky due to the obesity.
What other remedies could I try?

Thanx in advance

Dr. Gary Taylor

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59351
From: spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu (Steve Pope)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

A woman once told me her doctor told her that I
could catch, asymptomatically, her yeast infection
from her, then give it back to her, causing
a relapse.

Probably bogus, but if not, it's another reason to use
latex...

Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59352
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Re: Proventil Inhaler

In article <16BB6CDEB.RICK@ysub.ysu.edu> RICK@ysub.ysu.edu (Rick Marsico) 
writes:

>Does the Proventil inhaler for asthma relief fall into the steroid
>or nonsteroid category?  Looking at the product literature it's
>not clear.

Non-steroid.  Proventil is a brand of albuterol, a bronchodilator.  

Regards,

Jay Keller
(asthmatic Proventil-head)



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59353
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Med school admission

hoss@panix.com  writes:
> hi all, Ive applied for the class of 93 at quite a number of schools (20)
> and have gotten 13 rejects, 4 interviews and 3 no responses.

Three possible results after interview:
1) rejection outright
2) acceptance outright
3) the infamous 'wait list'... 

If you are on a 'wait list', your entrance into medical school
is dependent upon some other applicant withdrawing their
acceptance.  This can happen as late as day -1 of starting
classes.  

> Any one know when the heck these people send out their acceptance letters?
> According to the med school admissions book theyre supposed to send out
> the number of their class in acceptances by mid March. Whats going on... I
> am losing my sanity checking my mailbox every day.

You can always call the admissions office.  The secretaries
should have some idea of when a decision might be made on your
application.  Be calm, respectful, and friendly; secretaries
have more power than you might realize, and you never know-
could be the dean of admissions answering the phone.

> Also does anyone have some useful alternatives in case i dont get in, i

If you don't get in this year, sit down and re-evaluate
yourself: your motives, desires, and goals that are directing
you into medicine; your academic and extracurricular
accomplishments.  Make a decision about whether you *really*
want to be a medical doctor.  I had classmates who dropped out
in the first semester of med school because they found it was
not what they wanted to do; I have friends who applied four
years in a row before they were accepted.  Medicine as a
career is a choice you must make for yourself; DON'T be
pushed into it because of your parents/family/significant
other.  

If you still want to be a medical doctor, determine how you
can improve your application.  A letter of recommendation from
a professor who knows you well and can give an honest positive
recommendation is far better than one from a 'big-shot' famous
professor who only vaguely remembers your face.  Also, don't
be afraid to ask these people if they can give you an honest
and positive recommendation; give them a chance to say 'no,
sorry' instead of the medical school saying 'no, sorry'.  I
have turned down writing recommendations for some students
because I did not know them well enough to make any meaningful
comments, and some because I honestly could not recommend them
at that point.  

Rewrite your personal statement; take it by an English
professor or some other friendly person with skill and
experience in writing and proof-reading and get their
criticism, both about what you are saying as well as how you
say it.

Review your academic accomplishments.  If your grades are poor
in some area, don't be afraid to spend some time in further
coursework.  Evidence of determined committment will help
here.  If you filled your pre-medicine curriculum with gut
courses, it usually shows.

Look at your extracurricular involvements.  Participating in
local philanthropic or service organizations is a plus;
substantial leadership roles in an organization help also.
Beware of 'resume padding'; such things are not difficult to
spot and weed out.

Overall, a clear conception of where you wish to head and why
you want to get there, combined with an honest self-appraisal
of skills and aptitude, will be the best path to take in
applying to any program, medical or what-have-you.

Good luck with the process -- as Tom Petty says, 'the waiting
is the hardest part', at least emotionally. :)

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59354
From: badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller)
Subject: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

My ENT doctor recommended surgery to fix my sinuses.  I have a very deviated
nasal septum (probably the result at least partially from several fractures).
One side has approximately 10-15% of normal flow.  Of course I have known this
for years but recently discovered that I suffer from chronic sinus infection,
discovered during an MRI after a severe migraine.  A CT scan subsequently 
confirmed the problems in the sinuses.

He wants to do endoscopic sinus surgery on the ethmoid, maxillary, frontal,
and sphenoid, along with nasal septoplasty.

He explained the procedure, and the risks.  What I would like to know is if
there is anyone out there who can tell me "I had this surgery, and it helped
me"?

(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
really help them).

I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.

I am 42.

Any relevant information is appreciated.

Regards,

Jay Keller
Sunnyvale, California
badboy@netcom.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59355
From: jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price)
Subject: Iridology - Any credence to it???


I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
"licensed herbologist and iridologist"
What are your opinions?
How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their eyes?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59356
From: chcho@vnet.IBM.COM ( Chul-hee Cho )
Subject: ProHibit for Spiral Meningitis

I like to know how effective ProHibit is to prevent spiral meningitis
for a child who is five years old.  I heard it's from Canada.
What sort of side effects , etc.

Chul-hee Cho

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59357
From: Stephen Dubin <sdubin@igc.apc.org>
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?


I think you must have the same hygiene teacher I had in 1955.  There 
is a story about the Civil War about a soldier who was shot in the
groin.  The bullet, after passing through one of his testes, then entered
the abdomen of a young woman standing nearby.  Later,  when she (a young
woman of unimpeachible virtue) was shown to be pregnant; the soldier did
the honorable thing of marrying her.  According to this story, they lived
happily ever after.  
Perhaps the most famous of Mr. Rau's classes was the time he would come
into class brandishing an aluminum turning mandrel  (tapering from about
3/8" to 1/2" over a 10 inch length).  He would say, "Boys, do you know
what this is?  It's a medical instrument called a 'cock reamer' and it's
used to unclog your penis when you have VD.  They just ram it up there
without an anesthetic!"  Needless to say this had a chilling effect.
I didn't have lascivious thoughts for at least an hour.  Later in life
as I perused medical instrument catelogs and saw the slender flexible
urethral sounds that are actually used, I could not escape thinking
that I might one day see, "Reamer, Cock (style of Rau) ."        
]


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59358
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

Speaking of educational systems, I recently had a colleague
tell me that the reason one of our fifth grade students is so
physically developed is because she was sexually abused as a younger
child. This, she went on to say, kicks the pituitary gland into
action and causes puberty.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59359
From: kiran@village.com (Kiran Wagle)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

I wrote:
KW> If you don't like additives, then for godsake, 
KW> get off the net and learn to cook from scratch.  Sheesh.

Mary Allison exclaims:
MA> EXCUSE ME!!!!!!!!!!!!
MA> Why can't people learn to cook from scratch *ON* the net. 
MA> I've gotten LOTS of recipes off the net that don't use additives.

Because one simply _can't_ cook on the net, nor can one cook while ON the
net.  Cooking is best done IN a kitchen, ON a stove.  (Gotcha! *grin*)

(I said this out of general frustration at people (not anyone in particular)
 who seem to expect packaged food to conform to their tastes.  In other
 words, if packaged foods are not to your liking, prepare foods that are.)

MA> If you LIKE additives then get off the net and go to your local
MA> supermarket, buy lots of packaged foods, and YOU get OFF THE NET!!

I don't have strong feelings about additives, as long as I can't taste 'em.

(As for the rest of your reply to me, I am sorry it it seemed as if i was 
 picking on you.  I wasn't trying to do so.  Please accept my apologies.)

~ Kiran 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59360
From: chungy2@rebecca.its.rpi.edu (Yau Felix Chung)
Subject: Nasopharinx Carcenoma...


Hi.  Does anyone know the possible causes of nasoparynx carcenoma
and what are the chances of it being hereditary?

Also, in the advacned cases, what is the general procedure to 
reduce the pain the area as it prevents the patient from eating
due to the excessive pain of swallowing and even talking?

Thanks.

-F.
.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59361
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy

In article <1993Apr27.043035.22609@etl.go.jp> klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663)) writes:
:Hello,
:I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
:can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
:have a cat in the same apartment?
:

Having the cat around is not a problem, but the pregnant woman should not
change the litter box.  Toxoplasmosis can be transmitted from the stool of
some cats.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59362
From: tegarr01@ulkyvx.louisville.edu
Subject: Herpes question?

I am looking for some clarification on a subject that I am trying to find some
information on.

How is HSV-2 (Herpes) transmitted?  I currently know that it can be transmitted
during inflammation but, what I am looking for is if it can be transmitted 
during in other periods.  Also, I want to know if you can be accurately tested 
for it while you are not showing symtoms?

If you can help I would greatly appreciate it.

Teg

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59363
From: lim@graphics.rent.com (Julie Lim)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

michael@iastate.edu (Michael M. Huang) writes:

> MSG is common in many food we eat, including Chinese (though some oriental
> restaurants might put a tad too much in them).  I've noticed that when I
> go out and eat in most of the Chinese food restaurants, I will usually get
> a slight headache and an ununsual thirst afterwards.  This happens to many
> of my friends and relatives too.  And, heh, we eat Chinese food all the
> time at home :) (but we don't use MSG when we're cooking for ourselves)

        Heck, I seem to feel like that *every* time I eat out. Including 
in the cafeteria at work. About half the time, the headache intensifies 
until nothing will make it go away except throwing up. Ick.

        As you might imagine, I don't eat out a lot. I guess my tolerance 
for food additives has plummeted since I switched to eating mostly 
steamed veggies. They're easy to fix, that's all.

        I won't even mention what happened the last time I ate corned 
beef. (Oops. Too late.)


 The Graphics BBS  908/469-0049  "It's better than a sharp stick in the eye!" 
 ============================================================================
 Internet: lim@graphics.rent.com (Julie Lim)
     UUCP: rutgers!bobsbox!graphics!lim

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59364
From: andrea@unity.ncsu.edu (Andrea M Free-Kwiatkowski)
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

Steve Pope (spp@zabriskie.berkeley.edu) wrote:
: A woman once told me her doctor told her that I
: could catch, asymptomatically, her yeast infection
: from her, then give it back to her, causing
: a relapse.

: Probably bogus, but if not, it's another reason to use
: latex...

: Steve

It isn't bogus.  I had chronic vaginal yeast infections that would go away
with cream but reappear in about 2 weeks.  I had been on 3 rounds of
antibiotics for a resistant sinus infection and my husband had been on
amoxicillin also for a sinus infection.  After six months of this, I went
to a gynecologist who had me culture my husband seminal fluid.  After 7
days incubation he had quite a bit of yeast growth (it was confirmed by
the lab).  A round of Nizerol for him cleared both of us.

Andrea Kwiatkowski


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59365
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich) writes:

>Speaking of educational systems, I recently had a colleague
>tell me that the reason one of our fifth grade students is so
>physically developed is because she was sexually abused as a younger
>child. This, she went on to say, kicks the pituitary gland into
>action and causes puberty.


Nonsense! I've taught fifth, sixth, seventh . There are a few early puberty 
types in fifth and it has nothing to do with early sexual experience. 

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59366
From: russ@pmafire.inel.gov (Russ Brown)
Subject: Re: Nasopharinx Carcenoma...

In article <+y55z0d@rpi.edu> chungy2@rebecca.its.rpi.edu (Yau Felix Chung) writes:
>
>Hi.  Does anyone know the possible causes of nasoparynx carcenoma
>and what are the chances of it being hereditary?

Nasopharyngeal cancer is (roughly, don't have references at hand) 20-30
times more prevalent in Chinese than Caucasians, particularly those Chinese
from southern China.  One province (or region) has an extraordinary excess. 
The Chinese and others have done major studies.  Some association with
the Epstein-Barr virus has been noted.
>
>Also, in the advacned cases, what is the general procedure to 
>reduce the pain the area as it prevents the patient from eating
>due to the excessive pain of swallowing and even talking?
>
Palliative radiotherapy is used.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59367
From: sutton@vxcrna.cern.ch (SUTTON,BERN./SL)
Subject: Hip replacement


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59368
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

-*----
In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu (Gunnar Blix) writes:
> I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
> cons of circumcision (at birth). ...

I pity those who hope that medical knowledge can resolve issues
such as this.  This issue has been rehashed in sci.med time and
time again.  The bottom line is this: in normal circumstances,
both the medical advantages of and the medical risks of
circumcision are minor.  This means that the decision is left to
the religious, cultural, ethical, and aesthetic mores of the
parents, at best, or to the habit of the concerned hospital or
caregivers, at worst. 

As (prospective) parents, you should do what you want in this
regard and not worry about it too much.  In terms of decisions
you make for your child, it will have far less importance than
many -- such as which schools you choose -- that most parents
think about only a little. 

This question will undoubtedly push the buttons of people who
feel that the decision to circumcise your infant or not is a
momentous medical decision.  It is not.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59369
From: tuser@azbuka.kharkov.ua ()
Subject: WE CAN SUPPLY YOU WITH THE TRANSPLANTANTS & OTHER


    The Private Scietific & industrial firm "Intercom 2000" can
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 - AIDS, Syphilis & other infection diseases tests;

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                tel. +7 (057)-2-323177
                fax  +7 (057)-2-431651, 231192
                e-mail: tuser%azbuka.kharkov.ua@relay.ussr.eu.net


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59370
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> Janice Price, jprice@dpw.com
writes:
>How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their
eyes?

By looking at the iris (iridology) - virtually nothing.

Looking at the retina allows one to visualise the small blood
vessels and is helpful in assessing various systemic diseases,
hypertension and diabetes for example.

Don Mackie - his opinion
UM will disavow

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59371
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: thermogenics

First off, if I'm not mistaken, only hibernating animals have brown fat,
not humans.

Secondly, your description sounds just like 2,4-dinitrophenol.  This is an
uncoupler of respiratory chain oxidative phosphorylation.  Put in layman's
terms, it short-circuits the mitochondria, causing food energy to be
turned into heat.

2,4-DNP was popular in the 1930's for weight reduction.  In controlled
amounts, it raises body temperature as the body compensates for the
reduced amount of useful energy available.  It is very dangerous.
It would be wiser to adjust to your present body form, rather than
play around with 2,4-DNP.

But if you insist, I suggest you look up the literature in your own
university library.  You can obtain 2,4-DNP by taking a first year
organic chemistry lab course and swiping it from the supplies (it's
a commonly-used reagent).

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59372
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: hypodermic needle

Scientific American had a nice short article on the history of the
hypodermic about 10 or 15 years ago.  Prior to liquid injectables,
there were paddle-like needles used to implant a tiny pill under the
skin.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59373
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1993Apr26.174538.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
 banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
>lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
>amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.

I've mentioned this study a couple of times now: Ingestion of yogurt
containing Lactobacillus acidophilus as prophylaxis for candidal
vaginitis, Annals of Internal Medicine, 3/1/92 116(5):353-7.  Do you
have a problem with the study because they used yogurt rather than
capsules of lactobacillus (even though it had positive results)?

The study was a crossover trial of daily ingestion of 8 ounces of
yogurt.  There was a marked decrease in infections while women were
ingesting the yogurt.  Problems with the study included very small
numbers (33 patients enrolled) and many protocol violations (only
21 patients were analyzed).  Still, the difference in rates of infection
between the two groups was so large that the study remains fairly
believable.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59374
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: Can men get yeast infections?

My (then) wife used to get recurrent yeast infections. One day, her
doctor sent her home with medication for her and a pill for me. I took
the pill, upon her insistence, and was very relieved the next day when I
looked it up in the PDR. It only RARELY causes testicular atrophy...

Anyway, men apparently do get yeast infections.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59375
From: wiesel-elisha@cs.yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel)
Subject: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  In
particular, Dr. Bernard Jenssen in his book "Colon Cleansing for
Health and Longevity" -- the title actually escapes me, but it is very
similar to that -- claims that regular self-administered colonics,
along with certain orally ingested "debris-loosening agents", boosts
the immune system to a significant degree.

He also plugs a unique appliance called the "Colema Board", which
facilitates the self-administration of colonics.  It sells for over
$100 from a California-based company.  He also plugs Vitra-Tox
products as his chemical agents of choice: these include volcanic ash,
supposedly for its electrical charge, and psyllium powder, for its
bulkiness.

If anyone knows anything about colon cleansing theory, its
particulars, or the Colema Board and related products, I'd be very
interested to hear about research and personal experience.

This article is crossposted to alt.magick as the issue touches upon
fasting and cleansing through a "ritual" system of purification.

-- Eli

-- 
/-------------------------------------------------------------------------\
![wiesel@cs.yale.edu] Elisha Wiesel, Davenport College '94 Yale University!    
![wiesel@minerva.cis.yale.edu] (203) 436-1338<-School (212) 371-2756<-Home!
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59376
From: wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel)
Subject: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  In
particular, Dr. Bernard Jenssen in his book "Colon Cleansing for
Health and Longevity" -- the title actually escapes me, but it is very
similar to that -- claims that regular self-administered colonics,
along with certain orally ingested "debris-loosening agents", boosts
the immune system to a significant degree.

He also plugs a unique appliance called the "Colema Board", which
facilitates the self-administration of colonics.  It sells for over
$100 from a California-based company.  He also plugs Vitra-Tox
products as his chemical agents of choice: these include volcanic ash,
supposedly for its electrical charge, and psyllium powder, for its
bulkiness.

If anyone knows anything about colon cleansing theory, its
particulars, or the Colema Board and related products, I'd be very
interested to hear about research and personal experience.

This article is crossposted to alt.magick as the issue touches upon
fasting and cleansing through a "ritual" system of purification.

-- Eli

-- 
/-------------------------------------------------------------------------\
![wiesel@cs.yale.edu] Elisha Wiesel, Davenport College '94 Yale University!    
![wiesel@minerva.cis.yale.edu] (203) 436-1338<-School (212) 371-2756<-Home!
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59377
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy

In article <1993Apr27.043035.22609@etl.go.jp>, klaus@ipri.go.jp (Klaus Hofmann;(6663)) writes...
>I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
>can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
>have a cat in the same apartment?

The disease you are talking about is toxoplasmosis.  It is a protozoan that 
lives and multiplies within cells.  In cats, the protozoan multiplies in the
intestinal cells and eggs are shed in the cat's feces.  The protozoa can
cross the placenta to infect the fetus.  The disease may be asymptomatic
after the baby is born, or it may be very severe.  Toxo may cause blindness
and mental retardation.

Having a cat in the same apartment should not be a problem; however, pregnant
women should not scoop or change the cat's litterbox.  In addition, whoever
does empty the litterbox should thoroughly wash his/her hands before handling
anything else, especially food.

Information came from _The Merck Manual, 15th Ed._

I hope this information is helpful to you.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59378
From: daniel@siemens.com. (Daniel L. Theivanayagam)
Subject: USMLE (formerly National Boards) Part 1- Request to Medical Students

This request goes out to medical students who have done
or are planning to sit the USMLE (or National Boards) Part 1.

My wife is sitting this examination in early June this year and would
like to have a look at some old National Boards, Part 1 questions
found in the following books. These books are currently out of print.
 

The books are:

(1) Retired NBME Basic Medical Science Test Items, NBME;
    Published by NBME in 1991

(2) Self-test in the Part 1 Basic Medical Sciences, NBME;
    Published by NBME in 1989

I would appreciate if anyone who has these books is willing
to loan it to her for a couple of days. Obviously, I would
reimburse for you all postage and related charges. Failing
that it would be beneficial if anyone could point to any
library in the NY, NJ or PA area that may have these books.

Please respond by e-mail since I do not read this newsgroup
regularly.

Thanks in advance.


Daniel


e-mail: daniel@learning.siemens.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59379
From: giamomj@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu (Mike G.)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> Gunnar Blix, blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu
writes:
>I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
>cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
>references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
>that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
>writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
>are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
>penile cancer.
>
>Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
>I will summarize to the net.

I'm very surprised that medical schools still push routine circumcision
of newborn males on the population. Since your friend is not a man, she
can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
appearance...

The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
unnecessary.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59380
From: sjg@maths.warwick.ac.uk (Susannah Gort)
Subject: Allergies and stuff (Was: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?)

 
> UNLESS I plan on getting sick - I won't eat the stuff without my
> Seldane.  And did I ever learn to read labels.

> - it might not please a medical researcher - but it pleased my own
> personal physician enough for him to give me allergy medicine 
 
-Allergy medicine, huh?  Is this just to get rid of the resultant migraine or
whatever, or does it actually suppress allergic reactions? (i.e. like an
antihistamine does?)  As far as doctors over here are concerned, if you slip up
and eat something you're allergic to (even if they won't test you to tell you
what to avoid) then tough; if a _cheap_ medicine will alleviate your symptoms,
then fine, otherwise you just suffer.  One doctor did prescribe me imigran (costs
the NHS #48 for 6 tablets) after having to rehydrate me because I'd been throwing
up for four solid days and couldn't even drink water - but I got taken off it
again when I moved and had to change doctors.  Reasoning: they did not know what
the side-effects were because it was new.  OK, fine - but it has passed the
safety tests to get on the prescription list, and anyway I was prepared to take
the risk to have quality of life now.  The only alternatives I have is to get it
prescribed privately, which I cannot afford, or to pay a private allergy
specialist to test me and tell me what to avoid.  I am fairly certain I am
allergic to more than one chemical additive, as a lot of things I can't eat have
nothing in common except things I know are safe, so testing myself isn't really
an option; there are too many permutations.

> I'm not saying I NEVER consume ANYTHING with MSG.  I've noticed that I
> have a certain tolerance level - like a (small) bag of bbq chips once
> a month or so it not a problem - but that same bag of chips will
> bother me if I also had chicken bouillon yesterday and lunch at one of
> the Chinese restaurants the day before.  

Yes, I've noticed that - and I can work it up by eating just under the tolerance
level fairly regularly.  If I don't eat anything except home cooking for a month
or so I lose it and have to work it up from scratch... a bad experience.  Now I
know what the early-warning symptoms are, though, I can usually tell whether I am
allergic to food before I've eaten too much of it... usually...


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59381
From: kryan@stein.u.washington.edu (Kerry Ryan)
Subject: looking for info on kemotherapy(sp?)


Hello, a friend is under going kemotherapy(sp?) for breast cancer. I'm
trying to learn what I can about it. Any info would be appreciated.
Thanks.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59382
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
=In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
=>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
=>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
=>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
=>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
=>with inanimate objects.
=
=True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
="corona discharge"?

Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59383
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <etxmow.735561695@garboc29> etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg) writes:

>   Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
>   a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
>   into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
>   I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
>   painless and effective treatment.
>   A couple of weeks ago I visited a hospital here in Stockholm and
>   saw big signs showing the way to the "Kidney stone chrusher" ...

I saw this a few years ago on "Tomorrow's World" (low-brow BBC
technology news program).  The patient is lowered into a bath of
de-ionized water and carefully positioned.  High intensity pressure
waves are generated by an electric spark in the water (you don't get
electrocuted because de-ionised water does not conduct).  These waves are
focused on the kidneys by a parabolic reflector and cause the stone to
break up.  This is completely painless.

Of course, you then have to get these little bits of gravel through
the urethra.  Ouch!

Paul.

-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59384
From: hd0022@albnyvms.bitnet (Chip Dunham)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

In article <westesC60xqF.59r@netcom.com>, westes@netcom.com (Will Estes) writes:
>Does anyone know of research done on the use of haldol in the elderly?  Does 
>short-term use of the drug ever produce long-term side-effects after
>the use of the drug?  My grandmother recently had to be hospitalized
>and was given large doses of haldol for several weeks.  Although the
>drug has been terminated, she has changed from a perky, slightly
>senile woman into a virtual vegetable who does not talk to anyone
>and who cannot even eat or brush her teeth without assistance.  It
>seems incredible to me that such changes could take place in the
>course of just one and one-half months.  I have to believe that the
>combination of the hospital stay and some drug(s) are in part
>catalysts for this.  Any comments?
>
>-- 
>Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Haldol, one of the wonder drugs that works wonders.  If you're a carrot that
is.
***************************************************************************
Henry Dunham (Chip) EMT-D, NREMT
Coordinator of EMS Operations
Houston Field House EMS
HD0022@albnyvms.bitnet
***************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59385
From: westes@netcom.com (Will Estes)
Subject: Re: Use of haldol in elderly

Lawrence Curcio (lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu) wrote:
: I've seen people in their forties and fifties become disoriented and
: demented during hospital stays. In the examples I've seen, drugs were
: definitely involved. 

: My own father turned into a vegetable for a short time while in the
: hospital. He was fifty-three at the time, and he was on 21 separate
: medications. The family protested, but the doctors were adamant, telling
: us that none of the drugs interact. They even took the attitude that, if
: he was disoriented, they should put him on something else as well! With
: the help of an MD friend of the family, we had all his medication
: discontinued. He had a seizure that night, and was put back on one drug.
: Two days later, he was his old self again. I guess there aren't many
: medical texts that address the subject of 21-way interactions.

I saw the same thing happen to my father, and I can more or less validate your
take on hospitals.  It seems to me that medical science understands precious
little about taking care of the human machine.  Drugs are given as a
response to symptoms (and I guess that makes sense since all the studies that 
validate the effectiveness of those drugs are based on a narrow
assessment of the degree of particular symptoms).  But there seems
to be very little appreciation for the well-being of a person
outside of the numbers that appear on a test.  I watched my dad
wither away and lose huge amounts of body fat and muscles tissue
while in the hospital.  There is something a little crazy about a
system in which there is more attention paid to giving you every
latest drug available than there is attention paid to whether you
have had enough to eat to prevent loss of muscle tissue.  It is
really, really bizarre.    

-- 
Will Estes		Internet: westes@netcom.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59386
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?

I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
else is going on?



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59387
From: alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

FLAME ON

Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
measure" attitude of many people out there.

I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
drop off the edge of the earth.

FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)

-- Alex

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59388
From: pyan@ehd.hwc.ca (Ping Yan)
Subject: What is the medical term for this sensation?

Dear Netters:

Maybe one of you can explain this.  From time to time I experience 
a strange kind of feeling (I have all kinds of weird feelings) which 
can be best described as the feeling of "losing gravity", like that one 
experiences in a descending elevator.  Needless to say, it is not 
enjoyable.  It sometimes comes with shortness of breath and extreme 
fatigue.  It lasts from a few minutes to an hour and when it lasts 
that long, it makes me sweatening.

Initially I called it "palpitation (spelling?)" until I later learnt that 
the terminology has been reserved for the self-awareness of heart beats.

So, is there a specific term for this feeling, or am I a stragne person?
I always believe I am unique. 

Thanks.

Ping





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59389
From: groleau@e7sa.crd.ge.com (Wes Groleau X7574)
Subject: Re: Discussions on alt.psychoactives

Re: serious discussion about drugs vs. "Where can I get a good bong, man?"

Why not have the group moderated?  That would eliminate some of the idiots.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59390
Subject: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?
From: eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg)

Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
man's vasectomy on his female partner?

I've seen plenty of study results about vasectomy's effects on men's health,
but what about women? 

For example, might the wife of a vasectomized man become more at risk for,
say, cervical cancer?  Adverse effects from sperm antibodies?  Changes in the
vagina's pH?  Yeast or bacterial infections?

Outside of study results, how about informed speculation?

Thanks in advance for your help!
--
Eric Skagerberg        <eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu>
Santa Rosa, California        Telephone (707) 573-1460

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59391
From: lipofsky@zach.fit.edu (Judy Lipofsky (ACS))
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@mitre.org(The Pancake Emporium) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
>|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>|> 
>|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
>|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>|> >appreciated.
>|> 
>|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
>|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
>|> 
>|> Bill from oz
>|> 
>
>
>Bill,
>No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
>photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
>it takes pictures of your aura.
>|> 
>
>-- 
>Greg 
>
>--  Be still, be silent...the rest is easy.  --

Dear Bill,
I think you forgot the smileys.  SOME of us got the joke!



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59392
From: jhsu@Xenon.Stanford.EDU (Jeffrey H. Hsu)
Subject: Re: Med school admission


I'm a fellow applicant and my situation is not too much better.  I applied
to about 20 schools, got two interviews, got one offer, and am waiting to
hear from the other school.

Let me be honest about my experiences and impressions about the medical
school admissions process.  Numbers (GPA, MCATs) are not everything, 
but they are probably more important than anything else.  In fact, some
schools screen out applicants based on these numbers and never even look
at your other qualities.  Of course, when this happens, don't expect a refund
on your $50 application fee.

But, the fact that you got four interviews tells me that you have the numbers
and are very well qualified academically.  You mentioned one response, was it
an acceptance, denial, or wait-list?  If I assume the worst, that it was a
denial, then you still have a great probability of acceptance somewhere.  How
did your interviews go?

As for how long you have to wait, I've called a few schools who never contacted
me for anything.  Many of them told me that the interview season for them was
over and that if I haven't heard by now, I can assume a denial.  Many rejection
letters are not sent out until May or as late as June.  But some schools are
still interviewing. I really don't think you should worry.  Don't become
fixated on the mailbox, go out, have fun, be very proud of yourself.

What do people think of the medical school admissions process?  I had a very
mediocre GPA, but high MCAT scores, and I have been working as a software
engineer for two years.  I majored in Computer Science at Stanford.  Still,
I think the profile of the person who has the best chance of getting admitted
is something like this:

VERY IMPORTANT
--------------
GPA:	3.5 or better
MCAT:   top 15% in all subject

MEDIUM IMPORTANCE
-----------------
Writing/Speaking ability
Maturity
Motivation for going into medicine
Activities

LESS IMPORTANT
--------------
College or University
Major
Work experience
Anything else you want them to know


Anyway, you are in good shape.  I think admissions committees are bound in
many ways by the numbers, but would like very much to understand each
person as an individual.  Sometimes thats just not practical.  But getting 
four interviews is an indicator that you have the numbers.  Hopefully, you
were able to impress them with your character.


Good luck,
Jeff


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59393
From: fzjaffe@hamlet.ucdavis.edu (Rory Jaffe)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

etxmow@garbo.ericsson.se (Mats Winberg) writes:
: 
:    Isn't there a relatively new treatment for kidney stones involving
:    a non-invasive use of ultra-sound where the patient is lowered
:    into some sort of liquid when he/she undergoes treatment? I'm sure
:    I've read about it somewhere. If I remember it correctly it is a
:    painless and effective treatment.
The use of shock waves (not ultrasound) to break up stones has been
around for a few years.  Depending on the type of machine, and intensity
of the shock waves, it is usually uncomfortable enough to require
something...  The high-power machines cause enough pain to require
general or regional anesthesia.  Afterwards, it feels like someone
slugged you pretty good!


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59394
From: alan@lancaster.nsc.com (The Hepburn)
Subject: Re: Resound Hearing aids (and others)

In article <rhaller-260493122521@rhaller.cc.uoregon.edu>, rhaller@ns.uoregon.edu (Rich Haller) writes:
|> I have a fairly severe high frequency hearing loss. A recent rough test
|> showed a gently sloping loss to 10-20db down at 1000cps. Then it falls off
|> a cliff to 70-80dbs down from 1500cps on.  This type of loss is difficult
|> to fit. I am currently using some old siemens behind the ear aids which
|> keep me roughly functional, but leave a lot to be desired.
|> 
|> Recently I had an opportunity to test the Widex Q8 behind the ear aids for
|> several weeks. These have four independent programs which are intended to
|> be customized for different hearing situations and can be reprogramed. I
|> found them to be a definite improvement over my current aids and was about
|> to go ahead with them until another local outfit advertised a free trial of
|> another programmable system called ReSound.
|> 
|> Unfortunately I was only able to try the ReSound aids in their office for
|> about 30 minutes and I couldn't compare them 'head to head' with the Widex.
|> Nevertheless, it did appear to me that they were superior and I was
|> impressed by what I was able to read about the theory behind them which I
|> will give in a separate posting. They also carry the Widex aids and had one
|> patient (presumably wealthy) who decided to go ahead and get the ReSound
|> even though he had purchased the Widex only 6 months ago.
|> 
|> The problem is that the ReSound aids are about twice as expensive as the
|> Widex and other programmable aids. I could take a trip to Europe on the
|> difference!  Being a lover of bargains and hating to spend money, I am
|> having a hard time persuading myself to go with the ReSounds. I would
|> appreciate any opinions on this and other hearing aids and projections
|> about when and if I might see improvements in technology that aren't quite
|> so expensive.
|> 
|> 

Your hearing curve sounds a lot like mine (thanks, Uncle Sam!).  I've been
wearing Miracle Ear canal aids for about 5 months now and I find them to be
acceptable.  They are molded to the shape of your ear canal, and tuned to 
your hearing curve.  They are comfortable to wear and almost invisible, if
you're worried about that (although if you're currently wearing behind the
ear models, that's not an issue).  The cost:  I paid $1200 each for mine,
through the Miracle Ear counter at Sears.  I've heard that there is a
substantial discount for senior citizens, but I haven't researched that, because
I'm not a senior citizen, yet!

Give them a try; you might be pleasantly surprised!


-- 
Alan Hepburn           "A man doesn't know what he knows
National Semiconductor       until he knows what he doesn't know."
Santa Clara, Ca              
alan@berlioz.nsc.com                              Thomas Carlyle

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59395
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rjifg$bgm@hsdndev.harvard.edu>, rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
> In article <1993Apr26.174538.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu>
>  banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:
>>oxygen(just like it does in the vagina).  As much stuff as there is in the 
>>lay press about L. acidophilus and vaginal yeast infections, I'm really 
>>amazed that someone has not done a clinical trial yet to check it out.
> 
> I've mentioned this study a couple of times now: Ingestion of yogurt
> containing Lactobacillus acidophilus as prophylaxis for candidal
> vaginitis, Annals of Internal Medicine, 3/1/92 116(5):353-7.  Do you
> have a problem with the study because they used yogurt rather than
> capsules of lactobacillus (even though it had positive results)?
> 
> The study was a crossover trial of daily ingestion of 8 ounces of
> yogurt.  There was a marked decrease in infections while women were
> ingesting the yogurt.  Problems with the study included very small
> numbers (33 patients enrolled) and many protocol violations (only
> 21 patients were analyzed).  Still, the difference in rates of infection
> between the two groups was so large that the study remains fairly
> believable.
> -- 
> David Rind

David, this study looks like a good one.  Gordon Rubenfeld did a Medline 
search and also sent me the same reference through e-mail.  Since 
commercial yogurt does not always have a good Lactobacillus a. or 
bulgaricus culture, a negative finding would not have been too informative.
This is often the reason why Lactobacillus acidophilus tablets are 
recommended rather than yogurt.

I guess the next question is why would this introduction of "good" bacteria 
back into the gut decrease the incidence of vaginal candida blooms if the 
anus was not serving as a candida reservoir(a fact that Gordon R. vehementy
denys)?  I see two possible theories.  One, the L. acidophilus, which is a 
facultatively anaerobic bacterium, could make it through the gut and 
colonize the rectal area to overgrow the candida.  This would not explain 
the reoccurance of candida blooms in the vagina after the yogurt ingestion 
was stopped though.  The other is that the additional bacteria in the 
intestinal tract remove most of the glucose from the feces and candida 
looses it's major food source.

Getting Lactobacillus acidophilus to colonize the vaginal tract(where it is 
normally found) would have a much better effect on the recurrance of vaginal 
yeast blooms though.  An acetic acid, Lactobacillus acidophilus douche has 
been used to get this effect but I've not seen any such treatment reported in 
the medical literature.  This would be an example of physicians conducting 
their own clinical trials to try to come up with treatments that help their 
patients.  When this is done in private practice, the results are rarely, if 
ever published.  It was the hallmark of medicine until the modern age 
emerged with clinical trials.  It really raises a big question.  Does the 
medical profession cast out the adventerous few who try new treatments to 
help patients or does it look the other way.

This particular issue is really a very simple one since no real dangerous 
therapy is involved(even the anti-fungals are not all that dangerous).  But 
there are some areas(like EDTA chelation therapy), where the fire is pretty 
hot and somebody could get burned.  It's really tough.  Do I follow only 
well established protocols and then give up if they don't work that well or 
do it try something that looks like it will work but hasn't been proven to 
work yet?

My stand is to consider other treatment possibilities, especially if they 
involve little or no risk to the patient.  Getting good bacteria back into 
the gut after antibiotic treatment is one treatment possibility.  The other 
is getting L. acidophilus into the vaginal tract of a woman who is having a 
problem with recurring yeast infections.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59396
From: stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <1rjr1uINNh8@gap.caltech.edu>, carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick) writes...
>In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>=In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>=>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>=>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>=>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>=>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>=>with inanimate objects.
>=
>=True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>="corona discharge"?
> 
>Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
>the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
>the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
>see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
>nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
>photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
>conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!

	This is true, but it's not quite the whole story.  There were 
	actually some people who were more careful in their methodology
	who also replicated the 'phantom leaf effect.'

    One of the most influential critics of Kirlian Electrophotography
    is a Theosophist (and threfore presumably willing to entertain the
    hypothesis of scientific evidence for a human aura, electromagnetic
    or otherwise), professor of electrical engineering at London's
    City University, and a past president of the Society for Psychic Research 
    named A. J. Ellison.

    After years of studying the method and the claims, Ellison
    came to the conclusion that the photographic images are what we
    calls 'Lichtenberg Figures,' an effect of intermittent ionization of
    the air around the object.  It's a bit more complicated than
    'not wiping off the plates,' but it comes down to the same thing
    in the end, Kirlian electrophotography has much more limited
    value (if any) than was previously widely thought.  Electrical and
    magnetic fields generated by the body are much too small to be
    of much use diagnostically without very elaborate equipment and
    usually also tracer chemicals.

					kind regards,

					todd
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Todd I. Stark				  stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com           |
| Digital Equipment Corporation		             (215) 542-3573           |
| Philadelphia, Pa. USA                                                       |
|    "(A word is) the skin of a living thought"  Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.   |
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59397
From: samuel@paul.rutgers.edu (Empress Carrena Kristina I)
Subject: REQUEST:FAQ

Hi. 
I have a friend who is interested in subscribing to this newsgroup.
Unfortunatly she does not have usenet access. If someone could send
her a faq and info on how to subscribe, we'd be very appreciative If
you want to send it to me, you can and I will get it to her. I do not
read this newsgroup regularly though so e-mail please.
Thank you
Jody
-- 


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jody Rebecca		Colby College		Majors: History/Sociology
			Class o' '94            
E-Mail:  jrgould@colby.edu
	 samuel@paul.rutgers.edu

Fantasy, Music, Colors, and Animals will lead this society out of oppression.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59398
From: samuel@paul.rutgers.edu (Empress Carrena Kristina I)
Subject: Oops. SIlly me.

Sorry. My friend's address who wants the faq and info is
jjsulliv@colby.edu
Sorry about that folks.
Jody
-- 


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jody Rebecca		Colby College		Majors: History/Sociology
			Class o' '94            
E-Mail:  jrgould@colby.edu
	 samuel@paul.rutgers.edu

Fantasy, Music, Colors, and Animals will lead this society out of oppression.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59399
From: werckme1@eecs.uic.edu (robert werckmeister)
Subject: ECG data needed

I need some ECG data , uncompressed,  hopefully in ascii format.
Don't care what it looks like, this is for a signal processing
project.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59400
From: dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field))
Subject: Re: PLEASE,HELP A PATIENT!!!

In article <AAghzshe-3@integral.stavropol.su> mymail@integral.stavropol.su writes:
>% mail newsserv@kiae.su
>Subject:  PLEASE, HELP!!!
>                    Dear  Ladies and  Gentlemen!
>      We should be grateful for any information about address and (or)
>   E-mail address of Loma-Linda Hospital (approximate position: USA,
>   California, near Vaimor town, 60 miles from Los-Angelos).
>      A patient needs consultation in this clinics before operation.
>                With respect,                  Igor V. Sidelnikov
>QUIT

This is also being replied to via e-mail.  I dialed my university
librarian, and he looked it up:

Loma Linda University Medical Center
Loma Linda, CA 92350

I don't know an Internet address for them, but they can be reached by
telephone at (714) 824-4300.

Good luck.

-- 
| Daniel R. Field, AKA InfoSpunj | "Never believe any experiment until |
| dfield@oboe.calpoly.edu        | it has been confirmed by theory."   |
| Biochemistry, Biotechnology    | -Arthur Eddington                   |
| California Polytechnic State U | Tongue-in-cheek or foot-in-mouth?   | 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59401
From: aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu ()
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <1993Apr27.151619.2636@netnews.noc.drexel.edu> giamomj@duvm.ocs.drexel.edu (Mike G.) writes:
>Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros
>
>In article <C63yG5.8tH@cs.uiuc.edu> Gunnar Blix, blix@milton.cs.uiuc.edu
>writes:
>>I need information on the medical (including emotional :-) pros and
>>cons of circumcision (at birth).  I am especially interested in
>>references to studies that indicate disadvantages or refute studies
>>that indicate advantages.  A friend who is a medical student is
>>writing a survey paper, and apparently the studies she has run into
>>are all for circumcision, the main argument being a lower risk of
>>penile cancer.
>>
>>Please email responses as I am not a frequent reader of either group.
>>I will summarize to the net.
>
>I'm very surprised that medical schools still push routine circumcision
>of newborn males on the population. Since your friend is not a man, she


Money probably has a lot to do with keeping the practice of routine 
circumcision alive... It's another opporitunity to charge a few hundred
extra bucks for a completely unnecessary procedure, the rationale for 
which until recently has been accepted without question by most
parents of newborns.  

One could also imagine that complications arising from circumcision
(infections, sloppy jobs, etc) are far more common than the remote chance
of penile cancer it is purported to prevent.  
 

>can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
>guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
>male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
>appearance...
>
>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>unnecessary.

Peter Schlumpf
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59402
From: OPDBS@vm.cc.latech.edu
Subject: Can I sell my TENS unit?

 
Sci med people:
 
Can I sell my TENS unit or does it have to be sold by a physician or
other liscened person?
 
Doug
opdbs@vm.cc.latech.edu
 
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59403
From: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Jennifer Scheiber)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU> matthews@oswego.Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:
>All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
>swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?
>
>I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
>else is going on?
>
>

But the sperm would be very diluted in a "x" gallon swimming pool   
-- 
_____________________________________________________________________________
*                  J e n n i f e r      S c h e i b e r                     *
email: scheiber@sage.cc.purdue.edu      School of Nursing - Purdue University
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59404
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
=FLAME ON
=
=Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
=photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
=narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
=measure" attitude of many people out there.

Where have you seen that attitude?

=I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
=so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
=as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
=quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

=I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
=something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
=of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
=were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

Fine, jackass.  Suppose you point out even ONE aspect of Kirlian photography
that's not explained by a corona discharge.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59406
From: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea)
Subject: Persistent vs Chronic

Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
hepatitis.

Thanks,
Horace

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59407
From: brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM (Brenda Bowden)
Subject: feverfew for migraines


I heard a short blurb on the news yesterday about an herb called feverfew (?)
that some say is good for preventing migraines. I think the news said there
were two double-blind studies that found this effective.

Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?
I'm skeptical, but open to trying it if I can find out more about this.
What is feverfew, and how much would you take to prevent migraines (if 
this is a good idea, that is)? Are there any known risks or side effects
of feverfew? 

Thanks in advance for any info!
Brenda

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59408
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

Iridology is descendant from a 19th-century theory which mapped certain
diseases to sectors of the iris of the eye.  There's enough natural
variation in color that a skilled examiner can find indicators of
virtually any disease.

Modern scientists consider it to be complete bunk.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59409
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: WE CAN SUPPLY YOU WITH THE TRANSPLANTANTS & OTHER

Harvested to order?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59410
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

Colonics were a health fad of the 19th century, which persists to this day.
Except for certain medical conditions, there is no reason to do this.
Certainly no normal person should do this.

Frequent use of enemas can lead to a condition in which a person is unable
to have normal bowel passage, essentially a person becomes addicted to
enemas.  As I understand it, this is a very unpleasant condition, and it
would be best to avoid it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59411
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Re: Med school admission

Then there are always osteopathy colleges....

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59412
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In <4974@master.CNA.TEK.COM> mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley) writes:

>In article ?????? I write:
>>When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>>in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>>sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>>cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>>
>>Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>>occur?

>Ohboy. Here we go again. And one wonders why the American
>education system is in such abysmal shape?

Actually, this was a school in England.  This same biology teacher also
told me that the reason that stars twinkle is that the small spot of
light on the retina sometimes falls between the light recepive cells.
So his info was suspect from the start.  

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59413
From: pinn@cpqhou.se.hou.compaq.com (Steve Pinn x44304)
Subject: Re: REQUEST: Gyro (souvlaki) sauce

Michael Trofimoff (tron@fafnir.la.locus.com) wrote:

: Hi All,

: Would anyone out there in 'net-land' happen to have an
: authentic, sure-fire way of making this great sauce that
: is used to adorn Gyro's and Souvlaki?

: Thanks,

I have a receipe at home that was posted to me by one of our fellow
netters about a month ago.  I am recalling this from memory but
I think I'm fairly close (by the way it was GREAT!)

1 	pint of plain yogurt 
1/2	med. sized cucumber finely shredded
3	cloves of garlic (more or less by taste)
1/4 tsp	dill weed

The yogurt is dumped into a strainer lined with a coffee
filter and allowed to drain at least 2 hours (you can
adjust the consistancy of the sauce by increasing this time
up to 24 hours)

The shredded cuc is drained the same way

Mix it all together and let it steep for at least
2 hours (it's better the next day) and enjoy!

Steve



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59414
From: cjh@tinton.ccur.com (Christopher J. Henrich)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu> eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>>Greg:Flame definitely intended here.  Bill was making fun of the misspelling. 
>>Go look up the word "krill."  Also, the correct spelling is Kirlian.  It
>>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>>with inanimate objects.
>
>True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>"corona discharge"?
>
I think I can explain the "missing part of a leaf" story.

I have actually seen a reproduction of that particular Kirlian
photograph, in a book compiled by people who were enthusiasts of
Kirlian photography.  "That particular photograph" ... ?  That's
right, the effect has been observed only once.  Even the writers of
the book were inclined to disbelieve in it.  

I conjecture that the maker of that photograph began by placing
a whole leaf between two plates and taking its Kirlian photo.
For his next experiment, he cut the leaf in half, put one half down
between the same two plates, and took another K. p.  The
"missing half" effect was created by water, oils, etc. left behind 
after the first photo.

This explanation must be tentative, because after all I wasn't there
when it happened.  

Regards,
Chris Henrich

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59415
From: wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>
>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.

It is one thing to be open-minded about phenomona that have not
be demonstrated to be false, and quite another to "believe" in
something like Krilian photography, where *all* the claimed effects
have be demonstrated to be artifacts.  There is no longer any reason
to adopt a "wait and see" attitude about Krilian photography, it
has been experimentally shown to be nothing but simple coronal
discharge.  The "auras" shown by missing leaf parts came from 
moisture left by the original whole leaf, for example.  

That's what science is, son.

---Bill VanHorne


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59416
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1rhb0e$9ks@europa.eng.gtefsd.com>, draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM
DRAPER) says:
>
>This homeopathic remedies.  I tried the dander one for a month. 15 drops
>three times a day.  I didn't notice any change whats so ever.  How long
>were you using the drops before you noticed a difference?
>
It is NOT a homeopathic remedy. Improvement began in a few months.
I am allergic to bermuda grass and if anyone nearby was mowing a lawn
my nose would start to run.  Now I can walk right by and it doesn't bother
me at all.  The same success with desert ragweed.

   Bruce Long

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59417
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Subject: Re: food-related seizures?

Michael Covington (mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu) wrote:
: 
: How about contaminants on the corn, e.g. aflatoxin???
: 
Little alflatoxin on commercial cereal products and certainly wouldn't
cause seizures.

--
David Ozonoff, MD, MPH		 |Boston University School of Public Health
dozonoff@med-itvax1.bu.edu	 |80 East Concord St., T3C
(617) 638-4620			 |Boston, MA 02118 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59418
From: carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU (Carl J Lydick)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1rk5miINNkju@usenet.pa.dec.com>, stark@dwovax.enet.dec.com (Todd I. Stark) writes:
=>Yup.  The demonstration to which you refer consists of placing a leaf between
=>the plates, and taking a Kirlian photograph of it.  You then cut off part of
=>the leaf, put the top plate back on, and take another Kirlian photograph.  You
=>see pretty much the same image in both cases.  Turns out the effect isn't
=>nearly so striking if you take the trouble to clean the plates between
=>photographs.  Seems that the moisture from the leaf that you left on the place
=>conducts electricity.  Surprise, surprise!
=
=	This is true, but it's not quite the whole story.  There were 
=	actually some people who were more careful in their methodology
=	who also replicated the 'phantom leaf effect.'

You can also replicate the effect with a rock:  Take your first Kirlian
photograph.  Then moisten one edge of the rock.  Lo! and behold!  Phantom rock!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Carl J Lydick | INTERnet: CARL@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU | NSI/HEPnet: SOL1::CARL

Disclaimer:  Hey, I understand VAXen and VMS.  That's what I get paid for.  My
understanding of astronomy is purely at the amateur level (or below).  So
unless what I'm saying is directly related to VAX/VMS, don't hold me or my
organization responsible for it.  If it IS related to VAX/VMS, you can try to
hold me responsible for it, but my organization had nothing to do with it.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59419
From: joel@cray.com (Joel Broude)
Subject: Mevicore vs. Lopid vs. ?


I used to be on lopid.  It did a good job of reducing cholesterol (295
down to around 214), as well as LDL and triglycerides.  Then, I got
pneumonia, and for some reason, the Lopid stopped working very well;
cholesterol and triglycerides soared.  The levels might have stabilized
over time, but a new doctor had me quit, wait a month, then switch
to Mevicore.  

On Mevicore, my total cholesterol was down to 207,  LDL was 108, 
and HDL was 35; but the trig's were still
very high, around 318, and my liver tests came back slightly abnormal, 
SGOT = 83 (N = 1-35),  GGTP(?hard to read copy) = 42 (N = 0 - 35).

He said the liver numbers were not offbase enough to cause him
concern, and the triglycerides are not as important as the cholesterol
figures.  He had me stop the Mevicore to allow the liver to heal ("Just
to be extra cautious, though I'm sure it's not a problem."),
and wants me to go back on it after that.  I suggested maybe Lopid might
be the better choice, and he said that he wouldn't object if that's what
I want to do.  But Lopid has one particular side effect I'm not fond of.

Should the above liver and trig figures be feared?  What happens to
folks with high trig levels?  Is my liver in danger with the above
results?  Would I be better off on Lopid, despite its inconvenient 
side effect, or, perhaps, some other drug?  (Niacin affected my 
liver, too).

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59420
Subject: EXPERTS ON EDWARD JENNER...LOOK!!!
From: pkwok@eis.calstate.edu (Philip Kwok)

I am a student from San Leandro High school.  I am doing a research
project for physics and I would like information on Edward Jenner and the
vaccination for small pox.  Any information at all would be greatly
apprectiated.  Thank you.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59421
From: kring@pamuk.physik.uni-kl.de (Thomas Kettenring)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu>, eas3714@ultb.isc.rit.edu (E.A. Story) writes:
>In article <1rgrsvINNmpr@gap.caltech.edu> carl@SOL1.GPS.CALTECH.EDU writes:
>>[..] It
>>involves taking photographs of corona discharges created by attaching the
>>subject to a high-voltage source, not of some "aura."  It works equally well
>>with inanimate objects.
>
>True.. but what about showing the missing part of a leaf?  Is this
>"corona discharge"?

This effect disappears if you clean your apparatus after you kirlianed
the whole leaf and before kirlianing the leaf part.

--
thomas kettenring, 3 dan, kaiserslautern, germany
The extraterrestrials don't even know this planet has native inhabitants.
Their government doesn't tell them.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59422
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: med school admission continued.


hi all, i got several emails and a couple news replies and i guess i
shoulda went into more detail... Being my anxiety level is peaking and you
folks have no clue who I am I may as well post the specifics and see what
you people think regarding my previous post.
To recap i applied to 20 schools total, 16 of which were MD and 4 DO.

as it stands now i have had 13 rejects, 4 interviews( 2 MD and 2 DO), the
results of which are 2 waiting lists (1 MD and one DO)

3 schools i heard nothing from at all.

I have contacted all institutions other than the rejects and they have no
info whatsoever to tell me.

I have taken a good mix to apply to.. 2-3 top schools a bunch of middles
and a few "safety"  (funny that most of my safety schools were the first
to reject me)

my index is at like a 3.5 mcats were R7 P9 B10 WQ and R7 P9 B11 WR
I couldnt get the damn reading score up... i never stuff like art
history, politics etc 

Ive done medical research at the undergrad level, done clinical lab work
for years now, but unfortunately i have no patient contact experience.

I cant think of what else i left out... but thats the summary. What
percent of people are usually called from the waiting lists on an average?
I felt that my interviews went quite well yet i dont have a firm
acceptance in my hand... anyone have any suggestions as to calm the
mailbox anxiety?  

If you premeds out there or med students have any questions or comments
for me feel free to send them down... Typing is a form of anti-anxiety
thereapy hehehehe :)


-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59423
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: med school

John Carey (jcarey@news.weeg.uiowa.edu) wrote:
: Actually I am entering vet school next year, but the question is 
: relevant for med students too.

: Memorizing large amounts has never been my strong point academically.
: Since this is a major portion of medical education -- anatomy, 
: histology, pathology, pharmacology, are for the most part mass 
: memorization -- I am a little concerned.  As I am sure most 
: med students are.

: Can anyone suggest techniques for this type of memorization?  I 
: have had reasonable success with nemonics and memory tricks like
: thinking up little stories to associate unrelated things.  But I have
: never applied them to large amounts of "data".

: Has anyone had luck with any particular books, memory systems, or
: cheap software?   

: Can you suggest any helpful organizational techniques?  Being an
: older student who returned to school this year, organization (another
: one of my weak points) has been a major help to my success.

: Please no griping about how all you have to do is "learn" the material
: conceptually.  I have no problem with that, it is one of my strong 
: points.  But you can't get around the fact that much of medicine is
: rote memorization.  

: Thanks for your help.
The only suggestion i can think of off the top of my head is get a large
supply of index cards and memorize small amounts of info at a time, making
flash cards and quesitons. Everytime i get a question wrong I always
manage to get the damn thing right the next time 

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59424
From: hoss@panix.com (Felix the Cat)
Subject: Re: A Good place for Back Surgery?

: gary.schuetter (garyws@cbnewsg.cb.att.com) wrote:

: : 	
: :         Hello,

: :         Just one quick question:
: :         My father has had a back problem for a long time and doctors
: :         have diagnosed an operation is needed. Since he lives down in
: :         Mexico, he wants to know if there is a hospital anywhere in
: :         the United States particulary famous for this kind of surgery,
: :         kind of like Houston has a reputation for excellent doctors
: :         in eye surgery. Any additional info or pointers will be
: :         appreciated a whole lot!...

: There is one hospital that is here in New York City that is famous for its
: orthopedists, namely the Hospital for Special Surgery. They are located on
: the upper east side of manhattan. If you want their address and phone let
: me know, i'll get them, i dont know them off hand.

for those who are interested the hospitals i was referring to are: 

The Hospital for Special Surgery
535 East 70th Street
New York, NY 10021
212-606-1555 (Physician Referral Service & info)
 
The Hospital for Joint Diseases
301 East 17th Street
New York, NY 10003
212-598-7600

-- 
         /\ _ /\          |            Felix The Cat
        |  0 0  |-------\==     The Wonderful, Wonderful Cat!                 
         \==@==/\  ____\ |     ===============================
 Meow!--- \_-_/  ||     ||            hoss@panix.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59425
From: oldman@coos.dartmouth.edu (Prakash Das)
Subject: Re: Is MSG sensitivity superstition?

In article <1993Apr26.143101.4307@llyene.jpl.nasa.gov> julie@eddie.jpl.nasa.gov (Julie Kangas) writes:
>
>I get tired of people saying 'don't eat X because
>it's BAD!'  Well, X may not be bad for everyone.  And even if
>it is, so what?  Give people all the information but don't ram
>your decisions down their throats.
>

It is evident you did not read my post carefully. I wasn't
trying to tell you not to eat MSG products and produce, nor was I
arguing for or against MSG. I was simply questioning the logic of
your statement that simply because
(a) one is not allergic to something, and
(b) likes eating that
it follows that one could keep eating whatever it is. 
In my post, I had clearly said that I don't know enough about MSG.
The statement "don't eat X because its bad" is just _your_ 
interpretation of nutritional info out there.

Prakash Das

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59426
From: tad@ssc.com (Tad Cook)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr26.120417.22328@linus.mitre.org> gpivar@mitre.org(The Pancake Emporium) writes:
>In article <1993Apr22.211005.21578@scorch.apana.org.au>, bill@scorch.apana.org.au (Bill Dowding) writes:
>|> todamhyp@charles.unlv.edu (Brian M. Huey) writes:
>|> 
>|> >I think that's the correct spelling..
>|> >	I am looking for any information/supplies that will allow
>|> >do-it-yourselfers to take Krillean Pictures. I'm thinking
>|> >that education suppliers for schools might have a appartus for
>|> >sale, but I don't know any of the companies. Any info is greatly
>|> >appreciated.
>|> 
>|> Krillean photography involves taking pictures of minute decapods resident in 
>|> the seas surrounding the antarctic. Or pictures taken by them, perhaps.
>|> 
>|> Bill from oz
>|> 
>
>
>Bill,
>No flame intended but you're way, way off base. In simple terms Kirilian
>photography registers the electromagnetical fields around objects, in simple,
>it takes pictures of your aura.
>|> 
>
>-- 
>Greg 
>
You're confused.  You are talking about KIRILIAN photography.

Bill is talking KRILLEAN photography.


-- 
  |   tad@ssc.com  (if it bounces, use 3288544@mcimail.com)   |
  |   Tad Cook     |  Packet Amateur Radio:  |  Home Phone:   |
  |   Seattle, WA  |  KT7H @ N7DUO.WA.USA.NA |  206-527-4089  |


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59427
From: ac940@Freenet.carleton.ca (Lau Hon-Wah)
Subject: Copper Bracelet (Sabona by Dr. John Sorenson)


I have seen Copper Bracelet by the name of Sabona created by Dr. John
Sorenson.  I am looking for literature on the effectiveness of Copper
Bracelet in dealing with Arthritis. 

I know in one case a 70-year old person developed bruise at the base of her
left thumb after wearing the copper bracelet on her left wrist for several
months.  She was told the bruise is "normal" and would disappear. 

Is the bruise reason to be concerned?
Should the person discontinued wearing the copper bracelet?
Could anyone kindly point me to literature on copper bracelet?
What are the other information on copper bracelet?

Your response would be very much appreciated.

Thank you.

Lau Hon-Wah
-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59428
From: msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder)
Subject: centi- and milli- pedes

Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
be liable to happen to the person?

(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)

Rebecca



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59429
From: help4@dcs2.dc (len ramirez)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

very good.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59430
From: ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov
Subject: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

Can anybody out there provide me with any advice concerning the
following two health problems:

First, I was recently diagnosed (using a UGI series) as having a
Schatzki ring and small sliding hiatal hernia. As I understand it,
the hernia is a relatively minor problem, though I do occasionally
have some nasty heartburn that is probably related to it. The Schatzki
ring, on the other hand, is causing swallowing difficulty. In particular,
if I'm not careful about eating slowly, and thoroughly chewing food,
food occasionally gets "stuck" before reaching my stomach. This results
in a period of painful spasms as the food attempts to pass the obstruction.
Fortunately, the food has always managed to pass, but this is annoying,
and causes frequent discomfort.

My doctor wants to "dilate" the ring using the
following procedure: use an endoscope to examine the esophagus and stomach
for any inflammation, then cut through the ring and dilate it by passing
some kind of balloon or something thru the esophagous. I would like to know
if anyone out there has had this (or a similar) procedure done-if so,
was it painful, successful, etc. Also, can anyone  comment on
safety, advisability, and success rate of this procedure? Has it become
a common procedure? I am kind of leery of having such an invasive-sounding
procedure performed for a (currently) non-threatening condition such as this,
especially considering the possible side effects (bleeding, perforation,
reaction to anesthesia).

The second issue: for the past 3-4 years I have had a large number
of "extra" heartbeats. In particular, during the past month or so there
has been a dramatic increase-a Holter monitor recently showed 50 PVC's in 24
hrs, along with a few PAC's. (Many days, there are far more than this,
however-five to ten per hour). All of them were isolated, and the cardiologist
indicated that such a number was "normal". It certainly doesn't
feel normal. In the past there have also been a couple of episodes of
extended "runs" of these beats, one of which lasted long enough to cause
severe light-headedness. I am relatively young (30-ish), thin and in good
health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
same time.

Thanks for any help/advice!


===============================================================================
===============================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59431
From: rmccown@world.std.com (Bob McCown)
Subject: Miscelaneous soon-to-have-baby questions

We're about to have our first baby, and have a few questions that we
dont seem to be able to get answered to our satisfaction. 

Reguarding having a baby boy circumsized, what are the medical pros
and cons?  All we've heard is 'its up to the parents'.

How about the pregnant woman sitting in a tub of water?  We've heard 
stories of infection, etc.  How about after the water has broken?


rmccown@world.std.com
Old MacDonald had an agricultural real estate tax abatement.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59432
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

A student told me today that she has been diagnosed with kidney stones, a
cyst on one kidney, and a kidney infection.  She was upset because her
condition had been misdiagnosed since last fall, and she has been ill all
this time.  During her most recent doctor's appointment at her parents'
HMO clinic, she said that about FORTY! x-rays were made of her kidney.
When she asked why so many x-rays were being made, she was told by a
technician that they need to see the area from different views, but she
says that about five x-rays were made from EACH angle.  She couldn't help
feeling that something must be wrong with the procedure or something.  She
is a pre-med student and feels she could have understood what was
happening if someone would have explained.  When nobody would, she got
worried.
	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
call back her doctor's office / clinic and try to get answers to these
questions.  But I told her I would also write in to sci.med and see what I
could find out about why there were so many x-rays and whether it seems
o.k. to wait in line 3 or more months for surgery for something like this
or whether she should be looking elsewhere for her care.  She does plan to
get a second opinion, too. 

	I will pass info on to her.  It never hurts to get information
from more than one source.  

You can e-mail me or post.

Thanks.

Alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59433
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU> matthews@oswego.Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews) writes:
:All right, listen up....  What are the possibilities of transmission through
:swimming pool water?  Especially if the chlorination isn't up to par?
:
:I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
:else is going on?

No dice.  As soon as the sperm cells hit the water they would virtually
explode.  The inside of the cell is hypertonic, and since the membrane is
semipermeable water would rush in and cause the cell to burst.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59435
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: New Method For Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease Discovered


Here is a press release from Huntington Medical Research Institutes.

 New Method For Diagnosing Alzheimer's Disease Discovered at
Huntington Medical Research Institutes: Results to Be Reported
 To: National Desk, Health Writer
 Contact: John Lockhart or Belinda Gerber, 310-444-7000, or
          800-522-8877, for the Huntington Medical Research
          Institutes.

   LOS ANGELES, April 28  -- A new method for diagnosing 
and measuring chemical imbalances in the brain
which lead to Alzheimer's disease and other dementias has been
discovered by researchers at the Huntington Medical Research
Institutes (HMRI) in Pasadena, Calif.  Results of their research
will be reported in the May issue of the scientific journal,
Radiology.
   Using an advanced form of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
called magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), a research team led
by Brian D. Ross, M.D., D. Phil., conducted a study on 21 elderly
patients who were believed to be suffering from some form of
dementia. The exams used standard MRI equipment fitted with special
software developed at HMRI called Clinical Proton MRS.  Clinical
Proton MRS is easily applied, giving doctors confirmatory diagnoses
in less than 30 minutes.  An automated version of Clinical Proton
MRS called Proton Brain Examination (PROBE) reduces the examination
time yet further, providing confirmatory diagnoses in less than 10
minutes.  By comparison, the current "standard of care" in testing
for Alzheimer's disease calls for lengthy memory function and
neuropsychological tests, which can be very upsetting to the
patient, are not definitive and can only be confirmed by autopsy.
   In addition to Alzheimer's disease, the new Clinical Proton MRS
exam may have applications in diagnosing other dementias, including
AIDS-related dementia, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's
disease.
   "We've developed a simple test which can be administered quickly
and relatively inexpensively using existing MRI equipment fitted
with either the MRS or PROBE software," said Dr. Ross, adding,
"this will help physicians to diagnose Alzheimer's earlier and
intervene with therapeutics before the progression of the disease
causes further damage to the delicate inner workings of the brain."
   Dr. Ross and his HMRI team measured a family of chemicals in the
brain known as inositols, and myo-inositol (MI) acted as a marker
in the study.  In comparison to healthy patients, those diagnosed
with Alzheimer's showed a 22 percent increase in MI, while their
level of another chemical called N-acetylaspartate (NAA) was
significantly lower, indicating a loss of brain-stimulating neurons
believed to be associated with the progression of the disease.
   Current drug therapy for Alzheimer's disease is widely
considered to be inadequate.  This is attributable, Dr. Ross
believes, to the theory that Alzheimer's is caused by an
interruption in the transmission of the chemical acetylcholine to
the nerve cells. This belief has been adhered to over the last 15
years, and consequently, most drugs to treat Alzheimer's were based
on the changing receptors for acetylcholine.
   "Physicians have a real need for a test to differentiate
Alzheimer's from other dementias, to provide the patient and his or
her family with a firm diagnosis and to monitor future treatment
protocols for the treatment of this disease.  For this reason, we
consider this test a major advancement in medicine," said Bruce
Miller, M.D., a noted neurologist at Harbor-UCLA, MRS researcher
and a co-author of the study.
   Other members of the HMRI research team included Rex A. Moats,
Ph.D., Truda Shonk, B.S., Thomas Ernst, Ph.D., and Suzanne Woolley,
R.N.  The PROBE software can be fitted on the approximately 1,200
General Electric MRI units currently in use in the United States,
and will be configured for other manufacturers' MRI units soon.
   For interviews with Dr. Ross, advance copies of the Radiology
May issue, and other information, please contact John Lockhart or
Belinda Gerber for HMRI at 310-444-7000 or 800-522-8877.

   Q & A on Alzheimer's Disease:

   What is Alzheimer's disease and how is it caused?
   Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an incurable degenerative disease of
the brain first described in 1906 by the German neuropathologist
Alois Alzheimer.  As the disease progresses, it leads to loss of
memory and mental functioning, followed by changes in personality,
loss of control of bodily functions, and, eventually, death.
   How many people does it affect?
   Alzheimer's disease affects an estimated 4 million adults in
the United States and is the fourth leading cause of death, taking
approximately 100,000 lives each year.  While Alzheimer's
debilitates its victims, it is equally devastating, both
emotionally and financially, for patients' families.  AD is the
most common cause of dementia in adults.  Symptoms worsen every
year, and death usually occurs within 10 years of initial onset.
   What are its signs and symptoms?
   Although the cause of AD is not known, two risk factors have
been identified: advanced age and genetic predisposition.  The risk
of developing AD is less than one percent before the age of 50
yars old, but increases steeply in each successive decade of life
to reach 30 percent by the age of 90.  In patients with familial
AD, immediate family relatives have a 50 percent chance of
developing AD.  One of its first symptoms is severe "forgetfulness"
caused by short-term memory loss.  Dr. Herman Weinreb of the School
of Medicine at New York University says "whether forgetfulness is
a serious symptom or not is largely a matter of degree" and
suggests the following criteria:

   -- Forgetting the name of someone you see infrequently is
      normal.
   -- Forgetting the name of a loved one is serious.
   -- Forgetting where you left your keys is normal.
   -- Forgetting how to get home is serious.

   Doctors suggest that people with severe symptoms should be
evaluated in order to rule out Alzheimer's disease and other forms
of dementia.
 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59436
From: "nigel allen" <nigel.allen@canrem.com>
Subject: Results of GUSTO Heart Attack Study to be Released Friday


Here is a press release from Medical Science Communications.

 Results of GUSTO Heart Attack Study to be Released Friday
 To: Assignment Desk, Medical Writer
 Contact: Jim Augustine of Medical Science Communication,
          703-644-6824, or Steve Hull or Tracy Furey,
          800-477-9626 or April 29-30, 202-393-2000 or
          202-662-7592 (J.W. Marriott)

   News Advisory:

   Results of the largest heart attack study ever undertaken,
the Global Utilization of Streptokinase and t-PA for Occluded
Coronary Arteries trial (GUSTO), will be presented Friday, April
30, at the Clinical Research Meeting.
   A press conference will be held at 12:30 p.m.
   GUSTO evaluates the most aggressive emergency-room treatment
strategies available to clear blocked heart arteries and restore
blood flow to the heart, a process called thrombolysis.  The
thrombolytic strategies compared in GUSTO use powerful drugs to break
up blood clots in heart vessels quickly and prevent clots from
recurring.  These strategies have never been compared directly in a
large-scale clinical trial until GUSTO.  The results are expected to
have an important impact on heart attack treatment worldwide.
   The press conference will be held at two locations: live at the
National Press Club, Main Lounge, 13th Floor, 529 14th St., N.W.,
Washington D.C., and via satellite at The Hotel Macklowe, 145 W. 44th
Street, 4th Floor, New York City, between Broadway and 6th Avenue.
   GUSTO results will be presented by Eric Topol M.D., GUSTO Study
Chairman, professor and chairman of the Department of Cardiology at
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation; Robert Califf, M.D., clinical
director, GUSTO Coordinating Center and Associate Professor of
Medicine at Duke University Medical Center; and Allan Ross, M.D.,
coordinator of the GUSTO Angiographic Substudy and professor and
director of the Division of Cardiology at The George Washington
University Medical Center.
    ------
   Editorial Notes/Attention television: The press conference may be
viewed in its entirety via satellite starting at 12:30 p.m. (EDT)
C-band Telestar 302, Transponder 2V (dual audio 6.2, 6.8) or KUSBS6,
Transponder 8.  Following the press conference, there will be a news
package and b-roll feed.  Camera-ready illustrations also will be
available at the press conference.
   Telephone hook up to the press conference is planned.
Availability is limited; please call MCS for more information.
   For reporters who will be at the Sheraton Washington attending the
Clinical Research Meeting on Friday morning, minibus transportation
will be provided to the press conference.  The bus will depart at
12 p.m.; it also will be available for return to the Sheraton
after the press conference.
   For more information, contact Steve Hull or Tracy Furey of MCS,
for the GUSTO Study Group, at 800-477-9626; or at the J.W. Marriott
April 29 to April 30 at 202-393-2000 or 202-662-7592.  For more
information about the Clinical Research Meeting, contact Jim
Augustine of Medical Science Communications at 703-644-6824.

 -30-
--
Canada Remote Systems - Toronto, Ontario
416-629-7000/629-7044

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59437
From: rrome@nyx.cs.du.edu (Robert Rome)
Subject: Need Prozac info


I'm looking for information regarding dosages of prozac used in minor
depression.  Also any other information regarding the drug is helpful. 
Please send responses direct.  Thanks!

rrome@nyx.cs.du.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59438
From: andrewm@bio.uts.EDU.AU (Andrew Mears)
Subject: sheep in cardiac research


Dear news readers,

Is there anyone using sheep models for cardiac research, specifically
concerned with arrhythmias, pacing or defibrillation? I would like
to hear from you.

Many thanks,
Andrew Mears

*********** Please email me <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au> ***************
*************************************************************************
**  *   Andrew Mears                            h: 61-2-9774245         *
* **    CRC for Cardiac Technology, UTS         w: 61-2-3304091	        *
* **    Westbourne St, GORE HILL                F: 61-2-3304003         *
**  *   N.S.W  2065               email: <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au>  *
*************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59439
From: larpjb@selway.umt.edu (Philip J Bowman)
Subject: Re: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

In article <1993Apr28.173600.21703@organpipe.uug.arizona.edu> ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh) writes:
>Greeting
>
>I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
>bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
>using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
>to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
>seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
>background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
>ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.
>
>Thanks for oyur help in Advance.
>
>Terrance J Dishongh
>ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

It sounds as though you might want to try a product such as "super-glue".
The active ingredient is cynoacrylate, the same compound used to reconstruct
bones.  I have successfully used superglue for a number of procedures on many
different species of animal. If you are simply trying to adhear something
to bone for several months, this would be ideal. It bonds almost immediatly,
is resistant to infection, and is non-irritating to surrounding tissue.

Phil Bowman, Manager
Lab Animal Resources
University of Montana
Missoula, MT 59812
larpjb@selway.umt.edu
:wg


-- 

          
               /\---/\          Phil Bowman, Manager
               \ * * /          Laboratory Animal Resources

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59441
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Urine analysis

In article <1rm2bn$kps@transfer.stratus.com> Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com writes:
>
> Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
>an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
>a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
>ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
>If so where can these substances be found. 

You could do what I do: never go near the stuff!  :)


-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59442
From: andrewm@bio.uts.EDU.AU (Andrew Mears)
Subject: sheep models in cardiology


Dear news readers,

Is there anyone using sheep models for cardiac research, specifically
concerned with arrhythmias, pacing or defibrillation? I would like
to hear from you.

Many thanks,

Andrew Mears
*************** PLEASE EMAIL ME *************
-- 
*************************************************************************
**  *   Andrew Mears                            h: 61-2-9774245         *
* **    CRC for Cardiac Technology, UTS         w: 61-2-3304091	        *
* **    Westbourne St, GORE HILL                F: 61-2-3304003         *
**  *   N.S.W  2065               email: <andrewm@iris.bio.uts.edu.au>  *
*************************************************************************

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59443
From: eileen@microware.com (Eileen Beck)
Subject: cortisone shots

I need some information on the implications of receiving
cortisone shots for a seasonal allergic condition.  

I've had the usual "skin prick" tests for the
common allergies, but reacted to none of the substances.
So for the last two seasons I've received cortisone shots
but the doctors seem reluctant to give more than two or
three shots.  Why?  What are the dangers?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59444
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: looking for info on kemotherapy(p?) (KINDA LONG)

In article <1rjpu7INNmij@shelley.u.washington.edu>, kryan@stein.u.washington.edu (Kerry Ryan) writes...
> 
>Hello, a friend is under going kemotherapy(sp?) for breast cancer. I'm
>trying to learn what I can about it. Any info would be appreciated.
>Thanks.

You've asked a toughie of a question.  There are many different drugs which
are used for chemotherapy.

The overall purpose of chemotherapy (don't worry about the spelling.  Some of
these crazy medical words are impossible to spell! :-) is to either destroy
cancer cells or to keep them from growing.  Different drugs have different
effects on cancer cells, and therefore, it is not uncommon to use more than
one drug at a time.

Some chemotherapeutic drugs are effective anytime during the growth cycle
of a cell.  Others work only at specific times during the cell cycle.

The first phase of the cell cycle is G1; it is when the protein synthesis
and RNA systhesis occurs.  In the second phase, S, synthesis of DNA occurs.
The third phase is G2; The DNA splits and RNA and protein are synthesized 
aagain.  In the fourth phase, M (or Mitosis), the cell may divide.

There are drugs which are effective in each phase.  Some stop DNA synthesis.
Others stop the cell from dividing. Others wreck protein synthesis.
At any rate, the end result that is being sought is for the cancer cells
to stop growing.

If what you are seeking is "practical" advice, I apologize for rambling
on the techno stuff.  Some side effects are pretty common.  Chemo. drugs
are rather nasty.  It can cause a person to lose their appetite and to 
experience nausea and vomiting.  Things to help this include eating small
frequent meals.  It is also suggested that if nausea/vomiting (hereafter
known as n/v) occurs that the person notify the doctor; there are medicines
tthat help nausea.  Diarrhea can be an effect.  Antidiarrheal medications 
can be given, and good skincare and fluid intake are important.

Probably the one of biggest concsern is hair loss.  This does not always
happen.  It depends on what drugs are being given, and on the person 
themself.  Different people taking the same drug can and do have different
side effects.  I have seen some literature which states that wearing a snug
headband and/or wearing an ice cap can help reduce hair loss, presumably
by reducing blood flow to the scalp.  If anyone has seen research on this
too, I would love to see it, and possibly some bib data.

I highly recommend making contact with the American Cancer Society.
They have a vast selection of literature and information.  In addition,
if your friend has had a mastectomy, I highly recommend "Reach for Recovery".
It is a support group comprised entirely of women who have lost a breast 
because of cancer.  They can offer some excellent support and suggestions.

If you have further questions, please send me E-mail.  I hav some good
access to information, and I enjoy trying to help other people.

I wish the best to you and your friend.



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59445
From: isckbk@nuscc.nus.sg (Kiong Beng Kee)
Subject: Hives


My wife had hives during the first two months
of her pregnancy.  My son (3 months old), breast-fed,
now has the same symptoms.  She has been to a skin-specialist,
but he has merely prescribed various medicines (one
each visit as though by trial and error :-))

Anti-histamines worked on both of them, but looks like
becoming less effective.

Are there other solutions?  Thanks.
-- 
Kiong Beng Kee
Dept of Information Systems and Computer Science
National University of Singapore
Lower Kent Ridge Road, SINGAPORE 0511

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59446
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: Miscelaneous soon-to-have-baby questions

In article <C66919.Inz@world.std.com>, rmccown@world.std.com (Bob McCown) writes...
>We're about to have our first baby, and have a few questions that we
>dont seem to be able to get answered to our satisfaction. 
> 
>Reguarding having a baby boy circumsized, what are the medical pros
>and cons?  All we've heard is 'its up to the parents'.
> 
Unfortonately, that truly is about the best summation of the research
that there is.  Advantages stated of circumcison included probably
prevention of penile cancer, (which, interestingly, occurs mostly in men
whose personal hygiene is exceptionally poor), simplicity of personal
hygiene, prevention of urinary tract infections, and prevention of
a unretractible foreskin,  Disadvantages include infection from the 
procedure, pain, etc.  I apologize; I am trying to pull this off
the top of my head.  I will post what I discovered in research; I did
a paper on the topic in my research class in Nursing school.
It really is a decision that is up to the parents.  Some parents use
the reasoning that they will "look like Daddy" and like their friends
as justification.  There is nothing wrong with this; just be sure it is
what you want to do, since it is rather difficult to uncircumcise
a male, although a major surgical procedure exists.

>How about the pregnant woman sitting in a tub of water?  We've heard 
>stories of infection, etc.  How about after the water has broken?
> 
As long as your membranes have not broken and you have not had any
problems with your pregnancy, it should be OK to sit in a tub of water.
HOWEVER, I WOULD RECOMMEND USING YOUR OWN BATHTUB IN YOUR OWN HOME!
It is nearly impossible to guarantee the cleanliness and safety of "public"
hot tubs.  A nice warm bath can be very relaxing, especially if your back
is killing you!  And it would possibly be advisable to avoid bubble bath
soap , esp. if you are prone to yeast infection.

Hope these tips help you some.

Elisa
picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59447
From: ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth)
Subject: Kidney Stones

     banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu (Marty Banschbach) writes:
[...]
B >  Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There
B >  has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is
B >  kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been
B >  done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the
B >  intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones
B >  from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to
B >  breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of
B >  Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong,
B >  increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is
B >  restricting calcium intake.    
[...]
B >  Marty B.

 Marty, I personally wouldn't be so quick and take that NEJM article 
 on kidney stones as gospel. First of all, I would want to know who
 sponsored that study.
 I have seen too many "nutrition" bulletins over the years from
 local newspapers, magazines, to TV-guide, with disclaimers on the
 bottom informing us that this great health news was brought to us
 compliments of the Dairy Industries.
 There are of course numerous other interest groups now that thrive
 financially on the media hype created from the supposedly enormous 
 benefits of increasing one's calcium intake.

 Secondly, were ALL the kidney stones of the test subjects involved 
 in that project analysed for their chemical composition?  The study
 didn't say that, it only claimed that "most kidney stones are large-
 ly calcium."
 Perhaps it won't be long before another study comes up with the exact
 opposite findings. A curious phenomenon with researchers is that they
 are oftentimes just plain wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
 
 Sodium/magnesium/calcium/phosphorus ratios are, in my opinion, still 
 the most reliable indicators for the cause, treatment, and prevention 
 of kidney stones.
 I, for one, will continue to recommend the most logical changes in
 one's diet or through supplementation to counteract or prevent kidney
 stones of either type; and they definitely won't include an INCREASE
 in calcium if the stones have been identified as being of the calcium
 type and people's chemical analysis confirms that they would benefit
 from a PHOSPHORUS-raising approach instead!

     Ron Roth
 =====================================================================
 --  Internet: rn.3228@rose.com  -  Rosenet: ron roth@rosehamilton  --

 * A stone on the ground is better than a stone in the body.
---
   RoseReader 2.10  P003228 Entered at [ROSEHAMILTON]
   RoseMail 2.10 : Usenet: Rose Media - Hamilton (416) 575-5363

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59448
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Umbilical Hernia

In article <1993Apr27.060740.3068@shannon.ee.wits.ac.za> gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor) writes:
>Could anyone give me information on Umbilical hernias.
>The patient is over weight and has a protruding hernia.
>
>Surgery may be risky due to the obesity.
>What other remedies could I try?


Unless the patient has a very short life expectancy, the possible complications
from a hernia that hasn't been repaired far outweigh the risks of surgery.
The risks of surgery, anyway, are minimal. Unless they are exceedingly large,
hernias can be fixed under local anesthesia. 
Don't forget that hernias are one the leading causes of small bowel obstruction.
And the smaller the hernia is, the higher the chances that a loop of bowel will
become incarcerated or strangulated.


===============================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59449
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction
From: pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz (Pat Churchill)

I am currently in the throes of a hay fever attack.  SO who certainly
never reads Usenet, let alone Sci.med, said quite spontaneously "
There are a lot of mushrooms and toadstools out on the lawn at the
moment.  Sure that's not your problem?"

Well, who knows?  Or maybe it's the sourdough bread I bake?

After reading learned, semi-learned, possibly ignorant and downright
ludicrous stuff in this thread, I am about ready to believe anything :-)

If the hayfever gets any worse, maybe I will cook those toadstools...

-- 
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
            The floggings will continue until morale improves              
    pchurch@swell.actrix.gen.nz  Pat Churchill, Wellington New Zealand     
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59450
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr22.143929.26131@midway.uchicago.edu> jacquier@gsbux1.uchicago.edu (Eric Jacquier ) writes:
>
>I am interested in trying this "desensitization" (?) method
>against hay fever.
>What is the state of affairs about this. I went to a doctor and
>paid $85 for a 10 minute interview + 3 scratches, leading to the
>diagnostic that I am allergic to (June and Timothy) grass.
>I believe this. From now on it looks like 2 shots per week for
>6 months followed by 1 shot per month or so. Each shot costs
>$20. Talking about soaring costs and the Health care system, I would
>call that a racket. We are not talking about rare Amazonian grasses
>here, but the garbage which grows behind the doctor's office.
>Apart from this issue, I was somewhat disappointed to find out
>that you have to keep getting the shots forever. Is that right?
>Thanks for information.
>
>
Go to your public library and get the February, 1988 issue of Consumer
Reports.  An article on allergy shots begins on page 96.  This article
is MUST reading for anyone contemplating allergy shots.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59451
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

In article <badboyC64t0z.FGq@netcom.com> badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:
>
>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>really help them).
>
>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.
>
>
>
Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
of your feet and improve your sex life?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59452
From: rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube)
Subject: allergic reactions against laser printers??

Hello,

does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?

Thanks in advance!

Reinhard

email: rdd@ibma.ipp-garching.mpg.de

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59453
From: pkhalsa@wpi.WPI.EDU (Partap S Khalsa)
Subject: Re: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

In article <1993Apr28.173600.21703@organpipe.uug.arizona.edu> ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh) writes:
>Greeting
>
>I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
>bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
>using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
>to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
>seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
>background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
>ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.
>
>Thanks for oyur help in Advance.
>
>Terrance J Dishongh
>ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

Terrance,

  There is a good article entitled:  "A long-term in vivo bone strain
measurement device,"  Journal of Investigative Surgery 1989; 2(2): 195-206
by Szivek JA & Magee FP.
  I think you can find some others by searching MedLine.

Partap S. Khalsa, MS, DC, FACO
Post-Doc Research Fellow
U.Mass.Med. School


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59454
From: johnf@HQ.Ileaf.COM (John Finlayson)
Subject: Re: feverfew for migraines

In article <ltrdroINNltf@exodus.Eng.Sun.COM> brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM (Brenda Bowden) writes:
>
>Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?
>I'm skeptical, but open to trying it if I can find out more about this.
>What is feverfew, and how much would you take to prevent migraines (if 
>this is a good idea, that is)? Are there any known risks or side effects
>of feverfew? 
>
>Thanks in advance for any info!
>Brenda

I've tried it, and so has one friend of mine.  No known side effects or
risks.  It didn't seem to work for us, but several studies now have 
suggested it does work for many people, so I think it's worth a try.

You can find it in capsule form at health food stores.  Up to six capsules
a day was recommended, if I remember correctly.  It can also be prepared 
as a tea.

Good luck,

John

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59455
From: Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com
Subject: Urine analysis





 Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
If so where can these substances be found. 

            If you know this information, please Email me directly
             
                Thank You Kindly for your support,


                         Randy





















Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59456
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty 

In article kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf) writes:
>In article badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:

>>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>>really help them).
>>
>>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.

>Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
>of your feet and improve your sex life?

Actually, severe headaches due to stopped up sinuses (plugged ostia) are
possible, and sinus surgery which widens the ostia - from the normal 2
mm to about 10 mm - should relieve this.  There are non-surgical ways,
however, to keep the ostia open (however, in a few individuals, their
ostia are naturally very small), and Dr. Ivker's book talks about this.
The underlying cause of chronic sinusitis is NOT cured by this kind of
sinus surgery, though.

About asthma, that's a little more controversial.  Dr. Ivker, in his book,
"Sinus Survival", *speculates* (and says it's not proven), that many cases
of asthma are triggered by chronic sinusitis due to the excessive drainage
(postnasal drip) from the sinuses.  He's had many patients who've found
relief from asthma when the chronic sinusitis is reduced or eliminated -
not clinical proof, but compelling anecdotal information of this speculation.

Before doing any sinus surgery, first get THE BOOK - it discusses surgery,
as well as a good non-surgical treatment program for chronic sinusitis.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59457
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: What's the origin of "STAT?"

In article <1993Apr28.100131.157926@zeus.calpoly.edu> dfield@flute.calpoly.edu (InfoSpunj (Dan Field)) writes:
>The term "stat" is used not only in medicine, but is a commonly used
>indicator that something is urgent.  
>
>Does anyone know where it came from?  My dictionary was not helpful.
>
>-- 


From the word 'statim' (Latin, I think), meaning immediately.


=========================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59458
From: hartman@informix.com (Robert Hartman)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <1rjn0eINNnqn@MINERVA.CIS.YALE.EDU> wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel) writes:
>Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
>cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  

No doubt the sci.med* folks are getting out their flamethrowers.  I'm
rather certain that the information you got was not medical literature
in the accepted academic/scientific journals.  So, the righteous among
them will no doubt jump on that.

Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.

Then there'll be the ones who call your doctor a raving quack, even
though he, like Linus Pauling, is lucid and robust well into his
nineties--but nevermind about that.  He shouldn't charge for his
equipment and supplies, since they're no doubt not approved by the
FDA.  Of course, with FDA approval an MD or pharmaceutical company can
charge whatever they can get for such safe and effective treatments as
thalidomide.  But nevermind about that either.

Unfortunately, you dared to step into the sacred turf of Net.Medical.
Discussion without a credential and without understanding that the
righteous among them will make certain that you are suitably denounced
before dismissing you as a fool.

But maybe somebody without such a huge chip on their shoulder will
send you some reasonable responses by e-mail.

1/2 ;^)  

1/2 ;^(

Oh yes, I did have a point.  A few years ago an MD with a thriving
practice in a very wealthy part of Silicon Valley once recommended that
I take such treatments to clear up a skin condition.  (Not through his
office, I might add.)  Although I'm sure that's not conclusive, it was
sure an unusual prescription!

-r

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59459
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

In article <1993Apr29.003406.55029@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
> A student told me today that she has been diagnosed with kidney stones, a
> cyst on one kidney, and a kidney infection.  She was upset because her
> condition had been misdiagnosed since last fall, and she has been ill all
> this time.  During her most recent doctor's appointment at her parents'
> HMO clinic, she said that about FORTY! x-rays were made of her kidney.
> When she asked why so many x-rays were being made, she was told by a
> technician that they need to see the area from different views, but she
> says that about five x-rays were made from EACH angle.  She couldn't help
> feeling that something must be wrong with the procedure or something.  She
> is a pre-med student and feels she could have understood what was
> happening if someone would have explained.  When nobody would, she got
> worried.
> 	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
> and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
> She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
> classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
> call back her doctor's office / clinic and try to get answers to these
> questions.  But I told her I would also write in to sci.med and see what I
> could find out about why there were so many x-rays and whether it seems
> o.k. to wait in line 3 or more months for surgery for something like this
> or whether she should be looking elsewhere for her care.  She does plan to
> get a second opinion, too. 
> 
> 	I will pass info on to her.  It never hurts to get information
> from more than one source.  
> 
> You can e-mail me or post.
> 
> Thanks.
> 
> Alice

My opinion(for what it's worth) is that 40 x-rays is *way* too many.  
Guidleines have been set on the number of dental x-rays and chest x-rays 
that one should have over a given period of time because of all the 
environmental factors that can cause cancer in humans, ionizing radiation 
is one of the most potent(splits DNA and causes hydroxyl free radical 
formation in tissue cells).  Ultasound(like that used in seeing the fetus 
in the uterus) has been shown to be extremely good at picking up tumors 
in the prostate and gallstones in the gallbladder.  But kidney tissue may 
be too dense for ultrasound to work for kidney stones(any radiologists care 
to comment?).

Most stones will pass(but it's a very painful process).  Unlike gallstones, 
I don't think that there are many drugs that can help "dissolve" the 
kidney stone(which is probably calcium-oxalate).  Vitamin C and magnesium 
have worked in rabbits to remove calcium from calcified plaques in the 
aterial wall.  I have no idea if a diet change or supplementation could 
speed up the process of kidney stone passage(but I'm pretty confident that 
a diet change and/or supplementation can prevent a reoccurance).  If surgery 
is being contemplated, the stone must be in the kidney tubule.  A second 
opinion is a good idea because there are better(less damaging) ways to break 
up the stone if it's logged within the kidney(sonic blasts).  HMO's are 
notorious for conservative care and long waits for expensvie treatments.  
My condolences to your friend. 

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59460
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Earwax

What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?

Stephen

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59461
From: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
 enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
>hepatitis.

I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.

Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
is often fairly fuzzy as well.
-- 
David Rind
rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59462
From: kring@efes.physik.uni-kl.de (Thomas Kettenring)
Subject: Old Sermon (was: Krillean Photography)

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>FLAME ON
>
>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.
>
>FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)

We know that sermon.  It is posted roughly every month or so by different
persons, and that doesn't make it any better.

How did you get the idea that skeptics are closed-minded?  Why don't you
consider the possibility that they came to their conclusions by the
proper methods?  Besides, one can come to a conclusion without closing
one's mind to other possibilities.

I you don't agree with a person, please ask him why he thinks like that,
instead of insulting him.  Perhaps he's right.  Follow your own advice,
be open-minded.

If you don't post a bit of evidence for your claims, I'll complain that
it's always those "neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever" types who 
narrow-mindedly judge others without knowing their motives.

--
thomas kettenring, 3 dan, kaiserslautern, germany
The extraterrestrials don't even know this planet has native inhabitants.
Their government doesn't tell them.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59463
From: bpeters@oasys.dt.navy.mil (Brenda Peters)
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

In sci.med, rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube) writes:
>Hello,
>
>does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
>of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?
>
>Thanks in advance!
>
>Reinhard
>
>email: rdd@ibma.ipp-garching.mpg.de


Do I ever!!!!!!  After 2 years of having health problems that had been
cleared up w/allery shots, and not knowing why, I went and was re-tested.
I actually did better than when I had been tested 2 years ago....
Then putting 2 + 2 together, I realized that it all started back up
when the laser printer came into the office.  I kept track of the usage, and
on hi use days, I was worse.  I got better over the weekends....

The laser printer is gone, I'm 100% better!!!..... Whether it is the toner
dust or chemicals, I dont know (I am highly allergic to dust...), but
it definitely was the laser printer....



		     brenda peters
		     carderock div, nswc, david taylor model basin
		     bethesda, md  20084

		     e-mail :   cape@dtvms.dt.navy.mil
				 or

				 bpeters@oasys.dt.navy.mil

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59464
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Vitamin B6 doses

Forgive me, but just the other day I read on some newsgroup or other a
physician's posting about the theraputic uses of vitamin B6.  I can't
seem to locate the article, but I recall there was mention of some safe
limits.

I looked at a "Balanced 100" time release formulation from Walgreen's
and noted that the 100 mg of B6 was some thousands times the RDA.  Is
this safe?!?.

Also what was the condition that B6 was theraputic for?

Mail would be just fine if you don't want to clog the net.

Thanks,
Leon Traister (lmtra@uts.amdahl.com)


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59465
From: spl@pitstop.ucsd.edu (Steve Lamont)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C64FuM.5B8@news.claremont.edu> ebrandt@jarthur.claremont.edu (Eli Brandt) writes:
>In article <MMEYER.93Apr26102056@m2.dseg.ti.com> mmeyer@m2.dseg.ti.com (Mark Meyer) writes:
>>	Besides, Kirilian photography is actually photography of my
>>friend's two-year-old son Kiril.  Perhaps you meant "Kirlian"?
>
>I think it was a typo for "Karelian photography", which is the
>practice of taking pictures of either Finns or Russians, depending
>on whom one asks.

Think we can lose the sci.image.processing group from this thread,
folks?

Thanks bunches.

							spl
-- 
Steve Lamont, SciViGuy -- (619) 534-7968 -- spl@szechuan.ucsd.edu
San Diego Microscopy and Imaging Resource/UC San Diego/La Jolla, CA 92093-0608
"My other car is a car, too."
                 - Bumper strip seen on I-805

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59466
From: rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com (Henry Melton)
Subject: Chromium as dietary suppliment for weight loss


My wife has requested that I poll the Sages of Usenet to see what is
known about the use of chromium in weight-control diet suppliments.
She has seen multiple products advertising it and would like any kind
real information.

My first impulse was "Yuck! a metal!" but I have zero data on it.

What do you know?

-- 
Henry Melton rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59467
From: gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:

>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>be liable to happen to the person?

>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)

>Rebecca


	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
concerted assault by several million of them.

			G.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59468
From: ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography


In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com> alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
>  alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>
>>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>
>Oooooh.  Bad example.  I'm an atheist.
>
This is not flame, or abuse, nor do I want to start another thread (this
is, after all, supposed to be about IMAGE PROCESSING).

BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.
To be a politically-correct skeptic, better to go with agnostic, like me! :)
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=
*Dr. Thomas Trusk                    *                              *
*Dept. of Cellular Biology & Anatomy * Email to ttrusk@its.mcw.edu  *
*Medical College of Wisconsin        *                              *
*Milwaukee, WI  53226                *                              *
*(414) 257-8504                      *                              *
*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*==*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=*=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59469
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

In article <1993Apr27.180334@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov>,
ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov wrote:
> 
> [summarized]
A person with a Schatzki's ring (a membrane partially blocking the 
espphagus) has worsening dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) and the 
doctor proposes dilation by balloow or bougie (using an inflatable
balloon to rupture the ring or a rubber hose to push through it.  

Question: is balloon dilation safe, common, and indicated?  It sounds
pretty invasive.
> [end summary]

Yes, this is a common and safe procedure.  The majority of Schatzki's
rings described by x-ray, however, wnd up being due to inflammation
instead of the congenital Schatzki's ring.  Occassionally a cancer
masquerades as a ring.  You should have the endoscopy to see if it
is due to the heartburn, and if so, you will need treatment for the
heartburn ong term.  The balloon dilation is an alternative to cutting
open your chest and cutting out a section of the esophagus, so dilation
is not at all invasive, considering the alternative.  


> The second issue: [summarized]  He has had extra heartbeats for the past
3 to 4 years, and once was symptomatic from them, with some
lightheadedness.
He is young, (30-ish), thin and in good
> health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
> caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
> want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
> of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
> as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
> down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
> be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
> same time.

I' not an expert on heart problems, but PVC's are common and have been
overtreated in the past.  My personal experience, and I have the same 
history an build you do (related to the heart, that is), is that my PVC's
come and go, with some months causing anxiety.  Taking on more fluids
seems to help, and they seem worse in the summer.  Remember that a slow 
heart rate will allow more PVC's to be apparent, so perhaps it is an 
indication of a healthy cardiac system (but ask an expert about that
last point, especially)

Good luck, hope we don't die of arrhythmias.  (God, what a happy thought)

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59470
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <1993Apr28.023749.9259@informix.com>, hartman@informix.com (Robert Hartman) writes:
> In article <1rjn0eINNnqn@MINERVA.CIS.YALE.EDU> wiesel-elisha@yale.edu (Elisha Wiesel) writes:
>>Recently I've come upon a body of literature which promotes colon
>>cleansing as a vital aid to preventive medicine through nutrition.  
> 
> No doubt the sci.med* folks are getting out their flamethrowers.  I'm
> rather certain that the information you got was not medical literature
> in the accepted academic/scientific journals.  So, the righteous among
> them will no doubt jump on that.
> 
> Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
> that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
> GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
> maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.
> 
> Then there'll be the ones who call your doctor a raving quack, even
> though he, like Linus Pauling, is lucid and robust well into his
> nineties--but nevermind about that.  He shouldn't charge for his
> equipment and supplies, since they're no doubt not approved by the
> FDA.  Of course, with FDA approval an MD or pharmaceutical company can
> charge whatever they can get for such safe and effective treatments as
> thalidomide.  But nevermind about that either.
> 
> Unfortunately, you dared to step into the sacred turf of Net.Medical.
> Discussion without a credential and without understanding that the
> righteous among them will make certain that you are suitably denounced
> before dismissing you as a fool.
> 
> But maybe somebody without such a huge chip on their shoulder will
> send you some reasonable responses by e-mail.
> 
> 1/2 ;^)  
> 
> 1/2 ;^(
> 
> Oh yes, I did have a point.  A few years ago an MD with a thriving
> practice in a very wealthy part of Silicon Valley once recommended that
> I take such treatments to clear up a skin condition.  (Not through his
> office, I might add.)  Although I'm sure that's not conclusive, it was
> sure an unusual prescription!
> 

The bacteria in your gut are important.  But colonic flushes are not the 
way to improve gut function.  Each person has almost a unique mix of 
bacteria in his/her gut.  Diet affects this mix as does the use of 
antibiotics.  A diet change is a much better way to alter the players in 
your gut than is colonic flushes.  Cross contamination has been a real 
problem in some of the outfits that do this "treatment" since the equipment 
is not always cleaned as well as it should be between patient "treatments".
Dental drills have me a little concerned about HIV infection and I've 
picked a dentist that uses both chemical and autoclave sterilization of his 
instruments(more clostly but much safer).  Full sterile technique is 
also used just like that practiced in an OR(mask, gloves and gowns worn and 
disposed of between patients).  Each visit costs me 15 dollars more than 
the standard and customary fee so I have to pay it out of pocket.  His much 
higher fees do not drive away patients.

I can not think of any good reason why someone should subject themselves to 
this colonic flush procedure.  For very little, if any benefit, you 
subject yourself to hepatitis, cholera, parasitic disease and even HIV.
Just ask yourself why someone might resort to this kind of treatment?
Could they be having GI distress?  Could this distress be due to a 
pathogenic organism?  Could I get this organism if the equipment is not 
cleaned properly between patients?  Do I really want to take this risk?
Food for thought.

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59471
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Hives

In article <1993Apr28.064144.24115@nuscc.nus.sg>, isckbk@nuscc.nus.sg
(Kiong Beng Kee) wrote:
> 
> 
> My wife had hives during the first two months
> of her pregnancy.  My son (3 months old), breast-fed,
> now has the same symptoms.  She has been to a skin-specialist,
> but he has merely prescribed various medicines (one
> each visit as though by trial and error :-))
> 
> Anti-histamines worked on both of them, but looks like
> becoming less effective.
> 
> Are there other solutions?  Thanks.
> -- 
> Kiong Beng Kee
> Dept of Information Systems and Computer Science
> National University of Singapore
> Lower Kent Ridge Road, SINGAPORE 0511

Food products can get through breast milk and cause allergies in the
young.  Since the son is allergic it would be best not to go to
bottle feedings, but rather eliminate foods from mother's diet.  Your
pediatrician should be able to give you a list of foods to avoid.

Good luck, Steve

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59472
From: chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

In article <35004@castle.ed.ac.uk>, gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark) writes:
> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
> 
>>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>>be liable to happen to the person?
> 
>>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)
> 
>>Rebecca
> 
> 
> 	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
> certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
> carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
> would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
> concerted assault by several million of them.
> 
> 			G.
Not sure of this but I think some millipedes cause a toxic reaction (sting?
So I would not assume that they are not dangerous merely on the basis of 
vegetarianism, after all wasps are vegetarian too.
dnc.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59473
From: mikeq@freddy.CNA.TEK.COM (Mike Quigley)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

How about going to a doctor to get some minor surgery done. Doctor
refuses to do it because it's ``to risky'' (still charges me $50!).
I go home and do it myself. No problem.

The ``surgery'' involved digging out a pine needle that had buried
itself under my tongue.

Mike

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59474
From: jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
: My girlfriend is in pain from kidney stones. She says that because she has no
: medical insurance, she cannot get them removed.
: 
: My question: Is there any way she can treat them herself, or at least mitigate
: their effects? Any help is deeply appreciated. (Advice, referral to literature,
: etc...)
: 
: Thank you,
: 
: Dave Carvell
: pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu

First off, I would consider the severity of the pain. I had stones
several years ago, and there's now way I could have made it without
heavy duty doses of morphine and demerol and a two week stay in the
hospital. I was told that there was nothing that I could take that would
dissolve them. If the stones are passible, the best thing she could do
is drink LOTS of water, and hope that they pass, but every time they
move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 
--

Jeff Silva
(707) 577-2681
jeffs@sr.hp.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59475
From: backon@vms.huji.ac.il
Subject: Re: Sinus Surgery / Septoplasty

In article <C670zy.DA@utdallas.edu>, kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf) writes:
> In article <badboyC64t0z.FGq@netcom.com> badboy@netcom.com (Jay Keller) writes:
>>
>>(I've already heard from a couple who said they had it and it didn't
>>really help them).
>>
>>I am a moderately severe asthmatic.  ENT doc says large percentage see some
>>relief of their asthma after sinus surgery.  Also he said it is not unheard of
>>that migraines go away after chronis sinusitis is relieved.
>>
>>
>>
> Did your ENT also tell you that this procedure may remove warts from the soles
> of your feet and improve your sex life?
>


You probably were trying to be facetious but just for the record partial nasal
obstruction is correlated with a number of chronic disorders such as migraine,
hyperthyroidism, asthma, peptic ulcer, dysmenorrhea, and lack of libido (:-) )
[Riga IN. Rev d'Oto-Neuro-Ophthalmol 1957;24:325-335], cardiac symptoms
[Jackson RT. Annals of Otology 1976;85:65-70  Cvetnic MH, Cvetnic V. Rhinology
1980;18:47-50     Cottle MH. Rhinology 1980;18:67-81], and fever, inadequate
oral intake and electrolyte imbalance [Fairbanks DNF. Otorhinolaryngology Head
and Neck Surgery 1986;94:412-415).

So before you post your inane comments it would be nice if you'd run a MEDLINE
search on the topic say back to 1966. There's been extensive literature on this
for over a 100 years.

I may be in cardiology but I've had a very good working relationship with
my colleagues from ENT.

Josh
backon@VMS.HUJI.AC.IL






Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59476
From: lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister)
Subject: Re: Earwax

stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:

>What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
>it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
>every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
>Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?

Assuming that the wax is causing hearing loss, congestion or popping
in the ears, you can try some cautious tepid water irrigation with a
bulb syringe, but it is awkward to do for oneself and may not work or
may even make things worse.  (My wife would disagree, she does it
successfully every six months or so.)  In any case DO NOT ATTEMPT
ANYTHING WITH Q-TIPS!!!

My experience has been that this is initially best handled by a
Ear/Nose/Throat person.  I say initially, because an ENT can evaluate
whether or not you might have success on your own with a little
instruction.

I am not a physician (obviously, because I eschew the term
otolaryngologist); this posting is based only on personal experience.

========================================================================

<Usual Disclaimer>        "The best is the enemy of the good" - Voltaire

Leon Traister (lmtra@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com)

c/o Amdahl Corporation            (408)737-5449
1250 E. Arques Ave.  M/S 338
P.O. Box 3470
Sunnyvale, CA  94088-3470

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59477
From: ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu (Terrance J. Dishongh)
Subject: Strain Gage Applications in vivo

Greeting

I am starting work on a project where I am trying to make strain gages
bond to bone in vivo or a period of several months.  I am currently
using hydroxyapaptite back gages, and I have tried M-bonding the gages
to the bone.  Apart from those two application methods there doesn't
seem to be much else in the literature.  I have only an engineering 
background not medical or biological.  I would be interest in any
ideas about how to stimulte bone growth on the surface of cortical bone.

Thanks for oyur help in Advance.

Terrance J Dishongh
ame_0123@bigdog.engr.arizona.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59478
From: shell@cs.sfu.ca (Barry Shell)
Subject: Great Canadian Scientists

About two years ago I posted the following:
 
I am planning to write a new book called "Great Canadian Scientists."
Please forward your nominations to me: shell@cs.sfu.ca
 
The rules are that the person must be a Canadian citizen. They don't have
to be born in Canada or even live in Canada, but they must have (or have
had, if they are dead) Canadian citizenship while they are/were great
Canadian scientists.
 
About 70 people have been nominated already and they are listed at the
end of this posting.
 
I'm not quite sure what should constitute greatness, and there may be a
gray area here. If you have any ideas on criteria for greatness, I would be
pleased to hear them. In any event, please nominate people even if you are
not sure they are great. I would like as big a list as possible.
 
Please give me a name and email address, phone number or mail address, so
that I can contact the person. If you don't know any of the above, then
give me their last known whereabouts. Also please give your reason for why
you think the person should be considered a great Canadian scientist.
 
After I have the list, I will choose about six of the most interesting ones
and do in-depth biographies of those individuals in the style of Tracy
Kidder's "Soul of a New Machine" or some other dramatic technique.
The rest of the great Canadian scientists will appear in an appedix with 
one paragraph biographies.
 
If you have any other ideas about this project, I am interested to hear
them.
 
So far, I have received 68 nominations as follows:
 
 
First Name     Last Name      Nominator            Famous For
----------     ---------      ---------            ----------
Sid            Altman         Kuszewski, John      Catalytic RNA(Nobel Chem 89)
Frederick      Banting        me                   Insulin (Nobel U23 medicine)
Davidson       Black          Stanley, Robert      Discovered Peking Man
James R.       Bolton         Warden, Joseph       chemistry?
Raoul          Bott           Smith, Steven        Math: algebraic topology.
Willard        Boyle          Chamm, Craig         Co inventor of CCD
Gerard         Bull           Stanley, Robert      Ballistics and gunnery
Dennis         Chitty         Galindo-Leal, Carlos First animal ecologist
Brian C.       Conway         Tellefsen, Karen     Electrochemistry
Stephen        Cook           Mendelzon, Alberto   NP-completeness, complexity
?              Copp           Kuch, Gerald         biochem aspects of physiol
H.S.M.         Coxeter        Calkin, Neil J.      Regular polytopes (math)
P. N.          Daykin         Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
H. E.          Duckworth      anonymous            Mass Spectroscopy,  admin
Jack           Edmonds        Snoeyink, Jack       Math, Operations research
Reginald       Fessenden      Johnsen, Hans        Wire insulation, light bulb
Ursula         Franklin       McKellin, William    Physics archeol. materials
J. A.          Gray           Gray, Tom            Nuclear physics, The Gray
E. W.          Guptill        Chamm, Craig         Slotted array radar
Donald         Hebb           Lyons, Michael       Learning (Hebbian synapses)
Gerhard        Herzberg       me                   Optical spectr Nobel 71
James          Hillier        me                   Electron Microscope (Can/Am)
Crawford S.    Holling        Galindo-Leal, Carlos Ecology, predators and prey
David          Hubel          Lyons, Michael       Visual cortex (Nobel med ?)
Kenneth        Iverson        Dare, Gary           Invented APL
J. D.          Jackson        Austern, Matt        Elementary Particle Theory
Andre          Joyal          Pananagden, Prakash  Category theory, categ Logic
Martin         Kamen          me                   Carbon-14 (Canadian/Amer.)
Irving         Kaplansky      Knighten, Bob        Algebra, functional analysis
George S.      Kell           Kell, Dave           Hot water freezing
T. E.          Kellogg        Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
Geraldine      Kenney-Wallace Siegman, Anthony     Chemistry ? Administration
Brian          Kernaghan      Brader, Mark         C programming language
Michael L.     Klein          Marchi, Massimo      Theoretical Chemistry
Charles J.     Krebs          Galindo-Leal, Carlos Ecology, Krebs effect
K. J.          Laidler        Tellefsen, Karen     Chemical Kinetics
G. C.          Laurence       Palmer, Bill         Physics ????
Raymond        Lemieux        Smith, Earl          First synthesized glucose
Martin         Levine         Meunier, Robert      Computer vision
Edward S.      Lowry          himself              Computer programming
Pere           Marie-Victorin Meunier, Robert      Jardin Botanique de Montreal
Colin          MacLeod        Turner, Steven       Nobel (?) DNA discovery?
Marshall       McLuhan        Clamen, Stewart      Social sci, communications
Ben            Morrison       Willson, David       Aurora Borealis
Lawrence       Morley         Strome, Murray       Plate Tektonics/Remote sense
Farley         Mowat          Abbott, John         Northern Animal rights?
Kevin          Ogilvie        Kendrick, Kelly      Genetics, cure for herpes?
Sir William    Osler          Lyons, Michael       Medicine
P.J.E.         Peebles        Vishniac, Ethan      Most important cosmologist
Wilder         Penfield       Perri, Marie         Anatomical basis for memory
John           Polanyi        me                   chemiluminescensce Nobel86
Denis          Poussart       Meunier, Robert      Computer Vision
Anatol         Rapoport       Lloyd-Jones, David   conflict theory, game theory
Howard         Rapson         Sutherland, Russell  Pulp chemistry
Hans           Selye          Goel, Anil K.        Psychology of stress.
William        Stephenson     Wilkins, Darin       WW2 Enigma code, Wire photo
Boris          Stoicheff      Siegman, Anthony     Raman Spectroscopy
David          Suzuki         Meister, Darren      Science communication
Henry          Taube          Parker, Wiley        Physical Chemistry Nobel83
Richard        Taylor         Manuel, John         Verified Quark model Nobel90
David          Thompson       Eisler, Michael      Mapped western Canada
Endel          Tulving        Green, Christopher   Psychology of memory
Bill           Tutte          Royle, Gordon        matroid theory (math)
I              Uchida         Palmer, Bill         Down's syndrome
J. Tuzo        Wilson         Collier, John        Continental Drift theory
R. H.          Wright         Palmer, Bill         Chem, mosquito repellant
J.L.(Allen)    Yen            Leone, Pasquale      VL baseline interferometry
Walter         Zinn           me                   Breader Reactor (Can/Amer.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
The list is growing nicely. It's amazing to see just how much was discovered
by Canadians. Actually there are many more who were born in Canada, but
became Americans after graduate school.
 
Please note: a lot of people have nominated Alexander Graham Bell but I
feel he was really a Scottish/American with a summer home in Canada. Now
I know this is debatable, but please don't nominate him again.
 
If anyone can fill in some of the question marks on the list, please drop
me a line.
==================================================
 
That was two years ago. Since then, I have received a grant from Science
Culture Canada, a division of Supply and Services Canada to research the
book. Since my old posting the book has evolved into an educational book
for kids aged 9 - 14 (though this may change again) It will have about
40 two-page spreads with a large graphic in the middle and text/graphic
boxes all around on the following subjects: Vital statistics and photo of
the scientist, Personal statement from the scientist, Narrative of a few
moments in the life of the scientist, "What I was doing when I was 12",
So you want to be a <insert kind of scientist>, Experiment you can do. There 
will be an appendix with 100 - 200 more scientists with one paragraph
biographies who didn't quite make it to the double spreads. The whole thing
will then be published on CD-ROM with video and sound clips for added
richness. I am looking for a CD-ROM publisher as well. The text part may
also be available on the CANARIE electronic highway being developed in
Canada as well.
 
I am still looking for a publisher though Penguin Canada came close 
to being it. Hope to find one soon. 
 
I would like to again ask for more nominations, especially in the
pure sciences of Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Also criticisms of 
the list are welcomed. Also women and French-Canadian scientists are needed.
 
I hope this posting will get others to nominate more Great Canadian
Scientists, and to discuss what is "great" what is "Canadian" and what is
"scientist".
 
Please respond to:
shell@sfu.ca
 
or
Barry Shell   604-876-5790
 
4692 Quebec St. Vancouver, B.C.  V5V 3M1 Canada
 
Thanks to all who responded already.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59479
From: king@reasoning.com (Dick King)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>FLAME ON
>
>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>drop off the edge of the earth.

(WITH-COUNTERFLAME-ENABLED

 Columbus was indeed a crank, but not in the manner you think.

 The fact that the world was round was well known when he set sail.  It was
 also well known that the circumference was about 25K miles, and that you could
 not reach Asia bo going west with current technology -- you would neither be
 able to carry enough supplies, nor get a long enough stretch of good sailing
 weather.  Nobody thought he would fall off the edge of the world.  Instead,
 they expected him to die at sea.

 Columbus thought for no good reason that the circumference was only 16K miles,
 making the trip practical.

 Unfortunately for Columbus and his shipmates, the Earth's circumference is
 indeed 25K miles.

 Fortunately for Columbus and his shipmates, there was a stopping place right
 about where Asia would have been had the circumference been 16K miles.


 My source is the recent PBS series on Columbus.

)

>
>FLAME OFF, or end sermon :-)
>
>-- Alex



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59480
From: jcarey@news.weeg.uiowa.edu (John Carey)
Subject: med school

Actually I am entering vet school next year, but the question is 
relevant for med students too.

Memorizing large amounts has never been my strong point academically.
Since this is a major portion of medical education -- anatomy, 
histology, pathology, pharmacology, are for the most part mass 
memorization -- I am a little concerned.  As I am sure most 
med students are.

Can anyone suggest techniques for this type of memorization?  I 
have had reasonable success with nemonics and memory tricks like
thinking up little stories to associate unrelated things.  But I have
never applied them to large amounts of "data".

Has anyone had luck with any particular books, memory systems, or
cheap software?   

Can you suggest any helpful organizational techniques?  Being an
older student who returned to school this year, organization (another
one of my weak points) has been a major help to my success.

Please no griping about how all you have to do is "learn" the material
conceptually.  I have no problem with that, it is one of my strong 
points.  But you can't get around the fact that much of medicine is
rote memorization.  

Thanks for your help.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59481
From: daless@di.unipi.it (Antonella Dalessandro)
Subject: Epilepsy and video games

There have been a few postings in the past on alleged pathological 
(esp. neurological) conditions induced by playing video games
(e.g. Nintendo). Apparently, there have been reported several cases of
"photosensitive epilepsy", due to the flashing of some
patterns and the strong attention of the (young) players.
One poster to comp.risks reported some action from
the British Government.

A quick search in a database reported the following two published
references:

1. E.J. Hart, Nintendo epilepsy, in New England J. of Med., 322(20), 1473
2. TK Daneshmend et al., Dark Warrior epilepsy, BMJ 1982; 284:1751-2.

I would appreciate if someone could post (or e-mail) 
any reference to (preferably published) further work on the subject.
Any pointer to other information and/or to possible technical tools 
(if any) for reducing the risks are appreciated.

Many thanks,

Antonella D'Alessandro,
Pisa -- Italy.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59482
From: adwright@iastate.edu ()
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

In <1993Apr29.112642.1@vms.ocom.okstate.edu> chorley@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>In article <35004@castle.ed.ac.uk>, gtclark@festival.ed.ac.uk (G T Clark) writes:
>> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
>> 
>>>Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? If someone
>>>was bitten, how soon would medical treatment be needed, and what would
>>>be liable to happen to the person?
>> 
>>>(Just for clarification - I have NOT been bitten by one of these,  but my
>>>house seems to be infested, and I want to know 'just in case'.)
>> 
>>>Rebecca
>> 
>> 
>> 	Millipedes, I understand, are vegetarian, and therefore almost
>> certainly will not bite and are not poisonous. Centipedes are
>> carnivorous, and although I don't have any absolute knowledge on this, I
>> would tend to think that you're in no danger from anything but a
>> concerted assault by several million of them.
>> 
>> 			G.
>Not sure of this but I think some millipedes cause a toxic reaction (sting?
>So I would not assume that they are not dangerous merely on the basis of 
>vegetarianism, after all wasps are vegetarian too.
>dnc.

As a child i can remember picking up a centipede and getting a rather painful 
sting, but it quickly subsided. Much less painful compared to a bee sting. 
Centipedes have a poison claw (one of the front feet) to stun their prey, but
in my single experience it did not have a lot of "bite" to it.

A.





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59483
From: wdh@faron.mitre.org (Dale Hall)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <8frk1ym00Vp5Apxl1q@andrew.cmu.edu> "Gabriel D. Underwood" <gabe+@CMU.EDU> writes:
>I heard a great Civil War story...      A guy on the battlfield is shot
>in the groin,   the bullet continues on it's path, and lodges in the
>abdomen of a female spectator.    Lo and behold....
>
>As the legend goes,   both parents survived,  married,  and raised the child.
>

	....who turned out to be a real son-of-a-gun.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59484
From: <ICBAL@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Depression

>I do believe that depression can have a dietary component.

Depression can also have various chemical (environmental) components.
I noticed that I became depressed in various buildings, and at home
when the air conditioning was on. Subsequent testing revealed that
I was allergic to stemphyllium, a mold commonly found in air conditioners.
After I began taking antigens, that problem disappeared.

Bruce L.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59485
From: mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

Laser printers often emit ozone (which smells sort of like Clorox).
Adequate ventilation is recommended.

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59486
From: mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
>pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:

>move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 

One more reason for men to learn the Lamaze breathing techniques, in order
to be able to get some pain reduction instantly, wherever you are.
-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59487
From: brian@ucsd.edu (Brian Kantor)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

As I recall from my bout with kidney stones, there isn't any
medication that can do anything about them except relieve the pain.

Either they pass, or they have to be broken up with sound, or they have
to be extracted surgically.

When I was in, the X-ray tech happened to mention that she'd had kidney
stones and children, and the childbirth hurt less.

Demerol worked, although I nearly got arrested on my way home when I barfed
all over the police car parked just outside the ER.
	- Brian

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59488
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Depression

Some of the MD's in this newsgroup have been riding my butt pretty good
(maybe in some cases with good reason).  In this post on depression, I'm 
laying it all out.  I'll continue to post here because I think that I have 
some knowledge that could be useful.  Once you have read this post, you 
should know where I'm coming from when I post again in the future.

In article <123552@netnews.upenn.edu>, lchaplyn@mail.sas.upenn.edu (Lida Chaplynsky) writes:
> 
> A family member of mine is suffering from a severe depression brought on
> by menopause as well as a mental break down.  She is being treated with
> Halydol with some success but the treatments being provided through her
> psychiatrist are not satisfactory.  Someone suggested contacting a
> nutritionist to
> discuss alternative treatment.  Since she is sensitive to medication, I
> think this is a good suggestion but don't know where to begin.  If anyone
> can suggest a Philly area nutritionist, or else some literature to read,
> I'd appreciate it.
 
Lida,
I can emphasize with your situation.  Both my wife and I suffered from 
bouts of depression.  Her's was brought on by breast cancer and mine was a 
rebound stress reaction to her modified radical mastectomy and 
chemotherapy.  Lida, I used my knowledge of nutrition to get her through 
her six months of chemotherapy(with the approval of her oncologist).  When 
severe depression set in a few months after the chemo stopped, I tried to 
use supplements to bring her out of it.  I had "cured" her PMS using 
supplements and I really thought that I knew enough about the role of diet 
in depression to take care of her depression as well.  It didn't work and 
she was put on Prozac by her oncologist.  Two Winters ago(three years after 
by wife's breast cancer) I got hit with severe depression(pretty typical and 
one reason why many marriages break up after breast cancer or another 
stressor).  I tried to take care of it for several months with 
supplementation.  Didn't work.  My internist ended up putting me on Prozac. 
I was going to give you a list of several studies that have been done using 
B6, niacin, folate and B12 to "cure" depression.  I'm not going to do that 
because all you would be doing is flying blind like I was.

Lida, I do believe that depression can have a dietary component.  But the 
problem is that you need to know exactly what the problem is and then use 
an approach which will "fix" the problem.  For chemotherapy, I knew exactly 
what drugs were going to be used and exactly what nutrients would be 
affected.  Same thing for PMS.  I was flying blind for both of these 
stressors but the literature that I used to devise a treatment program was 
pretty good.  Depression is just too complicated.  What you really need is 
a nutritional scan.  This is not a diet analysis but an analysis of your 
bodies nutrient reserves.  For every vitamin and mineral(except vitamin C), 
you have a reserve.  The RDA is not designed to give you enough of any 
nutrient to keep these reserves full, it is only designed to keep them from 
being emptied which would cause clinical pathology.  Stress will increase 
your need for many vitamins and minerals.  This is when your reserves become 
very important.

Lida, without your permission, I'm going to use your post as a conduit to 
try to explain to the readers in this group and Sci. Med. where I'm coming 
from.  I have taught a course on human nutrition in one of the Osteopathic 
Medical schools for ten years now.  I've written my own textbook because 
none was available.  What I teach is not a rehash of biochemistry.  I 
preach nutrient reserves(yes my lectures in this course are referred to by 
my students as sermons).  Here is what I cover:

Indroduction and Carbohydrates 			Lipids

Proteins I					Proteins II

Energy Balance					Evaluation of Nutritional
						Status I, A Clinical 
						Perspective

Evaluation of Nutritional Status II,            Evaluation of Nutritional		
A Biochemical Perspective			Status III, Homework 
						Assignment Using the 
						Nutritionist IV Diet and 
						Fitness Analysis Software 
						program

Weight Control					Food Fads and Facts

Age-Related Change in Nutrient Requirements	Food Additives, 
						Contaminants and Cancer

Drug-Nutrient Interactions			Mineral and Water Balance

Sodium, Potassium and Chloride			Calcium, Magnesium and 
						Phosphorus

Iron						Zinc and Copper

Iodine and Fluoride				Other Trace Minerals

Vitamin A					Vitamin E

Vitamins D and K				Vitamin C

Thiamin and Niacin				Riboflavin and Pyridoxine

Pantothenic and Folic acids			Biotin and B12

Other Nutrient Factors				Enteral Nutrition

Parenteral Nutrition

Every three years I spend my entire Summer reviewing the Medical literature 
to find material that I can use in my nutrition textbook.  I last did this 
in the Summer of 1991.  I read everything that I can find and then sit down 
and rewrite my lecture handouts which are bound in three separate books 
that have 217, 237 and 122 pages.  Opposite each page of written text(which 
I write myself) I've pulled figures, tables and graphs from various 
copyrighted sources.  Since this material is only being used for 
educational purposes, I can get around the copyright laws (so far).  I can not 
send this material out to newsgroup readers(as I've been asked to do).

I am now in the process of trying to get a grant to setup a nutrition 
assessment lab.  This is the last peice of the nutrition puzzle that I need 
to make my education program complete.  This lab will let me measure the 
nutrient reserve for almost all the vitamins and minerals that are known to 
be required in humans.  The Mayo clinic already uses a similiar lab to 
design supplement programs for their cancer patients.  Cancer Treatment 
Centers of America, which is a private for-profit organization with 
hospitals in Illinois and Oklahoma(Tulsa) also operates a 
nutritional assessment clinical lab.  I also believe that the Pritikin 
Clinic in California has a similiar lab setup.

For physicians reading this post, I would suggest that you get the new 
Clinical Nutrition Textbook that has just been published(Feb) by Mosby.  I 
have been using Alpers Manual of Nutritional Therapeutics(a Little Brown 
series book) as a supplemental text for my course but Alpers is geared more 
to residency training.  Two M.D's have written this new Clinical Nutrition
textbook and it is geared more towards medical student education and it 
does a good job of covering the lab tests that can be run to assess a 
patient's nutritional status.  Let me quote a few sentences from the 
Preface of this new text:

"So-called nutrition specialists were in reality gastroenterologists, 
hematologists, or pediatricians who just happened to profess some knowledge 
of nutrition as it related to their field of practice."  

"Unfortunately, about two thirds of the medical schools in the United 
States require no formal instruction in nutrition."

"But times and medical practice have changed.  More than half of the 
leading causes of death in this country are nutrition related."

"... this monograph should accomplish the following two objectives: (1) it 
should complement your medical training by emphasizing the relevance of 
nutrition to your medical practice; and (2) it should heighten your 
awareness of nutrition as a medical speciality that is vitally important 
for both disease prevention and the treatment of diseases of essentially 
every organ system."

Roland L. Weinsier, MD, DrPH 

Lida, my advise to you is that you tell your family members to try to find 
a physician who has an understanding of the role that vitamins and minerals
(yes even magnesium may play a role in depression) play in depression and 
who could get a nutritional profile run.  Menopause is often a time when 
women suffer depression.  There are a lot of hormonal changes that are 
occuring but they are not the same ones that occur during PMS.  A 
nutritionist may also be able to help.  Not too long ago a poster mentioned 
that his nutritionist had diagnosed a selenium deficiency based on a red 
cell glutathionine peroxidase test(the specific test for the selenium 
reserve).  Most clinical labs will not run this test and I advised him to 
try to make sure that the lab that did the test was certified.  There are 
also a lot of hair and nail analysis labs setup to do trace mineral 
analysis but these labs are not regulated.  Checks of these labs using 
certified standards, and also those doing water lead analysis, showed some 
pretty shoddy testing was going on.  If you or anyone else finds someone 
who will run these speciality nutrition tests, make sure that they are 
using a lab that has been certified under CLIA(the Clinical Laboratory 
Improvement Act).  

A diet analysis may be helpful since many nutrient reserves have been shown 
to correlate fairly well with the dietary intake as monitored by food logging 
and software analysis(Nutritionist IV and other software programs).  But 
there are still about half of the nutrients required by humans that do not 
show a very good correlation between apparent dietary intake and reserve status.
Until we have more nutritional assessment clinical labs in operation in the 
U.S. and physicians who have been trained how to use the nutritional 
profile that these labs provide to devise a treatment approach that uses 
diet changes and supplementation, anti-depressants will probably continue 
to be the best approach to depression.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine

"Without discourse, there is no remembering, without remembering, there is 
no learning, without learning, there is only ignorance."

































Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59489
From: hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*)
Subject: re: earwax

Hi Stephen
Ear wax is a healthy way to help prevent ear infections, both by preventing
a barrier and also with some antibiotic properties.  Too much can block the
external auditory canal (the hole in the outside of the ear) and cause some 
hearing problems.  It is very simple, and safe, to remove excess wax on your
own, or at your physician's office.  You can take a syringe (no needles!) and
fill it with 50% warm water (cold can cause fainting) and 50% OTC hydrogen
peroxide.  Then point the ear towards the ceiling ( about 45 degrees up)
and insert the tip of the syringe (helps to have someone else do this!) and  
firmly expell the solution.  Depending on the size of the syringe and the
tenacity of the wax, this could take several rinses.  If you place a bowl 
under the ear to catch the water, it will be much drier :-).  You can buy
a syringe with a special tip at your local pharmacy, or just use whatever
you may have.  If wax is old, it will be harder, and darker.  You can try
adding a few drops of olive oil into the ear during a shower to soften up
the wax.  Do this for a couple days, then try syringing again.  It is also
safe to point your ear up at the shower head, and allow the water to rinse
it out.
Good Luck
-heather

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59490
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

In article <1993Apr28.095305.3587@rose.com>, ron.roth@rose.com (ron roth) writes:
>      banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu (Marty Banschbach) writes:
> [...]
> B >  Medicine has not, and probalby never will be, practiced this way.  There
> B >  has always been the use of conventional wisdom.  A very good example is
> B >  kidney stones.  Conventional wisdom(because clinical trails have not been
> B >  done to come up with an effective prevention), was that restricitng the
> B >  intake of calcium and oxalates was the best way to prevent kidney stones
> B >  from forming.  Clinical trials focused on drugs or ultrasonic blasts to
> B >  breakdown the stone once it formed.  Through the recent New England J of
> B >  Medicine article, we now know that conventional wisdom was wrong,
> B >  increasing calcium intake is better at preventing stone formation than is
> B >  restricting calcium intake.    
> [...]
> B >  Marty B.
> 
>  Marty, I personally wouldn't be so quick and take that NEJM article 
>  on kidney stones as gospel. First of all, I would want to know who
>  sponsored that study.
>  I have seen too many "nutrition" bulletins over the years from
>  local newspapers, magazines, to TV-guide, with disclaimers on the
>  bottom informing us that this great health news was brought to us
>  compliments of the Dairy Industries.
>  There are of course numerous other interest groups now that thrive
>  financially on the media hype created from the supposedly enormous 
>  benefits of increasing one's calcium intake.
> 
>  Secondly, were ALL the kidney stones of the test subjects involved 
>  in that project analysed for their chemical composition?  The study
>  didn't say that, it only claimed that "most kidney stones are large-
>  ly calcium."
>  Perhaps it won't be long before another study comes up with the exact
>  opposite findings. A curious phenomenon with researchers is that they
>  are oftentimes just plain wrong. It wouldn't be the first time.
>  
>  Sodium/magnesium/calcium/phosphorus ratios are, in my opinion, still 
>  the most reliable indicators for the cause, treatment, and prevention 
>  of kidney stones.
>  I, for one, will continue to recommend the most logical changes in
>  one's diet or through supplementation to counteract or prevent kidney
>  stones of either type; and they definitely won't include an INCREASE
>  in calcium if the stones have been identified as being of the calcium
>  type and people's chemical analysis confirms that they would benefit
>  from a PHOSPHORUS-raising approach instead!
> 
>      Ron Roth

Ron, you are absolutely right.  Not all kidney stones have calcium and not 
all calcium stones are calcium-oxalate.  But the vast majority are calcium-
oxalate.  Calcium is just one piece of the puzzle.  I cited that NEJM article 
as a way of pointing out to some of the physicians in this group that 
conventional wisdom is used in medicine, always has been and probably 
always will be.  If one uses conventional wisdom, there is a chance that 
you will be wrong.  As long as the error is not going to cause a lot of 
damage, what's the big deal(why call a physician who gives anti-fungals to 
sinus suffers or GI distress patients a quack?).

On the kidney stone problem.  I'd want a mineral profile run in a clinical 
chemistry lab.  Balance is much more important than the dietary intake of 
calcium.  I know that you use an electrical conductance technique to 
measure mineral balance in the body.  I know that you don't think that the 
serum levels for minerals are very useful(I agree).  If I can get a good 
nutritional assessment lab setup where I can actually measure the tissue 
reserve for minerals, I'd like to do a collaborative study with you to see 
how your technique compares with mine.


Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59491
From: tung@paaiec.enet.dec.com
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?


I have just started taking allergy shots a month ago and is 
still wondering what I am getting into. A friend of mine told
me that the body change every 7 years (whatever that means)
and I don't need those antibody-building allergy shots at all.
Does that make sense to anyone?

BTW, can someone summarize what is in the Consumer Report
February, 1988 article?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59492
From: mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou)
Subject: cure for dry skin?

Hi all,

My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
cure for this.

At the supermarkets or pharmacies, there are quite a lot of stuffs for
dry skins, but what to chose?

Thanks in advance for all advices and hints.

Reply by email preferred.

Alex



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59493
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

-*----
In article <1993Apr28.081953.21043@nmt.edu> msnyder@nmt.edu (Rebecca Snyder) writes:
> Does anyone know how posionous centipedes and millipedes are? ...

The millipede's around here (Austin) have no sting.  Some of the
centipedes do.  The question Rebecca Snyder asks is much like
asking "How venomous are snakes?"  One either wants to ask "which
snake?" or point to some reference on the many different species
of snake.  Similarly, there are many different species of
millipede and centipede.  (These are different families;
millipedes have two pairs of legs per body segment, while
centipedes have but one pair.)

Sorry if this information is not useful.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59494
From: roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
Subject: Sumatripton (spelling?)


I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called sumatripton
(I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly utilizes a chemical
that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has regular migraines and nothing
seems to help - does anyone know anything about this new drug?  Is it in
a testing phaze or anywhere near approval?  Does it seem to be working?

Any information would help.

Please feel free to e-mail rather than take up bandwidth if you prefer.

Thanks in advance,

-Rox
-- 
roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us


"Virtue is a relative term."

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59496
From: bechtler@asdg.enet.dec.com (Laurie Bechtler)
Subject: Re: Urine analysis


In article <C67t3M.Fxx@athena.cs.uga.edu>, mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington) writes...
>In article <1rm2bn$kps@transfer.stratus.com> Randy_Faneuf@vos.stratus.com writes:
>>
>> Someone please help me. I am searching to find out (as many others may)
>>an absolute 'cure' to removing all detectable traces of marijuana from
>>a persons body. Is there a chemical or natural substance that can be
>>ingested or added to urine to make it undetectable in urine analysis.
>>If so where can these substances be found. 
> 
>You could do what I do: never go near the stuff!  :)
> 
> 
>-- 

There's always the old switcheroo.

My brother works at a dialysis clinic.  They were interviewing 
candidates for a technician job (mainly electronics tech), and a
urine screen was part of the interview.  The bathroom was across
the hall from a lab.  One candidate managed to switch his urine
sample with one he grabbed from the lab.  (No one was in it at
the time.)

Most inner-city dialysis patients have quite a few medical problems,
so it was immediately obvious what had happened.  My brother 
fleetingly considered telling the candidate, "I'm sorry but you
are very ill and need medical attention immediately."  They offered
him another *well-monitored* chance and he declined.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59497
From: markv@pixar.com (Mark T. VandeWettering)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:

>FLAME ON

>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>measure" attitude of many people out there.

	
>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

	Accepted by whom?  People who think digital watches are a 
	real good idea?  That 60 channels of television is 10x better 
	than 6 channels of television?  

>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

	You're right.  Keep an open mind to the following:

	1. Taco flavored donuts.
	2. Cannibalism.  Good way to get that extra protein in the diet.
	3. Belief in Yawanga, armadillo god of parking meters.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mark VandeWettering
Truest Servant of Yawanga!  Oh Yawanga!  He who never will become a road-pizza!
All of my quarters and dimes, nay even nickels, will be spent to buy time to 
		park in your eternal parking lot!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59498
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
>pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
>move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 

I've had neither a baby nor a kidney stone, but according to my aunt, 
who has had plenty of both, a kidney stone is worse. 


--Barbara 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59499
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Chromium as dietary suppliment for weight loss

In article <1993Apr29.145140.10559@newsgate.sps.mot.com>, rhca80@melton.sps.mot.com (Henry Melton) writes:
> 
> My wife has requested that I poll the Sages of Usenet to see what is
> known about the use of chromium in weight-control diet suppliments.
> She has seen multiple products advertising it and would like any kind
> real information.
> 
> My first impulse was "Yuck! a metal!" but I have zero data on it.
> 
> What do you know?
> 
> -- 
> Henry Melton 

I'll tell you all that I know about chromium.  But before I do, I want to 
get a few things off my chest.  I just got blasted in e-mail for my kidney 
stone posts.  Kidney stones are primarily caused by diet, as is heart 
disease and cancer.  When I give dietary advise, it is not intended to 
encourage people reading this news group(or Sci. Med. Nutrition where I do 
most of my posting) to avoid seeing a doctor.  Nothing can be further from 
the truth.  Kidney stones can be caused by tumors and this possibility has to 
be ruled out.  But once it is, diet is a good way of preventing a reoccurance.
Same thing with heart disease and cancer, if you suspect that you may have 
a problem with one of these diseases, don't use what I'm going to tell you 
or what you read in some book to avoid going to a doctor.  You have to go.
Hopefully you will find a doctor who knows enough about nutrition to help 
you change your risk factors for both diseases as part of a treatment 
program(but the odds are that you will not and that's why I'm here).  When 
my wife detected a lump in here breast I didn't say, don't worry my vitamin 
E will take care of it.  Any breast lump has to be worked up by a physician, 
plan and simple.  If it's begnin(which most are) fine, then maybe a diet 
change and supplementation will prevent further breast lumps from occuring.
But let me tell you right now, if you have tried diet and supplementation 
and another lump returns, get your butt into the doctor's office as fast as 
your little feet can carry you(better yet, have a mammography done on a 
regular basis, my wife kept putting her's off, both myself and her 
gynocologist told her she needed to have one done).  Her gynocologist even 
scheduled one, but she didn't show up(too busy running the Operating Room for 
the biggest Hospital in Tulsa).

One more thing, I am not an orthomolecular nutritionist.  This group uses 
high dose vitamins and minerals to treat all kinds of disease.  There is 
absolutely no doubt in my mind that vitamins and minerals can and do have 
drug actions in the body.  But you talk about flying blind, man this is 
really blind treatment.  No drug could ever be used as these vitamins and 
minerals are being used.  I'm not saying that some of this stuff couldn't 
be right on the money, it may well be.  But my approach to nutrition is a 
lot like that of Weinsier and Morgan, the two M.D's who wrote the new 
Clinical Nutrition textbook.  My push is the nutrient reserves and the lab 
tests needed to measure these reserves and then supplementation or diet 
changes to get these reserves built up to where they should be to let you 
handle stress.  That's where I'm coming from folks.  Blast away if you want,
I'm not going to change.  Put me in your killfile if you want, I really 
don't care.  I'm averaging 8-10 e-mail messages a day from people who think 
that I've got something important to say.  But I'm also getting hit by a 
few with an axe to grind.  That's life.

Chromium is one of the trace elements.  It has a very limited(but very 
important) role in the body.  It is used to form glucose tolerance factor
(GTF).  GTF is made up of chromium, nicinamide(niacin), glycine, cysteine 
and glutamic.  Only the chromium and the niacin are needed from the diet to 
form GTF.  Some foods already have GTF(Liver, brewers or nutritional yeast,
and black pepper).  When chromium is in GTF, a pretty good absorption is 
seen(about 20%).  But when it is simply present as a mineral or mineral 
chelate(chromium picolinate) it's absorption is much lower(1 to 2%, lowest 
for all the minerals).  I've been posting in Misc. Fitness and chromium has 
come up there several times as a "fat burner".  Chromium is among the least 
toxic of the minerals so you could really load yourself up and not really 
do any harm.  I wouldn't do it though.  The adequate and safe range for 
chromium is 50 to 200ug per day.  The average American is getting about 
30ug per day from his/her diet.  Chromium levels decrease with age and many 
believe that adult onset diabetes is primarily a chromium deficiency.  I 
can cite you several studies that have been done with glucose tolerance in 
Type II diabetes but I'm not going to because for each positive one, there 
also seems to be a negative one as well.  I'm convinced that the problem is 
bioavailability.  When yeast(GTF) is used, good results are obtained but when 
chromium itself is used the results are usually negative.  In addition to 
Type II diabetes, chromiuum has been examined in cardiovascular disease and 
glucoma, again with mixed results as far as cardiovascular disease is 
concerned

Since a high blood glucose level can lead to cardiovascular disease, 
this possible link with chromium isn't too surprising.  Glucoma is a little 
more interesting.  Muscle eye focusing activity is primarily an insulin 
responsive glucose-driven metabolic function.  If this eye focusing activity 
is impaired(by a lack of glucose due to a poor insulin response), intraocular 
pressure is believed to be elevated.  In a fairly large study of 400 pts with 
glaucoma, the one consistent finding was a low RBC chromium. J. Am. Coll. 
Nutr. 10(5):536,(1991).  But this one preliminary study should not prompt 
people to go out and start popping chromium supplements.  For one thing, 
just about every older person is going to have a low RBC chromium unless 
they have been taking chromium suppleemnts(yeast).  Since glucoma is often 
found in older people, it's not too surprising that chromium was low in the 
RBC's.  If chromium supplementation could reverse glucoma, that would 
prompt some attention.  I suspect that there will be a clinical trail to 
check out this possible chromium link to glucoma.

You could find out what your body chromium pool size was by either the RBC 
chromium test or hair analysis.  Most clinical labs are not going to run a 
RBC chromium.  There are plenty of labs that will do a hair and nail 
analysis for you, but I wouldn't use them.  There is just too much funny 
business going on in these unregulated labs right now.

Here's Weinsier and Morgan, advise on chromium.  They do not consider 
chromium to be one of those minerals for which a reliable clinical test is 
available(they don't like the hair and nail analysis labs either, and they 
also recognize the RBC chromium is primarily a research test that is not 
routinely available in most clinical chemistry labs).  This has to change 
and as more labs run a RBC chromiuum, it will.  What then do they suggest?
Make a diagnosis of chromium deficiency based on a documented clinical 
response to chromium(run a glucose tolerance test before and after chromium 
supplementation).  Once you make the diagnosis, put the patient on 200ug of 
CrCl3 orally each day or 10grams of yeast per day.

What's my advise?  Don't take chromium supplements to try to loose weight
(they just do not work that way).  If you want to take them and then 
exercise, that would be great.  Do include yeast as part of your diet(most 
Americans are not getting enough chromium from their diet).  If you do have 
a poor glucose tolerance, ask your doctor to check your chromium status.  
When he or she says, "what in the world are you talking about", just say, 
please get a copy of Weinsier and Morgan's new Clinical Nutrition textbook 
and do what they say to do with patients who present with a poor glucose 
tolerance.  If you can't do that, I'll find a doctor who can, thank you 
very much.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59500
From: jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............

Michael Covington (mcovingt@aisun4.ai.uga.edu) wrote:
: In article <C697IJ.IuA@srgenprp.sr.hp.com> jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) writes:
: >pk115050@wvnvms.wvnet.edu wrote:
: 
: >move a little, the pain will be excrutiating. I was told by my doctor
: >at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
: >by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
: >really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
: >have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 
: 
: One more reason for men to learn the Lamaze breathing techniques, in order
: to be able to get some pain reduction instantly, wherever you are.
: -- 
: :-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
: :-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
: :-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
: :-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

It would have been pretty difficult to practice my hee hee's while I was
keeled over pukeing my guts out though.

--

Jeff Silva
jeffs@sr.hp.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59501
From: alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Before more bandwidth gets wasted on this:

I APOLOGIZE for my flame.

First, because I distributed the message to so many newsgroups; I did
       not check the crosspostings of the article I followed up on.

Second, for not making my argument clear enough. I reacted to the tone
        of many of the anti-Kirlian posts, not to their content. Right
        or wrong, I found the arguments set in arrogant and sneering words
        (that includes "jokes"), which I still think is unwarranted.

And, obviously, I should not have done the same.

-- Alex


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59502
From: green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price) writes:
>
>I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
>"licensed herbologist and iridologist"

I don't believe any state licenses herbologists or iridologists.
-- 
******************************************************************************
Robert Greenstein           What the fool cannot learn he laughs at, thinking
green@srilanka.island.com   that by his laughter he shows superiority instead
                            of latent idiocy - M. Corelli

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59503
From: meg_arnold@qm.sri.com (Meg Arnold)
Subject: Botulinum Toxin, type A

I am looking for statistics on the prevalence of disorders that are
treatable with Botulinum Type A.  These disorders include: facial
dyskinesia, meige syndrome, hemifacial spasm, apraxia of eyelid openeing,
aberrant regeneration of the facial nerve, facial paralysis, strabismus,
spasmodic torticollis, muscle spasm, occupational dystonia (i.e. writers
cramp, etc.), spasmodic dysphonia, and temporal mandibular joint disease.

I realize many of the disorders I listed (such as "muscle spasm" !!) are
vaguely defined and may encompass a wide range of particular disorders.  My
apologies; the list was provided to me as is.  I have some numbers, but not
reliable.  

Any ideas on sources or, even bbetter, any actual figures (with source
listed)?

Many thanks,

- Meg

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~  Meg Arnold, Business Intelligence Center, SRI International. ~ 
~  333 Ravenswood Avenue, Menlo Park, CA  94025.                ~     
~  phone: (415) 859-3764    internet: meg_arnold@qm.sri.com     ~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59504
From: esd3@po.CWRU.Edu (Elisabeth S. Davidson)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction


In a previous article, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu () says:
>least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
>too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
>they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
>medical profession.

Case Western Reserve Med School teaches nutrition in its own section as
well as covering it in other sections as they apply (i.e. B12
deficiency in neuro as a cause of neuropathy, B12 deficiency in
hematology as a cause of megaloblastic anemia), yet I sill
hold the viewpoint of mainstream medicine:  candida can cause
mucocutaneous candidiasis, and, in already very sick patients
with damaged immune systems like AIDS and cancer patients,
systemic candida infection.  I think "The Yeast Connection" is
a bunch of hooey.  What does this have to do with how well
nutrition is taught, anyway?
>
>Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
>called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
>for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
>yeast-like fungus.  

Well, maybe I'm getting picky, but I always thought that a yeast
was one form that a fungus could exist in, the other being the
mold form.  Many fungi can occur as either yeasts or molds, 
depending on environment.  Candida exibits what is known as
reverse dimorphism - it exists as a mold in the tissues
but exists as a yeast in the environment.  Should we maybe
call it a mold infection?  a fungus infection?  Maybe we
should say it is caused by a mold-like fungus.
 
> 
>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
>1111 West 17th St.
>Tulsa, Ok. 74107
>

You're the chairman of Biochem and Micro and you didn't know 
that a yeast is a form of a fungus?  (shudder)
Or maybe you did know, and were oversimplifying?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59505
From: twain@carson.u.washington.edu (Barbara Hlavin)
Subject: Re: Schatzki Ring/ PVC's

In article <uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu-280493114107@spam.dom.uab.edu> uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland) writes:
>In article <1993Apr27.180334@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov>,
>ohandley@betsy.gsfc.nasa.gov wrote:
>> 
>> The second issue: [summarized]  He has had extra heartbeats for the past
>3 to 4 years, and once was symptomatic from them, with some
>lightheadedness.
>He is young, (30-ish), thin and in good
>> health (recent bloodtests were all normal), and do not smoke, use drugs or
>> caffeine, etc. I'm willing to accept the extra beats as "normal", but don't
>> want to ignore them if they might be some kind of warning symptom. The number
>> of PVC's seems to increase throughout the day, and with exercise (or something
>> as simple as climbing some stairs). Also, if I get up after sitting or lying
>> down for a while, I tend to get a couple of extra beats. Could they possibly
>> be related to the esophagous problems? Both seemed to develop at about the
>> same time.
>
>I' not an expert on heart problems, but PVC's are common and have been
>overtreated in the past.  My personal experience, and I have the same 
>history an build you do (related to the heart, that is), is that my PVC's
>come and go, with some months causing anxiety.  Taking on more fluids
>seems to help, and they seem worse in the summer.  Remember that a slow 
>heart rate will allow more PVC's to be apparent, so perhaps it is an 
>indication of a healthy cardiac system (but ask an expert about that
>last point, especially)

I too have had premature ventricular heartbeat, starting in 1974.  (These 
are not, by the way, "extra" heartbeats.  This is how they feel, and 
this is how I described them initially to the doctor, but they're 
actually *premature* heartbeats.  I would sometimes experience a lapse 
after one of these that went on for a suffocatingly long period of time, 
making me wonder if my heart were ever going to beat again.) 

I had them persistently for eighteen years.  Then I went on a low-fat 
diet, and they just stopped.  I haven't had a single episode of PVH 
for almost two years.  I know:  correlation does not imply causation. 
This is just FWIW.  

--Barbara 




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59506
From: tysoem@facman.ohsu.edu (Marie E Tysoe)
Subject: Natural Alternatives to Estrogen

Need Diet for Diverticular Disease
and ideas for gastrointestinal distress

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59507
From: tysoem@facman.ohsu.edu (Marie E Tysoe)
Subject: sciatica

Ideas for the relief of sciatica. Please respond to my E-mail

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59508
From: "Gabriel D. Underwood" <gabe+@CMU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

I heard a great Civil War story...      A guy on the battlfield is shot
in the groin,   the bullet continues on it's path, and lodges in the
abdomen of a female spectator.    Lo and behold....

As the legend goes,   both parents survived,  married,  and raised the child.

--
"Death. Taxes.  Math.  Jazz."
- Wean Hall Bathroom Graffiti
Gabriel Underwood
gabe+@cmu.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59509
From: Daniel.Prince@f129.n102.z1.calcom.socal.com (Daniel Prince)
Subject: Re: Placebo effects

 To: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)

 RT> o  Those administering the treatment do not know which subjects 
 RT> receive a placebo or the test treatment.

It seems to me that many drugs have such severe side effects that 
it might not be possible to keep the doctors from knowing who is 
getting the true drug.  This is especially true of the drugs used 
for "mental" illnesses.

... My cat is very smart.  He has ME well trained.
 * Origin: ONE WORLD Los Angeles 310/372-0987 32b (1:102/129.0)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59510
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Should I be angry at this doctor?

brandon@caldonia.nlm.nih.gov (Brandon Brylawski) writes:

>mryan@stsci.edu writes:
>: Am I justified in being pissed off at this doctor?
>: 
>: Last Saturday evening my 6 year old son cut his finger badly with a knife.
>: I took him to a local "Urgent and General Care" clinic at 5:50 pm.  The 
>: clinic was open till 6:00 pm.  The receptionist went to the back and told the 
<:  ....other good stuff about the Drs idiocy

Ok, much as I hate to do it, here I am posting an EVEN BETTER "Dr. Idiot"
story.


I was in my 18th hour of labor, had been pushing for 4.5 hours and was
exhausted.  My OB and I decided to go for a csec.  The OB called in
the anesthisiologist (sp?) and asked him to help prep me for surgery.

AFTER, watching me go through a couple contractions, the anes (or anus as
I like to refer to him) said, "Well, I am off duty now." (still staring
between my legs at that).  The OB asked to go call whomever it was who
was on duty and ask him/her how long it would take...and if it was going
to take more than a few minutes, to please stay even though he was off duty.

The anes. went out, supposedly to call the on-call anes.   In a couple of
minutes the nurse came running in to tell the OB that the anes. had left
without even trying to get ahold of the on-call.  It was the only time 
during my labor that I swore.  The on-call anes. took 20 minutes to get
there.

Come to find out, the anes. had only just gone off duty (about 2 minutes
before) and technically was supposed to stay in the hospital until the
next on-call got there.  Good thing for all of us (especially him) that
it was not a critical emergency.  But boy would I love to knock that
fellow's ouchie places ...just to let him be in pain a
few little minutes.



I have run into "Dr. Idiots", "Mechanic Idiots", "Clerk Idiots" and "Etc.
Idiots" in my time, but this fellow I would like to have words with.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59511
From: lkherold@athena.mit.edu (Lori K Herold)
Subject: Re: Kidney Stones

If the student has a kidney infection, she ought to be on antibiotics.
Kidney infections-- left untreated-- can cause permanent damage to
the kidneys.  I was hospitalized with a kidney infection a while ago
and I was very sick.

In article <1993Apr29.003406.55029@ux1.cts.eiu.edu>, cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:
......
> 	Also, she is told that thre are 300! surgery patients ahead of her
> and that they cannot do surgery until August or so.  It is now April...
> She is supposed to rest a lot and drink fluids.  But she has to go to
> classes.  She wonders why they have given her no medicine.  She plans to
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59512
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu () writes:

>>can't imagine what it's like to have a penis, much less a foreskin. I
>>guess if American medicine did an artistic job of circumcising every
>>male, then the visual result would be somewhat more natural in
>>appearance...
>>
>>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>>unnecessary.

>Peter Schlumpf
>University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
alt.sex.

Secondly, how absolutely bogus to assume that "American's are just too hung
up on the penis....blah,blah".  I think most American's don't care about
anything so comlicated as that.  They just think it "looks nicer".  Ask 
a few of them and see what response you get.  Others still opt for
circumcision due to religious traditions and beliefs.  Some think it is
easier to clean.  Still others do it because "Daddy was".

Dont' be so naive as to think American's are afraid of sexuality. 

My son is not circumcised, and I can vouch for the argument that it is
more difficult to keep clean than a circumcised kids'.  Not so much that
the foreskin is difficult to pull back (it isn't) but because my son
doesn't want to wait long enough for a thorough check for smega or misplaced
feces.  So, many times it just gets a once over dab.  It worries me
that he might get an infection due to his lack of cooperation.  I am
sure, however, that he will be able to handle cleaning under the foreskin
himself once he is old enough.  Until, there is always the decision at
each diaper change...is this the time to clean or can we wait till next
time.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59513
From: cacci@interlan.interlan.com (Ernie Cacciapuoti)
Subject: Question: Phosphorylase Kinase Deficiency???

If anyone has any information on this deficiency I would very greatly
appreciate a response here or preferably by Email.  All I know at this
point is a deficiency can cause myoglobin to be released, and in times
of stress and high ambient temperature could cause renal failure.
x

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59514
From: atae@spva.ph.ic.ac.uk (Ata Etemadi)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com>, alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
-| In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
-|   alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
-| Okay.  Name one single effect that Kirlian photography gives that
-| can't be explained by corona discharge.

Dozens of very funny postings to sci.image.processing 
[of which this may not be one :-].

	Ata <(|)>

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59516
From: <U18183@uicvm.uic.edu>
Subject: Re: Chromium for weight loss

  There is no data to show chromium is effective in promoting weight loss.  The
 few studies that have been done using chromium have been very flawed and inher
ently biased (the investigators were making money from marketing it).
  Theoretically it really doesnt make sense either. The claim is that chromium
will increase muscle mass and decrease fat.  Of course, chromium is also used t
o cure diabetes, high blood pressure and increase muscle mass in athletes(just
as well as anabolic steroids). Sounds like snake oil for the 1990's :-)
 On the other hand, it really cant hurt you anywhere but your wallet, and place
bo effects of anything can be pretty dramatic...

                                    -Paul
     ----------------------------------------------------------
    |  Paul Sovcik, Pharm.D. U of Illinois College of Pharmacy |
    |                                                          |
    |    Email- U18183@UICVM.UIC.EDU                           |
    |                                                          |
     ----------------------------------------------------------


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59517
From: bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer)
Subject: Re: Earwax

In <faUk03m6d0Kq00@amdahl.uts.amdahl.com>,
	dated 29 Apr 93 15:43:10 GMT,
	lmtra@uts.amdahl.com (Leon Traister) writes:
> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
> 
> >What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
> >it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
> >every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
> >Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?
> 
> Assuming that the wax is causing hearing loss, congestion or popping
> in the ears, you can try some cautious tepid water irrigation with a
> bulb syringe, but it is awkward to do for oneself and may not work or
> may even make things worse.  (My wife would disagree, she does it
> successfully every six months or so.)  In any case DO NOT ATTEMPT
> ANYTHING WITH Q-TIPS!!!

I'll agree with your wife.  While I was a student, I had doctors remove
rather surprising amounts of wax from my ears by flushing them out a couple
times, usually because they were examining my ears for some other reason, and
said something like "Gee, you've got a lot of wax in there".  In my case,
removal of these large wax buildups did noticeably improve my hearing, and
I've since gotten in the same habit as your wife of flushing them out with
warm water from a little rubber bulb every few months.  You can buy little
bulbs together with ear drops for this express purpose from the drug store -
I don't notice that the drops accomplish much of anything.

One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
comments?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59518
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article <1rp8p1$2d3@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>, esd3@po.CWRU.Edu (Elisabeth S. Davidson) writes:
> 
> In a previous article, banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu () says:
>>least a few "enlightened" physicians practicing in the U.S.  It's really 
>>too bad that most U.S. medical schools don't cover nutrition because if 
>>they did, candida would not be viewed as a non-disease by so many in the 
>>medical profession.
> 
> Case Western Reserve Med School teaches nutrition in its own section as
> well as covering it in other sections as they apply (i.e. B12
> deficiency in neuro as a cause of neuropathy, B12 deficiency in
> hematology as a cause of megaloblastic anemia), yet I sill
> hold the viewpoint of mainstream medicine:  candida can cause
> mucocutaneous candidiasis, and, in already very sick patients
> with damaged immune systems like AIDS and cancer patients,
> systemic candida infection.  I think "The Yeast Connection" is
> a bunch of hooey.  What does this have to do with how well
> nutrition is taught, anyway?

Elisabeth, let's set the record straight for the nth time, I have not read 
"The Yeast Connection".  So anything that I say is not due to brainwashing 
by this "hated" book.  It's okay I guess to hate the book, by why hate me?
Elisabeth, I'm going to quote from Zinsser's Microbiology, 20th Edition.
A book that you should be familiar with and not "hate". "Candida species 
colonize the mucosal surfaces of all humans during birth or shortly 
thereafter.  The risk of endogenous infection is clearly ever present.  
Indeed, candidiasis occurs worldwide and is the most common systemic 
mycosis."  Neutrophils play the main role in preventing a systemic 
infection(candidiasis) so you would have to have a low neutrophil count or 
"sick" neutrophils to see a systemic infection.  Poor diet and persistent 
parasitic infestation set many third world residents up for candidiasis.
Your assessment of candidiasis in the U.S. is correct and I do not dispute 
it.

What I posted was a discussion of candida blooms, without systemic 
infection.  These blooms would be responsible for local sites of irritation
(GI tract, mouth, vagina and sinus cavity).  Knocking down the bacterial 
competition for candida was proposed as a possible trigger for candida 
blooms.  Let me quote from Zinsser's again: "However, some factors, such as 
the use of a broad-spectrum antibacterial antibiotic, may predispose to 
both mucosal and systemic infections".  I was addressing mucosal infections
(I like the term blooms better).  The nutrition course that I teach covers 
this effect of antibiotic treatment as well as the "cure".  I guess that 
your nutrition course does not, too bad.  


>>Here is a brief primer on yeast.  Yeast infections, as they are commonly 
>>called, are not truely caused by yeasts.  The most common organism responsible
>>for this type of infection is Candida albicans or Monilia which is actually a 
>>yeast-like fungus.  
> 
> Well, maybe I'm getting picky, but I always thought that a yeast
> was one form that a fungus could exist in, the other being the
> mold form.  Many fungi can occur as either yeasts or molds, 
> depending on environment.  Candida exibits what is known as
> reverse dimorphism - it exists as a mold in the tissues
> but exists as a yeast in the environment.  Should we maybe
> call it a mold infection?  a fungus infection?  Maybe we
> should say it is caused by a mold-like fungus.
>  
>> 
>>Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
>>Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
>>Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
>>OSU College of Osteopathic Medicine
>>1111 West 17th St.
>>Tulsa, Ok. 74107
>>
> 
> You're the chairman of Biochem and Micro and you didn't know 
> that a yeast is a form of a fungus?  (shudder)
> Or maybe you did know, and were oversimplifying?

My, my Elisabeth, do I detect a little of Steve Dyer in you?  If you 
noticed my faculty rank, I'm a biochemist, not a microbiologist.
Candida is classifed as a fungus(according to Zinsser's).  But, as you point 
out, it displays dimorphism.  It is capable of producing yeast cells, 
pseudohyphae and true hyphae.  Elisabeth, you are probably a microbiologist 
and that makes a lot of sense to you.  To a biochemist, it's a lot of 
Greek.  So I called it a yeast-like fungus, go ahead and crucify me.

You know Elisabeth, I still haven't been able to figure out why such a small 
little organism like Candida can bring out so much hostility in people in 
Sci. Med.  And I must admitt that I got sucked into the mud slinging too.
I keep hoping that if people will just take the time to think about what 
I've said, that it will make sense.  I'm not asking anyone here to buy into 
"The Yeast Connection" book because I don't know what's in that book, plain 
and simple. And to be honest with you, I'm beginning to wish that it was never 
written.

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59519
From: alan.barclay@almac.co.uk (Alan Barclay)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumci

TO: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)


RO> First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
RO> alt.sex.

Would you like to rephrase that?
  
---
 . ATP/Unix1.40a . G'day mate, throw another cat on the barbie!
                                                                                                        

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59520
From: jhl14@cunixb.cc.columbia.edu (Jonathan H. Lin)
Subject: atrial natriuretic factor



ANP is secreted by the atria in response to increases in fluid volume
and acts to facilitate sodium and water excretion from the kidneys.
Can someone tell me the molecular mechanism by which this is done?

Please email your response

Thanks
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                   Po'g Mo Thon                              
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59521
From: Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com (John Lauger)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

In article <5531@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us>, roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.us
wrote:
> 
> I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called sumatripton
> (I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly utilizes a chemical
> that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has regular migraines and nothing
> seems to help - does anyone know anything about this new drug?  Is it in
> a testing phaze or anywhere near approval?  Does it seem to be working?
> 
My girlfriend just started taking this drug for her migranes.  It really
helped her get through the rebound withdrawl when she got off analgesics. 
She doesn't have a mail account, but asked me to forward this:

"Glaxo is the distributor; Imitrex is the drug's brand name.  It works. 
She can call her pharmacy for more info. The "miracle" drug has been used
for years in Europe and for some time in Canada.  Trials in the U.S. were
completed and the drug hit the US market at the end of March.  Some
pharmacies don't stock it yet.  Presently it needs to be injected
subcutaneously; although testing is starting with a nasal spray form.  It
mimics serotonin (its molecular structure that fits onto pain receptors
looks identical to serotonin on a model I saw)"

Opinions are mine or others but definately not MDA's!
Lauger@ssdgwy.mdc.com
McDonnell Douglas Aerospace, Huntington Beach, California, USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59522
From: mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu
Subject: BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY

          

                              BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY
                          
                        ( ANOTHER Form of COLD FUSION )

               ( ALTERNATIVE Heavy Element Creation in Universe ) 

               A very simple experiment can demonstrate (PROVE) the 
          FACT of "BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS" (reactions like Mg + O 
          --> Ca, Si + C --> Ca, K + H --> Ca, N2 --> CO, etc.), as 
          described in the BOOK "Biological Transmutations" by Louis 
          Kervran, [1972 Edition is BEST.], and in Chapter 17 of the 
          book "THE SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS" by Peter Tompkins and 
          Christopher Bird, 1973: 

               (1) Obtain a good sample of plant seeds, all of the same 
                   kind.  [Some kinds might work better that others.]

               (2) Divide the sample into two groups of equal weight 
                   and number.

               (3) Sprout one group in distilled water on filter paper 
                   for three or four weeks.

               (4) Separately incinerate both groups.

               (5) Weigh the residue from each group.  [The residue of 
                   the sprouted group will usually weigh at least 
                   SEVERAL PERCENT MORE than the other group.]

               (6) Analyze quantitatively the residue of each group for 
                   mineral content.  [Some of the mineral atoms of the 
                   sprouted group have been TRANSMUTED into heavier 
                   mineral elements by FUSING with atoms of oxygen, 
                   hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, etc..]

          
               BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS occur ROUTINELY, even in our 
          own bodies. 
          
               Ingesting a source of organic silicon (silicon with 
          carbon, such as "horsetail" extract, or radishes) can SPEED 
          HEALING OF BROKEN BONES via the reaction Si + C --> Ca, (much 
          faster than by merely ingesting the calcium directly).  
          
               Some MINERAL DEPOSITS in the ground are formed by micro-
          organisms FUSING together atoms of silicon, carbon, nitrogen, 
          oxygen, hydrogen, etc.. 
          
               The two reactions Si + C <--> Ca, by micro-organisms, 
          cause "STONE SICKNESS" in statues, building bricks, etc..  
          
               The reaction N2 --> CO, catalysed by very hot iron, 
          creates a CARBON-MONOXIDE POISON HAZARD for welder operators 
          and people near woodstoves (even properly sealed ones). 
          
               Some bacteria can even NEUTRALIZE RADIOACTIVITY! 
          

               ALL OF THESE THINGS AND MORE HAPPEN, IN SPITE OF the 
          currently accepted "laws" of physics, (including the law 
          which says that atomic fusion requires EXTREMELY HIGH 
          temperatures and pressures.) 



          "BIOLOGICAL TRANSMUTATIONS, And Their Applications In 
               CHEMISTRY, PHYSICS, BIOLOGY, ECOLOGY, MEDICINE, 
               NUTRITION, AGRIGULTURE, GEOLOGY", 
          1st Edition, 
          by C. Louis Kervran, Active Member of New York Academy of 
               Science, 
          1972, 
          163 Pages, Illustrated, 
          Swan House Publishing Co.,
               P.O. Box 638, 
               Binghamton, NY  13902 

          
          "THE SECRET LIFE OF PLANTS", 
          by Peter Tompkins and Christopher Bird, 
          1973, 
          402 Pages, 
          Harper & Row, 
               New York
          [Chapters 19 and 20 are about "RADIONICS".  Entire book is 
               FASCINATING! ]
          

               For more information, answers to your questions, etc., 
          please consult my CITED SOURCES (the two books). 



               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 


                                   Robert E. McElwaine
                                   B.S., Physics and Astronomy, UW-EC



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59523
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

It just received FDA approval a few months ago. I have a
prescription which I haven't had to use yet. I believe the
company [Glaxol] is developing an oral form. At this stage, one
must inject the drug into one's muscle. The doctor said that
within 30 minutes, the migraine is gone for good! 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59524
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

I cured mine with Bag Balm which I bought at the local farm
supply store. It is relatively cheap and works in a few days.
The product was developed to treat sore udders. 


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59525
From: joshm@yang.earlham.edu
Subject: Re: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?

In article <1993Apr27.110440.5069@nic.csu.net>, eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg) writes:
> Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
> man's vasectomy on his female partner?
> 
> I've seen plenty of study results about vasectomy's effects on men's health,
> but what about women? 
> 
> For example, might the wife of a vasectomized man become more at risk for,
> say, cervical cancer?  Adverse effects from sperm antibodies?  Changes in the
> vagina's pH?  Yeast or bacterial infections?
> 
> Outside of study results, how about informed speculation?

I've heard of NO studies, but speculation:

Why on _earth_ would there be any effect on women's health?  That's about 
the most absurd idea I've heard since Ted Kaldis's claim that no more than 
35,000 people would march on Washington.

Ok, _one_ point:  Greatly reduced chance of pregnancy.  But that's it.

--Josh

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59526
From: cindy@berkp.uadv.uci.edu (Cindy Windham)
Subject: What's a bone scan?

My mother has been advised to have a bone scan performed?  What is this
procedure for, and is it painful?  She's been having leg and back pain
which her GP said was sciatica.  Her oncologist listened to her symptoms
and said that it didn't sound like sciatica, and she should get a bone
scan.  

- Cindy W.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59527
From: noring@netcom.com (Jon Noring)
Subject: Re: Candida(yeast) Bloom, Fact or Fiction

In article banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu writes:

>...I'm not asking anyone here to buy into "The Yeast Connection" book
>because I don't know what's in that book, plain and simple. And to be honest
>with you, I'm beginning to wish that it was never written.

I agree with this consensus that it should not have been written the way
it was.  My doctor - who claims to have introduced Dr. Crook to the
possibility of candida overbloom causing diffuse symptoms way back in
1961 (I have no reason to doubt him on this) - does not like the book
because 1) it makes too many unfounded claims, and 2) is horribly written
from a scientific viewpoint.  On the other hand, my doctor has always kept
an open mind on the subject and does believe in aspects of the "yeast
connection".

But, I believe there is some truth to the book.  Hopefully the right
clinical studies can be done to separate the fact from the fiction.  In
the meantime, I'd still encourage people who have "incurable" chronic sinus
problems (especially if they overused antibiotics), to find a doctor to
administer a systemic-type anti-fungal such as itraconazole (along with
liver panels before, during and after treatment just to play it safe).  It
is an empirical approach for sure, but when all else fails, and your ENT
says "sorry, you'll just have to live with it", it is time to step out and
try an empirical approach backed up with significant anecdotal evidence
(Dr. Ivker), supported by plausible theories (outlined by Marty).  At
this stage you have little to lose, particularly if you use itraconazole and
have the proper monitoring - the health risk has been shown through extensive
clinical studies both in Europe and the U.S. to be very minimal with
relatively healthy (i.e., non-AIDS) patients.  I'm glad I did this, since I
saw remarkable results after only one week on Sporanox (itraconazole).  Of
course, your mileage may vary a lot - everyone is different so it may not
work for you.  Talk to your doctor.

Jon Noring

-- 

Charter Member --->>>  INFJ Club.

If you're dying to know what INFJ means, be brave, e-mail me, I'll send info.
=============================================================================
| Jon Noring          | noring@netcom.com        |                          |
| JKN International   | IP    : 192.100.81.100   | FRED'S GOURMET CHOCOLATE |
| 1312 Carlton Place  | Phone : (510) 294-8153   | CHIPS - World's Best!    |
| Livermore, CA 94550 | V-Mail: (510) 417-4101   |                          |
=============================================================================
Who are you?  Read alt.psychology.personality!  That's where the action is.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59528
From: picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu (PICL account_25)
Subject: Re: What's a bone scan?

In article <cindy.349@berkp.uadv.uci.edu>, cindy@berkp.uadv.uci.edu (Cindy Windham) writes...
>My mother has been advised to have a bone scan performed?  What is this
>procedure for, and is it painful?  She's been having leg and back pain
>which her GP said was sciatica.  Her oncologist listened to her symptoms
>and said that it didn't sound like sciatica, and she should get a bone
>scan. 

Do I assume correctly from the above aricle that your mother has a historyy
of cancer?  I was just wondeing, since you mentioned thhat she has an
oncologist.

A bone scan is a nuclear scan.  Thperson receivving the scan is gven a
dose of a radioactive tracer, and an imaging device is used to track the
distribution of the tracer wwithin the body.  The tracer is usually given
intravenously.  (IV) This means that the physician or his assistant will
insert a needle into a vein and inject  medicine into the vein. 

After a few minutes has passed for the tracer to circulate through the
body, the person is scanned with an imaging device to detect high 
concentrations of the tracer.  The radiologist or doctor is looking for
areas that take up more of the radioactive tracer or less of it.

As far as pain, the only pain comes from the needle stick that is required
to start the IV line.

What the doctor is probably looking for are changes in the bones that may
have resulted from cancer.  This is also why I was wondering if your mother
has had cancer, since cancer can spread from one site and wind up in the
skeletal system.

I hope I have answered some of your questions.  Feel free to e-mail me if
you have more questions related to the bone scan or anything else related
to your mother's care.  I'm a newly graduated nurse, and I enjoy sharing
information with other people to help them understand things that they did
not know about before.

My thoughts are with you both.

Elisa B. Hanson   (picl25@fsphy1.physics.fsu.edu)
"The chief function of the body is to carry the head around."
                                        --Albert Einstein


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59529
From: houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle)
Subject: Antihistamine for sleep aid


	For a very long time I've had a problem with feeling really awful
when I try to get up in the morning.  My sleep latency at night is also
pretty long,  ranging from 30 min to an hour.  I get about 7 hours of
bedtime (maybe 6 of actual sleep) a night and more on the weekends.  I
will spend two or three hours laying in bed after this if I can,  because
I feel so tired when I wake up,  even more tired than I was when I
went to bed,  which is usually too tired to work.

	Anyway,  I recently had a really bad flu,  so I called a friend to
get me some cough syrup with both an expectorant and a nasal decongestant;
but he got Vicks formula 44M which has everything but an expectorant.  So
I used that anyway,  and the three nights I used it,  I fell asleep rapidly
and felt that I got really good quality sleep -- that is,  I actually
felt refreshed the next morning.

	So,  I am now trying to look into,  both in the literature and
experimentally,  the use of antihistamines as sleep aids,  since I am
presuming that it was the antihistamine that caused the effect.  The
antihistamine in Vicks formula 44 is Chloriphenamine maleate,  so I bought
some generic tablets of that,  and tried one last night and didn't
notice any improvement.  I might try one with a little alcohol (about
1 beer) to see if it is a synergism effect.  Also,  library research
seems to show that Benadryl is the antihistamine with the strongest
sedative effect of what is availible OTC.  So I might also buy a generic
form of that and try that;  the PDR seems to suggest that 50 mg is a good
dosage level to try.

	For other medical information,  I have allergies but rarely have
an allergic reaction living in New Mexico.  I also have chronically dry
eyes,  which get horrible if I try to use most underarm deoderants.  I did
guess that my problem might be caused by hypoglycemia,  so I made some
changes in my diet consistent with that,  and it didn't help,  so I
went back to a normal diet (Pretty diverse,  also taking vitamin supplements)

	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
(Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59530
From: goldstej@bag_end.pad.otc.com.au (Johnathon Goldstein)
Subject: Bates eye-exercises

Have I mailed this to the correct newsgroup(s)? Are there other newsgroup(s)
which cover the following topic?
--------

Has anyone with myopia (short-sightedness) ever done the Bates eye-exercises?

If so, could you please e-mail me the following information:

	- age and state of sight before exercises were commenced;

	- type, frequency, and length of time spent on exercises performed;

	- improvements noticed immediately after performing exercises;

	- length of period before any improved sight deteriorates;

Thanks in advance for any replies. I'll summarise and post results if there's
enough interest.

 - Jonathan Goldstein

-- 
Jonathan Goldstein       goldstej@nms.otc.com.au       +61 2 339 3683

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59531
From: tas@pegasus.com (Len Howard)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <10030@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <stephen.735806195@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>:When I was a school boy, my biology teacher told us of an incident
>:in which a couple were very passionate without actually having
>:sexual intercourse.  Somehow the girl became pregnent as sperm
>:cells made their way to her through the clothes via persperation.
>:Was my biology teacher misinforming us, or do such incidents actually
>:occur?
>
>Sounds to me like someone was pulling your leg.  There is only one way for
>pregnancy to occur: intercourse.  These days however there is also
>artificial insemination and implantation techniques, but we're speaking of
>"natural" acts here.  It is possible for pregnancy to occur if semen is
>deposited just outside of the vagina (i.e. coitus interruptus), but that's
>about at far as you can get.  Through clothes -- no way.  Better go talk
>to your biology teacher.
>=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =

Well, now, Doc, I sure would not want to bet my life on those little
critters not being able to get thru one layer of sweat-soaked cotton
on their way to do their programmed task.  Infrequent, yes, unlikely,
yes, but impossible?  I learned a long time ago never to say never in
medicine   <g>                        Len Howard MD, FACOG



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59532
From: davec@ecst.csuchico.edu (Dave Childs)
Subject: Dental Fillings question

I have been hearing bad thing about amalgam dental fillings.  Some say
the lead/ mercury leeches into your system and this is bad.  And I have
recently heard that there is some suspicion that the mercury is a breeding
ground for bacteria that will be resistant to antibiotics.   

My dentist wants to use an amalgam filling for me in a place where I have
two cavaties in one tooth and wants to use one filling to cover both.
He says that composite filling don't hold up well when they are large.
So, I would like to know if there are any other choices besides amalgam
and composite.  And, should I really even be worried about amalgam?  I
heard that some scandanavian country does not even use them any more- 
is this true.

Any information you can give me will be greatly appreciated.


Thanks!

Dave Childs


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59533
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

I'm interested in this from the other angle: what antihistamine can I
take at bedtime for relief of allergies, with the assurance that its
sedative effect will have completely worn off by the next morning, but
preferably with the anti-allergy effect lasting longer?

I'm thinking mainly of OTC products. Which has the least duration of
sedative action: Benadryl, Chlor-Trimeton, or what?
Note that I'm asking about duration, not intensity.
-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59534
From: kcarver@dante.nmsu.edu (Kenneth Carver)
Subject: Isolation amplifiers for EEG/ECG *cheap*

I have several isolation amplifier boards that are the ideal interface
for EEG and ECG.  Isolation is essential for safety when connecting
line-powered equipment to electrodes on the body.  These boards
incorporate the Burr-Brown 3656 isolation module that currently sells
for $133, plus other op amps to produce an overall voltage gain of
350-400.  They are like new and guaranteed good.  $20 postpaid,
schematic included.  Please email me for more data.

--Ken Carver

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59535
From: per-arne.melander@histocel.umu.se (Per-Arne Melander)
Subject: HELP-purification of neutrophils from mice.


Hello!

I need a technique for separation of polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN)
from the peripheral blood of mice. Because of the low PMN:Lymphocyte ratio
(approx. 20:80) its not just as easy as the corresponding technique used
with human blood.


																																										Yours,
               
                            													 Per-Arne Melander


Ps. My E-mail address is: per-arne.melander@histocel.umu.se. DS.
       

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59536
From: nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu (David Nye)
Subject: Re: Sumatripton (spelling?)

[reply to roxannen@cruzio.santa-cruz.ca.u]
 
>I recently heard of some testing of a new migraine drug called
>sumatripton (I have no idea of the actual spelling) that supposedly
>utilizes a chemical that trips neuro-transmitters.  My mother has
>regular migraines and nothing seems to help - does anyone know anything
>about this new drug?  Is it in a testing phaze or anywhere near
>approval?  Does it seem to be working?
 
I just got back from the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting,
where the consensus was that sumatriptan (Imitrex) has no advantages
over DHE-45 nasal spray, which is much less expensive, has fewer side
effects, is as effective, and works more quickly (5-10 minutes vs. 30).
Besides, who wants to give themselves a shot (sumatriptan) when a nasal
spray works?  DHE nasal spray is not widely available yet -- it has to
be mail ordered from one of a few pharmacies in the country -- but most
neurologists now know about it and know how to order it.
 
David Nye (nyeda@cnsvax.uwec.edu).  Midelfort Clinic, Eau Claire WI
This is patently absurd; but whoever wishes to become a philosopher
must learn not to be frightened by absurdities. -- Bertrand Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59537
From: barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu (Edwin Barkdoll)
Subject: Re: thermogenics

In article <80389@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>First off, if I'm not mistaken, only hibernating animals have brown fat,
>not humans.

	Human infants do have bown fat deposits while adult humans are
believed not to have brown fat.
	Also while brown fat may play an important role in rousing
hibernators, it is definitely not limited to hibernating animals -- it
is a common energy source for nonshivering thermogenesis.

-- 
Edwin Barkdoll
barkdoll@lepomis.psych.upenn.edu
eb3@world.std.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59538
From: jlecher@pbs.org
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

In article <1rmn0c$83v@morrow.stanford.edu>, mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou) writes:
> Hi all,
> 
> My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
> from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
> actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
> cure for this.
> 
> At the supermarkets or pharmacies, there are quite a lot of stuffs for
> dry skins, but what to chose?
> 
> Thanks in advance for all advices and hints.
> 
> Reply by email preferred.
> 
> Alex
> 
> 

As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and while I 
was there, I asked him about dry skin. I'd been spending a small fortune
on various creams, lotions, and other dry skin treatments.
He said all I needed was a large jar of vaseline. Soak in a lukewarm tub
of water for 10 minutes (ONLY 10 minutes!) then massage in the vaseline,
to trap the moisture in. That will help. I haven't tried it yet, but you
can bet I will. The hard part will be finding the time to rub in the
vaseline properly. If it's not done right, you remain greasy and stick
to your clothes.
Try it. It's got to be cheaper then spending $30 for 8 oz. of 'natural'
lotion.

Jane


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59539
Subject: Re: Earwax
From: nicholson_s@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz

In article <stephen.736092732@mont>, stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
>What is the healthiest way to deal with earwax?  Should one just leave
>it in your ear and not mess with it, or should you clean it out
>every so often?  Can cleaning it out damage your eardrums?
>Are there any tubes in your ear that might get blocked?
>
>Stephen
>

The best thing to do is leave it, it will work its own way out to the surface.
Anything you stick up there to try and clean it is just going to push the wax
up against your eardrum and pack it on there solid, thus impairing your
hearing .

Sean

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59540
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY

mcelwre@cnsvax.uwec.edu writes:

|          

|                              BIOLOGICAL ALCHEMY
|                          
|                        ( ANOTHER Form of COLD FUSION )

Gee, I'd FORGOTTEN about THIS NUT.

|               UN-altered REPRODUCTION and DISSEMINATION of this 
|          IMPORTANT Information is ENCOURAGED. 


|                                   Robert E. McElwaine
|                                   B.S., Physics and Astronomy, UW-EC

And we KNOW (CAN PROVE) what B.S. stands for in this case.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59541
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Subject: Re: Earwax

bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer) writes:
|One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
|a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
|trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
|works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
|water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
|out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
|comments?

When I have trouble it's usually because of water trapped by some
remaining wax.  I don't see why you can't just let it evaporate; it
should do this eventually.

	/J
=
Nets: levin@bbn.com  |  "Earn more sessions by sleeving."
pots: (617)873-3463  |
              N1MNF  |                               -- Roxanne Kowalski

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59542
From: theisen@uni-duesseldorf.de (Herr Theisen)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <1993Apr27.233234.2929@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu> wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne) writes:
>Newsgroups: sci.energy,sci.image.processing,sci.anthropology,alt.sci.physics.new-theories,sci.skeptic,sci.med,alt.alien.visitors
>Path: unidus.rz.uni-duesseldorf.de!rrz.uni-koeln.de!gmd.de!newsserver.jvnc.net!howland.reston.ans.net!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu!wvhorn
>From: wvhorn@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (William VanHorne)
>Subject: Re: Krillean Photography
>Message-ID: <1993Apr27.233234.2929@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>
>Sender: news@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Nntp-Posting-Host: bottom.magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu
>Organization: The Ohio State University
>References: <1993Apr26.204319.11231@ultb.isc.rit.edu> <C64MvG.BoI@usenet.ucs.indiana.edu> <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>
>Date: Tue, 27 Apr 1993 23:32:34 GMT
>Lines: 33
>Xref: unidus.rz.uni-duesseldorf.de sci.energy:6430 sci.image.processing:2668 sci.anthropology:2183 alt.sci.physics.new-theories:1762 sci.skeptic:18848 sci.med:18773 alt.alien.visitors:10138

>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
>>
>>Reading through the posts about Kirlian (whatever spelling)
>>photography I couldn't help but being slightly disgusted by the
>>narrow-minded, "I know it all", "I don't believe what I can't see or
>>measure" attitude of many people out there.
>>
>>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
>>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
>>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
>>
>>I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
>>something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
>>of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
>>were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.
>>
>>Especially the USA should be grateful; after all, Columbus did not
>>drop off the edge of the earth.

>It is one thing to be open-minded about phenomona that have not
>be demonstrated to be false, and quite another to "believe" in
>something like Krilian photography, where *all* the claimed effects
>have be demonstrated to be artifacts.  There is no longer any reason
>to adopt a "wait and see" attitude about Krilian photography, it
>has been experimentally shown to be nothing but simple coronal
>discharge.  The "auras" shown by missing leaf parts came from 
>moisture left by the original whole leaf, for example.  

>That's what science is, son.

>---Bill VanHorne


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59543
From: yozzo@watson.ibm.com (Ralph Yozzo)
Subject: Cold Sore Location?

I've had cold sores in the past.  But they have always been in the 
corner of my mouth.  Recently,  I've had what appears to be
a cold sore, but on my lower lip in the middle (above the chin).

Can cold sores appear anywhere around the mouth (or body)?

Is there a medical term for cold sore?

-- 
 Ralph Yozzo (yozzo@watson.ibm.com)  
 From the beautiful and historic New York State Mid-Hudson Valley.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59544
From: ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking)
Subject: thyroidal deficiency

Hi.

My wife has aquired some thyroidal (sp?) deficiency over the past year
that gives symptoms such as needing much sleep, coldness and proneness
to gaining weight. She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the 
gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?). The last couple of 
monthes she has been seeing a hoemoepath (sp?) and been given
some drops to re-activate either her thyroidal gland and/or the 
'message-center' in the brain (sorry about the approximate language,
but I haven't got many clues to what the english terms are, but the 
brain-area is called the 'hypofyse' in norwegian.) 

My questions are: has anyone had/heard of success in using this approach?
Her values have been (slowly but) steadily sinking, any comment on the
probability of improvement? Although the doctor has told her to 'eat
normally', my wife has dieted vigorously to keep her weight as she feels
that is part of keeping an edge over the illness/condition, may this
affect the treatment, development?

I can get the exact figures for her tests for anyone interested, and I
will greatly value any information/opinion/experience on this topic.

I don't intend this post to be either a flaming of the established
medical profession or a praise for alternatives, I am just relaying
events as they have happened.

Sincerely,

Erik A. Wolff

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59545
From: resinfo@resinfo.demon.co.uk (resinfo)
Subject: Investigating Phenylanine?

Resinfo (research and information) is currently seeking contact
_IN_ the United Kingdom with researchers of 'phenylanine', or is
this amino acid uninspiring?

Resinfo is not a regular subscriber to sci.med due to the 
excessive load of data and regrettably, our limited ability
to monitor. It would therefore be appreciated if replies
could be sent direct to;
resinfo@resinfo.demon.co.uk
using the ref: mr t.a.t.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59546
From: jge@cs.unc.edu (John Eyles)
Subject: insensitive technicians

A friend was recently admitted to North Carolina Memorial Hospital
because of suspected meningitis.  Serious business.  They wanted to do
a lumbar puncture, for which a CT scan is a prerequisite.

I arrived in her hospital room about an hour after she had returned
from the CT.   She was in tears.  Evidently the technicians in the CT
lab had been very unpleasant to her.

To begin with, they put her on the apparatus that moves you into the
machine itself, and just pushed a button to slide her straight into the
machine, without any explanation.  Imagine this.  You worried you may
have a deadly disease, and next thing you know you're being put into
this big scary machine, without a word of explanation about what is
going to happen to you.  I believe this is inexcusable.   She waved her
hand as if to say what are you doing to me, and they responded with
annoyance and anger.  Next they inserted, or tried to insert, an IV
catheter.  Apparently she has a lot of trouble with these and complained
of the pain.  The technician just stopped and fixed her with a glare
without any words of explanation.

Is there anything I can do about these pigs ?

I realize that these technicians do this sort of job day in and day
out.  And that some patients can be very irritating and uncooperative.
But this is simply no excuse.  Their purpose for existing is to help
sick people, and there is no excuse for this sort of behavior.
Fortunately my friend is fine.  But I imagine a large proportion of the
people who get CT scans are not fine at all.  They have cancer and that
sort of thing.  They don't need this kind of shit.

Also, since I named the hospital involved, I should also point out that
neither she nor I have any complaints about the competence or compassion
of any of the other personnel at NCMH.

Thanks for listening,
John Eyles
jge@cs.unc.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59547
From: u2nmh@csc.liv.ac.uk (N.M. Humphries)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

Thomas Trusk (ttrusk@its.mcw.edu) wrote:

> In article <C67G01.2J1@efi.com> alanm@efi.com (Alan Morgan) writes:
> >In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> 
> >  alex@vuse.vanderbilt.edu (Alexander P. Zijdenbos) writes:
> >
> >>I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
> >>so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
> >>as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
> >>quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.
> >
> >Oooooh.  Bad example.  I'm an atheist.
> >
> This is not flame, or abuse, nor do I want to start another thread (this
> is, after all, supposed to be about IMAGE PROCESSING).

> BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.

-- That means that there cannot be any atheists  since there is NO WAY that you
can prove that there is no god. Atheists are people who BELIEVE that there is no
god, most not only believe, but also are damn sure that there isn't a god (like
me).

  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     The Cursor, aka Nick Humphries, u2nmh@csc.liv.ac.uk, at your service.
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------
   "What's the use of computers? They'll never play  | "Why pay money to see
   chess, draw art or make music." - Jean Genet.     | bad films? Stay home 
   "Intelligence isn't to make no mistakes, but how  | and see bad TV for
   to make them look good." - Bertolt Brecht.        | free." - Sam Goldwyn.
  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59548
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: RE: Robert's Biological Alchemy

Robert,

I'm *so* glad that you posted your Biological Alchemy discussion.  I've 
been compared to the famous Robert McElwaine by some readers of Sci. Med.
I didn't know how to respond since I had not seen one of your posts(just 
like I haven't read "The Yeast Connection").

Let me just start by stating that the authors of the "Cold Fusion" papers of 
recent years are now in scientific exile(I believe that one has actually 
left the country).  Scientific fraud is rare.  I'm still not sure that if a 
review of the research notes of the "cold fusion scientists" actually 
proved fraud or just very shoddy experimentation.

Your sources do not seem to be research articles.  They are more like lay 
texts designed to pique human interest in a subject area(just like the food 
combining and life extension texts).  Robert, I try to keep an open mind.
But some things I just can't buy(one is taking SOD orally to prevent 
oxidative damage in the body).

Your experiment, if conducted by readers of this news group, would prove 
that you are right(more ash after seed sprouting than before).  Unless you 
use a muffle furnance and obtain a very high temperature(above 600 degrees 
I believe), you will get organic residue in the ash.  Even the residue in 
commercial incinerators contains organic residue.  I remember doing this 
kind of experiment in my organic chemistry couurse in College but I 
couldn't find a temperature for mineral ash formation so I'm really 
guessing at 600 degrees F, it may actually be much higher.  The point is 
that no one in their home could ever get a high enough temperature to 
produce *only* a mineral ash.  They also could not measure the minerals so 
they could only weigh the ash and find out that you appear to be correct. 

Chemical reactions abound in our body, in our atmosphere, in our water and 
in our soil.  Are these fusion reactions?  Yes many of them do involve 
fusing oxygen, nitrogen and sulfur to both organics and inorganics.  Do we 
really have the transformation of silicone to calcium if carbon is fused with 
silicon?  Not in my book Robert.

Silicon is the most abundant mineral on our planet.  I've seen speculation 
that man could have evolved to be a silicon based rather than a carbon 
based life-form.  I like reading science fiction, as many people do.  But I 
know enough about biochemistry(and nutrition) to be able(in most cases) to 
separate the fiction from the fact.

Silicon may be one of the trace elements that turns out to be essential in 
humans.  We have several grams of the stuff in our body.  What's it doing 
there?  Only the Lord knows right now.  But I will tell you what I do know 
about silicon and why, as you state, it helps bone healing(and it is not 
because silicon is transformed into calcium).

Almost all of the silicon in the human body is found in the connective 
tissue(collagen and elastin).  There have been studies published which show 
that the very high silicon content in elastin may be an important protective 
factor against atherosclerosis(the higher the silicon content in elastin, 
the more resistant the elastin is to a an age-related loss of elasticity 
which may play a role in the increase in blood pressure that is often seen as 
part of the ageing process in humans).

For bone fracture healing, the first step is a collagen matrix into which 
calcium and phosphate are pumped by osteoblasts.  A high level of silicon 
in the diet seems to speed up this matrix formation.  This first step in the 
bone healing process seems to be the hardest for some people to get going.
Electriacl currents have been used in an attempt to get the matrix forming 
cells oriented in the right direction so that the matrix can be formed in 
the gap(or gaps) between the ends of the broken bone.  A vitamin C deficiency
(by slowing collagen formation as well as causing the prodcution of 
defective collagen) does slow down both bone and wound healing.  Zinc is also 
another big player in bone and wound healing.  And so is silicon(in an  
undetermined role that most likely involes matrix formation and not 
transformation of silicon to calcium).  For you to take this bone healing 
observation and use it as proof that silicon is transformed into 
calcium is an interesting little trick.

But Robert, I have the same problem myself when I read the lay press(and 
yes even some scientific papers).  Is the explanation reasonable?  Without 
a very good science knowledge base, you and most readers of this news group 
are flying blind(you have to take it on faith because you don't know any 
better).

If the explanation seems to make sense to me based on my knowledge base, 
I'm inclined to consider it(this usually means trying to find other sources 
that come to the same conclusion).  If the idea(like a candida bloom) seems 
to make sense to me, I tend to pursue it as long as any advice that I'm 
going to give isn't going to really mess somebody up.  If this makes us 
kindred souls Robert, then I guess I'll have to live with that label.

For the physicians who have decided to read my response to Robert's 
interesting post, I hope that you saw the segment on the pediatric 
neurosurgeon last night on U.S. TV.  I can't remember the network or his 
name(like many nights, I was on my computer and my wife was watching TV in 
our Den where I have my computer setup).  This neurosurgeon takes kids with 
brain tumors that everyone else has given up on and he uses"unconventional"
treatments(his own words).  He says that he has a 70% success rate.  The one 
case that I heard him discussing would normally use radiation(conventional 
treatment).  He was going to go in and cut.  You guys complain about the 
cost of the anti-fungals.  What do you think the cost difference between 
radiation treatment and surgery is guys? 

I'm going to ask you guys one more time, why blast a physician who takes the 
chronic sinus sufferer(like Jon) and the chronic GI sufferer(like Elaine)
and tries to help them using unconventional treatments?  Treatments which 
do not result in death(like those that the neurosurgeon uses?).  Is it 
because candida blooms are not life-threatening while brain tumors are?
How about quality of life guys?  May the candida demon never cross your 
sinus cavity or gut(if it does, you may feel differently about the issue).

Marty B.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59549
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid


In article <1993Apr29.052044.23918@nmt.edu> houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle) writes:

> 	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
> antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
> (Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
> millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
> a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
> whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
> tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
> lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
> kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
> any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
> many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Antihistamines have been the active ingredient of OTC sleep aids for
decades.  Go to any drugstore and look at the packages of such sleep
aids as Sominex, Nytol, etc.  The active ingredient is:
diphenhydramine, the same antihistamine that's in Benadryl.



--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59550
From: uabdpo.dpo.uab.edu!gila005 (Stephen Holland)
Subject: Re: Annual inguinal hernia repair

> 
> In article <jpc.735692207@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov>, jpc@avdms8.msfc.nasa.gov
> (J. Porter Clark) wrote:
> [synopsis] Young man with inguianl hernia on one side, repaired, now has
> new hernia on other side.  What gives, he asks?  [and he continues...] 
> > Of course, my wife thinks it's from sitting for long periods of time at
> > the computer, reading news...
> 
> There is the possibility that there is some degree of constipation causing
> chronic straining which has caused the bowel movements.  The classic 
> problems that are supposed to be looked for in someone with a hernia are
> constipation, chronic cough, colon cancer (and you're not too young for
> that) and sitting for long periods of time at the computer, reading news.
> 
> Good Luck with your surgery!
> 
> Steve Holland

Well, that post was not that accurate.  People with early life hernias
are felt to have a congenital sack that promotes the formation of hernias.
The hernias of later life may be more associated with chronic straining.  
However, the risk of damage to the intestine without an operation is 
high enough that it ought to be repaired.  The risk of cancer is probably
no higher than the general population, but since you are near 40, it would
be sensible to have some sort of cancer screening, such as a flexible
sigmoidoscopy.  Sorry for the misleading info.

Steve Holland

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59551
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Subject: Re: allergic reactions against laser printers??

In article <1993Apr29.124806.4599@Informatik.TU-Muenchen.DE>, rdd@uts.ipp-garching.mpg.de (Reinhard Drube) writes:
> does anyone know about allergic reactions caused by the developer/toner
> of laser printers? What chemical stuff is involved?

Mainly carbon dust with iron in a plastic binder that is melted on to the
paper.  Same stuff as dry paper photocopiers.

Allergies?  Haven't heard of any, but anything's possible with allergies ;-)

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59552
From: gecko@camelot.bradley.edu (Anastasia Defend)
Subject: Physical Therapy Students



I am interested in finding other Physical Therapy Students on the
net...If you are one, or you know anyone could you get into contact
with me via email, my address is

gecko@camelot.bradley.edu


				thankyou

					anastasia
 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59553
From: SFB2763@MVS.draper.com (Eileen Bauer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.162636.22327@cc.ic.ac.uk>,
ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking) writes:

>Hi.
>
>My wife has aquired some thyroidal (sp?) deficiency over the past year
>that gives symptoms such as needing much sleep, coldness and proneness
>to gaining weight. She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
>tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
>not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the
>gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?).
>
...
>My questions are: has anyone had/heard of success in using this approach?
>Her values have been (slowly but) steadily sinking, any comment on the
>probability of improvement? Although the doctor has told her to 'eat
>normally', my wife has dieted vigorously to keep her weight as she feels
>that is part of keeping an edge over the illness/condition, may this
>affect the treatment, development?
>

There are several different types of Thyroid diseases which would cause
a hypothyroid condition (reduction in the output of the thyroid, mainly
thyroxin). Except for ones caused by infections, the treatment is
generally thyroxin pills. Hypothyroid conditions caused by infections
usually disappear when the infection does...this doesn't sound like the
case with your wife.
Thyroxin orally does "shut down the thyroid" through a feedback loop
involving the pituitary (I believe). The pituitary "thinks" that the
correct amount of thyroxin is being produced so it doesn't have to
tell the thyroid to produce more. This process is reversable! I have
Hashimoto's thyroiditis (an autoimmune condition) and was on thyroxin
for approx 6 mo when my endocrinologist suggested I not take the pills
for 6 wks. When I was retested for thyroxin levels, they were normal.
I still get tested every 6mo because the condition might reappear.
The pills are safe and have very few side-affects (& those mostly at
beginning of treatment). Having a baby might be a problem and would at
least require closer monitoring of hormone levels.
Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

I am not a doctor, so I'm sure I mistated something, but the important
thing is that thyroid problems are usually easily corrected and if they
aren't corrected can cause problems in the rest of the body. Get a
second opinion from a good endocrinologist and have him/her explain
things in detail to you and your wife.

- Eileen Bauer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59554
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Vitamin A and Infection

I've sent Gordon R. my posts on protein, vitamin C and vitamin A prior to 
posting on internet as a professional courtesy.  Somehow I've managed to 
delete my vitamin A post from my text file.  Gordon R. had promised to send 
it back to me but he's pretty mad at me right now so I'll just retype it.
Since digging through all my references is very time consuming(took me all 
day for that PMS post), I'm not going to cite any references(Gordon R. has 
them).  I'm going to include some of the material from Weinsier and 
Morgan's new Nutrition textbook(which was not in my original material) to 
point out that what I'm going to say has some support in the medical 
community.

Diet has been know to affect the immune system of man for a very, very long 
time.  Protein has always had the biggest role in infection and I've 
already covered the role of protein in protecting you against infection.
Now I'm going to hit what I consider to be the most important nutrient in 
the U.S. as far as infection is concerned(vitamin A).

When vitamin A was originally discovered, it was commonly referred to as 
the anti-infection vitamin.  Many people(Linus Pauling being one) have 
decided to take this title away from vitamin A and give it to vitamin C
(which I've already covered).  Big mistake(in my opinion).  Vitamin A is 
also getting a reputation as an anti-cancer vitamin(with good reason).
The NCI currently has numerous clinical trials in progress to see if 
vitamin A can not only prevent cancer but cure it as well.  It's role in 
both cancer and infection is almost identical(but not quite).

Vitamin A comes in two completely different forms(retinol and 
beta-carotene).  Retinol is the animal form and it's toxic, beta-carotene 
is the plant form and it's completely nontoxic.  Both retinol and beta-
carotene display good absorption in the human gut if bile is present
(60-80%).  The liver stores all of your retinol and doles it out for other 
tissues to use by synthesizing retinol binding protein(RBP).  A normal human 
adult liver should have 500,000IU to 1,000,000IU of retinol stored.  We 
are born with 10,000IU in our liver.  U.S. autopsy has shown that about 
30% of Americans die with the same(or less) amount of vitamin A as they 
were born with.  If you don't believe that nutritional reserves(like that 
of retinol in the liver) are important, then this low vitamin A reserve is 
not going to affect you.  But if you believe(like I do) that the nutrient 
reserves are important, then there is a problem with vitamin A in the U.S.

The U.S. RDA for vitamin A in an adult male is 1,000 RE or 5,000IU of 
vitamin A.  For adult feamles its 800 RE or 4,000IU of vitamin A.  Diet 
surveys show that most Americans are getting this amount of vitamin A
(either retinol or Beta-carotene) from their diet.  But the NRC(National 
Research Council) was going to release a new RDA table in 1985 that had the 
RDA for both vitamin A and vitamin C raised(C to 90mg per day and A to 
7,500IU per day for adult males).  That report and it's recommendations was 
killed.  Why? Concern over the increasing supplementation was the main 
reason.  RDAs are set to prevent clinical disease, not to keep nutrient 
reserves full.  Many scientist in the U.S. feel that the time has come to 
move away from the prevention of clinical pathology concept and move 
towards the promotion of optimum health concept, especially since we have 
some very good data now that show that nutrient reserves are extremely 
important during periods of stress.  The nutritonal concervatives won that 
battle and a new group of scientist were collected to come out with the 
1989 RDA list which lowered the RDA for several nutrients and moved the 
dietary guidelines back to where they were when we first started in the 
1940's(get enough to prevent clinical pathology, but not enough to fill 
the reserves).

We know from autopsy that only about 10% of Americans have a liver with a 
normal vitamin A reserve(500,000IU to 1,000,000IU).  I preach nutrient 
reserves to my students and tell them to measure them in their patients.
But for vitamin A, only a liver biopsy(or autopsy data) will tell you how 
much somebody has stored.  We can tell very easily if someone has 
overfilled his or her liver with vitamin A by measuring the serium retinol 
level(levels above 450ug/dl are highly suggestive that you have filled your 
liver with vitamin A and it's time to stop taking retinol).  The normal 
range of serum retinol will be 20-100ug/dl.  Hypervitaminosis A is 
diagnosed with a serum retinol level of 2,000ug/dl or higher(Interpretation 
of Diagnostic Test, Wallach, M.D., a Little Brown Series book).  This level 
of vitamin A in blood means that medical attention is necessary due to 
vitamin A toxicity.  Weinsier and Morgan take a much more conservative 
approach to vitamin A toxicity than does Wallach, as you will see later in 
this post.  Between 450ug/dl and 2,000ug/dl you should have plenty 
of warning that it's time to eliminate the retinol from your diet(headache, 
redness of the skin, hair loss, joint pain).

I tell all my students that will use vitamin A in their practice that they 
had better monitor the serum retinol level and stop when there are clear 
signs that the liver is full.  You will never really know if the patient 
needs the vitamin A(because you can not measure the pool in liver) but you 
will always know when it's time to stop(just like in those vitamin A for 
PMS studies).

Beta-carotene can be taken to fill up your liver with retinol and you will 
never have to worry about toxicity because the conversion of beta-carotene to 
retinol that occurs in both your gut and your liver will slow down(stops in the 
liver and slows down in the gut) when your liver is full of retinol.  But 
taking Beta-carotene as the source of retinol takes a very long time to 
fill the liver up(I've seen estimates of 20-30 years) if you are in the 30% 
that only has as much as you were born with in your liver(10,000IU).  One 
other problem with beta-carotene, if you have a zinc deficit, you will not 
convert as much beta-carotene to retinol in the gut or the liver because the 
enxzyme that does this conversion requires zinc.  In addition, the release of 
retinol from the liver is a zinc dependent process so a zinc deficit will 
cause a vitamin A deficit even if your liver has plenty of vitamin A.

Now what does vitamin A do in cancer and infection protection?  The body 
uses vitamin A(retinol) for many different things.  Vision(the first to be 
nailed down and where you see overt clinical pathology) uses the aldehyde
(retinal) and alcohol(retinol) form of vitamin A.  Reproduction uses the 
retinol form  and some retinal.  Infection and cancer protection uses 
retinoic acid.  How do you convert retinol(which your white blood cells 
and the mucosal cells get from blood) to retinoic acid?  You use enzymes, 
one of which requires vitamin C(this is why Pauling has tried to pull the 
title of anti-infection vitamin away from vitamin A).  Vitamin C does play 
a role in infection(interferon production for example) but it's biggest role 
is the conversion of retinol to retinoic acid.  If you increase your intake 
of vitamin C, you will increase your formation of retinoic acid.  But 
retinoic acid can not be converted back to retinol(as retinal can) and once 
it's formed, it's used and then lost to the body.  This is why the 1985 NRC 
group wanted to increase both vitamin C and vitamin A RDA's.

Most people taking large amounts of vitamin C really think that they are 
helping themselves.  If they don't have much vitamin A in their liver and 
they are not also increasing their intake of vitamin A, they actually do 
themselves more harm than good.

Retinoic acid functions in white blood cells to promote antibody formation.
In the mucus membrane, it is the main factor in promoting good mucus 
production and a good epithelial cell barrier to prevent infectious agents from 
entering the blood system.  The mucus membrane is referred to as the "first 
line" defense against infection.  For cancer, retinoic acid has been shown 
to act as a cell brake(it counteracts the effect of cell promoters which 
stimulate cells to divide).  Cancer has two distinct steps, DNA alteration 
and cell promotion.  For cells that normally divide all the time, promoters 
are not that important.  But for lung and breast tissue which does not 
normally divide, promoters are real important in the malignant process.
This is the major reason why the NCI has so many different clinical trials 
in progress using retinol and/or beta-carotene.

Chronic infection(irritation) of the mucus membranes is a signal that 
vitamin A may not be adequate.  I tell my students that any patient who 
walks into their office with a complaint of chronic infection has to be 
worked up for vitamin A(along with the other factors that medicine already 
has on it's list of causes for chronic infection).  I drive this home in my 
course at the Osteopathic College in Tulsa, when I teach at the allopathic 
medical school in Tulsa(OU's branch campus) and when I give CME lectures.

Dark adaptation is the best clinical test for vitamin A status since night 
vision is impacted when liver reverves drop to 50,000IU of retinol.  The 
serum level of retinol can also be used, but it does not drop until liver 
reserves drop below 10,000 to 20,000IU.  Asking a patient if they have 
trouble seeing at night is a good initial screen(if cataracts are ruled 
out).  In one study done on U.S. Spanish-Americans where serum retinol levels 
were measured, 25% of the sample population had a serum retinol level below 
20ug/dl.

As more studies are done on serum retinol levels in population groups of 
the U.S. that have had a history of high infection rates, we will probably 
see a much stonger correlation between infection incidence rates and low 
serum retinol levels.

What do Weinsier and Morgan have to say about vitamin A?  Here are excerpts
from their book:

Vitamin A functions in vision in the forrm of retinol, it is necessay for 
growth and differentation of epithelial tissue, and is required for 
reproduction, embryonic development, and bone growth.  Protein-calorie 
malnutrition and zinc deficiency may impair the absorption, transport, and 
metabolism of vitamin A.  Retinaldehyde is converted to retinoic acid, 
which has biological activity in growth and in cell diferentiation but not 
in reproduction or vision.  The most common procedure to evaluate vitamin A 
status is to measure the retinol level in plasma or serum.  The normal 
range for vitamin A content for a child is 20 to 90ug/dl.  Lower values are 
indicators of deficiency or depleted body stores.  Serum levels greater 
than 100ug/dl are indicative of toxic levels of vitamin A.  Dark adaptation 
tests and electroretinogram measurements are also useful but difficult to 
perform on young children.  Rapidly proliferating tissues are sensitive to 
vitamin A deficiency and may revert to an undifferentiated state.  The 
bronchorespiratory tract, skin, genitourinary system, gastrointestinal 
tract and sweat glands are adversely affected.  A daily intake of more than 
7.5mg(about 37,000IU) of retinol is not advised and chronic use of amounts 
over 20mg(100,000IU) can result in a dry and itching skin, desquamation, 
erythematous dermatitis, hair loss, joint pain, chapped lips, hyperostois
(bony depositis), headaches, anorexia, edema and fatigue.  

They recommend 30mg of retinol via IM injection in children for vitamin A 
deficiency but do not discuss treatment for adults.  Their toxic serum retinol 
level is very conservative.  I recommend that my students try 25,000IU in 
adults that are having problems with chronic infection.  They have to rule 
out a zinc deficit first by getting an RBC zinc run(or if their clinical 
lab can't run it, I tell them to do what Weinsier and Morgan suggest, give 
them the zinc along with the vitamin A.  At 25,000IU per day, toxicity 
should not be a problem and you will not have to worry about pulling the 
patient into the office on a regular basis to run a serum retinol.

Both Elaine and Jon found doctors who used a much higher dose of vitamin A.
Recall that the PMS papers were using 100,000IU to 200,000IU of vitamin A.
I don't suggest that my students use these high doses.  If you wanted to 
fill the liver up fast(as part of a clinical trial) and were monitoring the 
serum retinol level, then you would be okay.  But my knowledge of the 
vitamin A literature suggests to me that 25,000IU for patients with a 
demonstrated vitamin A deficit(dark adapatation test or serum retinol) will 
provide a good and steady improvement(as long as zinc and vitamin C status 
are good) without having to worry about toxicity.  If they want to get more 
agressive, fine if they follow my advise to check the serum retinol.  But 
vitamin A(retinol) should never be given in high dose to women who could 
become pregnant since vitamin A shows teratogenicity towards the human 
fetus.  The dose needed to show this effect on the developing fetus is 
18,000IU of retinol per day.  Beta-carotene will never have this effect on 
the human fetus.

Could just taking Beta-carotene instead of retinol supplements help?  Yes 
but the effect will take a long time to develop.  My advise is to use 
retinol to fill the liver up and then switch to beta-carotene to keep it 
full.  Vitamin A is probably one nutrient that is better off left to 
prescription by doctors.  But when we have the M.D.'s in this newsgroup 
jumping all over me and other doctors that propose the use of vitamin A 
supplements for treating patients with chronic sinus and GI distress, I 
think that the most prudent option is to keep vitamin A in the OTC market 
but require manufactors to provide package inserts to educate the general 
public about the dangers of vitamin A supplementation.

Marty B.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59555
From: donrm@sr.hp.com (Don Montgomery)
Subject: Re: feverfew for migraines

Brenda Bowden (brenda@bookhouse.Eng.Sun.COM) wrote:

: Does anyone know about these studies? Or have experience with feverfew?

I keep an accurate log of my migraine attack frequency; feverfew didn't
seem to do anything for me.  However, eliminating caffeine seems to pre-
vent the onset of migraine in my case.  In other words, no caffeine, no 
migraines.

Don Montgomery
donrm@sr.hp.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59556
From: jhilmer@ruc.dk (Jakob Hilmer)
Subject: NEED VALUES FOR AORTA!


We need following data for human aorta:

  Tear and shear stress for aorta.
  A plot of the aortic cross-sectional area.  
  Stroke-volume at the aortic root.
  Approximate distribution of blood through the major arterial
      branches of the aorta.
  Flow velocity of blood in aorta.
  
We have various values for flow velocity, If you have any data remember to
give us the references too include in our report

--
Stud. Jakob Hilmer		Fax: (+45) 45 93 34 34
Hus 7.1 Gr. 8a			
Roskilde University, Denmark
Postbox 260
DK-4000 Roskilde






  
  


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59557
From: wdw@dragon.acadiau.ca (Bill Wilder)
Subject: Seeking info on retinal detachment

I am quite near sighted.

I've recently received laser treatment for both eyes to seal
holes in the retinas to help prevent retinal detachment. In my
left eye a small detachment had begun already and apparently the
laser was used to "weld" this back in place as well.

My right eye seems fine. In my left eye I was seeing occasional
flashes of bright light prior to the treatment. Since the
treatment (two weeks) these flashes are now occuring more often
- several each hour.

The opthamologist explained the flashes are caused because the
vitreous body has attached to the retina and is pulling on it. He
says this is not treatable and he hopes it may go away on its own
accord - if it tugs enough I may well face retinal detachment.

I am seeking (via sci.med) additional info on retinal detachments.
The Dr. did not wish to spend much time with me in explanations
so I appreciate any further details anyone can provide. Of most
interest to me:

If my retina does detach what should be my immediate course
of action?

If conventional surgery is need to repair the detachment what is
the procedure like and what kind of vision can I expect
afterwards.

Do the symptoms (fairly frequent flashes) imply that detachment
maybe near at hand or is this not necessarily cause for alarm.

Many thanks

Bill
-- 
Bill Wilder, Computer Systems Manager 
Kentville Research Station
Agriculture Canada
Kentville, Nova Scotia

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59558
From: ningeg@leland.Stanford.EDU (Nick Ingegneri)
Subject: Ethics regarding placebo/homeopathic "medicines"

I would like to know if their is any medical consensus
(or consensus within this group) regarding the ethics
of the following:

  1: Prescription of placebo medications when the patient
     did not specifically request any sort of treatment.

  2: Selling a placebo medication for a profit.

  3: Prescribing homeopathic remedies without advising
     a patient of their "controversial nature".

  4: Representing homeopathic remedies as "over the counter"
     medications.

Thanks,
Nick Ingegneri

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59559
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

In article <1993Apr29.052044.23918@nmt.edu> houle@nmt.edu (Paul Houle) writes:
>	Anyway,  I am looking for advice for the use of
>antihistamines as sleep aids,  and if there are any dangers of such use
>(Seems safe to me since they are used chronically for allergies by
>millions).  I don't want to try BZs,  because BZ addiction seems to be
>a serious threat,  and from what I hear,  BZ sleep quality is not good,
>whereas antihistamine sleep quality seems to be better for me.  I have
>tried some dietary tryptophan loading stuff,  and that also seems to
>lower sleep quality,  I seem to wake up around 4:00 or so and be in some
>kind of mental haze until 7:00 or 8:00.  Also,  I would be interested in
>any other advice for helping my problem.  (Although I've already tried
>many of the non-pharmacological solutions)

Well, I think you might want to visit a doctor who is familiar with
sleep disturbances, because antihistamines only help induce sleep when
they're used intermittently; they lose their sedative effect if they're
used on a nightly basis.  Their anticholinergic effects (drying of secretions,
relaxing effects on smooth muscle) can be problematic in some people, such as
those with glaucoma or prostate enlargement.

Antihistamines like diphenhydramine (Benadryl) or doxylamine (Unisom)
are potent sedatives which are useful occasionally.  Chlorpheniramine
(Chlor-Trimeton) is said to be less sedative, but 8mg seems to work
well in some people.  Both chlorpheniramine and doxylamine have long
half-lives compared to diphenhydramine, and so may produce a residual
hangover or "drugged" feeling the next morning.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59560
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.162636.22327@cc.ic.ac.uk> ewolff@ps.ic.ac.uk (Erik The Viking) writes:
>She has been to a doctor and taken the ordinary (?)
>tests and her values were regarded as low. The doctor (and my wife) are
>not very interested in starting medication as this "deactivates" the 
>gland, giving life-long dependency to the drug (hormone?).

This is ridiculous, and your doctor sounds like a nut, if what is
reported here is what the doctor actually said.  If your wife's
pancreas stops producing insulin and therefore becomes diabetic, she'll
need insulin replacement.  That doesn't mean she's "dependent" on
insulin, anymore than she was beforehand--if her body doesn't make
enough, she'll have to get it elsewhere.  Oral thyroid replacement
hormone therapy is the cornerstone of treatment for hypothyroidism, and
it's really the only effective therapy available anyway.  Plus, it's
cheap.  Taking thyroid hormone when it isn't needed does cause your
thyroid gland to reduce its own production of the hormone, but that's a
_feature_, not a _bug_, and it's irrelevant in any case in the face of
hypothyroidism, because her problem that her gland isn't producing
enough.  There isn't a clinical phenomenon of "thyroid insufficiency"
caused by a sudden discontinuation of exogenous thyroid hormone
analogous to adrenal insufficiency caused by the sudden cessation of
prolonged administration of corticosteroids, so there should be no
worry about inappropriately "suppressing" the thyroid gland.

>The last couple of 
>monthes she has been seeing a hoemoepath (sp?) and been given
>some drops to re-activate either her thyroidal gland and/or the 
>'message-center' in the brain (sorry about the approximate language,
>but I haven't got many clues to what the english terms are, but the 
>brain-area is called the 'hypofyse' in norwegian.) 

Homeopathy is nonsense.  Tell her to stop wasting her money, health and time,
and get her to a legitimate doctor who will be in a position to make
a proper diagnosis and recommend the right therapy.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59561
From: bai@msiadmin.cit.cornell.edu (Dov Bai-MSI Visitor)
Subject: Re: Earwax

In article <lu2defINNac7@news.bbn.com> levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin) writes:
>bobm@Ingres.COM (Bob McQueer) writes:
>|One question I do have - a doctor who flushed out my ears once also advocated
>|a drop of rubbing alcohol in them afterwards to flush out any remaining
>|trapped water - said he told swimmers to do this after swimming, too.  It
>|works, but it stings like the devil, so I've always been content to let any
>|water in my ears from swimming or flushing them out figure out how to get
>|out by itself if shaking my head a few times won't do the trick.  Any
>|comments?

Perhaps diluting the rubbing alcohol in some water, until you
feels comfortable will do the trick ?



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59562
From: cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid

But after you have taken antihistamines for a few nights, doesn't it start
to have a paradoxical effect?  I used to take one every night for
allergies and couldn't figure out why I developed bad insomnia.  Finally
figured out it was the antihistamines.  I would fall asleep for a few
minutes but would awaken at the drop of a pin a little later and could not
get back to sleep.  I don't have that problem since I stopped the
antihistamines at bedtime.  ?

Alice


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59563
From: george@crayola.East.Sun.COM (George A. Perkins  Sun Microsystems  Tampa FL  Systems Engineer)
Subject: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...


Hi sci.med folks...

I would like to know anything you folks can tell me regarding Lithium.

I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to 
know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.

I have a booklet from the "Lithium Information Center" based at the 
University of Wisconsin, but feel that it is pro-lithium and would be
interested in comments from the "not necessarily PRO" side of the fence.

I am a concerned father and just wish to be well informed...

Thanks for any information you can provide.

Please email me directly...

---
    /\        George A. Perkins
   \\ \       Systems Engineer
  \ \\ /      Sun Microsystems Computer Corporation
 / \/ / /     6200 Courtney Campbell Causeway
/ /   \//\    Suite 840
\//\   / /    Tampa, FL  33607
 / / /\ /     
  / \\ \      Phone:  (813) 289-7228
   \ \\       Fax:    (813) 281-0219
    \/        EMail:  george.perkins@East.Sun.COM


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59564
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?

In article <1993Apr30.035235.26613@pbs.org> , jlecher@pbs.org writes:
>As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and
while I 

Seeing a dermatologist sounds like a very good idea if you are
worried about your dry skin.

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59565
From: Donald Mackie <Donald_Mackie@med.umich.edu>
Subject: Re: insensitive technicians

In article <1rrhi9INN2bq@ceti.cs.unc.edu> John Eyles, jge@cs.unc.edu
writes:
Friend's unpleasant experience uring CT scan deleted
>Is there anything I can do about these pigs ?

I'd suggest writing a detailed letter about the incident to the
hospital administrator. Specify the date and time. If possible the
names of the technicians. 

Send a copy to the clinician under whose care your friend was
admitted. I say this because, though your friend has no argument
with the doctor, I have found that administrators sometimes ignore
complaints until the patient becomes litigious. Clinicians may not
have been informed of the complaint and are very surprised to find
themselves named in a suit.

If there is no response within a week send a follow up letter.
Attach a photocopy of the original letter. Do this weekly until you
do get a response.

CAT scans are non-invasive but they can be very scary. The scanner
can be a bad place for the claustrophobic. There was an interesting
study in the BMJ, about 10 years ago, which found that around 10% of
people who had CAT scans found it so unpleasant that they would
never have another. This compares with 15% who said the same about a
lumbar puncture. 

Don Mackie - his opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59566
From: calzone@athena.mit.edu
Subject: Legality of placebos?



How is it that placebos are legal?  It would seem to me that if, as a patient,
you purchase a drug you've been prescribed and it's just sugar (or whatever),
there's a few legal complications that arise:

	1. 
If you have been diagnosed with a condition and you aren't given accepted
treatment for it, it seems like intentional medical malpractice.

	2.
A placebo should fall, legally, under the label of quackery (why not?)

	3.
Getting what you pay for.  (Deceptive "bait and switch" to an extreme...).  False
advertising  (what if McDonalds didn't put 100% pure beef in their hamburgers?)


	So I'm mystified.  Are these assumptions erred?  If they aren't, why the
hell can a doctor knowingly or unknowingly prescribe a placebo?

Thanks
calzone

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59567
From: claude@banana.fedex.com (claude bowie)
Subject: vitamin A and hearing loss

i heard a news report indicating research showing improved         
hearing in people taking vitamin A. the research showed that new    
growth replaced damaged "hairlike" nerves. has anyone heard about
this? 

thanks,
claude
-- 
claude bowie			| voice:  (901)797-6332
federal express corp		| fax:    (901)797-6388
box 727-2891, memphis, tn 38194 | email:  claude@banana.fedex.com

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59568
From: bitn@kimbark.uchicago.edu (nathan elery bitner)
Subject: Deadly NyQuil???

I originally posted this to alt.suicide.holiday but it was recommended
that I try you guys instead:

My friend insists that Ny-Quil can be deadly if enough is taken -- he
suggested something like 20-30 of the Night-time gelcaps would do someone
in.  Being a NORMAL user of Ny-Quil :), I checked the 'ingredients' and
have a very hard time believing it.  They are:

250 g acetaminophen
30 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl
10 mg Dextromethorphan HBr
6.25 mg Doxylamine Succinate

(per softgel)

Can someone settle our bet (a package of Ny-Quil of course :) -- what 
effect would 20-30 of these babies have?

*-Nathan-*

-- 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
|                         INTER ARMA SILENT LEGES                      |
| "Worship Ditka NOW."                email:  bitn@midway.uchicago.edu |
|______________________________________________________________________| 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59569
From: abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency


In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com  
(Eileen Bauer) writes:
> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59570
From: George <george_paap@email.sps.mot.com>
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <80412@cup.portal.com> Mark Robert Thorson, mmm@cup.portal.com
writes:
> Colonics were a health fad of the 19th century, which persists to this
day.
> Except for certain medical conditions, there is no reason to do this.
> Certainly no normal person should do this.

In article <1993Apr28.023749.9259@informix.com> Robert Hartman,
hartman@informix.com writes:
> Also, insofar as it doesn't conform to the accepted medical presumption
> that it just doesn't matter what you eat, and that we can think of the
> GI tract as a black box in which nothing ever goes wrong (except for
> maybe cancer and ulcers), the righteous will no doubt jump on that too.

Recently, I completed a 2 week juice fast (with 3 days of water) and had
two colonics as part of it.  My motivation was primarily spiritual, to
de-toxify from all the crap I've been putting in my body (not like thats
enough to clean it all out but it did have an effect).  Personaly, I
didn't find it an uncomfortable experience (the colonic), lost about
15lbs of beer belly (which hasn't come back over the last month), and
feel great.  One of the things that prompted me to get the colonic was
seeing my 90 year old grandmother chair ridden from colitis (?) from
years of indulgence.

Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
my body a hand once in a while.

Just my experience,

George Paap

I am my beliefs.
(which almost certainly are not those of my employer)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59571
From: jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton)
Subject: Re: Legality of placebos?

calzone@athena.mit.edu wrote:
>
>
>How is it that placebos are legal?  It would seem to me that if, as a patient,
>you purchase a drug you've been prescribed and it's just sugar (or whatever),
>there's a few legal complications that arise:
>
>	1. 
>If you have been diagnosed with a condition and you aren't given accepted
>treatment for it, it seems like intentional medical malpractice.

A placebo is an accepted treatment at times. 

>	2.
>A placebo should fall, legally, under the label of quackery (why not?)

Why should it?  Placebos are effective under certain circumstances.  That's
why they're used.  

Actually, I don't know know anyone who has actually gotten a "sugar pill".
I don't know how it could be done, since prescription drugs are always
labeled, and it's easy enough to find out what's in a pill if you have the
name.

It's more common to prescribe a drug which is effective for something, just
not for what you have.  Antibiotics for viral infections are the most
common such placebo. 

>	3.
>Getting what you pay for.  (Deceptive "bait and switch" to an extreme...).  False
>advertising  (what if McDonalds didn't put 100% pure beef in their hamburgers?)

I'm not sure what you mean by this.  What do you think you're paying for?
You're not entitled to a prescription drug just because you pay for a
doctor's appointment.  

-- 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jack Hamilton  KD6TTL  jfh@netcom.com  PO Box 281107  SF, CA  94128  USA

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59572
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: vitamin A and hearing loss

In article <1993Apr30.194806.10652@banana.fedex.com>, claude@banana.fedex.com (claude bowie) writes:
> i heard a news report indicating research showing improved         
> hearing in people taking vitamin A. the research showed that new    
> growth replaced damaged "hairlike" nerves. has anyone heard about
> this? 
> 
Claude, I've not heard or read anything that would suggest that vitamin A(
retinol) could reverse hearing loss due to nerve damage(usually caused by 
high sound levels, but also occassionally due to severe infection).  The 
types of cells that vitamin A regulates are the general epithelial cells 
and these cell types are not the ones that function in the ear hearing 
process.  The hair cell nerve-like epithelial cells in the ear may respond 
to vitamin A during cellular differentiation(embryogenesis) but I don't 
know if they are still capable of responding in adults.  If they are 
capable of responding with new hair growth, this would be a very major 
breakthrough in hearing loss.  With all of the medical interest in vitamin 
A, it would not be too surprising if a clinical study was done using 
vitamin A to reverse hearing loss.  But with only a news announcement to go 
on(and this type of communication is notoriously bad), I can't comment on 
your question anymore than I already have.  If one study has been done, 
more will need to follow to firm up a link between vitamin A and hearing 
loss if there really is one.

Marty B. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59573
From: SFB2763@MVS.draper.com (Eileen Bauer)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

In article <1993Apr30.211625.568@adobe.com>,
abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno) writes:

>
>In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com
>(Eileen Bauer) writes:
>> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
>> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
>> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.
>
>Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?

Perhaps the listlessness caused by thyroid deficiency could mimic
depression, or feeling unable to do anything could cause one to get
depressed, but I know of no specific effect on the brain caused by the
thyroid that would cause depression. Note that weight gain is usually
a symptom of both. Simple blood tests would indicate if a thyroid
condition is present.

I don't know if depression would cause a reduction in thyroid output,
but I would tend to doubt it. As far as I know clinical depression is
caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain, and that chemical
imbalance has no direct effect on any other part of the body. A regular
everyday depression IMHO should not cause a chemical imbalance in the
body at all.

The pituitary bases its secretions of Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH)
on the level of circulating Thyroxin (there are two types T3 and T4 -
one is used as a reserve and is changed into the other -active- form in
the liver). The ratio of T3 & T4 can be affected by a number of other
hormones (estrogen, for example). Naturally, changing activity of the
body's cells would cause changes in availabilty of free thyroxin, but
the liver and a healthy thyroid should be able to balance things out in
short order.

Good sources for info on the thyroid are the Merk Manual (a physician's
reference book ) although reading it is enough to get one depressed :-)
and the Encyclopedia Brittanica (should be available in your local
library).

I hope this has been of some help.

-Eileen Bauer

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59574
From: swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil (Steve Kirchoefer)
Subject: RESULT: misc.health.diabetes passes 155:14

Voting for creation of the newsgroup misc.health.diabetes ended at
23:59 GMT on 29 Apr 93.  At this time, the total response received
consisted of 155 votes for newsgroup creation and 14 votes against
newsgroup creation.  Under the Guidelines for Usenet Group Creation,
this response constitutes a passing vote.

There will be a delay to allow time for the net to respond to this
result, after which the newsgroup misc.health.diabetes should be
created.

Please check the vote acknowledgement list to be sure that your vote
was received and properly credited.  Any inconsistencies or errors
should be reported to swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil by email.

I want to thank everyone who participated in the discussion and vote
for this newsgroup proposal.

The following is the voting summary:

Votes received against newsgroup creation:

cline@usceast.cs.scarolina.edu               Ernest A. Cline
coleman@twin.twinsun.com                     Mike Coleman
ejo@kaja.gi.alaska.edu                       Eric J. Olson
elharo@shiva.njit.edu                        Elliotte Rusty Harold
emcguire@intellection.com                    Ed McGuire
hansenr@ohsu.EDU
hmpetro@mosaic.uncc.edu                      Herbert M. Petro
jjmorris@gandalf.rutgers.edu                 Joyce Morris
julian@bongo.tele.com                        Julian Macassey
knauer@cs.uiuc.edu                           Rob Knauerhase
lau@ai.sri.com                               Stephen Lau
macridis_g@kosmos.wcc.govt.nz                Gerry Macridis
owens@cookiemonster.cc.buffalo.edu           Bill Owens
rick@crick.ssctr.bcm.tmc.edu                 Richard H. Miller

Votes received for newsgroup creation:

9781BMU@VMS.CSD.MU.EDU                       Bill Satterlee
a2wj@loki.cc.pdx.edu                         Jim Williams
ac534@freenet.carleton.ca                    Colin Henein
ad@cat.de                                    Axel Dunkel
al198723@academ07.mty.itesm.mx               Jesus Sanchez Pe~a
andrea@unity.ncsu.edu
anugula@badlands.NoDak.edu                   RamaKrishna Reddy Anugula
apps@sneaks.Kodak.com                        Robert W. Apps
arperd00@mik.uky.edu                         Alicia R. Perdue
baind@gov.on.ca                              Dave Bain
balamut@morris.hac.com                       Morris Balamut
bch@Juliet.Caltech.Edu                       Bryan Hathorn
bernsteinn@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL            Norman P. Bernstein
BGAINES@ollamh.ucd.ie                        Brian Gaines
bgeer@beorn.sim.es.com                       Bob Geer
Bjorn.B.Larsen@delab.sintef.no               Bjorn B. Larsen
bobw@hpsadwc.sad.hp.com                      Bob Waltenspiel
bock@VSIKP0.UNI-MUENSTER.DE                  Dirk Bock
bruce@uxb.liverpool.ac.uk                    Bruce Stephens
bspencer@binkley.cs.mcgill.ca                Brian Spencer
claudia@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL               Claudia Servadio-Coyne
compass-da.com!tomd@compass-da.com           Thomas Donnelly
constabiled@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL           Diane Constabile
csc@coast.ucsd.edu                           Charles Coughran
curtech!sbs@unh.edu                          Stephanie Bradley-Swift
debrum#m#_brenda@msgate.corp.apple.com       Brenda DeBrum
dlb@fanny.wash.inmet.com                     David Barton
dlg1@midway.uchicago.edu                     Deborah Lynn Gillaspie
dougb@comm.mot.com                           Douglas Bank
drs@sunsrvr3.cci.com                         Dale R. Seim
dt4%cs@hub.ucsb.edu                          David E. Goggin
ed@titipu.resun.com                          Edward Reid
edmoore@hpvclc.vcd.hp.com                    Ed Moore
emilio@Accurate.COM                          Elizabeth Milio
ewc@hplb.hpl.hp.com                          Enrico Coiera
"feathr::bluejay"@ampakz.enet.dec.com
franklig@GAS.uug.Arizona.EDU                 Gregory C. Franklin
FSSPR@acad3.alaska.edu
gabe@angus.mi.org                            Gabe Helou
gasp@medg.lcs.mit.edu                        Isaac Kohane
gavin@praxis.co.uk                           Gavin Finnie
Geir.Millstein@TF.tele.no                    Geir Millstein
ggurman@cory.Berkeley.EDU                    Gail Gurman
ggw@wolves.Durham.NC.US                      Gregory G. Woodbury
gmalet@surfer.win.net                        Gary Malet
GONZALEZ@SUHEP.PHY.SYR.EDU                   Gabriela Gonzalez
greenlaw@oasys.dt.navy.mil                   Leila Thomas
grm+@andrew.cmu.edu                          Gretchen Miller
halderc@cs.rpi.edu                           Carol Halder
HANDELAP%DUVM.BITNET@pucc.Princeton.EDU      Phil Handel
hc@Nyongwa.cam.org
heddings@chrisco.nrl.navy.mil                Hubert Heddings
herbison@lassie.ucx.lkg.dec.com
HOSCH2263@iscsvax.uni.edu                    Kathleen Hosch
hrubin@pop.stat.purdue.edu                   Herman Rubin
HUDSOIB@AUDUCADM.DUC.AUBURN.EDU              Ingrid B. Hudson
huff@MCCLB0.MED.NYU.EDU                      Edward J. Huff
huffman@ingres.com                           Gary Huffman
HUYNH_1@ESTD.NRL.NAVY.MIL                    Minh Huynh
ishbeld@cix.compulink.co.uk                  Ishbel Donkin
James.Langdell@Eng.Sun.COM                   James Langdell
jamie@SSD.intel.com                          Jamie Weisbrod
jamyers@netcom.com                           John A. Myers
jc@crosfield.co.uk                           Jerry Cullingford
jcobbe@garnet.acns.fsu.edu                   James Cobbe
jesup@cbmvax.cbm.commodore.com               Randell Jesup
joannm@hpcc01.corp.hp.com                    JoAnn McGowan
joep@dap.csiro.au                            Joe Petranovic
John.Burton@acenet.auburn.edu                John E. Burton, Jr.
johncha@comm.mot.com
JORGENSONKE@CC.UVCC.EDU                      Keith Jorgenson
jpsum00@mik.uky.edu                          Joey P. Sum
JTM@ucsfvm.ucsf.edu                          John Maynard
julien@skcla.monsanto.com
kaminski@netcom.com                          Peter Kaminski
kerry@citr.uq.oz.au                          Kerry Raymond
kieran@world.std.com                         Aaron L. Dickey
kolar@spot.Colorado.EDU                      Jennifer Lynn Kolar
kriguer@tcs.com                              Marc Kriguer
laurie@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL                Laurie J. Key
lee@hal.com                                  Lee Boylan
lmt6@po.cwru.edu                             Lia M. Treffman
lunie@Lehigh.EDU
lusgr@chili.CC.Lehigh.EDU                    Stephen G. Roseman
M.Beamish@ins.gu.edu.au                      Marilyn Beamish
M.Rich@ens.gu.edu.au                         Maurice H. Rich
maas@cdfsga.fnal.gov                         Peter Maas
marilyn@LONEXA.ADMIN.RL.AF.MIL               Marilyn M. Tucker
markv@hpvcivm.vcd.hp.com                     Mark Vanderford
MASCHLER@vms.huji.ac.il                      Michael Maschler
mcb@net.bio.net                              Michael C. Berch
mcday@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu                       Marrianne C. Day
mcookson@flute.calpoly.edu
melynda@titipu.resun.com                     Melynda Reid
mfc@isr.harvard.edu                          Mauricio F. Contreras
mg@wpi.edu                                   Martha Gunnarson
mhollowa@libserv1.ic.sunysb.edu              Michael Holloway
misha@abacus.concordia.ca                    Misha Glouberman 
mjb@cs.brown.edu                             Manish Butte
MOFLNGAN@vax1.tcd.ie                         Margaret O' Flanagan
muir@idiom.berkeley.ca.us                    David Muir Sharnoff
N.D.Treby@southampton.ac.uk                  N. D. Treby
N.J.C.Hookey@durham.ac.uk                    N. J. C. Hookey
Nancy.Block@Eng.Sun.COM                      Nancy Block
ndallen@r-node.hub.org                       Nigel Allen
nlemur@eecs.umich.edu                        Nigel Lemur
nlr@B31.nei.nih.gov                          Nathan Rohrer
pams@hpfcmp.fc.hp.com                        Pam Sullivan
papresco@undergrad.math.uwaterloo.ca         Paul Prescod
paslowp@cs.rpi.edu                           Pam Paslow
phil@unet.umn.edu                            Phil Lindberg
pillinc@gov.on.ca                            Christopher Pilling
pkane@cisco.com                              Peter Kane
pmmuggli@midway.ecn.uoknor.edu               Pauline Muggli
popelka@odysseus.uchicago.edu                Glenn Popelka
pulkka@cs.washington.edu                     Aaron Pulkka
pwatkins@med.unc.edu                         Pat Watkins
rbnsn@mosaic.shearson.com                    Ken Robinson
rmasten@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu            Roger Masten
robyn@media.mit.edu                          Robyn Kozierok
rolf@green.mathematik.uni-stuttgart.de       Rolf Schreiber
sageman@cup.portal.com
sasjcs@unx.sas.com                           Joan Stout
sca@space.physics.uiowa.edu                  Scott Allendorf
SCOTTJOR@delphi.com
scrl@hplb.hpl.hp.com
scs@vectis.demon.co.uk                       Stuart C. Squibb
shan@techops.cray.com                        Sharan Kalwani
sharen@iscnvx.lmsc.lockheed.com              Sharen A. Rund
shazam@unh.edu                               Matthew T. Thompson
shipman@csab.larc.nasa.gov                   Floyd S. Shipman
shoppa@ERIN.CALTECH.EDU                      Tim Shoppa
sjsmith@cs.UMD.EDU                           Stephen Joseph Smith
slillie@cs1.bradley.edu                      Susan Lillie
steveo@world.std.com                         Steven W. Orr
surendar@ivy.WPI.EDU                         Surendar Chandra
swkirch@sun6850.nrl.navy.mil                 Steven Kirchoefer
S_FAGAN@twu.edu                              Liz Fagan
TARYN@ARIZVM1.ccit.arizona.edu               Taryn L. Westergaard
Thomas.E.Taylor@gagme.chi.il.us              Thomas E. Taylor
tima@CFSMO.Honeywell.COM                     Timothy D. Aanerud
tsamuel%gollum@relay.nswc.navy.mil           Tony Samuel
U45301@UICVM.UIC.EDU                         Mary Jacobs  
vstern@gte.com                               Vanessa Stern
wahlgren@haida.van.wti.com                   James Wahlgren
Waldref@tv.tv.tek.com                        Greg Waldref
waterfal@pyrsea.sea.pyramid.com              Douglas Waterfall
weineja1@teomail.jhuapl.edu
wgrant@informix.com                          William Grant
WINGB@Underdale.UniSA.edu.au                 Brian Wing
YEAGER@mscf.med.upenn.edu
yozzo@watson.ibm.com                         Ralph E. Yozzo
ysharma@yamuna.b11.ingr.com                  Yamuna Sharma
Z919016@beach.utmb.edu                       Molly Hamilton
zulu@iesd.auc.dk                             Bjoern U. Gregersen

The charter for misc.health.diabetes appears below.
 
--------------------------
 
Charter:  
 
misc.health.diabetes                            unmoderated
 
1.   The purpose of misc.health.diabetes is to provide a forum for the
discussion of issues pertaining to diabetes management, i.e.: diet,
activities, medicine schedules, blood glucose control, exercise,
medical breakthroughs, etc.  This group addresses the issues of
management of both Type I (insulin dependent) and Type II (non-insulin
dependent) diabetes.  Both technical discussions and general support
discussions relevant to diabetes are welcome.
 
2.   Postings to misc.heath.diabetes are intended to be for discussion
purposes only, and are in no way to be construed as medical advice.
Diabetes is a serious medical condition requiring direct supervision
by a primary health care physician.  
 
-----(end of charter)-----
-- 
Steve Kirchoefer                                             (202) 767-2862
Code 6851                                      kirchoefer@estd.nrl.navy.mil
Naval Research Laboratory                       Microwave Technology Branch
Washington, DC  20375-5000              Electronics Sci. and Tech. Division

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59575
From: grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

ttrusk@its.mcw.edu (Thomas Trusk) writes:
: 
: BUT, to say you're an atheist is to suggest you have PROOF there is NO GOD.
: To be a politically-correct skeptic, better to go with agnostic, like me! :)
:

As a self-proclaimed atheist my position is that I _believe_ that there is
no god.  I don't claim to have any proof.  I interpret the agnostic position 
as having no beliefs about god's existence.

--
Grant Edwards                                 |Yow!  Are we THERE yet?  My
Rosemount Inc.                                |MIND is a SUBMARINE!!
                                              |
grante@aquarius.rosemount.com                 |

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59576
From: mavmav@mksol.dseg.ti.com (michael a vincze)
Subject: Re: Chromium for weight loss

In article <93119.141946U18183@uicvm.uic.edu>, <U18183@uicvm.uic.edu> writes:
|>   There is no data to show chromium is effective in promoting weight loss.  The
|>  few studies that have been done using chromium have been very flawed and inher
|> ently biased (the investigators were making money from marketing it).
|>   Theoretically it really doesnt make sense either. The claim is that chromium
|> will increase muscle mass and decrease fat.  Of course, chromium is also used t
|> o cure diabetes, high blood pressure and increase muscle mass in athletes(just
|> as well as anabolic steroids). Sounds like snake oil for the 1990's :-)



Where are your references?  I have been unable to find studies that state
that chromium "cures diabetese".  It can reduce the amount of insulin you
have to take.  "High blood pressure" - I have never heard of this claim
before.  "... anabolic steroids" - I have also never heard of this claim
before.  Sounds like you are making things up and stretching the truth
for God knows what reason.  Did somebody piss you off at one time?



|>  On the other hand, it really cant hurt you anywhere but your wallet, and place
|> bo effects of anything can be pretty dramatic...



I agree with you that chromium picolinate by itself isn't likely
to make a fat person thin.  But it can be the decisive component
of an overall strategy for long-term weight control and make an
important contribution to good health.  It is important to
exercise (11, 12) and also avoid fat calories (9, 10).

Chromium picolinate has shown to reduce fat and increase
lean muscle (1, 2, 3).  I will not bore you with the
statistics.  You wouldn't believe these anyway.

Chromium Picolinate is an exceptionally bioactive source of
the essential mineral chromium.  Chromium plays a vital role
in "sensitizing" the body's tissues to the hormone insulin.
Weight gain in the form of fat tends to impair sensitivity
to insulin and thus, in turn, makes it harder to lose
weight (4).

Insulin directly stimulates protein synthesis and retards
protein breakdown in muscles (5, 6).  This "protein sparing"
effect of insulin tends to decline during low calorie diets
as insulin levels decline, which results in loss of muscle
and organ tissue.  By "sensitizing" muscle to insulin,
chromium picolinate helps to preserve muscle in dieters
so that they "burn" more fat and less muscle.  Preservation
of lean body mass has an important long-term positive
effect on metabolic rate, helping dieters keep off the
fat they've lost.

Chromium picolinate promotes efficient metabolism by aiding
the thermogenic (heat producing) effects of insulin.
Insulin levels serve as a rough index of the availability
of food calories, so it's not at all surprising that insulin 
stimulates metabolism (4, 7, 8).  Note that I did not say
that chromium picolinate increases metabolism.

In summary, you need to change your life style in order to
loose weight and stay healthy:

  A. Reduce dietary fat consumption to no more than 20% of calories.
     - Eating fat makes you fat.

  B. Increase dietary fiber
     - low in calories; high in nutrients.

  C. Get regular aerobic exercise at least 3 times a week
     - burn calories.

  D. Take chromium picolinate daily
     - lose fat; keep muscle


References:

1.  Kaats GR, Fisher JA, Blum K. Abstract, American Aging
    Association, 21st Annual Meeting, Denver, October 1991.
2.  Evans, GW. Int J Biosoc Med Res 1989; 11: 163-180.
3.  Page TG, Ward TL, Southern LL. J Animal Sci 69, Suppl 1:
    Abstract 403, 1991.
4.  Felig P. Clin Physiol 1984; 4: 267-273.
5.  Kimball SR, Jefferson LS. Diabetes Metab Rev 4: 773, 1988.
6.  Fukugawa NK, Minaher KL, Rowe JW. et al. J Clin Invest 76:
    2306, 1985.
7.  Fehlmann M, Freychet P. Biol Chem 256: 7449, 1981
8.  Pittman CS, Suda AK, Chambers JB, Jr., Ray GY. Metabolism
    28: 333, 1979.
9.  Danforth E, Jr. Am J Clin Nutr 41: 1132, 1985.
10. McCarty MF. Med Hypoth 20: 183, 1986.
11. Bielinski R, Schutz Y, Jequier E. Am J Clin Nutr 42:69, 1985.
12. Young JC, Treadway JL, Balon TW, Garvas HP, Ruderman NB.
    Metabolism 35: 1048, 1986.


Best regards,
Michael Vincze
mav@asd470.dseg.ti.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59577
From: res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg)
Subject: Re: Deadly NyQuil???

bitn@kimbark.uchicago.edu  writes:
> My friend insists that Ny-Quil can be deadly if enough is taken -- he
> suggested something like 20-30 of the Night-time gelcaps would do someone
> in.  Being a NORMAL user of Ny-Quil :), I checked the 'ingredients' and
> have a very hard time believing it.  They are:
> 
> 250 g acetaminophen
        ^^^^^^^^^^
> 30 mg Pseudoephedrine HCl
> 10 mg Dextromethorphan HBr
> 6.25 mg Doxylamine Succinate
> (per softgel)
> 
> Can someone settle our bet (a package of Ny-Quil of course :) -- what 
> effect would 20-30 of these babies have?

The acetaminophen is the agent of concern in overdose of this
OTC medication.  A single dose of acetaminophen of 10 grams or greater
can cause hepatotoxicity, and doses of 25 grams or more are
potentially fatal from hepatic necrosis.  If I recall
correctly, the metabolism of acetaminophen at high doses
involves N-hydroxylation to N-acetyl-benzoquinoneimine, which
is a highly reactive intermediate, which then reacts with
sulfhydryl groups of proteins and glutathione.  When hepatic
glutathione is used up, this intermediate then starts
attacking the hepatic proteins with resulting hepatic
necrosis.  The insidious part of acetaminophen toxicity is the
delay (2-4 days) between ingestion and clinical signs of liver
damage.  This is NOT a nice way to die.

As to taking 20-30 of these tablets, that comes to 5-7.5 grams
of acetaminophen.  In a normal adult, this would probably
cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and loss of appetite.

Bob Schmieg

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59578
From: brb@falcon.is (Bjorn R. Bjornsson)
Subject: Re: earwax

hbloom@moose.uvm.edu (*Heather*) writes:
>You can try
>adding a few drops of olive oil into the ear during a shower to soften up
>the wax.  Do this for a couple days, then try syringing again.  It is also
>safe to point your ear up at the shower head, and allow the water to rinse
>it out.

About six years ago my ears clogged up with wax, probably as a
result of to much headphone use.  Anyway, the clinic that cleaned
them out used the following procedure:

1. Inject olive oil into ears.
2. Prevent leakage of oil with cotton.
3. Come back in an hour.
4. Rinse ears with warm vater, forcefully injected
   into ear (very strange sensation).
5. Done.

They had special tools to do this, and were evidently quite
familiar with the problem: Very large steel syringe.  Special
bowl with cutout for ear to take the grime coming out without
spillage.

>Good Luck

Seconded,

Bjorn R. Bjornsson
brb@falcon.is

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59579
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Legality of placebos?

In article <jfhC6BG8y.D2x@netcom.com> jfh@netcom.com (Jack Hamilton) writes:
>
>Actually, I don't know know anyone who has actually gotten a "sugar pill".
[...]
>
>It's more common to prescribe a drug which is effective for something, just
>not for what you have.  Antibiotics for viral infections are the most
>common such placebo. 

And presumably this is a matter of degree; it must be common to prescribe
a drug that has _some_ chance of giving _some_ benefit, but not a high
probability of it, and/or not a large benefit.  Right?

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59580
From: sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <93111.145432ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes:

   A good source of information on Burzynski's method is in *The Cancer Industry*
   by pulitzer-prize nominee Ralph Moss.

Interesting. What book got Moss the pulitzer nomination? None of the
flyers for his books mention this, and none of the Cancer Chronicle
Newsletters that I have mention this either.

   Also, a non-profit organization called "People Against Cancer,"
   which was formed for the purpose of allowing cancer patients to
   access information regarding cancer therapies not endorsed by the
   cancer industry, but which have shown highly promising results (all
   of which are non-toxic).

Moss is People Against Cancer's Director of Communications. People
Against Cancer seems to offer pretty questionable information, not
exactly the place a cancer patient should be advised to turn to. Most
(maybe all) of the infomation in their latest catalogue concern
treatments that have been shown to be ineffective against cancer, and
many of the treatments are quite dangerous as well.

sdb
---
sdb@ssr.com




Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59581
From: sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne)
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

In article <jschwimmer.123.735362184@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu> jschwimmer@wccnet.wcc.wesleyan.edu (Josh Schwimmer) writes:

   Any opinions on Burzynski's antineoplastons or information about the current 
   status of his research would be appreciated.

Burzynski's work is not too promising. None of his A-1 through A-5
antineoplastons have been shown to have antineoplastic effects against
experimental cancer. The NCI conducted tests of A-2 and A-5 against
leukemia in mice, with the result that doses high enough to produce
toxic effects in the mice were not effective in inhibiting the growth
of the tumor or killing it. (These were in 1983 and 1985)

Burzynski claims that A-10 is the active factor common to all of A-1
and A-5 (something which he has not shown, A-10 has only been
extracted from A-2. He also hasn't shown that A-1 through A-5 are actually
distinct substances). The NCI conducted a series of tests using A-10
against a standard panel of tumors that included different cell lines
from tumors in the following classes: leukemia, non-small-cell and
small-cell lung cancer, colon cancer, cancer of the central nervous
system, melanoma, ovarian cancer and renal cancer. A-10 exhibited
neither growth inhibition nor cytotoxicity at the dose levels tested.

It is necessary to process A-10 since it is not soluble (Burzynski's
theory requires soluble agents), but this basically hydrolizes it to
PAG (which he calls AS 2.5). PAG is not an information carrying
peptide, something which Byrzynski claims is necessary for
antineoplastic activity. AS 2.1 (also derived from A-10) is a 4:1
mixture of PA and PAG. PA (also not a peptide) can be purchased at a
chemical supply houses for about $0.09 a gram. A-10 is chemically
extremely similar to glutithamide and thalidomide, both of which are
habit forming and can cause peripheral neuropathy. The nasty effects
of thalidomide are widely known. In spite of this similarity, A-10
does not appear to have been tested for it's potential to induce
teratogenicity or peripheral neuropathy.

Many of Burzynski's statements about the origin of his theory, early
research, past and present support by others for his work have been
shown to be untrue.


sdb
---
sdb@ssr.com


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59582
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: Iridology - Any credence to it???

In article <9304261811.AA07821@DPW.COM> jprice@dpw.com (Janice Price) writes:
>
>I saw a printed up flyer that stated the person was a
>"licensed herbologist and iridologist"
>What are your opinions?
>How much can you tell about a person's health by looking into their eyes?


Its bogus.  See the sci.skeptic FAQ (I edit it).

You can diagnose some things by looking at the eyes.  Glaucoma is the
Classic Example, but there are probably others.

Iridology maps parts of the body onto the irises of the eyes.  By
looking at the patterns, striations and occasional blobs in the irises
you are supposed to be able to diagnose illnesses all over the body.

The two questions to ask any alternative therapist are:

1: How does it work?

2: What evidence is there?

The answer to question 1 takes a little knowledge of medicine to
evaluate.  I don't know about iridology, but I've read a book on
reflexology, which is a remarkably similar notion except that the
organs of the body are mapped onto the soles of the feet.  There are
supposed to be channels running down the body carrying information or
energy of some sort.  Anatomists have found no such structures.
(Always beware the words "channel" and "energy" in any spiel put out
by an alternative practitioner.)

The answer to question 2 is rather simpler.  If all they have is
anecdotal evidence then forget it.  Ask for referreed papers in
mainstream medical journals.  Ignore any bull about the conspiracy of
rich doctors suppressing alternative practitioners.  Studies are done
and papers are published.  Some of them are even positive.

The word "licensed" in the flyer is an interesting one.  Licensed by
whom?  For what?  It is quite possible that the herbology is real and
requires a license: you can kill someone by giving them the wrong
plants to eat, and many plants contain very powerful drugs (Foxglove
and Willow spring to mind).  It is not clear whether the license
extends to the iridology, and I suspect that if you ask you will be
told that it means "(Licensed herbologist) and iridologist".

BTW, the usual term is "herbalist".  Why use a different word?

-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59583
From: paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson)
Subject: Re: cats and pregnancy


>Hello,
>I heard that a certain disease (toxoplasmosys?) is transmitted by cats which
>can harm the unborn fetus. Does anybody know about it? Is it a problem to 
>have a cat in the same apartment?


See the rec.pets.cats FAQ or any doctor or vet for more information.

I am not any of the above, but we do have a couple of cats.

It is transmitted through the fecal matter, so a pregnant woman should
avoid cleaning the cat tray and you should both wash hands before
preparing or eating meals.  The latter is sound advice at any time of
course.

Apart from that, its no great problem.  You certainly do not need to
get rid of your cats.

Paul.
-- 
Paul Johnson (paj@gec-mrc.co.uk).	    | Tel: +44 245 73331 ext 3245
--------------------------------------------+----------------------------------
These ideas and others like them can be had | GEC-Marconi Research is not
for $0.02 each from any reputable idealist. | responsible for my opinions

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59584
From: aldridge@netcom.com (Jacquelin Aldridge)
Subject: Re: thyroidal deficiency

abruno@adobe (Andrea Bruno) writes:


>In article <19930430140738SFB2763@MVS.draper.com> SFB2763@MVS.draper.com  
>(Eileen Bauer) writes:
>> Thyroxin controls energy production which explains sleepiness, coldness,
>> and weight gain. There is also water retention (possibly around heart),
>> changes in vision, and coarser hair and skin among other things.

>Is there any relation between thyroid deficiency and depression?
 

There can be. But depression is not diagnositic of thyroid deficiency.
Thyroid blood tests are easy, cheap, and effective in diagnosing thyroid
deficiencies.

-Jackie-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59585
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <1rm29k$i7t@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
:In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
:>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
:>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
:>hepatitis.
:
:I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
:two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
:persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
:term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.
:
:Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
:sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
:is often fairly fuzzy as well.

I beg to differ.  Chronic *active* hepatitis implies that the disease
remains active, and generally leads to liver failure.  At the very
minimum, the patient has persistently elevated liver enzymes (what some
call "transaminitis").  Chronic *persistant* hepatitis simply means that
the patient has HbSag in his/her blood and can transmit the infection, but
shows no evidence of progressive disease.  If I had to choose, I'd much
rather have the persistant type.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59586
From: kxgst1@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

Len Howard (tas@pegasus.com) wrote:

: Well, now, Doc, I sure would not want to bet my life on those little
: critters not being able to get thru one layer of sweat-soaked cotton
: on their way to do their programmed task.  Infrequent, yes, unlikely,
: yes, but impossible?  I learned a long time ago never to say never in
: medicine   <g>                        Len Howard MD, FACOG

Yes, I suppose a single layer of wet cotton would be feasible.  After all,
we certainly do not make condoms out of cotton!] 
--
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59587
From: stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith)
Subject: Nose Picking

I have two quations to ask:

1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?

2)  Is it harmful for one to eat one's nose pickings?

Stephen


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59588
From: taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao)
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU>, Harry Matthews writes...
> 
> I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
> else is going on?

    Do you swim nude in a public swimming pool?  :)  I doubt sperm can
penetrate swimsuit material, assuming they aren't immediately dispersed
by water currents.
-- 
Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59589
From: taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, Alexander P. Zijdenbos writes...
> 
> I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
> so-called "paranormal" stuff; but as far as I'm concerned, it is just
> as likely as the existence of, for instance, a god, which seems to be
> quite accepted in our societies - without any scientific basis.

    But no one (or at least, not many people) are trying to pass off God
as a scientific fact.  Not so with Kirlian photography.  I'll admit that
it is possible that some superior intelligence exists elsewhere, and if
people want to label that intelligence "God", I'm not going to stop
them.  Anyway, let's _not_ turn this into a theological debate.  ;-)

> I am convinced that it is a serious mistake to close your mind to
> something, ANYTHING, simply because it doesn't fit your current frame
> of reference. History shows that many great people, great scientists,
> were people who kept an open mind - and were ridiculed by sceptics.

    Read alt.fan.robert.mcelwaine sometime.  I've never been so
closed-minded before subscribing to that group.  :)

-- 
Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59590
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: centi- and milli- pedes

I remember as a kid visiting my relatives on Kauai, and one of the things
that really frightened me was centipedes.  I'd been told they were poisonous
and infrequently one would pop up and scare the heck out of me.  Once
one came out of the vacuum cleaner and it seemed like it was at least a foot
long and moving at 35 miles an hour!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59591
From: texx@ossi.com ("Texx")
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon) writes:

>aezpete@deja-vu.aiss.uiuc.edu () writes:

>>>The penile cancer thing has been *completely* debunked...she must be
>>>going to school on a South Pacific island. Tell her to check the Journal
>>>or Urology for circumcision articles. I remember at least 1 on an old
>>>Jewish man (cut at birth) who developed penile cancer....I mean, if the
>>>cancer risk was that great, the Europe who have been circumcising like
>>>crazy, too. Teaching a boy how to keep his cockhead clean is the issue: a
>>>little proper hygiene goes a long way - Americans are just too hung up on
>>>the penis to consider cleaning it: that's just way too much like
>>>mastubation. So you have surgical intervention that is basically
>>>unnecessary.

>>Peter Schlumpf
>>University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

As I recall, it is a statistical anomaly because of the sample involved in the studies.
I am certain that if it were true the Europeans would be cutting kids right & left.

>First off, use some decent terms if ya don't mind.  This is sci.med, not
>alt.sex.

>Secondly, how absolutely bogus to assume that "American's are just too hung
>up on the penis....blah,blah".  I think most American's don't care about
>anything so comlicated as that.  They just think it "looks nicer".  Ask 
>a few of them and see what response you get.  Others still opt for
>circumcision due to religious traditions and beliefs.  Some think it is
>easier to clean.  Still others do it because "Daddy was".

I think alot do it blindly because "Dad" had it done.  But there are many
who get bamboozled into it with the bogus cancer thing.  Awhile back some
quack told a friend of mine that it would help prevent AIDS.

Yeah...Right! (Sarchasm)

>Dont' be so naive as to think American's are afraid of sexuality. 

Oh YEAH ?

Scene: Navy boot camp

DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
Recruit:	"No Sir !"
DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
DI:		"Why ?"
Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."

This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.

I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59592
From: mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson)
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

> Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
> my body a hand once in a while.
> 
> Just my experience,
> 
> George Paap

I've got a very nice collection of historical books on medical quackery,
and on the topic of massage this is a recurring theme.  Ordinary massage
is intended to make a person feel better, especially if they have muscular
or joint problems.  But -- like chiropracty -- there are some practitioners
who take the technique to a far extreme, invoking what seems to me to be
quack science to justify their technique.

In the case of massage, there is a technique called "deep abdominal massage"
in which the masseur is literally attempting to massage the intestines!
The notion is that undigested food adheres to the inner surface of the
intestines and putrifies, releasing poisons which cause various disease
syndromes.  By this vigorous and painful procedure, it is alleged that
these deposits can be loosened up and passed out.

I just can't believe this idea has any truth behind it!  The human intestine
is not a New York City sewer pipe!  And even if it were, you eat half of
a small box of Triscuits, and there ain't gonna be nothin' sticking to the
inner surface of your intestine  :-)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59593
From: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein) 
Subject: Data of skull

GT> From: gary@concave.cs.wits.ac.za (Gary Taylor)
GT> Hi, We are trying to develop a image reconstruction simulation for the skull

You could do high resolution CT (computed tomographic) scanning of
the skull.  Many CT scanners have an algorithm to do 3-D
reconstructions in any plane you want.  If you did reconstructions
every 2 degrees or so in all planes, you could use the resultant
images to create user-controlled animation.
---
 . SLMR 2.1 . E-mail: jim.zisfein@factory.com (Jim Zisfein)
                                                                                                                        

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59594
From: draper@umcc.umcc.umich.edu (Patrick Draper)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

In article <1rsvgr$r13@nym.ossi.com> texx@ossi.com ("Texx") writes:
>Oh YEAH ?
>
>Scene: Navy boot camp
>
>DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
>Recruit:	"No Sir !"
>DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
>Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
>DI:		"Why ?"
>Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."
>
>This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.
>
>I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!


Wow that certainly CONVINCED me that all Americans ar hung up about sex.
Just one example of something that probably ran in a Hustler mag is enough
to convince me.

Sarchasm off.


------------------////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\------------------
| Patrick Draper-ZBT                 We are a nation of laws, not people.  |
| draper@umcc.umich.edu                    Flames > /dev/Koresh            |
|                   University of Michigan Computer Club                   |
------------------\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\////////////////////------------------


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59595
From: GWGREG01@ukcc.uky.edu
Subject: Re: Pregnency without sex?

In article <C6BotF.137@r-node.hub.org>
taob@r-node.hub.org (Brian Tao) writes:
 
>In article <1993Apr27.182155.23426@oswego.Oswego.EDU>, Harry Matthews writes...
>>
>> I've heard of community swimming pools refered to as PUBLIC URINALS so what
>> else is going on?
>
>    Do you swim nude in a public swimming pool?  :)  I doubt sperm can
>penetrate swimsuit material, assuming they aren't immediately dispersed
>by water currents.
>--
>Brian Tao:: taob@r-node.hub.org (r-Node BBS, 416-249-5366, FREE!)
>::::::::::: 90taobri@wave.scar.utoronto.ca (University of Toronto)
 
Here we go again.
 
========================================================================
 
U   UK   K UNIVERSITY                                 GARY W. GREGORY
U   UK  K  OF KENTUCKY                          GWGREG01@UKCC.UKY.EDU
U   UKKK   __________________________________________________________
UU UUK  KK
 UUU K   KK                                      DEPARTMENT OF OB/GYN
                                                MS 335 MEDICAL CENTER
                                       LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY 40536-0084
=====================================================================

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59596
From: mmatusev@radford.vak12ed.edu (Melissa N. Matusevich)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking

I don't know if it causes the body any harm, but in the 23
years I've been teaching nine and ten years olds I've never had
one fall over from eating "boogers" which many kids do on a
regular basis [when they think no one is looking . . .]


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59597
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Subject: Meaning of atheism, agnosticism  (was: Krillean Photography)

-*----
Sci.med removed from followups.  (And I do not read any of the
other newsgroups.)

-*----
In article <1993Apr30.170233.12510@rosevax.rosemount.com> grante@aquarius.rosemount.com (Grant Edwards) writes:
> As a self-proclaimed atheist my position is that I _believe_ that 
> there is no god.  I don't claim to have any proof.  I interpret
> the agnostic position as having no beliefs about god's existence.

That's fine.  These words have multiple meanings.

As a self-proclaimed atheist, I believe that *some* conceptions
of god are inconsistent or in conflict with fact, and I lack
belief in other conceptions of god merely because there is no
reason for me to believe in these.  I usually use the word
agnostic to mean someone who believes that the existence of
a god is unknown inherently unknowable.  Note that this is a
positive belief that is quite different from not believing in a
god; I do not believe in a god, but I also do not believe the
agnostic claim.

Russell

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59598
From: ceci@lysator.liu.se (Cecilia Henningsson)
Subject: Q: Repelling wasps?

(This is a cross post to rec.gardens and sci.med. Set the follow-up
(line in the header, depending on what kind of advice you give, or
(e-mail directly to me: ceci@lysator.liu.se.)

I have a problem with wasps -- they seem to love me. Last summer I
couldn't spend more than ten to fifteen minutes at a time in my garden
before one or several wasps would come for me. I am asking for advice
on how to repel wasps.

   This year the wasps have built their nest under a stone next to one
of my tiny ponds. The caretaker (poor fellow!) will have to take care
of them, and that will give me a head start on them. Last year we
couldn't find any nest. Even after the caretaker has gassed the nest
in my tiny garden of 30 square meter, other wasps will most likely vie
for the territory. Is there anything I can grow, rub on my skin or
spread on the soil that will repel the black and yellow bastards?
Never mind if it turns my skin purple or kills off all my beloved
plants, I want to be able to spend time in my garden like everyone
else.

   Would it help to remove the ponds and the bird bath? The wasps seem
to come to drink at them, and I suppose that their prey will breed in
them. The black tits seem to be afraid of the wasps, because as soon
as the wasp season starts, they stop coming to have their bath.

Even when I am not trying to win back my patio from 15-20 wasps, they
seem to love me. The advice I usually get when I ask what to do about
wasps, is to stand still and not wave my arms. I've got some painful
stings when trying to follow that advice. I have also tried to use
hygienic products without perfumes, to no avail. They still love me,
and come for me, even when I'm in the middle of a crowd. So far only
two things seem to work: To kill it dead or to run into the house and
close all doors and windows. 

NB: I don't have a problem with bees or bumble-bees, just wasps.
    Patronizing advice redirected to /dev/null.

--Ceci
--
=====ceci@lysator.liu.se===========================================
"The number of rational hypotheses that can explain any given
 phenomenon is infinite."
Phaedrus' law from RM Pirsig's _Zen_and_the_Art_of_Motorcycle_Maintenance_

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59599
From: <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu>
Subject: Re: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...

In article <1rrv7i$7m7@dr-pepper.East.Sun.COM>, george@crayola.East.Sun.COM
>
>I would like to know anything you folks can tell me regarding Lithium.
>
>I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
>difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
>wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to
>know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
>thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.
>
>I have a booklet from the "Lithium Information Center" based at the
>University of Wisconsin, but feel that it is pro-lithium and would be
>interested in comments from the "not necessarily PRO" side of the fence.
>
>I am a concerned father and just wish to be well informed...
>
I get "antsy" about posts like this. Is the concern more for son or about ex-w
ife??? The standard impartial procedure is to ask for a second opinion
about son's condition.
Then too, is son "acting out" games between divorced parents????

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59600
From: mcovingt@aisun3.ai.uga.edu (Michael Covington)
Subject: Re: Lithium questions, Doctor wants my 10 year old on it...

In article <93121.120223RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> <RFM@psuvm.psu.edu> writes:
>[Someone writes:]
>>I have a 10 year old son that lives with my ex-wife.  She has been having
>>difficulty with his behavior and has had him on Ritalin, Tofranil, and now
>>wants to try Lithuim at the local doctors suggestion.  I would like to
>>know whatever is important that I should know.  I worry about this sort of
>>thing and would like pros/cons regarding Lithium therapy.

>I get "antsy" about posts like this. Is the concern more for son or about ex-w
>ife??? The standard impartial procedure is to ask for a second opinion
>about son's condition.
>Then too, is son "acting out" games between divorced parents????

Precisely.  One wonders what unusual strain the boy might be under that
could be causing "difficulty with his behavior".  Standard practice would
be to get a second opinion from a child psychiatrist.  One would want to
rule out the possibility that the "bad behavior" is not psychiatric
illness at all.

(Disclaimer: I am not a medic. But I am a parent.)

-- 
:-  Michael A. Covington, Associate Research Scientist        :    *****
:-  Artificial Intelligence Programs      mcovingt@ai.uga.edu :  *********
:-  The University of Georgia              phone 706 542-0358 :   *  *  *
:-  Athens, Georgia 30602-7415 U.S.A.     amateur radio N4TMI :  ** *** **  <><

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59601
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10535@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:
>In article <1rm29k$i7t@hsdndev.harvard.edu> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>:In article <enea1-270493135255@enea.apple.com>
>: enea1@applelink.apple.com (Horace Enea) writes:
>:>Can anyone out there tell me the difference between a "persistent" disease
>:>and a "chronic" one? For example, persistent hepatitis vs chronic
>:>hepatitis.
>:
>:I don't think there is a general distinction.  Rather, there are
>:two classes of chronic hepatitis: chronic active hepatitis and chronic
>:persistent hepatitis.  I can't think of any other disease where the
>:term persistent is used with or in preference to chronic.
>:
>:Much as these two terms "chronic active" and "chronic persistent"
>:sound fuzzy, the actual distinction between the two conditions
>:is often fairly fuzzy as well.
>
>I beg to differ.  Chronic *active* hepatitis implies that the disease
>remains active, and generally leads to liver failure.  At the very
>minimum, the patient has persistently elevated liver enzymes (what some
>call "transaminitis").  Chronic *persistant* hepatitis simply means that
>the patient has HbSag in his/her blood and can transmit the infection, but
>shows no evidence of progressive disease.  If I had to choose, I'd much
>rather have the persistant type.


Being a chronic HBsAg carrier does not necessarily mean the patient has chronic
persistent anything. Persons who are chronic carriers may have no clinical,
biochemical, or histologic evidence of liver disease, or they may have chronic
persistent hepatitis, chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular
carcinoma.

Most cases of chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH) are probably the result of
a viral infection, although in a good number of cases the cause cannot be
determined. The diagnosis of CPH is made on the basis of liver biopsy. It
consists of findings of portal inflammation, an intact periportal limiting
plate, and on occasion isolated foci of intralobular necrosis. But in contrast
to chronic active hepatitis (CAH) there is no periportal inflammation, 
bridging necrosis, or fibrosis. 

CPH has, indeed, an excellent prognosis. If I had to choose between CAH and
CPH there is no question I would also choose CPH. However, as David pointed
out, the distinction between the two is not as neat as some of us would have
it. The histology can sometimes be pretty equivocal, with biopsies showing
areas compatible with both CPH and CAH. Maybe it is a sampling problem. Maybe
it is a continuum. I don't know.

=================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59602
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: INFO: Colonics and Purification?

In article <80651@cup.portal.com>, mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
>> Not everything that goes in comes out, and personaly I don't mind giving
>> my body a hand once in a while.
>> 
>> Just my experience,
>> 
>> George Paap
> 
> I've got a very nice collection of historical books on medical quackery,
> and on the topic of massage this is a recurring theme.  Ordinary massage
> is intended to make a person feel better, especially if they have muscular
> or joint problems.  But -- like chiropracty -- there are some practitioners
> who take the technique to a far extreme, invoking what seems to me to be
> quack science to justify their technique.
> 
> In the case of massage, there is a technique called "deep abdominal massage"
> in which the masseur is literally attempting to massage the intestines!
> The notion is that undigested food adheres to the inner surface of the
> intestines and putrifies, releasing poisons which cause various disease
> syndromes.  By this vigorous and painful procedure, it is alleged that
> these deposits can be loosened up and passed out.
> 
> I just can't believe this idea has any truth behind it!  The human intestine
> is not a New York City sewer pipe!  And even if it were, you eat half of
> a small box of Triscuits, and there ain't gonna be nothin' sticking to the
> inner surface of your intestine  :-)

Mark, this is the most reasonable post that I've seen in Sci. Med. on the 
topic of Colonic Flushing.  I'm in a profession that uses manipulation(a 
very refined form of massage) to treat various human diseases.  Proving 
that manipulation works has been extremely difficult(as the MD's delight in 
pointing out).  The Osteopathic Profession seems to be making better 
progress than the chiropractors in proving(scientifically) that their 
techingues work.  The JAOA recently had a study on the use of manipulation 
to relieve mensrual cramps in women with results that were as good or 
better than drug treatment(using physiological measurements, and not just 
the woman's preception of improvement).  This study was hailed by the JAOA 
editors as the turning point in the profession's long struggle to prove 
itself to the medical community.

I'm currently trying to get the AOA(American Osteopathic Association) which 
has supported most of the Osteopathic research in the U.S. to also support 
nutrition education and research.  I've pointed out, in a grant proposal, 
that the founder of Osteopathic Medicine(A.T. Still) embraced both diet and 
manipulation to set himself apart from the MD's of his time who were pushing 
only drugs(Still was himself an MD who got real dissillusioned with drugs 
during his service in the Civil War).  He decided that there had to be a 
better way to treat human disease since he saw the cure(drugs) as being 
worse than the disease.  Through his many years of study of the human body, 
he developed his manipulation techniques that he then taught to his 
students in the U.S's first Osteopathic Medical school.  We now have 17.
Still used manipulation to treat(and also diagnose) human disease but he 
used diet to prevent human disease.  I'm trying to get the Osteopathic 
Profession to return to it's roots and beat the MD's to the punch(so to 
speak).  Both DO's and MD's in current medical practice have very little 
understanding of how diet affects human health.  This has to change.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Chairman
Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology
OSU COllege of Osteopathic Medicine

"You are what you eat." 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59603
From: kmldorf@utdallas.edu (George Kimeldorf)
Subject: Re: Opinions on Allergy (Hay Fever) shots?

In article <1993Apr29.173817.25867@nntpd2.cxo.dec.com> tung@paaiec.enet.dec.com () writes:
>
>I have just started taking allergy shots a month ago and is 
>still wondering what I am getting into. A friend of mine told
>me that the body change every 7 years (whatever that means)
>and I don't need those antibody-building allergy shots at all.
>Does that make sense to anyone?
>
>BTW, can someone summarize what is in the Consumer Report
>February, 1988 article?

I am reluctant to summarize it, for then you will have my opinion of what the
article says, rather than your own opinion.  I think it is important enough
for you to take the trouble to go to the library and get the article.  The
title is "The shot doctors" and it appears on Pages 96-100 of the February,
1988 issue of Consumer Reports.  The following excerpt from the article may
entice you to read the whole article:
     Too often, shots are overused....."When you put a patient on
     shots, you've got an annuity for life," a former president of
     the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology told CU. [page 97]

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59604
From: menon@boulder.Colorado.EDU (Ravi or Deantha Menon)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

texx@ossi.com ("Texx") writes:

>Scene: Navy boot camp

>DI:		"Son, you smel awful! Dont you ever clean that thing?"
>Recruit:	"No Sir !"
>DI:		"Why the hell NOT!"
>Recruit:	"Your not sposed to touch down there?"
>DI:		"Why ?"
>Recruit:	"Cause thats the eye of god down there, an' your not s'posed to touch it..."

>This did not happen 40 years ago, it happened 2 years ago.

>I think Americans are QUITE hung up about sex and the involved plumbing!

Cute anecdote, but hardly indicative of the population.  From the responses
I've received to that post (all from men, by the way) I get the impression
that unless a person is willing to drop down and masturbate whenever the
need or desire strikes, then that person is very hung up on sex.

With tv programs about "boobs" (Seinfeld) and "masturbation (again Seinfeld)
and with condoms being handed out in high schools and with the teenage
pregnancy rate and the high abortion rate here in the States, I would
not assume that we American's are frightened of sex.  Rather we are a bit
stupid about it.  Healthy sexuality does not require flamboyance or
promiscuity.  It requires responsibility.


Deantha

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59605
From: glskiles@carson.u.washington.edu (Gary Skiles)
Subject: Re: Deadly NyQuil???

In article <C6BK0F.H7I@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> res4w@galen.med.Virginia.EDU (Robert E. Schmieg) writes:

[Partial deletion]

>potentially fatal from hepatic necrosis.  If I recall
>correctly, the metabolism of acetaminophen at high doses
>involves N-hydroxylation to N-acetyl-benzoquinoneimine, which
>is a highly reactive intermediate, which then reacts with
>sulfhydryl groups of proteins and glutathione.  When hepatic
>glutathione is used up, this intermediate then starts
>attacking the hepatic proteins with resulting hepatic
>necrosis.  The insidious part of acetaminophen toxicity is the
>delay (2-4 days) between ingestion and clinical signs of liver
>damage.  This is NOT a nice way to die.
>
Nice explanation except that it isn't N-hydroxylation that causes the
formation of the N-acetyl-p-benzoquinone imine (NAPQI), but rather a
direct two-electron oxidation. In addition, there is one school of thought
that contends that oxidative stress rather than arylation of protein
is the more critical factor in the hapatotoxcity of acetaminophen.  

As far as drug toxicities go, acetaminophen has and continues to be one
of the most intensely scrutinized. An excellent recent review of the topic
can be found in: 

	Vermeulen, Bessems and Van de Straat. 	
	Molecular Aspects of Paracetamol-induced hepatotoxicity and its
	Mechanism-Based Prevention. Drug Metabolism Reviews, 24(3) 367-
	407 (1992).

	(Acetaminophen is known as paracetamol in Europe)

I couldn't agree with you more about what an awful way to die a toxic
dose of acetaminophen causes.  I've heard a number of descriptions by
physicians associated with poison control centers, and they describe a
lingering very painful death. 

-Gary-


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59606
From: chungdan@leland.Stanford.EDU (Zhong Qi Iao (Daniel))
Subject: [sleep] the pulse of relaxation; roaming while sleeping

     I posted about a "pulse of (relaxation) electricity".  I now think
it more like a pulse of "relaxation" or comfort than a pulse of
electricity.  It is what you feel if you are overwhelmed by a feeling
of comfort, such as seeing or thinking about something beautiful.

     Another thing.  When you sleep, you lie down facing up, with your
palms aside of you and facing down on the surface of the bed.  Then you
relax, and there start involuntary nerve firings inside your flesh.  So,
you feel a "shiver" below the surface of the skin (not heart-beat).
Then this shiver increases, and comes up to your head, and the roam you
hear loudens.  (Note that you always hear a high-pitch when you lie down
in bed; this is just the noise of your blood running in your ear.)  This
roam is different from the high pitch, but follows the shiver of your
body.

     "Shiver" is not the word.  It may be called a mild vibration or quake.
What is this shiver and roam?  Can I use this to induce out-of-body
experience?

					Daniel Chung (Mr.), U.S.A.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59615
Subject: Help with antidepressants requested.
From: blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz (Gordon Taylor)

Hello all,

          There is a small problem a friend of mine is experiencing and I 
would appreciate any help at all with it.

My friend has been diagnosed as having a severe case of depression requiring 
antidepressants for a cure. The main problem is the side effects of these. 
So far she has been prescribed Prozac, Aurorix, and tryptanol all with 
different but unbearable side effects.

The Prozac gave very bad anxiety/jitters and insomina, it was impossible to 
sit still for more than a minute or so.

The Aurorix whilst having a calming effect, all feelings were lost and the 
body co-ordination was similar to a drunken person. Her brain was clouded 
over.

The tryptanol gave tremors in the legs and panic attacks along with unco- 
ordination occurred. She did not know what she was doing as her brain was 
"closed down".

Has anyone had similar problems and/or have any suggestions as to the next 
step?

Thankyou in advance.

Gordon Taylor
E-mail: blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59616
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10557@blue.cis.pitt.edu> doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle) writes:
:Being a chronic HBsAg carrier does not necessarily mean the patient has chronic
:persistent anything. Persons who are chronic carriers may have no clinical,
:biochemical, or histologic evidence of liver disease, or they may have chronic
:persistent hepatitis, chronic active hepatitis, cirrhosis, or hepatocellular
:carcinoma.
:
:Most cases of chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH) are probably the result of
:a viral infection, although in a good number of cases the cause cannot be
:determined. The diagnosis of CPH is made on the basis of liver biopsy. It
:consists of findings of portal inflammation, an intact periportal limiting
:plate, and on occasion isolated foci of intralobular necrosis. But in contrast
:to chronic active hepatitis (CAH) there is no periportal inflammation, 
:bridging necrosis, or fibrosis. 
:
:CPH has, indeed, an excellent prognosis. If I had to choose between CAH and
:CPH there is no question I would also choose CPH. However, as David pointed
:out, the distinction between the two is not as neat as some of us would have
:it. The histology can sometimes be pretty equivocal, with biopsies showing
:areas compatible with both CPH and CAH. Maybe it is a sampling problem. Maybe
:it is a continuum. I don't know.

Darn.  Just when I think I understand something someone who knows the
pathology has to burst my bubble :-(  We'd better not start talking about
glomerular diseases, then I'll really get depressed.

Seriously though, I wonder how someone with CPH would end up getting a
biopsy in the first place?  My understanding (and feel free to correct me)
is that the enzymes are at worst mildly elevated, with overall normal
hepatic function.  I would think that the only clue might be a history of
prior HepB infection and a positive HepB-sAg.  Or is it indeed on a
continuum with CAH, and the distinction merely one of pathology and
prognosis, but otherwise identical clinical features?

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59617
From: werner@soe.berkeley.edu (John Werner)
Subject: Re: Help with antidepressants requested.

In article <736250544snx@penguin.equinox.gen.nz>,
blubird@penguin.equinox.gen.nz (Gordon Taylor) wrote:

> The Prozac gave very bad anxiety/jitters and insomina, it was impossible to 
> sit still for more than a minute or so.

I tried Prozac a few months ago, and had some insomnia from it, but no
anxiety or jitters.  I probably could have lived with the insomnia if the
Prozac had done any good, but it only provided a tiny benefit.  Maybe
because the person who prescribed it didn't know much and gave up after a
20mg dose didn't work.

Now I'm seeing a psychiatrist who has put me on Zoloft (another serotonin
reuptake inhibitor like Prozac).  One pill/day (50mg) seemed to help some. 
Now I'm trying 100mg/day.  Zoloft has fewer and milder side effects than
Prozac.  I think my doctor said that only 4% of the people taking Zoloft
have to discontinue it because of side effects.  The only problem I'm
having is some minor GI distress, but nothing too annoying.  Hopefully the
Zoloft will work.  Maybe your friend should try this one next.

My psychiatrist's strategy seems to be to first try one of the serotonin
drugs, usually Prozac.  If that works, great.  If it works but has too many
side effects, try Zoloft or maybe Paxil.  If the serotonin drugs don't work
at all, try one of the tricyclics like desipramine.

>...suggestions as to the next step?

Having a doctor who knows something about antidepressants can make a big
difference.  My psychiatrist claims that most GPs and FPs don't have much
experience in this area, and from what I've seen I'm inclined to believe
him.  I think I know more about antidepressants than the people at my
family practitioner's office.

Disclaimer: I'm not a doctor; what I know about this comes from talking to
my psychiatrist and reading sci.med.  

--
John Werner                          werner@soe.berkeley.edu
UC Berkeley School of Education      510-596-5868

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59619
From: stanley@skyking.OCE.ORST.EDU (John Stanley)
Subject: Re: Krillean Photography

In article <C6Bot5.12A@r-node.hub.org> taob@r-node.hub.org writes:
>In article <C65oIL.436@vuse.vanderbilt.edu>, Alexander P. Zijdenbos writes...
>> I am neither a real believer, nor a disbeliever when it comes to
>    But no one (or at least, not many people) are trying to pass off God

Will you please keep this crap out of sci.image.processing?


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59620
From: collopy@leland.Stanford.EDU (Paul Dennis Collopy)
Subject: re: antidepressants

Without restating the thread going here.....

Zoloft is a stimulating antidepressant.

It is unfortunate that antidepressant therapy is trial and error, but
if it is any help, there are a lot of people using the side effects of
the many medications to help manage other conditions.

Hang in there, maybe someday a "brain chemistry set" will be available
and all the serotonin questions will have answers.

Please, no flames........I have enough to deal with   :)



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59621
From: haynes@cats.ucsc.edu (Jim Haynes)
Subject: Is this a total or partial scam?


There's a chiropractor who has a stand in the middle of a shopping
mall, offering free examinations.  Part of the process involves a
multiple-jointed sensor arm and a computer that says in a computer-
sounding voice "digitize left PSIS" "digitize right PSIS" "digitize
C7" "please stand with spine in neutral position".  I'm wondering
whether this doesn't really measure anything and the computer voice
is to impress the victims, or whether it is measuring something
that chiropractors think is useful to measure.
-- 
haynes@cats.ucsc.edu
haynes@cats.bitnet

"Ya can talk all ya wanna, but it's dif'rent than it was!"
"No it aint!  But ya gotta know the territory!"
        Meredith Willson: "The Music Man"


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59622
From: romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu (Ella I Baff)
Subject: IS THIS A SCAM?

    Jim Haynes wants to know the following is a scam....

       There's a chiropractor who has a stand in the middle of a shopping
       mall, offering free examinations.  Part of the process involves a
       multiple-jointed sensor arm and a computer that says in a computer-
       sounding voice "digitize left PSIS" "digitize right PSIS" "digitize
       C7" "please stand with spine in neutral position".  I'm wondering
       whether this doesn't really measure anything and the computer voice
       is to impress the victims, or whether it is measuring something
       that chiropractors think is useful to measure.

Earth to sci.med....If it looks like a duck...and quacks like a duck......

This is a TOTAL scam. Since the beginning of chiropraxis, the chiropractor has 
tried to sell The Subluxation as The Problem and then sell themselves and
their Adjustments as The Solution. The Chiropractic Subluxation is a delusional 
diagnosis and the Adjustments of Subluxations by extension constitute a 
delusional medicine.

The wide spectrum of chiropractic Techniques ALL have their own methods for 
detecting Spinal Demons and unique methodolgies for Excorcizing Them. The 
computer approach is an attempt to 'sell with science' but this device is 
nothing more than a 'high-tech' Subluxation Detector.....and in the end...
AMAZINGLY...it will show the potential 'patient' to suffer from...VS......
Vertebral Subluxation....The Silent Killer!

John Badanes, DC, CA
romdas@uclink.berkeley.edu





Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59623
From: mrbulli@btoy1.rochester.NY.US (Mr. Bulli (private account))
Subject: Re: Vasectomy: Health Effects on Women?

On 28 Apr 93 20:54:04 GMT joshm@yang.earlham.edu wrote:
: In article <1993Apr27.110440.5069@nic.csu.net>, eskagerb@nermal.santarosa.edu (Eric Skagerberg) writes:
: > Does anyone know of any studies done on the long-term health effects of a
: > man's vasectomy on his female partner?
: > 
: > ...
: I've heard of NO studies, but speculation:

: Why on _earth_ would there be any effect on women's health?  That's about 
: the most absurd idea I've heard since Ted Kaldis's claim that no more than 
: 35,000 people would march on Washington.

: Ok, _one_ point:  Greatly reduced chance of pregnancy.  But that's it.

: --Josh

Well, there might be another: Since I'm sterile my wife can enjoy sex 
without fear of getting pregnant.
--
  ______                             __        _  _
    /   /                           /  )      // //                        
   /   /_  __________  __.  _      /--<  . . // // o ____  _,  _  __
(_/   / /_(_) / / / <_(_/|_/_)    /___/_(_/_</_</_<_/ / <_(_)_</_/ (_
       UUCP:     ..rutgers!ur-valhalla!btoy1!mrbulli      /|  Compu$erve:
       Internet:       mrbulli@btoy1.rochester.NY.US     |/    76535,2221

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59624
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Antihistamine for sleep aid


In article <1993Apr30.202808.19204@ux1.cts.eiu.edu> cfaks@ux1.cts.eiu.edu (Alice Sanders) writes:

> But after you have taken antihistamines for a few nights, doesn't it start
> to have a paradoxical effect?  I used to take one every night for
> allergies and couldn't figure out why I developed bad insomnia.  

Insomnia is a known, but relatively infrequent, side-effect of
diphenhydramine.  

For most people, this does not occur.  On the other hand, most people
can build up a tolerance to an antihistamine with extended use.
(Allergy sufferers are often switched from one antihistamine to
another to avoid this.)


--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59625
From: sdl@linus.mitre.org (Steven D. Litvintchouk)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking


In article <stephen.736228799@mont> stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:

> 1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
> might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?

It may be a good way to catch a cold.  It's easy to pick up cold
viruses on your fingers, either from touching a contaminated surface,
or by shaking hands with someone that has a cold.  Then putting your
fingers in your nose will transfer the viruses to your nose.


--
Steven Litvintchouk
MITRE Corporation
202 Burlington Road
Bedford, MA  01730-1420

Fone:  (617)271-7753
ARPA:  sdl@mitre.org
UUCP:  linus!sdl

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59626
From: doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10587@blue.cis.pitt.edu> kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert) writes:

>
>Seriously though, I wonder how someone with CPH would end up getting a
>biopsy in the first place?  My understanding (and feel free to correct me)
>is that the enzymes are at worst mildly elevated, with overall normal
>hepatic function.  I would think that the only clue might be a history of
>prior HepB infection and a positive HepB-sAg.  Or is it indeed on a
>continuum with CAH, and the distinction merely one of pathology and
>prognosis, but otherwise identical clinical features?
>


Chronic persistent hepatitis is usually diagnosed when someone does a liver
biopsy on a patient that has persistently elevated serum transaminases months
after a bout of acute viral hepatitis, or when someone is found to have
persistently elevated transaminases on routine screening tests. The degree of
elevation (in the serum transaminases) can be trivial, or as much as ten times
normal. Other blood chemistries are usually normal. 
As a rule, patients with CPH have no clinical signs of liver disease. 
Chronic active hepatitis can also be asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, at
least initially, and that's why it's important to tell them apart by means of
a biopsy. The patient with CPH only needs to be reassured. The patient with
CAH needs to be treated.

======================================

Howard Doyle
doyle+@pitt.edu



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59627
From: sjha+@cs.cmu.edu (Somesh Jha)
Subject: What is intersection syndrome and Feldene?


Hi:

I went to the orthopedist on Tuesday. He diagnosed me as having
"intersection syndrome". He prescribed Feldene for me. I want
to know more about the disease and the drug.

Thanks


Somesh







Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59628
From: j.thornton@hawkesbury.uws.EDU.AU (Jason Thornton       x640)
Subject: Cancer of the testis

Could someone give me some information on the cause, pathophysiology and 
clinical manifestations and treatment of this type of cancer.

Thank you in advance, Jason.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59629
From: ashwin@gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram)
Subject: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
are beginning to wonder how often "more often" really is, whether our
son is more susceptible or has lower immunity than average, what the
longer-term effects of constantly being sick and taking antibiotics are,
and what we can do to build up his resistance.  He really enjoys his day
care and we think it's great too, but we are beginning to wonder whether
we should think about getting a nanny.

Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

-- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections?  Is there any data on
home care vs. day care?

-- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),
does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
not have any long term effect?

-- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
term effects?

-- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
normal, and what does one do about it?

-- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?

Any data, information or advice relating to this would be much
appreciated.  Thanks a lot.

Ashwin.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59630
From: Lawrence Curcio <lc2b+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Subject: Athlete's Heart

I've read that exercise makes the heart pump more blood at a stroke, and
that it also makes the heart pumb slower, in order to make up for the
greater volume. My Internist, who diagnosed my AV block, slow heart rate
and PVC's, told me something different. She says that heart rate is
associated with the electrical properties of the hear muscle, not its
size. Exercise lowers heart rate and increases stroke volume, but the
effects are unrelated except for their common source. The AV block, she
asserts, is another electrical effect, which is irreversable - even when
exercise is dicontinued. PVC's are also common in runners. 

So my EKG puts me in a class with trained athletes and also with heart
patients. Isn't that strange, though? Are there any not-so-beneficial
aspects to athlete's heart? Is it all good?

Not worried, just curious,
-Larry C. 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59631
From: Diane.Mayronne@f232.n109.z1.cobaka.com (Diane Mayronne)
Subject: fever blisters

Cause and cures for fever blisters respectfully requested.
Thanks!
            :-D iane

 * Origin: Another PerManNet Kit (1:109/232)

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59632
From: banschbach@vms.ocom.okstate.edu
Subject: Re: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

In article <ASHWIN.93May2131021@leo.gatech.edu>, ashwin@[Agatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
> Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
> started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
> not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
> flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
> infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
> 3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
> are beginning to wonder how often "more often" really is, whether our
> son is more susceptible or has lower immunity than average... 
> Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

When kids stayed in the home until kindergarden or 1st grade, infection 
incidence was much lower because exposure was lower.  Some studies suggest 
that early exposure to various infectious diseases is probably beneficial 
because exposure as an adult carries much more risk of morbitity and 
mortality(mumps, measles. etc.).

> -- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
> How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections?  Is there any data on
> home care vs. day care?

Daycare will always carry a higher exposure risk than home care.

> -- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),
> does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
> not have any long term effect?

Exposure to infectious organisms does build immunity.  But many viruses 
mutate and reexposure to the new strain requires another immune response(
new antibody production).  In addition, antibody levels tend to decline 
with time and re-innoculation is needed to keep the antibody levels high.
Chronic overstimulation of the immune response can lead to immunosupression 
but this is rare and very unlikely to occur in children.

> -- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
> term effects?

Yes, chronic use of antibiotics can have an adverse effect on the good 
bacteria that are supposed to be present in and on the body.  Health effects 
of this depletion of the good bacteria is a very hotly debated topic in the 
medical community with most physicians seeming to discount any health effects 
of chronic antibiotic use( a view that I do not support).
 
> -- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
> normal, and what does one do about it?

Chronic infection in an adult or a child needs to be worked up( in my 
opinion).  But most physicians feel that chronic infection in a child is 
normal because of both exposure and lack of prior immunity to many 
infectious diseases.  I do not share this view and there are some 
physicians who also suspect that diet plays a big role in infection 
frequency and severity.  Exposure to an infectious agent does not have to 
result in a severe infection.  A strong immune response can minimize the 
length of time needed to deal with the infection as well as the symptoms 
associated with the infection.

> -- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?

There are five major nutrients that are responsible for a good strong 
immune response to infectious agents.  They are: protein, vitamin C, 
vitamin A, iron and zinc.  The American diet is not low in protein so this 
is rarely a problem.  But vitamin A, vitamin C, iron and zinc are often low 
and this lack of an adequate pool(nutrient reserve) can impair the immune 
response.  Iron is know to be low in most kids(as is vitamin A).  There are 
distinct biochemical tests that can be run to check the status of each of 
these nutrients in a patient who is having a problem with chronic severe 
infection.  Serum ferritin for iron status, dark adaptation for vitamin A 
status, red blood cell zinc for zinc status and leckocyte ascorbate for 
vitamin C status.  I have attempted to work up posts on these five 
nutrients and their role in infection for this news group as well as the 
others that I participate in.  I can e-mail you what I've worked up so far.
But my best advice to you is to try to find a physician who recognizes the 
critical role that diet plays in the human immune response.  You may also 
be able to get help from a nutritionist.  Anyone can call themselves a 
nutritionist so you have to be very carefull.  You want to find someone(
like myself) who has had some formal training and education in nutrition.
Many Ph.D. programs in the U.S. now offer degrees in Nutrition and that's 
what you need to look for.  Some dieticians will also call themselves 
nutritionists but most dieticians have not had the biochemical training 
needed to run specialized nutritional assessment tests.  They are very good 
for getting general dietary advice from however.

> Any data, information or advice relating to this would be much
> appreciated.  Thanks a lot.
> 
> Ashwin.

Martin Banschbach, Ph.D.
Graduate degree in Biochemistry and Nutrition from VPI
and developer of a course on human nutrition for medical students


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59633
From: <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET>
Subject: Re: Burzynski's "Antineoplastons"

nnget 93122.1300541
In article <C6BJyt.A1K@ssr.com>, sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne) says:
>
>In article <93111.145432ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> <ICGLN@ASUACAD.BITNET> writes:
>
>
>Moss is People Against Cancer's Director of Communications. People
>Against Cancer seems to offer pretty questionable information, not
>exactly the place a cancer patient should be advised to turn to.

And where do you advise people to turn for cancer information?


 Most
>(maybe all) of the infomation in their latest catalogue concern
>treatments that have been shown to be ineffective against cancer, and
>many of the treatments are quite dangerous as well.

It seems to me you've offered a circular refutation of Moss's organization. Who
has shown the information in the latest book of PAC to be questionable? Could
it be those 'regulatory' agencies and medical industries which Moss is showing
to be operating with *major* vested interests. Whether one believes that these
vested interests are real or not, or whether or not they actually shape medical
research is a seperate argument. If one sees a possibility, however, that these
interests exist, then the 'fact' that some of the information put out by PAC
has been refuted by the medical industry doesn't hold much weight.

As for the ineffectiveness of antineoplasteons, the fact that the NIH didn't
find them effective doesn't make much sense here. Of course they didn't! I
tend to have more faith in the word of the patients who are now alive after
being told years ago that they would be dead of cancer soon. They are fighting
like hell to keep that clinic open, and they credit his treatment with their
survival. Anyone who looks at the NIH's record for investigation of 'alterna-
tive' cancer therapies will easily see that they have a strange knack for find-
ing relatively cheap and nontoxic therapies dangerous or useless.

gn

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59634
From: marco@sdf.lonestar.org (Steve Giammarco)
Subject: Help. Info: CLARITIN (Allergies)

My doc handed me 10mg samples of CLARITIN (brand of Ioratadine Tablet
from Schering Corp.)  I tried to find it in the PDR to no avail. I
do remember she mentioned this drug was relatively new to the US but
available overseas for quite some time.

Looking mostly for side-effect, contraindications, and mode of action 
such that it differs from Seldane and Hismanal.

Email or newsgroup is fine. Thanx in advance.

-- 
Steve Giammarco/5330 Peterson Lane/Dallas TX 75240
marco@sdf.lonestar.org
loveyameanit.

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59635
From: thomas@mvac23.UUCP (Thomas Lapp)
Subject: Re: Nose Picking

stephen@mont.cs.missouri.edu (Stephen Montgomery-Smith) writes:
> 1)  Does it cause the body any harm if one picks one's nose?  For example,
> might it lead to a loss of ability to smell?
> 
> 2)  Is it harmful for one to eat one's nose pickings?

I've seen children do this and wondered about something.  If the
mucus in one's nose collects (filters) particles going into the
airway, if a child then picks and ingests this material, might
it have a vaccinatory effect, since if the body ingests airborne
diseases or other 'stuff' on the mucus, the body might generate
antibodies for this small "invasion"?

Maybe this is why some children don't get sick very often? :-)
                         - tom
--
internet     : mvac23!thomas@udel.edu  or  thomas%mvac23@udel.edu (home)
             : lapp@cdhub1.dnet.dupont.com (work)
OSI          : C=US/A=MCI/S=LAPP/D=ID=4398613
uucp         : {ucbvax,mcvax,uunet}!udel!mvac23!thomas
Location     : Newark, DE, USA


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59636
From: rob.welder@cccbbs.UUCP (Rob Welder) 
Subject: Thermoscan ear thermomete

To: ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram)

AR>Does the "Thermoscan" instrument really work?  It is supposed to give you a

ABSOLUTELY!
Ya don't have to do the other end!
(it is accurate - but technique is important)

cccbbs!rob.welder@uceng.uc.edu
---
 . QMPro 1.02 41-4771 . See?... It only hurts for a little while!
                                                                      

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59637
From: wang@ssd.intel.com (Wen-Lin Wang)
Subject: Re: How often do kids fall sick? etc.

In article <ASHWIN.93May2131021@leo.gatech.edu> ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
>Our 20-month son has started falling sick quite often every since he
>started going to day care.  He was at home for the first year and he did
>not fall sick even once.  Now it seems like he has some sort of cold or
>flu pretty much once a month.  Most of the time the cold leads to an ear
>infection as well, with the result that he ends up being on antibiotics
>3 weeks out of 4.  I know kids in day care fall sick more often, but we
>...

Sounds pretty familiar.  I posted similar cries about last September when
Caroline just entered daycare.  She was two, then, and have been with 
continuous colds since until last March.  As spring approaches, her colds
slowed down.  Meanwhile we grew more and more relaxed about her colds.
Only once did the doctor diagnosed an ear infection and only twice she
had antibiotics.  (The other time was due to sinus infection, and I wished
that I did not give her that awful Septra.) 

>Are there any studies that can help answer some of these questions?

There are the 'net studies' -- that is, if you read this newsgroup often,
there will be a round of questions like this every month.  There might
be formal studies like that, but bear with my not so academic experience.
Okay?
>
>-- How often do kids in their first, second and third years fall sick?
>How often do they get colds, flus, ear infections? 

Gee, I bet 50/50 you'll hear cases in all these catagories.

> Is there any data on home care vs. day care?

I am pretty sure, an insulated child at home sicks less.  But, that child 
still will face the world one day. 

>
>-- Does being sick "build immunity" (leading to less illness later),

That's what I believe and comfort myself with.  Caroline will get more
and more colds for sure before she learned not to stick her hand in other 
kid's mouth nor let other kids do the same.  Cold virus mutate easily.
However, I hope that her immune system will be stronger to fight these
diseases, so she would be less severely affected.  Everytime she has a cold,
we make sure she blow her nose frequently and give her Dorcol or Dimetapp 
at night so she can have good rest (thanks to some suggestions from the net).
That's about all the care she needs from us.  I try very hard to keep her
off antibiotics.  Twice her ped. gave me choice to decide whether she would
have antibiotics.  I waited just long enough (3-4 days) to see that she
fought the illness off.  I do understand that you don't have much choice if
the child is in pain and/or high fever. 

>does it make kids "weaker" (leading to more illness later), or does it
>not have any long term effect?

If the child doesn't rely on antibiotics to fight off the sickness everytime,
then the child should be stronger.

>
>-- Does taking antibiotics on a regular basis have any negative long
>term effects?
> 
I'll leave this to expert.

>-- How does one tell if a child is more susceptible to illness than
>normal, and what does one do about it?
>
If your child just entered daycare, I'm pretty sure the first 6 months will be
the hardest.  (Then, you get more used to it.  Boy, do I hate to see me typing
this sentence.  I recall when I read something like this last September, I said 
to myself, 'oh, sure.'  But, I do get used to it, now.)  However, I do hear 
people say that it does get better after a year or two.  I am looking forward 
to a healthier next winter.  As it gets warmer, I hope you do get some break 
soon.

>-- Is there any way to build immunity and resistance?
>
Eat well, sleep well.  Try not to use antibiotics if not absolutely necessary.

Good luck.

Wen-lin


-- 

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59638
Subject: Re: cure for dry skin?
From: habersch@husc8.harvard.edu (Oren Haber-Schaim)

jlecher@pbs.org writes:

>In article <1rmn0c$83v@morrow.stanford.edu>, mou@nova1.stanford.edu (Alex Mou) writes:
>> Hi all,
>> 
>> My skin is very dry in general. But the most serious part is located
>> from knees down. The skin there looks like segmented. The segmentation
>> actually happens beneath the skin. I would like to know if there is any
>> cure for this.
>> 

>As a matter of fact, I just saw a dermatologist the other day, and while I 
>was there, I asked him about dry skin. I'd been spending a small fortune
>on various creams, lotions, and other dry skin treatments.
>He said all I needed was a large jar of vaseline. Soak in a lukewarm tub
>of water for 10 minutes (ONLY 10 minutes!) then massage in the vaseline,
>to trap the moisture in. 

That is the standard advice in dermatology texts.
The soak part greatly increases the inconvenience.  Don't bother unless
it doesn't work otherwise.

>The hard part will be finding the time to rub in the
>vaseline properly. 

Exactly, but it adds to the "ritual" aspect, which is important for
us suggestible patients.  (Posters, don't bother to repeat the 
rationale for the soak.)

>If it's not done right, you remain greasy and stick

Greasy no matter what. Vaseline (generically, petrolatum) is 
famous for that.  One text states that the more greasy a dry-skin
cream is, the more effective.  

>Try it. It's got to be cheaper then spending $30 for 8 oz. of 'natural'
>lotion.

Try USP lanolin, at least for maintenance (preventive) therapy.  USP
lanolin is natural and much less greasy AND cheap (don't buy the more
expensive perfumed lanolin mixture).  As I've commented before, petrolatum
is a poorly characterized mixture of hydrocarbons which are not found in
biological systems (that is not inherently bad, but smell it up close,
even on your hand), are partially absorbed into the body and remain there
for months or more, and have associations with cancer.  Don't panic, but
also don't believe it's God's gift to the human skin.


Oren Haber-Schaim

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59639
From: antonio@qualcom.qualcomm.com (Franklin Antonio)
Subject: Re: Thermoscan ear thermometer

In article <ASHWIN.93May1225032@leo.gatech.edu> ashwin@cc.gatech.edu (Ashwin Ram) writes:
>Does the "Thermoscan" instrument really work?  It is supposed to give you a
>fast and accurate temperature reading in the ear.  How far in the ear does
>one have to insert the instrument?  Is it worth the $100 it is currently
>selling for?

No, they do not work well.  My doctor started using one recently, and I
thought the concept was so amazing that I bought one too.  

The thing works by reading the infrared emissions from the ear drum.
The ear drum is hotter than the ear canal walls, so you have to point
the thing very carefully.  This means tugging on the top of the ear
to straighten out the ear canal, then inserting the thing snugly, then
pushing a button.  Unfortunately, there are many things that can go wrong.
It is almost impossible to aim the thing correctly when you do it on 
yourself.  I get readings which differ from each other by up to 2 degrees,
and may differ from an oral thermometer by up to 2 degrees.  

I talked to one of the nurses in my doctor's office recently about this,
and she said she didn't like them either, for same reasons.  She did give
me some instruction on how to tug on my ear, and what correct insertion
feels like, but she said she thought it was impossible to do correctly
on one's self.  She also said that she and other nurses had complained to
the company about inaccurate readings, and that someone from the company
had told them to take great care to clean the infrared window at the end
of the probe with alcohol from time to time.  She demonstrated this prior
to reading my temperature, and managed to get a reading within 0.5 degree
of the oral temperature I took at home before driving to the Dr's office.

I have also noticed tha some nurses click the button, then remove the
probe immediately.  This causes wrong readings.  In my experience, you
have to leave the probe in a good 1 to 2 seconds after clicking the button
to get a good measurement.  The nurse I talked with agreed.  I suspect
that many people don't realize this, and therefore get bad readings for
yet another reason.

In short, it's a great idea.  It may work for some folks, but I believe
it doesn't work well for a person who wants to take his own temperature.


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59640
From: Renee@cup.portal.com (Renee Linda Roberts)
Subject: Muscle spasms post-surgically

I had ankle reconstruction (grafting the extensor digitorum
longus to the lateral side of the ankle, along with a video
arthroscopy of the ankle (interesting to watch, to say the
least). Since then, I have had periodic muscle spasms (not
cramping, but twitching that is very fast) in some of the
muscle groups along the lateral side, and along the top of
my foot. 

TX with quinine sulfate produced ringing in my ears, but did
help with the spasms.

I am on flexeril now, but no discernable help with the spasms.

Any ideas?

One thing - I am in a short leg cast, so heat is not the answer.

Renee Roberts

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59641
From: bf455@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bonita Kale)
Subject: Re: HELP for Kidney Stones ..............



In a previous article, jeffs@sr.hp.com (Jeff Silva) says:
 I was told by my doctor
>at that time that the pain was comparable to that of childbirth. (Yes,
>by a male doctor, so I'm sure some of you women will disagree). I'd
>really like to know the truth in this, so maybe some of you women who
>have had a baby and a kidney stone could fill me in. 



I've had three children and the pain was different in degree for each.  I
think it just depends.  I was impressed by how awful a kidney stone seemed
to be, when I saw a relative with one.  I bet they depend, too--some are
probably worse than others.

Pain--yucch.


Bonita Kale


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59642
From: bf455@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Bonita Kale)
Subject: arthritis and diabetes




I have osteoarthritis, and my huband has just been diagnosed with diabetes
(type II, I guess--no insulin). 


I've been trying to read up on these two conditions, and what really
surprises me is how few experiments have been done and how little is known. 
Losing weight appears to be imperative for diabetes and advisable for
arthritis (at least, for -women- with arthritis), but, of course, the very
conditions that make weight loss advisable are part of the reason for the
weight gain. 

For myself, I'm almost afraid to lose weight, because no matter how gentle
and sensible a diet I use (the last one was 1800-2000 calories, in about
eight small meals), the weight won't go off gradually and stay off. 
Instead, it drops off precipitously, and then comes back on with much
interest, like bread on the waters.


With this experience, it's hard to be encouraging to my husband.  All I can
suggest is to make it as gradual as possible.

Meanwhile, some experts recommend no sugar, others, no fat, others, just a
balanced diet.  It's almost impossible to tell from their writings -which-
parts of their recommendations are supposed to help the condition, and
which are merely ideas the expert thinks are nifty.

Is it my imagination, or are these very old conditions very poorly
understood?  Is it just that I'm used to pediatrician-talk ("It's strep;
give him this and he'll get well.") and so my expectations are too high? 


Bonita Kale



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59643
From: dkibbe@med.unc.edu (David C. Kibbe)
Subject: quality management



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59644
From: disraeli@leland.Stanford.EDU (Jamie Lara Bronstein)
Subject: Re: Bacteria invasion and swimming pools

I have been struck down this past week by a stomach bug and fever
which went away quickly when treated with an antibiotic. The
pharmacist told me the antibiotic is effective against a wide
variety of "gram-negative bacteria." I was wondering where I
might have acquired such a bacteria. Could they hang out in swimming-
pool water, or would the chlorine kill them? 

Feeling better, I am

J. Bronstein
disraeli@leland.stanford.edu


Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59645
From: matthews@Oswego.EDU (Harry Matthews)
Subject: Re: Need info on Circumcision, medical cons and pros

BULLSHIT ! ! !



Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59646
From: V5113E@VM.TEMPLE.EDU (James Arbuckle)
Subject: Drop your drawers and the doctor will see you

Organization: Temple University
X-Newsreader: NNR/VM S_1.3.2

Last week I went to see a gastroenterologist. I had never met this
doctor before, and she did not know what I was there for. As soon as I
arrived, somebody showed me to an examining room and handed me a gown.
They told me to undress (from the waist down, to be exact) and wait for the
doctor. Is this the usual drill when you go to a doctor for the first
time? I don't have much experience going to doctors (knock on wood), but
on the couple of occasions when I've gone to a new doctor, I met him
with my clothes on. First, he introduced himself, asked what I was there
for and took a history, all before I undressed.
 
Are patients usually expected to get naked before meeting a doctor
for the first time? Personally, I'd prefer to meet the doctor on
something remotely resembling a condition of parity and to establish an
identity as a person who wears clothes before dropping my drawers. If
nothing else, it minimizes the time that I have to spend in the self
conscious, ill at ease and vulnerable condition of a person with a bare
bottom talking to somebody who is fully clothed.
 
Does anybody besides me regard this get-naked-first-and-then-we-can-talk
attitude as insensitive? Also, is it unusual?
 
 
James Arbuckle                          Email:  v5113e@vm.temple.edu

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59648
From: kxgst1+@pitt.edu (Kenneth Gilbert)
Subject: Re: Persistent vs Chronic

In article <10600@blue.cis.pitt.edu> doyle+@pitt.edu (Howard R Doyle) writes:
:Chronic persistent hepatitis is usually diagnosed when someone does a liver
:biopsy on a patient that has persistently elevated serum transaminases months
:after a bout of acute viral hepatitis, or when someone is found to have
:persistently elevated transaminases on routine screening tests. The degree of
:elevation (in the serum transaminases) can be trivial, or as much as ten times
:normal. Other blood chemistries are usually normal. 
:As a rule, patients with CPH have no clinical signs of liver disease. 
:Chronic active hepatitis can also be asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, at
:least initially, and that's why it's important to tell them apart by means of
:a biopsy. The patient with CPH only needs to be reassured. The patient with
:CAH needs to be treated.

I just went back to the chapter in Cecil on chronic hepatitis.  It seems
that indeed most cases of CPH are persistant viral hepatitis, whereas
there are a multitude of potential and probable causes for CAH (viral,
drugs, alcohol, autoimmune, etc.).  Physicians seem to have a variety of
"thresholds" for electing to biopsy someone's liver.  Personally, I think
that if the patient is asymptomatic, with only slight transaminitis and
normal albumin and PT, one can simply follow them closely and not add the
potential risks of a biopsy.  Others may well biopsy such a patient, thus
providing these samples for study.  It would be interesting to see if
anyone's done any decision analysis on this.

-- 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
=  Kenneth Gilbert              __|__        University of Pittsburgh   =
=  General Internal Medicine      |      "...dammit, not a programmer!" =
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-|-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Newsgroup: sci.med
Document_id: 59652
From: bj368@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Mike E. Romano)
Subject: Re: Drop your drawers and the doctor will see you


This is not an unusual practice if the doctor is also a
member of a nudist colony.



-- 
Sir, I admit your gen'ral rule
That every poet is a fool;
But you yourself may serve to show it,
That every fool is not a poet.    A. Pope

