Medicine
Antibiotic Resistance: Combating An Important Problem
The antibiotic is a cornerstone of today’s medical treatment, but with the increasing rate of bacteria that are steadily growing impervious to these chemical treatments, should we consider the other options as valid alternatives? [1]. Starting in the 1920’s with the discovery of penicillin, a surge of antibiotic discovery enveloped the scientific world as scientists [...]
‘Bloodless’ Surgery: An Alternative to Invasive Medical Procedures?
By Nima Ahmady-Moghaddam, George Washington University The choice of words may at first glance be misleading. For several years now, an increasing number of hospitals – including University Hospital in Newark, NJ, Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC, and Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia, PA – have been implementing medical techniques and protocols that are geared [...]
Paramedics: A Danger to Patients?
By Michael West, George Washington University There’s a motto in emergency medical services (EMS) that one learns during his first days of training, “no airway, no patient.” Paramedics are trained in advanced pre-hospital medicine including advanced airway management techniques. One of the most notorious of these techniques is the endotracheal intubation (ETI), a technique in [...]
Healthy Biodiversity: Taking Care of the Environment and Our Health
Biodiversity is an important element in the natural world: it maintains ecosystem function by preserving species dominance and protects species health by ensuring genetic diversity. Biodiversity also acts as a buffer to many diseases—a genetically diverse population is much more likely to withstand outbreaks, while weak genetic diversity within wildlife can lead to an increase [...]
Your Genes Belong to Us: Gene Patenting and its Discontents
Genae Girard, a 39-year-old woman living in the US, had to pay a staggering $3200 for a single genetic test for the BRCA gene associated with breast and ovarian cancer, only to find that she was unable to request a second opinion upon receiving the positive test result. After consulting with doctors, Ms Girard was [...]
Staphylococcus Aureus: Horizontal Gene Transfer Scaring Antibiotics
Effective policy implementation is a challenging task, especially when taking into account a particular country’s large size and vast bureaucracy, such as those of the United States. One of the many fields that require constant attention is healthcare policy. Factors like age, social backgrounds, and community settings interact together to create a complex dynamic wave [...]
Brawn and Brains: Looking at NFL Head Injuries
NFL Head Injuries Any football fan watching a Sunday afternoon game will most likely witness at least one slow‐motion replay of a running back lowering his head as he faces off against a safety, or a defensive end’s helmet colliding with another player’s during a tackle. Fans of professional football bear witness to repeated head [...]
The Doctor-Patient Relationship in the Internet Age
Introduction The advent of the “information technology age” has led to a rapid change in the doctor‐patient dynamic. Before the Internet became host to a plethora of medical information and advice, the doctor‐patient relationship was confined primarily to office consultations. In that setting, doctors advised patients on the best course of medical action, and the [...]
Outsourcing Medicine: The Expanding Field of Medical Tourism
Medical Tourism In a country where 62% of all bankruptcies are the result of skyrocketing healthcare bills, it’s clear that the U.S. has a healthcare expenses problem [1]. Combine that with some of the worst mortality rates in the developed world, and you start to understand how Americans are in a lose-lose situation when it [...]
Obesity Epidemic: Will Money Talk?
In October 2010, obesity passed smoking as the most preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States [1]. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 68% of adult Americans were overweight or obese in 2008 [2]. A recent projection by Wang et al. estimates that of the 86% of American adults who [...]
Nanorobots: Novel Technology for Cancer Therapy
Human knowledge, with all its growth and development, is still in its initial stages of finding efficient ways to treat cancer. The elevated number of cancer patients puts cancer treatment amongst the top priority of scientific research facilities. The advent of nanotechnology opens new windows that promise effective ways in locating the chemical sources, tracking [...]
Methylation: The Cause of Brain Tumor?
When one thinks of the word “cancer” breast cancer, lung cancer, and skin cancer are among the various types that first come to mind. One type of cancer that is often neglected is Brain Tumor. According to the National Tumor Society, more than 500 people per day are diagnosed with primary or metastatic brain tumor [...]
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