Summarizes highlights of a discussion by 12 leaders in the field of child sexual abuse concerning the technical conduct of the child-sexual-abuse medical examination. (DB)

Summarizes highlights of a discussion by 13 leaders in the field of child sexual abuse concerning normal anogenital anatomy in relation to medical evaluation for child sexual abuse. (DB)

Debates the paradoxical nature of claims about the emerging contributions of functional brain mapping. Examines the various ways that images are deployed and rejected and highlights an approach that provides insight into the current demarcation of imaging. (Contains 68 references.) (DDR)

Research in family caregiving recently has become more challenging because of the strict protection of privacy mandated in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996. We ask when should Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) follow HIPAA rules to the letter and when might they use the waiver option? What is the appropriate…

In departure from the standard approach of using several problems to cover specific topics in a class, I use a single problem to cover the contents of the entire semester-equivalent biochemistry classes. I have developed a problem-based service-learning (PBSL) problem on HIV/AIDS to cover nucleic acid concepts that are typically taught in the…

In 1998, Horvath et al. [Horvath, K., Stefanatos, G., Sokolski, K. N., Wachtel, R., Nabors, L., & Tildon, J. T. (1998). Improved social and language skills after secretin administration in patients with autism spectrum disorders. "Journal of the Association of the Academy of Minority Physicians," 9, 9-15] reported an uncontrolled…

Axons undergo Wallerian degeneration distal to a point of injury. Experimental investigations have documented many of the cellular and molecular events that underlie this behaviour. Since relatively little is known about such events in human CNS pathologies and current experimental intervention strategies indicate the possibility of significant…

The swiftly growing field of neurobiological research utilizes highly advanced technologies (e.g., magnetic resonance imaging, electron microscopy) to mediate between investigators and the brains they investigate. Here, the author analyzes a device called the "slam freezer" that quick-freezes neurons to be studied under the microscope. Employing…

Research on Problem-Based Learning in medical education has undergone an evolutionary process from initial proof of concept studies through critiques of the original methods and beyond. Initial studies focused on whether or not the instructional method was effective for medical students and the goals of medical education. Despite much movement…

Medical science, according to the author, is in a primitive stage of development. He traces the science of infection, beginning around 1875, not developed enough to be considered an applied science until the 1930's, and points out that we are only halfway in basic scientific understanding of such diseases as cancer, nephritis, and schizophrenia.…

The systematic measurement of the quality of patient care based on outcome data is becoming a part of the delivery of that care. The author reviews the history of an early approach developed and crusaded by Dr. E. A. Codman 60 years ago and suggests some lessons it holds for today's health care professionals. (Editor/JT)

The study reported assessed different aspects related to the research activities undertaken by students in medical school. An extensive questionnaire was administered to graduating seniors that covered degree of participation in research, length of time, circumstances, importance of pay, and level of resulting benefit. (Editor/PG)

A study of the relationship between pain-relieving drugs given to mothers during labor and delivery and neonatal behavior as assessed by the Brazelton Scales. Tested 44 infants on eight different days during their first month of life. (SDH)

Two current evaluation projects of the Family Nurse Practitioner Training Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill compare the utilization or quality of services provided by graduates practicing in different care settings. Clinical trial studies are essential first steps in assessing an innovation in health care delivery. (EA)

This report on the proposed National Childhood Vaccine Improvement Act of 1986 describes the background and need for legislation to safeguard the supply of vaccines for childhood diseases, to improve knowledge about adverse reactions, and to assist in the development of safer vaccines. This bill is a substitute amendment for a bill previously…