HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Electrocardiogram question
From: pyan@ehd.hwc.ca (Just call me Ping...)
Date: 6 Jan 93 11:37:27 
Distribution: na
Organization: Health and Welfare, Canada

In article <2365@hsdndev.UUCP> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu (David Rind) writes:
>
>A palpable murmur (thrill) is very unusual without some significant
>underlying cardiac abnormality.  Echocardiography is generally a
>very sensitive test if done by a competent technician with modern
>equipment.
>

First of all, I would like to thank all of you who wrote to me through e-mail 
and who posted here.  For the EKG part, I was just following an on-going 
thread and put something little bit more than non-specific.  What I said 
above about the echocardiagraphy as shown "none or little abnormality", 
a more precise statement should be "inconclusive".  I went to the near-by 
walk-in clinic to see my doctor, who recommended me to a neighoring 
hospital (Grace Hospital in Ottawa) to do the tests.  The echo was done 
in tandem with a doppler.  Due to my especially tight ribs, the ultrasound 
couldn't reach the pulmonary area (valve and nearby region).  The written 
report to my doctor was a recommendation for a trans-esophageal echo., and 
my doctor recommended to by-pass it for a catheterization.  Regarding 
other readings, the echo. showed thickenings in other valves and walls to 
an extent not significantly exceeding the normal values (on the boundaries).

>If you've already had all this done, and people are still disagreeing
>about the best course, you might try to seek out another opinion from
>a well-respected cardiologist.

Yes, my doctor can't do a catheterization himself.  He will recommend 
me to a well-respected cardiologist first and I can get a second opinion 
by then.  I think the murmur has been around for almost 10 years, with a 
slow progression in terms of loudness.  This is the first time that some
sort of abnormality shown on EKG.  
The reason that I went to the clinic was that I passed out 
in my bath tub, about one and half hour after supper, which could be either 
explained as dehydration since blood was mostly in the stamoch and hot water 
drained water from the skin, or due to other reasons.  Just to be caucious.

>-- 
>David Rind
>rind@binoc.bih.harvard.edu

I apologize for deleting some lines from your original article in order 
to shortening this message.

Ping

Newsgroups: sci.med
From: CSMSCST@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (Chris Thomas)
Subject: Re: Cellular telephones and brain tumors
Date: 5 Jan 93 09:49:49 PST

In article <3390@bsu-cs.bsu.edu>, on 5 Jan 93 14:21:42 GMT,
rlp@bsu-cs.bsu.edu (Ralph L. Place) writes:

>
>I heard yesterday on a radio newscast that someone in Florida was suing
>a cellular telephone company for causing his wife's brain tumor.  He
>claims that she held the phone and antenna close to her head and the rf
>(the announcer called it 'microwave') radiation resulted in causing the
>brain tumor.
>
>Now it would seem that at rf frequencies, the radiation would be absorbed
>within the outer layers of the skin (the familiar 'skin-effect', although
>no pun is intended) and thus would be highly unlikely to be absorbed
>deeply enough to cause interior damage (even if the intensity was high
>enough).
>

Would you put your head in a microwave oven?

There have been a number of studies of the effects of RF, such as
that generated by cellular phones, police/fire portable radios, etc.
Results have been mixed.  Handheld celular phones are limited to
0.6 watts, as opposed to the 3.0 watts used in transportable and
car-mounted cell phones, in part because of a concern about limiting
RF exposure (the other reason is battery life).  0.6 watts is within
the current safety standards.

My personal opinion is that 0.6 watts is probably safe, given the
shielding of your skull.  I would however be very careful to keep
the antenna by the side of my head so that my eyes are not exposed.
My take of the studies I've seen so far indicates that retinal
damage is a possibility.  Amateur radio operators and police/fire
radio users often use 5 watt radios in the UHF range, and that is
a power level at which concern becomes more significant.  I would
also favor cell phones with longer antennas - they have a radiation
maximum roughtly half way up the atennna instead of at the antenna
base - since this gets the RF that much further away from from your
body.

  --  Chris Thomas, AA6SQ (CSMSCST@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU)
From: arodgers@dcs.qmw.ac.uk (Angus H Rodgers)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Colbys-Weizenbaum and Overcoming Depression 2.0
Date: 11 Jan 93 22:50:46 GMT
Organization: Computer Science Dept, QMW, University of London

In <1993Jan10.051507.21290@spdcc.com>
dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer) writes:

>I'd also love to know where this entire thread has come from; it reads
>as if it's part of an ongoing controversy, but it appears in a vacuum here.

For me, it has come from J.Weizenbaum's book "Computer Power and Human
Reason"; plus a cross-posting from sci.med to sci.philosophy.tech (I
think it was) of part of the "Toxic Psychiatry" thread; plus personal
experience and anecdotes from friends.

There does not appear to be an appropriate newsgroup for such debates.
--
Gus Rodgers,  Dept. of Computer Science, | Cinema's worst romantic dialogue? --
Queen Mary & Westfield College, Mile End | "Mechagodzilla's brain is  installed
Road, London, England.   +44 71 975 5241 | in my stomach!" "I don't care if you
E-mail (JANET):   arodgers@dcs.qmw.ac.uk | are a cyborg  --  I still love you!"
From: engelson-sean@cs.yale.edu (Sean P. Engelson)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Exercise/Stress-induced asthma
Date: 11 Jan 1993 17:45:25 -0500
Organization: Yale AI Mobile Robotics Project
Distribution: world
Reply-To: engelson-sean@cs.yale.edu
NNTP-Posting-Host: fridge.ai.cs.yale.edu



Query: Can anyone give me references to the main papers on stress- or
exercise-induced asthma?  I'm asking because I have reason to believe
I may have it (I just heard of it, and it seems to match a
long-standing condition of mine).  I'm seeing my physician to check it
out, and it might be helpful if I can refer to recent articles on it,
since I understand it's only a recently diagnosed condition.  Any
other advice would be most welcome.

Thanks in advance.

-- 
Sean Philip (Shlomo) Engelson		
Yale Department of Computer Science	
Box 2158 Yale Station			
New Haven, CT 06520			
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: bechtler@asdg.enet.dec.com (Laurie Bechtler)
Subject: on-line info for haemodialysis professionals?
Organization: Digital Equipment Corporation
Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1993 16:47:16 GMT



The subject sounds rather pompous.  Actually, what I'm interested in
is a justification for my brother to get e-mail access so we can talk
to each other!

He started a job 2 months ago as technical director for a hemodialysis
clinic in Manhattan.  His experience was all in field service, so the
other aspects of the job are new to him.  He did join a professional
society but hasn't been involved much with it yet.

What kind of on-line newsgroups, mailing lists, services, etc. are
available for dialysis-related issues?

I don't think cost is an issue, but adequate justification is.

Thanks for any info.

Newsgroups: sci.med
From: kolstad@cae.wisc.edu (Joel Kolstad)
Subject: Re: resisting electromagnetic radiation
Organization: U of Wisconsin-Madison College of Engineering
Distribution: sci.med, sci.med.physics, sci.engr.biomed, misc.health.alternative
Date: 11 Jan 93 14:53:14 CST

In article <1993Jan11.191400.17805@kestrel.edu> king@reasoning.com (Dick King) writes:
>
>That's not the reason why a Faraday Cage can't keep out 60HZ.

I maintain that it's part of the reason. :-)

>There are two problems:
>
>  1: The lower the frequency of the radiation, the more conductive the Faraday
>     Cage material must be.  At 60 Hz., only a superconductor would do.
>     Loosely put, the rate at which a magnetic field penetrates a conductor is
>     proportional to the material's resistivity, and a magentic field can
>     penetrate even silver in milliseconds.

I'd buy this, although I might re-phrase it as follow: Anything that
conducts at all will attenuate the magnetic field as it (the field) passes
through the "thing".  Things that conduct more attenuate the field faster.
The higher frequency the field, the more it is attenuated in a given amount
of conductive sheeting.  The velocity of the EM wave slows down more in
things that are more conductive, but this doesn't really matter anyway
in what we're talking about (since there's always plenty of 60Hz around).

Therefore, for a reasonably sized Faraday cage, I'd say you need _both_ a
solid box, as well as very good ocnductors (or Mu metal, etc.).

I'll leave your second paragraph alone, because, although technically a
little inaccurate, it provides a pretty good visualization of what's going
on.

						---Joel Kolstad

Xref: sparky sci.med:23751 sci.med.occupational:199 comp.human-factors:2955 news.answers:5059
From: hinz@picard.med.ge.com (David Hinz (hinz@picard.med.ge.com))
Subject: Re: resisting electromagnetic radiation
Organization: GE Medical Systems, Magnetic Resonance
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]
Distribution: sci.med, sci.med.physics, sci.engr.biomed, misc.health.alternative
Date: Fri, 8 Jan 93 08:23:52 GMT

Denise M. Cuevas (denise@isl.stanford.edu) wrote:
: 
: Has any research been done on blocking electromagnetic radiation? I
: assume that planting trees between my house and the power lines
: would be ineffective. How about buttressing the walls of my house with
: some sort of repulsing material?

A Faraday cage is used to block RF leakage, can't really speak for 60Hz 
though.  Basically, what you need is a conductive box, with no gaps,
surrounding that which you want to keep  the RF out of (or in).

At the frequencies that MRI uses, copper mesh is sufficient, although
copper foil/sheet or welded steel (3/8") is usually used.  I would have
to defer to someone with more RF experience than I to tell you if this would
help at microwave or ELF frequencies.  (MRI uses frequencies in the TV/FM
radio band, usually 21 MHz to 63 MHz, up to 170MHz for 4 tesla systems).

--

Dave Hinz  -  Opinions expressed are mine, not my employer's.  Obviously.
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: donnam@niwot.scd.ucar.edu (Donna Melle)
Subject: Hypothyroidism
Organization: Scientific Computing Divison/NCAR Boulder, CO
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1993 17:08:21 GMT

I work with a woman who has recently been diagnosed with hypothyroidism.
Prior to beginning a synthyroid prescription from her medical doctor, she
decided to check out her medication options with a chinese herbologist.
He claims to be able to permanently "cure" the hypothyroidism without the
use of synthyroid.  The entire process will take several months.  He has
prescribed Hsiao Yao Wan (Bupleurum sedative pills), 8 pills, 3 times a day.
The ingredients listed on the bottle are:
		Radix Bupleuri
		Radix Angelicae Sinensis
		Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae
		Radix Paeoniae Lactiflorae
		Poria
		Radix Glycyrrhizae
		Rhizoma Zingiberis
		Herba Menthae

Does anyone know what these ingredients are and how they could be used to
effectively treat hypothyroidism?  Can acupuncture stimulate and regulate
a low-acting thyroid?  Does synthyroid have any side effects?

Donna Melle
donnam@niwot.scd.ucar.edu
From: dozonoff@bu.edu (david ozonoff)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Softened water
Date: 10 Jan 93 03:10:30 GMT
Distribution: usa
X-Newsreader: Tin 1.1 PL5

I'm not sure how much sodium is added by a softener, but
unless you are on a severely sodium restricted diet it is
unlikely to contribute much compared to your diet (a Big
Mac, for example, has about 1500 mgm of sodium). Most 
americans consume several grams of sodium a day.
	I think you need reverse osmosis system to get rid
of it. Filtration *definitely* will not remove ions (they are
too small).

--
Dave Ozonoff
dozonoff@med-itvax1
Boston University School of Public Health
80 East Concord St., T3C
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 638-4620
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: dabaghi@menusin.inria.fr (Fadi El Dabaghi)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: looking for Comp Sys for Dental practices
Keywords: Dental
Date: 11 Jan 93 11:21:01 GMT
Reply-To: dabaghi@menusin.inria.fr (Fadi El Dabaghi)
Organization: INRIA Domaine de Voluceau Rocquencourt France

I am looking for informations about any advanced computerized
system for dental practices (patient's data, color or b/w graphics
showing patients history with automatic invoicing, electronic
appointment list, diagnostics, treatments and periodontal treatments,
librairies,...). I have a pc (Note Star NP-913, 60 mb mem and a proc
intel 386dx) running with Dos. Thanks for replying on my email.

ps: thanks Randy for the info ...
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: crittew@agora.rain.com (Walt Crittenden)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Digoxin
Date: 8 Jan 93 09:25:17 GMT
Article-I.D.: agora.C0J3I6.2nr
Organization: Open Communications Forum

grmd@lrts1.demon.co.uk (Gareth) writes:

>Digoxin is a beta blocker (slows and steadies the heart)

No, digoxin is a cardiac glycoside that increases the force of contraction.
It does this by inhibiting the sodium-potassium ATPase to allow more calcium
ion to activate the cardiac muscle fibers.  It also slows the rate of the
heart by depressing the pacemaker node (SA node), and slows condiction through
the AV node (these last two are indirect actions caused by parasympathomimetic
stimulation).

Hope this helps,

Walt Crittenden, R.Ph.
Staff Pharmacist
Good Samaritan Hospital & Medical Center
Portland, Oregon
From: pwageman@jupiter.spk.wa.us (Peggy Wageman)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Ecxema
Date: 11 Jan 93 09:34:34 GMT
Organization: Astrology R Us

Does anybody know if there have been in recent advances in the treatment
of ecxema (sp?)?  And are there any adverse reactions from the long term
use of prescription cortisone cremes?  Any information would be 
appreciated.  Thanks,  Peggy Wageman/s
From: Robert.Lewy.MD@f9453.n106.z1.fidonet.org (Robert Lewy MD)
Sender: Usenet@f-454.fidonet.org
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Ritalin
Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1993 11:51:06 -0600

There is a good attention-deficit forum on the Fidonet backbone too.
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Philosophy & Psychiatry: 1 more thought
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)
Date: 5 Jan 93 20:07:05 EDT
Distribution: world
Organization: Philosophy Dept., Wesleyan University
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.20Lines: 12

One more thought on this subject:

The April 1992 issue of the JOURNAL OF MEDICINE & PHILOSOPHY was a special
issue dedicated to philosophical questions involved in psychiatric diagnosis
and treatment.  There are about a dozen articles on various aspects of this
subject.



------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA
From: mcglk@cpac.washington.edu (Ken McGlothlen)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Advice on contact lenses wanted (especially on disposable ones)
Date: 4 Jan 93 12:54:18 GMT
Article-I.D.: yang.MCGLK.93Jan4045418
Distribution: world
Organization: Dubious.
NNTP-Posting-Host: yang.cpac.washington.edu

Seng-Poh Lee (splee@pd.org) asked
+----------
| My wife is ready to go to contacts lenses and she needs to know the pro and
| cons of each type. [...]  [summary of hard and soft lenses omitted]
|
| disposable:	Wear for two weeks and throw away. This is the one she is most
|		   interested in. I'd appreciate hearing from people who have
|		   experience with them, both good and bad.
+----------

I've used disposables for over a year now.  I *love* them.  I used to use
daily-wear soft lenses, but the cleanser residue used to sting my eyes (and no
amount of rinsing seemed to help), and in spite of diligent enzyming (which
removes the protein deposits which contacts acquire), they were still a pain to
clean from time to time.  Switching to disposables is the best thing I've ever
done---not only do I get crystal-clear contacts every couple of weeks, but if I
lose one, it's not a huge deal:  I just go get another one, and it's okay.

I use NewVues at the moment, but I've used Acuvues with no problems, either.
And they're not all that expensive---more expensive than replacing daily-wear
lenses annually, certainly, but it boils down to about a dollar per day.

Wish your wife well---I think she'll really like 'em.

				---Ken McGlothlen
				   mcglk@cpac.washington.edu
				   mcglk@cpac.bitnet
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg WA7KGX)
Subject: Re: Adiposity 101
Organization: Omen Technology INC, Portland Rain Forest
Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1993 11:42:07 GMT

In article <17973@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1992Dec29.024354.0201957@locus.com> yazz@locus.com (Bob Yazz) writes:
>>
>>| I don't know how to fix the metabolic processing (other
>>| than by exercising more) of what's eaten, and neither do you.
>>
>>I won't presume I can persuade you, but I DO know a few things about
>>changing the metabolic processing.  And the "metabolic processing"
>>stuff that Chuck talks a lot about in Adiposity 101 is, for me, the
>>most interesting part.  Repartitioning agents, beta3-agonists, lipase
>>inhibitors, and so on are all related to the metabolic processing side,
>>not the eating side, of the equation.
>>
>So if you're so smart, why ain't you thin?  Sorry, I couldn't pass

If you professional diet wonks are so smart, why isn't your cure
rate better than chiropractic?

>that one by.  These are promising research topics, none of which
>have yet had any substantial results reported.

The RU-486 and CoPP treatments completely reversed the subjects'
obesity.  Timed bromocriptine seems to work wonders.
Dexfenfluramine seems to prevent weight regain after dieting.
These are substantial, if preliminary, results.

>>| And I never insisted that dieting was *the* solution
>>| to obesity.
>>
>>If you say so then perhaps not, but I've certainly come away with that
>>impression repeatedly -- even when possible future medical interventions
>>are part of the discussion.
>>
>It's not my fault that you let your preconceived notions color what
>you read.  I've never had any discussions about possible future
>medical interventions in which I was negative about them, other
>than saying they are future and thus only hypothetical.

The issue is, is dieting sufficiently safe and effective for all
subgroups of fat people that America should continue to spend
$30+ billion/yr on it while sandbagging the development and
deployment of superior alternatives?

-- 
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
From: pwageman@jupiter.spk.wa.us (Peggy Wageman)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Stroke
Date: 11 Jan 93 09:39:26 GMT
Organization: Astrology R Us

I know somebody that was recently diagnosed as possibly having a slight
stroke, this individual is only 35 years old.  How common is that?  I had
always assumed that strokes occurred primarily in people over 50.  Could 
somebody explain to me what a stroke is and what causes them.  Any 
information would be appreciated.  Thanks,  Peggy Wageman
Save
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Ventolin
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)
Date: 7 Jan 93 22:16:50 EDT
Distribution: usa
Organization: Philosophy Dept., Wesleyan University
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.20In-Reply-To: rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu's message of 7 Jan 93 23:23:09 GMTLines: 17

In <2378@hsdndev.UUCP> rind@enterprise.bih.harvard.edu writes:

> This question has come up quite a few times because of the media
> attention, and I'd suggest it go in the FAQ file (if it's not
> already there).
> 
> -- 
> David Rind
> rind@binoc.bih.harvard.edu

Great idea!  David, I've been trying to contact you via e-mail, but all the
e-mail I send to you gets bounced back.  Sorry to post this to the whole
continent, but could you please send me a non-bouncy e-mail address? Thanks.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: derion@VAX309.NOSC.MIL (Toni Derion)
Subject: obesity/alcohol/pregnancy
Reply-To: derion@VAX309.NOSC.MIL
Organization: Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, CA
Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1993 21:05:07 GMT

Please forgive me if this has already been discussed in the replies
to 'Adiposity 101' (I didn't read them all.)  Can anyone direct me
to the best scientific journal(s) in which to find info regarding
the effects of alcohol consumption on fat storage?  I've read
that although alcohol contains no fat, it facilitates storage of
fat.  I was wondering if this is true, and if so, what the 
physiological mechanism is.  (Empirically it seems to be true--
look at all the "beer bellies"!)

I would also be interested in learning what the relationship is
between obesity, alcohol comsumption, and pregnancy (actually,
fertility-- the woman's).  I know someone (female) who is 35,
*VERY* heavy (but otherwise healthy), who with her husband drinks
1-2 bottles of wine per evening with dinner, and who has been
trying for several months to conceive.  (BTW she is sedentary.)

How does obesity interfere with ovulation (or does it)?

How does alcohol consumption (to the above extent) interfere with ovulation
and/or other aspects of female fertility?

I know that all this time that she and her husband have
been trying to make a baby, they haven't cut back on their wine
consumption.  This is worrisome from another point of view as
well-- if she were to get pregnant and not know it for a month
or so, while continuing to enjoy her bottle of wine
with dinner every night.....

Thanks for your replies!

TD

Newsgroups: sci.med
From: Oliver Schoett <schoett@informatik.tu-muenchen.de>
Subject: Temporary loss of gripping force -- a known symptom?
Organization: Inst. fuer Informatik, Technische Univ. Muenchen, Germany
Date: Sat, 9 Jan 1993 14:33:59 GMT

A friend of mine reports a strange symptom that she has had all her
life and that she seems to have in common with her mother: several
times during a day, she loses the ability to exert gripping force with
her hands for ten to twenty minutes.  This often happens immediately
after waking up or after intense laughing (honest!), but also without
discernible trigger.  The gripping force in the hands may be lost
almost completely (after waking up) or only to some degree (during the
day).  Dexterity of the hands seems not to be affected.  The symptom
disappears gradually.

As she has had this syptom all her life, she has accustomed to it and
never consulted a doctor about it, but she is now nearly a doctor
herself and cannot find anything like it in her (neurology) textbooks.
It is truly amazing: when this loss occurs, she can grab my arm with
her maximum force, and the pressure is roughly the same as when I
simply hold my arm relaxedly with my other hand.

Has anyone ever seen or heard of a symptom like this?


Oliver Schoett     Inst. f. Informatik (H2), Technische Univ. M"unchen
                   Postfach 20 24 20,     8000 M"unchen 2,     Germany
schoett@informatik.tu-muenchen.de    phone +49 89 2105-2399  fax -8207
Newsgroups: sci.med