HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: RFD Alternative Medicine - need definition
Date: 18 Nov 92 15:11:17 GMT
Reply-To: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Organization: Univ. of Pittsburgh Computer Science

In article <1992Nov16.205552.6554@island.COM> green@island.COM (Robert Greenstein) writes:

>
>I think the real reason you proposed the alternative group is that
>you don't like controversy when it dares to challenge the party line.

I think you've been around long enough to know I like controversy.
If you'd read other newsgroups, you'd see that I do also.  I'm
just getting weary of the same ones coming up again and again,
and I also want to raise the scientific level of the discussion
on sci.med.  The alternative stuff is hindering attacting more
scientists to sci.med.

>I think when people are presented with more than one viewpoint, they
>are intelligent enough to decide for themselves which is valid. They
>don't need you to shout "quack" whenever an alternative approach is
>suggested. 

Some people are and some people aren't.  People who are not scientifically
trained often don't know how to evaluate evidence.  You see it
here almost every day where people imply causality without valid
reasons.  "I took X and felt better, therefore I *know* homeopathy
works."  It isn't just a matter of intelligence, although stupid
people never will get it.  Very intelligent people can believe in
very stupid myths.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "I have given you an argument; I am not obliged
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  to supply you with an understanding." -S.Johnson
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: ghica@fig.citib.com (Renato Ghica)
Subject: Re: Circumcisions (Are they ever performed on adults ?)
Originator: ghica@duck
Organization: Citibank IBISM
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 15:25:53 GMT


In article <1992Nov16.044856.1700@ennews.eas.asu.edu>, prado@enuxhb.eas.asu.edu (Louis A. Prado) writes:
|> In article <BxsEr1.6DA@acsu.buffalo.edu>, oispeggy@ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu (Peggy Brown) writes:
|> > 
|> > Are there any studies regarding decreased sensitivity (or is this 
|> > just hearsay)?
|> > 
|> Just trust me on this one Peggy, sensitivity IS decreased :).
|> 
|> 
|> > >>Anyway, what options are available to adult men who were not circumsized at
|> > >>birth. 
|> > Leaving it alone, for one.
|> 
|> Well considering that wives of uncircumcised men are much more likely to
                       ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|> contract cancer of the cervix, and all the other problems previously
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
|> mentioned, leaving it alone doesn't sound like the best advice.
|> > -Peggy
|> 
|> -Lou
|> 
|> 


So that's what happen to cavemen and cave-women of old!


Is this for real? Please direct us to unbiased medical references.

(Studies of people living near a major city, or in Long Island,
or smokers, or drinkers, or people with lead pipes or people
that eat saccharin or women that use fiber-glass based 
tampons or plasticised underwear or have a workstation under their
desk or eat too much or eat too little ...... DO NOT COUNT!)
-- 

"I am a brain, Watson."
"These views are my own. / Mail me or Flame me"
Copyright (c) 1992 Renato Ghica / ghica@fig.citib.com
From: gw@hpscit.sc.hp.com (Gordon Wilson)
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 23:48:30 GMT
Subject: Acromegaly
Organization: Hewlett-Packard, Santa Clara, CA
Newsgroups: sci.med

  Acromegaly is a disorder of the the endocrine system.  It creates
too much Growth Hormone.  Typically, a pituitary adenoma is the
culprit. I have just been diagnosed with this rare disorder.  
It affects something like 1 in 40,000 people.  I would like to 
find a doctor that handles lots of acromegalic patients, since 
there is a lot of development in drugs and xrays (gamma knife).
The developmental drugs are made by sandoz, I wonder if I could talk
to them to get a knowledgeable doctor? Please let me know if you 
know of such a doctor (endocrinlogist), or of any relevant information.   

thanks
gordon
mail address:
gw@general.dtc.hp.com
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Prozac side effects
Date: 17 Nov 92 03:38:27 GMT
Article-I.D.: spdcc.1992Nov17.033827.12375
Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA

In article <Bxu5nK.26E@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu> muwjt@uxa.ecn.bgu.edu (William J. Taney) writes:
>What kind of interaction would PROZAC have with Alchol

Unless it makes you drowsy (highly unlikely), not a whole lot.
That is, there's no special prohibition beyond the general one
that it's not wise to mix recreational drugs and psychotropic
medications.

I seem to recall some studies which say it reduces alcohol consumption,
though I don't know how controlled these observations were.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Prozac and alcohol
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)
Date: 21 Nov 92 20:27:26 EDT
Distribution: world
Organization: Philosophy Dept., Wesleyan University
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.20In-Reply-To: rsilver@world.std.com's message of Fri, 20 Nov 1992 12:13:24 GMTLines: 31

In <By0KMD.E2v@world.std.com> rsilver@world.std.com writes:

> My wife is trying Prozac for mild depression. The physician said
> no alcohol and was quite adamant. My wife likes a daily glass of
> wine with dinner and asked the pharmacist. He said there is no
> problem mixing alcohol and Prozac. Would someone comment?
> Is there a risk mixing the drugs?

I think the greater problem (than mixing Prozac & alcohol) is mixing
*depression* and alcohol.  Perhaps the physician was concerned that the "daily
glass of wine" might be (1) contributing to the depression; (2) an attempt at
"self-medicating" the depression; or (3) in danger of getting out of hand &
becoming a problem, when combined with the depression.

On a rather personal note, I wish someone had recognized my ex's daily drink as
a warning sign of alcohol-trouble far earlier than I did.  Perhaps if he'd had
a doctor who had treated his depression & gotten him to give up the alcohol ...
<oh, well: "if", "if", "if", ...>  I wish we could be blessed with hindsight
AHEAD OF TIME, when it would actually do any good. *NOT* that I'm saying that
this is your wife's situation; it just kind of rings one of those bells of
personal experience.  I'd say, if the doc told her to lay off the wine for a
while, do it.  It might help in the end & it couldn't hurt, could it?

P.S.:  If it is REALLY HARD for her to give up her daily glass of wine for a
time, then this *IS* a warning sign of difficulties with alcohol.  For a person
who is neither physiologically nor psychologically dependent on alcohol, it
should *NOT* be difficult to abstain for a while.

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Clinton's health care plan
Date: 18 Nov 92 15:13:00 GMT
Reply-To: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Organization: Univ. of Pittsburgh Computer Science

In article <921116210327.2060aab0@VAX1.UTULSA.EDU> RSE32195@VAX1.UTULSA.EDU writes:
>
>Would someone please send me a copy of Clinton's health care plan/proposal?
>I have seen it posted before but didn't save it.
>
Of course what he said in the campaign and what he is going to
actually do may not be all that similar.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "I have given you an argument; I am not obliged
geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  to supply you with an understanding." -S.Johnson
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: egf48542@ucbeh.san.uc.edu
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Prozac and alcohol
Date: 23 Nov 92 23:07:23 EST
Distribution: world
Organization: Univ. of Cincinnati

In article <By0KMD.E2v@world.std.com>, rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver) writes:
> 
> My wife is trying Prozac for mild depression. The physician said
> no alcohol and was quite adamant. My wife likes a daily glass of
> wine with dinner and asked the pharmacist. He said there is no
> problem mixing alcohol and Prozac. Would someone comment?
> Is there a risk mixing the drugs?

I would take the doctor's advice before the pharmacists, IF the doctor has
a decent amount of experience prescribing Prozac. The pharmacist may be
correct, however, it is often better to be safe than sorry when mixing two mood
modifiers like Alcohol and Prozac.

It is important that this drug be monitored very closely, as it has been known
to increase suicidal ideation in rare cases.  

I wouldn't see a general physician for more than one month on this drug.  It is
generally better to have a psychiatrist overseeing patients on anti-depressants
than an endicrinologist or a gastroenterologistor other non-psychiatric
physician.  They often lack the necessary training and experience to manage the
drug properly.

Alcohol is a CNS depressant.  If you want to look at it this way, drinking
alcohol while on an anti-depressant is a little like taking salt tablets while
on anti-hypertensive medication.  Alcohol won't improve depression, and
probably will worsen it.

Ed Francell, M.S.W. Candidate - Psychiatric Social Work
University of Cincinnati
From: RFLOOD@ESOC.BITNET
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Knee Injury
Date: 17 Nov 92 08:58:54 GMT
Organisation: European Space Operation Centre (E.S.O.C)

Now, forget all those perves ingesting their own urine, wondering if
seminal flued is emerging from their ears, etc., becoz I have a real
problem.
About two months ago, my knee joint 'went'. I was having a long break
from sports - biking, hiking, swimming etc - and one day whilst walking
home it started clicking, felt generally 'loose', and within a week I
couldn't walk more than 2 miles without it hurting badly.

Both my sports trainer and my doctor suspect that the membrane between
upper and lower leg bones (sorry I'm a layman - don't know the names)
is ruptured, allowing contact of the bone ends.  The trainer wants me
to have injections: the doctor has given me oral medicine. Both say
that once the membrane is ruptured that's it: it's gone for good, but
that the injections/medicine will 'help'. So, how ?  Both say that
wearing an elastic bandage won't help, other than keeping the joint
warm - why does keeing it warm help ? And my own opinion is that the
elastic bandage DOES help.

I conjecture that as knee injuries are so common these days as we all
try to "get fit" (i.e., we wear out our bodies faster than ever before !)
a lot of people should be able to advise me on this matter.
Thanks in advance,

RaF
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: viking@iastate.edu (Dan Sorenson)
Subject: Re: Toothbrush sterilizers any good?
Organization: Iowa State University, Ames IA
Date: Sat, 21 Nov 1992 05:56:03 GMT

cmriggin@iastate.edu (Christin M Riggins) writes:

>>Hmmm... if toothbrushes need sterilizing, why not dunk 'em in rubbing
>>alcohol?  

>Well for one, what about the taste? |P  Yuck!

	As opposed to the taste of the "New Mint-Flavored Gel" toothpaste?
Give me the rubbing alcohol any day!  I admit, I brush daily, but I really
hate the taste of the toothpaste.  Give me a beer-flavored paste and
I'd brush hourly, but they all taste bad so far.

	One might try a soaking in Listerine, among others, to kill the
critters that inhabit brushes.

< Dan Sorenson, DoD #1066 z1dan@exnet.iastate.edu viking@iastate.edu >
<  ISU only censors what I read, not what I say.  Don't blame them.  >
<  "This isn't an answer, it's a pagan dance around a midnight fire  >
<   written in intellectual runes." -- Rich Young                    >
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: lindae@netcom.com
Subject: Re: Baclofen - It Works!
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 23:19:11 GMT

In article <17475@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>In article <1992Nov6.163945.28458@netcom.com> lindae@netcom.com writes:
>>
>>My doctor recently put me on Baclofen and for the first time in 8 years,
>>I am feeling incredibly better.  Not 100%, but about 60-70% better than
>>I have in all of these years.  To me, it's like a miracle and I wanted
>>to share this information with any of you who may be suffering with
>>the same problem.  
>>
>Baclofen is helpful in cases where ephaptic transmission is the
>cause.  It is a rare cause of chronic vertigo.  I would not be
>expected that Baclofen would help more than 5% of vertigo sufferers.
>
>Gordon Banks  N3JXP      | "I have given you an argument; I am not obliged
>geb@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu   |  to supply you with an understanding." -S.Johnson

What is "ephaptic transmission"?  Couldn't find a definition of that anywhere!
From: turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Blood in Stools
Date: 22 Nov 1992 12:41:15 -0600
Organization: CS Dept, University of Texas at Austin
NNTP-Posting-Host: im4u.cs.utexas.edu
Summary: Probably not.

-*----
In article <69985@cup.portal.com> mmm@cup.portal.com (Mark Robert Thorson) writes:
> I am under the impression that blood in the stool is always a symptom
> which should be checked out for the possibility of intestinal cancer. ...

Probably the most common cause of blood in the stool is just a
small tear in the anus.  If everyone who experiences this went to
the hospital forthwith, the waiting rooms would be significantly
more crowded than they are now.  

Occult blood is more significant, but it is often invisible and
is black rather than red.  

Like everything else in this newsgroup, the above is meant as
general information only and does not substitute for asking your
doctor. 

Russell
From: kingsley@hpwrce.mayfield.hp.com (Kingsley Morse)
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 20:39:32 GMT
Subject: Re: knee - thear in meniscal cartilage
Organization: HP Western Response Center
Newsgroups: sci.med

In sci.med, holen@netcom.com (Victor Holen) writes:

> Are there any cures other than cuting off part of the meniscus ?

Yes. Repairing it. Repair is more complicated than removal, and, it has been
done.

Newsgroups: sci.med
From: wales@kona.cs.ucla.edu (Rich Wales)
Subject: Halogen light bulbs?
Organization: UCLA, Computer Science Department
Distribution: na
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 92 17:13:54 GMT

A hardware store here recently started selling a line of halogen light
bulbs, marketed by GTE under the Sylvania brand.

According to the advertising on the box, the new bulb uses a tungsten/
halogen capsule (apparently similar to those used in cars) enclosed in
a second, outer glass bulb.  The outer bulb glass is much thicker than
"normal" light bulbs, and the new bulbs are much heavier than usual.

I bought a few of these bulbs (at about $5 for a 100W bulb, they're on
the pricey side), and I must say I'm very pleased.  The light is much
whiter than what you get from regular incandescent bulbs.  According to
the box, the new bulbs are about 10% brighter than conventional bulbs
of similar wattage and are supposed to last about three times as long.

I've heard concerns about UV radiation from halogen lights, but I would
assume the thick outer glass bulb would absorb most of the UV.

I ordered some of SunBox's "northern sunlight" neodymium incandescent
bulbs yesterday; it'll be interesting to compare the two kinds of light
side by side.

-- 
Rich Wales <wales@CS.UCLA.EDU> // UCLA Computer Science Department
3531 Boelter Hall // Los Angeles, CA 90024-1596 // +1 (310) 825-5683
From: carl.camurca@travel.com (Carl Camurca) 
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Circumcision...
Date: 21 Nov 92 18:06:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: Travel Online / St. Louis Online - St. Louis, MO
Reply-To: carl.camurca@travel.com (Carl Camurca) 

GD>Subject: Circumcision as mutilation

...but the foreskin obtained is an invaluable source for fresh and
healthy fibroblast cultures!

:-), Carl.

 * OLX 2.1 TD * The penis mightier than the sword.
                                                        
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.med.occupational
From: n9ljx@en.ecn.purdue.edu (Scott A Stembaugh)
Subject: Re: Carbonless paper: environmental hazard?
Organization: Purdue University Engineering Computer Network
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 92 02:52:14 GMT

In article <BxqEH7.3nA@world.std.com> dpbsmith@world.std.com (Daniel P. B. Smith) writes:
>I THOUGHT I had read that NCR paper contains PCB's.  I haven't seen any
>of the stuff for years; I rather thought it had been more or less
>discontinued for that very reason.
>
>
>-- 
>Daniel P. B. Smith
>dpbsmith@world.std.com

Just a note to point out that NCR paper has not been discontinued. We still
use it for one annual report (approx 15 boxes).  I believe we get it from
Bowater.

--sas


-- 
Scott Stembaugh - N9LJX           internet: n9ljx@ecn.purdue.edu
Operations Supervisor, ADPC       phone:    317 494 7946 
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN 47907-1061
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: yazz@locus.com (Bob Yazz)
Subject: Re: Red neck
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 06:52:07 GMT

woodson@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu (Charles Woodson) writes:

| My brother reports to me that he has for some weeks had a red neck,
| it looks somewhat like a sunburn, but it does not follow a shirt pattern.
| It is not painful and his GP says don't worry about it.
| 
| What could it be?

A red neck could result from either a laundry detergent allergy
(switch brands), or voting for a Republican (switch parties)!

Best Wishes

== Bob Yazz ==
-- 

Welcome to Sci.med -- where-school-of-thought bashing is as old as
sickness itself.

Xref: sparky sci.med:21068 sci.med.nutrition:1327
From: cam@castle.ed.ac.uk (Chris Malcolm)
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.med.nutrition
Subject: Re: Royal Jelly
Date: 16 Nov 92 12:47:29 GMT
Organization: Edinburgh University

In article <davidmh-161192121442@jenni.ucc.su.oz.au> davidmh@is.su.edu.au (David Martin Hill) writes:

>I have read a great deal about how wonderful
>Royal Jelly is, and how it contains almost every amino acid known to man
>and needed by man to do all the wonderful things fit healthy and active
>people need to do...

So does haggis, and in addition, it is much cheaper, and contains
sufficient fats and carbohydrates as well to be useable as a complete
food rather than a supplement. Haggis is an old Scottish health food,
made from animal ingredients carefully selected to include those which
the fast-food muscle-meat culture usually throws away, but actually
are richest in trace elements and vitamins as well as amino acids. It
also contains oats, a hardy grain long used by the horse-racing
fraternity to give extra strength and endurance, and a rich source of
the best kind of anti-cholesterol fibre. This balances the inclusion
of plenty of suet, which provides the raw materials neccessary for the
insulation of nervous tissue, lack of which is thought by some to
contribute to degenerative nervous diseases and over sensitivity of
the nervous system to electrical fields. It may also have a positive
contribution to make to brain health, as suggested by a recent UK
study which showed that there was a correlation between high IQ and
higher than average consumption of suet.

In the days when haggis formed part of the general staple diet of
Scotsmen, Scotsmen were so famed for their size and strength that many
European monarchs kept a personal bodyguard of Scots guards. The
haggis-eating Scots have also long been famed for their cleverness,
e.g., the only person who understands the propulsion system of the
Starship Enterprise is a haggis-eating Scot.

As for "all the wonderful things fit healthy and active people need to
do", have you ever wondered why Scotsmen developed the kilt rather
than trousers and underpants? Just think about it...

Eating Royal Jelly turns bees into queens. Is this really what you
want (sorry sir, no offence intended :-) Eat plenty of haggis and
become large, frightening, hairy, and clever! (my apologies madam, I
was just making a general health-food-advertising type of remark,
nothing personal intended :-)
-- 
Chris Malcolm    cam@uk.ac.ed.aifh          +44 (0)31 650 3085
Department of Artificial Intelligence,    Edinburgh University
5 Forrest Hill, Edinburgh, EH1 2QL, UK                DoD #205
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: mrl@nerus.pfc.mit.edu
Subject: RE: Chondomalacia, kneecap tracking problems
Organization: MIT PLASMA FUSION CENTER
Date: Mon, 16 Nov 1992 12:47:06 GMT

I was told by a podiatrist that orthotics could help my Chondomalacia problem. 
However, I could never get good orthotics that did not bother me.  I do,
however, wear Rockports now and the problem seems to have disappeared, so there
may be something to that.  Either that, or my chiropractic treatments have
helped, as my chiropractor also said he could help!

Walking down stairs seems to be very aggravating to the condition (my friend
with it also said notices that), so don't do that if you can avoid it, or walk
slowly down (and possibly up) them.  I used to run up and down, but no longer.

Mark London
MRL@NERUS.PFC.MIT.EDU
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com (PAM DRAPER)
Subject: herbal remedies
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.3-4   
Reply-To: draper@gnd1.wtp.gtefsd.com
Organization: GTE Government Systems, Federal Systems Division, Chantilly, VA
Distribution:  world
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 20:55:29 GMT


Hey all you homeopathic people out there.  What herb is prescribed
for allergies? stuffy nose? etc.
From: levin@bbn.com (Joel B Levin)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: What homing device does a virus use?
Date: 17 Nov 92 20:26:31 GMT
NNTP-Posting-Host: bbn.com

In <lgihacINN6hm@peaches.cs.utexas.edu> Russell Turpin says:
|In article <17491@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
|> The same way that plant seeds distinguish soil from rocks: they don't, ...
|
|For once, you lose me.  Seeds clearly do distinguish soil from
|rocks: they grow in the former and die on the latter.  

I liked the way Gordon phrased it; I suspect he answered a question
different from what you meant to ask.  He says (if I may presume to
interpret) that the organisms don't "home in" on the particular areas
they infect; rather that, like seeds scattered in the wind, they show
up everywhere but only find conditions suitable for growth (soil) in
these particular areas and fail to thrive everywhere else.

|		       Now ... What are the mechanisms in the case
|of the question I posed?

Now -- if you are asking why the viruses grow in certain areas and not
in others, that is a different question.  I assume it has to do with
availability of warmth, moisture, absence of direct exposure to air,
etc.; one of the doctors or scientists will have to answer that
question, which I don't think was exactly what you asked. 

	/JBL
=
Nets: levin@bbn.com  | "How does a mouse let me move the cursor anywhere 
pots: (617)873-3463  |  I want?"  "What are address busses?"  "How do 
              N1MNF  |  icons work?"              --Time-Life Books
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: rsilver@world.std.com (Richard Silver)
Subject: Prozac and alcohol
Organization: The World Public Access UNIX, Brookline, MA
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 12:13:24 GMT


My wife is trying Prozac for mild depression. The physician said
no alcohol and was quite adamant. My wife likes a daily glass of
wine with dinner and asked the pharmacist. He said there is no
problem mixing alcohol and Prozac. Would someone comment?
Is there a risk mixing the drugs?