HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: splee@pd.org (Seng-Poh Lee, Speedy)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Advice on contact lenses wanted (especially on disposable ones)
Date: 4 Jan 93 04:05:23 GMT
Organization: Public Domain Inc.
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]

Hello,

My wife is ready to go to contacts lenses and she needs to know the
pro and cons of each type. From my limited knowledge, it goes like this;

hard lenses :	The original, harder to adapt to, and have to be taken out
   		for cleaning every night
soft lenses :	Easier to adapt to, more prone to infections? Not suitable
		for people with astigmatism. Some are extended wear.
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.

Thanks

--
Seng-Poh Lee    <splee@pd.org>
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: mdkline@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Mark D. Kline)
Subject: Re: post-Prozac reactions
Organization: Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 92 17:37:56 EST

In article <1992Dec21.150104.2296@u.washington.edu> lamontg@stein.u.washington.edu (Lamont Granquist) writes:
>mdkline@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Mark D. Kline) writes:
>>Results of large scale reviews - involving thousands of cases - suggests
>>that the risk of suicidal or violent behavior is not different between
>>patients taking Prozac and patients taking other antidepressant medications.
>
>You see this isn't sufficient, however, to rule out a small population of
>patients that have an honest-to-god biochemical reaction to Prozac which
>causes either suicidal ideation or fits of rage.  [ stuff deleted ]

I'll admit that its possible.  I haven't seen it in my own experience. 
What is important for people to know is that despite individual experiences
reported here, Prozac is NOT more likely to induce a paradoxical increase
in suicidality than other antidepressants.  The risk of treatment emergent
suicidality among patients on antidepressants has been estimated to run as
high as 3%, which seems a very high estimate (too high) in my experience.

>The thing is that I seem to have a hellishly screwed up biochemistry when
>it comes to these drugs.  After three days on desipramine, I started to
>develop something which looked like it was progressing into amphetamine
>psychosis 

Such reactions have been reported for desipramine and I've seen 
people get psychotic on tricyclics (I would have predicted such responses
would be more common with Wellbutrin, but they don't seem to be).

These medications are about quality of life, in my book.  If they
improve the quality of life, raise a person's level of functioning,
they should be continued.  If there is only questionable improvement,
consideration of a trial of life without medication is definitely 
warranted.  



Newsgroups: sci.med
From: dfp10@thor.albany.edu (D Parsons)
Subject: New medical group
Originator: dfp10@thor.albany.edu
Organization: State University of New York at Albany
Date: Sun, 27 Dec 92 12:55:08 GMT

 I am considering setting up a mirror list like sci.med.hspnet-l to
bring the BITNET list hspnet-l@albnydh2.bitnet to a wider audience. I 
would get the BITNET list gatewayed to it. Anyone know the set up
procedure? Please mail to me at dfp10@albnydh2.bitnet. Thanks. Don
-- 

Donald F. Parsons MD, Wadsworth Ctr. Rm C273, NY State Dept of Health, ESP,
PO Box 509, Albany, NY 12201-0509. (518)474-7047 Fax: (518)474-7992
dfp10@uacsc2.albany.edu dfp10@albnydh2.bitnet Cis 71777,212
From: nadel@attatash.aero.org (Miriam Nadel)
Subject: Re: Women Doctors
Organization: /usr/lib/news/organization
Date: Tue, 29 Dec 1992 19:26:25 GMT

In article <92361.102433MIWHC@CUNYVM.BITNET> MIWHC@CUNYVM.BITNET writes:
>     It seems that the rate of malpractice suits are lower for women, but
>again, I need data. 

You would need to take into account differences in areas of specialization.
Women physicians are still most likely to be psychiatrists, pediatricians
and pathologists and I suspect the malpractice suit rate is relatively
low for at least two of these specialties.  Obstetricians suffer from
particularly high rates of malpractice suits and women are more
underrepresented in this field.  In general, surgical subspecialties are
the target of more malpractice suits than medical subspecialties.

So any meaningful statistics would be within a particular specialty.  You
might also find that women who are in the "riskier" specialties have lower
rates of malpractice suits because only the best (or, at least, most
motivated) women survive the isolation and discouragement.  This is
conjecture on my point by analogy to the experience of women in other fields
that they're underrepresented in (e.g. women engineering students generally
get better grades than men in the same classes).

Miriam Nadel

Newsgroups: sci.med
From: yazz@locus.com (Bob Yazz)
Subject: Re: Getting off Xanax
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1992 01:54:10 GMT

mdkline@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Mark D. Kline) writes:

| With all due respect, I think I disagree with you.

Very kind answer!

| I'm all in favor of
| people getting their lives together, but 12 step program people are a
| bit of a biased sample of information when it comes to drugs such as
| Xanax.

I agree completely.  But the whole point I'm making is NOT that benzos
or anxiolytics in general are problematic, but that among benzos, there
is something very specifically different about Xanax.

The special scorn heaped upon Xanax doesn't relate to the frequency with
which it is a problem, it's to do with the severity and lengthiness of
the withdrawal associated with it.

The net.testimonies (not enough for a study of course, even if the data
had been gathered scientifically) also seem to have a common component
that seems funny to me: the patient successfully reduces his dosage
slowly over time, down to Almost nothing (250mics, isn't it?).  So far
so good.  But then when the dose goes from that to 0 all hell breaks
loose.  It's as tho in addition to whatever dose-related (perhaps linear)
effect the drug has, it has an additional effect that kicks in with even
the smallest dose -- such that withdrawal from that additional effect
only kicks in with the very last step in tapering.

I've never actually met anyone personally who withdrew from Xanax so the
above is sheer speculation based, as I said, on net.testimonies.

There are an awful lot of areas in which I think MDs are much wiser than
12-step folks (and of course the two groups do overlap to some extent) but
I really think that for this particular question, it's the 12-step folks
who are the most knowledgable experts.

Best Wishes

== Bob Yazz ==
-- 

Welcome to Sci.med -- where-school-of-thought bashing is as old as
sickness itself.
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Peter Breggin, _Toxic Psychiatry_ (Q)
Date: 27 Dec 92 23:57:22 GMT
Reply-To: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Organization: Univ. of Pittsburgh Computer Science

In article <BzB0IB.89F@unx.sas.com> sasghm@theseus.unx.sas.com (Gary Merrill) writes:

>Yeah.  Naturally when you take a child to the pediatrician and the child
>presents with classic symptoms of scarlet fever the pediatrician
>cultures the skin.  Who are you trying to kid?  It is these kinds of
>misdirected and specious responses that weaken your own position.
>
Huh?  The rash in scarlet fever is an immune reaction, not bacteria
in the skin!  Believe me, the diagnosis of schizophrenia can be
made with more certainty than scarlet fever in many cases.  After
you've seen some schizophrenics, you get to recognize them just
as you do children with the symptoms of scarlet fever.  The only
difference is that you are more mentally prepared to believe your
pediatrician when he pronounces that your child has scarlet fever
than if your psychiatrist pronounced your relative to have schizophrenia.
This is a consequence of your previous prejudice against "mental illness",
not some magic difference in how these diseases are diagnosed.



-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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: das@canctr.mc.duke.edu
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Nicotine Withdrawal Help Needed
Date: 30 Dec 92 04:27:04 GMT
Reply-To: das@canctr.mc.duke.edu
Organization: Duke U. Med. Ctr., Durham, NC

I am trying to quit smoking for health reasons (what other reasons are
there? :-)  ).  Now, I've done a lot all ready...  I've cut down to light
cigarettes, and down to half a pack a day.  I can smoke as little as 6
0.6 mg cigs a day but have reached a point where I can't smoke any more
than 12 without feeling like my lungs are glued together.  You might ask
where I'm going with this.  I'll tell you.

I receive less nicotine from my current levels of smoking than are provided
in the lowest dosage nicotine patch.

I have TMJ and can't chew Nicorette gum.  (I know because I've got a box of
the stuff aging in my medicine chest.)

So...  the doctor wants me to go cold turkey.  So, I'm trying.  I've gone
24 hours without a cigarette (I cheated 2 hrs ago and had a 0.2 mg ultra
light cigarette, durn it) and I'm climbing the walls.  I only smoked 4 cigs
yesterday so by two this afternoon my hands were shaking and I couldn't
concentrate on a darn thing.  I've been to classes countless times but
because of the timing (no, this is NOT a new years resolution type of thing)
the leader of my latest group isn't available.  My roommate is out of town
for the next ten days and I've GOT to get through the worst of this before
she returns - also, the next term starts in about two weeks and my boss is
course director for a graduate level class to I've got to have my wits about
me.  In the meantime, my doctor expects me to have followed her orders before
I see her in March or I might get thrown out of the health program I'm
involved in.  I guess they figure that info will motivate me or something.
Guess it's working.  Anyway, I'm rambling.

The main point is:  I'm going crazy!!!  I'm climbing the walls.  My hands are
shaking.  I can't keep a thought in my head long enough to work out a
coherent sentence much less an entire paragraph.  I'm not gonna make it if
I can't find SERIOUS motivation, and soon.  I figure if I can go at least 24
hrs without cheating by Friday at the latest, I'll have a better chance than
I've got right now.

1)  Is there a Smoke-Ender's type support group on the Net?

2)  What are your worst horror stories about what smoking does to a persons
    lungs, general health, etc.  Can anybody out there SCARE me into
    quitting?

Thanks folks.  I need all the help I can get.  (Just keeping my fingers on the
keys and typing this message has helped a wee bit.  (-:  )

----------
Lora M. LeMosy
71544.467@compuserve.com (preferred) -or- das@canctr.mc.duke.edu
-or- steege@bchm.biochem.duke.edu (12/30 only)
----------
/
From: RYAN@arizvm1.ccit.arizona.edu
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: <none>
Date: 30 Dec 92 19:45:37 GMT
Distribution: world,local
Organization: University of Arizona

> RUTH RYAN  - SYSTEMS ANALYST - UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
 
 
 
I noticed some inquiries about Prozac a few days ago but have not seen
any responses.
I'm new to this group, so maybe I missed some, but I am curious about
other experiences with this drug.
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: amirza@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu (Anmar Caves)
Subject: Epstein-Barr virus
Organization: Indiana University
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 21:24:00 GMT



Been feeling sick the last couple of weeks, and since for me that's
just not normal I went to see the doctor.  Had a blood test done,
both a CBC and a mono spot, and results came back, I have
mononucleosis.  So, being the sort I am, I went and studied up on
mono.  It's really hard to find any definitive information about this
virus.  I did learn a bit about it's pathology, but one thing I
couldn't find *any* information on was how long I can expect to remain
infectious.  So, keeping in mind that I am asking the net, how long
can I expect to remain infectious, and are there any indicators that I
can use to tell when I'm not infectious?  Any pointers to some good
literature on the subject?


-- 
Anmar Mirza   # Chief of Tranquility  #My Opinions! NotIU's!#Purveyor of
EMT-D         # Base, Lawrence Co. IN # Legalize Explosives!#nontraditional
N9ISY (tech)  # Somewhere out on the  # Politicians prefer  #family values
Networks Tech.# Mirza Ranch.C'mon over# unarmed peasants.   #Space For Rent
From: goshorn@CS.ColoState.EDU (michael goshorn)
Subject: Re: Nicotine Withdrawal Help Needed
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 1992 06:37:57 GMT
Organization: Colorado State University

Most of the responses so far are missing part of the point.  You
were asking what you can do right now - not tomorrow, not next week
with medication, etc.

I found that the first 48 hours are the most difficult for physical
effects.  Forget trying to concentrate - it's almost impossible -
don't worry about it.  I found trying to quit at work impossible
for this reason; I couldn't be nonfunctional for two days at work.

Try breathing fresh air, step outside, run, yell, whatever.
Try imagry: Some yuppie V.P. of marketing is getting a fat year-end
bonus for increasing cigarette sales and profits during the past
quarter, year, etc - at your expense.  He knows you need the stuff.
You've been taking hits several hundred times a day for an extended
period of time. He spends millions in advertising to convince you
that smoking is okay.  The government supports crop growth and
allows distribution of a product that will kill you if used as 
directed.  To the manufacturer you are expendable.

Each breath you take without inhaling from a cigarette puts money
in your pocket.  Think about banking a few cents every minute - 
adds up to a trip to Hawaii in a short period of time - start planning
the vacation.

Actually, I went through all of this in July.  I quit for a couple
of weeks and then started smoking again.  In october my wife was
diagnosed with advanced inoperable lung cancer.  No B.S.  I haven't
smoked a cigarette in a couple of months or so.  I would still like
to occassionally.  The mental addiction is as difficult as the physical.

Do not count milligrams of nic going into your body & discard use of
the patch because you are taking less than 7mg.  Cost of the patch is
less than 1.5 packs per day.  I've been using them for the past two
months and would continue for the rest of my life to avoid smoking
again.  Do ANYTHING but don't start smoking again.  It is extremely
difficult to quit - but possible.

I've been through two months of almost daily medical procedures,
tests, treatments, etc - so far nothing is working for my wife.
Like you, I wanted stuff that would provide motivation.  I've got
plenty - I'll check this group later tonight for follow ups.

I'm attaching the NCI information on nonsmall cell lung cancer.
I will forward instructions for use of internet connection to nci
bulletins; I think info is sent by machine - should be 24 hour service
Response time is 10-20 minutes.  Stay up all night reading up on
cancer - it will provide a lot of motivation when you need it.

If you would like to email direct send to goshorn@cs.colostate.edu
I'll check a couple of times yet tonight and again tomorrow.

If your library is open tomorrow check for stop smoking self hypnosis
tapes.  I find them helpful.  Even if they don't offer a cure
for you - they keep you busy and not smoking for 30 to 45 minutes.
:-)

Mike Goshorn
Organization: University of Illinois at Chicago
Date: Monday, 28 Dec 1992 16:35:05 CST
From: <U29242@uicvm.uic.edu>
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Drusen

Would anyone be able to give me a reference to a book that would help me unders
tand what macular Drusen's are?  Of course, I know they are a form of maculopat
hy but I don't know much about prognosis etc.....Any direction would be helpful
 or for that matter any information on the pathology would too.
                                                                 Thanks

                                                                 Ray
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Adiposity 101
Date: 28 Dec 92 01:33:41 GMT
Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA

In article <17911@pitt.UUCP> geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks) writes:
>[Fenfluramine] is approved.  So why not go to some other physician?  Unless
>the law in your state forbids prescription of these drugs for obesity
>(some do), you should be able to find a physician who will give them
>to you.  This is a further demonstration of the problem with HMOs.

Well, as someone else pointed out, I think you will find it virtually
impossible to "shop" for a physician who will prescribe these drugs in
obesity, even in a state which doesn't prohibit such prescribing for
these indications.  There is just too much of a stigma associated with
being either the patient or the practitioner in such a situation.

I can use myself as an example.  I refuse to shop around, because it's
demeaning and demoralizing, especially given that I know more about the
drugs and their legitimate indications than the doctor I'd be talking to.
I'll be damned if I'll put myself in the presumed role of drug-abuser simply
because I think I'd benefit from such a trial.  I suppose some people are
single-minded enough to try; at this point, I'd rather not bother.  A long
while ago (say, 10 years or so), I asked my HMO doc about a prescription for
fenfluramine; after a few minutes of his perusing the PDR (he'd never heard
of it before), he refused, and referred me to the HMO's nutritionist, who had
sample-size portions of Jello and mashed potatoes on her desk to educate
me on eating properly.  Arrggggggggggggh!  I'm surprised more obese
individuals aren't more disposed to murder.

When I get frustrated like this, I have to wonder who actually IS prescribing
this drug; it wouldn't stay on the market if it wasn't being prescribed.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: mt@media.mit.edu (Michael Travers)
Subject: Re: Getting off Xanax
Organization: M.I.T. Media Laboratory
	<1992Dec26.114156.16237@newstand.syr.edu> <BzzH7B.2Dq@techbook.com>
Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1992 22:00:56 GMT

In article <BzzH7B.2Dq@techbook.com> kim@techbook.com (Kim Larsen) writes:

   Have you read William Styron's account of his depression (can't recall
   the name right now...)?  What did you think of his suspicions that Halcion
   contributed to his problem?

The book is _Darkness Visible_.  I haven't read it, but I just read a
related piece in a recent _Nation_ magazine called "Prozac Days,
Halcion Nights" where he has some nasty things to say about Halcion
and the company that manufactures and pushes it (Upjohn).
From: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Adiposity 101
Date: 31 Dec 92 17:46:29 GMT
Article-I.D.: pitt.17938
Reply-To: geb@cs.pitt.edu (Gordon Banks)
Organization: Univ. of Pittsburgh Computer Science

In article <1992Dec23.071242.6984@omen.UUCP> caf@omen.UUCP (Chuck Forsberg) writes:

>instances.  There is a feedback system that regulates body
>weight within fairly narrow limits.  Gordon doesn't believe in
>it, but it is described by the Set Point Theory.
>

This is true for normals, but not for many obese, who steadily gain
year after year with no sign of an upper bound.  I myself am
one such person that if eats ad lib has no known upper bound.
Of course, one never knows if there is an upper bound short
of infinity, but I wasn't willing to find out by experiment.
-- 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
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: esther@verdix.com (Esther Lumsdon)
Subject: Re: Non-physician bashing
Organization: Verdix Corp
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1992 22:20:26 GMT

sdb@ssr.com (Scott Ballantyne) writes:

>In article <1gvpgsINNm32@im4u.cs.utexas.edu> turpin@cs.utexas.edu (Russell Turpin) writes:

>   Those who embrace quack theories [...] are merely less
>   than well educated or lacking in the skills for critical thought
>   in the area concerned.

>There was an interesting paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine,
>July 1984 which studied patients and practitioners who indulged in
>'alternative' (i.e. quack) theories of cancer medicine. Of many
>interesting observations, particularly interesting was that most
>patients were well educated (no arguments about what really
>constitutes education, puleeze) and that 50% of the practioners were
>M.D.s

This is not really surprising.  One can go through an undergraduate
degree and medical school, and residency, and still lack the skills
for critical thought.  
-- 
-- Esther Lumsdon, not speaking for Verdix.   esther@verdix.com
Q: How many user support people does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We have an exact copy of the light bulb here and it seems to be
   working fine.  Can you tell me what kind of system you have?  
Newsgroups: sci.med
From: kudzu@netcom.com (Michael Sierchio)
Subject: Re: "reflexology"?
Organization: True Love, and Home-Grown Tomatoes
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 1992 18:19:18 GMT

Reflexology, like the meridian theory in acupuncture, is based on the
notion that certain points are distally related to organs or processes.
This is clearly easy to verify empirically -- for instance, if I were
to remove some of the bills in your wallet, I could cure the pain in
your lower back.
-- 
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Michael Sierchio                          1563 Solano Avenue, Suite 123 |
|  kudzu@netcom.com                                Berkeley, CA 94707-2116 |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------+
From: dyer@spdcc.com (Steve Dyer)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Adiposity 101
Date: 28 Dec 92 17:57:06 GMT
Article-I.D.: spdcc.1992Dec28.175706.4105
Organization: S.P. Dyer Computer Consulting, Cambridge MA

In article <n1347t@ofa123.fidonet.org> Rick.Ellis@ofa123.fidonet.org writes:
>My doctor is.  I talked her into it after reading a Scientific American
>article on S.A.D. in which d-fenfluramine was being used.  

I'm sure its use as an antidepressant is vanishingly small compared to
its use in obesity, at least in the US.

-- 
Steve Dyer
dyer@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
From: oispeggy@ubvmsd.cc.buffalo.edu (Peggy Brown)
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Was:(Getting off Xanax) Now: Consumer Reports on Xanax
Date: 3 Jan 93 12:26:00 GMT
Organization: University at Buffalo
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.41


The January 1993 issue of Consumer Reports has an interesting 
(and critical) article on Xanax.

- Peggy -
Newsgroups: sci.med
Newsgroups: sci.med
Subject: Re: Prozac inquiries
From: RGINZBERG@eagle.wesleyan.edu (Ruth Ginzberg)
Date: 31 Dec 92 09:04:21 EDT
Distribution: world
Organization: Philosophy Dept., Wesleyan University
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.20In-Reply-To: RYAN@arizvm1.ccit.arizona.edu's message of 30 Dec 92 19:45:37 GMTLines: 17

In <168CDB371.RYAN@arizvm1.ccit.arizona.edu> RYAN@arizvm1.ccit.arizona.edu writes:
> I noticed some inquiries about Prozac a few days ago but have not seen
> any responses.
> I'm new to this group, so maybe I missed some, but I am curious about
> other experiences with this drug.

This is probably one of the most Frequently Asked Questions of this newsgroup.
I e-mailed the (forthcoming) prozac FAQ file to those who inquired, & am doing
the same for you.

Again, I apologize that I don't have the automated faq files up & running yet,
but they WILL be happening soon (my #1 New Year's resolution: to get these
@#%&*@! FAQ files out of my own directory & preferably out of my life). ;-)

------------------------
Ruth Ginzberg <rginzberg@eagle.wesleyan.edu>
Philosophy Department;Wesleyan University;USA
Newsgroups: sci.med,talk.politics.medicine,alt.activism