SMJ // December 2003, Volume 96 - Issue 12

Original Article

Work-related Injury among South Texas Middle School Students: Prevalence and Patterns

BackgroundWork experiences among early adolescents are largely undocumented. Our purpose was to document the prevalence of work and work-related injury among lower-income Hispanic South Texas middle school students.MethodsAnonymous surveys were conducted in classrooms of sixth- through eighth-grade students, and 3,008 students reported current or recent employment.ResultsThe prevalence of work was…

Original Article

The Confederate Medical Laboratories

During the Civil War, the scarcity and expense of imported drugs forced the Confederate Army to establish several medical laboratories to manufacture drugs for military use. The laboratories produced medicines from indigenous plants and also made non-plant-based drugs. The Confederate Surgeon General and the Chief Purveyor in Richmond, VA, coordinated…

Original Article

Use of Birth Certificates and Surveillance Data to Characterize Reported Pertussis among Texas Infants and Young Children, 1995 to 2000

BackgroundPertussis morbidity is increasing, especially among young infants and children, who are more likely to be hospitalized and have more severe complications. Maternal and pediatric factors associated with underimmunization and hospitalization for pertussis are poorly understood, but young maternal age and low birth weight have been associated with pertussis among…

Original Article

Reliability of a Short Gun Questionnaire

BackgroundThe purpose of the study was to develop and test a short gun questionnaire and compare its reliability to a long gun questionnaire to identify youths who may have access to or ownership of a gun.MethodsA seven-question short gun questionnaire asking about gun accessibility, ownership, and usage was modified from…

Expired CME Credit Submission and Evaluation Form

CME Credit—December 2003 Featured CME Topic: Drug Development in the United States

Expired CME Credit Submission and Evaluation Form – Drug Development in the United States

Case Report

The Urban Cowboy Syndrome Revisited: Case Report

Inspired by the 1980 movie Urban Cowboy, many drinking establishments offered mechanical bull riding to their patrons. As the use of mechanical bulls became more popular, associated injuries became increasingly reported in the literature as the “urban cowboy syndrome.” We report a case of severe straddle injury resulting in symphysis…

Case Report

Chinese Red Rice-induced Myopathy

A middle-aged man presented with joint pain and muscle weakness that had begun 2 months before presentation. Three months before presentation, he had begun to take the herbal preparation Chinese red rice. Laboratory testing revealed a moderately elevated creatine phosphokinase level. Symptoms and laboratory abnormalities resolved with discontinuation of the…

Editorial

Will Advances in Biotechnology Usher in a New Era of Medicine?

The article by Avidor et al 1 discusses four main classes of biotechnology products currently in development: small molecular drugs, protein drugs (ie, hormones, enzymes, monoclonal antibodies, cytokines), gene therapy products, and antisense drugs. It is evident that the field of biotechnology has made remarkable strides within the past 3…

Editorial

Patient Perception of Physician Appearance: A Concern for All Physicians

In an age of consumerist medicine and patient mistrust of physicians due to massive, and generally negative, media coverage of physicians, the patient’s perception of their physician has become an important area of concern. The appearance of a physician may influence anything from the patient’s opinions of physician competence to…

Original Article

Biotechnology and Drug Discovery: From Bench to Bedside

New biotechnology and drug discovery technologies are facilitating the rapid expansion of the clinical drug chest, empowering clinicians with a better understanding of disease as well as novel modalities for treating patients. Important research tools and themes include genomics, proteomics, ligand-receptor interaction, signal transduction, rational drug design, biochips, and microarrays….

Original Article

Occupational Stress among Obstetrician/Gynecologists

ObjectiveOur objective was to assess occupational stress in obstetrician/gynecologists using a standardized, validated tool.MethodsThe Osipow Occupational Stress Inventory, which measures occupational stress (occupational roles questionnaire [ORQ]), psychological strain (personal strain questionnaire), and coping resources (personal resources questionnaire), was distributed to 277 obstetrician/gynecologists in Houston. The &khgr;2 or Fisher’s exact test…

Original Article

Patients’ Attitudes Regarding Physical Characteristics of Family Practice Physicians

BackgroundThis study examined patient perceptions and attitudes toward various aspects of the male and female physician’s professional appearance in the family practice setting.MethodsFour hundred ninety-six patients from two family practice clinics in Knoxville, Tennessee, completed a valid and reliable questionnaire. Questionnaires were offered to all patients on registering at their…

Original Article

The Impact of Resident Physician Coverage on Emergency Department Visits in South Carolina

BackgroundThis study examines emergency department (ED) visits to assess the potential impact on rural and minority patients if the practice of resident moonlighting was limited.MethodsBilling data from all South Carolina ED visits in 1998 were linked to the physician licensure file. Logistic regression analysis was performed to determine patient characteristics…

Original Article

Agricultural Tasks and Injuries among Kentucky Farm Children: Results of the Farm Family Health and Hazard Surveillance Project

BackgroundThis population-based study reports the prevalent agricultural tasks and the 1-year cumulative incidence of injuries in a sample of 999 children ≤18 years old living on family farms in Kentucky.MethodsData were collected in 1994 to 1995 for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Farm Family Health and Hazard…

Announcement

General Information

Southern Medical Journal General Information

Announcement

Announcements

In AppreciationThe editor and staff of the Southern Medical Journal would like to extend their appreciation to those who served as reviewers during 2003. The editorial office apologizes for any omissions or errors. Achal Dhupa, MD Adnan T. Bhutta, MBBSAgop Bedikian, MDAkinyink Ajelabi, MDAlan Peiris, MD, PhDAlbert S. Braverman, MDAlex…

Editorial

Stress and the Obstetrician

There is no doubt that the specialty of obstetrics and gynecology lends itself to occupational stress, perhaps more than any other specialty. Demands in regard to malpractice claims and increasing premiums, the need to see increasing numbers of patients with decreasing reimbursement, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of…

Expired CME Article

Drug Development in the United States

Expired CME Article – Drug Development in the United States

Review Article

Humor in Medicine

Humor and laughter have been a focus of attention in the popular media and in the medical literature. Despite statements about the health benefits of humor, current research is insufficient to validate such claims. There is support in the literature for the role of humor and laughter in other areas,…

Expired CME Article

An Overview of Drug Development in the United States and Current Challenges

Drug development in the United States has undergone many changes in the past 25 years, but relatively few fully realize the complexities involved in developing a new drug. Once a promising compound is identified, it must undergo preclinical testing, have an Investigational New Drug Application filed with the U.S. Food…

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