Battens Battens Disease is a neurological disorder, which was discovered in 1903 by a British pediatrician. Battens Disease, also known as Spielmeyer-Vogt-Sjogre-Batten disease is the most common in a group of disorders called neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCLs). There are three other types of...

Cuba and the Affects of the Embargo The island nation of Cuba, located just ninety miles off the coast of Florida, is home to 11 million people and has one of the few remaining communist regimes in the world. Cuba's leader, Fidel Castro, came to power in 1959 and immediately instituted a...

Natural Remedies For Common Maladies The origins of herbal medicine can be traced back as far as 2852 B.C. and the Fu Si dynasty in China (Frey 1). Although there have been other recorded uses of herbal medicines this was considered the first system of use. The first books were written at this t...

Euthanasia Euthanasia, also known as mercy killing, is enveloped as deeply in medical and ethical controversy as abortion. Both issues involve the termination of a life, and both conjure strong arguments for advocacy and opposition. Pro-euthanasia arguments emphasize the right of patients to ...

Alternative medicine, also known as alternative therapies, lies outside the realm of conventional medicine. Alternative therapy is an intervention that: is not reimbursable by most health insurance providers in the United States, is not well supported by scientific tests establishing safety and effe...

Euthanasia, also known as mercy killing, is enveloped as deeply in medical and ethical controversy as abortion. Both issues involve the termination of life, and both conjure strong arguments for advocacy and opposition. Pro-euthanasia arguments emphasize the right of patients to choose their own de...

During a shower one day you notice a lump that was not otherwise there. The next day you see a doctor. The lump you have identified is diagnosed as cancer. Now you need to figure out what to do. There is no absolute cure for cancer, but there are different ways to treat it. One treatment is the tr...

During a shower one day you notice a lump that was not otherwise there. The next day you see a doctor. The lump you have identified is diagnosed as cancer. Now you need to figure out what to do. There is no absolute cure for cancer, but there are different ways to treat it. One treatment is the trad...

During a shower one day you notice a lump that was not otherwise there. The next day you see a doctor. The lump you have identified is diagnosed as cancer. Now you need to figure out what to do. There is no absolute cure for cancer, but there are different ways to treat it. One treatment is the trad...

IntroductionThe Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman follows the journey of Lia Lee and her parents as they attempt to engage in Western medicine and find help for Lia's epilepsy. Although the tale ends in tragedy for Lia, the story clearly elucidates stark contrasts between Western ...

Imagine living in one place all of your life. In this place you have a home, a family, friends, activities that you have committed yourself to and possibly even a car. You feel safe in this place and most likely have developed an everyday rut of doing things. Change doesn't happen often in ...

Introduction: Some time ago, I read an authoritative WHO publication with a guide to the "Five-Star Doctor" '...improves quality of care by responding to the patient's total health needs with integrated preventive, curative and rehabilitative services while considering the pa...

Quinlan Case of 1975On April 15, 1975 Karen Ann Quinlan age 21 became ill. She had difficulty breathing, became unresponsive and showed signs of brain damage. Her doctors described her condition as persistent vegetative state. At times she could not breathe and eventually a respirator tube was in...

Ethnobotany is the study of how people of a particular culture and region make use of indigenous plants. Cultures have been using the environment around them for thousands of years. The use of plants were mentioned in the Code of Hammurabi in Babylon circa 1770 BC. The ancient Egyptians believed ...