Contents: March 2006

Editorials

Ultrasound defining the fetus as a patient
Advanced technology has enabled a thorough fetal assessment, as David Churchill explains

How Islam changed medicine
Before the year 800, medical care was largely provided by priests. In the Islamic era, Arab doctors and scholars laid the foundations for today's medical practice in Europe, argues Azeem Majeed

News

News Bites

Medics worldwide: news and opportunities from the IFMSA
Jana Kammeyer president, International Federation of Medical Students’ Associations president@ifmsa.org,

Education

From medical student to junior doctor: accepting the responsibility of informed consent
Gaining informed consent is fundamental to a medical career, but understanding when, where, and why can be confusing. In the sixth part of the series, Richard Beasley and colleagues explain it all

Axillary pain and swelling
A 44 year old man with a body mass index of 41 kg/m² presented to the surgical outpatient clinic with a three month history of swelling, erythema, and small tender lumps in his right axillary region

ABC of wound healing: Wound assessment
Most wounds, of whatever aetiology, heal without difficulty. Some wounds, however, are subject to factors that impede healing, although these do not prevent healing if the wounds are managed appropriately. A minority of wounds will become chronic and non-healing. In these cases the ultimate goal is to control the symptoms and prevent complications, rather than healing the wound.

10 Minute consultation - Proteinuria
A 40 year old woman comes to you after she was found to have a reading of 2+ on a dipstick proteinuria test at an insurance company medical examination. She is fit and well with no major medical history or family history of illness. She has no urinary symptoms and no oedema. She is not pregnant.

editor wanted
Why don't you edit the studentBMJ?

Careers

Creative medicine
Fancy unleashing your creative side and entering the world of media? Fiona Kenny explains just what medical journalism entails

Making the studentBMJ:this is how we do it
Immortalising your opinions in print and having Google find your name when you search for it are just two good reasons for getting your work published in the studentBMJ. But turning your idea into part of a finished print or web based product necessitates many people and many processes, as Richard Hurley explains

15 minute interview - Head girl
Fiona Godlee was appointed editor of the BMJ in March 2005. She is the only woman to have held this position since the journal was launched in 1840. Peter Cross found out more

Community based medical education: a tool for developing countries
Providing undergraduate and professional medical training in rural community settings could greatly benefit the health of developing countries, as Yusuf Moradeyo and Kingsley Ukwaja report

Preparing yourself to become a competitive professional
The abstract is your calling card to the world of scientific research. Senthil K Selvanathan and coauthors explain what you need to do to get your message across in a non-abstract way

“GAMMS”: - Go away, male medical student
With the number of doctors opting for careers in obstetrics and gynaecology dwindling, Alexander Hamilton expresses his views about male medical students being turned away from clinical examinations

Papers

Cannabis intoxication and fatal road crashes: case-control study
Are drivers under the influence of cannabis at higher risk of being responsible for road crashes? Peter Leman explains how a population based case-control study was used to investigate a possible association

Life

Travelling on
Travelling people make up Europe’s largest ethnic minority. Thomas Mac Mahon takes us through their world and points out the health obstacles they encounter in their journey

Older & wiser?
Stephanie Gapper considers the pros and cons of graduate entry medicine

Muslims in medicine: making things better
Anisa Nasir gives her opinion about the self segregation of Muslims at medical school and onwards

Sarajevo healing
Medical aid in disaster zones cannot be transient. Health problems continue for many years afterwards, as Jason H Wasfy explains

Quiet life
Confidentiality is a general principle of medical practice. Despite the many exceptions to the rule, it is still one of the keys to the success of the doctor-patient relationship, as Seye Abimbola explains

Letters

Alternative v evidence based

Hong Kong's perspective

Seeking consent from patients

It doesn't matter which sex students are

Reviews

Doctors on the frontline

It's all about attitude

Our attitudes towards patients

The English- Asian divide: does it exist?

Health management

Eyespy