Faculty Bibliography

Nip-Tuck [Television Program] -- As to whether [Sean McNamara] should operate on his own child, [James P. Bradley] bucks conventional wisdom. Most doctors say that the lack of emotional distance interferes with medical judgment and surgical precision. But Bradley disagrees, asserting that such a decision isn't unwise as long as the doctor is qualified. 'A good surgeon can learn to suspend the emotional component,' Bradley says. 'If you're the best-trained surgeon for the procedure, then you're the one to do it.' ECTRODACTYLY, often known as lobster claw syndrome or split hand/ foot malformation, is fairly common, with six cases per 10,000 human births. All forms are associated with at least one genetic mutation, one of the most frequent (Type 1) caused by a mutation on chromosome 7. Ectrodactyly often occurs in common with other congenital anomalies -- such as a cleft lip and palate, and ectodermal dysplasia (hair, skin and nail deformities). In 'Nip/Tuck,' McNamara views a photograph of a hand with ectrodactyly and contemplates [Connor]'s surgery

Cattle farmers are not thinking of the harmful effects of manure; they are concerned about selling their product. Sellers of organic fertilizer made from manure are hoping their product will grow vegetables, not concerned that it will contaminate water or spinach. Salad makers screen and cleanse their food but can't always afford the expensive equipment to detect the most elusive bacteria. There is also not enough separation between animal and animal products before they become human food. Multiple studies in the agricultural literature have shown that dairy cows shed harmful bacteria at variable rates. This shedding is dependent on several factors that could be controlled, including the animal's feed. Studies have shown that changing feed from grain to hay decreases the acidity in the gut of cows that allows bacteria to thrive. Because very small amounts of 0157:H7 can cause human infection and because shedding of the bacteria by cows is so variable, proper surveillance of manure is also crucial in preventing outbreaks. But sophisticated laboratory techniques that are most effective at detection are very expensive and not commonly used. Current agricultural attempts to contain manure and organic fertilizers at the farm are not sufficient to prevent occasional seepage into water supplies, which sparks outbreaks. E. coli 0157:H7 is a strain that produces a toxin that breaks down the lining of blood vessels, causing bloody diarrhea in humans and sometimes kidney failure. Because cows lack the receptor on their cells to absorb the toxin, they don't show symptoms that they are carriers of the bacteria

E. Coli is a common bacteria; trillions of strains that don't make us ill thrive and multiply in our intestines. But the 0157:H7 strain, which has been found in cow intestines, makes a toxin that damages human blood vessels and can cause blood clots and damage kidneys, especially in children. Cows don't have the receptors in their blood vessels to pick up the toxin, so they are asymptomatic carriers. What to do about the bacteria? Some studies suggest that feeding cattle hay rather than grain, or injecting them with 'pro-biotic' bacteria may help to reduce the prevalence of 0157:H7. At the national level, we need more integrated food-safety measures, a better way to coordinate the FDA and the USDA animal and food inspections. This could be accomplished by a new food-safety agency that acts as a bridge, or by expanded regulatory roles in both the FDA and the USDA

The 157:H7 strain of E Coli, which can populate the intestines of cows, makes a toxin that damages human blood-vessel lining, causing bloody diarrhea. It can also lead to blood clots and kidney failure, especially in children. Cows lack the toxin receptors in their blood vessels, and so are asymptomatic carriers. The manure from infected cows can contaminate ground water or organic fertilizer. Since very small amounts are necessary for human infection, it is fairly easy to cause a limited outbreak, especially in farms that rely on manure for fertilizer. There have been at least 11 outbreaks of this E Coli in salad foods since 1995. No one knows the exact mechanism in each case, but possibilities include contaminated water, equipment or fertilizer. In 1999, nearly 1,000 people were infected, and at least two died after consuming water (believed to be contaminated by manure after a heavy rain) at a county fair in upstate N.Y

Invincible [Motion Picture] -- VINCE PAPALE (Mark Wahlberg) is a 30-year-old teacher and part- time bartender with only one year of high school football experience, when Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear), the new coach of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles, decides to hold open tryouts. Papale, possessed of more persistence and enthusiasm than pure physical ability, tries out -- and manages to make the team, avoid major injury despite using light shoulder pads and even star in an NFL game by scoring the winning touchdown. [Ray Didinger] thinks that Papale's relatively 'fresh' body was a big asset, however. 'Papale didn't have the cumulative damage, he didn't have the scarring in his knees and shoulders that the other players had,' he says. Sports medicine research has found a raised risk of arthritis in the knees, hips and ankles of such players; Didinger estimates that more than 90% of professional footballers have significant knee and shoulder scarring. Although it may seem paradoxical, [Michael L. Gross] believes that the thin, less-protective shoulder pads also might have helped Papale because they increased his maneuverability and agility and helped him to avoid injury. (In the 1970s, when Papale was playing, all shoulder pads were light compared with today's.)

Measles is preventable: 99% of those who receive the two-step vaccination develop immunity. The measles vaccine uses a live attenuated virus, which means a deactivated virus that can still provoke immunity but no longer get people sick. There is a growing irrational fear of vaccinations that is not connected to fact. This fear leads to disuse of a crucial preventative. While it is understandable that parents are concerned about vaccines their child receives, the measles vaccine requires 100% compliance to effectively prevent reoccurrence and control spread of a deadly disease

Weeds [Television Program] -- NANCY BOTWIN (Mary-Louise Parker) is struggling to bring up her two sons and maintain the same lifestyle in the wake of her husband's sudden death. She secretly becomes a local pot dealer. Meanwhile, her family's life deteriorates. While Nancy is on a romantic tryst, her older son, 16-year-old Silas (Hunter Parrish), has his girlfriend stay over, and 10-year-old brother Shane (Alexander Gould) observes them having sex. Nancy's pot supplier Heylia (Tonye Patano), mother to a large brood of her own, suggests that family dinners are the 'superglue' that holds families together, and that studies have shown children do better in the long term, with higher test scores and less depression, when families eat together regularly. 'IT'S terrible to wake up in the middle of the night and not know where your mom is,' says Irene Goldenberg, family therapist and professor emeritus of psychiatry at UCLA. In her opinion, a bigger problem than the fact that Nancy isn't home much is that she is lying to her kids about her actions and whereabouts

Ant Bully [Motion Picture] -- LUCAS NICKLE (voice by Zack Tyler Eisen) is a short, spectacled 10-year-old boy whom his mother calls 'Peanut' and treats him like a much younger child. He is bullied by Steve (Myles Jeffrey), who says, 'What are you going to do about it? Nothing, because I'm big and you're small.' Lucas turns his pent-up anger and humiliation toward an ant colony in the garden, besieging it with a water hose until the ant wizard Zoc (Nicolas Cage) devises a magic potion to shrink 'Lucas the Destroyer' down to ant size. The ants then capture the shrunken boy, and the queen ant (Meryl Streep) decides to teach him the ways of the ants: mutual respect, teamwork, rules of cooperative behavior. Ultimately, these lessons enable a newly confident, full-sized Lucas to stand up to his mother and to defeat the old bully. 'MANY bullies were once bullied themselves and they have learned to identify with the aggressor,' says Dr. Heather Krell, associate professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at UCLA. 'It is totally believable that Lucas would transfer his aggression to the ant colony.'

This article debunks myths about pharmaceuticals and, more specifically, to defend the drug manufacturers from unfair attacks against their products in the media. Merck, a company which has been accused of draconian indifference to cardiac risks, should in fact be applauded for its new vaccine against Human Papillomavirus called Gardasil. The FDA has approved Gardasil, and when it is used regularly in daily medical practice, several thousand less women per year should get gynecological cancer

Click [Motion Picture] -- MICHAEL NEWMAN (played by Adam Sandler) is an architect bored with his life. When his TV remote breaks, he goes to a Bed Bath & Beyond store and meets Morty (played by Christopher Walken), a man with mysterious powers. Morty provides Michael with a new remote that enables him to move through time, fast-forwarding through the boring, irritating and routine parts of his life without consciously experiencing them. In the movie, during his periods of prolonged mental absence, the automaton Newman develops halting movements and inappropriate social behavior. In real life, symptoms like these can occur when there is damage to the brain's frontal lobe, which is responsible for planning, abstract reasoning, sustained attention and insight, and is needed for full alertness. When clicker Newman clicks past a period of his life, he leaves the automaton Newman behind, stuck in lesser consciousness, where he continues to ritually move and speak without being fully aware, and later experiences amnesia