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You’ve
come a long way, Eli, To the editor: Cathy Shufro’s piece on graduate student Matthew Weed [“Bringing Science Into Focus,” Summer 2000] was inspiring. I was particularly pleased to read it as my husband works with a man who was denied entry to Yale College many years ago because he had suffered a wrestling accident in his senior year of high school and was a paraplegic. Yale could not accommodate him and revoked his acceptance. As a graduate, this story has always saddened me. Now, I am heartened to read about the advances Yale has made in accommodating the disabled, both from a physical and technological standpoint, as well as from a humanistic one. Thank you for your continued efforts to make Yale Medicine interesting and fresh. Natalie
P. Silverstein, M.P.H. ’96
A new gloss on magazine’s design To the editor: I have long enjoyed and valued the copies of Yale Medicine that have come to me in the mail. However, the glossy paper that is used in printing the magazine makes it almost impossible to read. Is there any possibility that a matte finish could be used? Since I actually treasure each issue of Yale Medicine and am sure others must be affected as I am, I hope you can find a solution to this devastating problem. Esther
A. Savage, YUSN ’39 As it happens, the paper Yale Medicine is printed on is changing this issue along with other aspects of our design (See From the Editor, below.) The glare is gone!
Debate
on Lyme therapy To the editor: The Lyme disease article on page 12 of the summer edition [“Conventional Lyme Treatment Found Effective,” Summer 2000] appears to denigrate physicians who use longer-term antibiotic therapy, with the strong message given that “a short-term regimen of antibiotics is adequate to treat the disease.” However, the 30-day limit has been found to be unrealistic, especially when diagnosis and treatment are delayed. Patients and physicians will not accept that continuing symptoms are due to “post-Lyme syndrome.” Nationwide evidence supports longer-term therapy for many patients. The study described in the article does not address several questions, including elapsed time between symptoms and diagnosis. The difficulties presented by Lyme disease include uncertainties about test results with resultant delayed diagnosis, penetration of the spirochete into cells, the changing forms of Borrelia burgdorferi, and its ability to cloak itself in DNA of the host. Evidence of long-term disability from inadequate treatment of Lyme disease is documented. And because of the potential for serious disability, I believe CDC treatment guidelines need to be re-examined. I would also like to see Yale involved in the development of more effective antibiotics for Lyme disease. Your article states that “Lyme disease has been a lightning rod for controversy for years.” My expectation is that Yale will provide accurate and balanced information on both viewpoints regarding short-term and long-term treatment. Constance
A. Bean, M.P.H. ’50
Through the pages of Yale Medicine, a colorful past To the editor: Having also read Connecticut Medicine for many years, I enjoyed the section entitled “50 years ago in Connecticut Medicine.” The thought occurred, “Why not a brief note each issue about ‘50 years ago in Yale Medicine’?” After reviewing my stacks of Yale Medicine I found Vol. 1, No. 1 (May 1953) of its predecessor, the Alumni Bulletin—but alas! That is only 47 years ago. Nevertheless, some of our gray-haired alumni might enjoy hearing about some of the names and events of our school 47 years ago (as I may not be writing letters in 2003.) So below are items of interest from that first volume. • Communications were to be sent to Dr. Herbert Thoms, but as I recall Dr. Arthur Ebbert was the editor. • The new dean, Vernon Lippard, was featured, as well as the alumni association. Our own Sam Kushlan is shown in a group photograph. The new dean announced that there would be a new medical dormitory built between the medical school and the new Memorial Unit of the hospital. There was a memorable photo of the Betsy Ross tea room. • Former Dean George Blumer gave a greeting to the new Bulletin (with his photo). • Markle Foundation awards were announced to Drs. Don Shedd and Bill Anlyan. • At the memorial service for Dean Francis Blake (June 15, 1952) the first scholarship in his name was awarded to Gerald Klatskin. R.W. Breck,
M.D. ’45M Dr. Breck’s suggestion coincides with our own recent exploration of the back issues of Yale Medicine and a new department in the magazine, Archives, which appears for the first time in this issue. The School of Medicine Alumni Bulletin, which made its debut in 1953 under the editorship of Arthur Ebbert, M.D., was succeeded by Yale Medicine in the fall of 1966. We will mine both sources for interesting nuggets from the school’s past.
From the editor: Change is in the air Last year, as we began the process of fine-tuning Yale Medicine’s content and design to create a more interesting and better-organized magazine, we asked readers for their suggestions. Your responses have been an enormous help to us as we’ve reviewed both what we report and how we present it within these pages. On the content side, we learned that readers want to know more about the lives of medical students today and more about what their fellow alumni are doing across the country, the continent and the globe. They are also interested in the past. By far, the greatest number of letters from readers has come in response to articles about the history of medicine at Yale—for example, the early use of penicillin that was the subject of a recent article. As a result of the comments we received, we are shedding more light on student life and educational issues today—as well as on the school’s past. We’ve devoted extra space to stories about teaching and have started a regular historical department, Capsule, which in this issue explores medicine in New Haven during the Civil War years. We’re also launching a new department, Archives, peeking into the magazine’s early issues. In addition, Yale Medicine will continue its focus on alumni, with 14 pages this issue devoted to alumni and reunion news. It is our goal to help classmates and old friends stay in touch and to spotlight the ways in which they are changing medicine and the wider world. Please let us know what you and your Yale School of Medicine colleagues are doing by writing to us at one of the addresses below. On the design side, readers say they find Yale Medicine appealing, engaging and easy to navigate, both in print and on the Web at http://info.med.yale.edu/ymm. We’ve taken steps to improve the easy readability of the magazine while keeping the design lively. Readers will notice a new paper stock this issue, and the overall design of Yale Medicine has been modified to be consistent with the school’s new printed materials for the offices of Admissions and Development (See “A closer look at the medical school”). A few changes in format will be apparent in this issue and in the Spring 2001 edition of Yale Medicine. We hope you enjoy your alumni magazine and that you will stay in touch with us, your classmates and your Yale colleagues. Michael Fitzsousa
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