An open letter for the people in Gaza

Portugal needs to revolutionise end-of-life care

“…In our trial population, the median duration of nasal complaints was 7 years and about three quarters had received intranasal corticosteroids before. 2 Ear, nose, and throat surgeons seem already to be selective in their indication for septoplasty, and we believe our findings should not change this.…”

“…We compared patients who underwent septoplasty alone to patients who had received septoplasty with concurrent turbinate surgery, and found that the first group performed slightly better, although the difference was not significant. 2 Fourth, we agree that we need to remain cautious of extending the indication for septal surgery beyond the current evidence base. In our trial population, the median duration of nasal complaints was 7 years and about three quarters had received intranasal corticosteroids before.…”

“…4 Nevertheless, we are happy to provide the original data upon request, in accordance with our data sharing statement. 2 Third, there is no reason to assume that the beneficial effect of septoplasty was caused by concurrent turbinate surgery. We compared patients who underwent septoplasty alone to patients who had received septoplasty with concurrent turbinate surgery, and found that the first group performed slightly better, although the difference was not significant.…”

Open Communication and Discussion Facilitate Reconciliation: The Promise Fulfilled

“…As I shared in my January 2015 editorial,1 the furor surrounding publication in The Lancet of the open letter by P. Manduca et al2 carried potential for bad and for good. Here at Rambam Health Care Campus, we have chosen and will continue to look for the good.…”

Mixing Politics and Medicine: A Case Study

“…Like physicians and scientists around the globe, I have been deeply saddened over the past months by the death, destruction and psychological harm wrought on noncombatants across a large swath of the Middle East. However, I was equally distressed by the July 28, 2014 publication in the Lancet , one of the world's leading medical journals, of an anti‐Israel diatribe by Manduca et al entitled “An open letter for the people of Gaza.” Initially, I took a reductionist view of the article: academic journals have no place mixing medicine and science with politics. Indeed, this view was supported by 77.5% of respondents to an August 2014 poll by MedPage Today .…”