J. Marion Sims (1813-1884) has been called the "Father of Gynecology" for his revolutionary approach to treating the diseases of women. He rose from humble origins to become a successful surgeon, teacher, and writer. His innovations included the first successful treatment for vesicovaginal fistula, the first gallbladder surgery, and the introduction of antiseptic principles in all areas of surgical treatment. The "Sims position" and "Sims speculum" are eponymic tributes to his accomplishments. In recent years Sims has, however, become a focus of controversy because of his experimental surgeries on slave women. His powerful personality and messianic attitude led him to minimize moral problems, and to bristle against opposition. Ethical principles of autonomy and beneficence are important criteria for evaluating Sims' research. An exploration of the nature of Sims' work and the atmosphere in which he practiced will illuminate the critical ethical questions surrounding Sims' use of slave women as experimental subjects.

Female↗

PubMed2004

High prevalence of genital mycoplasmas among sexually active young adults with urethritis or cervicitis symptoms in La Crosse, Wisconsin.

Sexually active young adults in the small college town of La Crosse, Wisconsin, were evaluated for conventional sexually transmitted pathogens and tested for infections with mycoplasmas. The prevalence in 65 symptomatic men or women and 137 healthy volunteers (67 men and 70 women) was compared. Urine specimens from both cohorts were tested by ligase chain reaction for Chlamydia trachomatis or Neisseria gonorrhoeae. In addition, the urethral or cervical swabs from the symptomatic subjects were tested by PCR for Mycoplasma genitalium and cultured for Mycoplasma hominis and the ureaplasmas. The results confirmed a relatively low prevalence of gonorrhea among symptomatic men (12%) and chlamydia among symptomatic men (15%) and normal women (3%). In contrast, infections with mycoplasmas, especially the ureaplasmas (57%), were common and the organisms were the only potential sexually transmitted pathogen detected in 40 (62%) symptomatic subjects. Because of the high prevalence, we also evaluated urethral swabs from an additional 25 normal female volunteers and recovered ureaplasmas from 4 (16%) subjects. Additionally, the participants rarely used protection during sexual intercourse and some symptomatic subjects apparently acquired their infections despite using condoms regularly. The findings demonstrate a strong association between abnormal urogenital findings and detection of myoplasmas, particularly ureaplasmas, and suggest the infections will remain common.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

"Commissioned by God": Mother Bickerdyke during the Civil War.

Mary Ann Bickerdyke, nurse, herbalist, and humanitarian, stood out as a singular figure during the American Civil War and afterward. She advocated nutrition and herbal medicines at a time when "heroic," if futile, treatments were often the rule. Her compassion toward ill soldiers was legendary and provided her with the nickname "Mother." Nevertheless, she did not hesitate to stand up to the bureaucratic and occasionally incompetent physician administrators who opposed her. Working in an arena typically off limits for women, she exceeded the bounds proscribed for her sex during the 19th century as a naturopathic physician, humanitarian, and social reformer.

Altruism↗