"The Society to Improve Diagnosis in Medicine (SIDM) is a non-profit organization that focuses on the issue of diagnostic error. Misdiagnosis is quite common in Lyme disease and the consequences can be devastating. The SIDM website recently featured the personal story of LymeDisease.org's Lorraine Johnson, and the lessons learned from her own experience with diagnostic error. It is re-published here with SIDM's permission."

Abstract: INTRODUCTION: Spasticity in chronic spinal cord injury is a condition that can have negative repercussions on the patient's quality of life. Its treatment is complex and sometimes the outcome is insufficient. Cannabinoids have recently been used in multiple sclerosis to successfully treat spasticity that is refractory to other therapies. AIM: To quantify the clinical response of a group of patients with spastic chronic spinal cord injury to the orally administered drug delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol-cannabidiol (Sativex®) as medication for use in special situations. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The research consists of a six-month observational study in patients with chronic spinal cord injuries with refractory spasticity. The variables collected were: modified Ashworth scale, Penn spasm frequency scale, Numeric Rating Scale, and Visual Analogue Scale for pain. Additionally, clinical variables and side effects of the treatment were also collected. RESULTS: Fifteen patients took part in this study. A significant improvement was observed on three of the scales recorded: modified Ashworth scale (z = -2.97; p = 0.003), Penn spasm frequency scale (z = -2.76; p = 0.006) and Numeric Rating Scale (z = -3.21; p = 0.001). The use of the drug was withdrawn in two patients due to side effects. CONCLUSIONS: Sativex can be considered an alternative in patients with spasticity associated with chronic spinal cord injury for whom other therapeutic measures have been insufficient. Further studies need to be conducted before the use of this drug can be recommended and so as to define a complete profile of its long-term side effects.

"Q. What are the consequences of taking antibiotics on your gut microbiome? Does the gut ever fully recover? A. Most gut bacteria recover quickly, but there can be long-lasting consequences from taking antibiotics. The changes, however, are not necessarily harmful. The gut microbiome, the roughly 10 trillion to 100 trillion bacteria and other microorganisms that live in the digestive tract, contributes to health by synthesizing vitamins, metabolizing drugs and fighting pathogens. Anything that disrupts the balance of microorganisms, such as antibiotics, which can kill both "good" and "bad" bacteria, has the potential to cause disease."

"UC San Diego medical researchers have for the first time used 3D printing technology to create a spinal cord and implant it with neural stem cells into rats with spinal cord injuries, the university announced Monday."

"Agile science is: people-centered as it is grounded in the real-world needs of individuals.   success-oriented as we ground all evaluation and optimization on clearly defined criteria of success.   efficiently  rigorous via the classic scientific concept of triangulation. We strive to clarify the most important assumption being made at a given moment and then evaluate it as efficiently and rigorously as possible. We then iterate and test again, often with a complementary but also efficient method for the stage of the process to balance strengths/limitations of the approaches." Eric Hekler, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Family Medicine & Public Health Director, Center for Wireless & Population Health Systems

Eric Heckler's comment ACTION-TARGETED STUDIES: For these studies, the focus is more on vetting if an action is "worth it" for a person. An example of this is Sayali's dissertation, http://www.hack-your-health.org/.

"Sayali Phatak PhD Candidate in Nutritional and Exercise Sciences at Arizona State University San Diego, California"

"Evidence-based medicine is increasingly the primary way in which individuals are receiving care and support. Advocates for the approach (Sackets et al 1996) defined evidence-based medicine as: "

Camille, "The reason I wanted to include ethnographic research was to document the organic evolution of Apollo and the PHE including successes, mistakes, progress, setbacks, and other trivial and/or monumental aspects of what we are doing. I would like to have this anthropological history be of use to us as part of our learning process moving forward; however, it may also be something we would want to share with others via a publication or blog post. Due to the latter, we should have an approved IRB protocol for conducting this work as it fits under the "field work" type of research. "

"prof m.c. schraefel, phd,fbcs, ceng, cscs (lower case deliberate). Professor of Computer Science and Human Performance, Fellow, british computer society, Research Chair, Royal Academy of Engineering, Chartered Engineer. Head, Agents Interaction and Complexity Group And now a wee bit more: Deputy Head of Department, Research, and current REF champion (for those in the UK) for CS."

This YouTube Edition should work! Here is the 'on the fly' video of our encounter with Master Lu. Jan wore the gut monitor for the short session in Oceanside. She followed up with a much longer (1 hour) session with Master Lu two days later. She was able to walk without a cane for the first time during those sessions. Subsequently she has been able to walk (in PT) barefoot without a cane.

I'll be posting some video of Janice walking shortly after seeing Master Lui (soon). ~ Dennis

Here is the 'on the fly' video of our encounter with Master Lu. Jan wore the gut monitor for the short session in Oceanside. She followed up with a much longer (1 hour) session with Master Lu two days later. She was able to walk without a cane for the first time during those sessions. Subsequently she has been able to walk (in PT) barefoot without a cane.

Karen has been my teacher since 2012. She is a true soul. Bringing her into the circle would be a wise decision.