Chemical weapons

Chemical warfare has been widely condemned since it was first used on a massive scale during the first world war. Chemical weapons are cheap, can cause mass casualties, and are relatively easy to produce, even by developing nations. They have been used in many conflicts during the 20th century (box), most recently by Iraq during the Iran-Iraq war, as well as in terrorist attacks.

New York besieged : 11 September and after.

Epidemiologists all over the world have been good enough to express their concerns and worries about how we, and other friends and colleagues in New York, fared in the terror provoked on 11 September. This annotation responds to the editors’ invitation that we convey something from our vantage point.We welcomed their interest. The experience is, so far, unique in history. Our account is personal, that of four individuals, all related (Sally married to Ezra, and Ezra born to Mervyn and Zena).

Posttraumatic stress disorder following an air disaster: a prospective study

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

The purpose of this study was to determine predictors of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in health care workers exposed to a disaster, in order to facilitate early case identification and prevention of subsequent morbidity.

METHOD:

The role of the press and the medical community in the epidemic of "mysterious gas poisoning" in the Jordan West Bank

In March and April 1983, an epidemic of "mysterious gas poisoning" occurred in the Jordan West Bank region, affecting more than 900 persons, predominantly schoolgirls. That both Arabs and Israelis believed there was an etiologic poisonous substance reflected their longstanding conflict. Israeli newspaper reports, opinions by Arab and Israeli physicians, and the emotional climate in Djenin Hospital contributed to the generation and propagation of this belief. The author discusses the specific difficulties he met in investigating the outbreak.

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