Comments? Email Us:

1. From the President... The Birth of Gadfly
2. Comparison of Canadian and American Medical Schools
3. Kaplan: August 1999 MCAT Flash Feedback
4. Interested in Interdisciplinary Research? The Medical Biophysics program is for you...
5. Canadians in Medicine: Dr. Morgentaler - A murderer or a hero?
6. Bioethics: Abortion - Deciding between the mother and the fetus
7. Alternative Medicine: Aromatherapy is more than meets the nose
8. Split-Liver Transplant: one way to deal with the scarcity of donor organs
9. Ever felt lost? Tips for planning your undergraduate studies as pre-med students
10. Pot Pourri... What do you know?

From the President...
Clement Zai
The Birth of Gadfly

... to exhort you and in my usual way to point out to any one of you whom I happen to meet: good sir, you are an Athenian, a citizen of the greatest city with the greatest reputation for both wisdom and power; are you ashamed of your eagerness to possess as much wealth, reputation and honours as possible, while you do not care for nor give thought to wisdom or truth, or the best possible state of your soul... ... as upon a great and noble horse which was somewhat sluggish because of its size and needed to be stirred up by a kind of gadfly. It is to fulfill some such function that I believe the God has placed me in the city.
Socrates, 399 BC

Athens was a prospering city in ancient Greece. However, a philosopher named Socrates felt that Athenians were so concerned with conducts of self interest that they never paused to reflect on themselves and strive for self-improvements. Therefore, he appointed himself as the Gadfly – with its stings it would keep the strong horse, the Athenians, awake and aware of its conditions and surroundings. Unfortunately, the political leaders at the time felt threatened by his philosophy. Socrates was charged with corrupting the youth and worshipping false gods. He was brought to trial and sentenced to death for standing by his principles.

...although I do not suppose that either of us knows anything..., I am better off than he is -- for he knows nothing, and thinks that he knows.
Socrates

Founded by a group of undergraduate life sciences students, Gadfly is entering its third year of publication. We feel that all medical school candidates should have a better understanding of what the medical profession is like, and also be aware of major health-care issues. This should help them in their medical school application processes as well as in their future health-care professions. A great way of learning is by researching and writing about different topics. By publishing our efforts, we can learn from one another and help others as well. Thus, I sincerely invite you to join us in our quest in producing Gadfly. Your contributions (as writers and editors) and comments will certainly help this magazine to grow and improve. So, hesitate no more. Join us and make a difference.

Into the Millenium

This year, we are producing three issues, devoting more time to increasing the quality of articles and art work. We have also extended the content for each issue. In addition to medical school information, interviews with doctors, diseases, breakthroughs in medical research/technology, undergraduate basic medical sciences programs, medical bio-ethics, and paramedical professions, we are introducing graduate programs offered by the Faculty of Medicine as well as a little history on great Canadians who made invaluable contributions to the field of medicine. We hope that Gadfly will help further your understanding of the medical and related professions.

To increase the recognition of Gadfly at U of T, we joined the Club Carnival event in September. We gave out many copies of our summer'99 issue. Thanks to everyone who signed up. I would like to extend my gratitude to Princeton Review and Kaplan, our sponsors, and Dr. Cathy L. Barr for their generous donations which made this event successful.

References:
Plato. The Trial and Death of Socrates. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1975. Pp.32-33.
URL:http://infoplease.lycos.com/ce5/CE048462.html Encyclopedia Entry: Socrates.
URL:http://www.msu.edu/user/mayhopee/Socrates.html Socrates Page.

Canadian vs. American Medical School
Tony Cheung

(C) Canadian Medical Schools
(A) American Medical Schools

-- Number of Medical Schools
(C) 16
(A) 122

-- Enrollment per School
(C) ~70
(A) ~150

-- Total Applicants
(C) NA
(A) 42000

-- Total Enrollment
(C) ~1300
(A) 16000

-- Language
(C) English and French
(A) English

-- MCAT
(C) Required for all except for McMaster, Ottawa and some Quebec medical schools
(A) Required for all except Brown and Johns Hopkins

-- MCAT Score
(C) Verbal, 8; Physics, 8; Biology, 8; Writing, N (minimum)
(A) Verbal, >9; Physics >9; Biology, >9 in most cases

-- MCAT Writing Sample
(C) Considered
(A) Usually not considered

-- Prerequisites
(C) Biology, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, sometimes English and Biochemistry
(A) Biology, Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, Physics, English, sometimes Biochemistry and Math

-- Interview
(C) Yes
(A) Yes (~90%), No (~10%) including Cornell

-- Tuition
(C) between $2000 to $11,000
(A) >$20,000 (U.S.)

-- Deadline for Application
(C) earliest is October 15
(A) earliest is October 15

Note: Some Public Schools like UCLA and UCSF do not accept International Students

source:
mostly from university web sites
Princeton Review on American Medical Schools 1999

Kaplan: August 1999 MCAT Flash Feedback

Kaplan students reported no surprises on any of the test forms administered for the August 1999 MCAT. Of course, there were the usual reports of rooms with broken air conditioners and nearby band practice. As always, Kaplan advises students to contact the MCAT Program Office to report irregularities at their test site. Kaplan students agreed that they were very well prepared for the test. Students noted that the topics emphasized in the Kaplan classes were many of the same topics that appeared on the exam. A significant percentage of the questions—both non-passage and passage based—tested students’ ability to synthesize discrete scientific principles to arrive at the correct answer. To this end, the critical thinking skills developed in class gave Kaplan students the advantage when answering questions that, at first glance, appeared to call for specialized knowledge.

VERBAL REASONING

Each test form contained nine passages of approximately equal length (65–70 lines, about a column and a half). Students reported the usual mixture of natural science, social science, and humanities passages, with an emphasis on social sciences and humanities. The passages dealt with diverse topics such as the emotions evoked by music, the dating of fossils and rocks, the role of myths in culture, the history of warfare, the architecture of the Parthenon, English clothing laws, and asteroid impact theories (sound familiar from Verbal Reasoning Lesson 2?). Students were pleasantly surprised to see many similarities between the topics that appeared on the exam and those found in Kaplan’s Verbal Reasoning Practice Tests. On at least one test form, the first passage was one of the more challenging passages in the section. While others may have been caught off-guard, Kaplan students who “triaged” the section were able to remain calm and pace themselves efficiently. As usual, the questions generally fell into the categories of inference, logic, application, implied detail, etc. Students agreed that the questions on the Kaplan Verbal Reasoning tests were very similar in form and tone to those that appeared on the MCAT. In particular, students felt well prepared to handle the tough inference, logic and application questions that are appearing more often on recent MCATs. Another MCAT trend students confirmed on the August ‘99 MCAT was a significant number of questions with complicated and intimidating stems. Many students reported that they probably would have gotten bogged down in the verbiage if they had not used Kaplan’s verbal strategies. Kaplan students also found that many of the wrong answer choices fell into one of Kaplan’s wrong answer “pathologies.” In general, students agreed that the passages and questions on the MCAT were more challenging than those found on AAMC Practice Test IV, but on par with Kaplan materials.

PHYSICAL SCIENCES

Students reported that they found the Physical Sciences section relatively straightforward. Even when the passages or questions appeared complex, students reported success with the Kaplan method of not trying to understand all of the details (i.e., mapping the passage). Elimination techniques such as dimensional analysis were also found to be helpful. Most of the passages included tables and/or graphs of data which provided important clues. All forms contained many “conceptual” questions, similar to questions 74 & 113 on Kaplan Full-Length #3 and questions 77 & 101 on Kaplan Full-Length #4. The amount of calculation necessary to answer questions varied from one test form to another. For example, test forms that emphasized kinematics and Newtonian dynamics contained more calculation-based problems than other test forms. Nevertheless, students found most of the calculation problems could be easily handled using Kaplan’s approximation techniques (for example, see question 95 on Kaplan Full-Length #4). Students reported an even breakdown between Chemistry and Physics passages on all ge topics included projectile motion, hydrogen bonding, Bernoulli's principle, wave-particle duality, redox reactions, the Doppler effect, the Bohr model of the atom, and the gravitational constant.

WRITING SAMPLE

The two prompts were taken from the 1999 MCAT Announcement: 1) “The role of technology should be to improve human life, but not to affect human values.” 2) “The function of the press should be to report only the facts of daily events, not to influence the public's opinion about those facts.” It should be noted that the second prompt has been used in a previous (April 1996) administration of the MCAT.

BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES

Students found a roughly even breakdown between Biology and Organic Chemistry passages on all test forms. Passage topics included hemophilia and the clotting process, LDL's, hemoglobin affinity, acylation of cycloalkenes, alternatives to Grignard reagents, isolation of diterpenes, and memory localization in the brain. Not surprisingly, many Biological Science questions required students to interpret passage tables and graphs similar to question 176 on Kaplan Full-length #3 and questions 187 and 208 on Kaplan Full-Length #4. The Organic Chemistry questions focused on MCAT favorites such as carbonyl reactions, as discussed extensively in Organic Chemistry Lesson 2. Many students praised the Kaplan Lessons and Review Notes for emphasizing basic reaction mechanisms over rote memory of numerous complicated reactions. Kaplan students' intimate familiarity with the fundamental reaction mechanisms gave them an edge in instances when unfamiliar reactions appeared on the exam—as they often do. Overall, Kaplan students felt that the level of difficulty was similar to what they encountered on the Kaplan Full-Length Tests.

Interested in Interdisciplinary Research? The Medical Biophysics program is for you...
Clement Zai

The Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto is well known for its research excellence. It is internationally recognized for its successes in the development of combination drug therapy in the treatment of cancer and the electron spectroscopic analyzer, invention of the ultrasound bio-microscope, the discovery and characterization of P-glycoprotein, and the cloning of the first gene coding the T-cell receptor. Graduate students made important contributions to these accomplishments. The Medical Biophysics graduate program offers students the chance to be exposed to a wide range of research ideas and techniques, preparing them for a career in research.

The graduate program is organized into three sections: Cell and Molecular Biology (cancer biology in particular), Medical Physics, and Structural Biology. The diverse research interests of the faculty members give students the opportunity to choose a wide range of topics: from gene expression to gene therapy in the Cell and Molecular Biology program; from imaging to evaluation of diagnostic methods in the Medical Physics program; and from structure determination of macromolecules to structure design for drug delivery in the Structural Biology program. The research laboratories of most faculty members are located at the Ontario Cancer Institute/ Princess Margaret Hospital (OCI/PMH), one of the largest cancer research and treatment centres, or at the Sunnybrook Health Science Centre (SHSC). They collaborate in many research projects, making the diversity of research a true strength of the Medical Biophysics department.

*An e-mail survey found that graduate students currently enrolled in this program have about two to four hours of class and one to two hours of seminars each week. The rest of the time is spent on research, which makes up anywhere from 30 to 70 hours a week. The graduate students are mostly impressed by the diversity of the program, and by seminars which give them a basic understanding of many topics from physics to cell biology related to their research specialties. They also have access to state-of-the-art research equipment, making sophisticated experiments possible. The graduate students find the administrative staff very helpful in addressing individual students' concerns, informing them about deadlines, seminars, and courses. They rated their overall academic experiences 8.4 out of 10 and their overall research experiences 8.7 out of 10.

The Medical Biophysics department primarily accepts students who are interested in pursuing a Ph.D. degree, though the M.Sc. degree is also offered. Most students first enroll in the M.Sc. program. During the first 18 months, students begin serious work on their research project and complete most of their formal course work. After that, they can either attempt to reclassify as a Ph.D. student or complete their M.Sc. degree before being evaluated as a potential Ph.D. candidate.

Graduate students in the biological sciences, medicine, and engineering with an A- average (flexible) and potential for creative research will be considered at any time. However, for the best chance of acceptance into the program and to be considered for special University of Toronto Fellowships, applications should be received no later than February 1. Please visit the Department of Medical Biophysics web-site at http://www.medbio.utoronto.ca/contact.html for contact and application information.

*We would like to thank all the graduate students in the Department of Medical Biophysics for giving helpful information in our survey.

Canadians in Medicine: Dr. Mongentaler - A murderer or a hero?

The clinician who went behind the bars and became a death target for fighting abortion laws.

On September 16, 1999, Dr. Henry Morgentaler, a pro-abortion clinician famous for striking down criminal laws against abortion, arrived at the University of Toronto. His visit attracted hundreds of students, and sparked a heated debate at Hart House, where speakers supported and challenged the resolution that “abortion should be a woman’s choice”. As anti-abortionists armed with gory placards of aborted fetuses voiced their opinions outside Hart House, Dr. Morgentaler described his continual efforts to fight for women’s rights.

What made him decide to get involved in this difficult and dangerous struggle? What are his theories and feelings? Let’s take a look:

Dr. Morgentaler was the son of a Jewish socialist activist killed in the Holocaust. Surviving Auschwitz and Dachau, he arrived in Canada in 1950. He began a general practice in medicine in Montréal in 1955, but by 1969 he was devoting all his energies to family planning. As president of the Montréal Humanist Fellowship, he urged the Commons Health and Welfare Committee in 1967 to repeal the law against abortion.

To draw attention to the safety and efficacy of clinical abortions, Dr. Morgentaler publicized in 1973 the fact that he had successfully carried out over 5000 abortions. In 1974, he was imprisoned for 10 months by the Québec Court of Appeal for violating article 251 of the Criminal Code which criminalized abortion. After a series of appeals, in which the government tried to reverse several acquittals granted in jury trials, Morgentaler was finally released.

In Nov 1984, Dr. Morgentaler and two associates were charged with procuring a miscarriage at their Toronto clinic. The case was taken to the Supreme Court of Canada, which struck down the abortion law in early 1988 on the basis that it conflicted with rights of women as guaranteed in the Charter. His victory meant that abortion became a woman’s private decision, and that a woman seeking an abortion in Canada no longer required the consent of a committee of doctors.

Since then, Dr. Morgentaler has set up abortion clinics across Canada to test provincial and federal laws. As a person who has done more than 60,000 abortions in Canada, he believes in the advantages of eliminating the law: an eradication of dangerous illegal abortions, a decline in female mortality as high-risk pregnancies are aborted safely, and the disappearance of orphanages for unwanted children. He even attributes the decline in violent crime rates to the availability of abortion, since “there are fewer young males …[who commit crimes because of the] rage and violence in their hearts.”

The relationship between decline in crime rates and abortion was criticized harshly by many as “absurd”. Moreover, pro-lifers said his abortions were equivalent to “killing off tomorrow’s citizens.” Pro-life groups vowed to continue the battle for new legislation, but the pro-choice movement has won a series of legal battles since 1988. Unfortunately, in recent years, some have resorted to extreme tactics, leaving three abortion doctors shot. The violence, while condemned by pro-life groups, also made Dr. Morgentaler a death target.

Despite facing such threats, Dr. Morgentaler seemed to stand firm in his belief at Hart House. He admitted that he has had a “stressful time”, but was proud of his accomplishments. He believed that his duty as a doctor was to help these women in need of abortion. “Abortion is indeed a woman’s choice,” he stated. “I will continue to promote it as long as I have a valid contribution to make.”

Reference:
The 1999 Canadian Encyclopedia: World Edition. McClelland & Stewart Inc. 1998
“Morgentaler debates”. Varsity News. Sept. 27, 1999
“Morgentaler’s Clinic”. http://www.morgentaler.ca
“The Morgentaler Files”. http://www.interlife.org/morgentaler/

Bioethics: Abortion - Deciding between the mother and the fetus
Gabriel Chan

On December 19, 1984, an abortion clinic in Toronto was raided by police. For performing thousands of illegal abortions, Dr. Henry Morgentaler was charged with conspiracy to procure a miscarriage under section 251 of the Criminal Code. The case was taken to the Supreme Court of Canada, which had to judge whether the government can limit a woman’s right to abort a fetus. Thus, decades long of debates on whether a woman’s reproductive freedom should override a fetus’ right to life made their way to the highest legal system in Canada. On January 28, 1988, the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the abortion law. Ruled as unconstitutional, the abortion law infringes upon a woman’s right to “life, liberty and security of the person.” While abortion was decriminalized in Canada, the moral and ethical debates on this issue have never ceased. The arrival of Dr. Morgentaler at U of T re-sparked a debate on this issue: how do we, as students, decide?

Pro-life versus Pro-Choice: an unresolved issue

Certainly enough, abortion is one of the most widely debated ethical issues of our time. In the dispute between the rights of the mother and the fetus, there are two deeply divided sides. On one side, there are the “pro-choice” supporters – individuals who favour a woman’s reproductive rights, including the rights to choose an abortion. On the other side are the “pro-life” advocates, believing in the fetus’ right to life and opposing abortion except in extreme circumstances, such as when the mother’s life would be threatened.
While some people may stand firm on one side, others often have mixed feeling towards this issue. Many of us do not feel that it is right to end a fetus’ life, especially late in pregnancy. However, our sympathy may go with the 60,000 to 120,000 women worldwide who died in illegal abortions performed by untrained people in unsafe manners, only because abortion is banned in those places. We may also agree to let a poor teenage mother to have an early abortion, when carrying the pregnancy to full-term would bring significant hardship to both the mother and the child.

How could we decide? A look at a few of the classical arguments (and the ones countering them) might help us to make up our minds:

Pro-Choice says that abortion can be done because…
1) It’s a woman’s right to control her body. This argument is often cited in abortion debates. However, a right to one’s own body does not entitle one to harm another’s body. Think of the common phrase: “My right to swing my fist ends where your nose begins.” Thus, if the fetus does have a right to life, a woman’s right to control her body cannot justify abortion.
2) A fetus’ right to life doesn’t entitle it to the right to the services and resources of the mother. This was proposed by Judith Thomson in a famous analogy. Suppose that one day you wake up and find yourself hooked up with the body of a violinist, who needs the help of your kidney to sustain his life for nine months. After that, the violinist will have recovered. The violinist is a person, so he has a right to life. Your life is not endangered, but your freedom will be severely limited.
Now, it seems that there is no reason why you cannot unplug the violinist; there’s no obligation for you to sacrifice your freedom to save the violinist’s life. Compare this to the case of the mother and the fetus; why does the mother have to sacrifice her liberty to support the life of the fetus? This supports a woman’s right to abortion, regardless of the right of the fetus.
However, this analogy is weak in two aspects. First, it ignores whether the pregnancy is intentional – the analogy would be suitable only in cases of rape. Second, it compares an adult with a fetus – the fetus is naturally a much more dependent entity than an adult. Thus, the analogy falls short to defend the woman’s right to abort.

Pro-Life says that abortion should be banned because…
…If you are conceived by human parents, you are human. This notion holds that conception is the “decisive moment of humanization” because that is when the new organism receives the genetic code. As such, the fetus is a human at conception, and is thus entitled to all the rights a human has – including the right to life. Abortion is therefore equivalent to murder and should be banned.
While this argument is embraced by the religious and the fundamentalist, many do find that this definition of the beginning of personhood to be too lenient. A cluster of a few cells is clearly different from a fully developed human, who have the ability to reason and communicate. The fetus is only a potential human, one that still requires substantial development.

When does a fetus turns to a person?
While it is probably extreme to define the zygote to be a person, a significant issue remains as to when does the fetus turn into a person and acquire rights? There are numerous interpretations, many of which depend on scientific findings:

1) the presence of brainwave (electroencephalographic) activity at around six weeks’ gestational age. However, early brainwaves are primitive and do not reflect a human’s normal brain capability.
2) the development of the neo-cortex – this is a part of the brain which is unique to humans. It is usually developed between 20 to 30 weeks – though the exact date is uncertain.

Another major criterion is the viability of the fetus – the capability of surviving outside the womb with or without artificial support. The U.S. Supreme Court considers viability when determining whether it can interfere with a woman’s “right to privacy”. That is, the State may consider prohibiting abortion only after the fetus becomes viable.
As compelling as it is, the standard of viability still suffers from a major drawback. As medical improvements advance at an enormous rate, the age at which a fetus can live outside a mother’s womb is being shortened continuously. Currently, the fetus can be supported by medical equipment at around 20 to 24 weeks. However, it is not difficult to envision that, sometime in the future, this period will diminish until the point when a sperm meets the egg. If so, does that mean that abortion should be completely banned?
Clearly, there is no single answer to the question of abortion. The primary difficulty lies in resolving the conflicting interests of two intimately dependent entities – the mother and the fetus. Which side one values more depends on one’s moral, cultural and religious beliefs, as well as one’s social and economic situation. As such, it might be justifiable for the Supreme Court of Canada to declare abortion to be, in most circumstances, solely a woman’s choice.

References:
“Abortion.” Encyclopedia of Bioethics. Macmillan Library Reference.
“Abortion.” The Canadian Encyclopedia, World Edition. McClelland & Stewart 1999.
“Abortion.” Encarta Online Delux. http://encarta.msn.com/encarta
Reiman, Jeffery. Abortion and the ways we value human life. Rowman & Littlefield. 1999

Princeton Review: An analysis of the August 1999 MCAT

Dear PreMedical Students,

Overall, the August 1999 exam offered no surprises and was comparable in difficulty to AAMC’s MCAT Practice Test IV, but, as usual, different forms had varying difficulty levels for the subtests. We identified six test series—G, H, K, M, N, and P—with several forms in each. Although almost all of the passages were reported as new, the course materials contained a number of passages and questions which helped to provide valuable practice for, and confidence with, those that appeared on the actual MCAT.

Verbal Reasoning:
All forms contained nine passages, with source credits collected (as usual) at the end of the booklet. Topics included poetry, myth, archeology and geology, architecture, literary criticism, science and society, history, sociology, and even the tracking of turtles in the Mojave Desert by spy satellites. There were many questions of the strengthen/weaken, support/challenge, agree/refute variety, as well as many that asked for specifics from the passage or to consider how the author would respond to new information. Passage length and difficulty was consistent with that in Practice Test IV.

Physical Sciences:
Everyone noted that the breakdown of passages favored Physics slightly over G-Chem, with 6 Physics and 5 G-Chem. The General Chemistry passages were reported as straightforward, with graphs and tables of data that often provided the answers without the need to scrutinize the passage text, although reading the passages which centered on an experiment was particularly helpful. Acid/base chemistry was most popular, followed by redox chemistry, periodic trends, intermolecular forces, and atomic structure. Physics was reported as generally fair, but some of the Physics passages were slightly more difficult (and less standard) than the G-Chem passages. The most popular Physics topics on this MCAT were mechanics and waves (including, on many test forms, intimidating passages on wave/particle duality and particle accelerators). As usual, there were many conceptual questions. However, with calm and confidence and a mastery of the fundamentals—and checking back to the equations in the passage or the data in the graphs—the questions could be successfully attacked. The percentage of questions requiring mathematical calculation was slightly higher than usual (around 25%), and the free-standing questions were usually regarded as straightforward.

Writing Sample:
As promised, the two Writing Sample items came from the list published by the AAMC in their 1999 MCAT Announcement (the MCAT Registration booklet). The first item on Saturday’s MCAT is the first prompt listed in the second column on page 58 of the Announcement, and the second item is the fourth prompt listed in the second column on page 53.

Essay Topic #1:
“The role of technology should be to improve human life, but not to affect human values.”

Essay Topic #2:
“The function of the press should be to report only the facts of daily events, not to influence the public’s opinion about those facts.”

Biological Sciences:
The split between Bio and O-Chem heavily favored Biology, with the most common breakdown being 7 Bio passages and 4 O-Chem passages. The free-standing questions also leaned much more toward Biology than O-Chem and offered no surprises. The BioSci section of this August’s MCAT was generally regarded as comparable to Practice Test IV. Genetics and physiology were again most popular in Bio this administration, and the Bio passages tended to be more experiment-based than descriptive. Reports indicate that the O-Chem passages were designed to look intimidating. Elimination reactions, analysis of synthetic steps, stereochemistry, and steric considerations were common topics. O-Chem passages often presented lots of structures and mechanistic steps, but the questions yielded to the analytic techniques learned and the practice gained from TPR’s diagnostics and the Compendium.

Again, our congratulations for completing this arduous test and thanks for letting us be a part of your preparation!

All the best,
Eric D’Astolfo
Executive Director
Princeton Review Canada
(800) 2-REVIEW

Alternative Medicine: Aromatherapy is more than meets the nose
Iris Sun

STUDENTS: Wake Up and Smell the Peppermint!

OIL HOW THE OIL NURTURES YOUR STUDENT NATURE
Basil
Personal or course-related anxieties are common barriers to successful concentration. Basil eases mental fatigue, headache and stress. It also stimulates memory, so that you can remember the material you have studied.
Lavender
Stress and tension can be alleviated with lavender’s pleasant and refreshing aroma. It can also help you get a good night’s sleep. Lack of rest can also serve as a barrier to successful studying.
Lemon
Late night studying? The light and refreshing scent of lemon will energize and help you stay awake while cramming for the exam(s).
Peppermint
The menthol in peppermint clears the head and stimulates thinking. This uplifting scent is traditionally used for nausea, headaches and fatigue.
Rosemary
This invigorating aroma is a powerful physical and psychological uplifter. Rosemary is also used for muscle aches (often attributed to carrying heavy backpacks and sitting with improper posture in class)
Tea Tree
Tea tree can be used to treat acne and paper cuts to avoid infection. It is antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal. Tea tree also strengthens the immune system.
Aromatherapy - it's Essential
Aromatherapy is the use of essential oils from plants. Plants may store their essential oil in their flower, leaves, peel, root, bark or seed. These concentrated extracts can help individuals relax, balance or stimulate the body, mind and spirit. Aromatherapy was used by ancient civilizations and is believed to be at least 6000 years old. Rene Maurice Gattefosse first coined the term in 1910. The French chemist was astonished at how well lavender oil healed a burn that he had suffered during a laboratory accident.

"The way to health is to have an aromatic bath and scented massage everyday" – Hippocrates

What are the benefits?

Essential oils may be inhaled through the nose and the natural components drawn into the lungs. The aromatic molecules stimulate the olfactory nerves and send impulses to the limbic system. This component of the brain is thought to control memory and emotions. When smelling essential oils, it is common to recall life experiences, even distant childhood memories. Aromatherapy may produce a sense of security and peace, allowing individuals to release built-up emotions during the process of working through difficult emotional issues.
Physical application to the skin is believed to cause the oil to be absorbed into the bloodstream. Carrier oils are pure and unperfumed vegetable oils. They are used to dilute the essential oil. Chemicals in synthetic oils may interfere with the properties of the essential oil and its absorption into the body. The blend of essential oils in suitable proportions may contribute greater total benefit than each oil working independently.
Aromatherapy enhances the physical and psychological well being, when used correctly and safely. The benefits may range from relaxation and hormone regulation to uplifting and energy stimulation. The use of essential oils may also enhance the immune, respiratory and circulatory systems. It may aid in the improvement of health, whether it is head clearing and invigorating to conditioning the skin and promoting rest. The use of aromatherapy complemented with other health care may take on a new dimension of therapeutic possibilities.

EVERYDAY APPLICATIONS:
Massage Room Fragrancing
General Household Freshening Bath
First Aid in Personal Care Products
Direct Inhalation Bug Repellent
Steam Inhalation/Vaporizer Compress
Diffuser and many more…

Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, Essential Oils are NOT always Pure and True…
If it smells like a rose, it doesn't necessarily signify that it is natural rose oil. Synthetic oils are readily available, but the natural version contains all the essential components that provide the oil with its power and healing properties. Also, perfume oils and fragrances contain unnatural chemicals and don't provide the therapeutic benefits of essential oils.
The term "100% essential oil" indicates that the oil contains only the extract of a particular plant. However, it should not be assumed to be absolutely pure. The essential oil industry grades the quality of the 100% essential oils on a scale of 1 to 5 (purest top grade is 1). Methods such as adding chemicals to draw oil from live material or using heat to enhance extraction will destroy the vital essence and may even add chemical or toxic elements to the finished product.
Where is the plant is grown and how it is cultivated affect an oil's quality. The type of soil, amount of rainfall, sunlight, humidity – the whole environment, in fact – plays a role in the quality of the essential oil that is produced by the aromatic plant. Best oils come from wild or organically grown plants that have not been treated by synthetic chemicals. To ensure best quality, these oils are extracted using methods that are more time-consuming and don't use heat. The therapeutic value and quality of essential oils are dependent on the original source of the plant, the extraction method, processing and storage.

CAUTIONS:
-- Always check with a physician before using any essential oils, especially if you have epilepsy, asthma, high blood pressure or other health conditions. Consult with a professional before using essential oils during pregnancy, nursing or on children under age of two.
-- Keep oils out of reach of children.
-- Some oils may not be suitable for use around pets.
-- Never take internally.
-- Avoid use with alcohol, it may cause drowsiness.
-- Most essential oils are flammable.
-- Essential oils should be diluted before use.
-- Avoid contact with eyes or mucous membranes. If any oil accidentally gets in the eyes, flush immediately with milk rather than water. The fatty content of milk will dilute the oil, whereas water does not.
-- When using an oil for the first time, patch test for irritation or reduce the quantity of oil normally called for in the usage (especially if you have sensitive skin).
-- Some essential oils can increase the skin’s sensitivity to the sun, causing sunburn and irritation. Once the skin becomes photosensitized, it will always need added protection from the sun.

There’s No Rose without a Thorn. Think before you smell!

References: http://www.accessnewage.com/AROMA/about.htm http://www.aromaweb.com/articles/ http://www.hhnews.com/aroma_articles.htm http://www.onhealth.com/ch1/resource/althealth/item,15025.asp

Split-Liver Transplant: one way to deal with the scarcity of donor organs
Tony Cheung

The surgical procedures of organ transplantation were developed in the twentieth century. The first organ to be transplanted was the kidney. This pioneering operation took place in 1951 at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston. Later on, surgeons and researchers discovered that many organs could be transplanted with fair results. These organs included heart, liver, lungs, pancreas, and bone marrow.
Liver transplantation is more complex than that of kidney and has only gained popularity since the 1980's. Initially, this operation was seldom performed because of its low success rate, but by the late 1980's, the survival rate of recipient patients was as high as 70%. Some of you may have heard about split-liver transplantation. In fact, there was a recent article in the Toronto Star about the first split-liver transplantation performed at the Toronto General Hospital by a team of surgeons from the Toronto General and the Hospital for Sick Children. What exactly is a split-liver transplant? It is somewhat similar to the usual liver transplant, but the main difference is that the donor liver is split into two parts for separate patients. You don't hear of split-heart transplantation, so how is split-liver transplantation feasible? Unlike other vital organs, the liver has the ability to regenerate itself and grow to its usual size in two or three months after a split-liver transplantation.
Let's examine the steps in a split-liver transplantation. First, splitting the liver, a rather taxing procedure, involves cutting it into unequal portions. From our knowledge of human physiology, we know that the liver has an asymmetrical structure, where the left lobe is smaller than the right lobe. Surgeons must perform the slicing carefully so that both sides will contain functional vessels and ducts which can be used by the recipient patients. Afterwards, the severed livers are implanted immediately in the recipients to avoid the risk of damaging the organ during prolonged storage. The success rate is highest when the donor livers are shared between an adult and a child, where the adult takes the large portion and the child receives the small one. In order to perform this entire operation, a large team of skillful surgeons is required to work together simultaneously, which explains why split-liver transplantation is not carried out frequently.
If liver-split transplantation is such a complicated surgery, why do doctors still want to perform it? The reason is simply that the supply of donor liver is very scarce in Canada. Hundreds of patients hoping for liver transplants die each year before any suitable livers become available. Splitting livers not only increases organ availability, but also prevents wasting organ parts since the size of the organ is reduced for pediatric transplantation. Medical professionals are doing their part to ensure more people can receive the transplants they need; have you done your part in helping these dying patients? I strongly urge all of you to visit the Canadian Liver Foundation web site at www.liver.ca today. Remember, every donor liver could now save two patients.

Sources:
Encarta 95, articles on “Surgery” and “Transplantation, Medical”
International Hepatitis C Forum – Information page about split liver transplants www.hepatitis-c.de/split.htm
Toronto Star article on August 17, 1999 “One liver becomes two” by Tanya Talaga http://www.thestar.com/back_issues/ED19990817/news/990817NEW03b_CI-LIVER17.html
University of Texas Health Science Centre at San Antonio. November 2, 1997 article, “Transplant saves two people with one organ" http://www.mha.org/mha/magazine/twoare.html

Ever felt lost? Tips for planning your undergraduate studies as pre-med students
Clement Zai

Entering university is an intimidating experience. Class sizes are ten to 100 times bigger. One often needs to walk long distances between classes in different buildings. I remember getting lost in the vast area of the University of Toronto St. George campus, not to mention finding a way to prepare myself for medical school. Here are some tips for students who are planning to apply to medical schools. These suggestions come from personal experiences. I hope they will be helpful.

First Year...
- Do well in BIO150Y, CHM137/157Y, PHY110/138/140Y, MAT135/137Y (or their equivalents in other universities)
- Beware of breadth requirements: at least one social science course and one humanity/language/linguistics course
- Build up your resume: volunteer at hospitals to get some patient contact, extracurricular activities
- Keep in mind: Three references are required for most medical school applications; also it is best to start researching medical schools you are interested in (most of them have web sites with contact information)
- Apply to: Undergraduate Basic Medical Sciences Program, Research Opportunity Program (ROP; 299Y courses)
- Try: mock MCAT offered by Premed Society or Human Biology Student Union

...First summer...
- Do research as a volunteer or an employee (under summer student research program)
- Try: MCAT (For Ontario medical schools in 1999, MCAT is required for Queens, Toronto, and Western only)

...Second Year...
- BIO250Y, CHM240Y...(or their equivalents in other universities) Keep up your GPAs
- Build up your resume: continue volunteering, run for executive positions of clubs or student bodies to help develop leadership / team-working skills
- Apply to: extern program offered by Career Centre to get a feel for the medical profession
- Start to: contact medical schools you are interested in for information, brochures, application requirements. Brainstorm on why you want to study medicine/become a physician, what makes you suitable for a career in medicine (your personality, your development)...

...Second summer...
- Do research as a summer student or employee
- Ask for an application package from OMSAS (Ontario Medical School Application System) around June by phone, web, or mail. Once you receive the package, read through it carefully (changes may be made to the application process every year).
- Try: August MCAT if you need to
- Start: asking for references, writing personal letters (according to outline provided)

...Third Year...
- Keep up your GPAs
- Request that transcript be sent directly to OMSAS (the process may take some time)
- Beware: OMSAS COMA submission deadline October 15, for most other medical schools deadline around November
- Keep track of your references; make sure that they have completed and mailed out the confidential assessment forms
- Sign up for interview workshops/mock interviews offered by Career Centre
- Be aware of medical issues
- Go to graduate school seminars, just in case... If medical application is not successful, try again next year and improve your GPAs and credentials

...Third summer...
- Do research
- Find information on graduate schools
- Brush up on personal letters...
- References for graduate schools (preferably faculty members, professors)

...Fourth Year
Application to medical schools, Ontario Graduate Scholarship, and NSERC, graduate school(s)

Good luck!

Pot Pourri... What do you know?
Cath Lam

[record in process]

[Back to Archives]