Menopausal symptoms, though well tolerated by some women, may be particularly troublesome in others. Severe symptoms compromise overall quality of life for those experiencing them.¹ Hormonal therapy is very effective in treating these complaints.² Postmenopausal symptoms are well known and basically understood by women in developed countries. However, the incidence and understanding of these symptoms amongst cultures in developing countries has long been debated and remains poorly documented.³

Even though voluntary abortion has been legalised in more than 100 countries, mostly in the developed world, it remains a controversial procedure in medical practice. The United Nations has agreed that abortion should never be promoted as a family planning method, and should be utilised only when contraception has failed.¹ Given the many safer family planning methods, abortion, with its associated risks of sterility and mortality, is unsuitable as a family planning method.

This study explored the expectations, experiences and recommendations of a sample of domestic violence survivors upon presenting their injuries to medical practitioners. The frequency of consultations with medical practitioners was also recorded. In order to ascertain whether patterns of injuries could be discerned, the general physical location of the injuries sustained during domestic violence was also noted. It is argued that this composite information will contribute to the diagnostic indicators used to inform medical practitioners when dealing with cases of chronic domestic violence.

The intestine is the largest organ in the immune system of the body, and as such is the location for the majority of lymphocytes and other immune effector cells. The intestine is exposed to vast quantities of dietary and microbial foreign bodies (pathogens), which, in some instances, are potentially lethal. The development of normal immune function of the intestine is therefore vital for survival, and is dependent on appropriate antigen exposure and processing, and an intact intestinal barrier. In early life, maternal colostrums and milk can significantly augment resistance to enteric infections. The mechanisms of enhancing disease resistance are thought to be passive, involving a direct support of anti-microbial factors, and active, by promoting the development of specific immune functions.

Depression afflicts people of all ages. It has a long historical past and has been described for centuries by poets, philosophers and physicians, and depicted in the works of some of the most creative artists. Depressive disorders are referred to as mood disorders because the predominant feature is a disturbance in mood

Procrustes was the mythical Greek innkeeper who either stretched or cut short his guests to fit a specific bed size. A classic mistake in medicine is to repeat this folly by adhering strictly to the “common things occur commonest” route. In a developing country with a high prevalence of HIV it is easy to ignore other possibilities, with consequences for the patient and family. We illustrate this point by presenting a case that was initially thought to fit the presentation of HIV disease but turned out to have another diagnosis, with a Mendelian inheritance pattern which made genetic counseling a worthwhile exercise.

The menopausal transition stage, which marks the beginning of the perimenopause, the phase in a female’s life associated with clinical changes that signal the end of reproductive capabilities, is divided into early and late phases. Women in the early phase often have shortened menstrual cycles, typically defined as a variation of more than 7 days in cycle length compared with their regular pattern

Cutaneous adverse drug reactions are amongst common conditions seen in Dermatology. An adverse drug reaction may be defined as an undesirable clinical manifestation resulting from administration of a particular drug; this includes reactions due to overdose, predictable sideeffects and unanticipated adverse manifestations.

Previous articles have focused on the need to recognise and implement modern educational theory in practice, to make learning a continuous, lifelong activity, and to relate learning to outcome measures. For each of these, the medical practitioner has to develop the appropriate tools for these concepts to be implemented and to be successful. But how do practitioners appraise what they have been involved with or map what they intend to carry out in the future, or make themselves ready for a future when accreditation and re-accreditation are realistic outcome measures?

As in the case of all changes, there are those supporting and those opposing the new two-year internship programme. Critics question the reason for changing a system that has produced doctors who are in demand in South Africa and the rest of the world. That said – what type of doctor does South Africa need?