1303NOTES AND NEWS

Notes and News

CLINICAL RESEARCH MADE EASIER

Now more than two years old, the Institute of ClinicalResearch at 40, Hanson Street, London, W.l, has beenfinely equipped for investigations by members of the seniorstaff of the Middlesex Hospital, and by juniors whose workthey sponsor. As it could be a prototype for institutes atother teaching hospitals, its progress will be followed with atten-tion ; and the exhibition arranged on Dec. 6 was encouraging.Clearly, the opportunities for experimental observations onanimals are valued highly by surgeons and others who donot readily find such facilities ; and, under the administrativedirection of Prof. Alan Eekwick, the institute is providingfor more and more solid work by a greater variety of workers.

Subjects under study include the substitution of aorta or’Orlon’ tubes for oesophageal segments (Mr. D. H. Patey) ;bone growth and repair (Mr. Philip Wiles and Mr. K. Dawson);jejunal replacement of the common bile-duct (Mr. VaughanHudson and Mr.’ F. A. Henley) ; and the effect of cortisonein X-ray damage in cancer of the lung (Mr. Holmes Sellorsand Dr. J. B. Walter). Professor Kekwick is studying, withMr. G. Pawan, the effect of altering the proportions of carbo-hydrate, fat, and protein in isocaloric diets, and with Dr. R.de Mowbray the relation of dietary fat to serum lipids andlipoproteins. Dr. Evan Bedford and Dr. Short had some finepost-mortem radiographs displaying the blood-vessel appear-ances characteristic of various forms of pulmonary hyper-tension ; Dr. Lawson Macdonald illustrated renal and vascularchanges caused by hypotensive therapy ; Dr. A. J. Hewerand Dr. P. Coles are investigating induced hypotension;Dr. D. H. P. Cope and Dr. D. E. Argent are examining theetiology and treatment of cerebral anoxia ; and Mr. L. P.Le Quesne and Dr. M., Hobsley use Evans-blue extractionfor estimating blood-volume. Dr. B. A. Sellick showed

apparatus for hypothermia, and Mr. R. Mowlem and Mr. D.Crockett are studying oedema fluids. The Middlesex Hos-pital’s reputation in endocrinology was upheld by severalexhibits of work by Sir Charles Dodds, F.R.S., Prof. J. E.Roberts, Dr. J. D. Nabarro, Dr. Oliver Garrod, Mrs. S. A.Simpson, Dr. J. F. Tait, Miss A. Moxham, Dr. G. Walker, andMr. Pawan. Dr. H. L. Marriott and Dr. D. G. James had ademonstration of sarcoidosis, Dr. Ray Bettley and Dr. E. A.Fairburn of malignant lymphomata of the skin, and Prof.P. B. Ascroft of the late effects of ’ Thorotrast.’ On theborderline between radiology and neurology, Miss DianaBeck and Mr. F. L. Davies are examining the effects of

’Myodil on the nervous system, and Prof. B. Windeyer, withDr. A. M. Jelliffe and Mr. Davies, those of pituitaryablation (in the dog) by injection of radioactive substances.The other exhibits included one on the toxic effects of tricresylphosphate, which Dr. F. Hobbiger has demonstrated byinducing demyelination in hens.

SUPERANNUATION FOR THE GENERALPRACTITIONER

THE regulations governing the National Health Service areso many, and so complex, that doctors cannot be blamed forignorance of most of them. The superannuation regulationsfor general practitioners are explained by Mr. Hugh Barry inan inexpensive booklet 1 which covers all aspects, including,for example, the provision for dependants if the doctor diessuddenly, what money he can expect if he is permanentlyincapacitated, and the size of his pension.

NATIONAL INSURANCE AND TRADE UNIONS

LOCAL tribunals are set up under the National InsuranceAct to hear appeals against decisions given by insuranceofficers. Under new regulations 2 which came into force onDec. 3, an association of employed persons, such as a tradeunion, now has a right of direct appeal to the NationalInsurance Commissioner from a decision of a local tribunalwhen the association is acting on behalf of the next of kin ofa deceased member on a claim for benefit arising from themember’s insurance. Such associations already have thisright where acting on a member’s behalf.1. Superannuation, for the General Medical Practitioner in the

National Health Service. London : Heinemann. 1955. Pp. 21.2s. 6d.

2. National Insurance (Determination of Claims and Questions)Amendment Regulations, 1955 (S.I. 1955, no. 1788). H.M.Stationery Office. 3d.

APPROVED NAMES FOR DRUGS

THE British Pharmacopoeia Commission has issued the

following new supplementary list of approved names :

FOOT-BRACING BARS FOR TRACTION COUCHES

Dr. J. B. JESSIMAN writes : " In reducing cervical-disclesions, a considerable pull has to be exerted, and its efficacyand safety depend largely on the security of the manipulator’sfoothold ; a foothold against highly varnished or tubular-steel leg ot a trac-tion-couch is awk-ward, insecure, andnot without danger.

I have designed astirrup-type foot-

stop or bracing barwhich can be fixedto the traction-couch easily andquickly by meansof two screws at a

height from the efloor suitable toreceive the shoe

instep (31/8-31/4 in.).Tubular-steel

legs would, ofcourse, require holes and bolts ior tixing. The bar, made ottoughened steel strip, 1 by 1/8 in., is cranked or stirruped andangled to 30 degrees to hold the instep of the manipulator’sshoe close to the inside of the couch legs (see accompanyingfigure). An alternative type has adjustable stirrups whichare made in two pieces, secured by thumb-screw bolts."Both types of apparatus are obtainable from Messrs. Allen &

Hanburys, 48, Wigmore Street, London, W.l.

FILM ON BLOOD-TRANSFUSION

A FILM on blood-transfusion (16 mm., sound, colour,24 minutes) has been made by Cyril Jenkins in collaborationwith the North London Blood Transfusion Service. Thefirst part deals with the hazards of transfusion, listing therisks arising from the donor, the stored blood, the laboratory,the transfusion itself, and the patient. This is an unsatis-factory section ; for some twenty hazards are listed againsta diagrammatic background, and the reading of them becomestedious. Indeed the information could be presented moreconveniently and cheaply in a printed leaflet. The largersection of the film is devoted to a brief review of giving-sets in use or planned for use in Great Britain, and a detaileddemonstration of the procedure of putting up a transfusionwith the " needle-piercing " set. Although at present in usein two regions, this set is not (nor is it likely to become)generally available, and it would have been preferable todemonstrate a standard giving-set. The film ends withsuggested sites for transfusion (including the arm, ankle,

1304 DIARY OF THE WEEK—APPOINTMENTS—BIRTHS, MARRIAGES, AND DEATHS

sternum, and, in babies, scalp veins) and a summary. Thecolour photography and the exposition are of a high standard,and some valuable sequences are included. The film may beborrowed free of charge from the I.C.I. Film Library,Imperial Chemical House, Millbank, London, S.W.I.

DOCTOR AND ADMINISTRATOR

IN 1924 Duke Alberto Denti di Pirajno began his workin the Italian North African colonies by opening a dispensaryat Buerat el Hsun, the small outpost in Tripolitania to whichhe had accompanied the exiled Duke of Aosta as physician.As his book shows, Denti proved himself an enterprisingdoctor, well able to deal with his varied and unorthodoxpatients. He was equally at home, and equally welcome, ina pasha’s palace, a bedouin tent, and a Tunisian harem, andhis case-histories would make any respectable card-indexcurl up in amazement. But, through his knowledge of thedesert peoples, he was increasingly and unwillingly drawninto the work of administering the colony, and we leave himin a sad chapter as governor of Tripoli surrendering the cityto General Montgomery.

University of LondonMr. Ralph Shackman, senior lecturer at the Postgraduate

Medical School of London, has been appointed to the universityreadership in surgery at that school.Mr. Shackman qualified from St. Bartholomew’s Hospital in 1933,

taking the M.B. Lond. the following year and his F.R.C.S. in 1936.Meanwhile he held house-appointments at the Metropolitan Hospital,London, and the Royal Infirmary, Sheffield, where he later becameR.s.o. He returned to London as first assistant in the department ofsurgery at the British Postgraduate Medical School. He also helda clinical assistantship at St. Peter’s Hospital for Stone. During thelate war he served as a surgical specialist with the R.A.F. medicalservice with the rank of wing-commander. Mr. Shackman is surgeonand urologist to Hammersmith Hospital and his publications includea paper on bladder cancer.

Royal College of Surgeons of EnglandAt a meeting of the council on Dec. 8, with Sir Harry Platt,

the president, in the chair, Mr. E. C. B. Butler and Mr. S. H.Wass were admitted to the court of examiners.The following lecturers were appointed for 1956 : Dr.

William Brockbank, Thomas Vicary lecturer ; Mr. S. A. S.Malkin, Robert Jones lecturer ; Mr. B. W. Fickling, CharlesTomes lecturer.

Prof. A. E. W. Miles was appointed hon. curator of theodontological museum.Diplomas of fellowship were granted to the following :Philip Henson, H. B. Wright, W. de M. Kellock, L. F. Levy,

R. H. B. Mills, P. P. Philip, R. R. Davis, R. R. L. Pryer, D. J.Cowan, Frank Ashton, Werner Stern, t D. F. N. Harrison, BernardLytton, J. J. B. Hobbs, M. P. Ward, B. 0. Smith, J. C. N. Wakeley,A. E. Wheatley, D. R. Sweetnam, J. A. Williams, S. A. Seligman,J. W. Bradbeer, J. G. Roberts, David Tanne, James Watt, MontagueModlin, Shakuntala Prem Chandra, Bernard Cashman, E. R.Price, Johannes Christiaan Kotzé, Himangsu Sekhar Lahiri, * E. M.L. Evans, B. B. Hall, P. B. Lacy, D. A. Larnder, Krishnadas Ray,D. C. D’Netto, J. L. Hayward, E. G. G. Jonas, * B. R. Jones,t G. E. Mann, F. 0. W. Wilkinson, J. J. Connors, t R. P. Freeman,P. H. Lord, R. D. Marshall, T. W. Milliken, J. E. Mitchell, P. W.Mitchell, R. B. J. Peiris, * Dhanwant Singh, E. A. Allcock, N. C.Azizkhan, S. L. Barron, F. G. Bell, W. L. Elrick, A. R. Epstein,J. B. Fethers, D. E. Gunatilleke, Neil Johnson, Daniel Lenaghan,Leslie Linder, I. F. McNeill, J. A. Muscat, David Roux, AryBlesovsky, Miles Fox, Joseph Hon Yin Fung, J. H. Heslop,Sibendra Mohon Lahiri, K. J. McCarthy, W. B. Maguire, 1. N. Nunn,B. M. O’Brien, R. C. Shepherd, F. I. Bishop, Ronald Dee, A. J.Duke, A. F. Masson, R. W. D. Middleton, J. M. Nield, K. B. Orr,B. S. Purssey, W. W. Richardson, P. R. Robertson, Thamotheram-pillai Kangesan Shakespeare, Hiran Sirikantha-Kirthi Singha,C. C. Wiggishoff, J. D. N. Yelland, Kaiyumali Abbasbhai Anjarwalla,R. L. B. Beare, R. G. Burwell, P. S. Reay-Young, R. G. Rushworth,F. C. Walker.

.

* In ophthalmology.t In otolaryngology.

Royal College of Physicians of Ireland .

On Dec. 2 the following were admitted licentiates inmedicine and midwifery :Lemboye Adenla Ayorinde, Dorothea L. Baxter, P. J. Bugler,

F. G. Conuolly, L. M. Cusack, Hareeduth Ghoorah, Adisa RahmanJinadu, R. E. Knight, Hana L. Malbsha, J. S. Mills, Marcus Molony,Terence MacMahort, W. V. O’Grady, Rosemary W. Orr, Pamela M.Fox-Russell, Oscar Singer, C. F Dundas.

Royal College of Surgeons in IrelandAt recent examinations the following were successful :D.C.1l.-N. J. Choksey, Marie T. Hyde, Mary P. Kent, A. J. M. X.

Kerrigan, M. L. Magotra, Elinor D. U. Powell.D.A.-P. Coleman, W. W. Deacon, N. Mark, G. A. Walsh,

M. W. Abrams, J. B. La Grange.

1. A Cure for Serpents. Alberto Denti di Pirajno. London: Deutsch.1955. Pp. 203. 16s.

University of DublinOn Dec. 8 at the School of Physic, Trinity College, the

following medical degrees were conferred :M.B., B.Ch., B.A.O.—Dolapo Ayinla Akisanya, B. C,. Anyakwo,

R. 1. Clingen, E. H. Crennell, D. W. D. Evans, Gordon Fletcher,N. H. Fletcher, J. T. Gaston, C. W. J. Hart, J. J. Hazlett, C. J.Higgins, J. L. Hyslop, D. L. Kelly, J. R. Marshall, J. B. W. Maxwell,Nissim Armando Nassim, Patricia E. O’Neill, C. G. C. Petit, M. B. C.Reidy, I. B. Sangmuah, Monica W. Taylor, J. A. C. Terry, LaurenceWarke.

British Association of OtolaryngologistsAt the annual general meeting held on Dec. 2, the following

were elected officers of the association : Mr. 1. Simson Hall,president ; Mr. V. E. Negus, immediate past president; Mr.C. Gill-Carey, vice-president; Mr. J. C. Hogg, hon. treasurer;Mr. Myles L. Formby, hon. secretary.Public RelationsThe Central Council for Health Education is to hold a

seminar on this subject for medical officers of health atSt. John House, London, S.W.7, from Feb. 28 to March 3.The programme will cover relations with the Press, contactwith local organisations, and the free flow of information onhealth matters to the public. A study will also be made of theuse of reports, handbooks, and exhibitions. Further particu.lars may be had from the council, Tavistock House, W.C.I.

Volume 3 of the Collected Papers published by the LaboratoryAnimals Bureau contains the proceedings of a symposium, held inLondon last May, on the Breeding of Laboratory Animals. Copies(7s. 6d.) may be had from the bureau, M.R.C. Laboratories, HollyHill, London, N.W.3.

Diary of the Week

DEC. 18 TO 24:Monday, 19th

’

HUNTERIAN SOCIETY8.30 P.M. (Talbot Restaurant, London Wall, E.C.2.) Dr, Evan

Bedford and Mr. T. Holmes Sellors : Scope of CardiacSurgery.

Tuesday, 20thINSTITUTE OF NEUROLOGY, National Hospital, Queen Square, W.C,l

5.30 P.M. Prof. David Slome : Physiology of Pain.INSTITUTE OF DERMATOLOGY, Lisle Street, W.C.2

5.30 P.M. Dr. H. T. H. Wilson : The Erythrodermias.ROYAL ARMY MEDICAL COLLEGE, Millbank, S.W.1

5 P.M. Dr. D. P. Cuthbertson : Food and the Future.

Wednesday, 21stROYAL SOCIETY OF MEDICINE, 1, Wimpole Street, W.1

8.15 P.M. General Practice. Dr. Leonard Roodyn and Dr. MaryBarber: Staphylococcal Infection.

INSTITUTE OF DERMATOLOGY5.30 P.M. Dr. Henry Haber : Reticulosis.

AppointmentsGIBSON, R. V., M.B.Camb., M.R.C.P.: asst. cardiologist. Hospitals

for Diseases of the Chest, London.KNIGHT, G. W., M.D. Leeds, D.P.H.: deputy county M.0. and deputy

principal school M.o., Bucks.MILLER, H. G., M.D. Durh., M.R.c.p., D.P.M. : physician in neurology,

Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle upon Tyne.SHARP, MARY K., M.R.C.S. : asst. county and school M.O., West

Riding of Yorks.THOMPSON, MALCOLM, M.D. Durh., M.R.C.P.: physician in physical

medicine, United Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals.TuRNEY, J. P., M.B. Lond., F.R.C.S. : whole-time senior casualty

officer, S.E. Northumberland H.M.C.TYNER, R. M. C., M.B. Dubl., D.P.H. : senior m.o. for mental health,

Derbyshire.VAUGHAN, B. F., M.B. Brist., D.M.R.D,: asst. radiologist, Royal

Perth Hospital, Perth, Western Australia.WALKER, R. B., M.R.C.S.,. D.P.H. : ",1.0.H. and asst. county 11.0.,

Kingsbridge and Salcombe u.D.s, and Kingsbridge andBlympton R.D.s.

The Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, London:SUTCLIFFE, JOHN, M.B. Canib., M.R.C.P., F.F.R., D.M.R.D.: part-time

deputy director of the department of diagnostic radiology.PAMPIGLIONE, GuisEPPE, M.D. Rome : part-time consultant,

physician in charge of the electro-encephalograpliicdepartment.

Births, Marriages, and Deaths

MARRIAGESVAUGHAN—AINSBURY.—On Dec. 1. at St. Mary’s Church, Cheadle,

Cheshire, Dr. Bernard Francis Vaughan to Barbary Ainsbury,