Natl Med J India
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We report a 46-year-old woman with disseminated Mycobacterium abscessus infection who was on maintenance haemodialysis for chronic glomerulonephritis. Prolonged blood cultures yielded growth of a rapid-growing nontubercular Mycobacterium. Diagnosis to a species level guided empirical therapy while we awaited antimicrobial susceptibility results. The patient was treated successfully with a multidrug regimen.
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Biography Historical Article
Suicides of elite Japanese writers: The case of Ryunosuke Akutagawa.
Background. To mark the 130th birth anniversary of Japanese writer Ryunosuke Akutagawa (1892-1927), I revisit his suicide (as recorded by his hand) in comparison to that of his junior contemporaries, who also chose a similar mode of death. Data sources. ⋯ Conclusion. Before his suicide, doctors offered Akutagawa various diagnoses: 'insomnia, gastric hyperacidity, gastric atony, dry pleurisy, neurasthenia, chronic conjunctivitis, brain fatigue'. Though it is uncertain, what percentage of hereditary factor(s) played a role, why the practitioners of the medical profession in 1920s Japan failed to save the life of this creative individual still remains a question.