Punitive limb amputation.

Background: Limb amputation has been carried out through the ages as a punitive method in various parts of the world. This article highlights the historical and societal background associated with the use of punitive limb amputation.

Methods: We performed an extensive electronic search of the pertinent literature augmented with a hand-search of additional sources.

Fatal hypernatraemia after laparoscopic treatment of hydatid liver cyst: medical and legal concerns of a rare complication.

A case of fatal hypernatraemia after laparoscopic treatment of hydatid livers cysts is presented in order to highlight the risks associated with the implementation of newer techniques and the use of hypertonic saline as a scolecocidal agent in hydatid disease. Additionally this case raises some concerns on the importance of obtaining a patient's informed consent.

Reflections of the Hippocratic Oath in modern medicine.

Hippocratic Oath indicates a prevailing ethos rather than a professional approach, and it is still regarded as the cornerstone and foundation of the medical profession. Medicine in Ancient Greece was strongly influenced by the values of classical philosophy as introduced by its main representatives: Plato and Aristotle. Hippocrates himself has been recognized not only as a pioneering physician, but also as an outstanding philosopher.

Do men have rights in abortion? The Greek view.

Aim: We have examined from a legal perspective the father's role in the decision to abort a pregnancy in western society. Furthermore, we have taken a closer look into the inadequacies the Greek legal framework on this issue, from a legal and social point of view.

Methods: Literature in the Greek and English language.

The impact of the Daubert case on modern litigation.

Numerous product liability and toxic tort verdicts were arguably unjustly made on the basis of "junk science" threatening not only justice but the workings of the American economy. This problem was expected to be solved with the application of Daubert criteria, which require the courts to determine whether an expert's testimony reflects scientific knowledge, whether his/her findings are derived by the scientific method, and whether the work product is based on good science. Moreover, the Daubert criteria were expected to have an extraordinary impact on criminal litigation because there is rarely a criminal trial that does not rely on some form of expert testimony.

Lethal self administration of propofol (Diprivan). A case report and review of the literature.

The death of a female anaesthesiologist is reported. Although the situation at the scene indicated propofol overdose-related death, self-administration of such high doses of propofol was unlikely, given the pharmacological properties of this drug. The analysis of the situation at the scene and the toxicological analysis in which the blood and liver propofol concentrations were 2.

Screening mammography, public perceptions, and medical liability.

Purpose: To outline the most common sources of raising malpractice claims in screening mammography and to discuss the related medical litigation issues in the light of the evidence-based medicine.

Methods And Material: Electronic and manual search of the relevant literature.

Results: The most common cause of malpractice is the delayed diagnosis of breast cancer.

Lessons learnt from the autopsies of 445 cases of sudden cardiac death in adults.

Aim: To determine the cause of sudden cardiac death in adults who underwent autopsy.

Methods: Four hundred and forty-five sudden cardiac deaths occurred within 1 h of the symptoms onset, and all other cardiac and noncardiac causes having been excluded from autopsy and toxicology screening, were retrospectively identified from among 902 autopsies performed in a 2-year period on the island of Crete. The presence of acute coronary thrombi and myocardial infarction was documented macroscopically and by light microscopy and histology.

Moral arguments on the use of ovarian tissue from aborted foetuses in infertility treatment.

The possibility of using eggs from an aborted foetus in IVF treatment has recently arisen after researchers presented work in which they managed to keep alive in the laboratory ovarian tissue taken from second and third trimester aborted foetuses for several weeks. Several ethical concerns and arguments have been raised. Some of them are general anti-abortion arguments while others relate to the use of eggs or ovarian tissue of aborted female foetuses in infertility treatment.

Physicians' liability in obstetric and gynecology practice.

Purpose: Litigation in obstetric and gynecologic practice has arisen as an important issue. This article aims to highlight issues related to malpractice in obstetrics and gynecology in order to point out several important aspects of medical practice, which may offer adequate professional protection.

Methods And Material: Search of the current relevant literature.

The abuse of children in Greece.

Children are being abused in Greece at an alarming rate. This article aims to clarify the magnitude of the child abuse issue in Greece and to highlight medical and legal aspects that may play a contributory role in the existing defects in the revelation, prevention, and punishment of this type of crime.

Confidentiality governing surgical research practice.

Healthy subjects or patients volunteering to participate in trials expect that their privacy and autonomy will be protected. The aim of this article is to highlight issues related to confidentiality governing surgical research practice. A search of the current relevant literature was undertaken.

Adolescence and abortion in Greece: women's profile and perceptions.

Purpose: To investigate the individual and social profile of the adolescents seeking abortion in Greece.

Procedures: Questionnaires were distributed from the obstetricians practicing in the capital and two major cities in Greece to adolescent pregnant women who were seeking for abortion and collected anonymously.

Main Findings: From 150 consecutive pregnant adolescents, 38 refused to participate and from 112 who accepted to participate only 74 (66%) replied.

Bioethics as a scientific enterprise.

The authors of this article attempt to look at the manner in which the field of bioethics has emerged to represent an entirely new science. The article does this by first looking at various developments in the field of medicine and science. Specifically, the authors point to the developments in pharmacology, biology, and in genetics, as the stimuli for the field of bioethics.

Medical litigation in cosmetic plastic surgery.

Aim: This article aims to highlight issues related to malpractice in plastic surgery and to point out the importance of good understanding of the law and the value of a patient's written informed consent as measures of professional protection.

Methods And Material: Search of relevant literature from PubMed.

Results: The demand for cosmetic plastic surgery increases despite the increasing cost, in contrast to other traditional goods for which demand typically declines as price increases.

Bioethics and the determination of personhood.

In today's technological world, humanity continuously surpasses the limits set by previous achievements. Although evidence of such progress exists in several fields of study, one clearly sees this in the medical and biotechnological fields. Despite the countless opportunities for longer, more productive lives, medicine and science have regressed in their conception of the human person.

Abortion under Greek law: parental consent for a minor's abortion.

As medical abortion becomes more widely used and available in Greece, several issues are emerging and require clarification. Health care providers often face a dilemma when dealing with an adolescent requesting abortion. Parents' consent is mandatory before delivering any kind of treatment to minors.

Physicians' liability in ophthalmology practice.

Purpose: The aims of this paper are to point out the importance of coherence in established guidelines in daily practice, highlight the value of signed patient informed consent forms and stress the value of a good understanding of the law, while focusing on issues related to malpractice in ophthalmology.

Methods: Search of the current relevant literature.

Results: The most common causes of medical litigation in ophthalmology are related to LASIK surgery, cataract surgery, glaucoma care, radial keratotomy for myopia reduction and failure to diagnose binocular vision anomalies in children and adults in a timely fashion.