Medical webwatch.

TRAUMA.ORG http://www.trauma.org/resus/moulage/moulage.html is an excellent and well-structured presentation of trauma moulage scenarios. The serious pedantic experience is lightened by humorous let-downs following incorrect responses to the questions posited at every stage--there are no passengers on this journey! But the exhilaration of correctly handling an extremely ill patient is almost a reward in itself. Onsite revision notes are to be found under "Resources" and then "Information Repository" to assist progression through the 6 progressive scenarios. The various trauma categories listed have their own interactive simulations. The website says that it "exists to promote and disseminate the knowledge and practice of injury prevention and trauma care throughout the world ... Bringing together the knowledge and experience of doctors, nurses, paramedics, researchers and all groups directly and indirectly related to trauma management, it has established an online, global, trauma community that promotes and furthers the care of the injured patient." On the left menu is to be found an "Image Bank" with a large gallery of images of traumatic injuries.

Red Atlas http://www.redatlas.org/main.htm describes itself as being "... a free, electronic atlas of eye disorders designed to help Ophthalmologists and Optometrists-in-training learn to identify eye diseases through pattern recognition." The top menu tabs open the various ophthalmic categories with the contributors listed on the opening pages. An image list on the left will open thumbnail galleries pertinent to the specific pathology. A straightforward diagnostic quiz is offered with a huge list of cases. Finally, each illustrated page offers a convenient PubMed search link.

Relief of Pain and Suffering http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/biomed/his/painexhibit/index.html The goal of the John C. Liebeskind History of Pain collection at the Louise M. Darling, Biomedical Library, UCLA is "... to promote and ensure the study of the history of pain research and pain therapy in the post-World War II era, in particular the origins, growth, and development of the international, interdisciplinary pain field." The pages are brimming with fascinating illustrations and original text that expound the application of human ingenuity to a direct understanding of the most ubiquitous of human conditions.

Catalog of Clinical Images http://medicine.ucsd.edu/clinicalimg/browse.html is from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. The website is fronted by 8 pictorial gateways to the various anatomical regions. This is one of many such sites, but is worth considering for your bookmarks list.

A Visual Guide to Physical Examination http://sohstrcam.csudh.edu/netmedia/content/AVisualGuidetoPhysicalExamination. aspx from the California State University, Dominguez Hills, College of Health offers a series of multimedia tutorials describing physical examination techniques. There are 13 sections (by anatomical region) with a number of subsections for each category.

Neurones http://icarus.med.utoronto.ca/neurons/index.swf Have fun browsing through this beautifully structured tutorial about the structure and function of neurones. Interaction with the large animated cartoons on the right of the page is keyword driven from the text to the left of the page. In eight, easily navigable chapters, this well-structured tutorial is an excellent introduction to the subject. The pages are authored by Professor Patricia Stewart, Professor Linda Wilson-Pauwells, and Teddy Cameron.

Update on Alcohol and Health Presentations http://www.bu.edu/act/alcoholandhealth/update.html is a "grand-rounds-like" PowerPoint presentation from Boston University that mirrors the content of their newsletters. It can be downloaded for free and used as a teaching tool.

Six Second ECG http://www.skillstat.com/Flash/ECG_Sim_2004.html is described by the producers SkillStat as offering a six second ECG workbook proven to be a practical how-to resource for rapidly interpreting ECGs. It uses a simple four-step method, reading single lead and 12-lead ECGs from a physiological perspective to make sense of ECGs in six seconds or less.

DPDx Case Studies http://www.dpd.cdc.gov/DPDx/HTML/Cases.htm is from the Centers for Disease Control and offers access to an archive of monthly case studies of parasitic diseases. The archives start in December 1998 and continue through to current cases. The histories and investigations are accompanied by appropriate images, with the diagnosis withheld under an "answer" button. The "Parasites and Health" tab on the top menu bar opens a fascinating A to Z index of parasite life cycles. There is also a comprehensive "Diagnostic Procedures" tab that documents the collection, shipping and examination of specimens, along with safety considerations. A veritable biological arms race!

E-mail: [e-mail] with your favorite websites.