1038 SYPHILIC EXPERIMENTS ON GUATEMALAN MEN - ANOTHER SKELETON IN THE CLOSET OF US PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE
2012; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; Volume: 187; Issue: 4S Linguagem: Inglês
10.1016/j.juro.2012.02.1143
ISSN1527-3792
Autores Tópico(s)Syphilis Diagnosis and Treatment
ResumoYou have accessJournal of UrologyMale Voiding Dysfunction (BPH & Incontinence) & Infection1 Apr 20121038 SYPHILIC EXPERIMENTS ON GUATEMALAN MEN - ANOTHER SKELETON IN THE CLOSET OF US PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE Sakti Das Sakti DasSakti Das Lafayette, CA More articles by this author View All Author Informationhttps://doi.org/10.1016/j.juro.2012.02.1143AboutPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES Syphilitic experiments conducted on the prisoners, mental patients and children of Guatemala by US Public Health Service (PHS), constitute a sinister chapter in the history of medicine manifesting gross violation of code of ethics and blatant neglect of autonomy. It is important for mankind to be aware of such reprehensible practice in the name of research, so that similar heinous acts may not be repeated. METHODS Information were gleaned from the scholarly paper by Susan M Reverby published in the Journal of Policy History with multiple cross references. Readings from New York Times and online papers provided further details. RESULTS United States PHS conducted syphilitic experiments in Guatemala from 1946 to 1948. The study was led by John C. Cutler who later had an important role in the notorious Tuskegee study in Alabama. Cutler's goals were to study - 1) human response to fresh infectious materials in enhancing body response to disease and 2) find ways to prevent disease immediately after exposure. His subjects were prisoners, children in orphanage, mental patients and soldiers. American tax dollars paid infected prostitutes to sleep with prisoners to transmit disease. In other experiments, syphilis inoculum was poured on to scrapes made on soldiers' penis, face or arms and in some instances injected by spinal tap. There were no mention of informed consents. Subjects contacting syphilis were given penicillin but there were no follow up whether they were cured. Cutler's mission was terminated because of medical 'gossip' about its propriety and because of use of so much penicillin that was in short supply. Details of the study was uncovered by historian Susan Reverby who found Cutler's papers in the University of Pittsburgh archives. Her scholarly report was published this year in the Journal of Policy History. On October 2010, the US government apologized with a statement from Hillary Clinton and Kathleen Sebelius: ‘ …. we are outraged that such reprehensible research could have occurred under the guise of public health. We deeply regret that it happened, and we apologize to all individuals who were affected by such abhorrent research practices…. ‘ Human rights activists called for subjects' families to be compensated. President Obama apologized to President Alvaro Colom, who called these experiments 'a crime against humanity'. CONCLUSIONS Our moral judgement and human decency behooves upon us to remain vigilant in upholding the code of medical ethics so that the disadvantaged and disenfranchised human beings are not deprived of their autonomy even in the interest of science. © 2012 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails Volume 187Issue 4SApril 2012Page: e421 Advertisement Copyright & Permissions© 2012 by American Urological Association Education and Research, Inc.MetricsAuthor Information Sakti Das Lafayette, CA More articles by this author Expand All Advertisement Advertisement PDF downloadLoading ...
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