Analysis of the incidence of pelvic trauma in fatal automobile accidents

Pelvic fractures are frequent complications of motor vehicle accidents, and motor vehicle accidents are the most common cause of pelvic fracture. Although pelvic fractures are associated with considerable morbidity and mortality, there has traditionally been no attempt to grade or classify pelvic fractures during postmortem examination. The authors performed a retrospective study of cases examined at the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner Office from 1994 to 1996, reviewing investigative reports and autopsy findings. Radiographs were examined for the presence and Tile type of pelvic fracture. Pelvic fractures were identified in 88 of 392 cases (23%). In most (89%), the pelvic fracture was readily classified according to Tile type on the basis of radiographs and the inferred mechanism of injury. This study indicates that current estimates of the mortality of pelvic fractures are low because of the exclusion of individuals who do not survive to hospitalization. Furthermore, pelvic fractures in rapidly fatal motor vehicle accidents tend to be more severe than fractures in individuals who have a significant interval of survival. The presence and classification of pelvic fractures may be readily determined by radiographs in most cases. The Tile classification scheme is easy to apply and has important implications in the comparison of study groups.     

Bioterrorism meets privacy: an analysis of the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act and the HIPAA privacy rule

Ms. Bruce's paper analyzes the interplay between the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act and the HIPAA Privacy Rule. The article begins by examining specific relevant provisions of the Act and Rule. Next, it traces the history of public health law through the court system and then uses this foundation to discuss how the Model State Emergency Health Powers Act and the HIPAA Privacy Rule could co-exist, protecting Americans in the case of a bioterror attack, while being appropriately sensitive to the confidentiality of private health information.     

“We need more clips about Putin,and lots of them:” Russia’s state-commissioned online visual culture

In this article, we examine how the Putin government is attempting to respond and adapt to the YouTube phenomenon and the vibrant oppositional online visual culture on Runet. We show how these processes are giving rise to new forms of state propaganda, shaped and driven above all by the quest for high-ranking search-engine results and the concomitant desire to appeal to the perceived new sensibilities of the Internet generation through the commissioning and production of “viral videos.” We focus in particular on the videos created by Iurii Degtiarev, a pioneer in the development of this genre, whose works we explore in light of the “Kremlingate” email leaks, which offer inside information on the strategies and aims being pursued on the online visual front of the campaign to manage the Russian mediascape, and Degtiarev’s own reflections on this subject. Examining the output of young creatives patronized by the Kremlin offers a “bottom-up” view to supplement studies of the Russian ideological and media landscape as shaped by “political technologists” such as Vladislav Surkov and Gleb Pavlovskii.