Minerva

The brain abnormalities that are found on magnetic resonance imaging in patients with schizophrenia are reviewed in the British Journal of Psychiatry (1998;172:710-20). A 3% reduction in the whole brain volume is accounted for mainly by reductions in the size of the temporal lobes and the amygdala/hippocampal complex. The lateral ventricles are enlarged. Findings such as these raise more questions than they answer, and Minerva will want to know what happens next.

On a typical day in Britain 6000 people sprain their ankles. A review in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (1998;80B:11-2) says that most recover fully after non-operative management and early rehabilitation. Even if the clinician overlooks a macroscopic tear of the anterior talofibular ligament, delayed repair may be expected to give good results. A very few patients injure the subtalar ligament complex, which may lead to chronic instability of the joint, but even this condition may be treated successfully.

Minerva enjoyed reading a short article in The Remedy (1997;6:132) outlining the evidence that honey may have acquired its reputation as a treatment for dyspepsia because of its antibacterial action against Helicobacter pylori. That may be the reason, the author suggests, that in Edward Lear's poem the owl and the pussy cat took a supply …