Error loading page.
Try refreshing the page. If that doesn't work, there may be a network issue, and you can use our self test page to see what's preventing the page from loading.
Learn more about possible network issues or contact support for more help.
Title details for Dangerous Medicine by Sydney A. Halpern - Available

Dangerous Medicine

by Sydney A. Halpern
Randye Kaye
Audiobook
Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
The untold history of America's mid-twentieth-century program of hepatitis infection research, its scientists' aspirations, and the damage the project caused human subjects

From 1942 through 1972, American biomedical researchers deliberately infected people with hepatitis. Government-sponsored researchers were attempting to discover the basic features of the disease and the viruses causing it, and to develop interventions that would quell recurring outbreaks. Drawing from extensive archival research and in-person interviews, Sydney Halpern traces the hepatitis program from its origins in World War II through its expansion during the initial Cold War years, to its demise in the early 1970s amid an outcry over research abuse.

The subjects in hepatitis studies were members of stigmatized groups—conscientious objectors, prison inmates, the mentally ill, and developmentally disabled adults and children. The book reveals how researchers invoked military and scientific imperatives and the rhetoric of a common good to win support for the experiments and access to recruits. Halpern examines the participants' long-term health consequences and raises troubling questions about hazardous human experiments aimed at controlling today's epidemic diseases.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English
OverDrive provides additional information that is consistent with the intended mission of the NIH Library. The U.S. Government and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) cannot attest to the accuracy of any non-federal website. Linking to a non-NIH site does not constitute an endorsement by NIH or any of its employees of the sponsors or the information and products presented on the site nor is it a guarantee of privacy. The views and opinions of authors expressed on this website do not necessarily state or reflect those of the U.S. Government and the NIH, and they may not be used for advertising or product endorsement purposes.