Volume 2, Issue 4 reflects on what American medicine has built, what it has lost and what must be restored—while presenting new research across medical ethics, critical care, informed consent and chronic disease
The Independent Medical Alliance (IMA) today announced the publication of Volume 2, Issue 4 of the Journal of Independent Medicine, continuing to advance rigorous, conflict-free, double-blind peer-reviewed science.
As the United States commemorates its 250th anniversary, the new issue features timely and notable medical research and observations, including:
- The Quiet Expansion of Death: Canada’s MAID Program and the Moral Fatigue of Modern Medicine
- Two Hundred Fifty Years of American Medicine: What We Built, What We Lost, and What Must Be Restored
- Vaccine Mandates and Evidence-Based Medicine: A Narrative Review
- Why Statistical Power Matters When Measuring Vaccine Safety
And much more from America’s leading independent doctors, researchers, and healthcare professionals.
“Over the past 250 years, American medicine has produced extraordinary discoveries and saved countless lives, but progress cannot be measured by innovation alone,” said Joseph Varon, MD, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Independent Medicine and president and chief medical officer of IMA. “It must also be measured by whether physicians are free to exercise clinical judgment, patients are fully informed and science can be examined without financial or political pressure. The Journal of Independent Medicine is helping restore those roots by providing a rigorous forum where evidence leads, honest debate is welcomed and the doctor-patient relationship remains at the center of care. This eighth issue demonstrates that independent science is not a retreat from progress—it is how medicine moves forward with integrity for the next generation.”
The new edition includes ‘Two Hundred Fifty Years of American Medicine: What We Built, What We Lost, and What Must Be Restored,’ a historical reflection by IMA Senior Director of Communications Lynne Kristensen and Dr. Varon examining American medicine’s scientific achievements alongside changes in clinical autonomy, informed consent and the physician-patient relationship.
The article complements IMA’s broader Medicine at 250 Years project, which reflects on the history of medicine while working to restore honest, independent and patient-centered care for the next generation. Learn more.
Featured Articles in Volume 2, Issue 4
A Life Well Lived, A Legacy Worth Carrying Forward
Lynne Kristensen
Honors attorney Warner Mendenhall’s commitment to constitutional rights, informed consent and medical freedom while calling on physicians, patients and advocates to carry his work forward.
The Quiet Expansion of Death: Canada’s MAID Program and the Moral Fatigue of Modern Medicine
Joseph Varon, MD
Examines the rapid expansion of Canada’s Medical Assistance in Dying program and the ethical responsibilities of physicians navigating autonomy, compassion, human dignity and the duty to preserve life.
From Fleming’s Petri Dish to a Global Cancer Registry: Turning Signals into Evidence
Manuel González
Proposes a global registry for collecting real-world outcomes involving repurposed cancer therapies, with the goal of transforming promising clinical observations into evidence that can guide research and care.
Why Statistical Power Matters When Measuring Vaccine Safety
Donald S. Adema, DO; Paul Thomas, MD; David Brownstein, MD
Explores how statistical power and study design affect the detection of rare adverse events and proposes a centralized database to strengthen transparency and future vaccine-safety analysis.
Vaccine Mandates and Evidence-Based Medicine: A Narrative Review
Mitchell B. Liester, MD
Considers vaccine mandates through the foundational principles of evidence-based medicine, including the integration of research evidence, clinical expertise, patient values and informed consent.
Association Between Mitral Valve Disease and Myocarditis in COVID-19 Hospitalizations: A National Inpatient Sample Analysis
Betzy Santiago Donato, MD; Mohamed Ziad-M. Said, MD; Jose Iglesias, MD; Joseph Varon, MD
Uses national inpatient data to investigate whether pre-existing mitral valve disease influences myocarditis risk among patients hospitalized with COVID-19.
Methotrexate-Induced Stroke-Like Syndrome in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Case Series from a Resource-Limited Center in Mexico
Edgar Selem, MD; Alejandro Torres, MD; Joseph Varon, MD; Pablo González Montalvo, MD
Describes three pediatric cases of transient stroke-like symptoms following methotrexate treatment and emphasizes early recognition, appropriate imaging and timely management.
MCAS, POTS, Dysautonomia, and “Genetic Disorders” — Long COVID Observations
Gwen Foster, ND, DNM
Discusses clinical observations involving POTS, dysautonomia, mast cell activation syndrome and related conditions during the post-COVID era, identifying patterns and questions for further investigation.
Two Hundred Fifty Years of American Medicine: What We Built, What We Lost, and What Must Be Restored
Lynne Kristensen; Joseph Varon, MD
Reflects on 250 years of American medical achievement while calling for renewed attention to trust, clinical judgment, informed consent and compassionate, patient-centered care.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease Is Not Genetically Determined, Not Classically Autoimmune, and Not Idiopathic: A Critical Reframing of Pathogenesis
Josh Dech, CHN; Yusuf J.P. Saleeby, MD
Challenges conventional explanations of inflammatory bowel disease and examines gene-environment interactions, immune function and potentially modifiable contributors to disease development.
Volume 2, No. 4 and all previous issues of the Journal of Independent Medicine are available free of charge at www.JIndepMed.org.
