Welcome to Wikipedia from Wikiproject Medicine (also known as WPMED).
We're a group of editors who strive to improve the quality of content about health here on Wikipedia, as part of the larger mission of Wikipedia to provide the public with articles that present accepted knowledge, created and maintained by a community of editors.
One of our members has noticed that you are interested in editing medical articles; it's great to have a new interested editor on board!
First, some basics about editing Wikipedia, which is a strange place behind the scenes; you may find some of the ways we operate to be surprising. Please take your time and understand how this place works. Here are some useful links, which have information to help editors get the most out of Wikipedia:
- Everything starts with the mission - the mission of Wikipedia is to provide the public with articles that summarize accepted knowledge, working in a community of editors. (see WP:NOT)
- We find "accepted knowledge" for biomedical information in sources defined by WP:MEDRS -- we generally use literature reviews published in good journals or statements by major medical or scientific bodies and we generally avoid using research papers, editorials, and popular media as sources for such content. We read MEDRS sources and summarize them, giving the most space and emphasis (what we call WP:WEIGHT) to the most prevalent views found in MEDRS sources.
- Please see WPMED's "how to" guide for editing content about health
- More generally please see The five pillars of Wikipedia and please be aware of the "policies and guidelines" that govern what we do here; these have been generated by the community itself over the last fifteen years, and you will need to learn them (which is not too hard, it just takes some time). Documents about Wikipedia - the "back office" - reside in "Wikipedia space" where document titles are preceded by "Wikipedia:" (often abbreviated "WP:"). WP space is separate from "article space" (also called "mainspace") - the document at WP:CONSENSUS is different from, and serves as a different purpose than, the document at Consensus.
Every article and page in Wikipedia has an associated talk page, and these pages are essential because we editors use them to collaborate and work out disagreements. (This is your Talk page, associated with your user page.) When you use a Talk page, you should sign your name by typing four tildes (~~~~) at the end of your comment; the Wikipedia software will automatically convert that into links to your Userpage and this page and will add a datestamp. This is how we know who said what. We also "thread" comments in a way that you will learn with time. Please see the Talk Page Guidelines to learn how to use talk pages.
- Thanks for coming aboard! We always appreciate a new editor. Feel free to leave us a message at any time on our talk page. If you are interested in joining the project yourself, there is a participant list where you can sign up. You can also just add our talk page to your watchlist and join in discussions that interest you. Please leave a message on the WPMED talk page if you have any problems, suggestions, would like review of an article, need suggestions for articles to edit, or would like some collaboration when editing!
- The Wikipedia community includes a wide variety of editors with different interests, skills, and knowledge. We all manage to get along through a lot of discussion that happens under the scenes and through the bold, edit, discuss editing cycle. If you encounter any problems, you can discuss it on an article's talk page or post a message on the WPMED talk page.
Feel free to drop a note below if you have any questions or problems. I wish you all the best here in Wikipedia! Jytdog (talk) 06:11, 31 March 2017 (UTC)
References
editRemember that when adding content about health, please only use high-quality reliable sources as references. We typically use review articles, major textbooks and position statements of national or international organizations (There are several kinds of sources that discuss health: here is how the community classifies them and uses them). WP:MEDHOW walks you through editing step by step. A list of resources to help edit health content can be found here. The edit box has a built-in citation tool to easily format references based on the PMID or ISBN. We also provide style advice about the structure and content of medicine-related encyclopedia articles. The welcome page is another good place to learn about editing the encyclopedia. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me a note. Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 12:51, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
- Please join the discussion Talk:Nasal_irrigation#Chitosan Best Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 15:55, 25 March 2017 (UTC)
These are all primary sources
edit- After surgery
The use of saline nasal irrigation is a cornerstone treatment recommended after sinus surgery.[1] The intricate anatomy of the sinus cavities makes them prone to scarring and synechiae. The already narrowed passages may become inflamed after surgery. If raw mucosal surfaces come in contact with each other after surgery, the post-surgery inflammatory process may lead to scarring and blockage actually leading to a worsening problem after the surgery.[2][3] The use of saline nasal irrigation promotes healing by removing crusted material composed of blood and mucous. This removal facilitates healing. Large volume nasal saline irrigation is a preferred method with use of a neti pot, squeeze bottle, or syringe versus low volume nasal saline sprays and mists."
Please use secondary sources or major textbooks.
References
- ^ Giotakis, A. I.; Karow, E. M.; Scheithauer, M. O.; Weber, R.; Riechelmann, H. (2016-12-01). "Saline irrigations following sinus surgery - a controlled, single blinded, randomized trial". Rhinology. 54 (4): 302–310. doi:10.4193/Rhin16.026. ISSN 0300-0729. PMID 27556896.
- ^ Lee, Jae Yong; Lee, Seung Won (2007-08-01). "Preventing lateral synechia formation after endoscopic sinus surgery with a silastic sheet". Archives of Otolaryngology--Head & Neck Surgery. 133 (8): 776–779. doi:10.1001/archotol.133.8.776. ISSN 0886-4470. PMID 17709615.
- ^ Anand, Vijay K.; Tabaee, Abtin; Kacker, Ashutosh; Newman, Jason G.; Huang, Clark (2004-09-01). "The role of mitomycin C in preventing synechia and stenosis after endoscopic sinus surgery". American Journal of Rhinology. 18 (5): 311–314. ISSN 1050-6586. PMID 15586803.
-- Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 12:34, 26 March 2017 (UTC)
You need to read this and comply. Thanks. Doc James (talk · contribs · email) 01:19, 31 March 2017 (UTC)
Conflict of interest in Wikipedia
editHi Engsurg. I work on conflict of interest issues here in Wikipedia, along with regular editing. Your edits to date have been focused on chitosan nasal rinses. Which is just kind of weird. I'm giving you notice of our Conflict of Interest guideline and Terms of Use, and will have some comments and requests for you below.
Hello, Entsurg. We welcome your contributions, but if you have an external relationship with the people, places, or things you have written about on Wikipedia, you may have a conflict of interest (COI). Editors with a COI may be unduly influenced by their connection to the topic, and it is important when editing Wikipedia articles that such connections be completely transparent. See the conflict of interest guideline and FAQ for organizations for more information. In particular, we ask that you please:
- avoid editing or creating articles related to you and your family, friends, school, company, club, or organization, as well as any competing companies' projects or products;
- instead, you are encouraged to propose changes on the Talk pages of affected article(s) (see the {{request edit}} template);
- when discussing affected articles, disclose your COI (see WP:DISCLOSE);
- avoid linking to the Wikipedia article or to the website of your organization in other articles (see WP:SPAM);
- exercise great caution so that you do not violate Wikipedia's content policies.
In addition, you must disclose your employer, client, and affiliation with respect to any contribution for which you receive, or expect to receive, compensation (see WP:PAID).
Please take a few moments to read and review Wikipedia's policies regarding conflicts of interest, especially those pertaining to neutral point of view, sourcing and autobiographies. Thank you.
Comments and requests
editWikipedia is a widely-used reference work and managing conflict of interest is essential for ensuring the integrity of Wikipedia and retaining the public's trust in it. As in academia, COI is managed here in two steps - disclosure and a form of peer review. Please note that there is no bar to being part of the Wikipedia community if you want to be involved in articles where you have a conflict of interest; there are just some things we ask you to do (and if you are paid, some things you need to do).
Disclosure is the most important, and first, step. While I am not asking you to disclose your identity (anonymity is strictly protecting by our WP:OUTING policy) would you please disclose if you have some financial interest in chitosan nasal rinses? You can answer how ever you wish (giving personally identifying information or not), but if there is a connection, please disclose it. After you respond (and you can just reply below), perhaps we can talk a bit about editing Wikipedia, to give you some more orientation to how this place works. Please reply here, just below, to keep the discussion in one place. Thanks! Jytdog (talk) 06:08, 31 March 2017 (UTC)