LEARNING RESOURCES
Editing Prose Quiz
by Laura King, MA, ELS
Directions: If you have been taking these quizzes from their inception, you’ll have
noticed that they usually focus on a single section of the AMA Manual of Style. This quiz
combines several sections of the stylebook for a more “real-world” editing experience.
Edit the following paragraph (adapted from Arch Dermatol. 2002;138[2]:232-242) for
abbreviations, grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and usage. Refer to chapters 7, 8,
10, 11, and 14 of the AMA Manual of Style for guidelines on how to handle such issues.
Herbal Therapy in Dermatology
Herbal therapy is becoming increasingly popular among patients and physicians. Many
herbal preparations are marketed to the public for various skin conditions. Herbal
therapies have been used sucessfully in treating dermatologic disorders for thousand’s
of years in Europe and Asia. In Germany, a Regulatory Commission oversees herbal
preparations and recommended uses. In Asia, herbal treatments that have been used
for centuries are now being studied scientifically. In the US, the FDA does not regulate
herbal products, as they are considered dietary supplements, therefore, there is no
standardization of active ingredients, purity or concentration. There are also no
Copyright © American Medical Association, 2011. For educational use only.
www.amamanualofstyle.com
LEARNING RESOURCES
regulations governing which herbs can be marketed for various ailments which has
made learning about and using these treatments challenging. We reviewed the scientific
evidence of clinical efficacy of the herbal medications and the more common herbs
useful in the treatment of dermatologic disorders. Knowledge about the safety of the
herbs have been shown to better enable the physician to know which herbal therapies
they may want to use in practice. As seen in the dermatologic setting, we also studied
common drug interactions and side effects of herbal medicines.
Copyright © American Medical Association, 2011. For educational use only.
www.amamanualofstyle.com