argument51【0710G Victors互助小组】第8次作业-superwangxi

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题目：ARGUMENT 51 - The following appeared in a medical newsletter.
"Doctors have long suspected that secondary infections may keep some patients from healing quickly after severe muscle strain. This hypothesis has now been proved by preliminary results of a study of two groups of patients. The first group of patients, all being treated for muscle injuries by Dr. Newland, a doctor who specializes in sports medicine, took antibiotics regularly throughout their treatment. Their recuperation time was, on average, 40 percent quicker than typically expected. Patients in the second group, all being treated by Dr. Alton, a general physician, were given sugar pills, although the patients believed they were taking antibiotics. Their average recuperation time was not significantly reduced. Therefore, all patients who are diagnosed with muscle strain would be well advised to take antibiotics as part of their treatment."
字数：449          用时：0:59:18          日期：2007-6-13
In this argument, the author proposes that all patients who are diagnosed with muscle strain would be well advised to take antibiotics as part of their treatment. In order to support the recommendation, the author cites a study which is a comparison between two groups of patients-one group has been treated with antibiotics, and another one hasn’t. While the argument seems reasonable, the author commits several fallacies on further analysis. I will discuss it in turns.

First, this study cited by the author fails to substantiate that the antibiotics as part of treatment can help patients recuperate much quickly. The comparison between these two groups of patients is not under the same conditions. First, the doctor of the first group who cost few time to recuperate was specialization in sports medicine, who was better understand about the muscle strain than a general physician who is the anther group's doctor. Second, perhaps, the sugar pills taken by second group do little harm to the patients' recuperation. Finally, the representative of the study is doubtful. The number of these people who took part in this study is too vague to be informative. If the author wants to prove the hypothesis mentioned in this argument, he must take this study on the same conditions such as same level of doctor, same medical equipments and same therapeutic environment.

Second, this argument rests on the fallacious assumption that the patients who is bound to suffer from the secondary infection after severe muscle strain. There is no evidence provided by author to illustrate the relationship between muscle strain and secondary infection. In common sense, the second infection always invades these patients who do not take good care about themselves, or they meet bacteria under some certain environment. If most patients will not suffer from the second infections, why do the doctors take antibiotics as part of their treatment? It is not necessary.

Finally, the author makes a hasty generalization about take antibiotics as part of their treatment to all their patients. Because a part of patients will suffer from allergy after they take the antibiotics. Besides, abuse of antibiotics will cause bigger severe problem for each individual even our whole society.

To sum up, to better evaluate this recommendation, the author must provide a study about the fact that whether the patients will necessarily suffer from the secondary infection after muscle strain. Furthermore, the author need take another study about the antibiotics' effects on patients by two groups of patients under the same conditions except taking antibiotics, and should take into account about the consequence after using antibiotics. Before that, the doctors should not follow the author’s recommendation to use the antibiotics for the patients.  

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