The Urban High-Risk Patient

Abstract

Most family practitioners would intuitively say that urban dwellers are subject to specific, urban health risks, but whether this is actually the case is a question that bears close scrutiny. Most appraisals of how healthy or unhealthy urban life is reflect the antiurban bias of American culture. Medical practitioners who have chosen to live and work in urban areas are not immune to this bias even while they may perceive many advantages to urban living. Physicians committed to the care of an urban population, therefore, must carefully consider whether their risk assessments reflect mere prejudice or actual health conditions. When physicians examine the medical literature concerning these conditions, they find contradictions, studies of very limited scope or applicability, and even obvious underlying biases. Undoubtedly, an urban/nonurban dichotomy colors medical research, and many studies are interesting mainly as urban or rural apologetics.