This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on ISI (1)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Related letters  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Treatment Adherence  • Adherence  • Alert me on articles by topic

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

To the Editor: There are estimated to be between 1 million and 3 million Muslims living in the United States,¹ and most will participate in ritual daily fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, which in 2005 starts on October 3 and ends on November 2. During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sundown, for approximately 13 hours. The fast is broken after the sun sets, with a meal called iftar. Children and individuals whose health may be harmed by fasting are exempt from fasting, according to the Qur’an. In addition, Muslims unable to fast during Ramadan may fast at other times of the year to compensate. Physicians should be aware of Ramadan and determine fasting practices among their Muslim patients to detect potential complications arising from this practice.

Serious complications of fasting from Ramadan have not been well documented in the literature, but the . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Sondra S. Crosby, MD
scrosby@bu.edu
Boston Medical Center

Elizabeth J. Rourke, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital

Mohamed A. Warfa
Boston Medical Center
Boston, Mass

RELATED LETTERS

Medical Issues and Ramadan
Kazim Sheikh
JAMA. 2006;295(5):498.
EXTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Medical Issues and Ramadan—Reply
Sandra S. Crosby, Elizabeth J. Rourke, and Mohamed A. Warfa
JAMA. 2006;295(5):498.
EXTRACT | FULL TEXT  

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Medical Issues and Ramadan
Sheikh
JAMA 2006;295:498-498.
FULL TEXT