Guantanamo Docs Neglected, Concealed Medical Evidence of Torture, Study Finds

Doctors caring for detainees at the Guantanamo prison may have neglected or concealed medical evidence of torture, such as bone fractures, lacerations, and symptoms of post traumatic stress disorder, , according to a study released today by Physicians for Human Rights.

For example, one of the suspected terrorists held at Gitmo who claimed he had been severely beaten with kicks and punches until he was unconcious had evidence of a fracture on X-ray, but the circumstances of the injury were not discussed in his medical file.

"Apparently the clinician did not ask how the injury occurred," says Dr. Vincent Iacopino, senior medical advisor for Physicians for Human Rights and co-author on the study

The study acknowledged that the Gitmo medical staff provided quality medical care for ailments ranging from athletes foot to nearsightedness.

"What was so striking in our investigation," Iacopino says, "was that it's clear the Department of Defense clinicians provided medical care in the way you'd expect at any hospital or clinic, except that whenever an injury implied the possibility of intentional harm or psychological symptoms suggesting torture, the cause of those symptoms were completely ignored."