The San Francisco Examiner from San Francisco, California • 2

A-2 Tuesday, Jnurv 24, 1989 SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER 1 esearcner says prayer for your XT good is Study focused on heart patients at S.F. General By Ken OToole OF THE EXAMINER STAFF Medical science is looking cautiously at a study that says prayer is good for what ails you, and the early consensus is that it certainly can't hurt. The study, conducted at San Francisco General Hospital and summarized this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, says that hospitalized heart patients had slightly fewer medical problems when other people prayed for their recovery. "Who has not, during a time of illness or pain, cried out to a higher being for help and healing?" begins the study by Dr. Randolph C.

Byrd. His conclusion, after a nine-month study: Prayer seemed to have an "Our 25th ASSOOATEO PHESS 1 House Speaker Jim Wright, left, President Bush, and Sens. George Mitchell and Bob Dole share a light moment Bush inaugurates own 'hands-on' presidency issues yet." Assistant House Democratic leader Tony Coehlo of Merced similarly called the meeting "a good way to start." "It was atmospherics, but important atmospherics," Coehlo said. "He's doing all the right things. We're going to get tough and he's going to get tough as soon as we get specific." SALE ALL INVENTORY REDUCED, NOTHING HELD BACK.

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JAMA published a one-paragraph "abstract" of the study. "Clearly, the fact that we chose to run the abstract means we probably think the study is OK," said Dr. George D. Lundberg, editor of JAMA. Original publisher's responsibility He pointed out Monday that while the study's methods appear to be up to standards and the Southern Medical Association is respected in scientific circles, the original publisher has primary responsibility for exhaustive review of the study.

Dr. John Thomison, the SMA's editor, said "anything that helps patients get well is valid," but he would like further studies confirm- Ik Anniversary Lll Creoior ot Fine Jewelry IN SAN FRANCISCO (415) 986-4747 ATOP NOB Hill 9 health ing the results. Meanwhile, he sees prayer as "about as benign a form of treatment as there is. There is no danger whatsoever." In the study, done at San Fran cisco General's coronary care unit in 1982 and 1983, Byrd randomly assigned half of 393 patients to ei ther an "experimental group whose health was prayed for by three to seven born-again Chris tians, or to a "control" group that did not receive such prayers. Patients were not told which group they were in.

Byrd, who eval uated their progress, also was in the dark until after all other data were recorded. The people doing the praying were told patients first names and diagnoses, "along with pertinent updates on their condition," Byrd wrote. Two groups were equally sick Statistics showed the two groups of patients were equally sick when they entered the hospital, but that patients who were prayed for had fewer complications during their stays. None of the patients prayed for needed tubes inserted for breathing or feeding, compared with 12 patients, or 6 percent, from the control group who did. Two in the prayer group needed antibiotics, compared with nine control-group patients.

Five percent of the prayer group needed diuretics drugs to reduce fluid buildup while 15 percent of the control group needed them. The patients who were prayed for also had fewer episodes of congestive heart failure, pneumonia and cardiac arrest But Byrd could not rule out the 'possibilitylhat these were chance differences. Twenty other health complications were equally common in the two groups. Thomison said he had gotten many positive reactions to Byrd's paper, but just one negative letter from Dr. Steven Kreisman of Gaston Memorial Hospital in Gas-tonia, N.C.

Kreisman called publication of the work "an attempt to return medicine to the Dark Ages, and to reduce physicians to the same status as witch doctors and faith heal- era." i Attempts to reach Byrd, formerly of UCSF, were unsuccessful. He reportedly is doing missionary work in Asia. Examiner news services con' tributed to this report. Girl, 15, injured escaping from man driving car EXAMINER PENINSULA BUREAU SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO -Police said they were still without leads Tuesday in the attempted kidnapping of the 15-year-old daughter of a South City police detective. Maryanne Sullivan, the intended victim, suffered a broken foot and a twisted back as she fell to the ground when the attacker's car bumped her bicycle while she attempted to evade him.

Sgt Mike Guglielmoni, a police spokesman, said Tuesday that there was no indication the incident was related to work being done by her father, Patrick Sullivan, the department's chief investi fails ill siJi in 7 Devgnef ond TWO FINE STORES 141 POST STREET FAIRMONT HOTEl 2B Furnishings for Men. Ifomcn Siitli City few words about Value question of knowing right from' wrong." Seeking continuity Bush also used his first day ttr give Quayle a visible show of support, meeting with him five timesv though it remains unclear how subC stantive a role the vice president; will play. Bush also made courtesy phone; calls to several foreign leaders, in-t eluding Soviet President Mikhajl' Gorbachev and British Prime Min-' ister Margaret Thatcher, and ed Japanese Prime Minister Nobo-J ru Takeshita to Washington Feb. That would be Bush's first meeting as president with a foreign leader. Bush has said he will seek "continuity-plus" building on the cord of the Reagan administration! he served as vice president for eightt years.

But starting with Inauguration Day, Bush has already offered number of contrasts with Reagan in presidential rtyle. spent his first weekend in, the WhitelHouse surrounded byi children and grandchildren, tossing, around a football on the White? II I nuusc awu. Reagan, though he spoke often of family values, rarely entertained. children at the White Usually, he and his wife, Nancy, retired by themselves to the Camp' David presidential retreat on week- ends. J't 1 Gifts awai Michaela on birthday UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL HAYWARD A stack of presj-ents sits in Michaela Garecht's bed- room, because Tuesday is her 10th, birthday.

"She came into our lives 10, years ago," said Sharon Garechtl mother of the little girl who waS kidnapped Nov. 19 just four block? from her home. "We hope she cain come into our lives again." In preparation for a possible ar-v rival, the Garechts have put a new, bedspread of multicolored flowers' on her bed and also bought a stereo for her. Some of the gifts had even bee'n. brought as Christmas presents, but' have yet to be opened.

"We are still hoping that she Is" going to come home soon," Garecht said Monday. "We have to hope." Hayward police have received more than 600 phone tips from around the nation since the NBC' series "Unsolved Mysteries" Iasti week re-enacted her Witnesses described her abductor, as a man with long, blond hair. "None of them look really exciti ing, but we are checking them all 4 out just in case," said Hayward po lice Lt. Chuck Breazeale. Tuesday also is the 15th births day of Kevin Collins, who was kidJ napped from a San Francisco streets corner five years ago.

Kevin's father, David said "his birthday is one of thej hardest days for us. (T. "On Christmas, we hang stocking for him, and the holidays are very hard," Collins said. "And as for his birthday, well, we always I used to sing to him and have a big! cake. It's hard having those days without him." By Matthew Quinn EXAMINER WASHNQTON BUREAU WASHINGTON President Bush has set out in his first days in office to show he will be a hands-on uupip president in a AMU 515 WTiite House that burns the midnight one of a number of contrasts with former President Ronald Reagan.

On Tuesday, Bush and leaders of Congress held their first official meeting, with all sides harmonious ly pledging cooperation that will be put to the test by pressure to reduce the federal budget deficit. 1A spirit ot good will permeated the tyhite House as the new presi dent promised to submit a detailed budget by mid-February. He also said proposals would be comirig soon on government ethics and the nation's savihgs-and-loan crisis and defended his deliberate pace in answering Soviet initiatives. Bush and -Vice President Dan Quayle met with 18 congressional leaders in the cabinet room of the White House. The hour-long ses sion was followed by a shorter one with the five most senior leaders of Congress.

Assistant Senate Democratic leader Alan Cranston of California welcomed "the obvious eager desire by the president to work with the Congress," but he also noted, "Of course, we haven gotten to the gator in child-abuse and sexual as-' sault cases. Police also believe there is no connection to the Michaela Gar-echt kidnapping. The attempted kidnapping occurred Thursday afternoon as the girl rode her bike on Shannon Drive. She described the man as a male in his late 20s or early 30s, with greasy collar-length black hair. She told police that the attack developed when the man pulled his car alongside her bike and.ordered her into his vehicle.

As she veered onto the sidewalk from the street to escape, the man followed in his car, bumping her rear tire, said Guglielmoni. "She screamed for help when she fell to the ground, and the man sped off." His vehicle was described as a 1977 Ford Mustang II in poor condition, with oxidized maroon color and a bright red paint strip below Four Travelers insurance group members have stopped renewing auto insurance policies on the ground that they would be unprofitable under provisions of the voter-approved initiative. About 1,800 drivers have lost their insurance. Robbins and the Insurance Department say it's illegal under Prop. 103 for an insurer to leave California without finding another carrier for its policy-holders.

Robbins accused Insurance Commissioner Roxani Gillespie of reneging on a promise to his committee to quickly take a vigorous He's not Ronald Reagan The contrast with Ronald Reagan could not have been missed. Bush was praised for his active participation in the session and for not limiting his first formal meeting with leaders from Capitol Hill to members of his own party. There were other contrasts as well. On Monday by 9 a.m., the hour Reagan usually started work, Bush already had eaten breakfast with Vice President Dan Quayle, received a detailed intelligence briefing from the CIA and admonished his senior staff and their fam-i ilies, "The lights burn brightly well after dark in this place h-v i Bush also laid down the law on members, say 1 i I il i. 11 1.

ing he expected them to adhere to the highest standards. A number of top officials of the Reagan administration were indicted or left office amid questions about their ethical conduct. i Bush told his staff Monday: "It's not really very complicated. It's a Police artist's sketch shows suspect in kidnap attempt on 15 the passenger door. Guglielmoni said the investigation does not indicate any connection by the attacker to the unsolved slaying of Yvonne Marie Fruit, 14, who was found stabbed to death near El Camino High School in May, 1987.

"police officer" role in cracking down on Travelers. Mathias, speaking for Gillespie, responded that the department is moving as quickly as possible under the law: It served Travelers with a notice of noncompliance with the law on Dec. 23, held a hearing on that notice Jan. 4 and is awaiting the recommendation of the hearing officer, due by early February. Starting the 20-percent rate rollback, one of the initiative's provisions, has been delayed by the state Supreme Court pending the outcome of an industry lawsuit.

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Senator wants state to act on insurer Yi if;) I i i I 'v i J5 201 POST STREET, COR. GRANT AVENUE SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA 94108 I Lx your Brooks Brothers card, American Express, MasterCard or Visa ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES A state sen ator says insurance regulators have failed to move swiftly and decisively against an insurance comDanv that quit selling auto policies in Lalilornia because of rate-slashing Proposition 103. Sen. Alan Robbins. D-Van Nuys, berated Deputy Insurance Commissioner Char Mathias at a legislative committee hearinu.

He demanded an explanation of the Insurance Department's actions against Travelers Corp..