title: Internet-based survey on medical manga in Japan.
abstract: The more manga (Japanese graphic novels) communicate medical information, the more people are likely to be influenced by manga. We investigated through an Internet search using Google the characteristics of medical manga published in Japan, defined as those in which the main character is a medical professional and that occur in a medical setting. As of December 2008, 173 medical manga had been published. For a period of time after the first medical manga by Osamu Tezuka in 1970, the number of publications maintained a steady level, but increased rapidly in the mid 1980s. The professions of the protagonist were 134 doctors, 19 nurses, 3 dentists, 3 medical students, and 1 nursing student. Although the main character was mostly a doctor, manga featuring paramedical professionals have increased since 1990s. Medical manga may be a powerful tool for increasing the awareness of the public regarding medicine.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Minato-Ku, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kishi
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsumura
authors.forename: Naoko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Murishige
authors.forename: Yuko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kodama
authors.forename: Nobuyo
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hatanaka
authors.forename: Morihito
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takita
authors.forename: Kenjiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sakamoto
authors.forename: Tamae
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hamaki
authors.forename: Eiji
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kusumi
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: Koichiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yuji
authors.forename: Hiroto
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Narimatsu
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kami
mesh_terms: D054626:Consumer Health Information / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007564:Japan; D008513:Medicine in Literature