Comparison of exophthalmos measurements: Hertel exophthalmometer versus orbital parameters in 2-dimensional computed tomography

Objective

To compare the reliability of orbital parameters calculated using 2-dimensional computed tomography (CT) and Hertel exophthalmometry when measuring exophthalmos in normal subjects and in patients with thyroid-associated orbitopathy (TAO).

An ethnobotanical study of medicinal plants used in sacred groves of Kumaon Himalaya,Uttarakhand, India

Ethnopharmacological relevance

International organizations recognize the importance of sacred groves and place them into the context of sustainable development and also emphasize to conserve biodiversity through protection of sacred groves and sties. The significance of medicinal plants from Himalayan region is well known to the world. Therefore, present study was conducted in identified sacred groves of Kumaon Himalaya to investigate and document the utilization of medicinal plants by various local communities and tribal people.

Materials and methods

The study was conducted during 2008–2011 in four seasons of the year. Information was collected from 70 locals from different sacred groves by using free listing interviews with randomly selected informants and semi-structured questionnaires; plant specimens were collected, identified and deposited at the CSIR-NBRI herbarium (LWG), Lucknow, India.

Results

Seven sacred groves viz., Dhwaj, Haat Kali, Hokra, Malay Nath, Nakuleshwar, Narayan Swami Ashram and Patal Bhuvneshwar were identified from the Pithoragarh district of Kumaon Himalaya. 89 medicinal plants belonging to 52 families and 77 genera of which, 2 are lichens, 4 are pteridophytes, 3 are gymnosperms and remaining 80 plant species are angiosperms. 6 plant species are reported with new therapeutic uses for the first time in this paper. Highest informant?s consensus factor value was found in liver disorder (0.55) and least by body pains (0.23). 55 ethnomedicinal plants are showing 100% fidelity level against various diseases.

Conclusion

Sacred groves in Kumaon region of Indian Himalaya are rich sources and best repository of ethno-medicinally important plants with many rare, endangered and threatened species. It is an excellent example of unique traditional way of in situ conservation of different plant species.     

The joy at birth: An interpretive hermeneutic literature review

Objectives

this literature review examines the experience of joy at birth and what that joy means. The premise is that the whole of the birthing experience has not been fully explicated in the literature and that something of significance remains unexplored and unspoken. It is argued that a hermeneutic phenomenological approach to reviewing literature provides unique insights and leads to deeper understandings about birth and the experience of joy that attunes at that moment.

Methodology

the philosophical underpinnings informed by Heidegger and Gadamer are central to this review and therefore the process of reviewing literature hermeneutically is described. Heideggerian phenomenology is used as the method to ask the questions of the literature in order that concealed and hidden experiences of joy at birth are made visible where they are gleaned from the literature. A hermeneutic lens is used to uncover relationships within the phenomenon of joy at birth and meaning.

Findings

although a vast birth literature was reviewed joy at birth was often ignored, hidden or covered over. Reviewing the literature on relationships, professional presence, place of birth, birth satisfaction studies and birth as peak and spiritual experience provides glimpses of the phenomenon ‘joy at birth’.

Conclusion

it is argued that joy at birth remains largely neglected as a phenomenon worthy of consideration. Plausible interpretations are presented that suggest that joy at birth points to something significant and meaningful. Spiritual and sacred meaning is alluded to in the papers reviewed yet the majority of papers that investigate birth leave this meaning unspoken. The review highlights a need for further thinking and questioning about birth that would direct on-going investigation.     

Valuation of environmental quality and eco-cultural attributes in Northwestern Idaho: Native Americans are more concerned than Caucasians

Valuation of features of habitats and ecosystems usually encompasses the goods and services that ecosystems provide, but rarely also examine how people value ecological resources in terms of eco-cultural and sacred activities. The social, sacred, and cultural aspects of ecosystems are particularly important to Native Americans, but western science has rarely examined the importance of eco-cultural attributes quantitatively. In this paper I explore differences in ecosystem evaluations, and compare the perceptions and evaluations of places people go for consumptive and non-consumptive resource use with evaluations of the same qualities for religious and sacred places. Qualities of ecosystems included goods (abundant fish and crabs, butterflies and flowers, clean water), services (complexity of nature, lack of radionuclides that present a health risk), and eco-cultural attributes (appears unspoiled, scenic horizons, noise-free). Native Americans and Caucasians were interviewed at a Pow Wow at Post Falls, Idaho, which is in the region with the Department of Energy’s Hanford Site, known for its storage of radioactive wastes and contamination. A higher percentage of Native American subjects engaged in consumptive and religious activities than did Caucasians. Native Americans engaged in higher rates of many activities than did Caucasians, including commune with nature, pray or meditate, fish or hunt, collect herbs, and conduct vision quests or other ceremonies. For nearly all attributes, there was no difference in the relative ratings given by Native Americans for characteristics of sites used for consumption/non-consumptive activities compared to religious/sacred places. However, Caucasians rated nearly all attributes lower for religious/sacred places than they did for places where they engaged in consumptive or non-consumptive activities. Native Americans were less concerned with distance from home for consumptive/non-consumptive activities, compared to religious activities.     

灵龟八法针刺治疗坐骨神经痛的即时镇痛效应观察

目的观察灵龟八法针刺治疗坐骨神经痛的即时镇痛作用。方法采用随机数字表法将符合纳入标准的128例患者随机分到观察组(灵龟八法组)和对照组(常规针刺组),每组64例。观察组采用灵龟八法针刺治疗,对照组采用常规针刺治疗。评估针刺前,进针10 min、20 min、30 min,取针后8 h、24 h的视觉模拟量表(visual analogue scale,VAS)评分和疼痛强度数字等级量表(pain intensity numerical rating scale,PINRS)评分,比较两组患者在不同时间点的镇痛效果。结果观察组针刺前、留针10 min、留针20 min、取针后24 h VAS评分与对照组比较差异均无统计学意义(P>0.05),在留针30 min、取针后8 h有统计学差异(P<0.01,P<0.05);观察组针刺前、留针10 min、留针20 min及取针后8 h、24 h PINRS评分与对照组比较差异均无统计学意义(P>0.05),在留针30 min有统计学差异(P<0.01)。结论灵龟八法针刺治疗坐骨神经痛在留针30 min出现显著的镇痛效果,其即时镇痛作用和镇痛持续效果明显优于常规针刺。     

Screening for significant carotid stenosis by ocular pneumoplethysmography.

Carotid stenosis is significant when the resulting lumen is 50 per cent or less of the diameter of the vessel distal to the carotid sinus. The ocular pneumoplethysmograph can detect these stenoses with an accuracy of 97 per cent.     

试析生命神圣论

生命神圣论是生命伦理学--系列争论的底线。为什么说生命是神圣的？什么样的生命才是神圣的？文章指出：传统的生命神圣论是非理性、非科学的；我们今天要坚持的生命神圣论是理性的生命神圣论，它植根于生命的理性和道德，生命的质量和价值，在适当的时候死去正是生命神圣的体现。今天，当我们面临一系列生命伦理学的难题时，既要高举生命神圣的大旗，又要反对在生命问题上的相对主义和功利主义。要以发展的、开放的眼光看待生命。