Ecowijze kinderen in de bres voor sociaal-politieke stabiliteit. De verwevenheid van het natuurlijke en het gecreëerde in achttiende-eeuwse kinderboeken

From a Dutch as well as an international perspective, eighteenth-century children’s books have received little attention from ecocritically inspired scholars so far, despite of the fact that these books structurally reflect relationships between human beings and their natural environment. I argue that these relationships are often depicted as ambiguous: human beings are connected to their environment because of both their resemblances and vital differences. Specifically focusing on two Dutch children’s books – Willem Emmery de Perponcher’s (1741-1819) Onderwijs voor kinderen (1782) and Johan Hendrik Swildens’ (1746-1809) Vaderlandsch A-B Boek voor de Nederlandsche Jeugd (1781) – I demonstrate that this ambivalent discourse fits into the didactical ambition to nurture citizens who were able to reflect on their social and political conditions and could actively contribute to socio-political improvement. De Perponcher and Swildens helped young readers to reflect on their position in a wider ecosystem, in which human beings, animals and nature exist in an equilibrium. As this equilibrium was implied to be a crucial precondition for the political social and economic harmony in Dutch society, the future stability of the ‘fatherland’ was imagined to be dependent on the ‘ecoliteracy’ of new generations: the skills to ‘read’ and understand the world as an organic whole in which everything is interconnected

Introduction to Travelling Islam

At the core of this special issue, Travelling Islam: The Circulation of Ideas in Africa, lies the editors’ fascination with the circulation of ideas by means of African languages, texts and people in and from Islamic Africa. It draws inspiration from a previous work on “Travelling Texts Beyond the West,” co-edited by Clarissa Vierke and Annachiara Raia. Further input has been provided by a workshop organised in 2020 with the generous support of lucis (Leiden University Centre of Islam in Society) and in cooperation with colleagues from the African Studies Centre Leiden, its collaborative research group ‘Africa in the World: Rethinking Africa’s Global Connections,’ and the neh Ajami Project

De manhaftige Arria in wetenschappelijk perspectief

What we know about women in ancient Rome depends on the available sources, but also on the questions we ask. In this article, the role of women in Latin literature is discussed in relation to the academic interest for these characters and the changes in these interests. Whereas a first generation of studies of Roman women was mostly focused on (stereo)types in literature, the second generation used material and textual sources to contextualize the lives of actual women in specific places and at specific times, and the third generation is influenced by gender theories and questions what femininity and masculinity mean in a specific socio-cultural environment. The case of Arria as described by Martial and Pliny serves to illustrate the different approaches to women in antiquity

Implications of medication use for oral health and oral healthcare:Development of a dental clinical decision support system

Door de dubbele vergrijzing in Nederland worden tandartsen steeds vaker geconfronteerd met medisch gecompromitteerde patiënten. Deze patiënten gebruiken vaak één of meerdere medicijnen die van invloed kunnen zijn op de mondgezondheid en tandheelkundige behandeling. Medicijnen kunnen: 1) consequenties hebben op de tandheelkundige behandeling (bv antistollingsmiddelen), 2) leiden tot bijwerkingen in- en rondom de mond of 3) interacties geven tussen een geneesmiddel dat de patiënt gebruikt en een geneesmiddel dat de tandarts voorschrijft. Het onderzoeken in het huidige proefschrift is gericht op deze drie facetten en beschrijft de ontwikkeling van een software applicatie waarmee tandartsen in de kliniek gemakkelijker rekening kunnen houden met deze consequenties

Preterm birth:Risk factors and treatment

Preterm birth, defined as a delivery before 37 completed weeks of gestation, is a major cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity worldwide. The pathogenesis of preterm birth is complex and largely unknown, and understanding of risk factors remains poor. Ideally, identification of risk factors will lead to effective interventions that reduce or prevent preterm birth. The first part of this thesis studies population trends in the Netherlands and studies risk factors for preterm birth.Once clinical symptoms of threatened preterm birth occur at a viable gestational age, it is challenging to prevent preterm birth. Treatment is then aimed at safe delivery and improvement of neonatal outcome. The second part of this thesis focuses on improving neonatal and long-term outcomes in threatened preterm birth, specifically the effectiveness of tocolysis (inhibiting labor). We state that, although tocolytics are widely used, there is currently no evidence to routinely administer tocolytics in threatenend preterm birth

Inflammatory arthritis from health to disease:Insights into immunopathogenesis and patient perspectives

Chronic inflammatory arthritides (IA) are immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) that are currently incurable. If left untreated, IA results in irreversible joint damage, limited mobility and a decreased quality of life. Early identification and early treatment of IA are required to prevent this. At-risk populations have been defined, although it is not possible to predict which at-risk individual will develop IA or prevent onset of IA. A better understanding of pathogenic mechanisms operative in the earliest phases of IA will improve identification of at-risk individuals or early IA patients and development of new therapies or preventive interventions. This thesis therefore studied: i. immunological processes responsible for IA development and ii. perspectives of patients or at-risk individuals towards translational research studies and therapeutic interventions, which will help to tailor therapy according to patients’ needs once it is available. This thesis revealed that studies in lymphoid organs are well-tolerated and may aid the identification of novel drug targets, as they will provide novel insights into early immunopathogenesis. Furthermore, this thesis showed that the Treat-to-Target strategy is not strictly applied in axial spondyloarthritis patients in daily clinical practice. Further studies are needed to investigate if this results in worse outcome for the patients or that is prevents overtreatment. Finally, we concluded that preventive interventions for IA might be accepted by at-risk individuals and physicians, although we need additional studies to better understand these perspectives and improve education for at-risk individuals

Navigating NAFLD non-invasively:Ingredients to shape future care paths in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

The prevalence of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is increasing worldwide, including the advanced stages: NAFLD fibrosis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. The stage of liver fibrosis is linearly associated with risk of liver-related and all-cause mortality. This warrants the development of guidelines, including diagnostic algorithms using non-invasive tests, to improve awareness and management of NAFLD and to identify those patients at high risk of developing advanced fibrosis.This thesis outlines the wide range of liver test candidates to navigate, diagnose and stage NAFLD non-invasively in different populations and care settings. This broad spectrum of non-invasive liver tests may perform varyingly in a diverse population. Therefore, it is key to select the optimal test for any particular patient. This selection process should be implemented in NAFLD care paths.To conclude, chief ingredients to shape future care paths in NAFLD are: improved awareness of this disease among health care professionals; the acknowledgement that non-invasive liver test performance can vary in diverse populations and the realization that a lot of work still needs to be done to reach an ideal situation

Pediatric gastroesophageal motility disorders:From diagnosis to management

This thesis focuses on the diagnosis and management of most common acquired and congenital gastroesophageal motility disorders in children and tests that are used for the diagnosis or follow-up of these disorders. In part I of this thesis, we evaluated diagnostic tests for the evaluation of pediatric gastroesophageal motility disorders. We calculated age-specific normal values of the Infant GastroEsophageal Reflux Questionnaire Revised (I-GERQ-R) and assessed the feasibility of high resolution manometry (HRM) and 24h pH Multichannel Intraluminal Impedance (pH-MII) testing in children. In part II of this thesis, we discussed the management of two gastroesophageal motility disorders: esophageal atresia (EA) and achalasia in children. In achalasia, incidence, clinical course and quality of life were additionally evaluated