Brain Changes in Long-Term Zen Meditators Using Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Diffusion Tensor Imaging: A Controlled Study

Introduction: This work aimed to determine whether 1H magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) are correlated with years of meditation and psychological variables in long-term Zen meditators compared to healthy non-meditator controls. Materials and Methods: Design. Controlled, cross-sectional study. Sample. Meditators were recruited from a Zen Buddhist monastery. The control group was recruited from hospital staff. Meditators were administered questionnaires on anxiety, depression, cognitive impairment and mindfulness. 1H-MRS (1.5 T) of the brain was carried out by exploring four areas: both thalami, both hippocampi, the posterior superior parietal lobule (PSPL) and posterior cingulate gyrus. Predefined areas of the brain were measured for diffusivity (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) by MR-DTI. Results: Myo-inositol (mI) was increased in the posterior cingulate gyrus and Glutamate (Glu), N-acetyl-aspartate (NAA) and N-acetyl-aspartate/Creatine (NAA/Cr) was reduced in the left thalamus in meditators. We found a significant positive correlation between mI in the posterior cingulate and years of meditation (r = 0.518; p = .019). We also found significant negative correlations between Glu (r =20.452; p = .045), NAA (r =20.617; p = .003) and NAA/Cr (r =20.448; P = .047) in the left thalamus and years of meditation. Meditators showed a lower Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) in the left posterior parietal white matter than did controls, and the ADC was negatively correlated with years of meditation (r =20.4850, p = .0066). Conclusions: The results are consistent with the view that mI, Glu and NAA are the most important altered metabolites. This study provides evidence of subtle abnormalities in neuronal function in regions of the white matter in meditators

New insights into the impact of neuro-inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis.

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is considered to be, in many respects, an archetypal autoimmune disease that causes activation of pro-inflammatory pathways resulting in joint and systemic inflammation. RA remains a major clinical problem with the development of several new therapies targeted at cytokine inhibition in recent years. In RA, biologic therapies targeted at inhibition of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) have been shown to reduce joint inflammation, limit erosive change, reduce disability and improve quality of life. The cytokine TNFα has a central role in systemic RA inflammation and has also been shown to have pro-inflammatory effects in the brain. Emerging data suggests there is an important bidirectional communication between the brain and immune system in inflammatory conditions like RA. Recent work has shown how TNF inhibitor therapy in people with RA is protective for Alzheimer's disease. Functional MRI studies to measure brain activation in people with RA to stimulus by finger joint compression, have also shown that those who responded to TNF inhibition showed a significantly greater activation volume in thalamic, limbic, and associative areas of the brain than non-responders. Infections are the main risk of therapies with biologic drugs and infections have been shown to be related to disease flares in RA. Recent basic science data has also emerged suggesting that bacterial components including lipopolysaccharide induce pain by directly activating sensory neurons that modulate inflammation, a previously unsuspected role for the nervous system in host-pathogen interactions. In this review, we discuss the current evidence for neuro-inflammation as an important factor that impacts on disease persistence and pain in RA

OPTIMIZIRANJE GUSTOĆE PRAŠINE IZ PEĆI ZA DOBIVANJE CEMENTA S CILJEM POBOLJŠANJA ISKORIŠTENJA PROSTORA NA ODLAGALIŠTU

Optimizing the density of waste materials in landfills by proper compaction prolongs the facility life due to the efficient use of landfill airspace. Cement kiln dust (CKD) is a waste by-product produced in huge amounts which exceeds the used quantities in the cement recycling industry and beneficial CKD applications. The vast amount of CKD is almost landfilled in its loose state in Egypt which causes a big loss in landfill airspace due to the low density of CKD. The hydraulic binder effect and dusty behavior of reactive CKD complicates its compaction process. Accordingly, this research was performed to investigate CKD compaction properties with three types of lubricants, which are potable water, salt water and waste oil. Maximum dry density (MDD) and optimum moisture content (OMC) for these lubricant types and different wetting methods were investigated in order to improve the landfill air space utilization and to reduce the dusty effect of CKD during compaction. The effect of immediate compaction after wetting and the effect of compaction delay by allowing CKD to hydrate initially for a certain period were studied. Compaction energy and methods of the wetting of CKD either by full submergence in water or prewetting were tested. The maximum weights of a disposed CKD and durations required to fill an intended landfill air space for different CKD conditions, lubricant types and compaction methods were presented for a case study in Ain Sokhna, Egypt.Optimiziranje gustoće otpadnih materijala na odlagalištima pravilnim zbijanjem produljuje vijek trajanja objekta zahvaljujući učinkovitom korištenju odlagališnog prostora. Prašina iz peći za dobivanje cementa (PDC) je otpadni nusproizvod koji nastaje u velikim količinama koje znatno premašuju količine materijala koji se može reciklirati u cementnoj industriji i korisno upotrijebiti na druge načine. Velika količina PDC-a u Egiptu se odlaže na odlagališta u rastresitom stanju, što uzrokuje veliki gubitak odlagališnog prostora zbog niske gustoće PDC-a. Učinak hidrauličkog veziva i ponašanje reaktivnog PDC-a kao prašinastog materijala komplicira proces njegovog zbijanja. U skladu s tim, ovo je istraživanje provedeno kako bi se ispitala svojstva zbijanja PDC-a s tri vrste ovlaživača/lubrikanata pitka voda, slana voda i otpadno ulje. Maksimalna suha gustoća i optimalni sadržaj vlage ispitani su za te vrste ovlaživača/lubrikanata i za različite metode vlaženja kako bi se poboljšala iskorištenost odlagališnog prostora i smanjio negativni učinak PDC-a tijekom zbijanja. Proučavani su učinak neposrednog zbijanja nakon vlaženja i učinak odgode zbijanja dopuštanjem PDC-u da se inicijalno hidratizira tijekom određenog razdoblja, a zatim odradi zbijanje. Ispitana je energija zbijanja i metode vlaženja PDC-a potpunim uranjanjem u fluid ili prethodnim vlaženjem. Prezentirane su maksimalne težine odloženog PDC-a i vrijeme potrebno za ispunjavanje predviđenog odlagališnog prostora za različite PDC uvjete, vrste ovlaživača/lubrikanata i metode zbijanja za studiju slučaja Ain Sokhna u Egiptu

Bearing Capacity of Driven Open-Ended Pipe Piles in Weak Soil Formations

Steel pipe piles have been increasingly used as deep foundations for offshore or onshore structures in weak soil formations. These piles are usually open-ended and installed to their final level using suitable hammers or vibrators relying on the subsurface conditions. Simultaneously, the soil plug (SP) forms inside the employed pipe pile during driving or installation. Moreover, it affects bearing behavior and total pile resistance. The experimental tests have been performed on a single tube pile. All tube piles were tested using the well-graded sand collected from the Egyptian desert, and the sand was prepared at medium density using a raining technique. The outcomes of the model pile tests showed that the value of plug resistance in open-ended pipe pile (OEPP) is typically on the order of 50% to 70% of the total pile load of OEPP, and it is influenced by pile thickness, pile diameter, pile length, and submerged state. Simultaneously, the plugging influence of OEPP increased with increasing pile thickness and embedded pile length. However, the plugging influence decreased with increasing pile diameter. The total pile load of OEPP increased with increasing the embedded pile length. It must be noted that the influence of pile length on the total pile load is greater than the influence of pile diameter; this refers to the pile length having a significant effect on the total pile load. This is due to an increase in the influence of SP

Insula-specific responses induced by dental pain: a proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy study

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate whether induced dental pain leads to quantitative changes in brain metabolites within the left insular cortex after stimulation of the right maxillary canine and to examine whether these metabolic changes and the subjective pain intensity perception correlate. METHODS: Ten male volunteers were included in the pain group and compared with a control group of 10 other healthy volunteers. The pain group received a total of 87-92 electrically induced pain stimuli over 15 min to the right maxillary canine tooth. Contemporaneously, they evaluated the subjective pain intensity of every stimulus using an analogue scale. Neurotransmitter changes within the left insular cortex were evaluated by MR spectroscopy. RESULTS: Significant metabolic changes in glutamine (+55.1%), glutamine/glutamate (+16.4%) and myo-inositol (-9.7%) were documented during pain stimulation. Furthermore, there was a significant negative correlation between the subjective pain intensity perception and the metabolic levels of Glx, Gln, glutamate and N-acetyl aspartate. CONCLUSION: The insular cortex is a metabolically active region in the processing of acute dental pain. Induced dental pain leads to quantitative changes in brain metabolites within the left insular cortex resulting in significant alterations in metabolites. Negative correlation between subjective pain intensity rating and specific metabolites could be observed

Is there a role for melatonin in fibromyalgia?

Fibromyalgia, characterised by persistent pain, fatigue, sleep disturbance and cognitive dysfunction, is a central sensitivity syndrome that also involves abnormality in peripheral generators and in the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis. Heterogeneity of clinical expression of fibromyalgia with a multifactorial aetiology has made the development of effective therapeutic strategies challenging. Physiological properties of the neurohormone melatonin appear related to the symptom profile exhibited by patients with fibromyalgia and thus disturbance of it’s production would be compatible with the pathophysiology. Altered levels of melatonin have been observed in patients with fibromyalgia which are associated with lower secretion during dark hours and higher secretion during daytime. However, inconsistencies of available clinical evidence limit conclusion of a relationship between levels of melatonin and symptom profiles in patients with fibromyalgia. Administration of melatonin to patients with fibromyalgia has demonstrated suppression of many symptoms and an improved quality of life consistent with benefit as a therapy for the management of this condition. Further studies with larger samples, however, are required to explore the potential role of melatonin in the pathophysiology of fibromyalgia and determine the optimal dosing regimen of melatonin for the management of fibromyalgia

Erratum to: 36th International Symposium on Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1186/s13054-016-1208-6.]

Sub-micron moulding topological mass transport regimes in angled vortex fluidic flow

Shear stress in dynamic thin films, as in vortex fluidics, can be harnessed for generating non-equilibrium conditions, but the nature of the fluid flow is not understood. A rapidly rotating inclined tube in the vortex fluidic device (VFD) imparts shear stress (mechanical energy) into a thin film of liquid, depending on the physical characteristics of the liquid and rotational speed,ω, tilt angle,θ, and diameter of the tube. Through understanding that the fluid exhibits resonance behaviours from the confining boundaries of the glass surface and the meniscus that determines the liquid film thickness, we have established specific topological mass transport regimes. These topologies have been established through materials processing, as spinning top flow normal to the surface of the tube, double-helical flow across the thin film, and spicular flow, a transitional region where both effects contribute. The manifestation of mass transport patterns within the film have been observed by monitoring the mixing time, temperature profile, and film thickness against increasing rotational speed,ω. In addition, these flow patterns have unique signatures that enable the morphology of nanomaterials processed in the VFD to be predicted, for example in reversible scrolling and crumbling graphene oxide sheets. Shear-stress induced recrystallisation, crystallisation and polymerisation, at different rotational speeds, provide moulds of high-shear topologies, as ‘positive’ and ‘negative’ spicular flow behaviour. ‘Molecular drilling’ of holes in a thin film of polysulfone demonstrate spatial arrangement of double-helices. The grand sum of the different behavioural regimes is a general fluid flow model that accounts for all processing in the VFD at an optimal tilt angle of 45°, and provides a new concept in the fabrication of novel nanomaterials and controlling the organisation of matter

Health problems and disability in long-term sickness absence: ICF coding of medical certificates

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility of International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) and to explore the distribution, including gender differences, of health problems and disabilities as reflected in long-term sickness absence certificates.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 433 patients with long sick-listing periods, 267 women and 166 men, were included in the study. All certificates exceeding 28 days of sick-listing sent to the local office of the Swedish Social Insurance Administration of a municipality in the Stockholm area were collected during four weeks in 2004-2005. ICD-10 medical diagnosis codes in the certificates were retrieved and free text information on disabilities in body function, body structure or activity and participation were coded according to ICF short version.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In 89.8% of the certificates there were descriptions of disabilities that readily could be classified according to ICF. In a reliability test 123/131 (94%) items of randomly chosen free text information were identically classified by two of the authors. On average 2.4 disability categories (range 0-9) were found per patient; the most frequent were 'Sensation of pain' (35.1% of the patients), 'Emotional functions' (34.1%), 'Energy and drive functions' (22.4%), and 'Sleep functions' (16.9%). The dominating ICD-10 diagnostic groups were 'Mental and behavioural disorders' (34.4%) and 'Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue' (32.8%). 'Reaction to severe stress and adjustment disorders' (14.7%), and 'Depressive episode' (11.5%) were the most frequent diagnostic codes. Disabilities in mental functions and activity/participation were more commonly described among women, while disabilities related to the musculoskeletal system were more frequent among men.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Both ICD-10 diagnoses and ICF categories were dominated by mental and musculoskeletal health problems, but there seems to be gender differences, and ICF classification as a complement to ICD-10 could provide a better understanding of the consequences of diseases and how individual patients can cope with their health problems. ICF is feasible for secondary classifying of free text descriptions of disabilities stated in sick-leave certificates and seems to be useful as a complement to ICD-10 for sick-listing management and research.</p