I Feared the Snow and Turned Back

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The Babylonian Ubāru and his Slave-sale Documents from Nineveh

Non peer reviewe

El babilonio Ubaru y sus documentos de ventas de esclavos de Nineveh

This article edits three Neo-Babylonian slave-sale documents found in Nineveh that form the dossier of Ubāru. The background of this Babylonian individual is uncertain, but we make some educated guesses about his identityEste artículo presenta tres documentos neobabilónicos de venta de esclavos hallados en Nínive, que forman parte del dosier de Ubāru. El trasfondo de este personaje babilonio es incierto, pero podemos hacer algunas conjeturas acerca de su identida

Can pacing self-management alter physical behaviour and symptom severity in chronic fatigue syndrome? : a case series

Given the lack of evidence in support of pacing self-management for patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), we examined whether physical behavior and health status of patients with CFS Would improve in response to a pacing self-management program. We performed an observational study of pacing self-management in seven CFS patients using a single-case study design. Stages A1 and A2 (7-day assessment periods) of the A1-B-A2 design corresponded to the baseline and posttreatment measurements of physical behavior (real-time activity monitoring) and health status (self-reported measures), respectively. Stage B (3 weeks of treatment) consisted of three individual treatment sessions of pacing self-management. When comparing pre- versus posttreatment data, we found that the patients' ability to perform daily activities and the severity of their symptom complexes were improved (p = 0.043). Concentration difficulties, mood swings, muscle weakness, and intolerance to bright light improved as well. A statistically significant decrease in the mean time spent doing light activity (<3 metabolic equivalents) was observed, but a change in the way physical activity was spread throughout the day was not. We found that 3 weeks of pacing self-management was accompanied by a modest improvement in symptom severity and daily functioning. The outcome of the present study calls for a randomized controlled clinical trial to examine the effectiveness of pacing self-management for people with CFS

Does acetaminophen activate endogenous pain inhibition in chronic fatigue syndrome/fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis? : a double-blind randomized controlled cross-over trial

Background: Although enhanced temporal summation (TS) and conditioned pain modulation (CPM), as characteristic for central sensitization, has been proved to be impaired in different chronic pain populations, the exact nature is still unknown. Objectives: We examined differences in TS and CPM in 2 chronic pain populations, patients with both chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) and comorbid fibromyalgia (FM) and patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and in sedentary, healthy controls, and evaluated whether activation of serotonergic descending pathways by acetaminophen improves central pain processing. Study Design: Double-blind randomized controlled trial with cross-over design. Methods: Fifty-three women (19 CFS/FM patients, 16 RA patients, and 18 healthy women) were randomly allocated to the experimental group (1 g acetaminophen) or the placebo group (1 g dextrose). Participants underwent an assessment of endogenous pain inhibition, consisting of an evaluation of temporal summation with and without conditioned pain modulation (CPM). Seven days later groups were crossed-over. Patients and assessors were blinded for the allocation. Results: After intake of acetaminophen, pain thresholds increased slightly in CFS/FM patients, and decreased in the RA and the control group. Temporal summation was reduced in the 3 groups and CPM at the shoulder was better overall, however only statistically significant for the RA group. Healthy controls showed improved CPM for both finger and shoulder after acetaminophen, although not significant. Limitations: The influence of acetaminophen on pain processing is inconsistent, especially in the patient groups examined. Conclusion: This is the first study comparing the influence of acetaminophen on central pain processing in healthy controls and patients with CFS/FM and RA. It seems that CFS/ FM patients present more central pain processing abnormalities than RA patients, and that acetaminophen may have a limited positive effect on central pain inhibition, but other contributors have to be identified and evaluated

Developmental stage on day-5 and fragmentation rate on day-3 can influence the implantation potential of top-quality blastocysts in IVF cycles with single embryo transfer

BACKGROUND: In IVF-ICSI cycles with single embryo transfer (SET), embryo selection for transfer is of crucial importance. The present study aimed to define which embryo parameters might be related to the implantation potential of advanced blastocysts. METHODS: Overall, in 203 cycles with SET, developmental characteristics of 93 implanted (group A) and 110 non-implanted (group B) advanced blastocysts of good quality were compared. The following developmental parameters were assessed in the two groups: normal fertilization, developmental stage on day 5, number of blastomeres on day 2 and on day 3, fragmentation rate on day 3, compaction on day 4 and cleavage pattern on day 2 and day 3. RESULTS: Expanded blastocysts compared to full blastocysts have higher implantation potential (56.5% vs. 29.3%, p < 0.05). In group B, a higher proportion of advanced blastocysts showed between 10% and 50% anucleated fragments on day 3 than in group A (23.6 vs 11.8, P = 0.03). Advanced blastocysts with >10–50% fragments on day 3 showed a significant lower implantation (29.7%) than those with ≤ 10%fragments (49.4%, P = 0.03). All the other parameters analysed were comparable for the two groups. CONCLUSION: Developmental stage on day 5 and fragmentation rate on day 3 were related to the implantation potential of advanced blastocysts and should also be taken into account in the selection of the best advanced blastocyst for transfer