A round robin exercise in archaeometry: analysis of a blind sample reproducing a seventeenth century pharmaceutical ointment

Chemical analysis of ancient residues of pharmaceutical or cosmetic preparations such as balms or ointment s is made problematic by the high complexity of these mixtures, composed of organic and inorganic materials. Consequently, a multi-analytical approach and special caution in the interpretation of the results are necessary. In order to contribute to the improvement of analytical strategies for the characterization of complex residues and to reconstruct ancient medical practices, a replica of a pharm aceutical formulat ion of the seventeenth century was prepared in the laboratory according to a historically documented recipe. In a round robin exercise, a portion of the preparation was analysed as a blind sample by 11 laboratories using various analytical techniques. These included spectroscopic, chromatographic and mass spectro-metric methods. None of the laboratories was able to completely reconstruct the complex formulation, but each of them gave partial positive results. The round robin exercise has demonstrated that the application of a multi-analyt ical approach can permit a complete and reliable reconstruction of the composition. Finally, on the basis of the results, an analytical protocol for the study of residues of ancient medical and pharmaceutical preparations has been outlined

French clinical practice guidelines for Moyamoya angiopathy

International audienceWe evaluated the cognitive status of visually impaired patients referred to low vision rehabilitation (LVR) based on a standard cognitive battery and a new evaluation tool, named the COGEVIS, which can be used to assess patients with severe visual deficits. We studied patients aged 60 and above, referred to the LVR Hospital in Paris. Neurological and cognitive evaluations were performed in an expert memory center. Thirty-eight individuals, 17 women and 21 men with a mean age of 70.3 ± 1.3 years and a mean visual acuity of 0.12 ± 0.02, were recruited over a one-year period. Sixty-three percent of participants had normal cognitive status. Cognitive impairment was diagnosed in 37.5% of participants. The COGEVIS score cutoff point to screen for cognitive impairment was 24 (maximum score of 30) with a sensitivity of 66.7% and a specificity of 95%. Evaluation following 4 months of visual rehabilitation showed an improvement of Instrumental Activities of Daily Living ( p = 0.004 ), National Eye Institute Visual Functioning Questionnaire ( p = 0.035 ), and Montgomery–Åsberg Depression Rating Scale ( p = 0.037 ). This study introduces a new short test to screen for cognitive impairment in visually impaired patients