Memorial meshwork: the making of the commemorative space of the Hyde Park 7/7 memorial

How do memorials act to transmit memory through the organization of space? In this paper we contrast a ‘preservation’ model of the endurance of encoded memory with a ‘meshwork’ model which treats memory as emergent on the perdurance of the memorial site. Developing a theoretical framework from Tim Ingold’s (2011; 2013) work, we describe how memorialization receives its spatial form through a collective work of braiding together multiple threads of activities and material flows. To illustrate, we examine the spatial and temporal organization of the Hyde Park 7/7 memorial from its initial designs, through to installation and contemporary use. We draw on interview data featuring various stakeholders in the 7/7 memorial project to analyse the relationship between memorial space and material relations. We develop an approach to organizational space as an unfinished meshwork that folds together wanted and unwanted memory, making the historical a matter of ongoing live concern but with the absence of a permanent guiding narrative

Long-Term Weight Changes After Starting Anti-IL-5/5Ra Biologics in Severe Asthma: The Role of Oral Corticosteroids

BACKGROUND Many patients with severe asthma are overweight or obese, often attributed to unintentional weight gain as a side effect of oral corticosteroids (OCSs). Anti-IL-5/5Ra biologics significantly reduce OCS use, but their long-term effects on weight are unknown. OBJECTIVES To examine (1) weight change up to 2 years after anti-IL-5/5Ra initiation in subgroups on the basis of maintenance OCS use at start of treatment and (2) whether cumulative OCS exposure before or changes in OCS exposure during treatment are related to weight change. METHODS Real-world data on weight and cumulative OCS dose from adults included in the Dutch Registry of Adult Patients with Severe asthma for Optimal DIsease management before and at least 2 years after starting anti-IL-5/5Ra were analyzed using linear mixed models and linear regression analyses. RESULTS For the included 389 patients (55% female; mean body mass index, 28 ± 5 kg/m$^{2}$; 58% maintenance OCS), mean weight decreased -0.27 kg/y (95% CI, -0.51 to -0.03; P = .03), with more weight loss in patients with maintenance OCS use than in those without maintenance OCS use (-0.87 kg/y [95% CI, -1.21 to -0.52; P < .001] vs +0.54 kg/y [0.26 to 0.82; P < .001]). Greater weight loss at 2 years was associated with higher cumulative OCS dose in the 2 years before anti-IL-5/5Ra initiation (β = -0.24 kg/g; 95% CI, -0.38 to -0.10; P < .001) and, independently, greater reduction in cumulative OCS dose during follow-up (β = 0.27 kg/g; 95% CI, 0.11 to 0.43; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS Anti-IL-5/5Ra therapy is associated with long-term weight reduction, especially in patients with higher OCS exposure before treatment and those able to reduce OCS use during treatment. However, the effect is small and does not apply to all patients, and so additional interventions seem necessary if weight change is desired

Alpine altitude climate treatment for severe and uncontrolled asthma: an EAACI position paper

Currently available European Alpine Altitude Climate Treatment (AACT) programs combine the physical characteristics of altitude with the avoidance of environmental triggers in the alpine climate and a personalized multidisciplinary pulmonary rehabilitation approach. The reduced barometric pressure, oxygen pressure, and air density, the relatively low temperature and humidity, and the increased UV radiation at moderate altitude induce several physiological and immunological adaptation responses. The environmental characteristics of the alpine climate include reduced aeroallergens such as house dust mites (HDM), pollen, fungi, and less air pollution. These combined factors seem to have immunomodulatory effects controlling pathogenic inflammatory responses and favoring less neuro-immune stress in patients with different asthma phenotypes. The extensive multidisciplinary treatment program may further contribute to the observed clinical improvement by AACT in asthma control and quality of life, fewer exacerbations and hospitalizations, reduced need for oral corticosteroids (OCS), improved lung function, decreased airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), improved exercise tolerance, and improved sinonasal outcomes. Based on observational studies and expert opinion, AACT represents a valuable therapy for those patients irrespective of their asthma phenotype, who cannot achieve optimal control of their complex condition despite all the advances in medical science and treatment according to guidelines, and therefore run the risk of falling into a downward spiral of loss of physical and mental health. In the light of the observed rapid decrease in inflammation and immunomodulatory effects, AACT can be considered as a natural treatment that targets biological pathways

Prayer and Healing: A Study of 83 Healing Reports in the Netherlands

© 2022 by the authors.The setting: 83 reports of healing related to prayer (HP) were evaluated between 2015 and 2020 in the Netherlands. Research questions: What are the medical and experiential findings? Do we find medically remarkable and/or medically unexplained healings? Which explanatory frameworks can help us to understand the findings? Methods: 83 reported healings were investigated using medical files and patient narratives. An independent medical assessment team consisting of five medical consultants, representing different fields of medicine, evaluated the associated files of 27 selected cases. Fourteen of them received in-depth interviews. Instances of healing could be classified as ‘medically remarkable’ or ‘medically unexplained’. Subsequent analysis was transdisciplinary, involving medical, experiential, theological and conceptual perspectives. Results: the diseases reported covered the entire medical spectrum. Eleven healings were evaluated as ‘medically remarkable’, while none were labelled as ‘medically unexplained’. A pattern with recurrent characteristics emerged, whether the healings were deemed medically remarkable or not: instantaneity and unexpectedness of healing, often with emotional and physical manifestations and a sense of ‘being overwhelmed’. The HP experiences were interpreted as acts of God, with a transformative impact. Positive effects on health and socio-religious quality of life persisted in most cases after a two and four year follow-up. Conclusions: the research team found it difficult to frame data in medical terms, especially the instantaneity and associated experiences in many healings. We need a broader, multi-perspective model to understand the findings. Horizontal epistemology, valuing both ‘subjective’ (experiential) and ‘objective’ data, may be helpful. An open dialogue between science and religion may help too. There is an analogy with healing narratives in the Bible and throughout church history. Future studies and documentation are needed to verify and clarify the pattern we found