The Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies: A new ally for education in emergencies.

This article provides an overview of the current landscape and needs for education in emergencies, as well as challenges and opportunities in today's critical juncture, in particular with the creation of a new ally for education in emergencies: the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies. It covers the disruption of education by the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated exacerbation of child-protection risks, as well as the pandemic's impact on the realization of the right to education of displaced children and youth and those living in humanitarian crises. While there is ample recognition at the international policy level of the importance of education in emergencies, major obstacles still prevail, such as continued underfunding and the underprioritization of education in humanitarian situations.

Anthroposophic Medicinal Products: A Literature Review of Features, Similarities and Differences to Conventional Medicinal Products, Scientific and Regulatory Assessment.

Background: Regulatory assessment of anthroposophic medicinal products (AMPs) can be challenging due to their specific features.

Objective: The aim of this paper is therefore to provide adequate scientific information on AMPs for regulatory purposes.

Methods: A literature review was executed with database searches in PubMed, Cinahl, Merkurstab, Anthromedics, and https://iaap-pharma.

Binary symbolic dynamics analysis to detect stress-associated changes of nonstationary heart rate variability.

Psychological stress may have harmful physiological effects and result in deteriorating health. Acute psychological stress acts also on cardiac autonomic regulation and may lead to nonstationarities in the interbeat interval series. We address the requirement of stationary RR interval series to calculate frequency domain parameters of heart rate variability (HRV) and use binary symbolic dynamics derived from RR interval differences to overcome this obstacle.

Splenic Rhythms and Postprandial Dynamics in Physiology, Portal Hypertension, and Functional Hyposplenism: A Review.

Background: Before the discovery of immunological and haematological functions of the spleen, it had for centuries been considered to be a digestive organ of variable size with a role in the portal vein system and nutritional metabolism. In the 19th and 20th centuries, volume changes in the spleen related to nutrition were studied using plethysmographic measurements. Rhythmical and regulatory functions of the spleen were demonstrated in the haemodynamics of the splanchnic region and were described as a "hepatolienal pendulum," a "Windkessel function," or a "pressure compensation.

Does the Spleen Have a Function in Digestion? Medical History, Phylogenetic and Embryological Development of the Splenogastric System.

Background: Before the spleen was discovered to be a lymphatic blood organ, it had for centuries been considered to be a digestive organ. Concepts of a regulative, secretory and resorptive function in the digestive system were based mainly on a postulated connection between the stomach and the spleen. Splenogastric vascular connections have recently been rediscovered by modern surgery.

Postprandial dynamics of splenic volume in healthy volunteers.

Throughout the history of medicine, many functions have been attributed to the spleen and numerous researchers have focused on a postulated digestive function. Beginning in 1825, systematic animal studies showed evidence for a postprandial increase in splenic volume (SV) with a peak 30 min to five hours after food intake. Since the introduction of imaging techniques, two studies have been conducted on humans, revealing a decrease in SV 30 to 45 min postprandially.

An assessment of the scientific status of anthroposophic medicine, applying criteria from the philosophy of science.

Objectives: The objective was to evaluate the scientific status of anthroposophic medicine (AM) according to demarcation criteria proposed in contemporary philosophy of science.

Design: Criteria for what is science were retrieved from eight publications in the philosophy of science, focusing either on science in medicine or on the demarcation between science and pseudoscience or non-science. Criteria were combined, redundancies were excluded, and the final set of criteria was ordered in a logical sequence.

Development of a whole plant bioassay to test effects of potentized calcium carbonate in pillule formulation.

Objectives: From a pharmaceutical point of view, we see a need to develop stable preclinical test systems to identify and investigate effects of potentized remedies as used in Anthroposophic Medicine and Homeopathy. We evaluated a plant bioassay regarding its capacity to distinguish homeopathic remedies from placebo, applied as sucrose pillules.

Methods: Pea seed (Pisum sativum L) was soaked for 24 hours in water with dissolved homeopathic or placebo pillules, or in water only.

Stress-associated changes in salivary microRNAs can be detected in response to the Trier Social Stress Test: An exploratory study.

Stress is an important co-factor for the genesis and maintenance of many diseases and is known to have an effect on gene expression via epigenetic regulation. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) appear to function as one of the key factors of this regulation. This is the first study to investigate the response of 11 stress-associated miRNAs in human saliva - as a non-invasive source - in an experimental condition of acute psychological stress, and also their correlation with established psychological (subjective stress perception), physiological (heart rate and heart rate variability) and biochemical stress parameters (salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase).

Can Speech-Guided Breathing Influence Cardiovascular Regulation and Mood Perception in Hypertensive Patients?

Objectives: Anthroposophic therapeutic speech (ATS) has been shown to positively influence heart rate variability (HRV) and cardiorespiratory coordination in healthy volunteers. This prospective, exploratory, pre-post study was performed to investigate ATS effects on baroreflex sensitivity (BRS), heart rate (HR), HRV by standard deviation of beat to beat intervals (SDNN), blood pressure (BP), and mood in hypertensive patients.

Design: Patients received three ATS treatments, alternating with three sham interventions (control).

MicroRNAs in Psychological Stress Reactions and Their Use as Stress-Associated Biomarkers, Especially in Human Saliva.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play a central role in the regulation of many cellular processes including physiological and psychological stress reaction pathways. Psychological stress is an important factor for the genesis and maintenance of many diseases. Several miRNAs have already been described to be involved in its regulation.

Design of a Self-Management Program for Children Aged 6-12 Years with Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus at the Community Hospital Herdecke, Germany.

Background: Children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) must replace lacking endogenous insulin by daily insulin injections or insulin pumps. Standards of treatment include educational programs enabling self-management. The program 'Herdecker Kids with Diabetes' (HeKiDi) is based on an anthroposophic understanding of the human being and intends to provide an individualized, patient-oriented approach to developing diabetes-related and comprehensive human competencies.

Does the model of additive effect in placebo research still hold true? A narrative review.

Personalised and contextualised care has been turned into a major demand by people involved in healthcare suggesting to move toward person-centred medicine. The assessment of person-centred medicine can be most effectively achieved if treatments are investigated using 'with versus without' person-centredness or integrative study designs. However, this assumes that the components of an integrative or person-centred intervention have an additive relationship to produce the total effect.

Placebo effects in medicine: A bibliometric analysis.

Objective: It was the aim of this bibliometric analysis to identify all publications dealing with so-called 'context effects/placebo effects' to bring some organisation into the publication landscape of the past 35 years.

Design: An electronic database search was carried out in Pubmed from its inception to November 2011.

Participants: Already published articles and their participants were included.

Mistletoe Berry Outline Mapping with a Path Curve Function and Recording the Circadian Rhythm of Their Phenotypic Shape Change.

This paper presents a discovery: the change of the outline shape of mistletoe ( ssp. ) berries and during ripening. It was found that a plant organ that is usually considered to merely increase in size actually changes shape in a specific rhythmic fashion.

Women's perceptions of induction of labour outcomes: Results of an online-survey in Germany.

Objective: induction of labour (IOL) is a common procedure in high income countries. It may be conducted for medical as well as non-medical reasons. Women's views on induction of labour have not extensively been evaluated as yet.

Temporal trends in fetal mortality at and beyond term and induction of labor in Germany 2005-2012: data from German routine perinatal monitoring.

Purpose: While a variety of factors may play a role in fetal and neonatal deaths, postmaturity as a cause of stillbirth remains a topic of debate. It still is unclear, whether induction of labor at a particular gestational age may prevent fetal deaths.

Methods: A multidisciplinary working group was granted access to the most recent set of relevant German routine perinatal data, comprising all 5,291,011 hospital births from 2005 to 2012.

Watchful waiting or induction of labour--a matter of informed choice: identification, analysis and critical appraisal of decision aids and patient information regarding care options for women with uncomplicated singleton late and post term pregnancies: a review.

Background: Decision-making during pregnancy regarding different options of care can be difficult, particularly when risks of intervention versus no intervention for mother and baby are unclear. Unbiased information and support for decision making may be beneficial in these situations. The management of normal pregnancies at and beyond term is an example of such a situation.

Tumour cell derived effects on monocyte/macrophage polarization and function and modulatory potential of Viscum album lipophilic extract in vitro.

Background: Macrophages are highly versatile cells that play an important role in tumour microenvironment. Tumour associated macrophages (TAMs) have been linked to both, good or bad prognosis of several cancer types depending on their number, composition and polarization. Viscum album lipophilic extract (VALE) contains several pentacyclic triterpenes known to modulate the activity of monocytes and other immune cells and to exhibit anticancer properties.

A systematic literature review on the effectiveness of eurythmy therapy.

Background: Eurythmy therapy is a movement therapy of anthroposophic medicine that can have effects on a person's physical body, spirit, and soul.

Objective: The aim of this publication was to update and summarize the relevant literature on the effectiveness of eurythmy in a therapeutic context since 2008.

Search Strategy: Different databases like PubMed, MEDPILOT, Research Gate, The Cochrane Library, DIMDI, Arthe and also the journal databases Der Merkurstab and the European Journal of Integrative Medicine were searched for prospective and retrospective clinical trials in German or English language.

[Foetal Mortality in Singleton Foetuses at and beyond Term - An Analysis of German Perinatal Data 2004-2013].

Background: Foetal mortality appears to increase in postmature pregnancies. There is debate on the optimal timing of induction of labour vs. watchful waiting.

Influence of spirituality on cool down reactions, work engagement, and life satisfaction in anthroposophic health care professionals.

This study aimed to analyse whether spirituality is a resource for health care professionals to deal with increasing stress and work burden, specifically to analyse associations between "cool down reactions" (which describe an emotional distancing towards patients and/or reduced engagement as a strategy to protect their own functionality), work burden, and life satisfaction. We specifically focussed on anthroposophic health care professionals because of their unique approach to distinct aspects of spirituality. In a cross-sectional survey using standardized questionnaires, 489 persons were enrolled (66% women, mean age 53 ± 10 years, 41% physicians, 12% nurses, and 47% other health care professionals).