Saigas on the brink: Multidisciplinary analysis of the factors influencing mass mortality events.

In 2015, more than 200,000 saiga antelopes died in 3 weeks in central Kazakhstan. The proximate cause of death is confirmed as hemorrhagic septicemia caused by the bacterium type B, based on multiple strands of evidence. Statistical modeling suggests that there was unusually high relative humidity and temperature in the days leading up to the mortality event; temperature and humidity anomalies were also observed in two previous similar events in the same region.

[Orthopaedic manual therapy : definition, characteristics and update on the situation in Belgium].

Although orthopaedic manual therapy (OMT) has existed for decades, and although a recent Belgian Royal Decree, published in 2014, recognized it as a particular professional qualification in physiotherapy for the treatment of neuromusculoskeletal dysfunctions, OMT remains little known by patients, but also by healthcare professionals. Yet, this professional qualification, based on clinical reasoning, using highly specific treatments, guided by the best available scientific and clinical evidence and the specific biopsychosocial characteristics of each patient, is the subject of a growing number of scientific studies pointing out its effectiveness. This article summarizes the knowledge related to OMT (definition, history, characteristics, techniques, indications, access and reimbursement) and describes its situation in Belgium.

A comparison of two stretching programs for hamstring muscles: A randomized controlled assessor-blinded study.

Most parameters regarding hamstring flexibility training programs have been investigated; however, the joint (i.e. hip or knee) on which the stretching should preferentially be focused needs to be further explored.

Disability evaluation in chronic fatigue syndrome: associations between exercise capacity and activity limitations/participation restrictions.

Objective: In an attempt to examine whether impairments in cardiorespiratory fitness are associated with daily functioning in patients with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), this study addresses the correlations between exercise capacity and activity limitations/participation restrictions.

Design: Prospective observational study.

Setting: An outpatient tertiary care, chronic fatigue clinic at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Belgium.