Q&A: Evaluation of Cerebral Ischaemia

The symptoms of brain ischemia may be transient, lasting seconds to minutes, or may persist for longer periods of time. Symptoms and signs remain indefinitely if the brain becomes irreversibly damaged and infarction occurs. Unfortunately, neurologic symptoms do not accurately reflect the presence or absence of infarction, and the tempo of the symptoms does not indicate the cause of the ischemia. This is a critical issue because treatment depends upon accurately identifying the cause of symptoms.

New Guideline on Mental Health in Humanitarian Emergencies - WHO/UNHCR Press Release

Worldwide close to 80 million people are currently impacted by humanitarian emergencies arising from natural disasters and armed conflicts, such as those in the Central African Republic, South Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, Yemen, and more recently, Nepal. WHO estimates 5% to 10% of these people suffer from a mental health condition such as depression as a result of the emergency.

Q&A: Autonomic Receptors and Post-Receptor Mechanisms of Action

The autonomic nervous system regulates many of the internal organs through a balance of two aspects, or divisions. Along with the endocrine system, the autonomic nervous system is instrumental in homeostatic mechanisms in the body. The two divisions of the autonomic nervous system are the sympathetic division and the parasympathetic division. The sympathetic system is associated with the fight-or-flight response, and parasympathetic activity is referred to by the epithet of rest and digest. Homeostasis is the balance between the two systems. Most organs in the body are innervated by both divisions and usually they have antagonistic effects. For example, the heart receives connections from both the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions. One causes heart rate to increase, whereas the other causes heart rate to decrease.

WHO's Rapid Health Impact Assessment of Nepal's Earthquake - Press Release

1 MAY 2015 | KATHMANDU - A rapid assessment of health-care facilities by WHO and the Ministry of Health and Population in the earthquake-stricken areas of Nepal has found that hospitals in 4 of the worst-affected districts are completely destroyed or too badly damaged to function.