Santiago Ramón y Cajal e Ivan Petrovich Pavlov: ¿existe complementariedad entre sus teorías? / Santiago Ramon y Cajal and Ivan Petrovich Pavlov: does complementarity exist between their theories?

Introducción. Pocos autores han comparado la vida y obra de Cajal y Pavlov, y, cuando lo hacen, se refieren generalmente a su coincidencia en el XIV Congreso Internacional de Medicina que tuvo lugar en Madrid en 1903. Objetivo. Presentar los modelos teóricos de ambos autores para estudiar la posible complementariedad entre sus teorías. Desarrollo. Se presentan las principales características de la teoría neuronal de Cajal, la teoría reticular que le antecedió, los principales resultados de las investigaciones de Cajal y las aportaciones que brindó al concepto de plasticidad. En cuanto a la teoría de los reflejos condicionales de Pavlov, se describen sus principales postulados, las leyes pavlovianas y la tipología del sistema nervioso según Pavlov. Conclusiones. Los niveles de organización en los que trabajan Cajal y Pavlov se pueden entender como complementarios si tenemos en cuenta la propuesta de Henry Wallon o las de marcos epistemológicos como la epistemología estratégica, donde el avance de la ciencia se logra desde estrategias diferentes, pero complementarias, que ayudan a construir modelos teóricos más fuertes (AU)

Introduction. Few authors have compared the life and work of Cajal and Pavlov and they refer normally to their coincidence at the XIV Medicine International Congress of Madrid in 1903. Aims. To describe the theoretical models of both authors and to explain the possible complementarities between the works of Cajal and Pavlov. Development. We describe the principal bases of the ‘neuron theory’ of Cajal, compared to the ‘reticulated theory’, the principal results of Cajal’s investigations and the contributions he made to the concept of plasticity. We describe the ‘Pavlov’s conditional reflections theory’, its principal postulates, pavlovians laws and the typology of the nervous system according to Pavlov. Conclusions. The works of Cajal and Pavlov can be understood as complementary under Wallon’s proposal and in the frame of the ‘strategic epistemology’, where the advance of the science is achieved from different but complementary strategies that help each other to construct stronger theoretical models (AU)

[Reflexotherapy in the context of rehabilitative medicine].

The main stages of the history of reflexotheray and its principal methodological aspects are reviewed in the context of the introduction of this approach into rehabilitative medicine. Productive results of such integration find the demonstrative reflection in the defense of 56 theses for the degree of candidate of science and 28 ones for the degree of doctor of science devoted to various aspects of reflexotherapy. The growing tendency toward the more extensive application of non-pharmacological approaches to complementary medicine opens up new prospects for the further development of reflexotherapy in the context of modern health care practices.

[The Italian Society of Reflexotherapy, Acupuncture and Auricular Therapy (SIRAA) : from the origins to the third millennium]. / La Società Italiana di Riflessoterapia, Agopuntura e Auricoloterapia (SIRAA). Dalle origini al terzo millennio.

The diffusion of acupuncture in Europe begun in the 50ies, following 2 main trends: traditional (or energetic) acupuncture and reflexotherapeutic acupuncture. In 1973, in Turin, Italy, the Italian Society of Reflexotherapy, Acupuncture and Auricolotherapy (SIRAA) was founded. This Society over the years tried to integrate the 2 different trends, whose main characteristics are analysed in this paper. The first aim of SIRAA, since its foundation, has been to study acupuncture and auricolotherapy by means of research and by scientific trials, in order to promote the understanding of its mechanisms of action and to clearly show all its therapeutic applications. The development of acupuncture in Italy, the activities of SIRAA from the origins up to now and the future aims of this Association are described. Among the aims, particularly important is to propose scientific research models compatible with evidence based medicine, but also able to warrant the adequacy of the acupunctural method. In conclusion, it is pointed out the necessity to address the future research on acupuncture not only towards the study of the mechanisms of action and the evaluation of therapeutic results, but also towards some new branches now considered with increasing attention, such as preventive medicine, rehabilitation and palliative cares.