Exsanguination and Islamic dhabihah (halal) dietary laws. The double edged pointed knife is prohibited. Instead, a long knife with a squared off end is used that in Jewish law must be at least twice the width of the animal's neck. The operation of sticking or exsanguination is executed faster than when using the pointed knife, as four large blood vessels in the neck are severed simultaneously. A 1978 study at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hanover indicates that these traditional methods, when executed as prescribed by the religious authorities, gave results which proved "...pain and suffering to the extent as has
Medically unexplained physical symptoms as effective as other therapeutic modalities published to date is described in Steele RE "et al." "A novel and effective treatment modality for medically unexplained symptoms". The next best documented approach is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), with evidence from multiple randomized controlled trials. Antidepressants may also help, but the evidence is "not yet conclusive." The effectiveness of CBT and antidepressants has not been studied for all medically unexplained symptoms, however. Evidence for a positive effect of CBT has been found in trials for fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, unexplained headaches, unexplained back pain, tinnitus, and non-cardiac chest pain.