Publications by authors named "A Ciofani"

We evaluated the effect of endogenous estrogen levels on exercise-related changes in right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) of healthy, eumenorrheic, sedentary women. Volunteers were studied at two separates phases of the menstrual cycle (LO and HI estrogen phases), exercised on a semi-supine ergometer with escalating workload and monitored continuously by 12-lead ECG and automated blood pressure cuff. At each exercise stage, Doppler echocardiography measurements were obtained and analyzed to determine RVSP.

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Article Synopsis
  • Chronic kidney disease (CKD) can lead to end-stage renal failure in children, and while angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) are known for their protective effects in adults, their effectiveness in pediatric cases remains uncertain.
  • A study using data from the ItalKid Project compared 41 children treated with ACEi for hypodysplastic CKD to 123 matched controls, measuring the decline in kidney function over time.
  • Results showed that ACEi-treated patients had a 40% slower decline in creatinine clearance compared to controls, but this difference was not statistically significant, indicating the need for further research before ACEi can be recommended as a standard treatment for children with CKD.
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The anthropometry-bioimpedance analysis-nutrition (ABN) score is a recently proposed objective method of assessing malnutrition in children on chronic peritoneal dialysis (CPD) that uses nine parameters based on anthropometry, skinfold thickness and bioimpedance analysis. The aim of this prospective, cross-sectional study was to apply it to children treated with CPD in seven Italian paediatric nephrology centres, with a score of < 10.33 (the 3rd percentile in a population of 264 healthy children) classifying the children as malnourished.

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Purpose: The nephropathy associated with vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) is one of the leading causes of chronic renal failure (CRF) in children. We describe the clinical course of the disease based on information available in the ItalKid Project database, and analyze the predictive value of baseline renal function, age at VUR diagnosis and urinary protein excretion in relation to the risk of progressive renal failure.

Materials And Methods: As of December 31, 2001 the registry included a total of 343 patients (261 males) with a diagnosis of primary VUR, which was the leading single cause of CRF, accounting for 25.

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The first checkpoint during T cell development, known as beta selection, requires the successful rearrangement of the TCR-beta gene locus. Notch signaling has been implicated in various stages during T lymphopoiesis. However, it is unclear whether Notch receptor-ligand interactions are necessary during beta selection.

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