Use of herbal remedies by multiple sclerosis patients: a nation-wide survey in Italy.

Though recent progress in multiple sclerosis (MS) treatment is remarkable, numerous unmet needs remain to be addressed often inducing patients to look for complementary and alternative medicines (CAM), especially herbal remedies (HR). HR use, scarcely investigated in MS, may cause adverse reactions (AR) and interfere with conventional treatment. We performed a survey aimed at evaluating use and attitudes towards HR and factor associated to HR use.

Dietary supplement and drug use and doping knowledge and attitudes in Italian young elite cyclists.

Objective: To explore use and attitudes toward drugs and dietary supplements (DS) and knowledge concerning doping in cycling.

Design: Retrospective cross-sectional study.

Setting: Professional cycling.

Hepatotoxicity after high-dose methylprednisolone for demyelinating disease.

Liver toxicity, although not mentioned among the possible adverse effects of corticosteroids, has been occasionally reported in literature. We observed 2 cases of hepatotoxicity after a high-dose methylprednisolone treatment of a demyelinating disease and evaluated the potential relationship in the light of available evidence. The first patient developed a histologically documented acute hepatitis and recovered after 3 weeks.

Cytokine production from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and polymorphonuclear leukocytes in patients studied for suspected obstructive sleep apnea.

Purpose: The relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and atherosclerosis-related inflammation has been poorly investigated, particularly focusing on functional responses of immune cells playing a key role in atherogenesis and in comparison with control groups with similar cardiovascular risk factors which are known to be themselves associated with inflammation. We sought to determine cellular tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) production from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and interleukin (IL)-8 release from neutrophils (PMNs) in patients studied for suspected OSA.

Methods: Thirty-six consecutive patients who underwent a nocturnal complete cardiorespiratory evaluation for suspected OSA were initially evaluated.