[Nutrition knowledge of Sardinian and Corsican university students].

The aim of this work was to evaluate the knowledge of Dietary Guidelines of university students in Sardinia and in Corsica. A nutrition knowledge questionnaire was administered to 566 university students, 141 from Corte University and 425 from Cagliari University. Sardinian students scored higher on the sections of the questionnaire about the recommended food intake, the sources of nutrients and the links between diet and disease, the best food choices to keep and to promote health.

Poor reliability of heart rate monitoring to assess oxygen uptake during field training.

The aim of this study was to quantify the error associated with the assessment of oxygen uptake (VO2) by heart rate (HR) monitoring in 15 athletes freely performing their training session. A laboratory-derived equation was used on the running track to calculate VO2 (VO2est) from HR. Oxygen uptake was also assessed by means of a portable gas analyzer (VO2real).

[Prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in North Sardinia: the Tempio Pausania's study].

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis in an Italian general population.

Methods: The study was conducted in the years 2002-2003 in Tempio Pausania's health district located on the North Sardinia and involved 30264 subjects aged 18 years or more treated by 29 general practices (GP). The GP was contact first by phone and letter and secondly a Rheumatologist administered a structured interview that included a screening questionnaire for RA.

HPRTSardinia: a new point mutation causing HPRT deficiency without Lesch-Nyhan disease.

Hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) deficiency always causing hyperuricemia presents various degrees of neurological manifestations, the most severe which is Lesch-Nyhan syndrome. The HPRT gene is situated in the region Xq26-q27.2 and consists of 9 exons.

[Diagnostic and prognostic value of antibodies to cyclic citrullinated peptide (Anti-CCP) in rheumatoid arthritis].

There is strong evidence that the determination of autoantibodies against filaggrine is a very useful tool for the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (Anti-CCP)-ELISA appear to be the most efficient test among those available for the detection of antifilaggrine autoantibodies, as it has the best diagnostic accuracy for the diagnosis of RA. Furthermore, the anti-CCP-ELISA determination in early arthritis is a good predictor of disease persistence and radiographic joint damage.