Invasive Fungal Infections Complicating COVID-19: A Narrative Review.

Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) can complicate the clinical course of COVID-19 and are associated with a significant increase in mortality, especially in critically ill patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU). This narrative review concerns 4099 cases of IFIs in 58,784 COVID-19 patients involved in 168 studies. COVID-19-associated invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA) is a diagnostic challenge because its non-specific clinical/imaging features and the fact that the proposed clinically diagnostic algorithms do not really apply to COVID-19 patients.

Drug-Drug Interactions and Prescription Appropriateness at Hospital Discharge: Experience with COVID-19 Patients.

Background: Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) are often elderly, with comorbidities, and receiving polypharmacy, all of which are known factors for potentially severe drug-drug interactions (DDIs) and the prescription of potentially inappropriate medications (PIMs).

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the risk of DDIs and PIMs in COVID-19 patients at hospital discharge.

Method: Patients with a proven diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection who were hospitalized between 21 February and 30 April 2020, treated with at least two drugs, and with available information regarding pharmacological treatments upon admission and at discharge were considered.

Drug-Drug Interactions and Prescription Appropriateness in Patients with COVID-19: A Retrospective Analysis from a Reference Hospital in Northern Italy.

Background: Patients hospitalised with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 [SARS-CoV-2; coronavirus 2019 disease (COVID-19)] infection are frequently older with co-morbidities and receiving polypharmacy, all of which are known risk factors for drug-drug interactions (DDIs). The pharmacological burden may be further aggravated by the addition of treatments for COVID-19.

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the risk of potential DDIs upon admission and during hospitalisation in patients with COVID-19 treated at our hospital.

Retinal findings in patients with COVID-19: Results from the SERPICO-19 study.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been associated to microvascular alterations. We screened the fundus of patients with COVID-19 to detect alterations of the retina and its vasculature and to assess possible correlations with clinical parameters.

Methods: Cross-sectional study.

Clinical Features and Outcomes of Patients With Human Immunodeficiency Virus With COVID-19.

Little is known about the clinical outcomes of patients with human immunodeficiency virus infected with SARS-CoV-2. We describe 47 patients referred to our hospital between 21 February and 16 April 2020 with proven/probable COVID-19, 45 (96%) of whom fully recovered and 2 who died.

Contribution of transgender sex workers to the complexity of the HIV-1 epidemic in the metropolitan area of Milan.

Objectives: Transgender people are disproportionately affected by the HIV-1 epidemic. We evaluated the origin of HIV-1 variants carried by South American transgenders living in Milan by combining accurate phylogenetic methods and epidemiological data.

Methods: We collected 156 HIV-1 sequences obtained from transgender patients engaged in sex work (TSWs) followed between 1999 and 2015 at L.

Identification of Gene in ST307 and ST661 Clones in Italy: Old Acquaintances for New Combinations.

In the past years, the carbapenemase (KPC)-producing sequence type 258 (ST258) became an important worldwide spread nosocomial pathogen. Recent evidence shows that the global epidemiology is changing, with the rise of new lineages. In this study we report the microbiological and genomic features of two VIM-1-producing isolates belonging to the emerging ST307.

Evaluation of the concentrations of psychotropic drugs in HIV-infected versus HIV-negative patients: Potential implications for clinical practice.

The management of psychiatric illness in HIV-infected patients is clinically challenging because of the risk of potential drug-drug interactions. Here, we aimed to measure the antidepressant and/or antipsychotic drug concentrations in HIV-infected patients during routine outpatient visits. Six hundred HIV-infected patients were screened during the first 15 months after the introduction of our outpatient polytherapy management service in a search for subjects treated with psychotropic drugs for at least 3 months.

Frequency of Pancreatic Hyperamylasemia in Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Positive Patients in the Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy Era.

Objectives: Increased frequency of hyperamylasemia has previously been reported in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients, but studies determined total amylase activity and were performed before the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). We evaluated the frequency of pancreatic hyperamylasemia in a large HIV+ population mostly treated with HAART.

Methods: The upper reference limit (URL) for pancreatic amylase (P-AMY) was derived from 299 healthy blood donors.

Thrombocytopenia is associated with an increased risk of cancer during treated HIV disease.

Objective: To assess the relationship between platelet counts and risk of AIDS and non-AIDS-defining events.

Design: Prospective cohort.

Methods: EuroSIDA patients with at least one platelet count were followed from baseline (first platelet ≥ 1 January 2005) until last visit or death.

Pancreatic cancer in HIV-positive patients: a clinical case-control study.

Objectives: Pancreatic cancer (PC) is the fourth and fifth most common cause of cancer-related death among men in United States and in Europe, respectively. No data are available for HIV-positive patients. The aim of this study was to investigate and to compare clinical presentation and outcome between HIV-positive and HIV-negative PC patients.

Short communication: impact of hepatitis C viral clearance on CD4+ T-lymphocyte course in HIV/HCV-coinfected patients treated with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin.

The long-term impact of pegylated-interferon plus ribavirin (Peg-IFN-RBV) treatment outcome on CD4 T cell course in patients coinfected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) is unknown. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of HCV-RNA clearance by standard anti-HCV therapy on long-term CD4 cells recovery in HIV/HCV patients on successful combined antiretroviral therapy (cART). We retrospectively enrolled HIV/HCV-coinfected patients on stable cART, treated with Peg-IFN-RBV between 2005 and 2009.

Diagnosis and therapy for hospitalized imported malaria in adults in Italy.

Background: The diagnosis and treatment of malaria in non-endemic countries presents a continuing challenge.

Methods: Medical records were reviewed for 291 patients hospitalized with microscopically confirmed malaria diagnosed consecutively in two infectious diseases wards in Milano, Italy, between 1998 and 2007.

Results: One hundred eighty-six (64%) were male; median age was 35 y (range 16-72 y).

Oxaliplatin based chemotherapy and concomitant highly active antiretroviral therapy in the treatment of 24 patients with colorectal cancer and HIV infection.

Background: Although FOLFOX4 is considered the standard chemotherapy regimen for colorectal cancer (CRC), few data are available on its results in human immunodeficiency (HIV)-related CRC. The results were analyzed to evaluate feasibility and activity of FOLFOX4 plus highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in metastatic CRC (mCRC) HIV-seropositive patients.

Patients And Methods: From January 2002 to March 2007, 24 patients were selected among the CRC HIV-seropositive patients treated with FOLFOX4 and concomitant HAART within the Italian Cooperative Group on AIDS and Tumors (GICAT).

High prevalence of human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1) in immigrant male-to-female transsexual sex workers with HIV-1 infection.

Human T-lymphotropic virus type 1 and 2 (HTLV-1 and HTLV-2) infections in Europe are limited to intravenous drug users and migrants coming from areas in which they are endemic. A survey was undertaken of HTLV-1 and HTLV-2 infections in 393 recent immigrants: 167 HIV-1 positive subjects (including 52 male-to-female transsexual sex workers) and 226 pregnant HIV-1 negative women. The prevalence of HTLV-1 was 3.