Control and prevention measures for legionellosis in hospitals: A cross-sectional survey in Italy.

Risk assessment, environmental monitoring, and the disinfection of water systems are the key elements in preventing legionellosis risk. The Italian Study Group of Hospital Hygiene of the Italian Society of Hygiene, Preventive Medicine, and Public Health and the Italian Multidisciplinary Society for the Prevention of Health Care-Associated Infections carried out a national cross-sectional survey to investigate the measures taken to prevent and control legionellosis in Italian hospitals. A multiple-choice questionnaire was developed, comprising 71 questions regarding hospital location, general characteristics, clinical and environmental surveillance, and control and preventive measures for legionellosis in 2015.

Low-energy interstitial laser photocoagulation for treatment of nonfunctioning thyroid nodules: therapeutic outcome in relation to pretreatment and treatment parameters.

Objective: Interstitial laser photocoagulation (ILP) is a recently proposed therapeutic procedure for the ablation of benign thyroid nodules, which has already proven to be safe and effective. However, results supporting the routine use of ILP are still limited.

Design: The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of ILP treatment in benign nonfunctioning thyroid nodules and to establish whether the therapeutic outcome may be predicted by any clinical parameter at baseline.

Physiological effects of translaryngeal open ventilation in patients with restrictive respiratory disorders.

Objective: To compare the efficacy of pressure-controlled ventilation (PCV) delivered through a conventional endotracheal tube with the same ventilatory mode using a small-size tube with the cuff left deflated (translaryngeal open ventilation: TLOV).

Setting: A medical-surgical intensive care unit (ICU).

Design: Prospective physiological study.