Publications by authors named "Buchignani B"

Article Synopsis
  • The study aimed to evaluate the need for tube feeding in infants with type I Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) and identify predictive factors for it.
  • Out of 75 infants assessed, by the last follow-up, only 34 needed no tube feeding, while 32 required tube feeding and could not be fed orally.
  • Key findings indicate that the necessity for tube feeding is not common in treated infants and can be predicted by their initial level of feeding involvement and CHOP INTEND scores, rather than SMA type or genetic factors.
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Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are widely used in the treatment of central nervous system tumors and acute lymphocytic leukemia even in the pediatric population. However, such treatments run the risk of a broad spectrum of cognitive and neurological deficits. Even though the correlation with cognitive decline is still not clear, neuroradiological defects linked to white matter injury and vasculopathies may be identified.

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Article Synopsis
  • Mutations in the KLHL40 gene often lead to severe nemaline myopathy, but some milder cases have been reported; this study reviews existing literature and follows an Italian patient with a rare homozygous mutation over 12 years.* -
  • The systematic review included 65 patients, revealing that the most common mutations were (c.1516A>C) and (c.1582G>A), with a high mortality rate of 60% within the first four years of life and a similar presentation across cases.* -
  • The study suggests that the clinical consistency of KLHL40-related myopathy could facilitate the development of new gene therapies, with muscle MRI identified as a valuable tool for tracking disease progression.*
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A quantitative biomarker for myelination, such as myelin water fraction (MWF), would boost the understanding of normative and pathological neurodevelopment, improving patients' diagnosis and follow-up. We quantified the fraction of a rapidly relaxing pool identified as MW using multicomponent three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) to evaluate white matter (WM) maturation in typically developing (TD) children and alterations in leukodystrophies (LDs). We acquired DTI and 3D MRF-based R1, R2 and MWF data of 15 TD children and 17 LD patients (9 months-12.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to assess early language acquisitions in treated individuals with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 1 and in infants identified by newborn screening (NBS).

Methods: Parents of SMA individuals aged between 8 and 36 months were asked to fill in the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory (MB-CDI) that assesses comprehension, gesture and expressive skills. A follow-up assessment was performed in 21 of the 36.

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Article Synopsis
  • Becker muscular dystrophy (BMD) is a genetic muscle disorder caused by mutations in the dystrophin gene, resulting in varying degrees of disability among patients.
  • A study followed 28 adult BMD patients for up to 24 months, assessing their clinical progression through various tests, including the North Star Ambulatory Assessment and muscle MRI.
  • The findings revealed significant variability in disease severity, particularly in patients with specific genetic deletions, underscoring the challenge of creating a standardized treatment approach and the importance of identifying predictive markers for patient care.
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Leukoencephalopathy with Calcifications and Cysts (LCC) is a rare genetic microangiopathy exclusively affecting the central nervous system caused by biallelic mutations in . Brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is often diagnostic due to the highly characteristic triad of leukoencephalopathy, intracranial calcifications, and brain cysts. Age at onset, presentation and disease evolution can all vary, ranging from pauci-symptomatic disease to rapid evolution of signs with loss of motor and cognitive abilities.

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There has recently been some concern on possible cognitive impairment in patients with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). The aim of this study was to assess cognitive profiles in type II and III SMA with a focus on individual indexes and possible correlations with motor function. 57 type II and III individuals, aged 3.

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The aim of the study was to retrospectively evaluate the consistency of longitudinal findings on intellectual functioning in DMD boys and their relationship to behavioral and neuropsychiatric difficulties. The cohort included 70 patients of age 3 to 17 years with at least two assessments using the Wechsler scales. CBCL and clinical observation of behavior were also performed.

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Objective: To define the prevalence of variants in collagen VI genes through a next-generation sequencing (NGS) approach in undiagnosed patients with suspected neuromuscular disease and to propose a diagnostic flowchart to assess the real pathogenicity of those variants.

Methods: In the past five years, we have collected clinical and molecular information on 512 patients with neuromuscular symptoms referred to our center. To pinpoint variants in COLVI genes and corroborate their real pathogenicity, we sketched a multistep flowchart, taking into consideration the bioinformatic weight of the gene variants, their correlation with clinical manifestations and possible effects on protein stability and expression.

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Nuclear Factor I B (NFIB) haploinsufficiency has recently been identified as a cause of intellectual disability (ID) and macrocephaly. Here we report on two new individuals carrying a microdeletion in the chromosomal region 9p23-p22.3 containing NFIB.

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The lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic has had adverse psychological effects on children and parents. While parenting is essential for positive development, increased parental distress has interfered with children's wellbeing. In our study, we aimed to identify the predictors of parental distress in families of children with neuropsychiatric disorders during lockdown.

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Ectopic cerebellar tissue is a rare entity likely secondary to multiple, interacting, developmental errors during embryogenesis. Multiple sites of ectopic cerebellar tissue have been reported, including extracranial locations; however, an intracranial location is most common. We report on the MR imaging findings of a multi-institutional series of 7 ectopic cerebellar tissue cases (2 males, 4 females, 1 fetal) ranging from 22 weeks 5 days' gestational age to 18 years of age.

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On 11 March 2020, a national lockdown was imposed by the Italian government to contain the spread of COVID19 disease. This is an observational longitudinal study conducted at Fondazione Stella Maris (FSM), Italy to investigate lockdown-related emotional and behavioural changes in paediatric neuropsychiatric population. Families having children (1.

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Background: To systematically review and analyse the effects of Action Observation Training on adults and children with brain damage.

Methods: Seven electronic databases (Cochrane, EBSCO, Embase, Eric, PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science) were searched up to 16 September 2018 to select Randomized Controlled Trials focused on adults and children with brain damage that included AOT training on upper and/or lower limb carried out for at least 1 week. Identification of studies and data extraction was conducted with two reviewers working independently.

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