A simplified regimen of targeted antifungal prophylaxis in liver transplant recipients: A single-center experience.

Background: Invasive fungal infection (IFI) is a severe complication of liver transplantation burdened by high mortality. Guidelines recommend targeted rather than universal antifungal prophylaxis based on tiers of risk.

Methods: We aimed to evaluate IFI incidence, risk factors, and outcome after implementation of a simplified two-tiered targeted prophylaxis regimen based on a single broad-spectrum antifungal drug (amphotericin B).

Low-dose Spinal Block With Continuous Epidural Infusion for Renal Transplantation in a Patient With Alport Syndrome: A Case Report.

Objective: We aim to describe management of a patient receiving renal transplantation for chronic renal failure due to Alport syndrome with low dose of intrathecal bupivacaine and continuous epidural infusion of local anesthetic.

Case Report: A 38-years-old man with chronic renal failure secondary to Alport syndrome underwent kidney transplantation. Because of a high risk of respiratory and cardiovascular complications related to the patient's baseline lung disease and abnormalities in heart conduction, we selected combined spinal-epidural anesthesia.

Effectiveness of an Education Program on Donation and Transplant Aimed at Students of the Nursing Degree Course.

Background: Health workers' awareness and knowledge of transplant medicine can improve people's sensitivity and reduce their degree of opposition to donations. The medical literature contains numerous examples of education programs aimed at university students. This work describes the experience of an education program for students of the second and third year of a nursing degree course.

Invasive Candida infections in low risk liver transplant patients given no antifungal prophylaxis in the post-operative period.

Background: In recent years the incidence of invasive fungal infections (IFIs) in post liver transplant (LT) has reduced to about 5%, however the majority of IFIs develops early in the post-transplant course. Candida species are the most frequent causative pathogens followed by Aspergillus species. Mortality for invasive candidiasis is still 40-50%.

Role of paravertebral block anaesthesia during percutaneous transhepatic thermoablation.

Purpose: This paper discusses the technique and preliminary results of right thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) for percutaneous thermal ablation of liver tumours.

Materials And Methods: Between October 2011 and August 2012 we treated 36 lesions (25 hepatocellular carcinoma and 11 metastases) in 30 patients aged 47-85 years (mean 67.5).

Organ donation and transplantation in migrants: Piedmont reality from 2004 to 2011.

Background: Over the last 20 years, an increasing number of people have immigrated into Italy. On January 1, 2011, there were 4,570,317 foreign residents in Italy, including 398,910 in the Piedmont region (Italian National Statistics Institute data). The Romanian community was the largest, followed by the Moroccan and Albanian ones.

Organ and tissue donation in migrants: advanced course for cross-cultural mediators.

Between 2004 and 2010 in Piedmont (Italy Northern Region) 1556 brain-death situations were reported, including 113 (7.3%) in migrants as potential organ and tissue donors. The health staff often has to face migrants, who show great cultural differences and language difficulties.

Organ donation awareness project for Piedmont high school students.

Foreword: Law no. 91 of April 1, 1999 confirmed the principle of citizens' free choice and awareness with regards the donation of their own organs and tissue. Many studies have shown that information/communication programs aimed at secondary school students are able to significantly increase their propensity toward donation.

Effect of a lung protective strategy for organ donors on eligibility and availability of lungs for transplantation: a randomized controlled trial.

Context: Many potential donor lungs deteriorate between the time of brain death and evaluation for transplantation suitability, possibly because of the ventilatory strategy used after brain death.

Objective: To test whether a lung protective strategy increases the number of lungs available for transplantation.

Design, Setting, And Patients: Multicenter randomized controlled trial of patients with beating hearts who were potential organ donors conducted at 12 European intensive care units from September 2004 to May 2009 in the Protective Ventilatory Strategy in Potential Lung Donors Study.

Acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with HHV-7 infection in an immunocompetent patient: a case report.

The association of human herpesvirus-7 with lung diseases is poorly known, although it has been suggested a role in causing interstitial pneumonia in non-transplant patients and bronchiolitis-obliterans-organizing-pneumonia in lung transplant. No case of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated to human herpesvirus-7 has been reported, while only one case associated with human herpesvirus-6 has been described in an immunocompetent patient. This report describes the identification of human herpesvirus-7 reactivation in an immunocompetent patient with acute respiratory distress syndrome, as evidenced by the increasing viral load in bronchoalveolar lavage, polyneuropathy, histopathological findings, and tissue positivity.

Ventilatory and hemodynamic management of potential organ donors: an observational survey.

Objective: To determine the current standard ventilatory and cardiovascular management in potential organ donors.

Design: Prospective, multiple-center, observational survey.

Setting: A total of 15 intensive care units in 13 hospitals in Piedmont, Italy.

[Complications of tracheostomy in critically ill patients: comparison of dilation and surgical techniques].

The tracheotomy, one of the oldest surgical procedures, has in recent years been the focus of particular attention given the undoubted, and not always justified, increase in indications, and by the introduction of dilatational tracheotomy techniques, particularly in critically patients. The present work compares the standard surgical tracheotomy with the more recent percutaneous techniques (Ciaglia dilatational tracheotomy and Fantoni translaryngeal tracheotomy). In particular, the relationship between the technique adopted, timing and complications were analyzed for 215 tracheotomies performed at different Intensive Care Units at our Hospital between 1993 and 1998 (106 performed using the standard surgical technique, 51 with the Ciaglia technique and 58 with the Fantoni technique).

Association of HLA-DR7 with rheumatic fever in the Brazilian population.

Objective: Rheumatic fever (RF) is a multisystem inflammatory disease that develops as a sequel of untreated throat infection by the group A beta-hemolytic streptococcus. As HLA antigens are known to be important in controlling immunological responsiveness, studies have investigated HLA antigen association with RF. Studies with Caucasians, Black Americans, and Indians showed associations with HLA-DR4, DR2, and DR3, respectively.

CVVH in postoperative care of liver transplantation.

Objective: To evaluate CVVH (Continuous Veno-Venous Hemofiltration) as acute renal replacement treatment in postoperative care of liver transplantation.

Design: Retrospective study.

Setting: Intensive Care Unit, year 1995.

[Acute scrotum in pediatric age: analysis of 265 consecutive cases].

"Acute scrotum" in infants and children is generally due to testicular torsion, torsion of the appendix of testis or acute orchiepididymitis. However they are other less frequent causes of "acute scrotum". The differential diagnosis is often very difficult.

[Ovarian tumors in children].

Ovarian tumors in children are uncommon. We reviewed all cases of ovarian tumors treated at the Department of Pediatric Surgery of Vicenza Regional Hospital from 1979 to 1994. They include 6 cases of cystic teratoma and 1 gonadoblastoma; the malignant lesions included 1 immature teratoma, 1 dysgerminoma, 1 yolk-sac tumors and 1 patient with ovarian infiltration from malignant leukemia.

[Testicular and paratesticular tumors in children].

Testis tumors in children occur infrequently and exibit differences in their histopathology, clinical behaviour and therapy from their adult counterparts. From 1979 to 1994, 17 children and adolescent with testicular tumors were treated at the Pediatric Surgical Department of Vicenza Regional Hospital. Paratesticular rabdomiosarcoma were present in 3 cases, 4 patients had embrional carcinoma, 1 Sertoli cell tumor, 2 Leydig cell gonadal stromal tumor, and leukemic infiltrates of the testis were clinically evident in 7 patients.

[Retroperitoneal nodular fasciitis: analysis of a case].

A case of nodular fasciitis occurring in a 14-year-old girl is described and the clinical-pathological profile and the diagnostic problems are analyzed. The Authors believe this report useful to be reported for the relative rarity of the disease, especially in children, the very great dimension and the unusual retroperitoneal localization.

Oxidative damage in human liver transplantation.

The aim of this study was to evaluate oxygen-dependent hepatic reperfusion injury in humans following orthotopic liver transplantation. To this end, a number of blood indices of impaired tissue redox balance were monitored in 19 adult patients for 3 weeks after liver transplantation. Both red cell malonaldehyde and plasma lipid peroxides increased significantly soon after organ reperfusion.

[Acute scrotum in children: analysis of 265 consecutive cases].

"Acute scrotum" in infants and children is generally due to testicular torsion, torsion of the appendix of testis or acute orchi-epididymitis. However they are other less frequent causes of "acute scrotum". The differential diagnosis is often very difficult.

[True hermaphroditism in crossed testicular ectopy: report of a case].

Crossed testicular ectopia is a congenital anomaly characterized by the presence of both testes in the same hemiscrotum and may be associated in 20% of the cases with genitourinary developmental abnormalities. This review underscores the complexities of assessment and surgical management of an uncommon case in which crossed testicular ectopia and true hermaphroditism are simultaneously described.

[Mesenteric lymphangioma: report of a case].

Lymphangiomas are benign tumours that appears to arise from congenital malformation of the lymphatics. They are most commonly reported in the head and neck regions. The clinical presentation, diagnosis and treatment of a rare case of mesenteric lymphangiomas are reviewed.

[Spontaneous and traumatic rupture of the renal parenchyma in primary obstructive megaureter: a report of 2 cases].

Urinary extravasation in infants may occur secondary to a variety of congenital obstructive uropathic conditions. This condition has been reported most often in infants with posterior urethral valves and pelviureteral junction obstruction. We present two cases of perirenal urinary extravasation from the kidney due to primary obstructive megaureter.