Publications by authors named "Ficari F"

Background: The colorectal adenoma undergoes neoplastic progression via the normal epithelium-adenoma-adenocarcinoma sequence as reported in the Vogelgram. The hazard of developing a tumor is deeply associated with the number and size of adenomas and their subtype. Adenomatous polyps are histologically categorized as follows: approximately 80-90% are tubular, 5-15% are villous, and 5-10% are tubular/villous.

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Background: In Italy, surgeons continue to drain the abdominal cavity in more than 50 per cent of patients after colorectal resection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of abdominal drain placement on early adverse events in patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery.

Methods: A database was retrospectively analysed through a 1:1 propensity score-matching model including 21 covariates.

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Introduction: ERAS pathway has been proposed as the standard of care in elective abdominal surgery. Guidelines on ERAS in emergency surgery have been recently published; however, few evidences are still available in the literature. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of an enhanced recovery protocol in a large cohort of patients undergoing emergency surgery and to identify possible factors impacting postoperative protocol compliance.

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Purpose: Diet affects Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) patients' quality of life. An adequate Food Literacy (FL) level enables adequate food choices. Currently, there is a lack of knowledge on the FL degree in patients with IBD.

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Early postoperative low compliance to enhanced recovery protocols has been associated with morbidity following colon surgery. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the possible causes of early postoperative low compliance to the enhanced recovery pathway and its relationship with morbidity following rectal surgery for cancer. A total of 439 consecutive patients who underwent elective surgery for rectal cancer have been included in the study.

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Purpose: The Montreal classification for Crohn's disease includes "age at diagnosis" as a parameter but few is reported about the age at surgery. The aim of this study is to evaluate the short- and long-term differences in the postoperative surgical outcome and disease behaviour, according to the age at the first surgery.

Methods: Patients consecutively operated for abdominal Crohn's disease during the period 1986-2012 at our centre were systematically analysed according to their age at first surgery.

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Purpose: Early non compliance to postoperative ERAS pathway has been reported in 20-30% of patients who underwent elective colon surgery. The aim of the present study is to investigate the possible relationship between early non compliance and postoperative complications.

Methods: We reviewed a prospective database including 1391 consecutively collected patients undergoing elective colon surgery in 22 Italian hospitals between January 2017 and June 2020.

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Background & Aims: Mediterranean diet may be beneficial for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The aim of this study was to evaluate the level of adherence to MD in Italian patients with IBD.

Methods: Eighty consecutive outpatients with IBD, 62 with Crohn's Disease (CD) and 18 with Ulcerative Colitis (UC) were included in the study.

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Background: Accurate identification of malnutrition and preoperative nutritional care in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) surgery is mandatory. There is no validated nutritional screening tool for IBD patients. We developed a novel nutritional screening tool for IBD patients requiring surgery and compared it with other tools.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigates the relationship between CARD15/NOD2 genetic polymorphisms and the clinical behavior of Crohn's disease (CD) in surgical patients over a long-term follow-up period.
  • Results show that specific CARD15/NOD2 mutations are linked to earlier onset of CD, reduced responsiveness to azathioprine treatment, and an increased risk of surgical recurrence, especially in younger patients and those with a family history of the disease.
  • The findings suggest that certain genetic markers could serve as potential clinical indicators for predicting CD prognosis and treatment response.
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Background And Aims: The pathogenesis of Crohn's disease [CD] is still unclear. Disorders in the mucosal immunoregulation and its crosstalk with the microbiota may represent an important component in tissue injury. We aimed to characterize the molecular immune response distribution within the ileal layers and to evaluate the correlated microbiota in pathological/healthy settings comparing first surgery/relapse clinical conditions.

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Background & Aims: Despite little evidence available to date, the dietary intake assessment is considered a useful tool to optimize dietary intervention for the improvement of the nutritional status of IBD patients. The primary aim was to compare the dietary intake of IBD patients scheduled for surgery with the dietary reference values (DRVs) for the Italian population (LARN) and the ESPEN guidelines for clinical nutrition in IBD. The secondary aim was to describe the dietary patterns of patients with CD and UC in relation to the disease-specific and nutritional parameters and to compare these results to a control group in order to evaluate if similar nutritional intakes than in oncologic patients are found in IBD.

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A limited ileocaecal resection is the most frequently performed procedure for ileocaecal CD and different anastomotic configurations and techniques have been described. This manuscript audited the different anastomotic techniques used in a national study and evaluated their influence on postoperative outcomes following ileocaecal resection for primary CD. This is a retrospective, multicentre, observational study promoted by the Italian Society of Colorectal Surgery (SICCR), including all adults undergoing elective ileocaecal resection for primary CD from June 2018 May 2019.

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Background: A gold standard method for malnutrition diagnosis is still lacking in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD).

Objective: The aims of this study are to determine the prevalence of malnutrition in IBD patients according with recently published Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition (GLIM) criteria, to detect the factors contributing to the onset of malnutrition, and to evaluate the most accurate predictor of malnutrition risk within the available nutritional screening tools.

Methods: Fifty-three consecutive adult IBD patients [38 Crohn's disease (CD) and 15 ulcerative colitis (UC)] had been assessed preoperatively by a multidisciplinary IBD team before undergoing elective surgery.

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Background & Aims: Preoperative patient care optimisation appears to be crucial for obtaining good surgical outcomes. Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) underlines the necessity to recognize and treat malnutrition perioperatively and to prehabilitate with interventions that can modulate the lean body mass before and after surgery. This procedure has been extensively reported in colorectal cancer patients but in Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) it has not yet been clearly evaluated.

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Crohn's disease (CD) patients are generally considered at high risk of post-operative complications with respect to non-CD patients. The primary endpoint of this study is to compare early major complications rates between CD and colon cancer (CC) patients undergoing mini-invasive ileo-colic resections or right hemicolectomies. The secondary endpoint is to evaluate the role of pre-operative medication with anti-TNF as a possible risk factor for post-operative complications.

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Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) pathway is a multi-disciplinary, patient-centered protocol relying on the implementation of the best evidence-based perioperative practice. In the field of colorectal surgery, the application of ERAS programs is associated with up to 50% reduction of morbidity rates and up to 2.5 days reduction of postoperative hospital stay.

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Crohn's disease (CD) and Ulcerative colitis (UC) are grouped as Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). The IBD is associated to a multifaceted interplay between immunologic, microbial, genetic, and environmental factors. Nowadays, the gut microbiota (GM) dysbiosis has been indicated as a cause in the IBD development, affecting the impaired cross-talk between GM and immune cells.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Crohn's disease (CD) is a complex condition influenced by genetic, environmental, and microbial factors, commonly affecting the terminal ileum in about 50% of cases.
  • - The study aimed to analyze sub-phenotypes of CD through genetic testing and tissue sampling in 14 patients undergoing surgery for ileal CD, focusing on identifying new therapeutic targets.
  • - Results showed increased expression of immune-related genes (Th17 and Th1) in inflamed ileal tissue compared to non-inflamed areas, indicating a stronger inflammatory response in ileal CD compared to colonic cases.
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Crohn' disease (CD) patients are at high risk of postoperative recurrence and new tools for the assessment of disease activity are needed to prevent long-term complications. In these patients, the over-production of ROS generated by inflamed bowel tissue and inflammatory cells activates a pathogenic cascade that further exacerbates inflammation and leads to increased oxidative damage to DNA, proteins, and lipids. We measured the products of protein/lipid oxidation and the total antioxidant capacity (ferric reducing ability of plasma, FRAP) in the serum of CD patients with severe disease activity requiring surgery with the aim to characterize their redox status and identify associations between oxidative stress-related markers and their clinical characteristics.

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Background: The feasibility of minimally invasive approach for Crohn's disease (CD) is still controversial. However, several meta-analysis and retrospective studies demonstrated the safety and benefits of laparoscopy for CD patients. Laparoscopic surgery can also be considered for complex disease and recurrent disease.

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Rationale: In developed countries, the incidence of acute appendicitis is about 95 cases out of 100,000 per year, being one of the most common urgencies in general surgery worldwide. However, its pathogenesis is still poorly understood. Direct luminal obstruction (by a fecalith, lymphoid hyperplasia, or impacted stool) is reported to be the primary and principal cause of acute appendicitis.

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