Publications by authors named "Franco P"

Meniscal root tears are recognized as an important pathology. Failure to recognize and to treat this pathology could lead to early-onset osteoarthritis, similar to a total meniscectomy. Surgical treatment is essential to restore meniscal function and to normalize compartment contact pressures, whenever there is joint overload and not severe cartilaginous damage.

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Background: Oximetry was proposed as an abbreviated exam, easily accepted by the child, for the diagnosis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) for children located in regions where access to pediatric sleep labs is limited. The objective of this study was to determine the diagnostic value of the oxygen desaturation index (ODI), the number of ≥ 3% oxygen desaturations per hour of recording, obtained by portable oximetry performed in parallel with video-polysomnography (PSG), in a cohort of children, with and without comorbidities, referred for OSA.

Methods: Data from portable oximetry performed in parallel with PSG were prospectively collected.

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Objectives: To prospectively assess, using polysomnography (PSG), the evolution in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in infants with Robin Sequence (RS) during their first year of life and to evaluate the role of PSG in OSA treatment.

Methods: Prospective and longitudinal study conducted in 2 tertiary hospitals (2018-2021). Data from 2 PSG (PSG1 0-3 months of life, PSG2 6-10 months of life) performed in RS infants in different sleep positions/conditions (without treatment: supine [SP]; with treatment: lateral [LP], prone [PP], respiratory support) were analyzed.

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Polysomnography (PSG) is the gold standard for diagnosing obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in children but not always available. Abbreviated exams exist, such as respiratory polygraphy (RP), but are less accurate for OSA diagnosis. Video recording (video-RP) may provide a more precise estimation of the total sleep time (TST) compared to RP alone.

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: For the development of new treatments, the acute phase of Chagas disease (CD) in experimental models acts as a filter to screen out potentially effective interventions. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate ZnO nanocrystals and Ag-ZnO/AgO nanocomposites containing different proportions of silver (ZnO:5Ag, ZnO:9Ag and ZnO:11Ag) in an experimental model of the acute phase of CD. : C57Bl/6 mice were infected with 1000 forms of the Colombian strain of .

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Article Synopsis
  • - Both Magnetic Resonance Enterography (MRE) and Computed Tomography Enterography (CTE) are important imaging techniques used for diagnosing and treating inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), with CTE being favored in urgent situations like suspected complications.
  • - CTE provides rapid and precise imaging but involves exposure to ionizing radiation, while MRE avoids radiation and excels in evaluating the small intestine and perianal disease, making it ideal for patients requiring frequent monitoring or those who are pregnant.
  • - The review highlights the strengths and weaknesses of both imaging methods, aiming to inform about their technical aspects, benefits, limitations, and the specific findings they can reveal regarding IBD.
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Background: To investigate changes of objective instrumental measures and correlate with patient reported outcomes (PROs) of radiation-induced dysphagia (RID) after swallowing organs at risk (SWOARs)-sparing IMRT.

Methods: Patients (pts) underwent Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES), Videofluoroscopy (VFS) and M.D.

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Objective: What are young children trying to express when they cry at night? According to Sadeh, parental beliefs about why their child is crying may play a role in the development and persistence of their child's insomnia. The aim of this study was to create a scale that specifically assesses these parental interpretations in different dimensions.

Methods: Children aged between 6 months and 3 years with either good sleep habits or behavioural insomnia were recruited.

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Bullous serous central chorioretinopathy (bCSCR) is an atypical form of CSCR characterized by large serous detachment. This variant presents significant diagnostic challenges, and optimal treatment strategies are not well defined. This report presents a case of a 31-year-old man with bCSRC treated with scleral thinning surgery in four quadrants with scleral windows created in the two inferior quadrants.

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Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most aggressive type of brain tumor, characterized by poor outcome and limited therapeutic options. During tumor progression, GBM may undergo the process of vasculogenic mimicry (VM), consisting of the formation of vascular-like structures which further promote tumor aggressiveness and malignancy. The resulting resistance to anti-angiogenetic therapies urges the identification of new compounds targeting VM.

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Background: the aim of this study is to assess the performance of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in predicting the response to neoadjuvant chemoradiation therapy (CRT) and outcome in patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC).

Materials And Methods: ninety-four patients with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pre- and post-neoadjuvant treatment were retrospectively enrolled. Three regions of interest (ROIs) were manually drawn on three different slices of the tumor for every DWI sequence.

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Male breast cancer (MaBC) is an uncommon disease. It is generally assimilated to post-menopausal female breast cancer and treated accordingly. However, the real impact of radiation therapy, after both mastectomy and breast conservation, has yet to be established.

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Breast cancer stands as the most frequently diagnosed cancer and the primary cause of cancer-related mortality among women worldwide, including Italy. With the increasing number of survivors, many are enrolled in regular follow-up programs. However, adherence to recommendations from scientific societies (such as ASCO, ESMO, AIOM) for breast cancer follow-up management varies in daily clinical practice across different cancer centers, potentially resulting in unequal management and escalating costs.

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Familial partial lipodystrophy (FPLD) is a very rare genetic disease characterized by insulin resistance due to a loss of subcutaneous fat from the extremities together with a progressive storage of fat around the face and neck and inside the abdomen. In over 50% of cases, molecular genetic testing reveals pathogenic variants in two nuclear genes, LMNA and PPARG. The case reported here refers to a woman phenotypically diagnosed with FPLD, who presented with diabetes and multiple cervical lipomatosis and in whom no variant had been found in the nuclear genes classically associated with this syndrome that could explain her phenotype.

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Article Synopsis
  • * The meeting involves discussion of pre-selected topics by working groups, which are informed by systematic reviews and surveys reflecting current clinical practices.
  • * The Assisi Working Group specifically examines lobular carcinoma, offering recommendations for locoregional therapy, especially radiation therapy for non-metastatic cases.
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  • Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is a fast-growing lung cancer type that responds well to certain treatments, but not all patients benefit, highlighting a need for new therapies and biomarkers.
  • The study investigated how exosomes from the blood of SCLC patients can influence responses to chemoimmunotherapy by examining immune and tumor markers.
  • Results showed that exosomes from patients who responded well to treatment significantly increased cancer cell death in lab tests, suggesting they could help understand the interaction between cancer and the immune system.
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Chronic liver disease (CLD) is a global and worldwide clinical challenge, considering that different underlying liver entities can lead to hepatic dysfunction. In the past, blood tests and clinical evaluation were the main noninvasive tools used to detect, diagnose and follow-up patients with CLD; in case of clinical suspicion of CLD or unclear diagnosis, liver biopsy has been considered as the reference standard to rule out different chronic liver conditions. Nowadays, noninvasive tests have gained a central role in the clinical pathway.

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  • - The study assessed the CARE-Radiology checklist's reliability and usability for evaluating radiological case reports, aiming to encourage its wider use and improvement.
  • - Ten case reports from 2020 were reviewed by 26 experts from 10 different countries, measuring the checklist's effectiveness using statistical methods like Fleiss' Kappa and Cronbach's alpha.
  • - Results showed moderate reliability, with a mean compliance rate of 61.8% for checklist items, and while most evaluators found it easy to use, certain areas need feedback for future enhancements.
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This study investigated the accuracy of mortality attributions assigned by the US News and World Report (USNWR) to the diabetes and endocrinology specialty. We reviewed medical records of all consecutive Medicare fee-for-service inpatients at Mayo Clinic, Florida (Jacksonville, Florida) with a Medicare Severity Diagnosis Related Group included in the USNWR Diabetes & Endocrinology specialty cohort admitted from November 2018 to April 2022, with documented mortality in our institution's electronic health record within 30 days of the index admission. A clinician adjudicated the primary cause of death, categorizing it as diabetes or endocrine, cancer, failure to thrive, or other.

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  • The study compares attentional performance in children with hypersomnolence (HYP), ADHD, and a control group using behavioral tests and EEG measures.
  • Children with HYP demonstrated slower reaction times and less stability in attention compared to controls, but their EEG results were similar to those of children with ADHD.
  • The findings suggest a link between sleepiness and attentional challenges in HYP, indicating that the BLAST-EEG method could aid in assessing attention issues related to excessive sleepiness.
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Article Synopsis
  • The original publication discusses key concepts and findings relevant to the subject matter.
  • It explores the implications of these findings in a broader context.
  • The article also highlights potential areas for future research or exploration in the field.
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Background: The COVID-19 pandemic introduced unique challenges to healthcare systems, particularly in relation to patient safety and adverse events during hospitalization. There is limited understanding of COVID-19's association with some patient safety indicators (PSIs).

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the impact of COVID-19 infection on the rate of PSI-3 events and its implications on quality metrics.

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Congenital Chagas disease (CCD) is a worldwide neglected problem with significant treatment limitations. This study aimed to evaluate the potential of Copaifera spp. oleoresins (ORs) against Trypanosoma cruzi infection in trophoblast cells (BeWo lineage) and human chorionic villous explants (HCVE).

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Congenital central hypoventilation syndrome (CCHS) is a rare genetic disorder of the autonomic nervous system resulting in decreased brain sensitivity to hypercapnia and hypoxia characterized by a genetic abnormality in the pair-like homeobox 2B (PHOX2B) gene. Most patients have a heterozygous expansion of the polyalanine repeat in exon 3 (PARM), while 10 % of patients have non-PARM (NPARM) mutations that can span the entire gene. The majority of pathogenic variants are de novo, but variants with incomplete penetrance can be identified in the heterozygous state.

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Doxorubicin (DOX) is a potent chemotherapeutic agent used to treat multiple types of cancer, but its clinical application is limited by cardiotoxicity, mainly due to oxidative stress. Curcumin (CUR) is a natural polyphenolic compound with strong antioxidant properties, but its potential protective effects against DOX-induced cardiotoxicity need further investigation. This study aimed to evaluate CUR's efficacy in mitigating DOX-induced oxidative stress in the hearts of BALB/c mice.

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