Background And Aims: Homocysteine (Hcy) levels are elevated in different conditions, including cardiovascular diseases (CVD), diabetes, and metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD). In this observational retrospective study, we analyzed Hcy levels in a population of 901 outpatients, considering its putative etiological role in MASLD.
Methods: A total of 901 outpatients underwent physical and biochemical evaluations.
Background: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is defined by the presence of hepatic steatosis, detected on ultrasonography (US) imaging or histology, and at least one of criteria for Metabolic Syndrome diagnosis. Simple non-invasive tests (NITs) have been proposed as an acceptable alternative when US and biopsy are not available or feasible but have not been validated for MASLD. In this observational study, we investigated the reliability of NITs for MASLD detection and whether sex-differences in screening methods should be considered.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cutaneous polyarteritis nodosa (cPAN) is a form of medium-sized vessel necrotizing vasculitis. It is a rare, skin-limited variant of polyarteritis nodosa, characterized by dermal and subcutaneous tissue involvement. The most common findings in cPAN include digital gangrene, livedo reticularis, and tender subcutaneous nodules.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Thyroid cancer incidence is increasing, and adiposity-related conditions are gaining space in its pathogenesis. In this study, we aimed to detect any anthropometric, biohumoral, and clinical features that might be associated with thyroid nodule malignancy, potentially representing novel non-invasive markers of thyroid cancer.
Materials And Methods: The study was conducted in a group of 142 consecutive outpatients (47 men and 95 women) who underwent fine-needle aspiration biopsy/cytology (FNAB/C) due to suspicion of malignancy from January 2018 to September 2022.
Ultrasound (US) is a useful tool in diagnosis and follow-up of portal vein aneurysms (PVA). In the absence of international surgical guidelines on PVAs, US can be effectively used in follow-up of asymptomatic patients not suitable for surgery.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction And Objectives: Despite chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is still a global burden as the high morbidity and mortality, the recently approved direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) permit a very high rate of sustained virologic response (SVR) in these patients. The clinical improvement due to viral eradication is being documented, however it is not clear why a subset of patients does not benefit in terms of fibrosis regression or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. Aim of the study was to assess the hepatic stiffness regression at SVR24 and detect factors impacting stiffness course.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMetabolic Syndrome (MS) is characterized by a low-grade inflammatory state causing an alteration of non-invasive indexes derived from blood count, namely monocyte-to-HDL ratio (MHR), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), lymphocyte-to-monocyte ratio (LMR). We analyse a population of 771 subjects (394 controls and 377 MS patients) to evaluate the best predictive index of MS. The diagnosis of MS was made according to the 2006 criteria of the International Diabetes Federation (IDF).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a clinical condition potentially promoting the development of atherosclerotic disease. To date, the clinical impact of elevated serum homocysteine (Hcy) levels in MetS is still under discussion. The aim of this cross sectional study was to evaluate the relationship between MetS and hyperhomocysteinemia and the potential role of Hcy in the pathogenesis of atherosclerotic complications of MetS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: The correlation between liver stiffness (LS) variations and portal blood flow (PBF) modifications induced by a standardized liquid meal consumption and the clinical relevance of this matter are two aspects not yet fully elucidated. Herein, we evaluated the variations of LS and PBF after a standardized liquid meal intake in patients with chronic liver disease.
Material And Methods: PBF and LS were determined after an overnight fasting period in 54 patients.