Bioelectrical Impedance Vector Analysis (BIVA) for the monitoring of body composition in pregnancy.

Background/objectives: During pregnancy, body composition alterations can be considered as markers of complications and in this context, a non-invasive and low-cost method such as Bioelectrical Impedance Vector Analysis (BIVA), can be employed to monitor such changes. This study aimed at identifying body compartments trend during physiological pregnancy.

Subjects/methods: Classic and specific BIVA variables have been measured in a sample of 37 pregnant women approximately every 4 weeks of gestation and once postpartum.

Investigating the effect of a passive trunk exoskeleton on local discomfort, perceived effort and spatial distribution of back muscles activity.

This study aimed at determining the effect of a passive exoskeleton on local perceived discomfort, perceived effort and low back muscles' activity. Thirteen volunteers performed two simulated working tasks with and without the exoskeleton. In the static task, the exoskeleton decreased the lumbar perceived discomfort, the perceived effort and the level of low back muscles' activity (∼10%) while increasing discomfort in the chest and feet.

Tractor Rollover Protection: Is the Incorrect Use of Foldable Rollover Protective Structures Due to Human or to Technical Issues?

Objective: To identify the critical behaviors that may hinder the correct use of foldable rollover protective structures (FROPS) on tractors and to explore the influence of user factors and FROPS technical characteristics.

Background: FROPS are effective in preventing fatal injuries in rollover accidents if they are in the upright position. However, many farmers leave FROPS folded down.

Risk Assessment for Musculoskeletal Disorders in Forestry: A Comparison between RULA and REBA in the Manual Feeding of a Wood-Chipper.

The analysis of the postural attitude of workers during the interaction with workstation's elements and working environment is essential in the evaluation and prevention of biomechanical overload risk in workplaces. RULA (Rapid Upper Limb Assessment) and REBA (Rapid Entire Body Assessment) are the two easiest methods for postural risk assessment in the workplace. Few studies investigated postural risk in forestry sector with regard to human⁻machine interaction, in particular manually fed wood-chippers.

Anal transitional zone adenocarcinoma following restorative proctocolectomy for ulcerative colitis: case report and review of literature.

Conservative proctocolectomy with ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) has become the intervention of choice for severe ulcerative colitis (UC) requiring surgery. Sporadically, the occurrence of carcinoma arising in or near the ileo-anal pouch after IPAA for UC has been reported. This issue is of utmost importance as an endoscopic follow-up is mandatory also after the operation.

Side-to-side stapled anastomosis strongly reduces anastomotic leak rates in Crohn's disease surgery.

Purpose: Anastomotic configuration may influence anastomotic leak rates. The aim of this study was to determine whether a side-to-side stapled ileocolonic anastomosis produces lower anastomotic leak rates than those with a handsewn end-to-end ileocolonic anastomosis after ileocecal or ileocolonic resection for Crohn's disease.

Methods: A series of 122 consecutive patients underwent elective ileocecal or ileocolonic resection with ileocolonic anastomosis for Crohn's disease from January 1998 to June 2003: 71 had handsewn end-to-end anastomosis and 51 had side-to-side stapled anastomosis.

[Intestinal fistulas in Crohn disease].

Background: Only a part of patients suffering from Crohn's disease has enteric fistulae and a different behaviour of Crohn's disease with fistulae is reported in the literature. Aim of this paper is to evaluate if enteric fistulae are a factor conditioning mortality, morbidity and overall postoperative course, in patients with Crohn's disease.

Methods: Data on the postoperative course of 126 laparotomies for Crohn's disease, performed between November 1993 and July 1998, have been prospectively examined.

[Indications for the use of somatostatin and octreotide in digestive pathology].

The authors report their experience about the use of somatostatin (SST-14) (47 cases) and its analog octreotide (15 cases) in gastrointestinal diseases. On the basis of own clinical data and literature review, at present they think useful SST-14 employ in the upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding and acute pancreatitis. Out of the emergency, they consider favourable the use of octreotide, above all because of the easy subcutaneous administration's route.

[Diagnostic and therapeutic approach to incidentally detected adrenal tumors].

The authors report their experience relative to 12 cases of adrenal "incidentaloma" surgically treated. All masses removed had a main diameter larger than 3 cm. In all patients an anterior median transperitoneal incision was performed.

[The surgical treatment of strangulated inguinal-crural hernias in geriatric patients].

The authors describe their own experience relative to 79 patients, aged 70 years or older, who underwent, during three years, emergency surgical intervention for inguinal or crural strangulated hernia. They report a postoperative mortality rate of 8.8% and a postoperative morbidity rate of 40%.

[Surgical treatment of hepatic hydatidosis. Current trends].

The authors report their experience relative to 33 patients with hepatic hydatidosis surgically treated during the years 1987 through 1993. Various surgical techniques were employed: subtotal (21 cases) and total (5 cases) cystopericystectomy, partial pericystectomy (12 cases), hepatic resection (2 cases). The postoperative rate complication was 30% (4 cases of cholangitis, 4 biliary fistulas, 1 suppuration of residual cavity and 1 colonic fistula).

[Indications for reimplantation of the inferior mesenteric artery in the course of prosthetic substitution for the subrenal aorta].

The authors report their experience relative to 8 patients who underwent IMA revascularization during infrarenal AAA repair. The Carrel patch technique was employed in all cases operated. With this procedure no ischemic intestinal complication occurred.

[Inguinal hernia containing bladder and ureter. A clinical case].

The authors describe an uncommon case of inguinal hernia with bladder and ureter content. Bladder herniation preoperative diagnosis has been achieved by means of clinical history, objective and instrumental examination (cystography). As usually happens, ureteral herniation was a chance finding; this could involve a trick in surgery setting up and doubts in the treatment methods.

[Autotransfusion: its use in a case of spontaneous splenic rupture in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma].

The article refers to autotransfusion experience in a patient affected by lymphoma (not Hodgkin type), who reached surgery for haemoperitoneum caused by the spontaneous rupture of the spleen. Considering the pathology, this method brought unpredictable variations in the hemochrome thus leading to a deep reflection on the limitations of the use of autotransfusion.

[Acute intestinal ischemia. Diagnosis and surgical treatment].

The authors report their experience of 32 patients operated for acute intestinal ischemia. A massive intestinal infarction was diagnosed in 24 cases. The overall postoperative mortality rate was 72%.

[Biliary ileus. Review of the literature and report of 22 further cases].

A critical review of the world literature of the main authors in the past twenty years (871 cases) and the personal series (1975-1987: 22 cases) shows that biliary ileus is a rare, serious pathology with an emergency surgical indication. The numerical data collected confirm the need for a conservative surgical attitude, limited to the removal of the obstructing cause. Some authors have maintained that it is possible to treat the occlusion and the bilio-digestive fistula and carry out the cholecystectomy contemporaneously.

[Tumors of the large intestine in acute phase].

A retrospective study was carried out on 406 patients operated on for tumours of the large bowel in the acute stage between 1975 and 1985. 285 cases were operated immediately, 53 for acute perforations and 232 for complete occlusions, whereas 121 were operated on with deferred urgency. The surgical approach was generally conservative in 230 cases while in 159 immediate tumour resection was carried out.