Post-COVID-19-pandemic changes and clinical characteristics of invasive group a streptococcal infections from 2015 to 2023.

Purpose: Since winter 2022, invasive GAS (iGAS) infections have re-emerged in Europe, causing severe diseases in children and adults. We aimed to examine whether this reported post-pandemic increase was associated with an increased disease severity and/or a shift in clinical disease phenotypes.

Methods: We performed detailed clinical phenotyping of patients hospitalized with iGAS infections at a 1410-bed tertiary German Medical Center from 01/2015 to 09/2023.

Copper and its complexes in medicine: a biochemical approach.

The fundamental role of copper and the recognition of its complexes as important bioactive compounds in vitro and in vivo aroused an ever-increasing interest in these agents as potential drugs for therapeutic intervention in various diseases. The vast array of information available for their bioinorganic properties and mode of action in several biological systems, combined with the new opportunities offered by the flourishing technologies of medicinal chemistry, is creating an exciting scenario for the development of a novel generation of highly active drugs with minimized side effects which could add significantly to the current clinical research and practice. In this paper we attempt to summarize all the available-to-date information on these issues.

Across the Atlantic cooperation to address international challenges in eHealth and health IT: managing toward a common goal.

Purpose: Countries on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean have invested in health information and communication technologies. Since eHealth challenges cross borders a European Union-United States of America conference on public policies relating to health IT and eHealth was held October 20-21, 2008 in Paris, France.

Process: The conference was organized around the four themes: (1) privacy and security, (2) health IT interoperability, (3) deployment and adoption of health IT, and (4) Public Private Collaborative Governance.

eHealth in Europe: from Vision to Reality.

It is now 20 years that the European Union supports research and development of information and communication technologies based tools for healthcare (eHealth). From 1989 till today, funding has continually been increased, initiating new research, complementing Member State initiatives, strengthening European industrial competitiveness, and tackling new health and social problems related to the free movement of people in the EU. By now, many of the earlier visions and dreams have been realised or are close to wider implementation.