Posterior spinal fusion in patients with spinal muscular atrophy: a surgical technique to allow intrathecally inject nusinersen.

Background: Nusinersen, the recently approved medical therapy in the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), has revolutionized the natural history of this disease. Until now, surgical treatment of scoliosis in SMA patients was an exclusion criterion for drug therapy. In fact, the bone graft positioned posteriorly during surgery, in order to obtain a solid fusion, prevented the lumbar puncture necessary for the intrathecal administration of the drug.

Designing a new scoring system (QualyP Score) correlating the management of cardiopulmonary bypass to postoperative outcomes.

Aim: The aim of this study was to ascertain if a score, directly derived from CPB records, could correlate to major postoperative outcomes.

Methods: An additive score (QualyP Score) was created from 10 parameters: peak lactate value during CPB, peak VCO(2)i, lowest DO(2)i/VCO(2)i, peak respiratory quotient, CPB time, cross-clamp time, lowest CPB temperature, circulatory arrest, ultrafiltration during CPB, number of packed red cells transfused intraoperatively. The PerfSCORE was calculated, as well.

Microbiological and clinical periodontal effects of fixed orthodontic appliances in pediatric patients.

The aim of this study was to evaluate changes of microbiota in ten patients undergoing orthodontic treatment. For each patient clinical examination of gingival index (GI) and plaque index (PI) were performed at the first molars at: baseline (T1), 2 (T2), 4 (T3) and 12 weeks (T4). At the same time subgingival plaque and tongue samples were taken for the microbiological study.

Antimicrobial susceptibility and beta-lactamase production of anaerobic and aerobic bacteria isolated from pus specimens from orofacial infections.

Most suppurative orofacial infections are polymicrobial. Information regarding the antimicrobial susceptibility of the microorganisms involved can be useful in the choice of an effective antibiotic therapy. In this study we determined the antimicrobial susceptibility of a total 235 anaerobic and aerobic bacteria recently isolated from pus specimens of orofacial infections.

Dental implants with locking taper connection versus screwed connection: microbiologic and scanning electron microscope study.

The aim of this study is to carry out an analysis of the Fixture-Abutment Interfaces (FAI), comparing different connection systems, to evaluate the role of geometric discrepancy, which is present between the abutment and the fixture, in favoring the permeability to bacterial colonization. Two types of commercially available FAI were studied, 16 screwed FAI (Sweden-Martina Italia) (4 of Ø 3.8 mm diameter, 4 of Ø 4.