The main contraindication to the anti-SARS CoV2 vaccine is an anaphylactic reaction to a vaccine component. The need to vaccinate allergic people who are at higher risk can be of public health interest and this report shows a case of an allergic reaction to PEG of a HCW who had received the first dose of anti-SARS CoV2 vaccine. For 5 h after the administration of the vaccine, she had the appearance of erythematous spots on the face and neck, and a feeling of a slurred mouth and hoarseness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground Mortality risk and outcome in critically ill patients can be predicted by scoring systems, such as APACHE and SAPS. The identification of prognostic biomarkers, simple to measure upon admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) is an open issue. The aim of this observational study was to assess the prognostic value of plasma mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin (MR-proADM) at ICU admission in non-selected patients in comparison to Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II (APACHEII) and Simplified Acute Physiology Score II (SAPSII) scores.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLiver transplantation is the only curative alternative for selected patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who are not eligible for resection and/or with decompensated cirrhosis. According to Milan criteria the 5-year survival rate is 70-85%, with a recurrence-free survival of 75%. However, HCC recurrence rate after liver transplantation remains a significant problem in the clinical practice.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the main cause of death in patients with cirrhosis, with an increasing incidence worldwide. Sorafenib is the choice therapy for advanced HCC. Over time several randomized phase III trials have been performed testing sunitinib, brivanib, linifanib and other molecules in head-to-head comparison with Sorafenib as first-line treatment for advanced-stage HCC, but none of these has so far been registered in this setting.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Radio-frequency ablation (RFA) has been employed in the treatment of Barcelona Clinic Liver Cancer (BCLC) early stage hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) as curative treatments.
Aim: To assess the effectiveness and the safety of RFA in patients with early HCC and compensated cirrhosis.
Methods: A cohort of 151 consecutive patients with early stage HCC (122 Child-Pugh class A and 29 class B patients) treated with RFA were enrolled.
Background: Abdominal surgery carries significant morbidity and mortality, which is in turn associated with an enormous use of healthcare resources. We describe the clinical course of 30 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) patients who underwent abdominal surgery and showed severe infections caused by Klebsiella pneumoniae sequence type (ST) 258 producing K. pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC-Kp).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has a high incidence all over the world. Even if the primary end point of treatment of HCC is survival, radiological response could be a surrogate end point of survival, and could have a key role in clinical management. Since 1950 several radiological response criteria have been applied; however, it was not until 2000 that specific criteria for HCC were introduced by the European Association for the Study of the Liver (EASL), and these were then standardized in 2010 with the development of the modified Response Evaluation Criteria for Solid Tumors (mRECIST) for HCC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHepatocellular carcinoma is a major health problem. It is the sixth most common cancer worldwide and the third most common cause of cancer-related death. Despite the availability of several treatment opportunities, diagnosis is still made in an advanced phase, limiting application of most therapeutic choices that currently are based on the Barcelona Clinic Cancer Liver Classification and include surgical resection, orthotopic liver transplantation and ablative methods for very early and early disease, arterial chemoembolization for intermediate stages and systemic therapy with sorafenib for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCurr Med Res Opin
June 2013
Background: The different operational definitions of breakthrough cancer pain (BTcP) has generated unclear epidemiological data.
Methods: A consecutive sample of patients was categorized on the basis of their background pain intensity, background analgesic treatment, and the presence of BTcP.
Results: A total of 265 patients were surveyed; 117 patients had background pain and 91 patients presented peaks of pain intensity distinguishable from background pain.