Causes and length of stay of readmission among individuals with traumatic spinal cord injury: a prospective observational cohort study.

Background: Secondary conditions may reduce function and participation in individuals with chronic Spinal Cord Injury (SCI). The knowledge of reasons for readmission to the hospital may be enlightening to prevent them and remodel the health services.

Study Design: Multicenter prospective observational study of all consecutive readmissions of persons with SCI after rehabilitation completion.

Changes in gut microbiota in the acute phase after spinal cord injury correlate with severity of the lesion.

After spinal cord injury (SCI), patients face many physical and psychological issues including intestinal dysfunction and comorbidities, strongly affecting quality of life. The gut microbiota has recently been suggested to influence the course of the disease in these patients. However, to date only two studies have profiled the gut microbiota in SCI patients, months after a traumatic injury.

Relationship Between Level of Economic Development, Age, and Etiology of Spinal Cord Injury: A Cross-Sectional Survey From 22 Countries.

Objective: To examine relationships between age and spinal cord injury (SCI) and cause of SCI and how this depends on economic development.

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Setting: Community, 22 countries representing all stages of economic development.

Traumatic spinal cord injury in Italy 20 years later: current epidemiological trend and early predictors of rehabilitation outcome.

Study Design: Multicenter prospective observational study of people with acute traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI) admitted to rehabilitation.

Objectives: To update epidemiological characteristics of a TSCI Italian population and verify the impact of patient characteristics at admission on two outcomes: functional gain (SCIM III) and discharge destination.

Setting: Thirty-one SCI centers for comprehensive rehabilitation in 13 Italian regions.

Incidence of traumatic spinal cord injury in Italy during 2013-2014: a population-based study.

Study Design: Observational prospective population-based incidence study.

Objectives: The main objective of this study was to assess the incidence of traumatic spinal cord injuries (TSCIs) and incidence rates, in order to provide estimates by age, gender, characteristics and cause.

Setting: This study was conducted at acute-care spinal cord injury (SCI) hospitals and SCI centers from 11 Italian regions, between 1 October 2013 and 30 September 2014.

Italian registry of cardiac magnetic resonance.

Objectives: Forty sites were involved in this multicenter and multivendor registry, which sought to evaluate indications, spectrum of protocols, impact on clinical decision making and safety profile of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR).

Materials And Methods: Data were prospectively collected on a 6-month period and included 3376 patients (47.2 ± 19 years; range 1-92 years).

Predictors of changes in sentimental and sexual life after traumatic spinal cord injury.

Objective: To investigate changes and identify predictors in interpersonal functioning and sexual life after traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Design: Prospective, multicenter, follow-up observational study.

Setting: Subjects at home, interviewed by phone during a 6-month period, 3.

Sport, free time and hobbies in people with spinal cord injury.

Study Design: Prospective, multicenter follow-up (F-U) observational study.

Objectives: To investigate the changes in participation and sports practice of people after spinal cord injury (SCI) and their impact on perceived quality of life (QoL).

Methods: The questionnaire investigated the health status and management of clinical conditions and attendance of social integration, occupation, autonomy, car driving, sentimental relationships and perceived QoL in a SCI population 4 years after the first rehabilitation hospitalization.

Occurrence and predictors of employment after traumatic spinal cord injury: the GISEM Study.

Study Design: Multicenter, prospective study.

Objectives: To assess the occurrence and predictors of return to work after traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Setting: Italian rehabilitation centers.

Age influences rehabilitative outcomes in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI).

Background And Aims: To define differences in rehabilitative outcome after Spinal Cord Injury (SCI), according to age at injury.

Methods: This is a prospective, observational, follow-up study. Completion of a questionnaire administered by a psychologist through a telephone interview to subjects discharged about 4 years previously from 22 SCI centers in Italy, who had already participated in a prospective multicenter study.

[Occupational therapy and return to work of the people with traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI)].

The aim of this study was to evaluate the employment condition of persons with TSCI 4 years after discharge from rehabilitation facilities, as well as the factors related to better outcome. In the follow-up we interviewed 403 persons. We recorded the following variables: current employment status, causes of unemployment and their correlation with demographic status, clinical status and other information.

Hospital care of postacute spinal cord lesion patients in Italy: analysis of readmissions into the GISEM study.

Objectives: To define the clinical characteristics of hospital readmissions of subjects with spinal cord lesion.

Design: Prospective, multicenter, 2-yr survey in 32 spinal cord lesion centers in Italy. Readmitted traumatic or nontraumatic spinal cord lesion patients were included.

A multicentre follow-up of clinical aspects of traumatic spinal cord injury.

Study Design: Prospective, multicentred follow-up (FU) observational study.

Objectives: Prospectively evaluate survival, complications, re-admissions and maintenance of clinical outcome in people experiencing traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Setting: Seven spinal units and 17 rehabilitation centres participating in the previous GISEM (ie Italian Group for the Epidemiological Study of Spinal Cord Injuries) study.

Follow-up in persons with traumatic spinal cord injury: questionnaire reliability.

Unlabelled: AIM. The aim of this study is to show the compliance and the test-retest reliability of the questionnaire.

Methods: Construction of a structured questionnaire to perform a phone follow-up in 511 persons with traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) 4 years after discharge from the first rehabilitative hospitalization.

Pharmacological interventions for spasticity following spinal cord injury: results of a Cochrane systematic review.

Unlabelled: The aim of this paper was to assess the effectiveness and safety of baclofen, dantrolene, tizanidine and any other drugs for the treatment of long-term spasticity in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients, as well as the effectiveness and safety of different routes of administration of baclofen. A systematic review of randomised controlled trials (RCTs), within the Cochrane Collaboration Injuries Group, was carried out. The Cochrane Injuries Group Specialised Register, the Cochrane Controlled Trials Register, MEDLINE, EMBASE and CINAHL were searched up to July 2006 without language restriction.

Spinal cord lesion management in Italy: a 2-year survey.

Design: Prospective 2-year survey from 1 February 1997 to 31 January 1999.

Objectives: To compare the route from injury to rehabilitation, and the outcome of care in a large sample of traumatic (T) and nontraumatic (NT) spinal cord lesion (SCL) patients at their 'first admission'.

Setting: T and NT SCI patients consecutively admitted to 37 SCL centres in Italy.

An Italian survey of traumatic spinal cord injury. The Gruppo Italiano Studio Epidemiologico Mielolesioni study.

Objective: To describe the etiology, clinical presentation, complications, outcome indicators, and links between emergency and acute intervention and rehabilitation of patients with traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI).

Design: Multicenter prospective study involving patients with SCI discharged, after rehabilitative care, between February 1, 1997, and January 31, 1999.

Setting: Thirty-two Italian hospitals involved in SCI rehabilitation.

[Chemoembolization of hepatocarcinoma. Six years' experience].

This study was aimed at retrospectively assessing the effectiveness of transarterial chemoembolization by reviewing our six years' experience. From January, 1988, to December, 1993, chemoembolization was performed in more than 400 patients. Of them, 321 patients with complete follow-up were selected.

[Coronary angioplasty during acute myocardial infarction].

Background: Percutaneous coronary angioplasty (PTCA) is an effective method to achieve myocardial reperfusion in acute myocardial infarction. In order to identify the predictors of primary success and major complications, we reviewed our experience in 107 patients (pts) who underwent PTCA of a totally occluded infarct-related coronary artery (IRA) within 24 hours (h) after the onset of symptoms.

Methods And Results: PTCA was successful in 92 pts (86%); PTCA failed without complications in 9 pts (8.

Protein tyrosine kinase inhibition and cell proliferation: is the [3H]-thymidine uptake assay representative of the T-lymphocyte proliferation rate?

T-cell growth is controlled to a large degree by extracellular signals that bind to specific receptors on the surface of cells. A number of these receptors have intrinsic protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) activity. Their action on second messenger generation, and thus on cell proliferation, has been indirectly demonstrated by the decrease in [3H]-thymidine (TdR) uptake that follows co-stimulation of T-cells with mitogens and PTK inhibitors such as genistein (GEN).

Dexamethasone and interleukins modulate apoptosis of murine thymocytes and peripheral T-lymphocytes.

Glucocorticoid hormones (GCH) induce apoptotic cell death in immature thymocytes through an active process, characterized by extensive DNA fragmentation into oligonucleosomal subunits. This requires macromolecular synthesis and is inhibited by interleukins (ILs). We performed experiments to analyse the possible effect of GCH on more differentiated lymphocytes, i.

The natural tyrosine kinase inhibitor genistein produces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in Jurkat T-leukemia cells.

Genistein, a natural isoflavonoid phytoestrogen, is a strong inhibitor of protein tyrosine kinases. We analyzed the effects of genistein on in vitro growth, cell-cycle progression and chromatin structure of Jurkat cells, a T-cell leukemia line with a constitutively increased tyrosine phosphorylation pattern. Exposure of in vitro cultured Jurkat cells to genistein resulted in a dose-dependent, growth inhibition.

Growth-inhibitory effects of the natural phyto-oestrogen genistein in MCF-7 human breast cancer cells.

Genistein, a natural isoflavonoid phyto-oestrogen, inhibits the tyrosine kinase activity of growth factor receptors and oncogene products, as well as the in vitro growth of some tumour cell lines. The low incidence of breast cancer in countries with a flavonoid-rich soy-based diet and the protection afforded by soy-derived products against experimental mammary tumours in rats suggest that genistein and other isoflavonoid compounds may exert an anti-tumour activity. We analysed the effects of genistein on cell number and cell cycle progression (flow cytometric analysis of propidium iodide-stained nuclei) of human breast cancer cells (MCF-7) in vitro.