Healthcare Application of Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA): Is There Room in the Infectious Disease Setting? A Scoping Review.

: Failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) is a valuable risk analysis tool aimed at predicting the potential failures of a system and preventing them from occurring. Since its initial use, it has also recently been applied to the healthcare setting, which has been made progressively more complex by technological developments and new challenges. Infection prevention and control (IPC) is an area that requires effective strategies.

The ABC of Immune-Mediated Hepatitis during Immunotherapy in Patients with Cancer: From Pathogenesis to Multidisciplinary Management.

Immune-mediated hepatotoxicity (IMH) is not-so-rare complication during treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). This narrative review aims to report the current knowledge on hepatic immune-related adverse events (irAEs) during immunotherapy from pathogenesis to multidisciplinary management. The majority of cases of IMH are asymptomatic and only a few patients may have clinical conditions.

The Prognostic Role of Diagnostic Criteria for COVID-19-Associated Pulmonary Aspergillosis: A Cross-Sectional Retrospective Study.

Several criteria exist to diagnose pulmonary aspergillosis with varying degrees of certainty in specific populations, including oncohaematological patients (EORTC/MSG), ICU patients (mAspICU) and COVID-19 patients (ECMM). At the beginning of the pandemic, however, the diagnosis of COVID-19-Associated Pulmonary Aspergillosis (CAPA) could not be performed easily, and the decision to treat (DTT) was empirical. In this cross-sectional retrospective study including patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and suspicion of CAPA, we studied the concordance between the DTT and the three diagnostic criteria using Cohen's coefficient, and then we identified the factors associated with the DTT and corrected them by treatment to study the influence of the diagnostic criteria on survival.

Impact of proton pump inhibitors on the onset of gastrointestinal immune-related adverse events during immunotherapy.

Introduction: The gut microbiota (GM) can influence the pathogenesis of immune-mediated adverse events (irAEs). Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) can affect the integrity of GM, but their role in promoting irAEs is still poorly understood.

Methods: In this retrospective single-center cohort study, the primary endpoint was the evaluation of the incidence of gastrointestinal (GI) irAEs in cancer patients on PPIs (exposed) versus cancer patients who were not on PPIs (unexposed).

A territory-wide opportunistic, hospital-based HCV screening in the general population from northern Italy: The 1969-1989 birth-cohort.

Background And Aim: The World Health Organization (WHO) goal of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) elimination by 2030 rose awareness about the need of screening plans, worldwide. In Italy, graduated screening starting from people born in 1969-1989 might be the most-effective strategy. We performed an opportunistic HCV screening study in the general population attending health facilities in Lombardy region, Northern Italy.

Dynamic NLR and PLR in Predicting COVID-19 Severity: A Retrospective Cohort Study.

Introduction: The hyperinflammation phase of severe SARS-CoV-2 is characterised by complete blood count alterations. In this context, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) can be used as prognostic factors. We studied NLR and PLR trends at different timepoints and computed optimal cutoffs to predict four outcomes: use of continuous positive airways pressure (CPAP), intensive care unit (ICU) admission, invasive ventilation and death.

Postvaccination immune-mediated hepatitis: what do we really know?

Tweetable abstract The percentage of patients with immune-mediated vaccine-associated hepatitis is minimal compared with the number of patients vaccinated worldwide.

Implementation of an antimicrobial stewardship program in the Vascular Surgery ward of a university tertiary care hospital in Pavia, Northern Italy.

Purpose: The commitment of multidisciplinary teams in antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) is often inadequately considered, especially in surgical wards. We wanted to evaluate clinical, microbiological, and pharmacological outcomes before and after the implementation of an ASP in the Vascular Surgery ward of Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, a tertiary care hospital in Pavia, Italy.

Methods: This was a quasi-experimental quality-improvement study.

Long-COVID in Patients with Cancer Previously Treated with Early Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Therapies in an Out-of-Hospital Setting: A Single-Center Experience.

The incidence of long COVID in a cohort of patients with cancer with or without previous treatment with early therapies anti-SARS-CoV-2 in an out-of-hospital setting have to be elucidated. We prospectively enrolled all patients treated for a solid tumor at the department of Medical Oncology of the Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo with a positive SARS-CoV-2 antigen or polymerase chain reaction test from January to September 2022 (Omicron surge). Ninety-seven patients answered the survey questions by telephone at least 12 weeks after COVID-19 diagnosis in order to evaluate the incidence of long COVID symptoms.

Occult hepatitis B in patients with cancer during immunotherapy with or without chemotherapy: A real-life retrospective single-center cohort study.

Introduction: Few data about the safety of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) in the patients with solid tumor with Occult Hepatitis B Virus (OBI) are available. According to the Taormina Workshop on Occult HBV Infection Faculty Members we defined as potential-OBI (pOBI) the HBV DNA negativity with anti-hepatitis B core antibody (anti-HBc) positivity (pOBI seropositive), and the patients with HBsAg-negative and anti-HBc-negative and Hepatitis B surface antibody (anti-HBs)-negative are defined pOBI seronegative. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of OBI in patients with solid tumors undergoing ICIs with or without chemotherapy and the incidence of reactivation (HBVr).

Early detection of variants of concern via funnel plots of regional reproduction numbers.

Early detection of the emergence of a new variant of concern (VoC) is essential to develop strategies that contain epidemic outbreaks. For example, knowing in which region a VoC starts spreading enables prompt actions to circumscribe the geographical area where the new variant can spread, by containing it locally. This paper presents 'funnel plots' as a statistical process control method that, unlike tools whose purpose is to identify rises of the reproduction number ([Formula: see text]), detects when a regional [Formula: see text] departs from the national average and thus represents an anomaly.

The Bio-Diversity and the Role of Gut Microbiota in Postmenopausal Women with Luminal Breast Cancer Treated with Aromatase Inhibitors: An Observational Cohort Study.

The interactions between aromatase inhibitors (AI) in breast cancer (BC) and gut microbiota (GM) have not been completely established yet. The aim of the study is to evaluate the bio-diversity of GM and the relationship between GM, inflammation and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) in postmenopausal women with BC during adjuvant AI treatment compared to women with disease relapse during or after one year of AI therapy ("endocrine-resistant"). We conducted a monocenter observational case-control study.

Assessing the Efficacy of Early Therapies against SARS-CoV-2 in Hematological Patients: A Real-Life Study from a COVID-19 Referral Centre in Northern Italy.

Early therapies to prevent severe COVID-19 have an unclear impact on patients with hematological malignancies. The aim of this study was to assess their efficacy in this group of high-risk patients with COVID-19 in preventing hospitalizations and reducing the SARS-CoV-2 shedding. This was a single-center, retrospective, observational study conducted in the Fondazione IRCSS Policlinico San Matteo of Pavia, Northern Italy.

Effectiveness of the available early therapies in reducing severe COVID-19 in non-hospitalized patients with solid tumors on active treatment.

Emergency use authorization of drugs against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) by regulatory authorities has provided new options to treat high-risk outpatients with mild-to-moderate Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). We conducted an ambispective cohort study of patients with solid tumors on active treatment to examine the effectiveness of these drugs in preventing the progression to severe COVID-19. Sixty-nine patients with solid tumors (43 women, 26 men; median age 61, range 26-80) reported a laboratory-confirmed diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Despite Vaccination: A Real-Life Experience of Severe and Life-Threatening COVID-19 in Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Patients.

Some vaccinated individuals still develop severe COVID-19, and the underlying causes are not entirely understood. We aimed at identifying demographic, clinical, and coinfection characteristics of vaccinated patients who were hospitalized. We also hypothesized that coinfections might play a role in disease severity and mortality.

Case report: Successful outcome of COVID-19 in the context of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: The impact of the anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccine and early remdesivir.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is a major issue. None of the published papers have reported data on the outcome of HSCT patients with COVID-19 according to the vaccination status and the short course of remdesivir (RDV). Therefore, we present the case of a 22-year-old man with relapsed testicular non-seminomatous germ-cell tumor who was diagnosed with COVID-19 during his first auto-HSCT.

Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia Due to MRSA vs. MSSA: What Should Guide Empiric Therapy?

The guidelines on ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) recommend an empiric therapy against methicillin-resistant (MRSA) according to its prevalence rate. Considering the MRSA and MSSA VAP prevalence over the last 9 years in our tertiary care hospital, we assessed the clinical value of the MRSA nasal-swab screening in either predicting or ruling out MRSA VAP. We extracted the data of 1461 patients with positive bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL).

Direct-Acting Antivirals as Primary Treatment for Hepatitis C Virus-Associated Indolent Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas: The BArT Study of the Fondazione Italiana Linfomi.

Purpose: We prospectively treated patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV)-associated indolent lymphomas with genotype-appropriate direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) with the aim to evaluate virologic and hematologic outcomes. No prospective studies in this setting have been published so far.

Methods: FIL_BArT is a prospective, multicenter, phase II trial that evaluated genotype-appropriate DAAs in untreated HCV-positive patients with indolent lymphomas without criteria for immediate conventional antilymphoma treatment.

The infection risk after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt: A multiple competing risk analysis from a tertiary care center.

Background: Infections following transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) placement have been poorly described. We aim to investigate the rate and the potential predictors of infections occurring after TIPS placement.

Methods: Single center, retrospective, observational study.

Development of hepatitis triggered by SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in patient with cancer during immunotherapy: a case report.

Patients with cancer have a higher risk of severe COVID-19, and expert consensus advocates for COVID-19 vaccination in this population. Some cases of autoimmune hepatitis have been described after the administration of COVID-19 vaccine in the people in apparently good health. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) are responsible for a wide spectrum of immune-related adverse events (irAEs).

Mortality due to COVID-19 during the pandemic: A comparison of first, secondo and third SMAtteo COvid19 REgistry (SMACORE).

COVID-19 tide had shattered on European countries with three distinct and tough waves, from March and April, 2020; October and November, 2020 and March and April, 2021 respectively. We observed a 50% reduction in the hazard of death during both wave II and III compared with wave I (HR 0.54, 95%CI 0.