Predicting survival in patients with severe heart failure: Risk score validation in the HELP-HF cohort.

Aims: Accurate selection of patients with severe heart failure (HF) who might benefit from advanced therapies is crucial. The present study investigates the performance of the available risk scores aimed at predicting the risk of mortality in patients with severe HF.

Methods And Results: The risk of 1-year mortality was estimated in patients with severe HF enrolled in the HELP-HF cohort according to the MAGGIC, 3-CHF, ADHF/NT-proBNP, and GWTG-HF risk scores, the number of criteria of the 2018 HFA-ESC definition of advanced HF, I NEED HELP markers, domains fulfilled of the 2019 HFA-ESC definition of frailty, the frailty index, and the INTERMACS profile.

Digital Health Interventions to Promote Physical Activity in Community-Dwelling Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Semiquantitative Analysis.

Objectives: Physical activity (PA) is crucial for older adults' wellbeing. Digital health interventions (DHIs) are important, however a synthesis aimed at healthy community-dwelling OA is lacking. This study aims to synthesize DHIs effect on PA levels among community-dwelling 60-year-old adults or older.

Prognostic role of TAPSE to PASP ratio in outpatients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction.

Aims: Few data are available regarding the role of tricuspid annulus plane systolic excursion to pulmonary artery systolic pressure (TAPSE/PASP), a measurement of right ventricular to pulmonary artery coupling, in patients with chronic heart failure and left ventricular systolic dysfunction.

Methods And Results: This retrospective single-centre study included outpatients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (ejection fraction ≤ 50%) evaluated between January 2022 and December 2022. TAPSE/PASP was evaluated as a continuous variable and as tertiles according to its value on the first visit.

The Synergistic Effects of Incobotulinum Toxin and Physiotherapy in a Rare Case of Paraparesis in a 7-Year-Old Affected by Klippel-Feil Syndrome Related to an Gene Mutation: A Case Report.

Background: Klippel-Feil disease is a condition characterized by a defect in the spine, consisting of the fusion or non-separation of two or more vertebrae of the cervical tract. It affects 1 in every 50,000 newborns, and the pathogenesis remains unknown to date, although the role of certain genes that are involved in segmentation processes is being studied. A single case of a genetic Myosin Heavy Chain 3 () mutation is described here.

Contemporary Role of Positron Emission Tomography (PET) in Endocarditis: A Narrative Review.

Endocarditis, a serious infectious disease, remains a diagnostic challenge in contemporary clinical practice. The advent of advanced imaging modalities has contributed significantly to the improved understanding and management of this complex disease. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging has shown remarkable potential in improving the diagnostic accuracy of endocarditis.

The Effectiveness of Combining Botulinum Toxin Type A and Therapeutic Exercise in Treating Spasticity in a Patient with Complicated Stiff-Person Syndrome: A Case Report.

Stiff-person syndrome is rare and disabling autoimmune condition that most frequently affects women, with no real predisposition by race. Diagnosis is often arduous, which is why patients concomitantly suffer from anxiety and depression. To date, drug therapy is based on the use of benzodiazepines, barbiturates, and baclofen.

Exposure to environmental pollutants selects for xenobiotic-degrading functions in the human gut microbiome.

Environmental pollutants from different chemical families may reach the gut microbiome, where they can be metabolized and transformed. However, how our gut symbionts respond to the exposure to environmental pollution is still underexplored. In this observational, cohort study, we aim to investigate the influence of environmental pollution on the gut microbiome composition and potential activity by shotgun metagenomics.

Endothelial Dysfunction in Heart Failure: What Is Its Role?

The endothelium is a continuous layer of cells that coats the interior walls of arteries, capillaries, and veins. It has an essential regulatory role in hemostatic function, vascular tone, inflammation, and platelet activity. Endothelial dysfunction is characterized by a shift to a proinflammatory and prothrombic state, and it could have a bidirectional relationship with heart failure (HF).

Medical therapy of cardiogenic shock: Contemporary use of inotropes and vasopressors.

Cardiogenic shock is a primary cardiac disorder that results in both clinical and biochemical evidence of tissue hypoperfusion and can lead to multi-organ failure and death depending on its severity. Inadequate cardiac contractility or cardiac power secondary to acute myocardial infarction remains the most frequent cause of cardiogenic shock, although its contribution has declined over the past two decades, compared with other causes. Despite some advances in cardiogenic shock management, this clinical syndrome is still burdened by an extremely high mortality.

Effects of Intradermal Therapy (Mesotherapy) on Bilateral Cervicobrachial Pain.

Background: Mesotherapy is a procedure or a process of injecting drugs into the skin. This technique can help decrease the total drug dose due to its drug-sparing effect on the systemic route and can be utilized to treat nonspecific neck pain that occurs in the lateral and posterior neck.

Methods: Ten patients with bilateral cervicobrachial pain were recruited and evaluated at T0 before treatments, T1 at the end of the treatment (42 days after T0), and T2 (72 days after T0).

Intrathecal Baclofen Infusion-Botulinum Toxin Combined Treatment Efficacy in the Management of Spasticity due to Cerebral Palsy.

Background: Cerebral Palsy (CP) is a group of permanent, but not unchanging, disorders of movement and/or posture and motor function, which are due to a non-progressive interference, lesion, or abnormality of the developing/immature brain. One clinical presentation is muscle spasticity, which leads to a significant impact on the individual's functionality and quality of life. Spasticity treatment is multidisciplinary and includes pharmacological and physical intervention; intrathecal baclofen shows a positive effect in severe spasticity and suboptimal response to oral drugs, while local injection of Botulinum toxin type A (BTXA) improves muscle tone, motion and pain.

Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer Testing on Reference Specimens: An Italian Multicenter Experience.

Introduction: Biomarker testing is mandatory for the clinical management of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Myriads of technical platforms are now available for biomarker analysis with differences in terms of multiplexing capability, analytical sensitivity, and turnaround time (TAT). We evaluated the technical performance of the diagnostic workflows of 24 representative Italian institutions performing molecular tests on a series of artificial reference specimens built to mimic routine diagnostic samples.

Soluble ST2 in Heart Failure: A Clinical Role beyond B-Type Natriuretic Peptide.

Soluble (s)ST2 has been proposed as a useful biomarker for heart failure (HF) patient management. Myocardial damage or mechanical stress stimulate sST2 release. ST2 competes with a membrane bound receptor (ST2 ligand, or ST2L) for interleukin-33 (IL-33) binding, inhibiting the effects induced by the ST2L/IL-33 interaction so that excessive sST2 may contribute to myocardial fibrosis and ventricular remodeling.

First attempt to quantify microplastics in Mediterranean Sabellaria spinulosa (Annelida, Polychaeta) bioconstructions.

This work focuses on the arenaceous reefs by the polychaete Sabellaria spinulosa and addresses microplastics pollution. The main aim is to assess microplastics amount in a bioconstruction located in the Adriatic coast of Italy (Mediterranean Sea) through a comparative approach: sea-floor sediment and bioconstruction samples were analysed to quantify microplastics absolute abundance in both substrates. A total of 431 MPs were found in the investigated substrates: respectively 85 % fibers and 15 % fragments.

First molecular detection of and in wild boars from southern Italy.

Introduction: Following the increase of wild boar () populations in Europe, a potential risk of emerging infections by vector-borne pathogens may occur. Despite this, the circulation of piroplasmid species in these ungulates is still a neglected topic, particularly in the Mediterranean basin. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the presence of / spp.

Ukrainian refugee crisis management in the Local Health Authority Roma 1: the challenges of implementing public health policies and lessons learned.

Background: The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has strained the health systems of countries that welcome war refugees on all levels, from national to local. Despite the Public Health guidelines regarding assistance being published on the topic, the scientific literature currently lacks evidence on the experience of applying theory in practice. This study aims to describe evidence-based practices that were implemented and to provide a detailed description of emerging problems and solutions pertaining Ukrainian refugee assistance in the context of one of the biggest Local Health Authorities in Italy (LHA Roma 1).