Gender disparity in access to advanced therapies for patients with Parkinson's disease: a retrospective real-word study.

Background: Gender differences in the access to advanced therapies for Parkinson's disease (PD) are poorly investigated.

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the presence of any gender disparity in the access to advanced therapies for PD.

Design: Retrospective study.

The New Era of Three-Dimensional Annuloplasty Devices for Mitral Valve Repair: Rationale and First Experiences.

Annuloplasty should always accompany mitral valve repair in order to achieve proper annular remodeling and stabilization. Numerous types of annuloplasty rings-that differ from rigid to semi-rigid and flexible devices, from complete to partial, and from flat to saddle-shaped rings-are clinically available. A deeper understanding of mitral valve function, in conjunction with several recent studies, suggest it is advisable to prefer annuloplasty rings that mimic the physiological mitral annulus shape and three-dimensional (3D) dynamic changes in order to reduce haemodynamic stress on valve components and optimize leaflet coaptation, perhaps improving valve repair durability too.

Staged magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound thalamotomy for the treatment of bilateral essential tremor and Parkinson's disease related tremor: a systematic review and critical appraisal of current knowledge.

Introduction: Essential tremor (ET) and Parkinson's Disease (PD) are debilitating neurodegenerative disorders characterized by tremor as a predominant symptom, significantly impacting patients' quality of life. Magnetic Resonance-guided Focused Ultrasound (MRgFUS) Thalamotomy is an innovative therapeutic option for the treatment of unilateral medically refractory tremor with fewer adverse effects compared to traditional surgical interventions. A recent CE approval allows appropriate patients to have their second side treated.

Cognitive safety of focused ultrasound thalamotomy for tremor: 1-year follow-up results of the COGNIFUS part 2 study.

Introduction: In the COGNitive in Focused UltraSound (COGNIFUS) study, we examined the 6-month cognitive outcomes of patients undergoing MRgFUS thalamotomy. This study endorsed the safety profile of the procedure in terms of cognitive functions that cannot be evaluated in real-time during the procedure unlike other aspects. The aim of the COGNIFUS Part 2 study was to investigate the cognitive trajectory of MRgFUS patients over a 1-year period, in order to confirm long-term safety and satisfaction.

Supplementation with MitoTEMPO before cryopreservation improves sperm quality and fertility potential of Piedmontese beef bull semen.

The purpose of this study was to improve the quality of frozen-thawed Piedmontese bull semen by incorporating MitoTEMPO (MT) in extended semen before cryopreservation. Semen was collected from 4 fertile bulls, using an artificial vagina, once weekly for 6 consecutive weeks. Semen samples were pooled, diluted with Bullxcell extender, and supplemented with different concentrations of MT (0 as control, 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 μM) before cooling, equilibration, and freezing procedures.

The "state of the art" of intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring: An Italian neurosurgical survey.

Introduction: Intraoperative Neurophysiological Monitoring (IOM) is widely used in neurosurgery but specific guidelines are lacking. Therefore, we can assume differences in IOM application between Neurosurgical centers.

Research Question: The section of Functional Neurosurgery of the Italian Society of Neurosurgery realized a survey aiming to obtain general data on the current practice of IOM in Italy.

Artificial neural network analysis of factors affecting functional independence recovery in patients with lumbar stenosis after neurosurgery treatment: An observational cohort study.

Background And Aim: Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is a leading cause of low back pain and lower limbs pain often associated with functional impairment which entails the loss or the impairment of independence in older adults. Conservative treatment is effective in a small percentage of patients, while a significant percentage undergo surgery, even if often without a complete resolution of clinical symptoms and motor deficits. The aim of the study is to identify clinical and demographic prognostic factors characterising the patients who would benefit most from surgical treatment in relation to the functional independence recovery using an innovative approach based on an artificial neural network.

Assessment of Frequency and Predictive Value of Comorbidities in Patients With Disorders of Consciousness in the Acute Setting.

Medical comorbidities are frequent in patients with disorders of consciousness (DoC) and their impact on outcomes is under investigation. The aim of this study was to investigate patients with DoC in the acute stage and the influence of comorbidities. Patients admitted to intensive care units and neurological units with a diagnosis of coma, vegetative state/unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (VS/UWS), and minimally conscious state (MCS) were investigated through the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), the Coma Recovery Scale - Revised (CRS-R) and the Comorbidities Coma Scale (CoCos).

Dynamic Correlations and Disorder in the Masticatory Musculature Network.

Background: Temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, which affect millions of people worldwide, have multiple etiological factors that make an accurate diagnosis and effective treatments difficult. As a consequence, the gold standard diagnostic criteria for TMJ disorders remain elusive and often depend on subjective decisions.

Aim: In this context, the lack of a non-invasive quantitative methodology capable of assessing the functional physiological state and, consequently, identifying risk indicators for the early diagnosis of TMJ disorders must be tackled and resolved.

Aortic Annuloplasty: Focus on the Use of an External Teflon Ring.

Aortic annuloplasty has been clearly demonstrated to have a protective influence in aortic valve repair. Over the past 20 years, different annuloplasty concepts have been proposed by different groups. However, the most appropriate approach to enable long-term annular stability remains highly controversial.

Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: From the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS) to the Italian Neurosurgical Society (SINch) Recommendations.

Cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) is a progressively growing pathology to afford by a spinal surgeon due to the aging of the population, associated with better treatment management and the best diagnosis and treatment solutions are greatly discussed. Nowadays that scientific literature is progressively increasing to identify the gold standard in diagnosis and treatment can be very challenging. This is particularly evident in spinal surgery with many different indications not only in different countries but also in the same local reality.

Extracranial Jugular Foramen Schwannomas Treated with the Extreme Lateral Juxtacondylar Approach: Surgical Technique and Our Experience.

Background: Schwannoma that arises in the jugular foramen (JF) represents an important challenge for neurosurgeons for its precise location, extension, and neurovascular relationship. Nowadays, different managements are proposed. In this study, we present our experience in the treatment of extracranial JF schwannomas (JFss) with the extreme lateral juxtacondylar approach (ELJA).

Fast-track protocols for patients undergoing spine surgery: a systematic review.

Background Context: Fast-track is an evidence-based multidisciplinary strategy for pre-, intra-, and postoperative management of patients during major surgery. To date, fast-track has not been recognized or accepted in all surgical areas, particularly in orthopedic spine surgery where it still represents a relatively new paradigm.

Purpose: The aim of this review was provided an evidenced-based assessment of specific interventions, measurement, and associated outcomes linked to enhanced recovery pathways in spine surgery field.

Circulating and endometrial cell oxidative stress in dairy cows diagnosed with metritis.

Dairy cows diagnosed with metritis may experience a greater degree of oxidative stress (OS) and a deficit in the antioxidative capacity compared to healthy cows. We aimed to assess circulating OS markers and endometrial cell mitochondrial function, intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and mean endometrial nuclear cell area in postpartum cows diagnosed with metritis or as healthy. From an initial pool of 121 Holstein cows, we retrospectively selected 34 cows and balanced for metritis (n = 17) or healthy (n = 17).

Cognitive outcomes after focused ultrasound thalamotomy for tremor: Results from the COGNIFUS (COGNitive in Focused UltraSound) study.

Introduction: Magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) thalamotomy is an innovative method for the unilateral treatment of essential tremor (ET) and Parkinson's disease (PD) related tremor. Our aim was to assess cognitive changes following MRgFUS thalamotomy to better investigate its safety profile.

Methods: We prospectively investigated the cognitive and neurobehavioral profile of patients consecutively undergoing MRgFUS within a 2-year period.

Effect of Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) on Cryopreserved Piedmontese Bull Semen Characteristics.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect on fresh and post-thaw beef bull semen quality of the supplementation of epidermal growth factor (EGF) to the semen extender at various concentrations (0-control, 50, 100, 200, and 400 ng/mL). For 8 weeks, sperm was collected from four fertile bulls, yielding a total of 32 ejaculates. Semen samples were pooled, diluted with Bullxcell extender, and then cooled, equilibrated, and frozen.

Nanoscale inhomogeneity of charge density waves dynamics in LaSrNiO.

While stripe phases with broken rotational symmetry of charge density are known to emerge in doped strongly correlated perovskites, the dynamics and heterogeneity of spatial ordering remain elusive. Here we shed light on the temperature dependent lattice motion and the spatial nanoscale phase separation of charge density wave order in the archetypal striped phase in LaSrNiO (LSNO) perovskite using X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) joint with scanning micro X-ray diffraction (SµXRD). While it is known that the CDW in 1/8 doped cuprates shows a remarkable stability we report the CDW motion dynamics by XPCS in nickelates with an anomalous quantum glass regime at low temperature, T < 65 K, and the expected thermal melting at higher temperature 65 < T < 120 K.

Effects of cysteamine supplementation on cryopreserved buffalo bull semen quality parameters.

This work aimed to determine the effect of cysteamine (25, 50, 100 and 200 μM) incorporated during dilution on frozen thawed buffalo semen quality. Semen was collected twice weekly for 7 consecutive weeks from three Egyptian buffalo bulls using an artificial vagina. Semen samples were pooled and extended with a Tris-based extender, cooled, equilibrated and finally frozen in liquid nitrogen.

Key Components, Current Practice and Clinical Outcomes of ERAS Programs in Patients Undergoing Orthopedic Surgery: A Systematic Review.

Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocols have led to improvements in outcomes in several surgical fields, through multimodal optimization of patient pathways, reductions in complications, improved patient experiences and reductions in the length of stay. However, their use has not been uniformly recognized in all orthopedic fields, and there is still no consensus on the best implementation process. Here, we evaluated pre-, peri-, and post-operative key elements and clinical evidence of ERAS protocols, measurements, and associated outcomes in patients undergoing different orthopedic surgical procedures.