Carotid Artery Aneurysm in HIV: A Review of Case Reports in Literature.

Background: HIV infection may affect the cardiovascular system through different physiopathological patterns. Rarely reported in HIV negative patients, aneurysms involving the carotid artery have been described for the first time in seropositive patients in 1989.

Aims: In our study, we have focused on aneurysm pathology affecting carotid arteries in HIV patients, analyzing clinical and surgical presentation, management, and outcome, through a review of cases published in the literature.

Glutathione infusion before primary percutaneous coronary intervention: a randomised controlled pilot study.

Objective: In the setting of reperfused ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) contributes to reperfusion injury. Among ROS, hydrogen peroxide (HO) showed toxic effects on human cardiomyocytes and may induce microcirculatory impairment. Glutathione (GSH) is a water-soluble tripeptide with a potent oxidant scavenging activity.

Many Different Patterns under a Common Flag: Aortic Pathology in HIV-A Review of Case Reports in Literature.

Background: Availability of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) for HIV has prolonged life expectancy of patients but has also increased the incidence of non-AIDS comorbid conditions. Among these, there are cardiovascular diseases, and aortic involvement has been described in patients with HIV in the form of aortitis, aneurysms, or dissections. Our study aims to describe aortic pathology occurring in patients with HIV, focusing on clinical and surgical presentation, management, and outcome, through a review of cases published in literature.

Postpartum aortic dissection. A case report and review of literature.

Introduction: Aortic dissection is a rare cardiovascular complication in pregnancy. Most of the cases occur during the third trimester of pregnancy, whilst 33% of cases are reported during the postpartum period.

Presentation Of Case: We report the case of a multiparous 35-year-old patient with gestational hypertension treated for a type A aortic dissection on the second postpartum day.

Prospective study to compare antibiosis versus the association of N-acetylcysteine, D-mannose and Morinda citrifolia fruit extract in preventing urinary tract infections in patients submitted to urodynamic investigation.

Background: The abuse of antimicrobical drugs has increased the resistance of microorganisms to treatments, thus to make urinary tract infections (UTIs) more difficult to eradicate. Among natural substances used to prevent UTI, literature has provided preliminary data of the beneficial effects of D-mannose, N-acetylcysteine, and Morinda citrifolia fruit extract, due to their complementary mechanism of action which contributes respectively to limit bacteria adhesion to the urothelium, to destroy bacterial pathogenic biofilm, and to the anti-inflammatory and analgesic activity. The purpose of this study was to compare the administration of an association of D-mannose, N-acetylcysteine (NAC) and Morinda citrifolia extract versus antibiotic therapy in the prophylaxis of UTIs potentially associated with urological mini-invasive diagnostics procedures, in clinical model of the urodynamic investigation.

[Stenting versus carotid endarterectomy for carotid stenosis. A single center experience].

Aim: The objective was to compare Carotid Endarterectomy (CEA) with Carotid Artery Stenting (CAS) in terms of efficacy and safety in patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic extracranial carotid stenosis.

Materials: This study enrolled 285 patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid stenosis that underwent either to CAS or CEA. The primary end-points were death, stroke and myocardial infarction.

Association between habitat and prevalence of hantavirus infections in bank voles (Myodes glareolus) and wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus).

In order to determine the habitat preferred by Myodes (before Clethrionomys) glareolus and the corresponding Puumala hantavirus seroprevalence in those habitats, we captured rodents simultaneously in three significantly different habitats. We compared trapping success and presence of virus per habitat during an ongoing epidemic in order to test the hypothesis of a density-dependent seroprevalence. Our study showed that bank vole population density, as well as Puumala virus seroprevalence, were habitat dependent.

Long-term survival and recurrences after total nerve-sparing surgery for rectal cancer.

Background/aims: In advanced extraperitoneal rectal cancer Japanese surgeons perform the lateral pelvic nodal dissection with only partial pelvic autonomic nerves preservation; instead most Western surgeons prefer the total mesorectal excision (TME) with complete pelvic nerve sparing except for evident neoplastic nervous involvement. Long-term oncological results of the total nerve-sparing TME are reported.

Methodology: From January 1992 to October 1998 71 [corrected] patients with extraperitoneal rectal carcinoma underwent TME with total nerve sparing except in two cases in which only a partial sparing was possible because of macroscopic neoplastic nervous infiltration: 54 anterior resections and 17 abdominoperineal resections were performed.

Histopathological features and clinical course of the gastrointestinal stromal tumors.

Background/aims: C-kit expression is a sensitive marker for a specific group of mesenchymal tumors of the gastrointestinal tract, gastrointestinal stromal tumors, the histogenesis and prognosis of which are uncertain.

Methodology: We have investigated the expression of c-kit by immunohistochemical analysis (APAAP method) in 12 out of 13 cases of mesenchymal gastrointestinal neoplasms operated from January 1991 to December 1998, in which the follow-up data were fully available. Furthermore, the c-kit expression was correlated both with the expression of vimentin, CD34 and the mitotic rate, and with the expression of muscle (muscle-specific actin-HHF35 and desmin) or neural (neuron-specific enolase) differentiation markers.