Determinants of delayed healthcare access and stigma associated with pandemic SARS-CoV-2 infec-tion: findings from a pilot study in the immigrant population in Catania (Sicily Region, Southern Italy).

Background: the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have aggravated existing social and healthcare inequalities among particular population groups, such as ethnic minorities, who showed increased susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Objectives: to characterize risk profiles or determinants of delayed healthcare access, as well as knowledge, risk perception, behaviour, and social stigma concerning SARS-CoV-2 infection in the immigrant population in the city of Catania (Sicily Region, Southern Italy).

Design: pilot, descriptive study.

[Reducing the impact of COVID-19 in immigrants: a systematic review of the efficacy of interventions].

Background: the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in the population has amplified the effects of health inequalities, particularly in the most vulnerable groups such as immigrants and refugees. An assessment of the intervention to contain the COVID-19 in these population groups was essential to define new strategies for more equitable, inclusive, and effective health policies to on health.

Objectives: to provide a systematic synopsis of the impact of interventions to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 in immigrants.

[Impact of COVID-19 on foreign population resident in urban areas of Italy: selection of indicators, data sources, and definition of geographical stratification levels].

Objectives: to describe indicators, data sources, and levels of geographical stratification used within the framework of the CCM project "Epidemiological Surveillance and Control of COVID-19 in Metropolitan Urban Areas and for the containment of SARS-CoV-2 circulation in the immigrant population in Italy".

Design: population-based observational study based on data from the Integrated Covid-19 Surveillance System and the archive of hospital discharge records.

Setting And Participants: interregional collaborative project.

Normative data beyond the total scores: a process score analysis of the Rey's 15 word test in healthy aging and Alzheimer's Disease.

Background: The Rey's 15 words test is currently the most frequently used task in Italy to detect memory deficits in AD. The current standardised version is however quite outdated and lacks some cognitive indexes which may highlight problems in recall or encoding processes. The aim of the study was to update the normative data of the test and to consider some variables which were not accounted for in the original study, that is, recognition, learning rate and forgetfulness.

Tuberculosis incidence in foreign-born people residing in European countries in 2020.

BackgroundEuropean-specific policies for tuberculosis (TB) elimination require identification of key populations that benefit from TB screening.AimWe aimed to identify groups of foreign-born individuals residing in European countries that benefit most from targeted TB prevention screening.MethodsThe Tuberculosis Network European Trials group collected, by cross-sectional survey, numbers of foreign-born TB patients residing in European Union (EU) countries, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom (UK) in 2020 from the 10 highest ranked countries of origin in terms of TB cases in each country of residence.

Malaria surveillance system and Hospital Discharge Records: Assessing differences in Italy, 2011-2017 database analysis.

Background: In Italy, surveillance through mandatory notification of cases to the National Surveillance System (NSS) has shown evidence of underreporting over the years. To evaluate the overall quality of malaria dataset, Hospital Discharge Records (HDRs) were analyzed as a second data source.

Methods: Malaria cases by NSS and by HRDs were compared and analyzed from 2011-through 2017.

Exploring the evidence for the effectiveness of health interventions for COVID-19 targeting migrants: a systematic review protocol.

Introduction: Owing to their inherent vulnerabilities, the burden of COVID-19 and particularly of its control measures on migrants has been magnified. A thorough assessment of the value of the interventions for COVID-19 tailored to migrants is essential for improving their health outcomes as well as promoting an effective control of the pandemic. In this study, based on evidence from primary biomedical research, we aimed to systematically identify health interventions for COVID-19 targeting migrants and to assess and compare their effectiveness.

The evaluation of capacity in dementia: ethical constraints and best practice. A systematic review.

The progressive ageing of a population leads to an increase in the number of people suffering from cognitive deterioration. This requires particular attention in terms of the necessity to assess these people's cognitive functions and their capacity to make decisions. The present systematic review analyses the clinical and ethical aspects of any assessment of capacity, with a specific focus on the capacity of the individual to give informed consent for medical treatment and also with regard to their testamentary capacity.

Hepatitis E Outbreak in the Central Part of Italy Sustained by Multiple HEV Genotype 3 Strains, June-December 2019.

In European countries, autochthonous acute hepatitis E cases are caused by Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) genotype 3 and are usually observed as sporadic cases. In mid/late September 2019, a hepatitis E outbreak caused by HEV genotype 3 was recognized by detection of identical/highly similar HEV sequences in some hepatitis E cases from two Italian regions, Abruzzo and Lazio, with most cases from this latter region showing a link with Abruzzo. Overall, 47 cases of HEV infection were finally observed with onsets from 8 June 2019 to 6 December 2019; they represent a marked increase as compared with just a few cases in the same period of time in the past years and in the same areas.

Non-imported malaria in Italy: paradigmatic approaches and public health implications following an unusual cluster of cases in 2017.

Background: The European region achieved interruption of malaria transmission during the 1970s. Since then, malaria control programs were replaced by surveillance systems in order to prevent possible re-emergence of this disease. Sporadic cases of non-imported malaria were recorded in several European countries in the past decade and locally transmitted outbreaks of Plasmodium vivax, most probably supported by Anopheles sacharovi, have been repeatedly reported from Greece since 2009.

Nine-Year Nationwide Environmental Surveillance of Hepatitis E Virus in Urban Wastewaters in Italy (2011-2019).

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging causative agent of acute hepatitis worldwide. To provide insights into the epidemiology of HEV in Italy, a large-scale investigation was conducted into urban sewage over nine years (2011-2019), collecting 1374 sewage samples from 48 wastewater treatment plants located in all the 20 regions of Italy. Broadly reactive primers targeting the ORF1 and ORF2 regions were used for the detection and typing of HEV, followed by Sanger and next generation sequencing (NGS).

Correlates of infection and molecular characterization of blood-borne HIV, HCV, and HBV infections in HIV-1 infected inmates in Italy: An observational cross-sectional study.

Coinfection of blood-borne hepatitis B and hepatitis C viruses (HBV and HCV, respectively) in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-positive individuals frequently occurs in inmate population and peculiar viral strains and patterns of virological markers may be observed.Plasma from 69 HIV-1-positive inmates was obtained from 7 clinical centers connected with correctional centers in different towns in Italy. HIV, HBV, and HCV markers were tested by commercial assays.

Effects of treadmill training on cognitive and motor features of patients with mild to moderate Parkinson's disease: a pilot, single-blind, randomized controlled trial.

The aim of this pilot randomized controlled trial was to evaluate the effects of treadmill training on cognitive and motor performance in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Seventeen persons with mild to moderate PD were enrolled. Nine patients were allocated to the Intervention group and received twelve 45-minute sessions of treadmill training: one session a day, three days a week, for four consecutive weeks.

Building up a collaborative network for the surveillance of HIV genetic diversity in Italy. A pilot study.

Introduction: Prevalence of infection with HIV-1 non-B subtypes in Italy has been reported to raise, due to increased migration flows and travels. HIV-1 variants show different biological and immunological properties that impact on disease progression rate, response to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and sensitivity of diagnostic tests with important implications for public health. Therefore, a constant surveillance of the dynamics of HIV variants in Italy should be a high public health priority.

Relationship between Cognitive Performance and Motor Dysfunction in Patients with Parkinson's Disease: A Pilot Cross-Sectional Study.

The aim of this pilot cross-sectional study was to extensively investigate the relationships between cognitive performance and motor dysfunction involving balance and gait ability in patients with Parkinson's disease. Twenty subjects with Parkinson's disease underwent a cognitive (outcomes: Frontal Assessment Battery-Italian version, Montreal overall Cognitive Assessment, Trail Making Test, Semantic Verbal Fluency Test, and Memory with Interference Test) and motor (outcomes: Berg Balance Scale, 10-Meter Walking Test, 6-Minute Walking Test, Timed Up and Go Test performed also under dual task condition, and Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale) assessment. Our correlation analyses showed that balance skills are significantly correlated with executive functions, cognitive impairment, and ability to switch attention between two tasks.

Incidence of malaria and risk factors in Italian travelers to malaria endemic countries.

Background: Imported malaria has been an increasing problem in Italy in the last three decades of the 1900s, representing the main risk for travelers visiting tropical and sub-tropical countries where malaria is endemic. Even though the total number of imported cases has been declining since 2000, malaria still represents the most frequent notifiable imported disease in Italy. The present study analyzes all the malaria cases reported in Italy in 2000-2006 in order to assess the trend of incidence over the time and reviewing the risk factors for travelers visiting malaria endemic countries.

Aspects of the Italian legislation related to HIV testing.

Italy has adhered to international declarations regarding the prevention, care, and treatment of HIV/AIDS and has adopted the fundamental interventions for surveillance and control; access to testing is defined by Law 135 of 5 June 1990. At the time, the Ministry of Health issued decrees to define national epidemiological surveillance systems for new HIV infections. The decree provides indications on the data to be collected, data flow, the modes of data transmission respecting security measures and some recommendations regarding access to HIV testing.

The risk of malaria in travelers to India.

Background: Several countries have reported a decline in malaria cases imported by travelers returning from India.

Methods: We collected data on imported malaria for the period 1992 to 2005 from nine countries. Traveler statistics denominator data were obtained from the Indian Ministry of Tourism.

Imported malaria in children in industrialized countries, 1992-2002.

Children account for an appreciable proportion of total imported malaria cases, yet few studies have quantified these cases, identified trends, or suggested evidence-based prevention strategies for this group of travelers. We therefore sought to identify numbers of cases and deaths, Plasmodium species, place of malaria acquisition, preventive measures used, and national origin of malaria in children. We analyzed retrospective data from Australia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States and data provided by the United Nations World Tourism Organization.