Background: Collecting post-mortem brain tissue is essential, especially from healthy "control" individuals, to advance knowledge on increasingly common neurological and mental disorders. Yet, healthy individuals, on which this study is focused, are still understudied. The aim of the study was to explore, among healthy potential brain donors and/or donors' relatives, attitude, concerns and opinion about post-mortem brain donation (PMBD).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Current lengthening of average life and constant increase of population ageing associated to forces that include rapid unplanned urbanisation and globalisation of unhealthy behaviours have determined the huge relevance of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Monitoring key modifiable behavioural risk factors has resulted to be crucial both in spatial terms and as per temporal trends in order to allow comparisons between different geographic areas or levels and over time.
Materials And Methods: In Italy, PASSI (Progressi delle Aziende Sanitarie per la Salute in Italia) and Passi d'Argento are the ongoing Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance Systems (BRFSSs), respectively, on adults (people aged 18-69) and elderly (65 and older).
This research aims to study tobacco smoking and vaping among adolescents in Italy through three repeat national cross sectional surveys conducted before (in 2010, 2014) and after (2018) the 2016 introduction of the European Union - Tobacco Product Directive (EU-TPD) and its transposition into Italy, and before Juul entered the Italian market in 2019. Prevalence of smoking and vaping, access to cigarettes and electronic cigarettes in adolescents aged 13-15 years were estimated from the 2010, 2014, and 2018 Global Youth Tobacco Surveys (N = 1587; N = 1428; N = 1518, respectively) conducted in Italy. Prevalence of current smokers and/or current vapers combined, accounting for dual users, non-significantly increased from 20.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMany problems exist in the surveillance of human food-borne illnesses, and one of the most important is identifying the responsible microorganisms. For this reason, a survey was carried out to identify regional reference laboratories and laboratories with the capacities necessary for identification of pathogenic microorganisms in Italy. All 21 Italian regions and autonomous provinces completed the survey except three (Basilicata, Tuscany and Sardinia).
View Article and Find Full Text PDF