TRIMAGE: A dedicated trimodality (PET/MR/EEG) imaging tool for schizophrenia.

Simultaneous PET/MR/EEG (Positron Emission Tomography - Magnetic Resonance - Electroencephalography), a new tool for the investigation of neuronal networks in the human brain, is presented here within the framework of the European Union Project TRIMAGE. The trimodal, cost-effective PET/MR/EEG imaging tool makes use of cutting edge technology both in PET and in MR fields. A novel type of magnet (1.

Colchicine for the prevention of pericarditis: what we know and what we do not know in 2014 - systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate and summarize available evidence on the efficacy and safety of colchicine for pericarditis prevention. Disease recurrence is the major and most common complication of pericarditis and its prevention may reduce morbidity and management costs. Colchicine has been intensively studied in the last decade for pericarditis prevention.

Efficacy and safety of colchicine for treatment of multiple recurrences of pericarditis (CORP-2): a multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised trial.

Background: Colchicine is effective for the treatment of acute pericarditis and first recurrences. However, conclusive data are lacking for the efficacy and safety of colchicine for treatment of multiple recurrences of pericarditis.

Methods: We did this multicentre, double-blind trial at four general hospitals in northern Italy.

A randomized trial of colchicine for acute pericarditis.

Background: Colchicine is effective for the treatment of recurrent pericarditis. However, conclusive data are lacking regarding the use of colchicine during a first attack of acute pericarditis and in the prevention of recurrent symptoms.

Methods: In a multicenter, double-blind trial, eligible adults with acute pericarditis were randomly assigned to receive either colchicine (at a dose of 0.

Efficacy and safety of colchicine for pericarditis prevention. Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy and safety of colchicine for pericarditis prevention.

Background: Recurrent pericarditis prevention is a major management goal that may reduce morbidity and management costs. Although empiric anti-inflammatory therapy is considered the mainstay of treatment, no specific drug has been proven to be efficacious for prevention but colchicine.

Colchicine reduces postoperative atrial fibrillation: results of the Colchicine for the Prevention of the Postpericardiotomy Syndrome (COPPS) atrial fibrillation substudy.

Background: Inflammation and pericarditis may be contributing factors for postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF), and both are potentially affected by antiinflammatory drugs and colchicine, which has been shown to be safe and efficacious for the prevention of pericarditis and the postpericardiotomy syndrome (PPS). The aim of the Colchicine for the Prevention of the Post-Pericardiotomy Syndrome (COPPS) POAF substudy was to test the efficacy and safety of colchicine for the prevention of POAF after cardiac surgery.

Methods And Results: The COPPS POAF substudy included 336 patients (mean age, 65.

Colchicine prevents early postoperative pericardial and pleural effusions.

Background: No preventive pharmacologic strategies have been proven efficacious for the prevention of postoperative effusions after cardiac surgery. Colchicine is safe and efficacious for the prevention of pericarditis. On this basis, we realized a substudy of the COPPS trial to assess the efficacy and safety of colchicine for the prevention of postoperative pericardial and pleural effusions.

Colchicine for recurrent pericarditis (CORP): a randomized trial.

Background: Recurrence is the most common complication of pericarditis, affecting 10% to 50% of patients.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of colchicine for the secondary prevention of recurrent pericarditis.

Design: Prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multicenter trial.

Risk of constrictive pericarditis after acute pericarditis.

Background: Constrictive pericarditis (CP) is considered a rare, dreaded possible complication of acute pericarditis. Nevertheless, there is a lack of prospective studies that have evaluated the specific risk according to different etiologies. The aim of this study is to evaluate the risk of CP after acute pericarditis in a prospective cohort study with long-term follow-up.

Contemporary features, risk factors, and prognosis of the post-pericardiotomy syndrome.

Contemporary series of postpericardiotomy syndrome (PPS) are lacking. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence, time course, features at presentation, risk factors, and prognosis of PPS. The study population consisted of 360 consecutive candidates to cardiac surgery enrolled in a prospective cohort study.

Meta-analysis of randomized trials focusing on prevention of the postpericardiotomy syndrome.

The natural history of postpericardiotomy syndrome (PPS), a relatively common complication of cardiac surgery, varies from mild self-limited episodes to cases with protracted courses, recurrences, and readmissions. Preventive strategies may be valuable to decrease morbidity and management costs. We thus aimed to conduct a comprehensive systematic review on available data for pharmacologic primary prevention of PPS.

Prevalence of C-reactive protein elevation and time course of normalization in acute pericarditis: implications for the diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis of pericarditis.

Background: The role of inflammatory markers is not well defined for either diagnosis or treatment of pericarditis. The aim of this study is to prospectively evaluate the frequency of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) elevation in patients with acute pericarditis, its time course of normalization, and the possible importance for diagnosis, therapy, and prognosis.

Methods And Results: Two hundred consecutive patients with viral or idiopathic acute pericarditis (mean age, 53 ± 15.

Cardiovascular-associated disease in an addicted population: an observation study.

Background: Illicit drugs such as cocaine, and methadone can induce acquired long QT syndrome.

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of cardiovascular disease and to assess the risk of torsades de pointes in substance abuse patients either with methadone or buprenorphine maintenance therapy, or without any specific therapy for opiate addiction.

Methods: From November 2008 to December 2009, 190 patients (153 men, mean age 38.

Medical therapy of pericardial diseases: part II: Noninfectious pericarditis, pericardial effusion and constrictive pericarditis.

The treatment of pericardial diseases is largely empirical because of the relative lack of randomized trials compared with other cardiovascular diseases. The main forms of pericardial diseases that can be encountered in the clinical setting include acute and recurrent pericarditis, pericardial effusion with or without cardiac tamponade, and constrictive pericarditis. Medical treatment should be targeted at the cause as much as possible.

Triage and management of pericardial effusion.

Pericardial effusion may be detected as an incidental finding during echocardiography or following a diagnostic imaging study for a symptomatic patient. When a pericardial effusion is detected the first step is to assess its size, hemodynamic importance, and possible associated diseases. The more common causes of pericardial effusions include infections (viral, bacterial, especially tuberculosis), cancer, connective tissue diseases, pericardial injury syndromes, metabolic causes (i.

COlchicine for the Prevention of the Post-pericardiotomy Syndrome (COPPS): a multicentre, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Aims: No drug has been proven efficacious to prevent the post-pericardiotomy syndrome (PPS), but colchicine seems safe and effective for the treatment and prevention of pericarditis. The aim of the COlchicine for the Prevention of the Post-pericardiotomy Syndrome (COPPS) trial is to test the efficacy and safety of colchicine for the primary prevention of the PPS.

Methods And Results: The COPPS study is a multicentre, double-blind, randomized trial.

Medical therapy of pericardial diseases: part I: idiopathic and infectious pericarditis.

The treatment of pericardial diseases is largely empirical because of the relative lack of randomized trials compared with other cardiovascular diseases. The main forms of pericardial diseases that can be encountered in the clinical setting include acute and recurrent pericarditis, pericardial effusion with or without cardiac tamponade, and constrictive pericarditis. Medical treatment should be targeted at the cause of the disease as much as possible.

Diagnostic issues in the clinical management of pericarditis.

Aims: To review the current major diagnostic issues on the diagnosis of acute and recurrent pericarditis.

Methods: To review the current available evidence, we performed a through search of several evidence-based sources of information, including Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Clinical Evidence, Evidence-based guidelines from National Guidelines Clearinghouse and a comprehensive Medline search with the MeSH terms 'pericarditis', 'etiology' and 'diagnosis'.

Results: The diagnosis of pericarditis is based on clinical criteria including symptoms, presence of specific physical findings (rubs), electrocardiographical changes and pericardial effusion.

Management of pericardial diseases during pregnancy.

Relatively few data have been published on the management of pericardial diseases during pregnancy. Pericardial involvement is sporadic during pregnancy, and pregnant women do not show any specific predisposition to pericardial diseases. The more common form of pericardial involvement is hydropericardium, usually as a benign mild effusion recorded in about 40% of pregnant women by the third trimester, followed by pericarditis as the more common disease requiring medical therapy.

The prophylaxis of infective endocarditis: a joint position study of the Italian Federation of Cardiologists and the Italian Society of Infectious and Tropical Diseases.

Background: Antibiotic prophylaxis of patients believed to be at a risk of developing infective endocarditis has been recently revisited with limited indications compared with the previous body of knowledge in use by the medical community. As a consequence, most of the healthcare specialists in cardiology and infectious diseases have doubts related to the enormous change that has been proposed. In this study, we report the results of an Italian consensus of experts in cardiology and infectious diseases, with the aim to offer a national document that illustrates the reasons for such a change through the review of the basis of infective endocarditis prophylaxis, the historical background, and the reasons for the change, providing practical conclusions and illustrating grey areas.

Diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases.

The management of pericardial diseases is largely empirical because of the relative lack of randomized trials that involve patients with these conditions. A first attempt to bring together and organize current knowledge resulted in the publication of the first guidelines on the management of pericardial diseases. Nevertheless, a number of observational studies and the first randomized trials are moving the management of pericardial diseases towards evidence-based medicine, particularly for pericarditis.

Colchicine for the treatment of pericarditis.

Colchicine has been effectively used in the treatment of several inflammatory conditions, such as gouty attacks, serositis related to familial Mediterranean fever, Behçet syndrome and more recently, in acute and recurrent pericarditis. Colchicine concentrates in white blood cells, particularly polymorphonuclear cells, inhibiting tubulin polymerization, thus interfering with migration and phagocytosis, and reducing the inflammatory cycle. Although the exact number of responders is unknown, the drug has been successfully used for the treatment and prevention of recurrences and to taper corticosteroids in patients with recurrent pericarditis in several retrospective studies and an open-label, randomized trial, where the recurrence rate was halved in the treatment arm.