Comparing accuracy of tomosynthesis plus digital mammography or synthetic 2D mammography in breast cancer screening: baseline results of the MAITA RCT consortium.

Aim: The analyses here reported aim to compare the screening performance of digital tomosynthesis (DBT) versus mammography (DM).

Methods: MAITA is a consortium of four Italian trials, REtomo, Proteus, Impeto, and MAITA trial. The trials adopted a two-arm randomised design comparing DBT plus DM (REtomo and Proteus) or synthetic-2D (Impeto and MAITA trial) versus DM; multiple vendors were included.

Patient-centred care with self-compression mammography in clinical practice: a randomized trial compared to standard compression.

Objective: To test the efficacy of self- compared to radiographer-led compression to reduce the average glandular dose without affecting image quality and compliance to follow-up mammography.

Materials And Methods: Women presenting for mammography for breast cancer follow-up, symptoms, opportunistic screening, or familial risk were asked to participate and, if willing, were randomized to self-compression or radiographer-led compression. Image quality was assessed blindly by two independent radiologists and two radiographers.

Foreign Body in the Cervical Oesophagus: A Case Report.

Background: Foreign bodies in the upper aerodigestive tract represent an uncommon cause of visits to emergency departments. In the majority of cases, foreign bodies do not go beyond the pharynx. They cause dyspnoea or pneumonia if they reach the tracheobronchial tree.

A Randomized Trial Comparing Breast Cancer Incidence and Interval Cancers after Tomosynthesis Plus Mammography versus Mammography Alone.

Background Adding digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) to digital mammography (DM) improves breast cancer screening sensitivity, but how this impacts mortality and other end points is unknown. Purpose To compare interval and overall breast cancer incidence after screening with DBT plus DM versus DM alone. Materials and Methods In this prospective trial (RETomo), women attending screening were randomized to one round of DBT plus DM (experimental arm) or to DM (control arm).

Predictive factors of clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19 treated with tocilizumab: A monocentric retrospective analysis.

Objective: The aim of this retrospective observational study is to analyse clinical, serological and radiological predictors of outcome in patients with COVID-19 pneumonia treated with tocilizumab, providing clinical guidance to its use in real-life.

Method: This is a retrospective, monocentric observational cohort study. All consecutive patients hospitalized between February the 11th and April 14th 2020 for severe COVID-19 pneumonia at Reggio Emilia AUSL and treated with tocilizumab were enrolled.

Tocilizumab or glucocorticoids treatment for patients with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia: An observational study.

Objective: To estimate the effect of tocilizumab or glucocorticoids in preventing death and intubation in patients hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia.

Methods: This was a retrospective cohort study enrolling all consecutive patients hospitalized at Reggio Emilia AUSL between February the 11 and April 14 2020 for severe COVID-19 and treated with tocilizumab or glucocorticoids (at least 80 mg/day of methylprednisolone or equivalent for at least 3 days). The primary outcome was death within 30 days from the start of the considered therapies.

Biomarkers Changes after Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer: A Seven-Year Single Institution Experience.

The adoption of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) for breast cancer (BC) is increasing. The need to repeat the biomarkers on a residual tumor after NACT is still a matter of debate. We verified estrogen receptors (ER), progesterone receptors (PR), Ki67 and human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) status changes impact in a retrospective monocentric series of 265 BCs undergoing NACT.

The value of computed tomography in assessing the risk of death in COVID-19 patients presenting to the emergency room.

Objective: The aims of this study were to develop a multiparametric prognostic model for death in COVID-19 patients and to assess the incremental value of CT disease extension over clinical parameters.

Methods: Consecutive patients who presented to all five of the emergency rooms of the Reggio Emilia province between February 27 and March 23, 2020, for suspected COVID-19, underwent chest CT, and had a positive swab within 10 days were included in this retrospective study. Age, sex, comorbidities, days from symptom onset, and laboratory data were retrieved from institutional information systems.

Accuracy and Reproducibility of Contrast-Enhanced Mammography in the Assessment of Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Breast Cancer Patients with Calcifications in the Tumor Bed.

This study aimed to evaluate contrast-enhanced mammography (CEM) accuracy and reproducibility in the detection and measurement of residual tumor after neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC) in breast cancer (BC) patients with calcifications, using surgical specimen pathology as the reference. Pre- and post-NAC CEM images of 36 consecutive BC patients receiving NAC in 2012-2020, with calcifications in the tumor bed at diagnosis, were retrospectively reviewed by two radiologists; described were absence/presence and size of residual disease based on contrast enhancement (CE) only and CE plus calcifications. Twenty-eight patients (77.

The association between clinical laboratory data and chest CT findings explains disease severity in a large Italian cohort of COVID-19 patients.

Background: Laboratory data and computed tomography (CT) have been used during the COVID-19 pandemic, mainly to determine patient prognosis and guide clinical management. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between CT findings and laboratory data in a cohort of COVID-19 patients.

Methods: This was an observational cross-sectional study including consecutive patients presenting to the Reggio Emilia (Italy) province emergency rooms for suspected COVID-19 for one month during the outbreak peak, who underwent chest CT scan and laboratory testing at presentation and resulted positive for SARS-CoV-2.

Accuracy of CT in a cohort of symptomatic patients with suspected COVID-19 pneumonia during the outbreak peak in Italy.

Objective: To assess sensitivity/specificity of CT vs RT-PCR for the diagnosis of COVID-19 pneumonia in a prospective Italian cohort of symptomatic patients during the outbreak peak.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we included all consecutive patients who presented to the ER between March 13 and 23 for suspected COVID-19 and underwent CT and RT-PCR within 3 days. Using a structured report, radiologists prospectively classified CTs in highly suggestive, suggestive, and non-suggestive of COVID-19 pneumonia.

Abdominal Visceral Infarction in 3 Patients with COVID-19.

A high incidence of thrombotic events has been reported in patients with coronavirus disease (COVID-19), which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. We report 3 clinical cases of patients in Italy with COVID-19 who developed abdominal viscera infarction, demonstrated by computed tomography.

Comparing two visualization protocols for tomosynthesis in screening: specificity and sensitivity of slabs versus planes plus slabs.

Objectives: Tomosynthesis (DBT) has proven to be more sensitive than digital mammography, but it requires longer reading time. We retrospectively compared accuracy and reading times of a simplified protocol with 1-cm-thick slabs versus a standard protocol of slabs + 1-mm-spaced planes, both integrated with synthetic 2D.

Methods: We randomly selected 894 DBTs (including 12 cancers) from the experimental arm of the RETomo trial.

Digital Mammography versus Digital Mammography Plus Tomosynthesis for Breast Cancer Screening: The Reggio Emilia Tomosynthesis Randomized Trial.

Purpose To compare digital mammography (DM) plus digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) versus DM alone for breast cancer screening in the Reggio Emilia Tomosynthesis trial, a two-arm test-and-treat randomized controlled trial. Materials and Methods For this trial, eligible women (45-70 years old) who previously participated in the Reggio Emilia screening program were invited for mammography. Consenting women were randomly assigned 1:1 to undergo DBT+DM or DM (both of which involved two projections and double reading).

Contrast-enhanced spectral mammography in neoadjuvant chemotherapy monitoring: a comparison with breast magnetic resonance imaging.

Background: Neoadjuvant-chemotherapy (NAC) is considered the standard treatment for locally advanced breast carcinomas. Accurate assessment of disease response is fundamental to increase the chances of successful breast-conserving surgery and to avoid local recurrence. The purpose of this study was to compare contrast-enhanced spectral mammography (CESM) and contrast-enhanced-MRI (MRI) in the evaluation of tumor response to NAC.

Ultrasound-Guided Percutaneous Catheter Drainage of Large Breast Abscesses in Lactating Women: How to Preserve Breastfeeding Safely.

Introduction: Management of breast abscess in lactating women remains controversial. During pregnancy, women may develop different kinds of benign breast lesions that could require a surgical incision performed under general anesthesia with consequent breastfeeding interruption. The purpose of this study was to prospectively evaluate the management of large breast abscesses with ultrasound-assisted drainage aiming at breastfeeding preservation.

Role of carcinoembryonic antigen, magnetic resonance imaging, and positron emission tomography-computed tomography in the evaluation of patients with suspected local recurrence of colorectal cancer.

The role of carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and positron emission tomography (PET)-computed tomography (CT) in detection of local recurrence of colorectal cancer is evaluated in 71 patients, selected due to suspected relapse at CT follow-up. Recurrence was confirmed by histology in 18 cases and excluded in 25 cases. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and accuracy were as follows: 44.