Cord blood presepsin as a predictor of early-onset neonatal sepsis in term and preterm newborns.

Background: To date, no studies on presepsin values in cord blood of term infants with risk factors for early-onset sepsis (EOS) are available, whereas only one study reported presepsin values in cord blood of preterm infants at risk. In this study, we investigated the presepsin values in cord blood of term and preterm infants with documented risk factors for EOS.

Methods: In this single-center prospective pilot study, we enrolled neonates presenting with documented risk factors for EOS.

is not decreased in symptomatic uncomplicated diverticular disease of the colon.

In this letter, assessment of the amount of fecal in symptomatic uncomplicated diverticular disease (SUDD) is described. Among 44 consecutive patients, comprising 15 SUDD patients, 13 patients with asymptomatic diverticulosis (AD), and 16 healthy controls (HC), the fecal amount of was not found to be significantly different between HC, AD and SUDD subjects (p=0.871).

Clinical and MRI measures to identify non-acute MOG-antibody disease in adults.

MRI and clinical features of myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG)-antibody disease may overlap with those of other inflammatory demyelinating conditions posing diagnostic challenges, especially in non-acute phases and when serologic testing for MOG antibodies is unavailable or shows uncertain results. We aimed to identify MRI and clinical markers that differentiate non-acute MOG-antibody disease from aquaporin 4 (AQP4)-antibody neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder and relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis, guiding in the identification of patients with MOG-antibody disease in clinical practice. In this cross-sectional retrospective study, data from 16 MAGNIMS centres were included.

Mobility and balance rehabilitation in multiple sclerosis: A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.

Objective: To assess the benefits of neurological rehabilitation and the dose-response relationship for the treatment of mobility and balance in multiple sclerosis.

Methods: We included studies investigating the effects of neurological rehabilitation on mobility and balance with the following eligibility criteria for inclusion: Population, People with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS); Intervention, method of rehabilitation interventions; Comparison, experimental (specific balance intervention) vs control (no intervention/no specific balance intervention); Outcome, balance clinical scales; Study Design, randomised controlled trials. We conducted a random effects dose-response meta-analysis to assess linear trend estimations and a one stage linear mixed effects meta-regression for estimating dose-response curves.

Is Mechanical Thrombectomy or Thrombolysis Universally Cost-Effective? A Systematic Review of the Literature.

Background: Thrombolysis (rTPA) and mechanical thrombectomy (MT) are cost-effective treatments for ischemic stroke. However, little is known about the impact of different types of health systems (HSs) on the outcome and cost of ischemic stroke.

Methods: Literature search was performed on PubMed/OVID for studies without time limits.

Correlation between patient-reported manual ability and three objective measures of upper limb function in people with multiple sclerosis.

Background And Purpose: Upper limb (UL) function is often affected in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) and is typically assessed through objective measures, including the Nine Hole Peg Test (9-HPT), Box and Block Test (BBT), and Hand Grip Strength (HGS). It is important to include the subjective perspective of PwMS in the assessment. This study aims to evaluate associations between Manual Ability Measure-36 (MAM-36) and 9-HPT, BBT, and HGS in MS.

Off-Adherence Keeping (OAK) observational study: intentional off-adherence immunomodulatory multiple sclerosis treatment.

To evaluate how improved treatment adherence with a lower-frequency regimen/treatment of intramuscular (IM) IFNβ-1a impacts therapeutic effectiveness in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) patients switching from a higher-frequency injectable regimen/treatment. Italian patients with relapsing-remitting MS and prior poor adherence to high-frequency injectable treatments (n = 181) were followed for 24 months after starting IM IFNβ-1a. During the study, 97.

Left ventricular assist device-related infections and the risk of cerebrovascular accidents: a EUROMACS study.

Objectives: In patients supported by a durable left ventricular assist device (LVAD), infections are a frequently reported adverse event with increased morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this study was to investigate the possible association between infections and thromboembolic events, most notable cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs), in LVAD patients.

Methods: An analysis of the multicentre European Registry for Patients Assisted with Mechanical Circulatory Support was performed.

Bridging Therapies With Injectable Immunomodulatory Drugs in the Management of Multiple Sclerosis: A Delphi Survey of an Italian Expert Panel of Neurologists.

Background: In multiple sclerosis (MS), bridging therapies are usually administered when switching from one therapy to another. Such treatments generally consist of injectable immunomodulatory drugs (interferon or glatiramer acetate), whose efficacy, safety, and tolerability data are consolidated for use even in fragile patients. We performed a nationwide survey to gather expert opinions regarding the most appropriate use of bridging therapies in MS.

Adherence to endocrine therapy in women with breast cancer: development and preliminary validation of the A-BET questionnaire.

Purpose: To develop an Italian tool that measures the therapy adherence of women with breast cancer undergoing treatment with oral endocrine therapy.

Methods: A two-phase study was conducted, which followed the guidelines of the European Statistical System for the development and validation of a questionnaire. In the first phase, the questionnaire was developed; in the second phase, a preliminary validation was carried out on patients with breast cancer undergoing treatment with oral hormonal therapies.

Effects of semaglutide on cardiovascular risk factors and eating behaviors in type 2 diabetes.

Aims: Aim of the present study was to evaluate the impact of once-weekly semaglutide on different end-points indicative of metabolic control, cardiovascular risk, dietary behavior, and treatment satisfaction in T2DM.

Methods: This was a retrospective observational study conducted in a diabetes clinic. Changes in HbA1c, fasting blood glucose (FBG), weight, blood pressure, lipid profile, and number of antihypertensive drugs at 32 weeks (T1) after the first prescription of semaglutide (T0) were analyzed.

Predictors of early discharge after transcatheter aortic valve implantation: insight from the CoreValve ClinicalService.

Aims: The aim of this study was to minimize the procedure, and reduce the length of hospital stay (LoS) is the future objective for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVI).Aims of the study are to identify procedural and electrocardiographical predictors of fast-track discharge in patients who underwent TAVI.

Methods: Patients treated with TAVI included in the One Hospital ClinicalService project were categorized according to the LoS.

Presepsin levels in neonatal cord blood are not influenced by maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Objectives: Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) can present with various symptoms and can involve multiple organs. Women infected during pregnancy have a higher incidence of obstetrical complications and infants born to "positive" mothers may get the infection with different manifestations. Presepsin seems to be a promising sepsis biomarker in adults and neonates.

Diagnostic therapeutic care pathway for pediatric food allergies and intolerances in Italy: a joint position paper by the Italian Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition (SIGENP) and the Italian Society for Pediatric Allergy and Immunology (SIAIP).

Epidemiologic data suggest an increased prevalence of pediatric food allergies and intolerances (FAIs) during the last decades. This changing scenario has led to an increase in the overall healthcare costs, due to a growing demand for diagnostic and treatment services. There is the need to establish Evidence-based practices for diagnostic and therapeutic intervention that could  be adopted in the context of public health policies for FAIs are needed.

Addition of Bevacizumab to Erlotinib as First-Line Treatment of Patients With EGFR-Mutated Advanced Nonsquamous NSCLC: The BEVERLY Multicenter Randomized Phase 3 Trial.

Introduction: Adding bevacizumab to erlotinib prolonged progression-free survival (PFS) of patients with EGFR-mutated advanced NSCLC in the Japanese JO25567 trial, but limited data were available in non-Asian patients. BEVERLY is an Italian, multicenter, randomized, phase 3 investigating the addition of bevacizumab to erlotinib as first-line treatment of advanced EGFR-mutated NSCLC.

Methods: Eligible patients were randomized 1:1 to erlotinib plus bevacizumab or erlotinib alone.

A Clinical and Epidemiological Prevalence Study on Friedreich's Ataxia in Latium, Italy.

Objective: The aim of this study was to estimate the Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) prevalence in a highly populated region of Italy (previous studies in small geographic areas gave a largely variable prevalence) and to define the patients' molecular and clinical characteristics.

Methods: For the point-prevalence study, we considered patients belonging to families with a molecular diagnosis of FRDA and resident in Latium on 1 January 2019. The crude prevalence of FRDA, specific for age and sex, was calculated and standardized for age using the Italian population.

Early use of high-efficacy disease‑modifying therapies makes the difference in people with multiple sclerosis: an expert opinion.

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic and progressive neurological disease that is characterized by neuroinflammation, demyelination and neurodegeneration occurring from the earliest phases of the disease and that may be underestimated. MS patients accumulate disability through relapse-associated worsening or progression independent of relapse activity. Early intervention with high-efficacy disease-modifying therapies (HE-DMTs) may represent the best window of opportunity to delay irreversible central nervous system damage and MS-related disability progression by hindering underlying heterogeneous pathophysiological processes contributing to disability progression.

Efficacy of prolonged-release fampridine placebo on walking ability, dynamic and static balance, physical impact of multiple sclerosis, and quality of life: an integrated analysis of MOBILE and ENHANCE.

Background: MOBILE and ENHANCE were similarly designed randomized trials of walking-impaired adults with relapsing-remitting or progressive multiple sclerosis (MS) who received placebo or 10 mg prolonged-release (PR)-fampridine twice daily for 24 weeks. Both studies showed sustained and clinically meaningful improvement in broad measures of walking and balance over 24 weeks of PR-fampridine treatment.

Objective: To evaluate the functional benefits and safety of PR-fampridine placebo using a integrated efficacy analysis of MOBILE and ENHANCE data.

A systematic review of European regional and national guidelines: a focus on the recommended use of nabiximols in the management of spasticity in multiple sclerosis.

Introduction: Spasticity is a common, debilitating symptom of multiple sclerosis (MS) with several treatment options including the cannabinoid-based treatment, nabiximols. The purpose of this review was to examine the existing clinical practice guidelines that direct the management of multiple-sclerosis-associated spasticity (MSS), to identify areas of similarity and divergence, and suggest where standardization and improvement may be obtained.

Areas Covered: Published literature (PubMed), websites of relevant European Medical Associations and Health Technology Assessment bodies were systematically searched to identify guidelines describing the pharmacological management of MSS, focussing on European countries where nabiximols (Sativex® oromucosal spray) is approved.