Biologics as well as inhaled anti-asthmatic therapy achieve clinical remission: Evidence from the Severe Asthma Network in Italy (SANI).

Background: This study aimed to evaluate the impact of severe asthma (SA) treatments after 12 months in achieving clinical remission (CR) within the context of the Severe Asthma Network in Italy (SANI) using the recent SANI definition of CR on treatment.

Methods: CR has been defined by SANI as complete, partial, and no CR. Complete CR is defined by the absence of oral corticosteroids (OCS), no symptoms, no exacerbations, and stable lung function, and partial CR requires the absence of OCS and the fulfillment of 2 out of the other 3 criteria.

Incorporating ethics into infectious disease clinical practice guidelines.

Background: Incorporating ethics into clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) can be challenging. This is particularly evident for infectious diseases (ID) CPGs due to the complexity of ID ethics (IDE) and the multiplicity of populations at-risk for infections.

Objectives: The OPENING project (IncOrPorating Ethics iN ClINical Guidelines: Practical Indications) was initiated by the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) Ethics Advisory Committee (EEAC) in collaboration with the ESCMID Guidelines Subcommittee to generate guidelines for the systematic inclusion of ethics principles into ID CPGs.

Antibiotic treatment versus appendicectomy for acute appendicitis in adults: an individual patient data meta-analysis.

Background: Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) have found antibiotics to be a feasible and safe alternative to appendicectomy in adults with imaging-confirmed acute appendicitis. However, patient inclusion criteria and outcome definitions vary greatly between RCTs. We aimed to compare antibiotics with appendicectomy for the treatment of acute appendicitis using individual patient data and uniform outcome definitions.

Laparoscopic versus open resection for hepatocellular carcinoma according to the procedure's complexity: real-world weighted data from a national register.

Background: Minimal access liver surgery (MALS) is considered superior to open liver resection (OLR) in reducing the perioperative risk in patients affected by hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). No national-level comparisons exist based on procedure complexity. This study aims to compare postoperative complications, postoperative ascites (POA), and major complications (MC) between MALS and OLR.

Infections Management in the Lung Transplant Setting in Italy: A Web-Survey.

Introduction: Infections significantly impact morbidity and mortality in lung transplant (LuTx) recipients. This survey focused on documenting current practices regarding the prevention and management of infections in LuTx in Italy.

Methods: A 52-question survey was administered online in the period from December 1, 2023, to January 31, 2024, assessing center characteristics, Tx team organization, microbiological investigations, infection prevention, and management.

Pre-biologic FeNO might predict anti-IL-5/IL-5Rα response to treatment in severe asthmatics.

Objective: It remains unclear whether baseline FeNO levels can predict response to anti-IL5/5R biologic treatment in patients with severe asthma.

Methods: We recruited 104 patients with severe eosinophilic asthma treated with anti-IL5/anti-IL5R for at least one year who had measured FeNO values before the beginning of anti-eosinophilic treatment. Population was divided into subjects with FeNO < 25 and ≥25 ppb.

Outcomes and prognostic indicators in daratumumab-refractory multiple myeloma: a multicenter real-world study of elotuzumab, pomalidomide, and dexamethasone in 247 patients.

Background: Daratumumab-refractory multiple myeloma (Dara-R MM) presents a significant treatment challenge. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and survival outcomes of elotuzumab, pomalidomide, and dexamethasone (EloPd) in a large, real-world cohort of patients with Dara-R MM, with particular focus on progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS).

Materials And Methods: This retrospective analysis included 247 Dara-R MM patients treated with EloPd.

The TL1A inhibitors in IBD: what's in the pot?

Introduction: Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), encompassing Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC), present ongoing challenges despite advances in pathophysiological understanding and therapeutic options. Current therapies often fail to achieve sustained remission, necessitating exploration of novel treatment targets.

Areas Covered: This review explores the role of Tumor Necrosis Factor-like cytokine 1A (TL1A) and its receptor DR3 in IBD pathogenesis, detailing their involvement in mucosal homeostasis and immune modulation.

Baricitinib for the treatment of severe alopecia areata: results from a 52-week multicenter retrospective real-world study.

Baricitinib, a JAK 1/2 inhibitor, is approved for treating severe alopecia areata (AA). This study aimed to evaluate the long-term effectiveness and safety of baricitinib in a real-world setting over 52 weeks. This multicenter retrospective study included 96 adult patients diagnosed with severe AA from 11 Italian Dermatology Units.

Reliability of the OMERACT Giant cell arteritis Ultrasonography Score (OGUS): results of a patient-based exercise involving experts and non-experts in vascular ultrasonography.

Objective: To test the reliability of the Outcome Measures in Rheumatology Giant cell arteritis (GCA) Ultrasonography Score (OGUS) and other composite scores in a patient-based exercise involving experts and non-experts in vascular ultrasonography.

Methods: Six GCA patients were scanned twice (two rounds separated ≥3 hours) by 12 experts and 12 non-experts. Non-experts received 90 min of theoretical and 240 min of practical training between rounds 1 and 2.

Sexual health in women and sexual-gender-minority patients with cancer: A nationwide survey on healthcare professional awareness and attitude on behalf of MITO and AIRO-gynecology group.

Background: Compared to male patients, sexual health remains poorly studied in women and sexual gender minority (SGM) patients with cancers.

Material And Methods: An online survey was developed by a multidisciplinary team to assess the awareness and attitude of Italian oncological providers facing sexual health during or after cancer treatment. On behalf of the respective scientific committees, the questionnaire was sent to Multicenter Italian Trials in Ovarian cancer and gynecologic malignancies group (MITO) and to Italian Association of Radiation Oncology (AIRO) Group.

Floor of the Mouth Hemorrhage Following Dental Implant Placement or Guided Bone Regeneration (GBR) in the Atrophic Interforaminal Mandible.

The authors present two cases of mouth floor hemorrhage consequences of implant placement within the atrophic anterior mandible. In one patient, the implant placement was associated with the guided bone regeneration (GBR) technique. This serious complication has been widely described in the literature, especially in the anterior mandible area.

The role of acetazolamide in critical care and emergency medicine.

Acetazolamide is the commonly prescribed oral and intravenous carbonic anhydrase inhibitor; over the years, its use in clinical practice has decreased in favor of more recent drugs. However, it is a rather handy drug, which can be useful in several clinical settings when managing critically ill patients. The objective of this review is the evaluation of the most recent evidence on the use of acetazolamide in emergency medicine and critical care medicine.

Predictors of Early Death in Patients With Wild-Type Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis.

Background: For the time being, tafamidis is the only approved treatment for wild-type transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis. However, benefits on all-cause death only emerge after ≈18 months. The current available staging systems are unable to specifically discriminate patients at high risk of death within 18 months from diagnosis, and the selection of patients who are expected to benefit from tafamidis is left to the clinical judgment of treating physicians, being often based primarily (and sometimes only) on age.

Use of ICD-9-CM coding for identifying antibiotic prescriptions during hospitalization: a Delphi consensus model.

A Delphi consensus-seeking procedure was conducted to validate a list of ICD-9-CM codes that could help identify hospital admissions in which antimicrobials are more likely to be prescribed. The panel agreed to include 2967 codes out of 16229 (18.28%).

Recommendations for Transitioning Young People with Primary Immunodeficiency Disorders and Autoinflammatory Diseases to Adult Care.

Purpose: Significant improvements in the prognosis for young patients with Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases (PID) and Autoinflammatory Disorders (AID), which together make up the majority of Inborn Errors of Immunity (IEI), have resulted in the need for optimisation of transition and transfer of care to adult services. Effective transition is crucial to improve health outcomes and treatment compliance among patients. Evaluations of existing transition programmes in European health centres identified the absence of disease-specific transition guidelines for PID and AID, as a challenge to the transition process.

Long-Term Effectiveness and Safety of Ustekinumab in Crohn's Disease: Results from a Large Real-Life Cohort Study.

Ustekinumab (UST) is an interleukin-12/interleukin-23 receptor antagonist approved for the treatment of Crohn's disease (CD). Only limited real-life data on the long-term outcomes of CD patients treated with UST are available. This study assessed UST's long-term effectiveness and safety in a large population-based cohort of moderate to severe CD patients.

Family planning and contraception in people with multiple sclerosis: perspectives for obstetricians, gynaecologists, and other health care professionals involved in reproductive planning.

Purpose: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is often diagnosed in people of reproductive age. However, family planning counselling is not always integrated within MS care. Decisions on family planning can be further complicated by potential side effects associated with several disease-modifying therapies.

Single-modality endocrine therapy versus radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery in women aged 70 years and older with luminal A-like early breast cancer (EUROPA): a preplanned interim analysis of a phase 3, non-inferiority, randomised trial.

Background: Optimal therapy following breast-conserving surgery in older adults with low-risk, early-stage breast cancer remains uncertain. The EUROPA trial aims to compare the effects of radiotherapy and endocrine therapy as single-modality treatments on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and ipsilateral breast tumour recurrence (IBTR) outcomes in this population.

Methods: This non-inferiority, phase 3, randomised study was conducted at 18 academic hospitals across Italy (17 centres) and Slovenia (one centre).

Integration of genetic testing into diagnostic pathways for cardiomyopathies: a clinical consensus statement by the ESC Council on Cardiovascular Genomics.

In the modern era, cardiologists managing patients and families with cardiomyopathies need to be familiar with every stage of the diagnostic pathway from clinical phenotyping to the prescription and interpretation of genetic tests. This clinical consensus statement from the ESC Council for Cardiovascular Genomics aims to promote the integration of genetic testing into routine cardiac care of patients with cardiomyopathies, as recommended in the 2023 ESC guidelines for cardiomyopathies. The document describes the types of genetic tests currently available and provides advice on their prescription and for counselling after the return of genetic findings, including the approach in patients and families with variants of unknown significance.