Association of Neuroretinal Thinning and Microvascular Changes with Hypertension in an Older Population in Southern Italy.

Background: Retinal microvasculature assessment at capillary level may potentially aid the evaluation of early microvascular changes due to hypertension. We aimed to investigate associations between the measures obtained using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT-angiography (OCT-A) and hypertension, in a southern Italian older population.

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional analysis from a population-based study on 731 participants aged 65 years+ subdivided into two groups according to the presence or absence of blood hypertension without hypertensive retinopathy.

Comparison of perioperative parameters in one-handed rotational phacoemulsification versus conventional phacoemulsification and femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery.

Aim: To compare perioperative parameters of one-handed rotational phacoemulsification technique (one-handed phaco-roll) with each of other two techniques, "Divide et Conquer" and femtosecond laser-assisted cataract surgery (FLACS).

Methods: In this retrospective and comparative cohort study, eyes with uncomplicated cataract (nuclear density grade 2 to 3) treated routinely with one-handed phaco-roll (=23; Group 1) or "Divide et Conquer" (=23; Group 2) or FLACS (=23; Group 3) were enrolled. Intraoperative parameters including effective phaco-time (EPt), ultrasound time (USt), aspiration time, surgical time, phacoemulsification (phaco)-power, balanced salt solution (BSS) use, cumulative dissipated energy (CDE) were recorded and compared.

Job satisfaction among physicians and nurses involved in the management of multiple sclerosis: the role of happiness and meaning at work.

Objective: Health professionals caring for persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) are faced with increasingly complex working conditions that can undermine their job satisfaction and the quality of their healthcare services. The aim of this study was to delve into health professionals' job satisfaction by assessing the predictive role of happiness and meaning at work. Specifically, it was hypothesized that job meaning would moderate the relationship between job happiness and satisfaction.

Clinical Activities, Contaminations of Surgeons and Cooperation with Health Authorities in 14 Orthopedic Departments in North Italy during the Most Acute Phase of Covid-19 Pandemic.

: From 10 March up until 3 May 2020 in Northern Italy, the SARS-CoV-2 spread was not contained; disaster triage was adopted. The aim of the present study is to assess the impact of the COVID-19-pandemic on the Orthopedic and Trauma departments, focusing on: hospital reorganization (flexibility, workload, prevalence of COVID-19/SARS-CoV-2, standards of care); effects on staff; subjective orthopedic perception of the pandemic. : Data regarding 1390 patients and 323 surgeons were retrieved from a retrospective multicentric database, involving 14 major hospitals.

Survival Analysis in Single N2 Station Lung Adenocarcinoma: The Prognostic Role of Involved Lymph Nodes and Adjuvant Therapy.

Background: Prognostic factors in patients with single mediastinal station (sN2) involvement continues to be a debated issue.

Methods: Data on 213 adenocarcinoma patients with sN2 involvement and who had undergone complete anatomical lung resection and lymphadenectomy, were retrospectively reviewed. Clinical and pathological characteristics together with adjuvant therapy (AD) and node (N) status classifications (number of resected nodes (#RN), number of metastatic nodes (#MN), and node ratio (#MN/#RN = NR) were analyzed.

Role of shear-wave and strain elastography to differentiate malignant vs benign subpleural lung lesions.

Elastosonography is a non-invasive diagnostic method to evaluate tissue stiffness. The aim of our study was to demonstrate the applicability and efficacy of elastosonography to differentiate benign vs malignant subpleural lung lesions compared to clinical, radiological and histological findings.We performed both strain and shear wave velocity (SWV) elastosonography on subpleural lung lesions.

Plasma from obese children increases monocyte-endothelial adhesion and affects intracellular insulin signaling in cultured endothelial cells: Potential role of mTORC1-S6K1.

Childhood obesity is characterized by the loss of vascular insulin sensitivity along with altered oxidant-antioxidant state and chronic inflammation, which play a key role in the onset of endothelial dysfunction. We previously demonstrated a reduced insulin-stimulated Nitric Oxide (NO) bioavailability in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial cells (HUVECs) cultured with plasma from obese pre-pubertal children (OB) compared to those cultured with plasma of normal-weight children (CTRL). However, mechanisms underlying endothelial dysfunction in childhood obesity remains poorly understood.

Evidence and Considerations on Treatment of Small Size Merkel Cell Head and Neck Carcinoma.

 Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive neuroendocrine malignant cancer. It is an epidermal cancer common in the head and neck.  Though there is limited number of cases described in the literature for the treatment difficult to obtain.

External validation of the N descriptor in the proposed tumour-node-metastasis subclassification for lung cancer: the crucial role of histological type, number of resected nodes and adjuvant therapy.

Objectives: Overlapping survival curves for N1b (multiple N1 stations), N2a2 (single N2 station + N1 involvement) and N2a1 (skip N2 metastasis) limit the current tumour-node-metastasis (TNM) node (N) subclassification for node involvement. We validated externally the proposed subclassification.

Methods: Clinical records from a multicentric database comprising 1036 patients with pulmonary adenocarcinoma (ADC) or squamous cell carcinoma with N1/N2 involvement who underwent, from January 2002 to December 2014, complete lung resections were retrospectively reviewed.

Prognostic score for survival with pulmonary carcinoids: the importance of associating clinical with pathological characteristics.

Objectives: Lung carcinoids (LCs) are staged using the non-small-cell lung cancer tumour/node/metastasis staging system; the possibility of an LC-specific staging system is still being debated. The goal of our study was to construct a composite prognostic score for LC.

Methods: From January 2002 to December 2014, data from 293 patients who underwent surgical treatment for LC in 7 research institutes were retrospectively analysed.

Mediastinal Up-Staging During Surgery in Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer: Which Mediastinal Lymph Node Metastasis Patterns Better Predict The Outcome? A Multicenter Analysis.

Background: Unexpected N2 involvement occurs in approximately 10% to 20% of patients with non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and patients' prognostic factors remain unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate prognostic factors in these patients.

Methods: From January 2002 to December 2012, we retrospectively analyzed data of 550 patients with NSCLC with preoperative negative, but pathologic positive N2 involvement, who underwent anatomical lung resection and hilo-mediastinal lymphadenectomy, obtained from 6 institutions.

How does ayahuasca work from a psychiatric perspective? Pros and cons of the entheogenic therapy.

Objective: Ayahuasca is a hallucinogenic plant preparation, traditionally consumed in sacred ceremonies by indigenous North-Westerner Amazonian countries like Colombia, Peru, Brazil, and Ecuador. It is fundamental to carefully balance benefits/risks related to the ayahuasca intake, both during ceremonies and experimental settings. The aim is at evaluating and comparing the potential therapeutic benefits versus health risks related to ayahuasca intake (both acutely and chronically), focusing on its application in psychedelic psychiatry.

Adjunctive vortioxetine for SSRI-resistant major depressive disorder: a "real-world" chart review study.

Objective: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are the cornerstone of treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). However, non-response is common, often necessitating combination strategies. The present study assessed the efficacy of vortioxetine as an add-on therapy in patients with SSRI-resistant MDD.

HepaDisk - A new quality of life questionnaire for HCV patients.

Background: Since most patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection now receive treatment irrespective of liver disease severity, special attention to patient quality of life (QoL), including psycho-social aspects, is required. No QoL questionnaire is specific for patients with HCV.

Aims: To develop and validate a short Italian questionnaire (HepaDisk) assessing the QoL of patients affected by HCV with intuitive graphic results that is understandable by patients and physicians.

Correction to: Thrombus aspiration in hyperglycemic ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients: clinical outcomes at 1-year follow-up.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported an error in Acknowledgment section. The last sentence should read as "All authors have read and approval the submission to Cardiovascular Diabetology.

Discordance between FISH, IHC, and NGS Analysis of ALK Status in Advanced Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC): a Brief Report of 7 Cases.

Background: Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) rearrangement represents a landmark in the targeted therapy of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is a sensitive and specific method to detect ALK protein expression, possibly an alternative to fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). In this study, the concordance of FISH and IHC to determine ALK status was evaluated, particularly focusing on discordant cases.

Thrombus aspiration in hyperglycemic ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients: clinical outcomes at 1-year follow-up.

Objectives: We evaluate whether the thrombus aspiration (TA) before primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) may improve STEMI outcomes in hyperglycemic patients.

Background: The management of hyperglycemic patients during STEMI is unclear.

Methods: We undertook an observational cohort study of 3166 first STEMI.

Lymph-node ratio predicts survival among the different stages of non-small-cell lung cancer: a multicentre analysis†.

Objectives: The prognostic role of the number of resected and metastatic lymph nodes in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still being debated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of lymphadenectomy in addition to the already validated variables in NSCLC survival.

Methods: From January 2002 to December 2012, data on 4858 patients with NSCLC undergoing anatomical lung resection and hilomediastinal lymphadenectomy in 6 institutions were analysed retrospectively.

MicroRNA in Sjögren's Syndrome: Their Potential Roles in Pathogenesis and Diagnosis.

Sjögren's syndrome (SS) or sicca syndrome was described by Swedish ophthalmologist Sjögren in the year 1933 for the first time. The etiology of the SS is multifunctional and includes a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental as well as epigenetic factors. It is an autoimmune disease characterized by features of systemic autoimmunity, dysfunction, and inflammation in the exocrine glands (mainly salivary and lacrimal glands) and lymphocytic infiltration of exocrine glands.