Educational needs and career development of young epileptologists in Italy.

Objective: The Education and Career Task Force of the Young Epilepsy Section-Italy focuses on educational and career development needs of young Italian epileptologists. Two surveys were developed (pre- and post COVID-19 pandemic) in order to identify the needs of members of the Lega Italiana Contro l'Epilessia under 40 years of age.

Methods: The first was distributed during the 42nd National Congress (Rome, June 5-7, 2019); the second during the 45th National Congress (Padova, June 8-10, 2022) and subsequently by e-mail until July 9, 2022.

Estimated plasma volume status is a simple and quick tool that could help define the severity of patients with infection on arrival at the emergency department.

Background: Infectious states are subtle and rapidly evolving conditions observed daily in the emergency department (ED), and their prognostic evaluation remains a complex clinical challenge. Recently, estimated plasma volume status (ePVS) has been suggested to have a prognostic role in conditions where volemic alteration is central to the pathophysiology. The aim of this study was to verify whether ePVS recorded at ED admission can provide prognostic indications of 30-day mortality in patients with infection.

Human intelligence versus Chat-GPT: who performs better in correctly classifying patients in triage?

Introduction: Chat-GPT is rapidly emerging as a promising and potentially revolutionary tool in medicine. One of its possible applications is the stratification of patients according to the severity of clinical conditions and prognosis during the triage evaluation in the emergency department (ED).

Methods: Using a randomly selected sample of 30 vignettes recreated from real clinical cases, we compared the concordance in risk stratification of ED patients between healthcare personnel and Chat-GPT.

The role of lactate-to-albumin ratio to predict 30-day risk of death in patients with sepsis in the emergency department: a decision tree analysis.

Background: Accurately estimating the prognosis of septic patients on arrival in the emergency department (ED) is clinically challenging. The lactate-to-albumin ratio (LAR) has recently been proposed to improve the predictive performance of septic patients admitted to the ICU.

Objectives: This study aims to assess whether the LAR could be used as an early prognostic marker of 30-day mortality in patients with sepsis in the ED.

Prognostic role of albumin, lactate-to-albumin ratio and C-reactive protein-to-albumin ratio in infected patients.

Introduction: The prognostic evaluation of the septic patient has recently been enriched by some predictive indices such as albumin concentration, lactate/albumin ratio (LAR) and C-reactive protein/albumin ratio (CAR). The performance of these indices has been evaluated in septic patients in intensive care, but until now their performance in infected patients in the Emergency Department (ED) has not been evaluated.

Aim: To investigate the potential prognostic role of albumin, LAR and CAR in patients with infection in the ED.

The Clinical Utility of Albumin with Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) in Improving 30-Day Mortality Prediction in Patients with Infection in the Emergency Department.

Background: The Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score is currently the primary prognostic tool used in patients with infections to predict sepsis and mortality, although its predictive role remains debated. Serum albumin values have been recently found to correlate with the severity of sepsis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical usefulness of albumin dosage on SOFA score prediction in infected patients.

Relevance of spirituality and perceived social support to mental health of people with pre-existing mental health disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic: a longitudinal investigation.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic and related measures have negatively impacted mental health worldwide. The main objective of the present longitudinal study was to investigate mental health in people living in Tyrol (Austria) and South Tyrol (Italy) during the COVID-19 pandemic and to report the prevalence of psychological distress among individuals with versus those without pre-existing mental health disorders (MHD) in the long-term (summer 2020-winter 2022). Here, we specifically focus on the relevance of spirituality and perceived social support in this regard.

Real requirements of nursing activities and patient-related factors related to nursing overload in an internal medicine department.

Adequate nursing care can be decisive for the outcome of a patient admitted to an internal medicine ward. Individual prediction of nursing activity at the time of a patient's admission could improve the work process. This study aimed to assess the objectively assessed nursing requirements of patients admitted to a medical setting and to identify clinical factors that correlate with high demands.

: The Italian botanist Arturo Nannizzi (1887-1961) and his contribution to the treatment of parkinsonism following encephalitis lethargica.

We describe the Italian contribution to the description and treatment of parkinsonism following encephalitis lethargica (EL): postencephalitic parkinsonism (PEP). Special attention is devoted to the description of postencephalitic symptoms by Giuseppe Panegrossi (1871-1953) and to the treatment based on introduced in Italy and extensively supported by Arturo Nannizzi (1887-1961), who was charged by the queen of Italy with conducting research into this plant and advocating its cultivation for healing purposes. This article gives us the unique opportunity to revisit the figure of this distinguished botanist, providing a summary of his biography, interests, and achievements.

Impact of Key Components of Intensified Ceftaroline Dosing on Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Target Attainment.

Background And Objective: Ceftaroline fosamil is a β-lactam antibiotic approved as a 600 mg twice daily dose (≤1 h infusion, 'standard dosing') or a 600 mg thrice daily dose (2 h infusion) to treat complicated skin and soft tissue infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus (minimum inhibitory concentration [MIC] 2-4 mg/L). We sought to systematically evaluate the relative impact of the three key components of the intensified dosing regimen (i.e.

Use, experience and perspectives of high-density EEG among Italian epilepsy centers: a national survey.

Introduction: High-density EEG (hdEEG) is a validated tool in presurgical evaluation of people with epilepsy. The aim of this national survey is to estimate diffusion and knowledge of hdEEG to develop a network among Italian epilepsy centers.

Methods: A survey of 16 items (and 15 additional items) was distributed nationwide by email to all members of the Italian League Against Epilepsy and the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology.

Multi-centric study for development and validation of a CT head rule for mild traumatic brain injury in direct oral anticoagulants: the HERO-M nomogram.

Background: Nomograms are easy-to-handle clinical tools which can help in estimating the risk of adverse outcome in certain population. This multi-center study aims to create and validate a simple and usable clinical prediction nomogram for individual risk of post-traumatic Intracranial Hemorrhage (ICH) after Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) in patients treated with Direct Oral Anticoagulants (DOACs).

Methods: From January 1, 2016 to December 31, 2019, all patients on DOACs evaluated for an MTBI in five Italian Emergency Departments were enrolled.

Back to the future: encephalitis lethargica as an autoimmune disorder?

More than 100 years after its emergence, the exact pathophysiological mechanisms underlying encephalitis lethargica (EL) are still elusive and awaiting convincing and complete elucidation. This article summarizes arguments proposed over time to support or refute the hypothesis of EL as an autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder triggered by an infectious process. It also provides a critical evaluation of modern cases labeled as EL and a comprehensive differential diagnosis of autoimmune neurological conditions that could mimic EL.

Treatment of seizures in the neonate: Guidelines and consensus-based recommendations-Special report from the ILAE Task Force on Neonatal Seizures.

Seizures are common in neonates, but there is substantial management variability. The Neonatal Task Force of the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE) developed evidence-based recommendations about antiseizure medication (ASM) management in neonates in accordance with ILAE standards. Six priority questions were formulated, a systematic literature review and meta-analysis were performed, and results were reported following the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) 2020 standards.

Comparison of the status epilepticus severity score and the epidemiology-based mortality score in predicting 30-day mortality and status epilepticus cessation.

Objective: To evaluate the role of the Status Epilepticus Severity Score (STESS) and the Epidemiology-based Mortality score (EMSE) in predicting 30-day mortality and SE (Status epilepticus) cessation, and their prognostic performance in subgroups of patients with specific characteristics.

Methods: We reviewed consecutive episodes of SE occurring in patients aged ≥14 years at Baggiovara Civil Hospital (Modena, Italy) from 2013 to 2021. We evaluated the predictive accuracy of EMSE and STESS for 30-day mortality and SE cessation through stepwise regression binary logistic models adjusted for possible univariate clinical confounders.

B-mode transorbital ultrasonography for the diagnosis of idiopathic intracranial hypertension: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the role of B-mode transorbital ultrasonography (TOS) for the diagnosis of idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) in adults.

Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (1966-May 2022) were searched to identify studies reporting ultrasonographic data about the optic nerve sheath diameter (ONSD) and optic disc elevation (ODE) in adults with IIH compared to subjects without IIH. The quality of the included studies was evaluated by the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality.

Drug-resistant epilepsy: Definition, pathophysiology, and management.

There are currently >51 million people with epilepsy (PWE) in the world and every year >4.9 million people develop new-onset epilepsy. The cornerstone of treatment in PWE is drug therapy with antiseizure medications (ASMs).

Acute symptomatic status epilepticus: Splitting or lumping? A proposal of classification based on real-world data.

This study aimed to group acute symptomatic etiologies of consecutive episodes of status epilepticus (SE) into different subcategories and explore their associations with clinical outcome. Etiologies were first categorized as "acute," "remote," "progressive," "SE in defined electroclinical syndromes," and "unknown." Four subcategories of acute etiologies were then defined: (1) withdrawal, low levels, or inappropriate prescription of antiseizure medications, or sleep deprivation in patients with pre-existing epilepsy; (2) acute insults to central nervous system (CNS; "acute-primary CNS"); (3) CNS pathology secondary to metabolic disturbances, systemic infection, or fever ("acute-secondary CNS"); and (4) drug/alcohol intoxication or withdrawal.

Albumin as a prognostic marker of 30-day mortality in septic patients admitted to the emergency department.

Background: Assessing the evolutive risk of septic patients in the emergency department (ED) is very complex. Predictive tools are available, but at an early stage, none of them can detect the tissue microvascular alterations underlying the septic process. Hypoalbuminemia is present in critically ill patients in the ICU, and some early indications also suggest its early role in septic patients.