Dupilumab efficacy in subgroups of type 2 asthma with high-dose inhaled corticosteroids at baseline.

Background And Objective: Dupilumab blocks the shared receptor component for interleukin (IL)-4/IL-13, key and central drivers of type 2 inflammation in multiple diseases. In phase 3 QUEST (NCT02414854), add-on dupilumab 200 and 300 mg every 2 weeks reduced severe exacerbations, improved pre-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV), and was generally well tolerated in patients with uncontrolled moderate-to-severe asthma. This post hoc analysis assessed dupilumab efficacy in subpopulations of patients with type 2 asthma and high-dose inhaled corticosteroids (ICS).

Deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease in practice: results of the survey by the Italian Neurosurgery Society.

Background: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a safe and effective treatment for patients with advanced Parkinson's disease (PD) and many neurosurgical centers in Italy have a DBS program. Considering the prevalence of PD and criteria for DBS implantation, about 3200-10,350 PD patients may benefit from DBS in Italy. The global management of patients underwent DBS is complex and it can be supposed that many differences exist between centers in clinical practice.

Carotid artery stenting during endovascular thrombectomy for acute ischemic stroke with tandem occlusion: the Italian Registry of Endovascular Treatment in Acute Stroke.

Purpose: The management of tandem extracranial internal carotid artery and intracranial large vessel occlusion during endovascular thrombectomy (EVT) for acute ischemic stroke (AIS) has been under-investigated. We sought to investigate outcomes of AIS patients with tandem occlusion (TO) treated with carotid artery stenting (CAS) compared to those not treated with CAS (no-CAS) during EVT.

Methods: We performed a cohort study using data from AIS patients enrolled in the Italian Registry of Endovascular Treatment in Acute Stroke.

Role of stem cells-based in facial nerve reanimation: A meta-analysis of histological and neurophysiological outcomes.

Background: Treatments involving stem cell (SC) usage represent novel and potentially interesting alternatives in facial nerve reanimation. Current literature includes the use of SC in animal model studies to promote graft survival by enhancing nerve fiber growth, spreading, myelinization, in addition to limiting fibrotic dege neration after surgery. However, the effectiveness of the clinical use of SC in facial nerve reanimation has not been clarified yet.

Case Report: A Case of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Heidenhain Variant Simulating PRES.

The Heidenhain Variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) is an uncommon early clinical syndrome of the otherwise regular sporadic CJD, which belongs to the group of prion diseases caused by a transmissible agent, the misfolded form of the prion protein. The most characteristic symptoms of CJD are rapidly progressive cognitive impairment, typical motor manifestations and mental and behavioural changes. Conversely, in the Heidenhain Variant, different kinds of visual disturbances are observed at onset due to microvacuolar spongiform degeneration or, less frequently, confluent spongiform changes in the parieto-occipital area, detectable through brain MRI with hyperintensity in T2-FLAIR or DWI in the same areas.

Impact of waterbirth on post-partum hemorrhage, genital trauma, retained placenta and shoulder dystocia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: There is insufficient high-quality evidence to either support or discourage water birth (WB).

Objectives: To examine different maternal complications of WB compared to standard land birth (LB). The primary outcomes were postpartum hemorrhage and genital trauma.

The need for a subsequent transvenous system in patients implanted with subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.

Background: The absence of pacing capabilities may reduce the appeal of subcutaneous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (S-ICD) devices for patients at risk for conduction disorders or with antitachycardia pacing (ATP)/cardiac resynchronization (CRT) requirements. Reports of rates of S-ICD to transvenous implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (TV-ICD) system switch in real-world scenarios are limited.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the need for a subsequent transvenous (TV) device in patients implanted with an S-ICD and its predictors.

Neural interfaces to monitor Interventional Cardiologists' mental workload: GAME-ON SAGA.

Background: Interventional cardiologists' mental workload may impact on their performance as well as on patients' outcome. Nevertheless, little attention is paid to the monitoring and optimization of their mental status. Electroencephalogram (EEG)-based neural-interfaces can estimate mental fatigue and sleepiness through spectral analysis techniques and the amplitude of alpha waves is a widely validated indicator of mental engagement's level.

Multiple sclerosis in the era of COVID-19: disease course, DMTs and SARS-CoV2 vaccinations.

Purpose Of Review: As of January 21st 2022, over 340 million are confirmed cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), including nearly 5.6 million deaths. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is neurotropic and affects the neural parenchyma through direct viral invasion from the nasal mucosa and postinfectious cytokine storm.

Redefining a minimal rehabilitation assessment protocol for severe acquired brain injuries.

Background: The assessment of patients with severe Acquired Brain Injury (sABI) is mandatory in every phase and setting of care, and requires a multidimensional and interdisciplinary approach, to develop the individual rehabilitation project, and monitor long-term functional outcomes. In 2001 the Italian Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (SIMFER) published the minimal assessment protocol for traumatic sABI, providing a comprehensive, standardized functional assessment based on the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), 2001. In 2007, a new protocol was published, extended to all sABI patients (PMGCA).

The role of geriatricians in hospital palliative care units for elderly patients affected by end stage diseases.

Objective: To show the importance of geriatricians in the assessment and treatment of patients with terminal illnesses requiring palliative care.

Methods: This was a retrospective epidemiological study, in which the authors used data relating to 229 patients with terminal stage cancer/advanced chronic diseases, which were evaluated by a palliative care team and collected from January to December 2018.

Results: The average age of the sample was 72 years.

Italian Case Report with a Double Mutation in PSEN1 (K311R and E318G).

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia worldwide. The clinical spectrum of suspected AD has been extended from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to preclinical AD which includes people who have typical cognitive function but harbor the underlying biological features of AD. We report the first case of an Italian patient affected by MCI (MMSE 24\30), characterized by a double mutation p.

Machine learning model prediction of 6-month functional outcome in elderly patients with intracerebral hemorrhage.

Spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has an increasing incidence and a worse outcome in elderly patients. The ability to predict the functional outcome in these patients can be helpful in supporting treatment decisions and establishing prognostic expectations. We evaluated the performance of a machine learning (ML) model to predict the 6-month functional status in elderly patients with ICH leveraging the predictive value of the clinical characteristics at hospital admission.

Infections in hospitalised patients affected by end-stage diseases: a narrative overview.

Aim: To analyse the presence and treatment of infections in hospitalised terminal patients by identifying potential risk factors.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using health data from 229 terminally ill patients (evaluated by our hospital palliative care team (HPCT) hospitalised from January to December 2018.

Results: A total of two types of infections were identified: blood flow infection (through blood cultures) and pneumonia (through radiological examinations), while the other cases of infection remained unknown.

Antisense Oligonucleotides Conjugated with Lipophilic Compounds: Synthesis and In Vitro Evaluation of Exon Skipping in Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

Our groups previously reported that conjugation at 3'-end with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) significantly enhanced in vitro exon skipping properties of ASO 51 oligonucleotide targeting the human DMD exon 51. In this study, we designed a series of lipophilic conjugates of ASO 51, to explore the influence of the lipophilic moiety on exon skipping efficiency. To this end, three bile acids and two fatty acids have been derivatized and/or modified and conjugated to ASO 51 by automatized solid phase synthesis.

Development of a Nomogram Predicting the Risk of Persistence/Recurrence of Cervical Dysplasia.

Cervical dysplasia persistence/recurrence has a great impact on women's health and quality of life. In this study, we investigated whether a prognostic nomogram may improve risk assessment after primary conization. This is a retrospective multi-institutional study based on charts of consecutive patients undergoing conization between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2014.

Definition of High-Risk Early Hormone-Positive HER2-Negative Breast Cancer: A Consensus Review.

Breast cancer is one of the major causes of cancer-related morbidity and mortality in women worldwide. During the past three decades, several improvements in the adjuvant treatment of hormone receptor-positive/HER2-negative breast cancer have been achieved with the introduction of optimized adjuvant chemotherapy and endocrine treatment. However, estimating the risk of relapse of breast cancer on an individual basis is still challenging.

Dementia and Related Comorbidity: Analysis of 2 Years of Admissions to Italian Hospitals.

Background: The aim of the present study was to examine the prevalence of dementia, related comorbidities, and mortality rates in hospitalized elderly patients in Italy.

Methods: Data were obtained from the Italian Ministry of Health and included all discharge records from Italian hospitals concerning subjects aged 65 years or above admitted to acute Internal Medicine during 2 years (n=3,695,278 admissions). Discharge diagnoses were re-classified into 24 clusters, each including homogeneous diseases by the ICD-9-CM code classification.

Preliminary Validation of FoRCaSco: A New Grading System for Cerebral and Cerebellar Cavernomas.

Objective: Surgical indications for cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) remain significantly center- and surgeon-dependent; available grading systems are potentially limited, as they do not include epileptologic and radiologic data. Several experienced authors proposed a new grading system for CCM and the first group of patients capable of providing its statistical validation was analyzed.

Methods: A retrospective series of 289 CCMs diagnosed between 2008 and 2021 was collected in a shared anonymous database among 9 centers.

5-Aminolevulinic Acid False-Positive Rates in Newly Diagnosed and Recurrent Glioblastoma: Do Pseudoprogression and Radionecrosis Play a Role? A Meta-Analysis.

Background: Several studies have confirmed the impact of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) on the extent of resection in newly diagnosed glioblastoma (GBM). However, there are controversies on the 5-ALA fluorescence status in recurrent GBM surgery, with specific reference to pseudoprogression or radionecrosis; therefore, the safety and accuracy of surgical planning in 5-ALA-assisted procedures in the recurrent context are still unclear.

Materials And Methods: This is a systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative studies on the use of 5-ALA in newly diagnosed and recurrent GBM, consistently conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement.

Communicating the diagnosis of Klinefelter syndrome to children and adolescents: when, how, and who?

Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is the most frequent sex chromosome aneuploidy in males. KS diagnosis disclosure has an important impact on diagnosis acceptance and the increase in prenatal diagnostic procedures raises questions regarding communication to children/adolescents. Limited data are currently available on this issue.

PROPHYlactic Implantation of BIOlogic Mesh in peritonitis (PROPHYBIOM): a prospective multicentric randomized controlled trial.

Background: Patients undergoing emergency surgery for peritonitis are at increased risk of abdominal wall-related complications. In patients with peritonitis, the risk of incisional hernia (IH) is extremely elevated. The evaluation of quality of life of patients with incisional hernia showed lower mean scores on physical components of health-related quality of life and body image.