Radiofrequency ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma: CT texture analysis of the ablated area to predict local recurrence.

Purpose: To investigate the role of CT-texture analysis of liver ablation area to predict local recurrence after HCC ablation.

Methods: Patients treated with liver ablation were retrospectively enrolled. CT-texture analysis was performed on the core and borders of ablation area 1-2 months after procedure.

Prevalence, Pathogenesis and Management of Anemia in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: An IG-IBD Multicenter, Prospective, and Observational Study.

Background: Anemia is a common extraintestinal manifestation of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), with a 6% to 74% prevalence and a negative impact on patient survival and quality of life, although the prevalence is apparently declining due to improved disease treatment. We aimed to investigate the prevalence, pathogenesis, and clinical correlates of anemia in Italian patients with IBD.

Methods: A multicenter, prospective, observational study, involving 28 Italian gastroenterology centers, was conducted to investigate the epidemiology and consequences of IBD-associated anemia.

Laparoscopic surgery does not reduce the need for red blood cell transfusion after resection for colorectal tumour: a propensity score match study on 728 patients.

Background: Patients with colorectal tumour often present with anaemia, and up to 60% will receive red blood cells (RBC) transfusion. Some evidence suggests a correlation between RBC transfusion and worse outcomes. Since laparoscopy minimizes intraoperative blood loss, we retrospectively investigated its role in reducing haemoglobin (Hb) drop and requirements for postoperative RBC transfusions.

Pooled diagnostic parameters of artificial intelligence in EUS image analysis of the pancreas: A descriptive quantitative review.

EUS is an important diagnostic tool in pancreatic lesions. Performance of single-center and/or single study artificial intelligence (AI) in the analysis of EUS-images of pancreatic lesions has been reported. The aim of this study was to quantitatively study the pooled rates of diagnostic performance of AI in EUS image analysis of pancreas using rigorous systematic review and meta-analysis methodology.

Development and validation of a risk score for prediction of clinical success after duodenal stenting for malignant gastric outlet obstruction.

Background: To develop and validate a risk score for predicting clinical success after duodenal stenting using self-expanding metallic stents (SEMS) for malignant gastric outlet obstruction (GOO).

Research Design And Methods: Consecutive patients who underwent duodenal stenting for malignant GOO were evaluated. Potential predictors of clinical success were determined by uni/multivariate logistic regression analysis.

Variations in risk-adjusted outcomes following 4318 laparoscopic liver resections.

Background/purpose: Quality measures in surgery are important to establish appropriate levels of care and to develop improvement strategies. The purpose of this study was to provide risk-adjusted outcome measures after laparoscopic liver resection (LLR).

Methods: Data from a prospective, multicenter database involving 4318 patients submitted to LLRs in 41 hospitals from an intention-to-treat approach (2014-2020) were used to analyze heterogeneity (I ) among centers and to develop a risk-adjustment model on outcome measures through multivariable mixed-effect models to account for confounding due to case-mix.

Eight months follow-up of corneal nerves and sensitivity after treatment with cenegermin for neurotrophic keratopathy.

Backgroud: Cenegermin (Oxervate, Dompè Farmaceutici, Milan, IT), a recombinant human NGF, is a potentially healing new drug for neurotrophic keratopathy (NK), a rare but challenging disease affecting the cornea. To date, studies that evaluate its mid-term effect on corneal nerves and sensitivity are lacking.

Objective: To evaluate the recovery and morphology of subbasal corneal nerves in patients treated with Cenegermin for NK and assess their correlation with corneal sensitivity.

Polysubstance Use Patterns Among High Dose Benzodiazepine Users: A Latent Class Analysis and Differences Between Male and Female Use.

Benzodiazepines (BZDs) represent one of the most widely used groups of pharmaceuticals, but if used for long periods of time they are associated with dependence and an increased risk of harmful effects. High-dose (HD) BZD dependence is a specific substance use disorder associated with a poor quality of life. It is especially important to pinpoint differences in HD BZD addict subgroups in order to tailor treatment to the individual's specific needs, also considering possible comorbidities with other substance use disorders.

Allergies and COVID-19 vaccines: An ENDA/EAACI Position paper.

Background: Anaphylaxis, which is rare, has been reported after COVID-19 vaccination, but its management is not standardized.

Method: Members of the European Network for Drug Allergy and the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology interested in drug allergy participated in an online questionnaire on pre-vaccination screening and management of allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccines, and literature was analysed.

Results: No death due to anaphylaxis to COVID-19 vaccines has been confirmed in scientific literature.

Minimally invasive treatment of colorectal liver metastases: does robotic surgery provide any technical advantages over laparoscopy? A multicenter analysis from the IGoMILS (Italian Group of Minimally Invasive Liver Surgery) registry.

Surgery has been the mainstay treatment for colorectal liver metastases (CRLM). Although the benefits of a laparoscopic approach have been evidenced by several comparative studies, the comparison between robotic and laparoscopic liver surgery has not been elucidated. Thus, in this study, we aim to analyze the short-term outcomes of a multicenter population that underwent robotic versus laparoscopic liver resection for CRLM.

Rituximab as Maintenance Therapy in Type 1 Autoimmune Pancreatitis: An Italian Experience.

Objective: Rituximab (RTX) has been proposed for the induction of remission and maintenance therapy in relapsing type 1 autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP). The aim of the study was to describe the use of RTX as maintenance therapy for patients with type 1 AIP.

Methods: Patients with type 1 AIP based on the International Consensus Diagnostic Criteria and treated with RTX were selected from our database.

Performance and effectiveness of step progressive care pathways within mental health supported accommodation services in Italy.

Background: In Italy, a growing number of people with severe mental illness (SMI) require care in residential facilities (RFs), a key component of the care pathway. However, despite their development, studies about resident samples have been very few.

Aims: This study, the VALERE-REC Study (eVALuation of outcomE in Residential-use of clinical data with REsearch objeCtives) aims to identify the characteristics that increase the probability to move patients living in RFs to a more independent setting.

Synthetic recovery of impulse propagation in myocardial infarction via silicon carbide semiconductive nanowires.

Myocardial infarction causes 7.3 million deaths worldwide, mostly for fibrillation that electrically originates from the damaged areas of the left ventricle. Conventional cardiac bypass graft and percutaneous coronary interventions allow reperfusion of the downstream tissue but do not counteract the bioelectrical alteration originated from the infarct area.

Pinch Anatomy of Forehead: An Injection Guide for Forehead Filler Treatment.

Filler injections have become very popular in recent years, and injectors globally use them for facial shaping and reversing age-related changes. Detailed knowledge about important vessels' and tissue planes' anatomy is essential for injectors. While giving the filler injections, injectors tend to gently pinch or pull the tissue fold with the nondominant hand during the procedure.

Impact of biliary stents on the diagnostic accuracy of EUS-guided fine-needle biopsy of solid pancreatic head lesions: A multicenter study.

Background And Objectives: There is no clear evidence of a negative impact of biliary stents on the diagnostic yield of EUS-guided fine-needle biopsy (EUS-FNB) for diagnosing pancreatic head lesions. We aimed to evaluate the association between the presence of biliary stents and the diagnostic accuracy of EUS-FNB.

Materials And Methods: A multicenter retrospective study including all jaundiced patients secondary to pancreatic head masses was performed.

The Sustained Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Health Care Workers One Year after the Outbreak-A Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey in a Tertiary Hospital of North-East Italy.

This study aimed to evaluate the mental health outcomes of health care workers (HCWs) of the Verona academic hospital trust (Italy) one year after the outbreak of COVID-19 and to identify predicted risk factors. A web-based survey was conducted from mid-April to mid-May 2021 on hospital workers one year after the first evaluation performed during the lock-down phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Post-traumatic stress, general anxiety, depression, and burnout were assessed by using, respectively, the impact of event scale (IES-R), the self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), the patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the Maslach burnout inventory-general survey (MBI-GS).

Definition of a hospital volume threshold to optimize outcomes after drainage of pancreatic fluid collections with lumen-apposing metal stents: a nationwide cohort study.

Background And Aims: There is increasing interest in expanding the use of lumen-apposing metal stents (LAMSs) in patients with pancreatic fluid collections (PFCs). The aim of this study was to determine whether there is a hospital volume threshold for which patient outcomes could be optimized.

Methods: Data from a large multicenter series of patients with PFCs treated with LAMSs were retrieved.

Evolving pancreatic cancer treatment: From diagnosis to healthcare management.

The prognosis of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma is still the worst among solid tumors. In this review, a panel of experts addressed the main unanswered questions about the clinical management of this disease, with the aim of providing practical decision support for physicians. On the basis of the evidence available from the literature, the main topics concerning pancreatic cancer are discussed: the diagnosis, as the need for a pathological characterization and the role for germ-line and somatic molecular profiling; the therapeutic management of resectable disease, as the role of upfront surgery or neoadjuvant chemotherapy, the post-operative restaging and the optimal timing foradjuvant chemotherapy, the management of the borderline resectable and locally advanced disease; the metastatic disease and the role of surgery for the management of patients with isolated metastasis and the use of biomarkers of metastatic potential; the role of supportive care and the healthcare management of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

Major adverse cardiovascular events associated with VEGF-targeted anticancer tyrosine kinase inhibitors: a real-life study and proposed algorithm for proactive management.

Background: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) are widely used in cancer treatment and burdened by cardiovascular toxicity. The majority of data come from clinical trials, thus in selected populations. The aim of our study is to evaluate the cardiotoxicity profile of VEGFR-targeted TKIs and the impact of cardiovascular risk factors in a real-life population.

Ablation Difficulty Score: Proposal of a new tool to predict success rate of percutaneous ablation for hepatocarcinoma.

Purpose: Identify the factors related to failure ablation after percutaneous ultrasound guided single electrode radiofrequency ablation (RFA) for hepatocarcinoma (HCC) and propose a score for improving patient selection and treatment allocation.

Methods: From 2010 to 2020 585 HCC nodules treated with RFA were prospectively collected. Ablation Difficulty Score (ADS) was built-up according to clinical and radiological factors related to failure ablation identified by Cox-logistic regression analysis.