High-throughput genotyping of high-risk Human Papillomavirus by MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometry-based method.

A high-throughput matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry (MS)-based method was here developed to genotype 16 high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) types in cervical cytology specimens. This method was compared to a commercial kit, the Inno-LiPA HPV genotyping assay, which detects a broad spectrum of HPV types. HPV DNA was assessed by the two methods in a total of 325 cervical cytology specimens collected in PreservCyt® solution.

Endovascular treatment of an aortic traumatic double rupture.

Traumatic thoracic aortic rupture is a life-threatening condition; aortic isthmus is the most common site of rupture, but in rare cases traumatic injury can localize elsewhere, such as at aortic arch or at the level of the diaphragm. In the past few years, endovascular treatment of traumatic aortic injury became a safe procedure, with lower mortality and complication, if compared with open surgery. We report a case of a 40-year-old-man admitted to emergency department after a violent car crash in which an aortic traumatic double rupture was successfully treated with two endovascular stent-grafts coverage.

Do Chest Expansion Exercises Aid Re-shaping the Diaphragm Within the First 72 Hours Following Lung Transplantation in a Usual Interstitial Pneumonia Patient?

Background And Purpose: Usual interstitial pneumonia is a chronic pulmonary disease, and it is characterized by progressive and rapid lung fibrosis and typically affects patients older than 50 years. This study sought to discuss the use of chest expansion exercises during the immediate post-operative phase in a lung transplantation recipient.

Methods: This was a non-experimental case report study.

The impact of internalizing symptoms on autistic traits in adolescents with restrictive anorexia nervosa.

Background: Although previous studies indicated a positive association between restrictive anorexia-nervosa (AN-R) and autistic traits, the potential interference of psychiatric internalizing comorbidity on this association is not yet fully investigated.

Materials And Methods: The aim of this study was to explore autistic traits and internalizing psychopathology in adolescents (age range: 11.7-17.

Thoracic manifestation of Eisenmenger's syndrome in adult patients: a MDCT review.

Eisenmenger's syndrome (ES) is the most advanced form of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) associated with congenital heart diseases (CHD). It is caused by simple or complex CHD with a large systemic-to-pulmonary shunt. When the pulmonary pressure exceeds the systemic pressure, the shunt reverses and central cyanosis appears.

Acute type B aortic dissection complicated by visceral ischemia.

Objective: Acute type B aortic dissection (ABAD) can lead to visceral malperfusion, a potentially life-threatening complication. The purpose of this study was to investigate the presentation, management, and outcomes of ABAD patients with visceral ischemia who are enrolled in the International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection.

Methods: Patients with ABAD enrolled in the registry between 1996 and 2013 were identified and stratified based on presence of visceral ischemia at admission.

Coronary artery surgery versus percutaneous coronary intervention in octogenarians: long-term results.

Background: The aim of this study was to compare 7-year rates of all-cause death, cardiac death, myocardial infarction, target vessel revascularization, and stroke in a large cohort of octogenarians with left main coronary artery or multivessel disease, treated with coronary artery bypass grafting or percutaneous coronary intervention.

Methods: Two propensity score-matched cohorts of patients undergoing revascularization procedures at regional public and private centers of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, from July 2002 to December 2008 were used to compare long-term outcomes of percutaneous coronary intervention (947 patients) and coronary artery bypass grafting (441 patients).

Results: There were no significant differences between groups in 30-day mortality.

Overview of current lung imaging in acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Imaging plays a key role in the diagnosis and follow-up of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Chest radiography, bedside lung ultrasonography and computed tomography scans can provide useful information for the management of patients and detection of prognostic factors. However, imaging findings are not specific and several possible differential diagnoses should be taken into account.

Root replacement surgery versus more conservative management during type A acute aortic dissection repair.

Background: Aortic root management in type A acute aortic dissection is controversial. This study compared outcomes of root replacement (RR) interventions versus more conservative root (CR) management.

Methods: Of 1,995 type A acute aortic dissection patients enrolled in the International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection, 699 (35%) underwent RR interventions and 1,296 (65%) underwent CR management.

Lessons from the Fourth Metronomic and Anti-angiogenic Therapy Meeting, 24-25 June 2014, Milan.

The Fourth Metronomic and Anti-angiogenic Therapy Meeting was held in Milan 24-25 June 2014. The meeting was a true translational meeting where researchers and clinicians shared their results, experiences, and insights in order to continue gathering useful evidence on metronomic approaches. Several speakers emphasised that exact mechanisms of action, best timing, and optimal dosage are still not well understood and that the field would learn a lot from ancillary studies performed during the clinical trials of metronomic chemotherapies.

Monte Carlo modeling provides accurate calibration factors for radionuclide activity meters.

Accurate determination of calibration factors for radionuclide activity meters is crucial for quantitative studies and in the optimization step of radiation protection, as these detectors are widespread in radiopharmacy and nuclear medicine facilities. In this work we developed the Monte Carlo model of a widely used activity meter, using the Geant4 simulation toolkit. More precisely the "PENELOPE" EM physics models were employed.

Novel antiretroviral drugs and renal function monitoring of HIV patients.

Chronic kidney disease is a major comorbidity in patients affected by HIV infection. In addition, the introduction of new antiretroviral agents that interact with creatinine transporters is raising some concerns. In this review we analyze the currently available data about three new antiretroviral drugs and one new pharmacokinetic enhancer.

Outcomes of patients undergoing concomitant mitral and aortic valve surgery: results from an Italian regional cardiac surgery registry.

Objectives: There are limited reliable data on the long-term survival of patients operated upon with double-valve surgery (DVS) in the literature. In this study, in-hospital mortality and 5-year survival were determined and the potential risk factors for increased mortality were identified and discussed.

Methods: This is a report of an observational retrospective study of 1167 patients undergoing concomitant aortic and mitral valve surgery from 2002 to 2011.

In vivo treatment sensitivity testing with positron emission tomography/computed tomography after one cycle of chemotherapy for Hodgkin lymphoma.

Purpose: Negative [(18)F]fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) -positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) after two cycles of chemotherapy indicates a favorable prognosis in Hodgkin lymphoma (HL). We hypothesized that the negative predictive value would be even higher in patients responding rapidly enough to be PET negative after one cycle. This prospective study aimed to assess the prognostic value of PET after one cycle of chemotherapy in HL and to assess the dynamics of FDG uptake after one cycle (PET1) and after two cycles (PET2).

Emergency endovascular stent grafting in acute complicated type B dissection.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess midterm results of emergency endovascular stent grafting for patients with life-threatening complications of acute type B aortic dissection.

Methods: Between March 1999 and November 2011, 110 patients (86 men, 24 women) with complications of acute type B aortic dissection (mean age, 61 years; range, 19-87 years) were treated with thoracic endovascular aortic repair for malperfusion (55.5%) or aortic rupture (53.

PET radiopharmaceuticals for imaging of tumor hypoxia: a review of the evidence.

Hypoxia is a pathological condition arising in living tissues when oxygen supply does not adequately cover the cellular metabolic demand. Detection of this phenomenon in tumors is of the utmost clinical relevance because tumor aggressiveness, metastatic spread, failure to achieve tumor control, increased rate of recurrence, and ultimate poor outcome are all associated with hypoxia. Consequently, in recent decades there has been increasing interest in developing methods for measurement of oxygen levels in tumors.

The problem of renal function monitoring in patients treated with the novel antiretroviral drugs.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is currently considered a major comorbidity in patients affected by HIV infection. In addition, new generation antiretroviral drugs that interact with creatinine transporters were recently introduced. Rilpivirine, dolutegravir, and cobicistat, with different mechanisms, inhibit the amount of tubular secretion of creatinine causing a slight increase in serum creatinine levels and consensual eGFRcreat reduction.

Detection of high-risk human papillomavirus type 16 and 18 using isothermal helicase-dependent amplification.

Persistent infection with human papillomavirus (HPV) induces cervical cancer. Here, we describe a sensitive, specific, and rapid assay for high-risk HPV16 and 18 detection by isothermal helicase-dependent amplification. This method can be used as cost-effective diagnostic method for low-income countries, where highest incidences worldwide of cervical cancer are registered.

Mitochondrial DNA genotyping efficiently reveals clonality of synchronous endometrial and ovarian cancers.

Simultaneous independent primary tumors of the female genital tract occur in 1-2% of gynecological cancer patients, 50-70% of which are synchronous tumors of the endometrium and ovary. Recognition of synchrony upon multiple tumors is crucial for correct prognosis, therapeutic choice, and patient management. Current guidelines for determining synchrony, based on surgical and histopathological findings, are often ambiguous and may require further molecular analyses.

Recurrence of ICH after resumption of anticoagulation with VK antagonists: CHIRONE study.

Objective: To evaluate the risk of recurrent intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) in patients on vitamin K antagonists (VKAs) after a first episode of ICH.

Methods: The Cerebral Haemorrhage in patients Restarting Oral Anticoagulant Therapy (CHIRONE) Study collected data of patients eligible for the study from the database of 27 centers affiliated with the Italian Federation of Anticoagulation Clinics.

Results: We enrolled 267 patients (163 male, median age 73.

D-dimer use for deep venous thrombosis exclusion in elderly patients: a comparative analysis of three different approaches to establish cut-off values for an assay with results expressed in D-dimer units.

Introduction: The use of adapted cut-off values in the elderly, combined with clinical probability (PTP), increases the proportion of patients in whom venous thromboembolism (VTE) can be safely excluded, compared with the conventional cut-off value of 500 μg/L fibrinogen equivalent units (FEU). We evaluated the clinical performance of three different approaches to establish cut-off values for a D-dimer assay whose results are expressed in D-dimer units (D-DU).

Methods: HemosIL D-dimer HS assay (Instrumentation Laboratory) was performed in 279 consecutive outpatients with suspected deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and nonhigh PTP.

Follow-up of bone mineral density and body composition in adolescents with restrictive anorexia nervosa: role of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.

Background/objectives: Restrictive Anorexia nervosa (ANR) is an eating disorder (ED) characterized by a low bone mineral content (BMC) and by an alteration in body composition (reduction and abnormal distribution of fat mass-FM and lean mass-LM). The aim of our study was to address whether bone and body composition changes could be influenced by hormonal status and sport in female adolescents with restrictive anorexia nervosa-ANR.

Subjects/methods: Prospective study on 79 adolescents with ANR submitted to Dual Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry-DXA at baseline-T0 and after 12 months-T12.