Double-valve infective endocarditis: clinical features and prognostic impact-a retrospective study in a surgical centre.

Most cases of infective endocarditis (IE) involve a single valve, and little is known concerning IE that simultaneously affects two valves. The involvement of more than one valve may imply more severe and extensive cardiac lesions. In these patients, surgery may be challenging.

Course and Lethality of SARS-CoV-2 Epidemic in Nursing Homes after Vaccination in Florence, Italy.

Evidence on the effectiveness of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in nursing home (NHs) residents is limited. We examined the impact of the BNT162b2 mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine on the course of the epidemic in NHs in the Florence Health District, Italy, before and after vaccination. Moreover, we assessed survival and hospitalization by vaccination status in SARS-CoV-2-positive cases occurring during the post-vaccination period.

Identification of a plausible serum uric acid cut-off value as prognostic marker of stroke: the Uric Acid Right for Heart Health (URRAH) study.

The Working Group on Uric Acid and Cardiovascular Risk of the Italian Society of Hypertension conceived and designed an ad hoc study aimed at searching for prognostic cut-off values of serum uric acid (SUA) in predicting combined (fatal and non-fatal) cerebrovascular (CBV) events in the whole database. The URic acid Right for heArt Health study is a nationwide, multicenter, observational cohort study involving data on subjects aged 18-95 years recruited on a regional community basis from all the territory of Italy under the patronage of the Italian Society of Hypertension with a mean follow-up period of 120.7 ± 61.

Infective endocarditis in intravenous drug abusers: clinical challenges emerging from a single-centre experience.

Background: Intravenous drug abuse (IDA) is a known risk factor for infective endocarditis (IE) and is associated with frequent relapses, but its prognostic impact is still debated. The potential futility of surgery in this population is a further issue under discussion. We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics, the therapeutic strategy, and the prognosis associated with IDA in IE.

ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction due to septic coronary embolism: a case report.

Background: Coronary artery embolism is an infrequent cause of type 2 myocardial infarction which can be due to arterial thromboembolism or septic embolism. While systemic embolization is one of the most acknowledged and threatened complications of infective endocarditis, coronary localization of the emboli causing acute myocardial infarction is exceedingly rare occurring in <1% of cases.

Case Summary: A 52-year-old man with a history of Bentall procedure and redo aortic valve replacement due to prosthetic degeneration (11 years prior to the current presentation) presented to the emergency department with high-grade fever and myalgias.

Syncope-presyncope and dizziness, differential diagnosis.

To date, there are no doubts about the evaluation of patients with syncope, while differential diagnoses between presyncope and nonspecific symptoms, generically referred to as dizziness, are complex and not clearly standardized. This paper aims to highlight the most frequent vestibular diseases, which can mimic a presyncopal episode in adult and older patients. It should be noted that nonspecific symptoms may be caused by multiple conditions, and they can coexist in the same person, making diagnosis even more difficult.

Ibrutinib in patients with relapsed/refractory mantle cell lymphoma: a real-life, retrospective, multicenter trial on behalf of the "RTL" (regional Tuscan lymphoma network).

Background: Relapsed or refractory (R/R) mantle-cell lymphoma (MCL) patients have a poor prognosis and their management is challenging, in absence of a golden standard as salvage treatment. Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitor ibrutinib represents an effective treatment for R/R MCL patients. We investigated ibrutinib efficacy and safety in daily clinical practice, together with factors that could predict disease outcome.

Clinical and Molecular Findings After Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation or Cyclophosphamide for Scleroderma: Handling Missing Longitudinal Data.

Objective: Among individuals with systemic sclerosis (SSc) randomized to cyclophosphamide (CYC) (n = 34) or hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) (n = 33), we examined longitudinal trends of clinical, pulmonary function, and quality of life measures while accounting for the influence of early failures on treatment comparisons.

Methods: Assuming that data were missing at random, mixed-effects regression models were used to estimate longitudinal trends for clinical measures when comparing treatment groups. Results were compared to observed means and to longitudinal trends estimated from shared parameter models, assuming that data were missing not at random.

Cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes treated with dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors: An extensive meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Aims: Meta-analyses of randomized trials on Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4 inhibitors (DPP4i) reported discordant results on major cardiovascular events (MACE), mortality, and heart failure. Aim of this meta-analysis of randomized trials is the assessment of the cardiovascular safety of DPP4i.

Data Synthesis: A Medline, Embase, Cochrane database search for sitagliptin, vildagliptin, omarigliptin, saxagliptin, alogliptin, trelagliptin, anagliptin, linagliptin, gemigliptin, evogliptin, and teneligliptin was performed up to up January 1st, 2020.

Trust of Italian healthcare professionals in COVID-19 (anti-SARS-COV-2) vaccination.

Background. Vaccination is one of the most effective tools available to Public Health. Its potential usefulness is threatened by the rise of vaccine hesitancy among the general population, which has grown as much as to prompt the World Health Organization to express its concerns on the matter.

Improvement of glycemic control in type 2 diabetes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Aim: Different guidelines provide similar, but not identical, therapeutic targets for HbA1c in type 2 diabetes. These targets can also depend from the different pharmacological strategies adopted for intensifying glycemic control.

Data Synthesis: This meta-analysis includes randomized trials adopting any pharmacological regimen for intensifying glycemic control in T2DM (versus standard of care/placebo), with a trial duration ≥2 years and a between-group HbA1c difference≥0.

The Role of testosterone treatment in patients with metabolic disorders.

Introduction: The specific role of testosterone [T] replacement therapy [TRT] on glycometabolic profile and body composition, particularly in patients with metabolic syndrome [MetS] and/or type 2 diabetes mellitus [T2DM], is still the object of an intense debate.

Areas Covered: To discuss available evidence on the association between T and metabolic diseases and on the possible effect of T administration on metabolic disorder-associated hypogonadism. Both preclinical and clinical data have been considered.

Rate and Predictors of Hesitancy toward SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine among Type 2 Diabetic Patients: Results from an Italian Survey.

Vaccine hesitancy (VH) has been identified as one of the major health concerns of our time by the World Health Organization. It may prove especially detrimental in the light of the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, as vaccination campaigns still represent the primary strategy against the detrimental consequences of the pandemic. Among patients suffering from type 2 diabetes mellitus (DB), who are particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, VH might represent an even more serious threat.

Being the Family Caregiver of a Patient With Dementia During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Lockdown.

Family caregivers of patients with dementia are at high risk of stress and burden, and quarantine due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic may have increased the risk of psychological disturbances in this population. The current study was carried out during the national lockdown declared in March 2020 by the Italian government as a containment measure of the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic and is the first nationwide survey on the impact of COVID-19 lockdown on the mental health of dementia informal caregivers. Eighty-seven dementia centers evenly distributed on the Italian territory enrolled 4,710 caregiver-patient pairs.

A new-onset pulmonary artery stenosis in a young man: case report.

Background: Poorly differentiated and undifferentiated sarcomas are the most common primary tumours of the pulmonary arteries. They usually affect large-calibre vessels and present with predominantly intraluminal growth. Dyspnoea, cough, chest pain, and haemoptysis are the most common presenting symptoms.

The "Early Treatment" Approach Reducing Cardiovascular Risk in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes: A Consensus From an Expert Panel Using the Delphi Technique.

Introduction: There is no consensus on the optimal therapeutic approach to adopt in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) to prevent cardiovascular disease (CVD). The study aimed to gather an expert consensus on the hypoglycemic treatment and CV risk management in patients with newly diagnosed T2DM through the Delphi methodology.

Methods: To address this issue, a list of 30 statements concerning the definition of "early T2DM patient", early treatment, CV risk in T2DM, treat-to-benefit approach, and indications for treatment with glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) and sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors was developed.

Association of uric acid with kidney function and albuminuria: the Uric Acid Right for heArt Health (URRAH) Project.

Background: Hyperuricemia is commonly observed in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). However, a better understanding of the relationship among uric acid (UA) values, glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and albuminuria may shed light on the mechanisms underlying the excess of cardiovascular mortality associated with both chronic kidney disease and hyperuricemia and lead to better risk stratification. Our main goal was to study the relationships between serum uric acid and kidney disease measures (namely estimated GFR [eGFR] and albuminuria) in a large cohort of individuals at cardiovascular risk from the URic acid Right for heArt Health (URRAH) Project database.

Myroxylon pereirae (balsam of Peru): Still worth testing?

Background: Because Myroxylon pereirae (MP), or balsam of Peru, is nowadays almost not used "as such," and fragrance mix 1 (FM1) apparently is more sensitive in detecting fragrance allergy, the usefulness of testing MP in baseline series was recently questioned.

Objectives: Identification of the number of clinically relevant patch test reactions to MP not detected by FM1.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of 12 030 patients patch tested with MP and FM1 for contact dermatitis between January 2018 and December 2019 in 13 Italian dermatology clinics.

A Single-Center Experience with the Olympus ORBEYE 4K-3D Exoscope for Microsurgery of Complex Cranial Cases: Technical Nuances and Learning Curve.

Background:  The introduction of exoscopes in neurosurgery has been welcomed due to their maneuverability, ergonomics, and low-profile frame. 3D devices have further enabled a better stereoscopic visualization. Reports on their application, albeit more and more frequent, are still at their beginning stages.

Primary cardiac sarcoma: a case report of a therapeutic challenge.

Background: Primary cardiac sarcomas are very rare and the prognosis is poor both because the diagnosis is typically made at an advanced stage of the disease and because data are insufficient to identify a standard treatment. Surgical resection is the cornerstone of therapy with the need to develop new therapeutic strategies.

Case Summary: We present a case of a young man admitted to the emergency department due to worsening dyspnoea.

The importance of including uric acid in the definition of metabolic syndrome when assessing the mortality risk.

Introduction: Serum uric acid (SUA) has been depicted as a contributory causal factor in metabolic syndrome (MS), which in turn, portends unfavourable prognosis.

Aim: We assessed the prognostic role of SUA in patients with and without MS.

Methods: We used data from the multicentre Uric Acid Right for Heart Health study and considered cardiovascular mortality (CVM) as death due to fatal myocardial infarction, stroke, sudden cardiac death, or heart failure.

High heart rate amplifies the risk of cardiovascular mortality associated with elevated uric acid.

Aims: Whether the association between uric acid (UA) and cardiovascular disease is influenced by some facilitating factors is unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the risk of cardiovascular mortality (CVM) associated with elevated UA was modulated by the level of resting heart rate (HR).

Methods And Results: Multivariable Cox analyses were made in 19 128 participants from the multicentre Uric acid Right for heArt Health study.

Effect of metformin on all-cause mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events: An updated meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Aims: The Italian Society of Diabetology and the Italian Association of Clinical Diabetologists are developing new guidelines for drug treatment of type 2 diabetes. The effects of anti-hyperglycaemic drugs on all-cause mortality and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) were included among the critical clinical outcomes. We have therefore carried out an updated meta-analysis on the effects of metformin on these outcomes.

Tocilizumab Prevents Progression of Early Systemic Sclerosis-Associated Interstitial Lung Disease.

Objective: Tocilizumab (TCZ) has demonstrated lung function preservation in 2 randomized controlled trials in early systemic sclerosis (SSc). This effect has yet to be characterized in terms of radiographically evident quantitative lung involvement. We undertook this study to assess the impact of TCZ on lung function preservation in a post hoc analysis, stratifying treatment arms according to the degree of lung involvement.