Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Telerehabilitation: A Solution For Patients After Hip Fracture?, Alessia Bramanti, Rossella Ciurleo, Carmine Vecchione, Andrea Turolla, Noemi Piramide, Michele Ciccarelli, Erica Piramide, Marina Garofano

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Hip fracture is the most common cause of hospitalization in frail geriatric subjects due to osteoporosis and recurrent falls. The clinical practice guidelines for rehabilitation after surgery in patients with hip fractures recommend to start treatment early. However, the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 pandemic between December 2019 and January 2020 forced to lockdown. Thus, telerehabilitation seemed the best solution to remote assistance. In this scenario, the aim of our study is to assess the effects of telerehabilitation and to clarify and rearrange the knowledge about its usability and feasibility in patients after hip fracture in emergency conditions, such as the pandemic …

Sex And Gender In Ageing And Longevity: Highlights From An International Course, Giuseppina Candore, Giulia Accardi, Anna Aiello, Giovannella Baggio, Tiziana Bellini, Vittorio Calabrese, Anna Paola Carreca, Ignazio Carreca, Anna Masucci, Monica Cattaneo, Serena Dato, Danilo Di Bona, Luca Fabris, Caterina Gambino, Gabriele Di Lorenzo, Claudio Franceschi, Mattia Emanuela Ligotti, Maria Cristina Manfrinato, Annibale Alessandro Puca, Martina Tamburello, Roberta Vassallo, Calogero Caruso

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Gender medicine is a multidisciplinary science and represents an important perspective for pathophysiological and clinical studies in the third millennium. Here, it is provided an overview of the topics discussed in a recent course on the Role of Sex and Gender in Ageing and Longevity. The paper highlights three themes discussed in the course, i.e., the interaction of gender/sex with, i) the pathophysiology of age-related diseases; ii), the role of genetics and epigenetics in ageing and longevity and, iii) the immune responses of older people to pathogens, vaccines, autoantigens, and allergens. Although largely unexplored, sex and gender are modulators …

Two-Year Opioid Prescription Trends In Local Sanitary Agency Naples 3 South, Campania Region, Italy. Descriptive Analyses And Ai-Based Translational Perspectives, Marco Cascella, Maurizio Capuozzo, Francesco Ferrara, Alessandro Ottaiano, Francesco Perri, Francesco Sabbatino, Valeria Conti, Vittorio Santoriello, Alfonso Maria Ponsiglione, Maria Romano, Francesco Amato, Ornella Piazza

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Aims: This study delves into the two-year opioid prescription trends in the Local Sanitary Agency Naples 3 South, Campania Region, Italy. The research aims to elucidate prescribing patterns, demographics, and dosage categories within a population representing 1.7% of the national total. Perspectives on artificial intelligence research are discussed.

Methods: From the original dataset, spanning from January 2022 to October 2023, we processed multiple variables including demographic data, medications, dosages, drug consumption, and administration routes.

Results: The analysis reveals a conservative approach to opioid therapy. In subjects under the age of 20, prescriptions accounted for 2.1% in 2022 and declined to …

Allergic Diseases In The Elderly, Gabriele Di Lorenzo, Marcello Melluso, Alessandro Rodolico, Aurelio Seidita

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Recent increases in allergic diseases are thought to be caused by better hygiene, Westernized diets, air pollution, climate change, and other factors that influence host microbiota, a key player in the induction and maintenance of immunoregulatory circuits and tolerance. The increase of allergic diseases in the elderly is also related to additional factors, such as various comorbidities that may interfere with the development and the type of allergic reactions. Immunosenescence plays a central role in these reactions, altering microbiota responses and triggering inflammageing. In addition, in the elderly, there is a shift from Th1 to Th2 immunity, thus favoring allergic …

Redoxomics In Ageing And Neurodegenerative Disorders: From Bench To Clinics, Vittorio Calabrese, Ursula M. Jacob, Tilman Fritsch, Noemi Osakabe

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

There is no abstract for this article type.

Scale Of Assessment Of Caregiver Care Burden Of People With Dementia: A Systematic Review Of Literature, Veronica Strini, Angela Prendin, Valentina Cerrone, Roberta Schiavolin, Ilaria De Barbieri, Vincenzo Andretta, Luigi Fortino, Biagio Santella, Gianluigi Franci, Mario Capunzo, Giovanni Boccia

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Cases of dementia have increased significantly in recent years. The family represents the main cornerstone of assistance to the elderly suffering from dementia, in particular the caregiver. Family members who take on the role of caregiver are subjected to physical, psychological, emotional, social and financial stress, which can be conceptualised with the term “burden”. The aim of this study was to investigate which tools are best suited to measure the type of burden based on the type of dementia for each caregiver. A literature search was undertaken in MEDLINE, CINHAL and The Cochrane Database in September 2022, including articles from …

The Role Of The Nurse In The Management Of Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Narrative Review, Luigi Ruggiero, Vincenzo Andretta, Carlo Soldaini, Ivan Fricano, Marco Mancusi, Annamaria Sellitti, Josephine Vastarella, Antonella Santonicola

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

rritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is characterized by chronic symptoms of abdominal pain in association with changes in bowel habits. Abdominal pain is the most debilitating symptom for IBS patients, and its management is one of the greatest challenges for gastroenterologists. In recent years more evidence has arisen about an increasingly central role of the nurse in the management of gastrointestinal diseases including IBS. The aim of this narrative review is to analyse the latest evidence on the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and treatment of IBS patients with a specific focus on the role of the nurse in its management.

A New And Effective Procedure For Advanced Oral Cancer Therapy: The Potential Of A Cancer Stem Cell Assay In Guiding Chemotherapy, Francesca Spirito, Pier Paolo Claudio, Candace M. Howard, Jagan Valluri, Krista L. Denning, Lorenzo Lo Muzio, Antonio Cortese

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Introduction Ineffective anticancer therapy can result in unnecessary toxicity and the development of resistant clones. Many types of solid tumors, including head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, have been found to contain a small population of cancer stem cells (CSCs) that contribute to tumor propagation, maintenance, and treatment resistance. Materials and Methods Selectively enriched CSCs from primary cancer cell cultures can be used in a chemosensitivity assay for a functional test (ChemoID) that uses patients’ live tumor cells to indicate which chemotherapy agent (or “combinations”) will kill not only the bulk of tumor cells but also the CSCs that are …

Sicilian Semi- And Supercentenarians: Age-Related Nk Cell Immunophenotype And Longevity Trait Definition, Mattia Emanuela Ligotti, Giulia Accardi, Anna Aiello, Anna Calabrò, Calogero Caruso, Anna Maria Corsale, Francesco Dieli, Marta Di Simone, Serena Meraviglia, Giuseppina Candore

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

The immune system of semi- and super-centenarians (i.e., the oldest centenarians) is believed to have peculiar characteristics that enable them to reach extreme longevity in a relatively healthy state. Therefore, in previous papers, we investigated, through flow cytometry, variations in the percentages of the main subsets of Tαβ and Tγδ cells in a Sicilian cohort of 28 women and 26 men (age range 19-110 years), including 11 long-living individuals (>90 years old) and 8 oldest centenarians. These investigations suggested that some observed immunophenotypic changes may contribute to the extreme longevity of the oldest centenarians. In the present study, to …

What Evidence-Based Medicine (Ebm) Doesn't Say About Allergen-Specific Immunotherapy (Ait), Gabriele Di Lorenzo, Marcello Melluso, Alessandro Rodolico

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Evidence-based allergology for the treatment of allergic rhinitis with allergen-specific immunotherapy (AIT) has been used in publications by the companies manufacturing AIT. The purpose of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) is to provide physicians, health authorities, patients, and their families with the best evidence upon which to base treatment decisions. However, some RCT results may do more harm than good because they serve the commercial interests of the companies producing and marketing AIT more than the interests of patients. Allergic rhinitis is a trivial disease that is not life-threatening and is easily controlled by drugs. In this paper, we analyze some …

Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm: Natural History, Pathophysiology And Translational Perspectives, Giulio Accarino, Antonio Nicola Giordano, Martina Falcone, Adriana Celano, Maria Giovanna Vassallo, Giovanni Fornino, Umberto Marcello Bracale, Carmine Vecchione, Gennaro Galasso

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

An abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a degenerative pathology that affects the infrarenal segment of the aorta, leading to its progressive dilatation and eventually rupture. The infrarenal segment is involved in 80% of the aortic aneurisms, and represents alone 30% of all aneurysms. The natural history of the disease is characterized by the progressive increase of the aortic diameter associated with proportionally higher risk of rupture, particularly for cases with diameter greater than 5.5 cm. In case of rupture the mortality rate is very high, independently from the endovascular or surgical treatment. The most important risk factors are older age, …

Gm Allotypes And Covid-19. A Pilot Study Performed On Sicilian Patients, Mattia Emanuela Ligotti, Anna Calabrò, Giulia Accardi, Anna Aiello, Calogero Caruso, Claudia Colomba, Danilo Di Bona, Giovanni Duro, Aryan M Namboodiri, Antonino Tuttolomondo, Janardan P Pandey, Giuseppina Candore

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Several studies suggest that genetic variants that influence the onset, maintenance and resolution of the immune response might be fundamental in predicting the evolution of COVID-19. In the present paper, we analysed the distribution of GM allotypes (the genetic markers of immunoglobulin γ chains) in symptomatic and asymptomatic COVID-19 patients and in healthy controls, all born and residing in Sicily. Indeed, the role played by GM allotypes in immune responses and infection control is well known. Our findings show that the GM23 allotype is significantly reduced in healthy controls. Interestingly, in a previous study, Sicilians carrying the GM23 allotype were …

Translating The Results Of A Selective Decontamination Of The Digestive Tract Trial Into Efficacious Real-Life Interventions, Ornella Piazza, Giovanni Boccia, Carolina Ciacci, Francesco De Caro, Amelia Filippelli, Gianluigi Franci, Pasquale Pagliano

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

No Abstract for this article type.

Lessons From Sicilian Centenarians For Anti-Ageing Medicine. The Oxi-Inflammatory Status, Calogero Caruso, Giulia Accardi, Anna Aiello, Anna Calabrò, Mattia Emanuela Ligotti, Giuseppina Candore

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Population ageing is a great achievement of humanity, but it also represents a challenge that the Western world is currently facing, as ageing is associated with increased susceptibility to age-related inflammatory diseases. Therefore, it is necessary to fully understand the mechanisms of healthy ageing to prevent the harmful aspects of ageing. The study of long living ndividuals (LLIs) is a great model for trying to achieve this goal. Accordingly, the oxy-inflammatory status of Sicilian LLIs was reviewed in the present paper. Based on the reported data, anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative stress strategies have been discussed, useful for delaying or avoiding the …

Kl-6 In Ards And Covid-19 Patients, Ornella Piazza, Giuliana Scarpati, Giovanni Boccia, Massimo Boffardi, Pasquale Pagliano

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

The Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) is a common, devastating clinical pattern characterized by life-threatening respiratory failure. In ARDS there is an uncontrolled inflammatory response that results in alveolar damage, with the exudation of protein-rich pulmonary-edema fluid in the alveolar space. Although severe COVID-19 lung failure (CARDS) often meets diagnostic criteria of traditional ARDS, additional features have been reported, such as delayed onset, binary pulmonary compliant states, and hypercoagulable profile. Increased levels of Krebs von den Lungen 6 (KL-6, also known as MUC1) have been reported in both ARDS and CARDS. KL-6 is a transmembrane protein expressed on the apical …

Acute Coronary Syndrome In Patients With Sars-Cov-2 Infection: Pathophysiology And Translational Perspectives, Francesco Paolo Cancro, Michele Bellino, Luca Esposito, Stefano Romei, Mario Centore, Debora D’Elia, Mario Cristiano, Angelantonio Maglio, Albino Carrizzo, Barbara Rasile, Carmine Alfano, Carmine Vecchione, Gennaro Galasso

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Acute coronary syndromes (ACS) may complicate the clinical course of patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). It is still unclear whether this condition is a direct consequence of the primary disease. However, several mechanisms including direct cellular damage, endothelial dysfunction, in-situ thrombosis, systemic inflammatory response, and oxygen supply-demand imbalance have been described in patients with COVID-19. The onset of a prothrombotic state may also be facilitated by the endothelial dysfunction secondary to the systemic inflammatory response and to the direct viral cell damage. Moreover, dysfunctional endothelial cells may enhance vasospasm and platelet aggregation. The combination of these factors promotes atherosclerotic …

Dpo: Diffuse Pulmonary Ossification - A Diagnostic Challenge, Gaetano Rea, Giuliana Giacobbe, Danila Caroppo, Silvia Iovine, Roberta Lieto, Marialuisa Bocchino, Tullio Valente, Angelantonio Maglio, Alessandro Vatrella

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Diffuse pulmonary ossification (DPO) is a rare condition of DLD (diffuse lung disease) characterized by the presence of metaplastic ectopic bone in the lungs and is less frequent in patients without a clear background of lung diseases. DPO is characterized by very small calcific nodules, often with bone mature located in both lungs and often in peripheral areas of the lungs. Two patterns of DPO have been recognized dendriform and nodular. The dendriform type is less common and is characterized by a coral-like network of bone spiculae along the alveolar septa and is often related to interstitial fibrosis or chronic …

Globularia Alypum L. Modulates Inflammatory Markers In The Human Colon And Shows A Potential Antioxidant Role In Myeloid Leukemic Cells, Najla Hajji, Elodie Hudik, Paola Iovino, Nacim Zouari, Hichem Sebai, Oliver Nusse, Carolina Ciacci

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Globularia alypum (GA), a plant of the Globulariacea family, has long been used as a traditional cure for inflammatory and metabolic illnesses.In addition to various in vitro model studies, the current work focuses on GA'santioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties in human colon biopsies.

Liquid Chromatography-Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry identified the phenol components in GA aqueous extract (GAAE).The antioxidant ability of GAAE was tested in vitro utilizing chemiluminescence and flow cytometry using fluorescent yeastsn conjunction with PLB-985-human myeloid leukemia cells. Experiments on human colon biopsies after a biopsy challenge with Escherichia coli-lipopolysaccharides aimed tosee if GAAE had an anti-inflammatory impact on human …

The Time For A Consensus Regarding The Coeliac Disease Diagnosis In Adults Has Come: Balancing The Pros And Cons Of Omitting The Biopsy, Carolina Ciacci, Julio C. Bao

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

How balancing the pros and cons of omitting the biopsy in diagnosing CeD in adults?

Possible Association Of Telomere Length With Sleep Duration. A Preliminary Pilot Study In A Sicilian Cohort With Centenarians., Anna Aiello, Giulia Accardi, Sawan Alì, Calogero Caruso, Maxine Chen, Immaculata De Vivo, Mattia Emanuela Ligotti, Giovanni Scapagnini, Sergio Davinelli, Giuseppina Candore

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Telomere length (TL) is considered a biomarker of ageing although this topic is still debated. Also, sleep pattern changes are physiological part of the normal ageing process. In fact, it is widely recognized that sleep duration declines with age, leading to dysregulation of circadian rhythms. The aim of our study was to analyse the possible association of sleep duration with TL in a sample of 135 subjects with ages ranging from 20 to 111 years, recruited from Palermo and neighbouring municipalities in Sicily (Italy). Preliminary data suggest that relative TL (RTL) decreases with age in both men and women. However, …

Role Of Bpifb4 In Immune System And Cardiovascular Disease: The Lesson From Centenarians, Francesco Montella, Valentina Lopardo, Monica Cattaneo, Albino Carrizzo, Carmine Vecchione, Elena Ciaglia, Annibale A. Puca

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Recent discoveries have shed light on the participation of the immune system in the physio pathology of the cardiovascular system underpinning the importance of keeping the balance of the first to preserve the latter. Aging, along with other risk factors, can challenge such balance triggering the onset of cardiovascular diseases.

Among several mediators ensuring the proper cross-talk between the two systems, bactericidal/permeability-increasing fold-containing family B member 4 (BPIFB4) has been shown to have a pivotal role, also by sustaining important signals such as eNOS and PKC-alpha.

In addition, the Longevity-associated variant (LAV), which is an haplotype allele in BPIFB4characterized by …

The Iterative Model Of Ethical Analysis For Large-Scale Implementation Of Ict Solutions, Carina Dantas

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

This manuscript presents a model and the methodology to understand and define the ethical management of the large-scale implementation of ICT solutions for Active and Healthy Ageing. Based on project expertise, including experience from the Pharaon project Horizon2020, this model includes an understanding of the main ethical challenges and the development of the necessary guidelines, measures, and tools for different stakeholder profiles. This model extends beyond conventional ethical guidelines, providing a methodology to actively discuss ethical and societal challenges within a project based on interactive and iterative dialogue between the entire value-chain of stakeholders. One of the cornerstones in the …

The Ant Home Care Model In Palliative And End-Of-Life Care. An Investigation On Family Caregivers’ Satisfaction With The Services Provided., Veronica Zavagli

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

The World Health Organization plan for a Decade of Healthy Ageing 2020-2030 has established some priorities in the field of palliative and end-of-life care. It states that “people require non-discriminatory access to good-quality palliative and end-of-life care” and recommends the “implementation of strategies for the provision of information, training, respite and support for informal caregivers”. The priorities described are in line with the home care services that National Tumor Assistance (ANT) Foundation has been providing in Italy. This 5-years investigation was designed to measure caregivers’ satisfaction and determine what types of support services are associated with greater satisfaction. 5.441 family …

Learning To Implement Smart Healthy Age-Friendly Environments, Willecke Van Staalduinen

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

To develop trainings on the implementation of smart healthy age-friendly environments for people who aim to support, for example, their parents, their neighbours or local community, there are precautionary measures that have to be taken into account: the role of the facilitator (volunteer or self-employed), the level of skills, the needs of the end-users, training content and methodologies together with the sustainability of the learning. This article examines these aspects, based on desk research and expert interviews in the Smart Healthy Age-Friendly Environments (SHAFE) fields

From The Bench To Practice – Field Integration Of Community-Based Services For Older Citizens With Different Levels Of Functional Limitation Across European Regions, Regina Roller-Wirnsberger

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

The meeting of the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing (EIPonAHA) action group A3 together with members of the Reference site collaborative network (RSCN) in December 2019 in Rome focused on integration of evidence-based approaches on health and care delivery for older citizens at different levels of needs with expertise coming from stakeholder across Europe. It was the final aim of the group to co-create culturally sensitive pathways and facilitate co-ownership for further implementation of the pathways in different care systems across Europe.

The study design is a mixed method approach. Based on data analysis from a cohort …

Go For It! Exercising Makes You Happy And Strong., Donatella Tramontano

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Despite it is generally recognized the beneficial role of physical activity, large portion of the population is physically inactive. Very alarmingly, the well-known gender gap in physical activity is constantly increasing. Several barriers obstacle women to perform physical activity although exercising would be of paramount importance for their health in particular during pregnancy and menopause. In addition to physical health benefits, physical activity may influence well-being and resilience, greatly impacting on quality of life.

Here we explore the relationship between physical activity resilience and well-being in a group of 1107 female residents in the Metropolitan area of Naples.

Pilot Study On The Effectiveness Of Reminiscence Therapy On Cognition, Depressive Symptoms, And Quality Of Life In Nursing Home Residents, Isabel Gil

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

This study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the group Reminiscence Therapy (RT) on cognition, depressive symptoms, and quality of life (QOL) in older adults recruited in nursing homes. Methods: A pilot study with a one-group pretest-posttest design was conducted between September 2017 and March 2018 in five nursing homes from central Portugal. A comprehensive RT program (Core program followed by a Follow-up program) was provided to clinically stable volunteers aged 65 years or more, who did not have severe cognitive impairment. Results: From the 50 older adults (32 women and 18 men, with mean age of 83.32±7.76, and mean …

The Management Of Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis: Is There A Benefit To Operate Elderly Patients?, Mohamed Nadjib Bouayed

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

We present a retrospective study of a series of 40 patients over the age of 75 operated for an asymptomatic carotid stenosis. The results were evaluated during an average of 3 years of follow-up. Material and method. The study is retrospective and monocentric. The series includes 40 patients aged over 75 years and with an average age of 78.5 years (range 75-82). Patients underwent surgery for an asymptomatic carotid stenosis of more than 80%. The technique in all case was a carotid endarterectomy. Results. There have been no postoperative deaths or neurological adverse events. During an average follow-up of 3 …

Good Practices For A “Decade For Active And Healthy Ageing”, Maddalena Illario

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

Ageing is a success story of Public Health worldwide, but poses many challenges that hinder its transformation into an opportunity for sustainable development: infectious outbreaks and public health emergencies, chronic diseases, social inequalities, environmental issues and more.

Kl-6 Levels In Covid-19, Giuliana Scarpati

Translational Medicine @ UniSa

We present preliminary results which encourage KL‐6 evaluation as a potential biomarker for phenotyping COVID-19 patients according to disease severity.