EU-China trade and investment relations and Covid-19: old struggles or new challenges?

The article investigates EU-China trade and investment relations, highlighting the importance of theirpartnership for the global economy. The article argues that Covid-19 is an accelerating factor ofexisting trends, analysing EU-China relations as empirical evidence. It will address the institutionaland legal framework of EU-China trade and investment relations. The article will use primary andsecondary sources to inform the research. It will benefit from an interdisciplinary approach,combining both legal and political literatures. The analysis is based on EU-China trade and investmentrelations, as reported by EU’s official documents and is divided into three main sections. The firstsection gives an overview of economic interactions between EU-China. The second section provides ananalysis of the main documents between the EU and China before the pandemic. The third section isdedicated to showing how the relations between the two actors continued during Covid-19 pandemi

Stosunek do nieregularnych imigrantów w czasie pandemii COVID-19. Analiza porównawcza podejść włoskiego i portugalskiego

The aim of the article is to compare two emergency migration legislation adopted in Italy and Portugal. The article attempts to prove the link between integration and law, analyzing the different approaches of Italy and Portugal to the policy problem during the COVID-19 pandemic. As two of the Southern EU Member States with different views on immigration policies, Italy and Portugal represent an interesting case study to investigate. The article benefits from an interdisciplinary approach, addressing the issue, combining both the legal and political literature. Ultimately, the article tries to assess if the current measures are in line with the regularization policies that have been adopted in the past decade. The main finding is that both states tend to pass emergency legislation favoring migrants and granting them equal access to healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic, assessing the link between law and integration. Further empirical research is desirable.Celem artykułu jest porównanie nadzwyczajnego prawa imigracyjnego przyjętego we Włoszech i Portugalii. W artykule podjęto próbę wskazania zależności między integracją a prawem, opierając się na analizie włoskiego i portugalskiego podejścia do polityki imigracyjnej w czasie pandemii COVID-19. Włochy i Portugalia, dwa południowe państwa członkowskie UE o różnych podejściach do polityki imigracyjnej, stanowią ciekawy problem badawczy. Zastosowano interdyscyplinarne podejście badawcze, które umożliwia wypełnienie celu postawionego przez autorów na podstawie literatury prawnej i politologicznej. W artykule podjęto także próbę oceny, czy obecnie stosowane środki wpisują się w politykę regularyzacji, wdrażaną od dekady. Oceniając powiązania między prawem a integracją, uznano, że w obu państwach zostały przyjęte nadzwyczajne regulacje sprzyjające imigrantom i gwarantujące im równy dostęp do opieki zdrowotnej w czasie pandemii. Wskazane jest prowadzenie dalszych badań empirycznych

Redefining diabetes mellitus treatments according to different mechanisms beyond hypoglycaemic effect

Early epidemiologic studies in type 2 diabetes suggested that the long-term risk of microvascular and macrovascular complications increase progressively as glucose concentrations rise, inspiring the pursuit of near euglycaemia as a means of preventing these complications in type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Evidence emerging over the past decade, however, showed that the aggressive efforts often needed to achieve low HbA1c levels can ultimately lead to worse clinical outcomes, greater risk of severe hypoglycaemia, and higher burden of treatment. The acknowledgment of the disappointing results obtained with therapies aimed exclusively at improving glycaemic control has led in recent years to a substantial paradigm shift in the treatment of the diabetic patient. The results obtained first with GLP-1RAs and more recently even more with SGLT2i on mortality and CV events have made it clear how other mechanisms, beyond the hypoglycaemic effect, are at the basis of the benefits observed in several cardiovascular outcome trials. And as evidence of the great revolution of thought we are experiencing, there is the recognition of gliflozins as drugs for the treatment not only of diabetic patients but also of non-diabetic patients suffering from HF, as reported in the latest ESC/HFA guidelines. Surely, we still have a lot to understand, but it is certain that this is the beginning of a new era

A novel ultrafast-low-dose computed tomography protocol allows concomitant coronary artery evaluation and lung cancer screening

BACKGROUND:Cardiac computed tomography (CT) is often performed in patients who are at high risk for lung cancer in whom screening is currently recommended. We tested diagnostic ability and radiation exposure of a novel ultra-low-dose CT protocol that allows concomitant coronary artery evaluation and lung screening. METHODS: We studied 30 current or former heavy smoker subjects with suspected or known coronary artery disease who underwent CT assessment of both coronary arteries and thoracic area (Revolution CT, General Electric). A new ultrafast-low-dose single protocol was used for ECG-gated helical acquisition of the heart and the whole chest. A single IV iodine bolus (70-90 ml) was used. All patients with CT evidence of coronary stenosis underwent also invasive coronary angiography. RESULTS: All the coronary segments were assessable in 28/30 (93%) patients. Only 8 coronary segments were not assessable in 2 patients due to motion artefacts (assessability: 98%; 477/485 segments). In the assessable segments, 20/21 significant stenoses (> 70% reduction of vessel diameter) were correctly diagnosed. Pulmonary nodules were detected in 5 patients, thus requiring to schedule follow-up surveillance CT thorax. Effective dose was 1.3 ± 0.9 mSv (range: 0.8-3.2 mSv). Noteworthy, no contrast or radiation dose increment was required with the new protocol as compared to conventional coronary CT protocol. CONCLUSIONS:The novel ultrafast-low-dose CT protocol allows lung cancer screening at time of coronary artery evaluation. The new approach might enhance the cost-effectiveness of coronary CT in heavy smokers with suspected or known coronary artery disease

Mediterranean diet adherence and synergy with acute myocardial infarction and its determinants. a multicenter case-control study in Italy.

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading causes of mortality and morbidity in Western countries. The possible synergistic effect of poor adherence to a Mediterranean diet (MD) and other risk factors for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) such as hypertension, cholesterol, ever smoker, BMI> 25, diabetes, has not been deeply studied. Design Case-control study. Methods Patients with first AMI and controls from four tertiary referral Italian centers were screened for enrolment. Dietary information was collected through a questionnaire and a MD adherence score was calculated. Physical activity and smoking habits were also registered. The Synergy Index was calculated according to Rothman. Results 127 cases and 173 controls were enrolled. The analysis was conducted using a dichotomous variable for the MD score with values 7 representing good adherence. Multivariate analysis showed the following variables associated to AMI: ever smoker (OR = 2.08), diabetes (OR = 1.42), hypertension (OR = 2.08), hypercholesterolemia (OR = 2.47), BMI> 25 (OR = 1.99), while a protective effect emerged both in subjects scoring > 7 on the MD score(OR = 0.55) and in subjects resident of Southern Italy (OR = 0.38). A synergistic effect does exist between poor adherence to the MD and the following risk factors: hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, BMI >25, diabetes and being a resident in central and northern Italy. Conclusion Synergy between heart disease risk factors and MD underlines the need to enlarge the list of known modifiable cardiovascular risk factors to include and promote adherence to Mediterranean dietary habits

Glucose variability: a new risk factor for cardiovascular disease

Aims and data synthesis: glucose variability (GV) is increasingly considered an additional index of glycemic control. Growing evidence indicates that GV is associated with diabetic vascular complications, thus being a relevant point to address in diabetes management. GV can be measured using various parameters, but to date, a gold standard has not been identified. This underscores the need for further studies in this field also to identify the optimal treatment. Conclusions: We reviewed the definition of GV, the pathogenetic mechanisms of atherosclerosis, and its relationship with diabetic complications

Antiplatelet therapy in elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome: Between scientific evidence and future perspectives.

Dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) is an important strategy for reducing cardiovascular events (CV) after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Elderly patients undergoing DAPT have a higher risk of bleeding than younger patients for a variety of reasons. Stratification of thrombotic/hemorrhagic risk is mandatory in order to decide on the type and duration of DAPT. The percentage of patients ≥ 75 years represented in clinical trials is not large, so very often elderly people are prescribed treatment protocols only experimented on younger patients with a lower hemorrhagic risk. However, even in patients aged ≥ 75 treated with invasive or conservative therapy, after an ACS, a DAPT with aspirin 80-100 mg/day plus a P2Y12 receptor inhibitor for 12 months is recommended. In elderly patients, DAPT should be considered a dynamic process that can be modified over time based on the patient's clinical conditions, or any other necessities (non-procrastinating surgical interventions, comorbid-like effects that can increase hemorrhagic risk). In patients with moderate-high or very high hemorrhagic risk, DAPT treatment should last less than 12 months. A prolongation of DAPT beyond 12 months in this setting is limited to a very low percentage of patients, after careful assessment of ischemic/hemorrhagic profile

Biomarkers, Inflammation, and Bipolar Disorder: Association Between the Improvement of Bipolar Disorder Severity and the Improvement in C-Reactive Protein Levels After 7 Days of Inpatient Treatment

Introduction: Compared to the general population, people with severe mental illness (SMI) have a poorer health status and a higher mortality rate, with a 10-20-year reduction in life expectancy. Excess mortality and morbidity in SMI have been explained by intertwined components. Inflammatory processes could increase the morbidity and mortality risk in patients with bipolar disorder (BD) because of a bidirectional interaction between BD and conditions related to inflammation. This pilot study aimed to evaluate the relationship between C-Reactive-Protein (CRP) and bipolar disorder severity.Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted on 61 hospitalized patients with bipolar disorder. CRP was measured at admission to inpatient treatment (T0) and after seven days from the admission (T1). Clinical Global Impression for Depression, Mania and Overall Bipolar Illness were recorded at T0 and T1. Comparisons among the recorded CRP values were determined through the paired t-test. Correlations between CRP and CGI scores were determined through Spearman's correlation coefficient at T0 and T1.Results: A statistically significant decrease in CRP values was observed after 7 days of hospitalization (p < 0.001) and positive significant correlations emerged between CRP and CGI scores at T0 and T1.Conclusion: Patients admitted to the inpatient unit reported a statistically significant decrease of CRP values during the first 7 days of treatment. Although the direction of the relationship between BP severity and inflammation status continues to remain unclear, this study showed a relationship between the improvement of bipolar disease symptoms and the improvement of the inflammatory marker CRP

Aquaporin-2 (AQP2) Urinary Excretion and Assumption of Water with Different Mineral Content in Healthy Subjects

The aquaporin-2 (AQP2) plays a key role in AVP-induced absorption of water, and its urinary excretion is related to its function. We aimed to test if the assumption of water with different mineral content can modify the expression of AQP2, leading to a change in AQP2 urinary concentration, in 20 healthy young subjects. Each subject received an oral water load (LM or HM) of 250 mL/hour for four hours, and several variables were measured. Plasmatic osmolality after water assumption was significantly reduced with no differences after the low (LM) or the high mineral (HM) water load. Urinary osmolality and plasmatic vasopressin concentration were significantly reduced after an assumption of both kinds of water. However, serum vasopressin was lower after HM water assumption than after LM. AQP2 urinary excretion was significantly reduced after water assumption with respect to the basal level and it was lower after LM than after HM water assumption. The different mineral content of water was investigated as a factor contributing to the development of hypertension. Considering that AQP2 can play a role in pathogenesis of hypertension, our demonstration that AVP-mediated AQP2 urinary excretion is strictly influenced by the consumption of water with different mineral content suggests a new, interesting field of investigation related to the link between blood pressure alterations and nutritional habits