The 7th Italian-brazilian Meeting In Hematology [7° Encontro Da Associação Ítalo-brasileira De Hematologia]

[No abstract available]30SUPPL. 21

the 7th italian brazilian meeting in hematology

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Ergonomics and cultural heritage: the Palatina chapel in Palermo, Italy

The present article presents results of a study that aims at the assessment of ergonomic safety conditions inside the Palatina chapel of Palermo. To reach this object, an informative questionnaire was established so as to collect visitors’ subjective judgments regarding overall ergonomic conditions in terms of accessibility, availability, safety or else environmental conditions (thermo-hygrometry; air, sound and visual quality); this stage was carried out, bearing in mind the Museum Visitors’ Rights Card that is currently under creation by the “Legambiente” group. An automatic instrument was bought to daily count the numbers of visitors; the latter element shall then be related to indoor environmental data registered thanks to a monitoring system of thermohygrometry, illuminating engineering and environmental aggressiveness

Setting up of a protocol of environmental research for the preservation and right exploitation of the cultural heritage

The research aims at collecting information on the state of preservation of the cultural heritage in Palermo, and deals more precisely with Vittorio Emanuele avenue, itself bounded by two city gates called Porta Felice (northern gate facing the Mediterranean sea) and Porta Nuova (southern gate) that both give access to the historic centre of the city. Another important purpose is the assessment of livability level, be it for workers, residents, cultural operators, or else visitors, with a particular interest in traffic noise. The research has been conducted by means of miscellaneous scientific duties; however we shall only refer here to two types of practice : the monitoring of environmental noise and the monitoring of the level of air aggressiveness through the study of thermo-hygrometric and chemical aspects. Whereas the Corrosion Classification Coupon was useful for the measurement of corrosive agents in outdoor locations, outdoor HOBO Pro sensors were used to report temperature and relative humidity. Hence it was possible to define the acoustic climate on the avenue surveying both geometrical data as well as traffic flow and characteristics

Il progetto Salvalarte respira pulito: uno strumento operativo multidisciplinare per la conservazione e la fruizione dei Beni Culturali nella Regione Sicilia

The present work concerns the description of the contents and of the methods of the project “SALVALARTE respira pulito” (“SAVE ART and breathe clean air”) promoted by Legambiente, ARPA and the Regional Center for the Project and the Restoration of the Region Sicily, in cooperation with the University of Palermo. The goal of the project was to analyze and collect information on the condition of the cultural heritage in Sicily. The purpose of the goal was both to provide guidelines for the safeguard, the promotion and the correct use of cultural sites, adopting a more scientific approach of the problem which would be divided in three phases: detection and cataloging of the cultural heritage at risk, monitoring of a significant sample of monuments that might represent the whole nation, and finally diffusion of the results. The activities carried out in 2003 enabled the definition of an optimal monitoring procedure. The main test of validation of the survey and analysis methodology was executed considering Corso V Emanuele in Palermo as case-study, since it is where many and important monumental elements and structures are located

An acoustical survey about the Sanctuary of Altavilla Milicia (Palermo)

This study aims at using the science and the technique, known nowadays, at the service of the Liturgy and of the holy architecture. In addition to this, its second goal is to investigate completely, on some general acoustic aspects that can be founded inside liturgical rooms, without overlooking the historical-architectural aspects regarding the difference "kinds" of manufactures and materials in relation to the specific liturgical needs. According to this, an interesting simulation of sound diffusion inside the Sanctuario of Altavilla Milicia, defined by the Cardinal S. De Giorgi "the first and most notorious Marian place of veneration belonging to the Church of Palermo", was performed. By means of this simulation, the acoustic parameters of the ecclesial room were taken, in compliance to the standards UNI EN ISO 3382/1997 (Measurements of enclosed environments Reverberation Time with reference to other acoustic parameters)

Prognosis of follicular lymphoma: a predictive model based on a retrospective analysis of 987 cases

Patients (n-987) with a histologically confirmed diagnosis of follicular lymphoma were studied with the aim of developing a prognostic model specifically devised for this type of lymphoma. We collected information on age, sex, Ann Arbor stage, number of extranodal disease sites, bone marrow (BM) involvement, bulky disease, B symptom criteria (fever, night sweats, and weight loss), performance status (PS), serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level, serum albumin level, hemoglobin level, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR). In the training sample of 429 patients with complete data, multivariate analysis showed that age, sex, number of extranodal sites, B symptoms, serum LDH level, and ESR were factors predictive for overall survival. Using these 6 variables, a prognostic model was devised to identify 3 groups at different risk. The 5- and 10-year survival rate was 90% and 65% for patients at low risk, respectively; 75% and 54% for patients at intermediate risk; and 38% and 11% for those at high risk (log-rank test, 86.62; P < .0001). The model was also predictive (P = .0001) in the validation sample of 265 patients with complete data only for the 6 variables used in the development of the model and even in the group of 210 patients from the validation sample uniformly treated with doxorubicin-containing regimens (P = .0001). The prognostic model appears to be very useful in identifying patients with follicular lymphoma at low, intermediate, or high risk

A third generation regimen VACOP-B with or without adjuvant radiotherapy for aggressive localized non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: report from the Italian Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Co-operative Study Group

The objective of this multicenter prospective study was to determine the clinical efficacy and toxicity of a polychemotherapeutic third generation regimen, VACOP-B, with or without radiotherapy as front-line therapy in aggressive localized non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Ninety-three adult patients (47 males and 46 females, median age 45 years) with aggressive localized non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, 43 in stage I and 50 in stage II (non-bulky), were included in the study. Stage I patients received VACOP-B for 6 weeks plus involved field radiotherapy and stage II patients received 12 weeks VACOP-B plus involved field radiotherapy on residual masses. Eighty-six (92.5%) achieved complete remission and 4 (4.3%) partial remission. Three patients (3.2%) were primarily resistant. Ten-year probability of survival, progression-free survival and disease-free survival were 87.3, 79.9 and 83.9%, respectively. Eighty-four patients are surviving at a median observation time of 57 months (range: 6-126). Statistical analysis showed no difference between stages I and II in terms of response, ten-year probability of survival, progression-free survival or disease-free survival. Side effects and toxicity were negligible and were similar in the two patient groups. The results of this prospective study suggest that 6 weeks of VACOP-B treatment plus radiotherapy may be the therapy of choice in stage I aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Twelve weeks of VACOP-B treatment with or without radiotherapy was shown to be effective and feasible for stage II. These observations need to be confirmed by a phase III study comparing first and third generation protocols in stage I-II aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.71972

Clinical course and prognosis of the lymphoproliferative disease of granular lymphocytes. A multicenter study.

Lymphoproliferative disease of granular lymphocytes (LDGL) is a recently recognized, relatively rare atypical lymphocytosis characterized by the presence of over 2000 lymphocytes with cytoplasmic azurophilic granules/mm3 in the peripheral blood. The clinical course is heterogeneous, varying from spontaneous regression to progressive, malignant disease. As a consequence, clinical intervention is not standardized. In a worldwide multicenter study, the authors observed 151 patients with LDGL for a mean follow-up time of 29 months. Forty-three patients were asymptomatic at the time of diagnosis. In the remaining cases, clinical symptoms included fever (41 cases), infections (58), neutropenia (47), anemia (17), and thrombocytopenia (12). In 69 cases, LDGL coexisted with an associated disease. Most patients had a nonprogressive clinical course despite the presence of severe symptoms. In 19 patients, death related to LDGL occurred within 48 months. The authors investigated which features at diagnosis were significantly associated with increased mortality. In the univariate analysis, lymph node and liver enlargement, fever at presentation, skin infiltration, a low (less than or equal to 5000/mm3) or high (greater than 20,000/mm3) peripheral leukocyte count, relatively low (less than or equal to 3000) or high (greater than 7000/mm3) absolute peripheral granular lymphocyte (GL) count, and a low (less than or equal to 15%) percentage of HNK-1-positive cells were found to be predictors of increased mortality. In the multivariate analysis, significant independent predictors were fever at diagnosis, a low (less than or equal to 15%) percentage of HNK-1-positive peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and a relatively low (less than or equal to 3000) GL count. These results showed that about 25% of the patients with LDGL were diagnosed after a routine blood count and had no clinical symptoms. The remaining patients were symptomatic, with some experiencing a fatal clinical course. The author's analysis of the significant prognostic features of LDGL may help in understanding the heterogeneous nature of this syndrom