A Budget Impact and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Blood Glucose Monitoring System in One Italian Region

n/

Computation of Gait Parameters in Post Stroke and Parkinson’s Disease: A Comparative Study Using RGB‐D Sensors and Optoelectronic Systems

The accurate and reliable assessment of gait parameters is assuming an important role, especially in the perspective of designing new therapeutic and rehabilitation strategies for the remote follow‐up of people affected by disabling neurological diseases, including Parkinson’s disease and post‐stroke injuries, in particular considering how gait represents a fundamental motor activity for the autonomy, domestic or otherwise, and the health of neurological patients. To this end, the study presents an easy‐to‐use and non‐invasive solution, based on a single RGB‐D sensor, to estimate specific features of gait patterns on a reduced walking path compatible with the available spaces in domestic settings. Traditional spatio‐temporal parameters and features linked to dynamic instability during walking are estimated on a cohort of ten parkinsonian and eleven post‐stroke subjects using a custom‐written software that works on the result of a body‐tracking algorithm. Then, they are compared with the “gold standard” 3D instrumented gait analysis system. The statistical analysis confirms no statistical difference between the two systems. Data also indicate that the RGB‐D system is able to estimate features of gait patterns in pathological individuals and differences between them in line with other studies. Although they are preliminary, the results suggest that this solution could be clinically helpful in evolutionary disease monitoring, especially in domestic and unsupervised environments where traditional gait analysis is not usable

Medioevo latino. Bollettino bibliografico della cultura europea da Boezio a Erasmo (secoli VI - XV) - Volume 26

Fondato nel 1980 da Claudio Leonardi, R. Avesani, F. Bertini, G. Cremascoli, G. Orlandi e G. Scalia e pubblicato ogni anno, \ue8 diventato un punto di riferimento per gli studiosi di medievistica. Diviso in grandi sezioni (Autori e testi, Fortleben, argomenti, generi letterari, istituzioni, scienze della storia, opere di consultazione, congressi e miscellanee), \ue8 corredato di un ricco apparato di indici. Il frutto del lavoro nasce dalla collaborazione fra numerose redazioni, nazionali e internazionali. La redazione bolognese \ue8 composta da A. Albuzzi, R. Cristiani, V. Lunardini, R. Parmeggiani, coordinati da G. Cremascoli e impegnati in un intenso lavoro di spoglio e schedatura di riviste e volumi, per un paio di mesi all\u2019anno

Dementia-friendly intervention for hospitalized older adults with cognitive impairments: results of the Italian Dementia-Friendly Hospital Trial (IDENTITÀ)

Objective: To evaluate whether a short training focused on improving dementia care practices of the hospital staff was able to counteract functional loss and to decrease negative outcomes at discharge among hospitalized older adults with cognitive impairment. Method: Sixty-eight hospitalized participants aged 65 and over with cognitive impairment were included in the study, allocated in the control group (n = 34) and intervention group (n = 34). The intervention consisted of a short training of the hospital staff aimed at improving the management of patients with cognitive impairment. Participants were evaluated within 48 h of hospital admission and at discharge using a battery of tests including Barthel Index, Mini-Mental State Examination, and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Results: The intervention group demonstrated shorter hospital length of stay and a maintenance of the functional status at discharge compared to the control group. We observed no differences in cognitive ability between the two groups, and a trend towards a decrease of anxious symptoms in the intervention group compared to the control group. Conclusion: The results suggest that an intervention, focused on improving dementia care practices in healthcare staff, has the potential to improve the outcomes for hospitalized older adults with cognitive impairment

Analysis of video-polysomnographic sleep findings in dementia with Lewy bodies

Knowledge of sleep architecture and disorders of nocturnal sleep in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is limited by a lack of systematic video-polysomnographic (video-PSG) investigations. We describe video-PSG findings in 29 consecutive subjects diagnosed with DLB. All the patients underwent a clinical interview and overnight video-PSG monitoring. Twenty-nine nondemented patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) matched for age and sex with the DLB cases were selected for comparison. The DLB subjects showed less 1NREM sleep (P=000) and more 2NREM sleep (P=000) than the PD subjects. Sleep apnea (30.7% vs. 34.8%) and periodic limb movements (60.9% versus 50.0%) were frequent in both groups. Disruptive motor behavioral manifestations were more frequent in subjects with DLB (69.6% vs. 26.9%, P=008) and consisted of not only REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) but also confusional events (30.3% vs. 3.8%, P=020) and arousal-related episodes mimicking RBD. Subjects with DLB in whom a sleep disturbance had been the presenting symptom performed better than those with other onset symptoms on both the Mini-Mental State Examination (22.2±4.1 vs. 18.1±4.6, P=019) and the Frontal Assessment Battery (15.8 vs. 10.3, P=010). Polysomnographic findings in DLB show a complex mix of overlapping sleep alterations: impaired sleep structure, sleep comorbidities, and various motor-behavioral events (not restricted to RBD). Clinicians should be aware of the possibility of misleading symptoms and of the risk of overlooking sleep comorbidities, and consider performing polysomnographic sleep investigations in selected cases. We found evidence that a sleep disturbance as the presenting symptom might indicate a different phenotype of the disease, characterized by milder cognitive impairment.© 2013 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society

Medioevo latino. Bollettino bibliografico della cultura europea da Boezio a Erasmo (secoli VI - XV) - Volume 27

Bibliografia ragionata sulla latinità medievale. Fondato nel 1980 da Claudio Leonardi, R. Avesani, F. Bertini, G. Cremascoli, G. Orlandi e G. Scalia e pubblicato ogni anno, Medioevo latino è diventato un punto di riferimento per gli studiosi di medievistica. Diviso in grandi sezioni (Autori e testi, Fortleben, argomenti, generi letterari, istituzioni, scienze della storia, opere di consultazione, congressi e miscellanee), è corredato di un ricco apparato di indici. Il frutto del lavoro nasce dalla collaborazione fra numerose redazioni, nazionali e internazionali. La redazione bolognese è composta da V. Lunardini e R. Parmeggiani, coordinati da G. Cremascoli e impegnati in un intenso lavoro di spoglio e schedatura di riviste e volumi, per un paio di mesi all’anno

Analysis of video-polysomnographic sleep findings in dementia with Lewy bodies.

Knowledge of sleep architecture and disorders of nocturnal sleep in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is limited by a lack of systematic video-polysomnographic (video-PSG) investigations. We describe video-PSG findings in 29 consecutive subjects diagnosed with DLB. All the patients underwent a clinical interview and overnight video-PSG monitoring. Twenty-nine nondemented patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) matched for age and sex with the DLB cases were selected for comparison. The DLB subjects showed less 1NREM sleep (P=000) and more 2NREM sleep (P=000) than the PD subjects. Sleep apnea (30.7% vs. 34.8%) and periodic limb movements (60.9% versus 50.0%) were frequent in both groups. Disruptive motor behavioral manifestations were more frequent in subjects with DLB (69.6% vs. 26.9%, P=008) and consisted of not only REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) but also confusional events (30.3% vs. 3.8%, P=020) and arousal-related episodes mimicking RBD. Subjects with DLB in whom a sleep disturbance had been the presenting symptom performed better than those with other onset symptoms on both the Mini-Mental State Examination (22.2±4.1 vs. 18.1±4.6, P=019) and the Frontal Assessment Battery (15.8 vs. 10.3, P=010). Polysomnographic findings in DLB show a complex mix of overlapping sleep alterations: impaired sleep structure, sleep comorbidities, and various motor-behavioral events (not restricted to RBD). Clinicians should be aware of the possibility of misleading symptoms and of the risk of overlooking sleep comorbidities, and consider performing polysomnographic sleep investigations in selected cases. We found evidence that a sleep disturbance as the presenting symptom might indicate a different phenotype of the disease, characterized by milder cognitive impairment.© 2013 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society