Aspetti Neuroscientifci nelle scelte alimentari: specificità di genere

Nel contributo di Massimo Ulderico De Martino è posta l’attenzione sul concetto di omeostasi interiore. È molto interessante che il termine omeostasi è soli- tamente utilizzato per rappresentare la condizione di equilibrio di un sistema biologico; l’omeostasi cellulare, ad esempio, rappresenta la condizione in cui la cellula funziona in equilibrio con il suo ambiente. L’omeostasi interiore quindi è una condizione di equilibrio che coinvolge la psiche e che siriflette su attività corporee, quali l’alimentarsi. In accordo con una propria omeostasi interiore, il rapporto col cibo, e quindi l’alimentarsi, è espressione del proprio modo di essere, di vivere le esperienze, gli ambienti, le relazioni. A questo proposito De Martino si sofferma sul rapporto estremamente personale di ciascun individuo col cibo. In senso epidemiologico, esiste una personaliz- zazione del rapporto col cibo, dove il genere – maschio/femmina – è la prima forma di personalizzazione: come l’uomo e la donna approcciano il cibo, quali sono le specifiche abitudini dell’uno e dell’altro, quali sono le modalità di consumo

Using a Hierarchic Fuzzy System to evaluate a racing car driver’s skills Index

The evaluation of a racing car driver’s skills is actually a psychophysical test. It should be thus mandatory to test the vision of a racing driver either quantitatively and qualitatively and in the most different conditions, as much as to evaluate his psycho-physical conditions. In fact, this represents the only way to let a racing car to be driven in complete safety. The research activity, based on the biochemical, physical and psychophysical study of the human body’s stress induced response to normal and extreme driving conditions, is thus addressed to create an Index, unique numerical expression of all driver’s skills

Aging and adherence to the mediterranean diet. relationship with cardiometabolic disorders and polypharmacy

Objectives: To investigate the association between adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (Med-Diet), cardiometabolic disorders and polypharmacy. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Geriatrics outpatient clinic, Policlinico Umberto I, Sapienza University of Rome. Participants: 508 patients (219 male, 289 female) aged 50 to 89 who were evaluated for cardiovascular and metabolic disorders. Methods and Measurements: Patients underwent a comprehensive medical assessment including medical history and the use of medications. Adherence to Med-Diet was assessed using the validated Med-Diet 14-item questionnaire; for the analysis, patients were divided in high (≥8) and medium-low (<8) adherence. Polypharmacy was defined as taking ≥5 medications. Results: 476 patients completed the study. Mean age was 70.4 years; 58% female. Median Med-Diet score was 8 (6-9). Patients with medium-low adherence had higher body mass index (p=0.029) and higher prevalence of arterial hypertension (p<0.001), previous coronary (p=0.002) and cerebrovascular events (p=0.011), diabetes, (p<0.001) and dyslipidemia (p=0.001) compared to those at high adherence. Med-Diet score decreased with the number of cardiometabolic disorders (p<0.001). The prevalence of polypharmacy was 39%. Consumption of olive oil (p=0.005), vegetables, (p<0.001), wine (p=0.017), legumes (p=0.028), fish (p=0.046) and nuts (p=0.045) were all inversely associated with the overall number of medications. In a multivariable regression model, medium-low adherence to Med-Diet was independently associated to polypharmacy (O.R.:1.859; 95% CI 1.142 to 3.025; p=0.013), after adjusting for possible confounding factors. Conclusion: Med-Diet was inversely associated with cardiometabolic disorders and with polypharmacy, suggesting that improved Med-Diet adherence might potentially delay the onset of age-related health deterioration and reduce the need of multiple medications

The ENDOTRIAL Study: A spontaneous, open-label, randomized, multicenter, crossover study on the efficacy of sildenafil, tadalafil, and vardenafil in the treatment of erectile dysfunction

Introduction. The three effective, commercially available drugs for the treatment of erectile dysfunction-sildenafil, vardenafil, and tadalafil-inhibit the same substrate, the erectolytic enzyme phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5). Although there are pharmacological differences between these three compounds, few comparative studies have been conducted to date. Aim. The aim of this study was to determine the efficacy of sildenafil, tadalafil, and vardenafil in a randomly assigned 8-week fixed regimen. Methods. This was a spontaneous, open-label, randomized, multicenter, crossover study where the patients were randomized to receive sildenafil 50 mg, sildenafil 100 mg, tadalafil 20 mg, or vardenafil 20 mg. Main Outcome Measures. The primary outcome included the posttreatment analysis of erectile function domains of the abridged International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF5+1). The secondary objectives included the analysis of peak-systolic velocities (PSVs), end-diastolic velocities (EDVs), and resistive index (RI), and the estimate of the percentage of men with normal penile hemodynamic parameters after each treatment. Results. In all groups of patients taking sildenafil 50 mg, sildenafil 100 mg, tadalafil 20 mg, and vardenafil 20 mg at a frequency reflecting the common treatment regimens in real life, there was a statistically significant baseline-to-end point improvement in subjective perception of erectile function measured by IIEF5+1. When the four groups were compared, the treatments were not different in modifying IIEF5+1 and penile flow parameters. However, the within-group analysis showed that PSV improved in the sildenafil 50 mg group and that PSV together with RI significantly ameliorated in patients receiving 100 mg of sildenafil. Regression analysis confirmed an independent effect of sildenafil on hemodynamic efficacy parameters. Conclusions. An overall equivalence was demonstrated in the subjective perception of treatment benefits for all the PDE5i tested. However, sildenafil, in a dose-dependent manner, was the unique PDE5i able to ameliorate some of the penile flow parameters within the 8-week treatment period. These findings should be interpreted conservatively because of the observational nature of the study. Jannini EA, Isidori AM, Gravina GL, Aversa A, Balercia G, Bocchio M, Boscaro M, Carani C, Corona G, Fabbri A, Foresta C, Forti G, Francavilla S, Granata ARM, Maggi M, Mansani R, Palego P, Spera G, Vetri M, and Lenzi A on behalf of the Endotrial Study Group. The ENDOTRIAL study: A spontaneous, open-label, randomized, multicenter, crossover study on the efficacy of sildenafil, tadalafil, and vardenafil in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. J Sex Med 2009;6:2547-2560