Lumbar spine bone mineral density and trabecular bone score-adjusted FRAX, but not FRAX without bone mineral density, identify subclinical carotid atherosclerosis

Purpose: Osteoporosis and atherosclerosis share common risk factors. Aim of this study was to test if FRAX (which is an algorithm that can identify subjects at risk of fracture), without or with BMD values, also adjusted for trabecular bone score (TBS) was able to identify subclinical atherosclerosis, evaluated by measurement of carotid intima media thickness (cIMT ≥ 0.9 mm) as compared to DXA values. Methods: Ninety postmenopausal women underwent DXA measurement and cIMT evaluation. For each patient, the FRAX algorithm for major osteoporotic fracture (M) and for hip fracture (H) without BMD was computed, together with FRAX with BMD and TBS-adjusted FRAX. Serum levels of osteoprotegerin, sRANKL, and interleukin-6 were also measured. Results: There were no differences in anthropometric parameters and cardiovascular risk factors between subjects with cIMT ≥ 0.9 mm (35% of subjects, group A) compared to those with cIMT < 0.9 mm (group B). The prevalence of osteoporosis and FRAX BMD, TBS-adjusted FRAX both for M and H were higher in group A compared to group B. The best ROC curves to identify subjects with a cIMT ≥ 0.9 mm were: lumbar spine T-score, with a threshold of − 2.5 SD (area under the curve, AUC 0.64; p = 0.02) with a sensibility of 50% and a specificity of 76%; TBS-adjusted FRAX H with a sensibility of 50% and a specificity of 72% (AUC 0.64; p = 0.01 with a threshold of 3%). Interleukin-6 positively correlated with FRAX BMD H and M. Conclusions: FRAX without BMD does not identify subclinical carotid atherosclerosis, while lumbar spine T-score and TBS-adjusted FRAX H similarly detected it with higher specificity for T-score

Safety of intravenous ferric carboxymaltose versus oral iron in patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD: an analysis of the 1-year FIND-CKD trial.

Background: The evidence base regarding the safety of intravenous (IV) iron therapy in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) is incomplete and largely based on small studies of relatively short duration. Methods: FIND-CKD (ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT00994318) was a 1-year, open-label, multicenter, prospective study of patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD, anemia and iron deficiency randomized (1:1:2) to IV ferric carboxymaltose (FCM), targeting higher (400-600 µg/L) or lower (100-200 µg/L) ferritin, or oral iron. A post hoc analysis of adverse event rates per 100 patient-years was performed to assess the safety of FCM versus oral iron over an extended period. Results: The safety population included 616 patients. The incidence of one or more adverse events was 91.0, 100.0 and 105.0 per 100 patient-years in the high ferritin FCM, low ferritin FCM and oral iron groups, respectively. The incidence of adverse events with a suspected relation to study drug was 15.9, 17.8 and 36.7 per 100 patient-years in the three groups; for serious adverse events, the incidence was 28.2, 27.9 and 24.3 per 100 patient-years. The incidence of cardiac disorders and infections was similar between groups. At least one ferritin level ≥800 µg/L occurred in 26.6% of high ferritin FCM patients, with no associated increase in adverse events. No patient with ferritin ≥800 µg/L discontinued the study drug due to adverse events. Estimated glomerular filtration rate remained the stable in all groups. Conclusions: These results further support the conclusion that correction of iron deficiency anemia with IV FCM is safe in patients with nondialysis-dependent CKD

Fuel cell based traction drive with supercapacitor power boost control

A fuel cell based traction drive and its control are presented. Dual cascaded voltage source inverter and supercapacitor bank allow to increase performances and efficiency. The proposed control allows to optimize the power flow from the two sources in whatever operating condition. Because the supercapacitor system cannot be normally recharged completely in case of asymmetric duty cycle of the vehicle, a novel modulation strategy for the energy stabilization of the supercapacitor is also proposed. It allows to recharge the supercapacitor during regenerative breakings but also in the normal run and stop of the drive without any additional power converter. The validity of the proposed control has been confirmed by the experimental implementation

Henoch-Schoenlein purpura in a patient with bowel bypass syndrome

Henoch-Schonlein purpura (HSP) is a common vasculitis being characterized by the classic tetrad of nonthrombocytopenic palpable purpura, arthritis or arthralgias, gastrointestinal and renal involvement. Antigen-antibody (IgA) complexes activate the alternative complement pathway, resulting in inflammation and small vessels vasculitis. We present the case of a 53 years old Italian woman with HSP who was previously hospitalized for purpura skin lesions of the lower legs and diarrhea; a skin biopsy showed a leukocytoclastic vasculitis with perivascular accumulation of neutrophils and mononuclear cells. She was treated with immunosuppressive therapy. After 8 months she was hospitalized again for a recurrent episode of purpura skin lesions of the lower legs. At age 49 she was affected by obesity (BMI = 41.6 Kg/m(2)), treated via a bilio-pancreatic diversion that led, within a year, to a BMI reduction (25 Kg/m(2)). We suppose that bariatric surgery played a role on the development of autoimmune phenomena and that the formation of immunecomplexes is secondary to the excess of intestinal bacterial antigens. A cyclic therapy with Paromomicine 500 mg twice daily and Metronidazole 250 mg twice daily was performed with a clear up of the clinical picture. In medical literature are described numerous complications which include arthritis, erythema nodosum-like lesions, eruptions and other skin manifestations in patients who have undergone jejunocolic bypass. This case report describes for the first time the presence of HSP in a patient with bowel bypass syndrome and it is also able to demonstrate the relationship between the intestinal bacterial overgrowth and the systemic autoimmune system

Patients’ reasons for adhering to long-term alendronate therapy

Summary: We aimed to determine patients’ reasons for continuing alendronate therapy over 5 years by administering a questionnaire. Bone mineral density, fractures, drugs, Charlson comorbidity index, and lifestyle factors were also considered. Education and awareness of the disease appeared highly associated with good alendronate adherence while worsening health status with discontinuation. Introduction: Aim of this study was to investigate patients’ reasons for adhering to long-term alendronate therapy (more than 5 years), as data is not available in the current literature regarding the reasons behind long-term adherence. Methods: We studied 204 long-term adherent alendronate users: 65 postmenopausal outpatients still adherent (group C, years on treatment = 8.70 ± 1.31) were compared to 139 age-matched patients who discontinued therapy (group S, years on treatment = 8.64 ± 1.43). We evaluated main biochemical parameters, BMD values, fractures, and Charlson comorbidity index (CCI). A questionnaire was administered to analyze the reasons for long-term adherence. Results: There were no significant differences between groups concerning baseline DXA values, number of fractures, and CCI. A higher education level was observed in group C (C 54% vs S 35% of patients, p = 0.001). At the time of interview, there was a significantly higher number of patients with a CCI of two in group S compared to the beginning of treatment (56% vs 43%, p = 0.04), together with a higher number of patients taking more than 3 drugs (22% vs 11%, p = 0.01) compared to basal evaluation. Forty-seven percent of patients reported new diseases during the treatment as the main reason for stopping alendronate. A multivariate, stepwise logistic regression analysis showed that awareness of the disease was highly associated with adherence (OR = 0.20; 95% CI 0.045–0.93, p = 0.04) followed by higher education (OR = 0.526, 95% CI 0.345–0.801, p = 0.003). Worsening of CCI was associated with discontinuation (OR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.033–7.324, p = 0.04). Conclusions: Education and disease awareness are associated with long-term alendronate adherence while competing health problems negatively impact adherence

Waves of infection and waves of communication: the importance of sharing in the era of Covid-19

No abstract availabl