depression and stroke risk

Evaluation of: Pan A, Okereke OI, Sun Q et al. Depression and incident stroke in women. Stroke 42(10), 2770–2775 (2011). In the Nurses' Health Study, 80,574 women aged between 54 and 79 years, without a history of stroke, were followed-up from 2000 to 2006. In this cohort, depressive symptoms were assessed at multiple time points utilizing the Mental Health Index score (1992, 1996 and 2000), and clinically significant depressive symptoms were defined as a score ≤52. A survey was carried out regarding antidepressant medication use biennially beginning in 1996, and physician-diagnosed depression was reported biennially from 2000. During this 6-year follow-up, 1033 incident strokes were documented. Having a history of depression was associated with an increased risk for total stroke, as well as the use of antidepressant medications with or without history of depression

Potenzialità dell’esercizio fisico nel miglioramento della sintomatologia dell’ADHD

Exercise plays a primary role in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Much of the scientific literature claims that the effects of physical activity, movement and sport act on the reduction of the main symptoms of ADHD, also improving executive functions. In this review, we offer a brief overview of the potential that exercise has in improving the symptoms of ADHD, both in the short and long term. Indeed, it has been found that the positive effects observed after acute aerobic exercise are promising, while studies relating to long-term physical intervention are still few and far between, although in both cases benefits are found, in general, for the person.L’esercizio fisico ha un ruolo di primaria importanza nel trattamento del deficit di disturbo dell’attenzione da iperattività (ADHD). Gran parte della letteratura scientifica sostiene che gli effetti dell’attività fisica, del movimento e dello sport agiscono sulla riduzione dei sintomi principali dell’ADHD, migliorando anche le funzioni esecutive. In questa review, si offre una breve panoramica sulla potenzialità che ha l’esercizio fisico nel miglioramento della sintomatologia dell’ADHD, sia esso a breve, che a lungo termine. Si è riscontrato, infatti, che gli effetti positivi osservati dopo l’esercizio aerobico acuto sono promettenti, mentre sono ancora pochi e carenti gli studi relativi all’intervento fisico a lungo termine, sebbene in entrambi i casi si riscontrino benefici, in generale, per la persona

The Relationship between Healthcare Providers and Preventive Practices: Narratives on Access to Cancer Screening

: Cancer screening programs are public health interventions beneficial to early diagnoses and timely treatments. Despite the investment of health policies in this area, many people in the recommended age groups do not participate. While the literature is mainly focused on obstacles and factors enabling access to health services, a gap from the point of view of the target population concerns healthcare providers. Within the "Miriade" research-action project, this study aims to explore the dimensions that mediate the relationship between healthcare providers and preventive practices through the narrations of 52 referents and healthcare providers involved in breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening. We conducted ad hoc narrative interviews and used theory-driven analysis based on Penchansky and Thomas' conceptualization and Saurman's integration of six dimensions of healthcare access: affordability, availability, accessibility, accommodation, acceptability and awareness. The results show that 21 thematic categories were representative of the access dimensions, and 5 thematic categories were not; thus, we have classified the latter as the dimension of affection. The results suggest trajectories through which psychological clinical intervention might be constructed concerning health, shared health decisions and access to cancer screening

Secondary Stroke Prevention in Women

In a meta-analysis of results from 21 randomized trials comparing antiplatelet therapy with placebo in 18,270 patients with prior stroke or transient ischemic attack, antiplatelet therapy was associated with a 28% relative odds reduction in nonfatal strokes and a 16% reduction in fatal strokes, while another trial for secondary prevention with atorvastastin 80 mg showed a 16% risk reduction in time to first occurrence of stroke (adjusted hazard ratio: 0·84, 95% CI: 0·71–0·99). However, few studies have examined the sex differences regarding the efficacy of these treatments. Specifically, recent studies have reported higher rates of perioperative complications during endarterectomy in women. Nonetheless, to date, the data on the effects of carotid artery stenting in women, coming from diverse studies and meta-analyses, have been limited owing to the small number of female patients examined. Owing to this, the evidence of the benefit for women is unclear. Peculiar pathophysiological aspects of stroke, the h..

Clinical and psychosocial constructs for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening participation: A systematic review.

Research has identified a wide range of psychosocial factors associated to choosing to engage in ongoing cancer screenings. Nevertheless, a systematic review of the theoretical frameworks and constructs underpinning studies on breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening participation has yet to be conducted. As part of the action-research project “Miriade,” the present study aims to identifying the main theoretical frameworks and constructs adopted in the literature over the past five years to explain cancer screening participation. According to the PRISMA guidelines, a search of the MEDLINE/PubMed and PsycINFO databases was made. Empirical studies conducted from 2017 to 2021 were included. The following keywords were used: breast OR cervical OR colorectal screening AND adhesion OR participation OR engagement AND theoretical framework OR conceptual framework OR theory. Overall, 24 articles met the inclusion criteria. Each theoretical framework highlighted clinical and psychosocial constructs of cancer screening participation, focusing on the individuals (psycho-emotional functioning and skills plan) and/or the health services perspectives. Findings from the present study acknowledge the plurality of the theoretical frameworks and constructs adopted to predict or promote breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening adhesion and the need for new research efforts to improve the effectiveness of cancer screening promotion interventions

Chiral selectivity of porphyrin-ZnO nanoparticle conjugates

Recognition of enantiomers is one of the most arduous challenges in chemical sensor development. Although several chiral systems exist, their effective exploitation as the sensitive layer in chemical sensors is hampered by several practical implications that hinder stereoselective recognition in solid state. In this paper, we report a new methodology to efficiently prepare chiral solid films, by using a hybrid material approach where chiral porphyrin derivatives are grafted onto zinc oxide nanoparticles. Circular dichroism (CD) evidences that the solid-state film of the material retains supramolecular chirality due to porphyrin interactions, besides an additional CD feature in correspondence of the absorbance of ZnO (375 nm), suggesting the induction of chirality in the underlying zinc oxide nanoparticles. The capability of hybrid material to detect and recognize vapors of enantiomer pairs was evaluated by fabricating gas sensors based on quartz microbalances. Chiral films of porphyrin on its own were used for comparison. The sensor based on functionalized nanostructures presented a remarkable stereoselectivity in the recognition of limonene enantiomers, whose ability to intercalate in the porphyrin layers makes this terpene an optimal chiral probe. The chiroptical and stereoselective properties of the hybrid material confirm that the use of porphyrin-capped ZnO nanostructures is a viable route for the formation of chiral selective surfaces. © 2019 American Chemical Society

Tunable supramolecular chirogenesis in the self-assembling of amphiphilic porphyrin triggered by chiral amines

Supramolecular chirality is one of the most important issues in different branches of science and technology, as stereoselective molecular recognition, catalysis, and sensors. In this paper, we report on the self-assembly of amphiphilic porphyrin derivatives possessing a chiral information on the periphery of the macrocycle (i.e., D- or L-proline moieties), in the presence of chiral amines as co-solute, such as chiral benzylamine derivatives. The aggregation process, steered by hydrophobic effect, has been studied in aqueous solvent mixtures by combined spectroscopic and topographic techniques. The results obtained pointed out a dramatic effect of these ligands on the morphology and on the supramolecular chirality of the final self-assembled structures. Scanning electron microscopy topography, as well as fluorescence microscopy studies revealed the formation of rod-like structures of micrometric size, different from the fractal structures formerly observed when the self-assembly process is carried out in the absence of chiral amine co-solutes. On the other hand, comparative experiments with an achiral porphyrin analogue strongly suggested that the presence of the prolinate moiety is mandatory for the achievement of the observed highly organized suprastructures. The results obtained would be of importance for unraveling the intimate mechanisms operating in the selection of the homochirality, and for the preparation of sensitive materials for the detection of chiral analytes, with tunable stereoselectivity and morphology

Supersymmetric Electroweak Corrections to Charged Higgs Boson Production in Association with a Top Quark at Hadron Colliders

We calculate the $O(\alpha_{ew}m_{t(b)}^{2}/m_{W}^{2})$ and $O(\alpha_{ew} m_{t(b)}^4/m_W^4)$ supersymmetric electroweak corrections to the cross section for the charged Higgs boson production in association with a top quark at the Tevatron and the LHC. These corrections arise from the quantum effects which are induced by potentially large Yukawa couplings from the Higgs sector and the chargino-top(bottom)-sbottom(stop) couplings, neutralino-top(bottom)-stop(sbottom) couplings and charged Higgs-stop-sbottom couplings. They can decrease or increase the cross section depending on $\tan\beta$ but are not very sensitive to the mass of the charged Higgs boson for high $\tan\beta$. At low $\tan\beta(=2)$ the corrections decrease the total cross sections significantly, which exceed -12% for $m_{H^{\pm}}$ below $300GeV$ at both the Tevatron and the LHC, but for $m_{H^{\pm}}>300GeV$ the corrections can become very small at the LHC. For high $\tan\beta(=10,30)$ these corrections can decrease or increase the total cross sections, and the magnitude of the corrections are at most a few percent at both the Tevatron and the LHC.Comment: 28 pages including 4 eps figure

Right atrial mass following transcatheter radiofrequency ablation for recurrent atrial fibrillation: thrombus, endocarditis or mixoma?

We report a case of an asymptomatic patient in whom a right atrial mass was fortuitously documented by echocardiography few months after a transcatheter radiofrequency catheter ablation for recurrent AF. No masses were seen in the cardiac chambers before the ablative procedure, raising important diagnostic and decision-making issues. The patient was referred to the surgeon and a diagnosis of right atrial myxoma was made