Delirium in hip fractured patients

The current clinical case concerns the mixed delirium in a 70-year-old man with hip fracture, following a fall at home. In his medical history, the patient reported several comorbidities, among which also sarcopenia. Delirium was already diagnosed by the geriatrician on hospital admission. The patient underwent hip endoprosthesis surgery after 24 hours without any intra-operative complications. However, in the post-operative period delirium persisted, causing a prolonged hospital stay, a delayed physio-therapy rehabilitation with poor functional recovery, and subsequent insti-tutionalization. The prevalence of delirium in older people with hip fracture is extremely high and it is associated with several negative outcomes. Delirium is considered a multifactorial disorder, and, in particular, sarcopenia appears directly linked to the development of delirium. The systematic assessment of sarcopenia should be performed in hospitalized older patients with hip fracture, together with the other predisposing risk factors for delirium, to timely identify people at higher risk for both delirium and disability

Predictors of psychological health in couples diagnosed with Male infertility: A dyadic approach.

Background: Research underlined that infertile men may experience sense of guilt and failure, loss of self-esteem, high psychosocial and marital stress, and psychological suffering, but little attention was given to individual and dyadic dynamics featuring both partners diagnosed with male infertility. Objective: The study aimed to apply the Actor-Partner-Interdependence Model (APIM) to investigate actor and partner effects of infertility-related stressors (Social Concern, Need for Parenthood, Rejection of Childfree Lifestyle, Couple’s Relationship Concern), coping strategies (Social Support, Avoiding, Positive Attitude, Problem-Solving, Turning to Religion) and dyadic adjustment dimensions (Consensus, Satisfaction, Cohesion, Affectional Expression) on perceived levels of state-anxiety and depression among both members of couples diagnosed with male infertility. Method: Both members of 80 couples with male infertility diagnosis completed self-administered questionnaires. Results: Perception of Social and Couple’s Relationship Concerns and adoption of Avoiding and Turning to Religion coping emerged as risk factors for both partners. Adoption of Social Support and Problem-Solving coping and partners’ perception of Rejection of Childfree Lifestyle emerged as risk factors, while the perception of dyadic adjustment and partners’ adoption of Social Support coping, emerged as protective factors for men's psychological health. Perception of Need for Parenthood and partners’ perception of Rejection of Childfree Lifestyle emerged as risk factors, while the perception of Cohesion, and partners’ perception of Social and Couple’s Relationship Concerns and adoption of Positive Attitude coping, emerged as protective factors for women's psychological health. Conclusions: The study suggested specific individual and dyadic dynamics to be addressed for developing tailored interventions to promote psychological health in couples diagnosed with male infertility

Paths towards parenthood after repeated treatment failures: a comparative study on predictors of psychological health outcomes in infertile couples persisting in treatments or opting for adoption

Introduction: Infertility literature suggests widespread recourse to long-term medical treatments despite evidence of high stress, costs, and adverse effects of repeated treatment failures. However, there is a lack of research comparing predictors of stress and psychological health outcomes between members of infertile couples who – after repeated failures – persist in pursuing medical treatments (PT) with those who opted for quitting treatments and adopting (QTA). Basing on a transactional and multidimensional approach to infertility-related stress and health, the present study aims at exploring individual (socio-demographics; coping strategies) and situational (infertility-related parameters; infertility-related stressors; couple’s dyadic adjustment dimensions) predictors of state-anxiety and depression in male and female partners of PT-infertile couples and of QTA-infertile couples. Methods: Participants were both members of 176 couples with duration of infertility and a history of medical treatments for at least 3 years (76 PT-infertile couples, 100 QTA-infertile couples). The study variables were compared by study group across genders. Structural equation models (SEM) were used to test main and moderating effects of study variables on state-anxiety and depression by study group and across genders. Results: Members of infertile couples quitting treatments and adopting (QTA) reported significantly lower levels of state-anxiety and depression, higher stress related to need for parenthood and rejection of childfree-lifestyle and lower stress related to social and couple’s relationship concerns than those who persist in pursuing medical treatments (PT). Members of infertile couples quitting treatments and adopting (QTA) recurred to a greater extent to active coping strategies (problem-solving/social-support) and to a lower extent to passive coping strategies (avoiding/turning-to-religion), and they reported higher levels of dyadic adjustment. Specificities in main and moderating factors related to state-anxiety and depression by study group and across genders were found. Conclusion: Findings should be addressed to provide a comprehensive assessment of both members of infertile couples facing repeated treatment failures to identify risks and resources and develop tailored evidence-based interventions

Mediterranean Diet and Colorectal Cancer: a systematic review

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide, especially in developed countries where an estimated 60% of all cases occur. There is evidence of a higher risk in Western society whose behaviours are characterised by higher consumption of red and processed meat than in people living along Mediterranean coast, who have a decreased overall cancer mortality correlated to eating habits such as Mediterranean Diet. Aim: This review evaluate the correlation between 3 components of MedD (olive oil, red wine and tomatoes) and incidence and progression of CRC

A drug-induced microscopic colitis in an older woman: a case report

We presented a case of a 87-year-old woman hospitalized for chronic watery diarrhea, affected by multimorbidities. After excluding other caus-es of diarrhea by biohumoral and microbiological tests, endoscopy was performed without revealing any macroscopic abnormalities, but, at histological examination of random biopsies, the characteristic features of collagenous colitis were found. Lansoprazolo and sertraline, chronically taken by the patient, was discontinued, and budesonide was started with prompt clinical improvement. Collagenous colitis is a rare cause of chronic diarrhea in advanced age, but it should be suspected in patients with polypharmacotherapy, after an accurate differential diagnosis

Design and Innovation: How Many Ways?

Introduzione allo Special issue Design and Innovation: How Many Ways

Paths towards parenthood after repeated treatment failures: a comparative study on predictors of psychological health outcomes in infertile couples persisting in treatments or opting for adoption

IntroductionInfertility literature suggests widespread recourse to long-term medical treatments despite evidence of high stress, costs, and adverse effects of repeated treatment failures. However, there is a lack of research comparing predictors of stress and psychological health outcomes between members of infertile couples who – after repeated failures – persist in pursuing medical treatments (PT) with those who opted for quitting treatments and adopting (QTA). Basing on a transactional and multidimensional approach to infertility-related stress and health, the present study aims at exploring individual (socio-demographics; coping strategies) and situational (infertility-related parameters; infertility-related stressors; couple’s dyadic adjustment dimensions) predictors of state-anxiety and depression in male and female partners of PT-infertile couples and of QTA-infertile couples.MethodsParticipants were both members of 176 couples with duration of infertility and a history of medical treatments for at least 3 years (76 PT-infertile couples, 100 QTA-infertile couples). The study variables were compared by study group across genders. Structural equation models (SEM) were used to test main and moderating effects of study variables on state-anxiety and depression by study group and across genders.ResultsMembers of infertile couples quitting treatments and adopting (QTA) reported significantly lower levels of state-anxiety and depression, higher stress related to need for parenthood and rejection of childfree-lifestyle and lower stress related to social and couple’s relationship concerns than those who persist in pursuing medical treatments (PT). Members of infertile couples quitting treatments and adopting (QTA) recurred to a greater extent to active coping strategies (problem-solving/social-support) and to a lower extent to passive coping strategies (avoiding/turning-to-religion), and they reported higher levels of dyadic adjustment. Specificities in main and moderating factors related to state-anxiety and depression by study group and across genders were found.ConclusionFindings should be addressed to provide a comprehensive assessment of both members of infertile couples facing repeated treatment failures to identify risks and resources and develop tailored evidence-based interventions

The COVID-19 Student Stress Questionnaire: Validation in Spanish university students from health sciences

This study aimed to validate the Spanish version of the COVID-19 Student Stress Questionnaire (CSSQ), a 7-item tool assessing COVID-19-related stressors among university students, namely, Relationships and Academic Life, Isolation, and Fear of Contagion. Participants were 331 Spanish university students. Factor analyses sustained the three factor solution of the original tool. Data also revealed satisfactory convergent and discriminant validity, suitable internal consistency, and significant associations with psychological symptoms, as measured by the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised. The Spanish version of the CSSQ represents a valid tool to be used in clinical settings to timely identify students at high psychological risk and to develop evidence-based interventions during/after the pandemic

Light-activated porphyrinoid-capped nanoparticles for gas sensing

The coupling of semiconductors with organic molecules results in a class of sensors whose chemoresistive properties are dictated by the nature of dyes. Organic molecules generally reduce conductivity, but in the case of optically active dyes, such as porphyrinoids, the conductivity is restored by illumination with visible light. In this paper, we investigated the gas sensing properties of ZnO nanoparticles coated with porphyrins and corroles. Under light illumination, the resistance of these materials increases with the adsorption of volatile compounds but decreases when these are strong electron donors. The behavior of these sensors can be explicated on the basis of the structural difference between free-base porphyrin and corrole, the influence of coordinated metal, and the corresponding electronic structures. These sensors are promising electronic noses that combine the selectivity to strong electron donors with the broad selectivity toward the other classes of chemicals. An efficient representation of the data of this peculiar array can be obtained by replacing the Euclidean distance with the angular distance. To this end, a recently introduced spherical principal component analysis algorithm is applied for the first time to gas sensor array data. Results show that a minimal gas sensor array (four elements) can produce a sort of chemotopic map, which enables us to cluster a very large class of pure chemical vapors. Furthermore, this map provides information about the composition of complex odor matrices, such as the headspaces of beef meat and their evolution over the time

Porphyrins Through the Looking Glass: Spectroscopic and Mechanistic Insights in Supramolecular Chirogenesis of New Self-Assembled Porphyrin Derivatives

The solvent driven aggregation of porphyrin derivatives, covalently linked to a L- or D-prolinate enantiomer, results in the stereospecific formation of species featuring remarkable supramolecular chirality, as a consequence of reading and amplification of the stereochemical information stored in the proline-appended group. Spectroscopic, kinetic, and topographic SEM studies gave important information on the aggregation processes, and on the structures of the final chiral architectures. The results obtained may be the seeds for the construction of stereoselective sensors aiming at the detection, for example, of novel emergent pollutants from agrochemical, food, and pharmaceutical industry