The HealthTracker System: App and Cloud-Based Wearable Multi-Sensor Device for Patients Health Tracking

Telemedicine has emerged as a vital component of contemporary healthcare, revolutionizing the way medical services are delivered and accessed (e.g., it enables patients living in underserved or rural areas to receive medical consultation and treatment remotely). Moreover, telemedicine plays a pivotal role in improving healthcare efficiency by reducing wait times, minimizing unnecessary hospital visits, and optimizing resource allocation. In this paper, we present HealthTracker, a monitoring infrastructure for patients comprising two Internet of Things (IoT) devices (one of which was designed and created by us) and a mobile app that sends data collected by the IoT devices to a cloud service. All these components work together to provide an innovative system able to monitor patient health condition, provide alerts in emergency cases, and elaborate upon data to improve the quality of medical care. Preliminary tests show that the system works well, and real experimentation will start soon in collaboration with the local health authority

Involvement of the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System in the Formation of Experimental Postsurgical Peritoneal Adhesions

We investigated the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System (UPS), major nonlysosomal intracellular protein degradation system, in the genesis of experimental postsurgical peritoneal adhesions. We assayed the levels of UPS within the adhered tissue along with the development of peritoneal adhesions and used the specific UPS inhibitor bortezomib in order to assess the effect of the UPS blockade on the peritoneal adhesions. We found a number of severe postsurgical peritoneal adhesions at day 5 after surgery increasing until day 10. In the adhered tissue an increased values of ubiquitin and the 20S proteasome subunit, NFkB, IL-6, TNF-α and decreased values of IkB-beta were found. In contrast, bortezomib-treated rats showed a decreased number of peritoneal adhesions, decreased values of ubiquitin and the 20S proteasome, NFkB, IL-6, TNF-α, and increased levels of IkB-beta in the adhered peritoneal tissue. The UPS system, therefore, is primarily involved in the formation of post-surgical peritoneal adhesions in rats

Gait Monitoring and Analysis: A Mathematical Approach

Gait abnormalities are common in the elderly and individuals diagnosed with Parkinson’s, often leading to reduced mobility and increased fall risk. Monitoring and assessing gait patterns in these populations play a crucial role in understanding disease progression, early detection of motor impairments, and developing personalized rehabilitation strategies. In particular, by identifying gait irregularities at an early stage, healthcare professionals can implement timely interventions and personalized therapeutic approaches, potentially delaying the onset of severe motor symptoms and improving overall patient outcomes. In this paper, we studied older adults affected by chronic diseases and/or Parkinson’s disease by monitoring their gait due to wearable devices that can accurately detect a person’s movements. In our study, about 50 people were involved in the trial (20 with Parkinson’s disease and 30 people with chronic diseases) who have worn our device for at least 6 months. During the experimentation, each device collected 25 samples from the accelerometer sensor for each second. By analyzing those data, we propose a metric for the “gait quality” based on the measure of entropy obtained by applying the Fourier transform

Relatives of Crohn's disease patients and breast cancer: An overlooked condition

AbstractRecent data suggest that patients suffering from Crohn’s disease (CD) may be at higher risk of developing extra-intestinal malignancies. This is attributed to inflammation and immunodepression due to medications. However, a genetic predisposition cannot ruled out. In the present study we investigated the prevalence of breast cancer in first-degree female relatives of CD patients compared with relatives of patients without evidence of gastrointestinal diseases. A total of 1302 female first-degree relatives of CD patients and 1294 relatives of controls were included. We found that CD was an independent risk factor for breast cancer development (OR = 2.76, 95% CI = 1.2–6.2; p = 0.017), and this is particularly evident in mothers (3.6% vs 1%, p = 0.009 − OR = 3.7, 95% CI 1.4–10). Among CD group, smoking habit of CD patients was associated with increased risk of cancer compared with relatives of non-smokers (7.7% vs 2.9%, p = 0.01 – OR = 2.8 95% CI 1.2–6.6). Intriguingly, stage at diagnosis was significantly higher in CD relatives (p = 0.04). Our findings suggest that first-degree female relatives of CD patients are at higher risk of developing breast cancer but receive diagnosis at more advanced stages, therefore advocating the need of more active screening protocol in this population

Protein supplementation prevents etoposide-induced skeletal muscle damage

Autophagy represents a physiological mechanism responsible for cell homeostasis and its deregulation is involved in several conditions related to muscle mass loss such as aging, inflammatory diseases and disuse [1]. In our previous work, double membrane vesicles, suggestive of autophagy, appeared after chemotherapeutic treatments in C2C12 myotubes [2]. Here, skeletal muscle cells have been exposed to Etoposide (Eto), a cell-death and oxidative stress inducer, as well as to protein supplementation before the trigger. Cytofluorimetric, morphological and molecular analyses revealed that Eto treatment increases cardiolipin peroxidation events, and induces lysosomal compartment and endoplasmic reticulum damage. Moreover, a peculiar accumulation of autophagic complex vacuoles resulted in LC3 localization into dot cytoplasmic structures, appeared in treated-differentiated cells, if compared to the diffuse cytoplasmic distribution observed in untreated cells. Protein supplementation, is able to prevent myotube damage, by reducing oxidative stress, improving the lysosomal degradation pathway, and, finally, by reactivating the protein synthesis. These findings suggest that a diet rich in protein could prevent the impaired autophagic degradation in a skeletal muscle model in vitro, exposed to a chemotherapeutic agent, thus contributing to delay the progression of several muscle disorders [3]

Clinical Study Functional Outcomes and Quality of Life after Restorative Proctocolectomy in Paediatric Patients: A Case-Control Study

Background. Restorative proctocolectomy with ileal-pouch anal anastomosis (IPAA) has some peculiarities in paediatric ulcerative colitis (UC). Aims. The primary aim was to compare the bowel function of patients undergoing IPAA between those operated on in childhood and adulthood. The secondary aim was to compare the quality of life (QoL) and outcomes for children between medical and surgical therapies. Method. Children undergoing IPAA were compared with adult patients undergoing IPAA between 2007 and 2012. Function was assessed 1 year after ileostomy closure. Function and QoL of medically managed paediatric patients were compared with their surgical counterparts. Results. Twelve paediatric IPAA patients were compared with 24 adult ones. Acute presentation was common in the former, usually after failed biological treatment. Recurrent pouchitis was more frequent in children. Younger patients exhibited a trend toward better discrimination and continence. QoL was excellent in both groups. Twelve medically treated children were enrolled for secondary aim. Functioning was similar in IPAA-and medically managed children, but the former had a better QoL, confirmed by parents' perception. Conclusions. Similar function is achieved by IPAA in childhood or adulthood. IPAA may offer a better QoL compared to prolonged medical management. The beneficial effects of IPAA experienced by children were similarly observed by their parents

Lock, Stock and Barrel: Role of Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone System in Coronavirus Disease 2019

none16noSince the end of 2019, the medical-scientific community has been facing a terrible pandemic caused by a new airborne viral agent known as SARS-CoV2. Already in the early stages of the pandemic, following the discovery that the virus uses the ACE2 cell receptor as a molecular target to infect the cells of our body, it was hypothesized that the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system was involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. Since then, numerous studies have been published on the subject, but the exact role of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in the pathogenesis of COVID-19 is still a matter of debate. RAAS represents an important protagonist in the pathogenesis of COVID-19, providing the virus with the receptor of entry into host cells and determining its organotropism. Furthermore, following infection, the virus is able to cause an increase in plasma ACE2 activity, compromising the normal function of the RAAS. This dysfunction could contribute to the establishment of the thrombo-inflammatory state characteristic of severe forms of COVID-19. Drugs targeting RAAS represent promising therapeutic options for COVID-19 sufferers.openZanza, Christian; Tassi, Michele Fidel; Romenskaya, Tatsiana; Piccolella, Fabio; Abenavoli, Ludovico; Franceschi, Francesco; Piccioni, Andrea; Ojetti, Veronica; Saviano, Angela; Canonico, Barbara; Montanari, Mariele; Zamai, Loris; Artico, Marco; Robba, Chiara; Racca, Fabrizio; Longhitano, YaroslavaZanza, Christian; Tassi, Michele Fidel; Romenskaya, Tatsiana; Piccolella, Fabio; Abenavoli, Ludovico; Franceschi, Francesco; Piccioni, Andrea; Ojetti, Veronica; Saviano, Angela; Canonico, Barbara; Montanari, Mariele; Zamai, Loris; Artico, Marco; Robba, Chiara; Racca, Fabrizio; Longhitano, Yaroslav