Comparing kinetic and hydrodynamical models for electron transport in monolayer graphene

The aim of this work is to compare, in monolayer graphene, solutions of the electron Boltzmann equation, obtained with a discontinuous Galerkin method, with those of a hydrodynamical model based on the Maximum Entropy Principle

Cost minimization analysis of BoNT-As in the treatment of upper limb spasticity and cervical dystonia

Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) injections are recommended for the management of upper limb spasticity (ULS) and cervical dystonia (CD). The main aim of this cost minimization analysis (CMA) was to compare the annual cost per patient for three BoNT-As (Botox®, Dysport® and Xeomin®) in the treatment of ULS or CD in Italy. A budget impact analysis (BIA) was also conducted. Methods The CMA was conducted from the perspective of the Italian National Health Service. Only direct medical costs (BoNT-A and standard therapy) were considered. By using a Delphi panel of twelve Italian Experts in the treatment of ULS and CD, data was collected about BoNT-As (dose, number of administrations and acquisition price) and standard therapy (concomitant medications, visits, Day-Hospital, hospitalizations, etc.). Costs were assessed in Euros 2014. The BIA was conducted to evaluate the pharmaceutical expenditure for the three BoNT-As on a five-year time horizon. A sensitivity analysis was conducted. Results The mean annual cost per patient with ULS was €1,840.20 with Dysport®, €2,067.12 with Botox® and €2,171.05 with Xeomin®. The mean annual cost per patient with CD was €1,353.79 with Dysport®, €1,433.12 with Botox® and €1,503.60 with Xeomin®. In the time horizon considered, the substitution process of Botox® and Xeomin® by Dysport® would result in a total saving of €620,000 when treating ULS and a total saving of €481,000 in the case of CD. Sensitivity and probabilistic analyses showed the robustness of results. Conclusions From the Italian National Health Service's perspective, Dysport® appears to be the cost-saving therapeutic option compared with Botox® and Xeomin® in the treatment of ULS or CD

L’impatto farmacoeconomico del trattamento della schizofrenia con antipsicotici tipici ed atipici: l’esperienza di un DSM della Regione Sicilia

Il presente lavoro è stato realizzato con il patrocinio del Dipartimento Ispettorato Regionale Sanitario dell.Assessorato per la Sanità della Regione Sicilia, nella persona del Dirigente Generale Dott. Saverio Ciriminna BACKGROUND: The comparatively high acquisition costs of the new antipsychotic drugs have induced the mental health community to look closely at their potential benefits. OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical and economic outcomes associated with olanzapine, risperidone and typical neuroleptics treatment for schizophrenia. METHODS:Amulticenter, observational, two-years long, retrospective and prospective study was conducted with 229 psychotic patients (in charge by psychiatric Centers of Regione Sicilia - Italy). Clinical outcomes were assessed using changes in CGI (Clinical Global Impression) and PANSS (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale) scores. The economic data collection included pharmacological and non-pharmacological resources consumption (hospitalizations, medical/nurse visits, etc.). The economic evaluation was conducted in the perspective of the Local Psychiatric Services. RESULTS: The results in terms of clinical performance indicated an advantage (statistically significant) in the olanzapine group of patients. The pharmacological costs were significantly lower (p0,05). Treatment with olanzapine was associated with a lower non-pharmacological resources consumption and showed a general reduction (

Characterization of the Sos Enattos site for the Einstein Telescope

In this work we report the ongoing characterization of the Sos Enattos former mine (Sardinia, Italy), one of the two candidate sites for the Einstein Telescope (ET), the European third-generation underground interferometric detector of Gravitational Waves. The Sos Enattos site lies on a crystalline basement, made of rocks with good geomechanical properties, characterized by negligible groundwater. In addition, the site has a very low seismic background noise due to the absence of active tectonics involving Sardinia. Finally, the area has a low population density, resulting in a reduced anthropic noise even at the ground level. This location was already studied in 2012-2014 as a promising site for an underground detector. More recently, in March 2019, we deployed a new network of surface and underground seismometers at the site, that is currently monitoring the local seismic noise. Most of the energy carried by the seismic waves is due to the microseisms below 1 Hz, showing a significant correlation with the waves of the west Mediterranean sea. Above 1 Hz the seismic noise in the underground levels of the mine approaches the Peterson's low noise model. Exploiting mine blasting works into the former mine, we were also able to perform active seismic measurements to evaluate the seismic waves propagation across the area. In conclusion we also give a first assessment about the acoustic and magnetic noise in this underground site

Sporadic ALS is not associated with VAPB gene mutations in Southern Italy

Mutations in the Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (Sod1) gene have been reported to cause adult-onset autosomal dominant Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (FALS). In sporadic cases (SALS) de novo mutations in the Sod1 gene have occasionally been observed. The recent finding of a mutation in the VAMP/synaptobrevin-associated membrane protein B (VAPB) gene as the cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS8), prompted us to investigate the entire coding region of this gene in SALS patients. One hundred twenty-five unrelated patients with adult-onset ALS and 150 healthy sex-age-matched subjects with the same genetic background were analyzed. Genetic analysis for all exons of the VAPB gene by DHPLC revealed 5 variant profiles in 83 out of 125 SALS patients. Direct sequencing of these PCR products revealed 3 nucleotide substitutions. Two of these were found within intron 3 of the gene, harbouring 4 variant DHPLC profiles. The third nucleotide variation (Asp130Glu) was the only substitution present in the coding region of the VAPB gene, and it occurred within exon 4. It was found in three patients out of 125. The frequency of the detected exon variation in the VAPB gene was not significantly different between patients and controls. In conclusion, our study suggests that VAPB mutations are not a common cause of adult-onset SALS

Array analysis of seismic noise at the Sos Enattos mine, the Italian candidate site for the Einstein Telescope

The area surrounding the dismissed mine of Sos Enattos (Sardinia, Italy) is the Italian candidate site for hosting Einstein Telescope (ET), the third-generation gravitational wave (GW) observatory. One of the goals of ET is to extend the sensitivity down to frequencies well below those currently achieved by GW detectors, i.e. down to 2 Hz. In the bandwidth [1,10] Hz, the seismic noise of anthropogenic origin is expected to represent the major perturbation to the operation of the infrastructure, and the site that will host the future detector must fulfill stringent requirements on seismic disturbances. In this paper we describe the operation of a temporary, 15-element, seismic array deployed in close proximity to the mine. Signals of anthropogenic origin have a transient nature, and their spectra are characterized by a wide spectral lobe spanning the [3,20] Hz frequency interval. Superimposed to this wide lobe are narrow spectral peaks within the [3,8] Hz frequency range. Results from slowness analyses suggest that the origin of these peaks is related to vehicle traffic along the main road running east of the mine. Exploiting the correlation properties of seismic noise, we derive a dispersion curve for Rayleigh waves, which is then inverted for a shallow velocity structure down to depths of ≈≈ 150 m. This data, which is consistent with that derived from analysis of a quarry blast, provide a first assessment of the elastic properties of the rock materials at the site candidate to hosting ET

First narrow-band search for continuous gravitational waves from known pulsars in advanced detector data

Spinning neutron stars asymmetric with respect to their rotation axis are potential sources of continuous gravitational waves for ground-based interferometric detectors. In the case of known pulsars a fully coherent search, based on matched filtering, which uses the position and rotational parameters obtained from electromagnetic observations, can be carried out. Matched filtering maximizes the signalto- noise (SNR) ratio, but a large sensitivity loss is expected in case of even a very small mismatch between the assumed and the true signal parameters. For this reason, narrow-band analysis methods have been developed, allowing a fully coherent search for gravitational waves from known pulsars over a fraction of a hertz and several spin-down values. In this paper we describe a narrow-band search of 11 pulsars using data from Advanced LIGO’s first observing run. Although we have found several initial outliers, further studies show no significant evidence for the presence of a gravitational wave signal. Finally, we have placed upper limits on the signal strain amplitude lower than the spin-down limit for 5 of the 11 targets over the bands searched; in the case of J1813-1749 the spin-down limit has been beaten for the first time. For an additional 3 targets, the median upper limit across the search bands is below the spin-down limit. This is the most sensitive narrow-band search for continuous gravitational waves carried out so far

Anxiety and depression in keratotic oral lichen planus: a multicentric study from the SIPMO

Objectives: Oral lichen planus with exclusive keratotic reticular, papular, and/or plaque-like lesions (K-OLP) is a clinical pattern of OLP that may be associated with a complex symptomatology and psychological alteration. The aim of the study was to evaluate the prevalence of anxiety (A) and depression (D) in patients with K-OLP, analyzing the potential predictors which can affect mental health status. Methods: Three hundred K-OLP patients versus 300 healthy controls (HC) were recruited in 15 Italian universities. The Numeric Rating Scale (NRS), Total Pain Rating Index (T-PRI), and Hamilton Rating Scales for Depression and for Anxiety (HAM-D and HAM-A) were administered. Results: The K-OLP patients showed statistically higher scores in the NRS, T-PRI, HAM-D, and HAM-A compared with the HC (p-value < 0.001**). A and D were found in 158 (52.7%) and 148 (49.3%) K-OLP patients. Strong linear correlations were identified between HAM-A, HAM-D, NRS, T-PRI, and employment status and between HAM-D, HAM-A, NRS, T-PRI, employment status, and female gender. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that HAM-D and HAM-A showed the greatest increase in the R2 value for A and D in the K-OLP patients, respectively (DR2 = 55.5% p-value < 0.001**; DR2 = 56.5% p-value < 0.001**). Conclusions: The prevalence of A and D is higher in the K-OLP patients compared with the HC, also found in K-OLP subjects without pain, suggesting that the processing of pain may be in a certain way independent of the processing of mood. Clinical relevance: Mood disorders and pain assessment should be carefully performed in relation to K-OLP to obtain a complete analysis of the patients

Low loss coatings for the VIRGO large mirrors

présentée par L. PinardThe goal of the VIRGO program is to build a giant Michelson type interferometer (3 kilometer long arms) to detect gravitational waves. Large optical components (350 mm in diameter), having extremely low loss at 1064 nm, are needed. Today, the Ion beam Sputtering is the only deposition technique able to produce optical components with such performances. Consequently, a large ion beam sputtering deposition system was built to coat large optics up to 700 mm in diameter. The performances of this coater are described in term of layer uniformity on large scale and optical losses (absorption and scattering characterization). The VIRGO interferometer needs six main mirrors. The first set was ready in June 2002 and its installation is in progress on the VIRGO site (Italy). The optical performances of this first set are discussed. The requirements at 1064 nm are all satisfied. Indeed, the absorption level is close to 1 ppm (part per million), the scattering is lower than 5 ppm and the R.M.S. wavefront of these optics is lower than 8 nm on 150 mm in diameter. Finally, some solutions are proposed to further improve these performances, especially the absorption level (lower than 0.1 ppm) and the mechanical quality factor Q of the mirrors (thermal noise reduction)