Comparison of Distances for Supervised Segmentation of White Matter Tractography

Tractograms are mathematical representations of the main paths of axons within the white matter of the brain, from diffusion MRI data. Such representations are in the form of polylines, called streamlines, and one streamline approximates the common path of tens of thousands of axons. The analysis of tractograms is a task of interest in multiple fields, like neurosurgery and neurology. A basic building block of many pipelines of analysis is the definition of a distance function between streamlines. Multiple distance functions have been proposed in the literature, and different authors use different distances, usually without a specific reason other than invoking the "common practice". To this end, in this work we want to test such common practices, in order to obtain factual reasons for choosing one distance over another. For these reasons, in this work we compare many streamline distance functions available in the literature. We focus on the common task of automatic bundle segmentation and we adopt the recent approach of supervised segmentation from expert-based examples. Using the HCP dataset, we compare several distances obtaining guidelines on the choice of which distance function one should use for supervised bundle segmentation

Commentary - Much ado about something else. Donald Trump, the US stock market, and the public interest ethics of social media communication

Trump’s use of social media during both his presidential campaign and term questions the principle that institutional responsibility in the digital realm implies treating the infosphere as a commons. We discuss the implications for the functioning of the stock market and the emerging public interest ethical issues related to the breakdown of this principle

Mortality of Patients With Candidemia and COVID-19: A Systematic Review With Meta-analysis

Mortality of candidemia in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients has not been deeply studied despite evidence suggesting an increased occurrence. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to summarize the available evidence about these patients' mortality and length of stay. Data about the in-hospital, all-cause and 30-day mortality, and length of stay were pooled. Subgroup analyses were performed to assess sources of heterogeneity. Twenty-six articles out of the 1915 records retrieved during the search were included in this review. The pooled in-hospital mortality was 62.62% (95% CI, 54.77% to 69.86%), while the mortality in intensive care unit (ICU) was 66.77% (95% CI, 57.70% to 74.75%). The pooled median in-hospital length of stay was 30.41 (95% CI, 12.28 to 48.55) days, while the pooled median length of stay in the ICU was 28.28 (95% CI, 20.84 to 35.73) days. The subgroup analyses did not identify the sources of heterogeneity in any of the analyses. Our results showed high mortality in patients with candidemia and COVID-19, suggesting the need to consider screening measures to prevent this life-threatening condition

Exploring Addictive Online Behaviors in Patients with Narcolepsy Type 1

Background: Narcolepsy type 1 (NT1) is a rare neurological sleep disorder caused by the loss of neurons that produce hypocretin—a peptide that plays a crucial role in addictive behaviors. We aimed to compare, for the first time, levels of problematic online gaming, problematic social media use, and compulsive Internet use between NT1 patients and healthy controls (HC), and to evaluate the association between anxiety, depression, and emotion dysregulation with addictive online behaviors in NT1 patients. Methods: A total of 43 patients with NT1 and 86 sex- and age-matched HC participated in an online cross-sectional survey. Results: NT1 patients did not differ from HC in terms of problematic social media use and compulsive Internet use but displayed higher levels of problematic online gaming compared to HC. Higher levels of emotion dysregulation were significantly associated with higher levels of problematic social media use and compulsive Internet use, while none of the tested factors were associated with problematic online gaming. Conclusion: NT1 patients and HC had similar levels of problematic social media use and compulsive Internet use, but NT1 patients showed higher levels of problematic online gaming. Emotion dysregulation might be an intervention target for reducing compulsive Internet use and problematic social media use

Recent transmission clustering of HIV-1 C and CRF17_BF strains characterized by NNRTI-related mutations among newly diagnosed men in central Italy

Increased evidence of relevant HIV-1 epidemic transmission in European countries is being reported, with an increased circulation of non-B-subtypes. Here, we present two recent HIV-1 non-B transmission clusters characterized by NNRTI-related amino-acidic mutations among newly diagnosed HIV-1 infected men, living in Rome (Central-Italy)

Understanding the burden of antibiotic resistance: a decade of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative bacterial infections in Italian intensive care units

IntroductionIn patients admitted to intensive care units (ICUs), Gram-negative bacteria (GNB) infections pose significant challenges due to their contribution to morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, Italy witnessed a rise in healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), with GNBs involved in a substantial proportion of cases. Concerningly, carbapenem-resistant GNBs (CR-GNBs) have increased worldwide, posing therapeutic challenges.MethodsRetrospective multicentre study analysing data from over 299,000 patients admitted to Italian ICUs from 2013 to 2022.ResultsThe study revealed an average of 1.5 infections per patient, with HAIs peaking during the pandemic years. Ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) emerged as the most common HAI, with Klebsiella spp. and Pseudomonas aeruginosa predominating. Alarmingly, CR-GNBs accounted for a significant proportion of infections, particularly in VAP, bloodstream infections, and intra-abdominal infections.DiscussionOur findings underscore the pressing need for enhanced infection control measures, particularly in the ICU setting, to mitigate the rising prevalence of CR-GNBs and their impact on patient outcomes. The study provides valuable insights into the epidemiology of HAIs in Italian ICUs and highlights the challenges posed by CR-GNBs, especially in the context of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, which exacerbated the issue and may serve as a crucial example for the management of future viral pandemics

SIRM-SIN-AIOM: appropriateness criteria for evaluation and prevention of renal damage in the patient undergoing contrast medium examinations-consensus statements from Italian College of Radiology (SIRM), Italian College of Nephrology (SIN) and Italian Association of Medical Oncology (AIOM)

The increasing number of examinations and interventional radiological procedures that require the administration of contrast medium (CM) in patients at risk for advanced age and/or comorbidities highlights the problem of CM-induced renal toxicity. A multidisciplinary group consisting of specialists of different disciplines-radiologists, nephrologists and oncologists, members of the respective Italian Scientific Societies-agreed to draw up this position paper, to assist clinicians increasingly facing the challenges posed by CM-related renal dysfunction in their daily clinical practice.The major risk factor for acute renal failure following CM administration (post-CM AKI) is the preexistence of renal failure, particularly when associated with diabetes, heart failure or cancer.In accordance with the recent guidelines ESUR, the present document reaffirms the importance of renal risk assessment through the evaluation of the renal function (eGFR) measured on serum creatinine and defines the renal risk cutoff when the eGFR is < 30 ml/min/1.73 m2 for procedures with intravenous (i.v.) or intra-arterial (i.a.) administration of CM with renal contact at the second passage (i.e., after CM dilution with the passage into the pulmonary circulation).The cutoff of renal risk is considered an eGFR < 45 ml/min/1.73 m2 in patients undergoing i.a. administration with first-pass renal contact (CM injected directly into the renal arteries or in the arterial district upstream of the renal circulation) or in particularly unstable patients such as those admitted to the ICU.Intravenous hydration using either saline or Na bicarbonate solution before and after CM administration represents the most effective preventive measure in patients at risk of post-CM AKI. In the case of urgency, the infusion of 1.4% sodium bicarbonate pre- and post-CM may be more appropriate than the administration of saline.In cancer patients undergoing computed tomography, pre- and post-CM hydration should be performed when the eGFR is < 30 ml/min/1.73 m2 and it is also advisable to maintain a 5 to 7 days interval with respect to the administration of cisplatin and to wait 14 days before administering zoledronic acid.In patients with more severe renal risk (i.e., with eGFR < 20 ml/min/1.73 m2), particularly if undergoing cardiological interventional procedures, the prevention of post-CM AKI should be implemented through an internal protocol shared between the specialists who treat the patient.In magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using gadolinium CM, there is a lower risk of AKI than with iodinated CM, particularly if doses < 0.1 mmol/kg body weight are used and in patients with eGFR > 30 ml/min/1.73 m2. Dialysis after MRI is indicated only in patients already undergoing chronic dialysis treatment to reduce the potential risk of systemic nephrogenic fibrosis

Sistema Integrato Multicentrico di Indicatori. Rapporto 2005. Provincia di Parma.

The SIMI (Integrated System of Indicators multicenter) Project contributes to the development of an integrated management of informative data streams related to drug addicted persons. This report analyzes the phenomenon of addiction on the territory of the Parma Province through a description of the network services that provide care and rehabilitation of those addicted. Besides the characteristics of users of local services for addictions, has been developed the analysis of the subjects reported to the prefectures for use of illegal drugs and any action taken. Standard methods of estimation were also applied to quantify the proportion of users of substances that do not relate to services and to identify certain characteristics.Il Progetto SIMI (Sistema Integrato Multicentrico di Indicatori) intende contribuire allo sviluppo di una gestione integrata e sinergica dei flussi informativi relativi ai consumatori di sostanze stupefacenti afferenti alle diverse amministrazioni dello Stato. In linea con quanto proposto dall\u27Osservatorio europeo di Lisbona, per la descrizione e analisi del fenomeno connesso all\u27uso/abuso di sostanze, risulta di fondamentale importanza la possibilit? di ottenere informazioni esaustive e comparabili sulle persone che usano e/o abusano di sostanze psicotrope. Il presente rapporto analizza il fenomeno delle dipendenze sul territorio della provincia di Parma attraverso la descrizione della rete dei servizi preposti alla cura e riabilitazione dei soggetti tossicodipendenti. Accanto alle caratteristiche degli utenti dei servizi territoriali per le dipendenze, ? stata sviluppata l\u27analisi dei soggetti segnalati alle Prefetture per uso di sostanze illegali e degli eventuali provvedimenti adottati. Sono state inoltre applicate metodologie standard di stima per quantificare la quota parte di utilizzatori di sostanze che non afferiscono ai servizi e per identificarne alcune caratteristiche