ADHD prevalence estimates in Italian children and adolescents: A methodological issue

Abstract Background Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is recognized as the most common, and most studied, developmental age disorder. Basic information, such as the most appropriate case definition and the best way to evaluate the disorder’s prevalence rate, however, remains an open issue. Methods A comprehensive meta-analysis on the epidemiology of ADHD in Italy, which was lacking from the literature, was therefore performed to attempt to estimate the actual prevalence rate of ADHD, highlighting conceptual and quantitative differences between clinical-diagnosis and survey-based symptoms studies. The Medline, Embase, and PsycINFO databases, and the grey literature, were searched up to January 2018. The review was laid out in three main sections: an overall prevalence estimate, an epidemiological profile of ADHD symptoms, and an attempt to define the actual rate of ADHD diagnosis, as emerged from Italian studies. Results A total of 15 unique studies were included. These contributed to estimating the prevalence of ADHD in 67,838 subjects aged 5–17, representing 9 of the 20 regions (45%) of Italy. Overall, the pooled prevalence of ADHD was 2.9% (range: 1.1–16.7%). When distinguishing studies based on case definition, however, we found an average prevalence estimate, based on symptoms criteria, of 5.9% (range: 1.4 to 16.7%) and a best-estimate prevalence rate of 1.4% (range: 1.1 to 3.1%). Conclusions Following the case definition for epidemiological studies of ADHD, counting only subjects with an ADHD diagnosis performed and confirmed by clinical assessment would reduce the wide variability in prevalence estimates, and, above all, would both describe the real rate of subjects suffering from ADHD disorder and avoid misdiagnosis

Psychiatric comorbidities in asperger syndrome and high functioning autism: diagnostic challenges.

RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are.Several psychiatric conditions, both internalizing and externalizing, have been documented in comorbidity with Asperger Syndrome (AS) and High Functioning Autism (HFA). In this review we examine the interplay between psychiatric comorbidities and AS/HFA. In particular, we will focus our attention on three main issues. First, we examine which psychiatric disorders are more frequently associated with AS/HFA. Second, we review which diagnostic tools are currently available for clinicians to investigate and diagnose the associated psychiatric disorders in individuals with AS/HFA. Third, we discuss the challenges that clinicians and researchers face in trying to determine whether the psychiatric symptoms are phenotypic manifestations of AS/HFA or rather they are the expression of a distinct, though comorbid, disorder. We will also consider the role played by the environment in the manifestation and interpretation of these symptoms. Finally, we will propose some strategies to try to address these issues, and we will discuss therapeutic implications

Development of a shared vision for flexible inter-institutional professional development using the OOFAT model

peer-reviewedGiven the increasing pressure higher education institutions are facing, collaboration is key to increase capacity to address competing demands. The professional development (PD) of academic staff has been identified as one of the key priority areas in the modernisation of Higher Education to support them to cope with growing numbers, more diverse student groups and a dynamic environment. There is a need for a flexible approach to PD that leverages from formal and informal approaches to allow academic staff to upskill while practicing. Many Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) are collaborating in this area to exchange best practice and increase the PD activities they offer to their staff. However, each HEI has different strategies, cultures and institutional needs. To allow them to collaborate they need to develop a shared vision in the area of PD. This paper discusses the FLEXIpath project in which three HEIs are collaborating to extend their PD provision to enhance academic practice. It explores the role of a visual modelling approach, (specifically the OOFAT model), in facilitating the development of a shared roadmap for the provision of collaborative PD through negotiation and scaffolded discussion

Hydrides as high capacity anodes in lithium cells: an Italian “Futuro in Ricerca di Base FIRB-2010” project

Automotive and stationary energy storage are among the most recently-proposed and still unfulfilled applications for lithium ion devices. Higher energy, power and superior safety standards, well beyond the present state of the art, are actually required to extend the Li-ion battery market to these challenging fields, but such a goal can only be achieved by the development of new materials with improved performances. Focusing on the negative electrode materials, alloying and conversion chemistries have been widely explored in the last decade to circumvent the main weakness of the intercalation processes: the limitation in capacity to one or at most two lithium atoms per host formula unit. Among all of the many proposed conversion chemistries, hydrides have been proposed and investigated since 2008. In lithium cells, these materials undergo a conversion reaction that gives metallic nanoparticles surrounded by an amorphous matrix of LiH. Among all of the reported conversion materials, hydrides have outstanding theoretical properties and have been only marginally explored, thus making this class of materials an interesting playground for both fundamental and applied research. In this review, we illustrate the most relevant results achieved in the frame of the Italian National Research Project FIRB 2010 Futuro in Ricerca “Hydrides as high capacity anodes in lithium cells” and possible future perspectives of research for this class of materials in electrochemical energy storage devices

Geometry Diagnostics of a Stellar Flare from Fluorescent X-rays

We present evidence of Fe fluorescent emission in the Chandra HETGS spectrum of the single G-type giant HR 9024 during a large flare. In analogy to solar X-ray observations, we interpret the observed Fe K$\alpha$ line as being produced by illumination of the photosphere by ionizing coronal X-rays, in which case, for a given Fe photospheric abundance, its intensity depends on the height of the X-ray source. The HETGS observations, together with 3D Monte Carlo calculations to model the fluorescence emission, are used to obtain a direct geometric constraint on the scale height of the flaring coronal plasma. We compute the Fe fluorescent emission induced by the emission of a single flaring coronal loop which well reproduces the observed X-ray temporal and spectral properties according to a detailed hydrodynamic modeling. The predicted Fe fluorescent emission is in good agreement with the observed value within observational uncertainties, pointing to a scale height $\lesssim 0.3$\rstar. Comparison of the HR 9024 flare with that recently observed on II Peg by Swift indicates the latter is consistent with excitation by X-ray photoionization.Comment: accepted for publication on the Astrophysical Journal Letter

Ticks and associated pathogens collected from cats in Sicily and Calabria (Italy)

Limited information is available about the species of ticks infesting the cat and the pathogens that they harbor. The aims of the present study were to identify the species of ticks removed from cats living in Sicily and Calabria (Italy) and to detect DNA of vector-borne pathogens in the same ticks. Morphological identification of 132 adult ticks collected throughout the year from cats was carried out. Real-time PCRs for Hepatozoon felis, Piroplasmid, Ehrlichia/Anaplasma spp., Rickettsia spp., Bartonella spp., Mycoplasma spp. and Leishmania infantum were performed from each individual tick. Ticks belonging to Rhipicephalus (R. sanguineus sensu lato, R. pusillus) and Ixodes (I. ricinus, I. ventalloi) genera were identified. Ixodes ventalloi was the most frequently found tick species (47 %). The positivity rate to at least one pathogen was 14.4 % (19/132 ticks). Leishmania infantum, Rickettsia spp. (R. monacensis and R. helvetica), Bartonella spp. (B. clarridgeiae), Piroplasmid (Babesia vogeli), and Ehrlichia/Anaplasma spp. (E. canis) DNAs were amplified in 8.3, 5.3, 1.5, 0.75 and 0.75 % of ticks, respectively. Hepatozoon felis, Anaplasma spp. and hemotropic Mycoplasma spp. DNAs were not detected. Four (21.1 %) out of nineteen positive ticks were co-infected. This study provides novel data about ticks infesting cats and the DNA of pathogens that they harbor. In Southern Italy, anti-tick prophylaxis should be implemented throughout the year in cats without neglecting winter time

Lightweight Borohydrides Electro-Activity in Lithium Cells

As a substitute for graphite, the negative electrode material commonly used in Li-ion batteries, hydrides have the theoretical potential to overcome performance limits of the current state-of-the-art Li-ion cells. Hydrides can operate through a conversion process proved for some interstitial hydrides like MgH2: MxAy + n Li = x M + y LimA, where m = n/y. Even if far from optimization, outstanding performances were observed, drawing the attention to the whole hydride family. Looking for high capacity systems, lightweight complex metal hydrides, such as borohydrides, deserve consideration. Capacities in the order of 2000–4000 mAh/g can be theoretically expected thanks to the very low formula unit weight. Although the potential technological impact of these materials can lead to major breakthroughs in Li-ion batteries, this new research field requires the tackling of fundamental issues that are completely unexplored. Here, our recent findings on the incorporation of borohydrides are presented and discusse

Compliant gluten-free children with celiac disease: an evaluation of psychological distress

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Children with chronic illnesses are known to have increased risks for emotional and behavioral problems. In the present study, children and adolescent suffering from celiac disease (CD) were compared with healthy controls to assess differences in the psychological profile.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A total of 100 well-treated and compliant CD patients (65 females/35 males; age mean ± SD: 10.38 ± 2.71) were compared to 100 normal controls (58 females/42 males; age mean ± SD: 11.47 ± 2.61). Emotional and behavioral problems were assessed by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children (MASC).</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Subjects with CD self-reported an increased rate of anxiety and depression symptoms and showed higher scores in "harm avoidance" and "somatic complaints", in the CBCL parent-report questionnaire, as compared to healthy control subjects. Furthermore, gender differences could be observed in the group of CD patients, with males displaying significantly higher CBCL externalizing scores, in social, thought and attention problems, as compared to female, who in turns showed more prominent internalizing symptoms such as depression.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The increased rate of emotional and behavioral problems in children and adolescent with CD emphasizes the importance of an early detection of mental health problems in these children.</p

The Regional Earth System Model RegCM‐ES: Evaluation of the Mediterranean Climate and Marine Biogeochemistry

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Metals uptake by Sagittaria montevidensis in contaminated riparian Area of Matanza-Riachuelo river (Argentina)

The objective of this study was to evaluate the accumulation and uptake of Cr, Zn, Cu, Ni and Pb in Sagittaria montevidensis growing in highly contaminated riparian soils of Matanza Riachuelo Basin (MRB). It is a native and very abundant riparian plant exposed to heavy metal contamination. Samples of S. montevidensis, rhizosphere riparian soil and water were collected at three sites in the lower MR basin. The accumulation and the level of translocation of Cr, Zn, Cu, Ni and Pb in this species were determined. The soils were found to be the main reservoirs of metals (2225 mg Cr kg−1 d.w., 367 mg Cu kg−1 d.w., 61 mg Ni kg−1 d.w., 239 mg Pb kg−1 d.w., and 1495 mg Zn kg−1 d.w.). All studied metals were uptaken, but Zn and Cu were the most accumulated metals (426 ± 28 mg kg−1 d.w. and 129 ± 28 mg kg−1 d.w., respectively). S. montevidensis was an accumulator species for Cu and Ni (Translocation Factor (TF) > 1) and it showed an exclusionary behavior (TF < 1) for Cr, Pb, and Zn. Cu was mostly accumulated in the aerial biomass. The rest of the metals analyzed were mainly accumulated in the roots. The analyzed plant specimens did not show signs of stress, having completed their phenological states. This native species shows high tolerance of metals. Then the preservation and revegetation of this species in the riparian areas constitute a sustainable alternative for ecological restoration.Fil: Gomez, Barbara Marion. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; ArgentinaFil: Reale, Marisol. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; ArgentinaFil: El Kassisse, Yanina. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; ArgentinaFil: Mujica, Carolina. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; ArgentinaFil: Gómez, Carlos. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; ArgentinaFil: de Cabo, Laura Isabel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia"; ArgentinaFil: Rodríguez Salemi, Valeria. Provincia de Mendoza. Ministerio de Infraestructura y Vivienda. Secretaria de Obras Publicas. Instituto Nacional del Agua; Argentin