Sudden olfactory loss as an early marker of COVID-19: a nationwide Italian survey

Purpose: The presence of many asymptomatic COVID-19 cases may increase the risks of disease dissemination, mainly for physicians. There are numerous reports on the frequent findings of sudden anosmia or hyposmia, before or at the same time of the typical COVID-19 symptoms onset. The aim of this study was to verify the association of olfactory impairment and COVID-19, providing a basis for subsequent research in the field of COVID-19 clinical heterogeneity. Methods: We developed a 15-item online questionnaire on “Sudden Olfactory Loss (SOL) and COVID-19” that was administered during March 2020 to Italian general practitioners registered to a social media group. Results: One hundred and eighty responses were received. SOL was identified as a significant sign of infection in COVID-19 patients, mainly aged between 30 and 40 years, even in the absence of other symptoms. SOL was present as an initial symptom in 46.7% of subjects, and in 16.7%, it was the only symptom. Among the COVID-19 confirmed cases, SOL occurred as the only symptom in 19.2% of patients. Conclusion: SOL could represent a possible early symptom in otherwise asymptomatic COVID-19 subjects. Subjects affected by SOL should be considered as potential COVID-19 cases. Level of evidence: 4

A structural analysis in seismic archaeology: the walls of Noto and the 1693 earthquake

A crucial problenl for seismic archeology is how to recognize seismic effects and how to date them. On an experimental basis. we proposed that the problem be reversed, and that we begin at the other end: i.e. by analyzing already known seismic effects on ancient structures, testified by written sources. to be able to .calibrate>> the types or possible observations and any subsequent elaborations. The choice of the walls of Noto was suggested by the fact that Noto was abandoned following the earthquake of l693 (I,= XI MCS. Me 7.5) which had already been studied in depth as part of an ING research programme (1988-92). Moreover, just after recent research, this event proved to be reconstructed with a high quality standard. Photogrammetric measurements were made on several parts of the town walls to plot a numerical model aimed at ascertaining specific aspects of the earthquake damage. An estimate of the ground acceleration during the earthquake has been attempted via non-linear finite-element analyses of a building located by the main city gate. The analyses show that. in order to obtain the building vault collapse, a ground acceleration of 0.5 to 0.7 g had to be reached during the earthquake. This result, typical of a strong earthquake such as the one of 1693, proves that an approach based on finite element analysis and a sound engineering judgment Inay be systematically applied to historical earthquake sites to obtain some estimates of ground acceleration in historical earthquakes. On the whole, this work aimed at starting up the second development phase of the great event of 1693 of which the macroseismic erfects are known. In the meantime, some possibilities of tackling structural analyses in seismic archaeology are being explored

A structural analysis in seismic archaeology: the walls of Noto and the 1693 earthquake

A crucial problenl for seismic archeology is how to recognize seismic effects and how to date them. On an experimental basis. we proposed that the problem be reversed, and that we begin at the other end: i.e. by analyzing already known seismic effects on ancient structures, testified by written sources. to be able to .calibrate>> the types or possible observations and any subsequent elaborations. The choice of the walls of Noto was suggested by the fact that Noto was abandoned following the earthquake of l693 (I,= XI MCS. Me 7.5) which had already been studied in depth as part of an ING research programme (1988-92). Moreover, just after recent research, this event proved to be reconstructed with a high quality standard. Photogrammetric measurements were made on several parts of the town walls to plot a numerical model aimed at ascertaining specific aspects of the earthquake damage. An estimate of the ground acceleration during the earthquake has been attempted via non-linear finite-element analyses of a building located by the main city gate. The analyses show that. in order to obtain the building vault collapse, a ground acceleration of 0.5 to 0.7 g had to be reached during the earthquake. This result, typical of a strong earthquake such as the one of 1693, proves that an approach based on finite element analysis and a sound engineering judgment Inay be systematically applied to historical earthquake sites to obtain some estimates of ground acceleration in historical earthquakes. On the whole, this work aimed at starting up the second development phase of the great event of 1693 of which the macroseismic erfects are known. In the meantime, some possibilities of tackling structural analyses in seismic archaeology are being explored

Marginal adaptation of new bulk fill composites: Microscopical evaluation

Aim of this study was to investigate the cavity margin adaptation of three composites using optical microscope and software evaluations

Stochastic Robustness of Delayed Discrete Noises for Delay Differential Equations

Stochastic robustness of discrete noises has already been proposed and studied in the previous work. Nevertheless, the significant phenomenon of delays is left in the basket both in the deterministic and the stochastic parts of the considered equation by the existing work. Stimulated by the above, this paper is devoted to studying the stochastic robustness issue of delayed discrete noises for delay differential equations, including the issues of robust stability and robust boundedness