CT pulmonary angiography appropriateness in a single emergency department: does the use of revised Geneva score matter?

Purpose: To assess the percentage of computed tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA) procedures that could have been avoided by methodical application of the Revised Geneva Score (RGS) coupled with age-adjusted D-dimer cut-offs rather than only clinical judgment in Emergency Department patients with suspected pulmonary embolism (PE). Material and methods: Between November 2019 and May 2020, 437 patients with suspected PE based on symptoms and D-dimer test were included in this study. All patients underwent to CTPA. For each patient, we retrospectively calculated the age-adjusted D-dimer cut-offs and the RGS in the original version. Finally, CT images were retrospectively reviewed, and the presence of PE was recorded. Results: In total, 43 (9.84%) CTPA could have been avoided by use of RGS coupled with age-adjusted D-dimer cut-offs. Prevalence of PE was 14.87%. From the analysis of 43 inappropriate CTPA, 24 (55.81%) of patients did not show any thoracic signs, two (4.65%) of patients had PE, and the remaining patients had alternative thoracic findings. Conclusion: The study showed good prevalence of PE diagnoses in our department using only physician assessment, although 9.84% CTPA could have been avoided by methodical application of RGS coupled with age-adjusted D-dimer cut-offs

Safety culture to improve accidental events reporting in radiotherapy

The potential for unintended and adverse radiation exposure in radiotherapy is real and should be studied because radiotherapy is a highly complex, multistep process which requires input from numerous individuals from different areas and steps of the radiotherapy workflow. The 'Incident' (I) is a consequence of which are not negligible from the point of view of protection or safety. A 'near miss' (NM) is defined as an event which is highly likely to happen but did not occur. The purpose of this work is to show that through a systematic reporting and analysis of these adverse events, their occurrence can be reduced

Wind farms, farmland occupation and compensation: Evidences from landowners’ preferences through a stated choice survey in Italy

The willingness to accept the construction of wind farms on private properties is investigated using a latent class model approach. This type of research is required in view of the frequent conflicts between landowners and system operators, who often pay little in easement compensation. This study highlights the fact that the acceptance of wind farms is a multifaceted issue comprising aspects relating to socioeconomics, farm type, territory, and past experience. In particular, the compensation claimed by landowners depends on the property's size, the number of turbines, the crop, the presence of surrounding wind farms, natural impacts, the landscape configuration, land fragmentation, land agreements, the presence of other wind towers on the property, and past experience with system operators concerning transparency and participation in the siting and planning phases. Stakeholders should take these factors into account to develop energy policies based on clear, and well-structured processes concerning the siting, planning, construction, and management of wind farms, in order to prevent conflict and to benefit the community and environment

Adaption actions to cope with climate change: evidences from farmers’ preferences on an agrobiodiversity conservation programme in the Mediterranean area

The paper investigates the attitude of farmers to participate in an on-farm conservation pro-gramme based on the cultivation of vine landraces in Apulia, southern Italy, in place of the current commercial varieties, as adaptation strategy to climate changes. The results, based on choice ex-periments and assessed through a latent class model, highlight a general interest of the regional farmers toward the biodiversity-based adaptation programme for coping with climate change. In particular, three classes of respondents were identified: i) farmers operating on the whole regional territory and willing to cultivate up to 50% of their farm area with up to two landraces and a compensation in line with the aid set by the regional rural programme; ii) winegrowers of the intensive rural areas and willing to cultivate up to 25% of their farm with up to two landraces and a compensation greater than 200% compared to the aid of the regional rural programme; iii) farmers operating in the intermediate rural areas and willing to cultivate up to 50% of their farm with up to three landraces and a compensation greater than 50% compared to the aid of the regional rural programme. Policy makers should calibrate adaption actions depending on rural areas, since economic, social, cultural, behavioural and cognitive barriers, as well as structural characteristics of farms, impact on the farmers’ attitudes toward measures aimed at coping with climate chang

What is the influence of FDI and international people flows on environment and growth in OECD countries? A panel study

Recent years have witnessed an international increase of capital and human flows, this being accelerated by globalization. Several studies show that this phenomenon positively influences growth whilst being detrimental for the environment. This article aims to shed a light on the relationship between environment, growth and international capitalism and human flows. By making use of yearly data in a panel constructed around 36 OECD countries over the timespan 2000–2017, we run Pooled Ordinary Least Squares, Fixed Effects and Random Effects regressions with Driscoll-Kraay standard error correction, as well as the Generalized Method of Moments and the Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares, to obtain both short and long-run relationship. The main results provide evidence supporting the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis in the short-run, while offering some variation in the long-run. The FDI bolster the economic growth by means of no green technologies. The international touristic demand just impacts on the growth, while the migration flows improve the environmental performance both in the short and long-run, implying that international human flows generate positive spill-over in terms of environmental behaviours and growth

Adaption Actions to Cope with Climate Change: Evidence from Farmers’ Preferences on an Agrobiodiversity Conservation Programme in the Mediterranean Area

The paper investigates the attitude of farmers to participate in an on-farm conservation programme based on the cultivation of vine landraces in Apulia, southern Italy, in place of the current commercial varieties, as an adaptation strategy to climate changes. The results, based on choice experiments and assessed through a latent class model, highlight a general interest of the regional farmers toward the biodiversity-based adaptation programme for coping with climate change. In particular, three classes of respondents were identified: (i) farmers operating on the whole regional territory and willing to cultivate up to 50% of their farm area with up to two landraces and compensation in line with the aid set by the regional rural programme; (ii) winegrowers of the intensive rural areas and willing to cultivate up to 25% of their farm with up to two landraces and a compensation greater than 200% compared to the aid of the regional rural programme; (iii) farmers operating in the intermediate rural areas and willing to cultivate up to 50% of their farm with up to three landraces and a compensation greater than 50% compared to the aid of the regional rural programme. Policymakers should calibrate adaption actions depending on rural areas, since economic, social, cultural, behavioural and cognitive barriers, as well as structural characteristics of farms, impact the farmers’ attitudes toward measures aimed at coping with climate change

All trans retinoic acid depresses the content and activity of the mitochondrial ATP synthase in human keratinocytes

Proteomic analysis shows that treatment of keratinocytes cultures with all trans retinoic acid (ATRA), under condition in which it inhibits cell growth, results in marked decrease of the level of the F1-β subunit of the catalytic sector of the mitochondrial FoF1 ATP synthase complex. Enzymatic analysis shows in ATRA-treated keratinocytes a consistent depression of the ATPase activity, with decreased olygomycin sensitivity, indicating an overall alteration of the ATP synthase complex. These findings, together with the previously reported inhibition of respiratory complex I, show that depression of the activity of oxidative phosphorylation enzymes is involved in the cell growth inhibitory action of ATRA

The conservation of cultural heritage in rural areas: Stakeholder preferences regarding historical rural buildings in Apulia, southern Italy

Rural cultural heritage deserves preservation for local communities and future generations. One important component of this heritage consists of historical rural buildings, which are repositories of ancient cultures, knowledge and lifestyles. However, in recent decades many have been abandoned by their owners, and are now in danger of disappearing completely. In order to help policy makers in identifying suitable conservation strategies, this study intends to investigate the attitude of different categories of stakeholders (owners and the community) to collaborative approaches for the conservation of the most representative type of historical rural building in Apulia, southern Italy, i.e. the masseria. The results of the survey regarding owners’ preferences highlight that masserias in intensive and underdeveloped rural areas are seriously threatened either by oblivion or by restoration work that may actually damage these structures. On the other hand, intermediate rural areas have the best conditions for the long-term sustainable preservation of masserias. In addition, the community has a general interest in the conservation of these structures and in their use. Furthermore, tourism operators are willing to create joint ventures with masseria owners to ensure successful conservation and management strategie

Latent relationships between environmental impacts of cultivation practices and land market: Evidences from a spatial quantile regression analysis in Italy

Several economic approaches can be carried out for managing the environmental impacts in agriculture, i.e. property and bargaining rights, economic incentives, ecological fees, etc. These approaches can be mainly applied to the cultivation phase or to the markets of the agricultural commodities. However, a further ambit in which the regulatory systems could be useful to trigger sustainable cultivation practices is the farmland market. Hence, this study contributes to the setting of market mechanisms based on incentives or fees related to the environmental impacts of farming practices for reducing the pressures of the production processes on the environmental components. The study, through a hedonic pricing method based on a spatial quantile regression and integrated by an environmental analysis, highlights different trends of land value determinants along the quantiles of the selling prices as the intensity of the cultivation system varies. The results show that the most important value determinants of the vineyards cultivated through the semi-extensive production system are related to the quality of grapes. Conversely, in presence of the intensive production system, the most important value determinants are related to the high yields, which also generate high greenhouse gas emissions, in contrast with the “polluter pays” principle. The results allow the assessment of the implicit marginal prices concerning the impact of the environmental indicator on land value per cultivation system, so as to favour the setting of regulatory monetary strategies able to foster farmers towards cleaner agricultural practices

Activation of protein phosphatase 2A is responsible for increased content and inactivation of respiratory chain complex i induced by all-trans retinoic acid in human keratinocytes

This study presents the effect of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) on cell growth and respiratory chain complex I in human keratinocyte cultures. Keratinocyte treatment results in increased level of GRIM-19 and other subunits of complex I, in particular of their carbonylated forms, associated with inhibition of its enzymatic activity. The results show that in keratinocytes ATRA-promoted phosphatase activity controls the proteostasis and activity of complex I