Natural vs. Anthropic influence on the multidecadal shoreline changes of mediterranean urban beaches: Lessons from the Gulf of Cagliari (Sardinia)

Urban Mediterranean beaches are often characterized by a fragile and unstable equilibrium that can be easily altered by ongoing climate change and by the increase in human pressure. This may pose serious threats to the survival of beach systems that cannot accommodate these modifications. In this paper, the spatio-temporal shift of the shoreline was investigated along two urban beaches in the Gulf of Cagliari (Poetto and Giorgino; southern Sardinia, western Mediterranean Sea) across a time frame of 62 years (1954–2016). The Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) ArcGIS™ extension was used to extract different statistical parameters which allowed us to quantify the erosion and accretion rates. These data were further examined in relation to a number of anthropic and natural forcings in order to disentangle the factors controlling shoreline evolution. Eight sectors with interchanging net erosive and accretion trends were identified along the Poetto and Giorgino beaches. In six decades, some sectors of the two study sites appeared to have undergone great shoreline modification as a result of the intense anthropogenic activities impacting these coastal areas. The westernmost portions of both beaches were found to be the most vulnerable to erosion processes; such conditions were likely controlled by the interplaying of local hydrodynamics and by the intense coastal development which affected these sectors. The highest retreat rates (mean end point rate (EPR) = −0.51/year) were recorded in the western limit of Giorgino beach. Along the western limit of Poetto beach, EPR erosion rates (mean EPR = −2.92/year) considerably increased in the years after the artificial beach nourishment carried out in 2002, suggesting that the majority of the nourished material was lost offshore or partly redistributed along the beach. Coastal structures, urban development, river catchment modification, industrial and port activities, beach cleaning and touristic and recreational activities have been identified as the ongoing causes of coastal alteration. If these factors remain constant, under projected climate change scenarios, these beaches are at risk of further increased flooding and erosion. In this context, the application of DSAS appeared as an essential tool, supporting a monitoring system able to provide understanding and, potentially, predictions of the short-to long-term evolution of these beach systems

The added value of whole-body magnetic resonance imaging in the management of patients with advanced breast cancer

This study investigates the impact of whole-body MRI (WB-MRI) in addition to CT of chest-abdomen-pelvis (CT-CAP) and 18F-FDG PET/CT (PET/CT) on systemic treatment decisions in standard clinical practice for patients with advanced breast cancer (ABC). WB-MRI examinations in ABC patients were extracted from our WB-MRI registry (2009-2017). Patients under systemic treatment who underwent WB-MRI and a control examination (CT-CAP or PET/CT) were included. Data regarding progressive disease (PD) reported either on WB-MRI or on the control examinations were collected. Data regarding eventual change in treatment after the imaging evaluation were collected. It was finally evaluated whether the detection of PD by any of the two modalities had induced a change in treatment. Among 910 WB-MRI examinations in ABC patients, 58 had a paired control examination (16 CT-CAP and 42 PET/CT) and were analysed. In 23/58 paired examinations, additional sites of disease were reported only on WB-MRI and not on the control examination. In 17/28 paired examinations, PD was reported only on WB-MRI and not on the control examination. In 14 out of the 28 pairs of examinations that were followed by a change in treatment, PD had been reported only on WBMRI (14/28; 50%), while stable disease had been reported on the control examination

A multi-element psychosocial intervention for early psychosis (GET UP PIANO TRIAL) conducted in a catchment area of 10 million inhabitants: study protocol for a pragmatic cluster randomized controlled trial

Multi-element interventions for first-episode psychosis (FEP) are promising, but have mostly been conducted in non-epidemiologically representative samples, thereby raising the risk of underestimating the complexities involved in treating FEP in 'real-world' services

CORRELATION WITH 3H-MPP+ BINDING-SITES BY DEBRISOQUIN AND SOME ANALOGS IN MOUSE-BRAIN

No abstract availabl

Horizontal Runup and Seagrass Beach Cast-litters: Modelling and Observations

Passarella, M.; Ruju, A.; De Muro, S., and Coco, G., 2020. Horizontal runup and seagrass beach cast-litters: Modelling and observations. In: Malvárez, G. and Navas, F. (eds.), Global Coastal Issues of 2020. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 95, pp. 143-147. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. We collected measurements of wave-driven swash on a beach characterized by the presence and accumulation of seagrass beach-cast litter (the so-called banquette). Beach surveys showed that this deposit can drastically steepen the foreshore thus affecting wave dynamics. This work explores the relationship between vertical and horizontal swash time series, in a previously unreported case of seagrass wrack deposits under mild to moderate incoming waves. The results from the field measurements, obtained by video imagery time stack analysis, show that the seagrass deposits influence wave runup. The horizontal runup extent can be reduced when compared with a nearby seagrassfree profile under the same incoming waves. The horizontal runup in case of seagrass presence seems to be approximately one-third of the seagrass absence case. The ratio between observed vertical and horizontal swash, when seagrass deposits are present, is almost 3.5 times the seagrassfree case. The SWASH model was used to extend the analysis beyond our field observations. A number of possible wave forcing scenarios were run on both the seagrass-rich and the seagrass-free profiles. Differences between the cases of seagrass presence and absence show that the horizontal wave runup in case of seagrass deposition can be largely reduced. Using observations and modelling, we show that the seagrass deposits on the beach face and berm inhibit the horizontal runup and so affect one of the key components necessary to predict coastal inundation and to manage coastal areas especially considering ongoing changes in the mean sea level

What Happens to a Mediterranean Microtidal Wave-dominated Beach during Significant Storm Events? the Morphological Response of a Natural Sardinian Beach (Western Mediterranean)

The short-term effects of storm events on the coastline morphology of natural, microtidal, wave dominated beaches located in the western Mediterranean are still poorly documented. Since one of the most visible consequences of a warming climate is an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather conditions, it appears important to know the response of natural and urban beaches to these storm events. The spatial shoreline variability of a natural Sardinian beach was assessed in our study, based on video camera monitoring data from August 2013 to August 2015 along a 0.3 km stretch of sandy beach. This methodology has been applied in the SW coastal sector of Sardinia where severe storm events mainly related to southwesterly winds (about 50 km/h on average) can induce important morphological changes. These include shoreline retreat/progradation, erosion, beach rotation, reconfiguration of nearshore bars and the deposition of significant seagrass beach-cast litters. Our study showed an erosion and a consequent accretion of the studied beach of about 20 m in two days after the event (SW wind and waves) as a result of the deposition of the Posidonia oceanica beach-cast litter. This morphological response induced by storm events is crucial for coastal managers to plan beach management (for example beach cleaning practice), to prevent coastal risk and to understand the importance of seagrass berm deposition in the formation of natural Mediterranean beaches

Assessing the role of reed and seagrass wracks in coastal protection. An example with numerical modelling integrated with videomonitoring system data in a southern Sardinia beach

This work aims to assess the role played by a beach berm, reinforced by the accumulation of reed and seagrass wracks, on coastal protection against storm-induced floodings. A huge depositional event, mostly consisting of Arundo donax reeds from nearby river systems and Posidonia oceanica wracks, happened in December 2019 in Poetto beach (southern Sardinia, western Mediterranean). Following the concerns that this event raised among local tourism service providers, the municipal authorities decided to remove the reed wracks. In support of coastal management, a scientific inquiry was commissioned to the Coastal and Marine Geomorphology Group (CMGG), belonging to the Department of Chemical and Geological Sciences of the University of Cagliari (Italy) for the assessment of the berm processes before the removal of the reed wracks. Within the five months between the reed deposition and removal, a video monitoring system collected runup and flooding data during storm wave conditions. These data were integrated by five topographic, three bathymetric and two drone surveys. The presence of the reeds intertwined with seagrass wracks, seems to strengthen the berm, making it more resilient to wave action, eventually offering additional protection against overwash and flooding. These results are supported by a numerical model chain, with the nesting of a phase-resolving model into a phase-averaged model, providing a characterization of wave runup dynamics

Spectrum of Pregnancy Related Renal Cortical Necrosis: A Study From Western India

Background: Pregnancy complicated by acute kidney injury is associated with higher morbidity and mortality in developing countries. The occurrence of renal cortical necrosis (RCN) in pregnancy related acute kidney injury may lead to grave renal prognosis. Objectives: This study is to analyse the risk factors that lead to acute cortical necrosis in all cases of pregnancy related acute kidney injury presenting in a tertiary care institute in Western India from January 2021 to July 2021, and assess the renal outcomes. Materials and Methods: Patients with pregnancy related acute kidney injury suspected to have a clinical profile of acute cortical necrosis, were subjected to histopathological and/or radiological examination for confirmed diagnosis. 4 patients were included in this case series. The etiology of the cases leading to cortical necrosis were analysed. Their prognosis was studied in terms of patient and renal outcomes for a period of 3 months postpartum. Results: The patients median age was 31 years. The most common aetiology was postpartum haemorrhage seen in 3 cases. The presence of postpartum thrombotic microangiopathy seen in one case is an important cause of RCN. Three of our four patients (75%) showed diffuse cortical necrosis. All needed renal replacement therapy at presentation. Two patients (50%) showed partial recovery of renal functions and became dialysis independent at 3 months postpartum.Conclusions: This study emphasises the need for early diagnosis and timely institution of appropriate management in cases of obstetric AKI with renal cortical necrosis to curtail the morbidity and mortality in young women