Flight flexibility in strategic traffic planning: visualisation and mitigation use case

The concept of strategic traffic planning that takes into account changing airspace configurations, their capacity, and allows the quantification of flight flexibility is presented in this paper: the visualization of the results and an example of possible use. The concept is implemented through two deterministic optimization models. Here, we focus on the output of the models, which identifies the departure times, trajectories, flight flexibility and the list of saturated sector-hours throughout the day, based on the configurations used during the day. In order to make the output understandable to various stakeholders, we use a visualization tool and a set of performance indicators. The information on the saturated sectors, and their impact on flexibility (criticality index) is taken as an input in the example of mitigation action application by Air Navigation Service Providers, aimed at improving the situation. A mitigation strategy of increasing capacity of saturated airspace is implemented, and results show that the improvements in flexibility can be achieved

The mediation of care and overprotection between parent-adolescent conflicts and adolescents’ psychological difficulties during the pandemic: which role for fathers?

Background: There is evidence of a significant raise in youths’ emotional and behavioral difficulties during the pandemic. Only a few studies have addressed parent-adolescent conflict, and none investigated the possible mediating effect of parenting in the association between conflicts with parents and adolescents’ symptoms. This study aimed at investigating youths’ psychological symptoms during the pandemic, focusing on the predicting effect of parent-adolescent conflict. The mediating role of care and overprotection was also explored, considering whether adolescent gender moderated this mediation. Methods: 195 adolescents aged 14–18 years participated in an online longitudinal study. Perceived conflict with parents and parenting dimensions (Parental Bonding Instrument; PBI) were assessed at baseline (2021). Self-reported psychological difficulties (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire; SDQ) were collected at baseline and after one year (2022). Results: A significantly severer symptomatology was found in adolescents having a conflictual relationship with one or both parents. Major conflicts with parents correlated with lower care and greater overprotection in mothers and fathers. However, parental overprotection and maternal care were not mediators of the relationship between conflict and youths' difficulties. The only exception was represented by paternal care that fully mediated this relationship in both adolescent males and females. Conclusions: Although further investigations are needed to overcome limitations due to the small sample, findings extend our insight into the impact of parent-adolescent conflict, highlighting the role of fathers’ care and the need to maximize their involvement in clinical interventions

Parental Internalizing Psychopathology and PTSD in Offspring after the 2012 Earthquake in Italy.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is common in youths after earthquakes, with parental psychopathology among the most significant predictors. This study investigated the contribution and the interactional effects of parental internalizing psychopathology, the severity of exposure to the earthquake, and past traumatic events to predict PTSD in offspring, also testing the reverse pattern. Two years after the 2012 earthquake in Italy, 843 children and adolescents (9\u201315 years) living in two differently affected areas were administered a questionnaire on traumatic exposure and the UCLA PTSD Reaction Index. Anxiety, depression, and somatization were assessed in 1162 parents through the SCL-90-R. General linear model showed that, for offspring in the high-impact area, predictors of PTSD were earthquake exposure, past trauma, and parental internalizing symptoms, taken individually. An interaction between earthquake exposure and parental depression or anxiety (not somatization) was also found. In the low-impact area, youth PTSD was only predicted by earthquake exposure. The reverse pattern was significant, with parental psychopathology explained by offspring PTSD. Overall, findings support the association between parental and offspring psychopathology after natural disasters, emphasizing the importance of environmental factors in this relationship. Although further research is needed, these results should be carefully considered when developing mental health interventions

Towards specific T–H relationships: FRIBAS database for better characterization of RC and URM buildings

FRIBAS database is an open access database composed of the characteristics of 312 buildings (71 masonry, 237 reinforced concrete and 4 mixed types). It collects and harmonizes data from different surveys performed on buildings in the Basilicata and Friuli Venezia Giulia regions (Southern and Northeastern Italy, respectively). Each building is defined by 37 parameters related to the building and foundation soil characteristics. The building and soil fundamental periods were experimentally estimated based on ambient noise measurements. FRIBAS gave us the opportunity to study the influence of the main characteristics of buildings and the soil-building interaction effect to their structural response. In this study, we have used the FRIBAS dataset to investigate how the building period varies as a function of construction materials and soil types. Our results motivate the need of going beyond a 'one-fits-all' numerical period-height (T-H) relationship for generic building typologies provided by seismic codes, towards specific T-H relationships that account for both soil and building typologies

Knotless PEEK and double-loaded biodegradable suture anchors ensure comparable clinical outcomes in the arthroscopic treatment of traumatic anterior shoulder instability: a prospective randomized study

Purpose: To compare the clinical outcome of arthroscopic capsulolabral repair for traumatic anterior shoulder instability with PEEK knotless and knotted biodegradable suture anchors. Methods: Arthroscopic stabilization was performed in 78 patients with recurrent traumatic anterior shoulder instability. They were divided into 2 groups of 39 patients each, according to suture anchors used: knotless PEEK anchors in group 1, and biodegradable anchors in group 2. Exclusion criteria were: instability without dislocation, posterior or multidirectional instability, glenoid bone loss > 20%, off-track lesions, concomitant rotator cuff tears and previous surgery. The primary outcome was the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) self-administered questionnaire. Secondary outcomes were: Work-DASH, Sport-DASH, Rowe score, recurrent instability and subsequent surgery. The following independent variables were considered: age, gender, dominance, generalized ligamentous hyperlaxity, duration of symptoms, age at first dislocation, number of dislocations, type of work, type of sport, sports activity level, capsule-labral injury pattern, SLAP lesion and number of anchors. Differences between groups for numerical variables were analyzed by use of the Student’s t-test or Mann–Whitney U-test. Fisher’s exact test was used for analysis of categorical variables. Significance was set at p < 0.05. Results: Seven patients (9%) were lost at follow-up, 5 from group 1 and 2 from group 2. Follow-up ranged from 36 to 60 months (median: 44; IQR: 13). Comparison between groups did not show significant differences for each independent variable considered. No differences could be found either for DASH (n.s.) or Rowe (p = n.s.) scores between the two groups. Overall recurrence rate was 7%. Three re-dislocations were reported in group 1 and two in group 2 (n.s.). Only one patient in each group underwent re-operation. Conclusions: The study showed no significant differences in clinical outcomes after arthroscopic treatment of traumatic anterior shoulder instability using PEEK knotless or biodegradable knotted anchors at mid-term follow-up. Level of evidence: I

The health impact of hazardous waste landfills and illegal dumps contaminated sites: An epidemiological study at ecological level in Italian Region

Background and aim: The implementation of idoneous management of hazardous waste, in contrast to illegal practices, is one of the environment and health priorities of the WHO. The aim of the present study, based on a collaborative agreement between the Italian National Health Institute and a Prosecution Office located in Naples North, was to evaluate the health effects of illegal landfills and burning of urban and hazardous waste in the territory of the Prosecution Office. Methods: The municipalities included in the study territory were investigated with respect to the regional population. Regression analyses were performed in the study area between four classes of an environmental municipal indicator of waste risk (MRI) previously defined, computing the relative risks (RRs) in 2–4 MRI classes, with respect to the first MRI class (the least impacted). The prevalence of reproductive outcomes and cause-specific mortality and hospitalization were analyzed in the general population and in the 0–19-year-old population using SAS software. Results: An increase of mortality and hospitalization risk in both the genders of the whole area, with respect to regional population, were found for overall all cancer cases, cancer of the stomach, the liver, the lung and the kidney, and ischemic heart diseases. An increase of mortality for leukemias in the 0-19-year-old population and in hospitalization risk for certain conditions originating in the perinatal period were observed. Correlation between MRI and the risk of mortality from breast tumors in women (MRI class 2: RR = 1.06; MRI class 3: RR = 1.15; MRI class 4: RR = 1.11) and between MRI and the risk of hospitalization from testis tumors (MRI class 2: RR = 1.25; MRI class 3: RR = 1.31; MRI class 4: RR = 1.32) were found. The hospitalization risk from breast tumors and asthma exceeded significantly in both genders of three and four MRI classes. Among the 0-19-year-old population, correlation between MRI and hospitalization from leukemias (MRI class 2: RR = 1.48; MRI class 3: RR = 1.60; MRI class 4: RR = 1.41) and between MRI and the prevalence of preterm birth (MRI class 2: RR = 1.17; MRI class 3: RR = 1.08; MRI class 4: RR = 1.25) were found. Conclusion: A correlation between health outcomes and the environmental pressure by uncontrolled waste sites was found. Notwithstanding the limitation of the study, the results promote implementing the actions of environmental remediation and the prosecution of illegal practices

Graphene-Based Interfaces Do Not Alter Target Nerve Cells

Neural-interfaces rely on the ability of electrodes to transduce stimuli into electrical patterns delivered to the brain. In addition to sensitivity to the stimuli, stability in the operating conditions and efficient charge transfer to neurons, the electrodes should not alter the physiological properties of the target tissue. Graphene is emerging as a promising material for neuro-interfacing applications, given its outstanding physico-chemical properties. Here, we use graphene-based substrates (GBSs) to interface neuronal growth. We test our GBSs on brain cell cultures by measuring functional and synaptic integrity of the emerging neuronal networks. We show that GBSs are permissive interfaces, even when uncoated by cell adhesion layers, retaining unaltered neuronal signaling properties, thus being suitable for carbon-based neural prosthetic devices

Transparent carbon nanotubes promote the outgrowth of enthorino-dentate projections in lesioned organ slice cultures

The increasing engineering of carbon-based nanomaterials as components of neuro-regenerative interfaces is motivated by their dimensional compatibility with subcellular compartments of excitable cells, such as axons and synapses. In neuroscience applications, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been used to improve electronic device performance by exploiting their physical properties. Besides, when manufactured to interface neuronal networks formation in vitro, CNT carpets have shown their unique ability to potentiate synaptic networks formation and function. Due to the low optical transparency of CNTs films, further developments of these materials in neural prosthesis fabrication or in implementing interfacing devices to be paired with in vivo imaging or in vitro optogenetic approaches are currently limited. In the present work, we exploit a new method to fabricate CNTs by growing them on a fused silica surface, which results in a transparent CNT-based substrate (tCNTs). We show that tCNTs favour dissociated primary neurons network formation and function, an effect comparable to the one observed for their dark counterparts. We further adopt tCNTs to support the growth of intact or lesioned Entorhinal-Hippocampal Complex organotypic cultures (EHCs). Through immunocytochemistry and electrophysiological field potential recordings, we show here that tCNTs platforms are suitable substrates for the growth of EHCs and we unmask their ability to significantly increase the signal synchronization and fibre sprouting between the cortex and the hippocampus with respect to Controls. tCNTs transparency and ability to enhance recovery of lesioned brain cultures, make them optimal candidates to implement implantable devices in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Management of mixed cryoglobulinemia with rituximab: evidence and consensus-based recommendations from the Italian Study Group of Cryoglobulinemia (GISC)

Cryoglobulinemic vasculitis (CV) or mixed cryoglobulinemic syndrome (MCS) is a systemic small-vessel vasculitis characterized by the proliferation of B-cell clones producing pathogenic immune complexes, called cryoglobulins. It is often secondary to hepatitis C virus (HCV), autoimmune diseases, and hematological malignancies. CV usually has a mild benign clinical course, but severe organ damage and life-threatening manifestations can occur. Recently, evidence in favor of rituximab (RTX), an anti-CD 20 monoclonal antibody, is emerging in CV: nevertheless, questions upon the safety of this therapeutic approach, especially in HCV patients, are still being issued and universally accepted recommendations that can help physicians in MCS treatment are lacking. A Consensus Committee provided a prioritized list of research questions to perform a systematic literature review (SLR). A search was made in Medline, Embase, and Cochrane library, updated to August 2021. Of 1227 article abstracts evaluated, 27 studies were included in the SLR, of which one SLR, 4 RCTs, and 22 observational studies. Seventeen recommendations for the management of mixed cryoglobulinemia with rituximab from the Italian Study Group of Cryoglobulinemia (GISC) were developed to give a valuable tool to the physician approaching RTX treatment in CV