Exploring the determinants and trends of STEM students' internal mobility. Some evidence from Italy

In recent years, there has been a widespread consensus that science, tech- nology, engineering and math (STEM) education is crucial for the long-term productivity and growth of a country. In this light, the present paper aims to explore the phenomenon of the mobility of Italian STEM students, namely, the ows of graduated students from the Southern regions who enrol in the universities in the Northern/Central area and choose a STEM degree course. We exploit microdata from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) on 8 cohorts (from a.y. 2008/2009 to a.y. 2015/16) of enrolled students in STEM elds who obtained high school diplomas in Southern Italy. The main results of our analysis show that the ow of STEM movers increases from year to year. This ow particularly aects the top- performing students and, therefore, is a threat to the socio-economic growth prospects of the Southern regions whose gap with respect to the Central and Northern regions is expected to grow year by year

Measuring the impact of financial crisis on quality of life in Europe

Improving and monitoring Quality of Life is becoming one of the most important goals of European Union policies. However, its measurement is complex and multi-faceted, as an individual's current and future state of wellbeing depends upon a great number of variables. Moreover, there is no doubt that crisis impacted differentially in European countries. Against this background, the aim of this article is to provide a better understanding of the changes in quality of life in European countries and the role of receiving contexts in influencing these outcomes. In order to achieve it, the paper proposes a multidimensional and fuzzy approach to measure Quality of Life and investigate the evolution of different dimensions of quality life over time by use a propensity score method for isolating the effect of crisis from the net change

Terapia con onde d'urto extracorporee nei disturbi del consolidamento osseo. Basi biologiche e raccomandazioni operative.

Nei disturbi del consolidamento osseo, l'efficacia della chirurgia può essere condizionata da varie complicanze. tra le strategie non chirurgiche, la terapia con onde d'urto extracorporee (ESWT - Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy) rimanda al principio fisico della meccanotrasduzione, in base al quale, l'interazione molecolare tra l'impulso acustico e le strutture meccanosensibili delle cellule regola l'espressione genica di determinati fattori di crescita e sostanze pro angiogenetiche. Tali prerogative conferiscono alle onde d'urto il significato traslazionale di terapia rigenerativa la cui efficacia nei trattamenti sull'osso dipende dalla corretta selezione dei pazienti, dal timing, dal rispetto di raccomandazioni operative e successive al trattamento

Pubis bone osteomyelitys after robotic radical cystectomy with continent intracorporeal urinary diversion: Multidisciplinary approach to a complex situation

Pubic bone osteomyelitis is a rare infectious condition which is characterized by a complex diagnostic and therapeutic workup, due to its various clinical manifestations. Among the many causes of this condition, urinary fistula is the most common in case of previous urological procedures. In order to solve this complication, it is crucial to treat both the fistula and (moreover) the infectious locus arising from it, because treating the fistula alone does not provide any control on the infectious noxa. We present the first case of pubic bone osteomyelitis arising from a urinary fistula after a robotic radical cystectomy with intra corporeal continent neobladder, which has been successfully treated through a multidisciplinary approach

Access to pediatric surgery delivered by general surgeons and anesthesia providers in Uganda: Results from 2 rural regional hospitals.

Abstract Background Significant limitations in pediatric surgical capacity exist in low- and middle-income countries, especially in rural regions. Recent global children's surgical guidelines suggest training and support of general surgeons in rural regional hospitals as an effective approach to increasing pediatric surgical capacity. Methods Two years of a prospective clinical database of children's surgery admissions at 2 regional referral hospitals in Uganda were reviewed. Primary outcomes included case volume and clinical outcomes of children at each hospital. Additionally, the disability-adjusted life-years averted by delivery of pediatric surgical services at these hospitals were calculated. Using a value of statistical life calculation, we also estimated the economic benefit of the pediatric surgical care currently being delivered. Results From 2016 to 2019, more than 300 surgical procedures were performed at each hospital per year. The majority of cases were standard general surgery cases including hernia repairs and intussusception as well as procedures for surgical infections and trauma. In-hospital mortality was 2.4% in Soroti and 1% in Lacor. Pediatric surgical capacity at these hospitals resulted in over 12,400 disability-adjusted life-years averted/year. This represents an estimated economic benefit of 10.2 million US dollars/year to the Ugandan society. Conclusion This investigation demonstrates that lifesaving pediatric procedures are safely performed by general surgeons in Uganda. General surgeons who perform pediatric surgery significantly increase surgical access to rural regions of the country and add a large economic benefit to Ugandan society. Overall, the results of the study support increasing pediatric surgical capacity in rural areas of low- and middle-income countries through support and training of general surgeons and anesthesia providers

Protocol of the Italian Radical Cystectomy Registry (RIC): a non-randomized, 24-month, multicenter study comparing robotic-assisted, laparoscopic, and open surgery for radical cystectomy in bladder cancer

Bladder cancer is the ninth most common type of cancer worldwide. In the past, radical cystectomy via open surgery has been considered the gold-standard treatment for muscle invasive bladder cancer. However, in recent years there has been a progressive increase in the use of robot-assisted laparoscopic radical cystectomy. The aim of the current project is to investigate the surgical, oncological, and functional outcomes of patients with bladder cancer who undergo radical cystectomy comparing three different surgical techniques (robotic-assisted, laparoscopic, and open surgery). Pre-, peri- and post-operative factors will be examined, and participants will be followed for a period of up to 24\u2009months to identify risks of mortality, oncological outcomes, hospital readmission, sexual performance, and continence

Similarities and differences in the autonomic control of airway and urinary bladder smooth muscle

The airways and the urinary bladder are both hollow organs serving very different functions, i.e. air flow and urine storage, respectively. While the autonomic nervous system seems to play only a minor if any role in the physiological regulation of airway tone during normal breathing, it is important in the physiological regulation of bladder smooth muscle contraction and relaxation. While both tissues share a greater expression of M2 than of M3 muscarinic receptors, smooth muscle contraction in both is largely mediated by the smaller M3 population apparently involving phospholipase C activation to only a minor if any extent. While smooth muscle in both tissues can be relaxed by β-adrenoceptor stimulation, this primarily involves β2-adrenoceptors in human airways and β3-adrenoceptors in human bladder. Despite activation of adenylyl cyclase by either subtype, cyclic adenosine monophosphate plays only a minor role in bladder relaxation by β-agonists; an important but not exclusive function is known in airway relaxation. While airway β2-adrenoceptors are sensitive to agonist-induced desensitization, β3-adrenoceptors are generally considered to exhibit much less if any sensitivity to desensitization. Gene polymorphisms exist in the genes of both β2- and β3-adrenoceptors. Despite being not fully conclusive, the available data suggest some role of β2-adrenoceptor polymorphisms in airway function and its treatment by receptor agonists, whereas the available data on β3-adrenoceptor polymorphisms and bladder function are too limited to allow robust interpretation. We conclude that the distinct functions of airways and urinary bladder are reflected in a differential regulation by the autonomic nervous system. Studying these differences may be informative for a better understanding of each tissue

Albiglutide and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (Harmony Outcomes): a double-blind, randomised placebo-controlled trial

Background: Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists differ in chemical structure, duration of action, and in their effects on clinical outcomes. The cardiovascular effects of once-weekly albiglutide in type 2 diabetes are unknown. We aimed to determine the safety and efficacy of albiglutide in preventing cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. Methods: We did a double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled trial in 610 sites across 28 countries. We randomly assigned patients aged 40 years and older with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease (at a 1:1 ratio) to groups that either received a subcutaneous injection of albiglutide (30–50 mg, based on glycaemic response and tolerability) or of a matched volume of placebo once a week, in addition to their standard care. Investigators used an interactive voice or web response system to obtain treatment assignment, and patients and all study investigators were masked to their treatment allocation. We hypothesised that albiglutide would be non-inferior to placebo for the primary outcome of the first occurrence of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke, which was assessed in the intention-to-treat population. If non-inferiority was confirmed by an upper limit of the 95% CI for a hazard ratio of less than 1·30, closed testing for superiority was prespecified. This study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02465515. Findings: Patients were screened between July 1, 2015, and Nov 24, 2016. 10 793 patients were screened and 9463 participants were enrolled and randomly assigned to groups: 4731 patients were assigned to receive albiglutide and 4732 patients to receive placebo. On Nov 8, 2017, it was determined that 611 primary endpoints and a median follow-up of at least 1·5 years had accrued, and participants returned for a final visit and discontinuation from study treatment; the last patient visit was on March 12, 2018. These 9463 patients, the intention-to-treat population, were evaluated for a median duration of 1·6 years and were assessed for the primary outcome. The primary composite outcome occurred in 338 (7%) of 4731 patients at an incidence rate of 4·6 events per 100 person-years in the albiglutide group and in 428 (9%) of 4732 patients at an incidence rate of 5·9 events per 100 person-years in the placebo group (hazard ratio 0·78, 95% CI 0·68–0·90), which indicated that albiglutide was superior to placebo (p<0·0001 for non-inferiority; p=0·0006 for superiority). The incidence of acute pancreatitis (ten patients in the albiglutide group and seven patients in the placebo group), pancreatic cancer (six patients in the albiglutide group and five patients in the placebo group), medullary thyroid carcinoma (zero patients in both groups), and other serious adverse events did not differ between the two groups. There were three (<1%) deaths in the placebo group that were assessed by investigators, who were masked to study drug assignment, to be treatment-related and two (<1%) deaths in the albiglutide group. Interpretation: In patients with type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, albiglutide was superior to placebo with respect to major adverse cardiovascular events. Evidence-based glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists should therefore be considered as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes. Funding: GlaxoSmithKline