Electrocardiographic markers of structural heart disease and predictors of death in 2332 unselected patients undergoing outpatient Holter recording

To test the hypothesis that the QS interval of ventricular ectopic beats (VEBs) (ventricular ectopic QS interval, VEQSI) would provide a marker for the presence of structural heart disease and a predictor of mortality

Cryopreservation of hazelnut (Corylus avellana l.) axillary buds from in vitro shoots using the droplet vitrification method

Cryopreservation by droplet vitrification was applied to hazelnut (Corylus avellana L.). axillary buds of the Italian cultivated variety Tonda Gentile Romana, which were collected from in vitro growing shoots, immersed in ice cooled PVS2 or PVS3 for 60 or 90 min, then transferred to a droplet of vitrification solution, placed on a strip of aluminium foil, and plunged into liquid nitrogen (LN). Additionally, the effect on the recovery of the mother plant after cryopreservation was evaluated, following a cold pre-treatment at 4◦C for 3 months. The highest regrowth percentage (56.7%) was obtained after applying PVS3 for 60 min, while the application of PVS2 for the same amount of time reduced regrowth to 41.5%. Increasing the exposure to vitrification solutions to 90 min reduced regrowth to 43.3% when PVS3 was applied, and 35.6% if PVS2 was used. The cold pre-treatment on the mother plant did not significantly improve overall regrowth. The cryopreservation process did not decline the rooting ability of the recovered shoot

Retroperitoneal liposarcoma associated with small plaque parapsoriasis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Extremely rare cases of paraneoplastic syndromes or ectopic production of proteins associated with liposarcoma are reported in literature. Production of Granulocyte-Colony Stimulating Factor, alpha-fetoprotein, paraneoplastic pemphigus and leucocytosis, Acrokeratosis paraneoplastica (Bazex's syndrome) are reported.</p> <p>The present report describes a case of retroperitoneal liposarcoma associated with small plaque parapsoriasis. Our search in the English literature of such a kind of association did not reveal any case reported.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>A 74 year male patient was admitted to our hospital because of the presence of an abdominal mass in right iliac fossa. He also complained of a two-year history of psoriasiform eruptions. The CT scan showed a retroperitoneal pelvic mass. Therefore surgical resection of the tumor was performed. After surgery, the skin eruptions disappeared completely in seven days and so a diagnosis of parapsoriasis syndrome was done.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Parallel disappearing of skin eruptions after surgery, typical clinical picture and not specific histology of the cutaneous lesions suggest the diagnosis of small plaque parapsoriasis. Therefore we propose to add Small Plaque Parapsoriasis to the list of paraneoplastic syndromes associated to liposarcoma.</p

Definitions and incidence of cardiac syndrome X: review and analysis of clinical data

There is no consensus regarding the definition of cardiac syndrome X (CSX). We systematically reviewed recent literature using a standardized search strategy. We included 57 articles. A total of 47 studies mentioned a male/female distribution. A meta-analysis yielded a pooled proportion of females of 0.56 (n = 1,934 patients, with 95% confidence interval: 0.54–0.59). As much as 9 inclusion criteria and 43 exclusion criteria were found in the 57 articles. Applying these criteria to a population with normal coronary angiograms and treated in 1 year at a general hospital, the attributable CSX incidence varied between 3 and 11%. The many inclusion and exclusion criteria result in a wide range of definitions of CSX and these have large effects on the incidence. This shows the need for a generally accepted definition of CSX

Distal Versus Conventional Radial Access for Coronary Angiography and Intervention: The DISCO RADIAL Trial.

BACKGROUND: Currently, transradial access (TRA) is the recommended access for coronary procedures because of increased safety, with radial artery occlusion (RAO) being its most frequent complication, which will increasingly affect patients undergoing multiple procedures during their lifetimes. Recently, distal radial access (DRA) has emerged as a promising alternative access to minimize RAO risk. A large-scale, international, randomized trial comparing RAO with TRA and DRA is lacking. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the superiority of DRA compared with conventional TRA with respect to forearm RAO. METHODS: DISCO RADIAL (Distal vs Conventional Radial Access) was an international, multicenter, randomized controlled trial in which patients with indications for percutaneous coronary procedure using a 6-F Slender sheath were randomized to DRA or TRA with systematic implementation of best practices to reduce RAO. The primary endpoint was the incidence of forearm RAO assessed by vascular ultrasound at discharge. Secondary endpoints include crossover, hemostasis time, and access site-related complications. RESULTS: Overall, 657 patients underwent TRA, and 650 patients underwent DRA. Forearm RAO did not differ between groups (0.91% vs 0.31%; P = 0.29). Patent hemostasis was achieved in 94.4% of TRA patients. Crossover rates were higher with DRA (3.5% vs 7.4%; P = 0.002), and median hemostasis time was shorter (180 vs 153 minutes; P < 0.001). Radial artery spasm occurred more with DRA (2.7% vs 5.4%; P = 0.015). Overall bleeding events and vascular complications did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS: With the implementation of a rigorous hemostasis protocol, DRA and TRA have equally low RAO rates. DRA is associated with a higher crossover rate but a shorter hemostasis time

Valorizzazione del frutto di bergamotto(Citrus bergamia)

Il bergamotto (Citrus bergamia Risso) è una pianta conosciuta soprattutto per le proprietà aromatiche della buccia del frutto. Infatti l’essenza che se ne ricava è ampiamente diffusa nel mercato degli oli essenziali concorrendo alla formazione del buquet di numerosi profumi ed altri prodotti cosmetici. In questo lavoro ci si è occupati della composizione del frutto sbucciato, cioè di quella parte del frutto che viene scartata e non utilizzata in nessun campo applicativo. I risultati di tale ricerca hanno evidenziato che il “prodotto di scarto” può essere utilizzato quale fonte di psoraleni e flavonoidi, molecole dall’elevato valore biologico e farmacologico