Digital Food and foodways. How online food practices and narratives shape the Italian diaspora

The article discusses the role of online food practices and narratives in the formation of transnational identities and communities. Data has been collected in the framework of a doctoral research project undertaken by the author between 2009 and 2012 with a follow-up in 2014. The working hypothesis of this article is that the way Italians talk about food online and offline, the importance they give to ‘authentic’ food, and the way they share their love for Italian food with other members of the same diaspora reveal original insights into migrants’ personal and collective identities, their sense of belonging to the transnational community and processes of adjustment to a new place. Findings suggest that online culinary narratives and practices shape the Italian diaspora in unique ways, through the development of forms of virtual commensality and online mealtime socialization on Skype and by affecting intra and out-group relationships, thus working as elements of cultural identification and differentiation

Clinical characterization of the frequent exacerbator phenotype in asthma

Background: Asthma exacerbation is episodic worsening of respiratory symptoms in conjunction with the deterioration of lung function, which may occur independently from the asthma severity hampering asthmatics’ quality of life. This study aimed to characterize the patient phenotype more prone to asthma exacerbation (oral corticosteroid burst ≥2 per year) to allow the proper identification of such patients. Methods: This real-life, observational, cross-sectional study evaluated 464 asthmatic patients stratified according to the asthma exacerbations experienced in the previous year. Clinical, functional, and blood parameters were retrieved from chart data and were representative of patients in stable conditions. Results: The frequent asthma exacerbator was more commonly female, suffered from chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis, had reduced lung function and peripheral oxygen saturation, and had increased daily activity limitations. These patients often had severe asthma and more frequently needed hospitalization in their lives. Furthermore, the frequent asthma exacerbator had higher concentrations of serum immunoglobulin E (IgE) and exhaled nitric oxide with cut-off risk values of 107.5 kU/L (OR = 4.1) and 43.35 ppb (OR = 3.8), respectively. Conclusions: This study illustrates the clinical features of the frequent asthma exacerbator phenotype. Nevertheless, serum IgE and exhaled nitric oxide could allow the identification of this phenotype and the establishment of an appropriate therapeutic approach

Osteointegration in Cranial Bone Reconstruction: A Goal to Achieve

BackgroundThe number of cranioplasty procedures is steadily increasing, mainly due to growing indications for decompressive procedures following trauma, tumor or malformations. Although autologous bone is still considered the gold standard for bone replacement in skull, there is an urgent need for synthetic porous implants able to guide bone regeneration and stable reconstruction of the defect. In this respect, hydroxyapatite scaffolds with highly porous architecture are very promising materials, due to the excellent biocompatibility and intrinsic osteogenic and osteoconductive properties that enable deep bone penetration in the scaffold and excellent osteointegration. Osteointegration is here highlighted as a key aspect for the early recovery of bone-like biomechanical performance, for which custom-made porous hydroxyapatite scaffolds play a major role. There are still very few cases documenting the clinical performance of porous scaffolds following cranioplasty.MethodsThis paper reports 2 clinical cases where large cranial defects were repaired by the aid of porous hydroxyapatite scaffolds with customized shapes and 3D profiles (Fin-Ceramica, Faenza, Italy).ResultsIn the long term (i.e., after 2 years), these scaffolds yielded extensive osteointegration through formation and penetration of new organized bone.ConclusionsThese results confirm that porous hydroxyapatite scaffolds, uniquely possessing chemico-physical and morphological/mechanical properties very close to those of bone, can be considered as a tool to provide effective bone regeneration in large cranial bone defects. Moreover, they may potentially prevent most of the postsurgical drawbacks related to the use of metal or plastic implants