Thoracic actinomycosis simulating neoplastic disease in Pediatrics

OBJECTIVE: To describe a pulmonary actinomycosis case in a pediatric patient. CASE DESCRIPTION: A ten-year-old healthy girl was admitted with a history of chest pain for the past three months. During the last two months, she evolved with bulging of the left anterior chest wall. Physical examination showed a mass with 8.0cm diameter in the left inframamilar region, without signs of inflammation. Chest tomography showed an expansion process in the left anterior chest wall. Biopsy and culture of the material identified Actinomyces israelli. She was treated with crystalline penicillin and amoxicillin, leading to the disappearance of the thoracic mass. COMMENTS: Actinomycosis is a rare, indolent and invasive bacterial infection, and is often not considered in children as a cause of chest masses. Early diagnosis is uncommon.OBJETIVO: Descrever um caso de actinomicose pulmonar em paciente pediátrico. DESCRIÇÃO DO CASO: Menina de dez anos, saudável, com história de dor torácica há três meses, evoluindo há dois meses com abaulamento em parede torácica anterior esquerda. Ao exame físico, apresentava massa de 8,0cm de diâmetro em região inframamilar esquerda, sem sinais flogísticos. A tomografia do tórax mostrou processo expansivo em parede torácica anterior esquerda. Realizou-se biópsia e a cultura do material identificou Actinomyces israelli. Foi tratada com penicilina cristalina e amoxicilina, com desaparecimento da massa torácica. COMENTÁRIOS: A actinomicose é uma doença bacteriana rara, indolente, invasiva e, frequentemente, não considerada em crianças como causa provável de massas torácicas, sendo incomum o diagnóstico precoce.OBJETIVO: Describir un caso de actinomicosis pulmonar en paciente pediátrico. DESCRIPCIÓN DEL CASO: Muchacha de diez años, saludable, con historia de dolor torácico hace tres meses, evolucionando, hace dos meses, con abombamiento en pared torácica anterior izquierda. Al examen físico, presentaba masa de 8,0 cm de diámetro en región inframamilar izquierda, sin señales flogísticas. La tomografía del tórax mostró proceso expansivo en pared torácica anterior izquierda. Se realizó biopsia y la cultura del material identificó Actinomyces israelli. Se trató con penicilina cristalina y amoxicilina, con desaparición de la masa torácica. COMENTARIOS: La actinomicosis es una enfermedad bacteriana rara, indolente, invasiva y, frecuentemente, no considerada en niños como causa probable de masas torácicas, siendo poco común el diagnóstico temprano.45045

Immunomodulatory drugs in the context of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation associate with reduced pro-tumor T cell subsets in multiple myeloma

Immunomodulatory drugs (IMiDs) are effective therapeutics for multiple myeloma (MM), where in different clinical settings they exert their function both directly on MM cells and indirectly by modulating immune cell subsets, although with not completely defined mechanisms. Here we studied the role of IMiDs in the context of autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplantation on the T cell subset distribution in the bone marrow of newly diagnosed MM patients. We found that after transplantation pro-tumor Th17-Th1 and Th22 cells and their related cytokines were lower in patients treated with IMiDs during induction chemotherapy compared to untreated patients. Of note, lower levels of IL-17, IL-22, and related IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-23 in the bone marrow sera correlated with treatment with IMiDs and favorable clinical outcome. Collectively, our results suggest a novel anti-inflammatory role for IMiDs in MM

Case report: Cytopenias in VEXAS syndrome - a WHO 2022 based approach in a single-center cohort

VEXAS syndrome is an acquired autoinflammatory disease characterized in most cases by cytopenias and macrocytic anemia. Dyshematopoiesis is a frequent finding in chronic inflammatory conditions and therefore, cytopenias are not easily classified in VEXAS patients. Here we report a series of 7 patients affected by VEXAS associated cytopenias, treated at our center. The use of NGS, together with morphological assays, integrated with the WHO 2022 criteria, allowed to identify three subsets of VEXAS associated cytopenias: ICUS (idiopathic cytopenia of uncertain significance), CCUS (clonal cytopenia of uncertain significance) at high risk of clonal evolution, and MDS. This approach could help to better understand the nature of VEXAS associated cytopenias and to guide the use of specific targeted treatments in order to achieve long lasting responses

Bivalirudin or unfractionated heparin in patients with acute coronary syndromes managed invasively with and without ST elevation (MATRIX): randomised controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE  To test the optimal antithrombotic regimen in patients with acute coronary syndrome. DESIGN  Randomised controlled trial. SETTING  Patients with acute coronary syndrome with and without ST segment elevation in 78 centres in Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Sweden. PARTICIPANTS  7213 patients with acute coronary syndrome and planned percutaneous coronary intervention: 4010 with ST segment elevation and 3203 without ST segment elevation. The primary study results in the overall population have been reported previously. INTERVENTIONS  Patients were randomly assigned, in an open label fashion, to one of two regimens: bivalirudin with glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors restricted to procedural complications or heparin with or without glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES  Primary endpoints were the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events, defined as death, myocardial infarction or stroke; and net adverse clinical events, defined as major bleeding or major adverse cardiovascular events, both assessed at 30 days. Analyses were performed by the principle of intention to treat. RESULTS  Use of a glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor in patients assigned to heparin was planned at baseline in 30.7% of patients with ST segment elevation, in 10.9% without ST segment elevation, and in no patients assigned to bivalirudin. In patients with ST segment elevation, major adverse cardiovascular events occurred in 118 (5.9%) assigned to bivalirudin and 129 (6.5%) assigned to heparin (rate ratio 0.90, 95% confidence interval 0.70 to 1.16; P=0.43), whereas net adverse clinical events occurred in 139 (7.0%) patients assigned to bivalirudin and 163 (8.2%) assigned to heparin (0.84, 0.67 to 1.05; P=0.13). In patients without ST segment elevation, major adverse cardiovascular events occurred in 253 (15.9%) assigned to bivalirudin and 262 (16.4%) assigned to heparin (0.97, 0.80 to 1.17; P=0.74), whereas net adverse clinical events occurred in 262 (16.5%) patients assigned to bivalirudin and 281 (17.6%) assigned to heparin (0.93, 0.77 to 1.12; P=0.43). CONCLUSIONS  A bivalirudin monotherapy strategy compared with heparin with or without glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors, did not result in reduced major adverse cardiovascular events or net adverse clinical events in patients with or without ST segment elevation.Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01433627

High Risk of Secondary Infections Following Thrombotic Complications in Patients With COVID-19

Background. This study’s primary aim was to evaluate the impact of thrombotic complications on the development of secondary infections. The secondary aim was to compare the etiology of secondary infections in patients with and without thrombotic complications. Methods. This was a cohort study (NCT04318366) of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients hospitalized at IRCCS San Raffaele Hospital between February 25 and June 30, 2020. Incidence rates (IRs) were calculated by univariable Poisson regression as the number of cases per 1000 person-days of follow-up (PDFU) with 95% confidence intervals. The cumulative incidence functions of secondary infections according to thrombotic complications were compared with Gray’s method accounting for competing risk of death. A multivariable Fine-Gray model was applied to assess factors associated with risk of secondary infections. Results. Overall, 109/904 patients had 176 secondary infections (IR, 10.0; 95% CI, 8.8–11.5; per 1000-PDFU). The IRs of secondary infections among patients with or without thrombotic complications were 15.0 (95% CI, 10.7–21.0) and 9.3 (95% CI, 7.9–11.0) per 1000-PDFU, respectively (P = .017). At multivariable analysis, thrombotic complications were associated with the development of secondary infections (subdistribution hazard ratio, 1.788; 95% CI, 1.018–3.140; P = .043). The etiology of secondary infections was similar in patients with and without thrombotic complications. Conclusions. In patients with COVID-19, thrombotic complications were associated with a high risk of secondary infections

Prescription appropriateness of anti-diabetes drugs in elderly patients hospitalized in a clinical setting: evidence from the REPOSI Register

Diabetes is an increasing global health burden with the highest prevalence (24.0%) observed in elderly people. Older diabetic adults have a greater risk of hospitalization and several geriatric syndromes than older nondiabetic adults. For these conditions, special care is required in prescribing therapies including anti- diabetes drugs. Aim of this study was to evaluate the appropriateness and the adherence to safety recommendations in the prescriptions of glucose-lowering drugs in hospitalized elderly patients with diabetes. Data for this cross-sectional study were obtained from the REgistro POliterapie-Società Italiana Medicina Interna (REPOSI) that collected clinical information on patients aged ≥ 65 years acutely admitted to Italian internal medicine and geriatric non-intensive care units (ICU) from 2010 up to 2019. Prescription appropriateness was assessed according to the 2019 AGS Beers Criteria and anti-diabetes drug data sheets.Among 5349 patients, 1624 (30.3%) had diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. At admission, 37.7% of diabetic patients received treatment with metformin, 37.3% insulin therapy, 16.4% sulfonylureas, and 11.4% glinides. Surprisingly, only 3.1% of diabetic patients were treated with new classes of anti- diabetes drugs. According to prescription criteria, at admission 15.4% of patients treated with metformin and 2.6% with sulfonylureas received inappropriately these treatments. At discharge, the inappropriateness of metformin therapy decreased (10.2%, P < 0.0001). According to Beers criteria, the inappropriate prescriptions of sulfonylureas raised to 29% both at admission and at discharge. This study shows a poor adherence to current guidelines on diabetes management in hospitalized elderly people with a high prevalence of inappropriate use of sulfonylureas according to the Beers criteria

Antidiabetic Drug Prescription Pattern in Hospitalized Older Patients with Diabetes

Objective: To describe the prescription pattern of antidiabetic and cardiovascular drugs in a cohort of hospitalized older patients with diabetes. Methods: Patients with diabetes aged 65 years or older hospitalized in internal medicine and/or geriatric wards throughout Italy and enrolled in the REPOSI (REgistro POliterapuie SIMI—Società Italiana di Medicina Interna) registry from 2010 to 2019 and discharged alive were included. Results: Among 1703 patients with diabetes, 1433 (84.2%) were on treatment with at least one antidiabetic drug at hospital admission, mainly prescribed as monotherapy with insulin (28.3%) or metformin (19.2%). The proportion of treated patients decreased at discharge (N = 1309, 76.9%), with a significant reduction over time. Among those prescribed, the proportion of those with insulin alone increased over time (p = 0.0066), while the proportion of those prescribed sulfonylureas decreased (p < 0.0001). Among patients receiving antidiabetic therapy at discharge, 1063 (81.2%) were also prescribed cardiovascular drugs, mainly with an antihypertensive drug alone or in combination (N = 777, 73.1%). Conclusion: The management of older patients with diabetes in a hospital setting is often sub-optimal, as shown by the increasing trend in insulin at discharge, even if an overall improvement has been highlighted by the prevalent decrease in sulfonylureas prescription

The “Diabetes Comorbidome”: A Different Way for Health Professionals to Approach the Comorbidity Burden of Diabetes

(1) Background: The disease burden related to diabetes is increasing greatly, particularly in older subjects. A more comprehensive approach towards the assessment and management of diabetes’ comorbidities is necessary. The aim of this study was to implement our previous data identifying and representing the prevalence of the comorbidities, their association with mortality, and the strength of their relationship in hospitalized elderly patients with diabetes, developing, at the same time, a new graphic representation model of the comorbidome called “Diabetes Comorbidome”. (2) Methods: Data were collected from the RePoSi register. Comorbidities, socio-demographic data, severity and comorbidity indexes (Cumulative Illness rating Scale CIRS-SI and CIRS-CI), and functional status (Barthel Index), were recorded. Mortality rates were assessed in hospital and 3 and 12 months after discharge. (3) Results: Of the 4714 hospitalized elderly patients, 1378 had diabetes. The comorbidities distribution showed that arterial hypertension (57.1%), ischemic heart disease (31.4%), chronic renal failure (28.8%), atrial fibrillation (25.6%), and COPD (22.7%), were the more frequent in subjects with diabetes. The graphic comorbidome showed that the strongest predictors of death at in hospital and at the 3-month follow-up were dementia and cancer. At the 1-year follow-up, cancer was the first comorbidity independently associated with mortality. (4) Conclusions: The “Diabetes Comorbidome” represents the perfect instrument for determining the prevalence of comorbidities and the strength of their relationship with risk of death, as well as the need for an effective treatment for improving clinical outcomes

Clinical features and outcomes of elderly hospitalised patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, heart failure or both

Background and objective: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and heart failure (HF) mutually increase the risk of being present in the same patient, especially if older. Whether or not this coexistence may be associated with a worse prognosis is debated. Therefore, employing data derived from the REPOSI register, we evaluated the clinical features and outcomes in a population of elderly patients admitted to internal medicine wards and having COPD, HF or COPD + HF. Methods: We measured socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics, severity and prevalence of comorbidities, clinical and laboratory features during hospitalization, mood disorders, functional independence, drug prescriptions and discharge destination. The primary study outcome was the risk of death. Results: We considered 2,343 elderly hospitalized patients (median age 81 years), of whom 1,154 (49%) had COPD, 813 (35%) HF, and 376 (16%) COPD + HF. Patients with COPD + HF had different characteristics than those with COPD or HF, such as a higher prevalence of previous hospitalizations, comorbidities (especially chronic kidney disease), higher respiratory rate at admission and number of prescribed drugs. Patients with COPD + HF (hazard ratio HR 1.74, 95% confidence intervals CI 1.16-2.61) and patients with dementia (HR 1.75, 95% CI 1.06-2.90) had a higher risk of death at one year. The Kaplan-Meier curves showed a higher mortality risk in the group of patients with COPD + HF for all causes (p = 0.010), respiratory causes (p = 0.006), cardiovascular causes (p = 0.046) and respiratory plus cardiovascular causes (p = 0.009). Conclusion: In this real-life cohort of hospitalized elderly patients, the coexistence of COPD and HF significantly worsened prognosis at one year. This finding may help to better define the care needs of this population