Telemedicine Network in Pediatric Cardiology: The Case of Tuscany Region in Italy

Four years ago, a telemedicine project in diagnosis and care of congenital cardiac malformations was developed in Tuscany interconnecting the Heart Hospital of Gabriele Monasterio Tuscany Foundation (FTGM) in Massa with main clinical centers around the region. Both live and store-and-forward tele-echocardiography were implemented, while the FTGM medical record system was applied for collaborative reporting. Mobile medical-grade carts, equipped with videoconferencing and computer units, were installed at main neonatology/pediatric centers throughout the Tuscany region. Today, 13 hospitals are connected to the network, while the MEYER Pediatric University Hospital (MEYER) in Firenze has recently adhered to the project, as HUB center jointly with FTGM, so enabling H24 telemedicine service in pediatric cardiology throughout the region. So far, more than 200 patients were diagnosed and followed by telemedicine

A Year in the Life of the OpenECG Network

The OpenECG network formed in 2002, is a European initiative with global reach, which aims to lower the barriers for ECG interoperability and make digital ECGs available as part of the integrated electronic health record. Currently, SCP-ECG, the European standard for ECG record communication and storage, has been implemented by some manufacturers. However, these implementations are not consistent with each other, hindering ECG exchange, processing, and serial analysis. Furthermore, the presence of alternative ECG storage formats, proprietary or open, raises issues of harmonization and quality assurance. In the first year of its life, the OpenECG network numbers 105 committed members, while its portal and associated help desk have already provided valuable information and development support to several manufacturers and integrators. Recently, the OpenECG certification service has become available to members who may submit their ECG records for interoperability validation and SCP-ECG conformance testing. Still, only the first step for the OpenECG network has been taken. Future plans involve contributing to the definition of integration profiles for ECG-related examinations and addressing issues related to quality assurance of eHealth services in general

Relazione tecnica impatto acustico

La presente relazione tecnica descrive la progettazione di interventi di correzione acustica di alcuni locali del complesso di ricerca INAF OAS situato a Bologna in via Gobetti 101, al fine di verificare se esistono condizioni di rischio lavorativo, e comunque, anche nel caso che non sussistano le condizioni per intervenire con misure di protezione e prevenzione, migliorarne il comfort, favorire la concentrazione e ridurre lo sforzo vocale degli operatori e delle operatrici

Current Controversies and Challenges on BRAF V600K-Mutant Cutaneous Melanoma

About 50% of melanomas harbour a BRAF mutation. Of these 50%, 10% have a V600K mutation. Although it is the second most common driver mutation after V600E, no specific studies have been conducted to identify a clinical and therapeutic gold standard for this patient subgroup. We analysed articles, including registrative clinical trials, to identify common clinical and biological traits of the V600K melanoma population, including different adopted therapeutic strategies. Melanoma V600K seems to be more frequent in Caucasian, male and elderly populations with a history of chronic sun damage and exposure. Prognosis is poor and no specific prognostic factor has been identified. Recent findings have underlined how melanoma V600K seems to be less dependent on the ERK/MAPK pathway, with a higher expression of PI3KB and a strong inhibition of multiple antiapoptotic pathways. Both target therapy with BRAF inhibitors + MEK inhibitors and immunotherapy with anti-checkpoint blockades are effective in melanoma V600K, although no sufficient evidence can currently support a formal recommendation for first line treatment choice in IIIC unresectable/IV stage patients. Still, melanoma V600K represents an unmet medical need and a marker of poor prognosis for cutaneous melanoma

Clinical and dermoscopic characteristics of congenital and non-congenital nevus-associated melanomas

No specific features of nevus-associated melanoma (NAM) are currently defined

The Online Observation Quality System for the ASTRI Mini-Array

The ASTRI Mini-Array is an international collaboration led by the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), aiming to construct and operate an array of nine Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) to study gamma-ray sources at very high energy (TeV) and to perform stellar intensity interferometry observations. This contribution describes the design and the technologies used by the ASTRI team to implement the Online Observation Quality System (OOQS). The main objective of the OOQS is to perform data quality analyses in real-time during Cherenkov and intensity interferometry observations to provide feedback to both the Central Control System and the Operator. The OOQS performs the analysis of key data quality parameters and can generate alarms to other sub-systems for a fast reaction to solve critical conditions. The results from the data quality analyses are saved into the Quality Archive for further investigations. The Operator can visualise the OOQS results through the Operator Human Machine Interface as soon as they are produced. The main challenge addressed by the OOQS design is to perform online data quality checks on the data streams produced by nine telescopes, acquired by the Array Data Acquisition System and forwarded to the OOQS. In the current OOQS design, the Redis in-memory database manages the data throughput generated by the telescopes, and the Slurm workload scheduler executes in parallel the high number of data quality analyses.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, Proceedings of the 37th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC 2021), Berlin, German

Magazzino 101 Gestione e smaltimento

La gestione di un magazzino efficiente passa attraverso una buona organizzazione e il rispetto delle regole. Trattandosi di ambienti in cui le merci sono costantemente movimentate, spesso con l’ausilio di attrezzature specifiche, il magazzino è soggetto a disordine e sporcizia. Questo, inevitabilmente, si può tradurre in incidenti, che possono rallentare o addirittura arrestare il lavoro. Ordine e pulizia dovrebbero essere mandatori

ASTRI Mini-Array Data Model Document

This document provides an overview of the data products of the ASTRI MA System, and their conceptual (and logical) data models. The goals are: - list the data products produced by the MA system and the related data product categories; - show the relationship between the data products; - define a short identifier for the data product; - refer to data streams in architectural diagrams without ambiguity; - define interfaces and data models

Comparative Safety of Originator and Biosimilar Epoetin Alfa Drugs: An Observational Prospective Multicenter Study

Background: Erythropoiesis-stimulating agents (ESAs) are biological molecules approved for the treatment of anemia associated with chronic renal failure. Biosimilars were licensed for use in Europe in 2007. Aim: This study aimed to compare the safety profile of biosimilars with respect to the reference product in a nephrology setting. Methods: A prospective study was conducted in four Italian regions between 1 October 2013 and 30 June 2015. The study population included patients aged 65 18 years undergoing hemodialysis and treated with epoetins as per the clinical practice of the participating centers. The two comparison cohorts included patients treated with either an originator or a biosimilar epoetin alfa. Each patient was followed up until occurrence of any safety outcome of interest (grouped into three major categories), switch to a different ESA product, transplant or peritoneal dialysis, death, or end of the study period, whichever came first. Results: Overall, 867 subjects were included in the study (originator: N = 423; biosimilar: N = 444). Biosimilar users were older than originator users (median age of 76 vs 64 years, respectively), more frequently affected by arrhythmia (29.3 vs 22.5%), and less frequently candidates for transplantation (3.8 vs 18.2%). Cox-regression analysis showed no increase in risk of safety outcomes in biosimilar users, even after adjusting for confounding factors: 1.0 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.7\u20131.3) for any outcomes; 1.1 (95% CI 0.7\u20131.8) for problems related to dialysis device; 0.9 (95% CI 0.6\u20131.5) for cardio- and cerebro-vascular conditions; 0.9 (95% CI 0.6\u20131.5) for infections. Conclusion: This study confirms the comparable safety profiles of originator and biosimilar epoetin alfa drugs when used in patients receiving dialysis

The HFE p.H63D (p.His63Asp) Polymorphism Is a Modifier of ALS Outcome in Italian and French Patients with SOD1 Mutations

Background: Data from published studies about the effect of HFE polymorphisms on ALS risk, phenotype, and survival are still inconclusive. We aimed at evaluating whether the p.H63D polymorphism is a modifier of phenotype and survival in SOD1-mutated patients. Methods: We included 183 SOD1-mutated ALS patients. Mutations were classified as severe or mild according to the median survival of the study population. Patients were screened for the HFE p.H63D polymorphism. Survival was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier modeling, and differences were measured by the log-rank test. Multivariable analysis was performed with the Cox proportional hazards model (stepwise backward). Results: SOD1 severe mutation carriers show more frequent familial history for ALS and shorter survival compared to mild mutation carriers. Carriers and non-carriers of the p.H63D polymorphism did not differ in terms of sex ratio, frequency of positive familial history, age at onset, and bulbar/spinal ratio. In univariate and in Cox multivariable analysis using sex, age at onset, site of onset, family history, country of origin, and mutation severity as covariates, p.H63D carriers had a longer survival (p = 0.034 and p = 0.004). Conclusions: We found that SOD1-mutated ALS patients carrying the p.H63D HFE polymorphism have a longer survival compared to non-carriers, independently of sex, age and site of onset, family history, nation of origin, and severity of mutations, suggesting a possible role as disease progression modifier for the p.H63D HFE polymorphism in SOD1-ALS