Rare jaw bone tumor: The importance of multidisciplinary management and minimally invasive treatment

Objective: The aim of this study was to present a mini review of oral Cementoblastoma and to report a particular case of this tumor. The Cementoblastoma is a rare benign lesion that represents less than 1-6% of all odontogenic tumors. Cementoblastoma, in the current WHO classification of odontogenic tumors, falls under the category of mesenchymal tumors (WHO 2017) and it is characterized by the proliferation of cementum-like tissue and, in all cases, tends to be associated with an erupting permanent tooth, most often the first molar. Case Presentation: A 15-year-old female presented a great Cementoblastoma with cortical expansion that affected the left mandibular body, extending from the canine to the first premolar (size 28x24 mm) and involving the mandibular canal. Surgery was performed under general anesthesia with total excision of the lesion, which was then sent for histological analysis. Due to the high risk of nerve injuries and the extreme fragility of the remaining bone after surgery, which required plates and intermaxillary blockage, the surgical site was regenerated with an iliac crest graft together with autologous and synthetic bone. Results: For the mini-review, 107 articles were found, but only 26 were selected. The patient was monitored for 12 months after surgery; a perfect healing was reported without complications, and she showed no signs of recurrence. Conclusions: This case report emphasizes the usefulness of clinical choices in a rare case of cementoblastoma of great size in a very young patient. In this condition, finding the most effective eradicative and reconstructive treatment, following the last published protocols, could achieve optimal clinical and psychological patient outcomes

Pseudococcus affinis MASK., new vector of grapevine trichoviruses A and B

Research Note Grapevine trichovirus A (GVA) and grapevine trichovirus B (GVB) were successfully transferred with bulk transmission trials under controlled conditions, from infected grapevines to herbaceous hosts by Pseudococcus affinis MASK., a pseudococcid mealybug that may attack grapevines. P. affinis is the fourth mealybug species capable of vectoring GVA and GVB, confirming that transmission by mealybugs of grapevine trichoviruses may not be species-specific

The role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in endometrial adenocarcinoma: a review of the literature and recent advances

Purpose: To provide a substantial coverage on the role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in endometrial cancer (EC), and identify the key issues which make its use recommended with both low level of evidence and low strength of recommendation in accordance with the last consensus conference. Methods: A comprehensive literature computer search was performed on PubMed/MEDLINE and Cochrane Library databases up to June 2020. Included studies had to focus on 18F-FDG PET/CT in EC, with regard to staging, follow-up and prognostic value. Review guidelines, systematic review, meta-analyses and original papers were included. Results: The 18F-FDG PET/CT is affected by suboptimal soft tissue differentiation, with sensitivity and specificity in tumor staging ranged from 77 to 85% and 79 to 96%. The sensitivity and the specificity of 18F-FDG PET/CT performed at staging for lymph node metastases ranged from 63 to 73% and 96 to 97%. For distant metastases, sensitivity and specificity of 18F-FDG PET/CT performed at staging ranged from 63 to 80% and 93 to 96%. After treatment, better performance emerged for EC recurrent with sensitivity ranged from 92 to 98% and specificity ranged from 89 to 94%. Maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) and metabolic volumetric parameters, such as total lesion glycolysis (TLG) and metabolic tumor volume (MTV), resulted to be significantly related to prognosis. Conclusion: Despite evidence-based data about the diagnostic performance are increasing, the low sensitivity represents the main limitation of 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging utilization for the detection of primary tumor and lymph node metastases. Better performances were observed for distant metastasis and EC recurrence. Further randomized prospective studies are needed to increase both the low level of evidence and low strength of recommendation for using 18F-FDG PET/CT in EC. Promising results emerged from PET/MRI

Exploring the interdependencies of research funders in the UK

Investment in medical research is vital to the continuing improvement of the UK's health and wealth. It is through research that we expand our understanding of disease and develop new treatments for patients. Medical research charities currently contribute over £1 billion annually to medical research in the UK, of which over £350 million is provided by Cancer Research UK. Many charities, including Cancer Research UK, receive no government funding for their research activity. Cancer Research UK is engaged in a programme of work in order to better understand the medical research funding environment and demonstrate the importance of sustained investment. A key part of that is the Office of Health Economics‟ (OHE) 2011 report “Exploring the interdependency between public and charitable medical research”. This study found that there are substantial benefits, both financial and qualitative, from the existence of a variety of funders and that reductions in the level of government financial support for medical research are likely to have broader negative effects. This contributed to other evidence which found that the activities and funding of the charity, public and private sectors respectively are complementary, i.e. mutually reinforcing, rather than duplicative or merely substituting for one another. “Exploring the interdependencies of research funders in the UK” by the Office of Health Economics (OHE) and SPRU: Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Sussex, represents a continued effort to build the evidence base around the funding of medical research. This report uncovers the extent to which funders of cancer research are interdependent, nationally and internationally. Key figures show that two thirds of publications acknowledging external support have relied on multiple funders, while just under half benefited from overseas funding, and almost a fifth are also supported by industry. In addition the analysis shows that the general public would not want tax funding of cancer research to be reduced, but would not donate enough to charities to compensate for any such reduction

The Italian Family Satisfaction in the Intensive Care Unit Questionnaire: A Psychometric Evaluation Using the Rasch Model

Quality measurement of the intensive care unit (ICU) should include families’ perspectives, their satisfaction with the care process and outcomes, and the evaluation of actions to improve their psychological health and wellbeing. The current study was designed to validate the Italian version of the Family Satisfaction in the Intensive Care Unit (FS-ICU) using the Rasch model. Results included reliability and separation for items and persons, item fit statistics, unidimensionality, and item characteristic curve. The study was conducted between August 2022 and February 2023. A total of 108 family members (mean age 54.9 years) completed the FS-ICU questionnaire. The instrument had a moderate discrimination ability and only five items (#21, #23, #10, #22, and #24) exhibited a misfit. The Rasch dimension explained 52.1% of the variance in the data, while the unexplained variance in the first contrast is 7.2%, which indicates a possible second dimension. FS-ICU was shown to be beneficial as an assessment instrument for family member satisfaction in the ICU, despite some flaws that need to further be addressed to improve the scale

Aza- and Mixed Thia/Aza-Macrocyclic Receptors with Quinoline-Bearing Pendant Arms for Optical Discrimination of Zinc(II) or Cadmium(II) Ions

The synthesis and coordination properties of two fluorescent chemosensors, featuring [9]aneN3 (1,4,7-triazacyclononane; L1) and [12]aneNS3 (1-aza-4,7,10-trithiacyclododecane; L2) as receptor units, and a quinoline pendant arm with an amide group as a functional group spacer are described. The optical responses of L1 and L2 in the presence of several metal ions were analysed in MeCN/H2O (1 : 4 v/v) solutions. A selective chelation enhancement of fluorescence (CHEF) effect was observed in the presence of Zn2+ in the case of L1, and in the presence of Cd2+ in the case of L2, following the formation of a 1 : 1 and a 1 : 2 metal/ligand complex, respectively, which was also confirmed by potentiometric measurements. 1H and 13C NMR measurements in CD3CN/CDCl3 in combination with molecular mechanics calculations show that for both complexes of L1 and L2 with Zn2+ and Cd2+, respectively, the coordination of the carbonyl group from the pendant arm could be the origin of the observed optical selectivity

Coupling of Cyclic Voltammetry and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy for Probing the Thermodynamics of Facilitated Ion Transfer Reactions Exhibiting Chemical Kinetic Hindrances

Mathematical models under conditions of cyclic staircase voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), which consider the kinetic effects due to the complexation reaction by the facilitated transfer of metal ions at polarized interfaces, are presented. Criteria for qualitative recognition of these kinetic effects from the features of simulated cyclic voltammograms are given. In case of the existence of these effects, only the EIS can bring access to the thermodynamics and kinetics of the complexation chemical reaction. Analytical equations for estimating the thermodynamic parameters by such systems under EIS conditions are evaluated. The theoretical results are compared with the experimental results of the facilitated Cu2+ transfer at the polarized water-1,2-dichlorethane interface, assisted by two phenanthroline-containing macrocycles. In the experimental case where kinetic effects due to the complexation step exist, we show how elegantly EIS can be used as a tool for estimation of the complexation constant of Cu2+ and 5-oxo-2,8-dithia [9],(2,9)-1,10-phenanthrolinophane (PhenOS2)