Satisfaction with allergy treatments depends on symptom severity but not on allergen specificity in patients with allergic rhinitis.

Allergic rhinitis is characterized by troublesome symptoms that may be particularly severe. Most of rhinitics are dissatisfied with drug treatments. The dissatisfaction level depends on symptoms severity, but not on the type of causal allergen

Passive drag in young swimmers: Effects of body composition, morphology and gliding position

The passive drag (Dp) during swimming is affected by the swimmer’s morphology, body density and body position. We evaluated the relative contribution of morphology, body composition, and body position adjustments in the prediction of a swimmer’s Dp. This observational study examined a sample of 60 competitive swimmers (31 male and 29 female) with a mean (±SD) age of 15.4 ± 3.1 years. The swimmer’s Dp was measured using an electro-mechanical towing device and the body composition was assessed using a bioelectrical impedance analyser. Body lengths and circumferences were measured in both the standing position and the simulated streamlined position. Partial correlation analysis with age as a control variable showed that Dp was largely correlated (p < 0.05) with body mass, biacromial-and bi-iliac-breadth, streamline chest circumference and breadth. Body mass, Body Mass Index, chest circumference and streamline chest circumference showed a significant and moderate to strong effect (η2 > 0.55) on Dp. Body mass was the best predictor of Dp explaining 69% of the variability. These results indicate that swimmers with lower Dp values were: (i) slimmer, with lower fat and fat-free mass; (ii) thinner, with lower shoulder breadth, chest circumference, and streamline trunk diameters (iii), shorter, with lower streamline height. These findings can be used for talent identification in swimming, with particular reference to the gliding performance

Displacement and emission currents from PLZT 8/65/35 and 4/95/5 excited by a negative voltage pulse at the rear electrode

It is shown that non-prepoled PLZT ceramics, both in ferroelectric and antiferroelectric phase, emit intense current bursts when a negative exciting voltage is applied to the rear surface of the cathode. The spontaneous polarization induced in the bulk by applying the field through the cathode disk, creates a sheet of negative charge on the diode boundary of the ferroelectric. This, in turn, induces such a high electric field at the diode dielectric surface that electrons are ejected out from the ceramic surface into the vacuum. The coherent behaviour of the displacement and emitted current shows clearly that the emission is due to a variation of spontaneous polarization. A second effect generated by the application of the high voltage pulse at the rear side is the formation of a surface plasma. Applying a positive voltage to the anode, electrons are readily transferred through the diode gap

Adherence issues related to sublingual immunotherapy as perceived by allergists

Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) is a viable alternative to subcutaneous immunotherapy to treat allergic rhinitis and asthma, and is widely used in clinical practice in many European countries. The clinical efficacy of SLIT has been established in a number of clinical trials and meta-analyses. However, because SLIT is self-administered by patients without medical supervision, the degree of patient adherence with treatment is still a concern. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception by allergists of issues related to SLIT adherence.We performed a questionnaire-based survey of 296 Italian allergists, based on the adherence issues known from previous studies. The perception of importance of each item was assessed by a VAS scale ranging from 0 to 10.Patient perception of clinical efficacy was considered the most important factor (ranked 1 by 54\% of allergists), followed by the possibility of reimbursement (ranked 1 by 34\%), and by the absence of side effects (ranked 1 by 21\%). Patient education, regular follow-up, and ease of use of SLIT were ranked first by less than 20\% of allergists.These findings indicate that clinical efficacy, cost, and side effects are perceived as the major issues influencing patient adherence to SLIT, and that further improvement of adherence is likely to be achieved by improving the patient information provided by prescribers

Sublingual immunotherapy: administration, dosages, use

Allergen extracts for sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) are currently marketed by several manufacturers, with administration schedules and amount of allergen(s) quite variable in the different products, although almost all are standardized biologically or immunologically. The allergen extracts for SLIT are available in two main pharmaceutical forms: solution to be delivered by drop-counters, pre-dosed actuators (mini-pumps) or disposable single-dose vials; tablets with appropriate composition that allows a slow (1-2 minutes) dissolution in the mouth in contact with saliva. In Europe, SLIT is prescribed in general for one or a few allergens, and mixtures are less used, though there is no immunological contraindication to give multiple allergens. SLIT traditionally involves a build-up phase and a maintenance phase with the top dose. The build-up phase has usually the duration of 4 - 6 weeks. The patient must start with the lowest concentration and gradually increase, using the different dosage preparations, until the maintenance dose is reached. Rush and ultra-rush inductions have been introduced, based on the safety profile of SLIT that is very favorable. For these reasons it has been suggested that an updosing phase maybe even not necessary. The no-updosing approach would result in a treatment that is more patient-friendly and convenient to manage. Indeed, the most recent randomized trials were performed with the no-updosing regimen and their results in term of safety were as favorable as the studies performed with the traditional updosing approach. The currently recommended duration of SLIT is comprised between 3 and 4 years depending on the clinical response in single patients

Indoor mobile mapping system and crowd simulation to support school reopening because of covid-19: a case study

Occupancy analyses represent a crucial topic for building performance. At present, this is even true because of the pandemic emergency due to SARS-CoV-2 and the need to support the functional analysis of building spaces in relation to social distancing rules. Moreover, the need to assess the suitability of spaces in high occupancy buildings as the educational ones, for which occupancy evaluations result pivotal to ensure the safety of the end-users in their daily activities, is a priority. The proposed paper investigates the steps that are needed to secure a safe re-opening of an educational building. A case study has been selected as a test site to analyse the re-opening steps as required by Italian protocols and regulations. This analysis supported the school director of a 2-to-10 year old school and its team in the decision-making process that led to the safe school re-opening. Available plants and elevations of the building were collected and a fast digital survey was carried out using the mobile laser scanner technology (iMMS - Indoor Mobile Mapping System) in order to acquire three-dimensional geometries and digital photographic documentation of the spaces. A crowd simulation software (i.e. Oasys MassMotion) was implemented to analyse end-users flows; the social distance parameter was set in its proximity modelling tools in order to check the compliance of spaces and circulation paths to the social distancing protocols. Contextually to the analysis of users flows, a plan of hourly air changes to maintain a high quality of the environments has been defined

Allogeneic Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells as a Potential Source for Cartilage and Bone Regeneration: An in Vitro Study

Umbilical cord (UC) may represent an attractive cell source for allogeneic mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) therapy. The aim of this in vitro study is to investigate the chondrogenic and osteogenic potential of UC-MSCs grown onto tridimensional scaffolds, to identify a possible clinical relevance for an allogeneic use in cartilage and bone reconstructive surgery. Chondrogenic differentiation on scaffolds was confirmed at 4 weeks by the expression of sox-9 and type II collagen; low oxygen tension improved the expression of these chondrogenic markers. A similar trend was observed in pellet culture in terms of matrix (proteoglycan) production. Osteogenic differentiation on bone-graft-substitute was also confirmed after 30 days of culture by the expression of osteocalcin and RunX-2. Cells grown in the hypertrophic medium showed at 5 weeks safranin o-positive stain and an increased CbFa1 expression, confirming the ability of these cells to undergo hypertrophy. These results suggest that the UC-MSCs isolated from minced umbilical cords may represent a valuable allogeneic cell population, which might have a potential for orthopaedic tissue engineering such as the on-demand cell delivery using chondrogenic, osteogenic, and endochondral scaffold. This study may have a clinical relevance as a future hypothetical option for allogeneic single-stage cartilage repair and bone regeneration

Evaluation of neuroactive steroid levels by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry in central and peripheral nervous system : effect of diabetes

The nervous system is a target for physiological and protective effects of neuroactive steroids. Consequently, the assessment of their levels in nervous structures under physiological and pathological conditions is a top priority. To this aim, identification and quantification of pregnenolone (PREG), progesterone (PROG), dihydroprogesterone (DHP), tetrahydroprogesterone (THP), testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), 5aandrostan- 3a, 17b-diol (3a-diol), 17a- and 17b-estradiol (17a-E and 17b-E) by liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (LC\u2013MS/ MS) has been set up. After validation, this method was applied to determine the levels of neuroactive steroids in central (i.e., cerebral cortex, cerebellum and spinal cord) and peripheral (i.e., brachial nerve) nervous system of control and diabetic rats. In controls only the brachial nerve had detectable levels of all these neuroactive steroids. In contrast, 17a-E in cerebellum, 17a-E, 17b-E, DHP and THP in cerebral cortex, and 17a-E, 17b-E and DHP in spinal cord were under the detection limit. Diabetes, induced by injection with streptozotocin, strongly affected the levels of some neuroactive steroids. In particular, the levels of PREG, PROG and T in cerebellum, of PROG, T and 3a-diol in cerebral cortex, of PROG, DHTand 3a-diol in spinal cord and of PREG, DHP, THP, T, DHTand 3a-diol in brachial nerve were significantly decreased. In conclusion, the data here reported demonstrate that the LC\u2013MS/MS method allows the assessment of neuroactive steroids in the nervous system with high sensitivity and specificity and that diabetes strongly affects their levels, providing a further basis for new therapeutic tools based on neuroactive steroids aimed at counteracting diabetic neuropathy

Adherence issues related to sublingual immunotherapy as perceived by allergists

Objectives: Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) is a viable alternative to subcutaneous immunotherapy to treat allergic rhinitis and asthma, and is widely used in clinical practice in many European countries. The clinical efficacy of SLIT has been established in a number of clinical trials and meta-analyses. However, because SLIT is self-administered by patients without medical supervision, the degree of patient adherence with treatment is still a concern. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception by allergists of issues related to SLIT adherence. Methods: We performed a questionnaire-based survey of 296 Italian allergists, based on the adherence issues known from previous studies. The perception of importance of each item was assessed by a VAS scale ranging from 0 to 10. Results: Patient perception of clinical efficacy was considered the most important factor (ranked 1 by 54% of allergists), followed by the possibility of reimbursement (ranked 1 by 34%), and by the absence of side effects (ranked 1 by 21%). Patient education, regular follow-up, and ease of use of SLIT were ranked first by less than 20% of allergists. Conclusion: These findings indicate that clinical efficacy, cost, and side effects are perceived as the major issues influencing patient adherence to SLIT, and that further improvement of adherence is likely to be achieved by improving the patient information provided by prescribers. © 2010 Scurati et al, publisher and licensee Dove Medical Press Ltd