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Biomedical subjects

E Granieri

Publications and source records attributed to E Granieri.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Incidence of multiple sclerosis in Macomer, Sardinia, 1912-1981: onset of the disease after 1950.

Intensive search of all cases of MS occurring in the Sardinian commune of Macomer since 1912 indicated that MS was absent up to the early 1950s. All 13 ascertained cases had clinical onset in the years 1952-1981. During this period, the average annual incidence was 4.8 per 100,000; the highest incidence was found in the period 1957-1961, slowly decreasing up to 1981. MS was probably introduced after 1945, when the centuries-old isolation of Macomer ended and the native population came into contact with individuals from high- and medium-risk areas.

Adult↗
PubMed1985

The frequency of multiple sclerosis in Italy: a descriptive study in Ferrara.

Results of intensive prevalence surveys on multiple sclerosis carried out in different small regions of Italy have suggested that this country falls into the high-frequency zone for the disease. To verify this hypothesis by studying a large population, we conducted intensive incidence and prevalence survey in the province of Ferrara, northern Italy (mean population, 386,000). Based on 128 patients, the mean incidence per year for the period 1965 through 1979 was 2.2 cases per 100,000. On October 24, 1981, the prevalence rate was 46.1 cases per 100,000. The results support the view that northern Italy is a high-risk area for multiple sclerosis.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Predisposing factors in Bell's palsy: a case-control study.

The frequency of diabetes mellitus reported in subjects affected by Bell's palsy varies widely. In this investigation, a case-control study, we encountered a frequency of 24.8%. In addition, arterial hypertension and lipid disturbances were found to affect subjects with Bell's palsy more frequently than controls. These findings appear to suggest a primarily ischaemic pathogenesis for most cases of idiopathic peripheral facial paralysis. Furthermore, the finding of significantly lower taste impairment in diabetics than in non-diabetics with Bell's palsy may support the hypothesis of a vascular rather than a metabolic pathogenesis in these cases also. In fact, the vessels supplying the distal portion of the facial nerve, probably more affected in the diabetic patients in order to preserve taste sensation, have such a particular anatomical configuration that this might favour the onset of a diabetic small vessel disease which, in turn, would represent a factor of easier decompensation.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

Acute cerebrovascular insults in homozygous beta-thalassaemia: a case report.

Neurological complications following vascular thrombotic crises are frequent and occur in sickle cell anaemia and its variants, but are less well recognized in thalassaemias. A case of beta-thalassaemia major is reported complicated by an ischaemic lesion involving the right cerebellar hemisphere. The probable pathogenesis is considered and the literature on the matter briefly reviewed. In agreement with other reports, the interference of risk factors provided by or occurring in association with multiple blood-transfusions is hypothesized. Consequently, caution is recommended in giving large blood-transfusions to thalassaemic patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1983

A descriptive study of epilepsy in the district of Copparo, Italy, 1964-1978.

Worldwide investigation of the epidemiology of epilepsy has suggested wide variations in the frequency of convulsive disorders. However, descriptive studies in general populations cannot be completely comparable because of a remarkable methodological dishomogeneity in definition of epilepsy, classification of seizures, and ascertainment, collection, and selection of the cases. The position with regard to the Mediterranean people was still little known, and the few studies presently available from Italy offer underestimates of epilepsy frequency owing to incompleteness in case-collection practices and lack of information about the incidence of the disease. Therefore, to verify the true frequency of epilepsy in our country, we performed a community-based epidemiologic study of convulsive disorders in the district of Copparo (population 45,153) in northern Italy. Based on 278 accepted cases with "active" epilepsy, the prevalence per 1,000 population on December 31, 1978, was 6.2 (6.4 if standardized to the Italian population). The average annual incidence for the period 1964 through 1978 was 33.1 per 100,000 (38.3 if standardized). These results, similar to those found in other Western countries, support the view that the frequency of epilepsy in Italy as a whole is higher than that indicated by the Italian studies previously published, and suggest that epilepsy is evenly distributed in Europe and the United States. Antecedents which could be considered potential causes of epilepsy were found in 39.6%, and in 39.1% of the prevalence and incidence cases, respectively; for both prevalence and incidence groups, perinatal brain injuries were the most frequent event. This high proportion of epileptic cases with underlying causes emphasizes the urgency of planning precautionary measures in Italy to improve prenatal and perinatal medical care.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1983

The frequency of multiple sclerosis in Mediterranean Europe. An incidence and prevalence study in Barbagia, Sardinia, insular Italy.

Recent investigations on multiple sclerosis (MS) distribution in Italy, based on relatively small population groups, contradict the current thesis, derived from studies undertaken in populations exceeding 300,000, of a lower spreading of the disease in Mediterranean Europe. Intensive surveys on small populations strengthen the suggestion that Italy is a high-risk area, although MS studies based on prevalence rather than incidence could also be biased by geographic variables making prevalence unsuitable for comparing MS prevalence rates found in different years and/or zones. We report a further epidemiologic study in Barbagia, Sardinia, insular Italy, undertaken both to establish the MS incidence in the last 20 years, and to estimate a new prevalence rate. Based on 31 probable incident cases, the mean incidence per year for the years 1961-1980 was 2.9 per 100,000 (3.2 if age- and sex-standardized to the Italian population). On October 24, 1981, the prevalence per 100,000 was 65.3 (77.9 if standardized to the Italian population). These results confirm that in Barbagia, MS occurs more frequently than expected in a Mediterranean area, and give further support to the idea that MS frequency in Italy is similar to that established for most central and northern European countries.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1982

Italy: a medium- or high-risk area for multiple sclerosis? An epidemiologic study in Barbagia, Sardinia, southern Italy.

Italy is currently regarded as a medium-frequency area for MS. In recent years, however, this opinion has been questioned by many. Current public health organization in Italy is inadequate for epidemiologic search, ad accurate estimates of MS frequency are possible only as a result of intensive surveys of small population groups. To date, seven studies of this sort are available, which are comparable in suggesting that Italy also falls into the high-risk zone for MS. This paper reports the results of a similar survey in Barbagia, Sardinia, Southern Italy. Based on 21 probable MS cases, the prevalence per 100,000 on December 31, 1975, was 407, (48.5 of age-and sex-standardized to the Italian population). This result gives further support to the possibility that Italy is a high-risk area for MS.

Epidemiologic Methods↗
PubMed1981

Multiple sclerosis in northern Italy. Prevalence in the province of Ferrara in 1978.

Most available Italian studies indicate that the prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in Italy is lower than 20 per 100,000. Much higher prevalence figures, however, have been recently found in small communities in Sicily. On this basis, it has been suggested that the frequency the MS in Italy has been seriously underestimated and that the true prevalence for MS is probably similar to that established for northern European countries. This paper reports the results of a survey of MS in the various public health districts of the province of Ferrara. The public health districts are homogeneous medical units serving small populations and therefore represent ideal areas for epidemiological purposes. The total prevalence rate of probable MS for the whole province has been found to be at least 26.9 per 100,000. This result supports the view that the frequency of MS in Italy is higher than that indicated by most published studies, but not that Italy is an area of high risk for MS.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1980

Multiple sclerosis in southern Europe. A prevalence study in the sociosanitary district of Copparo, northern Italy.

The prevalence of multiple sclerosis (MS) in the Italian studies presently available is reported to be between 3.3 and 19.5 per 100,000. All these studies, however, have been undertaken in populations exceeding 300,000 and probably offer underestimates of MS frequency. Current sanitary organization in Italy is inadequate for epidemiological search and many patients with MS may be overlooked when large populations are studied. So, accurate estimates of MS frequency are possible only as a result of intensive surveys in small population groups. Prevalence figures of 53 and 32 per 100,000 have been recently reported by Dean et al. who studied the frequency of MS in small population groups in Sicily. The present study reports the results of a similar survey in the district of Copparo (population 45,153) in northern Italy. The prevalence of probable MS found in Copparo was 31 per 100,000. This result confirms the findings of Dean et al. in southern Italy and supports Dean's opinion that the true frequency of MS in Italy as a whole is higher than that indicated by the Italian studies.

Adult↗
PubMed1980

The risk of Parkinson disease in Mediterranean people.

On the basis of previous epidemiologic studies, Parkinson disease was thought to be evenly distributed throughout the world. These studies, however, were conducted only on North European populations. The position with regard to the Mediterranean peoples was still unknown, and we therefore studied the frequency of Parkinson disease on the island of Sardinia, where some ethnic groups of the Mediterranean stock are represented. Based on 967 accepted cases, the prevalence 100,000 population on January 1, 1972, was 65.6; the average annual incidence for the period 1961 through 1971 was 4.9. These figures are one-half of the figures established for North Europeans. Our findings suggest racial differences in predisposition to Parkinson disease. Some Negroid features are present in Sardinians. If, as seems likely, Africans prove to be relatively unsusceptible to the disease, the risk for Sardinians and other Mediterranean ethnic groups might be intermediate between North Europeans and Africans.

Adult↗
PubMed1978

Voluntary lid closing inability. Release of a compulsive reaction to the exploration of the environment.

Voluntary lid closing inability has been observed in two patients with right-sided frontal ischemic damage. The patients developed a transient inability to close their eyelids voluntarily at the same time as a transient forced grasping in the left hand and left hemiparesis not affecting the face. Automatic and reflex lid closures were retained as well as the ability to keep the eyes closed and to reopen them readily on command. In previous reports, inability to close eyelids voluntarily has been attributed to apraxia, paralysis, or motor impersistence. The localization of the lesion observed in our patients suggests other pathogenetic hypotheses similar to compulsive gaze [19]. It is conceivable that the voluntary lid closing inability produced by frontal lobe lesions is due to the release of a compulsion to maintain the lids elevated in the waking state, because of the overactive effect of the visual stimuli.

Adult↗