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Biomedical subjects

F Cortese

Publications and source records attributed to F Cortese.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Global and local processing of musical sequences: an event-related brain potential study.

Musical processing can be decomposed into the appreciation of global/holistic and local elements. Here, we investigated the pattern of neural activity associated with the processing of contour-violated (CV) and contour-preserved (CP) melodies. The CV and CP musical sequences were obtained by altering the pitch value of one note within the musical phrase, while keeping both the scale and the key constant. In the unadulterated melody, there was a sustained negativity that was larger over the right than left fronto-central regions. Participants were equally accurate in detecting CV and CP trials, but were slower in detecting CP than CV trials. Globally altered melodies (i.e. CV) generated an early, negative waveform (N2) and a P3b deflection, whereas the CP target only generated a P3b wave. This suggests that global precedence may occur at an early perceptual stage and argues in favor of fractionating musical processing into global and local components.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Event-related brain activity associated with auditory pattern processing.

One of the basic properties of the auditory system is the ability to analyze complex temporal patterns. Here, we investigated the neural activity associated with auditory pattern processing using event-related brain potentials. Participants were presented with a continuously repeating sequence of four tones with rare changes in either the frequency or timing of one of the tones. Both frequency- and time-deviant sounds generated mismatch negativity (MMN) waves that peaked at midline central electrode sites and inverted in polarity at inferior temporal and occipital sites, consistent with generators in the supratemporal plane. The MMN scalp topography was similar for the frequency- and time-deviant stimuli, suggesting that both spectral and temporal relations among elements of an auditory pattern are encoded in a unified memory trace.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1999

Binding visual features during high-rate serial presentation.

The neural mechanism supporting performance during single and feature conjunction detection was investigated using event-related brain potentials. In different blocks of trials, participants responded to visual targets defined by one of two colors, one of two orientations, or both color and orientation. Participants were faster and more accurate in detecting targets defined by a single feature than for targets defined by a conjunction of features. Compared with the single feature conditions, conjunction targets were associated with enhanced negativity between 230 and 270 ms post-stimulus and showed a delayed P3 latency. The relative timing of feature specific attention effects isolated in difference potential shows that feature conjunction occurs concurrently with the analysis of single features.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia-associated membranous glomerulopathy: remission with fludarabine.

In some individuals, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) may be associated with glomerular disease from membranous nephropathy with resultant nephrotic syndrome. CLL is characterized by abnormal immunoregulation with a malignant clonal proliferation of lymphocytes. The association between the abnormal clone and nephrotic syndrome is suggested in some cases by the remission of proteinuria with a reduction in abnormal lymphocyte number after treatment with antineoplastic agents. For the first time, we describe a patient with CLL and associated membranous glomerulopathy whose nephrotic syndrome remitted after treatment with fludarabine, a new purine analogue used in the treatment of refractory CLL.

Antineoplastic Agents↗
PubMed1999

[The endorectal repair of rectovaginal fistulae].

BACKGROUND: Twenty-one patients who had simple rectovaginal fistulas were treated at the Surgical Department of "Tor Vergata" University from 1992 to 1996 all of whom were at the first approach. METHODS: The fistulas were treated with complete excision of the external tract and primary closure of the internal opening with advancement of a rectal mucosal flap, distal to the origin fistulas opening. The vaginal side is left open for drainage. RESULTS: Eighteen of the twenty-one patients had good results; three patients required reoperation for recurrences; all of them had satisfactory results. CONCLUSIONS: The advancement flap technique was very useful for simple rectovaginal fistulas with any sphincter damage, and it is very well tolerated by patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Event-related brain activity associated with auditory pattern processing.

One of the basic properties of the auditory system is the ability to analyse complex temporal patterns. Here, we investigated the neural activity associated with auditory pattern processing using event-related brain potentials. Participants were presented with a continuously repeating sequence of four tones with rare changes in either the frequency or timing of one of the tones. Both frequency- and time-deviant sounds generated mismatch negativity (MMN) waves that peaked at midline central electrode sites and inverted in polarity at inferior temporal and occipital sites, consistent with generators in the supratemporal plane. The MMN scalp topography was similar for the frequency- and time-deviant stimuli, suggesting that both spectral and temporal relations among elements of an auditory pattern are encoded in a unified memory trace.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Rhomboid flap procedure for pilonidal sinus: results from 67 cases.

Sixty-seven patients with chronic pilonidal sinuses were treated by excision and rhomboid flap transposition (RFT). Primary healing was obtained in all patients except two who developed a seroma and one who had a partial dehiscence of the surgical wound due to a hematoma, which necessitated drainage through the margin of the flap. The average stay was 5.3 days (range 1-16). All patients returned to normal activities within 2 weeks of surgery. No late recurrence occurred after a mean follow-up of 74.4 months (range 8-137).

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Tall cell variant of papillary thyroid cancer.

Papillary histologic type is the most common form of thyroid carcinoma amounting to 85% cases. This pathology presents a rather good prognosis, but a few years ago, new subtypes have been described. Some of these variants show a fairly good prognosis i.e follicular, macropapillary, encapsulated while others appear to have a decidedly worse one, columnar cells, diffused sclerosing, or even to be clearly malignant as in the case of the tall cell variant. The authors report a case treated by a combined surgical and radiometabolic therapy and evidence the main characteristics of this rare and underestimated neoplasia.

Carcinoma, Papillary↗
PubMed1996

Masking of spatial frequency in visual memory depends on distal, not retinal, frequency.

Spatial frequency discrimination thresholds measured in a two-interval forced choice paradigm are virtually constant across inter-stimulus intervals ranging from 400 to 30,000 msec, demonstrating that an accurate representation of spatial frequency is maintained in short-term memory. This representation can be degraded by briefly flashing a grating during the retention interval. Moreover, this memory masking effect varies with the spatial frequency of the mask, suggesting that the mechanisms used to store spatial frequency in memory are similar to low-level visual filters. In this paper we replicate those previous findings and extend them by showing (1) that accurate memory for spatial frequency lasts as long as 1 min; (2) that memory masking is based on distal (c/cm), not retinal (c/deg), spatial frequency.

Differential Threshold↗
PubMed1994

Phantom lower limb as a perceptual marker of neural plasticity in the mature human brain.

Three lower limb amputees, who reported phantom sensations, referred somatic stimuli delivered to skin regions proximal to the stump to select points on the phantom limb. Stimuli on the rectum and anus (e.g. during defecation) and on genital areas (e.g. during sexual intercourse) induced analogous, although less precise, mislocation to the phantom limb. Although the representation of the stump in the somatosensory pathway is lateral to that of the amputated lower limb, both anus and genitals are mapped medially to the areas formerly subserving the amputated lower limb. Therefore the mislocalization phenomenon can be considered as a perceptual landmark of new functional connections between the deprived areas and the adjacent ones, thus suggesting a dynamic neural remodelling in the mature nervous system, which was previously considered as a static entity.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Rapid sensory remapping in the adult human brain as inferred from phantom breast perception.

We provide evidence for a perceptual marker of neuroplasticity in female mastectomy patients who reported phantom breast perceptions. When tactile stimuli were delivered to dorso-thoracic, shoulder and pinna regions ipsilateral to the mastectomy, these patients (in some cases even 5 days after the operation) referred the stimuli to the amputated breast mainly to the nipple. The somatosensory representation of the stimulated regions is probably adjacent to the former representation of the amputated breast. These results suggest that input from stimulated regions of the skin can drive neurones originally driven by input from the amputated breast. The apparent functional relation between pinna and nipple might give clues to the mechanisms underlying referred sensations and pain.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

[Surgical complications in renal transplantation].

Technical complications in kidney transplantation are unusual but with a high incidence of graft loss and mortality. The authors report their experience with 89 kidney transplants with an overall incidence of 16.8%. Only early and aggressive surgical procedures can resolve certain of the complications.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1991

[A case of severe posterior hepatic lesion caused by contusion trauma].

A case of blunt liver trauma with massive peritoneal hemorrhage due to a major intraparenchymal injury with active bleeding from a posterior tributary of the right hepatic vein is reported. The treatment consisted of resectional debridement of the VII and VI segment of Couinaud and hemostasis was possible in total vascular exclusion without an intracaval shunt.

Accidents, Traffic↗
PubMed1991

[Recurrent digestive hemorrhage of jejunal angioma].

A case of obscure recurrent gastrointestinal bleeding in a 78 year old man is reported. Selective mesenteric angiography made it possible to identify the site of hemorrhage in the upper jejunum. The pre- and intraoperative problems in case of small bowel vascular lesions are reviewed.

Aged↗