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Biomedical subjects

F Pistoia

Publications and source records attributed to F Pistoia.

12 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Prevalence of Parkinson's disease in the L'Aquila district, central Italy.

OBJECTIVE: We estimated the prevalence of Parkinson's disease (PD) in the L'Aquila district. METHODS: Cases of PD were identified screening all available case sources including general practitioners and antiparkinsonian drug-users by means of pharmacy records. Prevalence of PD was computed considering the prevalence day of December 31, 2001. RESULTS: On the prevalence day, 682 patients with PD were alive and residing in the L'Aquila district. A total of 354 patients were women and 328 men. The overall crude prevalence rate was 229.3/100,000 (95% CI 212.7-247.1), without any difference between men (227.4/100,000; 95% CI 200.0-257.5) and women (231.1/100,000; 95% CI 202.2-263.1). Prevalence rates increased with age in both sexes and were higher in urban (244.5/100,000; 95% CI 213.7-278.5) than in rural residents (214.7/100,000; 95% CI 189.0-242.9) (SRR = 1.7; 95% CI 1.3-2.1). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of PD in the L'Aquila district was within the range of prevalence rates found in our country and steeply increased with advancing age in both sexes.

Age of Onset↗
PubMed1987

Ball-and-socket ankle joint.

The ball-and-socket ankle joint is a malformation of the ankle in which the articular surface of the talus is hemispherical in both the anteroposterior and lateral projections and has a congruent, concave tibial articular surface. Fourteen patients with this condition were identified retrospectively. Thirteen patients were thought to have the congenital type of ball-and-socket ankle joint which in many was associated with tarsal coalition, short limb, and ray fusion and deletion anomalies. One case of the acquired type, demonstrating less geometric rounding of the talar margins, was seen in a patient with myelomeningocele, probably resulting from sensory and motor deficits. Although the exact etiology of the congenital type is unknown, its association with other malformations suggests that the ball-and-socket ankle joint results from an overall maldevelopment of the ankle and foot.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Contrast material in posterior vaginal fornix mimicking bladder rupture: CT features.

Abdominopelvic CT of a 22-year-old woman who sustained blunt abdominal trauma revealed a collection of contrast material posterior to the bladder. This CT appearance was interpreted as evidence of bladder rupture, despite previously performed normal retrograde cystography. Subsequent urologic studies confirmed the absence of bladder injury. Retrospective review of CT revealed that collection was within the vagina. This case demonstrates an important false-positive CT diagnosis of bladder rupture and confirms the importance of retrograde cystography for the diagnosis of bladder rupture.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Endoscopic diagnosis and treatment of juvenile solitary polyps, in the light of the unusual but proven neoplastic potential].

For many years a neoplastic potentiality of the juvenile polyps has been denied. The authors performed a critical review of the international literature about the neoplastic transformation of the juvenile polyps. Each examined case had to respect three conditions: 1) exhaustive hystological findings certifying a clear neoplastic degeneration of a juvenile polyp; 2) clear evidence of single juvenile polyposis (< 5), presence in the colon and rectum only and absence of familiarity; 3) reliable diagnostic practice (endoscopic and/or hystological evidence). During the review we collected 271 cases of juvenile polyposis observed in 12 countries, 97 of which (35.79%) showed neoplastic transformation, adenomatous type in 50 (18.45%) and carcinomatous type in 47 (17.34%), and 13 cases of neoplastic degeneration of single juvenile polyps. The review shows clearly and strongly that the risk of cancer in the juvenile polyposis can reach the risk of the adenomatous polyposis. The neoplastic degeneration exists in the single juvenile polyps even if in a lower degree.

Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Does rifaximin prevent complications of diverticular disease? A retrospective study.

While the treatment of complicated diverticular disease (DD) is standardized, the approach to the symptomatic DD and prevention of relapsing complicated DD is still debated. An open question is whether nonabsorbable antibiotics may reduce the incidence of major complications of DD. We wanted to retrospectively analyze the prevalence of this disease in a large population of patients undergoing colonoscopy in our center in the last 10 years. Patients with symptomatic or complicated DD were treated with rifaximin 1,200 mg/die for 10-12 days during the acute phase in addition to the appropriate systemic antibiotics, followed by a prophylactic regimen with 800 mg/die for 7 days every month. The patients were followed up to December 2003, and the incidence of new complications and the relapses of symptomatology were determined. A total of 11,344 patients were screened. Of them, 2,287 showed an anatomical diverticulosis, and 408 had a diagnosis of complicated DD. The results indicate that the prevalence of DD--either in the uncomplicated or complicated form--in our area (Abruzzo, Italy) is identical to that of European countries, whose diet is characterized by a low amount of fiber and a high content of calories and refined sugars. Along a period of 10 years, a relapsing symptomatology of DD was observed in 112 patients treated with rifaximin (4.89%), while new complications of the DD were observed in 27 patients (1.18%). The comparison of these data with those of larger published series suggests a possible role of rifaximin in the prevention of DD main complications.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

The role of xenon CT measurements of cerebral blood flow in the clinical determination of brain death.

The demonstration of absent blood flow to the brain is often used as a confirmatory test of brain death. Traditionally, cerebral angiography and dynamic radionuclide brain scanning have been used for this purpose. Recently, xenon CT cerebral blood flow techniques have been developed and applied to a wide variety of clinical problems, including the confirmation of brain death. We report our experience with xenon CT studies performed over a 7-year period (1983-1989) in 30 patients with brain injuries. These patients met clinical criteria for brain death within 24 hr of the study. Twenty patients had average global flow values of less than 5 ml/100 ml/min. Seven patients demonstrated mixed flow patterns, whereby large areas of brain showed flow values of less than 5 ml/100 ml/min and residual pockets of flow greater than 5 ml/100/ml/min. Globally symmetric normal to hyperemic flows were seen in three patients. Our study suggests that the demonstration of average global flows of less than 5/ml/100 ml/min is confirmatory of brain death. Demonstration of persistent flow to the entire brain or regions of the brain is not diagnostic of brain death but also does not exclude such an outcome in patients with severe brain injuries. Xenon-derived flow information may be clinically useful in determining the patient's prognosis and in counseling the patient's family.

Adolescent↗