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Biomedical subjects

G Formicola

Publications and source records attributed to G Formicola.

5 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1999

Word recall correlates with sleep cycles in elderly subjects.

Morning recall of words presented before sleep was studied in relation to intervening night sleep measures in elderly subjects. Night sleep of 30 elderly subjects aged 61-75 years was recorded. Before sleep, subjects were presented with a list of paired non-related words and cued recall was asked immediately after the morning awakening. Recall positively correlated with average duration of NREM/REM cycles, and with the proportion of time spent in cycles (TCT) over total sleep time (TST). No significant correlations were found with other sleep or wake measures. These results suggest the importance of sleep structure for sleep-related memory processes in elderly adults.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Slow wave sleep (SWS) distribution across night sleep episode in the elderly.

Slow wave sleep (SWS) distribution across night sleep was shown to be different between infants and young adults. The present research aimed at studying the SWS distribution across night sleep in elderly subjects. Nine healthy elderly subjects, 61-71 years old, were submitted to nocturnal polygraphic sleep recording. Eleven young subjects, 21-23 years old, were the control group. Recordings were visually analyzed according to Rechtschaffen and Kales rules; the method proposed by Webb and Dreblow was used for scoring SWS. An NREM-REM cycle was defined as a sequence of NREM and REM sleep not interrupted by a waking period longer than 15 minutes. SWS percentage was calculated for each successive NREM episode. No significant association between SWS percentage and cycle rank was shown in elderly subjects, whereas a significant association was observed in the young ones. This kind of SWS distribution could be interpreted as reflecting the restructuring of internal organization of sleep in the elderly.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Functional uncertainty, aging and memory processes during sleep.

Disorganized sleep patterns, can be found both during normal development and in pathological conditions. Aging could also be accompanied by a disorganization of the night sleep episode; sleep could be interrupted by spontaneous awakening, sleep cycle could be shortened or incomplete, sleep states modified. These patterns suggest an inability to sustain a stable condition, i.e. a condition of functional uncertainty. Biological and cognitive implications of functional uncertainty conditions are discussed. In particular, the hypothesis has been put forward that disturbances of sleep could have a detrimental role on memory. Recent results obtained in our lab support this hypothesis: recall is correlated with NREM-REM cycles proportion. Future research should ascertain the role of the functional uncertainty with respect to the kind of memory being involved during sleep, and establish how much and for which cognitive processes (including those involved in dream production) the inability to sustain a steady condition impairs the functioning during sleep. The duration of the functional uncertainty condition is also important. The long-term study of the link between functional uncertainty and cognitive resources, could be important for the understanding of the night life and for an adequate treatment of patients.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

[Cefoxitin in emergency surgery].

In basic pharmacological studies, sodium cefoxitin has proved to possess the following features: a broad action spectrum, resistance to bacterial beta-lactamase, activity against anaerobic species, rapid distribution, rapid serum and bile concentration, rapid, elevated excretion in the urine in active form, and low local and general toxicity. Patients in an Emergency Surgery Department often present the following conditions: highly compromised general situation, serious, often polymicrobic sepsis with aerobic and anaerobic flora, prior treatment without result with various cycles of chemo-antibiotic treatment. The theoretical conditions therefore exist to assess the effectiveness of sodium cefoxitin in patients admitted to an emergency surgery department and presenting serious post-surgical or post-traumatic sepsis, or sepsis due to pathology that can be corrected surgically. A study of 14 patients (3 g i.v. or i.m. for 6 days) showed 71% complete cure, 21% definite improvements and one death (treatment commenced 36 hours prior to death). It is therefore maintained that sodium cefoxitin is particularly indicated as first-choice antibiotic in emergency surgery situations.

Bacterial Infections↗