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G Giorgetti

Publications and source records attributed to G Giorgetti.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

Ethanol-induced decrease of the expression of glucose transport protein (Glut3) in the central nervous system as a predisposing condition to apoptosis: the effect of age.

We measured the effect of chronic ethanol administration on the expression of Glut3 in the cerebellum and hippocampus of adult and old rats. Glut3 expression significantly decreased in aging, in ethanol-treated rats vs. age-matched controls, and in adult- vs. old ethanol-treated rats. These findings lend consistent support to the hypothesis that disturbances of glucose metabolism due to ethanol may constitute an unfavorable condition predisposing to neuronal death.

Aging↗
PubMed2001

Low prevalence of antigliadin and anti-endomysium antibodies in subclinical/silent celiac disease.

OBJECTIVE: Endomysial antibodies (EMA) are a well-known hallmark of celiac disease, but some recent studies showed that the prevalence of these antibodies in clinical practice is lower than expected. The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of antigliadin (AGA) and EMA antibodies on a consecutive series of subclinical/silent celiac patients. METHODS: We studied 115 consecutive patients with subclinical (92 patients) or silent (23 patients) forms of celiac disease. AGA and EMA were screened in all patients. Histopathology of celiac disease was expressed according to the Marsh classification. RESULTS: The overall AGA in subclinical form were positive in 77% (14 of 18) of patients with partial villous atrophy (VA), in 84% (21 of 25) of patients with subtotal VA, and in 90% (27 of 30) of patients with total VA, whereas EMA were positive in 88.88% (16 of 18) of patients with partial VA, in 92% (23 of 25) of patients with subtotal VA, and 96.66% (29 of 30) of patients with total VA. On the other hand, AGA were positive in 0% (zero of two) of patients with Marsh I and in 30% (three of 10) of patients with Marsh II, whereas EMA were positive in 0% (zero of two) of patients with Marsh I and in 40% (four of 10) of patients with Marsh II (Marsh I-IIIa vs Marsh IIIb-c, p = < 0.005 in overall AGA-positive patients and p = < 0.0001 in EMA-positive patients). At the same time the overall AGA in silent form were positive in 60% (three of five) of patients with partial VA, in 66.66% (four of six) of patients with subtotal VA, and in 77.77% (seven of nine) of patients with total VA, whereas EMA were positive in 80% (four of five) of patients with partial VA, in 83.33% (five of six) of patients with subtotal VA, and in 88.88% (eight of nine) of patients with total VA. On the other hand, overall AGA were positive in 0% of patients with both Marsh I (zero of one) and Marsh II (zero of two), as well as EMA were positive in 0% with both Marsh I (zero of one) and Marsh II (zero of two) (Marsh I-IIIa vs Marsh IIIb-c, p = < 0.001 in overall AGA-positive patients and p = < 0.007 in EMA-positive patients). CONCLUSIONS: At this time small bowel biopsy seems to be the only correct procedure to diagnose a case of suspected celiac disease, especially in patients with mild symptoms or suspected for celiac disease, because they belong to high-risk groups.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

[Non-invasive diagnosis of celiac disease in clinical practice].

Coeliac disease is a permanent intolerance to gluten which requests a quick diagnosis as soon as possible to prevent neoplastic and non-neoplastic complications of the disease, since frequently coeliac disease shows pauci- or asymptomatic forms. We describe herein the most common non invasive diagnostic methods used in clinical practice to diagnose coeliac disease, as well as we describe non invasive methods poorly used or which will play a key role in the non invasive diagnosis of coeliac disease in the future.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1999

Low plasma cholesterol: a correlate of nondiagnosed celiac disease in adults with hypochromic anemia.

OBJECTIVE: Hypochromic anemia is at times attributable to nondiagnosed celiac disease. The aim of this study was to define the correlates of celiac disease in anemic adults without overt malabsorption. METHODS: One hundred patients with hypochromic anemia and without diarrhea underwent a complete diagnostic work-up, including screening for celiac disease, i.e., upper endoscopy with duodenal biopsy and search of antiendomysium antibodies. RESULTS: Patients with hypochromic anemia were from two different Divisions and were analyzed as a single group because they were not significantly different for any variable. Hypochromic anemia was attributable to celiac disease in 10 patients. Compared to anemic patients without celiac disease, anemic patients with celiac disease had significant or borderline significant differences for plasma cholesterol (-17.9%), albumin (-9.4%), and body mass index (-11.8%), but not for gender distribution, age, weight, height, blood hemoglobin, mean corpuscolar volume, plasma iron, and ferritin. All anemic patients with celiac disease had plasma cholesterol < 156 mg/100 ml. Within the entire cohort of anemic patients, plasma cholesterol inversely related to prevalence of celiac disease (p < 0.001); also plasma albumin and body mass index inversely related to celiac disease, but coefficients were borderline significant (p = 0.056 and 0.052, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The data suggest that among patients with hypochromic anemia, plasma cholesterol in the high-to-normal range could be used to exclude the presence of celiac disease. Other nutritional markers are less sensitive as indices of risk of celiac disease. Hematological indices are not of help to define the risk of celiac disease in anemic patients without signs of malabsorption.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1999

Experimental infection by Vibrio anguillarum in mice and guinea pigs.

The fish pathogen Vibrio anguillarum causes a lethal infection in farmed fish characterized by hemorrhagic septicemia. There are no reports of experimental laboratory infections in warm-blooded animals. We investigated the effects of an intraperitoneal infection with different doses of a V. anguillarum suspension in mice and guinea pigs. The infection caused a 95-100% of mortality in 24-48 h. Hemorrhagic septicemia was observed at necropsy and confirmed by histological and hematological examination. Immunohistochemically positive bacterial clumps were detected exclusively in vessel lumen in all examined organs, including brain, and V. anguillarum was reisolated in pure culture from all organs, particularly from the kidney. Blood analysis showed erythropenia and leukopenia with granulocytosis in mice, platelet reduction and leukopenia with lymphocytosis in guinea pigs.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Loco-regional radioimmunotherapy of high-grade malignant gliomas using specific monoclonal antibodies labeled with 90Y: a phase I study.

A Phase I radioimmunotherapy trial was conducted in which radioconjugated monoclonal antibody (MAb) was directly infused into the tumor or postoperative tumoral bed in patients with high-grade malignant glioma. BC-4, a murine MAb that recognizes tenascin, was used in these studies. The MAb was labeled with 90Y, a pure beta emitter with maximum energy of 2.284 MeV, which can penetrate into tissue up to 0.5-0.7 cm. Stable 90Y-labeled MAb conjugates were prepared using the chelator p-isothiocyanatobenzyl derivative of diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (ITC-Bz-DTPA), obtaining >95% labeling efficiency and conserving the antibodies' immunoreactivity (>85%). Twenty patients, 2 with anaplastic astrocytoma and 18 with glioblastoma, were included in the study. All of the patients had been treated previously with conventional therapies (surgery, external radiotherapy, and chemotherapy) and presented with progressive disease not amenable to further treatment. A dose-escalation study was performed using doses ranging from 5-30 mCi (185-1110 MBq) of 90Y-labeled MAb BC-4. The protein dose of MAb was always 1 mg. Three patients were treated at the 5, 10, 15, and 20 mCi levels, and the 25- and 30-mCi doses were each administered to 4 patients. Systemic toxicity was completely absent in all of the patients. The maximum tolerated dose to the brain was 25 mCi (925 MBq). The average dose to the tumor was 3200 cGy/mCi. Doses to the liver, bone marrow, and kidneys were below 10 cGy/mCi in all of the cases. Biodistribution studies demonstrated that the 90Y-labeled MAb accreted exclusively in the neoplastic area without any diffusion into the normal brain or other normal organs. No clinical responses were recorded because of the very advanced stage of disease at the time of radioimmunotherapy.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

[Pharmacological treatment of delusional depression].

Delusional depression is characterised by the presence of symptoms such as hallucinations (typically auditory) and delusions either mood congruent and incongruent. Most commonly the content of delusions is consistent with the depressive themes: guilt, unworthlessness, poverty, death. Hallucinations, when present, are not elaborate and may involve voices that berate the patient for shortcomings or sins. Mood incongruent psychotic symptoms include persecutory delusions, delusions of thought insertion or thought broadcasting. Several pharmacological studies have demonstrated a differential response pattern in delusional depression and in nondelusional depression. Delusional depressives in fact, have a much lower response rate to tricyclic antidepressant treatment alone (20-25%) than nondelusional depressives (70-80%). The combination treatment with tricyclic and neuroleptic drugs leads to a dramatic improvement in the response rate in these patients (68-95%). The drugs most widely used are, for tricyclics, amitryptiline (150-215 mg/day) and desipramine (150-200 mg/day), and for neuroleptics, perphenazine (30-50 mg/day), but good results have also been reported with haloperidol (8-20 mg/day). The better results obtained with the tricyclic-neuroleptic association seem to be related to 3 factors: an increased tricyclic plasma level due to a competitive hynibition in the hepatic hydroxilation processes caused by neuroleptic agents: a dopaminergic blockade and an increased serotonergic and noradrenergic activity. Treatment with neuroleptics alone improves the symptomatology only in 19-50% of the patients. If the patient does not show a good response to the combination of tricyclics and neuroleptics, lithium augmentation (600-1200 mg/day) notably ameliorates the rates of clinical response (80-90% of cases). The treatment of delusional depressive patients with amoxapine leads to positive results in 70-80% of cases. Very good results have also been noted with bupropione (300-750 mg/day) after only a week of therapy. A complete symptomatological remission has been observed with 1-Dopa (1000 mg/day). The relatively low number of delusional depressive patients treated with SSRI to date does not allow to draw any consistent and definite conclusion on their real efficacy in this severe form of depression. For the continuation treatment it is recommended to continue the tricyclic-neuroleptic treatment for at least 6 months, at the lowest neuroleptic dosage which allows a long lasting clinical remission. Once the clinical remission is complete, the neuroleptic agent can be gradually tapered in some months, unless the patient had previous recurrence with the tricyclic agent alone. To the patients who show a symptomatological re-exacerbation during neuroleptic tapering, must be given again the combination treatment. In these cases it is important to assess more often and carefully the patient because of the increased risk of tardive diskinesia. Inconsistent results have been reported regarding the role of lithium in preventing relapses and recurrences: some authors suggest a prophylactic treatment with lithium and/o tricyclics in monotherapy to avoid the risks linked to a long-lasting neuroleptic treatment; others authors have documented a higher risk of relapse with lithium and/o tricyclics in monotherapy than with the tricyclic-neuroleptic combination treatment.

Amitriptyline↗
PubMed1996

Morphological, physico-chemical and biological variations in Vibrio anguillarum cultured at low osmolarity.

The Authors studied the morphological, biochemical, physico-chemical and biological characteristics of Vibrio anguillarum cultured on different growth conditions, characterized by low osmolarity and high temperature (37 degrees). One culture was subcultured for several days in tryptone soya agar with 0.5% Nacl at 37 degrees C incubation until the cell morphology was stabilized. The low osmolarity, through an osmotic shock, induced remarkable morphological modifications in the strain, evidenced by optic and electron microscopic studied; in addition SDS-PAGE analysis of saline extracts from the culture at 37 degrees C showed a specific new protein band of about 66KDa. This band was correlated with remarkable differences in outer membrane protein composition (OMPs) evidenced by Ag/Ah cross-reactions with rabbit hyperimmune sera against the modified and the reference V. anguillarum strains. Finally, the modified strain proved to be non pathogenic for trout and sea bass.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

[Recurrent brief depression].

The initial conception of manic depressive illness by Kraepelin included short and mild depressive and hypomanic states in the nosologic category of affective illness. The concept of recurrent brief depression was further confirmed in recent community and general practice studies. The diagnostic criteria for recurrent brief depression requires the presence of at least five of nine depressive symptoms analogous to the symptoms of major depression, yet a duration of less than two weeks (in general 1 to 3 days), a recurrence of at least 12 times a year, and the evidence of work impairment. The 1-year prevalence in the general population is about 5% and the lifetime prevalence 16%. Recurrent brief depression may develop into major depression and vice versa in about the same percentage of cases. Patients with combined major and recurrent brief depression are more severely affected, have a higher suicide attempt rate, and have an increased frequency of treatment--seeking than patients with only one condition. Recurrent brief depression is typically characterized by monthly occurring short-lived depressive episodes, with an erratic, relapsing and chronic course and significant suicide risk. The duration of these episodes in clinical samples was of 3-5 days on average, with a medium number of episode a year of 20. The onset of episodes is sudden and patients progress rapidly to the severe levels of depression. Resolution of the symptoms also tends to be rapid. The suddeness of the episodes may contribute to the relationship reported with suicidal behaviour. This is a disabling illness because of the frequency with which the episodes recur reported as erratic "irregularly regular".(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗
PubMed1974

[Contribution of clinical, biohumoral, morphological and instrumental parameters to the diagnosis of some chronic liver diseases].

A comparative study concerning the diagnostic importance of clinical, humoral, morphological and instrumental parameters had been carried out on 105 patients affected by chronic liver disease (51 cases with liver cirrhosis, 15 with metastatic tumors, 10 with liver steatosis and 29 with chronic hepatitis). The final diagnosis of the patients used for the comparison was formulated considering the greatest numbers of data. The results of this study can be drawn as follows: --clinical and laboratory data show satisfactory diagnostic value principally in patients suffering from liver cirrhosis (90 per ceny) and metastatic tumors (93 per cent); --peritoneoscopy appears to be generally the most useful procedure with the most significance value above all in cirrhotic patients; --morphological examination in biopsy specimen results of the greatest importance in patients affected by chronic hepatitis and hepatosteatosis while rather high has been the percentage of false negatives in secondary tumors of the liver (40 per cent) and cirrhosis (68 per cent); --scintiphotoscanning is generally less useful as a diagnostic tool than peritoneoscopy a part of the cases of metastatic tumors. In such a condition the diagnostic power of both the procedures results to be identical; --it may be concluded that an integrating diagnostic information generally results to be the most precise and maximally capable of reducing the number of false negatives. In individual cases, of course, the less important procedure shows to have the maximum of diagnostic capacity.

Biopsy, Needle↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Clinical evaluation of patients with squamous carcinoma of the oral cavity.

AIMS: To make a clinical evaluation of patients with squamous carcinoma of the oral cavity. METHODS: The clinical condition of 72 patients with squamous carcinoma of the mouth, hospitalized at the Institute of Oral and Maxillo-Facial Surgery, 2nd University of Naples, Italy, between 1992 and 1996, were examined. The patients were evaluated system by system, staged by TNM-UICC and classified by ASA and by the Karnofsky and Burchenal and the Zubrod et al. Performance status methods. RESULTS: Evaluation by the two methods produced different results. Of the patients examined, 34.5% showed more than one systemic disorder. 51.4% were in ASA classes 3-4. CONCLUSIONS: The presence of a disease with poor prognosis associated with advanced neoplastic stage (stages III-IV; 69.4% of the total) precluded radical surgery in 32% of patients, who were treated with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Prevalence and clinical presentation of subclinical/silent celiac disease in adults: an analysis on a 12-year observation.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In recent years, an increased incidence of subclinical/silent celiac disease has been reported. Thus, we herein describe the prevalence and the clinical presentation of subclinical/silent celiac disease in 252 consecutive diagnosed celiac patients. METHODOLOGY: From 1988 to 1999 we diagnosed 252 celiac patients (74M and 178F, mean age: 27.9 yrs; range: 15-65 yrs, F/M ratio: 2.4). 144 patients were referred to us due to gastrointestinal symptoms, while 108 were referred to us from other specialists due to unexplained or unresponsive disease. All patients underwent both total immunoglobulin A and antigliadin antibodies antiendomysium antibody and evaluation, followed by gastrointestinal endoscopy with duodenal histological examination. RESULTS: 144 (57.14%) and 108 (42.86%) patients showed classical and subclinical/silent celiac disease, respectively. The most frequent extraintestinal marker of subclinical celiac disease were iron-deficiency anemia (27.77%), alopecia and dermatitis herpetiformis (11.36%), osteoporosis (6.81%) and recurrent aphtous stomatitis (5.68%), while first-degree relatives (30%), Basedow's disease (25%) and insulin-dependent diabetes (20%) were the most frequent in silent celiac disease. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms the extremely polymorphic nature of this condition that can affect several organs and apparatus without gastrointestinal symptoms. However, a more precise description of subclinical/silent celiac disease can only emerge from screening studies on general populations.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Enteral nutrition in maxillofacial oncology].

The authors present a review regarding knowledge of malnutrition in maxillofacial oncology. The causes of nutritional deficit in head and neck tumor derived from metabolic alteration, consequent to the presence neoplasia and antineoplastic therapy. They analyze how to evaluate clinical status in malnutrition patients and they show different therapeutic strategy. The authors emphasise advantages and disadvantages of EN and TPN and present their nutritional forms, based on the EN, analyzing the characteristics.

Antineoplastic Agents↗