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Biomedical subjects

M Marroni

Publications and source records attributed to M Marroni.

31 records · Page 2Linked to original sources
PubMed1993

Enterocytozoon bieneusi detection in a patient with human immunodeficiency virus infection and chronic diarrhoea: response to albendazole treatment.

Diarrhoea is a common symptom among HIV-infected subjects. An infective cause is often missed. However, more recent knowledge about pathogens has led to the identification of newly recognized unusual microorganisms, such as Microsporidia. We report a case of infestation with these agents in an HIV-infected subject with chronic diarrhoea.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Four drug-HAART in primary HIV-1 infection: clinical benefits and virologic parameters.

BACKGROUND: From a theoretical standpoint, primary HIV infection (PHI) represents a great chance to modify the natural history of the disease. In this study we purposed a four drugs regimen with zidovudine, lamivudine, ritonavir and saquinavir to treat aggressively the infection and achieve a complete immune reconstitution. METHODS: This is an Italian multicentric open label study. Adult patients with PHI were eligible for the study if they met at least one clinical criterion and one laboratory criterion of the following. Clinical criteria: Signs and symptoms of acute retroviral syndrome within the past 70 days, exposure to HIV-1 within the last 3 months, a preceding negative antibody test within the past 6 months. Laboratory criteria: Detectable p24 antigen with neutralization in serum; detectable HIV-RNA in plasma; indeterminate Western blot test with negative or low positive value HIV antibody in ELISA test. RESULTS: Since April 1997 to April 1999 40 patients with PHI have been enrolled; 80% of this cohort referred symptoms related to acute antiretroviral syndrome. Treatment has been withdrawn in 17 patients (12 for intolerance, 3 for toxicity and 2 for failure). At baseline the mean CD4+ T cells count and CD4/CD8 ratio were 537 (range 55-1287) and 0.58 (range 0.1-1.03) and the mean plasma HIV-RNA level was 5.9 log copies/ml (range 3-7.15). Plasmatic HIV-1 RNA levels of all patients dropped below 200 copies/ml in 68% of patients at week 12, 81% at week 24, 93% after 12 months and 100% after 18 months. Immunological parameters have been improved and have achieved normal range since 6th month. CONCLUSIONS: A rapid virologic suppression and immunological reconstitution are associated with PHI therapy. However early treatment should be weighted against the potential disadvantages such as immediate adverse events (intolerance and drug toxicity) and long term manifestation (metabolic disorders).

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Clonal spread of Acinetobacter baumannii in a general intensive care unit.

The epidemiological characterization of multiply resistant Acinetobacter baumannii isolates from a six-bed Intensive Care Unit (ICU) is described. Investigations for A. baumannii were performed in three subsequent surveillance studies. In the first study, surveillance cultures were taken from patients, health care personnel and the environment; in the second study surveillance cultures were taken at 0, 4, and 7 days from all patients admitted consecutively to the ward; and in the third study surveillance cultures were taken from patients, health care personnel and the environment. During the first study all four hospitalized patients were found to harbour A. baumannii. Hand cultures did not grow any A. baumannii when staff entered the ward from home, but 7 positive health care workers were identified out of 25 samples taken during work, and two cultures of environmental specimens grew A. baumannii. During the second study, 4 of 86 (4.6%) patients resulted colonized with A. baumannii. In the third epidemiological study, no A. baumannii was cultured from either patients, health care personnel or the environment. All isolates recovered from various patients or sources produced conserved macrorestriction Pulsed-Field Gel Electrophoresis (PFGE) patterns and showed the same antibiotic resistance; therefore, they can be considered indistinguishable. The same antibiotic resistance and macrorestriction patterns were observed in previously isolated A. baumannii strains in the ward during May 1997, suggesting the persistence of a single A. baumannii in the ICU. The present study confirms that molecular typing is an essential tool in the epidemiology and control of nosocomial infections, showing here the persistence of a single A. baumannii clone in the ICU. The origin of this strain remains unknown but, when basic infection control measures were reinforced, emphasizing the importance of hand antisepsis and judicious use of gloves, control of A. baumannii spread in the ward was achieved.

Acinetobacter baumannii↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Septicemia and systemic inflammatory response].

To determine the relation between endocarditis/septicemia and systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), septic shock, MODS, we performed a retrospective analysis in 196 HIV-negative patients, with endocarditis/septicemia. No deaths were observed between 20 patients with endocarditis without severe infective SIRS/septic shock. On the other hand among 10 patients with endocarditis with severe infective SIRS/septic shock we registered 3 deaths (P = 0.052). No deaths were registered among 93 patients with septicemia without severe infective SIRS/septic shock. Between 73 patients with septicemia and severe infective SIRS/septic shock 9 (12.3%) patients died and, precisely, 7/61 in severe infective SIRS (11.4%) and 2/.12 (16.6%) in septic shock (P = 0.003). The definition of septicemia according to Schottmüller (1914), as a generalized bacterial infection with a persistent bacteremia is still justified. The term "sepsis" has become ambiguous because it has been used as synonym of "acute response to infection", while in the past and presently, at least in Europe, it is synonym of septicemia, persistent bacteremia. The term of SIRS could avoid the misunderstanding. The words: "infective SIRS", "severe infective SIRS", may label properly the reactive events mounted by the host as a useful defence against infections but they become dangerous and bring about septic shock, organ failure and mortality when excessive.

Adolescent↗