Biomedical subjects

M Soresi

Publications and source records attributed to M Soresi.

76 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

PubMedDate not supplied

[Incidence of anti-HCV positivity in a Sicilian population with liver diseases].

The discovery of virus C as an etiological agent of chronic liver disease (CLD) has modified previously-held concepts concerning the etiology of this disease. In a study of 581 consecutive patients with CLD, we confirmed that virus C was the sole agent responsible for it in 64.2% of all cases. Moreover, virus C was characteristically associated with virus B, alcohol consumption, and autoimmunity. When the various CLD were separated into subgroups, i.e., chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH), chronic active hepatitis (CAH), and liver cirrhosis (LC), virus C continued to be the main etiological agent, varying from 60.5% to 68.3%: this suggested constant evolution from milder to more severe forms of liver disease. Virus B alone was found less frequently, probably thanks to the virtual elimination of post-transfusion hepatitis B and the anti-B virus vaccination which is now widely administered. Frequency was 15.2% in the CPH group but lower in the LC and CAH groups (7.4% and 6.3% respectively), suggesting that evolution from the milder to the more severe forms of liver disease may not occur. Finally, we confirmed a statistically significant difference in mean age between hepatitis C virus positive men and women (p < 0.0001): in men, frequency was higher in the 20- to 50-year-old group; in women it was higher in the 50+year-old group.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Cathepsin D, B and L circulating levels as prognostic markers of malignant progression.

Growing evidence indicates that lysosomal Cathepsins D (CD), B (CB) and L (CL) may promote carcinogenesis and tumor progression. Therefore, we evaluated their potential value as biochemical parameters of malignant progression in patients with benign diseases which may undergo malignant transformation, such as liver cirrhosis (LC) and chronic pancreatitis (CHP) as well as in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and pancreatic cancer (DPC). CD, CB and CL serum levels were determined by immunoenzymatic assays in LC, CHP, HCC or DPC patients and correlated with a number of biochemical and clinical parameters of these diseases. CD serum levels were increased in LC, CHP and HCC, but not in the DPC group as compared to normal subjects (NS) (P < 0.01). Interestingly, higher levels of this enzyme were observed in LC patients compared to HCC patients ( P < 0.01). CB serum concentrations were increased in all patient groups (P < 0.01). However no difference was evidenced between benign and malignant diseases. CL serum levels were significantly increased only in DPC as compared to NS (P < 0.01) or CHP patients (P < 0.02) and in HCC as compared to NS (P < 0.01). The evaluation of CD, CB and CL serum pattern in LC, CHP, HCC and DPC patients may be useful as additional biochemical parameters in the differential diagnosis and therapeutic monitoring of these diseases. Prospective clinical investigations to assess the potential value of these enzymes as biochemical markers of malignant progression of LC or CHP are warranted by the present data.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Ultrasonographic assessment of gallbladder motility in obese subjects].

The reduction in gallbladder motility could play an important role in the pathogenesis of cholesterinic lithiasis by favouring the precipitation of cholesterol crystals, especially in obese subjects who, as is well known, present a greater biliary secretion of cholesterol. In the present study we evaluated, by ultrasonography, the emptying capacity of gallbladder following a liquid meal in 20 obese subjects (BMI 37.8 +/- 11.8 kg/m2) and in 20 control subjects (BMI 23.2 +/- 1.7 kg/m2). The base and residual volume of the gallbladder, expressed in ml, were significantly higher in the obese group than in the controls: 30.7 +/- 11.8 vs 22.0 +/- 6.7 (t = 2.88 p < 0.001) and 14.6 +/- 7.14 vs 10.2 +/- 4.7 (t = 2.14 p < 0.04), respectively. However, there was no significant difference between the percentages of gallbladder emptying in the two study groups, although in the obese subjects the minimum volume was reached at the 60th minute, while in the controls it occurred at 40 minutes. Our data, in agreement with most reports in the literature, indicate that the volume of the gallbladder is greater in obese subjects and they do not present an intrinsic defect in gallbladder contractility; therefore this condition can be excluded from the risk factors of biliary lithiasis in obese subjects.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Transmission of hepatitis C virus: a study of the main risk factors in a Sicilian population of volunteer blood donors.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is quite widespread in Sicily, and in the absence of a vaccine, prophylaxis is important. In order to determine the most effective means of prophylaxis, we must first understand the main vectors of transmission. METHODOLOGY: We performed a case control study on 274 consecutive anti-HCV virus positive subjects and compared them with 548 anti-HCV negative subjects, matched for sex and age and selected from voluntary blood donors. The modes of transmission were investigated by means of a detailed questionnaire focused on the common risk factors of HCV contagion. RESULTS: Univariate analysis showed associations between HCV infection and transfusions (OR 23.0), surgery (OR 2.2), family history of chronic liver disease (OR 4.54), and drug addiction (OR 5.74). Multiple logistic regression indicated that transfusions (p < 0.0001), surgery (p < 0.002), family history (p < 0.0001), drug addiction (p < 0.002) and alcohol consumption (p < 0.002) are related to the development of HCV infection. CONCLUSIONS: The modes of transmission of HCV in an endemic area of Sicily do not greatly differ from those in other Italian regions; the subjects at greatest risk were those who had received blood transfusions or underwent surgery, alcoholics, drug abusers and those with a family history of chronic liver disease, who are probably more exposed to contracting the infection by non-conventional ways of transmission.

Adult↗