Biomedical subjects

P Filippini

Publications and source records attributed to P Filippini.

49 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMed1983

Circulating complement fixing immune complexes in chronic hepatitis. Use of anti-C3 enzyme immunoassay to define antibody class and nature of antigen.

An anti-C3 enzyme immunoassay (anti-C3 EIA) was used to identify the antigen and antibody of immune complexes (IC). HBsAg, liver cell membrane antigens (LSP and LP-2), IgA, IgG and IgM were determined in IC of 258 patients with chronic active hepatitis (CAH) and 31 patients with chronic persistent hepatitis (CPH). IC that contained an antibody of either IgG, IgM or IgA class were detected in all types of CAH and CPH investigated. IC were seen more frequently in patients with cirrhosis than in CAH patients without cirrhosis and patients with CPH. LSP and LP-2 in IC were detected in 50% of patients with CAH and, infrequently, in CPH patients. In a group of 56 patients with CAH, followed for two to nine years, those patients treated with steroids showed a tendency to clear IC, whereas no variation was seen in untreated patients. While the presence of IC seems to indicate a decreased clearance of IC, a damaging activity of IC on the liver or the immune system remains to be demonstrated.

Antigen-Antibody Complex↗

PubMed1980

[Maternal-fetal transmission of hepatitis B virus. Follow-up study of 21 infants born to HBSAG-positive mothers, and 6 born to HBSAG-negative mothers with anti-HBV antibodies].

Vertical transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV) was studied in 21 mother-infant pairs. A transient HBs-antigenemia was observed in 60% of the 10 children born to HBsAg healthy carrier mothers and 91% of the 11 babies born to mothers with HBsAg-positive CAH. Among the 16 children showing HBs-antigenemia, 3 developed acute viral hepatitis two of whom showed progression to chronicity.

Antibodies, Viral↗

PubMed1980

Serum levels of hepatitis B surface and core antigens during immunosuppressive treatment of HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis.

One of the following treatments was randomly assigned to 101 consecutive patients with biopsy-proven chronic active hepatitis: prednisone 20 mg daily, azathioprine 100 mg daily, prednisone 20 mg and azathioprine 50 mg daily, or B vitamins 2 tablets daily (control group). Patients were observed at the beginning of the study, then at 2, 6, and 12 months after treatment. At each visit levels of HBsAg and Dane-particle-associated core-antigen (HBcAg) and their corresponding antibodies were determined. 42 patients were HBcAg positive at the beginning of the study. Of these 42 patients, the 34 who were under treatment remained HBcAg positive and showed a rise in HBcAg titre, while the 8 who were not treated had a fall in HBcAg titre (6 patients) or became HBcAg negative (2 patients) in 6 months. Among 59 patients who were HBcAg negative at the beginning of the study, this antigen became persistently detectable in 40% of the 42 patients who were treated, and was transiently present in 2 (12%) out of the 17 untreated patients (p < 0.05). Our data indicate that long-term prednisone and/or azathioprine treatments favour the replication of hepatitis-B virus in patients with HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis.

Chronic Disease↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of immunosuppressive therapy on HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis in relation to presence or absence of HBeAg and anti-HBe.

Two hundred and four patients with biopsy-proven HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis were treated for at least 2 years with azathioprine, prednisolone or a combination of both, or were untreated. Prevalences of HBeAg, anti-HBe, and anti-HBc were 26, 58, and 100%, respectively. Criteria for improvement or progression of disease were based on clinical, biochemical, and morphologic parameters. Prednisolone therapy and combination therapy did not modify the course of the disease in HBeAg-positive patients; azathioprine therapy may have been deleterious for these patients. Among HBeAg-negative patients, deterioration or death occurred more frequently in those who were untreated than in those who received the combination of azathioprine and prednisolone. Prednisolone therapy was of moderate effect, whereas azathioprine did not influence the outcome.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Interaction between HDV and HBV infection in HBsAg-chronic carriers.

We studied the interaction between HBV and HDV infection in 149 consecutive subjects with HBsAg positive chronic hepatitis and in 22 chronic HBsAg healthy carriers. Liver HBcAg was detected in 52 (30.4%) of the 171 subjects. Of these 52, 35 were HBV-DNA and HBeAg positive, 11 HBV-DNA positive only; two HBeAg positive only and four were negative for both HBeAg and HBV-DNA. None of the 119 HBcAg-negative subjects had detectable HBV-DNA in serum. HD-Ag in hepatocytes was detected in 31 of the 171 subjects (18%); it was detectable in none of the 22 HBsAg healthy carriers, in four of the 56 patients with chronic persistent hepatitis (7.2%), in six of the 24 patients with chronic lobular hepatitis (25%), in 16 of the 40 patients with chronic active hepatitis (40%) and in five of the 29 with cirrhosis (17%). A presence of anti-HD in serum in the absence of liver HD-Ag was found in 54 of the 171 subjects (32%). This condition was observed not only in patients with a progressive disease (37.7% of chronic active hepatitis or cirrhosis and 33% of chronic lobular hepatitis), but also in healthy carriers (36%) and in chronic persistent hepatitis patients (21.4%). Liver HBcAg was detected in 6.4% of the 31 HD-Ag-positive patients, in 12.9% of the 54 HD-Ag-negative/anti-HD positive, but in 50% of the 86 with no marker of HDV infection. HDV appears to inhibit HBV genome and such inhibition may persist even when anti-HD is the only HDV marker detectable.

DNA Replication↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Azathioprine treatment in a patient with HBsAg-positive acute viral hepatitis complicated by bridging necrosis.

A patient with HBsAg-positive subacute hepatitis who presented a progressively deteriorating clinical condition was treated with azathioprine (100 mg/day) for eight months. Although the clinical symptoms disappeared and the biochemical abnormalities decreased, the disease nevertheless progressed to chronic active hepatitis. Moreover, azathioprine favoured hepatitis B virus replication since titers of HBsAg, HBeAg and Dane-particle-associated core-antigen, as detected by radioimmunoassay, increased during treatment. In all, this drug was only of moderate use to our patient.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Treatment of HBsAg-positive chronic active hepatitis with corticosteroids and/or azathioprine. A prospective study.

204 patients with biopsy-proven CAH were observed for at least one year with periodic examinations including a second liver biopsy for each patient. Patients were assigned at random to a group left untreated or treated with either azathioprine 100 mg daily, or prednisolone (Dutimelan 8 15), or prednisolone plus azathioprine 50 mg daily. The outcome, assessed on clinical, biochemical and histological parameters, was correlated to the presence or absence of HBeAg and its antibody. No treatment was effective in HBeAg-positive patients whereas, among anti-HBe-positive patients, those who were treated with the association of steroids and azathioprine more frequently showed improvement and less frequently deteriorated (p less than 0.01) than untreated patients. Thus, HBsAg/anti-HBe-positive patients with CAH may be treated with the combination of these drugs, even though many side-effects may occur and there are frequent relapses after discontinuation of treatment.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Long-term lymphoblastoid interferon-alpha therapy for non-cirrhotic chronic hepatitis C: an Italian multicentre study on dose and duration of IFN alpha treatment.

The aims of the study were to evaluate the long-term efficacy and tolerability of different doses of interferon-alpha (IFN alpha) and different durations of treatment in chronic hepatitis C by comparing 3 or 6 mega units (MUs) three times weekly given for either 12 or 24 months, and the possibility of obtaining a response in non-responder patients by increasing the dose or by administering IFN daily. A total of 504 patients with non-cirrhotic chronic hepatitis C enrolled in a multicentre study were consecutively assigned to receive either 3 (255 patients) or 6 MU (249 patients) of lymphoblastoid IFN alpha 3 times a week (tiw). At the 12th month of therapy, patients with normal aminotransferase (AMT) in both groups were either given IFN for an additional 12 months with an unmodified or halved dose, or else discontinued therapy. For patients with unmodified AMT levels after 6 months of therapy, the IFN dose was doubled in the 3-MU group, while it was administered at 3 MU daily in the 6-MU group. When no improvement was achieved, therapy was discontinued; otherwise it was prolonged until the 18th month. Patients were followed up for 12 months after discontinuing IFN. Of the 255 patients enrolled at 3 MU, therapy was stopped during the first 6 months in 36 patients (14.1%) because of side effects, and in 24 (9.4%) because of lack of cooperation. Of the remaining 195 patients at the 6th month of therapy, 119 (61%) had normal and 76 (39%) unmodified AMT levels; 14 of the 76 normalized AMT after doubling the dose of IFN, but only 5 (6.6%) had a sustained response. Of the 119 patients with normal AMT, 40 discontinued IFN at the 12th month (schedule A), 39 remained at 3 MU tiw (schedule B) and 40 were given a dose of 1.5 MU tiw (schedule C) for an additional 12 months. At the end of follow-up, 23/40 (57.5%) patients in schedule A, 31/39 (79.5%) on schedule B and 29/40 (72.5%) on schedule C still had normal AMT (A vs. B p = 0.04). In an intention-to-treat analysis, the sustained response rate for patients enrolled at 3 MUs, including the 5 initial non-responders, was 34.5%. Of the 249 patients enrolled at 6 MU, therapy was discontinued during the first 6 months for 39 (15.7%) because of side effects, and for 27 (10.8%) because of lack of cooperation. Of the remaining 183 patients at the 6th month of therapy, 110 (60%) had normal and 73 (40%) unmodified AMT levels. Of the 73 patients, 55 accepted the daily regimen and 8 of them (14.5%) showed a sustained response. Of the 110 patients with normal AMT, 32 (29.1%), despite normalization of AMT, spontaneously discontinued IFN or reduced the dose because of a poor quality of life, while 78 continued with 6 MU until the 12th month, when therapy was discontinued for 28 (schedule A1); 24 patients were given an unmodified dose (schedule B1) and 26 a halved dose (schedule C1) for an additional 12 months. At the end of follow-up, 18/28 (64.3%) patients on schedule A1, 19/24 (79.2%) on schedule B1 and 19/26 (73.1%) on C1 still had normal AMT (p = NS). In an intention-to-treat evaluation, the sustained response rate for patients enrolled at 6 MU, including the 8 from the daily treatment, was 25.7% (64/249). HCV viraemia was undetectable 1 year after discontinuation of IFN in 72.6% of patients with a sustained response. Sustained response was observed in 36.4% of patients with minimal, 46.6% of those with mild, and 33.3% with moderate or severe histological activity (p = NS). The rate of sustained response was lower in patients with genotype 1b (23.6%) than in those with genotype 2a (67.8%, p = 0.002) or genotype 3 (50%, p = 0.03), irrespective of the histological activity. In conclusion, 6 MU IFN alpha are no more effective than 3 MU in inducing a sustained response in treatments of both 12 and 24 months. A 24-month treatment is more effective than a 12-month treatment in maintaining a biochemical response after discontinuation of IFN. In terms of efficacy, compliance and cost, 3 MU for 24 months app

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Diagnosis of HCV related acute hepatitis by serial determination of IgM to HCV: a preliminary observation.

OBJECTIVE: To verify whether serial determination of titre of IgM to HCV core protein (HCV IgM) may be useful to distinguish acute hepatitis C (AHC) from reactivation of chronic hepatitis C (r-CHC), we studied 18 consecutive patients with AHC (identified by seroconversion to anti-HCV) and 15 consecutive patients who had been anti-HCV positive for at least one year at the time of reactivation. METHODS: Samples of serum were obtained from all patients on hospitalisation and every 5 days during the follow-up and stored at -80 degrees C: 54 samples of serum for the AHC group and 41 for the r-CHC group. Titres of HCV IgM were calculated as Index values by a commercially available enzyme immunoassay (HCV-IgM EIA 2.0, Abbott Laboratories, North Chicago, IL, USA). RESULTS: No difference was observed between the two groups of patients as regards age, sex, risk factors for the acquisition of HCV infection, clinical and biochemical data on presentation, prevalence of cases with detectable viremia or distribution of HCV genotypes. HCV IgM was detected with an Index value of 350 or more in only 1 (6.7%) in the r-CHC group and in 17 (94.4%) in the AHC group (p<0.01). Moreover, during the early phase of the illness we observed a wide variation in the HCV IgM Index values in AHC and consistent values in r-CHC. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that AHC is characterised by high and variable titres of HCV IgM during the acute phase of the illness, which may be considered diagnostic, whereas in r-CHC the IgM titre remains stable and rarely reaches a high level.

Acute Disease↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Dehiscence and fenestration: study of distribution and incidence in a homogeneous population model].

Ninety crania of Italian and Austrian males, 25-32 years old, coming from the ossurary of Custoza have been examined, (in all 2205 teeth) to determinate the presence and the frequency of dehiscences and fenestrations. All the crania presenting signs of serious stomatologic pathology have been rejected. Dehiscences are more frequent than fenestrations (7.30% vs 6.98%); dehiscences are more frequent in the mandible than in the maxilla (11.55% vs 1.86%), while fenestrations are more frequent in the upper alveolar arch than in the lower one (13.23% vs 2.10%); the upper right first molar is resulted to be the tooth showing the greatest number of defects (8.13% dehiscences and 49.69% fenestrations).

Alveolar Process↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Epidemiological evaluations of human immunodeficiency virus, herpes simplex virus type 1 and 2 and cytomegalovirus infections in drug addicts].

Eighty-eight drug addicts from the "BAN Center" in Torre Annunziata (Naples) and 88 normal subjects pair-matched for age and sex were tested for IgG to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), herpes simplex virus (HSV) type 1 and 2 and cytomegalovirus (CMV). A high prevalence of subjects with antibodies to HSV-1 and CMV (80.7% and 65.9%) were recorded in the control group testifying to the high level of these infections in Campania. Prevalences were higher in drug addicts, and drug abuse was identified as a risk factor for the acquisition of CMV infection (odds ratio = 2.3). Moreover, drug addiction is also a risk factor for HSV-2 and HIV infection as demonstrated by the observation that drug abusers were anti-HSV-2 (9.1 vs. 1.1%, odds ratio = 6.16) or anti-HIV (11.4 vs. 0%, odds ratio = 23.6) positive more frequently than normal controls. Thus, drug addiction is a risk factor for the acquisition of HIV, HSV-2 and CMV infections. This is probably due to similar habits, frequent among drug addicts from our geographic area and uncommon in the normal population, such as tattooing, needle-sharing needlestick and unsafe sex. Some of these habits, such as unsafe sex and tattooing, seem to be, per se, risk factors for the acquisition of both HIV and CMV infections. The data also suggest that HIV infection was probably introduced in Campania more recently than in northern and central Italy where the prevalence of anti-HIV positive cases among drug addicts is definitely higher.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Histologic changes in human periodontal tissue after transplantation of teeth with completely formed roots].

Authors present the histological evolution of the periodontal tissues after complete-root teeth transplantation in human. They point out that there is a great distinction between the histological and clinical results. It is difficult to obtain the neoformation of a normal periodontal ligament. In spite of the histological failure, they obtained a good clinical result: there fore the complete-root tooth transplantation must be considered an acceptable surgical procedure.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

[Renal oncocytoma. A diagnostic and therapeutic problem].

Renal oncocytoma is a more common entity as one may believe. Five cases and their sonographic features observed in six months are reported; in none of these cases was possible a secure diagnosis before the operation.

Adenoma↗