0000000000011105
AUTHOR
Francesca Di Bernardo
showing 10 related works from this author
Clinical and Epidemiologic Features of Viral Gastroenteritis in Hospitalized Children: An 11-Year Surveillance in Palermo (Sicily)
2022
In order to acquire information regarding viral agents and epidemiologic features of severe paediatric Viral Acute Gastroenteritis (VAGE) across multiple seasons in the pre-rotavirus-vaccine era, the epidemiologic characteristics of VAGE were investigated among paediatric patients hospitalized in a major Sicilian paediatric hospital from 2003 to 2013. Overall, 4725 children were observed and 2355 (49.8%) were diagnosed with a viral infection: 1448 (30.6%) were found positive to rotavirus, 645 (13.7%) to norovirus, 216 (4.6%) to adenovirus, and 46 (0.97%) to astrovirus. Viral infections showed different patterns of hospitalization in terms of age at risk (younger for rotavirus and adenovirus…
Evaluation of the diagnostic performances of two commercially available assays for the detection of enteric adenovirus antigens
2021
The performance of 2 antigenic commercial assays for enteric adenovirus (AdV) infection, bioNexia Rota-Adeno ImmunoChromatographic Tests (ICT) and LIAISON® Adenovirus ChemiLuminescence Immuno Assays (CLIA), was evaluated on 321 stools from children hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis in Palermo, Italy, using a Real time-PCR (Rt-PCR) as reference method. The CLIA showed higher sensitivity (77% vs 60%), accuracy (94.4 vs 90.9) and concordance (k: 0.81 vs 0.67) with respect to ICT, despite equivalent specificity (98.8%). Using the Ct values of the Rt-PCR as a proxy of the fecal viral load, similar Ct values (mean 9.32 vs 9.89) were observed among the true positive samples, whilst a signific…
Immunological characteristics of non-intensive care hospitalized COVID-19 patients: A preliminary report
2021
The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is posing a threat to global health. This disease has different clinical manifestations and different outcomes. The immune response to the novel 2019 coronavirus is complex and involves both innate and adaptive immunity. In this context, cell-mediated immunity plays a vital role in effective immunity against SARS-CoV-2. Significant differences have been observed when comparing severe and non-severe patients. Since these immunological characteristics have not been fully elucidated, we aimed to use cluster analysis to investigate the immune cell patterns in patients with COVID-19 who required hospitalization but not intensive care. We identi…
Co-colonization with carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii in intensive care unit patients
2013
Objectives: This investigation was conducted to study co-colonization by carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase-producing K. pneumoniae (KPC-Kp) and Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB) in intensive care unit (ICU) patients in Palermo, Sicily, a geographic area where both organisms are endemic in the healthcare setting. Risk factors at admission and during ICU stay and outcomes were also evaluated. Methods: All patients colonized by KPC-Kp, or CRAB, or both in 2 ICUs of a large general hospital during the period October 2011 – March 2012 were enrolled. Demographics and clinical data were collected. Resistance determinants and clonality of the 2 organisms were characterized by mo…
Extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing and carbapenemase-producing Enterobacter cloacae ventriculitis successfully treated with intraventricular …
2014
SummaryWe present a case of post-neurosurgical ventriculitis caused by carbapenemase-producing Enterobacter cloacae successfully treated with intraventricular colistin. Enterobacter spp are intrinsically resistant to aminopenicillins, cefazolin, and cefoxitin due to the production of constitutive chromosomal AmpC beta-lactamases. Moreover, extended-spectrum beta-lactamase-producing Enterobacter spp have been identified in the USA and Europe, and carbapenems are considered the drug of choice in these cases. Our isolate was sensitive only to fosfomycin, tigecycline, and colistin, and 6 days of intravenous colistin had failed to eradicate the infection. This case provides clinical evidence to …
Data mining from a 27-years rotavirus surveillance in Palermo, Italy.
2014
Uninterrupted surveillance conducted in Palermo, Sicily, for 27 years (1985–2012) detected rotavirus infection in 32.7% of 6522 children <5 years of age, hospitalised at the “G. Di Cristina” Children’s Hospital of Palermo. Increased rotavirus activity usually occurred from the beginning of winter to mid-spring. G1P[8] rotaviruses were the prevalent strains in most of the years and were only occasionally overcome by G9P[8], G4P[8] or G2P[4]. The circulation of non-G1P[8] strains was discontinuous and fluctuating. Phylogenetic analyses revealed an heterogeneous population of viruses within each genotype, with different lineages and sublineages emerging over the time. Amino acid substitutions …
Immune Response Failure in Paucisymptomatic Long-Standing SARS-CoV-2 Spreaders
2021
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly spread throughout the world. This disease has a spectrum of different clinical pictures with different outcomes. Herein, we report all the data from three paucisymptomatic patients during a hospital stay that might represent a paradigmatic example of the method by which SARS-CoV-2 is shed. We demonstrated the lack of an adequate qualitative and quantitative immune response by multiparametric flow cytometry analysis. Our data can provide a new perspective about the method by which SARS-CoV-2 is shed and the clinical weight of viral persistence. In all three cases, the …
Norovirus GII.17 as Major Epidemic Strain in Italy, Winter 2015–16
2017
In winter 2015-16, norovirus GII.17 Kawasaki 2014 emerged as a cause of sporadic gastroenteritis in children in Italy. Median patient age was higher for those with GII.17 than GII.4 infection (55 vs. 24 months), suggesting limited cross-protection for older children.
Louseborne relapsing fever in young migrants, sicily, Italy, july-september 2015
2016
To the Editor: During the early 20th century, at the end of World War I, and during World War II, louseborne relapsing fever (LBRF) caused by Borrelia recurrentis was a major public health problem, especially in eastern Europe and northern Africa (1,2). Currently, poor living conditions, famine, war, and refugee camps are major risk factors for epidemics of LBRF in resource-poor countries, such as those in the Horn of Africa (3,4). Increased migration from resource-poor countries and war/violence create new routes for spread of vectorborne diseases. Recently, several cases of LBRF have been reported among asylum seekers from Eritrea in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany (5–8). All of…
Imported and Indigenous cases of Invasive Meningocococcal Disease W:P1.5,2:F1-1: ST-11 in migrants' reception centers. Italy, June-November 2014.
2015
We report about three unliked cases of meningococcal meningitis caused by the ST-11/ET-37 strain of Neisseria meningitidis serogroup W. Two of the three cases, detected in Sicily on June and July 2014, were migrants from Mali and Eritrea. The third case was a fatal meningitis occurred on November 2014 in a 37 years old man, working in an immigrant center in Calabria. This report suggests that tetravalent conjugate vaccines (ACYW) should be actively offered to the staff of migrants’ reception centers.