0000000000022889
AUTHOR
Roberta Pacifici
showing 6 related works from this author
Assessment of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in young adolescents following implementation of smoke-free policy in Italy.
2009
We investigated acute and chronic exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in a cohort of young adolescents using urinary cotinine and hair nicotine testing after recent implementation of Italian smoke free legislation. Study subjects were 372 Italian young adolescents, between 10 and 16 years of age from the principal city of Sicily, Palermo. Urine and hair samples were collected between November 2005 and May 2006, when the legislation to ban smoking in all the enclosed places of employment (including bars, restaurants, pubs) was completely enforced. An exhaustive questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics and active and passive exposure to cigarette smoking was complete…
Laboratory medicine and sports : between Scylla and Charybdis
2012
Laboratory medicine is complex and contributes to the diagnosis, therapeutic monitoring and follow-up of acquired and inherited human disorders. The regular practice of physical exercise provides important benefits in heath and disease and sports medicine is thereby receiving growing focus from almost each and every clinical discipline, including laboratory medicine. Sport-laboratory medicine is a relatively innovative branch of laboratory science, which can provide valuable contributions to the diagnosis and follow-up of athletic injuries, and which is acquiring a growing clinical significance to support biomechanics and identify novel genomics and "exercisenomics" patterns that can help i…
Which group of smokers is more vulnerable to the economic crisis?
2016
Objectives: Studies investigating whether smoking increases or decreases during economic downturn provided contrasting results. For the first time, we used direct questions to analyse changes in smoking behaviour due to the 2008 financial crisis, comparing socio-economic characteristics of smokers who changed with those who kept their smoking intensity. Study Design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: We used data from three annual surveys conducted in Italy in 2012-2014 on representative samples of te Italian general population aged >_15 years. Results: A total of 1919 current smokers were asked specific questions on the influence of the economic crisis that started in 2008 on their smoking …
The Particular Story of Italians' Relation with Alcohol: Trends in Individuals' Consumption by Age and Beverage Type.
2015
Aims In Italy, sales data show a dramatic fall in alcohol consumption between 1970 and 2010. The aim of our study is to provide updated information on trends, prevalence and determinants of alcohol drinking in Italy, using individual-level data. Methods Seven nationally representative cross-sectional surveys were conducted in Italy between 2006 and 2014, on a total sample of 21,416 participants aged ≥15 years, with available information on weekly consumption of wine, beer and spirits. Results Per capita alcohol consumption decreased by 23% between 2006 and 2014 (from 5.6 to 4.4 drinks/week), due to the fall in wine drinking. Overall, the prevalence of alcohol drinkers was 61.6%. Individuals…
Effects of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons on Lung Function in Children with Asthma: A Mediation Analysis.
2022
Studies investigating the association between urinary Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) and asthma in children provided inhomogeneous results. We aimed to use Mediation Analysis to discover whether a link between urinary PAHs and lung function exists and if it might be ascribed to a direct or a symptom-mediated (indirect) effect in children with asthma. This single-center prospective study was conducted in Palermo, Italy, between March and July 2017 and involved 50 children with persistent mild-moderate asthma, aged 6–11 years. At each time visit (day 0, 30, 60, and 90), physical examination, spirometry, and urine collection for detection of urinary cotinine and PAHs were performed. A…
Smoking in Italy 2013-2014, with a focus on the young.
2015
Aims To update smoking prevalence trends in Italy among adult and young populations; to determine the recent spread, particularly among young smokers, of roll-your-own (RYO) cigarettes (which cost approximately half the price of manufactured cigarettes); and to evaluate the effects of 2013 legislation increasing the minimum tobacco purchasing age from 16 to 18 years in Italy. Methods Two surveys on smoking were conducted in 2013 and 2014 in Italy, on a total sample of 6052 individuals, representative each year of the national population aged ≥15 years, where we collected data on type of tobacco most frequently smoked and on the perception of the enforcement of the tobacco sales-to-minors le…