0000000000022890
AUTHOR
Simona Pichini
Assessment of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in young adolescents following implementation of smoke-free policy in Italy.
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…
Sodium oxybate therapy for the treatment of alcohol withdrawal syndrome and the maintenance of alcohol abstinence
Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB or sodium oxybate) is both an exogenous and endogenous molecule with neuromodulator properties. In the United States, GHB is an approved drug for the treatment of narcolepsy and narcolepsy with cataplexy in adults. In some European Union countries, sodium oxybate is applied for the treatment of opioid and alcohol withdrawal.
When a death apparently associated to sexual assault is instead a natural death due to idiopathic hypereosinophilic syndrome: The importance of gamma-hydroxybutyric acid analysis in vitreous humor
We here report a case involving a 21-year-old female, found dead in a central square of a city in the south of Italy. Initial evidences and circumstances were suggestive of a death associated with a sexual assault. Two peripheral blood and two vitreous humor samples were collected for the purpose of gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB) testing from the dead body at two different post-mortem intervals (PMIs): approximately 2 (t0) and 36 (t1) hours. The obtained results showed that, between t0 and t1, there was an increase of GHB concentrations in peripheral blood and vitreous humor of 66.3% and 8.1%, respectively. This case was the first evidence of GHB post mortem production in a dead body and n…
Sodium Oxybate Therapy for Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome and Keeping of Alcohol Abstinence
BACKGROUND Gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB or sodium oxybate) is both an exogenous and endogenous molecule with neuromodulator properties. In the United States, GHB is an approved drug for the treatment of narcolepsy and narcolepsy with cataplexy in adults. In some European Union countries, sodium oxybate is applied for the treatment of opioid and alcohol withdrawal. OBJECTIVE The aim of the present review was to describe the state of art of the pre-clinical research and the clinical evidence related to GHB used alone or in combination with other treatments in alcohol withdrawal syndrome and alcohol abstinence maintenance. METHOD Internationally published pre-clinical findings and clinical studi…
Effects of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons on Lung Function in Children with Asthma: A Mediation Analysis.
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…