Search results for "Italy"
showing 10 items of 2893 documents
Recent acquired STD and the use of HAART in the Italian Cohort of Naive for Antiretrovirals (I.Co.N.A): analysis of the incidence of newly acquired h…
2008
Objective: To estimate the incidence of newly acquired syphilis (n-syphilis) and hepatitis B infection (n-hepatitis B) in I.Co.N.A. and to evaluate the impact of HAART, calendar date and risk group. Methods: Cohort study: Incidence was calculated by person-years analyses. Poisson regression was used for the multivariate model. Results: The rate of n-syphilis was 23.4/1,000 PYFU and it increased over time; HIV transmission risk was the most important predictor: men who have sex with men (MSM) had a considerable higher risk (RR 5.92, 95% CI 2.95-12.13 vs IDU/exIDU, p < 0.0001). The rate of n-hepatitis B was 12.2/1,000 PYFU; it declined in recent years and halved per 10 years age. Patients wit…
Phylogenetic Analysis of isolates from new cases of HBV infection in Southern Italy.
2012
The level of endemicity of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections in Italy is low and genotype D infections predominant. New HBV strains may however be introduced as a result of movements of people from regions of high endemicity. The aim of the present study was to determine whether strains from new cases of acute hepatitis B detected in southern Italy were due to endemic or new HBV strains. We studied 34 isolates from patients with acute hepatitis B infection, and 35 from chronic hepatitis B patients. A phylogenetic analysis of preS/S region was done by comparing the sequences from the acute and chronic cases with references sequences. The study showed that 44% of strain from acute hepatitis …
Detection of bacteria and yeast species by the BACTEC 9120 automated system with the routine use of aerobic, anaerobic, and fungal media
2008
ABSTRACT During the period 2006 and 2007, all blood cultures required by four units at high infective risk and most of those required by other units of the University Hospital of Palermo, Palermo, Italy were performed using a Bactec 9120 automated blood culture system with a complete set of Plus Aerobic/F, Plus Anaerobic/F, and Mycosis IC/F bottles. The aim of the study was to enable the authors to gain firsthand experience of the culture potentialities of the three different media, to obtain information regarding the overall and specific recovery of bacteria and yeasts from blood cultures in the hospital, and to reach a decision as to whether and when to utilize anaerobic and fungal bottle…
PREVALENCE OF PERTUSSIS IgG ANTIBODIES IN CHILDREN IN PALERMO, ITALY
1989
The prevalence of IgG antibodies to Bordetella pertussis in a sample of 615 1-12-year-old unvaccinated children in Palermo was estimated by ELISA. The overall prevalence was 56%; it increased from 24% in one to three-year-old children to 67% in 11-12-year-old children (p less than 0.01). IgG antibody prevalence was not associated with the father's years of schooling (OR 1), nor with the family size (OR 1.3; C.I. 95% = 0.8-2.2). For children aged one the three years, serological results showed that the history of pertussis reported by parents in questionnaires gave high specificity (93.2%) and negative predictive value (85.4%). Our seroepidemiological study evidences a great exposure of chil…
Sequence type 101 (ST101) as the predominant carbapenem-non-susceptible Klebsiella pneumoniae clone in an acute general hospital in Italy.
2012
Klebsiella pneumoniae is one of the most common multidrug-resistant (MDR) Gram-negative organisms worldwide, responsible for high morbidity and mortality both in hospitals and alternative healthcare settings. Recently, increasing use of carbapenems has promoted the emergence and dissemination of carbapenem-non-susceptible MDR K. pneumoniae strains. All of the CNSKP strains isolated between January 2009 and December 2011 in the General Hospital of Prato (Prato, Italy) were studied. Our findings indicate that, unlike previously reported by other authors from different regions of Italy, K. pneumoniae producing KPC-2 and belonging to ST101 have been established in the area of Prato, Tuscany, It…
Is the monoclonal spread of the ST258, KPC-3-producing clone being replaced in southern Italy by the dissemination of multiple clones of carbapenem-n…
2015
D. M. Geraci, C. Bonura, M. Giuffre, L. Saporito, G. Graziano, A. Aleo, T. Fasciana, F. Di Bernardo, T. Stampone, D. M. Palma and C. Mammina 1) Department of Sciences for Health Promotion and Mother-Child Care ‘G. D’Alessandro’, University of Palermo, 2) Postgraduate Specialty School in Hygiene and Preventive Medicine, University of Palermo, 3) Laboratory of Microbiology, General Hospital ARNAS ‘Civico, Di Cristina & Benfratelli’, 4) Laboratory of Microbiology, General Hospital Azienda Ospedaliera ‘Villa Sofia-V, Cervello’ and 5) II Intensive Care Unit, General Hospital ARNAS ‘Civico, Di Cristina & Benfratelli’, Palermo, Italy
The gut microbiota of larvae of Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Oliver (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
2014
Background: The red palm weevil (RPW) Rhynchophorus ferrugineus Olivier (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is one of the major pests of palms. The larvae bore into the palm trunk and feed on the palm tender tissues and sap, leading the host tree to death. The gut microbiota of insects plays a remarkable role in the host life and understanding the relationship dynamics between insects and their microbiota may improve the biological control of insect pests. The purpose of this study was to analyse the diversity of the gut microbiota of field-caught RPW larvae sampled in Sicily (Italy). Results: The 16S rRNA gene-based Temporal Thermal Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (TTGE) of the gut microbiota of RPW …
Mycobacterium tuberculosis molecular evolution in western Mediterranean Island of Sicily and Sardinia
2004
Abstract In this study, a total of 204 Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNAs from Sicily ( n = 144) and Sardinia ( n = 60) were studied by three genotyping methods. Results were analyzed both within and across islands, to define the phylogeographical specificities of the genotypes, look for their diversity and infer a molecular evolutionary scenario. A strong link between geography and tuberculosis genotypes was observed in Sardinia. The results were also matched against a world-wide genetic diversity database to compare the population structure of the tubercle bacilli in the islands. Eight common genotypes between Sicily, Sardinia and continental Italy were found which underlines the influences …
Rotavirus gastroenteritis in Italian children: can severity of symptoms be related to the infecting virus?
2001
The aim of our study was to determine whether the severity of rotavirus gastroenteritis may be related to the different characteristics of infecting viral strains. The severity of clinical symptoms in 401 children with acute rotavirus gastroenteritis was assessed using a scoring system for frequency and duration of vomiting, diarrhea, and fever, as well as the patients' requirements for intravenous rehydration. Rotavirus strains were characterized by determining the electropherotype of their double-stranded RNA, the G type and subgroup by a panel of monoclonal antibodies, and the P type by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Strains with a short electropherotype, G2P[4] type, a…
Rare AU-1-like G3P[9] human rotaviruses with a Kun-like NSP4 gene in children with diarrhea in Italy
2007
ABSTRACT Three G3P[9] rotaviruses, detected in children hospitalized with gastroenteritis in Palermo, Italy, were found to be genetically related to strains of either human or feline origin in the VP7, VP4, and VP6 genes. In contrast, in the NSP4 gene the viruses resembled G2P[4] human strains, suggesting a reassortment between AU-1-like and Kun-like strains.