Search results for "malattie"
showing 10 items of 1963 documents
Respiratory syncytial virus infection in a Sicilian pediatric population: Risk factors, epidemiology, and severity
2008
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of hospitalization for lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) in young children worldwide. This study evaluated the epidemiological and clinical patterns of RSV infection in infants hospitalized for LRTIs in Sicily. Over a 7-month period (October 1, 2005 to April 30, 2006), all children 6 months old, with a gestational age (GA) of >36 weeks, with a birth weight of >2.50 g, with previous hospitalizations due to LRTI, with smokers in the household, and with a history of breast-feeding (p < 0.05 for each). RSV infection was associated with a higher likelihood to be admitted to neonatal intensive care units and to longer hospitalization…
Bronchodilatory Effect of Deep Inspiration Is Absent in Subjects With Mild COPD
2004
Study objectives To investigate whether the bronchodilatory effect of deep inspiration is impaired in subjects with COPD. Methods We measured deep inspiration-induced bronchodilation in 19 patients with COPD and 17 healthy subjects (mean age, 67.8 ± 7.1 years vs 62.5 ± 9.3 years, respectively [± SEM]). Each subject underwent a series of single-dose methacholine provocations to induce at least a 15% reduction in inspiratory vital capacity (IVC). When this was achieved, subjects were asked to perform four consecutive deep inspirations, after which the IVC measurement was repeated and the percentage of bronchodilation by deep inspiration was calculated. Results The percentage of reduction in I…
Spirometry Reference Values for Women and Men Aged 65–85 Living in Southern Europe: The Effect of Health Outcomes
2002
<i>Background:</i> Spirometry is more and more frequently used for the diagnosis of respiratory diseases in the elderly people. Unfortunately, reliable predictive values for the spirometric variables in the elderly are lacking. <i>Objectives:</i> Data obtained from 429 subjects participating in the multicenter Italian study SARA on respiratory health in the elderly were analyzed in order to derive reference values for spirometry in the age range of 65–85 years. The second aim of this study was to assess the influence of variables describing many dimensions of the health status on the prediction of spirometric variables in that age range. <i>Methods:</i> S…
Aspiration Risk Factors, Microbiology, and Empiric Antibiotics for Patients Hospitalized With Community-Acquired Pneumonia
2021
Background: Aspiration community-acquired pneumonia (ACAP) and community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in patients with aspiration risk factors (AspRFs) are infections associated with anaerobes, but limited evidence suggests their pathogenic role. Research Question: What are the aspiration risk factors, microbiology patterns, and empiric anti-anaerobic use in patients hospitalized with CAP? Study Design and Methods: This is a secondary analysis of GLIMP, an international, multicenter, point-prevalence study of adults hospitalized with CAP. Patients were stratified into three groups: (1) ACAP, (2) CAP/AspRF+ (CAP with AspRF), and (3) CAP/AspRF- (CAP without AspRF). Data on demographics, comorbidi…
Disability in moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Prevalence, burden and assessment-results from a real-life study
2014
<b><i>Background:</i></b> The role of disability and its association with patient-reported outcomes in the nonsevere forms of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) has never been explored. <b><i>Objectives:</i></b> The aim of this study was to assess, in a cross-sectional real-life study, the prevalence and degree of disability in moderate COPD patients and to assess its association with health status, illness perception, risk of death and well-being. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> Moderate COPD outpatients attending scheduled visits were involved in a quantitative research program using a questionnaire-based data collec…
Blood eosinophils and treatment response in hospitalized exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: A case-control study
2015
Background: In outpatients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), blood eosinophilia is considered as a biomarker of response to systemic corticosteroid therapy. However, little is known on whether blood eosinophilia is also predictive of positive clinical outcome in severe acute exacerbations of COPD requiring hospitalization. We hypothesized that blood eosinophil-positive severe acute exacerbations of COPD differ from eosinophil-negative ones in terms of response to therapy and clinical outcomes. Methods: To test our experimental hypothesis, we retrospectively analyzed medical records of patients with COPD admitted to our ward because of severe exacerbation, over a two-year pe…
Do GOLD stages of COPD severity really correspond to differences in health status?
2003
The purpose of this study was to assess whether different stages of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) severity defined according to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria correlate with meaningful differences in health status. A total of 381 COPD patients, aged 73+/-6 yrs, were classified in the five GOLD stages. Disease-specific (St George Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ)) and generic indexes of health status were measured in all patients. Multivariate analysis of covariance or Kruskal Wallis tests were used to compare health status indexes across the spectrum of GOLD stages of COPD severity. GOLD stages of COPD severity significantly differed…
Alternative ways of expressing forced expiratory volume in the first second and long-term mortality in elderly patients with asthma
2013
Abstract Background Clinical and epidemiologic evidence on asthma in the elderly is scant. There is evidence that forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV 1 ), a commonly used indicator of overall pulmonary function, might not be an independent predictor of 5-year mortality in elderly patients with asthma. Objective To investigate the association between FEV 1 expressed using 3 alternative methods and 5-, 10-, and 15-year mortality in a population of elderly patients with asthma. Methods Participants in the Salute Respiratoria nell' Anziano study were included. Asthma was diagnosed at baseline according to spirometric and clinical data. Vital status at 15 years was assessed using d…
Inhalation therapy in the next decade
2018
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial License (by-nc 4.0) which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
Genuair® Usability Test: Results of a National Public Survey of the Elderly
2016
Proper use of inhaler devices may be problematic in elderly patients due to age-related difficulties. A survey was administered to elderly patients to investigate the usability of the Genuair® device and patients' subjective viewpoint on the device. A representative sample of the Italian population aged ≥ 65 years was completed with a pre-defined sample of 89 patients with hand arthritis/arthrosis. Of 526 respondents, 88 were not self-sufficient. Only the replies of the 438 self-sufficient respondents were analyzed. A total of 107 participants (24%) reported having respiratory diseases, and 81 of these (76%) were users of inhaler devices. After the first test, the device was considered “pra…