1,720,985 research outputs found
Targeting patients' microbiota with probiotics and natural fibers in adults and children with constipation
No full textOBJECTIVE: Functional constipation (FC) is a common condition in which the gut microbiota composition plays a fundamental role. The increasing knowledge on the role of gut microbes in the regulation of gut motility and stool consistency has allowed reconsidering, with a new scientific-based approach, the possibility to target the composition of intestinal bacterial populations for FC treatment. In this review, we evaluate recent attempts that used prebiotics, natural fibers or probiotics to treat FC, with a deep microbiome-based focus.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This is a literature review of articles published in Medline, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Library. Studies on FC in adults and children were identified using the following terms: constipation AND probiotics OR prebiotics OR synbiotics PR fibers OR microbiome OR microbiota. Selected animal studies were also considered if showing mechanistic observations.RESULTS: FC is associated with alteration in microbiome composition. Motility and fecal consistency are affected with different efficacy by the type of fiber, prebiotic or probiotic strain used in patients.CONCLUSIONS: Selected bacterial strains, mainly belonging to the Bifidobacterium genus, and some poorly or non-fermented natural fibers, such as Psyllium, may significantly improve FC and may represent the basis for an effective supplementation
Integrazione dei flussi informativi sanitari: un modello applicato nei processi HTA per l'acquisizione di tecnologie nella Regione Veneto
No full textSafety and efficacy of administering 0.2 mg of recombinant human TSH for two consecutive days as an adjuvant to therapy with low radioiodine doses in elderly out-patients with large nontoxic multinodular goiter
No full textAIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of recombinant human TSH (rhTSH) as an adjuvant to radioiodine therapy for nontoxic multinodular goiter (MNG) in elderly subjects.
METHODS: Twelve elderly out-patients with large MNG (group 1) were studied. The effect of adjuvant rhTSH administration (0.2 mg i.m. on 2 consecutive days) before low-dose (131)I was compared with that of radioiodine alone in 8 out-patients matched for age and MNG volume (group 2). The follow-up period was similar in both groups.
RESULTS: The number and severity of side-effects during the first month of treatment were similar in both groups. On final examination, the number of patients symptomatic for goiter was significantly lower in group 1 than in group 2 (P=0.03). In group 1, TSH levels peaked at 40.3+/-9.5 mU/L on day 3, from the baseline value of 0.5+/-0.1 mU/L (P<0.001). In group 2, baseline TSH was 0.4+/-0.1 mU/L. Although a marked increase in f-T3, f-T4 and Tg (P<0.001) was noted in both groups during the first 2 weeks of treatment, peak values were much higher in group 1 than in group 2. On final examination, a slightly significant increase (P=0.01) in TSH levels from the baseline was noted in both groups (group 1: 1.2+/-0.2 mU/L; group 2: 1.4+/-0.3 mU/L). The percentage of patients who did not need therapies to control TSH secretion at the last examination was higher in group 1 (83%) than in group 2 (38%). Only in group 1, a significant reduction was noted in mean anterior-posterior lobar width (31+/-1.7 mm) from the baseline value (24.5+/-1.7 mm, P=0.04). Thyroid volume was reduced from 78.1+/-11.7 mL to 49.4+/-13.4 mL (P=0.001) in group 1 and from 89.8+/-25.2 mL to 67.1+/-20.5 mL (P=0.04) in group 2. Six months after (131)I therapy, slight changes in thyroid length and tracheal lumen were noted in both groups.
CONCLUSIONS: This long-term controlled study demonstrates that 0.2 mg of rhTSH on 2 consecutive days increases the efficacy of ambulatory (131)I dosages in treating nontoxic MNG in elderly subjects. Adequate drug preparation generally prevents side-effects due to short-term but marked thyrotoxicosis that is aggravated by rhTSH administration. An increase in thyroid volume reduction seems to be the most important effect of rhTSH administered before (131)I
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Integrazione dei flussi informativi sanitari: un modello applicato nei processi HTA per l'acquisizione di tecnologie nella Regione Veneto
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Safety and efficacy of administering 0.2 mg of recombinant human TSH for two consecutive days as an adjuvant to low-dose radioiodine therapy in out-patients with large non-toxic multinodular goitre.
No full textRecombinant human TSH (rhTSH) has recently been used as an adjuvant to the treatment of non-toxic multinodular goitre (MNG) by means of 131I. The aim of our study was to evaluate the efficacy of 0.2 mg rhTSH or placebo administered im on 2 consecutive days before a fixed therapeutic dose of 14 mCi of 131I. Thirteen elderly patients (71±7 years) with large non-toxic MNG (group 1) were treated with rhTSH plus 131I. While a control group of 8 patients, matched for age and non-toxic MNG volume, was treated with placebo plus 131I (group 2)
Dispositivi medici innovativi: aumento o diminuzione del rischio? Un’analisi della sicurezza e dell'appropriatezza d'uso di guaine per videocistoscopio
No full textDispositivi medici innovativi: aumento o diminuzione del rischio? Un’analisi della sicurezza e dell'appropriatezza d'uso di guaine per videocistoscopio
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Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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