269 research outputs found
Guide artistique et historique de la ville de Florence et de ses environs : orné de vues, plans et catalogues
No full textBreve viaggio nella storia dell’arte. Dal Rinascimento al Rococò
No full textDi libri e riviste d’arte ne abbiamo sfogliati tanti, attirati dalle loro splendide illustrazioni. E se poi ci interessa qualcosa di particolare, le librerie sono piene di testi e guide turistiche con ogni notizia relativa ai monumenti di fronte ai quali potremmo soffermarci mentre cerchiamo un buon ristorante dove mangiare. Questo “Breve viaggio” contiene una selezione di in-formazioni e immagini assolutamente personale, sintetica e di certo incompleta − anche per ovvi motivi di spazio − di ciò che i principali artisti italiani ed europei hanno prodotto nell’ambito della pittura, scultura e architettura dal Rinascimento al Rococò, ovvero approssimativamente dal Quattrocento al Settecento. Si tratta di un piccolo saggio creato utilizzando il materiale raccolto da più fonti bibliografiche per la preparazione dell’esame di Storia dell’arte moderna. Come vedrete, ho cercato di dare un senso cronologico e soprattutto storico alla narrazione, con richiami alle parti delle Sacre scritture che hanno ispirato alcune opere, riservando maggior spazio ai personaggi a mio avviso più importanti e interessanti. Infine, in appendice, ho voluto preparare una specie di percorso ideale che potrebbe servire da miniguida al lettore durante la visita ai principali Musei citati. Spero che questo mio lavoro possa essere utile al vostro prossimo viaggio culturale
Storia dell'Europa contemporanea. Una visione sociopolitica
No full textLa storia contemporanea offre sempre nuovi spunti di ricerca e differenti chiavi di lettura. Con questo breve saggio, al di là del riassumere la cronologia dei principali avvenimenti accaduti in Europa dopo la Rivoluzione francese e fino agli anni Cinquanta del XX secolo, l’autore ha cercato di offrire una “visione” di tipo filosofico-letterario e – come dice il titolo – sociopolitica, senza tuttavia tralasciare qualche accenno alla storia dell’economia e del cinema. Nell’ultimo capitolo si parla dell’Europa “quasi” unita, confidando in una sua futura completa aggregazione politica. In appendice sono riportati alcuni dati demografici ed epidemiologici elaborati utilizzando esclusivamente documenti ufficiali pubblicati dall’Istituto nazionale di statistica (ISTAT), riguardanti l’Italia
FOOD AND HISTORIC URBAN SIGHTS
No full textIn every community, food undoubtedly plays a unifying role. We eat primarily because we are hungry, of course, but in the selection of food we make sensory-based choices, connected with our individual knowledge, experiences and food-related personality traits. Food is easily one of the main reasons for a holiday; however, multicultural tourists are no longer satisfied with being passive visitors, and expect a temporary immersion in a “real” local life-style, starting from food, which may afford considerable opportunities for socialization. In this framework, historic urban sights, as environment inhabited by residents, be- come essential towards living an unforgettable holyday experi- ence. The idea proposed in this essay is that when tourists are looking for a place to eat, as they take a glance at the new- concept website or guidebook we are proposing, their attention can be directed to historically significant neighboring sites. Fur- ther relevant data can of course been provided on demand, but in order to avoid heaping information on the careless tourist at too early a stage, a gradual accompaniment towards the world of art is suggested. Some examples and original designs (e.g. the Pan- theon, Rome; the Acropolis, Athens) of how such a new-concept guidebook should be organized are provided at the end of the book. Special thanks are due to my friend Attilio Favaro, for crit- ically revising both the entire text and its English translation
Bone alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin as markers of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women with breast cancer and bone metastases.
No full textObjective(s): Breast cancer (BC) is a heterogeneous tumor that occurs predominantly in elderly women. The overall estimated number of new BCs in the USA in 2011 was 232,000, accounting for about one-third of cases of cancer in women. It continues to be one of the most common causes of cancer death. BC frequently metastasizes to the skeleton, and it is estimated that 85% of individuals with advanced disease harbor bone metastases (BM). Bone alkaline phosphatase (BAP) and osteocalcin are widely used to check the response to therapy in patients with progressive bone disease. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether a correlation exists between bone remodeling serum markers BAP and osteocalcin, and BMD in women with BC and BMs.
Material & Methods: Data from a group of 18 postmenopausal women (median age 65 years, range 54-74 years) who have undergone surgery for invasive BC and successively developed BMs were retrospectively analyzed. Lumbar spine (L2-L4) BMD using DXA, and serum BAP and osteocalcin were measured in all patients. According to the WHO criteria, 13 patents (subgroup A) had mild or moderate osteoporosis (T-score -2.5 through -4 SD), while 5 (subgroup B) had severe osteoporosis (T-score of<-4 SD) Results: Age (62.2±5.6 vs. 68.8±4.2 years, p=0.061), baseline BAP (27.8±7.3 vs. 34.8±7.4 U/L, p=0.088) and osteocalcin (22.8±7.4 vs. 31.4±8.7 ng/mL, p=0.081) did
not differ significantly (subgroup A vs. B). There was no relationship between age, BMD, BAP and osteocalcin serum levels in subgroup B, while in the subgroup A, only a week correlation (R=0.72, p=0.018) between BAP and
osteocalcin was observed, and no relationship (p=NS) between BMD, age, and serum markers was found. Conclusion(s): In patients with BMs from advanced BC, the action of local osteolytic factors, such as PTHrP, together
with direct bone resorption by lytic metastasis, may cause a severe bone disease. In postmenopausal women with BC and BMs the effects on bone of age and cancer together likely overlap, and the relationship between age, BMD, and bone remodeling serum markers is not maintained.
References: Lumachi F et al. Anticancer Res 2009;29:1551
Surgical Treatment of Hypercalcemia
No full textIn patients with hypercalcemia the surgical treatment is likely limited to those with primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT), which represents the most frequent cause of this biochemical alteration. Hypercalcemia may also occur in up to 30% of patients with cancer, but unfortunately they are usually unsuitable for surgery. Surgery of parathyroid glands is particularly challenging,
because PT anatomy is one of the variables of our organism. The treatment of choice for patients with symptomatic primary HPT is removal of the affected parathyroid(s), that can be achieved both by surgical and non-surgical techniques. The latter is used only in selected patients, when surgery is contraindicated. In asymptomatic patients, surgical parathyroidectomy is usually suggested to prevent complications, but its role is controversial. Bilateral cervical exploration has been the procedure of choice for decades, and it is still mandatory in case of suspicion of multiglandular
disease or malignancy, and multiple endocrine neoplasia or familial syndromes. Recent advances in preoperative localization studies, and intraoperative adjuncts, such as quick parathyroid hormone assay, encouraged as a less invasive surgery. Currently, minimally invasive arathyroidectomy is widely performed, both videoassisted and radioguided. Considering the significant improvements of
clinical features of the disease after surgery, and the effectiveness and safety of minimally invasive surgical techniques, parathyroidectomy should be suggested both in symptomatic patients and in those with minimally symptomatic primary HPT. However, each patient should be referred to an
experienced parathyroid surgeon or endocrinologist, with the aim of having a better definition of the disease, and the best recommendation for treatment
Malattie della mammella
No full textLe malattie della mammella, un tempo di esclusivo interesse chirurgico, vedono oggi l’intervento di un team multidisciplinare che deve essere in grado di affrontare al meglio tutte le problematiche senologiche, coordinando l'esperienza di più specialisti (radiologo, chirurgo senologo, chirurgo plastico, anatomopatologo, patologo clinico, oncologo, immunologo), ma tenendo anche conto degli importanti cambiamenti psicologici e psicosociali che qualunque trattamento per una patologia mammaria comporta, specie se si tratta di un cancro. In questo capitolo vengono descritte le principali malattie della mammella, con particolare attenzione alle neoplasie benigne e maligne, descrivendo le più recenti metodiche diagnostiche e terapeutiche, soprattutto non invasive, sia chirurgiche che complementari, farmacologiche (chemioterapia, ormonoterapia, immunoterapia, targeted thrapy) e radianti. Si tratta di un testo di 20 pagine, con 34 figure, 13 tabelle, 20 voci bibliografiche e numerosi richiami a specifici URL nel testo
MANFE’ A.Z., BASSO S.M.,LUMACHI F.: Usefulness of chromogranin A, neuron-specific enolase, and 5-hidroxyindolacet acid measurements in patients with malignant carcinoids
No full textPrimary Hyperparathyroidism & Benign Diseases
No full textPrimary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) is the most common cause of hypercalcemia in nonhospitalized patients. Benign sporadic primary HPT is caused by a solitary adenoma in 80-85%, by multiglandular disease (multiple adenoma, parathyroid hyperplasia) in 12-14%, and parathyroid carcinoma in 1-2% of the cases. Parathyroid carcinoma is an uncommon finding, and its etiology remains unclear. Primary HPT can also occur in familial syndromes, such as multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN 1), MEN 2A, hyperparathyroidism-jaw tumor (HPT-JT) syndrome, and familial isolated primary HPT, which seems to be an early stage of MEN 1 or HPT-JT. Most of the patients with primary HPT are diagnosed because of asymptomatic hypercalcemia, and both signs and symptoms of the disease, when present, are nonspecific, mainly depending on serum calcium concentration. Some patients, however, are diagnosed because of having osteopenia, osteoporosis, or unjustified recurrent bilateral nephrolithiasis. Primary HPT can be discovered by a simultaneous increase of both serum calcium and parathyroid hormone (PTH) levels, and thus the diagnosis can be obtained by inclusion rather than by excluding all the other causes of hypercalcemia. Indeed, the PTH measurement represents the keystone for differential diagnosis between primary HPT and malignancy-associated hypercalcemia. Other benign causes of hypercalcemia are drug-induced (vitamins A & D intoxication, thiazides, lithium, estrogens), endocrine (thyrotoxicosis), posttransplant and tertiary HPT, and familial benign hypocalciuric hypercalcemia. Virtually, all symptomatic patients with confirmed primary HPT should be referred for surgery, while more restrictive criteria have been suggested for the management of those with asymptomatic HPT
Hypercalcemia Pathophysiology & Treatment. Foreword
No full textHypercalcemia is a relatively common disorder, which requires specific treatment in order to control symptoms and prevent the development of organ damage. Since primary hyperparathyroidism and malignancy are responsible for more than 90% of all cases of hypercalcemia, greater interest was given in terms of developing the best strategy to manage these two critical situations. The aim of this book is to present up-to-date knowledge on hypercalcemia, its association with renal disorders, and benign and malignant diseases, diagnostic methodologies, as well as surgical and medical treatment. Insights into the etiology, pathogenesis and pathophysiology of hypercalcemia are included in the first four chapters, also providing comprehensive descriptions of clinical features, diagnostic and treatment procedures in the specific diseases associated with hypercalcemia. The other chapters present details on biochemical findings and ways to monitor complications and therapy, giving suggestions on the current imaging techniques, and deal with the criteria, procedures and results of surgical treatment of hypercalcemia, including unilateral and minimally-invasive parathyroidectomy. Finally, a specific chapter describes the pharmacology of anti-hypercalcemic drugs, also providing information on new drugs and future perspectives. Uniquely, this book will serve as a complete reference source for oncologists, nephrologists, endocrinologists and other clinicians, as well as for biochemists and pharmacologists, and all those involved in hypercalcemia management and research
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