24 research outputs found
COVID-19 vaccination, implications for PET/CT image interpretation and future perspectives
No full textINTRODUCTION: The present paper aims to systematically review the literature on COVID-19 vaccine-related findings in patients undergoing PET/CT. METHODS: The search algorithms included the following combination of terms: “PET” OR “positron emission tomography” AND “COVID”; “PET” OR “positron emission tomography” AND “COVID” AND “vaccination”; “PET” OR “positron emission tomography” AND “COVID”, AND “autoimmune”. RESULTS: We selected 17 articles which were assessed for quality and included in the systematic analysis. The most frequent vaccine-related signs on PET/CT were the deltoid [(18)F]FDG uptake and axillary hypermetabolic lymph nodes, which were described in 8–71% and 7–90% of the patients, respectively. Similarly, frequency of these findings using other tracers than [(18)F]FDG was greatly variable. This large variability was related to the variability in time elapsed between vaccination and PET/CT, and the criteria used to define positivity. In addition, vaccine-related findings were detected more frequently in young and immunocompetent patients than in elderly and immunocompromised ones. DISCUSSION: Therefore, awareness on vaccination status (timing, patient characteristics, and concurrent therapies) and knowledge on patterns of radiopharmaceutical uptake are necessary to properly interpret PET/CT findings
Endovascular Low-Pass Filter
No full textWe present the case of an 82-year-old man with a history of inferior vena cava filter implantation and concomitant severe mitral regurgitation requiring transcatheter edge-to-edge repair. Despite being deemed ineligible for transfemoral access as technically challenging, he successfully underwent mitral transcatheter edge-to-edge repair after crossing and dilatation of the inferior vena cava filter. (Level of Difficulty: Intermediate.)
Far-Right Politics and the Disputes over Gender Equality in Brazil
No full textFlávia Biroli has a Master\u27s and PhD in History at Unicamp (Brazil). She is currently a full professor of Political Science at the University of Brasília (UnB), where she has taught since 2005. She was the president of the Brazilian Political Science Association (2018-20), one of the founders of the Brazilian Network of Women Scientists (2021), and a senior researcher for the National Observatory of Women in Politics of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies. She was a member of the international Expert Groups that prepared the reports for the 64th and 65th Commission on the Status of Women of the United Nations (2019 and 2020). She has also collaborated with UN Women Brazil in different projects since 2016. She published dozens of articles in Brazilian and international journals, mostly on gender and democracy in Latin America. They present research on women’s political participation, disputes about abortion rights, theoretical debates on autonomy and care, and analysis of the backlash against gender in its connections to the pushback in democracy in the region. She is the author of many books, among them Gênero e Desigualdades: Limites da Democracia no Brasil (São Paulo, Boitempo Editorial, 2018), Gênero, Neoconservadorismo e Democracia (São Paulo, Boitempo Editorial, 2020, with Maria Machado and Juan Vaggione), Feminismo e Política (São Paulo, Boitempo Editorial, 2014, with Luis Felipe Miguel), Autonomia e Desigualdades de Gênero (Niterói, Editora UFF, 2013). She also co-edited many books, including Mulher, Poder e Ciência Política (Campinas, Editora da Unicamp, 2020)
Body composition assessment: comparison of quantitative values between magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography.
No full textBackground
The primary objective of this study was to compare measurements of skeletal muscle index (SMI), visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) at the level of L3, on subjects who underwent computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations within a three-month period. The secondary objective was to compare the automatic and semi-automatic quantifications of the same values for CT images.
Methods
Among subjects who underwent CT and MRI at our Institution between 2011 and 2020, exclusion criteria were: presence of extensive artifacts; images not including the whole waist circumference; CT acquired with low-dose technique and lack of non-contrast images. A set of three axial images (CT, MRI T1-weighted and T2-weighted) were used to extract the following measurements with semi-automatic segmentations: SMI [calculated normalizing skeletal muscle area (SMA) by the square height], SAT, VAT. For the CT images only, the same values were also calculated by using automatic segmentation. Statistical analysis was performed comparing quantitative MRI and CT measurements by Pearson correlation analysis and by Bland-Altman agreement analysis.
Results
A total of 123 patients were included. By performing linear regression analysis, CT and MRI measurements of SMI showed a high correlation (r2=0.81 for T1, r2=0.89 for T2), with a mean logarithmic difference between CT and MRI quantitative values of 0.041 for T1-weighted and 0.072 for T2-weighted images. CT and MRI measurements of SAT showed high correlation (r2=0.81 for T1; r2=0.81 for T2), with a mean logarithmic difference between CT and MRI values of 0.0174 for T1-weighted and 0.201 for T2-weighted images. CT and MRI measurements of VAT showed high correlation (r2=0.94 for T1; r2=0.93 for T2), with a mean logarithmic difference of 0.040 for T1-weighted and -0.084 for T2-weighted images. The comparison of values extracted by semi-automatic and automatic segmentations were highly correlated.
Conclusions
Quantification of body composition values at MRI from T1-weighted and T2-weighted images was highly correlated to same values at CT, therefore quantitative values of body composition among patients who underwent either one of the examinations may be compared. CT body composition values extracted by semi-automatic and automatic segmentations showed high correlation
Synthesis and catalytic activity of titanium-silsesquioxane frameworks as models of titanium active surface sites of controlled nuclearity
No full textThe synthesis and catalytic activity of some new titanium(IV) complexes with incompletely condensed Cy6Si6O7(OH)4 and endo-Cy8Si8O11(OH)2 (Cy = c-C6H11) silsesquioxane cages have been carried out with the aim of investigating new Ti silsesquioxane frameworks as molecular models of titanium active sites of catalysts prepared by grafting Ti(IV) precursors on the surface or in a matrix of mesoporous silica. The silsesquioxane Cy6Si6O7(OH)4, which bears four potentially reactive OH groups, when reacted with TiCpCl3 (Cp = η5-C5H5) affords the new species [Cy6Si6O12Ti2(Cp)2], with two titanium atoms connected through one μ-oxygen bridge, as confirmed by a XANES and EXAFS spectroscopic investigation. By reaction of endo-Cy8Si8O11(OH)2 with [Ti(o-C6H4O2)(OCH2CH3)2] the new complex [Cy8Si8O11O2]2Ti was obtained, which exhibits a tetrapodal coordination of Ti, as shown by a X-ray diffraction investigation. The catalytic activity of these two new Ti silsesquioxane complexes was investigated for the catalytic epoxidation of cyclohexene with tert-butyl hydroperoxide and compared with the catalytic activity of the known [Cy7Si7O12TiCp], widely used to model very active tripodal titanium single sites. It appears that a tripodal coordination of Ti sites facilitates the catalytic activity that is in contrast quite low for the two new complexes investigated in this work, probably due to the higher stability toward dissociation to generate a tripodal coordination of the Ti−O−Ti bond and to the steric hindrance of Ti tetrapodal coordination
Web discussions on cardiovascular diseases: pre-COVID-19 evaluation and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic – Web listening analysis in the Italian population
No full textBackground: Web discussions on health issues are becoming very relevant in the general public. In this context, little information is available regarding cardiovascular diseases, which remain the first cause of morbidity, disability and mortality worldwide. The central objective of the study was to conduct a Web listening analysis on discussions about cardiovascular diseases in Italy, comparing the data relative to the 2-year pre-COVID-19 pandemic period with those collected during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown (March-July 2020), with quantification of conversations on cardiovascular disease and Web-based discussions and specific evaluation of COVID-19 lockdown impact. Methods: A retrospective Web listening analysis using publicly available data was conducted, using validated methods that allow to estimate cardiovascular disease awareness. Digital sources were identified to retrieve data (Italian language), relevant to cardiovascular disease topics. Data were analysed by Google Trends methodology and the Digital Intelligence Platform Brandwatch. Natural Language Processing algorithms enabled comparative analysis, topic detection, classification, leading to a 279,790-item dataset. Results: News channels and Twitter were the most important platforms feeding cardiovascular disease information. Facebook was mostly relevant for information sharing. In the pre-COVID-19 period, cardiovascular disease ranked 5th among main health issues (vaccines, tumors, influenza, diabetes) on the Web, and the most discussed cardiovascular disease themes were symptoms/diagnosis (34%), treatments (20%), disease causes/triggers (11%), disease information (9%), quality of life (8%). Conversations on cardiovascular disease prevention were marginal (5%). The COVID-19 pandemic lockdown strongly impacted on discussed topics; novel themes emerged: hospitalization, death risk/occurrence, greater cardiovascular disease risk. Discussions on cardiovascular disease prevention remained marginal (4%). COVID-19 pandemic increased fear of severe COVID-19 among patients with cardiovascular disease and worsened quality of relationship/contact with physicians. Conclusions: A limited awareness of cardiovascular disease and their prevention was observed before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Patients/caregivers need more information and contact with physicians, as it emerged during COVID-19 pandemic. It is urgent to promote novel prevention strategies and to engage people leveraging digital channels and social media
Wiener criterion for relaxed Dirichlet problem relative to Riemannian p-homogeneous Dirichlet forms
No full textWe give a Wiener criterion for the relaxed Dirichlet problem relative to a Riemannian p-homogeneous Dirichlet form.The first author has been supported by the MIUR research project n. 2005010173
Early Experience with Acuson AcuNav 4D-ICE to Guide Transcatheter Tricuspid Edge-to-Edge Repair: 4D Intracardiac Echocardiography Compared to Transesophageal Echocardiography
No full textTricuspid regurgitation is a common valvular disease associated with high morbidity and mortality if left untreated. While surgery has been the standard intervention, transcatheter tricuspid edge-to-edge repair (T-TEER) has emerged as an alternative for high-risk surgical candidates. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is the gold-standard imaging modality for guiding T-TEER due to its high spatial and temporal resolution. However, it requires general anesthesia and esophageal intubation, limiting its use in certain patients. Additionally, TEE image quality may be compromised by anterior structure shadowing, which is common in T-TEER. The development of 4D intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) offers real-time, three-dimensional imaging, potentially overcoming these limitations. This study compared TEE and Acuson AcuNav 4D-ICE in guiding T-TEER in ten high-risk patients across eight crucial procedural steps. ICE showed optimal feasibility in key procedural steps, including valve steering and leaflet grasping, due to its proximity to target structures, minimizing shadowing artifacts. Both modalities performed equally in lesion identification and residual regurgitation assessment and achieved non-statistically different results in most quantitative measurements. This study supports the integration of 4D-ICE into T-TEER procedures, particularly for patients unsuited for TEE or with complex TEE windows. Its real-time imaging, reduced invasiveness, and feasibility in critical steps highlight its potential as a viable alternative or complement to TEE. Further multicenter studies are needed to validate its role, optimize protocols, and evaluate long-term outcomes in 4D-ICE-guided T-TEER
Clinical Impact of Renal Dysfunction in Patients with Severe Tricuspid Regurgitation and Chronic Heart Failure
No full textBackground: Renal dysfunction (RD) is common in patients with heart failure (HF), however its impact on clinical outcomes in patients with tricuspid regurgitation (TR) and HF is still debated; therefore, we aimed to assess the impact of RD on clinical outcomes in this population. Methods: All patients with HF and a prevalent or incident diagnosis of TR presenting at two centers between January 2020 and July 2021 were enrolled, in both acute (in-hospitalized patients) and chronic settings (outpatient). Patients were stratified according to the degree of RD (Group 1 <30 mL/min (n = 70), Group 2 30–59 mL/min (n = 123) and Group 3 ≥60 mL/min (n = 56). Results: Out of 249 patients, those with severe RD had lower left ventricular ejection fraction (41.8 ± 13.1% vs. 45.7 ± 14.2% vs. 48.6 ± 13.1%, p = 0.020) and tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (16.6 ± 3.7 mm vs. 17.6 ± 4.0 mm vs. 20.0 ± 4.4 mm, p < 0.001) while brain natriuretic peptides levels were higher (979 ± 1514 pg/mL vs. 490 ± 332 pg/mL vs. 458 ± 543 pg/mL, p = 0.049) than in the other subgroups. After a median follow-up of 279 (interquartile range, IQR 195–481) days, all-cause mortality was higher in patients with severe RD (37.7% vs. 23.3% vs. 13.7%, p = 0.012). HF hospitalizations (32.7% vs. 31.2% vs. 30.6%, p = 0.970) and the composite of all-cause mortality or HF hospitalization (54.1% vs. 47.9% vs. 42.0%, p = 0.444) did not differ between subgroups. Conclusions: Severe RD is highly present in patients with HF and TR and is associated with increased incidence of all-cause mortality
