[Oral rehydration in infants with acute diarrhea: using a new preparation of reduced osmolarity]. / Reidratazione orale in bambini con diarrea acuta: utilizzo di una preparazione a ridotta osmolarità.

Oral rehydration solutions (ORS) are widely employed in the treatment of acute diarrhea in children. Although several studies in the recent literature prove the efficacy and safety of newly formulated, reduced-osmolarity solutions, and a specific working group of the European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition (ESPGAN) has made similar recommendations, such evidence in our Country is lacking. To this aim, we enrolled 38 children (age from 3 to 24 months, average: 8.2) with acute diarrhea lasting from no more than 5 days (average: 2.5). At observation, dehydration was found to be: absent in 12 (31.6%), mild in 19 (50%), moderate in 5 (13.2%), severe in 2 (5.2%). The last 2 patients were admitted and treated i.v., thus excluded from the study. In the 36 remaining children, a pathogen was identified in 25 (69.4%): Rotavirus in 18, Salmonella in 4, EPEC in 2, Cryptosporidium in 1. Stool Clinitest was positive in 7/31 children, all with Rotavirus infection. All the patients received ad libitum for the first 4-6 hours exclusively a reduced-osmolarity ORS formulated according to the ESPGAN criteria. Afterwards, they were fully re-fed and were also given the same ORS until diarrhea stopped. Most of the children accepted the ORS; those who refused it were either not dehydrated and/or older than 15 months. Thirty-three out of 36 children were fully rehydrated after 12 hours, without any side effects. We conclude that such an ORS is safe and effective in the treatment of children with acute diarrhea in our settings.

Survey on the prevalence of leptospira infections in the Italian population.

This investigation is the first nationwide survey on the circulation of leptospira infections in human beings in Italy. In nine out of twenty Italian regions, representative samples of the population were investigated for the presence of leptospira infections. Unexpectedly, leptospira infections were found to be widespread, the number of cases being much higher than the diagnosed clinical cases. There were found to be high, medium, and low risk areas. On the whole, the risk for the rural population was no higher than the risk for urban dwellers; leisure activities, contact with animals and residence on the plain versus residence in the hills were important risk factors. There was an unidentified risk factor in urbanites which was absent in the rural population. A changing pattern in infecting serovars was observed, with infections from serogroups Sejroe, Javanica and Australis prevailing over infections from the Icterohaemorrhagiae and Bataviae serogroups, which were the main agents of human leptospirosis during the 1950s. The mechanisms of these changes, the need for epidemiological surveys and improved diagnostic methods of screening are discussed.

[Antisalmonellal agglutination in liver cirrhosis and chronic hepatitis]. / Agglutinazione anti salmonelle nella cirrosi epatica e nelle epatiti croniche.

A positive serum diagnosis for Salmonellae was obtained in 7 patients with cirrhosis of the liver and 18 with chronic hepatitis (22 males and 3 females), even though their history was negative and they had not even been vaccinated against thyphus and paratyphus. The results are seen as a warning that laboratory data that might lead to a mistaken diagnosis and incorrect treatment should be interpreted with particular care.

[Salmonellae in the district of Catanzaro: dynamics of serologic types and of sensitivity to antibiotics (author's transl)]. / Le salmonelle in provincia di Catanzaro: dinamica dei tipi sierologici e della sensibilit' ai chemioantibiotici.

We have examined Salmonellae isolated from patients in regional Hospital of Catanzaro from 1973 to 1978, and also the ones isolated from healthy people in order to detect the carriers from 1976 to 1978, and also the statements of salmonellosis from 1974 to 1978. We noticed a progressive increase of the cases of salmonellosis and a diminution of cases of typhoid fever which, anyway, is still rather relevant in comparison with other regions. All the types of S. isolated, their geographic distribution and their resistance to antibiotics are reported.