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1.
Dis Markers ; 2021: 8863053, 2021.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-34055104

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: The clinical course of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is highly heterogenous, ranging from asymptomatic to fatal forms. The identification of clinical and laboratory predictors of poor prognosis may assist clinicians in monitoring strategies and therapeutic decisions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, we retrospectively assessed the prognostic value of a simple tool, the complete blood count, on a cohort of 664 patients (F 260; 39%, median age 70 (56-81) years) hospitalized for COVID-19 in Northern Italy. We collected demographic data along with complete blood cell count; moreover, the outcome of the hospital in-stay was recorded. RESULTS: At data cut-off, 221/664 patients (33.3%) had died and 453/664 (66.7%) had been discharged. Red cell distribution width (RDW) (χ 2 10.4; p < 0.001), neutrophil-to-lymphocyte (NL) ratio (χ 2 7.6; p = 0.006), and platelet count (χ 2 5.39; p = 0.02), along with age (χ 2 87.6; p < 0.001) and gender (χ 2 17.3; p < 0.001), accurately predicted in-hospital mortality. Hemoglobin levels were not associated with mortality. We also identified the best cut-off for mortality prediction: a NL ratio > 4.68 was characterized by an odds ratio for in-hospital mortality (OR) = 3.40 (2.40-4.82), while the OR for a RDW > 13.7% was 4.09 (2.87-5.83); a platelet count > 166,000/µL was, conversely, protective (OR: 0.45 (0.32-0.63)). CONCLUSION: Our findings arise the opportunity of stratifying COVID-19 severity according to simple lab parameters, which may drive clinical decisions about monitoring and treatment.


Subject(s)
Blood Cell Count , COVID-19/blood , COVID-19/mortality , Clinical Decision Rules , Hospital Mortality , Severity of Illness Index , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , COVID-19/diagnosis , Female , Humans , Italy/epidemiology , Male , Middle Aged , Multivariate Analysis , Prognosis , Retrospective Studies
2.
Sci Rep ; 10(1): 20731, 2020 11 26.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-33244144

ABSTRACT

Clinical features and natural history of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) differ widely among different countries and during different phases of the pandemia. Here, we aimed to evaluate the case fatality rate (CFR) and to identify predictors of mortality in a cohort of COVID-19 patients admitted to three hospitals of Northern Italy between March 1 and April 28, 2020. All these patients had a confirmed diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection by molecular methods. During the study period 504/1697 patients died; thus, overall CFR was 29.7%. We looked for predictors of mortality in a subgroup of 486 patients (239 males, 59%; median age 71 years) for whom sufficient clinical data were available at data cut-off. Among the demographic and clinical variables considered, age, a diagnosis of cancer, obesity and current smoking independently predicted mortality. When laboratory data were added to the model in a further subgroup of patients, age, the diagnosis of cancer, and the baseline PaO2/FiO2 ratio were identified as independent predictors of mortality. In conclusion, the CFR of hospitalized patients in Northern Italy during the ascending phase of the COVID-19 pandemic approached 30%. The identification of mortality predictors might contribute to better stratification of individual patient risk.


Subject(s)
COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/mortality , Pandemics , SARS-CoV-2/genetics , Age Factors , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , COVID-19/virology , Comorbidity , Female , Humans , Italy/epidemiology , Length of Stay , Male , Middle Aged , Retrospective Studies , Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction , Risk Factors , Sex Factors , Smoking , Survival Rate
3.
BMJ Open ; 9(4): e027179, 2019 04 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-30944140

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Our cross-sectional study aimed at evaluating the diagnostic performance of Focused Assessment with Sonography for HIV-associated tuberculosis (FASH) to detect extrapulmonary tuberculosis in extremely resource-limited settings, with visceral leishmaniasis as a differential diagnosis with overlapping sonographic feature. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centre (VCT) of Yirol Hospital, South Sudan. PARTICIPANTS: From May to November 2017, 252 HIV-positive patients out of 624 newly admitted to VCT Centre were registered for antiretroviral treatment. According to the number of trained doctors available to practise ultrasound (US) scan, a sample of 100 patients were screened using the FASH protocol. INTERVENTIONS: Following a full clinical examination, each patient was scanned with a portable US scanner in six different positions for pleural, pericardial, ascitic effusion, abdominal lymphadenopathy and hepatic/splenic microabscesses, according to the FASH protocol. A k39 antigen test for visceral leishmaniasis was also performed on patients with lymphadenopathy and/or splenomegaly. All demographic, clinical and HIV data, as well as FASH results and therapy adjustments, were recorded following the examination. RESULTS: The FASH protocol allowed the detection of pathological US findings suggestive of tuberculosis in 27 out of the 100 patients tested. Overall, FASH results supported tuberculosis treatment indication for 16 of 21 patients, with the treatment being based exclusively on FASH findings in half of them (8 patients). The group of FASH-positive patients had a significantly higher proportion of patients with CD4 count below 0.2 x109/L (n=22, 81%) as compared with FASH-negative patients (n=35, 48%) (p=0.003). Moreover, 48% (n=13) of FASH-positive patients had CD4 below 100 cells/mm3. All patients tested had a negative result on k39 antigen test. CONCLUSION: FASH was found to be a relevant diagnostic tool to detect signs of tuberculosis. Further research is needed to better define a patient profile suitable for investigation and also considering diagnostic accuracy.


Subject(s)
HIV Infections/complications , Tuberculosis/diagnostic imaging , Ultrasonography , Adolescent , Adult , CD4 Lymphocyte Count , Cross-Sectional Studies , Female , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Point-of-Care Systems , South Sudan , Young Adult
4.
Neurology ; 82(15): 1370-3, 2014 Apr 15.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-24634458

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: We report updated results at a median follow-up of 12 years of a phase II trial assessing first-line MATILDE chemotherapy and response-tailored radiotherapy in patients with primary CNS lymphomas (PCNSL). METHODS: Forty-one HIV-negative patients (18-70 years; Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status ≤3) with histologically confirmed PCNSL received 3 courses of MATILDE chemotherapy followed by whole-brain radiotherapy (WBRT). Chemotherapy activity was the primary endpoint. RESULTS: Overall response rate was 76% (95% confidence interval [CI] 63%-89%) after chemotherapy and 83% (95% CI 71%-95%) after chemotherapy ± radiotherapy. At a median follow-up of 144 months (range 47-153), 31 patients experienced an event: relapse in 24, progressive disease in 3, and toxic death in 4, with a 5-year progression-free survival of 24% ± 8%. Two patients experienced a late relapse (100 and 101 months). Nine patients are alive and disease-free, 8 of whom are alive at >10 years, with a 5-year overall survival of 30% ± 7%. At 10 years from diagnosis, no patient showed chronic hematologic and nonhematologic toxicities, with a Mini-Mental State Examination score of ≥29 in all cases but one. CONCLUSIONS: At a median follow-up of 12 years, MATILDE regimen followed by WBRT confirmed the previously reported survival plateau, which further proves its long-lasting efficacy with acceptable neurologic deficits. CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE: This study provides Class IV evidence that in patients with PCNSL, MATILDE chemotherapy followed by response-tailored radiotherapy increases the probability of disease remission at 12 years.


Subject(s)
Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/therapeutic use , Central Nervous System Neoplasms/drug therapy , Lymphoma/drug therapy , Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols/administration & dosage , Central Nervous System Neoplasms/radiotherapy , Combined Modality Therapy , Cytarabine/administration & dosage , Cytarabine/therapeutic use , Disease-Free Survival , Female , Follow-Up Studies , Humans , Idarubicin/administration & dosage , Idarubicin/therapeutic use , Lymphoma/radiotherapy , Male , Methotrexate/administration & dosage , Methotrexate/therapeutic use , Remission Induction , Thiotepa/administration & dosage , Thiotepa/therapeutic use , Treatment Outcome
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