Apulian infectious diseases network: survey on the prevalence of delta infection among chronic HBV carriers in Apulia.

Background: The current prevalence and clinical burden of Hepatitis Delta Virus (HDV) infection in Apulia are unknown. This study aimed to define the current epidemiological scenario of delta infection and to detect difficulties in the diagnosis and clinical management of HDV patients in Apulia. Methods: From May to September 2022, a fact-finding survey was conducted at eight Infectious Diseases Units of the Apulian region; each Unit was asked to complete a questionnaire on screening and diagnosis of HDV infection and demographic, virological, and clinical characteristics of HDV patients. Results: A total of 1,461 HBsAg-positive subjects were followed up on an outpatient basis. Screening for HDV ranged from 30 to 90% of HBsAg + carriers in a single center. Overall, 952 HBsAg ± subjects (65%) were tested for HDV, and 80/952 (8.4%) were anti-HDV positive. Serum HDV RNA was detected only in 15/80 (19%) anti-HDV-positive subjects, and 12/15 patients (80%) were viremic. Sixty-five anti-HDV-positive subjects (81%) were from Italy; risk factors for HDV acquisition included the presence of HDV infection in the family (29/80 = 36%), drug addiction (12/80 = 15%), and co-infection with HCV or HIV (7/80 = 9%). Liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma were diagnosed in 41 (51%) and 4 (5%) patients, respectively. Fifty-seven patients (71%) received nucleos(t)ide analog treatment. Conclusions: The results of this survey show that HDV screening is variable and insufficient, thus real prevalence data on delta infection are lacking in Apulia. Moreover, the HDV RNA test is not available in most laboratories and is not provided by the national health system. These results underline the need for an organizational model to optimize the management of HDV patients throughout the Apulian region.

Acute acalculous cholecystitis as an early manifestation of COVID-19: case report and literature review.

Background: The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has rapidly spread worldwide since the outbreak in Wuhan, China, in 2019, becoming a major threat to public health. The most common symptoms are fever, dry cough, shortness of breath, but subjects with COVID-19 may also manifest gastrointestinal symptoms, and in a few cases an involvement of the gallbladder has been observed. Case report: Here we present a case of 50-year-old male with SARS-CoV-2 infection who had abdominal pain, vomiting and diarrhea without respiratory symptoms and was finally diagnosed as acute acalculous cholecystitis (AAC). Laparoscopic cholecystectomy was performed and found a gangrenous gallbladder; the real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction SARS-CoV-2 nucleic acid assay of the bile was negative. We also made a review of the literature and try to understand the hypothetic role of SARS-CoV-2 in the pathogenesis of AAC. Conclusions: We highlighted that it is noteworthy to look at gastrointestinal symptoms in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and take into account AAC as a possible complication of COVID-19. Although more evidence is needed to better elucidate the role of the pathogenic mechanisms of the SARS-CoV-2 in AAC, it is conceivable that the hepatobiliary system could be a potential target of SARS-CoV-2.

Safety and effectiveness of a 12-week course of sofosbuvir and simeprevir ± ribavirin in HCV-infected patients with or without HIV infection: a multicentre observational study.

The combination of sofosbuvir and simeprevir ± ribavirin (SOF + SMV ± RBV) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment has been associated with high rates of sustained virological response (SVR). Few data are available regarding this regimen in HIV/HCV co-infected patients. This study evaluated the effectiveness and safety of a 12-week course of SOF + SMV ± RBV in a cohort of HCV monoinfected and HIV/HCV co-infected individuals. HCV-infected patients, with or without HIV infection, receiving a 12-week course of SOF + SMV ± RBV in four Italian centres from February to October 2015, were included in this retrospective observational study. Clinical and biochemical data were retrieved for all patients. A total of 88 individuals were evaluated: 29 (33.0%) HIV/HCV co-infected and 59 (67.0%) monoinfected. Most patients were males with HCV genotype 1b (62.5%) and 1a (25%) infection. RBV was used in 41 HCV monoinfected and 6 HIV/HCV co-infected patients. Cirrhosis was found in 67 patients (76.1%). The most common adverse events (AEs) were rash and/or pruritus (23.9%), fatigue (13.6%) and anaemia (9.1%). Serious AEs occurred in three patients (3.4%). No treatment discontinuations were observed. RBV use was associated with multiple AEs (P = 0.02). An overall SVR12 of 93.2% was achieved; 96.6% in HCV monoinfected and 86.2% in HIV/HCV co-infected individuals, without significance both in univariate (P = 0.09) and multivariate analyses (P = 0.12). A baseline platelet count ≥90 000/mm3 was associated with higher rates of SVR (P = 0.005). A 12-week course of SOF + SMV ± RBV was associated with good safety and high SVR12 rate both in HCV monoinfected and HIV-HCV co-infected individuals.

ARFI: from basic principles to clinical applications in diffuse chronic disease-a review.

UNLABELLED: The many factors influencing the shear wave velocity (SWV) measured with Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) are examined in order to define the most correct examination technique. In particular, attention is given to the information achieved by experimental models, such as phantoms and animal studies. This review targets the clinical applications of ARFI in the evaluation of chronic diffuse disease, especially of liver and kidneys. The contribution of ARFI to the clinical workout of these patients and some possible perspectives are described. TEACHING POINTS: • Stiffness significantly varies among normal and abnormal biological tissues. • In clinical applications physical, geometrical, anatomical and physiological factors influence the SWV. • Elastographic techniques can quantify fibrosis, which is directly related to stiffness. • ARFI can be useful in chronic diffuse disease of liver and kidney.

Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) in the evaluation of the renal parenchymal stiffness in paediatric patients with vesicoureteral reflux: preliminary results.

OBJECTIVES: To prospectively evaluate acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging of the kidneys in children with and without chronic renal disease. METHODS: Twenty-eight children (age range 9-16 years) with primary or secondary vesicoureteral reflux (≥ grade III) underwent scintigraphy and ultrasound with ARFI. Kidneys were divided-according to scintigraphy-into "affected" and "contralateral"; the results were compared with 16 age-matched healthy subjects. An ARFI value, expressed as speed (m/s) of wave propagation through the tissue, was calculated for each kidney through the mean of the values obtained at the upper, middle and lower third. The Wilcoxon test was used; P values <0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The mean ARFI values obtained in the "affected" kidneys (5.70 ± 1.71 m/s) were significantly higher than those measured in both "contralateral" (4.09 ± 0.97, P < 0.0001) and "healthy" kidneys (3.13 ± 0.09, P < 0.0001). The difference between values in the "contralateral" kidneys and "healthy" ones was significant (P < 0.0001). The "affected" kidneys with secondary reflux had mean ARFI values (6.59 ± 1.45) significantly higher than those with primary reflux (5.35 ± 1.72). CONCLUSIONS: ARFI values decrease from kidneys with secondary vesicoureteral reflux to kidneys with primary reflux to unaffected kidneys contralateral to reflux to normal kidneys.

Gray-scale ultrasonography in the evaluation of bone callus in distraction osteogenesis of the mandible: initial findings.

The accuracy of panoramic radiography (RX) and ultrasound (US) in the evaluation of both the length of the osteotomic gap and the quality of new bone formation in patients undergoing mandibular distraction osteogenesis (DO) was assessed, verifying the results against intraoperative and histologic findings. In 31 patients, three RX and three US examinations were performed after DO. RX and US findings were each independently compared, at the time of distractor removal, to the direct intraoperative measurement of the osteotomic gap and to the histologic evaluation of the maturity of a resected specimen. No significant differences (P>0.1) resulted at any step between RX (average length: 18.19 mm) and US (18.29 mm) measurement of the osteotomic gap. In the assessment of the callus maturity the difference between RX and US (P<0.001) was statistically significant: at the final control the maturity score averaged 0.612 at RX, 3 at US and 3 at histology. RX and US are equally reliable in the measurement of the osteotomic gap, while US is much more accurate than RX in the evaluation of the callus maturity. US-based follow-up might allow a safe shortening of the fixation period.

Comparison of CT features of Aspergillus and bacterial pneumonia in severely neutropenic patients.

PURPOSE: To establish whether a relationship exists between computed tomography features of lung opacities in severely neutropenic patients and their Aspergillus or bacterial etiology. METHODS: Computed tomography scans of 124 patients with lung opacities larger than 5 mm occurring during severe (neutrophils <500/mm) and prolonged (>7 d) neutropenia-induced by bone marrow transplantation and/or high-dose chemotherapy for hematologic malignancies-were reviewed. Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis or bacterial pneumonia were assessed by means of bronchoalveolar lavage, bronchial washing, trans-bronchial biopsy or (for bacteria only) blood cultures. Pulmonary opacities were classified as nodules or as consolidations. The presence of a perinodular ground-glass halo, the similarity of consolidations to a pulmonary infarction and the presence of cavitation (crescent-shaped or not) were recorded. RESULTS: Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis was diagnosed in 68 patients; bacterial pneumonia in 56. Nodules (85) were more common than consolidations (39); their distribution among the patients with aspergillosis (52 nodules and 16 consolidations) and those with bacterial pneumonia (33 nodules and 23 consolidations) was even. Out of the 19 nodules surrounded by a halo 17 were due to aspergillosis. Nine consolidations (3 due to aspergillosis) were infarctionlike shaped. Cavitation appeared during 22/68 aspergillosis and 31/56 bacterial pneumonias; an air-crescent in 6 patients with aspergillosis and in 24 with bacterial pneumonia. CONCLUSIONS: Although rare enough, the perinodular halo is highly specific for invasive aspergillosis. The nodular pattern of lung opacities, their similarity to a pulmonary infarction, the occurrence of cavitation and the air-crescent are not related to aspergillosis.

Low-dose helical chest CT in asbestos-exposed workers in the Veneto Region: preliminary results.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the preliminary results of low-dose helical chest CT in a group of individuals with an occupational exposure to asbestos. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between October 2000 and May 2004, 1,512 asymptomatic subjects, selected by Occupational Health physicians of the Veneto Region among those with a significant exposure to asbestos, underwent low-dose helical chest CT without contrast media administration. According to their features, all pulmonary nodules identified underwent pathology, further CT evaluation or follow-up with low-dose CT. RESULTS: Apart from benign pleural findings (in 40% of subjects), 590 pulmonary nodules were identified. Eleven nodules underwent pathologic examination, which detected 5 malignant lesions, and 51 were evaluated with other CT techniques, in all cases demonstrating benign features. In follow-up low-dose CT scans, performed in the remaining 528 nodules, a minimal increase in size occurred in 4 cases only. CONCLUSIONS: Screening for clinically relevant pulmonary lesions in asymptomatic people with occupational exposure to asbestos may be useful if rigorous enrollment criteria are adopted. The management of abnormal findings is cost-effective if it is based on the morphological features of each finding.

Thymic masses of the middle mediastinum: report of 2 cases and review of the literature.

Although thymic lesions are relatively common causes of anterior mediastinal masses, they can rarely arise in other mediastinal compartments, as it is well recognized that thymic tissue can lie in ectopic intrathoracic locations. A thymic mass within the middle mediastinum has rarely been reported, with only a single case of a thymic cyst described and no reports of a middle mediastinal thymoma. We report 2 thymic masses (1 thymoma and 1 thymic cyst) found to arise in the middle mediastinum.

Renovascular disease: effect of ACE gene deletion polymorphism and endovascular revascularization.

BACKGROUND: Renal artery stenosis (RAS) is associated with high cardiovascular mortality and significant clinical complications, including resistant hypertension and ischemic nephropathy. Despite availability of endovascular revascularization techniques, determining which patients should undergo revascularization and the timing of the procedure still are controversial. Several studies have reported a higher frequency of the DD genotype of the insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism of the angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene in patients with RAS, and one study found higher mortality in patients with the DD genotype. Material and methods We retrospectively studied 100 patients with documented atherosclerotic RAS and evaluated long-term (median follow-up, 28 months) mortality, blood pressure control, and renal function in relation to the ACE genotype and two therapeutic strategies, that is, endovascular treatment with percutaneous renal transluminal angioplasty or stenting (ET group) versus conservative drug therapy (CT group). RESULTS: Comparison between therapeutic groups showed a higher cumulative probability of survival (86.7% vs 67.1%), better blood pressure control (57.4% vs 29%), and slower decline in renal function (17.9% vs 48.4%) in the ET group. The DD genotype was strongly represented in our study patients (DD, 50%; II, 15.5%; I/D, 34.5%), but bore no relation to mortality, blood pressure control, decline in renal function, or rate of recurrent stenosis. CONCLUSIONS: Conservative medical treatment of RAS, compared with endovascular treatment, is associated with higher mortality, poorer blood pressure control, and impaired renal function over the long term. Early endovascular treatment enables amelioration of this unfavorable evolution. The DD genotype does not predict clinical outcome of RAS.

Sonography versus helical CT in identification and staging of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.

PURPOSE: The aim of this prospective study was to compare sonography with helical CT in the identification and staging of ductal adenocarcinoma of the pancreas. METHODS: Sixty-four patients with histopathologically proven pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma underwent both sonography and helical CT at our hospital between November 1, 2000, and October 31, 2001. These diagnostic imaging examinations were performed by 2 independent radiologists who were unaware of the findings of any other imaging or histopathologic examination and who assessed each case for the presence of tumor, involvement of peripancreatic vessels, the presence of metastases in the liver, and the resectability of the tumor. In the patients who underwent subsequent laparotomy, imaging-based diagnoses of overall resectability and vascular involvement were compared with surgical findings, which were considered the gold standard. Imaging-based diagnoses for the presence of hepatic metastases were compared with the findings of intraoperative sonography in patients who underwent radical resection and with the surgical findings in the patients who underwent palliative surgery; the operative findings were considered the gold standard. RESULTS: In the identification of pancreatic adenocarcinoma, sonography was more accurate (61 of 64 tumors, 95.3%) than helical CT was (57 of 64 tumors, 89.1%). In the overall prediction of resectability among the 43 patients who underwent laparotomy, sonography (81.4%) was less accurate than CT was (86.0%). In diagnosing involvement of the superior mesenteric artery, sonography (95.3%) was more accurate than CT (88.4%). The 2 methods were equally accurate in diagnosing hepatic metastases (86.0%) and involvement of the celiac trunk (100%) and the superior mesenteric vein (88.4%), but sonography was less accurate than CT for diagnosing involvement of the common hepatic artery (90.7% versus 95.3%, respectively) and portal vein (88.4% versus 93.0%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Sonography is more reliable than CT in identifying pancreatic adenocarcinoma, and its accuracy in staging is similar to that of CT.

A placebo-controlled treatment trial of Blastocystis hominis infection with metronidazole.

Blastocystis hominis, previously considered a harmless yeast, is now classified as a protozoan inhabiting the human intestinal tract. The pathogenicity of B. hominis remains controversial and is currently the subject of extensive debate.1- 5 As a result of the uncertainty surrounding the pathogenic role of B. hominis, large-scale treatment trials of B. hominis infection have so far been lacking. In spite of this, several drugs have been reported to be active against the parasite.6-8 The present study was carried out in order to evaluate the efficacy of metronidazole treatment in inducing clinical remission and parasitologic eradication in immunocompetent individuals with B. hominis as the only evident cause of diarrhea.

Diagnosis of malignant mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis by ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration.

Malignant mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis is a very rare tumor that is not usually diagnosed until surgery is undertaken. In only a few cases has the correct diagnosis been obtained preoperatively by cytologic examination of fluid from the hydrocele. We describe a case of mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis that was suspected on sonography because of the presence of a hydrocele and focal nodularities. The diagnosis was confirmed preoperatively by ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology aimed at 1 of the focal nodularities. Our patient was an 85-year-old man with concomitant cancer of the sigmoid colon; because of his age and the spread of his colon cancer, we did not remove the scrotal lesion. We recommend consideration of ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology of the solid masses instead of the fluid from the hydrocele in cases of suspected malignant mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis.