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Biomedical subjects

Ercole Concia

Publications and source records attributed to Ercole Concia.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Osteomyelitis: clinical update for practical guidelines.

Bone infections represent a diagnostic or therapeutic challenge for the infectivologist, orthopaedic surgeon, radiologist and nuclear medicine physician. Staphylococcus aureus is the major bacterium responsible for bone infections although Mycobacterium tuberculosis is emerging as an infectious agent in Italy because of immigration from Africa and Asia. Osteomyelitis requires long and expensive antibiotic treatment, including rifampicin administered parenterally for several weeks and the use of antimicrobial-impregnated cement in prosthesis substitution. Sometimes it is necessary to carry out surgical debridement of a necrotic bone or the consolidation of compromised bones and joint prosthesis implants. Radiographs and bone cultures are mainstays for the diagnosis of bone infections but are often useless in the lengthy management of these patients. Diagnosis of skeletal infections still includes conventional radiography but magnetic resonance imaging is essential in haematogenous and spinal infections. Bone scans are still useful in acute osteomyelitis whereas scintigraphy using labelled white blood cells is preferred in infections of peripheral bone segments or joint prosthesis. In the axial skeleton a combination of an agent for detecting inflammation ((67)Ga citrate) and a metabolic agent ((99m)Tc-methylene diphosphonate) enables an infection and an area of increased metabolic activity to be distinguished. [(18)F]Fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography, where available, has a significant impact in the study of infections using radionuclides: high-resolution tomographic images represent an effective alternative to gallium in the assessment of inflammation of spine lesions but a comparison with morphological examinations (computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging) is essential.

Humans↗
PubMed2006

Early discharge of hospitalised patients with community-acquired urosepsis when treated with levofloxacin in sequential therapy.

OBJECTIVES: To compare the sequential therapy with levofloxacin with a standard treatment in the management of urosepsis. MATERIALS AND METHODS: It was a multicenter, randomized, open label, pilot trial in community acquired urosepsis carried out in 7 hospitals. Levofloxacin administered 500 mg twice a day intravenously and then orally was compared to piperacillin/tazobactam 4 g/0.5 g three times a day, both in combination with amikacin 7.5 mg/Kg twice a day, for a maximum of 14 days. Amikacin could be suspended between day 3-7. RESULTS: Both treatments were efficacious and well tolerated in the 47 enrolled patients, even tough the time to clinical stability was shorter in the levofloxacin treated patients (3.9 vs. 4.9 days). In the levofloxacin group the sequential therapy was performed in 19 (82.6%) cases, after 4.8 +/- 1.7 days of parenteral administration (100% in the per-protocol population after 5.1 +/- 1.9 days). CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of the sequential therapy in the levofloxacin group allowed an early hospital discharge in patients with urosepsis and a cost saving in the hospital perspective.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed2005

Considerations for a WHO European strategy on health-care-associated infection, surveillance, and control.

Health-care-associated infection (HAI) is a major issue of patient safety with a substantial impact on morbidity, mortality, and use of additional resources worldwide. In April 2004, the WHO Regional Office for Europe organised the first international consultation to address the issue of HAI in eastern and central Europe. The main objectives of the consultation were to identify the primary needs and obstacles for the prevention and control of HAI at country level, to design the essential components of an international strategy to effectively address the issue of HAI, and to identify specific priorities and recommendations for interventions by the WHO and other international institutions. An update on HAI activities and related networks throughout Europe, together with the outcome of the meeting, are presented, with special emphasis on future considerations for a European WHO strategy on HAI prevention.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed2005

Penetration of orally administered prulifloxacin into human lung tissue.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the distribution in lung tissue of ulifloxacin, the active metabolite of prulifloxacin, a new once-daily fluoroquinolone administered orally in a single 600mg dose. DESIGN: Open-label, randomised study. PATIENTS: Twenty-seven patients (25 males, 2 females; mean age 65.7 years [range 49-79 years]) with a lung neoplasm requiring lobectomy or pneumonectomy. METHODS: Patients were randomly assigned to five treatment groups and received a single oral dose of prulifloxacin 600mg at 2, 4, 6, 12 or 24 hours preoperatively. During surgery, blood and healthy lung (based on macroscopic appearance) samples were collected at the same time. Ulifloxacin concentrations in plasma and lung tissue were determined by a validated reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography assay. Lung tissue ulifloxacin concentrations were adjusted for blood contamination, by measuring haemoglobin in the supernatant of each tissue sample and applying a corrective equation. RESULTS: Ulifloxacin concentration in lung tissue exceeded plasma concentration at every timepoint. Following administration of prulifloxacin 600mg, the overall mean corrected lung/plasma ratio over the 24-hour period was 6.9 (range 1.2-14.1). When sampling intervals were assessed, the corrected lung/plasma ratios were 7.5 (2 hours after dosing), 6.3 (4 hours), 4.3 (6 hours), 7.0 (12 hours) and 9.2 (24 hours). The mean corrected lung/plasma area under the concentration-time curve ratio was 6.3, demonstrating the ability of the drug to penetrate lung tissue and confirming the high exposure of this target tissue to ulifloxacin. However, the limitation of the lung tissue sampling method and the high interpatient variability should be considered. Over the 24-hour period, the concentrations of ulifloxacin in lung tissue were higher than the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for pathogens frequently involved in community-acquired respiratory tract infections. CONCLUSION: Lung tissue penetration data may have a supportive value when considered jointly with MICs and efficacy results. The findings from this lung penetration study could explain the efficacy of once-daily prulifloxacin 600mg observed in clinical trials conducted in patients with exacerbation of chronic bronchitis.

Administration, Oral↗
PubMed2004

Viral growth assay to evaluate the replicative capacity of HIV-1 isolates.

The replicative capacity of HIV is studied by carrying out replication-competition experiments with the insertion of the gene of interest. These assays cannot capture the complicated patterns of mutations of different genes.A cross sectional study was carried out on 10 HIV-infected nai;ve patients and on 15 patients failing HAART. The CD8-depleted PBMCs, with known proviral DNA and cellular HIV-RNA copy numbers, were cultured. A reference curve was determined using the data obtained from 10 nai;ve patients. The replicative capacity was calculated as the ratio multiplied by 100 of the p24 antigen level of isolates over the p24 antigen level determined on the reference curve.A linear correlation between p24 antigen level and the infectious doses of HIV-DNA alone or plus cellular RNA copy number of PBMCs was found in naive patients (r=0.63, P<0.001 and r=0.67, P<0.001, respectively). Although all patients failing therapy had strains with impaired replicative capacity, a wide range of values (0.1-74.5%) was detected. All strains with a replicative capacity above 10% had non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors related mutations.A viral assay to evaluate the HIV replicative capacity is described. The high variability of replicative capacity confirms the need to undertake replicative capacity assay using the whole virus.

Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active↗
PubMed2004

Painful neuropathy vasculitis in 2 patients with long-standing human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection.

We describe 2 most unusual cases of distal symmetrical painful polyneuropathy in patients with long-standing HIV-1 infection well controlled by HAART. Sural nerve biopsies revealed vasculitis in both cases and steroid therapy led to resolution of symptoms not influenced by analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs. These unusual cases outline the importance of nerve biopsies in order to reach a diagnosis.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Histoplasmosis in two human immunodeficiency virus-positive immigrants to Italy: clinical features and management in the highly active antiretroviral therapy era.

We report two cases of histoplasmosis occurring in human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients who immigrated to Italy, and focus our attention on the clinical features and therapeutic aspects, with particular emphasis on secondary prophylaxis. The patients had comparable human immunodeficiency virus baseline parameters, but had a completely different compliance over therapeutic regimens. The two patients were followed in two different city hospitals of our region, Padua and Verona, and the diagnosis was made on the basis of instrumental, histologic, and microbiologic findings. One of them was treated with corticosteroids because of nephrotic syndrome.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗
PubMed2004

[No improvement of lipodystrophy syndrome in an HIV-infected patient].

Lipodystrophy in patients with HIV-infection has been studied intensively to understand its epidemiology and pathophysiology. Recently its development was attributed to a dysregulation of TNF-alpha synthesis' homeostasis by HAART. A few years ago it was found that pentoxifylline decreases TNF-alpha production. We describe one HIV-infected patient, with lipodystrophy syndrome, treated with pentoxifylline without any improvement of lipodystrophic symptoms.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Making hospitals safer: the need for a global strategy for infection control in health care settings.

Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) have a substantial impact on morbidity, mortality and health costs. At least 5 to 10% of patients admitted to acute care hospitals acquire an infection. Factors that promote HAI include underlying diseases and decreased patient immunity; invasive diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, the widespread antimicrobial resistance, lack of infection control measures and environmental hygiene. HAI are preventable and infection control programmes are cost-effective. Health care workers education, HAI surveillance, appropriate legislation and basic infection control measures are the essential elements of an infection control programme. A recent consultation on the 'Prevention and Control of HAI' identified the need for an international strategy that would establish standards, procedures and methods for HAI surveillance, prevention and control and promote their implementation at national level.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed2003

Clearance of 14-3-3 protein from cerebrospinal fluid heralds the resolution of bacterial meningitis.

The 14-3-3 protein, a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) marker of neuronal damage that was recently adopted for the diagnosis of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, is also found in the CSF of patients with a variety of neurological disorders. We prospectively studied 12 consecutive patients with purulent bacterial meningitis and found that 14-3-3 protein was detected in all patients at admission to the hospital. All patients who recovered cleared 14-3-3 protein from the CSF before discharge from the hospital (this was the first CSF marker to clear), whereas those who died never cleared the protein.

14-3-3 Proteins↗
PubMed2003

Replication capacity, biological phenotype, and drug resistance of HIV strains isolated from patients failing antiretroviral therapy.

The fitness of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in vivo depends on the interaction of a multitude of viral and host factors. The aim of this study was to analyze the biological phenotype and the intrinsic capacity of the HIV isolates with drug-resistance mutations to replicate efficiently in the absence of drugs. An open label multicenter cross-sectional study was undertaken on 28 HIV-infected patients failing antiretroviral treatment. The subjects were studied for CD4+ cell count, HIV viral load, syncytium-inducing phenotype, genotypic drug-resistance assay, and replication capacity of HIV isolates assessed by co-culture assay. All HIV isolates showed a decreased replication capacity compared with wild-type strains. The lowest replication capacity was detected in HIV strains with more than five drug-resistance mutations. The highest replication capacity was observed in strains carrying the K103N and Y181C primary mutations that emerged after treatment with non-nucleoside analogue inhibitors. Isolates with R5 biological phenotype had a higher number of resistant mutations than X4 isolates (P = 0.004). Particularly, the R5 phenotype was detected in all 6 isolates with more than 14 drug-resistance mutations. Patients with R5 strains had plasma viral load similar to patients with X4 strains, but marginally higher CD4+ cell counts, and their HIV isolates had significantly lower replication capacity of HIV isolates (P = 0.008). No patient carrying HIV with a maintained replication capacity had a viral load less than 30,000 copies/ml. In patients failing HAART, the detection of HIV isolates with the R5 biological phenotype correlates with CD4+ cell count, an impaired replication capacity, and a high number of drug-resistance mutations.

Anti-HIV Agents↗