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Biomedical subjects

F Petrini

Publications and source records attributed to F Petrini.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Role of intensive therapy in liver transplant recipients: experience in blood purification and biosynthetic techniques.

The severity of the clinical situation for patients awaiting liver transplant depends on the conditions induced by the liver disease, which trigger a series of extrahepatic system alterations requiring prompt correction to improve the patient's preoperative condition. In the pre-terminal stage of liver cirrhosis, the patient's general condition is partly due to toxemia caused by loss of blood purification functions and also to liver synthetic deficits. In this study we describe our experience with extracorporeal support techniques, both from the blood purification standpoint and from biosynthesis. This experience represents an historic overview of the techniques involved in for construction of an "artificial liver." The aim of this work was to provide a summary of our clinical findings and current methods in extracorporeal liver support with the goal of improving the clinical status potential transplant patients.

Adolescent↗

Ciaglia percutaneous dilational tracheostomy. Early and late complications and follow-up.

AIM: Evaluation of the safety of percutaneous dilational tracheostomy (PDT) for perioperative, early and late complications. METHODS DESIGN: we prospectively collected complications in patients who underwent PDT for mechanical ventilation; patients were interviewed 8 months after discharge, symptomatic cases underwent ENT control. SETTING: 10 bed general ICU in a 650 -bed general hospital treating 450 patients per year. PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTION: 181 patients admitted between July 1998 and June 2000 who underwent PDT for mechanical ventilation. Prospe-ctive collection of data on patients and procedures and screening by a phone interview for symptoms possibly related to the tracheostomy. Symptomatic patients were referred to the ENT specialist. RESULTA: We found 17 perioperative minor complications and 10 minor during hospital stay complications. We traced 83 patients, alive 8 months after discharge. Sixty-one patients (73.5%) were symptom free. Four (4.8) complained of minimal dysphonia. Eighteen patients (21.7%) complained of symptoms deserving ENT control. Eleven patients came to the ENT control that was positive in 5 cases. In 2 patients swallowing uncoordination was found, in 1 arytenoid movement uncoordination. In 1 case (1.2%) a 25% tracheal stenosis was found. The stenosis was asymptomatic. One patient (1.2%) had a severe tracheal stenosis and had a Montgomery tracheal stent in place. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience Ciaglia PDT had an overall low rate of complications (21.8%). No patient had severe early complication. We found only 1 (1.2%) severe late complication. In selected patients, Ciaglia PDT with endoscopic control guarantees a high safety standard.

Female↗

Haemodynamic and volumetric monitoring during haemorrhagic shock in swine.

Various studies have been performed concerning haemodynamics in the shock state. The aim of this study was to examine if a haemodynamic approach based on volumetric indices can offer a new method of evaluation. Volumetric measurements of ventricular filling and cardiac function were compared with classical haemodynamic variables during induced haemorrhagic shock in swine. Twelve hybrid swine were anaesthetized and underwent arteriectomy to induce haemorrhagic shock. Blood was collected in ACD treated bags and reinfused via the same vein after a shock period of 90 min. Haemodynamic and volume measurements were evaluated. Seven swine survived to complete the protocol and reached the final experimental time (90 min after reinfusion), while the remaining five died 1 h after reinfusion. Concerning the haemodynamics, afterload changes characterized the haemorrhagic shock period, while blood volume distribution dictated ventricular filling and ventricular kinetics during the post-reinfusion period. Systemic vascular resistance was different in the two groups. This study suggests that blood volumetric evaluations can offer better comparative data than pulmonary catheterisation for a precise assessment of cardiac output. Preload values have turned out to be of greater relevance than traditional pressure variables.

Animals↗

Efficiency of organ procurement and transplantation programs.

The number of donations per million population (pmp) per year and the number of transplants pmp/year enables one to compare donation or transplant programs made in different years in the same area or made the same year in different areas. These pmp indexes may be integrated with an evaluation system by which each organ is evaluated separately in terms of the efficiency of its procurement and transplant systems using the procurement index (percentage in terms of number of organs utilized/number of organs procurable from donors utilized in a single area during 1 year) and the transplant index (percentage in terms of number of transplants performed/number of organs harvested in a single area during 1 year). We have called them Caldes I (procurement) and Caldes II (transplant) indexes. The harvest index evaluates the efficiency of utilization of organs retrieved from suitable donors. It usually ranges between 80-90% for the kidney, 70-95% for the liver, 40-50% for the heart, and 5-15% for the lungs. The transplant index evaluates for each organ the transplant team capacity to use available organs which can be harvested locally or in different areas. It usually ranges between 60-120%. Index determination did not require information different from the standard data available. Both the harvest and transplant indexes could be used to compare the efficiency of donation and transplant programs and policies in the same area during different years or at the same time in different areas. They can be critical in evaluating: (a) marginal donor utilization, (b) marginal organ utilization, and (c) dishomogeneity of organ retrieval and organ transplantation in different regions belonging to the same area. They also enable to evaluate if organs considered not available in a single area are offered to other areas or are not retrieved at all from available donors.

Efficiency, Organizational↗

Organ donation and transplantation as health programs in Italy.

Organ and tissue donation and transplantation have a role in public health programs as organizational projects designed by public health departments to increase the quality and number of donations and transplantations. These programs serve as communication projects to inform public opinion on cerebral death, organ and tissue shortages, procurement and allocation rules, and the quality of life of transplanted patients. The health department of Emilia-Romagna created a regional law and a multimedia communication program for these purposes, resulting in a 95% increase of cadaver donor in 4 years. In 1995, regional activity reached the European mean level and afterwards surpassed it. In 1997, the bone bank was activated, followed in 1998 by the heart valve and vascular segment bank. The regional health department now considers transplant activities a primary goal; human and professional relations between intensive care units and the transplant reference center are considered crucial; cooperation among health departments, medical teams involved in organ procurement and transplant activities has been fostered, and the local coordination network has been active and efficient. The public information campaign has proven important in providing information both to professionals and citizens.

Health Care Rationing↗

Reliability of ultrasound screening of liver and kidney donors: a retrospective study.

The reliability of abdominal ultrasound in screening liver and kidney donors was assessed by correlating ultrasound findings with the suitability of organs for transplantation as determined by direct examination of the organs. We evaluated 100 multiorgan donors (100 livers, 200 kidneys) during a 15-month period. Abdominal ultrasound showed the following results for liver and kidney, respectively: specificity, 95.6% and 98.9%; sensitivity, 62.5% and 66.6%; and accuracy, 93% and 97%. These results show that abdominal ultrasound is a valuable tool for determining suitability of organs for transplantation when the ultrasound findings are normal. When ultrasound findings are abnormal, further studies are necessary to determine the suitability of the organs for transplantation.

Adolescent↗

[The transplant coordinator].

Spain was the first European country adopting a strategy of organ procurement based on a specific health professional named transplant coordinator, who was first established in Catalunya in the middle eighties. In principle, the transplant coordinator is a doctor with hospital experience who is involved full time in organ procurement. The transplant coordination activity is available without interruption, due to a team work. Transplant coordination is based on four main functions: clinical, research, training and communication, management. The principles of transplant coordination according to the Spanish model are reported in the recently approved Italian law on transplantation (law 91/1999), indicating the coordinator's specific functions: a) communication to the regional reference centre of the data concerning the possible organ donors, b) preparation of the documents needed, c) relationship with the donors' family, d) information and education of the population on transplantation issues.

Humans↗

[Mechanical ventilation in the emergency room].

The respiratory failure in polytrauma patients and respiratory failure of different origin (COPD, pneumonia, pulmonary edema). In the first case invasive ventilation seems to be preferable and so the tracheal intubation, in emergency, with its more important guidelines. In the second case there are important physiopathological elements to consider NIMV the best first approach for ventilatory support.

Emergency Medical Services↗

A comparison of pediatric and adult kidney donors for adult recipients.

The high demand for organs for transplantation has made it necessary to consider using even the oldest and youngest of potential donors in order to increase the organ supply. In this retrospective study, the outcome of kidney transplantation using cadaveric pediatric donors was compared with that of an adult control series. Graft procurement took place in two regions of Italy (Emilia-Romagna and Piemonte) over an 11-year period. A group of pediatric donors (< 15 years old, n = 30) was compared with an adult donor group (n = 67). All recipients were adults who received cyclosporin as immunosuppression. Actuarial patient and graft survival rates did not differ significantly between the two groups (patient survival 96% and 96% for pediatric donors versus 98% and 92% for adult donors at 1 and 5 years post-transplantation; graft survival 76% and 68% for pediatric donors versus 88% and 74% for adult donors 1 and 5 y post-transplantation). Complications were also evaluated, but no difference was found (the only exception being the creatinine level in the 5th year). Renal transplantation with cadaveric donors starting at 4 years of age gave results comparable to kidneys coming from adults. These data show that cadaveric pediatric donor kidneys may be used in adult recipients with good results. The ethical implications of the subject are extensively reviewed.

Adolescent↗