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G Aliberti

Publications and source records attributed to G Aliberti.

48 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

Occurrence of diabetes mellitus in neurogenic diabetes insipidus.

The occurrence of a family history of diabetes mellitus, of overt diabetes mellitus and of impaired glucose tolerance was investigated in a group of 43 patients with neurogenic diabetes insipidus. Family history was positive in 16.2% of these, similar to that in control subjects; manifest diabetes mellitus was present in 9.3%, impaired glucose tolerance in 20%. This prevalence appears to be even more significant, considering the patients' mean age, 26.9 +/- 2.3 years.

Diabetes Complications↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Differences in platelet count and size between marrow and peripheral blood.

Automatized platelet parameters were evaluated in 23 unselected patients undergoing a bone marrow examination for diagnostic purposes, both in medullary and in peripheral blood, with the aim of investigating the biological significance of platelet volume heterogeneity. In the marrow blood the platelet count was 10.07 +/- 21.25% (p < 0.05) lower and the platelet volume 7.93 +/- 6.88% (p < 0.001) higher compared to peripheral venous blood: 275,173 +/- 108,079 versus 296,652 +/- 104,814/mm3 (p < 0.05) and 8.93 +/- 1.46 versus 8.23 +/- 1.57 fl (p < 0.001), respectively. The same behavior was observed between the marrow and the arterial blood collected from 12 out of the 23 patients, while no significant difference was observed between arterial and venous blood. The differences observed might be attributable to a platelet population replacement under homeostatical regulation and seem to support the concept that the large platelets are younger elements.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Predictive value of thyroglobulin changes for the efficacy of thyroid remnant ablation.

The aim of this case-control study was to determine the utility of the evaluation of changes in serum thyroglobulin (Tg) levels before and after 1311 diagnostic total body scan (TBS) in patients with thyroid cancer to predict the efficacy of radioiodine ablation. Among 134 consecutive patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) who had undergone a thyroidectomy and TBS prior to radioiodine ablation, we selected those subjects with no evidence of distant metastases and with two consecutive assessments of Tg before TBS and radioiodine ablation within a period of four weeks. With this selection procedure 27 patients (22 with papillary and five with follicular carcinomas) were included in our evaluation. The ablation therapy was considered successful when the TBS performed one year after treatment did not show any or less than 1% cervical 131I uptake, Tg levels remained below 3 ng/mL, and clinical and instrumental examinations were negative for the presence of relapses. These criteria divided the selected patients into two subsets: patients with successful radioiodine ablation and patients with residual thyroid tissue. The majority of patients with unsuccessful ablation showed an increase in serum Tg levels, while most of the patients with successful ablation showed a steady decrease in Tg concentrations. Statistical analysis evidenced that the increase in Tg levels after TBS was related to unsuccessful ablation (P > or = 0.01). By contrast, the rate of thyroid remnants with 131I uptake did not show any relationship with the outcome of ablation therapy. The group of patients with increasing Tg levels after TBS had a relative risk of 3.3 of unsuccessful ablative therapy compared to the group with stable or decreasing Tg levels. This study supports the concept that by monitoring Tg levels in patients who undergo diagnostic TBS before radioiodine ablation it is possible to obtain useful information about the efficacy of 131I therapy.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Ochronotic arthropathy: structural and ultrastructural features.

Fragments of articular cartilage and synovial membrane in a case of ochronosis were studied by light microscopy (LM), polarized light, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Granular and/or shard-shaped pigments were observed in the synovia, cartilage, and subchondral tissue, and dispersed pigment was also seen in the synovial fluid. Zones of the articular cartilage surface showed small erosions near shards, and sometimes, when the degenerative process was in an advanced stage, a substitutive fibrosis of the cartilage edge was demonstrated. LM and TEM observations of the samples studied revealed an alteration of collagen fibrils that appeared wavy and sometimes fragmented with loss of periodicity. They were always mixed with the dispersed pigment. A peculiar finding that characterized this ochronotic case was the complete absence of inflammatory infiltrates or signs of monocyte-macrophage activation. These structural and ultrastructural observations suggest that the pigment deposition in the articular surfaces was due to the synovial fluid circulation and partially to subchondral blood flow, which transports and stores the ochronotic pigments in the synovia and cartilage. These etiopathologic elements associated with the mechanical pathogenesis naturally present in the joints can contribute to the explanation of the pathogenesis and origin of ochronotic arthropathy.

Arthritis↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Accuracy and clinical correlates of two different methods for chromogranin A assay in neuroendocrine tumors.

Measurement of chromogranin A (CgA) plays a major role in the management of neuroendocrine tumors (NET); however, reliable assaying of CgA is made difficult by the rapid hydrolysis following its release into the bloodstream. This study was aimed at the assessment of two assays for CgA in NET patients. CgA was measured in 93 patients by means of an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and an immunoradiometric assay (IRMA). The specificity and sensitivity of CgA were evaluated in relation to tumor histology. The clinical accuracy of the two assays was evaluated by receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Regression analysis demonstrated different immunoreactivity for CgA of the antibodies used in the two kits (r = 0.61). The two assays had different accuracy also in classifying patients according to their clinical condition (91% vs 64% specificity and 79% vs 79% sensitivity for the ELISA and IRMA assay, respectively) and tumor histology (81% vs 85% sensitivity for the ELISA and IRMA assays, respectively, in carcinoids; 92% vs 67% sensitivity for the ELISA and IRMA assays, respectively, in pancreatic islet cell tumors). The different clinical accuracy of the two assays was confirmed by the ROC analysis (AUC = 0.90 vs AUC = 0.87 for the ELISA and IRMA assays, respectively). In conclusion, because of the poor standardization of the commercially available measurement tools the clinical accuracy of CgA measurement depends on the assay used. This makes it difficult to compare CgA values measured with different kits and affects the clinical accuracy of the different assays for CgA.

Adolescent↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Exogenous glucocorticoids affect in different way the various phases of bone formation in postmenopausal patients.

BACKGROUND: To determine the effect of glucocorticoid excess on the most important circulating markers of bone formation in postmenopausal treated patients. METHODS: The study included 15 postmenopausal women taking glucocorticoids for various medical conditions and two groups of 30 healthy premenopausal and 28 age-matched postmenopausal women as controls. Osteoblastic activity was assessed by measuring both serum levels of osteocalcin (BGP) (N-tact Osteo SP, Incstar Co.) and the bone-specific isoenzyme of alkaline phosphatase (BAP) (Alkphase-B, Metra Biosystems). RESULTS: The mean values of serum BGP found in patients taking steroids were significantly reduced as compared to those found in both fertile and postmenopausal women (p < 0.0001). The mean serum levels of BAP were significantly increased in treated patients as compared to premenopausal women (p < 0.0001), while no significant difference was found between patients and age-matched postmenopausal women. Similar results were also obtained when individual values of both serum BAP and BGP were expressed as standard units in comparison to values obtained in fertile subjects (T-score) or postmenopausal subjects (Z-score). CONCLUSIONS: Steroid therapy in postmenopausal patients differentially affects the various phases of bone formation. Measurement of serum BGP may represent a reliable parameter for monitoring bone formation in postmenopausal treated patients.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Clinical and prognostic importance of changes in the number of circulating lymphocytes in cerebral infarction of the ischemic type].

Aim of the present study was to assess the increase of peripheral white blood cell (WBC) count and its clinical and prognostic significance in patients with cerebral ischemic infarction (CI). Thirty-six subjects (17 males, 19 females; mean age 73 +/- 10 years) with CI confirmed at CT scans were studied. A significant increase of WBC, not related to complicating infections, was observed in the early phase of CI. There was a significant linear correlation between the level of serum creatine phosphokinase and the number of circulating WBC which were higher in patients who died 6-30 days after the occurrence of CI. These data suggest that the increase in circulating WBC is dependent on the extent of the cerebral damage and should be considered as unfavourable prognostic sign.

Aged↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Plasma osteocalcin in children: effects of age, sex and body surface].

The aim of the study was the evaluation of plasma osteocalcin (O.), alkaline phosphatases (A.P.) and urinary hydroxyproline excretion (uOHPr) in subjects 3-20 years aged. O., A.F. and uOHPr were increased in patients less than 15 years aged; thereafter the values were similar to normal adult values. O. correlates with age and body surface area in children aged less than 15 years; the highest values were observed at the expected age of puberal spurt. This behaviour was not evident for the other bone turnover markers studied. In conclusion, it could be suggested that O. is a useful index of bone peak mass reached at puberty.

Adolescent↗