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Biomedical subjects

S Bianca

Publications and source records attributed to S Bianca.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Prenatal 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional ultrasonography diagnosis and autoptic findings of isolated ectopia cordis.

Ectopia cordis is a very rare congenital malformation, commonly associated with intracardiac anomalies. It is due to a defect in fusion of the anterior chest wall resulting in an extrathoracic location of the heart. We report prenatal 2-dimensional (2D) and 3D ultrasonography diagnosis and postnatal autoptic findings of an isolated ectopia cordis with tricuspid atresia. Ectopia cordis prenatal diagnosis is easily made with ultrasound by visualizing the heart outside the thoracic cavity. 3D ultrasonography may add more detailed visualization of the heart anomaly even if the 2D ultrasonography alone permits the prenatal diagnosis. Obstetrical management should include a careful search for associated anomalies, especially cardiac, and the assessment of fetal karyotype. As this is considered a sporadic anomaly, the recurrence risk is low and no genetic origin is known.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

A new deletion in autosomal dominant guanosine triphosphate cyclohydrolase I deficiency gene--Segawa disease.

Hereditary Progressive Dystonia with marked diurnal fluctuation (HPD) is an autosomally dominantly inherited dystonia which is characterized by marked diurnal fluctuation of symptoms and by marked and sustained response to levodopa associated with mutations in guanosine triphosphate cyclohydrolase (GCH-1) deficiency gene. We report an italian patient with a new 18 bp deletion at 267 in exon 1 in the GCH-1 gene. The peculiarity of our patient is the new mutations never reported and mnemonic disturbances that are also not reported in the classical HPD.A genotype-phenotype relationship may be suggested between different gene mutations and non classical clinical manifestations.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Prenatal detection of congenital renal malformations by fetal ultrasonographic examination: an analysis of 709,030 births in 12 European countries.

The study was performed to evaluate the prevalence of prenatal ultrasound diagnoses for renal anomalies in 20 registries of 12 European countries, and to compare the different prenatal scanning policies. Standardized data were acquired from 709,030 livebirths, stillbirths, and induced abortions during the study period of 2.5 years and transmitted for central analysis. At least one renal malformation was diagnosed in 1130 infants and fetuses. Prenatal diagnosis (PD) was given in 81.8% of all cases, 29% of these pregnancies were terminated. The highest detection rate was reported for unilateral multicystic dysplastic kidneys with 97% (102/105). An early diagnosis was documented for exstrophy of bladder at a mean gestational age of 18.5 weeks. Dilatations of the upper urinary tract were seen late in pregnancy at 28.3 weeks. Terminations of pregnancies (TOP) were performed in 67% (58/86) of the detected bilateral renal agenesis/dysgenesis, but only 4% of the unilateral multicystic dysplastic renal malformations (4/102). In about 1/3 of the cases, renal malformations are within the category of associated malformations, which include multiple non-syndromal malformations, chromosomal aberrations, and non-chromosomal syndromes. Renal malformations were detected in 2/3 of the associated category by the first prenatal ultrasound scan. Detection rates vary in the different countries of the European community due to diverse policies, ethical, and religious background. Countries with no routine ultrasound show the lowest rates in detection, and termination of pregnancy. Prenatally detected renal malformations should result in a careful examination for further anomalies. Prenatal ultrasound fulfills the needs of screening examinations and is a good tool in detecting lethal and severe renal malformations.

Congenital Abnormalities↗
PubMed2004

Prenatal and postnatal findings of acrania.

INTRODUCTION: Acrania is a rare congenital anomaly in which the flat bones of the cranial vault are partial or complete absent with complete but abnormal development of the cerebral hemispheres. CASE REPORT: We report two cases, diagnosed prenatally by ultrasound and followed by medical pregnancy termination, one with isolated acrania and one with associated cleft lip and palate and spina bifida. DISCUSSION: The acrania pathogenesis is unknown and differential diagnosis should be made with other conditions like anencephaly and acalvaria. Genetic counselling is not easy because there is no evidence for a specific genetic origin, but the extreme rarity and sporadic nature suggests a low recurrence risk.

Abortion, Induced↗
PubMed2003

Persistent high plasma levels of interleukins 18 and 4 in children with recurrent infections of the upper respiratory tract.

The aim of this study was to examine whether children with recurrent infections of the upper respiratory tract might have alterations in the systemic immune response to viral infections as compared with healthy control children. We quantitated plasma levels of interferon-gamma, interleukin-12, interleukin-18, interleukin-4, lymphocyte subpopulations, serum immunoglobulins, and subclasses of immunoglobulin G in 30 children under the age of 6 years with recurrent infections of the upper respiratory tract, both during the acute phase of the infection and 4 weeks later, when clinical symptoms had resolved, as well as in 20 normal controls. We found elevated levels of immunoglobulin G primarily due to increased levels of immunoglobulin G(1). Moreover, significantly higher levels of interleukin-18 and interleukin-4 were noted during the acute phase of infection among children with an increased incidence of respiratory infections as compared with the controls (P =.022 and P =.0001, respectively), while plasma levels of interferon-gamma and interleukin-12 were significantly lower (P =.034 and P =.0001, respectively) than in controls. We suggest that an imbalance between T-cell helper type-1 and T-cell helper type-2 immune responses might be responsible for the perpetuation of recurrent infections of the upper respiratory tract.

Child, Preschool↗
PubMed2003

Isolated esophageal atresia and perinatal risk factors.

Esophageal atresia (EA) is a relatively rare alimentary tract congenital anomaly. We studied perinatal risk factors of 90 live birth cases of isolated EA with (40 cases) or without (50 cases) tracheal fistula. We found sex ratios of 1.43 for total EA cases and 1.5 for both subgroups of EA with or without tracheal fistula. Evaluation of parity showed statistically significant values for low parity and for high multiparity for EA with and without tracheal fistula. Birth weight evaluation revealed statistically significant values for both subgroups. We did not find statistical significance both for maternal age and gestational age. The etiology of esophageal atresia is complex and heterogeneous and within each subgroup, apparently different etiologies may exist, resulting in differences in epidemiologic characteristics. Moreover, some causes linked to genetics and gene-environment interaction may be involved. We think that parity and low birth weight can be considered as risk factors for EA, and an accurate evaluation of reproductive history can be useful for the provision of genetic and perinatal counseling.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed2003

Isolated hypertrophic pyloric stenosis and perinatal factors.

Infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (IHPS) is a common condition requiring surgical intervention during the first weeks of life. Up to now the exact etiology of IHPS remains unclear and it is probable that several predisposing risk factors would be associated with the condition. Prompted by the observation that some perinatal factors may be involved in IHPS etiology, we evaluated 171 isolated cases referred to the Sicilian Registry of Congenital Anomalies. Our results show that some perinatal factors like sex ratio imbalance and parity are associated with IHPS, but further investigation is needed to clarify the relationship between genes and other factors involved in IHPS etiology. Therefore the presence of these perinatal factors may be accurately evaluated in genetic counseling to provide a perspective of recurrence prevention.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed2003

Pre-auricular tags and associated anomalies: considerations for genetic counseling.

Pre-auricular tags are relatively common isolated congenital anomalies with a prevalence of about 5 per 1000 live births. Several associations with congenital anomalies have been reported and the opportunity of systematic ultrasonography examinations in these patients were debated in the literature. We conducted a retrospective epidemiological study on 95 affected newborns, to evaluate whether infants with pre-auricular tags may be at risk for associated anomalies. Our results focus the attention on the increased risk of congenital urinary tract and heart malformations in newborns with isolated pre-auricular tags. Therefore, we recommend that a carefully genetic clinical examination to evaluated dysmorphic features evocative of a specific pattern or syndrome and an urinary and cardiac ultrasonography should be performed in infants with isolated pre-auricular tags.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗
PubMed2002

The role of maternal reproductive history in the aetiology of neural tube defects.

The contribution of environmental factors to the aetiology of neural tube defects (NTD) has been stressed over recent years and many different risk factors have been proposed. We evaluated the reproductive history of 113 NTD cases to investigate the possible role of maternal age, gestational age, sex, parity and previous pregnancy. Our results show that parity and previous spontaneous abortion can be considered as risk factors for NTD and that an accurate evaluation of reproductive history can be useful for genetic counselling. The known benefits of periconceptional intervention in reducing the incidence of NTD in high risk populations, together with our results, means that mothers with a positive reproductive history for spontaneous abortion and for multiparity are ideal subjects for folic acid periconceptional management.

Abortion, Spontaneous↗