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Background: Population-based surveys on the quality of life of people with Down syndrome (DS) are difficult to perform because of ethical and legal policies regarding privacy and confidential information, but they are essential for service planning. Little is known about the sample size and variability of quality of life of people with DS living in the city of Rome, which has a population of 2.7 million inhabitants. The aim of the present study is to explore the needs and challenges in health, social integration and daily life, of people with DS living in Rome. Methodology: A cross-sectional, census-based survey was conducted in 2006. All family doctors (3016 in total) of the National Health Service were involved by the Statistical Bureau of the Municipality of Rome. As per the census, every resident citizen is registered with a family doctor and every person with disabilities is coded. Associations for Down Syndrome encouraged their members to participate in the research. Questionnaires were completed by families of people with DS, in accordance with privacy laws. Findings: An initial survey, conducted via a letter and a telephone contact with family doctors, identified 884 people with DS residing in the city of Rome. Data on the medical and social conditions of 518 people with DS, ranging in age from 0 to 64 years, were collected. Some 88% of these were living with their original family; 82.1% had one or more siblings, and 19.5% had lost one or both parents. A full 100% of children with DS were enrolled in the public school system. This ensures that they are fully occupied and entirely integrated in society. After secondary school there is a lack of opportunities. Thus, only 10% of adults were working with a regular contract. A mere 42.2% of people with DS aged 25-30 were involved in some form of regular activity (although not always on a daily basis). After the age of 30, the percentage of people demonstrating decline in function increased sharply, while disability-related support decreased. In other words, as people with DS age, daily life evolves increasingly around the home, with only occasional outdoor activities. Conclusion: The health, employment and social needs of the majority of people with DS in the city of Rome are not being met. The findings of this study underscore the urgent need for more comprehensive inclusion in society of adults with DS and for the provision of support services to create an enabling environment for inclusion. Because of the variability of performance among individuals with DS, there is a need to create more case-specific options in terms of work, living arrangements, social networking and medical services. Schooling and social inclusion in childhood alone do not guarantee a satisfactory quality of life in adulthood. It is argued herewith that policy of inclusion and support should extend over the entire lifetime of people with DS.

The so-called ‘Tunguska Event’ refers to a major explosion that occurred on 30 June 1908 in the Tunguska region of Siberia, causing the destruction of over 2000 km2 of taiga, globally detected pressure and seismic waves, and bright luminescence in the night skies of Europe and Central Asia, combined with other unusual phenomena. The ‘Tunguska Event’ may be related to the impact with the Earth of a cosmic body that exploded about 5–10 km above ground, releasing in the atmosphere 10–15 Mton of energy. Fragments of the impacting body have never been found, and its nature (comet or asteroid) is still a matter of debate. We report results from the investigation of Lake Cheko, located ∼8 km NNW of the inferred explosion epicenter. Its funnel-like bottom morphology and the structure of its sedimentary deposits, revealed by acoustic imagery and direct sampling, all suggest that the lake fills an impact crater. Lake Cheko may have formed due to a secondary impact onto alluvial swampy ground; the size and shape of the crater may have been affected by the nature of the ground and by impact-related melting and degassing of a permafrost layer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, benchtop nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers utilizing permanent magnets have emerged as versatile tools with applications across various fields, including food and pharmaceuticals. Their efficacy is further enhanced when coupled with chemometric methods. This study presents an innovative approach to leveraging a compact benchtop NMR spectrometer coupled with chemometrics for screening honey-based food supplements adulterated with active pharmaceutical ingredients. Initially, fifty samples seized by French customs were analyzed using a 60 MHz benchtop spectrometer. The investigation unveiled the presence of tadalafil in 37 samples, sildenafil in 5 samples, and a combination of flibanserin with tadalafil in 1 sample. After conducting comprehensive qualitative and quantitative characterization of the samples, we propose a chemometric workflow to provide an efficient screening of honey samples using the NMR dataset. This pipeline, utilizing partial least squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) models, enables the classification of samples as either adulterated or non-adulterated, as well as the identification of the presence of tadalafil or sildenafil. Additionally, PLS regression models are employed to predict the quantitative content of these adulterants. Through blind analysis, this workflow allows for the detection and quantification of adulterants in these honey supplements.

Introduction: Children's involvement in mathematics-related activities in the home environment is associated with the development of their early numeracy over the preschool years. Intervention studies to promote parents' awareness and provision of mathematics-related home activities are however scant. In this study we developed and tested the effectiveness of a non-intensive intervention program delivered by community pediatricians to promote mathematics-related activities in the home environment., Methods: Parents of 204 Italian children were invited to report on the frequency of mathematics-related home activities when children attended the first preschool year (3 years, 8 months of age on average) and, subsequently, the third preschool year (5 years, 6 months of age on average). At both waves, children were also assessed on their early numeracy. In occasion of the routine well-child visit at age 5, parents who were randomly allocated to the intervention condition (vs. a business-as-usual control condition) received guidance on age-appropriate home mathematics-related practices to sustain children's numerical development., Results: Results revealed that parents in the intervention group improved their provision of home mathematics-related activities at the post-intervention assessment (relative to baseline) to a greater extent than parents in the control condition. No effect was observed on children's early numeracy., Discussion: Overall, results are promising in suggesting that community pediatricians may be a resource to promote home mathematics-related activities though non-intensive low-cost interventions., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Tomasetto, LeFevre, Passolunghi, De Vita, Guardabassi, Brunelli, Ciotti and Biasini.)

Fetal cholelithiasis was first diagnosed in 1983 and since then there have been only few reports about the presence of gallstones in the fetus. Maternal conditions, fetal or obstetrical predisposing risk factors have been proposed to have a causative role, but the pathogenesis of fetal gallstones remains unknown. Clinical sequelae of fetal gallstones are poorly understood as well as the role of fetal cholelithiasis in predisposing the adult to gallstones. We report on 3 patients whose cholelithiasis was diagnosed by obstetrical ultrasonography. Repeated ultrasound scans were performed in each patient until resolution of the US images. The goal of US was to correctly identify the number, size, and US features of the material within the gallbladder. The presence of distal shadowing or comet-tail artifact was assessed. Multiple, small echogenic foci without distal shadowing were recognized in the fetal gallbladder in our patients. Echogenic material was present at the US exams after birth in two patients and disappeared in the second month of life. In the third case echogenic foci disappeared during pregnancy. In all the cases, US showed no biliary tract abnormality, and neither the mothers nor the patients had clinical or laboratory findings consistent with liver or biliary diseases. The Authors discuss a diagnostic protocol to detect and follow-up gallstones in the perinatal period by ultrasonography. In our experience, fetal cholelithiasis confirmed to be a self-limiting disease without complications and did not require any form of therapy. However, a close follow-up is indicated in these patients until spontaneous resolution is demonstrated by US.

A study of childhood injuries of 0-14 year-olds children based on emergency room records of the five hospitals was conducted in USL 39 of Emilia-Romagna during 1988. The incidence of visits was 164, 14/1000 child-years with 95% confidence intervals (CI = 163, 28-165). The rate was 198, 93/1000 child-years (CI = 195, 36-202, 51) among the 0-4 year-olds, 140, 65/1000 child-years (CI = 139, 17-142, 13) in the 5-9 age group and 170, 86/1000 child-years (CI = 169, 77-171, 95) among 10-14 year-olds. The male to female ratio was 1.4 for the 0-4 year-olds, 1.7 for the 5-9 year-olds and for the 10-14 year-olds. The most frequent causes of injuries were falls (49.52%), being road accidents (22.1%) and bites-stings (17.4%); 4.8% of the injured children were admitted to hospital and 0.044% dead.

Admission of 429 children in Pediatric Department were examined. 249 children had been taken to emergency ward by parents, 131 had been hospitalized by other physician. 175 children had been examined before admission by panel doctor who decided admission of 114 in Pediatric Department. Parents decided admission of 30 children. The necessity of admission in Department was only in 33 per cent of children admitted.

The study intends to value results of follow-up of risk neonates hospitalized for the period 1980-88 at Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Bufalini Hospital Cesena and the course with time of neurologic and neuropsychological alterations, reported to the birth-rate of territory in which operates the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. The survivor infants attended in follow up have been 419: 63 of neonatal weight less than or equal to 1500 g (group A), 117 of weight 1501-2000 g (group B), 239 of weight greater than 2000 g (group C). The follow-up provided at first 12 months of life a pediatric examination together with motoscopic examination to Milani-Comparetti every two months, at 3 years--4 years and 6 months, 7 years a pediatric examination with evaluation of Intelligence Quotient (N.E.M.I.), at last two months of 1st Primary School evaluation of acquired scholastic learning capacities by reading test of Inizan and calculation test of Meljac. Diagnosis of cerebral palsy (C.P.) has been always placed at first 12 months of life. All the survivors have been executed pediatric checks as foreseen at first 12 months of life. The subjects with CP are 26 (%); of these 13 have an I.Q. less than or equal to 70. The risk to develop CP seems to depend strictly by hypoxic perinatal stress (21/26 infants). The type of CP seems to be conditioned by neonatal weight, in particular as regards spastic paraplegia (10/12 infants of weight less than or equal to 2000 g), but hemiplegia and tetraplegia are with equality distributed (7/14 infants of weight less than or equal to 2000 g).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

In 1983-88 period, 206 subjects with a average age of 9 years and 6 months, referred [correction of envoied] to our service for learning disabilities, have been submitted to neuropsychiatric visit with a psychometric evaluation, I.Q. included, by which a neuropsychological diagnosis has been expressed. The distribution curves of I.Q. of different diagnostic groups (neurosis, psychosis, specific learning disability with and without sociocultural deprivation, central neuromotor damage, psychomotor delay, Down syndrome, mental retardation) have been examined. The analysis shows that only subjects with central neuromotor damage, psychomotor delay, Down syndrome, mental retardation have an I.Q. less than or equal to 70. The anamnesis and clinical evaluation consent to assert an "organic" etiopathogenesis in 9 of 20 subjects with mental retardation. Therefore for diagnostic evaluation of children with learning disabilities seems useful to perform always an I.Q. and, when I.Q. less than or equal to 70, to execute an instrumental examination to exclude an "organic" etiopathogenesis.

Case report of a neonatal meningitis due to Haemophilus influenzae. The treatment with ampicillin was ineffective because of insensitivity. This case demonstrates the importance of a proper bacteriological identification in order to avoid ineffective or delayed treatment.

Patients suffering from chronic lung infections are a major problems in therapy of cystic fibrosis (CF). Resistance frequently occurs with great rapidity among isolates of Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonal aeruginosa. The rational for the use of frequent antibiotics (reduction of bacterial count), and the principle to follow while using antibiotics in CF patients are discussed. Research on amikacin peak levels and its average levels in serum, saliva and sputum is presented.

The study purpose to take a contribution to the Knowledge of circumstance and of consequences in which happen the scholastic incidents. Have been taken into consideration 92 scholastic incidents happened during the school year 83/84 at nursery, primary and secondary schools of the Municipality of Cesena, for a total of 11,856 children and have been compared with 1,185 incidents not scholastic of children with same age, happened in Municipality of Cesena and registered at first aid of the "Bufalini" Hospital of Cesena in months of November-December '83 and March, April, July, August 1984. The frequency of such scholastic and not scholastic incidents results superior at male child and of age more low. The seat of damage of scholastic and not scholastic is prevalently the head for children in age 3-6 years and the limbs for those in age 7-11 and 12-14 years. The type of damage of scholastic and not scholastic incidents are prevalently the wounds-abrasions for children in age 3-6 years and the bruises-luxations-stretchings-distortions for those in age 7-11 and 12-14 years. The 77% of scholastic incidents applies to treatment of first aid, the prognostic opinions of which are not significantly different from those emitted for not scholastic incidents. The scholastic incidents at nursery school happen prevalently in court on the occasion of recreation activities for falling from a play equipment, at primary school in schoolroom or in corridor on the occasion of recreation for push of schoolfellow, at secondary school in palaestra during time of physical education for falling or traumatic contact with the ball.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

An intraoral device has been experimented to stabilize oro-gastric or oro-jejunal feeding tubes in low birth weight newborns.

A 16 year boy with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis in stage 4 is described. Neuropsychological analysis reveal a transcortical sensorial aphasia. Behavior therapies of shaping and fading are proposed.

Case report of a four-year-old atopic boy with protein-losing hypertrophic gastropathy. The diagnosis was confirmed radiologically and with radioisotope examinations. Already after one week of a high protein diet, spontaneous remission occurred, accompanied by an asthmatic attack.

Data are reported of a study on airborne pollen diffusion carried out in the area of Cesena (Emilia Romagna) during the years 1984-85-86 to create a pollen calendar. The seasonal trend of Graminacee, Fagacee, Betulacee, Chenopodiacee, Urticacee, Oleacee, Composite, Plantaginacee, Salicacee concentration has been investigated using the method of daily, weekly and mobile mean which provides the elimination of interferences brought about by atmospheric phenomena.