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Total hip arthroplasty (THA) is one of the most successful orthopedic procedures and is highly effective at improving function and quality of life. However, patients commonly experience edema immediately after hospitalization and also after discharge, which can lead to health consequences and a lower quality of life. For these reasons, the aim of this study (NCT05312060) was to evaluate the effectiveness of a specific intermittent leg pneumatic compression on lower limb edema and physical outcomes in patients after total hip arthroplasty, compared to standard conservative treatment. A total of 47 patients were enrolled and randomly allocated into two groups: the pneumatic compression group (PG = 24) and the control group (CG = 23). The CG performed the standard venous thromboembolism therapy, which included pharmacological prophylaxis, compressive stockings, and electrostimulation, while the PG combined pneumatic compression with standard VTE therapy. We evaluated thigh and calf circumferences, knee and ankle ranges of motion, pain, and walking autonomy. Our results showed a greater reduction in thigh and calf circumferences for PG ( p < 0.001), while other outcomes were similar for the two groups ( p > 0.05). The combination of standard therapy with pneumatic leg compression was more effective at reducing lower limb edema and thigh and calf circumferences than standard treatment. Our results suggest that pressotherapy treatment is a valuable and efficient option for managing lower limb edema after THA., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

We report on two actinobacteriophages, Genamy16 and NovaSharks, that were isolated from soil in Florida using Gordonia rubripertincta NRRL B-16540. The genomes of both phages are ~65,000 bp, with similar GC contents, and, based on gene content similarity to phages in the Actinobacteriophage Database, were assigned to phage cluster DV.

Several studies have demonstrated different cross-reactivity patterns between proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). The aim of this study was to investigate cross-reactivity between commercially available PPIs and establish a procedure for performing cutaneous tests for verifying PPI allergy. We performed skin prick and intradermal tests with all commercially available PPIs in 5 patients with clinical allergy to omeprazole and observed positive results in all patients. We report 5 cases of immunoglobulin (Ig) E-mediated allergy to omeprazole and document cross-reactivity by skin testing between all the PPIs studied. We also found that the probability of confirming an IgE-mediated mechanism with skin tests decreases with time. Finally, we propose a hypothesis that could explain the different PPI cross-reactivity patterns reported.

Background: Cystic fibrosis (CF) may strongly condition the life of affected people. CF may be associated with relevant painful conditions caused by complications of the illness and also by therapy itself, which may represent an additional load of suffering. This study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence of pain symptoms in adult CF patients, if they are noticed and treated, and the influence of pain symptoms on patients' life., Method: Using a questionnaire, we examined 239 adults with CF (17% of the whole Italian adult CF population)., Results: We found a high prevalence of painful episodes among CF adult patients, as for both intensity and frequency. In a 2 months period 32.6% of patients experienced episodes of pain described as intense to severe, and 29.7% had more than 10 occurrences of pain in the same location. Headache, gastric pain and backache were the most frequently reported kind of pain. 59.8% of subjects perceived pain episodes as the cause of unfavorable effects on their life. Only 42.6% of those with pain asked a CF center physician for help and another 3.5% a general practitioner., Conclusion: Painful symptoms can be the cause of a worsening of the quality of life for adults with CF; the relevance of pain in CF adult patients may often be underestimated; the assessment of pain should be routinely performed as a part of care in CF centers.

Infections caused by respiratory pathogens such as Burkholderia cepacia and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are associated with an increased morbidity and mortality in people affected by cystic fibrosis, the most common lethal genetic disease in Caucasian populations. Preventing the acquisition of these pathogens is paramount for these patients. The goal of this survey was to assess the distribution and the prevalence of the measures adopted for the prevention and control of infections caused by respiratory pathogens in the 28 italian centres for cystic fibrosis. 21 questionnaires were returned and some important differences can be observed in the adoption of segregation measures. Although results may be influenced by other factors, specific segregation policies appear to be more directly associated than other measures (e.g., intensive disinfection; behavioural rules to minimise patient' contacts) with lower prevalence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (OR 0.36 CI95% 0.31-0.42), of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (OR 0.30 CI95% 0.22-0.40), and of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (OR 0.67 CI95% 0.48-0.94).

Background: Troponin I, a specific cardiac muscle protein, has proven to be very helpful in detecting myocardial damage in ischemic heart disease. In order to assess if this laboratory test may also characterize some hypertensive subjects with proven cardiac damage, we compared troponin I serum concentrations of a group of patients affected by systemic hypertension and left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) with troponin I serum concentrations of hypertensive patients without LVH and with normal controls., Methods: Of 100 hypertensive patients consecutively enrolled in the study, 27 had an increased left ventricular mass by M-mode/two-dimensional echocardiographic examination. Of these, 4 were excluded for significant Holter ST-segment modification. Troponin I was measured in the remaining 23, in 23 age- and sex-matched hypertensive patients with normal left ventricular mass and in 23 normal controls., Results: Troponin I serum concentration was higher than the upper limit of the normal values (0.5 ng/mi) in 12 of the 23 hypertensives with LVH. On the contrary, all hypertensives without LVH and all normal controls had troponin I serum concentration below the upper limit of the normal values. Consequently, the mean troponin I serum value was significantly higher in the group of hypertensive patients with LVH than in the group of patients without LVH (0.88 +/- 0.93 vs 0.27 +/- 0.08 ng/ml, p = 0.002) and in normal controls (0.88 +/- 0.93 vs 0.22 +/- 0.04 ng/ml, p = 0.0001)., Conclusions: Our data indicate that a significant proportion of patients affected by essential hypertension with LVH have slightly elevated troponin I serum concentrations. This test seems to identify two subgroups of hypertensive subjects with LVH, and, considering that troponin I is a marker of myocardial damage, higher serum values probably indicate a more important cardiac involvement in the setting of a hypertensive disease.