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Evidence on the efficacy of phythotherapic remedies for the treatment of menopausal symptoms were reviewed. Evidence of the literature were graded and level of reccomandation defined. A strenght A recommendation was given for isaproponol extract of Cimicifuga recemosa (systematic review and metanalysis). Strength B recommendation, due to some inconsistent findings or lower quality studies, was given to the use of soy isoflavones, genistein above 30 mg/day, equol containing product and pollen extract. Strength C reccomendation for very weak evidence of efficacy was given to resveratrol, hops, dioscorea, enotera. No evidence of efficacy on vasomotor symptoms was found for Hyperycum perforatum, matcha, ginseng, that find no place in the treatment of vasomotor symptoms.

The primary aim was to evaluate changes in female sexuality across the menopausal period, and the secondary objective was to test the associations of female sexuality domains with vaginal atrophy and its symptoms.A cross-sectional multicenter study was performed involving 518 women, 40 to 55 years of age, consulting outpatient gynecological services at 30 centers across Italy. Vaginal atrophy was identified by the contemporaneous presence of a pH5, subjective vaginal dryness, and an objective sign. The relationships between vaginal atrophy and its main symptoms (vaginal dryness and dyspareunia), and Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) score and its domains (desire, arousal, orgasm, dyspareunia, lubrication, and sexual satisfaction) were analyzed.The prevalence of sexual dysfunction, as defined by a FSFI score26.55, was 70.6%, increasing from 55% in the years 40 to 45, to 82.8% (P 0.01) in the years 52 to 55 of age. Mean FSFI score decreased from 40 to 45, to 46 to 48 years of age (23.13 ± 9.76 vs 19.49 ± 9.88; P 0.05), and from 48 to 51, to 52 to 55 years of age (21.3 ± 8.06 to 17.59 ± 9.11; P 0.01). Independent determinants of FSFI were age, vaginal atrophy, and the presence of vaginal dryness and dyspareunia (R2 0.208; P = 0.011). FSFI score was independently correlated (R2 0.116) with weight (CR -0.067; 95% confidence interval [CI] -0.126, -0.006; P 0.032), menopausal status (CR -2.406; 95% CI -4.180, -0.63; P 0.008), and vaginal dryness (CR -5.647; 95% CI -7.677, -3.618; P 0.0001). Vaginal dryness was the only variable correlated independently with each FSFI domain, including desire (also correlated with menopausal status), arousal (with age and menopausal status), lubrication (with age), orgasm (with age), satisfaction (with vaginal atrophy and being an ex-smoker), and dyspareunia (with age and spontaneously referred dyspareunia).In the perimenopausal years, FSFI score decreases and sexual dysfunction increases by about 30%. Vaginal dryness is the symptom of vaginal atrophy most closely related to all domains of female sexuality.

Weathering, aging, infiltration, solar radiation and several other factors cause the deterioration of buildings and infrastructures and hence the need for periodical maintenance and restoration. The need for maintenance has been traditionally determined based on visual inspections of qualified operators. Since this process is obviously time consuming and quite expensive, especially when the considered building is quite large and high, then a number of recent studies have been recently published proposing remote sensing tools in order to ease the monitoring process. Among the possible spatial data acquisition sensors, terrestrial laser scanning has been considered in several of the existing studies, mostly because of its high reliability, to cope with cracks and defect detection up to the millimeter level of resolution, which is the typical accuracy of the current generation of professional laser scanners. This paper considers the problem of detecting small defects on the façade of a University building. Similar to other previous studies, in this work defect detection is accomplished by considering distances with respect to a planar surface locally fitted on the building façade. Then, statistical filtering and machine learning tools have been implemented in order to cope with damage detection of the brick surfaces at sub-millimeter level.

In this paper it has been investigated the implementation of a Structure from Motion (SfM) using a reflex camera with integrated GPS for documentation and conservation of Cultural Heritage. The SfM provides a non-invasive approach for the structure representation, without the interaction between the structure and any operator. In order to verify the suitability of this technique it has been carried out a terrestrial photogrammetry survey and compared the results with and without use of the Ground Control Points (GCP) surveyed with the total station and GNSS receiver. The study has been conducted on an ancient Aragonese watchtower of the seventeenth century, located near the Abbey of San Vito in the countryside of Polignano a Mare (in the province of Bari, Southern Italy). The elaborations have been carried out in Agisoft PhotoScan and CloudCompare softwares. The first one has been used for extracting the point cloud and the second one for comparing the point clouds: point cloud from integrated GPS and point cloud from GCP. The use of reflex camera with integrated GPS can release 3D modeling but the results can be applied for small scales of representation and not for monitoring or metric analysis

Aims Oral glucose-lowering medications are associated with excess risk of heart failure (HF). Given the absence of comparative data among drug classes, we performed a retrospective study in 32 Health Services of 16 Italian regions accounting for a population of 18 million individuals, to assess the association between HF risk and use of sulphonylureas, DPP-4i, and glitazones. Methods and results We extracted data on patients with type 2 diabetes who initiated treatment with DPP-4i, thiazolidinediones, or sulphonylureas alone or in combination with metformin during an accrual time of 2 years. The endpoint was hospitalization for HF (HHF) occurring after the first 6 months of therapy, and the observation was extended for up to 4 years. A total of 127 555 patients were included, of whom 14.3% were on DPP-4i, 72.5% on sulphonylurea, 13.2% on thiazolidinediones, with average 70.7% being on metformin as combination therapy. Patients in the three groups differed significantly for baseline characteristics: age, sex, Charlson index, concurrent medications, and previous cardiovascular events. During an average 2.6-year follow-up, after adjusting for measured confounders, use of DPP-4i was associated with a reduced risk of HHF compared with sulphonylureas [hazard ratio (HR) 0.78; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.62–0.97; P = 0.026]. After propensity matching, the analysis was restricted to 39 465 patients, and the use of DPP-4i was still associated with a lower risk of HHF (HR 0.70; 95% CI 0.52–0.94; P = 0.018). Conclusion In a very large observational study, the use of DPP-4i was associated with a reduced risk of HHF when compared with sulphonylureas.

SELF-ESTEEM AND POSTURE: AN INNOVATIVE PROGRAM OF PEDAGOGIC AND POSTURAL TRAINING Bellafiore, M.1,3, Battaglia, G.1,3, Caramazza, G.2,3, Storniolo,F.1, Costantino, D.3, Bianco, A.1,3, Palma, A.1,3. 1: DISMOT (Palermo, Italy), 2: PhD in “Human Diet and Nutri- tion” (Palermo, Italy), 3: Regional Sport School of Sicily CONI (Olympic National Italian Committee, Italy). Introduction It is known that exists a strong interaction between psycho-emotional aspects and postural system. A deficit in self-esteem can be associated with an altered conception of own body imagine which reflects itself in the behavior and posture of the person. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of a program of body pedagogy and postural recovery on thoracic hyperciphosis and low level of self-esteem in adolescents. Methods Ten female subjects (age: 15.5 ± 1.4 years; weight: 56.0 ± 5.1 kg; height: 160 ± 3.0 cm; BMI: 21.9 ± 1.8) and ten male subjects (age: 15.3 ± 1.8 years; weight: 67.3 ± 5.8 kg; height: 170 ± 4.0 cm; BMI: 21.9 ± 1.8) with thoracic hyperciphosis (Cobb angle: 45-55°) and low level of self-esteem (PSDQ index < 2) were selected from a center of global postural re-education and recruited to participate in a 6- month training program for 1 hour 6 times per week. In particular, 3 hours/week were addressed to treatment of postural alteration through the application of Pilates, Mezieres and RPG methods; while the other 3 hours/week were aimed at the body education using Feldenkrais and Gendlin methods. Before, during (3 months) and after 6 months of training program, ciphotic curve and self-esteem level were assessed measuring Cobb angle and with Physical Self-Description Questionnaire (PSDQ) respectively (Marsh, 1996). One-way ANOVA test with Bonferroni’s correction was used to analyze significant differences (p0.05). This structural modification was associated with an increase in the self-esteem level in both groups; however, the growth trend was significantly different between the two genders. In particular, we noticed that self-esteem was higher in female than male adolescents after 3 months (p