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Cosa sia una collezione è noto a tutti e tuttavia, se ci interroghiamo su che cosa tenga insieme attività e oggetti molto diversi fra loro sotto il segno della collezione, le cose non sono più tanto chiare: si tratta di pratiche culturali diverse che presentano somiglianze ma anche profonde discontinuità. Collezionare è molto di più che raccogliere e accumu- lare degli oggetti, è una pratica di costruzione del sapere attraverso la quale si dà forma alla realtà, la si rappresenta e la si espone in forma pubblica o privata: è un modo di darsi ragione del mondo, di costruire un microcosmo tra reale e immaginario che ci parla tanto degli altri come di noi. E un pensiero concreto che si fa con le cose. È lo spazio in cui si mette ordine nel mondo o nella propria vita, ma anche un modo per esplorare altre possibilità. È uno dei luoghi in cui gruppi e persone articolano la propria biografia e costruiscono la propria identità e quella degli altri. Partendo dalle ricerche etnografiche svolte in Italia e in Camerun, Ivan Bargna riflette sulle forme contemporanee del “collezionare” nella quotidianità e nell’arte, dai musei alla discarica, dall’accumulazione compulsiva di cose ed esperienze all’arte di disfarsene, dalle cabine armadio delle nostre case ai tesori dei re dei Grassfields camerunesi. Il collezionismo appare così non la mania di persone eccentriche (o una prerogativa esclusiva dell’occidente) ma come indicatore di dinamiche sociali e culturali più ampie, localmente diversificate e attraversate da flussi globali.

A pregnancy related cancer is defined as a neoplasm diagnosed in a woman during gestation or within 12 months following childbirth or abortion. Breast, thyroidal, melanoma, cervical and hematological malignancies are those most commonly diagnosed during pregnancy, with a reported incidence considered lower than those estimated of 1 case on 1000 pregnancies. The clinical complexity is generated by the co-presence of mother and fetus, and the consequent conflict represented by the need to identify a therapeutic strategy that is effective for the maternal prognosis and, at the same time, safeguards the fetal well-being. Moreover, the counseling, diagnosis, staging and management of these cases are further complicated because most of the scientific literature consists in case reports or small retrospective studies and lacks in guidelines and prospective clinical trials. On that basis, the Study Group on Cancer in Pregnancy (members of S.I.G.O.-Italian Society of Gynecology and Obstetrics) presents the TIGRE Trial, an Italian multicenter observational study aimed at establishing a shared database for the collection of epidemiological and clinical data of the patients affected by pregnancy related cancer in Italy, with the final objective to improve the outcome of a mother and a child involved in a such pathology.

The physiological relevance of slow-wave vasomotion is still unclear, even though it has been hypothesized that it could be a compensatory mechanism for enhancing tissue oxygenation in conditions of reduced oxygen supply. The aim of our study was to explore the effects of hypoxia and ischemia on slow-wave vasomotion in microcirculation. Peripheral oxygen saturation and forearm microcirculation flow (laser-Doppler flowmetry) were recorded at baseline and during postocclusive reactive hyperemia in the Himalaya region from 8 European lowlanders (6 men; aged 29-39 yr) at 1,350, 3,400, and 5,050 m and from 10 Nepalese male highlanders (aged 21-39 yr) at 3,400 and 5,050 m of altitude. The same measurements were also performed at sea level in 16 healthy volunteers (aged 23-61 yr) during a short-term exposure to normobaric hypoxia. In lowlanders, exposure to progressively higher altitude under baseline flow conditions progressively increased 0.06- 0.15 Hz vasomotion amplitude [power spectral density % was expressed as geometric means (geometric standard deviation) = 14.0 (3.6) at 1,350 m; 87.0(2.3) at 3,400 m and 249.8 (3.6) at 5,050 m; P = 0.006 and P < 0.001 vs. 1,350 m, respectively]. In highlanders, low frequency vasomotion amplitude was similarly enhanced at different altitudes [power spectral density % = 183.4 (4.1) at 3,400 m vs. 236.0 (3.0) at 5,050 m; P = 0.139]. In both groups at altitude, it was further increased after ischemic stimulus (P < 0.001). At baseline, acute short lasting normobaric hypoxia did not induce low frequency vasomotion, which was conversely induced by ischemia, even under normal oxygenation and barometric pressure. This study offers the demonstration of a significant increase in slow-wave vasomotion under prolonged hypobaric-hypoxia exposure at high altitude, with a further enhancement after ischemia induction.

Objective: To describe morbidity in neonates born by cesarean section (CS) before labor between 34+0 and 38+6 weeks, stratified by gestational age.Methods: Cohort study from five Italian tertiary care hospitals. Consecutive singleton pregnancies delivered by CS before labor between 34+0 and 38+6 weeks of gestation from January 2010 to August 2011 were included. Women in labor, with premature rupture of membranes, or with previous administration of steroids were excluded. The incidence of neonatal complication by gestational week was calculated.Results: A total of 1135 cases were analyzed. Composite adverse neonatal outcomes, respiratory distress syndrome, transient tachypnea and use of continuous airway positive pressure decreased from 50%, 28%, 5% and 22% at 34 weeks of gestation, to 4.7%, 1.0%, 0.9% and 0.3% at 38 weeks of gestation. Multivariate analysis showed that the only variable independently associated with composite adverse neonatal outcome was gestational age at delivery (adjusted odds ratio 0.49; 95% confidence interval 0.39-0.61).Conclusions: The prevalence of neonatal complications in newborns delivered by CS before labor halves at each week of gestation from 34 to 38 weeks. Nonetheless complications, and mainly respiratory problems, are still present at early term gestation.