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The epidemic wave that hit Italy from February 21st, 2020, when the Italian National Institute of Health confirmed the first case of SARS‑CoV‑2 infection, led to a rapid and efficient reorganization of Dialysis Centers' activities, in order to contain large-scale spread of disease in this clinical setting. We herein report the experience of the Hemodialysis Unit of Parma University Hospital (Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria, Parma, Italy) and the Dialysis Centers of Parma territory, in the period from March 1st, 2020 to June 15, 2020. Among patients undergoing chronic haemodialysis, 37/283 (13%) had positive swabs for SARS‑CoV‑2, 9/37 (24%) died because of COVID-19. Twenty-three patients required hospitalization, while the remaining were managed at home. The primary measures applied to contain the infection were: the strengthening of personal protective equipment use by doctors and nurses, early identification of infected subjects by performing oro-pharyngeal swabs in every patient and in the healthcare personnel, the institution of a triage protocol when entering Dialysis Room, and finally the institution of two separate sections, managed by different doctors and dialysis nurses, to physically separate affected from unaffected patients and to manage "grey" patients. Our experience highlights the importance and effectiveness of afore-mentioned measures in order to contain the spread of the virus; moreover, we observed a higher lethality rate of COVID-19 in dialysis patients as compared to the general population., (Copyright by Società Italiana di Nefrologia SIN, Rome, Italy.)

Recent events and phenomena, such as A(H1N1) pandemic in 2009, "Fluad case" (2014-2015) and the spread of vaccine hesitancy, affected influenza vaccination coverage rates in Italy. In this study, the annual coverage rates in Lombardy Region and in Italy (from 1999-2000 season) have been critically described and compared. Regarding both the general population and the elderly over-65s, Lombardy's coverages always remained consistently below the national average. However, declines and peaks occurred simultaneously. The current slight recovery, both at national and regional level, is not sufficient. Coverages are still widely below the recommended thresholds.

Physical activity is recognised as a major health determinant, with positive effects on health, environmental sustainability and economy. National surveillance data show that one out of three Italians - adult and elderly alike - declares to be sedentary, with a progressively increasing trend. From the urgent need to implement strategies to promote physical activity the "Activate your Wait" ("Attiva l'Attesa") project was born, aimed at transforming the waiting pauses during day to day life into opportunities to perform simple stretching and active mobilization exercises. The pilot study was carried out at the Terme S. Egidio, Suio Terme Castelforte (Latina). The results of the questionnaire distributed in the pre-intervention phase, aimed at assessing the users' interest in the project and physical activity in general, are reported. The questionnaire was administrated in the waiting rooms in September 2018 and September 2019. A total of 129 subjects responded to the questionnaire: 43% declared themselves sedentary, 73% reported willingness to perform simple physical exercises while waiting, and 76% believed that physical activity during waiting moments could have a positive impact on health. The project's subsequent goal is to identify suitable exercises to be proposed during the intervention period, which can be easily reproduced independently by users in their everyday life.

The phenomenon of "Vaccine Hesintacy" and the consequent decrease in vaccination coverage with the re-ignition of some epidemic outbreaks has led Italian national and regional authorities to set a new vaccination plan (PNPV 2017-19) and even coercive measures such as the the Law n.119/2017. In addition, there have been initiatives by scientific societies also in order to increase involvement of professionals in information and education campaigns. Among the professional figures involved, the general practitioners represents the starting point from which to regain the citizen's trust. This article assesses their important role in the implementation of vaccination policies in Italy by identifying the essential points of the campaigns carried out on their patients.

Background: It is recognized that airborne fungi can cause illnesses in humans but data on environmental exposure are still poor. The aim of this study was to evaluate the fungal airborne contamination in a university building., Methods: The study was performed in February and May 2018; air samples were collected, before activity (on Monday) and during activity, (on Friday), both through active (CFU/m3) and passive (Index of microbial air contamination, IMA) method. Fungi were identified by using the scotch test., Results: In February the median fungal contamination value decreased from 14 CFU/m3 before activity to 7 CFU/m3 during activity, while IMA median remains 0. Instead in May both increased during activity (from 87 to 140 CFU/m3; from 5.5 to 7.5 IMA). Overall values increased in May compared to February. Aspergillus spp., Penicillium spp.,  Cladosporium spp. Absidia spp. were the genera most frequently isolated in both months, while in May Chaetomium spp. e Ulocladium spp. were recovered too., Conclusions: Seasonal trend in the levels of fungal contamination of the air was observed, with a statistically significant increase in May. This study represents the first step of a wider study aimed at enhancing knowledge about air fungal contamination.