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In the near future, we will be surrounded in our daily lives by a multitude of small and relatively inexpensive computing devices that are equipped with wireless communication and sensing featuring the concept of 'pervasive intelligence,' a basis from which we can envision our future world as an Internet of Things/Internet of Everything (IoT/IoE) in terms of both a consumer IoT/IoE and the Industrial IoT. One of the key desired characteristics of an IoT wireless sensor node is its ability to operate autonomously by means of energy harvesting (EH) rather than relying on bulky batteries, which have a limited lifetime. Furthermore, for many of the aforementioned scenarios, wearable solutions are foreseen to further increase the pervasive diffusion of the IoT paradigm, enabling a multitude of devices and individuals to be connected to each other.

The location quotient (LQ), a ratio of ratios, is a widely known geographic index (Isard, 1960). It is used to measure and map relative distributions or relative concentrations of a character in a sub-area compared to the area as a whole (Wheeler, 2005). It has been recently proposed as a local index in the study of residential segregation of foreign population (Apparicio et al., 2008; Benassi et al., 2016). The LQs are particularly useful when applied to a metropolitan area where they allow to identify the spatial units in which a population group is under-represented (LQ1). Despite their apparent simplicity, the location quotients present some slippery features this contribution tries to reflect on. This paper examines some different ways to compute the LQs and their results, by using data on residents by citizenship in the metropolitan area of Milan. We analyse and compare the statistical distributions of the LQs of selected foreign population’s groups. Finally, we propose an alternative measure, the Locational Differential Index, to take account of density, conveying the spatial component, absent in location quotients.

Background: Sleep is a significant dimension of daily life. However, only a few studies have examined the sleep quality of asthmatics in a real-world clinical settings. Objective: This study is aimed to estimate the prevalence of sleep impairments among asthmatic patients and examine the relationship between sleep quality, asthma control, rhinitis symptoms, and sociodemographic characteristics. Methods: The present study adopted the observational cross-sectional research design that has been designed by the Italian Respiratory Society and used valid assessments to measure the study variables. Results: Data from 1150 asthmatic patients (mean age 51.01 years ± 16.03) were subjected to analysis. 58.3% of the patients had impaired sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index [PSQI] total scores > 5), and their mean PSQI score was 5.68 (SD = 3.4). A significant correlation emerged between sleep quality and asthma control (p = 0.0001) and a significant albeit weak correlation emerged between PSQI total scores and Total 5 Symptoms Score (r = 0.24, p = 0.0001). Sleep quality was significantly associated health-related quality of life [HRQoL]. (r = 0.50, p < 0.001). After exclusion of patients at risk for Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome (OSAS) and Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), the most important determinants of PSQI score were HRQoL, In the entire sample asthma control is the strongest predictor of both sleep quality and HRQoL. Conclusions: The results of this real-world study highlight the prevalence, impact and predictors of sleep disturbances in asthmatic patients and suggest the need for physicians to detect poor sleep quality.

It is argued that the organization of services by local authorities should take into account both the demographic features of the usually resident population and the spatial dimension of the territory involved. Focusing on the Italian region of Tuscany, the paper seeks to identify homogeneous and spatially contiguous areas between the municipal and regional levels. Demographic indexes of usually resident population and spatial attributes of each Tuscan municipality are used as the input of a spatial clustering and regionalization model in order to obtain nareas that minimize the internal heterogeneity of the demographic structure under the constraint of spatial contiguity

Silvia Scurati1, Franco Frati1, Gianni Passalacqua2, Paola Puccinelli1, Cecile Hilaire1, Cristoforo Incorvaia3, Italian Study Group on SLIT Compliance 1Scientific and Medical Department, Stallergenes, Milan, Italy; 2Allergy and Respiratory Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, Genoa; 3Allergy/Pulmonary Rehabilitation, ICP Hospital, Milan, ItalyObjectives: Sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) is a viable alternative to subcutaneous immunotherapy to treat allergic rhinitis and asthma, and is widely used in clinical practice in many European countries. The clinical efficacy of SLIT has been established in a number of clinical trials and meta-analyses. However, because SLIT is self-administered by patients without medical supervision, the degree of patient adherence with treatment is still a concern. The objective of this study was to evaluate the perception by allergists of issues related to SLIT adherence.Methods: We performed a questionnaire-based survey of 296 Italian allergists, based on the adherence issues known from previous studies. The perception of importance of each item was assessed by a VAS scale ranging from 0 to 10.Results: Patient perception of clinical efficacy was considered the most important factor (ranked 1 by 54% of allergists), followed by the possibility of reimbursement (ranked 1 by 34%), and by the absence of side effects (ranked 1 by 21%). Patient education, regular follow-up, and ease of use of SLIT were ranked first by less than 20% of allergists.Conclusion: These findings indicate that clinical efficacy, cost, and side effects are perceived as the major issues influencing patient adherence to SLIT, and that further improvement of adherence is likely to be achieved by improving the patient information provided by prescribers.Keywords: adherence, sublingual immunotherapy, efficacy, cost, side effects

Background It has been suggested that withdrawal of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) in COPD patients on maintenance treatment results in deterioration of symptoms, lung function and exacerbations. The aim of this real-life, prospective, multicentric study was to investigate whether withdrawal of ICS in COPD patients at low risk of exacerbation is linked to a deterioration in lung function and symptoms and to a higher frequency of exacerbations. Methods 914 COPD patients, on maintenance therapy with bronchodilators and ICS, FEV1>50% predicted, and

Endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) has emerged as a promising, less invasive alternative to conventional open surgery for the treatment of infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs). In the last 20 years, the application rate of EVAR and its clinical results have significantly improved thanks to the evolution of stent-grafts and endovascular delivery systems. However, further development is still needed to reduce the incidence of complications and secondary re-interventions. The Treovance abdominal aortic stent-graft (Bolton Medical, Barcelona, Spain) is a new-generation endovascular device, developed to increase flexibility, lower profile, improve deployment and sealing mechanisms. In particular, it is provided with some innovative features as a double layer of proximal barbs (suprarenal and infrarenal) for supplemental fixation, dull barbs between modules to avoid potential leg disconnections, detachable outer sheath provided with a new-design hemostatic valve, and a double improved mechanism (slow motion and "pin and pull") for precise stent-graft deployment. A European prospective, non-randomized, multi-institutional, "first-in-human" trial (the ADVANCE trial) was conducted from March to December 2011 to assess the safety and performance of the Treovance stent-graft system before commercialization. Thirty patients with anatomically suitable non-ruptured AAAs were enrolled at five clinical sites in Italy, Spain, and Germany. EVAR was completed successfully in all patients. The stent-graft was delivered and deployed safely even in heavily angulated or calcified anatomies. No 30-day device-related complications nor deaths were observed. Preliminary experience with the Treovance abdominal stent-graft within the ADVANCE trial was satisfactory with regard to technical success and perioperative clinical results. Follow-up data are needed to assess mid- and long-term clinical outcomes, along with durability of this new-generation endovascular device.

Background: To assess early and late mortality in patients with isolated acute tricuspid valve infective endocarditis (TVIE) using data from a multicenter registry.Methods: From 1983 to 2018, isolated acute TVIE was surgically treated in 157 (3.8%) patients [mean age 47 +/- 16 years (range 15-86 years), 25% females]. Of these, 142 (90%) had native tricuspid regurgitation, 7 (5%) native tricuspid valve (TV) steno-regurgitation, and 8 (5%) prosthetic TVIE. Intravenous drug use (IVDU) was recorded in 38% of patients, infection involved cardiac implantable electronic device leads in 21%, and vascular catheters for dialysis in 1%; in the remaining cases, the cause was unknown. The primary endpoint was in-hospital outcome, long-term freedom from recurrence and overall survival.Results: Overall, 77 (49%) patients underwent TV repair, 72 (46%) TV replacement, and 8 (5%) prosthetic TV replacement. Early mortality was 11% (n = 17). Expected early mortality according to EndoSCORE was 12%, with age (odds ratio 1.06) and redo (odds ratio 6.64) as risk factors. Late deaths occurred in 31 patients and TVIE recurrences in 4. Survival rates at 10, 20, and 25 years were 66%, 60%, and 44%, respectively. Risk factors were age [hazard ratio (HR) 1.06], mycotic TVIE (HR 4.2), IVDU (HR 4.90), infected prosthesis replacement (HR 4.4), and presence of cardiac implantable electronic device leads (HR 3.0). No significant difference was found in valve repair vs. replacement and in IVDUs vs. non-IVDUs.Conclusions: Patients with isolated acute TVIE undergoing surgical treatment show acceptable early and late outcomes. TVIE recurrence was low, and repair of the affected valve does not seem to confer any advantage either at early or long term up to 25 years. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Studies on fertility determinants have frequently pointed to the role that socio-economic, cultural and institutional factors play in shaping reproductive behaviours. Yet, little is known about these determinants at an ecological level, although it is widely recognised that demographic dynamics strongly interact with ecosystems. This research responds to the need to enhance the knowledge on variations in fertility across space with an analysis of the relationship between fertility and population density of Italians and foreigners in Italy at the municipal level for the period 2002–2018. Using global and local autocorrelation measures and a spatial Durbin model, we show that there is a negative association between the fertility and population density of the Italian population, while the density of foreigners is correlated with higher fertility. This second result poses new insights on the relationship between space and fertility. Moreover, we find that the features of neighbouring areas, measured by population density, contribute significantly to explaining spatial fertility variation, confirming the importance of the study of spatial diffusion in demographic processes.

Sri Lankans constitute one of Italy's oldest foreign communities. A comparative geographic study of Sri Lankans’ settlement patterns in three main municipalities of South Italy (Naples, Palermo, and Catania) is performed in the present work. The uniqueness of the analysis relies on the fact that, to the authors’ knowledge, no other existing studies comparatively examine the spatial segregation of Sri Lankan communities in different southern European municipalities. Moreover, implementing a single geographic reference grid allowed the homogenisation of different areal unit arrangements and the comparison between urban contexts. Original results have emerged from the empirical analysis, detecting peculiar and similar residential behaviour in Sri Lankans’ settlement patterns across the three municipalities analysed, jointly influenced by work specialisation and variations in the local cost of living. In particular, the high levels of Sri Lankan concentration detected in the wealthiest neighbourhoods revealed complex dynamics underlying the urban spatial segregation, beyond the mere centre-periphery dichotomy.

The Internet of Things (IoT) paradigm is currently highly demanded in multiple scenarios and in particular plays an important role in solving medical-related challenges. RF and microwave technologies, coupled with wireless energy transfer, are interesting candidates because of their inherent contactless spectrometric capabilities and for the wireless transmission of sensing data. This article reviews some recent achievements in the field of wearable sensors, highlighting the benefits that these solutions introduce in operative contexts, such as indoor localization and microwave sensing. Wireless power transfer is an essential requirement to be fulfilled to allow these sensors to be not only wearable but also compact and lightweight while avoiding bulky batteries. Flexible materials and 3D printing polymers, as well as daily garments, are widely exploited within the presented solutions, allowing comfort and wearability without renouncing the robustness and reliability of the built-in wearable sensor.

This work proposes the design and implementation of a wearable rectifying filtenna (filtering antenna) which is activated and powered wirelessly, to detect the presence of ethanol solutions. The system is implemented on a Rogers RT/Duroid 5880 substrate ( $\varepsilon _{r} =2.2$ and thickness: 0.508 mm), whose flexibility facilitates the system wearability. The fluid detection is performed by a resonant stub embedding a microfluidic channel on its end, which resonates as an open circuit at 2.45 GHz when the channel is filled with the ethanol solution and undergoes a dramatic shift on its input impedance behavior when the channel is filled with water or when it is empty. The system is powered wirelessly by means of a 2.45-GHz narrowband antenna, and the frequency selection is performed by a second-order open-end coupled-line filter whose one end is loaded with the resonant stub. The filtenna RF signal is transduced by a full-wave rectifier exploiting low-threshold voltage diodes, and fluid detection is read out through different values of dc-output voltages, allowing an immediate response. The system is designed and optimized by means of full-wave/nonlinear co-simulations and the realized prototype is measured to confirm a safe detection of the tested solution.

This paper investigates the meso dimension of the Italian territorial capital. Multivariate explorative analysis was carried out on Italian municipalities using several original statistical indicators. We detected two latent dimensions on which three clusters of municipalities were identified: the prevalence of cultural endowments and typicality, the prevalence of environmental and natural endowments, and the prevalence of other endowments. These clusters were then used for analytical purposes, crossing demographic and socio-economic variables. The results showed that some elements of “‘disadvantage,” such as poor accessibility, can, in reality, represent strengths, provided that such an endowment is exploited in sectors that can benefit from it, such as, for example, culture and tourism.

Taylor’s law states that the variance of population density in a given set of areas is a power function of its mean. When the exponent is equal to 2, the distribution of population densities between areas remains unchanged; when it is less than 2, the distribution converges toward the uniform distribution; when it is greater than 2, the densities become increasingly different from each other over time. The exponent takes the value 2 for East Asia, the Pacific, and South Asia. It takes a value greater than 2 for sub-Saharan Africa because the ongoing demographic transition and intense urbanization are redistributing the population over the territories. The exponent is lower than 2 for the other regions of the world, which have completed their demographic transition and where the rural exodus has been completed.

Immigration flows and social inequalities reflect increased social and multi-ethnic segregation in contemporary urban Europe. For a better understanding of these processes, the present study investigates the main strengths of the multi-group residential indices, testing sensitivity and reliability under different metropolitan contexts in five European countries. These indices focus on different research dimensions and approach multi-group residential segregation conceptually and mathematically in a different way. A multivariate exploratory data analysis was adopted to classify the observed segregation patterns into a few homogeneous types and to delineate the multivariate relationship between the indices. The results of principal component analysis demonstrate that the indices assessing uniformity and disproportionality of the social groups analysed (H and D) contribute largely to the diversification in today's multi-ethnic communities, clarifying the importance of the dimension of evenness. Our results highlight how segregation is more evident in economically disadvantaged metropolitan regions with high levels of social vulnerability.

This paper offers an analysis of the supply of Airbnb accommodation in Rome, one of the main tourist destinations in the world, the third-largest city in Europe, by the number of Airbnb listings. The aim is to focus on the recent spatial trend of Airbnb listings, including the period of the COVID-19 pandemic, and highlight the main housing and socioeconomic characteristics of the neighbourhoods associated with a strong presence of Airbnb listings. The study is developed with quantitative methods and spatial regression (spatial lag and spatial error using OLS as a benchmark), based on data collected from the Inside Airbnb and Tomslee websites. In the period 2014–2019, the listing trend in Rome has been increasing in absolute numbers. After the start of the pandemic, the trend became negative, and the decline of Airbnb offerings is more substantial for shared accommodation. Airbnb supply is related to the distance from the city centre, the average income of the area, empty apartments, singles and the share of foreign residents coming from high-income countries. A signal of spatial diffusion of Airbnb listings emerges in the coastal area, even if they are increasingly concentrated in the historic centre, where there is a monoculture of short-term renting.

This essay considers the rural-to-urban transition and correlates it with urban energy demands. Three distinct themes are inspected and interrelated to develop awareness for an urbanizing world: internal urban design and innovation, technical transition, and geopolitical change. Data were collected on the use of energy in cities and, by extension, nation states over the last 30 years. The\ud urban population boom continues to pressure the energy dimension with heavily weighted impacts\ud on less developed regions. Sustainable urban energy will need to reduce resource inputs and environmental impacts and decouple economic growth from energy consumption. Fossil fuels continue to\ud be the preferred method of energy for cities; however, an increased understanding is emerging that\ud sustainable energy forms can be implemented as alternatives. Key to this transition will be the will to\ud invest in renewables (i.e., solar, wind, hydro, tidal, geothermal, and biomass), efficient infrastructure,\ud and smart eco-city designs. This essay elucidates how the technical transition of energy-friendly technologies focuses on understanding the changes in the energy mix from non-renewable to renewable.\ud Smart electricity storage grids with artificial intelligence can operate internationally and alleviate\ud some geopolitical barriers. Energy politics is shown to be a problematic hurdle with case research\ud examples specific to Central and Eastern Europe. The energy re-shift stressed is a philosophical\ud re-thinking of modern cities as well as a new approach to the human-energy relationship.

Fertility is a key process shaping long-term population dynamics. Distinctive fertility trends have characterized demographic transitions, exhibiting sequential periods of spatial convergence and divergence. This descriptive study investigates the spatiotemporal evolution of Total Fertility Rate (TFR) and Crude Birth Rate (CBR) at different geographical scales in Italy between 2002 and 2018. Descriptive statistics of the TFR and CBR values across geographical scales were computed and the associated maps were prepared for the most detailed spatial levels available; specifically, down to the municipality level. Spatial analysis at the provincial and municipality level was based on both global and local Moran's indexes. Southern Italy, a mostly disadvantaged region, was characterized by relatively stable fertility patterns; fertility then decreased following an opposite trend with respect to economic conditions. The reverse relationship was observed in Northern Italy. As such, economic expansion and recession impacted fertility more intensively in Northern Italy.

Although still needing a definite theoretical status, spatial justice represents an inspiring framework for geographical analysis and for planning. In this paper we try to operationalize the concept through a geo-demographic approach. By using demographic and social differences as proxy of the concept at the urban level we define five socio-territorial clusters based on the characteristics of the population residing in the enumeration area of 14 Italian local labour market areas (LLMAs) whose capital is also the capital of a metropolitan city. The first results of the analysis show a high level of heterogeneity and the absence of compact and segregated peripheries. At the same time the analysis highlights the need for further methodological investigations to attain a better representation of social justice in its spatial dimension.

In 1885, Ravenstein formulated his “laws” of migration, based on the experience of the British Isles. In a further 1889 paper, he extended his analysis as a tour d’horizon of migration and population changes in other nations, including Italy. Even if social and economic processes including globalisation and rising mobility have changed the world since then, Ravenstein’s “laws” remain a point of reference today. Harnessing theoretical and methodological advances made since the 19th century, this paper describes and seeks to explain the role of international and internal migration in regional population change in Italy from 2002-2017. This paper provides the first geographically detailed migration analysis for the country’s 611 Local Labour Market Areas (LLMAs), using register-based migration and population data. Our contribution focuses on several of Ravenstein’s “laws” relating to gender (differences between men and women), natives and non-natives (differences between the Italian and the foreign population), distance migrated from origin to destination, and the role of the economy in shaping push and pull factors of migration. The results show that international migration is more prominent among men than women. In the case of internal moves, the rates of migration among men and women are similar, and internal migration is more prominent among the foreign than the native Italian population. Overall, international migration gains contribute substantially more to population change than internal migration gains and losses do. In Italy, the effects of persistent economic imbalances and of distance on migration patterns are not in line with Ravenstein’s hypotheses: not all areas with high unemployment show an effect of dispersion, nor does distance always act as a deterrent to migration. The geographically detailed analysis presented here illustrates the temporal and spatial coexistence of diverse international and internal migration processes depending on local characteristics, as well as the importance of the economic or administrative centres as the driving force behind national patterns. Our results show that, even 130 years after their formulation, Ravenstein’s migration “laws” (more accurately called “hypotheses” today) are still a valuable starting point in assessing and understanding migration processes and their role in regional population change. * This article belongs to a special issue on “Internal Migration as a Driver of Regional Population Change in Europe: Updating Ravenstein”.

Density-dependent population growth regulates long-term urban expansion and shapes distinctive socioeconomic trends. Despite a marked heterogeneity in the spatial distribution of the resident population, Mediterranean European countries are considered more homogeneous than countries in other European regions as far as settlement structure and processes of metropolitan growth are concerned. However, rising socioeconomic inequalities among Southern European regions reflect latent demographic and territorial transformations that require further investigation. An integrated assessment of the spatio-temporal distribution of resident populations in more than 1,000 municipalities (1961&ndash, 2011) was carried out in this study to characterize density-dependent processes of metropolitan growth in Greece. Using geographically weighted regressions, the results of our study identified distinctive local relationships between population density and growth rates over time. Our results demonstrate that demographic growth rates were non-linearly correlated with other variables, such as population density, with positive and negative impacts during the first (1961&ndash, 1971) and the last (2001&ndash, 2011) observation decade, respectively. These findings outline a progressive shift over time from density-dependent processes of population growth, reflecting a rapid development of large metropolitan regions (Athens, Thessaloniki) in the 1960s, to density-dependent processes more evident in medium-sized cities and accessible rural regions in the 2000s. Density-independent processes of population growth have been detected in the intermediate study period (1971&ndash, 2001). This work finally discusses how a long-term analysis of demographic growth, testing for density-dependent mechanisms, may clarify the intrinsic role of population concentration and dispersion in different phases of the metropolitan cycle in Mediterranean Europe.

The foreign population has become a structural trait of Italian society, and its territorial integration a key factor in social sustainability. Mixed couples, an emerging phenomenon in the Italian context, are leading to a change in social space and residential geography of the local environment. Encouraging an improvement in the level of territorial integration of the foreign population, by the host, plays an important role in understanding demographic changes. This chapter proposes a theoretical reflection on the importance of territorial integration of foreigners and an assessment of the dimensional effects it presents to the host societies’ social cohesion, and an empirical application to examine the relationships between foreigner residential integration and mixed couples. Results indicate that the increase in mixed couples leads to a weakening of residential segregation and therefore to greater territorial integration of the foreign population in the host society. Taking level of segregation of other ethnic groups under control, the effect of mixed couples on the level of residential segregation remains negative, while at the same time, the level of residential segregation of a given foreign community is positively correlated with other foreign community’s level of residential segregation. The territorial integration of foreigners is, thus, strongly linked to the local, social environment in context of multi-segregation. From this perspective, the growth of mixed-race couples, at least within a territorial dimension, can represent an agent of change in the social space modifying the majority and minority groups’ residential geography.

Population decline is a major issue impacting environmental sustainability, economic growth and social well-being. Although earlier studies evaluated demographic factors, social forces and economic aspects associated with population decline in Europe, the role of territorial factors was less considered when investigating the spatial linkages between rural depopulation and the local context. As demographic patterns are the result of past dynamics depending on place-specific factors, this study hypothesizes that (time-invariant) territorial characteristics (altitude, geographical area, proximity to the sea, and urban hierarchy) are important drivers of the spatial variability in depopulation rates on a local scale. To verify this assumption, changes over time (1981–2011) in resident populations of Italian municipalities were investigated and a regression model aimed at identifying the relevant factors shaping the population decline in Italy was run separately for three decades (1981–1991, 1991–2001, 2001–2011) with depopulation rate as the dependent variable. Model estimation was based on a system of simultaneous equations where the dependent variable at time t is an explanatory variable of the model at a subsequent time (t + 1). Results show that basic territorial factors – and especially altitude - impacted significantly on local-scale depopulation rates. North-south differences in population decline emerged more clearly in the last decade. Municipalities with a declining population at a given time were more likely to experience depopulation also in the subsequent decade. These findings highlight the relevant role of territorial factors in shaping depopulation across Italy and the importance of a spatially explicit analysis of demographic dynamics for local development research and policy.

Reflecting a broader form of neo-liberal urban policy underlying the progressive return of capital investment, gentrification is a key issue in urban studies. Although earlier definitions of “gentrification” focused mostly on socio-cultural processes, recent works have qualified gentrification as a mixed political–economic issue. Clarifying whether inner city gentrification should be supported, controlled, constricted, or prevented is a key debate in urban sustainability and metabolism, contributing to managing and, possibly, enhancing metropolitan resilience. To define the causes and consequences of gentrification, understanding the intrinsic linkage with different social contexts is crucial. There are no universal and comprehensive gentrification processes, displaying similarities and differences at the same time. A comparative analysis of different forms of gentrification and urban change provides basic knowledge to delineate complex, non-linear paths of socioeconomic development in cities, shedding light on the increased socioeconomic complexity and the most appropriate policies to fuel metropolitan sustainability in a broader context of global change. From this perspective, our commentary focuses on the main issues at the base of gentrification in Europe, starting from basic definitions and providing a regional vision distinguishing three “gentrification ideal-types” (northern, eastern, and Mediterranean). The implications of these different socioeconomic processes for the policy and governance of sustainable and resilient cities were discussed, evidencing new lines of investigation to frame (or re-frame) the increasing complexity of urbanization patterns and processes.

Taylor’s power law (Tpl) is applied to the human population density of Italian regions and provinces for the period 1971–2011. Three different weighting systems are used to estimate Tpl at the national and subnational levels in which seemingly unrelated regression models are adopted. The following results were found: Tpl is suitable for human populations and sensitive to the adopted weighting system; Tpl’s slope is positive and, at a subnational level, has an inverse behaviour with respect to the spatial variability of the weighting variables; and Tpl’s slope can be viewed as an indicator of a population’s spatial distribution homogeneity.

In this essay, we tackle the issue of the international mobility of young Italians in relation to regional disparities. Our intention is to determine if and to what extent a relationship exists between regional development and the international mobility of young people. We analyze the international migration of Italian citizens aged 15-34 who left the country in the period 2010-2017 using several variables that reflect the varying conditions found in different NUTS 3-level regions in terms of economic dynamism, labor-market efficiency, social fragility, educational underdevelopment and spatial peripherality. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) and Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) models show that the international mobility of young Italians is very much dependent on local conditions and affected by spatial differences. It is greatest in the most economically dynamic areas of the country, in border regions and in metropolitan areas, with factors relating to spatial proximity and peripherality, imbalances in local labor markets, and paucity of human capital proving particularly significant.

Animal ecology has devoted a great deal of effort to the study of the relations between the variance (V) and the average (M) of the density of a group of sub-populations (pi) belonging to the same territorial system, and thus, it has been possible to develop several ‘laws’. Among these laws, one of the best known is Taylor’s power law (TL), which provides that between V and M, there is a power law. Several studies have appeared on this topic only recently in the field of human demography, mainly those of Cohen and colleagues. This is quite surprising given the extreme importance of the population density indicator in population studies. This paper, for the first time, tests the relations between V and M at the world level by working on the sub-populations (pi) resident in each country belonging to five continents and following a long-term perspective (1950–2017). To estimate the unknown parameters of the relation we make use a simultaneous equation system (SUR). The results show that TL is verified in two out of five cases (Asia, and America), while in three cases (Africa, Europe and Oceania), a quadratic relationship shows better results.

OBJECTIVES: We described clinical-epidemiological features of prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE) and assessed the determinants of early surgical outcomes in multicentre design.METHODS: Data regarding 2823 patients undergoing surgery for endocarditis at 19 Italian Centers between 1979 and 2015 were collected in a database. Of them, 582 had PVE: in this group, the determinants of early mortality and complications were assessed, also taking into account the different chronological eras encompassed by the study.RESULTS: Overall hospital (30-day) mortality was 19.2% (112 patients). Postoperative complications of any type occurred in 256 patients (44%). Across 3 eras (1980-2000, 2001-08 and 2009-14), early mortality did not significantly change (20.4%, 17.1%, 20.5%, respectively, P = 0.60), whereas complication rate increased (18.5%, 38.2%, 52.8%, P -2 mg/dl, chronic pulmonary disease, low ejection fraction, non-streptococcal aetiology, active endocarditis, preoperative intubation, preoperative shock and triple valve surgery were significantly associated with mortality. In multivariable analysis, age (OR = 1.02; P = 0.03), renal insufficiency (OR = 2.1; P = 0.05), triple valve surgery (OR = 6.9; P = 0.004) and shock (OR = 4.5; P CONCLUSIONS: PVE surgery remains a high-risk one. The strongest predictors of early outcome of PVE surgery are related to patient's haemodynamic status and microbiological factors.