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Italy has been the first-hit European country to face the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Aim of this survey was to assess in depth the impact of the outbreak on healthcare workers (HCW). A 40-item online survey was disseminated via social media inviting Italian HCW, with questions exploring demographics, health status and work environment of respondents. A total of 527 were invited to take part in March 2020, of whom 74% (n = 388) responded to the survey. Of these, 235 (61%) were women. HCW were mostly physicians (74%), from high-prevalence regions (52%). 25% experienced typical symptoms during the last 14 days prior to survey completion, with only 45% of them being tested for COVID-19. Among the tested population, 18 (18%) resulted positive for COVID-19, with 33% being asymptomatic. Only 22% of HCW considered personal protective equipment adequate for quality and quantity. Females and respondents working in high-risk sectors were more likely to rate psychological support as useful (OR, 1.78 [CI 95% 1.14–2.78] P = 0.012, and 2.02 [1.12–3.65] P = 0.020, respectively) and workload as increased (mean increase, 0.38 [0.06–0.69] P = 0.018; and 0.54 [0.16–0.92] P = 0.005, respectively). The insights from this survey may help authorities in countries where COVID-19 epidemic has not yet broken out. Management strategies should be promptly undertaken in order to enhance safety and optimise resource allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To evaluate the adjunctive clinical efficacy of probiotics in the treatment of peri-implant mucositis (p- iM) with professionally administered plaque removal ( PAPR) and photodynamic therapy ( PDT). Materials and methods Following p- iM induction, patients underwent PAPR + PDT and were randomly assigned to receive the professional and home-based administration of probiotics ( Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus brevis) (test treatment) or placebo preparation (control treatment) according to a cross-over design. Clinical parameters were assessed at six sites for each implant before as well as at 2 and 6 weeks after professional treatment administration. Results Twenty patients contributing one dental implant each were included. Immediately before treatment and at 6 weeks, the median number of sites with bleeding on probing (BoP+) sites per implant unit was 4 (3-6) and 2 (0-2) ( p < 0.001), respectively, for test treatment, and 3.5 (2-4) and 2 (0-3) ( p = 0.03), respectively, for control treatment. No significant difference in clinical outcomes was observed between treatment groups. Conclusion The combination of PAPR and PDT either alone or associated with probiotics determined a significant reduction in the number of BoP+ sites at 2 and 6 weeks around implants with p- iM. The adjunctive use of probiotics did not significantly enhance the clinical outcomes of PAPR + PDT. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multiple types of temporary and circular migration carried out for work can be interpreted as forms of intermediate mobility located between commuting and permanent migration. These forms of mobility are a flexible adaptation to the new opportunities and constraints brought about by the present-day social and economic organization. The study of temporary migrations represents an arduous yet unavoidable challenge precisely for its contemporary relevance and close connection with ongoing changes in society. Studies on temporary mobility for work are not very common, and also the international literature on the subject does not share definitions and measures, but is concordant in identifying the protagonists as being mostly young men, with a high level of education, and in the early stages of their work life. The aim of the article is two-fold: to provide methodological insights for further studies on temporary migration, contributing to the debate surrounding the conceptualization of this phenomenon and an improvement in quantitative sources; to offer a descriptive and multivariate analysis of southern residents temporarily migrating to the centre-north regions through the Italian Labour Force Survey (ILFS) data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Using the epidemiological data of pleural cancer mortality, the authors estimated time trends and distribution of malignant mesothelioma in Italy during the period 1974-2006. Methods: To describe temporal trends of the standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) in all the 20 Italian regions, we applied the Joinpoint Regression Model, developed by the National Cancer Institute (USA). The 107 provincial SMRs are represented on maps by using the Arcview GIS software (version 3.2). Results: The high values from mesothelioma mortality in construction and shipbuilding sectors, previously reported, are confirmed by our analyses. Furthermore, data show that the annual percentage change is still growing: statistically significant increments in time trends are observed for 11 of 20 Italian regions. Of additional concern has been the identification of changes in 9 of 20 trends partially due to the misdiagnosis in the past. Conclusions: Given the long latency of mesothelioma, preventive and legal measures with the ban of asbestos in Italy since 1992 are still not giving effects on mesothelioma mortality trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The aim of the present study was to assess the cost-effectiveness of cement-less versus hybrid prostheses in total hip replacement (THR) in patients diagnosed with primary osteoarthritis. Methods: Effectiveness data were obtained from the Emilia-Romagna Regional Registry on Orthopaedic Prosthesis (RIPO), which collects information on all orthopaedic intervention performed in Emilia-Romagna (41,199 total hip replacements performed from 2000 to 2007), and from which we obtained survival curves and transition probabilities for the cement-less and hybrid prostheses, respectively. Conversely, costs were derived from regional databases through a specific procedure, which allowed us to register individual component''s costs for both primary and subsequent revision interventions. A specific Markov transition model was constructed in order to consider the 3 types of revisions that an implant could possibly undergo through its life-span: total, cup or stem, head insert or neck. The cost-effectiveness was expressed in terms of cost per “revision-free” life year. Results and conclusions: Considering a 70-y old patient undergoing THR, the cementless strategy resulted more effective but more costly than the hybrid solution, with an incremental cost effectiveness ratio of 2401.63 € per revision-free life year. Following a deterministic sensitivity analysis, hybrid and cementless fixation showed, respectively, a dominance profile for patients older than 83 y and younger than 43 y, whereas for all ages in between, we report a progressive increase in the ICER of cementless prostheses. Our results proved to be robust, as underlined by the probabilistic sensitivity analysis performed using cost distributions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]