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BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Low total lymphocyte count (TLC) has been found to be a poor prognostic factor in adults affected by heart diseases, malignancy, and renal failure. The aims of this study were to verify if a low TLC was associated with in-hospital mortality in older persons and to evaluate whether this association was independent of the presence of multiple co-existing diseases (multimorbidity). METHODS: The authors carried out a cross-section analysis of data of 65+ years old patients (n=596) admitted to a Geriatric Unit in Northern Italy. TLC, total white blood cell count (WBC) and serum albumin were assayed the day after admission. The presence and severity of diseases were evaluated with the Geriatric Index of Comorbidity (GIC). Other covariates included age, gender, cigarette smoking, cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination) and function (Activities of Daily Living). Logistic regression models were created to study factors affecting in-hospital death. RESULTS: TLC was inversely correlated with both age and multimorbidity. Patients in the lowest tertile of TLC had the highest association with death during hospitalization (OR 6.1, 95% CI 1.1-33.6) independently of multimorbidity and all the other covariates. Stratifying the sample by degree of multimorbidity, this association was clearest in patients with the least severe multimorbidity (GIC

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Understanding which patients benefit from rehabilitation programs may be useful in balancing resources and needs. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether cognitive and nutritional status are associated with functional improvement after rehabilitation in old persons. METHODS: 2650 patients (aged >/=60 years) consecutively admitted to a geriatric rehabilitation unit in Italy between August 2001 and December 2005, were included. Functional status was evalutated with the Tinetti scale, cognitive status with the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and nutritional status with the Mini-Nutritional Assessment Short Form (MNA-SF). To identify predictors of functional recovery, multiple logistic regression models were run, with improvement on the Tinetti scale score as dependent variable. RESULTS: Eighty per cent of old persons functionally improved after rehabilitation, ranges being 84% of those with MMSE>/=24 to 58% of those with MMSE<10. Persons with both good cognition and good nutritional status were most likely to improve [odds ratio (OR)=2.5; 95% confidence interval (95% CI)=1.9-3.2]. Stratifying the sample according to cognitive status, we found that in patients with MMSE>/=18 better nutritional status emerged as a factor associated with functional improvement, whereas in patients with severe cognitive impairment (MMSE<18), the only associated factor was a higher MMSE score. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the present study suggest that both good cognition and good nutritional status are associated with functional improvement in older persons. However, patients with poor cognition can also improve, depending on their degree of cognitive impairment, and they should not be routinely excluded from rehabilitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Study Objective: We evaluated whether aging may produce changes in bronchial hyperresponsiveness, risk of enhanced bronchoconstriction, and changes of bronchoconstriction perception.Setting: Each subject underwent a methacholine bronchial challenge. Methacholine challenge was stopped when one of the following conditions occurred: (1) plateau of bronchoconstriction; (2) decrease of FEV(1) > 40%; (3) FEV(1) drop below 1 L; or (4) excessive respiratory discomfort. Methacholine dose-response curves were plotted both for FVC and FEV(1). The provocative dose of methacholine causing a 20% decrease in FEV(1) with respect to baseline (PD(20)) and the fall in FVC (DeltaFVC) at PD(20) were computed. The Borg scale was used for scoring the perception of respiratory discomfort.Patients: We compared 17 young asthmatic patients (aged 22 to 45 years) with 17 older asthmatic patients (aged 63 to 78 years) selected on the basis of similar baseline pulmonary function and disease duration.Results: No significant between-group difference was found in PD(20) and in plateau development. Conversely, DeltaFVC was significantly higher in the older group (mean +/- SD, 15.5 +/- 3.9% vs 11.6 +/- 5.5% in younger patients). In addition, DeltaFVC showed a positive linear relationship with age (p = 0.0026). Elderly subjects were less aware of bronchoconstriction during the methacholine challenge (p = 0.04).Conclusions: In elderly patients with asthma having comparable pulmonary function and disease duration, bronchial responsiveness is not different from that observed in younger asthmatic patients. Nevertheless, in such patients, an age-related tendency to an enhanced bronchoconstriction and a reduced perception of the degree of bronchoconstriction exist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Pneumonia with severe respiratory failure represents the principal cause of death in COVID-19, where hyper-inflammation plays an important role in lung damage. An effective treatment aiming at reducing the inflammation without preventing virus clearance is thus urgently needed. Tocilizumab, an anti-soluble IL-6 receptor monoclonal antibody, has been proposed for treatment of patients with COVID-19., Methods: A retrospective cohort study at the Montichiari Hospital, Brescia, Italy, was conducted. We included consecutive patients with COVID-19 related pneumonia at the early stage of respiratory failure, all treated with a standard protocol (hydroxychloroquine 400 mg daily, lopinavir 800 mg plus ritonavir 200 mg per day). We compared survival rate and clinical status in a cohort of patients who received additional treatment with tocilizumab once (either 400 mg intravenous or 324 mg subcutaneous) with a retrospective cohort of patients who did not receive tocilizumab (referred to as the standard treatment group). All outcomes were assessed at the end of the follow-up, that correspond to death or complete recovery and discharge from the hospital., Findings: 158 patients were included, 90 of which received tocilizumab. 34 out of 68 (50%) patients in the standard treatment group and 7 out of 90 (7.7%) in the tocilizumab group died. Tocilizumab significantly improved survival compared to standard care (multivariate HR: 0.057; 95% C.I = 0.017- 0.187, p < 0.001). No differences between the two administration routes of tocilizumab were observed. No tocilizumab-related infections and/or side effects were observed., Interpretation: Early treatment with tocilizumab could be helpful to prevent excessive hyper-inflammation and death in COVID-19 related pneumonia. Low dose administration of tocilizumab is not associated with adverse events., Funding: none., Competing Interests: All authors declare no competing interests., (© 2020 The Authors.)

Background: Pneumonia with respiratory failure represents the main cause of death in COVID-19, where hyper inflammation plays an important role in lung damage. This study aims to evaluate if tocilizumab, an anti-soluble IL-6 receptor monoclonal antibody, reduces patients' mortality., Methods: 85 consecutive patients admitted to the Montichiari Hospital (Italy) with COVID-19 related pneumonia and respiratory failure, not needing mechanical ventilation, were included if satisfying at least one among: respiratory rate ≥ 30 breaths/min, peripheral capillary oxygen saturation ≤ 93% or PaO2/FiO2<=300 mmHg. Patients admitted before March 13th (n=23) were prescribed the standard therapy (hydroxychloroquine, lopinavir and ritonavir) and were considered controls. On March 13th tocilizumab was available and patients admitted thereafter (n=62) received tocilizumab once within 4 days from admission, plus the standard care., Results: Patients receiving tocilizumab showed significantly greater survival rate as compared to control patients (hazard ratio for death, 0.035; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.004 to 0.347; p = 0.004), adjusting for baseline clinical characteristics. Two out of 62 patients of the tocilizumab group and 11 out of 23 in the control group died. 92% and 42.1% of the discharged patients in the tocilizumab and control group respectively, recovered. The respiratory function resulted improved in 64.8% of the observations in tocilizumab patients who were still hospitalized, whereas 100% of controls worsened and needed mechanical ventilation. No infections were reported., Conclusions: Tocilizumab results to have a positive impact if used early during Covid-19 pneumonia with severe respiratory syndrome in terms of increased survival and favorable clinical course., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest No conflict of interest has been declared by any author., (Copyright © 2020 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Background: Restoring functional independence in elderly people with disabilities is one of the main purposes of a geriatric rehabilitation unit. However, the rehabilitation period may also represent a useful circumstance to identify predictors of long-term health outcomes. The aim of this study was to evaluate a broad spectrum of characteristics in geriatric patients admitted to a rehabilitation unit in order to identify possible predictors of long-term survival., Methods: This cross-sectional and prospective study was carried out in an Evaluation and Rehabilitation unit in Northern Italy. 243 persons aged 65 or older were enrolled over a period of 12 months (2007-8) and followed for 2 years. Possible predictors of survival were identified among a large spectrum of demographic, clinical (Charlson Index, lab data), nutritional (Mini-Nutritional Short-Form, bio-impedance analysis), and respiratory (spirometry) features. Logistic regression models were used to evaluate the association between patients' characteristics and survival., Results: 189 (86.3%) participants were alive after 2 years of follow-up. Younger age, better functional status at discharge, a lower Charlson Index score, higher hemoglobin and albumin values at discharge, lower basal fasting glucose, creatinine, TNF-α levels, and extra-cellular water, as well as higher cholesterol, vital capacity (VC), and inspiratory capacity were significantly associated with survival. In the multivariate model, higher VC (OR=6.2; 95%CI=1.6-24.6) and albumin (OR=3.7; 95%CI=1.2-11.8) were associated with survival, whereas the Charlson Index and male gender showed an inverse correlation (OR=0.77; 95%CI=0.60-0.99 and OR=0.23; 95%CI=0.10-0.95, respectively)., Conclusion: VC was identified as one of the best predictors of survival along with higher albumin and lower Charlson Index score within 2 years of inpatient rehabilitation among older adults., (Copyright © 2012 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)