Search

Objective: Sensory deficits are important risk factors for delirium but have been investigated in single-center studies and single clinical settings. This multicenter study aims to evaluate the association between hearing and visual impairment or bi-sensory impairment (visual and hearing impairment) and delirium. Design: Cross-sectional study nested in the 2017 "Delirium Day" project. Setting and participants: Patients 65 years and older admitted to acute hospital medical wards, emergency departments, rehabilitation wards, nursing homes, and hospices in Italy. Methods: Delirium was assessed with the 4AT (a short tool for delirium assessment) and sensory deficits with a clinical evaluation. We assessed the association between delirium, hearing and visual impairment in multivariable logistic regression models, adjusting for: Model 1, we included predisposing factors for delirium (ie, dementia, weight loss and autonomy in the activities of daily living); Model 2, we added to Model 1 variables, which could be considered precipitating factors for delirium (ie, psychoactive drugs and urinary catheters). Results: A total of 3038 patients were included; delirium prevalence was 25%. Patients with delirium had a higher prevalence of hearing impairment (30.5% vs 18%; P < .001), visual impairment (24.2% vs 15.7%; P < .01) and bi-sensory impairment (16.2% vs 7.5%) compared with those without delirium. In the multivariable logistic regression analysis, the presence of bi-sensory impairment was associated with delirium in Model 1 [odds ratio (OR) 1.5, confidence interval (CI) 1.2-2.1; P = .00] and in Model 2 (OR 1.4; CI 1.1-1.9; P = .02), whereas the presence of visual and hearing impairment alone was not associated with delirium either in Model 1 (OR 0.8; CI 0.6-1.2, P = .36; OR 1.1; CI 0.8-1.4; P = .42) or in Model 2 (OR 0.8, CI 0.6-1.2, P = .27; OR 1.1, CI 0.8-1.4, P = .63). Conclusions and implications: Our findings support the importance of routine screening and specific interventions by a multidisciplinary team to implement optimal management of sensory impairments and hence prevention and the management of the patients with delirium.

Ips typographus Linnaeus, 1758, the most important pest of Norway spruce (Picea abies Linnaeus, 1753) from Eurasia has damaged, in the last decades, a large area of forest in Romania. Associations between beetles and their symbiotic fungi are well known compared to beetle-mite relationships. The objectives of the study are to determine: (i) the diversity of mites species associated with I. typographus in a local outbreak from Central Romania, (ii) the mite&rsquo, s preferences concerning the body parts of their carriers, and (iii) how phoresy changes during seasonal flight activity of the host. A total of 7896 adult I. typographus were analyzed and six mite species (both adults and immature stages) were found: Dendrolaelaps quadrisetus Berlese,1920, Proctolaelaps fiseri Samsinak, 1960, Trichouropoda polytricha Vitzthum, 1923, Histiostoma piceae Scheucher, 1957, Uroobovella ipidis Vitzthum, 1923, and Uroobovella vinicolora Vitzthum, 1926. Most mites were observed under the carriers&rsquo, elytra (46.8%), while 26.7% and 25.8% were seen on the thorax and elytral declivities, respectively. Mite phoresy peaked in the spring corresponding to the dispersal flight of the carrier. A smaller peak in phoresy occurred in the summer during the second beetle generation.

Asiatic pathogen Cryphonectria parasitica produced dramatic diebacks of American chestnut (Castanea dentata) and European or sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) throughout their natural or artificial range, both in forests and orchards. Fungus chemical treatment is a useless (curative) to a less important (preventive) tool. Biological control of Cryphonectria parasitica has various levels of efficiency (from very good to very low), according to compatibility of local strain and fungus mycoviruses. In Romania all the sweet chestnut orchards have been largely destroyed. Till now, searching for natural resistance of European and American chestnut has largely failed. Therefore, chestnut breeding in order to improve resistance to pathogen is imperative both for horticulture and silviculture. In this paper, we tested transferring resistance to C. parasitica from Japanese (Castanea crenata) to European chestnut (C. sativa) in the Carpathian basin, Romania. Open pollinated interspecific hybrids (C. crenata × C. sativa and C. sativa × C. crenata) have been used as tested variants. Sweet chestnuts seedlings of local origin were used as a first control; the second control was a sweet chestnut forest situated at 50 km from the breeding trial. All chestnut material has been under pressure of Cryphonectria parasitica natural infection. We used several characteristics to evaluate the chestnut resistance: presence of fungus (fruitbody, mycelium, and infections), cankers, shoot/branch/stem infections, water sprouts, secondary woody fungus. Complementary, we tested the biological control of C. parasitica. Hybrids' resistance to Cryphonectria parasitica looked very promising, with just a small number of hybrids developing fruit bodies or cankers. On the contrary, first control sweet chestnut collections were severely damaged by the Asian pathogen. Biological control was very efficient both in European chestnut and interspecific hybrids. The untreated forest (second control) was dramatically affected by the fungus. At present, the health status of the chestnut hybrids is very good, showing a very good acclimatization in Carpathian continental climate.

Trypodendron laeve Eggers, 1939 is a species of ambrosia beetle much less known than the other three Trypodendron species occurring in Europe. Its status (native or alien) in Central Europe has been a subject of debate over the past two decades. In Romania, the species was discovered in 2008 and the aim of the research presented in this paper was to investigate its distribution in the Carpathians, mainly at high altitudes (>800 m), in tree stands with Norway spruce (Picea abies [L.] H. Karst). Panel intercept traps baited with synthetic pheromone for Trypodendron lineatum (Olivier, 1795) were used in the spring of 2015, at 31 locations. Adults of T. laeve were caught in 20 of them. Additional observations were made within some studies using similar baits and T. laeve specimens were caught in eight locations. T. laeve was always trapped together with T. lineatum, and at some locations also together with T. domesticum (Linnaeus, 1758) and T. signatum (Fabricius, 1787). In all traps, fewer specimens of T. laeve were caught compared to T. lineatum. The species has a widespread distribution in the mountain regions, within forests composed of native tree species and generally located far away from commercial routes. There, it occurs together with other native species of the same taxonomic genus. It seems to be more abundant at high altitudes, but overall its populations are less abundant than those of T. lineatum.

Negli ultimi anni i liquidi ionici hanno suscitato un grande interesse in campo accademico ed industriale per le loro proprietà, quali stabilità termica, non infiammabilità, pressione di vapore trascurabile, capacità di solvatazione, biocompatibilità, bassa tossicità, ecc. I liquidi ionici a base di sali di imidazolo sono stati utilizzati in una vasta gamma di applicazioni biologiche e per la preparazione di materiali come tensioattivi, membrane di trasporto di ossigeno, scaffold per applicazioni biomimetiche, plastificanti, agenti antimicrobici ed anti-infiammatori. È stato riportato che questa tipologia di liquidi ionici mostra un'attività antimicrobica paragonabile a quella di agenti antimicrobici commerciali come il Triclosano e che la loro attività biocida è principalmente dovuta alla lunghezza della catena alchilica del catione. Lo scopo di questo studio è stato lo sviluppo di compound antimicrobici di PVC additivati con il liquido ionico dimetilsulfoisoftalato 1-esadecil-3-metil-imidazolo (DMSIP-Im) in concentrazioni dallo 0.5 al 10 % in peso. Il liquido ionico è stato sintetizzato secondo Colonna et al. ?4? e caratterizzato mediante NMR e TGA. Compound di PVC DMSIP-Im sono stati ottenuti tramite un miscelatore discontinuo di tipo Brabender a 150 °C per 3 minuti. Film dei compound sono stati realizzati mediante stampaggio a compressione. I risultati hanno dimostrato che la presenza di DMSIP-Im nella formulazione del PVC non ne ha influenzato le proprietà termiche e meccaniche (modulo elastico E, trazione TS e allungamento a rottura EB). L'attività antimicrobica del liquido ionico sintetizzato è stata testata sulla crescita di due ceppi batterici, Escherichia coli (gram negativo) e Staphylococcus epidermidis (gram positivo), attraverso la determinazione della concentrazione minima inibente (MIC) e della concentrazione minima battericida (MBC). L'attività antimicrobica dei film dei compound di PVC DMSIP-Im è stata determinata mediante il metodo della diffusione su piastra. La zona di inibizione (mm) che circonda i film, su piastre di TSA seminate con inoculi di Escherichia coli e Staphylococcus epidermidis ad una concentrazione iniziale di 106 cell/ml, è stata misurata dopo 24 ore di incubazione a 37 °C. S. epidermidis è risultato sensibile al liquido ionico, infatti tutti i compound di PVC contenenti le diverse concentrazioni (0.5, 1, 5, 10% in peso) di DMSIP-Im hanno indotto la formazione di aloni di inibizione. Nessuna zona di inibizione è stata osservata verso la crescita di E. coli, confermando una maggiore attività antimicrobica dei liquidi ionici a base di imidazolo verso i batteri gram positivi.

Strontium ranelate (SR) increases bone mineral density (BMD) in postmenopausal osteoporotic women and reduces vertebral and non-vertebral fracture incidence. Hip fracture reduction has also been observed during 3-year treatment with SR in osteoporotic women at high risk of hip fracture. The objective of this study is to analyse the association between BMD changes and hip fracture incidence during treatment with SR.In this post-hoc analysis, 465 women aged over 74 years with low BMD at the femoral neck (T-scoreor = -2.4 according to NHANES normative values) were selected from the population of a recently published study (the Treatment of Peripheral Osteoporosis Study - TROPOS). BMD was assessed at the femoral neck at baseline and after a follow-up of 3 years. Hip fractures were reported by study investigators.After adjusting for age, body mass index, femoral neck BMD at baseline and number of prevalent vertebral fractures, we found that for each 1% increase in femoral neck BMD observed after 3 years, the risk to experience a hip fracture after 3 years decreased by 7% (95% CI: 1-14%) (p = 0.04). In patients experiencing a hip fracture over 3 years of treatment with SR, femoral neck BMD increased by (mean [SE]) 3.41 (1.02)% compared to 7.23 (0.81)% in patients without hip fracture (p = 0.02).In this post-hoc analysis of women undergoing 3 years of SR treatment, an increase in femoral neck BMD is associated with a decrease in hip fracture incidence.

The authors presents a case about right central superior incisor impacted. After surgical remotion of the retain tooth, this was utilized like pontic in the confeccion of the indirect adhesive prosthesis for the patient.

For the injection of a low‐current (100 μA) high‐brightness ion beam into an EBIS for subsequent ionization to very high‐charge states, we have constructed a bucket‐type ion source with the following specific features: a) microwave discharge plasma generator for long lifetime, b) isolated end flanges to allow for versatile ion species production by sputtering, c) SmCo magnets in 90° easy‐axis rotation for the magnetic cusp fields, and d) large diameter for reduction of gas load to the UHV beamline of the EBIS. The extraction system has been optimized for maximum brilliance at an emission current density of about 2 mA/cm2. The extraction electrode consists of a spent washer of the sputtered material and of the long‐lasting complex shaped main part. The design provides almost unchanged extraction optics until the washer is sputtered away.

Pharyngeal viral flora was studied in 0-1-year-old dystrophic children with acute infections of the upper respiratory tract and with interstitial pneumopathy. Influence of the dystrophic factor on the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the viral flora is discussed.

A number of 92 viral agents could be isolated from 1,000 nasopharyngeal secretion samples collected from apparently healthy schoolchildren aged 7-14 years. The following viruses were identified, in decreasing order of frequency: 42 influenza A/USSR 90/77 (H1N1), 20 adeno-, 20 parainfluenza, 8 Coxsackie B1 and 2 herpes virus strains.

Two hemagglutinating and hemadsorbant agents-serologically identified as parainfluenza viruses type 3-were isolated from the cerebrospinal fluid of a 10-month-old infant with meningoencephalitis and from the urethral secretion of a male patient with nonbacterial urethritis. Parainfluenza virus antigens types 1, 2, and 3 were detected by indirect immunofluorescence reactions in cells exfoliated in the vagina of women with genital neoplasia or common gynecopathies.

Virus isolation attempts were made with nasopharyngeal secretions from 400 apparently healthy 0-5-year-old children of a semi-closed community. Repeated virus isolations were achieved in 25 cases subjected to periodic investigations in 1982-83. One-two reisolation(s), 1-5 months apart, of the initially detected viral agents could be obtained in 15 out of the 25 children. The following viruses were reisolated (in decreasing order of frequency): adenoviruses, respiratory syncytial virus, Coxsackie B1 virus, herpes virus type 1, parainfluenza virus type 3. The problems raised by the carriage of respiratory viruses in the nasopharynx of apparently healthy children are discussed.

Intranasal administration of two doses of the inactivated influenza vaccine prepared in the "Stefan S. Nicolau" Institute of Virology was followed by rises in the level of neutralizing secretory influenza antibodies in 82% of the cases. The concomitant study of secretory antibody, IgA and total protein levels, as well as of the serum HAI influenza antibodies demonstrated that their evolution was parallel only in 23% of the vaccinees. The percentage of secretory antibody conversion was similar to the rate of protection conferred by the vaccine.

In an epidemiologic, clinical and viral study of several influenza foci in some urban districts of Romania during January-March 1974, 23 influenza virus B Hong-Kong 8/73 strains were isolated. The dynamics of HAI serum antibodies confirmed the viral diagnosis. The epidemic ran a slow course, affecting especially the 14-25 years age group and had an evident benign clinical aspect.

A parainfluenza virus type 3 strain was isolated from the cerebrospinal fluid of an infant with a clinical diagnosis of meningoencephalitis. Specific HAI antibodies to parainfluenza virus type 3, ranging in titer from 1/80 to 1/160 could be detected in the infant's serum. A 2-fold rise in the level of complement fixing serum antibodies-from 1/16 at the first to 1/32 at the second collection-was recorded.

The presence of viral (herpes 1 and 2, influenza A and B, parainfluenza 1, 2, and 3, adenovirus) and inframicrobial (Chlamydia, R. burneti and mycoplasma) antigens was investigated by indirect immunofluorescence reaction in exfoliated cells from 107 patients with chronic eye diseases and 77 patients with chronic respiratory diseases. Single or associated viral or inframicrobial antigens were detected in 80% of the former and in 60% of the latter patients. The proportion of multiple infections was of about 60% in both patient groups.

The studies on respiratory virus diseases performed for 30 years in the "Stefan S. Nicolau" Institute of Virology approached various aspects of the ecology of inlfuenza and parainfluenza viruses, adenoviruses and other respiratory viruses, including numerous experimental, fundamental, clinical and morphopathological investigations. Special attention was paid to specific influenza prophylaxis and to the preparation of an inactivated influenza vaccine applicable by nasal and oral route.

Virus isolation attempts were made with 500 nasopharyngeal secretion samples from apparently healthy schoolchildren aged 7-14 years, vaccinated by nasal route with an inactivated influenza vaccine and with 500 samples from unvaccinated schoolchildren of the same age. The number of virus isolates obtained was much smaller in the former than in the latter group (13 as against 50 virus isolates). The role of influenza vaccination in the protection of schoolchildren against respiratory tract infections is discussed.

Study was conducted on 20 subjects with non bacterial chronic rhinopharyngitis. Forty-one virus strains, mainly adenoviruses, type 3 parainfluenza virus, influenza and type 1 herpes viruses, as well as enteroviruses were isolated from samples collected at regular intervals. After the NIVGRIP (R) vaccination, the number of subjects with viruses present in the pharynx decreased by 75% (from 20 to 5 positive patients) and that of isolates from 41 to 6 (80% positive samples before vaccination against 10% after immunization).

The presence of 12 viral (herpes 1 and 2, influenza A(H1N1), A(H3N2) and B, parainfluenza 1, 2, 3, adenovirus 5) and inframicrobial (Chlamydia, mycoplasma, Rickettsia burneti) antigens was investigated by direct or indirect immunofluorescence (IF) reactions in exfoliated conjunctival cells from 110 patients with nonbacterial keratitis and keratoconjunctivitis. A rapid etiological diagnosis could be obtained in 101 (92%) of the cases, parainfluenza and herpes antigens being the most frequently detected. In most of the cases the simultaneous presence of several antigens was made evident. Encouraging results were obtained by the application of a specific treatment based on the diagnosis provided by the IF reaction.

The NIVGRIP inactivated influenza vaccine was administered by oral route to 11 children of a semi-closed pre-school community, found to carry viruses in their nasopharynx. Periodic virological investigations demonstrated that after vaccination virus carriage disappeared completely in 7 children; in the remaining 4 cases there was a considerable decrease (from 14 to 6) in the number of virus strains isolated. The virus isolates obtained after vaccination were represented exclusively by enteroviruses (Coxsackie B1 and B3, poliovirus type 1), in contrast with the wider range of viral agents (adeno-, parainfluenza, herpes, Coxsackie, and polioviruses) detected prior to vaccine administration.

A high proportion of parainfluenza, herpes, adenovirus and chlamydial antigens (10.7-36%) was detected by indirect immunofluorescence in cells exfoliated in the vagina of women with genital neoplasia and with uterine cervix ectopia and dysplasia. Much lower proportions of the same antigens were found in patients with common gynecopathies or recurrent genital herpes and in pregnant women. The possible relationships between chronic virus infections and genital neoplasia in women are discussed.

Study was conducted on the multiplication of two strains (C243 and D) of parainfluenza virus type 3 in BHK 21 cells. Multiplication curve of the virus was established and immunohistochemical aspects of the process were investigated. Chronological study of successive steps of the formation and development of viral components allowed to see that the virus multiplication rate is low in this cell system. The parainfluenza antigen became detectable by immunofluorescence in the infected cell perinuclear region after a relatively long eclipse period (18 h) and synthetized virus has few RNA and induced no inclusion information in the cytoplasm or the nucleus. However, an important nuclear participation was noted: 72 h after inoculation, nuclear fluorescence was observed, as well as a nuclear DNA rising and frequent aberrant mitoses. Comparison between the two investigated strains led to the observation that the autochthonous D strain induced more frequent aberrant mitoses and more important cell destruction than the C243 one. Differences were also noted as regards the infecting and hemagglutinating titers.