Oral contraceptives and the risk of focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver: a case-control study

OBJECTIVE: A role of female hormones, including oral contraceptives, has been suggested in the etiology of focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver. There is, however, no epidemiologic quantification of this relationship. STUDY DESIGN: A hospital-based case-control study was conducted in Italy of 23 women with histologically confirmed focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver and 94 controls in the hospital for acute diseases. Odds ratios (ORs) were computed by use of multiple logistic regression models. RESULTS: Focal nodular hyperplasia was not associated with menstrual and reproductive factors. Ever oral contraceptive use was reported by 83% of cases and 59% of controls. The multivariate OR was 2.8 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.8-9.4) for ever use, and 4.5 (95% CI, 1.2-16.9) for use > or = 3 years. The trend in risk with duration was statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirms previous clinical observations, and provides a quantitative estimate of the association between use of oral contraceptives and focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver.     

Bio-alcamid: a novelty for reconstructive and cosmetic surgery

Research for new biocompatible and easily implantable materials continously proposes new molecules and new substances with biological, chemical and physical characteristics more and more adapted to aesthetic and reconstructive surgery. Bio-Alcamid (Polymekon, Italy) is a non reabsorbable polymeric material composed of alkylimide-amide groups. This cosmetic agent has been used for the treatment of 2000 patients by a multicentric trial led by different Hospitals and University in Italy and abroad. Very serious aesthetic defects such as pectus excavatum, Poland Syndrome, postoperative traumas, in addition to common aesthetic defects such as lips, cheek-bone and chin hypovolumetry and relaxing of nasolabial sulcus, have been treated by surgical implant of Bio-Alcamid. Aesthetic results were excellent; tissues felt soft and the implants were uniformly distributed. No migration or dislocation of the implants, no granulomas, no allergic response and no kind of intolerance were observed. Only 12/2000 patients had post-operative complications (Staphylococcus infections) and only 3/12 cases could be directly ascribed to the implanted material. For its characteristics Bio-Alcamid can be considered a novelty in the aesthetic and reconstructive surgery; it is absolutely biocompatible, non toxic, non allergenic, easily injectable and quickly removable. Bio-Alcamid can be defined a sort of "endoprosthetis", perfectly suitable for soft tissue augmentation and for the correction of different tissue deficiences, with a long-term safety and efficiency.     

Influence of acute exercise on human platelet responsiveness: possible involvement of exercise-induced oxidative stress

The aim of this study was to evaluate in sedentary male subjects the effects of an acute bout of strenuous and moderate exercise on ex vivo platelet responsiveness and its possible relationship with exercise-associated modifications of oxidant-antioxidant status. An increased ADP- and collagen-evoked platelet aggregation associated with modified membrane fluidity and ion homeostasis was observed after exhaustive exercise. After moderate exercise, we found a decrease of platelet aggregation evoked by low concentrations of agonists. Strenuous exercise, but not moderate exertion, resulted in the enhanced accumulation of secondary products of lipid peroxidation, decreased total antioxidant capacity, including a diminished superoxide dismutase activity, and increased susceptibility of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) to in vitro oxidation. Acute elevation of plasma nitrite/nitrate (NO_X) content was observed following each single session of physical test, whilst the platelet NO_X content was decreased after strenuous exercise and increased after moderate exercise. Findings of the present study suggest that oxidative stress induced by acute strenuous exercise may interfere with platelet responsiveness most likely by promoting oxidized LDL-mediated platelet activation and by decreasing plasma and platelet-derived nitric oxide (NO) bioactivity. Moreover, our results further suggest that platelet responsiveness following an acute moderate physical stressor may depend on the efficiency of plasma and intraplatelet NO to desensitize platelets to agonist stimulation. Electronic Publication     

Physical activity, heart and ageing: a morpho-functional study by Echo-Color-Doppler in sedentary and non sedentary healthy subjects

Several papers have shown that in young people sports activity is associated with a higher prevalence of cardiac valves incompetence, that can be detected, though to a lesser extent, even in healthy subjects randomly selected from the population. Aim of the present study was to analyse the effects of physical activity not only in young subjects but even in the elderly, with particular reference to valve competence, by using the Echo-Color-Doppler. The study cohort was represented by 80 healthy young subjects, 40 men and 40 women, aged between 20 and 25 years, each group subdivided into two subgroups, sedentary and non sedentary, and 80 healthy elderly subjects, 40 men and 40 women, aged between 65 and 91 years, again divided into sedentary and non sedentary. Valve incompetence was more frequent in the elderly if compared to young subjects (P<0.001) and in non sedentary if compared to sedentary subjects (P<0.01), while no significant difference was found between males and females. Worth of interest the fact that in young subjects valve incompetence was more frequent in non sedentary if compared to sedentary subjects (P<0.001), while in the elderly no significant difference was found between sedentary and non sedentary subjects. This original datum may be explained both by the natural higher prevalence of valve incompetence in the elderly, and by the kind of physical activity usually performed by the elderly, i.e. endurance activity.     

"Apple-peel" intestinal atresia,ocular anomalies,and microcephaly syndrome: brain magnetic resonance imaging study

We report on a male child with "apple-peel" atresia associated with microcephaly and ocular anomalies. To date, no magnetic resonance imagings have been published. We report on the fourth reported case with this phenotype, but the first to be studied by brain magnetic resonance imaging.