Distinct Platelet Phenotype and Reactivity in Individuals with Permanent Atrial Fibrillation Treated with Direct Oral Anticoagulants: A Pilot Study.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is linked to an elevated risk of thromboembolic events. Despite the use of guideline-recommended direct anticoagulants (DOACs), a significant proportion of AF patients show a residual risk of thromboembolic events, driven by mechanisms that are not fully understood.We conducted a pilot study to characterize the platelet function in DOACs-treated AF patients, to explore whether an association between platelets and the residual thromboembolic risk exists.

Neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio is associated with worse outcomes in patients with cirrhosis: insights from the PRO-LIVER Registry.

Background: Liver cirrhosis (LC) is a leading global cause of morbidity and mortality, with inflammation playing a key role in disease progression and clinical complications of LC. The Neutrophil/Lymphocyte Ratio (NLR), a readily available marker of systemic inflammation, has been linked to short-term adverse outcomes in LC, but data on long-term follow-up are limited. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between NLR and long-term all-cause mortality in an unselected cohort of LC patients.

Metabolic Syndrome and Liver Disease: Re-Appraisal of Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Through the Paradigm Shift from NAFLD to MASLD.

Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), previously known as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), encompasses a spectrum of liver diseases characterized by hepatic steatosis, the presence of at least one cardiometabolic risk factor, and no other apparent cause. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of clinical conditions associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and overall morbidity and mortality. This narrative review summarizes the changes in the management of people with MetS and NAFLD/MASLD from screening to therapeutic strategies that have occurred in the last decades.

Hypoalbuminemia and Risk of Portal Vein Thrombosis in Cirrhosis.

Background And Aims: Hypoalbuminemia, as defined by serum albumin (SA) levels ≤35 g/L, is associated to venous and arterial thrombosis in general population and in patients at risk of cardiovascular disease. It is unknown if SA ≤35 g/L is also associated to portal vein thrombosis (PVT) in cirrhosis.

Methods: Cirrhotic patients enrolled in the Portal vein thrombosis Relevance On Liver cirrhosis: Italian Venous thrombotic Events Registry (PRO-LIVER) study (n = 753), were followed-up for 2 years to assess the risk of PVT, that was diagnosed by Doppler ultrasonography.

A Focus on the Pathophysiology of Adrenomedullin Expression: Endothelitis and Organ Damage in Severe Viral and Bacterial Infections.

Adrenomedullin (ADM) is a peptide hormone produced primarily in the adrenal glands, playing a crucial role in various physiological processes. As well as improving vascular integrity and decreasing vascular permeability, ADM acts as a vasodilator, positive inotrope, diuretic, natriuretic and bronchodilator, antagonizing angiotensin II by inhibiting aldosterone secretion. ADM also has antihypertrophic, anti-apoptotic, antifibrotic, antioxidant, angiogenic and immunoregulatory effects and antimicrobial properties.

NOX2 as a Biomarker of Academic Performance: Evidence from University Students during Examination.

Background: Cortisol levels, oxidative stress, and lower cerebral performance seem to be closely related. This study aimed to evaluate the question of whether exam stress affected oxidative stress and endothelial function parameters in the salivary samples of students.

Methods: A total of 114 healthy students were recruited.

Prediction of new-onset atrial fibrillation with the CHEST score in patients admitted with community-acquired pneumonia.

Purpose: Patients hospitalized for community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) may have a higher risk of new-onset atrial fibrillation (NOAF). The CHEST score was developed to evaluate the NOAF risk in the general population. Data on the value of the CHEST score in acute patients admitted with CAP are lacking.

Hypoalbuminemia as predictor of thrombotic events in patients with community-acquired pneumonia.

Background: Hypoalbuminemia complicates acute diseases and infections and is associated with a worst prognosis. The aim is to evaluate whether hypoalbuminemia is associated with higher incidence and risk of thrombotic events in community-acquired pneumonia.

Methods: We retrospectively collected data from a prospective study investigating the incidence of thrombotic events in community-acquired pneumonia hospitalized patients from 2011 to 2016 at University-Hospital Policlinico Umberto I.

Breakthrough infections after COVID-19 vaccinations do not elicit platelet hyperactivation and are associated with high platelet-lymphocyte and low platelet-neutrophil aggregates.

Background: Severe COVID-19 is associated with an excessive immunothrombotic response and thromboinflammatory complications. Vaccinations effectively reduce the risk of severe clinical outcomes in patients with COVID-19, but their impact on platelet activation and immunothrombosis during breakthrough infections is not known.

Objectives: To investigate how preemptive vaccinations modify the platelet-immune crosstalk during COVID-19 infections.

Mid-Regional Pro-Adrenomedullin Can Predict Organ Failure and Prognosis in Sepsis?

Sepsis causes immune dysregulation and endotheliitis, with an increase in mid-regional pro-adrenomedullin (MR-proADM). The aim of the study is to determine an MR-proADM value that, in addition to clinical diagnosis, can identify patients with localized infection or those with sepsis/septic shock, with specific organ damage or with the need for intensive care unit (ICU) transfer and prognosis. The secondary aim is to correlate the MR-proADM value with the length of stay (LOS).

Low-grade endotoxemia is associated with cardiovascular events in community-acquired pneumonia.

Objectives: Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is associated with low-grade endotoxemia but its relationship with cardiovascular events (CVE) has not been investigated.

Methods: We evaluated the incidence of CVE including myocardial infarction, stroke, and cardiovascular death in 523 adult patients hospitalized for CAP. Serum lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and zonulin, a marker of gut permeability, were analyzed in the cohort, that was followed-up during hospitalization and up to 43 months thereafter.

Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet in Preventing Major Cardiovascular Events in Patients with Ischemic Heart Disease: The EVA Study.

Background: Adherence to healthy dietary patterns, such as the Mediterranean diet (Med-diet), is recommended for the maintenance of cardiovascular health. The determinants for adherence to Med-diet and its importance in secondary cardiovascular disease prevention are still unclear. The aim of the study was to evaluate the influence of sex- and psycho-socio-cultural (i.

A machine-learning based bio-psycho-social model for the prediction of non-obstructive and obstructive coronary artery disease.

Background: Mechanisms of myocardial ischemia in obstructive and non-obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD), and the interplay between clinical, functional, biological and psycho-social features, are still far to be fully elucidated.

Objectives: To develop a machine-learning (ML) model for the supervised prediction of obstructive versus non-obstructive CAD.

Methods: From the EVA study, we analysed adults hospitalized for IHD undergoing conventional coronary angiography (CCA).

Distinct platelet crosstalk with adaptive and innate immune cells after adenoviral and mRNA vaccination against SARS-CoV-2.

Background: Genetic-based COVID-19 vaccines have proved to be highly effective in reducing the risk of hospitalization and death. Because they were first distributed in a large-scale population, the adenoviral-based vaccines were linked to a very rare thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, and the interplay between platelets and vaccinations increasingly gained attention.

Objectives: The objective of this article was to study the crosstalk between platelets and the vaccine-induced immune response.

Association between PaO/FiO ratio and thrombotic events in COVID-19 patients.

PaO/FiO (P/F ratio) is considered a marker of hypoxia/hypoxemia and mortality. Several prothrombotic changes are associated with the decrease of P/F ratio. The role of P/F ratio in patients with arterial and venous thrombosis remains unclear.

Serological Response and Relationship with Gender-Sensitive Variables among Healthcare Workers after SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination.

Vaccine-induced immunity is a key strategy in the long-term control of the COVID-19 pandemic. The aim of our study was to explore the relationship between mRNA vaccine-induced antibodies and gender-sensitive variables among healthcare workers. Two thousand-sixty-five volunteers who received the BNT162b2 vaccine were enrolled in the study and followed up.