The novel Mechanical Ventilator Milano for the COVID-19 pandemic.

This paper presents the Mechanical Ventilator Milano (MVM), a novel intensive therapy mechanical ventilator designed for rapid, large-scale, low-cost production for the COVID-19 pandemic. Free of moving mechanical parts and requiring only a source of compressed oxygen and medical air to operate, the MVM is designed to support the long-term invasive ventilation often required for COVID-19 patients and operates in pressure-regulated ventilation modes, which minimize the risk of furthering lung trauma. The MVM was extensively tested against ISO standards in the laboratory using a breathing simulator, with good agreement between input and measured breathing parameters and performing correctly in response to fault conditions and stability tests. The MVM has obtained Emergency Use Authorization by U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in healthcare settings during the COVID-19 pandemic and Health Canada Medical Device Authorization for Importation or Sale, under Interim Order for Use in Relation to COVID-19. Following these certifications, mass production is ongoing and distribution is under way in several countries. The MVM was designed, tested, prepared for certification, and mass produced in the space of a few months by a unique collaboration of respiratory healthcare professionals and experimental physicists, working with industrial partners, and is an excellent ventilator candidate for this pandemic anywhere in the world.

[Current role of sialography]. / Ruolo attuale della sialografia.

Computed tomography, ultrasonography and nuclear medicine are morphological techniques widely accepted in clinical practice. They are used together with plain film and sialography in the study of salivary glands pathology. In comparison with these techniques, the efficacy of sialography in different diseases is discussed and the diagnostic value of CT-sialography related to sialography alone is analyzed.

Lymphographic evaluation in bone and soft tissue sarcomas.

A group of 79 patients with soft tissue sarcomas and 46 with primary malignant bone tumors underwent lymphangiography as part of the initial diagnostic workup. In the group of soft tissue sarcomas, the overall incidence of metastases was 22 of 79 (28%). According to the site of origin, the highest incidence was found in tumors originating from the buttocks (57%), followed by those from the inferior limbs (31%). Considering the histology, the incidence ranges from 50% in anaplastic sarcoma, to 43% in rhabdomyosarcoma, to 23% for liposarcoma and fibrosarcoma. The incidence of lymphographically proven metastases in bone tumors was 8 to 46 (17%), with 1 out of 4 in reticulum cell sarcoma, 1/1 in chordoma, and 22% in Ewing's sarcoma. A radiographic/histologic correlation on the lymph nodes was obtained in 19/79 (24%) soft tissue sarcomas and in 4/46 (9%) bone tumors. In the 12 radiographically negative and 11 radiographically positive cases, this correlation was always correct. The results of this study suggest a larger use of lymphography in these tumors.