Accuracy evaluation of surgical guides in implant dentistry by non-contact reverse engineering techniques.

OBJECTIVE: In the paper laser scanning was used to evaluate, by indirect methods, the accuracy of computer-designed surgical guides in the oral implant supported rehabilitation of partially or completely edentulous patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Five implant supported rehabilitations for a total of twenty-three implants were carried out by computer-designed surgical guides, performed with the master model developed by muco-compressive and muco-static impressions. For all cases the surgical virtual planning, starting from 3D models obtained by dental scan DICOM data, was performed. The implants were inserted on the pre-surgical casts in the position defined in the virtual planning. These positions were acquired by three-dimensional optical laser scanning and compared with the laser scans of the intraoral impressions taken post-operatively. RESULTS: The comparison between the post-surgical implant replica positions and the positions in the pre-operative cast, for the five patients, shows a maximum distance in the range 1.02-1.25 mm, an average distance in the range 0.21-0.41 mm and a standard deviation in the range 0.21-0.29 mm. SIGNIFICANCE: The results of this research demonstrate accurate transfer of implant replica position by virtual implant insertion into a pre-operative cast and a post-operative cast obtained from impressioning. In previous studies the evaluation of the implant positions have required a post-surgical CT scan. With the indirect methods by laser scanning technique, proposed in the paper, this extra radiation exposure of the patient can be eliminated.

Frontline chemotherapy with bortezomib-containing combinations improves response rate and survival in primary plasma cell leukemia: a retrospective study from GIMEMA Multiple Myeloma Working Party.

BACKGROUND: The best therapeutic approach for primary plasma cell leukemia (PPCL) remains unknown so far. In very limited studies, the poor clinical outcome of this aggressive variant of multiple myeloma seemed to be ameliorated by the use of the proteasome inhibitor bortezomib. Aiming to provide more consolidated data, this multicenter retrospective survey focused on unselected and previously untreated PPCL patients who had received bortezomib as frontline therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Twenty-nine patients with PPCL were collected. Bortezomib was given at standard doses and schedules, in various combinations with dexamethasone, thalidomide, doxorubicin, melphalan, prednisone, vincristine, and cyclophosphamide. RESULTS: An overall response rate of 79% was observed, with 38% of at least very good partial remission. Grade 3-4 hematological, neurological, infectious, and renal toxic effects occurred in 20%, 21%, 16%, and 4% of patients, respectively. After a median follow-up of 24 months, 16 patients were alive (55%), 12 of whom were in remission phase and 4 relapsed. The best long-term results were achieved in patients who received stem-cell transplantation after bortezomib induction. CONCLUSION: Bortezomib, used as initial therapy, is able to increase the percentage and the quality of responses in PPCL patients, producing a significant improvement of survival.

Predictors of high level of burden and distress in caregivers of demented patients: results of an Italian multicenter study.

BACKGROUND: Considerable suffering is experienced by carers of patients with dementia. Most existing studies do not consider the coexistence of subjective and objective aspects that cause, interacting to each other, this suffering. OBJECTIVES: In this study we: (1) define the high-risk group of caregivers on the bases of the scores obtained on the four scales evaluating burden, distress, depression and anxiety (BDDA) taken into account simultaneously and (2) evaluate risk factors related to the high level of BDDA. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: 419 elderly outpatients with dementia and their caregivers were enrolled. Patients were evaluated for their cognitive, neuropsychological and functional impairment and for comorbidity. Caregivers were evaluated with four scales for the assessment of burden, distress related to neuropsychological disturbances, depression and anxiety. Cluster analysis was used to identify the group with the High level of BDDA (HBDDA). RESULTS: By multiple logistic analysis, disability, specific behavioural disturbances of the patients as well as caregiver's age, type of relationship and living in the south of Italy were observed to be a major risk factor for HBDDA. CONCLUSION: The targeted use of scales specifically assessing BDDA of the caregiver and the identification of particular patient and caregiver characteristics are able to allow a precise and early definition of caregivers at high risk of burden and distress. This might be helpful in planning the correct social/clinical/rehabilitative approach.

Clinical assessment of mental decline in elderly people: a proposal for a new quantitative index.

Despite the many instruments available for assessing elderly people, there is a need for additional methods to measure mental decline that would also be applicable in cross sectional and longitudinal studies. With this purpose in mind, our group developed and checked a new instrument, the Index of Mental Decline (IMD), which consists of five clusters of items intended for the assessment of cognition, personal interrelationships, affective disorders, apathy and somatic complaints. To improve its consistency, all clusters and items were evaluated individually, according to their clinical impact. Three levels of symptom importance were determined: absent to very mild, mild to moderate, severe to very severe. Inter-rater reliability and test-retest reliability were demonstrated in a sample of 59 subjects, and proved to be satisfactory. The validity of the IMD was tested in a group of 203 patients, in whom a clinical diagnosis of probable dementia (DSM III-R criteria) had been formulated. The results suggest the effectiveness of the IMD both in quantifying mental decline and monitoring clinical symptoms. The IMD cannot be the first step of diagnostic procedure, but it can be useful for evaluating mental decline in elderly subjects with cognitive disorders. In longitudinal studies, the presence of the same caregiver or informant is compulsory.

A double blind, placebo controlled trial of efficacy and safety of oral acyclovir (Zovirax) in the treatment of chickenpox in adults.

A double-blind placebo controlled trial of oral acyclovir in otherwise healthy immune competent young adults with chickenpox was conducted. One hundred males were recruited into the trial, fifty were randomised to receive acyclovir at a dose of 800 mg five times daily for 5 days and fifty to receive matching placebo. Acyclovir recipients experienced itching and required anti-pruritic therapy for a significantly shorter period of time (p less than 0.05); no significant effects of acyclovir therapy on overall rash progression were observed. In patients with a mild rash on entry the maximum daily temperature recorded was significantly lower in the acyclovir group as compared with placebo recipients on day 1 of therapy (p less than 0.01). Acyclovir was extremely well tolerated and no adverse events were reported. Studies with early oral acyclovir therapy in otherwise healthy children with chickenpox has demonstrated significant benefits, particularly in rash progression. It is postulated that the partial benefits shown in this study in adults reflect the high proportion of patients with mild disease and enrollment of the majority of patients more than 24 hours after the rash onset.

Serum osteocalcin radioimmunoassay in bone diseases.

Osteocalcin (or bone Gla protein, BGP) is a non-collagenous vitamin K-dependent protein accounting for 1-2% of the total bone proteins. It represents a specific index of osteoblastic activity and directly reflects the bone turnover. Serum levels of osteocalcin were measured by a radioimmunoassay method. In 40 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis, mean serum BGP levels were lower than the normal range (3.69 +/- 1.35 ng/ml), whereas they significantly increased in 7 patients with osteomalacia (10.48 +/- 3.05 ng/ml), in 12 patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism (11.1 +/- 4.9 ng/ml) and in 41 patients with Paget's disease (12.09 +/- 6.5 ng/ml). Four patients with primary hyperparathyroidism showed very high BGP levels (64.0 +/- 32.3 ng/ml), which strikingly fell after the surgical removal of a parathyroid adenoma. These results confirm that the quantitation of serum osteocalcin is a specific and sensitive method in the diagnosis of bone disease, represents a useful index of bone turnover and is particularly helpful in the follow-up of patients with treated bone disease.

Calcitonin levels in normal subjects according to age and sex.

To evaluate the effect of age and sex on plasma calcitonin in human beings, the concentrations of the hormone were measured in 63 normal subjects aged 13-87 years of both sexes. In another study 30 healthy women were studied, 14 of them were pre-menopausal, 16 were post-menopausal. Plasma calcitonin was determined by means of a radioimmunoassay, using delayed tracer addition for increasing sensitivity. The antibody was produced in rabbits against pure synthetic human calcitonin and was specific for the aminoacid sequence 17 to 32 in the calcitonin molecule. A second antibody was used as a precipitating agent. A mean plasma calcitonin level of 71.3 +/- 37.0 SD pg/ml was observed. Women were found to have lower levels than men, the mean values being 63.4 +/- 34.7 pg/ml and 92.6 +/- 35.4 pg/ml respectively. The difference was statistically significant (P less than 0.005). No significant correlation was found between calcitonin levels and age of subjects. Premenopausal women, however, showed higher levels of plasma calcitonin than post-menopausal women, the mean values being 88.5 +/- 38.4 pg/ml and 54.0 +/- 33.6 pg/ml, respectively. This difference was also significant (P less than 0.01). Possible implications of these data are discussed.