The efficacy of myofunctional therapy in patients with atypical swallowing.

PURPOSE: The myofunctional treatment (MFT) is a conventional therapy in the treatment of oral disease like atypical swallowing (AS). Functional (standardized surface electromyographic analysis-ssEMG) and clinical ("orofacial muscular evaluation with score" protocol-OMES) analyses were conducted to detect the effects of MFT (10 weeks session) in a group of patients with AS. METHODS: ssEMG was performed to analyze the activity of masseter (MM), temporalis (TA), and submental (SM) muscles before (T1) and after (T2) the MFT in a group of 15 patients. OMES was completed at the same timepoints. A Student-t test was carried out to detect differences between T1 and T2 for ssEMG data, and a signed RANK test was used for OMES ones. One-way ANOVA variance test was performed to detect any differences between the different couples of muscles at each timepoint. RESULTS: After MFT, patients showed a shorter duration of the whole act of swallowing (p < .0001), higher intensity of the SM activity (p < .01) than at T1. At T2 masticatory muscles showed lower values for the activation index (ANOVA, p < .0001) and for the spike position (ANOVA, p < .01) than SM. The OMES protocol showed a significant increase for the total evaluation score (p < .01), appearance-posture (p < .01) and functions (p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: MFT permits a shortening of the muscular activation pattern and an increase in SM activity. The improvement of oral functionalities is possible and identifiable thanks to the use of standardized protocols.

Dysphagia screening in subacute care settings using the Italian version of the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (I-RBWH) dysphagia screening tool.

The large majority of the available dysphagia screening tools has been developed for the stroke population. Only few screening tools are suitable for heterogeneous groups of patients admitted to a subacute care unit. The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) dysphagia screening tool is a nurse-administered, evidence-based swallow screening tool for generic acute hospital use that demonstrates excellent sensitivity and specificity. No Italian version of this tool is available to date. The aim of this study was to determine the reliability and screening accuracy of the Italian version of the RBWH (I-RBWH) dysphagia screening tool. A total of 105 patients consecutively admitted to a subacute care unit were enrolled. Using the I-RBWH tool, each patient was evaluated twice by trained nurses and once by a speech and language pathologist (SLP) blind to nurses' scores. The SLP also performed standardised clinical assessment of swallowing using the Mann assessment of swallowing ability (MASA). During the first and the second administration of the I-RBWH by nurses, 28 and 27 patients, respectively, were considered at risk of dysphagia, and 27 were considered at risk after SLP assessment. Intra- and inter-rater reliability was satisfactory. Comparison between nurse I-RBWH scores and MASA examination demonstrated a sensitivity and specificity of the I-RBWH dysphagia screening tool up to 93% and 96%, respectively; the positive and negative predictive values were 90% and 97%, respectively. Thus, the current findings support the reliability and accuracy of the I-RBWH tool for dysphagia screening of patients in subacute settings. Its application in clinical practice is recommended.

Reliability, validity and normative data of the Italian version of the Bus Story test.

OBJECTIVES: Evaluation of the reliability and the validity of the Italian version of the Bus Story Test (I-BST), providing normative data in Italian children. METHODS: A total of 552 normally developing children (278 males and 274 females) aged 3; 6 to 9; 0 years, were enrolled. Test-retest, intra- and inter-rater reliability were analysed on a sample of respectively 145, 178 and 178 children. Normative data were gathered from all the enrolled children and estimate centiles according to the CG-LMS method provided. The children were divided into 11 age classes of six months each; percentile scores and standard error measurement were analysed in children from age class 4; 0-4; 5 years to age class 8; 6-811 years. Age effects on I-BST were analysed. RESULTS: Results showed high test-retest, intra- and inter-rater reliability scores. A significant age effect on I-BST scores emerged from the ANOVA test analysis; in particular, as age increases, so do I-BST scores. CONCLUSION: The I-BST is a reliable and valid tool. The availability of normative data for Italian speaking children may help clinicians during clinical assessment.

Persistence and translocation of a benzothiadiazole derivative in tomato plants in relation to systemic acquired resistance against Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato.

A reproducible and accurate procedure, based on HPLC analysis, has been developed to determine simultaneously acibenzolar-S-methyl (CGA 245 704) and its acid derivative (CGA 210 007) in tomato leaves. The limit of detection and quantification of the method are 0.015 and 0.15 mg litre-1 for CGA 245 704 and 0.030 and 0.30 mg litre-1 for CGA 210 007. In tomato plants treated with 250 microM CGA 245 704, it was found that the inducer rapidly translocates from treated leaves (cotyledons, 1st and 2nd) to untreated leaves (3rd to 5th), with the maximum translocation (40% of the total quantity found) occurring 8 h after the treatment. CGA 245 704 residues decreased as time elapsed in both treated and untreated tomato leaves, reaching negligible values 72 h after treatment. The acid derivative, CGA 210 007, was formed in tomato plants as early as 2 h after CGA 245 704 treatment, albeit only in the treated leaves. CGA 210 007 residues decreased in treated tomato leaves with a trend similar to that observed for CGA 245 704. Treatment of tomato plants with CGA 245 704 or CGA 210 007 at 250 microM systemically protected the plants against Pseudomonas syringae pv tomato attacks, the causal agent of bacterial speak disease. Evidence of this were reductions in the degree of infection, the bacterial lesion diameter and the bacterial growth in planta. Since neither CGA 245 704 nor CGA 210 007 inhibited bacterial growth in vitro and the protection against bacterial speak of tomato was observed when the two compounds were completely degraded, the protection must be due to the activation of the plant's defence mechanisms.

Microbial biomass-persistence relationships of acifluorfen in a clay-loam soil.

The interference of the effect of the herbicide acifluorfen on microbial biomass and on hydrolytic capacity, and its persistence in a clay-loam soil before and after enrichment with glucose, were investigated. The experiment was carried out under laboratory conditions for 120 days. Acifluorfen was added to the soil at two different application rates corresponding to 1X and 10X the recommended field rate. Biomass-C was significantly higher in the enriched soil during the first 35 days; subsequently there was a tendency to return to the original value of the unenriched soil. The herbicidal treatments depressed the biomass-C level, particularly at the higher rate. The hydrolytic capacity, measured as FDA-hydrolase activity, was significantly higher in the enriched soil than in the unenriched soil. This was enhanced by acifluorfen treatment, chiefly at the higher rate. The degradation trend of acifluorfen was not significantly different at the two rates, but was significantly faster in the enriched soil. Half-life values of 28 and 40 days were found in the enriched and unenriched soil, respectively.

[A weight and surface analysis of glass ionomer cements in the presence of acid solutions]. / Analisi ponderale e della superficie di cementi vetroionomerici in presenza di soluzioni acide.

The surface and solubility of some glass ionomer cements have been assessed after exposure to four acids (acetic, formic, lactic and propionic), that are usually present in the bacterial plaque. Therefore, we prepared 80 samples--20 for earl of 4 commercial products; after 7 days and, then after 30 other days, the samples were examined by microscope and weighed. Finally, those showing the most significant modifications were photographed.