Treatment in patients with severe asymptomatic aortic stenosis: is it best not to wait?

New insights into the natural history and pathophysiology of patients with aortic stenosis (AS), coupled with the dramatic evolution of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), are fuelling intense interest in the management of asymptomatic patients with severe AS. This patient presenting for elective intervention poses a unique challenge. These patients are not traditionally offered surgical aortic valve replacement or TAVI given their lack of symptoms; however, they are at increased risk given the severity of their AS. Furthermore, clinical experience has shown that symptoms can be challenging to ascertain in many sedentary, deconditioned, and/or elderly patients. In addition, evolving data based on imaging and biomarker evidence of adverse ventricular remodelling, hypertrophy, inflammation, or fibrosis may radically transform existing clinical decision paradigms. However, management of asymptomatic severe AS is otherwise controversial and the decision to intervene requires careful assessment of the benefits and risks in an individual patient. Further randomized trials [EARLY TAVI (NCT03042104), AVATAR (NCT02436655), EVOLVED (NCT03094143)] will help determine future recommendations.

[Evolution of transcatheter aortic valve implantation from a high-volume Italian center: report of 2058 procedures over 15-year experience]. / Evoluzione dell'impianto transcatetere di valvola aortica in un centro italiano ad alto volume: report di 2058 procedure in 15 anni di esperienza.

BACKGROUND: To assess the longitudinal changes in transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) practice and patients' outcomes in a high-volume Italian center. METHODS: We analyzed all patients undergoing TAVI at our Institution from June 2007 to August 2021. We stratified the overall population considering four time periods according to procedural advancements and changes in clinical practice: period 1 (2007-2009, n=107) vs period 2 (2010-2014, n=449) vs period 3 (2015-2019, n=864) vs period 4 (2019-2021, n=638). Baseline and procedural characteristics, and in-hospital outcomes among the four groups were compared. RESULTS: A total of 2058 patients underwent TAVI receiving all the available devices. Patients had a median age of 82 years (78-85) with no differences among time periods. A stepwise reduction of median Society of Thoracic Surgeons mortality risk score (3.7 [2.8-5.3] vs 3.6 [2.6-5.4] vs 3.6 [2.5-5.5] vs 3.3 [2.2-4.9]; p=0.01) was observed. In-hospital all-cause-death (7.5% vs 5.1% vs 2.9% vs 3.0%; p<0.05), major stroke (4.7% vs 0.7% vs 1.0% vs 0.8%; p<0.05), major vascular complications (17.8% vs 8.7% vs 10.5% vs 5.8%; p<0.05) and permanent pacemaker implantation (23.4% vs 12.0% vs 8.7% vs 8.8%; p<0.05) rates significantly lowered over time. Device success markedly improved (80.4% vs 87.1% vs 95.0% vs 96.3%; p<0.05) with significant improvement of paravalvular regurgitation after TAVI (moderate-to-severe 16.8% vs 8.1% vs 0.7% vs 0.2%; mild 61.4% vs 38.2% vs 38.5% vs 25.6%; p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: All-cause death and in-hospital outcomes of patients undergoing TAVI significantly improved accordingly to technical advancements and changes in clinical practice over 15-year experience.

Factors associated with the transition of adolescent inpatients from an intensive residential ward to adult mental health services.

Transition of young people from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) to Adult Mental Health Services (AMHS) is a complex process. Transition rates are heterogeneously reported, with wide definitions and ranges. Few data are available regarding predictive factors of a successful transition. We explored factors associated with transition in a cohort of former inpatients of a Children and Adolescents Intensive Treatment Ward (CAITW). Socio-demographic and clinical features of patients previously admitted to CAITW were matched to AMHS data for those patients having reached age requirements. We built multiple logistic regression models to identify factors associated with transfer to AMHS (either inpatient or outpatient) and with successful retention in treatment (RIT) at six (short RIT), 12 (intermediate RIT) and 24 months after transfer (long RIT). From a cohort of 322 inpatients, 126 reached the age threshold for transfer to AMHS in the study period. The transfer rate was 50%. Two years after transition-age boundary, CAMHS-AMHS continuity of care was found in 40% and disengagement in 6% of cases. Longer and multiple hospitalizations, atypical antipsychotics prescription and a diagnosis of psychotic disorders were factors associated with short and intermediate RIT. A positive psychiatric family history was negatively associated with successful short and intermediate RIT. Diagnosis of psychosis and learning-supported school attendance were associated with long RIT. Young adults with a history of psychiatric inpatient admission as children or adolescents have a relatively high rate of transition to AMHS. A diagnosis of psychosis seems to be the strongest predictor for transition in these patients. Further research should focus on patients' schooling needs and on children of parents with mental health problems to enhance family and educational system engagement.

The Interplay among BMI z-Score, Peer Victmization, and Self-Concept in Outpatient Children and Adolescents with Overweight or Obesity.

BACKGROUND: Research has provided evidence that obesity is associated with peer victimization and low levels of self-concept. No study has examined the relationship between BMI z-score, self-concept in multiple domains, and peer victimization. METHODS: The aim of the research was to investigate the interplay between BMI z-score, self-concept in multiple domains (physical, athletic, social), and peer victimization, testing direct, mediated, and moderated associations. Eighty hundred fifteen outpatient children and adolescents were consecutively recruited in 14 hospitals distributed over the Italian country. The sample consisted of 419 males and 396 females; mean age 10.91 ± 1.97 years (range 6-14 years) and mean BMI z-score 1.85 ± 0.74 (range -0.97 ± 3.27). Peer victimization and self-concept were assessed with a revised Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire and with the Self-Perception Profile for Children. A structural equation model approach was used to determine the associations among variables, testing two competing models. RESULTS: In both models, path analysis revealed that BMI z-score was directly associated with peer victimization and self-concept in multiple domains. In the first model, peer victimization mediated the relationship between BMI-score and self-concept, whereas in the alternative model, self-concept mediated the relationship between BMI z-score and peer victimization. Interaction analyses revealed that social competence moderated the relationship between BMI z-score and peer victimization and that peer victimization moderated the relationship between BMI z-score and physical appearance. CONCLUSIONS: Higher levels of BMI z-score are a risk factor for peer victimization and poor self-concept. When high levels of BMI z-score are associated with a negative self-concept, the risk of victimization increases. Preventive and supportive interventions are needed to avoid negative consequences on quality of life in children and adolescents with obesity.

A 5-year retrospective study of demographic, anamnestic, and clinical factors related to psychiatric hospitalizations of adolescent patients.

BACKGROUND: Psychiatric emergencies of children and adolescents have greatly increased during the last years, but this phenomenon has not been studied in detail. The aim of this study was to analyze the correlation between acute psychiatric hospitalizations of adolescents and selected variables to highlight risk factors for psychiatric emergencies. METHODS: This retrospective research was conducted in the acute psychiatric public ward, Service of Psychiatric Diagnosis and Treatment (SPDT), and in the residential facility for adolescents, "The Medlar", located in Modena. The sample was constituted by all adolescent patients (n=101, age range 14-18) who had acute hospitalizations (n=140) in SPDT and had been successively transferred to "The Medlar" (n=83), from February 2, 2010 to January 31, 2015. From clinical charts, we extracted demographic and anamnestic characteristics of patients and clinical variables related to hospitalizations. Data were statistically analyzed. RESULTS: Sixty-one percent of our patients lived with one divorced parent, with adoptive or immigrant family, or in institutions; 51% had experienced stressful events during childhood; 81% had a normal intellective level, but only 6% presented regular school performance. Parental psychiatric illness was negatively related, in a statistically significantly way, with onset age of adolescent mental disorders (coefficient -2.28, 95% confidence interval [CI]: -3.53 to 1.01, P<0.001, single linear regression; odds ratio: 4.39, 95% CI: 1.43-13.47, P<0.010, single logistic regression). The most frequent reasons for admission were aggressive behavior in males and suicide risk in females (P=0.002). The most frequent psychiatric diagnosis at SPDT discharge was "conduct disorder", more frequent in males, followed by "adjustment disorder", more frequent in females (P=0.001). In SPDT, the adolescent hospitalizations progressively increased fivefold at the end of the observation period. CONCLUSION: Our results overlap the worldwide trend of increasing adolescent psychiatric hospitalizations, suggest risk factors like parental psychiatric illness and early life stressful events, and highlight the different prevalence of aggressiveness and suicide in males and females.

Bullying and Victimization in Overweight and Obese Outpatient Children and Adolescents: An Italian Multicentric Study.

OBJECTIVE: Being overweight or obese is one of the most common reasons that children and adolescents are teased at school. We carried out a study in order to investigate: i) the relation between weight status and school bullying and ii) the relation between weight status categories and types of victimization and bullying in an outpatient sample of Italian children and adolescents with different degrees of overweight from minimal overweight up to severe obesity. PARTICIPANTS/METHODS: Nine-hundred-forty-seven outpatient children and adolescents (age range 6.0-14.0 years) were recruited in 14 hospitals distributed over the country of Italy. The participants were classified as normal-weight (N = 129), overweight (N = 126), moderately obese (N = 568), and severely obese (N = 124). The nature and extent of verbal, physical and relational bullying and victimization were assessed with an adapted version of the revised Olweus bully-victim questionnaire. Each participant was coded as bully, victim, bully-victim, or not involved. RESULTS: Normal-weight and overweight participants were less involved in bullying than obese participants; severely obese males were more involved in the double role of bully and victim. Severely obese children and adolescents suffered not only from verbal victimization but also from physical victimization and exclusion from group activities. Weight status categories were not directly related to bullying behaviour; however severely obese males perpetrated more bullying behaviour compared to severely obese females. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity and bullying among children and adolescents are of ongoing concern worldwide and may be closely related. Common strategies of intervention are needed to cope with these two social health challenges.

The relationship between alexithymia, shame, trauma, and body image disorders: investigation over a large clinical sample.

BACKGROUND: The connections between eating disorders (EDs) and alexithymia have not been fully clarified. This study aims to define alexithymia's connections with shame, trauma, dissociation, and body image disorders. METHODS: We administered the Dissociative Experience Scale-II, Trauma Symptom Inventory, Experience of Shame Scale, Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20, and Body Uneasiness Test questionnaires to 143 ED subjects. Extensive statistical analyses were performed. RESULTS: The subjects showed higher scores on alexithymia, shame, dissociation, and traumatic feelings scales than the nonclinical population. These aspects are linked with each other in a statistically significant way. Partial correlations highlighted that feelings of shame are correlated to body dissatisfaction, irrespective of trauma or depressed mood. Multiple regression analysis demonstrates that shame (anorexic patients) and perceived traumatic conditions (bulimic and ED not otherwise specified) are associated with adverse image disorders. CONCLUSION: Shame seems to hold a central role in the perception of an adverse self-image. Alexithymia may be interpreted as being a consequence of previous unelaborated traumatic experiences and feelings of shame, and it could therefore be conceptualized as a maladaptive-reactive construct.

Audit of digestive complaints and psychopathological traits in patients with eating disorders: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND: Esophago-gastrointestinal symptoms are frequently reported by patients with eating disorders. Scanty data exist on the relationship between psychopathological traits and digestive complaints. AIMS: To prospectively analyze (i) prevalence of digestive symptoms; (ii) psychopathological traits; (iii) relationship between symptom scores and psychopathological profiles. METHODS: Psychopathological and digestive symptom questionnaires were completed at baseline, at discharge, at 1 and 6 months' follow-up in 48 consecutive patients (85.4% female, median age, 15 years) hospitalized for eating disorders. RESULTS: The most frequently reported symptoms were postprandial fullness (96%) and abdominal distention (90%). Pooled esophageal (4; IQR 0-14) and gastrointestinal (34; IQR 19-53) symptoms significantly decreased at 6 months' follow-up (1; IQR 0-3 and 10; IQR 4-34; p<0.0001 and p<0.005, respectively). Pooled gastrointestinal symptoms significantly correlated with hypochondriasis (r=0.42, p<0.01). Both esophageal and gastrointestinal symptoms improved in patients with normal values of hypochondriasis and hysteria scales (p<0.05 and p<0.005, respectively) compared to those with pathological traits. CONCLUSIONS: Digestive symptoms are frequently reported by patients with eating disorders with their expression and outcome being influenced by psychopathological profiles. Hypochondriasis and hysteria traits are predictive factors for symptomatic improvement.

Drama therapy and eating disorders: a historical perspective and an overview of a Bolognese project for adolescents.

OBJECTIVES: The authors present a description of a theater workshop ("Metamorphosis Project"), developed at the Bologna Eating Disorders Center. DESIGN: The workshops are aimed at young, hospitalized patients, and are largely based on the principles of drama therapy. In this article, this therapeutic modality is introduced by a discussion of the theoretical basis for the use of theater in psychiatry from the points of view of several preeminent psychiatrists, including Freud, Winnicott, Klein, and Moreno. RESULTS: Three (3) clinical reports are presented. The satisfaction rate among the first groups of participants was 93%. CONCLUSIONS: It is suggested that theater can be useful in decreasing defense mechanisms, allowing a patient-focused approach, mitigating specific symptoms, and improving the quality of life during the hospital stay.

Case report of pyruvate dehydrogenase deficiency with unusual increase of fats during ketogenic diet treatment.

This article describes a case of pyruvate dehydrogenase deficiency in a 3-year-old boy who presented generalized hypotonia, severe psychomotor development delay, and generalized and partial seizures and was refractory to antiepileptic drugs. After the diagnosis, the patient was put on a ketogenic diet. Six months later, seizure frequency was reduced and psychomotor development had improved. At the same time he presented some side effects, such as 2 episodes of significant increases in cholesterol and triglycerides associated with viral respiratory infections. The latter decreased with a supplementation of ω-3 fatty acids and an increase in caloric intake.

Psychometric evaluation of SAFA P test for eating disorders in adolescents: comparative validation with EDI-2.

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluates the psychometric properties of self-administered psychiatric scale for children and adolescents with psychogenic eating disorders (SAFA P)--a brief self-report designed to screen and assess eating disorders (ED) in children and adolescents. Although SAFA P belongs to a broad battery of tests (SAFA) that explores different psychiatric conditions, it has not undergone appropriate validation until now. METHOD: We administered SAFA P and Eating Disorder Inventory 2 (EDI-2) to 87 ED patients, with an average age of 15.4 ± 1.6 years. RESULTS: The internal reliability of SAFA P is good (Cronbach α = .776). Convergent validity with EDI-2 was assessed: both SAFA P subscale P1 (p < .005) and EDI-2 subscale bulimia (p < .001) showed a statistically significant difference among the three diagnostic categories (anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and eating disorder not otherwise specified). Sensibility and specificity range from 62 to 91%, depending on the subscales. McNemar's test did not reveal statistically significant differences in assessing the concordance of the two measures. Statistically significant correlations were found between specific couples of subscales (p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Cross-validation with EDI-2 showed good results. SAFA P may be an alternative, useful and reliable instrument for assessing cursory ED in childhood and adolescence.

Uveitis in autoimmune hepatitis: a case report.

In this case report we describe for the first time an association between autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and uveitis, without any doubts about other possible etiologies, such as HCV, since all the old reports describe the association of AIH with iridocyclitis before tests for HCV-related hepatitis could be available. A 38-year-old businessman with abnormal liver function tests and hyperemia of the bulbar conjunctiva was admitted to the hospital. Six years before admission, the patient presented with persistent fever, arthralgias, conjunctival hyperemia, leukocytosis and increased ESR, referred to acute rheumatic fever. The presence of systemic diseases, most commonly associated with uveitis, was investigated without results and the patient was then treated with topical corticosteroids. His symptoms resolved. A test for anti-nuclear antibodies was positive, at a titre of 1:320, with a speckled and nucleolar staining pattern. Liver ultrasound showed mild hepatomegaly with an increased echostructure of the liver. Percutaneous liver biopsy was performed under ultrasound assistance. Histological examination showed necroinflammation over the portal, periportal and lobular areas, fibrotic portal tracts, with periportal fibrosis and occasional portal-to-portal bridgings, but intact hepatic architecture. Some hepatocytes showed barely discernible granules of hemosiderin in the lobular area. Bile ductules had not any significant morphological alterations. METAVIR score was A2-F3, according to the modified HAI grading/fibrosis staging. The patient was diagnosed to have AIH with mild activity and fibrosis and was discharged on 25 mg prednisone, entering clinical and biochemical remission, further confirming diagnosis. After discharge the patient continued to have treatment with corticosteroids as an outpatient at a dose of 5 mg. On January 2002 the patient was readmitted to the hospital. A test for anti-nuclear antibodies was positive, at a titre of 1:320, with a speckled and nucleolar staining pattern. Anti-smooth muscle antibody test was also positive (1:160), while anti-LKM antibodies were negative. Ophthalmologic examination revealed inflammatory cells and proteinaceous flare in the anterior chamber of the left eye, and a stromal lesion in the cornea. He was maintained on immunosuppressive therapy (5 mg prednisone plus topical antibiotic therapy for two weeks) and then discharged. A complete remission of the symptoms was registered on follow-up. At present (July 2005), the patient is on prednisone (5 mg) and has no symptoms. Liver function tests are also within the normal range.

Prevalence of bcl-2 rearrangement in patients with hepatitis C virus-related mixed cryoglobulinemia with or without B-cell lymphomas.

BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is strictly associated with mixed cryoglobulinemia, a benign B-cell lymphoproliferative disorder that may evolve to lymphoma. An increased prevalence of bcl-2 rearrangement (the t(14;18) translocation) has been shown in patients infected with HCV. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of bcl-2 rearrangement in patients with HCV-related mixed cryoglobulinemia and patients with chronic hepatitis but no cryoglobulinemia. DESIGN: Prospective study. SETTING: Two university hospitals. PATIENTS: 37 consecutively recruited patients with HCV-related mixed cryoglobulinemia and 101 patients with chronic HCV infection but without mixed cryoglobulinemia. MEASUREMENTS: Clinical and serologic characteristics; liver biopsy; bcl-2 rearrangement, Bcl-2 expression, and the ratio of Bcl-2 to Bax in total peripheral blood mononuclear cells and cell subgroups; and sequence analysis of the junction of bcl-2 and IgH joining segments in positive samples. RESULTS: Rearrangement of bcl-2 was observed in 28 of 37 (75.7%) patients with mixed cryoglobulinemia (65% of those with type III disease and 85% of those with type II disease, including 3 of 4 patients with lymphoma) and in 38 of 101 (37.6%) patients with chronic HCV infection but not mixed cryoglobulinemia (P < 0.001). Overexpression of Bcl-2 protein and a high ratio of Bcl-2 to Bax were observed in samples from patients with bcl-2 rearrangement. In 2 patients followed over time, peripheral blood cells bearing the t(14;18) translocation disappeared after antiviral therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Rearrangement of bcl-2 was found with increased frequency in patients with chronic HCV infection and mixed cryoglobulinemia. The frequency was greatest in patients with type II mixed cryoglobulinemia. The high ratio of Bcl-2 to Bax in patients with bcl-2 rearrangement and disappearance of the rearrangement with antiviral therapy suggest that the translocation is associated with the antiapoptotic function of Bcl-2 and that HCV infection is linked to inhibition of B-cell apoptosis.