Stroke and the need for immediate assistance at the place of onset: the future of mandatory training for lay people in Italy.

Introduction: Lay training is essential to manage emergencies properly, although patients or bystanders need increased recognition of medical urgencies such as strokes. In Italy, as defined by Legislative Decree 81/08, all companies must train employees responsible for correctly recognizing and managing medical emergencies. Our study aims to evaluate the characteristics of medical emergencies concerning patients with a possible stroke in the Lombardy Region. Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted. All missions performed by Regional Agency for Emergencies and Urgencies (Agenzia Regionale Emergenza Urgenza - AREU) in which the patient presented a possible stroke, recorded in the SAS-Areu database, were analyzed. The study period was from January 1, 2019, to December 31, 2019. Results: 10,201 patients with possible stroke were rescued, of whom only 540 (5.3%) occurred in workplaces. In workplaces, the percentage of males with a possible stroke was higher (62.2% vs 45.2%; p<0.01) and the mean age of rescued patients was lower (64.7 vs 77.5; p<0.01). Conclusions: A stroke occurs less frequently in the workplace, while most events occur at home. Man-datory training on early stroke recognition should be extended to schools and conveyed through a media information campaign. Lay training is the first point in the chain of survival; redefining training is critical for the future.

Resveratrol proniosomes as a convenient nanoingredient for functional food.

Proniosomes are free-flowing powders composed of water-soluble carriers blended with surfactants, which form niosomes upon hydration. In this work, proniosomal formulations containing the natural antioxidant resveratrol (RSV) were prepared and fully characterized. A pre-formulation study on RSV-loaded niosomes was carried out to determine the most promising ratio between the two surfactants, Tween 20 and Span 60, in terms of entrapment efficiency and antioxidant activity. The optimized formulae were subsequently adapted to be prepared as proniosomes by the slurry method, including lactose or maltodextrin as carriers. The impact of surfactants and carriers properties on size, entrapment efficiency and release kinetics of proniosomes were evaluated. In vitro release of RSV in simulated gastric and intestinal media was determined, as well as the vesicular stability. Moreover, the biocompatibility of the formulations was determined on intestinal cells in vitro. Overall, the developed proniosomes provide promising nanoingredient for functional food, improving resveratrol stability and bioavailability.