Central nervous system pediatric multi-disciplinary tumor board: a single center experience.

BACKGROUND: The Multidisciplinary Tumor Board (MTB) is a collaborative platform involving specialists in oncology, surgery, radiology, pathology, and radiotherapy, and aims to optimize diagnostics and treatments. Despite MTB's widespread benefits, limited literature addresses its application in pediatric neuro-oncology. After a literature revision on pediatric neuro-oncology MTB, our study describes our institute's pediatric neuro-oncology MTB, focuses on evaluating its impact and the neuroradiologist's role in patient-centric approaches, considering recent genetic insights into pediatric brain tumors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Literature Review concerning pediatric neuro-oncology MTB from January 2002 to June 2024. CLINICAL DATA: retrospective study of all patient files presented in the pediatric neuro-oncology MTB (pnMTB) between 2019 and 2022. Statistical analysis was mainly carried out by directly comparing the absolute or relative values of the respective parameters examined; qualitative variables compared mainly with the chi-square test, quantitative variables mainly with the t-test. RESULTS: Literature Review: 7 papers encompass a multidisciplinary approach for the pediatric CNS tumors. CLINICAL DATA: A total of 236 discussions were analyzed representing 107 patients. Median age was 14,3 years (range: 6 months - 17 years). The requests for case evaluations primarily came from the pediatric oncologists (83%) and neurosurgeons (14.8%), and they were mainly addressed to the neuroradiologists (70.3%). Proposals during pnMTB mainly involved imaging follow-up (47.8%) and management with chemotherapy (34.7%). Changes in patient treatment (CPT) occurred in 115 cases, and pediatric neuroradiologist intervention contributed to 72.4% of these changes. CONCLUSION: Thanks to their multidisciplinarity, high number of cases discussed, and usual respect for their proposals, the pnMTB has made it possible to improve the coordination among specialties involved in patient management, to apply the recent protocols, and to exchange knowledge among teams managing pediatric CNS tumors.

The table grape 'Victoria' with a long shaped berry: a potential mutation with attractive characteristics for consumers.

BACKGROUND: Puglia is the most important region in Italy for table grape production. Since consumers look for new products, the number of table grape varieties has greatly increased in recent years. RESULTS: In a survey in the Puglia region, we identified several years ago a potential mutation of the cv. Victoria. We described this accession in comparison with the standard Victoria for some amphelographic traits. All the characteristics were very similar to the standard Victoria except for the berry shape, which was significantly more elongated. Moreover, the berry of the mutated Victoria showed higher firmness, lightness and chroma than the standard one, with a more intense yellow colour of the skin (appreciated by consumers). The molecular characterisation with 25 SSR markers showed that normal and mutant Victoria were genetically identical at all the analysed loci, thus suggesting that the two accessions could be considered as clones with the difference in berry shape probably due to a somatic mutation. CONCLUSIONS: This mutation of the cv. Victoria may have interesting perspective for the market since consumers are always attracted by different shape and colour of the fruits (consumers buy with eyes). This accession can be an alternative clone of the already known standard Victoria. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

[Superficial mycoses: casuistry of the Mycology Department of the Instituto Nacional de Higiene "Rafael Rangel", Caracas, Venezuela (2001-2014)]. / Micosis superficiales: casuística del Departamento de Micología del Instituto Nacional de Higiene "Rafael Rangel", Caracas, Venezuela (2001-2014).

The superficial mycoses are very common infectious diseases and therefore are a frequent reason for medical consultation. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic frequency of superficial mycoses in the Mycology Department of the Instituto Nacional de Higiene "Rafael Rangel" during 14 years (2001-2014). A retrospective cross-sectional study was performed to review the mycological records of patients with presumptive diagnosis of superficial mycosis. Nails, hairs and epidermal scales were the processed samples. The identification of fungi was performed by macro and microscopic observation of colonies and biochemical and physiological tests, as required of the isolated agent. For the investigation of Malassezia spp. only direct examination was performed. Of the 3 228 samples processed, 1 098 (34%) were positive and their distribution according to the etiological agent was: dermatophytes 79.5%; 10.9% yeasts; non-dermatophytes fungi 5.1% and 4.5% Malassezia spp. The most frequently isolated dermatophyte was Trichophyton rubrum Complex (70.1%), followed by T mentagrophytes complex (15.1%), Microsporum canis (9.4%) and Epidermophyton floccosum (4%). The most frequent ringworms Were: Tinea unguium (66.8%), followed by Tineapedis (16.4%) and Tinea capitis (8.1%). Candida parapsilosis complex (37.5%) was the most frequently isolated yeast and Fusarium spp. (53.6%) was the most isolated among non-dermatophyte fungi, followed by Aspergillus spp. (19.6%) and Acremonium spp. (10.7%). The identification of the etiological agent is essential to guide appropriate treatment. This study constitutes an important contribution to the knowledge of the epidemiology of superficial mycoses in our country.

Recurrence of paratesticular liposarcoma: a case report and review of the literature.

Paratesticular liposarcomas are rare tumors that typically affect adult. Diagnosis is very difficult and inadequate surgical excision leads to a high rate of recurrence.We report a case of local recurrence of paratesticular liposarcoma diagnosed six months following surgery.Since there is low response to adjuvant treatments, extensive surgery remains the only curative approach, as shown by the case described here and the following review of the literature.

Effects of irrigation with treated wastewater on root and fruit mineral elements of Chemlali olive cultivar.

Twenty-year-old "Chemlali" olive trees trained to vase and rainfed were investigated in either "on" (2004) or "off" (2003) year. A randomized block design with three blocks and three treatments was used and each experimental plot consisted of nine olive trees. Three treatments were applied: (1) rainfed conditions (RF, used as control treatment); (2) irrigation with well water (WW); and (3) irrigation with treated wastewater (TWW). Irrigation with TWW led to a significant increase of root N, P, Ca, Zn, Mn, Na, and Cl concentrations, in particular in the on-year. Data showed significant differences, between the two years, for the concentration of the mineral elements in the roots, with general lower values in the on-year, probably as a consequence of nutrients movement upward in the tree. Fruit N, P, K, Zn, Mn, and Cl contents were significantly higher in TWW irrigated trees with respect to both RF and WW trees, whereas similar values for Ca, Mg, Na, and Cl contents were measured for WW and TWW irrigated trees. The irrigation with TWW allowed to reuse problematic waters and to save nutrients inputs in the olive orchard thus moving towards a more sustainable management of olive orchards in countries where water is the major limiting factor for agriculture.

Effect of irrigation with treated wastewater on soil chemical properties and infiltration rate.

In Tunisia, water scarcity is one of the major constraints for agricultural activities. The reuse of treated wastewater (TWW) in agriculture can be a sustainable solution to face water scarcity. The research was conducted for a period of four years in an olive orchard planted on a sandy soil and subjected to irrigation treatments: a) rain-fed conditions (RF), as control b) well water (WW) and c) treated wastewater (TWW). In WW and TWW treatments, an annual amount of 5000 m(3) ha(-1) of water was supplied to the orchard. Soil samples were collected at the beginning of the study and after four years for each treatment. The main soil properties such as electrical conductivity (EC), pH, soluble cations, chloride (Cl(-)), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), organic matter (OM) as well as the infiltration rate were investigated. After four years, either a significant decrease of pH and infiltration rate or a significant increase of OM, SAR and EC were observed in the soil subjected to treated wastewater treatment.

[A comparative study between the Vitek YBC and Microscan Walk Away RYID automated systems with conventional phenotypic methods for the identification of yeasts of clinical interest]. / Estudio comparativo entre los sistemas automatizados Vitek YBC y Microscan Walk Away RYID con los-métodos fenotípicos convencionales para la identificación de levaduras de interés clínico.

The aim of this study was to compare the identification of clin- ically relevant yeasts by the Vitek YBC and Microscan Walk Away RYID automated methods with conventional phenotypic methods. One hundred and ninety three yeast strains isolated from clinical samples and five controls strains were used. All the yeasts were identified by the automated methods previously mentioned and conventional phenotypic methods such as carbohydrate assimilation, visualization of microscopic morphology on corn meal agar and the use of chromogenic agar. Variables were assessed by 2 x 2 contingency tables, McNemar's Chi square, the Kappa index, and concordance values were calculated, as well as major and minor errors for the automated methods. Yeasts were divided into two groups: (1) frequent isolation and (2) rare isolation. The Vitek YBC and Microscan Walk Away RYID systems were concordant in 88.4 and 85.9% respectively, when compared to conventional phenotypic methods. Although both automated systems can be used for yeasts identification, the presence of major and minor errors indicates the possibility of misidentifications; therefore, the operator of this equipment must use in parallel, phenotypic tests such as visualization of microscopic morphology on corn meal agar and chromogenic agar, especially against infrequently isolated yeasts. Automated systems are a valuable tool; however, the expertise and judgment of the microbiologist are an important strength to ensure the quality of the results.

Datasets for genetic diversity assessment in a collection of wild and cultivated pomegranates (Punica granatum L.) by microsatellite markers.

Data described in this article refer to molecular characterization and assessment of genetic diversity within a wide collection of pomegranate genotypes including both selections and cultivars from different geographical origin/disseminations by using microsatellite (SSR, Simple Sequence Repeats) markers. Supplied datasets refer to a set of 63 genotypes including 55 accessions (landraces) from Italy, Turkmenistan, Japan, and USA and 8 cultivars from Israel, established at the pomegranate repository of the Fruit Tree Unit of the Department of Soil, Plant and Food Science at University of Bari "Aldo Moro", Italy. Pomegranate accessions differed for end-use purpose (edible, ornamental) and some morpho-pomological traits including juice taste, inner tegmen hardness, and skin/seed color. Molecular data were opportunely employed to build a similarity matrix to establish phylogenetic relationships (genetic similarity and distances) among pomegranate accessions and compare genetic clustering to morpho-pomological classification. The present data article provides detailed information and methodological protocols on SSR markers, PCR amplification and banding profiling aimed to molecular characterization of pomegranate collection. This latter was conducted by amplifying a set of informative polymorphic SSR markers on the genomic DNA of each pomegranate accession, and then comparing the different molecular profiles by capillary electrophoresis. The banding patterns obtained from microsatellite markers were used to build a binary matrix containing the scores for each individual SSR fragment, which was transformed into a similarity matrix and finally used for cluster analysis and dendrogram building based on the UPGMA algorithm. This paper supplies data potentially useful for the identification of polymorphic markers suitable for varietal identification and traceability, or discrimination between tightly related pomegranate accessions with very high morphological similarity and/or geographical identity. Data described in this paper support the published original research article titled "Exploiting DNA-based molecular tools to assess genetic diversity in pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) selections and cultivars" [1].

Experimental Characterisation of Lime-Based Textile-Reinforced Mortar Systems Made of Either Jute or Flax Fabrics.

Existing buildings are often in need of strengthening interventions, and several technical solutions have been recently developed for this purpose. Among them, the use of textile-reinforced mortar (TRM) composites has gained consensus as a technically viable and economically convenient option. Moreover, TRM has the potential to be employed as a reversible and sustainable strengthening technique for masonry buildings. In this context, the present paper aims to investigate the mechanical properties of TRM systems consisting of sustainable phases, such as lime-based matrices and natural fabrics produced by waiving fibers obtained from plants, such as Jute or Flax. This class composite system can be referred to as natural TRM and is denoted by the acronym NTRM. The present study moves from the geometric and mechanical characterisation of fibres and fabrics and, after having also investigated the properties of the mortar, it reports the results of tensile tests carried out on specimens of the NTRM systems under consideration, with the main aim of providing the empirical bases of the relationships between the geometric and physical properties of the constituents and the resulting mechanical response of the composite system. The obtained results show that the considered Flax-TRM system has an apparent composite behavior, as its response to tension is clearly characterised by the well-known three stages corresponding to the elastic response, the formation of cracks, and the reinforcement response up to rupture. Conversely, the Jute-TRM system needs to be further improved in terms of balance between the properties of the matrix and the internal reinforcement. Further studies will be devoted to this specific aspect and, more generally, to investigating the relationships between constituents' properties and the NTRM behavior.

Metabolomics and genetics of reproductive bud development in Ficus carica var. sativa (edible fig) and in Ficus carica var. caprificus (caprifig): similarities and differences.

In figs, reproductive biology comprises cultivars requiring or not pollination, with female trees (edible fig) and male trees (caprifig) bearing different types of fruits. Metabolomic and genetic studies may clarify bud differentiation mechanisms behind the different fruits. We used a targeted metabolomic analysis and genetic investigation through RNA sequence and candidate gene investigation to perform a deep analysis of buds of two fig cultivars, 'Petrelli' (San Pedro type) and 'Dottato' (Common type), and one caprifig. In this work, proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR-based metabolomics) has been used to analyze and compare buds of the caprifig and the two fig cultivars collected at different times of the season. Metabolomic data of buds collected on the caprifig, 'Petrelli', and 'Dottato' were treated individually, building three separate orthogonal partial least squared (OPLS) models, using the "y" variable as the sampling time to allow the identification of the correlations among metabolomic profiles of buds. The sampling times revealed different patterns between caprifig and the two edible fig cultivars. A significant amount of glucose and fructose was found in 'Petrelli', differently from 'Dottato', in the buds in June, suggesting that these sugars not only are used by the ripening brebas of 'Petrelli' but also are directed toward the developing buds on the current year shoot for either a main crop (fruit in the current season) or a breba (fruit in the successive season). Genetic characterization through the RNA-seq of buds and comparison with the literature allowed the identification of 473 downregulated genes, with 22 only in profichi, and 391 upregulated genes, with 21 only in mammoni.

Dataset from RNAseq analysis of bud differentiation in Ficus carica.

The presented data regards the transcriptome profiling and differential analysis with RNA-Seq approach with the following goals: de novo transcriptome assembly and genome annotation of Ficus carica and the differential expression analysis of parthenocarpic and non-partenocarpic varieties in order to identify candidate genes for the production of seedless fig. Two fig varieties Dottato and Petrelli and the caprifig were grown at the fig repository at the 'P. Martucci' experimental station in Valenzano (Bari) of University of Bari 'Aldo Moro'. The data included: RNA-seq data obtained from fruits of parthenocarpic and non-parthenocarpic varieties, gene expression in the different genetic materials; genes up and down regulated. The data in this article support information presented in the research article "I. Marcotuli, A. Mazzeo, P. Colasuonno, R. Terzano, D. Nigro, C. Porfido, A. Tarantino, R. Aiese Cigliano, W. Sanseverino, A. Gadaleta, G. Ferrara, Fruit Development in Ficus carica L.: Morphological and Genetic Approaches to Fig Buds for an Evolution From Monoecy Toward Dioecy. Front. Plant Sci.(2020) 11:1208. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2020.01208.

Electrical Impedance Tomography during Abdominal Laparoscopic Surgery: A Physiological Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Both general anesthesia and pneumoperitoneum insufflation during abdominal laparoscopic surgery can lead to atelectasis and impairment in oxygenation. Setting an appropriate level of external PEEP could reduce the occurrence of atelectasis and induce an improvement in gas exchange. However, in clinical practice, it is common to use a fixed PEEP level (i.e., 5 cmH2O), irrespective of the dynamic respiratory mechanics. We hypothesized setting a PEEP level guided by EIT in order to obtain an improvement in oxygenation and respiratory system compliance in lung-healthy patients than can benefit a personalized approach. METHODS: Twelve consecutive patients scheduled for abdominal laparoscopic surgery were enrolled in this prospective study. The EIT Timpel Enlight 1800 was applied to each patient and a dedicated pneumotachograph and a spirometer flow sensor, integrated with EIT, constantly recorded respiratory mechanics. Gas exchange, respiratory mechanics and hemodynamics were recorded at five time points: T0, baseline; T1, after induction; T2, after pneumoperitoneum insufflation; T3, after a recruitment maneuver; and T4, at the end of surgery after desufflation. RESULTS: A titrated mean PEEP of 8 cmH2O applied after a recruitment maneuver was successfully associated with the "best" compliance (58.4 ± 5.43 mL/cmH2O), with a low percentage of collapse (10%), an acceptable level of hyperdistention (0.02%). Pneumoperitoneum insufflation worsened respiratory system compliance, plateau pressure, and driving pressure, which significantly improved after the application of the recruitment maneuver and appropriate PEEP. PaO2 increased from 78.1 ± 9.49 mmHg at T0 to 188 ± 66.7 mmHg at T4 (p < 0.01). Other respiratory parameters remained stable after abdominal desufflation. Hemodynamic parameters remained unchanged throughout the study. CONCLUSIONS: EIT, used as a non-invasive intra-operative monitor, enables the rapid assessment of lung volume and regional ventilation changes in patients undergoing laparoscopic surgery and helps to identify the "optimal" PEEP level in the operating theatre, improving ventilation strategies.

Advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Evaluation of Treated Glioblastoma: A Pictorial Essay.

MRI plays a key role in the evaluation of post-treatment changes, both in the immediate post-operative period and during follow-up. There are many different treatment's lines and many different neuroradiological findings according to the treatment chosen and the clinical timepoint at which MRI is performed. Structural MRI is often insufficient to correctly interpret and define treatment-related changes. For that, advanced MRI modalities, including perfusion and permeability imaging, diffusion tensor imaging, and magnetic resonance spectroscopy, are increasingly utilized in clinical practice to characterize treatment effects more comprehensively. This article aims to provide an overview of the role of advanced MRI modalities in the evaluation of treated glioblastomas. For a didactic purpose, we choose to divide the treatment history in three main timepoints: post-surgery, during Stupp (first-line treatment) and at recurrence (second-line treatment). For each, a brief introduction, a temporal subdivision (when useful) or a specific drug-related paragraph were provided. Finally, the current trends and application of radiomics and artificial intelligence (AI) in the evaluation of treated GB have been outlined.

Role of aspirin, beta-blocker, statins, and heparin therapy in septic patients under mechanical ventilation: a narrative review.

Sepsis is the main cause of death among patients admitted to intensive care units. Management of sepsis includes fluid resuscitation, vasopressors, intravenous antimicrobials, source control, mechanical ventilation, and others. New insights into the potential benefits of non-antimicrobial drugs in sepsis have evolved based on the pathophysiology of the disease and the mechanism of action of some drugs, but the findings are still controversial. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of beta-blockers, aspirin, statins, and heparin as adjunctive treatments in septic patients under mechanical ventilation with non-cardiovascular diseases and their effect on mortality. We searched PubMed with relevant keywords (beta-blockers, aspirin, statins, or heparin, and critically ill or sepsis) for the last 10 years and some personal collection of relevant articles, and then we assessed studies according to prespecified inclusion and exclusion criteria. Our results show that beta-blockers, aspirin, and heparin may have promising feedback on reducing mortality. However, new well-controlled, randomized, multicenter studies are needed to confirm that, and multiple issues regarding their usage need to be addressed. On the other hand, the feedback regarding the effectiveness of statins was not as strong as that of the other drugs studied, and we suggest that further research is needed to confirm these results.

New Materials and Technologies for Durability and Conservation of Building Heritage.

The increase in concrete structures' durability is a milestone to improve the sustainability of buildings and infrastructures. In order to ensure a prolonged service life, it is necessary to detect the deterioration of materials by means of monitoring systems aimed at evaluating not only the penetration of aggressive substances into concrete but also the corrosion of carbon-steel reinforcement. Therefore, proper data collection makes it possible to plan suitable restoration works which can be carried out with traditional or innovative techniques and materials. This work focuses on building heritage and it highlights the most recent findings for the conservation and restoration of reinforced concrete structures and masonry buildings.

Structure-property relationships in heterophasic thermoplastic elastomers filled with montmorillonite.

Polypropylene (PP)/ethylene-propylene rubber (EPR)/Montmorillonite ternary nanocomposites with a phase separated morphology were studied in this work. Wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD), small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used to investigate the samples. One of the aim of this work was to separate the effects of rubber and clay content on the structure, morphology and mechanical properties of the samples. The presence of clay favored the formation of gamma phase and disrupted the lamellar framework. Clay had moreover a major role in shaping the phase separated morphology of the samples. Atomic Force Microscopy showed that the shear exerted by the clay layers was key for inducing a shish kebab morphology in the polymer matrix. Rubber content decreased the degree of crystallinity at a crystalline cell level and induced the formation of a double population of lamellar stacks. The mechanical properties of the samples primarily depended on rubber content, and they were secondarily tuned by the effect of clay. This synergistic effect allowed to obtain composites with increased stiffness, ductility and toughness, oppositely to what is frequently found.

Mechanical Characterisation of GFRP Frame and Beam-to-Column Joints Including Steel Plate Fastened Connections.

The study is part of the MOOVABAT project aiming at defining innovative technological buildings with low environmental impact and characterised by the capacity to constantly adapt to the changing of their users' needs. In this context, the mechanical performance of a fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) frame, chosen as a structural solution for the building assembly, was investigated. Specifically, the research study aims to experimentally define the moment-rotation behaviour of screw-connected joints by using steel plates. For this purpose, two different configurations, a beam-to-column joint and a whole portal frame, were tested to evaluate the strength and the stiffness of the connection. In addition, the beam-to-column element was also subjected to cyclic loads to assess the joint energy dissipation capacity. The experimental results show that the strength of the connection is higher than that required to satisfy both serviceability limit state (SLS) and ultimate limit state (ULS) loading conditions. Moreover, it also provided an accurate characterisation of the semi-rigid connection useful for designing purposes and raising the possibility of considering an optimisation of the system. All in all, with respect to mechanical aspects, the study confirms the suitability of pultrude FRP element assemblies for modular building applications and paves the way for further analysis aimed at enhancing their efficiency.

Immunological effects of glutamine supplementation in polytrauma patients in intensive care unit.

BACKGROUND: In polytrauma intensive care unit (ICU) patients, glutamine (GLN) becomes a "conditionally essential" amino acid; its role has been extensively studied in numerous clinical trials but their results are inconclusive. We evaluated the IgA-mediated humoral immunity after GLN supplementation in polytrauma ICU patients. METHODS: All consecutive patients with polytrauma who required mechanical ventilation and enteral nutrition (EN) provided within 24 h since the admission in ICU at the University Hospital of Foggia from September 2016 to February 2017 were included. Thereafter, two groups were identified: patients treated by conventional EN (25 kcal/kg/die) and patients who have received conventional EN enriched with 50 mg/kg/ideal body weight of alanyl-GLN 20% intravenously. We analysed the plasmatic concentration of IgA, CD3+/CD4+ T helper lymphocytes, CD3+/CD8+ T suppressor lymphocytes, CD3+/CD19+ B lymphocytes, IL-4 and IL-2 at admission and at 4 and 8 days. RESULTS: We identified 30 patients, with 15 subjects per group. IgA levels increased significantly in GLN vs the control group at T0, T4 and T8. CD3+/CD4+ T helper lymphocyte and CD3+/CD8+ T suppressor lymphocyte levels significantly increased in GLN vs the control group at T4 and T8. CD3+/CD19+ B lymphocyte levels increased significantly in GLN vs the control group only at T8. IL-2 and IL-4 levels showed no significant differences when comparing GLN with the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Our study showed that there was an improvement in humoral and cell-mediated immunity with GLN supplementation in polytrauma ICU patients using recommended doses.

Machine learning and predictive models: 2 years of Sars-CoV-2 pandemic in a single-center retrospective analysis.

BACKGROUND: Since January 2020, coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) has rapidly spread all over the world. An early assessment of illness severity is crucial for the stratification of patients in order to address them to the right intensity path of care. We performed an analysis on a large cohort of COVID-19 patients (n=581) hospitalized between March 2020 and May 2021 in our intensive care unit (ICU) at Policlinico Riuniti di Foggia hospital. Through an integration of the scores, demographic data, clinical history, laboratory findings, respiratory parameters, a correlation analysis, and the use of machine learning our study aimed to develop a model to predict the main outcome. METHODS: We deemed eligible for analysis all adult patients (age >18 years old) admitted to our department. We excluded all the patients with an ICU length of stay inferior to 24 h and the ones that declined to participate in our data collection. We collected demographic data, medical history, D-dimers, NEWS2, and MEWS scores on ICU admission and on ED admission, PaO2/FiO2 ratio on ICU admission, and the respiratory support modalities before the orotracheal intubation and the intubation timing (early vs late with a 48-h hospital length of stay cutoff). We further collected the ICU and hospital lengths of stay expressed in days of hospitalization, hospital location (high dependency unit, HDU, ED), and length of stay before and after ICU admission; the in-hospital mortality; and the in-ICU mortality. We performed univariate, bivariate, and multivariate statistical analyses. RESULTS: SARS-CoV-2 mortality was positively correlated to age, length of stay in HDU, MEWS, and NEWS2 on ICU admission, D-dimer value on ICU admission, early orotracheal intubation, and late orotracheal intubation. We found a negative correlation between the PaO2/FiO2 ratio on ICU admission and NIV. No significant correlations with sex, obesity, arterial hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, and neither MEWS nor NEWS on ED admission were observed. Considering all the pre-ICU variables, none of the machine learning algorithms performed well in developing a prediction model accurate enough to predict the outcome although a secondary multivariate analysis focused on the ventilation modalities and the main outcome confirmed how the choice of the right ventilatory support with the right timing is crucial. CONCLUSION: In our cohort of COVID patients, the choice of the right ventilatory support at the right time has been crucial, severity scores, and clinical judgment gave support in identifying patients at risk of developing a severe disease, comorbidities showed a lower weight than expected considering the main outcome, and machine learning method integration could be a fundamental statistical tool in the comprehensive evaluation of such complex diseases.