TRITRIAL: The Impact of Fixed Triple Therapy with Beclometasone/Formoterol/Glycopyrronium on Health Status and Adherence in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in an Italian Context of Real Life.

Purpose: The TRITRIAL study assessed the effects of beclometasone dipropionate/formoterol fumarate/glycopyrronium (BDP/FF/G) fixed combination in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a real-world setting, focusing on patient's experience and perspective through the use of patients reported outcomes. Patients and Methods: TRITRIAL was a multicenter, prospective, observational study conducted on patients with moderate-severe COPD treated with BDP/FF/G fixed therapy for 12 months. The main objective was to evaluate the impact of BDP/FF/G on health status through the COPD Assessment Test (CAT) score. Additional assessments included adherence and satisfaction, measured by the TAI-10/12 questionnaire and a specifically designed eight-item questionnaire, quality of life through the EQ-5D-5L test, sleep quality through the COPD and Asthma Sleep Impact Scale (CASIS), as well as safety and disease-related outcomes. Results: Data from 655 patients were analyzed in the study. The mean total CAT score significantly improved (from 22.8 at baseline to 18.1 at 6 months and 16.5 at 12 months; p < 0.0001), as well as all the eight CAT sub-items, which decreased on average by 0.5-0.9 points during the study. Adherence and usability of the inhaler also improved during the study, with a decrease in poor compliance (from 30.1% to 18.3%) and an increase in good compliance (from 51.8% to 58.3%) according to the TAI score. Patients also benefited from significantly improved quality of life (EQ Index from 0.70 to 0.80; EQ-5D VAS score from 55.1 to 63.1) and sleep quality (CASIS score from 41.1 to 31.8). Finally, patients reported a significant reduction in exacerbation during the study. Conclusion: TRITRIAL showed that the BDP/FF/G fixed combination is effective and safe in patients with moderate-severe COPD and poorly controlled disease, improving patients' HRQoL, sleep quality, adherence and inhaler usability and reducing COPD symptoms and the risk of exacerbation in a real-life setting.

Histopathology of COVID-19 pneumonia in two non-oncological, non-hospitalised cases as a reliable diagnostic benchmark.

In lung cancer patients infected with COVID-19, pathological features are not easy to distinguish. This report presents detailed histopathological findings in two non-neoplastic subjects whose out-of-hospital deaths were caused by COVID-19 infection. These 'pure' cases differ in the time of presentation of symptoms, the phase of lung anatomopathological patterns (acute lung injury versus diffuse alveolar damage) and the mechanism of death. The results provide a valid diagnostic benchmark for evaluating the evolution of COVID-19 pneumonia.

The role of 18F-FDG PET/CT in management of paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis combined with small cell lung cancer: A case report.

RATIONALE: Limbic encephalitis is one of the most common paraneoplastic neurological disorders (PND). The role of brain Fluorine-18-fluorodeoxyglucose position emission tomography/computed tomography (CT) in paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (PLE) and of the whole body 18F-FDG PET/CT in this setting, remains still not well defined. PATIENT CONCERNS: We report a case of a patient with chronic inflammatory rheumatism, psoriasis and Hashimoto thyroiditis and subsequent appearance of static and dynamic ataxia and episodic memory deficit who was diagnosed as PLE combined with small cell lung cancer (SCLC). DIAGNOSES: The diagnosis of SCLC was made with EBUS-TBNA of a mediastinal lymph node. INTERVENTIONS: Whole-body 18F-FDG PET/CT was performed for the initial staging of SCLC, in the planning of radiotherapy treatment, to evaluate therapeutic response and in the follow-up. A dedicated brain scan was included to the same PET session. Whole-body contrast enhanced computed tomography (CT) and contrast enhanced whole-brain MRI were also performed. OUTCOMES: She was administered neoadjuvant chemioterapy with Cisplatin and Etoposide with concomitant radiotherapy treatment. Whole body 18F-FDG PET/CT showed a complete metabolic response already after 3 cycles of chemioterapy. Brain functional study showed a metabolic pattern characterized by the migration of hypermetabolism in the bilateral hippocampal areas during the therapeutic treatment, which correlated with the persistence of clinical symptoms. LESSONS: In the era of personalized medicine and targeted therapy, this case highlights the importance of the 18F-FDG PET/CT study as an accurate tool to identify PLE and to guide the diagnostic work-up of the underlying tumor. Considering that most of these are 18F-FDG avid tumors and that the 18F-FDG PET/CT scan is often added to the diagnostic work-up when screening patients for malignancy, this functional imaging can play a decisive role.

Competence in endosonographic techniques.

Endobronchial ultrasound (EBUS) has revolutionized the field of bronchoscopy because it allows to observe peribronchial structures and distal peripheral lung lesions. The use of EBUS was first described by Hurte and Hanrath in 1992. EBUS technology exists in two forms: radial and convex transducer probes. The radial EBUS probe has a 20-MHZ (12-30 MHz available) rotating transducer that can be inserted together with or without a guide sheath through the working channel (2.0-2.8 mm) of a standard flexible bronchoscope. The transducer rotates and produces a 360-degree circular image around the central position of the probe. There are two types of radial EBUS probes: "peripheral" probes, used to identify parenchymal lung lesions, and "central" probes, with balloon sheaths, used for the assessment of airway walls and peribronchial lymph nodes.