Suchergebnisse

To investigate the attack rate and risk factors for probable dengue fever, a cross-sectional study was conducted of an Italian military unit after its deployment to East Timor. Probable dengue was contracted by 16 (6.6%) of 241 army troops and caused half of all medical evacuations (12/24); no cases were detected among navy and air force personnel.

The aim of this review is to offer dietary advice for individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) and neurogenic bowel dysfunction. With this in mind, we consider health conditions that are dependent on the level of lesion including skeletal muscle atrophy, autonomic dysreflexia and neurogenic bladder. In addition, SCI is often associated with a sedentary lifestyle, which increases risk for osteoporosis and diseases associated with chronic low-grade inflammation, including cardiovascular and chronic kidney diseases. The Mediterranean diet, along with exercise and dietary supplements, has been suggested as an anti-inflammatory intervention in individuals with SCI. However, individuals with chronic SCI have a daily intake of whole fruit, vegetables and whole grains lower than the recommended dietary allowance for the general population. Some studies have reported an increase in neurogenic bowel dysfunction symptoms after high fiber intake; therefore, this finding could explain the low consumption of plant foods. Low consumption of fibre induces dysbiosis, which is associated with both endotoxemia and inflammation. Dysbiosis can be reduced by exercise and diet in individuals with SCI. Therefore, to summarize our viewpoint, we developed a Mediterranean diet-based diet and exercise pyramid to integrate nutritional recommendations and exercise guidelines. Nutritional guidelines come from previously suggested recommendations for military veterans with disabilities and individuals with SCI, chronic kidney diseases, chronic pain and irritable bowel syndrome. We also considered the recent exercise guidelines and position stands for adults with SCI to improve muscle strength, flexibility and cardiorespiratory fitness and to obtain cardiometabolic benefits. Finally, dietary advice for Paralympic athletes is suggested.

We previously examined the safety and immunogenicity of multiple vaccines administered to a military cohort, divided into two groups, the first composed of students at military schools, thus operating inside the national borders for at least 3 years, and the other formed of soldiers periodically engaged in a 9-month-long mission abroad (Lebanon). In the current study, we analyzed 112 individuals of this cohort, 50 pertaining to the first group and 62 to the second group, in order to examine the possible late appearance of side effects and to calculate the half-life of the induced antibodies. Moreover, the possible involvement of B-cell polyclonal activation as a pathogenetic mechanism for long term antibody persistence has even been explored. No late side effects, as far as autoimmunity and/or lymphoproliferation appearance, have been noticed. The long duration of the vaccine induced anti-HAV antibodies has been confirmed, whereas the antibodies induced by tetravalent meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine have been found to persist above the threshold for putative protection for a longer time, and anti-tetanus, diphtheria, and polio 1 and 3 for a shorter time than previously estimated. No signs of polyclonal B-cell activation have been found, as a possible mechanism to understand the long antibody persistence.