Browsing by Author "Veroux, Pierfrancesco"

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    Attachment and parental bond: impact on psychopathology, mental health and quality of life of hemodialysis patients: a cross-sectional study
    (BMC, 2023-07-15) De Pasquale, Concetta; Pistorio, Maria Luisa; Veroux, Massimiliano; Sapienza, Gabriella; Florio, Alberto; Hichy, Zira; Ekser, Burcin; Giaquinta, Alessia; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Background: Attachment theory represents a reference model for understanding better how pre-existing personality factors can influence the coping with some chronic conditions. The onset of a chronic disease can represent a "threat" to the relationships between the subject and parental figures according to the type of bond that already exists. The aim of our study was to explore attachment styles in a sample of hemodialysis patients, hypothesizing that a secure attachment bond can constitute a protective factor for the quality of life and mental health in this type of patients. Design: We used a cross-sectional design. Methods: Fifty hemodialysis patients were given the following tests: Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ) to assess attachment styles, Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) to assess parental bonding, Short Form Health Survey-36 (SF-36) for perceived quality of life and Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire (MHQ) to detect key psychological symptoms and relevant traits. Results: The results showed that secure attachment style correlated with good general health (r = 0.339; p < 0.05), good mental health (r = 0.547; p < 0.001) and mental component scale (r = 0.373; p < 0.05) of SF-36. Secure attachment was also significantly associated with mental health (B = 1.104; p = .002) of the SF-36. Conclusions: The results confirmed the positive role of a secure attachment style for adequate psychological health. Early identification of patients with dysfunctional attachment styles will make it possible to offer them targeted interventions to improve their ability to accept, adapt and manage the disease and to maintain adequate psychological well-being.
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    Gastrointestinal complications after kidney transplantation
    (Baishideng Publishing Group Inc., 2020-10-14) Gioco, Rossella; Corona, Daniela; Ekser, Burcin; Puzzo, Lidia; Inserra, Gaetano; Pinto, Flavia; Schipa, Chiara; Privitera, Francesca; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Veroux, Massimiliano; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Gastrointestinal complications are common after renal transplantation, and they have a wide clinical spectrum, varying from diarrhoea to post-transplant inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Chronic immunosuppression may increase the risk of post-transplant infection and medication-related injury and may also be responsible for IBD in kidney transplant re-cipients despite immunosuppression. Differentiating the various forms of post-transplant colitis is challenging, since most have similar clinical and histological features. Drug-related colitis are the most frequently encountered colitis after kidney transplantation, particularly those related to the chronic use of mycophenolate mofetil, while de novo IBDs are quite rare. This review will explore colitis after kidney transplantation, with a particular focus on different clinical and histological features, attempting to clearly identify the right treatment, thereby improving the final outcome of patients.
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    Heme-Oxygenase and Kidney Transplantation: A Potential for Target Therapy?
    (MDPI, 2020-05-30) Corona, Daniela; Ekser, Burcin; Gioco, Rossella; Caruso, Massimo; Schipa, Chiara; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Giaquinta, Alessia; Granata, Antonio; Veroux, Massimiliano; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Kidney transplantation is a well-established therapy for patients with end-stage renal disease. While a significant improvement of short-term results has been achieved in the short-term, similar results were not reported in the long-term. Heme-oxygenase (HO) is the rate-limiting enzyme in heme catabolism, converting heme to iron, carbon monoxide, and biliverdin. Heme-oxygenase overexpression may be observed in all phases of transplant processes, including brain death, recipient management, and acute and chronic rejection. HO induction has been proved to provide a significant reduction of inflammatory response and a reduction of ischemia and reperfusion injury in organ transplantation, as well as providing a reduction of incidence of acute rejection. In this review, we will summarize data on HO and kidney transplantation, suggesting possible clinical applications in the near future to improve the long-term outcomes.
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    Kidney Transplantation From Donors with Hepatitis B
    (International Scientific Literature, 2016-04-28) Veroux, Massimiliano; Ardita, Vincenzo; Corona, Daniela; Giaquinta, Alessia; Ekser, Burcin; Sinagra, Nunziata; Zerbo, Domenico; Patanè, Marco; Gozzo, Cecilia; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Department of Surgery, IU School of Medicine
    The growing demand for organ donors to supply the increasing number of patients on kidney waiting lists has led most transplant centers to develop protocols that allow safe use of organs from donors with special clinical situations previously regarded as contraindications. Deceased donors with previous hepatitis B may be a safe resource to increase the donor pool even if there is still controversy among transplantation centers regarding the use of hepatitis B surface antigen-positive donors for renal transplantation. However, when allocated to serology-matched recipients, kidney transplantation from donors with hepatitis B may result in excellent short-term outcome. Many concerns may arise in the long-term outcome, and studies must address the evaluation of the progression of liver disease and the rate of reactivation of liver disease in the recipients. Accurate selection and matching of both donor and recipient and correct post-transplant management are needed to achieve satisfactory long-term outcomes.
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    Mental health, COVID-19 burden and quality of life of kidney transplant recipients two years after the COVID-19 pandemic
    (Frontiers Media, 2024-05-01) De Pasquale, Concetta; Pistorio, Maria Luisa; Veroux, Massimiliano; Barbagallo, Noemi; Cottone, Provvidenza Marisa; Ekser, Burcin; Lorenzano, Giuseppina; Giaquinta, Alessia; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Introduction: Few studies have evaluated the psychological distress of COVID-19 in kidney transplantation and the psychological impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on kidney transplant recipients is not yet well understood. The present study aimed to investigate the change in symptom burden and health-related quality of life in the two years after initial assessment, by outlining the change over time of symptoms at 12 and 24 months of follow-up. Methods: This is a follow-up study. We performed a study published in 2021 (phase 1 of COVID-19); of the 89 kidney transplant recipients evaluated in this study, 60 completed the 12 months follow-up (March 2021 June 2021, phase 2 of COVID-19) and 57 completed the 24 months follow-up (March 2022 June 2022, post COVID-19). The same tools as in previous study were administered: the ad hoc questionnaire on emotional state and psychophysical well-being during COVID-19, the Middlesex Hospital Questionnaire (MHQ) to provide a simple and rapid quantification of the psychological and somatic symptoms and the Short Form Health Survey 36 (SF-36) was used to assess health-related quality of life. Results: Compared to the first and second phase of COVID-19, the mean score of quality of life variables were higher in the post COVID-19 phase; thus the recipients physical health, mental health and their perception of their general health improved. Regarding the psychopathology variables the levels of Anxiety, Depression and Phobia in the Post COVID-19 phase decreased, while the Somatization score was higher. Lastly, burden of COVID-19 scores in the third phase, significantly decreased. Discussion: Our study highlights a significant association between mental health and the burden of COVID-19 pandemic in kidney transplant recipients. This study showed, a significant worsening, over time, of some specific symptoms, such as somatization and phobias. However, the results showed that depressive symptoms improved during the study period. Long-term monitoring of kidney transplant recipients therefore remains fundamental. These results confirmed the need to provide integrated multidisciplinary services to adequately address the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of the most vulnerable subjects.
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    Mesenteric lymph nodes as alternative site for pancreatic islet transplantation in a diabetic rat model
    (BMC, 2019-04) Veroux, Massimiliano; Bottino, Rita; Santini, Roberta; Bertera, Suzanne; Corona, Daniela; Zerbo, Domenico; Volti, Giovanni Li; Ekser, Burcin; Puzzo, Lidia; Raffaele, Marco; Bianco, Salvatore Lo; Giaquinta, Alessia; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Vanella, Luca; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Background Islet transplantation has progressively become a safe alternative to pancreas transplantation for the treatment of type 1 diabetes. However, the long-term results of islet transplantation could be significantly increased by improving the quality of the islet isolation technique even exploring alternative islet transplantation sites to reduce the number of islets required to mitigate hyperglycemia. The goal of the study was to test the lymph node as a suitable anatomical location for islet engraftment in a rodent model. Methods Forty Lewis rats, 6–8 weeks old, body weight 250–300 g, have been used as islet donors and recipients in syngeneic islet transplantation experiments. Ten rats were rendered diabetic by one injection of 65 mg/Kg of streptozotocin. After pancreas retrieval from non diabetic donors, islet were isolated and transplanted in the mesenteric lymph nodes of 7 diabetic rats. Rats were followed for 30 days after islet transplantation. Results A total of 7 islet transplantations in mesenteric lymph nodes have been performed. Two rats died 24 and 36 h after transplantation due to complications. No transplanted rat acquired normal glucose blood levels and insulin independence after the transplantation. However, the mean blood levels of glycemia were significantly lower in transplanted rats compared with diabetic rats (470.4 mg/dl vs 605 mg/dl, p 0.04). Interestingly, transplanted rats have a significant weight increase after transplantation compared to diabetic rats (mean value 295 g in transplanted rats vs 245 g in diabetic rats, p < 0.05), with an overall improvement of social activities and health. Immunohistochemical analysis of the 5 mesenteric lymph nodes of transplanted rats demonstrated the presence of living islets in one lymph node. Conclusions Although islet engraftment in lymph nodes is possible, islet transplantation in lymph nodes in rats resulted in few improvements of glucose parameters.
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    Nonadherence to Immunosuppressants Among Transplant Recipients: Emotional Intelligence as a Predictive Factor During COVID-19 Pandemic
    (Dove Press, 2023-11-27) De Pasquale, Concetta; Barbagallo, Noemi; Veroux, Massimiliano; Pistorio, Maria Luisa; Zerbo, Domenico; Giaquinta, Alessia; Ekser, Burcin; Veroux, Pierfrancesco; Surgery, School of Medicine
    Purpose: To evaluate the association between emotional intelligence and fear of COVID-19 on self-reported adherence, based on a cross-sectional design. Patients and methods: Transplants recipient of both sexes aged 23-75 years old were evaluated at the Organ Transplant Unit, University Hospital of Catania, Italy. Data were analyzed using frequency, descriptives, Spearman and Pearson correlations, Chi-square goodness of fit test, and linear regression. Self-reported adherence was estimated with the Basel Assessment of Adherence with Immunosuppressive Medication Scale (BAASIS). Emotional intelligence and fear of COVID were, respectively, measured with the Emotional Intelligence Scale (EIS) and Multidimensional Assessment of COVID-19 Related Fears Scale (MAC-RF). This was a cross-sectional study of kidney transplant recipients. In reporting this study the authors followed the STROBE guidelines. Results: A correlation was found between EIS and MAC and between EIS and adherence but there was no correlation between MAC and adherence. A linear regression model was also conducted using a stepwise method, which indicated that EIS was a significant predictor of adherence (p <0.05). Conclusion: This study was found that EIS is a predictor of adherence to treatment in transplant patients. Fear of COVID, while positively correlated to EIS, is not correlated to the adherence's outcome, possibly due to the proper follow-up performed to the patients. Indeed, according to these results, we suggest to provide good follow-ups with recipients, with interviews also based on self-regulation and awareness.