Annamaria Porreca

San Raffaele University of Rome

The World Wide Web (WWW) has become a popular and readily accessible big data source in recent decades. The information in the WWW is offered in many different types, e.g. Google Trends, which provides deep insights into people's search queries in the Google Search engine. Analysing this kind of data is not straightforward because they usually take...

Intertemporal preferences are closely related to essential aspects of an individual’s emotional and cognitive domains. Discount functions are used to quantify these preferences, which can help us understand conditions such as addiction, depression, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). However, traditional parametric models are limit...

Diversity is fundamental in many disciplines, such as ecology, business, biology, and medicine. From a statistical perspective, calculating a measure of diversity, whatever the context of reference, always poses the same methodological challenges. For example, in the ecological field, although biodiversity is widely recognised as a positive element...

Diversity is vital across various fields like ecology, business, and medicine. From a statistical standpoint, determining diversity presents consistent methodological hurdles, regardless of the specific context. For instance, in ecology, while biodiversity is widely acknowledged as beneficial for ecosystems, there is no universally accepted measure...

Purpose To quantitatively explore preretinal abnormal tissue (PAT) in macula-on rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD) before and after surgery. Methods In this case-series study, PAT was detected by en-face optical coherence tomography images with custom slabs in eyes that underwent pars plana vitrectomy and SF6 for macula-on RRD. Main outcome m...

The motivation behind this research stems from the inherent complexity and vagueness in human social interactions, which traditional social network analysis (SNA) approaches often fail to capture adequately. Conventional SNA methods typically represent relationships as binary or weighted ties, thereby losing the subtle nuances and inherent uncertai...

Introduction The introduction of multiparametric prostate magnetic resonance imaging (mpMRI) has revolutionized prostate cancer (PCa) diagnosis, enhancing the localization of clinically significant prostate cancer (csPCa) and guiding targeted biopsies. However, significant disparities in the execution, interpretation, and reporting of prostate MRI...

Purpose To analyze choroidal and choriocapillaris changes in eyes affected by active unilateral central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC). Methods A total of 17 eyes suffering from naïve CSC were enrolled. In addition, 17 healthy fellow eyes were analyzed, and 10 eyes were enrolled as controls. Main outcome measures were choroidal vascularity index (...

This study aimed to analyze Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) parameters and Macular Pigment Optical Density (MPOD) changes in patients affected by Retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Eighteen eyes of 18 patients suffering from early-stage RP were enrolled in our observational study. 18 eyes of 18 patients age and gender matched were enrolled as controls....

Purpose To identify novel quantitative parameters for evaluating photoreceptor loss in full-thickness macular holes (FTMH), exploring their potential clinical impact on postoperative functional and anatomical recovery. Methods This pilot study enrolled 38 eyes from 38 patients diagnosed with FTMH. Preoperatively, eyes underwent analysis and were s...

Purpose To compare the visual and anatomical results of navigated subthreshold micropulse laser (nSML) and photodynamic therapy (PDT) in the treatment of chronic central serous chorioretinopathy (CSCR). Methods Patients who underwent either half-dose PDT or nSML for the management of chronic CSCR were included in this study. Comprehensive ophthalm...

Background: Assessing hand function is essential for many people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The Measure of Activity Performance of the Hand (MAP-Hand) allows a rapid evaluation of the hand. Objective: To translate the MAP-Hand into Turkish and investigate its psychometric properties. Method: The MAP-Hand was translated into Turkish by usi...

The primary objective of this study is to explore and validate the potential of the human microbiome, specifically in the colon, as a valuable source of biomarkers for colorectal cancer (CRC) detection and progression. The focus is on developing a classifier that effectively predicts the presence of CRC and NORMAL samples based on the analysis of t...

Classical finance models are based on the premise that investors act rationally and utilize all available information when making portfolio decisions. However, these models often fail to capture the anomalies observed in intertemporal choices and decision-making under uncertainty, particularly when accounting for individual differences in preferenc...

Introduction: The aim of this study was to investigate demographic, anatomical, angiographic, and functional parameters in patients suffering from polypoidal choroidal vasculopathy (PCV). Methods: Sixty eyes of 60 patients with a definite diagnosis of treatment-naïve exudative unilateral PCV were evaluated in this retrospective study. Fellow eye...

The positioning of this research falls within the scalar-on-function classification literature, a field of significant interest across various domains, particularly in statistics, mathematics, and computer science. This study introduces an advanced methodology for supervised classification by integrating Functional Data Analysis (FDA) with tree-bas...

Background This study aimed to assess the influence of vitreoretinal interface (VRI) on the outcome of Brolucizumab intravitreal injections (IVBr) in patients with age-related macular neovascularization (MNV). Methods 40 eyes of 40 patients with active-naive MNV candidates to IVBr were enrolled at the Ophthalmology Clinic of the University “G. d’A...

Introduction: The aim of the study was to evaluate functional and anatomical changes in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) treated with a loading dose of faricimab intravitreal injections (IVIs). Methods: Eighteen eyes of 18 patients with active macular neovascularization and nAMD were enrolled at the Ophthalmology Cl...

Background Artificial intelligence (AI) has become a popular tool for clinical and research use in the medical field. The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy and reliability of a generative AI tool on pediatric familial Mediterranean fever (FMF). Methods Fifteen questions repeated thrice on pediatric FMF were prompted to the popular gen...

This paper introduces a novel supervised classification strategy that integrates functional data analysis (FDA) with tree-based methods, addressing the challenges of high-dimensional data and enhancing the classification performance of existing functional classifiers. Specifically, we propose augmented versions of functional classification trees an...

The advent of big data has raised significant challenges in analysing high-dimensional datasets across various domains such as medicine, ecology, and economics. Functional Data Analysis (FDA) has proven to be a robust framework for addressing these challenges, enabling the transformation of high-dimensional data into functional forms that capture i...

Social network analysis (SNA) helps us understand the relationships and interactions between individuals, groups, organizations, or other social entities. In the literature, ties are generally considered binary or weighted based on their strength. Nonetheless, when the actors are individuals, these relationships are often imprecise, and identifying...

Objectives: This retrospective study compared the outcomes of implants placed in alveolar ridge preservation (ARP) treated sites with those in spontaneously healed (SH) sites. Materials and methods: The study included patients presenting with one implant placed in an ARP-treated socket and one in an SH site. The primary outcome was the compariso...

Purpose Transduodenal surgical ampullectomy (tAMP) with papillary reimplantation is a valid alternative to pancreaticoduodenectomy for lesions of the periampullary region not amenable to endoscopic resection. As tAMP is burdened by high rates of biliopancreatic-enteric anastomotic leak, we tested preventive endoluminal vacuum therapy (eVAC) combine...

To analyze in vivo scleral changes induced by MicroPulse transscleral laser therapy (MP-TLT) in refractory glaucoma using anterior segment–optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT). Forty-two candidate patients for MP-TLT were consecutively enrolled and underwent AS-OCT at baseline and after six months. MP-TLT success was defined as an intraocular pres...

Background/aim: Neoadjuvant radiochemotherapy followed by surgery is a standard of care in locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). Only a subgroup of patients can obtain a pathological complete response (pCR) and achieve good local control. However, the role of pCR on patient survival is debated. The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of p...

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has significantly affected the pediatric population. Long-term sequelae (Long COVID-19) may particularly involve the central nervous system, with possible effects on psychological well-being and quality of life (QoL), aspects that were already influenced by the restrictive measures and general social impact of t...

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to investigate long-term outcomes of intravitreal injections (IVI) of antivascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) with type 3 macular neovascularization (MNV). Methods: This retrospective study included 19 eyes of 17 patients with nAMD and type 3 MN...

Background: Opinions in the literature on the impact of cancer on patients with haemophilia are contradictory. There is a lack of data on the clinical presentation and management of cancer in patients with haemophilia (PWH). Methods: Papers were found following a comprehensive search in PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus using the terms “cancer” an...

Introduction: As the integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in healthcare continues to advance, the need for rigorous study design and research protocols tailored to diagnostic and prognostic studies becomes paramount.Aim: The primary objective of this work is to highlight the biostatistician’s point of view about the key points of the researc...

Background: Identifying predictive factors of long COVID syndrome (LCS) is essential to preventing and managing this condition. We investigated the prevalence, symptoms, and risk factors of LCS in a cohort of Italian children and adolescents. Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional survey on demographic characteristics and clinical data related t...

Cerebrovascular accident is the most ominous complication observed after cardiac surgery, carrying an increased risk of morbidity and mortality. Analysis of the problem shows its multidimensional nature. In this study, we aimed to identify major determinants among classic variables, either demographic, clinical or type of surgical procedure, based...

Animal models have demonstrated that structural changes affect the macula during peripheral rhegmatogenous retinal detachment. This study aimed to assess photoreceptors, retinal and choriocapillaris perfusion in non-macula involving rhegmatogenous retinal detachment by analyzing en-face images from structural OCTA segmented at the ellipsoid zone (E...

We conducted a cross-sectional study to compare macular pigment optical density (MPOD) in eyes with idiopathic macular holes with bumpy (bbMH) and smooth borders (sbMH) and to assess the relation between MPOD and optical coherence tomography findings. Thirty eyes from thirty patients affected by idiopathic macular hole were studied. All patients un...

Background: Opinions on the impact of cancer on patients with haemophilia literature are contradicting. There is a lack of data on the clinical presentation and management of cancer in patients with haemophilia (PWH). Methods: Papers were found following a comprehensive search in PubMed, Google Scholar, and Scopus using the terms “cancer” and “haem...

Background: In this study, we aimed to report the short-term (6 months) effects on visual functionality and safety of femto-laser assisted smaller-incision new-generation implantable miniature telescope (SING-IMT™) implanting, particularly related to postsurgical intraocular pressure increase, in patients suffering from end-stage age-related macula...

Purpose: The aim of the study was to analyze choroidal vascularity index (CVI) fluctuations in patients with epiretinal membrane after vitreoretinal surgery, comparing idiopathic and secondary diabetic ones. Methods: Thirty eyes suffering from idiopathic ERMs (I-ERMS; n = 15) and diabetic ERMs (D-ERMS; n = 15) were analyzed in this observational...

Purpose :To evaluate functional and anatomical changes in type 1 and type 2 naïve MNV patients treated with brolucizumab injections up to one year of treatment (week 48). Methods: 38 eyes of 38 patients with active MNV were enrolled at the Ophthalmology Clinic of the University “G. d’Annunzio”, Chieti-Pescara, Italy. All patients were scheduled for...

The assessment of renal function is critical to diagnosing and managing renal age-related decline, disease (KD), and failure, which are prevalent in the elderly population. The glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is widely used as an indicator of kidney function, but its direct measurement is challenging, as are its age and gender caveats. This makes...

This study aimed at predicting the filtration surgery (FS) outcome using a machine learning (ML) approach. 102 glaucomatous patients undergoing FS were enrolled and underwent ocular surface clinical tests (OSCTs), determination of surgical site-related biometric parameters (SSPs) and conjunctival vascularization. Break-up-time, Schirmer test I, cor...

BACKGROUND For patients affected by haemophilia, Patient Support Programs (PSPs) may be a support tool to assist patients and physicians in optimising treatment and improving disease management. PSP on the Pharmacokinetics (PK) service in Italy aims to support haemophilia A or B patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS This report analyses data of patients...

Background In Europe, flu vaccination coverage has decreased, and there are complex barriers to overcome to vaccinate against flu. Many studies have been conducted to estimate vaccination coverage. The COVID-19 pandemic threatens to disrupt immunization programs in many countries, including Italy, where vaccination against the flu is recommended bu...

Introduction The health consequences of lactose intolerance remain unclear. We studied the association of lactose intolerance with growth in children. Methods In this prospective case–control study, we compared Caucasian prepubertal children with lactose intolerance (LI) [ n = 30, median age = 7.87 years (3.00–12.75)] to healthy controls [( n = 75...

Background: Acquired hemophilia A (AHA) is a rare bleeding disease due to autoantibodies directed against clotting factor VIII (FVIII). Treatment of AHA consists of inhibitor eradication with immunosuppressive therapy (IST) and prompt control of bleeding obtained with bypassing agents or recombinant porcine FVIII (rpFVIII). The latter has recently...

Objectives: Alveolar ridge preservation (ARP) is a procedure with the aim to reduce bone resorption that occurs after tooth extraction, facilitating the following implant placement. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the prevalence of mucositis and peri-implantitis around implants inserted in sites treated with ARP and to invest...

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze choroidal and retinal vascular alterations of both the macula and midperiphery areas in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 infection complicated with pneumonia within 30 days from discharge. Methods: A total of 46 eyes of 23 subjects with a history of symptomatic COVID-19 infection and recent hos...

A Nasal Provocation Test allows the differentiation of allergic and non-allergic rhinitis, but it is difficult and expensive. Therefore, nasal cytology is taking hold as an alternative. We carried out a cross-sectional study, including 29 patients with persistent rhinitis according to ARIA definition and negative skin prick tests. Nasal symptoms we...

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate optical coherence tomography (OCT) and OCT angiography (OCTA) parameters in patients with neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and macular neovascularization (MNV) type 1, type 2, and type 3. Methods: In this retrospective study, 105 treatment-naïve eyes of 105 patients (60 men...

Background: The incidence of eating disorders (EDs), serious mental and physical conditions characterized by a disturbance in eating or eating-related behaviors, has increased steadily. The present study aims to develop insights into the pathophysiology of EDs, spanning over biochemical, epigenetic, psychopathological, and clinical data. In partic...

Background There is limited information available on fast and safe bedside tools that could help clinicians establish whether the pathological process underlying cases of wheezing is due to asthmatic exacerbation, asthmatic bronchitis, or pneumonia. The study's aim was to characterize Lung Ultrasound (LUS) in school-aged children with wheezing and...

Background Description of a large cohort of Akin osteotomies without fixation (286 feet), to depict the mean angular correction, to analyze complication rates and to pull over with rates described in the literature with other techniques. Methods Retrospective single-center cohort study. Five radiologic measurements analyzed preoperatively and post...

Background/aim: T2 weighted magnetic resonance (MR) imaging is the gold standard for locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC) staging. The potential benefit of functional imaging, as diffusion-weighted MR (DWI) and positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT), could be considered for treatment intensification strategies. Dose intensifica...

In this paper, we aim to evaluate the potential of mixed models in assessing the impact of ibuprofen, fluoxetine, and a mix of them, on the Gosner stage development of Bufo bufo tadpoles, using incomplete trajectory data. We consider the mixed effects models as a good choice to deal with missing data, the within-subject correlations over time, and...

In this paper, we aim to evaluate the potential of mixed models in assessing the impact of ibuprofen, fluoxetine, and a mix of them, on the Gosner stage of Bufo bufo tadpoles, using incomplete trajectory data. We consider the mixed effects models as a good choice to deal with missing data, the within-subject correlations over time, and the feasibil...

Both SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination have raised concern in immune-mediated diseases, including immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) considering risk of de novo ITP development and ITP recurrence. Here, we report on data from a single-center retrospective–prospective collection aiming to evaluate platelet (plt) dynamics in patients (pts) with...

Background and purpose A prognostic scoring system based on laboratory inflammation parameters, [Hemo-Eosinophils-Inflammation (HEI) index], including baseline hemoglobin level, the systemic inflammatory index and eosinophil count was recently proposed in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the anus (ASCC). HEI was shown to discriminate diseas...

Purpose: to assess the anatomical and functional changes after brolucizumab intravitreal injection (BIVI) in macular neovascularization type 1 (MNV1). Setting/Venue: Ophthalmology Clinic, University "G. d'Annunzio" of Chieti-Pescara. Methods: A total of 24 eyes of 24 patients suffering from naïve MNV1 candidates to BIVI as per label with q12/q8...

The introduction Caplacizumab in the management of Immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (iTTP) has raised different questions, considering its cost-efficacy and the optimal immunosuppressive treatment (IST) to associate. A retrospective multicenter collection of 42 first iTTP cases was conducted to identify variables associated with a higher...