Elisabetta Bacchi

• PhD
• Research Assistant at University of Verona

Purpose: Accurate quantification and monitoring of exercise “dose”, described by oxygen consumption (VO2), is necessary for exercise prescription and individualization. However, due to the complexity and elevated cost of direct, gold-standard methods, this is rarely done outside research laboratories. Heart rate index (HRindex) is a new simple meth...

Lifestyle is considered a cornerstone in the management of type 2 diabetes. In particular, both aerobic exercise training and resistance exercise training improve glucose control and attenuate insulin resistance, and a combination of these two types of training is recommended in individuals with diabetes. Interestingly, several studies have clearly...

Context Structured exercise programs are of great benefit for the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). However, whether aerobic (AER) or resistance (RES) exercise training exert specific epigenetic changes through the expression profile of circulating miRNAs (c-miRNAs) is still largely unknown. Objective To assess whether the c-miRNAs profile chan...

In western countries, aging is often accompanied by obesity and age-related obesity is characterized by vascular dysfunction and a low-grade inflammatory profile. Exercise is a nonpharmacological strategy able to decrease the development and incidence of risk factors for several health-threatening diseases. Nonetheless, its long-term effect on vasc...

Structured exercise programs are of great benefit in order to obtain a proper glycemic control in subjects with type diabetes (T2D). However, whether the metabolic effects of aerobic (AER) and resistance (RES) exercise exert specific changes in the expression profile of circulating miRNAs (c-miRNAs) is still largely unknown. We studied 24 individua...

Aim: To assess the association of psychological variables on leisure-time physical activity and sedentary time in men and women with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated 163 patients with T2D, consecutively recruited at the Diabetes Centre of the Verona General Hospital. Scores on depression and an...

Background: Physical activity is an essential part of prevention and therapeutic management in diabetes. Nevertheless, doubts remain as to whether endurance sports may contribute to worsen an enhanced oxidative DNA injury, frequently observed in diabetics. Methods: The study population consisted of 19 euglycemic and 16 diabetic amateur runners (9 w...

Objective Lifestyle is considered a major determinant of risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). We investigated whether daily physical activity (DPA) is associated with beta-cell function (BF) and/or insulin sensitivity (IS) in patients with T2D at the time of diagnosis. Methods In 41 subjects enrolled in the Verona Newly-Diagnosed Type 2 Diabetes Study w...

Background and Aims Both aerobic (AER) and resistance (RES) training improve metabolic control in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM). However, information on the effects of these training modalities on cardiovascular autonomic control is limited. Our aim was to compare the effects of AER and RES training on cardiovascular autonomic function in th...

Percentage of body fat (%BF) is estimated in clinical practice using anthropometric equations, but little is known about their reliability in overweight/obese patients with type-2 diabetes. The aim of this study was to compare, in overweight/obese adults with type-2 diabetes, %BF estimated with several commonly used anthropometric equations and %BF...

We compared the effects of a new physical activity education program approach (EDU), based on a periodically supervised protocol of different exercise modalities vs traditionally supervised combined strength-endurance training (CT) on health-related factors in patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Twenty-eight COPD pati...

Purpose: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common and heterogeneous endocrine disorder, affecting 8-12% of reproductive-aged women. Insulin resistance and body fat excess are common features in these subjects. Increased physical activity and diet modifications are the first recommended approach in the management of these women, at least in ove...

The aims of the present study were to assess the volume of physical activity (PA) throughout pregnancy in normal-weight vs overweight/obese women, and to investigate which factors may predict compliance to PA recommendations in these women throughout gestation. In 236 pregnant women, 177 normal-weight and 59 overweight/obese (median[IQR] BMI 21.2[1...

Original data. (XLS)

Exercise has a powerful action on metabolism, and adaptation of the body to changes induced by exercise is fundamental to be able to provide the energy required for muscle contraction and physiological functions of vital tissues. Depending on the intensity and duration of exercise, different mechanisms are called on to make energy available, and un...

Nordic Walking (NW) owes much of its popularity to the benefits of greater energy expenditure and upper body engagement than found in conventional walking (W). Muscle activation during NW is still understudied, however. The aim of the present study was to assess differences in muscle activation and physiological responses between NWand W in level a...

Limited literature has shown that maximal oxygen consumption (V'O2max ), i.e. the maximal capacity of an individual to perform aerobic work, may be lowered in overweight/obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). However, it remains unclear whether this impairment is associated to PCOS per se or is entirely due to body fat excess. Our objec...

Factors contributing to the reduced cardiorespiratory fitness typical of sedentary subjects with type 2 diabetes are still largely unknown. In this study, we assessed the relationships between cardiorespiratory fitness and abdominal and skeletal muscle fat content in 39 untrained type 2 diabetes subjects, 27 males and 12 females (mean ± SD age 56.5...

Factors contributing to the reduced cardiorespiratory fitness typical of sedentary subjects with type 2 diabetes are still largely unknown. In this study, we assessed the relationships between cardiorespiratory fitness and abdominal and skeletal muscle fat content in 39 untrained type 2 diabetes subjects, 27 males and 12 females (mean ± SD age 56.5...

Unlabelled: Although lifestyle interventions are considered the first-line therapy for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which is extremely common in people with type 2 diabetes, no intervention studies have compared the effects of aerobic (AER) or resistance (RES) training on hepatic fat content in type 2 diabetic subjects with NAFLD. In...

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by frequent ectopic fat accumulation in several tissues and organs. In particular, a number of studies showed that these subjects frequently have hepatic fat accumulation, which may play a role in the metabolic abnormalities typical of diabetes and has been also linked to increased risk for cardiovascular disease. I...

In this paper we have demonstrated for the first time that 4 months of resistance (RES) or aerobic (AER) training are equally effective in reducing hepatic fat content among sedentary type 2 diabetes subjects with NAFLD. This study was a sub-project of the RAED2 Study, a RCT aimed at comparing the metabolic effects of RES and AER training in diabet...

Both aerobic (AER) and resistance (RES) training, if maintained over a period of several months, reduce HbA1c levels in type 2 diabetes subjects. However, it is still unknown whether the short-term effects of these types of exercise on blood glucose are similar. Our objective was to assess whether there may be a difference in acute blood glucose ch...

CONSORT checklist. (DOC)

Trial protocol. (DOC)

Background: Several studies have reported that low body weight and menstrual alterations are very frequent findings in elite dancers, suggesting they could be at risk for associated medical problems. However, it is still largely unknown whether these alterations are also common in the very large number of young amateur dancers. Aim: The aim of t...

To assess differences between the effects of aerobic and resistance training on HbA(1c) (primary outcome) and several metabolic risk factors in subjects with type 2 diabetes, and to identify predictors of exercise-induced metabolic improvement. Type 2 diabetic patients (n = 40) were randomly assigned to aerobic training or resistance training. Befo...

To evaluate the impact of an exercise program organized into supervised walking groups in subjects with type 2 diabetes. Fifty-nine diabetic subjects were randomized to a control group receiving standard lifestyle recommendations or an intervention group assigned to three supervised walking sessions per week and counseling. Changes in metabolic fea...