Adipose-derived stem cells are an ideal mesenchymal stem cell population for regenerative medical application. The isolation procedure is performed by mechanical isolation under a laminar air flow bench without using serum or animal-derived reagents; cells were characterized by flow cytometric analysis. Cell availability is improved compared with enzymatic digestion procedures. The adipose-derived stem cell mechanical isolating procedure presented here is easier, safer, cheaper, and faster than traditional currently performed enzymatic procedures.

White adipose tissue is the most abundant and accessible source of stem cells in the adult human body. In this paper, we present a standardised and safe method of isolating and maximizing the number of adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) from conventional liposuction for clinical applications, which was carried out through both mechanical (centrifuge) and enzymatic (collagenase) means. Isolated cells were characterized through flow cytometry assay. Gathered data showed a greater amount (9.06 × 10(5) ASCs from 100 mL of adipose tissue) of isolated ASCs compared to previous protocol, also with high (99%) cell vitality; the procedure we presented is easy and fast (80 minutes), allowing collecting a significative number of mesenchymal stem cells, which can be used for clinical purposes, such as wound healing.

Following the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) authorization of the rapid antigen test (RAT), we implemented the use of the RAT in the emergency ward of our university hospital for patients’ cohorting. RAT triaging in association with RT-PCR allowed us to promptly isolate positive patients and save resources. Among 532 patients, overall sensitivities were 48.3% for Exdia and 41.2% for Standard Q^®, Panbio^TM and BD Veritor™. All RATs exhibited specificity above 99%. Sensitivity increased to 74.6%, 66.2%, 66.2% and 64.8% for Exdia, Standard Q^®, Panbio^TM and BD Veritor™, respectively, for viral loads above 10⁵ copies/mL, to 100%, 97.8%, 96.6% and 95.6% for viral loads above 10⁶ copies/mL and 100% for viral loads above 10⁷ copies/mL. Sensitivity was significantly higher for patients with symptoms onset within four days (74.3%, 69.2%, 69.2% and 64%, respectively) versus patients with the evolution of symptoms longer than four days (36.8%, 21.1%, 21.1% and 23.7%, respectively). Among COVID-19 asymptomatic patients, sensitivity was 33%. All Immunoglobulin-A-positive patients resulted negative for RAT. The RAT might represent a useful resource in selected clinical settings as a complementary tool in RT-PCR for rapid patient triaging, but the lower sensitivity, especially in late presenters and COVID-19 asymptomatic subjects, must be taken into account.

Recent insights into the pathogenesis of migraine headache substantiate a neuronal hyperexcitability and inflammation involving compressed peripheral craniofacial nerves, and these trigger points can be eliminated by surgery. The aim of this study was to describe a modified, innovative, minimally invasive endoscopic technique to perform selective myotomies of corrugator supercilii, depressor supercilii, and procerus muscles, which turned out to be an effective therapy for migraine and tension-type headaches. Forty-three patients (18–75 years) who experienced 15 or more frontal migraine headaches without aura, tension-type headaches, or new daily persistent headaches each month were enrolled in the study between 2011 and 2013. Of 43 patients, 15 were followed for 2 years. Fourteen patients (93.3%) reported a positive response to the surgery: 5 (33.3%) observed complete elimination, 9 (60%) experienced significant improvement (at least 50% reduction in intensity or frequency), and 1 patient (6.6%) did not notice any change in their headaches. A statistically significant difference was found between our protocol compared with currently performed, more invasive technique (odds ratio, 1.9; 95% confidence interval, 1.151–3.13). According to our data, the modified endoscopic procedure leads to better results, compared to previous techniques, together with eliminating the need for general anesthesia, reducing the invasiveness of the procedure and the number of postoperative scars.

Saliva sampling could serve as an alternative non-invasive sample for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis while rapid antigen tests (RATs) might help to mitigate the shortage of reagents sporadically encountered with RT-PCR. Thus, in the RESTART study we compared antigen and RT-PCR testing methods on nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs and salivary samples. We conducted a prospective observational study among COVID-19 hospitalized patients between 10 December 2020 and 1 February 2021. Paired saliva and NP samples were investigated by RT-PCR (Cobas 6800, Roche-Switzerland, Basel, Switzerland) and by two rapid antigen tests: One Step Immunoassay Exdia^® COVID-19 Ag (Precision Biosensor, Daejeon, Korea) and Standard Q^® COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Test (Roche-Switzerland). A total of 58 paired NP-saliva specimens were collected. A total of 32 of 58 (55%) patients were hospitalized in the intensive care unit, and the median duration of symptoms was 11 days (IQR 5-19). NP and salivary RT-PCR exhibited sensitivity of 98% and 69% respectively, whereas the specificity of these RT-PCRs assays was 100%. The NP RATs exhibited much lower diagnostic performance, with sensitivities of 35% and 41% for the Standard Q^® and Exdia^® assays, respectively, when a wet-swab approach was used (i.e., when the swab was diluted in the viral transport medium (VTM) before testing). The sensitivity of the dry-swab approach was slightly better (47%). These antigen tests exhibited very low sensitivity (4% and 8%) when applied to salivary swabs. Nasopharyngeal RT-PCR is the most accurate test for COVID-19 diagnosis in hospitalized patients. RT-PCR on salivary samples may be used when nasopharyngeal swabs are contraindicated. RATs are not appropriate for hospitalized patients.