Maria Antonia Brighetti - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Maria Antonia Brighetti

Frontiers in Allergy

BackgroundNasal provocation testing (NPT) is a reference methodology to identify the culprit alle... more BackgroundNasal provocation testing (NPT) is a reference methodology to identify the culprit allergen in patients with allergic rhinitis. Selecting the right allergen for NPT is particularly difficult in poly-sensitized patients with seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR). Predictors of NPT outcomes may facilitate the proper use of this test or even substitute it.ObjectiveTo identify predictors of grass pollen NPT outcome from an array of clinical data, e-diary outcomes, and allergy test results in poly-sensitized pediatric patients with SAR.MethodsPoly-sensitized, SAR patients with grass pollen allergy, participating in the @IT.2020 pilot project in Rome and Pordenone (Italy), participated in a baseline (T0) visit with questionnaires, skin prick testing (SPT), and blood sampling to measure total (ImmunoCAP, TFS, Sweden) and specific IgE antibodies to grass pollen extracts and their major allergenic molecules (ESEP, Euroimmun Labordiagnostika, Germany). During the pollen season, patients ...

Sustainability, Feb 24, 2023

This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY

Sustainability, Apr 3, 2023

Among the alien species reported in Latium Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. deserves special considerat... more Among the alien species reported in Latium Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. deserves special consideration because of its potential danger for allergy subjects. The spread of the species in the area is relatively recent, and it’s among those normally moni- tored by the monitoring centres in Italy and Europe. More than ten years of observations aerobiological in the city of Rome have confirmed its presence. Its concentration seems to vary in relation to precipitation occurring before the summer.

The aim of this study is monitoring, mapping and forecast of pollen distribution for the city of ... more The aim of this study is monitoring, mapping and forecast of pollen distribution for the city of Rome using in-situ measurements of 10 species of common allergenic pollens and measurements of PM10. The production of daily concentration maps, associated to a mobile phone app, are innovative compared to existing dedicated services to people who suffer from respiratory allergies.

Boxplots show the proportional annual change of yearly pollen sums for the 23 pollen tax... more Boxplots show the proportional annual change of yearly pollen sums for the 23 pollen taxa analyzed (reasons for selection given in the main text). Medians are significantly different from zero (Mann-Whitney test, * : , ** : , *** : , n.s.: ) for 11 taxa. On the right, the percentages of significant trends are indicated for each taxon (of which the percentages of positive trends are given in parentheses). The height of the boxplot is related to sample size, taxa are arranged in decreasing order of their medians.</p

Log-scaled mean annual sum of airborne pollen was plotted against local mean temperature... more Log-scaled mean annual sum of airborne pollen was plotted against local mean temperature for 23 pollen taxa. Mean temperatures were calculated for two periods, January to April (associated with the flowering of Alnus, Betula, Carpinus, Corylus, Cupressaceae, Fagus, Fraxinus, Olea, Pinaceae, Platanus, Populus, Quercus, Salix, and Ulmus) or April to August (related to Ambrosia, Artemisia, Castanea, Chenopodiaceae, Plantago, Poaceae, Rumex, Tilia, and Urtica), over the period 1977–2009. Only significant regression lines are shown.</p

The local longest monitored period is shown as a red bar for each of the 97 locations co... more The local longest monitored period is shown as a red bar for each of the 97 locations considered. Missing years, occurring in few cases, have been omitted for clarity.</p

JMIR mHealth and uHealth

Background Mobile health technologies enable allergists to monitor disease trends by collecting d... more Background Mobile health technologies enable allergists to monitor disease trends by collecting daily patient-reported outcomes of allergic rhinitis. To this end, patients with allergies are usually required to enter their symptoms and medication repetitively over long time periods, which may present a risk to data completeness and quality in the case of insufficient effort reporting. Completeness of patient’s recording is easily measured. In contrast, the intrinsic quality and accuracy of the data entered by the patients are more elusive. Objective The aim of this study was to explore the association of adherence to digital symptom recording with a predefined set of parameters of the patient-generated symptom and medication scores and to identify parameters that may serve as proxy measure of the quality and reliability of the information recorded by the patient. Methods The @IT.2020 project investigates the diagnostic synergy of mobile health and molecular allergology in patients w...

I funghi provocano talora disturbi dell\u2019apparato respiratorio e sebbene alcuni semplici prov... more I funghi provocano talora disturbi dell\u2019apparato respiratorio e sebbene alcuni semplici provvedimenti possano rivelarsi determinanti per prevenirne lo sviluppo in ambiente domestico, la loro ubiquit\ue0 fa s\uec che essi si sviluppino sia outdoor che indoor. Un fattore predisponente allo sviluppo di asma bronchiale \ue8 la sensibilizzazione allergica, mentre l\u2019inquinamento ambientale gioca un altro ruolo di rilievo anche nelle altre patologie legate all\u2019esposizione a muffe: l\u2019aspergillosi broncopolmonare allergica, la rinosinusite, la sick building syndrome e la sindrome da polveri organiche tossiche. L\u2019immunoterapia specifica, in virt\uf9 del suo ormai accertato potere desensibilizzante, rappresenta un valido presidio terapeutico, specie in et\ue0 pediatrica, con valenza preventiva proprio dello sviluppo di asma

Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 2022

Nowadays, technology permeates every aspect of human activity, from the professional to the recre... more Nowadays, technology permeates every aspect of human activity, from the professional to the recreational side, and the recent pandemic crisis has only amplified a clearly defined trend.

Clinical & Experimental Allergy, 2021

Background: Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) is the only disease-modifying treatment in patients with... more Background: Allergen immunotherapy (AIT) is the only disease-modifying treatment in patients with seasonal allergic rhinoconjunctivitis (SAR). Its efficacy depends on the precise identification of the triggering allergen. However, diagnostics based on retrospective clinical history and sensitization to whole extracts (SWE) often leads to equivocal results. Objectives: To assess the usability and impact of a recently established algorithm for a clinical decision support system (@IT2020-CDSS) for SAR and its diagnostic steps [anamnesis, SWE (skin prick test or serum IgE), component resolved diagnosis, CRD, and real-time digital symptom recording, eDiary] on doctor's AIT prescription decisions. Methods: After educational training on the @IT2020-CDSS algorithm, 46 doctors (18 allergy specialists, AS, and 28 general practitioners, GP) expressed their hypothetical AIT prescription for 10 clinical index cases. Decisions were recorded repeatedly based on different steps of the algorithm. The usability and perceived impact of the algorithm were evaluated. Results: The combined use of CRD and an eDiary increased the hypothetical AIT prescriptions, both among AS and GP (p < .01). AIT prescription for pollen and Alternaria allergy based on anamnesis and SWE was heterogeneous but converged towards a consensus by integrating CRD and eDiary information. Doctors considered the algorithm useful and recognized its potential in enhancing traditional diagnostics. Conclusions and clinical implications: The implementation of CRD and eDiary in the @IT2020-CDSS algorithm improved consensus on AIT prescription for SAR among AS and GP. The potential usefulness of a CDSS for aetiological diagnosis of SAR and AIT prescription in real-world clinical practice deserves further investigation.

Clinical and Translational Allergy, 2021

Abstract Background Patient‐generated symptom and medication scores are essential for diagnostic ... more Abstract Background Patient‐generated symptom and medication scores are essential for diagnostic and therapeutic decisions in seasonal allergic rhinitis (SAR). Previous studies have shown solid consistencies between different scores at population level in real‐life data and trials. For clinicians, the evaluation of individual data quality over time is essential to decide whether to rely on these data in clinical decision‐making. Objective To analyze the consistency of different symptom (SS) and symptom medication scores (SMSs) at individual level in two study cohorts with different characteristics and explore individual patient trajectories over time. Methods Within the pilot phase of the @IT.2020 project on diagnostic synergy of mobile health and molecular IgE assessment in patients with SAR, we analyzed data of 101 children and 93 adults with SAR and instructed them to record their symptoms and medication intake daily via the mobile app AllergyMonitor®. We then assessed the correlation between different SMS and a visual analogue scale (VAS) on the impact of allergy symptoms on daily life at population and individual level. Results At population level, the Rhinoconjunctivitis total symptom score (RTSS) correlated better with VAS than the combined symptom and medication score (CSMS). At individual level, consistency among RTSS and VAS was highly heterogeneous and unrelated to disease severity or adherence to recording. Similar heterogeneity was observed for CSMS and VAS. Conclusions The correlation of clinical information provided by different disease severity scores based on data collected via electronic diaries (e‐diaries), is sufficient at population level, but broadly heterogeneous for individual patients. Consistency of the recorded data must be examined for each patient before remotely collected information is used for clinical decision making.

Il fumo di tabacco costituisce un problema ancora attuale e di notevole rilevanza per il grande i... more Il fumo di tabacco costituisce un problema ancora attuale e di notevole rilevanza per il grande impatto sulla salute pubblica. Milioni di bambini sono esposti ai danni devastanti del fumo passivo. Questo contribuisce all\u2019inquinamento degli ambienti chiusi apportando significative concentrazioni di nicotina, sostanze irritanti, tossiche e cancerogene, tanto da risultare il principale inquinante degli ambienti chiusi. Oltre al cosiddetto \u2018fumo di seconda mano\u2019, miscela costituita dal fumo derivante direttamente dalla sigaretta accesa e da quello esalato dai polmoni dei fumatori, recentemente \ue8 stata individuata una nuova forma di esposizione a fumo passivo, denominata \u2018fumo di terza mano\u2019. Questo consiste in una miscela di inquinanti che, una volta consumata la sigaretta, si deposita sulle superfici e nella polvere degli ambienti confinati o reagisce con altri composti per formare inquinanti secondari. L\u2019esposizione a fumo passivo ha gravi effetti sulla salute dei bambini, i quali, inoltre, sono pi\uf9 sensibili degli adulti ai suoi effetti nocivi. I maggiori rischi da esposizione riguardano in particolare la salute respiratoria. Relativamente alle allergie, gli studi sull\u2019associazione tra esposizione a fumo di sigaretta e rischio di sensibilizzazione atopica ad oggi pubblicati non sono numerosi e non giungono a conclusioni univoche. La discrepanza dei risultati \ue8 probabilmente legata a differenze di carattere demografico nelle popolazioni studiate nonch\ue9 ai diversi disegni di studio utilizzati dai vari autori. Tuttavia, i danni da fumo passivo sulla salute sono ben noti, motivo per cui la protezione dei bambini da questo rischio deve diventare prioritaria in tema di salute pubblica

Sustainability, 2021

Pollen exposure in occupational settings involves different categories of workers. In this paper ... more Pollen exposure in occupational settings involves different categories of workers. In this paper the effects of diurnal pollen variations have been evaluated in two sites characterized by different vegetation and urbanization: the suburban site of Tor Vergata (TV) and the rural site of Monte Porzio Catone (MPC). Aerobiological and meteorological monitoring was performed in the two sites during the winter of 2017. The data analysis focuses on the comparison between pollen concentrations observed in relation to meteorological variables. In general, it can be stated that the indoor and outdoor dynamics for MPC and TV are different, with the outdoor concentration of pollen for MPC always higher than for TV, in accordance with significant presence of vegetation. The high nocturnal peaks detected in MPC and completely absent in TV could be caused by the presence of particular conditions of stagnation combined with greater emissions from the pollen sources. Furthermore the higher I/O ratio...

Journal of Investigational Allergology and Clinical Immunology, 2021