Ricerc@Sapienza

INTRODUCTION: The health emergency caused by the spread of SARS-COV-2 virus has required the adoption of passive measures against contagion, such as social distancing. The use of filtering masks, of the different types available on the market, such as surgical and facial filtering masks (FFP1, FFP2 and FFP3), is also recommended.

The management of healthcare facilities has become increasingly complex in recent years, leading to a greater demand for public health physicians in Italy. Public Health physicians are responsible for evaluating community needs, with particular attention to health determinants and, at the same time, to final user feedback. During their training, they must acquire the competencies to manage a wide range of problems.

Purpose: The evaluation of Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) in patients with chronic otitis media COM has gained attention over the past years and several questionnaires have been developed to evaluate it in affected patients. The Chronic Otitis Media Questionnaire 12 (COMQ-12) is a widely used disease-specific tool that evaluates the severity of symptoms, the specific impact on work and lifestyle, the effects on the health service, and general impact of the disease in patients with COM.

Objective: There are no instruments available to comprehensively assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in chronic otitis media (COM) in Italian-speaking countries. The Zurich chronic middle ear inventory (ZCMEI-21) is a well-established instrument for the assessment of HRQoL in COM. The objective of this study was to translate and cross-culturally adapt the ZCMEI-21 into Italian and validate this questionnaire for measuring HRQoL in patients with COM. Study Design: Prospective multicenter study. Setting: Three University hospitals (northern Italy, central Italy, southern Italy).

Current evidence about COVID-19 symptoms and mortality rate derives from data collected in large case series mainly in China, where the virus first emerged, even if the rate of new cases in the country has nearly stopped. There are now many more COVID-19 cases outside of China than there were inside of it at the height of the outbreak, that is now involving many other countries with relevant impact in particular in Spain, United States, and Italy.

The vote NO (a defeat for the proponents) of the 2016 Italian referendum has been broadly attributed to a wave of protest politics sweeping Western democracies. Given that the government of Matteo Renzi proposed and supported the referendum, the resulting vote against government interests raises a crucial theoretical question: to what extent does the referendum vote reflect the characteristics of a protest vote?

The Italian population is rapidly aging. According to recent data, in 2018 there were 168,7 elderly people (over 65) on 100 young people (under 14). In Italy elderly self-sufficient people traditionally lived with their families, but nowadays, due to demographic and socio-economical changes, in several cases, the family unit cannot offer appropriate support for these vulnerable inhabitants. Some alternative housing paths, such as cohousing, are starting to give new answers to the current needs of the elderly population.

In a globalised world, where competitiveness represents the keystone of modern capitalist society and, thus, of economic health and prosperity, knowledge and expertise express the very differentiating element between successful and unsuccessful economic performance. In a systemic perspective, the ever-changing character of our society imposes a continuous reorientation of the processes of knowledge transmission to tackle the increasing challenges, posed by interrelated labour markets.

The Italian Five Stars-League government has on several occasion advocated enhanced cooperation with the People’s Republic of China, especially within the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the massive infrastructure project launched by China in 2013.

A taken-for-granted assumption within the Italian foreign affairs community argues that the relationship between
Rome and Moscow follows a generally cooperative attitude, fostered by strong cultural, economic and political
ties. This narrative misses a significant part of the tale, which is at odds with the idea that the good relations with
Russia are a ‘constant feature’ of Italy’s foreign policy. Indeed, competitive interaction has frequently emerged,