Background-Nonadherence to antihypertensive treatment is a common problem in cardiovascular prevention and may influence prognosis. We explored predictors of adherence to antihypertensive treatment and the association of adherence with acute cardiovascular events.

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1 The nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) is a transcription factor which plays a pivotal role in the induction of genes involved in physiological processes as well as in the response to injury and in¯ammation. Dithiocarbamates are antioxidants which are potent inhibitors of NF-kB. 2 We postulated that pyrrolidine dithiocarbamate (PDTC) would attenuate in¯ammation. In the present study we investigate the e ects of PDTC in animal models of acute and chronic in¯ammation (carrageenan-induced pleurisy and collagen-induced arthritis). 3 We report here for the ®rst time that PDTC (given at 100, 30 or 10 mg kg 71 i.p. in the pleurisy model or at 10 mg kg 71 i.p. every 48 h in the arthritis model) exerts potent anti-in¯ammatory e ects (e.g. signi®cant reduction of (A) pleural exudate formation, (B) polymorphonuclear cell in®ltration, (C) lipid peroxidation, (D) inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) activity and nitric oxide production (E) plasma and pleural exudates levels of interleukin-1b and tumour necrosis factor-a, (F) histological injury and (G) delayed development of clinical indicators). 4 Furthermore, PDTC reduced immunohistochemical evidence of (A) formation of nitrotyrosine, (B) activation of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), (C) expression of iNOS and (D) expression of cyclo-oxygenase-2 (COX-2) in the lungs of carrageenan-treated mice and in the joints from collagen-treated mice. 5 Additionally, Western blotting and immunohistochemical analysis of lung tissue revealed that PDTC prevented degradation of IKB-a and translocation of NF-kB from the cytoplasm into the nucleus. 6 Taken together, our results clearly demonstrate that prevention of the activation of NF-kB by PDTC reduces the development of acute and chronic in¯ammation. Therefore, inhibition of NF-kB may represent a novel approach for the therapy of in¯ammation.

The prevalence of gout and hyperuricaemia increased in Italy from 2005 to 2009. A high recurrence rate for gout attack was observed during the first year following the first episode. Early management of hyperuricaemia in patients at higher risk of recurrent gout attack should be considered in primary care.

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The use of either atypical or typical antipsychotic drugs in elderly patients is associated in a dose-dependent manner with risk for community-acquired pneumonia.

Our data indicate that association of ED + alcohol is very popular among students. This behavior can be dangerous. In fact, the combination of ED + alcoholic drinks can reduce adversive symptoms of alcohol intoxication including the depressant effects. As consequence, users of ED + alcoholic beverages might not feel the signs of alcohol intoxication, thus increasing the probability of accidents and/or favoring the possibility of development of alcohol dependence.