Signatures Underlying Inflammation in the Pathogenesis and Evolution of Chronic Diseases

A special issue of Diagnostics (ISSN 2075-4418). This special issue belongs to the section "Pathology and Molecular Diagnostics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 March 2025 | Viewed by 1983

Special Issue Editors


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Faculty of Dentistry, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 700115 Iasi, Romania
Interests: periodontal disease non-surgical and surgical treatment; adjunctive periodontal treatment; orthodontic-periodontal interface; microbiome; immune system; host modulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Internal Medicine, “Grigore T. Popa” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 16 Universitatii Street, 700115 Iasi, Romania
Interests: cardiovascular disease; atherosclerosis; arterial thrombosis; venous thrombosis; anticoagulants; hereditary thrombophilia; inflammation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The relationship between inflammation and modern human diseases (e.g., diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, obesity, cancer, renal disease, autoimmune diseases, and others) is still an unsolved mystery in medicine and biology. Inflammation is a protective reaction to detrimental stimuli that inevitably takes a toll on the physiological function of the tissue in which it occurs. Although we have evolved tremendously as a species, the evolution of genetic adaptation and the inflammatory response has not been able to keep up with the rapid changes in our environment, inducing escalating amounts of dissonance between the modern environment and selected traits. As a result, various tradeoffs affecting human physiology are not optimized to the modern environment, leading to heightened disease susceptibility.

Immune cascades of pro- and anti-inflammatory regulation are similar across the body, from the cardiovascular system to the oral cavity and metabolic regulation. They are interconnected with neural and psychological pathways through feedback loops. Through this lens, we can observe how seemingly non-connected pathologies, such as cancer, autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular diseases, renal pathology, diabetes mellitus, and oral diseases such as periodontitis, are intertwined in their ability to overwhelm this finely tuned system, resulting in systemic inflammation and subsequently allowing chronic diseases to emerge.

The aim of this Special Issue is to accommodate a wide variety of original research but also review papers centered on inflammation. Moreover, we wish to integrate various disciplines and areas of study in the medical field so as to convey a novel perspective on this topic.

Finally, we wish to reframe the approach of managing individual diseases to a more holistic approach of treating the “person as a whole,” thus maximizing overall health and well-being, enhancing the patient experience, and encouraging patients to make the necessary lifestyle changes.

It is our pleasure to invite researchers to submit either original research or reviews for publication in the upcoming Special Issue of Diagnostics. Topics of interest especially include, but are not limited to, the following: inflammation signatures of chronic diseases, including of the oral cavity, such as periodontitis and other oral pathologies; diagnosis and treatment; theoretical and clinical studies on new and established diagnostic methods; evaluation of treatment effectiveness; effects of medication in the context of comorbidities; and new clinical treatment procedures and protocols.

Prof. Dr. Liliana-Georgeta Foia
Dr. Maria Alexandra Mârțu
Dr. Minerva Codruta Badescu
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • inflammation
  • biomarkers
  • inflammaging
  • inflammasome
  • diabetes mellitus
  • cardiovascular diseases
  • renal pathology
  • immunomodulatory therapy
  • periodontitis
  • oral diseases

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1835 KiB  
Article
Early Detection of Inflammation and Malnutrition and Prediction of Acute Events in Hemodialysis Patients through PINI (Prognostic Inflammatory and Nutritional Index)
by Monica Cordos, Maria-Alexandra Martu, Cristiana-Elena Vlad, Vasilica Toma, Alin Dumitru Ciubotaru, Minerva Codruta Badescu, Ancuta Goriuc and Liliana Foia
Diagnostics 2024, 14(12), 1273; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14121273 - 17 Jun 2024
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Abstract
Protein-energy wasting and inflammation are major risk factors for complications in hemodialysis patients. As these risk factors are triggered by a pro-inflammatory state, oxidative stress and hemodynamic dysfunction, which overlap in hemodialyzed subjects, we aimed to assess the efficacy of a cost-effective and [...] Read more.
Protein-energy wasting and inflammation are major risk factors for complications in hemodialysis patients. As these risk factors are triggered by a pro-inflammatory state, oxidative stress and hemodynamic dysfunction, which overlap in hemodialyzed subjects, we aimed to assess the efficacy of a cost-effective and straightforward screening tool, the Prognostic Inflammatory and Nutritional Index (PINI), in regularly screening maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients, to detect early signs of inflammation and malnutrition. A 12-month follow-up was carried out on a cohort of 102 adult patients undergoing maintenance dialysis, during which the Prognostic Inflammatory and Nutritional Index (PINI) was calculated using the formula alpha1-Acid Glycoprotein (AGP) × C-reactive protein (CRP)/albumin (ALB) × transthyretin (TTR). A PINI score < 1 was considered normal. The patients were stratified based on their PINI score: 66 patients (64.70%) had a normal score, below 1, while 36 patients (35.30%) had a PINI score ≥ 1. Despite the absence of clinical evidence of inflammation at enrollment, the latter group exhibited higher levels of CRP. During the follow-up period, all patients with a PINI score ≥ 1 experienced at least one acute event, compared to only 6% of patients with a normal PINI score, which presented COVID-19 infection as an acute event. The evaluation of the PINI can effectively identify the silent malnutrition–inflammation syndrome and predict the risk of acute events. This straightforward test appears to be a rapid tool that is independent of the examiner’s experience and subjectivity, thereby potentially reducing hospitalization costs. Full article
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14 pages, 1495 KiB  
Article
Correlation between Peripheric Blood Markers and Surgical Invasiveness during Humeral Shaft Fracture Osteosynthesis in Young and Middle-Aged Patients
by Flaviu Moldovan
Diagnostics 2024, 14(11), 1112; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics14111112 - 27 May 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 765
Abstract
The treatment for humeral shaft fractures (HSFs) is still controversial, consisting of a wide variety of orthopedic osteosynthesis materials that imply different grades of invasiveness. The aim of this study is to investigate the correlation between inflammatory blood-derived markers and the magnitude of [...] Read more.
The treatment for humeral shaft fractures (HSFs) is still controversial, consisting of a wide variety of orthopedic osteosynthesis materials that imply different grades of invasiveness. The aim of this study is to investigate the correlation between inflammatory blood-derived markers and the magnitude of the surgical procedure in young and middle-aged patients who sustained these fractures. Observational, retrospective research was conducted between January 2018 and December 2023. It followed patients diagnosed with recent HFSs (AO/OTA 12−A and B) and followed operative treatment. They were split in two groups, depending on the surgical protocol: group A, operated by closed reduction and internal fixation (CRIF) with intramedullary nails (IMNs), and group B, operated by open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) with dynamic compression plates (DCPs). Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) between the two groups could be observed in injury on the basis of surgery durations, surgical times, pre- and postoperative neutrophil-per-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), postoperative platelet-per-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), monocyte-per-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), systemic inflammatory index (SII), systemic inflammatory response index (SIRI) and aggregate inflammatory systemic index (AISI). The multivariate regression model proposed revealed that NLR > 7.99 (p = 0.007), AISI > 1668.58 (p = 0.008), and the surgical times (p < 0.0001) are strongly correlated to the magnitude of the surgical protocol followed. Using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, a balanced reliability was determined for both postoperative NLR > 7.99 (sensitivity 75.0% and specificity 75.6) and AISI > 1668.58 (sensitivity 70.6% and specificity 82.2%). Postoperative NLR and AISI as inflammatory markers are highly associated with the magnitude of surgical trauma sustained during humeral shaft fracture osteosynthesis in a younger population. Full article
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