Laboratory Medicine Unit
Annalisa CAVALLERO, MD, Ph.D
Director
STAFF Deputy Director: Monica Raggi, DSc
Assistants: Tiziana D’Errico, MD, Giovanni Introcaso, DSc,
Daniela Riggio, DSc, Maria Rossi, MD, Roberta Temporiti, DSc
(Alessandra Ratto, MD)
Chief Technician: Paola Rumi
Technicians: Chiara Ardeleani, Laura Cadau,
Carmela Calvara, Cristina Frassi, Vanessa Guerra,
Chiara Miggiano, Massimo Moreo, Giorgia Piras,
Carmen Riva, Lorenza Rondelli, Simona Sabella
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Activities 2011. The Laboratory Medicine Unit
encompasses the fields of biochemistry, coagulation,
haematology, infectious disease serology, cancer
markers, drug monitoring and microbiology. It serves
both in and outpatients, and is also carrying out
diagnostic laboratory tests for other hospitals or medical
centres. Clinical chemistry and immunochemistry
sections are integrated and equipped with recent and
updated analyzers providing the best analytical and
clinical performance.
The coagulation section is certified for oral anticoagulant
monitoring in patients who undergo a long-term
therapy; the haematology section provides a first step
screening on patients admitted to the hospital needing
to undergo cardiovascular surgery. The microbiology
section, besides carrying out tests on in and outpatients,
performs culture tests for the Istituto Neurologico
Besta and particularly for the ICU and neurosurgery
departments. It also performs the microbiological tests
required for the activity of the Cardiovascular Tissue
Bank located at Centro Cardiologico Monzino by
assessing tissue sterility before and after disinfection
and by performing environmental controls to satisfy the
requirements for tissue sterile preparations.
The total number of tests carried out during 2011 was
about 1.100.000. Moreover, the Unit organizes the
supply of blood products by means of a dedicated team.
The laboratory staff is composed of a team working
very well together that meets and contacts daily the
physicians of the hospital departments, resulting in a
thorough vision of the patient health.
The daily internal quality controls, and the involvement in
external quality assessment programmes, either organized
by Regione Lombardia or by private companies, guarantee
the reliability of the test results. An updated online
computerized system connects the lab with the wards, so
that the results of the tests are rapidly available for the
physician, immediately after validation.
There is also an epidemiology programme that supplies
the Infection Control Committee with the results of the
microbiological research of the Institute. Moreover, the
medical staff of the laboratory, in association with FCSA
(Federazione Centri per la diagnosi della trombosi e la
Sorveglianza delle terapie Antitrombotiche), is in charge
of the supervision of the oral anticoagulant therapy to
outpatients.
Besides traditional diagnostic laboratory tests, the Unit
is involved in a research project on the evaluation of
new cardiac biomarkers in suspected acute coronary
syndrome (ACS) in collaboration with the Coronary
Care Unit. Furthermore, the laboratory collaborates with
other groups of Centro Cardiologico Monzino and other
hospitals in Milano on several research projects and
clinical trials.
Publications
Cattadori G, Wasserman K, Meloni C, Mustaq S, Contini
M, Apostolo A, Andreini D, Magrì D, Sciomer S, Veglia F,
Berna G, Introcaso G, Palermo P, Fiorentini C, Agostoni
P. Alveolar membrane conductance decreases as BNP
increases during exercise in heart failure. Rationale
for BNP in the evaluation of dyspnea. J Card Fail.
2009;15(2):136-44
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Introcaso G, Raggi M, D’Errico T, Cavallero A. Shortterm increases of plasma cardiac troponin I are better
evaluated by comparison with the reference change
value. Biochemia Medica 2010;20(3):327-33
Marenzi G, Giorgio M, Trinei M, Moltrasio M, Ravagnani
P, Cardinale D, Ciceri F, Cavallero A, Veglia F, Fiorentini
C, Cipolla CM, Bartorelli AL, Pelicci P. Circulating
cytochrome c as potential biomarker of impaired
reperfusion in ST-segment elevation acute myocardial
infarction. P. Am J Cardiol. 2010;106(10)
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Marenzi G, De Metrio M, Rubino M, Lauri G, Cavallero
A, Assanelli E, Grazi M, Moltrasio M, Marana I,
Campodonico J, Discacciati A, Veglia F, Bartorelli AL.
Acute hyperglycemia and contrast-induced nephropathy
in primary percutaneous coronary intervention. Am Heart
J. 2010;160(6):1170-7
Research Laboratories
Gatti S, Rama P, Matuska S, Berrilli F, Cavallero A, Carletti
S, Bruno A, Maserati R, and D Di Cave J. Isolation and
genotyping of Acanthamoeba isolates from corneal
infections in Italy. Med. Microbiol. 2010;5: 1324-30
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