84445 - Cardiovascular and Thoracic Pathology

Academic Year 2022/2023

  • Moduli: Pier Paolo Piccaluga (Modulo 1) Giovanni Tallini (Modulo 2)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo 1) Traditional lectures (Modulo 2)
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: Single cycle degree programme (LMCU) in Medicine and Surgery (cod. 9210)

Learning outcomes

Recognize the morphologic and molecular features of cardiovascular and thoracic diseases, and correlate them with their clinical presentation.

Course contents

Module 1 (Prof. Giovanni Tallini)

DISEASES OF THE RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

Anatomic alterations and histopathology of obstructive pulmonary diseases (chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma, bronchiectasis).
Anatomic alterations and histopathology of interstitial lung disease: diffuse alveolar damage and acute interstitial lung diseases, chronic interstitial lung diseases (fibrosing, granulomatous, eosinophilic, other).

Diffuse Alveolar Hemorrhage: syndromes and histopathology.

Anatomic alterations and histopathology of lung infections: general features, lobar pneumonia, bronchopneumonia, viral/infectious interstitial pneumonia, tuberculosis.

Lung tumors: general features, staging, molecular pathology, classification and histopathological diagnosis (squamous carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, neuroendocrine tumors, other neoplasms).

Pleural tumors: solitary fibrous tumors, malignant mesothelioma.

DISEASES OF THE THYMUS

The mediastinum and its tumors (generalities). Thymic Hyperplasia. Thymic epithelial tumors (Thymoma and thymic carcinoma).

DISEASES OF THE BREAST

Anatomy and the terminal duct-lobular unit; clinical presentation of breast diseases. Stromal tumors. Epithelial lesions. Breast cancer: epidemiology and screening, risk factors and pathogenesis. Non invasive carcinoma (Ductal, lobular). Invasive carcinoma (Ductal/no special type, lobular, other special types). Breast cancer: molecular pathology, outcome (grading, staging and other factors). Breast pathology in males.

Module 2 (Prof. Pier Paolo Piccaluga)

CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

Ischemic heart disease: anatomic alterations and histopathology of chronic ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction (timing and evolution of morphologic changes, complications of myocardial infarction).

Valvular heart disease: anatomic alterations and histopathology of rheumatic heart disease, infective endocarditis.

Myocardial diseases: anatomic alterations and histopathology of myocarditis and cardiomyopathies.

Pericardial diseases: anatomic alterations and histopathology of pericarditis.

Blood vessel diseases: anatomic alterations and histopathology of arteriosclerosis, atherosclerosis, aneurysms and vasculitis.

Vascular tumors: classification and histopathological diagnosis.

Readings/Bibliography

Robbins & Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease (Robbins Pathology) or equivalent Pathology textbook.

Teaching methods

Slide supported lectures with interactive discussion. Teaching materials will be made available to the students at the designated University of Bologna websites at least one day before the lecture.

Attending lectures plays an important role in the learning process. During lectures, the teacher guides the students in the critical reading of the teaching materials and provides opportunities for online formative assessment.

Attendance to learning activities is mandatory; the minimum attendance requirement to be admitted to the final exam is 66% of lessons. For Integrated Courses (IC), the 66% attendance requirement refers to the total amount of I.C. lessons. Students who fail to meet the minimum attendance requirement will not be admitted to the final exam of the course, and will have to attend relevant classes again during the next academic year.

Professors may authorise excused absences upon receipt of proper justifying documentation, in case of illness or serious reasons. Excused absences do not count against a student’s attendance record to determine their minimum attendance requirement.

Assessment methods

The final exam/final summative assessment will be an oral exam/assessment consisting of questions focusing on the educational objectives and topics of the integrated course of Thoracic and Vascular Diseases (I.C.)

Professors of the integrated courses participate in an overall collegial assessment of the student's final profit. The final summative assessment is expressed with a scale of grades from 18 to 30.

  • The final assessment (final summative assessment) is passed with a collegial grade of a minimum 18/30
  • Honors (cum laude) can be awarded in case of a final maximum collegial assessment (30/30)
  • The credits of the Integrated Course of Thoracic and Vascular Diseases (14 CFU) are awarded with a collegial grade of a minimum 18/30

If it is necessary to appoint several subcommittees for the same final summative assessment, the student has the right to ask, in advance, not later than the beginning of the assessment, to be assessed also by the professor responsible of the discipline

The final summative assessment takes also into account the level of mastery of the key concepts illustrated in the classroom, critical thinking and the ability to integrate the key concepts and take-home messages of the different modules of the integrated course.

Failure to pass the exam may be due to insufficient knowledge of these concepts.

Teaching tools

The teaching material discussed during the lectures will be made available through the designated University of Bologna websites. Access is reserved to Bologna University students.

Office hours

See the website of Giovanni Tallini

See the website of Pier Paolo Piccaluga