The lack of therapies for moderate COVID-19 syndrome prompted us to use a standardized polyphenolic green tea extract rich in catechins during the lockdown due to the pandemic in Italy (Autumn 2020). Catechins are powerful antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antiviral agents that are safe for human use. While awaiting hospitalization, 10 swab-positive patients, symptomatic for SARS-COV-2, were treated for 15 days at home with two sessions of inhalation plus three capsules per day (total catechins: 840 mg; total EGCG: 595 mg). All patients recovered fully and had no symptoms at a median of 9 days, with a range of 7–15 days. Seven switched to a negative SARS-COV-2 nasopharyngeal swab test at a median of 9 days, with a range of 6–13 days. Among the 3 patients still swab-positive, one had a strong decrease of infection down to a “very low” SARS-COV-2 nucleic acid load at 5 days. All patients exited quarantine at the end of therapy because they were free of symptoms. Inflammation markers α-1 anti-trypsin, C-reactive protein and eosinophils had significantly decreased. The IL-6 and erythrocyte sedimentation rate decreased in 7 out of 10 patients. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of the efficacy of green tea catechin against COVID-19 syndrome. These results may open new perspectives in the fight against the disease.

Background: MIVAT (minimally invasive video-assisted thyroidectomy) is a recent technique that requires a learning curve. Materials and Methods: From July 2005 to December 2006, we treated 100 from a total of 467 thyroidectomy patients with MIVAT. We divided the patients into 3 groups. The first 2 groups consisted of 25 patients each: group A (cases 1–25) and group B (26–50). We also divided patients into 2 groups based on our surgical experience: group A + B (cases 1–50) and group C (cases 51–100). Results: The operative times for groups A and B were 101.7 and 84.6 min, respectively (p < 0.03); those for groups A + B and C were 91.07 and 63.06 min, respectively (p < 0.004). Complications of hypocalcemia were observed in 6 cases (4 in the first 50 cases and 2 in the second 50), and complications of nerve palsy were observed in 2 cases from group A. Conclusions: After 25 cases, we observed that the MIVAT procedure allows for a lower mean operative time and a reduction of complications.

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