Objective To compare the differences in intraoperative radiation exposure between leadless and transvenous pacemaker implantation. Methods Cumulative dose (CD), dose area product (DAP), and fluoroscopy time during procedure were recorded and analyzed in 21 patients with leadless pacemaker implantation (Micra group), 55 patients with transvenous single-chamber pacemaker implantation (VVI group), and 216 patients with transvenous dual-chamber pacemaker implantation (DDD group). Results The fluoroscopy times of the Micra group, VVI group, and DDD group were 5.0 ± 1.9, 4.8 ± 1.4, and 7.6 ± 1.9 min, respectively (P < 0.001). Their CD values were 203.5 ± 76.1, 147.0 ± 41.0, and 249.6 ± 58.2 mGy, respectively (P < 0.001). Their DAP values were 18.6 ± 7.1, 13.4 ± 3.9, and 22.6 ± 5.6 Gy·cm², respectively (P < 0.001). Compared with the VVI group, the Micra group had similar fluoroscopy time (P=0.813) but higher CD (P=0.010) and DAP values (P = 0.012). Compared with the DDD group, the Micra group had reduced fluoroscopy time (P < 0.001), CD value (P = 0.033), and DAP value (P = 0.047). Conclusion Leadless pacemaker implantation is associated with increased radiation exposure compared to transvenous single-chamber pacemaker implantation. However, it offers a significant advantage in reducing radiation exposure for both medical staff and patients compared to transvenous dual-chamber pacemaker implantation.

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy of Qi Shi Shen Shu Capsule combined with dapagliflozin in treating type 2 diabetic nephropathy.Methods 120 patients with type 2 diabetic nephropathy(qi-yin liangxu syndrome)admitted to the endocrinology department in the inpatient and outpatient depart-ments of endocrinology from May 2022 to December 2023 were randomly divided into control and observation groups(60 cases each).The control group received dapagliflozin plus placebo capsules,while the observation group received dapagliflozin plus Qi Shi Shen Shu Capsule for 6 months.The therapeutic effects were observed between the two groups.Parameters including serum creatinine(Scr),urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio(uACR),24-hour urinary protein quantification(24hUP),glycated hemoglobin(HbA1c),and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α),interleukin-6(IL-6),and high sensitivity-C reactive protein(hs-CRP)were measured be-fore and after treatment.Results The total effective rate was higher(P＜0.05)in the observation group(93.33％)than in the control group(78.33％).After treatment,both groups showed decreased levels of uACR,Scr,24hUP,HbA1c,TNF-α,IL-6,and hs-CRP compared with baseline,with lower levels in the obser-vation group(P＜0.05).Conclusion Qi Shi Shen Shu Capsule combined with dapagliflozin can effectively re-duce uACR,Scr levels and serum inflammatory cytokines levels in patients with type 2 diabetic nephropathy.

Objective To explore the relationship between preoperative coronary angiography and postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in cardiac surgery. Methods The clinical data of patients who underwent coronary angiography within 30 days before cardiac surgery in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University from January 2015 to April 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Univariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to explore the relationship between the interval from preoperative coronary angiography to cardiac surgery and postoperative AKI. Results Finally 1 112 patients were collected, including 700 males and 412 females, with a median age of 61 (55, 66) years. The incidence of postoperative AKI was 40.8% (454/1 112), of which grade 2-3 AKI accounted for 11.9%. Multivariate analysis showed that age (OR=1.049, 95%CI 1.022-1.077, P<0.001), body mass index (OR=1.065, 95%CI 1.010-1.123, P=0.020) and time interval between preoperative coronary angiography and cardiac surgery within 24 hours (OR=1.625, 95%CI 1.116-2.364, P=0.011) were independent predictors of postoperative AKI. Patients who underwent coronary angiography within 24 hours before surgery had a 10.6% higher incidence of postoperative AKI compared to those who underwent angiography ≥24 hours before surgery (P=0.004). Patients who underwent valve surgery with or without coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) had a higher risk of AKI than those who only underwent CABG. The in-hospital stay of patients who developed AKI was 2 days longer than those without AKI. However, undergoing coronary angiography within 24 hours before cardiac surgery did not prolong the length of ICU stay or hospital stay, nor did it increase the risk of death or renal failure after the operation. Conclusion Undergoing coronary angiography within 24 hours before cardiac surgery increases the risk of postoperative AKI.

Objective:This study proposed a novel technique for aortic root reconstruction and evaluated its safety and effectiveness.Methods:Acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) patients who underwent Sun' s procedure from January 2020 to June 2022 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University were retrospectively enrolled. These patients were divided into three groups according to their surgical procedures of aortic root: aortic root reinforcement combined with vascular grafts built-in and intermittent anastomosis technique (XJ-procedure) group, continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and Bentall group. The perioperative data and postoperative follow-up results of the three groups were compared to analyze the efficacy of XJ-procedure in the root treatment of ATAAD.Results:A total of 509 patients were enrolled in this study, including 288 patients in the XJ-procedure group, 132 patients in the continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and 89 patients in the Bentall group. The 30-day mortality of all patients was 7.5% (38/509), and were 7.3%, 8.3% and 6.7% in the XJ-procedure group, continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and Bentall group, respectively. The operation time of the XJ-procedure group [355 (320, 380) min] was significantly lower than the other two groups. The cardiopulmonary bypass time [154 (140, 169) min] and the aortic cross-clamping time [80 (72, 89) min] of XJ-procedure group were lower than the Bentall group [166 (147, 184) min and 86 (77, 96) min]. The aortic root bleeding that required secondary cardiopulmonary bypass did not occur in the XJ-procedure group. There was no significant difference in early postoperative complications among the three groups. The incidence of residual aortic root dissection before discharge, in 3 and 6 months after operation was lower in the XJ-procedure group compared to the continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group ( P<0.001). Conclusion:The XJ-procedure technique is a safe, simple and mastered method for the aortic root treatment of ATAAD, which shows an accurate early clinical effect.

Objective:This study proposed a novel technique for aortic root reconstruction and evaluated its safety and effectiveness.Methods:Acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) patients who underwent Sun' s procedure from January 2020 to June 2022 in the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University were retrospectively enrolled. These patients were divided into three groups according to their surgical procedures of aortic root: aortic root reinforcement combined with vascular grafts built-in and intermittent anastomosis technique (XJ-procedure) group, continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and Bentall group. The perioperative data and postoperative follow-up results of the three groups were compared to analyze the efficacy of XJ-procedure in the root treatment of ATAAD.Results:A total of 509 patients were enrolled in this study, including 288 patients in the XJ-procedure group, 132 patients in the continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and 89 patients in the Bentall group. The 30-day mortality of all patients was 7.5% (38/509), and were 7.3%, 8.3% and 6.7% in the XJ-procedure group, continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group and Bentall group, respectively. The operation time of the XJ-procedure group [355 (320, 380) min] was significantly lower than the other two groups. The cardiopulmonary bypass time [154 (140, 169) min] and the aortic cross-clamping time [80 (72, 89) min] of XJ-procedure group were lower than the Bentall group [166 (147, 184) min and 86 (77, 96) min]. The aortic root bleeding that required secondary cardiopulmonary bypass did not occur in the XJ-procedure group. There was no significant difference in early postoperative complications among the three groups. The incidence of residual aortic root dissection before discharge, in 3 and 6 months after operation was lower in the XJ-procedure group compared to the continuous suture and pledgeted interrupted reinforcement group ( P<0.001). Conclusion:The XJ-procedure technique is a safe, simple and mastered method for the aortic root treatment of ATAAD, which shows an accurate early clinical effect.

Objective:To investigate the epidemiology of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in patients with maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) in Jiangsu province during SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in China from December 7, 2022 to January 27, 2023, and to analyze the influencing factors of all-cause death.Methods:It was a multi-center cross-sectional investigation. Structured questionnaire was used to collect patient information by medical staff of each hemodialysis center (room) as investigators. Part of the demography data and laboratory examination data came from the Jiangsu Province Hemodialysis Data Information System. MHD patients from hemodialysis centers (rooms) at all levels of medical institutions and independent hemodialysis institutions in Jiangsu province during the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 infection were included, and the clinical characteristics and all-cause mortality of confirmed and suspected cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection were analyzed.Results:Questionnaire surveys and data analysis on 57 278 patients in 407 hemodialysis centers (rooms) were completed, accounting for 90.41% of the total number of MHD patients (63 357 cases) in Jiangsu province during the same period. There were 24 038 cases (41.97%) of SARS-CoV-2 infection and 14 805 cases (25.85%) of suspected infection, which were widely distributed in all dialysis centers in Jiangsu province. After clinical classification of 38 843 confirmed and suspected SARS-CoV-2 infection cases, 3 662 cases were severe and critical cases, accounting for 9.43% of the infected and suspected cases. Among the patients who had completed the questionnaires, there were 1 812 all-cause deaths, with an all-cause mortality rate of 3.16%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that elderly (taking ≤50 years as a reference, 51-59 years: OR=1.583, 95% CI 1.279-1.933, P=0.001; 60-69 years: OR=3.972, 95% CI 3.271-4.858, P<0.001; 70-79 years: OR=7.236, 95% CI 5.917-8.698, P<0.001; ≥80 years: OR=11.738, 95% CI 9.459-14.663, P<0.001), male ( OR=1.371, 95% CI 1.229-1.529, P<0.001), and co-infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) (positive serum HBV surface antigen, OR=0.629, 95% CI 0.484-0.817, P<0.001) were independent influencing factors for all cause mortality. Receiver-operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the area under the curve for male, age and current HBV infection prediction of all-cause death was 0.529 ( P<0.001), 0.724 ( P<0.001) and 0.514 ( P=0.042), respectively, and the cut-off value for age prediction of all-cause death was 65.5 years old. Compared with patients without HBV infection, MHD patients with HBV infection significantly reduced the proportion of severe and critically ill patients, all-cause hospitalizations and all cause deaths when infected with SARS-CoV-2 (4.99% vs. 6.41%, χ2=6.136, P=0.013; 8.90% vs. 11.44%, χ2=11.662, P<0.001; 2.01% vs. 3.37%, χ2=10.713, P=0.001, respectively). Conclusion:The MHD patients in Jiangsu province are susceptible to SARS-CoV-2. Elderly age and male gender are independent risk factors for death in MHD patients during the epidemic, while the HBV infection may be a protective factor for death of MHD patients infected with SARS-CoV-2.

Purpose: This study was to investigate the work experience of newly recruited male nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: With a phenomenological approach, this qualitative study was adopted semistructured interviews by phone or video calls. A total of 9 male nurses newly recruited for the COVID-19 wards in Chinese hospitals were interviewed for this study. And Colaizzi's method was applied for evaluation in the data analysis. Results: Based on our findings, three themes were extracted. First, the newly recruited male nurses showed negative emotions at the beginning of COVID-19 epidemic, which was caused by changes in working conditions and content, but also prompted the nurses to change the way of coping with the crisis. Second, they gradually mastered the working skills and psychological training to cope with COVID-19 and developed a positive attitude toward life and a high sense of professional responsibility. Finally, we learned about their needs to respond to public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion COVID-19 is a disaster for all of humanity. The newly recruited male nurses are an important force in emergency rescue. Although they suffered from short-term negative emotions, they quickly adapted to the crisis. In order to better prepare for future emergencies, the disaster response capacity of newly recruited male nurses needs to be further improved. In addition, newly recruited male nurses have a strong demand for timely and personalized career development guidance.

Purpose: This study was to investigate the work experience of newly recruited male nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: With a phenomenological approach, this qualitative study was adopted semistructured interviews by phone or video calls. A total of 9 male nurses newly recruited for the COVID-19 wards in Chinese hospitals were interviewed for this study. And Colaizzi's method was applied for evaluation in the data analysis. Results: Based on our findings, three themes were extracted. First, the newly recruited male nurses showed negative emotions at the beginning of COVID-19 epidemic, which was caused by changes in working conditions and content, but also prompted the nurses to change the way of coping with the crisis. Second, they gradually mastered the working skills and psychological training to cope with COVID-19 and developed a positive attitude toward life and a high sense of professional responsibility. Finally, we learned about their needs to respond to public health emergencies such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion COVID-19 is a disaster for all of humanity. The newly recruited male nurses are an important force in emergency rescue. Although they suffered from short-term negative emotions, they quickly adapted to the crisis. In order to better prepare for future emergencies, the disaster response capacity of newly recruited male nurses needs to be further improved. In addition, newly recruited male nurses have a strong demand for timely and personalized career development guidance.

Objective:To compare the differences of fluoroscopy time and dose between HIS bundle pacing and right ventricle apex pacing.Methods:This study includes thirty patients undergoing HIS bundle pacing (HIS group) and 32 patients undergoing right ventricular apex pacing (RVA group). The fluoroscopy time and cumulative dose (CD) to patients during surgery were recorded and analyzed.Results:The operation time for patients in HIS group and RVA group were (76.8±13.1) and (66.0±10.8) min ( t=3.386, P<0.001), respectively. The fluoroscopy time was (698.2±113.7) and (293.3±63.9) s ( t=14.709, P<0.001) and the CD were (391.3±70.0) and (162.3±40.5) mGy ( t=13.694, P<0.001) in HBP group and RVA group, respectively. In comparison, the fluoroscopy time and CD for HIS bundle electrode implantation were (501.2±112.3) s and (279.9±65.0) mGy, respectively, significantly higher than in the case of RVA, where the values were (103.4±30.6) s and (57.3±13.8) mGy ( t=15.864, Z=-6.524, P<0.001). Conclusions:Compared with right ventricular apical pacing, the HIS bundle pacing takes longer operation time, leading to higher radiation dose, which should be prudently selected.

Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy (ARVD/C) is a genetic cardiac muscle disease that accounts for approximately 30% sudden cardiac death in young adults. The Ser358Leu mutation of transmembrane protein 43 (TMEM43) was commonly identified in the patients of highly lethal and fully penetrant ARVD subtype, ARVD5. Here, we generated TMEM43 S358L mouse to explore the underlying mechanism. This mouse strain showed the classic pathologies of ARVD patients, including structural abnormalities and cardiac fibrofatty. TMEM43 S358L mutation led to hyper-activated nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) activation in heart tissues and primary cardiomyocyte cells. Importantly, this hyper activation of NF-κB directly drove the expression of pro-fibrotic gene, transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ1), and enhanced downstream signal, indicating that TMEM43 S358L mutation up-regulates NF-κB-TGFβ signal cascade during ARVD cardiac fibrosis. Our study partially reveals the regulatory mechanism of ARVD development.