Objective: To analyze the trend in burden of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in China from 1990 to 2021, so as to provide insights into reducing the RA burden in China. Methods: Data of Global Burden of Disease Study 2021 were collected, and the incidence, mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALY) of RA in China from 1990 to 2021 were analyzed and compared with global and different Socio-demographic Index (SDI) regions. The trend in burden of RA was analyzed using average annual percent change (AAPC). Results: The crude incidence rates of RA in China increased from 10.87/105 in 1990 to 17.38/105 in 2021, the crude mortality rates increased from 0.41/105 to 0.72/105, and the crude DALY rates increased from 34.26/105 to 58.61/105, with the increases of 59.98%, 77.95% and 71.06%, respectively. From 1990 to 2021, the standardized incidence rates of RA in China showed an increasing trend (AAPC=0.545%, P<0.05), the standardized mortality rates showed a decreasing trend (AAPC=-0.783%, P<0.05), and the standardized DALY rates showed no significant trend (AAPC=-0.017%, P>0.05). In 2021, the standardized incidence rate, standardized mortality rate and standardized DALY rate of RA were higher in females than in males; from 1990 to 2021, the standardized DALY rates of RA showed a decreasing trend in females (AAPC=-0.200%, P<0.05) and an increasing trend in males (AAPC=0.316%, P<0.05). The crude incidence rates of RA first increased and then decreased with age in 2021, reaching the highest in the age group of 75-<80 years at 34.36/105. Both the crude mortality rates and the crude DALY rates increased with age, reaching the highest in the age group of 95 years and older at 26.72/105 and 285.67/105, respectively. The standardized incidence rates and standardized DALY rates of RA in China in 2021 were lower than those in high SDI regions, while the standardized mortality rate was lower than that in medium-low SDI regions. Conclusions The burden of RA in China from 1990 to 2021 showed an upward trend, and was at a high level compared to different SDI regions. Higher disease burden of RA was seen in females and the elderly.

Objective: To evaluate the risk of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) on excess mortality among residents. Methods: The data of residential mortality in Yangzhou City, Jiangsu Province from 2015 to 2021 were collected from the Chinese Disease Prevention and Control Information System. The average daily mass concentration of PM2.5 and meteorology data were collected from the Yangzhou Environmental Monitoring Station and Yangzhou Meteorological Bureau, respectively. The effects of PM2.5 on non-accidental mortality, morality of respiratory diseases and mortality of circulatory diseases were evaluated using a generalized additive model. The risk of excess mortality was evaluated using excess risk (ER) and the number of excess mortality. Results: The median average annual mass concentration of PM2.5 was 38.00 (interquartile range, 31.95) µg/m3 in Yangzhou City from 2015 to 2021, decreasing from 51.75 (interquartile range, 32.82) µg/m3 in 2015 to 28.00 (interquartile range, 23.42) µg/m3 in 2021. The median average annual number of non-accidental mortality, mortality of respiratory diseases and mortality of circulatory diseases were 96 (interquartile range, 22), 9 (interquartile range, 5) and 38 (interquartile range, 13) cases, respectively. The greatest effects of per 10 μg/m3 increase in PM2.5 mass concentration on non-accidental mortality, mortality of respiratory diseases, and mortality of circulatory diseases were seen at a cumulative lag of 1 day (ER=0.528%, 95%CI: 0.293%-0.763%), a cumulative lag of 2 days (ER=0.917%, 95%CI: 0.125%-1.714%) and a cumulative lag of 1 day (ER=0.595%, 95%CI: 0.232%-0.961%), respectively. The number of excess mortality caused by PM2.5 on non-accidental mortality, mortality of respiratory diseases, and mortality of circulatory diseases in Yangzhou City from 2015 to 2021 were 2 125, 412 and 977 cases, respectively; compared with 2015, the number of excess mortality in 2021 decreased by 66.95%, 75.53% and 64.42%, respectively. Conclusions An increase in the mass concentration of atmospheric PM2.5 may elevate the risk of excess mortality among residents. Compared to 2015, the number of excess deaths attributed to exposure to atmospheric PM2.5 declined in 2021.

Objective Plasma circulating DNA can be em-ployed in place of bone marrow examination for the auxiliary diagnosis of leukemia.This study aimed to explore the clinical application of the plasma DNA level in evaluating the effect of chemotherapy on chronic leukemia. Methods We collected blood samples from 52 patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) (33 in the chronic phase, 7 in the acceleration phase, and 12 in the blast phase) , 85 with chron-ic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) (28 with complete remission, 27 with partial remission, and 30 with no remission), 4 patients with hairy cell leukemia (HCL), and 80 healthy subjects.We simultaneously obtained plasma DNA and recombinant plasmid DNA using the BI-LATEST DNA Kit and examined the human β-actin gene and the level of plasmid DNA by real-time quantitative PCR. Results Before chemotherapy, the median value of plasma DNA was 149.46(30.63-496.91)ng/ml in the CML and 101.54(69.10-258.14) ng/ml in the CLL patients, both significantly higher than in the healthy controls (19.05[12.67-25.92]ng/ml) (P<0.01).After chemotherapy, the plasma DNA level of the CML patients was remarkably decreased, but still higher than that of the controls ( P<0.01).The CML patients in the chronic phase showed a markedly higher level of plasma DNA (302.89[93.33-541.52]ng/ml) than those in the blast phase (43.19[23.54-70.03]ng/ml) and acceleration phase (28.11[16.21-92.07]ng/ml) (P<0.05).The CLL patients with CR exhibited a significantly lower level of plasma DNA (24.29[14.64-30.74]ng/ml) than those with PR (106.88 [96.23-143.25]ng/ml) and NR (460.73[284.57-653.38〗ng/ml) (P<0.01), but all dramatically higher than that of the healthy controls (P<0.01) Conclusion The quantification of plasma DNA has a clinical application value in evaluating the effect of chemo-therapy on chronic leukemia.

Objective To study the effect of scalp acupuncture plus facilitation technique on the temporal and spatial parameters of gait in spastic cerebral palsy. Method Thirty eligible patients with spastic cerebral palsy were randomized into a treatment group and a control group based on the inter-group balance in age, palsy type, and the Gross Motor Function Classification System (GMFCS), 15 cases in each group. The treatment group was intervened by scalp acupuncture, together with the facilitation technique during the retaining of the needles; the control group was also by scalp acupuncture and facilitation techniques but with over 1 h interval between the two methods. The treatment was given once a day, totally for 3 months. The walking, running, and jumping items (E category) of the Gross Motor Function Measure-66 (GMFM-66), temporal and spatial parameters of gait, and vertical ground reaction force during stance were compared before and after the treatment. Result There were no significant inter-group differences in comparing the rates of E category of the GMFM-66 before the treatment (P>0.05), the rates were significantly changed after the treatment in both groups (P<0.05), and there were significant differences in comparing the rates between the two groups after the intervention (P<0.05);after the intervention, the step length, walking speed, and step frequency were increased significantly in both groups (P<0.05), while the double-stance phase was decreased significantly, and swing phase was increased significantly (P<0.05); after the intervention, the step length, walking speed, and step frequency of the treatment group were significantly better than that of the control group (P<0.05). Conclusion Acupuncture plus facilitation technique can mitigate the spasticity in spastic cerebral palsy, improve the gross motor function, especially the function of standing and walking, enhance the activities, and benefit the improvement of the step length, step width, and walk speed.

Objective:To explore the abnormal brain metabolic pattern and connectivity in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) patients.Methods:18F-FDG PET images of 75 patients diagnosed as drug resistant unilateral TLE from January 2014 to December 2016 in Huashan Hospital of Fudan University were collected retrospectively, including 41 (22 males, 19 females, age (28.4±8.7) years) left TLE (LTLE) and 34 (13 males, 21 females, age (28.5±8.8) years) right TLE (RTLE). Forty-four healthy controls (24 males, 20 females, age (31.2±6.2) years) were also enrolled. The cerebral glucose metabolism in TLE patients and the controls were analyzed with statistical parametric mapping (SPM) 12. The brain connectivity based on glucose metabolism were analyzed with bilateral hippocampus and amygdala as seeds. Permutation test with 1 000 permutations was used to analyze data. Results:Compared to control group, in both LTLE and RTLE groups, hypometabolism was found in affected hippocampus, amygdala, insula and temporal gyrus and hypermetabolism was observed in health hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, amygdala, lenticular nucleus and thalamus. In addition, hypometabolism was also found in affected superior/middle frontal gyrus and hypermetabolism was also found in bilateral frontal-orbital gyrus, bilateral cerebellum, affected lenticular nucleus and thalamus in LTLE group. In both TLE groups, affected seeds exhibited increased connectivity with affected superior frontal gyrus, lingual gyrus, fusiform gyrus, superior/middle temporal gyrus and temporal pole (all P<0.05); affected seeds exhibited increased connectivity with health superior frontal gyrus ( P=0.005), lingual gyrus ( P=0.018) and transverse temporal gyrus ( P=0.016) in RTLE group in addition. Besides, affected seeds exhibited decreased connectivity with bilateral default mode network (DMN) (all P<0.05), affected caudate nucleus ( P=0.015) and health thalamus ( P=0.008), in a uniform distribution pattern in LTLE group, and with bilateral cerebral cortex in an irregular distribution pattern in RTLE group (all P<0.05). In LTLE group, health seeds exhibited more increased connections with superior ( P=0.005)/middle frontal gyrus ( P=0.042), health hippocampus ( P=0.038), parahippocampal gyrus ( P=0.019), amygdala ( P=0.038), posterior cingulate gyrus ( P=0.004), and bilateral fusiform gyrusand ( P=0.048) compared with RTLE group; while, in RTLE group, health seeds exhibited more decreased connections with health superior ( P=0.047), inferior frontal gyrus ( P<0.001), orbital frontal gyrus ( P<0.001) and rectus gyrus ( P=0.016) compared with LTLE group. Conclusion:Altered brain glucose metabolism and connectivity pattern are found and will elucidate the underlying metabolic pattern of TLE.

Objective:To explore the association of the impaired cognition and the deposition of β-amyloid (Aβ) in normal cognitive (NC) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI).Methods:From December 2018 to January 2021, 305 subjects (113 males, 192 females; age (64.0±7.7) years) who completed neuropsychological tests and MRI in Shanghai Sixth People′s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University and 18F-florbetapir (AV45) PET imaging in Huashan Hospital, Fudan University were retrospectively analyzed. The subjects were divided into MCI group and NC group based on neuropsychological tests, and each group was further divided into Aβ-positive and Aβ-negative based on PET imaging results. Independent-sample t test, Mann-Whitney U test and χ2 test were used to analyze the data. Results:There were 118 subjects in MCI group and 187 subjects in NC group. The Aβ-positive rate in MCI group (37.3%, 44/118) was higher than that in NC group (26.2%, 49/187; χ2=4.19, P=0.041). The assessment performances of MCI group in general cognitive function, memory function, language function and executive function were inferior to those of NC group ( t values: from -10.63 to -6.31, z values: from -11.01 to -6.03, all P<0.001). The Auditory Verbal Learning Test-Long Delay Recall (AVLT-LDR) score of Aβ-positive subjects was lower than that of Aβ-negative subjects in MCI group (1.00(0.00, 3.00) and 3.00(1.00, 4.00); z=-2.49, P=0.013). The Montreal Cognitive Assessment Basic (MoCA-B) score of Aβ-positive subjects was lower than that of Aβ-negative subjects in NC group (25.29±2.67 and 26.36±2.42; t=-2.61, P=0.010). Conclusion:Compared to Aβ-negative subjects, MCI patients with Aβ-positive perform worse on memory tests, and NC subjects with Aβ-positive perform worse on general cognitive function.

Objective To investigate the correlation between the location of ruptured intracranial vertebral artery dissecting aneurysm (VADA)and the outcome after endovascular treatment. Methods Thirty-six patients with ruptured intracranial VADA undergoing endovascular treatment were enrolled retrospectively. According to the relationship between VADA and the location of the opening of posterior inferior cerebellar artery(PICA),they were divided into 3 groups:proximal to PICA group (n=13), distal to PICA group (n=13),and PICA involvement group (n=10). The demographic data, vascular risk factors, clinical features, imaging features, endovascular treatment mode, postoperative complications, and differece of the good outcome rate(defined as the modified Rankin scale 0-2)after 6 months of treatment were compared.Results Seven patients in the proximal to PICA group received reconstructive endovascular treatment (RET), and 6 received endovascular internal trapping(EIT);the good outcome rate was 100%(13/13).Seven patients in the distal to PICA group received RET,6 were treated with EIT;the good outcome rate was 84.6%(11/13).Four patients in the PICA involvement group received RET,and 6 received EIT,and 2 of them received contralateral vertebral artery retrograde PICA stenting combined with VADA segment and proximal vertebral artery coil embolization;the good outcome rate was 60.0%(6/10). There were significant differences in the overall outcome good rate among the 3 groups (P<0.05). The good outcome rate in the PICA involvement group was significant lower than that in the proximal to PICA group,and significantly lower than that in the proximal to PICA combined with distal to PICA group(P<0.05).Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that only Fisher grade 3-4 was the independent risk factor for poor outcome (odds ratio 28.0, 95% confidence interval 1.71-458.82; P=0.020). Conclusions The surgical options of endovascular treatment for ruptured intracranial VADA needs to evaluate the relationship between the location of dissecting aneurysms and the PICA origin. The risk of endovascular treatment in patients with intracranial VADA involving the origin of PICA is higher and it may affect the outcome.

Objective:To explore the β-amyloid (Aβ) deposition pattern of subjects with the preclinical Alzheimer′s disease (AD), community-derived amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and normal cognition (NC) from communities of Shanghai.Methods:According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 273 subjects (104 males, 169 females; age (64.2±7.6) years) were recruited from Shanghai community and memory clinics from December 2018 to July 2020. All subjects underwent MRI, 18F-AV45 PET imaging and neuropsychological scale tests and were grouped into AD, aMCI and NC groups based on clinical diagnosis. Differences in demographic information, the neuropsychological scale tests′ scores and positive rate of Aβ deposition among each group were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance or χ2 test. Aβ deposition patterns of AD and MCI groups were analyzed at voxel level, and the differences of Aβ deposition among different groups were compared. Results:Among 273 patients, the positive rates of Aβ deposition in AD, aMCI and NC groups were 84.4%(38/45), 36.4%(20/55) and 23.1%(40/173), respectively ( χ2=58.37, P<0.001). Among AD, aMCI, NC and NC (Aβ-) groups ( n=132), the education years of AD group was the lowest ((9.7±4.6) years; F=8.86, P<0.001). In addition, there were significant differences in the scores of several neuropsychological scale tests among AD, aMCI, NC groups and NC (Aβ-) group ( F values: 27.68-235.50, all P<0.001). Compared with subjects in NC(Aβ-) group, the Aβ depositions in the aMCI and AD groups were widely distributed in the whole cerebral cortex; and AD group had higher Aβ deposition in bilateral frontal, parietal, temporal, occipital lobe, cingulate gyrus and precuneus than aMCI group. Conclusions:The positive rate of Aβ deposition in the preclinical AD population from the Shanghai community is obtained. There are significant different Aβ deposition patterns in subjects at different stages of AD.

Objective:To investigate the tau deposition pattern in Alzheimer′s disease (AD) and its correlation with cognition by 18F-MK6240 PET imaging. Methods:From August 2021 to February 2022, 46 elderly people over 55 years old (16 males, 30 females; age (68.9±7.7) years) were included from outpatient and community in Shanghai. Structural brain MRI, β-amyloid (Aβ) PET imaging, tau-PET imaging and comprehensive neuropsychological tests batteries were conducted. The subjects were divided into AD group ( n=16) and normal cognition (NC) group ( n=30) according to the 2018 National Institute on aging and Alzheimer′s Association (NIA-AA) diagnostic criteria. Quantitative analysis was conducted to investigate the tau deposition pattern in AD after preprocessing 18F-MK6240 PET images with MRI images. SUV ratio (SUVR) of brain regions such as entorhinal cortex, hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, amygdala, insular lobe, frontal lobe, precuneus, occipital lobe, thalamus and putamen were analyzed, with cerebellum as reference region. The differences of tau deposition in brain regions between AD and NC groups were analyzed by independent-sample t test. The associations between SUVR and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score and Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Basic (MoCA-B) score were analyzed by Pearson correlation analysis. Results:AD displayed a significant tau deposition in frontal lobes, temporal lobes and parietal lobes compared with NC. SUVR of brain regions in AD group were higher than those in NC group ( t values: 3.37-9.61, all P<0.05). SUVR in brain regions were negatively correlated with MMSE score ( r values: from -0.735 to -0.350, all P<0.05) and MoCA-B score ( r values: from -0.723 to -0.367, all P<0.05). Conclusion:18F-MK6240 PET can demonstrate the tau deposition in the brain of AD patients, and the tau deposition is related to cognitive function.

Ocular diseases pose a significant challenge to global health. The field of metabolomics, which involves the systematic identification and quantification of metabolites within a biological system, has emerged as a promising research approach for unraveling disease mechanisms and discovering novel biomarkers. Through its application, metabolomics has yielded valuable knowledge pertaining to the initiation and advancement of various ocular diseases. This review presents an overview of metabolomics and examines recent research progess in four ocular diseases, specifically diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and dry eye, summarizing potential biomarkers and metabolic pathways associated with these diseases. Additionally, this review offers insights into the future prospects of utilizing metabolomics for the management and treatment of ocular diseases.