Objective China is experiencing increasing disease burden and economic burden of acute myocardial infarction(AMI),while the healthcare resources are limited and unevenly distributed.Hospitalization duration is an important measure of health resource utilization index.This study aims to describe the time trend of Length of stay(LOS) for AMI inpatient care in eastern urban areas of China,and to identify potential hospital-level factors associated with the LOS,which is an important indicator of resource utilization.Methods The study randomly selected a representative sample of patients admitted for AMI in 2001,2006 and 2011,from urban hospitals in eastern China.After central data abstraction from medical records,patients' characteristics,treatments and outcomes were compared between 3 hospital groups that were divided according to their median of LOS.Results Five thousand and forty-seven AMI cases were included in the analyses.The average LOS were (15.3±10.2),(13.5±8.7) and (12.2±7.8) d in 2001,2006 and 2011 respectively,with a decreasing trend(F=10.93,P<0.001).After adjusted for patients' characteristics,there were no significant different in LOS between years.Patients' characteristics were similar between high-,middle-and low-LOS hospitals,however,in high-LOS hospitals,use rates of aspirin,clopidogrel and statins were even lower(P≤0.001).LOS were longer 1.9 d in the hospitals with relatively small AMI inpatient treatment volumes(30-80 annually,t=2.97,P<0.01).Conclusions The average LOS for AMI in eastern urban areas of China is much longer than in western countries.Conclusion between hospitals have highlighted the gaps in care quality and efficiency.Standardized clinical pathways and hierarchical medical system are essential strategies in the new healthcare reform.

Objective To investigate the cognitive condition in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Methods Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children IV (WISC-IV) was administered for 127 DMD patients aged 6~14 years from April, 2013 to December, 2015. The verbal intelligence quotient (VIQ), performance intelligence quotient (PIQ) and full-scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) scores were analyzed. Results The FSIQ, VIQ and PIQ were (93.2±18.6), (91.5±18.9), and (96.6±19.5), respectively, which were lower than 100 in normal population (P<0.001), and higher than that of patients abroad in the previous studies (P<0.001). There were 13 patients (10.24%) whose scores of FSIQ were less than 70. The VIQ-PIQ discrepancy score was (-5.0 ± 16.6). Conclusion About 1/10 of Chinese DMD pa-tients impaire in cognitive function, which is significantly lower than that abroad. VIQ is more affected than PIQ.

Objective:To verify the efficacy and safety of daily oral minodronate in postmenopausal women with established osteoporosis.Methods:In this randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial, 262 postmenopausal women were enrolled. Patients were randomized to receive daily oral minodronate 1 mg with supplements of 500 mg calcium and 200 U vitamin D 3 ( n=130) or placebo ( n=132) with daily supplements of 500 mg calcium and 200 U vitamin D 3, for 48 weeks. The primary endpoint was the average bone mineral density (BMD) change in the lumbar vertebrae 48 weeks post-treatment. Secondary outcome measures was the incidence of vertebral fractures. Safety assessments included the rate of adverse events. Results:At the end of 48 weeks treatment, the average BMD change rate from baseline were: full analysis set results: (3.52±4.82)% in the minodronate group and (2.00±5.74)% in the placebo group; per-protocol set results: (3.99±5.05)% in the minodronate group and (2.07±6.20)% in the placebo group; the differences were all significant (all P<0.05). Vertebral fracture occured in 3 patients (2.3%, 3/132) in the placebo group, and 1 case (0.8%, 1/130) in the minodronate group ( P>0.05). The incidence of adverse events was 71.5% (93/130) in the minodronate group and 78.0% (103/132) in the placebo group ( P>0.05). Conclusion:Minodronate is effective and safe in the treatment of postmenopausal osteoporosis without severe side effects.