Objective To investigate the changes and significance of serum inflammatory factors in coronary heart disease (CHD) patients with obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) ,and the treatment effects of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP).Methods A total of 76 CHD patients in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University from October 2007 to October 2008 were enrolled.Polysomnography (PSG) was performed in these CHD patients to identify if they were complicated by OSAHS.The levels of inflammatory factors including TNF-α, IL-6, high sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in serum were determined in the CHD patients and 23 normal subjects.The CHD patients with mederate-severe OSAHS (AHI≥ 15 episodes/hour) were treated by Auto-CPAP for 3 months and all parameters above were measured again.Results There were 41/76 (53.9%) of CHD patients had mederate-severe OSAHS and were treated with CPAP.The levels of TNF-ct,IL-6 and hs-CRP were significantly higher in the CHD patients than those in the normal controls (all P <0.01) ,and were significantly higher in moderate-severe OSAHS patients than those in the non-OSAHS CHD patients.Auto-CPAP ventilation significantly decreased the levels of inflammatory factors in the CHD patients with moderate-severe OSAHS.Conclusions An obvious proinflammatory state is detected in CHD patients ,and is aggravated with OSAHS.CPAP is a useful treatment for CHD patients with mediate to severe OSAHS.

BACKGROUND:Studies have shown that there is a close association between spinal cord injury and ferroptosis,and that tetramethylpyrazine has the function of regulating redox reactions. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the regulatory effect of tetramethylpyrazine on ferroptosis in rats with spinal cord injury and its mechanism. METHODS:Thirty-six female specific pathogen-free Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operated group,model group and tetramethylpyrazine group,with 12 rats in each group.Animal models of spinal cord injury were established using the modified Allen's method in the latter two groups.No treatment was given in the sham-operated group,while rats in the model and tetramethylpyrazine groups were given intraperitoneal injection of normal saline and tetramethylpyrazine solution,once a day,for 28 days. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:The Basso,Beattie&Bresnahan Locomotor Rating Scale score in the tetramethylpyrazine group was lower than that in the sham-operated group but higher than that in the model group after 14,21,and 28 days of treatment(P＜0.05).After 28 days of treatment,hematoxylin-eosin staining showed that in the model group,the spinal cord tissue of rats showed cavity formation,necrotic tissue and inflammatory infiltration with fibrous tissue formation;in the tetramethylpyrazine group,the area of spinal cord tissue defects was smaller,and inflammatory infiltration and fibrous tissue formation were less than those in the model group.After 28 days of treatment,Prussian blue staining showed that a large amount of iron deposition was seen in the spinal cord tissue of rats in the model group,and less iron deposition was seen in the spinal cord tissue of rats in the tetramethylpyrazine group than in the model group.After 28 days of treatment,the levels of glutathione and superoxide dismutase in the rat spinal cord tissue were decreased(P＜0.05)and the level of malondialdehyde was increased in the model group compared with the sham-operated group(P＜0.05);the levels of glutathione and superoxide dismutase in the rat spinal cord tissue were increased(P＜0.05)and the level of malondialdehyde was decreased in the tetramethylpyrazine group compared with the model group(P＜0.05).After 28 days of treatment,qRT-PCR and western blot assay showed that the mRNA and protein levels of glutathione peroxidase 4,ferritin heavy chain,and ferroportin in the rat spinal cord tissue in the model group were decreased compared with those in the sham-operated group(P＜0.05),while the mRNA and protein levels of glutathione peroxidase 4,ferritin heavy chain,and ferroportin in the rat spinal cord tissue in the tetramethylpyrazine group were increased compared with those in the model group(P＜0.05).Immunofluorescence staining showed that after 28 days of treatment,the neuronal nuclei positive staining in the spinal cord of rats was the most in the sham-operated group and the least in the model group.To conclude,tetramethylpyrazine can improve motor function and play a neuroprotective role in rats with spinal cord injury by regulating ferroptosis.

Objective:To compare the differences of brain activation in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD) and multiple sclerosis (MS) under contact heat stimulation (CHS), and to explore the characteristics of pain-related brain networks in NMOSD and MS patients.Methods:Fourteen NMOSD patients (NMOSD group) and 12 MS patients (MS group) admitted to Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College from September 2022 to December 2022 who met the diagnostic criteria were collected. Twelve healthy individuals (HC group) matched with gender and age were recruited during the same period. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score was used to evaluate the pain of the subjects, CHS painful stimuli were given, and task-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were performed at the same time, and the differences in brain activation among the 3 groups were analyzed and compared.Results:(1) Compared with the HC group, the NMOSD group had a stronger activation degree than the HC group in the brain regions including the cortex around the left distance fissure, bilateral medial superior frontal gyrus; the activation degree of the NMOSD group was weaker than that of the HC group in the brain areas including the left medial and paracingulate gyrus, right superior parietal gyrus, left postcentral gyrus, and right supplementary motor area (all P<0.05). (2) Compared with the HC group, the brain regions whose activation degree was weaker in the MS group included the left caudate nucleus, left medial and paracingulate gyrus, left paracentral lobule, right superior parietal gyrus, left postcentral gyrus, left precuneus, right supplementary motor area, right superior temporal gyrus and right thalamus, and there was no brain area in the MS group whose activation degree was stronger than that of the HC group (all P<0.05). (3) Compared with the MS group, the brain regions with stronger activation degree in the NMOSD group included the left perifissure cortex and right thalamus, but no brain regions with weaker activation degree were found in the NMOSD group (all P<0.05). (4) There was a correlation between somatic pain VAS scores and activation of the medial superior frontal gyrus in the NMOSD group ( r=0.66, P<0.05). Conclusions:The results of CHS-fMRI in the NMOSD group, MS group and HC group showed that multiple brain regions were activated, indicating that multiple brain regions were involved in the generation and processing of pain, and there was a pain-related brain network. Pain-related brain networks were altered in NMOSD patients and MS patients, and there were differences in pain-related brain networks between the two diseases.

Background::To date, there is no effective medicine to treat coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and the antiviral efficacy of arbidol in the treatment for COVID-19 remained equivocal and controversial. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of arbidol tablets in the treatment of COVID-19.Methods::This was a prospective, open-label, controlled and multicenter investigator-initiated trial involving adult patients with confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. Patients were stratified 1:2 to either standard-of-care (SOC) or SOC plus arbidol tablets (oral administration of 200 mg per time, three times a day for 14 days). The primary endpoint was negative conversion of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week. The rates and 95% confidential intervals were calculated for each variable.Results::A total of 99 patients with laboratory-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection were enrolled; 66 were assigned to the SOC plus arbidol tablets group, and 33 to the SOC group. The negative conversion rate of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week in patients receiving arbidol tablets was significantly higher than that of the SOC group (70.3% [45/64] vs. 42.4% [14/33]; difference of conversion rate 27.9%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 7.7%-48.1%; P = 0.008). Compared to those in the SOC group, patients receiving arbidol tablets had a shorter duration of clinical recovery (median 7.0 days vs. 12.0 days; hazard ratio [HR]: 1.877, 95% CI: 1.151-3.060, P = 0.006), symptom of fever (median 3.0 days vs. 12.0 days; HR: 18.990, 95% CI: 5.350-67.410, P < 0.001), as well as hospitalization (median 12.5 days vs. 20.0 days; P < 0.001). Moreover, the addition of arbidol tablets to SOC led to more rapid normalization of declined blood lymphocytes (median 10.0 days vs. 14.5 days; P > 0.05). The most common adverse event in the arbidol tablets group was the elevation of transaminase (5/200, 2.5%), and no one withdrew from the study due to adverse events or disease progression. Conclusions::SOC plus arbidol tablets significantly increase the negative conversion rate of SARS-CoV-2 within the first week and accelerate the recovery of COVID-19 patients. During the treatment with arbidol tablets, we find no significant serious adverse events.Trial registration::Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, NCT04260594, www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04260594?term= NCT04260594&draw=2&rank=1

Adult ; Delayed Diagnosis ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Thoracic Injuries ; complications ; Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Wounds, Nonpenetrating ; complications