The purpose of this study was to explore the clinical efficacy and safety of Gynostemma pentaphyllum (G. pentaphyllum) in the treatment of hyperlipidemia, and to provide systematic evaluation basis for clinical application. CNKI, Wanfang Data, VIP, Web of science, PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Library were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) about G. pentaphyllum in the treatment of hyperlipidemia. Review Manager 5.4 were used for statistical analysis. Through reading topics, abstracts, and full texts, 27 papers with 2311 cases involved that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were finally included for the analysis. In terms of curative effect, the effect of G. pentaphyllum alone in increasing high density lipoprotein (HDL) index was better than that of conventional treatment, and the effect of reducing total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) was similar to that of conventional treatment. There was a synergistic effect between G. pentaphyllum and conventional drugs, and the combination of G. pentaphyllum and conventional drugs was superior to conventional treatment in reducing TG and increasing HDL. G. pentaphyllum can also decrease the levels of serum glutamic pyruvic transaminase and glutamic oxaloacetic transaminase in the treatment of hyperlipidemia, indicating a certain protective function of the liver. In terms of safety, there were fewer cases of adverse reactions in the G. pentaphyllum treatment group, and the adverse reaction events reported in the literature was mild. According to the results of meta-analysis, G. pentaphyllum was effective in the treatment of hyperlipidemia, and it has the potential to be combined with traditional drugs, has a certain liver protection function, and was superior to traditional drugs in the treatment of hyperlipidemia.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical treatment outcomes and the changes of the outcomes over time in extremely preterm twins in Guangdong Province, China. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for 269 pairs of extremely preterm twins with a gestational age of <28 weeks who were admitted to the department of neonatology in 26 grade A tertiary hospitals in Guangdong Province from January 2008 to December 2017. According to the admission time, they were divided into two groups: 2008-2012 and 2013-2017. Besides, each pair of twins was divided into the heavier infant and the lighter infant subgroups according to birth weight. The perinatal data of mothers and hospitalization data of neonates were collected. The survival rate of twins and the incidence rate of complications were compared between the 2008-2012 and 2013-2017 groups. RESULTS: Compared with the 2008-2012 group, the 2013-2017 group (both the heavier infant and lighter infant subgroups) had lower incidence rates of severe asphyxia and smaller head circumference at birth (P<0.05). The mortality rates of both of the twins, the heavier infant of the twins, and the lighter infant of the twins were lower in the 2013-2017 group compared with the 2008-2012 group (P<0.05). Compared with the 2008-2012 group, the 2013-2017 group (both the heavier infant and lighter infant subgroups) had lower incidence rates of pulmonary hemorrhage, patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), periventricular-intraventricular hemorrhage (P-IVH), and neonatal respiratory distress syndrome (NRDS) and a higher incidence rate of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS There is a significant increase in the survival rate over time in extremely preterm twins with a gestational age of <28 weeks in the 26 grade A tertiary hospitals in Guangdong Province. The incidences of severe asphyxia, pulmonary hemorrhage, PDA, P-IVH, and NRDS decrease in both the heavier and lighter infants of the twins, but the incidence of bronchopulmonary dysplasia increases. With the improvement of diagnosis and treatment, the multidisciplinary collaboration between different fields of fetal medicine including prenatal diagnosis, obstetrics, and neonatology is needed in the future to jointly develop management strategies for twin pregnancy.
Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia/epidemiology* ; Female ; Gestational Age ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Extremely Premature ; Infant, Newborn ; Pregnancy ; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Newborn/epidemiology* ; Retrospective Studies ; Treatment Outcome