Objective:To investigate the correlation between eosinophil count and short-term outcomes of patients with acute ischemic stroke.Methods:Patients with acute ischemic stroke treated in Fuyang People's Hospital from June 2017 to June 2019 were enrolled retrospectively. The demographic and baseline clinical data were collected. The modified Rankin Scale was used to evaluate the short-term clinical outcome at the time of discharge or 14 d after onset. 0-2 was defined as good outcome, and >2 was defined as poor outcome. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent influencing factors of poor short-term outcome. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive value of eosinophil count for poor short-term outcome. Results:A total of 300 patients with acute ischemic stroke were enrolled, including 187 males (62.3%) and 113 females (37.7%); their age was 63.62±12.14 years; baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score was 5.48±4.85. Two hundred and twenty-eight patients (76.0%) had a good outcome and 72 (24.0%) had a poor outcome. Univariate analysis showed that age, hypertension, baseline NIHSS score, C-reactive protein, atrial fibrillation, and neutrophil count of the poor outcome group were significantly higher than those of the good outcome group, while male, smoking, eosinophil count and percentage of eosinophils were significantly lower than those of the good outcome group (all P<0.05). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that baseline NIHSS score (odds ratio [ OR] 1.726, 95% confidence interval [ CI] 1.400-2.128; P<0.001), hypertension ( OR 3.744, 95% CI 1.227-11.426; P=0.020) and eosinophil count ( OR 0.287, 95% CI 0.102-0.616; P=0.043) were the independent influencing factors for the poor short-term outcome. ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve of eosinophil count for predicting the poor short-term outcome was 0.717 (95% CI 0.642-0.792), the best cutoff value was 0.075×10 9/L, and its sensitivity and specificity for predicting the poor short-term outcome were 88.6% and 51.4% respectively. Conclusion:The decreased eosinophil count had a certain predictive value for the poor short-term clinical outcome of patients with acute ischemic stroke.

Objective To investigate the correlation between serum alkaline phosphatase (ALP) level and early functional outcomes in young patients with acute ischemic stroke. Methods From January 2017 to December 2018, consecutive young patients (18-45 years old) with acute ischemic stroke admitted to the Department of Neurology, Fuyang People's Hospital were enrolled. According to the modified Rankin Scale score at discharge or on the 14th day of hospitalization (whichever occurs first), the patients were divided into poor outcome group ( > 2) and good outcome group (0-2). Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to determine the independent correlation between the serum ALP level and outcomes. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the predictive value of baseline serum ALP level for poor outcomes. Results A total of 200 young patients with acute ischemic stroke were enrolled, and 138 (69. 0％) in the good outcome group and 62 (31. 0％) in the poor outcome group. Univariate analysis showed that the serum ALP level (87. 72 ±25. 60 U/L vs. 81. 70 ±22. 95 U/L; t = -4. 464, P < 0. 001) and baseline National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score (median and interquartile range: 9 [8- 12] vs. 2 [1-4]; Z = -10. 540, P < 0. 001) in the poor outcome group were significantly higher than those in the good outcome group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high serum ALP levels (odds ratio 1. 030, 95％ confidence interval 1. 001-1. 060; P = 0. 040) and high baseline NIHSS score (odds ratio 2. 387, 95％ confidence interval 1. 799-3. 142; P < 0. 001) were the independent risk factors for early poor outcomes. ROC curve analysis showed that the optimal cut-off value of the baseline serum ALP level predicting poor outcome was 86. 25 U/L, and its sensitivity and specificity were 53. 2％ and 79. 7％, respectively. Conclusions High serum ALP level is independently associated with poor early outcomes in young patients with acute ischemic stroke. Baseline serum ALP level has certain predictive value for poor outcomes.

Vascular calcification is often observed in the angiographic examination of patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, especially in the elderly. There are many researches on the relation between intracranial artery calcification (ICA) and ischemic stroke (IS) in clinic, but the conclusions of these researches have not been unified yet. In this article, the researches on progression of relation between ICA and IS are used as a clue to review, and try to clarify the correlation between ICA and IS in the current researches, so as to provide a new strategy for the treatment of IS in clinic.

Objective:To explore the clinical prognoses of acute ischemic stroke (AIS) patients with large core infarction after endovascular therapy (EVT) and their influencing factors.Methods:Totally, 139 AIS patients with large area core infarction (volume of infarction core area≥70 mm3) admitted to our hospital from November 2019 to December 2020 were enrolled in our study; their clinical data were analyz ed retrospectively. These patients were divided into EVT group ( n=78) and non-EVT group ( n=61) according to whether endovascular treatment was performed, and the clinical prognoses of patients from the 2 groups were compared. According to the 3-month modified Rankin scale (mRS) scores, the patients in the EVT group were divided into good prognosis subgroup (mRS scores≤2) and poor prognosis subgroup (mRS scores>2); univariate and multivariate Logistic regressions were used to analyze the independent influencing factors for prognoses of AIS patients with large area core infarction after EVT. Results:As compared with those in the non-EVT group, patients in the EVT group had significantly higher good prognosis rate (11.48% vs. 42.31%), and significantly lower proportion of patients with neurological deterioration, cerebral hernia and death ( P<0.05). As compared with the poor prognosis subgroup, the good prognosis subgroup had significantly lower percentage of patients with atrial fibrillation, significantly higher percentage of conscious patients, significantly higher Alberta stroke program early CT scale (ASPECT) scores, statistically lower volume of infarction core areas, and significantly higher percentage of patients with grading 2-4 in collateral circulation ( P<0.05). ASPECT scores ( OR=4.164, 95%CI: 2.081-8.332, P=0.000), volume of infarction core areas ( OR=0.917, 95%CI: 0.855-0.984, P=0.016), and collateral circulation grading ( OR=5.113, 95%CI: 1.104-23.683, P=0.037) were independent influencing factors for prognoses of AIS patients with large area core infarction after EVT. Conclusion:EVT can effectively improve the prognoses and reduce the complication rate of AIS patients with large area core infarction; patients with high ASPECT scores, low infarct core volume, and high collateral circulation grading get great benefits.

Objective To investigate the expression of NLRP3 inflammatory body in the process of liver fibrosis in a rat model of common bile duct ligation (BDL) and the association of NLRP3 inflammatory body with liver fibrosis. Methods A total of 65 Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operation group with 15 rats and BDL model group with 50 rats. On days 3, 7, 14, 21, and 28, 10 rats in the model group and 3 rats in the sham-operation group were sacrificed. The serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), direct bilirubin (DBil), total bilirubin (TBil), total bile acid (TBA), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) were measured, and HE staining, Masson staining, and sirius red-picric acid staining were performed for liver tissue to evaluate liver fibrosis degree. Immunohistochemistry was used to measure the expression levels of alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) and transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in liver tissue, Western blot and qRT-PCR were used to measure the expression level of NLRP3 inflammatory body, and ELISA was used to measure the level of the inflammatory factor interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in liver tissue. An analysis of variance was used for comparison of continuous data between groups, and the least significant difference t -test was used for further comparison between two groups. Results Compared with the sham-operation group, the BDL model group had significant increases in the serum levels of ALT, AST, DBil, TBil, TBA, and ALP (all P < 0.05) and the level of IL-1β in liver tissue ( P < 0.05), which reached the highest level on day 3 and then decreased. Compared with the sham-operation group over time, the BDL group had a significant increase in liver fibrosis score ( P < 0.05); immunohistochemistry showed gradual increases in the expression of SMA-α and TGF-β1 ( P < 0.05), and Western blot and qRT-PCR showed a gradual increase in the protein expression of NLRP3 inflammatory body in liver tissue ( P < 0.05), which remained stable after day 14. Conclusion Liver injury exists persistently in a rat model of BDL, and liver histopathology shows the dynamic evolution of hepatitis, liver fibrosis, and liver cirrhosis. NLRP3 inflammatory body is in a state of continuous activation and may play an important role in the process of liver fibrosis.