OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the dynamic changes of glucocorticoid (GC) dose and the feasibility of GC discontinuation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients under the background of Chinese medicine (CM). METHODS: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 1,196 RA patients enrolled in the China Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry of Patients with Chinese Medicine (CERTAIN) from September 1, 2019 to December 4, 2023, who initiated GC therapy. Participants were divided into the Western medicine (WM) and integrative medicine (IM, combination of CM and WM) groups based on medication regimen. Follow-up was performed at least every 3 months to assess dynamic changes in GC dose. Changes in GC dose were analyzed by generalized estimator equation, the probability of GC discontinuation was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curve, and predictors of GC discontinuation were analyzed by Cox regression. Patients with <12 months of follow-up were excluded for the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,196 patients (85.4% female; median age 56.4 years), 880 (73.6%) received IM. Over a median 12-month follow-up, 34.3% (410 cases) discontinued GC, with significantly higher rates in the IM group (40.8% vs. 16.1% in WM; P<0.05). GC dose declined progressively, with IM patients demonstrating faster reductions (median 3.75 mg vs. 5.00 mg in WM at 12 months; P<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis identified age <60 years [P<0.001, hazard ratios (HR)=2.142, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.523-3.012], IM therapy (P=0.001, HR=2.175, 95% CI: 1.369-3.456), baseline GC dose ⩽7.5 mg (P=0.003, HR=1.637, 95% CI: 1.177-2.275), and absence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use (P=0.001, HR=2.546, 95% CI: 1.432-4.527) as significant predictors of GC discontinuation. Sensitivity analysis (545 cases) confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS RA patients receiving CM face difficulties in following guideline-recommended GC discontinuation protocols. IM can promote GC discontinuation and is a promising strategy to reduce GC dependency in RA management. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT05219214).
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy* ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Retrospective Studies

Objective:To analyze the comorbidity status and influencing factors of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia among middle-aged and elderly in Jiangsu Province and to provide support for "co-management of the three diseases".Methods:Data originated from the Comprehensive Prevention and Control Project of Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases baseline survey in Jiangsu Province. Questionnaire interviews, physical examinations, and laboratory tests were conducted on 136 433 permanent residents aged ≥35 years who participated in the survey from 2021 to 2023. A multinomial logit model was established using SPSS 23.0 to analyze the influencing factors of the three comorbidities.Results:The comorbidity rate of hypertension, diabetes, and dyslipidemia among middle-aged and older adults in Jiangsu Province was 7.3%. Hypertension combined with dyslipidemia was the main comorbidity pattern, and patients with diabetes accounted for the largest proportion. Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that the risk of being two types of the three comorbidities was higher in male, aging, urban residents, and those with high/technical secondary school, higher frequency of cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking, and longer daily sedentary time; the risk was lower in those with higher the level of physical activity and longer daily sleep time. Among the three types of comorbidities, males with aging, high/technical secondary school, regular smoking/quitting, higher frequency of alcohol drinking, and longer daily sedentary time had higher risk; those with an annual family income of 30 000-99 999 RMB, higher level of physical activity, and the daily sleep time of 7 hours had the lower risk (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The prevention and control of the three comorbidities among middle-aged and older adults in Jiangsu Province still needs strengthening. High-risk groups for the three diseases and comorbidities, such as males, low-income , and high/technical secondary school should be focused on. Middle-aged and older adults are suggested to increase daily physical activity, reduce daily static time, reasonably arrange sleep duration, and quit smoking and drinking as early as possible to maintain a healthy weight.

The steps for installation and withdrawal of WYD2000 field surgical lamp were introduced.The failures and causes of broken cross-arm connector of WYD2000 field surgical lamp were analyzed.The problems of WYD2000 field surgical lamp in vulnerability to breaking and difficulty in maintenance were solved by designing and manufacturing a special maintenance tool and optimizing the materials and fixing mode of cross-arm connection.References were provided for main-tenance and improvement of WYD2000 field surgical lamp.[Chinese Medical Equipment Journal,2024,45(4):116-118]

Aim To investigate whether diallyl disul-fide (DADS) augments the sensitivity of DJ-1 (protein/ nucleic acid deglycase) overexpressed human gastric SGC7901 cells to 5-FU (5-fluorouracil). Methods The experimental groups include control group, DADS group, VCR (vincristine) group, VCR + DADS group, DJ-1 group, DJ-1 + DADS group. MTT was used to analyze the effect of DADS on 5 -FU (5 -fluorou- racil) induced proliferation inhibition. Flow cytometry was performed to examine the effect of DADS on cell apoptosis. RT-PCR, Western blot, and immunofluo-rescence were used for determine the effect of DADS on the drug resistance associated gene expression. Results DADS enhanced the proliferation inhibitory effect of 5-FU on DJ-1 overexpressed cells and VCR resistant cells. DADS could induce apoptosis in VCR-resistant cells. DADS downregulated the expression of DJ-1 while inducing apoptosis in DJ-1 overexpressed cells. DJ-1 overexpression upregulated the expression of P-gp (P-glycoprotein), Bcl-2, and XIAP (X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein), downregulated the expression of caspase-3. DADS decreased the expression of P-gp, Bcl-2, and XIAP, while increased the expression of caspase-3 in DJ-1 overexpressed cells and VCR-resistant cells. Conclusions DADS can augment the sensitivity of DJ-1 overexpressed cells to 5-FU, which is related to its antagonism against DJ-1 mediated upregula- tion of P-gp, Bcl-2, XIAP, and downregulation of caspase-3.

Objective To analyze the correlation between the multiple evaluation indicators in the early stage and the cure time(needed time from treatment to cure)of the patients with facial neuritis treated by ac-upuncture combined with medication,and to optimize the subjective and objective indicators enable predicting the cure time of facial neuritis in early stage.Methods All patients were treated by acupuncture and medica-tion combination.The research subjects were 64 patients with facial neuritis from the outpatient of cupuncture and moxibustion department of this hospital.The correlation between the grade of facial nerve paralysis,sur-face electromyography related data,scores of self-made symptom scoring scale,Sunnybrook Facial Grading System(SFGS)score,Facial Disability Index-Physical(FDIP)score,Facial Disability Index-Social(FDIS)score on 7 d of onset with the cure time was analyzed.Results The cure time was positively correlated with the grade of facial nerve paralysis and FDIS score on 7 d of onset(P＜0.01),amd negatively correlated with the scores of self-made symptom scoring scale,FDIP score,SFGS score and the affected side to healthy ratio of CMAP amplitude of buccal temporal branch of facial nerve(P＜0.01 or P＜0.05);the cure time had no sig-nificant correlation with the ratio of affected side and healthy side of CMAP amplitude in zygomatic branch of facial nerve,the ratio of affected side and healthy side of CMAP latent period of temporal branch,buccal branch and zygomatic branch of facial nerve and F wave output rate(P＞0.05).Conclusion In the early stage subjective indicators of the acupuncture combined with medication for treating facial neuritis,grade of facial nerve paralysis,self-made symptom scoring scale,scores of self-made symptom scoring scale,FDIP and FDIS scores and the ratio of affected side to healthy side of CMAP amplitude of the buccal branch,temporal branch of the facial nerve in sEMG in the objective indicators could be used to predict the cure time,better guide the treatment and have more effective and accurate comunication with the patients.

Objective:To prepare advanced platelet-rich fibrin (A-PRF)/chitosan thermosensitive hydrogel (hereinafter referred to as composite hydrogel) and explore the effects of composite hydrogel on full-thickness skin defect wound healing in diabetic rats.Methods:This study was an experimental study. The composite hydrogel with porous mesh structure and thermosensitive characteristics was successfully prepared, containing A-PRF with mass concentrations of 10, 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L. Diabetic model was successfully established in male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 6-8 weeks by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin, and 4 full-thickness skin defect wounds were established on the back of each rat (finally the model was successfully established in 36 rats). Three wounds of each rat were divided into blank group (no drug intervention), positive control group (dropping recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage stimulating factor gel), and chitosan hydrogel group (dropping chitosan hydrogel solution). Thirty rats were collected, and the remaining one wound of each rat (totally 30 wounds) was divided into 10, 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups, with 6 wounds in each group, which were dropped with composite hydrogel solution containing 10, 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L A-PRF, respectively. Taking the remaining six rats, the remaining one wound from each rat was dropped with composite hydrogel solution containing 100 g/L A-PRF. On 14 d after injury, 6 rats with one wound dropped with composite hydrogel containing 100 g/L A-PRF were selected for hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining to observe the inflammation, hemorrhage, or necrosis of the heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney. On 10 d after injury, 6 rats with one wound dropped with composite hydrogel containing 15 g/L A-PRF were selected to observe the blood perfusion of wounds in the four groups (with sample size of 6). On 7 and 14 d after injury, the wound healing rates in the eight groups were calculated. On 14 d after injury, the wound tissue in the eight groups was taken for HE and Masson staining to observe the formation of new epithelium and collagen formation, respectively; the positive expressions of CD31 and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) were detected by immunohistochemistry, and the percentages of positive areas were calculated; the protein expressions of CD31 and VEGFA were detected by Western blotting; the mRNA expressions of CD31 and VEGFA were detected by real-time fluorescent quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction method (with all sample sizes of 4).Results:On 14 d after injury, no obvious inflammation, hemorrhage, or necrosis was observed in the heart, liver, spleen, lung, and kidney in the 6 rats. On 10 d after injury, the blood perfusion volume of wound in 15 g/L composite hydrogel group was significantly more than that in blank group, positive control group, and chitosan hydrogel group, respectively (with P values all <0.05). On 7 and 14 d after injury, the wound healing rates of blank group were (26.0±8.9)% and (75.0±1.8)%, which were significantly lower than those of positive control group, chitosan hydrogel group, and 10, 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups, respectively ((45.8±3.2)%, (49.8±3.7)%, (51.2±2.9)%, (68.5±2.4)%, (68.8±1.5)%, (72.7±2.1)%, (75.0±3.7)% and (79.1±1.9)%, (77.2±1.7)%, (82.3±1.3)%, (89.6±1.9)%, (89.8±1.3)%, (87.3±1.1)%, (87.9±1.3)%), P<0.05; the wound healing rates of positive control group, chitosan hydrogel group, and 10 g/L composite hydrogel group were significantly lower than those of 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups ( P<0.05). On 14 d after injury, the wound epithelialization degrees of 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups were higher than those of the other 4 groups, the new microvascular situation was better, and the collagen was more abundant and arranged more neatly. On 14 d after injury, the percentages of CD31 and VEGFA positive areas in wounds in positive control group and the percentage of VEGFA positive area in wounds in chitosan hydrogel group were significantly higher than those in blank group ( P<0.05), the percentage of VEGFA positive area in wounds in 10 g/L composite hydrogel group was significantly higher than that in blank group, chitosan hydrogel group, and positive control group (with P values all <0.05), and the percentages of CD31 and VEGFA positive areas in wounds in 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups were significantly higher than those in blank group, positive control group, chitosan hydrogel group, and 10 g/L composite hydrogel group ( P<0.05). On 14 d after injury, the protein and mRNA expressions of CD31 and VEGFA in wound tissue in chitosan hydrogel group, positive control group, and 10 g/L composite hydrogel group were significantly higher than those in blank group ( P<0.05); the protein expression of VEGFA in wound tissue in 10 g/L composite hydrogel group was significantly higher than that in positive control group ( P<0.05), and the mRNA expressions of CD31 and VEGFA in wound tissue in 10 g/L composite hydrogel group were significantly higher than those in positive control group and chitosan hydrogel group ( P<0.05); the protein and mRNA expressions of CD31 and VEGFA in wound tissue in 15, 20, 50, and 100 g/L composite hydrogel groups were significantly higher than those in blank group, positive control group, chitosan hydrogel group, and 10 g/L composite hydrogel group ( P<0.05); the mRNA expressions of CD31 and VEGFA in wound tissue in chitosan hydrogel group were significantly lower than those in positive control group ( P<0.05). Conclusions:The composite hydrogel has high biological safety, can improve wound blood perfusion, effectively promote the formation of blood vessels and collagen in wound tissue, thus promoting the wound healing of full-thickness skin defects in diabetic rats. 15 g/L is the optimal mass concentration of A-PRF in composite hydrogel.

Objective To explore the key active ingredients and action characteristics of Wenxing Jingjintong Gel Patch in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis(RA)based on the systematic pharmacology and LC-MS/MS technology.Methods The information of active ingredient from Wenxing Jingjintong Gel Patch was established through LC-MS/MS analysis and literature retrieval.The targets of the active ingredients were predicted using Swiss Target Prediction platform and then mapped with the RA-related targets obtained from GeneCards,DrugBank,and OMIM databases to identify the intersecting targets.The"active ingredients-effective targets"network was constructed through the Cytoscape software.The shared targets were imported into STRING database to construct a protein-protein interaction network.GO function and KEGG pathway enrichment analysis were performed using the Metascape database.Molecular docking studies were conducted using AutoDock software to investigate the interactions between key ingredients and target proteins.Results A total of 142 active ingredients were identified in Wenxing Jingjintong Gel Patch by wsing LC-MS/MS,which were further supplemented to 174 through literature retrieval.There were 175 shared targets between the active ingredients and RA.It was anticipated that Wenxing Jingjintong Gel Patch exerted immune regulation and anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects through the interaction between key active ingredients such as berberine,neobavaisoflavone,and palmatine chloride with key targets,including TNF,IL6,and AKT1 to regulate PI3K/Akt1,JAK/STAT,and MAPK signaling pathways.In 1 152 molecular docking validation,94%of them had binding energies less than-5.0 kcal·mol-1,while 51%of them had binding energies less than-7.0 kcal·mol-1.It was indicated that there was a good binding affinity between the potential active ingredients and core targets.Conclusion This study predicted the active ingredients and action characteristics of Wenxing Jingjintong Gel Patch in the treatment of RA,which provided a theoretical basis for further clinical application and quality control.

The Evidence-based guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of age-related macular degeneration in China (2023) is the first evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) in China that strictly follows the WHO guideline formulation and international guideline standards. Based on the latest evidence-based medical evidence and the rapid development of ocular fundus imaging technology, the new version of the guidelines has been updated in the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of AMD. Based on the origin and presence of neovascularization in retinal tissue, the macular neovascularizations are divided into type 1, type 2 and type 3 macular neovascularization (MNV). Optical coherence tomography (OCT) plus OCT angiography is recommended as the useful diagnostic method in neovascular AMD patients. Antioxidant vitamins, zinc, lutein, zeaxanthin, or a mix of antioxidant vitamins and minerals are recommended to prevent the progression of early to intermediate AMD. Intravitreal administration of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) agents is the first-line treatment for neovascular AMD, and once a month for the first 3 months plus treatment and prolonged administration regimen shows benefit to a certain extent. For poor response and non-response neovascular AMD patients, the clinician should decide the next treatment plan based on comprehensive consideration. Close observation is recommended for non-exudative MNV, and anti-VEGF therapy should be used promptly once non-exudative MNV transfer to exudative MNV. It is hoped that this guideline will improve the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and follow-up of AMD in China.

This study delves into the pivotal factors influencing the consensus process within traditional Chinese medicine guideline development, with the objective of augmenting the quality of this process through methodological recommendations aimed at elevating standardization.

To expand the single-dose duration over which noninvasive clinical and preclinical cancer imaging can be conducted with high sensitivity, and well-defined spatial and temporal resolutions, a facile strategy to prepare ultrasmall nanoparticulate X-ray contrast media (nano-XRCM) as dual-modality imaging agents for positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) has been established. Synthesized from controlled copolymerization of triiodobenzoyl ethyl acrylate and oligo(ethylene oxide) acrylate monomers, the amphiphilic statistical iodocopolymers (ICPs) could directly dissolve in water to afford thermodynamically stable solutions with high aqueous iodine concentrations (>140 mg iodine/mL water) and comparable viscosities to conventional small molecule XRCM. The formation of ultrasmall iodinated nanoparticles with hydrodynamic diameters of ca. 10 nm in water was confirmed by dynamic and static light scattering techniques. In a breast cancer mouse model, in vivo biodistribution studies revealed that the ⁶⁴Cu-chelator-functionalized iodinated nano-XRCM exhibited extended blood residency and higher tumor accumulation compared to typical small molecule imaging agents. PET/CT imaging of tumor over 3 days showed good correlation between PET and CT signals, while CT imaging allowed continuous observation of tumor retention even after 10 days post-injection, enabling longitudinal monitoring of tumor retention for imaging or potentially therapeutic effect after a single administration of nano-XRCM.