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

BACKGROUND: China is seeing a growing demand for rehabilitation treatments for post-stroke upper limb spastic paresis (PSSP-UL). Although acupuncture is known to be effective for PSSP-UL, there is room to enhance its efficacy. OBJECTIVE: This study explored a semi-personalized acupuncture approach for PSSP-UL that used three-dimensional kinematic analysis (3DKA) results to select additional acupoints, and investigated the feasibility, efficacy and safety of this approach. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTIONS: This single-blind, single-center, randomized, controlled trial involved 74 participants who experienced a first-ever ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke with spastic upper limb paresis. The participants were then randomly assigned to the intervention group or the control group in a 1:1 ratio. Both groups received conventional treatments and acupuncture treatment 5 days a week for 4 weeks. The main acupoints in both groups were the same, while participants in the intervention group received additional acupoints selected on the basis of 3DKA results. Follow-up assessments were conducted for 8 weeks after the treatment. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome was the Fugl-Meyer Assessment for Upper Extremity (FMA-UE) response rate (≥ 6-point change) at week 4. Secondary outcomes included changes in motor function (FMA-UE), Brunnstrom recovery stage (BRS), manual muscle test (MMT), spasticity (Modified Ashworth Scale, MAS), and activities of daily life (Modified Barthel Index, MBI) at week 4 and week 12. RESULTS: Sixty-four participants completed the trial and underwent analyses. Compared with control group, the intervention group exhibited a significantly higher FMA-UE response rate at week 4 (χ² = 5.479, P = 0.019) and greater improvements in FMA-UE at both week 4 and week 12 (both P < 0.001). The intervention group also showed bigger improvements from baseline in the MMT grades for shoulder adduction and elbow flexion at weeks 4 and 12 as well as thumb adduction at week 4 (P = 0.007, P = 0.049, P = 0.019, P = 0.008, P = 0.029, respectively). The intervention group showed a better change in the MBI at both week 4 and week 12 (P = 0.004 and P = 0.010, respectively). Although the intervention group had a higher BRS for the hand at week 12 (P = 0.041), no intergroup differences were observed at week 4 (all P > 0.05). The two groups showed no differences in MAS grades as well as in BRS for the arm at weeks 4 and 12 (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Semi-personalized acupuncture prescription based on 3DKA results significantly improved motor function, muscle strength, and activities of daily living in patients with PSSP-UL. TRIAL REGISTRATION Chinese Clinical Trial Registry ChiCTR2200056216. Please cite this article as: Huang XY, Liao OP, Jiang SY, Tao JM, Li Y, Lu XY, Li YY, Wang C, Li J, Ma XP. Three-dimensional kinematic analysis can improve the efficacy of acupoint selection for post-stroke patients with upper limb spastic paresis: A randomized controlled trial. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(1): 15-24.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Acupuncture Points ; Upper Extremity/physiopathology* ; Biomechanical Phenomena ; Single-Blind Method ; Aged ; Stroke/therapy* ; Acupuncture Therapy/methods* ; Stroke Rehabilitation/methods* ; Adult ; Muscle Spasticity/therapy* ; Paresis/physiopathology* ; Treatment Outcome

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of Yiqi Huatan Tongluo Prescription(mainly composed of Fici Simplicissimae Radix,Notoginseng Radix et Rhizoma,Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum,Poria,Nelumbinis Folium,and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma,etc.)combined with drug-coated balloon(DCB)in the treatment of coronary heart disease(CHD)and to observe its effect on low-shear related serological indicators.Methods A total of 106 patients with CHD of qi deficiency and phlegm stasis obstructing collateral type who were scheduled to undergo percutaneous coronary intervention were randomly divided into a treatment group and a control group,with 53 cases in each group.The control group was treated with drug-eluting stent implantation,and the treatment group was treated with DCB.After the operation,the control group was given conventional antiplatelet aggregation drugs,and the treatment group was given oral administration of Yiqi Huatan Tongluo Prescription.The medication for the two groups lasted for 12 weeks.The changes in the serum levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1(MCP-1),interleukin 1 β(IL-1β)and vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)in the two groups were observed before and after treatment.Moreover,the traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)syndrome efficacy after treatment and the incidence of adverse events one year after operation were compared between the two groups.Results(1)After 12 weeks of treatment,the total effective rate for TCM syndrome efficacy of the treatment group was 88.68％(47/53),and that of the control group was 75.47％(40/53).The intergroup comparison(tested by chi-square test)showed that the TCM syndrome efficacy in the treatment group was significantly superior to that in the control group(P＜0.05).(2)The analysis of indicators related to endothelial dysfunction in the blood flow with low shear stress showed that after treatment,the levels of serum MCP-1,IL-1βand VEGF in the control group presented no obvious changes(P＞0.05),but the serum levels of MCP-1 and IL-1β in the treatment group were significantly lowered compared with those before treatment(P＜0.05).The intergroup comparison showed that the decrease of serum MCP-1,IL-1β and VEGF levels in the treatment group was significantly superior to that in the control group(P＜0.05).(3)The one-year follow-up after the operation showed that the total incidence of adverse events in the treatment group was 18.87％(10/53),and that in the control group was 20.75％(11/53).There was no significant difference between the two groups(P＞0.05).Conclusion Yiqi Huatan Tongluo Prescription combined with DCB has definite action on the targets related to endothelial dysfunction in coronary blood flow with low shear stress,which is conducive to reducing inflammatory response,improving the symptoms of angina pectoris and enhancing clinical efficacy.The incidence of adverse events did not increase one year after operation,indicating good safety and effectiveness.

A 6-month primary care quality improvement (QI) project was conducted for 63 general practice residents at Union Hospital Affiliated to Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology from November 2021 to April 2022. The effectiveness of the QI project on the post competency of general practice residents was comprehensively assessed by three dimensions: self-satisfaction, objective evaluation and teacher-evaluation. The overall satisfaction score of general practice residents was significantly increased after the implementation of QI project((3.83±0.67) vs. (3.41±0.63), t=3.35, P=0.009). The total score of objective assessment was increased from (73.48±8.04) before the project implementation to (78.14±5.24) after the implementation ( t=3.37, P=0.001). The total score of training effectiveness significantly increased from (57.57±11.84) before the project implementation to (79.27±8.40) after the implementation ( t=30.07, P<0.001). The results indicate that the primary care QI project can improve the post competency of general practice residents, and also improve the self-satisfaction of residents for active learning and participation in the training.

Objective:To explore the clinical features and prognosis of patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma(PCNSL).Methods:A retrospective analysis was performed on the relationship between clinical features,treatment regimen and prognosis in 46 newly diagnosed patients with primary central nervous system lymphoma who were diagnosed and treated in The Second Hospital of Lanzhou University from January 2015 to September 2022.Fisher's exact probability method was used to analyze the differences in clinical data of different subgroups.Kaplan-Meier survival curve was used to analyze the overall survival rate and progression-free survival rate of patients with different treatments,and the factors influencing survival were analyzed.Results:Among 46 patients with PCNSL,which pathological type were diffuse large B-cell lymphoma(DLBCL).There were 26(56.5％)cases of male and 20(43.5％)of female,with a median age of 54(17-71)years.In Hans subtypes,14 cases(30.4％)of GCB subtype,32 cases(69.6％)of non-GCB subtype.32 cases(69.6％)of Ki-67 ≥80％.Among 36 patients who completed at least 2 cycles of treatment with follow-up data,the efficacy evaluation was as follows:overall response rate(ORR)was 63.9％,complete response(CR)rate was 47.2％,17 cases of CR,6 cases of PR.The 1-year progression-free survival rate and 1-year overall survival rate was 73.6％and 84.9％,respectively.The 2-year progression-free survival rate and 2-year overall survival rate was 52.2％and 68.9％,respectively.The ORR and CR rate of 17 patients treated with RMT regimen was 76.5％and 52.9％(9 cases CR and 4 cases PR),respectively.Univariate analysis of 3 groups of patients treated with RMT regimen,RM-BTKi regimen,and RM-TT regimen as first-line treament showed that deep brain infiltration was associated with adverse PFS(P=0.032),and treatment regimen was associated with adverse OS in PCNSL patients(P=0.025).Conclusion:Different treatment modalities were independent prognosis predictors for OS,the deep brain infiltration of PCNSL is a poor predictive factor for PFS.Patients with relapse/refractory(R/R)PCNSL have a longer overall survival time because to the novel medication BTKi.They have strong toleration and therapeutic potential as a first-line therapy for high-risk patients.

Objective to analyze the Budget Execution Rate of administrative departments in sample hospitals,and to realize the cost control of Budget performance integration with Balanced Score Card(BSC)Financial Dimension Quantitative Assessment.Methods The budget and execution data of 23 administrative departments were collected from January to June in the sample 2023.The budget execution rate was calculated and cleaned,and the data were segmented by histogram.Using the financial dimension 25 to divide by the total number of items in each department's budget to obtain the scoreof each item in each department,and using the interpolation method to calculate the cost scores of each department,then into the performance appraisal.Results(1)Each item score should be multiplied by item coefficient,and then sum up;(2)The total score of self-executing Project+the total score of centralized executing project.(3)Cost score:1 the scores of 8 departments of non-homing items were 5.54～15.76,2 the scores of 15 departments of homing items were 7.68～17.06.Conclusion It adopts the concept of BSC and Hospital Resource Planning as the cost control of administrative departments to make up for the lack of qualitative and quantitative BSC;can focus on monitoring the dispersion of large data;histogram score results of segmentation objective and easy to operate,makes the interpolation calculation more credible.In a word,it provides quantitative ideas and methods in the aspects of different responsibilities and difficult performance evaluation.

Objective to analyze the Budget Execution Rate of administrative departments in sample hospitals,and to realize the cost control of Budget performance integration with Balanced Score Card(BSC)Financial Dimension Quantitative Assessment.Methods The budget and execution data of 23 administrative departments were collected from January to June in the sample 2023.The budget execution rate was calculated and cleaned,and the data were segmented by histogram.Using the financial dimension 25 to divide by the total number of items in each department's budget to obtain the scoreof each item in each department,and using the interpolation method to calculate the cost scores of each department,then into the performance appraisal.Results(1)Each item score should be multiplied by item coefficient,and then sum up;(2)The total score of self-executing Project+the total score of centralized executing project.(3)Cost score:1 the scores of 8 departments of non-homing items were 5.54～15.76,2 the scores of 15 departments of homing items were 7.68～17.06.Conclusion It adopts the concept of BSC and Hospital Resource Planning as the cost control of administrative departments to make up for the lack of qualitative and quantitative BSC;can focus on monitoring the dispersion of large data;histogram score results of segmentation objective and easy to operate,makes the interpolation calculation more credible.In a word,it provides quantitative ideas and methods in the aspects of different responsibilities and difficult performance evaluation.

Objective to analyze the Budget Execution Rate of administrative departments in sample hospitals,and to realize the cost control of Budget performance integration with Balanced Score Card(BSC)Financial Dimension Quantitative Assessment.Methods The budget and execution data of 23 administrative departments were collected from January to June in the sample 2023.The budget execution rate was calculated and cleaned,and the data were segmented by histogram.Using the financial dimension 25 to divide by the total number of items in each department's budget to obtain the scoreof each item in each department,and using the interpolation method to calculate the cost scores of each department,then into the performance appraisal.Results(1)Each item score should be multiplied by item coefficient,and then sum up;(2)The total score of self-executing Project+the total score of centralized executing project.(3)Cost score:1 the scores of 8 departments of non-homing items were 5.54～15.76,2 the scores of 15 departments of homing items were 7.68～17.06.Conclusion It adopts the concept of BSC and Hospital Resource Planning as the cost control of administrative departments to make up for the lack of qualitative and quantitative BSC;can focus on monitoring the dispersion of large data;histogram score results of segmentation objective and easy to operate,makes the interpolation calculation more credible.In a word,it provides quantitative ideas and methods in the aspects of different responsibilities and difficult performance evaluation.

Objective to analyze the Budget Execution Rate of administrative departments in sample hospitals,and to realize the cost control of Budget performance integration with Balanced Score Card(BSC)Financial Dimension Quantitative Assessment.Methods The budget and execution data of 23 administrative departments were collected from January to June in the sample 2023.The budget execution rate was calculated and cleaned,and the data were segmented by histogram.Using the financial dimension 25 to divide by the total number of items in each department's budget to obtain the scoreof each item in each department,and using the interpolation method to calculate the cost scores of each department,then into the performance appraisal.Results(1)Each item score should be multiplied by item coefficient,and then sum up;(2)The total score of self-executing Project+the total score of centralized executing project.(3)Cost score:1 the scores of 8 departments of non-homing items were 5.54～15.76,2 the scores of 15 departments of homing items were 7.68～17.06.Conclusion It adopts the concept of BSC and Hospital Resource Planning as the cost control of administrative departments to make up for the lack of qualitative and quantitative BSC;can focus on monitoring the dispersion of large data;histogram score results of segmentation objective and easy to operate,makes the interpolation calculation more credible.In a word,it provides quantitative ideas and methods in the aspects of different responsibilities and difficult performance evaluation.

Objective to analyze the Budget Execution Rate of administrative departments in sample hospitals,and to realize the cost control of Budget performance integration with Balanced Score Card(BSC)Financial Dimension Quantitative Assessment.Methods The budget and execution data of 23 administrative departments were collected from January to June in the sample 2023.The budget execution rate was calculated and cleaned,and the data were segmented by histogram.Using the financial dimension 25 to divide by the total number of items in each department's budget to obtain the scoreof each item in each department,and using the interpolation method to calculate the cost scores of each department,then into the performance appraisal.Results(1)Each item score should be multiplied by item coefficient,and then sum up;(2)The total score of self-executing Project+the total score of centralized executing project.(3)Cost score:1 the scores of 8 departments of non-homing items were 5.54～15.76,2 the scores of 15 departments of homing items were 7.68～17.06.Conclusion It adopts the concept of BSC and Hospital Resource Planning as the cost control of administrative departments to make up for the lack of qualitative and quantitative BSC;can focus on monitoring the dispersion of large data;histogram score results of segmentation objective and easy to operate,makes the interpolation calculation more credible.In a word,it provides quantitative ideas and methods in the aspects of different responsibilities and difficult performance evaluation.