Objective To compare the application value of coronary computed tomography angiography(CCTA)based plaque characteristics and computed tomography(CT)derived parameters in predicting future major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)between patients with and without diabetes mellitus.Methods A total of 425 patients who underwent CCTA in Shunde Hospital Affiliated to Southern Medical University from June 2016 to November 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.Patients were divided into DM group(n=120)and non-DM group(n=305)for follow-up.According to the occurrence of MACE during follow-up,patients were divided into DM group(n=81),DM+MACE group(n=39),non-DM group(n=39),non-DM group(n=244)and non-DM+MACE group(n=61).The differences in general characteristics,biochemical index and parameters in imaging were compared among the four groups.Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to analyze the influencing factors for MACE in the two populations.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the difference in the predictive value of different plaque characteristics and CT-derived parameters for MACE.Results The levels of coronary artery calcification score(CACS),and the proportion of low-attenuation plaque(LAP)were higher in the DM+MACE group than in the DM group(P<0.05).The levels of positive reconstruction(PR),the proportion of antihypertensive drugs,CAD-RADS,CACS,residual cholesterol and apolipoprotein B were higher in the non-DM+MACE group than in the non-DM group(P<0.05).Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that CACS≥100(HR 2.151,95%CI 1.128～4.102,P=0.020)and LAP(HR 2.337,95%CI 1.032～5.290,P=0.042)were the influencing factors for MACE in patients with DM.PR(HR 124.305,95%CI 42.883～360.326,P<0.001)was the influencing factor for MACE in patients without DM.ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC of CACS combined with LAP were 0.606,0.609 and 0.660 for predicting MACE in DM patients within 1,3 and 5 years respectively.The AUC of PR for predicting MACE were 0.862,0.927,and 0.806 in the non-DM population within 1,3,and 5 years respectively.The predictive value of CACS and LAP for MACE in the DM patients was stable during the 5 years,while the predictive value of PR for MACE in the non-DM population decreased significantly after 4 years.Conclusions The predictive values of different plaque characteristics and CT derived parameters for future MACE are different between population with and without diabetes.The combination of CACS and low-attenuation plaques can effectively evaluate the risk of MACE in diabetic patients,while PR has a higher predictive value for MACE in non-diabetic patients.

Objective To analyze the value of MRI in evaluating the treatment efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy(NAC)in breast cancer patients.Methods The clinical data of 130 patients with breast cancer were analyzed retrospectively.All patients under-went 4-8 cycles of NAC,with MRI examinations was performed before and after NAC treatment.Based on postoperative response eval-uation criteria in solid tumors(RECIST),the patients were categorized into effective and ineffective groups.The MRI related param-eters,early enhancement parameters and peak enhancement parameters before and after NAC were observed to evaluate the efficacy of MRI in evaluating the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer.Results The sensitivity,specificity,and accuracy of MRI in evalua-ting the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer were 96.74％,89.47％,and 94.62％,respectively.The Kappa value for consis-tency analysis between MRI and postoperative pathology reached 0.869,indicating good agreement.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis showed that the area under the curve(AUC)for MRI in predicting the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer was 0.935[95％ confidence interval(CI)0.831-0.981].Significant differences were observed between the effective and ineffec-tive groups in early and peak enhancement parameters before and after NAC(P＜0.05).Conclusion MRI can effectively assesses the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer patients,demonstrating high value in clinical applications.

Objective To compare the application value of coronary computed tomography angiography(CCTA)based plaque characteristics and computed tomography(CT)derived parameters in predicting future major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)between patients with and without diabetes mellitus.Methods A total of 425 patients who underwent CCTA in Shunde Hospital Affiliated to Southern Medical University from June 2016 to November 2016 were retrospectively analyzed.Patients were divided into DM group(n=120)and non-DM group(n=305)for follow-up.According to the occurrence of MACE during follow-up,patients were divided into DM group(n=81),DM+MACE group(n=39),non-DM group(n=39),non-DM group(n=244)and non-DM+MACE group(n=61).The differences in general characteristics,biochemical index and parameters in imaging were compared among the four groups.Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to analyze the influencing factors for MACE in the two populations.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the difference in the predictive value of different plaque characteristics and CT-derived parameters for MACE.Results The levels of coronary artery calcification score(CACS),and the proportion of low-attenuation plaque(LAP)were higher in the DM+MACE group than in the DM group(P<0.05).The levels of positive reconstruction(PR),the proportion of antihypertensive drugs,CAD-RADS,CACS,residual cholesterol and apolipoprotein B were higher in the non-DM+MACE group than in the non-DM group(P<0.05).Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that CACS≥100(HR 2.151,95%CI 1.128～4.102,P=0.020)and LAP(HR 2.337,95%CI 1.032～5.290,P=0.042)were the influencing factors for MACE in patients with DM.PR(HR 124.305,95%CI 42.883～360.326,P<0.001)was the influencing factor for MACE in patients without DM.ROC curve analysis showed that the AUC of CACS combined with LAP were 0.606,0.609 and 0.660 for predicting MACE in DM patients within 1,3 and 5 years respectively.The AUC of PR for predicting MACE were 0.862,0.927,and 0.806 in the non-DM population within 1,3,and 5 years respectively.The predictive value of CACS and LAP for MACE in the DM patients was stable during the 5 years,while the predictive value of PR for MACE in the non-DM population decreased significantly after 4 years.Conclusions The predictive values of different plaque characteristics and CT derived parameters for future MACE are different between population with and without diabetes.The combination of CACS and low-attenuation plaques can effectively evaluate the risk of MACE in diabetic patients,while PR has a higher predictive value for MACE in non-diabetic patients.

Objective To analyze the value of MRI in evaluating the treatment efficacy of neoadjuvant chemotherapy(NAC)in breast cancer patients.Methods The clinical data of 130 patients with breast cancer were analyzed retrospectively.All patients under-went 4-8 cycles of NAC,with MRI examinations was performed before and after NAC treatment.Based on postoperative response eval-uation criteria in solid tumors(RECIST),the patients were categorized into effective and ineffective groups.The MRI related param-eters,early enhancement parameters and peak enhancement parameters before and after NAC were observed to evaluate the efficacy of MRI in evaluating the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer.Results The sensitivity,specificity,and accuracy of MRI in evalua-ting the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer were 96.74％,89.47％,and 94.62％,respectively.The Kappa value for consis-tency analysis between MRI and postoperative pathology reached 0.869,indicating good agreement.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis showed that the area under the curve(AUC)for MRI in predicting the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer was 0.935[95％ confidence interval(CI)0.831-0.981].Significant differences were observed between the effective and ineffec-tive groups in early and peak enhancement parameters before and after NAC(P＜0.05).Conclusion MRI can effectively assesses the treatment efficacy of NAC in breast cancer patients,demonstrating high value in clinical applications.

The precise assessment and management of the axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer is crucial for regional control, disease staging, selection of adjuvant chemotherapy strategies, and prediction of prognosis, with a general downward trend in surgical management. For early breast cancer with negative axillary lymph node metastases, sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) has replaced axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) as the criterion for axillary status measurement. Patients can be exempted from ALND if they have negative SLNB results. However, it remains to be carefully decided in China whether patients with one or two positive nodes in SLNB can be spared from ALND. However, consensus has been met that patients who meet the criteria of the Z0011 study can be exempted from ALND. For breast cancer patients with positive axillary lymph nodes metastases at the beginning of treatment, the clearance of lymph node disease can be achieved by neoadjuvant therapy, with a reduced rate of complications related to ALND. In particular, there are still many debates associated with SLNB after neoadjuvant therapy, such as whether patients who remain axillary lymph node positive can be spared from ALND. Exploratory and validation studies related to the SLNB avoidance criteria are still controversial. In the future, clinicians should consider the characteristics of patients, the risk of recurrence, and adjuvant treatment regimens to develop individualized axillary lymph node management.

Objective To investigate the application value of extracellular volume fraction(ECV)obtained from enhanced CT in diagnosis and classification of acute pancreatitis.Methods The clinical data from patients with acute pancreatitis(acute pancreatitis group)and normal controls(control group)underwent enhanced CT were analyzed retrospectively.The CT values of pancreas and abdominal aorta in the same sclice on precontrast and equilibrium-phase images were measured,and then pancreatic ECV was calcu-lated.The measured parameters were compared between the groups of control and acute pancreatitis,and subgroups of non-severe and severe pancreatitis.The logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors for acute pancreatitis and severe pancrea-titis,and the receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the diagnostic efficiency in diagnosis and classifica-tion of acute pancreatitis.Results The pancreatic CT value and ECV were independent risk factors for acute pancreatitis(P＜0.05),and the ECV was an independent risk factor for severe pancreatitis(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)of ECV was higher in acute pancreatitis group(0.81)and severe pancreatitis subgroup(0.68).Conclusion As a quantitative parameter,the ECV obtained from enhanced CT has higher clinical application value and higher popularity in the diagnosis and classification of acute pancreatitis.

Breast cancer remains a leading cause of mortality in women worldwide.Triple-negative breast cancer(TNBC)is a particularly aggressive subtype characterized by rapid progression,poor prognosis,and lack of clear therapeutic targets.In the clinic,delineation of tumor heterogeneity and development of effective drugs continue to pose considerable challenges.Within the scope of our study,high hetero-geneity inherent to breast cancer was uncovered based on the landscape constructed from both tumor and healthy breast tissue samples.Notably,TNBC exhibited significant specificity regarding cell prolif-eration,differentiation,and disease progression.Significant associations between tumor grade,prog-nosis,and TNBC oncogenes were established via pseudotime trajectory analysis.Consequently,we further performed comprehensive characterization of the TNBC microenvironment.A crucial epithelial subcluster,E8,was identified as highly malignant and strongly associated with tumor cell proliferation in TNBC.Additionally,epithelial-mesenchymal transition(EMT)-associated fibroblast and M2 macrophage subclusters exerted an influence on E8 through cellular interactions,contributing to tumor growth.Characteristic genes in these three cluster cells could therefore serve as potential therapeutic targets for TNBC.The collective findings provided valuable insights that assisted in the screening of a series of therapeutic drugs,such as pelitinib.We further confirmed the anti-cancer effect of pelitinib in an orthotopic 4T1 tumor-bearing mouse model.Overall,our study sheds light on the unique characteristics of TNBC at single-cell resolution and the crucial cell types associated with tumor cell proliferation that may serve as potent tools in the development of effective anti-cancer drugs.

The precise assessment and management of the axillary lymph nodes in breast cancer is crucial for regional control, disease staging, selection of adjuvant chemotherapy strategies, and prediction of prognosis, with a general downward trend in surgical management. For early breast cancer with negative axillary lymph node metastases, sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) has replaced axillary lymph node dissection (ALND) as the criterion for axillary status measurement. Patients can be exempted from ALND if they have negative SLNB results. However, it remains to be carefully decided in China whether patients with one or two positive nodes in SLNB can be spared from ALND. However, consensus has been met that patients who meet the criteria of the Z0011 study can be exempted from ALND. For breast cancer patients with positive axillary lymph nodes metastases at the beginning of treatment, the clearance of lymph node disease can be achieved by neoadjuvant therapy, with a reduced rate of complications related to ALND. In particular, there are still many debates associated with SLNB after neoadjuvant therapy, such as whether patients who remain axillary lymph node positive can be spared from ALND. Exploratory and validation studies related to the SLNB avoidance criteria are still controversial. In the future, clinicians should consider the characteristics of patients, the risk of recurrence, and adjuvant treatment regimens to develop individualized axillary lymph node management.

Objective:To investigate the correlation between 25 hydroxyvitamin D[25 (OH) D] level and sleep monitoring index in patients with severe altitude obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS).Methods:Sixty-six patients with severe OSAHS (AHI≥30 times/hour) diagnosed by apnea hypopnea index (AHI) who had lived at high altitude (1 800-4 193 m) for≥1 year were included in the experimental group. The patients underwent polysomnography monitoring in Sleep Medicine Center of Qinghai Red Cross Hospital from June to December 2021. In addition, healthy volunteers matched the experimental group by gender, age, ethnicity and living altitude during the same period were selected for polysomnography monitoring. Finally, 48 healthy volunteers with AHI<5 times/hour were included as the control group. 25(OH)D level and its deficiency were compared between the two groups. The experimental group was further divided into severe deficiency group [25(OH)D≤10 μg/L], the deficiency group [10 μg/L<25(OH)D≤20 μg/L] and the non-deficiency group [25(OH)D>20 μg/L] according to 25(OH)D level, and the differences of sleep parameters among the three groups were compared. Correlation analysis and multifactor linear regression analysis were performed on the factors that may affect the level of 25(OH)D in patients with severe OSAHS.Results:A total of 114 adults living on the plateau for at least one year were enrolled, including 66 in the experimental group and 48 in the control group. 25(OH)D deficiency (≤30 μg/L) was found in all the individuals included in the experimental group and the control group, and the 25(OH)D level of the two groups was [(13.13±4.05) vs (13.68±4.60) μg/L, P=0.507] and there was no significant difference in deficiency degree (all P>0.05). Within the experimental group, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep time and proportion (REM%) and sleep awakening time of 25(OH)D non-deficiency group, were significantly lower than those in severe deficiency group (all P<0.05), and sleep efficiency in 25(OH)D non-deficiency group was significantly higher than that in severe deficiency group and deficiency group (all P<0.05). Spearman correlation analysis showed that the level of 25 (OH) D in experimental group were positively correlated with serum calcium ion level ( r=0.293, P=0.017) and sleep efficiency ( r=0.309, P=0.011), and were negatively correlated with age ( r=-0.298, P=0.015), REM sleep time ( r=-0.401, P=0.001), REM% ( r=-0.421, P<0.001) and awakening time ( r=-0.362, P=0.003). Multifactor linear regression analysis suggested that serum calcium, REM sleep time and history of hypertension were the predictors of 25(OH)D level in severe OSAHS at high altitude. Conclusions:There is a correlation between sleep monitoring indexes and serum 25(OH)D level in patients with severe OSAHS at high altitude. The longer the REM sleep time, the lower the 25(OH)D level. Meanwhile, there is a certain relationship between co-morbidity hypertension and 25(OH)D level in patients with severe OSAHS at high altitude.

Objective: To analyze the correlation of growth differentiation factor-15(GDF-15)level with the severity of coronary artery disease and prognosis and in elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome. Methods: A total of 168 elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome admitted into Hangzhou Xixi Hospital and Shaoyifu Hospital Affiliated to Medical College of Zhejiang University from March 2017 to April 2018 were enrolled in the study.Patients were divided into three groups: GDF-15>1 800 μmol/L(n=28), GDF-15 between 1 200-1 800 μmol/L(n=45), and GDF-15<1 200 μmol/L(n=95). Plasma levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein(hs-CRP)and GDF-15, and SYNTAX score, single-vessel-, double-vessel, multi-vessel coronary disease and major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)were analyzed and compared between groups. Results: Plasma levels of hs-CRP and GDF-15 had significant differences among the three groups(P<0.05). There were significant statistically differences in SYNTAX score, single-vessel, double-vessel and multi-vessel coronary disease and MACE among the three groups(P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that the levels of GDF-15(OR=2.092, 95%CI: 1.585~2.687), SYNTAX score(OR=1.948, 95%CI: 1.097~2.098), double-vessel lesions(OR=1.124, 95%CI: 1.006~1.251)and multi-vessel lesions(OR=1.744, 95%CI: 1.149~2.642)(all P<0.05)were statistically significant influencing factors for the prognosis. Conclusions GDF-15 level is correlated with SYNTAX score, double-vessel lesions and multi-vessel lesions, and could predict the severity of coronary artery lesions and prognosis in patients with acute coronary syndrome.