Short stature(SS) and disorder of sex development(DSD) are two types of conditions characterized by high clinical heterogeneity and complex etiology. There is interplay and mutual influence between the pathways regulated by growth hormone and sex hormones in skeletal and gonadal development. Causing co-occurrence of SS and DSD, as seen in conditions such as Turner syndrome, mixed gonadal dysgenesis, Noonan syndrome, and Prader-Willi syndrome. Patients with these disorders are often accompanied by distinctive facial features, endocrine and metabolic disturbances, cardiovascular disease, and other systemic complications. Genetic factors involved include chromosomal numerical and structural abnormalities; mutations in genes such as SHOX, CHD7, SOX8, and PTPN11, dysregulation of the RAS/mitogen activated protein kinase signaling pathway, and defects in imprinted genes. This article aims to systematically review the relevant research progress, in order to provide a reference for the clinical diagnosis and treatment strategies of patients with coexisting SS and DSD.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the prenatal and postnatal phenotypes of 22q11.2 microdeletion syndrome (22q11.2DS) and enhance clinical understanding of this condition. METHODS: Data were collected from 86 fetuses diagnosed with 22q11.2DS at four prenatal diagnostic centers across China between January 2014 and August 2025. Prenatal imaging findings, pregnancy outcomes, and postnatal conditions were analyzed. RESULTS: Among the 86 fetuses, complete ultrasound data were available for 65 cases. Cardiovascular abnormalities were observed in 42 cases, thymic hypoplasia or aplasia in 7 cases, urinary system anomalies in 6 cases, nuchal translucency (NT) thickening in 7 cases, butterfly vertebrae, clubfoot, omphalocele and diaphragmatic hernia in 1 case each, cleft lip and palate in 2 cases, and ultrasound soft markers in 13 cases. The parents of 9 fetuses opted to continue with the pregnancy. Among these, 6 showed no significant ultrasound abnormalities and no related phenotypes postnatally, while the remaining 3 exhibited ultrasound anomalies with postnatal manifestations including developmental delay, immunodeficiency, and cardiac defects. CONCLUSION Fetuses with 22q11.2DS may exhibit various ultrasound abnormalities in multiple systems before and after birth. In addition to cardiovascular anomalies, they may also present with thymic hypoplasia or aplasia, thickened NT, and urinary abnormalities. Fetuses with thickened NT or thymic anomalies should be closely monitored, and thymic assessment should be included in routine prenatal imaging evaluations. For fetuses with 22q11.2DS who show no ultrasound abnormalities, the risk of developing severe phenotypes after birth is relatively low, but occult palate clefts and psychiatric disorders cannot be ruled out. Due to limitations in sample size and follow-up duration, above conclusions require further validation through large-scale prospective studies.
Humans ; Female ; Pregnancy ; Ultrasonography, Prenatal ; DiGeorge Syndrome/genetics* ; Adult ; Male ; Follow-Up Studies ; Fetus/diagnostic imaging* ; Phenotype ; Infant, Newborn

ObjectiveTo develop an exercise intervention program for patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty based on the daily goal management pathway, and preliminarily verify its clinical feasibility and effectiveness. MethodsThe intervention program was formulated based on the daily goal management pathway and hope theory, combined with literature analysis, qualitative interviews and expert consultation. Feasibility evaluation was conducted among orthopedic nurses and patients in Beijing Bo'ai Hospital from September to November, 2025. A controlled pilot study was performed with 15 patients in each group: the control group received routine rehabilitation care, while the experimental group received the developed intervention program. The Hospital for Special Surgery Knee Score (HSS), range of motion (ROM) of knee, functional exercise compliance score, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) were compared between two groups. ResultsThe program covered three themes from admission to three weeks postoperatively, including seven training methods and 32 specific recommendations. Feasibility results showed 100% patient recruitment rate, 93.75% retention rate and 96.94% program acceptance rate. A total of 21 orthopedic nurses scored ≥ 4.5 on all four dimensions of the program. After intervention, HSS score and knee ROM significantly increased (|t| > 6.205, P < 0.001), while WOMAC and VAS score decreased (t = 9.127, Z = -3.415, P < 0.01) in the experimental group; in the control group, VAS score decreased (Z = -3.122, P = 0.002), and knee ROM reduced (t = -2.622, P = 0.015), with no significant improvement in other indicators (P > 0.05); all the indexes were better in the experimental group than in the control group (|t| > 7.949, |Z| > 2.990, P < 0.01), including the functional exercise compliance (t = -8.565, P < 0.001). ConclusionThe exercise intervention program based on the daily goal management pathway is scientific, feasible and preliminarily effective, which can provide a new structured and humanized nursing for early exercise training of patients during hospitalization for total knee arthroplasty.

Objective To assess the risk of human Spirometra mansoni infections and investigate the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) towards sparganosis mansoni among residents in Henan Province, so as to provide insights into formulation of the sparganosis mansoni control measures. Methods Qinling Village in Fugou County of Zhoukou City, Bali Village in Yancheng District of Luohe City, Duzhai Village in Puyang County of Puyang City and Doushan Village in Luoshan County of Xinyang City were sampled as survey sites in Henan Province from July to August 2023, and more than 40 frogs were sampled from ponds or streams in each survey site for detection of Sparganum mansoni infections. At least 150 residents were sampled using a cluster sampling method from each survey site, and the sero-prevalence of anti-S. mansoni IgG antibody was estimated. In addition, a questionnaire survey was conducted on the KAP towards sparganosis mansoni among participants, and the proportion of eligible KAP, rate of correct KAP and KAP scores were calculated. Results A total 229 frogs were collected from 4 survey sites in 2023, and the overall prevalence of S. mansoni infection was 4.37% (10/229) in frogs, with 7.75% (10/129) prevalence in wild frogs and 0 in farm-bred frogs. A questionnaire survey was performed among 649 residents sampled from 4 survey sites, and 649 serum samples were collected. The seroprevalence of anti-S.mansoni IgG antibody was 0.15% (1/649) and the overall proportion of eligible KAP was 23.73% (154/649) among participants. There were age- (χ² = 30.905, P = 0.000), educational level- (χ² = 41.011, P = 0.000), and occupation-specific proportions of eligible KAP among participants (χ² = 10.721, P = 0.005), and the proportion of eligible KAP decreased with age (χ² _trend = 22.717, P = 0.000) and increased with education levels (χ² _trend = 40.025, P = 0.000). The rates of correct KAP towards sparganosis mansoni were 40.81% (2 119/5 192), 96.66% (1 882/1 947) and 63.81% (3 727/5 841) (χ² = 1 913.731, P = 0.000) among residents, respectively. The rates of correct KAP towards sparganosis mansoni varied significantly among survey sites (χ² = 136.872, 42.347 and 255.157; all P values= 0.000, with the highest rate of correct knowledge (51.94%, 748/1 440) and practices (75.86%, 1 229/1 620) in Yancheng District of Luohe City and the highest rate of correct attitudes in Puyang County of Puyang City (99.11%, 446/450) (all P values< 0.05). Conclusions There is still a high transmission risk of sparganosis mansoni in Henan Province, and the KAP towards sparganosis mansoni is required to be improved among residents.

Objective To investigate the factors associated with unplanned readmission within 30 days after discharge in adult patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and to develop and validate a risk prediction model. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of patients who underwent isolated CABG at the Nanjing First Hospital between January 2020 and June 2024. Data from January 2020 to August 2023 were used as a training set, and data from September 2023 to June 2024 were used as a validation set. In the training set, patients were divided into a readmission group and a non-readmission group based on whether they had unplanned readmission within 30 days post-discharge. Clinical data between the two groups were compared, and logistic regression was performed to identify independent risk factors for unplanned readmission. A risk prediction model and a nomogram were constructed, and internal validation was performed to assess the model’s performance. The validation set was used for validation. Results A total of 2 460 patients were included, comprising 1 787 males and 673 females, with a median age of 70 (34, 89) years. The training set included 1 932 patients, and the validation set included 528 patients. In the training set, there were statistically significant differences between the readmission group (79 patients) and the non-readmission group (1 853 patients) in terms of gender, age, carotid artery stenosis, history of myocardial infarction, preoperative anemia, and heart failure classification (P<0.05). The main causes of readmission were poor wound healing, postoperative pulmonary infections, and new-onset atrial fibrillation. Multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that females [OR=1.659, 95%CI (1.022, 2.692), P=0.041], age [OR=1.042, 95%CI (1.011, 1.075), P=0.008], carotid artery stenosis [OR=1.680, 95%CI (1.130, 2.496), P=0.010], duration of first ICU stay [OR=1.359, 95%CI (1.195, 1.545), P<0.001], and the second ICU admission [OR=4.142, 95%CI (1.507, 11.383), P=0.006] were independent risk factors for unplanned readmission. In the internal validation, the area under the curve (AUC) was 0.806, and the net benefit rate of the clinical decision curve analysis (DCA) was >3%. In the validation set, the AUC was 0.732, and the DCA net benefit rate ranged from 3% to 48%. Conclusion Females, age, carotid artery stenosis, duration of first ICU stay, and second ICU admission are independent risk factors for unplanned readmission within 30 days after isolated CABG. The constructed nomogram demonstrates good predictive power.

Objective:To investigate the therapeutic value of visual endoscopic retrograde appendicitis therapy (vERAT) in pediatric patients with acute suppurative appendicitis (ASA).Methods:This was a retrospective cohort study. A total of 55 ASA patients who underwent vERAT at the Pediatric Department of the Tangdu Hospital of Air Force Medical University between November 2023 and January 2025 were selected and divided into groups based on the presence or absence of fecaliths: fecalith group and non-fecalith group. The baseline characteristics, initial treatment success rates, treatment costs, hospital stay duration, procedure time, and recurrence rates between two groups were compared. Mann-Whitney U test and χ2 test were used to evaluate group differences. Results:A total of 55 ASA patients were enrolled, including 38 males and 17 females, with the age of 11.2 (9.2, 13.1) years. Based on the presence of fecaliths, patients were divided into two groups: fecalith group (32 cases) and non-fecalith group (23 cases). No statistically significant differences were observed between the two groups in terms of age, gender, duration of abdominal pain, white blood cell count, neutrophil percentage, diameter of appendix, thickness of appendix clinical symptoms or signs (all P>0.05). The initial treatment success rates were 91% (29/32) in fecalith group and 96% (22/23) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.632). However, significant differences were noted in stent placement ( χ2=5.85, P=0.026) and procedure time ( Z=4.75, P<0.001). The follow-up duration time was 6.0 (2.0, 12.0) and 7.0 (2.0, 8.5) months for the fecalith and non-fecalith groups, respectively, with no significant difference ( Z=0.05, P=0.962). The recurrence rates were 14% (4/29) in fecalith group and 5% (1/22) in non-fecalith group, with no statistically significant difference ( P=0.375). Conclusions:vERAT can safely and effectively treat pediatric ASA, regardless of the presence or absence of fecaliths. It can provide a new treatment option for ASA.

Objective To use imaging features of pulmonary nodules to predict the risk of lymph node metastasis in patients with cT1-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), providing a reference for clinical decision-making. Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on the imaging features and postoperative pathological results of cT1 NSCLC patients who underwent surgical treatment at Linyi People’s Hospital from July 2019 to July 2022. Patients were grouped and analyzed according to lymph node metastasis status. Results A total of 1 123 patients were included, comprising 471 males and 652 females, with a median age of 59 (52, 66) years. Comparative analysis revealed that sex, age, nodule location, nodule size on imaging, solid component size, consolidation tumor ratio (CTR), average CT value, and tumor proximity to the pleura all influenced lymph node metastasis. A nomogram was constructed, indicating that the probability of lymph node metastasis in cT1 NSCLC was positively correlated with solid component size, CTR, and average CT value of the pulmonary nodule, and negatively correlated with patient age. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.929. Conclusion For cT1 NSCLC patients, the probability of lymph node metastasis can be predicted by measuring the solid component size, CTR, and average CT value of the pulmonary nodule, in conjunction with patient age. However, relying solely on pulmonary nodule imaging characteristics is insufficient to determine a specific lymph node dissection strategy.

The female reproductive system is essential for sustaining reproductive endocrine homeostasis,however,its vulnerability to various endogenous and exogenous insults,including pathological conditions,pharmacological agents,genetic predispositions,and environmental factors,often results in compromised fertility.The existing protective approaches(including surgical interventions,hormonal replacement therapies,and assisted reproductive techniques)are constrained by several limitations,such as adverse therapeutic effects,technical complexities,and their incapacity to reverse ovarian senescence.Artemisinin and its derivatives(ARTs),characterized by their unique endoperoxide bridge configuration,have exhibited outstanding therapeutic performance across multiple domains including malaria treatment,anticancer therapy,inflammation modulation,and parasitic infection control.Emerging research has identified their novel protective capabilities against various reproductive system pathologies.This comprehensive review systematically elucidates the molecular mechanisms underlying artemisinin-based interventions in reproductive pathologies and evaluates their clinical translation prospects,thereby proposing innovative strategies for the development of next-generation fertility-protective agents with enhanced safety and efficacy profiles.

Objective:To evaluate the analgesic effect of intercostal muscle plane block of external oblique muscle in patients undergoing endoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy.Methods:A total of 48 patients undergoing endoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy under elective general anesthesia in Nanjing First Hospital from February to July 2023 were prospectively selected and divided into two groups ( n=24) according to random number table method: abdominal external oblique intercostal muscle plane block combined with general anesthesia group (EG group) and general anesthesia group (G group). The EG group was blocked in the intercostal muscle plane of the external oblique muscle before general anesthesia induction, and 0.375% ropivacaine 20 ml was injected on both sides, respectively. Patient-controlled intravenous analgesia (PCIA) was performed in both groups after operation, and the pain Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score was less than 4 points. When the VAS score was ≥4, 1 mg oxycodone was injected intravenously for relief and analgesia. VAS scores at 30 min (T 0), 6 h (T 1), 12 h(T 2), 24 h(T 3), 48 h(T 4) after extubation, intraoperative drug and fluid dosage, postoperative sleep quality, analgesic satisfaction score, remedial analgesia and the occurrence of adverse reactions were recorded. Results:The scores of rest and exercise VAS at T 0, T 1, T 2, T 3 and T 4 in the EG group were significantly lower than those in the G group (all P<0.05). The dosage of norepinephrine, propofol, remifentanil and total fluid infusion in the EG group were significantly lower than those in the G group (all P<0.05). The sleep quality and analgesic satisfaction of the EG group were better than those of the G group (all P<0.05), the first time of PCIA compression after surgery was longer than that of the G group ( P<0.05), the number of effective compressions, the amount of oxycodone relief and analgesia, the proportion of nausea and vomiting, and the stay time of anesthesia intensive care unit (AICU) were lower than those of the G group (all P<0.05). There was no significant difference in total hospital stay between the two groups ( P>0.05). Conclusions:Compared with general anesthesia alone, abdominal external oblique intercostal muscle plane block combined with general anesthesia in patients with endoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy has significant postoperative analgesia effect, which can not only reduce postoperative VAS score and opioid consumption, but also improve sleep quality and increase postoperative analgesia satisfaction. Ultrasound-guided intercostal muscle plane block of external oblique muscle can be used as a better analgesic method in endoscopic pancreaticoduodenectomy.