Objective: To characterize perioperative dynamic changes in immune-cell phenotypes and inflammatory cytokines in patients undergoing CPB (cardiopulmonary bypass) cardiac surgery, and to explore their associations with postoperative outcomes. Methods: In this prospective cohort study, 120 adult patients who underwent elective cardiac surgery under CPB at West China Hospital from May 2022 to March 2023 were enrolled. Perioperative immune-cell phenotypes and concentrations of 40 inflammation-related cytokines were measured. The primary outcomes were the sequential organ failure assessment (SOFA) score at 24 h after surgery and ΔSOFA (the peak SOFA score within 48 h after surgery minus the preoperative SOFA score). Secondary outcomes included major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), acute kidney injury (AKI), respiratory failure, severe liver injury, and infection. Results: The mean age of enrolled patients was 57±10 years. Of these, 52% (62/120) were male and 90% (108/120) underwent valve surgery. During the rewarming to the end of CPB, neutrophil counts rapidly increased (7.39×10 /L vs preoperative 3.07×10 /L, P<0.001), with significant upregulation of CD11b (7.30×10 /L vs preoperative 3.05×10 /L, P<0.001) and CD54 (7.15×10 /L vs preoperative 2.99×10 /L, P<0.001). Lymphocyte counts increased at the end of CPB (1.75×10 /L vs preoperative 1.12×10 /L, P<0.001) but decreased significantly at 24 h after surgery (0.59×10 /L vs preoperative 1.12×10 /L, P<0.001). Plasma analysis showed that multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines increased during CPB and remained elevated up to 24 h after surgery; five chemokines and the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 peaked at the end of CPB. The SOFA score increased from 1 (1, 2) preoperatively to 7 (5, 10) at 24 h after surgery, with a ΔSOFA of 6 (4, 8). Within 30 days after surgery, 48 patients (40.0%) developed AKI, 17 (14.2%) developed infection, 4 (3.3%) developed severe liver injury, 3 (2.5%) developed respiratory failure, and 3 (2.5%) experienced MACE. During the 2-year follow-up, 8 patients (6.7%) experienced MACE and 5 (4.2%) died. Conclusion: Multi-organ dysfunction is common after cardiac surgery under CPB (median ΔSOFA, 6), accompanied by perioperative activation of multiple immune-cell subsets and upregulation of pro-inflammatory, anti-inflammatory, and chemotactic mediators. This study provides data-driven evidence and research clues for further investigation of the associations between CPB-related immune perturbations and postoperative organ dysfunction and clinical outcomes.

Objective To investigate the post-discharge exercise behavior and factors influencing moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) in patients undergoing lung surgery. Methods A total of 2874 patients from the large prospective, observational perioperative lung symptom study cohort (CN-PRO-Lung 3) in the Department of Thoracic Surgery at Sichuan Cancer Hospital between April 7, 2021, and January 31, 2024, were selected as the survey subjects. A survey was conducted using the Investigation of Exercise Behavior after Lung Surgery questionnaire and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form (IPAQ-SF) among patients who underwent lung surgery. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the factors influencing patients’ engagement in MVPA. Results A total of 702 patients were surveyed, including 252 males and 450 females, with an average age of (52.4±10.2) years. Patients with lung cancer accounted for 85.9%. Only 36.0% of the patients had regular exercise habits, while 42.3% did not engage in any physical activity. The three main barriers for postoperative exercise were physical discomfort (pain, coughing, shortness of breath, etc, 54.7%), lack of professional guidance (41.7%), and concerns about the surgical wound (28.9%). The proportions of patients engaging in vigorous, moderate, and low-intensity physical activity were 5.7%, 28.2%, and 66.1%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that patients with a personal annual income ≥50000 yuan (OR=1.52, 95%CI 1.01-2.29, P=0.044), high school education or above (OR=1.92, 95%CI 1.33-2.76, P<0.001), and lobectomy (OR=1.44, 95%CI 1.02-2.03, P=0.037) engaged in more MVPA. Conclusion Patients undergoing lung surgery have inadequate physical activity after discharge, particularly lacking in MVPA. Patients with higher income, higher educational levels, and lobectomy are more frequently engaged in MVPA. Measures such as symptom control, providing exercise guidance, and enhancing education on wound care may potentially improve the inadequate physical activity in lung surgery patients after discharge.

Objective: To conduct screening for rare blood types within important blood group systems for the Chinese population, such as Rh, Duffy, Kidd, P1Pk, Diego, and MNS, in the Guangzhou region, and to establish a corresponding rare blood type database and physical repository. Methods: The saline medium microplate method was used to screen blood donors with the ccDEE phenotype combined with either Jk(a-) or Jk(b-). The polybrene microplate method was employed to screen for donors with Fy(a-), s(-), Lu(b-), Di(b-), k(-), and p phenotypes. The urea lysis microplate method was applied to screen for the Jk(a-b-) phenotype. A high-resolution melting (HRM) curve method was established for screening some donors with the Di(b-) phenotype. Subsequently, expanded phenotyping of antigens in the Rh, Kidd, MNS, Duffy, P1Pk, Lewis, Kell, and Lutheran blood group systems was performed on identified rare blood type donors using monoclonal antibodies. The test results are entered into the Rare Blood Type Bank Management System of the Guangzhou Blood Center, enabling functions such as confirmation reminders and cryopreservation storage when the donor donates again. Red blood cells of rare blood types are processed into frozen red blood cells for long-term storage. Results: Among voluntary blood donors, 16 cases of the ccDEE combined with Jk(a-) phenotype were identified (0.221 7%, 16/7 216); 10 cases of the ccDEE combined with Jk(b-) phenotype (0.138 6%, 10/7 216); 78 cases of the Fy(a-) phenotype (0.169 5%, 78/46 012); 39 cases of the Lu(b-) phenotype (0.138 2%, 39/28 214); 31 cases of the s(-) phenotype (0.081 8%, 31/37 913); 22 cases of the Di(b-) phenotype (0.029 9%, 22/73 691); 30 cases of the Jk(a-b-) phenotype (0.010 1%, 30/298 250); and 1 case of the k(-) phenotype (0.001 3%, 1/77 382), which was further identified as KELnull phenotype (K0). No p phenotype donors were identified (0/88 528). A total of 228 units of frozen red blood cells were prepared. The screening results were compared and analyzed with rare blood type data from other regions. Conclusion: This study, through a combination of different screening methods, significantly improved the efficiency of rare blood type screening while remaining cost-effective. By conducting large-scale screening and performing data informatization processing, a database and physical repository of rare blood types in the Guangzhou region were successfully established. This provides a strong guarantee for the timely supply of blood to patients with difficult-to-match and rare blood types in the region, effectively enhances the level of transfusion safety in the region, and offers a practical paradigm for constructing a comprehensive blood transfusion support system.

Randomized controlled trial(RCT) is considered to represent the gold standard for evaluating the efficacy of interventions and has been widely used to evaluate the clinical efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM). However, there are unique challenges in implementing RCT in TCM. Patients seeking TCM treatment often have preferences for TCM due to the unsatisfactory therapeutic effect of western medicine, their personal intolerance, and their rejection of certain drugs, medical devices, or surgery. Patients are generally reluctant to be randomly assigned to a group, making it challenging to enroll patients in the control group of western medicine during the implementation of RCT in TCM. This has become a prominent problem restricting the implementation of RCT in TCM and needs to be solved urgently. Therefore, this paper introduced commonly used research designs used in solving the problem of enrolling patients in control group during the implementation of RCT in TCM, including Zelen design, partially randomized patient preference trial(PRPP), single-arm objective performance criteria(OPC), cohort studies, single-arm clinical trials using real world data(RWD) alone as the external control group, and the design method based on RWD-augmented control group samples in RCT. The paper outlined the definitions and principles of these methods, evaluated their advantages, disadvantages, and applicable scenarios, and explored their applications in the TCM field, so as to offer insights for solving the difficulty in enrolling patients in the control group during the implementation of RCT in TCM.
Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional/methods* ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic/methods* ; Research Design ; Patient Selection ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Control Groups

Cardiac fibrosis(CF) is a cardiac pathological process characterized by excessive deposition of extracellular matrix(ECM). When the heart is damaged by adverse stimuli, cardiac fibroblasts are activated and secrete a large amount of ECM, leading to changes in cardiac fibrosis, myocardial stiffness, and cardiac function declines and accelerating the development of heart failure. There is a close relationship between heart yin deficiency and cardiac fibrosis, which have similar pathogenic mechanisms. Heart Yin deficiency, characterized by insufficient Yin fluids, causes the heart to lose its nourishing function, which acts as the initiating factor for myocardial dystrophy. The deficiency of body fluids leads to stagnation of blood flow, resulting in blood stasis and water retention. Blood stasis and water retention accumulate in the heart, which aligns with the pathological manifestation of excessive deposition of ECM, as a tangible pathogenic factor. This is an inevitable stage of the disease process. The lingering of blood stasis combined with water retention eventually leads to the generation of heat and toxins, triggering inflammatory responses similar to heat toxins, which continuously stimulate the heart and cause the ultimate outcome of CF. Considering the syndrome of heart Yin deficiency, traditional Chinese medicine capable of nourishing Yin, activating blood, and promoting urination can reduce myocardial cell apoptosis, inhibit fibroblast activation, and lower the inflammation level, showing significant advantages in combating CF.
Humans ; Fibrosis/drug therapy* ; Animals ; Yin Deficiency/metabolism* ; Myocardium/metabolism* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use*

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a severe disease caused by viral infection that triggers an uncontrolled inflammatory response. This study investigated the capacity of jasurolignoside (JO), a natural compound, to bind to Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and treat ALI. The anti-inflammatory properties of JO were evaluated in vitro through Western blotting, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), immunofluorescence staining, and co-immunoprecipitation. The investigation utilized a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI animal model to examine the therapeutic efficacy and mechanism of JO in vivo. JO attenuated inflammatory symptoms in infected cells and tissues by modulating the NOD-like receptor family pyrin domain containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome and the nuclear factor κB (NF-κB)/mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. Molecular docking simulations revealed JO binding to TLR4 active sites, confirmed by cellular thermal shift assay. Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) demonstrated direct interaction between JO and TLR4 with a Kd value of 35.1 μmol·L^-1. Moreover, JO inhibited tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and IL-6 secretion and reduced leukocyte, neutrophil, lymphocyte, and macrophage infiltration in ALI-affected mice. JO also enhanced lung function and reduced ALI-related mortality. Immunohistochemical staining demonstrated JO's ability to suppress TLR4 expression in ALI-affected mouse lung tissue. This study establishes that JO can bind to TLR4 and effectively treat ALI, indicating its potential as a therapeutic agent for clinical applications.
Toll-Like Receptor 4/chemistry* ; Animals ; Acute Lung Injury/chemically induced* ; Mice ; Humans ; Ilex/chemistry* ; Molecular Docking Simulation ; Male ; NF-kappa B/immunology* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/immunology* ; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha/genetics* ; Interleukin-1beta/genetics* ; RAW 264.7 Cells ; Disease Models, Animal

In May 2023, the Chinese Stomatological Association promulgated the group standard of "Clinical Practice Specifications for Permanent Tooth Extraction". These specifications were formulated after repeated discussions and revisions guided by relevant literature and the opinions of well-known experts in the field across the country. However, the content of the group standard is not elaborated and is limited to its writing form and requirements. As a consequence, medical workers might not easily understand and comprehend its content and knowledge points, which also limits its dissemination and wide use in primary medical units. This study aims to sort out and interpret the content of the 2023 edition of the "Clinical Practice Specification for Permanent Tooth Extraction" to help medical staff understand and apply it in clinical practice.
Tooth Extraction/standards* ; Humans ; China ; Dentition, Permanent ; Practice Guidelines as Topic

Bone grafting is a primary method for treating bone defects. Among various graft materials, xenogeneic bone substitutes are widely used in clinical practice due to their abundant sources, convenient processing and storage, and avoidance of secondary surgeries. With the advancement of domestic production and the limitations of imported products, an increasing number of bone filling or grafting substitute materials isentering clinical trials. Relevant experts have drafted this consensus to enhance the management of medical device clinical trials, protect the rights of participants, and ensure the scientific and effective execution of trials. It summarizes clinical experience in aspects, such as design principles, participant inclusion/exclusion criteria, observation periods, efficacy evaluation metrics, safety assessment indicators, and quality control, to provide guidance for professionals in the field.
Humans ; Bone Substitutes/therapeutic use* ; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic/methods* ; Consensus ; Bone Transplantation ; Research Design

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is associated with an increased risk of calcific aortic valve stenosis (CAVS). However, the directionality of causation between blood pressure traits and aortic stenosis is unclear, as is the benefit of antihypertensive drugs for CAVS. METHODS: Using genome-wide association studies (GWAS) summary statistics, we performed bidirectional two-sample univariable mendelian randomization (UVMR) to assess the causal associations of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and pulse pressure (PP) with CAVS. Multivariable mendelian randomization (MVMR) was conducted to evaluate the direct effect of hypertension on CAVS, adjusting for confounders. Drug target mendelian randomization (MR) and summary-level MR (SMR) were used to estimate the effects of 12 classes of antihypertensive drugs and their target genes on CAVS risk. Inverse variance weighting was the primary MR method, with sensitivity analyses to validate results. RESULTS: UVMR showed SBP, DBP, and PP have causal effects on CAVS, with no significant reverse causality. MVMR confirmed the causality between hypertension and CAVS after adjusting for confounders. Drug-target MR analyses indicated that calcium channel blockers (CCBs), loop diuretics, and thiazide diuretics via SBP lowering exerted protective effects on CAVS risk. SMR analysis showed that the CCBs target gene CACNA2D2 and ARBs target gene AGTR1 were positively associated with CAVS risk, while diuretics target genes SLC12A5 and SLC12A1 were negatively associated with aortic stenosis risk. CONCLUSIONS Hypertension has a causal relationship with CAVS. Managing SBP in hypertensive patients with CCBs may prevent CAVS. ARBs might exert protective effects on CAVS independent of blood pressure reduction. The relationship between diuretics and CAVS is complex, with opposite effects through different mechanisms.