As a patented characteristic medicine of Yi ethnic minority， Pingxuan capsules have the effects of nourishing the liver and kidney， pacifying the liver， and subduing Yang. With the main indications of dizziness， headache， palpitations， tinnitus， insomnia， dreaminess， waist and knee soreness caused by liver-kidney deficiency and liver Yang upward disturbance， Pingxuan capsules are widely used in the treatment of posterior circulation ischemic vertigo， vestibular migraine， benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. However， the current knowledge is limited regarding the efficacy， syndrome differentiation， and safety of this medicine. On the basis of summarizing the experience of clinicians and the existing evidence， this study invites clinical experts of traditional Chinese and Western medicine， pharmaceutical experts， and methodological experts from relevant fields across China to conduct evidence-based evaluation of Pingxuan capsules. The evaluation follows the Specifications for the Development of Clinical Expert Consensus on Chinese Patent Medicines issued by the Standardization Office of the China Association of Chinese Medicine， and reaches 5 recommendations and 16 consensus suggestions. The consensus clarifies the clinical applications， efficacy， dose， course of treatment， combination of medicines， precautions， and contraindications of Pingxuan capsules in the treatment of vertigo and explains the safety of clinical application. This consensus is applicable to clinicians （traditional Chinese medicine， Western medicine， and integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine） and pharmacists in tertiary hospitals， secondary hospitals， and community-level medical and health institutions across China， providing a reference for the rational use of Pingxuan capsules in the treatment of vertigo. It is hoped that the promotion of this consensus can facilitate the rational use of drugs in clinical practice， reduce the risk of drug use， and give full play to the advantages of Pingxuan capsules in the treatment of vertigo diseases. This consensus has been reviewed and published by the China Association of Chinese Medicine， with the number GS/CACM330-2023.

Objective: To investigate the risk factors affecting the patency time of the125I seeds stent in malignant obstructive jaundice. Methods: A retrospective analysis of 113 patients with malignant obstructive jaundice underwent biliary tract125I seeds stent implantation. The gender, age, obstruction site, type of125I seeds stent, primary tumor type, and postoperative response to treatment of tumor were enrolled for analysis to evaluate the related risk factors affecting the patency time of the stent. Results: Univariate analysis showed that the location of biliary obstruction, the type of125I seeds stent, the type of primary tumor, and the type of primary tumor were the main factors affecting the patency time of the stent(P<0.001); Cox multivariate regression analysis showed biliary obstruction location, the type of125I seeds stent, and whether the primary tumor treated were independent factors that affected the patency time of the stent(P<0.001). Conclusion Multi-factor analysis shows that the location of biliary obstruction, the type of125I seeds stent, and the primary tumor are independent risk factors that affect the patency of the stent for malignant obstructive jaundice, which shows important markers for evaluating the prognosis of patients treated with this method.

Background::High-dose dual therapy (HDDT) with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and amoxicillin has attracted widespread attention due to its favorable efficacy in eradicating Helicobacter pylori ( H. pylori). This study aimed to compare the efficacy and safety of high-dose PPI–amoxicillin dual therapy and bismuth-containing quadruple therapy for H. pylori rescue treatment. Methods::This was a prospective, randomized, multicenter, non-inferiority trial. Patients recruited from eight centers who had failed previous treatment were randomly (1:1) allocated to two eradication groups: HDDT (esomeprazole 40 mg and amoxicillin 1000 mg three times daily; the HDDT group) and bismuth-containing quadruple therapy (esomeprazole 40 mg, bismuth potassium citrate 220 mg, and furazolidone 100 mg twice daily, combined with tetracycline 500 mg three times daily; the tetracycline, furazolidone, esomeprazole, and bismuth [TFEB] group) for 14 days. The primary endpoint was the H. pylori eradication rate. The secondary endpoints were adverse effects, symptom improvement rates, and patient compliance. Results::A total of 658 patients who met the criteria were enrolled in this study. The HDDT group achieved eradication rates of 75.4% (248/329), 81.0% (248/306), and 81.3% (248/305) asdetermined by the intention-to-treat (ITT), modified intention-to-treat (MITT), and per-protocol (PP) analyses, respectively. The eradication rates were similar to those in the TFEB group: 78.1% (257/329), 84.2% (257/305), and 85.1% (257/302). The lower 95% confidence interval boundary (–9.19% in the ITT analysis, –9.21% in the MITT analysis, and –9.73% in the PP analysis) was greater than the predefined non-inferiority margin of –10%, establishing a non-inferiority of the HDDT group vs. the TFEB group. The incidence of adverse events in the HDDT group was significantly lower than that in the TFEB group (11.1% vs. 26.8%, P < 0.001). Symptom improvement rates and patients’ compliance were similar between the two groups. Conclusions::Fourteen-day HDDT is non-inferior to bismuth-containing quadruple therapy, with fewer adverse effects and good treatment compliance, suggesting HDDT as an alternative for H. pylori rescue treatment in the local region. Trial registration::Clinicaltrials.gov, NCT04678492.

Background: Early diagnosis and severity assessment of acute cholangitis is an important means to improve the prognosis of acute cholangitis. Aims: To investigate the clinical value of serum platelet (PLT), D-dimer (D-D) and procalcitonin (PCT) for severity assessment in patients with acute cholangitis. Methods: A total of 96 patients with acute cholangitis were enrolled, and were divided into mild group (n=40), moderate group (n=32), severe group (n=24). Levels of serum PLT, D-D and PCT were compared among the three groups. ROC curve was used to verify the predictive value for the severity assessment of acute cholangitis. Results: The serum levels of D-D and PCT increased with the increase of severity of acute cholangitis, and the differences were statistically significant (P<0.05). The serum level of PLT decreased with the increase of severity of acute cholangitis, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Correlation analysis showed that serum levels of D-D, PCT was positively correlated with severity of acute cholangitis, while serum level of PLT was negatively correlated with severity of acute cholangitis (P<0.05). When the cut-off values were 135.6×10

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common clinical critical illness, and ischemic kidney injury is the main type. The mortality rate of ischemic kidney injury is high, because the efficacy of treatment is limited due to symptomatic and supportive treatment. Establishing a reliable animal model of ischemic AKI is an important prerequisite for conducting research on physiological, pathological and pharmacological researches, so as to explore effective prevention methods and strategies. In recent years, the establishment methods of animal models of ischemic AKI have been continuously improved. The article summarizes the common methods and model characteristics of animal models of ischemic AKI in order to provide a reference for researchers to choose a reasonable modeling method.

Objective To investigate the safety and efficacy of wide local excision surgery combined with 5-aminolaevulinic acid(ALA)-photodynamic therapy(PDT)in treating Paget's disease of the scrotum in elderly people.Methods Patients with an average age of 68.4 ± 4.7 years undergoing wide local excision surgery combined with ALA-PDT for Paget's disease of the scrotum from June 2014 to February 2018 were followed up.All patients underwent wide local excision surgical treatment first and were then enrolled in ALA-PDT study after the diagnosis of Paget's disease of the scrotum was confirmed.Four cases were eliminated as a result of two patients refusing photodynamictherapy for various reasons and two patients lost during follow-up after ALA-PDT.A total of 16 patients were included in the study,of whom 6 cases were in Ray stage A1,7 cases in stage A2 and 3 cases in stage B.Patients underwent 3 courses of ALA-PDT after operation.Then the efficacy,shortand medium-term complications were followed up.Results The duration of disease among the 16 patients ranged from 4 to 76 months before diagnosis,with an average of 35.7 months.Surgery was performed immediately after diagnosis.Ten patients underwent resection and suture and 6 patients were treated with skin flap transfers.Of the patients treated with surgery,3 patients received suspicious lymph node dissection and 1 patient underwent reoperation due to skin flap necrosis.Patients were followed up for 3 months to 3 years and 6 months after ALA-PDT.Recurrence and distant metastasis occurred in 2 cases,with 1 case of brain metastasis and 1 case of systemic metastasis,and the overall recurrence rate was 12.5％.During the follow-up,there were no other serious complications except for 1 case(6.3 ％)with lower limb movement disorders.Conclusions Wide local excision surgery combined ALA-PDT has good clinical outcomes,low recurrence rates and few complications for the treatment of Paget's disease of the scrotum in elderly people.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In recent years, greater assessment accuracy after transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) to ascertain prognosis has become important in decompensated cirrhosis due to portal hypertension. The aim of this study was to assess the ratio of the portal pressure gradient (PPG) pre-TIPS (pre-PPG) to albumin (PPA), which influence ascites formation in cirrhotic patients in the 6-months after TIPS placement, and is a metric introduced in our study. METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of 58 patients with decompensated cirrhosis admitted to an academic hospital for the purpose of TIPS placement. We collected the following data: demographics, laboratory measures, and PPG during the TIPS procedure. Then we analyzed the association between the above data and ascites formation post-TIPS in cirrhosis patients. RESULTS: Twenty-two patients with ascites and 28 without ascites were evaluated. Univariate and binary logistic regression analysis were adjusted for the following variables: to determine prognosis; Child-Pugh scores, lymphocyte count, platelet count, hemoglobin level, albumin level and pre-PPG or PPA. The outcome showed that PPA was better than pre-PPG and albumin for predicting ascites according to area under receiver operating characteristic curves and a statistical model that also showed PPA’s influence 6-months post-TIPS. CONCLUSIONS: The combined measurement of pre-PPG and albumin, defined as PPA, may provide a better way to predict post-TIPS ascites in decompensated cirrhosis, which underlines the need for a large clinical trial in the future.
Ascites ; Cohort Studies ; Demography ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; Hypertension, Portal ; Logistic Models ; Lymphocyte Count ; Models, Statistical ; Platelet Count ; Portal Pressure ; Portasystemic Shunt, Surgical ; Prognosis ; Retrospective Studies ; ROC Curve ; Serum Albumin

Objective To evaluate the diagnostic value of circulating tumor cells(CTCs) in prostate cancer (Pca) through studying the relationship between CTCs and Gleason scores and pathological TNM stage in Pca patients. Methods A total of 238 patients including 161 Pca patients as cancer group, 35 male patients with benign prostatic diseases as benign group and 42 male with non-prostate disease as control group, who were treated in our hospital from July 2016 to January 2018,were enrolled. Venous blood of every patient was collected and CTCs were enriched and identified by immunocytochemistry CD45 capturing leukocyte and fluorescence in situ hybridization with chromosome 8 (CEP8-FISH). Cells displaying CD45-/DAPI+/CEP8>2 were characterized as CTCs. One-way ANOVA was used to exam the correlations of the number of CTCs with Gleason scores and pathological TNM stage. Results CTCs ≥2 were detected in 74.53％(120/161) of Pca patients and 20.00％(7/35)of benign prostatic diseases patients and 7.14％(3/42)of control group (χ2=79.605,P<0.05). In group Gleason scores 6, the numbers of CTCs were 2.00 ± 2.42, the ratios of CTCs≥5 and tetraploid were 13.33％ (2/15)and 26.67％(4/15) respectively. In 7 scores group, the results were 3.14±2.68,17.72％(14/79) and 34.18％(27/79)respectively;In 8 scores group, the results were 3.57 ± 2.70, 33.33％(7/21)and 42.86％ (9/21)respectively; In 9 scores group, these three results were 4.65±4.41, 43.48％(20/46) and 45.65％(21/46)respectively. The numbers of CTCs in the≤pT2b (20), pT2c(27), pT3a(19), pT3b(16)and≥pT4(12) groups were 2.25±2.45, 3.56±2.79, 4.05±3.47, 4.69±2.12 and 5.17±3.21 respectively. The ratios of CTCs≥5 were 25.00％(5/20), 25.93％(7/27), 26.32％(5/19), 50.00％(8/16) and 58.33％ (7/12)respectively. The proportions of tetraploid were 20.00％(4/20), 25.93％ (7/27), 31.58％(6/19), 50.00％(8/16) and 58.33％(7/12) respectively. There were significant differences between CTC and Gleason scores (F=3.200, P<0.05)and pathological stage (F=2.673, P<0.05). The ratios of CTCs≥5 increased with the increase of Gleason scores (χ2=11.592, P<0.05). Conclusions The detection of CTCs could be used for the differential diagnosis of Pca and benign prostatic disease. There were notable correlations between the numbers of CTCs and Gleason scores and pathological stage in Pca patients, especially between CTCs≥5 and Gleason scores.

Background:CT portography(CTP)permits comprehensive evaluation of portal vein and its collateral pathways. It is widely used for assessment of portal hypertension in clinical practice. Aims:To assess the value of CTP in esophagogastric varices in cirrhotic patients. Methods:A retrospective cohort study was performed in 143 cirrhotic patients admitted from Jan. 2013 to Sep. 2015 at the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University. All patients fulfilled the inclusion criteria and underwent CTP and gastroscopy within 7 days after admission. According to the occurrence of gastrointestinal bleeding at admission,patients were allocated into two groups:bleeding group( n = 70 ) and non-bleeding group( n = 73 ). Consistency of the results of CTP and gastroscopy was analyzed by kappa coefficient;the accuracy of CTP parameters, including diameters of main portal vein(MPV),splenic vein(SPV)and left gastric vein(LGV)for prediction of variceal bleeding was evaluated by ROC curve. Results:CTP and gastroscopy had a good consistency in typing and grading of esophagogastric varices,with the kappa value of 0. 793 and 0. 775,respectively. The diameters of MPV,SPV and LGV were significantly higher in bleeding group than in non-bleeding group(P < 0. 01),and their area under the ROC curve (AUC)in predicting variceal bleeding was 0. 741,0. 627 and 0. 816,respectively. The accuracy of diameter of LGV was superior to that of MPV and SPV. With the cutoff value of 6. 1 mm,the sensitivity and specificity of diameter of LGV were 65. 71% and 84. 93% ,respectively. With the cutoff value of 16. 3 mm,the sensitivity of diameter of MPV was 75. 71% , which was higher than that of LGV and SPV. Conclusions:CTP can be used in clinical diagnosis of esophagogastric varices in cirrhotic patients,and two CTP parameters,the diameters of LGV and MPV,might be helpful for prediction of variceal bleeding.

Objective To investigate the angiographic manifestations of renal artery injury caused by percutaneous nephrolithotomy, and to evaluate the therapeutic effect of super-selective renal arterial embolization in treating renal artery injury. Methods A total of 22 patients with persistent or intermittent gross hematuria that occurred after percutaneous nephrolithotomy, who were encountered at authors’ hospital during the period from Jan. 2010 to June 2014, were included in this study. The diagnosis was confirmed by renal angiography in all patients, and super-selective renal arterial embolization with steel micro-coils was carried out in all patients. The patients were followed up for three months. The results were analyzed. Results Of the 22 patients, DSA examination showed that renal artery pseudoaneurysm (RAP) was found in 14 (63.6%), renal arteriovenous fistula (RAVF) in 5 (22.7%) and RAP associated with RAVF in 3 (13.6%). Renal angiography performed after super-selective renal arterial embolization showed that complete obstruction of the bleeding arteries was achieved in all patients, and the active bleeding stopped. Both the technical success rate and the hemostasis rate were 100%. During the follow-up period lasting for three months, no recurrence of hematuria or severe complications occurred. In 20 patients, different degree of embolism syndrome was observed after the treatment. Conclusion Renal artery pseudoaneurysm and renal arteriovenous fistula are the main types of renal artery injury after percutaneous nephrolithotomy. Super-selective renal arterial embolization with micro-coils can be used as the treatment of choice for patients who has failed to respond to conservative therapy.