The American Heart Association (AHA) and the American College of Cardiology (ACC), in collaboration with multiple professional organizations, jointly released the "Guideline for the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults" in August 2025. Based on the latest evidence-based medical findings from February 2015 to January 2025, the guideline proposes an individualized treatment strategy grounded in total cardiovascular disease risk stratification, incorporates the novel PREVENT risk assessment model, lowers the medication initiation threshold and control targets for high-risk populations, and provides specific management recommendations for special populations. This article provides an interpretation of these updates and conducts a comparative analysis with the current status of hypertension prevention and treatment in China as well as Chinese guidelines, aiming to offer reference for hypertension control practices in China.

The American Heart Association (AHA) officially released the "2025 Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics: A Report of US and Global Data From the American Heart Association" on January 27, 2025. This report systematically compiles the latest statistics on major cardiovascular diseases worldwide, while simultaneously integrating relevant outcome indicators, including quality of care, procedures, and economic costs, and updating the global prevalence patterns and evolving trends of diverse risk factors impacting cardiovascular health, providing essential guidance for the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Synthesizing insights from this pivotal report and other relevant studies, this article highlights key findings concerning the global prevalence and mortality of heart diseases, associated risk factors, and emerging diagnostic and therapeutic technologies.

OBJECTIVE To form an expert consensus addressing clinical issues regarding the use of parenteral direct thrombin inhibitors （DTIs） in special populations. METHODS Led by the Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People’s Hospital（the Affiliated Hospital of UESTC）， a multidisciplinary working group was formed comprising experts from multiple fields， including clinical pharmacy， cardiac surgery， obstetrics， pediatrics and evidence-based medicine. Through literature review and the Delphi method， clinical questions regarding the efficacy and safety of parenteral DTIs used in special populations were identified. A structured design was adopted using the “Population-Intervention-Comparison-Outcome” （PICO） framework；systematic searches were conducted in CJFD， PubMed， Embase and other databases. Relevant evidence from randomized controlled trials，cohort studies and systematic reviews were included and synthesized. Evidence quality was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment，Development and Evaluation （GRADE） approach， and recommendations were formulated through three rounds of Delphi surveys and expert consensus meetings. RESULTS &CONCLUSIONS Seven clinical questions were ultimately selected （with a consensus rate exceeding 90%）， resulting in the formulation of seven recommendations on the use of parenteral DTIs in special populations， including children， pregnant women， patients with hepatic or renal impairment， patients with mesenteric venous thrombosis， and individuals with thrombophilia. These recommendations clarify the preferred agents， dosing ranges， monitoring parameters， and safety management strategies for parenteral DTIs in these special populations. This expert consensus， which is formulated based on the best available evidence， provides evidence-based guidance for standardized and individualized use of parenteral DTIs in special populations.

ObjectiveTo observe the effect of functional pelvic floor muscle training on pelvic floor muscle function, incontinence symptoms and quality of life in female patients with stress urinary incontinence (SUI). MethodsFrom February, 2024 to July, 2025, 40 female patients with SUI were recruited from Beijing Bo'ai Hospital and advertisements. They were randomly divided into control group (n = 20) and experimental group (n = 20). The control group received conventional pelvic floor muscle contraction and relaxation training, and the experimental group received functional pelvic floor muscle contraction and relaxation training, for eight weeks. The data of pelvic floor muscle strength, pelvic floor muscle surface electromyography (sEMG), 1-hour urine pad test and Incontinence Quality of Life questionnaire (I-QOL) were collected before and after training. The compliance rate was counted after training. ResultsOne case dropped down in the control group and three cases dropped down in the experimental group. After treatment, the pelvic floor muscle strength increased in both groups (|Z| > 3.317, P < 0.01), the pre-resting average value, sustained contraction average value and durable contraction average value of sEMG improved in the control group (|t| > 2.731, P < 0.05), the mass of 1-hour urine pad significantly reduced (t > 9.215, P < 0.001) and the I-QOL score significantly increased (|t| > 13.229, P < 0.001) in both groups; compared with the control group, the pelvic floor muscle strength significantly increased (Z = -2.281, P = 0.023), the mass of 1-hour urine pad significantly reduced (t = 4.215, P < 0.001), the I-QOL score significantly increased (t = -4.501, P < 0.001), and the compliance rate significantly increased (Z = -2.798, P < 0.01) in the experimental group . ConclusionFunctional pelvic floor muscle training can significantly improve pelvic floor muscle strength, incontinence symptoms and quality of life in female patients with SUI.

ObjectiveTo develop an assessment tool for apraxia of speech (AOS) of Chinese Putonghua speakers and test its reliability and validity. MethodsThe Chinese Apraxia of Speech Assessment and Diagnostic Tool (CAADT) was developed based on the Apraxia of Speech Rating Scale 3.5, combined with the linguistic characteristics of Chinese and clinical experience. The tool consistsed of eleven items across three sections: articulation, prosody and alternating motion rates. Six experts evaluated the content validity. From November, 2024 to May, 2025, 51 patients with post-stroke AOS (experimental group) and ten patients with post-stroke aphasia without AOS (control group) were recruited from Anhui Wannan Rehabilitation Hospital (the Fifth People's Hospital of Wuhu), and tested with CAADT. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's α coefficient, Kendall's coefficient of concordance W and Pearson correlation coefficient. Validity was evaluated using the content validity index (CVI) and Spearman correlation coefficient. Discriminative effect was analyzed using the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. ResultsThe Cronbach's α coefficients for the articulation and prosody sections and the total scale were all > 0.9, while it was 0.454 for the alternating motion rates. Inter-rater reliability was good (W ≥ 0.598, P < 0.001). Test-retest reliability showed high positive correlations for the three sections and the total score between the two assessments (r ≥ 0.84, P < 0.001). The scale-level CVI was 0.95, and the item-level CVI ≥ 0.83. The Spearman correlation coefficients among the sections ranged from 0.30 to 0.70. ROC analysis revealed an area under the curve of 0.953, with a cut-off value of 11, yielding a sensitivity of 0.92 and a specificity of 0.90. ConclusionCAADT demonstrates good reliability, validity and discriminative effect, which can be used for clinical assessment and auxiliary diagnosis of Chinese Putonghua speaking patients with post-stroke AOS.

To optimize the traditional refining process of Hydrargyrum Chloratum Compositum(HCC) and explore the change law of substances before and after refining, this study applied the hierarchical analysis method(AHP)-entropy weight method, using appearance, yield, and mercuric chloride content as evaluation indexes. The temperature and time of mild and strong fire were examined as single factors, and an L_9(3~4) orthogonal experiment was used to optimize the refining process. An infrared thermal imaging platform was set up to record the temperature changes on the surface of the tank, aiming to establish a standardized operating procedure for the refining process. Elemental changes, physical phase changes, and thermal property changes of the materials before and after refining were analyzed using atomic absorption spectrophotometry(AAS), X-ray diffraction(XRD) and differential scanning calorimetry(DSC). The results showed that the average overall score of the finished product obtained from the optimized HCC refining process(with mild fire temperature of 102 ℃, mild fire refining time of 30 min, strong fire temperature of 178 ℃, and strong fire refining time of 68 min) was 91.59, with an RSD of 0.076%, indicating that the process is stable and feasible. Combined with thermal imaging data and related research results, it was found that, at the strong fire temperature, mercury ions and nitrate ions generated mercuric chloride under the catalysis of other ions. The mercury content of mercurous chloride, mercuric chloride synthesized from nitric acid, HCC, and the pre-refined sample was 84.535%, 72.376%, 70.838%, and 41.334%, respectively. The highest intensity of the(120) diffraction peak for HCC appeared around 20.36°, but the residual fit value was larger. The synthesis of mercuric chloride from HCC and nitric acid showed an exothermic peak at 190-204 ℃, with the peak shape exhibiting a rightward trend. This study optimized the traditional refining process of HCC and analyzed the elemental changes, physical phase changes, and thermal property changes before and after refining. The findings provide experimental data for exploring the changing patterns in the refining process of HCC and its pharmacological value, as well as for standardizing the traditional refining process in clinical practice.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/chemistry* ; X-Ray Diffraction ; Temperature ; Calorimetry, Differential Scanning ; Mercuric Chloride/chemistry*

This study investigated the effects and underlying mechanisms of vanillic acid(VA) against cardiac fibrosis(CF) induced by isoproterenol(ISO) in mice. Male C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into control group, VA group(100 mg·kg~(-1), ig), ISO group(10 mg·kg~(-1), sc), ISO + VA group(10 mg·kg~(-1), sc + 100 mg·kg~(-1), ig), ISO + dynamin-related protein 1(Drp1) inhibitor(Mdivi-1) group(10 mg·kg~(-1), sc + 50 mg·kg~(-1), ip), and ISO + VA + Mdivi-1 group(10 mg·kg~(-1), sc + 100 mg·kg~(-1), ig + 50 mg·kg~(-1), ip). The treatment groups received the corresponding medications once daily for 14 consecutive days. On the day after the last administration, cardiac functions were evaluated, and serum and cardiac tissue samples were collected. These samples were analyzed for serum aspartate aminotransferase(AST), lactate dehydrogenase(LDH), creatine kinase-MB(CK-MB), cardiac troponin I(cTnI), reactive oxygen species(ROS), interleukin(IL)-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-18, and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α) levels, as well as cardiac tissue catalase(CAT), glutathione(GSH), malondialdehyde(MDA), myeloperoxidase(MPO), superoxide dismutase(SOD), total antioxidant capacity(T-AOC) activities, and cytochrome C levels in mitochondria and cytoplasm. Hematoxylin-eosin, Masson, uranium acetate and lead citrate staining were used to observe morphological and mitochondrial ultrastructural changes in the cardiac tissues, and myocardial injury area and collagen volume fraction were calculated. Flow cytometry was applied to detect the relative content and M1/M2 polarization of cardiac macrophages. The mRNA expression levels of macrophage polarization markers [CD86, CD206, arginase 1(Arg-1), inducible nitric oxide synthase(iNOS)], CF markers [type Ⅰ collagen(Coll Ⅰ), Coll Ⅲ, α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA)], and cytokines(IL-1β, IL-4, IL-6, IL-10, IL-18, TNF-α) in cardiac tissues were determined by quantitative real-time PCR. Western blot was used to detect the protein expression levels of Coll Ⅰ, Coll Ⅲ, α-SMA, Drp1, p-Drp1, voltage-dependent anion channel(VDAC), hexokinase 1(HK1), NOD-like receptor protein 3(NLRP3), apoptosis-associated speck-like protein(ASC), caspase-1, cleaved-caspase-1, gasdermin D(GSDMD), cleaved N-terminal gasdermin D(GSDMD-N), IL-1β, IL-18, B-cell lymphoma-2(Bcl-2), B-cell lymphoma-xl(Bcl-xl), Bcl-2-associated death promoter(Bad), Bcl-2-associated X protein(Bax), apoptotic protease activating factor-1(Apaf-1), pro-caspase-3, cleaved-caspase-3, pro-caspase-9, cleaved-caspase-9, poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase-1(PARP-1), and cleaved-PARP-1 in cardiac tissues. The results showed that VA significantly improved cardiac function in mice with CF, reduced myocardial injury area and cardiac index, and decreased serum levels of AST, CK-MB, cTnI, LDH, ROS, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-18, and TNF-α. VA also lowered MDA and MPO levels, mRNA expressions of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-18, and TNF-α, and mRNA and protein expressions of Coll Ⅰ, Coll Ⅲ, and α-SMA in cardiac tissues, and increased serum levels of IL-4 and IL-10, cardiac tissue levels of CAT, GSH, SOD, and T-AOC, and mRNA expressions of IL-4 and IL-10. Additionally, VA ameliorated cardiac pathological damage, inhibited myocardial cell apoptosis, inflammatory infiltration, and collagen fiber deposition, reduced collagen volume fraction, and alleviated mitochondrial damage. VA decreased the ratio of F4/80~+CD86~+ M1 cells and the mRNA expressions of CD86 and iNOS in cardiac tissue, and increased the ratio of F4/80~+CD206~+ M2 cells and the mRNA expressions of CD206 and Arg-1. VA also reduced protein expressions of p-Drp1, VDAC, NLRP3, ASC, caspase-1, cleaved-caspase-1, GSDMD, GSDMD-N, IL-1β, IL-18, Bad, Bax, Apaf-1, cleaved-caspase-3, cleaved-caspase-9, cleaved-PARP-1, and cytoplasmic cytochrome C, and increased the expressions of HK1, Bcl-2, Bcl-xl, pro-caspase-3, pro-caspase-9 proteins, as well as the Bcl-2/Bax and Bcl-xl/Bad ratios and mitochondrial cytochrome C content. These results indicate that VA has a significant ameliorative effect on ISO-induced CF in mice, alleviates ISO-induced oxidative damage and inflammatory response, and its mechanism may be closely related to the inhibition of Drp1/HK1/NLRP3 and mitochondrial apoptosis signaling pathways, suppression of myocardial cell inflammatory infiltration and collagen fiber deposition, reduction of collagen volume fraction and CollⅠ, Coll Ⅲ, and α-SMA expressions, thus mitigating CF.
Animals ; Isoproterenol/adverse effects* ; Male ; Mice ; Signal Transduction/drug effects* ; Vanillic Acid/administration & dosage* ; Dynamins/genetics* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Fibrosis/genetics* ; Apoptosis/drug effects* ; Mitochondria/metabolism* ; NLR Family, Pyrin Domain-Containing 3 Protein/genetics* ; Myocardium/metabolism* ; Humans

Hongsheng Dan, historically referred to as the "surgical sacred medicine", is at risk of losing its refining technology in contemporary times. This study aimed to preserve and innovate this traditional non-heritage refining technology. By utilizing the analytic hierarchy process(AHP) combined with the entropy weight method, this study established the hierarchical structure model of refining process of Hongsheng Dan and conducted a single factor experiment and an L_9(3~4) orthogonal experiment to optimize the refining method of Hongsheng Dan. Additionally, the study employed infrared thermal imaging to monitor temperature variations of Hongsheng Dan during the refining process. The optimized refining parameters for Hongsheng Dan were established as follows: a slow fire temperature of 175 ℃ with a duration of 30 minutes, a strong fire temperature of 270 ℃ with a duration of 60 minutes, and a tail fire temperature of 180 ℃ with a duration of 15 minutes. The stability and feasibility of this optimized process were confirmed through validation tests. The research focused on the material transformation of Hongsheng Dan, starting from the material changes during the refining process of Hongsheng Dan and the synthesis of mercuric oxide from nitric acid. The study investigated elemental transformations, physical phase changes, and alterations in thermal properties. 78.98% of the mercury in Hongsheng Dan and 80.21% of the mercury in mercuric oxide from nitric acid were retained. The diffraction peak intensity of the(011) crystal plane of Hongsheng Dan was highest at approximately 30.07°, indicating that the(011) crystal plane had a preferred crystalline orientation. Furthermore, the temperature range for the alteration in thermal properties during the refining process of Hongsheng Dan was found to be between 80 ℃ and 130 ℃. This research not only optimized the refining technology of Hongsheng Dan but also pioneered the application of infrared thermal imaging to study temperature changes throughout the refining process. By exploring the material transformation patterns of Hongsheng Dan and the synthesis of mercuric oxide from nitric acid, the study provided technical support for the preservation and innovation of Hongsheng Dan.
Drugs, Chinese Herbal/standards* ; Temperature

Osteoporotic fractures(OPF) refer to the fractures caused by minor violence in the state of osteoporosis, seriously threatening the life and health of elderly patients. Drug and surgical therapies have limitations such as single targets, diverse adverse reactions, and poor prognosis. Kidney-tonifying traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) has good potential in the treatment of OPF. TCM can promote the healing of OPF by promoting angiogenesis in the early stage of bone healing, promoting osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in the stage of bone repair, maintaining the balance of osteogenic and osteoclastic system in the stage of bone remodeling, and regulating the oxidative stress responses throughout the process of OPF healing. TCM can alleviate the pathological state of osteoporosis and promote fracture healing in OPF patients via multiple pathways and targets, demonstrating the advantages and potential of biphasic regulation.
Humans ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Osteoporotic Fractures/metabolism* ; Animals ; Fracture Healing/drug effects* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Kidney/metabolism* ; Osteogenesis/drug effects*

This study primarily aimed to investigate the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) and other common pathogens of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in spermatozoa of infertile men and their effects on semen parameters. These pathogens included Ureaplasma urealyticum, Ureaplasma parvum, Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma genitalium , herpes simplex virus 2, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus agalactiae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa , and Staphylococcus aureus . A total of 1951 men of infertile couples were recruited between 23 March 2023, and 17 May 2023, at the Department of Reproductive Medicine of The First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province (Kunming, China). Multiplex polymerase chain reaction and capillary electrophoresis were used for HPV genotyping. Polymerase chain reaction and electrophoresis were also used to detect the presence of other STIs. The overall prevalence of HPV infection was 12.4%. The top five prevalent HPV subtypes were types 56, 52, 43, 16, and 53 among those tested positive for HPV. Other common infections with high prevalence rates were Ureaplasma urealyticum (28.3%), Ureaplasma parvum (20.4%), and Enterococcus faecalis (9.5%). The prevalence rates of HPV coinfection with Ureaplasma urealyticum, Ureaplasma parvum, Chlamydia trachomatis, Mycoplasma genitalium , herpes simplex virus 2, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, Enterococcus faecalis, Streptococcus agalactiae , and Staphylococcus aureus were 24.8%, 25.4%, 10.6%, 6.4%, 2.4%, 7.9%, 5.9%, 0.9%, and 1.3%, respectively. The semen volume and total sperm count were greatly decreased by HPV infection alone. Coinfection with HPV and Ureaplasma urealyticum significantly reduced sperm motility and viability. Our study shows that coinfection with STIs is highly prevalent in the semen of infertile men and that coinfection with pathogens can seriously affect semen parameters, emphasizing the necessity of semen screening for STIs.
Humans ; Male ; Infertility, Male/epidemiology* ; Coinfection/microbiology* ; Papillomavirus Infections/virology* ; Adult ; Sexually Transmitted Diseases/complications* ; China/epidemiology* ; Staphylococcus aureus/isolation & purification* ; Chlamydia trachomatis/isolation & purification* ; Prevalence ; Mycoplasma genitalium/isolation & purification* ; Ureaplasma urealyticum/isolation & purification* ; Neisseria gonorrhoeae/isolation & purification* ; Enterococcus faecalis/isolation & purification* ; Streptococcus agalactiae/isolation & purification* ; Herpesvirus 2, Human/genetics* ; Pseudomonas aeruginosa/isolation & purification* ; Semen/virology* ; Sperm Motility ; Spermatozoa/microbiology* ; Human Papillomavirus Viruses