Objective:To evaluate the function of serum dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) in adult adrenal space-occupying lesions.Methods:In this cross-sectional study, 395 patients with adrenal space-occupying lesions who had their DHEAS levels measured were collected from the First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital from January 2010 to June 2021. They were divided into the adrenal Cushing syndrome (ACS) group ( n=100) and non-ACS group ( n=295). The former was divided into the cortisol-producing adrenal adenoma (CPA) group ( n=67) and primary bilateral macronodular adrenal hyperplasia (PBMAH) group ( n=33). Clinical data of each group were collected and compared among groups by independent samples t-test, chi-square test, and Mann-Whitney U test. Serum DHEAS ratio corrected for age and sex was further constructed to identify the receiver operating characteristic curve and the optimal tangent point value for different adrenal occupation. Results:Patients in the ACS group were younger (44.9±13.7 vs. 49.9±12.5, P=0.001); had a larger proportion of women (79/100 vs.139/295, P=0.001); and had higher cortisol levels [8∶00Am, 497.31 (343.52, 606.50) vs. 353.11 (267.50, 487.91) nmol/L, P<0.001] than those in the non-ACS group. The serum DHEAS level and ratio in the ACS group were significantly lower than those in the non-ACS group [0.50 (0.40, 1.21) vs. 2.68 (1.56, 4.32) μmol/L, 1.00 (0.43, 1.68) vs. 3.17 (2.21, 4.54), both P<0.001]. When the serum DHEAS ratio cut-off point was 1.29, the sensitivity and specificity for differential diagnosis of ACS and non-ACS were 72.0% and 91.5% respectively. The ratio of DHEAS in the CPA group was lower [0.58 (0.27, 1.05) vs. 1.14 (1.04, 2.40), P<0.001] than that in the PBMAH group. When the serum DHEAS ratio cut-off point was 0.99, the sensitivity and specificity for differential diagnosis of CPA and PBMAH were 64.2% and 81.2% respectively. Conclusion:Corrected age-sex DHEAS ratio can assist in the functional assessment of adrenal space-occupying lesions.

Objective To translate the fear-avoidance components scale(FACS)into Chinese and test its reliability and validity.Methods In September 2023,the Chinese version of the Fear-avoidance component scale(FACS)was translated from the English version with translation,back-translation,cultural adjustment and pre-experiment according to Brislin's translation-back-translation model,after having been granted the rights by the author of FACS in August 2023.In October 2023,with the convenience sampling method,402 patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain in a Grade IIIA hospital were selected as the trial subjects to test the reliability and validity of the Chinese version of FACS.Results A total of 376 patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain had completed the study.The Chinese version of FACS encompassed 2 dimensions with 18 items:fear-avoidance psychology(12 items)and fear-avoidance behaviour(6 items).The total Cronbach α coefficient of the scale was 0.907 with the split-half reliability at 0.836 and test-retest reliability at 0.895.The Cronbach α coefficients of the two dimensions were at 0.884 and 0.812,split-half reliability at 0.871 and 0.896 and the test-retest reliability at 0.808 and 0.921,respectively.The content validity index of the scale level was 0.935,with a range from 0.870 to 1.000 at the item level.The KMO value for exploratory factor analysis was at 0.909,the spherical test value at 3134.208(P<0.01)and the cumulative variance contribution rate at 66.514%.Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that the model fitted the data well.Conclusion The Chinese version of FACS exhibits good reliability and validity.It can serve as an effective tool in the assessment of fear-avoidance in the patients with chronic pain in China.