OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the dynamic changes of glucocorticoid (GC) dose and the feasibility of GC discontinuation in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients under the background of Chinese medicine (CM). METHODS: This multicenter retrospective cohort study included 1,196 RA patients enrolled in the China Rheumatoid Arthritis Registry of Patients with Chinese Medicine (CERTAIN) from September 1, 2019 to December 4, 2023, who initiated GC therapy. Participants were divided into the Western medicine (WM) and integrative medicine (IM, combination of CM and WM) groups based on medication regimen. Follow-up was performed at least every 3 months to assess dynamic changes in GC dose. Changes in GC dose were analyzed by generalized estimator equation, the probability of GC discontinuation was assessed using Kaplan-Meier curve, and predictors of GC discontinuation were analyzed by Cox regression. Patients with <12 months of follow-up were excluded for the sensitivity analysis. RESULTS: Among 1,196 patients (85.4% female; median age 56.4 years), 880 (73.6%) received IM. Over a median 12-month follow-up, 34.3% (410 cases) discontinued GC, with significantly higher rates in the IM group (40.8% vs. 16.1% in WM; P<0.05). GC dose declined progressively, with IM patients demonstrating faster reductions (median 3.75 mg vs. 5.00 mg in WM at 12 months; P<0.05). Multivariate Cox analysis identified age <60 years [P<0.001, hazard ratios (HR)=2.142, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.523-3.012], IM therapy (P=0.001, HR=2.175, 95% CI: 1.369-3.456), baseline GC dose ⩽7.5 mg (P=0.003, HR=1.637, 95% CI: 1.177-2.275), and absence of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs use (P=0.001, HR=2.546, 95% CI: 1.432-4.527) as significant predictors of GC discontinuation. Sensitivity analysis (545 cases) confirmed these findings. CONCLUSIONS RA patients receiving CM face difficulties in following guideline-recommended GC discontinuation protocols. IM can promote GC discontinuation and is a promising strategy to reduce GC dependency in RA management. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT05219214).
Adult ; Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy* ; Glucocorticoids/therapeutic use* ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Retrospective Studies

Aural vertigo frequently encountered in the otolaryngology department of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） mainly involves peripheral vestibular diseases of Western medicine， such as Meniere's disease， benign paroxysmal positional vertigo， vestibular neuritis， and vestibular migraine， being a hot research topic in both TCM and Western medicine. Western medical therapies alone have unsatisfactory effects on recurrent aural vertigo， aural vertigo affecting the quality of life， aural vertigo not relieved after surgery， aural vertigo with complex causes， and children's aural vertigo. The literature records and clinical practice have proven that TCM demonstrates unique advantages in the treatment of aural vertigo. The China Association of Chinese medicine sponsored the "17th youth salon on the diseases responding specifically to TCM： Aural vertigo" and invited vertigo experts of TCM and Western medicine to discuss the difficulties and advantages of TCM diagnosis and treatment of aural vertigo. The experts deeply discussed the achievements and contributions of TCM and Western medicine in the diagnosis and treatment of aural vertigo， the control and mitigation of the symptoms， and the solutions to disease recurrence. The discussion clarified the positioning and advantages of TCM treatment and provided guidance for clinical and basic research on aural vertigo.

Objective To explore the prognostic value of hs-cTnⅠ in patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome(ACS)in emergency department.Methods A large-scale,prospective observa-tional study was conducted on totally 966 patients with suspected ACS admitted in Fuwai Hospi-tal from January 2017 to October 2020.Their baseline serum/plasma hs-cTnⅠ level was detected at admission,conventional treatment was performed,and relevant data were collected.Logistic regression analysis was used to predict the risk of primary and secondary endpoint events within 30 d by hs-TnⅠ concentration,and subgroup analysis was performed.Results Among the 966 patients,the time from chest pain to visit was 5.0(2.5,13.0)h,and 284 patients had primary end-point events within 30 d,including 283 cases of myocardial infarction(99.6％)at the first visit,1 case of recurrent myocardial infarction(0.4％),5 cases of cardiovascular death(1.8％),and 1 case of unplanned revascularization(0.4％).When hs-cTnⅠ was at the minimum detection limit of 2 ng/L,the incidence of adverse events was 5.8％,when the limit of 70 ng/L,the incidence was 49.2％,and when of 316 ng/L,the incidence reached 100％.The model could correctly classify 92.3％of the patients.Conclusion The hs-cTn sequence has a good predictive effect for the risk of short-term cardiovascular adverse events in Chinese population.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of treating sepsis patients with Xuebijing injection (XBJI). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 418 patients who experienced severe infections and were treated with XBJI from June 2018 to June 2021. Propensity score matching was used to match the patient cases. The study population included 209 pairs of cases (418 individuals), and the analysis included data from before and after a 14-day course of treatment with carbapenem alone, or carbapenem with XBJI. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in the 14-day mortality or length of hospital stay (P > 0.05) between the two groups. The combined treatment group had more patients with C-reactive protein that returned to normal levels (compared to baseline) than the non-combined treatment group (14.4% vs 8.1%; odds ratio [OR]: 0.528; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.282-0.991; P = 0.026). Similarly, the combined treatment group had higher procalcitonin attainment rate (55.0% vs 39.7%; OR: 0.513; 95% CI: 0.346-0.759; P = 0.001) than the non-combined treatment group. Further, more patients in the combined treatment group achieved normal creatinine levels than in the non-combined treatment group (64.1% vs 54.1%; OR: 0.659; 95% CI: 0.445-0.975; P = 0.037). CONCLUSION The combination of XBJI with carbapenem did not reduce the 14-day mortality rate of patients with severe infection, but it was able to reduce the level of inflammatory factors in patients with sepsis, and had a protective effect on liver and kidney function. Please cite this article as: Gong ZT, Yang HX, Zhu BB, Liu HH, Siri GL. Clinical efficacy of Xuebijing injection for the treatment of sepsis: A retrospective cohort study. J Integr Med. 2024; 22(6): 645-651.
Humans ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage* ; Sepsis/mortality* ; Retrospective Studies ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Treatment Outcome ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/administration & dosage* ; C-Reactive Protein/analysis* ; Carbapenems/therapeutic use* ; Length of Stay ; Injections ; Adult ; Drug Therapy, Combination ; Procalcitonin/blood*

OBJECTIVE To study the protective mechanism of Bawei chenxiang powder containing serum on H9c2 cells injured by oxygen-glucose deprivation （OGD）. METHODS H9c2 cells were divided into blank group， model group and Bawei chenxiang powder low-dose， medium-dose and high-dose groups （the dose of drug containing serum 2.5， 8， 12 g/kg）. H9c2 cells were cultured in vitro to establish OGD model. After intervention with drug-containing serum， survival rate of cell was detected. The cell morphology was observed； the levels of lactate dehydrogenase （LDH）， creatine kinase （CK）， superoxide dismutase （SOD）， catalase （CAT）， respiratory chain complexⅠ （ComplexⅠ）， glutathione peroxidase （GSH-Px） and malondialdehyde （MDA） were detected. The contents of reactive oxygen species （ROS）， mitochondrial membrane potential and apoptosis were also detected. The expressions of oxidative stress-related proteins [Kelch ECH association protein 1 （Keap1）， nuclear factor erythroid 2- related factor 2 （Nrf2）， heme oxygenase 1 （HO-1）， NADH oxidoreductase coenzyme 10 （Ndufa10）， thioredoxin （Trx）] and apoptosis-related proteins [B-cell lymphoma 2 （Bcl-2）， Bcl-2 associated X protein （Bax）， Caspase-3 and cytochrome C （Cytc）] were detected. RESULTS Compared with blank group， the cell morphology of model group was damaged； the levels of LDH， CK and MDA were significantly increased （P＜0.01）， while the levels of CAT， ComplexⅠ， SOD and GSH-Px and mitochondrial membrane potential were significantly decreased （P＜0.01）. The content of intracellular ROS and apoptotic rate were significantly increased （P＜0.01）； the expressions of oxidative stress-related proteins （Keap1， Nrf2， HO-1， Ndufa10 and Trx） and pro- apoptosis proteins （Bax， Caspase-3 and Cytc） were significantly increased （P＜0.05）， while the expression of anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2 was significantly decreased （P＜0.05）. After administration of Bawei chenxiang powder containing serum， the cell morphology improved， and most of the above indexes were significantly reversed （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）.CONCLUSIONS Bawei chenxiang powder containing serum E-mail：345783110@qq.com has a good protective effect on H9c2 cells damaged by OGD，the mechanism of which is related to the reduction of oxidative damage and inhibition of cell apoptosis.

Humans ; Child ; Nephrotic Syndrome/drug therapy* ; Hormones

ObjectiveBy comparing the composition and content changes of the volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma before and after processing with rice-washed water， the effect of rice-washed water processing on volatile components in Atractylodis Rhizoma was investigated. MethodHeadspace-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry （HS-GC-MS） was used to detect the volatile components in rhizomes of Atractylodes chinensis and A. lancea， and their processed products of rice-washed water. Chromatographic conditions were programmed temperature （starting temperature of 50 ℃ for 2 min， rising to 120 ℃ with the speed of 10 ℃·min^-1， then rising to 170 ℃ at 2.5 ℃·min^-1， and rising to 240 ℃ at 10 ℃·min^-1 for 3 min）， the inlet temperature was 280 ℃， the split ratio was 10∶1， and the solvent delay time was 3 min. The conditions of mass spectrometry were electron bombardment ionization （EI） with ionization temperature at 230 ℃ and detection range of m/z 20-650. Then the relative content of each component was determined by the peak area normalization method. SIMCA 14.1 software was used to perform unsupervised principal component analysis （PCA） and supervised orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis （OPLS-DA） on each sample data， the differential components of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products were screened by the principle of variable importance in the projection （VIP） value>1. ResultA total of 60 components were identified， among which 40 were rhizomes of A. chinensis and 38 were its processed products， 46 were rhizomes of A. lancea and 47 were its processed products. PCA and OPLS-DA showed that the 4 kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma samples were clustered into one category respectively， indicating that the volatile components of the two kinds of Atractylodis Rhizoma were significantly changed after processing with rice-washed water， and there were also significant differences in the volatile components of rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis. The compound composition of Atractylodis Rhizoma and its processed products was basically the same， but the content of the compounds was significantly different. The differential components were mainly concentrated in monoterpenoids and sesquiterpenoids， and the content of monoterpenoids mostly showed a decreasing trend. ConclusionAfter processing with rice-washed water， the contents of volatile components in rhizomes of A. lancea and A. chinensis are significantly changed， and pinene， 3-carene， p-cymene， ocimene， terpinolene， atractylon， acetic acid and furfural can be used as difference markers before and after processing.

Objective:To evaluate the proper blood collection time and calculation formula by measuring the iohexol plasma clearance as a representative of glomerular filtration rate at the same time of routine enhanced computed tomography (CT) examination.Methods:The prospective study method was applied, and 9 subjects with normal renal function, who admitted in Civil Aviation General Hospital from September 2018 to June 2019, were included. A single bolus of a standard dose (5 ml) (iodine concentration: 350 mgI/ml) was injected. The concentration of iohexol was measured from heparin plasma at fasting state of the subject and at nine different times after the injection, respectively. More than 24 hours after the injection of the standard dose, an enhanced CT-level dose (50 ml) of iohexol was injected to the subject and the concentration of iohexol was measured at similar time points as the standard dose. Using a multi-point method of a standard dose as the standard, the clearance rate was calculated by three kinds of formulas including Groth and Aasted formula, Jacobsson formula and Fleming formula with the single-point method to assess iohexol plasma clearance at 0.5 to 8.0 hours post injection of enhanced CT-level dose. The correlation consistency and accuracy of the multi-point method and the single-point method, as well as the dual-point method and the single-point method were compared, and the proper blood collection time and calculation formula of the single-point method at regular enhanced CT-level dose were evaluated. The correlation between the multi-point method and the single-point method, as well as the dual-point method and the single-point method were assessed using Pearson correlation coefficient; the consistency between the multi-point method and the single-point method, as well as the dual-point method and the single-point method were assessed by bias using mean±standard deviation ( SD) and 95% confidence interval ( CI) of mean difference and so on. We assessed the concordance of GFR using GFR±5% ( P5),±10% ( P10) and 1±30% ( P30) intervals. Results:Compared with the multi-point method, the mean deviation of iohexol plasma clearance obtained by the three single-point methods increased gradually from 5 hours after the injection of iohexol ( P<0.05). Compared with the multi-point method, only 3 h results, which was calculated by the Groth and Aasted formula, reached a P value greater than 0.05, a correlation coefficient of 0.938, a mean deviation of (-5.2±8.8) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2, and the concordances were 100% corresponding to P30,77.8% corresponding to P10, and 66.7% corresponding to P5; the 2, 3 and 4 hours results, which was calculated by the Jacobsson formula, reached P values greater than 0.05, when the blood collection time was 3 hours, the correlation coefficient was 0.938, and the mean deviation was the smallest, which was (1.5±6.2) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2, and the concordances were 100% corresponding to P30, 88.9% corresponding to P10, and 66.7% corresponding to P5; the 2 and 3 hours results, which was calculated by the Fleming formula, reached P values greater than 0.05, when the blood collection time was 2 h, the correlation coefficient was 0.956, and the mean deviation was the smallest, which was (-4.5±8.8) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2, and the concordances were 100% corresponding to P30, 77.8% corresponding to P10, and 55.6% corresponding to P5,Compared with the dual-point method, when Groth or Aasted formula was used, the mean deviation was the smallest at 3 hours, which was (-5.3±5.7) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2; when Jacobsson formula was used, the mean deviation was the smallest at 2 hours, which was (1.6±1.6) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2; when Fleming formula was used, and the mean deviation was the smallest at 2 hours, which was (-4.6±4.0) ml·min -1·1.73 m -2. Conclusion:At a regular enhanced CT-level dose, one blood collection can accurately measure the glomerular filtration rate, the proper time for blood collection can be 3 hours after iohexol injection, and the appropriate calculation formula can be Jacobsson formula.

The efficacy of gastrodin as a Chinese herbal medicine extract in the treatment of tension-type headache has been confirmed. This paper systematically reviewed the efficacy and safety of gastrodin in the treatment of tension-type headache, aiming to provide a new choice for the treatment of this disease. In this study, four Chinese databases, four English databases and two trial registries were searched from the date of establishment to September 2020. The related randomized controlled trials(RCTs) were screened out according to the predetermined criteria. The bias risk assessment tool developed by Cochrane collaboration was used to evaluate the quality of the reports. RevMan 5.4.1 was used for Meta-analysis, and GRADE system for the evidence-based evaluation on the quality of outcome indicators. A total of 177 articles were retrieved and 8 articles were finally included for analysis, with a total sample size of 1 091 cases, which included 565 cases in the treatment group and 526 cases in the control group. The overall quality of included stu-dies was not high. The results of Meta-analysis are as follows:(1)In terms of headache frequency, gastrodin group was better than wes-tern medicine group(MD=-2.90, 95%CI[-3.76,-2.03], P<0.000 01).(2)In terms of number of abnormal blood vessels in TCD, gastrodin group was better than western medicine group(MD=-88.96, 95%CI[-102.36,-75.55], P<0.000 01).(3)In terms of effective rate, gastrodin group was better than western medicine group(RR=1.47, 95%CI[1.29, 1.68], P<0.000 01). The results of subgroup analysis are as follows:(1)Effective rate based on age, for the patients upper age limit 40-46 years old, gastro-din group was better than western medicine group(RR=1.69, 95%CI[1.50, 1.90], P<0.000 01); for the patients upper age limit 55-60 years old, gastrodin group was better than western medicine group(RR=1.27, 95%CI[1.16, 1.38], P<0.000 01).(2)Effective rate based on dosage form, both the gastrodin capsules and injection groups were better than western medicine group(RR_(capsules)=1.42, 95%CI[1.08, 1.88], P=0.01; RR_(injection)=1.50, 95%CI[1.26, 1.77], P<0.000 01). GRADE evaluation showed that the above outcomes had low quality of evidence. Only one article detailed the occurrence of adverse reactions and thus the present study cannot make a positive conclusion on the safety of gastrodin in the treatment of tension-type headache. The small number and low quality of the included reports affected the reliability of the results. In the future, more high-quality randomized controlled trails are needed to improve the evaluation on the efficacy and safety of gastrodin in the treatment of tension-type headache.
Adult ; Benzyl Alcohols/therapeutic use* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/adverse effects* ; Glucosides ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Reproducibility of Results ; Tension-Type Headache

Calcium calculi account for about 80% of urolithiasis with high incidence and recurrence rate. Recurrent urolithiasis increases the risk of hypertension and chronic kidney disease. Comprehensive metabolic evaluation is of paramount importance for the prevention of calcium calculi. With deepening of the study on the pathogenesis of calculi, we find crystallization inhibitors, inflammation and oxidative stress molecules play an important role in the formation of calculi, and susceptibility gene sites of urinary calculi are identified in succession. These may be used as novel markers for the prevention and evaluation of urinary calculi. Models that predict the risk of kidney stone recurrence can help warn people at high risk.