OBJECTIVES: To investigate the clinical and immunological features of children with primary immune thrombocytopenia (pITP) or connective tissue disease (CTD) with thrombocytopenia as the initial manifestation at initial diagnosis, and to provide a basis for early differentiation. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed on 236 children with pITP (pITP group) or CTD with thrombocytopenia as the initial manifestation (CTD-TP group) who were admitted from January 2019 to August 2024. Clinical and immunological indicators were compared between the two groups to identify potential influencing factors for early differentiation and their discriminative validity. RESULTS: Compared with the pITP group, the CTD-TP group had a significantly older age of onset and significantly lower leukocyte count, eosinophil count, lymphocyte count, and complement C4 level (P<0.05), as well as significantly higher levels of C-reactive protein, IgE, and IgM (P<0.05). The logistic regression analysis showed that age, IgE, IgM, total B cells, and complement C4 were predictive factors for early differentiation between pITP and CTD-TP (P<0.05). The receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that a combination of these five factors had a good discriminative validity, with an area under the curve of 0.944. The correlation analysis showed a negative correlation between IgG and platelet count in the pITP group (r_s=-0.363, P<0.05) and a positive correlation between NK cells and platelet count in the CTD-TP group (r_s=0.713, P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS There is heterogeneity in the clinical and immunological indicators between children with pITP and CTD-TP at initial diagnosis, and these research findings can help with the early differentiation between the two diseases.
Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic/immunology* ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Connective Tissue Diseases/immunology* ; Retrospective Studies ; Early Diagnosis ; Age of Onset ; Leukocyte Count ; Complement C4/immunology* ; C-Reactive Protein/immunology* ; Immunoglobulin E/immunology* ; Immunoglobulin M/immunology* ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Infant ; Child, Preschool ; Child ; Adolescent ; Biomarkers/blood*

OBJECTIVE: To establish an in vitro cell model simulating acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) bone marrow microenvironment injury with the advantage of mouse serum of aGVHD model and explore the effect of serum of aGVHD mouse on the adipogenic differentiation ability of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). METHODS: The 6-8-week-old C57BL/6N female mice and BALB/c female mice were used as the donor and recipient mice of the aGVHD model, respectively. Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) mouse model (n=20) was established by being injected with bone marrow cells (1×10⁷ per mouse) from donor mice within 4-6 hours after receiving a lethal dose (8.0 Gy, 72.76 cGy/min) of γ ray general irradiation. A mouse model of aGVHD (n=20) was established by infusing a total of 0.4 ml of a mixture of donor mouse-derived bone marrow cells (1×10⁷ per mouse) and spleen lymphocytes (2×10⁶ per mouse). The blood was removed from the eyeballs and the mouse serum was aspirated on the 7^th day after modeling. Bone marrow-derived MSCs were isolated from 1-week-old C57BL/6N male mice and incubated with 2%, 5% and 10% BMT mouse serum and aGVHD mouse serum in the medium, respectively. The effect of serum in the two groups on the in vitro adipogenic differentiation ability of mouse MSCs was detected by Oil Red O staining. The expression levels of related proteins PPARγ and CEBPα were detected by Western blot. The expression differences of key adipogenic transcription factors including PPARγ, CEBPα, FABP4 and LPL were determined by real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR). RESULTS: An in vitro cell model simulating the damage of bone marrow microenvironment in mice with aGVHD was successfully established. Oil Red O staining showed that the number of orange-red fatty droplets was significantly reduced and the adipogenic differentiation ability of MSC was impaired at aGVHD serum concentration of 10% compared with BMT serum. Western blot experiments showed that adipogenesis-related proteins PPARγ and CEBPα expressed in MSCs were down-regulated. Further RT-qPCR assay showed that the production of PPARγ, CEBPα, FABP4 and LPL, the key transcription factors for adipogenic differentiation of MSC, were significantly reduced. CONCLUSION The adipogenic differentiation capacity of MSCs is inhibited by aGVHD mouse serum.
Animals ; Mesenchymal Stem Cells/cytology* ; Mice ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Adipogenesis ; Female ; Cell Differentiation ; Graft vs Host Disease/blood* ; Bone Marrow Cells/cytology* ; PPAR gamma/metabolism* ; Disease Models, Animal ; CCAAT-Enhancer-Binding Protein-alpha/metabolism*

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the impact of glycemic control and diabetes duration on subsequent myocardial infarction (MI) in patients with both coronary heart disease (CHD) and type 2 diabetes (T2D). METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 33,238 patients with both CHD and T2D in Shenzhen, China. Patients were categorized into 6 groups based on baseline fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels and diabetes duration (from the date of diabetes diagnosis to the baseline date) to examine their combined effects on subsequent MI. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used, with further stratification by age, sex, and comorbidities to assess potential interactions. RESULTS: Over a median follow-up of 2.4 years, 2,110 patients experienced MI. Compared to those with optimal glycemic control (FPG < 6.1 mmol/L) and shorter diabetes duration (< 10 years), the fully-adjusted hazard ratio ( HR) (95% Confidence Interval [95% CI]) for those with a diabetes duration of ≥ 10 years and FPG > 8.0 mmol/L was 1.93 (95% CI: 1.59, 2.36). The combined effects of FPG and diabetes duration on MI were largely similar across different age, sex, and comorbidity groups, although the excess risk of MI associated with long-term diabetes appeared to be more pronounced among those with atrial fibrillation. CONCLUSION Our study indicates that glycemic control and diabetes duration significant influence the subsequent occurrence of MI in patients with both CHD and T2D. Tailored management strategies emphasizing strict glycemic control may be particularly beneficial for patients with longer diabetes duration and atrial fibrillation.
Humans ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/blood* ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Aged ; Coronary Disease/complications* ; Myocardial Infarction/etiology* ; Retrospective Studies ; China/epidemiology* ; Glycemic Control ; Blood Glucose ; Adult ; Risk Factors ; Time Factors

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy and safety of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)constitution correction based on the theory of preventive treatment of disease on the patients with early asymptomatic diabetic peripheral neuropathy(DPN).Methods A total of 87 patients with early asymptomatic DPN were randomly divided into the control group with 43 cases and the trial group with 44 cases.The control group was required to have standard diet,do exercises and take medicines for diabetes.On the basis of treatment for the control group,the trial group was given the corresponding TCM constitution correction regimen according to the predominated constitution types of the patients.The course of treatment for the two groups lasted for 48 weeks.Before and after intervention,the two groups were observed in the alteration of TCM constitution types,and the changes of body mass index(BMI),systolic blood pressure(SBP),diastolic blood pressure(DBP),fasting plasma glucose(FPG),glycosylated hemoglobin(HbA1c),total cholesterol(TC),triglyceride(TG),high-density lipoprotein cholesterol(HDL-C),low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-C)and nerve conduction velocity(NCV).Moreover,the safety of the two groups was evaluated.Results(1)After the intervention,the constitution of 17 patients in the trial group was transformed into the balanced constitution,while only the constitution of 5 patients in the control group was transformed into balanced constitution.There was a statistically significant difference in the distribution of TCM constitution between the two groups(P＜0.05).(2)Before intervention,there were no significant differences in the levels of BMI,SBP,DBP,FPG,HbA1c,TC,TG,HDL-C and LDL-C between the two groups(P＞0.05).After intervention,the levels of BMI,SBP and DBP in the two groups and the levels of HbA1c,TC,TG and LDL-C in the trial group were lower than those before intervention(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01),while the levels of FPG and HDL-C in the control group were higher than those before intervention(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).The intergroup comparison showed that the levels of FPG,HbA1c,TG and LDL-C in the trial group were significantly lower than those in the control group(P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).(3)After the intervention,10 cases in the control group had typical clinical symptoms of DPN,while only 6 cases in the trial group had the clinical symptoms of DPN.Before intervention,there was no significant difference in the motor nerve conduction velocity(MNCV)of bilateral tibial nerve and common peroneal nerve and in the sensory nerve conduction velocity(SNCV)of bilateral sural nerve and superficial peroneal nerve between the two groups(P＞0.05).After intervention,the MNCV of bilateral tibial nerve and common peroneal nerve and the SNCV of bilateral sural nerve and superficial peroneal nerve in the control group were slower than those before intervention(P＜0.05),while the above indicators of nerve conduction velocity in the trial group were mildly increased compared with those before intervention,but the differences were not significant(P＞0.05).The intergroup comparison showed that the MNCV of bilateral tibial nerve and SNCV of bilateral sural nerve and superficial peroneal nerve in the trial group were higher than those in the control group,and the differences were statistically significant(P＜0.05).(4)During the intervention,no obvious adverse reactions occurred in the two groups,with high safety.Conclusion The TCM constitution correction can adjust the biased constitution of patients with early asymptomatic DPN,and has certain protective effect on the glucose and lipid metabolism,MNCV of tibial nerve,and SNCV of bilateral sural nerve and superficial peroneal nerve.

ObjectiveThis study aims to explore risk factors for the development of major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events （MACCEs） in middle-aged and elderly patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus complicated with stable angina pectoris （T2DM-SAP） based on real-world clinical data in traditional Chinese medicine （TCM）， so as to develop a COX proportional risk prediction model and visualize the predicted results using a nomogram. MethodBased on the clinical scientific research information sharing system， the medical records of 586 T2DM-SAP patients （45-94 years old） were collected from January 2012 to December 2019， including age， gender， course of disease， major medical history， laboratory examination， tongue image， pulse image， TCM syndrome， and major treatment drugs. MACCE outcome indicators of patients were obtained by telephone follow-up and re-hospitalization records. The data was divided into a training set and a validation set according to 7∶3. In the training set， COX univariate analysis was used to determine the risk factors for MACCE in T2DM-SAP patients， and then variables were screened by forward-backward stepwise regression method， so as to establish a MACCE risk prediction model and construct a nomogram. The predictive efficacy of the model was reflected by the C-index， receiver operating characteristic （ROC） curve， calibration map， and clinical decision curve. ResultThe history of cerebrovascular disease ［Hazard ratio （HR）=1.983， 95% confidence interval （CI，1.314-2.993）］， low-density lipoprotein （LDL-C/mmol·L^-1）≥4.1［HR=2.683， 95%CI（1.461-4.925）］， dull red tongue ［HR=1.955， 95%CI（1.273-3.002）］， dull purple tongue ［HR=4.214， 95%CI（2.017-8.803）］， white thick coating ［HR=3.030， 95%CI（1.634-9.293）］， thin and weak pulse ［HR=2.233， 95%CI（1.283-3.888）］， and syndrome of wind-phlegm blocking collaterals ［HR=2.007， 95%CI（1.179-3.418）］ were found to be risk factors in middle-aged and elderly T2DM-SAP patients. Insulin ［HR=0.604， 95%CI（0.399-0.914）］， glycosidase inhibitor ［HR=0.627， 95%CI（0.409-0.962）］， and TCM treatment ［HR=0.328， 95%CI（0.214-0.503）］ were protective factors in middle-aged and elderly T2DM-SAP patients. The prediction model was constructed based on the above risk factors. The C-index of the model was 0.818 （95% CI 0.777 -0.859） in the training set and 0.814 （95% CI 0.773-0.855） in the validation set， and the change of C-index over time was plotted. The AUC of patients for 5， 10， 15 years in the training set was 0.71， 0.67， and 0.61. The AUC of patients for 5， 10， and 15 years in the validation set was 0.60， 0.68， and 0.63， respectively. The calibration map and clinical decision curves of 5， 10， 15 years were drawn in the training set and the validation set， respectively. The model was well calibrated and clinically effective. ConclusionThe history of cerebrovascular disease， LDL， dull red tongue， dull purple tongue， white thick coating， thin and weak pulse， and syndrome of wind-phlegm blocking collaterals are risk factors for MACCE in middle-aged and elderly T2DM-SAP patients， and insulin， glycosidase inhibitors， TCM treatment are protective factors for MACCE in middle-aged and elderly T2DM-SAP patients. A clinical prediction model is established accordingly. This model has good discrimination， calibration degree， and clinical effectiveness and provides a scientific basis for the prevention and treatment of MACCE in middle-aged and elderly T2DM-SAP patients.

This study analyzed the outcome index and related design elements of randomized controlled trials （RCTs） of traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） in the treatment of children with tic disorder （TD） in the past ten years， so as to provide a basis for the construction of the core index set of TCM in the treatment of children with TD. Eight databases were searched， including four English databases （PubMed， Web of Science， Embase， and Cochrane Library） and four Chinese databases， including China National Knowledge Infrastructure （CNKI）， Wanfang Database， VIP Database， and China Biology Medicine disc （CBMdisc）， as well as ClinicalTrials.gov and China Clinical Trial Registry. The search time was limited to from January 1， 2013 to October 29， 2023. RCTs on the TD in children treated with TCM were collected. Two researchers independently conducted literature screening， data extraction， and literature quality evaluation and summarized clinical outcome indexes and related trial design elements through qualitative analysis. A total of 67 RCTs were included， including 63 outcome indexes， with a total frequency of 348 times. The related outcome indexes could be divided into six categories： 12 symptom/sign indexes with a frequency of 134 （38.5%）， seven TCM symptom/syndrome indexes with a frequency of 31 （8.9%）， 33 physical and chemical examination indexes with a frequency of 97 （27.9%）， four safety indexes with a frequency of 67 （19.3%）， three long-term prognostic indexes with a frequency of 14 （4.0%）， and one kind of quality-of-life evaluation index （0.3%）. Currently， the RCTs research design of TCM in the treatment of TD in children has not yet formed a unified standard， and there are many problems in the quality of methodology， which reduces the authenticity and reliability of clinical conclusions. There are problems with clinical outcome indexes， such as significant quantity differences， unclear primary and secondary outcome indexes， unreasonable alternative indexes， non-standard TCM syndrome types and TCM evaluation indexes， lack of economic evaluation indexes， and less attention to long-term prognostic indexes and safety indexes. It is suggested that the researchers should design a more rigorous trial scheme and reasonably design the outcome index which is in line with the clinical trial efficacy evaluation of TCM， so as to construct the core index set with the characteristics of TCM for the treatment TD in children.

Objective This study aimed to investigate the potential relationship between urinary metals copper (Cu), arsenic (As), strontium (Sr), barium (Ba), iron (Fe), lead (Pb) and manganese (Mn) and grip strength. Methods We used linear regression models, quantile g-computation and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) to assess the relationship between metals and grip strength.Results In the multimetal linear regression, Cu (β=-2.119), As (β=-1.318), Sr (β=-2.480), Ba (β=0.781), Fe (β= 1.130) and Mn (β=-0.404) were significantly correlated with grip strength (P < 0.05). The results of the quantile g-computation showed that the risk of occurrence of grip strength reduction was -1.007 (95％ confidence interval:-1.362, -0.652; P < 0.001) when each quartile of the mixture of the seven metals was increased. Bayesian kernel function regression model analysis showed that mixtures of the seven metals had a negative overall effect on grip strength, with Cu, As and Sr being negatively associated with grip strength levels. In the total population, potential interactions were observed between As and Mn and between Cu and Mn (Pinteractions of 0.003 and 0.018, respectively).Conclusion In summary, this study suggests that combined exposure to metal mixtures is negatively associated with grip strength. Cu, Sr and As were negatively correlated with grip strength levels, and there were potential interactions between As and Mn and between Cu and Mn.

The adulteration and counterfeiting of herbal ingredients in medicinal and food homology (MFH) have a serious impact on the quality of herbal materials, thereby endangering human health. Compared to pharmaceutical drugs, health products derived from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) are more easily accessible and closely integrated into consumers' daily life. However, the authentication of the authenticity of TCM ingredients in MFH has not received sufficient attention. The lack of clear standards emphasizes the necessity of conducting systematic research in this area. This study utilized DNA barcoding technology, combining ITS2, psbA-trnH, matK as universal barcode sequences, and DX, HH, JYH as specific barcode sequences, to identify the authenticity of commercial medicinal and food homology scented herbal teas. The aim was to investigate the authenticity of scented herbal tea products circulating in the market. The research results revealed that among 180 scented herbal tea samples, DNA barcodes were successfully obtained from 164 samples, while the remaining samples either lacked the target components or suffered severe DNA degradation, resulting in failed amplification. Combined with morphological identification studies, it was found that out of the 180 samples, 141 were authentic, accounting for 78.33% of the total samples, while 31 samples showed adulteration and 8 samples lacked the target components, accounting for 21.67% of the total samples. Additionally, water testing revealed that 5 samples of Carthamus tinctorius herbal tea exhibited the phenomenon of weight adulteration. This study exposed the presence of adulteration and weight adulteration in scented herbal tea products, highlighting the need for regulatory authorities to expedite the establishment of quality standards in scented herbal tea industry. These findings provide valuable insights for the rapid development of the scented herbal tea industry.

Objective To construct and preliminarily apply a graded exercise rehabilitation program for patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(AECOPD),and to provide a theoretical basis for the scientific implementation of exercise rehabilitation by medical staff.Methods Based on Triangle model and evidence-based method,the first draft of the graded exercise rehabilitation program was constructed,and the items were revised through 2 rounds of expert consultations from March to October,2023.The graded exercise rehabilitation program was preliminarily applied in 10 patients with AECOPD.Results The effective recovery rates of the 2 rounds of expert consultation questionnaires were 100％;the expert authority coefficients were 0.857 and 0.863;the coefficients of variation were 0-0.285 and 0.052-0.244;the Kendall's harmony coefficients were 0.167 and 0.145,respectively(all P＜0.001).The final plan includes 4 first-level indicators,13 second-level indicators,and 25 third-level indicators.The scores of 6 min walking test,mMRC and CAT after exercise were improved compared with those before exercise,and the differences were statistically significant(all P＜0.05).Conclusion The graded exercise rehabilitation program for patients with AECOPD constructed in this study has good scientificity and practicability,which can provide references for clinical implementation of exercise rehabilitation.

Objective To standardize nursing management on postoperative patients with a left ventricular assist-ant device(LVAD).Methods The first draft of the Consensus was formed on the basis of literature review.2 rounds of expert consultations and a round of online meeting discussion were held for adjustments and modifications the draft of the Consensus.Results The recovery rate of the inquiry questionnaire was 93.75%.The authority coefficients of the 2 rounds of inquiry experts were 0.927 and 0.920.The concentration degree of expert opinions for each indicator was greater than 3.5 score,and the coefficient of variation was less than 0.25.The Kendall harmony coefficients for 2 rounds of correspondence were 0.402 and 0.407(P<0.01).The final Consensus formed through expert consultations and meetings includes 7 themes:hemodynamic monitoring,LVAD function monitoring,coagulation function monitoring,percutaneous cable and wound care,exercise rehabilitation care,health education and guidance,and pre-discharge assessment.Conclusion The Consensus is scientific,rigorous,and authoritative.The Consensus covers all aspects of postoperative care for patients with LVAD,and it will benefit to clinical practice.