Objective To explore the risk factors for very early recurrence (VER) after curative-intent resection for gallbladder cancer (GBC) patients and construct prediction models for VER based on various machine learning (ML) algorithms. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 329 GBC patients who underwent curative-intent surgery at our hospital between January 2016 and December 2020. Risk factors for VER were identified, and prediction models were constructed, validated and compared with multiple ML algorithms[logistic regression (LR), support vector machine (SVM), naive Bayes (NB), random forest (RF), light gradient boosting machine (LGB), and extreme gradient boosting (XGB)]based on independent associated factors for VER. Results Among the 329 patients who underwent curative-intent resection in patients with GBC, 162 (49.2%) patients experienced recurrence, including 69 (42.6%) with VER（<6 months） and 93 (57.4%) with non-VER（≥6 months）. Survival analysis showed that patients with VER had significantly worse median overall survival compared to those with non-VER (6 months vs. not arrived，χ2=398.2, P<0.001). Univariate analysis showed that carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA), carbohydrate antigen (CA)19-9, CA-125, tumor differentiation, pathological type, liver involvement, vascular invasion, perineural invasion, TNM stage, T stage and N stage were risk factors of VER (P<0.05), whereas adjuvant chemotherapy was protective factor (P<0.05). Multivariate analysis confirmed CA-125, tumor differentiation, pathological type, vascular invasion and N stage as independent risk factors (P<0.05), whereas adjuvant chemotherapy was independent protective factor (P<0.05). XGB model achieved the best performance with an area under curve (AUC) of 0.841 and an accuracy (ACC) of 83.0% in the validation set. Shapley additive explanations (SHAP) bar plots highlighted tumor differentiation, N stage, pathological type of tumor, and CA-125 the top four features contributing to the model, each positively influencing the predicted probability of VER. Conclusions CA-125, tumor differentiation, pathological type, vascular invasion, N stage and adjuvant chemotherapy are independent factors associated with VER of GBC following curative-intent resection. ML-based prediction models incorporating these factors have the potential to some extent to effectively identify high-risk patients, providing a valuable reference for VER surveillance in GBC.

Background and Aims:Laparoscopic cholecystectomy(LC)is a common surgical method for the treatment of gallbladder diseases.However,some patients experience symptoms such as dyspepsia after surgery,which can affect their quality of life.Compound azinomide enteric-coated tablets,a novel drug,may improve dyspeptic symptoms after LC.This study was conducted to explore the clinical efficacy of compound azinomide enteric-coated tablets in treating post-LC dyspepsia symptoms through a multicenter clinical trial.Methods:A multicenter,superior efficacy,open-label,parallel-controlled design was used.Patients with postoperative dyspepsia were enrolled in 7 centers between January 2023 and May 2024.Patients were randomly assigned to either the observation or control groups using a random number table.The observation group received compound azinomide enteric-coated tablets,while the control group was treated with a combination of oryzae pancreatin tablets and ursodeoxycholic acid tablets.Both groups were treated for 4 weeks.The primary endpoints included gastrointestinal symptom scores and quality of life scores assessed before and at 14 and 28 d after treatment.Additionally,the incidence of adverse reactions and cost-effectiveness ratio(CER)were compared between the groups.Results:A total of 303 patients were included,with 150 in the observation group and 153 in the control group.Baseline characteristics were balanced between the groups before treatment(all P>0.05).After treatment,the observation group showed significantly higher effective rates at 14 d and 28 d than the control group(44.7%vs.29.4%;98.0%vs.73.9%,both P<0.05).The observation group also had significantly lower symptom scores and quality of life scores at both 14 and 28 d,with a significantly higher improvement rate in symptom scores compared to the control group(all P<0.05).Further analysis of the improvement rate and treatment efficacy for individual symptoms revealed that,except for the 14-d improvement in abdominal pain/discomfort,the observation group showed better improvement in all other symptoms at 14 d and in all symptoms at 28 d compared to the control group(all P<0.05).No adverse reactions were observed in either group.The CER for the observation group was 283.78 yuan/efficacy rate at 14 d and 128.57 yuan/efficacy rate at 28 d,while the control group's CER was 729.93 yuan/efficacy rate at 14 d and 290.22 yuan/efficacy rate at 28 d.Conclusion:Compound azinomide enteric-coated tablets demonstrated good clinical efficacy in treating dyspepsia symptoms after LC with excellent safety and high cost-effectiveness.Despite some limitations,the results provide a new treatment option for dyspepsia after LC.Larger-scale randomized controlled trials are needed to validate this study's conclusions further.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of MR amide proton transfer(APT)imaging and enhancement signals in benign and malignant muscular soft tissue tumors and to explore the value of MR APT imaging,contrast enhancement techniques,and their combined application in the differential diagnosis of benign and malignant muscular soft tissue tumors.Methods A retrospective analysis was conducted on 34 patients with muscular soft tissue tumors confirmed by pathology,including 13 malignant and 21 benign.All patients underwent both MR with contrast enhancement and APT imaging examinations before surgery.APT values were obtained through post-processing on an image workstation.The enhancement signal characteristics and APT values were compared between benign and malignant muscular soft tissue tumors.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the diagnostic efficacy of the two techniques alone and in combination for differentiating between benign and malignant muscular soft tissue tumors.Results There were significant differences in enhancement signal characteristics on MR and APT values between benign and malignant muscular soft tissue tumors(P<0.05).The enhancement signal of malignant tumors was more heterogeneous,with higher enhancement degree than benign tumors;the APT value of benign tumors was(2.20±0.93)%,and the APT value of malignant tumors was(3.52±0.83)%,the ROC curve analysis determined a cutoff APT value of 2.82%for malignant tumors,with a diagnostic specificity of 90.5%and sensitivity of 76.9%.The area under the curve(AUC)for MR with contrast enhancement,APT imaging,and the combination of the two techniques were 0.694,0.857 and 0.894,respectively.No significant differences were found in the diagnostic efficacy between MR with contrast enhancement and APT imaging(Z=1.587,P=0.112 6)or between APT imaging and the combination of the two tech-niques(Z=1.217,P=0.223 4),but there was significant difference between MR with contrast enhancement and the combination of the two techniques(Z=2.428,P=0.015 2).Moreover,the combination of the two techniques showed the overall highest diag-nostic efficacy.Conclusion The combined application of MR APT imaging and contrast enhancement techniques is more beneficial for the qualitative diagnosis of muscular soft tissue tumors.

Objective:To compare the dose-response effects of single-fraction ultra-high dose rate (FLASH) and conventional dose rate (CONV) whole abdominal irradiation (WAI) with X-rays on acute radiation-induced intestinal injury in mice, in order to identify optimal dose parameters and potential mechanisms.Methods:A total of 186 male C57BL/6J mice were randomly assigned to a non-irradiation group ( n=6), FLASH irradiation groups ( n=90), and CONV irradiation groups ( n=90). Acute radiation-induced intestinal injury models were established using single-fraction WAI with 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15 Gy X-rays (200 Gy/s for FLASH and 4 Gy/min for CONV). Changes in body weight, stool characteristics, and disease activity index (DAI) scores were assessed at 9 d post-irradiation. At 7 d post-irradiation at 11, 12, and 13 Gy, the intestines were collected for macroscopic examination and length measurement. The small intestine was selected for HE staining and quantitative analysis of intestinal crypt number and mucosal epithelial thickness. The survival of mice was assessed at 15 d post-WAI across all dose groups. Results:After single-fraction WAI at 11, 12, and 13 Gy, the body weight was higher in the FLASH group than that in the CONV group ( t=10.17, 12.65, 10.16, P<0.05). The DAI scores for the FLASH group were 1.00±1.10, 3.17±0.75, and 2.83±1.17, respectively, which were lower than those of the CONV group (4.33±0.52, 7.00±0.00, 8.60±0.55; t=8.70, 11.71, 14.99, P<0.05). However, after WAI at 14 Gy and 15 Gy, there were no significant differences in body weight and DAI between the FLASH group and the CONV group ( P>0.05). At 7 d after single-fraction WAI at 11, 12, and 13 Gy, mice in the FLASH group exhibited less intestinal congestion, edema, and shortening compared with the CONV group. The difference between the FLASH and CONV groups were statistically significant in small intestine length at 11 and 13 Gy ( t=4.42, 3.78, P<0.05), and in colorectal length at 11 and 12 Gy ( t=3.97, 3.12, P<0.05). Small intestine HE staining revealed superior preservation of intestinal architecture in the FLASH group compared with the CONV group, characterized by longer villi, increased crypt numbers, thicker mucosal epithelium, and enhanced structural integrity. The differences in crypt number and mucosal epithelial thickness were statistically significant ( tcrypt=13.10, 23.80, 11.90; tmucosal=5.75, 2.64, 7.74; P<0.05). At 15 d post-irradiation, the survival rate in the 15 Gy FLASH group was higher than that in the CONV group (50% vs. 10%, χ2=5.39, P<0.05), with a median survival extension of 6 d ( HR=0.340, 95% CI: 0.115 4-0.999 9). No significant survival differences were observed between the FLASH group and the CONV group at 11, 12, 13, and 14 Gy ( P>0.05). Conclusions:FLASH irradiation significantly alleviated acute radiation-induced intestinal injury from medium single-fraction WAI with 11, 12, and 13 Gy X-rays compared with CONV irradiation, and showed potential to improve mouse survival after single-fraction WAI at 15 Gy. This effect is likely associated with the preservation of intestinal crypts and exhibits a dose-dependent relationship.

Objective:Assessing the therapeutic efficacy of methotrexate(MTX)-modified magnetic nanoparticles in thermo-chemotherapy for rat breast cancer and its impact on immune function.Methods:Female Wistar rats were subcutaneously inoculated with breast cancer Walker-256 cells to establish a transplantation tumor model,and injected with polyethyleneimine(PEI)-modified Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles(47T group,42T group and multiple 42T group)or MTX-modified Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles(47TC group,42TC group and multiple 42TC group)for thermotherapy under the magnetic field at different temperatures(47℃and 42℃).The rats injected with MTX-modified magnetic fluid only(MFC group)and the tumor-bearing rats without any treatment(blank control group),with irradiation treatment in an alternating magnetic field only for 30 minutes(M group),with injection of PEI-modified magnetic fluid only(MF group),with treatment of MTX-mono drug(MTX group)and not inoculated with tumor cells(normal group)were used as control groups.X-ray radiography was used to display the distribution of magnetic fluid in the tumor tissue 24 hours,2 weeks and 2 months after intra-tumor injection.After 24 hours of treatment,three rats were selected from each of the 47T and 47TC groups,and the effect of magnetic fluid on tumor cells was observed under an electron microscope after execution.After 14 days of treatment,the tumor volume of rats was measured and statistically analyzed.At the same time,4 rats were selected from each of the 47TC,47T,42TC,42T,MFC,MTX,blank control and normal groups,and the levels of IL-2,IFN-γ and IL-4 in peripheral blood were detected by ELISA method.The remaining rats were observed for long-term survival.Results:The magnetic nanoparticles were evenly distributed in the center of the tumor but unevenly distributed at the tumor's edge;they primarily localize amomg tumor cells and can penertrate into tumor cells.Tumor growth was inhibited in rats in the 47TC,47T,multiple 42TC and multiple 42T groups(all P<0.05),and the survival rates of the rats were high.As compared with the blank control group,the levels of IL-2 and IFN-γ were increased while the IL-4 level was decreased in the 47TC and 47T groups(all P<0.05).Conclusion:Thermo-chemotherapy at 47℃for 30 minutes and multiple sessions at 42℃for 60 minutes can partially inhibit tumor growth and prolong rat survival.This effect maybe related to the thermo-chemotherapy at 47℃for 30 minutes which can activate the body's immune function.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the economic burden of the intensive care unit(ICU)patients due to hospital-associated multidrug-resistant organisms(MDROs)infections based on propensity score matching(PSM)so as to provide evidence-based bases for prevention and control of hospital-associated MDROs infection and improvement of utilization efficiency of medical resources.METHODS A total of 2118 patients who were hospitalized in Zibo Central Hospital from Jan.1,2023 to Dec.31,2024 and conformed to the inclusion and exclusion criteria were re-cruited as the research subjects.The patients with hospital-associated MDROs infections were matched in a 1∶1 ratio by PSM(with the clamp value 0.02).Totally 309 pairs were successfully matched.The length of hospital stay and the costs were observed and compared between the MDROs group and the non-MDROs group.RESULTS The MDROs group was with the length of hospital stay 14.00 days longer than the non-MDROs group after the matching(Z=-5.750,P＜0.001),with the total cost of hospitalization increased by 91,420.84 yuan(Z=-8.271,P＜0.001).With the respect to the medical treatment expenses,the expenses of the MDROs group were higher than those of the non-MDROs group,covering the cost of medical service,therapeutic procedures,nursing,western medicine and TCM,and there were significant differences(P＜0.05).Among the differences in the costs between the two groups,the difference in the cost of western medicine was the most signif-icant(22,182.91 yuan),followed by the cost of clinical laboratory test for diagnosis(19,529.60 yuan)and the cost of therapeutic procedures(16,333.50 yuan).CONCLUSIONS The hospital-associated MDROs infections may lead to the extension of hospital stay length of the ICU patients,which then increases the economic burden.There-fore,it is necessary to strengthen the multidisciplinary collaboration and formulate corresponding measures so as to reduce the risk of such infections among the ICU patients.

Objective:To explore the clinical and pathological features and survival outcomes of patients with early-onset intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (EOICC).Methods:This is a multicenter, retrospective cohort study. Data of 1 160 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma patients undergoing radical resection in 14 tertiary Grade A hospitals in China from January 2010 to November 2021 were retrospectively collected. The cohort included 632 males and 528 females, aged( M (IQR)) 61 (14) years (range: 22 to 93 years). ICC aged ≤50 years at the time of diagnosis was defined as EOICC and >50 years as late-onset intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (LOICC). Of these, there were 247 cases in the EOICC group and 913 cases in the LOICC. The clinical and pathological characteristics of both groups were analyzed and compared using the independent sample t-test, Mann-Whitney U test or Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression models for patient outcomes were constructed and forest graphed. Results:Compared with the patients in the LOICC group, patients in the EOICC group had lower carcinoembryonic antigen levels (2.5(4.0) μg/L vs. 3.1(5.2)μg/L, U=124 899, P=0.009) and CA19-9 level (63.4(524.7)U/ml vs. 77.9(611.3)U/ml, U=120 320, P=0.013), higher levels of ALT (29(35)U/L vs. 24(26)U/L, U=101 214, P=0.013), a lower score of the Eastern US Cooperative Oncology Group (0 score patients: 54.7% vs. 44.1%, χ2=12.472, P=0.014), higher TNM stage ( χ2=11.807, P=0.038), and proportion of lymph node dissection (62.3% vs. 54.1%, χ2=5.355, P=0.021). Patients in the two groups in sex, first diagnosis symptoms, intrahepatic bile duct stone history, nail protein, albumin, total bilirubin, transaminase, liver function Child-Pugh grade, T stage, stage, N stage, preoperative laparoscopic exploration proportion, tumor diameter, vascular invasion proportion, differentiation, margin, intraoperative bleeding, postoperative complications, postoperative hospital days were no statistical significance (all P>0.05). Patients in the EOICC group had better outcomes than the LOICC group (median survival time: 29.7 months vs. 25.0 months, 3-year overall survival: 45.1% vs. 37.8%, P=0.027). Conclusion:EOICC patients are better than LOICC patients in carcinoembryonic antigen, CA19-9, ALT, physical strength status and TNM stage, and the long-term prognosis is also better than LOICC patients.

Objective To investigate the regulatory effect of circular RNA ASAP1(circASAP1)targeting microRNA-4500(miR-4500)on the proliferation and apoptosis of osteosarcoma cells.Methods Human osteosarcoma cells(Saos-2)were selected as the experimental subjects and cul-tured in DMEM medium containing 10％fetal bovine serum while maintaining 5％CO2.The expres-sions of circASAP1 and miR-4500 in osteosarcoma tissues were detected using RT-qPCR.Saos-2 cells were transfected with si-NC(40 nmol/L),si-circASAP1(40 nmol/L),pcDNA(0.4 μg),pcDNA-circASAP1(0.4 μg),miR-NC(40 nmol/L),miR-4500 mimics(40 nmol/L),si-circASAP1+anti-miR-NC(40 nmol/L),and si-circASAP1+anti-miR-4500(40 nmol/L),respectively.Cell proliferation and apoptosis were assessed using CCK-8,colony formation assays,and flow cytometry.The interaction between circASAP1 and miR-4500 was analyzed using a dual-luciferase reporter assay.Results Compared with adjacent non-tumor tissues,the expression of circASAP1 was significantly upregulated,while that of miR-4500 was significantly downregulated in osteosarcoma tissues(P＜0.001).Compared with the si-NC group,the si-circASAP1 group exhibited significantly decreased circASAP1 expression,optical density(OD)values,and the number of cell colonies(P＜0.001).Compared with the si-NC group,the si-circASAP1 group showed significantly upregulated levels of cleaved-caspase3 protein,cleaved-caspase9 protein,and the apoptosis rate(P＜0.001).StarBase search revealed specific binding sequences between miR-4500 and circASAP1.Co-transfection of miR-4500 mimics and WT-circASAP1 significantly reduced the relative luciferase activity of the cells[(0.34±0.03)versus(0.95±0.06),t=27.280,P＜0.001].The expression of miR-4500 in the pcDNA-circASAP1 group was significantly lower than that in the pcDNA group,whereas the ex-pression of miR-4500 in the si-circASAP1 group was significantly higher than that in the si-NC group(P＜0.001).Compared with the miR-NC group,the miR-4500 group exhibited significantly in-creased miR-4500 expression,cleaved-caspase3 protein levels,cleaved-caspase9 protein levels,and the apoptosis rate,while the OD values and the number of colonies significantly decreased(P＜0.001).Compared with the si-circASAP1+anti-miR-NC group,the si-circASAP1+anti-miR-4500 group showed significantly decreased miR-4500 expression,cleaved-caspase3 protein levels,cleaved-caspase9 protein levels,and the apoptosis rate,while the OD values and the number of col-onies significantly increased(P＜0.001).Conclusion The expression of circASAP1 is increased,while that of miR-4500 is decreased in osteosarcoma tissues.Moreover,circASAP1 promotes the proliferation and inhibits the apoptosis of osteosarcoma cells by targeting miR-4500.

Peri-implant keratinized mucosa (PIKM) augmentation refers to surgical procedures aimed at increasing the width of PIKM. Consensus reports emphasize the necessity of maintaining a minimum width of PIKM to ensure long-term peri-implant health. Currently, several surgical techniques have been validated for their effectiveness in increasing PIKM. However, the selection and application of PIKM augmentation methods may present challenges for dental practitioners due to heterogeneity in surgical techniques, variations in clinical scenarios, and anatomical differences. Therefore, clear guidelines and considerations for PIKM augmentation are needed. This expert consensus focuses on the commonly employed surgical techniques for PIKM augmentation and the factors influencing their selection at second-stage surgery. It aims to establish a standardized framework for assessing, planning, and executing PIKM augmentation procedures, with the goal of offering evidence-based guidance to enhance the predictability and success of PIKM augmentation.
Humans ; Consensus ; Dental Implants ; Mouth Mucosa/surgery* ; Keratins