Objectives:To investigate the predictive value of epicardial fat volume(EFV)and atrioventricular groove fat thickness(AVGT)—morphological biomarkers of epicardial adipose tissue—for major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy(DCM).Methods:This study enrolled 216 DCM patients.EFV and AVGT were obtained from cardiac magnetic resonance imaging(CMR).Patients were divided into event-free group(n=142)and event group(n=74)based on MACE occurrence during follow-up.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis was used to determine optimal cutoff values.Survival differences were assessed using Kaplan-Meier analysis,Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to identify independent risk factors,and restricted cubic spline(RCS)models were used to evaluate dose-response relationships.Results:AVGT and EFV were significantly higher in the event group than in event-free group(both P<0.05).ROC analysis identified optimal MACE-predicting cutoffs as follows:AVGT≥7.74 mm(area under the curve[AUC]=0.57)and EFV≥78.6 ml(AUC=0.62).Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed significantly lower MACE-free survival rates in patients with AVGT≥7.74 mm and EFV≥78.6 ml(both P<0.05).Cox regression analysis confirmed that AVGT(HR=2.18,95%CI:1.34-3.54)and EFV(HR=1.81,95%CI:1.11-2.96)were independent MACE risk factors(both P<0.05)in this patient cohort.RCS models demonstrated the significant linear associations between EFV/AVGT and MACE risk(bothoverall P<0.05).Conclusions:EFV and AVGT,the non-invasive imaging biomarkers quantifying and characterizing fat distribution,are independently correlated with elevated MACE risk in DCM patients.These metrics serve as potential prognostic indicators,enriching risk stratification indicators for early identification of high-risk patients and guiding personalized medication strategies.

Objectives:To investigate the predictive value of epicardial fat volume(EFV)and atrioventricular groove fat thickness(AVGT)—morphological biomarkers of epicardial adipose tissue—for major adverse cardiovascular events(MACE)in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy(DCM).Methods:This study enrolled 216 DCM patients.EFV and AVGT were obtained from cardiac magnetic resonance imaging(CMR).Patients were divided into event-free group(n=142)and event group(n=74)based on MACE occurrence during follow-up.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve analysis was used to determine optimal cutoff values.Survival differences were assessed using Kaplan-Meier analysis,Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was used to identify independent risk factors,and restricted cubic spline(RCS)models were used to evaluate dose-response relationships.Results:AVGT and EFV were significantly higher in the event group than in event-free group(both P<0.05).ROC analysis identified optimal MACE-predicting cutoffs as follows:AVGT≥7.74 mm(area under the curve[AUC]=0.57)and EFV≥78.6 ml(AUC=0.62).Kaplan-Meier analysis revealed significantly lower MACE-free survival rates in patients with AVGT≥7.74 mm and EFV≥78.6 ml(both P<0.05).Cox regression analysis confirmed that AVGT(HR=2.18,95%CI:1.34-3.54)and EFV(HR=1.81,95%CI:1.11-2.96)were independent MACE risk factors(both P<0.05)in this patient cohort.RCS models demonstrated the significant linear associations between EFV/AVGT and MACE risk(bothoverall P<0.05).Conclusions:EFV and AVGT,the non-invasive imaging biomarkers quantifying and characterizing fat distribution,are independently correlated with elevated MACE risk in DCM patients.These metrics serve as potential prognostic indicators,enriching risk stratification indicators for early identification of high-risk patients and guiding personalized medication strategies.

Objective:To study the efficacy and drug-related adverse reactions of long-term appli-cation of biological anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs) to patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), and provide reference for clinical diagnosis and treatment.Methods:We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of AS patients who were followed-up for more than 5 years in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology of Peking University Shenzhen Hospital. The patients treated with bDMARDs alone or combined with traditional antirheumatic drugs were included as the treatment group, while those who did not receive biological or non-biological antirheumatic therapy were included as the control group. The data collected included clinical sym-ptoms, inflammatory biomarkers, imaging results, drug applications and drug-related adverse reactions, etc. The counting data were tested by χ2 test, the measurement data in normal distribution was tested by t test, and the measurement data that not normally distributed was tested by Mann-Whitney U test. Paired test was used for statistical processing before and after treatment. Results:We collected the data of 114 eligible patients, including 64 in the treatment group and 50 in the control group. There were no significant differences in baseline data between the 2 groups, including mean follow-up time, course of disease, age, sex ratio, HLA-B27 positive rate, morning stiffness duration, night pain, peripheral arthritis, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), and imaging. After 5 years, patients in the treatment group had shorter morning stiffness [(3±7) min vs (26±37) min, t=4.827, P<0.01], lower nighttime pain rates [(3/64, 4.8%) vs (29/50,58.0%), χ2=38.329, P<0.01], lower ESR level [(14±14) mm/1 h vs (20±18) mm/1 h, t=2.102, P=0.038], lower CRP level [(7±8) mg/L vs (14±19) mg/L, t=2.431, P=0.017], and lower progression rate of sacroiliac arthritis [(18/64, 28.1%) vs (35/50, 70.0%), χ2=19.786, P<0.01], than the control group. The main drug-related adverse reactions in the treatment groupincluded reversible leucopenia, elevated transaminase level, redness and swelling at the injection site. Conclusion:Biologics treatment for more than 3 consecutive years can effectively control the clinical symptoms of most AS patients, reduce inflammatory indicators and delay the imaging progression of the sacroiliac joint. Without treatment, the imaging progress of the sacroiliac joint in AS patients could be 70% after 5 years.

Objective:To observe the long-term effects of conventional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (cDMARDs) in the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and drug-related adverse reactions, and provide reference to clinical treatment and assessment.Methods:Retrospective analysis was performed for AS patients with more than 10 years follow-up records in the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, Peking University Shenzhen Hospital. The AS patients enrolled were treated with cDMARDs, non-steroid anti-inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs), and glucocorticoidsonl only. The treatment group was treated continuously for at least 3 years, and the control group was untreated or treated for less than 3 months. Clinical symptoms, inflammatory indicators, imaging results and drug-related adverse reactions of all patients were collected for statistical analysis. The counting data were tested by χ2 test, the measurement data in normal distribution was tested by t test, and the measurement data that not normally distributed was tested by mann-whitney U test. Paired test was used for statistical processing before and after treatment. Results:A total of 166 eligible patients were included, including 111 in the treatment group and 55 in the control group. There were no statistical significant differences between the treatment group and the control group at baseline including the mean follow-up time, symptomatic disease course, age, sex ratio, human lymphocyte antigen (HLA)-B27 positive rate, duration of morning stiffness, pain at night, peripheral arthritis, ESR, CRP and imaging data. After 10 years, the treat-ment group had shorter morning stiffness[(8±18) vs (22±34), U=2 228, P=0.008], less nocturnal pain [(2/1.9%) vs (19/36.5%), χ2=37.037, P<0.01], lower ESR level [(14±13) vs (20±19), t=2.249, P=0.026], lower CRP level [(6±6) vs (10±11), t=2.154, P=0.033], lower incidence of peripheral arthritis [(23/20.7%) vs(25/45.5%), χ2=10.946, P=0.001] and lower sacroiliac arthritis progression rate [(28/25.2% ) vs (46/83.6%), χ2=50.922, P<0.01], and lower spinal progression rate [(8/7.2%) vs (51/92.7%), χ2=117.407, P<0.01] compared with the control group. The differences between the two groups was statistically significant. The main medications and drug proportions in the treatment group were as follows: sulfasalazine (100%), methotrexate (86.5%), NSAIDs (98.2%), glucocorticoid (78.4%) and thalidomide (62.2%). The main drug-related adverse reactions that occurred during the treatment included dizziness, abnormal menstruation, and reversible liver dysfunction. Conclusion:The combination of cDMARDs can effectively control the clinical symptoms of most AS patients, reduce inflammation indicators, delay the progression of sacroiliac joint and spinal damage, and have no serious drug-related adverse reactions. Almost all of the untreated AS patients have radiographic progression of the sacroiliac joint and spine.

Objective To observe the clinical characteristics of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients with hyperuricemia (HUA), and to understand the correlation between AS and HUA, so as to improve the understanding of AS patients with HUA. Methods A retrospective analysis was carried out in patients with the diagnosis with AS from November 2012 to August 2016. Patients were divided into two groups based on complicated with and without HUA. The clinical manifestations, inflammatory indicators, imaging manifest-ations, treatment and outcomes of the two groups were statistically analyzed, and the follow-up results of some patients with HUA were analyzed. The chi-square test was used for the counting data. The measurement data in line with the normal distribution were tested by t test, and the measurement data in non-normal distribution were tested by Mann-Whitney U test. Results Three hundred and sixty-two patients with AS were collected, consisting of 288 males (79.6％) and 74 females (20.4％), aged from 14 to 72 years, a course of disease was 3 months to 40 years. There were 87 cases (24.0％) with hyperuricemia, 77 cases were male (88.5％, 21.3％of all AS patients), and 10 were female (11.5％, 2.8％ of all AS patients). Shorter morning stiffness time [(13 ±31) min and (22 ±48) min, Z=-2.231, P=0.026], lower IgM level [(1.4 ±1.3) g/L and (3.0 ±4.3) g/L, Z=-2.040, P=0.041], and lower erythrocyte sedimentation rate [(25±17) mm/1 h and (33±22) mm/1 h, t=-2.617, P=0.007] in the HUA group when compared with patients without HUA. The difference between the two groups was statistically significant. Four cases (4.6％) had gout arthritis in the group with HUA, all were male, blood uric acid level all>420 μmol/L. There were 7 cases (8.0％) of urolithiasis in the group with HUA, and 24 cases (8.7％) of urolithiasis in the group without HUA, but there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of urolithiasis between the two groups. None developed hypertensive disease, heart disease, nephropathy, or diabetis. Conclusion The incidence of hyperuricemia is high in AS, and with lower disease activity, and fewer complications.