Objective To evaluate the efficacy of Yunpi Runtong Formula(composed of Haematitum,Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma,Paeoniae Radix Alba,Cinnamomi Ramulus,Ophiopogonis Radix,Angelicae Sinensis Radix,Cannabis Fructus,Aurantii Fructus Immaturus,Cimicifugae Rhizoma,Picrorhizae Rhizoma,etc.)in treating functional constipation(FC)of spleen deficiency type in children and to analyze its effects on gut microbiota,defecation patterns,and the serotonin(5-HT)signaling pathway.Methods A total of 160 children with FC of spleen deficiency type treated at Shanxi Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine from August 2022 to August 2024 were enrolled and randomly divided into a control group and a study group,with 80 patients in each group.The control group received conventional western medicine(lactulose oral solution)treatment,while the study group received Yunpi Runtong Formula treatment in addition to the control group's treatment.Both groups underwent treatment for one month.Changes in traditional Chinese medicine(TCM)syndrome scores,defecation parameters[mean defecation time,spontaneous complete bowel movements(SCBM),Bristol Stool Form Scale(BSFS)],gastrointestinal function markers[substance P(SP),gastrin(GAS),motilin(MLT)],gut microbiota composition,and 5-HT signaling pathway components(serum 5-HT levels,5-HT3R and 5-HT4R protein expression)were analyzed.Clinical efficacy and safety were evaluated.Results(1)The intergroup comparison(by chi-square test)showed that the study group exhibited significantly higher total efficacy[95.00％(76/80)]than the control group[81.25％(65/80);P＜0.01].(2)Both groups exhibited reduced TCM syndrome scores(defecation duration,stool features,difficulty of defecation,interval of defecation,and secondary symptoms;all P＜0.05),with greater improvements in the study group(P＜0.01).(3)After treatment,both groups had shorter mean defecation time,increased SCBM,and higher BSFS scores(all P＜0.05),and the study group demonstrated superior improvements(P＜0.01).(4)Serum SP,GAS,and MLT levels increased in both groups(P＜0.05),with more pronounced elevations in the study group(P＜0.01).(5)Gut microbiota analysis revealed decreased levels of Enterococcus and Enterobacter(P＜0.05)and increased levels of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus(P＜0.05)in both groups,with the study group showing significantly greater modulation(P＜0.01).(6)The 5-HT pathway activation(serum 5-HT,5-HT3R/5-HT4R expression)was enhanced in both groups(P＜0.05),more markedly in the study group(P＜0.01).(7)No adverse events or abnormal liver/renal function were observed.Conclusion Yunpi Runtong Formula combined with lactulose effectively alleviates FC symptoms,improves defecation patterns,gastrointestinal function,and gut microbiota,likely via 5-HT pathway activation,with high safety.

Objective To study the distribution characteristics of blood uric acid level and blood glucose status and their potential interaction in elderly hypertensive patients. Methods The randomized study enrolled elderly patients with essential hypertension who were treated in our hospital from January 2020 to January 2022 and received antihypertensive therapy. Collected patients’ sociodemographic information, medical history, treatment history, etc., and detected their blood uric acid and blood glucose levels. Analyzed and described the subjects’ basic characteristics and the distribution of blood uric acid and blood glucose, and the potential interaction between them. Results A total of 205 subjects were included in this study, including 108 males and 97 females, with an average age of 70.94 years and an average BMI of 23.19kg/m². During the study period, the average blood pressure level was controlled at SBP 151.34±10.96mmHg and DBP 96.24±9.87mmHg, and the proportion of excellent blood pressure control reached 89.27%. The blood uric acid level of the subjects was elevated by increasing of subjects' age and BMI (P < 0.05), and blood glucose only elevated by the increasing of BMI (P < 0.001). High BMI, high DBP, family history of hypertension, high blood uric acid level, and current history of diabetes were risk factors for elevated hypertension grade. Conclusions High DBP, high BMI, high blood uric acid level, current history of diabetes and family history of hypertension are risk factors in elderly hypertensive patients, we could make clinical treatment strategies for these patients accordingly.

Vaccination is the most effective measure for reducing and preventing influenza and related complications. In this study, we analyzed the mutation trend and the antigen dominant site changes of the amino acid sequence of hemagglutinin subunit 1 (HA1) of human influenza A virus (IAV) in the northern hemisphere from 2012 to 2022. According to the HA1 sequences of A/Darwin/6/2021 (H3N2) and A/Wisconsin/588/2019 (H1N1) recommended by the World Health Organization in the 2022 influenza season in northern hemisphere, we employed the mosaic algorithm to design three Mosaic-HA1 antigens through stepwise substitution. Mosaic-HA1 was expressed and purified in 293F cells and then mixed with the alum adjuvant at a volume ratio of 1:1. The mixture was used to immunize BALB/c mice, and the immunogenicity was evaluated. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay showed that Mosaic-HA1 induced the production of IgG targeting two types of HA1, the specific IgG titers for binding to H3 protein and H1 protein reached 10⁵ and 10³ respectively. The challenge test showed that Mosaic-HA1 protected mice from H3N2 or H1N1. This study designs the vaccines by recombination of major antigenic sites in different subtypes of IAV, giving new insights into the development of multivalent subunit vaccines against influenza.
Animals ; Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype/genetics* ; Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype/genetics* ; Mice, Inbred BALB C ; Mice ; Influenza Vaccines/genetics* ; Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus/genetics* ; Humans ; Antibodies, Viral/blood* ; Antigens, Viral/genetics* ; Immunoglobulin G/immunology* ; Female ; Orthomyxoviridae Infections/prevention & control* ; HEK293 Cells

Objective: To compare clinical efficacy between laparoscopic radical proximal gastrectomy with double-tract reconstruction (LPG-DTR) and laparoscopic radical total gastrectomy with Roux-en-Y reconstruction (LTG-RY) in patients with early upper gastric cancer, and to provide a reference for the selection of surgical methods in early upper gastric cancer. Methods: A retrospective cohort study method was carried out. Clinical data of 80 patients with early upper gastric cancer who underwent LPG-DTR or LTG-RY by the same surgical team at the Department of General Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from January 2018 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into the DTR group (32 cases) and R-Y group (48 cases) according to surgical procedures and digestive tract reconstruction methods. Surgical and pathological characteristics, postoperative complications (short-term complications within 30 days after surgery and long-term complications after postoperative 30 days), survival time and nutritinal status were compared between the two groups. For nutritional status, reduction rate was used to represent the changes in total protein, albumin, total cholesterol, body mass, hemoglobin and vitamin B12 levels at postoperative 1-year and 2-year. Non-normally distributed continuous data were presented as median (interquartile range), and the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison between groups. The χ(2) test or Fisher's exact test was used for comparison of data between groups. The Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare the ranked data between groups. The survival rate was calculated by Kaplan-Meier method categorical, and compared by using the log-rank test. Results: There were no statistically significant differences in baseline data betweeen the two groups, except that patients in the R-Y group were oldere and had larger tumor. Patients of both groups successfully completed the operation without conversion to laparotomy, combined organ resection, or perioperative death. There were no significant differences in the distance from proximal resection margin to superior margin of tumor, postoperative hospital stay, time to flatus and food-taking, hospitalization cost, short- and long-term complications between the two groups (all P>0.05). Compared with the R-Y group, the DTR group had shorter distal margins [(3.2±0.5) cm vs. (11.7±2.0) cm, t=-23.033, P<0.001], longer surgery time [232.5 (63.7) minutes vs. 185.0 (63.0) minutes, Z=-3.238, P=0.001], longer anastomosis time [62.5 (17.5) minutes vs. 40.0 (10.0) minutes, Z=-6.321, P<0.001], less intraoperative blood loss [(138.1±51.6) ml vs. (184.3±62.1) ml, t=-3.477, P=0.001], with significant differences (all P<0.05). The median follow-up of the whole group was 18 months, and the 2-year cancer-specific survival rate was 97.5%, with 100% in the DTR group and 95.8% in the R-Y group (P=0.373). Compared with R-Y group at postoperative 1 year, the reduction rate of weight, hemoglobin and vitamin B12 were lower in DTR group with significant differences (all P<0.05); at postoperative 2-year, the reduction rate of vitamin B12 was still lower with significant differences (P<0.001), but the reduction rates of total protein, albumin, total cholesterol, body weight and hemoglobin were similar between the two groups (all P>0.05). Conclusions: LPG-DTR is safe and feasible in the treatment of early upper gastric cancer. The short-term postoperative nutritional status and long-term vitamin B12 levels of patients undergoing LPG-DTR are superior to those undergoing LTG-RY.
Albumins ; Anastomosis, Roux-en-Y/adverse effects* ; Cholesterol ; Gastrectomy/methods* ; Hemoglobins ; Humans ; Laparoscopy/methods* ; Postoperative Complications/etiology* ; Retrospective Studies ; Stomach Neoplasms/pathology* ; Treatment Outcome ; Vitamin B 12

Objective:To explore the feasibility of deep learning technology for renal artery recognition in retroperitoneal laparoscopic renal surgery videos.Methods:From January 2020 to July 2021, the video data of 87 cases of laparoscopic retroperitoneal nephrectomy, including radical nephrectomy, partial nephrectomy, and hemiurorectomy, were retrospectively analyzed. Two urological surgeons screened video clips containing renal arteries. After frame extraction, annotation, review, and proofreading, the labeled targets were divided into training set and test set by the random number table in a ratio of 4∶1. The training set was used to train the neural network model. The test set was used to test the ability of the neural network to identify the renal artery in scenes with different difficulties, which was uniformly transmitted to the YOLOv3 convolutional neural network model for training. According to the opinion of two senior doctors, the test set was divided into high, medium, and low discrimination of renal artery and surrounding tissue. High identification means a clean renal artery and a large exposed area. For middle recognition degree, the renal artery had a certain degree of blood immersion, and the exposed area was medium. Low identification means that the exposed area of the renal artery was small, often located at the edge of the lens, and the blood immersion was severe, which may lead to lens blurring. In the surgical video, the annotator annotated the renal artery truth box frame by frame. After normalization and preprocessing, all images were input into the neural network model for training. The neural network output the renal artery prediction box, and if the overlap ratio (IOU) with the true value box was higher than the set threshold, it was judged that the prediction was correct. The neural network test results of the test set were recorded, and the sensitivity and accuracy were calculated according to IOU.Results:In the training set, 1 149 targets of 13 videos had high recognition degree, 1 891 targets of 17 videos had medium recognition degree, and 349 targets of 18 videos had low recognition degree. In the test set, 267 targets in 9 videos had high recognition degree, 519 targets in 11 videos had medium recognition degree, and 349 targets in 18 videos had low recognition degree. When the IOU threshold was 0.1, the sensitivity and accuracy were 52.78% and 82.50%, respectively. When the IOU threshold was 0.5, the sensitivity and accuracy were 37.80% and 59.10%, respectively. When the IOU threshold was 0.1, the sensitivity and accuracy of high, medium and low recognition groups were 89.14% and 87.82%, 45.86% and 78.03%, 32.95%, and 76.67%, respectively. The frame rate of the YOLOv3 algorithm in real-time surgery video was ≥15 frames/second. The false detection rate and missed detection rate of neural network for renal artery identification in laparoscopic renal surgery video were 47.22% and 17.49%, respectively (IOU=0.1). The leading causes of false detection were similar tissue and reflective light. The main reasons for missed detection were image blurring, blood dipping, dark light, fascia interference, or instrument occlusion, etc.Conclusions:Deep learning-based renal artery recognition technology is feasible. It may assist the surgeon in quickly identifying and protecting the renal artery during the operation and improving the safety of surgery.

Objective To investigate the clinical effect of percutaneous transhepatic drainage combined with sequential percutaneous nephroscopy for necrosectomy and drainage in the treatment of refractory liver abscess after transcatheter arterial embolization (TACE). Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for three patients with refractory liver abscess after TACE in The Affiliated 3201 Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University School of Medicine from January 2018 to December 2020, and among the three patients, one had the formation of liver abscess after TACE for hepatic metastases after pancreaticoduodenectomy, one had liver abscess after repeated TACE for massive hepatocellular carcinoma, and one had secondary liver abscess after TACE for traumatic hepatic rupture. All three patients received percutaneous transhepatic drainage and sequential percutaneous nephroscopy for the treatment of refractory liver abscess, and their specific treatment process was summarized. Results All three patients were diagnosed with refractory liver abscess based on CT, routine blood test, procalcitonin, blood culture, and clinical manifestation. Percutaneous transhepatic catheterization under the guidance of conventional ultrasonography or CT and effective antibiotics had an unsatisfactory therapeutic effect, and after sequential percutaneous nephroscopy was performed for necrosectomy and drainage, liver abscess was cured and the patients had good prognosis. Conclusion For refractory liver abscess after TACE, when routine puncture treatment has an unsatisfactory therapeutic effect or a patient cannot tolerate surgical operation, percutaneous transhepatic drainage combined with sequential percutaneous nephroscopy is safe and effective in the treatment of refractory liver abscess.

Objective To investigate the clinical effect of two-step percutaneous transhepatic choledochoscopic lithotomy (PTCSL) in the treatment of complex hepatolithiasis. Methods A retrospective analysis was performed for the clinical data of 118 patients with complex hepatolithiasis who were admitted to 3201 Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University Health Science Center from January 2018 to June 2020, and according to the surgical procedure, they were divided into PTCSL group with 60 patients and surgery group with 58 patients. All patients were followed up for half a year to 3 years via telephone and outpatient service. The two groups were compared in terms of general information, perioperative indicators (including time of operation, intraoperative blood loss, incision length, time to first flatus and time to first defecation after surgery, time to extraction of abdominal drainage tube, and length of hospital stay), changes in liver function and inflammatory indicators, postoperative complications (bile leakage, acute cholangitis, wound infection, and venous thrombosis of lower extremities), stone clearance rate and recurrence rate, and quality of life. The two-independent-samples t -test was used for comparison of continuous data between two groups; the paired t -test was used for comparison between different periods of time within group; the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between two groups. Results Compared with the surgery group, the PTCSL group had significantly shorter time of operation, time to first flatus and time to first defecation after surgery, and time to extraction of abdominal drainage tube, a significantly lower intraoperative blood loss, and a significantly shorter incision length (all P < 0.05). On day 1 after surgery, both groups had significant reductions in alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) ( P < 0.05) and a significant increase in white blood cell count (WBC) ( P < 0.05), and the PTCSL group had significantly lower levels of ALT, AST, and WBC than the surgery group (all P < 0.05). Compared with the surgery group, the PTCSL group had significantly lower incidence rates of postoperative bile leakage (5.0% vs 17.2%, P < 0.05), acute cholangitis (3.3% vs 13.8%, P < 0.05), wound infection (1.7% vs 10.3%, P < 0.05), and venous thrombosis of lower extremities (1.7% vs 12.1%, P < 0.05). Compared with the surgery group, the PTCSL group had a significantly higher stone clearance rate (58.3% vs 37.9%, P < 0.05) and a significantly lower long-term stone recurrence rate (10.0% vs 20.7%, P < 0.05). The PTCSL group had significantly higher quality of life scores than the surgery group (all P < 0.05). Conclusion For the treatment of complex hepatolithiasis, two-step PTCSL can effectively remove stones, with the advantages of fast postoperative recovery, low recurrence rate and incidence rate of complications, and high quality of life, and therefore, it is an effective alternative surgical procedure.

Objective: Several COVID-19 patients have overlapping comorbidities. The independent role of each component contributing to the risk of COVID-19 is unknown, and how some non-cardiometabolic comorbidities affect the risk of COVID-19 remains unclear. Methods: A retrospective follow-up design was adopted. A total of 1,160 laboratory-confirmed patients were enrolled from nine provinces in China. Data on comorbidities were obtained from the patients' medical records. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratio ( Results: Overall, 158 (13.6%) patients were diagnosed with severe illness and 32 (2.7%) had unfavorable outcomes. Hypertension (2.87, 1.30-6.32), type 2 diabetes (T2DM) (3.57, 2.32-5.49), cardiovascular disease (CVD) (3.78, 1.81-7.89), fatty liver disease (7.53, 1.96-28.96), hyperlipidemia (2.15, 1.26-3.67), other lung diseases (6.00, 3.01-11.96), and electrolyte imbalance (10.40, 3.00-26.10) were independently linked to increased odds of being severely ill. T2DM (6.07, 2.89-12.75), CVD (8.47, 6.03-11.89), and electrolyte imbalance (19.44, 11.47-32.96) were also strong predictors of unfavorable outcomes. Women with comorbidities were more likely to have severe disease on admission (5.46, 3.25-9.19), while men with comorbidities were more likely to have unfavorable treatment outcomes (6.58, 1.46-29.64) within two weeks. Conclusion Besides hypertension, diabetes, and CVD, fatty liver disease, hyperlipidemia, other lung diseases, and electrolyte imbalance were independent risk factors for COVID-19 severity and poor treatment outcome. Women with comorbidities were more likely to have severe disease, while men with comorbidities were more likely to have unfavorable treatment outcomes.
Adult ; Aged ; COVID-19/virology* ; China/epidemiology* ; Comorbidity ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Severity of Illness Index ; Treatment Outcome

Objective To analyze the clinical characteristics for hypertensive attack during operation and clinical experience of preoperative evaluation and preparation in patients with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma(PHEO/PGL).Methods A total 219 PHEO/PGL cases from September 2016 to September 2018 were retrospectively reviewed.It included 99 males and 120 females,aged 13 to 76 (average 47) years old.The mean diameter of tumor was 5.3 cm (1.5-18.0 cm).140 cases were unilateral PHEO,6 cases were bilateral PHEO,68 cases were PGL(jugular,mediaphragm,heart,retroperitoneum,pelvic and bladder) and 5 cases were PHEO combined with PGL.Preoperative highest systolic blood pressure (SBP)was 240 mmHg(1 mmHg-0.133 kPa) and highest diastolic blood pressure (DBP) was 160 mmHg.20 cases were occult PHEO without hypertension.217 cases accepted preoperative preparation of alpha-blocker [phenoxy-benzamine,dosage ranging from 5 mg Q12h to 40 mg Q8h,maximum dosage not exceeding 1 mg/(kg· 24 h)].2 cases did not accept preoperative preparation.All cases accepted open or endoscope surgery.The patients were divided into 2 groups depending on the presence or absence of hypertensive attack at the time of surgery.Patient demographic characteristics and preoperative evaluations were assessed for their prognostic relevance with respect to hypertensive attack.Results Histopathological results showed that all cases were PHEO or PGL,while 205 cases were benign,14 cases were malignant.Hypertensive attack were recorded in 112 cases(51％).The diameter of tumors in the hypertensive attack group were larger than that in the non-hypertensive attack group[(6.70 ± 2.95)cm vs.(3.95 ± 1.70) cm,P =0.005].There was no significant difference between the two groups among age [(51.0 ± 10.8) years vs.(38.5 ± 17.6) years,P =0.105],preoperative catecholamine level [norepinephrine (111.20 ± 41.49) μg/24 h vs.(419.15 ± 154.81) μg/24 h,P =0.075],time of use of alpha blockers [(53.0 ± 7.5) d vs.(38.0 ± 6.4) d,P =0.139],daily dosage of alpha blocker [(40.0 ±7.2)mg vs.(27.1 ± 1.8) mg,P =0.111] and blood pressure at diagnosis[(173.75 ± 26.69) mmHg vs.(155.0 ± 20.75) mmHg,P =0.139].Among 219 cases,2 case had emergency hemostasis after operation,1 case had catecholamine cardiomyopathy after operation for occult pheochromocytoma,and no perioperative death occurred.Conclusions Patients with large tumor tend to have hypertensive attack during operation so that should be better prepared.

Objective To discuss the diagnosis,perioperative treatment,cardiac function changing of pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PHEO/PGL) patients with catecholamine cardiomyopathy.Methods Fifteen PHEO/PGL patients with catecholamine cardiomyopathy were included in our hospital from Jan 2008 to Mar 2018.There were 8 males and 7 females with an average age of 32.8 years,ranging 13-64 years old.4 cases were found left PHEO.4 cases were found right PHEO and 3 cases were bilateral PHEO,including 2 cases of VHL.One case was jugular PGL.2 cases were lift PGL and 1 case was right PGL.The tumors diameter ranged from 2.3 to 7.2 cm.14 patients were diagnosed as PHEO/PGL with catecholamine cardiomyopathy with typical clinical manifestations of PHEO/PGL,such as headache,palpitation and perspiration.Their 24 hours of urine catecholamines showed an average of 24.87 μg/24 h in epinephrine and 551.70 μg/24 h in norepinephrine.Their average value of dopamine was 395.41 μg/24 h.Among 7 cases,the octreotide scan and Iodine-131-meta-iodobenzylguanidine (131 I-MIBG) s scan were positive in 6 and 1 case,respectively.Enhanced CT showed significantly heterogeneous enhancement tumors in adrenal or retroperitoneal area.Ischemia and necrosis area were found inside tumors.The blood flow of some tumors were extremely rich and irregular vascular network with a racemose distribution around the tumors could be observed.Echocardiography showed that the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) ranged from 32％ to 54％,mean (42.0 ± 7.1) ％ during catecholamine cardiomyopathy.5 cases were mild abnormal,which the LVEF ranged from 45％ to 54％.9 cases were moderate abnormal,which the LVEF ranged from 30％ to 44％.Their catecholamine cardiomyopathy performance including left ventricular hypertrophy,myocardial echo enhancement and left ventricular enlargement.9 cases combined with acute left ventricular failure manifested as pulmonary edema and pink foamy phlegm.Sensitive antibiotics were given to suspected pulmonary infection patients.14 cases accepted regular alpha blockers,beta blockers and calcium antagonists treatment for 1 to 3 months and underwent surgery after a significant improvement in cardiac function.1 non-functional PHEO patient was lack of typical clinical and imaging changing.Both of her 24 hours of urine catecholamines and octreotide scan were negative.Echocardiography showed that LVEF was 73％ before operation.She was misdiagnosed as an adrenal non-functional adenoma.All patients underwent surgical treatment,including 13 laparoscopic surgery.One case switched to open surgery.2 PGL patients all accepted open surgery.Rusults All cases accepted complete resection of the tumors.1 case of nonfunctional PHEO had severe fluctuations in blood pressure during operation.Her BP were 190/130 to 80/50 mmHg (1 mmHg =0.133 kPa) and heart rate raised to 150 bpm.Catecholamine cardiomyopathy appeared in ICU ward after operation.Echocardiography showed that LVEF was 37％.The left ventricular enlargement and myocardial systolic function decreased.Fibrous bronchoscopy showed pink foamy phlegm in both sides of lungs.Chest X ray showed bilateral pulmonary edema which predominant in left side.The diagnosis was catecholamine cardiomyopathy of this patient.The LVEF was (55.9 ± 7.6)％ after treatment in 14 PHEO/ PGL patients with catecholamine cardiomyopathy,and there was statistically significant difference between before and after treatment (P =0.041).The LVEF was (66.1 ± 8.5) ％ postoperation,and there was statistically significant difference between postoperation and after treatment (P =0.013).The non-functional PHEO case occurred severe catecholamin cardiomyopathy after operation and cardiac function recovered after treatment.15 cases were followed up from 1 months to 10 years without recurrence.Conclusions PHEO/PGL patients with catecholamine cardiomyopathy should have adequate medication.The abnormal cardiac function of patients would be reversed after surgical treatment.Cardiac function failure would be recovered after active treatment.Non-functional pheochromocytoma patients were extremely dangerous.Adequate medication should be given to any suspected non-functional pheochromocytoma patients.