Objective To investigate the therapeutic effect and underlying mechanism of Qishishenshu Capsule on renal fibrosis in mice with early diabetic nephropathy(DN).Methods A DN mouse model was established by multiple injections of streptozotocin.The mice were randomly divided into a normal group(NC),model group(DN),and Qishi group(QS)(0.9 g/(kg·d)),with eight mice in each group.Mice were gavaged continuously for 4 weeks,and fasting blood glucose(FBG)was measured weekly.Four weeks later,urinary albumin/creatinine(UACR),serum creatinine,and blood urea nitrogen were measured.Hematoxylin-eosin,periodicacid-Schiff,and Sirius red staining were used to analyze renal pathological changes.Real-time fluorescence quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction was used to detect the mRNA levels of fibronectin(FN),collagen type Ⅰ alpha 1(Col1a1),and α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA).Immunohistochemistry and Western blot were performed to detect FN,collagen type Ⅰ(Collagen Ⅰ),collagen typeⅢ(Collagen Ⅲ),α-SMA,Podocin,Nephrin,and transforming growth factor-β1/SMAD family member2/3(TGF-β1/Smad2/3)pathway-related proteins.Results Compared with mice in the NC group,those in the DN group showed significantly higher levels of FBG and UACR(P＜0.001),and mesangial hyperplasia,basement membrane thickening,and collagen deposition in the renal tissue.The mRNA levels of FN,Col1a1,and α-SMA were increased(P＜0.05).Protein levels of Podocin and Nephrin were decreased(P＜0.05).The levels of FN,Collagen I,Collagen Ⅲ,α-SMA,and TGF-β1/Smad2/3 pathway proteins were increased(P＜0.05).Compared with the DN group,the QS group's level of UACR was decreased(P＜0.05),their renal pathological injury was alleviated,and mRNA levels of FN,Collagen Ⅰ,andα-SMA were attenuated(P＜0.05);whereas their protein levels of Podocin and Nephrin were elevated(P＜0.05).The levels of FN,Collagen Ⅰ,Collagen Ⅲ,α-SMA,and TGF-β1/Smad2/3 pathway proteins were also decreased(P＜0.05).Conclusions Qishishenshu Capsule improved renal fibrosis in DN mice,probably through the inhibition of the TGF-β1/Smad2/3 signaling pathway.

Objective:To analyze the current mental health status of employees in large public hospitals and its correlation with factors such as social support.Methods:A cross-sectional study was conducted in November 2023. Using cluster sampling, employees from Beijing Hospital, China-Japan Friendship Hospital, and the Cancer Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences were surveyed. An electronic questionnaire was used to collect indicators related to mental health. Mental health status was assessed using a self-evaluation questionnaire, with scores ≤6 indicating good mental health and scores ≥7 indicating the need for attention. A total of 3 828 questionnaires were distributed, and 3 803 valid responses were included in the final analysis. The study analyzed the current mental health status and its correlation with factors such as social support among the included employees. Social support indicators included living alone, frequency of contact with relatives or friends, and participation in group activities. Other factors included job type (physicians, nurses, medical technicians and researchers, and administrative and logistical employees), gender, professional title, education level, and satisfaction with workplace benefits.Results:The study included 3 803 respondents, comprising 874(23.0%) males and 2 929 (77.0%) females; 743 (19.5%) aged ≤30 years, 2 177 (57.2%) aged 31-45 years, and 883 (23.2%) aged >45 years. Among them, 1 238 (32.6%) employees needed attention for their mental health. The female, nurse, unmarried, post-graduate degree or less, and employees with low satisfaction with unit welfare need to pay attention to their mental health (all P<0.05), their total social support score ( t=138.59, P<0.001) and grade ( χ2=255.25, P<0.001) are lower. In terms of social support factors, non-living alone, frequent communication with relatives and friends and participation in group activities were independent protective factors for mental health (all P<0.05). The protective association between education and mental health of female workers was stronger than that of male workers (female OR=0.348, 95% CI: 0.198-0.614 vs male OR=0.653, 95% CI: 0.430-0.994). Non-living alone was the only protective factor for nurses′ mental health ( OR=0.515, 95% CI: 0.367-0.723); However, high professional title ( OR=0.362, 95% CI: 0.182-0.720) and educational background ( OR=0.365, 95% CI: 0.175-0.758) were only protective factors for physicians′ mental health (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The mental health of employees in large public hospitals is differentiated among different subgroups, such as gender, position and educational background, which needs attention in general. In terms of social support factors, non-living alone, frequent communication with relatives and friends, and participation in group activities were associated with good mental health. Hospital trade unions and other departments should carry out more targeted help and support to create a better mental health environment for employees.

Objective:To investigate the effects of antibacterial absorbable suture closure in the repair of small range of bone defect wounds due to deep sternal wound infection after median thoracotomy.Methods:This study was a retrospective non-randomized clinical controlled study. A total of 32 patients (20 males and 12 females, aged (58±11) years) who met the inclusion criteria and underwent closure with antibacterial absorbable sutures (hereinafter referred to as direct closure surgery) admitted to Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital of Southern Medical University (hereinafter referred to as our hospital) from October 2017 to December 2021 were included in direct closure group. A total of 39 patients (27 males and 12 females, aged (59±11) years) who met the inclusion criteria and received bilateral pectoralis major muscle flap packing repair admitted to our hospital from January 2015 to January 2020, were included in muscle flap packing group. In the two groups, sternal infected wounds were thoroughly debrided during stage Ⅰ surgery, followed by wound repair during stage Ⅱ surgery. The width of sternal cross-section defects after debridement was less than 1 cm for patients in the two groups. For patients in direct closure group, stage Ⅱ wound repair involved intermittent sutures to the anterior sternal plate or full-thickness sternum with a total of 6 or 7 double sternal sutures. Relevant data including the duration of the stage Ⅱ wound repair surgery and the volume of blood loss during surgery, length of hospital stay, and bacterial wound infection of patients in the two groups were recorded. The postoperative complications and wound healing of patients in the two groups were recorded. During follow-up, the wound infection or recurrence of patients in the two groups and the sternal healing of patients in direct closure group were observed.Results:Compared with those in muscle flap packing group, the duration of stage Ⅱ wound repair surgery and length of hospital stay of patients in direct closure group were significantly shorter (with t values of 13.61 and 6.25, respectively, P<0.05), and there was no statistically significant difference in intraoperative blood loss volume of the stage Ⅱ wound repair surgery between the two groups ( P>0.05). The main bacterial infection in the two groups was Staphylococcus. In direct closure group, one patient had exudation in the wound two weeks post-operation, however the wound healed well after two weeks of conservative dressing changes; the wounds of the other patients healed well. In muscle flap packing group, 5 patients had postoperative complications, of which one patient died, and the wounds of 4 patients healed after dressing change or reoperation; the wounds of the other patients healed well. There was no statistically significant difference in complication incidence of patients between the two groups ( P>0.05). During the follow-up of 22-45 months, there was no re-infection or recurrence in the wound of patients in direct closure group and surviving patients in muscle flap packing group, the sternum of patients in the direct closure group achieved anatomical union. Conclusions:Direct closure surgery can not only effectively repair sternal cross-sectional defects with width below 1 cm due to deep sternal wound infections after median thoracotomy, but can also significantly shorten the operation time and duration of hospitalization.

Purpose To explore the influence of different spin-locking frequencies on T1ρ values based on a 3.0T MR system.Materials and Methods Thirty-eight healthy adult volunteers underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging at the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University from July to September 2023.T1ρ mapping and short-axis cine imaging with steady-state free precession sequences were performed with 3.0T MR system.T1ρ mapping sequence in three short-axis slices with three spin-lock frequencies at the amplitude of 5 Hz,300 Hz,400 Hz,and 500 Hz was scanned,respectively.T1ρ relaxation times and myocardial fibrosis index were quantified for each slice and each myocardial segment,the difference in T1ρ of different spin-locking frequencies and myocardial fibrosis index was analyzed using one-way repeated-measures analysis of variance method.Results T1ρ of 5 Hz,300 Hz,400 Hz,and 500 Hz were(33.9±2.8)ms,(43.4±2.1)ms,(45.4±2.6)ms and(46.5±2.4)ms,respectively;and T1ρ values showed a significant progressive increase from the low spin-lock frequency to the high spin-lock frequency of the heart(300 Hz vs.400 Hz:P<0.001;300 Hz vs.500 Hz:P<0.001;400 Hz vs.500 Hz:P=0.043).In addition,the measured myocardial fibrosis index at 300 Hz,400 Hz and 500 Hz were(9.4±2.2)ms,(11.3±2.9)ms and(12.6±2.7)ms,respectively.Statistical analysis underscored significant variations among these measurements(300 Hz vs.400 Hz:P<0.001;300 Hz vs.500 Hz:P<0.001;400 Hz vs.500 Hz:P=0.033).Conclusion In this prospective study,myocardial T1ρ values for the specific cardiac magnetic resonance setting are provided,and we found that spin-lock frequency can affect the T1ρ values.

Objective:To assess the value of a model based on helicobacter pylori(Hp)status and peripheral blood levels of pepsinogen Ⅰ(PGⅠ),PGⅡ,and gastrin-17(G-17)for predicting disease progression in high-risk populations for gastric cancer.Methods:Retrospective se-lection of clinical data from 126 high-risk individuals for gastric cancer who underwent PGⅠ,PGⅡ,G-17,and C14 urea breath tests and gastro-scopy tissue biopsy at Tianjin University Jinnan Hospital from January 2023 to January 2024,Based on pathological biopsy results using gast-ric cancer tissues obtained by gastroscopy,the high-risk population for gastric cancer was assigned into normal control,precancerous lesion,and early gastric cancer groups.The diagnostic efficacies of PGⅠ,PGⅡ,G-17,C14 urea breath,and other indicators in each patient group were determined,and a predictive model was constructed.Results:The HP-positivity rate(82.35％)and PGⅡ level(22.73 ng/mL)in the early gastric cancer group were higher than those in the precancerous lesion and control groups.The PGI level(51.36 ng/mL)was lower in early gastric cancer than in precancerous lesions and control tissues.The G-17 level(5.17 pmol/L)was lower in the precancerous lesion group than in the control and early gastric cancer groups(P<0.05).Combined use of PGⅠ、PGⅡ、G-17and Hp,the area under curve(AUC)can reach 0.899,a sensitivity of 94.12％,and a specificity of 95.65％,making these factors ideal diagnostic tools for gastric cancer.According to the prediction model,the threshold for precancerous lesions was 10 points,and the critical value for early cancer was 19 points.Conclu-sions:Implementation of the C14 urea breath test combined with PGⅠ,PGⅡ,and G-17 detection in high-risk populations for gastric cancer can help monitor disease progression in high-risk populations for gastric cancer.

Objective:To investigate the application of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) quantitative techniques in evaluating myocardial involvement differences between new onset and longstanding systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients.Methods:From August 2020 to April 2023, 14 new onset and 15 longstanding SLE patients treated at the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University were prospectively included as the study group. Additionally, 18 age-, gender-, body surface area-, and body mass index-matched healthy volunteers were included as the control group. Clinical baseline data, electrocardiograms, and CMR results including left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), left ventricular end-systolic volume index (LVESVI), left ventricular end-diastolic volume index (LVEDVI), cardiac index (CI), left ventricular stroke volume index (LVSVI), left ventricular mass index (LVMI), myocardial strain, native T 1 values, and T 2 values were collected. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) or Kruskal-Wallis H test was used to compare the quantitative parameters among the three groups. Bonferroni correction was applied for pairwise group comparisons. Results:The native T 1 values [1 114.50 (1 089.33, 1 150.39) ms, 1 085.32 (1 051.31, 1 129.75) ms] and T 2 values [(55.9±3.4) ms, (53.3±1.5) ms] of new onset and longstanding SLE patients were higher than those of the healthy control group [native T 1 values 1052.62 (1024.75, 1077.59) ms, H=17.72, P<0.001; T 2 values (51.2±1.3) ms, F=18.70, P<0.001]. The T 2 values of the new onset SLE group was higher than that of the longstanding SLE group ( P<0.05). The LVEDVI[86.87 (80.80, 93.55) ml/m 2], LVSVI [54.63 (50.42, 59.03) ml/m 2], and LVMI [48.39 (41.65, 53.26) g/m 2] of the new onset SLE group were higher than those of the control group [LVEDVI: 71.11 (65.80, 81.28) ml/m 2, Z=3.02, P=0.003; LVSVI: 42.17 (40.36, 51.33) ml/m 2, Z=2.76, P=0.006; LVMI: 38.48 (35.22, 43.83) g/m 2, Z=3.10, P=0.002]. The LVEDVI and LVSVI of the new onset SLE group were also higher than those of the longstanding SLE group [LVEDVI: 73.30 (69.87, 84.71) ml/m 2, Z=1.97, P=0.048; LVSVI: 45.53 (42.28, 50.98) ml/m 2, Z=2.34, P=0.020]. Conclusion:Myocardial involvement is more severe in new onset SLE patients, whereas acute myocardial injury is alleviated in longstanding SLE patients. Therefore, early detection of cardiac involvement in SLE patients is crucial for improving prognosis.

Objective To analyze the correlation between serum miR-939 and miR-15b expression and mi-crovascular injury in patients with diabetic retinopathy(DR).Methods A total of 176 patients with type 2 di-abetes diagnosed and treated in the Baoding Second Hospital from January 2021 to October 2022 were selected as the study objects.The subjects were divided into 74 patients without DR(NDR group),62 patients with non-proliferative DR(NPDR group)and 40 patients with proliferative DR(PDR group)according to whether or not DR occurred and the degree of lesions.Real-time fluorescent quantitative PCR was used to detect the relative expression levels of miR-939 and miR-15b in serum of all groups,the level of vascular endothelial growth factor(VEGF)was detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay,and the count percentage of en-dothelial cells(ECs),endothelial progenitor cells(EPCs)and circulating progenitor cells(CPCs)was detected by flow cytometry.Serum levels of miR-939,miR-15b,VEGF and ECs,EPCs and CPCs were compared in 3 groups.Pearson correlation was used to analyze the correlation between serum miR-939 and miR-15b and VEGF,ECs,EPCs and CPCs.Multivariate Logistic regression was used to analyze the factors affecting the oc-currence of DR in patients with type 2 diabetes.Results The relative expression levels of miR-939 and miR-15b in PDR group and NPDR group were lower than those in NDR group,while the serum VEGF levels were higher than those in NDR group,with statistical significance(P＜0.05).ECs in PDR group and NPDR group were higher than those in NDR group,while EPCs and CPCs were lower than those in NDR group,the differ-ence was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Serum miR-939 was negatively correlated with VEGF and ECs(r=-0.407,-0.613,P＜0.05),and positively correlated with EPCs and CPCs(r=0.481,0.486,P＜0.05).Serum miR-15b was negatively correlated with VEGF and ECs(r=-0.539,-0.625,P＜0.05),and positively correlated with EPCs and CPCs(r=0.451,0.483,P＜0.05).Multivariate Logistic regression anal-ysis showed that the duration of type 2 diabetes,hemoglobin A1c,2-hour postprandial blood glucose,VEGF,miR-939 and miR-15b were the influencing factors for the occurrence of DR in type 2 diabetes patients(P＜0.05).Conclusion The expression of miR-939 and miR-15b in serum of DR patients is closely related to VEGF,ECs,EPCs and CPCs,and the expression of miR-939 and miR-15b in serum of DR patients can provide a certain reference for early judgment and evaluation of the degree of microvascular injury.

Objective To study the changes of tinnitus after cochlear implantation in post-lingual adault recip-ients and analyze the factors that affect tinnitus.Methods A total of 47 postilingually-deafened adult subjects with tinnitus who underwent cochlear implantation at the Department of Otology,the first affiliated hospital of Zheng-zhou University,from January 2017 to December 2021.The subjects were evaluated using tinnitus handicap invento-ry(THI)and visual analogue scale(VAS)before cochlear implantation and 6 months after cochlear implant surger-y.Results Among 47 subjects who were eligible for this study,the THI scores were 36.94±13.337,14.48± 12.726,respectively,before CI and 6 months after cochlear implantation.The VAS scores were 5.13±1.676 be-fore and 2.34±1.903 after cochlear tmplantation.Statistical analysis showed significant differences in THI and VAS scores before and after cochlear implantation(P＜0.05).A total of 18 patients experienced complete tinnitus suppression,14 patients experienced alleviation of tinnitus,tinnitus remained unchanged in 13 patients,tinnitus worsened in 2 patients,and the overall efficiency was 66.0％(31/47).The tinnitus alleviation rate was signifant higher in the patients with tinnitus history of ≤5 years than the patients with tinnitus history of＞5 years(P＜0.05).There was a statistically significant difference in tinnitus alleviation between the patients with mild tinnitus and the patients with more than mild tinnitus before surgery(P＜0.001).Conclusion Cochlear implantation has an inhibitory effect on tinnitus in adults.Patients with shorter duration of the tinnitus and higher tinnitus handicap are more likely to experience tinnitus improvement after cochlear implantation.

AIM: To investigate the potential of human induced pluripotent stem cells(hiPSCs)differentiating into corneal epithelial cells in the simulated limbal stem cells(LSCs)microenvironment.METHODS: The hiPSC cell lines were established in vitro, and hiPSCs were co-cultured with corneal stromal cells in transwell system, which simulated the LSC microenvironment. Bone morphogenetic protein 4(BMP4)and a specific transforming growth factor β inhibitor(SB431542)were added to improve the differentiation efficacy. The expression of corneal epithelial cell-specific markers CK3 and CK12, corneal epithelial cell precursor CK15, and the limbal stem cell markers ABCG5 were determined by immunofluorescence staining and flow cytometry.RESULTS: The hiPSCs were actively proliferated in vitro, and immunofluorescence staining showed positive stem cell-specific markers OCT4, SOX2, TRA-1-60 and NANOG. Furthermore, hiPSCs co-cultured with corneal stromal cells exhibited LSCs markers ABCG5 and corneal epithelial cell precursor markers CK15 were positive; however, corneal epithelial cell markers CK3 and CK12 were negative. With the addition of BMP4 and SB431542, hiPSCs showed positive expression of CK3, and the CK3 expression increased over the time.CONCLUSION: With the addition of SB431542 and BMP4, hiPSCs cultured in simulated LSCs microenvironment could differentiate into corneal epithelial cells.

To explore the impact of an airway stepwise management strategy in the treatment of hospital acquired pneumonia (HAP) in the ultra elderly critically ill patients.