To review the clinical characteristics, short-term outcomes, and risk factors of patients with infective endocarditis(IE) who underwent surgical treatment at a single center, and to summarize treatment experience.

Consecutive patients diagnosed with IE who underwent cardiac surgery at the Department of Cardiac Surgery, Peking Union Medical College Hospital between May 2012 and June 2024 were enrolled. Statistical analyses were performed on their baseline characteristics, comorbidities, IE predisposing factors, surgical indications, pathogen distribution, surgical strategies, short-term outcomes, and associated risk factors.

A total of 709 IE patients meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included. IE involved left-sided valves in 85.3% of cases. The median age was 48(35, 58) years, and 68.0% were male. Prosthetic valve endocarditis accounted for 8.7%. Patients with left-sided IE had a higher prevalence of comorbidities. Streptococcus was the causative pathogen in 43.2% of patients, while right-sided IE was more frequently associated with Staphylococcus aureus. Underlying structural heart abnormalities were present in 66.4% of patients. Preoperative heart failure occurred in 32.7% of patients, 90.1% had valvular dysfunction, 11.3% underwent emergency surgery, and 24.8% had preoperative neurological complications. Valve replacement was performed in 95.3% of patients with aortic valve involvement, whereas the mitral valve repair rate was 55.4%. The in-hospital mortality rate was 3.5%, and the rate of in-hospital composite adverse events was 13.5%. Preoperative NYHA class Ⅲ-Ⅳ(OR=5.24, 95% CI: 2.01-13.71), infectious pancytopenia(OR=3.32, 95% CI: 1.29-8.51), regional cerebral infarction(OR=4.09, 95% CI: 1.34-12.49), and preoperative fever(OR=2.34, 95% CI: 1.00-5.47) were identified as independent risk factors for in-hospital mortality. Every 10-year increase in age(OR=1.20, 95% CI: 1.02-1.40), Staphylococcus aureus infection(OR=2.15, 95% CI: 1.13-4.11), preoperative unstable vital signs(OR=2.29, 95% CI: 1.26-4.17), NYHA class Ⅲ-Ⅳ(OR=3.07, 95% CI: 1.84-5.10), and history of prior cardiac surgery(OR=2.10, 95% CI: 1.12-3.96) were independent risk factors for the composite endpoint event.

Significant differences in pathogen distribution were observed between patients with left-sided and right-sided IE. Heart failure was identified as an independent risk factor for both perioperative mortality and adverse outcomes in surgically treated patients. Through strict timing of surgical intervention and optimized perioperative management, surgical treatment may effectively reduce mortality and improve prognosis in patients with IE.

ObjectiveTo investigate the potential mechanisms of Jiawei Jingqin Decoction （加味荆芩汤） in the treatment of rosacea. MethodsFifty 8-week-old female BALB/c mice were randomly divided into normal control group， model group， and Jiawei Jingqin Decoction low， medium， and high-dose groups， with 10 mice in each group. Except for the normal control group， mice in the other groups were injected with 40μl of antimicrobial peptide LL-37 at a concentration of 320 μmol/L on the back， repeated once every 12 hours for a total of 4 injections， to induce the rosacea mouse model. The mice in the normal control group were injected with 40 μl of PBS solution at the same time. After successful modeling， the mice in the Jiawei Jingqin Decoction low， medium， and high-dose groups were orally administered Jiawei Jingqin Decoction at doses of 4.35， 8.71， and 17.42 g/（kg·d） respectively， while the mice in the normal control group and the model group were orally administered 20 ml/（kg·d） of normal saline. All groups were treated once daily for 5 days. The changes in skin lesions were observed， and the erythema area was measured and scored. Skin tissue at the injection site was collected for histopathological examination using HE staining， and the number of mast cells was detected using toluidine blue staining. The levels of interleukin-6 （IL-6）， interleukin-1β （IL-1β）， and tumor necrosis factor-alpha （TNF-α） in the skin lesion tissues were measured using the ELISA method. The mRNA expression levels of key factors in the innate immune response pathway of rosacea disease mechanism， including Toll-like receptor 2 （TLR2）， downstream molecules serine protease kallikrein 5 （KLK5） and matrix metalloproteinase 9 （MMP-9）， as well as related inflammatory factors （IL-1β， IL-6， TNF-α）， and adaptive immune CD4⁺ T cell-related factors interferon-gamma （INF-γ） mRNA were detected using RT-qPCR. Immunohistochemical staining was performed to detect the protein expression of KLK5， MMP-9， and the number of CD4⁺ T-positive cells. Western blot analysis was used to determine the protein expression levels of CD4⁺ T cell-related factors including IFN-γ， CC chemokine receptor 5 （CCR5）， signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 （STAT1）， signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 （STAT3）. ResultsThe skin at the injection site on the back of mice in the normal control group appeared normal without any skin lesions or erythema， and histopathological examination showed no infiltration of inflammatory cells. The model group had significantly higher erythema scores and larger erythema areas compared to the normal control group （P＜0.05）， and histopathological examination revealed a significant infiltration of inflammatory cells， with some signs of deep connective tissue damage. Compared to the model group， the Jiawei Jingqin Decoction medium and high-dose groups showed a significant decrease in erythema scores and erythema areas （P＜0.05）， as well as a reduction in inflammatory exudates and inflammatory cell infiltration. However， the Jiawei Jingqin Decoction low-dose group did not show significant difference （P＞0.05）， but there was a slight reduction in inflammatory cell infiltration compared to the model group. When compared to the normal control group， the rosacea skin tissues of the model group showed an increase in the number of mast cells， levels of IL-1β， IL-6， TNF-α， mRNA expression of IL-1β， IL-6， TNF-α， TLR2， INF-γ， KLK5， MMP-9， protein expression of KLK5， MMP-9， and the number of CD4⁺ T-positive cells （P＜0.05）. Compared to the model group， the Jiawei Jingqin Decoction medium and high-dose groups showed a decrease in the number of mast cells， levels of IL-1β， mRNA expression of IL-1β， TNF-α， and the number of CD4⁺ T-positive cells. The Jiawei Jingqin Decoction high-dose group showed a decrease in IL-6， TNF-α levels， mRNA expression of IL-6， TLR2， INF-γ， MMP-9， protein expression of MMP-9， KLK5， and the number of CD4⁺ T-positive cells， as well as a decrease in IFN-γ and STAT1 protein expression （P＜0.05） compared to the Model group. ConclusionJiawei Jingqin Decoction has significant improvement effect on the skin symptoms of roseacne in a mouse model. Its mechanism might be related to regulating skin immune inflammatory reactions， thereby reducing the release of pathogenic factors and inflammatory factors.

Hereditary hemochromatosis is a rare autosomal genetic disorder that can cause multi-organ dysfunction in the liver,pancreas,spleen,heart and pituitary gland,with diverse clinical manifestations,make the diagnosis difficult.In recent years,with the deepening of clinical understanding and the development of genetic diagnosis tools,the diagnostic rate of this disease has increased significantly.In this paper,we report a case of hereditary hemochromatosis type 3 involving multiple organs and complicated by severe heart failure,aiming to improve the clinicians'understanding of this disease and reduce the leakage and misdiagnosis.

Objective: To explore the linear associations between social support, coping strategies, depression, anxiety, and cognitive function among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using a path-analytic method. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled 496 individuals hospitalized due to T2DM. Well-trained investigators conducted face-to-face interviews with the participants using the Social Support Rating Scale, the Chinese version of Medical Coping Modes Questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale, and the Mini Mental State Examination to measure social support (including objective support, subjective support, and support utilization), coping strategies (including confrontation, avoidance, and acceptance-resignation), depression/anxiety, and cognitive function, respectively. A path analysis was used to elucidate the linear associations between social support, coping strategies, depression, anxiety, and cognitive function. Results: In the final path model with satisfactory model fit, objective support was found to be associated with cognitive function not only directly but also indirectly through confrontation coping and depression, and acceptance-resignation coping and depression/anxiety. Further, subjective support was found to be associated with cognitive function indirectly through depression/anxiety, as well as serially through acceptance-resignation coping and depression/anxiety. Support utilization was found to be associated with cognitive function indirectly through confrontation coping and depression, as well as through acceptance-resignation coping and depression/anxiety. Conclusion Social support, coping strategies, depression, and anxiety were associated with cognitive function among people with T2DM, and these associations were best explained by a serial mediation model from social support, coping strategies, and depression and anxiety to cognitive function.

Objective:To explore the predictive value of multi-slice spiral CT (MSCT) arterial enhancement fraction (AEF) in the risk degree of gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST).Methods:The clinical data of 178 patients with GIST in Shanxi Province Cancer Hospital from January 2013 to May 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. According to tumor size, primary site, mitotic figure and whether the tumor was ruptured or not, the patients were divided into extremely low risk group (24 cases), low risk group (44 cases), medium risk group (48 cases), and high risk group (62 cases). One-way ANOVA was used to compare MSCT AEF value and conventional plain and enhanced scan values among the 4 groups. The receiver operating characteristics (ROC) curve was drawn to assess the predictive efficacy of AEF value, conventional plain value, enhanced scan value, Ki-67 and AEF value combined with Ki-67 for high-risk GIST.Results:Except for CT value in the venous phase and CT value in added arterial phase, the comparison of AEF value, plain scan CT value, arterial phase CT value, and added venous phase CT value of GIST patients in the 4 groups showed statistically significant differences (all P < 0.05). In the predictive efficacy evaluation of high-risk GIST, the area under the curve (AUC) of the ROC curve for AEF value was 0.753, which was higher than that for plain scan CT value (0.593), arterial phase CT value (0.592) and added venous phase CT value (0.631), lower than AEF combined with Ki-67 (0.799). Kappa consistency test showed that the AEF value, plain scan CT value and arterial phase CT value were consistent with the pathological examination results (Kappa values were 0.375, 0.168 and 0.168, respectively), however, the added venous phase CT value was inconsistent with the pathological examination results (Kappa = -0.224). The AUC of AEF value combined with Ki-67 for predicting high-risk GIST was 0.799, and the Kappar value was 0.528. Conclusions:MSCT AEF value varies in GIST with different risk degree, and its preoperative efficacy in predicting high-risk GIST is superior to that of conventional plain scan and enhanced scan; especially the combination of AEF value with Ki-67 shows a higher predictive efficacy.

Acute lung injury/acute respiratory distress syndrome (ALI/ARDS) is an inflammatory lung injury induced by a variety of factors, and these diseases are associated with high rates of mortality due to the lack of effective treatments. Based on the latest research in ALI/ARDS, it is widely accepted that generalized inflammatory responses play a critical role in initiating and developing process of ALI/ARDS. We make a brief review on the immune-pathogenesis and the signaling pathways of ALI/ARDS from the perspective of inflammation, thereby helping develop novel therapeutic strategy for treatment of patients with ALI/ARDS.

Objective To investigate the relationship between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) activity and choroidal thickness,and evaluate the utility of a choroidal thickness measurement in assessing IBD activity.Methods A total of 100 eyes of 50 patients of IBD with different disease activity,including 23 patients of ulcerative colitis,27 patients of Crohn's disease (CD).Ninety-six eyes of 48 healthy volunteers were recruited as control group.Choroidal thickness was measured using enhanced depth imaging(EDI)optical coherence tomography.Results Compared with the subfoveal choroidal thickness (294.37 ± 35.04) μm in healthy volunteers,the subfoveal choroidal thickness (349.28 ± 76.57) μm in UC patients with severe disease activity,the subfoveal choroidal thickness (326.71 ± 59.71) μm and (354.24 ± 66.34) μm,respectively,in CD patients with moderate and severe disease activity were found to be increased significantly (all P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion Choroidal thickness should be considered as a potential marker to assess the disease activity in patients with IBD,especially in patients with CD.

Objective To evaluate the effect of ischemic postconditioning on myocardial injury in the patients undergoing cardiac valve replacement under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB).Methods Thirty patients of both sexes,aged 21-59 yr,of American Society of Anesthesiologists physical status Ⅱ or Ⅲ (New York Heart Association Ⅱ or Ⅲ),with left ventricular ejection fraction ≥ 40％,scheduled for elective cardiac valve replacement under CPB,were divided into 2 groups (n=15 each) using a random number table:control group (C group) and ischemic postconditioning group (P group).In group P,ischemic postconditioning was induced by 3 cycles of 30 s aortic unclamping followed by 30 s cross-clamping starting from 5 min before complete opening of the ascending aorta.After induction of anesthesia and before operation (T1),at 1 h after opening of the ascending aorta (T2),at the end of operation (T3),and at 12,24 and 48 h after opening of the ascending aorta (T4-6),blood samples were taken from the radial artery for determination of plasma concentrations of heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP),ischemia-modified albumin (IMA),and cardiac troponin Ⅰ (cTnI).Myocardial specimens in the right auricle were obtained at T2,and the pathological changes were examined using an optical microscope.Results The concentrations of plasma cTnI at T2-6 and H-FABP and IMA at T2-5 were significantly higher than those at T1 in the two groups (P＜0.05).Compared with group C,the concentrations of plasma cTnI at T2-6,H-FABP at T2-4,and IMA at T2,3 were significantly decreased (P＜0.05),and the pathological changes of myocardial tissues were significantly reduced in group P.Conclusion Ischemic postconditioning can reduce myocardial injury in the patients undergoing cardiac valve replacement under CPB.

BACKGROUNDChanging health care providers frequently breaks the continuity of care, which is associated with many health care problems. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between a change of health care providers and pregnancy exposure to FDA category C, D and X drugs.

METHODSA 50% random sample of women who gave a birth in Saskatchewan between January 1, 1997 and December 31, 2000 were chosen for this study. The association between the number of changes in health care providers and with pregnancy exposure to category C, D, and X drugs for those women with and without chronic diseases were evaluated using multiple logistical regression, with adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and its 95% confidence intervals (CIs) as the association measures.

RESULTSA total of 18 568 women were included in this study. Rates of FDA C, D, and X drug uses were 14.35%, 17.07%, 21.72%, and 31.14%, in women with no change of provider, 1-2 changes, 3-5 changes, and more than 5 changes of health care providers. An association between the number of changes of health care providers and pregnancy exposure to FDA C, D, and X drugs existed in women without chronic diseases but not in women with chronic disease.

CONCLUSIONChange of health care providers is associated with pregnancy exposure to FDA category C, D and X drugs in women without chronic diseases.

Adult ; Continuity of Patient Care ; Databases, Factual ; Drug Prescriptions ; statistics & numerical data ; Drug Utilization ; statistics & numerical data ; Female ; Health Personnel ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Pharmaceutical Preparations ; Pregnancy ; drug effects ; Saskatchewan ; United States ; United States Food and Drug Administration

Objective To summarize the surgical experience of surgical management for aortic dissection aneurysm. Methods A total of 265 patients with aortic dissection aneurysm were treated with surgical management and the surgi-cal approach were chosen according to the condition. Results There were 170 cases Stanford A ADAs and 95 Stanford B patients. After following-up for 6 to 12 months, of which 19 and 3 cases died, respectively, and in the survivals, whose CTA displayed artificial vessel were unobstructed,the endovascular stents were fixed well.The heart function re-covered to Ⅱ-Ⅰ stage. Conclusion Surgery is an important method to save the patients with aortic dissection a-neurysm,the choice of surgical procedures depend on the location of intimal tear of aortic dissection. Proper surgical indication,technique and brain protections are the key factors of aortic dissection surgery. EVGE is a minimally inva-sive,effective,safe surgery in treating Stanford type B aortic dissection aneurysm.