Background: and Purpose Vertebrobasilar fusiform aneurysms (VBFAs) carry substantial morbidity and mortality, but optimal management for unruptured VBFAs remains unclear. We compared the safety and efficacy of conservative management (CM), stent-assisted coiling (SAC), and flow diverters (FDs) in patients with unruptured VBFAs, focusing on long-term prognosis. Methods: This study included data from a nationwide Chinese cohort of patients with vertebrobasilar dissecting aneurysms. Inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW) balanced confounders across groups. The primary outcome was poor prognosis (modified Rankin Scale score >2). Secondary outcomes included aneurysm rupture, ischemic stroke, compression symptoms, and VBFA-related deaths. Logistic regression estimated odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Subgroup and sensitivity analyses were performed. Results: Among 1,115 patients with unruptured VBFAs, 838 (median age, 54 years; 655 men) were included. After IPTW, baseline characteristics were balanced. Median follow-up was 54 months. FD was associated with a lower risk of poor prognosis than CM (OR, 0.48 [95% CI, 0.30 to 0.77]; p=0.002), with no difference between CM and SAC. FD also reduced aneurysm rupture (OR, 0.20 [95% CI, 0.07 to 0.60]; p=0.004) and compression symptoms (OR, 0.30 [95% CI, 0.13 to 0.68]; p=0.004) versus CM. Time-to-event analyses further revealed significant differences in vertebral artery lesions and Type I–II VBFAs, whereas no significant differences were observed in basilar or vertebrobasilar junction lesions or in Type III–IV VBFAs. Conclusions Compared with CM, FD was associated with improved long-term outcomes in unruptured VBFAs, particularly in vertebral artery lesions and Type I–II VBFAs, although residual confounding cannot be excluded.

ObjectiveTo investigate the correlation between sleep patterns and myopia progression among younger school-age children at a primary school in Changning District of Shanghai, based on the data from the Shanghai Students’ Common Diseases and Health Influencing Factors Monitoring System and a sleep-specific survey, so as to provide data support for myopia prevention and control in this age group. MethodsOne primary school was selected from the common diseases and health influencing factors monitoring system for students in Changning District, Shanghai. A total of 230 first-grade students were included in the study. Myopia and refractive parameters were examined, and sleep patterns were investigated. General demographic characteristics and myopia-related behavior data of the students were also collected. Sleep patterns were evaluated in terms of sleep duration, sleep efficiency, and sleep quality, with the latter assessed using the Chinese version of the Children’s Sleep Habits Questionnaire (CSHQ). Multiple linear regression and binary logistic regression models were used to analyze the association between sleep patterns and myopia progression among these students. ResultsThe results of the regression analyses revealed that the total CSHQ score of the students at baseline survey was (48.85±7.15) points. Their sleep efficiency was (94.49±8.48)%, sleep duration was (9.58±0.93) hours, and the proportion of those with insufficient sleep (<10 hours) was 78.26%. At baseline survey, students’ higher daytime sleepiness scores were associated with lower spherical equivalent (SE) ( β=-0.18, 95%CI: -0.31 to -0.04) and an increased risk of axial length (AL) / corneal radius (CR) ratio >3 (OR=1.52, 95%CI: 1.00 to 2.29), whereas longer sleep duration and higher sleep efficiency were associated with higher SE (β=0.18, 95%CI: 0.05 to 0.32; β=0.17, 95%CI: 0.04 to 0.31, respectively), shorter (AL) (β=-0.15, 95%CI: -0.27 to -0.03; β=-0.13, 95%CI: -0.25 to 0, respectively) and a reduced risk of AL /CR>3 (OR=0.70, 95%CI: 0.51 to 0.96; OR=0.73, 95%CI: 0.53 to 0.99, respectively). At baseline survey, children’s higher propensity for sleep problems (OR=1.70, 95%CI: 1.04 to 2.78), sleep resistance (OR=2.26, 95%CI: 1.36 to 3.75), and sleep anxiety scores (OR=2.15, 95%CI: 1.33 to 3.48) were all associated with an increased risk of AL/CR >3 at follow-up (all P<0.05). Furthermore, higher sleep anxiety scores predicted prolonged AL at follow-up (β=0.03, 95%CI: 0 to 0.05). According to the mixed-effects model, higher daytime sleepiness scores and prolonged sleep duration were independently linked to reduced right-eye SE (β=-0.05, 95%CI: -0.10 to 0, P<0.05) and shorter right-eye AL (β=-0.05, 95%CI: -0.10 to 0, P<0.05). ConclusionIn this school in Shanghai, there are problems of insufficient and poor-quality sleep among young children. Sleep problems such as sleep resistance, delayed sleep onset, sleep anxiety, and daytime sleepiness among children may accelerate the risk of myopia progression, while longer sleep duration and higher sleep efficiency may serve as protective factors against the occurrence and development of myopia.

Anxiety disorder is a highly prevalent psychological illness, and research has shown that obesity is a significant risk factor for its development. This study explored the ameliorative effects and mechanisms of saponins from Panax japonicus(SPJ) on anxiety disorder in mice fed a high-fat diet(HFD). Fifty C57BL/6J mice were randomly divided into normal control diet(NCD) group, HFD group, and low-and high-dose SPJ groups. At week 12, six mice from the HFD group were further divided into a control group(treated with DMSO) and an exogenous fibroblast growth factor 21(FGF21) group(administered rFGF21). The anxiety-like behavior of the mice was assessed using the open field test and elevated plus maze test. Hematoxylin-eosin(HE) staining and oil red O staining were performed to observe pathological changes in the liver and adipose tissue. Glucose metabolism was evaluated through the glucose tolerance test(GTT) and insulin tolerance test(ITT). Western blot analysis was performed to detect the expression of FGF21 and its downstream-related proteins in the liver and cortex, along with the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor(BDNF), disks large homolog 4(DLG4), and synaptophysin(SYP) in the cortex. Real-time quantitative fluorescent PCR(qPCR) was used to detect the expression of FGF21 and its receptor genes in the liver and cortex. Immunofluorescence staining was employed to examine the expression of neuronal activator c-Fos, FGF21, and the FGF21 co-receptor β-klotho in the cerebral cortex. The results showed that SPJ significantly improved the frequency of activity in the open arms of the elevated plus maze and the central area of the open field in HFD mice, up-regulated the expression of BDNF, DLG4, and SYP, and effectively alleviated anxiety-like behaviors in HFD mice. Compared with the NCD group, HFD mice exhibited up-regulated expression of FGF21 in the liver and cerebral cortex, while the expression of fibroblast growth factor receptor 1(FGFR1) and β-klotho was significantly down-regulated, suggesting that HFD mice exhibited FGF21 resistance. SPJ markedly up-regulated the β-klotho levels in HFD mice, reversing FGF21 resistance. Further comparison with exogenously administered FGF21 revealed that SPJ activates brain cortical regions in a consistent manner, and additionally, SPJ promotes the number and colocalization of c-Fos and β-klotho positive cells in the brain cortex. In summary, SPJ effectively alleviates anxiety-like behaviors in HFD mice. Its mechanism is associated with up-regulation of β-klotho expression in the brain, reversal of FGF21 resistance, and subsequent activation of neurons in the cerebral cortex and amygdala.
Animals ; Diet, High-Fat/adverse effects* ; Fibroblast Growth Factors/genetics* ; Mice ; Male ; Panax/chemistry* ; Mice, Inbred C57BL ; Anxiety/etiology* ; Saponins/administration & dosage* ; Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor/genetics* ; Humans ; Liver/metabolism* ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/administration & dosage*

Medical institutions, with their clinical practice foundation and abundant human use experience data, have become important carriers for the inheritance and innovation of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) and the "cradles" of the preparation of new TCM. To effectively promote the transformation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions and establish an effective evaluation index system for the transformation of new TCM conforming to the characteristics of TCM, consensus experts adopted the literature research, questionnaire survey, Delphi method, etc. By focusing on the policy and technical evaluation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions, a comprehensive evaluation from the dimensions of drug safety, efficacy, feasibility, and characteristic advantages was conducted, thus forming a comprehensive evaluation system with four primary indicators and 37 secondary indicators. The expert consensus reached aims to encourage medical institutions at all levels to continuously improve the high-quality research and development and transformation of new TCM originating from the TCM clinical practice in medical institutions and targeted at clinical needs, so as to provide a decision-making basis for the preparation, selection, cultivation, and transformation of new TCM for medical institutions, improve the development efficiency of new TCM, and precisely respond to the public medication needs.
Medicine, Chinese Traditional/standards* ; Humans ; Consensus ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal/therapeutic use* ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVES: To develop and validate a preoperative clinical-radiomics model for predicting overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS) in patients with extrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (eCCA) undergoing radical resection. METHODS: In this retrospective study, consecutive patients with pathologically-confirmed eCCA who underwent radical resection at our institution from 2015 to 2022 were included. The patients were divided into a training cohort and a validation cohort according to the chronological order of their CT examinations. Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO)-Cox regression was employed to select predictive radiomic features and clinical variables. The selected features and variables were incorporated into a Cox regression model. Model performance for 1-year OS and DFS prediction was assessed using calibration curves, area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), and concordance index (C-index). RESULTS: This study included 123 patients (mean age 64.0 ± 8.4 years, 85 males/38 females), with 86 in the training cohort and 37 in the validation cohort. The OS-predicting model included four clinical variables and four radiomic features. It achieved a training cohort AUC of 0.858 (C-index = 0.800) and a validation cohort AUC of 0.649 (C-index = 0.605). The DFS-predicting model included four clinical variables and four other radiomic features. It achieved a training cohort AUC of 0.830 (C-index = 0.760) and a validation cohort AUC of 0.717 (C-index = 0.616). CONCLUSIONS The preoperative clinical-radiomics models show promise as a tool for predicting 1-year OS and DFS in eCCA patients after radical surgery.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Retrospective Studies ; Middle Aged ; Cholangiocarcinoma/mortality* ; Prognosis ; Bile Duct Neoplasms/mortality* ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed/methods* ; Aged ; Radiomics

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effectiveness of arthroscopic release of elbow joint assisted by medial small incision ulnar nerve release in the treatment of non-traumatic elbow stiffness. METHODS: The clinical data of 15 patients with non-traumatic elbow stiffness treated with arthroscopic release of elbow joint assisted by medial small incision ulnar nerve release between April 2019 and September 2023 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 6 males and 9 females with an average age of 46 years ranging from 34 to 56 years. The causes included rheumatoid arthritis in 3 cases, gouty arthritis in 2 cases, loose bodies in 3 cases, and elbow osteoarthritis in 7 cases. There were 4 cases with ulnar neuritis and 3 cases with synovial osteochondromatosis. The duration of elbow stiffness ranged from 6 to 18 months, with an average of 10 months. The operation time and intraoperative blood loss were recorded. The effectiveness was evaluated by visual analogue scale (VAS) score, range of elbow motion (maximum flexion, maximum extension, and total flexion and extension), Mayo score, and Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) elbow score. RESULTS: The operation time was 60-90 minutes, with an average of 65 minutes, and the intraoperative blood loss was 40-100 mL, with an average of 62 mL. All patients were followed up 13-18 months, with an average of 14 months. There was no complication such as vascular and nerve injury, poor wound healing, collateral ligament injury, elbow joint space narrowing, osteophyte proliferation, or loose body formation around the joint. At last follow-up, the elbow range of motion (maximum flexion, maximum extension, and total flexion and extension), VAS score, and Mayo score significantly improved when compared with those before operation ( P<0.05). The HSS elbow score was 85-95, with an average of 92; 12 cases were excellent, 3 cases were good, and the excellent and good rate was 100%. CONCLUSION Arthroscopic release of elbow joint assisted by medial small incision ulnar nerve release is an effective way to treat non-traumatic elbow stiffness, which has the advantages of small trauma, short operation time, and good effectiveness. It can carry out early elbow rehabilitation training and significantly improve elbow function.
Humans ; Male ; Female ; Arthroscopy/methods* ; Adult ; Middle Aged ; Elbow Joint/physiopathology* ; Retrospective Studies ; Range of Motion, Articular ; Treatment Outcome ; Ulnar Nerve/surgery* ; Operative Time

PURPOSE: We carried out the study aiming to explore and analyze the risk factors, the distribution of pathogenic bacteria, and their antibiotic-resistance characteristics influencing the occurrence of surgical site infection (SSI), to provide valuable assistance for reducing the incidence of SSI after traumatic fracture surgery. METHODS: A retrospective case-control study enrolling 3978 participants from January 2015 to December 2019 receiving surgical treatment for traumatic fractures was conducted at Tangdu Hospital of Air Force Medical University. Baseline data, demographic characteristics, lifestyles, variables related to surgical treatment, and pathogen culture were harvested and analyzed. Univariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to reveal the independent risk factors of SSI. A bacterial distribution histogram and drug-sensitive heat map were drawn to describe the pathogenic characteristics. RESULTS: Included 3978 patients 138 of them developed SSI with an incidence rate of 3.47% postoperatively. By logistic regression analysis, we found that variables such as gender (males) (odds ratio (OR) = 2.012, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.235 - 3.278, p = 0.005), diabetes mellitus (OR = 5.848, 95% CI: 3.513 - 9.736, p < 0.001), hypoproteinemia (OR = 3.400, 95% CI: 1.280 - 9.031, p = 0.014), underlying disease (OR = 5.398, 95% CI: 2.343 - 12.438, p < 0.001), hormonotherapy (OR = 11.718, 95% CI: 6.269 - 21.903, p < 0.001), open fracture (OR = 29.377, 95% CI: 9.944 - 86.784, p < 0.001), and intraoperative transfusion (OR = 2.664, 95% CI: 1.572 - 4.515, p < 0.001) were independent risk factors for SSI, while, aged over 59 years (OR = 0.132, 95% CI: 0.059 - 0.296, p < 0.001), prophylactic antibiotics use (OR = 0.082, 95% CI: 0.042 - 0.164, p < 0.001) and vacuum sealing drainage use (OR = 0.036, 95% CI: 0.010 - 0.129, p < 0.001) were protective factors. Pathogens results showed that 301 strains of 38 species of bacteria were harvested, among which 178 (59.1%) strains were Gram-positive bacteria, and 123 (40.9%) strains were Gram-negative bacteria. Staphylococcus aureus (108, 60.7%) and Enterobacter cloacae (38, 30.9%) accounted for the largest proportion. The susceptibility of Gram-positive bacteria to Vancomycin and Linezolid was almost 100%. The susceptibility of Gram-negative bacteria to Imipenem, Amikacin, and Meropenem exceeded 73%. CONCLUSION Orthopedic surgeons need to develop appropriate surgical plans based on the risk factors and protective factors associated with postoperative SSI to reduce its occurrence. Meanwhile, it is recommended to strengthen blood glucose control in the early stage of admission and for surgeons to be cautious and scientific when choosing antibiotic therapy in clinical practice.
Humans ; Surgical Wound Infection/epidemiology* ; Male ; Female ; Risk Factors ; Retrospective Studies ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Case-Control Studies ; Fractures, Bone/surgery* ; Aged ; Drug Resistance, Bacterial ; Logistic Models ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use* ; Incidence ; Bacteria/drug effects*

PURPOSE: To investigate the incidence and influencing factors of bone loss in patients with spinal cord injury (SCI). METHODS: A retrospective case-control study was conducted. Patients with SCI in our hospital from January 2019 to March 2023 were collected. According to the correlation between bone mineral density (BMD) at different sites, the patients were divided into the lumbar spine group and the hip joint group. According to the BMD value, the patients were divided into the normal bone mass group (t > -1.0 standard deviation) and the osteopenia group (t ≤ -1.0 standard deviation). The influencing factors accumulated as follows: gender, age, height, weight, cause of injury, injury segment, injury degree, time after injury, start time of rehabilitation, motor score, sensory score, spasticity, serum value of alkaline phosphatase, calcium, and phosphorus. The trend chart was drawn and the influencing factors were analyzed. SPSS 26.0 was used for statistical analysis. Correlation analysis was used to test the correlation between the BMD values of the lumbar spine and bilateral hips. Binary logistic regression analysis was used to explore the influencing factors of osteoporosis after SCI. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The incidence of bone loss in patients with SCI was 66.3%. There was a low concordance between bone loss in the lumbar spine and the hip, and the hip was particularly susceptible to bone loss after SCI, with an upward trend in incidence (36% - 82%). In this study, patients with SCI were divided into the lumbar spine group (n = 100) and the hip group (n = 185) according to the BMD values of different sites. Then, the lumbar spine group was divided into the normal bone mass group (n = 53) and the osteopenia group (n = 47); the hip joint group was divided into the normal bone mass group (n = 83) and the osteopenia group (n = 102). Of these, lumbar bone loss after SCI is correlated with gender and weight (p = 0.032 and < 0.001, respectively), and hip bone loss is correlated with gender, height, weight, and time since injury (p < 0.001, p = 0.015, 0.009, and 0.012, respectively). CONCLUSIONS The incidence of bone loss after SCI was high, especially in the hip. The incidence and influencing factors of bone loss in the lumbar spine and hip were different. Patients with SCI who are male, low height, lightweight, and long time after injury were more likely to have bone loss.
Humans ; Spinal Cord Injuries/complications* ; Male ; Female ; Retrospective Studies ; Incidence ; Adult ; Bone Density ; Middle Aged ; Case-Control Studies ; Osteoporosis/etiology* ; Lumbar Vertebrae ; Bone Diseases, Metabolic/etiology* ; Aged ; Risk Factors

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the predictive role of the modified Endothelial Activation and Stress Index (mEASIX) in the efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy and cytokine release syndrome (CRS). METHODS: The clinical data of 70 relapsed and refractory (R/R) B-cell tumor patients who were treated with CAR-T therapy from September 1, 2018 to February 28, 2023 in the Department of Hematology, Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, were retrospectively analyzed. The value of log-2 mEASIX before conditioning (-7 d) was calculated, and the patients were divided into a low-mEASIX group (42 patients) and a high-mEASIX group (28 patients) based on the cut-off value of 5.443 determined by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Eventually, the predictive role of mEASIX before conditioning on the efficacy of CAR-T cell therapy and CRS was analyzed. RESULTS: The high-mEASIX group exhibited significantly worse median overall survival (OS) and median progression-free survival (PFS) in comparison to the low mEASIX group (OS: 3.2 months vs not reached, P < 0.01; PFS: 1.3 months vs 6.0 months, P =0.009). The incidence of grade ≥2 CRS in the high-mEASIX group was substantially higher than that in the low-mEASIX group (57.1% vs 19.0%, P =0.007). The degree of remission after CAR-T therapy (P =0.001), whether CRS occurs or not (P =0.041), the lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) level before conditioning (P =0.046), and the mEASIX score before conditioning (P =0.047) were independent influencing factors for the OS of patients receiving CAR-T cell therapy. CONCLUSION The mEASIX score before conditioning can predict OS and the incidence of grade ≥2 CRS in patients with relapsed and refractory B-cell tumors who receive CAR-T cell therapy.
Cytokine Release Syndrome/therapy* ; Immunotherapy, Adoptive/methods* ; Humans ; Lymphoma, B-Cell/therapy* ; Retrospective Studies ; Hematology ; China ; Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/blood* ; Predictive Value of Tests

BACKGROUND: The association between uric acid-albumin ratio (UAR) with different diseases has been evaluated before. However, the association between UAR with spontaneous reperfusion (SR) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has not been explored. METHODS: STEMI patients admitted to our department and underwent primary coronary angiography between 1^st November 2018 and 31^st December 2020 were retrospectively enrolled. The patients were divided into the SR group and the non-SR group according to the index coronary angiography results. The association between UAR and SR was evaluated by uni-variable and multi-variable logistic analysis. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was used to determine the optimum cut-off level of UAR in predicting SR. RESULTS: Three hundred and fifty-seven patients were finally enrolled in our study, 55 patients were divided into the SR group and 302 patients were divided into the non-SR group. In uni-variable analysis, patients with SR were older (P = 0.032), with higher red blood cell distribution width (P < 0.001) and red blood cell distribution width-to-platelet ratio (P < 0.001), higher level of C-reactive protein (P = 0.046), higher level of uric acid (P < 0.001) compared with patients without SR. Patients with SR had a lower level of platelets (P = 0.008), lower level of on-admission B-type natriuretic peptide (P < 0.001). As for the level of UAR, STEMI patients with SR had significantly higher levels of UAR compared with STEMI patients without SR [11.1 (8.9-13.4) vs. 8.3 (6.6-10.0), P < 0.001]. Further multi-variable logistic analysis reveals that UAR was the independent risk factor of SR in different models after adjusting different variables. Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that UAR had good predictive value in SR (AUC = 0.75, 95% CI: 0.702-0.794, P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS Our study shows that UAR is an independent risk factor for predicting SR in STEMI patients.