1.From Cathartic Colon to Cathartic-dependent Constipation: Diagnostic-therapeutic Strategies from Integrative Medicine Perspective
Youcheng HE ; Fengru JIANG ; Yanru WANG ; Minghan HUANG ; Yue WU ; Chunyu ZHOU ; Lian MO ; Lifeng WEI ; Keyi PAN ; Shuyu CAI ; Jianye YUAN
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2026;32(11):162-172
Both cathartic colon (CC) and cathartic-dependent constipation (CDC) are caused by the abuse of stimulant laxatives, while their concepts are not completely the same.Starting from the disease name of CC, this article traced the origin and evolution of the concept of CC, summarizes and compared the similarities and differences between CC, CDC, and slow transit constipation (STC), and called for strict differentiation among the three.Furthermore, this article explored the specific contents of Western medicine clinical subtypes and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome differentiation of CDC and delved into the TCM pathogenesis of CDC according to both literature and clinical practice.The relationship between clinical subtypes and TCM syndromes was established, and the syndrome characteristics of CDC of different clinical subtypes and TCM syndromes were summarized.The recommended prescriptions for corresponding syndromes were listed.A systematic CDC diagnosis and treatment approach of "clinical subtypes-syndrome differentiation-syndrome characteristics-recommended prescriptions" was thus formed.Additionally, the paper provides an overview of current research on CDC in both Western medicine and TCM contexts, identifies future research directions, and suggests research pathways for refining and advancing CDC studies.
2.Strategies for Building an Artificial Intelligence-Empowered Trusted Federated Evidence-Based Analysis Platform for Spleen-Stomach Diseases in Traditional Chinese Medicine
Bin WANG ; Huiying ZHUANG ; Zhitao MAN ; Lifeng REN ; Chang HE ; Chen WU ; Xulei HU ; Xiaoxiao WEN ; Chenggong XIE ; Xudong TANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(1):95-102
This paper outlines the development of artificial intelligence (AI) and its applications in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) research, and elucidates the roles and advantages of large language models, knowledge graphs, and natural language processing in advancing syndrome identification, prescription generation, and mechanism exploration. Using spleen-stomach diseases as an example, it demonstrates the empowering effects of AI in classical literature mining, precise clinical syndrome differentiation, efficacy and safety prediction, and intelligent education, highlighting an upgraded research paradigm that evolves from data-driven and knowledge-driven approaches to intelligence-driven models. To address challenges related to privacy protection and regulatory compliance in cross-institutional data collaboration, a "trusted federated evidence-based analysis platform for TCM spleen-stomach diseases" is proposed, integrating blockchain-based smart contracts, federated learning, and secure multi-party computation. The deep integration of AI with privacy-preserving computing is reshaping research and clinical practice in TCM spleen-stomach diseases, providing feasible pathways and a technical framework for building a high-quality, trustworthy TCM big-data ecosystem and achieving precision syndrome differentiation.
3.Research progress on imaging examinations of macular hole
Luxuan WANG ; Xiuhua LIU ; Lei GAO ; Lifeng LIU
International Eye Science 2026;26(1):63-66
Macular hole is an age-related disorder defined by a full-thickness defect of the foveal retina and a profound loss of central vision. First described in the mid-19th century, its study has now extended across more than 150 years. Breakthroughs in science and technology—especially the relentless refinement of retinal imaging platforms—have progressively refined our understanding of the disease. Optical coherence tomography(OCT)in particular has revolutionized characterization of the condition. At the same time, the widespread adoption of macular hole surgery has not only driven deeper investigations into pathogenesis and pre-operative assessment but also facilitated the global dissemination of surgical expertise and a marked rise in anatomical success. This review synthesizes the multimodal imaging hallmarks of macular holes and highlights the remaining clinical challenges in the application of OCT technology.
4.Analyses of the epidemiological characteristics of injury-related deaths among the elderly in Yuyao City of Zhejiang Province from 2013 to 2022
Bibo HU ; Shanshan SHI ; Lifeng WANG
Shanghai Journal of Preventive Medicine 2026;38(3):235-239
ObjectiveTo analyze the causes and trends of injury-related mortality among elderly residents in Yuyao City, and to provide a scientific basis for formulating prevention and control strategies for injury-related deaths among the elderly. MethodsData on injury-related deaths among elderly residents aged 60 years old and above in Yuyao City from 2013 to 2022 were collected. The epidemiological characteristics were analyzed, including the crude mortality rates, standardized mortality rates, age-specific mortality rates, annual percent change (APC), and average annual percent change (AAPC). ResultsThe crude mortality rate of injury among elderly people aged 60 years old and above in Yuyao City was 263.90/100 000, with a standardized mortality rate of 131.21/100 000. A statistically significant decreasing trend in standardized mortality was observed from 2013 to 2020 (APC=-3.17%, P=0.017). The standardized mortality rates of injury for elderly males and females were 154.74/100 000 and 134.46/100 000, respectively. Among elderly females, the standardized mortality rate of injury initially decreased and then increased (APC2013—2020=-5.14%, APC2021—2022=22.86%, both P<0.05). The top five causes for injury-related deaths among the elderly were accidental falls, traffic injuries from motor vehicles, drowning, accidental asphyxia, and suicide, accounting for 74.78% of all injury-related deaths among the elderly. Among these top five causes, mortality rates due to accidental falls, motor vehicle traffic injuries, and accidental asphyxia all increased significantly with age (χtrend2=8 315.40, 25.12, and 37.26, respectively; all P<0.001). Analyses of the annual trends showed a significant increase in deaths caused by accidental falls (AAPC=4.97%, P=0.013) and a significant decrease in deaths caused by suicide (AAPC=-14.87%, P<0.001). ConclusionFrom 2013 to 2022, the injury-related mortality burden among adults aged 60 years old and above in Yuyao City remained considerable, primarily caused by accidental falls, motor vehicle traffic injuries, drowning, accidental asphyxia, and suicide. There is an urgent need to develop targeted injury prevention strategies and measures to reduce the risk of unintentional injury deaths among the elderly.
5.Treatment Modalities and Long-Term Outcomes in Unruptured Vertebrobasilar Fusiform Aneurysms: A Nationwide Observational Cohort Study
Linggen DONG ; Dachao WEI ; Xiheng CHEN ; Mingtao LI ; Yang ZHAO ; Yong SUN ; Qingbin NIE ; Jun FENG ; Guomin XIAO ; Jinghua ZHOU ; Shengli HU ; Lifei FENG ; Lifeng QI ; Hongen LIU ; Geng GUO ; Yufang LI ; Renfu TIAN ; Jianghua YU ; Dianshi JIN ; Liang HAO ; Tian TIAN ; Shizhong ZHANG ; Yang WANG ; Liping LIU ; Ming LV
Journal of Stroke 2026;28(2):250-262
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.
6.Analysis of oocyte granulosa cell transcriptome data in aged women
Lifeng QIN ; Jiaqiang WANG ; Ling ZHU
Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research 2025;29(19):4069-4075
BACKGROUND:The granulosa cell state greatly affects the quality of oocytes.As the increased proportion of aged women in assisted reproduction,granulosa cells from patients of different ages are examined at transcript levels in order to better assess oocyte quality. OBJECTIVE:To investigate the expression changes of mRNA and long non-coding RNA in granulosa cells from the young and aged patients. METHODS:Waste cumulus granulosa cells obtained during the assisted reproductive cycle.Young group was in 25-35 years old,and the aged group was in 38-45 years old.Granulosa cells collected from the young and aged females were analyzed using RNA sequencing,three replications for each group. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:(1)The RNA sequencing analysis results showed that the average sequencing volume of samples was more than 14 G;the data quality Q30 after quality control was more than 93%;the average mapping rate of data was 98.4%,which indicates that the data had good quality.(2)The results of principal component analysis and correlation analysis showed that the samples of the aged group and the young group could be clearly distinguished.(3)The difference analysis results showed that compared with the young group,a total of 410 differentially expressed mRNAs were detected in the aged group(167 up-regulated and 243 down-regulated).GO analysis results showed that the down-regulated genes were mainly enriched in regulatedexocytosis and the emetabolicprocess.GSEA analysis results showed that secretion-related pathways in the aged group were down-regulated.(4)Compared with the young group,662 differentially expressed long non-coding RNAs were detected in the aged group,and 1 772 protein-coding genes were directly regulated by these long non-coding RNAs,among which 59 genes overlaped with differentially expressed genes.The results showed that the expression of secretion-related genes and pathways in granulosa cells of the aged group was down-regulated,thus affecting oocyte quality.At the same time,these down-regulated genes were regulated by long non-coding RNA.Therefore,the expression of long non-coding RNA might be related to age.
7.Clinical features and prognosis of Castleman disease in 29 children
Xiaofei ZHU ; Zhaoling WANG ; Lifeng ZHANG ; Xiaojun XU ; Meiping LU
Chinese Journal of Rheumatology 2025;29(7):583-589
Objective:To investigate the clinical features, treatment strategies, and prognosis of pediatric Castleman disease (CD), with the aim of enhancing disease recognition and improving diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 29 children diagnosed with CD at the Children′s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, between January 2016 and January 2024. Age, sex, initial presentations, routine blood test, inflammatory indicators, coagulation function test, immunoglobulin level, histopathological examination, imaging examination, treatment and follow-ups were recorded. Patients were classified into two groups based on the presence or absence of symptoms: the symptomatic Castleman disease group (SC) and the asymptomatic Castleman disease group (AC). All patients were followed for a minimum of six months. Clinical characteristics, therapeutic regimens, and outcomes were compared between the two groups.For the measurement information, the independent samples t test was used for comparison between groups of data that conformed to normal distribution; the Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparison between groups of data that did not conform to normal distribution. The Chi-square test or Fisher′s exact probability method was used for comparison between groups of count data. Results:A total of 29 pediatric CD cases were included, comprising 15 males and 14 females. The number of patients diagnosed as unicentric Castleman disease (UCD) was 21, with the rest 8 as multicentric Castleman disease (MCD). There were 11 patients (37.9%) in the SC group and 18 patients (62.1%) in the AC group. The median age at onset was 10.0 years (interquartile range: 6.5-12.2 years). The most common initial presentation was mass ( n=20), followed by fever ( n=2), amaemia ( n=2), fever with fatigue ( n=2), rash ( n=1), abdominal pain ( n=1), and cough ( n=1). The frequently involved sites were neck ( n=8), abdominal cavity ( n=5), mediastinum ( n=3), retroperitoneum ( n=2), and one case each in the back, upper arm, and pelvis. The maximum lesion volume reached 1 040 cm 3. Compared to the AC group, the SC group had significantly lower hemoglobin levels [108.0(92.0, 123.0)g/L vs. 127.0(117.5, 139.0)g/L, Z=-2.35, P=0.019] and significantly higher levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) [38.0(3.0, 87.0)mg/L vs. 0.6(0.5, 3.8)mg/L, Z=-2.19, P=0.029], prothrombin time[12.6(11.4, 13.3)s vs. 11.3(10.5, 11.7)s, Z=-2.64, P=0.008], and fibrinogen [4.5(3.5, 5.4)g/L vs. 2.1(1.9, 2.6)g/L, Z=-3.04, P=0.002]. All patients underwent MRI/CT and ultrasonography; however, only 2 cases were diagnosed as CD by ultrasound. All patients underwent surgical excision of the mass, and diagnoses were confirmed by histopathological examination. Among the SC group, 4 patients (4/11, 36.4%) required postoperative treatment with glucocorticoids alone or in combination with immunosuppressants and biologics. The overall prognosis was favorable, with follow-up ranging from 6 months to 7 years and no reported mortality. One case, initially misdiagnosed as systemic lupus erythematosus, was later confirmed to be CD complicated with paraneoplastic pemphigus (PNP); this patient experienced recurrent fever, rash, and elevated CRP, and continued to require low-dose glucocorticoids and tacrolimus during the 4-year follow-up. Conclusion:In chileren, CD is most common in the neck and surgical resection yields favorable outcomes. Approximately 37.9% of patients present with systemic symptoms, of which about 36.4% require postoperative systemic therapy such as glucocorticosteroids. CD complicated with PNP may be misdiagnosed. Symptomatic cases are often associated with anemia, elevated CRP levels, and coagulation abnormalities. UCD pediatric patients without complications have a good prognosis and there′s no need for long-term medications after surgery. About 37.5% of MCD pediatric patients require glucocorticoids, immunosuppressants, biotherapy or chemotherapy to control symptoms in the postoperative period. Imaging modalities have limited diagnostic value, and histopathological examination remains the gold standard for diagnosis.
8.Human Digital Metabolic Chamber Platform: Construction Standards and Testing Specifications
Weiqing WANG ; Shijia PAN ; Yixiang HU ; Yashu ZHU ; Riqiang BAO ; Guang NING ; Yifei ZHANG ; Lifeng ZHU ; Xiaoxia LUO ; Jiqiu WANG ; Zhuoran ZHANG ; Shi XIANG
Chinese Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 2025;41(12):1-16
This document targets digital human metabolic chamber platforms and specifies construction standards and testing protocols covering the full lifecycle of " build-test-operate." It encompasses chamber engineering and environmental control, digital platform and cybersecurity architecture, metabolic measurement and multimodal data acquisition, as well as quantitative system performance and data quality indicators with verifiable acceptance tests. By standardizing architecture, interfaces, and quality control, the specification enables multicenter data interoperability and harmonized quality management, providing high-quality, verifiable, and traceable infrastructure to support precision metabolism research and clinical translation in China.
9.Underestimated risk of breast ductal carcinoma in situ and risk model construction
Renjie WANG ; Lifeng CHEN ; Zhiping PAN ; Limin SHEN
Journal of Navy Medicine 2025;46(8):793-797
Objective To analyze the underestimated influencing factors of ductal carcinoma in situ(DCIS)detected by ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration cytology(US-FNAC),and to construct and validate the nomogram prediction model.Methods A total of 105 patients with DCIS diagnosed by US-FNAC in Yixing Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine from January 2020 to June 2023 were retrospectively selected.All patients were female and aged 40-76 years.According to postoperative pathological results,they were assigned to underestimated group(n=27)and non-underestimated group(n=78).The clinical data of the patients were collected to analyze the influencing factors of the underestimation of DCIS,and a nomogram prediction model was constructed.The receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC)was drawn,and the area under the curve(AUC)was used to analyze the predictive efficacy of the prediction model for the underestimated risk of DCIS before operation.Results Univariate analysis showed that the proportions of palpable masses,tumor size>2 cm,microcalcification,and breast imaging reporting and data system(BI-RADS)4B-5 in the underestimated group were higher than those in the non-underestimated group(P<0.05).Binary logistic regression analysis showed that tumor size[(odds ratio,OR)=4.453,95%(confidence interval,C I):1.890-10.486],microcalcification(OR=3.079,95%CI:1.650-5.742),BI-RADS classification(OR=5.211,95%CI:2.528-10.740)were the independent risk factors for preoperative underestimation of DCIS(P<0.05).Internal validation of the nomogram prediction model based on the above factors showed that the C-index was 0.865(95%CI:0.785-0.952),and the correction curve for predicting the underestimation of DCIS was close to the ideal curve(P>0.05).ROC curve showed that the nomogram model had a sensitivity of 87.90%,a specificity of 88.60%,and an AUC of 0.895(95%CI:0.823-0.966).Conclusion Tumor size,microcalcification and BI-RADS classification are independent risk factors for preoperative underestimation of DCIS.The nomogram prediction model based on these factors can better evaluate the risk of preoperative underestimation of DCIS.
10.Awakening effect of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation combined with multi-sensory environmental stimulation in patients with persistent vegetative state
Lili ZHANG ; Suxin WANG ; Lifeng WANG ; Hui WANG
Journal of Clinical Medicine in Practice 2025;29(1):23-27
Objective To analyze the awakening effect of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation(taVNS)combined with multi-sensory environmental stimulation in patients with persistent vegetative state(PVS).Methods Sixty PVS patients were selected as study subjects,and randomly divided into control group(n=30)and observation group(n=30).Three patients in the control group shed 3 cases and eventually included 27 cases,and the observation group shed 2 cases and e-ventually included 28 cases.Both groups received basic treatment and routine rehabilitation training.The observation group was treated with multi-sensory environmental stimulation combined with taVNS,while the control group received multi-sensory environmental stimulation combined with sham stimula-tion.Both groups were treated once per day,five times per week,for eight consecutive weeks.The Glasgow Coma Scale(GCS)and the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised(CRS-R)scores were compared between the two groups before treatment,after 4,8 weeks of treatment and during follow-up(12 weeks).The electroencephalogram(EEG)grading was analyzed before and after 8 weeks of treat-ment.The awakening effect during follow-up was compared between the two groups.Results After 4,8 weeks of treatment and during follow-up,the GCS and CRS-R scores of both groups were signifi-cantly higher than before treatment,and the observation group had significantly higher scores than the control group(P<0.05).After 8 weeks of treatment,the EEG grading of both groups was signifi-cantly better than before treatment,and the observation group was significantly better than the control group(P<0.05).During follow-up,the awakening rate in the observation group was 46.43%,which was significantly higher than 29.63%in the control group(P<0.05).Conclusion The method of taVNS combined with multi-sensory environmental stimulation has a good awakening effect in PVS patients,and can improve their level of consciousness disorder with high safety.

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