Objective:To observe the effect of Guilu Taohong Formula on semen quality in varicocele(VC)models of rats,and to explore its possible mechanism.Methods:Forty-eight male SD rats were randomly divided into four groups(sham group,model group,Guilu Taohong Formula group and L-carnitine group).After the establishment of models,the rats were treated with intra-gastric administration for eight consecutive weeks.The general condition of the rats was observed.After the gavage,the testicular and epididymal indices were calculated.Semen quality was assessed using an automatic semen analyzer.Apoptosis of testicular cells was assessed by TUNEL staining.And the expression levels of B-cell lymphocytoma-2(Bcl-2),Bcl-2-associated X protein(Bax)and cys-teine aspartate protease-3(caspase-3)in testicular tissue were detected by Western blot.Results:Compared with the sham group,testicular index,epididymal index,sperm concentration,the percentage of progressive motility of sperm(PR％)and the expression level of Bcl-2 decreased in model group(P＜0.01).An increased apoptosis rate of spermatogenic cells and the expression levels of Bax and caspase-3 proteins were observed in model group as well(P＜0.01).Compared with the model group,the testicular index,epidid-ymal index,sperm concentration,PR％and the expression level of Bcl-2 in Guilu Taohong Formula group increased significantly(P＜0.05,P＜0.01).A decreased apoptosis rate of spermatogenic cells and the expression levels of Bax and caspase-3 proteins were de-tected in Guilu Taohong Formula group as well(P＜0.01).Similarly,the L-carnitine group showed increased testicular index,epidid-ymal index,sperm concentration,PR％and the expression level of Bcl-2 protein(P＜0.05,P＜0.01),where showed decreased ap-optosis rate of spermatogenic cells and the expression levels of Bax and caspase-3 proteins compared with model group(P＜0.01,P＜0.05).Conclusion:Guilu Taohong Formula improves semen quality in VC model rats and reduces the apoptosis rate of spermato-genic cells in testicular tissue,which may be related to the promotion of Bcl-2 protein expression and the inhibition of Bax and caspase-3 protein expression levels.

Objective:The aim of this study is to explore the clinical efficacy and safety of endocrinotherapy combined with Shenqi Pills on hormone-sensitive prostate cancer(HSPC).Methods:Eighty patients who were diagnosed with HSPC and renal-yang deficiency at the First Affiliated Hospital of Hunan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the Hospital of Traditional Chi-nese Medicine of Mayang Miao Autonomous County from 1st April 2021 to 30th April 2024 were randomly divided into 2 groups.The patients in the control group were treated with androgen deprivation therapy(ADT).And the patients in treatment group were treated with Shenqi Pills orally on the basis of the control group.The baseline data of the two groups were analyzed.After 36 months of treat-ment,the differences between the two groups were compared in terms of overall survival(OS),prostate-specific antigen(PSA)level,PSA response rate,Functional Assessment Scale for Prostate Cancer Therapy(FACT-P),Chinese medicine evidence scores,testoster-one level and safety.Results:A total of 80 study subjects were included in this study,including 42 cases in the treatment group and 38 cases in the control group.There was no statistical difference in the baseline data between the two groups before treatment(P＞0.05).At the end of the observation period,a statistically significant difference in OS was found in the treatment group compared to the control group in the subgroup of patients with a disease duration ranged of 0-6 months(P＜0.05).There was no statistically signif-icant difference in PSA levels in the treatment group at 3 months(P＞0.05).And the differences in the proportion of PSA50(98.1％vs 91.4％),PSA90(92.9％ vs 84.6％)and the proportion of decrease in PSA(56.7％vs 33.8％)in the treatment group were found compared to those in the control group after 6 months of tre atment.After 12 months of treatment,the scores of FACT-4 and re-nal-yang deficiency in the treatment group were(95.28±7.93)and(15.73±5.70)respectively,compared to the scores in the con-trol group([85.46±10.12]and[18.20±4.27](P＜0.05).However,there was no significant difference in serum testosterone([0.60±0.24]nmol/L vs[1.09±2.10]nmol/L)between the two groups(P＞0.05).After 24 months of treatment,there were significant differences in in the FACT-4 total score([97.95±7.54]vs[80.33±8.58]),renal-yang deficiency syndrome score([14.64±5.15]vs[24.94±8.75])between the treatment group and the control group(P＜0.05).However,there was no signifi-cant difference in serum testosterone([0.73±1.01]nmol/L vs[0.59±0.25]nmol/L)between the two groups(P＞0.05).Bet-ter therapeutic results were showed in the treatment group in terms of total FACT-P score,physical situation score,social and family situation score,emotional state score,functional state score,additional score and renal-yang deficiency symptom score(P＜0.05).After treatment,there was no serious adverse reaction in the course of treatment,and no obvious abnormality was found in the liver and kidney function of the patients from two groups.Conclusion:Endocrinotherapy combined with Shenqi Pills is safe and effective in HSPC and can reduce the risk of death in HSPC patients,and the earlier the intervention,the longer the overall survival of the pa-tients.In addition,this treatment regimen can increase the PSA response rate,improve patients'quality of life,and reduce the renal-yang deficiency syndrome score without the risk of elevating serum testosterone levels.

Objective To observe the effect of multi-modal hand hygiene(HH)intervention on HH compliance,as well as the relationship between HH compliance and the healthcare-associated(HA)case infection incidence.Methods From 2014 to 2022,the infection control team in a tertiary first-class hospital implemented multi-modal HH intervention for health care workers(HCWs).The changing trend of HH monitoring data,the correlation be-tween HH compliance rate and HA case infection incidence were analyzed retrospectively.Results The consump-tion of HH products in the wards showed a stable upward trend;HH compliance rate increased from 64.98％in 2014 to 85.01％in 2022(P＜0.001),and HA case infection incidence decreased from 1.21％to 0.83％(P＜0.05).HH compliance rate was negatively correlated with HA case infection incidence(r=-0.369,P=0.027).HH compliance rates in different regions and job posts in each quarter were increased(P＜0.001).For 5 different HH moments in each quarter,HH compliance rate fluctuated slightly before sterile manipulation and after touching patient;presented rising trend after touching surroundings around patient,and decreased before touching patient and after touching patient's body fluid since 2020(P＜0.001).Conclusion Multi-modal HH intervention can im-prove the HH compliance of HCWs,improving their HH awareness is conducive to reducing HA case infection incidence.

Objective:To analyze and evaluate the expressions and clinical value of tuftelin (TUFT1) and Krüppel-like factor 5 (KLF5) in hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues.Method:KLF5 mRNA and TUFT1 mRNA transcriptional status in cancer and non-cancer groups were compared according to the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database. The differences and prognostic value between the groups were analyzed. Postoperative liver cancer and its paired pericancerous tissues, with the approval of the ethics committee, were collected to build tissue chips. The expression of KLF5 and TUFT1 and their intracellular localization were verified by immunohistochemistry. Tissue expression and clinicopathological characteristics were analyzed by immunoblotting. SPSS software was used to analyze the relationship between SPSS and patient prognosis.Results:The transcription level of TUFT1 or KLF5 mRNA was significantly higher in the HCC group than the non-cancer group ( P ?

OBJECTIVE:The rabbit model of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head is the most commonly used animal model of femoral head necrosis.The pathological changes of the femoral head are close to clinical practice,however,the conditions,methods and evaluation standards of animal models reported in and outside China are not uniform,which leads to the low scientific value of animal models and is difficult to popularize.This study aimed to clarify the influence of different mold-making conditions on the establishment of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head rabbit model and analyze the appropriate conditions for the successful model establishment. METHODS:We searched the CNKI,WanFang,VIP,CBM,WoS,PubMed and EMbsae databases for the literature on the modeling of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head rabbits up to April 1,2022,completed the screening of the literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria and literature quality evaluation,and extracted the outcome index data in the literature.RevMan Stata and ADDIS statistical software were used to conduct a meta-analysis of the included data. RESULTS:(1)A total of 82 articles with 1 366 rabbits were included in the study.The steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head modeling methods were divided into three types:steroid-alone method,steroid combined lipopolysaccharide method and steroid combined serum method.Among these,33 articles used steroid-alone method;20 articles used steroid combined lipopolysaccharide method;29 articles used steroid combined serum method.(2)Meta-analysis results showed that the three modeling methods significantly increased the rate of empty bone lacunae in the femoral head of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head rabbits(P<0.001),and significantly decreased the ratio of the trabecular bone area in the femoral head of steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head rabbits(P<0.001).The order of empty bone lacunae rate of each modeling method was:steroid combined with lipopolysaccharide method>steroid-alone method>steroid combined with serum method>normal group,and the order of trabecular bone area rate of each modeling method was:normal group>steroid combined with serum method>steroid-alone method>steroid combined with lipopolysaccharide method.(3)The results of subgroup analysis suggested that the rate of empty bone lacunae in the rabbit model induced by steroid alone might be related to the rabbit variety and the type of steroid used for modeling(difference between groups P<0.05),in which the combined effect amount of New Zealand white rabbits was higher than that of Chinese white rabbits(P<0.05)and Japanese white rabbits,and the combined effect amount of dexamethasone was higher than that of other steroids.The rate of empty bone lacunae induced by steroid combined with lipopolysaccharide was related to the administration mode of lipopolysaccharide and the type of steroid(P<0.05),among which the combined effect of methylprednisolone sodium succinate was significantly higher than that of other steroids(P<0.05),and the combined effect of prednisolone was significantly lower than that of other steroids(P<0.05).The combined effect of lipopolysaccharide 100 μg/kg×twice was significantly lower than 10 μg/kg×twice and 50 μg/kg×twice(P<0.05).The rate of empty bone lacunae in the model induced by steroid combined with serum was related to serum dose and steroid type(P<0.05),among which the combined effect amount of dexamethasone sodium phosphate was significantly higher than other steroid types(P<0.05),and the combined effect amount of dexamethasone was significantly lower than other steroid types(P<0.05);the combined effect amount of serum"10 mL/kg+6 mL/kg"combined dose was lower than other serum doses(P<0.05). CONCLUSION:(1)With the rate of empty bone lacunae and the ratio of trabecular bone area as the judgment standard for the successful establishment of the model,the three modeling methods can successfully construct the rabbit steroid-induced osteonecrosis of femoral head model,of which the steroid combined with lipopolysaccharide method is the best.(2)New Zealand white rabbits and dexamethasone are recommended when selecting the steroid-alone method.Methylprednisolone sodium succinate and low-dose lipopolysaccharide are recommended when selecting the steroid combined with lipopolysaccharide method.Dexamethasone sodium phosphate is recommended when selecting the steroid combined with serum modeling method.

Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in tertiary hospitals in major regions of China in 2022.Methods Clinical isolates from 58 hospitals in China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2022 Clinical &Laboratory Standards Institute(CLSI)breakpoints.Results A total of 318 013 clinical isolates were collected from January 1,2022 to December 31,2022,of which 29.5％were gram-positive and 70.5％were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species(excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi)was 28.3％,76.7％and 77.9％,respectively.Overall,94.0％of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 90.8％of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis showed significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 94.2％in the isolates from children and 95.7％in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 13.1％in most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,21.7％-23.1％of which were resistant to carbapenems.Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.1％to 13.3％.The prevalence of meropenem-resistant strains decreased from 23.5％in 2019 to 18.0％in 2022 in Pseudomonas aeruginosa,and decreased from 79.0％in 2019 to 72.5％in 2022 in Acinetobacter baumannii.Conclusions The resistance of clinical isolates to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still increasing in tertiary hospitals.However,the prevalence of important carbapenem-resistant organisms such as carbapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a downward trend in recent years.This finding suggests that the strategy of combining antimicrobial resistance surveillance with multidisciplinary concerted action works well in curbing the spread of resistant bacteria.

Objective:To explore the value of 18F-fibroblast activation protein inhibitor (FAPI) PET/CT in the assessment of early-stage graft fibrosis (S1-S2) after liver transplantation (LT). Methods:From November 2021 to April 2022, 17 adult liver transplant recipients (12 males and 5 females; age (52.6±7.9) years) in the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University were enrolled retrospectively in this study. All 17 patients received laboratory examinations, FibroScan, 18F-FAPI PET/CT and liver biopsy. According to the Scheuer scoring system, hepatic tissue was divided into no fibrosis (S0) and early fibrosis (S1-S2). Independent-sample t test was used to compare SUV max between two groups, and Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare liver stiffness measurement (LSM). ROC curve analysis was used to evaluate the diagnostic efficacy of LSM and SUV max in the early fibrosis of liver grafts. Delong test was used to compare the difference of AUCs. Results:Among 17 adult LT recipients, 11 were in stage S0, 5 were in stage S1, and 1 was in stage S2. There were significant differences in LSM and SUV max between no fibrosis group and early fibrosis group (LSM: 5.4(4.7, 6.6) vs 12.9(5.6, 19.9) kPa, z=-2.01, P=0.044; SUV max: 1.7±0.8 vs 3.9±1.6, t=-3.14, P=0.019). The threshold value of LSM in predicting early-stage graft fibrosis was 8.2 kPa and the AUC was 0.80 (95% CI: 0.54-0.95), which was 2.0 and 0.92 (95% CI: 0.78-1.00) for SUV max respectively. There was no significant difference in AUC between the two tools ( z=0.80, P=0.421). Conclusion:18F-FAPI PET/CT can precisely evaluate the early fibrosis of allografts, with the similar diagnostic efficacy with FibroScan (LSM), which is expected to be a new non-invasive diagnostic tool for predicting the early-stage of graft liver fibrosis.

Objective To analyze the characteristics of healthcare-associated infection(HAI)in patients in liver transplantation intensive care unit(ICU),and provide basis for the effective prevention and control of liver post-transplantation infection.Methods Targeted surveillance data of HAI in liver transplantation ICU from 2018 to 2022 were analyzed retrospectively.Incidence,incidence trend,infection site,pathogens and drug resistance were analyzed.Results A total of 3 762 liver transplantation patients were surveilled,106 patients developed 133 cases of HAI,with an incidence of 2.82％and a case incidence of 3.54％.There was no significant difference among the years(P=0.473).Infection mainly occurred within 2 weeks after admission to ICU,accounting for 85.85％.The main infection sites included blood system(26.32％),respiratory system(22.56％),and surgical site(19.55％).The average utilization rates of central veinous catheterization,urethral catheterization,and ventilator were 85.77％,70.58％,and 40.83％,respectively.The incidences of central line-associated bloodstream infection(CLABSI),catheter-associated urinary tract infection(CAUTI),and ventilator-associated pneumonia(VAP)were 0.54‰,0.33‰,and 1.84‰,respectively.A total of 131 strains of pathogens were detected,of which Gram-negative bac-teria accounted for 38.17％and Gram-positive bacteria accounted for 29.77％.The top three pathogens were Kleb-siella pneumoniae(15.27％),Enterococcus faecium(11.45％),and Acinetobacter baumannii(9.16％).Conclusion Effective prevention and control measures should be taken based on the characteristics of HAI in the liver transplan-tation ICU,so as to curb bacterial resistance and reduce liver post-transplantation HAI.

Objective To monitor the susceptibility of clinical isolates to antimicrobial agents in healthcare facilities in major regions of China in 2023.Methods Clinical isolates collected from 73 hospitals across China were tested for antimicrobial susceptibility using a unified protocol based on disc diffusion method or automated testing systems.Results were interpreted using the 2023 Clinical & Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) breakpoints.Results A total of 445199 clinical isolates were collected in 2023,of which 29.0％ were gram-positive and 71.0％ were gram-negative.The prevalence of methicillin-resistant strains in Staphylococcus aureus,Staphylococcus epidermidis and other coagulase-negative Staphylococcus species (excluding Staphylococcus pseudintermedius and Staphylococcus schleiferi) (MRSA,MRSE and MRCNS) was 29.6％,81.9％ and 78.5％,respectively.Methicillin-resistant strains showed significantly higher resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents than methicillin-susceptible strains (MSSA,MSSE and MSCNS).Overall,92.9％ of MRSA strains were susceptible to trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and 91.4％ of MRSE strains were susceptible to rifampicin.No vancomycin-resistant strains were found.Enterococcus faecalis had significantly lower resistance rates to most antimicrobial agents tested than Enterococcus faecium.A few vancomycin-resistant strains were identified in both E.faecalis and E.faecium.The prevalence of penicillin-susceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae was 93.1％ in the isolates from children and and 95.9％ in the isolates from adults.The resistance rate to carbapenems was lower than 15.0％ for most Enterobacterales species except for Klebsiella,22.5％ and 23.6％ of which were resistant to imipenem and meropenem,respectively .Most Enterobacterales isolates were highly susceptible to tigecycline,colistin and polymyxin B,with resistance rates ranging from 0.6％ to 10.0％.The resistance rate to imipenem and meropenem was 21.9％ and 17.4％ for Pseudomonas aeruginosa,respectively,and 67.5％ and 68.1％ for Acinetobacter baumannii,respectively.Conclusions Increasing resistance to the commonly used antimicrobial agents is still observed in clinical bacterial isolates.However,the prevalence of important crabapenem-resistant organisms such as crabapenem-resistant K.pneumoniae,P.aeruginosa,and A.baumannii showed a slightly decreasing trend.This finding suggests that strengthening bacterial resistance surveillance and multidisciplinary linkage are important for preventing the occurrence and development of bacterial resistance.

As artificial intelligence technology rapidly advances, its deployment within the medical sector presents substantial ethical challenges. Consequently, it becomes crucial to create a standardized, transparent, and secure framework for processing medical data. This includes setting the ethical boundaries for medical artificial intelligence and safeguarding both patient rights and data integrity. This consensus governs every facet of medical data handling through artificial intelligence, encompassing data gathering, processing, storage, transmission, utilization, and sharing. Its purpose is to ensure the management of medical data adheres to ethical standards and legal requirements, while safeguarding patient privacy and data security. Concurrently, the principles of compliance with the law, patient privacy respect, patient interest protection, and safety and reliability are underscored. Key issues such as informed consent, data usage, intellectual property protection, conflict of interest, and benefit sharing are examined in depth. The enactment of this expert consensus is intended to foster the profound integration and sustainable advancement of artificial intelligence within the medical domain, while simultaneously ensuring that artificial intelligence adheres strictly to the relevant ethical norms and legal frameworks during the processing of medical data.
Artificial Intelligence/legislation & jurisprudence* ; Humans ; Consensus ; Computer Security/standards* ; Confidentiality/ethics* ; Informed Consent/ethics*