Objective:To investigate the predictive value of serum signal lymphocyte activation molecule family member 8(SLAMF8)levels for post-stroke cognitive impairment(PSCI).Methods:The GSE122063 dataset was selected from the Gene Expression Omnibus(GEO), and key genes associated with vascular dementia were identified using STRING network and Cytoscape software.This prospective cohort study involved 123 patients with acute cerebral infarction(ACI)who were admitted to the Department of Neurology at Jiangsu University Affiliated Hospital from January to December 2023.Patients were followed up for six months and categorized into PSCI and post-stroke non-cognitive impairment(PSNCI)groups based on the occurrence of PSCI.General data from both groups at baseline, as well as the Mini-Mental State Examination(MMSE)and Montreal Cognitive Assessment Scale(MoCA)scores at the six-month follow-up, were collected.Baseline serum levels of SLAMF8 and stabilin-1(STAB1), along with serum levels of interleukin-1β(IL-1β)and interleukin-6(IL-6)at the six-month follow-up, were measured.Pearson correlation analysis was used to assess the correlation between variables, while logistic regression analysis was employed to determine baseline factors influencing the occurrence of PSCI.Receiver Operating Characteristic(ROC)curves were plotted to analyze the predictive value of variables for PSCI occurrence.Results:The Cytoscape software identified SLAMF8 and STAB1 as key genes associated with vascular dementia, utilizing maximum neighborhood component density(DNMC)and eccentricity algorithms on the GSE122063 dataset.In the cohort study, patients in the PSCI group exhibited higher baseline NIHSS scores and serum SLAMF8 levels compared to the PSNCI group( t=3.033, 5.422; P<0.01). Additionally, they demonstrated significantly lower MMSE and MoCA scores( t=16.340, 18.634; P<0.001)and higher serum levels of IL-1β and IL-6( t=2.633, 2.632; P<0.05)at the 6-month follow-up.No significant difference was observed in baseline STAB1 levels between the two groups( t=1.280, P>0.05). In the PSCI group, there was no significant correlation between baseline serum SLAMF8 levels and admission NIHSS scores( r=0.257, P=0.082); however, SLAMF8 showed a negative correlation with both MMSE scores( r=-0.711, P<0.001)and MoCA scores( r=-0.686, P<0.001)at the 6-month follow-up.Logistic regression analysis indicated that baseline serum SLAMF8 levels( OR=1.142, P=0.001)and NIHSS scores( OR=1.094, P=0.007)were risk factors for the development of PSCI in patients with acute cerebral infarction(ACI). ROC curve analysis revealed that the area under the ROC curve(AUC)for baseline serum SLAMF8 levels in predicting PSCI occurrence in ACI patients was 0.776, while the AUC for the combined prediction using both SLAMF8 and NIHSS scores was 0.796.Furthermore, baseline serum SLAMF8 levels were positively correlated with serum IL-1β levels( r=0.652, P<0.001)and IL-6 levels( r=0.710, P<0.001)at the 6-month follow-up. Conclusions:The serum SLAMF8 level, exhibiting early high expression in ACI patients, may serve as a potential biological marker for predicting the occurrence of PSCI.

Objective:To develop PixelSIFT-UNet, a novel semantic segmentation model that integrates deep learning with scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) algorithm to improve the segmentation accuracy of oral mucosal lesions.Methods:This investigation utilized 838 standard clinical white light images of oral mucosal diseases acquired from January 2020 to December 2022 at the Stomatology Hospital Zhejiang University School of Medicine. Randomization was achieved through Python′s random.seed function implementation. The random sample function was subsequently applied for sampling distribution. The dataset was stratified into three subsets with a 6∶2∶2 ratio: training ( n=506), validation ( n=166), and testing ( n=166). Lesion boundaries were annotated using Labelme software, and a PixelSIFT-UNet-based deep learning model was developed with VGG-16 and ResNet-50 backbone networks. Model parameters were optimized using the validation set, and performance metrics [including Dice coefficient, mean intersection over union (mIoU), mean pixel accuracy (mPA), and Precision] were assessed on the test set. The model′s performance was benchmarked against conventional semantic segmentation frameworks (U-Net and PSPNet). Results:The developed PixelSIFT-UNet model could achieve precise segmentation of three common oral mucosal lesions: oral lichen planus, oral leukoplakia, and oral submucous fibrosis. Utilizing VGG-16 as the backbone network, the model achieved Dice coefficient, mIoU, mPA, and Precision values of 0.642, 0.699, 0.836, and 0.792, respectively. Implementation with ResNet-50 backbone network yielded metrics of 0.668, 0.733, 0.872 and 0.817, demonstrating significant improvements across all performance indicators compared to conventional U-Net model (relevant metrics: 0.662, 0.717, 0.861 and 0.809) and PSPNet model (relevant metrics: 0.671, 0.721, 0.858 and 0.813).Conclusions:The proposed PixelSIFT-UNet architecture demonstrates superior performance in oral mucosal lesion segmentation tasks, surpassing conventional semantic segmentation models and providing robust quantitative improvements in segmentation accuracy.

Cyclic neutropenia (CN) is relatively rare in clinical practice, and cases complicate with intestinal fistula have not been reported yet. This article reports a 45 year old female patient with CN and intestinal fistula, hoping to improve clinical experience in the diagnosis and treatment of such diseases.

Objective To investigate the early dynamic changes of biomarkers associated with capillary leak syndrome(CLS)in patients with severe acute pancreatitis(SAP)and their correlation with multiple organ failure(MOF).Methods A total of 171 SAP patients admitted to the West China Centre of Excellence for Pancreatitis,West China Hospital,Sichuan University between September 1,2019 and December 31,2020 were enrolled for this study.The patients were divided into MOF and non-MOF groups based on the occurrence of MOF in the first 5 days of hospitalization,and were further divided into subgroups based on the presence of moderate-to-severe intra-abdominal hypertension(IAH).We performed dynamic monitoring of the blood biomarkers(hematocrit[HCT].blood urea nitrogen[BUN].and creatinine[Cr]),plasma proteins(albumin[Alb].total protein[TP].and non-albumin plasma proteins[NAPP]),and intra-abdominal pressure.Trends in these indicators across groups were analyzed comprehensively.Results No significant differences in baseline data between the two groups were observed.The baseline data of the 2 groups were comparable.The MOF group had significantly higher rates of persistent systemic inflammatory response syndrome(SIRS)lasting 48 hours(91.3％vs.71.8％),ICU admission(70.4％vs.17.6％),and length-of-stay([32±17.7]days vs.[19.0±12.2]days)compared to those of the non-MOF group(P＜0.05).The incidences of respiratory,circulatory,and renal failures were higher in the MOF group than those in the non-MOF group,showing significant differences in circulatory failure(69％vs.3.5％)and renal failure(65.5％vs.3.5％)(P＜0.05).In the first 5 days of hospitalization,the MOF group showed significantly elevated BUN and Cr levels,while Alb and TP levels dropped rapidly upon admission and then gradually recovered.The NAPP level of the MOF group continued to decrease after admission,and on the third day after admission,the NAPP level was lower than that of the Non-MOF group,showing statistically significant difference(P＜0.001).The Alb/NAPP ratio of the MOF group decreased significantly on day 1 and then rapidly increased,showing significant differences between the groups on days 3 and 4(P=0.001).Subgroup analysis of MOF patients with moderate-to-severe IAH revealed similar trends in the dynamic changes and the overall changes in the indicators,and the difference was even more pronounced.The mixed linear model showed that the average levels of HCT,BUN,Alb/NAPP,and Alb/TP were higher and increased over time in the MOF combined with IAP subgroup(P＜0.001).Conclusion The CLS model of SAP patients is validated,confirming that CLS is a key factor in the progression from SIRS to MOF.The loss of NAPP is an early and important indicator of CLS persistence and progression to MOF.Additionally,moderate-to-severe IAH accelerates the deterioration of MOF.These findings provide valuable insights into the potential mechanisms of MOF and warrant further validation through large-scale prospective studies.

Objective To discuss the application of ankle pump exercise with colorful ring counting command in improving the blood hypercoagulable state in patients after hepatic arterial infusion chemotherapy(HAIC).Methods A total of 105 patients,who received HAIC at the Interventional Department of a certain Grade A general hospital in Fujian Province of China from January to December of 2023,were collected.The 53 patients who received treatment from January to June of 2023 were used as the control group,and the other 52 patients who received treatment from July to December of 2023 were used as the study group.The postoperative routine nursing and ankle pump exercise was employed for the patients of the control group,while ankle pump exercise with colorful ring counting command on the basis of postoperative routine nursing was carried out for the patients of the study group.The resting status of popliteal vein,the maximum and average systolic blood flow velocity at the end of exercise,the changes in coagulation index,the incidence of deep vein thrombosis,and the compliance of ankle pump were compared between the two groups.Results There were no statistically significant differences in the resting popliteal vein blood flow velocity and incidence of deep vein thrombosis between the two groups(P＞0.05).The maximum and average popliteal vein blood flow velocity at the end of exercise in the study group were higher than those in the control group.The levels of PT,APTT,FBG,TT and D-dimer(D-D)at 72 hours after HAIC were lower than those in the control group(all P＜0.05),and the compliance of ankle pump exercise in the study group was better than that in the control group(P＜0.05).Conclusion Ankle pump exercise with colorful ring counting command can accelerate lower limb blood flow velocity,improve the blood hypercoagulable state,and improve compliance with ankle pump exercise in patients after receiving HAIC.

Objective To investigate the expression level and diagnostic value of serum cysteine protease inhibitor S(CST4)in patients with gastric cancer.Methods Clinical data of 115 patients with suspected gastric cancer who complained of gastric discomfort were retrospectively analyzed,and they were divided into benign disease group(n=50),precancerous disease group(n=26)and gas-tric cancer group(n=39).The levels of serum CST4,carcinoembryonic antigen(CEA),carbohy-drate antigen 19-9(CA19-9)and carbohydrate antigen 72-4(CA72-4)were analyzed in the three groups.The positive rates of CST4 among the three groups were compared.Binary Logistic regression analysis was used to screen for independent risk factors for gastric cancer occurrence.The receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to evaluate the diagnostic value of CST4 in gastric cancer.Results The positive rate of CST4 was 6.00％(3/50)in the benign gastric disease group,30.77％(8/26)in the gastric precancerous lesion group,and 66.67％(26/39)in the gastric canc-er group.The positive rate of CST4 in the gastric cancer group was higher than that in the gastric pre-cancerous lesion group and the benign gastric disease group(P＜0.05).The results of binary Logistic regression analysis showed that advanced age,high levels of serum CST4 and high levels of CEA were independent risk factors for gastric cancer occurrence(P＜0.05).The area under the curve(AUC)for CST4 alone in diagnosing gastric cancer was 0.847(95％CI,0.760 to 0.934),with an optimal cut-off value of 94.6 U/mL,the Youden index of 0.638,sensitivity of 71.8％,and specificity of 92.0％.The AUC for the combined diagnosis of gastric cancer using CST4,age and CEA was 0.959(95％CI,0.919 to 0.992),with sensitivity of 94.9％and specificity of 86.0％.Conclusion As a novel se-rum marker,CST4 has high predictive value in the auxiliary diagnosis of gastric cancer.

Objective To explore the mediating effects of potential mediating factors on occur-rence of stroke-associated pneumonia(SAP)in patients with varying degrees of neurological deficit based on real-world case data.Methods A total of 902 hospitalized patients in the acute phase of stroke were selected as study subjects.Clinical characteristics were compared among patients with dif-ferent degrees of neurological deficit and those with SAP.R studio was employed to generate a correla-tion heatmap of potential mediating factors,enabling the identification of primary potential mediating factors.Multivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess the impact of the degree of neurological deficit,potential mediating factors,and stroke-associated pneumonia.R studio was also used to analyze the interaction between the degree of neurological deficit and potential mediating factors,as well as the mediating role of potential mediating factors in the association between neurological deficit and SAP.Results Based on the results of the correlation heatmap,this study screened out five major potential mediating factors,namely consciousness level,neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio(NLR),chlorine(Cl),fasting blood glucose(FBG)and albumin(ALB).Multivariate logistic re-gression analysis revealed that the degree of neurological deficit was significantly associated with the level of consciousness,NLR,Cl,FBG levels and the occurrence of SAP.Interaction analysis dem-onstrated an interaction between the degree of neurological deficit and FBG levels.Mediation analy-sis indicated that the total effect of the association between neurological deficit and SAP was 0.302.Both the level of consciousness and NLR exhibited partial mediating effects in the association be-tween neurological deficit and SAP,with mediating effect proportions of 25.92％and 15.15％,re-spectively.Conclusion Consciousness level and NLR have partial mediating effects in the occur-rence of SAP in patients with different neurological deficits.There is an interaction between the de-gree of neurological deficit and the level of FBG.

Objective:Explore the protective effect and mechanism of methyl badosolone (CDDO-Me) on rats with traumatic brain injury (TBI).Methods:A total of 72 SPF-grade SD rats aged 8 weeks were randomly (random number) divided into 4 groups ( n=18) using the random number table method: Sham, TBI, TBI+Vehicle, and TBI+CDDO-Me. The rat TBI model was established using the hydraulic impact head injury method. The TBI+CDDO-Me group was administered CDDO-Me (dissolved in 1% DMSO, at a dose of 10 mg/kg) via intraperitoneal injection 30 minutes after modeling, twice a day for a total of 3 days. On the third day after modeling, brain tissue was collected for pathological and water content detection after mNSS scoring. Immunofluorescence double staining was used to detect the expression of nuclear factor erythroid2 related factor 2 (Nrf2); immunohistochemical staining was used to detect the expression of ionized calcium binding adapter molecule-1(Iba-1); ELISA was used to detect the levels of tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-1β, and IL-18 in serum; kits were used to detect the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS); Western blot was used to detect the expression of the Nrf2 pathway, B-cell lymphoma-2 (BCL-2), and BCL-2 associated X protein (BAX). Results:(1) Compared with the Sham group, the mNSS scores and water content in the injured cortex of the TBI group rats were significantly increased (both P<0.05), and both significantly decreased after CDDO-Me intervention (both P<0.05). (2) Compared with the Sham group, the proportion of Nissl-stained injured neurons and apoptotic positive cells in the TBI group rats were significantly increased (both P<0.05), and both significantly decreased after CDDO-Me intervention (both P<0.05), accompanied by a decrease in BAX protein expression and upregulation of BCL-2 protein expression (both P<0.05). (3) Immunofluorescence and Western blot results showed that compared with the Sham group, the expression of total Nrf2, nuclear Nrf2, HO-1, and NQO1 proteins in the TBI group were all increased (all P<0.05), and the increase was more significant after CDDO-Me intervention (all P<0.05). (4) Immunohistochemistry and ELISA results showed that compared with the Sham group, the levels of MDA, ROS, Iba-1 in brain tissue and the levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-18 in serum in the TBI group rats were all significantly increased (all P<0.05), and all significantly decreased after CDDO-Me intervention (all P<0.05). Conclusion:CDDO-Me helps to reduce oxidative stress and inflammatory responses in TBI rats, and the mechanism may be related to the activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 antioxidant stress pathway.

Objective:To investigate the application of time series models in forecasting pre-hospital emergency ambulance trips in Handan City and develop the LPro ensemble model for improved prediction accuracy to support emergency resource allocation.Methods:Pre-hospital emergency data from Handan Emergency Medical Command Center (2019-2023) were retrospectively analyzed. From 324 799 original records, 289 949 valid records were included after cleaning. The training set (2019-2022: 215 918 records) included 35 527 records in 2019, 52 015 in 2020, 61 836 in 2021, and 66 540 in 2022. The validation set (2023) contained 74 031 records. ARIMA, linear trend seasonal, exponential smoothing, and Prophet models were fitted to the training set. The LPro ensemble model was constructed using MAPE-based weighting (linear trend seasonal model: 0.38, Prophet: 0.62). Performance metrics included MAPE, RMSE, MAE, and R 2. Results:Data showed annual growth (compound annual growth rate 23.27%) and seasonal patterns (October peaks, February troughs). Ambulance dispatches increased annually with monthly cyclical patterns. For 2023 validation predictions: ARIMA (MAPE 8.76%, RMSE 619, MAE 491, R 2 0.4563), linear trend seasonal (MAPE 9.83%, RMSE 671, MAE 545, R 2 0.3608), Prophet (MAPE 8.43%, RMSE 562, MAE 503, R 2 0.5513), exponential smoothing (MAPE 8.08%, RMSE 643, MAE 410, R 2 0.4124). LPro model showed superior performance (MAPE 7.05%, RMSE 491, MAE 393, R 2 0.6570), with 16.37% lower MAPE, 12.63% lower RMSE, 21.87% lower MAE, and 19.17% higher R 2 versus Prophet. Conclusion:The LPro ensemble model substantially enhances prediction accuracy and reliability, offering scientific support for emergency resource optimization and dispatch scheduling in Handan City.

AIM:To explore the potential mecha-nism of arecoline in promoting oral submucous fi-brosis based on key factors of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase(PI3K)/protein kinase B(Akt)/mammalian target of rapamycin(mTOR)pathway.METHODS:SD rats were randomly divided into arecoline low-dose group,arecoline medium-dose group,and are-coline high-dose group(5,10,and 15 mg/mL).The oral buccal mucosa was injected with the corre-sponding concentration of arecoline(ANE)solution to induce the establishment of oral submucous fi-brosis(OSF)models,with 8 rats in each group.An-other 8 unmodeled rats were selected as the blank group,and the changes in mouth opening of the rats were detected after 8 weeks of grouping and intervention.HE and Masson staining were used to observe the pathological changes of oral buccal mucosa,measure the length of epithelial staple process and calculate collagen volume fraction.Western blot and qRT-PCR were used to detect the expression of collagen-Ⅰ(COL-Ⅰ),E-cadherin,fibro-nectin(FN)and PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway-related proteins and mRNA in rat oral buccal muco-sa.The levels of tumor necrosis factor(TNF)-α,in-terleukin(IL)-1β and transforming growth factor(TGF)-β1 in rat serum were detected by ELISA.Hu-man immortalized keratinocytes(HaCaT cell line)were cultured in vitro,and the effects of different concentrations of arecoline,PI3K activator,and PI3K inhibitor on the survival rate of HaCaT cells were investigated by CCK-8 method.According to the results of CCK-8,the concentration of arecoline 75 μg/mL,the concentration of PI3K activator 10μmol/L,and the concentration of PI3K inhibitor 2μmol/L were selected as the subsequent experi-mental concentrations.The cells were set as blank group,arecoline group,PI3K activator group,PI3K inhibitor group,and arecoline+PI3K inhibitor group.The mRNA expression levels of COL-Ⅰ,E-cad-herin,FN,PI3K,Akt,and mTOR in each group of cells were detected by qRT-PCR.The levels of TNF-α,IL-1β and TGF-β1 in each group of cells were de-tected by ELISA.RESULTS:Compared with the blank group,the arecoline low-dose group,the are-coline medium-dose group,and the arecoline high-dose group significantly reduced the mouth open-ing,significantly shortened the length of the epi-thelial staple process,significantly increased the collagen volume fraction,inflammatory cell infiltra-tion,and severe pathological damage.The protein expression levels of COL-Ⅰ,FN,p-PI3K,p-Akt,and p-mTOR were up-regulated,and the protein expres-sion levels of E-cadherin were down-regulated.The mRNA expressions of COL-Ⅰ,FN,PI3K,Akt,and mTOR were significantly increased.The mRNA ex-pression of E-cadherin was significantly reduced,and the levels of TNF-α,IL-1β,and TGF-β1 were sig-nificantly increased(all P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).Com-pared with the blank group,the mRNA expression levels of COL-Ⅰ,FN,PI3K,Akt,and mTOR in the cells of the arecoline group and the PI3K activator group were up-regulated,and the mRNA expression lev-els of E-cadherin were down-regulated.Compared with the blank group,the mRNA expression levels of COL-Ⅰ,FN,PI3K,Akt,and mTOR in the cells of the PI3K inhibitor group were down-regulated,and the mRNA expression levels of E-cadherin were up-regulated.Compared with the PI3K inhibitor group,the mRNA expression levels of COL-Ⅰ,FN,PI3K,Akt,and mTOR in the cells of the arecoline+PI3K inhibi-tor group were up-regulated,the mRNA expression levels of E-cadherin were down-regulated,and the levels of TNF-α,IL-1β,and TGF-β1 were significant-ly increased(all P＜0.05 or P＜0.01).CONCLUSION:Arecoline can significantly promote oral submucous fibrosis,which may play a pro-fibrotic role by up-regulating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway.