ObjectiveTo investigate the efficacy and safety of atezolizumab combined with bevacizumab versus sintilimab combined with bevacizumab biosimilar in the treatment of patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma （HCC） in a real-world setting， and to provide a reference for clinical practice. MethodsA retrospective analysis was performed for 130 patients with unresectable HCC who were treated in Beijing Ditan Hospital， Capital Medical University， from January 2020 to January 2026， and all patients received the first-line systemic therapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors combined with bevacizumab or its biosimilar. According to the treatment regimen， the patients were divided into atezolizumab+bevacizumab group （T+A group with 51 patients） and sintilimab+bevacizumab biosimilar group （Shuangda group with 79 patients）. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival （PFS）， and secondary endpoints included objective response rate （ORR）， disease control rate （DCR）， and safety profile. The independent-samples t test or the Wilcoxon rank-sum test was used for comparison of continuous data between the two groups， and the chi-square test was used for comparison of categorical data between groups. The Kaplan-Meier method was used for survival analysis， and the Log-rank test was used for comparison between groups. ResultsThe T+A group had a median PFS of 297.00 days （95% confidence interval ［CI］： 195.44 — 398.56）， and the Shuangda group had a median PFS of 236.00 days （95%CI： 165.10 — 306.90）， with no significant difference between the two groups （P=0.668）. There were no significant differences between the T+A group and the Shuangda group in ORR （56.9% vs 45.6%， χ²=1.581， P=0.209）， DCR （76.5% vs 77.2%， χ²=0.010， P=0.922）， and the incidence of adverse events （96.08% vs 94.94%， P>0.05）. ConclusionFor unresectable HCC patients without prior systemic treatment， atezolizumab combined with bevacizumab can achieve a comparable PFS to sintilimab combined with bevacizumab biosimilar.

Objective To investigate the expression changes and clinical significance of serum pepsinogen(PG)and triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1(TREM-1)in patients with reflux esophagitis(RE).Methods A total of 140 patients with RE who were treated from October 2021 to October 2023 were selected as the observation group,and 140 healthy adults who underwent physical examination during the same period were selected as the control group.Serum PG(PGⅠ and PGⅡ)and TREM-1 were detected by ELISA.Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the influencing factors of RE.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)was used to analyze the diagnostic efficacy of serum PGⅠ,PGⅡ and TREM-1 levels for RE.Results The levels of interleukin(IL)-2,IL-6,Il-1β,PGⅡ,TREM-1 and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group,while the level of PGⅠ was significantly lower than that in the control group(P<0.01).Serum IL-2,IL-6,IL-1β,TNF-α,PGⅡ and TREM-1 were risk factors for RE,while serum PGⅠ was a protective factor for RE(P<0.01).ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the ROC curve(AUC)of combined detection of PGⅠ,PGⅡ and TREM-1 in the diagnosis of RE was significantly higher than that of PGⅠ alone(Z=5.940,P<0.001)and PGⅡ alone(Z=6.764,P<0.001)and TREM-1 alone(Z=6.791,P<0.001).Conclusion The expression levels of serum PGⅡ and TREM-1 in patients with RE are increased,while the expression level of PGⅠ is decreased.The combined detection of the three can improve the diagnostic efficacy of RE.

Objective:To evaluate the clinical value of three-dimensional(3D) printing-assisted fenestrated/branched endovascular aortic repair (F/B-TEVAR) for the treatment of endoleak after open surgery for type A aortic dissection.Methods:A multi-center retrospective case series analysis was conducted on 16 patients with anastomotic leakage following Stanford type A aortic dissection open repair, admitted to 12 medical centers between January 2019 and December 2023. All surgeries were led by the vascular surgery team from Department of Vascular Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital. The study included 12 males and 4 females, with an age of (58.1±8.2) years (range: 42 to 75 years). Preoperative patient-specific 3D-printed models or 3D parametric surface topological guides were created based on aortic CT angiography data. These models assisted intraoperative external positioning of fenestration sites, combined with stent diameter selection and inner branch techniques to complete endovascular repair. Surgical procedures, complications, and clinical outcomes were evaluated, with follow-up CT imaging to assess efficacy.Results:All patients successfully underwent surgery without conversion to open repair. One patient had distal stent migration from a prior open repair, requiring intraoperative coverage of the main stent window and conversion to an in situ fenestration procedure. The mean operative time was (332.6±111.2)minutes (range: 80 to 460 minutes). No renal failure, paraplegia, or branch artery loss occurred. Postoperative follow-up ( M(IQR)) was 18(18) months(range: 6 to 36 months), with follow-up rates of 16/16 at 6 months, 10/16 at 12 months, 8/16 at 24 months, and 2/16 at 36 months. During follow-up, endoleak occurred in 3 patients, cerebral infarction in 1 patient, and death in 1 patient. The remaining patients demonstrated stable stent positioning, patent branches, and no endoleak. Conclusion:3D technology-guided F/B-TEVAR shows favorable mid-to short-term outcomes in treating anastomotic leakage after open repair of type A aortic dissection.

Objective To investigate the expression changes and clinical significance of serum pepsinogen(PG)and triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1(TREM-1)in patients with reflux esophagitis(RE).Methods A total of 140 patients with RE who were treated from October 2021 to October 2023 were selected as the observation group,and 140 healthy adults who underwent physical examination during the same period were selected as the control group.Serum PG(PGⅠ and PGⅡ)and TREM-1 were detected by ELISA.Multivariate logistic regression was used to analyze the influencing factors of RE.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)was used to analyze the diagnostic efficacy of serum PGⅠ,PGⅡ and TREM-1 levels for RE.Results The levels of interleukin(IL)-2,IL-6,Il-1β,PGⅡ,TREM-1 and tumor necrosis factor-α(TNF-α)in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group,while the level of PGⅠ was significantly lower than that in the control group(P<0.01).Serum IL-2,IL-6,IL-1β,TNF-α,PGⅡ and TREM-1 were risk factors for RE,while serum PGⅠ was a protective factor for RE(P<0.01).ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the ROC curve(AUC)of combined detection of PGⅠ,PGⅡ and TREM-1 in the diagnosis of RE was significantly higher than that of PGⅠ alone(Z=5.940,P<0.001)and PGⅡ alone(Z=6.764,P<0.001)and TREM-1 alone(Z=6.791,P<0.001).Conclusion The expression levels of serum PGⅡ and TREM-1 in patients with RE are increased,while the expression level of PGⅠ is decreased.The combined detection of the three can improve the diagnostic efficacy of RE.

Objective:To evaluate the clinical value of three-dimensional(3D) printing-assisted fenestrated/branched endovascular aortic repair (F/B-TEVAR) for the treatment of endoleak after open surgery for type A aortic dissection.Methods:A multi-center retrospective case series analysis was conducted on 16 patients with anastomotic leakage following Stanford type A aortic dissection open repair, admitted to 12 medical centers between January 2019 and December 2023. All surgeries were led by the vascular surgery team from Department of Vascular Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital. The study included 12 males and 4 females, with an age of (58.1±8.2) years (range: 42 to 75 years). Preoperative patient-specific 3D-printed models or 3D parametric surface topological guides were created based on aortic CT angiography data. These models assisted intraoperative external positioning of fenestration sites, combined with stent diameter selection and inner branch techniques to complete endovascular repair. Surgical procedures, complications, and clinical outcomes were evaluated, with follow-up CT imaging to assess efficacy.Results:All patients successfully underwent surgery without conversion to open repair. One patient had distal stent migration from a prior open repair, requiring intraoperative coverage of the main stent window and conversion to an in situ fenestration procedure. The mean operative time was (332.6±111.2)minutes (range: 80 to 460 minutes). No renal failure, paraplegia, or branch artery loss occurred. Postoperative follow-up ( M(IQR)) was 18(18) months(range: 6 to 36 months), with follow-up rates of 16/16 at 6 months, 10/16 at 12 months, 8/16 at 24 months, and 2/16 at 36 months. During follow-up, endoleak occurred in 3 patients, cerebral infarction in 1 patient, and death in 1 patient. The remaining patients demonstrated stable stent positioning, patent branches, and no endoleak. Conclusion:3D technology-guided F/B-TEVAR shows favorable mid-to short-term outcomes in treating anastomotic leakage after open repair of type A aortic dissection.

Spinal microglia and astrocytes are both involved in neuropathic and inflammatory pain, which may display sexual dimorphism. Here, we demonstrate that the sustained activation of spinal astrocytes and astrocyte-derived interleukin (IL)-17A promotes the progression of mouse bone cancer pain without sex differences. Chemogenetic or pharmacological inhibition of spinal astrocytes effectively ameliorates bone cancer-induced pain-like behaviors. In contrast, chemogenetic or optogenetic activation of spinal astrocytes triggers pain hypersensitivity, implying that bone cancer-induced astrocytic activation is involved in the development of bone cancer pain. IL-17A expression predominantly in spinal astrocytes, whereas its receptor IL-17 receptor A (IL-17RA) was mainly detected in neurons expressing VGLUT2 and PAX2, and a few in astrocytes expressing GFAP. Specific knockdown of IL-17A in spinal astrocytes blocked and delayed the development of bone cancer pain. IL-17A overexpression in spinal astrocytes directly induced thermal hyperalgesia and mechanical allodynia, which could be rescued by CaMKIIα inhibitor. Moreover, selective knockdown IL-17RA in spinal Vglut2 ⁺ or Vgat ⁺neurons, but not in astrocytes, significantly blocked the bone cancer-induced hyperalgesia. Together, our findings provide evidence for the crucial role of sex-independent astrocytic signaling in bone cancer pain. Targeting spinal astrocytes and IL-17A/IL-17RA-CaMKIIα signaling may offer new gender-inclusive therapeutic strategies for managing bone cancer pain.

Background and Aims:Rupture is the most serious complication of abdominal aortic aneurysm,requiring rapid diagnosis,emergency surgery,and posing significant surgical challenges,with high mortality rates. Currently,there is very limited reporting on ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (rAAA) in our country,which presents numerous difficulties for the prevention and treatment of rAAA. This study collected the data of epidemiological characteristics,treatment outcomes,and prognosis of rAAA patients from multiple centers with a large sample size,analyzing the current status and trends of rAAA surgery in China over the past decade,aiming to provide reference for clinical practice.Methods:The clinical and follow-up data of 161 rAAA patients treated at five major vascular surgery centers (50 from Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to the Medical School,Nanjing University;19 from the First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University;33 from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University;31 from Qilu Hospital,Shandong University;and 28 from the First Affiliated Hospital of the University of Science and Technology of China) were retrospectively analyzed.Results:Among the 161 patients,124 (77.02％) were male and 37 (22.98％) were female,with an average age of 68.27 years. The median age at diagnosis was 70 years for males and 71 years for females. The overall mean aneurysm diameter was 7.11 cm,with males at 7.72 cm and females at 6.82 cm,showing a statistically significant difference (P<0.05). The main comorbidities were hypertension and coronary artery disease. Over 80％ of patients presented with abdominal pain as the initial symptom,while 15％ presented with low back pain,and 8 patients sought medical attention for dizziness or visual disturbances. Among the 161 patients,86 underwent open surgical repair (OSR),and 75 received endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR). The proportion of EVAR has increased annually,reaching nearly 70％ in the past five years,and up to 90％ in patients aged over 70 years. All OSR procedures were performed under general anesthesia,while 20 EVAR cases used local anesthesia and 55 used general anesthesia. Compared to the OSR group,the EVAR group showed significant differences in operative time (231.77 min vs. 162.49 min),intraoperative blood transfusion volume (1578.56 mL vs. 843.87 mL),length of hospital stay (21.21 d vs. 15.34 d),ICU stay duration (8.28 d vs. 5.49 d),and hospitalization costs (108500 CNY vs. 132800 CNY) (all P<0.05). No significant differences were found between the EVAR and OSR groups in total complications or perioperative mortality rates (both P>0.05). The main causes of perioperative death included respiratory and circulatory failure,acute myocardial infarction,and severe infections. Postoperative follow-up was effectively conducted for 92 patients,with follow-up durations ranging from 10 to 142 months. Survival analysis revealed no significant difference in survival rate between the OSR and EVAR groups (P=0.3182).Conclusion:rAAA is a rare and high-risk disease,with certain clinical differences between male and female patients. The number of EVAR procedures has increased rapidly;however,EVAR has not shown a significant advantage over OSR in improving long-term survival rates.

Objective:To compare the clinical outcomes between percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation and elastic intramedullary nailing in the treatment of radial neck fractures in children.Methods:A retrospective study was conducted to analyze the 60 children with radial neck fracture who had been treated by percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation at Department of Pediatric Orthopedics, Children's Hospital of Soochow University from January 2016 to July 2023 (set as an internal fixation-free group). They were 30 males and 30 females (34 left and 26 right sides) with an age of (7.7±3.0) years. At the same time, another cohort of 60 patients were chosen as an intramedullary nailing group who had been treated by percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus elastic intramedullary nailing and matched in age and gender with those in the internal fixation-free group. The preoperative fracture angulation, operative time, hospitalization time, fracture angulation on the first postoperative day, fracture angulation at 1 month postoperatively, rate of angulation loss after reduction, Mayo elbow performance score (MEPS) at the last follow-up and complications were compared between the 2 groups.Results:There was no significant difference between the 2 groups in their preoperative general data, showing comparability ( P<0.05). The 120 pediatric patients were followed up for (7.5±3.2) months. The operative time [(27.4±15.0) min] and hospitalization time [(3.4±1.9) d] in the internal fixation-free group were significantly shorter than those in the intramedullary nailing group [(45.4±13.5) min and (4.4±1.3) d] ( P<0.05). The preoperative fracture angulation (50.8°±1.9°), fracture angulation on the first postoperative day (11.3°±1.2°), fracture angulation at 1 month postoperatively (12.1°±1.3°), rate of angulation loss after reduction (2.9%±0.5%), and MEPS at the last follow-up [(90.4±2.0) points] in the internal fixation-free group showed no significant differences from those in the intramedullary nailing group [49.5°±1.7°, 11.1°±1.2°, 13.3°±1.5°, 3.9%±1.4%, and (90.2±2.3) points] ( P>0.05). None of the patients in the internal fixation-free group developed pin-tail irritation sign or premature epiphyseal closure after surgery, whereas 3 patients in the intramedullary nailing group developed pin-tail irritation sign and 2 ones premature epiphyseal closure after surgery, showing a significant difference in the complication rate between the 2 groups [0 (0/60) versus 8.3% (5/60)] ( P<0.05). Conclusions:Percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation and close elastic intramedullary nailing can both achieve satisfactory outcomes in the treatment of radial neck fractures in children. However, percutaneous Kirschner wire leverage plus plaster fixation needs shorter operative time and hospitalization time, leads to fewer complications, and requires no reoperation to remove internal fixation.

Objective To investigate the predictive value of CALLY index for ischemic post-stroke depression(PSD).Methods The clinical data of 179 patients with ischemic stroke were included,and the demographic information,medical history,stroke severity and laboratory indicators at admission were collected.After 6 months of follow-up,all patients were assessed for depressive symptoms using the 17-item Hamilton Depression Scale(HAMD-17).Patients were divided into the PSD group(48 cases)and the non-PSD group(131 cases).Differences in clinical characteristics were compared between the PSD group and the non-PSD group.CALLY index was calculated from C-reactive protein(CRP),albumin(ALB)and lymphocyte counts.Receiver operating characteristic(ROC)curve was used to analyze the predictive value of CALLY index to PSD.Spearman correlation analysis was used for the correlation between CALLY index and neurological and cognitive function in PSD patients.K-M curve and Cox regression were used for analyzing the influence of CALLY index on PSD.Results The CALLY index of 179 patients ranged from 0.54 to 1.79,with a median of 1.08.ROC curve analysis showed that the optimal critical value of CALLY index to predict PSD was 1.09,and the area under ROC curve was 0.757(95%CI:0.687-0.818).Compared with the non-PSD group,the proportion of females was higher in the PSD group,and the proportion of patients with hyperlipidemia was increased with shorter years of education.The serum C-reactive protein(CRP)was higher,and albumin(ALB)and CALLY index were lower(P＜0.05).The K-M curve showed that the incidence of PSD was significantly higher in the low CALLY index group(CALLY≤1.08)than that in the higher CALLY index group(CALLY＞1.08,33.0%vs.20.5%,Log rank χ2=8.553,P=0.004).Cox regression analysis showed that after adjusting for other covariates,the decreased CALLY index was an independent risk factor for PSD(HR=2.651,95%CI:1.269-5.540,P＜0.05).Conclusion CALLY index has a certain predictive value for PSD in acute ischemic stroke patients,which is helpful for early identification and timely intervention to improve the prognosis of patients.